The Puppet on the Strings

Trust is Earned, Not Given

Akira had stopped by the library to check on me, saying he'd be on the roof for a bit before going home. He mentioned having to wrap up something from when he was busy. I sigh, tapping my pencil on the table. I thought Kamoshida being gone would give me less to worry about, but it's the exact opposite. Those "Phantom Thieves of Hearts" have to be real. It's too much of a coincidence. The real question bugging me is who in this school they have to be. Akira definitely raises some red flags for me. He can't hang out for two days and suddenly Kamoshida confesses everything.

Honestly, my theory has too much evidence to be considered false. 

I'm not dumb. I'm not blind. I know he's part of the Phantom Thieves. Although, is that such a bad thing?

I'd be lying if I claimed blackmail didn't cross my mind. The reason it didn't stick is because I don't have enough answers. Maybe I should head up to the rooftop and ask. I have too much running through my mind to study.

It'd be best if I talk to Akira alone. I'll catch him at the entrance.

~~~

"I know you're a Phantom Thief."

Morgana pokes his head out of the bag, looking up at me. "Busted..." Morgana mutters, hiding his head again before I can push him back in.

"What are you talking about?" I question, my voice sounding more confident than I expected.

"Look, I'm not going to turn you in or anything." She sighs, checking her phone. "Can we hang out at LeBlanc right now? I wanna talk."

I guess there's no harm in talking. It isn't like I have anything going on anyway. "Sure. But it can't be around Sojiro."

She nods, walking ahead. When I don't move, she spins around. "We going or what?"

I fix my bag, jogging to catch up to her. "What do you wanna talk about that we can't discuss here?"

Y/n never looks at me while we head for the train. "I'm sure you'd rather talk with nobody else around." She sighs. "Maybe I shouldn't have trusted you..." I can hear her mutter. My heart skips a beat. Did keeping this a secret hurt her that much? And why do I feel so guilty now?

When we arrive at LeBlanc, she still hasn't spoken. She runs up the steps into my room, Sojiro looking at me. "How'd you piss her off that much?"

I shrug as a response, running up the steps to my room. Y/n is looking through my room, noticing the desk where I have a few lock picks spread out. I didn't need them for a bit, so I didn't bother putting them in my bag. My brain is screaming at me to stop her from looking around, but that won't help anything. 

"You wanted to talk?" I question, sitting down on the couch. She turns to look at me, her face red with anger. After she took in a breath, the red began to fade. 

"Yeah. I need to know what's going on."

My heart is pounding. If I can't answer one of her questions, how would I ever act if I got arrested? 

"How much of the truth do you want?"

"All of it." There's no break between my question and her answer. Is bringing up Ryuji and Ann a good idea? No. I'll tell her whatever she can handle for the time being. If she really wanted to turn me in, she would have by now.

"Yeah, I'm a Phantom Thief."

"I know that much," she snaps, tapping her foot in thought. "How'd you make him confess? Does whatever you did only work on criminals?"

"Honestly, I can't say. I've only ever done this to Kamoshida so far."

She looks to the side. I notice her face is pale. "How did you do it?"

"I have an app on my phone." I remove my phone from my pocket, pulling up the Nav and showing it to her. As she took the phone, I continued to explain. "It takes me into something called the Metaverse. There, people have shadows. Their shadows have palaces that look like how they view a place. Kamoshida's was the school turned into a castle." I rub the back of my neck nervously. "It's hard to explain. I barely understand it myself."

"How'd you get this app?"

I shrug. "Just got it when I arrived."

She looks to my phone again. "How'd you find his palace?"

I'm surprised she understood that. My explanation was a mess. "You state the name of the target, location of the distortion, and the distortion itself. In Kamoshida's case, the keywords were 'Kamoshida, Shujin, and castle.'" I notice her typing on my phone. "Oh, his palace is gone now it won't-"

"Candidate found."

Y/n looks up from my phone, handing it back to me. I look at what was typed in, Morgana peeking his head out to read as well. 

"She has a palace?" Morgana questions. 

Y/n shrugs. "I was just curious." She shifts her weight onto her other foot. "I don't know if it's worth your time, but I need your help. I... I don't wanna feel so confined anymore..."

Confined? What does that even mean?

"I don't know the location, but I think I can help with the distortion." She looks away. "I feel like a puppet. I don't really do anything on my own. I feel like I'm dragged along against my will. I know it's a bit selfish to ask, but could you... check through my palace...?"

I look at the app again, saving her name so I can find the other keywords with Ann and Ryuji tomorrow. "I can't promise you it'll help, but I can look around for you."

Her cheeks are red. 

"Thanks. Don't feel obligated, though. I don't need you to steal my heart or whatever it is you do. I need to know what's really wrong with me. I want to know for sure." She looks up at me. "I trust you'll know what's best for me. You've made me feel better by just being around. I don't care if my parents think you're dangerous! Everything you've done so far proves the opposite!" She shrinks again, looking to the floor. Is she just shy?

"Please... I'm not asking you to fix me. I'm asking you to find my problem so I can fix it myself for once."

I look at the Meta Nav again, then to Morgana. "It isn't an unreasonable request. It shouldn't be an issue."

Y/n has her bag on her shoulder again, heading for the stairs. "Just let me know your answer. I promise I won't turn you in, but I need to know you'll really stay by me..."

She heads downstairs, the bell ringing as she steps outside. 

"I think we just found a new target."