2025-11-07: Assessment, Acknowledgement and Appropriate Response
- Log: 2025-11-07: Assessment, Acknowledgement and Appropriate Response
- Cast: Ren Amamiya, Makoto Niijima
- Where: Central Street, Shibuya and Shibuya Station
- OOC Date: November 07, 2025
- IC Date: August 07, 2012
- Summary: With the Fireworks Festival rained out, the Phantom Thieves make for Shibuya Station to get to their midnight appointment. Ren falls back a bit to enquire about Makoto's sudden and convenient acquisition of a Buchimaru-kun umbrella, and they discuss Akechi's motivations, as well as how to respond.
<Pose Tracker> Ren Amamiya has posed.
While inside Triple Seven, Ren had gotten Makoto's text that she'd gotten an umbrella. That's great--one less umbrella that the group needs. They rejoin Makoto and Ann with Ryuji in tow not too long after that--though still after Akechi's ride has already driven off. Thankfully, Kazusa is gone by now--probably inside Triple Seven to go after her own friend.
As Ryuji and Ann talk between themselves (probably good-natured bickering) and distribute/receive Schroedinger's Goods, Ren looks curiously at Makoto's umbrella. The panda-like design looks familiar. "Where'd you get that from, anyway?" they wonder. Kazusa didn't have anything like that on her, so she couldn't have gotten it from her...
<Pose Tracker> Makoto Niijima has posed.
It's a little easier to wait outside with a proper umbrella, rather than the shelter of the storefront. It provides a little more protection from the angled rain swept in with the occasional wind. It's also, frankly, a little awkward and embarrassing and *surely* Ann noticed right? But... well. Those two are occupied and it's just her and Ren hanging back.
"...It's almost too unlikely to believe," Makoto starts, with a sigh, but she sees no reason to hide it from Ren asking, she just wanted to avoid any unnecessary shouting. "It was Akechi-kun." Makoto shakes her head, clearly a touch frustrated. "Apparently, Sis had let him off work early for the fireworks festival. Given he pulled up in a government car, that much checks out but..." She looks up at the panda umbrella, before returning to Ren. "...It's an incredibly unlikely coincidence, isn't it? But if he was following us, why would he go out of his way to show up like that?" Makoto lets out a fatigued sigh. "I really don't understand him."
<Pose Tracker> Ren Amamiya has posed.
Ren's eyebrows rise. It was Akechi? They glance at Ann and Ryuji, distracted with each other, and step in closer to Makoto so they can talk more. Morgana's still taking cover from the rain in their bag, too, so...
Those eyebrows furrow when Makoto explains more of what happened. That does sound like an unlikely coincidence. At the same time, the rain was abrupt; a lot of people didn't anticipate it. On the other hand, Akechi is smarter than most and could have anticipated the possibility... But showing up just long enough to give Makoto an umbrella, while in a government car, and then just leaving? One hand rises to twiddle with a lock of their bangs in thought before they too look again at the umbrella.
"Don't you have a pencil case with this mascot on it?" they observe. "Is this a thing?"
<Pose Tracker> Makoto Niijima has posed.
As Ren steps in closer, Makoto adjusts her grip on the umbrella to give him room, understanding the need for quiet conversation under the circumstances. It is, after all, technically PT business and it's good to not be overheard.
That's not the question Makoto was expecting, frankly. "Ah, yes, I do." Makoto blushes a little at the question, looking a touch embarrassed. "It's Buchimaru-kun, he was a mascot around when I was a kid." She's not surprised that Ren hasn't heard of him- but she is a little surprised that he noticed. Not that Ren's unobservant, it's just... most people don't.
"They don't really make things for him these days, but he was pretty popular when I was a kid. Dad got me the pencil case when I was young, and I've kind of... collected it ever since." It's a pretty childish attachment, but an important one for Makoto. "Why do you ask?"
<Pose Tracker> Ren Amamiya has posed.
Good thing there's no one around to read too much into the fact that Makoto and Ren are now sharing an umbrella.
Ren listens to Makoto's explanation. They don't remember ever seeing or hearing of Buchimaru-kun, and they're only a year younger than Makoto, but they grew up in a country town, after all. It probably never reached their neck of the woods, especially if he was a flash-in-the-pan mascot, from the sounds of it.
So it's a thing Makoto likes and has liked for a long time, that she is at least a little embarrassed about liking, if that blush is any indication. "Did you ever tell Akechi you like Buchimaru-kun? Or do you think your sister might've told him?" they press, their form of an answer.
<Pose Tracker> Makoto Niijima has posed.
Who could possibly read too much into a simple sharing of an umbrella between friends.
Still, Ren brings up a new idea, and Makoto pauses. "...I don't think Sis told him," she says, thoughtfully, "but I am pretty sure he learned I liked him from her." Makoto thinks back. "He already knew about that the first time I met him."
Makoto frowns, she hadn't thought about it at all back then, but she's had to replay that first conversation a few times in her head since then. Ren is giving her cause to go over it moreso. "...Apparently he saw Sis looking at a pair of Buchimaru shoes at some point, and thought they were more my taste than hers."
Makoto sighs. She and Sae still hadn't had a proper conversation since then. How much of that was Makoto becoming more guarded, and how much was it Sae having less and less time for her. Not that Makoto had as much time for Sae, either.
"It's... not exactly a hard thing for him to figure out, if he spends that much time with Sis." It's easy to catch the jealousy in Makoto's voice, especially given she has little reason to hide it from Ren beyond habit. "But it's... weird that he'd have a Buchimaru umbrella at all. They haven't made these in years, and you'd think it'd show more use of wear and tear unless he's a collector."
Makoto's frown deepens. "He even said I could borrow for as long as I wanted, which kind of indicates it's not precious to him."
<Pose Tracker> Ren Amamiya has posed.
Makoto's initial reply prompts a quizzical look from Ren. As she explains further, understanding dawns, and they nod once, mulling over the facts. They've only seen Sae once, but based on her style, they think that's a fair assessment on Akechi's part. That lawyer lady definitely doesn't seem like she'd be using panda goods for herself, and if Akechi knew she had a younger sister...
But then there's another piece of information: that jealous note ringing like church bells in Makoto's voice. Ren gives her a concerned look. She hadn't wanted to talk about her home situation before, but this definitely sounds like she dislikes the fact that Akechi has a close relationship with her sister. After all, if Akechi saw Sae looking at Buchimaru shoes, that means they were shopping casually together. And if he's not personally attached to that umbrella...
"He definitely got it specifically for you," they conclude. "No idea where he got it from, but I don't believe for a second it's a coincidence."
<Pose Tracker> Makoto Niijima has posed.
It's a style that Makoto kind of respects, herself, even if it's not quite hers. That said, Makoto's own style has shifted more adult in the years since her dad died, and only some of that is because of Sae's hand me downs.
Look, you don't have to discuss your feelings if you bury them deep enough no one else notices, or fail so badly at that that the people around you notice!!
Indeed, she takes Ren's concerned look to match their conclusion, and not Makoto's own emotional state. "...That's the only explanation that makes sense," Makoto agrees, looking up at the umbrella again. "But why though?" Makoto shakes her head, clearly failing to understand the logic. "If he wanted to show that he knew I liked Buchimaru-kun, well, he did that in our first conversation. If he wanted to show he has his eyes on us, hasn't he done that enough already?" She rotates the umbrella a bit, as if looking for something planted on it- but Makoto sees nothing, and an umbrella is surprisingly hard to hide things on. "So... why go out of his way to deliver an umbrella to me tonight? And there's no way he could have accounted for you going in after Ryuji and Ann being distracted at the time. He's good but he's not Sherlock Holmes. Only fictional characters can get to that level of deduction..."
<Pose Tracker> Ren Amamiya has posed.
Ren considers the conversation they'd had with Akechi only yesterday and rubs a lock of their bangs again in thought. "So, they don't make Buchimaru-kun goods anymore, right? So this probably isn't something he picked specifically because it's an umbrella; it's probably the first Buchimaru-kun he was able to get his hands on. He's probably had it for a while, and he gave it to you tonight because he knew you'd be at the fireworks festival, and probably guessed it'd get rained out after checking the weather like you did. The rest was a coincidence, but also an opening he was waiting for, probably. Maybe he would've gone for it anyway, but who knows.
"As for why..."
They slip their hands into their pockets and look back at Makoto. "I don't fully get Akechi, either, but he's confided a lot of personal things to me. Assuming they're true, I do understand some parts of him, and there's two plausible scenarios I can think of.
"The first is that he was trying to be nice and give you something he knew you'd like, but didn't want you to think he was making a big deal of it in case it didn't land or you turned out not to like it after all. In other words, he's trying to make friends with you but he's too awkward to say it.
"The second is that he's showing off that he knows you like this thing because of how close he is to your sister--closer than maybe even you are, thanks to how much they work together," Ren says, watching Makoto's face closely. "In other words, he's mocking you and trying to make you feel bad about yourself.
"Which do you think it is?"
<Pose Tracker> Makoto Niijima has posed.
Ren lays out the scenario as he sees it- and it's kind of surprising the way Ren thinks through Akechi's logic, in a way Makoto just couldn't. Finding rare merch just in case, waiting for an opportunity, weighing the odds and making a right call that Makoto got wrong about the weather. And then striking the second he saw the opportunity. Makoto seems to take a while to process Ren's logic, walking through it herself.
And then Ren posits his scenarios, and that gives Makoto pause.
Which do you think it is?
Makoto sighs. "It's... probably the latter." Makoto says, sounding a touch frustrated with herself. "He made it clear how little he thought of me at the end of that first conversation." She frowns. "He seemed pretty disappointed I was a 'good girl pushover' instead of being more like Sae." Those words are still buried in her head, popping up with many of her other recurring doubts, sometimes for motivation, sometimes to dispirit her. "...He probably worked out how I felt about that too. It goes against his image, but..."
But does he care if he thinks that they're the Phantom Thieves?
Makoto seems frustrated by this revelation, but is she more frustrated that Akechi thinks that way or that she couldn't work it out on her own. "Leave it to Akechi-kun to find a way to wrap an insult in a kind gift." Makoto mumbles, somehow having failed to place juvenile bullying tactics that she was on the receiving end of as a kid.
"...Is that too harsh of me?" Makoto asks, looking to Ren for advice. They know Akechi best of all of them- and that Makoto is predisposed against him already could be colouring her view. "And... what do we do if I'm right?"
<Pose Tracker> Ren Amamiya has posed.
Ren is silent at first when Makoto posits that scenario #2 is probably the correct one. That's definitely possible--they wouldn't have brought it up if they thought otherwise; they even called Akechi out yesterday on doing plausibly deniable things with the intention of hurting others, but not so overtly that he couldn't get away with it.
"His image is fake, anyway. Cultured for the cameras," Ren remarks. They shake their head. "No, it's not too harsh, but... There's one thing that doesn't make sense if that's the right scenario. That's a lot of effort to go through to insult you in a backhanded way. Does he really hate you that much?"
They look back at her. By now, they're back in Shibuya Station--no doubt have been for a bit. "Truth be told, I'm 99% sure Akechi already knows who we are. That means he's seen all of us fight, up close and personal. He knows you're not that 'good girl pushover' anymore. I bet he did dislike you back then, but he probably doesn't want you to be like your sister. He wants you to be you, unapologetically." They look back at her. "And you are now."
They pause to let this sink in for a moment. "That being said," they continue, "he is a jerk. He mocks me a lot too. And at the same time that he mocks me, he challenges me. Sees what I'll do when he jabs at me and encourages me to push back. He's a competitive jerk. He likes it when people push back on him--and at the same time, he hates being rejected."
Ren offers Makoto a slow, slight, but real smile. "So it might be that the truth is in the middle: it's some of both. If he really held you in contempt, he wouldn't go to all that trouble. He's trying to challenge you--see if you notice both sides of the gesture and how you react." They shrug a little. "...That's what I think, anyway."
That smile fades as they look back at her. "Either way, this is a message he sent to you specifically. What we do next depends on what you want."
<Pose Tracker> Makoto Niijima has posed.
Ren is quick to dismiss Akechi's image as fake, and Makoto is inclined to agree with them there, but Ren posits something she hadn't considered at all- the idea that it could be both. It takes Makoto a while to consider the possibility. "...honestly, after that first meeting, I'm kind of surprised he'd consider me even worth his notice." Makoto seems to take a while to think about that, while Ren lays out everything else. When given the chance to let things sink in, that gives her a chance to truly consider what it means- especially the fact that Ren suspects he's fully aware of who they are.
"...And he hasn't just handed us over to Sis. That means he's more interested in the competition than anything else, right?" It's an educated guess, but it tells her something too.
"...Do you think that's what he was doing, when he approached me for information on you?" Makoto frowns. The implications of that are worrying. It means Akechi-kun's push is what led her to join the Phantom Thieves, and the further implications of that...
The specific words about changing Sae's heart take on a new context, if Akechi was active as a Persona User even then, that's... that's a whole lot. Enough to make Makoto hesitant to voice any further.
She takes in Ren's smile, that smile she associates more with Joker than she does Ren Amamiya. So if it depends on what Makoto wants...
The Queen's cold expression makes it onto Makoto's face, perhaps a little out of place here in regular Shibuya Station, as Makoto Niijima finds her answer. "...I want to wipe that shit eating grin off his smug face at least once."
And maybe there's a more personal side to that ambition than just Akechi needling her, challenging her. Maybe, just maybe, she wants Sae to see that Makoto is just as valuable, worth just as much as the Detective Prince.
That part, however, is a little harder to say out loud.
<Pose Tracker> Ren Amamiya has posed.
'That means he's more interested in the competition than anything else, right?'
"Exactly."
But does that mean he was pushing Makoto deliberately, back in their first meeting? "I'm not sure. Pushing you towards us? Yeah, I think so. But he couldn't know that you'd end up awakening and joining us. I think that part had to've been a surprise." But Ren doesn't sound sure of that. "I think it's likelier you were a pawn to him back then, and he's taking you more seriously now."
None of them know for sure how long Akechi's been a Persona User. However, Ren knows it's at least been since before that visit to the TV station. That means he was definitely awakened by the time he and Makoto met. More importantly, Makoto considers what she wants...
And when she says it, Ren's slight smile broadens into a sickle of a grin--an expression that's definitely more Joker than Ren Amamiya.
"Give 'im hell, Makoto," they encourage. "It'll be fun."