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Futaba spends the days after exploring Maruki's Mementos obsessing over those strange tentacles they'd found twisting through the whole of the collective unconscious' Palace. They looked tech-y, but her readings of it were totally abnormal. The more time she spends thinking about it the less it makes sense, and the more she wants to go back to Mementos to investigate.
A few more hours of obsessing and it's decided--she has to go back to Mementos, at least for a quick look. Even if she doesn't learn anything, she just has to see them again. So Futaba heads straight to Leblanc to find Akira and ask him to accompany her, since it'd be a little dumb to waltz into Mementos all by herself with her offensive stats so low. She doesn't even have a weapon. Though she supposes she could improvise, not that she'd know what to do with whatever she brings.
"Akira!" she exclaims, pushing the door open wide. "Can you take me--"
She cuts off, noticing Akira isn't alone in the cafe. Across from him, sitting at the counter is Sumire, her cheeks flushed bright red. Come to think of it, Akira almost looks like he's blushing too, and he's leaned down to her level, their faces not far apart…
"Oh," says Futaba, backing up. "Um, sorry I interrupted! Nevermind! Ehehe--" She bumps into the closed door, then scrambles for the doorknob.
Akira stands bolt upright as Sumire ducks her head, clearly embarrassed. "Oh, it's not like that--"
"No, it's okay!" Futaba swings the door open and the bell chimes.
"Futaba, wait--"
"Havefunbye!" she says as she scrams the fuck out of there.
Plan B, she thinks, because Akira maybe having a girlfriend (Why does that feel so weird? Nope nope, don't think about that now, or how Sumire looked kind of cute when she ducked her head and her cheeks flushed to match her red hair. There is absolutely no time to think about that now.) doesn't mean she's not going back to Mementos today. No, she has her heart set on it, and her adopted brother's love life isn't going to dissuade her.
Futaba tries texting the other Thieves (without outright mentioning her plan--they might think it's silly for her to be hyperfocused on something so irrelevant to the ultimate mission, and they don't need to know about it unless they're the only one who can take her) but they're all busy. Solo mission time.
Of course, Futaba's not dumb. She won't leave the Mementos entrance, not without someone else to accompany her. Besides, the entrance should be more than enough to satisfy this craving. She'll be fine. Just fine.
That doesn't stop her from sweating up a storm all the way to Shibuya. Besides the whole traveling-all-alone thing, something she's only done a handful of times, she's never entered Mementos by herself before.
On second thought, this is probably all just a terrible, stupid idea based on a random whim she had. She should turn back. She should go to Leblanc and crash Akira's awkward first date for real this time. That would be kinda hilarious.
But she doesn't. Sumire really should thank the gods Futaba's so keen on seeing those tentacles again and chooses that over cockblocking her bro. Instead, she goes all the way to Shibuya. She walks all the way to the entrance to Mementos. And she opens the Nav, sending her all the way to the other world.
The world shifts around her, reforming into that strange merging of the circulatory and subway systems, now with a unique side bonus of tentacle tech courtesy of dear old Dr. Maruki. Futaba squeals at the mere sight of it, and immediately begins analyzing it.
She doesn't end up learning much, but she hadn't really expected to. The readings are still so weird, more similar to a persona than to a cognition like her own tech. Futaba tries pulling one free from the ground, but all she ends up doing is landing hard on her backside and bruising her tailbone.
Wincing and rubbing the sore spot, she takes one last look around the place, expanding her scanner's scope to the couple levels below her as well, just in case there might be any anomalies with the tentacles nearby.
Nothing. Just the regular shadow readings, and--
Wait. No, there is something down there, in the level just below. A lone reading, like one of the party member's, fighting shadows--no, obliterating them left and right.
"What the fuck," mutters Futaba. None of the rest of the team are here, she knows both because she texted them and because she's downloaded trackers to all their phones at one point or another and knows their precise locations at all times. (She could just track them down using triangulation without the trackers, of course, but trackers are far more convenient.)
Anyway.
It can't be any of the Phantom Thieves. Which means…
This is someone else.
It'd be stupid to venture alone into enemy territory with no backup and no one to know where she is if something happened to her. Especially to confront a persona user she doesn't even know. But if there's another persona user out there, they really ought to know about them, and they might not still be here if she tries retrieving Akira or another Thief first...
Curiosity gets the better of her, and she scurries down the escalator before she can talk herself out of it.
_____
Turns out Futaba forgot about one of the Thieves.
Akechi slices with his saber and uses his claws to slash shadows across the chest. He screams his persona's name, annihilating dozens of severely under-leveled shadows in one go. The slaughter is almost beautiful, in a strange, grotesque kind of way.
Almost.
She didn't text him earlier, obviously. And she's pretty sure he has a different phone from the one she hacked since that one went offline after their confrontation in Shido's Palace, so she hasn't been tracking him. Turns out the mysterious persona user was just the black mask after all--false alarm, everyone head home.
What is he doing here, though, killing shadows that are so far beneath his level it's almost laughable? These guys are pathetic weaklings compared to his current level, a complete waste of time to fight head-on. Akira doesn't even bother with them anymore, and everyone knows how much he loves a good fight.
Maybe it's just Akechi's seemingly unquenchable bloodlust. Futaba wrinkles her nose. Yeah, that must be it. Akechi just likes killing things more powerless than him, and apparently, Maruki's Palace and infiltrating Mementos with the rest of them wasn't enough for him.
Futaba turns to go, but that's when he finally spots her. Still thrusting his saber through another shadow's chest, he faces her at the end of the spin. The shadow dissolving to dust behind him, he stands up straight, twirling the blade in his fingers before grasping it at his side. "What are you doing here?" he growls.
"I could ask you the same thing."
Akechi huffs and turns back to fighting. "Get out of here, Oracle. I'm not going to waste my time protecting you."
"Gee, thanks." Futaba rolls her eyes. "I was about to leave anyway, loser."
Akechi shifts his posture, almost looking…offended? Amused? She can't tell from behind that helmet. He slices another shadow approaching from behind across the chest, not even bothering to look back at it. "Loser, eh?"
"Yeah," says Futaba. "Only a loser would waste his time fighting baby shadows so far beneath his level it's pathetic."
"Ah, pathetic. A slightly better insult than loser , I'll admit. Still not very clever, though."
"Says the guy who calls shadows 'piece of shit' when they block your attack. You're just mad I interrupted your little murder spree."
"These things aren't cognizant. Hence, they cannot be murdered. Besides, your friends kill shadows too."
"Yeah, to defend themselves. Not for some twisted pleasure like you."
Akechi bursts into laughter at that, the cackle that's really too cartoonishly evil to take seriously. "You really are all delusional, aren't you? Stop wasting my time. I'm not endangering the mission by being here, so it's none of your damn business how I spend my free time. I don't particularly care what some fifteen-year-old thinks of my hobbies."
Futaba huffs, a wave of dormant anger rising from her. She steps forward until she's only a few meters away as Akechi continues fighting the last few shadows. "First of all, for your information, I'll be sixteen next month. Second of all, what's your problem? Why do you act like such an asshole to everyone? Is this really how you are under that detective prince lie?"
"Get used to it," says Akechi between slashes.
"Why did we even let you back on the team? You betrayed all of us, but for some reason Joker still likes you. I don't get it. To me, you're just some pretentious brat trying to prove himself to his daddy."
Akechi stops at that, panting slightly. "I'm past that," he hisses. "I don't give a shit about Shido anymore."
"Oooh, hit a nerve, did I?"
"Shut-the-fuck-up," says Akechi, timing his strikes with each word. Slicing through the last shadow, Akechi turns on her, holding his weapon--well, not exactly at her, but certainly in her direction. "This place isn't safe for you. Go back to the real world before your precious Thieves get worried."
Futaba grins. This is fun. She likes antagonizing Akechi, even though it's definitely immature of her. This angry side to him isn't one she knows well, but it seems more genuine than the old Akechi, so she kind of likes it, at least for its honesty if nothing else. "Nah. Imma stay and hang out with you. It's fun watching you kill baby shadows anyway."
Akechi grits his teeth. He stares at her, as though trying to think of a retort, but he finally just turns and struts further into Mementos, in search of more shadows. "Have it your way," he grumbles. "Don't blame me if you end up dead."
They wander through the level, not finding any shadows for a while. "What's it like, huh?" asks Futaba. "Having a second chance? Woulda thought you might try to do something good with it."
"I'm helping you defeat Maruki. Wouldn't you call that good?"
"Depends on why you're doing it. Your reasons seem kinda selfish to me, and you're still a total asshole to everyone. It's like you're trying to be worse."
"So, you're an altruist?" Akechi sighs, reading the confused expression on her face. "Someone who thinks people should act for the benefit of others, not themselves. It does have its merits, but there are flaws in the ideology, as I find is true for most moral theories." Futaba rolls her eyes. She knew what an altruist was, she'd just been confused by the sudden turn in conversation.
Silence. Akechi fills it with a snide remark. "Well, at least I'm not killing people anymore." He looks at her with a humorous smirk, but she just looks away. His smirk disappears. "Ah. Right."
That righteous anger is back again. Futaba got her revenge on Shido, that's true, but Akechi was the one to pull the trigger. She doesn't want vengeance anymore, but she is angry. Fuck, is she angry. "You already forgot, huh? She really mattered that little to you?"
Akechi stiffens up a bit at that. "I only did what I believed I had to do."
"What you had to do?" Futaba gawks. "Did you know she had a daughter who cared about her, who'd be left all alone just like you were?"
Akechi says nothing.
Futaba jumps in front of him to stop him from walking forward and clenches her fists. " Well?" She says the words slowly, deliberately. "Did. You. Know?"
Akechi turns to the side, looks down and away so she can't make out his expression from behind his black mask.
"Yes."
There are tears in Futaba's eyes. She loses her offensive stance, holds her arms to her chest. "How could you do that? You told me your mom killed herself when you were little too. You know how it feels, but that didn't stop you. Why?"
"I--didn't know she would die," says Akechi, voice strained, like he's forcing out the words against his will. "I barely knew what mental shutdown meant. I assumed she'd recover eventually, and I couldn't have had any idea of the lies they'd tell you about the cause of her death. When I found out…"
He doesn't say anything more, but his eyes are full of the malice she's seen in them so many times. And yet this time it's different, because this is malice he feels on her behalf. Perhaps he can't force out the rest of his words, but the rest she infers. He wished he could strangle each of those adults who lied to her until they felt just as much pain as anyone they'd ever mistreated, and more.
It's not enough. It will never be enough, not so long as her mother is gone.
"I know none of that excuses what I did. I…" Akechi shuts his eyes, and his body trembles, as though the next words are physically painful for him to say. "I am sorry, Futaba."
There's silence for a long time, the two of them standing in the middle of Mementos, neither knowing what to say, or how to say it. She can't forgive him, not now and maybe not ever. Still, it's nice to hear, to know he regrets it. She never thought she'd hear him say those words.
Futaba gasps, and Akechi sighs. "What?" he says sarcastically, "Is my expressing regret that surprising--"
"No!" says Futaba, looking at her readings, which have gone absolutely buck wild, stats flying off the charts. "What the…? There's something--"
The sound of rattling chains. Akechi curses under his breath, then grabs Futaba tightly by the arm. "Run!" he shouts, taking off and dragging her with him.
"What--are we--running from?" Futaba says, gathering her feet beneath her as they sprint, Akechi's hand still tight around her arm. She pulls away but stays close--somehow she senses it'd be very bad if they got separated right now.
"The reaper," he says, and Futaba recalls the tale the Thieves once told her of their first encounter with the Mementos monstrosity, in the days before she joined their ranks. They barely escaped with their lives.
"Shit, I should have been smarter than this," continues Akechi. "We have to get out of here. Not even I have a chance against it, and you'll be utterly helpless."
Mementos trembles and shifts around them, those rattling chains getting louder and louder. Futaba realizes Akechi's taken off in the wrong direction, leading them farther into Mementos. "Wait!" she yells. "The other way, we need to go the other way to go back--" She grabs his arm and pulls, slowing them down.
"What?" He wrenches his arm out of her grasp. "No! We just need to get off this level, and this exit is closer." He takes off in the direction he'd been leading them all the faster. She looks back in the direction towards the entrance, then sighs, following him.
But those few seconds of confusion cost them valuable time, and the reaper catches up to them just before they reach the station. Akechi screams something guttural, and she can't tell if there are words in that cry or not. Futaba merely whimpers and feels like a coward for it.
But the reaper is terrifying. Not even necessarily from its appearance, which is still large and hulking, a figure wearing a long red cloak, chains hung over its arms. But its stats are simply...enormous. Worse even than most bosses they'd faced in the Palaces. Any other time this might excite Futaba--fighting the reaper is a perfect opportunity to majorly increase the Phantom Thieves' XP, and she can't believe they've never taken advantage of that. But right now, it being just her and Akechi against this thing, she's just very, very scared.
And...maybe a little fascinated.
But mostly scared.
"Oracle!" screams Akechi. He's near the opening between the reaper and the platform, about to run through, but he must have noticed she stopped moving. When had he gotten so far ahead of her? She's not sure, all she knows is she's now facing the reaper head-on all alone, all alone, and she wishes not for the first time she had even one offensive attack to defend herself. Just one. She's frozen, she can't move, can't run, as the reaper attacks. It's a critical hit, sending her to the ground. She hears a distant shout from Akechi.
Her goggles glitch, and she loses sight of the reaper's stats. Something along her chest and face burns like nothing else. She hasn't known this pain for herself, always watching the battles at a distance from the safety of her persona. I should have summoned my persona, she realizes far too late. The terror of the reaper distracted her, and she forgot . But she can't even remember how to anymore. She's going to die. She's going to die she's going to die she's going to--
As the reaper prepares for a follow-up attack, Akechi jumps in front of her, shielding her from the attack. He takes the brunt of it in her stead, leaving him bent over himself and gasping for air. The magic disappears, and Futaba looks up in shock at her unexpected savior.
Akechi grits his teeth, then screams, " Persona -- Megidolaon!" at the top of his lungs. A great burst of magic washes over her, and she passes out.
_____
Futaba blinks open her eyes. Twisting veins and tentacles swim in her vision. Mementos, she thinks groggily. Why am I…?
She sits up straight, then falls sideways, caught by the shoulders. She doesn't recognize him at first, thanks to an outfit she hasn't seen in months. "Crow?" she mumbles.
"Careful," he says. "We're safe. I got us back to the entrance."
"You...carried me all the way here?" she asks, her thoughts finally lining up in order, her head spinning less and less. Futaba pulls away, sitting up on her toes and pulling her knees to her chest. That's better. The familiar position brings her comfort. "Why are you wearing…?"
Akechi looks down at his white suit, then scowls. "Ah, that." His outfit transforms back to Loki's black and blue striped uniform. "Only--" His voice catches, and he clears his throat. "Only Robin Hood had the power I needed to revive you."
"You...saved me," she admits.
Akechi winces. He’s pushed up his mask, revealing his face, and she can make out his expressions when she bothers to look up from the ground. "Technically, I'm the one who killed you. I was...distressed, and I wasn't careful enough with my opening attack. It hit everything around me, not just the reaper."
Futaba chuckles. "Wow. Can't even try to save a girl without accidentally killing her, huh?" Still, he's the reason she's alive right now, and he deserves the credit for it. "Thanks anyway," she adds. "Did you defeat the reaper all on your own?"
Akechi shakes his head. "I might have been able to under normal circumstances, but you were a risk and I couldn't give it the opportunity to target you again. I slashed the reaper with my saber, which caused it to despair, and took the opening to toss you over my shoulders and run the rest of the way."
"Wow," says Futaba with a teasing grin. "My very own prince charming, come to rescue me."
"Technically I was still wearing the Loki outfit at the time."
"Whatever," Futaba says with a laugh, and she thinks she spots a hint of a smile on his lips too.
A silence settles over them again, quiet yet uncomfortable. There's too much between them, baggage they'll never fully be rid of. But...she can't help but think that things are different between them now.
"Why were you here, fighting shadows by yourself?" she asks. "The real reason, I mean."
Akechi sighs. "I find it a reliable way to distract myself, clear my head. It's familiar, I suppose. I spent years fighting shadows on my own, and by fighting the weaker ones I can excuse the danger I'm putting myself in. And I've needed the distraction as of late."
"Because of Maruki."
Akechi's face darkens. "You could say that."
"I get it. I dunno what your ideal reality was like, but it was really hard to reject mine. I…" Her eyes grow wet. "I had my mom back. She was here, and...she felt real." Is she crying? She might be crying. In front of Akechi. God, this day is weird.
"She wasn't," says Akechi, firmly. "She was a creation of Maruki's. The real Wakaba is dead, because in the true reality I killed her."
"So…" says Futaba. "In this reality, Maruki's erased all your crimes? Is that your ideal reality?" It kind of disgusts her that Akechi would wish to escape the consequences of his actions. And yet, at the same time, can she really blame him? She wouldn't want a lifetime in prison either.
"Hardly," mocks Akechi, sounding disgusted at the idea. "That aspect is...someone else's doing." Futaba's taken aback, confused. But she doubts he'll be likely to share more, so she doesn't pry further.
"What you said about my mom, though. About the one here being fake. How can you be sure? She definitely felt real, and if Maruki can really change reality, alter past events...wouldn't it make sense that she was the real deal?"
Akechi shrugs. "I can't be sure, I suppose. It's just what I tell myself so I can sleep at night."
Futaba frowns. Now, that doesn't make sense either. Why would he care if Wakaba was real or not? Akechi is definitely keeping secrets.
"I almost kind of prefer it was really my mom," says Futaba, in a voice barely above a whisper. "Because that means I really did get a few more days with her." Oh, no. Here come the tears again. She wipes them away, sniffling. "Sorry," she says, trying to laugh it off. "I know it's silly."
"No," says Akechi. He's looking in the distance, farther into Mementos, his eyes soft, reminiscent. "I'd do anything for one more day with my mother. Just one. So I could say goodbye."
Futaba inches closer to him. "Why didn't you get to see her? In this reality, I mean. If that's what would make you happy, shouldn't Maruki have given it to you?"
Akechi huffs. "I didn't get an ideal reality," he says. "Not that I'd want one. Maruki's tricks never worked on me."
"Ohhh," says Futaba. "So, you're just stronger than the rest of us, then?"
"Yes," says Akechi, without a hint of irony in his voice. Futaba rolls her eyes.
"Sure, then. Don't tell me what your ideal reality was."
"I'm telling the truth," Akechi snaps. "I never got an ideal reality."
"But that doesn't make sense!" says Futaba. "All the Phantom Thieves did."
"I'm not a Phantom Thief. I didn't defeat the God of Control, and I never spoke to Maruki as the rest of you did.”
"That still doesn't make sense. How did you figure out this reality is fake? You seemed totally fine with it when you showed up to take Joker's place outta nowhere. Did you know it was fake then? Was something so out of place from the start that--" She stops.
Wait.
Wait.
"Hold on," she says slowly. "You showed up to take Joker's place on Christmas Eve. After we defeated the God of Control. Right?"
Akechi doesn't say anything. His face is blank. His eyes, though, are terrified.
"After Maruki started changing reality," she continues.
It never made sense how Akechi could have survived. His signal disappeared, she knows it did. She wouldn't make a mistake like that, not when so much was on the line.
Her next question is a whisper. "You didn't survive our confrontation in Shido's Palace, did you?"
Akechi doesn't respond. Which is basically the same as confirmation she's right.
"Then how are you here? Who wanted you back?" But she already knows the answer, even as she says the words. She's seen how much Akira cares about Akechi, no matter how much he tries to hide it.
"A certain leader of ours made sure of that," he says through clenched teeth.
Futaba sits on that for a moment, the weight of this truth still not quite hitting her. "Joker's ideal reality," whispers Futaba, "is to be with you." She laughs, trying to lighten the mood. "You know, that's really fuckin' gay of him."
Akechi's cheeks go bright pink, and Futaba can't help but find it adorable. Here, Mr. Murder Your Mom, blushing over a crush. "It's not like that."
Futaba frowns, thinking back to what she saw earlier between Akira and Sumire. "Well, maybe not...unless he swings both ways…"
Akechi's face grows an even deeper shade of red. "What are you talking about?"
"Oh. Well, earlier today I saw him and Sumire--"
"Yoshizawa," he hisses, eyes growing dark. She watches him battle to cover the disdain on his face, but it's too late. Futaba's seen the truth, and there's no covering it up now. She grins.
"I don't think he's good enough for her either," she pokes.
"What? Sumire, too good for him? If anything, he's--" Akechi glowers, stopping himself, and meets her gaze. "You're provoking me."
Futaba nods, still grinning. Though there is a kernel of truth to her words--Sumire doesn't seem like the right person for Akira. Futaba's not jealous, at least not like Akechi clearly is, but something still burns with resentment at the thought of him being with Sumire. Perhaps it's simply a younger sister's overprotectiveness.
Akechi growls but says nothing. Futaba laughs some more, but it's forced, and eventually, they're left back in that awkward, melancholic silence.
"You know," says Futaba slowly. "I don't think you're evil, Crow. I called you that before, but...you showed incredible courage in your final moments."
"Yes, I know," he says disdainfully. "The justice in my heart saved you in the end, so on and so forth. Save me the corny speech."
"Wait." Futaba bolts upright. "You know Featherman?"
Akechi stiffens. "What?" But his expression gives the truth away. Futaba grins mischievously.
"That was a quote from the Featherman game. You've played it?"
Akechi purses his lips. "Not...exactly. I don't play many games myself, but I've...watched a playthrough of it online."
Enough times to recognize a quote and casually quote another line back to her. Oh, this guy's got it bad. She can't believe this. Akechi, The Akechi, is into Featherman. She's going to force him to rewatch the show with her, and he's definitely going to play the game for himself. They'll introduce Akira to it together. With both of them on his case, he'll have to finally give the franchise a shot. It'll take at least a few months to get through the show, but--
Oh.
Wait.
Futaba's rising spirits plummet as quickly as they'd begun to climb. Akechi will be dead by next week.
Dead, just like Gray Pigeon.
She always thought his death was unfair, that he should have joined the Featherman. It didn't matter that he'd been created as an Aberrant--he'd proven his true nature by the end. She even outlined a fanfiction at one point where he lived, though it never got written past the first couple pages.
Akechi reminds her a lot of Gray Pigeon, come to think of it.
"Does Akira know?" asks Futaba, changing the subject. "If he knew, shouldn't you have...like, disappeared or something?"
"No, he doesn't. And I don't know," Akechi admits. "Akira is a special case. He was never truly fooled by this false reality, and I suspect a part of him must already know the truth."
"You should tell him. It's not fair to keep something like that a secret."
Akechi's eyes are fiery, yet somehow cold. "I'm not about to dangle my life over his head. It's irrelevant, anyway." He stands up. "My life is meaningless," he continues, marching towards the exit, his back to her. "I can't have him risking everything for my sake. It's better for everyone that he never be the wiser."
"Akechi--you can't be serious--" Futaba scrambles to her feet, hurrying after him. "Of course your life matters! How can you say that?"
Akechi turns on her, looking dangerous for the first time since he saved her. " You of all people should understand this. Every second I spend still breathing is a slap in the face to all the people I killed. Or do you not agree?"
"No!" Futaba pants, gathering her thoughts. "No, I don't agree. If you're dead, you're useless. But alive, you can actually begin to make amends. Death isn't a good enough punishment for what you've done anyway. No, that's the easy way out for people like you. There's good inside of you, deep down. You've proven that to me more than once now. You could do great things with your life if you were only given the chance." It's the same speech she's given Sojiro about Gray Pigeon more times than she can count.
Akechi huffs. "Of course, you'd say that. I don't appreciate your pity."
"It's not about pity! It's about justice. You of all people should understand that," she echoes.
Silence. Long, long silence.
Akechi finally exits Mementos without a word, and Futaba follows him. They reenter the subway station under Shibuya, crowds shuffling past, conversations filling the echoing halls. Akechi doesn't move, just stands there.
Without his helmet, she can make out the extent of the sadness on his face. The regret, how his past and pain pull him down. And yet, there's anger there too. Determination. You don't want to die, she thinks. You just tell yourself that to make it easier.
She thinks back to what he'd said before about telling himself the people Maruki brought back are fake. "It's just what I tell myself so I can sleep at night."
If this Akechi is fake, there'll be nothing to grieve once this reality is gone. Maybe believing he's a mere figment of Maruki's creation gives him comfort, but Futaba can't believe that. No, this Akechi is real, just like her mother had been. He's chosen to oppose Maruki's reality with every fiber of his being, and could a mere creation of Maruki really do that? The spirit of rebellion is alive and well in this young man, and the spark of life is there too. She can see it. Sense it. She doesn't need her metaverse goggles to read that.
And that means the real Akechi saved her life when he could have escaped unscathed. He took the reaper's blow for her. He didn't do it because Maruki made him do it--Akechi, real and true and wholly himself-- chose to save her.
And right now, Futaba chooses to pull Akechi into a hug and squeeze as tightly as she can.
"I'm sorry," she says. "That you can't be with Akira. That the universe decided to give you a second chance only to steal it away from you."
Akechi is stiff in her embrace, but she doesn't care. She squeezes all the more tightly until he wheezes from lack of air, and she loosens her grip. But she doesn't let go.
Akechi doesn't hug her back. He doesn't speak, doesn't say a single word. But he does pat her head, one, two, three times. Just like her mom used to.
Tears stream down her face, silent and painful. It's not fair, she thinks. It’s not fair he's going to die. Again.
"Promise to watch Featherman with me after we defeat Maruki," she blurts as she lets go.
"Futaba--"
"I won't accept no for an answer! You'll watch Featherman with me, and we'll introduce Akira to it together. Pinky promise!" She holds out her pinky toward him.
Akechi stares at her finger, mouth slightly open, eyebrows arched in a partially surprised, partially concerned expression. It softens to a scowl, and he begrudgingly wraps his pinky around hers. "Promise," he mutters.
Futaba unhooks her pinky and hugs Akechi again, quick and tight. He grunts in surprise, and that scowl is all the deeper when she parts. "I'm going to remember that promise, Akechi. You'd better keep it."
"I don't believe this is a particularly healthy way to deal with the inevitability of my--"
"Shhhh!" Futaba holds up a finger, wagging it at him. "You pinky promised. No breaking pinky promises, or I'll have to break your pinkies."
Akechi finally smiles, a minuscule ray of light in a thunderous storm of dark skies. A smile worth far more than any other she's seen on his face, because this one is not part of any mask.
"Fair enough, Futaba-chan." He hasn't called her that since before Shido's Palace.
She decides she likes it.
"By the way--" adds Akechi, smile turning into a smirk. "What were you doing in Mementos all by yourself?"
"Oh." Futaba looks down, embarrassed. "Well…that's a funny story…"