The sunlight filtered through café windows, warm and golden—but for the Phantom Thieves, it felt like waking from something deeper than sleep.
They gathered slowly.
Ren sat at the booth in Leblanc, sipping his coffee in silence. There was a faint glow behind his eyes, one that hadn't been there days ago. His fingers lingered against the side of the cup just a second too long, as if replaying a memory not entirely his own.
Makoto arrived first—punctual, as always. But she didn't meet his gaze at first. Her composure seemed intact, yet there was a hesitation in her walk, a shadow in her eyes that hadn't been there before.
She took the seat beside him.
"I… had strange dreams last night," she said softly.
Ren didn't reply immediately. Their shoulders brushed.
Makoto's hand rested on the table. She didn't pull it away.
Ann slipped in next, sunglasses perched atop her head, trying to look casual. But her expression was too tight, her lips drawn. She kept glancing at Ren, at Makoto, then quickly away—as if trying to puzzle together a question she didn't dare ask.
Behind her, Ryuji and Yusuke entered—both quiet, uncharacteristically so.
Ryuji, now visibly changed, wore an oversized hoodie. Her movements were twitchy, self-conscious, but her gaze swept the room with lingering curiosity—especially toward Ren. Toward Ann. Her jaw tightened when she caught herself staring.
Yusuke was pale and contemplative, as though the night had painted strokes across his soul. He carried a sketchpad, but his hands hovered over it uncertainly.
"I dreamed of velvet skies and whispering shadows," Yusuke said suddenly. "There was longing in it. I felt… desired. Watched. But not in fear."
Silence followed.
Ryuji gave a dry chuckle, flopping into the booth. "Mine was a damn mess. Can't even tell if it was hot or horrifying. Just… everything felt too much." She rubbed the back of her neck, cheeks flushed.
Ann looked between them. Her voice came soft, barely above a whisper.
"Did anyone else dream of Ren?"
A beat passed.
No one answered.
But the tension was a response all its own.
Morgana was last to arrive. Still adjusting to her new form, her steps were hesitant—but her eyes carried clarity. She slid into the seat next to Ren and didn't say a word, only met his eyes and nodded once, as if to say I understand.
"So…" Makoto finally said, her voice steadying, "something's happening to us."
Yusuke gave a slow nod. "Transformation. Emotion. Perhaps something more metaphysical. We are being guided."
Ann crossed her arms. "Or manipulated."
"I don't think it's that simple," Ren murmured, finally speaking. "It's like… something inside us is waking up. Or being drawn out."
Morgana added, "And it's not just us. The bonds are changing. Deepening. Becoming… more."
Ryuji stared at the tabletop. "You think it's that deity from before? The one messing with us?"
Makoto folded her hands. "If it is, it's working through our desires. Our dreams."
Ann looked up at that. Her gaze locked with Makoto's, and something unspoken passed between them.
It was Ren who broke the silence.
"I think we're all changing," he said. "But that doesn't have to be a bad thing."
He looked around the table—at Makoto's guarded strength, Ann's quiet confusion, Ryuji's restless energy, Yusuke's searching gaze, and Morgana's newfound grace.
"We decide where it goes."
No one spoke, but for the first time that morning, they all breathed a little easier.
For now, the dreams were over.
But what they awoke into… might be stranger still.