"We are not doing Jo-jokes right now," Shiho said seriously.
Ren and Ryuji stared at her.
"You read JoJo?!" they said in unison.
"ANYWAYS," Morgana snapped. "Back to what I was saying. The Shadows won't come in here."
Shiho visibly relaxed, but Ryuji immediately asked, "Why though?"
"Well, the cognition is weak here!" Morgana declared. "This is your school—but it's the way that king sees it."
"Cognition? What the hell are you talkin' about?" Ryuji shouted. "Oi, you guys don't think this thing's bullshittin' us, right?"
'Cognition… perception… the school… king… 'Ren thought.
"How can I explain this in a way you'll understand…" Morgana whined.
"WHAT DID YOU SA—"
"Ahem." Shiho smiled sweetly. "Sakamoto-kun. Morgana-chan."
"SORRY, MA'AM!" both replied, saluting.
"It's like a daydream," Ren said slowly, "except real."
"Oh," Ryuji muttered. "So this bastard's twisted fantasy of the school."
"Eh. Close enough—" Morgana began.
"THAT SON OF A BITCH!"
"Wow," Morgana whispered. "You really hate the guy…"
"Hate doesn't even begin to—"
"Sakamoto." Shiho's voice dropped. "Stop."
"…Sorry, Suzui."
She turned back to Morgana. "Please continue. What are Shadows? And Personas?"
Morgana nodded. "A Shadow is an aspect of the collective consciousness of humanity. It's also called the true self. By confronting it—and rebelling against what binds you—you gain control of it. That's when it becomes a Persona."
'That sounds right… but also not,' Ren thought.
"Yeah, nope," Ryuji said. "I don't get that at all. They're monsters, and you and Ren turned 'em into your Stands or something."
"…Uh. Okay," Morgana said not knowing what to say to that.
Shiho glanced toward the cell outside. "What about the person locked up out there? They're a volleyball player—just like me."
"Calm down, Lady Shiho," Morgana said gently. "Other than us, there are no real people in this castle. Those are cognitions—puppets that act the way Kamoshida sees people in reality."
Shiho gasped. Ryuji clenched his fists.
"So if we take one out," Ren asked, "it disappears and reappears where it belongs?"
"Pretty much."
Ren nodded. "Alright. Let's catch our breath and hope we're not too late for school…"
"Boss is gonna be pissed," he muttered.
"WAIT!" Ryuji exclaimed as he sat down. "You said people! You're obviously a cat!"
"I'm a human! An honest to-" Morgana rebutted.
"We are not doing this now, understood?" A sickly sweet voice interrupted.
The two troublemakers turned to see an extremely angry Shiho staring at them as she tried to rest.
---
They moved quickly from hiding spot to hiding spot until they reached the grand hall.
Footsteps echoed from every direction.
"Oh," Ryuji said. "We are soooo screwed."
"Can it, Blondie!" Morgana shouted. "Come forth! My other self!"
"Arsène!"
Morgana and Ren stood back-to-back as Shadows closed in. Shiho stumbled in fear, bumping into Ren—
—and inside his bag, his glasses slid against the yellow tarot card.
Reality glitched, like a warped television screen being pressed with a magnet. Black and white tore across Ren's vision as something jumped toward the bag—
—and—
They collapsed in a heap in the empty school courtyard.
The bell rang, signaling the start of the day as Ryuji groaned in pain, having somehow landed flat on his face.