Ren woke up the most rested he had ever been in his life. He felt like he had fallen into the softest bed imaginable and had been gently held the entire night.
As he blinked his eyes, he noticed that some of his bonds had changed. The one with the fake Igor was twisted and mangled, barely holding on. Ren wanted to cut the bond entirely, but he just couldn't.
'A fateful enemy,' Arsène spat in disdain. 'A coward through and through.'
'Wow, Arsène. I am surprised you're so offended,' Ren laughed as he prepared for the day.
'Hmph. An enemy who rigs the board is not worthy.'
---
"Wow, kid, you look really rested. Have a good night's sleep?" Sojiro said with a smile.
Looking at the café he had come to love as his home, Ren looked at the gruff man and gave him a grateful nod.
"Yes. It was the best sleep I've had in months," Ren said. "By the way, thank you for everything, Sojiro."
His voice cracked a little.
"Don't get all mushy on me, kid. Come over here and tell me how it's going with those girls," Sojiro replied with a smirk, setting down a cup of coffee.
---
Ren arrived at school in good spirits. He didn't run into anyone on the train, and Morgana was sleeping in his bag, so his trip there was relaxed. Seeing his group of friends, he was reminded of what Sojiro had said earlier.
"Don't break those girls' hearts! They're definitely interested!"
He coughed and blushed.
'He's probably teasing me.'
He approached, and the team all greeted him warmly. His little found family was always there.
"Ren. Do you want another day to rest before we..." Shiho asked, leaning against the wall next to the vending machines in the courtyard. She looked at him with sharp eyes.
"Are you rested enough?" Ann added.
"Don't lie, dude. The girls were trading ideas for threats and punishments and—" Ryuji suddenly shut his mouth after being on the receiving end of three glares.
'I haven't smiled so much in a long time,' Ren thought happily, looking at his friends.
"Yeah. Let's head to the Palace this afternoon." He nodded.
---
"I wish we had concrete evidence on Madarame so we could tell Yusuke," Orihime mumbled as she kicked a rock.
The team was walking down the road, approaching the shack.
Ren paused for a moment, seemingly considering something, before saying, "I don't want to ask Fuuka to look for us. This is our journey. Not theirs. Maybe things keep getting more confusing because they're interfering so much."
"I understand what you mean, Ren." Shiho nodded. "I think it's a good idea to leave that as a last resort."
"I even think directly bringing Yusuke in might work. He'll understand the symbolism," Ren muttered before shaking his head. Not yet.
[Beginning Navigation.]
The color faded from the world as the team entered the Metaverse.
Cracking his neck, Ren saw the blue Velvet Room doors. They didn't feel scary anymore. Caroline and Justine were sitting outside the door, seemingly reading from a massive book with Margaret watching over them. He didn't feel like bothering them right now.
"Everyone ready?" Ren said with a cocky grin.
"Oh, it looks like Joker is back in action!" Ryuji cheered.
"I got the chalk that will reveal the laser security too." Ren's grin grew wider.
"Iwai had something?!" Ann gasped. "I knew he was bad news!"
Ren's grin was so wide it was almost demonic at this point. The team couldn't help but chuckle. When Ren got into his Joker mood, he was different, but still himself.
Orihime nudged Shiho gently and whispered, "I see what you mean about him being a combat maniac too. I didn't think you were serious."
Shiho blushed, turned away, and whispered, "I'm pretty much the same way."
---