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If your looking for more phantom thief inspiration, how about Twenty Face and Fantomas? (though he more of a villain). Hell, for P5 idea I have for persona was combing Fantomas and Ogon Bat (look up his names in another country it would make more sense). But these are just suggestion.

I’m actually saving a particular character as a Persona for something else later in the story.

I haven’t heard of Ogon Bat before, but he seems interesting. I’m grateful for you helping me with this, it’s not always easy when you’re brainstorming by yourself. I’m also open to other characters aside from phantom thieves, I just want MC to have a Persona of her own that relates to her just like it does with all the characters in the Persona franchise.

hi I have a request!! how about akira being sleepy/groggy after a clinical trial with takemi, with the side effects of the drug making him feel really tired…and clingy too. reader is already at Leblanc when he comes back and waiting in his room bc she had brought a movie for them to watch. but of course they don’t end up watching the movie and he decides that her chest would be the perfect pillow and place to fall asleep on. she is a bit flustered but melts into the cuddles and pets his hair while he sleeps. /)//w\\(\

Personal Remedy

Fandom(s): Persona 5

P5 Protagonist/Joker x Fem Reader

Summary: After a tiring day of going through another round of Takemi’s clinical trials, Akira needs you to make a full recovery. And despite all your fluster, you are more than happy to take of your hardworking boyfriend. There’s no place he’d rather be in anyone else’s arms but yours.

One-shot

Content: Fluff, romance, established relationship, sleepiness, napping, tired/soft Joker, flustered/nurturing Reader, cuddling & snuggling, comfort, domestic bliss/fluff, falling asleep listening to heartbeats, movie date.

Warnings: None.

Main List | 𝐉𝐨𝐤𝐞𝐫 | AO3

Taking your seat on Akira's bed, you couldn't help but shift a little in anticipation as you stared at the floor entrance of the stairs, waiting for your quiet and ever hardworking boyfriend to walk up.

The two of you had planned for a movie date today, where you'd be the one to pick the film and your boyfriend would have his home-attic reserved for you to watch together. Akira had texted you beforehand that he would possibly be running mildly late, so you could get a head start in arranging the setup.

Sojiro had allowed you to stay to wait for the young man as he began preparations for closing the café. He had long since trusted you two in being rationally responsible for whatever activity you'd do alone. So he left the small establishment some time ago with the closed sign switched and a locked door on his way out. Akira would reopen it with his spare key.

Looking out the window, evening had began to roll in. You went to playing on your phone to pass the time when you finally heard the sound of a lock being undone, signalling his expectant arrival.

The noises of footsteps drew closer, albeit slow and lazy as a familiar mop of messy black curls and trademark faux glasses came to view as Akira trudged up the stairs. They were all a part of his look in keeping a low-profile regarding his unjust criminal record.

"Treasure..?" Akira's soft baritone voice called out to you; carrying a pleasant relief and relaxation underlying his calm tone.

Your face instantly changed into a fonder and gentler look towards your boyfriend. As nonchalant and reserved as he behaved, he had a serious romantic and sweet side of himself that he'd bring out to you in private.

Akira's sharp, stormy eyes were slightly half-lidded, posture a little hunched, even with his hands in his pants pockets, showcasing his drowsy state after a tiring day. And considering that another way you've spent time together aside from dates and group hangouts, was helping each other with errands and such. You understood the amount of work he had to do as the leader of the Phantom Thieves, including 'strengthening his bonds', as he previously explained it to you.

Akira had opened up to you about his unique ability, which was different compared to yours and the others. The power of the Wildcard, where the strength of his multiple Personas depended on the strength of his ties with the people around him. So doing clinical trials with the gothic doctor was a way for him to form a bond with her. He never delved too deeply on the topic, but it made your heart light knowing that Akira trusted you enough to talk about this part of himself. There were even times where he confessed to sometimes feeling alienated from the Thieves.

You were always willing to hear what Akira had to say to get whatever pressure he needed off his chest. Including lying together on his stiff, makeshift mattress atop of those crates as you freely conversed about anything, cuddling on his couch, or spending other moments such as these.

"Aki," you say, standing up from his bed to make way to him. Your brows furrow slightly at his clear exhaustion, just what ragged him out like this? Standing in front of him, you place one hand on his shoulder, the other to his cheek. Akira didn't hesitate to lean into your touch with closed eyes.

"Are you okay?" you made sure to keep your voice mellow. "What happened?"

".. Takemi."

Ah, that made sense. Akira volunteered months ago to be the test subject of Tae Takemi's, a back alley doctor in Yongen-Jaya, clinical trials. It served to benefit both parties: access to medicine for the Phantom Thieves, and research for the local doctor.

Though you did worry sometimes that the woman would push the experiments a bit too much on the noiret, even if she was licensed in the medical field. She did call him her 'guinea pig' after all, it made you a tad unsettled by that notion but Akira reassured you that he wouldn’t overdo it.

"C'mon.." you whisper, taking your hands to hold his. "How about some rest, yeah?"

Akira tried to straighten himself, doing his best to blink away the drowsiness. He must've had to put as much energy as he could to walk home. "No, it's okay. You chose a movie to watch, right? We can still set it up."

When he took a step forward, he slumped against your body. You didn't stumble from his action, and stood steady as you accepted his embrace. He didn't put all his weight on you though, just enough to hold you loosely in his arms. With your height difference, Akira towered over you, so you stood head-to-chest. That meant he had to lean down more to rest his face on your shoulder.

You deliver him a half smile, quirking one corner of your lips high with an eyebrow raised. "Think you can manage to sit through the whole thing?"

The frizzy haired male snuggled his nose against your neck in response, causing a sudden squeak to escape you from the sensation. Akira gave a light chuckle under his breath, you always were ticklish there. He knew he had to prove that he could go through the entire film, but that meant moving his body away from yours, and you were just so warm that he couldn't bring himself to leave.

"Let's just do a rain check, all right?" you stroke the back of his head, fingers brushing his soft tresses. "No objections. Don't think you can fight me on this."

"I think you've been spending too much time with Morgana.." Akira mumbled, giving you a light squeeze.

"You two are basically a package deal." you softly retort. "Being with you includes him, too, you know. Speaking of Morgana, where is he anyway?" looking at his bag that somehow still hung onto his shoulder, you saw no sign of the not-cat's whereabouts. He would've chimed in to agree with your sentiment by now.

"Futaba," Akira took a pause to lightly sigh. "took him home for the day for our date."

You hum, musing to yourself, "He did say he never liked being the third-wheel."

"Nope." eventually untangling from your hug despite his dismay, Akira stood on his own, mildly sluggish, glasses lowered to the bridge of his nose.

You shook your head with a sigh, reaching to take off his spectacles with one hand, "This way, Hero." the other went to grab his again and guided him to the bed.

Even snickering a little from the jesting nickname, Akira lazily followed suit. Once he sat down on the mattress, you stood in front of him after putting his glasses on one of the shelves nearby, he was still able to surprise you with his sudden agility. Trapping you in his arms, he brought you down with him, turning you to lie on your back while he laid on your front. But this time, he rested his head against your chest, body between your legs.

You immediately felt warmth spread your cheeks, which grew hotter when you felt his face press further.

"W-Wha—?!" you stuttered, face completely flushed.

"You're really warm," Akira sighed out contently. "and soft. I should do this more often..."

"Hol-hold on for a second..!"

You tripped over your words, unsure how to respond to that, much less what to do with your hands as they were raised halfway up from your shock.

"Sh-Shouldn't you change into your pyjamas? You can't sleep in those clothes..!”

"Just this once..?" Akira's sleepy voice begged, lifting his head to give you those endearing soft gray eyes. "You can spend the night, we don't have school tomorrow."

"It is getting dark.." you mumbled out as you looked out the window. "And I don't think I can bring myself to get up anyhow..." you sigh, cheeks still carrying a remnant of pink.

Akira's face brightened up at your words, "Then I hope you don't mind being my pillow for the night, too?" There was that cheekiness of his that came out to play. "You feel much better than a real one. Definitely a better way to wake up than having a cat suffocating you to consciousness."

Knowing he was serious about that last part, you grumble a little, lips pressing together in an almost pout before Akira swooped in to deliver you a swift kiss. It almost blanked your mind before you shook your head out of your stupor. "At least let me take off my bra, I can't sleep in it."

"Of course." he beamed. "That'd be even better." Akira quietly laughed when you answered him with a gentle shove, you couldn't bring yourself to actually hit him, not matter how light. And it wasn't like nakedness was a novel thing between you with how far and committed your relationship was.

Shifting to let you take your shirt off enough, he chose to rest his head back down beside your torso, letting you do what you needed to do without making any glances. He was a gentleman, after all. And you wholeheartedly trusted him.

Once done, you were only able to put your bra on the shelf with his glasses because of your limited reach. Grabbing a hold of his blanket you draped it over his body, which covered you, too.

Resting back to your bust gain, he rubbed his head side to side with a pleased sigh. And despite all your fluster, you feel elevated regarding his relaxation. Your hand went to pet his hair, running over his messy tresses as he listened to the sound of your heartbeat like a lullaby. It thumped fast from the beginning before going more steady.

“.. I don’t mind how our date turned out.” you murmur.

“I don’t either.” he says back, tone just as quiet.

Hearing Akira’s breathing slowly going even, you knew he was falling asleep. So you presumed to continue stroking his head as your vision slowly faded as well, soon succumbing to the realm of dreams along with him.

ur opinion abt violet is pretty based ngl 😭 she also striked me off as an iffy or obviously 'waifu' character

Thank you for a kindly worded opinion. I felt like I had to personally be prepared for any moment of an online cyber attack of toxic fans going crazy at me for these honest thoughts the moment I decided to post my rant. And I thought it would be a unique ice breaker for seeming like a distant-silent-writer-with-a-writer-blog to others.

I was even hesitant on doing so because of it, knowing that the Persona fan base is no different from any others, fan bases all have their meaner sides. But the more reasons I found out about her, and I found a lot, it just wouldn’t leave my head whenever I saw even a mention of her in Persona fan content. And with Persona coming to Xbox, PC, and Switch, I just felt like I had to let it out or it’d give me a headache. It made me wonder why people love her so much when she has all these things about her that clash. It’s not like they were secrets. They’re literally in front of your face. I just had to let these opinions out and see if there was anyone at all who’d thought the same and I wasn’t alone thinking differently.

Can I give my two cents on Yoshizawa? Coming from someone that just finished Royal and also likes Aigis and Rise (and can understand why people hate her as well, it takes time to warm up to her). Sorry, english isn't my first language. This isn't also a hate message, just giving my honest opinion.

As someone who always struggled with depression and self steem issues, I really liked Sumire's portrayal and her wishing to be another person (in this case, her "better" twin).

I'll first adress the points in which I agree with you. First, her clothes. You're right, she shouldn't wear black clothes. I think, as she had her true awekening, her clothes could change and have similar colors as her third awakening.

Ok, back to the arguments. I shall tackle them in order.

The only time she helps Joker in the real world is to get him out of jail. - I could say the same about the other confidants. Only Ryuji stuck up to him against Kamoshida, and Shido on the elevator scene (and you can also defend him back if you have enough guts).

Her appearances never feel normal. - I played Vanilla before, so I knew whenever a new scene was popping up with Sumire, Akechi and Maruki. Maybe you think they're shoehorned because you already know she's a new character? Like, that feeling that "oh she wasn't here before".

Overly attached to Joker. - Think about it this way. She just lost her sister (in her mind, Kasumi lost Sumire). And while she behaved as Kasumi, everyone knew who she really was. Talking to her was awkward and like walking on eggshells. Joker, because he didn't know about this situation, he acted normal around her and even helped with her depressive episodes. So, she respected him. Sometimes we need this person to remind us that it's okay to have doubts but we can't let them win. But you said it, she ACTS like a extroverted socialite. She isn't one.

The thieves love her and she ignores them. - Hm... no? She respects all of them equally, specially Futaba and Mona. I do think she least interacted with Yusuke and Ann, but she and Ryuji did talk as well (but well it's Ryuji).

She does not contribute to the plot until the 3rd semester. - She was busy trainning and going on competitions. There's even a whole week she isn't around because of it. That's the same reason she doesn't join the Thieves at first. She's busy. Simple as that. Just like Akechi joined you because of his goals, she couldn't join you because of her goals.

Her first ranks and her "slumps". - Depression does this to a person, you can be happy one time and suddenly a tiny obstacle creates this wave of "I'm not good enough I shouldn't be here I shouldn't be happy." Cognition or not, she had suffered the loss of her sister and wasn't getting results while trainning. Anything could put her down. I've been there myself and I still struggle with it sometimes.

The social link doesn't reset/You only know Kasumi, not Sumire/ her perky attitude didn't change/her awakening doesn't make sense - We know Sumire. Sure, she's pretending to be Kasumi, but deep down she's still Sumire. There's an event where she makes a bento for Joker, and it looks atrocious, but when he tastes it it's just curry. In her mind she should be a bad cook, but her food comes out alright anyway. Plus we get snippets about the plot twist, the phone never working, we never saw a picture of her sister. Also, we know her when she was depressed for being her sister's shadow (cutscene with the car accident) but we don't know how she usually acted. We know, thanks to her trainer, that she was quieter and more graceful than Kasumi. Doesn't mean she wasn't perky at the time, and she has as much talent as her twin. In her eyes, Kasumi was better because she won all the time, but Sumire got just as much trainning as her. And Shujin, when Kasumi was alive, wanted BOTH of them enrolled with special status. Self doubt and depression made her underperform, even before losing her sister. Knowing this, her awakening DOES make sense, specially when you consider what her persona was saying. Ok we have Sumire/Kasumi, her sister just died and you're carrying the dream for both of you. You get enrolled with special status, all students are talking about you (we see scenes about the gossip right at the start of the game), the school is expecting great results and in your mind you're "the best of the best". But come competition after competition, you can't perform well. The students that praised you now badmouth you, and even after a third place the higher ups aren't satisfied. No wonder she would almost snap at the palace, SPECIALLY after seeing her sister dying AGAIN (remember, she doesn't know about cognitions yet so it was just like seeing her die again). Her persona says "You strive towards splendor... you know the risk... well if these were the shoes that you chose." You know the risk = she's a fake, and deep down she knows it (self doubt, depression); the shoes that you chose = continue pretending to be Kasumi. On her TRUE awakening, her persona even says "such tenacity, it seem to fit you better than ever before. The glass slippers are a sign of glory." Right at the start of this exploration, Sumire was still faltering due to her self sabotage. But now, NOW she's ready to fully commit and accept who she is. The glory of being herself and being proud of it.

Why did she dance at the school festival. - she's a famous athlete. Students love famous people. She was called because she was recognized.

Why did her father show up? - well we DID help choosing his glasses. jokes aside, it's to foreshadow even further about Sumire's true identity. He says her name, but it gets cut off. We only hear "... re" something like that. Also, two reasons. One, Maruki was making this series of "perfect and happy coincidences" between the characters, so much so that even them commented on it. Her father showing up is also one of those happy coincidences. Two, this man lost one of his children in a tragic accident. I wonder how come he didn't show up MORE. Picking her up from school, from trainning. He should be a little paranoid about her safety.

Why Cinderella/Cendrillon? - Cinderella suffered out of jealousy, ok. Sumire suffered out of jealousy, for her SISTER. Plus, remember, Cinderella had one key aspect: she wished to go to the ball, have the best night ever, maybe meet the prince but she wanted to get out of the shadows. Sumire's biggest wish is to get out of Kasumi's shadow and "go to the ball" so to speak. In this case, to be acknowledged, just as Cinderella was. From ashes to glass. I do think it's quite fitting for her, other fairy tales like Ugly Duckling and Little Mermaid could fit as well.

She suddenly accepted her sister's death. - she got a reality check, had her persona beaten, got in a moody and depressive state. She DID run away from the fact for almost a year. She rralized she had to stop running at some point.

We could've known other patients he helped. - I think the game implies he only helped Rumi and Sumire. He was busy working on his research, and then counseling at Shujin. If he had a chance, he should have helped other students there. Plus the game explicity says that he changed reality because WE the Phantom Thieves asked for it.

She loves Joker no matter what you do. - so does Haru. And Ann.

She stalks you into the palace. - she's worried about her friends after you implied you had an important job. I'd tag along as well just to be sure. And Lavenza went to the nurse's office as the butterfly. She probably saw it as well, IT'S A GLOWING BLUE BUTTERFLY.

Why everyone talks about how much she eats? - it's a trope, probably like Goku or Luffy. It's a japanese game after all.

She doesn't have a reason to join! - She does. It is "stop Maruki and his weird reality". When she joined Joker and Akechi, neither of them knew what was going on as well. They were the only ones with their memories and that's it. They joined up to solve the mystery. She joined up go help. After that, to stop Maruki.

She has Marinette vibes - ... I don't see it? And I watched a lot of Ladybug, got a bit out of hand yikes. But Marinette is a lackluster character I'll give you that.

AAAAAAND I guess that's it? Wow I wrote a lot. If you read it, thank you so much. Once again I'm not attacking you or anything, I'm giving you my honest opinion.

But I'm gonna say: I hated her goodbye scene in Royal. Maruki left you at the station (Billy Kametz c.c), the gang had an awesome farewell and she just... stumbles across you? What was THAT Atlus?

Those are some details, and I appreciate you being polite about them.

I might need to reinstate my thoughts, points, and counters regarding yours:

I can’t say I’ve totally understood the way the game portrays Sumire’s mental struggles… I mean I’ve also hit a really hard time in my life in high school where I was alone in going through these struggles for some time. And the way people go through their own mental hardships can be different for everyone. But Sumire never emphasizes what her “slump” is, or explains the cause for it. She says it like she doesn’t know the reason, and makes it sound like it’s only a simple slump throughout the first five confidant rankings. She’s been pretending to be Kasumi for some time so maybe it was a mind block from tying her back to who she really was? It’s really her confidence that’s shaky, and Joker repeats the same method of saying a phrase to encourage her, and she goes right back to being perky again without pause. Her slump is always dealt with in the same way the first half of her confidant. She seems to just take it as face value like a compliment.

Even with people feeling awkward about her acting and calling herself Kasumi, it’s not a valid enough reason for avoiding her like the plague. Shujin students I get, but her other fellow gymnasts would be the closest thing to interacting with her and having at least a simple conversation, like Makoto with the student council members. She probably wouldn’t have had to lean on him all the time if her parents or her.. teammates? club members? or maybe a single person talked to her and weren’t so set off about her identity issue. It’d be something like Ann and Shiho, Makoto and Eiko, and Mishima with the guys, or just an acquaintance. I don’t know.

I do find your point of her social link interesting over what she could’ve been feeling herself. But it all feels up for interpretation from before she came to Shujin and when she was Kasumi. Joker did what he always does, helping someone because he was somehow out of the loop about her actual identity when none of the thieves, from Shujin, talk about it. I mean I know it’s for the reveal but this detail was something so simple that could easily be solved. Maybe it’s because they thought Joker was calling her Kasumi for her own sake but he could’ve been informed about it, it feels like a loophole.

I had forgotten about her phone. And it doesn’t really makes sense as to why it’s broken only that Sumire’s or Kasumi’s was damaged and she either kept her phone or taken Kasumi’s. The explanation for that is weird. Did she really need Kasumi’s phone to be her sister?

The thieves love her after meeting her how many times outside the Metaverse without brief meetings like she had full conversations with them every time? Futaba and Mona are taken with her right off the bat because of her politeness for being the same age as Futaba with a different personality and interest for being a Persona-User and an athlete. She’s a Persona-User, that’s usually what catches other Persona-Users’ interest, especially the thieves. The most it feels like she interacts with them is in the Metaverse in Maruki’s Palace. Just because she respects them doesn’t mean they have something close to a max 10 rank up up of a powerful bond like the whole team sorta has. Respect can be different from willingly choosing to make close connections because one likes to have a bond with another. Respect can be broken down in many forms.

Her awakening shows no real form of rebellion for an oppressed society that has personally and wrongfully affected her. She has verbally stated that she does not care for people’s opinions and understands the consequences of losing her honour status as a result for ranking lower instead of first place. She did the best she could with what she was already doing and the outcome was what it was. I figured that time she saw her cognitive self was a sort of reminder of her she really was. Like a clue. Considering that her other self from the other world said that it’s her fault, the other self, felt strange and out of place because we don’t know the reason why. If it was just self discovery then that would fit. But she shares nothing that fits with the themes of Persona 5 as a Persona-User. Altus breaks those rules for her. There shouldn’t have been a point for her to have a Persona with such weak reasoning. Her second awakening still has nothing to do with rebellion. And to awaken again the second time with no changes? Hypocritical for the point of the Persona series. It would’ve made sense whether or not she had to even be a Persona-User in the place. Her growth, realization, and moving on from her past would’ve still been affective like the other confidants who reached a point in their lives where the change is known, yet didn’t need a Persona to showcase that. I feel caught in the middle about it.

Her being busy is one thing, but to be out of the story so much with only gaps in between from her appearances just doesn’t feel like a character that can connect the player so strongly as opposed to everyone else. Everyone has responsibilities. Haru has to work on her family company, Yusuke tries to find stability as an independent artist after Madarame, Makoto deals with the student council and doing well with her grades, Ryuji goes back to training as an athlete while working on recovering his leg, and Ann has to deal with the struggles of making it out as a model for her career. Akechi goes through crap with Shido as the Black Mask, being a detective, keeping appearances, and being a student. That’s kind of the point, her goals clash with why she doesn’t need to join the thieves outside of dealing with Maruki. Other than that, she’s got no stakes. She has a life for gymnastics that takes her on a more divided path from others. It’s a lazy excuse of writing to bother even including a character and deeming them important when they deliver no reason of significance to the viewer and backfire their involvement. Akechi doesn’t really count as his reasons and motives are intwined with the thieves’.

The whole school dance and she’s a famous athlete and all is one thing. But is she really the only well known athlete in the entire school for students to be talking about her all the time? It makes me curious about that. And if it’s a school dance, why aren’t any of the thieves who attend Shujin be there? I think I’ve forgotten as to why. But Atlus could’ve come up with any scenario and they chose a dance to bring the obvious ship of her and Joker.

I can really see other fairytale folklore characters that fit her, too, like what you’ve previously mentioned. Though none really fit P5’s themes of fighting for a cause for others and themselves. But I still get the vibe that while her jealousy is shared with Cinderella’s stepsisters, and she becomes someone else to be something than more than what she was, nothing changes about her after that. Her only freedom was through the prince, who took her away from her household and live a happy ending. And while her circumstances are understandable as to why she couldn’t achieve it alone, Cinderella seems like she doesn’t really change. And it’s someone else who does everything for her. To her stepfamily they could’ve perceived her differently, but Cinderella’s character doesn’t appear to change. It feels like a bit of a static character situation, maybe even more. I suppose it’s because she’s acting good in spite of her situation. But I can get behind why Cendrillon fitted her but also not, it just leaves the impression that her and her Persona stays the same. Cendrillon could at least look a little different to bring more evidence of growth instead of giving lines. I think that may be just me..?

The whole eating trope is ridiculous for having it be stated all the time. It feels overused, and to have it be stated every time she eats becomes an unnecessarily boring mention. Especially when the thieves have Ryuji, an athlete himself who they should know exercises a lot. It’s like they don’t know what being an athlete even means.

You can avoid a romance with Ann and Haru by choosing choices that aren’t actually responses to love confessions. Example: when Ann says she’s about to cry on Rank 9, you can comfort her platonically by saying she has the others. It’s the same with EVERY female confidant love interest. There’s an implication for a romance, but you can at least avoid it if you want to.

Your point with her father is something I can agree on. But does getting new glasses with her really deserve a confidant rank? And her tie with Maruki feels loose, and from the time she acted as Kasumi, it didn’t feel like her story expanded to how close of a connection she has to him. Maruki is just far more interesting.

We really didn’t get a chance to see how her student status affected her. But at the same it feels too similar to Makoto’s situation as well in a writing standpoint.

Sumire probably didn’t realize the process of losing her sister for almost a year. She did have her cognition be to probably think and act like Kasumi where their processing of grief is different. Perhaps she didn’t feel the impact of what Kasumi might’ve felt and if the roles were reversed and she wasn’t too heartbroken over herself because of her subconscious? She could’ve only just been processing her thoughts fresh as Sumire because she finally gets to truly be herself again. BUT, part of that just doesn’t sit right, because she said it herself that she knew deep down that her sister was dead (one of them had to be) and that pretending was wrong. That basically confirms that she is actually aware of what she has been doing this whole time. She really did want to be Kasumi. This is just my interpretation.

I did not mean about Maruki’s change in reality. I meant to wondering about the amount of time he has had since obtaining his Persona and what he’s done with his powers that had led up to the moment of his Palace.

She stalked Joker out of just sheer curiosity and not about minding his privacy that had nothing to do with her? Especially the important job that could’ve meant anything that was of no matter to her. Sure, it makes sense for her to care, but to just blindly follow and stayed in the Metaverse for who knows how long does explain much to me. I’m not sure if I’ve missed out an a detail or something. And what friends? She’s only behaved courteously with the thieves like what a professional relationship would be for a workplace. Nice but nothing deep behind it. And their relationship remains the same. The blue butterfly in the office is an iffy one. Other students were there and they didn’t see it. It’s like when some of the Velvet Room Attendants had gone through a veil of invisibility to the outside world accept their guests. Like the various locations of the Velvet Room in the real world and the Metaverse. Not even the thieves, or any team from P3/4 see the doors accept the guest. This could’ve went in a similar route. Like with Marie where she found support with all the members of the Investigation Team whereas Sumire only had that from Joker.

I had also meant something different as to why she had no reason to join the thieves’ cause. It’s obvious that she’d join to stop Maruki because she was personally affected by him and wanted to help. But as a writing standpoint, joining to simply help without having the shared standard goal of a group who strive for betterment from injustice, who personally experienced injustice and have it affect their lives deeply as motivation doesn’t work.

That’s what I mean for the most part when I inputted that Sumire gave the vibes of a similar lacklustre character who goes with seeking someone as their main person of attention. Marinette was the only character I could think of that gave even remotely a similarity. The two are portrayed as good characters despite their actions that leaves a lot of room for questioning why that even is.

Hi hi! I'm back. I kind of shocked you took your time answering me, I'll be honest. I thought you'd just dismiss everything I said (specially with such a lengthy text). So thank you, really!

I'm going to answer you back as well, if you don't mind. And once again, I'm not attacking you, just giving you my honest opinion. And once again, I'll tackle your points in order.

- When I get my anxiety attacks and depressive episodes, I act just like Sumire on her slumps. Maybe that's why I can resonate so much with her on those first ranks. Maybe it's a difference in our life experiences and how we tackled it? You think it's lackluster, I think it's subtle enough. And I agree with you on how she slowly was trying to regain herself but Maruki's actualization kept in check. I think that's how we got the little snippets of the real Sumire inside (the bento incident).

- I think the other athletes thought she had lost it and she was going crazy. In Japan, mental health issues is a real sensitive topic and people try to avoid "different" people. It may be a little graphic, but if you have time read about the Sagamihara stabbings. Also, that's the issue. Sumire had her Shiho. Her Eiko. It was Kasumi, and she lost her. And we, in fact, get to talk to her trainer twice so there's our "person in the area".

- About the phone: I don't think it was really broken, nor it was Kasumi's phone. It was Sumire's phone. The lag, the malfunctioning, it was all due to Maruki's interference. When she calls you and we get to listen to her first call ever, her voice is all Darth Vader like. Plus, Joker calls her Kasumi because Sumire carries Kasumi's student id, issued before her death. Joker being Joker and helping out is the reason we can reach the true Sumire. After all, if you don't advance her confidant you can't reach the Royal route.

- I think you're partially right on your point about the Phantom Thieves and their friendship. I do think their friendship get the usual flow: meet, persona time, join the team, funny banter. They like her, they are friends. But you're right, it isn't a rank 10 friendship between them. That's evident with the last cutscene. The gang joins up to help you get to the station, but she arrived there first? Why didn't she go with them? And what the fudge I HATE THAT SCENE. It's so lackluster for her character. A disservice.

- I think BOTH of her awakenings show a Spirit of Rebellion, yes. First time she's rebelling against common sense. About the fact she has to accent she isn't Kasumi and never will be. Hence, the dialogue about "these are the shoes that you chose". The second awakening, rebellion is against MARUKI'S SOCIETY. Remember, he had already changed the entire world at this point and he's saying "it's okay, you can keep on dreaming. Your pain will go away." At this time, she rejects this version of the world, thus finally embracing herself and achieving the "true glass slippers": her own self.

- About connection with the player, well, even with the new brief Haru scenes I still couldn't like her and her confidant. Both of them suffer a LOT by being the last kids on the bunch, and after you get her rank 5 there's not much else you can do together until Sumire becomes relevant again. Thinking about it, Akechi sometimes disappears as well aka you can't raise his confidant in some months. Now, about the goals, the only ones I think it can trully compare are Ann and Yusuke. She does decide to be an international model, but only AFTER you do her confidant. She wasn't serious before. It was a hobby. Ryuji goes back to track at the end of the game. Haru is busy with the company, but at the same time she always has time for you. She's always tending her garden. I don't know.

- Is she the only well known athlete? Yes!

Remember, the star of the school was Kamoshida and the volleyball team. After he confessed, Shujin's reputation was in shambles and only the Yoshizawa twin(s) were left. And about the dance... they did say they were busy/going home. And her dance is even after you have a romantic rendevouz with a love interest and Ryuji, so they really don't have a reason to stick in school.

- Giving you once again the point that Cendrillon (and her clothes for that matter) should have changed after her true awakening. Specially with the knowledge that Personas have the form of one's true psyche. And Cendrillon fits like a glove -- or, rather, a shoe -- in the themes. Your argument is that "[Cinderella] doesn't fight for a cause for other and themselves." That's true. But so doesn't Carmen. Or Milady. Or Captain Kidd. So what does a pirate, two femme fatales, a legendary thief, two vigilantes and fairy tale princess have in common?

They're all tricksters!

Yaldabaoth made two Main Trickers, Joker and Akechi. But the other personas are just as much tricksters as them. Milady is a femme fatale that doesn't have a clear side. Captain Kidd was a corsair. Robin Hood and Goemon stole from the rich to give to the poor. Arsene Lupin was a gallant thief and Zorro fought for his people.

Why is Cinderella/Cendrillon a trickster?

Because she disguised herself to go to the ball, so much so her family could recognize her. She TRICKED them and the prince, making him think she was noblity!

- The eating trope. I dind't mind it, but I read a lot of shounen. What made me cringe was the beach scenes, yukata scenes, fhe fanservice. But again, japanese game.

- Romance: You can avoid their romance, but Haru already loves you by the point you reach rank 9. And if you say you're only friends, she asks to be left alone and goes to her room. Plus on many moments on her confidant other people ask if you two are a thing or not. Other than her, I THINK Chihaya? She reads her cards? I don't know she's the second worst romance I rushed it.

- Getting new glasses for her dad deserves a rank? Yes because it's not about the glasses. It's about Sumire choosing something by herself. She was ready to leave that responsibility to Joker, but he gave her his moral support and she did get to choose it. She even lampshades it.

- When you like your therapist, you develop this bound in which they become kind of like your second family. You can talk anything to them. Maruki did say, at the beginning of the game, that she was a former patient of his, we get to see when and how he changed her cognition. And, remember, she was depressed because her sister had died and suddenly after only one t

visit she's all better. It's a miracle! He's THAT good! He helped her on her worst moment! Maruki is as important for her as Joker.

- Effect of her student status: in what way? I mean we saw how everyone acted before and after she started underperforming. Other students gossip she can take tests whenever, skip class all the time with no repercutions. I think it's enough. She's special. More explanation would go into exposition territory.

- About her processing about her twin death, I just thought about something reading your point. Maybe her recovery was fast because she was already processing the death. It IS a reach but, say. Sumire, pretending to be Kasumi, came to terms to her sister's death. Okay. Once Sumire went back, since she was already processing the loss, the shock went full on "wtf who am I really?" And I think most of her trauma came with the guilty that she contributed to her sister's death.

- What was Maruki doing? I think it's what we saw. He helped Rumi. Kept his research in secret while taking care of some patients. One of them was Sumire. She was a drastic case so he helped her. I don't think he helped more people at this time, and if he did, they were extreme cases like Rumi and Sumire. They were irrelevent, tho. Because they were like Rumi and Sumire. If he did help more people, they were unremarkable to him. Sumire was his second successful case. His Persona wasn't fully awakened yet, keep that in mind. He got the job at Shujin to keep an eye on Sumire while finishing his paper and keeping up with the kids.

- The blue butterfly: only the persona users could see it. And the party members did get invited to the Velvet Room and talked to both Lavenza and Igor, with the exceptions of Akechi (probably went before tho bc Yaldabaoth) and Sumire.

- She stalking him and the important job: Mona knew amd talked about it, so most likelly it was Phantom Thieves business. Why else would a talking cat care?

- But it was for the betterment of society and saving it from injustice. Maruki wanted the world to like by his rules, he had good intentions but his views were flawed, as seen by that part in his palace where you answered quizzes with what was right and wrong. Plus, remember, at first Sumire didn't agree with the Phantom Thieves changing hearts because she wishes for people to be able to solve their own problems by themselves. People should be able to stand on their own, without relying to a god, a group of teens or someone dictating their lives and take away the pain. Free will and struggle are too important for her, which is also a shock when you realize Maruki's meddling with her cognition. BTW I think this is also one of the moments where we can see, deep down, this is Sumire's view of the world. If she was only mimicking Kasumi, when we explored the palace she could have agreed to Maruki or wouldn't feel unconfortable on the quizz part. The question about "give up on your dream and get a new one" really hurt her.

- Marinette is a static character. Her views get challenged, she gets more roles (being the new guardian and everything) but at the end of the day she's still the same old Marinette. They even get TIME TRAVEL ffs Astruc. On the other hand, the Sumire from the start of the game is not the same from the end, the whole "stole identity act" aside. She gets braver, she stands up for herself and what's right, she finally can reach international competitions, comes to terms with her sister's demise and even gets her self confidence back.

OOF! DONE!

Sorry if I made any spelling mistake, english isn't my first language, it's 1 am over here and im tired.

Once again thank you if you took your time reading, I'm loving our talks.

NOTE: This will be my last post over this discussion as I will not be accepting messages regarding this debate topic anymore. My original post that led to these exchange of views was just meant for me to let these bubbling thought go, leaving it behind and moving on with my continuation for writing. An outlet. And while I appreciate the responses of different opinions, please understand and respect my choice that I am done with it and am moving on.

Your long discussion is something else, I’m impressed by you making an extended analysis and outlook. And it’s kind of hard to dismiss a message from my inbox with such a lengthy text. I feel like I’m kinda overwhelmed seeing the time you take to message me again regarding the topic further. Though I have to admit that this subject has brought burnout for me, as I am brought to think about her again when I was going for moving on from her. But I’m not pointing fingers at you or anyone else. My opinion on her has hasn’t changed much, she is a poorly written character who is still my least favourite, but she had potential to be something if under the right circumstances.

Though I can see your point of view, I can’t help but diverge from them as well. There are gaps where we probably won’t totally look at things about the character the same way, which I understand and mean no rudeness by it.

Also, thank you for the follow. Though I’m not sure if my regular posts would be appealing to you following me based on our discussion, considering I run a storytelling blog, aside from the inbox discussion which is not actually my preference to do on Tumblr. I thought the other debate would leave a different impression but I’m glad it didn’t.

Anyways, back to my point of view.

For the slumps, I suppose I just view them from the writing perspective for the most part. I can see it being subtle as well, but perhaps too subtle to the point where it’s not elaborated enough for her story. I think Atlus should’ve done more to link her connection with Maruki further, like her routinely going to his sessions so he’d keep her cognition in check, more showy in being off putting if not, etc, since it felt like she stayed the same when acting as her sister until the reveal happened. Everyone has slumps, but her’s can’t be different she is not introspective enough that there’s more to it then that. If she was more about the loss of her sister when acting as Kasumi then there’d be a reason for the difference in her slumps.

It makes sense for Japan to walk around topics from mental health as a country who thinks about it differently from others. I’m not going to put a label any more than that as these subjects are never to be defined by others as one thing or be something that everyone agrees on. I wouldn’t put Kasumi as being Sumire’s Eiko or Shiho since I was actually meaning about her association currently instead of the past. Especially when we know more about those two unlike the real Kasumi. I would say she was more like Sae for the sister aspect, including the predictable similarities the Yoshizawas have with the Niijimas and the grief and loss of their father, and Futaba’s mother Wakaba. Her trainer wouldn’t be quite the same as she’s only in Yoshizawa’s life when it’s about her training and classes but nothing so familial. When the real ‘person in the area’ should’ve been her parents after losing one of their kids. And their lack of involvement is disappointing. Her words spoken when choosing to battle Joker and Akechi show that she hadn’t accepted her sister’s death with healing and affirmation during the times she impersonated her. That is not how a person overcomes grief. Acting as a deceased loved one and ignoring the reality of it is not acceptance, it’s avoidance and a coping method of blocking out the truth. It’s unhealthy. And her parents are pretty crappy because of how they respond to that situation. Her father makes only a rare appearance, they aren’t being constant figures in her life, and they let her parade around as Kasumi when they should’ve sat her down and talked to her about what she is doing to herself and to them as a family. Sumire’s cognition only affects her, so they know the truth. It’s not how anyone should go about loss and sorrow when it doesn’t resolve anything but a painful reminder. If they had bothered to care more about their daughter’s situation and be more present and involved in her life, Sumire wouldn’t be so pushed to the edge of her inner struggles when she could talk to them about it. And a point that you’ve mentioned on how people had distanced themselves from her is saying that, aside from her parents, coach, and obviously Joker and Maruki, there has apparently not been a single decent person at all in her life besides the obvious four where two are not around enough. This just proves that whatever so called bond she has with the thieves is so minuscule and inconsistent when she doesn’t even consider them. They’re the ones out of the other confidants of Joker that she interacts with, yet those interactions have no substance as she discredits them compared to Joker, who she only gives her real attention to when it should’ve been in fair amounts in regards to having anyone decent in her life.

To have her phone be malfunctioning by Maruki is a bit strange to me since his powers are a little confusing. That detail doesn’t happen to the other thieves when he grants their wishes and affects their mentality. It may be the side affect of her cognition, but if that were the case then only Yoshizawa would’ve been the only one affected by her phone malfunctioning. But we can notice the malfunction, too. So it has to be that she took her sister’s phone or her phone was broken herself from the impact of the traffic accident. But that would depend on if the twins had their phones on their person in their bags. Yet that is also iffy when her phone goes back to normal, so she’s either gotten herself a new one or something. It’s just confusing and weird. Yoshizawa’s ID is all Joker had to go off of in identifying her anyways, but there’s creative opportunities in finding out her real name. Since everyone apparently knew what happened and her backstory, it must’ve landed on the news. I’d think that advancing her confidant didn’t need to be the reason to reach the royal route when Maruki is the star of Third Semester, a confidant, and has interactions with everyone that can leave a more interesting opportunity for royal’s route. It revolves around him like Nyx, Izanami, and Yaldabaoth. And he is similar to Nyx and Yaldabaoth in the sense that the three are both responding to what people wanted. While she answers to humanity’s desire for death and extinction, while he and Yaldabaoth are about granting deepest desires, which compensates for their own benefits.

Maybe the point Atlus made for the end meeting of Yoshizawa was that she’s fine to go back to her life as nothing ties her to the thieves anymore. Because her one true objective was defeating Maruki, and having achieved that, went to continue her career as a gymnast. Which would majorly diverge her path from others due to absences, different goals, that kind of thing. Since the only thing she cares about is gymnastics, it’s her priority that she holds above all else. Which could even transcend the thieves. It makes sense that her and Cendrillon are the odd ones out.

I feel like her first awakening needed more than just ‘going against common sense’. Her failings of gymnastics other than for her own personal goals mean nothing else to her. The dialogue for her first awakening explains that that’s the reason for her rebellion, what others have said about her. When, in contradictory, she factly states that she does not care for her special treatment, the school’s approval, or her honour student status, who she herself is opposing the terms upholding said status that she also doesn’t care about. All of her ‘potentially losing her status’ is just by a result of her own actions and self-knowledge. She is fully aware that keeping the honour student-athlete status all depends on her only and that the consequences of it taken away are the results of her actions. Not anyone else’s. Like being in third place. That all came down on her alone. Yet she spins it as if it’s unfair and that she’s being wronged. Making a commotion because she is unable to deal with her slumps that she claims is affecting her gymnastics, which is not delved upon further detail, is not worth the attention of storytelling when there is nothing off about the school staff warning her about the loss of status. There’s just no injustice. She won’t let anyone speak ill of her dream? Why when she doesn’t even care about anyone has said. Does she tell every person what she wants to be when she grows up? Nothing about her getting third place was rigged, it’s just the result of her performance that she failed to meet in the end. That’s it. And fake Kasumi’s reaction over losing her younger twin is not impactful. She brushes pass her “death” with mild sadness and grief and continues off on her merry way. Even Sumire’s fake appearance in the Palace was small. If fake Kasumi had cared about her sister more, and the situation around her, then we’d have something more interesting to go off of. To say that her awakening was just about her identity crisis doesn’t fit because that wasn’t what was presented in the dialogue or the scene leading up to her gaining a Persona. And she said that her name was Kasumi, she was still in firm belief that she was the older twin, not that she accepted that she couldn’t be her sister. If that were the case, then we, as the player, would’ve known her true identity sooner as a result because her lines would’ve given evidence. The reveal of her actual sister shows that she genuinely thought it was the other way around. Cendrillon’s words like “Rather than accept a life in cinders, you’d strive towards splendor, you know the risk. Well, if those really are the shoes you’ve chosen.” works with Yoshizawa’s, albeit rather poorly, motive for awakening. Cinderella had strived to have the freedom to do what she wanted without being held back, to be something a little more than what she really was. It aligns with Yoshizawa’s goals when as fake Kasumi: to reach the level of gymnastics on a higher level for herself, since that’s the only thing that matters to her. The student status goes with the athlete status, but she doesn’t even care for it. She wants to be a star, to be the best of her club and proceed bigger goals. Her ‘Risk’ is being stripped of her honour student status title as the result of her inability to meet the requirements of first or second place tournaments that come with the athlete terms she is consciously aware of. There’s no fowl play, no rigging, no unfairness. It’s simple understanding and consent by both parties. She knew exactly what to expect depending on the outcome.

The ‘shoes’ she’s chosen can be more than just her filling in her sister’s place. Cinderella puts no effort to be someone else, she’s just perceived by that impression from others after her fairy godmother makeover. She stays the same person as when she attended the ball and never had to put on an act. The thing about Sumire achieving Kasumi’s dream for her by being as her is obviously a major flaw, that’s not how life works. Sumire is aware that to accomplish a goal like reaching to the top, to want to put oneself in a higher position requires the person themself to truly reach that dream. She knows that that’s what Kasumi wanted, not only with her but also for herself by her own efforts. And being in Kasumi’s position was the most notable thing about what Sumire wanted, she wanted what her sister already had. But for Sumire, her inferiority complex and jealousy isn’t simply a mild thing, it’s pushed to the edge to the point where it’s so unhealthy that it consumes her and her treatment of the people in her life. For fake Kasumi, the shoes can be a representation of her ideal objective, because it’s a symbol of success like how Cinderella got her happy ending from those shoes, which she keeps to the end. So fake Kasumi’s version would be to reach gymnastics on the global scale that she’s mentioned before. Because that’s the only thing she cares about. How Sumire and fake Kasumi think are an interesting comparison. And it’s also only based on Sumire’s interpretation of her twin, but still a sort of instinctive reflection of herself. Judging by Maruki’s powers, it’s clear that what the wisher desired is a likelinesses of oneself. Unlike some of the other thieves, Sumire never wanted Kasumi’s return. And I don’t think it’s because she “accepted her death” when that can be open to a different meaning. She literally confessed when opposing Joker and Akechi that she couldn’t stand remembering the truth. Her being Kasumi is not a way to heal from grief. She could’ve viewed it as “Kasumi’s gone. I was the cause and I don’t want to remember that. I’ve always wanted to be like her, to move like her, all of it. I can be rid of my guilt and be the person I’ve always wanted to be. And I can reach the top like we had strived for. As the twin who had everything.” kind of mindset. To her, Kasumi and Sumire cannot coexist, there needs to be only one that remains. While it can be seen that her desire to be Kasumi is of survivor’s guilt and that her sister should’ve been the one who lived, it can also be for herself. She envied Kasumi to an unstable amount, and it’s implied that the two lacked communication about each other’s feelings. She wanted to be Kasumi, to be in her position as the best, to be thought of as such by her peers, and a spotlight dedicated for herself. This can be viewed as the unstable selfish side of Sumire regarding her inferiority and possible resentment towards her sister, because that also stems to jealousy. Her growing issues and struggles not only affects her, but also the people in her life. It isn’t just one defined thing that she believed Kasumi should’ve lived when she has a layer of internal issues that can’t be simplified.

To say her second awakening is about her rebelling against Maruki’s society is off. Including Maruki “changing the world”, because that is a doubtful outcome. Nyx is an exception since she’s an ancient being that’s been around for eons. She was brought up to answer humanity’s wish, death. Which has been their growing desire that’s been built up after thousands of years. And she was to bring the end to the entire world. Yaldaboath and Izanani, on the other hand, are different because their powers only stretch within Inaba and Tokyo. As far as we know anyways, Yaldaboath’s influence has only been over Tokyo. Like how the Dark Hour only happens in Tatsumi Port Island. The Dark Hour happened from the broth of the Kirijo Group’s meddling and failed experiment. Inaba fog and TV world was an experiment by Izanami who pinned P4 Protag and Adachi against each other to see who’d win. Yaldaboath made a bet with Igor over similar circumstances. Him with Akechi, Igor with Joker, and who’d be victorious with their own morals. It sets the reasoning behind the other world’s locations being in these places. It is an improbable chance that Maruki’s abilities are capable of affecting the whole world when he is a human being with a Persona and a Palace. Yaldaboath is the one with the obvious possibility of affecting the world into distortion and twisted desires, he’s a supernatural entity with inhuman abilities. Maruki’s may be amplified by his Persona with his Palace to back him, that doesn’t mean his powers are unlimited. They would reach to the extend of his own location. While Personas are capable and grow by strength, they are not invincible or superiorly godlike. Like taking over the globe. So the idea that Maruki took over the world in comparison to the true antagonists is inconsistent.

Yoshizawa had willingly agreed with his empathetic, yet misguided view that everyone can be happy. She wanted to go back to being Kasumi, not only so she’d forget her cause of death, but also to continue in a happy place of ignorance and position where she was the elder twin who had everything. Maruki’s Actualisation focuses on the deepest desire of a person becomes true. But that is not forced on everyone; aka, Joker and Akechi. Joker is easy to understand, he’s in a place where he is fine where he is, the present. He has no lost loved one, he’s free of his record, he’s made allies, he’s released the chains of fate tied to him, freed the city from corruption, he’s just in a good place where his life was already on track. Akechi has never been one to bow to false happiness and accept deceiving fantasies of having his own mother return or anything like that. It works for them beu see they are a mirror of each other that went down different roads in life. Though Sumire’s second awakening is at least a little more consistent, as she embraces her real identity, it doesn’t align that she’s rebelled against Maruki or rebelled at all. She has no will of rebellion in either awakenings, yet her both awakenings didn’t really matter. Atlus just added it for audience sake. Because deep down she’s already made that choice when returning to the real world and living as herself. Maruki’s powers weren’t forced down her throat, she wished for it and got what she had wanted like the thieves. But she already had this figured out when returning from his Palace. Her sister’s death is still fresh, her internal struggles haven’t gone away, her selfishness is still there, she accepts that Kasumi is dead but hasn’t made peace with it before her mind was blocked for fake Kasumi, something that was by her own choice.

Sumire and fake/real Kasumi had always wanted to be gymnasts as their profession before they even met Joker. And despite absences of confidants like Akechi, she was always the one with the least amount of appearances. Akechi plays an important key role for Joker, they are two similar yet different individuals who go as two sides of the same coin. Yin and Yang. Rivals. Haru only being relevant until Yoshizawa’s return is just one of many script changes by Atlus so that we’re reminded that Yoshizawa is actually supposed to be important.

It’s obvious that Kamoshida and the volleyball team were considered the ‘star’ when volleyball was the most mentioned sports in the school, with track second. And that was the case because of the Kamoshida drama. With the reputation of volleyball being under fire just as the school’s. Yet it is baffling how out of an entire school, Yoshizawa is the well known athlete when there should be absolutely way more recognized athletes that isn’t just defined by the volleyball team who do other sports. It’s a plot hole. It’s like saying she’s the only honour student in school, when Makoto and I’m sure other star students fit the slot, too.

The reason for Joker’s friends not attending the dance is a pretty lazy excuse. A plot hole. Saying that they’ve all unavailable for going home sounds so inconsistent. Especially since almost all the thieves attend the same school, including even Mishima, and with the number of them, at least one would’ve made sense to stay. And of course the dance scene is mandatory, even after a romantic event with someone else, because it’s too literally focus solely on Yoshizawa. That’s the whole reason Atlus made the dance interaction in the first place when it doesn’t happen in vanilla p5 during the festival.

The thing about me going about “Cendrillon doesn’t physically change” is the matter that Sumire, being fake Kasumi, carried the cognition that she was in full belief that she was someone else with a different conscience mindset. Even if Sumire’s mind may have been repressed and kept as a form of subconscious, what fake Kasumi believed in was real to her. As I’ve stated previously, fake Kasumi truly thought that she was the older twin until the reveal. Persona; the physical representation of a psyche, leaves some gaps. Because things like identity crisis, amnesia and other similar situations can affect and influence a person’s psyche greatly. It’s about knowing yourself, knowing who you are and what you stand for and stand by. Personas are foreshadowings and representations of the characters’ stories. They don’t change because the stories fill out all the way to the end.

Another thing, Cendrillon doesn’t fight, period. Not for others, not for a cause, not even for herself. Carmen and Milady are not the same as the fairytale damsel. Also because they are not damsels, they’re femme fatale oriented characters who do more in their stories. They’re fighters, in personality wise and mentally. They do not let men or anyone walk all over them. Carmen’s death goes with the lines that she will always be free, tied down by no one. She’d rather choose to die than be bounded in life. While Milady, made as an antagonist with no remorse for her actions, is executed for her crimes. The two women share many traits like deceit, sneakiness, cleverness, living their lives by their own rules with no regrets, even with the consequences. Cinderella can hardly be considered a Trickster. When, as I’ve mentioned before, aside from her fairy godmother makeover, she does not change in any way apart from her appearance. She didn’t even try to trick anyone when no body but her stepfamily would recognize her, and yet the stepfamily don’t even interact with her at the ball. The only characters (excluding animal friends depending on what version) that do anything in the whole story, are the prince and fairy godmother. The prince just lets her identity slip by him because of physical attraction and “love at first sight”. He’s the reason for how Cinderella ends turns out in her life, he made the decision to test every woman am with the glass slipper and put it into action. That’s really the glory of the slippers; her doing nothing and him doing something by hormonal attraction by first meeting. She can hardly even try to lie because he doesn’t bother getting to know her enough like a rational person when he immediately sees her and instantly decides she’s the one to marry after a dance and a conversation, which wouldn’t be much from a first meeting. She looks just like everyone else at the ball, so of course nobody would notice. This was all the fairy godmother’s doing in the first place.

Remember, Persona 5’s whole theme is about Tricksters, rebellion, and characters who stand by free will. That’s the entire point of the game’s story and symbolism. It’s Persona, all the games in the series have a theme with Personas basing off them.

The romance thing with Haru isn’t really anything new. In vanilla p5, Atlus pushes Joker and Makoto more as a couple, and they even had to act like one for Eiko, and have scenes in Futaba and Sae’s Palaces, or the other girls in a more mild way. But in Royal, it is so blatant that they changed things to ship Yoshizawa instead since she’s the poster girl. Okay

How does getting her father’s glasses have Sumire making her own choice when she was actually Kasumi? Her mindset was from her cognition when that event happened. It wasn’t actually her being herself. Her making her own choice can be the case for any scenario, but one that she’s always made was letting real Kasumi do what she wants. That was a choice. They’re twins, supposedly meant to be close, so she’d had to let her sister make choices for her when she could’ve spoken up about it at any point. And her being ready to leave the responsibility up to Joker can just be seen as consideration since he came all this way for a simple task. That’s normal for politeness and matters. It’s not that significant.

Her friendship with Maruki is normal, it’s not abnormal. But Maruki gives small amounts of manipulation and gaslighting to have her and everyone else under his powers. Maruki, you’re a considerate guy and all, but please NEVER counsel anyone ever again. To say that he’s “just that good of a therapist” by getting her all better is, ludicrous. How does this obvious shift of transition from her turning into fake Kasumi a sign that he’s a amazing at counseling when EVERYONE can see that she’s masquerading as her sister. The school knows this, her club, her teachers, her trainer, for the love of god her parents. You’ve also mentioned this that they do. She even vocally calls herself Kasumi and carries her sister’s ID. It’s clear to everyone, minus Joker and maybe others who don’t attend Shujin, that she is not fine. It’s such a weird contradiction that the people in her life are fully aware that she’s pretending to be her sister and yet act like that’s a completely normal thing when it’s her cognition, by the power of Maruki, that’s actually being affected. I feel like I’m repeating my points again, but parading around as a deceased person who has been in your life, is not how a person healthily recovers and heals from loss. That is not natural or normal. People should know that! Especially her parents! It doesn’t make any sense why it’s going this route other than another plot hole that Atlus made as an excuse so Joker wouldn’t find out about her identity sooner. It’s absurd.

I’ve mentioned the effect of her student status in the other points I’ve made a few times. It’s not about the gossip, the tests, skipping classes when she does not care for any of that unless it involves her personal goals of gymnastics. Otherwise, she doesn’t care for it at all. And I also talked about her processing of her sister’s death.

Which of her stalkings? Because Morgana did not even know about both these cases. Her confessing to tailing them thieves left just as much of shock to him as Futaba and Joker. The same for when she pops up in Maruki’s Palace on her own.

Joker has been the only person to see the blue butterfly. He’s a wildcard, he has the fool arcana, he’s contracted to the velvet room. Of course he can see it. Morgana can as well because he was created by Igor. Velvet room attendants can alter their appearances based off the other games. They are capable of turning invisible to the human eye when going into the human world or be apparent. But they are always viable to their guests. The thieves’ reason for being in the velvet room in the first place was because of Yaldoboath, the false god took them to repress their strive for justice and tried to manipulate Joker for a deal because he cheated on his bet with Igor and infiltrated the velvet room so he’d win. Impersonating Igor and splitting Lavenza so she wouldn’t recognize his true identity. None of that was Igor or Lavenza’s doing. It’s a similar scenario to P3’s the answer. Where it was that SEES reached their conclusion and conviction and were able to follow Aigis to the velvet room, just like the thieves when they reach their resolve and are able to leave their cells. Lavenza even stays in the nurse’s office as Joker recruits everyone to meet, but not all of them appear at once. The entrances to the velvet room are all in various locations between the real world and the supernatural. Public places that can by stumbled upon mind you. And nobody in SEES, Investigation Team, or the Phantom Thieves have been able to actually see the entrance. The Persona-Users. They just think the leaders are lost in thought or daydreaming. And as I’ve stated before, the interaction of the thieves being in the velvet room wasn’t even by the residents’ choice because of Yaldaboath. He infiltrated the velvet room.

The Phantom Thieves were put as a public symbol of inspiration for society to solve their own problems if they could help it. Of course everyone knows that the thieves can’t fix everything and make everyone hunky dory. Maruki’s rules aren’t necessarily by his rules, as the power of his actualisation depends on the person he can affect if they have a wish so deep, like bringing back the dead. It feels like Yoshizawa undermines the meaning of solving one’s own problems when there are times solving things on your own just isn’t enough.

That’s the thing with Sumire on the Marinette similarities. They get no consequences from the result of their actions, it’s excused and passed off, or the repercussions are light. While Sumire gets self confidence, no matter the little amount of time it happened, she goes back to being the same character as we saw her in the beginning. And wardrobe and hair are a big part of visual representation on characters. Her hair goes back into a ponytail with the red bow, and her glasses are gone. She looks exactly the same as when Joker first meets her in the ending. Everything’s the same. Just like her thief attire where she had truly sought for herself to be her sister. There’s nothing that differentiates them apart. Regarding Marinette, most of my opinions over her are similar to Youtuber Cyrus the Great’s analysis videos on the show if you’re curious. He’s pretty detailed and makes interesting notes about her and the cast.

hello, sorry to bother but i think some of your links are broken like the masterlist one

I’ve noticed it. I have been trying to fix it but when I tap on the links myself it doesn’t really work either. It made me wonder if it’s because the Tumblr app changed or something. I’ll be trying to get the links working.

hey good day, I'm going to tell you that I fucking love you're writing.

Oh, thank you! I know I’m not the fastest to add new works, but it means a lot that anyone enjoys what I write. I also appreciate yours and others’ kind messages.

cCan i do a small ice breaker? like a small teehee question? 🗣

if yes, then i wanna hear your opinions on akechi, the guy, the bro, the man that got his carefully planned years long revenge plot absolutely destroyed with breakfast food. the one and only that embodies my emotions when im experiencing That Time Of The Month.

imo, im so glad that he got fleshed out more in royal. he was like a surprisingly breath of fresh air cause, like, while the thieves are pretty positive and great, i really wanted someone that was like the opposite or something like that. third semester was lowk one of the best additions in the entire game despite uh.. a certain gymnast..

either way, im lowk looking forward to akechi's and entwined hearts!reader's dynamic.. like omg imagine the awkwardness.. happy valentines by the way, hope this isn't too much a bother!

Well, Happy belated Valentine’s Day to you. So, my opinions on Akechi, huh? Well he is an interesting character for Persona 5, similar to Adachi from Persona 4. He balances out well with Joker since they’re meant to be two sides of the same coin. He’s a character with a lot of layers and complexity, an interesting backstory. He brings a lot to the table and his involvement really helps the direction of Persona 5’s plot, including Third Semester. Akechi’s rivalry and opposing characteristics of Joker and the Phantom Thieves are important. Kinda like Arsène and Sherlock Holmes. And of course we get to understand why he is the way he is.

Though despite it all I personally don’t like him. But I do like his character in a story sense. I can get behind his character and all, but I don’t have to be a fan to do so. Despite Akechi’s tragedies and struggles, he is technically a sadistic psychotic murderer who manipulates and uses people to further his agenda no matter what until he stops. Nothing can really excuse that. That’s a choice. I can’t say I was moved by his sacrifice, but I understand it is for his character arc. He did have no problem showing zero hesitancy to kill Joker and shoot him straight in the head. He was pretty much yearning to do that.

I can’t say much about Akechi and Entwined Hearts’ Reader’s interactions will be like. Though you’d probably have a clear guess to what it’ll be like. They’re opposites on opposite sides. The tension and displeasure could cut a Shadow with a single slice. Plus, you can also say it’s similar to another tense/conflicting relationship from.. let’s say, P3? If you know the two characters I’m referring to.

what art thou's own opinion on the grandeth opening of persona 5: the phantom x

one craves for the opening of persona 6 but one will also be satisfied for now

I honestly have mixed and confused feelings about this. Look, I have to say, in my opinion, it feels a bit like a rip off of Persona 5 and the game’s legacy. It’s clearly a spin-off, but to base it off Persona 5 with no connection to the Phantom Thieves themselves? That’s only a speculation. But another group of the same circumstances as the Thieves? Of course the game hasn’t been released yet so nothing is concrete. I really don’t know what to feel about it. Though right off the bat the additional is odd, “The Phantom X”?

But I question the point of Atlus going in this direction. This new cast’ having Metaverse outfits. An owl is the mascot, we got a new Velvet Room, another female attendant (poor Theodore is truly outnumbered). The X Protagonist’s Persona honestly looked like a jellyfish to me the first time I saw it and I can’t stop seeing it that way. The design makes it so you’d have to look real close to notice it’s supposed to be humanoid. They’re clearly imitating the Phantom Thieves. If this guy’s the new Wildcard, it’d make sense to make it a full game of establishing confidants and rank. I really wonder where they’re going with this, and what’s added to the timeline/story of the Persona franchise when it seems like it copies too much of P5 itself and doesn’t give enough originality. The other cast’s Personas are also… interesting choices. Including the code names (are they actually serious? what kind of choice of names are those?).

While I am skeptical, I’ll probably go learn more about it when it comes out. We’ll see. Who knows what the game will reveal. It’s kind of you to ask my opinion about it, I like having these conversations.

i’m skeptical about p5X too, but Atlus isn’t the company mainly developing it, so hopefully this will be the time for them to work on p6 and not another p5 game

Yeah, but Atlus owns the series, so I’m sure they’d have to have the final say of what goes on. Making another P5 game is one thing. I know there have been talks about fans wanting P5 Arena, we already have Strikers, but to make a spin-off? Without the original crew? P5 was what brought great popularity to the Persona series with its new upgrades from P3 & P4, it’d be hard to top it but the company has most likely already been ahead in the planning. We’ll just have to see how it goes.

Hello !! May I ask why isn't your rules link isn't working?

I’ll get it running. Reason is that because I’ve changed my username the links probably didn’t follow through with it. There will be times where I won’t know which link isn’t working since I don’t exactly look over my posts often.

your thoughts on sumire definitely aren't wrong, but i personally see her as "a bad person pretending to be good." the fanservice, x joker, and being shoehorned into the plot are basically all a given, considering basically all the girls get the first two, and she wasn't in vanilla so ofc she's gonna be shoehorned in royal.

as for sumire herself, her good-girl waifu act is just that: an act. she's meant to come off as a one dimensional waifu to hide her deeper, more toxic traits.

from the first cutscene where we see her true self, it's implied sumire was attempting suicide before kasumi saved her. and her reaction to this? to wish she was kasumi, to take kasumi's successes as her own. and when this doesn't work, she can't compare to kasumi's natural charm, sumire's perfect persona cracks.

and once maruki gains more power, to where he can even ressurect wakaba, okumura, and akechi, sumire still wishes to be kasumi. her desires don't change to bringing kasumi back like the other three. because sumire psychologically cannot stand to live as her inadequate, depressed, talentless self, she has to take kasumi's successes as her own. to her, there's no way "sumire" and "kasumi" can co-exist.

in this way, sumire is an extremely morbid character, disguised as a basic waifu. and the icing on the cake is one of her battle quotes: "what doesn't kill me makes me stronger."

For context, this a past comment regarding my character opinions post here that I finally decided to include here:

My Rants on Kasumi Yoshizawa + 1 & 2

Thanks for the reply, Anon. I mean, I don’t think Sumire was actually attempting suicide. She got overwhelmed with her frustrations and wanted to get away from the source of them, which is Kasumi, so she ran from her and didn’t look where she was even going. As nice as it is to get responses and feedback, I DO NOT want to relive getting the hate comments from this character’s cult for expressing my thoughts freely. Please be reasonable when you respond to posts and think before firing hate onto others. If you don’t like these posts I have then it’s fine to ignore and not care, it’s not important.

i also agree with your opinion. at first she's kinda cool, i liked the idea of her guilt and thus taking her identity due to the fact she feels that her sister should be the one who's alive. but watching her play out throughout the game was kinda.. meh? everything abt her feels so forced to me. like maruki was also a new character, but he felt more natural. it was pretty obvious that one of the reasons she was there was to be the waifu bait.

tldr: she was kinda cool at first, but was kinda disappointing. 5/10. could be executed better.

For context, this a past comment regarding my character opinions post here that I finally decided to include here:

My Rants on Kasumi Yoshizawa + 1 & 2

Thanks for the reply, Anon. As nice as it is to get responses and feedback, I DO NOT want to relive getting the hate comments from this character’s cult for expressing my thoughts freely. Please be reasonable when you respond to posts and think before firing hate onto others. If you don’t like these posts I have then it’s fine to ignore and not care, it’s not important.

bow chika wow wow can i pretty please with a cherry on top ask whats your favorite character in hazbin hotel

Sure, Anon. I have a few.

For being in only 2 episodes, Lucifer does steal the spotlight for me when he shows up. He’s my favourite adaptation of the Devil, like the Lucifer show is cool, Chilling Adventures of Sabrina’s version is pretty much a creep with the standard evil portrayal that we’re all aware of when it comes to Lucifer/Satan/the Devil and all that. Those are the ones I’m familiar with. But Hazbin Hotel’s Lucifer is very unique and interesting.

Before the show came out a majority of the fandom thought he was strict, cold, wicked and more among those lines, especially an absentee because of Charlie’s dream, but we’re all proven wrong. He’s silly and goofy, an actual loving father, loves ducks which seems to be from the Ugly Duckling story. The fact that he isn’t sinister because he rules Hell and all evil, but a family guy who got shunned and doesn’t like sinners because they turned evil themselves for the freedom he gave them to do good is so intriguing and quite sad. He’s such a fun character to watch when he’s on screen. And the finale where he helps rebuild the hotel with Charlie is sweet.

Alastor is always the fan favorite for how the audience knows immediately that he’s cruel, pretty much a sociopath, sadistic, a cannibal serial killer, but he’s entertaining for his personality and how different and mysterious he is compared to the rest of the cast. A real example of a demon in Hell. I’ve watched Hunicast and it’s amusing to hear him tell dad jokes and be witty and everything. His relationships with Rosie and Niffty appear a lot more genuine than others. For his name to be Alastor and be the opposite of what it means is unique. He’s truly an interesting character and his secrets make it even more so.

Husk is a favourite, too. Especially after Loser Baby with Angel Dust, their dynamic with each other got better and the bond they have from it is nice

not trying to be a dick but if all of your sumire thoughts are just character hate like, what exactly possesses you to put it in the all the main fandom tags as well as the character tag. like, if you don't want to get hate from her "cult" why are you putting your rants in the tags they use. puzzling behaviour.

(I’m not adding Keep Reading on this)

Okay, dear Anon, let me answer this “puzzling behaviour” you think that is.

This is literally my RIGHT as freedom of speech and that just BECAUSE I’M MAKING AN OPINION, it’s labeled as hate. And I CAN hate a character all I want because that’s my right to think and choose and feel to do so. Why do I always have to keep stating this?

My thoughts on Sumire are everything I’ve considered on how her role and character doesn’t fit the story and point she is supposedly supposed to make from the writers. That’s MY take. So take it or leave it. I don’t dislike her for NOTHING!! I’m not throwing this crap for shits and giggles. I have reasons. My rant posts are my reasons. What I’m seeing here is you being incredibly biased and narrow-minded.

And they have had debates by others. Do you know how lengthy these were to read and respond back? They didn’t start shit but rather offered polite opinions of their own. The reactions to these things were exactly what I expected and something I debated about even posting that in the first place because I knew people were going spew pointless hater talk bullcrap at me. And it’s tiring. Especially about a character that’s worshipped so highly, it makes anything you say against them seem controversial.

And these tags are there because it’s about them? What’s hard to understand that while I knew I was bringing myself attention for adding these tags, I did so on the grounds of seeing anyone else thinking similar things or offering something different instead of collecting tumbleweeds waiting for anyone to stumble across my posts. I had said before that if anyone could even sway me on this, they could try. But after all this time I can’t be bothered to give a shit at the end of the day on a fictional character and this hate judgement you’re throwing me with hypocrisy. Blind level of understanding. And that’s not what my rants were at all.

If you can’t even make a counterpoint to my argument, much less talk about why I’m such a hater for my personal thoughts, even with a series of reasons to explain why, then your response here has no purpose.

I am TIRED of having to repeat myself over this pettiness and repetitive song and dance calling me a hater with hate. I can say whatever I want about whatever I want. Everyone’s always going to think differently and be judgy about them but nobody needs permission to think differently. Have a nice day, Anon.

I’m going to say this bluntly in regards of Kasumi/Sumire: Yes, she’s a character that the audience relate to, such as her depressive slumps, the emotional grudge against her twin sister. But with that said, her story doesn’t connect with the themes of Persona 5 which is why her character sucks. From her unsympathetic reasoning for her Persona awakening, to how everyone around her reacts to her presence, she feels more like an unused character for Persona 4. Instead of filling in the holes within Persona vanilla, Altus just created a lifeless poster girl with themes that don’t connect with Persona 5.

It’s to the point where Sophia, an artificial intelligence from a spinoff game, manages to stay in tune with the theme of rebellion.(Plus Kasumi feels like an Oc made by Persona fan who has a hard on for Joker)

[ I AM NO LONGER ACCEPTING INBOX RESPONSES ABOUT THIS MATTER ]

Final comment regarding my character opinions post here that I finally decided to include here:

My Rants on Kasumi Yoshizawa + 1 & 2

I appreciate another opinion, Anon. But I will not take anymore replies on this. My inbox is for requests, questions, and harmless chats. This blog is dedicated to writing, and sometimes art if I plan on it. Please respect that.

These comments are only posted to publicly showcase anonymous responses and not to hurt anyone.

Interesting how this ‘crying free speech’ over something like a fictional character study and the related content for that of all things is SOOOOO FUNNY.

Like have my words glitched out or what? If you don’t care why bother? You’re saying my defence for something I think about in my own blog is not what free speech means when that’s what that post was literally about?

When did I say I was censored? How does that make me an asshole? Because I’m talking about the preconceived notions for saying even one criticizing thing for such an overly hyped character? And putting a character’s tag about it? That’s kind of how tags work but sure, you do you, bud.

If this is what your definition of hate is then have it your way, I’m not stopping you. Anyone would find these posts anyway because it’s public(shocker) so why does that even matter?

not trying to be a dick but if all of your sumire thoughts are just character hate like, what exactly possesses you to put it in the all the main fandom tags as well as the character tag. like, if you don't want to get hate from her "cult" why are you putting your rants in the tags they use. puzzling behaviour.

(I’m not adding Keep Reading on this)

Okay, dear Anon, let me answer this “puzzling behaviour” you think that is.

This is literally my RIGHT as freedom of speech and that just BECAUSE I’M MAKING AN OPINION, it’s labeled as hate. And I CAN hate a character all I want because that’s my right to think and choose and feel to do so. Why do I always have to keep stating this?

My thoughts on Sumire are everything I’ve considered on how her role and character doesn’t fit the story and point she is supposedly supposed to make from the writers. That’s MY take. So take it or leave it. I don’t dislike her for NOTHING!! I’m not throwing this crap for shits and giggles. I have reasons. My rant posts are my reasons. What I’m seeing here is you being incredibly biased and narrow-minded.

And they have had debates by others. Do you know how lengthy these were to read and respond back? They didn’t start shit but rather offered polite opinions of their own. The reactions to these things were exactly what I expected and something I debated about even posting that in the first place because I knew people were going spew pointless hater talk bullcrap at me. And it’s tiring. Especially about a character that’s worshipped so highly, it makes anything you say against them seem controversial.

And these tags are there because it’s about them? What’s hard to understand that while I knew I was bringing myself attention for adding these tags, I did so on the grounds of seeing anyone else thinking similar things or offering something different instead of collecting tumbleweeds waiting for anyone to stumble across my posts. I had said before that if anyone could even sway me on this, they could try. But after all this time I can’t be bothered to give a shit at the end of the day on a fictional character and this hate judgement you’re throwing me with hypocrisy. Blind level of understanding. And that’s not what my rants were at all.

If you can’t even make a counterpoint to my argument, much less talk about why I’m such a hater for my personal thoughts, even with a series of reasons to explain why, then your response here has no purpose.

I am TIRED of having to repeat myself over this pettiness and repetitive song and dance calling me a hater with hate. I can say whatever I want about whatever I want. Everyone’s always going to think differently and be judgy about them but nobody needs permission to think differently. Have a nice day, Anon.

Oh, I have seen some works on this theme! From what I understand and have read, while I’m no expert(sorry, I know I’m rambling): specifically, Fenghuangs are mythological birds of Chinese mythology, also interpreted from other eastern cultures, do symbolize the union of yin and yang. They also tend to be considered one and the same as Phoenixes, which blur a lot of what separates between them. The two birds are both thought to contend to the same status as the dragon. Hence, they are portrayed to be perfect pair.

Representations and symbolisms vary about either bird. Fenghuang can be interpreted to represent yin and yang by itself instead of having another being as the other half. The Phoenix is mostly regarded with rebirth than the Fenghuang.

The name, Fenghuang, is a combination of names from Feng(male/yang) and Huang(female/yin), the symbol of yin and yang. But later on the Fenghuang would symbolize femininity while the dragon represents masculinity. The bird(fenghuang/phoenix) and the dragon generally represented the harmonious union of husband and wife, depicted at weddings and royalty.

When I first learnt about it when reading some Zhongli stories with this premise, I was really fascinated and liked the idea a lot. But it honestly slipped past me to try it until you came, Anon! I’d love to write it! I just need to think of a plot. So I hope you don’t mind being patient with me while I figure it out.

hiii I was wondering if your blog is still running!

Yes, it is! I’m just terrible at being active with posting… Besides writing, I don’t really post anything else here.

I've only known this blog for 0,5 seconds, and all I can say is I ADORE your artworks sm!! Your artstyle?? Your ideas?? *mwah* master chef

Oh my gosh tysm I just found this! Tysm ;;3;;)