"Is this how you all felt when we were driving around Mementos? This is horrible…"

Morgana attempted to stretch and dug into Akira's lap, causing him to wince. Beside him, Ryuji was snoring loudly, and Yusuke was attempting to frame the rolling countryside with his fingers.

"Oddly enough, you were a more comfortable ride, but it's a good thing we're not on railroad tracks this time. This van sucks…" Ann whined in the front passenger seat.

"Blame Shido. Legislator's Pins are worthless, and gods don't leave behind any good treasure…" Futaba kicked her feet and commented from behind her laptop, dominating the space of the backseat. Haru, next to her, kindly made space for Futaba's propensity to move around.

Akira sighed. "Why don't we take five? We've been on the road for a couple hours now. We're getting pretty close to our first stop, but it's good not to push ourselves."

Ryuji roused from his slumber at the mention of a break. "Huh, good, I could use a good stretch. My leg fell asleep…"

"That's not the only part of you that did. Any chance we could just kick Ryuji out at the next stop?"

"You damn cat! I can't believe I missed you!" Ryuji leapt at the cat, causing Yusuke to lose his focus and Akira to jump as well. Morgana shot to the other end of the car, causing chaos as he lept to the backseat, and onto Haru's lap.

"Would you guys quiet down please?" Makoto snapped. In an instant, the car was silent. She had been quietly driving for some time. Akira's eyes widened as he looked over at her, seeing her knuckles whiten on the wheel.

"Makoto, pull over at the next exit, I think we could all use a few minutes to catch our breath." Akira said calmly.

Makoto paused. "...Ok." She returned to silence, and there was a stiff tension in the air…

The area was a little further from the ocean than their last stop. The team was surrounded by a decently thick wood, with little to no civilization to be seen. There was a small dirt road leading away from a bus stop, and a small town in the distance.

Akira stretched his arms into the sky and took a deep breath. He looked at the sky for a moment, and then turned to his friends. "We've made some good time today. Let's hang out here for a little while, and I will take over driving. Meet back here in half an hour." The team nodded. Ryuji was off first, shouting that he would bring back snacks for everyone. Ann chased off after him.

Yusuke had already taken his sketchbook out and was roughing out the trees and foliage in the area, while Haru had chased off after Morgana, who was already on a stroll in the woods, shouting "Mona-chan, wait for me!" and running somewhat daintily.

Futaba and Makoto were still in the car, windows rolled down. Akira peered inside, seeing Futaba with a familiar expression of focus, indicating that she wouldn't be moving any time soon.

Akira turned his attention to Makoto, who looked as if she was collapsed against the seat, her eyes closed and a distinct frown on her face. Akira grinned, and leaned in through the window to kiss her cheek.

She opened her eyes in shock, and by the time she turned her head, Akira had already backed away slightly, allowing their eyes to meet. Makoto attempted to smile, but her eyes wavered while looking into his, betraying her feelings.

"Let's take a walk. It's been a while since it was just the two of us," Akira suggested. Makoto could only offer a weak nod, and opened the door. Akira stepped away, allowing Makoto her space, and then stepped in to fill it, wrapping his arm around hers and interlocking his fingers with hers. She practically wrapped her entire being around his arm before separating slightly, remaining close as they walked away.

They walked until they could hear no sounds but the noises of the forest, slowly, and in relative silence.

"You ever gonna tell me what's on your mind?" Akira inquired in his usual, calm, but warm, manner.

"You already know. You always know what's on my mind," Makoto stated harshly. She sighed. "...I'm sorry…"

The two stopped and sat on a log next to one another, evoking memories of Akira's room above Leblanc. She placed her head on his chest, and he leaned down to kiss the top of her head as she did. The two nuzzled each other affectionately.

"You know this isn't forever. I've only got a year left in school and-"

"Dammit I know it isn't forever." She interrupted him sharply, and in pain. He waited.

"Before I met you, I didn't...I didn't even know who I was. I was a coward. I couldn't recognize myself in a mirror. But oddly, I never even thought about such things. Until you came."

Akira shifted very slightly, his heart beat echoing into Makoto's ears.

"I changed. Permanently. I can't ever go back to who I was, and you did that."

Akira sighed. "You worked hard, too." Akira pondered briefly why she was going over so many things they had talked about before.

"Of course I did! But I would have never made that effort without you." Makoto kept her face down, knowing that eye contact would have meant instant tears. "I know it isn't forever, I just…" her voice trailed off. Finally, she wrapped her arms around his waist and buried her face into his chest, beginning to sob.

Akira wrapped his arms around her to the best of his ability, bringing one hand up to stroke her hair as she started to sob harder and harder, muffling her pained screams with his torso. There, she cried and cried, taking a few moments to breathe properly. Akira didn't waver, and held her steady.

After a few minutes, she calmed herself. "...I'm going to miss you."

"I know. I'm going to miss you, too." They sat in this embrace in silence, save for the chirping of birds.

"You know…" Akira began, "You would never have been this emotional before. You've really grown, Makoto."

She looked up into his eyes, and saw his smile. "How do you constantly keep your cool? You're gonna make a girl think you don't care…" She smiled as she brushed tears from her eyes.

Akira's eyes widened and he blushed. "Of course I care! I love you!"

They both blushed. "I love you, too…" Makoto said softly.

They sat in silence for a few minutes more. Makoto began to reflect, and found that these silent moments were the moments she most valued with her beloved Trickster. The life of an honor student rarely had time for such relaxation. She felt comfortable in a way she had never found, even aside of her sense of belonging with the Phantom Thieves.

Akira smiled at her. "Do you know the place we're going to?"

Makoto looked up at him again, with a curious expression. "Well, no. In fact, I was wondering why you were just giving directions, instead of telling us where we were headed." Makoto flipped to rest her head on his lap, looking up at his messy hair.

Akira grinned. "I was gonna leave it a surprise, but we're headed for Inaba, by way of Kanazawa."

Makoto turned her head. "Inaba? Is that your hometown? And why Kanazawa?"

Akira shook his head. "No, but it's pretty close by. There's just something I want to check out there. As for Kanazawa…" He paused and took out his smartphone, tapping on it for a few minutes before revealing the screen to Makoto. "..I would have thought you would know about one of the top law schools in the country, miss police commissioner." Akira smirked triumphantly.

Makoto shot up. "Wait, we're going to a law school? I mean, that's definitely one of my top picks, but-"

Akira put a finger to her lips. "Are you doubting your leader?" He said somewhat arrogantly. "I do have quite a bit of sway with some people. As it turns out, Kawakami-sensei knows some of the faculty there, and they've arranged an interview." He smirked again. "If you're up for it."

Makoto blushed and her eyes darted around, trying to settle on a place to look. "But, with the whole team? They don't need to come along, is this really ok…?"

Akira chuckled. "Haru was the one who recommended it actually, and most of the rest of them already know. I didn't bother telling Ryuji, but I doubt he'll care if we can find some good junk food nearby." Makoto looked on in stunned silence.

"I haven't even told you the best part, and you're already speechless. Maybe I should just wait-" Akira's teasing was interrupted by Makoto's utterly shocked expression.

"Whoa, what best part? What are you scheming?"

"Well, I know Tokyo U will want you. And if that's what you want to do, then no problem. But Kanazawa has one particular perk. You see, my hometown is Tsubata. Only a half an hour away by car, or maybe an hour by train."

Makoto seemed stunned, and Akira waved a hand in front of her face, half teasing.

She suddenly broke from her stupor and leaned up into a kiss. It was deep, and passionate. Akira felt her surprisingly soft hand wrap around the back of his head, pulling him deeper into the kiss. When she finally pulled away, she was beaming. "You know, I could have gotten that interview on my own."

Akira smiled weakly. "I know, but we had a lot going on. I mean, we did save the world."

Makoto smacked his chest. "I'm serious! How did you even manage this while you were in prison?"

Akira sighed. "Well, it wasn't easy. You'll have to thank your sister for managing all of the letters." He paused and smiled. "Except for the ones I sent you. Can't have your sister reading those."

Makoto blushed, remembering the...shocking intimacy that was shared in those letters. "Still, how do you do this? Not just for me, but everyone we've met, you go out of your way to help in such profound ways. You're...absolutely incredible."

Akira blushed, a rare sight to behold. "I don't really know what to say to that. Once I see what I can do, it becomes the only thing on my mind."

Makoto laughed. "You would have a half-assed explanation like that. Well, it's fine. Kanazawa, huh?"

Akira looked up to the sky, the blue with flecks of white cloud peeking through the trees. He grinned. "Yeah...We should be getting back."

Makoto tugged at his waist. "Just a little longer…"

Akira could not find it within himself to disagree, so the two enjoyed the serenity of the woods for a few moments longer...