Quincy Rose @roseblossom01 - Tumblr Blog

A Heartbeat for a Tin Man

A Heartbeat for a Tin Man is my grandest Shuake work, and the foundation from which I build my empire of beautiful beautiful yaoi. It aims to tell the story of their time together, after Akechi's confession of hatred in his rank eight confidant event, and largely before the events of Sae's palace. This is a slow burn rivals to lovers romance. It is a story told in things unsaid, in tiny gestures, and in the shadow of fate hanging over our heads. For if collapse is imminent, how do we spend the time we have left?

The main relationship is between Goro Akechi and Ren Amamiya from Persona 5: The Royal.

CWs: Implied abuse (physical, sexual, emotional), suicidal ideation, implied prostitution, implied incest, murder, violence, bodily fluids (blood, vomit, spit), grooming, dark romance, dissociation/depersonalization. Dead Dove: Do Not Eat.

Note: There is no explicitly sexual content in this work (I wanted my mom to be able to read it lol), but the implications are there and intentional. Additional NSFW can be found on my account.

Chapters 1 - 36:

Act 1:

Chapter 1 - TV Station (Home turf)

Chapter 2 - Painting (They're pitiful)

Chapter 3 - Darts (Why does the point feel so good?)

Chapter 4 - Coffee (Tip your waiters)

Chapter 5 - Space Heater (Damage)

Chapter 6 - Snowy Night (A moment all for them)

Chapter 7 - Akechi Alone (What does Akechi do when he's alone?)

Chapter 8 - "Beach" Episode (It's actually a pool)

Chapter 9- Nap Time (Because God knows they need it)

Chapter 10 - Joker Alone (What does Joker do when he's alone?)

Chapter 11 - Nothing Happens (A return to normalcy)

Chapter 12 - Cigarette (Akechi is a British cigarette)

Chapter 13 - Acid (The night is young)

Chapter 14 - Blood on the Snow (Heartbeat)

Act 2:

Chapter 15 - Sugar (An attempted return to normalcy)

Chapter 16 - Favor (Eventually we had to get to a chess metaphor, sorry)

Chapter 17 - Close Quarters (Ah, domestic life)

Chapter 18 - Shrine (Go on high, hear my prayer)

Chapter 19 - Tectonic Plates (An act of God)

Chapter 20 - Good Weather (Fuck you Fruit Cart)

Chapter 21 - Touch (Touch)

Chapter 22 - Bird Watching (The Crow and the Raven)

Chapter 23 - December 17th Part One (Amusement park)

Chapter 24 - December 17th Part Two (Sunrise)

Chapter 25 - December 18th (One more dawn. One more day. One Day More)

Chapter 26 - Interrogation Room (Eclipse)

Act 3:

Chapter 27 - Futaba (True siblings)

Chapter 28 - Engine Room Part One (Damocles)

Chapter 29 - Engine Room Part Two (Enter the Black Mask)

Chapter 30 - Engine Room Part Three (Flatline)

Chapter 31 - Depth Perception (An eye for an eye)

Chapter 32 - After the Storm Part One (Vengeance)

Chapter 33 - After the Storm Part Two (A Heartbeat for a Tin Man)

Epilogue 1 - Someday

Epilogue 2 - Another Day

Epilogue 3 - Scars

#persona 5 #shuake #p5 akechi #goro akechi #persona 5 akechi #ren amamiya #joker persona 5 #joker #akeshu #fanfic #writing #ao3 writer #rose blossom #A Heartbeat for a Tin Man

“An… angel?”

“I mean, yeah. I think so.”

“You saw an angel, and you didn’t think to wake me up?”

“I would’ve, but it really wasn’t doing much. Just, sort of, staring. Smiling,” Ren shuddered. “Anyway, it was gone within fifteen minutes at the most.”

“It left? What, just disappeared?”

“Basically. Gone in a cloud of white smoke.”

Akechi put his fingers to his brow. “So you’re telling me that you didn’t bother warning me about the teleporting smiling angel. Are you stupid?”

“Uh…”

“Adrenaline junkie.”

“Jeez, okay, I get it.”

“Why?”

“What?”

“Why didn’t you wake me up?”

“I… you looked like you needed the rest.”

Akechi blinked. “Sentimental idiot. You’re going to get us killed some day.”

“I’m sorry,” Ren looked away.

“Don’t be,” Akechi stood. “I’ll save my anger for when that day comes. But don’t do that shit again.”

“I won’t.”

“I know,” Akechi flashed a toothy smile, unlike the one the angel wore. It lit Ren’s face on fire to see.

“Oh, by the way,” Ren tried not to make eye contact, “it, uh, well I don’t wanna jump to conclusions but it looked like the angel was using your smile.”

Akechi’s face hardened again. “My smile?”

“Yeah.”

“Odd,” Akechi put a hand to his chin like Sherlock. “What’s that meant to imply? Affiliation, I suppose.”

“I can’t say it’s particularly convincing; why would you be affiliated with an angel neither of us have seen before?”

“No, that’s too simple,” Akechi was quick to correct. “I guess relation would be the better word. It’s related to me… or, perhaps, I’m related to it in some way. Hm.”

“As in, you don’t know?”

“Do I look like I know?”

“Ah, sorry.”

“You apologize too much.”

“Maybe.”

“Well? What do you think?”

“About the angel?”

“Mhm.”

“It… looking at it gave me the same feeling of being in that house. Of looking at the imprisoned humans. Of seeing Igor’s seat empty. It felt… dirty, you know?”

“I do,” Akechi cocked his head. “Not an ally, then?”

“I doubt it.”

“An angel, hm? Remind you of anyone?”

“So,” a voice from behind them spoke, hollow and echoey, and yet honey-like “she referred to herself as an ‘Angel.’ I guess she and I had similar ideas.” Their heads whipped around, and there it was. Hovering above the floor was an angel, smiling Akechi’s taunting smile. A puff of white smoke faded away behind it. “Be not afraid, my lambs,” it grinned at its own joke. “I come in peace.”

“What are you—” Akechi stumbled. “What do you want?”

“Oh relax, would you? I already said ‘I come in peace,’ no? Though that may change if you keep talking about how dirty I make you feel,” it chuckled. “Just a joke. What do I want? Nothing much. You two have been making quite a splash around here recently, you know? It’s been quite fun to watch.”

“Who are you?” Ren summoned Arsene. “The one who brought us here?”

“Who am I?” the angel licked its lips. “Hm, I wonder. If I asked you to call me Angel, would you? Probably not. Humans are so interesting in that way, wouldn’t you say? And, no, I was not ‘the one who brought you here.’ Such reductive thinking. It only serves to sadden you, you know?”

“Then what?”

“Isn’t it obvious, Amamiya Ren? You’re not supposed to be here."

I gotta say, I fucking love this chapter. The angel, who may or may not be a certain God we know and """love,""" does some freaky fucking shit to my boys. Like what you read? This is part of chapter 11 (Angels and Demons) of my new shuake AU Fate of the Wildcards. Read the full thing here!

Akechi winced as the thin black and white fabric wrapped around his bloody knuckles. It squeezed out the sides when the trickster tightened them, staining the torn off bandage red. Still, though, it was enough to quell the bleeding.

“How does that feel?” Ren asked softly.

“It’s fine,” Akechi looked away, clearly still in pain. “You don’t have to do this, you know?”

“I know.”

“I can take care of myself.”

“I know.”

“Stubborn as a mule,” the detective scoffed.

Ren chuckled, tying a knot around the other hand.

“It is a cheap trick, isn’t it?”

“Very much so.”

“You… uh, never talk about your parents.”

“No,” Ren sat next to Akechi, propping himself on the wall. “I don’t. You wanna hear?”

“You’d tell me?”

“You told me about your mom. It’s only fair.”

“I did, didn’t I?” Akechi cringed. “No, that’s alright. Tell me if you want, but not because you owe me.”

“Hm,” Ren smiled. “Alright then.”

“I don’t even remember why I told you that.”

“What?”

“My mom.”

“Oh.”

“I don’t know. Something about you, I guess. You’re easy to trust. I find myself doing it even when I don’t want to. I guess that’s another place we differ.”

Ren snorted, falling into sharp, painful snickers.

“What??”

“No, it’s just— I think you’re overestimating me. I lie, Goro. I lie all the time.”

“What, like about being Phantom Thieves? I’d hardly say that counts.”

“No. About tiny, petty shit. Sometimes it feels like I lie just because I can.”

“...Have you ever lied to me?”

“I am lying to you.”

“Good,” Akechi nodded. “Good.”

Oh dialogue. How I love you so. Like what you read? This is part of chapter 10 (Good and Bad) of my new shuake AU Fate of the Wildcards. Read the rest here!

They stared at the enslaved humans, watching them flick up and down, performing calculation after calculation that created the house that stood before them. Akechi’s eyes moved to Ren’s fists, trembling.

“C’mon. It’ll never get done if we don’t move.”

“Yeah,” Ren sighed. “Yeah, you’re right. You wanna check out the house?”

Akechi blinked, then shrugged. “Up to you. I’m basically just following your lead.”

“You can still give your input, you know?”

He shook his head, “it’s safer this way.”

“Nothing about this is safe.”

“...” Akechi had to think for a moment, “safer.”

“I trust you, Goro. You know that, right?”

“For now.”

The conversation was going nowhere, so the duo moved on. Ren approached the front door to the non-descript house, and knocked. There was no answer, obviously, so he turned the handle. The old wood creaked open, releasing a long-trapped wave of dusty air. When it settled, Ren peered inside. Just like the outside, the inside of the house was almost entirely unmarketable; there were a few rooms in view of decent seeming quality with decent furnishings and decent appliances; if the house had a neighborhood, he imagined that it’d be decent too.

They stepped inside, hands at their waists. Even though the other two rooms had been, largely, empty, there was still something unsettling about being inside someone else’s house and not knowing if they were there. Perhaps this was the right instinct as, when both had fully entered, the door shut behind them. The sound snapped their heads backward, and when they returned their attention to the room, it had changed. Stone statues of humanoids littered the place, peeking out of each and every corner. They appeared to depict the same nuclear family again and again, in different stages of their life: a mother, a father, a son, and a daughter.

For good measure, the rivals decided to take their eyes off the statues simultaneously and for only a second. Only when they turned back and found that nothing had moved did either release the air in their lungs. With this established, they felt freer to approach. Perhaps to nobody's surprise, the statues were dressed in prison garb: the mother and father wore the uniforms of officers— wardens, perhaps— while the children wore regular inmate getup, just like the thieves. Despite their differences, though, each member wore an iron band around their neck, chains hanging loosely off them.

“Creepy,” Ren mentioned off-handedly.

“Cryptic,” Akechi corrected, placing a palm against the cool gray stone that made up the mother. No reaction. “Though that’s hardly off theme.”

“So the parents are wardens and the children are prisoners?” Ren examined the closest scene. The family had gathered in the living room to watch television. Whether because he was bored or because he was a child, the son had taken to harassing his little sister, tearing at her hair. He didn’t get far, though, before the mother yanked on his chain like an owner heeling a dog. This was the tableau he’d found them in. Ren ran his hand along the son’s chain, tracing it back to his mother. Her face, carved in stone as it may have been, was soaked in resentment.

Like what you read? This is part of chapter 9 (Parents and Children) of my new shuake AU Fate of the Wildcards. Read the rest here!

snnxnr

chatlote

silly p5x event i got today that i had to doodle

When Akechi finally fell asleep, he didn’t dream. There were no hands, no water, no eyes, no cameras; and it was not as if he dreamt of nothing. He simply didn’t dream. It felt a bit like a hangover when he awoke the next “morning.” As if there was something incomplete about his functioning. Ren had, again, relit the fire in the night, and so Akechi woke up to the smell of roasting flesh. When the detective approached, Ren smiled sweetly, like a good househusband would. Akechi felt his stomach churn.

“Good morning,” Ren said, soft and gentle.

“Morning.”

“Sorry, no coffee today. I’m out.”

“That’s alright,” Akechi accepted a plate of meat. “I’ll live.”

“Looked like you got better sleep than last time.”

“You watch me sleep?” he asked, monotone, snacking on shadow.

“I, uh, well, I notice. Sometimes.”

Seemingly unwilling to dignify this with a response, Akechi side-eyed Ren, and then went back to eating. “So, what are you going to do next?”

“What am I going to do?”

“With what Angel said. Do you intend to track down this parasite? To take back control?”

“Sure, but, why are you saying it like you won’t be there?”

“I’ll tag along if you’ll have me; I need you, remember? But there’s no reason to pretend that I have any part in your hero’s journey. Not the heroism, at least. To quote my betters, my ‘well has run dry.’”

“...I’m sorry it said that about you.”

“I have no doubt you are. It’s fine, Joker. I can accept my place in this, and I can accept yours too.”

“Goro, this changes nothing about us. I still—“

“Care about me? I’m sure you do. We’ll see how long that lasts.”

“I told you; this changes nothing!”

“I know; I don’t believe you.”

“I…” Ren couldn’t find the words, “I’m sorry.”

“Yeah,” he looked away. “You never answered my question.”

“Oh, right,” Ren sighed. “We need to move. We need to keep going. I haven’t forgotten our promise.”

“Our… what?”

“We’ll figure out what’s happening here, and we’ll stop it. Together, right?”

“Joker,” Akechi shook his head, “this isn’t going away with pretty speeches. Believe whatever you want, but, please, don’t make believe it too.”

Ren stared at Akechi, as if horrified. “I…” he swallowed, “how do we always end up like this?”

“I don’t know,” Akechi half smiled. “Maybe it’s our fate.”

“...Maybe it is.”

“C’mon. We should get going. You’ve got a game to win.”

Like what you read? This is part of chapter 8 (Ones and Zeroes) of my new shuake AU Fate of the Wildcards. Read the rest here!

I tried something new! This is a snippet from Through Red Eyes, an Akechi POV piece that goes into the thought process behind his many masks and how he goes through every day. I’m normally not a fan of first person or present tense, but I wanted to challenge myself and to truly get into his thinking. It’s like a little character study slice of life piece! Enjoy!!

“Mgh,” I groan like a pig.

My eyes open, and I am staring at a ceiling I don’t recognize. It’s lighter than my own, and without the hint of golden yellow. I sit up, and there is a man laying beside me in bed, naked. His hair is darker than my own, a strong bald spot forming at the back center of his scalp.

He looks like he’s made of pancake batter.

When was the last time I ate?

I stand quietly. It’s still dark— too early for the sun to peak through the tightly drawn curtains— so I’m forced to stumble around until my toe slams into a metal briefcase.

Damn it! Fucking piece of shit.

I cover my mouth, and reach down to open the case with a free hand. A clean brown peacoat awaits me inside, as well as a new pair of pants, socks, underwear, a shirt, and a tie. Deftly, I wrap them around me until I am no longer naked. The watch now strapped to my wrist reads 5:09.

The sun’ll be up soon.

I slowly make my way to the front door like a thief in the night. It’s not slow enough; as if in response to my thoughts, a slim beam of light slips through a crack in the well-drawn shades, falling onto the man’s eye. He stirs, and I am caught.

“...Akechi-kun…?” he asks as the room brightens. His tone is gentle and slightly confused, like a child peeking downstairs to see Santa Claus.

Don’t grin. Don’t grin. Don’t grin. You can play this.

Polite, but confident. Railroad him; it’s what he wants.

Tilt your head— somewhere around 15º. Close your eyes and close your lips and smile.

Pretend you’ve paid attention. What’s his name? Ta… Taka… Takahashi?

Ah, Takahashi-san,” I freehand, my smile immaculate. “I’m so glad you woke up before I left. I was hoping to get the chance to thank you for last night.”

“T-thank me?”

Bingo. Don’t grin. Don’t grin. Don’t grin.

Reel him in. Don’t ever let his mouth off the hook.

“Of course, Takahashi-san. You made it a night to remember,” I bow, approximately 55º. “Thank you very much, sir. I only wish that I could stay, and make my gratitude felt.”

“O-oh,” he stutters, sitting up in bed. “Well, can’t you, Akechi-kun? I have money.”

Surprise and gratitude. Open your eyes wide, but be realistic. You’re flattered.

What a louse. I wonder what his guts would look like splattered on the wall.

Give him inch after inch, but never let him take the mile. The win is yours.

“My deep apologies, Takahashi-san,” I shake my head, “but I already have appearances scheduled for the whole day. If… you’d like, though, I am free tonight,” I smile again, that same smile. My eyes are closed, but I can hear his breath catch and the thought wriggle into his mind. “Think about it, okay?”

“Sure. Yeah, okay,” he blushes.

Jesus Christ.

“Thank you, again. I hope I see you soon, Takahashi-san. Goodbye,” I open the door and exit, not bothering to look behind me as it closes. For a moment, I stand on the other side, back resting against the wood. I breathe once, and move on.

I hope you enjoyed! That was just a snippet of the full thing. Click here to read the rest! Thank you!!

#p5 akechi #goro akechi #persona 5 akechi #persona 5 #akeshu #shuake #joker persona 5 #ren amamiya #ao3 fanfic #rose blossom #Akechi #akechi goro #persona 5 royal #p5r #p5 royal

norumaru

Do you think he saw butterflies too?

Happy birthday Akechi!

roseblossom01

No! I don’t!!

I think Yaldaboath specifically took Lavenza from Akechi!! Heheheheheheheheheh.

I think it makes him feel super shitty!!!!

This gets explored in Fate of the Wildcards

HEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHE

Like many exotic meats, it tasted like chicken. They’d lit a fire by the side of the pool and roasted the bodies there, cooking them until they were at least somewhat edible. To say they tasted good, though, would be a lie. The meat was entirely unseasoned, as neither thought to bring salt to the metaverse, and strangely moist. It was a bit like biting into fruit.

“Gross,” Ren reiterated, trying to swallow.

“Honestly I’m a little underwhelmed. They always make it seem like a five star meal but this is just bland.”

“They? You’ve… been in the room with cannibals?"

“I’m a celebrity, Ren,” Akechi smirked.

“I can’t tell if you’re joking or not.”

“Good.”

“So, what happens next?”

“Good question,” Akechi sighed, taking a bite of flesh. “It’s stupid to make a move as we are now. With my injuries and your…” he gestured at Ren, hand pausing over the bloody scratches on his cheek, “...injuries, we’d be better off taking a rest.”

“Agreed,” Ren nodded. “But, I mean, are you comfortable with… staying here?”

“Why wouldn’t I be?”

Warily, Ren nodded to the elephant in the room, the giant blue butterfly trapped in ice behind them.

“I’m not a child, Joker.”

“I don’t mean it like that. What if it’s dangerous?”

Akechi chuckled, and walked off from the fire toward the bug. “Fine. Let’s find out.”

Ren paused for a moment, then followed. It sat under a dim beam of light from the ceiling above, in an otherwise empty room. A thin mist wreathed itself around their legs when the rivals entered. The butterfly was comparatively massive, nearly as large as a car. It glowed a vibrant bright blue that shone out through the ice, dyeing the dust that settled around them. Ren reached a hand out, and felt the butterfly’s glacier prison, finding it cold. When his fingers, the stone shook.

“Trickster…” a voice echoed through the chamber, startling Akechi. “Is… that you…?”

Ren looked to Akechi, who shot him a judgemental look back. “Uh, yeah. It’s me.”

“Oh, my trickster…” the voice wept. “I… thought I’d lost… you… Forgive me…”

“I… who are you?” Ren asked.

“A friend. My name is…” but nothing came out. “Ah… I see… My apologies… trickster… No… it doesn’t… matter… I will… help… you all… the same… For that… is my… purpose… For now… call me… Angel… will you…?”

“Angel,” Akechi scoffed. “Jesus.”

“So, Angel,” Ren began, “your purpose is to help me?”

“My purpose… is to help… my master… He… has assigned me… to you… You are… the trickster… who will save… this world from… Ruin.”

“Ruin. Igor mentioned something like that, right?” Ren consulted Akechi, who nodded in agreement, trying not to open his mouth lest something nasty fall out.

“Igor…” the voice said, resentment dripping from its voice. “No… That is… false… It is not… Igor… Not my… master…!”

“What are you talking about??” Akechi interrogated.

No response from the bug.

“Tell me!”

Still nothing.

“Is it fucking ignoring me?”

“What are you talking about?” Ren repeated, jaw clenched.

“Trickster… I am so… fortunate… to have been found… The Igor you… know… is not… the true master… It is a… cruel and… pale imitation… A walking Ruin… created only… to distract… and deceive… It goes by… the name of…” and again, no sound. “No… I am restrained… Just like… you…”

“We’re restrained?”

“We…?” the butterfly asked. “Ah… even now… you think of… your bonds… your friends… your fellow thieves… How good of you… my trickster…”

“I—” Ren paused, as if considering the meaning behind his own words. “No. I mean Goro and I.”

“You… are referring to… Goro Akechi…? Of the… Justice… card…?”

“Yes.”

“The Justice card? What the hell does that mean?”

“Why… do you grieve… him specifically…? You have done… well to pursue his… bond… Trickster… but that well… has run dry…”

“What?”

“He… is a pawn… used by the enemy… solely to… hinder… your growth… trickster…” it spoke, slowly and methodically, “I am… sorry… the boy is… born of lies… created… to deceive…”

Like what you read? This is chapter 7 (Heroes and Villains) of my new shuake AU Fate of the Wildcards. Read the rest here! CW: This chapter contains explicit self-harm.

HAPPY FUCKING BIRTHDAY GORO AKECHI. Unironically I think this stupid motherfucker may have changed my life for the better. I love him with all my heart.

Okay, we can start pride month now.

#p5 akechi #goro akechi #persona 5 akechi #persona 5 #akeshu #shuake #joker persona 5 #ren amamiya #ao3 fanfic #rose blossom #akechi #akechi goro

“Oh,” Ren said, quietly staring at the butterfly.

“Oh? You know what this thing is?”

Ren turned to him, surprised. “You haven’t seen it before?”

Akechi’s brow furrowed. “And you have.”

“I mean, yeah. I don’t exactly know what it is, but I hear its voice sometimes, and I see it flutter by. It didn't seem like anyone else could see it but I assumed you…”

“No,” Akechi growled. “Never. It speaks to you?”

“Yeah. Cryptic notes about a cruel fate and an unjust game.”

Akechi snickered. “Really? You need a bug to tell you that the world is unfair? I could tell you that.”

“No, it’s more than that. It’s like it’s… guiding me. Like it’s trying to warn me about something and it’s doing its best to keep me away from it. Keep me on the right path. I don’t know; I guess you wouldn’t understand,” Ren looked over, only to find Akechi’s fists clenched tight, the muscles in his arms bulging against his bandages. “Goro?”

“How long?”

“How long have you been hearing this voice, Joker?”

“Uh, maybe 3/4ths of a year? Since just before I awakened to my persona. Why?”

“What would’ve happened to you if the voice wasn’t there?”

“I…” Ren thought, “I don’t know. I might’ve never met Arsene. I might’ve never defeated Kamoshida. I might’ve been expelled. I might’ve… died.”

Akechi scoffed. “There are worse things than death, Amamiya.”

“What do you mean?”

“I guess you wouldn’t understand.”

Ren examined the twitching muscles in Akechi’s face carefully. “Goro, I don’t know what’s happening but—”

“No. You don’t.”

“Well, but, I want to.”

“What?” Akechi replied, indignant.

“If… you want to talk to me about… whatever, you can. We’re teammates. We’re…”

Another snicker. “Teammates? Seriously? What do you take me for? I don’t know if you know this but we are enemies,” the snickers transformed into seething breaths. “As soon as we get out of here and we finish our business with Sae— as soon as I KNOW that the names of you justice perverting freaks will NEVER appear on a broadcast again— we are through, you hear me? I never want to have to see any of you again. So no! I’m not gonna tell you my deepest darkest secrets just for you to use them against me when you can’t win fair and square! You don’t deserve that!!”

Like what you read? Wanna figure out how they resolve this? This is part of chapter 6 (Fact and Fiction) of my new shuake AU Fate of the Wildcards. Read the rest here!