if I may ask, who among the PT does Riku get along with the best? What are their dynamics like? :3
OH YES ABSOLUTELY!!!!
So for the most part Riku does get along with all the thieves. He owes a lot to them and he loves them all like family. Lmao this got long again so readmore. But the tldr is that he gets on best with Ann and Yusuke and the only one he kinda clashes with is Makoto.
As for who he gets along best with easy, Ann and Yusuke (may or may not be influenced by the fact that they are my favs). Yusuke and him have been friends since they started Kosei High together. They were both kinda loners (for different reasons) until one day Yusuke kinda just randomly sat beside Riku and told him he was one of the most aesthetically pleasing students he'd seen 😭 Riku was then like oh cool bro hey you have no lunch take some of mine and they've been besties ever since 💀💀💀. They are super close and a lot of their relationship is Yusuke trying and failing to stop Riku from doing stupid shit (and Ann when she hangs out with them) and Riku trying and failing to stop Yusuke from buying stupid shit.
Ann and him also connected pretty much immediately after they met in the TV station (no romance - I hc Ann as a lesbian - it was more like oh my god you could have been my sibling in another life). After Hatanaka's heart is changed there's a small period (two/three days) where he would have been homeless but because Ann's parents are always away she offers him a place at hers. There they get to talk a lot and they realize that they just really get on. They go on a lot of shopping trips together and cause general mayhem 💀. Seperate they have a few braincells but together? Not a single one in site. They get into trouble all the time either in the real world or the Metaverse 😭. On a more serious note they do have a really strong connection and Ann is the first person Riku actually came clean to about the severity of his abuse and Ann confides in him a lot about what she went through with Kamoshita. And because I'm Shihoann trash Riku absolutely plays wingman for Ann and often ends up third wheeling their dates unintentionally or not 😭
They would be the two he gets on best with. Ryuji is someone he's also super close too because they are both mamas boys and also because Riku's arcana (the Captain Arcana) is a Chariot equivalent in another deck they are kinda similar and have a very similar outlook on things. Haru is a other notable one because they knew each other when they were young teenagers. This is cause they met at some rich ball event and Riku ended up punching some idiot twice their age who was hitting on Haru. They became pretty close but then Haru one day basically told him they couldn't be friends anymore. This was because her father found out and started talking about how Riku would be a good candidate for her because of who he is (kirijo heir). Haru knew her father would try and take advantage of their friendship so she cut him off to protect him :[ Riku was understandably confused but when they meet up as phantom thieves they have a heart to heart about it and they make up.
Futaba is also someone he gets on well with cause she's around the same age as his sister (and also Futaba may end up dating Yuna smddnjdjs). Same with Sumire (again as with Futaba I'm thinking of having her, Futaba and Yuna be dating? Idk I think they'd be cute). He also does get on with Morgana because he likes cats (but respects Morgana not wanting to be called a cat and actually rarely calls him one) but he also gets pretty annoyed by him (especially in a certain arc). Ren/Akira and his relationship does develop further as he progresses his confidant but I don't have a plot for that yet so I don't have too much to say here yet.
Finally Akechi (technically) and Makoto. Akechi is so fucking complicated that I haven't even fully decided on what their relationship will be so I'll have to get back to you on that 😭. Makoto is the only one of the thieves Riku truly butts heads with. Makoto (and this is more due to her writing in fairness) has a tendency to state the obvious and Riku really gets annoyed by that? They have a very petty rivalry going on because they are both intelligent but different about it. Riku's naturally intelligent ig and doesn't need (and chooses not) to study much. He's also loud and tends to get in trouble at school. A LOT. Then you have Makoto who's also naturally intelligent but studies very hard and is ofc student council president. Makoto is jealous of how easy Riku can (seemingly) fit in with others and goes with the flow while Riku is actually jealous of her discipline. He knows that he'll never be student council president because of his record and he's jealous of Makoto because he's always felt like because of who he is he SHOULD be student council president he SHOULD be this perfect student that Makoto seems to be? So they're jealous of each other for very silly reasons. Ultimately as much as they argue they do genuinely care for each other and they see each other as an annoying but endearing older/younger sibling. Also this is reflected in the fact that Pimpernel (Riku's persona) is weak to nuclear attacks lol.
And that's basically it! I could actually write a whole essay on certain dynamics but this is the main jist of it for now. I feel like I've forgotten someone for some reason so whoops if I have 😭
Also as a little bonus fact: each of the thieves he gets on best with actually reflect the arcana of the sees member he gets on best with! For example he's super close to Ann and ofc both Ann and Yukari are the Lovers Arcana. Same with Haru and Mitsuru, Yusuke and Akihiko and also although not mentioned here, Hifumi and Akihiko (Aki representing both the Emperor and Star Arcana). This was actually unintentionally but a cool detail I noticed after coming up with all these dynamics 💀
i just found this blog and even if it's not active it's wonderful thank you
oh it is active! once a day at 7pm UTC there’s a quote, and when i get in the mood i reblog like 3 fan content posts (like once a week or month depending on if there are any)
youre super super welcome to submit quotes etc tho or tag me in posts! or just put them in #the belgariad bc i will not miss them.
very interested in black mask!riku if u have any lore you'd like to share about him!! unless it's spoilers :0
Now that I've revealed his design I can finally talk about it, so glad you asked!!! I'll keep most of the details under wrap for now because again I'd love to do something with this but we'll see.
The AU actually starts off the same as Captain. So the Thieves meet Riku, he awakens to his persona in Hatanaka's palace and they try to change her heart. However, something goes wrong. I haven't had much time to really think about the ins and outs of Hatanaka's palace yet, but I'm thinking there might be some puzzle they can't solve, or a block in the real world. Either way… they fail the deadline. Hatanaka successfully goes through with her assassination and Riku dies. The end.
SIKE Riku actually wakes up again at home (Port Island home), in his bed. And he's super confused. He very clearly remembers getting shot, he shouldn't be here right? He's dead right? He gets out of bed and looks in his bathroom mirror to find that he's actually 14 again. Now he's really confused. It takes him a couple of minutes to adjust but it seems that he's travelled back in time to when he was 14, before he moved to Tokyo and met the Thieves. He goes downstairs and finds his moms there and he kind of indirectly asks them what year it is. They're a little confused but they tell him it's 2032, two years before the events of the captain au. If you haven't figured it out already Black Mask AU also doubles as a sort of NG+ AU :]
He takes time to adjust and tries to go about his days as normal just as he did before. He's been having very weird dreams though, twisting darkness and a deep voice encouraging him to use this new start to his advantage. He mostly ignores it and passes it off as some weird nightmare - a byproduct of this weird timeline reset. Mitsuru is summoned to Tokyo to speak to the government/public safety/something like that idk about her request for the Shadow Ops to investigate the strange shadows nest in Tokyo (the Metaverse - this also happens in Captain). The family all decide to go and make a sort of trip out of it. While they're there, Riku decides to take this opportunity to check out the Metaverse and see if he can figure out wtf is going on as he still has the app. He still… sort of has access to Pimpernel. He can hear and speak to him but he can't properly summon him. Anyway he sneaks off and goes into Mementos, where he wanders around for a bit.
Eventually a few levels below he finally gets cornered by a shadow (he's able to avoid them up until now thanks to Pimpernel). This shadow happens to be the shadow of a very annoying CEO of a largish tech company - one who is very vocal about his hatred of the Kirijo Group. He recognizes Riku, having met him at a few business parties. This guy starts going off about the Group saying some really horrible stuff about Riku, the group in general, and ofc Mitsuru herself. It's when he starts saying shit about Mitsuru (I'm sure you can imagine what a sleazy businessman like him would say), that something inside Riku snaps. He's been so confused and upset about everything that's happened (I mean you would he's literally reliving his life but being painfully aware he died it's gonna mess you up) and in that moment it all kinda comes to the surface, and he lunges for the shadows throat. Now Riku is very strong for a 14 year old and he caught the shadow off guard so he manages to actually snap the shadow's neck, killing it instantly (I should warn that in general Black Mask is much darker than Captain and there's a lot more gore so fair warning). Riku stumbles back realizing what he's done, vaguely remembering the Thieves telling him the consequences of killing a shadow.
He doesn't have much time to think however as he's ambushed by a bunch of lower level shadows. Just as one of the shadows is about to attack, Riku feels a surge of power within him and a blast comes out of nowhere to knock the shadow back. Then he hears a voice, a voice that's not Pimpernel but feels the same. This is a very rough draft of what it says:
Poor child, beaten and trodden on by society… hated by those who should be cowering at your feet, scorned by those who should bend to your every whim! What a pity full sight indeed… This is no way for a KING to act!!! I ask you boy… will you sit back and be trampled on by these fools? You've been given such a unique gift… the gift of foresight… use it to your advantage… make those who ridiculed you bow before you in fear and reverence! I can give you that power… do we have a deal? … Yes. I hear you, COME TO ME! AHAHAHA VERY WELL! I am thou… thou art I… let us join forces and show these pathetic bastards who the REAL KING IS!
Then he rips off his mask and summons his new Persona… who I won't reveal yet cause I have two ideas I can't pick between. Regardless, he defeats the shadows with ease and escapes. Thankfully no one noticed he went missing but from that point on Riku changed. His parents begin noticing subtle things about him, he's much more quiet, always lost in thought and seems to be muttering to himself. Mitsuru (well Artemisia) senses some strange dark aura around him, but only for a second before it fades (she's sensing both his persona and the influence of Nyarlathotep). Ultimately, she puts it down to her worrying too much, and says nothing (big mistake on her part 😕).
Riku, now equipped with a persona he can use (still can't access Pimpernel) and the Metanav decides to see if Port Island has any distortion - which it does. Goaded on by his persona he decides to take advantage of the Metaverse and starts off kinda small, using it to neutralize small enemies of the Kirijo Group before slowly building up to much larger foes. He also decides to still move to Tokyo, like in Captain and with Hatanka. This time though, Hatanaka doesn't actually abuse him, instead he uses her for her connections as he aims to go after the person who ordered her to kill him in the original timeline.
I just realized I can't actually go into anymore detail without spoiling some stuff from Captain (I might have mentioned this stuff already I actually can't remember but for now I'll treat it as I haven't). So this is where I'll stop the summary for now. The main big changes to the AU happen in the Hatanaka Arc and the Shido Arc plus an entirely new palace being added after Shido's (who's you ask? You'll see 😏). Another big thing to mention is that Akechi is also still Black Mask as well. He pretty much does the same as he does in P5 but he actually gets saved in Shido's palace by the Thieves. I haven't quite decided if he knows what Riku is up to directly or if he's simply just aware of him. If you have any other questions feel free to ask and I'll do my best to answer without any spoilers. Thanks for showing interest!! Black Mask AU was really fun for me to come up with so I'm glad you're intrigued :]
thank u so much for answering questions about riku!! i love him and his story it's so interesting and detailed and it's kind of inspiring like i wanna make my own persona oc now fjdkd thank u i cant wait to find out more about all of it!
AWWW THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR SAYING THAT 🥺 For a while I was kinda scared to share stuff about him (general anxiety is a bitch) but honestly y'all have been so nice about him and the fact that people are genuinely interested him and his story is so heart warming and encourages me to keep going it actually means so much to me 🥺
ALSO THAT IS SO AWESOME TO HEAR IT MAKES ME SO HAPPY THAT I INSPIRE OTHER PEOPLE TO MAKE OCS!!! Please feel free to tag me if you do come up with anything because I would LOVE to hear about it <3
