Do You Wanna Watch A Movie?

The Saturday after Akira's return to his hometown, Sae got home from work early. She and Makoto had dinner together, something that was made possible by Sae becoming less busy, and the sisters becoming able to talk about difficult subjects without arguing. Luckily, the subject this time was more pleasant than many of the others that had come up in the past.

"I have some good news," Sae said. "I'll be able to take tomorrow off, so would you be interested in seeing 'Defrosted' together?"

Without even hesitating, Makoto nodded with a smile on her face.

"Of course," Makoto said. "Then again, I didn't expect that you'd be interested in a film like that, Sis."

"It... looks fairly promising," Sae said, slightly sheepishly. "The reviews said that it's a refreshing take on a classic trend, mixing in a surprising amount of realism and mature themes."

Makoto furrowed her brow. She'd made a similar excuse when going to see "Like A Dragon" with Akira, but suspected that he only went along with it in order to be polite, and never believed her for a moment.

"I've also heard that," Makoto said, "but I also remember you saying that people judge you for your tastes in movies."

"Perhaps I did," Sae said, "but while that's an unfortunate fact of life, that doesn't mean that's a belief I hold mysel. I won't pretend that people won't think less of us, but such people don't need to find out."

"True," Makoto said. "If anyone asks, I'll just say that I'm spending the day with you."

While Makoto saw the other former Phantom Thieves who were in town on a regular basis, she knew that they would understand if she set aside a Sunday for family, rather than friends. The others realized how much Makoto cared for her sister, even though their relationship had been strained during the Phantom Thieves case, and thus they understood how much spending time with Sae meant to Makoto.

Makoto and Sae took their seats in the Shibuya movie theater. Since the film was on opening weekend, it was almost completely full, making finding two seats that were side by side a challenging task.

The two Niijima sisters sat and intently watched a story of sisterly love, reconciliation, and the culinary arts. Apparently, the older of the two sisters in the movie had the potential to be a talented cook, but her gift, if not properly controlled, burned anything she cooked, and her younger sister once came to harm as a result, an incident the younger sister forgot. Fearful of her powers, the elder sister had to subsist on a diet of frozen dinners and other dishes that were prepared in the microwave once their parents died. Makoto didn't quite know how she had become this way, and this reminded her a little of her Persona- she knew where it came from but barely understood how it worked.

"You can't cook dinner for a man you just met," the elder sister said.

"You can if you know how!" the younger sister said.

"What do you know about cooking?" the elder sister said.

"More than you!" the younger sister said. "All you know is how to make instant ramen!"

Sae's stony facade cracked in the ensuing argument. She knew that the older sister had her reasons for acting the way she did, but they were lost on her younger sister. There were many things that the younger sister did not understand, but she was not wrong in wanting her older sister to be there for her.

Over an hour passed, and the film approached its climax. On the brink of death, the younger sister turned to her lover for help, but then...

"If only there was someone out there who could make a meal for you," the younger sister's lover said.

"But you said you could," the younger sister said.

"As one of thirteen siblings, there was no way I could make dinner for the whole family, so I just left it up to the servants," the lover said, while moving to turn off the gas to the nearby stove in order to ensure the younger sister's demise.

Makoto and Sae, not wanting to talk during the film, simply turned to one another, exchanging a glance that more or less said "I knew it." The sisters had little experience in the area of romance, but they knew when someone was too good to be true.

Before long, the emotional climax followed, with the younger sister seemingly making the ultimate sacrifice. Makoto's gaze was held on the movie the entire time, save for when she heard an odd sound and turned toward her sister.

"Is my sister... crying?" Makoto thought, before shaking her head and deciding to pretend she hadn't seen anything. The power of love had come through, and the younger sister's sacrifice hadn't just saved her sister's life, but also her own.

Makoto smiled warmly. Akira had turned himself in on Christmas day in order to protect his friends and ensure the success of their shared mission, thus going to juvenile hall for violating his probation, but less than two months later, he went free, with his record cleared, thanks to the efforts of his friends. The world could often be harsh and unfair, but people could make a difference, and it was heartwarming to see the younger sister's love for her sister save her in the end, just like all the people Akira had helped had ended up helping him in turn.

After the movie ended, the Niijima sisters walked into the lobby.

"The movie was enjoyable, if oddly familiar," Sae said. "I'm fairly sure I've seen this somewhere before."

"Maybe you have, Sis," Makoto said. "It kind of seems like a fairy tale, but except for the magic, it's surprisingly realistic. I also liked how each person's point of view was considered."

Sae nodded in agreement.

"The elder sister was fairly harsh, but she was right not to trust her younger sister's first boyfriend," Sae said. "She could have made her point without seeming like the 'bad guy,' but I can't really criticize her."

"I completely understand," Makoto said. "I've been in a similar position with one of my friends, who got charmed by a manipulative host who tried to trick her into selling herself."

Sae paused, and tried for a moment to think of which of Makoto's female friends- Ann, Futaba or Haru- fit the description, but shook her head. Ann had never been fooled by Kamoshida, so she would never be deceived so easily. Futaba, as a shut-in for years, was likely vulnerable to being manipulated, like the younger sister had after spending much of her childhood in the palace, but Futaba also found it difficult to approach others. As for Haru, she was already spoken for, having been arranged to a man she cared nothing for. Clearly, the girl in question was someone Sae had never met, and whose privacy Makoto wished to protect.

"I hadn't heard," Sae said. "How did things go in that case?"

"Not so well at first," Makoto said. "She got mad at me and said she thought I was trying to steal her boyfriend, so I eventually lost my temper and slapped her."

Sae paused in surprise. Makoto had changed a great deal over the course of the last year, so any behavior that was seemingly uncharacteristic of Makoto should not have surprised her, but this incident did. Sae concluded that this was just one of many things she needed to discuss in more depth with Makoto, in order to further the process of reconnecting with her sister.

"Thankfully, though, she did start to see the kind of person her boyfriend was," Makoto said, "so she dumped him and we made up."

"Good for you," Sae said. "Some less charitable individuals would have lost patience with this girl and washed their hands of her while she ruined her own lie, but you refused to let that happen without going soft on her- well done."

Makoto nodded appreciatively. While her relationships between her and Sae had often been strained as a result of Sae's bitterness and growing obsession with her personal success, Makoto realized that Sae, suddenly thrust into the position of a parental authority figure, had tried to emulate their father's tough but fair attitude toward parenting. As much as the sisters disagreed, Makoto realizing that Sae was trying her hardest despite being stuck with an unenviable task at a young age ensured that Makoto always had at least some measure of sympathy for her sister.

"That reminds me, Sis, about what I liked most about the movie," Makoto said. "It's the message that if you love someone- family, friends or lovers- things may not go smoothly all the time, but you shouldn't just give up on them."

"Indeed," Sae said. Building and maintaining a familial bond was no easy task, but she and Makoto had taken the first steps toward reconciliation, so they felt confident they could go the rest of the way, as long as they did so together.

Author's Notes

Thank you for reading this fic.

In case you haven't figured it out, the movie is obviously based off of Frozen. I figured that it nicely fit the Niijima sisters, particularly Makoto's determination to return her relationship with her sister to the way it was in the past, and Sae's (at least in my interpretation) trying to do what is best for Makoto in spite of her issues.

Incidentally, if you could watch this film in-game, it would increase your Kindness stat.