[open/intro]

[fireandfaith]

Ann knows this place.

This shade of blue, and the song...though its notes flow far more harmoniously than they had the last (and only) time she'd heard them, the melody itself is enough to make Ann's heartbeat kick up a notch. That song only plays in the Velvet Room--and the Velvet Room is not a place she wants to be. Lavenza had said it. Her gut had said it--and Elizabeth had confirmed it. The Velvet Room was in the control of Yaldabaoth, wearing the skin of Igor.

Ann had never met Igor, personally, but both Akira in the previous timeline and the Attendants she'd encountered had painted a vivid picture of him. Taking in her surroundings carefully (this Room matched neither the descriptions of a prison Akira had once given her, or the crumbling ruins Lavenza had pulled her into at the End of a World), Ann eyes the man she can only assume is Yaldabaoth. And, even if it is truly Igor...

She's never met the man, and she doesn't trust anything he has to say to her. She might not be garbed in her will of rebellion, currently, but Célestine is always with her, and steeling her spine with a little of her flame, Carmine stands tall and proud.

Ann takes in the doors. Makes a split second decision that she shouldn't just be rushing into making a decision; Lavenza, and Elizabeth, she trusts--and she's heard Elizabeth describe their siblings enough that she feels as though she can trust them too. She'll poke around in this unfamiliar Velvet Room for now, and see if she can't encounter one of them...or at least someone who can tell her what's going on.

[OOC: check out Ann's AU info and perms here!]

Comments

[aknightnotaprincess]

"Same."

Even if she were a Black Mask or a palace ruler, Shiho would still consider Ann her friend.

Shiho nods. "So far it seems like my timeline is unique in that I didn't jump, and became a Phantom Thief. I'm starting to think it might be a butterfly effect thing as I have yet to see a Ren or an Akira in a Kosei uniform yet."

Perhaps they should head somewhere to sit down and talk more.

[fireandfaith]

"My Shiho didn't jump either," Ann confides, but isn't quite ready yet to admit that it went like that because she killed Kamoshida before he could ever lay so much as a finger on Shiho. "She isn't a Phantom Thief though. I think?" What with the Phantom Thieves being much smaller scale and underground, she hasn't been able to keep full track of what they're doing at all times...she'd like to think she'd notice if Shiho started acting all secretive too, though.

"Want to go get coffee, maybe? We can sit somewhere and...not catch up, I guess, heh. Compare notes?"

[aknightnotaprincess]

"Then did some other poor girl jump instead?" It wouldn't surprise Shiho if there was another girl at school that would be pretty enough to get Kamoshida's attention.

She nods. "Coffee sounds good, and I'd like to compare notes."

Even if it's mostly so they can be on the same page more or less. As nice as it would be to go to a copy of Leblanc, it would be best to go to a different cafe. It's not like Leblanc is the only cafe in Tokyo.

She can help guide her to the right door to get to the right place.

[fireandfaith]

"Don't worry," Ann reassures her as they walk, "No one jumped. And Kamoshida won't have the opportunity to hurt anyone ever again. He got his just desserts."

"Do you have any particular places to eat you've liked around here?" In creepy, cognitive Tokyo.

[aknightnotaprincess]

Got his just desserts? Either Kamoshida had his heart changed early or he's dead. She won't judge Ann if it's the latter. She understands the temptation.

"Other than Leblanc, there's a decent cafe that does serve good cake. Even if the coffee isn't as good as Leblanc's."

She knows Ann's sweet tooth so surely that will hopefully win her over.

[fireandfaith]

Ann perks up. She loves cake. "Sure thing! Let's go." Even if Leblanc has spoiled her for all other coffee...

[aknightnotaprincess]

Bingo. Looks like Shiho was right. Some things don't change.

And that's exactly why this cafe isn't as good when it comes to coffee. Once you've had it at Leblanc, all others just don't compare.

She leads them towards where the cafe is. It's a little furthur than Leblanc, but not too far. It certainly looks newer, but it's not a bad thing. Once inside, she looks around for a good spot where they can get the most privacy. Even though the cognitions in here aren't real.

"Hmm..."

Where to sit?

[fireandfaith]

Ann watches Shiho scan the cafe with amusement. Even without a crowd to push through, she's still thinking of the best spots, hmm?

Understandable, though. This is no Leblanc, where they could feel comfortable spreading out all over the room. "How about over there?" She suggests, pointing to a booth on the far wall, right in the corner. Walls on two sides, and a good view of the door for both of them.

[aknightnotaprincess]

"Sounds good."

Shiho heads over there with Ann towards that booth, and takes a seat. Once they are both seated, there's a menu there to look at for choices. And there's plenty of choices for both coffee and different types and flavor of cakes.

They could decide and order now, or get started on comparing notes. She's fine with either really. Even if having coffee and cake would help with the talk.

[fireandfaith]

"My Shiho has far less of a sweet tooth than I do," Ann says casually, perusing the menu once she's sat down. "Is that universal, or a quirk all her own?" She happily selects what she'll be ordering, and then looks at Shiho questioningly. "Order now, and then chat while we eat, or...?"

[aknightnotaprincess]

"It's true that while I don't hate sweets, I don't think I could eat as much as you can. So I guess it's universal."

Which makes sense. There's only so much sweet that she can handle before it makes her sick.

"We can chat while we eat if it would make things easier." Especially during the hard parts with talking about Kamoshida.

Shiho looks at the menu and settles for a tiny lemon cake.

[fireandfaith]

Shiho gets a little lemon cake, and Ann orders a triple fudge chocolate slice. Once they're settled with their food, Ann makes the first move.

"You said that you're a Phantom Thief, in your world? Sorry, it's just a little weird to think about...is the rest of the team roughly the same as it is in most worlds, or is that different, too?"

/slides one tag in before bed

[aknightnotaprincess]

Shiho takes a bite out of her cake, and swallows before answering.

"That's right. In terms of members so far, there's Ren, Morgana, Yusuke, Mishima-kun, and Hifumi. I'm not sure if Futaba-chan will end up joining because we were about to give her the calling card, but then that blue door appeared to me, and I went through.

And I will say though, going from the middle of summer to late fall was not fun. Especially since I was still in my summer uniform. I guess I should be thankful I didn't show up in December instead."

At least she has warm clothes and a sweater to wear instead of the summer uniform top.

*tucks you in*

[fireandfaith]

Ann's nodding along at the mentions of Ren, Morgana, and Yusuke, but then the rest of that list has her tilting her head. She has no idea who 'Hifumi' is, but Mishima's involvement is a little startling. "Huh," she comments mildly. "I didn't know he had it in him."

"If you can get Futaba on your side, she's a big help," Ann adds. "Even if it's not as a Persona user--her tech skills are almost more invaluable than her navigator skills, and she could really use some friends, you know?"

(She laughs at the gripes about temperature; she's always been pretty adjustable. Just another way she and Shiho always managed to balance themselves out.)

[aknightnotaprincess]

Unless her Akira/Ren never had a confidant link with Hifumi, Shiho would be willing to clarify who she means.

"I was surprised too but apparently the Meta-Nav appeared on his phone, and he foolishly used the app without stopping to think. Luckily he awakened to his persona since the shadows were too tough for Ren, Yusuke, and Morgana at the time. Then again, it's obvious that even he reached his breaking point with Kamoshida when he started the Phan-Site after being inspired by them changing Madarame's heart."

Yeah the order was slightly changed.

She nods at that. "I know she's been through a lot. Those slide-puzzles with pictures of her memory were pretty rough to see. It really got to Ren, even though he tried to hide it at first."

Oh boys.