[EVENT] Memory Tapes

[vrdr_mods]

On the morning of November 21st, denizens in the Velvet Room will awake to a message on their phones or by their bedsides in an envelope. Perhaps even on their computer screens.

Greetings! If you've received this message, then you've been selected as a participant in a new activity to strengthen bonds within this community.

In order to facilitate connections with your fellow residents, we advise you to watch this video. Watch it and return the tape to its rightful owner. If you lacked the means to watch VHS tapes before, we have provided you with the necessary equipment.

Failure to do so may put your own memories at risk. Do not be selfish, lest you find yourself struggling to recall crucial moments of your life. You have no way of knowing which memories have been shared, so ask yourself if it is worth the risk to selfishly hoard another's secrets.

They will soon find a VHS tape, with a case that gives off a soft, blue glow to symbolize its importance. If they lack a TV or VCR, they will find one in their living space.

What they do is up to them, but they should heed the warning, if they value their own memories.


[For links to characters' memories, please see this post in the OOC comm. Have fun!]

Comments

[herewardbound]

"I won't send her away. If she wants me to leave... then I'll leave."

He looked around at the front room. At Sojiro Sakura's house. "This is more her home than it's ever been mine. I have a family to go back to, and she's got people who love her back home. She's... brilliant. She's got a future doing anything she could possibly want and I've... already left that world behind. This was always going to be a temporary situation, and I've dragged it out longer than I ever should have because... because I'm a coward. I couldn't bear to see her hurt."

He leaned back, against the wall. "It's better this way. Maybe by arming her I can... save her mother. Wipe some of the red out of my ledger."

[lostgemini]

As long as she remembers?

That's a little strange, to say the least. Just how young was she when she obtained her Persona that it wouldn't be a clear, vivid memory? Awakening to Wilhelm and Thor is one of the most clear memories he can recall, so why...?

Though his question is answered soon enough by her story- which only brings up more questions.

"He found you in Mementos? With amnesia?"

It's unbelievable, honestly, but somehow- it doesn't feel like a lie either. He's heard this exact story before, after all. And the outfit...

Yeah, Goro would pick something like that. A smile twitches onto Kou's face, followed by a heavy feeling of melancholy.

"... I believe you," he murmurs. "That's... yeah, that's his kind of fashion." Grandpa fashion, Kou had called it once, teasingly, only for Goro to scoff at him that it was professional and clean. Which, true, and Kou did wear it without complaints- adults like a nice, cleaned up young man, but that didn't mean it wasn't grandpa fashion.

It hurts a little to think of it like that now, and suddenly Kou feels... like a slob. Sloppy in his fashion sense, geared towards comfort rather than presenting nice, but-

"You really have no memory of anything before he found you?" he pivots away from the thoughts.

[mirrorkechi]

He wonders if he should say something, but decides better of it. Best to let Kira handle himself.

And then he hears the gunshots and decides, yep, he would not have been able to handle whatever crisis he’s having.
He should probably just leave, especially if Kira has a gun on him, but he stays rooted in place. The possibility of more information outweighs the risks of obtaining it.

And if he can get one over on Shido…
He’ll just have to be careful not to piss kira off enough to get shot.

Eventually Kira returns, acting like whatever happened in the restroom didn’t, and decides not to press.
He’s getting the impression that Kira might firmly be in the ‘too many loops’ part of a time loop story… which is a bit troubling to consider.

So instead he just shakes his head.
“We all have our moments” is what he responds with, because frankly, he isn’t immune to rash violence as a form of coping.
…so unless Kira volunteers the information he just won’t ask for the time being.

[linkclickakira]

Akira pauses, Akechi’s lack of questioning catching him off guard for just a fraction of a second. The grin flickers, but only for a heartbeat, before it curves into something softer, something closer to genuine amusement.

“Huh,” he mutters under his breath, just loud enough for Akechi to catch. He chuckles, more to himself than anyone else, his hands still tucked casually into his hoodie pockets. “You are actually staying.”

He doesn’t elaborate on the statement, doesn’t prod or demand an explanation. Instead, he lets the silence stretch just long enough to feel weighty before breaking it with a low laugh. “Makes sense I guess- you arrived from April. You are yet to run into me...if there is a version of me in your world."

His gaze slides across the room, landing on the dartboard mounted on the wall. His expression shifts, a flicker of mischief lighting up his features.

He gestures at the dartboard with a tilt of his head, his grin widening. “So,” he begins, his tone light and playful, "Wanna play darts?"

Akira’s grin widens, his voice dropping to a teasing lilt with his hands raised up. “Promise I won’t shoot the board.”

[mirrorkechi]

He raises a brow at Kira’s surprise, but doesn’t give a verbal response.
He lets the silence stand.

And when Kira does speak, he shrugs. “That’d be correct, I haven’t had the… pleasure of becoming acquainted with the Akira or Ren from my world.” It’ll be nice to know what name to use that’s for sure. “I’ve no reason to believe there isn’t one. We just haven’t met yet… and if this universal constant is upheld we inevitably will” He just feels like there’d be more drastically different if there wasn’t. He’s still a little miffed Kira didn’t just ask him for that information directly but, fine, he’ll let it slide.

And then Kira asks if he wants to play darts. He blinks in surprise a moment, considering the offer.
You know what? Why not. He does still want to ask a few questions, for his own curiosities sake.
And considering the fucking ride he’s been on today throwing sharp objects at a board sounds like great stress relief.

“Sure, I’m up for a few games” he smirks a bit in a silent challenge, “though be aware, I only play 701” why not? He’s up for a challenge. And he did notice how well Kira was playing when he arrived. So screw it why not?

Mockingbird actually snorts at Kira’s last comment, “I’d hope not, it’d be difficult to play with the dart board full of bullet holes”

[mirrorgirl]

“Yeppers” Hannei taps her head a few times. “Couldn’t remember a thing. He found me in mementos about… two years ago now?” She tilts her head as she thinks, then nods when she recalls the number.
“I’d be really lost without him, but he’s helping me figure out what happened in exchange for me helping him. Which sounded like a good deal to me” she bounces on her heels a moment, before tilting her head.
“It’s… well I wouldn’t say I’m not worried about why I forgot and how I ended up there, but with everything going on we just, haven’t been thinking about it? I have Fenrir, and I know how to help, so…” she shrugs. As long as she can help akechi she’s okay if their little Investigation is on hold.

[lostgemini]

"I... see," Kou says, idly stirring his coffee. He should really just have them bring a new one but he's a little distracted, to say the least.

Two years... then, Ren wouldn't be in the picture yet- and without Ren, no Morgana either. Still... Kou puts his hand on his chin, thinking.

"That sounds familiar," he murmurs, "the name 'Morgana' wouldn't happen to mean anything to you?"

[rosemaudite]

"The better question is, will company be helpful to you right now?"

If not, she can get out of his synthetic hair. If so, she can impose upon his hospitality for a while.

[linkclickakira]

A flicker of irritation flares on Akira’s features as the guy- who did just knock him down and broke his nose continues to explain that he simply pissed off the velvet attendants. As if that doesn't happen enough.

His shoulders sag as he finally reigns down on his anger. "The tapes have put everyone on edge so I don't see how talking to the manager will do anything other than cause a repeat of what you went through."

He does throw a once-over at the Akiren, eyes glinting with amusement. "Pissed them off, didn't you? Or did you just walk in on the velvet room's maintainence period?" Perhaps the tapes disposal may have made the place inaccessible.

[gorobo]

"... Not really, no," he grumbles. He already feels vulnerable enough as is, and while he likes Rose well enough- "I don't know."

He really feels off-kilter, and if what Rose saw is to be believed...

"I'd kind of like to watch what's on this tape," he murmurs, "alone."

Is that the best idea? Probably not, but Falcon's not exactly thinking straight right now.

[rosemaudite]

"All right. Let me know if you change your mind."

[mirrorgirl]

“Morgana?” She repeats the name, tilts her head, and thinks. Really thinks! But draws a blank.
Hannei shakes her head.
“Nope, doesn’t ring any bells sorry. Should I know a Morgana?” Having a lead to follow when they get back home wouldn’t be a bad thing to keep in mind!

[linkclickakira]

"You will," Akira sighs as he looks down at his hands. "If by some instance your fate is any bit similar- even if you want to avoid him; you won't be able to." He says it as if he had personally tried to deny that same fate and he only managed to fare four months of a delay before...
Well. Everything.

"Do you?" He raises a brow at Akechi's "warning" and for a moment he wonders if he even realizes who he was challenging. "Go easy on me then, please." He grins- knowing that it will just further fuel the Akechi to rub his face to the ground in some way of showing himself off before actually going easy on him. Always going for the Bullseye, taking no more than five to ten seconds to land his mark and only messing up when Akira was messing with him. The perfect recipe for disaster.

Akira strolls up to the dartboard, picking up the set of darts with a casual air, though his sharp eyes betray a flicker of anticipation. He spins one dart lazily between his fingers as he turns back to Akechi. He doesn’t seem fazed. He’s grinning wide, the type of grin that says he’s walking straight into a storm—and enjoying every second of it.

He hands the darts to Akechi, the gesture smooth and deliberate, as though relinquishing control in a game he’s already planning to upend.

“Alright, Akechi-san,” he says, putting just enough emphasis on the name to make it sound like both a compliment and a jab. “You’re up first. Show me what you’ve got.”

[willowandoak]

"I hope so. I didn't say you should tell her just to fuck with the two of you, you know? I want things to go better for some Futaba, somewhere."

It doesn't occur to him that Phoenix might be wrong about Futaba's reaction. Why would she want to stay with the person who killed any version of her mother? Ren's sister asked him to come back, but that's not the same.

It is true that Ren killed his own Wakaba Isshiki, admittedly, which might not make him the best option. But if Futaba needs a place to stay, isn't helping her more important than telling her how half the people here have killed an Isshiki? What would that do to her, having to ask herself if everyone she meets murdered her mother? This is the kind of thing Ren tells himself, over and over.

"I bet Goro would like living here, in any case," he murmurs. "He wishes he was Futaba's brother. Like, the one back home, not... You don't have to bring us into it, but you can if you need to. That's what I wanted to say."

[willowandoak]

He sits there for a long moment, just breathing, feeling Goro's arms around him and the warmth of his body. Eventually he opens his mouth, unsure what he's going to say until he hears himself speak.

"Sometimes I want to—to find anyone who's ever hurt you. And anyone who could ever hurt you. And hunt them all down. And then I'm like... oh, yeah."

[willowandoak]

so shoot out the cameras wherever we go?
theyll prob come back so well have to keep doing it but it could work

[lakebrat]

People have done so much worse to me than you have, he wants to say. But dismissing Ren's guilt won't make it go away.

"One day you're going to look up, in... South America, or wherever we end up together. And you'll know that we took down all the people who could hurt us, all the ones on your list. And maybe you won't forgive yourself, still, but you'll at least know that things are okay."

He rubs Ren's back, steady and certain. "Because we will get there, Ren. It's coming."

[willowandoak]

"Tried to shoot Igor again. It'll work someday. I've never gone through the door before, that was new."

New and painful. He stretches his back.

[willowandoak]

"South America," he mutters. "I guess we could do Brazil." He would miss Tokyo, but... he'll probably just have to deal with that.

He shifts, readjusting so he's closer to Goro. It is not snuggling, he would insist. There'll never be a time when all those people are gone, he would say. But he's tired. It's not even noon yet, but the fucking tapes have wiped him out.

"Did you know," he says, instead of going for the final one. "For the anonymous art threat bullshit. Shido had me go in the Metaverse with the info the public would have, to try to find people who matched that description. He didn't want you to find anyone and affect the plan somehow. I looked for ages, but it was all too... vague, and made up. So I told him it was good, and you wouldn't be able to do anything."

[lakebrat]

That's... not good. Goro goes still. "What happened?"

[cybermask]

She looked up at the door, "hey there," she said nodding. She was sat the two tapes on the table as she looked him over.

[willowandoak]

"You did something," Ren says flatly. "And he had me brought in.

"I'd either failed or lied. He didn't believe me when I said I hadn't lied, but I don't think it would've mattered that much anyway. He had his... his thugs there. You know, you've seen them. But more than usual."

He doesn't want to spell it out. "Remember when I wouldn't hang out with you for a couple weeks?"

[lakebrat]

There is a moment of perfect, silent stillness, as Goro freezes with Ren there in his arms; as the picture forms itself in his head. Then his hands knot into fists against Ren's back. He is going to tear Shido limb from limb. And then he's going to forcefeed him the pieces. And then—

His head drops, as he pulls himself back under control; he sighs. "I'm sorry, Ren. It was pointless, too. Nothing but vanity."

[willowandoak]

Ren's face goes slack with surprise. He stares wide-eyed at the line of Goro's neck, his mind empty, his body filled with a strange, unsteady emotion.

"It's cool," he says hoarsely, after a long, conspicuous moment. Gun to his head, he wouldn't be able to think of anything else to say. I'm sorry, Ren.

[fogboundcrow]

[Raven approaches with the corresponding tape and a nod.]

Please make yourself comfortable.

[He gestures at the couch. It'll likely be easier to hash all this out if they sit down.]