I'm blue, da ba de, da ba di.

[shiroganeheir]

There's a new occupant of the Velvet Room, and if you don't look closely, you might miss her, considering she's wearing... black and blue. But no, it's not an attendant. It's a Detective Prince! No, not that one. Or that one, or even that one. It's the original. Naoto Shirogane.

She looks very confused, and to those who know her well, slightly concerned. Eventually, she starts exploring, and finds her way both to Tokyo and Inaba. Thankfully, at least in her opinion, the Estate is where it usually is, and, well, as empty as it usually is (other than the masses of stuff they never throw out.)

It won't take long before she's less confused and tense, but still curious. Always curious.

[OOC: Want to know what Naoto's been doing/some backstory? Check here!]

Comments

[fogboundcrow]

Around the time Naoto makes it to Inaba, she may hear a gasp from nearby. Some books hit the ground. A very startled tween gawks.

"N—Naoto Shirogane?!"

Oh. Oh dear, that's a bit too fanboyish, isn't it? He hastily picks up his books and clears his throat. This is fine. "Ah... I take it you just arrived?"

[shiroganeheir]

Well, that's new. Naoto blinks a couple times. She's not exactly used to people being that surprised to see her in Inaba of all places. She manages a smile, and goes over and picks up one stray book that fell away from the others, handing it over.

"Yes. Everything here is... very uncomfortably... odd. Everyone I know is not here, and the people who are here are..." She pauses and thinks for a moment. "Well, it feels like they're NPCs in a video game." Yes, she just outed herself as a gaming nerd. Whups.

[fogboundcrow]

"Thank you." Oh, goodness, how embarrassing that he missed a book. He smiles a bit sheepishly, still a little starstruck. The metaphors aren't lost to him. "Yes, NPCs would be an apt way of putting it. They're all smiles with little substance, though I suppose we can be grateful that the TV world doesn't have an uncanny Teddie lurking inside."

The fox seems... normal? So perhaps it's not a hollow cognition. The fox was always kind of strange, anyway.

[shiroganeheir]

The Teddie during that strage fighting tournament was odd enough, thank you. A small grimace crosses her face for a moment, and she shakes her head, moving onward.

"So, the TV world is connected to this place." She thinks for a moment, not worrying at all about his embarrassment. Whups. "What that would likely mean is that this entire area is part of some sort of shadow-cognitive anomaly."

There's a slight pause, and she actually looks at him for a moment. "So, you know me, but... who are you?" There's a bit of an apologetic look on her face. "Apologies. I don't mean to be rude. It's just surprising to see someone I don't know in Inaba who knows about the TV world."

[fogboundcrow]

"Ah, apologies. I'm Goro Akechi, and chances are we haven't met because I didn't end up in Inaba in your world." It's said with a small frown. That so many worlds have him leading more tragic lives... It stings a bit, that he got off so lucky. "I was actually taken in by Dojima-san in my world a few weeks before the arrival of Yu Narukami... or Souji Seta? Evidently, he has a different name in some realities, but the short of it is, I was in an abusive foster situation. Kanji-san noticed and reported it in, and I was rescued from my dire circumstances."

[shiroganeheir]

"Of course he did." There's a small, fond smile on Naoto's face as he mentions Kanji. "No matter what people try to tell you, he is extremely protective of those in terrible situations, and very kind to people who need it." If you're an asshole, he'll just tell you to get bent. But that's beside the point.

"It is good to meet you, Goro-kun. So, are there a lot of people here from different versions of their world?" That could be interesting, she thinks, or it could be horrifically painful.

[fogboundcrow]

"There are, but quite a few of them are versions of me or a boy who either goes by Akira Kurusu or Ren Amamiya. I'm still trying to find the correlation between each name and aspects of them. It's a mystery I've yet to fully grasp..." But he's working on it. Maybe he's not making much headway, but he'll get to it!

"Kanji-san is here, at least, but he's the only person from Inaba I've seen thus far besides an older version of me. Then there are two versions of a girl named Haru Okumura, and apparently some therapist named Dr. Maruki. There are also two very real vampires."

[shiroganeheir]

"Kanji's here?" Well, that makes everything better. Him, Rise, or Souji would be the best, but, well. Kanji. There's a silly look on her face before it turns into just a smile.

"Ah, are you a lover of mysteries? Perhaps, if you're interested, we could talk it through together? I would appreciate the additional knowledge of the situation, and talking through things always helps me order my thoughts on things."

[fogboundcrow]

"Ah, yes. I've actually been following the Midnight Channel rather meticulously, and have gathered notes... But I suppose we should find a place to sit down before we get too enraptured."

But still, Naoto Shirogane wants to talk mysteries with him! That's so exciting. He needs to keep his composure, of course. He doesn't want to come on too strong. But... it's so cool. The Detective Prince, in the flesh!

"Do you have any preferences? Aiya's and Souzai Daigaku are close enough, but there's also the food court..."

The latter of which is a rather good meeting place. Hm. Naoto's preferences come first!

[shiroganeheir]

"Yes, that is definitely a good idea. Even though we're in the middle of people who aren't necessarily listening, another place would be better."

She thinks for a moment, then eyes him.

"No particular preferences. However, which do you think would be a better meeting spot?" This might be a little bit of a test, but a gentle one.

She can't help but smile a bit wistfully. He's starting to really remind her of herself when she was smaller.

[fogboundcrow]

"Hmm... Well, the Junes food court is the 'official hideout.' I suppose it's only logical, then, to go there for authenticity." He turns toward the general direction of Junes. Normally, it'd be a lengthier walk, however, "The distances here are compressed, as I'm sure you've noticed, so I doubt it'll take that long, anyway."

Less than five minutes, to be sure. And then, oh... So many things to share. Will Naoto be as wowed as Kanji was about his findings? That would be delightful.

[shiroganeheir]

"Excellent." Naoto gives him a little smile and nod as they walk off towards Junes. "I had noticed that. It did not take long at all for me to get to the Estate from the shopping district, which was nice, but surprising." If she were to try to get to Yasogami, it would probably be a similar short walk.

Before long, they're seated at a table at Junes, and Naoto gives him a nod. "Alright. I would love to hear what you have come up with."

[fogboundcrow]

Oh boy. Time to wow Naoto with his notes! ...Hopefully. Give him a moment. The excitement's building, but nerves are nibbling, and...

Screw it. He's made it this far! So, digging into his pocket, he'll unveil his most up to date notes.

"I started these a few days after I began following the Midnight Channel and have tried to keep them relatively up to date. Before I arrived here, it was May first, so I've yet to see the full scope of the murder case. I also have some photos and video clips on my cell phone, but obviously they wouldn't compare to a direct recording with a higher budget camera."

[shiroganeheir]

Naoto takes the notes, and reads over them, eyes widening as she takes in the details and all of the things that he's found. There's surprise on her face, but it turns into a smile as she looks over at him when she's finished.

"This is fantastic!. I don't know if even I was that far at the time you are back home." She hands the notes back, smiling. "You've done very very well so far. Can you tell me what you think the next steps should be?" Another test.

[fogboundcrow]

"Well, normally I would have said, 'find a way to face my Shadow so I can properly awaken my Persona,' but I bypassed that step after coming here and have since sorted that out. With that in mind, we'll obviously need to consider if the culprit only targets women who appear on TV, seeing how Kanji-san was an odd anomaly, overlooked last month when he was questioned about me."

His fingers drum on the table. That's one dubious loose end. "Of course, there's also the fact that if we do know the pattern, we could potentially utilize that to either prevent the next kidnapping or catch the culprit in the act. The latter is risky, but Kanji-san informed me that you tried such a method yourself once."

[shiroganeheir]

"That is definitely something that we considered, whether it is women on TV, or just... anyone on TV." Now that she thinks about it, most of the victims were female, herself and Kanji being the outliers. An odd coincidence to be sure.

A somewhat bemused smile crosses Naoto's face, and she nods. "I, well... yes. I did. Kanji will never let me hear the end of it. Every time I consider doing an interview for something, I hear about it for a week." It's a fond exasperation, but she's still quite frustrated by it.

[fogboundcrow]

"I suppose I shouldn't be surprised. Kanji-san probably just doesn't want you to get hurt. He certainly gave me a bit of an earful after I had gone into the cognitive world on my own a few weeks ago." He briefly looks away, just a tad sheepish at that fact. "In my defense, I was acting on pure impulse at the time, and I did walk out with valuable information. I just don't intend to do it again."

[very_elaborate]

Kanji knows that hat. ...Enough else is different that there's probably timeline bullshit, but that's beside the point. Kanji knows that hat.

"Well, shit, you coulda said you were coming."

[shiroganeheir]

"Kanji!" Naoto grins and walks over to him. "I doubt I would have had the chance to tell you, as I didn't know I was coming."

Leaning up, she gives him a hug. Too much? Maybe. But she needs it.

[very_elaborate]

The hug's a little bit of a surprise, but it's a good one. But if Naoto wasn't expecting to be picked up off the ground as a result, well, he doesn't know what to say.

"Yeah, yeah. You think the details are gonna stop me from givin' you a hard time?"

[shiroganeheir]

She can't help the squeak as he picks her up, but obviously doesn't mind. "Details have never been a problem to you. I know this quite well."

Pulling back just slightly, she looks Kanji over. "What date is it back home for you?"

[very_elaborate]

"2012. Just about April. Been longer for you?"

It's a visual-details thing. Of course he's gonna notice.

[shiroganeheir]

"Yes. A good few years longer." There's so much that she wants to tell him, about their future, and about their friends, but it's probably better, she realizes, not to say too much.

"However, the one thing I will tell you, Kanji" she reaches over and takes his hand. "is that we're still together."

[very_elaborate]

"I kinda figured, when you didn't mind me pickin' you up." Maybe it was a risk, especially with so much timeline bullshit going on around here, but it was a risk he was willing to take.

"You could give me a little more to work with than that, you know."

[willowandoak]

Ren might be living in Mementos, but it lacks a lot of important amenities. Like a stove, for example, and a shower. Not to mention a toilet. So actually, he spends a lot of time around Shibuya Station. He's there now, in fact, having just made himself a nice omurice in a restaurant kitchen for... breakfast? Lunch? Who cares. Blinking, he emerges into the sunlight—and finds his cousin. Standing right there.

He freezes. For a moment, as his eyes widen in shock, he actually looks his age. He hasn't seen any of his family in person since that day half a lifetime ago; catching glimpses of the TV appearances of a cousin he barely knew isn't the same.

"Uh. Naoto-san. Hi." When he was little, she was just Naoto. But it's been ages. And this isn't really her, anyway. This is some other guy's cousin.

(...He hopes so, anyway. What the hell do you say to your detective cousin when you're an assassin?)

[shiroganeheir]

"Akira-kun!" Naoto smiles, but her expression is tinged with a bit of concern. "First, please, you do not need to be so formal with me. I know it has been quite a while since we have spoken, but I am your cousin after all."

Walking over, she blinks, concerned. "What brought you here? Are you alright?"

[willowandoak]

Akira-kun. Not his world's Naoto. A little of the tension in him recedes. He laughs, and it doesn't sound nervous or anything. He's pretty sure, anyway.

"Same thing that brought you here, I guess. Fuck if I know what it is, though. I'm Ren, by the way. Ren Amamiya. Still kind of your cousin, just a different name. We're from different worlds."

He's ignored the question about whether he's all right. It's also not lost on him that Naoto being here suggests that she's a Persona-user. That's... that sure is something.

[pancakeboy]

Speaking of people who wear black and blue, Akechi's engaged in what used to be a retreat from reality, and now is pretty much the only thing he has to do, tedious as hell; he's sitting on a café terrace somewhere in Tokyo, nursing a coffee, counting cognitions, and idly wondering what you'd have to do to make one bleed.

And the thing is, there's no missing Naoto Shirogane. She haunted Akechi's awareness as a kid, a reminder of his status, of his poverty, of how nobody would notice him without a wealthy family behind him. She haunts him at home, a real detective trailed by a menacing playactor; even the clothes he chooses are patterned after hers, for someone else who's just a Detective Prince and not a boy at all.

And the thing is, he admires her, too. As much as he admires anyone, that is. And he's heard things, since he got here, that makes him think she might know far too much about him. All this means that, when he looks up from his coffee and sees her, he freezes like a rat beneath an arclight. Maybe, if he doesn't move, she won't see him...?

That's shit, though. Shirogane is here, and so is he. There are no secrets, least of all to her; he quickly repatterns his face into a wry little smile across the terrace, an almost-shy tilt of his head: hello, senpai. But his hand itches for the Evoker strapped to his ankle.