2025-08-17: To Know
- Log: To Know
- Cast: Ichika Kawase, Hyousuke Suzuki
- Where: Izakaya Shirashi, Hirasaka Ward, Sumaru City
- OOC Date: August 17, 2025
- IC Date: June 27, 2012
- Summary: Hyousuke follows up with Ichika on the matter of the supernatural--and she shares what she can. A plan is made.
<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.
Izakaya Shirashi is a stylish place, with dark floors and tables and red lanterns. Ma'am, the proprietor, is said to be many things--a former spy, a retired starlet, an active man-hunter... and has a bodyguard. In any case, it's delicious, even the oddball items like banana ramen. Yes, it sounds strange but it works somehow--thanks to the power of rumors.
Ichika chose it when Hyousuke asked seriously to meet up. It's public but not too public, and Ma'am's way of running things ensures that peole are unlikely to eavesdrop. There's professional pride at stake.
Ichika chose a booth in the far corner, away from most people, and frankly, most people here are unlikely to assume that the teenagers have anything important to discuss, especially in Kasugayama uniform.
That's what Ichika's wearing; her uniform, midriff exposed and skirt ankle-length. She waits around for Hyousuke, and this time, she's not wondering as much what this is regarding.
It's a nice enough day out. For now.
<Pose Tracker> Hyousuke Suzuki has posed.
Hyousuke hadn't expected an izakaya to be their proposed meeting place. It wasn't as though he was opposed to the idea - the place seemed nice enough, and its patrons looked to be more concerned with their own company than the conversations of those around them. He even wagered that few would spare so much as a wayward glance to the scruffy youth wearing a creased uniform, shoes scuffed and shirt only barely tucked. His surprised stemmed more from the fact that she'd not chosen a spot on her own territory for the meeting place.
He supposed he'd have time to ponder it later. He caught sight of Ichika quickly enough, and unceremoniously sat opposite her. There was a seriousness to his otherwise unremarkable expression - one left there by the topic of their meeting, no less. Once seated comfortably, he looked her square in the eye, and spoke bluntly.
"What's up with you and the ogre?"
There was no hesitation, no standing on ceremony, and no mall talk. He had questions, and he didn't care to tiptoe around the subject when they (presumably) both knew what this was all about.
<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.
Ichika's territory is good for gang business--but gang business this isn't. She's keeping Shuyo, Tsubasa, and Shizuko out of this stuff as much as she can. ...besides, with Ma'am on the lookout, it's less likely that they'll be interrupted by an attempt at teenage violence.
But without ceremony and without ado...
"Ogre fights things," Ichika explains. "I know things. Between us we're getting a handle on all... that stuff."
"I can explain some of it. I've been learning more, myself."
<Pose Tracker> Hyousuke Suzuki has posed.
A rather vague response, and one that raised more questions than it answered, but Hyousuke took it regardless. At least she seemed willing to shed what light she could on all that had been going on. He nodded slowly, letting the information digest, before following up with a response of his own.
"Not sure where I'm supposed to start." He said, sounding almost resigned as he admitted to his confusion. "I guess... What the hell's a Persona?"
<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.
Ichika unfortunately doesn't have a lot of hard answers. But she'll do her best. So when he figures out where to start--
"It's a weird ghsot like thing that's part of you and lets you fight supernatural stuff," Ichika says. "That's about all I know. Mine spoke to me once, but hasn't since. I think yours spoke to you, too."
She thinks about it. "That place you met the Ogre is called the 'Dark Hour'. It sounds stupid, but every day there's an hour after midnight that only some people experience. It's full of dangerous shit."
"Some places are, too. A lot of weird rumors are real, like the Joker killer. And..."
"A lot of other people have this power. Some of them use it to hurt people."
<Pose Tracker> Hyousuke Suzuki has posed.
Throughout the entire explanation, Hyousuke was silent. Eerily so, to those that knew him well. From the way he nodded along, his expression shifting in reaction to all the information given to him, it was evident that he was listening to her - the problem lay in the lack of response he gave to information that should have upended his understanding of the world. Even once she'd finished speaking, he said nothing to Ichika, instead letting the shifting looks on his face settle into something calmer. When he did finally speak, it seemed as if he had to drag the words from his throat, such as the effort it took to say them.
"That Dark Hour thing... Why haven't I heard about it before? I've been up past midnight loads of times. This is just..." Then his mind turned to the last of what she'd said. "...And who's trying to hurt people with these powers? Are you saying I've gotta watch my back for *more* now?"
<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.
Ichika has never really done an information session like this before; some of this she only learned recently herself. But she feels a certain responsibility all the same. Nobody explained it to her when she awoke to her Persona. So...
"Probably because only people with Personas and stuff can experience it. And for people who can't... who'd believe it? An extra hour? It's stupid."
"There's a serial killer," Ichika explains. "Supposedly if you call your own cellphone, you reach him--and if you give him a name, he'll kill them for you. ...I dunno how or why, but I know he's real. I've seen him."
"There's some people helping him. So long as you're not targeted, you're probably fine, except when you run into monsters. But... yeah, maybe."
"I'll watch your back if you watch mine. If I hear about something dangerous, I'll tell you about it."
<Pose Tracker> Hyousuke Suzuki has posed.
"Crap... Like I didn't have enough to deal with."
There was a growl to his voice. Slight, but noticeable nevertheless. He tried to keep it from showing on his face, but there was no hiding it, only suppressing it. Doubly so when he leaned back a little, as if sitting more upright would grant him a better understanding of everything that'd been going on. "I would've thought you were mad if you said all this a week ago, but now..." He'd seen ghosts clad in bronze, masked vigilantes, and pitch-black creatures composed of otherworldly goop bearing down on him, all in one night. At that point, he was primed to believe just about anything. "If this is all true, then yeah. I've got your back." There was some small emphasis on the 'if' when he agreed to that informal offer. He didn't seem fully convinced of anything, but even he could see no sense in dismissing it out of hand. "Any idea what that guy looks like? I'll kick his ass for you if I see him."
<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.
It's a fair reaction... but Ichika wonders how much Hyousuke already had to deal with, in that case. She watches him as he tries to suppress that reaction. And what she says...
"Yeah," Ichika says. "And I couldn't have argued with you. ...Most people don't know about it. The crew doesn't know about it generally; they're not involved."
"If I knew any of the 'whys', I'd tell you," Ichika says. "But I don't. I just know what I've seen."
Hmm.
"...The serial killer wears a paper bag on his head. It's got a face drawn on. Otherwise he's a big, lanky kinda guy. Likes fire."
"The other guy... That's actually something you can help me with. If you wanna fight more, then there's a sort of a... monster version of the guy who hurt me. He's got smoething called a Palace, a weird place where there's monsters and stuff, hidden from the real world."
"Ogre's gonna try to kick his ass, see if she can get any evidence in the process."
<Pose Tracker> Hyousuke Suzuki has posed.
Paper bag, lanky, smiley face. If he didn't know better, he'd have said that the man sounded like something out of a bad horror movie, but he bit his tongue and refused to say anything of the like. Even if she hadn't been telling him the truth, or at least the entirety of it, he probably wouldn't have trusted some weirdo with a disguise like that in the first place. Besides, the second person she mentioned was far more concerning. A more prescient matter too, he wagered.
"Is this the 'opportunity Ogre mentioned?" He questioned, sounding far more serious than concerned. Mostly for her - she was the closest thing to a friend he had at his new school, after all. But if this served as a chance to learn more, and fight more in the process, he had to take it seriously.
<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.
The Joker does not look very trustworthy. That's true.
"Yep," Ichika says. "...I've been to that 'Palace' once. I kind of stumbled in. ...And barely made it out. But with a group, I think you guys could manage it. As long as nobody tried to go it alone."
Serious is fine. She doesn't really expect concern for her in the moment. "There's a website where if you dig, you can learn some more about this stuff. Called the Dark Side of Sumaru. I'll give you a link if you want."
"But yeah... That's the 'opportunity'. I'm putting together a few other people for it, too. So you'll have a chance to meet others."
<Pose Tracker> Hyousuke Suzuki has posed.
"Then count me in." There was certainty to his voice - conviction that, though sudden, was undoubtedly genuine. The minute tensing of his muscles, the clenching of his jaw, the hardening of his expression, all of it pointed towards him being raring to go. It was like seeing an attack dog primed and ready, waiting for someone to point towards the target it was to savage. Was he eager? Curious? Bloodthirsty? The third seemed most likely, if his performance previously was anything to go by, but the man was inscrutable for someone that lacked the smarts to act well. "I don't know a thing about investigating. But this guy sounds like a piece of crap, so Ogre's not the only one that wants to kick his ass."
<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.
Conviction. Ichika can see it and hear it both, and it surprises her with its suddenness. She can't tell exactly what it is he's feeling, but...
"There's gonna be a lot of ass to kick," Ichika assures Hyousuke. "His monsters have weird powers, too. You'll need that Persona."
A pause. "...Yeah. He's a piece of crap," she says, though her feelings are a little mixed; that much is definitely true, at least. "He..." She trails off.
"He might... tell you stuff about me, while you're fighting," she settles on. "I can tell you his name, but... You gotta promise not to go after the 'real' one. It'd just get you in trouble. And me."
<Pose Tracker> Hyousuke Suzuki has posed.
Memories of an old life flashed through Hyousuke's mind, leaving him in a stunned, frozen, silence for what felt to be an age. His expression remained, but it was hollow, lacking any real feeling behind it. His mind was elsewhere, recalling people he'd once trusted, and acts he sorely regretted. For a moment, he thought to try and empathise with her aloud, rather than assure himself he understood the sentiment. But the need for secrecy stifled that notion the second it had reared its head, leaving him to nod numbly in response to her request.
"Just tell me who to look out for." He said, keeping as much of the tone he'd had before as was possible, but failing to recover all of it. That sudden onslaught of memories had seen to that. "I won't do anything else unless you ask." He knew well the consequences of storming in and demanding vengeance, after all.
<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.
Ichika can't read Hyousuke that well; she doesn't know what freezes him up like that. What makes him all hollow. She figures he's thinking about something, but that's as far as she can go. Still...
"OK," Ichika says. "...His name's Eiji Kamiya. He goes to Seven Sisters High. He's a little taller than me... black hair, blue eyes."
"We were... we were supposed to get married," she explains weakly. "But it didn't happen that way."
"Thanks. I just... didn't want you to go in blind. I don't want to dredge up the past, but... I won't live in fear, either."
"We'll do something."
A pause. "...Any other questions, for now? I'll try to get you ready however."
<Pose Tracker> Hyousuke Suzuki has posed.
Hearing her explain that fragment of her past was enough to have his expression soften. Unlike the look he'd worn a moment ago, or the one that remained trapped in his features like a creature in amber, it was genuine. Sympathy, perhaps, or empathy towards her situation, little as he knew of it. They were there on business, and he wanted answers as well as a plan of action, but even so, he couldn't help but feel something vaguely resembling the beginning of friendship.
"I got a couple. One, Ogre had a weapon." He said, though almost immediately wondered if a shield counted as a weapon. Regardless, he continued. "Am I gonna need one?" While he spoke, he moved his hand to the menu, and pushed it forward. "Two, what do you want to order? It's on me. Y'know, as thanks for clearing all this up."
<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.
Ichika has a lot of feelings about sharing, but remembering what it was like in the 'Palace', she has a feeling she can't keep her past completely under wraps. ...But people knowing about that is worth it, if they can do something. If they can get 'justice'.
But the questions, at least, are fairly easy. "Yeah," Ichika confirms. "You don't wanna be touching those things with your bare hands if you can help it. You don't need like, a gun or whatever, but something you can hit someone with is a good idea. ...There's places around Sumaru that sell real weapons, according to the rumors. There's one here in the Alley, the uh, Toa Armory."
Second...
"Hey, thanks," Ichika says, and does feel a little better. "How about some yakitori? And I'll get you more info when I've got it, too."
<Pose Tracker> Hyousuke Suzuki has posed.
"I'll go there straight off." Was all Hyousuke said in response to the weapons. He wasn't sure how it'd reflect on him to be buying actual knuckledusters, given that he was already on thin ice, but he didn't care to be caught unarmed. Weighted gloves or ones wrapped in wire could suffice as well - he'd figure it out later, though. For the time being, food was the more pressing matter, not least because he though they'd be in trouble if they didn't order anything. "...Banana ramen? That can't be right..."