2025-10-06: A Much Needed Break
- Log: 2025-10-06
- Cast: Tamaki Uchida, Tatsuya Suou
- Where: Kuzunoha Detective Agency
- OOC Date: October 06, 2025
- IC Date: July 22, 2012
- Summary: Both Tamaki and Tatsuya take a break to chat. They need one.
(|======================== Kuzunoha Detective Agency =========================|)
-=================================================== Sumaru City/Aoba Ward ====-
The first thing that greets visitors to Kuzunoha Detective Agency is a giant
golden lucky cat statue that, with its left paw raised, bids a hearty welcome to
customers and opportunities alike. Inspect it, and a mewling voice will ask for
donations: 100 yen from students and other children, and 1000 yen from adults.
A pair of dark couches that frame a coffee table have an excellent view of the
massive HDTV and dual stereos on the far right wall. On the far left wall are
shelves upon shelves full of books, none of which definitely can slide to one
side. A large desk with a lamp and computer stands in front of it. This is where
the portly older ex-gumshoe, Chief Daisuke Todoroki, makes his business, as...
blessed... by the agency's original owner. He investigates (and will spread) all
manner of rumors to find out the truth (and change reality), assisted by veteran
Persona User Tamaki Uchida.
The back room is nothing special; it has a stove and a sink, so it's a simple
task to always have tea ready for customers. There's a bathroom there too, but
it seems like it's always occupied. Don't ask who's in there, meow.
<Pose Tracker> Tamaki Uchida has posed.
Sunlight streams in through the windows of the Kuzunoha Detective Agency. Todoroki is taking the opportunity to enjoy a nice cup of tea while he peruses through a list of contacts and reports. Tamaki's seated at her desk, in a deep trancelike focus on something. The cat statue merely waits to ambush would-be customers to the Agency, same as it always does.
Multiple empty cans of coffee lay strewn across Tamaki's desk, and her fatigue-shot eyes are glued to a computer screen full of public records regarding various corporations, mergers, insurance reports, tax reports ... things of that nature. Several textbooks also lie flat on her desk, currently unopened, even though it's exams week.
Despite the amount of caffeine in her system, her neck feels like it's about to give way to slumber as she starts to nod off. Her mind is more than willing, she has to find some connection here, she just has to. Her body, on the other hand, well.
Maybe she's due for an excuse to take a break.
<Pose Tracker> Tatsuya Suou has posed.
The doors swing open to the Kuzunoha Detective Agency. Tatsuya Suou walks through once more, and this time he's sort of drenched and sullen-looking, carrying his shinai bag with him slung over his shoulder and a backpack that's no less soaked than he himself is. "... I'm back."
He drops the bag off at the part of the Agency that doesn't have carpeting so it doesn't soak all over, and puts his sword down next to it and goes to the kitchenette to wash his face off, taking his red leather jacket off with it to leave him in a black tanktop underneath. Several paper towels get ripped off the dispenser as he uses them as a makeshift towel, and then he turns towards the both of them.
"... the Demon's dealt with."
<Pose Tracker> Tamaki Uchida has posed.
"Welcome, nya~!" rings out from the lucky cat at Tatsuya's entrance. Todoroki offers a rumbling "Good, very good ... feel free to take a load off." accompanied by a nod and takes a sip of his tea. Tamaki ...
Tamaki minimizes what she was working on and rubs her eyes while she supresses a yawn. She looks over at Tatsuya, then glances at the windows. It wasn't raining out today, so he must mean ... "The one in the rail station bathrooms? Or the one at the swimming pool?"
Regardless, she goes to retrieve a more dry, more clean leather jacket from one of the cabinet doors and hands it to Tatsuya. "Here you go. Need a first aid kit, too, or just some time to decompress?"
<Pose Tracker> Tatsuya Suou has posed.
Tatsuya still has a suspicious glance towards the Lucky Cat statue. It was 100 yen on the other side. It's 1,000 yen here... did their desire for a better, kinder world result in massive inflation of the yen? I'm sorry, everyone, it's because I didn't believe hard enough that the global recession happened. That's right, I'll take that sin on for myself too...
"... yeah, I found Hanako-san at the rail station bathrooms, then I chased her down to the sewers. I told her that she's causing problems, and she promised to not bother anyone anymore at sword point," Tatsuya explains, like he's not explaining the darndest thing ever, as if he was just reciting instructions from his washing machine's manual.
He takes the leather jacket from Tamaki gratefully, but doesn't move to put it on immediately -- he'll wait until he's a bit more dry before doing so. He doesn't feel too filthy to not sit down on the couch, though. "I didn't get injured, thanks. There sure are a lot of requests lately though..." It's not all that different from the Other Side.
<Pose Tracker> Tamaki Uchida has posed.
Tamaki waves off the lucky cat dismissively. "Ignore it today, you get a pass in my book. If anything, it should be paying you. Ha ha ha!" While Tatsuya moves to sit on the couch, Tamaki's apparent mirth instantly shifts to the frostiest warning glare she can muster aimed in the lucky cat's direction as she silently implores it to cool it this time. She'll cover his bill! After the briefest of moments, she resumes her normal professional countenance with her ever-present customer service smile.
"Still, it's 100 yen for children, but 1000 yen for adults. The cat must regard you as mature, somehow. ... Or it's just trying to extort you specifically. I can get it looked at, maybe see if it's malfunctioning."
"Hanako-san? Even urban legends have become true, huh ..." she muses as she eyes Tatsuya. "I guess we would eventually come to the conclusion that rumors in Sumaru City become real once they've spread far enough, but lucky for us we got a head start with some help, huh?"
She nods, thankful that only his dignity seems injured, but not his body. "Yeah, it's a lot to keep up with. The amount's slowly escalating, it seems." Tamaki slowly paces back and forth on the floor in front of the couch as she thinks this over, eager for a change in pace from her original task of sorting through a bureaucratic maze. Nothing good can come of them increasing at this rate. Well, it's good business, but it's not good for the state of Sumaru City -- something's bound to give.
"Are you balancing this out with anything ... fun? Or relaxing? If I were in your shoes right now, I'd go get a spa treatment. Watch a movie. Something to chill, at least."
<Pose Tracker> Tatsuya Suou has posed.
Tatsuya has a quiet, knowing look for a time at the Lucky Cat Statue, knowing that who operates it is behind the bathroom that's always occupied, nya~. Or perhaps... it's different on This Side? "Hmm... it doesn't bother me too much, but if you say so... there's also the dog mascot at the police station charging 1,000 yen. Perhaps the mascots are colluding behind our backs." What an odd thing to say...
There's a faint nod from the quiet boy, as he settles for a moment and listens to Tamaki's thoughts about rumours. It's not missed what she's implying -- he did come to them ahead of time to ask if the rumour of the Joker Killer had been spread, and then he was the one who initiated the rumour with the Sevens Emblem... just what did he know, ahead of the game?
It does look like Tamaki-san is eager for a break from her work -- he doesn't blame her, given how difficult and tedious it all looks. Chief Todoroki sure can be a hard boss to work with sometimes. "... it would've been better if we could've nipped it in the bud before it grew. But at this rate, the Joker Killer's only getting more popularity. Do you have any new leads about him?"
His work-focused mind is tempered a moment as Tamaki asks if he actually does anything for... fun. His shoulders sag for a moment, that despairing, forlorn look back on his face. The last time he was here, try as Tamaki might to not snoop in, he was saying painful farewells to that beautiful boy that he seemed to be really fond of... it seemed like a really complicated relationship, somewhat unusual for what seems like a high school romance.
"Not really... though if I know Tutor-sensei," that's one Umie Akabane, "she's probably plotting something to get me to have fun right now."
You can sneeze on that, Umie.
<Pose Tracker> Tamaki Uchida has posed.
"Colluding? That's a funny joke, Tatsuya, ahahaha!" Tamaki waves off the thought with a breezy laugh while one thought briefly echoes in her mind: He knows too much.
Take for instance Tatsuya's knowledge of the rumors, too. Tamaki does suspect that he knew something early, but at worst, she can only conclude that he knew earlier than the Chief and herself. Not that he's patient zero, so to speak; it's more likely that that's whoever else spread the Joker Killer rumor in the first place. She doesn't know Tatsuya's role in all of this, but she can hardly suspect him of starting it.
At the question of leads, Tamaki glances over at her computer and shakes her head. "Nothing conclusive yet, but I think I'm onto something." She's been pursuing some leads regarding the Kirijo Group lately, and that might be wholly disconnected from the Joker Killer, but she doesn't know that for sure right now. She still has to look over months of shipping manifests headed to Port Island.
"And if it comes down to the wire, I've got my methods ... costly as they are." Tamaki lets her eyes slide over to the cat statue before she catches herself and they zip right back to Tatsuya. "Or dangerous as they are. I don't think I can swing that this week, it's exams week, but over vacation, I'm sure I can go put an ear to the ground and see if I can't chat up some of the friendlier Demons."
Whoa nelly, she wasn't expecting to see that expression on Tatsuya from that question! She was tiptoeing around any mention of ... him? for a reason, she had no intention of striking a nerve! "H-hey. I'm just recommending that you do, but at your own pace. Even the hardest stuff I've dealt with required that I take the occasional break. If I didn't, my body literally forced the issue, ahahaha."
<Pose Tracker> Tatsuya Suou has posed.
"Hmm...." Tatsuya does his best to not sound like he's suspicious. He's onto them... watch out, Rumourmonger Nekomata!!
He drops it for the time being, though, and Tamaki shares a little of some of the things she's looking into. He doesn't know she's digging into the Kirijo Group, but that would be something of a blind spot for him anyway -- going to Iwatodai and dealing with Tartarus opens up painful wounds about how it all ended on the Other Side.
"I could've had him last time..." Tatsuya murmurs, looking rather glum. But even he knows it's not useful to keep dwelling on it. But Tamaki also reminds him that it's exams week. "... oh yeah. It is exams time, huh."
Which in itself is probably depressing -- here is a high school boy that's so detached from his life he doesn't even remember that it's exams season. It's like he's given up entirely on his future, in favour of -- chasing down Hanako-san down the sewer and fighting odd things that most people would just say are silly urban rumours with a sword.
"That'd be helpful. Thanks, Tamaki-san, you're better at negotiating with them than I am," Tatsuya admits. Maya-nee often did take the lead with them, he was much better at dealing with the 'tougher' types of demons... or the ones that seemed to really like his motorcycle impersonations for some reason.
Tamaki seems a bit flustered, though, so he shakes his head. "No, look, I... had a birthday meal with Tutor-sensei, for instance." ... that's it??? That's the entire budget for fun allowed??
<Pose Tracker> Tamaki Uchida has posed.
It's a long shot, but it'd be convenient for her if they're related, then she'd be able to kill two birds with one stone. If not, she can't spend much more time on the Kirijo Group and pass along to Myunghon what she'll have found out then resume her full attention to Sumaru City's rumors.
"Last time?" Tamaki blinks owlishly, unsure of what he's referring to. "Oh ... at the Aoba Park art exhibit incident? Yeah, I was on assignment elsewhere at the time."
Tatsuya must be dealing with something terrible if he seems that detached from the normal cadence of high school life. Even the SEES students she's met are keeping up with their studies, like she discussed with Aomori and Takeba the other day. "Yeah ... they are. College exams are easier, but if you're in high school, that's when they're the hardest. If you can, you really should ..."
Her voice trails off as she grows more uncertain of the advice she would normally give. Moderation, balance, proper nutrition, sleep, exercise, recreation, all that. She can't bring herself to give Tatsuya the same talk she gave to the pair of SEES members (Yua was there too).
She shakes her head. More gently, she resumes. "... sometimes other things do take priority over exams, though, in exceedingly rare cases. But even in those times, you need to rest when you have an opportunity to."
Tamaki spreads her hands and smiles. "Take, for example, how I'm slacking off from pursuing leads on the Joker Killer. I was about to fall asleep in my chair, then I wouldn't be of any use to anyone!"
<Pose Tracker> Tatsuya Suou has posed.
"Yeah. I didn't have my sword at the time, so there's only so much I could do... maybe I should be more ready more of the time," Tatsuya murmurs, which in itself is concerning that the eighteen-year old is resolving to be more prepared to end a sequence killer's life by carrying an illegal weapon on him at all times... really, this boy. It's like he's resolved to conclude this, and with it, he'll fizzle out, with no idea of the future...
The future...
"... hey, Uchida-san?" Tatsuya asks, in a tone that's a bit rare. It's curious. "What's college like?" A longer pause, as they glance away. "... I'm just curious. I've never had to... think about it before." Another real odd way in the way he phrases things -- 'never had to think of it before'? "I heard you can pick what you're interested in and study that. ... when Saeko-sensei asked, I never had an answer for her."
But Tamaki does reinforce the need for rest, and Tatsuya glances and gets up from the couch. "I'll start with a drink, then," as he moves back over to the kitchen at the back. Her joke almost gets him to crack a smile, but... ...only almost. He's a stoic one, this one. It's hard to get him to be emotive.
<Pose Tracker> Tamaki Uchida has posed.
"Your -- sword?" There's some concern growing in her voice. Tamaki glances at the shinai bag by the doorway. That'll stand out like a sore thumb. The first aid kits, the spare clothing, the Agency prepares those so that Tatsuya won't stand out, so people won't ask questions, so police won't ask questions. That'll end it for sure, but it'd be a pyrrhic victory. "W-well, it can't hurt to be prepared, I suppose ... though I still have to wonder."
"Oh -- college is ..." Tamaki presses her index fingers together. "People will say it's easier than high school, and it is, but the reasoning behind that is to give students more ability to direct their own studies. You could treat it like an extended go-home club. A lot of other students I know spend their nights at bars, drinking and socializing, but most of them are also trying to establish connections and network with people so they have an easier time in starting their career." She pleasantly smiles and extends a hand in the Chief's direction. "If I didn't hit it off with Todoroki here, I'd be doing the same thing! But I basically get to skip the networking step and get a head start in putting my studies to practical use at this job." She places her hands in front of her and folds them. "I know other people your age who still haven't decided on a field of study. I don't think I knew when I was your age. Then something happened and I knew what I wanted to do in order to make the most of my life."
"Help yourself~! A drink's a good start, at least."
<Pose Tracker> Tatsuya Suou has posed.
Tatsuya does make a coffee from the office supplies, returning with the cup to sip from. He doesn't seem to have a particularly refined palate or anything -- instant's good enough for him. It's a good reminder -- the battle's taken a lot out of him, and caffeine'll prop him up for long enough until he gets back, at least.
But Tatsuya does look surprised with what Tamaki starts with. College is easier than high school? He wouldn't have ever guessed that in a million years. "That's... a lot different than what I imagined. I thought it'd be even stuffier and restricted than high school. A lot of the college preppers I used to know acted like it was all or nothing, like they've got to succeed to get the job their parents want..."
Tamaki didn't know what to do with her life when she was his age. It's not that unusual, huh? But something happened... ...
That has him dwelling a bit again, and then he takes a sip of his coffee. He kind of looks like he's trying to act cool by having it black but really would like sugar and creamer in it. "When you awaken to a Persona, it does change how you view the rest of your life... I'm more surprised more people are still able to hold their lives together better."
<Pose Tracker> Tamaki Uchida has posed.
"Eheheh. I've got classmates who complain about have to write a paper that's a whole twooooo pages long." She snickers as she holds up two fingers. "Poor babies."
"But the theory goes that after passing entrance exams, you've proven that you have what it takes to take on more of your own responsibility for your education. That's what those college preppers are so desperate for. In a way, high school is easier because you don't have to make any difficult decisions, you don't have to shoulder as much, you just have to do as you're told. In college and adult life, the difficulty doesn't come from exams, but from boundless, terrifying amounts of freedom."
Tamaki's own taste in coffee leans black, but the way she'll tell it if pressed, that preference shifted as she got older. A person's taste buds change over time, so they become better able to appreciate bitter flavors, and the tastes they enjoyed as a child seem more bland.
Tamaki fiddles with her necklace at Tatsuya's last comment. "Well, I can't speak for everyone, but ... unique as it was, my own experience provided some clarity. We only get one life. It's important that it doesn't go to waste in idleness, nor that it's ill-spent recklessly."
<Pose Tracker> Tatsuya Suou has posed.
Tatsuya wisely does not divulge that having to write an essay that's two pages long is, indeed, an incredible chore from the last time he had to do it, which feels like forever ago. Who the hell cares about whether the animals represent some stuffy guys from one hundred years ago...? Metaphors are stupid. Just say what you mean.
"Freedom, huh..." There he goes again. Even when Tamaki's trying hard to not set him off, random things just seems to drag his mood down, as Tatsuya tries to hide behind his cup of coffee again. He's back at the couch, and has finally decided to slip the leather jacket back on at this point, satisfied enough at his dryness status. But what Tamaki says should make sense -- you only get one life.
...
...
That has him feeling guilty about the fact that they did opt for a second chance. He masks it well, this time, however. He can understand and agree that it's important to not waste time, though. If anything, it's always more the opposite with him -- as Tamaki herself advised when she said he should slow down and... y'know, have fun.
"Is it hard... being an adult?" Tatsuya does ask, after a longer moment of contemplation.
<Pose Tracker> Tamaki Uchida has posed.
Oh, don't let her hear your thoughts on books, Tatsuya. She keeps a small collection of Edo- and Meiji-era literature on the shelf behind her desk. There's even a new addition! There's even value in indirectness and misdirection, you can talk shit about people at the top of the food chain and they don't even realize they're being made fun of. Among other things!
After some hesitation, Tamaki adds, "Well, I did get to cheat a little bit, back then. I've got one life ... remaining, let's say." Her voice trails off faintly as she admits such a thing. At full volume again, she adds, "I wear this to remind myself of my mortality and that I should make the most of my life. Helps to keep me focused."
"Boundless, terrifying freedom, as I said." She glances back over at her computer. The screensaver cycles through screen captures of an old detective procedural TV show from the '90s, something produced over in America. "It's ... different, I'll say. Things that seemed difficult at first become rote. New difficulties are piled on each day. There's people who get stuck in thinking that what worked for them as a child should continue to work when they're an adult. Even after Awakening to my Persona, I still had a lot of growing up to do. I could have stayed frozen at that point in time, at the zenith of a major accomplishment, but ..." Tamaki tilts her head. "Life doesn't work that way, you know?"
<Pose Tracker> Tatsuya Suou has posed.
Tatsuya Suou is an incredibly mainstream teenage boy in this regard. The hard books'll just put him to sleep... ... but then again, he did get passionate enough to look up that poem of Der Doppelganger Maya-nee liked, and he did think it was worthwhile learning and memorising flower language. He's technically savvy, and knows how to do drafting. It really is in how to get motivated.
He does look towards the necklace with the coins. "Should I assume you had nine like a cat...?" Tatsuya wonders. "That means you've seen a lot of danger already, haven't you, Uchida-san. I suppose we all have in some way... I never counted, but it's definitely not zero."
But Tamaki once more depicts adulthood for the terrifying freedom it possesses. Things seemed difficult at first... but then it became rote -- but new difficulties came by each and passing day. But the most important part is that you can't stay frozen in time...
"... ... yeah," Tatsuya answers, perhaps feeling as if he's been indirectly chided. "I'm trying to figure out how to..." He can't say atone, here. "Make things right."
<Pose Tracker> Tamaki Uchida has posed.
Tamaki cheerfully imitates the beckoning gesture of the lucky cat by the door. "Nine? Ahahahaaa, I'll never tell, nya~."
She grows a bit more serious -- relatively, at least -- and nods. "I have, but I also had it easier, I think. I don't know for sure. I just get that feeling." She still doesn't know the entire truth of what happened during the SEBEC Scandal or the Snow Queen Crisis -- while she was present, she was on the sidelines. Persona, but sans any Revelations for her.
Tamaki stares at Tatsuya in mild alarm and silently blinks at the way he delivers that 'yeah.' She must have struck another nerve. After giving Todoroki a sidelong glance, and as Tatsuya continues, she listens further. Exhaling a heavy sigh, she replies, "You and me both. For different things, I imagine. I don't have everything figured out, myself. But I'll get there. I'm sure you will, too."
<Pose Tracker> Tatsuya Suou has posed.
Tatsuya will never, in a million years, be able to guess the absolutely baffling way in which Tamaki and her friends effectively were able to reincarnate with different guardian shadows -- Personae, perhaps. But there's just a nod of respect at her, knowing that she's likely experienced a lot of things that he didn't inquire from her even on the Other Side...
He did figure out, inevitably, that Tamaki was friends with Yukino back during her days at St. Hermelin -- but it wasn't something that he particularly wanted to be nosy about. But Yukki experienced a lot of hardship then, and in turn, Tamaki was probably embroiled in that too...
"... I've had my drink... so I'll try to not take it too hard the rest of the day, then," Tatsuya sets the coffee cup down, zipping his leather jacket back up. "I should go. I've got something else that I need to look after. It was nice to talk to you, Uchida-san."
And he does mean it. He doesn't dwell on the 'future' to any degree, believing himself to be a ghost that should fade away before long, if any sense of correctness is to be achieved in this universe...
But it doesn't mean it's not nice to at least... give some passing thought to it.
<Pose Tracker> Tamaki Uchida has posed.
That particular magic trick of reincarnation cannot and should not be replicated. The secret to that is lost, as far as she's concerned.
As for St. Hermelin, she was technically embroiled in things, but only distantly. Tamaki was on the periphery during the Mikage-cho incident, electing to protect the nurse and the other members of the fencing club while the others went on ahead. Present, but not on the main stage. A background actor. A stagehand.
Tamaki cheerfully waves goodbye. "Take care, Suou-kun! -- maybe take a bath and do some laundry. And see you again soon!"