2026-04-12: Future Proof
- Log: 2026-04-12 Future Proof
- Cast: Tamaki Uchida, Jun Kashihara
- Where: Kuzunoha Detective Agency
- OOC Date: April 17, 2026
- IC Date: October 26, 2012
- Summary: Tamaki and Jun discuss both the Purple Mirror, those who strive for their ideal world and future, and what each of them want for their own.
<Pose Tracker> Tamaki Uchida has posed.
Studying for midterms had brought Tamaki's own efforts into pursuing Konan Ward's rumor of the Purple Mirror to a grinding halt.
Well, not just her studies, but they were a significant contributing factor. They may not seem as significant as other recent supernatural events, like traversing Kazusa's Atelier or the Aerospace Museum catching on fire just before a Zeppelin took off from its roof and crashed into the ocean ...
... but despite the crises, whether they're known to the public or not, everyday life goes on regardless, the residents of Sumaru drifting along in a surreal haze.
That's the purpose behind the call that the Kunuzoha Detective Agency put out for information on the case. Juggling everything with their low headcount is difficult.
Now that exams are over, the apprentice private investigator is busy at her own desk on the side, less ornate and prominent than Todoroki's on the adjacent wall is. As she peruses her inbox to catch up on the information that several groups of people have already sent her, the lucky cat near the entrance watches and waits, beckoning to any would-be visitors.
<Pose Tracker> Jun Kashihara has posed.
Everyday life does go on. That, Jun is finding, is a crucial part of dealing with the supernatural. As strange as things can get in Sumaru, there is and must remain a clear delineation--much like there is between This Side and the Other Side.
That said, he's made time even during his midterms to look into various strange incidents, including the Purple Mirror. It's more that he was caught up in it, sure, but he could have dipped at any point. It was his own choice to see it through to the end, and take that information to the KDA with Maki and Ixquic.
Now that midterms are over and Jun's had a chance to rest and unwind after a horribly stressful week, he returns to Aoba Way to poke his head into the detective office. He smiles slightly at the giant lucky cat and submits a hundred-yen coin at its request, then enters the rest of the way inside.
"Good afternoon, Uchida-san. I hope I'm not interrupting anything," he says. "I just wanted to come by and ask how things are going with the investigation on the Purple Mirror rumors?"
More Rumors than rumors, really, considering he saw with his own eyes that she's real, but still.
<Pose Tracker> Tamaki Uchida has posed.
"Nya~! Nya~! Nya!" goes the lucky cat, followed by a chirp of "Thank you, nyaa!" in return for Jun's contribution of 100 yen to the kitty.
The noise alerts Tamaki to Jun's presence, and she leaps up from her chair. She presses her hands together and smiles sunnily. "Kashihara-kun! Good to see you here!"
In response to his question, she snaps her fingers and points at him. " -- I was just catching up on that. Don't worry, I haven't forgotten about it!"
Tamaki starts to grin, but then frowns and furrows her brow in thought. "Hahaha! ... well, given the nature of the case, that might not be a good thing."
She shakes her head. "All kidding aside, how are you holding up? After -- " She gestures vaguely in the air. " -- well, after everything." As she asks that, she leans on the side of her desk and watches Jun, trying to take stock of how this may or may not be visibly wearing on him. (Maybe she doesn't have too much to worry about if he was, in fact, able to unwind.)
<Pose Tracker> Jun Kashihara has posed.
"Oh, is that so?" Jun looks from Tamaki to the paperwork on her desk. "Yes, so I see." He chuckles at her follow-up remark... but all considered, it's a little weak.
Argeiphontes only protects him from remembering one specific supernatural phenomenon, expansive though it might be...
"I'm doing all right, thank you. I had to make up the day I missed of midterms, but if I may be so blunt, even if I'd missed that part of the exam entirely, I'd still do well." Just not top-of-his-grade well. "I have mixed feelings about what happened with Sudou-san... especially since it seems like the 'JOKER' will indeed not die with him."
No need to explain that. Not with that televised interview with Wang Long Chizuru Ishigami recently. Jun did see that one.
He approaches as he speaks so that they aren't shouting across the room at each other. He comes to a stop near the couch--and he glances aside at it. He and Tatsuya had spoken there what feels like ages ago... He brushes his fingertips along its back, the look in his brown eyes bittersweet.
"There's a lot to be anxious about, but at least now I feel prepared to handle it," he concludes, looking back up at her. A beat. "How about you? Though, given your history, I suppose it might have felt like just another Tuesday to you."
<Pose Tracker> Tamaki Uchida has posed.
Tamaki's smile grows slightly more taut, but her voice remains as chipper as ever. "That's good to hear! Glad you're keeping up with your studies despite the chaos."
She's not so adept as balancing both worlds as she thought, now that she's rejoined the fray in earnest. A large part of why she's done so well academically has been due to her distance from supernatural matters.
Then again, maybe she is good at balancing, given that her results were ... middling. She does experience a pang of envy for how well Jun seems to be doing in comparison to her.
That all dissolves away when Jun brings up the ominous message everyone descending from the Zeppelin heard. "I saw the news, yeah. Guess we know what that referred to now ..."
Tamaki follows Jun's glance to the couch, no doubt remembering who he's thinking of. Her own gaze grows wistful.
She has a reason of her own for getting more involved in the supernatural.
After she chews on her cheek in silent thought for a few moments, she replies, "I'm managing okay, but I don't know if I'd put it that way. It's easier than it used to be, but it's nontrivial."
She turns her attention back to Jun. "How are you and Suou-kun doing?"
<Pose Tracker> Jun Kashihara has posed.
Grades aren't everything. If they were, Jun wouldn't have chosen to attend Kasugayama High School; he had both the grades and the connections to get into Seven Sisters easily. But Tamaki doesn't mention her feelings, so Jun can't share what his thoughts on the matter would be.
"Yes. I do wonder if Sudou-san had meant for that to happen, or if it had just been a consequences of the forces he'd been toying with--or, perhaps, had been toying with him. That god or devil he invoked, Nyarlathotep... This could have been 'his' manipulations all along." Jun shakes his head. "But that's just a hypothesis."
It does seem as though it wasn't just another Tuesday for Tamaki, at least, given how long it takes her to answer. Jun watches her with concern, and nods when she gives her response. "I see... In a strange way, that's reassuring. One involved in this world doesn't simply grow to find atrocities 'normal.'"
The question about him and Tatsuya--doesn't catch him off guard, per se, but it does make Jun hesitate for a second. "I haven't seen him since the zeppelin went down," he admits. "That's to be expected, though. He usually only appears before me when I'm in trouble, and even then not always. The day we came here together was a fluke."
Arguably, that time, Tatsuya had been the one in trouble. Beyond that, there was that glimpse Jun caught of him during Eikichi's concert with Gas Chamber, but it really had been just a glance, so it hardly counts as an encounter. There's also the day they first officially met, in the hospital, but Jun had just been in trouble, so it still counts under that umbrella.
<Pose Tracker> Tamaki Uchida has posed.
When Tamaki does mention her feelings about the disparity between their academic success, she should -- and does -- wait for a bit to process her response and put her envy aside. Comparison is the thief of joy, after all. With a heavy sigh, she admits to her own struggles. "My own grades have slipped. University's a different ballgame than high school, and that's on top of juggling the mundane aspects of this job, let alone the more outlandish elements."
She angles her head downwards and smiles sheepishly at Jun. "On that note, thank you very much for your help on the Purple Mirror case. It really does help lighten our load. The clients out in Konan express their thanks in payment, but -- in my case, let me repay the favor sometime, alright?"
Tamaki nods at Jun's 'hypothesis'. "Given what some other people I know have alluded to, I wouldn't pin this all on Sudou himself, yeah." After anxiously chewing on a fingernail, sounding less certain now, she adds, "The pattern I've seen is that him and people like him are symptoms of some greater problem, buuut the nature of that problem is more nebulous than it is exact."
With a plaintive smile, she offers, "Maybe that isn't ideal, but it's good that he's still around, even if it is at arm's length." After that, she grows contemplative for a few moments.
Soon enough, Tamaki breaks her silence again. "Sudou isn't the only person who had expressed his intent to change the world. I know of at least two others that talked about something similar, even if their vision differs from what his was." She folds her arms. "I feel like I've only been a reactive force, by contrast, but maybe we should start more actively thinking about what kind of world we want."
With her arms still folded and her eyes closed, she rolls her neck to one side. "I don't know if I'd resort to supernatural means to achieve my own ends, but the temptation is there, I'll admit ..."
<Pose Tracker> Jun Kashihara has posed.
"I'm sorry to hear that," Jun says sympathetically. He's also heard that university is very different from high school, and while his father has taught him much, he's come to appreciate that there are some things you need to experience for yourself.
He's maintaining his grades for now, but how will he manage when he needs to start dealing with the same things Tamaki is? Even if his parents support him through college, Jun doesn't want to over-rely on them.
So it's nice to hear that his involvement with the Purple Mirror case was a help. He blinks once, wide-eyed, before smiling back. "You're quite welcome. It was..." He hesitates, then concludes truthfully, "a valuable experience for me too." She offers to repay the favor sometime, and he waves a hand. "You already helped plenty when Sudou-san kidnapped me! If anything, this was my way of repaying you." He smiles anew. "But I'd be remiss if I refused any future help. We should continue to cooperate, don't you think?"
Symptoms of a greater, but nebulous problem... Jun folds his arms and rests a hand on his chin in thought, eyebrows furrowed. "Then we probably need to gather more information before we can do anything decisive... In the meantime, more people will become victims."
Yet what else can they do--especially if they are indeed up against some god or demon? Tatsuya would no doubt know more, but Jun has already resolved not to try to interrogate him. He mustn't try to rely on information from, or about, the 'Other Side.'
His eyes soften at Tamaki's offer of consolation. It's easy to see how she and Umie are good friends. "You're right. We're still working towards the same goal. I'm sure we'll meet again."
There's a moment of silence after that. Jun moves to the couch to seat himself, legs folded, and looks over his shoulder when Tamaki brings up-- "Two others?" he repeats. "Who?" (He was actually there for a bit of that, when the Bride and Groom helped attack the Morimoto Sanitarium, but Jun was so focused on Sudou that he only caught bits and pieces of what the two of them were on about.)
What kind of world do Jun and Tamaki want, though--and, perhaps, all Persona Users? Jun falls silent himself at that, turning to regard the lucky cat. He thinks about what she says; for those with difficult or even impossible dreams to accomplish, he can see how someone might be tempted by it. But as for himself...
"I feel like... I'm already in the world I want," he says quietly. "My parents are together and happy, and I'm close with both of them; I'm pursuing my dreams steadily by gaining all sorts of experience; I admit I'd like a world that's more accepting of queer people like me, but my mother is campaigning for us, and with midterms over, I'll be joining her soon."
He pauses, head bowed. There's something there that he can't quite grasp--puzzle pieces that he should be able to put together, but isn't. Argeiphontes is stirring in his soul... He clutches his chest--the uniform jacket that's still bereft of a new flower--and slowly shakes his head.
<Pose Tracker> Tamaki Uchida has posed.
Tamaki smirks. "Thanks. I'm not in dire straits, and ultimately, I think my career trajectory is pretty stable at this point. I'll ... make some adjustments." She hides a chuckle behind a hand. "I'll be fine."
News that the experience of tracking down the Purple Mirror rumor was valuable for Jun causes Tamaki to raise her eyebrows. "It's good to hear that you found it valuable." She glances back to her computer, curious if the details are in his group's report, but it's more likely that they left it at just the details relevant to the case. They've already reciprocated aid as it turns out, and Tamaki grins back at Jun. "Well, I hadn't thought of it that way! I was just doing what I thought would be right to do. Here's to our continued cooperation, though!"
She nods firmly. "I am investigating the 'god or demon' angle, for what it's worth." She narrows her eyes and glances to the side. "I'll know more in a couple of days." Namely, when she meets with her fellow St. Hermelin alumni and others shortly. "If I can, I'll let you know what I find out."
Jun expresses his confidence that him and Tatsuya will meet again. Tamaki gives a wan, wordless smile in return. She can't say the same in her own situation, but that's all the more reason for her to help these two out. No one else should be deprived of what she lost.
Tamaki stands upright, then follows Jun to the couches, sitting on the one opposite from him. The 'two others' in question are: " -- part of the cleanup crew at the sanitarium. The fencer and the woman protected by her Persona's cage. While their employer had their own reasons for taking Sudou out, they seem to have had their own personal stake in preventing his plan from coming to fruition."
Tamaki gently smiles when Jun brings up his mother's support and whispers, "Like you and me both." She holds up a finger to her lips. "I'm not open about it, so keep it quiet for now, please? I'd like to come out on my own terms." She angles her head in thought. "Though if I want to join in that campaign, I should probably stick my neck out like that soon."
Her expression fades. "... but funny you should mention that. That's what those two at the sanitarium wanted, too. They're willing to go to great extremes on par with Sudou's for the same cause your mother's campaigning for." Her eyes sheepishly dart to the side, then back to Jun. "So when I say it's tempting ... I've been asking myself about that more and more lately."
<Pose Tracker> Jun Kashihara has posed.
"It's the same for me, then. I didn't know about your involvement until after I started helping out Sonomura-san with the matter," Jun replies. He sobers when Tamaki reveals not only is she working the god-or-demon angle, but she'll have more answers within days. He thinks of that one young man who had a peculiar reaction to the mention of Nyarlathotep. "I see... Please do, in that case."
It's more like faith than confidence, really. There is a measure of confidence there too, though. Now that they know what Sudou started will indeed not end with him, then Tatsuya's involvement is sure to continue. As long as Jun keeps getting involved too... it seems inevitable. Maybe that's unwise of him, but the heart wants what it wants. He can only do his best to temper those desires so they don't get out of control--not unlike Tamaki herself.
"Oh--I remember seeing those two," Jun says, touching his chin again when Tamaki describes the Bride and Groom. "I did get a sense like that from them, now that you mention it, but I was too caught up with dealing with Sudou-san to pay close attention. I wonder who they really are..."
Jun shares a smile with Tamaki when she speaks her truth and nods once. "Your secret is safe with me," he promises. "Even if you do join in, you could always claim to be just an ally." His own smile fades at her further explanation. "I see... They must feel quite hopeless if they think they can't enact that change under their own power." He sighs and leans back on the couch; his hand rises not to his chin but to his empty breast pocket. "I've had my share of struggles too, of course--I used to be bullied for it, among other things--but I at least have the support of my parents and friends." He meets Tamaki's gaze. "...What about you, Uchida-san? If you feel like you can relate, do you also feel like you aren't supported?"
<Pose Tracker> Tamaki Uchida has posed.
"Sonomura-san?" Tamaki blinks as she recognizes the name. "Funnily enough, she's one of the people I'm talking to soon. I'm getting caught up to speed on some things I had missed." Had Tamaki encountered the name 'Nyarlathotep' on her lonesome, she wouldn't have thought anything of it, but having heard Eriko and Masao recognize it is what clued her in to its significance. "She could likely fill you in better than I'd be able to, but if she doesn't get to you first, I can."
Jun's attention was on Sudou, which is -- "Completely understandable, yeah. I'm not sure about their real identities, myself."
Tamaki gives Jun a wry grin. "You're right, I could just claim to be an ally, but I feel like that would complicate things more than necessary."
More glumly, she nods at Jun's mention of the Bride and Groom's apparent hopelessness. "... yeah. I'd prefer to do it your mom's way, but their approach makes me wonder what they know that I don't. What hurdles are there, really? Am I just being naive? That sort of thing."
Tamaki frowns at Jun's troubles regarding his identity ... but shakes her head at his question. "Truth be told, I don't think I can relate so directly. I feel like in my case that it's fuzzier, less distinct, you know? I've had a lot of doubts about it over the years. I didn't know if the attraction I felt for a girl classmate was a one-time thing or just a phase. I was engaged to a guy up until a few months ago, even." Tamaki narrows her eyes, then reiterates, "Was."
"To answer your question, I think ... I didn't support myself. Like I gave up for a few years." She folds her arms and closes her eyes. "I haven't even taken stock of external support, but ..." Knowing her own parents, well, "... I'm sure I have some friends who would be supportive, at least."
She angles her head at Jun in curiosity and lets a question escape her lips. "... how do you do it? -- I mean, how do you deal with not just leaving things be entirely and not diving in headfirst like Sudou wanted to?"
<Pose Tracker> Jun Kashihara has posed.
"Oh! Is that so?" Jun utters, blinking back. What a coincidence that is! "I hadn't realized. I'll try reaching out to her about it, in that case."
Jun smiles back at that wry grin. "True. I feel like it's better to live one's truth, but I can understand not being ready for that yet."
That smile fades again as Tamaki points out that they might have experienced more obstacles than they have. "...That's true. Even my mother, who's a famous actress, has gotten a fair amount of... pushback, including former fans who've turned against her. Fortunately, she's mature enough that such things don't bother her," at least, as far as Jun knows, "but she isn't even queer herself. If the Bride and Groom aren't in a position to advocate for themselves for whatever reason..."
Beyond that, though, he can relate to the questions. He knows he's naive on the matter and knows far less about the kinds of hurdles his queer peers face than most. It really is fortunate for him that his parents love and accept him for who he is...
Case in point: Tamaki herself. Jun nods as he listens to her own circumstances. The mention of a guy she was engaged to raises his eyebrows, but he just nods. "I'm glad you realized before you married him, at least. If you've had confusion and doubts, perhaps you're bisexual--attracted to women and men? Or, I should say, people of your own gender and people of other genders." He smiles. "Just because things didn't work out with your ex-fiancé doesn't mean it wouldn't ever work out with any man."
His smile softens with sympathy as she goes on, though. "I'm very sorry to hear that. I hope you can get that support you need--from others and yourself." The question gets her a brief look of surprise, but he gives it due consideration, hand on his chin again. "I suppose... part of it is that I wasn't given a choice. I wasn't awakened for a long while, but supernatural trouble kept finding me even after I decided to avoid it. Now that I have Argeiphontes by my side, I have a better understanding of what's at stake if I did 'dive in headfirst,' as you say.
"Ah, but I suppose that wasn't precisely your question, was it? It was, 'how do I deal with it.' The truth is, I probably wouldn't be if it weren't for all the support I've had as a Persona User--people like you who've come to my aid, taught me about this world, and guided me. If not for that..." He lowers his eyes, gloom casting a shade on his lovely feature. "I'd probably end up having a nervous breakdown by the end of the year." He shakes his head a little, then gives her another small smile. "Everything is easier with true friends by your side."
<Pose Tracker> Tamaki Uchida has posed.
In a few days' time, Maki will have likely informed both of them on some background. And Tamaki
"Yeah, it doesn't seem like they are ... but without knowing who they really are, it's difficult to conclude anything for certain." Tamaki folds her arms and closes her eyes in concentration again. "... those two are seeking supernatural solutions, but is the problem supernatural in nature in the first place?"
She punctuates this line of thought with, "Hmmmph. When you have a hammer, everything starts to look like a nail, doesn't it? Take the Phantom Thieves, for example. It's good they're catching people and getting confessions out of them, but imagine the same power in the hands of someone else less scrupulous."
Confusion and doubts? Tamaki raises a quizzical eyebrow at the notion, then chuckles good-naturedly while waving a hand. "Oh! Ahaha! I know the term, yeah. Don't get me wrong, I'm pretty sure I'm not picky." She rolls her eyes up to the ceiling in recall, then shoots her gaze back in Jun's direction when she settles on her words. "Our engagement ended due to some ... let's call them external factors, a force majeure." With a tilt of her head and a smile, she adds, "No, I've only been reconsidering these things now that the course of my life changed. This was all aftermath, not leadup."
Jun may remember that she was all smiles around Julian, after all!
Tamaki listens intently to his answer to her question. Jun wasn't given a choice. Quietly, she admits, "... ah. On the other hand, I did have the luxury of choice." She winces. "And I gave up, for a time. It's why I'm only finding out some things from old classmates like Sonomura-san secondhand, despite literally being where that all happened." With a remorseful glance at Jun, she continues. "Part of why I'm so eager to support others these days is to make up for how I didn't do so back then."
'Everything is easier with true friends by your side.' Tamaki quietly smiles at the sentiment, but it's bittersweet. Who are her true friends?
It's an easier question for her to answer now than it was earlier this year.
"... yeah, I think you're right about that. I'm used to thinking about who I can give support to, not who can support me."
<Pose Tracker> Jun Kashihara has posed.
Is the problem supernatural to begin with? That's something else that's food for thought. Jun already enjoys and appreciates Tamaki's company, and part of that is how she keeps asking thought-provoking questions. There's no taking anything for granted around her. No wonder even Tatsuya has a measure of trust for her. "We'll have to gather more information on them too... if we can."
He considers her example. It's a little besides the point, but he replies, "It's hard for me to remark on the Phantom Thieves. I've heard about their exploits, of course--there's something romantic about a real-life phantom thief--but I don't really understand how they do what they do. I am fairly sure they're using some kind of supernatural means, since I know they're Persona Users--but I know that because two of them helped come to my rescue from Sudou-san." He sighs a little. "I do understand what you're getting at, though. However they do what they do, I'm glad it's them and not someone black-hearted doing it."
Tamaki clarifies the nature of her confusion and doubts, and Jun sits up a little straighter (gayer?). "Oh! Pardon me, I misunderstood your meaning." Thinking back, she was all smiles around Julian--and perhaps that wasn't just her being friendly. He does raise his eyebrows again at that talk of a force majeure, but he's polite enough to not ask after the details. Instead, he simply nods. "Then I'm glad it gave you the clarity you needed."
His eyes soften. Again, she says that she gave up for a while. Whatever choice she made, it must have hurt her deeply. He doesn't know what she's talking about--how could he?--but it does paint a stark picture of what she means all the same.
To make up for the past... For some reason, that resonates with Jun. He doesn't quite know why. Maybe it's less about the past and more about changing one's behavior. He certainly knows about having a lack of support, for all that that changed ten years ago.
"Then, if you and Todoroki-san would have me... I'd like to continue to support you more directly. That is, if the Kuzunoha Detective Agency is open to any new part-time hires?" Jun wonders.
<Pose Tracker> Tamaki Uchida has posed.
'We'll have to gather more information on them ...' Tamaki holds up a finger. " -- if we can. If we can't, we've got other ways to pursue equality."
Curling a finger over her chin, she muses further, "Were queer relationships always so marginalized, or did something change? What influences were at play? While the practice goes back for over a millennium, the modern implementation of the family registry goes back to the Meiji Restoration ... and while it does make aspects of our jobs easier as private investigators, I do think it's a bit restrictive."
She smiles at Jun's response about the Phantom Thieves. "Something to keep in mind, is all. Things aren't always so clear-cut. Using those powers is one extreme, running away like I did is the other."
It did hurt at the time. That's a part of life, though; while you can't control everything that happens to you, you can control how you respond and move forward. Better late than never, Tamaki figures.
Tamaki blinks in stunned silence for a couple of seconds, then glances over at Todoroki's desk. "Weeeell, that's really up to the boss to decide, but! Speaking personally, I would like that very much! We'll have to figure out in what capacity, but ..."
She trails off as she returns to her desk to pull out a folder. They might spend the next bit of time going over his skillset and what kind of work they could use more hands for ...