2026-05-04: Tall Meets Small on the Factory Floor
- Log: Tall Meets Small on the Factory Floor
- Cast: Hyousuke Suzuki, Aoi Igarashi
- Where: Abandoned Factory
- OOC Date: 2026-05-04
- IC Date: Sat Nov 03 2012
- Summary: Hyousuke pokes around one of Sumaru's premier real estate sites (the abandoned factory) in search of a rumour demon he's caught wind of. Aoi, eager to look for clues of a cryptid she's caught wind of, also hapepns to be in the area - though finds herself confronted by an entirely different kind of hulking brute.
<Pose Tracker> Hyousuke Suzuki has posed.
Each footstep Hyousuke took into the factory rang out like a gunshot in the still, stagnant, air of the abandoned factory. No longer dressed in his uniform, he had long since swapped the well-polished shoes demanded by Kasu's loosely-enforced rules for a pair of durable, dirt-brown, walking boots. They were heavy things, ill-suited for stealth, but he had no doubt that the factory floor was littered with any number of sharp objects and slicing debris. Better to walk in there with something strong enough to protect him than risk it with his uniform shoes.
He was under no impression that he would catch the beast in the early afternoon. What few rumours he'd heard about some four-legged, canine, monstrosity stalking through Sumaru all pointed towards it being a nocturnal creature, operating exclusively from the shadows and disappearing back into them like a shade. But, as he swept his torch across the barren concrete and dirtied machinery that operated in spite of the ravages of time, he hoped that he could at least find some sign of what he was dealing with. Clues that pointed towards what kind of demon it was, tracks that would lead him to its lair... anything.
"Should've asked Uchida-san about this..." Hyousuke grumbled, venturing further into the derelict factory. He cast the light idly in one direction and then another, thinking he might see some schoolmates or delinquents of other stripes lurking in the corners, but it was just more machinery. Nothing he could use. Hyousuke sighed a little, wondering if perhaps the entire affair would turn out to be fruitless, before continuing in. He was there already - he might as well give it a more thorough look.
<Pose Tracker> Aoi Igarashi has posed.
There are rumors on the web about a strange monster. Some kind of cryptid. It's not quite a ghost, but she's not going to deny that the excuse to go exploring an abandoned factory has it's appeal as well. So, with camera in hand and some confirmations on the board she uses, she's made her way out after a Kendo meet. Using it as an excuse to show up home late.
Not that it would be obvious she was at Kendo, she's back in her street clothes. A baggy black t-shirt that mostly hides her figure, a pair of cargo pants almost entirely for the pockets and cute tennis shoes. In black, because they don't show mess as easily.
She's got a little handheld recorder, well, in hand. Held up to her mouth, she's murmuring into it, "I hear footsteps echoing through. They're definitely not some random creature's." She tilts her head this way, then that before continuing, "Might be other explorers. Or the security." There's a frown. The devise is pocketed and she begins to walk along, her footsteps quiet. Careful. She's using an l-shaped flashlight with a red lens on it, trying to keep the visibility at it's absolute minimum to outside observers, though it does add a creepy vibe to things.
At the sound of a voice, she tenses up. Pulling her hands against herself. Hand starting to go for her recorder until her brain processes the sound.
Adjusting her glasses, she turns, kicking what she thinks is a beercan, probably, making a rather notable rattle. Earning a sharp intake of breath, a moment of panic, then she starts to run.
Away would work, but maybe there's more than one guard. Can she run forward, cut a corner and hide? She tries! Running straight through the nearby door and turning to make her escape!
<Pose Tracker> Hyousuke Suzuki has posed.
A rattling noise. Something hollow, something metallic - something starkly different to the machinery still chugging along, or a stray bit of scrap collapsing against the floor. At first, he figured it was just another delinquent hiding out and tossing their rubbish aside, and he turned his torch - a simple thing, bought cheaply from the nearest hardware store - away from what he thought to be the source. But the he heard running from the same direction. Footsteps of any kind would have been enough to rouse his interest a little, but running? Away from him, no less? That was something to investigate.
Despite his size, Hyousuke was remarkably fast, and strangely deft. He darted around pillars and through gaps, chasing like a hound on the scent, determined to figure out what the running was. It didn't sound like any kind of beast he knew, but even if it wasn't one of them, there was every chance it was a person being stalked by one... or a person that meant him harm. There were no shortage of those these days, and some derelict old factory avoided by all but society's dregs was a good place to harm him at.
It wasn't long before he closed in on the source. It was even less time before he closed in on Aoi. Green eyes gleaming in the torchlight, narrowed and focussed like he was on a hunt, he stood behind her with his torchlight glaring. Then his expression softened, changing into something closer to perplexed than focussed.
"Wait a minute, you're not a-" Hyousuke bit his tongue and kept quiet. Demons weren't exactly unknown to the citizens of Sumaru, if Tamaki was to be believed, but there was still no need to go crowing about them. "...Who *are* you? And what's with the running?"
<Pose Tracker> Aoi Igarashi has posed.
There's a scrambled attempt to stop before Aoi plows into the much taller guy that just stepped in front of her. She does get her arms up before her though, crossed, elbows out like she might try to cushion the impact that she stops well short of.
There's an awkward moment of silence there. Her fingers adjusting the grip on the surplus flashlight. Then she slowly lifts her chin when he says something odd. She had been expecting "Hey you, what are you doing here?' or similar.
She hops back, surprisingly adept and offers an apologetic bow. Face hidden behind her long hair as she says quickly, "I apologize for intruding on your temporary home." Before she starts to turn her foot on her heel to get ready to run.
There's an added question about who she was and why she was running. "Exploring, thought you were security." She wheezes out. Some of that adrenaline coming down.
She seems to be maybe thinking about buying time.
In reality she's about to vaporlock, her breathing increasing as she maybe panics a little. She still hasn't realized this is another student.
<Pose Tracker> Hyousuke Suzuki has posed.
"My tempor- You thought I was what?" Hyousuke didn't look at her with anger, or suspicion, or any number of things that might have signalled some kind of danger. Instead, he looked at her with a bemused expression, his face scrunched a little as he tried to make sense of what Aoi had blurted out. As he had so many times before when confronted with something confusing, Hyousuke tilted his head a little, sending those short and blonde locks tumbling down some fraction of an inch as he turned the words over in his head.
Thinking he'd made some sort of sense of her words, Hyousuke flicked the light off, and tucked it into his bag. No need to keep waving it around now that he was close enough to actually get a good look at her face. Dirty as the windows in the factory were, some sunlight still managed to filter through, and some of the bulbs hadn't quite blown yet.
"Security hasn't been in this dump for ages, from what I've heard." He said, looking to her, then out across what parts of the factory he could see.
"Closest you'll ever get to 'security' here is some guys telling you to stay off their turf. And even they're probably not gonna do much, since this is kinda *everyone's* turf." Hyousuke spoke with only a little certainty, and his expression - one he didn't even attempt to hide - matched it. He seemed more curious than cautious, however, and let his gaze linger a moment or two longer before turning back to Aoi. "...Hey, are you alright?" He asked, tilting his head again. His voice was soft that time, noticeably lower and gentler than it had been when he'd first addressed her.
<Pose Tracker> Aoi Igarashi has posed.
Looking up and up, she finally doesn't quite meet the much taller guy's eyes. "You're not?" She still hasn't actually looked at what he's wearing. It's pretty obvious that Aoi just rolled with the first thought that came to mind and hasn't managed to confirm it in some brand of panic.
He might find it hard to see her face, between her glasses, hair and how she holds herself. Her own light goes off and she takes a cautious step away from him. "I-I.. I'd heard the s-s-same." She stammers this out, then there's a quiet little squeak and seh clamps her mouth shut.
There's a little squeak of an 'eep' and she says, "O-of course!" Holding her hands up before her, waving them back and forth. "Nothing wrong here. Nope." Said with absolutely no confidence. At least her heart rate is starting to come down. A little.
<Pose Tracker> Hyousuke Suzuki has posed.
Hyousuke noted the step, but made no move towards her - though he did make sure to keep a close eye on her. Duplicitous individuals were hardly a new phenomenon, and he didn't know for certain whether she was putting on an act or genuinely was in some sort of distress. Regardless of which it was, Hyousuke decided it was best to keep going as he had - calmly, softly, and at a respectable distance.
"...If you're sure." He said, letting the statement linger in the air for a little. He didn't believe her, and he made that much clear through his tone, but decided to leave well enough alone. Pushing might only have served to make things worse - he'd been around others enough to learn that much, despite how dense he was. "So what *were* you hoping to find here?" He asked, hoping to distract with some casual conversation. "You don't look like the usual kinda guys trying to stake a claim here. Or were you just poking around?"
<Pose Tracker> Aoi Igarashi has posed.
If he was a people person, he'd probably realize she's just a socially inept nerd. Aoi adjusts her glasses, nudging them up her nose as she finally looks at the guy in question. Still never quite meeting his eyes admittedly.
To be fair, most of her distress is wrapped up in herself. That he isn't chasing her off is at least helping her. Somehow.
Turning away from her, helps too. "I'm fine." She manages to avoid that stammer. "Just caught me off guard." She puts her foot down for emphasis. It really does help when she can step away a bit. "I'm here because I'd heard about a cryptid thing. I thought it was fake, but it's fun to find them." That part's easy to say, it's the truth! And she's lookign for said thing. She might be trying to compartmentalize things.
She does try to flip the script, "W-why are you here?"
<Pose Tracker> Hyousuke Suzuki has posed.
Hyousuke didn't believe her for a moment. He didn't look like he believed her either - though that was more a result of him being unable to hide it than any active attempt at conveying his disbelief. Whatever his thoughts were, he was able to at least push them back far enough that he could continue the conversation, blinking slowly and speaking gently. The fact that he was a giant of a man when compared to her, with an appearance that screamed he was one of the delinquents that frequented the place, did not occur to him while he rambled on.
"Pretty much the same thing. Heard some rumours about this place, and I figured I'd check it out." Hyousuke said, shrugging a little. Half-truths weren't technically lies, Hyousuke told himself, and he could therefore act as though he was telling the truth rather than concealing it. He paused a moment, wondering how best to try and dissuade her from looking into things further, without outright telling her that there was a vicious monster that probably wouldn't hesitate to eviscerate her. Or perhaps that *was* the best course of action, and he was just looking at it from the wrong angle.
Hyousuke *really* wished he'd asked Tamaki to come with him on this.
"Hey, you wanna go look for it together? It's a big factory, and kinda dangerous if you go past the ground floor." He asked, seemingly oblivious to how such a proposal might be perceived. Hyousuke only hoped to try and keep some random civilian from getting turned into mincemeat by a prowling beast.
<Pose Tracker> Aoi Igarashi has posed.
There's a sharp look given to the much bigger guy when he offers to wander off alone with her. That's the first time she's managed to look him in the eyes, even if just briefly. Like she's realizing she might have to do something stupid and run. Or run and do somethign stupid. She starts to back away again. Even if he does kinda seem harmless. Well, sort of.
"I think-" She starts, taking a half step back, "That the rumor's full of it." Her head turning this way and that as she asseses things. Briefly more confident in herself, even if there's a number of problems that could happen here. That confidence is mostly, 'I'm probably faster than him right?' and it probably shows on her face.
"N-no that's fine. I can keep exploring alone." She doesn't stammer, but she doesn't sound confident saying it either. Is she afraid of him or the area?
<Pose Tracker> Hyousuke Suzuki has posed.
There was a quizzical look in his eyes as he watched her move. He didn't step towards her, but that didn't stop him from eyeing her curiously, hoping to figure out what exactly had her on edge. It wasn't clear whether he was oblivious to the fact that he was six feet of muscle and looked like a bully out of a bad manga, or if he simply chose to ignore it.
"If the rumour's full of it, what're you doing here?" He asked, seeming genuinely curious to hear her reasoning, before moving on.
"...Alright, if you say so. Just be careful out there." He wasn't disappointed or put out when she declined his offer. He seemed concerned, more than anything, as though he knew something about the area that she didn't. "Floor up there'll give out if you step on it wrong, and there's always a couple of guys spoiling for a fight in here." He didn't actually know if that second part was true, but he'd heard enough from others to be fairly certain the first held some weight. Unlike the floors.
<Pose Tracker> Aoi Igarashi has posed.
Aoi at least has some distance between them if it comes down to running. Or something. That he's got THAT much reach on her does worry her. And you know, bigger, probably faster than she'd like even if she's in good shape. Maybe she can lose him in the dark!
"You don't know it's a fake until you investigate it right?" SHe points down to the ground, "And so far the only thing I've found is some banchou stomping around in boots."
The concern seems legit, but he's still huge. And she's not. And he's a person that is trying to talk to her. Even if it isn't berating her or anything else! When he mentions there are guys spoiling for a fight, she notably takes another step away from him. "Is it a risk of falling because of your weight, or in general." That came out wrong.
<Pose Tracker> Hyousuke Suzuki has posed.
For once during their encounter, Hyousuke looked a little annoyed. Not angry, simply irritated, in the same way one might if a fly kept bumping into their face, or if they spilt a drink onto a clean shirt.
"Hey, I'm nothing like those guys." Hyousuke said, pulling a face that looked exactly like those guys. "And it's not 'cause of my weight." He seemed quite insistent about that one. It was likely more concern than anything, but he couldn't stop the twinge of annoyance in his voice. "This place is as old as dirt. Pretty sure you kicking that can out the way's the closest this place's gotten to being cleaned in years."
Hyousuke looked up at the various gantries and walkways, hoping to see one that would prove his point, before glancing back down again.
"Look, just be careful around here. And don't come back after dark. If you think it's bad now, just wait 'til you can't see a damn thing."
<Pose Tracker> Aoi Igarashi has posed.
Aoi looks relieved that he's not going to insist she comes along with him. She puts her hands up and mutters, "I don't plan on getting caught again." Either way. She hasn't seen any signs of an animal around anyway. No footprints that can't be explained, no signs of habitation, nothing. Well, animal habitation at least.
She flinches away and steps back again when he pulls that face and puts his proverbial foot down. "I'm saying it because-" She holds her hand up past her head briefly. "Not the other thing."
"You never saw me here." She never gave her name even! She's definitely ready to get out of there at least. Just probably for other reasons. She might be back.