POV: Minato
Time: May 15 After school
Location: Junes Food Court
Well I came, here now what? I scanned the area and saw nothing out of the ordinary, so I sat at a table near the exit. I figure if this is some trap it would be easier to get out.
"Am I early?..." I flipped open my cell and checked the text, "It doesn't give a time."
Well not content with doing nothing while the others did all the leg work, I pulled out some news paper copies I had picked up. I had asked for any gang related news figuring that any news pertaining to this Kanji Tatsumi person would be there. As I scanned though it seemed more that he wasn't actually in a gang. He had picked fights with quite a few gangs, leaving his mother to apologize. Lately it has been the biker gang that has been hanging around…Well now I have an idea about his history, how does this tie in to the other victims…I wonder, nothing really stands out. Excluding him the old theory would make sense, so maybe it's not entirely wrong. What if the killer was targeting anyone who had a connection to the original murder. With that theory everything falls into place except, wouldn't the parents be better targets in all but Saki's case, as they would have had more contact with Mayumi Yamano? Well it's something to talk to the others about.
"That guy still isn't here…was it a joke?" I flipped open my phone to check the time and saw that I had a message.
[I will be there at 5:00pm, I forgot to mention that earlier, sorry.] I looked at the time and I had about 10 minutes, so I got something to drink and sat back down. I turned my mp3 and waited as the few minutes ticked by. I got the feeling I was being watched. Looking around I saw that a few new people were hanging around. This being one of the only places to do so it made sense. I did however notice someone in a police cadet's uniform and it appeared he was either lost or trying to find someone. Somehow I got the feeling that he may be looking for me. I got up and approached him from a blind spot.
"So, you looking for someone?" I asked casually.
"Actually yes, but I'm unfamiliar with the area." He said still looking ahead.
"Not from around here, huh, what brings you to the area?" I asked the man.
"They figured a small town like this would be better for getting on job experience. I also heard a friend of mine may be in the area." He said finally turning to see who he was talking to. His face looked familiar, just as I was trying to figure out why, "You! So she wasn't lying!" The man almost yelled, and it finally clicked as to who he was.
"Akihiko! What are you doing here!" I asked in shock.
"I think a better question is, why did you have Mitsuru keep it a secret that you came back?" He asked as we walked back to the table I was sitting at.
"Well I needed some time to collect my thoughts." I answered him.
"About what, Mitsuru didn't give me any details." He said.
"About Nyx and her views on humans." I said.
"Oh that's right, how is the seal active without you?" He asked.
"To be honest, it's not, however she won't be causing us any problems." I said.
"Why not, last I knew she planned on granting the wish of death to all of the world." He said showing some concern.
"It would appear that she is giving us a second chance." I said picking up the newspaper clipping on the table.
"Oh…Is there something going on here?" He asked noticing the paper clippings.
"I see Mitsuru really didn't tell you anything…" I filled him in on what was going on.
"So there are other persona users here, huh. Do they know about us?" He asked.
"Not yet, they have enough stuff to worry about. I can tell that at least Souji, the new wild card, is curious about me. So are you going to tell everyone?" I asked.
"No, I doubt they would believe me, and if Mitsuru already knows I imagine she will force you to tell them yourself." He said, "I would, however, like to be kept up to date on this new situation. I may be able to get information from the police."
"Thanks, actually I was wondering if you have any idea about the connections between the victims?" I asked.
"Well, your theory seems to fit, but it feels like we are missing something. There is too much we don't know, like when we first started going into Tartarus." He said.
"You're right. The biggest questions I have lay with this Midnight Channel." I said.
"You said it predicts who will be the next victim and once they are put into this other world, it shows this low-budget TV program? But who could have the power to do that? To make a connection between this world and the shadow world, another persona user?" He questioned.
"Well I suppose that it is possible, but I haven't seen any with that kind of power." I said.
"Hmm, well we'll just have to wait and see, I guess. Minato, where are you staying?" He asked.
"An inn in town called the Amagi Inn. I do some work there, but I am a freeloader for the most part. The owner says it's a 'reward' for helping find her daughter. It isn't a bad deal, but I do feel a bit bad about it." I said.
"Well you did save her daughter. For now you may just have to deal with it." He said standing up, "You have my number, give me a call if you need me."
Thou art I… I am thou…
Thou hast established a new bond…
It brings thee closer to the truth…
Thou shalt be blessed when creating personas of the Star Arcana…
Thou hath also restored a part of a past link…
The strength of the Fool Arcana has increased…
After Akihiko left, I figured I should as well. Maybe the others found something out, I guess I'll just ask Yukiko later. Before that, Mitsuru owes me an explanation.
I got back to the inn around 6:30. After finding out that there wasn't anything I needed to do today I went up to my room. I took out my phone and added the phone number in Akihiko's text message to my contacts list and then pulled up Mitsuru's.
[Ring…Ring…Ring…Click…Hello Minato, is there something wrong?]
"…Mitsuru do you really need to ask that? You should already know why I'm calling you."
[I see you met with Akihiko.]
"Yes, I did. What happened to my continued existence being a secret?"
[Well, you don't want us getting too involved there, but sitting around isn't what I like to do. I figured having another set of eyes in Inaba would help.]
"So you used your connections to expedite Akihiko's police training and then have him assigned here?"
[That about sums it up.]
"Why didn't you give me any warning?"
[Well you would have objected to the idea, plus I think having Akihiko around may help you figure things out faster.]
"Is that all I should know about?"
[You remember that your deadline is September, good luck. I have a meeting so bye…Click]
"Looks like she is getting impatient. It's not like I have time to worry about that." I said to myself trying to figure out my next move. This Kanji person wouldn't get kidnapped without a fight. If it comes to that maybe he'll actually see the person causing this. As I was pondering the next few moves someone knocked on my door.
"Who's there?" I asked getting up to open the door.
"Minato-sama, the mistress sent me to tell you that dinner is ready." Said one of the maids working at the inn.
"Thanks, I'll be down in a minute." I said getting ready to head down.
The dining room was empty of guests, just Yukiko, Sayoka, and some employees.
"Slow day?" I asked.
"Yeah, but it is a small town after all. Slow days are normal." Sayoka replied. The rest of the dinner was quite. Not that quite is bad, but it is very different from the way I used to live. After dinner I helped clean up. As I was heading up to my room someone called me.
"Minato-kun, wait up." The voice said. I turned around to see Yukiko walking over.
"Something wrong, Yukiko-san?" I asked.
"I figured you would want to know about how things went today." She said as we started walking toward my room.
"We probably shouldn't talk about that out in the hallway." I said opening the door to my room. Once inside she started looking around in a nervous manor. "Is something wrong?"
"Umm…It's my first time in a guy's room." She said still nervous looking. I hadn't thought about that.
"Oh, umm…" I said followed by an awkward silence. Yukiko was the first to break the silence.
"So…we found out that Kanji is connected to the original murder as well." She said.
"Really?" I asked.
"Yeah it turns out that his mother's textile shop made a pair of scarves for Miss Yamano." she said.
"Wait, wouldn't a better target be Kanji's mother than?" I asked.
"We thought about that too. We think that by killing the child they are targeting the mother as well." She said.
"Two birds with one stone, huh. It makes sense. So what is the plan now?" I asked.
"We plan to follow him tomorrow, as he is meeting with…someone tomorrow." She said, but the hesitation caught my attention.
"Who?" I asked.
"Well…you." She answered.
"…um…what!" I almost yelled.
"Well, not really you but someone who looks just like you." She said.
"…There is someone around here who looks just like me?" I asked.
"Yes, but it appears he doesn't know you. When Souji brought you up he was confused." She said.
"I see…well I'm bound to see this person if he is around town." I said. I really wonder who this person is.
"Do you have any relatives?" She asked.
"I don't know. From what I can remember I had no brothers or sisters. But I have no idea about cousins." I said.
"I see...What would you do if you found out you do?" She asked with a sad look.
"Well, the fact that they didn't take me in when my parents died means they can at least wait till things are solved here." I said, but she still looked down. "No matter how far away true friends go, they will eventually meet again." She appeared to perk up.
"You sound like you are speaking from experience." She said.
"Hmm, perhaps I am." I said.
"What do you think about me leaving Inaba?" She asked.
"Is that what you want to do?" I asked.
"Well, what my shadow said is true." She said.
"Well, I'm not going to tell you what you should do, cause it is your decision. Your shadow was wrong about one thing, you always did and always do have the choice. Your mother may not like it in the beginning but she will come to understand your decision if you choose to leave." I explained.
"I guess you are right…" She said and then got quite.
"But you are still unsure?" I asked.
"Hmm…Maybe." She said getting up.
"Good. Take your time, the right answer will come." I said.
"Thanks, it was nice talking to you." She said leaving the room.
I am Thou, Thou art I…
Thou hast strengthened the bond of the Priestess Arcana…
"No matter how far away true friends go, they will eventually meet again, huh…Wonder why it is I can't do just that." I said, "I guess I'll go to bed. Not much else to do today."