(After Suzu saves Kei and Tomo)
It did not take the police long to arrive after the boy's father backed off. As per the law the authorities were not allowed to interfere with child abuse cases until the time period elapsed. However, all of Kei's dad's shouting in the middle of the street was enough to garner a public disturbance report. Once an officer received the teenagers' testimony about the scratch on Suzu's cheek, there was ample enough evidence to arrest the man for battery against a civilian minor.
Releasing a sigh the heroic school girl watched as the abusive father was escorted away by peace officers. Honestly she didn't know what in her made the scumbag cower away, but whatever it was took the fight completely out of him. The last she saw of him was his pitiful expression as he was placed into the back of the police vehicle, which would hopefully distance him as far as possible from the two young boys he had no right calling his own.
"Well, it looks like you were the champion of justice all along Belle."
Suzu was jolted out of her thoughts as a middle-aged balding man walked up beside her. Although she expected to be recognized in public, she was still VERY uncomfortable with how familiarly this stranger seemed to address her.
"U-um, i'm sorry, d-do I know you?" she managed to stutter out.
"Oh right, you wouldn't recognize me in the real world" the stranger mused humorlessly" I mean, who would?…"
Clearing his throat he then proceeded to adopt a heroic pose and quoted a line about "the light of justice" and such.
"Waaait…" Suzu began to scrutinize his posture as the pieces began to fall into place. "... Justin?!"
Indeed this out of shape, sunken eyed, shut in stereotype made flesh was none other than the gallant Justin. Much like the case with Belle and her, the antagonistic Justin derived from much humbler origins. If there was one thing Suzu has come to accept these past months, it's that the real you really does come somewhere far deeper than the superficial
Deflating the noticeably stout visitor merely chuckled in response. "In the flesh. By day I'm a mere programmer for U's Tokyo branch, by night, a savior of the digital realm… though I guess, more of an overzealous moderator when you get down to it."
Reaching into his pants pocket Justin retrieved a collapsible umbrella and offered it to the teen girl, which she accepted with a quiet thanks. A sad expression then crossed his face as he looked over to the pair of boys still being interviewed by the police just up the street, praying that they would be spared from the sight of their fool of a family acquaintance.
"...Their mother was one of the key designers of U, did you know that?" Suzu shook her head in response. "Yeah, not too many people care to know about that anymore… she died in a car crash a few months before dragon appeared". To accentuate his point he then opened the article and video of kei and his remaining family that she skimmed past all those weeks ago.
"I'm sure Kei already told you that some of her kouhais tried to reign in his father a couple of times. From what little of this side of him we saw, we just chalked it up to some sporadic grief… but it looks like we just didn't want to see how far he was really gone."
Still a bit dazed by all of this the internet star just stared at the man in confusion.
"So all this time you've been hunting down dragon, you've actually been harassing your deceased friend's son?"
"Yeah, it looks that way…" Justin replied evenly. Tearing his gaze away from the ones who needed him most the wannabe hero affixed Suzu with a serious expression.
"I told you once that the Voices disagreed with me; that U already had everything it needed to be a good place. You proved them right, miss. When all I could see was a punk ruining the fun for others, you saw the boy that just needed to be cared about." with a smile, the villain of the story placed a reassuring hand on the heroine's shoulder. "Just keep being you Belle, that's enough to change the world for the better".
At that moment the sun broke out from behind the clouds, ushering in a brighter future for the three youths it shown upon.
"Alright, I've said my piece" the programmer stated as he began to walk away. "If you'll excuse me, there's a lot of work I need to catch up on if I want to make up for my lost sponsorships." Before he could turn the corner Justin suddenly remembered something. "Oh, and tell Kei and Tomo that we'll restore their castle to the server before the end of the day, the least we could do for them."
With the Justin shaped weight off her shoulders Suzu once again sighed in relief. Although she had no idea what the future held in store, whether it be if Kei's father tries to take back his sons, or the world decides to take advantage of her revealed identity as Belle, at least she had one less virulent voice against her. Pushing anxieties away for another time lowered the umbrella, basking in the crisp air of a sky no longer accosted by a downpour.
The gale's song was loud and clear.