A/N: To clear up some apparent confusion, Aigis's line in the previous chapter about Minato "trying" was regarding her wanting him to try to live, not try to love her. I love Aigis as much as anyone (read: more than anyone, come the fuck at me), but you guys gotta read things without your shipping goggles on sometimes. As in TFT, Minato and Aigis are only very solidly friends in this.
And the italic words are not any kind of 'weird enemy thing' or anything. They're called depression.
Alright, Shenjay here! Just thanking Evilshroom for writing like 70... 80... a million percent of the chapter!
I'd like to thank everyone as well for their kind reviews, answer MGS with 'you missed the point enterely, he obviously HAS problems' and thank sillyfudgemonkeys for The Fool's Turmoil's TVTropes article!
"So then, where are you planning on investigating first?" Aigis asked the next morning as the two prepared to leave their room at the inn.
"Hm… guess I'll ask around about the Midnight Channel thing," Minato said, yawning. "I don't think I have the full picture on it yet. Then I'll see if I can find Naoto again and get her to be more reasonable this time."
"So, your plan is to go around and talk to people you don't know at random?" Aigis clarified. At his affirmative nod, she pursed her lips. "Perhaps I may be better suited for this task…?"
"I know how to talk to people, Aigis…" he grumbled. "It was Hamuko that always sucked at the talking with good words thing."
"…I see."
A knock on the door turned their heads. Minato shrugged and opened it up, revealing a young high school-aged girl with long black hair in a kimono.
"…What do you want?" he asked bluntly. She looked taken aback.
"You… aren't you that guy that was harassing Naoto-kun yesterday?"
"No."
"Oh… you look just like him. I'm sorry," she said with a bow.
"I was just talking to Naoto. Not harassing her. She is a bit more sensitive than I remember, though."
"I… um…" the girl appeared to be at a complete loss, not knowing where to begin. "…Her?"
"Yeah, I'm pretty sure she's my sister," he said, scratching the stubble on his neck thoughtfully. "Anyway, I gotta go figure out what this Midnight Channel crap is all about. Hey, you have any clue about it?"
"I…"
"Actually, scratch that. You were around Naoto, I guess. Don't remember, but you saw me there so you had to be there. Do you know anything about her?"
"Um…"
"Also, does this inn serve breakfast?"
"…Yes?"
"Excellent. Thanks for your help." And with that, he pushed past her out of the room. The girl stood looking at his back, dumbfounded. A hand on her shoulder drew her attention to the blonde who remained behind.
"Forgive him," Aigis said apologetically. "He has… been through some trying times. Although, that is little excuse for his rudeness… please let me introduce us both. I am Aigis, and he is Minato Arisato. We will be staying as guests in this inn for a time."
The girl managed a smile.
"Well, it's nice to have you as our guest. I'm Yukiko Amagi, the daughter of the owners of this inn." She hesitated awkwardly. "Um, I don't mean to pry, but that man, Arisato-san…"
"He is not dangerous," assured Aigis. "Minato is only… in quite a lot of pain, and has been for some time. He lost a person very dear to him, and it caused him to drift away from most of his friends, and lose touch with society. He is terribly lonely now. This attempt of his to find a family is… the desperation of a man with little left in his life."
"Um, I don't really know the situation that well, but Aigis-san, aren't you close to him?" Yukiko asked.
Aigis offered her a wry smile.
"I'm afraid that I remind him too much of the times he had with the one he lost."
"Oh, I see…" she murmured. "Well, it was nice to meet you, Aigis-san… um, do you have a last name?"
"Of course," Aigis said, nodding. "It is Aigis."
"Oh!" Yukiko shook her head lightly. "I thought that was your first name."
"It is."
"Eh?"
"It is my only name. Therefore, it is both my first and last name, correct?"
There was a small pause. A snort escaped Yukiko's nose, then built into a restrained giggle. Before long, the girl was holding her sides, laughing with a wild abandon. Aigis raised an eyebrow at the display, but smiled softly. When Yukiko managed to calm down, and rose from her bent over position, Aigis handed her a tissue for the tears streaming down her face.
"I am glad that there is finally someone who appreciates my jokes."
"Oh, ahahaha, oh... thank you, Aigis-san," Yukiko managed out, wiping her eyes. "Um, I hope Arisato-san starts to feel better. Although… he should be careful what he looks into."
"I will ensure he doesn't go too far in his investigations," Aigis reassured her. "This seems like a very nice town. I will attempt to restrain him from causing too much trouble."
"Oh, good. It's just… the Midnight Channel…" she stopped suddenly as Aigis looked at her with interest.
"Do you know something about it?" she inquired.
"No, well, it's just a rumor-" she started to offer weakly, before her phone went off. She apologized quickly to Aigis, then pulled it out. "Yes? Souji-kun? Of course, Chie and I saw it last night… today, then. Yes, we have to get Na-"
She shot a quick look in Aigis's direction.
"…We have to do it as quickly as possible. Of course. Goodbye." She turned towards Aigis, offering her a smile that even the android could see was not entirely genuine. "I'm sorry, I need to go ensure the other guests are taken care of. It was very nice meeting you, Aigis-san."
"Likewise, Amagi-san," agreed Aigis, giving her a speculative look. "Perhaps we will see each other more later."
As soon as Yukiko hurried away, Aigis walked quickly out the door and into the lobby, where Minato held a plate of food.
"They don't have cereal," he announced with a note of forlorn. Aigis just shook her head and took him by the arm, leaning to whisper into his ear.
"Amagi-san knows more than she is letting on," she said. "I believe she also saw the Midnight Channel last night, and furthermore, that she knows more about what it entails than we do."
Minato paused, biting into a piece of toast.
"Then I suppose we have a lead," he mused, chewing thoughtfully. "Should we confront her?"
"Not immediately," she advised. "I believe she will be meeting with someone who called her. If we follow her where she goes, we may be able to gather more information ourselves instead of relying on her to tell us directly."
"Sounds good. Lets me finish my toast, at least."
"May I have a bite?"
"Sure."
Aigis leaned into the proffered slice of toast and took a bite, chewing thoughtfully.
"I was correct," she confirmed. "It tastes strongly of toast, with just a hint of spring."
Minato lifted his head, seeing a figure in a red sweater hurry out the door.
"I think that was Amagi," he pointed out. "Aigis, engage pursuit mode. Let's see where she's off to..."
"What kind of group of high-school friends comes together at the local megamart?" he wondered later, watching them from an adjacent table, peering over a newspaper he used to occlude his face. Aigis had produced one from who-knows-where. She insisted she had a hammerspace.
"Minato, you are the last person to complain about high school students spending time 'coming together' in odd places," Aigis muttered, listening intently for snatches of the group of teenagers' conversation.
"Funny," he grumbled. "What are they saying?"
"From what I can determine, they seem to believe that Naoto-san was kidnapped... although they're mentioning a TV a lot."
"She what?!"
Every head at the table adjacent to them turned to Minato, who had risen furiously. He stalked over to the group, paying no mind to the general displeasure of everyone there upon seeing him, save perhaps Yukiko.
"You again," the gray-haired one said, eying him carefully.
"Jeez, this weirdo again?" the one with the headphones around his neck grumbled, just loudly enough for Minato to hear him and glare at him.
"Senpai, you want me to take this creep out of here?" the large, bleach-blonde punk asked the albino.
Every eye at the table went to the young man the punk had addressed, who continued looking intently at Minato.
"What do you want?" he asked simply.
"The whereabouts of my sister would be a nice start," replied Minato. "You seem to think she's been kidnapped. Why?"
"We have our sources of information," the boy replied guardedly.
"Do you believe everything you see on TV?" Aigis asked, smiling triumphantly at the boy's startled jump in her direction. "The Midnight Channel has something to do with this, does it not?"
"Aigis-san!" Yukiko gasped, startled. "How did you-?"
"You know these two somehow, Yukiko?" the boy asked, turning interestedly in her direction.
"They're guests at the inn," she explained. "Aigis and Minato Arisato."
"I see... then that would mean you two aren't from around here, then," the boy speculated.
"The fact that you didn't notice such a thing from the beginning, considering the size of this town, would indicate much the same about yourself," Aigis observed.
The boy leaned back, looking somewhat impressed.
"You have quite the deductive mind," he said, sparing her a smile. "Let me introduce us. This is Yosuke Hanamura," indicating the boy with headphones, "Chie Satonaka," a girl in a green sweater with a large plate of meat before her, "Kanji Tatsumi," the scowling blonde punk, "and Rise Kujikawa," a pretty young lady who had spent more time watching the gray-haired boy than the newcomers. "I'm Souji Seta."
"You're Rise Kujikawa?" Minato asked in surprise. She sighed slightly.
"Yeah. I guess you're a fan?"
"No, not at all," he said flatly. "I really can't stand your music. But I used to have to listen to it all the time... even your speaking voices are similar..."
Rise didn't seem to know how to respond to that. No one did, although Yosuke looked noticeably more irritated.
"Look, I really don't care about all your names," Minato continued. "Just tell me what you know about my sister, already."
Souji leaned back, studying the increasingly frustrated blunet.
"Alright then," he acquiesced. "You're new around town. Yosuke, why don't you show them around and answer their questions... within reason."
"What?!" Yosuke spluttered. "Partner, why the hell...?"
"Ariasto-san seems to be a very determined fellow," Souji said casually, still locking eyes with the Fool before him. "If we don't give him any answers, he would just dog us until he found things out anyway. This would be best for both of us."
"...I gotcha," Yosuke said, loosening up a bit. "You sure Yukiko wouldn't be better for this sort of thing? She's more the type to take care of people."
"We may need those skills for ourselves, don't you think?"
"So... I guess the rest of you are going to be busy while I'm... showing them around?"
"We'll find something to do," Souji affirmed.
"...Alright," Yosuke said, rising from his spot at the table. "Aigis-san, Arisato, let's go. I guess I'll answer your questions while we walk."
Minato narrowed his eyes at Yosuke whenever he would direct a dreamy look at his dear android, and that happened way too often as they headed wherever that boy meant to go.
"Then, you're the owner of all these beautiful televisions in which I could see all kinds of anime?"
"W-well, that's not quite true. You see, I'm the manager's son and…" He could hear the two of them talking a couple meters ahead.
"And even being so you work assisting clients? That's quite impressive, Yosuke-san."
"Really? I-I mean, yeah, I guess it is…" His face went slightly red as his smile increased. "Hey, would you like to have a drink together or something once this is—"
"Hanamura-san." Minato interrupted, arms folded in exasperation. "I am still waiting for an explanation."
"Huh? Oh, you're still there?"
Minato's glare was such that even Aigis took a step back.
"Right, right, guess you don't really care 'bout seeing places either." Yosuke raised his hands in a placating way. "So uh, whaddja wanna know, again?"
"The Midnight Channel. Tell me everything about it." Minato demanded.
"Well, uh… we don't know EVERYTHING. We're only taking guesses at most stuff." He admitted, rubbing the back of his head.
"I don't care if it's speculation or not, you must have enough proof to relate what used to be an urban legend to my sister's disappearance."
"You… you really think he's a girl?"
"Irrelevant. Answer my question."
Aigis put a hand on the shoulder of the puzzled, and somewhat irritated, Yosuke. "He's truly worried. Answer him, please, or neither of us will hear the end of it."
Minato limited himself to raising an eyebrow at that affirmation.
"Well, basically…" Yosuke folded his arms and looked away, sighing. "If you appear in the Midnight Channel you'll get kidnapped."
The blunet gave him a grave nod of understanding. "But…how can someone appear in the Midnight Channel?"
"That's…"
He turned for a moment towards Aigis, who was looking at him intently. Cuteness shouldn't be a legal way to press into giving a confession.
"…You have to be on TV first."
Minato could only furrow his brow. So? Was that it? A magical phenomena happening only to people who appeared on TV? "I don't suppose half of the news staff have been kidnapped." He pondered aloud. "How did you relate both facts?"
"Most of our members were kidnapped and rescued at some point."
"…Rescued?"
The boy bit his tongue at the slip.
"A-ah, w-well… we're an Investigation Team! We investigate and stuff! They were rescued by the police, o-of course!"
After this obvious lie, he began cackling. Minato was unimpressed.
"Was my sister one of you, perhaps?"
"Um… kinda."
"Kinda?"
"Well… he was studying the murders and all, too." Yosuke moved his eyes left and right. "So uh…you done asking?"
Minato shook his head. This boy just wouldn't cooperate any further… with him.
"Yes, thank you very much for your kindness. I believe I can go on investigating by myself with this."
"Er… right. Good luck or something."
As Aigis was about to go after Minato, he turned around with a smile.
"I'd like to be alone for a while, Aigis. You'd only get bored standing by in my room."
Yosuke seemed to get a bit startled by that fact.
"Why don't you go with Yosuke and take a look around town?"
"Minato…"
"Well, see you both!"
As he kept on marching onwards, his feigned smile disappeared. Aigis wasn't stupid, she knew him perfectly, and the reason he left her with them as well. It wasn't fair to her… but he'd make sure to repay her once everything was over.
Until then… he had to follow a certain bundle of teenagers.
Minato opened the door to his room and dragged his feet towards the futon, letting himself fall face first over it.
"I really need to get fit again." He muttered, face covered by his pillow. "No more… persecutions…"
As he was about to fall into Morpheus's arms, someone opened and closed the door swiftly.
"Hey, AigisssAAAAARGH."
The android lifted him in the air and gave him a crushing hug. "Oh Minato! You won't believe how much fun I had! Everyone is so nice! And Yosuke-san got me so many free things!"
"Aigisss."
"I hadn't had so much fun in years! Going around town, seeing Chie-san and Yosuke-san argue…!"
"Aigis, I beg you…"
As she finally looked down at the boy she was embracing, she realized that he'd gone from red to almost purple, and quickly left him on the ground again.
"Seriously…" Minato sighed, fully recovered by the next morning. "You guys can't take anything seriously. I followed you the whole day and got nothing interesting."
"Save some muscles?"
"Save sore muscles." He sighed yet again. "So? Did you find anything out?"
"Rise-san is prone to accosting Souji-san."
"Interesting. Regarding the investigation, though?"
"Oh… I… ahem, made some inquiries."
"Aigis, you don't cough."
"However, I'd need some more… confirmation."
Minato grinned, giving Aigis an amused look. "Now now, you want to play with your new friends, hm?"
Aigis gasped. "I AM BEING STRICTLY PROFESSIONAL, MISTER MINATO."
"Oh, yeah?"
"How dare you doubt me, hmph!" She quickly turned her face away.
"…Where did you learn that?" He asked, bemused.
"Some old police film in which the character who says those words ends up joining the enemy."
"Oh, that gives me SO much more confidence."
As they were laughing together, someone knocked on the door.
"Go on, it's open!"
Unsurprisingly, Yukiko was the one behind the door, but she wasn't clad in the kimono she wore to assist customers.
"Um, good morning." She greeted coyly. "Aigis-san, would you like to come with us today? We were thinking about…"
As Aigis was about to say yes without even hearing the rest of it, her eyes suddenly fell on Minato-san. The conflict became obvious.
Minato only shook his head, a wry smile decorating his face. "Don't worry about me, you should have as much fun as you can; she's my sister, not yours. I'll keep on investigating by myself. Now, go on. Your friends are waiting."
With that he ruffled her hair, and pushed her out of the room, closing the door strongly behind her.
Aigis stared at the door for a few seconds, before finally opening her mouth, sadness filling her voice.
"Minato…"
The answer was delayed, but it eventually arrived. "…Yes?"
Aigis looked down, her blonde locks covering her face.
"I'm still in my pajama."
"…So Arisato-san decided to let you go alone again, huh?" Souji mentioned casually, trying to walk as normally as he could with an idol clinging to his arm. "A pity, I would have liked to talk to him further. Perhaps he could offer some insight if he… calmed down."
Aigis looked confused at those words, so Rise decided to intervene.
"Aigis-san, that boy is kinda creepy… no offense!" She explained, making Aigis hold back a small smile. Her voice did seem like Hamuko's. "He doesn't suit you at all! You're so cool, and pretty too! You could have someone nicer and younger!"
"Yeah, he's like a thousand years older than you, right?" Chie asked, seconding the motion.
"Old for me…?" Aigis asked, looking perplexed. Then she understood. "Oh, um… he's not my boyfriend. And he's not that old."
Both Souji and Yosuke seemed to perk up a little.
"He's around nineteen. I'm around… twelve."
Everyone fell into a ghostly silence. The bleached boy muttered something along the lines of 'That's just wrong…', but then…
"Twelve? Pfffft… Hahaha! Aigis-san, there's NO way you're twelve!" Yukiko kept laughing harder and harder.
"Aigis-san, don't mess with us! You're obviously around our age!" Rise complained.
"Well, I suppose technically speaking, I am well into my hundreds or so…"
"Aigis-san, stop joking!" Chie protested, holding back a grin of her own. "You're killing Yukiko!"
Indeed, the girl in the red sweater appeared to be unable to stand up under her own power, now laying on the ground in convulsions. Aigis laughed nervously.
"Oh, haha… yes, you've found me out," she said unconvincingly. "I am, um… sixteen?"
"O-oh, so you were really kidding?" Yosuke let out a relieved sigh. "Man, I can't tell when foreigners are trying to be funny…"
"…Well, I can be very humorous sometimes." She then pointed to her arm. "I could never be humerus though."
Yukiko kept laughing, while Chie only shook her head, defeated. "Please, stop. We already have someone in charge of making horrible puns…"
"Which reminds me, we should probably go to Junes and see how's Teddie doing." Souji proposed. "Perhaps he'll have something interesting to tell us."
His voice changed during the last sentence, and Aigis didn't miss that.
The group left the strip mall to head towards the shopping mall, and as they walked, Souji sent Rise somewhere else and walked more slowly to accompany Aigis.
"So, how are you enjoying the town?"
"It seems very interesting. I'd never been outside Port Island before, so I didn't know what to expect of Inaba."
Souji gave her a pleased grin as he nodded in agreement. "However, after a couple of days, there isn't much fun stuff to do in this town in the middle of nowhere." He gave her what Aigis could only guess was a flirty look. "Good thing I'm here, huh?"
"Souji-san," Aigis held back a snort, "perhaps I shall ask your other love interests how much fun you are?"
"Oh, you noticed?" He closed his eyes, pretending to be calm. "There's a general agreement of keeping anything beyond friendship a secret."
"How convenient for you." She mocked. "However, I'm sorry to say that confident as you may be, you are barking up the wrong tree."
"How so?"
Aigis reflexively took a hand to the base of her neck. She was a robot. "I've already got someone I love." But that wasn't a lie, either.
The albino boy seemed satisfied with the answer, so he made no attempt to pry any further as they advanced.
They finally arrived to the food court in Junes, a beautiful terrace… absolutely crowded with people of varying ages, mostly kids.
"This is our usual meeting place." Souji announced. Aigis really couldn't understand how they could meet to discuss anything in such an indiscreet place. "If you ever need us, we're probably here, fooling around."
"How are you doing, Teddie?" Yukiko asked a few meters away. Behind her there was…
Someone in a bear suit. A bear suit could never be as cute as an angry faced persimmon, though.
"I'm bear-y tired of working." The person inside the suit lamented. "I'm sure I'd feel better if we smooched for a while!"
Aigis didn't manage to see Yukiko's glare, but she was sure she could feel it a mile away.
The mascot sighed and turned around, finally taking notice of Aigis.
"OOH, WHO'S THIS CUTIE?"
The bear suit's head flew away as the blonde boy inside of it ran towards her.
"Hau aru yu duingu, mai daruringu?" He asked in what Aigis could only guess was English.
"Parure-bu furansua?" She replied, smiling at the bear's confused face.
"Hey, only Yosuke can make fun of Teddie here." Souji laughed. "Teddie, this is Aigis. She speaks Japanese perfectly. And Aigis, this is Teddie. He's a bit…weird."
"A Casanova-wannabe, I see." She muttered.
"You sure she speaks Japanese?" He asked, disappointed.
"Quite certain, Teddie-san," Aigis said, her voice amused. "I could ask you the same question, however, considering your appearance. Do you come from here?"
"Nope!" Teddie chirped cheerfully. Aigis noted a blur of motion from beside her. "I live inside th-"
Souji's hands clasped tightly over the blonde boy's mouth. His expression was stern as he looked Teddie in the eyes. A note of understanding filled Teddie's expression, and he held up his thumb and forefinger in the "okay" sign, allowing Souji to release him. Aigis raised an eyebrow at this.
"Teddie, do you have anything to tell us, keeping in mind present company?" Souji stressed.
"The nose knows, Sensei!" Teddie boasted. "I found, uh… that thing you were looking for! My talents are an ins-bear-ation to us all!"
He punctuated this statement with what he was sure to consider a sly wink. Souji nodded and turned to Aigis.
"Aigis-san, I apologize for how rude this sounds, but we have something we need to do alone for a while. Perhaps Arisato-san can escort you back?" He raised his voice at the last sentence, directing it across a few tables.
"What gave it away?" a dry voice asked from behind a newspaper.
"That's the same newspaper as yesterday."
Minato tilted the paper downwards, studying the date.
"So it is."
"Sensei, do you know this crazy guy?" Teddie asked curiously. Minato glared at that.
"This coming from the one who goes around in a suit that looks like a clown egg."
"I'll have you know that suit is bear-y fashionable!"
"Your puns are worse than Aigis's!"
"Ai-chan has a sense of humor?" Teddie gasped, instantly abandoning his argument with Minato and running to clasp the android's hands. "Ai-chan, we have so much in common! Like our beautiful hair and eyes!"
"Perhaps we are long-lost twins," proposed Aigis. "Separated from birth, and drawn together by fate!"
"It makes perfect sense!" Teddie agreed enthusiastically.
"It makes no sense whatsoever," Minato stated flatly.
"Sensei, back me up on this one!" Teddie cried out, turning behind him to look for support. Not a single member of the Investigation Team was there. "…Oh no! I got left bear-hind!"
"Distraction tactics…" Minato muttered.
"No, it was a ninja vanish," Aigis argued.
Squeak. Squeak. Squeak. The two turned around to see Teddie, back in his bear suit, 'sneaking' away into the megamart proper. He paused and turned around to see them staring after him. After a moment's pause, he took off as fast as his stubby legs can carry him.
"Your friends are weird," Minato stated. Aigis had nothing to say in their defense. "So, we've found out nearly nothing… we do, at least, know that they know something else they haven't told us yet. Do you think you can get it out of them?"
"Is this another request for me to spend time with my 'weird' friends?"
"Yeah. I think I tend to scare them off, so I'll be leaving it to you."
"Very well."
"You used to have a better poker face, you know."
The following day, Aigis stepped briskly into the afternoon air, intending to make her way to the Junes food court where she was told she could typically find the group that would be making their way out of school at the time. She thought to herself as she walked of her companion, who had been unnaturally obsessed with this venture, putting more energy into it than he had his entire life post-Nyx. The man she had known for centuries was on a dangerous precipice, was unconcerned with his own wellbeing… was running right by her?
Indeed, Minato blazed by her at breakneck speed, apparently intending to head to the same destination, his eyes set with a desperate fire. Aigis took off after him in pursuit, catching him easily by the arm after a short dash.
"Minato, what is it?" she asked in concern. A manic look filled his eyes.
"Naoto!" he exclaimed. "She's been found! I bet you anything it was those kids! I have to go talk to her!"
"How do you know this?" Aigis asked.
"Went to get today's newspaper to improve the disguise, and saw it on the headline!" he hurried out. "Come on, come on!"
With that, he rushed forward, tugging her along as she still had her grip firmly on his arm.
The town was small, and the run was short, and before long, the two had made it to Junes's food court. At the large table in the middle, the familiar group stood gathered around an even more familiar figure in a blue cap, who seemed not entirely displeased with the attention.
"Minato, control yourself," Aigis hissed at him. "Do not cause a scene, remember that even if this Naoto is related to you, she will not know who you are, so-"
"Naoto!" Minato shouted out with a broad smile, running up to the Investigation Team, who all looked less than overjoyed to see him. Their newest member, in particular. Naoto's eyes, plagued by dark circles signaling exhaustion, narrowed in irritation.
"You, once again," she said wearily. "Please leave at once, I have no desire-"
"Naoto-kun, um…" Yukiko interrupted, sparing Minato a pitying glance. "Could you hear him out? Maybe he just got off on the wrong foot earlier."
Naoto sighed heavily, tugging her cap over her eyes and sagging into her chair.
"Very well," she mumbled, waving a hand. "What is it you want, Arisato-san?"
Minato took in a heavy breath, choosing his words carefully.
"I think you're my sister."
Just not intelligently.
Naoto's mouth gaped open, and she turned a furious glare on the Investigation Team, who began simultaneously denying having told him about her gender.
"He actually knew before any of us did," Souji said calmly.
"No, look, hear me out!" Minato said desperately. "Look, you lost your parents in a car crash, right? So did I! And you know, we look similar… that hat! It used to be mine! We're siblings!"
Naoto gave him a long, level look. After a time, when she spoke, it was without detectable emotion, and all the more dangerous for it.
"When last we met, just before I was kidnapped," she began, "despite the audacity and lack of tact you displayed, despite the fact that you then, as you did now, reminded me of the fact that yes, my parents are deceased, I made the mistake of giving your delusions even the slightest bit of credence. I called my grandfather, who is an outrageously busy man, with the humiliating question of whether he was keeping a secret of my parents having another child that was separated from me for some reason. When asked why I would ask something so utterly idiotic, my only response was that an unkempt, socially maladjusted boy who bore a passing similarity to me claimed to be my long-lost brother."
Her hand clenched, the only external sign of her growing anger.
"Allow me to be perfectly clear so that you may leave me in peace once and for all. I have no brother. You are not related to me by any but the most distant link, and I am even beginning to question if we are of the same species, considering your personal traits. Your delusions are childish fantasy at best, and a madman's lunacy at worst. Now. Leave."
Minato's eyes widened; the desperation within them blazed out of control.
"You're wrong!" he shouted back, his wild appearance causing the Investigation Team to gather closer to Naoto. "Let me talk to Jouhei, please! Or have some blood work done! You're a detective, you know how to tell this sort of thing, right? RIGHT?! You haven't done enough; you can't rule out the possibility yet!"
He stepped forward on unsteady legs, and in an instant, despite her exhaustion, the fed-up Naoto was on her feet and had her small revolver leveled at his chest.
"Stay right where you are, Arisato-san," she said calmly. Her tone brooked no argument. "I am quite weary of your incessant bothering, against my will. I will be calling the police, and you can answer some questions of theirs, for once."
"You…" Minato said, his voice as unsteady as his legs. "…You aren't, really?"
He fell back into a chair of his own, staring down at his feet while Naoto pulled out her cell phone, ignoring Aigis's pleas to let it go. The world lost focus around him, seeming to turn gray. Even as he was pulled into the back of a squad car, he only stumbled along, putting up no resistance. Aigis watched sadly as it pulled away.
Minato sat in the empty interrogation room, staring downwards at nothing, into nothing. The desperate fire in his eyes was gone, as was anything at all. The door swung open, and he looked blearily up at the face of a rather goofy-looking officer who stepped in.
"Hey there!" the officer said cheerfully. "I'm Tohru Adachi. Just need to ask you a few questions."
At no answer from the young man before him, Adachi shrugged and continued.
"Anyway, to be honest, what we brought you in here for wasn't really that big a deal. Even in a small town like this, you aren't the only weird otaku stalker we've had to deal with… oh, sorry!" he stammered, rubbing the back of his head. "My mouth gets me in trouble sometimes…"
Minato still said nothing, just meeting his eyes with that same dead look. Adachi laughed nervously, turning his own stare down to the file in his hands.
"So, you gave your name as Minato Arisato, right? Not Shirogane? Did you really think you were Shirogane-san's brother, or was that just a trick to get close to him? Like, dye your hair blue, get some alone time…"
Still no response.
"I guess you really did believe it, huh? Well, I mean, nothing against you. People believe all kinds of crazy things… so, should I call your parents, or something?"
Minato's mouth twitched in a movement that could generously be called a frown.
"Oh, sorry… shoulda read this file closer. Orphan, huh? So what happened there? Car crash? Murdered? Just gave you up?"
A long blink. Minato's eyes sharpened slightly.
"Anyway…" Adachi sighed. "I guess none of that really matters. Honestly, what we brought you in for isn't that big of a deal. We'd have just slapped you on the wrist and told you to go back home. But what we got off you when we brought you in…"
Adachi dangled Minato's Evoker, always kept in one of his pockets, before him.
"You know these are illegal, right?" he asked. "Even shut-ins know that, don't they? I mean, you could get in a lot of trouble here."
Minato remained silent, still watching Adachi half-interestedly from under his sagging eyelids. Adachi frowned.
"Man, what's got you all depressed, kid?"
"You would like to know that, wouldn't you?"
The first words spoken were in a rough, croaking voice that yielded neither emotion nor life. Adachi cocked his head at them.
"What do y-"
"You've been picking at potential weaknesses this whole time, looking for a reaction," Minato said, his half-lidded gaze sharpening into a slight glare. "You know, I hid what I really was for years upon years. I can tell when someone else does the same. You're pathetic. One of those cops that didn't join to do any good. You just want the power over people you have now. The power of your station, and a gun at your side. You want to hurt people just because you can. But you never get the chance in a town like this, do you? You know… I bet you're a real sick fuck on the inside."
Adachi's goofy smile faded as Minato's tirade went on. By the time he had finished, Adachi's face had twisted into a murderous glare.
"Nice speech, kid," he said, his grin returning in what looked more like a snarl. "Real perceptive of you. Yeah, I hate this tiny little backwater town. But, you know, it does have its advantages. Like, hey, this force is too poor to have a camera in the station."
"So, what are you going to do?" Minato asked, his voice still yielding no emotion. "Shoot me in the head with my own gun?"
Adachi scoffed.
"What, this toy? I'm not stupid enough to mistake this thing for a real gun. Not that I let any of the other officers notice."
"Your real one, then? Just end me here?"
"Would it be such a bad thing?"
"Too messy," Adachi replied with a shrug. "Hard to explain. Nah, I think I'll just-"
Cutting off suddenly, he lunged across the table. Grabbing a fistful of Minato's long bangs, he jerked his arm forward and down forcefully, slamming the Fool's head into the steel table. Stunned and surprised, Minato wasn't able to react quickly enough to prevent Adachi from charging forward out of his seat, the chair clattering to the floor, and grabbing him by the throat. With a tight grip, Adachi forced the younger, out-of-shape man into the corner of the room where a decently-sized TV sat.
"You know, it's such a shame you escaped," Adachi said mockingly, pushing Minato further back, pressing him against the TV. To Minato's shock, he began to push into the screen. "Because, you know, the police can search…"
As Minato fell through the screen completely, into the abyss, he heard Adachi's mocking voice above him.
"…But no one will ever find you!"
Lookit that, only about two weeks to get this out! That's like, twice as fast as those later TFT chapters! (Not as fast as the very last ones, but someone has to have their fancy-pants professional colorist job, so a certain promoted beta reader is left waiting on said someone to finish. Psh, artists…)
In another row of news, this story will have five chapters. That's right, a TFT story that doesn't make the term "doorstopper" seem woefully inadequate! With no filler! It's like a dream come true! As long as that dream involves the main character being utterly broken right from the beginning.