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Missing.; [Reika and Ren. Completed.]
Topic Started: Oct 25 2016, 06:49 PM (295 Views)
Wagoo

Ren Taira sighed. Maybe it's the lack of English?

Ren was sitting on a bench at the food court, a can of coffee in hand. His mother had gone off to another store, leaving him with 2000 Yen and no words apart from "Do what you want, go walk around, it'll be fine. I'll call you when it's time to go look for furniture." Thus, he spent his first Sunday off from school doing nothing apart from writing in his notebook and draining cans dry (as the two other cleared coffee cans could attest to). Which led his mind to wander, and try to figure out why Nagashima felt off to him.

He had heard plenty of stories about how weird and dangerous the city could be. But Ren couldn't help but think that was it. It's a really public place, but there's hardly any of that alphabet. Okinawa, courtesy of the American military presence it held, had much of its signage and infrastructure in general written bilingually. Ren payed it no mind, the mysterious alphabet was as much a constant presence as anything else, and it didn't matter much to him (though he'd never let his mother and uncle hear him say that). But up north in Nagashima, the English alphabet was a rarity. Now, it was pure katakana and kanji, another reminder that he was not home anymore.

Or the climate? Okinawa was warm, and Ren had always gone in shorts and a shirt. But now, his shirts had longer sleeves, and he'd worn pants every day since arriving (so much so that though he wouldn't tell his father, Ren thought he did have a point in buying extra clothes from Junes before leaving). The air was far less humid, and it felt like a comforting blanket that had comforted him since childhood was forcibly removed.

It's no ocean. Just constant mountains. Perhaps it was the landscape that troubled him the most. Naha was admittedly capable of being urban, but Nagashima was far more rough. It was a larger concrete jungle that paradoxically held less concrete, and was surrounded by hills and mountains. It felt as if the world was trying to box him in more. Before, it was a short walk, if not a short drive depending on where he was, and he could see the ocean. The whole sky expanded to all the planet could afford, and it seemed he understood the world. Now... caged, like so many people.

The thoughts unsettled Ren, so he vented the only way he knew how- his left hand moving swiftly, creating words from the graphite in his mechanical pen and the paper he met.

I want to go home.
Here is an unfriendly land.
I feel foreign here.


Feeling foreign reminded Ren of how his Uncle and mother disliked the American military presence, which made him far more homesick for some reason. While it was for the better it was gone, some part of him was nostalgic. A troubled, possibly surprised expression crossed his face before changing into a disturbed one at the realization of nostalgia. I know me, and I'm not going to be stuck in the past! He tore out the piece of paper, crumpled it into a ball, and tried to toss it into the trashcan across the people walking.

It fell short, and dropped into the crowd, someone no doubt stepping on it. Ren sighed at his failure, and looked at his shoes, melancholic.
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Sylia
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Hmm. Reika thought absently, sitting in a seat not too far from Ren. A lot has been on her mind since Sanae's awakening, making her rethink her entire course of action. While she didn't tell Sanae about her other activities, she did show her who she was under the mask; something she's done for ho one else.

While she was casually looking over the crowd, Reika's eyes fell on the young man nearby. His expression was easily read and his overall demeanor screamed new person. What will you do? Go over to him? Fafnir chuckled inside her mind. Reika watched for a while before rising and walking over to the young man.

"Hiiii~" She says casually, giving a light wave to Ren. "Is this seat taken?"

Reika smiled disarmingly as she scanned him, noting that he's not a persona user. Well it didn't really matter in the long run, she wasn't actually out looking for a fight right now. "Oh where are my manners?" She clucks her tongue, then pulls out a card. "The name's Reika. Kurenai Reika."
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Wagoo

Nobody responded to the bit of trash thrown into the crowd.

Ren looked a tad relieved at this, glad that some random person wasn't going to go up to him and berate him for his brief moment of lashing out. (Though Ren did feel as if some form of reprimand was deserved). Yet it didn't come in an expected form, but in the form of a newcomer lady. She seemed older than Ren, and her friendly greeting put him on edge, if his surprised expression was anything to go by. Clearly, it was not expected.

It took Ren a moment before he spoke up. "No, it is open. Here...." he moved the empty cans of coffee out of the way, making room for the lady. "There, that should be neater." I hope she just wants to check something on her phone. Yeah, she does.

As the lady spoke again, Ren was proving wrong, dashing his confidence. He still attempted to fake someone sure of himself, though it seemed to not be working as fully as intended. "Ah, pleased to meet you, Kurenai-san. Taira Ren." Ren offered the lady a respectful bow of his head before setting his mechanical pencil down and using his now free left hand for taking the card.

The gears in Ren's head seemed to stop turning for a few seconds before resuming with immediate clarity. A life counselor? Did she see me throw the paper and decided to ask?... maybe she can help me somehow. But how to get there?.... The answer came in the next sentence he spoke.

"Pardon me, but why did you give me this card, Kurenai-sensei?"
Edited by Wagoo, Oct 26 2016, 12:42 PM.
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Sylia
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Smiling impishly as she sat down, Reika adjusted her shades. "Call it female's intuition!" She replies, crossing her legs and tilting her head to the side. "So, Taira-san, you must be new here.. am I right?"

Chuckling politely, Reika awaited his response while looking him over casually. One of the weird things about Nagashima was its constant influx of new people. She had read in bedlam about it from that corrupted report one of the users put up. It made her think that something was up with this place and maybe stirring the pot might cause something to happen.

"Anyway, I couldn't ignore a young man acting listless and alone in this shopping center." Reika says with a smile. "You seemed like you could use a friend to talk to."
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Wagoo

Kurenai's method of taking a seat caught Ren quite off guard. So much so, he seemed distinctly uncomfortable as her head tilted.

"How can you tell I'm not from Nagashima, Kurenai-sensei?" One part of Ren was telling him to go running to his mother from this stranger, but another was saying it would be for the better to stay and talk to her. Just keep calm, if she does something bad, start running... right?

Kurenai's comments on needing someone to talk to seemed to hit home a bit, but he ignored the feeling, and responded with as much dignity as he could. Which, naturally, made him continue to sound somewhat off at the older lady being friendly to him.

"I really do look that bad?"
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Sylia
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Chuckling lightly, Reika merely shrugged her shoulders. "Call it a hunch. It was either that or you've been ditched by your friends." She replies, then giggles softly. "Also I tend to notice new people in the area. They seem to stick out to me."

"So what's your name? Unless you want me to make up a horrible nickname to call you by?" Reika says with a grin. By the looks of her, she probably means it too! Reika wasn't above most types of silliness like that, in no short part from her dealing with Sanae.

Heh, seems you've taken an interest in this one. Fafnir spoke inside her head. What will you do with him if he turns out to become one of them?

We'll know when we get to that, won't we? Reika thought back, then grinned as she waited for the young man's response. He was being cautious, which was good since usually a grown woman doesn't generally approach you unless she wanted something. In Reika's case she was merely testing a theory. That being that most people drawn to Nagashima were gonna end up in the ruins at some point. So she'll keep tabs on this one and see if it happens.
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Wagoo

Did she miss my name? were the words that came through Ren's head as he looked at the counselor. He was clearly somewhat creeped out by an older lady being so friendly, and by this point it was starting to show. Nevertheless, Ren decided to continue the conversation. He could always yell aloud and hope someone would help. Whether that worked or not was an entirely different story.

"I guess you could say its both? My mother's off elsewhere right now, but she should be back soon." An uneasy smile came from Ren. "But, ehm, yeah, it seems you do have a talent for finding such people, Kurenai-sensei."

The line about a nickname made Ren stop and think. Nobody had ever given him a nickname, whenever he was referred to, it was always 'Ren' or 'their kid'. Why this was the case, he didn't know. Part of him wanted to have one. Part of him didn't due to it potentially backfiring into an insult. His next words proved the latter had won out. "Ehm, Ren! Taira Ren, as I stated." His words came out a bit flustered. "I've never gone by a nickname."
Edited by Wagoo, Oct 28 2016, 12:33 PM.
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Sylia
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Yes, he's said his name earlier. Fafnir chuckled lightly. But yeah, maybe we should call him... Momoiro Kakaricho!

Heh, tempting. Reika thought back as she leaned backwards slightly in her seat, resting her hands on her knee. "Hmm.. how about.." Reika tapped her cheek in thought before saying, "Nanashi Fate. Nanashi for short."

Yeah, this one'll be her guinea pig to test her theory on. Should he become a persona user, she'll know for certain that her hypothesis is correct.

Aww. My name was way better. Fafnir grumbled.

Save it for someone that it'd be fitting on.
Reika mentally replied as she awaited the boy's response. Smiling at him, she could tell by his body language that he's a bit.. wary of her. She didn't mind really as it was a natural response to someone randomly coming up to you and talking. "Aww, I'm getting the feeling you'd rather be alone, Nanashi-kun?" She says in a mock hurt tone. "If you'd like me to go, that's fine. I'm sure we'll run into each other again."
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Wagoo

Nanashi Fate?... why is she calling me that? The name didn't sit well with Ren. Part of him felt hurt by it, all things considered. Kurenai was extremely off-putting, and as time wore on, she seemed more and more like yet another weird person. But a small part of him seemed to disagree, if his slight blush at being nicknamed was anything to go by. ... I have to get out of here!

Half of Ren was trying to conjure an exit strategy away from Kurenai, while the other continued to hold a conversation, partly to find out why he was dubbed with such a nickname, partly because he'd never spoken with a life counselor before- for all her eccentricities, Kurenai seemed to get a handle on Ren all too quickly. Maybe she might say something that could be useful advice? "Pardon my asking, Kurenai-sensei, but why do you wish to call me that? It seems a little... weird." Worryingly unorthodox, really. His tone continued to be a mixture of flustered and worried.

Kurenai's mention about going away further galvanized half of Ren into thinking of how to escape. He eventually settled onto faking a text. "No, it's not that, Kurenai-sensei it's that... hm?" Ren's gaze darted to left pocket. Pulling out his smart phone, he pretended to look at his texts, positioning the screen so that Kurenai couldn't see the act for what it was.
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Sylia
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"Oh, no reason really aside from the fact that it seems to fit you." Reika replies with a grin. "Or would you rather have Pink Supervisor?"

Chuckling quietly, Reika let him play up the part of a text. Yep. No vibration sound. Fafnir comments. And he'd have to be psychic to know he just received one without and visual or audio notification.

Mmm. Mused Reika as she finally stood upright. Sure she could've called him on it, but that was enough for today. She'll probably see him around eventually if nothing else. "Well! This was a nice first meeting~" Reika says as she turns to leave. "See ya around, Nanashi-kun~"

With a half wave as she began to walk away, Reika chuckled lightly to herself. No point in ruining a potential user so soon, after all. Still think my name was better. Grumbled Fafnir.

Heh, like I said, save it for someone who matters. Reika replied mentally as she walked. Soon enough she'd be out of sight of the boy, potentially leaving him rather confused as to what just went on.
Edited by Sylia, Oct 28 2016, 08:07 PM.
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