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[rabbeats]

TEXT / VIDEO / VOICE / ACTION

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7/17

[overstrain]

[ The 16th was a hectic day. Hibiki was asked to cover for Terry in the maid cafe. That must have gone swell. As for Terry, his body was found in the middle of the street, bleeding profusely from his head. The streets were pretty noisy at that time, especially for persona users--a dragon's constant roars, screams, and teeth gnashing. It took a while, but Terry is finally awake and sitting up on his hospital bed. "It's a miracle as to how he's still alive" some nurses say when they're not tired of trying to chase the cats outside. The cats are pretty persistent and in the end, the faculty had given up, and relocated Terry's bed to the corner of the room where five cats just huddle around him. There's cat hair all over the bed as he's brushing through each and every one with a pet grooming glove.

The nurse enters the room after knocking: "Nowell-kun. A friend is here to see you."

Terry looks up from the cat that he's currently brushing. He has bandages wrapped around his head and a huge gauze taped over his cheek. At least it looked like he stopped bleeding for now, since his healing rate is abysmal. ]

Hibiki?

[rabbeats]

Yeah, it's me. Hi.

[ It would be a heartwarming sight—a guy with his cats curled up next to him, hoping to get some pets—if it wasn't for the bandages wrapped around Terry's heat and that gauze on his cheek. Hibiki seems to be carrying a box of chocolates in his hand and puts in on top of the drawer. ]

You didn't strike me as flower type of guy, so I brought something sweet. How's the food here, by the way? How are you?

[ He has so many questions, but first things first: he needs to make sure how Terry's doing first. ]

[overstrain]

[ The kittens jump off the bed on the opposite side and goes to take shelter under it. The mother cat, who lost a foreleg, stands up, interrupting the brushing session, and goes to follow her babies. Terry gathers as much cat hair as possible on the bed before peeling it off the glove, makes a spherical hairball, and puts it off to the side. Then he gets a hand sanitizer to clean his hands. ]

The food is fine. [ It's edible and he doesn't have to cook. That's good enough for him. ]

... I have a hard time getting out of bed though. Work wasn't too hard on you, was it?

[rabbeats]

[ Hibiki watches the kittens and their mom for a while, but sooner rather than later he turns his attention to Terry. ]

You should rest, it looked really... [ A pause. ] ...Bad.

[ To put it mildly. It felt terrible not knowing what's going on and not being able to do much. It's not about him, though. ]

I'm glad you're okay. Is there anything I can do? If you want to talk, I'll listen. It doesn't have to be about what happened, but...

[ While he doesn't want to be too pushy, his hunch is telling him that Terry might brush it all off. ]

[overstrain]

Oh.

[ So Hibiki saw. Terry feels a little bad that someone else had to witness his sad state of being. A small, wry smile is on his face. ]

Actually, yeah... I should tell you. It's something important. Last night, no... the night before that, my persona--the thing you summon with the charm--went crazy in the dungeon. He was firing off magic everywhere and wasn't listening to me. He was... hard to handle. Anyway, then there's yesterday... he appeared out of nowhere. I wasn't even touching my charm at that moment, but my persona still showed up. [ That was probably when Hibiki heard a dragon's scream outside. ] And it attacked me... the "trying to bite my head off" kind.

[ He can at least warn others! And he thinks it's a good idea, even if he's not sure why it happened. ]

So... you should be careful too. I don't know what I did to make it go like that, but... I wasn't really thinking straight when it happened.

[rabbeats]

We really don't know all that much about them, do we... [ Hibiki subconsciously reaches for the amulet in his pocket, but doesn't pull it out, just curls his fingers around it and squeezes it a little. ] I'll try asking around, maybe someone knows more about them than we do.

[ He's been feeling fairly safe with Byakko by his side, but realizing that he can't trust it...well, he shoves these thoughts aside, focusing on Terry for the time being. ]

But...you weren't thinking straight? Did something else happen?

[ This part leaves him wondering if something triggered this weird persona behavior. ]

[overstrain]

I was feeling fine when my persona went berserk in the dungeon, but yesterday, I...

[ He pauses and quietly breathes in. He tries to hold back everything else that wants to spill out of his mouth just by saying the two that he could muster at the time: ]

I cracked.

[rabbeats]

[ "I cracked" is so vague, but Hibiki assumes that Terry didn't crack his butt. ]

Terry, I'm here to listen if you want to talk. [ In case he doesn't want to talk, Hibiki will understand. He just simply wanted to say that out loud. ] I'm here if you want anything else, really. I can run to buy you snacks...I don't run as fast as you, but I'll be pretty quick, promise.

[overstrain]

I don't really need snacks right now. I'm not feeling particularly hungry... but I like that you're here, so if you can stay here for a while longer, I'd like that.

[ The mention of the snacks does get him to smile a little, but it's not as wide, mostly because of the huge gauze on his cheek. ]

I just remembered something... not great. Then it kinda snowballed from there. I was panicking when my persona came out all of a sudden too. I know that I usually move quickly when I panic, but right there and then... I couldn't move.

8/2, action

[16lab]

[ As promised(?), RO has made a resolve to go dungeon crawling with Hibiki more often, more to overlook his progress and to keep him out of harm's way while doing so. She looks over the first floor with the maze, ravens, and those eye-bulging Hybrids. Unfortunately, she only has one offensive skill in her arsenal, which is a physical type--less effective on Hybrids, but good at everything else, as proven by Astraea's tendency to smack birds down with her bare hands. ]

Are you ready? Show me what you got.

[ She looks over at Hibiki while getting a grip on her omamori just in case. ]

[rabbeats]

[ Teaming up with RO might have been the most reasonable decision Hibiki has made in a while—nothing was stopping him from going in all by himself which admittedly, was much less productive. He can see the first effects of the training as well—he's not getting tired as fast as he used to. Keeping in mind that his persona might turn against him at some point is affecting his cooperation with Byakko a little, but it's nothing big—Byakko still listens to him, but sometimes just acts slower than usual.

Seeing a Hybrid, Hibiki reaches for his amulet even before RO asks him whether he's ready. Byakko appears by his side and attacks right away, guided by Hibiki. However, when Byakko casts a fire spell, he's a bit baffled. It's more than enough to knock the Hybrid down and finish it off, apparently. ]

I had no idea that it can—

[ There's no time to celebrate, though—in place of one Hybrid, another three Shadows appear and they're all focusing their attacks on Hibiki. ]

What's going on...?!

[ Time to cast a spell is a luxury he can't afford—he can dodge just fine, but if he gets hit, it's going to hurt. ]

[16lab]

[ And this is why RO is here--she immediately summons Astraea and she goes to stand between Hibiki and the shadows, casting the attack debuff on them and Attack Master on Byakko. Astraea's physical resistance helps take hits, along with the debuff, so she's more than fine. ]

Focus!

[rabbeats]

O-Okay!

[ Hibiki bites his bottom lip, frustrated that he let himself get caught off guard, but that's not going to happen again. RO stepped in and saved him from getting hit, but he can't let her do that for too long. ]

Byakko!

[ He has no idea why Byakko can spit fire now, but that's okay—the most important thing is that it works, so he can knock all the Hybrids fairly easily as long as he's careful. Byakko finishes them off with physical attacks, but— ]

There are more incoming?!

[ Before one of them gets closer, Hibiki casts Agi, so at least that one gets shut down before it reaches RO. ]

[16lab]

[ RO quickly scans the area to see where the enemies are. As true to Hibiki's word, there are more incoming. A lot more. RO is hesitant about leaving Hibiki alone to perform her diversion tactic, because it didn't seem to work well before? And there's something about these monsters that she can't quite... explain... or at least, until she studies their movements and kicks away one of the hybrids. Having her gun with combat core would sure be useful right now!! ]

They're raging.

[ Then she realizes that they're in big trouble. The shadows are swarming and since they seem to be affected with some sort of rage against Hibiki, she can't exactly dodge because they'd just go straight to Hibiki instead. A commander needs to be flexible in all sorts of situations--she remembers that. Think, think. Think. ]

They're all focused on you!

[ For now, she'll have Astraea take one side, while she takes the other. She certainly has the role of being the dodge tank, but she can do normal tanking as well. She can take some hits here and there while trying to ward off the shadows away from Hibiki. Though, she can only do so much without her own combat core and without her gun, so she's counting on Hibiki to get rid of them before she sustains too much damage. Astraea is a Persona, so she seems to be doing fine at least. ]

[rabbeats]

[ Hibiki's strategy is painfully plain: freeze as many shadows at once while he's trying to decapitate the ones that are closing the distance to attack them. Plain doesn't mean bad, but new shadows keep appearing, making his efforts futile. ]

We have to retreat...

[ Actually, another idea pops up in his head almost at the same time—casting rebellion would make everyone's chances for getting a critical hit much higher, but that's a double-edged sword. They could either defeat shadows more efficiently or die trying.

And that's not good. If he was alone, he'd probably try that, but he's not going to risk RO's life. ]

I know I said that you won't have to carry me anywhere, but I can keep attacking while you run!

[ Hibiki points at the lone house in the distance which might make a great shelter. Still, he can't believe he's asking for this. ]

[16lab]

[ Hibiki doesn't need to say any more than that, really. As soon as the enemy she's dealing with is far enough to make a strategic retreat, she leaves her position and easily swoops Hibiki into a bridal carry again. Astraea disappears once she's out of range.

Even while she's running, she can see that there are shadows coming from every direction. She doesn't have the luxury to stop so she summons Astraea to punt a shadow in her way.

Works like a charm. ]

[rabbeats]

[ At the same time, Byakko tries to slow them down with casting Agi over and over again—it's tedious, but knocks the Hybrids down. If it only worked on other Shadows... ]

Are you okay? [ Hibiki turns his head and sees that Astraea has just sent one of he shadows flying. ] Whoa...

[ He doesn't let himself get distracted for too long, though. They're getting closer, but there's still a bunch of shadows chasing them. Actually, one of them gets dangerously close, but Byakko manages to pounce at it and stop the Shadow for doing them any harm. ]

We're getting closer...

8/20, action

[16lab]

[ There has been several changes to the inn that Hibiki is staying at. Ever since the 17th, it has gone under new management with the former manager having gone off to vacation somewhere, probably to never return, replaced by a newbie who's still learning the ropes. Since Hibiki lives there, it's hard not to notice police officers going in and out frequently from the inn, questioning several residents and the new manager too. Two rooms in particular have also been made very, very cheap, divided by the room that was always thought to be inaccessible, where, if Hibiki had tried to investigate before, was the source of the crying in the night every so often.

When Hibiki leaves the inn today, he'll find RO staring up at the inn from the outside as if waiting for something or talking to the surrounding people about... something. When she notices Hibiki, she'll thank whoever she's talking to for their time and walks up to him. ]

I need to ask you several questions.

[ Not even a "good morning". ]

[rabbeats]

[ The change was sudden, but it didn't occur to Hibiki to question it. Actually, he didn't notice until the day before since he's been out most of the time. Seeing RO here is a bit surprising, but Hibiki figures that he'll find out what this is about sooner or later. ]

Good morning.

[ He greets her by waving his hand too. ]

Sure, go ahead.

[16lab]

Have you noticed anything strange in the inn as of late?

[ She's hoping that Hibiki will know something, since he's the one that lives there and all. ]

[rabbeats]

Strange...?

[ Hibiki rubs his forehead while trying to recall anything. The new manager seems to be okay, even though he saw him just a few times. ]

You probably know about these weird sounds at night? That's the only weird thing. But it's been going on for a while. I tried to figure it out, but didn't get too far.

[16lab]

I believe there a crime has occurred in the inn.

[ Right under your nose, Hibiki. At least she gives it to him straight. ]

[rabbeats]

A crime?

[ He wants to pat himself on the back for checking on Airi this morning because at least he knows she's not involved. ]

What makes you think that?

[16lab]

Several days ago, I met up with the clown-denizen to go explore the haunted inn and entered one of the rooms that was previously inaccessible--I believe it was the source of the crying that is occasionally heard at night. We found evidence of inhumane captivity conditions and traces of injury in that room, and I believe the previous manager had fled [ She doesn't believe the vacation excuse ] due to the accusation.

[ Is that a lot to swallow for HIbiki, because RO can wait. I just thought of the first thread Hibiki had with Kido about the haunted inn and well--here's the danger. ]

[rabbeats]

Clown-denizen?

[ He thinks of Kokichi for some reason. Shit gets real soon enough, so he forgets about the purple gremlin, his eyes fixed on RO. ]

What...? [ It's unbelievable on the one hand, but on the other... ] That's...but you can still hear the crying. What is going on in here?