Checking out the Biggest Top [Rita]

What a beautiful day it was... The sun was shining and the gentle spring breeze had just started blowing. Yep, Spring was on it's way. Mae was on her way to Penecia. After that battle in Lunapa, she needed something to keep her mind off Shadows, personas and angels, and what better way to do that than to go check out the Biggest Top? Mae had only seen the big tent once, and that one time being of course her second day in Azores, when she had gone on a tour through Penecia with Sharaku Rikei. The pinkette had not been to a circus before, so seeing something new was exciting. Sure, it was a long way to Penecia from the dorms, but in the end it would be worth it... Hopefully.

Sitting down, waiting for the tram to arrive, Mae read the newspaper. Now that she was a Persona User, and fighting to save people who have been trapped in the other worlds, keeping a good eye on any sudden dissapearances was key. At least, that was the general Idea. Sure, Hyde had told her about the velvet room, but Mae wasn't sure if they would alert her if someone was trapped... Or maybe they would. She did not know, but it was best to keep an eye out, just to be on the safe side.

After a good 20 minutes spent reading, the tram arrived, and Mae hopped on board together with ten other passengers. The doors closed behind them, and they were off towards Penecia.

"Here I am again." Mae mumbled to herself as she stood in front of the large tent.


Qilin's voice sounded impressed by the large structure of cloth. // Yeah. That's the one. // Mae responded happily. She had ordered her ticket yesterday night, so she should be able to pick it up here. But where did one go to do that...?

Mae's attention was shifted over to a girl who had apparently addressed her. At least, that's what the pinkette assumed. "Good-day to you too!" Mae greeted the stranger in her usual cheery tone, smiling. Was she a performer or something...? Judging by her choice of clothing, Mae took a wild guess and assumed she as at least part of the staff. In her hand, she held a bottle with some kind of liquid inside. What it actually was, Mae had no idea. Come to think of it, today it was unusually warm for being in the middle of March. Mae had actually bought a bottle of water herself on the way here, judging by how long she would be here today. Not only was it the Circus, but she had also had to go do some shopping afterwards for clothing. The Talent show was only 3 weeks away from now, and Mae wanted something with a little extra "oomph" to wear then. She was going to participate in the event of course. In fact, she had her sights dead set on winning the whole shebang, so preparations were necessary. Jack's collection of costumes didn't exactly fit the bill on what Mae wanted to wear. Come on, Ranger Costumes? Really?

"Yeah. Is there something wrong?" Now that got Mae a tad bit worried. Was there something she had missed? Were they not open yet? Or was it something that had come up which made hosting the show impossible? Like someone got injured during practice or something and they had to cancel the show because of that? That was just her luck... The pinkette wasn't exactly known for having good luck, but she wasn't riddled with bad luck either... This sort of thing just had a tendency to happen when she was somehow involved... Well... things could've been worse.

"Ugh, yeah tell me about it... Sure I wasn't here when it originally aired, but I've seen it since, and it's creepy. And Confusing too." Mae shuddered. After seeing what this broadcast was all about, and what had happened afterwards... It had been a terrifying experience, but she did overcome it, stronger as a person. "I try just to keep my mind off of it as much as I can..." Mae smiled sheepishly, scratching the back of her neck. "I guess I must've missed that announcement then... Sorry. But yeah, I'll come this weekend instead!" She had not even thought about the circus being closed at this time.

Now What? She couldn't just go home... "Now... Since I'm here... And I don't want my trip here to go to complete waste. I need something to do. Mind showing me around here? Oh, and before I forget, the name's Mae Iharu. Nice to meetcha!" She offered a handshake. Might as well introduce herself properly, right?

"Yeah... we have to stay strong right?" At least, Mae had to. She was in this whole mess whether she wanted to or not... How deep she was in it all, the pinkette had no idea. Sure, she had helped out Quinn and the other two in Lunapa... But that was basically the extent of her involvement in whatever was going on here, so she wasn't too involved... yet, anyway. "Hopefully what you say is true... I don't think Azores can take much of this anymore." Truth be told, people had been glancing at her suspiciously in school lately... And Mae knew exactly why. Apparently, the broadcast was still going on at the radio tower, listing up new names every now and again... And Mae's name was just recently added to that list. That confirmed her suspicions that all the people on the list were somehow connected to Personas, Shadows and the other world in some fashion...

"Really? Oh, thanks! That's really kind of you." Mae smiled back at the girl. // Wait... Rita... Arisato? Wasn't she mentioned on the broadcast? // Mae thought. Yeah. She had been mentioned when Mae watched it that day before she had gotten kidnapped. So... did that mean that Rita was a Persona User as well? There was only one way to make sure... And that was asking. But how would she go about it? If she wasn't one, then things would just be awkward... After contemplating whether or not to ask, Mae simply decided to give Jack's method a shot.


Smooth, Mae... Smooth...

"Yeah..." Worrying was a good way to put it. Considering Azores was basically in a state of panic, how could it not be anything but worrying? Mae and the rest of the Persona Users were supposed to be safeguarding the civilians from this kind of stuff, and yet... They somehow still got the short end of the stick... "I hope you're right." Mae's voice being slightly worried. The summer was still ways off, so alot of things could certainly change for the worse. With her awakening still fresh in her memory, the last words of her Shadow had left questions lingering in the back of her mind... Those guys in the sky? What was the deal about all the rifts popping up everywhere? And were there other worlds like that desert floating around behind the other rifts? Mae had been very curious about trying entering one of them herself, but... Going in alone felt... risky. She was still relatively new to her powers, and she didn't want to take any unnecessary risks.

"I don't see a problem with it, Rita-chan. I'm not opposing you at all. In fact, I wanna say we're on the same side. I was just recently saved by a friend of mine. I just figured I could use some connections with other Users, should any problems arise... I... I wanna do my part too. I won't lie... I'm kinda scared about all this... It's just so... Overwhelming, you know?" It felt a bit weird being this open about her worries to a complete stranger, but she needed to get that stuff off her chest.

"Indeed. I mean, I just got here two months ago, and all this stuff is going on just when I get here. Some luck I have, huh?" Mae chuckled. Seriously, Mae's streak of bad luck here never seemed to end. First, there had been troubles with her flight on the way to Azores, so it had been delayed for like a week. Then she had arrived at the Dorms, only to be met by... no one. Not the dorm manager or anything like that... So she had to ask some students for help finding her room. Then Mae saw the broadcast, and got kidnapped shortly afterward, facing her shadow self in that desert, suffered from sleep depravation due to nightmares two days afterwards... And thus missed out on a lot of school stuff... And now... well... she just had to get dragged into the whole mess when Quinn and the other two were attacked in Lunapa. Like... Can't a girl catch a break, geez...

"Well, hopefully we get a nice and clean resolution... Because god knows the aftermath can be just as bad as whats going on now..." Who knows what could be happening within that space of time...

"You don't like it? It's just a habit of mine. I really ought to stop that, and ask first... Geez." Mae assumed Rita wasn't used to the whole '-chan' deal. Her reaction was basically all Mae needed to tell. "I can stop, if it makes you uncomfortable." She smiled sheepishly.

"Well, all I really need is someone who can listen, and... show me the ropes as it were. I want to help. " She couldn't just sit still, knowing that she had the power to make a difference. "Does it really matter that much that you're a circus worker though? It doesn't change the fact that you're a nice person at all. And I wouldn't say that 'just a circus worker' is a bad thing. It's kinda neat, to be honest."

"Hehe... I guess so. I mean, I can actually do something about it. I don't wish for innocents to be dragged into this... And now that I have the power to stop it... I'll give it my all." The last thing she wanted was her classmates getting dragged into this whole mess... Mae had a feeling such an event might be inevitable, but even so, she would fight to make sure no innocent lives were lost. At least she could take solace in knowing that she was hardly alone facing all this.

"True. I know I'll pitch in and help should it be needed. As a User myself... It's sort of become a duty of mine to protect Azores, you know. I love this place, I really do." Mae stared off into the distance. Yeah, Azores had become a place like home for her. The people, the cities... Everything was just... nice and tranquil, had it not been for everything that had been going on these last few months. It's incredible how much had happened over such a relatively short amount of time...

"Aww, don't say that. If anything, we're allies at the very least. It's something right? And you seem pretty easy to hang with, Rita." Seems she didn't like the tacked on -Chan honorific. Oh well, at least Mae was able to adapt. "So, what sort of things do you help out with here?" Mae asked curiously as the silvernette showed the other around.

"Well, you're a good person too. At least from what I can tell." Mae looked over at the worker scuttling about, getting everything ready for the show later on that weekend. "I see you're all working hard to get this show ready for the weekend huh? It's hard work, I'm sure, but it's worth it, right?" That was truly an idea Mae could get behind. Nothing made her happier than seeing others smile. Just like Kinaku, Mae wanted to spread happiness with her voice. "My adoptive mother's a singer, so... I've kinda grown up with this performing stuff. She's not all that famous, but she continues on singing to spread happiness. I... Inherited that will, I suppose..."

"Well, we're in this together, right? You, me and everyone else capable of fighting. You don't have to shoulder this burden on your own." Mae looked at Rita, smiling gently at her. "So, don't hesitate to call for help when things get rough." Placing such responsibilites on oneself really wasn't healthy for anyone. Especially not teenagers like Mae and Rita. The unfortunate reality of things forced these two to carry a burden that should not have been theirs to begin with. But rather than lamenting in this dark hour, they kept fighting on, burning brightly like the flames they carried within.

"Yeah?" Mae looked up at Rita, raising her eyebrows. "Yes... As a matter of fact I do..." She closed her eyes. "Several people come to mind, like my adoptive mother, and my friends back in Japan... But there's one person standing out above all the rest..." Yeah... HIM. Who else could it be?