Edogawa Sushi [Blaez]

A couple of days had passed since Mae moved in with Sharaku, and Ayane had left Azores... The now red-headed girl stared out the window, clutching a small, blue, Kirin Plushy close to her, as she wondered how her friend was doing back in Japan. Ayane and Mae had only spoke once since the girl left, and that had been roughly a week ago... Back them, she was doing just fine, and apparently, her exchangee had made it back home safely as well, so that was a plus. All of her classmates missed Mae apparently, heck, even some of the teaching staff did too, which was suprising... Mae hadn't been that much of a teacher's pet at all... Maybe the girl was just pleasant to be around?

Regardless, now that her thoughts had made their way to her friend in japan, the next obvious connection was Blaez. Last time she had seen him ended up with him holding hands with Ayane, so something was obviously going on between the two. Mae had asked Ayane About it, not recieving a straight answer, as she expected. Sure, Ayane trusted Mae with everything pretty much, but... considering the current state of affairs between her and Blaez, Mae honestly didn't blame Ayane for wanting to keep it a secret. For now anyway. Ayane would eventually tell her. She always did in the end, so there was no use in trying to force an answer out of her anyway. Now that she thought about it... Hadn't Ayane asked Mae a favor?


Well, now that she could go do so... Why not check up on him? And she knew just the place to do so... With this idea in mind, Mae sent a text message over to Blaez, asking him if he could go meet her at Penecia station. It was fairly close to the place she had in mind anyway. Besides, it's been a while since she saw Kei Edogawa... And sushi was something she liked anyway, so what did she have to lose?

A few weeks have passed since Ayane left Azores... She was safe now... This event was just making people unhappy, Blaez just wanted to see the people he loves happy, that situation was so stressing, good thing Mae invited him too hang out that day, it was the perfect opportunity to relax with a good friend.

Mae had told him to meet her at the Penecia station, so there he was, patiently waiting for the pinkette to show up, he considered telling her about his persona condition, but that would kill the mood, maybe some other day, no life changing or serious conversations, just two friends chilling and talking about pointless stuff... When he puts like that it sounds boring, but spending time with a friend is fun... just being next to someone you care for makes the situation fun.

Mae was sitting on a bench, waiting for Blaez's tram to arrive. As per usual, when it came to the transit system between the islands, there really wasn't any delay at all. After all the passengers had exited, Mae spotted Blaez stepping out. "Hey, Blaez!" She waved at him, with a big smile on her face. It was nice to see him again. "How are you doing? It's been a while." The girl approached him. "Say, have you ever tried out Sushi? I know a great place nearby which I wanted to show you." Hopefully he didn't mind the Japanese Cuisine that much. It certainly was better food than the fast food she had eaten the day the two met.

"Hehe. I have someone else I'd like you to meet too. He's waiting for us at the resturant. Hope you don't mind." Maybe Kei and Blaez would get along as well. The red-head was a nice guy, and he did remind Mae of herself in some regards. Perhaps that's why they got along as well as they did. Perhaps Blaez would too. "It's not that far away. This way." she proceeded with leading the way to Edogawa Sushi Resturant. Hopefully things were going to end up well.

Mae arrived at the meeting point before Blaez again, he expected no less from the girl"Hey Mae, nice to see you again."He greeted Mae, she looked happy that day"I'm fine, what about you?"He wasn't being sincere about his emotional state, but that wasn't the time or place to talk about it.Sushi?Blaez shook his head, he never had the curiosity to try... He is too accommodated with how things are, never cared about trying new things... until recently, he was accepting different ideas now.

"Another friend of yours?"Mae sure was popular, she is pleasant to have around so it's no surprise that she has a lot of friends"Edogawa...?"That was an odd name, it was definitely a Japanese name"Is this the place?""Sushi Restaurant", of course it was there, it fit the criteria perfectly.

"Likewise." Mae smiled warmly at him. It really was nice seeing him again after all this time had passed. "I'm doing great!" Well, considering that she now lived with Sharaku, and everything in her life seemed to finally move in a much more positive direction, how could she not be doing great? Sure, Ayane wasn't around anymore, but at least she was safe and sound back home in Miyazaki. At least for the moment.

"Yep, he's another friend of mine. I met him during one of my first visits to Penecia." Yeah. Back when she had been eating Sushi with Hyde a couple of months back. They met up after that every now and again, and just hung out like friends. Turns out that they used to go to the same school back in 4th grade. Which was pretty interesting. He was a year younger than her though, so for him it was 3rd grade. The two barely knew eachother back then, and look now. Coincidence? or was there a higher power at work? Regardless, it was nice to see someone from Tokyo aside from Ayane for a change. "Yeah. This is a family buissness. Kei's the next owner, after his dad retires of course." Mae nodded in response to Blaez's question. "Yep. This is it." the girl opened the door, and let Blaez in first.

"Hm? Mae?" Kei's eyebrows rose in suprise as Mae and Blaez entered the resturant. He was sitting on a chair, reading a Manga, while eating lunch. "Hey, Kei-kun!" The red-headed guy stood up and smiled warmly at them. "Blaez, this is Kei Edogawa, a good friend of mine." Kei offered Blaez a handshake. "Heh, Nice to meet you, Blaez." After shaking hands with Blaez, he smiled at the two of them, before asking: "Now, what can I help you with?" It looked like today was rather slow for buissness here, which was rare nowadays. Perhaps the things going on here scared away customers? Or maybe it was just because that tourist season was almost over...? It could honestly be both, now that Mae thought about it.

"So it runs in the family."He joke before entering the restaurant with Mae, the place was almost empty, the only living soul there was an employee, probably the guy Mae was talking about early, people must be scared to come out of their houses due the recent events... the sooner the event is over the better, people are distressed and the islands are being ruined... nothing good came out of that event.

Kei looked surprised when he saw the two teens, Mae greeted Kei and then introduced him to Blaez"Nice to meet you too, Kei."Blaez gave a firm handshake"Mae dragged me here to eat sushi."He said scratching the back of his head"To be honest i never tried sushi, so i will let Mae pick for me."As far Blaez knows sushi is raw fish, in paper that sounds gross but people have been eating it for hundred of years so it must be at least edible"Are you okay with that, Mae?"He asked the pinkette, some people would not like the pressure of picking food for someone.

"Actually, you're not too far off base with that." Mae said with a smile. "I think they have been sushi-chefs for... 3-4 generations or something like that." Which was impressive. Kei was going to be the 5th generation owner once his dad retired. And as far as Mae knew, the young chef intended to keep the tradition going when he eventually had kids. When that would be, he didn't know. How could he, really?

"She did, huh?" Kei chuckled. It was easy to tell that hearing this greatly amused him. "Well, she's got good taste for stuff like this, I'll give her that." He would then turn his attention to Mae. "Alright then, what do you want?" Mae looked at the menu, pondering for a couple of seconds on what pieces to grab. "I guess We'll take a Penecian Paradise set for Blaez, and I'll go with the Fatty tuna and salmon roe." She picked her own favorites of course. As for Blaez, he got a slightly bigger order than her, with a wide selection of different pieces to try. She could pretty much eat anything when it came to sushi, so if Blaez didn't finish everything, she could easily eat the leftovers. "Excellent choices. Now then, If you excuse me." Kei hurried over to the kitchen, yelling the orders to his dad and... Hyde whom were working in there. Not that Blaez knew that. At least not to Mae's knowledge. She probably shouldn't bother him anyway while he's working. "Let's have a seat meanwhile. Oh yeah, and you can grab your beverages over there." Mae pointed towards a fridge with a glass door, revealing a large variety of different drinks, both Azorean and imported alike. Mae walked over there to grab herself a Cola, before sitting down in front of Blaez. "So... I've been a bit curious about this. You and Ayane... Are you...?" Hopefully she didn't need to finish that statement for Blaez to understand where she was getting at... It should be okay of her to ask that now, no?

"Penecian Paradise...?"That didn't sounded like food, but if it was on the menu then it was food"What's that?"He asked curious about what Mae had ordered for him.

"Alright..."Blaez grabbed the first soda he saw and sat down with Mae, he was calmly taking a sip when Mae asked about his relationship with Ayane, he thought it should be obvious by now, but it seems Mae wanted to be 100% sure that they were dating... weird, didn't Ayane told her?They are best friends, it's only natural that they would share that type of information"Didn't she told you...?"Maybe she was too shy to tell Mae about it"I guess you could say that..."He sighed looking down at his soda can"...Why did she had to leave so soon?"Not much time has passed since Ayane left, but he already missed her... but he couldn't help but think it was better for her to stay away from Azores"At least she is safe now... so that's a plus."

"Ah, the Penecian Paradise is basically a selection of the best pieces of sushi they have here. One of each. So... that's about, like what, 10-15 pieces of sushi? Or something." Kei nodded in confirmation. "14 pieces, but yes, it's a good spread, I think. I could make it a bit smaller..." But Mae shook her head. "I'll take any of the leftovers with me back home. I could use that later on today." Well, at least she didn't have to cook for herself and Sharaku... Oh geez... She did not look forward to that. What if she accidentally gave him food poisoning?

"I had a hunch, but no, she didn't tell me. She usually tells me this kind of stuff after a while. She needs to come to terms with it herself first. I know her really well, so I'm not going to push her for information." Mae shrugged casually. "And I wanted to hear your side of the deal." Ayane did have a tendency to... imagine things. "I know... It really stings... She asked me to keep an eye on you. I have two reasons why. 1. to keep you safe... and 2. I guess she wants me to keep you away from other girls. She's a bit easy to make jealous when it comes to that stuff. She has been cheated on before... Once. Barely a relationship to begin with, and nowadays, she pretends it never happened, and I do the same. God, that really was an awful day when she found it out..." Mae had never seen Ayane like that before then, and luckliy she hadn't seen her like that since either. "Well, Blaez. If it's anything... She's coming back in two months, roughly. Normally, she'd stay here for about... a week or so... But I think she's actually going to transfer over here... Just because of you. I just hope all this is over before then." Mae fell silent as Kei approached the two with Mae's sushi. "Yours is going to take a bit longer, I'm afraid, Blaez. Hope that's okay?" Mae smiled back at Kei. "Thanks." And with that, the aspiring sushi chef headed back to the kitchen, leaving Mae and Blaez alone again. "So... What do you think of her? I'm curious!" She couldn't help it but being a bit nosy here. This was good news after all. Ayane had actually grabbed a guy's interest for once, and Blaez wasn't a total dick to her! She was so happy for her friend in Japan.

"...Is that expensive?"He didn't minded if he had to pay a bit more for food, but he wanted to be aware of how much he was going to pay for it"Alright, but i'm not the type who leaves food on his plate, Mae."Blaez tried his best to avoid wasting food... but this time he wouldn't be a waste if he left some, even then he was going to try to eat everything.

Blaez listened to everything Mae had to say attentively, from what she told him, it seems Ayane never had a solid romantic relationship, yet she tried so hard to make someone like her, at least her quest was over"...I see."It seems Mae's sushi was ready but Blaez's would take more time to get it done"What do i think of her...?"There was a lot of things he liked about her"She is cute and a sweetheart, i want to know more about her, be close to her... but sometimes i think she'd be better without me... i just want to see her happy."He took a deep breath after telling Mae how he felt about Ayane"What about you and Charles?"From what Charles told him they broke up and it was a peaceful break up... Blaez had the feeling the android wasn't being sincere though so he wanted to hear what Mae had to say about the incident, he had the feeling she would say the truth.

"Don't worry, I'll pay for it." She had dragged Blaez here after all. Hopefully he didn't mind her paying. "Hehe, that's great then. I hope you'll like it." Kei nodded with a big smile. "I'll be right back then."

"I'm sure she feels the same way, Blaez. She did keep up a rather... happy exterior when she left, but I know her. She was probably devastated when she left you here." She sighed deeply. "I miss her too... But why do you think she'd be better off? Ayane didn't just pick you on a whim. I can tell that much." It certainly seemed that way. The girl was way more serious about this than normal. "Heh. Opening up somewhat, are we? You still have her Skype details right? Why not give her a call sometime? I'm sure she would greatly apprechiate it." The girl gave Blaez an encouraging smile. "Distance relationships aren't easy to maintain, but if you two really love eachother, I'm sure you'll find a way to make it work out." That was one thing she was quite confident in. Where there's a will, there's a way, as they say.

Mae frowned somewhat when he mentioned Charles... Why did this had to come up now...? Oh well, it wasn't like there was a reason to hide it.


Mae paused for a moment, thinking of how she could word this properly. "Well... He DID leave me in the San Malarus park crying... all alone, without even looking back at me... All I did was telling him the truth... About what the apartment manager told me. He asked me to lie to Charles and I.... I just couldn't do it. And then he just up and left me... I think he's blaming me for all this somehow. Like a child." Sure, she could get behind him becoming angry, but what he did after that just left a bad taste in Mae's mouth. It really was a horrible display, no matter how you looked at it.

"No, i will pay for it, i insist."It just felt wrong to let Mae pay for it and he wouldn't budge, no matter what Mae had to say on the matter.

"I know, it's just...."Maybe he should tell her about his persona"...It's my persona, i can't control it naturally... i need a special medication to keep it in check..."He paused for a few seconds and gathered some courage to tell Mae more about it"If i don't take the medication my persona will get out of control and kill me... The medication also has some nasty side effects... So i can't leave Azores without risking my life."Now Mae knew about his rogue persona, he hoped she wouldn't get too worried about it... He already told too many people about it.

"I see..."Charles didn't told him about how it was, just that it happened. Blaez was not surprised at all that he did that"I will take you two aren't going to give it a chance."He tapped his finger on the table a few times... maybe they should change the subject"Let's talk about something else, shall we?"He leaned back and folded his arms trying to think on something to say"So..."

"Hehe, alright then!" Mae chuckled happily, giving up on it. The food was going to be good at least.

When Blaez told her everything about his powers, Mae gasped faintly, covering her mouth. "K-Kill you?!" She blurted out eventually, still in a light shock. What was this? Sharaku's powers had been different from hers yes, but his Shadow didn't exactly put his own life at risk... Well... Not on it's own anyway? "Well... I can see how that could make things difficult for you..." Mae looked down at the table. "There's no other way aside from the medication?" Wishful thinking, but she knew that if there was indeed another, healthier way to keep it in check, Blaez probably wouldn't be taking the medication to begin with... It didn't hurt to ask though. "Well... I can't say I'm not worried..." Well, all she really needed to think about was how this would affect Ayane... She would probably be worried out of her mind if she found out about this... "Well... I think she plans on moving down here permanently once she's done with her studies... So one more year. If I had to guess, she wants to stay with you..." The distance between Azores and Japan was quite long, and going over here all that way every once in a while probably wasn't enough to sustain a relationship for very long...

"Well, yes... How much have you heard from him?" Mae asked curiously, with a slight frown on her face. "What does he say about me?" Well... She needed to know... Perhaps Blaez didn't know but Mae had to ask him... "So, have you ever been to the Amusement park here in Penecia?" She would ask casually. Might be a good idea to go there with him and Kei someday. If only to have some fun, provided that Blaez liked that sort of thing. Perhaps he didn't.

"Not that i'm aware off... I guess i'm stuck with a rogue persona forever."Not it didn't had it's advantages, his persona was stronger than the regular persona, but he wasn't sure if it was worth it, it was a pain to deal with his persona, sometimes he just wanted to get rid of it, but without the alternate worlds and a persona he'd become an empty shell again, walking around without ambitions and dreams... and people say everyone has dreams, he wished that was true"...I'm not sure if i should stay with her, Mae."She'd be much happier with someone else, someone without his limitations and who strives for a better future for themselves and the people they love.

"What gave you the idea the he told me something?"He did spoke with Charles briefly about it but Blaez never mentioned anything that could give it away"But if you are really that worried, he just said you two broke up, nothing else."Blaez shrugged, he decided to not intervene much in their problems, it was just a couple fight after all.

"Actually, yes, once or twice at least."He replied as he leaned on the table"Why do you ask?"He raised his eyebrow, did Mae already had plans for their next hangout?The Amusement Park should be fun, last time he went there was with Nagisa... then Jack showed up and tried to play the cupid, Blaez did kissed Nagisa but it had nothing to do with Jack's actions.

"Huh? Figures..." Mae said, slightly annoyed at it... Why did it have to be irreversible? Sure, Mae would probably be stuck with hers for the rest of her life, but at least she didn't have to take medication for it... "That actually got me thinking... What if you faced your shadow self? I mean, everyone has one, right? Would you just not get a persona for overcoming it? Or would it replace the one you already have?" Not that she was suggesting him such a thing. Facing oneself was dangerous... From what she had seen... Shadow Julian had been close to killing both her and Julian back then... It was all in the past now, but still... a Shadow Blaez might be just as powerful, if not moreso than Shadow Julian had been...

"Well, It's up to you and Ayane, not me... I really shouldn't poke my nose in your buissness than I already have." Mae sighed. "You don't want to worry her about this whole medication thing, huh? Understandable..." Well, this was probably a matter he should discuss with Ayane, so she would shrug lightly before moving on.

"Hehe." Mae giggled, smiling brightly at Blaez. "Just call it... Women's intuition." Kei eventually made his way over to the two, with a tray carrying their food. "Alright, one Penecian Paradise, and the fatty tuna and salmon roe." After putting down the tray on the table, Kei grabbed a chair, and joined the two. "Mind if I join in?"

"Oh, nothing really. I was thinking we could go there sometime. All three of us. You, me and Kei. Sounds nice, right?" Mae smiled. She really had just come up with that idea on the fly. But hey, why not? It sounded like a pretty good idea. And generally, her experience with the Amusement park here in Penecia had only given her pleasant memories.