Another night of Hunting [Open to Four]

Ruo would find herself ignored for the most part. It was probably the best for her, as she could not at the moment figure out why she interjected in the first place. All she did was add a comment when she knew no one save for the man she had met once before. That in mind, she would stay silent as the gray-haired man would speak, along with the androgynous figure spoke to him, hushing their tone a bit. She would not eavesdrop, and instead look around to see the place was looking a bit cleaner as it went on. She looked outside the restaurant as well, debating taking her leave. She had no place. And perhaps the only time she stuck out would be when one person is there. Maybe a glitch in her personality occurred and she did not know it. Though, more often than not, she would have noticed it if it were to come up. Preparing to leave, Ruo would stay silent, letting those who were talking finishing up, as the familiar man spoke, and turned to leave. However, she would be stopped before she took even a step by the same man, asking if she had met him once before.

She turned to him, with a neutral expression, and nodded slightly. “Yes. That was fairly recent actually,” she said, striking up a way to a conversation. With any luck, she may get the chance to leave, or at the very least, she would at least not be too conspicuous. She would take a seat on the counter, near where they sat, but not next to them, though able to hear and be heard. “Very true as well,” she said, confirming what he said in agreement. His statement seemed quite the coincidental thing to say, with the comment about humans not being robots. She did not really have a reaction to it internally, nor externally. She would however, look behind her shoulder, and to the direction outside, checking to see if anyone might see her or be following her. Ruo would remain silent for a bit until something of note would come up in conversation or if the man asked her a question or introduced himself. Ruo figured it would be in poor etiquette to just leave without any sort of farewell. She would not exert herself in conversation however until she was called to do so.

The Tsurinai's eyes would take a more sullen appearance as the Attendant closed their distance and spoke to him with a hushed voice. His silver hues continued to look forward as he absorbed the information like that of a punch taking in a stream of water. If more people were winding up in Limbo, then could it have been that Masked Man's doing? Or perhaps the Shadows were continuing to grow in strength and were pulling their own prey into the other side. There was still much Naito didn't know, yet he did know to end this conflict he'd need to defeat the deities that were currently residing within Limbo. Though he was extremely prideful, that was a task he knew he could not do alone. He had grown powerful since the first time he had received his Persona. He had even faced himself on more than one occasion and came to terms with the demons he held within his own conscious and soul. Though even through all these trials and tribulations, he still lacked the strength to tackle this task alone. For once in his life the silver haired teenager felt quite powerless. Without even knowing it, he tilted his head forward and let his hair drape down over his forward to cover his right eye. Obviously the young male was in deep thought about many things, mostly what Chance had just told him. Naito certainly was not the Hero type, and he only saved Satoshi Anya because he knew she had information that would be essential for him. However these mass of others that were brought into Limbo against their will, he thought very little of. After all, the Masked Man could have been using them to lure him back into the forbidden place to keep him for good. The last time he dealt with the man, he had offered his life in exchange for information. Though the mysterious individual loss, it didn't mean he did not hold a grudge against the Tsurinai's short victory. It'd be too risky, and that was the bottom line. When the Attendant spoke of Limbo even having the potential of spreading into their world, the pale faced teen closed his eyes and gave a slight breath. "So those Attendants are in danger aswell, hmm?" Naito thought to himself. "If they is the case, perhaps they had no choice but to enlist the aid of us humans. To think supernatural creations would come to rely on our race for their own safety. How pathetic."

"Alright, Chance. I'll contact Barbados and speak with Satoshi Anya. You're free to join me if you'd like. I'm sure you'd like to be a part of protecting your siblings and your home." Naito looked at his Attendant with a reassuring nod before turning back towards the young man and the newcomer. Placing his left hand on his side, he'd narrow his eyes towards the two and interject into their short conversation. Apparently they had met each other before. Well that was of no concern to him. "Nakahara Hibiki, hmm?" The young teen spoke in an easy tone as he sullen ridden eyes continued to gaze towards this one named "Hibiki". "My name is Tsurinai Naito. I'm sure we'll meet again in due time." The silver haired Tsurinai would turn and begin to walk towards the exit of the building. The customers sat through the entire explanation and conversation without ever ushering a word, most likely feeling out of place. Lifting his free hand, Naito would signal the Attendant to follow him out of the small sushi bar as he was not completely finished talking with her, or him. Once they made it outside, the young man would begin to walk at a steady stride so the Attendant could easily keep up with him. "Chance, I've been meaning to ask. What is the exact process a person goes through to unlock their potential? Has it always been from them being thrown into Limbo to facing themselves, or is there numerous ways for their potential to be unlocked. Also I must ask, is it predetermined on who has the power to unlock Persona, or does every single human being hold the potential themselves?" This was a question that had been bothering him for quite some time, and he had always been meaning to ask Chance. Through his personal experience, it had always been the process of meeting your other self and unlocking your Persona that way, but was there various ways to get the gift? No one had made that clear to him as of yet.

''Hmm, okay, if that's what you see it as. I still think we're practically talking about the same thing, but no matter.'' Hibiki shrugged slightly, as he responded to Chance. He could indeed have said more and elaborated on what he meant and all, but he was starting to have enough. Long conversations were cool, but this particular one was a little overkill, and he didn't feel like drawing it out anymore. It was practically done already anyway.

''Sure, why not? I'll be looking forward to that.'' he threw back at Naito, who seemed to be pretty much set on leaving with Chance, so there was no need for further discussion on that topic. Though, he kind of wondered that if he were to meet Naito again, what would it end up like. He was hoping it would be at least a little chillier than this meeting was. Intense things were good, but only in small doses. It would be tiring to go through something of this nature very often. Well, no mater, really. He was still looking forward to meeting him again, whatever would it entail. He seemed like a nice guy, in his own way. Maybe he didn't look it, but he sure couldn't be that bad.

With those two making the exit, it left Hibiki alone with the mysterious girl that he met before. ''So, I remember right then.'' he addressed the girl this time. ''What brings you here? You seemed happy to be in a place with a few to no people.'' he asked quite curious, as she wasn't pleased with being approached back then. It was a fairly big change from last time, if she suddenly wanted company. ''May I ask your name? I don't think I caught it before.'' he added afterwards. It was kind of awkward that he still didn't know her name on a second meeting.

She would remain silent at the group, and let their discussion continue. Such interesting conversation, about something that she would not normally talk of. Once more they spoke of humanity, which was sobering to Ruo in her head, as she was clearly in her head, not human. It made her a sort of third-party to speak in these discussions. Though, it was not as though she spoke, rather she made noise that was promptly ignored by all but the man she had met in Iwaigodai. The man had seemed particularly dulled to the conversation as of late, not really giving a committed response to them once they finished speaking. The man and the “it” had soon got up to leave and at that point, Ruo almost thought of leaving herself. It would be a fine opportunity, as well as not wishing to stand much longer than she had to. The man with grey hair seemed like a decisive person, a quality that Ruo carried within her as well. She wondered how he carried himself; if he was as paranoid as she was. She would look behind her and notice the counter, still there of course. She would have to learn one day to get over that, though the day may never come.

Looking back, she noticed the man addressed her, remembering her just as she remembered him. She had not seen many people since her escape, so humans like him who had just met her would stick out for quite a while in her memory. She would nod to him confirming his suspicions. “I recently figured that it would be best to explore the area. I am unfamiliar with some of the areas. Unsure if I mentioned that earlier, even I do not remember,” she said. Ruo did not feel it at the time to remember a trivial thing to say, despite it being the absolute truth; just not all of it. He also would ask for her name, and she would suddenly feel the sharp adjustment in the back of her neck. She would grab the back of her neck, squeezing it lightly, trying to stop it, but to no avail. All of a sudden, the boy needed to be reminded of manners. Ruo would hold a finger pointed up, talking in the same voice, but with a pleasant motherly tone. “Remember, it is always polite to introduce yourself before asking others of their name,” she said, before the change in her mind dissipating and reverting to normal. Ruo would remain silent for a second, blinking a few times, and look to her left and right and back at the man. Anyone watching her might think she did not know what she was saying at the moment. She did not know what to think. She had to explain somehow without lying. “Forgive me. I…” she paused, not knowing how to explain. Her social inabilities would have to be fixed as well at some point. “I sometimes act this way. Pay no mind to me. My name is Ruo,” she said, regaining the familiar stiffness in her voice that she conveyed when they spoke the last time. It was bad enough she barely knew this man, and even worse that part of her poorly-designed functions would act up at the worst possible times. She would be looking behind her much more on her way home this evening.

Weakness:

So she decided to explore in more places than Iwaigodai then. It made sense, as she had indeed mentioned before that she was unfamiliar with this town. Even though she did not seem like the type to merrily go around and look at tourist spots and stuff like that. But, then again, everyone had to go out of their comfort zone for once, or they could miss out on a lot. ''I see. Good luck with it then. And, yes, you did mention it before.'' he said, trying to sound sincere. In a way he did hope she would enjoy herself, but on the other side it didn't really matter to him. So he went on with the polite answer.

Hibiki had to try hard not to laugh when she attempted to reprimand him for asking her name. While it was quite strange, and he should have probably been weirded out at least, for some reason it struck him as funny. She acted as if she had split personalities or something of that nature. He remembered well, that she did something similar during their meeting in Iwaigodai too. Still, this time it was more amusing than not. Or maybe he just had a weird sense of humor. That was probbaly more likely. He didn't respond though, until she tried to apologize for the sudden change of behaviour. ''It's alright, I don't mind.'' he waved it off, as he didn't want her to feel bad about it. ''Though, maybe you were right you know? It might just be impolite to do that.'' he commented jokingly, before actually giving his name back. ''My name is Nakahara Hibiki. It's nice to know you Ruo.'' he said, this time in a more serious tone. Concerning this particular situation it might have even seemed as if he was kind of changing his mood rapidly too, but in contrast to Ruo, it wasn't that much really.

The man himself was polite enough, far more so than when she met him the first time. That could easily have been due to her own issues and the circumstances of their meeting. Nonetheless, she at least was now to get a fair grasp on the man, and learned a better side of him. Ruo would never judge until she was positive. But to her, she never was when meeting someone new, and really, was any human sure at first? She recalled the term “first-impression” and how often they can end up being wrong. That only reinforced her logic. She would never trust those she did not know everything of, a flaw that could end up sectioning her off all by herself. Ruo might find that a better choice, but perhaps it was not the healthiest for her. That thought would never come to her mind. No exception would come to the man, at least for now. However, because of her last meeting with him perhaps, she would listen and speak to him. She did not know how to thank him, much less express it, but she did know Japanese customs for the most part. She would bow slightly, but stiffly. Only enough to where she could speak with her face hidden. “You have my thanks,” she said.

The man was rather forgiving of her outburst. Were Ruo in that position, she may try to leave. She did not understand people, and did not want to try for the time being. Perhaps once she was assured of her own safety, she would attempt it. Though that would most likely be a long road off. Though she would not do that to the man, who would introduce him as Nakahara Hibiki. His humor she did understood, but would go right over her head for simple enough reasons. She wondered if he was so willing to give his full name to her, after she gave him a single name. She did not have a last name, so she could not give him one. But he obviously did not know that. She would look outside where the previous couple had left and turn to Hibiki. “You were most likely there with them before I showed up. Did something happen to make them act as such? Or rather, did they have something to do with the recent ones who fell to the floor earlier?” she would ask. Probably the better thing to ask. Maybe it would get him to change the subject.

Hibiki watched as Ruo went on to tensely bow to him and say thanks. That action suprised him quite a bit. Of course he knew it was a tradition and all, but you didn't see people doing it very often these days. At least younger people tended not to. Perhaps Ruo was trying to be extra polite, or she just prefered the traditional way of doing things. Hibiki didn't particularly mind. It was her choice as to what she did and why she did it. It's not like she was doing something crazy or insane, so it was okay. ''You're welcome.'' he responded calmly, as that was the logical thing to say when someone thanks you.

He thought on the question she asked next a little longer. True, he'd been there for a while longer than she had, so he basically knew what happened. He was just taking a moment to formulate an answer. He had no idea how much she wanted to know, so it was probably the best bet to give her base info. If she wanted to hear more she could ask follow up questions, right? Because if he were to go into detail right off the bat, he'd probably just overwhelm her with a long monologue, which he doubted she was looking for. ''Those guys that were on the floor recently had tried to harass the bar owner. One of the two I talked to before, to be exact the silver haired one, just decided to teach them a 'lesson'. That's basically what happened.'' Hibiki tried to explain it in the shortest way he could. He would tell her more in case she was interested, but otherwise he probably wouldn't. It was intense enough to watch it, he didn't really need to retell a story of it. ''It was kind of like a drama show...'' he added after a moment, just so he wouldn't sound so deadly serious. The whole scene was tense enough by itself.

Ruo would listen to the man’s explanation. Apparently the men currently in a committed relationship with the floor were unsavory people who tried to cause trouble. If the grey-haired man had taken them all down as Hibiki claimed, then he must truly be a formidable person. She would have to stray from him for the time being, unless she knew he intended her no harm. Being alone has so far been successful for now. “Interesting,” she said aloud. “It is calming to at least see those who are doing wrong get punished for said wrongdoings,” she said. She had the face of one who did not care, or more accurately, did not express anything. Ruo could not contemplate her feelings on it truly, but surely, if those who have it coming get their “just desserts”, it would work correct? Of course, that would be up to the person and their morals, and as such, Ruo would never take up the role herself. She did not have “morals” per se, but she relied on thought and thought alone. That ended up deciding her priorities of survival and living in solitude. Though, she would hardly call that morals, because morals imply bias, and Ruo would perhaps never learn bias unless she learned to feel. That would be a chore and a half.

Hibiki expressed his amazement at it all, and Ruo would continue to stand up next to his seat looking at him. She would take an empty seat next to him and sit, finding the most tranquility in that position. It had occurred to her that she knew fairly little of him, if anything at all. Perhaps this was an opportunity to learn. If it was her goal to see how people would act, and one day learn how to act herself, then this would be a proper way to start. “Hibiki if I may,” she began. She did not know how to begin the new conversation, snce changing it immediately to the subject of him seemed rather jarring and sudden. Perhaps she would speak of what they spoke of earlier, and calmly enter the subject matter. Maybe she would learn more about him. “Is the grey-haired man’s-if I am correct, his name was Naito?-views are aligned with your own? I came in at a fair point in the conversation, and he seemed fairly certain about his views. Did you agree with him at all?” she asked. That may or may not be the extent of her questioning, but it was fairly simple to gather from her creators, the internet she had access to, and what she has seen, that people will explain their opinion if they are committed to it. So maybe along that line of questioning she would learn some things about the man named Hibiki.

Hibiki had originally suspected that she would be at least decently surprised by what happened. But, apparently, no. Instead, Ruo seemed to be pretty much calm and level-headed about the whole thing, even claiming it as interesting. Then again, if he were to consider it from the point that she was generally a little different from normal people, it wouldn't be very surprising anymore. He shouldn't have even been surprised at all, as he himself didn't freak out or anything when it took place. Did that make him weird too? That was definitely a thing to ponder, but not right now. ''Yes, I suppose it is, even though it was done in quite an agressive way itself.'' he said matter of factly. It wasn't that it bothered him. Or maybe it did a little. The only disturbing part was the fact that it indeed included humans getting hurt. Hibiki knew that such couldn't be always avoided, but he still had a distaste when it came to injuring fellow humans. He couldn't really describe why was it so. It just was.

He watched Ruo as she sat closer to him. Maybe she was getting more comfortable? Possibly, she just wanted to hear him better. That sounded more logical. The slightly abrupt change of topic was a little unsettling, and Hibiki briefly wondered if it wouldn't have been better to stay with the previous. Too late though. ''I...It's not that easy to say. I suppose I do agree with him on most points. We didn't go over everything though, so I can't say for sure yet. What I can say, is that it is an interesting notion, at the very least.'' he answered quite thoughtfully. While he did understand Naito's views and kind of agreed, he still didn't know everything, so he didn't want to openly say yes to such a question. Not until he was 100% sure about it. There could still be something that was not brought up yet and that he would greatly dislike or have a too much different of an opinon on. Things like that happen often, and he didn't want to go out of his way before he could be at least decently sure it wasn't likely in this case.

“Formidable that man is,” she had said out loud. A Battle of four on one must have been the sight to behold, especially if he won so brilliantly. But truly, it was unimportant right now. Perhaps the humans would live after he was to take them down, perhaps not. It made no difference to Ruo, as it was not particularly important to her. “Perhaps we are safer than we realize. Though, now it is worth a note that this area is not particularly safe…” she said with a lowered voice. She had no particular reason to say it out loud, and if anything, he could learn this if he did not already know and that could be the takeaway from this conversation. But the note was mostly for her own benefit, as she was learning even more about Nadashiki by the minute. Maybe this would come in handy for her at some point.

She would look at Hibiki as he gave his views. Incidentally enough, Ruo could not agree with him more on his suspension of belief from lack of information. Granted he agreed with much of what he said anyway, the fact that he was not already sold on the idea was something. “It is probably best to take the agnostic approach until you have all the information you can obtain. Otherwise, you might come across challenges, as well as conflicting opinions,” she said. It was always important to be decisive, and know what you plan to do and why. To make rash decisions without information was always foolish in her eyes. Instinct could never work in battle or any situation for that matter. If one had enough time to act rashly, then they had enough time to ponder the consequences before acting out said decision. Ruo was built to be decisive in combat, and would know when to kill if she had to, and why.

It had become a bit more apparent that it was getting rather late at night. She would look upon the clock, and seeing the time at 9:23 P.M. The moon outside would confirm this, and she would turn outside to look. She would turn back to Hibiki and nod slightly after he would respond to what she said if he responded. She did not have to speak back, she could just acknowledge what he said. The man was to be fair, a smart enough person in Ruo’s eyes. He has the ability to consider and doubt without falling into categories as easily as others. Looking online or looking around would only show that. “I see. I appreciate the conversation Hibiki. However, I have to go for the evening. I must do some things before heading home. Get home safely,” she said. It was not a complete lie, she had to take a train to return home in Iwaigodai, and take a quick look over the strip mall once more and the shops around it before leaving. She would boy to him once more, and turn calmly to leave. Once she was sure Hibiki was unable to see her, she would put her hood over her head and make her way for a quick run of the small area, then back home to the empty warehouse that is her home.

((EXIT))

To be completely honest, Hibiki didn't even consider to take time to think if it was safe there or not. Safety was a temporary condition, and it could change on a moment's notice. Afterall, the bar they were currently in could  normally be considered a safe place, and yet all this happened. Trying to pin an area either as safe or not wasn't truly possible, as it was fickle in perspective. ''Perhaps yes, perhaps not. It's not like it can be said for sure. Not that it really matters.'' he said casually, not intending to continue that particular topic any longer, as long as there was no need for it. In retrospect it wasn't an important issue either way.

''You're most likely right. Rushing into something without considering other options may just end up worse than not taking any action.'' Well, yes it could. Even though it wasn't as simple as that. Afterall wasn't Naito stressing the point of taking the risk being important? That made sense too, in its own way. If one were to think on it on a deeper level, the answer may just not lie in either of those options. Both approaches could be either effective or not. It was a paradox. Even after thinking about it, Hibiki was none the wiser, so it indeed wasn't easy to crack. Well, they'd all find out eventuallly, no?

''Sure. Have a safe trip too.'' he said politely after Ruo excused herself. It was truly getting late, so it was natural that they'd be parting ways. Funny how the time went so quickly. Hibiki didn't even notice when it got so late. It didn't feel as if he were there for such an outrageous amount of time. That reminded him...''Oh, great. I totally forgot why I came here in the first place.'' Giving the clock a thoughtful glance, he wondered if he should even bother buying the food anymore. With so much time having passed it was probbaly moot to do so. His classmates were most likely going to be gloomy about it no matter what he did. They've probably eaten something else already too. In the end he decided to rather spend some time on making a solid excuse to calm them down. The food wasn't worth it anymore. With his thoughts on that, he walked off towards the school dorms.

~Exit~