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Persona: A Less-Than Cinematic Tale (Starring Hikari of PQ2)

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Intro to Dorm Life
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    • Hikari had a room to herself on the first floor, at the southeast corner of the building. She had two windows, one of which was half-covered with clinging vines, and the other of which had the view blotted out completely. A television had been provided with the room, but she'd needed to bring her own DVD player.

    She'd also brought her own films to watch. Scripts she'd written herself, back in high school, and presented at a film festival in her final year, which had gotten her the attention of the Kusoka film program. There were four of them, and for the time being, she left them on top of the DVD player, with the superhero movie at the top of the stack.

    She didn't have a lot of things to decorate the room with yet, but she assumed that she'd come across something while in town.

    Once she'd gotten everything she'd brought along set up, there was a loud crash in the hallway. Hikari flinched, and leaned against the wall, and overheard two male voices talking.

    "What did you put in these boxes, anyway? They weigh more than my computer does!"

    "I'm not sure how much it matters to you, Akabori."

    "It'll be set up in     our room, I'm pretty sure that means it matters to me."

    "And in that case, you'll see it once it's opened. Assuming you haven't     broken it with your clumsiness..." The voices faded out into the distance as their owners climbed the stairwell, and Hikari let out a breath she didn't know she was holding.

    She was tired from the long train ride, but other people were still moving in and making lots of noise. Maybe she'd see if there was anything on TV before going to bed...

    "There has been no progress in the search for the missing detective, Goro Akechi, though former Prime Minister Shido still denies having had him killed..."

    ...Ah. Politics. Also a slow news day. Kusoka wasn't even anywhere near Tokyo, it wasn't like someone who'd been missing for months would just... show up. Maybe getting some sleep would be a better idea, after all...

    When Hikari stepped into the cinema, it was deserted with the exception of a young man that was half-asleep next to the popcorn machine. He cracked open an eyelid at her approach, pushing himself up a bit to face her.

    "All right. Who are you, and what month is it? I     know it can't still be December." ...What?

    "Um... I'm... Hikari..." She had absolutely no idea what was going on, but this guy looked sort of scary. "It's, um... April of 2017?"

    "...Really,     really glad I don't have any responsibilities right now." Okay, this wasn't making things any less confusing. "Look, I don't think anything bad's going to happen if you stay in the theater, but you shouldn't stick around here. Go back to having regular dreams." Really, really not making things less confusing.

    "You... haven't told me     your name, though."

    "What's it matter? Unless something big changes, we're     not going to meet again. This ain't a place for normal people. ...Ain't even a place for me. No place for anyone but the Shadows."

    ...Shadows. Hikari thought she'd known that word, at some point, but the meaning refused to come to her.

    And, as she failed to remember, the cinema slipped away from her grasp.

    By the time morning arrived, Hikari had completely forgotten about her dream. She got a notification from the school on her phone, so she scrambled out of bed to check it.

    ...Apparently, to celebrate the start of the new year, Negai Arimura, the woman who'd first set up the university, would be giving a speech that morning. Attendance, while not mandatory, was highly recommended. Hikari figured it couldn't hurt too much to go, and decided that she would be attending later.

    But there was an hour before she had to be anywhere, so maybe she could do something else, as well...


    [ ] It came to mind that she hadn't really met any of her fellow students, yet. Maybe it was time to fix that...

    [ ] Figuring out where to get food was important. And on her first day in a new place, getting breakfast was extra important. If only she could find some...

    [ ] If she could meet with Nara-san again, perhaps she could have some important questions answered about dorm life...
    -[ ] Write-in exact questions.

    [ ] Actually, if she left early, maybe she could scope out various faculty members... figure out who she needed to avoid the notice of.
     
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    • [X] Figuring out where to get food was important. And on her first day in a new place, getting breakfast was extra important. If only she could find some...

    It's the most important meal of the day, after all.
     
    [X] Figuring out where to get food was important. And on her first day in a new place, getting breakfast was extra important. If only she could find some...
     
    [X] Figuring out where to get food was important. And on her first day in a new place, getting breakfast was extra important. If only she could find some...
     
    [X] Figuring out where to get food was important. And on her first day in a new place, getting breakfast was extra important. If only she could find some...
     
    [X] It came to mind that she hadn't really met any of her fellow students, yet. Maybe it was time to fix that...
     
    Inserted tally
    Adhoc vote count started by SeekerofDreams on Aug 2, 2020 at 5:15 AM, finished with 6 posts and 6 votes.
    • [X] Figuring out where to get food was important. And on her first day in a new place, getting breakfast was extra important. If only she could find some...
      [X] It came to mind that she hadn't really met any of her fellow students, yet. Maybe it was time to fix that...
    Click to expand...
     
    All right, now for breakfast!


    -Vote Closed!-​


    Food is important. Especially when there's a big event coming up.
     
    The Speech
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    • The first part of Hikari's morning was spent on exploration. More specifically- on the hunt for food.

    There were a number of small cafes dotting the campus here and there, at least according to the map that she'd found online. The nearest one was honestly in better condition than student housing, which probably said something, even if Hikari wasn't sure what it was.

    "Welcome to Cafe Chagall! Would you like to try our special pheromone coffee? We also have small breakfast sandwiches, if you're interested."

    "...A sandwich would be nice." She thought she'd pass on the coffee. Nobody had ever been able to figure out what went into it, but she was pretty sure it was hallucinogenic. "And... maybe some hot chocolate?" It wasn't that late into the spring, it couldn't be too weird to ask for a cup of cocoa.

    "Coming right up!" Hikari sat down near the counter, next to a girl with a long black braid.

    The unfamiliar girl turned to her. "Are you attending the university, as well?" She asked.

    "...That's right. I'm doing... film studies." Even after getting this far, it was still uncomfortable to say it out loud.

    "...Pre-med. If we were in the same sort of classes, I'd invite you to study together, but..." She shrugged. "Shiyuri Kosono."

    "...Hikari." It didn't feel quite like she'd made a friend, but it was nice to finally know someone else's name.

    ...Actually, for a social interaction, this had been surprisingly painless.

    (You have discovered Cafe Chagall. Once per day, Hikari may spend time here with other university students to become better friends. She will not touch the pheromone coffee.)

    Negai Arimura, the woman who made Kusoka University's broad range of subjects possible, stood in front of a large crowd. Her long, perfectly-straight hair was more purple than brown, though not by all that much. Her right eye was pale green, and her left eye a slightly-darker yellow. She was perfectly composed in front of the crowd.

    "I would like to welcome all of you to a new school year at Kusoka University. You are all coming here with something you would like to achieve, and our goal, as a school, is for you to be able to achieve them. I hope that my efforts will not be wasted in bringing all of your dreams to life.

    "However, for this to be a productive learning environment, there must be rules for you to follow. Each of your teachers will have their own guidelines for you to live by, so that they may teach the classes of their dreams. Please follow them, so that these dreams may not be disturbed.

    "On a more general notice, however, the tunnels under the school are to be avoided when possible, as they are incredibly dangerous. There are locations in the city which are similarly dangerous, but as the tunnels are on school property, it falls on me to ensure that no students are lost there. Students who are lost are students who will not get the chance to become their ideal selves. For the sake of the dreams you carry, please stay away from the tunnels."

    The speech continued on for quite some time. Hikari zoned out after about ten minutes.

    Due to Arimura's speech, there would be no classes until tomorrow. This left Hikari with a large amount of free time, and no idea what to do with it. Perhaps she'd spend what was left of the morning...


    [ ] Scoping out staff and faculty, if only to see who's attention she'd rather avoid getting.

    [ ] Introducing herself to some of the other students, such as...
    -[ ] A boy with tan skin and light orange hair, wearing black gloves and a black-and-white checked scarf.
    -[ ] A boy with gelled-down black hair who looks fairly uncomfortable in the nice clothes he's wearing.

    [ ] Exploring the campus in search of other useful locations.

    [ ] ...Didn't she hear something about tunnels under the school?
     
  • Threadmarks
    • [X] Introducing herself to some of the other students, such as...
    -[X] A boy with tan skin and light orange hair, wearing black gloves and a black-and-white checked scarf.

    Got the basics down. Now she can start to look for some friends.
     
    [X] Scoping out staff and faculty, if only to see who's attention she'd rather avoid getting.
     
    [X] Exploring the campus in search of other useful locations.

    Any good navigator should familiarize herself with the area!
     
    [X] Scoping out staff and faculty, if only to see who's attention she'd rather avoid getting.
     
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    Mechanics- Time
  • Informational
    • As Hikari goes through her life at Kusoka University, time will pass. Each day, there are three time periods available to her- Before Classes, After Classes, and Evening. (Or Morning, Afternoon, and Evening on days without school.) Before Classes is only available because Hikari lives in the dorms.

    Due to the need to get to class on time, Before Classes only allows Hikari to do things that can be achieved on-campus. Similarly, due to a need to get home before the doors are locked, Hikari may only spend her Evenings on on-campus activities.

    Off-campus activities may always be done After Classes, and are also available during Morning and Afternoon. Exploring Phantasmagoria is available at any point except for Before Classes, but will give a penalty to all activities later in the day.
     
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  • Informational
    • [X] Introducing herself to some of the other students, such as...
    -[X] A boy with tan skin and light orange hair, wearing black gloves and a black-and-white checked scarf.
     
    Inserted tally
    Adhoc vote count started by SeekerofDreams on Aug 3, 2020 at 6:47 AM, finished with 8 posts and 7 votes.
    • [X] ...Didn't she hear something about tunnels under the school?
      [X] Introducing herself to some of the other students, such as...
      -[X] A boy with tan skin and light orange hair, wearing black gloves and a black-and-white checked scarf.
      [X] Scoping out staff and faculty, if only to see who's attention she'd rather avoid getting.
      [X] Exploring the campus in search of other useful locations.
    Click to expand...
     
    ...This might be the first time I've seen things resolved as a three-way tie. Someone please fix this.
     
    Huh. All right then!

    [X] Scoping out staff and faculty, if only to see who's attention she'd rather avoid getting.

    Given the (lack of) roommate vote implies Hikari's social awkwardness is still in full effect it seems a bit odd to me for her to be that proactive in introducing herself. And while I'm sure we'll see the tunnels eventually and I am interested, people-watching seems more in line with the early characterization we're establishing here out of those choices.
     
    All right, let's take a look around.


    -Vote Closed!-​


    ...Of course, now I'll have to figure out exactly what day it is, in-story, so...
     
    Monday, April 10- Morning
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    • The first thing Hikari did in a new school year was usually to scope out the teachers. While some of them could be nice, that hadn't really been true in her experience until high school, and even then, some were much better than others.

    As she was new to the school, and therefore had heard very little about the people working there beforehand, this became even more important. While she wasn't sure she could handle asking around when she didn't really know anyone who'd be in the same classes as her, that left the internet and personal observation to tell her what she needed to know, and whose attention was to be avoided.

    The first person who would be relevant to Hikari's life was Kain Nara, whose rules she would be living under. From the introduction, she'd gotten the impression that he was a strict man, and the complaints she overheard from her fellow students cemented that impression. Nara was someone not to be crossed, but as long as she followed all the rules, she should have been fine.

    All things considered, she wasn't sure if that last part was entirely trustworthy, but she'd just have to follow the rules and hope for the best.

    Next was Negai Arimura. While she was almost certainly going to be irrelevant to Hikari's life as it was now, getting information about her was as simple as going online and typing her name into a search engine, so Hikari figured it couldn't hurt to do so.

    There were a lot fewer results than expected. Arimura had only taken charge of Kusoka University within the past five years, at which point the school had apparently been almost completely unknown. The various news articles had little to say about her personality, but all noted that she apparently took the education of her charges very seriously.

    This was much less information than Hikari had expected. Still, she also figured she'd never be talking with this woman in her life, and so had little need of this information. She put the lack of search results out of mind.

    Those names checked off of her list, she started looking into the teachers whose classes she would be taking. As she was passionate about everything relating to film, there were a lot of courses she would be taking at some point or another.

    One of the teachers in that department was Toyosada Hirose. He was apparently unpopular with the other teachers, but incredibly popular with his students. Hikari thought that meant it might have been safe to have his attention, but it was hard to tell... It wasn't unusual for her hair and eyes to get her a different reception from most people, though it had been happening less and less with time. She wasn't sure if that was because of the world getting better, or if the people she was surrounded by were just finally growing up.

    Nobody else who she would potentially be dealing with was being talked about by her fellow students, nor did they give her a large number of internet search results. In her wanderings around, however, she did come across various adults that probably wouldn't be relevant to her school life that seemed unpleasant enough to warrant avoiding later.

    All things considered, a decently productive morning.

    Hikari took notes. She gathered all of the relevant information about the people she'd heard of into a simple orange notebook, onto the cover of which she'd drawn...

    [ ] A sun.

    [ ] A star.

    [ ] A set of scales.

    Once the information was compiled, she placed the notebook back in her bag.

    The sun was high in the sky, now, and there were plenty of things that Hikari could do. Such as...


    [ ] Going out into the city in search of places to visit.

    [ ] Exploring the campus in search of other useful locations.

    [ ] ...Didn't she hear something about tunnels under the school?
     
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    • [X] Exploring the campus in search of other useful locations.

    [X] A sun.
     
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    [X] A star.
    [X] Going out into the city in search of places to visit.
     
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