A Midnight Odyssey: Persona in the Playground

[A Rainy Knight]

The evening sky outside the dorm windows is already growing dark as Miyuki sits curled up under her covers with her laptop, browsing the web page of one of the local video game stores.

World Tree Odyssey 2 - special midnight release!

The premium edition will be for sale, first come, first serve! Supplies are limited!

"The premium edition, huh?" Miyuki lies back in bed, alone in her room for the time being, and glances out the window. It's already pretty dark... I kinda don't want to go all that way by myself. I guess if Tsubaki and Asami are busy, there's no helping it...

She thinks for a moment, and when a thought suddenly occurs to her, she hops out of bed and walks into the hall.

Yeah, maybe he'd do it! We're teammates over there, after all...

Nervously taking the doorknob to the guys' common room, she steps in, glances around, and skulks over to knock at Soga's door.

"H-hey, Soga? You in t-there?"

[Xhosant]

Soga had been trying to fall asleep early, seeing how tough Monday mornings always were on him.

...to no avail, since his 'up late, sleep in' custom for weekends meant he was wide awake now. Instead he'd lay there, his mind wandering on the past, and the place where Cel awoke. That was becoming a habit recently.

He was lucky, then, that he heard a knock on the door, and Miyuki calling him out.

"Just a minute!", he half-whispered as he donned the day's shirt and shorts as swiftly as he could (the night was too hot for him for anything more than a sheet to sleep with), then hastily opened the door. Yup, there was Miyuki alright!

[A Rainy Knight]

"Ah... S-Soga, I was, uh, gonna ask you if, um..." Miyuki stops and takes a breath, as if refreshing her resolve to keep talking. "T-there's a midnight release tonight for a game I really want, but I'm kinda, uh, s-scared to be out in the city by myself that late..."

Wringing her hands in front of her, she looks up at him hopefully.

"If it's not a b-bother, do you wanna come with me? I think I'd feel a little better with you around. You seem pretty tough over in that world, at least, and you're, y'know, a guy." She smiles nervously. "S-sorry to spring this on you. I guess we don't really h-hang out that much outside of missions, huh..."

[Xhosant]

There goes my early morning, but I could really use a distraction right now... Why not, this could be fun!

"Well, I'm not that tough without Cel to watch my back, but sure, I'm not really doing anything anyway", he replies with a small chuckle.

"What sort of game, if you don't mind me asking?", he adds as he dashes around the room making sure everything was in order. He felt his Evoker left in his shorts' cargo pocket, but he didn't bother to remove it.

[A Rainy Knight]

"You're t-tough enough for me," Miyuki replies, with a little smirk of her own. "T-thanks. I, um, really appreciate it..."

Her eyes follow Soga around the room as he dashes around checking over everything.

"It's a d-dungeon crawling RPG," she says to his question, eyes lighting up at the subject. "You build a party and navigate these mazes, f-fighting monsters and drawing maps and stuff. Sounds kinda familiar when you think about it... A-anyways, this one's the sequel. I was a r-really big fan of the original before I came here."

Once he's about ready, she walks back to his door and waits for him.

"T-there's a bus that goes pretty close to the store, I think. Maybe we could ride that, and then w-walk together the rest of the way...?"

[Xhosant]

Soga smiled at the compliment, and if the sudden rush hadn't made him redden a tad, he may have blushed.

"Sure, sounds like a plan! Which bus is it?", he asks as he closes the door behind him, starts walking out with her, and pulls out his phone, intent on checking when said bus sets off.

"I gotta say, I like that kind of game as well! Though, I have an extra-soft spot for action RPGs."

((Kudos on the easter egg checking busses as I step out is a RL gimmick of mine, you might see another in a second))

[A Rainy Knight]

Miyuki takes out her own phone and fiddles with it for a few seconds, before holding the screen up for Soga to see. It's a bus schedule.

"It's this one," she says, pointing out the bus' name and time on the schedule. "We should be able to make it p-pretty easily, I think."

She walks with Soga the rest of the way out of the dorm, and takes a breath as she takes the first step out into the cool evening air. It's already getting rather dark outside, but the street lamps and the lights of the city provide a welcome reprieve from the night.

"S-so you like those kinds of games too?" she asks excitedly. "That's g-great! H-hehe. I, uh, like action RPGs, too... they're a nice mix of l-leveling and building and stuff with your own skill, don't you think? And I think the bus stop is t-this way," she adds, starting down the sidewalk.

[Xhosant]

Soga followed her lead, savoring the silvery light of that particular time and area.

"Well said! RPGs factor in skill, don't get me wrong, but in the end, you live and die by the numbers. You can't try a little harder. But strategising is still way fun!"

[A Rainy Knight]

Never drifting too far from Soga's side as they walk, Miyuki keeps enthusiastically carrying on the conversation.

"Y-yeah, it's kinda lame when a g-game just boils down to tossing a big pile of numbers at each other. I like games like the one I'm getting tonight, where even a w-weak party can beat a strong one with a good strategy and a well-balanced team...!"

She takes a breath, and sighs.

"It's been a while since I t-talked to anyone about RPGs... I'm g-glad someone else here plays them, too," she says, with a smile.

When they reach their stop and the bus arrives, Miyuki steps aboard with her eyes trained on her feet and her hands shoved in her pockets. Shuffling nervously toward the back, she starts looking for a pair of seats where she and Soga can sit together.

[Xhosant]

Noticing a pair of seats, Soga lightly touches Miyuki's shoulder, then points at them.

He couldn't help but notice how shy and hesitant she acted among people, but he wasn't exactly qualified to help her loosen up. Maybe she'll get used to us, eventually?

"I'll be honest though: a good story is what really makes or breaks a game for me, if the gameplay is at least mediocre. I really like those games that slowly have you discover how their world works!"

[A Rainy Knight]

Miyuki walks over, takes a seat next to Soga, and smooths out her skirt.

"H-hehe... yeah, there's nothing like really g-getting into the lore of a game," she says, her tone more subdued than before. "I've played games with better s-stories than a lot of books, y'know?"

She looks aimlessly out the window, watching the lights go by outside as the bus departs.

[Xhosant]

Soga got lost in thought for a while, merely watching the streets pass them by, not moonlit, but not quite unlike so. Even in a bus, there was something quiet and serene about it.

"So," he eventually broke the silence, "what's your favorite story? Game or otherwise?"

[A Rainy Knight]

Miyuki stops and thinks for a moment. "Well... I read this story once about a girl who thought she wasn't g-good for anything. But then she met a f-friend who mattered so much to her, she went back in time over and over again to try to save her life."

She pauses, then suddenly speaks up again.

"Ah! S-sorry... it probably gives you the wrong impression, saying that I l-like a story with a character like that. I just thought it was really t-touching and well-written..."

[Xhosant]

Soga laughs, rushing to dispel the awkwardness.

"Don't worry about it, no impression given."

"Well, mine's about three friends, two boys and a girl, separated when their island was destroyed. One of the boys is looking for the others, eventually trying to redeem the corrupted boy, and cure the comatose girl. Actually, there's also that story with the dragon-rider, and..."

Soga keeps rambling for a moment, almost to himself, before shaking his head back to the present.

"Heh, sorry", he chuckles, "I just really like stories."

[A Rainy Knight]

"D-don't worry!" Miyuki reassures him with a little smile. "I like s-stories a lot, too... when you read a good story, it's like you can go somewhere else, or even be s-someone else, for just a little while. Just leave everything else behind for a bit, and..."

Her voice trails off, and she blushes.

"S-sorry. I guess that sounded kinda depressing too, huh?"

[Xhosant]

"No, not at all," replied Soga with a smile, "isn't that what they're for, after all? And with any luck, you bring back something good."

[A Rainy Knight]

"Right... r-right, that's right!" Miyuki nods. "When you read a story, or p-play it, you think about things, and sometimes you l-learn something about yourself... that's what I think."

The bus slows down and arrives at a stop, and some of the people around her and Soga start to stand up and head for the doors.

"Oh!" she says, suddenly getting to her feet. "I think this is our s-stop! C'mon, let's go."

[Xhosant]

Soga jumps up, trying to get off before his absent-mindedness gets him carried away.

At the street, he looks up and down, not seeing the shop.

"Where to, now?" he asks Miyuki.

[A Rainy Knight]

Miyuki nervously glances left and right.

"Um, uh... t-this way!" she decides, taking Soga by the edge of his sleeve and tugging him along beside her as she heads off to the left. "I think it's this way... I l-looked up a map online before we came. It should just be a c-couple of blocks, I think. And, um... let's be careful not to g-get separated..."

[Xhosant]

Soga follows suit. Miyuki didn't seem too confident about their direction, but what's the worst that could happen? He had a knack for eventually finding his way out when lost.

"Don't worry, we won't", he replies, "I'm keeping an eye on you."

[A Rainy Knight]

"T-thanks," Miyuki says, with an appreciative nod.

Despite her misgivings, a few minutes' walk down the sidewalk brings the game store into view a short distance ahead. There's a small group of guys standing outside, chatting among themselves.

"Oh! T-there it is is!" she says excitedly. "It's pretty close to midnight already... I w-wonder if we made it in time?"

[Xhosant]

Checking his phone for the time, Soga nods.

"Seems so, with a minute or 2 to spare. It seems to be a popular game, judging by the crowd. Think they got enough copies for everyone?"

[A Rainy Knight]

"T-they've got enough copies of the game, I think... but I wonder how many of the p-premium edition they've got?" Miyuki wonders aloud, as she heads for the store's front door. "Let's just go in and..."

She stops, as one of the guys out in front of the store turns and looks at her.

"Yo!" he says, with a grin and a wave. "You guys here for the midnight release, too?"

"Um... y-yes..."

[Xhosant]

Noticing his companion uneasy, Soga decided to lighten her burden, so he slightly moved forward and drew the boy's attention to himself.

"That's right! We're both fans! Any word on when they start handing them out?"

[A Rainy Knight]

Miyuki turns her head and flashes Soga an appreciative smile, as the guy answers Soga's question.

"Should be pretty soon! The wait's almost over. There's a few more guys inside, but the crowd's not as big as I thought - shouldn't be too much of a line, at this rate. Speaking of which, maybe we oughta get lined up in there..."

Miyuki grabs at Soga's sleeve again and tugs him toward the store's automatic doors, her eyes starting to light up again.

"C'mon, let's get in line behind t-these guys. Hee hee! I bet we g-got here in time!"

As the guys out front starting heading into the store, one of them near the back of the group meets eyes with Soga and gives him a thumbs-up. "Nice work, man! I wish my girlfriend was into RPGs..."

Miyuki's only response is a bashful glance at her own feet.

[Xhosant]

Soga smiled awkwardly for a moment, then burst in laughter.

He'd just realized how the stranger had misunderstood their situation nearly in as many ways as there were words in his statement.

With a light fist bump against Miyuki's shoulder, a gesture he'd hoped would dispel her shyness (while being as un-couple-ish as possible), he tugged her to the newly-forming line.

Spoiler: OOC

Show

I gotta say, your RPing (and 'GMing', so to speak) is quite spectacular! Having a great time

Sorry I'm not up to par, and leaving all the background to you

[A Rainy Knight]

For lack of a better response, Miyuki pokes her elbow against Soga's side as she gets into line with him, a faint smile still on her face.

Just a few moments later, the cashier at the front of the store fires a small confetti popper and raises his voice. "All right, everyone, midnight is here! Just keep in a nice orderly line like you are now, and we'll start ringing you all up!"

The people in line all start excitedly murmuring, and even Miyuki's expression has turned to a barely-suppressed grin when she gives Soga another light jab to catch his attention.

"You h-hear that? H-haha, it's kinda exciting being here in person..."

Spoiler: OOC

Show

Thanks! I'm glad you like my style.

[Xhosant]

"That's true, it's great fun! I've never been to an event like this before!"

Soga kept looking around as the line slowly moved on. He turned towards his 'charge' now and then, happy to see her barely-hidden excitement still present.

[A Rainy Knight]

The register steadily clicks and rings at the front of the line, and the pair gradually grow closer and closer to the counter.

"Y-yeah, it's fun!" Miyuki agrees, clasping her hands in front of her before glancing down to fish her wallet out of her skirt pocket. "I guess it's a first for b-both of us. H-hee hee..."

She steps forward as the next person in line moves ahead. They're almost there!

[Xhosant]

The idea had been scratching at the edge of Soga's mind for a while now, but he had grown thoroughly curious with the game so far. Seeing Miyuki reach for her purse made him realize he had left some money in the pocket of the sorts he was wearing right now.

He decided. He'd grab a copy himself!

As the thought hit him, the person in front of them stood aside, revealing the counter. Front of the line, at last!

He reached in his pocket for his own money, but the small cargo pocket was thoroughly blocked by none other than his evoker. Damn, I can't just take it out to ease my job...

Now rushing frantically and awkwardly, in front of a cashier that may or may not have been getting restless, he leaned in towards Miyuki.

"Can you, ugh, buy me a moment somehow?" he asked, pausing as he struggled to maneuver around the gun lookalike.

By now, he was bright red with awkwardness.

((Curveball get!))