pawnstorm | [Open] It's getting hot in here

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[Open] It's getting hot in here

Who: Caren and anyone visiting the hot springs!
When: Post dungeon, could be right after fail/success, could be days after
Where: Hot Springs of course
What: There's a hot springs, so now there's a hot springs episode.
Rating: Could be a p-13 and beyond because some people are only wearing towels in this place.

[Win or fail, everyone needed a reason and a way to relax. With the fall of the towers, there was all sorts of good things to come from it. Some would say it was the birds; and others would say it was the hot springs.

The large, large pools of heated water. Sure, they could be used as a way to get all steamed up (or even steam punk) but after all that hard work, everyone deserves a break!

Bring your swimsuits, your towels, your drinks and snacks-who knows, you should be able to find them in the bazaars, or even on Airy. It's time to soak in the heat!]

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[ She just...says it. So simply. Like it's something that doesn't need to be a close kept secret. Maybe she doesn't have people she's worried about finding out, but Minato realizes that it's not just Yukari. Aigis knows, yes, but he doesn't want Souji to know, either. Or...or anyone. What would they think if they did?

Another silence falls between them. Minato looks thoughtful for a second, searching her face. Should he press further? Is that even worth it?

Instead, he opts for something...maybe a little--no, a lot gentler than he usually is. ]

...Can we talk?

[Kaede tilted her head to the side, like an inquisitive sort of bird. She wasn't angry, or furrowing her brows in confusion.]

About what?

About what happened.

[ He's curious, he's...very curious. Anyone would be if given the opportunity, but this definitely hits closer to home. ]

If that's okay.

Not much to tell.

[Another shrug. That wasn't quite true; there was quite a bit that happened in the spiral of catastrophes that led to her death. Kouta's rejection. Kakuzawa. His daughter's intervention. Having to destroy what little family Kaede had left.

Her nonchalance broke for a moment, turning into a shifting discomfort as she looked at her own hand. Solid, flexible—not melting into sloughing, entropic ruin.]

I used my power too much. It ate me.

[ His gaze moves to her hand as well. Had she done something to hurt it? But when she speaks again, his eyes return to her face. ]

...So it was an accident.

[ Hm. ]

That power...like you just used?

No. I knew it would tear me apart if I used it too much. I did anyway.

[She couldn't let another important person die in front of her. And she didn't.

Kaede looked away from her hand, returning the gaze as her agitation stilled.]

Like that? Yes. But now everyone can see them.

[A snort.]

And they don't kill things as easily.

[ The fact that she is willing to talk about it is a bit of a surprise, but he's not going to point that out. She'd been very closed off when they met, and not that she's an open book now, he does wonder why she's comfortable enough to share something that seems so sensitive.

Or maybe it isn't to her? Is he taking it too seriously? ]

What are they?

My vectors?

[The question made Kaede pause, blinking in thoughtful surprise. She couldn't call the echoing fire out so quickly; instead, she looked down at her physical hand again.

...what were her vectors, anyway? She'd never thought to question them; they were as much a part of her as her own hands.

She wasn't part of Kakuzawa's race of impostors; she was something new, something...different, mutant and strange. Were her vectors for corrupting the DNA of others, or for tearing their heads off? Both?

Was their only purpose destruction—or could they be used to heal and mend?

She'd died before she found out.]

...I don't know. Something my mind controlled.

[Strange. That admission had been easier than talking about her own death, at least in the vaguest of terms.]

[ A power she doesn't understand? Mm. He wonders if they're something she was given or inherited, but he doesn't ask. ]

Do you remember what it was like?

Like I could reach further than my arms could go; they answered at a thought. Once did. They hummed, mostly.

[She scowled, but it was brief. Should she be telling him this...?

Eh. It wasn't like it mattered now, not here. Kaede sincerely doubted Minato was going to relay that information to genocidal cultists like Kakuzawa.]

Not going to share for show and tell?

[ Minato is exceptionally good at keeping secrets, in part because he doesn't more asking than sharing in general. He just listens quietly, filing what he learns away. This...feels like a social link in the making.

He shakes his head. ]

I won't tell anyone.

[It just might be! ...while they're both ass-naked and staring at each other in a pool.]

Hmph. We'll see about that.

[Not saying that she might follow him to make sure he's not snitching to the cops sometimes.

But she might follow him in the future, for reasons.]

[ Does he really have anything to share, though? Yes, he does...but...he's not too keen on saying it. Though if anyone's going to understand, it's her. ]

...I just wanted to know if anyone else had a...similar experience.

[Kaede laughs, sudden and brief. That was one way to put it.

She did feel a tiny bit bad; if this was as uncomfortable subject as it seemed, she was probab-

Wait, what was this feeling guilt thing doing here?

Minato what did you do??]

So how'd you die?

...

[ Yeah, she...she got it. And this will be the first time he's ever really talked about dying. He and Aigis had touched on it, briefly, more in concept than the literal reality of it. He's going to have to do this at some point, though...right?

But how does he put this? ]

I agreed to it.

[Kaede doesn't laugh again; thought about it, yes, but she was also thinking of other things. More relevant things.]

Is that so.

[She inclined her head just so slightly the other way. How...curious. She was almost jealous. Or...no, not exactly. She hadn't intended to die then, but it happened, didn't it? Death didn't care if she had things to do, one more person to kill, others to meet—it caught up to her as surely as her disintegrating form did.]

Not all of us can choose when to die.

[ If he thinks about it...really thinks about it, the alternative wan't much better, was it? Welcoming death for everyone, bringing on the end. He doesn't really want to get into all the nuances of martyrdom, though, because that's certainly not how he sees it. ]

...Yeah.

[ He's not good at talking about this. But should anyone be? ]

...And some people do, then regret it.

Hm.

[Her voice continued sounding less and less dismissive. Not like she was talking to an equal, not quite yet. More a solid feeling that he really understood, instead of just making guesses and conjectures.]

Awfully understanding for a human, aren't you.

[It wasn't a question; more a statement, even a compliment.]

[ It's a curious statement. Minato looks up. He'd assumed that she was human, you know, by appearances at least. Humans can have some amazing powers, but...is that not the case? ]

You think so?

Did I stutter?

[Some of Kaede's spite returned, smoldering in the edges of her words. She spat them, her anger directed elsewhere.]

Most humans are cruel and wretched. Monsters that claim they aren't. I don't have any regrets killing them.

[The building rage cooled as quickly as it appeared, though the occasional mana spark still flickered from her shoulders.]

...but not all of them.

[ So...she's died, destroyed by her own power. Fought humans, killed many and holds a general disdain for them, but can still see the merit in a few...

> You feel that you're beginning to understand Kaede a little better...

With the somber mood, it seems fitting to get this, after he's learned so much. ]

Thou shalt have our blessing when thou choosest to create a Persona of the Hangedman Arcana...

[ Hmm...interesting.

He spaces out for a moment, staring sort of blankly ahead as the visuals and voices do what they will. Then, when the scene slowly returns to normal, he seems to wake back up. ]

...I think most people are afraid. And don't know what they really want.

[ Should he ask what happened? Or is that pushing his luck? ]

[Initially, Kaede assumed Minato's silence was simply due to thought.

Just when she was about to wiggle her fingers to see if his blank expression was due to how far he was in his own mind or just zoning out, Minato started to speak again.

That...wiggled through her armor to hit something underneath. Kaede twitched, as if stung by something.]

...maybe so.

[>You need a higher Social Link to unlock her tragic backstory.]

[ It does seem like a big reveal, and it certainly is to him, so Minato figures their Social Link will need some time before it levels up again. Keeping that in mind, he decides to back off on some of the finer details. She may prefer that as well. ]

Have you talked to anyone else?

[Her discomfort disappeared, and her usual neutral posture settled back into place.]

Caren. It hasn't really come up otherwise.

[ Caren...something about that doesn't entirely surprise him. She has a certain aura around her that makes him think the notion of talking to the dead wouldn't be all that strange to her. ]

...I guess it's not really a cocktail party conversation.

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[Open] It's getting hot in here

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