Persona: Shadows of the Mind

[Aarah]

"Ohhh...yeah." Keira giggled as the mystery was solved. "I thought you might be psychic for a minute there."
She smiled and tucked her hair behind her ear.
"That's nice though: bothering to remember our names and faces. I suppose it comes with the job, what with you being the president and all."

[Pilovv]

Makoto blinked, listening in to the two kids that seem to know each other well. Though she wasn't really looking to make any friends, she heard stirring up trouble. Then they started whispering about something... Hmm. No, she just left the school, clutching her new schedule.

Hopefully it wouldn't get dog eared too fast. She was going to copy it into a text document or something once she got home, just so she didn't have an excuse to wander around school and say "I don't know my classes." As tempting as that was.

[The SheoDovah]

Oscar Nigel Tarinson - Coffee time.

Oscar Nigel Tarinson departed afterwards and made his way towards the canteen to grab a much needed cup of coffee and would proceed to his dorm to grab his swimming trunks along with a towel. If it was up to him, he would have swam naked but there were rules about those kind of things and he knew better then to push it.

[Unionhack]

Waiting Room

Henry gave a light-hearted, soft chuckle that absolutely oozed with his attempting to be civil. "Yes, well, as you say, it comes with the job. I've got to show my father up somehow, yes? Now, let's have you set your schedule and be off, yes? I'd hate for you to have to stay here any longer than you must, being that it's our last day off."

Makoto

Makoto made her way to Lavoie Dormitory, and her room.

Maria

Maria departed the school, to her house by the transit system if she so wished.

Oscar

After stopping by a local coffee house for a cup, and then to Martin Dormitory, Oscar made his way to the school's outdoor pool where there absolutely were rules about wearing clothing, to say nothing of public indecency laws.

Location added to documentation post: The Daily Grind Coffee House

[The SheoDovah]

Oscar Nigel Tarinson - The pool.

Oscar Nigel Tarinson enjoyed his coffee and he had to admit that it was one of the few things that he permitted into his life as a pleasure. After arriving at the pool, he put his towel nearby where he knew it would be safe or so he believed and did a gentle yet elegant dive into the pool. He would start doing laps. The pool was one of his common haunts and swimming was something he greatly enjoyed. He viewed it as physical excerise then pleasure but did not mind that he happened to enjoy it.

[Aarah]

"Yep, last day before the grind." Keira said to Henry.
"Ok. Thanks then. I guess I'll see you around campus."
With a smile and a raise of her hand as a gesture of goodbye, Keira left the waiting room and went over to the secretary's desk.

Most of her fellow students had already filled out their forms and left, so she had plenty of room to complete hers.
Picking up a pen, she chose the class with psychology, naturally, as well as biology.
After signing her name, she left the pen and began to exit the building.

On her way out, she texted Nick again.

Finished now. Meet you outside your dorm? x

[Pilovv]

Makoto didn't walk too fast, so it's possible that someone that goes to her dorm could bump into her. She wasn't exactly in a hurry to go home and do absolutely nothing. Nothing could wait for a little bit. She couldn't just sleep every day away. She was sure there'd be something to do in that room of hers.

[Unionhack]

Keira

Sure thing, we can drive to the cafe I mentioned.

Keira made her way to Martin. Nick was waiting in the parking lot, next to his old-but-cared-for car. He smiled as she approached, still a little shy to compliment her despite their time together.

Makoto

Makoto passed a number of people on her way back to Lavoie. She could speak to any that she recognized, or continue on her way to her dorm where she would have access to her computer and other amenities.

Spoiler:

Are we all relatively prepped for a skip to day 1, or would you guys like to do a bit more interacting? Up to all of you.

[The SheoDovah]

Hidden:

I'm ready for a timeskip.

[Aarah]

Keira read the message on her phone, and had no objection to driving to the coffee house. She was too tired to be bothered walking there.

She mirrored Nick's smile on approach to his car.
"Hey, sweetie."
She gave him a quick kiss on the cheek.
"Urr, I'm so ready for that coffee!"

Keira proceeded to tell Nicholas all about the lost records, as they drove to The Daily Grind Coffee House.

Hidden:

I'm good with a timeskip too. If you want to have Nick say anything else, I'm fine with that too, but left the post at a point where it could skip ahead easily.

[Rook]

Hidden:

I'm fine with a timeskip.

After submitting his completed form, James walked leisurely back to the Lavoie dorm, intent on picking up his soccer ball before heading to the field. He was almost desperate to stretch his legs after such a long wait.

[Cassandra]

After leaving the school, Maria hurried straight home. She had a fair bit of work to do to prepare the household for the first day of school, and was none too pleased at how much of her time had been spent waiting around.

Hidden:

Timeskip's good for me.

Also, it just hit me that there's no Labour Day.

[Pilovv]

Spoiler:

Go ahead and timeskip.

Naturally, Makoto gravitated straight to her room. Talking with people... Nah. That ain't happening. She was going to use the computer for the rest of the day.

[Unionhack]

Spoiler:

Apologies for the wait! Been getting stuff ready for some online D&D with some bros. Might throw y'all the link to the stream, we'll see. Until then, more Persona! We've got a new arrival in tow, as a matter of fact! Here's Dirty Spaceman's character, Brendan.

Hidden:

EDITED POST-AWAKENING
Name: Brendan Rathburn
Age: 16
Nationality: Canadian
Sex: Male
Academic Class: Sophomore
Campus Involvement: Varsity hockey
Living Situation: Dormitory (Martin)
Major Arcana: The Chariot
Persona: Guan Yu
Strong Element: Physical
Weak Element: Darkness
Appearance: Approaching 6 feet in height, with a frame that would have been lanky if not for all his time spent at the gym. He has fair skin, blue eyes, and wavy brown hair that is long enough to be combed back over his head.
Persona Appearance: Guan Yu appears as a muscular, fierce east Asian-looking man with a red-toned face and thick beard that is clearly reminiscent of the mother of all playoff beards. He wears what appears to be a traditional Chinese robe, but is in fact made out of stitched-together hockey jersey fabric. He wields a weapon with most of the components of a guandao, but with the blade in the curved shape of a hockey stick's blade.
Personality: Brendan is outgoing and personable most of the time. He is confident and decisive in his everyday actions, and is easy to befriend. However, he has a short fuse and a notorious temper. He is easily provoked into fights on the ice and arguments off it, which has caused harm to some of his friendships. And what with his recent uncertainty about his future, his emotions have become even more volatile of late.
Backstory:

Spoiler:

Brendan was born and raised in Newmarket, on the outskirts of the Greater Toronto Area. He discovered a passion for hockey at a young age, as many Canadians do, but he took to it more than the average player. He was soon playing on AAA teams, and he began aspiring to play professionally when he grew up. However, despite his talent and strong leadership, his short temper on ice prevented him from being considered a top player - by people who weren't him, anyway.

Thus, the previous year, his parents sent him to Horizon, hoping that a boarding school would help teach him some maturity. He began to show encouraging signs, and became an alternate captain of the varsity hockey team in his freshman year. In the spring of this year, he was drafted to a team in the Major Junior OHL - but when training camp came around in late summer, he failed to make the cut.

Despite the odds being low for newly-drafted players in the first place, Brendan had expected to make his team, and this came as a disheartening blow. For the first time, doubt entered his mind regarding his future. He easily made the varsity team at Horizon once again, but it didn't stop him from contemplating and fearing the idea of a life outside of hockey.

Items, Possessions: School books and uniform, smartphone, hockey equipment, and a lightweight laptop. He also has a puck signed by Mats Sundin that he keeps in his dorm room as a lucky charm.
Relationships: William Rathburn, Father, 45
Irina Rathburn (née Wolczuk), Mother, 44
Katherine Rathburn, Sister, 13
Other info: Knows some basic Polish through his mother.

___________________________________________

Max Delaney

Max came home to a quiet home that night. After hearing nothing from his mom, he found a note on the refrigerator.

Max,

I'm going to the doctor for an emergency late-night visit. It should be nothing to worry about, but the doctor said that it's about time to check out those headaches I've been having for a few days now. The doctor is a good ways into the city, so if I don't come back by the time you go to sleep, make sure to lock up.

There's leftovers in the fridge if you need anything.

- Mom

By the time he went to bed that night, she indeed had not come home.

___________________________

You find yourself faced with another restless night, but this time, when it fades away into calmness, it is not accompanied with a sudden shock. Again you hear the piano, and your vision is flooded with the blue of the Velvet Room.

As you open your eyes, you find yourself facing those shadowy figures once more. However, this time, you notice that you can move. You mumble "what?" in surprise, and alert yourself that you are able to speak as well. It seems nothing at all like last time.

"Well, well." speaks the same distinct voice of Igor, causing you to instinctively look up to his position. This time he is not alone; he is flanked by a woman in a blue office suit that matches the room's distinct blue overtones. In her hands she carries an almost absurdly large tome, and when you examine her face, you recognize her as the blonde secretary from the school's front office. She carries the same lustrous hair, but her eyes are now an otherworldly, glowing yellow.

Igor clasps his hands together and leans forward, his eyes forever bulging as he examines you in your seat. "It seems that your journey is proceeding as predicted. You have signed a contract, binding you to the responsibility for your actions. However, the forces that would wish your kind harm are moving ahead of schedule. I must wonder if you will be able to stop the first move in time... Alas, that is not for us in this Velvet Room to determine. We are here to merely facilitate your growth, once you achieve the means to control it."

The secretary then speaks, in an almost monotonous voice in comparison to Igor's colorful manner of speaking. "You possess limitless power within the sea of your souls, but it seems that the time to unlock this has not come to pass. Return to the waking world, and wait your calling."

Before you can speak or question the odd proceedings, you find yourself unable to fight the sudden wave of drowsiness that steals you away from the Velvet Room...

______________________

Day 1: August 20th

Jukebox: DJ Kawasaki - Bright Like Light (Welcome to Horizon Academy)

Hidden:

YouTube Link

The seven students faced with the odd situation yesterday made their way to Horizon Academy, each in their own usual way, still a bit sluggish from the odd dream from the previous night.

Keira Swanson, Makoto Adiev, and James Cothran found themselves walking nearby each other on their way out of Lavoie Dormitory. They recognized each other from yesterday's proceedings.

Separate from these seven peculiar souls, exiting Martin Dormitory, was a young man named Brendan Rathburn. Unlike the others, he had slept just fine the previous night. Instead, he was battling a nagging headache that had begun just around the time he woke up in the morning. The periodic aches distracted him for a moment on the walk to school, almost making him run into one Oscar Tarinson; a fellow departing resident of Martin Dormitory.

Maria Parazza and Kieran Ikeda made their daily commutes without incident. Max Delaney did as well, with a noticeable difference; his mother seemed to not return that night, or had either gone to work before he woke up. In either case, she had not contacted him.

[Aarah]

When Keira had gotten ready for the first day of school that morning, several thoughts had filled her mind; her classes, her records, her friends, the semester ahead, but one thought unrelated to school life was the weird dream she had the night before.
That same blue room, that same strange man, the same strange talk of contracts and powers, all the same as those from Saturday night. But last night's had been so vivid; it was almost like she was really there.
She knew, however, that it was nothing more than a dream, however real it felt. Probably the result of too much coffee and thinking about her lost files. The secretary had been in the dream, after all.

Shrugging the dream out of her mind, Keira left the Lavoie dormitory to head to her first class of the day.
On her way out, she spotted two people that she recognised.
The tanned senor and the scruffy wallflower.

The tall, mousy-haired girl gave a friendly nod to James and Makoto.
"Oh, hey. You were both in the waiting room yesterday."

[Pilovv]

Makoto was looking as scruffy as ever, walking next to the two while being deep in thought. She thinks the blonde lady was familiar. Her aunt? Nah, she doesn't think she ever met an aunt that wasn't Japanese. She couldn't normally remember dreams, so if these dreams were connected it was really going to bother her.

Trying to clear her thoughts of dreams and prepare herself for school now that everything had been sorted, something took her out of her day dreaming. A voice she'd heard a lot recently. She turned her head with a bit of a clueless gaze, only to see two of the people from the waiting room yesterday. She guess she might as well be a little bit sociable. It was probably only for a few minutes. She resisted her urge to take a few steps away, and spoke. "Uhhh... Yeah. Hi." Mhh. Smooth.

[Cassandra]

Pushing any thoughts of the dream to the back of her mind as she got everyone in the house ready and out the door, Maria took time to think once she was alone on the subway. One weird dream is understandable, but twice in a row? Nonna'd blame it on a "troubled spirit" or whatever... But no, it's probably just stress.
Nothing to spend time worrying about anyway, whatever the reason.

By the time she arrived at school, the girl was more concerned with finding her first class than with figuring out the reason behind her lack of sleep.

[Baloth-Kul]

Max - Day 00
"What do I think of him?" Max replied to Kieran, in an unimpressed tone. "Pfft, I don't."

Hidden:

Just to get that reply in. Yeah. Not doing any time travel, here. Just forgot about it.

Max - Day 01
Tightly clutching his cellphone, Max was not in great form as he shuffled into the school. His shoes did not click-clack as they did the day before. He'd almost missed his bus stop, as he was compulsively checking his phone for any received texts or calls. No new messages.

With a weary sigh, he stalked the halls, finding his way to his classroom.

[Dirty Spaceman]

Brendan
"Whoa - sorry," said Brendan as he nearly stumbled to avoid his fellow student as they both made their ways toward Martin's exit. His apology was more instinctual than earnest, as he was both distracted and irritated by his headache. In his current mood, he couldn't stop himself from adding in a mutter, "Watch where you're going..." as he turned to continue on his way towards the door.

[The-Shadow-One]

Kieran rubbed his eyes. "Two nights." He grumbled. "At least I managed to get some sleep after that weird ass dream." At least he had the entire day to wake up. A soft slap to his cheeks to wake him up as he started to look about for his class.

[The SheoDovah]

Day 00 - Oscar Nigel Tarinson

Oscar spent the next hour swimming in the pool and engaged in various other physical activities for the rest of the day. He was exhausted by the time he retired to his dorm and flumped onto the bed. It was completely worth it and he assumed it would result in an instant night's sleep. But little did he know that it was dangerous to assume such a thing.

Day 01 - Oscar Nigel Tarinson

Oscar was rather miffed about having a weird dream for the second time in a row along with not being able to sleep. He assumed his body would allow him to but what a foolish thing that was! His eyes ached and he knew today would have to be fuelled by coffee, this drink called an energy drink that other students claimed was great and coffee. He wasn't paying much attention as he walked out of his room and down the corridor after having a quick shower along with getting dressed. Though, his hair was a complete mess as he did not have the energy or could not be arsed to tend to it. He was almost bumped into by another student and that caused him to focus. "Hey, wat.... wait, my mistake, chap." He told the student and could have sworn that the ruffian uttered something underneath his breath but wasn't the type or in the mood to respond to such comments.

He elected to make his way towards the coffee place in the hope that it could give him a massive burst of energy or enough to avoid him facepalming the desk with his head during a lesson. "If this keeps up, i best see the er... whatsaccallit." He uttered before yawning again for what felt like the millionth time.

[Unionhack]

Day 1 - Afternoon

The day carried on as most first days typically went; it was coined 'syllabus day' by the students for its relative ease in settling their class schedules and the explanations of what they would do for the year. It passed relatively quickly for most of the students; save for Max Delaney.

As the day carried on agonizingly slowly, a call over the intercom rang out just as the lunch period began.

"Max Delaney, please report to the front office immediately. Repeat; Max Delaney, please report to the front office immediately."

The other 6 students from the previous day would recall the name as they made their way to eat either within the cafeteria or the surrounding halls.

[Baloth-Kul]

Gulp. Hoping for the best and planning for the worst, Max made his way to the front office. Was this pertaining to the school's clerical errors, or was something wrong with Mom?

His thoughts then turned to the secretary he would see momentarily, and her appearance in his dream. Ahh, I bet I didn't even dream her right. Probably doesn't look quite like that. ...Certainly not the eyes.

[Unionhack]

Mark didn't find the secretary from the previous day. She seemed to not be at the front desk at all.

The vice president of the academy, a middle-aged dark-skinned man named Dr. Cecil Farrow, stood against the desk with a solemn look on his face. "Hello, Mr. Delaney." he said, a frown on his face. "Son, I'm not exactly sure how to tell you this, but... you may want to sit down." he said, continuing whether or not Max took a seat. "We... received a call from the local Toronto Police service. They... they found your mother. She's... she passed away. The details are unknown, but... I'm so sorry."

[Pilovv]

Makoto wasn't too much of a fussy eater these days, grabbing pizza or whatever was on the menu that day. She sat at the table, in the corner, as she was prone to doing. "They still haven't sorted everything out?..." She sighed. Then quickly shut up and started eating. Sitting in the corner was one thing. Talking to yourself was even worse. She quietly ate her food, hoping lunch got over with quickly.