Part 7: 4/16/11

4/16/11

The Midnight Channel aired again last night.

VIDEO- "That Night"

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> Will something appear on the TV…?
Weather Announcer: In other Inaba-related news, meteorologists are predicting heavy fog throughout the year.
The region has seen an abnormal amount of fog over the past few years, and the cause of the climate change is unknown.
Whatever the reason, residents of the Inaba area should be extra careful.
Our broadcast tonight was extended to bring you up-to-date news on the incident in Inaba. The time is now midnight.

Once again the Midnight Channel appeared.



> It seems that if the conditions are met, you can see it as many times as you want…

The girl who appeared on the screen seemed awfully familiar.



> It seems to be a woman. It looks like she's wearing a kimono…
> ……
> The image is so out of focus that you can't tell who it is…
> What would happen if you touched the image on the Midnight Channel…?
> Would you be able to touch the person on screen…?

I reached out to touch it, but my hand just went through the same way as normal.



> You should speak to Yosuke and Chie about this tomorrow.
> ……
> You decide to go to bed for tonight.

I dreamed of that weird place again. Maybe it's not even a dream. I don't know who those people are exactly, but this time they actually had some answers. And raised a lot more questions.



Welcome.
Do not be alarmed. You are fast asleep in the real world…
I have summoned you within your dreams.
> It seems you've been summoned to the Velvet Room…
And so we meet again.
This is a space that only those who have, in one way or another, entered into a contract may enter…
In your daily life, you subconsciously heard the call to awaken, and you chose to follow the destiny of your inner voice…
…thereby enacting your glorious awakening to your power.
Hold on to this…

A blue key appeared in my hands.



Your destiny will require you to hone your power, and for that, you will inevitably require our help.
There is but one price for this assistance…
You must abide by your contract and assume responsibility for all decisions you may make.

I've never been one to have regrets, luckily.



Very well.
The Persona you have acquired…
It is a side of yourself that shows itself when you face the world around you.
Perhaps you can think of it as… a façade of determination you wear to face various difficulties in life.
You Persona ability, however, is that of the wild card… Compared to that of others, it is very special.
It is like the number zero… empty, yet holding infinite potential within itself.

Now that made no damn sense at all.



The Persona ability is the power to control one's own heart… And the heart is strengthened through bonds.
As you form bonds by becoming involved with others, your own Social Links will gradually develop.
The power of these Social Links is what will determine your Persona's abilities.

I wasn't sure I was understanding him properly but it sure sounded like he was saying I could gain vast supernatural power by making friends with people.



Social Links are necessary for more than strengthening your Persona.
At times, they will help light the way to the truth you are searching for.
Where will your awakened power of the wild card take you…?
I look forward to traveling the road of your destiny together… *chuckle *
'Til we meet again…

I woke up, and got ready for school. Yosuke had the good sense to not nearly run me over this time.

VIDEO- "Bonds"

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You saw what was on last night, right?
I couldn't tell who it was, but if someone's shown on TV, we can't ignore it.
Let's go check it out after school. Maybe Teddie can tell us something.
If it turns out someone was thrown in again, there really might be a culprit behind all this.
Even if it is something about that place that's killing the victims…
If someone's using that world as a weapon, that's unforgivable.
We need to find the culprit… no matter what it takes!
There's no way the police can do it… Who'd believe that the murderer kills people by throwing them into the TV?

Yosuke was sure as hell right about that. Anyway, regular people probably weren't going to be able to do much against those freaky monsters in TV land.



Hehe… Cool. It's reassuring to hear someone else say it.
You know, I tried sticking my head inside the TV last night, the way you did, and it actually worked.
I think I can do that now because I have the same power…
Persona, wasn't it?
Could be that we got this gift from someone specifically so we could solve this case.
Then again, you managed to go inside the TV and get your Persona first…
I feel like, as long as you're with me, I can find the culprit and crack this case.
…Well, let's do our best!
> Even with so much mystery swirling around, Yosuke is trying his hardest to move on…
> You sense a faint stirring of friendship between you and Yosuke…

I heard that strange voice again. Was this what that Igor guy had been talking about?



> As you form a bond with Yosuke, you feel the power in your heart strengthening…
> …You recall Igor's words.
The Persona ability is the power to control one's own heart… And the heart is strengthened through bonds.
As you form bonds by becoming involved with others, your own Social Links will gradually develop.
The power of these Social Links is what will determine your Persona's abilities.
> Social Links… Is this bond with Yosuke what Igor was talking about…?
> ……
> You have established the Yosuke Hanamura Social Link of the Magician Arcana!
> Yosuke's determination in battle has been enhanced…
> Yosuke can now take a mortal blow for you in battle!

Anyway, Chie ran in shortly after we got to class. She seemed upset, and it turned out rightly so.

VIDEO- "Investigation"

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Um… About yesterday… We're sorry we worried you…
Oh-never mind that. Is Yukiko still not here?
Huh? Y-Yukiko-san? Uh… no…? At least, I haven't seen her today.
Oh man… What should I do…? Hey, is that stuff you were talking about for real?
You know… All that about how people showing up on the Midnight Channel is related to that other world.
Oh, we were just talking about that. We're thinking of checking it out later-
The person on TV yesterday… I think it was Yukiko.
That kimono looks like the one she wears at the inn, a-and she wore it during the interview a few days ago too.
I got worried, so I emailed her last night, but she hasn't responded…
I called her earlier in the evening, though, and she said she'd be at school today…
I-I…

Could Yukiko already be in that other world? It seemed crazy, I'd just seen her myself.



No…
> You summed up the information you gained in that other world for Chie.
What's that supposed to mean…? Wait, are you saying… Yukiko was thrown in there!?
We don't know yet for sure. We should check to see if she's safe first.
Give her another call.
No good… Her voicemail picked up…
She's not answering…
Are you serious…? Then is Yukiko-san inside that place…?
Jus-S-Stop it! Something must've come up, like an errand or something…
Oh, or she might be helping at the inn… She wouldn't be able to answer her cell if that's it…
Yeah, but would she skip school for that?
W-Well, I'll give the inn a call… Umm… I've got the number here somewhere…
C'mon, Yukiko… Pick up…

Thankfully, she picked up. Seems we'd been worrying over nothing.



Uh-huh… Uh-huh, I see…
Hm? Oh. Nah, it was nothing. I'll email you again later…
*sigh * She was over at the inn.
She said they had a big group reservation and she had to help out.
Yeah… Now that I think about it, this has happened before, too. At least once a year.
She said she'll be at the inn tomorrow, too.
Oh, for crying out loud, Yosuke! You got me worried over nothing!
She was totally fine!
And you were all "Is Yukiko-san inside that place…?" Hmph…
S-Sorry…
But there is a reason we thought that.
Oh yeah…? What?

Yosuke had a pretty good way to settle all of this.



I mean, it makes sense, right? People show up on the TV because they're inside the TV…
But Yukiko-san's still here, in our world. We might want to see what this is about.
Alright, let's meet up at Junes after school.

Teddie could tell us for sure if something was going on in the other world.



O-Okay, I think that's more than enough about my sorry escapades.
If I hadn't seen the place first hand… I'd never have believed a story like that.
Yeah, no kidding.
Anyways, we need to know what's going on inside-
Wh-How? By talking to that Teddie guy?
Yeah. Too bad there's so many customers around… I forgot there's a sale in the electronics department today…
I got it! C'mere a sec.
Try sticking your hand in and calling him over. I bet that bear's wandering around the entrance anyway.
Hey Chie, stand over here. Make a wall with me.
A wall?

I stuck my hand in, and regretted it very quickly.



> Something bit you!
Wh-What's wrong!?
Shhh! Not so loud, you idiot!
D-Dude, is that a bite mark!? Are you okay!?

I was more surprised than hurt luckily.



That's good… Sheesh, that stupid bear must've done it…
Hey, you! We know you're in there!
Ooh ooh, is this a game?
No, it's not a game! Can you sense anyone inside there right now?
Who's "anyone"? I'm a lonely little bear like always.
This land feels so bear-ren…

I really hope this isn't the start of a trend. Anyway, we need to watch again tonight and see if it's the same as before.



So there's no one inside…? You're sure?
I-I'm not lying! My nose is running as good as ever!
……
I'm gonna go warn Yukiko anyway.
Since she'll be busy this weekend helping out at the inn, I doubt she'd go anywhere alone, but still…
Yeah… You'll walk with her to school on Monday, right?
Sure, I'll go pick her up at her house.
Maybe we'll find out more on tonight's Midnight Channel.
Cross your fingers that this is all just a misunderstanding…
What's your cell number? I'll call you when I watch it tonight.
> You exchanged cell numbers with Yosuke.
Alright, don't forget to watch tonight.

Elsewhere…

VIDEO- "CSI Inaba"

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And we've still got nothing that points directly to a suspect…
We don't even know if this is a homicide.
Well, what else could it be? There's no way a body could end up like that by accident!
…I know.
We haven't found the cause of death for the first vic, and now we've got a second one just like it…
If this is a murder case, there's no doubt we're dealing with a single perp.
But if that's true… what the hell is going on?
You know, I thought at first that this all spun out of that love triangle.
No. That singer-Misuzu Hiiragi-has a solid alibi. She was performing overseas, and her phone records prove it.
And remember, the only reason the scandal went public was because Hiiragi herself broke it to the media.
No one would put themselves under suspicion that way if they had murder on their mind.



Same with Taro Namatame, her husband. No matter how much we shake him down, nothing links him to the murders.
He's been working in the city for the past six months.
Seems he was here recently because of the scandal, but he was swamped with work back home at the time of the incident.
There are eyewitnesses and other evidence placing him at his office the night that Mayumi Yamano died.
And we can't find anything that shows Yamano making contact with Namatame before of after her disappearance…
You hear Namatame's career has also been killed stone dead? He's been fired from his position as secretary.
He's practically as much of a victim as the Yamano girl.
Yeah, I agree…
Then we have the second case, regarding Saki Konishi…
She's the one who discovered Yamano's corpse… But I don't buy the killer shutting her up as a possible motive.



The only other connection is that she attended the same school as the daughter of the inn where Yamano was holed up.
But that hardly points to a motive. Coincidences like that are common in a town as small as ours.
Yeah… I heard about that angle on the news, too.
What!? Is the story about the inn out already?
Okay, I got it! How's this?
Maybe there was something about the corpse that only Saki Konishi knew!
And our perp killed her to keep whatever it was from leaking out!
……
Either way, all we can do now is keep investigating anyone involved with the victims…
Our perp… It has to be someone in Inaba.
Ooh, is your detective's intuition at work?

4/15/11- Late Entry

Oh crap. This could be bad.

VIDEO- "Yukiko"

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I turned on the Midnight Channel, and there was no mistaking that it was Yukiko this time.



It was like she was in some kind of bad reality show, and she was saying some really crazy shit.



And then she ran into a castle. There were some suspiciously familiar elements in the scene.



Yosuke called me right away.



That was Yukiko-san for sure! It looked like her, and I mean, she even said her name!
But didn't the stuff she was saying sound weird!?
And she looked like she was on some low-budget TV show… Was it like this before, too?
What's going on…?

The only way we could find out what was going on was to get in touch with Yukiko herself.



Y-Yeah, I know.
Uhhh… Crap, I don't know her number… Oh yeah, I can just call Chie!
Tomorrow's Sunday, so let's meet up at Junes first thing in the morning!
> You promised to meet up with Yosuke tomorrow.
> You decide to go to bed early tonight.

I keep trying to tell myself that what we saw didn't necessarily mean she was in the TV world now, but I just have this terrible feeling that won't go away. I just hope that if she's in there, we can get to her in time.

Next Time On Persona 4: Law And Order: Inaba Victims Unit