Part 57: 9/11/11-9/12/11

9/11/11

Rise and I went to Okina earlier today.



> You walked Rise home after a trip to Okina City…
*giggle * I placed lots of special orders.
Come with me next time when I go pick 'em up, Senpai.
I had tons of fun today. Not many people tried to come up and talk…
…Maybe they already forgot who I am.
Oh, yeah. Want some tofu to take home?
I helped make them today.
Wait right here.
Man's Voice: Excuse me… Souji-san, is it?
Inoue: Ummm… Sorry about the other day…
I'm Minoru Inoue, Rise Kujikawa's former manager.
I'm sorry to bother you, but… Could you give this to her?
> Inoue handed you a letter…
Inoue: A fan letter came, you see…

I didn't have a problem giving it to her really but I wasn't sure what his deal was.



Inoue: I'm one of her fans myself. Her talent is captivating…
Rise always looked forward to this girl's letters, so I…
In today's cult of personality, being popular carries its own problems.
Your schedule fits together, minute by minute, like a jigsaw puzzle… Every day you're squeezed utterly dry…
But even knowing that, I still want her to come back…
She was genuinely brilliant… Not only that, but she's strong enough to use her pain as a foundation.
From what I could see… she's relying on you.
So could you…?
Sorry, Senpai, but we're all sold out…
Inoue-san!? Quit pestering me!
Wait… What did you say to Senpai!?
Inoue: I-I'm sorry. I'm leaving now… Goodbye…
Hounding me even after I quit… He's practically a stalker!
To think I trusted him… I feel betrayed!

I don't think I agree with Rise entirely as to why he's here.



No… He just wants Risette back.
The "me" he created…
> Rise is biting her lip…
So… what did he come for?
> You told Rise why Inoue came and handed her the fan letter.
This letter…
She wrote again…
I see… But he came all the way out here for this…?
……
This girl is a middle school student. She writes to me all the time.
I did this public service campaign once to stamp out bullying…
She said it inspired her… She wrote that she wouldn't let bullies get her down, that she'd try to make friends…
Ever since then, she wrote me letters… "This happened to me today," "I was able to say this," stuff like that.
"Seeing Risette work hard encourages me," "It makes me feel like I can still hang in there…"
Haha, she doesn't really know how it works, huh?
But still, every time I read her letters, I felt like Risette actually meant something…
So whenever things got tough, I would read them over and over…
Senpai… Do you still have some free time…?

We headed to the shrine.



Officially, I'm taking a break due to illness, so…
……
Before I quit, there was talk about a part in a movie…
She sounds like she was really looking forward to it…
"Please get well soon and come back," she says…
……
I'm so glad you were here. I was scared to read it alone…
I gave up being Risette. I can't meet her expectations…
Having second thoughts?
I have no regrets.
…At least, I think not.
I mean, it was such a relief to quit. To go back to being the real me…
Haha…
……
> Rise has a lonely smile on her face…
Anyway, Risette doesn't exist anymore.
It's not just this girl. I disappointed lots of other people…
The president of the company told me that over and over, and I knew already…
I knew this was the path I chose, but…

I think despite everything she says Rise really is having some second thoughts about quitting.



Maybe I'll just inherit the tofu shop!
I'm the shop's main attraction now. I bet I could make it thrive!
…Senpai.
Maybe we should really just do it… Y'know, what I was saying a while back.
You could marry me once we graduate high school, and the two of us could work at the tofu shop together.
Doesn't that sound fun? H-How about it? Haha… ha…

Of course she was joking so I played along.



……
Senpai, you'll say that to just anyone, huh?
It's dangerous to try to tell everyone what they want to hear…
Too bad, though! Risette wasn't fooled.
> Rise is smiling…
Thank you, Senpai. For being with me all of today…
I feel a bit better.
Yeah… I'm fine.
I can contribute something…
And it looks like there are still plenty of things only I can do…
> You can sense Rise's quiet will…
> You feel that you understand Rise even more…

While going by a TV Rise said she thought she could almost feel the Shadows behind it, so I think her Persona's gotten stronger as well.



Sorry for dragging you around all day.
I'll let you go now.
> You walked Rise to her house and went home.

9/12/11

I think Rise was right by the way that I say way too much stuff that's what people want to hear without thinking things through. More on that later.



Don't you all feel just a bit more mature now that you've visited an urban area like that?
Oh, by the way… That cute bear that Souji-kun had on the trip…
Where'd you get that?
I get soooo tempted by animals with such unique design.
Speaking of bears, some species feed on salmon. And speaking of salmon, I have an interesting fact for you.
They're actually a white fish. That orangish color actually comes from the pigment of the shellfish.
Salmon roe is also affected by the shellfish. Hence, a salmon's color is affected by its environment.
*giggle * The same thing goes for girls. I hope the city brought you ladies that much closer to becoming women.
> You listened to the lecture intently…

So first off that girl from the roof had run into a bit of a problem with what I'd told her.



> The awkward girl is teary-eyed…
Awkward Girl: Your lesson didn't work!
I just tried starting up a cheerful conversation with a girl in my class…
B-But I got nervous all of a sudden… I said something I wasn't even thinking!
"Move aside, ugly' I'm comin' through!"
Wh-What should I do? She just started crying…
Apologize to her.
> Your current Courage allows you to give a passionate speech about courage!
> You instructed her about the social importance of having the courage to apologize for your mistakes.
Awkward Girl: Y-You're right… I'll apologize to her. Hurting others without apologizing is selfish and cowardly…
I'll go apologize.
Maybe after I do, I can try and have a real conversation with her.
I can't keep using my bad conversation skills as an excuse… I'll do my best.
> The awkward girl appears to have broken through the fear that was stunting her social growth…
> You accomplished the request written on the ema!

I went to drama after that. Yumi came, but wasn't practicing with us.



> Yumi is still standing there absentmindedly…
What's wrong?
Oh… Sorry, I didn't realize it was over already…
After trying to act again, it's so different from the way it was before…
I can't step into the role.
I can't become a different me… I don't want to…
> Yumi smiles sadly…
There's… There's no one who will say my name like that anymore…
No one… to call me "Yumi" with that… That voice full of love…
No one, anywhere…
> Yumi clenches her teeth…

So like I was saying before, in my haste to help the people I care about out I seem to say and do stuff that in retrospect wasn't a great idea.



Huh…? *sob * …Waaaaaaaaaaaah!
> Yumi begins to cry like a dam has broken inside her.
I-I hated him. I despised him.
> Yumi's voice trembles as she speaks…
I wanted to know why he left us…
But I didn't want to know how he felt about us…
I didn't want to feel sorry for myself and my mom, for him leaving us!
…That's why I decided to act like I never had a father.
Since the day he abandoned us, I stopped thinking about him.
And I stopped thinking about myself, too…
…I just wanted to run away from all of that. I wanted to look the other way from my entire life!
What… What should I do now…?
What did they mean by "bear fruit"…?

She's the only one who can figure that out for herself.



Do what I can…? But what can I do…?
> Yumi thinks while she cries…
Souji-kun…
Just today…
Just this one day…
Don't… leave me alone…
> Yumi trembles helplessly…
> You can feel that Yumi trusts you greatly…

Poor Yumi.



> After waiting for Yumi to calm down, you walked her to her house, then went home.

Anyway now we have other things to worry about.

VIDEO- "A Bold Move"

Click Here For Video!

Announcer: A suspect in the murders in Inaba was safely arrested recently.
But what few people know is that the mastermind who brought him to justice was a high school detective.
Tonight's report will focus on this Detective Prince, Naoto Shirogane, whose handsome looks are sweeping the nation.
Thanks for being on the show.
No, no, the pleasure is all mine.
> Naoto is on TV…
Oh, his uniform is the same as yours.
Announcer: First, congratulations to you and the police for your recent arrest of the culprit.
It was well-known that there were a lot of mysteries surrounding this case, and you did a great job clearing them up.
I'd hesitate to say that the matter is "cleared up," as such.
It's true that our suspect was behind Mr. Morooka's unfortunate death.
But when I cast my eye over the case as a whole, I detect a few things that seem out of place.
Announcer: Oh… Like what?
Unfortunately, I cannot divulge details at this time.
But this matter claimed the lives of three people. Hence, I believe even the smallest inconsistency must be investigated.
Announcer: I… I see. I have to say, this is a surprise in light of the police's official statement.
N-Now for our next segment, "The Detective Prince's True Identity," where Naoto-kun tells us a little bit about himself.
Amazingly, the Detective Prince has solved a whopping 24 cases. 16 of them were…
There's a detective at your school?
When I'm older, I'm gonna go to your school too!
> The breezy evening passes…

I have a bad feeling about this.

Next Time On Persona 4: Naoto's Gambit