Round 1: Test Drive

[cordibus]

Welcome to the first test drive!

Please don't worry too much about using your Personas correctly or following the prompts exactly. They're meant to give you starting ideas, but by all means, go wild and add more options!

The objective here is to try out characters and see who you could have the most fun with in the game's setting. However, feel free to follow this link to request a Persona be generated for you as if you were part of the game. (Please try to limit this to only one of your test drive characters if you can as to not overwhelm us! Never mind generating Personas is a pretty fast process! Request for as many characters away as you like!)

If you have questions about the test drive itself, you can ask them here! If you want to play an AU don't forget this entire post can be used for you to get AU scenarios set up and see who your character might have been related too or know before Awakening.

Now then, let's begin...

Prompt 1 - From Dawn to Dusk

The city has been abuzz for the past few weeks. A new string of murders is making front page news and serving as a grim reminder why the nightly curfew is so important. As families, perhaps even someone close to you, mourn, pressure continues to rise at the many police stations and at city hall. The people are afraid and they’re demanding answers.

There's not much time for you to dwell on this.. Like everyone else in the city, you have a lot to do, and a tight schedule to do it in. You don't even notice the application that has appeared on your phone's screen. The headache that follows, however, is strange and disorienting, and it brings with it an odd sensation that something is wrong today. You’re just not sure why.

The day passes by and soon, it's close to midnight. Your body, if you're not in bed by now, is completely exhausted. Despite your best efforts, you'll find yourself closing your eyes. Too bad it's quickly interrupted by a strange noise, and movement like something pulsating softly.

It's your phone, or at least you think it's your phone, but it's never glowed this orange before. There’s mist rising above it almost like fire...something's definitely bizarre about this. Despite your fears, you forces yourself to open it, and click on that strange snake-like icon.


It opens revealing a single statement and blank box;

To begin, please write your name.

Your fingers move on their own. Before you have time to really think about it, and as the pain inside your head becomes so terrible you start breathing rapidly and sweating, you've entered a series of letters and pressed enter. Now you're in a large chatroom with many others...but your 'name' you've never even heard of it...have you? It almost feels like you have...

Prompt 2 - Awakening

The last rays of the sun disappeared over the horizon almost an hour ago, yet here you are, walking through the apple orchards located behind one of the campus wings. The strange app that's been sending you strange clues the past seven days now says you're ready to face the truth. It told you to come here tonight, but never to travel alone. Repeatedly, it warns you to make sure to have someone close by if you're to survive…but besides some friends, what else did you bring with you? Did you pack for this, or did you figure you'd make it up as you go? Are you in a position to be able to bring weapons with you that no one would suspect?

Something is out there, and it's getting closer.

Before you can think, you see it: a large, blackish mass, almost like slime, slithering along the ground resembling a vaguely humanoid shape with glowing yellow eyes. When it roars again, it reveals rows and rows of teeth. This was a mistake your brain warns. The strange name from the chatroom, the days leading up to this...you're fairly certain even if you are prepared that you're going to die.

And yet, something inside you stirs. Even as they move closer, you find yourself charging instead of running, as your heartbeat increases. A voice inside is guiding you, each movement bringing forth a surge of memories of a past that you had lost. You’re angry and confused, but your pain, your fears, your rage for all of this… all of that needs to be taken out on those creatures.

All you need to do now is to tear out your heart.

Prompt 3 - A new, old life

Now that you have your memories back, the strange veil of this world has been somewhat lifted. Things that seemed simple now seem strange. You have so many questions, but not enough answers. Then there's the new weapons you wield and the strange creature inside of you...your Heart Persona.

During the day, you are encouraged to continue to live as you did before, but with old and new memories together, sometimes it is difficult to keep acting like you did. Will it cause issues in your job or school life? Will it change your reactions to whatever life you had here? Do you notice others like you who have awakened?

Maybe it would be a good time to send a chatroom message, just to ask others what they are planning to do. Maybe you should set up a meeting to fight shadows at night. Maybe you’ll organize a plan of attack or set up a club to escape the strange looks others have been giving you. Maybe you just want someone's opinion on the best place to have pizza. Hey, no one said you had to use the AppleNET just for serious things, after all.

Comments

[munechika]

[ aww where's the dere!! ]

... If it's not yours, then there must be something else that's going on.

[ maybe it's a kidnapping attempt on him or sth

another headpat-- before mikazuki starts towards the orchard. or well,
in its general direction, at least. ]

You stay here. I'll find out what it is.

[clicked]

[ This being a kidnapping attempt has certainly crossed his mind. Mikazuki's a powerful man, and it'll be more trouble for everyone if he were to disappear. He appreciates the gesture, but protecting Subaru (not Saruhiko; his parents loved him this time) Fushimi is less important.

So he grabs his wrist. ]

No. We stay together. I can't lose you.

[ there's the dere

But he means it in the sense that Mikazuki gets lost easily, and if Mikazuki does, he will be ridden with guilt forever. To convince his uncle not to GET LOST AT SCHOOL, Fushimi pulls out what looks like a smartphone, thicker than usual. Probably because it's fitted with a few handy features: an infrared camera, a night vision camera, an EMF meter... ]

Nothing's showing up yet...

[munechika]

[ look, look. if this is really a kidnapping plot, then it's even more dangerous with him around. what would mikazuki even tell his parents if something happens to him??

but apparently pigheadedness runs in this family so. there's not much he can do about it but sigh and prepare his phone in case he needs to call someone and peer over his shoulder.

maybe he should've brought a weapon too?? but he didn't think it would be necessary. ]

What are we expecting to show up? The principal, perhaps?

[clicked]

[ In Fushimi's experience, Mikazuki doesn't bring a lot of things he didn't think would be necessary. But that's why he's here... as the useful gofer nephew... ]

People who were called here, people who called us here... if they are people. Frankly, I hope we don't find anyone. I'd rather this be a waste of our time.

[ it's a fun waste of time, tho. he hasn't been this excited since they released the wii. ]

Let's go this way. Watch your step.

[ And they start walking! Through the orchard! ]

[munechika]

[ he can walk just fine ok. like sure, it's a little difficult when you're wearing leather shoes while walking on grass but mikazuki's not totally clumsy.

maybe a little, if tripping here and there and possibly grabbing onto fushimi's sleeve every now and then is of any evidence. but really, it's no big deal. ]

You don't think whoever told me to go here are people? [ heeeeeadtilt. ] What else could they be?

[ ... ] You don't believe that rumor about ghosts at school, do you, Subaru?

[clicked]

[ And that's why you don't wear Gucci when you go ghost hunting... which isn't what they're doing but dammit, Mikazuki, he's trying to cover all bases here.

s i g h s as he helps his fumbling uncle by the hand... ]

Electromagnetic fields, infrasound, chemically-induced hallucinations, mass hysteria—I'm going to prove everything this week's one of those before the night is over.

[ ... ]

Didn't the app say you shouldn't come alone?

[ I mean. Maybe Fushimi's imagination is a little wild, but Mikazuki should be missing or dead by now. ]

[munechika]

[ he's not so defenseless that he'll die right away, wow. mikazuki would like to think that he's rather capable when push comes to shove. ]

You were not exactly chaperoned yourself when I landed on you earlier, nephew.

[ a.k.a. what the app said applies to you too, young man!! ]

If I call my assistant and ask him to accompany me instead, would you go home?

[clicked]

Tch.

[ He's not the one who needs looking after!! Leave him alone!!!! ]

No. My back still hurts so I need to make this worth it. There's something I want to ask them. The app had no source code... I wanna know how they did it.

[munechika]

[ if mikazuki was the type to deadeye, he would've deadeyed already. instead he's just sighing in exasperation and looking very dismayed about this. ]

And after you've found out how, will you then go home?

[ just let jijii get kidnapped by himself omg ]

[clicked]

[ hmm

pros: no more stuffed animals
cons: no fun hacking job, no cool uncle, no more stuffed animals

obviously, the goal is not to get anyone kidnapped. ]

Nah. This is the most interesting thing that's ever happened to me, or any of us. The least I could do is be an idiot for once and check it out.

[ "For once"... His infrared camera is detecting nothing in the trees... The entire orchard is safe, and they just made it out alive. Onto the next stage. ]

By the way, I didn't think you were the type to climb walls at your age. Aren't you my grandpa or something?

[munechika]

[ this is probably the very first instance of fushimi openly agreeing to do stupid things that mikazuki has ever witnessed. not that he approves of it but is this considered a milestone in his life as his uncle?

mikazuki briefly pauses when he hears rustling behind them. his hand has also moved, holding onto fushimi's wrist this time. ]

We old men need to get our blood pumping once in a while. [ even though he's not that old!! yet!!

another beat, before the rustling stops. maybe it's just the wind. ] Makes our heart stronger and less prone to cardiac arrest.

[clicked]

[ He didn't deny that he was his grandfather.................. ]

Please don't talk about the possibility of sudden death in the middle of a haunted school. [ Ghosts aren't real but verbal suggestions can give you heart attacks. Also, he doesn't want to deal with Mikazuki's ghost? ] Allegedly, anyway.

[ But Fushimi's observant. His camera goes back to the trees. Again, nothing. The EMF meter isn't making any noise, either.

Maybe these devices aren't as useful as he thought. He puts it away. ]

... You don't have a stalker, do you? Lonely housewives have a lot of free time...

[munechika]

[ maybe that's who mikazuki really is: fushimi's grandfather ............... ]

I've never considered that possibility.

[ a housewife with fushimi's skills at hacking, installing an app in his phone and telling him to go to the school at midnight. secret trysts and all that. ] Will I finally live the life of a romance novel protagonist?

[ he's joking ................ ]

[clicked]

[ bossing him around, getting him into impossible situations, having him clean up after mikazuki's mess... isn't jijii already munakata 2.0 ]

I wish you'd stop saying things that might actually come true.

[ Impossibly anime housewives aside, Mikazuki is already the stuff of romance novels in the eyes of many. Fushimi just thinks he's an old man, though, and him getting a love interest sounds like more trouble than it's worth. He'll be buried under so much work. So. Much...

But there's the rustling again, and Fushimi instinctively holds his arm out to shield his uncle. ]

[munechika]

[ time to start buying jigsaw puzzles ]

It's surprises me that you, of all people, would think--

[ that it might come true?? mikazuki, with a love interest??? what????

only yeah no, that's not important that very moment when he also hears the rustling. mikazuki starts at the thought of his nephew protecting him, the obvious reversal of roles. but before he could say anything, the rustling gets louder, the bush already shaking. ]

-- What are you doing? Step back!

[ he tries to pull fushimi behind him just as something black slithers out into the open. ]

[clicked]

[ HE DOESN'T NEED TO RELIVE THIS TRAUMA (or does he)

Fushimi's slowness is to Mikazuki's advantage. The force behind Mikazuki's grip and pull startles the boy in confusion, and the tug on his arm is strangely familiar, much like the times his mother or his ward would pull the younger him back onto the sidewalk right before the traffic lights turned red. He remembers the cars speeding past a second after—the loud whirring of their engines, the blur of colors, the blasts of wind, the terrifying force behind them.

This moment's just like that. In the darkness, large eyes open with a sinister glow. A multitude of sharp fangs shine in the moonlight. The shadow makes itself known. ]

Shit...

[ Maybe he's dreaming. Maybe this isn't real and he'll wake up tomorrow and they'll both be at work as if nothing happened because they can't die. Not here, not now, not when Iyo can't make it through another heartbreak without bawling her eyes out. It's a ghost, it's a trick, he's convinced it's just the stories messing with his head, but the monstrosity looks so real that Fushimi, who had been so certain he could do anything and protect anyone—

Takes a step back. ]

[munechika]

[ taking a step back is not enough, nope. they need to run and get away from whatever this thing is. and to do that, fushimi needs to move faster.

(note to self: drag fushimi out to jog next time and train his reflexes better)

coming here was a mistake. letting his nephew drag him here was a mistake. they should've left right away, they should've climbed back up the wall. they should, they should, they should! ]

Move now! [ mikazuki yells if only to hear himself over his loud heartbeat, pushing fushimi back to the direction where they came from--

while still standing right there. it's probably not the time for heroics but he has no control of himself that moment. his body insists that he stays. ]

Subaru, go! I'll be right behind you.

[clicked]

[ This wasn't how he thought this night would go. He was supposed to be here alone. No attachments, no liabilities.

Definitely no deaths. ]

Are you seriously trying to be a hero now? You're not thinking of fighting it, are you?

[ He'd do anything his uncle told him to, but Fushimi's feet are heavy as the monster creeps closer, darkness dripping like blood as it snaps its jaws hard. Even behind Mikazuki, the fear of losing family paralyzes him. Family—it's a distant concept for a moment. But he sees new images flashing in his head: men in uniforms with lips moving to words he can't remember, his expression nothing short of shock, the drop in his heart.

Then Mikazuki stands between him and the shadow, and another memory resurfaces. Warmer, brighter. Safer. Fushimi always had the impression that Mikazuki was an idiot who never had a sense of self-preservation, but when sees his back protecting him and standing tall, Fushimi thinks he's kind of cool.

Ugh, this isn't the time for sappy thoughts.

But although he wants to move, Fushimi's not so selfish that he'd abandon a good relative then and there. ]

Uncle!

[ If he says his name, maybe he'll snap out of it and they can both get out of this mess alive. ]