Recudor: Nightly Stroll #1

Having finally caught up with Jian who left the house in quite a hurry, his leg appearntly fine enough to make his way to the market board in such a short time, Jack calls out to him, trying to catch his breath a little.

"Jian! Jian, ol'sport! Not quite sure what you're doing there, but I don't believe we have much time. We must find out why Ayame was kidnapped post haste, and you're the only one of us who knows her address."

He exclaims in the middle of the street.

There are still not many people around, though, and some of them are giving him brief confused or strange looks before moving on about their business.
By now it's become evening. It's still surprising sometimes how it can get dark and gloomy within only a few minutes to an hour from having previously been outside.
It's far from black but the world is basked in a grey and blue and orange scale as the sun is slowly setting and it's becoming increasingly more dark. Unsurprisingly, the street lamps fueled by protraction have already turned on by now. Small glimmers of light dancing around the inside of a sealed glass box. The lamps themselves illuminate the main roads well enough, though the alleys around this time start to get shady and dark.

Jian sticks the note into the board. Obscuring a few others, but not really caring about it either. The message is out, and the decision has been made. His thoughts turn to Ayame, who lives in the slums of this district, before Jack finally catches his attention.

"No need to yell that much at night, you're going to attract way more attention than we need if you say the word kidnapping and a girl's name out loud.", he says, looking back at his own note for a moment.

"I am not too sure though what intrigues you so much about this, I recall you being incredibly annoyed with my concern about her. I even recall the face you had. It was without a doubt either disgust or annoyance you represented then.", he then adds, shifting his eyes back to Jack, not turning away from the board though.

"In any case, it does not matter, I think. We should get going, I'd rather have you let me do the talking though, as her family is quite... on edge one could say. And her dad is quite a tough man to deal with, so please, let me be the one who talks to them."
He sounds quite serious and sincere with stating that, and having said what he felt like he had to say, he begins finding his way to the slums. His pace is quite fast too, him being quite determined to reach the destination fast.

"Now Jian, I was annoyed because I was the only one who did not trust that girl when she said Miss Ayame was locked away in the quarantine. I was upset because no one bothered listening to me. I'm fully aware that I was wrong, but I don't quite like these harsh feelings you are insinuating I have towards Miss Ayame."

Jack was speaking softer now. Jian was right. Someone might be listening. Jack had his guard down more than usually. His head was cloudy with an odd headache.

"I am not insinuating anything, it's just that I haven't heard anything from you in that regard since then. Well, didn't hear anything at all, but I didn't see anything from you since. You can't expect anyone to see you feel differently if you don't express yourself in that regard, you know?"

He yawns out for a moment, nighttime always leaves him with getting tired, regardless of what time it might be. He kept on walking towards the slums, keeping an eye on his surroundings, as nice and calming a night can be, it can hold quite some problems too. The last thing he needs right now is to be jumped or anything of the sorts.

"In any case, due to you explaining things, it makes more sense to me now. At least I understand your concern a bit more now.", he then adds, another yawn escaping him.
"But like said, once we're there, I'd rather talk to them to explain things. The last thing we need is for it to look like an interrogation."

"Well I guess it makes the most sense you ask the questions. You have all the people skills out of the two of us."

"Seems we're headed towards the lower income areas. Makes sense considering she was desperate enough to take the job at the castle"

Jack felt somewhat relaxed. The rustic atmosphere of the place reminded him of his childhood. He was still on edge to the point that he checked behind him every once in a while.

Jack and Jian continue down the streets, towards and into the slums. They're a lot more tightly packed than the rest of the southern district, but not uncomfortably so. There are usually slums or lower class districts in most any city, but the ones here had their own kind of feel to them. It was clear that a lot of the eastern people had moved here, as their culture reflected in the hastily built huts and houses around the area.

After a short bit of walking and conversing, the two of them arrive at a modest little house in the middle of the slums. Its a bit more maintained than the other houses, or at least it doesn't look like its about to fall apart.
The air is somewhat tight around Jian, as he is nervous because of his previous encounters with Ayame's Dad. The initial of which ended in Jian hastily running all across the city trying to find the gone-missing maid.

The lights in the tiny building are on, suggesting there are people home.

Jian stops Jack for a moment.

"Okay, this is it, seems like they are at home aswell. Now, wait for a moment while I go to check on things, I am sure it won't take long for them to come out.", he then says to him, finding his way towards the door, knocking on it lightly.

"Hello? Ayame? It's me, Jian, if you are at home right now, it'd be kind if you came out for a moment!", he then says, loud enough to be heard from outside.

"What do you say to someone who has been through all that. I guess I went through nearly similar situations as her, but one can assume it's her first time dealing with such trauma. I gotta say something. I was her cell mate for heaven's sake."

"You look nervous there Jian. I know you have feelings for Miss Ayame if you were making any trying to hide it, a rather poor effort if you were, but we are here on business and have to remain focused."

Jack looked over his shoulder one more time.

After a short pause after knocking, the door opens wide and an old man is standing in its frame.
Ayame's Father.

Glancing past him, Jian can see two women sitting at a dinner table. An elderly woman, likely her mother judging by her age. And a young lady with sharp features and long black hair. The latter, somewhat familliar, of which is awkwardly smiling at the elderly woman, while Ayame steps into view to set the table with dishes and a pot.

Jian catches himself staring, when Ayame's father moves his head to the side- into Jian's view- to get his attention. "Hello there." he says, in just as gruff of a tone as the last time they met. "You're that guy that brought my daughter back, aren't you?" he tries to confirm. He then turns towards Jack, giving Jian view inside the house again. Ayame must have walked off to get more things.
"And you? Who'se this? How come the two of you are here so late?" he asks in not an offended but rather demanding tone none the less. "Can I do anything for you?" he asks immediately after, and stares down the two youngens in-front of him.

"Ah, yes indeed. I have brought your daughter back. Sorry for the sudden appearance, I was going to check on how she's been doing since. I also have a few quesions I'd like to ask her, if that would be okay with you. I won't be stealing much of her time, I promise.", he says to her father as he steps into view, inquiring about their reasons being here.

"My friend over there", he starts pointing over to Jack, "He's been coming along, the city is not the safest recently, and the central district seems to have quite some problems going on. He felt like it'd be safer if two people walk through the town at a time."

Jian scratches the little bit of stubble he has by now, looking at Ayame's father in a way to make sure that he's is not planning to do anything stupid, being honest with his intentions.

"In any case, we won't stay for long, it's quite late for us too.", he then adds, hoping for a positive response.

Jack puts on his kindest demeanor possible.

"Hello sir, I'm Jian's colleague. Being completely honest, i-I...uh...don't have any children of my own, so I'd be lying if I said that I could understand the anxiety you must have felt when your daughter disappeared...well...well for lack of better words, Central district has gone to hell. First the quarantine, then the skies over the district changed and shadowy beasts rose out of nowhere, but before all that was the disappearance of Miss Ayame which took place in the exact same area, nearly the same time as the outbreak. I'm beginning to theorize that their may be some sort of connection between your daughter's kidnapping and the other horrendous events that have taken place in Central. When we located Miss Ayame and escorted her out of the area, we encountered a mysterious man who said 'keep the girl, there are others' with 'the girl' obviously referring to Miss Ayame. So the question here is why. Why did this mysterious group kidnap your daughter, and by extension, who are these 'others' that man was referring to? Getting to the point of all this, I beseech you, sir. Your daughter could potentially still be in danger. Is there anything extraordinary about your daughter that the men who kidnapped her may have wanted?"

Ayame's father listens to Jian attentively. Adjusting his pose every now and again. When Jian finishes he nods, looking at the ground as if in thought. "Hm. I see." he says in a stern tone, but with an underlying hint of understanding. He turns halfway into the house, where Ayame has stepped back to the table, to put down a kettle and some cups. But before he can  say anything, Jack steps in against Jian's wishes.

The man stops and turns back to the two infront of him, listening to what the man is suggesting. Though as he goes on and on about the topic, the father starts building a worried and confused frown. "Hwhat's that? She's still in danger?" He asks in a bit of a louder tone, catching the attention of the people inside. He looks back at them and waves them off, and they return back to their pre-dinner routine. "Listen, I'm not sure what you're up to.. nameless colleague, but this boy here..." he continues in a subtle but defensive tone as he points in Jian's general direction. "But this boy here risked a lot for my daughter... and I want to believe with the best in mind. But the way you're coming here... preaching about unnatural dangers and dang quarantines and all that stuff... it doesn't make me feel comfortable with handing my daughter out, just so she can be snatched up by you or anyone else." he says but then suddenly catches himself. "Ah what am I saying. The defensive instincts of an old Man with too much to loose, eh?" he says with a half hearted grin. He turns back to Jian. "Forgive me, with all these strange things happening lately, I've been very stressed and very on edge, and my daughter's safety comes first. Surely you understand?"

The man nodds to Jian, signaling him to stay put, and closes the door. A minute or so later the door opens and Ayame stands in his stead. At the sight of Jian she gasps in excitement and steps out the door. "Jian!" she exclaims and grabs for his hand without noticing. "It's wonderful to see you, are things going well since you've returned?"

Jian turns towards Jack, wanting to interrupt him, raising his hand for a moment before dropping it again, letting him finish instead. Instead his view just tilts down further and further with him continuing with his little explanation.
He snaps out of it once Ayame's father then starts talking again, feeling a bit bad about him as he really seemed to be on edge since the first time they met. He nods to him thereafter, also smiling.

"It is fine, I am sure I'd also be very protective of my family if they... were...", he was going to finish the sentence, a flashback then kicking in to remind him that it went exactly the opposite way back then. "Nevermind.", he can only say afterwards, "There is no real family I could look after anyway."

His view shifts to Jack afterwards, looking at him in a bit of a distress himself. "That was a close one, way to close for comfort... You risked us getting denied and sent off without having the chance to talk to her", he says, but before he can say anything else, Ayame then pulls him out of that.

He blushes a little, smiling at Ayame as she seems excited to see him aswell, he hugs her for a moment, rubbing her back before letting her go. "Good evening! It's really good to see you again, I am doing okay, I'd say, things could be better, but also worse!", he laughs, his bad feelings are like washed away at this point. "Sadly, I am not only here to just say hello, there's a different matter at hand. My friend next to me said, that he overheard some people saying things that might regard you in this case, and we came to inquire about it. If you are able to help us, it might help with ensuring the safety of everyone involved. It won't take long either I promise!", he says, keeping his smile to not make Ayame feel uncomfortable with what he's saying, also clearing up that it's not as dangerous as it sounds so far.

"I wasn't asking to take her...grr...well, defensive instincts of an old man, his words, not mine... perhaps Miss Ayame has some sort of magical property that these people were after. All the events in Central were supernatural in one way or another. The doctor could have helped right about now, but I highly doubt I could just drag Miss Ayame over to our house after all this."

"I'm terribly sorry for not formally introducing myself, sir. My name is...

"I guess I have to tell him my real name since Miss Ayame already knows it. Oh sprigets, I'm fethed if he's a pagan"

Jack let's out an inaudible breath

"John, but my friends call me Jack. As for you Miss Ayame, I believe we have already met while I wish it was under better circumstances."

As Jian explains the situation, Ayame starts to form a worried expression on her face. She glances over to Jack, recollecting the events from the previous night and her frown turns neutral once more. "I see." she says calmly and directs her attention back to Jian. "What did you want to know? I'm unsure if I can be of much help." she replies and waits for his next question.

"Well, what I personally would like to know from you Ayame, is if you recall anything unusual, something that made it appearant that you were kidnapped not just because they wanted to. Because it seems like they had a deeper reason than that, at least according to... Uh "John". Now, I personally don't know if there is any connection, he is the one who is concluding all this from those events. But... If you have noticed anything that would not fit a behaviour pattern of some standard-issue kidnapping scenario, that'd already be a really huge help to us. You see, we're all persuing different issues right now, and who knows... maybe they're all connected somehow."

Jian catches a small breather, thinking.

"Ah... It would also help if you recall anything they said to you personally when they went to take you away into the building we found you in, maybe that does drop a hint.", he adds, not sure on what else to inquire on.

"Most importantly though, no pressure here. If you can not recall it too well, that is okay, I'd feel bad if I make you feel pressured by my questions. I am also sorry that our third encounter has to be some sort of questioning about negative events, I'll make sure to make up for it with something nice, promised!", he smiles saying that, to brighten the mood a little again.

"Well, I assume there is at least enough evidence to link your employment at Castle Vikuur with your kidnapping given the rapid succession one took place after the other. My current theory is that the trait all these people after you for is magic related given the circumstances of all the events. How ever it could also be some sort of magical capability you are not even aware of possessing. I wouldn't know for sure having never studied magic before. All that being said, this first question is probably going to seem somewhat anticlimactic, but just...how are you feeling? At the castle, in Central, right now, does anything feel off?"

"Kidnapping?" Ayame asks confused. "Are you referring to the police? They didn't really Kidnap me as much as they arrested me." she clarifies, confused about having to do so as she had explained this to them back when they busted her out of the makeshift prison.
"I'm sorry, I can't say I recall anything special. I had gone to the Castle because I wanted to make money for my family, but past that I've never been involved with those people. And I don't think there's anything special about me." she says, looking down at her clothes with a bit of a sad expression. Of course she wasn't wearing the Maid Attire she had been caught with the night prior, but instead was wearing a long but simple and worn blue dress.

Shortly after, her father can be heard calling for her from inside. "Ayame, the food is ready. Why don't you come inside?"
She looks into the house, where her father, mother, and the familliar woman were sitting and then directs her attention back to Jian. "Was there anything else? I want to help if I can..."

"Ah... I see. I am sorry for intruding so suddenly once more. I won't interrupt you with dinner, we have to get going too, it's quite late after all... I personally don't ", he then says to her, giving her a short and tight hug.

"Good night to you, enjoy your meal and stay safe.", him then breaking the hug after saying that. Scratching his head he steps away from the door so she then can close it. After Ayame then closing the door, Jian turns towards Jack, with a expression that makes clear he's thinking about something.

"That woman that sat at the table with them strikes me odd... I recall seeing her somewhere, but... where? I can't tell, I gotta remember.", he says to Jack quietly.

"Well we could've easily asked if we just accepted their invitation inside...At least they know to stay alert which I guess can be written down as an accomplishment."

"I could barely see her out of the corner of my eye. I just assumed she was Ayame's sister. Makes sense because Ayame's father would have mentioned her presence to us if she was a guest. We ought to get home. It's not safe on the streets for extremely obvious reasons, but please try to remember where you've seen her, the castle perhaps?"

"We weren't invited in, she was told to come back in... He does not know me enough, moreso he hasn't ever seen you before. He's quite a tough man, but he seems to be a good father and very caring... About that woman... I gotta think. There was that twisted Maid in the castle, but.. didn't she have red hair? Ms. Keil... I barely have seen her properly because I was always kinda passed out during her appearance. There's a bunch of people, but I can't put my finger on it yet."

"I'm afraid you must be mixing up names. Ms. Keil was the trader's guild representative. More importantly we agreed that we wouldn't accuse her with out damning evidence no matter how mysterious she may be. I really didn't get a good enough look. Perhaps it really was actually Ms. Keil. Now the possibility that the woman was another maid... Luckily there's no way she is an undead since they all vanished when the castle crumbled or a test subject since the help was never tested on. I still stand by the theory that that girl was Miss Ayame's sister as it would make a lot of sense for two siblings to work there if one of them was offered employment."

"Hmm. In any case, I can't really tell who it might be. Maybe it is her sister, maybe not. I saw the person before and that is the interesting bit for now. We should get back to that tomorrow, it's getting late, don't you think? Plus, it'd look a bit odd after a while if we discuss stuff infront of someone else's door, so let's get going, I'd say."

Jian backs off from the door, sighing once. He then buries both hands in his pockets, walking off slowly, gesturing Jack to follow him.

"Also... What was the whole "John" thing about? What are you trying to hide?"

"...Nothing... John is the name my parents gave me, Joey and Jack are just nicknames people gave me, my brother and the orphanage respectively. My brother referred to me as Joey with a caring tone, but the kids at the orphanage, they would always Jack as some kind of jeer. They never liked me. I never knew how, but I knew I was different. They did too, and a small mind's greatest fear is different...sorry...to make a long story short, I prefer most people call me Jack as a way to embrace all that pain....sorta...you can call me whichever name you want

...

Oh yes the sister thing...counts as a clue...proves whatever reason Miss Ayame was kidnapped wasn't gentic...r-right?"

Jack forgets to check his pockets for his key.

Following his own advice, Jian heads back home, at least glad that Ayame is safe and sound.
Jack follows Jian back to the house, taking the same route through the markets that they took on the way there.

After quite a while, they arrive at the house. They're the first ones back, but it's already getting pretty late so they decide to wind down and tend to their own things until they eventually decide to head to bed and sleep.