A pawsome guardian

[oichi]

She had protected her bike from the nasty woman and also protected her friends from possible harm as well. With someone like that around, who knows what else there could be happening tonight? She couldn't help but giggle at the sight of Karen fleeing with a murder of crows around her, doing all the combat and the nuisance. These kind of bad luck curses wouldn't last long, at least til next morning. She wished it could last just a tiny bit longer than the remainer of the day.

Being shown the NAPI badge, there wasn't anymore point to keep up the charade of being an adorable cat. She also felt bad for scaring Tatsu a bit. She began to fully speak after taking the sock monkey off of her license plate. "Don't worry Mr. Detective, that series of events for her won't last long. Sorry for the bit of chaos there for a minute." Sparkles circled around her in a tornado for a few seconds before revealing a young woman in a blue hoodie, black shorts, some red shoes, and her orange short shaggy hair with cat ears. She leaned down on her motorcycle stretching out a bit to get back to using her human form. "Well that is certainly one event that brought us together. Name's Meinya Ayane. I'm pretty much a drifter." she said carefreely. She put her sock monkey away, keeping it safe til she needs it again. "I know you ain't surprised Kunekawa-san for seeing a cat yokai. I just hope it doesn't surprise you too much Soma-san." she said with a bit of humility.

[mermalaide]

"Oh no! I am alright. We get all types at the shrine." She smiled, and yes Tatsu was pretty surprised. But, it was actually not as bad as it could have been. What a cute kitty, well now nekomata. RIP Karen though. She deserved it, but definitely a bad turn of luck. Deserved luck though. That thought is interrupted by the knowledge that Ayane is a drifter. "You are a drifter Ayane-chan?" She looked worried for her. Out in the night was no place for anyone. "If you need a place to stay, we have a guest wing at the shrine. I am sure grandpa won't mind. At least for the night. Or until you find something." Her head always tilted just so when she spoke with either a question or a concern.

Admittedly, she felt dumb for not realizing until Karen got cursed to know Ayame was a Nekomata. However, her abilities were not in detection. "If you are a little lost I can help you find your way too. I mean, both myself and likely Kunekawa-sama should know the area well." She still wanted to help if she could. She didn't like the idea of Ayane being alone, even if it looked like she could take care of herself.

[datmass]

Well, at least things would calm down a little, now that the Karen was gone. The cat named Ayane soon revealed herself to be a Nekomata, same name. As Shiro expected, Ayane was keeping tags of herself to use in cat form, should it be required, in order to stave off any suspicion. Hopefully, once she refined her act, that would follow through, but for now, it wasn't exactly an important thing to worry about. She'd been exposed, but by the right kind of guy. Shiro wouldn't be causing her any trouble. Not real trouble, at any rate. The hex from the now orange-haired young lady wouldn't last long, so Ayane was out of hot water, as she was only trying to protect her property from potential sabotage. This was important, as...apparently, Ayane had nothing to her name but what you see here. She was, in effect, a stray looking out for her own. Tatsu offered to help her, which she did out of the kindness of her heart and basically little prompting. Shiro would also make the offer, though his reasoning was attached to another thing or two, plus he really did want to help. This isn't the right situation for a girl like her.

"It sounds like you have a sound offer. I don't exactly have the same kind of room as a shrine, if that's something you're alright with. Regardless, I really don't like seeing someone like you - a basically decent yokai - have to go through personal hardship like this. I should ask if you drift by choice or not, because it would affect what paperwork I'll be submitting to see if there is anything that can or should be done. At any rate, we'll probably talk again, regardless. I have some questions and probably some paperwork to file on this occasion. Gotta make sure that Karen doesn't blame anyone for this and try to make it stick with a lawyer."

He was putting himself out there for professional and for morally-decent reasons. Ayane looked like nobody's danger, just a cat looking out for her needs, day by day. That kind of person deserved a little help, so if there was something Shiro could ddo in this situation, he'd at least wanna give it a try.

[oichi]

Ayane had been given a few options to help find a home. She had a home but it was more for her mom. They weren't exactly rich either so she had left home for less money strain. She stood up, trying to answer and consider the possibilties of what was the living conditions. First, answering Shiro's questions. "So I live in the heart of Fukuoka prefecture with my mom. Now I left home to go and drift around to try to out less stressed out of food for her because it was a tight budget just the two of us. I'm trying to see if I could find my father eventually as he left before I was born. All me and my mom remember was he was also a Nekomata like me. I just really want to know who he exactly is." she explained, her ears drooping downward. It was a bit of a mystery to her, with not much information to go off of. All she knew that he was a Nekomata.

Going into a shrine as another cat would be nice location-wise. It would be nice protection enough but there were rules that she didn't want to accidentally break if the shrine had strict rules. Plus other cats that also take the spotlight as well. It would be nice to have another temperary home away from home, so she answered Tatsu's offer with pride. "I can stay for a bit in the shrine since you asked. I don't know how far exactly it is from here, still it would be a nice night to just walk around and get more food." she said subtly eyeing the pizza again.

[mermalaide]

"It's a little bit of a ride by train. I live in Kyoto which is an hour and a half ride from here. I actually came to be in this neighborhood because they needed an extra set of hands to help purify an old shrine." She had been listening with rapt attention about Ayane's circumstance. "You can get about anywhere in this area and Kyoto's by train." Tatsu tilted her head thought. As far as the father went, maybe the detective with them could help.

"You are welcome to rest at our shrine anytime you need, we have extra room. Because we are an old shrine that is just myself and gramps, we aren't really strict with rules, it's mostly pick up after yourself, be mindful of the hot water because the boiler is pretty old, and sometimes we have a patient or two in the back wing of the temple, so it's good to be quiet back there. Stuff like that." Tatsu didn't think Ayane was the sort to just cure someone. She had her reason with the Karen woman, and that was fair.

"Senpai?" She said this to their new detective friend. "Do you think NAPI could help find a missing person? He is of a paranormal nature." Tatsu put it out there hoping. It didn't hurt to ask. He seemed like a nice sort anyway. If anything, maybe they could help Ayane in her quest to find her father. Could it be called a Dad-Quest? Her stomach growled a little, and she was a little pale. It had been a bit since she had eaten.

[datmass]

Fukuoka Prefecture... Wasn't that the place that Lord Ilpalazzo always tried to take over, as he was a villain with the doctorine of conquering one city at a time? No matter. Just a small aside in Shiro's mind as he listened to Ayane's story. It was...kind of telling, actually. She was a Nekomata type with a Nekomata father, and a mother who didn't make quite enough to fend for them both, so she tried striking out on her own to make life better for her mother while searching for her father. It was... Shiro didn't know how to put it. He'd had his own family troubles, though none of it had anything to do with anyone missing. In fact, missing family would be tame in comparison to his own, but Ayane was no-less burdened by the life she now led. He felt bad for the girl. Tatsu could help with her living condition, but he felt like...

"Senpai? Do you think NAPI could help find a missing person? He is of a paranormal nature."

Yeah... It felt to him like he was on a new case. Shiro felt his good mood returning as he let off a grin.

"You know, I think I could. Detective Kunekawa, at your service."

He then heard Tatsu's stomach growl, which took him by surprise as he looked between the two of them, and then the pizza in his hand. Okay, why not?

"Tell you what. My car is just over there. Let's talk and eat. I don't mind sharing, especially since this'll be a boon to my commission for getting right on it."

He was pointing to a rather nice Honda Accord, not far from where they were standing, his actual destination when he got in the middle of all this. Really, he was alright with this, even the getting-back-to-work thing. This was a case that hit where the heart lived, and he wanted to see it through to a positive end.

[oichi]

She was secretly glad that the shrine wasn't strict and it was simple enough to live in. It didn't feel right for her to be there if the place was too fancy, that or she would mostly be interested on anything shiny. She didn't really have anything fancy aside from her motorcycle and that was one of her favorite things she has. Difficult as it was to be wandering around, she is happy with not having her mother be financially burdened anymore by family. "Tatsu is interesting. I wonder what the inside of the shrines are like? Can I fish there?" she thought about it.

Her thoughts were interuptted by the fact that Shiro was going to share the food and also see if there was going to find some clues for her dad. Her tail wagged back and forth as she walked over to the car, thinking about all the delicious meats from the pizza, as well as seeing the nice car that they were now getting into. "That's a pretty nice car. It looks kinda comfy inside." she said as she climbed in the car from the back.

[mermalaide]

Tatsu smiled at this development."That's pretty great to hear Kunekawa-sensei." It looked like he would take the case for Ayane, and Ayane would not have to hang out in the square tonight. "I have a few drinks and snacks to share. Let's go and have a seat." She walked, keeping up with them. I can tell you both about our shrine and mark where it is for you if you have a phone." She had met a few people that had not had phones rather recently. "It's a Honda right? I heard they were pretty good."

It was like an impromptu pizza party, which was really nice. She checked her phone so that she knew the time, and maybe if gramps sent a message. It was usually just a thumbs up emoji, with a tengu mask, unless he had instructions of course. She took a deep breath. "That lady earlier was kind of crazy." She gave a little of a comedic sigh. "Oh! You have toiletries right? We have a few extra in the supply closet at the temple, but, we can stop at a Don Quixote if you need anything. I can tell you more about the temple if you like. Granted, it's not a very fancy temple like some of the more well known ones, or the newer ones, but it's clean and Gramps and I made it pretty comfortable."

Tatsu moved to the side of the car. She had never really thought about it, but it would have been nice to drive, she walked or rode the train about everywhere, like most of the people in the city. She dug in her shopping bag, there were a few drinks to share. "Do you like cola or tea? I have Strawberry Calpico too." She also had some shrimp chips. Grandpa's rice crackers and tea were safe she was sure.

[datmass]

Really, Shiro invited them to do whatever they liked, as he opened the car up. Sit inside, lean against it and eat at the hood, or whatever. He wasn't driving off. This was just their picnic table and impromptu office. So long as nobody was around even - and there wasn't, right now - they would have their privacy. As Ayane stepped inside, Shiro realized there was one particular advantage to having had the girl take her humanoid form: No shedding. It's quite an odd thing to be removing cat hair and being like 'This came off of a person.'. Ayane remarked on it, and Shiro nodded.

"It's comfee, it's functional, and it gets me where I need to go. And yes, it's a recent-model Honda. I liked the styling too, because there's a certain feeling that I think a detective needs, and 'stylish black sedan' is it."

Tatsu also had extra snacks and drinks to share, so the initial light meal and discussion just got upgraded to a full meal. While they were getting set up, she began talking to Ayane about the state of the temple and whether they needed to stop and get some things before then. The neko girl would, as she was in the back now, notice a particular black cane leaning against one of the back seats. Nothing immediately obvious would leap out about that, for now, but...Shiro didn't walk with a limp. He didn't seem to need a cane, and it was kind of an odd design too... Well, Tatsu was asking drink preferences now, and as Shiro got into the driver's seat, he said...

"Tea is fine, thank you."

...before noticing his cane and frowned slightly.

"Oh right, I left that out of the trunk. I can store it if it's in the way, Ayane. If not, well...tell me what you do know about your dad. I'll be taking notes."

He said this, putting the pizza between driver and passenger, but also taking out a notepad and pen he kept on hand.

[oichi]

She noted how it was a newer model, she wouldn't be able to afford this. Ayane was just happy to have her motorcycle when she did, one of the most expensive items she owned. It was a good deal on the motorcycle when they were closing down the shop on her 16th birthday. She didn't have a cell phone on her sadly, and she ran out of the basic travel essentials a little bit ago. Maybe it was also a good idea for some shopping? She had a credit card at least to buy stuff. "I think we should stop by a general store before they close. Maybe they'll have things i need to get for the road?" she said then noticing the strawberry calpico. It was one of her favorite drinks. Her tail wagged as Tatsu offered drinks. "I'll take the calpico." she said, taking the bottle.

She bumped her arm into the cane that was in the back seat. That's really when she noticed it was even there. She wondered what the cane was for but didn't want to assume anything negative. "It's fine there detective!" she said simply laying it more on the ground "It's a cool thing to have. Maybe use it for self defense sometimes?" she asked assuming it was for something really cool. Grabbing a pizza slice in one hand and the calpico in the other, she went back to focus on hand. "Well from what I know, dad is a bakeneko. I assume he's older than my mom as my mom was around my age when she was dating him and got pregnant with me. It was within Fukuoka prefecture. I don't really know what he looks like because my mom was pretty much scarred from him leaving her and mildly cursing her, and blocked his looks from her memory. She did say that he went somewhere east but i don't really know." she said, savoring the pizza.

[mermalaide]

Tatsu handed out tea to Kunekawa senpai and Calpico to Ayane chan. They were still really cold. She dug through the bag and got herself a tea as well. They were cold enough to have condensation on the bottles and she wiped them off before handing them over. She also had a few napkins and opened up a few of the packaged food, leaving her grandfather's things in the bottom of the bag and closed.

Everything smelled good. "Yeah, we can do that. There is a comer store that sells about everything a few streets over from the temple. They stay open for a little while. We have some toiletries in the linen closet too, but I am sure there are a few things you will want. It's pretty cheap too. The lady that runs it is pretty nice." The cane reminded her of something she had seen a man in the neighborhood with, though, she wasn't sure if that was a weapon too. She wouldn't have been surprised in the least, he was an old military man.

"He cursed her? How terrible!" Especially after getting her pregnant too! If Tatsu ever met this man, she might bonk him one with her priestess bells! "There has to be a reason.. but that is still pretty rotten." She empathized with Ayane even if she had never really been through that. Her parents always had seemed pretty happy to her, until their last day really. She tilted her head in thought, and took a slice of pizza with a napkin. "Maybe there are little clues. Did anyone else know him in that area? I am sure someone had to have seen him besides your mom..unless he cursed them too."

She took a bite of pizza and chased it with a cold swallow of tea. "I have never really met any Nekomata, or Bakeneko for that matter, at least I don't think, I wonder if that is common. You know, to have one put a curse on someone like that. Or if that belongs to a specific type of Bakeneko, like something that would run in families."

[datmass]

Shiro nodded at Ayane, saying "It actually is for self-defense. Well-spotted.", just not confirming the fact that it was his sword in that thing. Kuro Seigi was a dangerous implement, and he wouldn't want others touching it, in case the thing that was connected to it decided to get a bit 'curse-y' itself. In any case, the meal would continue as the neko began to speak of her father, outlining whatever she knew. It wasn't much, sadly. Not only was her father's description vaguely-known, but it was made that way on purpose when it was revealed that the cat being had let off his own curse, making it impossible for the senior Meinya-san to recall any specific detail. Perhaps part of this was in the fact that Ayane herself used 'bakeneko' and 'nekomata' interchangeably. There was some debate on whether they were the same, related, two separate beings, or whatever else. Supposedly, it was based around some of the powers and how human their humanoid form looked. Nevertheless, the bakeneko part would be the basis for Shiro's case, for now. They were a bit more known for curses, and they had a higher penchant for establishing themselves as the 'Alpha Cat'. As Tatsu began to muse on the possibilities, he spoke up now, as he was taking notes.

"Bakeneko are a bit more known to be curse-driven, as legend has it that the suffering and woes of another being can immediately transform a feline into a full-blown one on the spot."

It was derived from an old tale about a woman being terribly mistreated by his husband, so that when she confessed all of her pain to her favorite cat and then died, the small feline was so overwhelmed with grief and anger that it demonized an attacked the man.

"This is, of course, just a tale in the past. Yokai of this age are affected somewhat by modern society, and have adjusted to it, in response. Tatsu's question holds relevance, though I'm guessing your mother DID ask around, right? And that that hasn't left you much wiser to the man. What I wanna know is if, instead of his appearance, you could give me any of his habits, things he liked to do. Second-hand information such as that could lead to a positive ID, and may not be covered by the identity curse."

Because, unfortunately, finding a bakeneko or nekomata was difficult at the best of times, and not knowing any of their traits would mean sifting through pretty much all of them, as long as they were male. It was especially bad, in fact, since a cold trail leading east from Fukuoka meant that their target search area was most of Japan, given that Fukuoka was in the lower-west region of the country. By now, he could be anywhere, which is why Shiro needed any and every detail he could find.

[oichi]

It was going to be exciting that there would be some shopping to do before the journey home. She had seen some impressive looking stores that had loads of things she wanted but needed the money for and some places that she had to wait to get money to go have fun in the first place. Good food, good company, it was all a cat (or a person) could ask for other than a comfy house. "I'd have to check out more stores in the area. There's probably a lot I missed in this city." Half of them were probably getting ready to close up soon, but she hoped there was plenty of time.

Back to the matter at hand though, it was true that she doesn't have much information to go off of. She did remember that her mother got the local police to try to do something about it the best they could. Sadly, it didn't do much on their end too so she had to close it. She didn't know if her mom asked anyone else. "Well, my mom did ask the local police about finding him but it was a cold case. Mom said that he hanged out away from people, and was mostly in cared-for nightclubs as a supposed charming man to ladies. Not sure if i'm old enough for nightclubs or even my mom back then was old enough for night clubs at 19. She said he usually is most seen at night."

[mermalaide]

"If you have a phone, there is a pretty good directory I use. It has most of the little shops too. But you get a lot from exploring." She showed the guide app she had on her phone. It was a flip phone that looked a little like a chocolate bar and had charms on it. The phone, when flipped open had the basic screen choices. She highlighted one that looked like a magnifying glass with a big eye behind it. "This one. GoggleMaps ." 




That would be interesting. "Well.. I think there is a district like that around here, and in Kyoto there is supposed to be one that is frequented by yokai. I know about them because Grandpa was very adamant about staying away from them. I had thought about going to the yokai one in Kyoto because they have a night market that is supposed to have all kinds of things in it, but, I would never go to something like that alone. I would have to go with friends." She seemed lost in thought, nibbling on pizza. "My mother used to be a hostess a long time ago. I wish I could ask her now." That wouldn't work though, she died quite a while ago.

"You know, if you need money, most of the temples have odd jobs listings for each neighborhood. It's little stuff like babysitting, mowing lawns or cleaning. Oh and there was one for stuffing envelopes for a company. You could make a little extra money." It might be hard to find this guy, he did hex a few people, but on top of that, it was likely that he had been in party circles that might not exist anymore if certain ladies retired, but how long did yokai ladies do hostess things? She had no idea. This was all subjective.

"Her Kunekawa-sempai? Where would you start looking?" She took a drink of tea and wiped her mouth with a napkin. Everything was delicious.

[datmass]

Shiro chewed the remainder of his slice deep in thought as Ayane gave what little she had in information. It was a start, even as Tatsu referenced clubs around the Night Market, but it was - admittedly - a rather small start. What they were looking for was a male cat yokai in the bake-neko-mata range who - nineteen years ago - had been in Fukuoka until he started heading east, which was towards the rest of Japan. There was no limit to where he could be, although an interest in clubs meant that he would prefer the modern scene over quiet spiritual places. He went to clubs, he hung out with ladies, he stayed away from alot of other people, and he preferred the night. All of these were details that would work AFTER he'd refined the search down from nearly every member of his kind and almost any in Japan, IF he was still in Japan. There was no rule saying a yokai couldn't leave the country, after all. The detective was finishing his drink as Tatsu asked where he might get started. He paused in that, because there was something...he'd forgotten.

"Well, I'll admit he's made it rather hard. Eliminating specific details about him creates a gap in the net I'd hoped to cast out. Checking out yokai-friendly clubs when the Night Market is in effect wouldn't be a bad idea. It moves, though, so where I go may depend on the day I do it in. There IS one thing he will have forgotten, though, one thing he could not remove the details of."

He turned and pointed squarely at Ayane.

"You, Ayane, are an orange Maine Coon in cat form, and there is no doubt in my mind that these are traits directly taken from your father. Maybe not orange, and maybe not the color of the eyes, but narrowing the search down to the fluffier bakeneko or nekomata will help."

And that's why he gets paid the big bucks. Yokai don't always think about modern methods or the passing on of traits. Even in magic, there is something that goes from parents to offspring, and they say quite a bit when you find them.