Parabellum. He couldn't remember the last time he'd been here, as all of his many visits seemed to roll up into one giant memory. Meeting Amano, Suou and Serizawa for the first time, spreading rumors, scheming, strategizing, nursing wounds.

Good and bad times were had here, but now, nearly two years later, this place just seemed unfamiliar. Sure, he'd been away for awhile, and the building itself was still the same. The same old guy sold weapons under the fine oak tables, and the low lights barely filtered through the haze of cigarette smoke. Different crowds, different moods, the place seemed to lack the resonance it once had.

Baofu took a long drag on his cigarette, and let out an equally long sigh, with the smoke snaking out of his mouth and up and into nothingness, "Fuck," he says with another sigh, and pulls out his cellphone. He punches in a few numbers, puts the phone to his ear and counts the rings. One... two... three...

"Good evening, Konan Police Department, how may I direct your call?"

"Detective Suou, please."

"One moment, please."

Ring... ring... ring...

h i a t u s

I have zero inspiration for Nexus-related things these days. I still love playing Baofu very much and the interactions he's had have been great, I just can't see myself role playing him in dear_multiverse anymore. But I still don't know what to do with him.

This journal is going to stick around, hiatus'd until I don't know when. Everyone's favorite rumormonger just might be brought out for special occasions, though. Who knows.

--pariker

This was pretty much Baofu's Wednesday night routine: hit up the Hirasaka district. Red Light Shiraishi was a great place for ramen, baseball and booze. He always stayed until closing, lost in his own thoughts or conversing with the owner of the establishment while the radio provided background noise.

Tonight, it's just Baofu sitting at the bar with an empty ramen bowl and a full bottle of beer. The owner is in the back finishing things up in the kitchen.

He sighs, takes a swig of beer and pokes at the several bottle caps on the counter. Another quiet night. Another boring as hell night.

It's the first time in months that Baofu's apartment was in any sort of mess. With Katsuya still being a boy scout and doing 'the right thing,' Baofu got to work with his own projects. Fixing records that the New World Order, police and Tien Tao Lien might've messed with while under Nyarlathotep's influence.

As such, it's an all night endeavor and requires much coffee and ramen. There's half a pot of coffee that's been there for awhile, getting bitterer by the hour. Grounds are spilled on the counter, and the can is still out. Water had been boiled for ramen, and said noodle cups littered Baofu's desk.

He'd been up a good twenty-four hours already and his attention span was fading fast. Quite frankly, he's nodding off at the desk. Sunglasses perched on the end of his nose, his head sinks down only to immediately jerk back up.

"Nngh..." Baofu groans, rubs at his eyes and gets back to work. The door is left open, in case his chef or spy friends decide to drop by.

It'd been a pretty hectic few months, since the showdown at Club Zodiac. Katsuya had moved in to evade his own comrades, who were out to arrest him. Baofu had been meeting with a Miss Ada Wong about prospect of a job with the mysterious 'S' organization she worked for. Living together was difficult, especially when Miss Wong came to exchange information.

But, on top of that, ever more demons were roaming the sterets of Sumaru, and several of those who had battled the Joker in the past were nowhere to be found. This effectively left Baofu and Katsuya to do all the work, and it was more than physically exhausting. It exhausted their souls.

So there Baofu sits, lounging around in his swiveling desk chair, idly spinning from one side to the other. He's decided to not wear his suit jacket, and the black button-up shirt he always wears underneath is unbuttoned at the top. With a frown, he nurses a cigarette and a Gala-Gala Drink, frowning at the taste every time he goes to drink it. Sure, it heals him, but it tastes like shit.

On top of that, Suou is rummaging around on the shelves for something. Probably organizing.

"Fucking shit, Suou. Be a little quieter, will you? My head hurts," he grumbles, rubbing at his eyes from under his sunglasses. There is also a constant, tightening pain in his chest from using his Persona too much. Ouch.

((Katsuya's player and I challenged ourselves to doing a scene with only dialog, since Baofu and Katsuya bantering back and fourth is fun stuff. :D It takes place after this post.))

( this game will swallow you, spit you out, you’re not the same )

It's about fifteen minutes after Ada leaves that Baofu decides to roll off of the couch and see what the damage is after that lovely night with the bitch lovely woman in the red dress.

With a groan he sits up, tosses his hair behind his shoulder and shoves his silly shuriken-print fleece blanket aside. He winces as the cold air of his apartment touches his bared chest and arms, as well as bare feet. Its even worse when he steps onto the cold floor and rises without bothering to get his usual sunglasses or even a shirt.

Coffee, awesome! And a note. He glances it over and smirks slightly. Always business with that one. His cellphone happens to be nearby, so he dials the given number while he pours coffee for himself.

Okay, so after some lengthy discussions with sumarus_finest's player (Staci!) we have concluded that we really, really would like to establish a canon Persona cast. People who are currently playing now and those who may be interested, plz, look behind the cut. Details are explained therein!

( Do you remember the Other Side? )

"So, yeah. This is Aoba Drive. Pretty much the only place that matters in this district. There's Parabellum; best bar in town. Also doubles as a weapons shop, thanks to yours truly." Baofu smirks, tucking a hand in his pocket. He fiddles with the decorative coins stashed there.

"And over there is the Kuzunoha Detective Agency." He gestures with his free hand. "If you're looking for information, that's usually the place to go. They did some work against the Umbrella goons that were in the city a few months back. " Hmm, seems that he's dropping an awful lot of info... and on purpose, too. Hard to tell what he's getting at, but he does have some sort of motive in bringing Ada here in the first place.

"There's Rosa Candida." He points to the trendy clothes shop. "The owner's a bit off her rocker, but whatever."

The rumormonger shrugs a bit. "So, any shops you wanna go to?"

Well, it's been awhile, but I finally got the forum back up. So, without further ado, The Dark Side of Sumaru City. Version 2.0. Have at it, folks. I'm interested to see what I missed while I was gone. (Also, mention anything about the Joker and I'll find you and punch you in the head.)

( Sumaru City Rumors )


((Here's how this works: you can submit a rumor via comments about something in Sumaru City if your character is 'in the know' about the city, so to speak. If not, I'm handwaving and saying that there's a separate forum for the Nexus. Just note that it's a Nexus rumor/question/whatever with [Nexus] in the subject line! The Nexus forum is open to anyone in the Nexus, so if you're not a friend of Baofu's or anything, post anyways. Have fun with this!))

Club Zodiac, 9:00PM. All of the rebellious teenagers sway on the dance floor to the music, creating a writhing mass of bodies. Strobe lights are going behind them, and the bar on the far wall is lit up by coils of flourescant lights.

That's where Baofu is, of course. The bar. Chatting it up in Chinese with the bartender, who is busy mixing drinks for people sitting at the back tables.

With a frown upon his lips, he swirls the contents of the small glass in his hands. Bourbon on the rocks, as usual.

He sits there with Katsuya, muttering things under his breath in Chinese. The bartender chuckles, until the name Nakamura comes up. The barteneder glances around and leans in close to Baofu and Katsuya, then whispers. In Japanese.

"He's in the back, upstairs in the casino. Took the place over once he got out of the slammer and learned that Sudou and Yung Pao were dead. Practically runs the place now..." He speaks in a hushsed, almost scared tone.

"Bastard won't be running this place when we're through with him. Put the drinks on my tab. Suou, let's head up." Baofu wastes no time in getting up.

"No, Mister Saga. Drinks are on the house. Go." The bartender nods.

There's a second of hesitation as Baofu frowns, and then immediately starts toward the stairs without looking over his shoulder to see if Katsuya is there. Baofu knows the officer will follow.

((Read part 2 here.))

So I've been trying to get back into the "groove," as it were, for Baofu. Nothin' like doing memes! This is going to be one huge honkin' post, so, prepared for more about Baofu than you ever wanted to know! :D

( That one 20 question thinger, yoinked from everyone. )

( Question the Pups: April. )

And... there's more on the way. Really. I'm just meme'd out right about now. D: *brain a'splodes*

The long-haired man plops down on a bench in Aoba Park, digging through the pockets of his suit jacket for a lighter to go with that cigarette he's got between his lips. Finally, he finds one and lights the cigarette and deeply exhales that first breath of smoke.

He thoughtfully puffs on the cigarette for a little while longer, contemplating all that had happened in the past few months. A bad business deal with Umbrella, his apartment getting blown up, saving Becky's Raccoon City, only to find out that it wouldn't escape catastrophe. That, and the whole Las Plagas thing. Even though he'd gotten the parasite successfully extricated, every now and again he can swear he felt that uncomfortable wriggling in his chest. It stops him dead in his tracks every single time.

Today is the first day he's been back since up and leaving Eiko Takashima's lab, and he's found that Sumaru hadn't changed... or had it? There are even more rumors of demons in the streets, and he's been having dreams of butterflies again...

This earns a frown from Baofu, who continues to tend to that cigarette.

((Open thread. :D))

Baofu finds himself on another stroll through Sumaru City. And again, he ends up in the cemetary, standing in front of the gravestone of someone named Miki Asai.

( Read more... )

((WARNING! Before you click on the cut, read the following! There are spoilers for Persona 2: Eternal Punishment all over the place in here, concerning Baofu's past. Yeah, it's an old game and the D_M rules don't really apply anymore, but still. Heads up, homes. This is my interpretation of what went down five years before the game even begins. And, um, yeah. Woo ficposts; I figured it was high time I wrote one for everyone's favorite grump.))

Ever since his last exchange with Katsuya, Baofu had gone back to his reclusive ways. There were few, if any sightings of him after saving Rebecca's Raccoon City. It was probably what he wanted; he couldn't very well show his face in Sumaru City with all of the Umbrella operatives still in place in the Narumi ward.

But... he couldn't help it. Sure, he'd gone to Japan in other Earthspaces using PINpoint technology and portals, but they weren't Sumaru. The city had always been his home, and he wasn't going to let anyone change that.

Today, Baofu finds himself strolling around in Narumi, near the ruins of his old lair apartment. He walks by, trying to be as inconspicuous as possible. But, really, it's hard to bled in with a gold suit, long hair and sunglasses in daylight, or anywhere for that matter. He just grumbles and continues walking.

Hmm... doesn't look like there's any sign of Umbrella here anymore. Maybe Roland was right; maybe they packed up and moved on, and are only keeping tabs on this place from a distance. He briefly wonders what all people have been saying about the incident.

Then, something catches his eye when he glances down a nearby alley. There's the sound of a struggle, and two crimson and gold things rush down the pathway, either leaping over or going through groups of garbage cans. He takes a closer look, and realizes what those two things are; vicious, gargantuan dogs. They're hunched over something quiet, save for their anxious breaths and the ripping of flesh.

There's an immediate sinking feeling in Baofu's stomach as he sees a human torso poking out from under the creatures. The corpse is clothed black fatigues, and there's an Umbrella, Inc. logo on the man's back...

"Oh, fuck..." He mutters to himself. That gets one of the dogs' attention. It snarls and bares blood-covered teeth at Baofu, then launches itself at him.

Really, there's no hesitation on Baofu's part. He lifts his arms to block the attack and a bright blue light surrounds him.

"PERSONA!" He yells, and a large figure wielding two swords materializes above him. As the dog leaps, the figure with the swords skewers it.

The other dog wastes no time in getting a fresh meal. Unfortunately, Baofu's back is turned (as he was making sure the first hound is dead), therefore he doesn't see it until it's too late to react...

((This thread'll probably be some slow threading... so yeah. Feel free to join in, Persona crew!))

WOO I AM A BLOG SHEEP. FASHIONABLY LATE BUT WHEE.

So, here's the deal. Is there anything you're curious about when it comes to Baofu? Ask a question and I will answer. This is all OOC, of course. :D

Somewhere near the rest area in Aoba Park, Rebecca and Baofu teleport in. Baofu tucks his PINpoint in his pants pocket and glances around, pushing up his sunglasses. It's been awhile since he's been to Sumaru City, and he wouldn't doubt Umbrella operatives being in the area. Perhaps it wasn't such a good idea to drag Becky along.

But... Umbrella is set up in Narumi and they're in Aoba, right? Things should be fine, right? Of course.

"Yeah... here we are. Let's hope this tour of Sumaru is better than your last." Baofu grumbles and tucks a few stray strands of hair behind his ear. "Things should be okay. If a plant starts talking to you, just ignore it. They're full of shit anyways."

After taking one last quick glance around, he makes a bit of a 'ladies first' gesture to Becky. Yay, a sunny day! Perfect for a stroll in the park!

Baofu pushes his way through the celebrating crowd in the Raccoon City streets. He doesn't make any effort to join the celebrations; one, he's too tired and two, fuck all that shit. Children cling to his legs and ask why his hair is so long, and it takes Baofu all of his willpower not to tell them to fuck off. He just sighs and pries them off, and makes haste in disappearing.

Soon enough, Baofu finds himself in a residential area of the city. It's deserted. Everyone is either barricaded inside their homes still, or out dancing in the rain with those who defended the city.

"Jesus... I can't believe this." He mutters to himself and wipes some blood off of his face, trudging onward to Sully's place with intentions to pack up his shit and leave.

((Open thread!))