Turnabout a la Mode! Day 1 Investigation

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The journey is far less painful than might be expected. After arriving in the Champ de Mars in Paris, the arriving strangers go unnoticed by the crowds all around, the people too busy whispering to each other in horror. Several are crying and others are carrying their children away from the Eiffel Tower which stands high above in the dark Paris night.

The area is hauntingly beautiful, with lights covering the trees of Paris's park and banners talking about the great Tic and Tac's final Parisian tour before going worldwide. So why is the entire place so somber?

The fact that the police are scrambling about is the first clue that something is very wrong. As the Visitors were warned, their powers are completely gone, leaving only their mundane skills. With no Persona to call on, it will make this entire journey far harder... but thankfully Minerva can be spotted close by.

But before anyone can do anything, she's being carried away by the policemen, put into a car, and carted off.  The police bar the perimeter, looking at you in annoyance.

"Mesdames et Messieurs, the show is over, and this area is a crime scene. Please move back so as not to cause issues with the investigation."

It seems something terrible has happened...

But just as you're pondering your next move, another car screeches up beside the yellow tape, and a man with a fervent expression and a rather alarming mustache leaps out of the car.  Gesticulating wildly, he descends upon the scene like a storm of extravagantly expensive cologne.

"Get back, get back!  A terrible crime has occurred here!  And I, Chief Inspector Otto Gaffe, swear that I shall not rest until justice is served!"

A flailing arm barely avoids breaking a nose as he impatiently pushes you out of the way.

"Who are you?  ...Is that an attorney's badge?"

Perhaps this would be a good place to start.

((There will be no tag order so as to speed things along!  But each group should only respond to the portions marked for them (A, B, or Defense).  When all the necessary clues have been discovered, we will initiate Day 1 Court. You may respond!))

Comments

[therooms]

She arches an eyebrow.

"Don't you? Perhaps you ought to follow that line of thought to its natural conclusion. If it isn't me, then the pool of suspects grows distressingly small. ...Too small for the people of this somewhat dim country to accept."

Her eyes roam about towards a spot on the wall behind Athena and the others. ...Even here, there is a poster advertising Tic & Tac's final Parisian tour.

"I should urge you to be prepared for your popularity to plummet precipitously, if you care about that sort of thing. ...But very well. What do you wish to know?"

[cykedfists]

Following where she was directing, she took notice of the poster. She had seen it around every now and then, but she hadn't paid it much mind. Murder and all happening. Still, it was clear enough what she was saying.

"So a scapegoat then. Regardless, this isn't much different from my past cases I've worked on," she let out a sigh. "I doubt that's even anything of importance right now. Being a lawyer generally gives people the wrong idea about you," she said with a sigh, "anything you can tell me. I'm still trying to put all the pieces together yet, so anything would help at this point. What did you see before we got here?"

[therooms]

"That irritating reporter - I suppose you know what he did if you came after me? But I doubt he intended for this to happen; he doesn't deserve quite so much credit."

Minerva clears her throat after a pause. It's as close as she'll get to seeming uncomfortable.

"I admit I don't remember much of what happened afterwards. I was... a bit disoriented. When I came to, I was opening a door and stepping out onto a stage. It was the sound of screams that roused me from my stupor."

[cykedfists]

So she came with very little knowledge herself. She was hoping that she would know more than that, but that first detail was enough to question about.

"Reporter? I'm sorry... I'm not familiar with what's happened," she told her.

[therooms]

Minerva calmly accepts this information before glancing pointedly at the security guards in the corner.

"Then I suggest you discuss that with your companions at your leisure. I imagine it makes for a compelling tale."

[cykedfists]

She would have hoped to learn more about it from McGonagall herself, but she understood why she didn't say anything. Making a mental note...

"Right. I'll be sure to ask them later then," she said before moving onto the next question, "Being randomly dumped on the stage, I know this may not be a good question to ask, but I have to know for certain. Have you met the trope prior to this?"

[therooms]

"Never. I have no interest whatsoever in what the Muggles believe pass for 'magic'."

A slight pause as she realizes what she just said in front of the guards.

"British... 'magicians' being much superior, of course."

She looks vaguely disgusted with herself as she says this.

"Regardless, when I walked into the scene, she was already quite dead."

[cykedfists]

Athena sort of wanted to question what she meant by muggles, but with her follow up comment and how uncomfortable she looked, she decided to ask her at a different time. The detention center wasn't exactly good for things like that.

"I see... So just your normal case of wrong place, wrong time then," she let out a sigh. Although she could hardly call this normal. It was interesting to see how the weird things become normal once you work for "the Wright Anything Agency".

"Do you have any idea who could have done it? Anybody who stood out to you. I get that these questions are probably not much help, but any kind of information you can give me will help me out," she said.

[therooms]

She has to think about this for a moment or two.

"...No. I can't say that I do. To tell the truth, I would have said those two blubbering fools were genuinely grieved."

She shakes her head.

"But then, in front of his own twin brother - the murderer must have hardened his heart to keep up the charade."