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

[dekillerqueen]

The friendly Hinoto-Ri baker is not a great fan of mingling. He does, however, have quite an interest in murders, and he would very much like to know what happened here.

Armed with his trusty leather gloves, he lifts the white cloth to see what's hidden below. He intends to leave the scene in the same state as it was before - no one needs to know he was ever here.

NOTE: GRAPHIC DETAIL OF VICTIM'S DEATH

[turnaboutalamode]

At first glance, the sight is rather macabre if someone had never seen a murder before (which is not much of an issue here); the body is in suck an uncomfortable position as if they'd been pulled forward, leaving the victim's legs dangling in the air slightly.

It becomes easier to see why soon enough; instead of where the head should be, what looks like a gigantic metal hammer has smashed not only into the wire, mirror and stone stage, shattering all it touched from impact. From the way the victim's neck disappears into it, little is left to the imagination of what might have happened.

She's dressed in a tight-fitting outfit with a few pockets, not leaving much to the imagination, stained with the blood as red as her nails from her very recent, unfortunate death.

[dekillerqueen]

Well, the cause of death is no mystery.

This could easily have been framed as an unfortunate accident. An equipment malfunction. But instead, the blame has fallen on someone else - someone who is probably not guilty and, if his intuition does not fail him, is being deliberately framed. That's how things tend to go.

He doesn't have the proper tools to investigate the body, sadly, nor would it be terribly appropriate to perform an autopsy right here. He covers up the grisly sight again, making sure the cloth is lying there as neatly as it was before he touched it.

There ought to be something else he can learn from the stage, though. He doesn't know much about magic tricks, which makes this a little difficult, but with any luck, he might see something more mundane. Oddly-placed blood splatters, perhaps, or - he's not counting on it, but it would certainly put a curious spin on the case - signs of a struggle.

He could try having another look at the body, but if anyone caught him staring at a scantily-clad corpse, well...

Shelly's just not very comfortable with the thought. Maybe as a last resort, though. Maybe.

[spiritofjustice]

Oops, someone did see him staring at a scantily-clad corpse. Rather, Bobby spotted him just as he lowered the cloth again. He makes sure to wait a little longer before drawing nearer, as he's pretty sure Shelly didn't mean to get caught, fellow Visitor or not. Once he does approach the stage, he does so in a casual stride and with an expression of pleasant interest.

"Good evening, Mr. Baker! In justice we trust!" He shoots Shelly a quick salute. "Have you found any clues yet?"

[dekillerqueen]

A spike of internal panic almost makes itself known, but then Shelly realises it's just good old Mr. Detective. Sure, as a Visitor, maybe he's supposed to be investigating, in a sense - but it still feels enough like breaking his cover to keep him alert.

"I'm afraid not, Mr. Detective. I have to admit I took a small peek at what lies beneath this cloth over here, but... The sight was far too terrible for me to bear."

A disguise is a disguise, and a friendly baker is not accustomed to the sight of blood and dead bodies.

[spiritofjustice]

Now now, Shelly, don't you worry. Bobby has no intention of breaking that cover. If anything, he'll humor it. If there's anyone who knows about the importance of keeping up pretense, it's him. That's why he'll produce a bit of a sympathetic tisking sound.

"Oh dear! I hope that taught you to leave that sort of thing to the professionals! There's plenty of investigating to do that doesn't involve dead bodies."

Ironic words, he knows. That's what Shelly gets for impersonating a person who has no business on a crime scene, while his real business is the cause of crime scenes.

[turnaboutalamode]

Now the question is...do either of them feel like walking up 900 steps to see what the contraption looks like? Cause that's the only other part that isn't a dead body.

[dekillerqueen]

Shelly was thinking of taking a quick look around the scene, in fact. But to be completely honest... he has some personal interest in Bobby as well.

"Quite so. Perhaps you will be able to glean something from the body, then, Mr. Detective...? I'm curious about your methods, I must admit."

[spiritofjustice]

Bobby is also more than a little determined to search every nook and cranny. He takes his investigations very seriously, even in another world and on a case he's not officially assigned to. Justice and all that, you know how it is.

"Oh, you are, are you? Well, in that case...! Prepare yourself, because you're about to see a true Champion of Justice in action!"

Please excuse him while he strides over to the body and crouches down beside it to lift the sheet with one hand. There's no doubt he'll see the same sight that Shelly saw moments ago and while his face contorts in dismay, his eyes are already sweeping up and down the corpse for any visible clues. The state of the fingernails, whether there are any rips in the outfit, whether there's any blood that might be splattered at an illogical location... Anything that might indicate a struggle or other sorts of foul play.

[turnaboutalamode]

Bad touch, bad touch!

The victim itself, apart from a completely obliterated head does not seem to have any physical markings. She is falling stage first, so that at the very least, the giant hammer covered the gristly scene for the participants. The weight definitely made the body jerk forward.

As he pats over the corpse, Bobby will quickly notice that one of the costume's pockets has a bump, like someone else did before him.

[spiritofjustice]

Jackpot.

He gives his gloves a quick tug to make sure they're covering all of his wrist, then reaches into the pocket with a look of utmost concentration. Let's see here. It's... It's...! Oh, it's a USB drive. Well, that's interesting enough. He examines it in the palm of his hand for a moment, then realizes he doesn't have any evidence bags.

Oh well.

"Hm... I wonder if we can find a laptop to plug this into."

[dekillerqueen]

Thanks for making it so Shelly doesn't have to touch a barely-dressed young lady (albeit a dead one), Bobby.

"Perhaps somewhere in the backstage area," he says, looking at the USB drive. "Unfortunately, I find those machines a little too unwieldy to carry around with me."

Then, he realises:

"... Do you not have evidence bags, Mr. Detective? I would think one can hardly conduct a proper investigation without those."

[spiritofjustice]

The backstage area, huh? Bobby casts a quick glance up those 900 steps. It seems like their best option. He carefully lowers the sheet again, deeming the rest of the body without further clues.

... Damn you Shelly. An embarrassed pout tugs at his lips as he straightens himself up again. "Well, I don't just carry those things with me wherever I go, you know."

He could've asked Chief Inspector Gaffe for bags, but he's trying to avoid that guy. If they are where he thinks they are- or rather, which world-, he'd rather not draw too much attention to himself.

I'm sorry I had to

[turnaboutalamode]

Those 900 steps aren't going to walk up their themselves. At least by the time he's done with the body, the policemen didn't seem to notice anything.

[spiritofjustice]

Policemen in France are just as inept as they are in America, huh? Well, that suits him just fine.

He slips the USB drive into his pocket and turns to head towards the stairs. Shelly can wait on the ground floor if he wants, but chances are, he'll miss out on juicy details if Bobby can find a computer or something of the sort with a USB input.

aaa sorry for the delay

[dekillerqueen]

Shelly follows, naturally. He's just as interested in this case as he is in seeing how Mr. Detective works.

"By the way... Have you noticed where it is that we appear to be?"

[spiritofjustice]

'Where it is that we appear to be'... He understands the implication behind that query just fine. He'd rather hoped no one else from their world would notice, but he supposes he should give them more credit. Especially when that other person from their world is Shelly de Killer.

He's not going to dignify it with a truthful answer. He'll just stick with being blissfully ignorant as they make their way up the stairs.

"Hm? Why, we're in Paris, of course."

[dekillerqueen]

Quite right. Shelly has done his fair share of travelling, although he's never done proper business in this country.

He's not deterred by that non-answer.

"Our Paris, Mr. Detective."

[spiritofjustice]

Whatever it is that Shelly's hoping to gain from all this, Bobby will make sure not to give it to him. He still doesn't trust this guy and he never will. The non-answers are just gonna keep on flowing.

"Ohh? That's a neat coincidence! Because there's other versions of Paris too, I'm pretty sure."

[dekillerqueen]

Shame about that trust thing. Real shame.

"Indeed. I have been to this country before, though - in passing - and I'm quite sure that we are home."

[spiritofjustice]

"Hmm. Maybe it's a sign from the gods of justice that we'll save Ms. McGonagall for sure. And then we can go back to Hinoto-Ri as heroes."

How many more steps are still left? About... 800? Damn, this is a long staircase.

[dekillerqueen]

"... The gods of justice?"

What a strange, strange man. And what a long staircase.

"I, for one, would rather have my involvement in this not be widely spoken of."

[spiritofjustice]

You know what? Bobby will just speed up his pace, then. Just a bit.

"Really? A simple baker wouldn't jump at the opportunity to be known as a hero? Thinking like that is what holds people back from reaching their true potential, you know."

[dekillerqueen]

Shelly has no problem keeping up with the pace. Neither the literal one, nor the pace of the conversation.

"No, I'm afraid I'm rather content with my modest way of living. I prefer not to be known by too many, you see."

At least half of what he said is true.

[spiritofjustice]

"Hah. Well... I guess if everyone were a famous hero, the fame would lose its meaning."

And while the Phantom is in agreement that being known by as few people as possible is preferable, Bobby Fulbright is the ambitious sort of man who likes to be known to all as a champion of righteousness. It's a dreadful mix.