Resurgence - Philip and Noriko
Aug. 29th, 2014 04:23 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
om_surge posting in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
om_mainNoriko brings the murders and the associated graffiti to Philip, and he decides to come with.
Noriko left Bigby in the library and pulled her phone out of her pocket, immediately speed-dialing Philip. She was headed at a brisk pace for the teachers' dorms, just in case he was in his room, but what were the chances? Hence calling. What the hell was going on in the streets? Much as she hoped that the graffiti were a coincidence, she couldn't believe it. And certainly couldn't afford to.
"Hi Noriko," Philip said as he answered his phone. He was well settled in to his new room, even after a year and a half rooming with Felix, he hadn't accumulated much by way of things. The biggest difference was the binder of cards displayed out on a bookshelf instead of squirreled away in his closet and he'd splurged on some new bedding. The room still looked barely lived in, there wasn't anything there that couldn't fit in the trunk of a car with space to spare. "What's up?"
"Where are you?" Noriko asked, stopping halfway up the flight of stairs, just in case he wasn't in his room. She'd know in a second, anyway. "I need your help with something."
"New room, 208 West," Philip tossed in the reminder as he locked his laptop. She knew where it was but still. "What kind of help and how far out are you?"
"I'll be there in a minute," Noriko assured him as she got climbing again. Even less than a minute, probably. "Talk to you then." She didn't really want to start explaining out in the hallways.
True to her word, she was knocking on his door less than a minute later, and she nodded at him as he invited her in. "Thanks." He probably knew her well enough by now to know something was definitely up, but she still mostly seemed like her usual self as he closed the door behind her. "Can I use your laptop? To show you something." Bigby had had the right of it; show, don't tell.
Philip frowned but went to unlock his laptop again, opening the 'guest' instance that was almost never used. He watched as she brought the article up and his frown deepened as he scanned the content. "New tags, color matching, the areas are ones we've gone out in. Did you know the victims?" he asked as he turned to look at Noriko. The names weren't familiar to him, but his network out there was still in its infancy.
"The latest victim," Noriko confirmed. "I'm not gonna be grieving for his death. Bigby's looked into it, and it seems like the other guy was the same sort of scum. Preying on street kids." A pause, and, "He just brought this to me."
"Vigilante then," Philip didn't ask her if she knew any more directly, Noriko was a lot of things but the idea of her leaving bodies around? Just... no. "And one that knows you or knows of you. So we're looking at someone you could have run into, how long were you out there again?"
He clamped his mouth shut then and took a deep breath before looking at Noriko. "I'm sorry, my mouth took over and I wasn't thinking. If it bothers you, tell me, alright?"
"There's a reason I came straight to you," Noriko pointed out. She certainly didn't mind the rational line of thinking. On the contrary, she welcomed it. "Two years. I met a lot of people, a lot of them unstable." Hell, she'd been unstable. "I don't know why they're calling out to me. If they are? I don't know why else they'd be leaving my name, if it's even the same person."
"We're going to have to look into it," Philip frowned as he started typing, looking for more information. What the police would release would be thin but it was better than nothing. "Ordinarily, I'd just leave it to the police, but I think that'd be a bad idea in this case."
Noriko agreed, on more than one level. She didn't trust the police, and she was involved in this somehow. Even without the risk of the cops noticing the graffiti and finding their way to her here, she wouldn't trust them to do what was right. Whatever that might end up being. "The last murder is only a few hours old. I'm meeting Bigby in half an... twenty-five minutes," she amended. "Maybe he can pick something up on the scene." It was definitely an invitation for Philip to come with.
"I can drive you. Give me five minutes to change and grab some things." Philip had his own 'uniform' for the trips out with Noriko, very different than his usual style of dress at the school. It was the work of moments to shut his laptop down and lock it again, to grab the nondescript duffle bag out of the bottom of his closet and the battered jeans, t-shirt and combat boots that were that uniform.
"I was hoping you'd say that," Noriko confirmed. "Bottom of the stairs in twenty?" If Bigby was a little early as well, they could be on their way in twenty-five. The sooner the better, as far as Noriko was concerned. And thanks to the Starkphones, they'd be able to do additional research on the road.
"Sounds good, I'll take care of the car too," Philip said as he turned around to start stripping out of his shirt. He'd need to take care of that soon too, he thought, getting something that wasn't connected to the school but there was no time for that now. "Meet you in a few."
"See you then," Noriko agreed, and slipped out the door, more grateful than ever for his pragmatic efficiency. She needed to make a stop by her room as well, and then she could go and try not to pace in the hall, waiting for them.
Noriko left Bigby in the library and pulled her phone out of her pocket, immediately speed-dialing Philip. She was headed at a brisk pace for the teachers' dorms, just in case he was in his room, but what were the chances? Hence calling. What the hell was going on in the streets? Much as she hoped that the graffiti were a coincidence, she couldn't believe it. And certainly couldn't afford to.
"Hi Noriko," Philip said as he answered his phone. He was well settled in to his new room, even after a year and a half rooming with Felix, he hadn't accumulated much by way of things. The biggest difference was the binder of cards displayed out on a bookshelf instead of squirreled away in his closet and he'd splurged on some new bedding. The room still looked barely lived in, there wasn't anything there that couldn't fit in the trunk of a car with space to spare. "What's up?"
"Where are you?" Noriko asked, stopping halfway up the flight of stairs, just in case he wasn't in his room. She'd know in a second, anyway. "I need your help with something."
"New room, 208 West," Philip tossed in the reminder as he locked his laptop. She knew where it was but still. "What kind of help and how far out are you?"
"I'll be there in a minute," Noriko assured him as she got climbing again. Even less than a minute, probably. "Talk to you then." She didn't really want to start explaining out in the hallways.
True to her word, she was knocking on his door less than a minute later, and she nodded at him as he invited her in. "Thanks." He probably knew her well enough by now to know something was definitely up, but she still mostly seemed like her usual self as he closed the door behind her. "Can I use your laptop? To show you something." Bigby had had the right of it; show, don't tell.
Philip frowned but went to unlock his laptop again, opening the 'guest' instance that was almost never used. He watched as she brought the article up and his frown deepened as he scanned the content. "New tags, color matching, the areas are ones we've gone out in. Did you know the victims?" he asked as he turned to look at Noriko. The names weren't familiar to him, but his network out there was still in its infancy.
"The latest victim," Noriko confirmed. "I'm not gonna be grieving for his death. Bigby's looked into it, and it seems like the other guy was the same sort of scum. Preying on street kids." A pause, and, "He just brought this to me."
"Vigilante then," Philip didn't ask her if she knew any more directly, Noriko was a lot of things but the idea of her leaving bodies around? Just... no. "And one that knows you or knows of you. So we're looking at someone you could have run into, how long were you out there again?"
He clamped his mouth shut then and took a deep breath before looking at Noriko. "I'm sorry, my mouth took over and I wasn't thinking. If it bothers you, tell me, alright?"
"There's a reason I came straight to you," Noriko pointed out. She certainly didn't mind the rational line of thinking. On the contrary, she welcomed it. "Two years. I met a lot of people, a lot of them unstable." Hell, she'd been unstable. "I don't know why they're calling out to me. If they are? I don't know why else they'd be leaving my name, if it's even the same person."
"We're going to have to look into it," Philip frowned as he started typing, looking for more information. What the police would release would be thin but it was better than nothing. "Ordinarily, I'd just leave it to the police, but I think that'd be a bad idea in this case."
Noriko agreed, on more than one level. She didn't trust the police, and she was involved in this somehow. Even without the risk of the cops noticing the graffiti and finding their way to her here, she wouldn't trust them to do what was right. Whatever that might end up being. "The last murder is only a few hours old. I'm meeting Bigby in half an... twenty-five minutes," she amended. "Maybe he can pick something up on the scene." It was definitely an invitation for Philip to come with.
"I can drive you. Give me five minutes to change and grab some things." Philip had his own 'uniform' for the trips out with Noriko, very different than his usual style of dress at the school. It was the work of moments to shut his laptop down and lock it again, to grab the nondescript duffle bag out of the bottom of his closet and the battered jeans, t-shirt and combat boots that were that uniform.
"I was hoping you'd say that," Noriko confirmed. "Bottom of the stairs in twenty?" If Bigby was a little early as well, they could be on their way in twenty-five. The sooner the better, as far as Noriko was concerned. And thanks to the Starkphones, they'd be able to do additional research on the road.
"Sounds good, I'll take care of the car too," Philip said as he turned around to start stripping out of his shirt. He'd need to take care of that soon too, he thought, getting something that wasn't connected to the school but there was no time for that now. "Meet you in a few."
"See you then," Noriko agreed, and slipped out the door, more grateful than ever for his pragmatic efficiency. She needed to make a stop by her room as well, and then she could go and try not to pace in the hall, waiting for them.
