Eh, what can I say, I like mystery genre, so I look for mysteries. I watch lots of them, currently Endeavour, Doctor Blake, The Brokenwood Mysteries, Death in Paradise, and Father Brown. A good mystery story is a puzzle combined with slice-of-life, so I guess it's not too surprising I'd be into it.
If Rob doesn't know how to use her, I might as well share what I wrote using Setsuna... the only thing is there's really no context for this scene. I don't know where it's going, or where it's coming from. Just her being mysterious, and apparently needing a detective. We don't have to use it.
Also sorry but I did just read HPMoR, so if it seems a little logicky, well, it's rubbed off on me. It is a show with a summing-up, so it's not OOC or anything.
I'm also liking playing around with the idea that different universes might have had different versions of the same fiction, like the American Sailor Moon in DW2.
If Rob doesn't know how to use her, I might as well share what I wrote using Setsuna... the only thing is there's really no context for this scene. I don't know where it's going, or where it's coming from. Just her being mysterious, and apparently needing a detective. We don't have to use it.
![[+]](/images/collapse_collapsed.png "[+]")
Long scene herein
If you haven't watched *Detective Academy Q*, let me spoiler a few things about the metaplot that won't affect your enjoyment of the individual mysteries at all: Meiousei/Pluto is an evil organization that plans the perfect crime, and then hypnotizes the client who requested the murder into executing them perfectly. Ryuu is a scion expected to be the next leader of the org, so he's going to detective school run by their archrivals to learn how to defeat the law -- but of course he likes being a detective and his friends and is totally obviously not evil (Applicable Tropes: The Lancer, Heel Face Turn, Becoming the Mask, The Unreveal, Blue Oni, Bishonen).
------
The blue-haired young man snuck back around into the alleyway, stepped out of the shadows and confronted a dark-skinned woman.
"You've been following me," Ryuu Amakusa stated plainly, as if it were a simple matter of fact.
For someone so distinctive -- a woman with green hair, olive skin, and the most unusual large red chevrons for earrings -- she had hidden herself very well. Her stealth must have been exceptional. But for a detective in training, a member of the elite Q class at the Dan Detective School, he had noticed her tailing several times.
"I have," she replied, equally cool. "Do come inside." She opened a door in the alley, which led into the back room of a furniture shop. He followed, and the of two them were alone.
"I have tailed many of your clan, you who bear the mark of Pluto."
Shock was starting to show on Ryuu's face. He knew then that she was really good at her tradecraft.
Then, the invisible tattoo on his neck, designed to only be revealed under strong ultraviolet light, shone out from his skin as if it was lit from within. It felt very strange indeed.
"And yet, you are the only one of the lot of them worthy of bearing my mark. Will you serve as my knight, o detective marked by my power?"
Ryuu took a step back from the woman. "Who are you?" he demanded.
Her tone was soft but clear, "Pluto Planet Power. Make-up."
Her entire body began to coruscate, as her clothes melted away. After being briefly shrouded in the mists of time, she emerged wearing a black and white sailor suit with tall boots, and holding a long silver staff with a huge gem on top.
"I am Sailor Pluto, Guardian of Time, Princess of the Ninth World."
Ryuu knew that when you undertook an investigation, you had to begin with all possibilities, and narrow down on the truth. As the adage goes, when you eliminate all other possibilities, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth.
"I'm sorry, may I have a moment to think?"
"Of course."
Sailor Moon was just a faerie story, something that had been told to children since time immemorial. Yet here this woman was, claiming the title of the title of the Princess of the Gate. With a display of power to prove it.
This left only three possibilities:
First, some sort of technology enabled the illusion of magic, and that his senses were tricked. He could see her form more clearly during the transformation. No, there was nothing in her motions that could have led to a magician's clothing change trick. Even with that distraction -- Ryu certainly was not so innocent not to have looked at her (briefly) naked form -- she could not have fully dressed in five seconds. And how could a curtain of steam erupt from a solid concrete floor? Moreover, the room was too well lit for something like a projector to be used, and there was nothing around this room which could serve as a lens. Ryu decided to discount this possibility completely.
Second, that he could not trust his own senses, and was under some form of hypnotism. His training should have allowed him to avoid hypnosis, and to be honest, he couldn't see himself wanting to believe in her. It was too far-fetched.
And who would want him to believe that Sailor Pluto was real, even for a minute? Perhaps someone wanting to expose him as a traitor to his own family. But she had said it right at the beginning, that he was the only one worthy. The only one who would not *murder*, she meant. The one who would stand for justice. But if the questioner knew that much already, why would he be under hypnosis, and not simply six feet under? Perhaps some last-ditch effort to teach the heir of the error of justice, by corrupting his idol or something. As if he were a child. Why not make up a more believable tale with Kyuu or Dan-sensei instead? The same logic applied if it was a bluff to get information. No, this all strained credulity too far. None of his clan would even think of a ploy like this, and he doubted anyone outside Meiousei could. Ryu assigned the second hypothesis a very low probability -- possible, but not plausible.
And third, that this woman was indeed a person of magical power. Because the concept of magic is a total unknown, it's hard to disprove that magic could be an explanation. But sleight of hand could not produce her staff, nor misdirection produce her costume. Her costume of a black-and-white sailor suit with a burgandy ribbon, with a golden tiara and bearing a silver Keyblade-staff -- he did not imagine that could come out of his subconscious. So it remained possible.
So the woman was most likely a wielder of magic, then. Yet extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence. Of course, he then considered all of the other extraordinary evidence lately -- houses appearing overnight where there was once an empty field, streets that didn't connect how you remembered them. Kyuu had noticed all of these too. And of course, the revelation of Academy City.
But was she in fact the Sailor Pluto of myth? How probable was it that one of the Sailor Senshi of the Silver Millennium was still alive past the End, magical or no? As the guardian of time, significantly more probable. And of course there was the prophesy, that the celestial guardians would be reborn at the hour of Japan's greatest need.
If magic was real, one of the rules he had read about was the Law of Contagion. It was true that he was marked with the symbol of Pluto, as were all members of Meiousei. It was intended to mark them as belonging to Pluto for life -- power and intent. And given the concept of Contagion, like power calls to like. So someone associated with the planet Pluto would be most likely to notice him and his family. His tattoo, when it had glowed -- it felt warm, and it felt like a smile from a true friend -- but it also felt powerful. Circumstantial evidence, to be sure, but all together it was enough for the detective.
"You are Sailor Pluto."
She made a small smile.
"About your offer...
"I will not force anything on you. You were not aware of what you were doing. None of you were. So you may walk away, if you wish, and I would not think ill of it. But I have need of you. Will you be my knight, and pledge to uphold justice?"
He wished he could ask Kyuu right now -- he just needed someone he trusted who would make sure he wasn't going crazy. He heard an echo of Kyuu's voice in his head, reiterating Dan-sensei's motto, "If the detective gives up, the mystery will remain forever unsolved." That was always the price of justice.
"You already know my answer, don't you."
"No spoilers," she chided.
"I pledge to serve Sailor Pluto in the pursuit of Justice."
"So mote it be."
She waved the Garnet Rod, and his Pluto tattoo glowed a brilliant fuchsia once again. It shifted from a curved shape, similar to the alchemical symbol for antimony, to an angular one -- ♇, the true symbol of the planet Pluto.
--------
------
The blue-haired young man snuck back around into the alleyway, stepped out of the shadows and confronted a dark-skinned woman.
"You've been following me," Ryuu Amakusa stated plainly, as if it were a simple matter of fact.
For someone so distinctive -- a woman with green hair, olive skin, and the most unusual large red chevrons for earrings -- she had hidden herself very well. Her stealth must have been exceptional. But for a detective in training, a member of the elite Q class at the Dan Detective School, he had noticed her tailing several times.
"I have," she replied, equally cool. "Do come inside." She opened a door in the alley, which led into the back room of a furniture shop. He followed, and the of two them were alone.
"I have tailed many of your clan, you who bear the mark of Pluto."
Shock was starting to show on Ryuu's face. He knew then that she was really good at her tradecraft.
Then, the invisible tattoo on his neck, designed to only be revealed under strong ultraviolet light, shone out from his skin as if it was lit from within. It felt very strange indeed.
"And yet, you are the only one of the lot of them worthy of bearing my mark. Will you serve as my knight, o detective marked by my power?"
Ryuu took a step back from the woman. "Who are you?" he demanded.
Her tone was soft but clear, "Pluto Planet Power. Make-up."
Her entire body began to coruscate, as her clothes melted away. After being briefly shrouded in the mists of time, she emerged wearing a black and white sailor suit with tall boots, and holding a long silver staff with a huge gem on top.
"I am Sailor Pluto, Guardian of Time, Princess of the Ninth World."
Ryuu knew that when you undertook an investigation, you had to begin with all possibilities, and narrow down on the truth. As the adage goes, when you eliminate all other possibilities, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth.
"I'm sorry, may I have a moment to think?"
"Of course."
Sailor Moon was just a faerie story, something that had been told to children since time immemorial. Yet here this woman was, claiming the title of the title of the Princess of the Gate. With a display of power to prove it.
This left only three possibilities:
First, some sort of technology enabled the illusion of magic, and that his senses were tricked. He could see her form more clearly during the transformation. No, there was nothing in her motions that could have led to a magician's clothing change trick. Even with that distraction -- Ryu certainly was not so innocent not to have looked at her (briefly) naked form -- she could not have fully dressed in five seconds. And how could a curtain of steam erupt from a solid concrete floor? Moreover, the room was too well lit for something like a projector to be used, and there was nothing around this room which could serve as a lens. Ryu decided to discount this possibility completely.
Second, that he could not trust his own senses, and was under some form of hypnotism. His training should have allowed him to avoid hypnosis, and to be honest, he couldn't see himself wanting to believe in her. It was too far-fetched.
And who would want him to believe that Sailor Pluto was real, even for a minute? Perhaps someone wanting to expose him as a traitor to his own family. But she had said it right at the beginning, that he was the only one worthy. The only one who would not *murder*, she meant. The one who would stand for justice. But if the questioner knew that much already, why would he be under hypnosis, and not simply six feet under? Perhaps some last-ditch effort to teach the heir of the error of justice, by corrupting his idol or something. As if he were a child. Why not make up a more believable tale with Kyuu or Dan-sensei instead? The same logic applied if it was a bluff to get information. No, this all strained credulity too far. None of his clan would even think of a ploy like this, and he doubted anyone outside Meiousei could. Ryu assigned the second hypothesis a very low probability -- possible, but not plausible.
And third, that this woman was indeed a person of magical power. Because the concept of magic is a total unknown, it's hard to disprove that magic could be an explanation. But sleight of hand could not produce her staff, nor misdirection produce her costume. Her costume of a black-and-white sailor suit with a burgandy ribbon, with a golden tiara and bearing a silver Keyblade-staff -- he did not imagine that could come out of his subconscious. So it remained possible.
So the woman was most likely a wielder of magic, then. Yet extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence. Of course, he then considered all of the other extraordinary evidence lately -- houses appearing overnight where there was once an empty field, streets that didn't connect how you remembered them. Kyuu had noticed all of these too. And of course, the revelation of Academy City.
But was she in fact the Sailor Pluto of myth? How probable was it that one of the Sailor Senshi of the Silver Millennium was still alive past the End, magical or no? As the guardian of time, significantly more probable. And of course there was the prophesy, that the celestial guardians would be reborn at the hour of Japan's greatest need.
If magic was real, one of the rules he had read about was the Law of Contagion. It was true that he was marked with the symbol of Pluto, as were all members of Meiousei. It was intended to mark them as belonging to Pluto for life -- power and intent. And given the concept of Contagion, like power calls to like. So someone associated with the planet Pluto would be most likely to notice him and his family. His tattoo, when it had glowed -- it felt warm, and it felt like a smile from a true friend -- but it also felt powerful. Circumstantial evidence, to be sure, but all together it was enough for the detective.
"You are Sailor Pluto."
She made a small smile.
"About your offer...
"I will not force anything on you. You were not aware of what you were doing. None of you were. So you may walk away, if you wish, and I would not think ill of it. But I have need of you. Will you be my knight, and pledge to uphold justice?"
He wished he could ask Kyuu right now -- he just needed someone he trusted who would make sure he wasn't going crazy. He heard an echo of Kyuu's voice in his head, reiterating Dan-sensei's motto, "If the detective gives up, the mystery will remain forever unsolved." That was always the price of justice.
"You already know my answer, don't you."
"No spoilers," she chided.
"I pledge to serve Sailor Pluto in the pursuit of Justice."
"So mote it be."
She waved the Garnet Rod, and his Pluto tattoo glowed a brilliant fuchsia once again. It shifted from a curved shape, similar to the alchemical symbol for antimony, to an angular one -- ♇, the true symbol of the planet Pluto.
--------
I'm also liking playing around with the idea that different universes might have had different versions of the same fiction, like the American Sailor Moon in DW2.
"Kitto daijoubu da yo." - Sakura Kinomoto