Day 56: Main Street (Early Afternoon)

[predictator]

[From here]If Villiers was going to join him, Izaya was going to make the most of the time. He'd mentioned an interesting piece of information just a moment ago, so now was as good a time as any to find out more

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[the_prosecutor]

The investigation was not going well.

After warming up and sharing a meal with Ushiromiya Battler, Edgeworth had immediately taken to Main Street once again, this time with a resolved sense of exploration. If it would take asking every person in town about the institute, he would do it...or so he thought.

There seemed to be a recurring trend after he had made his decision - after striking up a conversation with a local, he was turned away the moment that he so much as brought up the institute - and after a while the small crowds of people walking down the street were ignoring him completely. It wasn't enough that he couldn't get any direct answers; people were outright avoiding him. It occurred to him after a few instances of this that they might have good reason to - the dog tag under his shirt declared him to be a member of some sort of militant group for the insane, and even if he lacked answers as to why and how he had arrived there he could see the local's rationale for avoiding any contact with him.

But that couldn't stop him, of course. Hard as it was to tell which people amongst the crowd were from the institute and which were citizens of Doyleton, he couldn't let the challenge stop him. There was a limited amount of time in order to investigate, he assumed - and he needed every lead he could get in order to build his case and receive anything in the way of answers.

Just as the crowds were beginning to thin completely, Edgeworth was uselessly trying to question a man who appeared to be on his way back to work, and although the conversation wasn't particularly audible to most of the other people walking down the street it was plain that Edgeworth was being disregarded - and even though the prosecutor made a few retreating comments to the man's back it didn't appear to do any good. Frustrated, Edgeworth began to massage his temples with his index and middle fingers as he turned on his heel and began walking the opposite direction. Annoyed as he was, he couldn't allow the emotion to overwhelm him - not when there was still the tiniest chance of finding any answers that might crop up amongst the endless string of dead ends.

[For Anise! ♥]

[gald_digger]

After parting ways with Ilia, Anise had made her way to Tasty Burger, where her coupon was put to use. She ate by a window, looking at the nearby stores and watching people go by.

She couldn't help but notice the man with ash-colored hair trying to get the attention of passers-by; stopping them, asking them questions, and then being left ignored as they walked away. Actually, it was pretty funny to watch. After a while, he was beginning to look frustrated, and Anise was beginning to get curious about what he was trying to do.

Her meal was finished, save for the ice cream cone, which she grabbed and walked out of the restaurant with. She decided she'd eat it outside; a decision she regretted a little once the cold winter air hit her hands and face. It wasn't unbearable though, so she took a few licks to make sure the dessert wouldn't drip on her hands, then skipped over to meet the stranger.

She had to hurry to catch up with him, and once she did, she followed at his side, looking up at the stranger with a playful grin. "What are you doing? It looks like you scared them all off," she teased.

[the_prosecutor]

After nearly a half-hour of consistently receiving the cold shoulder from the locals, Edgeworth was startled by the sudden presence of the young girl, his eyes widening slightly as he dropped his arms to his side. A certain amount of dismay hit him then, the fact that the only people in this town willing to engage him on the streets were apparently young girls (and as helpful as Ema had been, her age and naivete had both made it so that she hadn't exactly been as comforting of a presence as he had wished for), and Edgeworth's features tensed slightly, the corner of his lip twitching as he suppressed a frown at the girl's openly displayed glee at his misfortune.

"They seem to be more in the business of scaring themselves off, it seems," he replied tersely, his gaze holding the girl's teasing expression before he turned away and towards the path before them, determined not to be baited by it. "Are you lost, or have you not been taught to not to speak with strangers?"

[gald_digger]

Normally, Anise might have taken offense to being treated like a little kid, but the fact that she got him twitching like that was funny enough that she couldn't bring herself to get angry just then.

"Hmm... my parents usually taught me the opposite, actually," she replied, bringing a finger to her chin. Anise was the only one in her family who ever questioned the motives of strangers, and sometimes she managed to help her parents avoid trouble... though they'd usually find it again as soon as she turned her back. She knew most kids got taught things like 'don't talk to strangers', and while that was probably better than what her parents taught her, Anise knew that at the institute (and in a lot of other situations), making connections was well worth the risks. Besides, talking to someone wasn't the same as trusting them.

The thoughtful look faded, and her cheerful grin came back. "Anyway, I just thought I'd be a nice person and see if you needed help with something." It was a little obvious that she was more interested in being entertained than helping the stranger, but the offer wasn't necessarily insincere. Anise had a lot of helpful knowledge and skills, after all.

[the_prosecutor]

Rather than take the girl's offer immediately, Edgeworth found himself hesitating, both her age and demeanor leaving him at a roadblock as to whether or not he should even try...but then, she didn't appear to be all that much younger than Ema was, and the institute had seen fit to make a patient out of Ema as well. It was certainly possible that she might know something worth hearing about, but given the amount of people evidently dwelling in the town versus the amount that had departed from the buses...

The silence carried on for a short moment as Edgeworth's thoughts reeled, his brow furrowed lightly in thought as he slowed the pace of their walking. Even if she is merely a child, her attitude isn't exactly one that reflects the personalities of the townspeople here. I have to wonder...

"...right, well, I would venture to say that 'help' would be putting things a bit too lightly, but what I'm mostly after at this point is information," he said, venturing a glance back at the girl. "I've been making inquiries in regards to an institute that I'm...currently researching." It was a vague statement, but a true one. "Unfortunately...it doesn't appear to be a topic up for discussion for most of the people here."

[gald_digger]

Huh. He was being really vague, wasn't he? Maybe he wasn't sure whether Anise was a patient or a resident. With how out-of-place this man was, and the subject of his inquiries, it was obvious to Anise which group he fell into.

"They're probably still bitter about some incident that happened a few weeks ago," she suggested with a shrug, then licked at her ice cream some more. There were a few different versions of that incident floating around as rumors, but Anise knew what really happened. It was kind of weird how the institute went out of their way to make up a story to cover up that disaster. They usually just fixed things up and brainwashed people into forgetting it entirely, didn't they? Then again... that incident was weird in a lot of ways.

"Are you new at the institute?" she asked, her smile softening a little. "I'm Anise. I've been at the institute for longer than most people, so I can probably answer some of your questions!"

She shivered a little then. As sweet and tasty as the ice cream was, it was making the weather even harder to deal with. "Ooh, but it's really cold out here. Why don't you come shopping with me, and I'll tell you everything I know while we're there?" She batted her eyelashes a little, hoping that would help motivate the stranger to agree with her.

[the_prosecutor]

...an incident? Edgeworth thought, his features tensing with curiosity as he filed away the question for a more appropriate time. Anise had pressed on before he could even open his mouth to ask, and she had presented him with a much greater opportunity - he could always inquire further later.

However, Edgeworth's mind turned to the thin credit card in his jacket pocket. He couldn't be sure just how much he had, and he hadn't really intended on wasting a cent...but from the look on Anise's face, he somehow had the feeling that he was going to have to part with at least some of it in order to keep her talking. Why exactly does this remind me of someone...?

Damning the consequences, Edgeworth nodded, his gaze lifting from Anise's face to the stores lining the street. "Very well, if that's what you wish," he reluctantly agreed, his hands slipping inside the pockets of his jacket as he idly fingered his credit card with his right hand. There had been a toy store near the end of the street by the park, if he wasn't mistaken, and he slowed their pace as he glanced behind himself to get his bearings. "Did you have somewhere in mind, Anise?" A thought occurred to him a moment later, and he added, "...and my name is Miles Edgeworth, by the way. You have my gratitude for your assistance."

[gald_digger]

Anise wasn't sure if it was the offer of information or her cuteness that convinced him to agree, but whatever it was, she was satisfied. "Yay!" she cheered, her smile brightening. Anise really did like helping people out... and if helping them led to them helping her farther down the line, then that was just a bonus! He was being so polite to her, too. Could that be a sign of a good upbringing? Hmm...

"Okay, let's try... over there!" she quickly decided, pointing her ice cream cone in the direction of the hardware store. "I bet there's some useful stuff in there." Maybe even things they could make use of during the night shifts! Anise wasn't sure what kinds of things those would be, but she'd have to look and see.

She skipped ahead a few steps, turned around to make sure he was following, then continued to lead the way to the store.

[to here]