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[lakebrat]

Hello. You've reached Goro Akechi, known as Frog. Please leave a message.

[Beep.]

[[ooc: WARNING that threads with willowandoak may contain unmarked NSFW. Tread lightly. Blame Sunflowren.]]

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[lakebrat]

And it doesn't take long for Frog to appear, with a weird, shadowed little smile as he opens the unlatched door.

"You're strange. Knocking on a café door?" But come in all the same, Crow.

[fogbornphantom]

"I didn't want to walk in at an awkward moment." Shrugging, Crow steps inside and settles at his favorite place at the bar.

[lakebrat]

And Goro follows behind, taking up his accustomed place behind the counter. Of new Ren and Morgana, there is no sign. "Coffee?"

He has quite the knack for it by now, as should be no surprise.

[fogbornphantom]

"So long as it's not too much trouble." Though, obviously, Frog wouldn't have offered if it was, it's still a matter of courtesy.

[lakebrat]

"I work here," he says, grin not touching his eyes. "If I don't keep it up, Boss will kill me when I go back. You know how it is."

He turns to the jars. "How about the kopi luwak? Since it's all free."

Yes, he's teasing about the civet coffee. Unless Crow is feeling brave.

[fogbornphantom]

"Hmm... If you feel so bold. Otherwise, the house blend is fine." It's really a test to see how serious Frog is, a playful smirk crossing his lips.

[lakebrat]

What, really? Goro glances back, as a little more life enters his eyes. "Kopi luwak it is."

He brings the jar down, puts on his green apron, and starts weighing out the beans, just as Crow may have seen his Ren do in the past. "You know, we have a regular who orders this every time. Such a poser."

Of course, they aren't here to make small talk. He knows that. His eyes dim again, looking at the scale.

[fogbornphantom]

"Are you saying that I'm a poser?" My, my. Such a bold proclamation, Frog. At least there's a sort of playful bounce to his words.

[lakebrat]

"Not unless you start going on about your film blog. Then I reserve the right to judge you accordingly."

He picks up the grinder, with a practiced hand; his smile fades. "But you didn't come here to talk shop. Or only in the most immediate sense. How'd you get the keywords?"

And he turns the handle. The grinder's remarkably quiet, all things considered.

[fogbornphantom]

"Falcon messaged me after messaging Raven about the matter. We speculated and hypothesized, and I stumbled into the keywords purely by chance with a recollection I had."

He folds his hands atop the bar, exhaling softly. "Essentially, your Ren spent some time living within Mementos. It made me ponder if Mementos had become a sort of home to him and, well... Everything fell into place."

[lakebrat]

His hand stills on the grinder. "That was how I got it, too. I didn't know he'd lived there here, though I suppose it isn't much of a surprise.

"Spent a hell of a time trying to work it out, too. He was registered in the app even before his Palace formed, you know." The rich, slightly fragrant smell of coffee fills the air as he finishes up the grind.

[fogbornphantom]

"I suppose in hindsight, I should have expected nothing less. What we talked about before very much applies." The fallout from him becoming a child and everything that's come since...

The smell of coffee grains is certainly a grounding one, pun not intended, though he makes no effort to mask his unease.

[lakebrat]

He can't help but nod. If there was anyone, at all, who shouldn't have been left alone for six months with their own thoughts....

"Glitch knows. The Futaba-san who goes by Glitch. She scouted the Palace with me." Futaba Akechi, of course, with everything else Crow knows about her. "And the Amamiya-san who lives here—and Phoenix knows. I'd say they're the beginning of my team—with you and Falcon, too, if you'd like to join."

He takes up the kettle, adding a drop of tap water to heat for the filter paper.

[fogbornphantom]

"If I go, there's a very high likelihood that my boyfriend and Magpie will want to go. I doubt the former will be a problem, since he's friends with your Ren, but..." A dark look crosses Crow's face. He doubts Frog has the highest opinion of Magpie even now. "Well, considering the hand Magpie likely had in all of this, perhaps it would be for the best."

[lakebrat]

Yeah, that... yeah. Goro's nose wrinkles as if he smells something bad; he's already been exposed to enough of Magpie's so-called navigation to last a lifetime.

"Do you really think it's wise for Magpie, of all people, to enter Ren's Palace? I don't deny there are issues unresolved there, but...." Really, there are so many ways that could go wrong.

[fogbornphantom]

"I won't deny that there are risks involved, but I also believe that if we break into smaller parties, we may cover more ground. To that end, I fully suspect Magpie would want to stick by my side. He would be my business, not yours, in such a case."

But despite his words, Crow's voice remains calm. Subdued, even. He isn't married to the idea, at least.

[lakebrat]

"You're... not wrong." God, he can see the tactical advantages of a larger party at least, just as he can see that Magpie isn't bad at what he does—just bad at being a human being.

Fortunately, the kettle begins to chatter, and he starts to moisten the filter he's been folding. "One of the things that became clear in there was that the Palace is split into multiple wings. If we had enough small teams, and if they were strong enough, we'd cover all of that faster.

"Did Futaba have a Palace, in your world?" The water soaks into the paper so easily, rinsing it through so it clings to its funnel. Like the dye Magpie was dipped in, that he seems to cling to despite everything. Just like Ren.

[fogbornphantom]

"No. Her mother did, however, albeit due to circumstances outside of her control." Crow watches as his counterpart works through the coffee. It's always a fascinating sight to see a more complex methodology at play, compared to the instant blends Dojima utilizes. "I'm... not surprised to hear that her having a Palace is somewhat commonplace, however. My world is an anomaly where Isshiki-san's fate is concerned."

[lakebrat]

But his face closes. Based on what he's heard from Futaba herself, from Sojiro—Wakaba Isshiki doesn't sound like someone who would have had a Palace. But how can he tell? "I suppose there's no way for me to tell whether Wakaba Isshiki-san had a Palace. I mean, short of asking someone who saw it."

He empties the filter water away, sets more to boil, grits his teeth. Short of asking Ren, that is. His hand clenches into a fist as he stares down at the hotplate. "Futaba's Palace was separated into wings, effectively. In that case, each had to be traversed in order—there were messages we had to uncover, and so we couldn't proceed until we cleared each one, you see?

"Ren's Palace, though, appears to have multiple accessible wings. A large enough team could clear them simultaneously. Assuming they survived entering the main building, that is." And he switches the hotplate back on, with an annoyed little click.

[fogbornphantom]

"In all fairness, the Palace she formed was not by ordinary circumstances. It was a result of damage dealt to her by Maruki." Why it happened is something he still hasn't fully grasped. He'd meant to ask her before his arrival here, but now it's on hold.

Nonetheless, Crow watches and listens as Frog delivers his explanation. "So at the very least, we won't be gated or forced to go through them in a specific order. However, I take it that the enemies within said Palace are rather intimidating?"

[lakebrat]

And he stills again, halfway through tapping the grounds into the filter. That moment of terror as he landed on the Palace floor is written on his face. "Extremely."

Quickly, he forces his hands back into motion; the last of the grounds settle into the filter, and he sets the whole thing on the scale. His voice brightens, though not enough. "Of course, with you and the others there, I'm sure they won't pose any problem."

Damn it, he thinks, levelling the grounds and not meeting Crow's eye. He couldn't be more obviously not okay if he spelled it out in skywriting.

[fogbornphantom]

"If it's any consolation, I have a rather robust collection of Personas, many of whom lack any tangible weaknesses. Alice can eradicate anything that isn't immune to curse without any SP drain, Helel is an immensely devastating almighty user, and I've got a great deal of elemental coverage across my collection of Personas."

Crow continues to observe. The lack of eye contact is rather telling, but far be it from him to call attention to it. Some things really are better left unsaid.

[lakebrat]

"If Lancelot ever brings out an army of bears, I'll know I've truly crossed to the dark side," he murmurs to the hotplate, left momentarily with nothing to do but talk.

"What about Falcon? What's his position on all this?" Because based on the little Goro knows, he'd guess Falcon has strong opinions.

[fogbornphantom]

Ah, of course. A deep sigh escapes Crow, and he slumps over the bar. "Falcon doesn't trust me, and I can't exactly blame him. He is adamant that we tell Ren of the Palace and our intentions to help him and do not change his heart. Which is fine by me. I wouldn't want to force such a change upon him in the first place."

[lakebrat]

Yeah, Goro expected that. And who's going to look Ren in the face, and tell him what they plan? The idea turns his stomach; it tastes like acid. He'd almost rather face the police in Niijima's Palace.

Fortunately, the kettle begins to chatter on the hotplate; he lifts it for the bloom pour, resting one hand on the lid. "It's funny, you know. A crow and a frog. If the metaphor held, you should be eating me."