[It's just something that he feels Souji could better explain than he could.]
No, it's fine. Teddie kind of found out things about himself at the same time we did, so I don't think he'd mind if I answered your question.
[Actually, Teddie would mind but that was more because Yosuke was sure he'd yell at Yosuke for probably not telling her how handsome he was or something ridiculous like that.]
Something I always found interesting about shadows is that they reflected repressed emotions or experiences that were buried away with someone. I would imagine this is why many of the shadows that we encountered had such a negative reaction to humanity, because they saw other Persona users as enemies or were themselves fragments of naked hostility.
That being said, it sounds to me like your Teddie was in stark contrast to that. That somehow he expressed repressed kindness and generosity. From how you described him, he had some serious concerns about your safety... or perhaps he was simply trying to protect his metaspace and was "pushy." Regardless, he did not seem to view humans as hostile, and was even helpful on multiple occasions.
This may be an impossible question to answer, but do you think that might be the case? That he was somehow a reflection of humanity's desire to be good?
[He looked down at the table in thought, a hand to his chin.]
But the TV World was apparently really peaceful before, according to him. And that the Shadows weren't always so hostile, not until the fog happened anyway. Once that all cleared up, supposedly all the Shadows would be calm again or something? It was a really pretty place once it went back to normal, anyway.
Then again... He's also the only Shadow I've seen who looks like him. The Shadows are normally pretty gross looking and sounding. He just looks like a mascot you'd find at a store, you know?
There's honestly a lot about the TV World that I don't think we'll ever fully understand, Teddie is part of that. [This was something he wasn't sure he should mention, but his lips thinned to a line as he sighed through his nose.] The thing is... he's a Shadow who had a Shadow much like we did. He gained his Persona through that as well. Everything about him is like an exception to the rule when it comes to how all this stuff works.
So it's hard to figure out if he's really just some kind of anomaly or if he's, as you're proposing, some sort of reflection on humanity.
Yeah, we learned that a long time ago. It sounds concerning when telling people he's a Shadow but I promise, it's mostly harmless. If he ever does show up, the only thing I would really need to warn you about is that he's an impossible flirt.
[He actually didn't have too many photos of Teddie on his old phone and he didn't transfer any of it to his new device yet. So he pulled out the group photo that they all had a copy of and pointed to Teddie.]
[Well that's certainly a reaction he doesn't normally get. Everyone just usually laughs at him or teases him further. So there's a bewildered stare to her bewildered stare.]
[He sighed heavily, flushing lightly in embarrassment.]
N-No, it's my fault. I overreacted. I kind of have a tendency to do that? Anyone of the IT can tell you.
[He laughs a little, self-deprecatingly.]
Teddie and I actually bicker a lot, I'm constantly having to deal with his antics and he's worse than me about saying shit out loud you shouldn't say. But I guess you're right in that he is like a little brother. We argue enough to have that kind of relationship, anyway. And it'd really suck if anything happened to him. He disappeared once before and I was worried sick, I mean we all were but...
[He does like Teddie and considers him family. So having his room empty for over a week without Teddie's usual presence was harder than he'd like to admit.]
Just... don't tell Teddie or any of the others I said this, I'll never heard the end of it!
[She looks at him, a heavy smile on her face. She wonders if this is the type of view Sae has of her, while never actually articulating it.]
I had no intention to.
[She... fumbles in her purse a moment, and reconsiders even pulling it out. But considering just how she had been privy to some pretty deep secrets of other members of the various groups, felt like it was only fair.]
[She pulls out her phone and scrolls to a picture of a young adult. She is looking stern at the camera, and cuts a severe image.]
My older sister. I... until recently, we had a complicated relationship.
[She forces a smile.] I guess I can't help but think that she sees me in the same way you do Teddie.
[Wow, she definitely did cut a severe image. She was beautiful though, too. Makoto and Sae both were, to be honest. But now wasn't the time to say that out loud.]
Uh... I dunno about complicated? Can I ask how Sae sees you? Ted can be annoying, but... I mean, it's more that he's really is like a child. He looks maybe a few years younger than us, but he's got the mentality of a kid. So, I get frustrated, I'm not used to having a kid brother around.
[He rubs his cheek in thought. He hoped he wasn't giving Makoto a bad impression because of this. But he also didn't know what was "complicated" with her and Sae, so.]
[She frowns and looks downcast. What is there to say...? What could she say?]
About four years ago... my father died...
I was fourteen at the time and the only family I had was Sae... She just passed the exam to become a public prosecutor. I was really proud for her, but... there was debts, and I had just entered high school...
She worked hard to keep us together. To take care of me.
Too hard.
[Her eyes close.] I'm sorry. I don't want to talk about this further. Things... are better now. We're better now.
[She smiles at Yosuke. The smile is real, but talking about this had still taken its toll.]
No! No, it's okay, I get it. Don't worry, you don't need to keep talking about it.
[That really did sound tough, so he can only imagine how hard it was to talk about even now. He felt bad for even asking, but she was smiling at him, so it didn't seem like she was holding it against him.]
I'm glad things are better now, though. I guess I can kind of see what you mean about complicated but... I guess I didn't paint a very good picture.
Trust me, we bicker a lot but that's all it really is. Other times, he's helping me at Junes or he's dragging me downstairs to watch some movie marathon.
[She smiles. You should enjoy those moments when you can, Yosuke. You never know when the life you live is not longer possible.]
That sounds fun. And a little frustrating. Still...
...it sounds nice.
[This was one of the biggest reasons she didn't sweat the everyday bullshit and the friendly needling. At the end of the day she is happy that she found a home. She found her family.]
Well, I want to thank you for helping me with information of Teddie. I don't think I'll be able to come up with any more questions until he shows up.
[She pauses, looking up to the sky.] Frog, a question. And do not worry, I have no intention of telling anybody else.
I live alone right now and I've grown used to him being around, so I miss him. I'm glad I have the others with me, but there is that little something missing. That being said, he's not... he doesn't really have the emotional maturity for this place. Like I said, he really is like a kid sometimes, he wouldn't understand what this place would ask of him, I think and I think it'd be a helluva crash course.
[And he wouldn't be able to hide that either. Sure, he could tell Teddie that all he needed to do was cuddle or "smooch" or something. But whose to say he wouldn't come across someone who wanted more than that? Teddie didn't know this stuff, it wasn't something that had come up for Yosuke to explain and his own parents sure as hell didn't give Teddie "The Talk" yet.]
If I wanted to give Teddie that Talk, this is not the place I'd want to do it.
[She nods, and is satisfied. She can understand that hesitation.]
Right. The physical requirements of Chroma may be overwhelming to someone not accustomed to its generation. And I imagine as a shadow he may think he knows what intimacy is but not what it actually entails.
[She chuckles gently.] You're a good older brother.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
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[It's just something that he feels Souji could better explain than he could.]
No, it's fine. Teddie kind of found out things about himself at the same time we did, so I don't think he'd mind if I answered your question.
[Actually, Teddie would mind but that was more because Yosuke was sure he'd yell at Yosuke for probably not telling her how handsome he was or something ridiculous like that.]
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That being said, it sounds to me like your Teddie was in stark contrast to that. That somehow he expressed repressed kindness and generosity. From how you described him, he had some serious concerns about your safety... or perhaps he was simply trying to protect his metaspace and was "pushy." Regardless, he did not seem to view humans as hostile, and was even helpful on multiple occasions.
This may be an impossible question to answer, but do you think that might be the case? That he was somehow a reflection of humanity's desire to be good?
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[He looked down at the table in thought, a hand to his chin.]
But the TV World was apparently really peaceful before, according to him. And that the Shadows weren't always so hostile, not until the fog happened anyway. Once that all cleared up, supposedly all the Shadows would be calm again or something? It was a really pretty place once it went back to normal, anyway.
Then again... He's also the only Shadow I've seen who looks like him. The Shadows are normally pretty gross looking and sounding. He just looks like a mascot you'd find at a store, you know?
There's honestly a lot about the TV World that I don't think we'll ever fully understand, Teddie is part of that. [This was something he wasn't sure he should mention, but his lips thinned to a line as he sighed through his nose.] The thing is... he's a Shadow who had a Shadow much like we did. He gained his Persona through that as well. Everything about him is like an exception to the rule when it comes to how all this stuff works.
So it's hard to figure out if he's really just some kind of anomaly or if he's, as you're proposing, some sort of reflection on humanity.
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I wonder what happened to cause it to change... though a part of me is afraid that I already know the answer.
[Her eyes furrow at that last one.] A shadow of a shadow. A reflection of a reflection. I...
...
I think I see what your group means when you say Teddie defies explanation.
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Yeah, we learned that a long time ago. It sounds concerning when telling people he's a Shadow but I promise, it's mostly harmless. If he ever does show up, the only thing I would really need to warn you about is that he's an impossible flirt.
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[If one listens really carefully, you could almost hear her lofty perception of Teddie shatter.]
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Yup. He will try to flirt with you if he comes here and you meet him. Just tell him no.
[Sorry not sorry, Teddie.]
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I... see...
Thank you for the warning...
[She's image-conscious, but not really one that is used to flirts. Those were more for cute and hot girls like Haru and Ann.]
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You don't need to worry too much about it, like I said, he's harmless. Especially when he's outta that bear suit.
[He's so much smaller and easier to drag off, that's for sure.]
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[He actually didn't have too many photos of Teddie on his old phone and he didn't transfer any of it to his new device yet. So he pulled out the group photo that they all had a copy of and pointed to Teddie.]
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...this is the human form that he created?
He looks a little like you... like a brother, perhaps...
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[He can't help the face he makes.]
He looks nothing like me!
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[That reaction took her off guard.]
[She recoils, giving him a bewildered stare.]
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...uh, s-sorry?
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And you two seemed rather close... you spoke very fondly of him... I just assumed...
[Fumble fumble...]
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[He sighed heavily, flushing lightly in embarrassment.]
N-No, it's my fault. I overreacted. I kind of have a tendency to do that? Anyone of the IT can tell you.
[He laughs a little, self-deprecatingly.]
Teddie and I actually bicker a lot, I'm constantly having to deal with his antics and he's worse than me about saying shit out loud you shouldn't say. But I guess you're right in that he is like a little brother. We argue enough to have that kind of relationship, anyway. And it'd really suck if anything happened to him. He disappeared once before and I was worried sick, I mean we all were but...
[He does like Teddie and considers him family. So having his room empty for over a week without Teddie's usual presence was harder than he'd like to admit.]
Just... don't tell Teddie or any of the others I said this, I'll never heard the end of it!
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I had no intention to.
[She... fumbles in her purse a moment, and reconsiders even pulling it out. But considering just how she had been privy to some pretty deep secrets of other members of the various groups, felt like it was only fair.]
[She pulls out her phone and scrolls to a picture of a young adult. She is looking stern at the camera, and cuts a severe image.]
My older sister. I... until recently, we had a complicated relationship.
[She forces a smile.] I guess I can't help but think that she sees me in the same way you do Teddie.
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Uh... I dunno about complicated? Can I ask how Sae sees you? Ted can be annoying, but... I mean, it's more that he's really is like a child. He looks maybe a few years younger than us, but he's got the mentality of a kid. So, I get frustrated, I'm not used to having a kid brother around.
[He rubs his cheek in thought. He hoped he wasn't giving Makoto a bad impression because of this. But he also didn't know what was "complicated" with her and Sae, so.]
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About four years ago... my father died...
I was fourteen at the time and the only family I had was Sae... She just passed the exam to become a public prosecutor. I was really proud for her, but... there was debts, and I had just entered high school...
She worked hard to keep us together. To take care of me.
Too hard.
[Her eyes close.] I'm sorry. I don't want to talk about this further. Things... are better now. We're better now.
[She smiles at Yosuke. The smile is real, but talking about this had still taken its toll.]
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[That really did sound tough, so he can only imagine how hard it was to talk about even now. He felt bad for even asking, but she was smiling at him, so it didn't seem like she was holding it against him.]
I'm glad things are better now, though. I guess I can kind of see what you mean about complicated but... I guess I didn't paint a very good picture.
Trust me, we bicker a lot but that's all it really is. Other times, he's helping me at Junes or he's dragging me downstairs to watch some movie marathon.
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That sounds fun. And a little frustrating. Still...
...it sounds nice.
[This was one of the biggest reasons she didn't sweat the everyday bullshit and the friendly needling. At the end of the day she is happy that she found a home. She found her family.]
Well, I want to thank you for helping me with information of Teddie. I don't think I'll be able to come up with any more questions until he shows up.
[She pauses, looking up to the sky.] Frog, a question. And do not worry, I have no intention of telling anybody else.
Would you want Teddie to appear in Prismatica?
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[That's a tough question and he winces slightly.]
Yes... and no.
I live alone right now and I've grown used to him being around, so I miss him. I'm glad I have the others with me, but there is that little something missing. That being said, he's not... he doesn't really have the emotional maturity for this place. Like I said, he really is like a kid sometimes, he wouldn't understand what this place would ask of him, I think and I think it'd be a helluva crash course.
[And he wouldn't be able to hide that either. Sure, he could tell Teddie that all he needed to do was cuddle or "smooch" or something. But whose to say he wouldn't come across someone who wanted more than that? Teddie didn't know this stuff, it wasn't something that had come up for Yosuke to explain and his own parents sure as hell didn't give Teddie "The Talk" yet.]
If I wanted to give Teddie that Talk, this is not the place I'd want to do it.
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Right. The physical requirements of Chroma may be overwhelming to someone not accustomed to its generation. And I imagine as a shadow he may think he knows what intimacy is but not what it actually entails.
[She chuckles gently.] You're a good older brother.
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[He was prepared for that though and he flushes a bit.]
A-Ah... I dunno 'bout that. But, um, thanks.
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