686/Phone Call with a Phantom Thief

Phone Call with a Phantom Thief
Date of Scene:	30 October 2023
Location:	Phone Call
Synopsis:	The Princess of Sarek (aka Phone Thief) calls Sailor Moon on a phone she stole from Hematite. It's a phone call between a 12 year old and a 14 year old - so it goes better than could have been expected.
Cast of Characters:	Veronica Perenna, Usagi Tsukino

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Veronica Perenna has posed:
A burner phone isn't the most glamourous thing ever stolen, but the self-professed villain seemed to hold some valuable information, so who knows who exactly he is in contact with.

A search through calls made turned up... 1 phone number. Quite the disappointment, but better than nothing. No doubt whoever is on the other other side will have been warned by Hematite, so Veronica just presses 'call' and sees who answers before saying anything.

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
Usagi Tsukino has been waiting for a phone call. A specific phone call, from a specific thief! So when her phone rings, and the number shows up as That Thief -

"So you've finally called me, phone thief!" Maybe not the most subtle way to start things, but what can she say? She's still really aggravated!

Veronica Perenna has posed:
Of all the voices that could have come out of that phone, Sailor Moon's wasn't anywhere near the top of the list. Well now. The Princess of Sarek blinks at her phone before she remembers to say something.

"Hello, Sailor Moon." Veronica knows the soldier of the moon is specifically on the side of good, so what's her number doing there? Is that Hematite a spy? But why the disregard then? Why call himself a villain?

"It's the Princess of Sarek. Frankly, I did not expect you would have turned up. I was hoping for someone in touch with our enemies' secrets."

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
There is a huff clearly heard through the phone, and Sailor Moon stretches out on her bed, grumpy on all sides. "Is that why you stole Hematite's phone, Sarek-hime? He wasn't going to just give you something with secrets on it, you know."

He's smarter than that! She's still annoyed - but she'll let the Princess of Sarek give answer and explain herself, before just getting mad at her.

Veronica Perenna has posed:
"I had nothing to lose and all to gain", the Princess of Sarek shrugs. "Worst case scenario, I gain nothing and he is only minorly inconvienced, best case scenario I get the number of someone useful. And hey, in a way, that came true. We can coordinate better now I have your number." Truly the picture of positivity.

"With all due respect, Sailor Moon, what kind of person calls themselves a villain, acts like the danger is not an issue, and then doesn't expect people to be suspicious?" That wasn't so smart as far as she was concerned.

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
"I mean, he could have attacked you. That was a thing you stood to lose," Sailor Moon feels compelled to point out. "If he was as bad a villain as you think he could be, he definitely could have just done that."

How is she the one teaching precaution? Something is definitely wrong with the world.

"And from what I heard, he was the only one who was actually helping the victim? So... if anything, it sounds like he took the danger the most seriously. Hematite calls himself a villain so that people can't be upset if he's not on their side. But when someone is helping people, you shouldn't antagonize them."

Veronica Perenna has posed:
"Sailor Moon, you speak like I have no countermeasures", Veronica speaks in a mock-offended tone. "I find it quite hard to attack someone you can't see and with additional defenses on top."

"So that's what he told you. Your friend is quite crafty, I will give him that." Veronica taps on the phone with moderate annoyance. "The Red Puella and I were discussing how to deal with Youkai incidents currently happening all over."

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
"But were you helping the victim right in front of you, or not?" It's a simple question. "Red likes the idea of monsters, and has a lot of questions - I've seen that first hand. So I can really, really easily believe she got distracted by everything going on, instead of handling the situation in the moment."

It's not just that Hematite had told her what happened - it's that it honestly checks out. "He gave you that phone to call emergency services. And I wouldn't underestimate him, if I were you. He has a lot more power than he likes to talk about."

Veronica Perenna has posed:
"They were both the situation in the moment", Veronica points out. "That driver just turned around not to drive over me, from their point of view at least, and that youkai not only never actually got close to them, but it also wasn't there anymore." Why does this have to be so hard? Are they really so friendly with each other she is personally offended?

"If you want, I will apologise to Hematite, but I have already explained why I felt what I did was necessary. I promise I will avoid doubting your friend in the future, for what's worth." She doesn't comment on Hematite having hidden powers, and who would have prevailed. She is 12, she is not in elementary school anymore!

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
"...the people can see youkai."

It's a simple, quiet statement.

"Maybe they wouldn't have before, but they can now. He was being chased by a monster, and he knew that. It wasn't just that he swerved to not hit you - good on him, for doing that, though! It's that... right now, things are pretty bad, between us and the youkai. Keep that in mind, if you see more of them around - the people scared of them know what they'e scared of, even if they forget later."

It's probably annoying a little annoying to be lectured by an older girl. Didn't stop Sailor Moon though!

"You probably don't need to apologize to him," Sailor Moon says with a thoughtful hum, considering once again the matter of Hematite. "Mostly because he just thought it was rude, not some unforgivable sin. Probably. But you can doubt him, he's not someone you can always trust. You just shouldn't steal from someone helping you. An ally for the moment is still an ally."

Veronica Perenna has posed:
Veronica is more confused about why Sailor Moon chose to bring that up, she never thought the driver wasn't aware of the danger, just that that was a problem everywhere that needed fixing.

Still it seems they have reached some sort of understanding, even if being to change how to deal with Hematite essentially based on how he feels like acting on the moment does irk her a little. "Thank you for being frank with me. If there is nothing else you want to talk about, I think we can leave it at that.

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
"Just one more thing - did you take an object from a shrine, some time ago?" It's a total pivot, but, well - she has her reasons for asking. She won't touch on Hematite again.

Veronica Perenna has posed:
An object from a shrine? Does she mean the ward's fan? "Uhm, yes, I did, what about it?" she asks, her voice clearly surprised through the phone's line.

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
"There have been some - other incidents, at shrines. Would you mind letting a friend of mine look it over, sometime?"

Veronica Perenna has posed:
"I could tell you all about it without needing your friend to look it over." She is not sure what kind of friend this one is. "It was my property, I would know all about it." Ok, it wasn't exactly her property, but she is the guardian of the ward now, it may as well be.

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
"...didn't you take it from a villain, who took it from that shrine?" How is that your property?

Veronica Perenna has posed:
"No, the villain brought it to the shrine, it didn't come from there", Veronica corrects her.

"To put it shortly, that fan is a shard of an enchantment that seals four dangerous demons. I am the guardian of that ward, and my duty is gather all the shards again and restore the enchantment to its full strength." Fairly succint, but it's a good summary.

"The villain stole it from the youma I was tracking down that stole it from me, and that's how it ended up at the shrine."

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
"Hmmm... I understand if it was stolen, that you probably don't want to let someone else handle it again. I'm not asking to take it from you - but, especially given it has something to do with demons already, it would be nice if we could check it out, just to make sure they didn't tamper with it. But if you don't want us to, I can't make you."

This was all just a matter of precaution, rather than actual surety, so if the Princess of Sarek absolutely doesn't want to let it be examined - sure, fine. Worse came to worse, Usagi could try her hand at stealing, she guessed.

Veronica Perenna has posed:
They already tampered with it, but Veronica isn't going to tell her that: it would only create needless worry, and she neutralised that already. Moreover turning it back to its primal form would by necessity unveil any more tampering, since it's just unbound energy.

"As long as I dictate how and where it is looked at, I do not mind letting you have a look at it, but understand that if something happens to it, it will be all the worse for everyone, since the ward would end up breaking irreversibly." The same would apply if something happened to Veronica, but she doesn't want to reveal that yet.

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
"I understand. If it looks like something we should definitely explore, I'll ask your permission again, and we'll look carefully with your guidance. I don't know if it's necessary yet - I'm not really leading the investigation - but I figured if we're talking, better to bring it up now so you know why I might ask later, y'know?"

Veronica Perenna has posed:
"I understand, I will send you a message from my actual phone, so you can contact me. See you around, Sailor Moon." Veronica waits for her to close the call at this point. If she doesn't after half a minute, the Princess of Sarek does.

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
"See you around, Princess of Sarek." click! She has ended the call.