Difference between revisions of "Naomi Suzuno/Connections"

***Handsome, charming, and debonair, Akatsuki by all rights appears to be just the sort of young man Naomi would inevitably get along with....and she does. While their relationship is largely founded on witticisms, banter, and the occasional errant plans to run away together to give the paparazzi something to write about, it has taken a more serious note most recently when a random phone call done at Tohya's behest revealed that they had more in common that they thought initially. Their relationship has deepened after the Ball where he took it upon himself to keep her mind off of her confrontation with Seiichi Miyamoto, and then later visiting her at her home to ensure that she was alright. This continued to develop, almost to an exponential degree, especially after a reckless attempt to get in touch with Shinjiro Aragaki (which succeeded) caused Akatsuki to actually lose his temper and give her a good shaking and talking-to. Shocked by the intensity of his dismay and affection, for once in her life, Naomi actually apologizes to him for a ''successful'' plan....which has never happened to her before. His kidnapping by the hands of [[Rena Kinukasa]] has revealed for the first time a darker side to the Sumaru ojou, the part of her that is dangerously motivated by a relentless love coupled by a debilitating fear of loss. He has revealed to her and others that he is currently dating [[Daiya Kagami]], and while nice enough, Naomi does not believe that her current Vice President is a good "fit" for Akatsuki. However, she has resigned herself to wish him the best despite her misgivings.

***A senior in Seven Sisters High School, Tohya counts for one of the first people Naomi met in her first few days as a new transferee. While she fostered a reputation for being intimidating, Naomi managed to somehow get along well with her and addresses her as "Kidzuki-senpai." A bit of a mentor in the ways of the supernatural, Tohya was instrumental in Naomi's continued education regarding her Persona's talents and abilities, having offered herself up to be her "spotter" to ensure that she didn't bite off more than she could chew. In that regard, Naomi accords Tohya with the courtesy and respect that she believes the senior is entitled to. Recently, she explained a few things to Naomi that motivated her to join KNOWS. So far, she is the only one who has seen her residence and had the occasion to meet the most important person in Naomi's life; her father, who promptly invited her to stay for dinner. Tohya has confided many things to Naomi, and in return, Naomi has let her in on aspects of her life she has never told anyone before, marking the gray-eyed girl as the heiress's closest friend. It is as if Akatsuki's kidnapping had opened the floodgates as far as Naomi's protectiveness is concerned, and this is especially true for Tohya, who Naomi tends to tunnel-vision over whenever she is in danger. She will do anything; charge into a dangerous situation, cut through her greatest weaknesses, and destroy everything in her path to get to her...so much that another friend, Himeru Namikawa, has observed that the depth of Naomi's bond with Tohya runs so deeply that she has never seen anything like it before, and that it was both terrifying and enviable. She tells Tohya almost everything, the only other person she confides in more is her own father, Miles Spencer. She is also one of the very few people around who is acquainted with Tohya's other "facets" after her discovery that her best friend is compatible with the DVA System. Naomi can tell them apart and knows each of them by name. While in Hong Kong during Golden Week and knowing that Tohya missed her family, Naomi filmed a video of her touring around the city-state so she could send it to her parents, who are currently in a secured location for their protection.

***A senior in Seven Sisters High School, Naomi met Miwa the same time she met Tohya. She occupies the first chair cello in the Music Club, and encouraged Naomi to join. They have plenty in common; gentle mannerisms, fondness for classical music and a certain love for fashion among the foremost of these, albeit their similarities were hinted at to run deeper than that. Naomi regards Miwa as one of the most beautiful people she has ever met, in looks and demeanor. Things have changed between them after the annual Christmas Ball, where she expressed her genuine regard for Miwa through her present and has asked her senior to call her by her given name. She also notably wore Miwa's present, a purple tatted bracelet, the moment she received it during the party - especially since it matched her dress! Recent discussions have revealed to Naomi the depth of Miwa's concerns regarding her and Tohya's affiliation with KNOWS, and after a heartfelt discussion, Naomi has asked Miwa to speak up her mind a little more, and that she prefers that Miwa do this more often. In the heiress's eyes, Miwa embodies most of the innocence and purity of spirit that Naomi feels that she has lost, and deep in her heart of hearts, she would like to see Miwa keep it and would do almost anything to ensure that she does. Miwa is the only person in her group of friends with whom she has talked in-depth about her mother, Midori Suzuno, a subject that rarely ever comes up. She has given Miwa an orchid from her mother's greenhouse as a housewarming present.

***A chance encounter during Port Island's 25th hour had Naomi running into Himeru in the most unfortunate and surreal of circumstances. Her first, true exposure to the world of Persona-users and the Supernatural, she and this austere, first year Gekkoukan student have run into one another several times since then, and most recently, were trapped in Mikage-cho together. After a few shared meals, conversations, and texts, despite being in opposite sides of the hellish dimension, Naomi and Himeru managed to keep in contact with one another, sharing information and trading a few shards of encouragement along the way. She is one of the few people in her life who shares Naomi's formal and precisely enunciated speech patterns and in that alone, some would say it was almost inevitable that the two of them would strike a friendship...and one built out of the deeper and more concrete foundations of trust. Despite appearances, especially during the Tartarus incident in which KNOWS, SEES, and SEES allies confronted one another, Himeru and Naomi continue to get along despite the grievous injuries the former has inflicted on her, and some would say their friendship has only deepened as opposed to devolved after the fight. While she does not know the whole story, Naomi knows a bit about Himeru's own, tragic past, and is rather certain that the circumstances around her sister's death is something that profoundly caused Himeru to become the way she is. Naomi is the first person Himeru has invited into her home in a very long time, a gesture that touched the heiress beyond words, and after the younger girl's confession regarding what she saw between the Shinsengumi members during the DVA debacle, Naomi shattered Himeru's conceptions of her by detailing some of her own troubles, and that rising above them is possible to prevent oneself from becoming an empty vessel. While done out of her genuine desire to bolster Himeru, even Naomi does not realize herself just how close her friend was to the brink and that her words may have more of an effect than she herself knows. Remembering their heart-to-heart, Naomi used the recently re-appropriated ''Argo'' to take Himeru to a place where she could view a meteor shower and in where she could make as many wishes as she wants. This is the only time she has seen Himeru cry, and not out of sadness.

***Given his infamy and absurd levels of popularity, the first moment she met him, Naomi anticipated that she would never speak to him again after that. Proven wrong after a random encounter on the street, and then later at a surprise visit by the young man at her home (much to the chagrin and paranoia of her butler) intent to speak to her about some very important things, she has recently discovered that their very obvious differences are offset by their more elusive similarities. Tatsuya has exhibited an inordinate ability to consistently surprise her and in turn, she has displayed a certain adeptness in effortlessly cracking through his stoic shell. Naomi may be one of the very few people in Sumaru who has actually heard him crack a joke, seen him smile, and heard him laugh. Out of all of Naomi's acquaintances, Tohya is the only person who is closer to her than Tatsuya is, especially after a quiet conversation regarding his disgraced family as well as the original reason why he started withdrawing away from others, which also happens to be the same incident which solidified his fearsome reputation in Sevens and the rest of the city. While Naomi normally does not offer up information about herself unless asked, an excursion in an abandoned hospital to save a boy from a rumor-produced demon has her breaking that personal rule to Tatsuya (who surprisingly noticed this propensity of hers), and not only regarding herself but also a bit about her butler, Robin. Since then, they have been thrown together repeatedly in a variety of situations with an increasing level of regularity to the point that they could move cohesively in perilous situations without prior communication or planning. Naomi has grown to care for Tatsuya deeply, and is normally strained by her efforts to keep the true depths of her affections a secret and unknown to him due to her current circumstances and her worries of being "lumped in" with the rest of his crazy admirers. It frightens her a great deal whenever he tells her he would protect her, a promise he's made repeatedly, because of what happened to her mother in the crash. She continuously tries to be as  best of a friend and partner to him as she's able (even if it means butting heads with him heatedly) and despite rampant word of his involvement with [[Lisa Silverman]], she has promised to celebrate his upcoming birthday with him.  

***In many ways, her friend Miwa's dark counterpart (though she has absolutely no idea that this is the case), Naomi first met Dona in the aftermath of the Mikage-cho incident where her strange, fellow second year asked about a mirror. Despite her less-than-stellar reputation around Sevens Sisters High School, Dona's misanthropy tends to lessen while she's around Naomi, who makes the time and effort to reach out to her due to her own nature and further encouraged to do so by the advice of [[Dona Kimura|Daiya Kagami]], a third year in the same school who has displayed some interest in Dona's welfare. Like with most of her friends, Naomi tries to keep Dona out of trouble, though this does not always work. A conversation has revealed that Dona knows about Miles Spencer's temperament, and how he seems to be a stand-up individual; a statement that earned Naomi's curiosity considering as far as she knows, her classmate has never met her father. Or has she? Dona has recently worked with her and Tohya to break the mirror curse that she has placed on Tohya, and did a considerable amount of research on the Clocktower ghost at Naomi's behest. As the young occultist slowly opens up to the world around her, Naomi continues to encourage her reconnection with fellow human beings. It has become a tradition for her to give Dona something from her travels, to give her a piece of the more exotic places she has visited.

***Once upon a time, there were two princesses who spent most of their early childhood together. Some would say that Mitsuru was the first "real" friend Naomi has ever made in her life, and vice-versa. They went to the same educational institutions, rubbed elbows with the same elitist constituents... they were even in fencing club together when they were old enough to wield foils safely. Naomi made her laugh, while Mitsuru did her best to encourage Naomi's independent streak (within reason) and dragged her to every high-class French restaurant within ready access. With tragedies assailing both Kirijo and Spencer families within precious few years of each other, the two girls have fallen out of touch, but never forgot one another. Now, with Mitsuru being the figurehead of SEES, and Naomi being a high-ranking member of KNOWS's Daybreak Squad, will their fondest memories of one another survive the strain of being on the opposite sides of the line? Covertly, they have been seeing more of one another lately, in hopes of rekindling the degree of sisterhood they have lost. Her recent departure from KNOWS has only steamrolled the re-development of their lost kinship, culminating into a night of drunken shenanigans in Tokyo and later on an impromptu sleepover at Naomi's penthouse. While Mitsuru still considers Naomi as one of her kouhais (and in fact her first one), given their one year age gap, they talk to one another as equals. Mitsuru has recently confided in her some of the darker aspects of the Kirijo family history, circumstances that are dire enough that she was initially afraid Naomi would turn her away after hearing about it. However, the other ojou remained by her side and reaffirmed her promises to the Kirijo heiress that she'll always be around when she needs her.

***The only son of Naomi's ex-piano tutor, Takeshi Miyamoto, Seiichi came barreling into her life anxious to repair the damage his father has made to the Spencer family. His intentions, however, are skewed, and unbeknown to himself, Seiichi is more like his father than he thinks despite his well-established loathing of him. While Naomi sees some good in him, she remains wary - those wounds remain open no matter how many years have passed. She is constantly worried about Mitsuru's burgeoning romantic relationship with him, and while she has made a more concentrated effort to get to know him and see past the visage of his father's  younger self, something about him nags at her. No matter how hard she tries, she can't trust him completely.

***Naomi met SEBEC's infamous CEO by chance, coming across him with Himeru cooking breakfast in Mikage-cho's version of St. Hermelin and promptly engaged him in a deeply intellectual conversation about food (as well as the preparation of) standing in as a metaphor for the human condition. While content with the idea that she would never speak to the man again, she was surprised to receive a sword forged by his own hand the next days after thanks to Tohya's request for supplies, and then later in Okina where he imparted on her certain truths about Sumaru City. The growing consistency of his interactions with her may or may not be one of the main reasons why she agreed to join KNOWS. The controversy regarding the DVA System has prompted both Tohya and Naomi to leave KNOWS, with the latter departing its ranks rather than subjecting herself to Kandori's disciplinary review. The last report that he requested from her served as her formal resignation letter. The state of affairs between them is largely unknown, but Naomi knows that this will not be the last time she would hold communications with SEBEC's CEO. A more recent string of events have landed Kandori in prison, and Naomi is currently struggling between the decision to sever all ties with him completely (bolstered by the fact that the SEBEC figurehead is a touchy subject between herself and Tatsuya) and the desire to visit him while he languishes behind bars.