Mayumi Yamano

Mayumi Yamano is a character in Persona 4. She is a TV announcer who went to an affair with Taro Namatame, as well as the first victim of the bizarre murder cases.
==Appearances==
*Persona 4 / Golden: Minor Character
**Persona 4 Manga: Minor Character
**Persona 4 The Animation: Minor Character
**Persona 4 The Golden Animation: Minor Character
**Persona 4: Kiri no Amnesia: Minor Character
==Design==
Mayumi is a young woman with short black hair and brown eyes. She wears a white collar shirt, black skirt, thick black tights, and black flats.
==Profile==
=== Persona 4 ===
A TV announcer, she is the center of the media attention after her scandal with a political secretary, Taro Namatame, has been broken off to the media by his ex-wife and enka singer Misuzu Hiiragi. Namatame once said that she was the only one who accepted him for who he was and in turn, she gave meaning to his life, implying that they had an emotional connection which was more important than Namatame's relationship with Hiiragi.
The protagonist is introduced to Mayumi Yamano when her alleged affair with Namatame was broadcast by the media. People cared more about the novelty of their affair being brought to light than the reasons that lead to it in the first place, focusing on the sensationalism and not on the actual people involved. This affair led to a chain of events, including the end of Namatame's career, and his marriage to Misuzu Hiiragi being broken off. People's opinion on Mayumi significantly deteriorated to the point where she retreated to Yasoinaba to avoid further media attention. She chose to stay at the Amagi Inn run by Yukiko Amagi's family. Additionally, Yamano would not attempt to contact Namatame either, not only according to his own testimony of his inability to get in touch with her, but also according to a police investigation.
A junior police detective, Tohru Adachi, claimed to be assigned as her guardian to help protect her from the media swarm. Ensuring he was alone with her, he confronted her about the affair, asking if it was true. When she refused to elaborate on the matter, he took it as her admitting that the rumors are true in every sense of the word, mixed with his own deluded feelings of betrayal. Having become incredibly abrasive he approached her, cornering her in front of the television and accidentally pushing her in. Through this incident, Adachi became aware of his powers. Adachi was merely threatening her at that point, and never intended to fully push her in. During this moment, Namatame was watching the Midnight Channel, and believed that Yamano was asking him for help, causing himself to put his arm into the TV, although he at first dismissed it as a dream.
Pushed into the television world, Mayumi fell into despair and was killed by the Shadows within. The Amagi Inn was abuzz over Ms. Yamano's "disappearance", until her body was found by Saki Konishi hanging between television antennas days later. Her subsequent disappearance and death made Taro Namatame aware of the existence of the Midnight Channel. Mayumi's death while staying at the Amagi Inn gave it the reputation of being cursed.
Namatame was grief struck by Yamano's death, and he believed that Yamano gave him the power to enter the TV to "save people" from the killer. Namatame's sheer ignorance of the situation led to him unwittingly playing into Adachi's sadistic serial murder spree.
Within the Midnight Channel, her bedroom would be visited by the Investigation Team several times, especially prominent at one point as it's the entrance to Magatsu Inaba: the room would be scattered with torn paintings of Hiiragi, smeared with paint of several shades (primarily red with complimenting yellow and white), as well as a chair and a noose made out of the red scarf. This points to a hatred towards Hiiragi leading in addition to a desire for suicide.
The Investigation Team would tie the kidnappings of several targets to the relations with Mayumi, particularly Saki for having found the body, and Yukiko Amagi and Kanji Tatsumi for Mayumi having interacted with their parents. Mayumi would complain to the manager of the Inn, Yukiko Amagi's mother, about how poorly they treat their guests, causing the woman to collapse. Additionally, the scarf itself was a special order from Tatsumi Textiles: it was initially ordered as a pair for a man and a woman, but she changed her mind and only got the woman's scarf.
=== Persona 4 The Animation ===
When the protagonist, Yosuke, and Chie accidentally arrived in the Midnight Channel, they stumbled upon a mysterious room where there were posters of Misuzu Hiiragi, either with the faces cut out or splattered with blood, upon the walls, and a noose hanging in the middle made with rope and a scarf belonging to Mayumi. A foreboding feeling lingered within the area, forcing the trio to leave. This area is undoubtedly where Mayumi had died.
After the culture festival, the protagonist, Teddie, Yosuke Hanamura, and Kanji Tatsumi stay in a room at the Amagi Inn in which they believe to be haunted due to the weeping sounds and the talismans hanging in the room. They believe that was the room Mayumi stayed in before she died. However, it is revealed the sobbing sounds came from Hanako Ohtani and Ms. Kashiwagi in a nearby room.
=== Persona 4 The Golden Animation ===
During episode 6, the scene where Mayumi is thrown into the TV by Adachi at the Amagi Inn is shown. Beforehand, Adachi sees Yamano on the Midnight Channel under the impression that one's soulmate does appear when viewed, further provoking his violence after asking her whether she is really in an affair or not.
=== Persona 4: Kiri no Amnesia ===
Yamano's Shadow appears under the deity's name Iwanaga-hime and attacks Amnesia, a being that takes the form of Saki's Shadow, along with Yosuke.
== Etymology ==
* The name Mayumi means "real, genuine" (真) (ma), "reason, case, cause" (由) (yu) and "beautiful" (美) (mi). 
* Mayumi's surname Yamano means "mountain, hill" (山) (yama) and "field, wilderness" (野) (no).
== Gallery ==
File:MayumiYamano-Concept.jpg|Concept artwork of Mayumi Yamano.
File:Mayumi is seen almost clearly in the midnight channel running from her life.jpg|Mayumi is seen almost clearly in the Midnight Channel, running for her life.
File:Saki spoted and found corspe of Mayumi Yamato.png|Saki Konishi discovers Mayumi's corpse.
== References ==
Category:Persona 4 Characters
Category:Persona 4 Golden Characters