118/On Ducks

On Ducks
Date of Scene:	01 July 2015
Location:	Mitakihara/Pikarigaoka - King Penguin Park
Synopsis:	In which Nagisa faces her fear of Mr. Duck and gives Lena something to think about.
Cast of Characters:	Lena Reiniger, Nagisa Momoe

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Lena Reiniger has posed:
Much as she wants to get out of her routines, there are just some things that she can't seem to get rid of. Lena's father had impressed upon her for pretty much her entire life that no matter how good someone is, without maintaining a skill it will be lost. For a Knight, losing your edge often would mean losing your life. So she continues her daily training. A warm up run, stretches, basic mana linking, that sort of thing. Currently she's taking her time going through various forms, keeping fresh in her mind the movements of her family's martial style. Nothing flashy though, all that training is done. For now a poor tree is enduring being her punching bag.

Nagisa Momoe has posed:
    Down by the pond is a small girl eight years of age, though looking even younger if judging by size, and wearing an Infinity Academy elementary school uniform. Currently she's holding a couple large leafs of romaine lettuce in her hands, and warily approaching some ducks splashing about the waters edge. A few days ago Nagisa had an encounter with an overly assertive duck, and since then she's been staying away from the pond. But the park is one of her favorite places, and it feels bad having to avoid part of it!

    And so here she is now, tearing a bite sized chunk off of one of her lettuce leafs and closing on the ducks, who have taken notice. "It's okay, duckies! There's plenty for all of you." She tosses the piece into the water, which causes a fair amount of splashing, which has her taking a step back. "N-no," she chides herself, "I've been through -much- scarier things than mean duckies... this should be easy for someone like me!" And so she steps back to the waters edge tears off another piece of lettuce and throws it into the pond to a chorus of delighted quacking.

Lena Reiniger has posed:
It's been how long since she started? Time seems to bleed together when she gets like this, so it's hard for her to tell. It doesn't seem to bother her though, since Ascalon will be more than happy to let her know when her training time has come to its end. For now she continues to flow through her forms, letting her mind wander as her body takes over motions that are all too familiar to her. And soon enough, with a quite ping and a voice that sounds more than a little mechanical, the bracelet on her arm speaks up. <Angeforderten Zeitgrenze erreicht ist> A final strike, and then for a time she leans against the tree, catching her breath.

It's kind of hard to not notice the scene playing out over by the pond; after all, how many kids do you see trying to feed ducks that seem to be pulling away from them the moment they make any sort of movement? It's hard to really look away. Lena finds herself staring while toweling off her face and neck. It's strangely amusing to watch, but at the same time she doesn't really see anyone else around that looks like they could be the child's parents, so Lena can't help but head over toward the pond as she picks up her water bottle. Ascalon pings and she looks down at her bracelet. "It's alright," she says, "what harm's there making sure she's alright?" There's silence for a moment and then a second ping, sounding like resignation. It's probably close enough to alert both Nagisa and the ducks of her presence too.

Nagisa Momoe has posed:
    Things seem to be going mostly fine as more lettuce is fed to the ducks one piece at a time. There don't seem to be any especially pushy ones in this group, so even if they swim closer to the waters edge there aren't any chasing up onto the ground to try and get the entire treat for themselves. Some ducks are clearly getting more than others, though, so Nagisa does her best to toss the pieces a little closer to the ones getting edged out.

    Then there's a beeping sound and the girl tosses another two pre-torn pieces of lettuce before looking to see where the sound came from. And then she starts looking higher. And higher. And then just a little bit more- there's a hill involved too, okay?! Still, the effect on Nagisa is one of shock, this incredibly tall red haired girl, an obvious foreigner, walking towards her. Definitely towards her too, and not just over 'somewhere' by the pond. She freezes for a moment, dumbstruck, and then slowly, absentmindedly, tears off another piece of lettuce and tosses it to the ducks.

    She looks away from the woman, (surely someone that tall is an adult!), and finishes off the first piece of lettuce and tosses it into the water. The girl then takes in a deep breath and turns towards Lena as she finishes her approach, moving with an air of.... proper formality? "Good morning to you, Miss." she offers in slow, easily understandable Japanese before holding her hands in front of herself and offering a full deep bow. "Is there anything at all that I can do for you?"

Lena Reiniger has posed:
She hadn't meant to disturb the feeding of ducks! But Ascalon just had to make a noise, and now she's been caught sight of! Really though, it isn't like she blends in all that well with the people in the city. Still, when she finds herself meeting eyes with this... little girl--has she ever had to look this far down at a person before--she can't help but offer a sweet, if a little dumb looking, smile and waves. Lena's at least polite enough to wait for her to finish feeding the ducks and takes the time to have another drink.

She's pretty sure that's her school's elementary uniform, though admittedly Lena doesn't really have much interactions with the kids that aren't in Infinity's high school. Well, she doesn't really have much interactions with the kids that are, either! That's beside the point! She's about to introduce herself but she's cut off by something she really isn't use to experiencing: someone being polite to her. For a moment she's caught off-guard by it! Ascalon almost considers speaking up, and it looks like the gem on her bracelet even begins to brighten a bit, but quickly it dies down when she finally snaps back to her senses. Quickly she responds to Nagisa's bow with one of her own and then settles down so they're a little more level with one another. "Oh, no. I was just wondering if your parents were around. It's still a little early for a kid to be out walking around alone, isn't it?" Her speech is a little cumbersome and very obviously way more formal than someone her age should be using with an elementary school girl, but she seems to have a good enough grasp of the language to communicate.

Nagisa Momoe has posed:
    Unfortunately once Lena was seen there was very little chance of the duck feeding going entirely uninterrupted; especially as she was mistaken for an adult. She was taught to be aware of strangers, after all, and foreigners certainly count- even if they're giving friendly smiles and waves! That friendly greeting, contrasting with her own formal one, makes her want to ease up a bit, but for now she doesn't. And if the accented, perhaps overly formal speech, is odd to her Nagisa doesn't show it. Her own speech is incredibly former at the moment, too.

    The question asked of her is... confusing, because it could be taken two ways; either of thoughtful concern or something more malicious. Holding her hands together and fidgeting she thinks for a moment, and in doing so feels the little ring on her finger. Oh, right! She's not exactly a helpless child herself, is she? She's not entirely sure what kind of power that ring brings, but it's not nothing! In the end, it makes it easier her take things simply and in stride, though the momentary pause and look of careful consideration was there to be read on her face.

    "My father isn't here right now; I walk through this park every day on the way to school, and today I came to feed the ducks before classes began." If her words sound well thought out it's because they are; perhaps even impressively so for one her age, though Lena's understanding of the language might obscure that a bit. She gives a slightly smaller bow than before, "I'm sorry if my being alone has given you reason to worry, Miss. I can assure you that I will make it to school on time on my own."

Lena Reiniger has posed:
There's something kind of unsettling about someone as young as Nagisa being so composed, but Lena can't say she's not entirely put off by it. She was pretty much the same way, though she can't imagine it's the result of a similar life, right? Of course, the look she's given suddenly makes Lena realize just what this might look like to some people. Without a second thought on the matter, she's quick to point out, "Ah... I'm sorry if I worried you. I was just concerned." She cuts off there, managing to catch herself before saying something stupid like 'I'm not a bad person' or anything. That's pretty much exactly what a bad person would say after all!

The subtlety of the language is mostly lost on her, though she can pretty much piece things together and nods, apparently satisfied with the answer. "That's a relief then." And then a thought, and she can't help giggling a little. "Though, from where I was standing it looked like you were a little scared of the ducks." Maybe just the one time, but it was still shying away from the little fowls. "Run into a mean duck once?" She can't really blame her, because ducks can be mean little gits! And then it dawns on her how much 'Miss' doesn't really sit well with her. "Oh, I'm Lena. Hardly old enough to be called Miss. After all, we go to the same school," she says, passing the water bottle to her other hand and offering up her right for shaking. She's actually not sure if this is a thing Japanese people really do, though. But it's a perfectly sensible Belkan greeting!

Nagisa Momoe has posed:
    Nagisa gives that first comment a little nod- she certainly understands why someone might be worried about a little girl out on her own, and she's also aware she looks younger than she actually is. A foreigner adult would probably never guess her age properly! Though she tries to keep her composure she does blush a little when her shying away from the ducks is mentioned, and she closes her eyes when the reason for it is guessed quickly enough. Maybe she's not such a mystery after all!

    "Yes, there was a duck that was mean to me not very long ago and it's made me wary of them." She opens her eyes back up, craning her head back a bit to look Lena in the eyes with a determined expression, "I do not like being afraid of the ducks, though, so I'm feeding them to help myself get over it!" Then the red haired girl says something that catches her off guard, "We go to the same school?"

    It's then that she realizes that despite her otherwise perfect manners she has completely forgotten to introduce herself! She'll forgive herself since she wasn't sure if she was going to have to run away from a stranger, though. "Nagisa Momoe, second grade Elementary at Infinity Academy. You go to Infinity, Lena-san?" Though she's still speaking formally there's a bit less rigidity in her posture now, and she seems curious about the tall girl.

    Of course she is once more quickly confused by Lena as the hand is extended out towards her. What is this?! A strange gesture- she knows so much about Japanese etiquette, but not much at all of other cultures. What could the girl possibly want from her? "Oh!" With a small smile she reaches up and puts the remaining piece of lettuce into Lena's hand.

Lena Reiniger has posed:
It's not that hard to guess! When something scares you, you tend to shy away from it so... really it's the only thing Lena could think of. Either an irrational phobia of ducks, which doesn't seem to be the case, Nagisa got on the wrong side of a mean duck. Clearly this deduction means she is the world's greatest detective! Or maybe not. "I don't blame you, they can be mean little things!" She proclaims, nodded. Her enthusiasm fades just a bit, and her smile gets a little less bright though. "But it's good to face your fears..." it's true enough, though the hypocrisy of those words still manages to sting her a good deal. "I'm sure your parents are proud to have such a strong little girl." Way to say you're not old enough to be referred to as Miss and say something that makes you sound like an old maid, Lena!

But on to less depressing things! She nods quickly, actually more than a little pleased that Nagisa is starting to relax around her. Honestly, she's not someone that needs to be ran away from... usually. "I do. Second year high school. I just transferred in this year." She shrugs a bit. "It's a nice school so far... even if people stare at me." Everybody gawk at the new kid! You know how it goes, after all.

She might have said more, but she's cut off by virtue of having a full leaf of lettuce placed in her hand. Her expression is one of mild confusion. This was not what she was expecting at all. She looks at this lettuce as though it were some arcane item, a true Lost Logia! Trying to puzzle out what she's expected to do with it before finally tearing a small piece off and dropping it for a duck that scoots a little closer, looking for the food. "Well... I suppose I'm feeding the ducks now?"

Nagisa Momoe has posed:
    "They can be, but not all of them are and I do not want to let the rudeness of one mean duck make me afraid of all the rest of them. These ones seem happy enough to be fed a little bit, rather than just running up and taking all that they want," Nagisa comments with a little huff, painting a bit more of a picture of what happened between her and the ducks without meaning to. "I think so too, that's why I'm trying," she responds to the mention of facing fears, "I just need to take things one little step at a time." The mention of her parents and then being called strong seems to strike a chord with her- and not necessarily a good one. She stiffens again and her hands unconsciously clench a little before she calms a bit and replies, "I'm sure they are very proud of me, yes."

    Then comes the shocking news that Lena isn't even in her last year of high school. She's just really tall! Though Nagisa recognizes that blurting that out would be the height of rudeness- after all she doesn't exactly like it when people make a huge deal out of her own height. That, though, is something she can sympathize with quite a bit. "It's hard when people stare, isn't it?" she comments. "People stared at me a lot too when I was in Kindergarten, and a lot of kids wouldn't talk to me because of my hair and my eyes. I was sad at first, but then I realized that the people who would talk to me were extra nice! So in the end maybe it helped me find good friends."

    When it comes to the lettuce leaf the short girl is confused at Lena's confusion! Isn't that what she wanted? Maybe she's just unsure if she wants to feed the ducks or not, and held her hand out in a moment of indecision? Some motivation then! "Look, they really like it!" she comments as one of the ducks snap up dropped lettuce. "And it's good for them and will make them strong and healthy too."

Lena Reiniger has posed:
She's not sure what to make of the reaction to mentioning her parents, but Lena wisely decides not to continue prodding at that particular point. Though she is sure Nagisa's parents are proud of her. She's doing a brave thing after all! It might not be a world-changing event, but it's brave nonetheless. That's more than she can say for herself. Lena isn't really sure her father would be proud of her at all. He probably wouldn't, even if she wasn't trying to ignore her responsibilities. That old man was always so hard to please!

She shrugs, seeming not too bothered by the fact that people stare at her, and probably talk behind her back. It's just what happens to new kids, especially when they're strange. "I've gotten use to it, to be honest. And I kind of like privacy, so it works out if people don't really want to talk to me!" Well, it isn't entirely untrue, but having some friends would be nice. There's that Shiroi guy, he seemed nice enough... well, more than nice enough. And even Minako wasn't bad. She's starting to make some friends! "The few people that do talk to me are nice though."

She tears off another piece of the lettuce and tosses it out for another duck, but she doesn't keep it up for too long before handing what's left of the leaf back to Nagisa. "But I'm not the one that should be feeding them." Her smile brightens some and once she's handed off the lettuce, she rather unceremoniously plants herself down on the ground, water bottle beside her and arms back to brace on while she stares out over the pond. "Nagisa-chan..." That is the right suffix, right? All these honorifics confuse her a bit. "I kind of wish I could be like you... trying to overcome what you're scared of. But I think I'm a bit of a coward..."

Nagisa Momoe has posed:
    "If you like privacy but there are a few nice people that are talking with you it sounds like you should be able to settle in just fine," Nagisa responds, trying to be a little more upbeat about it. When the lettuce is handed back to her she takes it and moves closer to the waters edge again, tearing off a few pieces of lettuce and then tossing them out into the water for the ducks, who munch them down happily. They're not as quick to squabble over them anymore though, a sure sign they're not as hungry as before, and so the young girl takes her time before feeding them any more.

    "Like me?" she asks with a little bit of surprise, only to shake her head. "I'm only trying to overcome the little things right now. I don't know that I'm all that strong... I'm sure you could help make yourself stronger a little bit at a time too." She watches the ducks swim around while letting out a little sigh. "People have called me 'brave' and 'strong', but I only act that way because the alternative is to just feel sad all the time. Doing something because the only other option is horrible doesn't really make you brave..."

Lena Reiniger has posed:
"I suppose so," she admits, shoulders shrugging. She's not too sure how right that assessment is, though. Everything starts off small, after all. "I still think I'd like to be a little like you. I can't even consider wanting to feed the ducks I need to..." Lena pauses pretty quickly after saying that, head tilted a bit and brow raised. That... "That sounded a lot better in my head." She can't help but laugh, leaning forward some. "But I think anyone that's willing to face something that scares them, no matter how small, is brave in my mind." She leaves it there, trailing off into silence.

Ascalon makes a rather annoying ping some time after, gem on her bracelet lighting up as it does. Thankfully the device has the good sense to not verbally announce anything and a voice rings out in her mind instead, <Schule beginnt bald>, though it doesn't stop her from staring long and hard at the bracelet. This is not what she meant by maintaining a low profile! Though she is greatful for the reminder and pushes herself up, brushing her legs off as she does.

Nagisa Momoe has posed:
    There's a small sound of slight annoyance, but then a little nod of acceptance. "I suppose you aren't entirely wrong about that. Trying to be stronger by facing my fears is why I'm doing it." That and she simply doesn't want to be afraid to sit on a bench near the water! Nagisa looks over the other girl as she sits for a moment, "Don't worry. I'm sure you'll be able to feed your ducks eventually. Just don't forget to have the lettuce ready when you try!" As silly as the analogy might be she doesn't seem to mind, and doesn't prod Lena about it even when she laughs at herself a bit for it.

    And though she doesn't have a mind-speaking bracelet she can tell that it's starting to get a little later in the morning. She tears off another couple pieces of lettuce for the ducks, and then quickly eats down the remaining bit herself before walking away from the edge of the pond. "I need to start off towards school now. It was nice meeting you, Lena-san!" She politely gives the high schooler a bow, but then adds a friendly little wave afterwards before going over to a nearby bench and picking up her backpack before hurrying off towards Infinity.