2295/Studying with a side of Segfault

Studying with a side of Segfault
Date of Scene:	06 January 2017
Location:	Uminari City - Game Center Crown
Synopsis:	Exams are rapidly approaching, and Ami, Naru and Hannah take to the Crown to study. There may also have been some catching up and surprises.
Cast of Characters:	Ami Mizuno, Naru Osaka, Hannah Sharpe

---

Ami Mizuno has posed:
Friday is a good day for studying. The crown is busy with people, but if you get there early enough you can get a table to yourself, and Ami has done just that. The background noise is almost musical with how many people are here playing games; good white noise to study by if you aren't easily distracted by it.

The teen is dressed in far too many layers for a Japanese winter: a sweater dress over bluejeans, thick furry boots, and a heavy coat over all of that. Despite all, Ami is practically shivering as she reads over a physics textbook designed for college students, waiting for Naru to show.

Naru Osaka has posed:
Naru brings with her more than enough distractions in her own head as she arrives to the Crown. Early to meet Ami, but not unreasonably so. She's texting as she slides into a seat at the table, a little smirk on her face at whatever conversation she's having.

Schoolbag down, phone down and Naru is sliding back out of her seat to come give Ami a quick hug. "You look as if you're going to die of hypothermia on the spot. Hi! Welcome home!"

Ami Mizuno has posed:
Ami leans into the hug, but doesn't put the book down for another second. A quick drop of a bookmark in place, then she turns to return the hug properly. "Three days ago it was thirty five degrees and ninety percent humidity for me," she explains. "Winter and I are friends, but I'm still not entirely used to it, again." She grins around almost chattering teeth, then motions for Naru to join her. "This is not going to stop me from enjoying milkshakes, though."

Naru Osaka has posed:
"My morning has been such that milkshakes are basically medicinal at this point." Naru comments with a further squeeze and then she slides back into her seat. "It's supposed to be warmer tomorrow. Like 10C." She grins. Fully aware that this does not actually help much compared to 35C.

"How was the trip? Enlightening?" Naru asks as she shrugs out of her coat. Sweater and jeans isn't exactly dressed for summer, but by comparison, she's dressed lightly.

Ami Mizuno has posed:
"Mmm, actually yes," Ami says with a faint nod of her head. "In more ways that one. We learned a bit about his mother's research, but we also had ... I dunno if you'd call it a fight, but a disagreement, at least, which led to what I hope will be a better understanding of one another. I dunno, we'll see. I just wish we hadn't had to stay so long. It wasn't ideal studying conditions especially since I couldn't get new books on demand. I feel like I'm so far behind on preparation for the exams next week."

Naru Osaka has posed:
"I keep thinking I'm doing fairly well, and then /something/ happens and I get distracted and do nothing for a few days and then the freak out sets in." Naru nods in rueful understanding on the exam issue.

"Disagreement while it's just the two of you so far away has to have been rough." Naru winces a little and moves to uncurl from her seat, to go order them milkshakes. "What do you want? I'm getting fries too, because apparently the extra eating thing? Not a short term endeavour, or at least hasn't eased off yet."

Ami Mizuno has posed:
"It wasn't fun," Ami agrees, "but I think in the end it's for the better. I'm a big girl, I can handle a fight with my boyfriend now and then." She sighs and glances towards the counter, then suggests, "Grab the chilli cheese fries, actually, and I'll take an orange twist? Next round's on me."

Hannah Sharpe has posed:
Suddenly, darkness! Nope, that's not a power outage, or a Sailor V Machine Youma again. There's the sound of tapping, a looming presence with a big fat playful grin, and then fwump!

Unless Ami gets out the way, there's an incoming warm jacket deposited right on her face to settle down. A hand reaches to give a fond ruffle of the hair. Hannah Sharpe laughs.

"Oh yeah, like you're not going to break those tests in half like twigs. Hey Bluebie. Welcome back. So how many times did you deck Takashi? He's not dead, right?" She greets casually. There's a yank of a chair, and flop in she goes.

"Hey Naru. Hope the new years went okay. Lookin' good! Great form last run. Starting to love the burn yet?" Reeeach, she'll try to smack her on the shoulder in her usual rough, friendly manner.

A hand goes up. "Cheesey fried for me, and a milkshake!" Sorry Senshi-types, you've been invaded by a Mage.

Naru Osaka has posed:
"Of course you can, but that deosn't mean it doesn't /suck/." Naru points out. "I managed to break ..."

And then there's the Hannah arrival, which circumvents the rest of what Naru might have been saying.

A snort from Naru at the query about loving the burn. "Hannah, I went for a run /on my birthday/. You and Kunzite are terrible influences. I'm just /saying/." She dodges, or at least attempts to dodge the shoulder smack, but that's part of the game too. "So two chili cheese fries, one cheese fries, two milkshakes and an orange twist. Got it." Naru turns to head up towards the counter to order.

Technically one senshi and two mages, but who's counting.

Ami Mizuno has posed:
Ami is many things, including highly observant. But 'aware of her surroundings' when in a familiar place, while also trying to study, is not one of those things. Thus, the darkness descends quickly and without warning, and Ami's response to the sudden coat over her head is a surprised squawk!

The bluenette reaches up to tear herself free, looking around confusedly, until she spots Hannah. That brings another surprise from her. Mouth-open, she stares for a moment, then bundles up Hannah's coat in her lap and hugs it like a plush for a moment, unsure what to say.

But those are questions, and she should answer them. What were the answers again? e^(ipi)+1 = 0? No wait, that's Euler's identity. NOt relevant. "Sharpe-san," she agrees quietly. "I didn't even know you knew him." She probably should know, but someone doesn't talk about Hannah much. "I didn't really punch him at all. He's still very much alive. I went to protect him, not to hurt him."

Hannah Sharpe has posed:
Naru dodge go! There's a slow nod of approval. "It's paying off. Good! I never doubted you Naru. All of that juicy potential bundled up, and it's just now starting to crawl around. Soon you'll be skipping, then hopping, then backflipping. Or at least going for a brisk jog."

Heh. Legs cross. "One woman's terrible is another's...I swear I was going somewhere with that. Uhh. Right! Doesn't matter, just means you're in the right frame of mind."

Off goes the Naru! "You're a peach!"

Hannah rolls her eyes. The coat is now marked as Ami's. This might have been part of the plan. Or Hannah's just being a jerk again. "Heh, I'm not surprised. I do enough talking for the both of us! He was my second real friend in Japan, ya know? If it weren't for Ao and Takashi, I'd be lost. Believe it or not I'm really a delicate soul! Like some kinda spring flower that wilts in winter if not surrounded by people! A flower with boxing gloves!" She proclaims. Then, there's an honest sigh of relief. "Good. Not that I doubted him, or you, but a friend's gotta worry! I'll smack him for the details later. After he's rested up, things like that can't have been easy on him." A small frown. Yup, worried Hanners!

Then she's pulling out a book, hands deftly running over the pages. There's a title in English: Advanced Calculus for Dummies. She too is in Exam Mode, despite her casual nature.

Naru Osaka has posed:
"As long as no one is expecting me to backflip off balconies, cause just /no/." Naru points out before she's gone a few minutes at the counter.

Drinks are quick and she's not gone for all /that/ long, with a trio of milkshakes returning. Fries will be coming along soon enough. She slides each one in front of the girl its destined for. Orange for Ami, a lack of specification got chocolate for Hannah, and lychee for Naru.

"It's just to the right of your book, Hannah." Naru notes absently as she slides back into her seat.

Ami Mizuno has posed:
"He doesn't talk about you," Ami explains to Hannah quietly. "I'm sorry, although I'm glad I know, now. He really probably could use more friends to talk about what happened. We found some of his mother's notes," Ami says, "and he didn't like what we found. I wouldn't be surprised if he refuses to face it." She shakes her head a little, then glances at Hannah's book briefly before going back to her own.

When it's delivered, the orange twist shake goes straight into Ami's mouth, siipping on the straw heavily despite her already poor disposition to the Japanese winter. She smiles a thanks to Naru, then asks, "So did anything exciting happen while I was gone? I know everyone was hiding things from me on video calls, but I didn't exactly have a way to challenge you guys on it."

Hannah Sharpe has posed:
"We'll get there, don't worry."

Fries get! Hannah's found a fork, given what she's doing, and test-taps before digging in. Nomf nomf nomf nomf! "Ahhh, now that's good! Never doubt the Crown for good food! Thanks." Her attention turns to Ami again.

"Don't apologize, it's just the way he is. Probably doesn't want to stuff words in my mouth. Argh, really? I wish I could say I'm surprised. I know he looks all tought, but...he can be fragile too ya know? Don't push him on that. Not too hard. A little knock in the right direction, but that's something he has to face on his own."

A shrug. "And you're right. We just need to keep an eye out for when he trips over his own stupid pride, and finally does what he has to do. Arms to catch him, pull him back up, et cetera."

Sluuuuurp. Down goes that milkshake alarmingly fast. "Oh /god/ why me!?" She's clutching her temple. Nope, she hasn't learned.

Naru Osaka has posed:
"I hope he doesnt break himself." Naru comments quietly. "I've no clue how to help him keep it together beyond hoping, which isn't a whole helluva lot of help, all in all."

"Um." Naru pauses a moment at the question of 'what's been going on?' and takes a sip from her milkshake. And another. "Weird stuff, or personal stuff, or both?" She offers with a touch of a rueful smile. "Creepy puella dreams, Sakura's damn cards, Madison was rampaging again, killer plants.. again.. new Wraiths, potentially an uptick in Witches again and um.. Alexis and I broke up." She considers that point form version and then nods. "And then there's new stuff, but that's the highlights."

Naru looks over to Hannah as she brain freezes herself. "You should stop doing that, you know." Oh so helpful.

Ami Mizuno has posed:
Ami watches Hannah's brainfreeze with concern, but waits it out and listens to Naru's explanations instead. "Creepy puella dreams?" she asks with an arched brow. "You're not supposed to have those," she notes. "You're not a Puella. But I can look into it if you want. Dream analysis isn't too hard, with the right monitoring tools. What happened with Alexis?"

She looks back to Hannah as the girl recovers from her brainfreeze. "That's what I try to do," Ami agrees with Hannah softly. "Even putting aside my own pain to help him with his. I don't have his particular affliction weighing me down. It's not great realising that you don't get to have an emotional breakdown because his will be worse, but ..." she shrugs just faintly, then says, "I got through it. We got through it."

Hannah Sharpe has posed:
"Good vibes...urgh...are a start."

Huff huff. Naru gets a squint. "Jerk. Don't change."

A minute or two later, and she's back to munching, reading, and generally soaking in information. She'll let Ami handle the Alexis part. There's a worried glance to Naru. "Do I need to break his jaw? Or is this mutual?" Hannah sounds a bit eager here. Question definitely looking for a 'yes'.

Two thumbs up. "That makes me a lot less worried. Doing a good job sounds like. Don't screw up too bad. If he really seems bad, send him to me, I'll distract him with something interesting." Go contingencies.

Legs uncross, then recross. "As for me, the usual. Exams, Haruna opened her shop finally, unraveling the mysteries of abominations against all that's holy for fun and profit, the usual."

Then she laughs. "Got to meet somebody preeeetty important, too. Things are gonna get fun soon, I can feel it! Especially with those dreams! Oh man, I can't /wait/ to see what happens!"

Then a big frown. "Didn't get to fight 'em though. Been itching for a good romp, but everyone's either busy or too deep in exam books for me to agitate them. Where's another apocalyptic event when you need one, huh?"

Naru Osaka has posed:
"I am exceptionally good at creepy dreams, but this time.. not my fault." Naru shakes her head at the offer to analyze her dreams. "A whole swack of people were getting them, not just me. Hana was sharing her memories, apparently." She pauses and then adds. "If the nightmares come back to the same extreme, though, I'll keep in mind that you can set up dream analysis. Currently, they're pretty under control."

"It mostly just wasn't working. A lot of disconnects, or at least that's how it felt to me, and... er.." Naru looks sheepish. "I also realized I was kinda interested in someone else. Which is pretty much a sign that its probably not working out. So no punching him, Hannah.. I broke up with him. I felt like enough of a jerk."

Naru looks to Hannah. "Who did you meet?" She asks curiously and then adds. "Between plants, wraiths and the potential of witches, I am pretty alright with the current 'lack' of fighting. There's enough for me."

Ami Mizuno has posed:
"That's even weirder," Ami notes to Naru with a wrinkle of her nose. "Someday I'd like the world to be less full of insanity and far more normal," she sighs wistfully. "But it won't be, so I guess we'll just have to keep dealing with it."

"Someone else, hm?" Ami asks, leaning towards Naru just a little as she digs into her french fries. "Who's the lucky guy?"

Naru Osaka has posed:
"I think I've mostly just redefined where my line for normal is." Naru points out as she stabs a forkful of gooey messy delicious fries. "Which somehow the universe /still/ seems laughing in the face of, but even not quite a year into knowing, that line has absolutely moved."

There's just a hint of shy as Ami leans in to ask that question and a moment of eating fries before she answers, first with a correction. "Girl." She adds after a sip of milkshake. "Kyouko."

Ami Mizuno has posed:
Ami's eyes widen at the admission from Naru, and she leans back to study her very confusedly for a long moment. "W..who?!" she asks, then squints. "Kyouko? As in lives on the street but is now acknowledged as a shitennou Kyouko? What? How did that even ... what?" Please stand by, her brain is rebooting.

Hannah Sharpe has posed:
Nomf. Nomf nomf. Hannah is packing in fries at this point 'lest they grow cold. She's too busy stuffing her face, so for once there's peace from the Hannah Chatter Time.

At least until Naru speaks back up. First cane, then milkshake, then fork falls. Hannah's jaw is agape in pure confusion and surprise. Stunned silence follows.

This is the face of a mahou having a living BSOD people. Savor it. She's gonna need a minute.

Naru Osaka has posed:
Naru looks from Ami and then to Hannah and then back to Ami as if evaluating which one of them is going to manage to recover first. She waits. She eats her fries as she waits. Eating fries means that she doesnt laugh as she watches the two of them.

Ami Mizuno has posed:
Ami looks between Naru and Hannah, then back to Naru again, then clears her throat. "Well, I didn't see that coming," she admits quietly. "I thought you were uh ..." she trails off. "I mean, not that there's anything wrong with liking girls. I could probably see myself liking girls if I didn't have a boyfriend. But um. I didn't .. expect that. Especially with Kyouko. I thought she had another girlfriend?"

Hannah Sharpe has posed:
There's a long, slow gulp, and Hannah sets about piecing back her dignity she dropped everywhere. Mostly by losing herself in milkshake. Slowly this time. Her right brow slooooowly rises like some kind of baloon. One milkshake down. And then she just sighs. Last of fries down, she shoves plate aside, then book. Arms to the table. WHUMP WHUMP WHUMP! Goes Hannah's forehead.

"You're lucky I like you Naru. Otherwise I'd pitch you out that front door right now. Oh maaaaan, she's gonna be a pain when she gets in tomorrow. This is gonna /kill/ morale!" Whines the CEO. WHUMP.

"'TOKI! Milkshake please!" She needs it right now.

"So even I'm not stupid enough to jump down that rabbit hole. But I'm gonna at least peek in. How?"

Naru Osaka has posed:
"I think the notable quote on that is that I make a terrible straight girl." Naru comments with a touch of a smile. "And Kyouko and Sayaka split up a while back, so that shouldn't be a brand new relevation, if that's what you're worried about, Hannah."

"Um." Naru considers that question a moment. "There are a lot of options for what 'how?'is referring to, and I expect it's probably safer if I ask for clarification rather than picking one at random."

Ami Mizuno has posed:
Ami tenses up a little and frowns at Hannah, "Could you please not threaten to throw my friends outside just because they say something you don't like?" she asks politely. "It makes the mood incredibly unwelcoming, and I'd rather we not wind up in a fight."

But then it's back to Naru, and her eyes are glistening just a little, "Isn't she a bit ... aggressive for you? I just didn't think of you as the type. But I guess congratulations? Does Usagi-chan know?"

Hannah Sharpe has posed:
Hannah closes her eyes and huffs! "Wimp! Fine, fine. Yeesh. Kids these days, so sensitive!" She mutters. A shake of the head.

Sigh. "That explains a lot. Oh yeah, Hannah Sharpe, the /great/ social magnet. Didn't even notice the two split up. Good job, you idiot." Bonk bonk bonk right on her head! At least she's as rough on herself as everyone else. "Yeah. I kinda want to know how you two ended up together. What Ami said! Don't get me wrong, I /love/ Kyouko to death! But let's just say I didn't even know you two knew each other much less had something going. This is weird. I'm not dreaming, right?" Pinch pinch.

"AUGH!"

Naru Osaka has posed:
"Yes, Usagi knows. She endured some of the 'omg, I am a terrible straight girl' freak out." Naru nods to Ami and there is an honest to goodness touch of a blush hitting her cheeks at the mention of Kyouko being 'agressive'. "We offset each other pretty well, actually. So far, seems to be working."

Naru blinks at Hannah a moment. "Seriously? I met Kyouko in the spring, when I was just barely figuring out the weird of the world. So.. we've been friends for a while. And over time ended up closer friends, cause I'm over at the boys' apartment .. well all the time. Especially doing the mural. And it just sort of evolved. And eventually we kinda figured out that it was a /thing/, and it's a new thing.. so it's not like either of you are terribly far behind on this gossip. Like.. our first date was New Year's Eve sort of new thing."

Ami Mizuno has posed:
Ami just shakes her head at Naru's news, then grins a little before leaning up, stretching across, and giving Hannah a gentle pinch. Then she settles back down on the seat. Taking up Hannah's coat, she places it down on the table. Now she has a soft smile on her features; amused at something or perhaps planning, but she doesn't say what it is she's thinking of.

Instead, Ami refocuses on her books. She pulls open the text and grabs her orange twist and settles in to study in silence, for the moment.

Hannah Sharpe has posed:
"Seriously, Naru, you're making me feel like an idiot here. How could I have missed that?" She opines, before shaking her head. Milkshake number two gets attacked to soften the blow to her pride.

"Well as long as it's good for you both. Maybe you'll have her open up a little. Realize that sometimes you can actually relax."

Smirk. "Grats, to you and her. Go hunting with her some time. It'd be fun." More like Fun.

Ack! Pinchu! She rubs her cheek, then sticks her tongue out at Ami!

Hands clap! "I got it. Take her out on a date to Gull's cafe!" Yup, gotta sell her love's new business.

Naru Osaka has posed:
Naru can't help but laugh and shake her head at Hannah's lament. "For some /strange/ reason, I am kinda busy not dying on our workouts. My personal life doesn't come up a whole lot." She doesnt add the fact that she tends to be fairly good at simply not sharing things. Minor detail.

"So far, good for us both." Naru confirms with a nod and then a laugh. "We were both at the cafe the day it opened." Naru points out to Hannah. "So already done that. Apple pastry has been confirmed as delicious."

Naru reaches for her own milkshake and then glances to her phone, checking the approximately bazillion texts that are her norm. A few quick taps cover a few more time sensitive replies before she sets it down again.

Ami Mizuno has posed:
"Apple Pas--" Ami starts to say, interrupting her own study to look up at Naru. But then, for some inexplicable reason, she starts blushing bright red and looks right back down at the text. Who knows what's going through her head, but it probably isn't appropriate.

Hannah Sharpe has posed:
"My loss entirely then! We'll have to change that." Comes Hannah with a wink. She does steal a fry though.

Oh yeeeeeah. "Man, is studies destroying my memory or what? Dang. I'll get you two double dipping yet!" More money for the Gull feathery war machine! Likely to be somehow converted to hugs. A shrug then. Hannah leans back, and even she needs a few breaths. Mostly so she can devour a few more pages of her book. Touch, slide, turn. Touch slide turn! Every now and then the smallest of little green lights comes from her pocket. She smirks occasionally. Darn mages and their Device telepathy cheating.

"So. Any luck getting on your feet in our world, Naru?" She asks out of the blue. Turn.

"Or am I going to need to drag you to my job on training day?"

Naru Osaka has posed:
Naru starts to giggle softly at Ami's blushing and she just grins, not commenting.

Naru too is ostensibly studying at this study session, reading in her own text book. At least until Hannah asks her next question. She looks up and then she considers. "Honestly? Yes and no. When I look at where I think I should be, I feel like I suck, but when I look at where I started, I realize that I'm making progress. I'm impatient though, which isn't helping, and somehow actually stopping and making a detailed study keeps getting inturrupted by various flavours of crisis and life." She gestures at the exam books that all three of them are tokenly reading, or more studeously reading, depending on person.

Ami Mizuno has posed:
Ami has mostly recovered from her embarassment; at least enough to contribute to the conversation at hand. "Figuring out how to cope with this environment isn't easy," she says around turning the page in her book. "There's so much to learn and no one to really prepare you for it. Veterans are few and far betwen, although I guess technically Hannah and I count as veterans. Kyouko's been at it longer than both of us, though, so I guess you should ask her for tips." Pause. "I mean, if you want help that is."

Hannah Sharpe has posed:
Both hands raise up in a shrug, book balanced on one leg.

"Well I can't /really/ say until you give me a demonstration...but somehow I doubt you 'suck'. Try 'lacking experience'. Heh. I know how that feels. Guess what? I feel the exact same way and I've been doing this for a bit now. You /want/ to be strong right? Don't lose that desire. It'll help you get up when you absolutely need to get off the ground."

That's definitely pride in Hannah's voice.

Nod nod nod to Ami. "Yeah, probably a good start. If you're running with Kyouko, and if Witches are really gonna start showing up properly again, you're going to need direct combat experience. Offer's open. I'll give you a good fight whenever you want. Only real way to learn is to throw yourself into it."

Naru Osaka has posed:
"Comparatively speaking, most of the people I know are veterans." Naru points out to Ami. "As fond as I am of Kyouko, our styles are pretty different, so tips tend to be for fights, which are never going to be my strong suit. I'm not a complete pansy, but I'm effectively a bard."

Naru nods to Hannah and there's a quirk of a smile. "I'm working on the direct combat experience.. mostly in combats, actually. I'm support, not front line, and yes.. lacking in experience. It also feels like I am getting very good at finding tactics that don't work well."

Ami Mizuno has posed:
Ami offers Naru a fond smile, here, looking up from her book. "Tactics are my job," she admits quietly, "and I'm okay at it. I could give you tips, but ... I admit it mostly comes from doing very fast mental mathematics, combined with several millenia years old memories. Trial and error of the past still holds true today."

Hannah Sharpe has posed:
Grin. "And therein lies the rub. I've got a lifetime of being a violent sports enthusiast, a really old magical AI buddy who's used to psychos like me, and instinct where that doesn't cover. Point being, we've all got our talents. You just gotta sharpen up yours. You'll find where you fit, Naru, don't worry kiddo!"

A tap on the chin. "Though we really need to find you a partner for when Kyouko isn't around. If you're support, you need somebody to take the heat off."

Shrug. "Buuuut you can work on that after exams." More food theft around the table. Hungry Hanners!

Naru Osaka has posed:
"I've skipped the AI buddy, and the millenia old memories. Just me." Naru quirks a half smile. "And I'm an artist. Which really didn't offer a lot of built in skills, or tactics. So I'm doing the trial and error thing now. If I get reincarnated in a few millenia, they can thank me for working thorugh the screw ups now."

Naru grins to Hannah. "Fortunately, I am pretty much never alone at a fight these days. My months of being effectively monster bait means that I'm well looked after. My friends are pretty awesome that way." She glances to Ami and there's a grin.

Ami Mizuno has posed:
Ami grins right back at Naru, then shrugs. "I'm not letting you have all the fun without us," she counters. "That's why I invented those little trackers." She smiles and slides the last of her fries to Hannah, then goes back to the books. "Anyways, I really do need to study more. I am pretty sure I'm going to fail these tests," she notes. Yeah right, Ami doesn't know how to fail a test.

Hannah Sharpe has posed:
"I'd expect nothing less of the Rocks and Skirts Team!" Beams Hannah to Naru. That's the official name now, sorry Ami.

Food! Nomf nomf nomf. Hannah leans back, and ahhh's contentedly. "Oh yeah, you'll both be fine. If you get anything less than a ninety-nine on a test I think the world will shift it's axis. Alright, yeah, I better go really study and make sure nothing escaped into the lab again. Right. Bye kids, let's do this again some time!" One-armed hugs for both! Hannah sneaks in a pay for the food, and then she's off!