663/Royal Garden

Royal Garden
Date of Scene:	04 December 2015
Location:	Pikarigaoka - Seiyou Public School
Synopsis:	Tadase, Amu and Mikoto are hanging out in the Royal Garden.
Cast of Characters:	Tadase Hotori, Amu Hinamori, Mikoto Nakajima

---

Tadase Hotori has posed:
Tadase Hotori is sitting at the massive table under the gazebo in the center of the Royal Garden, his jacket draped across the back of the chair he's in. He's finishing off a small cookie. There's a big sprawl of papers around him, to the side of him, and he's occasionally taking one and marking on it. Guardian Business. It's not always fun.

But there's a smile on his face today - and Kiseki is sitting on his shoulder, eating a nibble of a similar cookie. And getting crumbs on his shoulder, naturally.

Amu Hinamori has posed:
Amu Hinamori is also seated at the same table, but unlike Tadase she doesn't have any 'guardian business' to be doing. Instead, she's busy working on her math homework, because she doesn't have much else to do. Admittedly, 'math homework' is turning into 'draw silly pictures in the margins', but she's trying! Honest!

Seated in the center of the table, a trio of multi-colored charas are busy having miniature tea together, all quietly enjoying the peaceful after-school activities without much need for talking.

Suddenly, it dawns on Amu that yet again her friends have abandoned her all alone with ~*Tadase-kun*~. She blushes and looks up at him very suddenly, blinking as she tries to get over her unexpected embarassment.

Mikoto Nakajima has posed:
Mikoto has been a bit concerned about ... well, several things, of late. Missing classes is rather low on her list compared to the various schemes and plots she's been drawn into. Which is part of what brings her to the Royal Garden this fine and lovely afternoon.

She'll admit she doesn't know a lot about how Guardians and Chara and such work. But that isn't why she's here. She's here to be a friend, to get to know the ones she might have to fight alongside... or against... in order to help Ikuto.

And thus it is that she pauses at the Garden entry, and raises her hand to knock thrice upon the door.

*knock* *knock* *knock*

Tadase Hotori has posed:
Tadase Hotori looks up from the work, smiling - and then half smiling as he realizes that the other Guardians have no intent to 'be right back' unless they're spying on them from the plants or something. But then there's a knock at the massive doors that lead into the Garden.

"I'll get it." he says to Amu as he steps away, and walks the astonishingly long path to the door, opening it curiously. Seeing Mikoto there, he tilts his head a bit. "Can I help you?" he asks the much-older teenager. He's still standing in the door though, not stepping back to let her in. Something has him innately wary. Kiseki is floating just behind the door, arms crossed.

Amu Hinamori has posed:
Amu lets out a soft sigh of relief when Tadase doesn't do anything awkward. Sure, she's saved by the door, but it could have still been awkward. On the other hand, would awkward really be so bad? Ugh, feelings are so complicated.

"Okay," she says, long after Tadase has walked off to answer the door. She winces, then looks down at her Charas, only to see Miki staring up at her with a judgemental expression on her face. Amu sticks out her tongue at the little chara, then stands and walks after Tadase to see who has come to visit. All three of her Characters give chase!

Mikoto Nakajima has posed:
And at the door is Mikoto, dressed casually, slacks and a nice shirt. ""It's very probable you can," she answers Tadase, her eyes flicking briefly to the Charas that hang about him and Amu. She stands there, one hand still raised, the other hanging at her side.

"It's good to meet you both when there isn't... you know... stuff, hanging in the balance." Lives. Hearts. Whatever. "I thought it might be a good idea to get to know you."

Tadase Hotori has posed:
Tadase turns around... looks at Amu, and shrugs. "Sure, we can talk. As long as you're not here for anything untoward. But I'm gonna warn you, it's hard to trust someone who's working with Ikuto." he says, honestly. "I've seen both of you do good, and both of you do bad, and I'm not sure what to make of it."

He walks her towards the front, and pulls out a chair at the table for her."

Amu Hinamori has posed:
Amu blinks in surprise at the girl beyond the door. Why was she here?! Is Ikuto in some sort of trouble? No, that can't be it; maybe he hurt her! Oh wait, she just wants to talk? Amu frowns and raises her chin a little, eyeing Mikoto skeptically. "Sure, seems reasonable," she agrees coolly. Gosh darnit, this girl has totally intruded on her chance to be alone with ~*Tadase-kun*~. Ugh!

Amu walks back to the table and slides into her chair. Su, however, is quick to start dragging cookies over for Mikoto. "Hello," says the little green-dressed Chara. "Would you like a cookie? Some tea? Maybe a biscuit?"

Mikoto Nakajima has posed:
Mikoto nods, softly, and lowers her hand, clasping both hands behind her back. "That would be why I'm here, Hotori-san," she says. "So as to avoid future ... misunderstandings."

She follows him in, taking the proffered seat and sliding in gracefully. "Thank you for your hospitality." She meets Amu's gaze, briefly, then looks down to Su. "I would be honored to take tea with you and your friends, neighbor," she tells the Chara, "And I'm sure your biscuits are not to be missed." (Well, she hasn't got a clue, really, since she's never seen Amu use any of Su's abilities. But it pays to be polite. And the girl -is- wearing an apron, and there's only so many things a girl of that age would be up to with one... so.)

Tadase Hotori has posed:
Tadase nods to her as he sits down - moving those papers out of the way so he can give her his full attention - and passing another cookie to Kiseki so he can avoid needing to coral the tiny version of himself.

"I'd like to avoid misunderstandings too." he says, taking a breath. "Especially the kind that lead to conflict. You were there at the White Flower too, weren't you? But we worked together better there. That's something I'd prefer to do, rather than have to fight you."

Amu Hinamori has posed:
Su smiles excitedly at Mikoto, then flies off to begin preparing tea. Where she finds a kettle is anyone's guess, but in the span of time it takes for Tadase to ask about the White Flower, a cup of tea is prepared very perfectly and properly, placed on a plate along with a trio of small cookies, and all are then placed in front of Mikoto. How does the little Chara even do it?!

Amu, meanwhile, sits back and stares at Mikoto. "You helped with the White Flower?" she asks concernedly. Gosh darnit, why does this girl have to be cooler than her!? Amu sulks a little, until Ran flies up and lands on her shoulder.

"Amu-chan, don't be stubborn," Ran says gently, and Amu lets out a huff of frustration, then nods. "So why are you helping Ikuto steal things, anyways?"

Mikoto Nakajima has posed:
"Yes, the White Flower mess was ... well, it brought a lot of people together. I'm glad we were able to help Erin get free of that whole thing. She's a good person, once she isn't listening to that Hana."

Mikoto smiles down at Su, admiring the little Chara's quick action. "Ooh, you're quick," she says, taking the teacup and sipping briefly at it. "Mmm, quite nice."

"I was there at Halloween, too," she reminds Amu. "Though you and your friend did most of the heavy lifting on that one." She sets down the teacup to try a cookie. "I'm satisfied with having met Ikuto-kun there."

The cookie deserves a moment to savor, while Amu asks her latest question. "Well, that's an interesting question, and one that deserves a better answer than I can give you right now. But it boils down to 'he needs them'."

Tadase Hotori has posed:
Tadase shakes his head though. "He's stealing them, Mikoto-san. And when he takes them, they call out. Amu and I can hear them literally scream out. So I don't know why he thinks he needs them - but it's obvious he's doing wicked things, either to get them or as part of his intent to take them. You're going to have to give me more than just 'he needs them' - Ikuto seems to need a lot of things that hurt people." Tadase says bluntly. He looks a lot older than his real age when he's talking this way.

"I appreciate what you've done - and Ikuto too - but that doesn't make stealing these things from other people okay. It doesn't make hurting people okay. And if there's more to it than that, if he needs help somewhere, you and him have to tell me, because when you hide things, it makes you look like you have something to hide."

Amu Hinamori has posed:
Amu frowns a little at the answer, then starts to protest, but Tadase basically brings up every point she was going to. So instead she just sits back and scowls thoughtfully again. "I don't, actually," she says after a moment. "I don't appreciate it. I'm mad at him, and I'm mad at you. You can't just take things that don't belong to you! It's not okay! It's never okay. Ikuto isn't like that, but he keeps doing it anyways, and it makes no sense, and it needs to stop."

Mikoto Nakajima has posed:
Mikoto takes another sip of the tea, and nods briefly. "I will admit that there are certain unsavory aspects to it, yes. That is ... unfortunately unavoidable." She pauses for a moment before answering Tadase.

"And of course I have something to hide, and so does he. And so do you, and so does everyone." She shrugs, waving her hand to dismiss the issue. "It's not a matter of being 'okay', it's a matter of 'cost of not doing it'."

She looks back to Su. "The tea is delicious. Thank you, neighbor."

Tadase Hotori has posed:
Tadase sighs, takes a drink of his own tea, and shakes his head. "I'm... not sure what misunderstanding you're here to clear up then, Mikoto-san." he says, shrugging, an honest look of slight confusion on his face. "You're not telling us anything, you're just trying to convince me that 'he has his reasons' but without telling me what those reasons are. You haven't told me the cost of not doing whatever it is Ikuto and you are working together to do. So you're asking me to make a decision without giving me the information."

"Ikuto and I have a lot of history... and I really want to trust him. But every time I have, I've been burned. It's happened so much that I'm starting to think the Ikuto I see stealing eggs and valuables and working for Easter is the real Ikuto. If you want to help him, Mikoto-san, give me something so I can see that isn't the case."

Amu Hinamori has posed:
Su beams brightly at Mikoto. "You are very welcome," she says cheerfully, bows, then flits off to enjoy her own cookies and tea (in a toy tea set) while the big people talk.

Amu just rolls her eyes at Mikoto. "That's an excuse," she says. "If he needs help, he should ask us. I don't know what he thinks he's doing, but he should know that if he asked for our help we'd give it to him! Whatever he thinks is so important that theft is necessary, it... it just isn't!"

Mikoto Nakajima has posed:
Mikoto nods. "I'm not here to ask you to let him keep doing it," she says, laying her hands flat on the table. Her fingers flex, as if trying to dig into the table's surface. "You're still right: it is wrong, and someone does need to stop him."

She looks Amu in the eye. "I'm here to ask you to keep trying to stop him."

She knows you'd try anyway. Which is why she has to add: "Just... please try not to hurt him."

Tadase Hotori has posed:
Tadase blinks a bit. Then he nods. "I see. So, are you going to help us? Or help him?" he asks. Sometimes these things are complicated. "I... I don't want to hurt Ikuto." he says, honestly. But his mind is brought back to what happened on the night that he helped handle the White Flower.

"...But the best way to keep him safe is going to be to make him see the error of what he's doing. And he won't listen to me." he says. "I don't want to hurt Ikuto, but he keeps pushing me, and some day I'm afraid that... I won't have the choice anymore. Because it'll be hurting him, or let him hurt a lot more people."

Amu Hinamori has posed:
"I won't hurt him," Amu is quick to interject. "I don't want to hurt anyone." She seems almost insulted at the very suggestion. "But I will fight him. I will stop him. And if I will try to purify him. Again, and again, and again, as long as it takes. I'm not going to give up on him, just because he's being stupid."

Mikoto Nakajima has posed:
Mikoto's trademark smile flickers across her lips once again. "He is a good person, under it all," she assures him. "Believe me, he understands." She sighs softly, and eats another cookie. They really are that good, it seems.

"I want to help you," she finally says. "I want to put an end to all this, just as much as you do."

Tadase Hotori has posed:
Tadase gets up suddenly. It's not out of anger, just out of a sudden rush of emotion he's kept bottle up while trying to be reasonable. "I keep trying! But that stupid, stubborn alley cat keeps making trouble. He keeps trying to steal eggs, he keeps turning the dreams of children into monsters, he's working for Easter!" Tadase's fist hits the table.

"Sometimes I don't know what more I can do without hurting him, and I keep trying..." he takes a few deep breaths before sitting back down, looking down intently into his tea which now seems to be very interesting.

Amu Hinamori has posed:
"Then make him stop stealing," Amu tells Mikoto frustratedly. "He seems to care about you. Make him stop. Or if you can't make him stop, then tell us why he's doing it so that we can help him. Don't you see that we want to help? Both of us," she motions to Tadase, and to herself. "Tadase-kun is at his wit's end, and I'm getting there. Nakajima-senpai, please. You have to convince him to stop."

Mikoto Nakajima has posed:
It's hard. Mikoto wants to explain, to tell them everything Ikuto told her. But he's right: she can't. It's too dangerous. Not for them, but for others. That's why she's here today.... to try to protect those others.

"I would dearly love to have him stop, Hinamori-san," she says, then takes her teacup into her hands. "But I fear that it will take more than kind words."

Tadase Hotori has posed:
Tadase looks at Mikoto. He sighs, and finishes off the rest of his tea. "Well, anything other than words has the potential to hurt him. That's why I want him to listen to me. I... I don't want this to come to blows. But he never listens; he just fights. He just keeps on doing the wrong thing. And as long as he does that, I don't think I can make that sort of promise."

"But I'm going to keep doing my best to help him." He says, with honest conviction.

Amu Hinamori has posed:
Frustrated, Amu pushes up out of her chair. "I can make one promise to you," Amu tells Mikoto. "No matter how much I want to see him doing the right thing, I won't stop getting in Ikuto's way. And if it comes down to fighting him, even hurting him, or letting him get away with something awful ..." She takes a deep breath, then grabs her bag. "I'm going to do what's right, Nakajima-san. Every time." Then she turns to go, leaving her startled Charas behind. The all hastily fly off to join Amu, alternately impressed and uncertain how to deal with Amu's newfound sense of forwardness. Well, all except Ran, who is quietly uncertain whether she should be regretting chara changing Amu into speaking her mind.

Mikoto Nakajima has posed:
It isn't the outcome she'd hoped for. Perhaps she'd been naive enough to assume that they'd simply trust her. It was, perhaps, foolish. But sometimes you just have to try. To take that foolish chance.

As she stands, she watches Amu turn to go. "I beg you, then, trust that I will do what is right, as well." Even if our definitions differ. "I hope we can meet once again as friends. Until then..."

She bows, stiff and formal, and turns to go.