It is exam time, for those in school on a regular basis. It is a time of cramming, and undersleeping, and muttering to oneself on the bus and hoping that all of those points of trivia that got crammed in match up perfectly with all of the questions asked when there's an academic infodump all over the exam booklet.
It is also Monday, and all of the getting back into the swing of the week that Mondays entail, and for some people, the return to o-stupid-early morning runs.
All of this combines perfectly with afternoon ice cream. Exams survived (for now). Run endured (til Wednesday). It's healthy if one gets a fruit milkshake, right? Naru is working on that theory as she relaxs in a booth with a lychee 'ice cream smoothie' and her sketchbook, absently doodling.
Kyouko doesn't frequent the Crown as much as she used to- when she first arrived in the city, she was the undisputed queen of the DDR machines. Life has seen fit to burden her with many things that need doing other than playing video games, however, in the form of work and hunting monsters and constant threats to life and planet, so she seldom gets to stop by anymore (and she doesn't even go to school!)
She does have the odd afternoon off, though- a few times a month the stars align and she's not scheduled to work at the conbenie, Momo is otherwise occupied, and there are no pending monster-related crises. At these times, she has a few choices of what to do with herself, and while the Crown isn't the only or even the most frequently chosen one, it is on the list.
That's why she's here today- to get in a few rounds of DDR, maybe get her name back on top of the high scores list, or at least keep herself from getting too rusty. She's headed that way, across the floor, when she spots Naru sitting alone in a booth. Altering direction, the redhaired Puella saunters over, recalling a text conversation she had with Naru a few days past.
Her grin is lopsided but friendly as she arrives and leans her elbow on the corner of the booth opposite Naru. "Hey, Naru-chan. Funny seein' you here. How's life? You holdin' up okay?"
Jiaying Maki doesn't look too frazzled over the tests. They're not as bad when the other aspect of your life literally, not figuratively hurts more at this point in time. Still, she looks rather tired! Sugar will help right? Besides she has company with her this time! This at the very least is making it a lot easier to want to stay awake instead of finding a nice quiet place to curl up and sleep for a few days.
Well, they're not here yet, but she is standing in line near the front which has it's benefits to the whole not waiting aspect. She's texting someone guessing by the way she's playing with her phone. After sending the text, she stands on her toes, trying to get a better look around to see if said person is here. Or if anyone else is around even!
The sound of a text can be heard from the entrance, Sora is just coming in, and as soon as she does she looks around, then notices Jiaying. "Jiji~" She rushes over and wraps her arms around the other girl in a quick hug, leaning forward to offer a quick kiss.
She's so tunnelvision on this she hasn't noticed Naru and company yet.
"Kyouko-chan!" Naru looks up at the familiar voice and her smile blooms and brightens. "I didn't expect to see you here, what a nice surprise." She chuckles softly. "Life is as odd as ever, but the weekend was deliciously quiet, and I really needed that. Granted, I also basically didn't leave my apartment, which does help the quiet. I'm good though. Emotional damage is /obnoxious/ to heal, I'm discovering. I'd take energy drain any day.
Naru glances over to Sora making a beeline for Jiaying and there's a little smile for the cute before she turns her attention back to Kyouko. "How about you? How are things? Any more of those dudes?"
Kyouko quirks her lips to the side in a bit of a wry expression as she slips into the booth opposite Naru. "I guess I ain't so much a common sight around here anymore." A brief lift of her shoulders. "Usedta be all the time but.. been a lot busier these days."
She raises a brow at the mention of emotional damage, and how obnoxious it is. "Yeah, that's why I wanted to check with ya when I saw you were here. Haven't run into any more o' those Wraith things myself yet, but I guess they're around. Did the one messin' with you look like a big tall skeleton-guy in a robe, too?"
She sighs absently, tapping a fingernail on the table. "Witches I'm used to. I dun like bein' outta my depth with these new things. Tryin' to figure out as much about 'em as I can as fast as I can, since it seems like they're our new source of 'nourishment', at least for the time being."
She doesn't notice Jiaying and Sora yet, not being familiar with them.
Jiaying Maki just about drops her phone, fumbling with it for a moment at the call and hug. She catches it last second, stuffs it away quickly and returns the hug happily! She's about to protest the nickname since she still doesn't have a cutesy one to use for Sora yet when she's distracted with the kiss, which she happily returns. As the line moves, she takes a step back, trying to tug Sora with her gently so they don't lose their place. It's only after this, that she manages to look a touch embarassed, though happy. "How did your tests go Sora?" she asks, then quickly adds, "Chan?" trying to remember if that's the right suffix. She'll learn them eventually, really!
She spots Naru and someone else out of the corner of her eye and without fully breaking the hug, points over and says quietly to Sora, "I wanted to check up on her. That creepy doll thing I was telling you about happened to her too." Hey she's still trying to be a good!
"Probably will get the best grades in class." Sora boasts, confidently, as she maintains the hug, following Jiaying's gaze to spot Naru. "Oh, Osaka-san got hurt?" She says softly, looking concerned. "Let's go check up on her, see if she's alright." She agrees, and then gently attempts to direct her girlfriend that way, "Osaka-san, how are you?" She asks, "And who's your friend?"
"Big tall guy in a robe, and he had friends." Naru nods to Kyouko in agreement. "The fog.. mist stuff.. not so obvious with just one of them, but when there was more, it was a lot more noticible. It's healing, I think. Normal stuff feels normal again, but there's still spots that aren't quite normal yet. Its a weird feeling, I have to say. Weirder than Mou Fubaki, but very much on the same lines."
Naru looks up as Sora and Jiaying approach and she waves. "I'm pretty good, how about you to?" She gestures between everyone, indicating all in turn. "Jiaying, Sora, Kyouko, I shall leave it up to each of you to provide your own details as you see fit."
"Yeah.. sounds about right. The miasma, which is what we're apparently calling the misty stuff, seems to be a byproduct of their presence, so the more of 'em there are, the thicker it gets." Kyouko says, in response to Naru. She frowns slightly. "Well.. glad you're doing better. I still need to work out the best way to hunt them things down.. keep the population in check. I dun really want you or anybody else gettin' messed up by 'em again."
She blinks, glancing over as Jiaying and Sora approach the table. Her expression is slightly closed, as she's never been particularly trusting of strangers, but not overtly hostile, as she shrugs briefly and offers a greeting. "Hey. Friends of Naru-chan?"
Jiaying Maki is dragged out of the line and away from the glorious sugar! But that's not a problem, there's later. She's totally not looking at the vacated spot as she's pulled over. Before she gets there though she says quietly to Sora, "I do not think she was hurt, but she treated it like it was nothing and that's kind of strange isn't it?" Not that she's any better about attacks usually. She's got an excuse though! Self-delusion's an excuse right?
Still, she leans against Sora and offers a surprisingly shy wave, then visibly relaxes and grins, "I'm alive." is her response to the question of how she's doing. Kind of an odd response Still, she waves to Kyouko after and says, "I'm Jiaying and this is Sora! Friends and classmates, I wanted to see how she was doing after an accident at the school." Totally pretending she didn't hear some of the conversation already. That's rude.
Looking over to Sora she adds quietly, "I think something else happened since the thing with the doll. See what I mean?!" In a very quiet undertone she murmurs, "I think she's the embodiment of bad luck." To Naru, she suddenly remembers why she was pulled over in the first place and asks, "Are you doing alright now? I just remember you saying you had dance and- did something else happen?"
Sora lets Jiaying introduce them, leaning her head on the shorter girl's hair. "I'm doing fine. A little tired lately, but I think that's just because I keep getting into fights with my cousin's girlfriend." She doesn't seem to really care about it whatsoever. "So who's your friend, Osaka-san?"
"Mmm." Naru explains to Kyouko. "Sora goes to the same school as I do, and Jiaying helped me out in my first encounter with Maeko." Because of course, it was only the first encounter.
"I'm good, thank you. Maeko barely snagged me at the school." She smiles easily. "This is Kyouko." She introduces again and then quirks her head at Sora. "Why do you keep getting into fights with your cousin's girlfriend?"
Kyouko gathers from the context of the conversation that these girls are in-tune with the whole magical world, although she still doesn't reveal too much about herself- an abundance of caution is second-nature to someone who has survived as long as she has. "Well," She says to Jiaying, "Thanks from all the rest of her friends for helpin' Naru-chan out. Girl can't seem to keep out of trouble." There's good-natured humor in her tone, but she casts a glance at Naru as she says it which is mildly concerned.
To Sora she says, "Kyouko Sakura. Nice to meetcha." She doesn't offer any more than that, although it's fairly obvious from her reaction that she too is involved in the magical world.
Jiaying Maki scowls at the reaction from Naru and asks, "She did it again? Maybe I can bait her out and figure something out from there." A quick shake of her head and she looks over from the corner of her eyes at Sora's admitting she's tired. She squeezes her gently, not commenting right away. That's not her place and she's got her own opinions on said girlfriend, but that's not something to rant about in her head. Not here anyway.
She nods to Kyouko and smiles again, "I'm happy to help! I like helping that is." A sidelong glance to Naru and she adds, "Was I really that scary when I came running down that hall by the way?" As she asks, she nudges Sora and nods to the empty seats before asking, "Is it alright if we sit too?"
"Because my cousin's girlfriend and I don't get along, and someone thought it was a good idea for her to move into the family appartments." Sora answers Naru with a tone of sheer frustration. "Maybe you've met her? Her name is Ayana. I forget the family name, we never use it."
The other bit causes Sora to nibble on her lower lip in thought. "I wish I could help with stuff like that." She sounds genuinely worried, "Are you going to be okay, Osaka-san?" And then, almost as an afterthought, "It's nice to meet you, Sakura-san."
"Hey.. it's been /days/.. and Thursday night wasn't /really/ trouble. Exactly." Naru laughs softly, accepting that teasing with goodnatured protests right back. "Although I'm going to say, that I'm not going back to the park alone for quite some time to come. It just never ends well."
"Well, the next time I met Maeko she was trying to protect me, so I'm really not sure what's up there, honestly." Naru hrms softly and then shakes her head a little. "That one.. I got nothing really." She mmms to Jiaying at the question about scary. "Well. I wasn't certain when you bounded up on if I was protecting myself just from Maeko, or from you as well. So startling, certainly."
"Apparently I've met Ayana, but I don't remember her at all. I was.. er.. distracted.. at the time." Which, as that's coming from Naru, it probably means she was mindcontrolled and being kidnapped at the time. "I'm fine, thanks, all in all." She smiles easily. "I'm getting better at running."
As the other two make to sit, Kyouko scoots out of the booth and stands back up. "Oh, feel free. I was just stoppin' by to check on Naru-chan since I saw her sittin' here, but the DDR machines are callin' my name." She says, with a one-fanged little grin and a shrug of her shoulders.
She glances at Sora at the mention of a 'cousin Ayana'- she's met (and indeed, fought with) Ayana several times, but they were all quite a long time ago when Ayana was still working for Eclipse, and anyway, there could very well be more than one Ayana in Tokyo, so she doesn't want to jump to conclusions.
She does scowl at Naru. "We gotta get you a life-alert button or somethin', I swear. I get that it's hard to pull your phone out and send a text when you're in trouble but with the amount of concerned and capable friends you got, there ain't no reason you should be getting hurt so often."
Jiaying Maki holds her hands up and says quickly to Kyouko, "You don't have to go!" With her hesitating at the vacated pair of seats. There's an advantage to that of course, but there's also the whole trying to be nice thing. That aside, she perks up at the idea of a magical 'Please send help, I've been kidnapped again' button being a rather good one. And a silly one that gets a giggle out of her, then it clicks that it's probably a good idea again. "Maybe a good luck charm that just burns when magic is directed at her. Tie it to an SMS Service?" How she'd tie magic to a cell phone is a good question there though.
As Sora explains the situation with Ayana, she scowls and adds, "We don't get along either. Turns out she doesn't trust me for who I associate with and- I don't feel like it's a loss at this point." Finaly back to Naru, which is why she's here in the first place! "Sorry about that. I don't think I look scary, but I'll keep that in mind. Maybe I'll shout out something like "I'm here to save the day!" A beat later and she asks, "What happened at the park?"
Sora leans in to kiss Jiaying on the cheek as she drags her girlfriend to the pair of seats. "Sounds like you get into a lot of trouble. That's no good, at least I manage to stay out of trouble." She says softly, sounding worried. she doesn't interrupt Kyouko's leaving at all, "Was nice meeting you, Sakura-san."
"Generally it all happens so fast though, that's the real challenge. Even a charm or a life alert button.. usually by the time someone gets there, things are wrapped up. It's good for peeling me off the pavement, but these days I can generally get myself home. It's not fair at /all/ to people who have lives to babysit me every second of the day." Naru gives a helpless little shrug. "So I'm looking at some options. And legit, getting better at running.
"The park? Lesseee. I got shoved in a mirror for all eternity by Namakelder. That needed rescuing. Fiore wrapped me in thorny vines and tried to make an example out of me, but y'know.. that was his /thing/ at the time. Then Mou Fubuki ambushed me while I was drawing and messed with my head, and heart. So .. I really cannot say that I'm in a rush to go back to the park." Naru pauses to think a moment. "I think that's it for the park."
Kyouko still scowls at Naru. "Yeah, we got lives, but we'd all be very upset if you got seriously hurt or killed, so. Consider it a fair tradeoff." She sighs, shrugging. "Anyway.. that kinda solution, tech and stuff, that ain't my department. I just hope somebody figures somethin' out for you soon, I'm gettin' tired of only hearing about it in the aftermath."
She smiles and ruffles Naru a bit though, to show she isn't mad at the girl, before jerking her thumb over her shoulder. "I'm gonna go play some DDR, but I'll be right over there if you need me. Nice meetin' you guys." She offers to Jiaying and Sora, before turning to wander over towards the machines across the room.
Jiaying Maki is pulled into the vacated seat and doesn't really fight against it as usual! She makes sure there's enough space for the two of them, then reduces that available space by scooting in closer to Sora and leaning her head against her shoulder. "Could teach you how to hide better instead maybe? I bet I could get some help testing that even. Could check with that one card I got from Hannah too maybe."
She returns Sora's kiss to the cheek, then finds herself suddenly distracted by the chain of events. "Huh, I only ever saw a giant mouse there." She idly rubs at the pink line on her arm that's still healing. "We need to figure something out at the very least." She nods to Kyouko and waves to distract herself, calling out "Have fun! It was nice meeting you too!" Then to Sora she asks, "Does your family do anything for situations like that? I mean the- uh, living embodiment of bad luck or monster magnets?"
"Unless it's an actual curse, I doubt it." Sora answers softly, and she looks over Naru as though trying to look for hints of cursed magic, but it's hard to say for sure that's what she's doing. "I know what it's like to feel helpless, Osaka-san. I hope this won't happen too often." She doesn't really have anything to say to Kyouko.
"Have fun!" Naru waves after Kyouko and then turns back to the snuggly pair at the table. She reaches for her milkshake to take a sip and then nods a little. "I'd love to better learn how to hide. I'm working with Hannah currently on my general fitness, to be perfectly honest."
"I don't think I'm actually cursed." Naru shakes her head. "I mean, not /literally/, but I'm also not sure how one determines that sort of thing." She smiles a little and nods. "I do my best to take care of myself, but unfortunately, that's not always an option. It does get frustrating."
Jiaying Maki drums her fingers on her lap for a moment then shakes her head and says, "Hannah might be able to do the technology thingy if she was being honest when I Met her. I haven't called the number yet- I probably should.' She flushes a faint shade of pink and adds, "Especially since it might help Sora too."
Running her fingers through her hair, she sighs and closes her eyes while leaning there against Sora, what without having sugar and being sleepy and comfortable. "I could give you some purification or sealing charms, but I- I'll be honest, you'd probably want to test them before relying on them. I'm still practicing."
"I'm not really feeling the signature tells of a curse anyway." Sora says softly, "A good luck charm might work, but I don't know how to make one. Purification or sealing might help fight off people trying to hurt you, Osaka-san, but they're no substitute for someone who can actually deal with the problem being there." She doesn't really have any better advice.
"Well a lack of curse is reassuring at least." Naru nods to Sora and then holds out her hands. "To be perfectly honest.. at the moment I'm getting there on learning how to proect myself. It takes some time to work up to though." She giggles softly. "Oh for the training montages in movies!"
"Thank you for the offer." Naru smiles to Jiaying. "While I'd be silly to turn down good luck charms, I'm pretty well set for purification and healing."
Jiaying Maki nods quickly and says, "Good. I don't mind using my own and getting hurt because I messed up, it's part of learning right?" She looks over at Sora and carefully nudges her side to get her attention, then initiates the kiss this time! Maybe being a bit cuddly isn't so bad.
TO Naru, she nods and says cheerfully, "We'll I"m glad you're learning. If you ever want to practice something let me know, you've still got my number right?"
Sora returns the kissing, clearly still in the early lovebirds phase of dating, then when she breaks it up, she adds, "Well... I could help with some fitness things, maybe? Volleyball doesn't help much for fighting, but you'll want to be in shape, right?"
"How long have you two been together?" Naru asks with a smile at the pair still clearly in bubble stage. "I do still have your number. I haven't gotten to practicing yet, but probably soon. Most of the time, I just aim to survive Hannah-chan's workout routines. She is.. er.. devoted. You've met Hannah.. yes? Force of nature."
Jiaying Maki is happy being in that bubbly stage, it's pleasant and a great distraction from all of the other things going on! Holding up her hand she says, "A couple of weeks now. Kind ahappened after school." She shifts in her seat, leaning back against Sora again while adding, "I have met Hannah, she was breaking trees- That is a good description of her.'
She glances at Sora from the corner of her eyes and asks, "Want to teach me how to play? I'm too short to play probably, but it'd be fun to at least practice." Hey, she wants to learn A sport that isn't just hitting other people, magical creatures and the occasional doll.
"If you want to learn, sure." Sora promises, and follows it up with another kiss. "Yeah I've met Hannah, she's okay, I think? I don't know her very well, though... so I can't say for sure." She half-shrugs, "So what is she teaching you?"
"Congratulations to you both." Naru smiles warmly at the mention of the relationship only being a couple weeks old. She picks up her pencil, to add to her doodles as they chat. "Me? We run three times a week, and then hit the gym a couple times a week for body weight stuff. The usual sort of fitness. I .. well.. I'm an artist and not an athlete. PE classes aren't much compared to devoted fitness routine, and really don't prepare you for running from things. Not really."
Jiaying Maki nodnods quickly to Sora and says, "Absolutely, it'll help with my coordination right?" Which means she'll probably take a shot to the head at least once. Oh well.
She quickly shakes her head though after that and says in general, "That whole not-getting-hurt thing is why I've been trying to find a teacher for some martial arts too. I bet the balance will help at least right?" She smiles cheerily after though, being congratulated for Sora is definitely preferred to the other thing! She notes the book, almost protests, having an idea of what's being said and instead shrugs and cuddles in sleepily against Sora.