concoursec | Small steps [Open]

Entry tags:

Small steps [Open]

Character(s): Raidou Kuzunoha XIV, whoever else
Location: Front Gate
Rating: PG-13 at most.
Open/Closed/Finished: Open
Summary: Raidou wrestles with English.

"'What did you do this weekend?' 'I went to see a movie. It was very interesting.'"

Raidou frowned a little as he read the words aloud, tracking his progress with one finger -- without the use of his translation device, of course. Sentences weren't too difficult, but throw in a few paragraphs and it was hard to remember all the details. Reading aloud helped somewhat, but it was still attempting to process information in an unfamiliar language. He turned his attention to the comprehension questions.

"What kind of movie did Alice watch?"

A documentary about fish, he wrote carefully in the space provided.

He wondered how the others were getting along.

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Having just returned from town after purchasing some new reading material, Cid could not help but notice the individual by the front gate. At first, he was simply going to walk past and continue on his way, but he could not help but notice that the boy was having a rather peculiar--harmless but peculiar, all the same--conversation with himself.

"Is everything alright, cadet?" he asked, taking a few steps closer. While he was under no delusion that he recognized everyone on campus, something about this individual struck him as new, and even if he wasn't, Cid had nothing to lose by greeting the other individual.

"Yes, of course," said Raidou. This time, he relied on the translation device to do the work for him; no point in making things overly difficult. He set the book aside as Cid approached, standing as he did so.

"I'm working my way through some extra lessons for my remedial English course."

There was a moment's pause, and then a faint smile passed across his features. Ah, yes, the English courses--Cid hardly remembered them these days since he'd been here for so long, but now that he was reminded, he too could recall the utterly inane scenarios one was meant to study and work off of.

"You are a new arrival then?" he asked, taking another step closer and offering his hand. "Cid Raines. I'm an instructor here."

"Yes. This will be my first quarter at the Garden." Not that he had much of a choice about it, from what he understood; this was simply the logical place for an offworlder of his skill set. Raidou took Cid's hand, giving it a firm shake. That much, at least, he'd had the opportunity to learn back in the Capital.

"Raidou Kuzunoha. A pleasure to meet you, Mr. Raines. I hope I'm not disturbing anyone here?"

"Not at all. I should be applauding you for your devotion to your studies." Cid had seen his fair share of slackers from those from other worlds; after all, what reason did they have for studying in a land not their own? Many individuals sought a quick and painless return to their own world. Certainly, there was the chance that this boy was like himself, perfectly happy to never return, but all the same...

"Have you been adjusting well to the new environment, Raidou? It can be quite a shock, despite all the efforts the Garden has taken to ensure our comfort as outsiders."

"It's nothing, really. A keen mind is its own reward." Especially if you were in Raidou's line of work. "Besides, this is an excellent opportunity, in its own way. Not all students are fortunate enough to receive a sponsored education."

In fact, he was probably lucky he hadn't been sucked into a dimension filled with cyanide gas or something.

"I've been adjusting as well as can be expected. This world is not very much like the one I'm used to. And the people in the area seem rather suspicious of me, generally speaking."

Yeah, why couldn't this be like the Capital, where everyone just assumed he was a normal high school student?

"Yes, the natives can be rather wary of us, but I cannot blame them," he replied with a slight nod of the head and a brief smile. "Several months prior, time compression brought a whole host of evil-doers, world conquerers, and others one might label as 'villains' to this world.

"Needless to say, the amount of chaos that ensued only worsened relations between off-worlders and those originally from here." There was also the random but large influx of strangers last month as well, but at the very least, that event had not caused quite as much a fuss as the other.

"I have no doubt you have already heard this advice, but I strongly suggest against using any unique abilities you may have while in their presence."

Raidou gave a slight shrug of his shoulders as he adjusted his cap. "That shouldn't be a problem. I had to practice discretion back home as well."

Of course, it wasn't too difficult to work clandestinely when ordinary people couldn't see demons anyway. But still, he'd had to take precautions.

"I assume the influx you spoke of was dealt with? By whom?"

"Many of them simply vanished on their own--sucked away once more by time compression." It was a source of many troubles, but all the same, it often provided the solutions as well. "A handful of them were taken care of by the SeeDs.

"Some of us recognized a few of the villains who visited this world during that time. Needless to say, those individuals felt pressed to assist in the resolving the matter."

Raidou tapped a finger against the hilt of his sword, thoughtful. "I see. Well, by virtue of simple probability, unsavory types were bound to show up sooner or later. And if a threat from my world appeared here, I would also feel obligated to stop it. Still, it was fortunate that they were few enough in number that they could be stopped."

And that the time compression had taken the rest of the lot back to where they'd come from, of course. "Did anyone from your world appear?"

"Yes and no. While I did not witness his appearance with my own eyes, I was told that a man I knew appeared." In truth, Cid was hesitant to call the lieutenant colonel an actual villain; the man was only doing what he felt was best for Cocoon and was, as such, no different from himself, save for a change in method. "He had a different history though, despite the face and name he shares with the individual I am familiar with."

"I don't know, what movie did she watch? Was it good at least~?" An amused, female voice came from nearby belonging to a nine-tailed girl who was sitting at the front gate seemingly playing with a ball of energy?

"According to the book, it was most scintillating."

Now there was a demon he'd never seen before. Raidou plucked a tube out from the sash about his shoulder, calling out one of his demons. It was time for... negotiating.

In a burst of otherworldly light, a tall young man dressed in green armor appeared, a long spear held in one hand. This newcomer bowed politely to the woman, giving her a pleasant smile. "Pleased to meet you, madam."

A summoner? There was something you didn't see every day.

"Can't say I can say the same just yet, but thank you for the courtesy." She smiled teasingly as she rolled the ball a bit of a distance away before calling it back to her.

"How honest of you," said Raidou, slipping the tube back into place. "My name is Raidou. And you are?"

It was possible this was a contrary sort, like Pixie. Best to start off gauging the conversation and adjusting their strategy from there.

Ahri smiled in turn. "I'm Ahri, a new arrival to this place. Are you new too?" she asked curiously.

"Yes. I arrived here not too long ago as one of the offworlder students. Unfortunately, it seems most people are a little suspicious of my assistants." He gestured toward Tam Lin, who nodded briefly in turn.

"How long have you been here?"

"I don't see what they would need to be wary about~" Ahri mused. "You arrived in their location and it seems they are plenty capable of handling anything. Why worry?" she gave a small shrug and smiled at Tam Lin.

"Hmm a little over a week? Something like that. I came in when they were still on vacation so I haven't had the pleasure of starting my classes. I have to say I'm really looking forward to those!" Considering Ahri never had formal education.

"Unfortunately, that's the way it is with most people," Raidou said. "Or so it was where I came from. Everyone wanted to move on from the days of old superstition and embrace the modern era. The number of people who wanted to hold on to belief in the supernatural was relatively few."

Therefore, it made sense to him when the people here didn't like things that didn't fall into their pre-existing set of beliefs about the world.

Tam Lin smiled at Ahri in return. "Do you enjoy studying, madam?"

"Ah yes~ The so-called 'progress'~" she mused with a small laugh. "Technology will one day surpass and replace magic and all you wretched creatures will cease to exist." she said in a gruff-mimicked voice before turning to look back at them, eyes half-slitted like a predator's.

"I was told this once... The person was a Zaunian drug lord who thrived on torturing others thrugh his technological machinations. He wasn't too fond of the magical prowess of the rest of Valoran. He didn't live long enough to fulfill his dream however." she added as she licked her lips as if savoring a memory.

Ahri shrugged, "You'll find them everywhere... I admit, the majority isn't unpleasant though. Just nearsighted is all. They can be rather kind and generous regardless." she said back in her cheery and smily state.

Turning her attention to Tam Lin, she smiled playfully. "I do! I enjoy learning about everything and anything I can! I never did have a chance to, and I hate to admit that I'm overly curious about everything~" she giggled.

Raidou raised an eyebrow... but death wasn't a very uncommon occurrence where he came from. As a devil summoner, he'd seen more than his share. "Regardless, that's how things are. Holding onto the past too tightly has its own dangers as well."

After all, there were those who abused their power even when people still believed in the supernatural. It was more or less human nature. It was the duty of the Kuzunoha to maintain order despite that.

"Never had a chance?" Tam Lin asked. "What do you mean by that?"

Ahri shrugged, "I don't deny that, but going about it as a means to 'erase' one or the other is not the way to go either."

At the latter question, she looking back towards the Garden. "I never had a chance to formally study. They had offered me all the knowledge I wanted at the institute of war so long as I kept participating in the Fields of Justice. But granted, they were very picky about what and when they let me read."

"True. It would be best if everyone could coexist." Of course, the way things had been going, that seemed rather unlikely; otherwise there'd be no need for people like him. "That makes sense. Propaganda is an excellent tool for making sure your armed forces are easy to manage and share your ideology." Of course, it was also unethical.

"But perhaps you can now make up for lost time."

Ahri turned back to look at them and smiled cheerily, "I'm hoping I can~ Truthfully, I want to learn as much as I can about everything. The world, the people, how things work, and all the things that so many others have put so much thought into~ Most of these worlds are so fascinating~" She mused with a small laugh.

"Well, I'm sure you'll get your chance. There seems to be no shortage of offworlders to interrogate." Interviewing people was one of Raidou's specialties, actually -- it had to be, with his line of work. But the thought of questioning them just because had never occurred to him.

Perhaps he'd think on it a while.

"Neither of us have been aboard a floating town before," Tam Lin volunteered. "I understand there are many types of vessels that traverse the sky."

Ahri giggled lightly and nodded, "Yup, there's lots of interesting people arriving every so often it seems. That makes this all the more exiting."

At the latter comment, she looked up to the skies and smiled, "There are. Apparently this place has it's fair share of really intriguing vessels. Someday I'll be allowed to try one, they look like lots of fun."

"Exciting... I suppose that's one way to put it. On the other hand, what happens to your world while you're away?" Not that Raidou was arrogant enough to think that the Kuzunoha couldn't get along without him. But he'd worked hard to become Raidou Kuzunoha, and the thought of losing his position through no fault of his own did bother him a little.

Tam Lin looked a little curious. "You are a helmsman, then?"

"Hmm, not really sure. I didn't bother to ask truthfully. I simply saw this as a continued opportunity to further my knowledge and continue my travels. I suppose if you really wanted to know you could always ask the dean, or the older offworlders. Although they seem to be not completely sure about how this all works just yet."

She smiled and then turned to look curiously at Tam Lin, "A helmsman?"

It was to be expected that few knew how the time compression worked... but what a curious reaction. Ahri spoke as though she didn't care what happened to her world. Raidou made a quiet note of it before moving on. "Thank you; I think I'll do that. No one I've asked so far seems to know the answer, though... so it's apparently not common knowledge."

"One who steers a vessel," explained Tam Lin. "A boat, for instance." Well, if she didn't know the term, chances were that she wasn't one...

"Doesn't seem like it, but someone must know more about it right? Something this big happening to such an active world is bound to being studied and researched. So I'm sure you'll find someone who's knowledgeable."

At the explanation Ahri laughed a bit, "Oh no, I'm not. But! I'm eager and more than willing to learn! It looks like too much fun to pass on don't you think~?"

"Perhaps. But I--"

It was at that point that the chime sounded, signaling a call to classes. It appeared that they'd have to continue this particular conversation another time. Raidou doffed his cap -- a reflexive motion. "Pardon me. I believe that's the bell for my next class."

Ahri raised a brow and smirked.

"Ah, alright~ Take care now, it was a pleasure meeting you both." she said with a playful wink.

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Small steps [Open]

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