973/To the top

To the top
Date of Scene:	06 January 2024
Location:	School Library
Synopsis:	Hinoiri runs into Ami, the girl who manages to consistently be top of the grade in every single exam. Hinoiri goes in, ready to throw down. Alas, Ami... turns out to be likeable. Nooooo! But that's fine. Hinoiri will just use this to her advantage, somehow, to destroy the brainiac. For only SHE can be top of the school.
Cast of Characters:	Ami Mizuno, Hinoiri Kirara

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Ami Mizuno has posed:
The Winter break had only just finished. School would be in session again come Monday, which meant that the last chance to hit up the library to study without it being too crowded was today. Ami was here, as she was a frequent flyer of this place, enough so that the librarians usually let her have run of the place when she needed or wanted.

Though she's not in her school attire (since she could wear cute clothes instead!) she's still being very serious about it. A stack of books is piled next to her, and another stack is off to the side for the ones she's already gone through. The workbooks she was currently writing neatly in are lain out in front of her as she studies with her large glasses on.

She could read easily without them, but she was prone to eyestrain for as LONG as she often studied. The glasses helped.

Hinoiri Kirara has posed:
Hinoiri Kirara was, well... preparing. She had to make another presentation later, try and get another member of the board to support project Eclipse. She alllllmost had enough. It really helped that she was making good headway in.... most things. Easter had proved to be very beneficial in that regard.

But there was still homework to do, still things to achieve. To work on. So she was stopping by the library to drop off a few workbooks and get some new ones. When you came from another world, you had to work hard to catchup. But she refused to 'catch up'. Ever. In anything. She'd managed to even tie for top of her grade a few times... rarely. But considering when she'd started she'd been a C+ grade student? It was decently impressive.

However, when she entered the library, her eyes narrowed on the other girl. Ami. Oh, she knew her. she knew her INCREDIBLY well. Where Hinoiri came from she was the best. The greatest. The most impressive in an entire generation! No, in multiple.

And yet, this girl, this totally mundane, simple girl... had managed to top her in EVERY academic achievement. Her equal in some ways... (Actually her better in many but she could NEVER admit that. Ever.)

For a moment she wondered if it was time for another kidnapping... but shoved that thought aside. Don't mix business and pleasure. That was how you got sloppy. Still... She should introduce herself. Get to know the competition. She made her way over and... "Mizuno-san?" she asked, giving a playful smile and offering a hand.

Ami Mizuno has posed:
"Thirty seconds." Ami states without thinking. It's blurted out as her eyes continue to skim over the text that she was reading, while writing notes with her other hand in the notebook. It's all done with a meticulous precision that makes one perhaps wonder if she's even come up for air from her books in awhile. Certainly she hadn't looked up toward Hinoiri or her offered hand.

Not until thirty seconds later. Exact. On the dot. Just as she comes to the end of the paragraph she'd been note-taking on.

The pencil lays down in the crease of the notebook, a deep breath is drawn, and Ami finally tears her too-blue gaze up toward Hinoiri to blink a moment at the unfamiliar face. A soft smile is offered as she explains, "Hello. I'm sorry, I had to get to the end of that text. You're... Kirara-san, right? I remember you've improved greatly since you started attending."

A pause as she blinks again, and glances to the stack of books. "Oh, were you needing one of the books I have? I can share."

Hinoiri Kirara has posed:
Hinoiri Kirara narrowed her eyes on the other girl. Thirty seconds? Wasting thirty of her seconds, the girl should be grateful to even be allowed the three seconds of a greeting, let alone ANY seconds. But Hinoiri counted. One. Two. Three...

Thirty seconds later, the girl looked up.

Okay, huh. So she was able to keep up on that front. But could she--

And a slight bit of wind had been taken out of her sails. This... Ami... actually knew who she was. Well, find then. Maybe she wasn't a TOTAL waste of space. She had the glory of being one of the few who could keep up with her, at least academically. And knew to scope out the competition. Impressive. BUT! There had to be a flaw, somewhere, in the girl's armor.

"Oh, you noticed? Yeah, there was a... small bit of a cultural gap when I came here. I've mostly managed to make up for it, though. I'm positively delighted that you actually remember me, though. I've seen your scores quite a few times. The Ami Mizuno, top of the class in almost every academic she's in. I don't need any of your books, I just felt I should talk to you, see how the rumors match up with the person behind them."

Were there rumors? Maybe. But this was just Hinoiri's attempts to prod. To poke. To see how the girl reacted to such things. Probe defenses, then find out how to destroy her...

Yes, she WAS in fact that petty.

Ami Mizuno has posed:
Ami Mizuno smiles in turn reaching up to take off her glasses so she can properly look at Hinoiri without having them in the way. They were rarely worn in class, just during these intense study sessions. "Of course I noticed. I'm always excited to see when another student is working hard to improve themselves. Plus as you said you had the culture gap to overcome, which made your progress all the more impressive." And now here she was seeking out the top performer to potentially get even better! The bluenette could absolutely appreciate a studious student set on improving themselves.

Mention of rumors though? That actually does find a little crack in her self-esteem. Just a bit. "... They're here, too? I hoped I got away from them when I changed schools. It's been so much better here." Saddened, Ami glances away breifly with a deep breath. No. No, it was different here. It was better. She had friends who really liked her.

"I don't think I'm better than anyone else, honest. My mother wants me to be a Doctor like she is, so I study a lot. It's the one thing I'm good at."

Hinoiri Kirara has posed:
Hinoiri Kirara couldn't help but preen just a little bit under the other girl's praise. Yes, she was impressive, she knew. But it was still nice to hear. Especially by someone as smart and talented at this Ami girl. But it wouldn't be enough to save her. "Thanks, I'm delighted that you've recognized it. I wouldn't imagine someone who must be as busy as you would have time to notice someone like me."

Hinoiri managed to even put on a concerned face when Ami mentioned rumors in her past school. "Oh dear. I'm sorry, I hope I didn't bring up a sore subject. Back at my last school they used to spread rumors about me, too, so I know it can be a bit... rough sometimes. But I'm sure they're just jealous."

She slid into the seat next to her, giving a small, friendly smile. Then... "A doctor? Oh, you must be really smart then, Mizuno-san. I'd love to study with you sometime. Assuming you've got time... as for... well... Being better than anyone... Yeah, I guess some of the rumors I've heard are like that. But you really don't seem that arrogant at all."

Ami Mizuno has posed:
Ami Mizuno purses her lips a little bit at mention of those rumors again, as well as the saccharine response. Maybe she'd just become used to Usagi's over-the-top way of remarks though. Her head shakes a single time. "It's fine. I know I'm not. I have friends that know that as well now." It was better. She wasn't alone.

"Of course you'd be welcome to study. I usually have a study session with my friends at least once a week, though I usually have to keep them in line. They're not all as serious about their work as I am."

"Do you have any goals for your future, Kirara-san? We're at the perfect age to start focusing on any specialties we may wish to pursue."

Hinoiri Kirara has posed:
Hinoiri Kirara felt another small twinge. Friends. Huh. So even this girl had friends. Why was it everyone but her always managed to... No. Nope. It was the world, obviously. They were just so nice here, even a girl like this could make friends. If she'd been born here then she'd have friends too. All there was to it. It was *easy* here. This girl wouldn't have lasted a month back home.

"Oh? What day? And who are your friends? Maybe I know some of them. And yeah, I know how that is. Back home they rarely wanted to study and I spent most days alone in the library, studying every tome I could get me hoo-- hands on."

"As for goals? Politics. Once I'm finished here, I want to head back home and try and make it a better place. A place where people can really thrive the way they were meant to. From the greatest to the lowest."

Ami Mizuno has posed:
"We haven't worked out a study regime yet this semester, though I have several suggestions ready," Ami begins having already put quite a bit of thought into this. "Last semester we would meet on Wednesdays. It was a good day because we'd already begun to get the lessons of the week, and could prepare for what would be needed to turn in by next week," she explains. It's all sensibly done of course. "Though if that doesn't work for you I'd be happy to meet in the library sometime to study together regardless." Of course she would.

"Oh you probably know some of them. Tsukino-chan, and Osaka-chan, though I haven't been able to see her much lately I admit." Ami really ought to check up on her but it was so easy to think she might be okay because she was Usagi's roommate. "Oh, and Makoto-chan. Ah, I mean Kino-chan," she quickly corrects herself making it perhaps more clear that she was closer friends with the tall girl that so enjoyed cooking. Or perhaps was just more at-ease with her.

Ami falls silent to listen to waht Hinoiri says about her own choices, and what she plans for the future. The same amount of attention she was paying to the book when she first showed up is now fixated on Hinoiri. "Oh that's a wonderful goal! I really do think that's so important. There's so many who may excell if they only had the proper chance to do so."

Hinoiri Kirara has posed:
Hinoiri Kirara gave a small nod. "Wednesday should be fine. I'm pretty busy, so I can't guarantee I'll be able to come every session, but I will when I can."

The girl... had plans. And Hinoiri couldn't help it. If more students had been like this when it came to studies back in KKF... then again... this girl was obviously exceptional. And there had only been space for so many 'exceptions' back there. Most of which were her.

"Usagi-chan and Naru-chan? Oh, that's not a surprise at all. The former could befriend an angry yak if it came down to it," Hinoiri said with an amused chuckle, a hand moving over her mouth. "Yeah, I imagine she's been pretty busy. With the new boyfriend and her birthday being just a few days ago."

Makoto, however, made her blink. "Oh yeah. The... girl who likes to cook, right? Really tall? Not Adora tall, but tall? She's nice. I only met her for a few minutes, right before I left down for a bit a few weeks back. Seems you're getting quite the friend network brewing. Though... I would worry a bit about Usagi-chan... I mean, not that she isn't a positive cinamon roll wrapped in sugar. But she's also kind of... everyone has their talents and I do not believe studying is one of hers."

Yes, she had in fact looked over Usagi's grades at times. "Still, she's really great. The more you get to know her the more special you'll see she is."

Her smile wavered. Just a hint. As... Ami... really was focusing on her. She'd expected a much... different encounter. The girl to be an eggheaded bitch or too smart for her own good, distant and...

Instead, she was kind of warm and personable. Focused, driven. "That's... certainly true. Sometimes all people really need is an opportunity and they can change the world. Which kind of makes me curious about you. Is the only reason you want to be a doctor because your mom is? There's got to be more to it than just trying to be a smaller version of your mom, right? Or is it just the pressure from... your... mother..." And now she looked a little thoughtful, before shaking her head. Nope. Noooope. Don't think that...

Ami Mizuno has posed:
"Yes, that's right, that's her," Ami agrees easily enough at the somewhat vague but not off-the-mark description of her. "She had similar issues at her school with rumors about her being a bully because she's so tall. Really though, she's very sweet and loves to cook, and is very good at it! She even made me some delicious gingerbread recently. I suppose we bonded a bit over having to deal with being isolated and alone due to bad rumors in the past." Her smile was soft, yet sad, as she recalls this. Yet it was a smile. It was something she could look back on now with more strength and confidence than she had in the past.

Her head tilts to the side with a thoughtful expression at the question of being a doctor. "Honestly, my mother has made it quite clear that is her expectation of me. I'm not entirely disinterested in medicine either, but I don't think I'd want to be a doctor myself." Her gaze flits back down to the workbook in front of her.

"I like computers. I was thinking that maybe I could work on a computer system that might help to centralize the healthcare in the world so that it would be easier to diagnose illnesses using similar symptoms and markers. Instead of relying entirely on what one doctor may know, or think of, there could be a list of the most possible suspect diseases to test for once the proper tests are run..."

Ami looks up again to offer a sheepish smile. "Ah, but I haven't developed anything like that yet."

Hinoiri Kirara has posed:
Hinoiri Kirara had another flickering to her smile. "Yeah... yeah... it's kind of hard to socialize when everyone around you is either intimidated or trying to shove you down so they can take your spot, huh? The cut throat life of school. Guessing you're not the best cook, then? But I'd be willing to bet you're absolutely incredible at chemistry. Not a lot of time for cooking when there's studying to be done, no?"

Okay, that made her smile entirely face. "Well, maybe your mother's wrong," Hinoiri said before she could stop herself. "Err, I mean... there's nothing wrong with having your goals match hers. But if you end up only doing what she tells you to, what are you going to do later in life when she's not around to tell you what to do? Realize you utterly screwed it up and wasted your life, but now it's too late to do anything else so just accept the misery and suffering because changing paths then will be too late to do anything else?"

Well, that was likely a bit... unexpected. "Err, I mean... not that I'm saying you're wrong or anything. Just a thought. But you know what? You should do it. If you're really passionate about computers, just do it. How hard can it be? I'd imagine the most difficult part would be getting the symptoms right, because while one person might have a headache from something, someone else might not, or they'll get a ache in their leg instead, and it's all so subjective and obnoxious. It's why I could never get into medical stuff, it's not like you can just grab someone and make them tell you exactly what's wrong with them, because half the time you'd just know. And there's no like... readout, either. Trust me, if there was I'd know how to get rid of these headaches."

Ami Mizuno has posed:
That was a bit unexpected. Though she'd had similar thoughts in a way of whether she ought to follow her mother's pressuring or not. Her mouth opens a moment, taking a breath, only to softly remark, "It sounds like you've been in a similar position yourself." She could recognize that.

"I have been exploring my options, but I'm not at a point yet where it would be safe for me to deviate from them. I'm still a bit young to be out on my own. If I had to support myself as well it would make everything so much more difficult." Besides that she was her mother.

"How much water do you drink?" Comes a rather off the wall question. "What I have learned so far is that about sixty percent of the time a headache is caused due to dehydration or lack of proper electrolytes. Especially," she adds reaching up to gingerly touch the back of her head in indication. "If it's right from the back of your skull."

Hinoiri Kirara has posed:
Hinoiri Kirara cringed and then, nervously, reached up to rub her head. "Errr, yeah. A... bit. I uhhhh... had a mentor at my last school. Before I came here. She was.... a piece of work. I got used to it, but sometimes I wonder how things could have been. But it's not so hard being on your own, you get used to it."

... Okay, that came out before she could stop herself. Maybe don't share too many details with the brainiac girl. She was still competition.

"Oh, I drink plenty. I try to, at least. Sometimes in the back, sometimes on the side of the head, right behind the eyes or on the forehead. It's probably nothing, I used to get them all the time back home. But hey, maybe it's the... electrolytes thing. Heh. I do sometimes do sports things. But it was great talking with you, mind if I call you Ami-chan?" Hinoiri asked. "You can call me Hinoiri-chan. I actually have some extra credit I need to get done and I need to finish a project that's due by the end of the month. But, hey, maybe this wednesday, we can do that study session thing." She quickly got to her feet and started to make her escape.

Dang it. There she went. She got... too close. Ami was an enemy. NOT a colleague. Certainly not a friend. And definitely NOT like her. Ami was just a normal girl who was smart. But it wasn't like she was magic. Like she had an entire world depending on her. Like she could even begin to understand the things that Hinoiri had to do.

And she certainly didn't... find... the girl pleasant, or anything. Or kind of hope that they would meet again for a study session. That... Nope. No. Nuh uh.

An enemy. That was all.

Ami Mizuno has posed:
Ami Mizuno gives a sympathetic frown at mention of this mentor. All she can really say is, "It's horrible that people like that exist. I'm so glad you got away from someone like that. I'm sure you're much better now."

But then the girl was standing, causing her to glance up with a little blink of surprise. The momentary sting of worry that she'd said or done something that might have sent her running passes through her--But it's momentary when she mentions having a project she needs to complete. Instead she nods knowingly taking that excuse as a fully believable one. Who would fib about that?

The suggestion of names earns another smile as she nods. "I'd like that, Hinoiri-chan. It's always good to make new friends. I hope you feel better soon, too," she hastens to add.