1255/Poolside Watching

Poolside Watching
Date of Scene:	09 March 2024
Location:	Plot Room 1
Synopsis:	After meeting Coco and discovering she's a mermaid, Katsumi has a talk with her and Kaori.
Cast of Characters:	Katsumi Cora, Coco Kiumi, Kaori Jira

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Katsumi Cora has posed:
The Pool at Radiant Hearts is usually for swim meets, practice, and for those classes that are taught on occassion to learn how to swim or recreation. Ever since learning that someone was on the swim team, Katsumi has been visiting the pool more often. But so far, their paths have not crossed again.

But here he is again, sitting on one of the benches near the pool, he has his guide cane in his hands, while sitting next to him is a medium-sized Shiba, the tan and white dog wearing a 'Service Dog' vest.

With sunglasses covering his eyes, it's pretty obvious he can't see into the water, but is clearly waiting for... something.

Coco Kiumi has posed:
Coco is absolutely enjoying her newfound freedom not to have to worry about dissolving into seafoam, so of course, she has been getting into the habit of swimming at Radiant Heart's own pool. After all, it's much closer than either her own house or the sea.

She really isn't taking effort to hide it either, and the noises of her own tail kicking the water are very audible, at least when she is leisurely floating underwater, simply resting and enjoying being in a facsimile of her home environment.

At a time when she was by the water surface, she looks curiously when a boy with his service dog sits down by a bench, clearly waiting for something to happen. Katsumi may hear those noises of Coco's tail moving closer where she gets near the edge of the pool and looks at him from there. "Are you ok?", she asks him out loud.

Katsumi Cora has posed:
Picking up on the sounds of tail swishes in the water, Katsumi arches a curious brow, head turning in Coco's direction without clearly focusing at her. There's a moment where he hears the new voice, and he starts to perk up, just to oh softly, a mote of disappointment there.

"I'm good!" he calls out, his hands settled on his cane, a smile coming to his lips. "I had met someone here a couple of weeks back." he admits finally. "I was hoping she would be here again. But it seems she's not." A little sigh.

Reaching to his side, he pats his bag with one of his hands. "I had made her some baked treats."

Coco Kiumi has posed:
Coco raises an eyebrow when she picks up on the disappointment in Katsumi's voice. Is the girl he is waiting for a friend? A sister? If so, why didn't he just call her? Must be an acquaintance then. An acquaintance that has clearly impressed him enough to have him wait out here in the hopes of meet her again.

A fond smile appears on the mermaid's face when she arrives at the conclusion that she is witnessing the precious moment of a blossoming crush, especially since he had already baked her something. "Do you know her name? Maybe I can help you find her", she offers, hoisting herself out of the water, and lifting her tail out of it too, waiting.

Let this be her trial ground. She will help this boy get the attention of his crush, that's a promise. "By the way, I am Coco Kiumi. What's your name?"

Katsumi Cora has posed:
"Oh! Totally forgot to introduce myself. I'm Cora Katsumi, age 14 and in grade 9!" Katsumi offers cheerfully, gesturing downwards with his free hand. "And this is Kobo, my guide dog." Kobo swishes his tail when spoken of, but since Katsumi is not getting to his feet, the dog remains seated.

"She showed up when I was making cookies for Valentine's Day and she brought me swimming once... we had a picnic, but I have not seen her since." the young man may be in a one-sided crush at that. "Oh! Her name... Kaori. Her name was Kaori." he comments, as he opens the bag and takes out a small tin. When he opens it, there's several fresh made cookies and a small loaf of bread. Clearly all made by hand.

Coco Kiumi has posed:
"Nice to meet you, Katsumi and Kobo", Coco smiles at the duo. "I am in grade 11. And that's absolutely precious of you, Katsumi, I am sure she will enjoy them very much when we find her." Even if she knows nothing about him at all, Katsumi already has the right spirit, and it too is goes a long way in getting Coco fully on board.

And then he says that name. Kaori. There is a Kaori she knows too. It can't be that much of a coincidence, can it? "Is it Kaori Jira you means? I actually know her, and I am sure I can help you find her", Coco exclaims.

Though by that token, he is possibly wondering why she isn't approaching him, since that's the typical reaction people would have. "But that will have to wait a moment, sorry, I am a mermaid and that will have to wait a few minutes before I can get back to a human form."

Katsumi Cora has posed:
"It is nice to meet you Coco-san." Katsumi assumes it's her last name based on the naming conventions and then he brightens a little when Coco asks which Kaori it is and gets the one right. "Yes, Jira-san!" he says with a straightening up and a smile. "You know her? How serendipitous! Is she... always a little standoffish?" he asks her. Evidentally, it was his past experience with her.

And then Coco is mentioning she's a mermaid, and Katsumi is tilting his head. "Like a... real one?" he asks in surprise, a hint of confusion. "With a tail and everything? That's neat!"

Then, to offer his own explanation, he reaches up and pulls down his sunglasses, showing the near vacant blue of his eyes. "I can't see anything, sorry." So clearly, he wasn't drawn to Kaori by her looks.

Currently, Coco is sitting on the edge of the school pool in her mermaid form, while nearby, Katsumi is on a bench with a small tin filled with a loaf of bread and cookies, Kobo sitting down by his feet.

Coco Kiumi has posed:
Uh, so it actually was her. That's quite interesting, and in fact serendipitous. She at least does have an idea of who they are going to meet, though she will have to expand her knowledge. For a start she knows she is a Kaiju and interested enough over movie to show up to a cinema club, and then showing up to Katsumi baking. Well, it is probably hard to meet someone that doesn't at least vaguely enjoy food, so the last one isn't much of a point. "She was a bit like that the other times I met her", the mermaid confirms about Kaori's standoffish behaviour.

"Yes, a real one", Coco replies, and her tone has picked up quite a relieved timber to it. She knew she wasn't going to dissolve, but letting go of that apprehension that you have had for so long is another matter entirely.

It makes sense he is doubting though, so Coco tells him the obvious thing that is going to convince him beyond a shadow of doubt. "You can come over and feel it if you want, I don't mind."

Coco understands when Katsumi offers his own explanations. That was probably part of why he had been waiting here instead of going around. They must have met here first, and he was hoping the meeting would repeat. "Is it ok if I ask how you and Kaori met, please?" That may give her some more ammo.

Kaori Jira has posed:
There was no water rippling nor earth shaking for this arriving Kaiju. At least, not in this form... instead the admittedly tall girl had changed into her swimsuit and was currently exiting from the changeroom into the pool area proper, her hair wild as ever and that perpetual serious expression on her face. Or maybe she was just grumpy about something and looking to find an outlet...one that didn't involve breaking things or people.

Of course, that path brings with it a pause, a blink, as she spots others making use of the pool in the distance.

Familier faces it seems.

Katsumi Cora has posed:
"No, it's okay, if you say you're a mermaid, I'll believe it!" Katsumi is not exactly comfortable about touching a mermaid's tail, even with permission. He'll take her word for it. Instead, his attention turns to the how they met story.

"I was making cookies before Valentine's Day..." he explains. "For sale, so that girls that wanted to buy cookies for their friends, could. And while I was baking, Jira-san showed up and was curious about the cookies, so I gave her some. In return, she offered to take me swimming."

"I don't really like swimming. I used too, before I lost my sight. But after I lost it - being in a body of water is something I fear. But... she brought me into the water, and it was nice. And we had a picnic later. But... since then..." he shrugs a little.

Coco Kiumi has posed:
Coco listens intently when Katsumi tells of how they met, and frowns slightly when she learns Katsumi lost his sight. Knowing what you have lost is always hard to deal with. If only there was something.

Though, she ought to at least focus on what she can do. Musing in her thoughts, Coco thinks theirs is not such a bad situation to start from. At least Kaori isn't disposed negatively towards him or anything, she was kind to him out, even.

"I understand, that's why this means a lot to you", Coco replies. Before she can tell him they will meet again, she actually spots the Kaiju girl. "Oh, Kaori, hi!", Coco tells her while waving.

Kaori Jira has posed:
Well at least Katsumi wasn't going to be suprised by not knowing Kaori was there, though a lift of a hand follows the thump of the bag being deposited near one wall before the sounds of her footsteps against the ground anounced her drawing closer.

"Coco, Katsumi," she greeted, even if it was in that normal tone of hers. "You are also here to swim without others bothering you?"

Katsumi Cora has posed:
Thankfully, Coco is there to warn him. Because while Katsumi can sense the dark energy that seems to cling to Kaori like barncles on her kaiju form, sometimes it takes a second for him to recognize her. "I really do hope..." And then, Coco's warning him and Kaori speaks up.

"Oh! Hi Jira-san!" Katsumi is suddenly sitting a bit straighter, a hint of blush showing up in his cheeks. "I was just... I thought you might be hungry!" he explains. And with that, he's getting out the tin of bread and cookies to present to her. "These are for you." he offers cheerfully. "But if you're here to swim you can totally eat them after you're done and... all." he trails off, not sure where he was going with that. "Anyway, it's good to see you again!"

Coco Kiumi has posed:
"I am here to swim because it's closer than the alternatives", Coco replies. "I get tired of being constrained to a human form every so often." Kaori might get the feeling herself.

But that's not the matter here, and besides, she can just feel herself be able to change form. And that she does.

And then Katsumi does his move, with Coco only waiting there, observing what Kaori's reaction will be, if she is going to answer Katsumi's feelings on her own.

Kaori Jira has posed:
Well, she -was- hungry. Anyone who told her she shouldn't eat before she went swimming? Well, they'd clearly never been a giant monster-eating Kaiju before. You ate when you could and you swam whenever you wanted to! As for Coco's comment, Kaori nodded, a little shrug of bared shoulders as she reached for the tin offered to her. "If the alternative is drowning...or worse, large crowds of people watching you try to relax, sure."

Back to Katsumi, there's a touch to his shoulder that seemed...friendly, considerate enough to let him know where she was as she retrieved the single cookie and crunched it with a food-muffled 'thank you'.

Katsumi Cora has posed:
Katsumi has learned that Kaori is hungry quite often! And he has no problem feeding her, she seems to enjoy it! "Why would large crowds of people watch you relax?" he asks Kaori in confusion.

Then he realizes... she may be really really attractive. Like so attractive that she draws crowds! Oh no. He does not compare to that. At all. He feels the touch on his shoulder and for a moment, he lays his cheek against her hand, but yeah. A little bit to digest.

"I'll let you get to your swimming, then! I just wanted to say hi! And give you these." With that, he's on his feet, and Kobo is on his feet as well. "I'll talk to you later. Nice to meet you, Coco-san!" With that, he's tak-taking his cane on the way out.

Coco Kiumi has posed:
Well, Coco certainly wouldn't be fond of watching people gazing at her as she tries to relax. She gets being curious about her form, and is even fairly permissive about it, but there is a limit there, and a crowd of people looking at her like she is part of an exhibition would do it.

And then Coco gets accidentally treated to the absolutely heartwarming detail that is Katsumi holding his cheek against her hand. He really is too adorable for his own good, she can't fail him, absolutely.

But then she is caught out of left field when he needs to leave. "Oh, likewise here, Katsumi, be well!" And with that she watches him leave. She would have given him her number, but she didn't want to give Kaori the wrong impression.

Instead, she turns around and asks her a question after an extra comment. "Katsumi seems nice. By the way, how have thing been lately. I haven't seen you ever since the movie gathering. That was fun, right?"

Kaori Jira has posed:
Given she's finally able to reclaim some of what she was when she transformed, and part of that basically included being an arcane nuclear reactor...it probably wasn't that suprising she needed a few calories more than most her size.

His question, it brings a little tilt of her head. "There's often a lot of people around the water, when there's a lot of people in the water."

A shrug, she considers, she didn't really get it yet.

He was leaving, she blinked, a little wave given before she remembered the uselessness of that. "Thank you!" she calls after him.

Actual manners from Kaori. Maybe she was mellowing a little.

Back to Coco, Kaori moved to slide her legs into the water, shrugging her bared shoulders. "Better," she offers, slipping back to her normal tones. "I am making do."

Coco Kiumi has posed:
Hmmm, Coco would have hoped Kaori would comment the movie thing when she brought it up, but apparently that wasn't a direct enough way to go about things. No big deal, she can do better.

At the same time, though, Kaori has started to slide into the water, and Coco doesn't want to be left standing there while she is gazing down at the other girl, so she does the same, leaving enough space between herself and Kaori so her fin doesn't accidentally brush her."What do you like doing in your free time, Kaori? Are you a movie aficionada" Or is there something else you like doing?", she asks her.

Kaori Jira has posed:
The movie thing -had- been decidedly not talked about, but to be fair she'd been plenty grumpy at the time, trapped and homeless...and she was still kind of one of those things, maybe a little of both, but she wasworking on it.

Sinking down into the water, there was a little moment of comfortable sighing before she closed her eyes, sinking down to her neckline and shaking her head. "No."

A beat, she continues, not remotely put off by the tail that she'd seen before, but relenting enough to know she should probably make conversation. "The movie that day was the first one I'd ever seen..."

Coco Kiumi has posed:
The first one, huh? Sounds like a perfect thing to know so Katsumi can introduce Kaori to more of them. "There is a very high number of movies to see, an entire lifetime wouldn't be enough."

"What else do you like doing in your free time, Kaori? Or are you struggling with finding something to do?", Coco asks Kaori, she too submerging herself into the water. It's a good thing that she is able to speak underwater.

"I guess you actually love swimming too, though, right?" she tries to guess while looking up at the kaiju girl. Either that, or it was just a big coincidence both Coco and Katsumi had a meeting with her at the pool. "That was a cool thing you did, trying to get Katsumi to be at ease in the water again."