1526/Tomato Tomoko

Tomato Tomoko
Date of Scene:	11 May 2024
Location:	Administrative Office
Synopsis:	Tomoko visits the nurse's office after taking a volleyball to the face. Madoka ends up taking care of her and looking her over. Everything here is perfectly normal and there most certainly isn't a fussy nurse fairy telling Madoka what to do the whole time.
Cast of Characters:	Tomoko Watanabe, Madoka Kaname

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Tomoko Watanabe has posed:
    It was one of those days.

    It had started so well! Sure it was cool for the season and a bit rainy outside, but gym class was inside today and volleyball nets were set up. Volleyball! Tomoko Watanabe always looked forward to volleyball. She wasn't athletic enough to ever consider being in a sports club but she enjoyed getting the chance to jump around and play with teammates. She even had a tiny hidden power: she was actually pretty good at setting the ball up for a teammate to spike!

    For once Tomoko wasn't worried at all about getting picked last for teams!

    Which naturally meant that something had to go wrong. Or a series of somethings. At first it was just the usual: someone had to go get the balls from storage since having them laying around during warmups would be a hazzard. Without even asking someone shouted, "Thanks, Tomoko-chan!" She didn't even fight it, sighing slightly and walking over to the storage room where a large wire basket held various balls. She quickly pulled the volleyballs out and tossed them to the various groups of students that assembled around nets.

    That meant the teams were all picked by the time she was done... but that was okay! All she had to do was look for an oversized group with some students she knew would rather stand around chatting than play and boom, she had a spot! Things went well for a few rounds, but when she rotated up for her turn at the net disaster struck: a boy on the opposite team jumped high into the air and spiked the ball... directly into Tomoko's face.

    With a cry more of surprise than pain she fell to the ground as the ball shot off in a random direction. Well... that was embarrassing! She could feel her face heating up as she winced on the floor, then stayed down as she heard the various worried shouts of her name. When she finally opened her eyes she briefly worried she was actually hurt because of how blurry the world was-- then she realized her glasses had fallen off.

    Unfortunately for her, it wasn't the only thing that had. It's a natural conclusion the world around: Shoes off equals dead. Only one of Tomoko's slip on indoor gym shoes had come off, but it was enough that soon people were crowding around her expressing all kinds of worries and concerns.

    Tomoko closed her eyes again, squeezing them shut. The way people were talking you'd think her whole leg had come off. A quick touch to her face meant she wasn't even bleeding! Actually, she didn't even feel that bad.

    Ten minutes later Tomoko was timidly trying to shake off the last of the girls who had dutifully escorted her to the Nurse's Office.

    "She got hit really hard with a volleyball," the girl emphasizes before leaving, "she even has a really big mark on her face from it! I think she's acting a little slow too, so you might want to check for a concussion."

    By the time she shoos the helpful classmate away Tomoko is actually breathing more quickly than she had when she'd first stepped in! Rather than explain what happened right away she simply hangs her head and lets out a long, slow sigh.

    There are no actual marks on her face, but it is beet red.

Madoka Kaname has posed:
    Madoka... had been tired. Chronically tired, over the past couple of days, for reasons she never really got into. The School's Administration hadn't really questioned her, largely because they already knew. Of course, that's how it was for this school. There were plenty here who knew what was up when it came to magical things.

    ... Of course, there were also people like Tomoko, who had no knowledge of magic whatsoever. In fact, people like her made up the vast majority of even Radiant Heart's population, students and teachers alike. People who Madoka knew couldn't possibly see what she had to deal with on the regular because, well... when you're constantly surrounded by fairies, you start to learn that there are those who look and those who do not, and not once did Tomoko ever seem to notice the minidoka fairies.

    Even now, she seemed completely unaware of the fussy nurse fairy that was circling around her, zipping around to try and get a closer look. Emphasis on 'try'. Her progress is constantly hindered by the unaware students who are trying to rush Tomoko to safety. Poor tiny little thing.

    When the cadre of concerned kids arrives at the nurse's office, Madoka is there taking a seat. She had honestly come here just to get a breather, but... she's also the nurse's aid, which means that she's somewhat expected to take responsibility. Or at least, she feels like she is.

    Standing up, the pink girl walks over to Tomoko and leans forward to get a closer look. Then she smiles to the other classmates and says, "Okay, don't worry about it. We'll take it from here!" She starts trying to escort the students out of the room so that they can have some reasonable breathing room, before turning back to Tomoko with a smile.

    "It's a little hard to believe that you got seriously hurt by a volleyball to the face. They might sting a bit but they aren't that dangerous. Still though... if you hit your head..."

    Madoka glances over Tomoko's shoulder at... something that isn't there, and then says, "Oh! Um..." She holds up her index and middle fingers, as well as her thumb. "How many fingers am I holding up? Do you remember your name and where you're from? Ah... hold on..."

    The pink girl turns away to rummage through the medical supplies, eventually pulling out a light pen. When she returns, she shines it at Tomoko's eyes and says, "Follow the light for me, please!" before waving it around a bit."

    Again Madoka glances over Tomoko's shoulder and looks a bit annoyed. "I know, I know..." she mutters. Then she rolls her eyes before focusing back on Tomoko.

    "It doesn't really look to me like your face is bleeding at all, which... it shouldn't be. Honestly, you just look a little bit worked up to me. How do you feel?"

Tomoko Watanabe has posed:
    There is some tiny chance Tomoko actually has something wrong with her. She's not quite hyperventilating but she's not breathing regularly either, and there's no denying she's extremely flushed. If Madoka had never seen the girl before it could be a lot easier to jump to that kind of conclusion.

    These symptoms had a much easier explanation though, and one that fit the girl to a T. She was mortified. She might be good at volleyball, but she would never be good at being the center of attention. She had a tendency to flush, squirm, stammer and sometimes even squeak when she had to give presentations in front of the classroom. Anything more than that and she'd be likely to lock up entirely. So make that several normal classrooms worth of students in the gym, cause a fuss and then have a large number of people seriously concerned for her?

    For an emapathetic girl like Madoka it wouldn't be especially difficult to put the puzzle pieces together. Still, it would be negligent to ignore proper procedures.

    "I didn't hit my head very hard when I landed. I lost my balance when the ball hit me, but it wasn't a bad fall..." She speaks quietly, still clearly nervous and embarrassed about the whole ordeal. She does admit to actually hitting her head on the ground, though. Her eyes follow the fingers as they're held up and she watches them for a moment before answering, "Three. Tomoko Watanabe, from the Juuban District." She doesn't bother saying 'Tokyo' given where they are, settling for something more specific.

    When penlight comes out she winces, then squints. She follows the pen for a few moments but then stops briefly, turning her eyes first, then her head and peeking over her shoulder. There's nothing there, of course, so she returns her gaze to the pen as it waves around. After the light goes off she wibbles briefly, then mildly breaks down, moving forwar and hiding her face against Madoka's shoulder. This seems to be less about Madoka herself and more about needing something to let out the emotion that built up inside of her.

    "It was horrible, Madoka-san! I got hit in the face and my glasses fell off. It didn't even hurt that bad but everyone was crowding around me and standing over me and talking about me!" She shakes her head and pulls back a little. There aren't tears in her eyes, but one could easily imagine them there, "Someone thought I broke my leg, and someone else said they should call an ambulance! They didn't even listen after they asked how I was and one of the teachers talked about calling my parents!" She looks like she's going to keep going but instead takes a deep breath and lets out a pathetic sigh, "Uuuuuu..."

Madoka Kaname has posed:
    The more Madoka looks Tomoko over, the more it becomes obvious what actually happened. 'Poor girl,' she thinks. After checking to make sure that Tomoko was, in fact, still in possession of her glasses and that nothing had been left behind, clasps her hands behind her back and leans forward, saying, "Well... no memory loss or confusion. Your pupils are responding correctly. There's no bleeding on the front or the back of your head, or anywhere else for that matter." Wait... when did she check the back? Oh, it must have been when Madoka was looking through things earlier.

    Going through The Checklist is an important part of any diagnostic process, as Madoka has had plenty of time to learn. Normally a mere volunteer wouldn't be doing things like that, but the pink girl has been on the front line of multiple disasters so she kind of gets the Wesley Crusher treatment sometimes. Not that she knows much about Star Trek.

    Besides. The unseen nurse fairy Medo wouldn't allow Madoka to do things anything less than properly, and it would be grossly negligent to not at least go through the basic procedures.

    Of course, when Tomoko lurches forward and places her face on Madoka's shoulder, the pink girl starts to fret a little bit. Oh no, she isn't fainting is she?!

    Oh, no. She's just overwhelmed. Poor girl. Kaname's surprise turns into sympathy, and she gives Tomoko a very loose hug. "It's okay. It's okay. Sometimes we just need space. It can't be easy to deal with that all at once, especially all of a sudden."

    Aside from that, as Madoka can testify, sometimes getting smacked in the face can rile you up even if it doesn't actually hurt.

    The nurse's aide pats Tomoko on the back and smiles, speaking with a reassuring tone. "Well... You look perfectly healthy to me! I'll have to tell the teachers not to call your parents. I'm sure they'll understand when I explain that you just got a little overwhelmed. There's a chance that they might not listen to me, but... I'm sure Meioh-sensei will back me up on that. I can't find anything physically wrong with you."

    Stepping back and glancing down, Madoka comments, "Also, I'm not sure how they came to the conclusion that your leg was broken. Generally that's something that's very... visible when it happens. I'm not even seeing a bruise. Are you feeling any pain anywhere? On your legs, arms or back?"

    Canting her head to the side, wearing a bright smile, she adds, "Because if not... all you probably need is a moment to settle down. You're free to take a seat here for a bit, in a chair or on one of the beds."

Tomoko Watanabe has posed:
    Tomoko can't actually blush any more than she already was but when Madoka notes people needing space her eyes widen a little and she realizes how close she'd gotten herself. She takes a step back, "I was talking about being overwhelmed and I went and imposed myself on you. I'm sorry, Madoka-san." She shifts nervously in place for a brief moment, "Thank you, though. It's good hearing someone that understands."

    She looks genuinely relieved when told she doesn't appear injured. She didn't feel that bad, but having enough people telling you you might be seriously hurt can be enough to make one worry. There is briefly a pleading look on her eyes and on her face though, "Please do, Madoka-san! They'll be very worried if someone calls and says I was hurt. I wouldn't want to scare them like that over nothing." It doesn't help that then she'd have to explain to them about how she embarrassed herself in front of so many schoolmates.

    Her head shakes at the question about her leg, but then she looks over herslef a little. She actually hadn't before. Her knees have slight red spots on them from landing on them but she doesn't say they hurt, though she does point to a spot just above her elbow where she might have a very slight bruise forming. "It hurts a little there but I don't need anything for it."

    If her relief was visible when told she wasn't hurt it's dramatic when Madoka tells her she can sit. She visibly relaxes, like she'd just been abe to take a backpack full of schoolbooks off after a long walk home. "Thank you, Madoka-san. I was going to ask if I could. I don't feel any pain and I wanted to play volleyball but..." She moves to a a chair and sits in it, tilting her head down and covering her face with her hands, "If I went back everyone would make a fuss about it again! Especially if it was so soon. I-it's okay. I'll get to play tomorrow. Everyone will know I'm fine by then."

Madoka Kaname has posed:
    Madoka holds up her hands in a 'settle down' gesture. "No, no! It's okay. I personally don't mind hugs..." Of all the things that could overwhelm her, a random touch from a girl she barely knows doesn't really even register to her. "... and I'll be sure to explain things. Honestly, with things that that it's often better to head it off quickly. Rumors can travel all over the world while the truth is still getting dressed. Do you remember which teachers were there? I can probably call them right now if needed."

    When Madoka takes a closer look at the legs, the red spots on the knees are... honestly par for the course for a spill like that. As long as they aren't skinned up or anything it's probably no big deal. It most certainly isn't a sign of anything broken.

    When she looks over at the elbow with the slight bruise, Madoka actually hms. Of course, it's only natural that one would use their arms to break their fall in a situation like that, but still...

    As Tomoko walks over to the chair, Madoka follows after her. Again she glances towards... nothing. The clock, maybe? A poster? When she looks at Tomoko again it's with a soft, warm smile. "Well, honestly, if you're bruised then you're better off sitting out today anyways. Any sort of running or contact sport can make it worse, and increased blood flow might not be the best right now. It doesn't look like anything to worry about, but... if it starts hurting too much be sure to put an ice pack on it, okay?"

    Feeling a bit bad for the girl, Madoka watches her for a moment, and then takes a seat next to her. "I mean... I'm sure that they would worry about you a bit. At best, the teachers would probably make you sit out anyways, so you wouldn't be having that much fun."

    Madoka tilts her head to the side and sets her hands in her lap before asking, "Do you want to talk about it? It sounds really frustrating, being so excited only to have it come apart like this."

Tomoko Watanabe has posed:
    "Oh, um..." Tomoko fidgets in place while trying to remember all of the teachers that were present before telling Madoka. The number seems right for the size of the class. "Do you think so? I wouldn't want people worrying about it for too long. It might be difficult if people were still asking me about it in a week."

    More relaxing as she hears there won't be a problem with staying longer, the fact that she might want to for health reasons anyway a fact hardly worth remembering. "Okay. Good, thank you," she replies. "It doesn't hurt enough for an ice pack now but I'll ask for one if it changes." By now her face has actually started to cool from that bright red to a still noticable but at least more normal pink tinge. "Talk about it? Um..." She shifts in place, unsure if she really wants to, but deciding to speak anyway since Madoka has been so nice and helpful to her already, "It was my turn up at the net and the boy on the other team spiked the ball."

    Her face reddens as she says it, knowing Madoka will instantly realize exactly what happened from that. "It was a good play!" she defends, "It's just... I was in the way." She shakes her head, "I was stunned so I fell over and by the time I could think straight again it seemed like the entire class was standing around me asking if I was okay. I tried to tell them I was but..." She goes quiet for several moments, not even realizing the irony of the situation, "I... clammed up and no one heard me when I did speak. It's not frustrating. I know I'll get to play tomorrow. It's just... embarrassing." As she talks her voice gets a little quieter, she speaks more slowly, and the nervous pauses grow longer.

    Oh look, there's the bright red again!

Madoka Kaname has posed:
    Madoka nods as she notes the list of teacher names. Most of them sound about right for this time of day. She picks up her smartphone and stands up for a moment, digging through her contact list. She doesn't quite have each teacher on her contact list, but she does have the phones that are linked to rooms.

    "Oh, hello... um... is Tanaka-sensei there? It's Kaname, from the nurse's office. Oh! She's fine, actually. Oh, no. No it's fine. I just wanted to tell you that she's alright, since people seemed really concerned about her. ... Ehehe, yeah, it looked a lot worse than it actually was! ... Oh! Would you? ... Thank you, sensei! ... Of course! ... Until then!"

    When she hangs up she gives Tomoko a soft smile. "She said she'd tell the others... which is good! It means I wont have to track them down myself."

    As she listens to the story, she starts putting pieces together. Boys can be... a little rough sometimes, and they don't always know their own strength. Or pay attention to their surroundings. Looking a little wide-eyed, Madoka watches Tomoko's expression with concern. "Huh. Sounds like it all happened pretty quickly."

    As the pink nurse's aide listens, she starts to realize more and more that Tomoko is getting shy. In an attempt to be encouraging, Madoka says, "Aw, you don't have to be embarrassed. It happens all the time! I'm sure no one thinks less of you for it. Whatever doesn't kill you makes you stronger, right?"

    Aw geeze. Poor Tomoko. She's red all over.

Tomoko Watanabe has posed:
    As Madoka calls the teacher Tomoko tries not to look too worried about what their reaction might be. She seems ready for Madoka to hear something that will make her reconsider her own diagnosis, but her fears are unfounded. "That's good. If others hear the teachers talking maybe there won't be a rumor that I was badly hurt, too." Whatever happened must have been visually impressive, though... maybe not enough for the classmates who helped her to the Nurse's Office to be as worried as they were.

    "It wasn't his fault," the brunette replies while shaking her head. "I should have seen what was going to happen. I was right there, so I should have been able to block it. It was a very good spike." She looks down, "He should have tried to aim away from me, but so it'd have a better chance of scoring, not because it might hurt me." At the least it seems she isn't upset at any of her classmates for what happened.

    "It did. Everything was fine up until then, it was a normal fun game. It was just an accident. I'm sure I'd have been fine if no one noticed." She closes her eyes and shakes her head again. The hardest part about all of this is defintiely that so many people saw her in an embarrassing moment and started worrying about her and the fact she keeps going over it in her mind again and again. "Y-yeah..!" she agrees to Madoka's sentiment in such a half-hearted way that she cringes inwardly and looks away, breaking eye contact with the kind nurse's assistant. "Maybe everyone won't think I'm so fragile once they hear I wasn't actually hurt," Tomoko asks speculatively.

    Then she looks around herself. Sitting in a chair in the Nurse's Office, hiding so she won't get mobbed returning. After being told she probably should sit out the rest of gym even if she did return. Her hands set in her lap and tighten slightly, and yet again her face reddens.

    No one said the lemonade made from lemons couldn't still be puckeringly sour.

Madoka Kaname has posed:
    Madoka shrugs as Tomoko defends the boy. "Well... I'm sure he didn't mean to, and honestly it looked like he didn't actually hurt you that badly anyways. Sometimes it's the surprise that's more impactful than the hit itself. ... and yeah, that was kind of my hope. Since they're probably going to gossip anyways, they may as well be given all the facts."

    Assuming of course, that the kids don't automatically assume that this is a coverup. Did the original Tomoko actually die, and get replaced by a robot clone?!?! Nah, that'd be too ridiculous to believe. Even for middle schoolers.

    "... and sure! Maybe they'll think you're tougher than you look. I'm sure that boy would feel bad if he thought he actually hurt you."

    After watching Tomoko for a moment, Madoka considers her feelings for a moment. Is making her stay here just forcing her to be alone? Would it be less embarrassing if she went back to class? She can't actually read minds without using magic, and even then she only 'hears' what people want to tell her.

    "Well... I mean... if you're lonely here you can go back to class if you want. I don't want to trap you here, either. Just... you know... take it easy if you do go back, okay?" She clears her throat and adds, "Of course, there's no rush. Whenever you're ready. I could even walk you back if you wanted."

Tomoko Watanabe has posed:
    "I hope so," Tomoko replies, only to look a little sheepish when Madoka mentions the boy feeling bad. In some ways that's an improvement, since she's not thinking about her own embarrassment for the first time. "Actually... I'm pretty sure people were already reprimanding him for it. I could hear someone yelling at him about it, but everyone kept asking me how I was and not really listening when I said it wasn't that bad. Then..." she trails off and rather than repeating her story she notes, "You saw."

    Her eyes go big as saucers as Madoka starts worrying she's forcing her to stay there. "N-no, it's alright! I'd rather stay here. If I went somewhere else it'd be skipping, but if I stay here no one will get mad." She dips her head, "If I go back everyone will want to ask me if I'm okay, even if they've already heard I was from someone else. ...all together at once." She shivers. Then she sighs and decides to be honest, "I'm sorry, Madoka-san. I don't like talking to so many people at once. Or... even having them look at me. It always makes me worried I'll do something wrong or they're looking because my collar isn't folded right or... anything. It's why I always sit at the back of the class, if I Can."

Madoka Kaname has posed:
    Madoka smiles brightly at Tomoko and clasps her hands together. "Well, if you'd prefer that." She once again looks around at... something that isn't there, says, "Oh!" and then looks at Tomoko with a tightly contained panic. "A-ah, well, um... Eheh..." Oh geeze oh geeze oh geeze why now?! "I just... realized... I have to go do something! Really quickly. Sorry!"

    She starts to walk briskly out the door, but at the threshold she turns to make a closing comment. "It's okay if you want to stay here for a bit, but don't forget your other classes! You'll need to get changed at some point. A-anyways, I'm sorry!"

    With that, she sprints out the room.

    Should Tomoko take a peek out the door, all she'll see is some weirdo in cosplay running down the halls. No trace of Kaname anywhere. Strange.