1627/Lunch Rush

Lunch Rush
Date of Scene:	04 June 2024
Location:	Radiant Heart Academy
Synopsis:	A series of students run across a new kid, and also each other, on the way to lunch at RHA.
Cast of Characters:	Kyouka Inai, Mamoru Chiba, Katsuko Takezaki, Amanda Faust, Usagi Tsukino, Bow, Coco Kiumi, Madoka Kaname, Ami Mizuno

---

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    Just after midday, and the campus is bustling with students and faculty members as people go to eat lunch, take a break, or head towards their next class. It's a fine summer day, by which of course I mean 'hot and humid' because it's Tokyo in June. Kyouka Inai has conceded minor points to the weather in that she is not attempting to wear a leather jacket, and she even has the sleeves of her button-down white shirt rolled up to the elbows, which some older teachers might regard as a heinous breach of propriety.

    She is, however, wearing her sunglasses, at least with some justification as she makes her way down the pathway from the administration building towards the cafeteria plaza, with all evidence pointing towards lunchtime. She is accompanied by a young man to whom she is speaking animatedly as they proceed. "...scars are badass anyway, dude. Like, I'm not saying it's great just that there's a silver lining. It's a record of the fact that you've been through hell and come out the other side largely intact."

    She gives a mildly amused snort. "All my scars are emotional. Equally damaging but you don't even get to show them off to make people think you're hardcore. Unless it's your therapist in which case you're paying them so it doesn't count."

Mamoru Chiba has posed:
"If they were just superficial scars, sure, but..." the absurdly tall young man in question is saying, gesturing with a gloved hand that has a couple of fingers curled. It's a beige glove that goes up over his wrist-- his orange uniform shirt has short sleeves, he doesn't have to roll them up to account for the weather. "Even after I deal with this with surgery, it's going to look a mess and people are going to pretend they're not staring. I can't heal something that's already healed, the surgery's going to just be to get the functionality back."

Katsuko Takezaki has posed:
    Katsuko waits for a moment for a relatively quiet moment to approach Kyouka. She can't quite seem to catch the woman alone, so she hopes that she's not just about to look weird in front of one her upperclassman. She approaches the two, and offers a quick bow. "Inai-sensei." A nervous glance to Mamoru, "Senpai" She pauses a moment, figuring out what to say when her choice is made for her. <GUTEN TAG> That voice comes from the necklace she's wearing, and she seems a little startled by it. "Uh, I was told you had some extra lessons for students like me?" A pause before she realizes she's forgotten something important. "Katsuko Takezaki, seventh grade, and this is Zwillingsrute." She gestures to the device.

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    Kyouka is made for loud moments- the quiet ones tend to be few and far between. This is about as quiet as it's likely to get, and if anything the bustling mass of students occupying the plaza they pass through provides more privacy than a shadowy alleyway. The ambient noise of a crowd where everyone is just trying to get to where they need to be is great cover.

    "You want people to stare. Trust me, being noteworthy has its benefits. You can learn to use that." She's replying to Mamoru when Katsuko approaches. It's not unusual for a student to approach Kyouka anyway, so when Katsuko does so she pauses in her walk and eyes the girl speculatively, her nose twitching. She doesn't seem particularly startled by the talking necklace, either, though the faint nod of self-confirmation she gives at the greeting is in response to it.

    "Afternoon. You were told right, and more students are always welcome, if they meet the qualifications which you clearly do." She gives a lopsided but friendly smile. "You can sign up for the Self-Defense Class in the office... the special lessons take place after the official class ends."

Mamoru Chiba has posed:
"You sound so weird saying it that way," the tall boy tells Kyouka affably. He bows to Katsuko. "Mamoru Chiba, grade eleven. Pleased to meet you, Takezaki-san and Zwillingsrute. I don't usually go to the extra lessons unless it's to bother her," he cocks the thumb of his gloved right hand at Kyouka, "or to blow stuff up." He leans forward a little bit, lowering his voice unnecessarily, "Blowing stuff up is *great*." Then he straightens up again and sticks his hands in his pockets, winces, and takes them out again.

Katsuko Takezaki has posed:
    Katsuko looks up at the tall boy, "A pleasure, Chiba-san." She glances at his hand, "Did something happen... you know..." She doesn't explain further. Her gaze returns to the much closer to eye level face of Kyouka, "Okay. And I'm sorry if I do something a little silly, I've not uh ... had Zwillingrute for long yet, still getting used to things." She offers, "And uh... I hope that self-defense class doesn't overlap with my martial arts classes?"

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    "Saying what which way?" Kyouka says to Mamoru, giving him a sidelong glance. "Don't call me weird in front of students. They'll think I'm weird." She smiles to Katsuko again. "I'm not weird, for the record. Don't listen to him. Unless it's about how he bothers me and blows things up. Those are both definitely true.

    "Thankfully, blowing things up is pretty much the point of the class, and I get paid to let people bother me, so I suppose I can't be too salty about it."

    She doesn't address the question about Mamoru's hand, leaving that to him, though she does elucidate upon the class thusly: "It's a training class, so the fact that you haven't had your Device for long means you are perfectly suited for it. You know, I taught Sailor Moon how to punch when she was fresh off her first henshin." A mild exaggeration, but only a mild one. "As for your schedule.. the class is Wednesdays, special lesson usually starts at around 4:30 and I kick everyone out by 7, but it's unofficial so you don't have to stay that late if you don't want to."

Mamoru Chiba has posed:
"Burned," Mamoru says with a one-shouldered shrug. "Someone went mad with power, went around burning people and stealing their magic. Got at least one Devicer that I know of, too. You know how the sun seemingly went out a couple of days ago? That was her. She's been defeated, though, and everyone's magic came back."

He makes a face at Kyouka, then says, "The self-defense class -- the mundane one -- counts as a gym class, so it would probably interfere, but Fite Nite only runs into some of the sports clubs. You can also show up late. You can also show up late and through the upper windows in the gym."

Katsuko Takezaki has posed:
    "I don't think you're weird, sensei." Katsuko says in a tone that says she's only technically not lying. "Yeah I did notice that, was a little scary and I didn't know what to do so I just walked around trying to see if I could spot any trouble." She offers, then back to Kyouka, "I don't know who Sailor Moon is, but I'm sure that's very impressive. Is she a friend of Sailor V?"

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    "It was very unpleasant." Kyouka adds, to Mamoru's description of recent events. "Thankfully we have a pretty good community around here that responds to threats like that." She seems rather proud of this, though any credit to be claimed for such a thing is surely only hers in small part.

    She makes a face back at Mamoru when he pulls one at her, though she agrees with him. "You can, in fact, show up late. Or early! And if you need special training because the official class doesn't work with your schedule, well we can probably arrange that too."

    She then adds, "Sailor Moon is, in fact, a friend of Sailor V. I'm pretty sure they work together. This guy would know better than me," She jerks her thumb at Mamoru. "He's Sailor Moon's boyfriend."

Mamoru Chiba has posed:
Mamoru gives Kyouka a look, like 'really?', and he says to Katsuko -- while putting one hand in a pocket and leaving the gloved one out -- "Sailor Moon is Sailor V's boss. But they're also friends, yeah. There's a whole bunch of Sailor Soldiers... but anyway, you might meet some of them at Fite Nite. What's really impressive is that Inai-sensei here wears sunglasses at night."

He reaches up with his gloved hand to push his glasses up on his face and says, "Anyway, have you heard about Obsidian? I mean, yes, there's the megaconglomerate that's mostly only as evil as Google, but the actually magical evil part?"

Katsuko Takezaki has posed:
    Katsuko misses the look between Mamoru and Kyouka. "Sunglasses at night? Is she super-sensitive to starlight or something?" She asks, how she came to that conclusion is unclear. "... I'm not sure? Is that that rival organization to the Time Space Administration Bureau?" She asks Mamoru next, "If so, I've ran into this white-haired no good jerkface a few times. Once he brought along this girl who's just trying to help her mom and the other time he interrupted lunch and brough along this other girl who everyone was really angry at for some reason." To Kyouka, "I intend to be part of that community."

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    "It's actually training," Kyouka says loftily. "I have superb night-vision because I've been wearing sunglasses at night for years. You know the old, very wise saying- "In order to defeat darkness, one must first be able to see it."" This is in fact something she just invented on the spot.

    She listens with some interest to Katsuko's account. "White-haired no-good jerkface could be one of several people but I'm fairly certain I know who you're talking about, in which case the description is accurate. Interrupting lunch, my god. People have no sense of decency."

    "But no, Obsidian is generally Bad Guys. Most people are angry at them for one reason or another. Even their own members, honestly."

Mamoru Chiba has posed:
Obsidian, a rival organization to the TSAB.

Mamoru's grin lights up his whole face. "That's a unique perspective," he says. Then he gets a little more serious. "The TSAB hasn't got any authority here, but there's one kid actually from it and he's deputized three others that I know of, and that's the extent of it on Earth. Those four kids-- well, three kids and one timeless and ageless nerd I respect a great deal-- do their best to thwart evil and contain terrifying problems with not enough resources, same as the rest of us. Obsidian is... a lot. And if you're talking about a white-haired jerkface in a lab coat who hangs out with... oh. Trying to help out her mom. Right. Yeah, no, you're talking about Riventon. He's a good fight target."

Mamoru exhales. He eyes Kyouka sidelong. "You wear sunglasses at night because you think it looks cool, come on, don't just make stuff up to justify your aesthetic choices."

Katsuko Takezaki has posed:
    Katsuko doesn't quite get where Mamoru's grin is coming from, when it comes to TSAB. "Riventon, okay. Do you know why these Star ... Strivers? were so upset that I think they wanted to /kill/ this girl who was with him when they interrupted lunch?" She looks shocked for a moment when Mamoru disses a teacher, then transforms her face. "Sensei, is he right? Did you lie to me?" She asks, deliberately opening her eyes as wide as she can and faking a little lip quiver.

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    Kyouka looks positively scandalized. "I never lie." She says, untruthfully. "I construct truths as pertinent to the situation in order to maximize educational opportunities. You may construe that as lying but you would be lying. Don't lie to kids, Mamoru. It's unbecoming of a leader."

    She then returns her grey-eyed gaze to Katsuko. "Interrupting lunch is a valid reason to want to kill anyone in my book, but no I have no idea what that particular incident was about. Still, if Riventon was involved it was probably bad news."

Mamoru Chiba has posed:
Mamoru rolls his eyes at Kyouka, then returns his attention to the seventh-grader. "Do you remember what the girl looked like? The one you're pretty sure they wanted to kill? I don't know the Star Drivers really well except for Ginga Otome, she's a shrine maiden with purification and shielding. I know that the blue-haired one-- Ginga Kingu-- nearly killed someone on accident, but I fixed them -- I'm a healer."

A healer with a hand burned badly enough that it doesn't work right. ...but he did say that the mad-with-power person stole people's powers, too.

"Also, Inai-sensei has a tendency toward hyperbole, please don't think she'd seriously want to kill someone over interrupting lunch."

Amanda Faust has posed:
    Amy approaches when she sees some familiar faces, catching a snatch of conversation and can't stop herself from humming. "Hmm hmm hmm HMMMM hmm-hmm hmm hmm SO I can SO I caaa-aaaan, hmm hmm hmm HMM hmm hmm hmm hmm oh hey Inai-sensei, Mamoru-san, person I don't know!" She's smiling cheerfully from the music.

    But then she briefly frowns. "What did Riventon do now?"

    "Oh uh," She smiles and turns to Katsuko, "I'm Amy Faust, 10th grade." And then without thinking she tries to bow, curtsey, and shake hands all at once, sort of awkwardly leaning over and extending a hand... she briefly looks confused and then just stands up and extends her hand.

Katsuko Takezaki has posed:
    "Are those fancy words for lying, senpai?" Katsuko responds to Kyouka, by asking Mamoru. She takes a moment to think about the boy's question, and then briefly describes La Crima. "And yes, killing people is bad. Fighting is fun, though, and educational as long as you get through without perma--..." She trails off and awkwardly looks away from Mamoru, and then another person arriving to the rescue. "Katsuko Takezaki, seventh grade." She bows, then shakes hands awkwardly.

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    "I think I like this kid." Kyouka says to Mamoru, not at all offended by being called a liar by her, it seems, especially after she says that fighting is fun. "But no, I almost certainly wouldn't kill someone for interrupting lunch. Dinner, on the other hand.."

    She makes a face when the girl describes La Crima. "Oh, she's very want-to-killable, that one. But I'm pretty sure the reason those particular guys are so mad at her is she once shot.. Ginga Otome's-" (she almost just said Wako-chan), "soul out or something. Don't worry though, it got put back in and she's fine now. But it's easy to understand why you'd be a bit peeved about something like that."

    Amy approaches, and Kyouka gives her a smile. "Faust-san, nive to see you. Don't worry, we're merely covering the basics with the new kid here. She seems to have good head on her shoulders though, so I think she'll do alright."

Mamoru Chiba has posed:
"Those are definitely fancy words for lying, Takezaki-kun," Mamoru says with a firm nod. Then his face clears. "Ah, yeah. That girl's a vampire who was trying to eat souls at one point. I don't know if she managed to succeed, but yeah, she had a weapon that shot them out. If the soul stays out, the person stays dead."

Katsuke gets awkward, and Mamoru looks awkward, and as Katsuko and Kyouka greet Amy, Mamoru waves with the hand that's got the beige pressure glove on it, shoulders de-tensing. He tells Kyouka, "I already stand out," calling back to their earlier conversation. Then he says to Kyouka and Amy, "Probably show her the bigger-on-the-inside place. I'm meeting Kazuo, so I'm going to dip. I'll see you later. Good to meet you," he finishes, toward Katsuko.

Then he slopes off across the grass, headed for the dorms.

Amanda Faust has posed:
    After the handshake Amy looks over the new student, eyebrows lifting slightly.

    She winces at the description of one of the heartsealer rifle incidents. "La Crima, the energy vampire? Her situation really sucks. She was cursed into what she is now and can't feel positive emotions anymore... Geeze, with everything that's happened lately I completely forgot about trying to find a way to heal her, not that my powers are any good for that... I feel really bad for her though. Can any of us really say if we had to go through that we wouldn't... do some pretty extreme things to find a way to feel again?"

    "Oh uh," Mamoru's heading out, she waves back, "Seeyou around! Good to see you up and about again by the way!"

    She grins back to Katsuko. "Did you hear about the bigger-on-the-inside place yet?"

Katsuko Takezaki has posed:
    "Ugh. That sucks, and I get why they're angry at her but it sounds like she doesn't want to be mean... they cut off her arm, and they weren't stopping there." Katsuko explains the situation that happened, as she saw it. She beams when Kyouka says she has a nice head on her shoulders. "I don't know about this bigger on the inside place, though."

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    Kyouka calls after Mamoru as he departs, "Tell Kazuo-kun that I'll buy him ramen sometime soon, I owe him one!" She doesn't elaborate on what for, lifting a hand in farewell to the young man as he walks away.

    Her attention returns to the two girls still standing nearby. "Everybody has a reason for what they do. Doesn't mean you should let them get away with it if 'what they do' involves hurting other people." A simple shrug, but she is not known to be a great philosopher.

    When Amy brings up the 'bigger on the inside' place, she ohs, nodding her head. "She hasn't from me, anyway. She's talking about the Shed, which is kind of a secret meeting room for the mahous on campus. We don't have any sort of organized structure like the TSAB or Obsidian, persay, but we do have a place to get together and share information."

Amanda Faust has posed:
    Amy winces at 'cut off her arm.' I've seen Sayaka recover from that, but I don't wanna find how much magic it would take me. Actually, if I can reattach it, it's probably a lot less than growing a new arm, right? Hmm...

    What were they talking about? Oh right. "She can turn into a dark energy blob or something, so I'm not sure cutting her up does anything permanent, still, yikes though."

    Wait, what if it's the arm with the soul gem on it? ...I guess that shouldn't matter if it's nearby enough to put it back on. Still, if a monster bit my hand off and flew away I could be in real trouble... Amy shivers a bit at that thought. Dang, this immortality has some peculiar weaknesses...

    She turns to Kyouka. "You know, we really should see if we can extend its protections to some kind of internet connection. It'd be great to have forums we can check from our PCs... or our phones! Or a chatroom or something... even a primitive BBS could be handy..." She taps her chin in thought. "Has anyone talked to Sailor Mercury about this?"

    (AUTHOR'S NOTE: Amy. Amy. Considering what just happened with the SQL server, think about what that means! You would be on the hook for magical tech support. Do you want to be on the hook for magical tech support 24/7??? It's not just gonna be, 'oh no the server's down.' You're going to get people going 'how do I make an account' or losing their passwords or having some problem with their device that they blame on the site! Do you want that, Amanda? Do you want that?!)

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
Just after Mamoru slopes off, from the opposite direction of the dorms - the classrooms - comes a girl with long blond hair pulled into two odango-bun'd twintails, her school uniform neat, her bow accented by a broach clipped to the center of it, predominantly pink with a gold star and five gems of varying colors. She's yawning as she comes, making it clear she's late to lunch because of sleeping in, but she pauses when she sees two familiar figures and a third, unfamiliar one.

"Inai-sensei, what's up? Recruiting for the special class or finally handing out some detentions?"

The latter is a joke, because she, Usagi, frequently uses Kyouka's office as a place to spend her entirely unearned detentions. So what if she sleeps in classs sometimes. Shut up. Her boyfriend was in the hospital, that should get her some slack!

It worked this time, at least.

"Hey, Usagi Tsukino! Grade 10, class 9c! Nice to meet you, new girl! Also, did I hear you guys talking about Mercury-chan?"

Just making sure.

Katsuko Takezaki has posed:
    Katsuko nods to Kyouka, "Stopping her I get, sensei, but it sounds like she needs help not violence." She listens to Amy, "Maybe. Still, they were real angry, they weren't fighting to stop her. They were even ignoring the WgDonald statue the... I think you said his name was Riventon... turned into a monster." Usagi arrives, and there's a bow. "Hello, I'm Katsuko Takezaki. Seventh grade. And this is Zwillingrute." She touches her necklace, <GUTEN TAG>

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    "You could just use a normal bulletin board." Kyouka points out to Amy dubiously. "I mean, any mundane who comes across it is just gonna think we're writing fanfic, and it'd be a pretty lucky bad guy who happened upon it by accident. Still, if you want to ask Mercury about it I ain't gonna stop you, maybe she knows something I don't."

    Kyouka then looks to Katsuko, giving a somewhat wry smile. "You're young still. One day you'll learn.. violence is how I help." She laughs, then turns and spots Usagi arriving over the proverbial hill from the dorms.

    "Usagi-chan, you just missed Mamoru. He was going off to get lunch Which," She glances at the big clock nearby, "I also need to do because I have appointments after and if I don't get something to eat I will absolutely kill someone and no, that isn't hyperbole." It is, actually.

    "I think Faust-san here was going to show the new kid the Shed. She seems like she'll fit in, even if she hasn't heard of you. Yet." She grins, giving Usagi an affectionate ruffle between the odangos, then dodging out of the way before any retaliation can be enacted and turning to walk towards the cafeteria herself.

    "See you guys later. Nice meeting you, Katsuko-chan!" She waves over her shoulder before disappearing amidst the crowd.

Amanda Faust has posed:
    A forum hosted out on the regular internet? "I guess that's true... Bye, Inai-san! Have a good lunch!" She waves.

    And here's Usagi! "Hi, Usagi-san! I was just thinking Mercury might know how to make the Shed's protection extend to a computer system we can access from outside, but Inai-sensei has a good point that it'll look like some RP project to normies and a bad guy probably won't stumble across it by chance."

    Also, now that the Device has been introduced and greeted them, she turns to look at it. "Ah, [guten tag], Zwillingrute."

    She blinks as she realizes what was said. "...They turned Wonald WcDonald into a youma?"

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
"Pfft, you would not kill them because you were hungry," Usagi snorts, "Maybe make them buy you lunch though, I'd buy that. Okay, by Inai-sense- MY ODANGOS!" An aggrieved noise, even as Usagi huffs and shakes her head with a laugh, turning back to the others.

"Nice to meet you, Katsuki-chan, and Z- Zwil -" oh, why is the world so cruel, she is not managing that name with her poor, Japanese and Lunar only speaking tongue. "Can I call you Zwi-chan?"

Hopeless!

"If you want to see the Shed, we can definitely check you in! It's got some nifty magic security now... and... I mean, Mercury or Luna could probably do that. Maybe with some Moon tech, Luna's got a whole bunch of fancy hookups, and Mercury-chan knows all about how to use them? But I think we've been doing pretty good with our bulletin boards and conspiracy notes."

She turns to Katsuko and says very seriously, "It's not a conspiracy if they're actually out to get you."

Bow has posed:
One of the advantages of being tall enough to stand above many of your peers is the fact that you learn to pick out people by their distinctive hair styles. And Usagi has one of the most distinctive ones on campus. Carrying his book bag over his shoulder, when he spots the blonde, he calls out, "Usagi!" to let her know he's about as he makes his way over to her.

He's tall, well-built, broad-shouldered and dark skinned. Is very much the foreigner in the group as he casts a nervous smile to the small group. "Hey! I... I wanted to check up on Ami? She good, after you know..." He doesn't know how much he can share right off the bat with the new girl, who gets one of his brilliant smiles.

"Hey, I'm Luke! But most folks know me as Bow, because of my love of archery and violins." A tap of his fingers against his brow. He doesn't go into the whole 'I'm from America bit', at least not until he knows the situation. "I'm in Grade 10. Class 10b."

Katsuko Takezaki has posed:
    "This Riventon guy did, while were having lunch." Katsuko explains the scenario, frowning at the memory once again. <JAWOHL> is the answer Usagi gets from the Armed Device. "It's nice to meet you, Tsukino-senpai." She listens to the rest of the explanation about the Shed, before concluding. "I thought it's not paranoia if they're actually out to get you?" She sounds a little confused. Then Bow arrives, <GUTEN TAG> The voice comes from Katsuko's necklace. "Hello, I'm Katsuko Takezaki, seventh grade." She introduces herself.

Coco Kiumi has posed:
The second day of Coco's return to school, the mermaid thought that she ought to at least show her face at the Administrative Office, after all that Setsuna had pulled to justify her absence. Unluckily for her, that was just when Inai-sensei had to leave to other pressing duties, but at least she saw her face when she was heading away. At least if something important will have to get tackled, she might receive a mail about it.

Instead of walking away herself, she moves towards the crowd of people standing there, having overheard talk of the Shed. And she has also heard that new device speak. "Hello!", she waves to the group. "Are we introducing someone new to the Shed?"

Looking towards Katsuko, she smiles and says to the new face "Hello, I am Coco, nice to meet you." Then since Usagi was talking about the Shed's security measure she adds "How is that going? Are people finding it manageable?"

Amanda Faust has posed:
    Oh no, poor Usagi. A conversation from long ago comes to Amy's mind, about the poor Ruin Explorer's VAs having to pronounce the bad guy's name, Rugudurool. "We were just headed that w-- your cat has moon tech?!" She thinks back to that time Luna took on a human form. "Oh, right."

    Bow gets a wave. "Hey Bow. We were just bringing the new girl to the Shed. She's magic, as the talking necklace shows. [Sprechen sie Belkan?]" Wait, no, he's from another dimension, not space. Gah, it's hard to keep all these aliens straight!

    And there's Coco! Amy runs up and hugs the mermaid. "Coco! It's so good to see you back on your feet!"

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
"That might be the official saying, but when you see our boards, you'll get it," Usagi says somewhat cryptically, but there's no way to describe it - and then she pauses and thinks of something else that's in the Shed, but uh,,,

"Oh, hey Bow-kun! Coco-chan! This is Katsuko-chan, she's like, involved in the same extracurricular as us! Ami-chan is okay now, and so is everyone else, at least as far as I know. Mamochan and I kind of healing blitzed the hospital."

Mahou Club, Activate! Lore dump, activate!

And then she blinks at Amy, before giggling, "Yeah, I mean, Luna's not exactly a normal cat, you know? She was my mama's advisor before she was mine... and, hey wait, Coco-chan, were you off your feet?"

Madoka Kaname has posed:
    "That cat is vicious," warns a tiny, familiar voice from seemingly nowhere. "Don't underestimate her. She can't be bribed even by catnip."

    A Labyrinth-like portal opens, complete with weird Witch Runes, strange magic circles, and some kind of opalescent fog. Gretchen, the dark fairy, sticks her head out. Her ghastly mask covers her face, but the Witch-like X-Chara's head is still clearly pointed towards the new kid. "Hi, Takezaki-san. My name's Gretchen. I don't have a last name."

    When the masked fairy spots Coco, she floats out of her portal to hover around the mermaid. "Hi~, Coco. Glad to see you on your feet again!"

    She doesn't explain what she means by that, since she figures that story is best told by the mermaid princess herself.

Bow has posed:
Bow, of course, recognizes his benefactor from the prom. "Hey, Coco! Been a while. I'm not sure if I ever got the chance to tell you how great your music was at Prom. That was a really good set. Thank you again for both performing and providing most of the funding!" A winning smile is given to her, and as the talk turns to the Shed, he can relax a little now that he knows the deal with the new girl. Using a finger to push his glasses up on his nose, when Katsuko introduces both herself and her device, he ohs, eyes lighting up with little sparkles. "So you're a device mage!" he says it with excitement, but quietly. "Have you met Koji and Rashmi? They both have similar items. I work for Rashmi's parents at the Korma Chameleon. You should come by some time. The food's great and it's a neutral ground where everyone can meet and talk."

Then he pivots to Amy. "Hey, Amy. Glad to see you're okay. Turns out I slept through most of that... whole thing. Eh-heh." Being mirrored can do that to you, after all. "Glad to see you about, and I'm not sure I got the chance to thank you for the removal of ... well, the thing that was trying to take me over. I appreciate it."

There's a nod to Usagi, and a breath of relief. "I'm glad she's doing well. I was so drained I slept like the whole next day. Probably worried Sayaka a little." And speaking of Sayaka, there's her best friend. "Hi, Gretchen!" he greets the little fairy, reaching into his pocket to pull out a small wrapped candy. "You want?"

Katsuko Takezaki has posed:
    "Nice to meet you, Coco-san, Gretchen-chan, Luke-San." Katsuko goes to the set of greetings, reiterating her own just in case. <WARNUNG! DUNKELENERGIE!> Zwillingrute alerts, but since the others don't seem bothered, Katsuko doesn't act on it. "I'll have to decide when I see the boards, then." Some of the details go over her head. "I think I might be a device mage? I haven't heard that term before, but it works." <MEISTER IST EINEN RITTER!> Zwillingrute helpfully clarifies.

Coco Kiumi has posed:
With the impetus of Amy's unexpected sprint, Coco almost loses her balance, but manages to catch herself and hugs the redhead in response. "Thank you! It's so nice to be back! I am glad to see you are well! That must have been dangerous, was everything alright?"

Smiling nervously at Usagi, she starts explaining herself. "Yeah, Sunbreaker got my powers too. I just wasn't at the hospital since I returned to my real form without them, so Nurse Meiou had me stay inside a bathtub at her home while she took care of my burns, plus she has also been introducing me to this series called Star Trek. And I am as good as new now."

A wink and a wave are given to Bow. "Don't mention it, it was a pleasure being part of your efforts to build the whole thing, and I definitely enjoyed myself on the stage! I have to thank you for the opportunity too."

"Hello, Gretchen, thank you too!", she addresses the pinkette. "I am glad that you are all right. How did things go?" She isn't sure if she should ask about the locket Madoka had brought up last time.

Amanda Faust has posed:
    Coco hugging her back makes Amy squeeze Coco even more before letting go.

    As Coco starts talking about a 'real form', Amy's eyes widen and she makes a 'STOP' gesture, waving an arm at Coco as she turns to Katsuko and explains, urgently, "Coco is a mermaid!" then relaxes and drops her arms back to her side. "Phew..."

    Luna was Queen Serenity's advisor... yeah, Amy remembers seeing the two cats at the end of the world, and nods.

    To Gretchen: "Vicious? But you're the perfect size for cuddling cats! ...Oh. She doesn't like that, huh?"

    To Bow: "Yeah, you missed some pretty crazy stuff! Maybe one of the Device Mages recorded it? Can they do that?"

    To Zwillingrute's dark energy concerns: "It's fine." To the others, she translates: "It said she's a knight." She's learned that much Belkan from hanging around Hannah, at least!

    As she walks with the group towards the Shed, she pauses once they get close. "Uh, what exactly was it to initiate someone new? Where's the thingie..." She starts looking around as if for some hidden object or key.

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
"Ahahaha... hi Gretchen-chan. Gretchan?" A cute nickname perhaps? Perhaps?! "I promise Luna isn't usually vicious, she just didn't realize you were, you know, okay."

The protection and defense of vending machines is an important matter!

Coco gets a sympathetic glance, "I'm sorry you were hurt, and it's good Meiou-san was able to help you out! I'm sure I'm not the only one who's hoping Sunbreaker is finally done with her bullshit."

They're walking over to the Shed, a large group of students moving as a pack, and once they arrive, she snickers a little as she watches Amy look around. "I think we left it in the regular Shed?"

Bow has posed:
With trhe group headed off to the Shed, Bow ohs. "I was on my way to band practice, so I'm going to be on my way. It was nice meeting you, Katsuko!" the Etherian offers in way of a smile to her, before he gives a wave to the others. "I'll have to catch up on what happened after I flipped the switch another time!" Though he's probably already been filled in.

Tossing the candy to Gretchen, he picks up his violin case to head off on his way.

Madoka Kaname has posed:
    Gretchen glances down at the piece of candy offered by Bow, then takes it into her two tiny hands and says, "Thanks!" before lifting up her mask to munch on the treat.

    When the device calls her out on having dark energy, she glares at it for a moment. Tattle tale, she thinks to herself. After watching the new kid for a bit, she decides that she's not going to get attacked right now and then relaxes a little. The X-Chara never really knows how... overzealous someone might get.

    "Sounds Belkan," comments Gretchen. "It also sounds like it's proud of you."

    Turning towards Coco, Gretchen looks a little meek and glances off to the side. "It was... um... I mean... we won? But also I was coughing up rainbows for a while after. I told her that if she wants to use that dumb purifying thing then she needs to get one of her other Chara to do it!"

    To Amy, she responds, "Hey, I'll play with Homu-chan's cat all day long, but that's a real cat and not a serious business mooncat. Also, I tease a little bit. 99% of the time her reaction would've been the right one." She decides not to elaborate further on Luna's crimes against X-Chara kind because they did in fact all agree to let it go.

    The nickname from Usagi gets a funny look from Gretchen, but after a moment, and this is a very rare event, she kinda smiles at it.

    Gretchen follows along with the group. She's a curious fairy being curious, especially about Katsuko. She also waves goodbye to Bow.

Katsuko Takezaki has posed:
    Katsuko wanders along with the others to this bigger on the inside shed. "Don't mind Zwillingrute." She tells Gretchen, "It just wants me to know about things that might be dangerous... I think." She glances at Coco and Amy and resists the urge to squee, "A real mermaid?" That tone still comes through, she waves to Bow as he leaves. "Sunbreaker is the person who shut off the, right?"

Coco Kiumi has posed:
Coco looks visibly guilty when Amy panicks on her account. She didn't realise she had forgotten to say something so important to her. "I am sorry, Amy, for making you worry! The thing is... that is not a problem any longer. I can now introduce myself just fine. Sorry."

"Inai-sensei and I placed it outside the Shed. The statuette is unassuming enough that most people would overlook it, but say, Rashmi could be told how it works via text and then she would be able to use it to let herself in."

Coco winces when she hears about the effects the Humpty Lock had on her. She doesn't want to imagine how cruel it must have been when just her songs had negative repercussions on her. "I am sure Madoka agrees that you have earnest your rest by far", she tries to console her.

"Yes, I am a real mermaid", Coco confirms. "I normally live in the South Pacific, but circumstances currently have me stay in Tokyo, and I am glad for that, it's really beautiful here!" And since Gretchen mentions Katsuko's device being a Belkan one, Coco adds "Oh, have you met Trager already? I am sure she would happy to get to know someone with another Belkan device."

Now that they are in front of the Shed, Coco makes the honours and lifts the Key statuette, using the magic hidden within to open the Shed remotely, automatically adding Katsuko to those who have been approved. "There we go! Let's go in", she says, putting the statuette back in its place and walking inside already.

Ami Mizuno has posed:
Inside the shed was ... Well there was a lot inside the shed that one wouldn't expect to BE inside the shed. A clean classroom with desks and chairs, whiteboards, office supplies and a coffee machine tucked neatly atop shelves that lined one side of the room. In the corner is tall object covered by a Hello Kitty bedsheet to hide what it was. Oddly the desk nearest the tree seems to be covered by some kind of shrine of sorts filled with prayer Ofuda, good luck charms, and similar items.

Most important in the room at the moment is the blue-haired girl sat hunkered over a desk with several workbooks spread out around her. Ami was working away diligently at something-or-another at least until the shed door opens. Her head jerks up to blink from behind her glasses at those entering. As soon as she recognizes them a friendly smile comes--But it outright blossoms into a full fledged grin when she spots the familiar face of Usagi.

"Hello everyone. Hello Usagi-chan!"

The smiles seem to hesitate as she asks, "Are you all here on business, or showing someone around?" She did see a new face among the group after all but it never hurt to be certain.

Amanda Faust has posed:
    Oh, Coco is fine. Amy smiles wide, "You're free of the curse?! That's awesome!" She hugs Coco excitedly again!

    Bow's headed off, and gets a wave. "Bye Bow!"

    Imagining Gretchen playing with a cat is adorable. Awwwwwwwwww.

    "Yeah, Sunbreaker's the one who turned off the Sun. I look forward to working with her on our side; She was always more reasonable and pleasant to talk to than the other villains, so much so I'll almost miss her as an enemy, maybe the others could have learned something from her-- Then again, she's the one who invented the Eclipse Zones, so, uh, they'd probably only learn the wrong things."

    On the subject of Belkan devices... Katsuko looks Japanese, but... there could be Space Japanese! Amy looks over Katsuko again. "Speaking of which... are you from space, or... just the Device?"

    Oh, right, there's the statue thingy. Coco does the honors, and Amy looks expectantly at Katsuko to see if she'll Say The Line. ('It's bigger on the inside!' or somesuch.)

    And Ami (with an i) is already here! "Hi Mizuno-san! Just showing the new girl around, but I was wondering, what do you think about setting up some sort of magically-locked forum or messaging service we could use? Is that possible? Or not worth it, since the bad guys will be unlikely to stumble over something conventionally-hosted anyway? I just worry there might be some kind of divination magic we don't know about that could find such things..."

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
"See you Bow!" is called out before they reach the Shed, but once they're there, and the door is opening - "Yeah, she turned off the sun. She's - a complicated person, who fucked up big time, and left people permanently scarred because she couldn't handle herself."

Which is honestly the nicest thing she can say about Sunbreaker right now. She side-eyes Amy a little, though when she remembers she made the Eclipse Zone, the side-eye settles a bit. "She got purified at the end of the last battle, but that doesn't mean she's on our side, Amy-chan. Hopefully, she decides not to keep working for Obsidian, but being purified doesn't mean she's necessarily going to change. She's got to work for that."

And it's going to be a lot of work. There's a lot of damage to repair.

And then the door is open, and Usagi runs forward to glomp Ami, ending up practically in her lap on account of Ami's seated position.

"Hiiii, Ami-chan! We're introducing Katsuko-chan to the Shed. I told Amy-chan you could probably do something like that, cause you're a genius and Luna has all that moon tech."

Madoka Kaname has posed:
    "Oh, I'm dangerous," boasts Gretchen, proudly placing her hands on her tiny hips while still crushing a piece of candy between her teeth.. "Just not to you. Unless you do a dumb thing, in which case it's my Chara Bearer you really need to worry about." She would not truly be a dark energy being unless she had at least a little bit of ego.

    To Coco, Gretchen crosses her arms, then glances away again. "She basically said she's not going to use me for a bit until I stabilize, and that I can have as much ice cream as I want. That dumb locket is probably the safest and gentlest ways to purify my kind, but that doesn't mean I'm gonna let her to pull the dummy stuff she did against Sunny-chan over a stupid street youma. Honestly, I'm going too easy on her as it is."

    Gretchen has been to the shed before, and vaguely remembers how it goes, but she's kinda glad that Coco is here to do the honors. When she follows the group inside, she sees Ami and gives her a tiny fairy wave.

    "Anyways, Sunbreaker used tape to trap me inside my own egg and I'm still mad about it. I'm sure others are mad at her, too."

Katsuko Takezaki has posed:
    "Puking up rainbows sounds bad and I have no clue if it's worse cuz of the..." Katsuko trails off not wanting to say it. "I haven't met Trager." They enter the shed and she looks around. "I was expecting like a cool hideout, not a secret classroom." She sounds disappointed, "I guess it's still neat that it's bigger on the inside." She pauses to think about Amy's question. "I'm pretty sure I'm not from space, but..." She touches the device, "My mum gave me Zwillingrute as a birthday gift and I'm pretty sure it was hers once." <RICHTIG!> The device in question confirms. "Are you from space?" She asks next, and the device doesn't answer.

    "Hello, Mizuno-san. I am Katsuko Takezaki, seventh grade. And thus is Zwillingrute." <GUTEN TAG> The pair greets Ami as they enter and names are offered, to Gretchen. "I don't plan to do any dumb things, but I'm a little dumb sometimes." She listens to the stories of the evils of Sunbreaker, "She's why Chiba-sensei is injured too, right?"

Madoka Kaname has posed:
    "It is bad!" says Gretchen, flailing her tiny arms. "In fact..." she clutches her tummy again. Then covers her mouth. Then opens a Labyrinth portal and dives in.

    She's gonna be... indisposed for a while.

Coco Kiumi has posed:
Glad that Amy has taken it well, Coco joyously hugs the redhead back! "Yeah, it was not too long after getting the Sealing Key, used it to find the Spiral Shell Sara had, and used them together to free myself." So now the worst thing she has to fear from running away from the rain is an avalanche of questions once she reveals she is a mermaid. Coco didn't doubt Madoka would have been understanding. "That's awesome, enjoy the ice cream."

"I think Sunbreaker has the potential to do good, deep inside." Possibly very deep inside, though she isn't sure if she should talk about the trust behind the recovery of the Sealing Key. She hasn't had the opportunity to talk about it with Usagi alone. And that's discounting the fact she is still trying to get over the whole 'be left in a dirty alley with freshly applied burns unable to go anywhere by your own power.'

"Hello, Ami", Coco waves when she notices that there was someone else in the Shed already. Her eyes briefly linger on the Hello Kitty cover. Umm, what?

Ami Mizuno has posed:
The sudden senshi-rushing hug earns a surprised squeak of air rushing from Ami as she reacts by hugging Usagi in return and ending up with her in her lap. The school books are completely forgotten for now as she instead ends up turning a very flustered shade of red. At the very least she laughs, and turns to give Usagi's cheek a quick peck. She's still working on this PDA thing.

"Ah... It's possible, Amy. I know that the Silver Millenia technology works with Belkan technology, and can access Mid-Childean as well. I'm not certain it would be good to have a regular phone or computer access such a thing though." Something to consider. "Hello Coco," she adds in to her greetings.

From around her lapful of Usagi Ami looks toward Katsuko with a polite nod. "Pleased to meet you, Katsuko-chan. Guten tag, Zwillengrute. Geht es euch beiden gut?" It's asked in Belkan. Not the best Belkan, but of course Ami Mizuno had picked up a thing or two from rooming with Hannah.

With a soft 'oh' she seems to recall something as her attention shifts back to the notebooks on the table. One hand disentangles from holding Usagi to flip open to the pocket holder of the pages so she can withdraw a little blue folded piece of paper. "I was thinking about you during break earlier and made this for you, Usa-chan. Pinch the end of the paper." And once the end is pinched she tugs on the end she still holds causing the folded paper to 'blossom' into an origami Forget-Me-Not.

"Um. I hope you like it," she mumbles a little shyly.

Amanda Faust has posed:
    Amy nods at the comment about working for change and sighs. "Yeah, I guess it is hard to change." Her eyes follow Usagi into the Shed and to Ami-with-an-i. Do girls normally sit in eachother's laps? Well, she would if it was Hannah...

    As for computers: "Maybe it could tie into those communicators? The device pairs with the communicator and then could like VPN in to a private intranet here..." She frowns. "Wait, but then if Obsidian got a computer virus on our devices, it might be able to detect that connection and steal data. Hrm."

    Amy looks curiously at Gretchen mentioning a... "Locket? What locket? What did it do to you? Can you even be purified?" she seems confused. "Wait, just like, taping it closed worked?" The mental image of like, duct tape forcing the mighty witch-chara to struggle in vain to push the egg open from inside is funny for about a half-second before she imagines being the chara in that situation. "Ohmigosh, that's really awful."

    Katsuko is... less impressed than expected! Amy throws up her hands. "Bigger on the inside is a cool hideout! It's magic!"

    And then Katsuko mentions getting Zwillingrute as a gift from her mother and Amy's face falls. Oh. So her mom was probably from space and forgot. That's awful to think about. Probably gave her daughter what she thought was just a nice piece of jewelry she was fond of... Sad for the device too... Although, she can't help thinking, I wonder if Mom would want to pass anything on to me if she knew...

    "Yeah, she--Sunbreaker--went kinda nuts and hurt a lot of people before turning off the sun. It was real bad."

    Awww Ami giving Usagi a flower is adorable. Amy can't help smiling at the two of them!

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
Usagi tugs on the paper as requested, and audibly gasps when it blossoms into a paper flower. "Ami-chan, this is so cute!"

A kiss on the cheek, before Usagi clamors out of Ami's lap - not shamefully, because this girl has very little shame in her body, but with the smug air of someone who has gotten to kiss at least one partner today.

She comes back down to Earth, with Katsuko's question. "Yeah. She's the one who hurt Mamochan. He's... he's working on getting better, but what she did... it's not something that's just going to go away. I'll be glad if she decides to actually change but - I used to be her friend. Now, I'm taking a break from that, to protect the rest of my friends."

If Hinoiri wants to be her friend... well, she was offered friendship openly, once. This time, she'll have to earn it, by showing she's changed, and doing better. She thinks about the surgery that's lined up, and the fact that Mamoru's genuinely considered - considered doing some awful stuff to his hand, just to be able to fix it, and shakes her head, hardens her heart, that little bit.

"This is a pretty magical place, you know? I'm pretty sure it keeps getting bigger... and ah.... Coco-chan, I'm glad you noticed that. Um, everyone, if you didn't know, behind that Christmas tree and under that sheet is... is a girl. She's trapped in some kind of like, mirror-coffin thing, and we don't know how to get her out, but the guy who did that to her wanted to get her back, so, we're hiding her here until we can help her. I try to burn incense for her, when I remember to bring some."

Katsuko Takezaki has posed:
    "Magic is cool, but using magic to do boring stuff is dorky." Katsuko's stance is firm. Though maybe she's just trying to play cool next to the more experienced and older magical girls. She doesn't pick up on Amy's face falling, probably for the best. "I don't know Sunbreaker, it just sounds like a bunch of bad stuff happened. I hope she feels sorry and is gonna say sorry." She glance between Ami and Usagi and that interaction, "We're doing well. I think?" <RICHTIG> the device confirms. She hears about the girl trapped in the coffin and blinks. "Let me know if I can help." She immediately ... demands, really. Though not in the rude sense, just overeager to be helping someone.

Ami Mizuno has posed:
Ami Mizuno seems quite... unused to such affection. Not displeased however as Usagi's reaction to the little origami gives her a little rush of giddiness.

Newly freed of lap-sagi she stands to begin scooping up her papers and notebooks to tidy up and keep track of everything. An excellent distraction when the Hello Kitty sheet covered mirror is pointed out.

"Cure Kinder is what the reports said. I've been trying to visit several times a week and have been scanning the mirror, but so far I've yet to devise a way to free her from it. It's possible another Precure may have more information or an idea of how to do so." Yet so far that hadn't been the case.

With a little sigh she hugs her books to her chest, and steps alongside Usagi breifly. "I need to go. I've got an appointment for dinner with mother tonight." the blue-haired girl inclines her head toward the others. "I hope you all have a good day."

To Usagi? She gets a fond smile. "I'll text you later tonight, Usa-chan."

Coco Kiumi has posed:
Coco could tell Amy what she had been talked on the locket, but Gretchen is here, and she likely knows more, plus she doesn't really want even come close to approaching the subject of Madoka's experiment on Gretchen even by mistake. But then the X-Chara opens a portal and disappears somewhere. Coco still hasn't learnt where it is she goes. A concerned glance is given to the place the X-Chara disappeared from, hoping she is gonna be alright.

Tech isn't really Coco's field, so she isn't really sure what to say over this discussion about compatibility with devices. There is nothing she can contribute, really.

The fact of a mirror-coffin thing trapping a girl... Coco didn't think that was what she would have been told by such a meeting. "It wasn't Namakelder or Hosshiwa, was it? Usually people get freed once the Terribad is purified. Have we tried using purification magic directly on the coffin?" With at least two users of purification here as far as she knew, now it might be a good time to try, maybe? Worst case, it will do nothing, Coco thinks.

"Oh, Amy", Coco turns towards the redhead when Amy mentions the whole bigger on the inside aspect of the Shed. "Are you familiar with Doctor Who? That was one of the things I saw at Nurse Meiou's house, and I am kind of exploring the whole thing still after she got me into Star Trek. She had some pointers too, but I don't know if could have some suggestions too."

Amanda Faust has posed:
    Dorky?! Amy puts her hands on her hips. "Hey, new boring stuff is what makes the cool stuff possible in the first place! Printing? Pens? Typewriters? Boring. Cool books and manga? Not boring. Moving pictures? Boring and dorky, but then we get movies and TV shows and anime!" She pulls out her phone (in a worn, bulky, protective black case) "I remember when-- I mean, these used to just be the dream of science fiction authors and now we use them every day to see stuff from all over the world and talk to our friends! It took a lot of boring, dorky inventions to make something this cool!"

    When the sheet is pointed out, Amy turns that way and her eyes widen; she rushes over and reaches out a hand to look under the sheet, then thinks better of it. "She's not... conscious, is she?" Coco may remember her concerns for the toy-ified people and her attempt to provide them a distraction from their troubles.

    Amy's still kind of focused on that train of thought as Ami leaves. "Oh um... Bye. You too!"

    To Coco, she shakes her head and answers, "No, it was Phantom. He's pretty scary actually. Seems like he can turn into the girls he captures and copy their powers, too." She looks... frustrated or annoyed at something, but decides not to put it into words here.

    Are you familiar with Doctor Who?

    Amy bursts out laughing, though it kind of comes out as a hearty cackle. Smiling, she turns to Coco and answers, "Yeah. The Tenth's my favorite, but I've seen some of the old stuff too. Silence in the Library and Forest of the Dead was my favorite episode, though I haven't seen the show in awhile. It's a shame the writing got so much worse for the girl Doctor's episodes, what a wasted opportunity..."

    She blinks as realization flashes across her face. "We... had mainstream rep for a minute there, huh...?"

    "Uhhhh... Star Trek? Nice, maybe we should get you into tabletop RPGs too, make a proper otaku out of you." She grins. "Was talking with Molly and Rashmi about starting another campaign... You should talk to them about this stuff, too, we'd all be happy to show you more!"

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
"I've tried," Usagi confirms, "It didn't do anything. I think - Phantom must be the one who has to undo it. Unfortunately."

She hates it, she really does! Ami-chan has to leave, and Usagi waves after her as she goes, sighing a little wistfully, because ah, she hates to see her leave but she loves to watch her go, "I'm going to have to gon too - I've got to actually get lunch before it's over."

A pout.

"It was good to meet you though, Katsuko-chan. If anything especially weird happens, you can leave a note here in the Shed, and someone will try to get in touch. Oh, and here's my number!"

She rattles off her phone number.

"But it looks like you guys have plenty of stuff to talk about, so see ya~"

And so off she goes.

Katsuko Takezaki has posed:
    As Usagi mentions she still needs to get lunch, Katsuko has a look on her face. The kind that says she totally forgot to eat. The situation with the mirror girl gets explains more, and she frowns. "Uh, I can stay a little longer, but I'm going to need to eat, too." She rolls her eyes at Amy's impassioned speech, "Dorky is good, you're right dorky people made loots of cool stuff, dorky just isn't me." She maintains her opinion, "Who's Doctor Who?" She asks.

Coco Kiumi has posed:
Coco does indeed remembers Amy's concern about the doll-people, though it isn't until Amy brings it up that she realises the implication. "She shouldn't be", she says in an unconvincing tone. "Namakelder and Hosshiwa put them to sleep, right? Surely this Phantom guy isn't much different", she hopes, the train of thought leading into a very different direction from the Phantom Empire, one she still isn't completely ok with.

"I have to just try", Coco mentions outloud, be it to Amy, Katsuko or Usagi, her heart beating fast as she can't stand that coffin, suddenly the only thing present in the room to her. "Yellow Pearl Voice!" she declares, the pearl in her shell locket responding to her will and starting to shine with a yellow light. A kaleidoscope of colours covers Coco's clothes as those change into her yellow gloves and boots with flowy extensions, as well as a yellow blouse with a yellow skirt, while her pearl expands into her trusty E-Pitch headset, the jewel nestled safely on the left side. Then what follows is Coco unclasping the Sealing Key from her neck, its form elongating into a rod.

The mermaid princess raises her arm, the bracelet on her wrist shining with white light as a halo of yellow light moves downwards from the mermaid princess's head: her clothes become more elaborate as it does so, gaining a flowing bow on her back and parallel frills on her blouse. "The Tale of the Seven Seas ~Pearls of Mermaid~: Pichi Pichi Voice, Live Start!" Coco sings of embracing a dream: the journey to find the story that leads all lives to paradise, a treasure that is surely shimmering beyond the seven seas.

The magical song spreads its splendor with renewed intensity, matching the release of energy from the Sealing Key Rod, attacking the coffin with purification of its max potency. The words of the mermaid princess call back to a lute, whose melody that resounded at dawn was similar to a sweet lullaby from her hometown. The enchanted melody shows everyone's hearts the peace the mermaid princesses wish to protect with their songs, a beautiful paradise when nobody has to hurt.

All of that, and nothing happens, the coffin just the same as before. "Curses", Coco explains, almost wanting to punch the wall in the frustration over her inability to do anything, even if she was warned. That is too cruel. "I hope you at least enjoyed the song, if you can hear me", she murmurs to the trapped girl. "Sorry for this", she says, returning to normal. "Anyway, we were talking about Doctor Who. Nurse Meiou had a shirt with the police box, the Tardis, on it, so I was wondering", Coco says, trying not to think of what just occurred. Most of the talk about the Tenth or the girl doctor is an unknown to her, beyond the fact the main character can regenerate into different lives.

"I really appreciate you wanting to show me, Amy, thanks. Rashmi and Molly, was it? I will be sure to ask them too", Coco gives the redhead a grateful smile, even if she has never met Molly. "See you, Usagi", Coco says when the other blonde excuses herself.

Amanda Faust has posed:
    I have to just try.

    Amy nods, and steps back out of the way, pulling the sheet off the mirror.

    She listens to Coco's song, eventually swaying with the music and softly singing along. She was reasonably sure if purification worked, the girl would be free already, but if Coco didn't try yet, maybe, just maybe? An ember of hope starts to burn inside her...

    But alas. It doesn't work. "You had to try." She looks to the (hopefully) sleeping girl in the mirror. "Sorry." And covers her with the sheet again.

    On to other topics. "Who is Doctor Who?" Amy echoes, before launching into: EXPOSITION!

    "The Doctor is a Time Lord from planet Gallifrey, one of the last of his kind after some kind of Time War sealed the whole planet off in some timeless moment. Earth's a favorite stop of his and he's almost always got a human or two with him, but he adventures through time and space to wherever and whenever the writers have an idea for a story that episode."

    Beat.

    "...It started in like the 60's or something as an edu-tainment program with the idea that episodes about going to the past or future would teach viewers about history or science respectively, but it quickly turned into a sci-fi show. It's uh... It's to Britain what Gundam is here, or Star Trek is in the US. But instead of making spinoff and sequel series, they had the idea that whenever the Doctor suffers a mortal injury, he 'regenerates' into a new form, so he can just keep being played by new actors."

    "It, uh, used to be famous for campy low-budget special effects, but after they un-retired the series in 2005, it got a much bigger budget, although these days it's taking forever for new episodes to come out. Now that they brought Russel T Davies back as showrunner though, the writing will hopefully get good again."

    (Author's Note: It turns out weekly episodes started airing again last month!)

    Amy slumps her shoulders a little. "Gosh, it feels weird like... a blast from the past to talk about this stuff. I used to be so excited for new Doctor Who episodes every year or so, but now I'm a magical girl, and... like... I haven't even thought about checking on the series for ages..."

Katsuko Takezaki has posed:
    Katsuko watches Coco try and fail, and seems similarly sadenned when it doesn't work. She reaches out to try to gently put a hand on the taller girl's shoulder. "You did your best, we'll help." She offers and promises. Then Amy explains Dr. Who and her eyes glaze over, "That sounds neat." Yeah, she doesn't get it. "Well I'm off to get lunch, it was nice to meet you both. See you around?"

Coco Kiumi has posed:
"Thank you", she says quietly to the other girls' consolation over her failure. Seems like they really have to go through this Phantom guy first.

Coco listens intently to Amy's speech: she had looked it up enough to understand the basics of what Amy was explaining, even if just about anything outside of the regenerations is new information to her. Though, one thing she definitely appreciates is how Amy's explanation goes deeper than just the content within the show, but it adds how the show came to be, how it evolved and even how it relates to other countries.

"That's really a lot", Coco mentions, surprise and interest really clear in her tone. "I was thinking of buying a streaming subscription to watch it, and I definitely want to now. What do you say we have a look at that, and then pick our conversation back up?

Amanda Faust has posed:
    "Don't stream. Always pirate. You can keep the copies forever and don't have to worry about losing your shows because some greedy company got a slightly better licensing deal somewhere else."

    Amy shakes her head. "You know, I remember when streaming first became a thing. Cable companies had gotten too greedy, with demanding you have a whole bunch of packages just to watch a few shows you want. Nobody could afford that so everyone just pirated. Then streaming came out and it was more convenient than piracy, so people were happy to pay for it! It's not like people aren't willing to pay a reasonable price if you actually provide a service people want!"

    The redhead shrugs. "But, now they've forgotten that, and made the exact same mistake as their predecessors. It'd be nice if whatever comes after streaming happens soon, it's been kind of a pain having to learn how to find good downloads again."

    As they head out, Amy puts an arm around Coco's shoulder. "So, what you do is..."