164/Office Visit -- Hotaru

Office Visit -- Hotaru
Date of Scene:	27 July 2023
Location:	Administrative Office
Synopsis:	Hotaru and Kyouka have a pow-wow. Hotaru is... a little defensive.
Cast of Characters:	Hotaru Tomoe, Kyouka Inai

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Hotaru Tomoe has posed:
Hotaru Tomoe was... was a little nervous. Being called to meet with the school counselor, well. It was a little nerve wracking. But she also understood why. She didn't get along well with the other kids, most called her weird.

But a part of her was scared that wasn't the real reason. That there was something else. That she was going to be... in trouble. That she had done something wrong. Or worse, that she had hurt someone. Sure, there had been... confrontations with others in the past, but nothing major. Nobody had gotten really hurt. In fact, some kids had gotten... the opposite of hurt. Well. Only once or twice.

But she was still nervous. Still keeping her head low, book bag in front of her. Gently standing in front of the door before, with a slightly shaking hand, reaching out to knock on it.

Only thirty seconds late, if you counted from the knock.

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    Kyouka is many things, but a stickler for protocol is not one of them. That's not to say she appreciates being kept waiting, but thirty seconds late is not going to register in her book. "Come in." She calls out, her tone formal. The counselor is seated behind her desk, her office chair tilted back at a slight angle and her elbows resting on the surface, fingers linked in front of her.

    "Ah, Tomoe-san, wasn't it?" She asks as Hotaru enters, with a slightly lopsided smile. "Come in, make yourself comfortable." She gestures to the two overstuffed armchairs in front of her desk.

Hotaru Tomoe has posed:
Hotaru Tomoe nodded and quickly moved to sit down across from the other girl. She kept her eyes down, feet firmly on the ground, hands neatly folded in her lap. "Sorry I'm late," she said softly. "I-I didn't want to cause problems by being early and interrupting anything."

"Tomoe. Hotaru Tomoe. A pleasure to meet you. Sorry. I ummmm... I was told to make an appointment. Is this about... my... conditions?" she asked nervously. "Or... am I in trouble?"

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    Kyouka quirks a brow. "You're not late. Not late enough for me to notice anyway. And when it's my office, that's all that's really important." She says, her smile getting a little bit bigger. She has an easygoing way about her, which perhaps suits her as a guidance counselor, as it makes her seem easy to be comfortable with, less of that 'teacher authority' energy.

    "Hotaru-chan," She says, being more informal after the girl introduces herself. "I'm not sure why you were told to make an appointment." She is though, she can sense the magic in the girl, but she's not about to just come out with that right off. "But you're not in trouble. What conditions do you mean?" Trying perhaps to lead some information out of the girl.

Hotaru Tomoe has posed:
Hotaru Tomoe nodded, letting out a sigh of relief. "I... I guess that's true. Your office, your rules, right?" she asked, nervously looking up at her. And there was a moment of tenseness when she was called 'Hotaru-chan'. They weren't that close, were they? Her office, her rules.

"You... don't? Oh. I thought.... I mean... because I ummm... have seizures..." she said gently. "I don't get along well with the other kids my age usually... My mother died in the same lab accident that left me hospitalized a few years ago... I imagine there's a whole lot of reasons that explain why I'd be called here. But... I'm not sure why I was called today. And I... did have a therapist before. But I haven't been to one in a while..." she said, glancing away again.

Was... she being a little snarky there? Just a hint of it in her tone...

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    Kyouka makes mental notes of what she is being told. Sure, she probably has a file on Hotaru that has a lot of that information contained within it, but you never know what you can learn listening to someone speak in person. The tone and expression can tell you a lot all on their own. "Oh yes, well.. I'm afraid seizures aren't something I can help you with. I'm not a doctor." She says, and her tone is if not gentle, at least kind. "And I'm not really a therapist anyway, at least not in the traditional sense.."

    She leans back in her chair. "But it is my job here to help students who have.. special needs." She's referring to the magic, of course, but there's no reason for Hotaru to jump to that conclusion right off the bat. "So if there is anything I can help you with, you're always welcome to ask me."

Hotaru Tomoe has posed:
Hotaru Tomoe nodded. Not really a therapist? Then why--

Oh. Then 'special needs'. Hotaru's fists clenched and she had to pause for a moment. But the reaction was instant. The anger flashing in her eyes, the way she jerked in her seat. The aforementioned clenching of the fist.

"You just said you're not a doctor, so why do my special needs concern you? I get along just fine, thank you. Is this about me, or is this about daddy? Because if you're hoping to... to butter me up to get closer to him or... or learn more about his research, or... or any of that, I'm not interested." Then she crossed her arms and glared. "Are you one of Kaolinite's friends?"

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    Kyouka finds this reaction very interesting, but she didn't actually know much at all about Hotaru's father. Some connection to Obsidian, sure, but it's not like she had any major ins with the company, other than having noticed that an awful lot of people with connections to them reek of Dark Energy. Which makes her want to know more.

    She leans forward on the desk again slightly, tilting her head to the side as she studies Hotaru. "They concern me because its my job to be concerned." She says, with a half-smile. "But I promise, it's not about your father. I don't even know anything about his research. Is it very important?" She humms idly. "Kaolinite? Sounds like a pretty rock, but not a person I'm familiar with. Are they a friend of your father's?"

Hotaru Tomoe has posed:
Hotaru Tomoe narrowed her eyes on Kyouka. She'd likely seen this look before. The look a child gives an adult when they're trying to determine if they could be trusted. At all. And, well, Hotaru had been bitten by a lot of adults over the years, so she was always a little wary.

"My daddy does the most important research. And Kaolinite is his... assistant," she said, a LOT of bitterness and annoyance in that word. "And she thinks she can just come in and become part of our family and--" And she stopped, hmphing and pulling back a little in her chair. That, at least, was simple enough. "She's just trying to use daddy because she knows his research is more important than hers."

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    Kyouka absorbs this readily, seeming to get at least some of the picture. Not about the research, but at least about why Hotaru would have such feelings about this Kaolinite person. Weird name. "Well, I wouldn't know much about your family or research assistants. I've never had much of either." She says, with a bit of a self-deprecating grin.

    "But if your father does important research, I guess it's possible people are always trying to find out about it. It's pretty brave of you to want to protect him from people who might be trying to use him for their own benefit." She says, nodding her head. "But I promise you, that has nothing to do with me or my job here. I'm here to help students, not their parents."

Hotaru Tomoe has posed:
Hotaru Tomoe nodded, blinking a few times. Well, now she just looked more confused. "I... I guess. I mean... yes. T-they are. And I'm brave!" Well, that at least was debatable. Admittedly, she was a little off kilter because, well... Kyouka kind of seemed like she was listening to her. Or was she just placating her?

"... Fine... I just... I'm fine. I know what you mean when you say I'm 'special needs'," she mumbled softly. "The prosthetics I have work just fine and I get along well. As long as I don't wear short sleeves, nobody can even tell. It's not like I need a wheelchair or anything. I haven't needed any special attention to do my work in... I haven't had to, here." The frustration was leaking into her voice.

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    Kyouka is definitely doing some placating, but that doesn't mean she's not also listening. Her motivations for listening might be a bit different from what Hotaru could guess thought. She just maintains her smile as the girl looks confused by her attention.

    "Hotaru-chan," She says after the girl speaks, her voice sympathetic, "I didn't say you were 'special needs'. I said that I help students /with/ special needs. I think there's a pretty big difference." In implication if not in actual fact. "You seem perfectly capable of keeping up with your schoolwork." She has no idea about that, but she's learning a lot and she's hoping to keep Hotaru talking. "I'm glad you're fine, though. I wouldn't want you to think the school is a difficult environment for you to work in."

Hotaru Tomoe has posed:
Hotaru Tomoe hmphs and shakes her head. "I think it's pretty much the same meaning. You think I can't handle everything, right? I... I don't--" Annnnd of course. She let out a gasp, clutching her chest and cringing. She'd gotten over excited and apparently it had triggered... something. The truth was the egg inside her was reacting to her negative emotions, drawing strength from it. Harvesting the dark energy.

But if Kyouka could tell was anyone's guess. It just looked like she was having another seizure, panting lightly as the pain coursed through her and she tried to will it to pass quicker. It, fortunately, didn't last too long. "I... I'm fine. The school is... fine... I like... it here. I've made... friends. Like... ummmm... U-Usagi-senpai... and Takashi-senpai... and I... I'll make more... eventually..."

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    Kyouka does look concerned as Hotaru has a little 'episode'. She's perhaps about to call the nurse, but the girl seems to recover on her own after a moment. She still seems a bit on edge as she says, "Usagi-chan is a friend of mine too." No such label for Takashi, although she has met him. She seems to think for a moment, then reaches into her desk and pulls out one of her business cards. She slides it across the table to Hotaru.

    "I'm sorry for making you worry, Hotaru-chan. You can go back to class now. But I want you to take this. If you ever need help with anything you can call me, alright?" She smiles. "I'm glad you like it here. Hopefully you continue to feel that way."

Hotaru Tomoe has posed:
Hotaru Tomoe stared at her before, very slowly, giving a nod. She took the card and stared at it. She then glanced up at her. "You... saw Usagi-senpai too?" she asked. But Usagi was smart, beautiful, brilliant, talented, amazing! She didn't need any special care. Did she?

"Is... is Usagi-senpai... was she hurt, too?" she asked. And oh, there was some protectiveness there. As if Hotaru thought she could fight whatever was threatening her senpai. "... Did she have an accident?" Annnnd now she looked worried for the other girl. Not just trying to protect her, but scared something bad may have happened to her.

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    Kyouka considers how to answer that question- it's not exactly good practice for her to go and tell students' problems to other students. It's not like she should blab on why she's seen this or that person. But perhaps feeling it would help Hotaru to relax a little, she says, "Yes, Usagi-chan is a friend of mine." That might be a bit of an exaggeration, but in the context of 'guidance counselor and student' it's true enough.

    "No, she wasn't hurt." A reassuring tone. "She just.." She pauses, considering the best way to say it that won't make Usagi's ears burn several buildings away, "Needed some help being motivated. That's the sort of thing I'm good at." That's an understatement!

Hotaru Tomoe has posed:
Hotaru Tomoe blinked a few times, nodding. A friend of... hers...? Was she really? Her eyes narrowed for a moment. Was it just a... no. She only mentioned Usagi. So... maybe? But not Takashi? Oh, Takashi had probably never met her. She looked at the card for a moment.

"You're good at motivating... people? I... I understand. I... think? Ummm... So... if I'm... free to go. It was... nice meeting you, Inai-senpai," she said before bowing politely. "But I don't think I have any... special needs I need addressed. I have everything perfectly under control now," she lied. Oh, that was SUCH a massive lie.

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    Kyouka just smiles and leans back in her chair again. "Yes, you're free to go. It was nice to meet you too, Hotaru-chan." She says, her tone pleasant. I'm glad you have everything under control." Giving the appearance, at least, of completely believing that statement, even if her eyes suggest perhaps she doesn't quite.

    "But remember, if you ever need me.." She gestures to the business card she had handed over. "You can call me. Maybe you won't, and that's fine. But it's always there if you need it."

Hotaru Tomoe has posed:
Hotaru Tomoe nodded, looking down at it before sighing. "Thanks, but ummmm... I... if I need help from... the school... counselor... I'll keep that in mind..." She didn't say it, but she was definitely thinking 'When would I EVER need to call you?'

After all, she had Takashi now. And... he...

She paused for a moment then. She looked down at the card again before shrugging and sliding it into her bag. She'd considered just tossing it the moment she was outside. But... well... Who knew? Maybe eventually she might need her. Better she didn't need it and had it, than had it and didn't need it.