626/A Walk in the Park

A Walk in the Park
Date of Scene:	21 October 2023
Location:	Dream Kingdom
Synopsis:	Kyouka invites Hotaru to the amusement park and the two have a day of fun, adventure and junk food!
Cast of Characters:	Kyouka Inai, Hotaru Tomoe

---

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    One random afternoon, Hotaru gets a text from Kyouka. "hey i won two tickets to Dream Kingdom, do u want one?"

    Why would she offer it to Hotaru? Well, Dream Kingdom is kind of a kiddie amusement park- either that or teenage couples dating. Kyouka isn't a teen, isn't dating anyone, and the selection of kids she knows who might enjoy the relatively gentle rides and cheery atmosphere are few and far between.

    Plus, she remembered how sad and alone Hotaru had seemed at their last encounter, and maybe figured she could do something nice for the girl who seemed to seldom get to have much fun.

    And hey, having someone else inside Obsidian view her as a friend has its own benefits, as well.

Hotaru Tomoe has posed:
Hotaru Tomoe did, in fact, want one. But... well. "I don't think I can go, daddy won't have free time for a while." But there had been a bit of back and forth... and when the counselor agreed to take her... She'd asked her daddy. He hadn't been able to take calls. Kaolinite said absolutely not.

So now Hotaru was outside the amusement park, NOT dressed like she was going to a funeral. She was wearing a pink dress... that looked like it might be part of a school uniform with the collar and all. But it wasn't BLACK or incredibly dark blue. So that was a positive.

When her eyes fell on Kyouka she gave a small wave. "Inai-senpai!" she called out and ran over!

And almost keeled over when she got there, a hand clutched to her chest, lightly panting, bent over. "J-just... j-just need a moment..." Right. Running out of henshin. Bad.

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    Look, Hotaru's daddy was never in this equation. Kyouka always intended to take the girl. Luckily it wasn't that hard, from her perspective, to make that happen. For her part, she's wearing what is for her normal non-work clothing: a red t-shirt, distressed black jeans, and boots. She smiles as Hotaru runs over to her. "That's a pretty dress." She comments, upon seeing the pink thing.

    She then looks mildly concerned as the small girl doubles over, and reaches a steadying hand out to lightly rest on the girl's shoulder. "Whoa there, careful. Are you sure this is a good idea?" She asks, suddenly concerned. "I mean, if the rides are too exciting.."

    She wants an in with Obsidian- she's not out to assassinate an enemy via overexcitement-heart-attack.

Hotaru Tomoe has posed:
Hotaru Tomoe eventually caught her breath and shook her head. "N-no, it's fine. I-I'm fine. R-really. I-I just... s-shouldn't r-run too much," she said before slowly standing up, a hand over her chest. I-I'm okay. I'm fine. Really. I-I like exciting rides. U-unless they need me to run. A-and I have my vitals monitored by a medical d-device now. If anything happens I'll get an a-alert. Everything is fine and stable n-now," she said, reaching up and brushing her hair back a bit.

"T-thanks. I-I like your shirt. It's cute." She smiled up at her, though. "I've never actually been here before. If... you don't mind me asking, why did you want me to come with you?"

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    "Well, there's no need to run. The rides go fast for you." Kyouka says, with amusement in her voice still tinged with just a little bit of concern. "Pretty sure exercising isn't actually a reason most people go to an amusement park. So I think you're safe." She certainly hopes so! She ruins the hair-brushing by ruffling it literally the moment after Hotaru brushes it back.

    She shrugs her shoulders, looking around the amusement park. "I haven't either. I just won the tickets in a sweepstakes at the shopping mall." That's a lie, she totally bought them. "As for why I wanted you to come... well, it's more fun to enjoy these things with people who will enjoy them too. I don't think most of my friends are into this sorta thing."

Hotaru Tomoe has posed:
Hotaru Tomoe gave a small nod, relaxing just a little and... blushing when the hair gets messed up. Again. Darn it. Still, she smiled at the attention. "Really? Your friends sound kind of boring. You're cool, I like hanging out with you. Even if you are a little old you're still really fun."

Wow. Sometimes she just... shouldn't say those things. "Their loss, then. Ohhhh! What do you wanna go on first? Can we go on the pirate ship? Oh! And the Dream ride? Oh, don't eat before it, though. Daddy ate before he went on a roller coaster once and he says it helped him come up with some new ideas, but uhhhh... the mess wasn't worth it."

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    Haha yes, all the friends that Kyouka has that are her own age. There are so many of them, haha. Of course. She smiles. "Well, even us old folks like to get out once in a while. And sometimes a little amusement park fun is just the thing to make you feel young again." If the corner of her mouth twitches at all, it must just be a coincidence.

    She turns to look, putting a hand on Hotaru's shoulder to start her walking towards the rides once they are in through the front gate. "Well, I haven't eaten anything yet but I was awfully tempted by the cotton candy.." She muses... "But I guess that can wait until after the upside down rides. The pirate ship sounds like a good idea."

Hotaru Tomoe has posed:
Hotaru Tomoe nodded and walked with her, happy as could be. "Cotton candy is great, it tickles your nose while you eat it," she said, the smile wide on her lips. "Did you go to a lot of amusement parks when you were my age? Did... your parents take you?" There was just a little hint of hesitation to her words. As if she was struggling on how to say it. Or something else.

The ride, at least, didn't seem to have too long a line. Though maybe it was because it wasn't the most busy of days. Halloween was coming and the big celebration for that was about a week out.

"So, what was the sweepstakes about? I didn't think you were a heavy gambler. Or was it more a like... 'sign up for a card and get entered in a sweepstakes' thing?"

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    "It's also almost entirely sugar." Kyouka sighs. "Did you know when you get old you have to start worrying about stuff like that? Especially when you're past the Fade.." Not that she is, exactly, but the mahou metabolism has at least partially abandoned her. It goes against her nature but being at least somewhat cognizant of her nutrition is a harsh reality everyone has to face eventually.

    At the question about going to amusement parks as a kid, she gives a half-smile and shakes her head. "Nah.. my dad was out of the picture early on and my mom.. well, she did her best for us. But she had to work pretty much all the time in order to keep a roof over our heads and food in our bellies so.. not really a whole lot of time for amusement parks and stuff like that."

    She moves up the line with Hotaru, shrugging her shoulders at the question about the sweepstakes. "It wasn't even that complicated. It was like "Oh hey, you're the 10,000th customer of the month, guess what you just won these tickets!" I was just trying to buy a microwavable dinner at the convenience store.."

Hotaru Tomoe has posed:
Hotaru Tomoe cringed and, slowly, glanced away. "I... don't... think that'll be much of a concern for me..." she said, her voice a little quiet when she said that. "I'm... likely... not going to... get that old..." Judging by the tone she said it, it wasn't a 'I'm young and don't believe I'll EVER be old!' kind of comment.

However, the comment about her parents made Hotaru glance over and give a knowing smile. "Yeah. That's... I understand that. Daddy works really hard to make sure everything is good. We have a nice home, I go to a nice school. Good food. I'm really lucky," she said. But Kyouka likely knew what was really missing. Affection. Love. Parental supervision. There was a reason she jumped at the option of going to hang out with the counselor when offered. Why the one who came to see her was another student, not her parent, when she had an episode.

Hotaru burst into a little fit of giggles, a hand over her mouth at that. "Oh senpai, you shouldn't eat things like that. You know, if you get a simple rice cooker you can just toss some meat and vegetables into it and it'll do all the cooking for you, barely any prep at all. And a lot healthier for you, too." She almost sounded like she was scolding her. Almost.

And then they were up! Time to PIRATE SHIP RIDE! Hopefully Kyouka's stomach was steady.

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    Kyouka frowned a little bit at Hotaru's reply to the prospect of getting old... but she doesn't push, or ask about it. Not that she doesn't care, but she recognizes that some things are best left to be talked about at their own speed, and not pressed.

    As for her mom- Kyouka's mom was actually very loving, and very affectionate... when she was around. Which was almost never. Unlike Hotaru, they lived in a tiny apartment and ate convenience-store food more often than not. But Kyouka knew how hard her mom worked to provide what little they had. It sucked but she did at least know the feeling of hardly ever having anyone around. The loneliness- that she can understand.

    She then rolls her eyes at the lecture about food. "Listen, you don't get to tell me how to eat." She says, chuckling. "With what I make as a guidance counselor, real meat is a 'once in a while' treat, okay?"

    Then they get to go on the ride! PIRATE SHIP TIME! Kyouka seems to enjoy the wild swinging just as much as the younger girl. Must be a thrill junkie.

Hotaru Tomoe has posed:
Hotaru Tomoe blinked a few times and stared up at her. Was... was she not allowed to eat with the student's meals? Or was she... The idea of her senpai starving just made her feel distressed, a little bit. And the smile on her lips wavered. Then calmed a little. She sent a small message to her device.

And then Riventon would get a text from her. << Hey, senpai? Can you find out what Kyouka Inai lives? >> Yup, definitely NOT something that'd go bad later or cause problems. NOPE!

"I thought you made better than that. You deserve better," Hotaru said softly. "... This isn't... going to... I mean, you taking me, maybe you could have sold the tickets or... though I guess they probably wouldn't go for much, would they?" she asked, a little guilt mixing with desire to be around another company today...

Of course, then the ship. And she SHRIEKED! But it was the giddy, excited shriek of a kid who WANTED to do the wild things. And she clutched the other girls arms at times, yelled 'Faster! Faster!' And by the end had forgotten almost entirely the talk about food and her impending demise. "Let's go on that next!" she yelled, pointing towards one of those multi-legged beheamoths of rides, that spun people wildly on each 'leg'.

Having gripped Kyouka's arm, now tugging her along, excited and giddy.

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    Kyouka Inai is, in fact, allowed to eat at the school cafeteria, and does so most days for lunch. You can find her in the staff area often enough. But one cannot simply eat at the school cafeteria for every meal, and so most nights will find her stopping by her local conbenie on her way home to pick something up. It's not a glamorous lifestyle but.. well, that's about it.

    Research into her living situation is not difficult to conduct, as its not a secret. She lives in a fairly standard one-room Tokyo apartment, not too far from the school. It's tiny, but not terrible otherwise, one of a bunch of similar units in a medium-sized apartment building.

    She has to laugh just a little bit at Hotaru's concern. "No, hun, I'm not going to go broke from not hocking the tickets. Educators do make a shameful living compared to the difficulty and importance of work that they do, but its not poverty-level, don't worry. I'm not starving. I just can't go out for steak dinners every night."

    Kyouka seemed to enjoy the pirate ship just as much as Hotaru, not shrieking but yelling and laughing as one does upon such things. She allows Hotaru to drag her towards the next one, laughing. "Okay, okay." She will allow them to ride several rides in a row before demanding a short break.

Hotaru Tomoe has posed:
Hotaru Tomoe dragged her from ride after ride after ride and... oh, she loved going faster, going wild, the thrill, the excitement... then... eventually... the coaster.

And after that, when the brake came, she looked... so happy. Flushed. Panting lightly. Having to sit as soon as she was reminded 'they needed rest'. And... "Y-yeah. A-a break... a break s-sounds... sounds good," she said. Before pulling out a small, black, obsidian business card. "H-here," she said. "It's from daddy's work. To get snacks and stuff. As long as it's under eight thousand yen total then we can get whatever," she said. "I'll... just s-sit for a minute... if that's okay..."

And it was while she was sitting there, resting... that it became more and more apparent just how unwell she was. How she was panting, sweat on her face. How her body was lightly shaking. How weak and tiny she looked. And Kyouka might have even remembered... how terribly, awfully cold those hands that had tugged her arm had been. She looked like she might collapse already just from all the excitement.

"T-thank you. I... haven't gone to an amusement park in... years. Ever since the... accident... hee... it's... almost as fun as I remember..."

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    Kyouka seemed to be having a good time, too. Let's not forget she's only 23 years old- that might seem old to teenagers, but it's still plenty young to have a good time at a theme park and not be too ashamed of it. She especially seemed to enjoy the coaster, raising her arms going over the hills and stuff like that.

    She sits down on a bench after the break is called. She quirks a brow at the card being offered to her. "Alright. Sit tight." She says, taking the card and rising again. She wanders off, coming back a few minutes later with a variety of snacks- a couple hot dogs, popcorn, waters, and pretzels. Laying it all out on the bench, she takes a moment to look over Hotaru again, and she frowns slightly.

    "Are you sure you're alright, kid?" She asks gently. "I know you're having fun, but if it's too much, you should say so beforehand, not after."

Hotaru Tomoe has posed:
Hotaru Tomoe gave a small, tiny nod. "I-I'm fine. I should be f-fine. I just g-got over excited. I-I'm not even having a seizure o-or anything," Hotaru said with a weak smile. "Y-you know, I was... h-having them almost d-daily until... a-a few months b-back. I-I still have them s-sometimes but... I have only... f-fully blacked out twice s-since then. It's... it's nice."

She took the cup of water and drank from it, heartily swallowing the water and rejuvinating herself.

"... But... I'm... not a-alright. I'm... fine, though. I-I'm sorry. I don't..." She glanced up at her and gave a weak smile. "I don't... think... I have much time left. Takashi-senpai thinks he... might be able to do something and... I know... d-daddy is trying. But... even if I'm having more g-good days now... the bad ones... feel... worse. When I feel tired... I feel so, so tired."

"... I know it's selfish, but it's why I was so *happy* when you invited me. I... know daddy won't have time to do something like this again and I know Takashi-senpai isn't... really the theme park type. But... you... seem like the kind of person who'd like these things. You're f-fun. And I'm really happy I got to go with you today. I--" Then she stopped, placing the cup down. Taking a few slow, deep breathes. Quivering. But no alarms. No seizures. Just... a bit of pain. For a few moments, before it passed. "I just... I want to have... a little bit of fun while I still can...? I'm sorry for being greedy..."

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    Kyouka listens to the girl speak in silence, munching on her hot dog. She doesn't look sad, or tear up or anything like that- she's not the type to respond with sadness to a tough situation. She might not be dying, any more than your average person anyway, but she's certainly no stranger to tough situations. If anything, she seems to approve of how Hotaru is handling herself.

    That doesn't stop her from putting her arm around the small girl though, and giving her a squeeze. "You know, Hotaru-chan," She says after the girl falls silent, "Not everybody can see the end coming and face it with that much dignity. I admire you for that. And I also don't think it's greedy to want to make the most of the time you do have. There are people around who live longer than any of us, that have years and years and years, but never do anything with it. Me, I'd rather die tomorrow, knowing I spent my time well and made a difference, than live another fifty years but never do anything meaningful again."

    "I don't think you should give up. Who knows... miracles are real. I've seen my share. Don't let fate push you around. But don't stop making the most of your time, either. Just because I'm not sick doesn't mean I might not get hit by a bus, or have a meteor crush me or something tomorrow, or the day after. So when the chance comes to do something I'll remember, or that seems important, I do it. You should too."

Hotaru Tomoe has posed:
Hotaru Tomoe couldn't help standing up a little straighter, feel a little swell of pride at the counselor's praise. "I... thank you. I don't want to die. If I can be honest. But... I... think I already did it once. It's not as scary the second time. I'm just... I'm... I don't know if miracles can happen twice. Me even being alive now is a miracle. But..."

"You seem... really smart. Kind. You... know about what's going on. How bad things can be. When I go? I want... I want to leave things better than they were when I got here. And... and I'm scared... that when my time comes... that it'll hurt more people. I'm scared that daddy... that Takashi-senpai... that they'll stop trying to do good and... and try to do anything. I'm afraid the... wrong people will turn them from the good they can do and they'll... do what they regret."

"... When I go, can you keep an eye on them? So... someone... is still looking out for them? Since I can't?"

As they say, no deed goes unpunished. Invite the woobie to a nice day at the theme park, get asked to babysit two megalomaniacs.

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    Kyouka actually gives a little bit of a chuckle at the notion of dying twice. "Kid, you have no idea." She murmurs, shaking her head slightly as she leans back. "I'm no stranger to death either, and the thing most people fail to realize is that it's not the end.. hell, it's not even an escape. Not for some of us. But don't worry.. there's no limit on miracles, either, to my knowledge. Live or die.. it all comes back around."

    She gives the girl a look at her request, and those who say that Kyouka Inai is a stranger to tact would be very impressed by what she doesn't say about exactly what she thinks Hotaru's daddy and Takashi Agera are already doing and what she thinks they deserve for it. Instead, she just gives a half-smile. "I'm not as smart or as kind as you give me credit for. But I can promise you one thing."

    "I will definitely keep a very close eye on everyone at Obsidian. And make sure they understand exactly the consequences of their actions. Don't you worry about that."

    The fact that she says it in a soft, reassuring voice doesn't particularly make it less ominous.

Hotaru Tomoe has posed:
Hotaru Tomoe cocked her head to the side. "Not... an escape? Oh... oh! You mean... the afterlife? Yeah. I... like to imagine my mom is watching out for us now. I... I really hope I'm making her happy with the choices I've made. We've all made."

"I wouldn't have thought you were a big believer in miracles, Inai-senpai," Hotaru said with a small giggle before, finally, reaching out and grabbing a hot dog and taking a small, tiny bite of it. She'd, maybe, get through half of it.

"I don't think anyone is as smart or kind as they think. Either they think too much, or too little," she said, before taking another small bite...

She caught the threat in Kyouka's words. The warning. But... she accepted it. If they went too far, a part of Hotaru understand. She hoped they could be saved... but she also, in a weird way, understood that sometimes everyone couldn't be. She glanced up at Kyouka and smiled again. "Senpai? What's your favorite ride? Can we go on that one next?"

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    "I think the afterlife is a lot more like the current life than a lot of people want to believe." Kyouka says, with mild irony. "You like to think you're in line for some big reward or eternal peace or whatever but.. it's just saving the world and a 9-5 all over again." She laughs, then. "Eh, don't listen to me though. It's not like I'm some kind of prophet or seer. Just somebody who's been around the block a couple of times already."

    At the question of miracles, she just says, "A miracle is just a thing some people said was impossible. But there's very little that's actually impossible- not in a world with magic in it. Unlikely, sure. But if you can imagine it, I'm pretty sure it can happen. You just need a little bit of luck on your side."

    "My favorite ride.. I've always been a fan of the ferris wheel. It's not exciting, but getting to look out over the whole city.. I enjoy the perspective."

Hotaru Tomoe has posed:
Hotaru Tomoe gave a low chuckle. "Really? Saving the world... I think I'd like to do that sometime. To be a super hero who does those kinds of things. Who gets to show up when everyone needs her the most, to swoop in and be all 'You're okay now, citizen! I am here! Oh ho ho ho ho!'" she said, then frowned. "Wait, that's not a hero laugh, is it? How do hero's laugh? Hee hee hee? Do super heroes laugh?"

Still, it seemed to be a softer topic. And she liked it more. She took a few pieces of popcorn and pretzels, slowly nibbling them as she sat there, looking up at her senpai.

"I... think I've always been lucky. It's selfish, but I'd like another miracle if I could have one. The ferris wheel sounds like fun. I like how they rock and spin sometimes and it's like you're a star moving through the sky. Seeing everything is really nice, too."

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    "The secret," Kyouka says, with a smile, "Is that you can be whatever you choose to be. People like to go on about fate and destiny and all that sorta stuff. But you know, I think the truth is that those things are just guidelines. Like the lines in a coloring book, outlining the shape of your life. But the crayon is in your hand, Hotaru-chan. And despite what they might want you to believe, you don't actually need to color inside the lines."

    She stands up then. "Let's go then. I like to look down on the city and think about how they all owe me their lives and don't even know it." She grins. "And it'll give us a chance to relax. Then maybe we can go on another thrill ride or two before they kick us out."

Hotaru Tomoe has posed:
Hotaru Tomoe gave a small nod. She hadn't eaten much in comparison to what was gotten, but well... hopefully Kyouka could. She'd put the card back in her pocket, of course, if it was returned. It had no dark energy in it, so it was fiiiine.

She nodded along with the comment on crayons. "I... I like that. I hope... my crayon is pretty. With lots of sparkles and warmth," she said, giving a light chuckle.

And soon, was walking with her counselor towards the ferris wheel. While she wouldn't hold her hand, her issues with skin to skin contact(well... close enough)... she did reach out to gently hold onto her sleeve. "Thanks. I... I think that sounds really nice."

If nothing else, Kyouka had at least made another friend in Obsidian.