77/Tea-party shenanigans

Tea-party shenanigans
Date of Scene:	13 July 2023
Location:	Obsidian Tower - Dark Laboratory
Synopsis:	Hotaru and Yochu have their first tea party! It... goes... well.
Cast of Characters:	Hotaru Tomoe, 93

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Hotaru Tomoe has posed:
Hotaru Tomoe was now, after countless hours... enjoying the rewards of having a new dolly. In this case, a dark energy doll that had once been a person and would, definitely, one day be a child again. Hotaru... was honestly quite protective of the little thing. Partially because she saw it as her fault... and partially because it was another person. Oh, and the fact, as someone with some... artificial... parts of her own... she felt just a little bit of shared trauma with the poor thing.

So, how did one cope with such feelings? TEA PARTY! In this case, at least, she felt a tea party was highly acceptable. And by acceptable, required. After all, they were still studying her, and what better experience for a doll than tea party? With crumpets.

They weren't the best crumpets, but they were... passable. Bought from a local gas station. And the tea wasn't the best, but it was.... passable. A bit cold. She poured it, at least, without shaking too much.

Yochu (93) has posed:
    Everything was new and different for Yochu. The life she'd once had was irrevocably gone, the memories of the girl she once was near and present, but strange and disconnected as if remembering a story, or watching the home videos of someone else. She was once a real, human girl and her dearest wish was to one day be so again. Yet she was a doll, and while she was one the trappings of such were comfortable, natural, and even soothing to her. If a young girl was claiming her as her new dolly, that only meant that she wasn't alone. And being alone was the very worst thing.

    Having a tea party with that girl was likewise a very natural thing to do. So the little doll, only a foot tall, sat at her place and with a delicate grip and very neat motions lifted the tiny teacup to her lips and took a sip. Despite being a doll, this was something she could do, and she even was able to take tiny nibbles of the crumpets, smiling preciously at the treats. Whether she actually tasted them, and what happened to the food after 'eaten'? Well... that's part of why they were in a lab, wasn't it?

Hotaru Tomoe has posed:
Hotaru Tomoe glanced over to the doll. She was... nervous. Ironically, not because of the doll. But because she was worried she would do something wrong. Hurt it in some way. She'd always loved stuffed animals and the like. Dolls were only natural for her to like. She nibbled one of the cookies and stared at the doll. "So... what's your favorite color?" she asked.

It was also kind of nice, having a doll who could talk back. She'd honestly always wished she could have something like that. Someone who... she could be useful for. Be the senpai, as it were. She uhhhh... hoped to one day be that for Fate. But she also knew that Fate vastly outqualified her. The more she could learn about the new friend, the more she could be useful to her. She hoped

Yochu (93) has posed:
    It's an interesting question. Not one the little doll had considered before. She sets down her teacup and her head tilts to one side, her very long hair shifting in an entirely lifelike manner. "White?" She finally responds, sounding unsure. "Or... maybe black?" After considering this another moment she adds a qualification, "Not pure black, but with other colors too. Black and white?" If one thing is sure, it's that Yochu is unsure. Rather than being introspective she looks around herself and her red eyes settle briefly on Hotaru. Maybe purple...

    Her mannerisms were strange. Elegant, like a prettily dressed little doll might be expected to have, but also childish. But also... somewhat strange. For example, she simply looked at Hotaru. Watching. Staring. It might be unnerving. At least she blinked, though, so it wasn't a caustic gaze. The little doll was clearly studying this girl that was with her. She lifts her teacup, closing her eyes while taking a sip, and then settles it down again, once more looking towards the girl she knew almost nothing about, but was already very important to her.

    "Thank you," she says in a soft tone, "for the tea and crumpets. I like them."

Hotaru Tomoe has posed:
Hotaru Tomoe nodded, listening intently. "White and black," she said, smiling. "That sounds nice. We could maybe get you some dresses with those," she offered.

Frankly, the doll was unsettling. At least, would be to most. Hotaru... was less unsettled. Granted, that was because in the horror movies, nobody knew the doll was alive. They just suspected it was. Absolutely terrifying! But this doll WAS alive, and moreso, was her friend.

And it was going to make Kaolinite never want to come near her room. Ever. So extra bonus. Even if she wasn't aware of it yet.

Her face lit up with a smile when she was told the doll liked the tea and crumpets. "I'm so glad!" she said happily. "Ummmm, is there any games you enjoy? Things you'd like to see? Read? Watch?"

Yochu (93) has posed:
    A lot of things simply didn't make sense about Yochu, from a mechanical standpoint. Even if the altered soul of a little girl was inside the doll, how was that doll moving? How was it speaking like a human when it clearly had no vocal cords? The general answer to all these answers was, of course, Dark Energy. The specifics how would probably interest Takashi, but maybe not Hotaru. Yochu herself most certainly couldn't answer these questions.

    "New dresses?" She perks up a little, lifting her head, those doll like eyes widening in a more human expression than her little body should naturally be able to make. "I... I think I'd like that very much." After a moment she notes, "Dress up. I'd like to play dress up, too." A very natural thing for a doll to want.

    Her eyes fix on Hotaru again and she asks in a quiet, hopeful way, "Do you think you could get new dresses, too? Then... we could play dress up together."

    More questions. They're very hard to answer, but she's glad to be asked. "I think... I'd like to listen to stories. Stories are nice. Games... Um..." Other than dress up, and make believe does she even know any..?

Hotaru Tomoe has posed:
Hotaru Tomoe nodded. "Yeah, we'll get you some new ones! And ummm..." New ones for her? Hotaru? That made her pause. Did she... want new dresses? Should she? She hadn't thought about it until now. She nodded, finally. "Of course! We could play dress up together, it'll be fun." Oh... oh boy. There were a whole line of comments on that one. "And I have some bedtime stories I could read to you. I like reading, do you like poetry?" she asked, still smiling to the poor thing.

"And don't worry about games, we can try a bunch of different ones. I have a lot of board games at home." She... liked board games. It felt nice to touch the pieces...

Yochu (93) has posed:
    Yochu makes a tiny smile when Hotaru decides that she should have some new dresses for herself too. Spending time together styling each other's hair and picking out what accessory should go where; that's the kind of thing a doll like her loves to do! Just try not to think too long about how long it would take a foot tall doll to brush a girl's hair with a doll-sized brush.

    "Poetry... like pretty words? I... I think I'd like pretty words." Poor thing, yes. If Yochu had once been a rich, extremely well educated girl perhaps this wouldn't be so difficult, but she hadn't. She'd been a poor girl living in an orphanage with an education that bordered on the bare minimum of acceptability.

    "I think... I'd like that. Playing board games with you, Hotaru." Of course she calls Hotaru by her given name, and without honorifics. It shows that they're very close. If she's Hotaru's dolly, of course they are. It's only natural.

Hotaru Tomoe has posed:
Hotaru Tomoe wouldn't mind. It would be nice, having someone touch her hair and brush it who she wasn't actually worried ABOUT touching. That was always a concern, after all. One touch could have... drastic effects, if she wasn't careful. The last thing she needed was to have someone freak out over brushing her hair.

"Oh, sometimes. More sentences and... I ummm. I like to read poetry sometimes. I don't really enjoy writing it, but reading it is nice. And... and I think that'd be fun," she said.

However, the way her face lit up when she was told the doll would like to play boardgames with her? Oh, that would have melted *so many hearts*. "That's wonderful! I... honestly, don't get to play them with many people. Since I... well... not... many people like to. But I think it'd be wonderful to play them with you, Yochu!" she said. No, honorifics and the like between a girl and her doll didn't make sense... but if she had to give Yochu one, frankly, now?

It would have been Imouto-san.

Yochu (93) has posed:
    Touching Yochu might be safe. She was a person, technically, but she didn't have skin to contact. She had a mind, in a way, but she didn't have neurons and synapses and chemical reactions that created the human experience of emotions. And yet, those emotions existed. Yes, it was a very good thing she was under Takashi and Hotaru's care. Even if dark energy could explain how a toaster could jump up and drain energy from people by throwing chunks of crispy overcooked bread at them, the fact she had once been a person would make her all the more interesting a test subject.

    "Oh, um... that sounds... almost like listening to stories? I think I'd like hearing you read poetry, too." She responds after a moment.

    Seeing Hotaru suddenly become happy puts a little smile on Yochu's face. Hotaru being happy made her happy! Anyone who couldn't understand that didn't understand dolls at all. "I'll play board games with you as much as you want, Hotaru," she quickly promises. It's an easy thing for her to promise. Even if she didn't enjoy the game itself, Yochu is very sure she'd have fun just from seeing Hotaru so happy.

Hotaru Tomoe has posed:
Hotaru Tomoe nodded. "Oh, it's a lot like listening to stories. Poetry is often... it comes from the heart and is a way for people to express themselves, when they can't say the words directly. When they can't find the words." Ah, that was why she liked it so.

"I have plenty of those kinds of books, I think you'll like them, then." She, slowly, poured a little more tea for both of them.

"Is there anything you'd like? I ummm... I've never gotten things for a living doll before, so I want to make sure I don't miss anything you need. I've never really been the best at getting myself things, either. Of that nature, I mean," she added quickly. "Like... ummm.... accessories and the like."

Yochu (93) has posed:
    Yochu doesn't entirely understand what Hotaru means about poetry, but she thinks she might be able to understand her better if she actually hears her read some and then talks about it with her later. Even if she doesn't end up understanding, she thinks she'll like doing that together.

    Her eyes follow the tea kettle as Hotaru lifts it up to pour, fixing on the spout and then the little stream going to her cup. Once it's poured she lifts her cup carefully and then blows gently over it, as if it might burn her if it was to hot even though it most assuredly wouldn't. She takes a sip, then sets the cup back down.

    "I like... pretty things. Frilly things, lacy things, and ruffly things. Um..." Speaking of not having the words, it seems we've come to one of those already. She looks down at her little dress. She likes her dress! It's always going to be a favorite. But what about it makes it her favorite? Because it's the dress of her beloved doll. Or... it was the dress of her beloved doll. Now she is the beloved doll. "I... I don't..."

    She looks confused, and after a few moments of confusion she looks up at Hotaru and attempts to cut the gordian knot, "Could... could we go shopping and look?"

Hotaru Tomoe has posed:
Hotaru Tomoe watched the poor thing struggling to understand, struggling to... accept what she was. What was going on.

Hearing her say what she liked only cemented that worry. Yochu was... struggling. In a way that Hotaru could both entirely understand and identify with... and a way she could never hope to. The request got an instant reaction from her, though. "Of course!" she all but yelled, but then paused. "Errr, but not right now. We'll need to prepare." Takashi would likely want to monitor them. And... well... "You know... you'd need to be careful when we did though, right? To not cause a... disturbance?" she asked.

Yochu (93) has posed:
    Yochu looks a little surprise at the force of the acceptance, but smiles afterwards. "I'd like that a lot. I want to go shopping with you, Hotaru, so we can have nice things to make each other look pretty." And also so she'll understand more about what she likes and doesn't like. At the mention of needing to wait she gives an elegant bob of her tiny head "Right now we're having tea," she agrees, taking another sip. She looks around at the lab equipment a little, showing she does understand Important Things are happening, even if that's not what she spoke of directly.

    "Careful?" She asks with another hint of confusion. "Disturbance? Why would there be a disturbance?"

Hotaru Tomoe has posed:
Hotaru Tomoe nodded. "Y-yeah, that sounds like a lot of fun," she said sheepishly. She liked the idea of getting the doll nice things. Nice things for her, though... that... was a bit harder to swallow. Sure, she knew, logically, it was okay. It still always worried her, though.

And the question, well... She just sighed. That, at least, she couldn't tell the girl. She didn't have the heart. She needed someone stronger than her, emotionally. Someone who was kind of a jerk. Someone who could tell people bad things and NOT burst into tears when she said them. "Oh, ummmm... Takashi-senpai can explain it later." Instead, she was going to toss Takashi under the bus. Problem solved!