View source for 18/A Strange Welcome

{{Log Header
|Date of Scene=2023/07/03
|Location=Dorms
|Synopsis=Adora receives an invitation to Radiant Heart Academy, and an introduction to the world she now resides in.
|Cast of Characters=6,98
|pretty=yes
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{{Poses
|Poses=:'''{{#var:6|Mochi (6)}} has posed:'''<br>To say that Tokyo is a strange place for the Etherian girl Adora is probably an understatement. Nothing like the world she left, the dense urban core of one of the largest cities in the world is strange and unfamiliar. But, stranger still is the familiar language a letter that showed up in her current hiding place was written in. A pink envelope with her name on it in her own language, it simply informed her - by her full name, Adora Happysmile Rainbowfist, despite that name being quite rarely used - that she was invited to attend a place called Radiant Heart Academy - and additionally, written instructions to get from where she was to the front gates.<br><br>And at those front gates - of a castle-like school, blue and white, a massive complex - waits something that might be the least threatening thing Adora had seen since arriving. An old Japanese woman - in her 70s, perhaps - in a pink shirt with a long white coat, brown wavy hair, wearing an amulet made out of gold with a red gem in the center. If she can see Adora coming her way, she will smile softly and wave.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:98|Adora Rainbowfist (98)}} has posed:'''<br>Seeing those Etherian letters on that piece of paper nearly made the normally tough teenager cry. It was like a breath of home. Something to hold onto. Maybe this person could give her some kind of answers. So, she'd packed her huge sword into the gym bag she found in the old locker room, tossed it over her shoulder, and headed out.<br><br>She looked a bit worse for wear when she arrived at the gates, and she certainly drew attention. A tightly athletic 5'7" blonde girl with amazing blue eyes tends to draw attention in Tokyo! She was wearing scrounged clothing consisting of gym clothes she found at the place she is currently hiding in. Battered, too-large gym shorts, and a somewhat baggy sleeveless shirt over her sports bra. Her gym bag, looking a bit lopsided with something firm in it, was over one shoulder.<br><br>She hesitates when she sees the older woman, and she raises a hand.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:6|Mochi (6)}} has posed:'''<br>Kaoruko reaches to the amulet around her neck and grasps it, and it glows softly. "Hello, Adora." she says. She says it very much in Japanese, it's not Etherian. But Adora understands it, regardless. "You've come a very long way to be here, haven't you?" she asks, with a sort of knowing old lady soft smile. There's compassion in those eyes, too.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:98|Adora Rainbowfist (98)}} has posed:'''<br>The girl opens and then closes her mouth, caught off-guard. She lets out a held breath and then takes a step forward, one hand tightly gripping the sling of her gym bag. "Oh my gosh, YES! I...think? But you can speak Etherian! Yes!" She hesitates, then. "Kind of? It's...not Etherian, is it?" Her shoulders sag a bit and she sighs. "...Where am I?"<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:6|Mochi (6)}} has posed:'''<br>"Not quite, but we can understand each other - for a little bit." she says. "Where you are? That's a question that's harder to answer. Sure, I can tell you Earth, or I can say that you're at the door of Radiant Heart Academy, but... your question is more about where you are relative to where you were. And perhaps the answer is that you're where you're needed most." she says.<br><br>"I don't get involved, much. It's not my place. I just bring everyone together. But normally, we don't get... students... who come from so far afield. And alone. It must be terrifying, and for that I am sorry. I can, however, help you get settled here for as long as you are here."<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:98|Adora Rainbowfist (98)}} has posed:'''<br>The girl shifts her weight from one ill-fitting sneaker to the other, and she finally nods. "...It has to be better then where I'm staying. I mean, you obviously know where, if you sent that letter..." Her blue-eyed gaze lifts to take in the school, and she smiles softly. "It kind of reminds me of home," she admits. "That's a good start."<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:6|Mochi (6)}} has posed:'''<br>Kaoruko laughs softly. "I don't actually know. The letters just go where they're supposed to go, and get you here." she says, and shrugs her shoulders. "Once you're here though, it's my job to try to help you and... now we're talking, so we're at that point."<br><br>"This world is different than yours in ways I cannot possibly imagine." she said. "But we can help you learn the language really quickly, and from there, make it easier to be here. Also, yes, it does look like the dorms would do you some good."<br><br>"I wouldn't tell people where you're from. Frankly the average person won't believe you, they'll just think you're crazy and it'll make things harder... Luckily just saying 'a foreign country' does wonders, failing that, tell them 'Bavaria'. Nobody knows anything about Bavaria." The old woman chuckles. It's a joke, mostly, tied into the advice.<br><br>"Of course, you can always leave and come back, if this is too much for you. But, you're here now, so... I think there must be a reason."<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:98|Adora Rainbowfist (98)}} has posed:'''<br>"Bavaria. Got it. I'm from Bavaria." She straightens her back a bit and nods. Suddenly, the poor kid doesn't resemble the girl she seems to be, but a soldier. A disciplined soldier. It's sad, actually, in a way. "I doubt it's worse then where I was staying. And...maybe it'll help me find my friends. My girlfriend." Poor Adora has no idea that the Catra that came to this world is...different from the one she knew. Unredeemed. Angry. That will be a heartbreaking revelation, surely.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:6|Mochi (6)}} has posed:'''<br>There's sympathy for her in the old woman's eyes, too. "You've seen a lot. And I wish you were here to get a different peaceful start, and regain things you should have had. But... I fear that's not the case. Things are about to get difficult for all of us, and I suspect you are here for the same reason as so many of my students... to carry a sword and shield. Metaphorically or literally." She says.<br><br>"But you don't entirely seem, well, to be the type who's yearning for a break, even if she deserves one." She smiles big. "And you might be aware that even in difficulties, great and wonderful things can be forged, and light can stay in your life and give you strength."<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:98|Adora Rainbowfist (98)}} has posed:'''<br>SHe nods as she listens. "Sounds pretty similar to the kind of things -I- was telling people not too long ago," the girl admits. She glances past the old woman to the school again, and clears her throat.<br><br>"So...my own room? Clothes, maybe? What...what about a place to bathe?," the girl asks, hopeful now.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:6|Mochi (6)}} has posed:'''<br>"You'll probably get to tell them again. You wouldn't be here if we didn't need you. You've come too far." Kaoruko says.<br><br>"Oh yes, oh yes. Room, clothes, and a private bath. If you'll Foro shite kudasai"... and Kaoruko pauses and looks down at her amulet. It's not glowing anymore.<br><br>She shrugs, annoyedly, and just motions Adora to follow her with her hands. No more Etherian for now. Who knows if the next time she hears it will be a time of joy or worry. But there is a nice room, a school uniform for her, and the promised bath at the end of the following. And soon, a far-too-quick-to-not-be-magic education in speaking Japanese and a little English. The modern world of Earth has some very different things but at least she won't have to experience them without understanding a language!<br> <br>
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