106/Roomies!

Roomies!
Date of Scene:	17 July 2023
Location:	Dorms
Synopsis:	Mio discovers that her new roommate is none other than Amanda.
Cast of Characters:	Mio Morita, Amanda Faust

---

Mio Morita has posed:
Its a quiet Monday afternoon. Its raining outside and things are rather peaceful. An occasional rumble of thunder sends a reminder that despite all the magic and craziness in Tokyo, Mother Nature is still the big boss.

Mio Morita is minding her own business. She isn't out selling stuff or baking baked goods. She happens to be in her dorm doing homework. Thankfully she is almost done with that. Then she can make dinner and enjoy the evening. Her roommate that she is sure exists, has never been seen in by her. All these room have at least two people per room so there was bound to be a roommate, right? She shrugs and keeps busy, finishing up the writing for her English class.

Amanda Faust has posed:
    MOVING DAY. Working out the logistics of this was a little tricky. She can't just rent a moving van and say she's moving Mallory's stuff... into the school dorms... Some sort of logistical help from whoever sent the invitation would've been nice, but Amy thinks she's got it worked out: Pack up everything--

    Everything she's *taking*, obviously... Personal electronics, mainly, her small supply of clothes (uniform, some of her old shirts for use as sleepshirts, her old jacket for comfort, the stuff she first detransformed in, plain colored T-shirts, a couple of pairs of slacks, a bulk pack each of socks and panties), toiletries, a few other personal posessions and, after getting a bunch of little bites taken out of her arm yesterday), she's decided it'd be a damn good idea to pack the contents of her medicine cabinet too.

    --into boxes, transform, run a box at a time over to some rooftop near the dorm room, then bring all the boxes to ground level when no one's looking, detransform, and-- OH GOD EVERYTHING IS SO HEAVY. It doesn't help that it's RAINING during all this, so she's also got a too-big raincoat and put a poncho over the boxpile.

    Her distress not going unnoticed, some passing teacher and another student or two offer to help, carrying boxes while Amy *insists* on personally carrying her computer tower.

    "We'll just leave these here, alright?" Amy nods as the slightly-damp boxes are set by the door, and she herself is confronted by... a doorknob. And her hands are full.

    She tries to get enough friction with the tread of her sneaker... nope.

    Ummmm....

    She lightly kicks the door, 'knocking' with her foot. "Hello? Is anyone in? I'm your new roommate!"

Mio Morita has posed:
"Huh? New Roommate?" Mio stands up from her desk and quickly goes over to the door. She opens it and her eyes go wide. "Amy! Good to see you. Wait you're my new roommate?! That is too cool! Can I help you carry stuff in?"

Mio doesn't wait for an answer. She quickly grabs a box and carries it inside. She then comes back for another. "What are the odds that you would wind up in this dorm. I wonder what happened to the other roommate?" She shrugs. "Guess she moved away." That is what she hopes anyway. Would be a shame if someone got kicked out like that.

"Are you hungry? I was going to make some Udon then. If you are interested I can make you some too! I love a good bowl of udon. Rumor has it that the Head of the Hero club can take down like four bowls of udon. I haven't met her yet but I wanna see her tackle that much udon!" She laughs a little bit as she continues moving boxes.

Amanda Faust has posed:
    Amy blinks in surprise. "Mio-san??" Then smiles, "Good to see you again!" She sets the computer tower on whichever desk doesn't have all Mio's stuff on it. "Maybe they withdrew at the last minute?" She can only shrug as she walks back out of the room, takes off the raincoat, and shakes it off, before nudging one of the lighter boxes into the doorway with her foot and then shoving it into the room with her foot, picking up another box and bringing that to the desk too. "Make?" She glances around to see what, if any, notable appliances or other accomodations Mio has added. When she was in college, some people had a mini fridge or a microwave in their room, so her first thought is maybe Mio means instant.

    Now that the coat's off (she tosses it on her bed), it can be seen that her upper right arm is bandaged.

Mio Morita has posed:
"Yeah make! I am going into the common kitchen and going to make some udon." Mio laughs as she continues helping get stuff in. "If I would have known you were moving in today I would have straightened things up a little bit." The room is far from dirty. Maybe a little disheveled but definitely not dirty. "But yeah, I cook a lot. The baked goods I sell to raise money for stuff to feed the homeless, I make all of that. Usually I do that at my family's house though.

She looks around the room and then notes the bandaged right upper arm. "Oh! Are you alright. It looks like you had a run in with a wall or something. I can put fresh bandages on that if you like." She offers, not questioning the cause of such an injury. She of course is curious but she doesn't want to pry. Besides what if its something she doesn't wanna talk about?

Amanda Faust has posed:
    Amy blinks, stopping for a moment. "We get a kitchen?" One or two more boxes and they're set.

> I would have straightened things up
    Amy's eyes glance over the room, with the experience of decades of barely being able to care about one's own body, let alone living space. "Looks pretty clean to me!"

    Her attention is called to the bandage. *Shit*, right. "I... tripped. By the stove. It's fine for now... wait, you already have medical supplies here? And... if your family's house is that close, why even live in the dorms? If you don't mind my asking."

Mio Morita has posed:
"Of course there is a small kitchen. Where else can we make instant ramen or a quick pot of udon?" Mio giggles.

"But yeah, I would have straightened things up a bit more. Cleaning up can be a fun thing too." She smiles and sets down the last of the boxes.

She then notices something on her desk. Her eyes go wide for a moment. Idly she steps to the side putting herself between her and the item on her desk. The item in question? Her Prechan Mirror. She really doesn't want that to be seen. Idly she backs up to her desk. She turns around and pockets the mirror and the cards. "Sorry bout that. Just something really private. Kinda like a diary I guess." She blushes bright and turns back.

"Oh right. I have a first aid kit here. My mom wouldn't let me move out without it. I know. I mean I could have stayed at home but honestly, I wanted to move out and be with my friends here. Being at home while everything is happening here is just boring. I go home to cook and thats pretty much it."

Amanda Faust has posed:
> Cleaning can be fun
    [X]: Disbelieve

> OOPS PRECHAN MIRROR
    Amy shrugs. "It's fine. Everybody's got private stuff."

> On moving
    "You were eager to move out at our age? Wow, you're so mature, Mio-san."

    She pulls a swiss army knife from her slacks pocket, unfolds the blade, and starts cutting the tape on all the boxes. "Your mom's the prepared type, huh? My Dad's the same way..."

Mio Morita has posed:
"I was eager to be closer to my friends. Who wouldn't want to live with their friends, even if its at school. Plus this school is pretty cool too." She laughs, "Me? Mature? I think my mom would argue that. I'm just a regular girl you know?" A regular girl who turns into a champion of light of course but that goes unsaid.

Mio sighs. "My dad enforced it. My mom wouldn't have let me move out without it. She isn't..." She goes quiet. "Sorry. My mom passed a while ago. Sometimes it still feels like she is around." She smiles. "She is the reason I am the way I am now though." She laughs.

Amanda Faust has posed:
    Amy, who didn't have close friends as a kid, hadn't considered this: "Huh, I guess that *does* sound cool." Mio? Mature? "You're living on your own without parental supervision. That's... that's something, you know?"

    Dead parent landmine stepped on! "Oh! I'm sorry." She wants to give the girl a hug. But just nods. "I'm sure she'd be glad you're taking care of yourself."

    Beat.

    Amy puts the knife away and continues unpacking. Pillows and sheets are tossed into her bed. "Huh, you picked the top bunk? Isn't the bottom more convenient?"

    Next is the COMPUTER. Cords and monitors and speakers and peripherals are in a box cushioned by shirts. THE COMPUTER isn't some off-the-shelf Dell or the like, it's in a fullsize tower case with removable dust filters. THE COMPUTER has two 23" or so 1080p widescreen monitors, 2.1 surround, a fullsize keyboard with RGB lights under the keys, a five-button wireless optical mouse, a wireless PS-style gamepad, a webcam clipped to one of the monitors, and a midrange pair of headphones with mic. A small gaming console is also set up connected to one of the monitors. Only once Amy has confirmed it starts (and then turning the screen off when she sees the login prompt for "Mallory Faust" come up) does she move on to other things.

Mio Morita has posed:
"I left the lower bunk for my roommate but they never really used it." She smiles a little smile. "Don't worry about my mom. She was an amazing woman. If not for her I wouldn't be the person I am. She taught me so much about helping others and bringing hope to them. She said to me "Never lose hope, Even when I am gone I am with you." She smiles even as tears fill her eyes a little.

She turns her attention to her desk and the mini fridge under it. "I should get that udon going. Are you hungry?" She asks curiously as she gathers a few ingredients. "I will get things going."

Amanda Faust has posed:
    "Oh uh, sure. I'll come with you! I can take this opportunity to learn where stuff in the dorm is. And how to make udon!" Amy glances in the fridge to see what sort of things Mio keeps it stocked with. "So, what are you majoring in anyway?" Wait. "I mean, uh... do you know what you wanna do when you grow up?"

Mio Morita has posed:
"Okay! Its not hard. I keep fresh noodles on hand so we can have it occasionally." Mio states as she stands up. A glance in the mini fridge shows some fresh udon noodles and a few drinks. It also has some miso paste and a few snacks. "This way!"

Mio has to think for a long moment. "Did you ever wish you could change who you are. Like to be something you're not. I kinda wish I could be someone who can help people on a grander scale. Not just helping the homeless around here but to help them all over." She smiles. "I know its foolish. I would have to be some sort of Princess or a Politician or something like that to be able to help people on that scale."

Amanda Faust has posed:
    (That night, sodas and some frozen meals are added to the fridge. No point letting it go to waste, right?)

    "Noodles you keep refridgerated instead of just dry?" She follows. And then goes RIGID at those two sentences. What?! Then lets out a breath and relaxes when Mio continues about helping people. "Yeah... it really sucks that there's no way for people like us to make such changes, but... maybe we can find a way? Who knows, maybe there's something older generations just didn't think of..."

    Despite the attempt at reassuring words, she suddenly looks... solemn. Mallory wanted to hurt people too. When he was first exposed to The News, his heart HURT every time he heard about injustice. It needed to be FIXED. Something needed to be DONE. Why weren't the grown-ups DOING anything about it?! Where was the talking animal offering a wish *then*? ...News of injustice and unfairness scraped that emotional wound again and again until it scarred over.

    But now...

    Damn. She's got superpowers, but... Yeah Amy can fight off a monster, but she can't fight poverty, or world hunger, or homelessness. God, that's a lot for a kid to put on herself.

    But... if no one ever DOES figure it out... will the world never change?

    She really does hope the next generation can figure something out... Well, the least she can do is support Mio.

    After a long time of being lost in thought, Amy continues, "It's... it's not foolish. You have a good heart. That's... that's something... Calling it *foolish*" she clenches a fist as righteous anger creeps into her voice, "Is just what adults do because they're too ashamed to admit the world is WRONG and they don't know how to fix it either!" She puts her hands on Mio's shoulders and stares into her eyes. "Never think it's foolish! And even if you can't save everyone... remember what a difference you made to everyone you gave food the other day. To everyone you DO help."

    Amy drops her hands to her side and steps back. "Maybe if we... maybe if we all don't think that way, when WE grow up... together, our generation will be able to change the world?"

Mio Morita has posed:
Its a hard reminder that she can go toe to toe with monsters and people who want to spread despair and come out on top but be unable to do what she longs to do in her day to day life. She shoves that feeling down into the pit of her stomach. Someday she will be able to make a wish. Would that be it? To be someone who can change the world? It certainly is a fantasy but lets face is, just a few weeks ago she was living a mundane life and now she is a Pretty Cure.

"I don't care what it takes. I'm going to help change the world. Even if its one empty belly at a time." She smiles. "I will study hard and maybe I will go into politics or something like that and I will make a difference on a grander scale. I'm going to be a hero." She smiles a little sounding a little too na?ve for a mature young lady.

"Lets go make udon." She leads the way to the common room where there is a TV and a bunch of games and such. She goes to the kitchenette and starts cooking. She heats up some broth and adds some veggies. Finally she adds some miso paste and the noodles. From there she lets it cook. "Thats it right there. Easy peasy. I know its not as good as a restaurant but I like using fresh noodles and it tastes good."

Amanda Faust has posed:
> Even if it's one empty belly at a time.
    Amy smiles and nods encouragingly. "Un!"

> Maybe I'll go into politics
    Amy's face falls a little. Well... maybe the truth that an idealist can't succeed in politics because successful politicians are ALL corrupt, is something that can wait until she's a little older...

    "Yeah, a hero! That's Mio-san!" she says with an earnest smile!

    Amy observes the noodle preparation process. "Hey, it's better than totally instant with the dried veggie flakes and stuff, and homecooked is better than fast food anyway. ...Sorry for getting into a heavy conversation with you. So um... What are you looking forward to this year?"

Mio Morita has posed:
Mio finishes up the Udon and dishes out two bowls full. She hands one to Amy and leaves one for herself before grabbing some chopsticks. She gives some to Amy as well before she digs into her soup. "Mmmmm I love Udon. It always makes me feel like I am at home. No matter where I am." She smiles and slurps up some noodles.

"But really. One step at a time. Don't need super powers to be a hero for people in need. Oooh!" She gets an idea. "Maybe I should talk to the Hero Club about a gift drive for the holidays. This would give us plenty of time to prepare and we can maybe get gifts for poor kids and stuff." She smiles bright at the idea.

Amanda Faust has posed:
    "Home's not that far away... but I guess it's more a mood, than a place." Amanda tastes her noodles. "Umaaaa! Hot food like this is *good*, on a rainy day like this... Sharing clothes and food with someone you just met, you're so kind."

    At the mention of superpowers she almost chokes on her noodles... Oh right. Of course. Totally normal for kids to talk about super powers. "A gift drive... You really are always looking for ways to help the less fortunate..." She hmms. "What about some kind of activity for charity? Some people do, like, a run, with people pledging X amount per distance made, but like, you could stream something, or... I dunno, work with the videogame club to have them attempt increasingly ridiculous challenges as more money is donated, or, or stream a tabletop game or something."

Mio Morita has posed:
"Oh! Those are some really good ideas!" Mio gets out her phone and starts making notes on it. "A run... Team up with the Video Game club..." She makes the notes as she goes. "I might work on something like that." She pauses and smiles. "Keeping my eyes on others keeps me from looking at only myself. I don't like being like that, you know? I wanna help others because it gives hope. Hope is so important. It can change everything if we hold onto it."

She then goes back to the comment about the clothes and the food. She has to laugh. "Its no biggie. I am happy to help. If you need anything just let me know. I will Help out anyway I can. That's what friends do right? They help each other out when needed and do nice things for each other." She smiles again, seeming to do that a lot.

Amanda Faust has posed:
    Amy blushes a little at the praise, feeling kind of guilty for recycling old ideas, but... they were new to Mio! "Yeah. People need hope."

    Anything she needs... Amy's going to need to come up with a cover story about why she's unfamiliar with girl stuff.

    "Friends... I don't really, have any here, but... I could make some!" She smiles. "And help them out! Heheh, o/~ When I become a ninth-grader, I'm gonna make a hundred friends... o/~" she sing-songs a bit of a Japanese children's song with one lyric changed.

Mio Morita has posed:
"Everyone needs hope. So many people lose it and they don't even know they have lost so much of it. But hope springs eternal. So no matter how bad it gets, there is always hope to cling to that you can get out of a bad situation and that things will improve. My mom told me not to lose hope and that she would always be in my heart so, I just kinda ran with it you know."

Mio grins. "Well you have at least one so far. I'm sure you will have more before you know it. Plus you said about joining the Hero Club. You will have friends there really fast. Togo is really nice and Itsuki is awesome. I'll bet you will have so many friends you will have trouble keeping track of them all."

Amanda Faust has posed:
...There is always hope to cling to that you can get out of a bad situation and that things will improve.

                                  ==Days Ago==                                  

    o o <If you refuse, and these four win, and you survive, you will likely not remember any of this. You'll be able to resume your normal life-->

    "N-no! I want to... I want to do something!" Mallory speaks without even thinking, something about the thought of day after day after day of nothing in particular, each day leading to the next and not really building towards anything, just waiting, hoping, for... something to be different.

    Today is pretty damn different. This might be his only shot.

    Kyubey turns his head back towards Mallory, expression unreadable. <Great! All you have to do to make a contract with me is make a wish!>

                                  ============                                  

    Amy is stirred from her thoughts. "Oh... oh right, the Hero Club! You said the others would be at the dance, but I didn't know what they looked like, and I got kinda distracted..." She looks away, blushing a bit, "...so I didn't end up meeting them there, though..."

Mio Morita has posed:
Mio just seems to space out a little bit. Part of her longed to get out and fight. Was that really the type of magical girl she was? One who wants to fight? Maybe. Really as long as it meant that the bad guys weren't being a threat it was a good thing.

She turns her attention back to Amy. "Oh umm... I heard that there were a lot of people at the dance so I'm not surprised. So How about we head to the club tomorrow. Maybe we will see them there?" She asks curiously.

Amanda Faust has posed:
    Amy ohs, "They meet tomorrow? Yeah, sure!" She smiles.

    Once noodles are done, it's back to the room to finish unpacking. Textbooks (and a few tabletop game books... she might not normally have brought those but she's expecting to basically abandon the apartment, so...)... a couple of stuffed animals are tossed into the bed, toiletries are set somewhere (toothpaste, toothbrush, bar of soap, cheap shampoo, hair brush, a little basket to carry them back and forth to the dorm showers... what more do you need, right?), she offers to merge medical supplies in one place (although when she gets to pill bottles labeled for FAUST, MALLORY she hurriedly puts that back in the bag) Mio can see her put away in her drawers the clothing she isn't presently wearing, which is: some color T-shirts, another pair of slacks, her school uniform, the one red jersey-knit skirt, and the unopened packages of like a half-dozen pairs of socks and panties, a complete wardrobe! Yup. A complete wardrobe. There is no makeup. A backpack (big, utilitarian, not cute) and a messenger bag (plain) with school supplies are ready as well, placed on the floor near her desk.

    Amy wipes a bit of sweat from her brow once everything has been set in its place. "Phew! That's everything, I think..."

Mio Morita has posed:
"You don't have any makeup?" Mio asks curiously having noticed that. "I thought everyone had at least a little makeup." She giggles a little. "Its okay. We can find some that you like. Makeup is fun after all." She does note the wardrobe but doesn't say anything. She will have to help her out with some clothes at some point.

"Well I am going to get changed for the night." She collects a nightie and goes to the bathroom. A moment later she comes back out dressed in a night gown and looking fit to sleep. "I'm going to need to go shopping tomorrow. I need to get some normal pajamas." SHe quickly climbs the bunk bed and lays down on her bunk. "Ah. Let me know if you are alright down there. I would hate if you were uncomfortable.

Amanda Faust has posed:
> You don't have any makeup? I thought everyone had at least a little makeup.
    Amy stiffens. "Ihavenosistersandmymomisatomboy!" she rattles off perhaps a bit too quickly the excuse prepared for any... lack of girliness she might be caught in. She looks nervous.

    Damn, is it really that late already? By the time Mio comes back, Amy has kicked off her shoes and exchanged the slacks and t-shirt for the oversized APERTURE LABORATORIES shirt that's big enough to be suitable as a nightshirt. "Pajamas... huh, that'd be a good idea. And thanks! I think I'll be fine though." Oh, there was one other thing: A fan! White noise, and helpful in the heat. Before actually going to bed, though, she goes over to the computer and makes sure the operating system account name says "Amanda Faust" (Amy for short) and generally cleans up the desktop and open browser tabs and such a little... Not that she left anything age-inappropriate in the open, but maybe she could NOT have any references open to last year's taxes or her old work email account, set up her student school email, etc etc.

    Oh right, she should also take all those My Little Pony wallpapers out of rotation before her roommate sees-- wait, no, hang on, that's the one thing that actually kind of sells her supposed identity as a teenage girl here, that can stay. Although the shreds of her manly pride die a little more at the admission that *anything* from her old life was more appropriate for this one.

    Charger and phone (with a plain black heavy-duty case) are set up by the bed, and then lights out.

    Amy's not sure just when troubled thoughts about *how am I going to get through all this* fade into dreams.