582/Information Exchange

Information Exchange
Date of Scene:	10 October 2023
Location:	Dorms #3
Synopsis:	Naru meets up with Chrono for coffee! And to exchange information. They discuss device magic, contracts with demons... and missing crew. Naru even unlocks the rare 'Happy Chrono!' event!
Cast of Characters:	Naru Osaka, Chrono Harlaown

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Naru Osaka has posed:
Classes are largely done for the day, but most folks are headed to clubs, or homework or whatever else needs to happen. Naru is still in her school uniform, her satchel looped across her as she heads through the boys dorm towards her destination. Could, honestly, be many of the rooms in this chunk of the corridor, but today it's outside Adrien and Chrono's room that she pauses.

*Knockknockknock*

It's a gamble that anyone's home, she hasn't actually texted first, but she's clearly willing to take her chances.

Chrono Harlaown has posed:
Chrono Harlaown would, after a few minutes, open the door. He looked... he actually looked rather refreshed. You wouldn't think he'd just come out of class or anything.

Likely because he was ALSO in his TSAB uniform.

Which meant he was, quite likely, working. The scent of coffee already filtered out of the room and his cup of it could be clearly seen on the nearby desk.

"Osaka-san? What brings you here? Come on in," he said, stepping aside to allow her in.

Naru Osaka has posed:
The smell wafting from the room prompts Naru to take a deep, appreciative sniff, followed by a smile. "Clearly, you have the hang of Adrien's espresso machine."

She steps into the room with a polite nod. "I was hoping to find you and either chat about some mutual projects, or find out when would be a good time to chat about some mutual projects." She smiles a touch ruefully. "Hopefully I haven't inturrupted your work too badly."

Chrono Harlaown has posed:
Chrono Harlaown gave a small nod. "I've never met a coffee machine not worth learning the finer details of. Would you like a cup?" he asked before walking over to it and beginning to set it up again... because yes, she did. They both knew she did. Why pretend? They all knew him asking was merely a formality.

"I've got time, I was actually making some adjustments to my spells. Working to increase the efficiency on one of my spells, by adjusting the..." and then he trailed off. "Right, right, sorry. Please, mutual projects? How have the work sheets I gave you been going?" he asked, giving her that gentle, TSAB smile.

Naru Osaka has posed:
"Coffee would be lovely, thank you." Because they both knew full well that Naru was going to say yes.

If she ever says no, assume she's either a pod person, or gravely ill. Possibly both.

"Adjusting the what?" Naru asks curiously and then laughs softly. "I don't mind hearing, unless its classified." She digs into her satchel, emerging out with a folder and then flipping through that to drop a few pages on Chrono's desk. "The ones I could finish, I did. There's a couple spots that I think I got to the right answer, but I'm not confident on the how or why of getting there, so either that'll be in an upcoming sheet, or I need to sit down with you about those. I marked them."

Naru moves over to settle herself in a seat and nods. "I was chatting with Hematite, and he noted that he'd spoken to you about doing some research into magical contracts."

Chrono Harlaown has posed:
Chrono Harlaown soon returned with a cup of joe, walking to her and holding it out. "Well, it involves moving numbers down, adjusting for air density, the moisture density in the air. My secondary specialty is temperature manipulation, whic involves a lot of different variables. By adjusting different values, I can reduce the mana intensity, but it does reduce the versatility of the spell."

He took the papers and began flipping through them. "I see. I'll need to go over these soon, but it'll take a little bit of time before I can give you more. This is useful, though, allows me to see which things you need to work on."

"As for contracts, yes. Though, I require access to the contract in order to find a way to break it. Contracts... especially magical ones... are incredibly complex, multi-faceted things."

Naru Osaka has posed:
"Ahh, thank you." Naru accepts the cup and inhales the fragrant aroma all over again, with just as much pleasure as she did right at the doorway. There's always good coffee here.

"Does your device do most of those calculations for you, or do you manually manipulate the variables?" Naru asks curiously, holding the coffee in both of her hands, absorbing the warmth while its still too hot to drink.

"There's no rush on the papers." Naru assures him. "I did enjoy working on them, though. It was an interesting puzzle." Because everyone appreciates /extra/ mystical math homework, right?

"I'll be interested if we actually get a copy of the contract, but that would be spectacularly helpful." Naru agrees with a little nod. "I forsee that we'll get it in dribbles and drabs of rememberances and suggestions wiht rebuttals."

Chrono Harlaown has posed:
Chrono Harlaown gave a small nod. "Yes, sort of. It can measure things like air flow, direction, humidity, temperature. But I need to set the different parameters myself. However, I'm a little more... specific in my range, I've been studying how different spells operate and how to get the maximum payload from each one for years. In many cases, the variance and extra oomph is incredibly small, but depending on the situation that razor's edge can mean the difference between life and death. That and well... I find it soothing, doing the math."

He certainly enjoyed his mystical math homework.

"Oh, don't worry. If nothing else, it has helped give me insight on what information I can give other device wielders on this planet and how to best help them achieve maximum results."

He sighed at the mention of the contract and nodded, moving to sit on the bed. "Indeed. I imagine this... demon of his would rather none see the contract. In the end... a contract unseen can only be used by the demon, without knowledge of its contents, he'd be shooting in the dark."

Naru Osaka has posed:
"That makes a lot of sense." Naru braves a sip of her coffee, cautious against the temperature. Clearly cool enough, if only barely, for another cautious sip. "You're probably also willing to push things to get exactly the configuration that you want, even if it's not strictly optimal, but does just precisely what you want."

Naru shakes her head a little "No. The demon in question has no desire to give up the contract, and I'm not sure that we can do much to help on that end. Have you asked Hematite for a copy of it? I assume yes, but you know how assumptions are."

Chrono Harlaown has posed:
Chrono Harlaown gave a small nod. "Exactly. In many ways, midchildian magic is like the computer programs you use on your phones or desktops. The calculations are done by the device itself, but study allows one to alter and design how the spells themselves operate."

Chrono gave a small nod. "Indeed, I have. Sadly, he was unable. For all I know there truly is no contract and the demon has instead bound them into believing there is one. Still, if we ever locate one, we may be able to find ways.... around it. As it is, it'd be like trying to calculate the price of a shopping trip, while knowing neither the items to purchase, where to purchase them or how much they would cost."

Naru Osaka has posed:
"Devices really are fascinating." Naru mmms softly as she sips from her coffee again.

"Well." Naru laughs softly. "I can't say that it sounds like the /most/ impossible task I have on my list, but I would put it in the top five." She shakes her head a little, the chuckles settling out.

Her thoughts are clearly still upon midchildian magic as she muses "That sort of tweaking and manipulation reminds me of the guy.." Naru pauses a moment and then gestures vaguely. "Can you show me the photo of your crewmates again?"

Chrono Harlaown has posed:
"Indeed, midchildian magic has been crafted over millenia, of the most complex calculations and enhanced magics. New ideas and iterations appear every day. One never knows when they'll create the next big spell."

Chrono couldn't help but snicker at the 'most impossible task'. "The obvious answer is to kill the demon, but that also might not be simple. Contracts... are a difficult thing. One should always be wary of what they sign when it comes to magic."

The question about the crew made him stick out his hand. The display showed once more... this time with seven faces on it and then two more, faded out. He had two, only seven to go. "Have... you seen one?" he asked, his voice soft, as if he was holding his breath...

Naru Osaka has posed:
Naru leans in just a little to consider the display more closely and she considers the seven before leaning back into her seat. "Mmmm hmm mmm." She gestures with her coffee cup. "The guy, second from the left. Either he, or his twin, sold me my phone." She nods, confident of the identification. "If he has any idea about magic, he gave no clue, but he'd have no reason to think some random schoolgirl knows anything." She points out. "But he couldn't help himself but offer me a few bazillion ways to tweak my phone for optimal performance." She smiles. "I put it down to just general nerdery, but there was /something/ familiar about him.." She gestures. "Clearly I only mostly remembered the picture."

Chrono Harlaown has posed:
Chrono Harlaown went entirely still. He wasn't even breathing. His heart was barely beating at this point. He just stared at her. Trying to stop himself from panicking. From yelling. From asking more.

But she could see the way his eyes were twitching. The way his staff, very slightly, shook in his grip. Very, very softly, he asked.

"I... see. And... could you tell me... where to... to find this phone store?" he asked gently. "I don't suppose his name... was Aikaze Hibaru?"

Naru Osaka has posed:
"I can go with you if you'd like." Naru offers, before Chrono vibrates himself into implosion.

"I honestly did not look at his name tag, I have to admit, but I dont remember that on the paperwork." She frowns a little, thoughtfully, "Although honestly, going by a different name is not super unusual around here."

Naru's expression is apologetic. "I don't have a lot of details, I'm sorry. I am just glad I recognized him for you."

Chrono Harlaown has posed:
Chrono Harlaown gave a small shake of his head and looked back at the picture before... "One... last question. Did he, by any chance, seem oddly focused... on ensuring that the clarity was perfect, no matter where you went? Even if you were, say, in a tunnel, or in a place with lots of background noise? Focusing primarily on if that was the thing that mattered most?"

Well, when you were a soldier, crystal clear orders WERE important....

Naru Osaka has posed:
"Oh yeah." Naru answers without hesitation. "So many of his tweaks were ensuring that it would stay connected no matter what." She gives a little shrug and a nod. "Which, considering the specifics of my life of weird, are great tweaks. I appreciate being connected as much as I can be, short of being on another plane, or trapped in a barrier."

Naru adds after a moment. "I would have been impressed if he had suggestions for /that/, but I didn't ask. Apparently I should have."

Chrono Harlaown has posed:
Chrono Harlaown shook his head. "No. He... he likely would have just thought you meant a flood barrier or something. I..." He stared at the hologram...

Then he hugged her. And it was a tight hug. And Chrono... Chrono was not a hugger. He likely knew her well enough for that. Buuuut... he hugged her. "Thank you. T-thank you so much," he said, his voice hushed, happy. Filled with appreciation. He then pulled back, giving her a smile. "I... I need to go. I need to go... I need to see if this is him. T-thank you, Osaka-san. I won't forget this. Could you lock up on the way out? Feel free to have another cup of coffee if you like."

Now leaving girls ALONE in their room? Scandelous~

Naru Osaka has posed:
Naru hugs back as she's abruptly ambushed with a hug. "If you need me, just ping me. Good luck." She's already getting up as Chrono is taking off.

She gets it and she waves after him as she moves to tidy up the coffee making things. "Yes, I'll lock up." She notes to Chrono's little hash marks of speed that are all that is left of him.