56/Towering Expectations

Towering Expectations
Date of Scene:	10 July 2023
Location:	Clover Tower
Synopsis:	Amu and Cho decide to visit the not!tokyo tower together. Adventure hooooo!
Cast of Characters:	Cho Konishi, 54

---

Cho Konishi has posed:
Cho Konishi was, well, a little nervous. Why?

Because Cho had never really done this kind of thing as herself. Sure, she'd... well... ... Okay, now that she thought about it had she EVER gone... anywhere with ANYONE before her change? Sure, she'd been asked to come help with things, but never... actually a thing which involved 'being out' with others.

So she had spent half the night fretting that she was going to out herself, or seem like a loser, or get shoved around, or any number of other things. Or worse... Just... be hated.

But now, here she was, waiting outside the school for Amu, wondering if she'd actually show. Was this... a blossoming of a friendship? Would Cho have a friend soon?

Sure, Cho HAD friends... probably... but her expectations rarely meshed with reality and even if she had friends, she wouldn't likely realize it for a while. After all, some people might... even find her endearing.

She glanced into her bag again, to make sure she'd brought her snacks and that Wuwu wasn't going to cause trouble. Fortunately, the monkey was still sleeping soundly in her bag, having *promised* to behave today. Pending a youma attack, this might even go well! She'd even changed out of her uniform, an advantage of living in the dorms. Granted, it was just a pair of long white socks, a knee length brown skirt and a simple red t-shirt... Not even a blouse. Someone needed to help this girl figure out... fashion.

Amu Hinamori (54) has posed:
Since Amu was informed about the whole uniform thing, she has not been seen in the official school uniform. Nope she was in her old uniform. The uniform is much more comfortable than the sailor suit, at least to her. The plaid skirt and leg warmers feel nice. Her white blouse and red tie look nice and of course the black jacket over the whole thing. The only thing that isn't part of her old uniform is a lock pendant she is wearing on a necklace.

Amu happily makes her way through the crowd. She isn't exactly all smiles, but she is happy. She just is excited to see Tokyo Tower. She quickly makes her way up to Cho. There is one thing out of place however. Floating over her shoulder, is Ran. She isn't exactly worried about people seeing Ran. Only a few people could. So why would she make her hide? Her other eggs have yet to hatch at least to her knowledge.

"Hey Konishi-san!" She waves and smiles. "How are you today? Are you ready to go?" She asks as she stands there.

Cho Konishi has posed:
Cho Konishi blinked and found her eyes drawn to Ran for a moment. Ohhhhhh. THAT kind of egg. That made sense. She just glanced for a moment before finding her eyes drawn right back to Amu. Should she mention it? Nahhhhh. She wasn't sure how aware Amu was of it so far...

Though, the mischievous side of her was tempted to see how she reacted to being called 'princess'.

"Pretty good. I got out of council business early and I got the snacks, they're fresh from the fridge and everything," she said proudly. "You look really cute in that uniform, I see why you like it so much. Much better than orange," she said with a light chuckle before she started to walk towards the bus stop. Calm, caaaaaalm. It was just a hangout. Totally normal. Social stuff. It was fun! Usually. Probably. So she'd heard.

"So, how was your parent's date?" she asked, before mentally kicking herself. That was weird to ask, wasn't it?

Amu Hinamori (54) has posed:
Amu notes where Cho's eyes are going. She looks in that direction too. Ran is flying there just minding her business. Holding her pompoms and just being her cute self. Amu looks at Cho curiously. Can she see Ran? If she can, does that mean that she is magical too? Does she have a chara too?

"Oh thank you. I really like this outfit. I am glad I am not one of the high ranking Student council. I would hate to have to wear a cape." She shudders at the thought. My mom sorta taught me how to dress for style. Its pretty cool.

"Oh my mom and dad's date was alright. They had a good time. I got to spend time with my little sister and while annoying sometimes, it was fun. If I hear that song from that one Icy movie one more time though, I may have to rip my ponytail out."

Cho Konishi has posed:
Cho Konishi nodded, snickering as they walked. "Ohhh yes, the guardians. They're great, a bit silly. But they're not so much... higher ups in the council, so much as this school is massive and we all have soooooo many different tasks and duties that they just kind of throw at us. We all have our own little specialties. Me? I'm good... at drawing the short straw and having to stay late to take everyone's forms when they don't submit their club information on time. And then making it their problem because I can be a lil bit sarcastic at times," she said with a snicker. "But really, the guardians are cool. And the prince, he loves being called the prince when there aren't a lot of crowds around by the way," Yes, Cho was a bit of a troll. "Is pretty sweet at times. I think you'd get along well with him. He has a bit of a fascination with eggs too, heh. His sparkles are obnoxious, though. I swear, the number of times he's used those on me to get me to do extra paperwork when needed, ugh."

She then glanced towards Amu for a moment and imagined her in a guardian outfit... before snickering. "I think you'd look cute in a cape, though."

She came to a stop in front of the bus stop. It wouldn't be long, now, at least. She snickered at the comment about that particular song, though. "Would you believe I've never actually seen it? I've heard the song, of course. But never saw the movie. My dad usually had me watch things with like... robots and stuff when I was a kid. Is it all it's cracked up to be?" This was going well, so far! She hadn't panicked, or screamed, or gotten hit by a bus. All in all, a nice first attempt at socializing.

Amu Hinamori (54) has posed:
"I don't know much about the hierarchy of the student council. I haven't been at Radiant Heart long enough to really find out about it. I just know that... Well you probably heard all about it." She sighs as she looks at Ran."

"What? You wanted to be someone who could tell him how you feel. I helped you with it." Ran smirks and shakes her little pompoms.

"But yeah, The prince and I had a talk about eggs and such. It was really cool. Then I got lost in the Club building. It was really messed up. I met this strange cat boy. I found out the Prince doesn't like the cat boy at all." She shudders thinking about just how angry the Prince was.

Amu thinks about the whole cape thing and shakes her head. "No way. I totally wouldn't look good in one of those capes. Too frilly for me." Never mind when she transformed she was even more loaded with ribbons and such.

"The movie is pretty good. I got to see it a bunch though. Ami loves it. She sings that song sometimes. Its adorable.

Cho Konishi has posed:
Cho Konishi blinked and shook her head. "Heard... about it? Oh, the flying omelette cheerleader you got going on there? Actually, not really. Until I saw it flying with you, I wouldn't have guessed. While the council has a lot of magical boys and girls in it, we aren't all that way. And, honestly, we tend not to tell on others until they mention it," she said. "Namely cause the whole like... 'Oh, magic is real' thing can be a bit much to take in all at once and we don't want people feeling overwhelmed."

"Kinda rough going from tuesday being like... 'Hmmm, I wonder if I should have rice or noddles', to 'Oh, wow, I can now leap half a mile into the air and bench press a bus. Also, giant monsters are real and I get to fight them.' Even before you consider just how many magical... everything there is. I'm only vaguely aware of the eggs, though. Mine is a teensy bit different. And uhhh, from what I've seen, I don't... really know how much the prince can do? Like, he's made a barrier, I can't do that. But like... I can do the leaping fifty feet in the air thing and he deeeeefinitely can't do that. Hee hee. Fun times."

"But yeah, the eggs thing is pretty... less... than subtle. Some of the other magic is," she then opened her bag to show the sleeping Wuwu. "He's not actually a doll, he's a little shit. But he also helped me like. Be me? So I forgive him."

She snickered a little before closing the bag again. "So like... just don't worry about it too much. There's things you'll pick up on, things that won't make sense. It's all kind of learning as you go in a lot of way. As far as I know, there's no real... magical guide book for any of this stuff. But there's enough of us that if you run into trouble, someone will probably be there to help you out. As for the cat boy... hmmmm. Let me guess. Cat boy monster? Prince fought it off? Yeah, the youma can be fun. Be careful about those. some of them are a bit murdery. Like... really. Really, really murdery. But the magic definitely helps with that."

... THAT WAS PROBABLY A LOT OF INFORMATION TO JUST DUMP ON THE GIRL! But in her defense, she thought that Tadase had explained more of it.

Then she snickered, right as the bus came to a stop in front of them... "So, you're Amu, your sister is Ami? I don't suppose you have a third sister called Ame?" she asked with a playful grin. "And I don't know about the frills. Frills can be fun, though... you got this whole... gothic badass tough girl thing going on that I guess frills wouldn't work with."

Amu Hinamori (54) has posed:
Amu blinks a few times. She didn't have all of THAT info. "You mean You didn't hear about me confessing that I like the Prince?" She shudders. "Ran... the little cheerleader, She changed me so I would actually do that. It was totally opposite of who I am!"

"It doesn't have to be! You can just be someone who can confess like that. We try to help, silly!" Ran responds

"Errr right. As for the Cat boy, They weren't a monster. They were a regular person with cat ears and tail. He had a chara too. I think Hotori-san and him had history because he really didn't like him. He wanted to fight I think." She pauses and looks at Cho, "I haven't seen a monster yet. I know I transformed. That was really wild!"

Amu moves to get on the bus. "No just two of us. Me and Ami. I dunno why my Mom named us so similar but, whatever. She's my sister and I love her." She laughs. "As for the frills Well... I gotta get used to some of them. I dunno about being a gothic badass. I just like dressing this way you know?"

Cho Konishi has posed:
Cho Konishi blinked a few times before snickering. "Oh, I mean. I hadn't heard it until now. But like... of course you like the prince. Everyone likes the prince at first. He's a cute boy with a smile that could dazzle the stars from the sky. He's a real sweety, like the little brother I never had. But some of the allure wears off after you get to know him for a while. Heh. I remember when I first met him, I was squeaking and squirming so bad," she said with a light laugh.

"But he really is a sweet guy. A little too soft at times, though. Hilarious to tease. He... wait. HE wanted to fight? The lil princling? About... this big? Wears a cape? Shiniest blond hair you've ever seen? HIM? HE wanted to fight? Holy crud. You should have recorded it. Could have made a fortune selling angry prince merchandise," she said with a snicker.

She held out her bus pass, then followed Amu... once they were seated and had some privacy, she spoke up again. "The first transformation is wild. I remember mine... the clothes shift, the longer hair, the accidentally jumping into a wall and, oh yeah, the property damage. That sucked. Still figuring stuff out, but you'll get the hang of it."

She glanced towards Ran and, for a moment, her smile wavered. She stopped looking at Amu, and instead looked ahead. "But... yeah. Hinamori-chan. Don't... be too hard on them, you know? If they're the kind of person you want to be. I imagine it can be obnoxious, having them take over and just... doing that. But... the alternative is like. You'd have to do it all yourself, right? It can be exhausting sometimes. Trying to be the person you... want to be. And not the person you are," Cho said before giving a soft sigh.

"And trust me, before this is over? Trust me. You're going to feel like an idiot a lot. I can't tell you the number of times I've had to just drop into bed and scream into my pillow because I'm so certain I did everything wrong. But the important thing is to bottle those feelings up and ignore them." Because suppression definitely worked!

"And well... if you like those, it's pretty cool you have a fashion you feel is your own, you know? If it makes you happy, wear what you want ot wear. Unless like. It breaks the rules. Then don't. Because... rule breaking. Nobody wants to get written up for having the wrong skirt someday," she said with a light chuckle.

Amu Hinamori (54) has posed:
"Yes! It was definitely Hotori-san. He was super angry. He Was under a Chara change too. He had his scepter and everything. It kinda freaked me out. I was so worried and the next thing I knew I was wearing a cheerleader outfit and felt like I could do almost anything." She shakes her head.

"I didn't really get to explore things. I was kinda weirded out by transforming and I untransformed really quick. It was a little too much to believe really except I have a constant reminder about it." She glances to Ran and smiles. "I gotta see what I can do when I transform."

She stops and thinks for a long moment. "I just... Its hard to believe. I mean Ran is like the total opposite of who I am but I do want to be athletic and outgoing. I'm actually kinda shy. I kept away from most people back at my old school. I wasn't the cool and spicy Amu Hinamori. I was just there, you know?"

Cho Konishi has posed:
Cho Konishi nodded. "Ohhhh. He was the lil king? Yeah, that makes sense. Hotori-san is sweet. Kiseki I could roll up in an old sock and shove in the bottom of my locker for an afternoon and not feel that bad."

"The changing... oh, it feels amazing. I try not to overdo it, but it's so tempting to just like. Transform and leap around the city sometimes rather than take the bus.

"And... I definitely get that. Like... your world was gray or something, right? But now... you want to have color? Believe it or not, I used to be the same way. I uhhh... did a lot, I guess. But I didn't really... talk to anyone. Or know anyone. But when I got this chance, to just change? To... be different? I decided to take it."

"Things are kind of a mess now, honestly. But at least it's a happy mess, right? That and you get to do a whole bunch of really cool things. Like, fighting monsters? That suuuuucks sometimes. But there's something *really* cool about having a twenty foot tall monster try and swipe at you, before you leap into the air and elbow drop it into the cement that makes you feel like the most badass bitch that ever ran around i na pink skirt." She then paused and glanced down at Amu's skirt. "Or red and black plaid skirt. Okay, seriously, that is *adorable*. How do I get one of those?"

Amu Hinamori (54) has posed:
Amu nods to Cho and then responds, "I think they both didn't like this guy. They told me to not trust the cat boy." She frowns. "They both seemed really insistent."

She pauses and smiles. "I didn't get to do any of that. I have no idea what I am capable of when I transform. I really wanna find out but I dunno if I am ready to fight monsters. That is kinda scary. I get freaked out over the idea that an area may be haunted. Like the basement of the Club building at school."

Amu goes quiet. Her yellow eyes look down as she collects her thoughts. "You ever see that crazy fortune teller lady who is always going on about guardian spirits on TV?" She asks. Quietly she begins speaking again. "A few nights ago, my parents had her show on and she was talking about how the Guardian Spirits are always with you and willing to help you become who you wish to be. I said it was all baloney. My parents took that as me being cool and spicy again. I went to my room and beat myself up for being like that again. I decided to give it a shot. I prayed to be my true self. The next morning I had three eggs in my bed. Thats why I was kinda talking about eggs when we met. Ran is the only one who hatched so far.

She smiles and laughs as Cho explains about how fighting monsters can be fun. The topic quickly changes and she has to laugh a little. "If you really want something like this I can talk to my mom. She might be able to make something like this for you. She is really wonderful like that."

Cho Konishi has posed:
Cho Konishi nodded. "Huh. Well, I've never heard of this guy... maybe the two dated or something once? Then again, we don't exactly like... hang out a lot outside of council stuff, so maybe it's just not something he cared to bring up."

She snickered at the mention of fighting monsters. "Oh, don't worry. We all figure it out at our own pace. Nobody expects you to go right out and punch out some monstrous ten foot tall t-rex or anything. Just know it may happen one day. Try not to get hurt if it does."

The talk of guardian spirits made her shake her head. "Eh. Never really put much acceptance into guardian spirits and well... ghosts never seemed very... realistic to me? I helped run a haunted house a few years back, but the whole notion of like... all that stuff seemed hardly worrying back then. Probably scare me a whole lot more, now. Since all that stuff is real. Heck, the lady who keeps trying to destroy history is some kind of ghost demon lady thing so, yeah. I can see why they'd scare you." You know. Cause THAT'D help.

However, something else she said finally clicked. "Wait, THREE eggs? You've got three of them? Dang. That's... three. I... I think that's a lot? I've only seen people with one. You must... be really impressive. Or a complete spaz who has no idea what she wants," Cho said. Very helpful, that one. "Still... you made your wish. You wanted something so desperately... and that'll serve you well. Mine was... kind of similar. I think that's part of it. Some wish or need or something like that. You need something you want deep in your heart and, if it's doable... something will find you." She held a hand over her heart and felt her beating chest for a moment. "Focus on that. When things get hard...? Focus on that wish. Really focus on it. Remember what you want, what you need. And remember how hard you're willing to fight for it. Because, when all is said and done? It'll give you strength."

She then snickered. "Probably. I don't know, I'm honestly just making this up as I go. Wuwu's really the closest thing I have to a mentor and his idea of doing things is 'Just do it, worrying is for mortals'. He... sometimes forgets I'm mortal." And this is why he was a pain.

The comment on her mother making her something like that, however, made Cho go entirely still for a moment and turn to face her. "R-really? She... she'd do that? Y-you'd do that for me? O-oh. Oh my gosh. If... if you could... I would be eternally grateful. Seriously. Like. If you ever need me to fight a ghost for you? I will totally send it to the next life. Promise," she said, staring at her like she was the greatest hero she'd ever seen.

Then, after a few moments, she glanced towards the front of the bus. They were almost there, yay! "And uhhh... is it okay if I ask something? What... does cool and spicy mean? Like... Is it cause you have mellow periods and then you explode? Or... you really like some foods like.... spicy mayo? Or something else entirely? As nicknames go it sounds pretty cool, but it's also confusing."