1174/Matchmaking Methods Act 2: The Infirmary

Matchmaking Methods Act 2: The Infirmary
Date of Scene:	24 February 2024
Location:	Radiant Heart Academy
Synopsis:	Coco goes to the infirmary to try and get Nurse Meiou's cooperation on the romance plan she and Cho have setup. Setsuna decides to give it.
Cast of Characters:	Coco Kiumi, Setsuna Meiou

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Coco Kiumi has posed:
Coco is back for the second time to visit the infirmary, but this time around she is not here to get help with burns or otherwise get her health checked, but to try and involve Nurse Meiou in the plan she and Cho have set up in the name of ROMANCE.

At a time she doesn't hear any voices coming from within, she approaches the door to the infirmary and knocks on it, waiting to be let in. In the meantime, she goes over what she has to tell the nurse one last time.

Setsuna Meiou has posed:
At the knock on the door, Nurse Meiou's voice can be heard from within, "There's no need to knock. Come right on in."

As one does open the door and enter, they'll find that Nurse Meiou is idling in her usual spot across from the door, reading a book and absently spinning a pen through the fingers of her off hand.

As Coco comes in, glances up and smiles at the younger woman, "Hello, Miss Kiumi. What can I help you with today?"

At the same time, the pen spins to a stop in her hand...and then with a twist of her wrist, it's replaced with...well, from across the room it looks like she just somehow produced a piece of solidified void...a hole in the universe that she flips between her fingers before reaching over and using it as a bookmark.

Place marked, she closes the book...which is a fairly plain softcover book with a title written in English that seems to be 'So You've Just Arrived from a Parallel Dimension'.

Coco Kiumi has posed:
Coco does open the door and at seeing the unsettling hole in space that she uses as a bookmark, the mermaid is distracted a little. Mostly, she has never seen a similar kind of magic being used, as it's certainly not a portal, since Setsuna's fingers never slipped in.

She gives a quizzical look to the title of the book given what she knows about Chrono, but she has a matter to address, and she will focus on that one. "Nurse Meiou, am I right to assume that Cho Konishi of the student council has revealed something with regards to me?" Better check she is not here too early, as the consequences otherwise would be literally fatal for her.

Setsuna Meiou has posed:
Nurse Meiou snorts a bit, "Ah, yes. Miss Konishi passed on some knowlege. Which makes your odd 'allergy' to soda water make somewhat more sense. Not really easy to run into the stuff underwater, after all."

She arches an eye and gives the blonde a quick once-over, "...However, you don't seem to have any OBVIOUS problems...so what brings you to my humble office this afternoon?"

Coco Kiumi has posed:
Ok, that's a big relief, so she can to proceed unencumbered. "That's right, and the reason I lied to you back then even when you made clear you know about magical events is that revealing our true nature to humans is completely contrary to us, so much so that we dissolve into seafoam for it."

But she is not here to discuss the magical biology of merfolk as much as that could be a potentially interesting subject for Nurse Meiou, but to try and get her help. "We are here because Cho and I have a plan to help a student to start a relationship with the one he loves, and we need your help for it."

Setsuna Meiou has posed:
At the mention that revealing their nature causes Mermaids to dissolve, Nurse Meiou blinks and gets a look that clearly expresses DEEP confusion about how THAT could ever come to pass...but then she shakes her head and mentally sets those questions aside for now.

As Coco then goes on to reveal the real reason for her visit, the nurse visibly perks up a little.

If she were the type of character to have an ahoge, it would be visibly twitching right now.

As it is, a knowing grin crosses the nurse's face and she waves Coco to a chair as she sits down in one not far away, "Please...tell me more."

Coco Kiumi has posed:
"The student in question is Tadase Hotori, and Cho and I got to know through his familiar that he has growing affection for Ami Mizuno, and that's why we would like to get the two to become closer", Coco explains the first part.

"Now as to why you had to know of my mermaid nature for it", she starts addressing the plan more directly, "is that I transplanted nearby very high value medicinal plants from the seven seas, and we would like you to mention to miss Ami that the infirmary coincidentally needs exactly those kinds of medicinal sea herbs and that one of the student council can help. This will lead her to Tadase, who will have to take charge of the situation in Cho's place as she will have discussed it with him and will be mysteriously unavailable then."

Setsuna Meiou has posed:
As Coco reveals that it's Tadase she's trying to set up, Nurse Meiou smiles and lets out a soft "Oh-ho..."

As she goes on and reveals who Tadase has a crush on, however, Nurse Meiou blinks and sits back a bit, "Ami-chan?"

She takes a deep breath and gets a bit of a thoughtful look on her face, "...well...I won't say I'm AGAINST trying to see if Ami-chan and Mister Hotori get along...I'm going to let you know that any story we try to sell her is going to have to be air-tight. That girl has a mind like a steel trap and she WILL spot any holes in it. So why would she get pointed at Mister Hotori about these rather than just going and getting them herself?"

Coco Kiumi has posed:
Coco is a bit emboldened by the fact the reaction Nurse Meiou is having. She doesn't seem repulsed by the idea of trying to push Tadase and Ami together, rather at the very least her curiosity has been piqued. And then there is the surprised reaction of someone who is very closely acquainted with Ami.

"Are you and miss Mizuno cousins?" is the first thing that escapes out of Coco's mouth. They could be close friends, she supposes, but with that age disparity, she would have considered family first, and they certainly don't share the same surname.

"Because you would be asking this of her as a favour, telling her that the student council would be likely to help her. When she goes to request the information, Tadase will be the one available having it, so he will accompany her and be able to tell her about those plants she is seeking on the way", Coco says. And the fact they are very close turns to their favour, as Ami being asked the favour would be even less suspicious.

Setsuna Meiou has posed:
The blonde's question about relationship to Ami makes Nurse Meiou smile.

A sharp eye might catch the ever so slight hint of melonchol before she gives herself a slight shake and goes on, "No, we're not related in that way...but..."

She frowns and taps her chin for a moment, "...perhaps the best explaination is that she and I share some crucial elements in our background."

The older woman hrms and purses her lips as she takes a few moments to think, her finger absently moving up to tap her lips as she ponders, "...I think...hrm...I think the best thing will be to tell her that I was told someone from the Council planted some of the herbs, but they didn't tell me precisely where...but since they're..."

She trails off a bit, then focuses on Coco, "...aquatic, you said?"

Her voice takes on a slight intensity, as if she was very carefully tiptoeing around a subject, "...one thing to confirm...why would I specifically be asking AMI to do this thing? Or rather, the justification for me to be asking HER so that she doesn't question why I'm not asking someone else? Because I just want to make sure we're on the same page about this. Like I said, if we slip our story, she WILL notice it."

Coco Kiumi has posed:
That hint of melancholy in Setsuna's eyes escapes Coco's perception, even if she can tell something odd is going on with Setsuna's reaction. She just doesn't know Setsuna to the level that would be required for her to fill the gap in her understanding.

They are not cousins, but still they share some crucial elements in their background... And Nurse Meiou is likely magic. "Are you perhaps under some sort of divine order that ties you and Miss Mizuno together?" she conjectures. Coco herself could state such a thing when it comes to herself and any of the other Mermaid Princesses under Aqua Regina. She would even go a step further and add that makes them like sisters.

"The reason I specifically picked acquatic plants is that they are slightly harder to find for land people when compared to land plants, and so it would increase the value of the discovery for miss Mizuno", Coco adds. "It being a rare opportunity, and so found as opposed to planted, was a crucial aspect of our strategy."

"You would be asking Ami because she has the intelligence to make sure the plants are treated with the due regard, and moreover you just said you shared some background."

Setsuna Meiou has posed:
Nurse Meiou looks contemplative for a few minutes, then nods and claps her hands, "Well...I'll have to think on how to word things to her, but this plan looks workable. You might want to get Miss Konishi to help steer Ami-chan at Mister Hotori."

She nods, "...and I'll tell her that someone on the Council had them planted but I never got where they were from them so she'll have to get that info there."

She then shrugs, "And from there, we'll see if the two have any chemistry going."

Coco Kiumi has posed:
Coco is perplexed when Setsuna avoids replying to her, but she has gotten what she came here for and is clearly being dismissed, so she should be thankful for just that. "Thank you, Nurse Meiou, I will be sure to tell Cho that. May Aqua Regina and Princess Serenity bless you", the mermaid says, exiting the infirmary, out into the school hallways.