teahoused | general texting meme

You always havhe a choice. A lot of people would uyrb theeir heads in thhe saznd or be committed to a mental oasi.ltph but you've gone in with both eyes open cand you're working on getting stronger. It's admirabtle.

An oasi.ltph?

[ Sorry, TG. That one confused her. Is she maybe trying to dodge while mulling over her words? Maybe that a bit, too. Is it really like that...? ]

[The fact that this is the first time he's had to correct his horrendous typos is truly a miracle. Give him a few minutes so he can try to type it more carefully.]

Mental hospital.

I see.If you say so Takahashi-san.

[ She can see his logic. Were it directed at anyone else, she wouldn't be so inclined to disagree, but the thought doesn't quite occur. Another does, though. ]

So you know how to fight those things too?

I dmo. If you qlike, i could teach qyou a few quick things you can do cto keep yourself safey.

[ She isn't sure she'd be any good at it. Fighting doesn't come naturally to her like it does some others. She hates conflict. She hates confrontation. The very thought makes her want to hug her knees to her chest and bury her face in them, but it's... it's caused problems. Put Kazue at risk. Makes things harder for her, so she's been trying to... well, do better, but it's no easy thing. So maybe --]

You really wouldnt mind?I dont want to be any trouble.

[ To anyone ever; and yet, it often feels to her that that's all she really is. She wants to change that. She's not sure if she can, but some part of her wants to try. ]

I do'tn mind at all. Considering how often you fand yorur partner get in troubtle, it'd be gaood kif one olf you were anble to pxut up a decenbt barrier. We tcan do oit on a weekend when it's slow at the tea ohuse.

Okay.I dont know how good ill be at it but I'll try my best.

[ It's the least she can do. Kazue always fights so hard and she can't even see the things she's fighting. She wants to be useful to her somehow. To everyone. ]

[When Kouta had been a frequent customer of the tea house, he had never truly known how big it was. There seemed to be enough space at any given time for anything, and considering he'd seen large parties show up at all hours and they still had space to be accommodated.

So Kouta had secured one of the rooms and cleared it out of most of the furniture, and rolled up his sleeves. He poked his head out of the room once he was ready, flagging down Maren.]

You ready?

[ Maren quietly inhales at the question and pushes herself up from the seat she'd occupied upon finding it outside the room. She hadn't really been sure what to wear to this sort of thing, so she'd opted to change into her gym clothes after realizing she isn't actually sure what sort of activity training in this area would entail. As she meets Mr. Takahashi's gaze, she reminds herself for the umpteenth time just what it is she's doing here, why, and the image of Kazue flickers into her mind's eye. That's right! But ah --]

As ready as I'll ever be, I think.

[ -- well, it doesn't quite change the fact that she's nervous despite her resolve. She really isn't sure she's going to be any good at this, but Takahashi-san had said... ]

We'll see what will be the most comfortable method for you to cast a barrier and work from there.

[From what Kazue had told him, sour faced and matter of fact, Maren did best when she had a visual to go off of and a way to take notes. So he had collected a few different sized balls, a few different ofuda, and a chalkboard just in case he needed to write out diagrams.

He gestured for Maren to sit down and sitting opposite of her.]

The three most common ways for an individual to create a barrier is through memorizing incantations, using hand seals, or using ofuda, but you can utilize all three. Each of them has their strengths and weaknesses. I believe Kazue has been having you activate her the ofuda she'd prepped, so I'd like to try to teach you an incantation and a hand seal to see if either of those are easier for you.

[He recited a simple incantation, writing it out on the board as he repeated it a few times.]

See if you can use that incantation to stop this ball from rolling.

[He took one of the smaller balls and once it seemed like she was ready, he rolled it towards her slowly.]

[ With her somewhat nervous but definite resolve, Maren had followed Kouta's words intently, glancing up between taking notes in the new hot pink notebook she had purchased and coded for these lessons. She'd placed it down beside her when he'd finished talking and regards it with the briefest of glances before nodding at him, her eyes centered on the ball now slowly rolling toward her, and --

Honestly, she's not entirely sure how this should feel, if she's doing it right. With Kazue's ofuda, she's gotten an idea of how it should feel, how to bear her concentration and let it -- er, she's not really sure how to describe 'it,' but -- flow? It's a pleasantly warm, but definitely cool sensation that flows through her from her center through her fingers like some kind of fluid that connects with the paper and... inspires? It inspires the spell in the paper, that's how she thinks about it. This feels different despite her concentration, the words tumbling out of her mouth with attempted force and uncertainty and the result is that the ball can't seem to decide which direction to go beyond backwards at Kouta's face for the sheer amount of uncertainty and energy poured into her words.

To put it succinctly, someone doesn't know how to measure or control her application just yet for how apparently large her reserve of spiritual energy and she stops abruptly, mouth dropping open upon seeing the ball shoot back, wide eyed and surprised -- ]

Edited 2019-09-07 12:40 (UTC)

[Luckily, Kouta still had his quick reflexes and the ability to become incorporeal, so he wasn't too worried when the ball shot back towards him. He snatched it out of the air, chuckling lightly at how horrified Maren seemed.]

So was that because it was more difficult to get it to do what you wanted so you forced out too much energy or because it was too easy?

[Kouta paused, toying with the ball, a small grin quirking his mouth upwards.]

Or do you think this mug is really that deplorable?

[He was teasing, which he probably shouldn't do with Maren's fragility at the moment, but he wasn't concerned about what had just happened and she shouldn't be either.]

[ That might just be a nervous little sigh of relief falling from Maren's mouth. That is, before that teasing shot was fired and she holds her hands up, shaking them and her head frantically. ]

N-no, of course not, Takahashi-san! I -- I didn't mean -- it's just so very different and --

[Was Kouta laughing a bit at Maren's obvious discomfort? Only a little bit. He was still only human after all, and it was easy to tease her. As opposed to Akemi the Fearless and Setsura the Shit Talker. He waved off her stuttering, grinning.]

It's fine. We'll stick with ofuda since it comes to you more easily. Have you learned any of the barrier seals?

[ And she... pulls it toether enough to pause in blinking at his question. ]

Barrier seals...?

Yes. The more complex the seal, the stronger the barrier. Typically, anyway. People who have better technique or more spiritual power can do just fine with the basics compared to novices.

[He went back to the chalkboard to start drawing a few of the more basic ones.]

Order matters, so pay attention and copy these down. When you have free time, practice drawing them. I want at least a thousand a day, until you can draw them in your sleep.

[ Most teenagers might have complained on the spot. "A thousand a day? Impossible! I'm not doing that!" Most teenagers are not Maren Uezawa, who, despite the nervousness welling up in her, has resumed taking notes studiously, dutifully. Some of what he's saying she understands. You don't serve as the eyes and ears of someone fighting preternatural beings and come to work in an establishment that serves the "Awakened" population without coming into contact with some terms. ]

So, it's just like any other skill?

[ And what he wants her to apply is... ]

Just like any other skill.

[Kouta agreed with a small, easy smile, glad that Maren wasn't complaining. Not that she seemed the type, but it was always a blessing to have such a dutiful and hardworking student. And just because she seemed like the type:]

Next time we meet up, I'll quiz you on these seals. If you're feeling confident, practice drawing them on paper and doing the ball exercise.

Okay.

[ She offers him a nod as she finishes copying down the information on the board, lifting her eyes to him after a moment. She's half tempted to apologize for the ball flying at him earlier, but she hadn't mean it and he hadn't made a big deal about it. That was probably intentional and, well, how does she word this? ]

D-did you have any trouble with this sort of thing when you were first learning?

[ Come to think of it, where did he learn? ]

[The question was enough to make him laugh, his memories of his learning days were fraught with disaster. He was still convinced he had only really gotten decent at barriers and healing was because he had so much hands on learning thanks to Akemi and Setsura.]

I was a terrible student, and I was very upset that my talents lied in something I thought was lame at the time.

[He settled back on the palms of his hands, rueful.]

I skipped class whenever I could. It took my friends being in danger for me to start to take my studies more seriously. I'm glad I don't have to have that sort of talk with you.

[ She listens intently, wondering. A student? As in, he had formal lessons? A class even? ]

You went to school for this sort of thing...?

[ Maren blinks, trying to wrap her head around that. A school where people learned to... make barriers? Defend against scary spirits? She'd think it ridiculous if it hadn't literally been the story of her life for the past couple of months. No, it sounds more like a good idea to her now and she's suddenly very, very glad for Mr. Takahashi's education, wherever he got it from, and that he started taking things seriously. Still, to go to school for something like this, to grow up aware... ]

I grew up in a place that specialized in this sort of thing, and was pretty inclusive of everyone. So learning about how to control your abilities was pretty important.

[Especially for hanyous like Setsura, who were a mix of both worlds. Or for people like Akemi, who seemed to be made for mass destruction if she hadn't learned proper control. He grinned down at Maren, crossing his arms over his chest.]

Why, would it help you to be in a classroom with others like you? You'd have to start at the basics with the babies, though.

I-I don't know.

[ If it'd help to be in a classroom with other "Awakened" people, that is. Up until a minute ago, she didn't even know that was a possibility. ]

It isn't as though I have a lot of experience, Takahashi-san. I'm still not sure what I'm doing a lot of the time when Kazue-chan and I are on the battlefield. What if I fail to trigger the spell at a critical moment?

[ It worries her. She already causes Kazue enough issues being unable to look after herself on the battlefield, after all. ]

If you haven't frozen up yet, I doubt it'll start happening anytime soon. But just so we're prepared, there are other ways to practice spells other than fighting demons.

[He was going to have to speak to Kazue about this later, because while the girl was undoubtedly talented, he had to wonder if she had taken any of Maren's very real concerns into consideration. Leave it to a disciple of Akemi to be so reckless.

He leaned forward to clap a comforting hand on Maren's shoulder, offering her a grin.]

We can make a few house calls on places that need their barriers reset and refreshed. I'll have you creating the seals so often that it'll be a reflex to put one up even if you so much as sneeze.

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