Reverie Inbox

[fujimaru]

It's Ritsuka! I've either fallen asleep or couldn't find my phone in time, so leave a message.

[ text / action / etc]

Comments

[fanstheflames]

I can drop by Cerberus, maybe? I've got something for you.

[fujimaru]

That works!
See you in a few

[fanstheflames]

[ There's a kind of thudding sound in a bit at the door. Tsuruno has a bag and is also holding ten plastic balls carefully, either in her arms or tucked under her chin. One is secured by her ponytail band. It's fine. ]

[fujimaru]

[ She opens the door, then affects the most deadpan expression that she can: ]

What's the password?

[fanstheflames]

Eat at Banbanzai.

[ without hesitation. ]

[fujimaru]

That works! Come in.

[ CERBERUS IS CERBERUS the only real difference is that she has in fact left the balls in the pit. They have fifty now!! Yay! ]

[fanstheflames]

Oh, whoa. [ she blinks at the balls. ]

Can I just dump mine in there? Is there an official passing over ceremony I have to do?

[fujimaru]

Go ahead! As a generous contributor, you can have an extra thirty minutes when this thing is finally full.

[ She is, in fact, taking out her phone to make a note. ]

[fanstheflames]

Thanks! I haven't been in a ballpit since I was eight!

[ And she'll carefully make her way over there and dump the balls in, pausing to free the one from her hair tie. ]

[fujimaru]

Neither have I, but when I saw this thing, I couldn't resist.

And anyway, I think it's funny with the rest of the decor. [ a pause as she pitches her voice lower, as much as she can manage ] Ohhhhh, we're the big scary dog from the underworld~ oh no~

[ and then back to normal: ] But a dog has to have balls, right?

[fanstheflames]

I stopped taking it seriously when they added in the cuddle pit. But absolutely, a dog should have balls!

[fujimaru]

I wasn't here for most of the decoration decisions, I can only work with what is given to me.

[ She's very solemn as she says it, then pins Tsuruno with a thoughtful look. ]

How are you doing?

[fanstheflames]

[ She pauses, then offers Ritsuka the bag. Homemade cookies. ]

Do you want the automatic answer or the "give me a second to think about it" answer?

[fujimaru]

I'd prefer the real one, honestly.

[ She peeks into the bag, then looks up again. ]

We can talk over these and milk? Or tea. I have so much tea right now.

[fanstheflames]

[ With a little smile that's half-resigned. ]

Sure. I'll help you get through the tea.

[fujimaru]

I'm okay at it, I promise.

[ She knows that's not the issue, but she keeps her tone light as she leads the way into the kitchen. ]

Li-sensei is a pretty strict teacher about that sort of stuff. You don't know disapproval till an old man looks at you over his sunglasses and shakes his head.

[fanstheflames]

[ And Tsuruno trots after her, head tilted. ]

That kind of sounds like a movie-style training montage.

[fujimaru]

It kind of was? You don't know intense till you get to know tea people.

[ She's selecting a milk oolong, holding the bag out for Tsuruno to sniff and approve/disapprove. ]

Though I guess Li-sensei is just kind of intense period.

[fanstheflames]

Sensei? Did he also train you how to fight, along with tea-brewing?

[ With a thumbs' up once she's sniffed the bag. ]

[fujimaru]

Actually, no. I've asked, but he always refused.

[ She gets the tea brewing, though her expression is thoughtful. ]

"You can barely hold a spear, let alone kill with it." That's what he told me.

[fanstheflames]

...

I can't tell if he was saying it because you have noodle arms or if it was meant to be deeper.

1/2

[fujimaru]

Oh no, he'd make much more explicit fun of me if it was that.

[fujimaru]

[ Deadpan joke aside, she goes solemn again. ]

...Li-sensei once told me that he only knows how to kill. If he takes up a weapon, or if the weapon is just his hands, he goes in with that intent. So he's always refused to teach me how to fight.

Tea, though, tea is fair game.

[fanstheflames]

Tea's more fun than killing any day.

[ A very sage nod, though her expression's also lapsed into something more pensive. ]

I guess technically that's something all of us Magical Girls have to agree to, too. Even if we didn't quite understand at the time.

[fujimaru]

One of those "deal with the devil" kind of things?

[ She might not be familiar with meguca in general, because she was much more of a robot and mech girl than magical girls, but she's not not familiar with the genre. ]

I don't suppose you guys could unionize?