An Educational Moment (Setsuna/Estelle)

Most coworkers wouldn't have found anything odd about Setsuna Tachibana working on a complex series of notes in the staff lounge.  She did teach English after all, and it was easily one of the hardest foreign tongues to master.  Making English lessons engaging for the girls who attended her classes was also a challenge in itself.  Nobody could blame her for spending some extra time in the afternoon pouring over a notebook.  At least that is what Setsuna truly hoped that her colleagues would think of her seemingly studious activity.  On the one hand it was studious; on the other she was certainly not working on anything that would be part of a lesson for her classes.  She'd been attempting to draw out some kind of hidden secret path she hadn't been able to find, but nothing was possible.

No matter which way she looked at it, there was no way to spare the knightly girl in this playthrough of her favorite video game.  She couldn't get her characters around the map to the objective in a way that skirted knightly girl's section of it.  There was no opportunity to get her to join the player character's party, either, since by this point the different houses from the beginning of the game had split into warring factions.  Which meant that sadly there was no chance for the knightly girl to realize the romance that Setsuna was certain awaited!  A lovely relationship between the steadfast knight and the former opera star who wielded strong magics.  Their partnership was just brimming with potential for something deep and meaningful, but it was not to be.  Not when Setsuna had failed to actively court the knightly girl enough to get her to change sides before the time skip.  All was lost now.

Setsuna stared at the charts and diagrams that she'd drawn in attempts to find the magic loophole.  Alas there was nothing which she could do that would allow the character in question to live.  All of the notes she had made so meticulously about why the two women in this video game were so good for each other, all for naught!  Already her mind had begun working on plans for the next time through, where she would recruit whichever of the girls wasn't in her house early on.  Then, then she promised herself, they would get together as she planned.  Still, she lamented the fact that she'd had to kill the knightly girl in the last battle.

"Why do you have to be so darn stubborn?!  If you'd just listen instead of assuming things, there'd be so much love and romance.   Cuddling.. quiet nights alone together..." Setsuna lamented, unaware of her surroundings.  She sighed, "Love is way too hard."

Estelle's office was in the infirmary, away from the other staff offices. Not that she minded - while it deprived her of the usual social interactions with the other teaches, it afforded her some privacy and quiet as she worked on her various letters to friends near and far. Of course, that was when there was were no students to attend to. -...I would like to remind you that even though much of the other sailors believed that you were held a qualification different that what you truely had, I am sure that they valued your company and guidance just the same. In the end, the patch on your shoulder was irrelvant - we were all the same ship together.- Today was one such quiet day. Though waning, Winter's grip still prevented much of the atheletic teams from doing too much outside, thus limiting the number of injuries that Estelle had to tend to. With a sigh, she put her pencil down and pushed the paper she was writing on to the side, atop a pile of other drafts. It was always hard to advise her friend Melissa; the Bostonian girl was as stubborn as she was smart, and Estelle knew she needed to find the right words the first time around to make sure it got through her friend's red hair and skull. But now the words weren't coming to her. Rather than throw her mind at the wall in futility, the old sailor got up from her desk and pulled on her old capelet coat. She knew that she couldn't wander too far or too long, but that she did need to get out of her little sanctuary a bit to refresh her mind. With the requisite sign on the door telling any passerby how to reach her, she set off, slowly walking down the hallways. Sounds of laughter, sometimes music, and occasionally chatter mixed with the clacking of Estelle's boots against the linoleum. Overall, Estelle could sense positive emotions. But as her path took her towards the teacher's lounge, the atmosphere seemed to change. Estelle altered her steps, making them a bit quieter as she entered the lounge and pocketing her hands in her coat. The lounge was empty, save for one person - one Tachibana Setsuna as the head nurse's memory told her. She knew little about her colleague beyond a name and the department of study she worked for. The charts and diagrams that surrounded Tachibana-san was too far away to read, but it Estelle found herself focused on something else. More interesting was the rant, and a sly grin silently spread across Estelle's face. Generally, Estelle tried not to pry, especially on such delicate matters - but if Tachibana-san was so openly airing her grievances, it was hard to resist a bit of teasing. "Well, Tachibana-san, if anyone said it was easy by any means probably was trying to trick you," Estelle said with a slight chuckle. "But thankfully, it seems that you do at least understand the value of clear and proper communication in a relationship."

Tags: Setsuna Tachibana Words: ### Notes: coded by rem of WW

Setsuna could have sworn that she was alone in the staff lounge.  There were no other teachers here, most of them having either later afternoon classes or club activities that they were advisors for.  Not so for the pinknettte who was fluent in English and science fiction.  Times like this were certainly ripe with opportunities for plotting out sci fi theories or romance plots in games.  As soon as she heard another adult voice nearby, the English teacher tensed up dramatically.  Caught red handed!  What in the world would her colleague think once she saw what it was that Setsuna was diagramming in her notebooks?  Already she could imagine the ridicule and gossip that was certain to result from her being outed as such a geeky person.  Adults didn't invest that much time into things like sci fi or video games! 

S-l-o-w-l-y she turned her head to see who had found out her dirty secrets.  It wasn't any of her department colleagues, or even anyone she really recognized all that well. The only reason that Setsuna recognized her at all was that she was maybe the only native English speaking staff member at Fukui.  That and they had briefly been introduced at the beginning of the school year.  Most likely the foreign staff member wouldn't even recognize what the notebooks contained, but Setsuna was terrified that it would be otherwise.  Her expression was one of initially fear, then just pure shock at having been overheard, and finally a strong blush coloring her cheeks.  And then something even more embarrassing happened.

<"Oh sh-">, a near swear in English were her first words in reaction.  The teacher quickly stood up and bowed in greeting to her colleague to try and gloss over that slip up, "Tambling-sensei!  How are you? What a surprise.  I didn't.. realize you were around."

Setsuna sat back down and sighed as her mouth got away from her mind, "I mean tell me about it.  This woman would be a fantastic match but she has to let her weird ideas of nobility get in the way of obvious budding love.  No matter what I try, she just won't change her mind and join me."

Setsuna's reaction reminded Estelle of a child who was caught with their hand still stuck inside of a cookie jar. Granted, romantic matters tended to be on the more sensitive side, yet it was being aired so openly, so the old sailor couldn't help but poke fun. Nonetheless, it was amusing to see her colleague so flustered. Still, Estelle politely bowed and returned the greeting then ambled across the room, the uneven thudding of her boots muffled by the carpet as she passed behind where Setsuna was sitting. "I am doing well, Tachibana-san, thank you," Estelle replied with a soft chuckle. She headed towards the windows at the other end of the lounge, passing by the notebooks without a glance. "My absence would be troublesome for the health of our students, would it not? So I am always here." The nurse glanced backwards to Setsuna to give her a cheeky grin before peering out the windows, looking towards the athletic fields to watch from afar. It was a deliberate misdirection of the notion of 'being around', another somewhat poor attempt to make humour before turning a bit more serious in her tone. "On the topic of romance, and without any further context, I would say that mayhaps you are trying too hard? It sounds like you've meted out a lot fine details then are scrambling to connect the dots. From what I've dealt with, romance is something where planning is hardly efficient. To borrow a phrase from my grandfather - you aren't the one having to storm the beaches of Normandy." A mix of curiosity and mischievousness finally won over and Estelle pivoted in place. "Speaking of storming Normandy, just what kind of war plans have you been cooking up?" Estelle asked with a sly grin as she approached one of the notebooks, still out of range to be able to make out anything.

Tags: Setsuna Tachibana Words: ### Notes: coded by rem of WW

There was an element of danger to having a conversation about romantic pursuits in the staff room - generally her supervisor discouraged gossiping at work.  Yet the fact that this was a foreign teacher might mean that Setsuna had an advantage over a lot of the people potential listening in.  The two of them shared a common language which the other staff probably didn't!  Come to think of it, she hadn't really taken advantage of Estelle's presence to practice her English skills.  That was a shame.  A real shame.  Teaching duties kept her plenty busy enough without even acknowledging the trouble of getting to the nurse's office between all of those duties.  In fact this was a great opportunity to get that language practice in, and to maintain the privacy the conversation demanded.

Of course there was also the very real question of just what the nurse actually knew about the things Setsuna was troubled about.  There had been some verbal hinting at it by her, but nothing specific.  As the embarrassment subsided a little bit, she wondered at that a bit.  Not too much, as she quickly became consumed by her brain's attempt to apply Estelle's advice to her situation.  Romance was indeed hard, and you didn't know where the programmers or writers had hidden the romance flags for each character.  Had she in fact just missed something?  Was there some hidden stone she hadn't turned over?  No, the more she thought about it the more she was certain her digging had hit the limits of what was possible in the game at the point she was at.

"War plans?  That's.. not a bad comparison.  Let's see, I've.. had tea with her at every opportunity.  Given her gifts.. gotten her help with big jobs and tasks.. learned more about skills she's interested in... talk to her whenever I can.. returned her lost items.. even dressed up in a maid outfit to see if that made a difference," Setsuna explained with a sigh.  She leaned back in her chair and tilted her head over its back, staring out the window, "It's just impossible.  She's impossible to win over, and I just have to accept that I'll keep losing her no matter what I do."

After a moment, she glanced over to the nurse and asked, <"Unless, of course, there's anything that our esteemed nurse might know that might help?">  It was unlikely that Estelle had ever played this game, but what harm was there in asking?

Oh, goodness. That was quite a bit. Estelle was familiar with sailors who found themselves lovestruck on shore leave, though often times it was solved by a good slap or wooden board to the back of the head - a solution obviously not available to Estelle here and now. Normally, the old sailor would be content to poke fun at the antics involved with the grand chase, but at this point Setsuna's actions so far painted a rather poor picture of the sitaution. "<If I know anything, then I will have to say that you are trying far too hard, deary>," Estelle replied in English dipping into her father's British accent as her demeanor got more serious. "<If this is giving you that much grief, then at a certain point, it just is no longer worth it.>" Without asking, Estelle riffled through the pages of the closest notebook through the hand, keeping her eyes on Setsuna and peeking at the contents using her peripheral vision. Diagrams and flowcharts, snippets of conversations analyzed to painstaking detail. With another flick of the wrist Estelle closed the notebook, shaking her head before looking to Setsuna with an expression full of disappointment. "<And with this level of detail and precision, deary? Books like these end up in the courtroom, and I have seen police have put people way for far less this.>" Estelle's eyes started to narrow. <"At this point...do you even really care about this girl? Or are you the type to treat all as a game?>"

Tags: Setsuna Tachibana Words: ### Notes: coded by rem of WW

Setsuna was more than a little surprised when her colleague just snatched up her notebook as if it were some mild curiosity to be examined by all passers by.  Yet there stood the school nurse holding her secret notes, reviewing them right before her.  The look on Setsuna's face was one of wide eyed surprise, mouth a bit slack jawed as she processed it.  No going back now, Estelle had seen her work.  Now the question shifted to what the nurse thought about it all, what she made of the meticulously detailed notes the pinknette had compiled.  At the very least their conversation was in English, so slightly less people listening in might be able to understand.  Still despite the sudden investigation she found herself under, Setsuna was passionate about her work; her shock turned to a bit of indignation, arms crossed over her chest.

"<You honestly have idea how special she is!  A lot of people overlook her when they talk about who would make a good partner, and some doubt if she would even be interested in a relationship with another woman.  But there are just way too many clues for me to believe that.  She's pretty, adorable and even heroic,>" Setsuna insisted, then sighed, "<But there's no way to get her as one, I have literally exhausted every possibility for winning her over.  Everything you're supposed to do or even just might work to get her.  The game just isn't designed to allow her to be the woman I know she can be.  Oh well.  At least it's still a fun play through multiple times.>"

Then she realized something kind of embarrassing.  Setsuna had just freely admitted to her hobby of video games, which wasn't really the kind of thing that a professional educator in her home country was expected to be.  There was a good reason why she didn't discuss it openly with other people.  They tended to get the wrong ideas about her, writing if off as her being immature, childish, unprofessional or just some weird geek whose interests were why she wasn't married.   Her passionate look of defiance changed abruptly to a colorful blush that was not dissimilar from her hair color.  It was probably the most awkward thing she had ever said to a coworker, and she wondered just how this would be inevitably catching up with her.

"<Heh... um.. well, I guess I just outed myself... I am a little bit of a gamer..>" Setsuna laughed nervously, then reverted to Japanese as she bowed her head, "Please don't think too poorly of me, it's just a hobby and I keep it inside the home."

It wasn't disgust that made Estelle close the notebook. Perhaps it was more a sense of matronly disappointment. But what gave Estelle a double-take was the notion of a game's design and 'play through'; everything else that Setsuna had said prior to that simply vanished from the sailor's mind. In the end, it was a game, just not one that Estelle was thinking of. At first there was a dumbfounded look on the nurse's face before it softened into an amused chuckle. "Please, Tachibana-san. Raise your head. There is nothing to be ashamed of," Estelle replied, following the transition to Japanese and setting the notebook down. Why Setsuna seemed so panicked was beyond Estelle's understanding, but she still tried to sound reassuring in some way. "Well, so long as you understand that a video game is very much not representative of real-life, then I have no issue." Finally, Estelle was able to smile, sweeping around where Setsuna was sitting to take a seat on the sofa across from her. "Admittedly, my of my old friends have prodded me into joining them in this hobby. Saying things along the lines of being...apologize for leaning so much on English, a '<Luddite>' who needs to learn about the modern world." She shrugged in exasperation, clearly not enjoying the appellation. "Well, mainly because of my habit of writing physical letters over using anything computer-ish for it." Estelle shrugged again, lifting her hands up a bit in a 'it can't be helped' kind of gesture before leaning back.. "Admittedly, I have watched my other colleagues with varying levels of curiosity while they played their games. Seems to be quite a lot the media can do." Slowly, the old sailor leaned forward, resting elbow on her thigh and her chin on her palm, grinnning almost viciously. "So, for someone who has really...no idea where to start in terms of genre or the media...does Tachibana-san have any suggestions?"

Tags: Setsuna Tachibana Words: ### Notes: coded by rem of WW

At first there was no doubt in the pinknette's mind that her colleague was going to dissociate herself on account of Setsuna's incredibly geeky research project.  Who could really blame if she ended up doing that?  Adults were supposed to have grown out of such childish interests.  Especially when they were working in a position where they were setting an example for young people.  A teacher ought to be mature, collected and professional when she was at school.  Just like how an older student ought to be setting a good example for her juniors, really.  She kept her head down as she awaited the inevitable rebuke from the school nurse. Except that.. the longer she sat there waiting for it the more she wondered what was going on.  Why hadn't she stormed out or begun lecturing Setsuna?  It wasn't that long of a time which passed, but for her it was a near eternity.

Instead of any harsh words for  her, the foreigner assured that it was totally fine.  A confused look played over Setsuna's face as she looked up again, though she quickly nodded to show she understood what Estelle was saying.  Despite how deeply she'd gotten into figuring out ideal romantic relationships between fictional characters she did know the difference.  Real people didn't work the way that they did in a virtual world.  Thankfully, girls in real life didn't need you to go on a big mission and fight off bandits to win them over.  Knowing that she wasn't on trial for her interests made the pinknette feel safe starting to relax again.  Now maybe they could talk more as just two adults, rather than someone caught with their hand in a misunderstood cookie jar.

Yet the question which her colleague asked of her was completely unexpected as well.  Not only were her gaming habits not a problem, she was being asked for recommendations for herself.  At first she raised her eyebrow at that.  It didn't seem like the sort of thing that ought to happen and yet here they were.  Both perplexed and intrigued, Setsuna's posture relaxed and she leaned back in her chair a little bit.  Once you got past the surprise of the request itself, it was a good question that might not be easy to answer.

"That's a tough question to answer, but I'll do my best to give you some recommendations.  There is a whole world of games out there to explore!  Though even if it's in the sort of genre you like, you might not enjoy it so experimentation is important," Setsuna explained, placing a finger on her chin as she thought.   After a moment's thought she smiled a little, "So I'll give you several suggestions when we figure out what you might enjoy.  That way you will have options and hopefully.. find something you like."

She then motioned to Etselle, "So, sensei, what kinds of things do you enjoy doing?  What is interesting to you?  That's where we'll start.  Once we pin that down, leave it to Tachibana Setsuna to find some options for you."

The old sailor raised and eyebrow in amusement. What did Estelle enjoy? Every time that question was asked, Estelle always found it hard to answer. Not that she didn't have one, per se, but it felt so unbelievable to herself. "Well, I would say that...reading and writing letters to my old friends, here in Japan and overseas, has been a hobby of mine. As the old saying when, the most important thing after Duty's Call...is Mail Call. Then I do have my other hobby of trying trying to keep fit, or at least not get too much weaker than before. But nowadays it boils down to mostly long-distance running," Estelle replied with a shrug. She spoke rather matter-of-factly, dropping the usual teasing façade. "But those are extensions of what I used to do in my past job. Not that I am ashamed of my previous work and what surrounded it. I'm actually quite proud of it. But...I'd like to do something different, a change perhaps." With a soft groan, Estelle raised her arms in a stretch, holding her pose for a moment before standing up and sighing. She walked towards the window, rotating her shoulders as she spoke. "I'm not entirely oblivious to the realm of video games. I've watched some of my colleagues play their war games, be it some sort of strategy game or some first-person shooter and I asked them - why?" Estelle shifted her arms, one of them going across her front as the other pulled on it to stretch her shoulder, all while looking wistfully out the window. "You know what combat is like for real. That's what you do for a living. So why go back to that in your leisure time?" Finally, Estelle's wry grin returned, and let go of her arm to look back to Setsuna. "And they told me, and I quote, 'It's not a matter of going back, Doc. The truth is...I can't leave.' Anyways. I hope that explains a bit."

Tags: Setsuna Tachibana Words: ### Notes: coded by rem of WW

There was a lot to pick out from what Estelle was telling Setsuna.  While she was not at all fluently versed in western culture, she caught some of the terminology that the nurse was throwing around.  Clearly someone who was mentioning 'duty calling' and war games being too close to reality for her had been in a military kind of setting.  Which in turn made her really wonder what the heck this woman was doing working as a nurse in Japan of all places.  That was not the main concern of the English teacher, though, not when there were video games to be discussed.  This might be a difficult one to crack - she probably didn't want anything too directly war or combat related, but enjoyed interpersonal connections and possibly strategy?  Maybe she could fudge on some of it. 

The pinknette spun her chair around so that she too could see out the window.  Maybe the natural light from outside would help her brainstorm some possibilities a bit more than just staring at her desk would.  As she did so she also leaned back in her chair and stretched her arms out over her head.  The best compromise between interpersonal connections and strategic thinking.. oh, she did have some ideas.  All of them rather suddenly rushed to her mind, which in turn brought a contented smile to Setsuna's face.  No longer caught by surprise and under mistaken assumptions of stalking, Setsuna felt more comfortable being herself.  Once the ideas had crystalized into a sort of list in her mind's eye, Setsuna hopped up from her chair and joined her colleague near the window.

"It does explain a bit, and I have some ideas for you now, sensei," Setsuna replied, folding her arms over her chest, "Based on what you've told me, I think that maybe visual novels.. or RPGs with visual novel sections.. are your best bet.  That would give you both the story and interpersonal connections and possibly some strategizing and problem solving that might not exclusively be combat or war themed.  There is thankfully a whole range of games out there that fit under that umbrella, so the particular one is really down to your personal taste."

With that she looked over to Estelle and smiled a bit more, "So the question is whether you want something romantic?  Something just with a strong story?  I mean, there are even games where you captain a troupe of mech pilots who are also musical actresses.  Just keep in mind most of the characters are teenagers or young adults just past high school age, especially your protagonists.  Beyond that the world is your oyster.  I'd be happy to give you a list of my personal recommendations! But there is.. a price."  The much more energetic English teacher chuckled and waited to see how Estelle responded to that before springing the 'price' on her.. which was really just a humble request.

Visual Novels? Estelle raised an eyebrow in amusement. From the name it seemed like a more fanciful version of an e-book. Hardly a game, but, more literature wasn't something that Estelle would necessarily turn down. She never had much a taste for fiction; it all paled in comparison to the raw stories she would get from her letters, but at this point, perhaps it was necessary to suspend disbelief for the sake of entertainment. Now, romance. That was a bridge too far. Estelle immediately shook her head but remained listening. Mechanized Infantry Musical Actresses? That was quite a stretch, and the old sailor gave off a hearty chuckle. Well, that kind of concept, along with the ages and demographics of the protagonists - that seemed quite in line with what her colleagues in Kure often pored over. As for a price. Estelle still smiled, but it was hard for her to say what was so amusing about it. In Tachibana-san's demeanor, Estelle could see shades of one of her best friends, Melissa. Boisterous, silly at times, but all to hide a cunning and ruthless nature. Intel-gathering was Mel's stock and trade, and while Estelle could never hope to ever beat her in that regard, she wondered how well Tachibana-san would stack up. "My, My...Truthfully speaking...I didn't expect to need to play hardball for such a matter." Estelle reached for the pull cord of the window shades, starting to let the shades down. Gone was the warm yet playful smile, slowly replaced by a more vicious and hungry grin as the light from the window was choked out. "But, I suppose that in the end, all information has a price." The other windows still let light through, but in the gap where Estelle stood, she was shrouded in much more ominous shadow. The nurse politely put her hands together as she looked right into Tachibana-san's eyes. "Very well then, Sensei. Let us negotiate your fee."

Tags: Setsuna Tachibana Words: ### Notes: coded by rem of WW

Truth be told Setsuna wasn't really sure that her tactic of stating a coy demand for payment was the right way to go.  There were a large number of things that Setsuna Tachibana was - photographer, English teacher, video game aficionado - but cunning negotiator was hardly one of them.  She usually showed her true feelings too obviously for any subtlety to mask her true intentions.  For another thing her bluffing was awful - she had a terrible poker face, and thus never tried playing any kind of game of chance where that'd be important.  To see that her ploy about payment for making game recommendations was working so well made Setsuna's heart jump for joy.  Even if she was just being humored, she was thrilled to feel that sort of duplicitous cunning even for a moment. 

And boy, the shades being lowered sure added to the atmosphere!  The pinknettte smirked as she tapped her finger on the windowsill thoughtfully, as if pondering whether Estelle could even afford her price. For a moment she thought how much she felt like a yakuza cutting some shady deal.  Mental images of herself and Estelle in cheap, flashy suits standing in the darkened room and sizing each other up danced through her imagination.  Setsuna turned on her heel so that she faced away from her colleague, so that Estelle wouldn't see the bemused grin on her face.  Once she finally got rid of those thoughts, the English teacher took a couple of steps away from the nurse.  She then suddenly stopped, turned around and held two fingers up in front of her face.

"Very well, sensei.  Tachibana Setsuna isn't cheap.. I have two demands in exchange for the list of recommendations," she said with her best attempt at wickedness, the hand in front of her face waving away to the right.  With a nod she smirked, "We'll see if you can afford that information."

She held a single finger up, "Number one.  Buy me.. a cup of coffee sometime.  Something nice would be lovely, but it doesn't have to be super fancy.  The sugary ones make my stomach upset."  Setsuna paused a moment before adding, "And more importantly number two.  If it's acceptable to you, I'd like to drop by your office from time to time.  I don't really get a chance to practice English very often, so I'd like to take whatever opportunities you can give me." 

With a laugh she asked, "Are these terms acceptable?"

It was hard to stifle her laughter. Indeed, Estelle was medical personnel and not intelligence, and thankfully it seemed like neither was Tachibana-san. In fact, it felt like she was haggling with a merchant at a bazaar instead of an informant - still a hard bargain, but with far lower stakes. Still, for the sake of playing along, Estelle tried her best to keep the facade as she kept a straight face and a steady demeanor. Of course, there were no expectations for the fee and Estelle was more than happy to simply walk from the deal if it was patently unfeasible, but in the end, it was a rather simple request. Coffee was still an expense, but it was the expense of having friends in the end, and Estelle could write it off. The nurse raised an eyebrow and shattered the façade, pulling the shades up in a single motion. "They say that in the navy...the coffee is mighty fine. You can drink it down at seven, and you'll throw it up at nine." Estelle recited the verse with an faux sense of flourish before winking and chuckling and explaining. "An old song from back then." Her spirits raised, Estelle then turned to walk around the couches in the center of the room again. "Hopefully the coffee I will make for you is of better quality than what I used to have. But your terms are indeed acceptable." She leaned against the back of one of the couches, looking backwards towards Setsuna again. "Quite frankly, it is the doctor's lot that they don't usually see people unless it is to remedy a problem, so having someone visit for the sake of visiting is a very, very amiable proposition. So really, any time you wish to drop by, feel free to do so."

Tags: Setsuna Tachibana Words: ### Notes: coded by rem of WW

Setsuna was hardly a savvy high stakes negotiator.  Being rewarded for her video game knowledge with a cup of coffee and (hopefully) pleasant company from time to time was enough for her.  Getting a little song in English in addition to that was all the more of a reward, no matter how the nurse had meant it to be conveyed.  The English teacher smiled cheerfully as she broke out of her cool, collected bargaining look fully and watched Estelle return to a couch.  Of course the first question that crossed the pinknette's mind now was what came next?  They'd made their deal and all that, and the earlier awkwardness had concluded.  So rarely did she speak with other adults (as opposed to her students) that she wasn't sure what to say once the topic of the conversation had been resolved.  This only lasted for a few seconds, though, as the excitement over getting to speak English with someone outside of lessons took over.

First she dug around on her desk and fished a spare notebook out of the various supplies there.  Setsuna also swiped a pen for herself, flipping it around between fingers as she made her way over to where Estelle was sitting.  She pondered where to seat herself a moment but decided on rolling over a nearby chair so that she wasn't sitting right next to the nurse.  To do so would have been incredibly awkward to say the least.  Still twirling the pen in her fingers she looked at the nurse, winked and suddenly began writing.  Just a few titles to suggest based on what they'd identified as Estelle's range of interests.  More and more titles came to mind though, and Setsuna could tell this process might take a little bit.  Didn't want to leave one out and then have her coworker miss out on something that she might enjoy!

As she wrote things down, she remarked, <"It's actually a big relief to have someone to talk to like this.  Honestly I haven't gotten to talk to anyone in English since.. dam... er.. shucks, since college!  I studied in America before getting my license to teach here.">

She added one more title to the list - which was now a full page of titles - and ripped the page out of the notebook.  This she held out for Estelle while smiling cheerfully, <"Here, these are a few games to consider if you want to try one.  I tried to include both the Japanese and English versions of the title in case you wanted those too.  Some of 'em are a little harder to translate because Japanese is so different from English.  And.. do you mind if I ask where you're from originally?  I'm guessing American but other than that I've got no idea.">

With whatever tension from negotiations gone, Estelle smiled as she watched Setsuna scavenge for pen and paper, taking a proper seat as Setsuna wrote things down. The nurse raised an eyebrow in mild surprise as the teacher spoke a little about her history. Well, it certainly explained her proficiency, though it was a curiosity as to why she wanted to speak English more. Well, it was a useful skill, and for a moment the old sailor pondered over brushing up on her Farsi again. Estelle matched Setsuna's smile as she took the list, chuckling in the same anticipation she had for receiving letters from her friends. It was a little difficult to really make out the genres from the titles alone. Some seemed to be more like book titles - perhaps those were the 'visual novels' as spoken from before, but even then, the subject matter seemed to range from fantasy and adventure stories to love stories to... Estelle's eyes narrowed a bit on a few of the titles that seemed to be familiar. Vague memories floated of her friends Kiriko and Alicia chatting about...a cadre of young girls forming some sort of music group. She stowed a mental note to ask her friends before looking up to Setsuna. "<Indeed, from the States. Philedelphia,>" Estelle replied, grinning as she continued to look through the list. "<Well, not in the city proper. My family and I lived more on the outskirts of the city, in a place called Mount Airy.>" She looked up from the list to look at Setsuna. "<Likewise, I was wondering where you learned English. You speak it very well, even better than some of my friends who learned it without leaving the islands. Though, if you could indulge my curiosity, where did you study?>"

Tags: Setsuna Tachibana Words: ### Notes: coded by rem of WW

Setsuna knew it was probably pretty lucky for her that the school nurse was from the States, rather than any number of other English speaking parts of the world.  She had tried in the past to watch media from those places and couldn't always understand what they were saying.  To be able to understand each other as well as they did was a small miracle in and of itself.  It allowed her to be more concerned about how the list of suggested video games would go over than whether mutual communication was even a possibility.  She watched on earnestly to see the nurse's expression, hoping that her guesses for likely starting places were on point. 

The pinknette could tell there was at the very least a good amount of thought going into them.  Good, good!  Someone who didn't really play video games was likely to need time to consider the options on the table, so Setsuna would take this as a good sign.  One little step at a time to introduce her colleague to the wondrous hobby of gaming.  Some day she hoped to introduce Estelle to multiplayer games so they could either face off with each other or team up toward a common goal.  Having time fly by as they battled their way through exciting titles.  Wait, wasn't it far too soon to be making that sort of plan?  They were just now starting to learn about each other!  Hardly appropriate to assume that the other woman would want to play video games with her in their downtime.  Setsuna felt very foolish for that leap in thought, so she was quite thankful for their discussion's new direction.

"<It's not really common for someone from Japan to become very fluent in English, since most Japanese folks are going to pursue their careers in their own country.  My parents are like that  - my dad thought it was a little weird that I wanted to stud abroad.  He found his place in life and figured I could find mine at home too - I don't think he's ever traveled to another country,>" Setsuna replied, tapping her right index finger on her left arm as she continued, "<But I was young, really fascinated by western TV and had a wanderlust you can't just get rid of.  I ended up getting a chance to study a couple of years in California, around San Jose.  My new friends and I took a couple of road trips north too, so I got to see a lot of places.  The summers were kind of nasty but it was pretty wonderful still.. but I don't think I'd want to live over there.  Something about being back in Japan is much more suited to me.  Does that make sense?>"

She turned around to look out the window again and sighed, "<This place is just about right for me.  I hope it's been good for you too...>"  A pause, and then she asked, "<So how about that coffee on the weekend?  I can send you the addresses for a few really nice spots around town so we can meet up there."

With the list as thoroughly read as Estelle felt comfortable, she set the note down on the coffee table and leaned back to listen to Setsuna, raising an eyebrow in interest as she talked about the English fleuncy of her peers. While Estelle was more than comfortable with Japanese, and thus never needed to use much English, she still had the impression based on the students at school and her colleagues in Sasebo that, while perhaps not conversational, most Japanese had a basic grasp of English. The nurse started to nod in understanding regarding the way Setsuna's father found it odd to study abroad. A small chuckle escaped Estelle's soft grin - most parents, she thought, would be similar. Except for Bastien Tambling, or rather the entire Tambling family, now that she thought of it. The naval tradition that ran through the father's side of the family seemed to scatter the children across the world. Estelle's grind started to fade a little bit, though never disappeared; for all that Estelle did to try integrate herself as a normal person, it seemed like from the start she was already detached. "Mn...San Jose..." Estelle echoed, nodding again to show that she was still following the conversation. As far as she was aware, San Jose was the largest city in Northern California, a very educated and technical place. It fit Setsuna, but of course, there is no place like home, in the end and once more Estelle nodded to silently signal that Setsuna was still making sense. However, the invitation to a coffee house was rather intriguing, and it got Estelle to lean forward. "<Sounds like a good idea to me. I'm not the most knowledgeable here even after a year. Most of my coffee is made in my apartment and bought from the department store, so I am a bit curious as to what is around. Frankly speaking, beyond the places that I really need to go, there isn't much I've done in terms of exploration.>" Indeed while in Sasebo, it was always Kiriko and Alicia taking her to some tea house, or Melissa trying to drag her to a bar. Estelle put a hand into her pinafore's pockets to fish out her cell phone. "<Oh, right, you probably need a number so you can actually contact me for this, right?>"

Tags: Setsuna Tachibana Words: ### Notes: coded by rem of WW

"<Making coffee at home is all well and good, but the taste of some that's been expertly ground and brewed is a whole different world.  It can get kind of pricey so I don't go out for it all the time.  Every now and then it's a nice treat after a long week.  Or cutting an expert deal for a list of video game recommendations,"> Setsuna replied, smirking playfully as she found the thought continually amusing.  She was a veteran of making coffee at home herself, though her capabilities were limited to the instant variety.  It just made more economic sense to her to have one kettle to heat up water than to have an apparatus specifically for making one kind of drink.  More money left over after bills to do some fun things every now and again.

She moved back to her desk and reached into her handbag to find her own phone when Estelle brought it up.  A good number of miscellaneous things were shifted or pushed out of the way inside while she looked for the thing.  As the English teacher searched she realized just how much she really ought to just clean out and organize the bag.  It wouldn't do to be unable to find something important when se was out and about.  Finally her fingers found the rounded edge of what had to be her phone; the slight scarring on that edge was the confirmation of the object's identity, the remnant of a time when the phone had slipped out of her hand at the store.  While it still worked fine it would forever bear that mark as a reminder.  Setsuna wrapped her hand around the device and pulled it out, along with a slip of paper which she'd forgotten about stuffing inside the bag.

It was a bit crumpled from being smashed up by the assorted keys, devices or other things which she kept in the bag from time to time.  The slip of paper was a fairly bland olive green in color, but the text was in excitingly bright red and gold lettering.  This text read 'Mountain Survival Game Club' and offered the holder of the paper (which turned out to be a coupon) 25% off their first game and a second person accompanying them getting in free.  Setsuna stared at the coupon incredulously as if it were a most unwelcome guest before placing her phone on top of it and waiting for Estelle's information.  She'd picked up the coupon on a lark since it had sounded kind of fun at the time.  Not the sort of thing that you admitted to a professional colleague.

"<If you don't mind me asking, where do you live?  I'm wondering how we should meet up.. um.. where we should meet up.  Maybe we live close to each other?">  Setsuna asked, trying to plot out something of a plan for the future coffee outing.

"Oh, I can imagine how pricey it can get," Estelle replied, scoffing and shaking her head in amusement over what she saw as Setsuna's gloating, deftly pulling out her cell phone, a simple-looking smartphone, then setting it in her lap as she watched Setsuna dig for hers. The nurse could recall from her high school days the coffee her father would bring home and brew for himself and the rest of the family, often with snide remarks over the quality that was served where he worked. But such high quality coffee was a luxury that her father could afford because of his position, and Estelle found herself rather reticent to elaborate further. At first, Estelle thought that the slip of paper that Setsuna pulled out would have been the teacher's phone numbers, but instead the nurse could make out the name of 'Mountain Survival Game Club' before her colleague's phone covered it, resulting in another amused raise of the eyebrows and a soft chuckle. Seeing no further details due to the distance, the old nurse figured that the name was probably belonged to some hobby shop that Setsuna frequented, sitting up straight as she picked up her own phone. "<I believe the neighborhood my apartment is located in is named 'Hanandokita', which is to the south of here. I take the light rail to get to school.>" Estelle explained as she unlocked her phone. "<Depending on what you have in mind, I think the train stations are probably the easiest for us. Alternatively, a bus stop.>" As Estelle navigated to her contacts list, she lifted her phone a bit for a better view, giving Setsuna a clearer look at the casing around it. Plain black and made mostly of rubber, reinforced at the corners by thick metallic-looking bits, all contrasting a cute-looking anchor charm on a pale blue cord. "<Very well...let's see if I remember my number...>" Estelle started, grinning as she found her own entry and recited the number, then waited to get Setsuna's details in turn.

Tags: Setsuna Tachibana Words: ### Notes: coded by rem of WW