maskormenace | Duel 01; Video

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Duel 01; Video

[There aren't any questions about what this place is or what it's like. Utena's already gotten used to all of that. She does, however, have a question about something else that's been on her mind: employment. She flops on her new bed and turns on her device, and the network will see a zoomed in image of her eye before she stretches her arms and raises her communicator, showing her from the shoulders up]

So. The government gives us these jobs when we get here, right? But what do you do when it's something you're not cut out for? Like...

[Okay, recording like this isn't very comfortable after all. She stops and rolls over on her side, and adjusts the camera so it's focusing mostly on her face]

I'm supposed to be a teacher, sort of. Or maybe instructor is a better way to put it? ...anyway, I'm supposed to give fencing lessons now. And it's not that I'm bad at it, but...

[She bites her lip and glances away for a moment, uncertain of how much she should (or how much she even wants to) explain about the duels.]

Well, I'm not really used to "standard" fencing matches. I mean, I've fenced before, but the last time I did the rules were kind of weird, and as soon as I got used to it the game would change again. The only real advice I could give is, "hey, don't get stabbed," but that's not really good advice, is it? I mean, that's what swordfighting is all about, I guess, but...

[She sighs, and flops back on her pillow]

I'm not really sure what I should do about this. I still need to talk to them - the people who run the lessons, not the guys who gave me the job - but... I guess I'm just worried that they'll expect more from me than what I can give them. That they'll expect me to be some master fencer from a movie or storybook or something like that. Has anyone else had to deal with that? With their bosses expecting them to be something they're not, I mean.

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[Utena's smile is contagious, and Cinders has one of her own as she pours the tea, offering her milk and sugar, along with some biscuits. If nothing else, Carmosa has taught her how to be an excellent hostess.]

As a matter of fact, I'd picked up a few things, like the tea. But we already had the kettle, at least.

[She'd had a hell of a time figuring out the currency here, at least. But apparently, the novelty of having an Import in the shop outweighed the inconvenience. Cinders didn't understand what the flashing of lights around her was - nor why people were holding up those strange rectangular shapes in her direction - but she didn't like it.]

[Utena passes on the milk and sugar, but she takes some of the biscuits, and nibbles at the corner of one before sipping her tea. If they taste stale she doesn't notice.]

Mm - it sounds like you're getting the hang of this place. But do you know what else you need to see?

[Cinders sips her tea daintily. If nothing else, at least she has her manners here.]

Hopefully a place where I can begin to make some sense of all this, with any luck.

There's more places like that than you'd think. I know there's a bunch of museums here, and every city's got a library in it. Heck, you could even stay home and watch tv if you'd like - there's almost always some history special or documentary playing. But I was thinking of something a little more fun.

A library? How wonderful! And I've never been to a museum. That sounds lovely. I have no idea what "TV" is, however.

[She smiles.]

Oh? Like what?

[Ohhh, she hasn't figured that out yet. Okay, change of plans.]

Actually, I have a better idea. Do you see that big box in the living room? The one with the glass screen and the tiny legs.

Well, yes. I can't figure out what it does for the life of me. It makes a terrible mirror.

[Up next: young woman yells at cloud.]

[Remote, remote, where are you... aha! There you are]

Well, you don't use it to look at yourself. You use it to look at everything else. Here...

[And bwoop! She turns it on, just in time to catch a... commercial break. Ooh, exciting.]

[Cinders jumps slightly at what happens, watching the screen curiously.]

Why is that person so terrible at pouring that beverage?

[Kids these days.]

They aren't - they're just acting. At least, I think they are? Anyway, you'll see why in a secon.

[And suddenly, there it is! A marvelous new invention, the likes of which have never been seen before! It's... a sponge. A miracle sponge, that can clean up messes like nothing else, or so the commercial claims]

They're just making a big deal of it so they can show off what they're trying to sell. Like the bigger the mess-

[The commercial is apparently on the same wavelength, and a booming voice interrupts with THE BIGGER THE MESS, THE BIGGER THE SPONGE, before showing off different products on the screen]

...okay, that was a little creepy.

[Meanwhile, Cinders is transfixed.]

I wish we'd had those back home. It would have saved me a lot of trouble.

Huh, I bet it would, wouldn't it? I wouldn't get too excited about this, though - you can find the same thing for cheaper in the stores, I bet. Or something close enough like it to count. We can go looking later, if you'd like.

[The commercial offers it's package for a cheap offer of ONLY NINETEEN DOLLARS AND NINETY NINE, ORDER NOW, before it fades back to... some kind of talk show? Real Talk with Laurie Brooke. Huh, she's never heard of them]

Edited 2017-05-22 06:36 (UTC)

You mean, they have places where you can shop like a normal person? Be still, my heart.

[She watches the show for a little while, fascinated.]

But why are these people coming out with their problems so publicly? Are they that terrible?

[Those poor people...]

[Utena can't help but cringe, and she grows more and more tempted to just change the channel]

I don't think it's that - if they needed help that badly, they could go to a counselor or something. It might be the money, but I don't know if there'd ever be enough money to make me do something that embarrassing.

[Change the channel, Utena. This is not a good first impression regarding television for Cinders.]

I'm hardly going to judge them. After all, I'm not from this world. Maybe this is normal for them.

Well... maybe it's normal for them, but it's not normal for everyone here. If it was, this kind of thing wouldn't get so big. It's like... well, one of the reasons why people watch tv is so they can watch stuff they don't get to see every day. Like this-

[Boop! Let's see what's on the sports channel... oh, hey, college baseball! It's not too exciting, but it's a better example than... whatever that was.]

Not everybody can play games like this, and they can't always go and watch them in person, either. So, they watch them on television.

[Cinders eyes the sport, cocking an eyebrow.]

Why are they hitting balls with sticks?

[Yeah, she doesn't get that at all.]

Edited 2017-05-24 03:29 (UTC)

[Hrm, how to explain this...]

It's a part of the game. You score by running all the way around the base, see? But the guys on the other team are trying to get you out - uh, out of the game, that is. They do that by tagging you with the ball. So the farther away they hit the ball-

[She punctuates this by miming a batter swinging at an illusory baseball]

-the longer it takes for them to catch it, and the longer it takes for them to catch you.

[And people like doing this stuff? Well, to each their own.]

I see. Are there other pastimes like these?

Oh, yeah, there's a ton of them. Baseball's just-

[Utena stops as she overhears the announcer going wild. The outfielder chases after a ball as it sails through the air, but it's for naught. It clears the fence and the crowd erupts into cheers! It's a home run!][...oh, wait, they were talking. Utena tears her gaze away from the tv and goes back to their conversation]

...sorry. But baseball's just really big here, especially when it gets warm.

[Cinders watches as the man runs around the bases, still more than a little confused.]

Do you play?

[Don't think she hasn't noticed your enthusiasm, Utena.]

Oh, yeah. But nothing like that, though - I'm not even part of a team. I just played with the boys back at school-

[Before she gets all nostalgic, though, she realizes that she might have to explain this a little more]

It's part of how school is, nowadays. They don't just want to teach kids academics, but they want them to be healthy, too. So there's a pretty big focus on health and athletics - they even have classes dedicated to this stuff.

I'm unfamiliar with the concept, I'm afraid. My father taught me everything, when I was growing up. Academies and the like don't often happen in small towns like ours.

[So that's how it was back then, huh? She's more interested in her family life, though]

That must have been really nice, though, spending that much time with your father. He must have known a lot to teach you like that.

It was. But my father was a dreamer, too.

[She smiles fondly.]

Duel 01; Video

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