Parents' Weekend Meet & Greet! Friday Afternoon at the Park [09/28].

[in_sidon_we_trust]

As one might have suspected, the weather that afternoon was incredibly cooperative and pleasant, just the right balance of nearly everything. Funny how that always seemed to work out. And wasn't that fine weather just a perfect companion for all the decorations and tables set up around the park in anticipation of the weekend's guests, as well as for the impressive spread of food offered for those wanting a bit of a nibble.

There was, of course, glitter, but some might note that it was a bit more tastefully restrained this year.

A bit.

Stretched over the entrance to the park was a large, bold banner, leaving no question as to what all this marvelous preparation was for:

Welcome to Parents' Weekend 2018!!

[[ Registration | Food and Drink | Mingle | Shadowy Corners | OOC ]]

Comments

Re: Food and Drink - PW 2018

[white_oleander]

And there he'd gone and hooked her by her curiosity again, so Astrid stopped, turning her head, looking confused. "Traps?" she asked. "For what?"

Re: Food and Drink - PW 2018

[trollbirb]

"Fun?" Tsurumaru replied with a casual shrug. "Have you ever seen someone fall into a pit trap? Their arms flail with panic and then they land in the pillows and you have a good laugh."

Look, he liked messing with people, not hurting people.

Re: Food and Drink - PW 2018

[white_oleander]

"So you're looking for people to help you make pit-fall traps?" Astrid just kind of wanted to make sure she got that right. "Who are you, again?"

Re: Food and Drink - PW 2018

[trollbirb]

"Well I can dig them myself, if necessary, I've done it before," Tsurumaru mused. He grinned and pointed at himself. "I'm Tsurumaru Kuninaga, renowned tachi from the Heian era. Who're you?"

Re: Food and Drink - PW 2018

[white_oleander]

And that certainly confirmed the suspicion she'd had at the beginning of the conversation right there.

"Astrid Magnussen," she offered, "unsubstantial student from the Bush era. You must be a guest of Mr. Mistutada."

Re: Food and Drink - PW 2018

[trollbirb]

"Oh, so you know Mitsubou?" Tsurumaru said. "It's the eyes, isn't it? We all have them, even though I wasn't a Date sword originally. But we've all got the same eye color, isn't that interesting?"

He grinned.

"And you've got plenty of substance. If you didn't, I'd be able to see right through you."

Re: Food and Drink - PW 2018

[white_oleander]

Astrid's head tilted as she peered a little closer at Tsurumaru's face. "You know," she realized, "I never noticed that. About the eyes." But now she was trying to think back and wishing she had a better memory. "I was in his class over the summer, really interesting stuff. I kind of miss it, actually..."

More than she was necessarily willing to admit, really, and not just because of the stories. Getting to learn how to use the weapons made her feel unusually strong, maybe even powerful, and lately she'd been feeling everything but those things.

Re: Food and Drink - PW 2018

[trollbirb]

"Well, missing Mitsubou is something I can sympathize with, not that you should tell him that," Tsurumaru said. "Tell me, is he a good teacher, or is it just because he's so handsome?"

Re: Food and Drink - PW 2018

[white_oleander]

"He is a good teacher," Astrid said with a nod. "And I liked all the different guests and their stories and learning about the different weapons, which...I wasn't expected. I thought I would hate the class, but everyone was just so interesting, each one of them so different, each one almost stranger than the last."

This new one here included, and she blushed a little as she added, "I honestly didn't notice the handsome part."

But now she would. So thanks for making it weird, Tsurumaru.

Re: Food and Drink - PW 2018

[trollbirb]

Tsurumaru basically specialized in making things weird.

"So he's trying to turn you all into warriors?" he mused out loud. "I guess it's a different tactic than just summoning more swords, though if you're all Tanto-sized it seems a bit... specific."

"Well I'm glad you liked it, though it sounds like you should be learning more about things you didn't know you'd like. Surprises are important."

That's most of why he liked doing things like dig pit traps.

Re: Food and Drink - PW 2018

[white_oleander]

"I don't know about turning us into warriors," Astrid said a bit wryly. "If that was the goal, then he definitely had his work cut out for him with some of us."

Mostly herself, but, really, she liked to think she hadn't done all that bad, but now he got her thinking: if she was a sword, what kind would she be? She supposed a tanto wouldn't be too far off, though she felt anything less than a Valkyrie's broadsword would be a disappointment.That was her mother, without a doubt, but Astrid... she was more like a small, stealthy stiletto dagger, one you didn't see coming until it was already buried in your heart.

"And trust me, there's no shortages of surprises around here, either."

Re: Food and Drink - PW 2018

[trollbirb]

"Oh? Well, you can't say something like that without further explanation. What kind of surprises can you get at a school?"

He was a little skeptical, but willing to listen.

Re: Food and Drink - PW 2018

[white_oleander]

"Well," Astrid started slowly, because where did one even begin to answer a questions like that, much less someone who had remained a diehard disbeliever for nearly half a year, contrary to the evidence right in front of her face? "For starters, the one I'm most recently trying to get a good grip on is the fact that I'm actually a time traveler from the past, and then there's the fact that my roommate might actually be from outer space. I work in a shop where the flowers literally dance and sing and try to bite you if you catch them in a bad mood, and I skipped out on nearly a whole semester of one of my classes and no one seemed to care. A mechanical singing fish grew to a monolithic size and attacked the school just because we spent a summer doing mean things to it..."

She bit her lip, looking up at him, expecting to see him looking at her like she was crazy, but, on the other hand...she found a wry smile.

"But maybe that's not so surprising for someone who's an actual embodiment of a Japanese sword, right?"

She still wasn't quite ready to give into that one, either. She almost liked thinking they were just actors really, really dedicated to their craft and their stories better.