yumemigaoka | Open ♪ Late June catch-all

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lisa imai

Open ♪ Late June catch-all

⭐ Who: Lisa, who is also Dreamer Rhodonite! And also you, who may or may not be a Dreamer!
⭐ When: Last two weeks of June; maybe more later?
⭐ Where: Promised Morning, the Dreamer Union HQ, and maybe the Dream Sphere
⭐ What: Lisa wants to go questing! And also to make herself a new outfit.
⭐ Warnings: Do you trust her with fabric shears? (N/A for now)

[A | I have only done this once before | Promised Morning | June 15th until the end of the month]
[Anyone passing by the notice board on the first floor of the high school, and also a couple other places through the more public spaces of the building, will find a flyer posted Thursday morning. It features a roughly-sketched picture of a bass guitar, apparently with either a white or clear body with light-ish red color sweeping through it - Dreamer Rhodonite's weapon - and the title, Looking for Group. The remainder reads:

I am a Novice looking for more practice, and also to see what we can find for the Dreamer Union's research request. I don't have a lot to offer for rewards, but I should be able to offer baked goods or maybe a small knitting commission. Seeking at least one Striker, or someone with similar skills, and other Dreamers to round out an exploration party. Then a LINE handle follows, or a note to swing up to her classroom or the Fashion Club and ask for Lisa. Thanks in advance! Best of luck to all of us.

After school on Thursday, she'll take one to the Dreamer Union on outside advice and post it there too. On that copy, the physical location is neatly crossed out and she'll instead hang out in the Dreamer lobby for a bit, looking anxious and a little out of place, but pasting on her best service smile if someone comes to talk to her. And on the morning of the 18th, she'll go back to Union HQ, and in hastily scrawled glitter pen at the bottom of the flyer: Also searching for party to clear out Reverie Necropolis! I'm worried about what could happen if we don't take care of things quickly. Same contact information as above. Please message ASAP. Even if the majority of the Torments have been cleared out, she wants to make sure for herself that things are safe. Or as safe as they're getting.]

[B | measure twice, cut at least once | Promised Morning: Fashion Club (as such) | last two weeks of June]
[While she admittedly hasn't been trying as hard as she perhaps should be, Lisa is still putting forward at least a little effort to pitch a Fashion Club as a thing. She hasn't gotten a lot of traction, but nobody's come to push her and her fabric out of the unused room she found yet, so she's calling it a win? Regardless, she's at a desk with half a bolt of emerald green, lightweight fabric and a sketchbook in front of her. The rough design drawing looks like this will go with a top she's started to work out but hasn't gotten far with, and the fabric in front of her will be a skirt to go with it. There are some ruffles and a somewhat deep and high waist; it look like she's planning to put loops for a belt or something on it? But the other thing she's trying to work out, and the part she's currently debating as she looks between a few things on the table with the fabric-]

Hmm. I can't decide if these buttons are cuter, or these buttons. Oh, or these. But then, do I want cute, or should I push for mature on this with the waist...?

[-yeah, she's being a touch indecisive right now. The reason this is relevant is that the door's open and she's being neither quiet nor private about her question. It's similarly not the only question, as she holds up the fabric against herself and ponders how high it should come up her torso, and how much she wants it to swish. Some of these questions are not confined to the clubroom she started in, as eventually she moves outside to see how the fabric moves in the wind, because she's watched just enough anime that such research is extremely important. She holds up one corner, considers, turns 45 degrees, holds it up a little higher... tilts her head... she may be here a bit. Her sketchbook is closed and leaning against a nearby bench, and instead she's taking notes in a small pad. It's... questionable what date she's collecting, but her nodding and humming suggests she's getting something out of this. Probably.]

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[The Gardening Club's outdoor shed gets too hot in summer to store seeds and chemicals, so Shinsha uses one of the empty club rooms to keep extra materials. Lately slugs have been nibbling the leaves of the strawberry plants and the tomatoes are in need of fertilizer, so after classes end for the day they stop by the club room to pick up a few supplies...

...Or that's the plan, anyway. But there's already someone there, twirling around the club room with a makeshift skirt of swishy green fabric held to her waist. She looks like some kind of forest fairy... Startled, Shinsha can only stare for a moment.]

Ah... sorry... I didn't mean to bother you...

[Belatedly, they recognize the girl as Imai-san, the new transfer student in their grade - not that they've ever spoken before. They're suddenly intensely aware of their own ill-fitting, dirt-stained gardening coveralls and the torn strap on their apron. Shinsha has always wanted to wear pretty things, but after spending most of their life in an orphanage they're used to sturdy hand-me-downs and practical shoes. They're too skinny and gangly, and they aren't very graceful, either. Anything cute would be wasted on someone like them.]

[Yep, this was definitely the right choice of fabric. Light enough to be playful, but not enough to be troublesome. And this height shouldn't restrict her movements too much, which is maybe a third of the reason she's giving it this initial test in the first place. The rest is, of course, because design can be fun, and testing is vital design! (That's what she tells people, anyway.)

Which would ordinarily not be a problem! But the presence in the doorway she can just make out through her hair gets her attention after a rotation or two, and she lets her momentum wind down so she can face the visitor... oh wait, she knows this person!]

Akashi-san, right? It's no bother! I wouldn't be working at school if I didn't want to talk to people, or at least not to be disturbed. What brings you- [She pauses, and looks properly at them. Then into the room, at where she thought she saw some gardening stuff earlier while looking for empty cabinets. Then back at them. The light bulb coming on is almost visible over her head.] Oh! Sorry, I'm over here playing ballerina and you're trying to work. Ahaha, please, don't mind me, come in! [She takes a couple steps further back into the room to punctuate the invitation.] Um, this isn't trying to poach you or anything, I see you already have a club, but. Do you have any interest in fashion?

[No, Lisa didn't miss the stare, Shinsha. But she doesn't want to read something that isn't there.]

Fashion? I...

[Shinsha looks down at their scuffed, muddy boots, grimy fingernails, and faded canvas work apron. It's certainly An Aesthetic, but it's about as far from fashion as Yumemigaoka is from Paris or Milan.]

...Do I look like someone who knows anything about fashion?

[They mumble, looking away. Shinsha's only foray into the world of fashion was buying a pair of bright red Crocs shoes (one of the local farmers had raved about how comfortable they were) and then being too embarrassed to wear something so flashy and colorful in public. And so, the red Crocs sat in the back of Shinsha's shoe cabinet, still with their original tags.]

Hey, that wasn't the question, though. [Gently delivered, but with no room for argument.] Whether or not you know anything about it, or if you think you can or should wear something flashy or dramatic, are you interested? If you could, and if nobody would say anything, would you wear something stylish, or a more decorative apron, even? [A beat.] On that note, would you like me to fix that one while you're here? It looks well-loved, but I think it needs a bit of attention. No commitment, you don't even have to answer any of my questions.

[Her eyes briefly go to that strap; there's a needle and several spools of thread on the desk, even, so she wouldn't have to rummage for supplies for very long. But Lisa returns her gaze back to them after a moment.]

If no one would say anything, then maybe...

[But people were always saying things, weren't they? Is that a boy or a girl? Why does she sound like a guy? Ugh, what a weirdo. Shinsha had learned to keep their head down and avoid attracting attention, until even the Torments in the Dream Sphere seemed to ignore their presence.]

...Then maybe a decorative apron wouldn't be so bad. This one has insufficient pockets.

[A more colorful apron could possibly be justified if it were also a practical improvement... and learning how to make clothes like Lisa could be justified as a practical skill. Even with Shinsha as its only member, there really wasn't much for the Gardening Club to do until the summer vegetables grew large enough for harvest.]

I've never sewn anything in my life, though... for now, maybe I could fix this strap?

Then you should do it! And if they do say something, forget about them. They weren't worth your time. [Lisa grins; that's an even better reason.] And yes. Pockets. Everything needs pockets. If there weren't pockets on this uniform I'd have added one myself. Anyway...

[She gives them an appraising look. Part of that is to get a feel for colors, but she's also trying to gauge actual interest. Lisa isn't really looking for commitment, like she said, but she certainly wouldn't mind company.]

If you'd like to try, I'd be happy to help you out! I don't have any spare canvas to draw up something totally new, but we can work on this one as much as you'd like. Besides, the patched-up look is cute anyway. It shows you put hard work and passion into gardening. [Most of her attention stays on Shinsha, but she starts to rummage through her thread case, looking for something sturdier and maybe in an earthy color...]

C-cute? [Shinsha looks away, embarrassed... but it's not an unpleasant kind of embarrassment for once.] I never really thought about clothes that way, but maybe you're right... If you have any scraps of fabric you're not using, maybe I could add some pockets?

[Shinsha had grown up at an orphanage in a rural town over an hour away from Yumemigaoka, where there was little for an introverted, unathletic child to do other than read or pick flowers from abandoned fields. Sensei taught them how to identify plants in guidebooks, how to collect seeds, and how to build a little greenhouse from nearby farmers' discarded junk. He'd even given Shinsha his old apron when they moved to Yumemigaoka to attend school. The idea that all of those memories could be contained in a piece of clothing makes Shinsha feel strangely warm inside.]

Lisa is still dressed in her school uniform, of course, but Shinsha begins to wonder what she wears outside of school. Probably something incredibly cute and trendy that she made herself, right? And she's a Dreamer, too, so she must have a costume that's covered in ribbons and frills... Shinsha's powers would only ruin an outfit like that.]

So you just... design your own clothes? How do you even know where to start?

I'm certain there's something in here. Give me a minute or two, I'll see what I can come up with. In a pinch, I definitely have some leftovers from my tote bag, but there might be something else! [With an absent gesture, Lisa indicates the two-tone canvas bag perched on a nearby desk. Most of it's a normal-enough color, but the bottom is in an almost-salmon shade, which seems to match the Sandglass attached to her adjacent school bag, clipped on like a charm. Hopefully she didn't intend it to be subtle, because it. Isn't.

Meanwhile she's digging through the bolts and scraps she's been keeping in her appropriated clubroom, alternately also digging through the tote bag looking to see if there's anything left in the bottom. And she really is digging - for as short a time as she's been in here, she's built up a bit of a stash already. As she searches, she answers the question over her shoulder, not having to raise her voice too much in the empty room.]

I don't! I sketch up rough designs when I feel an idea come on, mostly, and I jot down notes on what kinds of colors might work. Or when I see a fabric or a pattern I love, I write that down, too. Sometimes I see a bit of fabric and I just impulse-buy it, and figure out something to use it in later. So I end up with the occasional thing that I thought would be really cool but I didn't love so much once I wore it, and then a few things that I thought would be kinda okay that I loved as soon as I put them on. [She turns around, finally, holding a chunk of that salmon canvas, as well as some fern-green, tough fabric that seems less smooth but about as water-resistant. On the table beside her is something silvery and smooth, and a shock of bright red something or other that's hard to further identify through the loudness of the hue.] It's a lot of trial and error. Sometimes you get something you like, and sometimes you get something that you try to find another home for. But it's fun either way!

[To be honest, fashion sounds very complicated and overwhelming... but it isn't entirely unlike gardening. Knowing which flowers to plant for each season required similar planning, and even with careful plans there were always last minute impulse buys and plants that didn't quite work in their intended location.]

Yes... I think can see how that would be fun. Do you think that color would work?

[Shinsha nods towards the fern-green canvas. There's only about half a meter of it left, but that should be more than enough to add a row of pockets to the bottom of the apron. They've never been confident enough to wear bright colors - having naturally red hair is bad enough - but the green isn't too flashy. The salmon color is cute too, but it matches the Sandglass clipped to Lisa's bag...]

...Have you been a Dreamer for very long?

Yes! I think that should work just fine. Let me find you some nice, sturdy thread that will match well enough... [She turns back to her thread case and starts to rummage through there again, a little more slowly. Something thick, in a dark color, with a fair bit left on the spool, and maybe a thicker needle with a wide eye...

Her hands still when that question comes in, but only briefly.] Not super long, no. A few months, give or take. And I spent more than a little of that time running from it. [Peering up over the case.] I'm betting you've been one longer than me, at least.

Me? I...

[There's no point in denying it while they're wearing a Promised Morning Academy uniform, but unlike most of their classmates, Shinsha never talks about being a Dreamer. They haven't joined one of the trainee units, they don't go on student excursions, they don't participate in Dreamer Union activities... every time Shinsha enters the Slumbering City, they're careful to avoid other Dreamers. They always fight alone, and they usually skip the more familiar areas of the Dream Sphere in favor of distant wild locations where solitary Torments can be picked off one by one.]

I awakened a few years ago, but I don't really go to the Dream Sphere very often. I'm not much of a fighter...

[It feels wrong to lie to Lisa, who has only been kind to them, but Shinsha rationalizes that it's necessary. The last thing they need is for Lisa to invite them on some kind of mission and have it go as badly as all the other times they've tried to fight alongside other Dreamers. But Shinsha can't trust themself to say "no" if someone does ask...]

[Lisa isn't so busy she doesn't notice them hesitate. They're probably not as hung up on it as she is, but there's... something there. Still, she's not in a position to push.]

I've been going more lately, to try and get better... I don't want to be a liability if something happens. So I get that. [And Akashi-san doesn't deserve to deal with my everything, she mentally adds. Best not to even bring it up.] But just because we're all Dreamers here, doesn't mean all of us have to fight all the time, or even at all, right? I don't think there's anything wrong with that.

...Right.

[Of course there's nothing wrong with not being able to fight. Plenty of Dreamers never fought, or only took support roles in battle. The problem is that Shinsha can fight... they can fight with brutal, frightening power that makes little distinction between friend and foe. The toxicity and sheer crushing weight of their mercury-based powers make them a danger to Torments and Dreamers alike.]

You must have practiced a lot to learn how to sew... so I'm sure you'll be able to do anything you set your mind to, Imai-san.

[For Shinsha, though, it was the opposite - the more they focused their mind on controlling their power, the more it became uncontrollable. While their subconscious, almost instinctive telekinetic control over mercury allowed them to react quickly with a shield of liquid metal, that also meant that it was highly affected by their emotional state. And for Shinsha, that state was usually anxiety. So much anxiety.]

And I used to have the pricks on my fingers all the time to show for it, too. But... I appreciate your confidence. [It's more than Lisa has for herself on the topic, but... she's working on it. Don't let on about that control issue aloud where she can hear it, they'll be anxiety buddies. Her problem isn't direct control, it's maintaining her composure if anything goes less than perfectly, and then she spirals.]

Okay! Thanks for waiting. Here's what I have... [The selection of thread she sets out is not quite as eclectic as the actual fabric was, partly owing to their more specific needs here, so what she offers them is a smaller selection: a darker brown, thicker thread, but with rather less on the spool; a fire-red thread that she insists is sturdy despite being finer; and a pine-green thread that doesn't quite match the fabric Shinsha had selected, but might be close enough at a distance, and that there's plenty of.] Given what we're going for, I think any of these will be fine! But it's your apron, and you should pick what will make you comfortable, and what feels right to you. I'll keep digging through the thread case if you don't like any of these, too.

[Lisa's tone turns softer.] That's the most important thing about fashion, if I have to pick one lesson. You are here to make something that you want to wear, that you like the look and feel of, that makes you feel like your best self; and if anyone else tells you otherwise, they're missing the point and their opinion can be ignored. We can share ideas and talk about what might look best for any of us, but the decision is - and should always be - yours. [Individuality and expression; comfort and confidence. Sword and shield. She may have internalized this idea a little more than she lets on.]

[Shinsha instinctively reaches towards the flame-red thread - it's close to the color of their hair, and to the color of the brittle gemstone they were named for - only to hesitate before touching the spool. Green or brown would match the color of the apron, right? And since it's their first time sewing, a duller color will hide the inevitable mistakes.

But if Lisa is right, then the most important thing about fashion is that you should create something that you want to wear, regardless of what anyone else thinks... Shinsha's hand settles on the red spool. They wait for Lisa to judge their choice, to tell them that the color is too bright for someone with such a dull and depressing personality, to tell them that they're wasting thread on such a dirty old apron... but the expected condemnation never comes.]

This one, I think. I have a pair of shoes in the same color... well, I've actually never worked up the courage to wear them, but they might look nice with a fixed-up apron....

[Lisa's eyes watch them reach for the red thread and... stop. Not out of indecisiveness - there's no second reach, even an aborted one, for another color - but. Something else. She's been there, so she doesn't say anything. This is their choice, and she doesn't want to taint that decision without being asked for her input, particularly after saying all that. So she just waits patiently, with a small smile. And maybe a little bit of a twinkle in her eyes, not that she'll admit to it.

When Shinsha grabs the spool of red thread, Lisa nods sharply, grin wide; she'd been preparing to give some kind of clothing-related Friendship Speech but it clearly won't be necessary.] You even have coordinating stuff already! You've got this, Akashi-san. No problem. And now that we've done the hard, exciting part, we just have the boring, mechanical part left. [With a quick grab and a flourish, she mostly-gently sets down something small and shiny held between two fingers, like someone might slam down a game-winning trading card game spell, with a slight click against the desk; this is, of course, a needle.] Think being handy in the garden will help you be handy with one of these? [There's no challenge, just a question of if they think they can handle it.]

Well, I know how to use pruning shears, so at least scissors shouldn't be a problem.

[Shinsha picks up the needle carefully. They're quite dextrous from years of tending to the bonsai at the temple-run orphanage they grew up in, so it feels less awkward than expected. After a few tries, they manage to get the end of the thread through the eye of the needle.]

Ah... I did it, I think.

[Shinsha can tell that Lisa is proud of them even though they've hardly done anything yet. Threading the needle is barely even the first step of sewing. And yet... Shinsha is a little proud of themself, too.]

Um... there's a fabric store in the Moon Bunny Market, right? If the Fashion Club takes a field trip there, I know a kissaten nearby where we could stop for coffee... I mean, if you like coffee! If you don't, they have tea too...

[Lisa giggles quietly; no, they probably wouldn't, and at least Shinsha seems to be a little more relaxed now. Indeed, it seems like she didn't need to worry at all - the needle is only a momentary challenge, and her smile seems to stay comfortably present.]

Mm! That's, like, the second hardest part. I don't know if you even need my help. I mean, you can have it if you want it, of course!

[She stills at the other suggestion for a moment, some of her cheer falling away, before she shakes her head and tries to perk back up.]

There, ah. There's nobody on the register but me, right now. So I can take a field trip more or less whenever? I don't head over there super often - the department store is closer - but I wouldn't mind checking out some new places! And I can do coffee, tea, whatever! I'm not super picky.

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Open ♪ Late June catch-all

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