Description: So, what business could two young ladies from Seijyun have with Pacific shop teacher Howard Rust? Find out next time on Mastery Match of the Millennium Theater! Or click the link... or maybe next time you show up here, click the link. Because it will be here, next time, on Mystery Match of the Millennium Theater. And every time after that. Yeah...
With winter finally coming to a close, or at least -trying- to do so, Yurika has decided that now may be a good time to start setting plans in motion. Her idea, she thought, was a pretty good one, but in order to really get things organized, she brought it upon herself to venture away from the protective walls of Seijyun and onto the dangerous turf of other school territory. Yes, indeed dangerous, so it's only common sense that the frilly student would arrive with a bit of muscle that used to be the duty of Aislinn, but now Sada Asai had taken that position.
Students of Pacific may not necessarily know the Seijyun president, but the presence is certainly there, the girl they look at is easily a girly, frilly, possibly snooty, but definatly from Seijyun. A casual stroll leads her to Rust's classroom, where she then waits patiently. According to her watch, classes should just be, or have already ended, and she peeks inside the glass doorway to see, and then looks to the small folder she's carrying. Inside is his photo and some very very basic information, ".. Howard Rust. This is most certainly him."
Sada has been flanking Yurika's left, carrying an instrument case. She is obviously subordinate, as can be told from her relatively lower quantity of frills and/or lace. She is not completely plain, though, and as she looks around at the Pacific schoolgirls, her double-length skirt trailing past her calves, she allows herself the smug feeling of superiority.
But then the picture's presented; she looks over, and nods curtly, once. "It is," she confirms, before her attention goes back up towards the target in question.
Mr. Rust's class can end up pretty much anywhere on campus. Typically the only time you see him (and said class) in the proper room is when there's some kind of boring and ultimately irrelevant written assignment to do. He lobbied pretty hard to let the top brass accept how low he wants to weigh scores of those assignments against what the rest of the course offers such as, say, actual work on projects that could translate into real working experience for those who might want a good side job with a steady income in 'becoming part of an international community.' He lost that appeal. Badly. And then someone asked him to fix a window before he went back to his classroom. He may have set a Guinness World Record for window reconstruction in the process. The world may never know.
But on the other hand he may very well be training future super secret agents across all nations and this latest assignment about gothic architecture may one day prove crucial to infiltration attempts against key political targets... maybe?
Moving on to what is actually relevant when looking into the glass doorway, it seems the classroom is nearly empty. From the Seijyun visitors' vantage point, there may only be a few students hanging towards the back where all the less serious sorts tend to hang out.
At the desk, a rather fancy one with all these new computer station and display hookups, a middle-aged man is looking over someone's papers in one hand and holding up his head with the support of the other arm. It's Monday, no working man gets through one of those looking perfectly intact at the end. His combover is even more repulsive than the photograph on file suggests and that's really enough of a description of that part of him. He lets out a long, drawn-out sigh that climaxes into a single dry cough, of which he has the courtesy to raise the arm he was leaning against in order to cough inside his elbow.
This gesture provides a perfect blind spot for the two girls to head inside and all but ambush him with polite greetings and/or death.
A glance is given to Sada, and.. Well she can't help but smirk just slightly to her 'hired muscle' of sorts. 'Thanks for the confirmation' she thinks to herself. "Thank you again, by the way, for taking the time to come down here with me.. After this we'll need to go to Justice and ..." the young woman cringes slightly. "Gedo."
The gesture is noticed, and after giving another nod to Sada, she opens the door and makes her way inside, toward Rust. Unlike the poor teacher, there is a definate air of grace and elegance about the woman, even if her pale skin and dark eyes on their own give off a mildly creepy vibe. Maybe she's one of those.. Elegant.. Gothic lolitas them there magazines are talking about. ".. Mister Rust?" she asks in a silent tone.
"It is a pleasure to finally meet one of Pacific's most interesting teachers. I am Yurika, Student Council President of Seijyun high school, and here is my subordinate and Council Secretary Miss Sada. If I could have a moment of your time?"
Sada keeps up her positioning, remaining silent as she does. Yes, she thinks: Silence can evoke its own strengths, its own terrors! That's right; let Yurika do the talking.
When she's introduced, she bows at her waist deeply in respect to the position of a teacher, her instrument case shifting in front of her. She grasps that handle with both hands now, which may perhaps interfere with her effort to seem... menacing.
She doesn't smile, though. Not even a little.
The door appears to open without the man noticing too much. You know why? The hinges on that thing are well-oiled. Tip top shape. Not an annoying squeak to distract anybody that could be working here. Except for there being a teacher that is busy coughing and a genuinely disinterested degenerate sitting all the way in the back trying to take a cleverly disguised nap behind a raised monitor. So far it appears to be working.
"Huh?! I-uh," a much smaller cough follows, face still buried in his elbow. Moments later his throat clears. He straightens up his posture against the chair, a little joint pop of mysterious origin as attention falls squarely upon new arrivals. Hm, hey, those uniforms aren't--
Those eyes of his, well, there's nothing special to be said about him. The photograph didn't miss anything. There's really nothing in those eyes of his. They're about as plain a brown as any brown can hope to be. He's, well, about an ordinary a man as any in appearance and reaction to the sudden appearance of young women from the prestigious and faintly distant Seijyun school. He's surprised enough that Yurika can finish off her introduction without another vocal composition of throat clearing or coughin in the process.
"Well, I..." he pauses to pat his chest. Damn, that cough's been getting his goat for the better part of the weekend too. "I'm, uh, pleased to meet you. Both of you." Caught off guard? Completely. But he does nod his head in return for the polite bow. One of the most interesting teachers, she says?
This isn't about where he was or what he was doing during a particularly violent thunderstorm two weeks ago, is it? He places the paper he was holding face down to fold his hands together in at least something approaching professional. "Well... class did just end, don't think there's a staff meeting today, so, how can I... help you?"
The more elegant student quirks a brow. He had completely fooled her, but she can tell now that he was taking a nap. Did she make some sort of error in the notes she had taken? No, it couldn't be, Yurika was good at seeing things that other people couldn't; she wasn't going to change her mind this quickly despite his... Less than elegant apperance. Once more relaxed, a mysterious little smile graces her lips following Rust's return of being pleased.
Still though, she can't help but flip the folder open just slightly again.. And then close it. "I'm pleased to hear that, and I'll try to be brief about the situation. In an attempt to bring a bit of competition and start spring off with a bang, I have been putting togeather a pageant of sorts, which I call 'Miss Teen Southtown'. I'm sure you're familiar with how they work, I understand they're rather numerous in America."
Yurika allows a moment for the teacher to let that sink in. "I am currently in need of judges, one from each school, and I've decided that you would be the best candidate for the Pacific Judge." And not Kichiga. For obvious reasons. Freak. "What do you think?"
Sada's fingers curl more tightly as she wonders for a moment if that razor blade she's hiding is sitting right. It'd be awkward if it started to slip, the blade slowly cutting into her skin as she stood there, gravity and sharp steel conspiring to produce a steadily widening sting that she could hardly feel until --
She shakes her head, slightly, once. "Yes," she chimes in. "You'll provide an unbiased opinion, as well as making sure that the Pacific students don't feel as if there was a bias."
The sleeping student leans their head out from the side of the monitor upon hearing about Miss Teen Southtown. 'Hot chicks, cool,' this student thinks while the teacher is politely allowing explanation while he straightens himself out a little more. Mr. Rust's eyes eyes wander only the slightest degrees off to his right at a rather ironic time.
Teen pageant? Okay. He nods, he's listening. Does he need to build the runway? Help with arranging the set? Anything he could possibly hand off to the students that, instead of taking advantage of the fact it's okay to miss a class here or there, decide to sleep through one instead? The reason is provided just long enough after there isn't much other things to speculate about.
"A judge?" That's the one he didn't expect. "You want me to represent the school?" Hm. That look on his face is full of a prolonged 'I dunno, but' statement. Who else? Preston? Luc? Oh man, that would be a disaster. Roy or Boman? Hm, nowhere near as guaranteed to be a mess, but... oh, hell, what if they ask Mr. Marshall, that guy who he had a colorful conversation with about some of that guy's opinions when one of them had to oversee cheerleading practice for a reasons that continue to remain obscure and embarrassing?
A cold sweat. "I, uh, well... hrm. I'm... I'm glad you think highly enough of me to do this, but..." and then a throat clear so that his already gravelly voice doesn't trail off into something even harder to understand were he to trail off into a mumble. "Your next pick wouldn't be Mr. Marshall, would it?"
Yurika doesn't mind Sada's add-in. It was perhaps a bit of clarification that was needed; so a nod is given to her companion. And then from that point it's simply her dark eyes locked onto the middle-aged teacher, watching and analyzing each movement carefully with her poker-face smile still in place. He seemed a bit nervous, though she wasn't exactly sure why. Was he one of those teachers that didn't think he'd ever get a promotion in his life? It's difficult to say. "Yes, I would. Though I'm aware of your talents as well, I understand you're quite talented in construction. This raises you quite high on the bar as the girls would really appreciate some help modifying the stage."
But what she does pick up on quite quickly is that there's some sort of competition between himself and a 'Mr. Marshall'. And so with that she lies, quite easily, by opening her folder again and pretending to turn a page to another person. ".. Hmn, yes, I don't have as much information but there was reason to believe he qualified as well. So if you'd rather not participate that's fine, I'd just like you to direct me to where his classroom is if it isn't any trouble.."
"We're trying to avoid selecting judges of our generation," Sada says, her arms raising upwards after she gently sets her instrument case at her feet, "so that we avoid the risk of seeming to be only confirming our own school popularity systems."
She glances at Yurika for a moment, and then back to the construction-happy teacher. "You'd have a greater appreciation of the finer things, too. There's more to it than fashion and beauty." No, seriously.
Competition? More like... irrelevant backstory you'll only find detailed in an obscure Japanese-only fanbook of Match of the Millenium that's been out of print three years before it ever existed. Moving on!!
It might be darkly humorous to see how well someone like Yurika can appear to make the teacher seem flustered. Really, when you get down to it, Howard Rust is a man that worries about a lot of things. Little things that kids these days won't have to contend with for several years yet. A man that continues to age along to relative obscurity on the world stage dominated by superpowered fighting people. It's not a grand life, but it's been a good one.
He brings his hands up a little higher, leaning forward. One of the joints in his finger emits a silent pop that really isn't silent, otherwise it would be impossible to call it a pop. More to it than fashion and beauty? How deep for a kid her age. He exhales quietly on Yurika's well-played bluff. He doesn't suspect a thing at all. "Uh, well... hrrrrm. One second." C'mon now. What's the issue?
He leans a bit over to the right, away from the two young ladies. "Better have that nap while you can, Fuchi, I know you've got an all nighter." The student sheepishly leans back towards his desk. The teacher leans back towards facing the girls with proper eye contact. "Sorry about that. Ah... well, just let me know when." He doesn't want to hear about your repulsive tastes being fulfilled from getting to judge this, Mr. Marshall.
The teacher clears his throat once more to reiterate. "I'll represent, sure. Just... need a date and time."
Yurika tilts her head just slightly, but she certainly seems patient; there isn't the slightest sign of the young lady being in any sort of rush. But it was rather amusing to see Rust act the way he does; she's a girl with problems of her own so she could somewhat sympathize. The bad news, however, is that for her they make the most interesting 'toys'. She'll keep that in mind for later, but for now it's best to keep a professional air.. Her smile grows a bit brighter to the teachers agreement, and one hand is raised to her cheek. "Oh really? Thank you so very much, Mister Rust! I know with your help this will be a very successful event. Oh and of course I will provide you with much more information a little later, I don't plan for this to start until at least another month.. But if you're free sometime next week to help with the handiwork at Seijyun, that would be appreciated."
Her stance relaxes slightly, as she seems to try to be remembering if she'd forgetten any points. "I will give two weeks notice before making the event known to public. So.. That should give you more than enough time to find slightly more.. Ah.. Suitable attire." There's a hint of teasing there in the last comment. She decides making any jokes about doing crunches would be too cruel.
Ugh, Sada thinks. 'Fuchi'. What a low class name.
She bows at the waist again towards Rust; "Thank you very much for your support," she says, well practiced and neat. She kneels a little then to collect her instrument case, deciding at last that, given the lack of cherry-red blood blossoming from her bosom, she totally didn't cut herself on her little hidden shiv. Good, she thinks - very good.
Her eyes flick towards Yurika then -- further instructions? Or perhaps this is a subtle cue, meant to suggest something secretive between close friends.
"Next week at Seijyun? I'll... be sure and find the time." He's already balancing out class schedules and parent/teacher meetings and miscellaneous meetings and 'me' time in his head. He's never actually been on the Seijyun campus. A lot of the students like to go between what some have called the 'rival schools.' He's been around their various communities surrounding them for class projects around Southtown, yes, but never near Seijyun. It'd be like going into another foreign country.
The chair he sits on rolls back a ways, nowhere near as well greased as the door as a tiny metallic screech tries to petition to be considered worthy of the ironic family name of the teacher who sits upon it. This petition goes ignored by said teacher. And, man, his right shoulder is stiff. He stretches his arm out, rolling the joint to get another small crack. Suitable attire, meeting in a week, figuring out how he might handle the coming month depending on what's demanded... eh, hm, looks like it'll get really busy again soon.
"Anyway... you're welcome. And, if I can, uh, say something real quick," he holds up a finger, "your English is pretty good! Better than some of the locals that go here," and they know who they are, "you got a good instructor."
Yurika's gaze meets Sada's at about the same time. Yes, the two are pretty much done here so it's time for Sada to protect Yurika from any Pacific ruffians until they reach their ride!
Before she heads off, though, she addresses Rust one more time, "Why thank you, one might say it's rather mandatory considering our positions. Though I suppose it wouldn't hurt to go into advances lessons. I'll consider looking for you when that time comes." Seeing this teacher on Seijyun grounds should be a lot of fun she thinks. "Well then, have a pleasent day."
Another nod is given to Sada, and with that she turns around to head off. So far so good, just two schools to go!
Log created on 19:39:26 03/31/2008 by Rust, and last modified on 23:36:07 03/31/2008.