🌹 OPEN

[recluserose]

WHO: Amelia Steinbeck (recluserose) and Others
WHERE: Throughout the hotel.
WHEN: October 25th-26this, varying times of the day.
WHAT: Acclimating to the hotel and floor explorations.
WARNINGS: N/A for now, also prompts in comments.



(X)

Comments

morning!

[unliminal]

[ It's the mug that catches his attention first as he assembles his daily breakfast of pancakes and donuts. The amount of confections on his plate is obscene. ]

I need to get me one of those...

[ About the mug. Not the wayward espresso. ]

Can't you just have coffee instead? People around here are sure serious about their espresso...

[recluserose]

[Ah yes, Satoru Gojo, instigator of the Great(?) Espresso Machine heist is the first person she wants to see in the morning and hear his remark about it.]

It's not the same, Gojo-sensei; it's not strong enough for one thing.

[Amelia yawns into her empty mug before tugging her blanket around her shoulders.]

On that note, I do have a question for you.

[unliminal]

[ He sticks out his tongue in distate. Sure, it's strong, but at what cost? You need so much cream and sugar to make it palatable! ]

Eh? About the espresso machine? I already told you they weren't supposed to break it.

[ These consequences aren't on him!!! (They kind of are.) ]

[recluserose]

[Gojo, you continue to make her think you are twelve]

Do you even feel bad about what happened to the machine?

[unliminal]

[ A thoughtful pause, as he taps his chin. ]

I feel bad it got broken, I guess. Once someone noticed it was gone, I would have put it back.

[ ...Probably. But would've-could've-should'ves have no value for the departed espresso machine now! ]

[recluserose]

[... Okay, so. At least he wasn't malicious or particularly pleased with the outcome. Sort of.]

Well... There are worse things in life than a broken espresso machine.

[As the kids said a few years ago, First World Problems etc, etc.

Speaking of, his breakfast plate...]

... You're a sugar-fiend, I take it?

[unliminal]

[ That's very big of you, Amelia... ]

It helps me stay at the top of my game. You should try it, if you want to wake up! Nothing stimulates the brain quite like a rush of sugar.

[ ...Except for maybe caffeine, but since she can't have her espresso, he's offering alternate solutions! ]

[recluserose]

[Someone's gotta be the bigger person in a hotel of very small men]

I like sweets but I don't think I could ingest that much in the morning.

But fruits and waffles sound good. [If the waffle machines break, then she'd shoot to kill but thank god we're not at that stage.

Something occurs to her though because she's reminded of a young esper that she hires for side work every now and then.]

Does the sugar actually help you? At least in regards to your abilities? No jesting, I'm asking very seriously.

[unliminal]

[ A shake of his head, though that would be neat, wouldn't it? If a bit unnecessary. Even as it is, he's a veritable font of cursed energy, a well he has never yet reached the bottom of. ]

Nah. The sugar is all for tickling my brain. My powers, on the other hand, are all about heart. Harnessing the energy of emotions, to be more specific.

[ Which he's happy to speak more about, given the chance. He loves to talk about jujutsu sorcery, and just how good he is at it, in particular. ]

[recluserose]

[Since Amelia is stubborn and hasn't given into reinforcing Gojo's showoff tendencies, she has yet to see this "jujutsu" he has mentioned. For now, she's fine with letting him talk about it since he's more than happy to be chatty.

She'll grab herself a plate and build a light breakfast in the meanwhile.]

Last went talked properly, you did mention something about curses. Is that a particular affliction that takes specific shapes in your world?

[unliminal]

[ Nor will he give in and show it off to her...until she casts a spell with her middle finger!!! It's a matter of principle now, a battle of wills.

As he leans against the table, waiting for her to finish assembling her breakfast (as he has apparently decided they're eating together this morning): ]

An affliction of the human condition, you could say. Where I'm from, the negative emotions that people give off result in cursed energy that can coalesce into physical forms. People like me, however, know how to use their cursed energy to fight against those manifestations instead.

[recluserose]

[Grandma versus youngster, the battle of wills, the battle of the century(?).

Her breakfast will be wheat toast, scrambled eggs with cheese (gonna take a bottle of hot sauce with that one), bacon, and a bowl of fruit salad. Amelia's a light but balanced eater and while she assembles her food, she's listening closely to Gojo's explanation.]

Then I'd imagine those who wield cursed energy are incredibly busy. Human negativity is a thriving economy with no end.

[She can paint a picture of constant strife with broad strokes in her mind with a world like that where curses can take physical form and affect the reality around them. In fact, that's downright terrifying.]

[unliminal]

[ As he takes a bite out of a cheese danish, talking through his mouthful: ]

You're telling me. Beyond the curses, we've got curse users to contend with, too — sorcerers that are up to no good. Considering how few sorcerers there are, and losing more and more each year, you'd almost think we're fighting a losing battle.

[ He doesn't seem to agree with that assessment though, going off his tone of voice. ]

[recluserose]

[And she'll pick that up quickly, of course.]

You don't sound like you believe that. Would it be safe to assume that you believe the current and upcoming generations of these sorcerer students show some promise?

[unliminal]

Of course they do. I'm their teacher.

[ Yeah, he's bragging about himself, but even he can't teach instincts. That's all on his students. ]

We're going to change the world for the better.

[recluserose]

How big is the student population of sorcerers if you don't mind me asking?

[She's a "normal" high school teacher, at least in the sense that she teaches a population of decidedly unpowered students with no magical or psychic abilities though with the latter, there are exceptions every now and then.

But she's an English teacher, not someone who is going to pass on her arts. Witches don't necessarily work that way.]

[unliminal]

Ah, we've had a pretty big crop the last few years! We have four whole second-years. Though one's been on an extensive mission out of the country...and two of the third years got expelled. So, we've got six students total at the school right now!

[ ...Yeah. Her intuition is absolutely spot on. Sorcerers are certainly few and far between; even those who possess the ability aren't necessarily interested in honing their technique.

Gojo can't exactly blame them. The odds of dying of natural causes in this line of work are near zero. If it's not from curses or curse users, then it's infighting or some other dumb shit. ]

[recluserose]

Six students make a class though I would find it debatable that it would count as a school.

[In fact, that sounds dire but if these students were dealing with the physical manifestation of curses, at that point, this society of sorcerers is utilizing all that they've got, nevermind the internal politics that are behind the scenes that would be foreign to her.]

How many of the students are under your jurisdiction?

[unliminal]

[ Jurisdiction makes it sound so bureaucratic and unfun...even if they are his charges, he doesn't really see them as just students. ]

Just the three first years: Megumi Fushiguro, Nobara Kugisaki, and Yuji Itadori. Now if they show up here, you know where to point them.

[ Megumi wouldn't be the type...but Nobara or Yuji? He could definitely see them stopping in.

...Would be nice to see them again, all things considered. ]

[recluserose]

[Amelia commits the three names to memory. It's kind of instinctual, like when you collaborate with another teacher at a normal high school regarding shared students.]

I'll see to it that if they ever show up, they'll remain under your supervision.

[So dutiful.]

[unliminal]

Appreciate it, Steinbeck-sensei!

[ Though now that she's brought it up, he has to ask: ]

I'm guessing from the way you asked, you have a lot more than three students.

[recluserose]

I teach up to four or five periods depending on the outlook of the year at the school I work at. As far as all those children are concerned, I'm only an English teacher. No one is aware that I'm a witch.

[That's just the facts about her life. Maybe it's a little lonely but she has several people in the paranormal/supernatural side of life.]

[unliminal]

[ He can hardly imagine himself in a position like that, teaching his students something like math or science while keeping the most important thing he could share to himself. Does it ever bother her? ]

Don't you have an apprentice or something? That seems like something a witch would do.

[ Or so fantasy tropes would lead him to believe. ]

[recluserose]

[Amelia shakes her head. She's done getting her breakfast items so she'll just follow Gojo to whatever table he'll end up going to.]

No. There's no formal apprentice system though it isn't unheard of. Personally, I'm not making any long-term plans to teach any younger witch magic.

[It's a bit of a commitment and also challenging if their methods of Envisioning are incompatible.]

[unliminal]

[ She can probably sense his follow-up question coming. ]

Why not? You don't mean that teaching English is your real passion, is it?

[ It comes off sounding a little judgmental, but he doesn't actually mean it that way, honest! ]