[Day: Friday, February 28th. Time: 8:00 p.m.] [Weather: Cloudy and cool.] [The scene is the school grounds, where the Cherry Blossom festival is being set up. Or maybe "has been set up" would be a better way to put it. Most of the students have finished settng up their booths/stands/whatever by now, and have taken off. There's just a few people left. One of them is Kaede.] [Mini Start] * Kaede sighs and wipes his forehead, taking a seat on the ground. "...I really should have asked for more help with this..." * Kaede opens a small bento box he took with him for the work, and takes a peek inside. [Some distance from Kaede, Makoto and Makoto are busy preparing their goldfish-catcher booth.] 2d6-4 * Dicesuke throws the bones for Katie (2d6-4) and gets 5. (Aww, heck. DR it.) 2d6-4 * Dicesuke throws the bones for Katie (2d6-4) and gets 4. * Kaede watches the others work for a change. There's a first time for everything. * Katie sneaks up behind Kaede, somehow moving silently despite all the crap she's carrying, and taps him on the top of his head. * Kaede tilts his head back, open bento in his lap. "Hmm?" * Katie looks down at him and grins. "Boo." * Kaede doesn't fall over backwards, and just ends up blinking at her. "...I don't get it." I'm not surprised. Want a sign? Is it a v-sign? No. But I can get you one of those, if you'd like. It'd cost extra. I'll take what you got. * Kaede gets his neck back into a less neck-crampy position. * Katie snickers and sets the sign down against the ground, propping it against her leg. She gives him a v-sign. * Kaede snaps his chopsticks without comment on the v-sign, taking a sigh and closing his eyes. "It's getting late..you worked all this time on it?" Sure. You think I'd do something halfway? It's not like my booth is going to take long to set up. I didn't know you were doing a booth. * Katie shrugs. "So to speak. I'm facepainting." * Kaede digs into his bento box and takes a bite. "...not enough spice..." * Katie ruffles Kaede's hair. "Poor you." She picks up the sign and goes over to his booth, propping it up. * Kaede turns around on his knees. "Why are you like that?" Like what? Like...I don't know...you. I know it sounds...weird to ask... * Katie hmms and steps away, eyeing the sign critically. "Might be because I'm me." She eyes it a bit longer, then clucks her tongue and goes about straightening it. You don't answer much, do you? * Katie pulls her hands away again and looks over at Kaede. "I don't know about that. I mean, what would you say if I asked why you're like you?" * Kaede sighs and puts down his bento box, adjusting his glasses and looking at Katie honestly. "I'd probably say it was a long story and leave it at that." Oh. * Katie grins. "Well, my story was never long." She backs away from the sign, studies it, and nods. I...don't know. This whole thing's fairly unusual...and I mean more than the whole card mentality and the weird occurances... Even the fairly normal stuff is, I don't know how to explain it. But you know that part of the story, right? Then you should know what makes me me, if that's all it is. What makes you say that? * Katie looks around and hums, before her eyes settle back on Kaede. "Want to eat dinner at my booth? I dropped my stuff off, but still need to set up." Maybe you were there for a good amount of it. I guess so...I could use a break I guess... * Katie snickers. "You were already taking a break. Come on." She heads towards her booth. * Kaede gets up, picking his bento up with him and following Katie. * Katie approaches and enters what must be hers. There's colored tablecloth and a few signs lying here and there, among a few other things, though (like she said) it hasn't been set up yet. She gets to work. Can I help with anything? * Kaede finds a spot to set his dinner. You don't have to. Like I said, it'll be quick. I left the paints and stuff at home; I don't want it stolen. I know what you mean. * Kaede goes over to pick up one of the signs. "Where should this go?" * Katie looks over and blinks. "Er... okay, there's a stand near where your right foot is; just set it up on the counter. Hang on." She tosses the tablecloth over the counter and starts smoothing it. There. * Kaede nods and carefully turns so he doesn't bump the stand. He picks it up and looks for an ideal spot to set it after her smoothing. "Right here?" * Katie nods. "Actually, turn it to your left a little bit." * Kaede turns it 5 degrees to the left. "Like that?" Yeah, right there. * Katie picks up the other sign and walks out of the booth, setting it up. * Kaede takes his hands away carefully so he doesn't bump it, then takes a step back and smiles slightly. "What else?" * Katie laughs as she sets up the sign to her booth. "That's about it, really. The rest is going to be last minute." She grins. "Told you it wouldn't take long." * Kaede looks almost disappointed. "Oh..." * Kaede goes over to his food and sits down. If you want, though, I can practice on you. Practice what? * Kaede blinks and adjusts his glasses. * Katie snerks as she checks her sign over. "Body art." * Kaede stares at Katie for a bit..then stares some more...then blinks..then stares a third time, answering in a steady monotone voice. "...no." * Katie doesn't seem put out by that at all. "Chicken," she calls before walking back into her booth and unfolding chairs. * Kaede ignores that and goes back to eating his fried rice, octopus, and eel combo. * Katie has a seat on one of the chairs and pulls an electric lamp from below the counter. She sets it on the tablecloth and flicks it on. * Kaede watches Makoto and Makoto's booth making (assuming they're still setting up and that he can see it from here). "A lot of weird events to get ready for this whole thing..." * Kaede takes a bite. Mmm, barbequed eel. * Katie then plunks her satchel down on the table, rummages in it for a bit, and pulls out the bali starling: it's complete now, though not yet polished. She sets it next to the light. "Yeah. And, actually, I lied. I didn't spend all that time working on your sign." I figured as much. Hey, I figured I could take my time where you were involved. * Kaede takes another bite, staring straight ahead. "What are you talking about?" * Katie rummages a bit more, pulling out a set of markers. She opens the box and sets her left hand down flat on the table, selecting green with her right. One bite and twist later, the cap is off, and she drops it from between her teeth onto the table. "Oh, nothing." * Katie starts drawing. On her hand. It's not good to say something without meaning it, Katie Andrews. * Kaede takes another bite. Mmm, fried rice. Some things are said as jokes. They carry meanings in what they are. So what did you spend all the time on? All my time? No one thing. But a lot of it was spent on this. * Katie tilts her head to the bird. * Kaede tilts his head back. "The starling...it's important to you?" * Katie hmms. I guess. It's the first time I've done it. It came out well...ever think of sanding down the final edges? * Katie nods, not looking up from her work. "I will. Varnish it too, probably. But the hard part's done." Yeah... * Kaede thinks for a minute, then sets his bento box down, getting up. "I'll be back in a minute." * Katie glances up. "Okay." She turns her attention back to her hand. 2d6-7 * Dicesuke throws the bones for Kaede (2d6-7) and gets 4. * Kaede comes back with his kaban in tow. 2d6 * Dicesuke throws the bones for Kaede (2d6) and gets 4. * Kaede sits back down, opening his kaban and taking out his laptop. Welcome back. * Katie studies her hand for a moment, then sets the green marker down for a red, and uses that. * Kaede lets out a little mmm of acknowledgement as he boots up his laptop, clicking here and there. There. What? * Kaede turns the screen around. * Katie looks up. * Kaede shows a 3d rendered picture of the bali starling. The colors are pretty well blended along the feathers and the beak. There's see some granulation in parts but not much. It's rotating slowly on the main screen. * Katie blinks. "That's... really good. Did you do that?" I started it when I saw your carving. * Kaede turns the screen back around. "Something seems off about it though..." * Katie smiles. "It is good." She blinks, then laughs. "Of course something's off. That's part of what makes it art." I wasn't going to show it to anyone..but since Eriko peeked, and you seem to enjoy yours so much... You weren't? Why not? * Kaede blushes slightly and shakes his head, closing his laptop. * Katie seems genuinely interested. ...nothing I do seems to come out right in the end... To you, it won't. * Katie looks back down at her hand for a moment before applying the marker to it again. I just... * Kaede blinks at that and looks up. "What do you mean?" As far as... um, what's the word. * Katie frowns. Something new? Different? novel? Unique maybe? Not... quite it. Close, though. As far as novel work goes, it'll almost never be 'right', not to the person who made it. The starling next to me doesn't look exactly right, to me. But..it's not finished. No, but I already see what's wrong with it. At least, it looks wrong to me. ...I don't really follow. * Kaede sighs and adjusts his glasses, hanging his head. "I guess some people aren't meant to make sense to me..." * Katie mmms as she sets the red marker down, picks up a dark green one, and pulls the cap off with her teeth. She drops the cap onto the table and applies marker to hand. It's simple. It's... people aren't perfect. I'm not perfect. Why should I think what I make should be? I just try to get as close as I can. Yeah but some imperfections just...glare...at you.. They always do. Do you make new things a lot, Kaede? * Kaede picks up his box and looks inside it, holding it out. "You hungry?" As for your question...not...really. At least, they don't seem new to me.. * Katie blinks and looks up. "I ate before I got here, but thanks." She snickers. "Mom forced me to." * Kaede sets down the bento box on the counter then puts his hands in his pockets, blowing out a breath, and looking aside. "Why would she need to force you?" Right. I've been carving, and drawing, and everything for a while. And while I'm a lot better than I used to be, imperfections still glare at me. Are you trying to be perfect, Katie Andrews? Hmm. Must be because she thinks it's fun. * Katie grins. "Nah, I got over that a few years ago. Thank goodness for everybody." She goes back to her hand and says lightly, "I just try to be close." You're not close...neither am I...not at everything... * Kaede looks up at the sky. "But...I like you that way..." It's getting late..I'll see you at the festival. * Katie giggles, then sobers a little. "I like me that way, too. Hope it's enough." * Kaede heads off slowly, picking up his kaban as he goes. [Mini end]