Posts
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18
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Arcana
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III. EMPRESS
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EXP
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Tag
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@isolde
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OOC Name
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Sky
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The Great Anime Hunt [Open] - Posted Jan 7, 2019 15:40:28 GMT -7
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Ever since the start of the second year of high school, there was less of a language barrier now that she did learn quite a bit to get around mostly. She missed her homeland, but it was not a problem when her own laptop had its webcam and she could speak with her father whenever possible, provided that there was no one that could be seeing she was keeping a secret from her own classmates. Thankfully, she had her own room since the host family she was in was wealthy and even had a television where she could watch at her own leisure.
Anyway, she was enjoying the sights and sounds of other people shopping at that street. Some of the students at her school made up rumors of her because she was a foreigner and that tended to get a ton of attention. Besides, going by a low profile in a Japanese city was the best course of action. There was the homework and study time that she got accustomed to and a time where she did not want to be bothered by outside interferences. However, she had also grown fond of watching magical girl anime during her stay here and opted to look for some sort of manga/anime store to partake in her shopping.
With enough luck, she found said anime/manga store which had colorful decorations of popular anime characters and manga on display. To not draw too much attention, she was donning a white long-sleeved blouse and a blue skirt along with a blue ribbon necktie, nothing too fanciful for peoples' tastes anyway. She entered through the door which resounded a little chime noise as it closed behind her. There was practically a large selection to choose from, but only one genre would stick out with her at the moment.
With that, she went over to the Sailor Moon section where there was the complete volume set as well as DVDs, Blu-Rays, and even cute little merchandise of the characters. If there was a heaven out there, this little section certainly was the ultimate magical girl anime heaven.
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Posts
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17
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Arcana
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0. FOOL
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EXP
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Tag
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@calico
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OOC Name
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Teddie/Cyan
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The Great Anime Hunt [Open] - Posted Jan 8, 2019 17:58:08 GMT -7
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Dealing with the sort of people whom browsed manga stores was an often exhausting affair. It was just another exhaustion for Seiji on top of a mountain of other worries, but it was good money, right out of the pocket of his brother's boss. Luckily for Seiji, the neckbeards mostly bothered his brother. They moved in like a herd of migrating whales and gorged themselves of the latest weekly shonen jumps, figurines, and whatever the hell else they got it into their heads to buy. When they found a target they liked, it was like watching a bunch of zombies in a feeding frenzy in some old Romero flick.
At the very least, it proved to be an entertaining way to spend an afternoon, a bit of lighthearted feeling better at the expense of lonely otakus to take the load off while earning a buck. Sometimes, the customers that were into boy love paid special attention to Seiji in his uniform, cutting a tall, mature figure in his green apron. The apron was, of course, decorated with one anime character or another from the latest seasonal sensation. Seiji didn't care for anime much himself, at least new anime, but he noticed they changed as soon as the shows that aired in the spring and winter began to gain traction. Running a hand through his hair, he made a show of adjusting boxes, straightening things out, and returning items customers had put down in the wrong section back where they were supposed to go.
All told, he was killing his afternoon in style. He took a moment to step into the back to get some supplies. On the inside, he found himself smiling at Takeda, who was doing his very best to put up with the army of otakus and neckbeards that were chatting his ear off about their waifus. Outwardly, he was as stoic as ever. He heard the chime of someone entering the store but did not pay it any mind until he walked out with an arm full of fresh DVDs to stock onto the shelves.
He happened to be going near the sailor moon DVDs, giving him a good look at her. His mouth opened slightly, pursing into a contemplative expression. For Seiji, that was as good as gawking. The lady was a classic beauty, looking like some painting that had stepped out of the canvas and into their drab little manga store in the shopping district. She was something else, whoever she was. Seiji stopped gawking for long enough to put the DVDs where they were supposed to go. "Hello." He said to her with that same flat voice, turning to look at her, his amber eyes focused on her blue orbs.
"Sailor Moon. Good taste." The words were delivered with very little cadence or expression. He almost sounded bored - or at least like that teacher that gave really boring lectures because he couldn't figure out how to inflect his voice worth a damn. "Get what you want quickly. Soon, the otakus will come. They want their figurines." Seiji shuddered, thinking back to his first encounter with a figurine out in the dumpster behind the store. "Do you need any help? I'm here to assist." A helpful little name tag was plastered on the front of Seiji's outfit, happily stating his name as 'Seiji Dalton', which looked like absolute gibberish in Kanji.
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Posts
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18
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Arcana
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III. EMPRESS
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EXP
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Tag
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@isolde
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OOC Name
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Sky
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The Great Anime Hunt [Open] - Posted Jan 9, 2019 9:55:10 GMT -7
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A male voice said to her that she had good taste for liking Sailor Moon and it seemed like the otakus would arrive to get their figurines of their 'waifus' as she heard them say. He also asked if she needed help finding a particular thing she wanted. "Oh hello. Ah, I might need some assistance in finding a couple of volumes I am missing along with the figurines." Judging by the name tag and the uniform, he must be that store's assistant. "And what are otakus? Are they anime lovers?" She assumed that these people had a passion for anime just as she did, but she rather hear his explanation of that first.
However, she noticed that the name of this person was in fact her senpai at the very same school she went to. "My apologies, I did not display the proper treatment I should be giving to you, senpai. I assume you go to the same school?" It was probably safe to assume that she saw him a few times as he was the overachiever of the entire school. She probably considered signing up for the School Council a bit later, perhaps it would be a learning experience when she returned back home. "In that case, pleased to meet you, Dalton. My name is Isolde Schroeder and I am a foreign exchange student from the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg." She gave him a warm smile as she introduced himself.
All things considering, it was a coincidence that she seemed to bump into one of her senpais at her school. Nowadays in discussions pertaining to anime, she often heard the aforementioned waifu term and the husbando term. Words that were quite new to her and probably words that otakus talked about on a daily basis. "At times, I am told that I have a likeliness to the famous Catholic saint, Jeanne d'Arc. Perhaps it is my pious attitude that I was compared as such."
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Posts
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17
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Arcana
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0. FOOL
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EXP
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Tag
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@calico
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OOC Name
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Teddie/Cyan
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The Great Anime Hunt [Open] - Posted Jan 9, 2019 10:38:15 GMT -7
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The girl talked, and Seiji listened. His expression remained stoney, even when she gave away the fact that she didn't know what an otaku was. It created something of a conundrum for Seiji. Would it be better to tell her the sordid truth, or to let her go on living in blissful ignorance? He was her senpai, he supposed. Seiji didn't really buy into the whole Senpai nonsense. He created something of a sensation among the first years when he talked to the third years like they were his equals, rather than someone to be admired. "I'll put it to you like this:" Seiji began, his voice gaining a single iota of enthusiasm, given his amused enjoyment of the subject matter.
"There's enjoying something. Going to a manga store, looking for volumes of a classic manga." He indicated towards Isolde and the rack of sailor moon manga, dvds, and figurines. "But then, there's enjoying something a bit too much." Seiji's arm moved dramatically, his finger pointing towards the counter, towards his brother with his angry expression, his dyed red hair, and the two overweight men arguing in front of him.
"I'm telling you, 02 is best girl!" "That anime's like 2 years old, dude! Minami is where it's at!"
The two went back and forth, arguing, badgering one another. Seiji ignored them. That was not his battle to fight. Instead, he turned back towards Isolde. "Generally, anyone that enjoys anime and manga could be called 'otaku', but you really have to push it for your primary identity to become otaku, if you're familiar with the sociology term." It was a pleasure talking with her already, between what he got to talk about with her and the fact that she could manage to pronounce his last name correctly. Memories flooded back again, his first day of school, the way the girl showing him around called him 'Darton'.
It was almost enough to bring a smile to his face. Almost.
"The exchange student? I'm surprised we've never actually met before now. Yeah, I go to Futaba High, too." His even tone raised a single octave, his lips curled into the indication of a smile. "I remember having a meeting about you last year. The old student council president was all in a huff, wanting to make sure the school welcomed you warmly. You'd have thought you were the president's daughter or something." Seiji's dry little joke hit close to the truth, a fact he remained blissfully oblivious of as he continued. "You can call me Seiji, if you want. You don't have to call me Dalton. We're not in school, there's no need for huffy ceremony. I'm just a guy trying to help the lone pretty girl in a sea of fussy neckbeards get what she needs so she can get out in one piece."
Beat.
Seiji found the girl fascinating already, he had to admit. Not in any romantic sense, he could just relate to being in a strange place, barely knowing anyone, even if she, like him, had already been there for a bit. "Everyone's still big on faith back home in Luxembourg, huh? That's pretty different from most places these days." He looked back to the manga, to the pretty display they had of Usagi herself, smiling at them. Beside it was a smaller display of magic girl Nanoha with her trusty detective mirror. "I was raised Christian myself. Nothing fancy like the catholicism still practiced in the old world, just good old Methodist values like you'd find in the southern US." He paused.
"So. Missing volumes. Which ones were you looking for, Schroeder? As you can see, we have several copies of each volume of the series, along with a lot of the common figurines you'd find on online sites. If you have anything in particular you want that you don't see, we have a catalogue you can order from and pick up in the store, but," His amber eyes shifted to his brother again, and to the customers that walked in and out, most of which were fairly normal in spite of his hyperbole, "In my unprofessional opinion? Just order the figurines online. Saves you a lot of trouble, especially when you're in a big city like Sanyo where things don't take long to get delivered."
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Posts
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18
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Arcana
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III. EMPRESS
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EXP
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Tag
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@isolde
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OOC Name
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Sky
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The Great Anime Hunt [Open] - Posted Jan 9, 2019 17:48:08 GMT -7
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With that, he explained what an otaku was and it was quite the helpful answer too. There was a matter of liking an anime and as she heard two clearly overweight men arguing about who was the best girl, there was liking something a bit too much. "Thank you for the explanation. I have a lot to learn about the culture of this country, so please forgive me if I am unaware of such things." If there was a class where everyone was taught the anime subculture of Japan, this was the grand opportunity to learn and appreciate it.
When Seiji mentioned that the old school council president seemed to go through great lengths to welcome her to the school, a remark that probably hit a bit too close to home. "Well truth be told, I am no mere president's daughter, but I shall tell you another time when we are not in earshot of other people." If that hit too close to home, perhaps she shouldn't try to give it away so easily. At this point, going undercover was something she was doing at this point.
Anyway, Seiji mentioned that he was a Christian himself and didn't know Luxembourg seemed to be fairly big on the matters of religious faith. "Yes, I make it a habit to attend mass at a Catholic church on Sundays. I believe my country's people are all Roman Catholics." And lastly, he asked her what number of volumes she needed and that she could buy Sailor Moon figurines off the store's website if she wanted. "I'll need volumes 14, 16, and 17. As for the figurines, I will buy them off online. Thank you for the advice." Assuming that the 'neckbeards' might start coming in soon, it was probably best to get everything out before they came in.
In another section titled "Fate", she spotted figurines mostly and other merchandise with heroes that she may or may not know. With Japan's fascination with Jeanne, it was no surprise that the Saint of Orleans had her own share of figurines and cute little phone keychains. She made her way over to the figurines, looking at them with utter delight. "May I take home these wonderful Jeanne d'Arc figurines? She would look perfect with blessing my room with her faith in God."
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Posts
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17
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Arcana
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0. FOOL
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EXP
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Tag
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@calico
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OOC Name
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Teddie/Cyan
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The Great Anime Hunt [Open] - Posted Jan 9, 2019 18:30:25 GMT -7
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Isolde thanked him, which kept that lip curl that was Seiji's idea of a broad smile on his face. Despite that, he waved the gratitude off. "Don't mention it. I still have a lot to learn about Japanese culture myself. I just happen to see this little part of the culture firsthand every afternoon." The job had its perks, like the free access to the latest volumes of the few manga Seiji actually cared to keep up with, but it was more fun to act like it was all a harrowing war zone for himself and his brother.
He let her speak, nodding, listening to what she had to say. She spoke about going to mass and Seiji's mind waxed poetic about the ceremony that Catholics put into the worship of Christ and His Father. His faith in a higher power was important to him, and he found it strange to not have a direct avenue through which to talk to God. The subject soon changed, however, to Joan, or Jeanne as the series Isolde indicated liked to call her. Seiji hated Fate. Or rather, he hated the way that the more unsavory characters in the store got when that series was brought up. "You're one of the lucky few that gets to say your waifu is, in fact, pure, Isolde." Seiji joked. Her question reminded him of something Takeda had mentioned to him and a light bulb went off in his head. "Wait right here."
Once more, he delved into the back of the store. There were all sorts of spares of different things there, ready to be placed outside in case the neckbeards got into a frenzy that day and decided to buy up anything in particular. Seiji found the three volumes of Sailor Moon Isolde requested with very little difficulty. With that out of the way, he dug through some of their orders, down through the stuff that no one had picked up that Takeda hadn't decided to throw away. Finally, he held what he was looking for in his hands and nodded to himself.
Returning to the front, he walked back to where Isolde was and handed her the volumes. "Here you go. Got you some that haven't even been opened yet. Also, this." He held up a large box. On the front of it was an exquisite model of Jeanne, highly detailed. It was a 1/7th scale figurine, one that had cost someone a lot of money. Seiji found it strange that, months later, the man who ordered it hadn't came to pick it up. Upon further reflection on the matter, Seiji grimly reflected that the person probably passed away or circumstances changed so harshly that he couldn't get it. "Someone ordered this six months ago and never picked it up. So, take it. My treat. I'd rather you get it than one of them." A shiver went up poor Seiji's spine, thinking about all the abuse Takeda told him the statues those sorts of people bought might get.
"And, do me a favor, alright? Don't give away too many details about yourself to strangers, if you're no mere president's daughter. For all you know, I'm a bad person." Despite telling her to not treat him like a senpai, Seiji realized he sure was lecturing her like one. He sighed and rubbed his face, feeling the slight black bags under his eyes. "Do what you want. You're almost an adult."
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Posts
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18
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Arcana
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III. EMPRESS
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EXP
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Tag
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@isolde
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OOC Name
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Sky
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The Great Anime Hunt [Open] - Posted Jan 9, 2019 20:36:55 GMT -7
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As the taller young man joked that her waifu was as pure as she could be, Japan's willingness to make Jeanne a waifu seemed to be more apparent. Maybe they just liked European women that way, it certainly had an effect on the otakus who loved the ever popular Fate series. At any rate, he got the gist of her order and went somewhere inside the store to pick up her stuff. He returned at a moment's notice with the books and a larger box with Jeanne on the cover, presumably this must be a figurine someone had never picked up. "Oh, Thank you for giving me that splendid figurine. I promise I'll take good care of her, all things considered. Could I get you to put them in a bag for me?" If she had to take them home, it would probably be the most convenient to carry them in a bag of some sort.
She noticed that he was lecturing her on the stranger danger, the kind that all parents seemed to let their children know of either age not to give out too many personal details to strangers. "Oh, my apologies. I do not think you are a bad person as you say, but I believe you are a good person at heart." Not many people were as nice as the average European might think of the Japanese, but she always believed they were a nice person underneath their rough exterior. Even if she was far away from the land she called home, she could never forget the duty and responsibility she had for each and every citizen she was willing to serve for.
But first, she would have to learn the whims and words of the anime subculture. Maybe this guy might take her out for that spin. "Perhaps you would be willing to teach me the ways of the anime geeks, Seiji? I shall do my best to learn and keep up." Referring to him by his first name seemed to be odd and disrespectful, especially since she wasn't close to him, but if that was what he wished to be called by then she wouldn't mind that. "In return, I shall teach you whatever customs and traditions my country has to offer despite its small size. Rest assured, the customs are not the most odd like a certain fictitious kingdom from a visual novel I know of."
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Posts
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17
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Arcana
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0. FOOL
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EXP
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Tag
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@calico
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OOC Name
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Teddie/Cyan
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The Great Anime Hunt [Open] - Posted Jan 9, 2019 21:29:39 GMT -7
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"Oh." Seiji realized he hadn't gotten her a bag. He also realized she hadn't paid for his manga, but there was also the implication that stuff was a gift, too. Takeda wasn't going to be happy, but enough merchandise went missing anyway that he didn't particularly care. Besides, it wasn't like they got commission for this stuff or anything, nor was it like their boss cared all that much. "One bag, coming right up, Ma'am." Seiji gave her a mock bow, the sort of exaggerated motion lots of Japanese salesmen gave to their customers.
He walked behind the counter, got a bag big enough for the products given to Isolde, and put everything there for her. The two obese neckbeards were still arguing over something or other. The subject had apparently changed from waifus to which 'trap' was the best. These neckbeards sure had a lot of weird conversations.
"It's obviously Felix. A cat is fine too." One said, spouting ancient memes. "He'll never beat Shimakaze!" The other retorted. "Shimakaze's a girl, you fucking dumbass." The first replied. "Tell that to all the crossplayers." The second neckbeard grinned smugly. "Astolfo's the best." Seiji said insincerely, throwing oil onto an open fire. Both neckbeards turned on him, leading to Takeda yelling at them as he walked away, which turned their attention fully to him.
"Here you go." Seiji said blankly as he handed the bag to Isolde "That took a bit because I made the otaku mad." Seiji almost smiled. Her offer perplexed him. "You...want to know more about anime?" He asked. It was a rhetorical question. After all, he'd heard her perfectly. Isolde asking him that was like one blind person asking the other to lead them. He shrugged, though. At the very least, he was surrounded by material. He had to admit, just hanging out with someone from school, no strings from a club, team, or the student council attached, was a tempting offer.
"Sure, Isolde. I'll teach you everything I know about anime nerds. In exchange, I expect you to make a proper Luxembourg gentleman out of me." He sounded deadly serious, as he always did.
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Posts
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18
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Arcana
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III. EMPRESS
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EXP
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Tag
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@isolde
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OOC Name
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Sky
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The Great Anime Hunt [Open] - Posted Jan 11, 2019 1:21:58 GMT -7
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All of her stuff was now in a bag and she heard those two neckbeards at it again, arguing who was the best trap. Obviously, it would be productive, had it not been initiated by two fedora-wielding overweight men. "Thank you so much." She could not wait to open that large box and put Jeanne near the desk where she studied, probably her religious beliefs would have her praying to Jeanne every night. It was customary for prayers before bedtime after all, but even she might be pinned as that one religious fanatic. At the very least, the host family's own daughter didn't think she was some religious weirdo.
Seiji was happy to teach her about the world of anime and all of its terminology. "Then, I shall make a fine gentleman out of you. You will not be disappointed." Now, what was all there to learn about? There was the anime genres and those ratings on whether an anime was good or bad. The latter seemed to be the most important when giving something a watch just like judging a movie. "By the way, is Jojo's Bizarre Adventure an excellent anime to start off with? I've heard good things about it." For all she knew about it, it was about manly and buff men fighting a vampire who is wholly flamboyant.
Perhaps that anime exuded the masculine aspect and even it created memes on its own. There were a lot more anime to watch than she would've thought, but most people seemed to stick to one genre. It was fine, it probably meant that she could watch more if she needed while out of study time. "Ah um... You would not mind if we hung out the next time we meet?"
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Posts
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17
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Arcana
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0. FOOL
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EXP
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Tag
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@calico
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OOC Name
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Teddie/Cyan
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The Great Anime Hunt [Open] - Posted Jan 11, 2019 8:04:18 GMT -7
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She took me seriously. Seiji realized as she promised to make a fine gentleman of him. Oh no. Despite his inner protest, he made no outward indication that he had the slightest bit of a problem with her promise to make him a gentleman. It might just prove interesting. Besides...with access to the right materials, Takeda and himself could start sewing themselves some suits. "Have you taken it upon yourself to make many men into gentlemen before?" Seiji would have left the question at that, had the men arguing near his brother not been wearing a particular accessory on their head. "M'lady?" With no indication of sarcasm, no smile or grimace, he grabbed a tuft of hair of his black hair and nodded as if tipping a hat towards her.
Her question about JoJo sobered him right up. Mostly because she'd managed to actually pick out the one anime that both Takeda and himself actually kept up with. "A good place to start? That's - hmm. I don't know. It's certainly one of the best series of all time." Which was true. JoJo was something of a phenomenon. Pointing towards the shelf with the JoJo volumes, he continued. "It's divided into parts that each tells a separate story. Most manga and anime, as far as I can tell, usually just tell a single consistent story. JoJo gets to stay fresh and reforge its identity every few years." He pointed to the volumes for Part 4. "This part is my favorite."
"I'm not the best teacher for all of this stuff, just so you know. My brother and myself just kind of work here, we're not die hard anime fans or anything. My favorite's still Cowboy Bebop and it's not even that popular over here, believe it or not. Oh, that's another thing. Some stuff that you'd expect to be super popular...just isn't. So even if something seems really good to your European tastes and sensibilities, remember that the Japanese are just plain weird." Seiji paused, realizing that he hadn't talked this much about anything to anyone, at least while he was off-duty, so to speak. Usually, he always had to be the stoic overachiever, taking notes for the president, quietly beating tail at kendo, and so on.
"Oh. Also, if we're just going to be hanging out sometime, we're going to need to exchange contact info." Seiji pulled out his smartphone. It was clearly a very, very old model. It even still had separate ports for headphones and a charger. Despite its age, the phone was well taken care of and protected by a thick gray case. "Unless you just want to hang out at school? I don't really have much time to do stuff there, between kendo, the health committee, and student council. I even have to work while eating lunch, usually." He admitted. Despite his normally dry tone, a hint of exhaustion seeped through in his voice.
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Posts
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18
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Arcana
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III. EMPRESS
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EXP
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Tag
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@isolde
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OOC Name
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Sky
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The Great Anime Hunt [Open] - Posted Jan 11, 2019 12:24:03 GMT -7
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This was perfect, starting with Jojo might be the one way ticket to the path of becoming the greatest otaku there ever was. He did mention that he wasn't the greatest teacher when it came to anime and that was fine. She could try to learn on her own which was the most sensible thing she could be doing. And yet, Seiji seemed to reference the ever so trendy meme of the guy tipping his fedora while saying "M'lady" which made her chuckle a little. "I know the meme you are trying to reference, it's the one with the fedora-wearing man, is it?" A lot of people seemed to reference this meme to the neckbeards that had body pillows and adored their waifus to the point that they never stop talking about them.
Well, if she was going to hang out with him, she might as well give him her contact info. "Perhaps we should hang out after school then? I assumed you have extracurricular activities, so I can wait for an opening." With that, she pulled out her smartphone which was relatively the latest model and probably the most expensive, given that the company liked to put outrageous prices on their phones. She wasted no time with showing him her phone number for easier contact. The fact that he led such a busy life with after school activities seemed to hit home with the numerous responsibilities she had back home.
Still, it seems like it was getting a bit late and that time goes by when she enjoyed a simple conversation with someone. "Well, it was a pleasure talking with you, but I have to go and do my homework. Take care!" She carried the bag that contained the goodies she bought and waved good-bye before walking out of the door. At least, today seemed to be the most productive, considering she met with someone at her own school.
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