Tea Time
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There is a knock on the door. “Excuse me, may I come in, Moriguchi-sensei?” The voice belongs to a young man, and you’ve heard it before.
Mai has left the door open wide enough for easy scrutiny; she kneels on a cushion in front of her traditional-style low desk, fingers moving in quiet but fairly rapid clicks across the keyboard of a laptop atop said table. Fairly nice auxiliary speakers sit at either end of the desk, emitting the muted tunes of an imperial koto piece - distant heavy drums and flutes, abstract vocals. She raises her head, blinking rapidly at the wall as she clears herself from the centering that privacy brings, and calls softly, “Yes, please come in,” beginning to rise to her feet to greet the visitor as she does so.
“Ojamashimasu.” The polite yet emotionless voice comes before the owner. Judjing from the tone and pronunciation, he seems to be well-upbrought. That ‘he’ finally makes his way into the room - and appears to be a young man in a black three-piece suit. Upon entering, he gives Mai a formal bow. “Ohayo gozaimashita, Moriguchi-sensei.”
Mai smiles warmly and freely as she moves to appropriate proximity to bow and, clasping hands together below her hips, does so. “Ohayo gozaimas, Shinoguno-sensei. It’s very nice to meet you personally; I’m afraid we haven’t seen much of each other besides faculty meetings.” She glances down at the man’s shoes. “Ano.. would you please remove your shoes?” She glances down at her own stocking feet. “I try to keep an atmosphere of home here. It seems to make the students much more comfortable, and me, too.” She laughs lightly at that, almost youthfully so, and lifts a hand from her side to cover her lips during this to prevent any unfeminine show of teeth - apparently also well-bred. Her hand floats down again. “I was about to break for lunch. Perhaps you’d like to join me for some tea?”
“Pardon me. It appears I need to brush up on my basic skills of entering a traditional Japanese home.” With his motions precise, the young man takes of his shoes before settling (of course, first asking for permission from the owner of the place to do so) down. “I would consider this an honour, Moriguchi-sensei". The face of the man can be considered somewhat strange - during all this time, it shows no traces of emotions, but, unlike a true samurai (who would somewhat better fit in such an atmosphere), it is not stern and also has no expression.
Mai flits her hand to her lips to cover another soft laugh, and paces back towards the rear of the office again, standing near the low coffee table with the silver tea set upon it - a set of three small porcelain jars resembling lucky cats rest on the tray as well. “You needn’t be so formal, Shinoguno-sensei, though you do present yourself very well. We’re colleagues, after all.” She gestures low with a hand. “Please, sit wherever you like.” On one side of the table is t he Western-style sofa, padded white with a floral print, and appears quite comfortable. On the other side, several cushions for kneeling are arranged.
“As you wish, Moriguchi-san.” Without much hesitation, he chooses Western over traditional, raising from his knees and sitting down on the sofa. “Thank you very much.”
Mai kneels on a cushion opposite you; there isn’t an enormous difference in elevation on the sofa, though her seating does make her markedly shorter. You need only lean slightly forward to reach the table. She slides the heating plate from under the table, setting it at her side, and rests the teapot atop it, then opening one of the cat jars to reveal small, round digestive biscuits. “Well, would you like a tea biscuit? And to what do I owe the pleasure of your visit?”
“Thank you.” Obviously, just a polite phrase signifying nothing in this particular case. “Although the school is officially closed, it is work that brings me to you. As a matter of a fact, I came here for, if I may put it so, guidance. A combination of two factors has me at a disadvantage. First, as you know, I recently got appointed to my current position and have yet to accustom myself to the traditions of this educational establishment. Second… unfortunately, child psychology is not my area of expertise, and because of this, I may act in an inappropriate way - from the position of efficient and correct upbringing, that is.”
Mai takes a cookie for herself, nevertheless, and sets it daintily on one of the saucers, which she places before her. She listens with uptilted chin and eyes, focusing on your face, her attention steady and passive, with small nods. “You feel that you’re not as well acquainted with practices at Eriol as you’d like to be? And you feel you might not be communicating in the best way with the students?”
Shinoguno pauses for a moment, formulating what he is about to say. “I think it would be better to explain the situation with an actual example. Did you manage to read the message I left on the main school bulleting board, Moriguchi-san?”
Mai nods slowly, lifting a slight smile. “Yes, I did. It was certainly nice of you to return Riko-chan’s Angel to her,” she replies softly; apparently she’s on a nickname basis with at least one student. She tilts her head minutely. “Do you feel you handled the situation inappropriately, Shinoguno-san?”
“This is the question I am unable to give a definite answer to.” Junri tilts his head a barely noticeable bit to the right, then returns to the same position. Well, you could consider that body language, whatever it meant. “From the point of correct behaviour I have dealt with this situation in an appropriate way: I received the lost item while being on the school premises, I posted a formal notice to all student to ensure similar situations would not happen, I contacted Minamioko-san and Kazuko-san in person, asking them to, if time permitted, come and retrieve their lost items. No rules broken, everything done in accordance with regulations and common sense. Daga…”
Mai listens in attentive silence, giving her tea cookie a brief nibble, and as the teapot begins to quietly whistle reaches off to pick it up. “That certainly sounds appropriate to me, Shinoguno-san. Were the students’ reactions what made you feel you may have acted in error?” she asks, before turning her head to attend to the tea. Lifting the silver kettle from the hot plate at her side, she brings it over the table and pours your cup, then her own, the aroma palpable even at a distance as a hearty tea of toasted barley, suitable for lunchtime.
“However, in both cases the students’ behavior was, in my opinion, erratical. Particularly, I was accused of stealing the items in question and yelled at. I am not against having ill-behaving children in the school: I am not in a position to be against and I consider this to be absolutely normal. But I am unable to understand why correct behavior led to incorrect reaction. I cannot trace the…” The computer sciences teacher makes a pause again, reformulating this statement - and, apparently, failing, “…intersection point.” He takes the teacup with a small grateful (or just polite) nod. “Therefore, if it is possible, I would like you to point out the incorrect steps in my course of action and flaws in my logical construction.”
Mai smiles softly, listening as a rising grin quirks up the corners of her lips. She takes up her own cup in a delicate clasp of two hands, bowing her head shallowly in reply. “Shinoguno-san, they’re children. When have you known children not to act erratically?” She grins brightly at this; anyone at all emotionally susceptible would clearly find it extremely hard not to feel at ease, at the very least, around this woman. “I don’t think you acted inappropriately at all. Though if you speak to children the way you’re speaking to me, you shouldn’t be surprised if they start calling you a robot.” She squints her eyes at this to show clearly lighthearted intent, nose crinkling.
Does Shinoguno feel at ease? Most likely so. Anyway, judging from his body language, he was not exactly stressed or closed to begin with. “Moriguchi-san, I was invited to the position of a teacher, as it was stated in the correspondence, because of my knowledge and practical skills. And yes, it is quite common for different individuals to call me a robot, cyborg or, quote, ‘feral killing machine’… But, in any case, it appears that the board has high expectations of my HR… pardon me, children management skills. Since you, if I understand correctly, find no flaws in my logic, I would like to request your cooperation in dealing with matters not directly associated with studies.” Pause. Deciding (?) to be at least more humane for a change, he adds “Onegai shimasu!”
Mai smiles gently at this, and nods slowly around a small sip of her tea. “I’ll be happy to help a colleague, Shinoguno-san. But I think you’ll learn soon that everyone needs..” she crinkles her nose at your wording, repeating it, “..children management skills, if they’re going to be a teacher. Perhaps I don’t spend as much time imparting factual knowledge to the children as you do, but we’re both in the similar position of needing to form a positive connection to them to have any success.” She sets her hands in a prim rest in her lap. “It was considerate of you to give Riko-chan her Angel, and you were patient with her for being silly with you. So obviously you want to treat the children well. The right attitude is the best beginning, ne?”
Yume wheels up to the door, rapping a hand against the doorframe, and peeking in the crack. “Moriguchi-sensei?”
“Allow me to share a personal experience, Moriguchi-san.” He finally takes notice of the cup in his hand, which is immediately… um, used to the fullest… half of the fullest. “Excellent…” A-ha, we got a reaction! “During last several weeks, I was able to establish personal contacts with many students. Most of them demonstrate normal reactions, are smart enough and can socialize without resorting to something drastic. I intend to maintain good relationships with students, but am unable…” His voice goes to an immediate full stop when he notices the noise coming from the direction of the door - and since he was also nicknamed Vigilante by the schoolkids, this happens before the female voice calls Mai out.
Mai clearly recognizes the voice, as a wide, soft smile washes her features. “Yume-chan… you’ve come to visit me? Please, do come in,” she calls, rising to her feet.
Shinoguno notices that motion and does the same - placing the cup on the table first, of course.
Yume swings the door open, and wheels herself in. She’s brought a plate of cookies this time to share, and her hair’s been styled quite flatteringly. Whoever made her over did a nice job. She smiles at Shinoguno, “No need to get up for me… I can’t do the same for you, yet. Hello, Shinoguno-sensei. I didn’t realize you’d have someone else here… Did I come at a bad time?”
Mai shakes her head, smiling warmly. “No, no. Goodness, you look lovely today, Yume-chan. Please, join Shinoguno-sensei and I for tea. Did you bake these yourself? They look wonderful…”
It appears Shinoguno had something else in mind, apart from politely rising and nodding to the girl. He undoes his trademark black jacket and sticks his hand under it. There’s a clearly audible “click-bzzz-clang", and the hand returns with a shiny object (which happens to be a PDA in a chrome carrying case). It is switched on, and Junri makes several manipulations. “Pardon me. Mizuhara Yume, des ne?” Yume nods, “‘Kaasan (Mom) helped me out. And you like the new hairstyle? Minamioko-san helped me with that.” She looks back to Shinoguno, “Hai, Sou desu.” She crooks her head, “Is there something I could do to help you?”
Shinoguno says, “Yes. Please sit straight for 5 seconds, my database is clearly outdated and is in need of new picture for your profile.”
Yume blinks, and stays still, until told she can move again. She smiles for the picture.
“Thank you.” And… nothing happens. Looks like the little computer had a built-in camera, and a soundless one at that. “Sorry for interrupting.”
Yume shakes her head. “It’s no problem.” She offers up the plate. “Cookie?”
Mai laughs softly, settling onto her knees in her previous cushion and looking up to Shinoguno as she observes the scene, taking up her teacup. “Shinoguno-sensei, perhaps you’d like to help Yume-chan to a seat? Yume, we may as well take advantage of having a man about. Would you like to sit on the couch for a change?”
Yume says, “Only if he wouldn’t mind. I don’t want to trouble anyone, you know?”
Shinoguno says, “I certainly can. Mizuhara-san, what would be your choice?”
Yume says, “If you don’t mind, I’d love to sit on the couch…”
Maybe this was actually a bad idea, since Junri had no such experience. Still, he managed to do it more or less flawlessly, neither breaking nor injuring anyone in the process. One cannot say that this young man is strong, but he certainly has experience in carrying things (but, alas, not girls) around.
Yume is deposited nicely on the couch, “Arigato, Sensei.” She still has her plate, and makes her offer again. “Cookie?”
Mai watches with a pleasant sort of detachment at this, obviously internally satisfied somewhere that the exchange was of value to all involved. “Thank you, Shinoguno-san, that was very nice. Won’t you try some of Yume-chan’s cookies?” She smiles across at the girl. “Yume-chan is my steadiest lunchtime companion. She’s catching me up on all the popular anime.”
Yume nods, “Card Captor Sakura, I think, will be the next one I throw at you… Since they’ll start showing the animated Tsubasa next month…
“I would be delighted". Shinoguno takes one cookie and is about to say something else, when a disturbing buzzing noise comes from… somewhere. The PDA which he left on the table is - ringing? Why, yes. And teacher promptly snatches it from there, switching on and pressing against his ear. “Yes, I am listening. Yes, it is possible. At work. When? Place? Will be. Mata aishita.” He closes the little technological marvel and puts it where it belongs - somewhere inside. “I am terribly sorry, but I have to excuse myself, dear ladies. I will have to depart for camp soon. Moriguchi-san, I do hope we will be able to continue our conversation later.”
Yume inclines her head, the closest she can get to a bow. “I hope to see you again soon, Sir.”
Mai watches with calm attention at the interruption, and shakes her head with a patient smile as she rises. “Of course, Shinoguno-san. You are always welcome in my office. And it’s been a great pleasure to see you at last.” She escorts the man to the door, waiting for him to reclaim his footwear and bidding him a brisk bow of farewell.
“Dewa, shitsureshimashita.”
