2025-07-23: Trouble Over Tea
- Log: Trouble Over Tea
- Cast: Ichika Kawase, Ririka Kawase
- Where: Kasugayama Dorms, Sumaru
- OOC Date: July 23, 2025
- IC Date: Thursday, June 14, 2012 (Afternoon)
- Summary: Ririka goes to visit Ichika at her dorm, and they talk on various things... including the topic of Trouble.
<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.
Ichika Kawase spends... some time in her dorm. She isn't always elsewhere! This is one of the times she's spending there. The day outisde is sunny, which means it's kind of hot in here, on account of the dorm lacking AC. But that much Ichika is used to. Her dorm room isn't too small--the dorm used to be a hotel, which means she has enough space for a desk as well as a bed. There are posters of bands on the wall, as well as cutouts from a number of fashion magazines, both counterculture and otherwise. The desk has some work scattered on it and a couple of textbooks, but the chair is presumably in use, or will be shortly.
If Ririka is just arriving, Ichika will let her in and encourage her to take the chair. Why the chair? It's cooler.
There's a fan going... and Ichika is in cargo pants and a midriff-baring top against the heat, a skull design over her chest.
It's at least easier to bring her sister up than certain other guests she tends to have.
<Pose Tracker> Ririka Kawase has posed.
Ririka's been trying to stay in touch with Ichika... and also trying not to be late. Still, having her (new) dorm close to a train station makes it easy enough to stop over for a change of clothes, so she showed up in a black tank top, dark purple skirt, and sneakers, along with her backpack.
Ririka smiled when Ichika opened the door. "Hey, Ichika-chan." She's far less rushed today. "How are you?"
After dropping off her backpack (and kicking off her shoes, manners are important), she did take the offered seat. "Anything new going on with you?"
<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.
Ichika does prefer punctuality. It's easier to plan around! She could be in her uniform.... But, well, she's already here, she might as well have changed.
"Nee-chan," Ichika says in return. "I'm fine. Little hot. That's normal, though."
She gestures inside, and gets out of the way so Ririka can take it, moving around to take a seat on her bed instead. The covers are pretty utilitarian; she didn't go for anything fancy.
But she does have a teapot and an electric kettle, if Ririka wants something.
But anything new? "...We've got this new dance teacher," Ichika says. "She seems to want to actually teach." There's some things that are more embarrassing, like the magazine she was in--and some things that are no good to share, like the supernatural businesss. But school is easy.
"How about you?" she asks. "You moved into a new dorm, I hear."
<Pose Tracker> Ririka Kawase has posed.
Ririka isn't always eager to wear her Gekkoukan uniform around Kasugayama for... reasons. IT's kind of drawing attention to herself, and, by proxy, to Ichika.
Little hot. Ririka nods. "Yeah, I decided to dress a little lighter for it..."
Ririka will, in fact, take some tea. Ichika's good at it.
"A new dance teacher...?" Ririka frowns a little. "I heard about something like that at Gekkoukan, too... she's coming in once a week, right?" The next part surprises her. "Really? That's... good, right?" She knows Kasu's reputation, so a teacher that cares would seem to be good... but it is also noticeable.
Supernatural business...
Ririka blinks in surprise. "Wait, you heard? Um... yeah, I did," She slowly nods. "Did Mom and Dad mention it...?" She drums her fingers lightly on her thigh. "Yeah, it's actually over near Iwatodai Station, there's this whole... thing attached to it, I just..." She glances aside a little. "... didn't want to seem like I was bragging, or rubbing it in or anything."
<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.
"Right." It's a good idea for that.
Ichika makes tea!! She gets to work as they talk, and will eventually hand a cup to Ririka. For now, "Right. She might come over more often for us, though--since she doesn't like what she hears about how our teachers act. ...It's not all of them," Ichika is quick to clarify. "But some really don't care."
"It's probably a good thing."
As for the dorm, "Yep. From one of your dormmates." That answers that. "That's pretty nice, near the station. ...But I don't think of it that way. You've got something nice. That's a good thing."
A pause. "Pretty surprised it's coed, though."
<Pose Tracker> Ririka Kawase has posed.
"Well, it's nice that she cares, then... Are her classes fun? Anything with music's gotta be fun, right?" Not everything has to relate to music, Ririka.
"Oh. I wonder who." She nods. "Yeah, it's pretty handy... makes it easier to change clothes after school, too." But Ichika doesn't think of it that way. Ririka nods a little to that, still glancing aside. She still remembers little things like the time they bickered about her guitar on her vacation. "... thanks. I appreciate it." She looks to Ichika and offers a small smile.
"Oh! W-well, it is, but-- all the boys are on one side and all the girls are on the other side. Kirijo-senpai is pretty strict about it, too." She pauses for a moment. "It, uh, actually used to be a hotel, too? So... we kind of have that in common?"
<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.
It was different, back then. Ichika did those things, but these days, she has a different view. "They are," Ichika says of the classes instead. "We get to move around a lot; not as much focus on music, so much as how to dance without hurting yourself."
"Arisato-san." Which one? Well, that's fine. "Good."
Hmmm... Boys and girls, separate. "I don't expect that to be a problem for you anyway," Ichika says. "You've always been really responsible about that kind of thing."
Pause. "Kirijo... Like the Kirijo Group? She really goes there?" Pause. "Oh. Huh. Guess hotels are good for living spaces."
<Pose Tracker> Ririka Kawase has posed.
It was, different, and Ririka recognizes that. But she hasn't completely forgotten, either. "Well, that's still good, I guess. Makes it more interesting than just doing calisthenics all the time."
"Oh, I see." She's guessing Minato--Minato and Ichika have already met, after all, at least, as far as she's aware of.
Not a problem for her. "What? Why?" Responsible. "Oh, right."
"Yeah, I guess... Mitsuru Kirijo-senpai is our student council president, too." And more in charge of the school than the principal, but she doesn't mention that part.
She's pretty sure Ichika doesn't mention all of the Kasugayama things to her, either, so it's probably fine. "Yeah, the dorm rooms are big, kinda like this one is."
"Oh, that reminds me. I ran into a couple of your classmates recently. Jun Kashihara-san and Tsubasa Seki-san."
<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.
"Right. ...The schoolwork part's kind of hard, but she uses examples of real movements, so..." It works.
Ichika could say a lot of works about Ririka and boys; 'Responsible' is the most generous. And it's even true! ...Even if that's probably not the whole truth. She listens about Mitsuru though, and nods. "Hmm. Guess that tracks."
But, she indeed doesn't mention everything. "Yeah," she says. "This one's pretty nice, as that goes."
But reminded? Ichika blinks once, and then finally hands over the teacup. "Kashihara-san's cool," she says. "And Tsubasa-kun's my good friend. ...I'm glad you finally met them. I'd been thinking of how to introduce you."
"How'd that go?"
<Pose Tracker> Ririka Kawase has posed.
"Learning by doing's nice..." That's how she prefers to learn, at least.
Definitely not the whole story. "Yeah," says Ririka with a nod. "She's... pretty amazing."
Ririka accepts the teacup. "Thank you." She nods. "He seems pretty nice. I... met him while picking up flowers last week." She looks down into her teacup, silent for a moment, and doesn't elaborate.
Toshiaki's birthday was last week.
She's listening, and nods a little to herself as Ichika uses 'them' as a pronoun. "They said they were a friend of yours, so I guess that's true. We ran into each other when I was picking up food last week." Ririka smiles. "Lance is really cute."
As for how it went... Ririka smiles. "We talked about music for a bit, and, uh..." There's a long silence, which she covers by carefully sipping from her tea. "... how they had to give it up."
There's really no graceful way to mention 'Oh, by the way, your friend dropped all of their trauma on me.'
<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.
Amazing? ...Ichika isn't surprised someone like that would be amazing, but it seems like there's more to it than that with Ririka. Maybe she admires her?
"Flowers..." Toshiaki's birthday. Ichika might under other circumstances talk flowers more generally, but she knows full well waht that means.
"Mm-hm." She doesn't mention the gang stuff. Ririka probably doesn't want to hear it. "Lance is adorable," Ichika agrees. "You know? I was there when we found her."
A pause. "...Hmm."
"If they were willing to share that with you, then they must've had a good impression of you. That's not somthing to reveal to somebody who's just going to judge you about it."
"...I'm glad you were good to them," is the impression she gets. "They're important to me. I rely on them a lot."
<Pose Tracker> Ririka Kawase has posed.
... No comment.
It's not too hard to guess what the flowers were for... Ririka asked Ichika how to make a dish Toshiaki would have liked, too. Maybe she'll talk about it sometime.
Ririka does smile a little at more Lance talk. "You were? She's... pretty scrappy, huh?"
She shrugs a little. "They mentioed that they used to play music, but had to give it up. All I asked was why. I... probably shouldn't have asked. I didn't really mean to get into all that personal stuff, but... I'm glad they trusted me with it, I guess. I didn't think they were going to tell me at first, but... I guess they changed their mind for some reason."
Judging someone... Ririka nods a little. "Yeah, I... just told them it sucked. Like, the whole situation. I didn't really know what else to say about it."
"I'm glad you have good friends like that here." She falls silent for a moment, thinking about some of the other things they discussed... like Ichika herself. "Hey, Nee-san, can I ask you something?"
<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.
"Yeah." She's a good dog, Ichika seems to say. But...
"Ah." She probably didn't want to get into personal stuff with someone she just met, but... "Hm. Well, whateer."
A nod. "That's pretty much what you can say about it. It sucked. That's just the truth. ...It's hard to know what to say when things are that bad."
Still...
"Hm?" she wonders. "Sure," Ichika answers. "You can ask me whatever."
<Pose Tracker> Ririka Kawase has posed.
She definitely didn't, but did anyway, but for what reason Ririka doesn't know. She shrugs.
"Yeah..." she agrees, of it being hard to know what to say. "I think maybe what I said surprised them? I dunno."
Ichika says to ask whatever. Ririka takes a deep breath. "So... when you say you're trouble, and I tell you you're not, does..." There's almost a wince in her expression. "... that bother you?" She looks up to Ichika. "Because I know what I mean when I say that, but maybe you don't, and maybe I don't know what you mean when you say you're trouble, and..." She lets that thought trail off.
She'd probably be tapping her fingers if her hands weren't full of teacup. Still, her fingers tense regardless.
She looks down to her teacup again. "I just... thought I should check. To make sure." She won't mention that Ichika was one of those subjects that she and Tsubasa talked about.
<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.
"Could be. You can surprise people."
The question she gets is one she didn't expect. Ichika waits for a moment, for Ririka to finish, and... looks distant for a while.
"Yeah," she answers then. "It does. You're trying to make me feel better, probably. But it doesn't. It's just ignoring the truth."
"...I'm trouble. I cause issues for you, and for our parents, and for me. I make them worry. I make you worry. And there's not a lot i can do about that right now."
She shakes her head. "I'm not saying everything that happened is my fault. I'm not."
"...But pretending it isn't all there..."
"That's worse."
<Pose Tracker> Ririka Kawase has posed.
Ririka looks at Ichika for a moment. Was that 'you' as in her, personally, or 'you' as in a more general you? "... You think so?"
But she waits, and listens, as Ichika takes the time to ponder and answer the question. Ririka listens, watching Ichika and listening to her words. And when she comes out and just says it... Ririka slowly nods.
She's sitting with that for a long time before she says, "I'm sorry," she says softly. "I didn't... that's not what I meant, but... I can see how it came off that way, so... I'll stop saying it." She sighs. "I just... when I hear you say you're trouble, to me it feels like you're blaming yourself for everything that happened, and... that doesn't feel fair to me, you know?" She sets her tea cup down (carefully!) so she has her hands free, and one of them starts tapping on the desk's surface.
<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.
"I do," Ichika says. "You've got a lot in you."
Definitely a 'you in particular'.
Still... Ririka seems to be listening. Ichika sits with it too, sipping her own tea and waiting. It's a hot drink for a hot day, but there's still something refreshing in it. So, when Ririka apologizes, Ichika immediately has the instinct to shake her head a bit. "...It's..."
But she's going to change her behavior. "...Thanks," Ichika answers. She turns her head towards Ririka, and nods. "...Yeah," she says. "...I think some of it's my fault," she says more honestly. "But no, not everything. I didn't ask for... the things he did. Or for Hannya to kick me out. ...Or to end up here."
"But I'd rather face the situation I'm in than pretend I'm not there. I want to look at reality, with my eyes open. ...Not pretend things aren't what they are. Pretending I didn't see the things that were wrong..."
"That's how I got into..."
She looks down. "...Well, anyway. I've had enough of pretending. That's all I mean."
<Pose Tracker> Ririka Kawase has posed.
Ririka blinks a little. "Oh. Well, thanks."
This is all awkward and weird to navigate. But she gets a thanks, and Ririka offers a soft, "Welcome." But she's at least a little relieved that Ichika doesn't think everything is her fault...
Even if she doesn't think any of it is her fault, but... at least she understands that her viewpoint isn't as distant from Ichika's as she thought. Still, she listens and nods to that part.
"I didn't mean to pretend this wasn't happening. I know it is, I just... " She looks down at her lap for a moment. "... I'm just trying to figure out how to support you in..." She gestures vaguely in a way to indicate 'this entire situation.'
Didn't see the things that were wrong, pretending...
Ririka draws in a slow breath as she processes that. She gets up and (carefully, so as to not disturb the tea) draws Ichika into a side hug. She just holds it for a moment before saying quietly, "... you weren't the only one who missed things."
But then she moves back to sit down again. "Okay, so... what can I do to support you, then?"
<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.
"It's how it felt," Ichika explains. "That you just... didn't want to see it. You wanted to think about other things." A pause. But Ririka is looking for things that can support her, and... Ichika lans on Ririka in the hug. "...Mm," she says. "But I was the one who could've seen the most. ...I always..."
"I always told myself it was fine. Until..."
What can she do, to support Ichika?
"I..." Ichika shakes her head. "I don't know," she admits. "Just... let me be who I am, I guess. For better and worse."
"Meet me here. Not... where we wish I was."
<Pose Tracker> Ririka Kawase has posed.
That's how it felt. "I'm sorry," she says again. "Of course I can see the situation, I just... you're not the person I blame for this. Even if you missed stuff or pretended something wasn't there."
She told herself it was fine, until it wasn't. "... mm." It's not at all the same thing, but... 'pretending your problems aren't there' still rings a chord with her.
But she listens, as she's asked to meet Ichika where she is. Ririka nods. "I'll try. Um... if I say anything like that again that bothers you, tell me? It's not like... there's a script for this kind of thing, I'm still figuring it out. But I want to support you."
... Hopefully next time it won't take talking to Tsubasa to have this revelation.
<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.
"...Right," Ichika says. "It's hard. Not to blame myself, I mean. Even though I know... it was him. It was him, and other people. But I think, what if I'd done something differently? What if I'd seen it better? Would I..."
She looks down into her tea. "...Anyway. Thanks. I'll... remember that. I don't want to upset you or anything, but..."
"I guess I'll try and keep that in mind."
"Thanks. There's no script, that's true. ...But I appreciate you trying."
"...I don't know what else I can say about it right now. It's... hard."
<Pose Tracker> Ririka Kawase has posed.
All Ririka can do is nod, when Ichika says it's hard. She's not in the same position, she doesn't know how it is, but... it makes sense it'd be hard, there's not really anything about this situation that's 'easy.'
But for doing things differently... "I don't know," she admits.
"I... I'll try not to be upset by what you have to say. Promise. Or, well... I promise I'll try to really listen." She picks up her tea again and takes a sip.
But Ichika appreciates the effort, and Ririka smiles a little at that.
"It's okay if it's hard. Take all the time you need." Ririka considers. "Toshiaki and I always had each other, and I know we didn't always include you, but... I want to try to be there for you in the same way he was there for me."
<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.
"Neither do I," Ichika says. "Maybe it all would've been the same. But maybe not. And that's what gets me."
She stops, and nods to Ririka, setting down her tea. "...Thanks. Then... Maybe sometime I'll have some more to say."
She looks out the window for a moment, to the city, through the bars. Then back to Ririka. "Thanks," she says. "...I just wish..."
"I wish we could've come together like this, all three of us, without losing him first."
"I really do."