2025-09-29: Interrupted
- Log: Interrupted
- Cast: Yua Ooshiro, Ichika Kawase
- Where: Kasugayama High School, Hirasaka Ward, Sumaru City
- OOC Date: September 29, 2025
- IC Date: July 19, 2012
- Summary: Ichika and Yua have a chat after school. Then, someone looking to have a different chat with Ichika comes along.
<Pose Tracker> Yua Ooshiro has posed.
There was a terrible attack at Aoba Park the other day. Yua wasn't involved, but of course she heard about it; she lives there! Arson by a wayward youth...
It seems a little unbelievable to her, given what she knows about the youth crime scene of Kasugayama, at least. (Not that most gangs show Yua their worst actions, of course; she's still a teacher and can still give them detention. Also she's very sweet and there's at least one Boss who will kick their ass if they give her trouble.) But... well, she does notice how the children in Seven Sisters are out of sorts, the next day, even if they know they're safe at school. And when Thursday comes around, she's booked into Kasugayama that afternoon; she goes into school quite braced to see troubled faces... particularly as Kasugayama has no such protection.
Class at least goes well enough; she has to cajole the students a little to get some of them out of their shells, with all the worrying over finals which at least some students are doing, but she manages to convince them that getting moving will help them to vent their stress and clear their minds. Once the mats are all packed up, she attends to her paperwork, and now...
... she's walking out to the carpark!!
(AKA a cool place to loiter around looking dangerous.)
<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.
Ichika, of course, was there! She was at the art exhibit, and was present for how everything went to hell. There's a certain irony in that particular set of exhibits being the ones targeted, considering. ...But last night, she got to see Tsubasa again, and the day before that was a nice hike, and...
And today it's back to caring about finals. Thus, she's actually paying attention in class, and not only because she's one of the Bosses who will kick ass about being nice to Yua.
But there's been a lot of talk going around about her; first, from the gossip running around about her and the Spike Boss. Then, from the gossip running around about Tsubasa and the 'Arsonist of City Hall' striking again.
Ichika's hands are still bandaged, but that hasn't stopped her from a few death glares.
But now, she's out in the carpark, loitering around and looking at her phone. She taps off another message, and then--
Glances Yua's way. "Ooshiro-sensei," Ichika greets, cool as ever.
"Made it out early?"
<Pose Tracker> Yua Ooshiro has posed.
Yua did note Ichika's hands, and that's why they didn't get on the ground much, today. (Because one needs to push oneself off the ground by their hands.) Gossip is of course the realm of the young, but... well, she does hear things, when people don't realise she's walking by.
(She can be surprisingly quiet in those ballet shoes of hers.)
"Oh, yes!" Yua smiles, to Ichika, slowing to a stop beside her. "I didn't have terribly much to do today, luckily." Because, of course, most of the administrative efforts are presently on those exams. Yua isn't involved in those, not in the least because she's going on leave at the end of July.
Someone's going to London.
"Kawase-kun," she asks, lowering her voice in the process, "how are your hands? Since there wasn't an exemption filed in advance, I supposed that pointing you out in front of everyone would make things difficult for you... I hope class wasn't too hard on you."
<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.
The rumors about her and the Spike Boss paint her in a pretty bad light; she was 'leading him on' according to a lot of people. But a good girl doesn't act like she does, anyway. And who would expect a good girl at Kasugayama, anyway?
...That's the nicer set of rumors. The ones about the arson committed supposedly by someone in her gang...
Yua stops, and Ichika nods along. "Yeah?" she asks. "I guess not, since you aren't handling exams."
London! That's pretty cool, at least.
But, as she lowers her voice, Ichika looks down her way, and lifts her hands. "I'm fine," she says. "They won't even scar, according to the doc. Just... got caught in some hot stuff, at the exhibit..."
The exhibit.
"It would've been whatever," she says. "But thanks. ...It was fine, anyway. Just hurts." And that's no big deal, according to her tone of voice.
<Pose Tracker> Yua Ooshiro has posed.
"And a good thing, at that!" Yua laughs, a little self-effacing. "I'd find some way to fail them despite administering them this time!"
Then -- "oh!" -- Yua does that thing she does when she's said something she really oughn't have said, long painted nails flashing as her hand covers her mouth. "N-not that I... ahaha, don't worry about that!"
... was Yua... bad at exams?! Are you ALLOWED to be bad at exams if you're a teacher?!? Don't they kick you out of teaching gang if you can't read three textbooks at once and then recite them all back fluently?!?!
Still... Ichika says her hands won't scar, and Yua puts a hand to her hip as the other presses to her lip, examining them carefully. "Don't dismiss your pain so readily," she says, after a moment, shaking her head and straightening up. (... she's still almost a foot shorter that Ichika.) "There are enough men in this world who will do that for you. I'm sure it mustn't have been whatever, at the time, no?"
<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.
Ichika blinks in surprise at that particular bit of self-effacement--and then laughs, appreciating her teacher a little more. "Didn't hear a thing," Ichika assures Yua. But she does feel a little better about her own academic issues.
Maybe she just got good at them later. You can do that, right? Get good at something you're not good at immediately? ...Right?
"That's..."
Enough men who will do that for you. "I guess that's true," Ichika admits. "...No, it's definitely true. I just meant... I've felt worse, you know?"
"It was worth it. ...I thought..."
"I thought my friend died," Ichika admits. "In the fire."
"But they didn't. So it's OK."
<Pose Tracker> Yua Ooshiro has posed.
"Phew!" Yes, she must have improved as time went on! Wow. Does that mean even Ichika could be a teacher one day?
... no, that's probably more Jun's idea of a good time.
But... Ichika says she's felt worse, and thinking back to that afternoon in the diner, Yua certainly believes her. Indeed, she has certain questions about the nature of Ichika's injuries -- though their origins become more believable when she shows that vulnerability.
"Oh, you poor thing," Yua says, and manages to make it sound motherly instead of patronising. She pats Ichika's shoulder, with concern, and right now she's not of the demographic to be immediately questioned for showing concern in that manner. (They don't know.) "What an awful thing to go through, and at your age!"
Yua clasps her hands together, in front of her, frowning thoughtfully. "Your friend... are they in hospital?" She asks, concerned. (Of course she's aware of the person who Ichika is inseperable from, though they've always stubbornly evaded her delinquent's classes, and so in turn she notices that they aren't here now. ... for some reason she knows how to use the right pronouns, though.) "Do you know how to visit them? It can be terribly confronting, going into a place like that..."
<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.
...Even so!
"It's fine," Ichika is quick to say--to dismiss, to reassure Yua or herself, she's not sure which--but Yua does seem to care. "Yeah, I..."
But Yua asks about Tsubasa's location. She knows to say the right words, anyway. "Ah, I..."
Ichika hesitates. "I... don't like hospitals too much..."
"That wasn't the question," comes a voice from behind Ichika, as a man in a suit walks over, and his partner follows after.
Ichika blinks, and turns--
But Yua might recognize police, too.
<Pose Tracker> Yua Ooshiro has posed.
Yua might have reassured Ichika that she doesn't like hopsitals, either, except --
"Sir," Yua says, stepping forward, to put herself between Ichika and the officers, "I am speaking with my student. Please sign in at the main office if you're to attend the premises."
"I'm an officer of the law, ma'am," he flashes his badge -- naming him as one Officer Goichi Mineno of the Sumaru Police Department. He's a soft-spoken man, with a gentle expression, and it ought to be easy to trust him. "I mean you no offence... I just want to speak to your student, there. That's Ichika Kawase, yes?"
"I insist, Officer -- ah --" Yua isn't quick enough at reading to know what his name is.
"Mineno," Goichi supplies for her, helpfully.
"Officer Mineno, please attend to the main desk properly before you traipse over our campus as if you work here! We do not employ officers of the law at Kasugayama," she sniffs, "nor am I aware of any plans to do so."
"And you are an employee of this school?" Goichi asks, tilting his head.
"My name is Yua Ooshiro, and I am the dance instructor," Yua informs him, her tone a touch chilly. "You understand that I must ensure the proper protocol is observed. These students must have a good example."
"Ooshiro-sensei... oh, that's right," Goichi smiles, though the warmth doesn't reach his eyes.
"I remember you."
... why would an officer remember Yua?
<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.
Ichika tenses up immediately when she clocks them as police; she is quick enough to catch his name, but she definitely doesn't trust him, not when he knows exactly who she is. She looks between the officer, his partner, and Yua for a moment. She insists, but...
"Sensei," Ichika starts. Yua's tone is chilly, but Ichika remembers a few things about Yua, and she remembers...
Why would he remember her?
"...Look," Ichika says, "Is this going to take long? I got finals to study for."
It's bravado, of course; Ichika is good at putting on the front of the Boss, but why would she do that here, when Yua is trying to help?
Unless, of course...
She suspects Yua might have trouble, too. She looks around--but not for an escape route.
It'd be real convneient if that driver of hers were already here...
"What do you want, anyway? I'm just talking to my teacher. I'm not doing anything."
<Pose Tracker> Yua Ooshiro has posed.
"It won't take long," Goichi assures Ichika, going literally and figuratively over Yua's head in the process. "If you'll just come with us --"
"Officer Mineno!" Did Yua just stomp her foot? Yeah, she full-ass just stomped her foot to try and call his attention back down to her. "Please observe the protocol!"
"Calm down, Ooshiro-sensei," Goichi assures her, remaining quite calm, himself. "You'll be the one to work Kawase-kun up, at this rate, don't you think? Don't worry," he adds, smiling to Ichika. "We don't suspect you of anything. We just want to work out what happened a few days ago."
"Officer Mineno --" Yua starts, again, before Goichi puts up a hand, palm-up.
"I should have led with this," he sighs, "but I thought you'd realise that officers would have followed procedure already... in any case, we've gone through all the proper channels," here he meets her gaze, the words weighing more than they ought, "I assure you. Let's not have a repeat of last time... that's not to say I don't understand, of course." He waves his hand, as he explains: "My aunt was a teacher, before she had her children. I've heard how stressful it is."
Yua clasps a hand to her chest, stepping back; for some reason, she averts her gaze, as if she owed this man humility. "Excuse me," she says, softly. "But... isn't this too brutish...?"
"You'll excuse her," Goichi smiles, to Ichika. "She's just easily excitable. You're in no danger, Kawase-kun."
<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.
Come with them. Ichika feels more than a little dread at that thought, and not a small amount of anger. Why should she go with them? She wasn't doing anything.
And he keeps smiling. As if she really won't worry. "Sensei," she starts, but Goichi is already leading with it. ...The 'proper channels', and 'last time' both stick out to Ichika.
'Before she had her children'.
Ichika scowls outright, because she's seeing Yua just being bullied outright, but sighs a moment later. Whatever the truth is...
"Right," Ichika answers. "...She hasn't done anything wrong, so there's no reason I'd have a problem with her."
Easily excitable.
"It's fine, sensei." She continues to tower over her teacher, and maybe over one or more of the officers, for that matter. Dressed in her Kasugayama uniform, she looks the very picture of a delinquent already. There's not a lot of other options here...
"Whatever," Ichika says, but she knows she has her back to the wall here. "I'll go. Later, sensei. Guess I don't get to see Seiji-san this time."
It's about the only thing she can think to say, and she gestures vaguely with her bandaged hands.
<Pose Tracker> Yua Ooshiro has posed.
Oh, it's giving Yua a heart attack, just the same. Do they know? How could they know?!
(It's probably the eyes they have everywhere, Yua. ... even in maternity clinics, apparently.)
Yua puts on a smile, when Ichika insists she's done nothing wrong, though for some reason it's shaken. "Thank you, Kawase-kun," she says, still avoiding looking at the officers any more.
And she says she'll go, and Yua wonders, with a sinking feeling, whether she just facilitated them taking her. ... just by the way she acts. "Oh... I'll tell him you said hello, so, d, do take care," she bids her adieu, and if she does so in a way which is just another way of saying to be careful...
Well, surely she's just a proper lady.
And perhaps it's notable, the way she steps back, and doesn't interfere in their operations any further.
(... did Ichika know she was going to pile her into her car the minute they went to the front office?, is a question she'll ask herself, later, when she's seated behind Seiji.)
"Right this way," Goichi escorts her to the police car, where she isn't handcuffed, so she won't have to bang her head on the way in. "We won't take too much of your time."
Somehow, his reassuring promises might seem a little less reassuring, seeing how cowed Yua was after some unseen stab of pressure.