2025-12-24: Campfire Stories: New Fear Unlocked
- Log: Campfire Stories: New Fear Unlocked
- Cast: Tsubasa Seki, Ichika Kawase
- Where: THE GREAT OUTDOORS
- OOC Date: 2025-12-24
- IC Date: Thu Aug 30 2012
- Summary: Ichika takes Tsubasa camping to try and heal their souls after Eiji's Palace. Tsubasa meets a horse. Tsubasa didn't realise horses were that big. Tsubasa is scared of horses, now. Ichika, on the other hand, has a new lead to getting a day trip in with some pretty pretty ponies...
<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.
The great outdoors! There's an awful lot of it, and Ichika has dragged Tsubasa out into it. Into the car, packed with a tent and various supplies, and out towards the trails! The brief time between end of summer vacation will see them in NATURAL SURROUNDS. The mountains are beautiful, and Ichika is animated all the way over. But the car ride didn't take too long--the important reason they took the van is that there's stuff to be taken out. Ichika thought about getting a trail that would've taken some hiking to get to the campsite...
And then decided to go easy mode with Tsubasa's first time.
The weather is nice, and Ichika, in a black dress with boots, is currently putting up some poles for the tent. "Hold this one right here," she advises Tsubasa. "Aaaand..."
Yes, they have to put up the tent to sleep in. That's part of the experience.
<Pose Tracker> Tsubasa Seki has posed.
Tsubasa is wearing jeans and a t-shirt for this one... after Ichika advised them they'd want to, like, actually cover their legs.
("What," they'd asked, "there like, leeches out there or some shit?"
And yeah, there are leeches out there and some shit, Tsubasa.)
But they went oun in the van, and aside from being a little nervous about being around all that green stuff, they've been quite infected with Ichika's excitement!
Now they're putting up a tent, though, and Tsubasa's pretty sure it's some kind of torture implement. Because, like --
"Wait hol' up a sec -- FUCK!"
-- this tent has fallen down on them three times so far and they don't know what God they've pissed off to make this so hard?!
<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.
Oh yeah. Leg covering is very important, hence Ichika's tights. She wants to look good, but she doesn't want to get Bugged. That's important.
There's so much great green stuff out here! But--
She can't help but laugh. Because Tsubasa has had this happen three times now. "...Ahahahaha," Ichika laughs, unable to stop herself. "Sorry, sorry. I know you're having trouble."
"Here, tell you what. I'll take the poles, and you lay out the stuff I brought for a snack. Sound fair?"
She leans over and--
Kisses Tsubasa unexpectedly!! Perhaps it will help.
<Pose Tracker> Tsubasa Seki has posed.
"No man, I got it, I --" Tsubasa tries to slot one pole into another pole, only for it to whip out of its fixings and into their shoulder. "Ow, fuck! This thing has it in for me, man!!"
They're so distracted wrestling with the poles that -- "whuh?!" -- Ichika's sneak attack hits for four times damage! There, that got them smiling again. "Aight, aight... you talk some sense inta this fuckin' devil pole, I'll get shit out for ya."
They are, at least, way better at unpacking than re-poling.
<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.
Tsubasa does not got it, but that's charming. Ichika's having fun. The tent... may have it in for them. But when it's set up--
Four times damage. Ichika beams. "It'll be OK," she says. "Besides, think about how nice it'll be to be in a tent with me, right?" She winks.
It will take Ichika a little while to set up the poles, but it is theoretically a one-person job; this is a two-person tent, which means it's manageable to put up, with a circule rather than pyramid style design. It's light blue! Very soothing. And there are sleeping bags in the van for it; the van is still nearby, which means if anything goes wrong, they can go back to it...
But Ichika has the keys. Of course.
She does pretty well though; stakes down into the ground first she already did, then the poles to set up to get the frame on, and...
"I wanna take a walk around once we get this set up," she says. "See the mountain a little, you know? But there's trails and stuff; we might run into other people."
<Pose Tracker> Tsubasa Seki has posed.
"Heh, yeah..." Tsubasa grins, when Ichika mentions that the tent will have her in it. And they're downright shocked to turn down from unpacking things to see that the tent is now a dome instead of a pile of horror sticks and weird fabric. "Wait wha-- holy shit, you seriously did all that just then?!"
They're very impressed!!
(They don't know that these tents aren't really designed to be that complicated. It sure seemed complicated to THEM.)
"We got, like, th' water right here," Tsubasa hands some over, "if ya wanna try that... but man, how many other people can even be out here? There's, like --"
Tsubasa gestures at all the green stuff.
"Prolly nothin' but trees for hundreds a miles out here?! Seriously, man, I looked past th' trees there, and you know what there were? More trees!! It's like one a them painted backgrounds in Officer Shimizu's games what's goin' 'oh yeah there's all this extra stuff out there' except the extra stuff IS out here and we can go fuck with it! Like, man, how long'd we be walkin' 'fore we hit society, a week?"
Tsubasa is both a) utterly fascinated by and b) completely defeated by the scale of nature.
Of course, the direction they're pointing leads right to the information kiosk at the road entryway to the reserve, so they actually wouldn't be walking all that long, but it sure looks like an eternal wall of trees.
<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.
It sure will. And--Ichika laughs again. "Yeah!" she says. "I've put this one together before," she says. "So it's pretty easy for me. And it's fun, you know? The pieces all fit together and then you thread them through and it's like a puzzle!"
She smiles. An easy puzzle for her, but still a puzzle.
Water! "Cool," Ichika says, and opens a bottle of water, drinking some ask Tsubasa gestures.
"You'd be surprised," Ichika says. "There's some more campsites down that way," she gestures, "And a trail down that way," she motions, "And... down there is the info kiosk." She grins. "I guess it is like a game, huh? Travelling the overworld. Think we'll get any of those random encounters?" Ichika has watched her brother play video games, at least, even if she doesn't play that many herself.
Pause. "...I don't think quite that long, though."
"It's pretty though, right?" Ichika says. "Especially at this time of year. You just... Kinda live it."
<Pose Tracker> Tsubasa Seki has posed.
"Oh, yeah? Cool!" Tsubasa believes it's a puzzle. It's just... not the kind of puzzle they can solve.
Seriously, they're pretty sure those poles are possessed?
But Ichika points out all the civilisation that is around here. "Huh, seriously?" Tsubasa peers through the trees, and concludes: "... man, I don't see shit." Of course you don't, Tsubasa. There's trees in the way. "But don't worry, man," they thump their chest, "if we run into anythin', we'll jus' beat the shit outta it!"
Youth violence! Does it work against boars? Tsubasa's pretty sure it probably works against boars.
And they're still pretty sure civilisation is a week away.
"Man, though, it is pretty," they say, as they turn back to the green. "It's all, like... you can smell it? Like, kinda musty an'... green? Is green a smell? I'm pre' sure green's a smell, man." Those will be the leaves. Some of them are scented! So are the bush flowers, obviously.
Tsubasa doesn't figure out that there are bush flowers until they're actually on the trail shortly afterwards, though. "Hey man, check out this bush!!" They exclaim, as they bound up to it. "Look at all these flowers, man!"
A beat of a pause, "this isn't like, super poisonous, right," they check, briefly --
-- before they crack one of those flowers off and turn to Ichika. "Hey, stay still a sec," they say, as they reach up to tuck her hair behind her ear... plus flower.
<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.
The poles are possessed! Of SUMMER VACATION SPIRIT.
"Haha, OK," Ichika answers Tsubasa, and smiles. There's not bears around here. Probably. "But not all encounters are bad!"
"Green's totally a smell," Ichika agrees. "In fact it's lots of smells. There's the trees, the grass, the flowers... Leaves, you know? It's really... soothing, to be out here."
"I love coming out here."
But indeed--a bush! "Oh, those are beautiful," Ichika says, and then quickly, "Not poisonous."
A flower comes off and--"Oh!"
She beams, tilting her head down to make it easier. "You're sweet," Ichika says.
There is noise up ahead at the trail, though...!
<Pose Tracker> Tsubasa Seki has posed.
Soothing... Tsubasa does kind of get that, as they walk out onto the trail. Like, the bugs which keep getting stuck in their concealer are the worst? But there's like, all these nature sounds and shit, cicadas...
"Pretty things oughta go together, yeah?" Tsubasa smiles, seeing the flower in Ichika's hair. "Man..."
They might have gotten distracted, then, if not for -- noises?! "Wha-- that th' encounter?" Tsubasa asks, turning around. "C'mon!"
Hurrying up that way, just around the next bend, they find...
"Whoa man what the fuck is that," Tsubasa exclaims, craning their neck up to look at the hulking behemoth snorting at them.
"What, kid," the woman riding the horse asks, "you never seen a horse?"
Tsubasa takes three steps back and points, wildly, at the monster which is TALLER THAN BOTH OF THEM at the CHEST let alone that massive HEAD.
"THAT THING'S A HORSE?!"
The man riding behind his wife is laughing at them... he can't help it.
<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.
Nature sounds! Ichika is in a great mood as they walk along; since they're walking, she has a light pack, full of a couple things they might need on the trail, instead of a purse. Mostly, water and snacks. But pretty things... "And smooth," Ichika decides, leaning over to kiss Tsubasa on the cheek while they're distracted. But suddenly--encounter!!
"Uh?"
Ichika, as it happens, is also laughing at them within moments. "Tsubasa!" she says. "Tsubasa, be nice! Yes, that's a real horse!"
She reaches up and nudges Tsubasa. "How big did you think they were?" she asks. "They gotta be big enough for you to ride on them, right?"
A wave. She looks like a delinquent... but she's friendly at least. "Beautiful," she says of the horses. "I guess we got near the riding trail?"
But this is only the beginning.
The beginning... of a horse-or story.
<Pose Tracker> Tsubasa Seki has posed.
"Heh heh," Tsubasa grins, when Ichika leans over for a smooch. It's much cooler than what they're thinking on the inside: SHE LIKES IT!!
But then -- HORSE!
"I-I mean -- like -- like, motorbike-sized? People ride motorbikes? Right?" Tsubasa gestures around chest-height, which is, like, not the size of those massive giants pawing at the ground in front of them.
"That's right," the woman atop her horse says, and she's polite enough not to laugh, but, like, her words are breezy in the fashion of someone who'd like to. "We pushed a bit farther out today..."
And then she hums, as she leans down to examine the delinquents in front of her. City-slickers, she decides. "Do you want to meet Maple?" She asks, as she pats the side of her horse's neck. "She's very nice."
"Uh." Tsubasa has not stopped staring at the massive monster, but it does occur to them, in between FUCK THAT THING IS MASSIVE WHAT THE FUCK, that Ichika is a horse girl. And so -- "Y--yeah, that'd be great!"
"Just a moment," she says, as she nudges Maple along to a nearby rock and uses it to help her dismount. Now she's not atop a horse, Ichika can probably tell the weight she's carrying isn't just adipose tissue. "We're the Umatanis," she introduces them, as she grasps her horse's reins. "Every year for our anniversary, we travel out here to ride the trails... uma, get it?"
('Horse'. It means horse.)
... And Tsubasa does have to laugh at that, even facing down such a dangerous random encounter. "Uh, it's Seki," they introduce themself, in turn. "Like, Tsubasa. So I jus', like... pet her?" They ask, still a touch hesitant.
"That's right!" Mrs. Umatani encourages them. "Approach her from the side, since she can't see very well head-on, that's what I'm for... and don't move behind her, she has a nasty kick!"
"A... a nasty kick, huh," Tsubasa looks at the giant monster's legs.
"You'll be fine, sweetie," Mrs. Umatani assures them.
<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.
She does like it!! She also likes Horse!!
"I mean, true," Ichika says, "But..." Big!!
They pushed farther out today though, and Ichika smiles. "That's cool," she says. "We're just camped up the way. It's Tsubasa's first time out here..." But not hers! But meet her? Ichika blinks once--and Tsubasa is the first one to answer, because Ichika is busy internalizing a squee that would be entirely undignified for a leader like her.
"Yeah!" Ichika enthuses after.
Ichika can tell, and she looks a little surprised, because she can't actually hide her emotions all that well while she's being Excited. But she doesn't say anything about it. Instead... "Kawase," Ichika introduces herself. "Ichika."
And then she grins. "That's great. Uma..." She totally gets it.
But Ichika does approach--from the same side as Tsubasa. "She's so pretty," Ichika says again. "I always wanted a horse..."
She will reach out to stroke Maple. And, "Oh, it's fine," Ichika says to Tsubasa. "Don't worry about it!"
She is delighted.
<Pose Tracker> Tsubasa Seki has posed.
Maple's mane sparkles in the breeze as she utters a majestic whinney.
Tsubasa moves down a bit so Ichika can pet Maple's majestic mane. They kind of get up on tip-toes to try and look over her side, still marvelling at how big this horse is. But after a moment, they, too, make a cautious effort to pet the massive monster's shoulder.
"Whoa. She's like... way pricklier than I reckoned?" They're still, just, agape at this god damn monster truck of an animal.
"You're right, son," Mr. Umatani says, still atop his mighty steed. (Oak. His mighty steed is called Oak.) "That's why you get paintbrushes made out of horse hair. It's very neat."
Tsubasa... decides not to try and give this middle-aged married couple a lesson in gender and just go with it. "Uh... ain't she too hot, though?" They ask, because they're in a better position to see how the sweat's affecting her fur where it meets the saddle.
"Horses get very hot as they exercise," Mrs. Umatani explains, smiling. "That's why she's sweating so much -- it's normal for her, it's how she vents heat. She'd be in trouble if it was really humid, but on a day like this, she's fine... she'll just need a lot to drink when we get back!"
Ichika may note that Maple's eyelashes are, just, SO long. And she has the sweetest, softest whuffle... what a gentle creature...
<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.
Sparkle...! Ichika's eyes sparkle, too. What a lovely mane...
Maple and Oak! Like the Hidden Creatures professors! ...Or like the trees. Probably like the trees.
'Son'. Ichika glances at Tsubasa, but they're cool with it, so that's what counts. "Yeah! I used to get Sei-kun horsehair brushes," she explains. Talking about her ex is normal! He's an artist. But Tsubasa asks a good question, and Ichika is... busy stroking Maple's mane. "Wow..."
Oh wait, sweat. "Oh. Well, cool then," she says. So long. So sweet...
Ichika is busy being in heaven for the moment. "Maple..."
"I guess I'd sweat a lot too in all that..."
Not that Ichika isn't in all black and boots. Don't worry about it.
<Pose Tracker> Tsubasa Seki has posed.
"Oh, cool," Tsubasa nods. Talking about her ex is super normal, she's still friends with him!! "They work better'n th' other ones or somethin'?"
But the horse is... still massive. Still terrifying, but, like, Ichika's having a fucking blast, so Tsubasa isn't going to point that out.
"You're both very considerate of horses," Mrs. Umatani smiles, to them. "It's a wonderful trait to have."
Luckily, Maple's mane isn't terribly sweaty. It's just lovely! A little wiry, just like the Umetanis are saying, but it goes swish and whoosh and --
"GACK!!"
That's the sound of Maple swaying to the side and pinning Tsubasa against a tree. "Why's she tryna kill me?!"
"Oh -- oh dear," Mrs. Umatake manages not to laugh, as she urges Maple a few steps away, as Tsubasa proceeds to fall right on their ass. "That's not it, Seki-kun, she must have just gotten an itch and wanted to scratch it... are you all right, dear?"
"Uh," Tsubasa looks up at the massive murderous creature in front of them. "Yeah man, I'm cool?"
SERIOUSLY that thing must weigh like A THOUSAND KILOS?! (Tsubasa isn't overblowing this as much as it sounds; a thoroughbred like Maple probably weighs a good five hundred kilos.)
<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.
"For some things," Ichika confirms. "Art's all about the right tool for the right job. Like a lot of other stuff."
MASSIVE. But Ichika is indeed having a blast. Mrs. Umatani smiles, and Ichika beams back. "I love horses," she admits. "But I can't have one in the city..."
Well, she has a car. That will have to comfort her. It does a lot.
Swish! Whoosh--
"Ah!?" Ichika blinks and looks over to--
"Oh..."
Ichika laughs softly, "I guess when she wants to do something she wants to do it Right Then, huh?" the tall girl asks.
She pats Maple once and then moves to help Tsubasa up. "Well, thank you for letting us say hi to your horses," Ichika says, "Umatani-san, Umatani-san. We probably shouldn't keep you any longer."
"But it was great."
"Hope your ride goes nice!"
<Pose Tracker> Tsubasa Seki has posed.
"You should find a riding school!" Mrs. Umatani encourages Ichika. "They'll have horses you can ride there, even if you don't own one... it's a great way for young people to get more exposure to horses."
"There are even motorcycle-sized horses at some of them," Mr. Umatani adds, still a touch amused. "Though we call them 'ponies', Seki-san."
"Wait, so that ain't jus' a gamblin' thing?" Tsubasa blinks, baffled.
"Not at all," he chuckles. "They're smaller and stockier than horses... they pull carts more than they're ridden, though children can learn to ride on them."
Tragically, Tsubasa's hopes for more Horse Facts (well, their hope to get Ichika more Horse Facts) is cut short by THE HORSE BEING TERRIFYING! And Umatani smiles, shaking her head. "That's right... Maple can be very stubborn, that way. But she really was pleased to meet you! And so were we."
She safely leads Maple off a little further, to use another rock to mount herself back up, while Tsubasa gets hoisted up by Ichika. "Yeah, man, it was sweet as!" Tsubasa adds, as they brush the leaf-litter from their jeans. "Have a good trip!"
"You too!!" The Umatanis salute them, as they ride off...
Only for Tsubasa to look to Ichika, wide-eyed.
"When were you gonna tell me horses were fuckin' terrifying man???"
They're a bit freaked out by the GIANT HORSES, but...
... it's really hard to take seriously when they have a stick caught in their wig...
<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.
"Oh, yeah!" Ichika answers. But motorcycle-sized... Ichika laughs a little at that one. She leaves the explanations to the experts, though she's still smiling as they go. Ichika is getting more Horse Facts until she isn't, and they were pleased to meet them, too. Ichika waves. "Later!"
And Tsubasa... looks to Ichika.
"Huh?" she asks. "Oh, c'mon. They're great!" she says. "They are kinda big, though. I didn't realize you thought they were small..."
"Imagine how much bigger they are when you're a kid!"
That's probably not helping.
Ichika reaches out to take the stick, though--and then flushes red as she realizes she still has the flower in her hair, and did the whole time...
<Pose Tracker> Tsubasa Seki has posed.
"I mean, like, elephants and stuff, sure, they're big? But most animals are, like... small???" Tsubasa still looks baffled. "Like I figured, like... they were like, deer?"
Tsubasa has seen deer, obviously. Deer are just kind of a Japanese Creature.
"Oh, man..." Tsubasa is imagining it now. It's even more terrifying!
But -- stick! Tsubasa can't feel it up there, so it's a good thing Ichika notices. "Oh, thanks," they say, dipping their head so she can reach. Today's wig is... blond!! It's the wig Ichika got them.
"So, you gonna do what they said an' look up some ridin' school or somethin'?" They ask, as they straighten up. "Now ya got th' van, you'd be able to get out to one..."
<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.
"Are they?" Ichika wonders. "I mean, most animals you'll see in the city are small..." But deer are small. That's fine. And Tsubasa is now imagining it, until Ichika gets the stick. She smiles. "Sticks in your hair aren't as nice as flowers," she says.
But...
"Probably not," Ichika admits. "Like, it's a nice idea? But Daddy already spent a ton on my car, I'd feel bad asking for that much more right now... And anyway, I don't have time. A boyfriend, a partner, and--" She glances around, "Our... other stuff, and school?"
"Nah. I'll be happy just getting to meet one now and then."
<Pose Tracker> Tsubasa Seki has posed.
"Oh, uh... yeah, I guess." Tsubasa pauses. "Wait does that mean there are more massive animals out here or --"
Tsubasa is now rapidly re-evaluating how big they think boars are supposed to be. (Like... the size of a pig? (Wait, how big IS a pig, they've never fucking seen a pig -- (DUDE IT'S LIKE A FAT DOG PROBABLY?!)))
"Hah... guess not," Tsubasa shakes thier head, when Ichika says sticks don't have the same vibe flowers do. "But you were a total natural with yours, like, they totally rolled with it!" Of course they did, Tsubasa, they can tell you're on a date. A nature date.
"Huh... guess it'd be a bit of a time sink, huh," Tsubasa supposes, rubbing at the back of their neck. "Still, oughta look th' nearest place up, y'know? Even if you figure you jus' wanna go hang out with horses for a day or somethin'. Seems like th' sorta thing ya gotta, like, look for." Tsubasa will not be coming to Horse Time, but that doesn't mean Ichika wasn't captivated by the hell beast.
Tsubasa thinks, for a moment, of how unstoppable they'd be if Ichika were commanding God's most fearsome creature to crush all the rival gangs...
... but that reality is too metal to come to pass. "C'mon, less' keep goin'! See th' mountain an' shit!" They remembered the way Ichika put it... more or less.
<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.
"Not a ton here," Ichika is quick to reassure Tsubasa. "This is beginner trails, mostly. If we run into a bear or something I'll be real surprised." As long as they stick with the trail, anyway. Off the trails, well....
Ichika smiles, and doesn't mention because she doesn't know Tsubasa is thinking it that pigs are fucking huge.
"Yeah," she says. "It was nice. ...I really like it."
A time sink. "Hmm. Guess it can't hurt to look, maybe go for a day," she admits. That might be nice.
Ichika on a horse would be terrifying.
"Ah--"
Ichika laughs, and then takes Tsubasa's hand. "Great! C'mon, this way--I wanna show you the river!"
<Pose Tracker> Tsubasa Seki has posed.
"And bears are, like... big?" If bears are so big why are teddy bears so small, Ichika!!! "Oh wait, yeah, saw a documentary 'bout 'em once... yeah, guess bears is pre' big."
Tsubasa is playing it cool, like they don't look like O_O about the fact that nature is FUCKING HUGE, apparently.
(Perhaps Tsubasa will look up pigs later and swear at the computer monitor. They've just never had much reason to care about this stuff, man! Like, don't you forget about farm animals once you hti elementary school? Cows and goats and stuff basically exist to teach kids how to read????)
"You're a total flower babe, babe," Tsubasa grins.
And -- horses!! They can be for a day, not just an ongoing commitment. "Yeah, man! If they got horses out there you can jus' go hang out with, worth a day trip!" Beat. "Uh... maybe make it a thing with Hibari-chan or th' Princess or Shuyo-kun or somethin', tho'."
Tsubasa laughs, a touch awkward. "I thiiiink I might be scared a horses now I met 'em." Embarrassing!!! But they'll admit that to Ichika, even so.
Tsubasa grasps Ichika's hand as they're tugged on towards --
THE RIVER
Which is flowing quite calmly, around this bend. (The river's pretty tame on this trail, which is part of why it's considered a beginner's trail; elsewhere, there are rapids across dashing rocks and an unassuming tourist could very easily expire.) "Whoa," Tsubasa says, as they creep forward. "Thas'... comin' down off th' mountain, yeah? Man... so weird to think, like, ya follow this thing out long enough ya jus' hit th' fuckin' ocean..."
Tsubasa's eyes go O_O again as they look over the river rocks, but this time their eyes are all sparkly. They grab Ichika's arm as they point, whispering: "Hey man look at those cool birds!!!"
The brown dippers are dipping at each other!
<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.
"Real big." She's also seen documentaries!!! ...She used to watch a lot of those, actually, as long as they were about nature or animals.
"Yeah!" Ichika answers, because she's not quite as cute as Yua who would've said 'Yay!' in that circumstance. Instead, "Hmmm, yeah. And sure, sure--Maybe the Princess'd like it..."
Ichika kisses Tsubasa on the cheek. "But you still hung on long enough for me to get to hang out with Maple," she says. "That's OK. They are pretty big..."
But suddenly--
The river! "Right!" Ichika says. "Pure water, coming down the mountain... out to the ocean. Nature connects everywhere, you know? We forget about that in the city, but out here..."
But?
"Oh!" Ichika quiets then, "Oh, wow! Lucky!" she says more softly. Birds...
Ichika smiles. "Birds are great, huh?"
<Pose Tracker> Tsubasa Seki has posed.
"Yeah, I bet th' Princess'd be super into it?" Tsubasa guesses. "She once told me how she like, imported these books called th' 'Bridle Club' from America 'cuz she was so into it..." Clearly the Princess can read English.
(According to the Princess, there was a spinoff targeted at older teens where the girls were older and it became the Bridal Club... and she assured them that pun made perfect sense in English.)
Tsubasa is distracted from American book titles, though, by another smooch. "Haha... 'course I did, man! You're way inta horses, I weren't gonna let 'em get away without lettin' you pet 'em!" And Tsubasa is brave enough to exist in the presence of the terrifying huge creature! Until said creature crushes them a bit, anyway.
Also crushing: the river! But mostly from the weight of its ANCIENT PRESENCE. "Yeah, man, it's so weird, like... like, they teach us 'bout this shit in school, but it ain't like seein' it, y'know? Like, th' whole... water cycle an' shit."
And the BIRDS in the WATER and Tsubasa sure does feel lucky!! "Man, wish I knew what kinda birds they was... but look at 'em, man, they doin' a little dance! That's like, th' best shit!!" Bob bob, bob bob... when the birds bob, Tsubasa is happy!
"Birds are like, my favourite, man," Tsubasa grins. "Ain't never met a bird I ain't liked."
(This may or may not spell disaster for Tsubasa in the future. Disaster, as it happens, starts with 'J'...)
<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.
"Whoa," Ichika says. "Imported books. I guess she's been smart like that for a while though..." Ichika's still impressed. She does not know about the Bridal Club. Instead, though--"...Yeah," she says. "I still have that unicorn Ryuji-kun got me..." And she met a unicorn! In Kasugayama's bomb shelter! But that was a different matter. "I really appreciate it," Ichika says. "And they were so nice! ...Guess being pregnant doesn't stop you riding a horse, either. A lot of things you'd want to avoid, but people have been riding horses for a long time..."
But the river... "Right," Ichika agrees. "It reminds you... that people are part of something. That we're tied to more than just what we worry about."
Birds... "Maybe..." She considers. She'll have to get Tsubasa some birdwatching books! "They're super cute," Ichika agrees. "I love their dance. Birds dance for each other for... Lots of shit, I think."
Tsubasa seems happy, too. Ichika beams. "Yeah. I like birds, but not like you like birds. ...It's really nice to see you light up, looking at them."
<Pose Tracker> Tsubasa Seki has posed.
"Yeah man, she's stupid good at English. She showed me her latest one an' it was like... fuckin' hieroglyphs, man. Like, I know they say there's only like 26 symbols in English, but like -- there's so many different rules for how each of 'em sounds? Man, I can't never figure it out." English is definitely not one of those academic subjects Tsubasa is just better at.
"But that unicorn was hella cute, man." Tsubasa pauses, though, double taking at Ichika. "Wait, so she was -- dude, seriously?" Tsubasa must have thought she was just... kinda Big. "Man. Guess ya really can do 'light exercise' or whatever..."
... the quotes are pretty audible to Ichika, which means that they read that somewhere, which means they've been looking it up.
"Yeah man, like, shit... reminds me a when we went to Ebisu Beach th' first time," Tsubasa reflects, looking down at the water. "I was like... no way there's that much water? So I tried swimmin' out, but th' water got pre' deep, an' like, I was still a kid, so I got a bit freaked out an' came back... an' even tho' I'd swum out there, th' horizon didn't look no closer than when I was on th' shore."
They're still grinning about the birds, though. "Yeah, man, it's like... birds got all this communication shit goin' on. That's why they got th' singin' voices too, right? All hollerin' like 'this is my tree if you touch it I'll kick your ass!' or 'hey guys, I'm single!' or 'there's a cat over here and I'm freakin' out!' or whatever. Like... when I was growin' up, we had a cockatiel, yeah? Name a Matcha, he was, like, seriously the best, man... like he was the only one happy to see me at th' end there. When I was fuckin' with me name, that's why I went with Tsubasa to begin with... 'cuz I figured he could fly outta that shit. Suits me way better'n flowers, man..."
(If 'uma' is a horse, 'tsubasa' is a wing... and a 'tsubaki' is a type of camellia.)
<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.
"It's cool, though. It's nice to see her good at stuff." Ichika sure isn't good at that stuff. But--
"Yeah!" Ichika says, and recognizes that tone--"Mm-hm. You wouldn't want to go galloping around or whatever, but a nice easy ride sounds OK."
But, "...Wow, yeah..." The beach, and the horizon. "For me it was going out into the mountains that did it most."
It's nostalgic.
But, "Hmm. Yeah..."
She smiles. "Birds suit you real well," she says, and focuses on that instead of how sad just the bird wanted to see them--a bird they haven't gotten to see in a while, presumably. "Leave the flowers to me," Ichika says. "...You're great like you are."
"I can't wait to see you fly."
<Pose Tracker> Tsubasa Seki has posed.
Tsubasa wonders, briefly, how riding a horse can ever be nice and easy when they might at any moment decide to roll over and CRUSH YOU INTO THE DIRT?
.............................
Maybe horses can't roll, Tsubasa assures themself. With those big gangly legs, they probably just, like, go forward really quickly? Yeah.
SO WHAT'S TO STOP THE HORSE FROM GOING FORWARD REALLY QUICKLY AND --
Anyway, the mountains! "Yeah," Tsubasa smiles. "I can see why ya like 'em so much. It's cool up here, like... ain't as quiet as I thought it woulda been? They always say 'oh it's so quiet' in like, movies an' stuff, but I'm pre' sure those cicadas are holdin' a mosh pit back there."
Well, that's one word for it. Does that mean all cicadas are metalheads...?
Tsubasa's pretty happy to focus on how cool birds are, as a rule, and they look super jazzed to hear how well birds suit them. "Yeah, ya reckon? Yeah..."
It's their turn to lean forward and kiss Ichika, now. (They have to get on their toes a bit; don't worry about it.) "I can fly better 'cuz you with me, babe," Tsubasa smiles, warmly.
<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.
The mountains! "Yeah," Ichika says. "Nope. Not that quiet at all. But it's not the kind of noise that stresses me out, either. It's... just how it is." Pause. "..Heheh. A mosh pit for cicadas. Yeah, I buy that."
But birds... "I do," Ichika answers, and she leans down to Tsubasa can kiss her more easily. "Happy to hear that," Ichika says.
"I want that to always be true."
She reaches for Tsubasa's hand. "...C'mon. Let's walk a little more."
<Pose Tracker> Tsubasa Seki has posed.
"Yeah, man, it's like... all harmonious an' shit." Tsubasa feels kind of like they're interrupting??? But, like, ICHIKA knows her way around here pretty well, so they're probably not uninvited...
"'Course, man," they smile. "Ichika... I don't reckon you'll ever clip my wings." They trust her!
Which might explain why they slip their hand into hers, heading forward. "Sure," and they're still smiling. "I wanna see it with ya..."