2736/Emi Hoshino Doesn't Need Any Guidance, Counselor! (she totally does)

Emi Hoshino Doesn't Need Any Guidance, Counselor! (she totally does)
Date of Scene:	14 August 2025
Location:	Campus Gardens
Synopsis:	Local delinquent annoys guidance counselor.
Cast of Characters:	Emi Hoshino, Kyouka Inai

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Emi Hoshino has posed:
The cool morning breeze carries with it the scent of those distinct, summer scents of the Radiant Heart gardens, but on this fine morning there is something else on the wind: the stark tang of cigarette smoke.

It's source is a girl sitting with her back against one of the dormant cherry blossom tree, sitting there like she owns the morning all to herself. Shoulders loose, an ankle resting lazily against one knee, sitting in both the shade offered by its branches and so too by the black parasol she holds lazily in her free hand. She's watching that smoke drift away over the flowers and stones, smoothing the ruffles of her gothic dress before she taps the ash into a little spider-shaped ashtray she brought with her for just this occasion.

It is not the *only* spider with the goth-girl either. Sitting on her shoulder is a vibrantly colored blue and green spider that looks whose body is at least the size of an average-sized person's palm.

The two of them just seems to be enjoying the moment. The calm.

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    The calm of the morning is quickly shattered by the arrival of an authority figure- or at least what attempts to pass as one, in the form of Kyouka Inai. Wearing her usual 'work uniform' of black pressed slacks and a button-down white womens' dress shirt, she appears from around one of the hedges, rectangular sunglasses perched as-ever upon her face but her normal leather jacket abandoned back at home due to the summer heat. The sleeves of her shirt are even unbuttoned and rolled up her forearms.

    It's unclear what she's doing, and if she were coming out here to sneak a cigarette herself there's no evidence of that and she certainly wouldn't admit it. Regardless, she pauses upon seeing the girl sitting beneath the tree, grey eyes behind her sunglasses studying a moment before she resumes her approach.

    "Hey kid," She greets, her tone not angry or chiding, just stating facts, "No smoking on campus." She's been told this often enough she should know.

Emi Hoshino has posed:
Oh no. An -authority-.

There's a slight sigh from Emi before she responds with a mien that can only be described as something akin to the height of indolence.

"How silly of me to forget," she remarks. She makes no move to put out her cigarette, though, not yet. Instead, she has another little puff on it first. She's -so- rebellious, a crooked grin coming across her face.

"Emi," begins the spider, it's voice an arch-tweee and feminine thing, whaps Emi with its forelegs on her arm before hissing, "Do you have to do this -every- time?!"

Emi nods her head, lazily in answer. It's not like she has any reason to suspect that Kyouka can see that spider just yet.

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    Kyouka gives no sign she can see the spider, which isn't because she can't but is actually because things like talking spiders are relatively normal for her (not spiders in particular, just 'things which talk') to the point where it's not worth commenting upon unless she needs to address it directly.

    Instead, still appearing unphased, not angry or even annoyed, she moves forward with surprising quickness and plucks the cigarette straight from Emi's fingers, deftly crushing it between her own fingers before tossing it into a convenient nearby trash can (making sure it's thoroughly extinguished first, of course).

    "Look, kid, I don't care if you smoke, I really don't, but if you do it here you're going to get caught and then I'm going to have to do paperwork, and I don't have time for it. So do me a favor and move along, huh? Find someplace better if you're going to break rules." If anything she sounds slightly exasperated, the prospect of paperwork far more offending to her than some kid sneaking a smoke.

Emi Hoshino has posed:
That sudden movement catches Emi off guard and there's an immediately flinch at the nearness required to take it from her, a brief moment of fear flickering across her face before its squelched under tighter control.

She stares up at her for a long moment, then bursts out laughing at the tone with which it has all been expressed.

"All right. If there's one thing I suppose I can empathize with a desire to avoid the burdens of actual -work-. She straightens, scraping her back against the rough bark of the tree, and snaps her parasol shut. "You could have at least let me finish," she grumbles. Those things are hard to come by at her age!

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    There are plenty of reasons to fear Kyouka Inai if you are a 'bad guy' but in her books, sneaking a cigarette on school grounds doesn't make you bad. Just foolish. And she's far from in a position to criticize anyone else for being foolish, at least in this way.

    At the grumbling, she just shakes her head, smirking a little bit. "Sorry, I have to at least pretend to do the job they pay me for, and the longer you sit there filling the air with easily-smellable cigarette smoke the greater the chances someone else is going to notice."

    She glances up at the sky, then back down to Emi. "Don't you have class or something?" Perhaps hoping she can send the girl on her way and stop worrying about it.

Emi Hoshino has posed:
"Nope. On break," is Emi's cheerful answer -- cheerful because something in Kyouka's tone suggests to Emi that this might actually annoy her. She's gonna take a shot at it, anyway. "I was just thinking I might smoke a little, stretch my arms out over my head, maybe even take a nap. Maybe even find new and innovative ways to break some rules. Hard to say, hard to say." She bows her head, briefly, bangs falling in front of her face and making her look like she just stepped out of a television set, or is set to contort her way down a set of stairs while doing a death rattle. The impact of this is ruined -slightly- by the pink strands of hair. She raises a hand and sweeps it over her face, staring at Kyouka with her blue eye as opposed to her green one.

"What is it you're supposed to be?" she asks, a wry note entering her voice.

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    Kyouka quirks a brow at the question, if not the cheeky answer, which is obviously constructed to be annoying and thus is less annoying for its obviousness. She is not the sort to be annoyed by someone's attempts to annoy her- unless they're doing something which is actually going to cause trouble for her, which at the moment Emi is not. At least, if she's really on a legitimate break and not playing hooky.

    "What am I supposed to be? Well, I'm supposed to be a guidance counselor. Which means it's technically my job to tell you to stop smoking and go study, or something." She does not add that this job is almost entirely just a cover for the actual reason she was hired, which is to advise and train new magical students. It's hardly a secret at all, at least if you are one of said magical students.

Emi Hoshino has posed:
"...wait."

The wheels turn in Emi's head as Kyouka announces her occupation and she slowly turns her head to stare at her. "Inai-Sensei? That's YOU?" She asks, a note of disbelief creeping into her tone. She'd heard of her through others -- chiefly Usagi -- but this is clearly -not- who she expecting that to be if she had much in the way of expectation at all.

The spider on her shoulder is now staring at her again, too before it hops effortlessly from Emi's shoulders onto the tree branch above her. Just gaining some space. Just in case.

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    In addition to being a guidance counselor, there's probably only a few perpetually-shades-wearing-bright-redheaded teachers around so she is fairly recognizable. "Yes that's me," She says, sounding mildly annoyed by the disbelief if nothing else, as if she feels there shouldn't be any question if her reputation precedes her.

    Her eyes follow the spider, which prove that she can in fact see it, although she continues to make no comment on it. "Who are you?" She then asks, with some reluctance, as if recognizing the fact that she needs to care about this troublemaker but being unenthusiastic about it.

Emi Hoshino has posed:
Emi takes note of that. She takes note of a lot of things. She's silent for a moment in the face of her question.

"Emi," she finally offers, softly, "Emi Hoshino." She tightens her little hands into fists for a moment, stretching her fingers out before pushing herself to her feet and keeping a watch on her with her mismatched eyes. "Oneiric Guardian Emi, I suppose, I can say." She folds her arms across her chest.

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    Kyouka makes no appearance that she was going to press for more information, but seems to take it in without complaint as the girl rises to her feet. She also makes no move to suggest she is going to apprehend, interfere, or otherwise restrain the girl, though she keeps her eyes on her.

    "Oh, I think I've heard of you." She says, equally casual to her previous statements, and likely also from Usagi, whom (as Emi may know) she speaks to regularly. "Good to finally lay eyes on you, I guess. Sorry, I've been pretty busy so I haven't been doing the introduction rounds the way I'm probably supposed to."

    She shrugs her shoulders, then reaches into a pocket and pulls out a business card. It has her name on one side, inscribed over the logo of Radiant Heart Academy, as well as a phone number. She holds it out.

    "Gimme a call if you ever need, y'know. Guidance." It's clear she doesn't mean the 'stop smoking, go to class' kind of guidance.

Emi Hoshino has posed:
"Oh good. I've been heard of," remarks Emi, clearly not loving that even if she knows it's inevitable. Seems like 'being seen and heard' are not high on her list of favorite things.

She plucks the card from her hand and eyes it openly for a long moment. "Yeah, sure," she answers.

"Yeah, I'll... bear that in mind, I guess. Honestly, I guess this was inevitable, eh?" She closes her eyes a moment.

"Do you know much about what it is I do?" she asks.

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    "Don't start thinking that means you're famous or anything," Kyouka says wryly. "It's my job to hear about things." It seems Emi would prefer it that way, anyway.

    At the question about 'what she does', Kyouka gives a shrug. "Only as much as I know about what anyone in the game does." Kill monsters, fight bad guys, save the world. It's dressed up different ways but it all boils down to the same thing.

Emi Hoshino has posed:
"We should change that, then," murmurs Emi, quiet, eyes down for a lengthy moment. She turns the card over in her hands.

"It's probably a good idea for you to see first hand. Do you have bad dreams?" She asks, staring at the card still, her voice distant. She's clearly contemplating something.

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    "Probably." Kyouka agrees, although at the question of bad dreams, she gives the girl a look. "Who doesn't? But I don't welcome other people poking around in my head, I'll say that right now."

    She sighs. "Anyway, it's been good to finally meet you, but I really do have some stuff I need to do, so.." She meanders back towards the pathway out of the garden.

    "No smoking on campus, alright? I'm not kidding about the paperwork." And with that, she's gone again. But now you have her phone number.