Timid Ronin

The pause makes him feel like he's committing some kind of social blunder. The question Masanosuke asks doesn't really dispel that feeling. Raiden puts a hand up in denial. "Oh-- no. As in, just thunder."

Could he even explain where the name came from? He's getting the feeling that this man might not be familiar with airplanes.

Masa's head tilts as he mulls on words. Come to think of it, there's that kind of memory somewhere at the back of his head as well. How strange...

" Ahh. I see... " Masa nods with a hum, " it is a fine name. "

A respectable one for sure. He feels like it might fit this stranger, although granted since it's their first meeting, it is a superficial notion.

Papa is too good. He should be more selfish! Anya is definitely adding, "teach Gregor how to be selfish" to her list (which she will immediately forget within the next few minutes). She nods happily, looking pleased with herself.

"Yup! I can say lots of things about papa. He's really nice, and takes good care of me! He's..." what does he do as a job? She isn't really sure actually, she mostly just imagines he's off doing detective things since, for some reason, she's decided that's the best job for him aesthetically. "I think he does detectivey things." He absolutely does not.

She happily browses the shelves, looking back at Masa and then back up the shelves.

Wasn't there some candy or something that he was thinking about before?

The stick candies?

" Ah, yes, of course. "

When Anya calls for his help Masa quickly reaches over.

" These.... " he says as he scoops some in.

His eyes glow in the din of the library, and while he does endeavor not to be eerie to an organic being, the library was closed. Perhaps he had not locked the door to the small section of campus.

"Perhaps you require a last-minute text for an assignment?"

It was these thoughts and some questions that led him here, fairly late in the evening. He peeks in from the door, slowly moving the door to enter. Like that he's barely in when a light in the dark approaches him.

" AHHHH?! "

His voice and shoulders jump up quite a bit and his hand automatically reaches towards his now wooden sword. Though his hand freezes on it he doesn't draw but instead stands there, nervously staring at .....

He's not sure what he's looking at, now that he thinks of it.

" Ah, I am terribly sorry, I did not mean to be loud but..."

He awkwardly rubs at the back of his neck, making a contemplative noise. "Of course I'll have you, but... hm... monsters uh... w-well, they're kind of a new problem?"

"Er..." How does he begin with this... "There was a situation a while ago, where uh..." How does he explain people getting split into two different versions of themselves? Sinclair, thankfully, didn't experience that, but he sure did see other people dealing with it and saw the aftermath. "U-uh, anyway, something happened, and now there's... monsters. They're not too much trouble, and there isn't a lot of them in populated areas, but enough to be an issue for people here that aren't made for combat."

Sinclair isn't exactly happy with his explanation, but it... probably gets the point across.

" ... right now, I only own a wooden sword. "

His hand instinctively lands on it.

" That will not be enough will it not? "

" I will have to be mindful where I walk then. "

How strange this place is... but there is little to do about it it seems, other than caution. He glances back at the other now.

"You take tea, I assume? Green or black?"

Masa's body didn't smell of coffee like some drinkers of that unholy broth carried around in their clothes. He was already levitating the teapot to refill itself with water, while various canisters of teas were floating over for Masa's selection.

" Coffee is not commonly drank where I am from. "

It had in fact been quite the surprise to learn how such bitter beverage was enjoyed in widespread. He did see some taking theirs with sugar and sweetening things but he can't imagine he'd enjoy it even if he did that...

Once again, he's slightly shocked, watching in awe as the teas float to his directions. The collection is quite wide in variety, he notices, many completely strange. For now, he'd like something that was new but also wouldn't likely hold any surprises.

" ...t-then perhaps this peach flavoured...? "

She leans nearer the window, eyes passing over the baked goods. There seemed to countless. She peers to the man, matching his look of shock with her own of confusion. “They aren’t likely to miss one. If they made all of this, they can replace what you take. How else will you get something from here?”

" That is not right! "

" If everyone thought the same what would become of this store? And I 'd also hate to be c-- "

He flinches when a tulip pops out from his wrist, slowly opening up there.His eyes grow larger as his hands come to clasp over his mouth.

PHYSICAL PRESENCE AND GESTURE.

1. How do they move and carry themselves? Pace, rhythm, gestures, energy?

2. How much physical space do they use, active and at rest?

3. How do they position themselves in a group? Do they like to be the center of attention, or do they hang back at the edges of a crowd?

4. What is their size and build? How does it influence how they use their body, if it does?

5. How do they dress? What styles, colors, accessories, and other possessions do they favor? Why?

6. What are they like in motion–in different environments, and in different activities? What causes the differences between these?

7. How do they physically engage with other people, inanimate objects, and their environment? What causes the differences between these?

8. Where and when do they seem most and least at ease? Why? How can you tell?

9. How do they manifest energy, exhaustion, tension, or other strong emotions?

10. What energizes and drains them most?

11. How are they vocally expressive? What kind of voice, accent, tones, inflections, volume, phrases and slang, and manner of speaking do they use?

12. How are they bodily expressive? How do they use nonverbal cues such as their posture, stance, eyes, eyebrows, mouths, and hands?

DISPOSITION AND TEMPERAMENT.

13. How do they greet the world — what is their typical attitude towards life? How does it differ in different circumstances, or towards different subjects? Why do they take these attitudes, and why do they change? How do these tend to be expressed?

14. What do they care deeply about? What kind of loyalties, commitments, moral codes, life philosophies, passions, callings, or spirituality and faith do they have? How do these tend to be expressed?

15. What kind of inner life do they have — rich and imaginative? Calculating and practical? Full of doubts and fears? Does it find any sort of outlet in their lives?

16. Do they dream? What are those dreams like?

17. Are they more shaped by nature or nurture — who they are, or what has happened to them? How have these shaped who they’ve become as a person?

18. What kind of person could they become in the future? What are some developmental paths that they could take, (best, worst, most likely?) what would cause them to come to pass, and what consequences might they have? What paths would you especially like to see, and why?

CONNECTIONS WITH OTHERS.

19. How do they behave within a group? What role(s) do they take? Does this differ if they know and trust the group, versus finding themselves in a group of strangers? Why?

20. What kind of individual relationships do they have with others, and how do they behave in them? How are they different between intimate relationships like friends, family, and lovers versus more impersonal relationships?

21. What kind of relationships do they tend to intentionally seek out versus actually cultivate? What kind of social contact do they prefer, and why?

22. How do people respond to them, and why might these responses differ?

23. How do they respond to difficult social moments? What makes them consider a social situation difficult?

24. How do they present themselves socially? What distinguishes their “persona” from their “true self”, and what causes that difference?

25. What do they need and want out of relationships, and how do they go about getting it?

26. How do they view and feel about relationships, and how might this manifest in how they handle them, if it does?

ACTIVITIES AND PREFERENCES.

27. What do they strongly like and dislike, in any category? Why?

28. What are they likely to do if they have the opportunity, resources, and time to accomplish it? Why?

29. What kind of activities, interests, and hobbies do they have? What significance and impact do these have in their lives, both positive and negative?

30. What is their preferred level of activity and stimulation? How do they cope if they get either too little or too much?

31. Is there anything that counts as a “dealbreaker” for them, positively or negatively? What makes things go smoothly, and what spoils an activity or ruins their day? Why?

32. Do they have any “props” that are a significant part of their life, identity, activities, or self-presentation somehow? What are they, how are they used, and why are they so significant? How would these props’ absence impact them, how would they compensate, and why?

THINKING AND LEARNING.

33. How do they learn about the world–what is their preferred learning style? Hands-on learning with trial and error? Research, reading, and note-taking? Observation or rote memorization? Inductive or deductive reasoning? Seeking patterns and organization? Taking things apart and putting them back together? Creative processing via discussing, writing about, or dramatizing things?

34. How do they understand the world–what kind of worldview and thought processes do they have? Why?

35. How and why do they internalize knowledge? What effect has that had on them?

36. How much do they rely on their minds and intellect, versus other approaches like relying on instinct, intuition, faith and spirituality, or emotions? What is their opinion on this?

37. Have they had any special education or training that colors their means of learning about or understanding the world? Conversely, do they lack some kind of education considered essential in their world? What kind of impact has this addition or lack had on them?

38. Is there anything they wish they could change about their worldview or thought processes? What, and why?

39. What sort of questions or thoughts recur in their lives, either specifically or as a theme? Why are these never answered, or answered permanently to their satisfaction?

40. What do they wonder about? What sparks their curiosity and imagination, and why? How is this expressed, if it is?

FREE FOR ALL.

41. What associations do they bring to mind? Words or phrases, images, metaphors or motifs? Why?

" This? Eating a large amount of sugar helps keep my thoughts sharp. My cognition works at a fast pace, and so my brain burns away calories just as quickly as I consume them, " he explains as a spoonful of shaved ice finds its way into his mouth.

" I'm the type of person who works well under pressure, but these circumstances are unusual, even for me. I will be working at all hours for the time being, " L shifts in his seat, and points his spoon to the sticky plate of dango sitting in front of the other man at the table.

Masa is in so awe of this information that he forgets the whole he'd been staring this stranger - or rather just the shaved ice- so intently he'd been spotted. He'd seen shaved ice before but these syrups looked far more colourful than he'd ever witnessed...

" It is impressive that you have already found employment... " Masa notes, mostly out of politeness for he's still far more taken by the treat.

" Hm? "

Masa looks down to his plate.

" Um... "

“So get something.”

She replies, an expression curious and yet all the same unfamiliar with the common workings of commerce.

Masa almost jumps away from the stranger as she makes her appearance. His upper body does move just a little bit away but otherwise he remains in place staring the stranger in shock.

Pride swells in his chest and the pirate beams at the echo of his name. “Ah! So you’ve heard of me, have you?” Perhaps Akitsu’s era and his own were one and the same. He finds himself hopeful. Who and what else did Akitsu know?

He can't quite focus on himself anymore when this stranger has revealed to be an enormous figure. He could swear the illustration he's seen looked a little different but somehow Masa doesn't find it in him to doubt his words.

" All of that and more! " he continues with intense tone of speech, bringing his hand over his mouth out of sheer shock for a second. He moves it away soon however, seemingly relaxing a smidgen.

" The fact that you have set your name onto history is already most impressive! Of course there are people that might look down on you for your loss but-- "

Masa freezes onto his place, growing stiff and nervous once more: