in the name of the moon

"Well, some knowledge is able to pass on, but as a whole, when you use a master seal, your old skills can make way for better ones - you can usually learn more potent skills after master seals! Like becoming a Sage, who can use healing magic as well as generally more powerful elemental magic. But yes, the entire specifics of magic in my realm can be explained as ‘complex’ in a nutshell."

A pause, his eyes slightly widening at the information the madam said: you…you could use more than one potent skill here?! That was…simply incredible, a feat unheard of back home: if he learned that, then hopefully finding a way out of here would be a great deal easier. "That sounds a good idea - especially if I wish to use my skills to attempt finding a way out. Speaking of magic…perhaps it may be some of my imagination, but there’s a faint sense…of magic from you, too…?” Tilting his head slightly to contemplate this, he then mused, looking sheepish: "W-well, I do not wish to pry, everyone needs their secrets. I shall not ask of it more if you do not wish me to."

More politeness from the mage, there.

"Mhm! I think we should all be trying our very best with the resources we have to --"

The words caught on her tongue, brows furrowing as she considered his latter question. She should have realized that if he were magical, in a way, then he might somehow be able to discern that there was something other about her person. Usagi found herself torn, worrying her bottom lip in thought. It was true that she had already decided that she rather liked Laurent, and she couldn't sense any sort of ill-intent from him, but...If she revealed herself to him as Sailor Moon, then there was the potential that he may be placed in harms way, as a result. 

It wouldn't be the first time something like that happened...and it's already bad enough that we're both stuck here! I don't want to be responsible for endangering him...

On the other hand, Usagi wanted to make friends here, and friendship must be based on trust and honesty in order to flourish. 

She smiled encouragingly and shook her head, long tendrils of hair fluttering gently as they caught on the wind. "No, it's fine. You're not prying, or anything. I'm sorry, Laurent. I wan't being very honest with you...Maybe I should have explained properly from the beginning, but I wanted to be sure that -- It was unfair of me to judge you before I even knew your name. Please, forgive me."

Cooking was something he had always done. His comrades were not big on doing it, so he took on the responsibility himself, often making sure there was a meal on the table, or that a meal was on the way, at least. Growing up, he hadn’t had the luxury of learning to read and write, so when he did finally learn, he hadn’t been overly interested. It had been wonderful to learn, but cooking didn’t require much more than a innate ability he already seemed to have.

The kitchen was fully stocked with food thankfully, and Orca sought solace there while he cooked. Some type of stir fry, nothing overly difficult, but enough to keep himself preoccupied. When it was finished, he served himself and put the extras in a larger bowl, taking that along with him. Walking out to sit at a table, he found one of them to be occupied already.

                                          So…

Sit at an empty one, maybe. Though that would seem rude— In the end, he decided on sitting at the same table as the girl, just at the opposite end. Placing the bowl of extras in front of him, he glanced at her before bringing his gaze back to his own food.

      “ There’s extra…if you want it. ”

The kitchen had swiftly become one of her favorite haunts, which was no real surprise, but would definitely become something of a problem in the future. She'd already acknowledged the health hazard is posed, but simply couldn't motivate herself to head to the gym. Maybe some other time...

For now, there was a plethora of delicious meals to ingest. The food here seemed to be an eclectic mix of familiar and foreign, and she was very interested in familiarizing herself with all of them. There was one little problem: she certainly wasn't the cook her friend, Kino Makoto, was -- which led her to her present dilemma. 

"Hungry in a kitchen...How pathetic," Usagi mused aloud, sighing heavily as she propped her head up in her hands and stared longingly in the direction the mouth-watering aroma was wafting from, stomach growling loudly. "I wonder if the kitchen would burn down if I tried...?"

She was promptly distracted by the arrival of the person responsible for creating the extremely appealing scent, the contents of the containers he carried causing her to sit up straight, licking her lips slightly to make sure she wasn't drooling as bad as she thought she might be. When he'd sat down and made his offer, the blonde nearly cried out of happiness. I won't have to worry about burning the place down for now! 

Using the table to support herself, she leaned over to reach the bowl of extras as she exclaimed excitedly, "Really, really?! Don't mind if I do! It smells so good~ Did you make this yourself? That's so cool!"

"Are you certain? It sounds a lot like a nickname of sorts, but I shall take your word for it: not that I know a great deal of ‘nicknames’ in the first place, but I’d better stop myself there lest I go off on a spree of information - I tend to get rather carried away when musing facts or possibilities aloud." The mage rubbed the bridge of his nose at that honest statement, before nodding.

"I cannot say for certain, but given the science and technology here is much different from home, I agree that I must have come a long way. Though I plan on attempting to find a possible escape, to get used to such strangeness may aid my mission greatly - perhaps this ‘science’ I know little of can be used in some magic way I don’t know yet, to make an escape. Now, to change the topic to your questions of magic, I shall answer them as best I can."

A pause, before he mused: "Dark Magic often involves hexes, dark arts - essentially, it is exactly what it’s name implies, ‘dark arts’. It is not a magic to be used lightly, indeed. I was not a teacher, but I did give advice to my friends to try and keep an eye on them. But no, nobody can be two things at once. If you wanted to change from a mage to, say, another kind of specality such as a Dark Knight, you would need to use a magical artifact called a Master Seal or  a Second Seal - Master Seals tend to change people to stronger specalities, though. It’s rather complicated…I do apologize if it sounds confusing, but that’s as much as I can summarize it given it’s sheer information."

Usagi decided then and there that she rather liked this strange male. Although he was strange, indeed, he was honest and forthcoming, traits that the blonde valued very much in others. He seemed aware of the oddity of his ways, so she didn't feel as if she had to awkwardly avoid pointing them out -- And he was remarkably kind in a way that Usagi hadn't exactly been expecting from anyone that she met here. 

Not that she didn't generally expect to find the best in others...It just hadn't seemed too likely, given the situation.

"...Dark Arts?" The recurring mention of the word dark seemed familiar to her, for some reason. "Master Seal? Second Seal? Ah, you're right! It is pretty confusing! I don't see why you couldn't retain some of your knowledge from your former...specialty, if you change it, but the process sounds complex, so maybe that's why --"

She'd tried to make herself sound smarter. Did  it work?

Placing a finger in the air victoriously, as if she'd just come to some important conclusion after intense thought, when in fact something had just occurred to her out of the blue, she said, "Well, you know, it doesn't work like that here...! Many people can be two things at once, with two sets of equally important skills. I'll just bet if you take a look in the library, you'll be able to find lots of books on modern science and electricity and things -- If you study them, you'll become something like a scientist, and then you'll be a Dark Mage and a scientist! I think that would suit you somehow, Laurent~"

A serious nod was given by Laurent, despite him still feeling rather the effects of his own social awkardness quite heavy at this point (good Naga, that would be a very strange thing for the one he was connected with to feel - he would have to apologize for it if he met them later) - "Indeed. It seems quite clear to me that nobody currently in this location has come here of their own will: well, nobody with these marks on them, anyway?" He paused to raise his own arm, the sleeves of his robe dropping slightly to reveal a symbol akin to to the madam’s own.

Yet, it was clear his symbol was different - though it was the same shape and general design, it also had a lot of strange curls around it. Maybe another way those ‘fated’ could see their partner - if they had the same symbol? Who knew. "Laurent-san? Is that some kind of…n-nickname?”

The mage blinked, his stoic mask completely caught off-guard by it - it happened every single time Morgan gave him a childish nickname as well, and sadly (much to his own inner sighs) he was unable to NOT be caught off guard by it this time either.

"N-no, just Laurent is fine. I wouldn’t wish for it to be an overly intricate title you might not remember. But I see…it is very informative to know that people feel that way about magic. It would indeed explain a good deal about the strange looks and glances I have been getting up to this point."

A pause, he taking a moment to try and summarize magic in general - but it was a long subject no matter what, so -

“As for where I learnt it - when people grow to a certain age in my realm, usually they discover for themselves what their ‘natural element’ is and if they can use magic or not: it’s…like something you’re born with. Using tomes such as the one I carry here calls upon this natural energy and allows you to use spells offensively - though you can use the natural energy for more mundane things without the books if need be. Because I am a Dark Mage, I am best at using dark Magic - though I’m good at Wind Magic too. Er. That didn’t get too lengthy, did it?” Concerned Laurent mode strikes yet again.

It shouldn't have been relieving to see the black marking upon Laurent's wrist, but it was; as far as Usagi was concerned, this meant that he truly was 'on her side.' At the very least, she didn't believe that whoever was in charge of this place would willingly shackle themselves to another. That seemed only a sadistic form of entertainment. 

"N-No...It's not an 'intricate title or a nickname, or anything like that -- But if that's what you prefer!" The blonde didn't really know how to explain things like polite suffixes or cultural differences, so she supposed that it would be best to let it slide for now. "It sounds as if you have come a far way from your home, Laurent-sa...Laurent. Don't worry, though! I'm sure that soon enough, things that seem strange will eventually become so commonplace, that you'll not even pause!"

Usagi wasn't sure if she were trying to convince him or herself, at this point. She could not accept her imprisonment here, nor the distance that separated her from her loved ones, but perhaps -- Perhaps with time, the idea of being attached to another in such an irrevocably personal way would not be so offensive. Although she could be somewhat headstrong, the blonde had often been forced to 'adapt on her feet,' so to speak. This particular hurdle -- if treated as such -- could undoubtedly be overcome in the same manner.

She listened to his explanation on magic seriously, eyes wide with fascination. His 'realm' seemed very interesting, to say the least, though she found the detailed method of magic usage to be somewhat tedious. Anything involving books (read: tomes) was hardly appealing to the blonde, who far preferred the means through which she and her friends channeled their abilities. It seems like less of a hassle...