#dcggersedge

When she reaches him, she does her best to throw an arm around his shoulders and pull him down to her height. As soon as she does, the cheer in her voice is dropped; all business now.

"Have you heard anything about the gardens?" She asks him. Her voice stays quiet, glancing over occasionally at the others on the street to check for anyone who might be listening. "I've heard from some sources that it's a place worth listening to, but I haven't been able to find the why. You heard anything?"

"Yunaka~! Hello."

He's already preparing a silly answer for her before she's finished bounding her way over. It dies on his tongue as she pulls him down some, and his brows dip alongside.

Why, that's not a very silly question at all!

"Well, gardens are nice places for reconnecting with oneself, usually." But Azama doubts very much that Yunaka means 'listening' in the spiritual sense. He smiles. "... if you're meaning the gardens in District..." He scrunches his face in concentration, trying to remember the map they'd been shown. "... Eight? Then I'm afraid I've not a peep for you. Not so much as an inkling."

Azama continues, matching Yunaka's hush - all in the spirit of the game, of course:

"But I did visit some other gardens by the church in District Twelve. They keep a greenhouse there." A one where things looked about as promising as anywhere else, really. "I don't know that I'd recommend them for sightseeing," or anything else, really, "but the nun working there was helpful."

His smile tightens a notch.

"Did you know, this," he sweeps his arm across the island, "all looks to have started some fifteen years ago? Shame they didn't ask for help then instead of..." whatever it is they're doing now. Hm. Although, maybe they did and Azama just wasn't around to hear about it. Shame on him for assuming the worst! Tsk.

"... Miss Nun did not seem to understand why Mister the Mayor took so long to just now come clean about their plight."

●●●○○ | ATTRACTION

●●●●○ | AFFECTION

●●●●○ | INTEREST

●●●○○ | LOYALTY

●●●●● | TRUST

Still accepting

"Yunaka, my dear friend. One of the few people back home who have seen me without the front I put up. It is quite heartening to have someone else who knows and does not mind. Like with many of my other friends, I had not expected to see her here in Fódlan, but I am certainly glad that I have."

●●●●● | ATTRACTION (zoo wee mama) ●●●○○ | AFFECTION ●●●●● | INTEREST ●●●○○ | LOYALTY ●○○○○ | TRUST

●●○○○ | ATTRACTION ●○○○○ | AFFECTION ●●●●● | INTEREST ●●●○○ | LOYALTY ●●●○○ | TRUST

●●●○○ | ATTRACTION ○○○○○ | AFFECTION ●○○○○ | INTEREST ●●○○○ | LOYALTY ○○○○○ | TRUST

A liar at heart. Her interest in concealing details of her past could make her something of a liability. Record indicate she was a trusted ally to Alear, but I do not know if I can extend the benefit of the doubt the same way Alear did. At the end of the day, every Alear I've met seems rather naive. Yunaka has shown herself immensely capable, but I worry what would happen if aiding us would put her at risk of her identity being revealed.

Identifiable by: star decorations, strange speech patterns

○○○○○ | ATTRACTION ●●○○○ | AFFECTION ●●●○○ | INTEREST ●●○○○ | LOYALTY ●●○○○ | TRUST

"Professor Yunaka is certainly worthy of the title. She may be no expert on the axe, but she does pick up new skills quickly. Adaptability will get a person far. I remember when she aided me in last year's Battle of the Eagle and Lion. She did so with the intent of granting me an opening. She didn't have to— It was those quick thinking skills and acceptance of my prowess that got us far."

"The longer she stays in Fódlan, the more she must realize the errors in its ways. Our journey to Jugdral was no exception, either. Battles will continue to find us so long as we remain under the church's banner. It hardly matters where we go. It was the church's attempt to create complacency. I hope she sees that as much as I. I'm confident she does."

𝐒𝐄𝐍𝐃 ♡ 𝐓𝐎 𝐒𝐄𝐄 𝐖𝐇𝐀𝐓 𝐌𝐘 𝐌𝐔𝐒𝐄 𝐓𝐇𝐈𝐍𝐊𝐒 𝐎𝐅 𝐘𝐎𝐔𝐑𝐒

●●●●○ | ATTRACTION ●●●●● | AFFECTION ●●●●● | INTEREST ●●●●○ | LOYALTY ●●●●● | TRUST

"A kindred spirit in many a way. Our meeting is both gift and miracle."

The box on Edelgard's desk is simple and its contents even simpler; an orchid, dried and preserved after last month's party. On top of it is a folded note, just as simple as everything else.

Hope you had fun. Happy birthday.

There is pleasure in simplicity. There is truth in repetition. The gift sitting upon her desk nearly makes her ignore the call of her name from classmates who inevitable desire her attention. She regards them, of course, but not without returning to where she must go soon afterwards.

Like before, her gratitude is shown without words. The orchid that falls upon her watchful eyes paints into her constructed stare. Edelgard holds the letter neatly, allowing her index fingers to touch the corners of the parchment.

When Edelgard retreats back to her room at the end of a long and studious day, she will push a stack of books to clear space for the box. Its lid will open; the orchid will find its place. The note will stay within her purview.