::Open RP - Welcome to the Confusion!::

[hikikomoriways.livejournal.com]

So, the talking hat (which was somehow more intimidating than a talking fridge) had placed Satou in Ravenclaw. The trouble was,he had no idea what that meant, and the bizarre little bug-eyed big-eared creatures he'd seen scuttling around unnerved him too much to try and ask.

He had, however, taken Kurama's promise of free room and board to heart, and a bit of wandering had lead him to the Great Hall, which happened to have a modest buffet laid out. Jackpot! Before anyone could tell him he couldn't, he took a plate and began piling on fish and chips (mostly fish).

That was the board part seen to. Now he needed to sort out the room.

Comments

[hikikomoriways.livejournal.com]

"But traveling still costs money, doesn't it?"

[elegantsamurai.livejournal.com]

"Hmmm, that I don't know. I haven't seen reason to leave the school grounds. I am a bit curious about the state of Japan now, but with the changes I've seen in the nearby town, I'm a bit concerned about it, you know? They tell me here is quite rural and that cities are quite different."

[hikikomoriways.livejournal.com]

"Japan is..." He frowned. He hadn't been anywhere else. "Is Japan."

[elegantsamurai.livejournal.com]

Yukimura laughed. "It is that. And, quite different from here, I've noticed."

[hikikomoriways.livejournal.com]

"I'm not sure how I'll get used to being here. I still haven't figured anything out."

[elegantsamurai.livejournal.com]

"It takes time," Yukimura reassure the boy. "I'm still not really used to being here and I've been here about half a year."

[hikikomoriways.livejournal.com]

Satou had more questions than he felt comfortable asking, of course, but one seemed pressing. He'd found how to get food, but...

"How do I get a room?"

[elegantsamurai.livejournal.com]

"If you've eaten enough, I'll show you the way to Ravenclaw, though the staircases have a habit of moving, as do the people and animals in the paintings. Once there, you just select an unoccupied room."

[hikikomoriways.livejournal.com]

Moving staircases, moving paintings... the idea was troubling. It sounded disorienting. But if he had a room of his own, he could hide from them. Just curl up with the nice soft scarf that pretty woman had given him and...

Clearing his throat, he pushed away his empty plate. "I've eaten enough."

[elegantsamurai.livejournal.com]

Yukimura rose, picking up the bottle of sake. It was very good sake, no sense in leaving it. "Once you know the general direction, it isn't too bad," he said conversationally as he led Satou out of the Great Hall.

[hikikomoriways.livejournal.com]

"What if I get lost?" Satou wondered. The castle was so big.

[elegantsamurai.livejournal.com]

"The house elves can help you or the people in the paintings are generally helpful." Yukimura looked up once they were out of the Great Hall. "It seems they are cooperative for now," he said as all the stairs were still for the moment.

[hikikomoriways.livejournal.com]

He couldn't help shuddering. "House elves make me uncomfortable," he said. A vast understatement.

[elegantsamurai.livejournal.com]

Yukimura raised an eyebrow. "They are harmless creatures whose sole purpose is to serve."

[hikikomoriways.livejournal.com]

"But they look so..." Creepy. Goblin-like. Leering. Watchful. He waved his hands. "Like they spy on you."

[elegantsamurai.livejournal.com]

"They are servants," Yukimura said. "That is what servants do, watch to know when they are needed."

[hikikomoriways.livejournal.com]

"But no one has servants anymore! Except for maid cafes," he amended with a giggle.

[elegantsamurai.livejournal.com]

Yukimura raised an eyebrow at the giggle. "I have servants, but then I'm not from this time," he admitted with a laugh. "I suppose it is something you have to be around to get used to."

[hikikomoriways.livejournal.com]

"This isn't going to be easy, is it?" Satou said quietly.

[elegantsamurai.livejournal.com]

"Nothing worth being done is easy," Yukimura replied cheerfully. "It is the challenge, not the results, that builds character."

[hikikomoriways.livejournal.com]

He laughed nervously. "And what if I don't have any character to build?"

[elegantsamurai.livejournal.com]

"I doubt that," Yukimura said. "I'll save judgment until there has been time for you to adapt a little more."

[hikikomoriways.livejournal.com]

Satou looked dubious, but there was a tiny spark of hope; what if the conspiracy couldn't find him here?

[elegantsamurai.livejournal.com]

Yukimura led Satou to the Ravenclaw common room, occasionally replying to greetings from those paintings who found him entertaining. "Here we are," he said, opening the door, encouraging Satou to enter before him.

[hikikomoriways.livejournal.com]

He'd tried to pay attention to where they were going, but each time one of the paintings spoke it spooked him. Somehow, he managed to stay coherent enough to follow Yukimura, and he entered the Ravenclaw common room, which seemed far less intimidating than the endless stone hallways.

"And this is my house?"