Lesson 1

[howeducational]

[ Appearing on the astral plane is a young man with an unmistakable look of curiosity about him, his head whipping to and fro as he tries to take in the mind-boggling view yet again from atop his stopped bike. ]

Wooooah...! So it wasn't just a dream after all! It's really here! It's like I stepped right into the cosmos! But... that can't be true

Comments

[polarisation]

[ What a weirdo. Sefton's simply going to stare for a moment while deciding whether he should try explaining things or just walk away before he's noticed.

Standard Sefton disclaimer applies. ]

[howeducational]

[ Kintaro, having gone back to licking the floor for a few moments, freezes in place as he looks up at the person staring at him, tongue still pressed to the ground. ]

... Um. Hello!

[polarisation]

[ Yyyep, Sefton's still staring. Why in the world would you lick that? ]

... Hey.

[howeducational]

[ And he's up in an instant, scratching the back of his head with a laugh. As for the reasoning... it's educational. ]

Wow, you're the first person I've met here! Uh, besides Meredith, but she... kind of scares me.

[polarisation]

[ His eyes roll, and he looks away casually. ]

Yeah. [ A beat. ] You can get home by thinking 'bout going. Time stops while you're here, though.

[howeducational]

So going home is the same as getting here, right? Learned something!

[ He whips out a small brown notebook from behind his back, scribbling furiously in it for a few seconds. ]

But that second part, about time. You mean while I'm here, in this astral plane place, nothing's happening back home?

[polarisation]

[ A nod. ]

Yeah, exactly.

[howeducational]

WOW! That's amazing! I'd call it impossible, but... so is appearing in a place like this to begin with!

I guess you've been here a while if you know all of this, right?

[polarisation]

[ Whoaaa enthusiasm. Sefton takes half a step back out of habit. ]

Uh... kinda, but s' not like it's hard to figure out.

[howeducational]

I guess it'd be pretty obvious the moment you get back home, actually!

[ A pause, and he laughs sheepishly. ]

Oh, I'm sorry. I'm asking you all this stuff and I haven't even introduced myself! I'm Kintaro, Kintaro Oe. It's good to meet you!

[polarisation]

Yeah. ... Not everyone here's from the same place, either.

[ And at the introduction, he 'casually' looks away again. ]

S' fine. Same.

[howeducational]

I kind of had a feeling since... well, in a place that looks like this, it sort of just makes sense, you know?

[ A beat. He half-wants to ask what this guy's name is, but doesn't want to be intrusive yet. ]

Anyway... besides looking at all these stars, what do you do here?

[polarisation]

[ Which is probably a good thing, because Sefton would likely not give it anyway. ]

Whatever you feel like, I guess. Some come here for the people. [ He shrugs, to show his opinion on that. ] But there's some useful places here, too.

[howeducational]

[ Don't worry. He'll get it one way or another. He just... will. ]

Hm! Please elaborate on these "useful places"!

[polarisation]

[ Good luck with that. ]

Well... there's a kitchen here. Restocks itself.

[howeducational]

An infinite kitchen, huh? [ Scribble scribble ] That's good! I can practice my cooking more, then.

Though... I kind of hope there's more than that. If the most impressive thing in this astral plane is the kitchen, that might be a bit disappointing.