<@Grysar> [Date: Tuesday April 27th.] <@Grysar> [Katie puts in for a meeting with Kazuko, her scheduler is fairly responsive, but still can't get a meeting until Tuesday. Kazuko's replies that perhaps they could meet outside this time, between the two of them they should be able to be alone in a crowd. She invites Katie to name a place.] <@Grysar> [What do you suggest?] <@Grysar> [Start!] * Katie suggests a park around lunch or a bit later - someplace close enough to campus for her to get to without a ton of trouble, and with easy enough wifi access. * @Kazuko agrees. She gets a drop off at the edge of the park from an official car. There's a light crisp breeze but it's quite pleasant in the sun. Flowers blossom in some of the trees, spreading a sweet scent. * Katie is waiting, seated on a bench at their designated meeting spot, with a larger bag than normal next to her. She's wearing jeans and her light windbreaker, with the guardian lion charm, as well as a rainbow-threaded decorative scarf. Her ear helpers are in, and she's carving something. It looks like she's probably been here for a while. * @Kazuko is wearing a button down shirt with a broad pointed collar, pastel pink jacket, and a long skirt. She gets her bearings and then heads directly to Katie. "Pleasure to meet you again, ." * Katie looks up when Kazuko announces her presence and smiles at her, a couple of shades smaller than a normal smile. " How are you?" <@Kazuko> Glad to be outside after a three hour meeting on testing protocols. Your suggestion was excellent. Testing protocols? Oh, for the schools? * @Kazuko nods and looks about ready to elaborate but then decides to give a short version. "Fairly routine updates, trying to incorporate lessons learned from other systems around the world." * Katie smiles. "Cool. Too bad I won't be able to benefit - I'm too old now." She looks around. "Do you want to stay here, or go somewhere else...?" <@Kazuko> Perhaps we could take a walk. Would you like me to make it one without company? Sure. Hang on. * Katie goes about putting away her carving knife and the carving itself - it's of a bear on its hind legs - tucking them into her bag. And then she stands, shouldering her bag. * @Kazuko glances down at the bear as the chatter surrounding you dies away and you have the park entirely to yourself. While no biologist, she does try to figure out if there's it's recognizably any type of bear. * Katie is carving a black bear! If Kazuko recognizes it. It's still very rough. <@Kazuko> I'm jealous of your ability to create like that. Sometimes in politics it feels like we're just building castles in the air. That may change some day, but there's a lot of work before I'll see anything solid. * Katie looks at Kazuko, and she nods. "Yeah." I could show you how sometime? It's something I learned when... * @Kazuko tilts her head and listens. * Katie trails off for a second, looking into the middle distance of nothing, then smiles at her. "I started carving when I was pretty young, back in the States." * @Kazuko nods and laughs, "I'm sorry. It's wrong of me, but I just envision you in a with a knife at four." * Katie rolls her eyes, laughing a little. "I'm from . were more south, but not like . More like ." <@Kazuko> So you didn't kill that bear yourself? Sorry, no. I'm not a warrior. * Katie walks along with Kazuko, as they are probably taking a walk at this point! <@Kazuko> So what is Iowa like? My mental reference point is Hokkaido, lots of fields and farms, at least one big city. Although not really a skiing destination. Lots of farms, yeah - corn and soy, and very flat. I'm actually from a suburb of one of the biggest city in the state, but it's not much of a city compared to Tokyo, and not big compared to the major cities in the US. No skyscrapers, really. * Katie hums, thinking. "Not many Asian people either, really. So it's pretty different." * @Kazuko nods. "I have been to the West Coast, but there were always at least a few people there, if only because people were coming to see my father." Yeah, the West Coast is different. I've never been, actually. * Katie adjusts the weight of her bag. <@Kazuko> I hope you get the chance some day, I loved it. * Katie smiles, a little sadly. "I'm not counting on it. But thanks." * @Kazuko looks down for a moment. "Oh." She doesn't pry further and walks a few paces in silence. * Katie glances at Kazuko. "What," she says, lightly, "you were hoping I'd flee to America once I got out of college?" * @Kazuko glances back. "What? No, that's silly. Japan needs all the bright young people we can keep." * Katie snerks. "If they can realize I'm worthwhile as a gaijin and a woman, maybe that'll work out, then." * @Kazuko nods. "Well, perhaps we should talk about that someday, when I'm in more of a position to do something about it.' Sure. I'd like that. * Katie looks around, making a show of double checking that Kazuko's field is up, and she lets out a breath. "In the meantime," she continues, "I've signed up for Shuffle." * @Kazuko nods. "I'm glad. So have you seen the FAQ?" * @Kazuko meanders off the path a bit, walking closer to the pond. There's a small stream entering it nearby, with smoothed, flat round rocks, four to eight centimeters in diameter, making up the creek bed and extending a few meters beyond it. Yeah. I have some questions about it- also, how is Hiromi Nekotani the sitting Wands representative and not you? * @Kazuko laughs again. "Oh, so we're past the indirect portion of this talk?" * Katie stops to pick up a smooth rock to fiddle with. They're made for skipping across water. She turns it over in her hand. "I can do indirect, but I'm not really into small talk." * Katie turns her attention up to Kazuko, gauging her reaction. * @Kazuko gets is caught slightly off guard by the follow up. She has a brief processing look and is reevaluating the last few minutes in light of this new information. * @Kazuko was trying to stall for a bit as she worked on a response, but it's also clear that this is not the first time Kazuko has heard this question and one of the questioners may have been even more direct on the matter than Katie. <@Kazuko> Direct then? In a way it's all your group's fault. * @Kazuko frowns. "That's unfair. But CM Nekotani... frustrates me." * Katie tilts her head. "Why?" * @Kazuko gives Katie a look. "She was your ally in the Osaka rescue. Surely she wasn't substantially more mature back then." I only knew her briefly, two years ago. I figured if she got a Council seat- I mean, and *you* didn't. * Katie looks for a place to skip her stone. It's not especially likely, given the running water. <@Kazuko> [The creek is fairly small, you can walk about five meters away and find a fairly placid spoit.] * Katie starts walking, then, to that spot. Maybe Kazuko comes with! * @Kazuko keeps her eye on Katie for a moment, perturbed and appraising her conversation partner as someone who knows exactly what she's doing. She bends down to pick up a rock of her own. "Have you ever been in a club election where the officers had a lot of responsibility but the benefits and prestige weren't that clear at the start?" I kind of avoided clubs. I had... bad experiences. * Katie throws her rock. It skips twice and sinks. "I like clear rules and benefits. Those aren't exactly laid out in the FAQ. I guess they weren't when you were voting the first time, either?" * @Kazuko frowns at that and does a better job managing annoyance, although she was already starting to hide it. "Elections in those clubs are often drafting sessions, not competitions. Wands was last, all the other positions were filled by volunteers without contest over the course of the last in a series of meetings at the Tower." * Katie looks at Kazuko. "But Wands was different." * @Kazuko skips a stone, one skip. "She stands up and says 'I have a problem with the way we're handling things. Yes, the gangs are real and could be dangerous. And yes, we've all acknowledged their role in saving the world and the importance of bringing them in. But it is ridiculous to act as if they're all the same. I'm newer to this, but I've heard stories. Some picked fights, some victimized people, but one in particular actually saved people...'" * Katie stills, watching Kazuko and letting her continue. <@Kazuko> 'You may not remember me in Osaka, but my power let me play the role of scout, to find out where people were being held. I can tell the difference between those that fight for right and those that fight for fun. I know which one I favor. And I hope you'll put me on the Council to make sure someone is playing that role.'" * @Kazuko watches Katie as she finishes this speech. * Katie lets out a breath. Then a faint almost-laugh, as she crouches to pick up another stone. "How did they take it?" <@Kazuko> Well actually. There was a lot of support in the room, mostly among people that weren't too sure about some of the earlier volunteers. * Katie nods. "And you?" * Katie finds a good stone that fits nicely in her hand. She stands with it. <@Kazuko> So, as you have already guessed, I was prepared to put in my name, hoping I could be-- But the thing is, she wasn't wrong. * @Kazuko looks around and fines another stone, not as well fitting of one though. * Katie nods and throws her stone. This one skips three times. * @Kazuko whistles appreciatively. * Katie actually blushes slightly, and she immediately clapss one hand into another. "I..." She looks at Kazuko. "Thanks." * @Kazuko makes eye contact for a moment and gives a small nod of acknowledgment. "So I had a quick calculation to make. I did speak up and say that I was also interested, but that the Council could probably use some like her more at this stage." She sighs. "And you know, she does try. But have you heard her agenda?" * Katie shakes her head. <@Kazuko> A monument in the tower reversed to *all* those who fought against Sho and the Oni, a salary for Councilmembers and those serving the Council, and a rudimentary health insurance system. * Katie blinks. "That's... some monument." And what will fund the salary? * @Kazuko's eyes twinkle for a moment. "Well, it's got to be big enough to have room for her name." * @Kazuko snaps her fingers. "Ah, you've noticed the subtle flaw." Or the insurance- ha! * Katie claps her hand over her mouth, but yeah, she thought the line about the monument was funny. * Katie says behind her hand, "Wait, she doesn't know yet?" <@Kazuko> She's working on it. The Benefit Society is probably the most practical idea. I did some research, secret societies back in the Tang dynasty... * @Kazuko weighs her rock, it doesn't quite feel right, she sets it own and looks again. * Katie nods, also looking for another stone. <@Kazuko> Actually used that approach. But the trouble is some of the initial beneficiaries are pretty clear and we don't really have much of a sense of solidarity yet. So getting people to basically transfer money to someone they may not care about is a hard sell. Yeah... it's too new. Hell, you don't even have the entire base signed onto Shuffle. I just got there... * Katie stands, new stone in her hand. "Nekotani's path to power and we just joined." She throws it, and it just sinks in the water. Still, I guess it's nice to know some people care. * @Kazuko had been watching Katie's stone picking, ready to follow in her path. The sinking leads her to reevaluate the extent to which she can necessarily do that. * Katie is looking out into the water. <@Kazuko> I do have some ideas on the funding, not just for CM. Nekotani's agenda. That said, I suppose the Queen of Wands may have some of his own. * Katie turns her attention to Kazuko without moving the rest of herself. "Shuffle told you, huh?" * @Kazuko nods. "Competitors get to know about one another. That may cause some trouble, but everything coming out at once could be worse. * @Kazuko centers herself and tosses. The Katie stone picking technique seems to have paid off for the student if not the master. Two skips. * Katie claps! * @Kazuko grins and bows, a little surprised, but also more familiar with an appreciative audience. * Katie smiles. "I hope you don't mind that he's running. And I'd like to hear about your funding ideas sometime." I'm thinking about running, too. I probably will... no idea who else is for Swords, but... * @Kazuko smiles back. "Democracy doesn't bother me, so long as my intent to beat him doesn't bother you." Nope. That's how it should be. Right now I think you'd both do a good job, anyway. * @Kazuko then takes a moment to ponder Katies run. "Thank you. I'll look forward to getting to know him better. For Swords, I think there's one declared candidate. King of Swords. The King has a lot of ideas." Mmm. Don't know him-or-her. * Katie scoops up a random stone. "Or them," she says, just throwing it as far as she can. <@Kazuko> I believe the King was part of Tomoyuki Kojirokawa-san's group. Not present for the fight against the Reversed, but was there against the Oni. The King is running under the title, not under their name. Ha. You know, it wouldn't matter which one I ran under. I feel like everyone knows. * Katie scoops another rock. "Katie Andrews, Page of Swords, Sometimes Accused of Being Judgment. As popular as she is unpopular." She is about to throw it, then looks at it and turns it in her hand. <@Kazuko> That happens when you accomplish things. I hope you do run, I can't promise my support, but I think I'd like you as a colleague. * Katie raises her eyebrows at Kazuko. "Really?" <@Kazuko> Well, I'm not promising you'd enjoy it. There's a lot of work to do, and probably a lot of comforting small talk to be made with the voters. But I think you'd take it seriously. Doesn't hurt that you realize that things need to be paid for. * Katie grimaces. "Yeah." She turns her attention to the water. "I just want things to be as fair they can be, as transparent as reasonable, and for people to be protected and helped. For once and finally." She throws this rock, and it skims across, instead of skipping, leaving a trail in the water due to her obvious display of power. "I feel like joining is the only way I can make sure that happens." * @Kazuko lifts her hand and the wind comes particularly easy to Katie; the rock keeps on skimming as it reaches the far shore, skipping once or twice off the ground sloping upwards. * Katie starts. She looks at Kazuko, surprise clear in her eyes. <@Kazuko> A worthy agenda. * Katie laughs. "You- that was amazing!" * @Kazuko holds up a hand. "That was you, I just lightened the burden a bit." * Katie grins. "Still. Very cool." * @Kazuko glances around. "So, anything you've ever wanted to do in a park if noone was watching?" Hmm. It's too cold to splash around in the stream. Do you climb? <@Kazuko> Some in my college hellion days, I'd probably need some help. I can- and you won't ruin your super respectable political image this way. Come on, I spotted a sturdy big one earlier. * @Kazuko follows. "Excellent." She throws one last stone all casual and cool like, which doesn't actually pay off in this instance as its naturally inclined to just go plonk. <@Kazuko> So how are you planning to ensure that people are protected? * Katie leads the way to the tree, which is a ways across the park. "I'm not sure yet. I think the first thing I want is fairness. If the democratic process is too messed up, it doesn't really matter." * Katie continues: "But back then..." Her voice quiets. "I did kill people. You know? I'm not a fighter, but I did." * @Kazuko doesn't actually blink, but she lowers her voice to match as she follows. "I've learned a lot about the larger war since volunteering as notetaker for the Council. Some of the people you killed would get you a place of honor at that monument." She frowns, "But monuments don't really grapple with the ugly parts." No. They don't. That's- * @Kazuko waits as she follows. * Katie stops and clenches her hands into fists, then tries to relax them. "I tried. I tried so long and so hard to find other ways, but so much kept- trying to destroy me. In every way they could. And others, who I knew were good people, who-" She takes a breath. "If being involved means becoming violent and not getting an early invite into the club, then yes, I was guilty. But I thought it was better to try to help, to try to save me and mine, than hiding - and doing that probably would have gotten me kidnapped and sent to where you were, instead of kidnapped and-" She stops. "Like you, that wasn't my first time." * @Kazuko takes a sharp breath at the interrupted sentence. She waits amount after Katie finishes before asking with quiet urgency, "Is he among the dead?" * Katie says, softly, "Two of the three." * @Kazuko makes a fist with both hands. "I don't know that we can bring justice for everything that was done. If this all is going to work, some of the people we need are people that wre bad guys. But I think people can be protected and helped. And I think to protect people, the Council needs to be willing to use necessary force." She looks down, "I don't know if that's good enough for you. You deserve real justice." * @Kazuko looks back up as she finishes speaking. Her expression is pained, but she does not want to miss any of Katie's response. * Katie shakes her head. "It's fine." She doesn't sound angry or resigned. "Justice for me would be hard, and the first thing the Council does, once it's really up and running, probably shouldn't be about vengeance. I just want to keep it from happening to anyone else. And I don't want people like me, or you, to be victimized or blamed. We both know what that's like." She meets Kazuko's eyes, smiling faintly. "But thanks." * @Kazuko nods. "And I will work on fairness and," She returns the faint smile, "reasonable transparency." She lets out a breath, "But I think it will also take more than that. It's going to be a slog. People like us may have to sacrifice vengence. Some other people would rather see it fail than to risk being told what to do. And we do have some real enemies left and dealing with them will sometimes be ugly." Yeah. So it'll have to be figured out. * @Kazuko nods. "Yeah." * Katie goes back to walking. "Fairness first, then taking stock of existing resources and what can be raised, then solutions. There's still a lot I don't know... like how to actually run, or how much power people on the Council have and how that works when there's nine of them. If you could help me out with that, I'd really appreciate it." She pauses, then adds more lightly, "Even if you vote for this King of Swords guy in the end." <@Kazuko> There's a budget from Shuffle, low seven digits annually. I think I can raise a lot more with the right agreements, but my people aren't always going to be friends with your people. There's a link on the page to register, but if you mean the how-to I can give a few pointers. And, hmm... * Katie glances at Kazuko. "Your people?" * @Kazuko continues to answer the earlier question. "The power of the Council, especially at the start, is the power of tradition and the power to persuade. The agendas we run on, the support we win, that answers your question more than any pre-World War charters. The Council will have what powers people think we have, to the degree it is unified." <@Kazuko> As for my people, that may be overly self aggrandizing, but I've been try to cultivate a range of supporters. Some comfortable with the spotlight, some not. That's fair. You have a lead on that. As does everyone else already running, I bet. * Katie reaches the tree in question; it's one of the tallest there, and seems quite sturdy and large. <@Kazuko> Don't underestimate the degree to which what you did back then opened doors that are remain available to you now. * @Kazuko glances up at whistles again. * @Kazuko takes off her jacket and finds a nice rock to lay it on. She then glances down at her long skirt. * Katie steps back and gauges the tree. "I bet we can get at least twenty feet up." * @Kazuko shimmies out of her skirt, somewhat shamelessly. That said, Katie can see that she has biker shorts underneath immediately, so that somewhat spoils the gag. * Katie laughs. "Nice trick." <@Kazuko> My mother disagrees. So, any questions before we head up? I'd prefer we handle anything hard while still on the ground or securely ensconced in a branch. Your mother is dumb. And I can, uh, connect with you on Shuffle, right? Or call or text if I need to. <@Kazuko> She is. And sure, my business card email will work for that, and I can search for yours. * Katie nods. "Okay. Want to go up?" * @Kazuko, for the record, was not using a light tone at all when agreeing with Katie on her mother. She does smile and nod though and heads towards the tree. * Katie grins back. Time to climb a tree! She climbs up after, calling up advice on where to find handholds and support if Kazuko needs it. * @Kazuko climbs eagerly but inexpertly. Katie does actually need to take her hand once or twice. Her college climbing probably involved man-made structures that broke rules but didn't require much in the way of technical skill. Once she's settled in tweny feet up she glances over. <@Kazuko> If someday I have real power, in Japan that is, we should talk about the blame thing too. That isn't just an Arcana problem. * Katie climbs up! She looks like she keep going, but she settles on a branch just a little higher. She looks like she's in a good mood, even as she says, "Yeah?" * @Kazuko nods. "It's the 2000s. They don't outright forbid it seeking justice. But at every step in the process, people point out that prosecutions are hard, particularly in grey cases where someone chooses to drink or take a pill. And of course, you have to think about the family reputation, can't forget that." * @Kazuko's voice drips with malice at the word 'grey.' * @Kazuko recovers quickly enough. "So when I promise I want to do something, know that I mean it." * Katie doesn't even hide her disgust, and she has a lot of it to go around. "Yeah." Let me know what you've got, when you've got it. Or if you need anything. For that, I'll help, on either side. * @Kazuko leans back to look up at the tree above and Katie. "Will do. And on some issues, you may have an ally or two you don't really expect." * Katie makes a faint 'hm' sound, kicking her feet a bit. She's wearing sneakers. Cheater. "We'll see." <@Kazuko> [End!]