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[12:58] <PersonaGM> [Wednesday, the 11th of April.-
[13:01] <PersonaGM> [Enitan Abiodun was a tall, rather thin black-skinned boy with short, straight dark brown hair and a pair of combo sunglass-eyeglasses on his face. He was also, at this exact moment, wearing a rather harassed expression on his face as he sat outside the Literature Clubroom, taking in members with the sign-in sheet.]
[13:24] <Hideki> One of those members stepped up to the table with a casual grin. "Hey, kid, what's the news? Hideki Nakajima, reporting for duty."
[13:26] <PersonaGM> ["Oh, hi Nakajima." said Abiodun. He turned the sheet around and pushed it toward Hideki. "Sign and head in.""]
[13:27] * Hideki signed. "How's it looking this year? Lots of new members?"
[13:27] <PersonaGM> [He scowled. "Members and no leader."]
[13:29] <Hideki> "Huh. How'd that happen?"
[13:30] <PersonaGM> ["No idea. I showed up today and… No leader recorded. So I guess I'm running it now."]
[13:33] <Hideki> "You okay with that?"
[13:35] <PersonaGM> ["I guess I'll have to be." Said Abiodun.]
[13:38] <Hideki> "If it's too much work, everyone in the club'll help out and make it easier!"
[13:44] <PersonaGM> ["We can only hope." He said, waving Hideki through.-
[13:45] <PersonaGM> [The clubroom for the Lit Club was, appropriately, right next to the library. Also like the library, it was stocked with bookshelves groaning beneath the weight of hundreds of works of literature.-
[13:47] <PersonaGM> [It was moderately busy here, and the room felt a little more crowded than it should've been due to how people milled about aimlessly.-
[13:47] <PersonaGM> [The room's seating was a mix of beanbags, squishy armchairs and simpler chairs grouped haphazardly around a series of small, round tables.]
[13:50] * Hideki sought out a free beanbag and flopped into it, pulling his pen and notebook out of his bag. Casually, he surveyed the room for familiar faces.
[13:58] <PersonaGM> [There were a few here and there. They hadn't quite cottoned on to Hideki's arrival yet, though.-
[13:59] <PersonaGM> [Flop.-
[14:03] <PersonaGM> [Someone else sat down next to him in another bean bag chair. A girl, from the look of her maybe a little younger, first or second grade. She was around 5'1 and Middle-Eastern, her straight, honey-brown hair tucked into a loose-knit silken white hijab patterned with blue butterflies. As she settled in, she stared up at him for a moment, then pulled out her own notebook and pen.]
[14:07] <Hideki> "Hey!" Hideki gave her a quick little headbob in greeting. "Name's Nakajima. Welcome to the Literature Club!"
[14:13] <PersonaGM> [She reached up and took a pair of wireless in-ear earphones out and tucked them away; she winced momentarily.-
[14:14] <PersonaGM> ["Thank you." She said. "My name is Parvaneh Rajavi. I am sitting next to you because my counsellor said that I should trust older students like you if I feel uncomfortable."]
[14:19] <Hideki> Uncomfortable? Hmmm… "Crowds not really your thing?" he guessed.
[14:24] <PersonaGM> ["I am fine with crowds sometimes. This club is not very settled right now." Said Parvaneh. "And this is my first ever club! I do not know how it unfolds."]
[14:32] <Hideki> "Oh, well, this is pretty typical of us. We hang out until our president calls us to order." He gestured to the hallway where Abiodun had been standing. "Since it's the first time for a lot of people here, he'll probably give clear instructions on what he wants us to do, so don't worry."
[14:45] <PersonaGM> ["Thank you." Said Parvaneh. She smiled widely.-
[14:47] <PersonaGM> [After a few more minutes, Abiodun entered and took up position at the front of the class. "Hello, everyone. Not the leader you were expecting, hm? Well, apparently this club doesn't have a leader, so I guess I'll be acting as that for now. Welcome to Literature Club."-
[14:47] <PersonaGM> ["First of all, what's one thing everyone likes about literature?"-
[14:47] <PersonaGM> [There were a variety of answers from around the room. Before long it was Hideki's turn.]
[14:59] <Hideki> "I like literature… for the words! There's nothing like watching a master string them together in ways that make you feel all sorts of things. I think that sort of skill is really useful and even a little amazing."
[15:04] <PersonaGM> ["That's a good answer, Nakajima." Said Abiodun. He moved on to someone else.-
[15:04] <PersonaGM> [Parvaneh leaned slightly toward Hideki and asked, "Is poetry literature?"]
[15:06] <Hideki> "Sure is. Literature covers just about every type of fancy or artistic writing there is!"
[15:19] <PersonaGM> ["Thank you."-
[15:19] <PersonaGM> [The opinions travelled around the room, before coming back to Parvaneh.-
[15:24] <PersonaGM> [She was still for a moment, and when she spoke her words were careful and clearly enunciated. "I like how poetry relies on the rhythm and metre of a language to make meaning so that the choice of word is less important than how the word fits into the whole. Because each language is different, that means poetry is hard to translate, which means it is more uniquely expressive of the language and the culture that created it."]
[15:28] <Hideki> "Oooh~" Hideki applauded lightly.
[15:39] <PersonaGM> [Parvaneh started slightly, then gave Hideki a smile.-
[15:47] <PersonaGM> ["Yeah, I like that." Said Abiodun. "I dunno what our leader was supposed to be prepping, but this year I want us to look at broader, more diverse forms of literature. We don't look at poetry much in this club, so that's something that we can focus on…"-
[15:48] <PersonaGM> ["Today's meeting is going to be rather short, everybody." Said Abiodun. "So I'm going to let us talk generally for awhile, and then in fifteen minutes I'm going to ask people to pick a book for themselves, take it home, and start reading it."]
[15:57] <Hideki> Short was right. Still, Hideki stayed quiet until he was done, thoughtfully tapping his pen against the first page in his notebook.
[15:59] <PersonaGM> ["What book are you going to choose?" Asked Parvaneh.]
[13:52] <Hideki> "I don't know. Something actiony! Maybe horror. It has to be something I haven't read before, though. What about you?"
[13:54] <@PersonaGM> ["I-I don't know."]
[13:55] <Hideki> "Hmm. Well, you like poetry, right? Why not start with that?"
[14:06] <@PersonaGM> ["Then I will do that. Thank you."]
[14:17] <Hideki> "How do you like Sophia so far? Are your classes any fun? You're probably taking both English and Japanese this semester."
[14:27] <@PersonaGM> [Parvaneh took a moment to reply. "It is a very large place, which means there is a lot more space than people, so I find it easy to find spots away from the noise and crowd. I like that." She said. "I find the classes satisfying when they remain on track."]
[14:32] <Hideki> "Which doesn't happen all the time," Hideki guessed. "I remember this one guy during my first year would ask all sorts of irrelevant questions just to steer the class away from any scrutiny that would reveal that he hadn't done any of the homework assignments."
[14:35] <@PersonaGM> ["Why did he not just do the assignments?"]
[14:37] <Hideki> "He never said, but I bet he thought they were boring. Anyway, sometime his plan worked. Sometimes it had the opposite effect."
[14:38] <@PersonaGM> ["It sounds like it was a bad plan."]
[14:40] <Hideki> "Yeah. Guy didn't really think it through. Poor Tachibana…"
[14:42] <@PersonaGM> ["Did he not get sick of the uncertainty?"]
[14:44] <Hideki> "Well, his teachers got sick of it all before he did. Almost kicked him out, but he made a comeback during couple of months of academic probation."
[14:47] <@PersonaGM> ["I am glad he is not in my class, then."]
[14:49] <Hideki> "Yeah, I don't see you guys getting along too well."
[14:55] <@PersonaGM> ["No." She said.-
[14:55] <@PersonaGM> ["… Who do you get along with?"]
[15:05] <Hideki> "Hmm. Lots of people! Especially if they're interesting and don't try to, like, actively annoy me."
[15:06] <@PersonaGM> ["How does someone do that?"]
[15:08] <Hideki> "Oh, you know. Mean insults, trashing my stuff, hurting other people. Being a jerk."
[15:14] <@PersonaGM> ["Okay. I won't do anything like that."]
[15:15] <Hideki> "Thank you. Now what sorts of people do you get along with?"
[15:16] <@PersonaGM> ["Understanding people. And people who appreciate what I like and why. And people who I feel comfortable talking to."]
[15:22] <Hideki> "Well, in that case, I will return the favor and try to be like that."
[15:27] <@PersonaGM> [Parvaneh smiled.-
[15:28] <@PersonaGM> [The club progressed, perhaps more directionless than Hideki had hoped. Nonetheless, before long the class was over, and both Parvaneh and Hideki had chosen books- for Parvaneh, a modern edition of an ancient set of Japanese poems.-
[15:35] <@PersonaGM> [Parvaneh didn't contribute anymore to the club discussions apart from her description of poetry. It was only after the club was over that Parvaneh caught up with Hideki.-
[15:35] <@PersonaGM> ["Excuse me, Mr. Nakajima?" She said as most of the club members were leaving.]
[15:39] <Hideki> "What's up?" Hideki had grabbed a large book of translated Irish mythology stories. He slowed down now, as he gathered the rest of his things.
[15:43] <@PersonaGM> ["Thank you for humouring me today." Said Parvaneh. "I do not have any friends here yet, and I wanted to know if you wanted to be the first."]
[15:46] <Hideki> "Sounds good to me. It was actually pretty fun talking with you today!"
[15:53] <@PersonaGM> ["It was?"]
[16:00] <Hideki> "Sure. How often do I get to show someone the ropes around here? Besides, you're calm, pleasant, and smart."
[16:01] <@PersonaGM> ["Oh." Parvaneh stared at him. "T-Thank you."-
[16:02] <@PersonaGM> ["Your classes still study literature and composition, correct?"]
[16:05] <Hideki> "Yeah, we do. If you're interested, I could bring in some of our stuff to show you."
[16:05] <@PersonaGM> ["Y-Yes." Said Parvaneh. "I am good at breaking literature and genres down and looking at their parts. If you wanted help or opinions on that, you could ask me and I could give you something…"]
[16:09] <Hideki> "Ah, you don't have to help me with my homework. But if you want to break them down and analyze them for fun… well, that's a different story."
[16:11] <@PersonaGM> ["Yeah!"]
[16:14] <Hideki> "All right. You can start next week. Same time, same place?"
[16:15] <@PersonaGM> [Parvaneh bowed, then nodded, which turned into kind of another bow. "Yes!"-
[16:15] <@PersonaGM> [ Thou art I; I art thou.-
[16:15] <@PersonaGM> [ Thou hast glimpsed a new path of thine heart, with which to rewrite your story.-
[16:15] <@PersonaGM> [ The first draft of the Priestess Arcana has been written; its refinement will bring you new power in the world to come.]
[16:21] <Hideki> "All right!" Hideki grabbed his bag. "Have a geat night. I'll see you later, yeah?"
[16:23] <@PersonaGM> ["Yes, you will! Next week!"]