destinystrings | ITP: Daily routine

Entry tags:

ITP: Daily routine

Who: Arturia and OPEN
Where: Various places
Summary: Arturia goes through her daily routine and runs into various people.
Warnings: None at the moment.

[A: Capricorn Ward; Sunrise]
Let it never be said Arturia was anything if not dedicated to her chosen art. It was only through dedication she was out here at this time of morning despite the freezing temperatures going through a basic form with her practice sword. It'd become part of her routine to get practice in before school since coming to Hinoto-Ri. After practice she planned on eating some of the breakfast she'd packed. Arturia wasn't much of a cook, but she could manage to pack fruit, yogurt, and some bagels for herself and any potential sparring partner she had.

It wasn't unusual for some people to come and request a sparring session with her. Usually Garviel or her uncle, but a few others had as well. Arturia never said no unless she had less than a few minutes to head in to school. Just like now, as she swung her sword and accidentally sent the head of the impromptu practice dummy she'd set up flying. Arturia sighed and went to retrieve it from where it'd landed.

Maybe soon she'd have enough money saved up to get a proper broadsword rather than this wooden one. Weapons like this did seem plentiful in this city, given the circumstances.

[B: Various locations; Afternoon]
A girl on a blue moped with a cutesy lion logo on the side sped through the city, stopping every once in a while to pull up a map on her COMP and make sure she was heading in the right direction. Arturia had deliveries to make and she told every customer she'd have the jobs done in less than half an hour. Heaven help her if she ever broke her word on that.

Right now, due to needing to refuel, she was running behind what she thought would be a good time, and knew she was likely going over the speed limit. Despite this, Arturia found herself excited. Here she was down to the wire, adrenaline singing through her veins as the wind whipped through her hair and the clock ticked ever closer to thirty minutes since she received the initial call. She just had to turn on this street and, despite her need for speed, had to slow down to make sure she had the right place. Two minutes.... minute and a half....

Arturia almost fell over as she got off the moped, quickly locked it up, and dashed into the front door of the building with the package under her arm. Thirty seconds--!

"Here's your package!" she said as she practically slammed it on the counter, a triumphant note to her voice.

Made it. Just in time.

[C: Virgo Ward; Evening]
And once her deliveries were done for the day came her own personal errands: dinner for herself and her uncle, cat food, a few odds and ends for around the apartment. Things like that. After dinner she would have homework, but for now she wandered the Virgo District to get her shopping done, occasionally waving and saying hello to people she knew.

It was odd how one could adjust to such unusual circumstances, but Arturia had no choice but to accept things as they are for now. After all, when she went home it would be as if she never left. She knew she would definitely fret more about her situation and demand to return home if it wasn't like that and people hadn't confirmed it for her.

Still, she had moments where she worried. Would Archer ever tell her what he was doing for once? How would Sakura react once she found out about her brother? What condition would the students in the school be in now that the Blood Fort had fallen?

Would she be able to help Rin and Lancer win the Grail War if she couldn't even get her Servant to listen? She trusted Archer when he said he had the world's best interests in mind, but how could she trust him beyond that when he kept disappearing and not speaking to her?

She rubbed the back of her hand where her Command Seals resided as she looked over the selection of instant food to take back to her Uncle. Frozen dinner or just get some fast food? Hard to decide.

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The silent wolf is backlit by the sun as he approaches, the servo-motors of his armor whirring as he walks towards her. He folds his arms, and raises a single eyebrow as she decapitates the practice dummy.

"I suppose practice makes the master, but why did you break it?"

"I didn't mean to," Arturia says as she places it haphazardly back onto the neck of the practice dummy. She'd heard the whirring of his armor's motors long before she saw him, the noise by this point just something she accepted about the man, "I suppose I'm just not used to practicing in the cold just yet."

Back home when the weather got cold her and her uncle would spar in the gym at school before they left for the day instead of on the roof of their apartment building after dinner. Part of her wonders if perhaps she should find another place to spar during the cold weather, but instantly dismisses the thought. A warrior should be ready for any kind of terrain, yes? That included it being a little cold.

"How fare you this morning, Mr. Loken?"

"I endure, as do we all. I am fit for war." He looks at her for a moment, realizing he should ask her the same, "And are you also all right?"

He shifts slightly, wondering if she wants to go blade to blade once more, but letting her make the decision rather than asking.

"I'm learning and I'm well," she said with a shrug as she headed for the picnic table she had her lunchbox with her breakfast in it in, "Are you hungry? I'd like to spar with you again, but I need to go to class soon and I don't think my teachers would appreciate me being late because we were having a session."

For the third time that month.

"I haven't eaten in..."

He calculates. "52 hours, I believe." And he hasn't slept in longer, not that it seems to have slowed him down.

"I wouldn't want you to be late, schooling is very important."

He would feel so guilty if he knew that, Arty. The guiltiest, really.

Yep. Arturia is staring at him in surprise.

"Is it part of being an Astartes to be able to go so long without eating?" Even so, she's already reaching into her lunchbag to pull out a bagel for him.

"Yes." He considers telling her his armor also reprocesses food from his own waste as well. But he also figures this would be gross. Instead, he notices what she's doing, and smiles slightly.

"We were designed to fight without supply or rest for extended periods of time."

She still hands him a bagel.

"Yes, but we're currently not fighting. It can't hurt to get in a few decent meals per day since food isn't in short supply here."

Loken takes it, considers it for a moment, and says, "Thank you."

And then he eats it in one bite. Because Astartes table manners include eating rocks.

Also, he is so large the thing is probably the size of a cookie, comparatively. One day, Arturia is taking him to a proper buffet to make sure he eats well.

"You're welcome. Has anything interesting happened for you lately?" Attempting to make some small talk. She really did enjoy Garviel's company.

Loken considers the question for a moment, and shakes his head, "No, I am... surprised by the ebb and flow of life in this city. I am asked to be... a civilian. And I have known only war for 200 years."

"You didn't have any kind of leisure time back home? Or periods of time when you were not fighting?"

Two hundred years?! She'd known his war had gone on for a long time, but she couldn't even grasp how long a war of two hundred years were, nor could she grasp what it must be like to be constantly fighting as he described.

"We had moments of rest and training, or study, but we were always called to battle for one reason or another. I once debated with Sigismund of the Fists if we would ever see the end of war. I maintained after the Crusade was over, the galaxy would no longer need us as warriors, but he maintained there would always be wars for us to fight."

His eyes narrow a bit, in recollection. "Would that he had been wrong. Horus' rebellion, even after it is inevitably broken, will likely set mankind's efforts back thousands of years. I have always accepted I would die for the Emperor, for my brothers, but the thought that no one I know outside the Emperor and his sons will see the end of war saddens me. We fought for humanity, but they'll never enjoy the fruits of our labors."

"And you will never have a chance to see peace yourself?" As far as she knew, she'd lived a life of nothing but peace. A simple life, one in which she had to keep her head down, but a peaceful life nonetheless. How could he simply accept that all there would be in his future is fighting? That he would die on the battlefield? Did he have no hopes and dreams beyond that?

Not that she's one to talk. Arturia liked the idea of battle and looked forward to fighting, but there was a difference between something that would one day see an end and being thrown back a thousand years.

"That is, do Astartes never leave the service of their Emperor to become civilians?"

"No. I expect to die in the service of the Emperor and Malcador."

He considers for a moment the long hours spent with the iterators in better times, and smiles, if only for a moment, as he considers his philosophical discussions with Kyril Sindermann.

"Only in death does duty end for such as we, and with a dreadnaught even that is uncertain. But if we are so badly wounded we can no longer fight we will often serve in ancillary roles as Equerries or doing other kinds of logistical work."

He is quiet, and considers what it would be like to be an actual civilian, "It was said Horus was training us to be planetary governors and other kinds of administrators once the Great Crusade was over, but I'll never know his mind now."

Link was heading out towards the Capricorn ward, too - and blinked in surprise when a dummy head flew towards him. He caught it in his hands and smiled, holding it out to Arturia.

"This is yours, right? That was a really good swing."

"Uh, yes," she said as she took the dummy back, feeling a little awkward for actually breaking the thing without intending to, but pleased nonetheless that someone thought her swing was good.

"Except I was trying to aim for the neck with my swing, not the head. I need to get better at fighting in this sort of weather."

"You were close, though."

He thought for a moment, and got an idea. "You could practice against me if you want - it's easier to get a handle on these things when you have a live target. Do you have an extra practice sword? I think mine might cut that one up too badly."

"Sometimes people spar with me so I've had live partners before," she pointed out and gestured to the picnic table she had her lunchbox on. Beside it was an extra practice sword since she had a tendency to break those, too.

"But I wouldn't mind another if you'd be willing. The more practice I get, the better I'd get."

He considered it for a moment and unstrapped the sheath with the Master Sword in it, laying it on the table. He picked up the wooden sword and grinned.

"Whenever you're ready. I haven't really had formal lessons, but I'll do my best!"

"My lessons consist of my uncle teaching me since I was child. So I assume we'd be on the same level as far as that's concerned."

She glanced curiously at the Master Sword. It was a fine piece of work, practically a piece of art in her opinion. Somehow, this blade seemed to suit him. A sword and its Master were meant to be partners and this one was no different.

It just made her even more determined to get a proper blade of her own soon.

"I don't recall if we've met before. My name is Arturia Pendragon. What would yours be?" she asked, looking back to Link.

"Oh... no, I had to figure out most of it by myself. There was a really small training course in the forest, but I only really got to use it once before setting out on my adventure."

He tested the weight of the practice sword with a few swings in the air. "And I'm Link. It's nice to meet you!" He walked a little closer and held out his hand to shake hers.

Edited 2012-12-04 06:04 (UTC)

Shopping was still something very bizarre to Anant. Food laid out in buildings, easily purchased by the card that was given to them? The food was extremely strange as well. They knew tinned food, since those were what were scavenged in the Wastes, but everything else...

'Instant Meals'? Microwave? 'Milk'? 'Cornflakes'? Other things?? Strange, strange, strange!

Anant wished to buy all of it! But they were well aware of currency and prices (they weren't that out of touch with civilisation!), which meant they would have to choose the most interesting and curious of things to purchase...

Prowling the instant food area, Anant rolled their camera between their hands, their head tilting this way and that as they gazed at the colourful packaging of some microwaveable curry.

"Interesting, interesting..." Anant murmured, lifting up their camera and taking a few pictures of the shelved food. "There is such a wide range of selection of the same meals - brands? Competition...?"

"And a slightly different recipe," Arturia supplied from near the strange person with the camera. Definitely strange with how they seemed to be hovering over everything and Arturia had no idea if she should worry for their sanity or not.

She approached the masked figure. If they turned out to be dangerous she can protect the patrons of this place. If they were just a weird persona then it couldn't hurt to be polite and maybe try to help them, right?

"Is there something in particular you are looking for?"

Anant almost jumped at the sudden voice, having been far too absorbed into their examination of the shelves, and turned to the newcomer with a curious tilt of their head.

"Hello! It is nice meeting you," they said, "Your offer of help is greatly appreciated. I am trying to decide which food item to try first. I have never seen such things before so, ooh, it's all sorts of exciting!"

Anant bounced on the balls of their feet, looking extremely childish in the process. "Humans make so many things, so many varied things, even over something like food! So many unique tastes give birth to unique foods and recipes and brands and- a-ah, my apologies. I am rambling."

"It's all right. Food is one of those things that many consider an art so I don't mind anyone rambling about it."

She looked over the selection, tapping a finger to her chin as she thought.

"Is there anything in particular you like to eat? It's usually best to start there when it comes to picking something out."

Anant stowed their camera away into their bulky coat, lifting a hand to cup the bottom of their mask in thought. "I greatly enjoy tinned beans. But I have eaten nothing but tinned food. I am in the mood to explore what wonderful inventions humans have made - however..."

Anant's shoulders drooped slightly. "Some meals require something I have not heard of. Microwave?"

"Yes, a microwave." Their behavior suddenly made sense if this person was from a world that didn't have things like this.

"I believe there's one by a sample cart, I could show you? It's rather simple. You just push the buttons to set the time listed on the box and it'll cook the food for you."

"Oh, that would be greatly appreciated!" Anant chirped, clasping their hands before them in a clear show of happiness. "Thank you, ah, please tell me, what is your name?"

"I am Arturia Pendragon. What would your name be, sir?"

'Sir' was the best pronoun she could come up with from the impression she had of Anant so far. She pulled one of the dinners out of the freezer--just some chicken alfredo.

"Just let me pay for this one and I'll show you." She didn't want to be a thief, after all.

"Sir...ah, a male name is required then. I am Leo," Anant replied, tilting their head forwards slightly. "A pleasure to meet you, Arturia Pendragon. Thank you for assisting me!"

Male name? Odder and odder, but Arturia left it be. It was not her place to pry into such things upon first meeting a person.

"It's no problem. If you'll excuse me for just a moment--" and she went and paid for the meal quickly before returning and leading Leo to the sample cart. She explained to the woman manning it she was showing her friend how to use one and then proceeded to explain what the buttons and such on it meant before demonstrating.

Anant was an attentive student, nodding and logging every every scrap of information Arturia gave them. When the microwave was turned on, the contraption humming lowly, Anant crouched to peer inside, their head tilting from side to side in a very bird-like manner.

"I see, I see... this is so incredibly fascinating," Anant gushed, straightening up with their hands pressed against their mask. "To think that humans have constructed a machine that can cook food within minutes - without the risk and drawbacks of open flames! And you can simply place full meals in here to be cooked?" A step up from a meal consisting solely of tinned beans!

Pit's wandering about the Virgo ward, too. He works there, but that's besides the point. It's getting colder and colder. The clothes he bought yesterday aren't warm enough for him today (metaphorically speaking). He's trying not to amass too big of a wardrobe, though, so he only has one bag of clothes on him as he starts to make his way back to the Libra ward.

That is, until he spots Arturia.

"Hey!"

"Oh, hello, Pit!" Arturia called and makes her way over to him. He was slowly becoming a decent friend to her and at least someone she knew seemed to understand "Viridi-ese."

"How have you been?" she asked once she was close enough to actually hold a conversation with him.

"Pretty good," he says. "Yourself? Been keeping busy?"

"Yes. Between school, my cats, my uncle, and working, it's been busy," she said with a smile, "I'm picking up some dinner for my uncle and myself right now, actually."

"Oh. I didn't know your uncle was here! It must be nice to have family around."

"It can be." When he wasn't breathing down her neck about where she was and what she was doing, that is.

"I could see about introducing you sometime? He's the one who taught me how to use a sword." As far as she knew, anyway.

"That'd be pretty cool! Maybe we could even spar! I mean, I don't have a sword, but..."

"That was fast!" the woman she was delivering to congratulated her. "Must have been under six kilometers."

Meetra happily signed for the package. "I guess I didn't need them so urgently you had to risk death delivering them, though...it's just some lenses."

"I know, but I told you I'd be here in a certain time and I like to keep my word."

That, and she enjoyed challenging herself like that. Arturia took her signature and the time for when she would go collect her payment the next day.

Meetra nods. "Very commendable. You're a guest, right? The locals seem to like bringing go-getters here..."

"Yes, I am. I've only been here for a few months. What about yourself?" How long she'd been here. Arturia could glean from what she said that Meetra is also a guest.

"I think it's two months now, if I've figured out the calendar correctly," she said. The fact that she was dressed like a monk and ordering fiberoptic components was probably another clue. "How are you liking it here so far?"

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ITP: Daily routine

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C: Virgo Ward

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