Good Morning, Endymion! :: Morning [Open]

While Batilde sat out in front of the house, Lui could be seen hiking along the trail in front of the house. He was listening to the radio over his phone, a pair of black headphones draped over one ear with the other phone drooping over his shoulder. When he scrolled stations to Mary Bell's show, his ears were assaulted by the morning shout. After a shout of alarm and pain, he quickly flipped off the station and removed his headphones, making sure his hearing was still working.
"Note to self: Turn down the volume after listening to your music."

He didn't often trek so far into the country, but Lui wanted to take some time to de-stress and practice with his saber. He patted the edge of his training saber and would have slid it out had he not noticed the girl relaxing outside her house. Being the assumed courteous fellow he was, he passed by the house and signaled to the girl with a wave and introduction.

"Morning, madam. Just passing through. You know any little groves out here I can use? Preferably with a tree or two. I want to get some training in."

The few things Lui had on him that could be seen by the girl were his headphones, a plastic sword of some kind, and his fake yet convincing chirpy attitude.

Despite her nervous smile, Lui could tell that she was delighted to see him. So far, so good. Her response was fairly kind and a touch interesting using Monsieur as his fill-in name. He... liked it. Monsieur, it fit so well. He'd need to remember this for later. He slipped one headphone back onto his head, turned his music to a quiet level to listen to the lady, and lightly bowed to her.

"Why, thank you Mademoiselle! But yeah, I don't venture too far out here. I live in Little Tokyo, so I see the city more than anything. You enjoy the country lifestyle? Sometimes I just practice out in the field, but I'm looking for a solid target to train on. So, the Camping Area? I'm not familiar where that is."

What's Playing On Lui's Headphones?:

"Hoh, you speak le français? Or do you only know Monsieur and Mademoiselle?"

"Oh, pas beaucoup (not a lot). I took a class about a year ago when I was finding a little something to occupy myself as a school interest. Sorry to disappoint. Must not be easy to speak English, I imagine? Don't worry about it."

She seemed genuinely nice, perhaps studious based on her comment of studying in the countryside, and isn't babbling basic drivel. Just the kind of person worth talking to. Maybe he'd ask to learn some French to make their conversations more friendly to her mother tongue.

"Oh, you've never been to A Little Place in Eden? Well, I can show you the way, if you'd like."

"Oh, how kind of you. I wouldn't want to take you away from your... program, but if you're willing to take me, I wouldn't mind."

As she ran inside to change into adventuresome attire and clean her dish, Lui walked up the steps and checked the view from the porch. The air was clean, all the elements of nature were open to act in the environment, and the only sounds around being the twittering of birds or a gust of wind rushing through an open window. After admiring the view, he stepped back down from the patio and unsheathed his saber. It wasn't metallic but instead made of more solid material that could withstand as much of a beating as the dummy that he would be striking. Should Batilde return, she would likely see him swinging his blade slowly but smoothly, as if his body flowed with it. His face, one appearing calm and kind, hardened into a stoic, unfocused mask, as if all his focus were elsewhere.

So, this girl was basically trading places with the son of this family. That did beg the question: if the son was studying art in France, what was worth studying over in Endymion? Apparently her family connections played a part in her getting this opportunity, but in what manner? The way she talked about it made it seem like a private matter, and pushing it would only damage her impression of him. He wanted to talk a little further with her, given however long the walk was or if she even wanted to stay to watch.

Hearing the girl's response, which reminded Lui that he didn't get her name, he quickly put his saber away at his side and turned back to her. Her outfit had changed to tight jeans, a long-sleeved shirt, and a green vest; certainly a more natural look that reflected the outdoors.

"Ready when you are... Oh wait, I never got your name. Mine's Lui, if you were curious."

As the two began their trot towards the camping area, he looked back at her face and noticed a hint of worry or concern. She seemed perfectly fine, but as soon as she came back out, she seemed preoccupied with something.

"Are you okay? You seem a little preoccupied with something. Nervous? You can tell me. "

It was a rather nice fall morning, bordering on a summer day. The sound of a nearby stream flowed with Lui's music as he swayed his head with the flow of both music and water. Batilde, if he was pronouncing it correctly, seemed to be very polite with her speech, though it could be because he was being rather nice right now. However, that little break in Batilde's speech only grew to more nervous behavior. She might as well threw a sign in his face that screamed "I'm lying". While he wanted to press further, he needed to be tactful with it. Though he had a gut feeling that he wouldn't enjoy discussing what came up...

"I swear, if this leads to some heart-throbbing story from her past or something, I'm gonna puke straight through my smiley face. No. Gotta steel myself and just ask.

"Ehm... W-What makes you think that?"

"Well, to be fair, you're floundering your words a bit. Strange that you're acting this way now. You seemed pretty content with your radio show and your meal. Is it... me? Is there something wrong with me walking with you?"

Racing through the pages of details he knew about average people, one thing he always remembered was that rumors spread like wildfire. Assuming she had a boyfriend or something, maybe she was nervous with another boy. Romance was not something he dealt with often, so he didn't have a lot to work with. Just put a foot in the door and see if she slipped up and said something.

Of course it had to be rumors. Rumors, gossip, and a direct cord connected to the internet were the few stimulants in a regular person's life that kept them alive. Lui had gotten sick of people assuming without a hint of certainty outside of heresay. Like how a dating couple might grow suspicious of each other through the wrong words said at the wrong times, people's assumptions could grow into bigger lies and junk that everybody stomached. Still, this girl was concerned that somebody would get the wrong idea about them. Did she have such a reputation to keep up? Whatever it was, he would at least try to stay out of some argument between her and her prospective girlfriend.

"Wait, what did she say? Girlfriend? So she was..."

Lui had blinked in surprise for a moment before recovering his composure.

"Oh, I see. So you've got eyes on a... female companion, and the way rumors are born these days, we may indeed light a fire under us without realizing. I understand. If worse comes to worse, I can take the blunt of it. Thanks for at least being honest with me."

As she was talking about her interest, her cheeks gave off a tinge of blush. So was she nervous about talking to this girl? Were they not of similar... love interests? Lui had to remind himself not to open the subject further than she would allow.

"It might not seem like a big deal but... I just don't want her to think I'm occupied."

"Then I don't want to interfere. I don't particularly care if people are mocking or laughing at me behind my back, but you probably wouldn't want that attention, right? Do you want to... just leave? We could always work some cover if needed. I'm a fairly good actor, so I can support whatever story you come up with. You could always just spin it, say I was lost and needed guidance because my sense of direction sucks."

"N-Not that there's anything wrong with you at all, Lui."

"I understand. You're one of the few people that thinks I'm alright. Everybody else just ignores me or thinks I'm some loser. They wouldn't be wrong; I'm the captain of a measly club that can barely fill a classroom, and my sister casts a shadow so wide she cover the whole city. But hey, I've lived with that. As far as you care, at least.

Lui felt a strange combination of emotions in his chest; on one hand, Batilde was really opening up to him, discussing the warm, fuzzy feelings she got from her special someone. He could see the alleviation run down her face, her tension lightened. It gave him some comfort to see his talent for emotional understanding. But on the other hand, it was just another face he wore. Lui had a face for just about anybody worth talking to, from vile to kind and serious to silly. His concern for the girl was real, but by the end of the day, it would be another note on the compendium of things he had to remember on people. He had just tricked her with a winning smile and an attentive ear.

This was why he enjoyed fencing behind a mask; it didn't matter what face he wore. He could twitch every time he went for a lunge, but nobody would notice. The body would be the only sign for watching what your opponent would do. He was free to be expressive, interpreted, and nobody would notice. His façade would come down just as soon as the mask could take its place.

Seeing that they were reaching the end of the journey, Lui politely thanked Batilda, inviting her to stay and watch or even learn a few moves in exchange as he brought out his saber in one quick motion and kept it in his right hand.

"Well, that's them, and not me. Just don't mind what they're saying, and focus on yourself, and those around you that, well... matter, so to speak. You're a good guy, Lui."

"To you, I certainly am. You're a rare commodity, Batilde. Vous êtes different (You are different). I've been blessed with meeting some rather different people in this town. But they've met different Lui's than you have. One was a fencing captain who prided himself on saving his club. The other was a determined psychoanalyst who debated the power of a group against authority. But today, I'm the friend who will lend you a hand through thick and thin. If you want to know who I really am...

I haven't figured that out myself.

Anyways, if you're not leaving, are you coming with? I just need to find a suitable target to strike. Unless you're still worried about the whole rumor situation."

Should Batilde agree to follow, Lui would lead her down the dusty path up to a small clearing with a few stumps, some thick trees, and sizable branches along the sides of the shrubbery. Lui would begin looking for a tree to set his eyes on.