Lunch with a Postulant :: Lunchtime [Godai]

It was a little earlier than she liked to start eating her food. But after a work meeting and a surprise Terrorist, her stomach clearly demanded she get some kind of reward for all that trouble. The cafeteria was open, so there wasn't any reason for her to comply to these wishes. At this point, she didn't really care of the attention she was getting from her get-up and the coffin. It was a long morning, after all. She just wasn't in the mood for it.

It was a meal of a salad, sandwiches, a bowl of clam chowder, sourdough bread, and an orange on a tray. A suitably well-stocked meal for one person. But Maria wasn't just a normal human either. In comparison to anything else she ate, it was like sustaining herself with just a piece of gum with this lunch alone. Maria would have wanted to ask for more, but she didn't want to impose herself on the school as she already did with the coffin. That and she was feeling rather moody to even care enough for more.


Maria was just taking a sip from her soup before pausing in surprise that someone actually wanted to approach the weird and foreboding looking nun. But then again, her world wasn't normal in any instance. She allowed the girl to sit near her, leaving her alone as the Cadet ate her meal. The postulant tried to be casual about it, but she felt rather awkward...

"Erm... well, alright. If you say so," Maria slowly relented with a nod. She could agree with her reasons, well almost completely. The Cadet figured there wasn't any reason to completely avoid everybody as long as they didn't harass her. So far, no one really did. At first, she blinked at the girl who was trying to introduce herself. But she took the handshake and replied in turn, "Maria. Maria Woodsworth, miss. Nice to meet you too."

She seemed rather friendly enough. Not really rudely pushing her face towards the Cadet like a certain somebody. Though strangely enough, did she know French? Was she French? Knowing that Endymion was really nowhere in Europe, perhaps she was a transfer student? She curiously asked her younger peer, "Are you by chance from France, Miss Gagnon?"

Exchange students weren't exactly common in Endymion as far as Maria was aware. Being someone who was stuck in the city for all her life, she had a kind of wish to travel out and see what the world was like. The Cadet intently listened to the student, as if savoring what she had to say. English was the only language that she knew, but to hear something like French had an air of something special.

"I was born and raised here," Maria gave a sheepish shrug, "Endymion is basically my entire world. That said, that's interesting. Your English is pretty good, Miss Gagnon. It can't have been easy, right?"

Learning another language wasn't impossible, but it took dedication, time, and practice. Three of these that Maria didn't have much time for given her circumstances at the moment, but she envied that. Another bite from her sandwiches caused half of it to disappear in her chewing mouth. After she swallowed, she asked her, "Could you tell me more about Lyon?"

"I'm sure the Cadets can handle them. They're doing their best, I'd imagine." Her smile was a little sad hearing this from her. The Psyche-Terrorists were a danger to the city. First it was demons, which they were still a considerable hazard, but were kept in check by the Cadets. Yet, it was the Terrorists that were far dangerous. Humans with powers were a potent force, especially when it's difficult to tell what they would do next. They weren't very different from demons. All it meant was that they were just enemies they had to neutralize for the good of the city.

There a look of envy in her expression as she listened to Batilde. There was a kind of romantic view of the place in Maria's mind. She could already imagine the infamous mountains and the homely medieval-like architecture. It would awfully be nice to visit there some day.

She remarked with a happy clap of her hands, "It sounds really romantic. I'd like to go there someday. I want the taste of Alps air... it must be really refreshing compared to the city."

Unpolluted and full of nature, she could already imagine how fresh it would be. Perhaps the reality was better than her imagination. But she wouldn't be surprised if it was better than East Eden for that matter. "So what brings you here, Miss Gagnon? Coming all the way from Lyons to here?"

She couldn't blame the exchange student for having doubts. Even Maria was having some doubts of her own abilities alone, the rest of her teammates were also another reason to worry about. But to do nothing was to exacerbate the issue. They had to get stronger, together.

Worries aside, Maria was staring at Batilde as she was slowly eating her sandwich and just finished other parts of her meal. She was rather fast, but at the same time she was slowing down the more the girl gave a view of her hometown.


This was like the fourth time she met someone of status? Perhaps fifth if you included all of the Lamecia's. It made her feel rather small in comparison, with her mundane cell-like room. She never needed for much as she had the bare necessities. "I can understand. Sometimes you'd like to try something new. I'm the same in that instance. But well... I got obligations here. Something like that."

She shrugged and took another bite of her meal. Maria could feel a lot of parallels with her. In a way, it made her nostalgic of her own background. But there was a bit of pain in it, after all.

"Um, well... I don't really do much. I just read... and exercise. I help out in community service," Maria replied awkwardly when asked, "Something like that."

She didn't want to share anything about her job as a Cadet. Yes, she was devoted to the city's safety and to follow the orders of the Government. But, she didn't want that to overwhelm what little she had as a person. In many respects, perhaps she had failed her training in the Church. She was supposed to be a weapon, yet that mindset didn't completely root inside of her. In a way, she was a failure.


Despite saying this, she was rather eager to get her hands on those recorded sights. Her meal was three-quarters the way done as she continued to eat. But even when she was done eating, she'd at least stay around to look into these pictures at least once. She had some time, not like anyone required her presence right away.

"Oh! Um, well, I am in training at the moment. So I sometimes end up wearing this," Maria replied as she pointed at her own garb, "Sometimes I end up coming here in it out of habit. If you know what I mean, ha ha..."

It wasn't just that, to her it was a kind of uniform for the job she took on as not just as a Cadet, but as an Executor. It was already five years since she was accepted, but she would need longer to become fully accepted within the Cathedral's fold in that religious sense. At best she was a combat resource to be relied upon from the religious establishment.


She was increasingly transfixed the longer she looked at the image. It was so picturesque in the middle of a city, it had a kind of charm that Endymion didn't have. But perhaps it was unique to an European city than a city that was inhabited by demons. It was the first time for a look into a world outside of these walls.


It made her remember something for that moment, she stared at the picture almost listlessly. But she finally blinked and gave one last bite from her meal. She was here, in Endymion, as an Executor and as a Cadet. There was no going back...

"Um, yeah. I will, it sounds like a nice place," she began to hurriedly speak, "Anyway, it's nice to meet you Batilde. I hope to meet you again. And I hope you will enjoy your stay in Endymion. Feel free to come to me if you need any help, I'll be at the Sunlake Palms Church. See ya!"

She tried to remain as cheerful as she could, while beginning to leave with her finished plates and tray. But somewhere inside... something hurt.

[Exit]

MARIA OF THE CHARIOT AND BATILDE OF THE EMPEROR HAVE ESTABLISHED A SOCIAL LINK