The Hermit's Lair (For TurnKTech)

Within the storage basement beneath the auditorium's stages, Noriko Takehaya sits on a herd of crates. These crates have been shaped into a throne of sorts. Various snacks surround her. The teen's headphones hang from her neck while sounding low-volume J-Pop. A soft hum, going along with the tune, escapes the girl while she types on her computer.

Click-clack, click-clack, the keyboard of her laptop sounds. As per usual, she's working on a program for the drama club. Well-- it's moreso several programs at once, but nothing she can't handle. Digits and letters alike rapidly dance across the scene, and Noriko's eyes are quick to follow. The light of the screen is reflected off of her glasses.

A tall stack of cardboard boxes with a pair of legs beneath them makes its way down several hallways inside of the academy and eventually arrives at the door to the basement of the auditorium. At this point, the boxes are carefully lowered to the ground and set to the side, revealing a silver-haired teen with bags under his eyes and an annoyed look on his face. "What a pain in the ass.." His complaint is uttered under his breath as he props the door open with one of the larger boxes and prepares to head inside with the others.

As his demeanor might tell, the member of the Student Council is not too fond of the task he had been given. Delivering boxes of new supplies and materials to the various clubs in the school? Surely this was a task better suited for one of the first years. "Play it cool, Kenny. Only another hour or so of this grunt work, then you can really get paid." He arrives in the heart of the basement sooner than later and aims to place the boxes down.. wherever he could, really. With his vision blocked for the most part and his patience wearing thin, that just so happens to be in the center of a throne made of crates -- the same one a certain programmer is click-clacking away at!

Noriko continues click-clacking away, humming and all. Life's fine-- at least until the male had vaguely came within viewing range of her. Although, depending on the boy's reaction time, it may have already been too late. A prominent yelp escapes the youth as the male approaches, being only several feet away. Her eyes go wide, and this effect is magnified by her glasses tenfold.

The programmer's gaze liddens, and her laptop is shut, giving her a brief view of the various J-Pop stickers, anime stickers, and such that'd been stuck onto the front of the laptop. Both arms coil around her laptop as if to protects it as she'll curl into a ball of sorts in order to further protect it -- and herself, to some lesser extent. Yeah, that's important too. Once she assumes said position, she'll await her presumably inevitable doom.

This is it. After all of the less than proper things he had done in his life, this is the one that will send him into the big house. Accidentally crushing a member of the opposite sex with a stack of boxes is a sin that could end his career before it even began! But maybe, just maybe.. this could be avoided. All she has to do is give him some sort of verbal sign-- Oh, there it is.

The yelp jolts the exhausted teenager fully awake, causing him to leap backwards and almost drop the supplies in his hands. "H-hey, wha--!!" He spends the next few moments stumbling around the room with one of the world's natural wonders - the leaning tower of Boxes(TM), trying to keep them from falling out and spilling their contents!

Kenneth eventually takes hold of his life fully and places the boxes down, only to lean back against a table on the opposite side of the room from Noriko, panting for breath. "..Geeze. Are you alright?" His widened gaze looks over to meet hers as his heart returns to its regular pace.

Noriko remains frozen for an extensive period of time. It's only when he speaks for the second time does she realize that the coast must be clear. Both eyes will slowly open as she scans the vicinity, looking for the source of the voice. Gee, it's like this place is public, or something! Oh-- wait, yeah, it is. None the less, she'll quickly locate the boy. After a few moments of presumed direct eye contact, she'll awkwardly glance a few feet away from him.

"Oh, u-uh... Hi." The Takehaya mumbles, soon after peering away from Keeneth. There's a pensive pause. Something is being forgotten--, oh, yes, he actually had an inquiry! "I-I'm okay, yeah," She'll mumble again while peering onto the ground. Her laptop remains clutched onto, as if a lifeline of sorts.

Paak continues to lean against the table as Noriko regains her bearings, his arms moving to fold over his chest. At the very least, he would not go down in history as the guy that murdered a girl with boxes in a poorly lit room.  His gaze sits on her until she breaks eye contact, at which point he looks over to the boxes that he had brought in and sighs.

"I wasn't told that there would be anyone down here. Or was I..?" His voice trails off as he tries to remember. In all honesty, the entire day had been one jumbled up mess. He had been late to his first period, slept through his second, and forgotten to pack a lunch! Even practice with the basketball team went over poorly with two  of their star players out. But none of that matters anymore. With the delivery of these glorious boxes, he is a free man again.

..Until tomorrow. This thought process leads to Kenneth rolling his eyes and standing up. "These are all the parts and pieces that your club ordered, implying you're actually in the Drama Club and aren't just some oddling that hangs out down here for fun." A skeptical glance is given as he walks forward, a sheet of paper being pulled out of his blazer for her to take once he got close enough. "Mind signing this, ...?" A pause is offered for the technician to give her name if she so desires.

"U-Uh.. I'm tech' support for the drama club." She whisper-says. Her composure's regained - or at least whatever's left of what could vaguely be referred to as "composure". Slowly she'll unhinge her grip from her laptop. The highly anime-and-manga-themed piece of hardware is placed on the right armrest of her makeshift throne. Her gaze quickly flickers between the sheet of paper and the male, an alarmingly high amount of times. She's already becoming unnerved, for whatever reason. The closed laptop's latched onto, yet again, as a coping mechanism of sorts. This is all probably because her (lack of) social experience and social sense is being shown.

The teen's got to think-- and fast. What'll fix the situation? "Uh-- Uh-- Noriko! I'm Noriko."

A shy girl cuddled up to her laptop in a man-cave of sorts, oblivious to the world around her? If that didn't fit the description of a tech support operative, what could? Speaking of laptops.. Kenneth's eyes seem to look the member of the Drama Club over for a bit longer before focusing on aforementioned tool of technology. Namely the various anime and manga stickers littering the cover!


"H-hey, Noriko. You're into that kind of stuff..?" His eyes lit up again as he is pulled further away from the realm of broodiness and back to being fully awake. The look he gives her is a judgmental one at first.. but it quickly warms up to become more lax as a sly smirk hits the corner of his mouth. A hand pulls the left side of his coat outwards like a flap, revealing several pins from different manga and anime. "It's nice to see another geek in person for once. I'm Kenneth." The display is left out for her to see a while longer as he takes a few steps to sit on top of the boxes he had almost squished her with.

"How'd you land this gig?"

Several beads of sweat cascade down the teen's temples as she notices the judgmental look. She's got enough social experience to read that look, at least. Her expression shifts from one of mild distress to one of earnest surprise as she notices the various pins that decorated the interior of his jacket. Then comes his statement, which she'll assume means that he's spoken to many geeks via various channels amongst the interwebs. Given a moment to process this, her visage will lighten up; eyes wide with the excitement of a child.

"O-Of course I do-- you do, too?! I love anime and manga!" Noriko's true loves have been noticed, and she's apparently even found a sympathizer. She's much louder than she'll probably ever be again, in all honesty. There's adrenaline coursing through her veins-- or, well, at least it feels like it. Maybe it's something simple to get over-excited about, but not to the Takehaya. The teen's not mellowing her town down to its usual hushed-whisper; in fact, she almost speaks at a tone reasonable to converse at.
"I-- Uh-- I joined the club almost a month ago, my parents told me I had to join one,
and drama seemed like the best since.. Well... I like it, but not really acting. I could be nearby it and still not be a bother, by joining tech' support. I'm pretty good with computers, too."

Kenneth listens to her words with the utmost interest, his fascination with her story only growing as she went deeper into it. He can barely contain a laugh as she mentions the part about her parents forcing her into it partially. "You too, huh? My parents made a huge scene to get me to join one as well. Even went as far as to 'lock my manga collection away in a trunk and toss it into the bottom of Riverway'!" He imitates his father's voice for the last half of the explanation, using finger quotes to properly execute the mocking gesture.

Soon after, he sinks into the box he had been sitting on and quickly leaps off of it, not wanting to bring anymore damage to the supplies than he probably had already. "..Are you a first year, then? I don't think I've ever seen you around." He steps a bit closer and continues to admire the stickers that gave her laptop a personality while he waits for a reply.

A chuckle of her own is stifled as Kenneth imitates his father. She'll ease her grip on her laptop, now allowing it to gently balance upon her lap. Evidently, she's much more at ease than when the male had initially entered the room. The power of a sympathizer, huh?

"I'd go crazy if my parents did that! I'm not a first year-- well, you probably haven't seen me because I don't attend this school. Or any, at all. I'm home-schooled. My parents threatened to send me to real school if I didn't at least join a club." There's a pensive pause - Noriko's gotten a genuine will to continue the conversation, but maybe isn't the best at doing so. "Uuuh... What year are you?"

Two eyebrows are raised at Noriko's response. She seems to have a knack for keeping the teenager's attention, despite initially coming off as one who might not be able to do so of her own will. A single index finger extends upwards to tap the bottom of his chin as he absorbs the information the Drama Club hidden-star had just presented. "I'm a second year. But let me get this straight.. you get to come to school, do what you like, and avoid all of the hallway drama? Sounds like you've got it made to me, Noriko." His smile softens up a bit more.

What had started as a chore had quickly turned into an enjoyable encounter. As a loner in his own right, it is a pleasant surprise for Paak. But what was that phrase that always been repeated to him? Something about.. following up? Sealing the deal? His face scrunches up slightly as he tries to find the words to do so. "I'm guessing you're online a lot, right? I should get going soon, but here's my messenger username. Look me sometime, yeah?" He tears off a piece of the receipt paper that he needed her to sign and jots down the phrase 'TurnKTech' on it to hand over.

A sheepish grin and rosy tint appears on the teen's expression, given the initial statement. This whole fiasco hadn't been expected - but it surely has been appreciated! Noriko chuckles softly, scratching the back of her head.

"T-Thanks! I-I.. I don't think it's anything spectacular - but I do like it..!" She initially replies. A questioning look appears on her expression as the male voices an inquiry. Alas, she'll hear him out. "I-I'd be happy to, yeah!" Her tone is as cheery as her expression currently is. This must be what making friends is like?! A hand is extended out to take the slip of paper. It is securely pocketed.

Kenneth pulls his phone out of his pocket after, pressing a single button to check the time. "Half past time for me to report back to the club and clock out. It was really nice meeting you, Nori'. I'm sure we'll meet again soon." He takes the liberty of shortening her name, that smile never leaving his face. The Council member proceeds out of the basement and back up from where he came.

"..Maybe this place isn't all bad."

Noriko of the Hermit Arcana and Kenneth of the Hanged Man have established a Social Link!