How to Solve a Problem [Maria]

[Ringo Shiro]

Ringo looked at his refrigerator with a bit of concern. It could be more filled. What with only some rice, an egg, a bottle of water, and an almost empty bottle of juice in there. Ringo was hoping to use his latest paycheck to upgrade his equipment too. But a healthy meal is important too. He can't exactly return to his parents malnourished...but at the same time he can't neglect his equipment and his attempts to solve this lock down incident...but this won't be enough for a dinner quite frankly. Ringo looked at the clock to see it was still early after noon. He shrugged as he started to head to his room to get his training equipment.

Once more, Ringo is not too far from the apartments, swinging his bokken lightly, wearing his kotes. Not far from is a bag containing his shinai, a towel, and his last bottle of water. He made another large set of practice swings. Since his journey into the outer areas he has been plenty faster and more powerful...fighting supernatural abominations kind of does that sort of thing. He took a deep breathe at the last swing. He once more noticed someone walking towards him.

"Hello, can I help you with anything?" Ringo asked as he lowered his bokken.

[Maria Stark]

Maria was walking back to her apartment form the Kindergarten. It was early afternoon and most children were home already. But she had to do little bit of preparing for the next day. So she left the building and went back to the streets. It was same as always. About the same people she met everyday. About the same buildings everywhere. But one thing in particular drew her attention. A boy was practicing with a wooden sword. Maria watched a little from afar. She hadn't been fighting with a sword a lot, but something told her that this boy was better then average for his age. 

She approached him. slowly but surely. After all she didn't want to receive a bokken in her face. The boy however lowered his bokken and asked her if he could help her with anything. "Nice work right there. Where did you learn to swing your sword that well?" Maria asked with a curious look on her face. She came closer to the boy, at a much faster pace now. There was no reason to walk slowly anymore as he had clearly seen her. 

[Ringo Shiro]

"Nice work right there. Where did you learn to swing your sword that well?" The one who spoke to him was a girl a fair bit shorter than him. She had long orangeish hair and eyes to match. Ringo pointed the bokken away from her as he might as well indulge in the conversation. It seems she knew a bit about the ways of the blade too.

"I learned my skills from a teacher back in when I lived in Japan." Ringo scratched the back of his head. "I wanted to take a break from the sport to focus on my college studies but..." Ringo shrugged, he might as well toss up this little excuse again. "I guess my daily routine doesn't feel the same without practice." Ringo walked over to his bag and dug out his water bottle. "Do you know kendo? He might as well ask. Though she doesn't exactly look Japanese, granted they're multiple kendo associations across the world according to his teacher.

[Maria Stark]

Maria was relieved when he pointed the bokken away from her. It wouldn't be nice to talk to an unarmed lady with a sword between the two, especially if it was aimed at her. He told her that he learned his skills in Japan. seems logical as it was a Japanese sports, but it could be here. This city is so multicultural it would be nearly impossible for not a Kendo club to be here. Especially with the current situation. he also told Maria about taking a break for his college studies, but he couldn't leave it out his daily routine. He seemed a little Japanese, but in a city like that it meant nothing. 

He asked whether she knew kendo? "I do, though that is about 3 years ago I last practiced against another human." She answered the boy. Which was typically truth. Yes she recently fought shadows, but those weren't human. Or at least Maria didn't count them as human. So yea that was true. She couldn't tell a normal person about the persona so she just decided not to do that. He wouldn't believe her anyhow. "I remember joining the local kendo group at our school to release some stress after a school day." She answered the boy. "So why did you started training kendo?" Maria asked the boy curiously.

[Ringo Shiro]

"I do, though that is about 3 years ago I last practiced against another human." Three years? So she's been retired longer. Ringo himself was a short lived separation from the sport and really it is preparation for him to fight abominations that threaten to consume the human mind. "I remember joining the local kendo group at our school to release some stress after a school day." Sounds typical, a good number of the team back home were there to discipline themselves and get rid of some stress. "So why did you started training kendo?"

"I was a bit of a trouble maker back then." Ringo said with a laugh, looking back at his more less than mature days. "So my mom decided that it'd be healthier for me." Ringo placed the bokken down and opened the bottle of water. "By the by, I'm Ringo. Nice to meet you."

[Maria Stark]

Maria was a little delighted he said in the past. It meant he wasn't anymore, right? "Well, you seem to got better." she answered. It indeed couldn't hurt. It was an excellent way to keep stress controlled. Stress wasn't necessary a bad thing. But uncontrolled it could go wrong. The boy opened a bottle of water and introduced himself. He said his name was Ringo. Ringo? never heard such a name. It was a little funny for her but she luckily she didn't laugh at it. Instead she just answered. Maria, Maria Stark. Nice to meet you too, Ringo." She said to the boy. Maria wasn't sure what to talk about now, she waited a little before asking. "So how are your college studies going?" She asked out of not knowing anything better to talk about.

[Ringo Shiro]

"Well, you seem" to got better." Well its intended purpose was accomplished through Ringo should leave out how his teacher accomplished said intended purpose."Maria, Maria Stark. Nice to meet you too, Ringo." Ringo bowed politely. He filled the momentary silence with a sip of water."So how are your college studies going?"

"They're going alright...all things considered." Ringo said. "Despite the lock down and me being unable to call anyone I know outside of Mosiac City, life has continued as always." Ringo was leaving out the convenient little detail that he is going out and slaying abominations that prey on humans that are just outside the circle."I'm occasionally a waiter at one of the cafes in the White Lion Shopping Center. Other than that, nothing really all that out of the ordinary. Do hope the lock down gets lifted soon..."

[Maria Stark]

With 'all things considered' he most likely met the lockdown. His further dialogue confirmed it. Yea she missed her family in London too. but yea she still went to the Kindergarten every schoolday. This boy was also a waiter at a shopping center? Well everyone seemed to have their job. "I just returned from the kindergarten in the Golden Alice district"  She told the younger boy. "Have you noticed..." She wasn't sure how to word it. 'have you noticed that the there are creatures in the city that are almost impossible to exist?' yea right? "Well, never mind."  she told Ringo. He wouldn't understand what she was talking about anyway. 

"Yea, I hope so too. But what can we do?"  She answered on Ringo stating that he hoped for the lockdown to end soon. For her it wasn't anything ordinary at all the last time. With those strange creatures and her new power she couldn't explain.

[Ringo Shiro]

"I just returned from the kindergarten in the Golden Alice district." Ringo looked up at Maria after he took his sip. He can imagine her teaching a kindergarten class. He started to close the water bottle. "Have you noticed..." Ringo looked over at Maria and wondered if she was going to finish. "Well, never mind." It was at this point that Ringo knew what he looked like when he confronted that black haired man the other day.

"Yea, I hope so too. But what can we do?"

"I guess we'd need magic to solve it." Ringo placed the water bottle away. "I just want to confirm and not sound crazy but...yes I have noticed strange things. People having supernatural powers?" He knew he sounded crazy but the way she asked must've implied something right? But she doesn't know anything though Ringo can live with the stigma of being slightly insane for a while.

[Maria Stark]

The word magic did Maria look up at the boy. Could he know something about it as well? She hated it to lie about this to people so it would be best to play it fair. Then with the next words he confirmed Maria's earlier thoughts. Yes he knew about it. She wasn't the only one in town aware of the shadows. "So... you have seen 'them' too?"  Maria talked quietly so only Ringo could hear her, referring to the shadows. "Do... Do you have one as well?"  She quickly but just as silently referring to the persona's. She wasn't sure if Ringo understood what she was talking about, but if he did then it would be great to know that she wasn't alone in this. Maybe they could work together. Only... she just hoped that this wasn't a joke. It would be a very bad one.

[Ringo Shiro]

"So... you have seen 'them' too?" Maria was lowering her voice. This was like a good few nights ago, only reversed. Though this confirmed it, Maria knows about the truth of the lock down. She wasn't at the battle with the demonic school girl meaning that the number of people who know about the supernatural ongoings of this city is only going to increase much to Ringo's horror. This meant more allies sure but that meant more people in danger. "Do... Do you have one as well?"

"I...don't." Ringo said with a sad smile. He looked around and lowered his tone as well. "I'm fighting these creatures as a normal human." Ringo pointed to the bokken. "I guess now would be a good time to confess that training myself to fight these things without supernatural powers is what actually brought me back into kendo." He said with a sad laugh. Ringo still wondered when he was going to get his Persona...

[Maria Stark]

oh, so he didn't? He had no persona? Well, she found him incredible. Maria's attempt without a persona ended in a disaster. If her persona didn't awakened she would be dead for sure. "No way, you actually manage to do something without a persona?" Maria said quietly, but a little to loud then she wanted to. But so far Maria knew it was nearly impossible to harm a shadow without a persona. "I never saw someone fighting a shadow without a persona. My attempt at that wasn't exactly successful." Maria praised him a little. He explained that the shadow were the things that brought him back to kendo. Well that made sense. Actually it was for her the same except that she only fought shadows with her sword and not go to train that much. Well she had a persona which greatly assisted her.

[Ringo Shiro]

"No way, you actually manage to do something without a persona?"Maria expressed a bit of surprise at this. Not that Ringo can blame her. From his accounts from others it was near impossible to harm these things in normal circumstances. "I never saw someone fighting a shadow without a persona. My attempt at that wasn't exactly successful."

"It's harder than it looks. I struggle to take out one shadow and I'm technically using special equipment from a shop called Laharal's." Ringo would ask questions about that place but he can't exactly complain about the equipment he got. "Honestly I would like to have the power of Persona, but beggars can't be choosers. So right now I'm doing what I can to help." Ringo started to take off kotes seeing as how he wasn't exactly getting anything done at the moment plus his hands needed some air.

"What level kendo are you?" Ringo asked, admittedly out of the blue. "I'm only 2-dan. I would've been 3-dan if I stayed at the sport officially." Maria was older than him so she must be at least 3-dan or 4-dan right? Must be the latter if she is teaching kindergarden

[Maria Stark]

Maria noticed him mentioning a shop called Laharal's. Maybe Maria would bring that store a visit. He also mentioned he wanted a persona but that he wasn't chosen or something. She didn't knew one was chosen, to be a persona user. But she didn't had another explanation to why Ringo didn't get a persona. She really found it admirable of the younger boy to help people with this. Maria's attempt without persona wasn't that successful. She almost died. Then he asked what level Kendo she was. "Well, I quit after finishing high school so I also was 2-dan but now there isn't that much of my skill left."  Maria wasn't that bad with a sword, but her skill had seen better days. "I really should start again with all these things going about."  She said half to herself and half to Ringo.

[Ringo Shiro]

"Well, I quit after finishing high school so I also was 2-dan but now there isn't that much of my skill left." So she wasn't that much different from Ringo huh? In some ways Maria might as well be him in a couple of years. Well provided that they somehow resolve this incident. Ringo shuddered to think what would happen if he had to continue this post college graduation. "I really should start again with all these things going about." Ringo looked at Maria before then raising a polite finger to ask her to wait a moment before then presenting her with his shinai.

"You can use this to practice if you want then." Ringo showed her a smile."I can buy plenty of these so I don't mind if you take one." Ringo then looked away for a moment realizing he might have not thought this out completely through. "Though I'd imagine you'd be busy looking after the kindergarten...but at the same time though if you really want to start..." Now Ringo was just collapsing on his own words.