Letters Between Strangers PV Akari Closed

@Akari Kato

The girl winced slightly, as she looked over her letter. It was starting to get rather lengthy, but she didn't know where to get rid of details. Hopefully Akari wouldn't mind too much.

Dear Akari,

I can't say I've really done it either- I just tried to replicate what they were doing and they would help me out if they could. But I never actually took classes. As for hobbies, I enjoy reading, mostly. I also like science and going outside to just look around, really. But I almost always get lost within the school, which isn't all that fun. I enjoy braiding or playing around with hair styles- I braid my hair a lot and doing something new with it also seems rather intriguing. In terms of sports and such- I don't have all that much interest. But I suspect my parents would want me to join some school activity or club.

What about you?

I have been there and I do know how to speak German, but I certainly need to practice a little more. They live near Mainz, so they have the Gutenberg Museum- a bit of a popular place and interesting, but it's hard to pay attention the entire time. They've also got an interesting fountain- don't really know how to explain it, but it looks quite cool. The entire place is really nice, but it's certainly more of a tourist destination. Probably why my family doesn't care to visit there all that often- they've already seen it plenty of times, unlike me. What is it like in Japan?

I haven't really had to care for a living being before, I'm eleven twelve(!), and they're not around to help. I don't know what I'd name my pet, though. Are your parents okay with you getting a pet?
Sorry for the rambling...
From,
Lea

Akari made a small displeased face as she examined her writing. She wasn't satisfied with how her calligraphy looked, but she wasn't about to rewrite it all over again so she just ended up exuding a big sigh while sending it off.

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Dear Lea,

Braiding hair sounds swell, but it's yet another thing that I am not particularly good at. Well I mean I can do a normal braid but that's it. I can't do anything fancy.
As for hobbies, I do martial arts, specifically Taekwondo. Most of my family does some form of MA (Martial arts) so it only felt right for me to do it as well.
My mother also taught me to play the piano which I have grown to enjoy very much, though unfortunately, I haven't been able to practice it lately because I have not had the time.

Wow! Being able to speak another language is so nice! The only thing I know in German is Gutin tag Guten Tag...
I understand most things in Japanese but I don't speak fluently. Both my parents speak it but they never taught me, which frustrates me greatly and I have no clue why they didn't.
It is really beautiful in Japan. If you ever get the chance to go, please do! It's really interesting to see how different it is from here. Even though I adore Tokyo I like the smaller more quaint towns since the ambiance is just lovely.

My parents didn't want me to get a pet this year for a similar reason. They don't trust me with being able to take care of a living creature yet. Perhaps I hope they'll change their mind.

- Akari

P.S.
Please excuse my handwriting, I've have been practicing different styles lately.
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@Akari Kato

She hadn't expected a new style of writing. It was quite nice, actually, a skill she hadn't realized she admired. But changing handwriting and making things look nice seemed rather appealing for a set of skills to have.

Dear Akari,

I'm still getting the hang of braiding my own hair (nicely), but I enjoyed trying to braid friend's hair- and occasionally my mother's if she had time and would allow it. Martial arts seems really challenging- I think I'd be more likely to fall over or to just lightly tap the other person. Piano? It's unfortunate that you haven't found the time- especially if you enjoy it a lot. Is it because of homework or other stuff?

That seems unfair is sad- it seems like a useful skill to be able to learn multiple languages, especially when travelling or when meeting your family. I'll try! It'll probably be after I graduate Hogwarts that I will be able to go, but I'll put it onto the bucket list.

Well it seems we're in the same boat when it comes to pets. A shame, I can't steal yours for pets (I'm joking, kind of).
From,
Lea

P.S. It looks nice. Can I ask what other styles you've been practicing?

[font=Comic Sans MS]Dear Lea,

The reason I haven't played the piano is definitely partially because of homework, but also because there has been so much going on in general since it's our first year. I suppose I have to adjust to living here and actually get accustomed to everything before I can add other things to my plate. (Also I am not particularly sure if they even have a piano here)

So if your family is German does that mean you speak it between yourselves all the time and at home?
When I had asked my parents about why they didn't teach me Japanese they just told me that they are so used to speaking English from being here for so long (lame excuse in my opinion, but oh well...), and specifically my mother said that it just came easier to talk to me in English.

Oh and about the styles of writing I've been doing... As you can see I wrote in the same style as last time since I think that it is actually fun to write in this print, and I probably will continue to write the rest of my letters to you like this. I have been practicing a version of cursive lettering but it's not going very well, and I think it looks atrocious. I keep on trying with it but every time I do it I swear it looks like a bunch of random squiggles!
Do you know how to write in cursive?

- Akari

@Akari Kato

Dear Akari,

I- would have to check if they have a piano. And considering my (well-founded) fear of the moving staircases and getting lost, I don't think I'll be checking anytime soon. But that's understandable- I have found that I've lost a lot of habits and hobbies that I used to do constantly because of the new environment and having left my friends.

Germany is certainly a little closer than Japan to here, so it's probably because I get to see my family more often. Plus, my parents were always insistent that I learn the language and use it- rather different from your family it seems. Maybe there are some others here that know the language and are willing to teach it? The library might have something as well.

The library has also been the only place I can reliably get to. But that's not the point.

Well, whatever works for you. The lettering looks quite nice. I- kind of know how to write in cursive. One of my friends really liked writing in cursive (I think her mom taught her?) and she tried to teach me, but... well, it was an attempt. I might try to pick it up again, we'll see.
From,
Lea

[font=Comic Sans MS]Dear Lea,

That is so true. I also find It is quite easy to lose hobbies over here. I mean I can't really say that I've lost some of my hobbies because I suppose they were just things I enjoyed (but not enough to call them an actual hobby of mine).

That is such a wonderful idea! I can't believe I never thought about checking the library or looking for someone who could teach me in person before
Thank you for the suggestion! Next time I go to the library I will definitely have a look to see if they have something in or about Japanese, as well as from now on I’ll keep an eye out for someone who speaks it.


Oh and on a completely different note, I almost forgot I have few a questions for you about being a muggle-born. What was it like finding out about the wizarding world? How did your family react? How did you react?
I've always been kind of curious about what it is like to just find out, out of absolutely nowhere that a whole other world exists and that you're apart of it.
Also was it hard for you to leave so much behind? What did you tell all your muggle friends?
Sorry for all the questions! They all sort of just came flooding out and kept multiplying as I was writing.

- Akari

@Akari Kato

Dear Akari,

Yep, I feel the same. I guess it's just about finding the time and the will.

Glad I was able to help- I hope you are able to find someone that can help or that there are books to help learn the language. The library (from what I can tell) is quite expansive. I doubt anyone would be able to read all the books in their lifetime. Probably doesn't help that some of the books are off limits.

Finding out about the wizarding world was rather strange. My parents were quite accepting of it, whereas I wasn't. Any odd shift in roles, but it's true. So, uh, the first part of this year? has been me not accepting being at Hogwarts and falling behind in classes. But now I know magic exists and I've been trying to catch up, so that's fun. I joined duelling, and surprisingly made it onto the team- so now it's just making sure I know spells and can do well.

But yeah... have you joined any sports or such at Hogwarts?

Continuing to answer the other questions, I'm still pretty homesick and don't like the distance. For my friends, we just said that I was going to a boarding school and would see them during breaks. No worries about the questions I preferred writing the answers than trying to say it aloud, so surprisingly easier. What about you? I'm assuming you had some muggle friends before?

From,
Lea

[font=Comic Sans MS]Dear Lea,

Speaking about the book section that is off limits, have you ever been curious as to what is back there? I know I have. I just wonder, what could be in there that causes them to be so secretive? I suppose it is a Magical School after all, but why would they put all that information right in front of us if we are not allowed to know what is actually there?

I think it is the first time that I have heard of someone not being keen on joining the magical world after finding out about it. What exactly made you not want to accept it? (if you don’t mind me asking of course)

Duelling sounds wonderful! Congratulations on making the team! Have you gotten a chance to actually duel yet? If so, how was it?

Nope, unfortunately not. I haven’t found any sports here that I am interested enough to join. I was thinking to join a club or two, but there are just so many to chose from. Have you ever considered joining one?

Ah, boarding school. I feel like that is the probably the best/only way to leave muggles without too much suspicion. My brother and I said the same. I did indeed have a few muggle friends, and as much as I miss them, it was sort of hard to keep this whole magic thing a secret. The problem was not that I struggle with keeping secrets, it’s just that I want to talk about wands or quidditch or something that has to do with our world but I couldn’t.

From Akari

@Akari Kato

Dear Akari,

That's what I was thinking- there should certainly be some more secure areas than this school, why keep off limit books here? It seems really strange, I have no clue what would need to be so secretive. But then again, I don't know that much about magical history except what they teach. Maybe there's more? I am quite curious about that area, but I wouldn't want to get in trouble.

It didn't make sense- still doesn't really, but I'm more used to it. There's more reasonable explanations for some of the magic, using electronics or mirror illusions or whatnot (I don't really know, but have seen some in a museum? of sorts?). But, you know, after a few days of classes talking entirely about magic, along with learning spells that don't really have a more logical explanation? I figured it out eventually. Have you ever done something similar- disagreed when the actual answer was right in front of you?

Yeah! It's a little strange at first, but I had a really great partner- she knew a lot of spells. We were able to win, which was exciting. Clubs seem cool- I haven't really looked into them much. Which ones were you interested in?

That's true- it would be really challenging to talk about any day at Hogwarts without editing the story quite a bit to not talk about magic. Was it always like this or did wizards and muggles live together without secrets before?

From,
Lea

P.S. Do muggles generally react the same way I did when first accidentally see magic? What about muggles that do believe in magic? Sorry, I'm just curious on your thoughts. Maybe there's some books that I can borrow from the library that can explain.

[font=Comic Sans MS]Dear Lea,

I feel quite similar. As I said I am very curious about it... but I suppose not enough to get a detention. Oh well, hopefully I'll be able to learn more about it someday.

I can't recall doing something exactly like you have described, but I totally understand your point. Sometimes it can be really hard to understand that not everything has a logical explanation or even an explanation at all.

Woah! On your very first duel you won? That is absolutely amazing! You should be very very proud! Will you be doing anymore soon?

In regards to clubs that I’m interested in -
The club that has really caught my attention is a martial arts club. I haven't heard much about it but I plan to look into it because it would be wonderful if I could join since I used to do taekwondo but haven’t really been able to practice lately much like the piano.

I honestly do hope that at some point in history muggles and wizards lived together without keeping secrets. But if they did then that means that something must have happened to make them so divided... right? I’m not sure though... I’m really just guessing.

Hmmm... I would assume they do react similar to the way you did, but also I imagine that since everybody is different their reactions could vary.
But something I have never heard of and know nothing about is muggles that already believe in magic.
Did you know anyone like this?

From Akari[/font]