Roleplaying as Ginyami Midorimori from Mahoutokoro
"English | Japanese"

Place: A manga cafe in the Shibuya district of Tokyo, Japan
Date: Saturday, March 16, 2024
Time: A little after noon

Ginyami adored shopping. It was one of his favorite hobbies. But when it came to shopping for modern-day mumajin clothing, especially ballgowns for modern-day witches, he was clueless. He was from a traditional, Japanese pureblood family, after all. Most of their fashion dated back to ancient times.

That wasn't about to stop him from trying, though. As he wanted to purchase matching outfits for both himself and his date, Akari Kato, he thought he could head to one of the most famous shopping districts in Japan and perhaps find what he was looking for by sight. Maybe he'd recognize it when he saw it - perhaps something between more modern, like Akari might have liked, and something more traditional, like what Ginyami was used to. He would just have to go there to find out.

Once he took the manga portkey that landed him in the private room of the manga cafe in Shibuya, however, he noticed someone else just leaving the place ahead of him. Quickly, he opened the door and followed her out of the dark room, curious as to who it could have been. She seemed younger than he was - perhaps one of his kohais at Mahoutokoro?

As it turned out, she was familiar, but only barely. She had been a relatively new student to the school who was at least part Chinese. Ginyami hadn't bothered trying to get to know her as he didn't have much interest in foreigners; even fellow Asian ones. Still...she was a modern witch, wasn't she? And could she have come to the same district at the same time, shortly after the trip to Hogwarts and the spring ball there had been announced, because she was hoping to shop for clothing for the occasion as well?

"Excuse me," Ginyami called to her once they had both left the room, choosing to use Japanese to determine just how much of it she could understand. She had to know it if she was living there, didn't she? "You attend Mahoutokoro too, don't you? May I ask where you are headed and what for?"

@Maria Leung de Almeida

Once again, Maria faced the rather indignant task of going shopping alone. She couldn’t tell if she was just incredibly unpopular at this point or if the students of Mahoutokoro were just a bunch of boring people who didn’t like shopping. No matter, it would not stop Maria from doing what she wanted. She tied her hair back with her favorite scrunchie and left her dormitory room wearing a white fitted t-shirt with her favorite manga printed on it and sweat pants. She didn’t really feel the need to go all dressed up, or as picture perfect as she normally tried to be - after all she wasn’t going with anyone and she didn’t anticipate anyone paying attention to her. Putting on her pink trainers and grabbing her matching designer purse, she went to the nearest portkey and away she went.

One moment she was in the very tradition, often times stuffy, Mahoutokoro where she felt more prisoner and required to be more proper, and the next she was in a bustling manga cafe. Away from the culture bristling of Chinese vs Japanese etiquette, Maria felt relaxed. No one was watching her…judging her, there was no face to lose when being lost in a crowd! She lightly browsed the manga collection before heading out into the busy district of Shibuya.

Whether it was wrapped tightly in a kimono with her face painted perfectly, or casually flitting this way and that, Maria’s presence always seemed to draw stares. Not here, however, every other person was dressed fashionably or smartly and she was able to just hide in the obscurity and that is when she really felt at peace. Shoulders drooping? Let’s go. Back kind of hunched? Yes, please. Maria could be the Maria locked deep insider herself and not the prickly, frustrated, and sometimes arrogant self she has to play. Sometimes, girls just want to have fun!

Or so she thought. She managed to only get a few steps out the door when a voice called out in Japanese. Perhaps it wasn’t meant for her? Oh, it was meant for her. She stopped dead in her tracks, her slouchy, sloppy self straightened into the very definition of proper posture as she turned around on her heels, hands placed folded in front. She gave a bow before even registering who was in front of her. When her eyes met his she blinked. She blinked again. “M-Midorimori-san…” she mouthed almost breathlessly, shocked that such a senior student would even choose to address her.

She blushed, quite unwillingly, and her right hand travelled up her left arm to scratch the back of her elbow, unsure of how to proceed. She really just wanted to go shopping, hopefully for a dress. However, she couldn’t just leave the rather handsome young man who was one of their well known quidditch players. She bit her lip subconsciously avoiding his eyes while she figured out what she might say. Had she known she would be meeting another student she would have put on her kimono…at least done her makeup… “What…brings you to Shibuyo?” She continued softly. “I was hoping to find a dress. I didn’t mean to get in the way…”

The normally elegant and proper Maria suddenly felt very small and caught off guard. Normally her default was to elevate herself but in this moment of weakness where all she wanted to do was just be a girl shopping, she wasn’t quite the self she publicly portrayed herself to be. She couldn’t help but wonder exactly what Ginyami wanted with an underclassman like herself or what he might have planned.

@Ginyami Midorimori

Roleplaying as Ginyami Midorimori from Mahoutokoro
"English | Japanese"

Ginyami, who was very adept at reading body language due to how much more he could surmise from it than verbal language, noticed immediately when the posture of the young woman before him changed. Quite drastically, too.

As if that wasn't enough, what her attire had to say about her spoke volumes on its own. Mumajin clothing! And the most informal kind, too, if his exposure to Sara's clothing outside of school over the years had taught him anything. He had caught her unawares, then. But he was also pleasantly surprised by her addressing him by name. She knew who he was? They weren't even in the same year! And she was still so new!

"You...know who I am?" he asked, his astonishment evident in his tone of voice and his raised brows before he broke into a pleasant smile and bowed at the waist. "I am honored that you would remember that name, let alone use it. But please...call me 'Yami'. It's a lot less of a mouthful than 'Midorimori-san'."

When he straightened back up, his smile had turned apologetic, a tinge of ruddiness flushing his own face as he confessed, "I'm so sorry, but I don't believe I recall your name." Only that it was something foreign and long. "Would you please be so kind as to remind me of it?" He paused before his expression grew warmer and friendlier. "Oh, and...no need to be so formal on my account. We're not at school or representing our families or anything of the sort at the moment, now, are we?"

At the question posed to him, small talk or not, Ginyami seemed a bit flustered for an instant. "Oh, no; you're not in the way at all. Actually...I was hoping to purchase a couple of dresses myself for the upcoming ball. But I'm afraid when it comes to dresses, I'm woefully and dreadfully ignorant; particularly in the department of modern day fashion." He cast her a sheepish smile. "Would you, perhaps, might be able to aid me in my endeavor? I would be happy to make it worth your while. Perhaps...I could make a purchase on your behalf?"

Had the new student always seemed so...meek? Tentative? He wasn't familiar with even having heard of this side of her at all. He couldn't help but find it somewhat endearing.

"If you prefer," he continued, hoping to put her at least a little more at ease, "We could keep this our little secret. Just between the two of us."

@Maria Leung de Almeida