❆ 1st Present ❆ [public video post] [BACKDATED to September 2]

[saltysanta]

[Have a young man in a monocle and top hat, complete with a sprig of mistletoe decorating the band, (which seems to be nothing but a belt wrapped around it) squinting dubiously into the mirror.]

She said this is some kind of..... magical intelligent telegraph, right.....? You just talk to it?

[It's a little hard to use, even after Fumiko had showed him the basics, but he's working on it--and his uncertainty is quickly covered with an irritated, impatient look.]

Right, then. Anyone who can see this, listen up! I'm looking for a reindeer with a red nose or a tall guy with long silver hair! They--he answers to Rudolph. You can probably get the idiot's attention with candy or cakes, okay? He belongs with me, and he's going to be in big trouble if he's here but hasn't tried to find me yet. You hear me, Rudolph? You'd better have a good explanation, or I'm cutting you off from sweets for a whole week!

.....Now, how do I make it go.....?

[There's a long beat of silence between his message and his realization that he's not sure how to send it. Noël's scowl softens a little in confusion as he starts poking at the mirror with a gloved hand; a few seconds later, the message ends.]

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[heartguard]

Right. 'Home'.

[ Her tone is still measured, but it's tinged with some kind of excited knowing not unlike one would expect of a teen accompanying a young child to see the mall Santa. If this guy doesn't want to break character, far be it from her to make him. The elevator business is pretty pressing, but for now, this holiday LARPer business takes the figurative bag and runs with it. It's not like they can't come back to the elevator bit in a minute. Besides, she's genuinely curious and there's probably a good laugh somewhere down this line of conversation. ]

Who are you supposed to be again? Santa's reindeer return or something?

[saltysanta]

Excuse me? Do I look like an elf? I'm Noël Christenbell, official of the North Pole, Santa Claus number 29.

[heartguard]

[ And all of the excitement that had bubbled up withers and dies with her previous expression. Her tone is flat, a wasteland devoid of any sort of awe or splendor as she regards him. ]

Dinah Travers, Pawn of the Fellowship of the Hand. There's no way you're Santa Claus.

[saltysanta]

I don't care if you're the Peasant of the Brotherhood of the Earlobe, it's not your decision to make!

[heartguard]

Do you even hear yourself? My beliefs are my business and I don't believe you're Santa Claus! You don't have to convince me otherwise, but you're doing a sorry job of it if you were actually trying to just now. Santa Claus would never call anyone a name like that, let alone in response to a polite introduction!

In fact, [ and she is snapping a finger at him ] I think you're besmirching the good name of Santa Claus and that's unforgivable!

[saltysanta]

You think I wanted this job?! I never even got to meet the man who forced me into this position, and you say I'm besmirching his good name?! I shouldn't have to convince anybody of what I am!

[He doesn't realize quite how upset he is until he starts shouting at the mirror; it isn't like he'd ever gotten an opportunity to hear Lord Klaus' side of the story, or yell at him, or demand answers to all his questions. Almost everything he knows, he's heard from Rudolph, and it's pretty clear that Rudolph idolized his old master like some kind of saint.

He hate kids. He hates Christmas. He hates that he even feels the need to defend himself in a role he never asked to have and feels no attachment to whatsoever, except that he's stuck in it for the rest of his natural life.]

[heartguard]

[ Well, someone has some unresolved issues. It's a small miracle she doesn't state as much aloud. She regards him for a moment, then, simply -- ]

You just introduced yourself as Santa Claus. I'm not saying I believe you, but even if you were forced into the position, it's your name now, too, and it carries weight. If you can't bear the weight of that name, you should give it up or give up the introduction before you break someone's heart.

[ She pauses a beat. ] It's not my fault you're in this position and that you're not dressed appropriately.

[saltysanta]

If I could give it up, I would.

[Have a glare; he's simmering down from his outburst, but that doesn't mean the smouldering irritation is gone.]

How I'm dressed doesn't matter in the slightest. It doesn't affect how I do my job, and neither do any of your thoughts on the matter.

[heartguard]

[ She doesn't so much as waver before that glare of his. Far more intimidating people have glared and yelled at her with greater intensity and malevolent intent than a holiday LARPer who insists he's Santa Claus with a tragic backstory. ]

Then stop arguing with me about it unless... [ Oh, but the corners of her mouth tug smoothly upward and she brightens. ]

Even though you aren't dressed the part, I might believe you if you satisfied the gift requirement. That's something Santa Claus would be able to do, isn't it?

[saltysanta]

[Have an irritated groan. What a greedy kid..... is she even a kid anymore? She looks pretty adult to him. But whatever, there's no rule saying adults can't get gifts too.]

Christmas is still months away..... But fine. What do you want?

[heartguard]

[ She slaps both hands flat together, and loudly. Is her mouth watering? It may be. She's got something pretty particular in mind that she'd been wanting since before she was plucked and deposited in this weirdo city. ]

A party sized tray of sushi! Fatty tuna, mackerel, salmon, yellow-tail, crab -- and not a centimeter of empty space should be on that tray! Maybe with a cup or two of soy, wasabi, or sushi ginger... mm, that would be so good!

[ And a decent, satisfying test, she thinks. If he can produce something like that, then... ]

[saltysanta]

[There's a long, long moment of silence as he looks at her, blankly uncomprehending. Finally, he just spreads his hands.]

I can only give you something like that once you tell me what "sushi" and "wasabi" actually are.

[heartguard]

Sushi is only one of the best dishes ever!

[ Unhelpful? Absolutely, and she knows it. It's why she's considering how best to describe it properly, if spiritedly. ]

It's a Japanese dish made of specially prepared vinegared rice and various other ingredients, like seafood and vegetables. Sometimes, even tropical fruits! The presentation varies depending on where you are in the world and the seafood is usually raw. I prefer mine with white rice. Wasabi is a little harder to explain! I think I read somewhere that it's in the same family as horseradishes, cabbage, and mustard? It's usually made into a sauce or paste that adds spice to things. I could probably draw a picture real quick if you need it!

[saltysanta]

.....Yeah, that would probably help.

[heartguard]

You're going to have to try a piece, too! No one should live without the first-hand experience of sushi. I... oh!

[ Give her a minute. She scrambles from the screen only to reappear a moment later and plop down in front of it with a sketchbook in hand. Flipping through the pages, she pauses at a particular one and turns the book to show him a detailed, professional grade pencil drawing of what appears to be all the types of sushi she named earlier complete with dipping cups of the previously mentioned assorted sauces. It's a detailed close up that captures the entirety of the plate, the sauces around it, and even a fair portion of the backdrop, which looks to be a private room inside of a traditional Japanese restaurant perhaps. Someone's had sushi on her mind for a while now. ]

How's that?

[saltysanta]

That's probably good enough.

[Noël studies the drawing for a minute, then ducks out of the frame, straightening again holding a messenger bag decorated with a snowflake. He takes a moment to open it up, turn it inside out, and give it a good shake in front of the camera, mostly for the benefit of Dinah's skepticism, to prove it's completely empty. That done, he sets it back to rights, slips the strap over his head, and reaches inside.

Moments later, he's carefully easing a fair-sized present out, one that's plainly too big to have comfortably fit inside the bag, wrapped in paper with a pretty, snowy pastoral scene on it. He holds it with one hand, tearing the paper back from the top to start revealing a platter of sushi.]

You do realize you're going to get horribly sick if you try to eat all of this by yourself, right?

[heartguard]

[ Closing the book and dropping it neatly into her lap, Dinah leans entirely too close entirely too quickly into the camera in taking in that sizable platter of delights. That smile of hers only seems to widen with those words of his as she considers this, all of this, and the implications. ]

That's what refrigerators are for! [ But more importantly -- ] Where are you? I'm definitely coming to pick that up!

[ In fact, she is already pushing herself up and picking her mirror up. Speak quickly, Noel. This is Urgent. ]

[saltysanta]

You'd probably accuse me of breaking and entering if I tried to deliver it, anyway..... I'm at 1007 Main Street.

[Noël plucks a piece out of the tray and pops it into his mouth, munching thoughtfully as she jumps up to rush over. She may find it an urgent matter, but he doesn't mind nibbling on her gift a little while he waits for her.]

1/2

[heartguard]

[ Good if only because he needs enlightenment about this important matter, the holiday heathen. ]

I'll be there in a minute! Don't eat it all! [ And she cuts the feed from her end. ]

2/2 - ACTION

[heartguard]

[ Kicking off from the ground at breakneck speed, Dinah neatly closes the distance between the street and the yard in a single bound and straightens quickly. With her 'parasol' secured at her back, the only thing that needs adjusting is her school uniform and the backpack hanging off her shoulder. Lifting a hand, she raps on the door with all the enthusiasm one might expect of a child at Christmas and waits, humming all the while. ]

[foeyay]

[the first person at the door isn't Noel. Instead, Kamui greets her with a gentle smile.]

Why the hell are you here?

[heartguard]

[ And wouldn't you know Dinah brightens at the sight of him and then, as though it's the simplest thing in the world -- ]

For my Christmas present! Noel said he was Santa Claus, so I told him I'd believe him if he gifted me a whole tray of really particular sushi and he pulled the whole thing out of his bag like it was nothing!

[ Why, yes, she did just excitedly admit to extorting sushi out of Santa Claus with a smile. ]

He's in, right?

[saltysanta]

It's still months until Christmas.

[Cue Noël walking out with a half-opened, gift wrapped tray of sushi, with a few pieces missing.]

Are you going to stand on the porch all night, or what?

[foeyay]

[Kamui's gaze sweeps from Dinah's impeccable smile to Noel's sushi tray. It stays locked on the sushi tray.]

Noel is Noel. I've never met anyone named Santa Claus.

[He steps back to let Dinah in.]

You can come in if you make him pull out more snacks.

[heartguard]

You've never met Santa Claus? Not even once?

[ Her smile breaks as she blinks rapidly at Kamui. A sadder story has not been told under this roof and she steps in wholly resolved to change the tune of it. That smile of hers is turned on Noel as she steps forward and across the threshold to pluck a piece up and properly inspect that tray. Don't mind her popping said piece into her mouth. That's the best test, after all, and he passes if that expression on her face is any indication. She might just be motioning for Kamui to try it, too. ]

It is kind of early, but maybe we can come to some sort of agreement. It'd be pretty rude to keep pushing the envelope when Christmas is so far away. If you can manage something like this...

[ She's plucking another piece up and popping it into her mouth, curious about what else he can 'manage'. Santa Claus isn't exactly what she'd call a lightweight across the various mythos. ]