Slide to the Left, now Slide to the Right

Haru might be the least likely person that someone would say 'Hey, that person right there, yeah, I bet he is a dancing machine.' Could it be his aloof demeanor? His oh so srs Snape thing before Snape Snaped (sans books). However! He can, in fact, dance. Not only that, he makes it a point to get that cardio in at the Plaza of Shibuya and promised Asuna to show how to do a dance move that is particularly useful in a scrap. The Shibuya Shuffle. Done daily, you can say that every day you are shufflin'

The white haired Artificer is sans his normal cloak or jacket. Haru wears a long sleeved shirt, a dapper vest, pants, and his boots. Of course there is that token monocle. Never leave home without it. He is stretching out before his routeen. Got to keep them noodle arms limber. "Moves in 5," he lets the assembled know and, more importantly, the people who actually have the Song concept to provide music for it. More fun with music, always.

    Asuna is here! She's ready. She's trying to figure out what to wear. Hm. The Shibuya Shuffle. What kind of dance will it be, exactly? Not knowing much at all about dancing (her mother said dancing was horrible and should never be done), she isn't entirely sure. So she figures she'll default to her usual outfit. It's not a dungeon run, so cosplay isn't required, right?

    Giving Haru an expectant look, she then realizes she hasn't stretched. Does she need to do that for dancing? Nobody else is. Except Haru. And Haru is the man who can dance. So Asuna stretches!

    "So how did you come up with this dance idea?" she will ask abruptly. Asuna, like nature, abhors a vaccuum.

They are fortunate a wild Gwen has not appeared. Hostile makeovers are a thing. They happen! Haru stretches out his legs while standing, one hand behind his back and grabbing his ankle. His one blue eye drifts over towards Asuna like an errant fleck of snow on the wind. "A game called Angelic Layer, back in the old world," he tells the scale samurai. "I once knew someone who would use their fighting doll in a particular dance-like fashion," he says as his leg comes back down. "It was fast, difficult to predict, and it looked fun." Thats why people dance, right, fun? The way Haru says it makes it sound like a robot imported fun.exe into him and he is running with it.

"Start with the Flashstep," the tall young man says as he draws his leg up, heavy on motions that move him to the left to the left. To the right to the right. As if he became weightless for a moment. "We use it to evade, but," he smiles, "the quick movement is fun." He repeats it again, the cycle being a bass beat track with his feet.

    Asuna nods thoughtfully. She's heard of Angelic Layer, but only since getting stranded in this world. "So you turn dancing into a combat style. I can see that. Good footwork, fast motion, changing direction swiftly." She sounds like she could use someone to import fun.exe into her from time to time.

    As for the directions. Those she can follow. And most importantly, she's able to use the gusts of wind in a way that doesn't send her careening into objects or other people.

    "I've always enjoyed going fast."

"It can be said," Haru says as he keeps the left left right right motion going on, "that any action that serves multiple functions is a form of elegant design. Exercise. Self Defense." The music starts up while he talks to Asuna, the wind making his hair flicker crisply around his bishy face. Drums. "Adding to it or reducing it to its purest form are both signs of understanding and mastery," he says as another track adds in. Strings. "Keep your core active for balance, like you are going for a Lightningstep," he explains with the evocation of flashsteps evolved form, Lightningstep. Hips matter more now as the fourth notes get sequences of eigths mixed to pick up the next instrument. Core. Arms.

"You can mix up anything above the waist so long as you keep in time. Useful for," Haru's two fingers move with, a trail of light and symbols following until its a complete 'loop' from start to finish with the steps, "Wave Artes and Sword Artes."

    Asuna has only heard a little bit about Haru. Not because he's not well known, but mostly because she avoids gossip like the plague. That he's extremely serious gets her attention right away and has kept it. She's not if not adaptable these days.

    Asuna isn't used to this kind of approach. Not exactly, that is. But she knows how to evade attacks. It's a matter of life and death, after all. She draws out her rapier. She's not doing much with it yet. At least nothing too visually interesting. She's getting her balance down as she makes a few basic, but powerful motions. It's an odd thing, being a samurai and using a rapier. She clearly has picked up the concept of the power of a single stroke, but her weapon itself is more about seeking holes in a defense rather than completely overwhelming it.

    And then it happens. She glides forward and unleashes a swift, clean sequence of rapid fire thrusts. With a slight shift of her pelvis, she maintains her balance, then glides back again.

    "This motion opens up a lot of opportunities. It's flexible and I never have to over-commit." She means to say she likes it.

Haru grins as he sees the fluid motion from Asuna come into the steps. How a simple motion like the dance step of the foot can lend to the same placement of the foot for putting power to the hips, the draw, the attack. The apex moments before the right are good for lunges. The double steps good for evasion with enough time to vary it up. It is /very/ much like Lightningstep but conserves energy while somehow moving faster. Like magic? Or like how you run a move a little faster when you are hyped up. Sing a little louder when there is an emotion behind it to tap into.

"Quick study," Haru observes, "how about some target practice," he asks while dancing. Direct fights would flag PvP in a non-Root Town like Shibuya, but the dancing Summoner isn't suggesting that. He switches his dance moves to the half steps, using his Wave Arts to cast freeze frame illusions of him near Asuna that are strikeable onbeat.

Did... Haru just invent a rhythm game? Doki Doki Revolution?

    "You know.. that's really clever. I've never seen dark magic put to use like that." She's not grudging or anything about admitting it. It's something she hadn't thought of. But she will remember it now.

    "Okay, let's see how this lines up."

    She's patient with the first move. Her timing isn't perfect like it was a moment ago. It wasn't exactly a fluke, it was just a bit of luck. She doesn't curse, she doesn't narrow her eyes. She just doubles her focus. "A bit too fast that time..." She bounces back, a rush of air pushes the Flash forward, and she attacks again, three quick piercing moves.

    "Hmm, over-corrected it, that time."

    Each time, she is dialing it in. Slowly she's getting herself closer to the perfect timing. What started so intuitive now has to become deliberate, repeatable, which in the end will let her master it. She's a brute force learner. Intuition is wonderful, but she isn't ready to bet on hers.

Pride, Haru's great sin (among others!). He grins at the compliment of the use of illusions, yet doesn't comment on it. Twould be vain. Even if he is subject to vainglory. "Like playing a piano," he begins as he is speaking in a more general way instead of at Asuna, "the body gets the grooves down into memory. But this technique doesn't rely on the physical aptitude. Neither the flash and lightning step areas do." Therein lies an interesting fact, as Haru's attributes are woeful on the physical stats, but he is moving around so fast one might think that the Wave Arte user didn't dump the stat. The secret he lets Asuna in on, "And thats why its a dance. Let the music in and let the energy express. I accredit the parties at Eas for that. Doing a waltz is one thing, doing it like you love every step is another." Cut loose. Releasing the tension, Haru puts in an element of fire and passion that is important to this kind of high energy dance move. He almost looks like he is having /fun/. Its pop-y, a bit EDM. Kau's blend of music would work well with these steps. The musicians in the Plaza do their best to try to keep the Song Sages appeased with their junior performances.

    What Haru describes is surprisingly difficult for Asuna. She has never danced, it seems. At least not in many years. If anything, the Flash seems to be having issues getting any closer than she was a moment go. After a half dozen more tries that simply cease to get closer to the mark, she stops.

    "I need to adjust my approach," she decides aloud. Brute force, it seems, is not the solution. While Asuna doesn't like admitting that to herself, she also refuses to be gentle on her failings.

    "So music. Pay attention to the music." She listens to the musicians, but it's rather clear that she's got a problem finding the beat. Asuna remembers going to karaoke once. And only once. She was positively useless at it.

    "I can do this."

    She says it, but it's clear she doesn't really believe it. Regardless, she tries again. And again. And again. It's like getting close to the mark, almost close enough for success, but never getting there. Her timing is putting her off balance on attacks, whether they use her rapier, wave artes, or even just a bit of hand-to-hand.

After a few seconds of practice against the illusions something interesting happens. "Pay attention to how you react to the music," Haru says as the phenomenon lends to the illusions starting to show up earlier and later than their assigned measure. A degree of the chaos he has learned from Uta and her song. "To the beat of your heart, like it is as loud of the drum," as he dances about, keeping those illusionary targets coming from that deep well of his mana reserves, "to the the feel of your feet as they hit the ground like a bass line." As he talks he closes his eye as if it makes it easier. "Let your body feel the music. Then your heart and the drums beat as one. Your feet, hands, head, shoulders, hips, they don't follow the music. They are the music. You are your own instrument."

Nearly evading a rapier to the face as he steps in where that was /not/ an illusion this time. Hand to hers, over the weapon, other to the hip, "You don't have to impress anyone. You just just have to. Be," he says sharply as the blue eye looks to the samurai before pulling her along. Its clear just how much strength Haru lacks in his arms as he moves to dance with Asuna in the next measures, jolted with electricity and air to twirl to the left. The grip of earth on the reverse. "Be as unyielding as a wildfire. As free as a storm."

But by the fourth and reverse measure, Haru's lead is an illusion, but there isn't a lack of support in the momentium, the motion. Ultimately he wasn't leading the move. Asuna was all along but didn't know it until the dance partner was gone. Enchanter Liiiffeee.

    It's frustrating. Asuna knows it. She feels it. It happened in school. Her brother always told her to take a break. But if there's one thing Asuna has always been kind of awful at, it's accepting setbacks or failures. Stepping away just isn't her style.

    What Haru says is heard. The meaning of the words is even understood. But the actual message with all its context is just not getting through. When Haru is actually there, though, he can sense just how tense she is. There's a stiffness in her back. No matter her apparent grace, there is a lack of flexibility.

    Her inward languard is harsh, critical. She thinks of how she must look. She imagines that she's letting others down. People believe in her. They call her The Flash and it means something to them. She can't fail. She has to inspire them and give them confidence.

    And in the midst of this, Haru says she doesn't have to impress anyone. It's so disconcerting that she actually stumbles. She is shocked, but hides it as well as she can.

    Her moment of shock, of loss of her supposed airtight control, makes something interesting happen. She actually moves the way she needs to. A moment later, and she starts to mess it up. She's thinking. It's a struggle, shutting her mind up. It goes on for what seems like an hour. It only takes a few seconds, though, and she's suddenly back on target. It's a strange expression she has, looking like she's clinging for her very life just to avoid overthinking the entire thing.

And then the stage is hers. Although Haru stops 'dancing', the support of his Enchantments and Illusions keep the party vibe going along with the music for the entire track. It is not until the the outro that Haru is there, standing like proper posture was downloaded into his DNA, providing a clap of one hand against the next. "Keep practicing that and you will be able to snap into the Shuffle in no time," he explains. The moves themselve are /so simple/ if spelled out: left left right right repeat. Its not in the mechanical motion, though. Its in the feels one puts into it. That is something that does not codify. It is experienced.

"Besides combat, it is good for the spirit," he motions around to the Landers and junior adventurers of the city that all seem to have been dancing as well at their own pace. Many of them have become new admirers of Asuna in the process. "I don't think we have truly met," he says, voice like polished silver artistocracy. He gives a light head bow, which is as far he normally goes when a handshake isn't viable. Which is isn't right now due to phoenix fire issues. Dancing really gets the heat up. "Haru Nox, Moonlight Goldsmith, Breaker of Crowns, Second of my Name, Lord of the Silver Sword Crafter Division, and mid-afternoon dance instructor," he says. It sounded almost serious with the way he talks until the end. "And a parched one at that. Care to grab a drink at Pela's?"

    Asuna is an attentive student. She's also kind of a pain in the ass, but mostly because she makes an artform out of self-criticism and broadly sucks at accepting praise. While she can supress it to a degree, anyone who is around her in the right situation will quickly realize just how demanding she is of herself.

    "I'll have to find someone to provide music," Asuna murmurs. "But I'll keep this going until I've got it every time. If I mess it up in the midst of a battle, it would cause a lot of problems."

    Haru's title is quite long, thorough, and descriptive. Asuna is totally buying into it as a serious matter until the last bit, which gets her to finally smile again.

    Her introduction is the perfect comedic response. "I'm Asuna."

    She looks back at Pela's place. But not like someone looks at a place they most desperately wish to go. No. This is like a woman dying of thirst looking at a temple devoted to the goddess of mountain springs. She really likes baked goods.

    "Yes. Yes I would like to go to Pela's." Again. Cause yes, she's eaten there at least once per day for half a week.

    "I'm a fan of hers."

Haru is often found there. His shop happens to be right not to hers. It is a black, glossy building with a minimalistic design that looks like someone summoned a block of carved obsidian from the ground and made it into a building. Atelier Nox. As a result, many lunches are spent over at Pela. The Artificer having a sweet tooth is totes not the reason. "The best baked goods," he says, passing by Uta's medical wagon with a pat-pat on it to see if she is in and wants to join them. Then he heads on in to grab his usual table.

"Do you have a favorite, Asuna?" the blue eyed man with the purple monocle asks as he flicks his right hand towards the ground. It sparks like campfire embers hitting the ground. Left over fire mana that won't quit it. He doesn't want to break more of Pela's cups by accident. "I am partial to the sugar cookies with the brown sugar style glaze," he says, considering a moment the logistics of sweets and how far culinary skills have come in the past two-some years.

    Asuna looks a bit sad that Uta doesn't spring out, excitedly sharing some new secret of the universe she's just found. "Darn, she must be busy. I was kind of hoping she might join the dance lessons." Asuna imagines she'd have learned it a lot faster. Uta makes it impossible for her to be so uptight and stressed.

    "You know, I have to ask... did a rather umm, anxious gnome happen to show up and kinda beg to be your apprentice lately?" It's a normal topic of conversation, isn't it?

    Haru springs the hardest question ever on her, then, and it's inviting her focus. "My favorite? That's difficult. But I have always loved melonpan. Pela's is so good. Like everything she makes. But sadly, it is something I can't quite duplicate at home. She's got a knowledge of plants that is on a whole other level. I have so much to learn. But in the meantime, I can eat and enjoy, just like everyone else."

A gnome? Apprentice? Haru considers this deeply like the scholars of eld thinking upon the important things. What is living? Is zero a number? Is there a gnome going for the Haru Intern Program? "Who?" he finally comes back with. The young man may be Gnome Blind. Maybe he isn't, he doesn't gnome.

"Melopan," yums a Haru, ordering up a water and coffea to start when one of Pela's lovely ladies stop by for the order. "I find I can only have that one for dinner or else my work will be less than precise. When setting a gem into a ring or sanding a lens to a certain curvature, even the small things like the beat of your hard or a tremor in the hand can cause damage." Lessons in dance that apply to a craft! "Pela is quite amazing. We went looking for the origins of the Witherless Rose once, if you are familiar with the flower, the Withering Rose. Quite a romantic item, albiet requires a flower that wilts quickly and a skilled Enchanter to apply the Witherless duration enchantment on it." A finger gestures to the store and then himself. "Lots of demand for it with couples, we were hoping to get a greenhouse set up here where an enchanter is close by to make them more accessible to the public." Bonded Hearts sales number every day of the month.

    "His name is Dosbox." A pause. "Yeah, I know. That name's... well, let's just say unique. But he has his own sense of humor."

    She is happy to move on from that topic. Dossy is quite an experience, and she'd hate to spoil it for Haru.

    "I have noticed that I sleep really well after I have a couple of them. So I can see how your precision work would be negatively impacted." She'd not be trying to fight a duel while under the influence of delicious treats, herself.

    "A Witherless Rose? That would be the only flower that is likely to work well with me. I tend to be away a lot, so the plant watering gets a bit unreliable. I imagine you could make record sales if you could produce hundreds of those. Hm. But then if it is truly witherless, you'd have to keep hunting for new customers."

    After overthinking that for a bit, she moves on. "So you make jewelry and you do enchantment, too? Does that kind of enchanting help in combat? I'm always trying to stay properly equipped."

"You would think," Haru considers about the need for more customers with the witherless rose, "but I have had clients come in for the 'perfect' ring more than once for more than one person." Gasp! Scandal! "Reaffirmation is as much a thing as affirmation. Much like watering a plant isn't a one time thing, too," he adds on with wholesome politeness. His client's true motives are their own.

Asuna hits on Haru's resume nicely on the next topic, "I do enchant. I am a Moonlight Enchanter, in fact. The stained glassworks you see in Shibuya are an innovation of mine, though I am particularly proud of the chapel works in Eas and the work on the Statue over in the Palace Lands." He gives an appropriate pause of humility before accenting the other accomplishments, "A Moonlight Goldsmith, as well, with Crown Breaking being a real thing and thankfully a more nuanced technique that Tian and I developed. It had its place earlier in the war effort. Finally I am a Summoner and that makes the Enchanting work particularly useful. By itself Enchanting is a particular challenge, like the illusionary targets for dancing practice, but they shine when paired with a group. In a pinch, my group is one of my elementals." A polite smile as he takes a gulp of much needed water. "If you meant on the equipment side of helping in combat, then yes, greatly. The right accessory can provide the right boost to a strength or cover to a weak spot. Weapons too. Pela is also a talented Enchanter and her mana batters augment weaponry."

    Asuna, for all her reputation, is actually friendly, once she can relax a bit. The dancing, eventually having Haru help her over come her problems in getting his technique down, and Pela's place (and melonpan) can get her to act more like a young woman and less like an emotionally-stunted perfectionist.

    The conversation drifts from topic to topic, but Asuna, for now, focuses on the safety of the gaming world. Haru has been traveled more than she has, so that's a matter of curiosity, too. If she can learn a lot more about the New World Alliance along the way, so much the better. It's a pleasant conversation, and Asuna seems to have quite a sweet tooth, adding several more baked items as they speak on past the day and towards the early evening...