learning for Hoppou [open]

Hoppou, while trying to get some food for herself and her sister, had found a few thrown away books while trying to find the store that she'd saw Mako go to and have brought her food from. Hoppou was getting pretty tired of walking and would find a spot to sit down and read the books he had found.

Hoppou:

opening the book, hoppou would see that the book had barely any pictures and a lot of big words that she didn't understand, but she would try to read it anyway. "O..Once.. u..upon... a.. time..." Hoppou said as she tried to read the first sentence of the book, having a very hard time just saying even the first four words.

What did people ever find interesting about libraries anyway? Whatever information books could get, Lazarus was certian he could find himself out in the world, building up on his own experiences and training. Even still, without much else going on in the day, he might as well give it a try. The inside was just as dull as he expected; too quiet with everyone's noses stuffed away into another cruddy book. He approached one of the shelves beside a young toddler as white as snow, and plucking the nearest one he found, he looks down to her with a bit of confusion. Who leaves little children unattended? "Whatcha reading, kid?" he said as nonchalant as can be, flipping to a random page in the book and giving it a glance over. "And where are your parents? Didn't know children get to roam around free now."

focused on the book a little too much, Hoppou never noticed the man walk up to her and take a book from the shelf. "t..there... l..liv..lived... a... ti..tiny... girl..." Hoppou said out loud, trying her very very hardest to even read like Mako would while she was younger and needed more attention. once the man had spoken up and asked hoppou what she was reading, hoppou would put her hand on the page she was reading and look at the cover, trying her best to read what it would say. "t..the... tale... of... the... northern... ocean... princess... that.. is.. t..the.. b..book... i am... re...ad..ing..." Hoppou said in a very slow and focused tone, trying her very best to even say the name of the book out loud.

once the man had asked Hoppou where her parents were, Hoppou would suddenly start to cry very loudly, as if her bad memories had flooded back to her and engulfed her into the sea of despair. "hoppou... h..has..n..no pa..parents... they... l..left.. hoppou... in a box... in the... sea... to.. die.." Hoppou said in a very depressed and sad tone, her cries getting louder and louder as the sadness would take over and make her feel abandoned.

The crying would begin, and with it the attention of the patrons around them would come as well. Lazarus awkwardly looked around between the eyes that were beginnig to stare at the crying child, and he would whisper and hush at her for her to lower her voice. "Shhh! It's alright, kid! Just.. stop crying! Look uhhh you kids like ice cream, right? How about I get you a ice cream cone or something! How's that? Don't be sad.." He reached over, and as soon as he did, retracted his hand. Perhaps a pat on the back was not due yet. He did, after all, just come across this girl. Though if what she said was true, how did authorities not pick her up yet? And how even did she manage to survive as long as she did alone?!

once the man said something about ice cream, Hoppou's crying would slowly die down and her tears would fade away as quickly as they came. "ice...cream...? i... want... ice cream... my.. n..name.. is.. Hoppou... hoppou.. Lyratone..." Hoppou said before getting up, wiping her tears away and going to the person at the desk and giving them the book. "i... wa...wanna... take... this... please... i.. ha..have.. a lib...library card... under... Mako... thank you... " Hoppou said in a calm, slow and cute tone before having the book stamped to say that Hoppou owned it, then the woman on the desk would give it to her and kiss her forehead. "there you go, hoppou. enjoy." the woman would say as she smiled warmly at hoppou, as Hoppou would walk over to the man with the book in hand. "take... me... to.. have... ice... cream... m..mis...mister..." Hoppou said slowly, making sure not to mess up her words.

How was Lazarus the one to always end up in these situations? With a low grumble, he motioned for Hoppou to follow. "It's just down the road. Come on." True to his word, the ice cream vendor was only a few homes down, having set up shop in a simple booth with all the materials and items he would need to create said frozen treats all around him at his disposal. "Just order what you'd like," he sighs. "I'm not really a guy for sweets myself. So uhh, who's supposed to be taking care of you. Maybe you got a brother or a sister? Or.. someone at least?" He was nobody's babysitter, and the sooner he got the kid back to her caretaker the better. Lazarus reached in his pocket and had his wallet in hand at the ready. The man behind the counter would open his mouth to speak, but Lazarus would jus hold up his hand and slowly shake his head. He was never realy one for sweets.

Hoppou would look at what the ice cream man had and would find out that the single cone was best to get. "Hoppou.. want... mint... c..cho..choco...chocolate ice... cream.. cone.. please... mister.." Hoppou said in a careful and slow tone, doing her very best not to mess up. As the ice cream man would prepare the ice cream for Hoppou, Hoppou would answer what Lazarus would ask her. "Hoppou has.. one sister... mako... take care... of hoppou.. Mako.. s...saved... hoppou... fr..from s..st..star...starve...starvation. Hoppou was... placed... in a.. wat..waterp..waterproof.. box... and sent... into the sea... by... parents... hoppou nearly... d..died... but big.. s..sis mako saved Hopppou... " Hoppou said even more slowly and carefull before the ice cream man gave her the ice cream she ordered, and she would lick it before blushing as to how delicious it was and by how cold it was on her little tongue.