Welcomeow to Shiawase's Seminyar

[isdf]

Who: Class of Shiawase and participants
When: September 30 → October 4 → October 6
Where: Classroom
What: A meeting, then a seminar and a contest, and then a crash out
Warnings: None

[A notice is posted on the bulletin board, stating that a seminar on cameras and photographs, as well as a nekomata selfie contest, will be hosted by the class of Shiawase on the 4th of October. The prize: a date with . . . ?

True to their word, a classroom is commandeered that day with three stations for picking up cameras and receiving a crash course on them, taking selfies with the nekomata, and submitting selfies for judging. Time to start shooting for those points!]

Comments

Teen Team Meeting 5 o(*￣▽￣*)ブ

[isdf]

Thank you for gathering.

[Today, they've commandeered a classroom to discuss their group task, where several nekomata laze about on the floor. While a few peel away from the pack to rub against the students, Yuma fluidly sidesteps their approach as he speaks.]

I believe we can combine several tasks for this seminar. Obviously, we will be teaching a class on how to handle a camera, as well as the differences between Polaroids and digital photographs. If we were to hold a competition afterward on selfies taken with the nekomata as an incentive, we can double our gain in points. The questions then are who'll be assuming which role, by which standards the selfies will be judged, and what we should offer as prizes . . . What do you think?

[titlecard]

[ Eyeing the nekomata a little warily now that they have some idea of what else is going on there... ]

Maybe the most creative selfie can win? I might have said cutest before, but I'm not sure if that's... possible...

[isdf]

[This prejudice . . . ]

I suppose their true appearances don't necessarily evoke a soft feeling. We can station someone nearby in case they behave strangely.

[titlecard]

[ They're creepy. Their creepiness is going to show up on photographs. Like... ]

I mean... they haven't behaved any differently, have they? So it'll probably still be okay for now. Just the selfies probably won't turn out all that cute.

[ A beat. ]

We're the ones who should avoid touching them the most anyway. That hasn't changed.

[isdf]

[Cats are soft to the touch, and he doesn't dislike them, but he's never been as attracted to them as some others. Are they really that cute . . . ?

That thought is cut short as his attention shifts.]

Because of our affliction?

[titlecard]

[ They are that cute. It's what makes what they actually might apparently be all the more unsettling.

But — it's a moot point regardless, because, ] Yeah.

[ Because of their affliction. ]

Kind of turns us into walking hazards, doesn't it...

[ He'd been so carefree when they first showed up. Too conscious of being problematic to the touch now, though. It's fine otherwise. ]

[isdf]

It is simply the transference of emotions. Why would that make us hazardous?

[He can understand wanting to keep one's emotions to oneself, but this sounds extreme even for him.]

[titlecard]

[ ... a beat, ]

I might be exaggerating a little, but like... it's kind of rude for anyone else, isn't it? So it's better if we just avoid them altogether.

[ Another beat, looking around. ]

Do we have selfie sticks?

[isdf]

[Well, he understands if it's about courtesy. During a relatively peaceful time like this, there's no reason to be too tactile.

As for now, he blinks at Mark.]

What are those?

[titlecard]

[ He knows this one!! Yay!! Perking back up. ]

It's a stick you can attach your phone to to hold it out farther away from you and give you more range, so your photos look better. They're pretty useful actually.

[ Also useless for Polaroids but he is a zoomer. what are those. ]

[isdf]

[He holds up the camera he retrieved from the box earlier. Phones like Ena and Mizuki's are flat and rectangular; compared to those, this is bulky and weighty.]

Would such a stick work for a camera with these dimensions?

[titlecard]

[ ... ]

No.

[ ... feeling kind of stupid now but persevering regardless. ]

I actually don't know how you'd take a selfie with one of those... you wouldn't even be able to see yourself. It'd be like blind guessing.

[ What did people even DO before smartphones. ]

[isdf]

[Mark is such a hard worker.

Yuma turns the camera around to look into the lens. All they have to do is angle and distance themselves with certain precision.]

Perhaps that can be a part of the challenge.

[titlecard]

[ it's a full-time job.

In the meantime, Yuma is much smarter, and Mark perks up, because he recognizes when he can lean on someone else's expertise. ]

Oh! So there's creativity, but also difficulty — like, try to make sure you're both in the picture, and it isn't blurry, all while getting the best shot of yourself and the cat as possible... Yeah. Yeah, this could work.

[isdf]

[Yuma has no idea what he's doing. The first and last time he took a photograph outside of work, he didn't even go near the camera.

That's right. The one who handled the camera back then was . . . ]

Indeed. The cameras seem to come with a single film, so challengers will only have one shot. Now, then, for the prize . . .

[titlecard]

[ Yuma has a straightforward confidence to him, which is just as good as knowing what one is doing. Mark will continue to follow his lead.

Frown at the question, though. ]

I... have no idea. What do we even have to offer? [ All that comes to mind is some artwork from Ena but, no, it's not fair to voluntell her for something. ] Kind of difficult to come up with something good when we're all working with the same stuff in this school.

[isdf]

[The person with the most marketable skills here is Ena. Yuma knows he's useless, so there's no point in overthinking that part.]

Hosting a competition yields fifty points per coordinator. Perhaps we can offer a cut to further incentivize participants.

[titlecard]

[ They're both useless. Any areas of expertise they may be fortunate enough to hold have run out. ]

I guess... Ten points, maybe? Fifteen? It sucks to lose the points but something like thirty-five to us is better than nothing. Unless we should be offering up more...?

[ Oh. Oh, yeah, there's the crushing sense of being absolutely terrible at anything other than punching things. Nevertheless... gotta persist... ]

[isdf]

[If only Mark had his issues of Seance Dog to loan out . . . ]

For how simple the objective is, ten points from one of us should be plenty. [He can forfeit those easily while the rest of them reap the full rewards.] Alternatively, we can extend a service of some kind.

[selfportraiture]

[Ena is sitting on top of a desk to avoid said nekomata.

She's seen what they look like. Gross.]

Oh, sure, that sounds nice. I've been a part of a competition like that before, so I'm pretty familiar with the judging criteria.

[selfportraiture]

[Piping up:]

It's a little tricky, but you can get that cute vintage photo feel with one of those, so it's worth the effort, I think.

[memori3s]

[ Prizes, huh... ]

A date with anyone from our class.

[ no. ]

[isdf]

That does not seem very romantic . . .

[isdf]

[They're not that grody. (Are they?)]

If you can write down what specific criteria you think would be appropriate, we can refer to them during the submission period.

[And if she's been part of a competition in the past . . . ] Have you taken selfies before, Botan?

[selfportraiture]

Sure. I can do that.

[She blinks at the question, and then laughs a little. It feels so weird to be asked that... everyone who knows her already knows the answer.]

Yeah, I've taken a few before. I'm pretty good at it.

[Mizuki not here right now to put her on blast.]