Japanese Etiquette & Tradition, 1/4/10, Period 5

[shiroi_tiger]

When the students filed into the classroom today, they would find the setup to be... sparse, at best. Algren had taken the time to push the desks to the side of the room, and to set out cushions to sit on. There was a mat at the door for students to leave their shoes on, and slippers nearby for them to wear instead. No, this wasn't the way that classrooms were set up in Japan. But Algren found it comfortable, and he could get away with doing this while teaching this particular course, and so the students were going to just have to suck it up.

Algren, who was clad in a traditional Japanese hakama today as opposed to his typical and very dated brown suit, was already seated, cross-legged, on the cushion farthest from the door.

"Hajimemashite," he said, speaking up as the last of the students settled in. "Algren desu. Doozo yoroshiku. Make yourselves comfortable. It's the first lesson of the year, so I'm going to actually take it easy on you, just this once."

How kind!

"Today, we'll be introducing ourselves. Hopefully the novelty of doing so hasn't been worn thin after a weekend of it. After all, you've still got another week of 'hello, my name is,' left to go. In front of you, you'll find your syllabus as well as a handout with the words I just said to you written on it, and a translation underneath. Introduce yourselves the way I just did, and then, please, share in English your grade, something random about yourself, and why you're taking this course."

Yes, 'paperwork error' is a completely acceptable answer. 'I enjoyed or missed out on laughing at you in Sex Thru The Ages' will probably result in detention.

"Miss Yamanaka, I would like to speak with you after class, if you don't mind. The rest of you? Introductions. Go."

[OCD coming up! And go!]

Comments

Re: Introductions 1/4/10

[sorella-vecchia.livejournal.com]

Triela's brow was wrinkled in concentration. She had extremely good hearing, so at least she remembered how it was supposed to sound.

"Haji... mema... shite. Triela desu. Doozo... ... ... yoroshiku." The pauses were significant, but her pronunciation when she finally said anything was pretty good.

"I'm a Junior, and in this class because someone back home apparently thought I needed to take it." Maybe they had felt that the etiquette class she'd already taken had been insufficient and this was close. Or maybe they were going to send her to Japan. Hard to know, really.

"And I didn't look like this before the break," she explained, waving at herself. As if it wouldn't be blatantly obvious to anyone who'd seen her before.

Re: Introductions 1/4/10

[shiroi_tiger]

Algren needed to take a moment to double-take at Triela, yes. He would have had trouble picking her out at a glance.

"That is a somewhat significant change, I must say." She didn't look like somebody's kid sister had wandered onto the campus, anymore. "It's good to have you in my class, Triela. I hope that the lessons I teach you here are up to the expectations of whoever it was who enrolled you in it."

Re: Introductions 1/4/10

[sorella-vecchia.livejournal.com]

Triela half-scowled at the double-take, but she was getting used to it. Then she nodded in a sort of greeting. The truth was that if she was going to be stuck in an etiquette class, at least it was with someone she could respect.