[center][h2]James Zhen[/h2][/center]

James nodded his head, vaguely catching words here and there that made [i]some[/i] semblance of sense to him. So long as the understanding was somewhat mutual, he didn't see any problems with what was being said. And hey, Akiya seemed to be a pretty compassionate guy, if what he was hearing was right. Cool.

"Well, ain't that how it hits us all?" James laughed at Akiya's remark about colleges. "I mean, it's the same reason I got forced into violin. But the same old classical stuff gets boring, so it got real tedious real fast. 'Course, a bunch of friends kept bugging me to play songs once they heard me once, but it's a change of pace from the usual stuff."

Unlocking his suitcase, James pulled out a punch of clothes, which he began to rapidly file into the drawers closest to his own bed. At the very bottom sat a small present, neatly-wrapped. A present from... His friends, maybe?

"Huh. Okay, gimme a moment...' he trailed off as Akiya mentioned having manga among his hobbies. Slowly unwrapping the present, James found himself holding a small box set of... Wait, was this...?
Anime? Seriously?

On top of the present sat a small note:
'Yo, James!
	Heard you were headed to Japan or something from your parents. Sucks that we couldn't see you off, but all the guys pitched in to buy this for you! Get us some stuff while you're there too, alright? We're expecting some returns, man!'

...

James stared silently at the note, then back to the anime, then at the note before letting out a laugh and putting the stuff to the side.

"God damn, that timing! Alright, I see your game, you assholes! You're on!"

With a cocky grin, James gave a thumbs-up to his partner before motioning towards the discs with his head.

"Well, two of my friends are really into Japanese stuff, so I should've seen this coming a mile away. Mind helping me out in the future? From what I hear, this stuff costs, like, at least a hundred bucks, so I've gotta go pay them all back now. You said you were a fan of manga, right? Don't worry, we differentiate between regular American comic books and manga, anyhow, so there's no need to explain the word."

[hr]
[h2][center]Mari Kougami[/center][/h2]
Mari let out a light cough before nodding her head in response. Well, high-strung would explain her partner's current disposition; that was for sure. Hopefully, she could use the walk back as some means of letter her cool her head.
...
Hopefully.
Glancing over the map, Mari closed her eyes momentarily to try and sketch a mental model inside her head before nodding.

"Okay, let's head out, then. I need to start memorizing the building's layout as soon as possible, anyhow."