A Helping Hand (Finished)

Far more composed than her anxious ally, Natasha bore her usual grace and poise when it came to her unlikely mission as she walked with her cane tapping along ahead of her – unsurprisingly, someone blind taking on a task involving manual labour wasn’t the most ideal solution; but given the pressure the organisation was currently under it was only natural that someone who didn’t have as big a part to play when it came to Chaldea’s signature research was the prime choice to handle the little things. And honestly, she was happy with such a role; even she couldn’t ignore her rather lazy position in the group. Still, with all the Master business looming over them surely she’d have more to do; for better or worse.

Since the job was going to involve Chaldea’s storage areas rather than its residential ones, Natasha had dressed for the colder climate – her white blouse was replaced with a similarly coloured rimmed sweater instead, albeit still alongside her usual skirt; just with stockings hidden underneath rather than just socks. The lady was looking relatively slim by her standards at the moment, having ended up drained of prana the day before – if she weren’t on this task she’d surely be working on a huge lunch instead. She felt a little unsafe when she was in this sort of state, honestly… just a bit of magic, and she’d probably be at a dangerous level of prana for her body. She got the feeling that her current partner probably wasn’t going to deal well with her associate passing out on top of her, so it wasn’t really the most reassuring thought.

Speaking of her partner; Natasha could already tell that the other girl was tiny compared to herself – not that such a difference was all that rare given the Russian’s Amazonian stature, but it was still of note. Her footsteps and tone made it clear she was nervous, or at least shy; surely a new member of Chaldea with such a demeanour. Her scent… well, it was hard to put a finger on, but it was certainly not unwelcome. Still, she seemed charming enough; large egos were all too common given the nature of Chaldea’s recruits; and such attitudes were one things Natasha had never really gotten used to.

Upon being welcomed by Ai’s words, Natasha gave her a sunny smile in her direction – although she was blind, it wasn’t too hard to aim her gaze (or lack there-of) towards the voice’s source. Still, it probably wouldn’t be too hard for the younger magus to notice her glassy eyed look. ”I’m Natasha Pajari; Ai. I’m sure it will be a pleasure to work with you.” replied the lady in a friendly, albeit somewhat formal manner; ”Would you be so kind as to lead the way to where the supplies have been unloaded, Miss?”

Natasha just nodded as Ai awkwardly gave her instructions, giving another slight smile upon being met with her nervous remark – the usual concern. It was understandable, of course; people generally weren’t really used to handling disabled people on the whole; but it was a bit annoying. Better than constant pity, anyway. ”Don’t worry about me; I wouldn’t have lasted long if I couldn’t handle even this much without an extra pair of eyes. Just lead the way, Miss.” replied the lady, doing her best to disguise her hint of exasperation; another skill one got good at while in her sort of state. Hasty explanations were up there on the requirements as well… she was just waiting for that to happen at this point.

Her musings were quickly interrupted by Ai’s sudden little outburst of confidence, earning a bemused giggle from Natasha and another sunny smile. ”When my partner greets me with a line like that, I don’t think I could ever say no! However, I will have to assure you that I will be doing my best too, so be sure not to hold back at all.” responded the taller magus, deciding to play along with the nervous girl’s remark – it really was out of the blue, particularly given the more formal nature of most of Chaldea’s staff; but it was anything but unwelcome. Honestly, to Natasha… it was adorable! But, it probably wasn’t too professional to go spouting that sort of thing on your first meeting with someone… erk, if Ai kept it up, though; she might end up smothered.

Following Ai’s lead, Natasha’s cane would tap rhythmically along with her steps behind the younger girl. ”If you don’t mind me asking, what do you study at Chaldea? Or are you perhaps one of the conscripts for this ‘Grand Order’ business? I don’t believe I’ve seen you around before, I’m afraid… ah, well; perhaps ‘heard’ you around before is a better term, ahahah.” said Natasha, ending her stupid little joke with a laugh that was like a chime – she wasn’t a big fan of the whole wordplay surrounding ‘see’ that seemed to haunt people like her, but she felt it’d probably help Ai feel more comfortable around the issue.

Unaware of Ai’s bashful response, Natasha was just surprised to end up having her hand taken – but not exactly opposed; it honestly helped her a bit to have the extra support given her blindness. However, the shorter girl’s added haste made her life a touch harder; though for now she just left her fate in the hands of her partner. Such petite hands, though… she really was a tiny girl, huh? Well, by Natasha’s standards, at least. Not that she minded… they were far, far more fun to tease, hoho. And she was so shy, too! She’d have to restrain herself, or she might break the poor thing…

As the pair halted Natasha nodded along demurely with Ai’s instructions; a bit bemused by how seriously the other magi was taking her job. It was certainly good to take pride in your work, though; and she had the right idea in any case… not that Natasha could help too much with that. She got the feeling the boxes weren’t exactly going to have braille labels. ”I’m afraid I probably can’t really identify the boxes unless they have unique shapes, so just use me as your workhorse for now – I can’t vouch too much for my strength, but my height should make it a bit easier in any case.”

Ai’s explanation for her position earned a slight frown from the older lady, though; unsure of how to approach it. Most of the members of Chaldea she knew of had been recruited based on their skills; much like she herself. It sounded like Ai was in about the same boat as she was in being a bit pointless, but surely the girl had a bit more competence when it came to magic if she was here. ”Oh, I see… hm, well; I think that’s a fine approach. I’m afraid I don’t do a lot of work here myself… I’m just sort of a, uh, utility, so to speak.” replied Natasha with a thoughtful look; deciding to keep her magical nature’s explanation for another time. ”I suppose this Master business takes priority anyway, so you probably shouldn’t worry too much.”

”So, the supplies are here, right? Let me see if there is anything I can feel….” mused the blonde as she felt around for the boxes stacked ahead of them – albeit perhaps a bit too rashly, as an unlucky Ai was caught between the leaning lady as the containers. Thankfully Natasha wasn’t too clueless and quickly realised the situation that her lack of sight had raised, but… it was a bit too tempting to try and get away with her unlikely tease. For the moment, the poor girl would just have to deal with being between a box and a soft place… ”Ah, I can’t feel any extra labels… you’ll have to be my eyes for now, dear.”

Unsurprisingly Natasha was especially smug about the reaction she’d drawn out of Ai with her stupid action – well, it could have been better, but she didn’t get this opportunity often; so best not to complain! That said, she was smart enough not to push her luck either; playing the fool was the best way to get away with this stuff. ”Oh! I’m sorry, dear; I didn’t know you were right there.” apologised the lady with a ditzy giggle, backing off gently. Admittedly, her stupid smile wasn’t the best cover for her smug satisfaction, but it might work on someone as nervous as poor Ai. ”How embarrassing…”

Still, her sunny smile just came back again with a newfound vengeance as another cunning thought come to mind – out of the oven, into the frying pan, ahahah. ”Ah, I suppose I’ll need some way to keep a handle on your position then, dear. Would you mind if I held onto you a little?” asked the lady; not waiting for a reply before resting a hand on Ai’s shoulder – frankly, Natasha seemed a bit too comfortable in the position. A very slight lean on the smaller girl probably wouldn’t help matters either.

”Alright, just pass me the boxes and we can get to work, right?” remarked Natasha happily, seeming quite a bit more chipper now than when the pair had met – she was having a bit too much fun right now. Perhaps far too much. ”I’m at your beck and call, Miss. Aye aye, Ai Ai~”