2022-12-30: All I Want For Christmas Is Ramen
- Cast: Banagher Links, Leina Ashta, Sayaka Yumi, Roux Louka
- Where: Boss Ramen
- Date: U.C. 0096 12 24
- Summary: In the aftermath of Gamia RX-2's efforts to liberate information on the Christmas Spirit, the group slouches into Boss Ramen after 11 PM, Japan time, 24 December...
<Pose Tracker> Sayaka Yumi has posed.
The battle against Gamia piloting Satan Claus P10 didn't result in any particular devastating damage or casualties, due to the relatively far off nature of the historical sight. As for the brave defenders however, the battle might've done a number to their own spirits.
As such, since they were already in the area, Sayaka has invited them for a hot meal at Boss Ramen. She'd already taken LiSA the day before, just before the attack, but the order for post-battle weariness and Christmas heartbreak are very different!
Once they enter the homely, tiny ramen shop, they are greeted with the ever-warm, friendly smile and voice of Boss himself. "Welcome to Boss Ramen, friends! What can my boys fix you with?" Nuke and Mucha have both already scrambled to the kitchen.
"Kikaiju attack, huh. Should've had the ol' Borot help out there myself!" He laughs, looking as if he genuinely considered it for a moment. "But nahhh, otherwise we wouldn't have the time /or/ energy to be making ramen, course."
Sayaka smiles at her old friend. "Just imagine what the Borot could do with the type of upgrades Aphrodite got."
And then she turns to her invitees. "So, what brought you all into the area? Before the kikaiju attack, that is. Shiro told me something was up." She takes in the atmosphere of the ramen shop that she'll never tire of. "Although as long as we're here I suppose we don't have to worry about all that."
The prominent "banned" sign on the wall is a bit noteworthy - no one's ever had /that/ dubious honour before.
<Pose Tracker> Leina Ashta has posed.
"Hey Boss, Merry Christmas!" And the big man gets a hug from her, before she murmurs to him, "Sorry again for the recent trouble."
The last thing she wanted to do was bring trouble to the doorstep of Boss Ramen, she just didn't expect Alma Stirner to have mind control powers???
Seriously what the hell!
Luckily besides her pilot suit, Leina kept a bag of the clothes she'd been wearing in one of the compartments. Right now she has on an ugly Christmas sweater with a Haro in a Santa cap on it, as well as a pair of jeans and some trainers.
"... Glad you're open tonight. If there's something we could all use after that thrashing..."
Sayaka brings it up though, and Leina and Boss perhaps share a glance, before she takes a seat, coughing into a hand, "Uhhh, that's a whole... thing. Can give you the full rundown sometime soon if you'd prefer? It's kind of linked to why I'm..."
She sounds real awkward as she pulls out a pen and writes something on a napkin, "... doing something I told Shiro maybe a hundred that I'd never do?"
She means the piloting of course, "Mayyyybe be real careful letting anyone connected to Yuliana Kafim into the Photon Power Labs until I can give you all the details."
She then slides it over to Sayaka. It simply reads 'Mind control involved'.
Then below that 'Yes really' which she's circled for emphasis.
"For now, what can you tell us about Gamias? Shiro once told me they were... Baron Ashura's Android Assassin daughters? That's... about all I remember."
<Pose Tracker> Roux Louka has posed.
Nobody died! Other than they themselves, nobody much was in deep danger of death.
Yet. It would have probably been better if they'd stopped her, but you take your win when you can.
After limping back to Japan, which involved a certain amount of tension as Roux looked out a narrow window at the dark, cold Sea of Area 11 (name disputed) below them...
It's dinner time.
"I want shoyu this time, give me the vegetable toppings," Roux tells Boss; "and get a couple orders of gyoza, too?" This closes with a wink~.
"I was going to buy New Year's presents and go to a day spa," Roux tells Sayaka frankly, folding her arms and gesturing vaguely. "Maybe several of them. I was going to play it by ear there, I have this app for quick discount stuff like that and I've had a lot of luck with it!" But then...
Yuliana comes up. Roux looks like someone just made the kind of fart that ends a marriage. As her expression uncurdles, she says, "That woman is stone cold crazy. And then, you know what, she didn't just stop at her psycho murder church wedding? No, then she's pulling some stuff up at this wrecked colony... That one's complicated, but I don't know if it's her or her goth wife that's behind this sudden rampage of super Junker crime." Roux concludes by throwing her hands into the air.
"Wait," Roux continues, "android? Like, android android, not like, how sci fi movies mess up robots versus clones versus cyborgs all the time, especially if it's in Nollywood? Like," Roux raises one arm and attempts to mime out being a robot.
It is inconclusive.
<Pose Tracker> Banagher Links has posed.
Banagher is nervous to bring the Unicorn anywhere near a civilian area, but... It's just for a little while, and it's Christmas Eve. Hopefully, possibility will be kind.
Unlike Leina, Banagher only has a hoodie on over his pilot suit. It's disguising the Vist Foundation logo, replacing it with Sheryl Nome's own personal brand. The singer's face covers the back of the hoodie, making a humorous contrast to the red-and-white normal suit.
Sticking close to Leina, Banagher glances around the restaurant as they walk inside. It's warm, and everything smells amazing. Before Banagher can feel nervous about Boss, Leina hugs him, and so the large man earns a smile. Anyone Leina trusts that much has Bangaher's trust, too.
"Thank you for your hospitality, sir." Banagher says, politely. It's Christmas Eve, these men would probably much rather be at home. "I'll have, um." He glances at Leina for guidance. "Whatever you recommend?"
At the mention of Yuliana, Banagher's face falls. He steps forward, taking Leina's hand in his own. Golden eyes are curious and concerned at the sight of the napkin, but he doesn't ask. He has no idea how much of this is secret.
"I'd like to hear about Gamias, too. I have no idea about most of this stuff."
<Pose Tracker> Sayaka Yumi has posed.
There's a shared sentiment that they're /glad/ Boss Ramen is a place that's open. "Shucks, it's no problem. This place is a home to us." Boss responds cheerfully. Perhaps literally? They have a ton of uncounted for underground space where Borot is stored as a generator, after all. "And we're always happy to share the Christmas spirit!" Mucha chimes in.
"Alright! Veggie shoyu and gyoza - on the double!" Nuke notes down, scrambling back to the kitchen as Mucha remains on standby for the rest of the orders. "Shio with rice, please." Sayaka decides.
After that, she turns her attention to Leina, who slipped her a note. Her return to piloting and the danger of Yuliana Kafim, who presents danger in the form of mind control. Sayaka grimaces, just as Banagher does at her mention - her encounters with Yuliana Kafim, both at JOSH-A and the wedding had been pleasant enough /personally/, but overtoned with a sense that something wasn't right, even with the imminent threat of danger in both scenarios.
Roux provides additional context, about a wrecked colony and 'Super Junker Crime'. "Hmm. She was always friendly enough when we spoke, but it's hard to trust when danger always seems to follow her." Perhaps she'll gleam more of the specific danger to the labs once she can take Leina privately.
"A day spa, huh?" She replies to Roux. "Yeah, after that fight, I could definitely go for one right about now..."
The elephant in the room is addressed by Leina, Roux and Banagher; the presence of a Gamia. Sayaka braces herself to explain. "Leina has the basics of it - and yes, android is an apt term. Unfortunately, they were all killed along with Baron Ashura in the Hell War, so the fact that one is here is another sign something is strange."
"Well, the ones we fought back then weren't nearly as chatty. And they certainly wouldn't be interested in the slightest in the 'Christmas spirit'. That's why I told LiSA it's also a sign of possibilities." It seemed much more likely that in this case, Gamia wasn't directly controlled by Ashura, but rather acting on her own.
<Pose Tracker> Leina Ashta has posed.
"Literally everything on the menu is good, but if you're a Ramen newbie - try the Shoyu." She offers her suggestion to Banagher. Before asiding to Boss, "Spicy Miso myself, please. Cold out there tonight."
Leina squeezes Banagher's hand, it's a complicated subject for her, Yuliana. She'd wronged her and the people she cares about time and time again...
... however for the moment she's quiet on her. She knows if she gets into it, she just won't stop talking about her.
There's just a sigh and what she says for now, "Yeah she would be friendly to you and Koji. It's... complicated."
She's happy enough to shift to the subject of Gamia, despite the butt whooping they received, "Like Android Android - from what I remember Shiro saying." She quiets though to let Sayaka explain it more in depth.
There's this blink and- "Oh. Oh I see!" Leina considers the idea more in depth, "So you're thinking this one is more sentient - like..."
There's a reluctant pause, as if she's hesitant to bring it up, as she knows how painful it was for Shiro.
Her volume drops notably, "... like Lorelai was." She remembers the story, and how it ended in tragedy, "Well, I'd definitely be in support of making the attempt to draw her away from Ashura's influence."
Pause.
"Probably shouldn't be me, she proved my inexperience pretty thoroughly."
<Pose Tracker> Roux Louka has posed.
"RIGHT?" Roux tells Sayaka. "Anyway, I guess she's personally pleasant, so for all I know it's her wife. I mean, some people get into a relationship and become completely different people to please their new SO."
A beat passes.
Roux just lets that one slide along as she smiles at Banagher, asking him, "Have you ever had fresh ramen? It's completely different from instant noodles, you're going to love it."
As they get somewhat settled down, Roux contemplates. The fact that Sayaka says killed is informative. "Hm," Roux says. "Well, it's not like they mass produce equipment like that, so in so far as they could make anything new, nothing would stop Baron Ashura from making more like them, right? And we know they've survived. It's an open question what that's supposed to accomplish, but maybe they just needed more hands to handle..."
"... Whatever it is Baron Ashura does," Roux concludes. "I was never really clear on that one, but we didn't really cross their path very much..."
Another ghost crosses the room, with Leina's words. Roux looks less light about it. Does she know of Lorelai? Maybe not, but the outlines are clear enough. "Mm," she says, resting an elbow on the table and her chin in her hand. "That seems... tricky to do unless she's going to be coming out and about. It's possible she's like Ashura's office gofer, and this was just an unusual case..."
<Pose Tracker> Leina Ashta has posed.
Leina immediately asides to Roux, "If /that/ was Ashura's intern I'd hate to see what their middle management can do."
<Pose Tracker> Banagher Links has posed.
Banagher seems to brighten again as Boss and Mucha reassure him. It feels genuine, too, every emotion genuine and warm. The young pilot smiles shyly, happy to let Leina do most of the talking.
"Okay, I'll have the Shoyu, please." Banagher turns to Roux after ordering. "Yeah, I've only had the poor college kid version of ramen. I'm really looking forward to this."
An android. Banagher quietly listens to the explanation of Gamias. "Where could this one have come from? And why did she want -- whatever it is she wanted so badly?" A pause, as the young man is reminded of another set of mass-produced 'daughters.'
Leina mentions a 'Lorelai', and her sadness echoes through their bond. Something else to ask about later, it seems.
"It wasn't just you, love. She took the Unicorn and I down too, and we have plenty of experience. She was just that strong." Banagher squeezes Leina's hand softly. "You were amazing out there."
<Pose Tracker> Roux Louka has posed.
Roux answers Leina after a moment's thought, "It could be a family business, though, less overhead."
<Pose Tracker> Sayaka Yumi has posed.
Nuke arrives with Roux's shoyu with veggies + gyoza and Sayaka's shio + rice, while Mucha prepares Leina's spicy miso and Banagher's own shoyu. "Thank you very much, Nuke. Let's eat, shall we?" Admittedly, Sayaka is very hungry after such a tight battle. "Oh, and tab's on me. This is the PPL's treat for your troubles."
"Ahaha.. I can't say I relate," Sayaka laughs off the comment about a SO changing to please you. She really does wish Koji was here, too, so like Leina and Roux, she lets the topic slide.
Sayaka grimly nods, when Leina makes the comparison to poor Lorelai. "Right. Her mannerisms.. they weren't that of a cold-blooded assassin. Even considering the photon barrier, she could've chosen to pick off your fallen machines, but she simply didn't." Sayaka explains, before realizing Leina's insecurity about her piloting performance.
Leina mentions the idea of it being possible to draw her away from Ashura's influence. "Yes.. that's why I ordered not to kill her. Because I think this can turn out differently from last time, or how it did with Lorelai."
Roux openly asks what it is Baron Ashura even does, to which Sayaka asides, "Mostly eat shit and shout a variant of 'CURSE YOU KOJI KABUTO' each week."
Banagher also has an interesting question of his own. "I have an idea of it myself. She wanted to please Baron Ashura - her parental figure. And she was working autonomously to do so." That theory presents this Gamia as capable of love and emotion - LiSA seemed to think so, too. "If it was Baron Ashura themselves carrying out the attack, it'd probably be more ruthless and in a civilian area. In that sense, we broke lucky."
At this point, Leina's worries about her piloting become much more obvious - and Banagher is quick to comfort her. "Even Aphrodite Areia was on her last legs." Sayaka adds. "We didn't shoot down the kikaiju, but we /did/ have zero casualties and no irreparable damage. That's the most important type of win." As a Mazin pilot, and especially one considered "second-fiddle" to Koji, Sayaka is used to this mindset - but she's just as used to rejecting it.
<Pose Tracker> Leina Ashta has posed.
"Much appreciated." Leina says to the PPL picking up the tab, she may be rich but that makes the gesture no less courteous to her.
(She lives her life frugally to an almost incredible degree, Roux's probably seen the Spreadsheets for household budget and expenses.)
Sayaka's reaction to Roux's comment earns a glance, and suddenly she wonders if the pair of them need to commiserate on their respective... problems with their SO committing, still she doesn't say it out loud.
Sayaka speaks more of Gamia, why she orderd it that way and she can't help but snerk at the 'eat shit and shout a variant of Curse you Koji Kabuto' comment, "Well... I certainly hope you'll be able to manage. I think you're right though, given that she didn't act as ruthlessly as Baron Ashura would, it might mean all she needs is to be shown there's more to life than..." She glances sidelong to Roux, and adds her analogy here, "...the family business."
She also hopes that they'll be able to manage for Shiro's sake. It might help give him closure on... something that's been haunting him.
Banagher squeezes her hand, and she laughs lightly in amusement, "I know, I know she did - but she still knocked me around like a rank novice - which /I am/." She at least seems somewhat good natured about it? "Just means I need to put in more time and effort."
Sayaka's words though knock her out of that mindset for a moment and she smiles, "... You're right. We're all still here for Christmas... I can't argue that that's the most important victory of all."
<Pose Tracker> Roux Louka has posed.
The speculation about Baron Ashura's business structure is kind of funny, but also ramen arrives at this point. "Thank you!!" Roux enthuses as she takes the bowl down, picking up her chopsticks and making a slightly demonstrative movement with them in case Banagher doesn't quite get the idea. She doesn't know, maybe they didn't have a Chinatown in that colony.
She eats a slice or two of daikon radish and greenhouse cucumber, before stirring a little and raising up some noodles. A gentle slurp later -- and she almost chokes at what Sayaka says. Roux raises up her head after biting off the noodles and giggle-laughs again: looking at Sayaka, she says, "Oh my god, that is so funny to hear now that you're like -- legitimate and everything. Even THEN you didn't look like butter would melt in your mouth and NOW it's just -- haha! Sorry, sorry."
Some more noodles come down. Her eyebrows shift at the statement of pleasing Baron Ashura. From the part of her face not occupied with eating noodles, Roux hadn't quite registered that, but seems to be taking it easily on board.
"I wonder if this is why Atrytone was involved," Roux muses. "I don't really get her at all, but I guess she might know about this? She's popped up twice on these situations, and I don't know who or what she's associated with."
(Roux was briefly consternated to see that the food budget for a houseguest was less than for the cats, but it turned out the cats were a biweekly expense, while houseguests were tracked per diem rounded to the nearest 5 gilla point. And the cats ate pretty well.)
"What did you think of her, Banagher?" Roux asks -- well, Banagher; though it may be ambiguous if she means Atrytone or the newest Gamia.
<Pose Tracker> Banagher Links has posed.
"Oh, thank you so much, Miss Sayaka!" Banagher says. Even though he has an income now, nothing gets you on a young man's good side faster than free food. Banagher was raised not to take advantage of such kindness, of course, but it's still truly appreciated.
Banagher nods to Sayaka's insight. "Yeah. She chose not to kill us. She had an open shot on me and Leina both. There's something good in her, no matter what she is, or who created her. I'm really glad we didn't hurt her."
"Ha!" Banagher snort-laughs loudly, then ducks his head in embarrassment. Roux is right, Sayaka is really funny..! "Once a week? That's rough... How does he keep fixing his machines in time to fight again?"
A quiet nod as Sayaka explains Gamia wanted to impress her parental figure. How many times has that story been repeated? It's always sad... "I'm glad there were no civilian injuries." He murmurs. "If she appears again, or some other threat, we'll be here to help if we can. If anyone can reach her, I'm sure it'd be Leina or you, Miss Sayaka."
"I thought..." Banagher pauses, thinking. "I was really angry once Gamia hurt Leina. I was ready to take her down. But -- once Leina stopped me, I was more attentive to her. Her desperation for whatever that thing was was strange, but the fact that she focused on Christmas Spirit so much? It felt like when a child learns about something for the first time, and then they try to emulate it."
May as well answer about both personages. "As for Atrytone, we fought once before, in space. They have this strange emotional power that was really tearing up the Unicorn, summoning spikes and shields of this weird red energy. But the whole time, they talked about heroes. How they're the real hero and I'm just pretending? Or something like that." He was a little distracted, fighting for his life. "I had a clear shot on them by the end, but -- I couldn't do it. I put a hand against their machine and tried to reach them, and they couldn't killed me, but they just left, instead."
"...we really fight a lot of confusing people..." Banagher says, smiling ruefully.
<Pose Tracker> Sayaka Yumi has posed.
Leina and Banagher receive their ramen bowls courtesy of Mucha. "Enjoy your meal!" He throws up a V-sign before walking away, humming Sheryl Nome's Infinity (?!), clearly set off by Banagher's hoodie design.
Leina's statement that they're all still here for Christmas is very true, as the clock had turned midnight while they were talking. "You're right. Merry Christmas, Leina." Sayaka smiles.
Realizing she let the phrase "eat shit" slip, that makes Sayaka a target for Roux - and even Banagher's relentless laughter. "Hey, hey - this is Boss Ramen. Here and the battlefield are the only two places on Earth I can truly loosen up." Sayaka grins. "You know, Koji used to be a total loudmouth, but I haven't heard a curse from his mouth in /years/." She laughs, subtly moving the target onto his back just as she would if he was present.
"Oh, you know, sometimes, they tried passing off existing kikaiju concepts and changed them just a little in hopes Dr. Hell wouldn't notice. Of course, they were foiled all the same." It's an exaggeration, but how often was the idea "this one has a scythe" slightly retooled?
She once again looks serious in tone, after a little reminiscing. "We'll do our best to reach her." Sayaka nods at Leina. "LiSA might be able to help too, if she's willing. I think she can understand Gamia's pain in some sense.." Sayaka grimaces. "LISA was also the same way in terms of emulating like a child - you should've seen her very first reaction to ramen.
As for the mysterious singer, Atrytone, Sayaka is much less certain, having never encountered her before. "Same as Roux, I wasn't really sure what her deal was. She knew who I was, but that's less surprising."
The idol did teasingly mention fighting some of Sayaka's friends, but Banagher further clarifies how it happened. "She said that, huh? I never had much patience for people philosophizing about heroes. I mean, Koji and I were considered heroes, but we were mostly teens who barely knew what we were doing at the time." Well, Koji especially. Sayaka had to show him how to pilot the damn Mazin. "You're an earnest kid, so I wouldn't say you're pretending. If you even consider yourself one in the first place."
<Pose Tracker> Leina Ashta has posed.
"Thanks Mucha!" Leina pauses as he hums Infinity, and finds herself grinning. "Sheryl claims another fan."
Leina breaks open her chopsticks and gets to work on the Spicy Miso, grinning at Roux's comment on Sayaka. She's lived around the PPL for eight years so the language from Sayaka isn't entirely surprising. Nor is Koji's progression to not cursing.
(They definitely feed the cats handcrafted organic food, not cat food. It is expensive but compare it to Judau's per diem expenses alone and it's definitely no contest.)
"Merry Christmas, Sayaka." Leina replies with a certain sincere warmth. Leina listens to Banagher's evaluation on Gamia, and... "I'm a bit more cautiously optimistic, I had trouble sensing her intent - but I'd agree that if they wanted us dead, they could have been far more aggressive." As Sayaka mentions LiSA, Leina laughs, "Gosh, hearing that I wish I'd been around for her earliest days here. She's adorable."
Unfortunately she wasn't /right away/ since well, Shiro and her broke up last Christmas, and that took some time to heal.
"But I think you're right. She might be the ideal person to reach her."
Before she tilts her head at Banagher at his comment on reaching them, "I'm not so sure, I don't... exactly have much experience dealing with Androids and Super AI Banagher." She smiles at Banagher, "I'm piloting now, so a lot of people are going to be trying to hurt me."
She leans over to peck him lightly on the cheek, "So while I appreciate you coming to my defense, we're gonna have to work on you keeping your head clear in a fight. Too much anger and you might tempt the NT-D to go active when you don't want it to."
On Atrytone though, Leina listens to Banagher's opinion, then Sayaka's... "So, the Codarl is an Arm Slave used by a clandestine organization of science criminals... and I saw a report that she was involved in the train attack in Britannia, for the Gundam fights."
Leina picks out a fish cake from her ramen, and chews on it, swallowing, "From what I've gleaned fighting her... she's self-aggrandizing in her attitude. She has the belief that only she knows the right way to change the world. The sort of idea that only great men and women have the drive and vision to get there. Her single mindedness towards that idea is dangerous. It's... how despots are made. She acts like she's trying to protect us but..."
She hesitates before adding, "... people like that have a line, but the line is always moving. Until one day there isn't any, anymore."
Roux of all people in the room might certainly understand who taught her that lesson.
Leina puts a hand on Banagher's arm, "Banagher... don't let her get in your head. She doesn't know you, or what you've been through. Not really. She just assumes you're some kid who climbed into a Gundam and is trying to be the next Amuro Ray." A pause, and a smile, "We know who you are. Sometimes that just has to be enough."
<Pose Tracker> Roux Louka has posed.
She chose not to kill us.
"It's funny to put it like it's a favor, but in a sense, it is, isn't it?" Roux says in reply to Banagher. It's a little wistful. She takes a swirling bite of her noodles, raising up the bowl - holding it, even though it's rather large, to be able to do so without contorting too much.
Her eyes turn towards Banagher for a moment (They flick to Leina but -- alright, Roux thinks, I get what he means, the ZZ 'is' her with her in it, isn't it? weird to consider. hm.) but then the rest comes through. After a long thoughtful swallow, Roux straightens up. "I guess this Christmas Spirit isn't just some Earth marketing thing, huh? Or if it started that way, it's become..."
"Something else."
"I told Atrytone I'd talk to her sometime," Roux says, a little -- shyly? -- as she twists her chopsticks around to grab a gyoza. "She hasn't called me, though I suppose I didn't exactly give her my call number. Heh! I guess the kind of people in action in a time like this are either going to be pirates or... well... confusing."
But as the target is placed on a back that isn't here, Roux's eyes turn back towards Sayaka. "Yeah," she breathes out. "He's definitely changed. I wondered which of us grew up when I tripped over him, that one time."
(it was Koji)
But the topic moves and there is something there, raw and still fresh, so -- "Mm," Roux says. "Maybe. I don't know if we can put that on her too much, but at least she'd be a positive example, for sure, if -- Gamia? What should we call her? Anyway, that person we fought, if they're afraid of bad things happening."
They talk then about heroes. Roux shifts herself, and rather than reply, digs into her noodles even deeper. There is not a shortage of fresh made noodles, laden with love, in there.
<Pose Tracker> Banagher Links has posed.
The food arrives! "Thank you very much!" calls Bangaher, politely, before digging in with gusto. Roux's tutorial was very helpful, and though it takes Banagher a moment to get the hang of it, he's quickly using the chopsticks like a pro.
"Oh. This is amazing." Banagher says, talking with his mouth full. At least he has the manners to bring a hand over his mouth as he does so.
If Sayaka wants to swear, it's not like he minds. But Banagher can't quite imagine Koji swearing, really... He was so cool and polite when they met. As for changing up the kikaiju... "Wow, that's kinda lazy. I guess that's what happens when you rush your employees so much, though."
In response to Roux, Banagher shrugs. "I don't really know. I didn't celebrate much after my mother died, but she always liked holidays. So I can go either way. But it means a lot to some people."
"I know you're going to try and reach them anyway, Leina." Banagher says, grinning fondly. "So I'm going to believe in you."
"There were some kidnapped singers, and I went to help get them home, and it turned into a fight." Banagher explains. "O--oh, thank you, Miss Sayaka." Banagher blushes, looking proud. "Leina's right. I'm not trying to mimic Amuro or anything. I could never be like him. I just want to do what's right."
There was something more to what Atrytone was saying. "I think they have some kind of grand goal to end the world. They were saying things about creating a world that doesn't need heroes. They're definitely someone we need to watch. But I think there's a way to reach them, just like Gamia."
Golden eyes flick up to Leina, and Banagher nods seriously. "I'll be careful, don't worry. I've heard enough of that garbage from Full Frontal. She's got nothing on his nonsense." Leaning to the side, Bangaher brushes his shoulder against Leina's, a substitute of a hug while they're both busy eating.
<Pose Tracker> Sayaka Yumi has posed.
Sayaka laughs at Leina's wish she could have seen LiSA at her earliest, and then reaches for more noodles. "We clashed a lot at first, once she started wanting to make everything nameable a pun. But over time, I've come to care for her so much." Almost like a daughter, huh?
%She considers both Leina's point about LiSA reaching out to Gamia - and Roux's caution that they can't put it all on her. "I'm leaving the decision up to her," Sayaka decides, respecting LiSA's own agency and opinion on the matter. "It would be nice if they could even become friends, but I can't force LiSA to try of course."
"Hmm, sometimes I think he's changed too much," Sayaka admits to Roux. "And just when I get a glimpse of the Koji I remember, he up and vanishes. I know he'll be back, because he made a promise, but well..." If she wanted to drop a total bombshell in the room, she could bring up WHAT EXACTLY he promised. But she doesn't.
Leina and Banagher's conversation is more than a little nostalgic for Sayaka for that exact reason. "As a tried and true battle couple, you'll both need to be looking after each other more than anything. Even if it leads to some bickering after the fight's over." She grins.
The description of Atrytone takes her back in a far less pleasant way. "Her mindset... it almost sounds like Dr. Hell's." She whispers. A once respected researcher who decided his vision was great enough to remake the world over. "As you know, I have no respect for views like that. But if you do think there's a way to reach her, Banagher, I'll trust you." She looks more closely at his sharp golden eyes. "After all, you believe in what's right."
<Pose Tracker> Leina Ashta has posed.
"You're only making me mourn not being there more given the /pun crimes/ Sayaka." She tells her with a teasing tone, before she nods, "Guess we'll see what she decides. She's so friendly that I almost can't imagine her... not, deciding that."
Which kind of makes her worry a touch too.
It kinda is a favor, isn't it?
"It's definitely persisted due to marketing... consumerism, but I think the end the Christmas Spirit is about the other people in your life, who you want to spend the day with... who you want to be happy."
Leina then asides to Banagher, "I told Audrey that liking the Ramen here is a mark of impeccable taste, so I guess you get to join that club too." She says with a light tease.
Leina eyes Roux when she said she told Atrytone she'd talk to her sometime as if to say 'Roux really???' but it's not so shocking that Roux might attach to her opponents.
Honestly she'd be the biggest hypocrite if she said that kind of thing out loud.
As evidenced by what Banagher says next, "Guhhh... Roux he's got me pegged." She smiles as if to say that's gonna be insufferable. And Sayaka probably catches her blush a bit (though it's easily something that can be attributed to the spicy ramen) as the two are compared to her and Koji as a 'battle couple', "We don't bicker /that/ much really." She can definitely see the writing on the wall though for future bickering though...
Banagher explains about the context with Atrytone, "The fact that she's so fixated on heroes is such a red flag." Leina says, perhaps thinking of Sayaka's point earlier, and of how everyone treats Sayla like a hero, "I'd agree with that." Leina grimaces on the idea of Atrytone aligning with Dr. Hell's worldview, "I do wonder I suppose, she's definitely not that far gone yet, so I think it's worth trying. So long as we approach it carefully." She then pulls up some noodles to slurp up.
Her eyes flick back to Banagher mid-slurp, as she finishes that bite, and chews, listening to him, then brushing her shoulder back against his with a smile and a swallow. Leina's walls go up a bit further as she looks abstracted in the distance.
Thinking of the red eyes behind the mask, alit by the glow of orange.
"You're definitely right about that." Before she adds more quietly, "Nothing on his nonsense."
<Pose Tracker> Roux Louka has posed. </poem> After his mother died.
"Heh," Roux says to Banagher, as she gets done with the majority of the noodles and sliced vegetables which have been steamed and seasoned by the broth. Which leaves her with a lot of broth.
"You can ask Boss or Nuke for extra noodles if you're still hungry," Roux tells Banagher, "but you can also do this," and then she raises that big old bowl to her mouth and takes a (rather careful) large ssssssip straight from the side, breathing out afterwards, "if you want. Whew~! It's intense..."
Heroes and promises are hanging in the Christmastide air. Neither one of these is landing happily on Roux's shoulders. It's hard to define why, she thinks as she gazes at the clear, golden-tinged broth. "It might and it might not," Roux answers Sayaka without looking, "but no, I'm not really the biggest fan of hers. I just sort of couldn't get a feel for her when we were in a dog fight."
A pause. "Then I did," Roux says with the shrug of one shoulder, looking up for a moment.
At Leina. "Is that right?" Roux asks, with raising of her eyebrows. "I guess you really have clicked, huh! Though I mean, no offense, Leina, but you are really straightforward like that. It's charming, but it never hurts to keep 'em guessing a little bit, right?"
Battle couples.
That one seems like it has a rope attached to it. Something Roux can grasp to pull away from this faintly uncanny feeling in the back of her head. This sense that she's being drawn out, into something that wasn't unlike that sensation when she was in that battle at Denver Colony, and it even connects to everyone's favorite topic - Mobile Suit battles.
"I don't know if it's very Christmassy," Roux says, "but do you want to hear about the Clown Pirates, Sayaka?" She reaches over to pick up a gyoza. "It's about as funny as you'd expect." </poem>
<Pose Tracker> Banagher Links has posed.
Banagher listens quietly to the talk of LiSA. Who was that? He'll ask Leina later, he doesn't want to disrupt the conversation. Whoever she is, she seems really well-loved. And, well, not talking gives him more time to eat.
Tilting his head at Sayaka, Banagher wonders what that promise could've been. It sounds really important. Huh.
"I wish I could've gone with you two! When Audrey gets excited about food, she's so cute..." Banagher says, dreamily. "I bet it was adorable."
For the moment, it seems Roux has the monopoly on food excitement. Banagher watches with awe as she slurps from the bowl, clapping a few times once Roux comes up for air. No wonder she and Judau have been together this long, they both know how to /eat/. "That might be a little advanced for me..." Banagher says, laughing. "But I'll do my best!"
Banagher blushes, a bright smile on his face. He bumps shoulders with Leina once again. "A battle couple. That sounds really cool. And yeah, we don't argue over much!" He grins. "I'll always be there to protect Leina, and she'll be there to protect me. And Audrey'll protect us, too, and we'll protect her..." Another quick bite of food. "We're going to be just fine."
Banagher nods seriously to Sayaka. "Thank you, Miss Sayaka. I'll do my best. If Atrytone hurts anyone, though, I'll make sure to stop her." Leina's walls go up, and Banagher gives her a concerned look. "Y--yeah. Maybe we can get Atrytone to fight him, or something..."
"Clown pirates?" A blink. "/I/ want to hear about that."
<Pose Tracker> Sayaka Yumi has posed.
"They were pun /crimes/ all right.. even the PPL top secret data names had to be puns!" Sayaka shakes her head, jokingly. "...We did let her compromise, though." She follows up, more quietly. On the topic of LiSA and Gamia, well.. she wouldn't consider it an unkindness if LiSA doesn't see herself up to an undoubtedly difficult task.
Leina explains what Christmas means to her, and Sayaka nods. "Family, and peace. That's what I said in the battle, at least. Nothing's more important than a peaceful day with those you call family."
Both Leina and Banagher instantly interject that they don't do so much bickering, which Sayaka thinks to herself, "yet". "A little bickering can be healthy, for making sure your relationship needs and boundaries are being met." She explains. "It can't come to a point where it's too much or you're just incompatible, and too little can result in, well..." She doesn't finish that sentence, but the point she's making is clear. "Although I won't argue against what works for you both, of course. The most important part is sharing your understanding after all." She all but directly catches Leina's blush. And the mention of an Audrey... battle /throuple?!/
At Roux's mention of extra noodles, as if listening in on the entire conversation, Boss turns up with an clump of noodles for Banagher. "On the house! Have a Merry Christmas!" Perhaps he would make an even better Santa than the kikaiju.
Sayaka listens carefully as Banagher promises to do his best to convince Atrytone, but nonetheless stop her if she hurts anyone. "That sounds like the best way to handle it. Hopefully she decides she prefers fighting with us or something like that?" You never know.
And finally, Roux brings up a very interesting topic. "Clown Pirates?? Sure, why not." She gives a bit of a raised-eyebrow look as if 'what on Earth are you talking about', but ultimately she's interested to see where that thread goes as she picks some rice.
<Pose Tracker> Leina Ashta has posed.
"Oh my God, that's /amazing/." Leina says of LiSA's proclivity towards naming top secret data files into Puns. "If you ever fire her I'm hiring her immediately."
Banagher mentions Audrey's excitement over food and how he wishes he could have gone, "It /was/ adorable." Leina tells Banagher, not saying the unspoken, 'until it wasn't'
The banned sign on the wall looms large enough.
Straightforward? She can't really argue with that, in the end the only protest she can offer is, "You think I can't keep this guy guessing?" With a soft tousle of his hair as if to demonstrate.
Embarrassed at first at the idea of being a battle couple, she gives him a fond grin as he details the eternal cycle of the three of them having each other's backs. Sayaka however - she can definitely pick up on the unspoken part, and Leina just gives her this sheepish look because Sayaka's definitely got their number. After all, she bickered with Shiro a lot, and Sayla and Leina bicker openly.
In the end there's this almost long-suffering sigh as she concedes the point to Sayaka, and a smile Banagher's way, "It's inevitable that we will /one day/. Eventually you'll be pushing back on me left and right." She says airily, "Don't think for even a moment I'll give in easy when you do."
Leina picks up a pork belly, but doesn't quite have it in her mouth when Banagher mentions Full Frontal fighting Atrytone, "If that's the way she wants to change the world... I'm not sure I could complain about that one."
If she has very little hope for saving Yuliana - she has almost none for saving him, even if they're both victims in a similar sense...
Then... "Clown pirates?" Leina gives Roux a long but amused look, "Was this a Jupiter thing? Something you and Judau did in your spare time as a break between fighting the lizards and the heir of Scirocco?"
Look Scirocco got around, she assumes he had many people claiming to be his child springing up all over Jupiter.
<Pose Tracker> Roux Louka has posed.
NOODLES drop in. The true noodles of the season...
Battle couple, Roux thinks, again. Does it become something more complex? The idea is briefly pleasant, but its complications make it a lot more tenuous (a brief memory of being held upside down) and so it isn't pleasant.
Maybe that's normal, too, Roux thinks. Not every holiday is a rain of good times. She takes a deep breath then, lowers her eyelashes, and says, "Well... if you all want to hear it. But I'm warning you, I'm going to need a drink after this, so I hope Boss has a cooler or something..."
INSERT MUSIC: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UaerCzKY2wo
"Well, it is a Jupiter thing, kind of, yes, Leina... here's the thing. Most of what I did, and which Judau did off and on, was Combat Space Patrol - which sounds a lot more exciting than it sounds. You'd see it around bases in space, mostly, and it's kind of its own field of expertise... some of the Suits you might think are crappy are actually really optimal for that role."
"Now in the Jupiter Sphere, there's a whole lot of nothing - but there's also two "trojan clusters," asteroid fields in the Sides of Jupiter relative to the Sun, basically. (I'm simplifying.) A lot of the Energy FAshtat ships would end up passing 'near' them in a certain sense, because they'd avoid complications once they got well past the Earth Sphere... they'd leave Earth's plane of the ecliptic if they weren't due in the Belt or the Mars Sphere, somewhere. (Less... of that lately, but you know what I mean.)"
"It's possible to eke out a living there... but it's hard. You can build something like a Sphere type colony, and there's a few near a lot of the asteroids, but they're usually pretty small. And the nature of them means they don't actually have a lot of room for people. Moon Moon was pretty empty, remember, Leina? But they'd had a technical collapse, and out there, well, if you had a technical collapse..."
"Usually they'd try to harry the fAshtats, in the hopes of either seizing an entire ship (which has only happened three times, ever, incidentally) or, more reasonably, getting enough of a hold of one wing or another to liberate a tank. And frankly, it often never got that bad. My job was to make it more expensive for them... which involved a lot of threatening, plus some actual shooting."
"I'm telling you all of this to get to the Clown Pirates. Most of these guys were kind of samey... dirty looking suits, cobbled together; they tried to come off tough. Usually it was guys about nine times in ten, too, and if you saw or heard a girl you could just go 'sure, Sieg Zeon' and they'd start crying because they were actually remnants. Leave a lot of people out there trying to be spartan and tough and they'll get sexist too... BUT THE CLOWN PIRATES WERE DIFFERENT."
"When we met the Clown Pirates they were easy to spot because their mobile suits were these ridiculous colors! Polkadots and stripes, big red noses -- and it was a real problem because *nothing they had made any sense*. They'd actually managed to pry off *two* tanks (not from the same fAshtat, of course) and were starting to demand cargo, too. The FAshtat command had been agreeable and they'd gotten together this big collection of goodies to give out when they got near Diomedes in the L4 cluster, the 'Greek Camp'. BUT..."
"So they sent us out - me, and seven other people with a similar kind of job, in our suits and with everything tuned up. That's about twice the usual complement, and they had four suits on the fAshtat already, so this is already getting stupid. The Clown Pirates come up, expecting their tribute, and WE come out."
Roux pauses here.
"They see TWELVE Mobile Suits coming on line... and they say, alright, alright, but we want you to prove it. Get all your suits out... and I wanna see your flight commander, says the Head Clown, some guy with a really whiny voice. So Flight Captain JungAshta heads out, and Head Clown wants him to shake his hand. Here's where I get really heroic because I had this INCREDIBLY bad feeling about it and it turned out to be extremely accurate BECAUSE the head clown was running THAT suit from a Ball by wire! I shout something, JungAshta stops at the last moment, and BOOM! This beater Zaku I or something gets hit with a railgun around, the size of Boss! (Not Boss Borot, I mean the guy over there. It's an estimate.)"
"So at this point we're all rallying up and we run into another problem which is that they'd heard about the Dummy Balloons and they'd replicated it... and they'd filled them with high molar acid from the chemical refinery on Diomedes! So suddenly here we are, out in the middle of nowhere, us, the fAshtat, and these morons, the nearest object is Diomedes and it's 'Side 3 from the moon' distant, it's just the only thing VISIBLE, and all of a sudden, pop! There are six thousand inflatable balloons in the area. I even saw some of those assholes MAKING SHAPES with them -"
"After one guy found out about the acid our new job was to pop them so that the ships wouldn't get damaged, which was mostly TEDIOUS -- and the Clown Pirates made their escape. They ran double escorts on that run for the rest of the time I was there, but nobody ever heard from the Clowns again."
"So far," Roux concludes, darkly. "So far."