2023-03-02: Unprecedented
- Log: Unprecedented
- Cast: Naoko Suzuki, Kamille Bidan
- Where: Medical Clinic, Ra Mari II
- OOC - IC Date: 0097-03-02
- Summary: Naoko confides her greatest secret to Kamille - someone experienced in Mental Stuff who won't be able to talk about it - in hopes of finding out more about herself. However...
<Pose Tracker> Naoko Suzuki has posed.
A fairly new name on the roster has been scheduled for a doctor's appointment: Nova Stellar, who's self-proclaimed job is 'Miracle Worker', but has a more official (if provisional) status as a pilot for the Ra Mari II. Technically a guest rather than crew, she doesn't actually have any assigned duties, but seems rather determined to help out where she can - recent times have seen her assisting the engineering crew.
Though she's been helpful enough, if a bit awkward at times, exactly who Nova "Probably An Alias" Stellar is... that's still a bit of a mystery. Her arrival had certainly been a turbulent one, picked up by the original Ra Mari following a distress signal from her Arm Slave due to low energy reserves, and almost immediately getting drawn into the conflict for Orb that led to splitting off from the Federation. She assisted the pilots from the bridge that time, but she actively piloted during the Federation-ZAFT intervention that led to the destruction of Quintilis Five and GENESIS.
All told, it had been rather easy for this girl to slip through the cracks in all the chaos. She undeniably has an aptitude for working with machines, but there's not exactly anything to back up the claims she has been making. Such as having designed and built her Arm Slave herself. It certainly looks... unprofessional enough to hold water, though it's also strangely advanced in certain ways.
Physically speaking, she seems to be just fine. Kamille would already have been able to see a report on this, since 'Nova' has already been to a different doctor on the Ra Mari II for a basic physical checkup. Enough to determine that while she may not at all be trained up to military standards, she's in normal physical health, nothing in the way of alarming abnormalities.
That checkup was a couple of weeks ago. Naoko begrudgingly went along with it because it was requested of her. This one however, she requested herself, asking for Dr. Kamille Bidan by name. No specific medical complaints were mentioned, she only mentioned having questions that she felt Dr. Bidan would be the best qualified to answer.
Considering she rushed into a mech fight clearly inexperienced yet did surprisingly well, has a high mechanical aptitude, and has been reportedly spoken to by a pair of mysterious voices that only Newtypes have been able to hear... well, there are certain parallels there. Odds are that this may have something to do with her request.
And so it is that, within seconds of the appointed time, there is a knock on the door of Kamille's office. When it opens, the 5-foot tall teenager (presumably? how old is she anyway??) steps inside, looking around apprehensively for a moment before bowing her head. "Excuse me... I'm here for my appointment?" She wouldn't actually recognize Kamille on sight, and may in fact only know of him by name.
It's quite possible for Kamille to have already sensed her coming before seeing her. On a mental level, she is... not 'loud', per se, it feels more 'crowded'. There is an odd sort of dichotomy there, where it feels as if more people should have been behind that door than just the one that ends up entering. And yet it doesn't appear as if there was ever anyone else there.
<Pose Tracker> Kamille Bidan has posed.
Like just about everything else, the clinic on the Ra Mari II is significantly roomier and better-equipped than its predecessor, with more private examination and interview rooms alongside the emergency medical bay. Kamille isn't really sure what he's going to do with all of the space, and it shows, as things just look slightly too...empty? There's a sense one ought to have more on the walls. Or more plants. Even the furniture looks scant in comparison, though there's more than enough chairs and they're all quite comfortable.
After an assistant greets Nova in the office and heads to the back, Kamille enters in his lab coat, holding a clipboard. He definitely sensed something from Nova even as she approached, something of a cacophony. Not the clear sound of a specific Newtype, but...something else. It's mildly distracting, but that's a him problem, not her fault. She may not even be aware of it.
Dr. Bidan is a short, lightly muscled young man with very vivid blue eyes that give off an intensity even when he's assuming his professional Doctor Bedside Manner, which he is.
"Stellar, right? Come and have a seat."
<Pose Tracker> Naoko Suzuki has posed.
If there's anyone who isn't in any position to lecture someone on the spartan nature of their quarters, it's Naoko. There's basically nothing in her room on the Ra Mari II that wasn't already there to start with. That's what happens when you arrive with nothing but a robot, the clothes on your back, and a backpack full of PaPPy. She totally has her priorities straight. That much is easy to tell from how she even brought some of her snacks along with her, slipping one in her mouth after the assistant leaves her alone for a moment.
The stick of PaPPy remains in the corner of her mouth even as the doctor himself arrives, her expression turning into a grin as she seems to gain confidence just from hearing her name being spoken. "That's me! Nova Stellar, Miracle Worker, nice ta meet ya!" This introduction traditionally includes displaying a v-sign, and this being a doctor's appointment makes no difference in that regard.
She takes a seat across from Kamille as suggested, placing her hands on her knees and looking around a moment, wobbling back and forth a bit as she does so. Catching herself, she quickly refocuses on the doctor. "I've been seeing a lot of people's offices lately. Kinda feels like I've done something wrong, y'know? Even though I asked to be in this one!" She looks left and right, as if to make sure nobody else is around, and then leans forward to whisper conspiratorially.
"So, uh, before anything else, I just wanna ask. There's something like a doctor's oath of confidentiality, right? Sooo, nothing I say here will leave this room, all that stuff?"
<Pose Tracker> Kamille Bidan has posed.
Kamille blinks at the...pose, and tries to hide a smile. He can't laugh at patients! And at least she's energetic, without some of the shellshock he's observed in other young pilots.
Outwardly, anyway.
"I don't think you've done anything wrong," he says as he glances at her chart. "If anything, you've been impressing people, and they're probably just curious. Building your own Arm Slave, for one." In fact, he wonders if others suspect her to be a Cyber-Newtype of some kind. But the 'presence' isn't the same. And she doesn't show any physical enhancements, so if she is one, she's a very specialized...
Ugh, he hates thinking about that.
"Everything's entirely confidential. Don't worry. Whatever you have to talk about, it won't leave this room unless you want it to."
<Pose Tracker> Naoko Suzuki has posed.
Outwardly, indeed. Inwardly, it's all a jumble. Naoko is flying by the seat of her pants through pretty much everything she does. Her emotions are hard to read because she quite simply doesn't know how to feel about her current situation. One thing's for sure: she is not nearly as confident as she's currently presenting herself. As such, the sigh of relief upon the confirmation that she can speak freely is genuine. Pretty theatrical, but no less sincere for it. 'Nova' lets herself fall back into a normal seating position.
"...That's good." That's all she says, for the moment, taking the time to chow down her PaPPy stick while she considers. The first thing that appears on her face after she finishes with that is a bright smile.
"Hehe. So people are impressed, are they? It's no big deal. I work miracles, it's what I do. It's true though, as miracles go, the Sukeban is probably the biggest one." She's absolutely proud of that machine. All of its quirks were fully intentional. However, what she's actually here to talk about... that's a bit more difficult. She rubs her forehead with two fingers a moment, trying to think of how best to describe... everything. Finally, she nods, seeming to have made a decision.
"Okay, well... I've never spoken about this stuff with anyone before, so, I don't know if any of this is gonna sound... 'out there', to you. But I've got a feeling it won't. And I really just... want to understand what's up with me."
She is aware, at least to a degree. There was just no way she could speak of it with anyone before. Everything changed once she met Captain York, and discovered she was less unique than she thought. While she's not exactly very capable where it comes to sensing this sort of thing outright... she's heard enough about Kamille Bidan to be fairly sure he's the right person to talk to about this. She takes a deep breath.
"...Here's the thing. I've known for... pretty much all my life that I'm..." 'not normal', she would have said before. But she prefers Rita's take, that she is 'how she should be'. Thus, she decides to go with, "...different, from most people. I hear things, in my head. I can see things most people can't. ...That sort of stuff. Am I right to assume that you know what I'm talking about?"
<Pose Tracker> Kamille Bidan has posed.
There's that word again, and this time embraced. "Miracles, huh..." And owning it this time, instead of denying it. Kamille taps the pen on the pad, one of his many nervous fidgets, as he listens to Nova Stellar's confession.
"...Well." He blinks, looking up and across his desk at her as he notices the shift in her body language. "Hear things like...does it feel like the thoughts and emotions of others? Or something else? A Newtype would be someone with heightened psychic sense, precognition, just an extra ability to connect. But what you hear or see, I'd need to know a little more about that, if you can tell me?"
He adds, "if it helps, there are so many kinds of 'different' we know of that you shouldn't feel like you're strange for it or anything." He can remember being a young, powerful Newtype desperate to be anything else.
<Pose Tracker> Naoko Suzuki has posed.
Nova Stellar is all about working those Miracles. Naoko Suzuki is... well, who knows, really. There isn't anyone on the ship she's even mentioned that name to. She's not planning on it today, either. Maybe one day, when she feels ready for that. The step she's taking right now is big enough as it is. A fidget of her own is displayed as she fiddles with one of her butterfly-shaped hair ornaments, the black one on her right side.
"...'Newtype'," she repeats the word, a foreign one for her to use. "I've heard of that word. I always thought it was..." Made-up. A myth. There has to be a better way she can put this. "...something to give people hope, in times of war." That's the context she's familiar with. The frown and complicated expression she bears are quite enough to tell that it's not something she'd ever thought to associate with herself, or others. But now it's gotten her thinking. Whatever else it may be, this is a warship she's on. If Newtypes are real, would it really be so strange for a lot of them to be here? That would explain a few things.
She can think about it all she likes, but in the end all she can do is shake her head. "...I don't know. You call it 'an extra ability to connect', but all it's ever done for me is make it harder to connect with anybody. I just always feel like... like... a lot of things are easy for me to understand, even when all I have to do is look at others to know they shouldn't be. And I can tell when people don't like me for that, even if they smile at me. Does that make sense?"
Oh, how she wishes any of this made sense to her. How she wishes she could not feel like she was strange. All her life other people have made little sense to her, which had to make her the strange one.
As for the things she can hear or see... that much, she can more easily demonstrate. "...Okay. It's time. Say hello, you two."
...Well, she thought she could more easily demonstrate that. Only silence follows in response. Nova visibly starts to panic. "Ahahaha... hang on a second." She drops the volume of her voice, but is still clearly audible when she asides, "Come onnn, you're embarrassing me." When there's still nothing after that, she suddenly yanks the black hairclip out of her hair and begins to violently shake it.
"SAY SOMETHING!!"
Sure enough, as strange as her antics may be... a voice does make itself heard in response, one that sounds like that of a young boy's, thoroughly freaked out.
>"UWAAAAH! Stop shaking me, you crazy psycho!!"<
Kamille could definitely hear that, even though there was nothing to be heard with his ears.
<Pose Tracker> Kamille Bidan has posed.
"I thought they were just a fancy term for pilots when I was growing up," Kamille admits. Which had more to do with Federation propaganda with regards to Amuro Ray at the time, but even now he's not surprised it's still poorly understood. Still, if she was a Newtype, wouldn't she sense something back from him? How would she know if he did?
Though as he listens and jots notes down, he adds, "that may be something else. I've felt like that myself, like the world wants me to make sense of a puzzle everyone else gets, right?" Is it too early to ask if she's been screened for neurodivergence? He's not a psychologist, and he just threw the whole 'Newtype' concept at her, so maybe he should pace it one at a time. And...
You two...?
Any thoughts of psychology are thrown aside when Nova starts yelling at herself, and before he can reach over to intervene and try to calm her down, something answers.
Something else.
"...That is..." He stares at nothing, and then shakes his head. No need to panic her, as she's the one dealing with it, even if he has no idea at this point what 'it' is.
"O-okay. I heard that. Them. You?"
<Pose Tracker> Naoko Suzuki has posed.
Naoko's knowledge, by contrast, comes from 'The Schoolyard' and 'The Internet'. She never encountered it in a situation where it was actually relevant, but that didn't stop it from being a hot topic at times. If she had to believe everything she heard and read, Newtypes would be basically like Superman, complete with flight, super strength and heat vision. Obviously, she never even considered believing any of that, until now.
She is far more ready to believe it's something else, being a Miracle Worker, not Supergirl. "Hmmm... kinda more like the other way around? Like I can easily make sense of puzzles that other people don't get, and I don't get why they don't get them. And sometimes, I'm confused because the puzzle has more pieces than it needs, and I'm like, what the heck am I supposed to do with these? And then before I know it, I've put a whole other puzzle together from the extra pieces, and nobody understands where it came from!"
...This metaphor is running away with her. Realizing this, she stops herself there. "...Sorry, it's, I'm just hoping this makes more sense to you than it does to me."
Thankfully, she soon has her little demonstration to take her mind off things. Because this, the way she's interacting with the source of the voices, this is her normal. She looks quite pleased at the distress she's managed to cause, smiling brightly as she clarifies, "Right! So that's Uriel." As soon as she opens her hand, the butterfly hairclip flutters off like an actual butterfly, landing on the back rest of a nearly empty chair.
>"I told you I wasn't going to cooperate with your crazy idea! It's dangerous to let people know about us!"<
Naoko did say 'you two'. And indeed, there is a second voice, a young girl's, which sounds out in response.
>"I, um, Uriel was rude about it, but I also think it's best if people don't know. It could be dangerous for you, if the wrong people hear about it. You should be more careful, Nova."<
Naoko waves the concern away with her hand. "It's fine, it's fine. Kamille can't tell anybody about you, or he'll lose his job as a doctor. Right?" Her tone is perhaps a bit too cheerful, just as her immediately going to a first-name basis is perhaps a bit too familiar. But that's how Nova Stellar rolls.
<Pose Tracker> Kamille Bidan has posed.
Kamille manages to get Nova's description of her cognitive abilities even while he's (very) (extremely) distracted by the presence of the Voices. He can hear them. It's not like how Newtypes can communicate with one another, short bursts of thought immediately understood. This is something entirely different. "No, thank you for...mentioning that, I can take note of it. It doesn't ring a bell immediately," he admits, "but that doesn't mean we can't figure it...out..."
Hairclip fly. "Is-is that an animatronic...?"
Uriel. The name of an angel. A coincidence, right?
"You have two voices." Okay. Right. Got it! "No, I promised I would keep it a secret and I meant it, um..." Uriel and another. Good? Right?
"Okay, so don't be freaked out but this is a little unprecedented, at least for Newtypes. But like I said, there's a lot we're figuring out about people! A lot we don't know yet! Which is to say...I'm sorry that I can't give you an answer on this yet but I will absolutely help you figure it out. Do, um, do the others...do 'you two' know anything, by chance, that I should know?"
This isn't Multiple Personality Disorder or anything else that, again, he would refer to a psychologist. There are two Voices and they have a Presence and he is trying his best to keep up a steady, professional guise because the last thing a teenager seeking help needs is to know that the adult she's speaking to has no idea what the hell is going on.
<Pose Tracker> Naoko Suzuki has posed.
Well, this is odd, Naoko thinks. Now she's feeling completely relaxed, and the doctor seems really nervous? How did things just flip entirely around like that? She did say that she had trouble 'getting' other people. Prime example right here: she has no idea why this is freaking Kamille out so much. Sure, she was a bit surprised at first, but she had no problem quickly taking it in stride, herself!
Kamille wonders if it's an animatronic. "Uh, it's a hairclip," Naoko unhelpfully clarifies. She just has a hairclip that's like a real butterfly, and also talks in people's brains. She's... still not seeing the big deal here, is she?
Two voices, indeed. The second one takes this as a cue to respond to Kamille.
>"Oh, yes, where are my manners. My name is Ariel, it's nice to meet you, Dr. Bidan."<
With that, the white hairclip leaves Naoko's other braid on its own accord, remaining nearby to hover over her shoulder. Well of course the other voice would come from the other hairclip. There is some method to this madness.
It takes the word 'unprecedented' to take the wind out of Naoko's sails. She isn't freaked out so much as really disappointed. Kamille doesn't need to clarify further for her to realize that this means he can't give her the answers she's looking for. ...Yet. But he'll help to figure things out. A weak smile returns at that, but it's easy enough to tell that she was really hoping for something more definitive. This just makes it feel like she really is as weird as she always suspected, after all. She lets her friends handle the response from there.
>"...I'm very sorry, but we know as little as Nova does. All I can tell you is that we're some form of AI, and we only want what's best for Nova. We simply... woke up one day, and ever since then--"<
In the mean time, the black metal butterfly had left its perch, suddenly zooming over to directly in front of the white one.
>"You're talking way too much, Ariel! This isn't gonna help Nova at all! Look, we just try to give her advice, that's all, we don't know or care about why things are the way they are."<
Naoko finally breaks her silence to add, in a soft voice, "They're just kids. They don't know much, but they mean well, and I appreciate them very much." Even in this mental mess, it's plain to sense her affection for the twin AIs.
<Pose Tracker> Kamille Bidan has posed.
Ariel. Not an angel to Kamille's knowledge, but a...
Disney mermaid. No. Mythology? He hasn't looked into mythology as much, given as there aren't giant monsters based in myth attacking Tokyo from time to time. Perhaps he should.
He realizes he's messed up as soon as he sees how that word 'unprecedented' just deflates her. How did any of the adults around him help him figure this out? Oh right, they barely did because they were still figuring themselves out, or something like that.
"I'm sorry," he says quietly, genuinely. "I wish I could tell you more. But I will find more, since you're my patient. Sometimes we just don't know what's going on right away, and that means we have to do a little more research." 'Run tests' sounds too ominous to tell a teenager who was hoping for guidance.
AI. AI! That's something he knows! "They seem to care about keeping you safe, and I get the impression the feeling is mutual. I can't answer your questions yet, but I will try. And I won't tell anyone unless you give me permission."
<Pose Tracker> Naoko Suzuki has posed.
All in all, Uriel and Ariel's advice isn't wrong. Imagine if the person Naoko chose to tell all this to had designs to exploit whatever capabilities it is that she has, exactly. She doesn't even know how lucky she is for it having been Kamille Bidan she chose to confide in. She generally follows the advice of her two friends, but this... this is important to her. To know herself, to understand why everything in her life ended up going the way it did.
To figure out how the heck she managed to dodge a swarm of remote bits, multiple times. By now, she's well aware that she should have been dead three times over, going up against Rau le Crueset at her level of combat inexperience. That, more than anything, has caused this burning need to know how she does the things she does.
In the end, she is still just a normal teenager, even if she'd be the first to protest being in any way 'normal'. She shakes her head at the apology, but it can't manage to dispel her insecurity. "It's alright, I... kinda fooled myself into expecting an easy answer. I should've known better. If it was that easy to figure out, you'd think I would have by now." That's one miracle she hasn't been able to work.
A quick 'come here' motion of her hand is all it takes for the Butterfly-AIs to fall silent and return to their previous positions, neatly landing on and fastening themselves to her braids. They're a bit on the large side for hair ornamentation, but it really is something you'd never expect just by looking at it. She closes her eyes.
"...I trust them. And they trust me to make my own decisions, even if I want to do something that they don't agree with." Reopening her eyes, she looks Kamille in the eyes, hoping he'll realize the difficulty and sincerity involved with her following words. "And now... now I've decided to trust you. Please don't tell anyone about my friends... and please, help me, in whatever way you're able."
<Pose Tracker> Kamille Bidan has posed.
Kamille folds his hands on the desk, watching the Butterflies land on her hair. So are the AIs in there, he wonders, or just controlling them remotely...?
Well, what really matters is if he can at least try to live up to Nova's expectations somehow or other. He looks back into her eyes, sensing that intensity from her, that level of trust.
"I will do whatever I can," he promises. She deserves help understanding herself if she's yet another unfortunate youth drawn into this endless cycle of war. "And for what it's worth, you're in safe hands here. If you ever feel safe talking to the Captain about it, I can vouch for her. But your secret is safe with me. You're probably right to keep it from the general public. There are a lot of-let's say adults who would love to take advantage of anything that gives you combat prowess. Uriel and Ariel obviously mean more to you, but what a lot of militaries will see is a soldier."
<Pose Tracker> Naoko Suzuki has posed.
There's a faint smile at the mention of the Captain. "...Eight's heard them. She's the first one other than me who did." First name for the Captain too, that's gonna be a hard habit to break should it ever be insisted upon. Scratching her head, she questions aloud, "That scared me a lot, and yet... she never asked about it. Or, anything about me, really. She just... accepted me, just like that. Even said I didn't need to do anything in return for her help."
The fact that such an attitude baffles Naoko so completely may imply some things about her old life, before she ended up living on the Ra Mari II, completely through chance. But that wasn't what she came to talk about today. Having said all she wanted, and gotten what in hindsight is probably the best reply she could have gotten, she rises from her seat.
"...Yeah. I never would've thought I'd be good for anything like that, but... I guess I can work miracles in combat, too." Suddenly she doesn't sound so enthused about working miracles anymore. Which follows the pattern - her attitude has changed dramatically from that confident way she swaggered into the doctor's office. Her bow, too, is far more formal rather than the casual one given after she came in. "Thank you for your time today, doctor. Please don't hesitate to call on me any time."
With that, she turns to leave, though she stops to note one more thing, spoken over her shoulder.
"...I have no interest in being a soldier. But I want to do everything I can to help my friends."
That, in the end, is the true form of her resolve. Nothing to do with miracles, everything to do with repaying kindness.
<Pose Tracker> Kamille Bidan has posed.
"That's Ei-the Captain for you." Kamille returns Nova's little smile. It's clear finding acceptance is good for her, whatever else she's keeping unsaid about her past. Thank goodness she found her way here, and not into somewhere like NERV or Newtype Labs.
"You don't have to fight if you don't want to, you know. You can just stay here with us. I'm sure the Captain would be happy to have you aboard in whatever way you chose. You're a civilian. I will do what I can to help you," he repeats. "And thank you for trusting me with this."
He waits for her to leave before leaning on his own folded hands. He couldn't give her what she needed yet, but he will someday. That's part of being a doctor, right? Healing?