2023-06-16: Because We Were Together
- Log: Because We Were Together
- Cast: Rikka Takarada, Namiko, Hass
- Where: Tsutsujidai - Karaoke
- OOC - IC Date: UC 0097 06 16
- Summary: At Namiko's suggestion, the Rikka Corps. reunite for a much-needed karaoke night. The three girls share snacks and songs, reaffirming their bond even through the recent horrors they've all faced. A miracle occurs, and the future looks bright.
<Pose Tracker> Rikka Takarada has posed.
Rikka's condition has been steadily trending upward. There are still bad days, but they're far fewer now, easier to manage. It's time for her to broaden her horizons again, to step back out into the world to appreciate what it has in store. With friends, of course - she's still not quite to the point where she can manage without a steadying presence nearby for extended periods of time.
And, after all, it's been far too long since she did anything with Namiko and Hass. And so, after a discussion on what they should do today, they've come to a mutual decision...
Karaoke!
It's a good, fun group activity, and the private rooms mean the three of them will have the privacy to talk and sing for as long as they'd like(or until their time is up, whichever comes first).
And so, Rikka reclines in the booth. Various snacks and drinks(non-carbonated for her part, of course) litter the table in the center of the room. She's been having a great time so far. The tracks she's queued up have been... mostly expected. Assorted Sheryl Nome songs, the opening and endings to Truthseeker Serena...
...though if one goes down the list to songs she has yet to sing they might spot some they are a little less expected. Including the opening to Tarabaman W.
Yeah, she's been Got, fully and completely.
"I've missed this. This was a great idea." Rikka enthuses. Singing is something she's very fond of - it's great singing with friends again.
<Pose Tracker> Namiko has posed.
It was a genuine miracle that Namiko didn't tackle Rikka completely out of her socks immediately on contact.
For now, Namiko is up front, belting her way through the Don Shine OP, which inevitably finds its way into her karaoke rotations at around this point.
Once she's finished with the inevitable fist-pump, she releases a happy "hoo!" and slips over to the couch, flopping down next to Rikka. "Hehehe, I'm pretty clever," she quips to Rikka's praise. "My first thought was to just sit you down for a proper relaxing tea ceremony. Then I thought, actually, maybe you've been sitting with your back straight too much anyway! So what's the opposite?" She giggles and waves around at the soundproofed walls.
That giddy smile does temper down, though. "We missed you, too," she says. Unsure where boundaries lie right now, Namiko extends a hand to hold rather than grabbing it with her usual vigor. "I was so worried...that's why I wanna make sure you have a blast for the Rikka Squad's reunion!"
<Pose Tracker> Hass has posed.
Learning the details of of Rikka and Akane's predicament, the danger they'd been in, was a lot to bear just on the heels of Hass and Namiko's brush with the nihilistic horror of 000. It might've been too much, if not for the fact that they were safe by the time the details got to them. It's been as difficult for Hass as for Namiko, and now that she's here...
It's hard not to imagine anything except a smile under that mask of hers.
Hass' selections tonight are rather eclectic--not uncommonly for her, but they tend to contrast pretty heavily with the poppier queue entries of the other two. A long, genre-spanning, opera-evoking song best sung as a trio tends to stick out like a sore thumb in the night's anime and tokusatsu-themed queue.
She claps and cheers as Namiko's song ends, laughing softly. "Yeah... a tea night is nice, but I think we really need to let loose tonight. I'm glad you're here."
She reaches out, a little more subtly than Nami, to Rikka--the same desire not to overwhelm her keeps her subdued as well. "Yeah. We really missed you."
<Pose Tracker> Rikka Takarada has posed.
Naturally, once Namiko's song concludes, Rikka gives her some applause. She eyes Hass's selections with interest, though. A song sung as a trio... she's actually kind of looking forward to that.
"You are." Rikka agrees, offering Namiko a grin before considering what she says. "That might've been nice too, but... I think you had the right idea. Hass is right - it's good to be able to just cut loose!"
...Through singing in a recreational, controlled environment, anyway.
She smiles, though, as they both say how much they missed her, that they're glad she's here. They both reach out and Rikka accepts those hands, offering them a gentle squeeze.
"...I'm really glad to be back. I missed you both so much..." Rikka murmurs. She missed everyone, but them especially. She takes a deep breath... and then smiles, as Namiko says she wants to make sure she has a blast.
"Definitely." She agrees. She lets go of their hands... but only because her next song's up next!
The opening to Tarabaman W... Rikka stands up, grabs the microphone, and really sings. It's outside of her usual zone for a lot of reasons, but from the way she's smiling, she's clearly enjoying it. It draws to a close and she sits back down, passing the microphone off.
<Pose Tracker> Namiko has posed.
Namiko would take credit for the trio song but Hass is the one who follows that genre. Namiko's weird is more like, Enka.
Namiko, an absolute touch energy fiend, brightens visibly with the touch from Rikka, and squeezes back before releasing her. "Good! The Rikka Squad's all back in action!" she puffs up happily, and then grabs one (1) cream puff and one (1) tamborine from the table. The first goes into her face and the second goes into her hand, which she happily baps along to cheer Rikka along as she sings.
...though, once the title of the piece comes on the board, Namiko glances an aside to Hass, a grin curling on her cheeks. "Her girlfriend is showing," she asides, at full volume.
<Pose Tracker> Hass has posed.
Hass giggles softly, giving Rikka's hand a squeeze in return. She's obviously grinning under the mask, and... the way Rikka lights up as she stands up and starts to sing the next song, she can't help gasping. "It really is. I was expecting Akane to get her into Taraba, but... wow!"
She can't help clapping a couple of times mid-song. "I... I'm really glad they're together. I think maybe..." She pauses a moment. "I get the sense they needed each other in there. They couldn't have done it without each other." She reaches over to take Namiko's hand. She doesn't say anything, but their own ordeal is clearly on her mind.
<Pose Tracker> Rikka Takarada has posed.
It's good to see a grin - in a manner of speaking - from Hass. Rikka brightens at the sight of it. She definitely needed this.
"Absolutely." Rikka confirms with a nod toward Namiko with a laugh. And then, when the song title comes up, Rikka laughs a little sheepishly as it's commented on. "Yeah, she kind of got me hooked..."
And once the song is over, she adds...
"We've been marathoning the series for a little while now." Rikka explains. "...It helps that she's, like, incredibly cute when she really starts getting into explaining the deep details."
She smiles, though. ...She's glad that Hass approves of them. And as for needing each other... Rikka nods. She leans forward, grabbing her drink and taking a sip.
"...Yeah. We kind of all needed each other in there... that's how they get you. They make you think you're completely on your own." Rikka says with a nod, and then smiled. "But I don't think they counted on us all working together. Me, Akane, Alouette, Banagher, Audrey... I don't think we could've done it if any one of us was missing."
Leina... she still misses her, but she has a lot more hope than she did when they first escaped. She's in no position to help her now, but she'll have trust in those who are. For now, she'll take solace in what she was able to do - and appreciate the fact that she can finally appreciate it herself, now.
She considers them for a moment, though.
"...How are you two holding up?" She asks.
<Pose Tracker> Namiko has posed.
"I still haven't watched that stuff since the one I saw with my brother, and that was," Namiko says, and waves her hand like 'who even knows'. "Kinda crazy when you think about it, Gridman really is like one of those heroes, huh? And the Ultramen, too! Earth has a ton of heroes!"
She's smiling when she says it...but it slips. "And even so..."
Even so, the kind of horror of the last month can strike.
But she holds strong, long eough to rally. She giggles at Rikka confessing about Akane's cuteness. "Hehehe, I know someone like that," she says, and takes Hass' hand with a grin.
The topic does turn more serious, though, and Namiko hums a nod. "I talked to Akane a little, too, like...how easy it is to try and rely on yourself even if someone isn't poking you. I'm really glad you were all together and could come back to us." She gives Rikka that big smile of hers, with just a little strain. "It's like...I wish I could've helped you. I know that would've been like a disaster for everyone, especially with what that moth jerk put in my head, but I'm still working on convincing myself the best thing I could do is what we're doing now."
She lets Hass go, and leans over to get Rikka around the midsection with a hug, feeling a bit bolder with her friend's space. "But I have as many of these as you ever need, OK?" she promises.
Separating again, Namiko reaches for a Jagariko cup. "I mean our first vacation date turned into existential horror, so that's, you know. Information." But she moves seats to be next to Hass now so she can take her hand. "But...we saw each other through, you know?" she says, with a tender smile. "Like you said. It's hard to imagine getting through without each other. That was...pretty nasty."
Revealing that she's pretty sure one or both of them were inches from flipping is perhaps not in the interests of the room, so she sits on it. Instead, she offers Hass a jagariko potato stick.
<Pose Tracker> Hass has posed.
"I watch it sometimes," Hass admits. "Laze likes it a lot. If it's on when I'm flipping channels, he starts chirping and yelling if I don't leave it there... maybe I should pay more attention, though," she wonders, sipping her soda through a straw.
She nods to Rikka, "Yeah... that's... that's how it was with me, too." It must be even worse, feeling alone while you're surrounded with people who should be your friends like that. "But the fact that we're all here now, after things like that... we're all pretty strong, aren't we? The Rikka Squad... and everyone else, too." She smiles.
"And... yeah. We went to G-Island for a waterpark day, stayed overnight, and... uh, got caught up in that attack." She looks a little uncomfortable, as she remembers that. "Nami, you were the one on the controls." To Rikka, she explains, "She pushed us through the worst of it. I was scared we wouldn't make it, but... look, you two are the heroes right now."
Ooh! Hass grabs the potato stick from Namiko, and... pauses a moment as she considers how to approach this. Then she tugs her mask down under her chin, giving Rikka her first look at her remarkably cute, sunny smile as she takes a bite. "Who's up next?" she asks, mouth half-full.
<Pose Tracker> Rikka Takarada has posed.
Rikka laughs a little as Namiko brings up the last one she watched.
"Utsumi tried to show me some of it before? But we kind of come from, like... completely different directions when it comes to media, so all the things he was hyping up were things that kind of just drove me away from it." Rikka explains. She looks toward Hass with interest as she admits to also watching Tarabaman. "Oh yeah? If you like it, go for it. Maybe we should talk about it sometime..."
She smiles, too, when Namiko continues. Gridman...
"...Yeah, he really is, isn't? I'm glad he's here. Him and the others..."
She notes the way Namiko's smile slips, and her own smile softens just a bit. But Namiko rallies, and when she takes Hass's hand, Rikka can't help but grin.
It's so good to see them together like this. She's glad that hasn't been taken away.
The conversation turns serious, though, and Rikka nods as Namiko explains what she and Akane spoke about. Namiko laments... and Rikka nods.
"...Yeah." She murmurs. It would've been bad. Knight getting hurt was bad enough, if she got Namiko hurt...
...She elects not to dwell on that, instead, reciprocating the hug by wrapping an arm around her shoulder and squeezing gently.
"...Thanks. I've missed these, too. I'm kinda behind on my quota..." Rikka admits sheepishly. "Having you and Hass here... that's the best thing for me right now."
She smiles, too.
"And, I heard you'll be helping on stocking days...? That'll really take a load off of us..." She adds. Hass mentions that it was that way for her, too - made to think you're completely alone. Rikka nods - and then, smiles back.
"Yeah... we really are. The strongest." Rikka affirms with a nod.
Namiko separates and continues, with Hass providing details, and Rikka nods.
"...I guess both of ours ended up sucking. God, they have the worst timing..." Rikka complains. She's playing it up just a little, but the feelings are true. She nods, though, smiling back as Namiko talks about how they saw each other through. "...Yeah. I'm really glad you were both together there, too."
Hass says that Namiko pushed them through the worst of it - that she and Namiko are the heroes.
"You are too, you know? I'm sure Namiko would agree... You both made it out together." Rikka assures.
And then, a miracle occurs. Namiko offers Hass a potato stick, and Hass... pulls down her mask! This is Rikka's first time seeing her face in full - and quite suitably, she's suddenly struck silent, her eyes wide.
Hass's bright, sunny smile... is actually impossibly cute...!
"I-" Rikka starts. Still dazzled, she finds her word are caught in her throat for a moment, but she manages to regain her composure. "Iii think this one is one of yours, actually?"
<Pose Tracker> Namiko has posed.
"Ahaha! That's so cute!" Namiko cooes. "Man, have I still not met Laserbeak...we should fix that soon."
Namiko hums happily at the hug's reciprocation, and lets it linger just slightly longer. "Come to me whenever you want, OK?" she says. "I have so many hugs for my best friend. I'm so happy I can be what you need." Hass is her girlfriend, so she can award the title handily now! "Heh, maybe we should watch party with you in my lap, like old times!" 'Old times' was, what, six months ago? Eight?
"and, yeah, I'll be swinging by a couple times a week. Hehe, I looked needy right when I needed to I guess." She says it like a secret plan but she's smiling tenderly when she does. "It's something I can do, since softball used to need me up at the crack of dawn anyway."
Hehehe. "Yeah! Rikka Corps., unbreakable!" Then she adds, regarding their ruined vacations: "Yeah, sucks. Right now I barely want to think about leaving the block, but...maybe we can do something fun together, later on. DecuFes is coming up, we'll have lots of reson to move around!"
Her Jagariko claimed, Namiko moves on to a boba slurp while Hass declares them heroes. "I am awesome, but don't underestimate yourself. You really helped rally those worried folks, you know? And I would have had trouble working so hard without you keeping me up." She fully leans in and headbutts Hass lightly, like a cat. "But next time we gotta find a two-seater. It was so hard not to just hold you the whole time."
And then, the biggest miracle of all.
"I confessed like one second after I saw her without the mask for the first time," she says, with her own dazzling smile. "I'm sorry, Hass, Yuta was right, your face is a powerful mystery to be protected."
Then Namiko diabolically steals a kiss right on the lips, tasting potato fry as she goes.
Then she whoops and leaps to her feet, scampering to the pick station. "Alright! Maximum power! Let's...!"
She jams her finger down on a button. "Hey, remember when we literally couldn't turn this one off?"
Familiar guitars....
...it's the GaGaGatchi theme.
<Pose Tracker> Hass has posed.
Hass blinks once, catching Rikka staring at her. She blushes. "--Oh, that's right, it's..." She breaks down in a bashful giggle. "C'mon... it's not that surprising, is it?" Rolling her eyes at Namiko, she retorts, "You were already feeling it, come onnnn."
"... Anyway," she changes the subject. "I guess it's easy to forget when I'm not the one pushing all the buttons... -wait, next time?" She hasn't even decided for sure whether she's going to join!
But speaking of joining things-- "If there's anything I can to do help, let me know. I want to make things easier, so we can have you back at 100% ASAP."
Namiko is met with a surprised squeak as she smooches Hass! "Aaa..."
She's just a little stunned, just enough that Nami's able to steal the selector and queue up a song that makes her groan. "It's burned into my brain. Nami-chaaan, what are you doing!"
<Pose Tracker> Rikka Takarada has posed.
"I'll have to take you up on that..." Rikka replies, as Namiko offers as many hugs as she needs. She chuckles, then. "Maybe we should. That sounds great, actually."
She nods as Namiko explains that she'll be swinging by a couple of times a week.
"Glad you're putting it to good use, then." She says. Rikka Corps., unbreakable... that gets a grin from Rikka. It feels good to hear that. She nods, though.
"...Yeah, I'm still not quite up to that, either." Rikka admits, then smiles. "...That should be fun, though. I'm looking forward to seeing what they come up with this year."
And just as she thought, Namiko moves in to reassure Hass. Rikka looks pleased.
"Not surprising, just... wow. You have a really nice smile." Rikka admits - and then, nods grimly toward Namiko. "...It's true, he was right."
But Hass wants to know how she can help... Rikka has to think about that.
"I'm still kind of getting used to the day to day again, myself, so I'm probably not the best person to ask..." Rikka admits. "...But for me personally, though, I'm just glad to be able to hang out with you again. Right now, that's good enough."
And then Namiko steals a kiss! Rikka grins, especially at Hass's stunned look afterward. They really do make a cute couple...
Namiko takes the opportunity to queue up a certain song. Hass complains and Rikka laughs, reveling in this genuinely good moment with her best friends.
<Pose Tracker> Namiko has posed.
Namiko's answer to Hass is to look her dead in the eyes, smile huge, punch her fist in the air, and yell along with the singer, "GAGAGA CUTTAAAAA"
Once the song comes to an end several minutes later, Namiko runs a hand through her hair and laughs. "Ahhh, chaos!" she chirps. "Had that in my head for a day!"
She slips back over to the couch, flopping down to grab her boba and rest for a bit. She points a finger at Hass. "I was! You were very cute and squishy! Do you have any idea how soft and warm you are!? It's criminal!"
Kyehehe. Her devilish deeds continued, Namiko says of Rikka's slightly tentative reply, "We do still have all sorts of cool places we can go even just here. I'm like pretty sure the lake is free of ninjas at this point? Ooooor..."
She hems and scratches her head. "Actually most of the cool places are the shadowy underworld full of buttheads. Let's stick to Starbows for a bit."
<Pose Tracker> Hass has posed.
Hass tosses her head back against the couch overdramatically as Nami puts up her fist, but can't quite suppress a giggle--and soon, she's singing along. Once it's all over, she gives Namiko a gentle nudge with he elbow. "You're a gremlin," she teases.
Soft and warm... knowing she can't deny it, she reclines a bit, a smirk on her lips. "Yeah, I *am* pretty cute, I guess..." And she gives a little sigh. "It sucks. The water looks so calm, I really wanna take a walk out there, but..." Stupid impassable waist-high caution tape. "Well... town's got plenty of stuff, and worst case, I figured out how to get us a discount on shuttle tickets." She winks.
"Now..." She cracks her knuckles, standing up, mask still tucked under her chin. She picks up her microphone and gestures to the other two, pressing the button to start the next song. "Come on, this is all three of us!"
<Pose Tracker> Rikka Takarada has posed.
Rikka laughs as Namiko plays it up even further - which turns into a pleased smile as she praises Hass, and the way she replies. They're just so adorable.
Cool places, though... It really is a shame. But at the same time...
"It feels like it's been forever since I've been to Starbows." Rikka laments. "Like, people have brought some for me... but I kind of miss the vibe. We should do that again soon."
She does give Hass an interested look at the mention of discounted shuttle tickets.
"You'll have to tell me all about that." She replies.
But! It's finally time for Hass's song - a song to be sung by three. With a grin, Rikka picks up her own microphone, standing up.
"Ready when you are." She announces. It's shaping up to be a good one!
<Pose Tracker> Namiko has posed.
Hass calls Namiko a gremlin and her mouth splits into a huge grin. "It's true, no aircraft is safe while I'm on the loose!" she chimes.
"Right? Just grab a few seats by the windows and vibe? Sounds like a pretty good day to me," Namiko agrees. "I know we're all busy enough that every day isn't in the cards anymore, but let's go over there soon!"
"Oop! It's time!" Namiko adds, hastily slurping down a strawfull of boba and then hopping back to her feet. She all but skips to the front, smoothly picking up the last mic on her way to swooping into the middle to throw arms around both her friends' shoulders. She smiles like sunlight. "All set! Let's go!" she cheers.