2023-11-22: On Food, Fighting, and Family
- Cast: Kikka Kobayashi, Shinji Ikari
- Where: Magallanica
- Date: U.C. 0097 11 22
- Summary: Following a particularly good meal, Kikka asks to chat with the culinary genius behind it - she's surprised to find it was the young Shinji Ikari. And even more surprised at the amount of things they subtly have in common.
<Pose Tracker> Kikka Kobayashi has posed.
Kikka Kobayashi's transfer to the burgeoning Magallanica colony was a rather uneventful one; it should be when you're working Intelligence. And while she's mostly helping Mineva as a member of the Shuffle Alliance, the Three Ships Alliance's hospitality has been appreciated, too. Her work does indeed bring her to the Ra Mari II and the Eternal, depending on the need.
So although it may be true that her mission here mostly entails not really standing out and collecting data on possible Sleeves remnants, while also ensuring the safety of people like Banagher and Leina, it doesn't hurt to get to know some of the people who made this colony their home, temporarily or not, either.
When it comes to that sort of thing, thankfully there are quite a few universal languages. Sometimes it's simple as asking to give your compliments to the chef after a particularly unique and flavourful meal.
Well, it's up to Shinji whether he's interested in that kind of thing, but regardless Kikka's taking a break in the lounge room outside of the dining area of the massive ship. Some time to kill before the next meeting.
<Pose Tracker> Shinji Ikari has posed.
Strictly speaking, Shinji is only a sous chef--an assistant cook, if you will. But the head chef had a kitchen accident involving a stove that looked like it was off but actually wasn't, and while they were getting bandaged up, someone had to take point on the cooking. With his kitchen assistant Haro, and since he'd already helped with a lot of the prep work, Shinji was the logical choice.
Thus Kikka ended up with a simple but warm and filling meal of hamburg steak with notes of soy sauce and a balsamic glaze drizzled over a medley of mixed vegetables and baked, rather than mashed, potatoes. Simple, but delicious all the same. It helps that Shinji made and thus seaseoned the hamburg patties. Shinji didn't make all that by himself either--the Ra Mari II is a big ship, and this was a meal for a lot of people, and he's hardly the only sous chef around--but it's him that gets the credit for this one all the same.
So when Kikka sent in a message to the kitchen asking for a chance to send her compliments, there is a little bit of arguing before Shinji ultimately caves. It's his break, anyway. After untying and hanging up his apron, he tip-toes out from the kitchen, Bud (his Haro) clutched between his hands, grimacing a bit as he eyes Kikka. That must be her...
He takes a deep breath, and Bud in his hands whispers, "Hang in there, Shinji! Hang in there, Shinji!" This prompts a faint smile, enough to calm him down... and then he manages to approach Kikka at a mostly normal pace.
"Um... I'm told you wanted to see me?" he murmurs once he's close enough. He's in his now-typical outfit: black-and-white moon-themed hoodie, baseball cap, T-shirt, jeans, and sneakers. He holds Bud close to his chest, and barrier between him and a stranger. After a second, he hastily adds, "I cooked your dinner, that is. Or I did most of the work on it, anyway." And then, as a final afterthought: "My name's Shinji."
<Pose Tracker> Kikka Kobayashi has posed.
It's through that long string of coincidences that Shinji not only cooked today's meal, but got to take the credit for doing most of the work. And well, it was delicious in a way that Kikka thought ship food could never be.
After all, her only frame of reference was the White Base, stocked exclusively with frozen food, meant to last long periods of time without resupply. It's hard to beat fresh, chef-cooked food like this.
Her second thought is that Shinji looks rather young to be working on a ship like this, but that's hardly that unusual in her experience. He looks only a little younger than Amuro, who was on the front lines and everything.
"Thank you for the meal," She starts first, politely. "It was seriously good. I'm a little surprised you actually showed up, though? Honestly, wouldn't blame you if you were just too busy on a ship like this." She smiles. "But thanks anyways.""
She honestly feels kind of bad, she reflects - she can feel his nervousness from here, and likely wouldn't even need her Newtype senses for it.
"Shinji, huh? Yeah, I think I saw your name on the roster... one of the new recruits, right?" She notes he doesn't include his surname, but she doesn't linger on that.
"Kikka Kobayashi. I'm new here myself, but I'm not really anyone special? Just a student, really." She doesn't try to shake his hand, but it's a reflex, from interviewing. "My current assignment is to observe the colony while it's being built and write up a report about it." Not a total lie? But certainly a lot of omission about the secret mission of the Shuffle Alliance and her connections with Mineva Lao Zabi.
"How 'bout you? It's not every day you get to be a sous-chef for a paramilitary organization's ship. Are you from one of the nearby colonies or something?"
Perhaps mercifully for Shinji though, she doesn't put too much pressure on him to answer in depth because: "Oh, cool! You got a Haro, too? ...Huh, that looks like one of the newest models Banagher was talking about. A far cry from lil' ol' Haro back at mom's place."
<Pose Tracker> Shinji Ikari has posed.
"It's my break anyway," Shinji says, and while his tone is neutral, he doesn't stop clutching that Haro to his chest. He doesn't really want to be doing this. Why is he doing it anyway? The rest of the kitchen staff said he should, and while he might have had the fury to walk out of NERV with his back straight, it's hard to muster that kind of anger for someone who wants to tell him how much they liked his cooking.
And, well. It's someone who wants to tell him how much they liked his cooking. If he's going to let himself get pushed into this, he does want to hear what she liked about it.
"Yeah. I just started..." Shinji trails off. How long has it been? What's the date right now, anyway? He realizes he's lost track of time. "...a few weeks ago," he concludes. It's probably true enough. He pauses, trying to find the words to ask what specifically she liked about his cooking--and in that moment, Kikka takes advantage of his silence to introduce herself instead.
"Oh, I see," he says, momentarily derailed. "Are you with one of the GUTS schools, Kobayashi-san?"
The moment he asks, it occurs to him that if she is with a GUTS school, that means that people he know--students he knows--might start appearing here too. He bows his head on the squishy Osanshoo-san that's draped on Bud's 'head.' He doesn't know how to feel about that.
"Oh, um, no," he says, shifting his weight as he fails to meet Kikka's eyes. "The captain is a... a friend of a friend, so she decided to do me a favor when I needed a job." And a place to stay, he doesn't add, because that's going into something he doesn't really want to discuss with a stranger.
He does look up when she comments on his Haro, though, and specifically on Banagher. "Oh, you know him too? He's the one who helped me put this one together. I call them Bud. Say hi, Bud."
"Hello, Kikka! Hello, Kikka!" Bud chirps, winglets flapping as their white eyelights flash green.
Shinji's unsmiling face softens. "They help me out in the kitchen," he continues. "I never had a Haro before... It's been nice."
...He'll get back to the topic of food eventually! But Kikka's presented an opportunity to talk about all sorts of matters of interest first too.
<Pose Tracker> Kikka Kobayashi has posed.
"Yeah. But breaks are important, too." Kikka points out. "You're supposed to be able to spend it however you want... but I guess I was the one who invited you." She adds.
She blinks a few times, when Shinji brings up GUTS. It takes a minute to click, it wasn't really an established thing until she was out of high school. "Ahh, no. I'm in university. I guess I didn't clarify... I'm guessing you must still be in high school, though?" Either way, perhaps her answer will alleviate Shinji's concern about school peers showing up around here.
"I see!" She nods, not really bothered by Shinji's lack of eye contact. "That's nice of her. And your friend, too." Although she's not entirely sure how a friend of his would be familiar with the Captain of a ship like this. "I guess even if the ship gets attacked or something, all this armour means you're pretty safe." Safer than the White Base was, she presumes.
"Yeah... although I only met him because I'm friends with one of his girlfriends." She nods, about Banagher. "But then we ran into each other at the HaroCon and I learned he was like, a super fan. He wanted to take pictures with my little guy soooo bad." She laughs.
And then she looks at Bud, who kindly greets her hello. "Hello, Bud! Hello, Bud!" She mimics. "I had no idea they could help cook these days... they really can do anything. I wonder what Amuro would think..." She trails off, wondering where is and what he's even doing right now. Even Sayla didn't seem to know.
"Speaking of cooking... I don't think I ever told you what I thought other than, you know, 'it's good'." She perks her head back up. "The seasoning technique was really unique. The quality of the meat and vegetables is important, of course... but the flavour is what really makes a dish memorable, right? Take this from a girl who lives and dies by instant ramen."
<Pose Tracker> Shinji Ikari has posed.
"Oh... That makes sense." That she's in university, he means. She looked too old to be in high school, but then, he looks too young for high school himself, doesn't he?
When Kikka correctly guesses him to be a high schooler--or former high schooler, at least--he actually smiles a hair. It doesn't last long. "I was," he replies. ...and he leaves it at that. It's a little disappointing... but it's a little relieving, too. He's not sure what he would say to Tohji or Kensuke if they showed up here. They're probably mad at him for leaving without a word... They both tried to reach out to him so much, too, but he just left them behind.
Shinji averts his gaze.
"Mm," he mumbles, non-committal, to the talk of his friend and of the ship. 'Safe' is a very relative term... and it's not like Kaworu made the connection for him. Though if he could have, Shinji's sure he would.
His nails dig into Bud's sides.
At least until they vibrate a bit with a buzz, at which point Shinji blinks down at them, then readjusts (and at the same time softens) his grip.
"'One of' his girlfriends?" Shinji echoes, startled into looking up again. But a second later, his wide eyes settle, and he nods once. "...Oh, I get it. He's in a polycule, right?" Banagher didn't seem like the kind of guy who'd cheat on his girlfriend, and he and Leina seemed happy together, so... "That sounds like him. I don't know him very well, but it's obvious he loves Haros a lot. He helped me out with Bud from start to finish, from getting the parts to coding everything they can do. Probably most Haros can't cook... Bud's a custom job."
He scratches his cheek as Kikka returns to the topic of dinner on her own. That was what she'd wanted to see him about it in the first place... She seems nice, too, with what she said about breaks. Almost everyone Shinji's met recently has been nice.
"Thank you," he says quietly. "I'm still learning as a cook, but I'm glad you liked it. Mostly I help with the prep work--well, that's an assistant cook's job... But this time I did the actual cooking, too." He pauses. He wants to say something about instant ramen, but refrains. It's not his business. "Was there anything else you liked about it?" he wonders instead.
<Pose Tracker> Kikka Kobayashi has posed.
'Was' a high schooler? Well, he definitely doesn't look like a graduate... dropout she supposes. That must be why he was asking about GUTS. She watches that smile of his fade from his face, along with the tug between disappointment in relief in his heart. But doesn't ask any questions. This isn't an interview, she reminds herself.
There's a bit of silence, then, as Kikka adjusts her position in her seat. 'Safe' is a relative term for sure, but surviving the White Base gives you your own perspective, doesn't it? Staying on the colony, in that situation, would've just meant death.
The silence clears when Shinji turns the topic back to Banagher. "Yeah. A polycule, I think that's the word for it." She nods. "Leina was one of my childhood friends, so I was pretty surprised to find out one day that she had not just a boyfriend, but a girlfriend, too!" But her expression suggests, she's happy for the three of them.
"...Yeah, I can imagine that right about now." She smiles, as Shinji explains how Banagher helped him with the entire process. "He's normally pretty polite and reserved, but when Haros are involved... the passion all comes right out." She blinks, looking back at Bud. "You know... how do they help you in the kitchen, anyways? Is it like letting you know the right temperature or what ingredients to use or something?" It's all not too outlandish - the original Haro model could measure brainwaves. Somehow.
"It means you have a bright culinary future ahead of you. Although you're right that it's probably a team effort, too." She answers, to the idea that he's still learning. "Hmm, what else? The texture was pretty good, I think. Like... all the ingredients came together nicely? Sometimes when you're working with a lot it all kind of clashes, but I didn't feel that this time." She's no culinary major, but she still tries to phrase her compliments the best she can.
<Pose Tracker> Shinji Ikari has posed.
It's true that the Ra Mari II is definitely safer than the White Base was--but Shinji's no Newtype. Any implication that Kikka was making on that part was lost on him. Such is communication by words: inherently imperfect.
So it's Leina that Kikka's friends with... Come to think, Banagher said that Leina was the social one who was always making friends everywhere. She probably really is the Kaworu of that group, huh... Or so Shinji assumes, anyway.
...though Kaworu is the only one left of his polycule.
That mental reminder casts shadows over his face as he bows his head. "..."
Fortunately, they're in the middle of talking about Haros and specifically Bud, so he has something to remind him from that topic. "Oh, uh--I can pick out ingredients myself... They have built-in scales and measuring cups and stuff. A thermometer's a good idea, though... I wonder if Banagher could set that up too, or if it's too late. We already have a lot stuffed in there, so it might be hard..." Shinji hems and haws in this way for a moment longer. He'll figure something out eventually.
For now, though, Kikka gives Shinji more feedback. It really is nice to hear that his hard word has paid off. It took a long time, but... A bright culinary future, huh... Maybe she's right.
It's hard to get enthusiastic, though. All considered.
"...Thanks again, Kobayashi-san," he murmurs, relaxing a bit. "I don't really know what I'm going to do with myself for the rest of my life, but... at least cooking is something I can do that does right by people. Not like piloting," he adds in a bitter mutter, meant to be under his breath--but Kikka is a Newtype, and also, literally right in front of him.
<Pose Tracker> Kikka Kobayashi has posed.
The irony in Shinji's thought process is that back in those days, Leina wasn't so social, although he couldn't possibly know that. It was Sayla introducing her to friends her age like Kikka, Shiro Kabuto, and Mamoru Amami that she could open her heart again. Kikka will never regret reaching out to her, that much is certain.
In the meanwhile, Shinji goes silent over something else entirely. She can't fully know what his heart is experiencing, even as a Newtype. But she understands loss and regret.
Haro lifts the curtain from those shadows, even if only for a little bit. "Ah, poor Haro, overflowing with knowledge..." She laments, light-heartedly. "You're a smart little one, aren't you?" She smiles at Bud. And then she nods. "If anyone can figure it out, it's Banagher. He can probably work in like, information shortcuts, to fit in more?" She suggests - she's not an expert, but she knows a good little bit.
"You're welcome, Shinji-san," she smiles, offering him the same honorific respect - but she avoids his surname. He didn't give it to her. "Even if it's not the career you decide on for the whole rest of your life... cooking is a really good skill to have." She points out. "It's something you can do for yourself, and for others."
'Not like piloting,' she hears, although she's not certain whether with her ears or her heart. It almost sounds like there's some bitter history there. "...No one should have to pilot against their will." She says, quietly. A familiar refrain throughout the song of history. There are many cases of people, like Leina, being conditioned to pilot whether for or against their wishes. But even back on the White Base, Amuro never truly wanted to pilot the Gundam for the Federation.
"Well... you're not wrong either way. My brother was a pilot... and so was my dad." She averts her own gaze. "...But I wish they never did." She adds, just as bitter.
<Pose Tracker> Shinji Ikari has posed.
"Smart little one! Smart little one!" Bud echoes, flapping away as they chirp.
"It's not the coding that's the problem there, it's the actual physical storage," Shinji explains. He nods down to the squishy salamander-esque thing draped on Bud's head. "They've also got a little keyboard and speakers and stuff, so I can use this dumb phone." Why keep it if it's dumb? Well... it's easier than getting a new phone, and it's already there, anyway. "But a meat or candy thermometer isn't so large... Maybe we can figure something out. If it isn't workable... well, Bud can scan a kitchen to help me find where everything is. I guess they can just keep doing that."
Cooking is a skill that's good for oneself and others... Shinji nods once. "...Yeah."
He flinches when it turns out that Kikka heard him--but true to his observation earlier that she's a nice person, she's on his side rather than against it. She makes it clear why in a moment; Shinji isn't always the most perceptive, but even he notices her use of was for her brother and father. "...Yeah. If they weren't..."
He holds Bud tighter and doesn't finish the thought. If Rei and Asuka had never become pilots, they might well be dead thanks to an Angel having ended the world. But at least they wouldn't have died horribly in battle to one, either.
"I'm just so sick of fighting," he mutters. "I don't care if it's something we 'have' to do. Nothing good ever happens because of it."
It's an exaggeration. But in the moment, it's how Shinji really feels. (And who is "we"? Who, indeed?)
<Pose Tracker> Kikka Kobayashi has posed.
"Hehe, don't you know it?" Kikka laughs, when Bud repeats the praise.
But when Shinji directs her attention to the salamander thing, she just kind of stares for a moment. "Ah. You know, I was kind of wondering what that even was. It definitely doesn't look like any phone I've ever seen..." It's stylish? Maybe?
"For Banagher, the challenge of working that out is probably its own fun. And you'll get more help in the kitchen... sounds like a good project." She concludes.
But although her views on the importance of cooking are appreciated by Shinji, it's the talk of piloting - and its consequences, that make him flinch. "...Things would be a lot different." She finishes his sentence. "Y'know, Katz was probably your age when he left to fight the Titans." She adds, more quietly. "But neither of you should've been fighting."
The way Shinji doesn't finish his thought... "I'm guessing it hasn't been easy for you either, Shinji-san. I guess if you've found your way onto a ship like this, it's impossible not to be." She offers him a sympathetic gaze.
"I'm sick of it, too. I've just been trying to convince myself there's ways to change the world without fighting. That's the real reason I'm here after all." Aside from the fact that Doctor Hell jerk just dropped a bunch of monsters all over her home, of course.
"But it's frustrating." She sighs. "Because for every person who's sick of fighting, there's someone who makes fighting their entire life, who can't live without it. And there's people who use fighting as an excuse to run away from all the other aspects of their life... like dad was, I guess." In some ways, this has turned into a venting session for the both of them.
"Well, maybe the two of us aren't any less fighters by fighting against fighting..." She adds more lightheartedly, because tongue twisters always improve a situation.
<Pose Tracker> Shinji Ikari has posed.
"It's a model that's popular on the Macross ships. That idol, Ranka Lee, has one, so it got really popular because of her, I guess. It wasn't something I picked up myself. They look cute, but they're really hard to use," Shinji explains. Stylish is definitely a big maybe, though Shinji is far from stylish either way.
Kikka encourages him to find a way to upgrade Bud. Shinji knows by know Banagher would like that challenge, so... if he gets the chance, he'll try asking. He doesn't want to bother him if he's busy, though...
But the topic shifts to piloting, and Shinji's mood darkens accordingly. Not just gloomy, but a simmer of anger. Fighting the Titans--he can see why someone would choose to do that. But it would've been better if there'd never been any fighting in the first place--for Katz and his sister. Shinji looks at Kikka again as she mentions he was probably his age. He doesn't ask Kikka how old she thinks he is; she guessed he was at least at one point a high schooler, so she's probably right, anyway.
"...I'm sorry that happened to you," he murmurs. "I've... I've lost people who were important to me, too. That's why I quit." He bows his head. "...I just couldn't take it."
But... it sounds like Kikka really understands how he feels. That's not just refreshing, but comforting, too. Even Kaworu liked fighting as a way to test his skills. Quietly, he scoots over to a nearby chair and finally sits with her. When she mentions her frustrations, his nods are a little too sharp, too emphatic. "People like that, who just don't get it, infuriate me. My father's like that too," he replies, that anger heating up his voice, its simmer adding a sharpness. "He doesn't care about people, and he's never loved anyone. He just wants to win his stupid war no matter what the cost."
Tongue twisters might improve a situation, but sadly, it doesn't do much for Shinji's mood. At least it doesn't make it worse, but he slumps into his seat. "...I don't know. I'm not cut out for fighting either way," he mumbles.
<Pose Tracker> Kikka Kobayashi has posed.
"Ahh, Macross idols... yeah, I remember when Fire Bomber merch was everywhere, at least." And it's not like she's never, ever heard of Ranka Lee. "So it was a gift? From someone particularly special, if you're still keeping it around?" She wonders. Even if Shinji's initial claim was that he's only keeping it around because replacing it would be a pain.
But she's certainly gloomy about the piloting topic, too. "...Yeah. For me, it was a while ago now. I can cope with it better than I could when I was a teenager. But for you? It must all be fresh." She shakes her head. "I'm sorry, Shinji-san. There's nothing wrong with quitting when it gets to be too much, after all."
She's glad she seems to be helping the young man in some fashion, and him moving closer definitely means something. "It's the way the world is set up, I suppose. A world that rewards people for fighting... even if it means they die. I hate it."
She makes room for Shinji, then... as he goes into his issues with his own father. "My dad was... I don't think he was a bad guy. But I don't think he knew how to keep a family together, so he ran away. For a while I couldn't forgive him, but..." She realized everyone on the White Base was broken in some way, she doesn't add. "Your dad, though? Doesn't sound like there's any forgiveness to be had for him anytime soon. I'm sorry you had to call a man like that 'father'."
"And I'm sorry for dragging the mood down, too. I have a feeling I wasn't meant to hear that part about piloting. But..." She looks back towards the boy, Haro in hand. "I didn't forget what I came here for. You might not be cut out for fighting, but... even those who have to fight have to eat even more. Isn't that proof you can change the world without fighting?"
<Pose Tracker> Shinji Ikari has posed.
From someone particularly special? "...Sort of." Shinji doesn't know Calibur well, but he knows he's a part of Gridman, so... But that's not easy to explain, so he doesn't even try.
Besides, what was more important was that it was a new phone that no one had the number of. And, again, it'd be a pain to replace. Going with the flow has always been easier for Shinji.
"...It is." Still fresh, he means. He looks down at Bud when she says there's nothing wrong with quitting. Mari had said that too... though he doesn't know that Kikka would know her, so he doesn't mention that part, either. Or the part where he was technically fired. He would've quit no matter what, so he's going to own that. It's one of the few things he owns, now.
"Me too. It's wrong," he agrees with quiet heat. "I don't understand how so many people don't understand that. I know sometimes you have to fight back or get killed. I know that! But I'd still rather die than kill someone!"
And considering he was getting strangled-by-proxy at the time, you know he means it. ...well. Kikka might not know. But she'll definitely sense his sincerity.
"Me too," he mutters, of his father. Maybe before, what Kikka says about her own father might resonate, about running away because he didn't know how to keep a family together--and even now, Shinji recognizes his father in that description--but even so, it's just as she says. There's no forgiveness for a man like that.
He blinks when she apologizes. Then he shakes his head slowly. "No... You didn't do anything wrong. If I didn't want you to hear it, I shouldn't've said it at all."
But... to change the world without fighting through cooking. If Shinji had come from a place where his enemies were people all along, that might resonate. But he has a hard time imagining persuading an Angel from its rampage with a hot plate of curry.
"...I don't know," he thus says. He meets Kikka's eyes, briefly. "But it's nice to meet someone who gets it."