2024-01-12: Meeting Under the Restaurant! Boss Borot Will Return!

• Log: 2024-01-12
• Cast: Boss
• Where: Boss Ramen, Fujinomiya City
• OOC - IC Date: February 0098
• Summary: Boss discusses the prospect of fielding Boss Borot more regularly with Nuke and Mucha, and whether it's what's best for them. The trio agrees to have it ready for when they're needed.'

<Pose Tracker> Boss has posed.

It's been about 10 minutes since Boss Ramen closed for the night. The lights are out, and there's not a sound that can be heard from outside. To all appearances, it would certainly seem as if it were empty.

And, in a sense, the restaurant /is/ empty, but its owners have not gone home. Boss has called for a meeting in the tunnels underground, where Boss Borot lies dormant as a generator. (By "called for", Boss really means that he mentioned it to Nuke and Mucha while they were doing their nightly cleanup. Government-level formality, this is not.) Just a few minutes later, the three are assembled; Mucha leaning against one of Borot's feet, Nuke fidgeting with the rope ladder lowered from its mouth to ground level. Boss stands roughly equidistant between them, facing both.

As leader, it is of course Boss's duty to begin the meeting. "So, I'm sure you're wondering why I've-"

"Yeah, we'll do it." Mucha immediately interjects, seemingly already knowing what's going on?? Nuke stays silent, but nods in affirmation. "Wh- I haven't even asked anything yet!!" Boss had already rehearsed how he was going to bring up the subject, and everything! "You /told/ us when you started making more trips to the PPL after the fight with Infinity, remember? Right after we finally got to bring out Boss Borot again? It's not hard to see how those two things might be connected." One stunned silence on Boss's part later, it's evident Mucha's hit the nail on the head.

"I- Nuke, did you figure this out too??" Nuke, who's been actively listening but still fidgeting with the ladder, now turns to look at Boss. "No, Mucha just told me. He knew you'd want to check with us first before un-retiring Borot, and he thought it'd be funny if we both already knew. Plus, you kinda deserve it. Don't you already know we'd always be willing to share the driver's seat with you again?"

Another pause. It doesn't last long, though, as the silence is quickly broken by a hearty laugh from Boss. "Well, I guess it's settled, then! That's my boys! That was quicker than I thought it'd be-" His expression freezes, and he stops himself. "Wait, no, hang on! There was an important part to that speech I skipped, and I didn't get to say it!" He paces a few steps, then tries again.

"I /do/ already know you'd follow me if I ever needed you, just like I'd do for either of you. But I can't ask you to do just /anything/, just 'cause I want you to do it. I want to know if /you/ want to do this, even without my input." His voice is just a touch quieter, here - he can't help being a little unhappy offering reasons /not/ to listen to him, even though he knows it's the responsible thing to do. "I've got my reasons for wanting to get back in the fight - or, really, just be /available/ to get back in the fight - but I want to hear yours. We've already got a good thing going with Boss Ramen. And I've got no plans to stop!" His voice raises back up in pride for a moment - Boss Ramen is dear to all three of them, and he'd never even think of shutting it down. "But it takes time to go off and punch bad guys, and I couldn't blame you for wanting to spend that time behind the counter. Plus... even we know there's risks to getting in fights. I can't ask you to take those risks unless every part of your heart's in it."

One more silence falls over the group, although this one lasts a bit longer than the others. Mucha, it seems, has not anticipated this question, and takes a little longer to think of his response. Instead, it's Nuke who speaks up first - "Well... it's just like it's always been, isn't it? There's a reason we keep Boss Ramen the way it is instead of getting all business-y about it. It's because we want to make people's days better, and we want /us/ to be the ones to do it. If some days people need Borot more than they need ramen, I think we should be there for them." Hearing this, Mucha nods his assent. "That's about the shape of it. Plus, there's not even that many bad guys to punch right now, right? I doubt it'll get in the way of the ramen /that/ much. And if it turns out there /is/ a lot of bad guys to punch... well, we might have bigger problems. Either way, I've always been the best one of us at actually /understanding/ 'the risks'." A little smirk, and a tilt of the head. "So don't you worry about a thing."

Boss waits patiently for the other two to say their pieces. Once they're done, he's wearing a smirk of his own. "That's what I'd hoped you'd say. Then it really is settled! Boss Borot's back in action! You know what this calls for. One, two, three:"

"Janjaja~n!" The trio is perfect sync.

"Woo! Well, while we're all here..." Boss reaches into his pocket and pulls out a paper with some simple sketches. "The reason I was going to the Labs was to see about getting Borot a little more up with the times. For one thing, it's about time we made this thing a little safer; and besides, Sayaka made me promise to, and I always keep my promises. Now, let's head up to the cockpit, and we'll have a look..."

The first part of their meeting may be over, but the three will be talking under Boss Ramen for a while yet.