2022-07-30: A Kinder Word

• Cast: Banagher Links, Leina Ashta
• Where: Space, Earth
• Date: U.C. 0096 07 30
• Summary: Banagher and Leina discuss sisters, guardians, and their upcoming date.

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<Pose Tracker> Banagher Links has posed.

So much has happened. Banagher makes his way back to his room, Haro flapping next to him in the low gravity. Leina was going to be so thrilled he's found another of Callipso's sisters! He can't help smiling to himself. It was so nice to have someone waiting to hear from him -- someone who cared about him as a person.

Hopefully, Leina would have good news of her own, about her Guardian's reaction to the him...

Settling in to a chair in his room, Banagher pulls out his communicator. He types in the number -- saved under Leina's name, with a smiley face emoji.

"Leina! It's Banagher, I have great news."

<Pose Tracker> Leina Ashta has posed.

When Banagher calls, Leina is on the balcony of her room, the breeze of AEU Spain softly swishing the curtains behind her. The room itself though is mostly obscured though other than a few hints of posters which display certain theatrical productions, and a few pictures from afar that - squint and it's still hard to make out through its from. She's sitting on a chair beside a small table, a book in hand.

"Leina! Telephone! Telephone!" A Haro hops excitedly onto the table beside the communicator.

"Thanks for the heads up Giovanni." She says with a grin, as she pats him on his metallic head, before hitting the Communicator.

The image is probably still a bit distorted, but Leina's wearing a tank top and some track pants, along with a beaded barrette in her hair. It looks like she was winding down from a recent workout. "Hey Banagher! I'm back Earthside." She waves, "Meet Giovanni! Giovanni say Hello to Banagher!"

The Blue/Violet Haro rolls into view of the screen and flaps excitedly, "Banagher! Hello! Hark!"

Leina quirks a brow as he says he has some great news, "Oh yeah? I could definitely use some of that. Lay it on me."

<Pose Tracker> Banagher Links has posed.

At the sound of another Haro, Banagher's Haro flaps into view. "Hello! Giovanni!" He seems to flap all the more excitedly, hovering just behind Banagher's shoulder. "Hello!"

"Oh, is that him?" Banagher grins. "Hello, Giovanni! Wow, he looks great! And -- um, so do you! I like your hair thing." Banagher points to his own hair around where Leina's barette would be placed. "It's pretty."

Sitting back a little, the young man practically radiates a sort of... gentle pride, as though he's quite glad of what he's done. "I found another one of Callipso's sisters. We were just helping another ship restock, so I was wandering around, and -- she just walked onto the bridge!" Then, a small frown. "Along with this horrible... robot thing. I don't know what it was, but I've never felt something so obviously evil in my life. We almost got into a fistfight right there on the bridge."

<Pose Tracker> Leina Ashta has posed.

Giovanni rolls to the side, and flaps a single flap Banagher's way as if waving. Leina laughs lightly as he calls it pretty, as she gives a toss of her head with some sweat dried bangs, a hand moving up to her barrette. "Flatterer. You caught me just after winding down from a run, but before a shower." Before she winks with a single eye, "So I'm definitely not one hundred percent right now."

However, as he says that he found another of Callisto's sisters, Leina sits up straight and looks so excited right away, "Really!? She must have been drawn towards you and Marida-!" However he then mentions this horrible robot thing... which... 'never felt something so obviously evil in his life.' "From a robot?" Leina blinks her green eyes twice, "Well I'm glad you didn't have to fistfight a /robot/. No way would that end well."

Leina though looks, and Banagher may even begin to sense that she /feels/ troubled. "It's probably not a robot if you felt it. Maybe another victim of Newtype labs or..." Leina has a slow blink of her eyes, "... someone that administrated one. Glemy ran his labs behind closed doors, so I never got more than a glimpse. And he likely had other labs..."

Leina still sounds disturbed, a hand on her chin as she thinks this through, before looking forward again at Banagher, "So what happened next? After you almost but didn't get into a fist fight."

It is a sweet gesture though, that he was willing to get into a /fistfight/ for one of Callisto's sisters.

<Pose Tracker> Banagher Links has posed.

Banagher blushes softly, but nods. "I don't know what that thing was, exactly. They felt like several minds all smashed together -- they were named Doctor Salamedes. Is that familiar? They only got aggressive when I got in between themself and the little girl... But anyone would've done that, right? Seeing a little child appear next to a monster?"

"I did almost get thrown off the bridge, but, it was fine in the end." Banagher clears his throat. "This sister was small, I mean -- a grade school kid. Maybe eleven years old? I introduced myself to her and showed her a picture of Marida. Her name's 'Puru 10'. At first she accused me of being up to something bad, because I was so excited to get her to Marida, but after we had some food and I answered about a thousand of her questions, she came with me."

He runs a hand through his hair, shaking his head a little. "I've never met a child so energetic. She was half sass and half curiosity. Oh, er -- and she's a pilot, somehow. I didn't like that." He sighs. "We made our way to Marida. When Puru Ten saw her, she just... panicked, I think. She started choking and staggering around, then had a full breakdown. She just collapsed and cried, and Marida held her and calmed her down. It was really sweet, seeing an older sister take care of a younger one."

"I'm an only child, so I've never experienced that sort of thing. But it felt so... warm, the happiest I've ever felt from Marida. I went off to get the Captain after that, to give them some privacy. Puru Ten's already left -- but I think she's on her way to Earth, too."

<Pose Tracker> Leina Ashta has posed.

Leina shakes her head at 'Doctor Salamedes' having never heard of it, though she'll throw a few texts out there soon to see if she can get a hit on it. 'He only got aggressive when I got between himself and the little girl'. Leina's eyes narrow, at several points of that.

And then he mentions she's a grade school kid, which confirms what she thought she heard a moment ago. Leina's not looking at the screen for a moment, and her pressure feels... tumultuous at best, hearing that. 'Half sass', 'Half curiosity' 'I didn't like that.' Leina pinches the bridge of her nose, eyes closing. Banagher would note she feels /legitimately/ upset in this moment.

And that's before he even talks about Marida. Her eyes open all at once and she stares at the screen in alarm about her choking. However, it's clear soon enough that Marida deescalated her. And she manages a smile when Banagher talks about how warm it was. "Sibling love is like that. No matter what it looks like on the surface... it's more often than not warm on the inside."

On Earth? More texts will go out soon.

"Alright, how shall I put this. Banagher. I told you I was ten - eleven during the first Neo Zeon War right?" She's trying to keep her voice even, as if that might stabilize her, help her calm down, "Well so was their big sister Elpeo. And so were they."

She lets that sink in to him. "They were pilots back then too. All of them. At first it was just Elpeo. I didn't get to meet the others during the war, but I'd heard Glemy say that he kept a... Cyber-Newtype corps on ice."

It takes her a moment to continue. "Glemy put Elpeo through machines in order to condition her and make her do what he commanded. You could hear her screaming all the time when she was in those rooms. Her base state though? How she was just day to day... it's a lot like what you're telling me about this one."

The look in her eyes is a bit haunted, "Just... boundless childlike energy all the time. She never had a family, so she attached to my big brother who was the only pilot who could keep up with her. She just, wanted his attention all the time." Pause, "If I had to guess what's going on Banagher, it's this Doctor Salamedes? He either took her while she was cryogenically frozen from Glemy's labs- or froze her after the war was over. And she's likely in his thrall, whether she knows it, or not."

<Pose Tracker> Banagher Links has posed.

Banagher's face falls as he feels Leina's energy turn upset. "Leina, are you alright?" His voice is soft, one hand reaching forward as though he could comfort her through the communicator.

"You were ten and eleven during the war... that'd make sense for Marida, too." His eyebrows draw together in confusion. "He... put Elpeo through machines, and kept her sisters on ice? How did he get his hands on this many children? How did--"

There's a sinking feeling in Banagher's heart. There was no good answer to his question. Either this Glemy kidnapped an entire family, or... or what?

"Leina... This all sounds horrible. I -- had the feeling it was, from what you've told me of Elpeo, but--" Bangaher's energy begins to harmonize with Leina's, a bone-deep sense of worry and sadness. "This is worse. This must be worse, than anything I was imagining."

His face darkens as Leina mentions her theory about Doctor Salamedes. "That -- I should've fought him! I should've --! What kind of monster takes a tormented little girl and throws her back into a mobile suit?"

<Pose Tracker> Leina Ashta has posed.

"No." Leina answers him honestly with a certain softness, voice steeped in pain, "But I could never be alright about this."

She nods at him putting them in machines, and keeping them on ice. Leina realizes that she's been doing him a disservice perhaps, even if she's trying to be kind to what their relationship is. "Banagher..." There's a slow blink of her eyes again, "...I call them sisters because it's a kinder word, and most of them would want me to call them that. And in all the ways that matter - they are. Elpeo though was their original. The rest were clones."

Again, she lets that sink in, "He created them. And he didn't consider them people. He treated them as things, weapons." Leina lets out a soft sigh, "Glemy was... a complicated person. He treated me kindly, even if I hated being his captive. I think he genuinely cared about me, but that doesn't excuse how he regarded them."

That feeling of sadness returns once again, all those messy feelings about such a person who cares about you, even if you don't like them - and don't like how he treated others.

"Banagher-" She holds up a hand, "-be very careful. I understand that impulse. I /get it/. However, what happens if she willingly becomes his shield? What happens if she gets into a unit and fights /you/?" Leina gives him this intense look, "What do you really want to accomplish here? Do you want to punish him, or save her?"

Leina's tone then gentles, "I know it's really the latter that you'd truly want here. So... what we need to do is do everything in our power to /reach her/."

<Pose Tracker> Banagher Links has posed.

"I'm sorry. I keep bringing up things that hurt you." Banagher hunches in on himself for a moment. "I really thought this would be happy news. I had no idea..."

Banagher's face goes rigid with horror, but he's quiet as Leina explains, hoping somehow there would be any point of happiness in the story of these girls. "I didn't think cloning was that advanced, or that something like that would be... I don't know, possible? Allowed? I'm -- glad this Glemy was kind to you, but..."

"How can you look at these children and not see how real they are... That little girl was just as alive as anyone, and so is Marida!" Banagher puts his face in his hands, letting his hair floof forward. "I'm sorry, Leina, you've -- had to endure so much pain and grief, you've had to carry so much."

He raises his head to listen as Leina holds up her hand. "I hadn't considered that. You're right. Puru Ten is probably conditioned like Elpeo was, or -- something. I feel even worse knowing she's been out fighting on her own. I -- should've taken Unicorn out to protect her. Saving her is what matters. That Doctor is the last thing we should be concerned about."

"How do we reach her?" Banagher's energy is hopeful, despite everything. There must be a way to find a happy ending for these girls -- he's seen it, with how Marida and Puru Ten took care of each other.

<Pose Tracker> Leina Ashta has posed.

"Banagher." Leina's tone is firm after he apologizes, "I understand you don't want to hurt me, but this is something very important to me. And these are things I need to know. Please don't hold back. I knew going into this that this task I've taken on wouldn't always be a happy one." She does smile though a moment later, "I /am/ happy that Callisto and Marida's sister is alive. That is happy news. It's just, her state brings back all kinds of bad memories."

Leina just gives a sigh and draws her legs up in her chair, sitting vaguely cross legged. "Unfortunately - it is, and anything went. Neo-Zeon's science wasn't meant to be ethical. It was intended to give them the means to win." That doesn't mean she thinks the Federation is any better in that regard, merely that they hide it better.

Leina completely understands his feelings in this moment, of not understanding how anyone could be so cruel as to unperson these children. It's just, she also is used to the idea that people will, no matter how much she hates it. "I've had good people in my life who've helped me get through it... who continue to help me through it. I won't say I'm okay. I'll just say I'll keep dealing... because the people in my life are too important for me to give up."

It is shocking isn't it, considering what Puru Ten's state is, and Leina appreciates that he's willing to fight for her, but right now her mind is moving a mile a minute as she tries to think through it. The pressure outwards from her churning like the sea.

"Judau was able to reach Elpeo by extending his hand again and again - and in the end we decided to be family together." However, Banagher also knows Elpeo is no longer with them, "I wasn't there to see how... he saved Callisto. And she was gone for so long. We haven't really talked about it."

Leina gives him a thoughtful look, "The Captain that you told me about. You told me he's a good man, that he thinks of Marida as his daughter. Ask him. Ask him how he was able to reach her." Leina looks sideways as if she were considering other angles, "Meanwhile I'll place a few calls to Callisto and my Brother. And ask them. They'll almost certainly know what to do."

<Pose Tracker> Banagher Links has posed.

"I would never hide anything from you, Leina. I know you're strong." Banagher smiles slightly. "I just wish it wasn't so hard on you. I -- think you're amazing, doing all this even though it hurts you so much." After a second, Banagher holds up his hands in a heart shape, a wobbly smile on his face. Was this the right thing to do?

He nods, lowering his hands. "I'm starting to understand why you hate Neo-Zeon so much. I was hoping they'd all be like Captain Zinnerman, but.." Banagher closes his eyes for a moment. "I'm so thankful for your Guardian, and your brother. Um -- thank you for not giving up, Leina. I'm happy you're still doing your best."

Closing his eyes as Leina's energy washes over him, he breathes out softly. Remembering what he tried when he first met Ouka, Banagher thinks of a calm moment -- playing the piano with his mother, safe and loved, sitting on her lap. The keys he hits are surprisingly accurate, even for a small boy. Banagher's mother praises him, and he laughs as the memory fades. Maybe his calm would help Leina feel better, just a bit...

Banagher looks down at his own hands as Leina mentions Judau reaching out over and over. "I... think I can do that. I'm not really experienced with kids, but -- I won't give up. Not ever. And -- if we work together, I'm sure we can do this! Especially if Callisto and Marida help out. Nobody would understand Puru Ten better than them."

"I'll talk to the Captain, too. He must've had to go through this with Marida, when they first met!" He nods, managing a more relaxed smile. "Thank you, Leina. Hey -- how did talking to your Guardian about -- me, go? If you've had time for it, with all this."

<Pose Tracker> Leina Ashta has posed.

Leina actually flushes a little with pleasure, just from how earnestly he compliments her - looking happy about it. It doesn't seem like she's particularly shy, it's just how earnest he is sometimes manages to get through that confidence of hers that's an effective defense against most compliments. She raises her hands to return the gesture with forming the heart. "Thank you. And... I do mean that. You're a sweet guy, Banagher Links."

She lowers her hands too, and she slowly nods, "I won't say that everyone who came out of Neo-Zeon was bad. Spacenoids - especially those from Zeon, they've suffered a lot at the hands of the Federation. Some of them have lost everything... and all they want to do is tear down the institutions who left such gaping wounds in their life. It's just that, Neo-Zeon itself was a bad place for those feelings to fester. It was an environment that just... twists people."

Leina smiles though, and slowly she brings Giovanni into her lap, as she hugs him around each side as if he were a pet. "I wouldn't dream of giving up." She winks at him, "I've got so much living left to do."

Leina can feel Banagher's struggle though, and slowly, slowly, she tries to calm the Tempest, as if she had powers akin to Prospero. It's a gradual process, so gradual, but it eases away from Banagher, perhaps helping him deal with those feelings. "Just listen to her, give her attention. Those things? They'll mean the world to her given the life she's led." Before she adds with a bright smile, "We'll figure this out together."

And then he asks how it went, and Leina actually leans back, and sighs for a moment before this silly grin forms, "She thinks I'm making a bad call. That I'm making a mistake."

There's a twinkle in her eyes, "She has no intention of stopping me though." There's some light laughter as she holds up a palm, "I know I know. It sounds bad. Like she thinks poorly of you - but she hasn't even met you yet. Part of it is just, she's being overprotective, and she's worried... given Laplace's Box and the whole conspiracy. She doesn't want me to be in the middle of it. Part of it is... she's had bad personal experiences. I can't tell you too much about that yet."

Leina just grins at him, "It's going to be okay, I can field her disapproval on this, and so can you. I still think you should meet her, as soon as you can - I know it sounds daunting given how I just described things but... I really do think it'd be for the best."

<Pose Tracker> Banagher Links has posed.

Banagher beams at Leina's flush -- returning it with one of his own at being called 'sweet'. "No one's called me sweet before -- thank you." He fumbles a little, before growing serious again. "So much suffering... I wish -- maybe the Box can put a stop to it, all this fighting, all this pain."

Haro has long since flapped off to some corner of the room, but Banagher can't help but gt a soft look in his eyes as Leina cuddles Giovanni. His shoulders relax as the storm of Leina's emotions calms down. Breathing was easier, now, as though he'd surfaced from beneath the waves. This allows him to soften his own efforts of projecting a calm, loving energy -- restoring a gentle, affectionate mix of emotions between the two of them.

"I can do that. Kids like candy and things -- maybe we can pick up some little gifts for her on Earth. Puru Ten sure seemed to like food, she ate more than I did!" He shakes his head playfully. "I guess she's got to get all that energy from somewhere. And -- as long as you've got my back, I'm not worried at all."

"Er--!" Banagher looks genuinely shocked to hear Leina's Guardian considers him a bad decision. "I -- well, I can't blame her, but -- I guess I was hoping --" He pauses as Leina holds up a palm. "I certainly don't want you mixed up with the Box. I can understand her worry there." Banagher cards a hand through his hair, looking a bit lost. "I'm glad you're willing to... still talk to me, after she told you she doesn't approve. And I'm still willing to meet her! I'll just be a little more nervous now."

Laughing nervously, Banagher shrugs. It's a somewhat helpless gesture -- he can face down enemy pilots and wicked robot-creatures without batting an eye, but the unhappy Guardian of the girl he has a crush on? That's far more daunting. There's a burst of winsome energy as Banagher desperately wishes his mother were alive, just for a moment. He could ask her how to do his hair, how to dress, what to say... Soft golden eyes close for just a moment, letting the feeling go.

"Does your Guardian have anything she especially likes? Maybe a thoughtful gift would help start us off on the right foot..."

<Pose Tracker> Leina Ashta has posed.

"Then I'll happily take the credit for being the first to notice." Leina grins as if brimming with confidence again, though it's quite likely that others noticed before her. It's just that she's the first who could actually /say/ it. She tends to call things like they are.

"Maybe." Leina offers after a moment, and the smile on her face might tell him that she doesn't quite believe it will, but that she /wants/ to believe it might. She's someone who's been hurt so much by the state of the world, that it's hard to believe in any one thing that could fix it on its own. She has optimism, but it's firmly rooted to the ground by pragmatism... and the world has hurt her enough that no one would blame her for brief moments of cynicism. "It'd be nice if things worked out that way." She's more scared that it's going to result in more bad things, than it's going to offer something good. After all... the Sleeves obviously believe it could revive Neo-Zeon.

Leina after a moment leans atop her Haro, and contemplates Puru Ten, she wonders if she likes baths like Elpeo did - though she's hardly going to suggest Banagher bond with a child like /that/. It all sounds cute and fluffy on its face, but she cautions, "/I'm/ a little worried, but that doesn't mean I don't still have your back." She smiles his way, "And it doesn't mean I don't think we'll figure it out. It's just - be extra careful Banagher. Especially if she attaches to you. What she might consider 'playing' could change when you're both in mobile suits."
She doesn't want to bring it up again, but it's certainly on her mind that time where Elpeo took her hostage purely to force Judau to play with her.

The conversation shifts to the topic of them dating though, and Banagher is instantly flustered and disappointed, lost and nervous over the idea that she doesn't approve. Leina though actually finds that pretty adorable that he cares so much about her approval, that he's so nervous /because/ he likes her and wants to date her, "Even if she had managed to talk me out of it, I still wouldn't stop being your friend." Leina says, of still being willing to talk to him, "She means the world to me, to be clear. It's just she also didn't raise me to let her live my life for me. Do I care about her reservations? Absolutely. We'll talk more about that later, about boundaries - about digging too deep."

Leina eventually lets Giovanni off her lap as the Haro appears to get a bit restless, and the Haro rolls off into an ungraceful landing off camera of the communicator. "It's just I want to give it a go anyway, even with those reservations in mind. I like you. I enjoy being around you. And I think we made a connection." Maybe not 'soulmates' she thinks, but a connection. Leina though puts a finger up to a lock of short hair, playing with it as she thinks on the matter.
"I think most things I could recommend to you - she'd know right away I had a hand in it." She has this lopsided smile, "And some things are just between us. So I think the best course is to give her something that wasn't obviously tailored to her preferences by me, that looks like it came from you. Maybe something Unicorn related?"

Her eyes glimmer with mischief, as she knows that Sayla is very much a girly girl when it comes to certain tastes, and that as hard as she is on the surface - however much she's hardened her heart she's seen how soft she can be. Something unicorn related is not something that will make her suspicious of her hand in it, given Banagher's Gundam, "She's going to give you a hard time no matter what you bring, but a sincere gift still can't hurt your chances."