2022-11-16: Movement

• Log: 2022-11-16- Movement
• Cast: Qivi, Akane Shinjo
• Where: Tsutsujidai - Near Aya/Akane's House
• OOC - IC Date: 0096-11-16
• Summary: Qivi gets a little better situated in Tsutsujidai.

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<Pose Tracker> Qivi has posed.

Qivi has been in Tsutsujidai for some time, now.

Her arrival was slightly remarkable in that she had arranged to bring Sarangay in with her. She couldn't bear to leave it - it meant a lot to her even if she didn't really have much of a use for it right now. She'd been involved in nearly every aspect of its construction and modifications - installing armour plates, tuning the controls and the guns, even painting it. It was a part of her and while she might not be piloting it, she wasn't willing to just throw it away.

Which means it is currently parked just 'outside city limits' - in an area few people go, not in the main cityscape of Tsutsujidai itself, under a tarp and out of the way. Nobody bothers it. It has an alarm that has never been triggered. She checks on it occasionally to make sure nobody has disabled it and stolen anything and not even the tarp has been moved. Whether that's because most people don't come out this far, because nobody really wants to mess with a giant robot, or because the Venora make everybody who isn't already awakened to the truth of Tsutsujidai not notice or care since it's right up against the border, she has no idea.

But that's where Qivi was this afternoon, though she's come back now.

Qivi has, perhaps incongruously, a job at Aya. She has done some work with Vultures and scrappers in the past and knows enough to be useful, if not enough to make it a career, and critically she isn't afraid of hard work; she's willing to move things around and is stronger than Rikka is, so she's been helping out in the junkyard.

She also has her motorbike because she didn't want to leave *that*, either, which is why a sleek-looking motorcycle in green and black - the same colours as Sarangay - is pulling up near Aya. She tends to park it a block or two away and walk in, so that it isn't mistaken for something Aya is trying to sell. She has skipped the full-enclosure motorcycle leathers because Qivi is either brave or stupid, and is wearing jeans, a T-shirt with a logo that's very badly faded and worn, and her bomber jacket. She does wear a helmet, at least, though she takes it off and shakes her hair out to try to un-squash the top part of it, the tips of her ears poking out now that her bandana is gone.

<Pose Tracker> Akane Shinjo has posed.

Akane, conveniently, lives literally next door to Aya, so parking 'a block or two away,' it turns out, means parking at the corner just past her house. Akane's heading home from school at the same moment that Qivi's heading toward Aya, which allows her to kill two birds with one stone -- she's already been kind of curious to check up on Qivi, and --

Well, 'and' she wants to get home and lie in the garbage for a while.

"Hey!" she calls, after taking a second to forcefully perk herself up; she's not feeling very great, honestly, but what she does have is a limitless capacity for constantly lying about how she's feeling, so she's certainly looking pretty chipper. "It's good to see you! Have you been settling in okay?"

For anyone else, this would look like pretty insubstantial small talk, of course.

"I think it's a pretty different vibe from everywhere else," Akane says, "so sometimes it takes a little bit. I know when I moved here it was a month or so before I really had the rhythm, you know?"

<Pose Tracker> Qivi has posed.

Qivi remembers speaking to Akane on a couple occasions, and Yuta and Rikka told her she might want to say hi now that she's here. Though that was before she had a job at Aya, anyway.

None of them, however, told Qivi where Akane lived, which means she had no idea she was walking past Akane's house every day - or at least every day past the first few, before she was working at Aya. It must have just been chance she'd never seen her before on her walk in, though left to her own devices Qivi keeps odd hours, so maybe that has something to do with it.

Not that Akane doesn't also keep odd hours. But she's not out on the street when she does it.

Having shaken out her hair to her satisfaction - it returns to its original floof with a remarkable quickness - Qivi tucks her helmet under her arm just as she's addressed. The surprise is written on her face, at first because she's surprised to be addressed at all and then, a moment later:

"Wow, you're way shorter than I guessed," Qivi says, having (as far as she can remember, anyway) never seen Akane outside the context of a communications screen before.

She grins to take the sting out of it, at least mostly. "Pretty good, I guess," she says, only feeling slightly self-conscious about being hailed by high schoolers. It's not the first time, and won't be the last, but it does feel weird to have them ask about how she is - she's just not used to it. "It's real different though, no kidding. I've never lived on a colony before, and most of the cities were bigger than this too. It feels kind of small, but in a comfortable way."

"I guess I never introduced myself proper, huh? We spoke on the comms, but not in person." Qivi juggles her helmet around to her left hand so she can stick out her right. "Qivi."

<Pose Tracker> Akane Shinjo has posed.

At the mention that she's shorter than Qivi would have guessed, Akane rubs at the back of her head -- just a bit too embarrassed. "Oh, c'mon, do I really give off that kinda energy?" Akane asks, glancing off. She doesn't linger on it, but there's a moment of legitimate 'ahah... ha...' before she ultimately says, "I'm the shortest girl in my class, I think. If not, it's close."

That awkward introduction out of the way, Akane looks at the offered hand. It takes her a bit; for a girl who was off committing science crime as recently as September, she's got a pretty tentative bearing in a place like this, it seems. She gives that extended hand a very tentative shake -- her grip is barely even a thing, honestly.

"Akane Shinjo, but I think we already established that one," she says, before moving back to the topic of the city being different. "Ahaha, yeah... this is about the size I could handle," she says, slightly self-deprecatingly. "It feels kinda smaller, too, shoved into the edge of a PLANT like this..." That implies there was a place it wasn't shoved into a corner before, but Akane breezes past that bit of weirdness. "Still! I like it. So -- working at Aya, huh?"

... Weird, but not that weird, Akane thinks to herself, before moving right along.

<Pose Tracker> Qivi has posed.

"...maybe a little?" Qivi now feels slightly guilty for embarrassing Akane - only slightly, it was minor, but still. "I never had that problem in high school but I know what it's like to stand out if you don't wanna. Don't worry about it. I won't mention it again," she promises.

Honestly, on a second look, she's not that far out of high school herself even though she's riding around on a motorbike. She could be anywhere from eighteen on up; the fact that some Meltrandi and Zentradi age well makes it a little harder to tell, though in truth she's twenty. But Akane already knew that.

She honestly wasn't sure if Akane would take the hand. Qivi almost didn't offer it *because* the last time they met she was doing science crime, but she's been told that Akane has quit that... and honestly, for whatever reason, she's not terribly worried about it anymore. Should she be? ...well, maybe, but it's not like she could do anything about it even if she was. Qivi's grip is strong, but not uncomfortably so.

"I always figured PLANTs got built all at once," Qivi says, because that struck her as weird too. Why would you not build the whole city (cities?) in one go? But it's not like she's an expert.

"Yeah, Aya. First few days around here, I wasn't sure what to do. I did some odd jobs. Mostly deliveries," Qivi admits. "I'm fast on the bike. I actually got picked up to do some construction work, but honestly, I'd rather work at Aya. Only thing I can do in construction is be strong, really. Here at least I know a bit."

Pause. "Were you going that way?" she asks. "Or somewhere else? Rikka mentioned you might be around... said if I couldn't get a job at a place like Aya I might want to talk to you when I settled in."

<Pose Tracker> Akane Shinjo has posed.

If Akane didn't perceive herself as having absolute control over this situation, the grip on her hand might be a little nervewracking. She's not displeased to have it end, by any stretch of the imagination -- though that, unlike the comment on her height, she manages to keep to herself.

"This is a bit of a special case," Akane says. It's all on the table, so... why not tell Qivi the basics? "It used to be in, like... a different part of reality entirely. Then -- something happened. It wasn't always a PLANT." Actually, she kind of wonders why it is a PLANT now -- but that's something she doesn't need to waste Qivi's time on.

Instead, she starts at the 'were you going that way' and moves on. "I don't visit the shop much," Akane says, with a vague shrug. "I don't need things people throw away. I was actually going to go get coffee... I'm guessing you have work, but I can wait a few minutes." She shifts her bag in her hands a bit, glancing over to the bike. "Ehe, wow. I've never been on a motorcycle before... kinda scary, but they are kinda cool. I was under the impression you couldn't drive one if you were as light as I am."

When Qivi mentions construction work -- and then that she'd rather work at Aya... "What does Rikka's mom have you doing, anyway? I'm guessing it's not just moving junk around, if you're that happy about it."
Asuka Shikinami Langley has arrived.
Asuka Shikinami Langley leaves for Lagrange Point 4 [ZFT].

<Pose Tracker> Qivi has posed.

Qivi *just said* that she was not going to bring it up again, but, well... Akane asked.

"You can, but you'll probably want a lighter bike than mine unless you're stronger than you look," Qivi says, "and you might need it lowered a bit so you can start and stop it more easily. But that's a pretty common mod. It's more about leg and core strength - and practice so you can move with the machine, instead of against it."

Qivi likes motorcycles. She will take the opportunity to proselytize a bit.

Still... "I heard a bit about that," Qivi says. "I've been to Tsutsujidai before, to visit, and I got here by train, so I knew SOMETHING was up when I got here by space this time. It's real weird is what it is. I can't figure out anything about it, though." She's not that knowledgeable about twisted space, though what she says is, "I felt kind of stupid just thinking about it and going nowhere. I guess it's probably pretty complicated."

Rather than get more annoyed at herself, or Akane (even though she doesn't deserve it) (for this), Qivi rubs at the back of her neck. "Actually I'm not expected in for a bit. You want a lift to the coffee place? I can at least do that, if you want to try out being on a motorcycle. I guess there's nowhere to sit but behind me, I don't have a sidecar, but it's doable."

"As for what I do, I've done work for scrappers before. So yeah, I do move junk around, but I also know how to do some repair and refurbishing. Better with metal than, like... wood, but I could probably fix a table leg or a cabinet door or something. It's kind of... refreshing, honestly. I get to do something useful, that actually works out... and when it's done, hey, there's something complete by my hands. It's a smaller job, but there's nothing wrong with that." She says this almost defensively. It's not quite the same tone Akane has used, but it's not *that* far off, either.

<Pose Tracker> Akane Shinjo has posed.

Hey! That part is... mostly true even if everything else changes, too. Akane's always been at least fairly slight, even if she's... accentuated that in Tsutsujidai.

"Huh, okay. I just always thought it was a big people thing, but that kinda makes more sense..." The truth is that Akane's conception of bikes comes entirely from tokusatsu, and her sense of what is actually achievable is more than a little warped. "Oh -- yeah, there was a whole thing for a little while. I try not to think about it too hard."

Qivi offers her a lift, and Akane considers it... "... Hrm. Okay," Akane agrees, starting to head toward Qivi's motorcycle -- she's taking it pretty slow, though. "Oh, huh -- I like making stuff, too! I get that part. I mostly do sculpture? But honestly, everything's kinda on the table... there's something about taking an idea from -- well, idea, to real thing, that's kinda nice." This is a thing she at least used to feel, and can say she feels.

Whether she feels it now is a bit of an open question.

<Pose Tracker> Qivi has posed.

"Me neither," Qivi agrees, about not thinking about it too hard. Where do you even start? HOW do you even start? They didn't cover that at school, or at least not the part she stayed in for. Maybe it's last year's project.

But she doubts it. It's frustrating, not having any way at all to grapple with it, but honestly a little refreshing that she can just not worry about it. It can be someone else's problem.

Qivi hops up on the bike and slides forward, as far forward as she can comfortably sit. She's done this before, and there is enough room for Akane, though there's not much to hold onto except Qivi. Though she's done this plenty, it's not exactly what you're supposed to do. "It'll be a pretty smooth ride," she promises, because she is not going to gun the engine with someone hanging on the back and no helmet. (She'd offer Akane hers but it's too big.)

"I don't know much about sculpture. I never tried. But I always liked fixing stuff, or tuning it. Making it work better. I didn't do much work on this bike, but some of the other stuff... yeah. It's something. Doesn't surprise me that you do art, though. Artists always... they kinda seem a certain way." If she's catching onto any discomfort from Akane, it doesn't show.

<Pose Tracker> Akane Shinjo has posed.

It wouldn't be the first motor vehicle accident Akane's been in in Tsutsujidai. In fact, it wouldn't even be the first seatbeltless, helmetless motor vehicle accident Akane's been in in Tsutsujidai. She gets to walk away from them; it's perfectly fine.

Settling in, Akane holds onto Qivi. It's... a complex feeling. Akane likes to be the one doing the showing around, but.

Can't drive!

"Seem a certain way, huh? What do you mean?" comes the natural question. She's never actually tried to hold a conversation on a a motorcycle; she understands older ones are pretty loud, but maybe this one -- given it's supposed to be a smooth ride and they're not planning to go too fast -- won't be too bad.

The other half of the equation, though -- fixing stuff... that's a little more complicated. "I'm kinda bad at fixing stuff. It's easier to pretend stuff like that never existed, for me. I get not everyone gets the chance at that kind of thing, though." If it sounds vague: it's on purpose!

<Pose Tracker> Qivi has posed.

"Artists? You know, I couldn't tell you exactly why you remind me of one." Maybe it was the stuff she used to do, Qivi thinks, though if she's turning over a new leaf she is *not* going to tell her she can't, even though that excursion in Paris was... not a good idea. "Knowing you're into sculpting helps, I guess."

"But you do. It's something about... artists have always got a feel and they want to make other people feel it, or sometimes just themselves. If they didn't, they wouldn't be an artist, right? It's kind of silly because you don't really seem entirely like that - or maybe I just don't know you well enough. But you've got the same attitude. You've got a feeling and you want to make it real, to make someone else happy or maybe for yourself. Right? Shit, I'm not good with words, but you know what I mean. I hope." With facing away from Akane, that's all that shows.

Qivi knows where Starbows is, and when Akane said coffee, that's what she assumed. So that's the route she takes: direct rather than circuitous, she's not really showing Akane around (why would she? Akane's been here longer than she has) but she's not taking in the sights much, either.

Qivi favours a heavier bike, and smooth ride or not it absolutely would be loud if she was driving fast, but - in Tsutsujidai, to go somewhere within walking distance, with someone hanging on the back - she has no reason to and a couple good reasons why not. So it's not precisely as quiet as the interior of a car going the same speed, but it's not *that* much worse, though it's easier for Akane to talk and Qivi to hear it than vice versa.

Fortunately, Qivi is loud.

"I'm only good at fixing some stuff," Qivi admits. "Don't ask about clothes, or - well, a bunch of other things. I tried to do some tailoring when I was about your age and it did *not* work out." (She has assumed Akane is 16 or 17, though she has not actually checked.) "So now I don't do that anymore. It's nice to be able to get away, huh? To find what you're really looking for."

She ran, once, to rebuild her life - to start over, really. Twice now, she supposes. She's not as angry about the need to have done so anymore, though this hasn't occured to her, precisely. Still, Akane - close as she is - can see Qivi tense slightly, leaning more forward on her bike and speeding up just a little bit.

<Pose Tracker> Akane Shinjo has posed.

Artists want to make other people -- or themselves -- feel things, huh. That's a little close to bone right now, isn't it? Akane agrees, "Yeah, I get what you're saying," though it's kind of bloodless. If Qivi were more 'aware,' she might notice the pang of shame there. As is, all that's noticeable is Akane shifting her position on the bike a little bit.

Qivi's assessment is accurate! Akane turns 17 in about a month and a half.

"I've never done clothes either!" Akane calls to Qivi. "Todo-sensei has me doing 3D modeling, but it's kinda not my speed... I probably won't stick with it after high school." She really needs to turn in something for that -- it's an informal assignment rather than a formal one, but still...

"It is, yeah. I think it'd be a lot easier -- if things just... slowed down. Maybe stopped. The way things are outside is just -- too much," she says, uncharacteristically candid. It's... easier. "You get it," she says, and she knows Qivi does. That was the point of the whole exercise, after all.

"Soooooooo... what's your coffee order?" she asks, as they get closer. "I like a light roast with double sugar and cherry syrup! I hear a little bit of salt helps too sometimes."

You know, Akane, you can just eat sugar and cut out all the intermediate steps.

<Pose Tracker> Qivi has posed.

Qivi makes a face at '3D modeling'. Akane can't see it, because of the way she's facing, but she can practically feel it. Qivi is whatever the opposite of a poker face is.

Then Akane says something that causes an uncharacteristic twinge in Qivi's soul. It would be easier. It *is* easier. There's a lot happening out there and no matter what she does, it doesn't seem to change anything.

But...

But nothing. She tried. It didn't work. The tension comes back - and then, all at once, Qivi relaxes. The bike slows down as she stops accelerating from her grip and position. "Yeah," she says. "I get it. Everything happening all at once, and it's not like people like us have any way to stop it." Better to come to a little place like Tsutsujidai and settle in. Everything is fine...

"Oh come on, you don't *actually* drink that as a regular, do you?" Qivi says, jolted out of whatever reverie she was in. "You must get a lot of exercise. I like sweet stuff, but if I cut down my usual workout and got stuff like that I'd be up ten pounds... or teenagers are luckier than I remember. I was just going to get a vanilla mocha," she says, as she starts to slow, looking for a spot to pull in.

That's not *that* much better, of course.

<Pose Tracker> Akane Shinjo has posed.

"Yeah, exactly. It's why I moved here in the first place," Akane affirms, at the idea of having no way to stop it. She hasn't even heard about recent developments in the war; she's been so focused on her own issues that that's gone totally ignored. Of course, if she had, that'd almost be immaterial -- if anything, it'd make it all the more important to do exactly what she's doing.

If she can defeat Gridman, she can put everything back. Then she'll be safe, and she won't be alone, and...

... right. Back to the present. "Yeah, actually. I mostly just skip lunch, though," Akane says, by way of explanation. The real truth of the matter is that Akane Shinjo has not needed to eat for the better part of two years at this point.

Once they pull in, the little god says, "Oh, and don't worry -- I can pick up the tab for both of us! I know you probably only have a few minutes to talk, but that's fine." Favoring Qivi with a smile, she leads her in.