2022-12-21: Masks
- Cast: Rita Bernal, Ujico Issa, Liu Mei Wang
- Where: ???
- Date: U.C. 0096 12 21
- Summary: Three young ladies meet in a classroom. The conversation is lighthearted, but everyone has something to hide.
<Pose Tracker> Rita Bernal has posed.
Even if you don't remember them, dreams are constant. They can't be escaped! Well, not most of the time. Whatever situation Ujico and Liu Mei find themselves in, they will be greeted with a strange sight.
A door! A cheerful blue door. Half of it is a nice window, and the other half is covered in what seems to be children's drawings. Really, it's a sweet sight, no matter how out of place it may be. Not wanting to intrude if it isn't wanted, the door will nestle itself in to a part of the dream where it will certainly be seen, but /can/ be ignored, if the viewer so desires.
If they choose to take that bronze doorknob, Ujico and Liu Mei will be greeted with sunlight, brilliant and warm. It's blinding, completely obscuring their vision for a moment. Once it fades...
A classroom! Every bit as cheerful and sweet as the door. It must be meant for small children, judging by the size of the two-dozen desks. Large windows line the opposite wall from the door, letting more radiant light in. By all rights, it's a very typical classroom. Art on the walls, supplies tucked into drawers, a teacher's desk before a computer-wall for projecting visual aids.
"You came!" Says a sweet, breathy voice. "I'm so happy, thank you!"
Said voice belongs to a lovely young woman perched atop one of the children's desks. She seems to be in her early 20s, with blonde hair that falls to her waist in dreamy waves. Clad only in a simple white sundress, she kicks her legs excitedly at the sight of her guests.
"Ujico. We met before, at the meeting." A gentle smile seems to be ever-present on the woman's face. "It's so nice to see you again. I've been thinking about you ever since we met!"
Unearthly green eyes turn to Liu Mei, then. "We haven't met yet, but my name's Rita! I was at the meeting with you, but you couldn't see me. Sorry about that!" A playful laugh. Clearly, Rita doesn't find it that big a deal. "I thought it'd be good to meet now, to save Ujico from having to explain."
<Pose Tracker> Liu Mei Wang has posed.
It's a rare moment of private seclusion for Liu Mei - back home in Chongqing to meet with distant relatives, but through with such duties for the day . . . she might be almost unrecognizable from her usual dressed up self. Hair utterly loose, in a cropped pink and yellow shirt and slightly baggy white jeans, she's seemingly ready to head out somewhere casually, maybe in search of being less 'recognized' for an outing...
She turns a corner, heads into what she figures is a convenience store in an aimless bout of fogginess . . . and realizes she's somewhere that doesn't quite feel 'real', somewhere she doesn't really belong. It's a sluggish reaction, though - this isn't the kind of space that she's...adept with.
"...Rita...? ...I remember that name...a little bit...right. So that wasn't just me not having slept enough. ...though I feel very tired right now...maybe I really am losing it...?" The heiress rubs one eye sleepily, slowly taking a seat upon a desk herself, looking around a bit cluelessly at her environment. "...Hm...? What is this place, anyway? Why are there so many tiny desks? Is it...some sort of conference center...for Haros...?"
As a privately tutored heiress, Liu Mei Wang has never set foot in nor so much as perceived a 'school', after all.
<Pose Tracker> Ujico Issa has posed.
Ujico doesn't always dream, but sometimes she does. Her father says that people always dream - 'that's what REM sleep is, Ujico' - but if she doesn't remember it, it might as well have never happened.
She's cleaning up before company comes over. She doesn't remember who 'company' is, but they're on their way. Her books are tumbling everywhere; no matter how carefully she stacks them they just sliiiiiide into a messy pile as soon as she turns her back. And Franklin keeps outgrowing its terrarium, no matter how big of a container she finds - the bathtub is full of moss now and what if someone wants to take a bath when they're visiting for lunch?!
Ujico hasn't remembered yet that that... kind of really isn't a thing.
And now, /now/ she's got a whole new door to worry about - a new room she's forgotten she owns. She's only supposed to have a one-bedroom, what if the landlord finds out and charges her more?! She curls her fingers around the doorknob. Maybe she'll get lucky and it's just a closet. She notes the drawings while she's opening it. A... kids' closet...
A bright flash, like the sun on Earth.
Ujico steps into the classroom, broom still in one hand, socked feet quiet on the tile. Oh, it's going to be one of /those/ dreams.
But she's got a weapon! She can defend herself! And, judging by the tiny desks, she must still be a grown up. Ujico checks herself out - okay good, it's her housecleaning clothes of 'a t-shirt and terrycloth shorts' and not her grade school uniform. And Liu Mei is here, and so is... "Rita," she blinks, giving her apartment beyond the door a lingering look before closing it behind her. "Loomy. ...It's a grade school," she explains, leaning the broom against her door so she won't forget it. "Yeah, this is Rita - from the conference. ...How did you know my name then, anyway? Is it a ghost thing?" she asks, crouching down to peer inside of a nearby desk.
<Pose Tracker> Rita Bernal has posed.
A giggle. Rita leans forward, placing her hands on the edge of the desk. "You're dreaming. Not losing it at all, I promise!" She coos at Liu Mei's idea. "Oh, that would be so cute! So many Haros in desks, all waving their wings. But... this is a school! One for very small children. It was /my/ school, when I was very small!"
Smiling sweetly, Rita tilts her head, letting some of that cloud-like blonde hair cascade over her shoulder. "If you're not comfortable here, we can go somewhere else. Anywhere you like, really!"
Trying very, very hard not to giggle again at Ujico's outfit, Rita simply smiles a little extra brightly. "Well... It'll sound silly, but I can see the future! So I simply saw when you told me your name, and remembered. I hope you don't mind! Sometimes it's hard to remember what has or hasn't happened yet."
Oops, Ujico is looking in a desk. With a quick twitch of her fingers, Rita populates it with a pencil case, a lunch bag, and some notebooks. There /may/ have been a moment before they appeared where Ujico was greeted with a vision of swirling color and radiance, effervescent and transient as an aurora.
It's hard work building a whole environment, you know!
"I wanted to make sure Ujico didn't get in any trouble for looking a little strange in front of you, Liu Mei. You see, I was at the meeting where you asked to partner with all those other factions! I always forget to put shoes on." And, in fact, she's forgotten again. Rita is barefoot, sitting atop that desk. "Ujico was so kind, she offered me her own shoes."
There's so much to say. There's so much she /shouldn't/ say. Where to begin?
Rita tilts her head, looking away from both women for a second. Thinking. "Just like you're looking for help from others... I'd like to help you, too."
<Pose Tracker> Liu Mei Wang has posed.
"Ah...right, school." Liu Mei streeeeetches skyward, hands locked together, balefully glancing Ujico's way at the explanation for why this assembly's happened...
...And it snaps her just a little free from that delirium, giggling with a hand over her mouth. "Eeeeh? Bringing me all the way out to your school just for that? I'm well aware of all of my operatives and their quirks - it's simply to be accepted that Ujico's somewhat strange. Indeed, it's somewhat rare that I find myself in the company of normal people, since normality scarce lends itself to a desire to overturn what is normal."
Hands folded under her chin, Liu Mei tips forward, flat shoes brushing against a school desk's leg. "...If anything, the...strangeness might have put others at ease? I think I was getting some really suspicious looks...but when Ujico started seeming to respond to a ghost, I could tell they eased up. That it was something...they understood, more than me. No, it's not a problem I have with her at all. I'm wondering more...what brought you here. If you can 'see the future' . . . was there something important about the future of that affair?"
Springing to her feet, Liu Mei glides over towards the windows, peering out into the sky that seems realer than ever, yet more illusory than ever. A platonic ideal of a 'sky', rather than a layer of gases refracting the light into blue. "...How did I even get here anyway? I'm not even sure where 'here' is, or where 'somewhere else' would be in relation..."
<Pose Tracker> Ujico Issa has posed.
The formless, nameless void was cool! So are school supplies, just in a very different way. Ujico still loves the smell of pencils. (It takes supreme willpower to not open the pencil case, but those are not /her/ pencils.)
She leaves them alone and stands back up to have a seat on the edge of the desk, pulling a knee up to lean on. "I don't think I'd be in trouble," she considers. "But it is good to explain things so that everybody's on the same page. Miscommunication causes too many problems." It's something that Newtypes probably don't have to worry about so often, she presumes. They're so lucky...
Being called 'somewhat strange' does bring a quirk of the lips, a quiet exhalation that isn't all the way a laugh. "People expect strange things from strange people," she agrees. Even here, asleep and dreaming, she has horns... though they look a little less shiny, somehow? It must be /someone's/ imagination.
Liu Mei shakes off her drowsiness, assuming her usual bright and perceptive persona. It must be nice...
"...What kind of help?" Ujico asks, green eyes turning to look at Rita, though the rest of her doesn't move much. She was just cleaning, she can afford to be lazy for a minute. "Diplomatic? You're..." She stops to think of the word she wants. "...Very easy to talk to."
<Pose Tracker> Rita Bernal has posed.
"Well... It's the only way I can talk with you!" Rita says, giggling softly. "Sorry to bring you all the way out here. If you want to go at any time, you can just walk back through the door. I won't stop you, I promise."
Another laugh. "I'm certianly not normal, either..! I hope you're not disappointed. But I think you're right about Ujico. She's a good person, with a kind heart." Rita smiles wide, squishing her unearthly-green eyes closed. "I'm always right about this sort of thing!"
Liu Mei goes to the window. Rita watches her, straightening up on the edge of her desk. Indeed, the sky is just a little too perfect. A little too wonderful. Birds soar in the sky -- though they seem to repeat the same movement over and over, like an NPC in a cheap video game.
Ujico's horns! Rita is trying very hard not to stare at them. She was never exposed to this sort of thing when she was alive, but she knows enought that it'd be impolite to bring it up. Secretly, Rita wonders what it'd be like if she had such pretty horns, too...
"Oh, well..!" Rita brings a hand to her mouth, hiding her smile for a moment. "I'm not sure I'd be very good at that. A lot of people can't see me, after all. But, you see, in the waking world, my body is a Gundam. Her name is Phenex. She's very powerful!"
A hand is extended. As Ujico saw before, irridescent light gathers above Rita's hand. It slowly turns to gold, then takes form. A humanoid shape -- a Gundam. Standing tall with twin "wings" at its back, trailing kite-tails. Rita pulls her hand back, then "pushes" the Gundam. It flies into the air, soaring to Ujico.
Gently, it orbits Ujico's head, then hovers just in front of her face.
"And, even without her power, I'm pretty good on my own. I know what's coming! And I'm happy to share." To a degree, anyway.
<Pose Tracker> Liu Mei Wang has posed.
It still hasn't quite...stuck to Liu Mei that she's in a space that isn't real. Such spaces make little sense to her. She thinks she just took a strange turn - because that's what's logical to have happened. (In reality, exhaustion had caught up to her and she's currently sprawled out on her suite room's couch, having entirely dreamed heading outside.)
"A Gundam, huh...?" Liu Mei crosses her arms, pivoting on one foot to rest her hips upon the windowsill, lips pursing slightly at the display of the Phenex. "It always seems to return to a Gundam. Maybe just because it was a light of hope for a terrible war - now they're all the hope anyone can seem to cling behind. If every country fights a bunch of Gundams, we'll have hope for more fair justice. If we build a task force of Gundams, maybe we'll close out the war with ZAFT. There is, of course, what we do, with our own Gundams that guide people into a new era - because anyone developing new technology bolts them into a Gundam. And then there's you. The Phenex."
A pause, as Liu Mei gets more lucid. That very process applies an odd...pressure to this little landscape Rita's made. Like she might 'wake up' and fall out of this whole space, ripping a chunk from it as she does. She's decidedly not a being that lives comfortably in spaces like these - her entire body resonates with a latent gravity to bring her back to the world of the purely material. Even she doesn't realize it - as the material scarce does.
"...How does it feel, Ujico? Does it feel like hope? Does it smell like hope? Is it clearer how you can go out and bust up a world that doesn't suit your needs? If so, then it's clear we were onthe right track all along."
<Pose Tracker> Ujico Issa has posed.
Ujico doesn't quite squirm at being praised, but the impulse is there. Like most of them, it's tamped down firmly. Instead she kind of freezes briefly, like a deer in headlights. "I just," she begins, and again seems to search for words. "...Just want people to not suffer." That's not special, that's normal! Right?
But... Rita's kind of staring, just a little. Ah, this is more familiar. "...You can look at them. It's okay." She tries a smile. "I mean, they're right here." And Ujico is proud of them, for reasons she can't even begin to articulate.
But. "...A Gundam?" A million questions spring to mind, all fighting at once to be the first thing out of her mouth; Ujico bites down on the words before they can spill over. "[Phenex] sounds like the mythical bird." The golden light of the projection reflects in her eyes - Ujico is entranced by it. How many times did she quietly think to herself that Palisade is [her body], too? And how many times did she leave it behind when a sortie was over? "She's beautiful. My machine is the Palisade. I hope we get to fly together sometime!"
Liu Mei is, however, much less enchanted.
Naturally, Ujico doesn't understand yet just how Liu Mei feels. The capricious-seeming heiress is her own sort of bird, with bright flashy plumage to entrance people. Ujico can't see past her brilliance. "It... I wasn't thinking of hope," she answers, finally lowering her heel back to the floor and leaning forward on her hands. "When I see it, I think of freedom." A golden bird soaring through space. "I know that to create a new world, the old way of things has to end. People have to learn not to go for their weapons. And if it makes me a hypocrite to do it... I've been called worse. So I'm not afraid."
She looks away from Liu Mei. "I'm not like Setsuna. I would be here even without Gundams."
<Pose Tracker> Rita Bernal has posed.
"That's a wonderful goal, Ujico. And... if you're sure you don't mind!" Rita takes advantage of Ujico's offer. Wow... They really are amazing! "Are they a sign of partnership with your machine? Oh, it'd be so fun to have feathers!"
Liu Mei seems... a lot less impressed with Rita's status than most people usually are. Huh. It's a little refreshing not to be seen with awe, but at the same time, she really needs Celestial Being to go along with her. If they don't trust her, then a lot of things could go wrong...
Rita's smile wavers, just a bit.
Reality ripples through the dreamspace, like a stone thrown into a still pond. Rita raises her hands, settling their surroundings with a show of incandescent strength. She can't keep Liu Mei here, but she can at least keep 'here' stable for Ujico and herself.
"Just like her sisters, the Phenex was named for a mythical creature. And I've always loved birds! I'd love to fly with you." Rita smiles happily, guiding the little model Phenex through a pretty spin before the other woman. "It's something that brings me great peace."
Ujico can answer Liu Mei herself. Rita waits, calmly, smiling to Ujico. Does it feel like hope? Smell like it? Hopefully, the Phenex doesn't smell like burned flesh, really...
Freedom. She can take that. Ujico earns another brilliant smile, one so wide is squishes Rita's eyes closed. "That's what she was to me. She saved me. I know she's a weapon. I was meant to be one, too. But we're more than that, especially together. We don't carry any weapons, ever." Though that doesn't mean she's helpless. "We're here to preserve life. Isn't that your purpose, too?"
Rita tilts her head at Liu Mei, letting her golden hair fall down one bare shoulder. The Phenex twirls for Ujico once more, then soars to Liu Mei, stilling before her.
<Pose Tracker> Liu Mei Wang has posed.
Liu Mei was just on the verge of 'falling' out the window when this realm solidifies a little more - without even seeing anything off. When the vision of the Phenex flutters by, the heiress extends a hand, tapping her index finger to the Gundam's chest, where blue motes of light flicker and sparkle just ahead of her touch.
"Well, considering how the One Year War was going until the White Base's miracle, maybe we /wouldn't/ be here without that very first Gundam. With a single ray of light, the conflict was cut down to mercifully only include several billion casualties. Every family of humanity pretty much lost someone in that conflict . . . and it really wasn't that long ago at all."
"Hope, freedom, desperation...you know, they're preeeeetty entangled at this point."
Is something as gloomy as this really what springs up from that confident and cheery celebrity's lowered subconscious? It's probably a bit of a downer to be directing all that to Ujico. Yet Liu Mei doesn't say any of this spitefully, bitterly...just...that it is. Like any fact about the world.
Her fingertip traces upwards, now upon the Phenex's face - the insignia an almost perfect echo of the very first form to share its name. "You should be grateful that these machines were first made with such a neutral looking face. They were modeled after the helmet of a samurai, after all - and traditionally, the sort of 'mask' a samurai would wear was contorted into quite the fierce grimace." Momentarily, she mimes that expression, eyebrows scrunched, lips straining to do something as inelegant as the gripping firmness of an angered warrior. "Though I guess that makes you, Rita, some sort of 'ronin'. Maybe that could be something of a fashion statement to make, fufu."
<Pose Tracker> Ujico Issa has posed.
There's a dissonance around Liu Mei, and Ujico thinks it might not just be about a disagreement with Rita. Because... no, it's gone. Ujico nearly grasped it. But it seems that Rita has things in hand, so maybe she doesn't need to worry too much...?
Everybody should have horns if they want them! Everybody should have a body that makes them happy. Even just a little bit at a time, even if it's painful, it's good to become who you want to be. A sign of partnership...? Ujico tilts her head to one side, the better to wrap a hand around one of her horns and take comfort in its presence. "They're because I'm an alien," she smiles, a thing that rings true and false at once, "But... I like that idea a lot."
Does Palisade become happy too, when she's one with it?
Meant to be a weapon. "I think it's important to believe that we can become what we want to. That... how we were born isn't how we will live or die." This is something Ujico has given thought to, over and over and over until she grew actual Opinions about it. It's easier to speak about something like this than 'normal' things. "I want the world to be easier to live in. Even if people can't live together in peace, I don't want them to fight and die."
Though, it's much easier to assert your ideas about 'peace' when you have a mobile weapon. When Ujico didn't have a mobile suit, the most she could do was help cook food for hungry people and repost memes on the internet. "I hadn't thought about it like that, Loomy," she has to admit - yes, she knew about the 'White Devil' Amuro Ray, but to think so hard about owing her existence to a single Gundam... Huh. Maybe Setsuna was more right than Ujico thought. Maybe she'll tell him, the next time they meet.
"Oh, oh, the [V], right?" she perks up a bit, sitting a bit straighter on the edge of the desk. (Ujico, are you ever going to stand up? There's a pocket universe to explore!) She holds a hand up to her forehead, pointer finger and thumb extended to be the fins...
Don't tell her, it looks a bit more like an [L].
<Pose Tracker> Rita Bernal has posed.
The Phenex is solid, when Liu Mei touches it. Every place she touches earns a glimmer of sparkle, floating out in the air for a brief few moments.
It's Rita's turn to look out the window, now. She turns her head, hiding her smile. "I lost my family in the One Year War. So did my two closest friends. It's an event that's still affecting everyday life."
"An alien!" Rita blinks widely, looking thrilled. "Wow..! I've never met an alien before!" A sweet laugh, as she brings her hands up to her mouth. "It's my honor, Ujico! Thank you for sharing them with me. They're beautiful." Ujico's true-false smile grabs Rita's attention, but she doesn't question it. Everyone has things they'd rather not talk about, after all.
Almost like flipping a switch, Liu Mei's gloom vanishes. Rita glances back at her, laughing when her face twists into the warrior's visage. "Oh, I'm very grateful! It wouldn't be cute at all if the Phenex looked so angry. She wouldn't like that one bit, either. Her appearance is very important to her."
A ronin..? And a fashion statement? Rita blinks. "What do ronin wear? I'll try it!" Rita hops down off the desk, spinning in place. "You can wear whatever you like, here! You just have to imagine it."
"Ah." Rita breathes out a sigh as Ujico talks about becoming what they want to be. There has never been 'want', for Rita, after all. Only the path stretching out before her, leading to one horrible moment. It must be changed.
"It's a wonderful thing to believe, isn't it? The circumstances of our birth don't determine who we are. Only our choices." What about those who have never had choices? Rita doesn't ask.
In place of a more personal response, Rita giggles. She raises her own hand to her forehead and mimics the gesture. "The V! The Phenex has one too, but I don't like to use it too often. It's a little too powerful."
Sunlight beaming through the window begins to dim. The sun is setting, Rita notes. It's time for the dream to come to an end.
"Liu Mei, Ujico... I'm afraid you're waking up!" Rita says, shrugging her shoulders. "It's been so fun to meet you both. I'll see you again, both of you." A look right for Liu Mei. "I'll show you what I can do. I'm certain you won't be disappointed." And now, back to Ujico. "And I can't wait to fly together!"
With a beckoning motion, Rita calls the Phenex back to her. Her other arm "pushes" toward the wall behind her, and it promptly falls over. It's a gentle motion, like a piece of paper slowly touching the ground. Rita walks forward into the space revealed, made of miraculous light and connection. Aurora-like colors swirl about her feet. She tosses the small Phenex into the air as though she were a bird, and she begins to grow. Larger and larger still, slowly, in the air above Rita.
"Thank you for talking with me, and your kindness." Rita smiles, squishing her eyes closed. "See you next time!"
Now a full-sized Gundam, the Phenex reaches down. Rita daintily steps aboard her hand. Lifting her pilot into the air, the Phenex gleams in the incandescence. Rita waves, then vanishes. Igniting with blue radiance, the Phenex lifts into the air. She takes one last look down at the women before her, and then soars into the sky, up and out of the dream.