2023-01-28: Do Spend the Day With Me
- Cast: Leina Ashta, Liu Mei Wang
- Where: REA Da Han Zhong - Changsha
- Date: U.C. 0097 01 28
- Summary: Celestial Being's pampered princess goes shopping with the Shuffle Alliance's tireless tomboy.
<Pose Tracker> Liu Mei Wang has posed.
The streets of Changsha, in the mid-south of Da Han Zhong, have always been a favorite for Liu Mei Wang to visit in her off days. Immense enough to have plenty of amenities and things to do, not so massive that it can feel too inhospitable, and plenty of scenic historic sites all the same - plus proximity enough to eye-catching mountains.
Inviting Leina here feels maybe, in a small way, mitigating the 'mystery' Celestial Being likes to hold, even within its relationship to the Shuffle Alliance as of late. It reminds Leina that one of their key financiers is this free-spirited creature two years her junior. ...it quickly establishes, as well, that Liu Mei keeps her bodyguard Hong Long fairly put upon, as she's dragging the pair all over town, first to a store for evening dresses, then the bold choice of lingerie shopping - then after that, only just settling down at a scenic cafe just across from a historic temple, the sun bright, the day breezy.
Even as so much has made Earth feel tumultuous and struggling, here in the center of China it can feel like very little at all happened over the course of the Universal Century. A rare luxury for any locale...
Sipping on a milk tea, setting down countless overladen bags, Liu Mei's dressed remarkably down for the occasion - yet still somehow impeccably fashionable. A doubtless irresponsibly expensive branded t-shirt beneath a vest and jeans hand-ripped by an artisan, hair pulled into two free-flowing twintails. "Hmmm...how long have we been at this...an hour or two already...?"
<Pose Tracker> Leina Ashta has posed.
Going mask off from time to time feels good doesn't it? In the end Celestial Being are humans too, just like the Shuffle Alliance.
Where they generally disagree is on the ideologic slant, but isn't it actually more complicated than that?
Leina goes around shopping in a simple pair of skinny jeans, some worn trainers, a cream colored jumper, a pair of sunglasses, a brown coat, and with a shooting star barrette in her hair.
Sheactually treats Hong Long pretty respectfully, not acting like he's just 'the help' or her bodyguard.
Liu Mei will quickly realize however that while Leina participates in lingerie shopping just fine, her stylistic choices diverge quickly when it comes to dresses, moving away from skirts and dresses to ensembles with pants, jumpsuits, rompers...
... she definitely doesn't seem like some Tomboy though either, so it's merely an interesting detail she might file away...
Having a bubble tea herself, she sucks at one of the tiny tapioca balls of the boba as she sets her own bags down...
"Mmm." A quick check of her watch, "That sounds right. Probably closer to two by now." Another sip, "I must admit, this wasn't the kind of invitation I expected when you called upon me."
She tells her affably, "But I'm glad we were able to do this. Much better than at some stuffy party on the orbital ring or meeting in some luxury high rise I feel."
A little shaking motion of her tea, as if to move the boba around at the bottom, "... And you did make quite the impression on me at our little get together. You're definitely not like your other 'friends' are you?"
<Pose Tracker> Liu Mei Wang has posed.
There's a confluence of curiosity and frustration at Leina's choices of attire - Liu Mei just isn't used to shopping with someone who has more boyish tastes. (there's a few points where it's Hong Long who steps in and points out choice picks to Leina. he's quiet, but he Gets It.)
Nibbling on a decadently cheesy panini-type sandwich, Liu Mei's elbows rest upon the table as she peers closer and closer to Leina. "Obviously I'm used to those sorts of formal events, but something like this is a nice treat. My wardrobe for those affairs is a lot bigger than casual clothes, sadly. It'd be a bit of a scandal to wear the same thing to the same event twice, hehe. I figured you wouldn't want that any more than I did right now, really."
Straw planted in her lips, Liu Mei casts her gaze to the slowly gathering crowds at the temple, raising her eyebrow to try and deduce why it'd be getting busier. Clothes aren't formal, and it seems to be a largely younger crowd...some sort of festival preparation for the evening...?
"Hmmmm. That's an interesting way to put it. Indeed, I suppose our operatives are a little more on the taciturn side. My role's a lot different from them though. ...In a way, they're the 'real deal', where I'm the one who's gotta do PR and negotiations, so I have to be different from them. After all...an organization 'declaring war upon war'...well...is largely going to recruit a lot of troubled people hurt by that very war, isn't it? But your companions seem so much more breezy and light-hearted, closer to how you are yourself..."
<Pose Tracker> Leina Ashta has posed.
Leina actually accepted Hong Long's advice with a certain grace, apparently valuing his opinion. Perhaps she just likes different perspectives on her fashion taste, or maybe she prefers a male eye. Who can say?
Leina herself is munching on a pork chop bun herself, some traditional Macanese flavor for the region, though it's more of a sandwich than a dumpling.
A touch of mischief gleams in Leina's eyes, "I can handle a touch of scandal, but I did prefer to stay out of the public eye. ... That all went out the window when I chose to run that Yumi gala in Dublin. I imagine I have papparazzi of my own now, but they can settle for pictures of me in my casual wardrobe. ... I'm not changing who I am for them."
A bite of the bun, and Leina chews for a time, listening to what she says, "The real deal huh?" Leina says as she puts down her bun, wiping the napkin across her mouth.
"I suppose in comparison it's easy to think that we're 'Breezy and light-hearted.'" She laughs lightly for a moment, "We all have our scars though... and we all cope in our own ways..." A thin smile, "...or don't."
A pause...
"But no that's not what I meant. Yes you were playing the diplomat but... it still struck me as different. Your companions' thoughts, feelings, outrage and objections... you glossed over them all, with few of your own beyond acceptance of whatever it took to create this armistice, this alliance."
She takes another sip of her tea through the straw, and puts it around, "I suppose my impression was that you don't precisely share the same ideals - if any - it's more that you're a pragmatist, with certain goals you feel you must attain."
The smile grows a touch coy, "You certainly don't like betting on just a single pony when it comes times for the races, do you?"
<Pose Tracker> Liu Mei Wang has posed.
Failing to share the rest of Celestial Being's emotions...
Liu Mei'd never thought of it that way. Indeed, it never occurred to her to think of it that way - the idea that her role was to even consider that.
Hands steepled over her face, Liu Mei furtively looks just slightly off to the side of Leina, a light frown just barely visible behind that cover. "Hm. Did it very well appear that way? Maybe you're right. Or-" Lips purse a bit tighter. "Or is it...that phenomenon that's been gripping the world as of late? I feel like what you're describing comes up more and more often, and I just have to put it aside. The value among 'newtypes' in sharing each others' hearts. Something like that. The experiences they talk about have always felt like they're in a different language."
A gentle narrowing in Liu Mei's eyes... "Maybe what you're talking about is that all I can do is make the world different for the sake of others. That I can reach out and change the colors of lights - or maybe they reach out to me, desiring a different hue."
%Her hands finally part, one planted upon a squishy cheek, lazily descended close to her tea so she can sip upon its straw with nary a motion. "Well. I guess that's the kind of thing that has to be accepted as an observer. We're the enablers of the idea. We're not Aeolia Schenberg. We're not the Gundam Meisters. It's their passions and ideals that 'matter'. We're chosen to make them possible. If that's all it can be, is it really so bad?"
The avoidant glance in her eyes maybe says otherwise.
<Pose Tracker> Leina Ashta has posed.
Leina keeps on that coy smile as Liu Mei steeples her hands, and begins to describe how it might be, the possibility that she's right. Or perhaps she's simply put aside the idea of sharing in each other's hearts.
Part of her thinks of Yuliana in this moment...
A bite of her bun, as she catches that gentle narrowing in her eyes, still she says nothing, chewing - listening.
Putting down her half eaten bun, she takes another sip of her tea, and wipes her fingers on her napkin.
Eventually...
"If I thought it was, would I be here right now?" Leina asks, quite simply, "I'm not asking to debate a Meister. Honestly I'd probably find it either quite boring - or quite upsetting. They wouldn't likely budge, nor would I. We'd only find common ground in respective pasts that taught us quite different lessons..."
Leina's sea green eyes lift to her, and there's a ghost of a smile, "You're the one that interests me right now, not Celestial Being, nor some enforcer of the will of Aeolia Schenberg."
A beat, "Honestly, I prefer the works of Zeon Zum Deikun to some scientist who could care less about the collateral damage that needs to be inflicted to reach his ideal vision for humanity."
Leina regards her in a different light, "... The fact that you don't share in their feelings makes you more interesting, rather than less so."
Leina lays her elbow on the table, a hand cradling her cheek, and that lopsided smile painted on her face, "Because it means I'm spending my day with someone so very human, rather than an earnest zealot."
<Pose Tracker> Liu Mei Wang has posed.
A soft little pout crosses Liu Mei's lips. Something gently sulking. "...They give off a stony sort of expression, don't they? Lockon at least pulls it through, but I do see how he often has it rough...you're right. They wouldn't budge. That's what makes them so amazing, though. It's a determination few people could really handle. No matter what, the future's been entrusted specifically to those four. It wouldn't be that way if they weren't outstanding people."
More defensiveness than expected...One last sip, before her cup becomes empty, and slurping only induces those airy noises which Liu Mei greedily persists at trying to draw from. "Honestly, with the world as it is right now - what vision doesn't come with collateral damage? We live hopping across a huge house of cards - even just saving a single person can topple an unreasonable amount over. It's not about what might blow up if you take action - something will, almost definitely. It's about how much action you're willing to take before the cost gets unreasonable."
She can't help but click her tongue, and slowly gather up her belongings, rummaging around in one bag to put on a most cozy, stylish little beret between her twintails. "Still, you're nice to be around in a little way. Far better than dealing with paparazzi. Be warned - that doesn't get any comfier to deal with, if you keep climbing the ladder, Leina.~"
<Pose Tracker> Leina Ashta has posed.
Leina's head tilts to the side after a moment, as if assessing to herself whether Liu Mei is being straight with her or not. It's a fascinating shift, seeing what she saw as little loyalty to their ideals before, to defending the people...
... but maybe that's what is more important to her. The will and determination to change things, rather than the ideals behind them.
In the end she doesn't say too much on that point...
"Those four." She repeats, as if there's something in that statement alone she finds interesting, perhaps reflecting on a certain girl who filled space with that blazing display of Red GN particles.
"Ah, but that's an important distinction... not that collateral damage will occur, but who suffers the lion's share... I feel. Is his vision solely for refined intellectuals and the elite? Or is it for everyone? ... I fear that what will blow up in his method of intervention is always far too predictable."
Leina smiles apologetically, "It's not a particularly fun debate though, so perhaps I should cut it off there."
She smiles, and then puts a hand over her heart dramatically, "Ouch." Leina chuckles, "I suppose that's what they call damning with faint praise... that it be compared to dealing with the paparazzi." She apparently has taken a signal by her gathering up her belongings, "Ah... before you go."
Taking a red pen out of her purse, Leina writes something upon a napkin. "I'll take your warning to heart... just in case we've been surrounded."
Turning it over, she slides it across the table to her...
... if she should happen to turn it over...
Why is Celestial Being creating Innovades?
Leina starts gathering her own things, "I do hope we'll be able to do this again sometime. ... I'll see if I can't strive to be better company."
<Pose Tracker> Liu Mei Wang has posed.
"Oh, absolutely. I'm a little bit woefully low on partners to go out for little things like this without too many questions, so I'd adore another meeting. Maybe I'll tag along somewhere special to you," Liu Mei beams, gazing nebulously upward - from here, even relatively downtown, the Orbital Ring is visible...
...the message on that napkin, though, makes Liu Mei furrow her brow. The Innovades - a word in hushed murmurs even in the cloisters of Celestial Being's contacts.
"Heh. The most troubling part, if you're asking me that - is that you probably know more than I do. ...At the end of the day, a lot of my job is to sign checks whose use I never know much about. And maybe that's why I can only relate so much. Even calling you up and getting our interests together was extending my hand. Make sure you dispose of that really quickly.~"
Pretty soon, Hong Long pulls his car around, and Liu Mei gives a cheery little wave as she's escorted off-!