2023-04-01: Clever Girl
- Cast: Lina Lombardi, Sonia Sophia-Grace
- Where: The Lombardi Grove, Italy
- Date: U.C. 0097 04 01
- Summary: Lina reunites with a Tsutsujidai friend and gets roped into something.
<Pose Tracker> Lina Lombardi has posed.
It was officially Lina's first day as a civilian. Yesterday, her resignation from G-Hound had been made official, and Alina and she had to relinquish the Nightmare, the ReLion, and most of the Juno Squadron support team. Lina had felt bad enough about Alina following her to and fro, and she hadn't wanted to force the rest of her team to go with her, though a few did resign in solidarity. Now all she had left was the clunker of an Alto she had worked merc with. It was technically her personal property, so she could still potentially do freelance work.
But for now, rest. She had retired to the Lombardi Villa, adjacent to the Grove, looking out at the setting sun over the grapevines from the estate's balcony. Elsa had been less resistant to Lina quitting than she had expected. She supposed her sister expected her to find a more "consistent" and "safe" occupation that didn't "expose her to death constantly."
As if.
<Pose Tracker> Sonia Sophia-Grace has posed.
Unfortunately, there is trouble brewing in Italia, and it isn't a batch of badly made wine.
Standing at the far end of the path up to the Lombardi Villa, Sonia tucks her hands into her pockets. She's not SCARED; this peppery captain has a good head on her shoulders, and is too empathetic by far to give into her neuroses, so to say. It helps that she had an asset to lean on to find this place, when circumstances occured a couple of months back that meant she may have wanted to find Lina.
Of course, circumstances change, even more so when she spots Lina on the balcony. Hands remaining in her pockets, she cuts through the path towards the grapevines - sure, Elsa can want her to be safe, but Danger is approaching. Ah, humor.
<Pose Tracker> Lina Lombardi has posed.
There's something moving in the vines...Lina squints and makes out the incredibly short figure of...
"...Sonia?!"
How the hell did she...ergh, the place is named after you, Lina. How could she not? She leans out and waves, trying to get the NERV captain's attention. "Sonia! What the hell are ya doing here, girl?"
<Pose Tracker> Sonia Sophia-Grace has posed.
Hey, she's not THAT short!
"OH! Hi Lina!" She waves furiously and continues to make her way through. "Listen, how could I not? It's not like we're in the same group or anything! I had to check up on you! Plus it was ... really easy!" Almost too easy. Should've saved that favor from Asciel, S.S-G.
<Pose Tracker> Lina Lombardi has posed.
"Well, you picked a hell of a time to check in on me," Lina starts as she leans against the balcony railing. "As of yesterday, I'm out of G-Hound. Free agent now."
She makes her way down the exterior stairs and onto the path to meet Sonia, still towering over her. She had to admit, it was pretty nice to see a friendly face.
<Pose Tracker> Sonia Sophia-Grace has posed.
Sonia's expression flickers from surprise, to curiosity, to concern, before finally settling on something more aligned with a '... oh but now...~?'
"I want to know, but only tell me what you wish. You still wantin' to fight, though, little bird? If so, do I have a proposition - how do you like ... space?" The battleship captain asks with a bit of a grin.
NERV: It has Sonia. NERV: .... It has Sonia.
<Pose Tracker> Lina Lombardi has posed.
Lina sighs as she expects what's coming. "Of course I wanna fight, Sonia. It's in my blood." She leans in and gently places a hand on top of the captain's head. "As for space, I used to get spacesick something bad, but I've managed to control it. And I'm assuming you're asking because you want me on the Paradiso."
She ruffles Sonia's hair with a chuckle. "Surprisingly, you're not the first person that's approached me."
<Pose Tracker> Sonia Sophia-Grace has posed.
"I'm NOT?!"
"But if you only just quit - gah!" Sonia pouts, and it's adorable.
"Well, not just the Paradiso. It belongs to NERV, they're who I'm with, you know. So fighting the Angels, and all of that. Not that we only have our fingers in one pie, that I can promise you. Got connections with various labs and other groups. Like, Gridman? I met him originally on a NERV factor, f'example." Sonia grins up at her from the mess of white hair. "If you keep doing that, I'm going to think you like me." She teases.
<Pose Tracker> Lina Lombardi has posed.
Lina's ruffling hand tightens into a fist to bonk Sonia on the head. "Well, I've been thinking about it for a bit, and I just so happened to run into Koji Kabuto the other week."
A couple more soft bonks. "It wasn't a formal offer, but he seemed to think I had the right stuff for the PPL. And yeah, I'm familiar with NERV. You take care of all the alien stuff, right?"
<Pose Tracker> Sonia Sophia-Grace has posed.
Bonk. "Ow."
"Yeah? Kabuto, Kabuto... oh, the Power Labs. Yeah, I can see that. I think you'll do good no matter where you end up, though." Sonia says, in a moment of surprising seriousness. "Like, I realize we haven't known each other long - although in a sense we've gotten to know each other *really* well-" Stop teasing her, Sonia- "But still. I don't know if it's all alien, but aliens make up a lot of it!"
<Pose Tracker> Lina Lombardi has posed.
Lina knew what Sonia had meant by that. She had been right in her cockpit when she awakened, after all. That kind of mind melding sticks with you.
"I don't know if I'm ready to make a decision quite yet, but I'll think about it. I'll make do right now as a freelancer, I guess. I've at least still got an Alto laying around. Appreciate the offer."
<Pose Tracker> Sonia Sophia-Grace has posed.
Don't think that too loudly.
"Well, let me know. Listen, I had several other ulterior motives for coming out this way, mainly because we never really had a chance in the final fight with Amuro Ray to talk again." Sonia's blue eyes dance in mischievous plotting. "First, are you set up with VERTEX? It'd be easier to chase you done, what with you not being with any specific group these days."
"Second, wanna go on a date?"
Sigh.
<Pose Tracker> Lina Lombardi has posed.
Lina removes her fist from Sonia's head and scratches at the back of her own. "VERTEX? Never got around to gettin' one of those. Yeah, you got a point, might make it easier to keep in touch now that I don't have official comms."
Second...Second...wait what did she say?
Date?
Date?
Date?
"Date?"
<Pose Tracker> Sonia Sophia-Grace has posed.
"Ah. Well... please do! I can at least give you my information, you should be able to contact me when you set one up?" Sonia offers.
Then Lina breaks, and Sonia can't help but both smile and huff a bit. "That's what I said! I'm twenty-two, you know - I'm just short!"
<Pose Tracker> Lina Lombardi has posed.
"Like a...date date?" Lina's cheeks flush a bit and she fidgets with her fingers. "But...it's like you said...we've really just met..."
Twenty two? She's still pretty young! I mean, I'm gonna be 28 next week... "And I'm not really that special! I'm just...a pilot!" Says the woman who'd been calling herself The Green Daredevil for the last three weeks.
<Pose Tracker> Sonia Sophia-Grace has posed.
"I'm not special! I don't even fight personally! I practically wave pompoms from the bridge of the Paradiso!"
She is annoyingly peppy. (Someone - we all know who - is currently crying to themselves in Tsutsujidai.) "Special doesn't matter, you... you..." Pause. "Dork!" Success. "Maybe it's because we barely know each other that I want to get to know you better? Did that ever occur to you?"
<Pose Tracker> Lina Lombardi has posed.
Lina wasn't gonna win this one.
"...Fine. Where and when? My birthday is next Wednesday, so I'm no good then, my uncle always throws a huge party for the entire town."
<Pose Tracker> Sonia Sophia-Grace has posed.
"Tokyo-3? Next weekend, about this time? Reach out to me and I'll find you. And... thank you for telling me -that-, I'll be here."
Sonia is cheeky.
<Pose Tracker> Lina Lombardi has posed.
"Sure, I'll get you on VERTEX. Sounds good."
She clicks her lip at Sonia's promise to be at the party. Geez, now she's gonna meet Uncle Francis...embarrassing... "Feel free, Lombardi birthdays are open invite."
<Pose Tracker> Sonia Sophia-Grace has posed.
Blue eyes sparkling mischievously, Sonia reaches out to grab one of Lina's hands.
"I'll take both of those as promises." She murmurs, pressing a very prince-ly kiss to the others hands.
<Pose Tracker> Lina Lombardi has posed.
The taller woman's cheeks completely flush red.
"Aaaaah whatever, anything else you came here for?!"
<Pose Tracker> Sonia Sophia-Grace has posed.
"Nothing that I feel like I can bring up without making you turn into a cherry!"
Sonia, no...
<Pose Tracker> Lina Lombardi has posed.
"Aaaaah, smettila! Uscire!"
<Pose Tracker> Sonia Sophia-Grace has posed.
At least Lina knows Sonia's teasing is for gentle fun, not being rude/terrible!
"That I can't translate, but I can take my leave. Good bye, my dear - til Wednesday!"