2023-11-27: Making Room
- Cast: Akane Shinjo, Alouette Pommier
- Where: The Division Train
- Date: U.C. 0097 11 27
- Summary: In the foreboding silence before the Ruin Apostles make their final move, Akane and Alouette navigate their futures together... but it's always nice to make room for your friends.
<Pose Tracker> Alouette Pommier has posed.
Even upon reaching Jupiter, daily life on the Division Train has been a little on the slow side. There's not much to do about a Jupiter compressed in the hands of the King of Ruin just yet, and the top brass can only conclude the Ruin Apostles are making final preparations to unleash their decisive weapon.
That doesn't come without countermeasures, of course, and Alouette has lend some of her talents to Formation P while it's being developed. She can't say the way the past few weeks went didn't leave a bitter taste in her mouth, though...
And to keep that bitter taste away, she's focusing on data review in the little office space in her personal quarters. Anything to save them. She finds herself clicking through Mikoto Utsugi's file... and closing it with a sigh, on the report of the very end of the Primeval War.
Deciding to take a break instead, she non-chalantly pushes aside a box of equipment she hasn't had to use, taking a seat on the little futon she's been sleeping on instead, even as the King of Ruin shines bright outside.
The room isn't in... terrible state, but it's definitely less 'permanent living quarters' and more 'temporary space', boxes of long unplayed with dolls and plushes she still felt attached enough to bring along on the trip anyways. Oh no, is she a secret hoarder?
It's not as if she hasn't just been acting her usual self, but it has been a while since she had a long conversation with Akane...
<Pose Tracker> Akane Shinjo has posed.
The months of travel have been kind to Akane, overall, especially for how much action they've involved -- but she hasn't made as much time as she'd like to talk to all of her friends. In large part, this is due to the combination of keeping up with school stuff and catching the mess left behind in Intelligence by Kamuy's death; she's been scared of letting anything drop that what she's let drop for a bit is her friends.
She can't let herself do that, though -- so she finally gets herself to stop by Alouette's room. Standing outside the door, she fusses with her hair for a few moments, trying to keep those long brown-black locks presentable. ... She'll never match Alouette on this point, though.
Eventually: she knocks. "Hey, Alouette? You in there?" Akane asks, through the door; she shifts a little uneasily on her feet, bending one knee slightly, then the other. "It's Akane." ... Usually she's on the other end of talking through doors...
<Pose Tracker> Alouette Pommier has posed.
Alouette's been wishing she'd made more time for her friends while they're not doing much but waiting, herself. At times like these, remembering that you're still surrounded by people who are precious to you can be all it takes to keep going.
She's perceptive enough to hear movement outside her door, but when she hears the knock, accompanied by Akane's voice, she lights up a little. "I'm here," she confirms, shifting towards her door. "And... you can come in if you'd like," she adds, a little awkwardly, but she doesn't need to force a smile.
When Akane does come in, Alouette's dressed a little more casually than usual, since she was expecting a night-in, but doing her hair is kind of a force of habit at this point. "It's pretty small in here because I used most of the space for the office, but make yourself at home, I think they say?"
She doesn't feel like she needs to linger on the hospitalities for too long, though... sometimes it's just fine to trust your friends with seeing the side of you a room brings out, temporary or not.
"I feel like we haven't sat down and talked one on one since before we left on this whole trip," she says, looking out the window and back. "So I guess I'm just glad you came by. It's been hard initiating things.. with anyone lately." She admits. "You've been studying for the U-FITS this whole time, haven't you? I just hope they're giving you the time to focus on it... that's important, too." She only implies the hole left in Intelligence by Kamuy. But she'd hope that others are willing to pick up the slack for a teenager with the future ahead of her.
<Pose Tracker> Akane Shinjo has posed.
Stepping into Alouette's room, Akane takes a look around; she's surprised to see Alouette's hair done, but not that surprised. She is quite fussy about it, after all -- though at the same time, it's nice to see that Alouette isn't totally falling apart on the long voyage.
... just about everyone here is more resilient than she expected, actually.
"This is still more roomy than a lot of rooms I've lived in," Akane says, laughing at herself a little bit. "It's not bad. Really, I'd say you're using the space pretty well." She looks around, noting, "Uh -- if you need a hand picking up, though, you can just ask." She doesn't actually push for this -- but it's important to make it clear the option is there.
"That and keeping up with normal schoolwork stuff," Akane says, about the U-FITS. "I got kind of weird about it and ended up getting through most normal school stuff at the start before things really took off, so now it's just... 3G stuff mostly. What about you? You've still got another year to go before you have to think about that kinda thing, right? What have you been doing?"
<Pose Tracker> Alouette Pommier has posed.
"You might be right... and there's a certain charm to little studies like these, too," Alouette considers, and then agrees.
"Ah, that-" She doesn't seem embarrassed, but she can tell there's good intentions behind Akane's offer. "It might come as a surprise, but that sort of thing never really bothered me. There's a difference between outward and inward expression, after all." She admits, a little awkwardly. "...But if you're offering, it might be nice." She concludes.
But there's not a strong push, and she moves on to the topic of U-FITS. "That checks... I remember you seemed really motivated, and maybe a little worried about it before we left." Alouette points out. "Are you still thinking about that psychology program?" She then asks, because she's curious if anything changed her mind or not. "It always sucks... but I guess this trip had a lot of hands-on experience when it comes to that."
"Me? Hmm..." She's going to be graduating soon, that's true. It's something to think about. "I want to keep working with 3G for sure, at least." She immediately decides, resolutely. "I mean... my main goal has always been to save 3G Green. But part of that is pride, too. I want to show them what I can do, without having to worry about Triple Zero."
Her expression seems a little more unclear, uncertain when it comes to post-secondary. "I don't know yet... I attended high school because I was lonely more than anything. Having something like GUTS turned out to be really nice, and I won't ever forget it." She starts re-arranging her desk as she talks - it's a start. "If I was going to go to college, I don't think it would be for computer science or something I already know. Maybe something less familiar... like one of the arts?"
<Pose Tracker> Akane Shinjo has posed.
"... Take some time to think it over. I've got a couple days to chill," Akane says, at the non-zero but somewhat tepid interest. She definitely knows better than to press; after all, if someone came into her room and really insisted she get it cleaner, she'd probably get frustrated really fast.
Is she still thinking about psychology? "Yeah. I had a few seconds where I was thinking about criminal justice instead, but like... that's not really my beat." It's... a relief, in a sense -- to know that there are possibilities out there that she could take and can elect to simply discard because she's not interested.
When Alouette admits that school was mostly a social thing for her in the end -- and then starts exploring the possibility of going to school to learn things she doesn't already know... that surprises Akane at first, but after a few seconds, her wide-eyed surprise gives way to understanding. "Yeah, like -- you could probably teach most computer science classes up through grad level!" Akane agrees. "Maybe it's good to become a better-rounded person, or something like that... it's kinda scary, though. No one's ever really told me I was allowed to do stuff I wasn't good at." Rubbing at the back of her head, she says, "Maybe that's why it's good, though."
On the topic of 3G Green, and what comes next, though... "That's gotta be coming up... we're getting pretty close to the Jupiter Sphere at this point. I've got your back... I think I'm probably the weakest pilot here, but I guess 'weakest' or 'strongest' isn't gonna matter. Everyone has to show up for this one."
Shiho Hahnenfuss teleports in.
<Pose Tracker> Alouette Pommier has posed.
"I will," Alouette nods. She does appreciate that Akane doesn't end up pressing too hard, but it's something she'll have to think over. But that can come a little later... she'd rather take the time to focus on their conversation.
"Criminal justice, huh? That's true... I'd imagine they both favour really different ways of thinking about people. And I feel like... that's the most important thing that comes out of a degree." Alouette nods. She thinks she might understand why Akane doesn't fully vibe with the criminal justice style of thinking. "I've heard it isn't too hard to change programs... so I guess there's no such thing as 'too late', though."
"Ehe, I'm not sure about teaching!" She figures she probably lacks the skills to explain things so effortlessly to an unfamiliar audience... but then again, that's a skill she might be better served picking up elsewhere. "You're probably right, though... I don't think I would get a lot out of pouring time and money into it."
The way Akane puts it, becoming a better-rounded person, makes sense to her. "The way I see it, it's less 'things you can't be good at' and more 'chances that never got to blossom'." She says. "I think I'll always love working with computers more than anything... but I don't want them to be my entire life, either." She finalizes, with a slight laugh.
As for 3G Green... "I think we have an idea of what's coming next... and it's going to be ugly." She nods, seriously. But Akane probably already knew that - and was willing anyways. "Whether that's true or not... you and Rikka seem like a pretty unstoppable team in the Kakuseijin V2." She points out, with a slight smile. "By this point, I know what you're both capable of. But I've got your backs, too... that's how we win here."
<Pose Tracker> Akane Shinjo has posed.
"Huh, yeah... well, I'll figure it out. I know a lot of people don't graduate in the same program they start in, and depending on the school you can go a long time without even picking anything to specialize in." ... That's a little anxiety-inducing in its own way, but she'll manage it.
"Chances that never got to blossom kinda makes it sound sadder to me!" Akane says, and that gets a smile and an awkward little giggle. "And... yeah. It sucks to have one thing be your whole life." She doesn't dig in too much deeper on this particular topic, though; it's... raising some complicated feelings in her that she doesn't want to dump onto Alouette.
It's kind of sad when 3G Green's status is the less stressful thing -- but even as she is now, Akane struggles with the future. "Ehehe... you think? It's -- she's the real star, but... it does take two, I guess." Laughing, she says, "I was kinda shaky on taking over that seat from Hinoki... but now we really need her doing Algernon stuff, so I guess it worked out."
<Pose Tracker> Alouette Pommier has posed.
"I think you will." Alouette agrees, on figuring things out. "I don't think there's any point in putting the pressure on right now, anyways... let's make it home, first." She truly has no doubt in her heart that they will be making it home.
"Sadder?" She asks, curious, even as Akane giggles. "It just means it needs some water... even if standing in the rain without an umbrella looks kind of silly." She mirrors Akane's smile with a little wordplay, of course.
"Hehe, and if I asked her, she'd say she couldn't do it without you." By rule that's how the Kakuseijin works, but she's operated for GaoGaiGo before - she knows the sub-pilot is important for more than just letting the machine move.
She pauses for a few seconds, struggling to find the words. "Either way... I'm still really glad you're here. And Rikka, too. Even Knight..." She says. "I know it won't be much longer... but having everyone here makes it so much more bearable, right?" She smiles again. "And thanks for coming by, too. It's been quiet... but the atmosphere has been really heavy, too. I guess it was a little grounding to just.. talk about post-high school plans for once." She laughs.
<Pose Tracker> Akane Shinjo has posed.
"Hahahaha... yeah. Like, most of my homework's already done... at this point going over it too much is kinda a waste." There's 'making sure to prioritize your long-term life' and there's 'pointlessly spinning your wheels,' and right now too much obsessing over hypothetical future classwork is definitely pointless wheelspinning.
Alouette's warmer perspective does get Akane the rest of the way out of that line of thinking... which is good, because it means she's perfectly capable of being excited to talk about Kakuseijin V2. "Hehehe... you're probably right," Akane concedes, rubbing at the back of her head awkwardly.
"It's been all of them... and that really does make it easier. "Ahaha, I'm glad I stopped by. I kinda needed to talk, too." She purses her lips a bit, and then says, "... I'm gonna go get something to drink from one of the vending machines... I can get you something, too. And then we can figure out if you want to tidy up, maybe?"
... it really is nice not to be in this alone.