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Lettuce+Rogue Bunny=Teaser
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 Quote:A diease with a mortality rate of 35 to 75% is the watered down version? O-O __________________ Into terror!, Into valour! Charge ahead! No! Never turn Yes, it's into the fire we fly And the devil will burn! - Scarlett Pimpernell Quote:Lord Obsidian really doesn't like humans. ^_^ Oh, and I have a resolution: N!Tate will be spending about two thirds of the Lingere Episode stoned out of his mind. But first I have to extract myself from this whole Natsuki mess... Ja, -n =========== =============================================== "V, did you do something foolish?" "Yes, and it was glorious."
Just started watching ep 4....
Quote:Keep the rotunda scene though...^^ BTW..when is forehead and her minion gonna be in the story? __________________ Into terror!, Into valour! Charge ahead! No! Never turn Yes, it's into the fire we fly And the devil will burn! - Scarlett Pimpernell Quote:Who? Blonde-and-Bossy and her friend Glasses? Their proper names are Suzushiro Haruka and Kikukawa Yukino - check my last post on the second page of this thread. Both of them will have larger roles later. Ja, -n =========== =============================================== "V, did you do something foolish?" "Yes, and it was glorious."
Hrm... I wasn't too impressed with Yukino -- nor Haruka really -- in Mai Hime (esp. around that confrontation with Shizuru) but Yukino and Haruka are imo much more likable in Mai Otome.
Quote:*checks*.... Got it. Somehow, I can't see Haruka smiling...unless it's with malicious glee. As for dynamite body...I'll just have to fininsh watching te series. __________________ Into terror!, Into valour! Charge ahead! No! Never turn Yes, it's into the fire we fly And the devil will burn! - Scarlett Pimpernell
*duckrollcovergrabfacefault*
Quote:Despite the fact that my avatar is a white-haired broken angel, neither he nor I could ever manage to pull off any amout of leather with any kind of style. Or comfort. Well, maybe a jacket. *kick* "Besides, the biggest problem right now is that 'that' rang," Natsuki Kruger said, gaze locked on the shape of the Windbloom Royal Palace, its presence towering even from that distance. "The news must be flying around everywhere right now," Shizuru Viola spoke up from beside her, completing the thought, if not the sentence. Two of the five Pillars of Garderobe, Meister level Otome dedicated solely to the preservation of the Academy, stood in the Headmistress' office, the floor to ceiling windows offering them a panoramic view of the city. If one looked hard enough, one could almost imagine seeing the waves spreading from this one stone having been cast into the pond that was Earl. Things that had been long dormant were being nudged, prodded, and sometimes outright shoved into motion by them. "Yeah, everyone's going to take action," the Headmistress finished, green eyes flashing with frustration. It wasn't that the suspicion of presence hadn't been there, before. But suspicion had, in many cases, been far too little to motivate action with the risks involved. The fact that the item in question was sitting right in what passed for Garderobe's backyard was something that made interested parties consider trying to go after it twice. And not on something as vague as a suspicion. Now, however ... "But it did bring some interesting questions up, didn't it?" Natsuki's eyes were drawn to a section of the city between Garderobe and the Palace. The place she'd been looking for stood out, at least now. The top floor, what was left of it, was certainly distinctive enough. "Well, it isn't like we didn't know there was more to them than met the eye," the green eyed woman commented, sighing. "They know far too much to be an uninvolved party." "Mm. But what is it exactly that they are involved in?" Shizuru said, arms slipping around her waist from behind. "Aswad, Schwarz, Black. All words from the old Earthen languages, all meaning the same thing. As different as what Schwarz is from what those who are messengers of the Valley are, what is Black?" "Well, whatever they are, they haven't made any overt moves in the past to suggest they're more than just messengers and information brokers. Useful ones, too," Natsuki half-shrugged. "Can we expect that to last, though?" "Given the effect of 'that' ringing, I doubt it," replied Shizuru. "Even if, as unlikely as it seems, they were not involved before, Mister Schrdinger did not seem like someone to let something like this go ... uninvestigated. Especially given the circumstances." "What circumstances, exactly?" "Well, it seems as thought recent events have left the gentleman less an apartment." Natsuki blinked, and resisted the urge to pinch the bridge of her nose. Black's representative, or whatever the hell he really was in that company, had struck her as a person who didn't lose his cool easily ... but getting the place you lived in blown up wasn't exactly something to be casually shrugged off. This was all going to end up in one big blowup, she just knew ... Natsuki startled out of her introspection as she felt her ear being nibbled on. "Shizuru!" "Hmm? Well, you were being far too serious again," the red eyed woman smiled innocently. Quote:Well, if we do get something wrong we can always pass it off as creative license, and stalinize later ^_^. -Griever When tact is required, use brute force. When force is required, use greater force. When the greatest force is required, use your head. Surprise is everything. - The Book of Cataclysm Quote:She does have a human side. Buried deep, somewhere. As for her figure, well, is there anyone who could honestly deny that that descriptor would apply to Mai? And pulling data off of the official site... Tokiha Mai - B/W/H: 87/56/83 Suzushiro Haruka - B/W/H: 88/55/80 ...well, numbers do not lie. Lie there, yes, but this time there doesn't seem that much room for interpretation. Ja, -n =========== =============================================== "V, did you do something foolish?" "Yes, and it was glorious." 
Let me just adjust those numbers for our friends still using Imperial measurements
Mai- 34/22/32 Haruka - 34/21/31 Still using the Japanese system of where the measurements are taken and how they're listed... Mai is likely to be listed in "centerfold" stats as a 32C/22/32 . . . However, I'm likely to be off by one letter, given the pneumatic effects of anime... ''We don't just borrow words; on occasion, English has pursued other languages down alleyways to beat them unconscious and rifle their pockets for new vocabulary.'' -- James Nicoll Quote:The manga gave her chest size as 87E...since the american/european system is one letter below it's japanese equivalent..Mai having a 32D chest and Haruka having a 32B minimum in american/european terms is likely. __________________ Into terror!, Into valour! Charge ahead! No! Never turn Yes, it's into the fire we fly And the devil will burn! - Scarlett Pimpernell
*Proof that no plan survives contact with the enemy*
Speaking of enemies..I hope N-Tate knows that the Tabris clone (Nagi?) and the director (Mashiro?) will realize that there is a 3rd person running around instigating things that are not in their script. Frankly, I'd be more worried about Nagi. He seems the type that likes to be the only conductor. __________________ Into terror!, Into valour! Charge ahead! No! Never turn Yes, it's into the fire we fly And the devil will burn! - Scarlett Pimpernell
So ... Nagi or 'someone else' (there's always a someone else) instigates several attempts on N!Tate's life, which the latter survives by the barest of margins.
Which leads to him being followed around by HiME acting as bodyguards. Possibly leading to his dorm room being ... aheh ... damaged in the process. Perhaps by an Orphan, or by a HiME herself. Whereupon he's forced to move in with one of them. Possibly the one who was partially at fault for the room being demolished. Bwhahahaha ...*chokes* *backtracks* ... y'know, Shizuru has a pretty big house ... *dies laughing* -Griever When tact is required, use brute force. When force is required, use greater force. When the greatest force is required, use your head. Surprise is everything. - The Book of Cataclysm Quote:Well, having now read the manga, I think I can safely say that it's going to have some pretty serious influences - the universe where he's ended up isn't precisely manga!canon or anime!canon, but rather could be viewed as the source behind both... or yet another AU, of course. His notes account for that, with him explicitly noting what happened where, and his own speculations included seperately from either. (Although he'll occaisionally forget it.) Among the many other factors in the manga is that it established quite unequivocally that Nagi is, 1, not human, and 2, really fucking badass in his own right. He wouldn't need help taking out a single crunchie, especially a concussed one. I can see him using it as a pretext for some of his other attacks, though, now that I think of it. There's definitely potential in 'someone else'... Koukuyo's people would be the only ones I can see being unprofessional enough not to be able to slip by the HiME, though. I'd think it'd be obvious by now, but I like the way you think. ^_^ Ja, -n =========== =============================================== "V, did you do something foolish?" "Yes, and it was glorious." Quote: *nod* *nod* If a HIME is going to bodyguard him, will it be just one HIME or a rotation? Shiho is not going to take kindly to one girl stuck to him like a limpet all day (unless it's her)..not to mention what it's going to look like to the rest of the student body. Now if it was a rotation...it'd be more practical, but I see a complication...look from it from the outside....if you're a high school girl/guy and see a guy with a parade of girls from Natsuki to Mikoto stuck to him like a barnacle either at either different days all week or different times of the day, what's the most obvious conclusion? This would cause all sorts of complications from Haruka to possible retribution by whichever girls have fanclubs. *snicker* __________________ Into terror!, Into valour! Charge ahead! No! Never turn Yes, it's into the fire we fly And the devil will burn! - Scarlett Pimpernell
The Shizuru Fanclub/Stalkers/Coterie is almost as scary as Shizuru herself... and Haruka has her Executive Committee devoted to rooting out moral corruption in the school...
*snag*
I am so very not satisfied with this - but I've got some homework to take care of by six thirty, so this is all there's time for. *boot* He was, after all, the best. It was obvious, given Okuzaki's presence and the HiMEs collusion, that his superiors' intended strategy of engineering their own indespensibility to each of the dozen competing players was now invalid. Failing to provide them with the information they were seeking would prevent them from supporting Natsuki in her current course, but it was unlikely that her own resources would be unequal to her apparent goal of accquiring undisturbed access to the First District's archives and - given Fujino's known friendship with her and apparent emotional state at the moment - it seemed likely that concealing his knowledge on the matter would involve his own expenditure as an asset. It might prove possible to move into a closer relationship with the HiMEs' coalition and use the knowledge of their personalities and goals to create the desired split and, in time, guide a chosen individual to success, but between the Fujino Group, the Okuzaki clan, and Director Kazahana's unknown and highly unpredictable agenda, it seemed unlikely that the Foundation would be able to replace him with any speed. In short, there was a great deal of potential benefit in cooperating, and none at all in resisting. Dissembling might be possible, but Fujino and Okuzaki would both have enough knowledge to see through any of the truly worthwhile ones he might tell, so... He shrugged. "She came, she tied me up, she asked where the First District's headquarters were. Of course I don't know, it's kept quite secret. She had that Duran of her sniff at me, I guess to make sure I wasn't lying, then left. I don't know where she went." She seemed to consider him for a moment, then smiled again. "Well, then, we won't trouble you any further. Shall we?" she asked Okuzaki, offering him her arm. "Hai," the younger boy told her, and they led the other two out of the apartment. Gyah. This's taking forever. Ja, -n =========== =============================================== "V, did you do something foolish?" "Yes, and it was glorious." Quote:Well, real life is that way. We are grateful the amusement you send our way. __________________ Into terror!, Into valour! Charge ahead! No! Never turn Yes, it's into the fire we fly And the devil will burn! - Scarlett Pimpernell Quote:Maa ... I just get these ideas, and sometimes I can't fit them in anywhere, but they'd work for someone else's story. Thanks ^_^. Quote:Just repeat to yourself - the worthwhile things usually do. If that doesn't work, I've got a cattle prod I can send you ^_^. *throw in* The more things change, the more they stay the same. My apartment and most of my office were a total loss. Repairs would take ... a while. Pretty much all of the labor that could have been hired to do them was busy at the Palace, and with the word out being that the Brat was going for a total remodelling ... well, if I was ever going to get my loft back, it wouldn't be anytime soon. Meanwhile, I was bunking in the workshop. There was actually a sleeping area in it, because all-nighters happened every now and again. The workshop itself, taking up most of the second floor of the building, was mostly used for gear maintenance, chiefly Frames since they got the most wear and tear. That aside, part of it doubled as a library of recovered technical texts, and one contained a forged documentation and user manual for the Rigs - simple computers that weren't really worthy of the title, and which were used as picture archives and analysis aids. The original had been something that I'd made a few years ago, on a long and extremely boring commercial flight between Foundations, after I'd managed to snag a Blade Runner rerun. I'd kept it with me ever since. Yes, the trip had been _that_ boring, and I was getting back from attending a course block on post-Wave computer systems. Then there'd been that engineering seminar out at Ultima - and, by the by, Sol seen from Pluto's orbit is still a sight - which was the mother of all long trips, and ended up in my cobbling together something that started off as a better toaster, and ended up being a hoverbike. The results were ... awkward. How awkward? I called them the Bullfrog. Amusingly enough, both of those hodge-podge affairs were currently being put to use. The Rigs, simplified - since the first try had looked like a reject from Wiring Hell - versions, for work on pictures, and the notes and Bullfrog itself - which was, at the moment, sitting in the garage a few floors down - as a baseline for what had, with a bit of work, become the Black Std. Issue Transport Frame. And no, I did not name the Prototype Anubis. I admit to having been tempted, though. In the night, it was perhaps the most quiet part of the building, if only because of the extra soundproofing on the walls and the metal shutters that covered the windows and served in much the same capacity. For the first time in I can't recall how long, I woke up sweating. Also, for the first time in a long, long while, I didn't remember what I'd dreamed. Not ... exactly, anyway. I threw off the cover of the cot, rising with a continuation of the motion, and crossed between the workbenches and free standing shelving, to end up in front of one of the outer walls and opening the shutters, letting moonlight filter in to look up at ... ... shrouded in crimson and dancing shadows, the flames licking nearly high enough to be touching it. Black, starless skies, the single orb peering down like a juding eye so much like their own ... I blinked. ...shining brightly in the night sky, waiting for the souls... I wondered who was doing the singing, until I realized my lips were moving. It was a conscious effort to stop them. The voice ... the voice had seemed nothing like my own, though. Too melodious, too ... alright, too feminine. Whatever had triggered that ... flash ... was either gone or no longer an issue, because I was looking out at a perfectly normal silvery moon with a bright blue star shining a bit to the side of it ... Why? Why? Why is it blue? You know it's supposed to be red. Red. Red like blood. Red like life. Red like the sheen on her lips when ... I steadied myself, pulling my AT Field close to my Core and waiting for the next mental ... attack? Was that what it had been? Regardless, it didn't come. The hand that had been laid on my shoulder made me jerk away and almost exclaim in surprise ... "You look troubled. Is this a bad time?" I had long since stopped wondering how she moved without alerting me. She'd told me she'd been built with stealth in mind as part of the design, but this went beyond mere mechanics. Just as she went beyond mere machine. Possibly, she felt the same way about my Field and other assorted things. Didn't really stop us from getting along ... to an extent. Her Batman act notwithstanding. "... I didn't expect to see you for a while," I managed after getting my breath back. "As a greated whole, the world is inherently unpredictable," she quoted my own words back at me. "I was merely drawn by circumstance. If you object to my company ..." I was never quite sure if she was serious when she said those things. She had a fair idea of humor by now, I wagered. I took it in stride. "I offered, didn't I?" She nodded. "Once upon a time." "Refreshments?" "I require none." "Would you _like_ some?" "... tea. Mint. If you have any." I shook my head, smiling. "You know I always do." Then I went to put the kettle on. Once this had been done, and with troubling dreams momentarily shoved into the back of my mind, I listened as Miyu related to me her visit to one Yumemiya Arika - an acquaintance of her and the new Garderobe student that whole mess during the coronation seemed to be, in part, centered around - as well as news from her own travels. The sort of news that doesn't really show up unless you stumble across it yourself. She was good at that. How she'd gotten the autopsy reports from Remulus and Romus wasn't something I was about to ask. Likely, in the same way she'd waltzed into the office, and workshop - both of which I'd considered secure before. We spent the night talking away, but in the end, still didn't really see how heavy and localized frostbite - the chief cause of death among most of the soldiers on either side, figured into the whole Lutetian situation. In the end, we agreed that we both needed more information on Shwarz's actions, supposed or not. Luckily, we would be getting a chance to acquire that much, at least, soon enough. Why? Because, as fun as messin with canon is, messing with alts is sometimes even more entertaining. -Griever When tact is required, use brute force. When force is required, use greater force. When the greatest force is required, use your head. Surprise is everything. - The Book of Cataclysm
The Plot Hammer O' DOOM is practically a -HiME trademark, was what I meant...
And yeah, I know that it's about characterisation and that Natsuki had to've had some serious reactions to the show's comments on her life, but her catatonia from canon doesn't feel right in this context, and I'm stuck trying to write her without my catalyzing viewpoint there to interact on top of having no idea where she's taking all this. Gah. *boot* * * * * * "Wow, you don't look nearly as impressive as someone as troublesome as you should," were the words that jolted me from... well, something close to real sleep. "I'm concussed, cut me some slack," I snapped, without opening my eyes. I was well aware that provoking Nagi like that wasn't likely to be conductive to my continued good health, but pain in general had always made me irritable, as had displacement or unexpected disruption of my life. I had already dealt with most of my issues with that - and let me tell you, forget how silly it might sound, having a therapist there to talk to who knows what she's doing is so very worth it - but having things finally start rolling then promptly go totally out of control had brought it back home all over again. "Oh, I know - but that wasn't what I meant at all. After all you've done to cause problems for me, are you just going to lie there and accept whatever I decide to do? That hardly seems like something to be expected from someone a Guardian picked..." "What am I gonna do? Throw up on you? I can't even walk straight, and that's not even getting into the fucking migrane you're setting off just turning the lights on through my eyelids." I laid an arm across the aformentioned organs. "I've already shot my bolt, frankly, and you're not stupid enough to change your mind about whatever you'd decided to do just on the spur of the moment, so please - can we either get it over with or postpone the witty banter 'till some time after the rabid diamond-clawed weasels stop trying to claw their way out through my skull?" He laughed. "Oh, this is going to be fun! None of the other dances had someone like you jamming along with the band - and you do know that the music makes the difference between a good dancer and a great one, don't you?" There was a subtle alteration in the air around me, and I could feel him lean close. "Besides, the payment should suit the debt, shouldn't it? Simply killing you wouldn't prove anything..." And then he was gone. I groaned. Fucking bastard had left the lights on. * * * * * An echoing, banging clatter woke me the second time. "Sagisawa-sensei!" After a moment, just before the nurse confirmed it, I placed the voice as Shizuru's. "No, Fujino, it's not something I'm going to argue over. She needs rest, and however worried you may be, having you hovering over her will not help her get it!" Shizuru didn't answer directly, but I could hear her murmur, "be well, my natsuki" from somewhere to my right before she walked out and closed the door - softly, fortunately for me. "'My Natsuki'?" She sounded amused. "I don't suppose either of you are awake to comment on that?" "I don't want to talk about it," Natsuki muttered, and I had to snicker a little before I experimented with opening my eyes. The top of my head didn't blow off, so I decided to take a little risk and try and lever myself to sit up a little. "She's scary," I said. "I see nothing, I hear nothing, I know nothing, and I most especially say nothing." That won a laugh, which was most of the point. "All right. I need to go pick up a couple of things from the mail room - don't either of you go anywhere while I'm gone, okay?" There was a moment of silence after she had gone, but then I snuck a look at Natsuki and had to bite my lip to keep from laughing - which probably wouldn't have done my head any good. You wouldn't think that a girl who'd give most models a run for their money would be capable of looking that cute, but her combination of an irritated scowl and a heavy blush pulled it off easily. I didn't comment, of course. I'm not that dumb. Quite. "Did you find what you needed?" I asked instead. "...No," she said eventually, voice low and a little rough, like she'd had a cold, or been crying a lot - which she probably had, come to that. "Not really. I... I guess I've never... really thought about my Mom. Like, as herself, rather than just as... Mom. What you'd seen... I needed to know... if she could have done that. "They didn't say a thing," she suddenly snarled. "Nothing about it! Like I didn't matter - like she didn't matter..." She leaned forwards a little and hugged her knees to her chest. Something occurred to me that hadn't before. "Was she working alone?" "What?" "Well... you want to know who she was, right? Who she was as a person? If she had coworkers, then shouldn't they..." It wasn't a beaming grin. Natsuki wasn't the sort of person who would use an expression like that. But her cheeks lifted a little, and her eyes weren't nearly as sad. "They'd know her... thank you." I'd never known how to handle any sort of compliment or thanks, let alone one so obviously important to the giver, so I could only look away and awkwardly mutter, "It's nothing." I don't remember the rest of the afternoon as clearly, but that was the first occaision I had to get to know who Kuga Natsuki was behind the 'tough biker' image. The thing that really surprised me, I think, was how lively she became once she started to relax a little - sure, she stayed all prickles and puritan morals, but I ended up losing my train of thought completely several times when I noticed that she had started waving her hands around and gesturing fiercely to try and make a point. It was an utterly un-Japanese mannerism, and even more unexpected coming from someone with her personality. She was a lot of fun to talk to - I was almost sad when we got sent back to our rooms, and in retrospect neither of us had even noticed when Nurse Sagisawa came back. Now that is rather more like it! Ja, -n =========== =============================================== "V, did you do something foolish?" "Yes, and it was glorious." Quote:The Sgt Shultz defense....works great if spoken in a German accent. __________________ Into terror!, Into valour! Charge ahead! No! Never turn Yes, it's into the fire we fly And the devil will burn! - Scarlett Pimpernell Quote:Well, if it isn't Xellos Jr, himself. Quote:At least he's not charging interest. Here's my take on Kuga Natsuki: On the outside she's the Ice Princess. Someone unapproachable, perfect and on a pedestal. On the inside.... Someone who cannot help but try and help/save people, even if she has to bash someone on the head a couple of times. And someone who is an Epicurian. That lingerie collection of hers is proof of that. She's definintely a tsundere. Tough and hard on the outside, soft, sweet and chewey on the inside. Quote:Dear me...does that mean N-Tate is going to be Shizuru's rival? ^^.......lol __________________ Into terror!, Into valour! Charge ahead! No! Never turn Yes, it's into the fire we fly And the devil will burn! - Scarlett Pimpernell Quote:N-Tate has to be *alive* to be Shizuru's rival... and *coughs* Shizuru's rival(s) tend to have a nasty habit of dying... disappearing... discombobulated... Quote:What, you mean when everything starts happening in exactly the wrong way and carefully built structures collapse like _so_ many cheap playing cards just pretending to be a house in a stiff breeze? Yeah. Though that's something that I haven't the foggiest whether or not I'll actually be able to do. I _have_ a point when the situation is going to become really FUBAR planned, but I have no idea whether or not it'll work out. Quote:Agreed. And, ooh, Nagi's playing that game as well? Hehe. I suppose Mr. Bad Hairday didn't _only_ pay off some people to shoot Tate, then. Which begs asking whether or not the Black Guardian had taken N!Tate into account. Maybe 'his' people merely want to lull his opposite number's agent into a false sense of security. Or maybe I'm just paranoid. I've often wondered where the seemingly magical camouflage properties of a hawaiian shirt came from. If you were to have me guess, I'd say it was sensory overload. The shirt is so damn visually loud that you not only don't but _can't_ notice the person, because of the morbid curiosity not letting you go as you stare and wonder 'Is that an actual pattern, or did someone drink too much and puke on it?' or something similar. It seemed to work for Nagi dai Artai, though it was about as difficult to misidentify him as it was to mistake ... well, me, for someone else. As of the latest population count, there was still a shortage of white haired, red eyed people on Earl, and the number didn't seem to be rising any. I briefly shuddered as the concept of dai Artai spawning came across my mind. Then did so again as the concept of doing so myself did. Not that I found the process objectionable, but ... well, simply put, the way things stood now? That'd end up being one messed up kid, pretty much no matter what. Genes allowing, he'd try to end the world. So, not going to happen. Not that I was seeing Nagi dressed like that in person. Rather, the picture I was currently holding did well to bring home the situation. If height were any indication, he was about as old as the Royal Brat of Windbloom, and if whispers were to be believed he wanted to capitalize on that in the grand tradition of people wanting to strengthen their countries the easy way - by marrying into power. Well, more power. Artai wasn't exactly rich, or as powerful - in a military way, at least - as Lutetia or Cardair, but it was still a country, still had a military ... And had placed two students in Garderobe. One of whom had set up a neat little network of connections to the shadier social circles. The trouble with Juliet-ane-san was that you were never able to be quite sure of her loyalties. The information she sold us was accurate, though ... I chuckled. Well, that wouldn't be the first case of employing, or subcontracting, as it were in this case, to someone whose priorities were suspect. "You know, this really isn't that much of a laughing matter," I was told. Wind whipped around outside and below, whistling through the crags of the rock wall Desert Port - the departure point for most of the ... oh, hell, I'll call them sandcrawlers and be done with it ... sandcrawlers leaving Windbloom - had been built into. The balcony we were on was deserted, the people having departed either on the sandcrawler going out or on the maglev train into the city. Didn't really make me or him any less cautious. Hence the fact that we'd taken a smallish table in the balcony's nook, which had us obscured from most of the platform. "Actually, I find the shirt hilarious," I deadpanned. He snorted and shook his head in reply. Neither of us was dressed to look inconspicous at first glance, myself in one of the spare runner kits - a tough pair of riding pants and a moderately heavy tan jacket, complete with adjustable hood which was currently up to hide my hair - and him in the clothes I pretty much always saw him in, meaning the dark green chinese style pants and jacket. The braid just made the image even more complete. Still, it was more about attitude than it was about clothing. Acting like you belonged and everything was perfectly fine was as important as looking like you belonged. A few subtle mental nudges with a thinly spread AT Field to anyone who came close enough to be interested in our conversation derailed any potential eavesdroppers. "Dai Artai doesn't do these things without a reason, and him having a meeting with Smith of Schwarz?" "You've been in and out of Artai for longer than anyone else, Yamada," I shrugged. "What do you think it means?" "Other than a hunch just being proven right?" the braid wearing man gave me a wry smirk. "The Grand Duke wants Windbloom. He's wanted it for a long time, for one reason or another. It follows that this alliance they've made is going to result in something soon, since when dai Artai does something seemingly drastic, results usually follow close behind. What happens then? That's anyone's guess. It's as likely that they'll stay allies, as it is that one party will get rid of the other." I nodded. "Schwarz ... I have speculations of my own, but what do you think about the why?" "Romulus and Remus. The situation has their fingerprints all over it, if you know where to look. They're testing something. My guess is, they want some closer secure location to make sure whatever it is they're doing doesn't go wrong for them," Yamada pretty much confirmed what I'd been thinking. I nodded again. "She visisted yesterday," I remarked, off-handedly. I didn't really need to name who I was speaking of, since there was only a single person to visit either of us like that, coming and going unannounced and as she pleased. "After what she said, I think we're going to be sending someone to have a better look at things in Lutetia." "I have no time," he replied. "One of my other employers is nearly running me ragged, though it's killing two birds with one stone, really, since he wants me to look into Schwarz as well." "I figured. I'd thought I'd send a runner, or even go by myself ... Windbloom is nice and all, but it's gotten a little stuffy." "Even with the new skylight you've put in?" I sighed wearily. Did he _have_ to mention that one? They'll never let me live it down, either of them, though Miyu was a bit more ... subtle, in her digs. Serves me right for coming clean with the guy back when we three were laying the groundwork for Black. Yamada, one of the two silent partners of Black, Miyu being the other? Seems to work. Barring eventual future developments in Otome, of course. And hey, everyone's got their own agenda. -Griever When tact is required, use brute force. When force is required, use greater force. When the greatest force is required, use your head. Surprise is everything. - The Book of Cataclysm Quote:*pikupiku* *checks google* Oh! What a useful word... I'd never run into it before. And, yeah, she's a pretty textbook case. Quote:He has no such intention. ^_^ Quote:Actually, as I tried to show, Nagi hasn't got a clue what's up with N!Tate, or why he should be important in the first place. Obviously he knows too much, but how? And what's he after? The tough thing about lulling scar-boy into a false sense of security (beyond the fact that I can and often do take anxiety and worry over, well, anything into the realm of all-out neurosis) is that his 'plan' basically boils down to 'Tell the HiME everything, so you can rely on them being able to make good decisions since they have the proper data, then make the rest up as you go along.' As far as he's concerned, now that the Hime-sentai are known to and working with each other, he's nothing but a cheerleader! Quote:I doubt it. They are likely out to get you. I'm honestly not sure what I had expected to see when I walked out of my dorm single (student council perk - so worth it), but a redhead in a carefully retailored and just short of scandalous version of the standard Academy middle school uniform certainly was not it. "Yuuki Nao?" I guessed weakly. "Heeeey," she purred, standing away from the wall and slinking over towards me. "Just the man I wanted to see." Brrr. She was going to be deadly in a couple-three years. "At your service," I told her as mildly as I could. "Although both of us probably have places we should be getting to in not terribly long." "Awww..." She had a devastating and well practiced cute pout. "Are you sure it can't wait? There are a lot of things I wanted to talk to you about..." Glomp, snuggle, squish. Jeez. Since when was I old enough that fourteen counts as 'too young for interest'? And yes, I was and am well aware of exactly how close Mai was to that age, and how much of a hypocrite that fact made me. "This is about that letter that Shiho-chan and Mikoto-san delivered, right? Yeah, go ahead." It was sort of creepy, actually - I could see the moment when she switched gears, an almost audible 'click' between 'do me' and 'protect me'. It made me sad, though I'm not sure why. I was so busy thinking about that that I missed her first sentance or two, and by the time I had tuned back in she was giving me an entirely too old and cynical glare. "You're not buying a word of this, are you?" "Not really, no." She growled and ran a hand through her hair, muttering something about 'wackos' under her breath. "Alright, fine. What's your price?" "Everything's already there," I told her gently. That made her laugh, though her expression was more like a snarl. "Do you honestly expect me to buy that bullshit? Nobody does things like that!" I shrugged. "Why shouldn't they? But no - I don't expect you to believe me. Besides what you might call my altruistic reasons, though, there's another logic: The information available to me indicates that the Obsidian Lord wants the human race gone - dead, destroyed, extinct. As a human myself, and a benificiary of all the benefits of civilization, that's obviously counter to my interests. Since all thirteen HiME - including you - share that interest, and in light of the fact that almost none of your other interests conflict, and since I myself am essentially powerless, the greatest step I can take towards preserving myself and my environment is providing y'all with the information needed to carry out your individual agendas more effectively. Attempting to edit the information I pass on to each individual HiME might grant me more influence over your choices and their repercussions, but given the complexity of the system and the fact that I'm far from the only active influence on same, it would also increase the risks involved to a far greater degree." She blinked, then groaned. "Is the inside of your head always that twisty?" "No," I admitted. "Every time I've followed a track like that I've found that it comes out in pretty much the same place as the morals I was raised on... which are a little wierd, granted, but that's a different question. So usually I don't bother, or at most just kind of try and intuit the problem." Nao just groaned again. I'm stopping here because I just know she wouldn't give in that easy - and even otherwise she shouldn't, since that'd ruin her dramatic impact as a character - but I'm having a hard time figuring out the rest of her reaction because as soon as the Nao-in-my-head comes up with one, the rest of my brain pounces on the thing and tears its logic to shreds before I can write it down. Ja, -n =========== =============================================== "V, did you do something foolish?" "Yes, and it was glorious." |
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