2018-05-27: Childcare Services
- Log: Childcare Services
- Cast: Fei Fong Wong, Riesenlied, Elhaym van Houten, Noeline
- Where: Taben's Peak
- Date: 27th May 2018
- Summary: After the battle with Id, Riese, Noeline and Elly spend some time with the Fereshte and Taben's Peak children when Fei visits them.
<Pose Tracker> Fei Fong Wong has posed.
Shortly after being taken captive by small children, Elly (and really everyone including Riesenlied and Noeline) are let free from their cells and given tasks to do at Taben Peak. This could be entertaining the children or performing repairs, or other work. It seems like everybody who was taken to Taben Peak was giving duties along these lines, if in a sort of casual haphazard way. The Fereshte's repairs have been slow going since it crashed in Taben Peak due to it being considerably shorter staffed than before and it's always harder to fix than it is to build. Hammer has been providing periodic aid but he's having difficulty working through the frankly ridiculous work that was done to make the Fereshte work in the first place. It's so strangely put together that Hammer has to relearn everything. He has asked Riesenlied to try and bring some of the original tech crew back to help out.
Speaking of Hammer, he's overjoyed to see the Black Wolves again and it seems he wasn't in terribly much danger after all. While he wasn't allowed to leave, Nall has finally given him free reign of the facility after all the work he's done at Taben Peak and, actually, gotten him a nicer room. Now Hammer is on top!
And frankly, while the surroundings aren't exactly pretty, there's a kind of Wayside-like joy that can be found here that might be nostalgic.
Fei ends up showing up a few days after your capture. He is brought in via a net and locked into a cell like everybody else. He asks where Elly is with frequency but eventually is let out to teach the kids arts and crafts (he sneaks in some martial arts' lessons because that's what he's used to when it comes up).
Eventually he's able to pull free and start looking for his friends. Seems like his cold has passed.
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
A WHILE AGO
An unconscious Riesenlied is placed into a cell, along with the others.
SHORTLY AFTER, A WHILE AGO
"Riesemama!" "Waaai mama's back mama's back!" "I wanna go in there with mama!"
A minor stampede trembles across the Grindery as the Fereshte's orphans rush down and pile down into the cell, followed shortly by Muni-Muni bobbling behind them, and then also followed by Cetiri.
Nall probably has a complaint that it's ridiculous for everyone to crowd inside a cell and that beats the point of a cell anyway!!!
NOW
Riesenlied is awake again, and appears to have been commissioned, for the time being, to have her children lay around her lap dozing off and cuddling her and otherwise getting spoiled for their time away.
Several other kids are chasing Cetiri around with what seems like a game of tag -- and the dog-shaped robot mother doesn't seem... to mind... too much.
She's sweetly doing some sewing to fix up some children's clothing when Fei shows up, leaning over as she wipes some curry off a child's nose. "Just hold still, and... there," she smiles warmly.
She's in her happy place at present.
<Pose Tracker> Elhaym van Houten has posed.
ELLY VAN HOUTEN - PRISONER OF THE FERAL CHILDREN!
Elly had not resisted arrest a lot. She was tired. She didn't want to do a hit. The children, while clearly mismanaged, were not laden with horror. If she was going to get stabbed while asleep, it would happen.
But then she was free.
Elly has been set to two jobs here, since one of them is very easy.
That easy job is lighting fires. Have you ever tried to light a fire without a match or a pilot light? Suffice it to say that it's a monster pain in the ass, and as far as the children can tell, Elly just has to wiggle her fingers and point and there is a little 'pouf!' and a merry fire, suitable for lighting a campfire or a torch or a cookstove.
The harder job is...
"And then, at the last possible moment," Elly says as she carries a bundle of collected sticks under her arm. "When all hope seemed lost, with both of the Lieutenants hurt, with the Security Squad all tied up in chains of ice and fire, with only her -Sidearm- between her and the enormous surface monster, Special Agent Alouette heard a merry beep beep."
"It was Purapura!" cheers one of the children.
"Was it Purapura?"
"It was the - uh - the Zee Twenty Two, right? The new Gear!"
"It was the Z Double Two, dummy!"
Elly quietly drops her bundle of sticks.
"Was it a bundle of sticks?!" "No!"
"Fei!!" Elly says in astonishment.
"Who's Fei?" complains a child. ("Probably that guy," says a more perceptive stripling.)
<Pose Tracker> Noeline has posed.
Noeline is probably the primest example of 'allowing herself to be captured', if only because she was entirely ready to just bring her strength to bear and drag her net along behind her in her struggle to get back to Riesenlied. Had she really wanted to, she could probably have forced her way out of the net - instead, with Cetiri and the Fereshte standing in front of them, the obvious thing to do seems to be to go along with the group and allow herself to be captured.
She does admittedly give Cetiri the odd dirty look, from time to time wondering audibly why /they/ get to be stuck in a bet when the robot mom does not, but she doesn't really have the heart to push the issue further, especially not when the Fereshte comes into view. Her sigh of relief is audible, all the moreso when she spies the rest of the Ebony Wings, and that seems enough for her to allow herself to be led on with Riesenlied at her side.
"Honestly," she's grumbling at the moment in the direction of the merchant as she returns to the 'room' she and Riesenlied have been sharing. "Your message made it sound as if you were facing some dire assassins, not a bunch of admittedly very resourceful children. We were prepared for one 'worst' and got two others instead. ... it is good to see you safe," she admits afterwards with another huff.
There's always stuff that needs lifting, and Noeline's raw strength is a bit better than many of the Tainteds, and easier to apply; she's put it to use replacing some of the panelling of the Fereshte, using the opportunity to try to get a sense of what else needs to be done and who would be best to do it. The rest of the time, well... she's not as much of a mothering sort as Riese is, but even she appreciates the time to catch up, smiling at the sight of Riesenlied's pile.
<Pose Tracker> Fei Fong Wong has posed.
Fei sees Riesenlied first purely for cheap dramatic effect. "Hey Riese... I see you're uh. Busy." He laughs awkwardly. "It seemed like the aftermath of a war zone out there, but it seems like everybody's okay." If they weren't okay he doubts Riesenlied would be this chipper. "I'm going to guess ... that this isn't the Shadow Dragon Cult." He watches Cetiri being chased by a small army of children. He smiles at it because it's pretty adorable honestly. "Guess someone bit off more than they could chew." Or perhaps someone's bark is stronger than their bite. Still, he doesn't want to jar Riesenlied from her happy place TOO much.
He hears some nearby storytelling and his eyes widen. "Elly!" He shouts, rushing over in her direction (Riese is already full on hugs). He will hug her unless stopped. "You're okay!"
MEANWHILE
Hammer says, "I said 'fierce children'!" to Noeline as he works on tightening a sprocket. "Then they jumped me and started pulling on my fur and tickling me. It was horrible." He grins back at Noeline. "But thanks! It turned out for the best, right?"
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
Somewhere not terribly far away from the Feresthe, Muni-Muni has developed yet another new form, particularly one of a springy Bouncy Castle that both the Taben Peak and Fereshte orphans are jumping up and down on. Given Muni's bioelectric nature, she can also apparently manifest cool glowing lights on it, which is currently being used for some kind of 'don't stand on the lava' game. It's a whole lotta fun.
Riesenlied smiles as she listens intently to Elly's story, wondering if Special Agent Alouette is going to make it out okay...!
"I'm just glad it all went okay... thank you so much for everything you've done, Hammer," Riesenlied expresses sweetly. One of the children to, "Mama...!" and Riese attends to her, holding up a spoonful of curry to go, "Aaah..." Nom. She watches as Fei and Elly unite, glad for their presence.
<Pose Tracker> Elhaym van Houten has posed.
Elly does not resist. She hugs back, in fact. "Oh, Fei--"
"No mushy stuff!" "I hate mush!" "Yeah, mush is for idiots." "I only want cold, brutal mush with the stomping and roaring of Gears!"
Elly explains to Fei, with a laugh and a pinkening of her cheeks, "I was just telling them stories. Oh my goodness. Did they capture you...?"
Her eyes turn towards Riesenlied for a moment, and she opens her mouth as if to answer --
--When a child interjects. "Hey! You can draw, right?"
"Yeah! Draw the Special Agent!" "And the Gear!" "Does she wear the Gear like a big suit of armor?"
Elly mutters to Fei, "They're from, um, home, so, some of the details didn't really..."
She doesn't seem in a rush to end the embrace.
"So they've put us all to work... You can see Riesenlied there, of course, and I know Noeline's been doing heavy lifting. I'd walk you over there but -"
"DRAW ALOUETTE! DRAW ALOUETTE! DRAW ALOUETTE!"
Elly tilts her head at the children. (One of them adds, helpfully, "Lady you dropped your wood. Did you mean to? Is there a reason you didn't pick it up yet?")
<Pose Tracker> Noeline has posed.
At least a couple of the orphans have made their way over to Noeline, curious about the part of the ship that Hammer is working on; Noeline is quick to scoop them up onto her shoulders before they can get too close to something dangerous, huffing as she begins to shepherd them back over to Riesenlied. "That much I cannot deny," she notes in a surprisingly solemn moment back to Hammer as she agrees with Riesenlied's statement, despite the light chuckle. "You certainly did find the Fereshte, which is more than I managed even with it right under our noses. Good work."
Carefully setting the pair down amidst Elly's audience, she leans down to pat one of the girls on the head, her smile rather softer than normal. "When you're a little older I'm sure you'll be able to help out - for now, though, it's a bit dangerous," she lectures lightly. "Besides, Riesemama's missed you more than anyone."
She snorts loudly with a growing grin as Fei begins to get mobbed; she studies the martial artist for a moment, but then lets whatever worries she has go. Even if things do look rough outside, as Hammer says, they did turn out for the best in the end, and she hasn't the heart to interrupt the pastoral scene too hard.
Seating herself next to Riese and leaning slightly into the other woman, she lets out an audible 'ahem'. "If you ask me, the Special Agent's Gear disguises itself as her pet." Hiro has left.
<Pose Tracker> Fei Fong Wong has posed.
Fei reddens too (the cheeks, not the hair, thankfully) but sorry kids, he's not exactly in a rush to end the embrace either. It's been a while since he's seen Elly and while he's still pretty shy he is completely one hundred percent okay with mushy stuff. The scene slides away for a moment to Hammer.
"Heh heh..." Hammer says. "Don't underestimate the power of my information network." He pauses for a moment before adding, "Though really I uh. Stumbled upon it myself. But one of my guys heard some noises in the area shortly after we arrived so I figured it was worth a look."
The scene cuts back to Fei having passed the mushy stu--
--oh wait no in Xenogears they're pretty clear about what's going on. In this case, he's giving Elly a kiss, creating more mushy stuff for the children to worry about. He has no qualms about this nor does he apologize for it. That declaration back when they first reconnected wasn't just for Solaris after all!
He does pull back a bit when they're demanding him to draw 'Alouette' however so he says, "Well, I missed the story." He admits. "But what does this special agent happen to look like?" He's kind of half looking at the kids and half looking at Elly here. Maybe three fourths Elly here.
Fei adds, "I'm sorry I wasn't here. As soon as I recovered I came by." He hesitates a bit on that. He feels like he's missing some time--but he doesn't dwell on it. Maybe it was a bit more than a cold.
"And well," He admits to Elly. "I wasn't about to uh. Punch a bunch of kids." He managed to befriend Dan. He has high kid tolerance.
Or 'manlet' tolerance as the case may be.
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
Riesenlied flushes a little, and politely looks away (and covers the eyes of the child she's spoonfeeding) as she smiles warmly towards Noeline. She's not about to give her partner a kiss of her own, bashful as she is, but... the thought is there, at least, as she reaches over and squeezes her hand. "I feel whole now, reunited with our family and friends."
The girl Noeline pulls out grumps to go, "Okaaa~y..." as she sits down to listen in on storytime. At the very least, a lot of the villagers have chipped in to day to day activities at Taben's Peak; with a good several dozen or more, it's been a lot more lively around the place than it was before.
"It was... trying, but I'm glad we all escaped, ourselves. To think we would see the Dragonmaster himself..." Riesenlied furrows her brow for a moment. "We'd best consider how to lift the Fereshte out so we don't bother them for too long. We should also contact Lydie and the CaraKin, and let them know we've found the skyship."
Smash cut of Muni and Lydie lifting the Fereshte wholesale and going 'peww' and running down the mountain with it.
... weirder things have happened ...
<Pose Tracker> Elhaym van Houten has posed.
The children look at Noeline.
Then to Elly.
Who is being smooched on. Her face burns a hot red that almost but doesn't quite match her hair, and her mouth hangs open for a moment, startled, stunned, ensorceled, but that is kind of easily drowned out by a chorus of "GRODY"
The children consider the question of Alouette's appearance. (One of them adds, "You better not have tried anything, mister. The Tall Ones have been our servants since forever!" The child is not entirely wrong.)
"Ah, everyone," Elly finally says. "This is Fei, we -"
"DON'T CARE" call the children. There is motion towards seating.
Elly murmurs to Fei, even as she gives Riesenlied and Noeline a pleading look as if she is in captivity, "She had blonde hair, she wore it short. Kind of bouncy, but not very wavy. Um. That's all I can really remember."
Elly has recovered enough to speak. "Ah - um - Noeline; it's possible, but in the... I... suppose it doesn't really matter. It isn't known for sure, so it could be possible, yes... But how could an animal get as big as a Gear?"
<Pose Tracker> Noeline has posed.
With a toothy grin, Noeline looks back towards Hammer from her seat next to Riesenlied. "It's as you said: everything worked out in the end. Even if we got there in a slightly rocky fashion, I dare say it still counts." Her face turns into a completely comical frown at the chorus of yells from some of the children, and one eyebrow twitches higher; Riesenlied's hand ends up in hers to steal her attention away, however, and she huffs happily. "... I'm glad," she replies honestly. "It-- is a relief, that's for sure."
Ever the more impulsive of the two, she /does/ go in for that kiss, brief but heartfelt, and when the inevitable chorus goes up again she just grins. "Jealous?" she hums at the Taben's Peak children, likely to be the ones protesting more when it comes to Noeline and Riese, and repeats it for good measure.
Looking immensely proud of herself for that, she settles back, drifting back towards more serious talk. "I've already sent work to Mikaia and Janey to let them know we're alright," she reports to both Riesenlied and everyone else present, half expecting the pair to suddenly show up. "As for the Carakin, they're around Vane and Meribia enough that I doubt it'll be much of a problem to find them."
There is a pause.
"/Obviously/ it shrinks down when it does so," she adds as she folds her arms around one of Riesenlied's with a huff. "A Special Agent wouldn't be any good at sneaking around if her Gear was stomping around all over the place. Besides, if she can spring it out as a surprise, it can be her getaway vehicle."
<Pose Tracker> Fei Fong Wong has posed.
Fei missed you Elly. Indeed, now that he has engaged operation: smooch, he seems to be calmer, more collected. It's not by much (he was already pretty chill) but it's likely noticeable. He does not complain about Noeline also introducing even more mush to the equation. Actually it's kind of nice, really, knowing that in spite of everything, they still have each other. Leon and Lily still have each other...He always worries when he sees joy like this that it could get taken away. Not yet, though, not yet.
Besides it's hard to stay dour when there's a small army of excitable children. "Hmm... short blonde hair--bouncy--and some kind of transforming...animal gear. I suppose I can handle the uniform too." HE HAS HIS SUSPICIONS on what that might look like.
He ducks down and gets to work, starting with a basic sketch. "Now you start with these circles," He says. "But you want them light so you can draw over them later..."
Hammer says, "You saw the Dragonmaster?" to Riese. "Was he uh..." A long pause. "Was he a di---iiiieeeecent individual?"
Close one there Hammer.
"So what animal?" Fei asks.
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
Riesenlied watches with a smile as the child she's nursing hops down to join story time, now that her bowl of curry is empty. She returns to her sewing for a moment, blushing just for a moment as the children chant and stammers, "Now now, don't be too rowdy, children..."
But Noeline does sneak in that kiss, and she-- gasps just for a moment. "A-aah..." her horns wilt cutely as she flushes up, and the Taben's Peak children gawk as her own go, "That's just Riesemama for you!"
She looks at Hammer and-- tilts her head, nodding. "He was an elf, I believe...? I do not believe he is a beastman..." A pause. "But yes! He came to our rescue and seemed to be very amiable."
Cetiri appears to have gotten piled on, as she intones: "Well done, heroes, you have vanquished the Beast, but beware...!" Her tail lashes several times, as it snags around the cheekiest so that she can lift her up and down, like it were a swing. "Gwaaa, the Beast's reach is vast!!" "Avast, matey!"
<Pose Tracker> Elhaym van Houten has posed.
Elly settles down near Fei as he starts drawing. She wants to touch her lips to feel what the rest of her is feeling, to see if it's truly there. Some kind of contact drug... but she doesn't reach up that far: she has, in the end, her dignity.
She smiles at Noeline, a little weakly. The presence of Fei the drawer means she can speak over the children. "So I suppose that's to be our 'rescue party'?" Looking to Hammer, she says, "If you're prepared to be 'rescued,' of course. We were very worried for you, Hammer... I'm glad we can finally chat a little."
She sweeps her hair back with a roll of the head. "It's been quite a handful..."
Yet she doesn't seem to be complaining, exactly.
The children are given a question. Proposals are raised.
"A kitty."
"A great big wolf! WAOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO"
"I heard there's supposed to be birds the size of horses." ("Those are made up." "But they're from the BLUE STAR, they could have real big birds...")
It seems there's no consensus, Fei. ("A monkey!")
<Pose Tracker> Noeline has posed.
"A little overbearing, perhaps," Noeline interprets Hammer's drawn-out original question neatly and diplomatically. "But we do rather owe him for the assistance, given the fight that went on and our state at the end of it. Besides, the sheer number of things that /could/ have happened to the Ebony Wings and the Fereshte hear on Lunar, and we find both intact and well - that itself is worth recognizing with a little respect," she chuckles.
She's quick to stroke Riesenlied's hair, too, angling the other woman to lean against her with a prideful little chuckle. "... honestly... I think your mother has finally let it go to her head," she comments in amusement, watching as Cetiri roars outside. "If I try to imagine her doing something like this two, three years ago, I simply can't. She's gotten quite possessive of these sorts of things," says Miss Kettle, as she calls the pot black.
Elly brings up a good point; they've still got business in Vane, after all, and if Noeline is sure of anything it's that Riesenlied won't be able to leave either alone. "... I am not sure how long we intend to stay, but I am quite, quite sure we'll be moving between the two locations a great deal," she nods. "Vane probably could not handle an influx of this amount... I suppose we may have to talk to Nall to square the whole business away and work out what happens from here on. We've still a lot to do to try to secure a route home, as well."
<Pose Tracker> Fei Fong Wong has posed.
Fei says, "Hmm... I hear a cat...wolf... A monkey. A bird... Let's see..."
He shifts the side of the paper and draws what in common parlance would be a 'MASCOT CHARACTER' with characteristics of all the animals mentioned. The wings of a bird! The tail of a monkey! The paws of a wolf! The face of a cat! "It seems like it looked a bit like...this!" He says.
This isn't very Solarian Propaganda at all Elly but this does seem like something you could sell at cafepress or something. Fei is artistic enough that he can add all these qualities and make it look cute instead of 'an abomination'. He's gotten good at drawing cute since meeting so much cute even if his style is usually more impressionistic.
Hammer nods slowly to Noeline. "Yeah, that makes sense. I mean, no need to make enemies we don't need." And it seems that the Guard didn't arrest anybody either so that's...nice. He gives Miss Elly a smile. "Heh, well--It's nice here and all and I'll have to come back to help with repairs, but it'll be nice to get back to Vane for a bit. I need to anyway in order to get more supplies. Only so much I can do with what I've got. I figure I'll be sticking around a bit to help the Fereshte though. Captain's orders!"
Hammer then hesitates and adds, "You uh... You doing okay yourself?" He's a super awkward Hammer.
"Yeah," Fei says, looking up. "It's good to see you're alright, Hammer. Sorry I didn't make it to the rescue party. But I guess y'all didn't need my help anyway." That's also kind of a relief. He looks over to Elly and adds, "I don't know if you heard, but the Shadow Dragon Cult--it's a group that Jean has some past with--it's been kidnapping children from here. One of the Four Heroes--Master Lunn--seems to want us to deal with it? I'm guessing Jean figures if we can get in good with the Heroes, it'll be easier for the Fiends to do what they need to do down the road. Maybe they'll stop hunting Lucia."
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
Riesenlied can barely hear the children from all their chatter with one another, let alone her own, but you can very, very distinctly tell when a girl talks about 'birds the size of horses' by the way her horns just perk straight up.
Big birds?? Where??
Alas, there are no big birds or cuccos here, so they deflate to normal position as she expresses, "First of all, we need to talk with Nall. I can see that there's definitely some bonding and camaraderie that has transpired between the children here, and our own; and the villagers of Wayside seem to be able to really help them out here."
She glances out towards the skies and expresses, "This is a well hidden spot... the last thing we need is for the Feresthe to draw the attention of the Guard or from Rolancian or Hyland nobles, with how strife-ridden it is over in Glenwood..."
She smiles warmly towards Hammer, appreciative as she always is. "Thank you, Hammer... there's a lot that we still need to do to repair the skyship so it is ready, so I'll lend all my efforts between here, Vane and the other places that need it."
She nods as well, perhaps thinking her concerns are unfounded -- but there's something about it... Lunn wouldn't point them to Taben's Peak for nothing.
"And finally... having the Ebony Wings here should be a boon if the Shadow Dragon Cult *does* show up."
As if to accentuate her point, Dva is getting twisted into a pretzel by several kids wrestling with her, exclaiming, "I CAPITULATE! I CAPITULATE! WAAAAH!"
<Pose Tracker> Elhaym van Houten has posed.
"... You're really getting comfortable here, aren't you?" Elly says to Noeline. She sees her, of course, with Riesenlied; and this makes her put her head on Fei's shoulder, perhaps interfering with a key pen stroke.
"Do you think it's really possible? To go back, I mean," she says to Noeline. Not home! Perhaps a subtle nuance.
Her eyes turn towards Fei as she sees the art begin. The creature is being combined. Formed. Remixed. Elly looks at this godless creation that should, like Polly the Crab/Parrot Hybrid, 'not be, wraaawrk!' "Ah, it's so adorable. But, do you think that you could draw --"
"THE SPECIAL AGENT"
"The special agent!" Elly says. (Quietly, to Fei, Elly says, "Purapura was kind of a... it's hard to explain...")
After this, she blinks, several times. "What!" she says. "Oh my -- oh my goodness. Tell me everything about them. It doesn't have to be right now." Fei may sense dimly that Elly may be planning to share this information with others. Her head turns to look at Hammer though, and she smiles.
"... Yes," she tells Riesenlied. "Concealment is very important. It's a little ironic where everything's ended up, I suppose."
<Pose Tracker> Noeline has posed.
With a light and easy snort, Noeline offers Elyham a lopsided grin. "I have a habit of getting comfortable no matter where I am," she claims, which is perhaps a bit suspect given that she's definitely exhibited a nesting behaviour of her own back in the Wolfsbane Tavern - her quiet little corner. Still, she does seem genuinely pleased with herself. "Besides, there are worse places to be. We have been looking for the rest of Wayside for some time, ever since coming to Lunar. It's-- pleasant to have them back."
She does make a little mental note - it would probably be best to talk shop with the Ebony Wings soon, just to keep them appraised of Riesenlied's state and learn about what's been going on their end - but Dva is evidently rather swept up in things, and common sense suggests that this is not the time to try to break Cetiri's war-mom dance.
"--well-- we have certainly handled worse together, if you ask me. I'll take a cult over a set of Quarter Knights any day," she grumbles at Riesenlied's comment, but squeezes the other woman's hand briefly in hers. "I suppose we should discuss bringing the Carakin here with Nall before we actually do so, but-- well, I can't imagine that will be too much of a problem in the end, I suppose."
<Pose Tracker> Fei Fong Wong has posed.
THE SPECIAL AGENT!
(Quietly, to Elly, Fei says, "Yeah?"). Sorry Elly, Fei isn't sure where she's going with this. He can tell it's likeley to be shocking or eccentric but that's about it!
He isn't really concerned about others finding out about a cult that kidnaps children to turn them into assassins. They deserve all the negative attention they end up getting by his books but he does admit, "Maybe when we're away from the kids." Not the best topic to discuss around the children who lost actual friends to these people. Fei understands Loss and would prefer the children don't have to dwell on it right now: | || || |_
But he does say, "Yeah. We should probably anticipate something sneaky. I doubt any kind of direct assault will get through this kind of protection." At least now that the Fiends and the Fereshte and the Black Wolves are present. Id may be grumbling in his head.
He smiles over to Dva faintly and says ,"Heh. She's really comin' into her own huh?" He shakes his head. "I guess I was worried for a bit, but I'm glad you were able to find her, Riese."
Hammer is naturally embarrassed but he takes it easier than Lucia's bombshell. He knows what Riese is like. It coming from Lucia is way more surprising. "Don't overdo it." He suggests. "You're still recovering. We should take a breather while we can."
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
Riesenlied does bashfully acquiesce, nodding to Noeline and Fei. "Of course... it's important to not shelter them too much, but it isn't useful to cause unnecessary panic." The Fereshte kids, by this point, are pretty much used to everything from world-ending threats to Quarter Knights to Metal Beasts to... whew, that's quite the list already, huh?
Riese looks to Dva and nods at Fei, smiling warmer. "I think so... I was worried for a while, but I think she's smart and tough enough to be able to figure out her own path." And maybe that's a bit of Noeline rubbing off on her, since the old Riesenlied would probably just nag and be concerned endlessly.
Her smile for Hammer doesn't really fade, and she nods as she says, "You too, Hammer. And I doubt the children are going to let me go so easily after not seeing me for weeks anyway..." as she yelps as one pounces behind her to go, "Mamaaaa!!"
So peaceful. Well, Wayside's idea of peaceful, anyway, which can be rather rowdy-friendly at times.
<Pose Tracker> Elhaym van Houten has posed.
"Really? I wish you could teach me," Elly answers Noeline with a smile.
But she doesn't have much time to clarify. "Wouldn't the wagon be hard to get up that mountain?" Elly then asks about the CaraKinMobIle, but then she looks towards Fei again, because Fei is super important.
("She was - um - a robot. You know? But... I didn't think to mention it, and I don't think they'd know what a robot was." Such is Elly's explication.)
"It's the Guard you're worried about? I apologize if that's silly to say," Elly says. "But I know that - I mean it was actually kind of funny - that White Knight Leo just came up next to me, as I was trying to help Leon. I don't think he recognized me, at least."
Elly remembered him of course. He's a memorable guy.
<Pose Tracker> Noeline has posed.
"Fortunately, 'sneaky' is something else we're reasonably good at," Noeline grins at Fei's comment, but seems to silently agree to leave it at that, not wanting to get into the subject too far. She does at least raise an eyebrow, grumbling slightly as she folds her arms at discussion of Dva's changed worldview. "She's a bit ore casual now, certainly. Really, if she'd just speak her mind a little more, imagine how much of a mess we could have avoided," she grumbles, perhaps a little possessive for Riesenlied's sake, not to mention a little hypocritical.
She carefully leans aside just in time to miss the pounce, huffing out another noise - this time, a lot more amused - as a couple of the children suddenly clamber on top of Riese and leave the poor Tainted doing her best to deal with them. Reaching up, it almost looks like she's going to help the other demon out, but instead her hand just rests on blonde hair to ruffle it gently. The lopsided smile on her face is a mixture of fondness and pride, and some other feelings that she wouldn't admit to any time soon.
"Well-- perhaps it's enough to say that I've gotten a few things off my chest recently," she considers as she addresses Elly's slightly off-hand comment. "It has certainly helped, in that respect. As for the Guard, well-- for a fanatic, Leo can be surprisingly thoughtful at times. I wouldn't rely on his constant clemency, but he is willing to back off when things are chaotic enough."
<Pose Tracker> Fei Fong Wong has posed.
Fei nods slowly. He just accepts 'robot' as a thing pretty readily. "I'll try to make it a thing without making it...overpowering."
Indeed, he is starting to fill out details now. He naturally ends up making an anime robot girl which is, honestly, not to far off. In effect this means there's some strange tech headgear and an arm... THAT IS ALSO A GUN!
But there's something about that face. Fei has given the special agent blonde short hair, but that face is familiar to Elly, and judging from the way Fei stares at the page before he's even done, it might be familiar to him too.
He laughs awkwardly at Noeline's comment before saying, to her, "Glad to hear it."
He forces his gaze to turn back to Riese. "Yeah...her own path. You're right."
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
Maybe Fei is drawing an early teaser for Chapter 2, in which Kamui will be insufferably known to the fanbase as 'Black-Hair Girl' for the longest time before being given a proper name. And then starring as the protagonist in Chapter 2.75, Dream Chasers Drop Distance-- wait...
"Yes... the Guard has seen it fit to assign bounties for us Hyadeans here too," Riesenlied explains to Elly with a softer voice. "I suppose it is not surprising, given that my brethren are still out there." She lowers her head. "But, in working with Blue Master Lunn, maybe we can start to walk that back a little..."
A pause, as she smiles bashfully at Noeline. "It's my fault..." she falls back on bad habits. "I didn't sense her needs enough when she was hurting, and let it get to that point. I want to provide for her better, so she doesn't have to struggle like that."
Speaking of struggling-- "I DIDN'T EVEN KNOW MY ARMS COULD BEND THAT WAY HYAAA--" Dva screams, her eyes probably shooting high-pressure tears like Vash the Stampede.
"... maybe... maybe we should tell them to ease a little...?" Riesenlied doesn't sound eager to come close.
<Pose Tracker> Elhaym van Houten has posed.
"That seems like it makes him more dangerous," Elly says about Leo, soberly. "If he can make adjustments like that."
But then Fei is drawing. Elly looks down and she feels like she should say something about the arm gun, not least the prospect that the Children won't know what a gun is - but - something -
Her expression softens. Even she doesn't know why.
She exhales softly, and then blinks towards Riesenlied. "Ah," she says: "You mean that they've arrived and have been engaging in, um, antisocial behavior?"
(The children snicker at this turn of phrase. They are honest, but unemployable. Also, short.)
"-- Yes, really," Elly says, shifting but reluctant to rise from her seat next to Fei. "That doesn't sound pleasant... shouldn't they do that sort of thing to Muni if they have to do it to anybody...?"
<Pose Tracker> Noeline has posed.
... amongst her other talents, Noeline can sometimes be kind of an ass; she spies the drawing and its familiarity, and there's a soft snicker under her breath, not particularly hiding her amusement at Fei's muse popping up once again. She doesn't comment, at least; she doesn't have the heart to particularly interrupt the relaxing scene, even if it isn't quite as relaxing for some of their number.
Elly's estimation gets another of those lopsided smiles, though. "... you're not incorrect, I suppose, and some of the other stories I've heard are worrisome. But-- ah, well. It's a question for another day, I suppose," she sums up with an easy grin and a light shrug. "For the time being, I am content to be a heretic. Did you know I got fussed at because my fighting style was too close to dancing?" she adds, feathers mildly ruffled.
"It was not exactly a time where we had a great deal of spare attention to go around," she huffs in response to Riesenlied, though her expression already says she knows what the Tainted commander's response would be to that - and so she heads it off at the pass, squeezing the other woman's hand and lifting up to her feet smoothly. "I'll see what I can do to assist, at the very least."
... ... as mentioned, though, she's kind of an ass, and her only immediate contribution is to plant her hands on her hips, leaning forward a little as she steps up to where Dva is Having A Fun Day. "You're getting on so well! I'm sure Riese is terribly proud," she snickers - leaving that hanging in the air for just long enough before she plucks one of the children away. "--play nicely, hm? She's a little fragile right at the moment."
<Pose Tracker> Fei Fong Wong has posed.
Fei stares at it a moment too long. A small child pushes him to keep going and he gets back to work. "Sorry, was uh--lost in thought." That's not really wrong, but.
He isn't in the mindspace right now to speak up for poor Dva too much but rest assured, it isn't Kamui. Not this time. Maybe next time he's asked to draw a robot girl.
Hammer does seem particularly sympathetic. He may have been in similar situations. "Come on kids, take it easy." Hammer says to them. "She's not made of apple gels."
He glances up to Noeline, gives her a grateful look, and helps pluck children away. He's not very strong so he has to use both arms.
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
Dva is in that position where one of her limbs is twitching as kids get plucked away from her, going, "This somehow feels tougher than getting turned into a spear and hucked at someone..." and gives Noeline and Hammer a faint, put-upon thumbs up.
Riesenlied smiles as she watches her walk off to address Dva, then looks towards Elly with a furrowed little brow. "... as of yet, I haven't heard anything extreme, so far so good. But I do not know where Lady Harken has gone to, and with the loss of Berserk... I cannot imagine my brethren are content to sit still."
She sighs very softly... then smiles quietly as she hugs another one of the children clambering onto her. "Well, it's probably time enough I started on dinner, after storytime?"
She yelps a bit as a bundle of children pass her on what appears to be a Muni-mobile, expressing, "Hey, don't play roughly inside, okay?" as one of them waves towards her going, "Mama, mama, look, I'm a racer!"
She puts her hands to her chest and looks to Fei and Elly, particularly the former. "Would you like to stay for dinner? The mountain has a lot to offer, so we've been able to make particularly lovely meals..." Riesenlied is no Lunata or Catenna, but her cooking's become the very image of 'comforting and home-cooked, just like ma still makes'...