2021-05-27: Heart-to-Heart

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<Pose Tracker> Jacqueline Barber has posed.

Jacqueline has spent much of her time here in Shevat involved in various discussions. It's been productive, but it hasn't really given her much opportunity to get a feel for what the city is like... and so today she's decided to set aside some time to explore Aphel Aura and see what it's like.

The city... it's hard to express her feelings in words. It's beautiful, but it's a bit... melancholy, as well. It feels a strange to be able to see so much cloud for miles, as well. What is life like here in Shevat? Speaking with some of its people have given her some ideas, but there are still a few things she still needs to figure out.

For the time being, Jacqueline has decided to stop and rest for a bit. There are plenty of places to do so, at least. At the moment, it is a circular room - as many of them are in Shevat - with a fountain in the middle and benches along the sides. Pillars display plantlife, and vines creep their way along the walls. It's nice, and overall provides a calm, relaxing place to relax and think.

Jacqueline is presently sitting in one of those benches, leaning back and watching the fountain as she considers everything she's learned. 

<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.

    Riesenlied has also been pretty darn busy, ever since arriving in Shevat; her Outreach instincts basically kick into overdrive, and she spends a lot of time chatting with people to understand what life here's like, what they have and don't have, what they might need...

    The good news is, at least, life on Shevat is a pretty reasonable standard. Great, even -- heating, running water and lightning aren't things that every Filgaian has! Not even Wayside has them on a good day! Well, the previous Wayside. New Wayside is apparently more established, but they haven't had time to go back yet.

    But... basic needs, while an important foundation, aren't the entire picture -- so she's spent some time investigating where people've fallen through the cracks as well. This might have ended up with several visits to orphanages, because she's a natural magnet to them.

    Still, that is that, and here is now -- Riesenlied claps as she enters, exclaiming, "Wow! This is a lovely place... an indoor fountain..."

    She has her new Cucco wheelchair, which looks more comfortable and snazzy. "Noeline, Noeline, let us have lunch here--"

    A pause, as she spots Jacqueline, waving. "Jay!" 

<Pose Tracker> Ethius Hesiod has posed.

    Ethius has been... okay, he always keeps to himself in some form, he's Ethius, his name can be used in so many contexts. He's Ethiusing. That's just what he does. (Except he hasn't set anything here on fire yet, so maybe he hasn't been Ethiusing much lately, and that is... is that a problem? Maybe this is digressing.)

     It's been exposed that he's not from here, that he's unknown to Shevat - not that he has ever specifically voiced a thought or desire on that front, but perhaps the pieces were there when he didn't interrupt or supplement the Shevat contact's exposition to the gathered Drifters. (Nor did they do so for him, to whatever extent he said much of anything.)

     He's sitting on a different bench from Jay, who seems content enough to just exist for the time being. 

<Pose Tracker> Citan Uzuki has posed.

    "Well, now! It seems we have some company after all."

    There are not many animals that live in Shevat, a result of its endless wandering in the skies. Insects, of course, and there are sometimes some mice in the storerooms that drive the custodial crew up the wall. But there are not many animals in Shevat that exist outside of the opportunistic pest paradigm.
    One of the exceptions, though, is the by now native population of flightless birds. After untold generations of living in Shevat, or so the story goes, they've lost the ability to fly. ...Whether or not that is strictly true or whether they were flightless before they started living in the flying nation is another question altogether.

    Nevertheless, having lived among people for generation upon generation, they're hardly shy at all, and in fact, rather like to be fed.

    This is what Midori and Fei appear to be up to at the moment, with Midori's father -- Citan -- keeping an eye on them both from a short distance away.

    "I thought that it might be you. It is quite good weather to be out and about. Ah, yes," he says, fidgeting with his glasses a moment as he takes a step towards them. "Riesenlied, Miss Barber, you have not met my daughter, Midori, have you?" 

<Pose Tracker> Noeline has posed.

    Noeline cannot help but have rather mixed feelings about Shevat.

    It is certainly a wonder; a flying sanctuary, sustaining itself against the world and Solaris, is not something she ever expected to set foot on in her life. Much of her time is spent assisting Riesenlied in Outreach work, but just as much of it is spent digging into the history and technology of the place. Between her sheer curiosity and some parallels to Wayside, she can't help herself.

    But there's a bittersweet edge to it as well, and she's forcibly reminded of it every time someone expresses surprise about the outside world from one of Riese's stories. Once upon a time, she'd figured something like this would be her own end state - on the run from the Photosphere, existing in her own little isolated bubble. It's not Shevat's fault, but it's still a reminder of a younger Noeline, one who for all her posturing wasn't really comfortable in her own skin.

    Hopefully, they're not so far gone that they cannot change that, and so she's done what she can to assist her partner in figuring out Shevat's needs, even if she's not sure how you'd begin delivering them in a very literal sense. The Crimson Noble routine kind of floundered at the first orphanage when none of the children even knew what that meant, and it took some rallying - but she's gotten pretty damn good at entertaining a group of kids, if she says so herself.

    Helping push Riesenlied along, she hums at the suggestion, taking in the sight of the little square. "That sounds like a perfectly fine idea," she nods towards the merchant, automatically turning the wheelchair towards her at the other Hyadean's call - then her eyebrows raise up high as Citan mentions his daughter. "... I see," she says, though her warm tone is mixed with mischief at Fei also feeding a bird. "And your son." 

<Pose Tracker> Jacqueline Barber has posed.

Jacqueline looks over toward Ethius, seated nearby, and hesitates a little. There's something that's been on her mind, ever since their visit with Queen Zephyr. There hasn't been much time to bring it up, but eventually...

"Hey, um... I'm sorry if I overstepped my bounds, Ethius - I should have asked if it was alright first before asking a personal question like that..." Jacqueline apologizes, a bit sheepishly. "I-"

She starts, but whatever she's about to say next is interrupted as she hears people approaching. There's a smile on her face, though, as she sees who it is.

"Ah, Riesenlied, Noeline, it's good to see you!" Jacqueline replies, standing up and returning Riesenlied's wave with one of her own. She soon spies the Cucco wheelchair. "Ah, that's adorable...!"

But it turns out, there are others here, as well - Citan, Fei, and a child she's never seen before. Her identity becomes clear, though, as Citan speaks.

"Doctor Uzuki. It's good to see you, as well." Jacqueline greets with a smile and a polite nod. "And no, I haven't!"

She didn't even know he had a child, come to think...

"Do you live here in Shevat?" She asks. It certainly seemed like he was more familiar with the place than most. 

<Pose Tracker> Fei Fong Wong has posed.

Fei Fong Wong has been spending most of his time catching up with his GOOD PAL MIDORI. This probably didn't involve talking. Fei is comfortable with silence, usually, even if he can get pretty chatty. But that's because in the wider world, chatting is how communication happens.

In fact, Fei seems to be in a pretty good mood. He's been doing this strange thing with his mouth called smiling and it even reaches his eyes sometimes. In fact, stranger than anything, is that he seems to be smiling without a clear impetus for the smile sometimes.

Maybe it's what Yui had told him. Maybe he had actually spoken to the people of Lahan like he said he was going to do. Maybe his player forgot to send in that +Request they said they were going to do and should really get on but for the most part, it's just because Fei feels...relief.

He doesn't even realize the burden he was carrying but it just feels lighter now.

FEI PSYCHO DOWN

And Midori is a good kid. "Hey Riesenlied. Hey Noeline," Fei says upon seeing them. He turns to murmur to Midori. "You know, Riesenlied has a flute that can summon chickens."

Cuccos really but FEi doesn't really know the difference

He tosses some corn to the MYSTERIOUS FLIGHTLESS BIRDS. Not Chu-Chus at least.

Fei has seen the chu chu room.

FEI PSYCHO UP?

If you ignore the fact they are in some kind of flying city death trap, Fei thinks, it's almost like home. It's nice. It's nice. 

<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.

    Riesenlied notices Ethius, doing Ethius things; she ponders a little about Jacqueline's question to Queen Zephyr back there, and how Jay apologises for it--

    Then her attention span is drawn to flightless birds. "Uwaaaa!" Riesenlied gasps, her eyes turning into dinnerplates and her horns on Full Wiggle Mode.

    She's so stunned by this sight she almost misses Noeline's feelings, but-- pauses and smiles, reaching over to her partner. If they're going to be on the run... let's be on the run together.

    ... such is the feeling Midori might get, if she senses the psychic link between these two women -- in fact, Riesenlied blinks for a few moments, then smiles warmly as she looks to Citan and Midori.

    "Oh, your daughter? Hello! My name is Riesenlied," she warmly expresses. A little pause, and then she tries...

    It's nice to meet you!

    It kind of exudes out of her, an emotion as much as it is a sentence. Recently, her psychic footprint has grown, perhaps out of necessity, and in part because of what happened back then... she smiles a bit sheepishly at Fei, saying, "Oh, that is true, but I wonder if they would respond to the flute?"

    She hopes she's not being overbearing. "Oh, do you like the chair, Jacqueline? I bought some of the parts off off the Carakin a while back! It is much more comfortable!" 

<Pose Tracker> Ethius Hesiod has posed.

    "...I suppose it would have born inquiry, Miss Jay," Ethius remarks coolly as wife and wife come together to enjoy the sights not far from the two of them, along with Citan, Fei, and a child while there is collective admiration for a collection of flightless birds atop this flying city. It might even have been a fair cop to ask - Queen Zephyr's professed values for Shevat seem to align closely with the way Ethius has treated the more vulnerable parts of Lunar and Spira. If this were a storybook, the reveal would be excellently timed after virtually all other avenues have been explored.

     That's not how it panned out.

     For the moment, he does not bring the gravity of the professed situation by the Queen up, seeming content enough to take in the relative peace of the environs (even if it is not bereft of the melancholy Filgaia bears - in fact, it does feel a bit heavier up here). 

<Pose Tracker> Citan Uzuki has posed.

    "My 'son'...?" Citan's response is to shake his head, even if the remark does make him smile slightly. "No, Fei has simply been a good friend to my daughter. She did not, ah," he says, stopping himself as he glances down at his daughter. There's a difference between talking about someone and talking about them when they're right there. Midori doesn't speak but that doesn't mean she isn't present. "Well, it is not important!" he says to Noeline, waving a hand dismissively.

    Midori, for her part, stares at the new arrivals, freezing in her 'tracks' with dried corn still pouring between her finders. Hesitantly, she looks over first at Fei and then up at her father. She doesn't say a word. But then, she's never said a word to anyone, so far.

    This is when Fei tells her that Riesenlied has a flute that summons chickens. She signs back at him, then frowns. That's right, perhaps she's thinking, Fei doesn't know how to sign yet...

    Instead she stands up, staring at Riesenlied and Noeline intently. Then, as if psyching herself up, she stoops to scoop up some more corn kernels and slowly starts to approach Riesenlied's wheelchair, a solemn expression on her face.

    'It's nice to meet you', says the voice in her mind. Midori's eyes widen.

    ...Who? Is it you? is the thought that returns to Riesenlied.

    Does he live here in Shevat? Citan's response is to shake his head. "No. ...However, my wife, Yui, is a Shevat citizen."

    Which is a revelation that perhaps raises more questions than it answers, all considering. 

<Pose Tracker> Fei Fong Wong has posed.

Fei looks towards Riesenlied. He doesn't tend to do the psychic conversation thing becauase obviously he is not psychic but he does seem pretty in tune with whenever Riesenlied flexes it-- ever since the Hyadean made contact--which nobody else had done before (and lived).

Barring maybe Midori. But even so, there's always this sense that there is something further beyond if you just push a little further but the further you push, the stronger the resistance. Clearly this is just because of his emotional trauma and brain problems and not because of some weird ability or anything.

Nasrin tell Riesenlied to be careful she's just a kid.

Fei is oblivious to Id's own attempt at psychic contact because he is not psychic. For some reason though his alterego seems particularly concerned about this sort of contact.

Fei does look towards Midori's hands as she signs with them. Unclear if he understands but he seems pretty focused on this meeting.

'Show her the cucco flute' Fei mouths to Riesenlied hopefully. 

<Pose Tracker> Jacqueline Barber has posed.

"Still... I'm sorry." Jacqueline replies, massaging the back of her neck at that cool tone. She frowns a little, thinking things over. "But... I guess this doesn't leave us a whole lot of avenues left, huh...?"

They've gone pretty much around the entire world at this point, with the exception of the deeper, more dangerous places of Elru. If not there... where else could the answers be...?

She looks back toward Riesenlied, then.

"I do! It certainly looks like you've put them to good use." Jacqueline replies with a smile, looking over the wheelchair. "It suits you perfectly."

She looks toward Midori, then.

"It's nice to meet you, Midori! I'm Jacqueline Barber, but you can call me Jay." She introduces herself. She notes the way Midori freezes up. Jacqueline sits back down, then, to put a little distance between the two of them to avoid overwhelming her with so many new faces at once. So instead, she looks toward her father.

"Oh, I see! I didn't know that." Jacqueline replies. He doesn't live in Shevat, but his wife is a citizen of it... there's still a lot she doesn't know about Citan, and that just poses more questions. How did he come to visit Shevat in the first place? "Still, it must be nice to visit... I hope you'll be able to enjoy a little time together, at least."

She looks toward Fei, then, sending him a smile. He looks to be in a good mood today. That's nice to see.

"It's good to see you as well, Fei!" Jacqueline greets. 

<Pose Tracker> Noeline has posed.

    Noeline isn't really surprised to see Citan here, though she privately reckons that the answer to Jacqueline's question might be 'no', and that is confirmed a moment later. Were it a different place or time, she might examine Citan's comment more closely, but she's content to leave it for the time being. Besides, it only stands to reason that anyone attempting to leave Solaris is going to get Shevat's attention one way or another - perhaps, she wonders, it may even be a necessary step. There are only so many ways down to ground level, after all.

    And the idea of Shevat or its role versus that of Solaris doesn't really prey on her, or anything - she just had to take a little while to sort out her thoughts on the matter, and keep them in mind. That and more is communicated back to Riesenlied as she places a hand on her partner's shoulder to squeeze it slightly in support, gently rolling her to a stop near enough to the fountain that the air is refreshing, and close enough to feed some birds.

    She's not heartless by any means, and her smile trends back towards warm at the sight of Midori and Fei interacting. "She also has a very stuffed picnic basket right now," she adds conspiratorially as the girl heads in their direction. "And a whole pile of comfortable blankets. ... my name is Noeline," she adds with a bob of her head, after giving a little time for the girl to reply. "We work with your father from time to time, when we're not looking after our own children."

    Anything else she could say is lost as she snickers happily at Citan. "Are you quite sure? As unruly sons go, Fei would be terribly fitting, don't you think?" she's clearly enjoying this, because it's not every day you get to catch the doctor with a deadpan comment.

    She can offer Ethius and Jay's side of the conversation a wry smile, but she's not sure she can be of that much help. She is someone who - for a long part of her life - intentionally discarded where she came from in favour of living in the moment. She could suggest where you came from isn't as important as where you go, but... that is Ethius' prerogative, not hers. 

<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.

    There is a quiet stirring inside Riesenlied's mind, and a quiet response of

    ... I will. But we might scare her too.

    Fortunately, Nasrin -- as a portion of Riesenlied's own trauma -- doesn't manifest in any kind of enormous, scary presence but as a cute, young girl in a yukata, before disappearing once more.

    Riesenlied pauses, as if sensing her own internal caution, and tries to soften her projection. Make it more round, you see. Is that even possible?

    Mmm-mm. It is me, Riesenlied chimes, seemingly terribly pleased to communicate with another psychic. Fei suggests showing her the Cucco flute, and the Hyadean obliges as she procures the cute instrument.

    She plays a little tune, seeing if the flightless birds around are attracted...

    (Let's not dwell on how Riesenlied might have just accidentally introduced Cuccos to Shevat and potentially destroyed a precarious ecohabitat teetering on the brink of collapse.)

    There's a very gentle nod to Jay, as she expresses, "I am grateful, as always..."

    Then, there is a pleased and redoubled smile as Noeline points out that she has a picnic basket. She reaches behind the chair and lifts it up, revealing a nice spread of sandwiches and other nice finger foods!

    "That is right. Everyone, please feel free to have some!" 

<Pose Tracker> Ethius Hesiod has posed.

    Ethius watches the way Riesenlied and Midori look to one another. A part of him feels some sort of deep-seated dread, akin to the idea of someone having to step blind on a field they know lies at least one landmine, a worried look on his face prevented from leaking through what of his face is visible by blinking once and putting a hand up to his forehead.

     "Indeed," he concedes to Jay. He might not be all that comfortable with what the answer is, or whether or not it's something anyone ought to know - but there doesn't seem to be much of any avenue left, because he sure doesn't talk like someone who came from any part of Solarian society. (Jessie or Citan would have picked that out about him by now if it were true.) He catches Noeline's wry smile but offers not a whole lot to them, eyes closing for a few seconds.

     "I've already eaten," he says, and this is always a dubious claim because almost everyone here knows what kinds of 'things' he prepares and consumes, "but... if you will have me, I'll stay." It takes him a moment to realize he has not been introduced to the young girl who has been giving interesting glances in Riese's direction, but a part of him seems all right with that much. "I can tell just about everyone gathered is of high spirits."

     He may also be on the lookout for any sudden Cuccos, because he knows the existential risk. 

<Pose Tracker> Citan Uzuki has posed.

    "An... unruly son?" he echoes, as if taken aback for the moment. He eyes Noeline, as if to take her measure (and precisely how much she might be attempting to troll). "In fact, he may be less 'unruly' than I was at his age! ...Well, or thereabouts, I suppose," he remarks, toying with his glasses briefly.

    "Yes," Citan says to Jacqueline, "It is good to be able to see them again. With all that has happened..." He shakes his head. "Fortunately, she was able to return here with the other villagers," he adds, glancing once at Fei as if to thereby gauge his reaction. He hadn't come along with Fei when he had gone to speak with the villagers, but then again, it had felt as if it would have been intruding if he had. Some things, one needs to reach on their own...

    He glances the once over at Ethius, as if to take his measure once again. "Mr. Hesiod, I trust that you are well?" If there is one thing that Citan Uzuki knows for sure about the sorcerer, it is that he is... definitely not from Solaris.

    Her expression is a determined one as Midori frowns more deeply than before, and with determination, pushes her thoughts outwards into the world-- or, well, at the woman in the wheelchair seated before her.

    You can... hear me? ...Is it true? You can summon chickens?

    Riesenlied then proceeds to play a little bit of music on that flute of hers; the friendly flightless birds turn away from their feed for the moment to watch and listen to the tune. ...Is there some ancient connection between Mysterious Flightless Birds and the Cucco?

    There's two of you. Midori notes thus mind to mind, brow wrinkling. In this one can almost see the resemblence to her father (she really takes more after her mother in general. Like big brother Fei. ...A little bit. 

<Pose Tracker> Jacqueline Barber has posed.

Jacqueline nods back to Ethius. Still... she'll continue to help him look. She promised she would, after all.

She looks back toward Riesenlied, then, offering her a smile.

"You know I'm always glad to help you all out with anything!" She replies. And then... picnic food is provided! "Oh, it all looks delicious... Thank you, Riese! Don't mind if I do!"

With that, Jacqueline leans forward to claim a sandwich. She glances toward Ethius as he says he's already eaten, but doesn't call him on it. If he doesn't want to eat, she won't force him. She's already familiar with his habits on that matter.

She smiles to Citan, then, though she does take a moment to chuckle good-naturedly at Noeline's comment about Fei.

"I imagine..." She says. "...From the village?"

She pauses, catching Citan's glance toward Fei. This explains a lot, filling in some gaps. The village... he must mean Lahan. She feels a little guilty for having not really thought about it in a while.

"Oh! I'm so glad..." She says, relieved. "I trust everyone is being taken care of alright here...?" 

<Pose Tracker> Fei Fong Wong has posed.

Nah

Midori's smarter than that

He's not sure if smarter is the best way to put it, it's a certain kind of intelligence anyway that she has plenty of.

Fei smiles at Jay and says, "Thanks Jay. I'm feeling calmer than usual."

He quirks his head. "Uh don't think about that for too long though." He cracks a casual grin. And naturally, and this certainly isn't new to Midori, when Riesenlied offers food Fei takes like two sandwiches with a, "Don't mind if I do! Thanks, Riesenlied!" If folks aren't careful (or fast), he might Xantia most of the box so better dig in while you can.

"Ethius just have a sandwich," Fei says. "It won't contaminate you or anything weird. Perfectly healthy."

NOTE: Fei is not responsible if eating real food kills Ethius Hesiod.

NOTE 2: Fei didn't comment either way on being Citan's son but what DOES get him talking is the idea that Citan was more unruly than him.

"Wait, what? really?" He quirks his head. "Maybe I haven't asked enough about your childhood."

He looks back to Riesenlied and Midori, regarding fondly. He can't hear a thing obviously because he's not psychic but he does notice Midori's THINKING expression and laughs a bit.

"Careful, Riesenlied...! She's checking you out...! She's really smart so if you're not careful, she'll have you all figured out in no time!"

He beams happily. HAPPILY???? 

<Pose Tracker> Noeline has posed.

    Thanks to their link, Noeline is only psychic when it comes to Riesenlied herself - but she is very good at paying attention to that connection, watching for and fussing over even slight changes to it. The actual details of the discussion that is taking place on a different wavelength might elude her, but she can tell for just a moment that there is some kind of communication going on. Given the girl's silence, her eyebrows raise just a little - then she lets it be to just nod lightly.

    "I don't mind if I do," she says instead, fishing out a set of paper plates to go with the picnic basket as she goes through the motions of setting lunch up. Whether they like it or not, Jay and Ethius both get a carefully wrapped sandwich thrust towards them as well, not to mention Citan and Fei - especially when the latter studies her face. The look on his face in turn is kind of priceless, and even if she wasn't particularly hiding her mirth before, Noeline's expression still dissolves into a dazzling grin.

    She relents shortly afterwards, tilting her head with a smile. "... it is good to see you having a chance to catch up with your family," she says genuinely. "I hope you have some more time to do so, still." 

<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.

    "Hehe... certainly there is some father-son-like relationship, between you and Fei, I am sure?" Riesenlied smiles as she kind of picks up on Noeline's teasing, but in a more earnest way. She listens more quietly as Citan explains about the citizens of Lahan...

    Then her attention is on Midori again.

    It is true. See? The birds come to me, Riesenlied expresses through the psychic link, though there is a pause when Midori points out there is two of them.

    Nasrin briefly surfaces again. Fortunately for Midori, she doesn't look broken right now. I'm Nasrin. It's... nice to meet you... Aw, now she's the shy one.

    "It is a relief. I was worried about my medications, but knowing you are here, I do not have to worry," Riesenlied smiles warmly towards Jacqueline, tilting the basket her way.

    Fei warns that if she's not careful, she'll have her all figured out. Riesenlied winks and says, "It may be too late. She is very, very clever!"

    There's a bashful look at Noeline, as if she doesn't want to exclude her; she does fashion a lunch plate for Noeline, before blinking to say, "Are you truly a 'wild rascal', as they say, Citan?" 

<Pose Tracker> Ethius Hesiod has posed.

    "I am of sound health at present, Mister Citan," so he claims, but he sure did look out of sorts with the Shevat development--

     'Ethius jut have a sandwich,' Fei says, certain it won't contaminate him or anything weird. He stares at Fei (not for over-long, the longest he's ever been able to go staring at him is three whole seconds and that window has been shortening lately), at the sandwich, and then...

     "...I will have a sandwich." Ethius concedes as he reaches out to Noeline's offer of a carefully wrapped sandwich, with his gloved hand, and... and...!

ETHIUS is now HOLDING a SANDWICH.

     He does not proceed to eat it. But he is holding it. Does that count? Ethius is holding a sandwich, he has a sandwich. He will be having a sandwich for as long as he holds it. This is technically satisfying the request.

     "The sandwich is appreciatied," he says to Noeline. Without removing the bandanna around his face. So he's just going to hold onto the sandwich. 

<Pose Tracker> Citan Uzuki has posed.

    "She seems quite interested in you," he remarks, to Riesenlied. "Usually she is quite shy around strangers. Have you made a new friend already, Midori?"

    Midori for her part doesn't even turn to regard her father in this moment, apparently rapt as she regards Riesenlied.

    Oh... I wish I had a flute like that. Though the birds don't fly away from me here. She has never had a conversation like this with someone before. It's nice. Nasrin. That's a pretty name. You're a lot like big brother Fei...

    "Sound health... I see," Citan says to Ethius, though not without briefly furrowing his brow.

    Citan looks Jacqueline's way and nods, as if to confirm what she's just realized, smiling ruefully. Almost all of the survivors of that incident are now safely living in Shevat. "Shevat rescues those that it can from Solaris' hands, from time to time. Of course, as the Queen had said, their scope is often limited. In this case..."

    He trails off. In this case, they had been fortunate enough to have a Shevat agent in the very village who was able to 'spirit away' the survivors to safety, before patrols came to follow up on what had happened.

    "...It is a different life from the surface. But not, I think, a bad life."

    He glances over at Fei, then, as if something were on his mind. "Fei... I assume that you will be speaking to the Queen, in time? Perhaps there is something she might know." Something she knows that he does not, that is.

    Food is offered around, but Citan shakes his head. "Another time, perhaps? I should not spoil dinner." He glances at his daughter, though and smiles. "...Don't worry. I won't tell your mother," he tells her, far more casually than he usually speaks.

    He just laughs lightly when Fei remarks on his childhood. ...Teenager-hood. Young-adulthood? "I am afraid that we most certainly had gotten up to no good, Fei. Why, one might even call us a bunch of..."

    'Wild Rascals', Riesenlied supplies.

    "...Yes, that is... certainly one way of putting it," Citan sighs, but hardly without mirth. "In fact, it might be 'right on the nose', as it were!"

    And he glances over in time to see that look on Noeline's face and near-matches it with a wide smile of his own. "I hope as much, myself." 

<Pose Tracker> Jacqueline Barber has posed.

"I'm glad to hear that!" Jacqueline replies to Fei, as he says he's feeling calmer than usual.

"Thank you!" Jacqueline says pleasantly as Riesenlied tilts the basket her way, and Noeline offers her a sandwich. She could hardly turn it down, after how politely it was offered! She looks toward Ethius, though, noting how he accepts a sandwich, and then proceeds to not eat it.

...She honestly can't tell if that's an actual attempt at sass, or Ethius just being Ethius.

She smiles, then, and nods toward Riesenlied.

"Well, I'm glad I could give you some peace of mind." Jacqueline replies. "If you're short on anything, let me know right away. I have my ingredients here with me, so I can prepare anything you need."

She looks between Midori and Riesenlied as they 'speak'. Jacqueline isn't a psychic, but... she's familiar enough with Riesenlied that she can tell that something's going on there.

She looks back toward Citan, then, nodding.

"I'm glad to hear that..." She replies. It was a relief, knowing there was someone looking after Solaris's victims. She nods then, quietly. "Yes, I imagine..."

She pauses, though, as Riesenlied asks a question.

"Really? I honestly wouldn't have though of you as a rascal, Doctor Uzuki." Jacqueline replies, with a good-natured chuckle as she looks back at Citan. "Now you've got me curious. Are there any tales from your youth you'd like to share?" 

<Pose Tracker> Fei Fong Wong has posed.

This time there IS a reaction when the strange relationship between Citan and Fei is brought up again this time by Riesenlied. Fei's cheeks turn big and bright red. Today might be one of the best days of Fei's life since the Lahan incident happened. There's a certain relaxed atmosphere around him that is evident now where it wasn't really before. There is this sense that this is what Fei can be when he finally lets go of his anxieties, when they aren't at the forefront of his mind. He's quieter, but he's happy. Maybe he's not really a naturally chatty guy himself when all is well.

"Citan's family is very important to me," He says to Riesenlied softly. "When I first arrived in Lahan, I didn't know anybody at all. The townsfolk were a little nervous around outsiders. But folks like Timothy, Alice...and of course Doc and his family, they were good to me. They..."

He trails off for a moment. He takes in a deep breath and rubs at his eyes. "Since everything happened, they've only become more important to me. He took responsibility for me, you know? Takes a special kind of guy to do that in that situation."

Maybe specialer than Fei knows. But Citan brings out something else.

"Ah--yeah. I intend to. I don't want to be too pushy about it so--when they're good for it, I'll go to them. I already felt like I was pretty rude at the meeting."

He grins, "You know, I can see it." About Wild Rascals. 

<Pose Tracker> Noeline has posed.

    With a light chuckle, Noeline takes the plate from Riesenlied with a bob of her head and a quiet 'thank you' - then sits down on the edge of the fountain next to her partner, using the plate for both of them anyway. She certainly doesn't look excluded, so much as just fussing over Riesenlied... though she does squirrel away a couple of slices of cake for later on her edge of the plate, because some habits come very naturally when you've spent a lot of time managing a lot of children.

    "Of course," she replies to Ethius with a nod; her smile is rather wry, but she knows the boundaries of the taciturn man. This is, effectively, a victory - and she knows well enough to not push any harder. If he feels the need to carefully inspect it in private later before risking eating it, that's alright.

    She can't help the curiosity that bubbles up as Citan talks. "... are they able to send someone down to the surface often?" she wonders, because of course someone like her would see that as the biggest detriment to Shevat's current situation. "My impression is that they do not really have that luxury, out of either fear or prudence. If anything, that is probably where the Outreach can help - once we reinforce the Fereshte to handle the height involved, perhaps," she grimaces to herself with a frown.

    Solaris are well aware of the Fereshte, which is a bit of a wrinkle in that plan. But she is prepared to try punching a Solaris official in the face again, should it come to that. 

<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.

    Riesenlied looks pleased to see Ethius accept one of her sandwiches! ... ... except he doesn't seem to be moving to eat it. She chuckles faintly as he thanks Noeline. Well, he did say that he ate, so maybe he'll have it later. It is, at least, wrapped!

    Citan says Midori is quite interested, and she pauses and looks between daughter and father for a moment. "Mm, I think we have..." She ponders if Citan is aware of Midori's psychic nature, but given how she doesn't regard her father...

    Well, that isn't something she wishes to ask of either of them right now.

    Do you like it? Then... Riesenlied giggles for a moment, before reaching for a wipe to clean the flute carefully...

    Then she offers it gently to Midori, in her palms. Then I do not mind giving it to you, as a token of our meeting, okay?

    -= MIDORI UZUKI is now the new CUCCO PRINCESS =-

    Nasrin, on the other hand, fidgets in bashfulness, doing the equivalent of looking away (where? psychic conversations are weird.) P-pretty... hey, Id, say something already. Aww, it's rare to see Nasrin bashful. It kind of sounds like she agrees with him that Midori's pretty darn smart, though. She's not used to this!!

    "Yes... I have a stock, fortunately. It was not destroyed in our climb of the tower!" Riesenlied expresses to Jacqueline. She is also incredibly interested in a story, though, of young and wild Citan.

    "The Fereshte... we will have to see if it can fly this high, it... may not be stable enough," Riesenlied does muse... but it sounds like Noeline is thinking of that too. Also, Solaris shooting them down...

    "But I have faith that it can! ... someday!"
    Riesenlied nods gently to Fei in turn. "... I understand." Fei knows about her story, after all, how she had nobody in the Gutter until the Fereshte and Nasrin took her in. And... now they're gone too, like Alice, and Timothy. "Mmm, of course." There's a smile to Citan. "I know just how important and special that kind of bond is." 

<Pose Tracker> Ethius Hesiod has posed.

    Ethius can say a lot of things with a straight face! Some of them happen to be blatantly untrue. Maybe this is one of them. (Also he cheats and hides half his face anyway. He might have a terrible poker face under there.)

     He does take the time to listen to how Citan describes life on Shevat and what it does for those victimized by Solaris when it can, looking away at the eventual mention about young adulthood and the amount of trouble one might have gotten into.

     Fei talks about his experience with coming to Lahan and how Citan was accepting of him. He taps his fingers at the wrapped sandwich idly, closing his eyes, as if... could it be? Wondering that maybe the sandwich might be good to eat? Here? Or something else. (To the psychically aware, there is an undercurrent of some sort of sorrow rustling here - alarming only because of the man's proximity, who usually does an almost superhuman job of trying to hold that back from the local known surface emotions empath that is Riesenlied.) 

<Pose Tracker> Citan Uzuki has posed.

    Citan glances, briefly, in Fei and Riesenlied's direction as Fei quietly explains the story -- it's a story that Citan has told her himself, if from a different angle. It wasn't that Lahan was unkind or unwelcoming, merely the fact that in such a small village an outsider no matter how beloved they had become, was still an outsider. Perhaps it would have been so to the end of Fei's days.

    Everyone needs a place to belong, the doctor reflects, glancing up for a moment at the blue skies above Shevat.

    "...Perhaps somewhat. It was more brash than I would have been," he remarks to Fei. "Yet, given the history at play here, it is also not precisely unwarranted. What her Majesty had said... Shevat's past, our own future..." Shaking his head, Citan lapses into silence.

    "They have, I am given to believe," in other words, yes, he knows this to be fact, "a robust intelligence operation. I do not know the precise number of operatives, and I am given to believe they typically operate in isolation from one another, but while I do not think they operate at a capacity comparable to Solaris' own agents in the field... I would not mistake their 'lower numbers' with 'lack of efficacy'. Indeed, one person in the right place can create some phenomenal changes in the world."

    Indeed.

    "Hmm," he muses, rubbing at his chin as Jay asks him for a story from his 'wild' days. "There was that one 'drinking party' the night before our third-year exams that had gotten, ahem, wildly out of hand... As I recall, Sigurd was battling a terrible hangover the entire exam day, though I admit that I was not much better off. Jesiah of course was hardly troubled at all! ...Come to think of it, I do not think Kahr had struggled much either."

    And if anyone asks who 'Kahr' is (Sigurd they should know from the Yggdrasil's crew), well... Citan will tell them:

    Kahr, also known as Kahran Ramses.

    Midori doesn't seem to hate or fear her father, precisely; and he clearly has an affection for her. But it's also the case that he's been absent from her life for about four years, and perhaps sometimes parent-child relationships can just be complicated like that. For now, she's far more intrigued by Riesenlied's ability to speak to her... and of course, the flute that even the birds seem to be enchanted by. Her eyes widen when Riesenlied offers it to her, and here the largely stoic young girl seems to almost seem overwhelmed for a moment. !! Really, you mean it? Oh...!

    She takes the flute in hand as if it were a rare glittering gem and holds it tight against her chest. ...Thank you...

    "Riesenlied," Citan says, overseeing the interaction between the two of them. He smiles gently, himself. "...Thank you. I have not seen her this happy in some time." 

<Pose Tracker> Jacqueline Barber has posed.

Jacqueline listens as Fei explains his relationship to Citan - how his family was among those who had been there for him when he needed it most.

"...I'm glad they were there for you." Jacqueline replies with a smile.

She looks toward Riesenlied, then, with a nod as she says she still has a stock on hand.

"Ah, excellent!" Jacqueline beams, then looks between Noeline and Citan considers Shevat's capabilities. Jacqueline doesn't comment directly - not being in a position to really know that kind of thing - but she does find it interesting.

Also interesting - the tale Citan tells of the legendary 'drinking party'.

"'Kahr'?" Jacqueline asks, curiously. The others she can place, but that one... and then he answers and she nods, considering that for a moment. She may or may not have actually known where he was from before that... but it doesn't change the way she views him. She chuckles good-naturedly.

"Wow, that must have been some party!" She replies. She opens her mouth to say something, perhaps to inquire further about this wild party... but then she pauses, watching as Riesenlied offers her flute to Midori. How happy she looks about it... Jacqueline can't help but smile. 

<Pose Tracker> Fei Fong Wong has posed.

Heh.

Maybe I shoulda warned her to be gentle instead.

He shouldn't. He knows he shouldn't, but...

Fei is distracted for a moment by Citan's very important words. He shakes his head, clearing his mind which accidentally sort of fumbles Id around a bit like he's stuck in a washer and dryer or something.

"I'll make sure it gets done," Fei promises. "I want to know the truth as much as anyone."

He grimaces. "Even if I kinda don't really want the truth, heh, if you get me?"

He turns his head and sees Midori is being offered the cucco flute.

"Seems like she likes it." Fei says. "Thanks for being so good to her, Riesenlied." He stands himself up, stretching. He gives Riesenlied a fond pat on the arm. "It's good to see you again. Every time, it's good to see you again."

He is content to leave it at that. 

<Pose Tracker> Noeline has posed.

    Noeline pauses, as if she's just caught an inkling of the second conversation around them; she fixes on a spot and slowly unfocuses her eyes, trying to force an attempt to look beyond what she usually sees. It doesn't work, unfortunately, but she seems satisfied regardless - there's a quiet smile on her face as she picks at their link, bolstering Riesenlied a little given the way in which psychic communication can often leave her tired afterwards.

    It takes her a little while to digest Citan's words, then she chuckles rather richly to herself, bowing her head in something that isn't really defeat but that she's overacting in that direction anyway. "I see. I must stand corrected, then, and maybe I should reevaluate Shevat a little. ... I mean, I am terrifically curious now, but I'm not about to bite the hand that shelters us. Besides, I know a little about professional pride myself," she puffs.

    That light huff persists through Fei's story of his found family, and she folds her arms as she offers the doctor a wry smirk. "Really, you're going to still deny it after an admission like that?" she teases again - but is more careful this time to show that she's joking, the lopsided smile clear on her face. She's careful to try to draw the line between making fun of it, and just making light of it. She of all people is not going to begrudge anyone the family they've chosen for themselves, given everything the Hyadeans have found along the way.

    Her eyes slowly cross as her brow furrows. Whatever her opinion of Solaris might be, it is clashing heavily with the idea of a drinking party, and her brain is conjuring up a table of ramrod-stiff students enjoying their Mandated Refreshment Allotment. "Please tell me you at least drew graffiti on something. That was a time-honoured Photosphere tradition, if you didn't mind some very angry superiors."

    As she watches Midori connect with Riesenlied, her smile tugs its way back onto her face, a little wider. "You know," she suggests as she places a hand on her partner's back, and leans over a little with an encouraging smile, "If you get the chance, I'm sure you'd be welcome on board our airship. It's a very friendly sort of place. There's stables and everything," she dangles. 

<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.

    Riesenlied smiles happily, between Midori thanking her, and Citan telling her she hasn't been this happy in a time, Fei telling her it's good to see her, and... of course, the bond she's still sharing with Noeline and the encouragement she's getting. She's just about buoyed with good feelings at this point, such that her cheeks are rosy and red.

    "Hehe... I would not be here without everyone, after all. That is a bond that is no less special than family! Thank you to all of you as well..."

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