2021-05-30: Chu-Chus Make Good Company
- Log: Chu-Chus Make Good Company
- Cast: Citan Uzuki, Lan Lilac, Fei Fong Wong, Elhaym van Houten
- Where: Aphel Aura - Chu-Chu Paradise
- Date: May 30, 2021
- Summary: In the aftermath of the Odessa attack, several seek the quiet of the home of the Chu-Chu in Shevat as the barrier is restored. Lan, Fei, and Elly have a slightly awkward reunion, and Citan realizes something about his relationship with his daughter. Chu-chus are involved all around.
<Pose Tracker> Citan Uzuki has posed.
It had been a tumultuous evening the day prior: courtesy of some trickery of Odessa's, they had not only deactivated the shield but had stormed the lower reaches of Shevat, attempting to claim the Gear hangar and cut off access to Shevat's most potent form of defense. Their goal it seemed had been to then storm the palace and request Queen Zephyr's surrender, but this had been thwarted by the intervention of several of the landdwellers the Queen had asked for assistance from just hours prior to the incident.
It's late morning the following day by now and Shevat is still on high alert: the shield generators are not yet operating at full capacity and out of all due caution, just about every able Gear pilot Shevat has on hand (especially Maria) are on standby. The last Citan had heard on the matter from Yui, hours ago, they were anticipating full restoration of the shield around noon, but even with that fateful hour approaching steadily, that still left a window of opportunity for something... unfortunate to happen.
But as there's nothing he can do (he doesn't expect they would let him take a look, and frankly, doesn't blame them on that front) he's taken his daughter, Midori, to one of the places in Shevat that is more removed from the tension that's gripped much of the flying country:
Which is to say, he's taken her to the part of Aphel Aura that the Chu-Chu call home.
If there's one thing he can admire about the Chu-Chu, it's the fact that even in times like these, they are able to carry on without worrying about what is to come. It's a trait he wishes he could cultivate in himself. Still, at least this will be less stressful for Midori. She already seems more relaxed, kneeling near one of the younger Chu-Chu (he... thinks?) and playing with what looks to be a stuffed puppy doll. Neither of them say a word to one another, but they seem to be able to communicate just fine regardless...
He rubs at his chin, considering this.
<Pose Tracker> Lan Lilac has posed.
Shevat, the mysterious city in the clouds. ...One of two mysterious cities in the clouds. Possibly more. Lan isn't sure what to believe anymore. Maybe the sky is secretly just full of people...?!
But even having only spent a couple of weeks here, Lan likes Shevat much more than Etrenank (so far). Being put on immediate and nearly-unending house arrest so long ago basically ruined any hope of her ever really liking the last cloud city she visited. It helps that in Shevat, she already has friends around.
Without much to do, Lan has gone back to her best non-herb-related pastime - slowly knitting a strand of lace. It helps that she can carry a ball of thread and a hook with her easily. She's not sure if Shevat has a cottage textile industry, but it can't hurt to keep her hands busy. And maybe someone will trade her something nice for it once she's got more than a couple of feet produced.
Somehow, she got persuaded to try to teach it to a Chu-Chu. "Okay, so, think of it as reaching through a fence and pulling a vine through--"
Lan isn't a particularly good teacher.
<Pose Tracker> Fei Fong Wong has posed.
Fei... hasn't had an on screen enouncter with the Chu Chus yet! He clearly has not yet heard the word of chuthulhu or its many adherants. The fact that Shevat has to worry about ODESSA attacking as well as Solaris now troubles him and makes him doubt the success of their shared goals. To top it off, apparently Tidus is also secretly from the zeboim era like Lily. Does he have a secret past self too? What's his deal??? Why hasn't he had any cool secret flashbacks to ancient zeboim blitzballing??? He honestly feels a little ripped off.
Maybe the Chuchus will help because his arm is still hurting from getting shot twice. He has been told that the Chu-Chus make good company and so he steps into the Sanctuary with an arm in the sling.
He quirks his head towards the younger Chu-Chu that Midori is...playing with?
Something seems strange about them, in fact. Maybe it's the fact that he can't really tell if they're dolls or not if they're standing still...
He looks up, seeing Lan--he grimaces slightly and rubs at his arm. No, he reminds himself, she isn't working with Solaris anymore.
"So uh..." He says to Lan. ".......Whatcha doing?"
......Good job Fei. It's not like Siegfried is being murdered again today. Right. Right. RIGHT.
<Pose Tracker> Elhaym van Houten has posed.
Elly van Houten was... not nearly as shot up as she often is after these battles. After some bandaging, an Aquasol, and a long conversation with a medical servicer in Shevat to avoid the cognitive risk of going to sleep immediately after a battle (mostly about which fish are prettier), Elly was eager to...
Go out and about.
Elly's uninjured arm is down to hold Fei's uninjured hand. as they go to this place, this place with an enigmatic indication, this place full of...
... "... what..."
Her eyes slowly widen at the sight of these ENTITIES. She's seen them before, she knows, but where. Where are they! What is going on! What -- then she remembers. Oh, yes, she thinks. Lady Marguerite's companion object. She saw that in video reports. Elly breathes out, and looks towards Midori, before looking towards Lan -
Who is teaching one to -
knit.
Elly seems obscurely thunderstruck, but she doesn't seem to clarify immediately. "Hello, Lan - I'm curious myself, is that...?" Elly does not seem to know. She does point, at the needle and yarn, before looking towards Midori and Dr. Uzuki and smiling, raising a hand to wave at them with a certain soreness.
<Pose Tracker> Citan Uzuki has posed.
He isn't ignorant of Lan's presence in here, either, having noticed her in the corner attempting to teach lace crochet to a particularly motivated Chu-Chu.
But he turns his head when the door opens and in walk...
"Fei, Elly! How are the both of you? I had thought you might still be resting. ...I had heard of your injuries. I assume you are both recovering well enough?"
He rises to his feet soon after, glancing for a moment in Lan's direction before focusing on the two of them.
"I am watching over Midori right now. With all that is going on... If you are looking for my wife, I am afraid she is still preoccupied."
With what, he doesn't say.
"Please, make yourselves comfortable. There does not seem to be many others present here at the moment save for..."
He pauses for a moment, crinkling his brow as he seemingly attempts to think back. "...Miss Lilac, I did say hello to you, correct...?"
...He's been a little bit preoccupied today.
<Pose Tracker> Lan Lilac has posed.
Lan had never seen a Chu-Chu before either! But unlike Fei and Elly, her (embarrassingly enthusiastic) reaction happened off-screen and she's had a little while to get used to them, and learn to control her impulse to just scoop one up like it's a plush Carro or something.
"And then you pull the vine through, and the vine becomes another fence, and you reach through that to grab another vine..." Lan tries to explain it the way her auntie taught it to her, but it's been more than a decade. She's certain that she heard once something like, 'those who can, do; those who can't, teach.' But isn't being able to teach a skill of its own? What about people who can't do that?! A familiar voice tugs her out of her impending philosophical crisis just in time. "--Oh! Fei, right? And Elly! You both made it."
While Fei is thinking about the friend he lost, and the girl who sorta kinda maybe helped in his murder, Lan... doesn't seem to be thinking about the same thing at all. In fact, she seems to be perfectly glad to see both of them. She waves with the hand not holding on to a small silver hook. "I'm teaching Chu-Chu how to make lace. It can be relaxing... you're welcome to try if you want! Though," she amends, finally seeming to notice their injuries, "if you're both feeling a little tender maybe you can watch, and try it yourselves later."
Chu-Chu seems to have gotten the hang of something, at least, and is slowly creating a strand of loops with its tiny hands.
"Oh! Yeah, you did," Lan nods at Doctor Uzuki. At least, she's pretty sure he did. Maybe Citan isn't the only one preoccupied.
<Pose Tracker> Fei Fong Wong has posed.
Fei laughs a little, "Well--yeah, we're resting. We heard this is a good place to rest." A Chu-Chu waddles up to Fei as he rubs the back of his neck. He looks towards the furry creature and blinks at it.
The Chu-Chu looks at him.
"..." Fei looks back.
"<3." The Chu-Chu says.
Fei grimaces and takes a step backwards. "Though uh--if it's too busy here, we could go somewhere else?" He looks to Midori then back to Citan, "It's good for you to spend time with her anyway." He says in agreement. He already feels bad for how long Citan has been kept from his own family even if it seems he may've had a few reasons for that these days rather than just the situation he fell into. Doc's a good guy, thouhg. He should try not to fret oto much.
"Yeah..." Fei says to Lan. "We've met before. At the...Photosphere?"
He rubs at his neck. He hasn't actually APOLOGIZED for what happened and--he still doesn't. Woops. But he does seem to be considerably less likely to try and bite Lan's face off so maybe it was a one time thing.
"Yeah, I shouldn't be moving this arm right now. And trying it with one hand might be awkward."
<Pose Tracker> Elhaym van Houten has posed.
"Oh, Doctor," Elly says to Citan with a smile. "I think we're doing alright. I wasn't hurt too badly." And so, Elly thinks, was Fei. Miraculous! If perhaps understandable - with a single main source, it is easier to defend yourself, even when shotguns get involved.
And if they weren't that badly hurt, they wouldn't be here. QED. Wrap it up, Gazeliures.
"Oh! Oh," Elly says. "I think I understand -- I didn't know you made it by hand... Oh, goodness, that makes it perfectly understandable why it was so expensive in the Seed Cities." (As opposed, one presumes, to the Lace Fairy in Solaris.) "It looks fascinating... ah, and your friend's hands are so small!"
"I think it's that chu have big hands," says another Chu-Chu with a mustache, or the suggestion of one, who is pushing a wheelbarrow. It has exactly twelve sweet potatoes in it.
Elly seems thunderstruck again, for a moment, even as another Chu-Chu makes time with her boyfriend. "Ah!"
"Chu look like chu saw a ghost," says the Chu-Chu who is rich in potat.
"You," Elly says.
The Chu-Chu sort of nods. "Me. Oh, did chu want one of these? Fifteen gella."
Wordlessly, Elly reaches into her money pouch. "... Do you have change?"
"Chu gotta be kidding me," says the Chu-Chu.
"Oh -- I -" Another 10G coin comes out. "Then, can I have two?"
VERY, VERY SHORTLY THEREAFTER: "Ah! They're a little hot...!"
"Fresh baked! Very chutricious," says the Chu-Chu, who begins to trundle off.
Wordlessly, Elly proffers one roast sweet potato to Fei. "... Maybe we should sit down, though. Ah... Were you here when there was, the... attack, Lan? I'm glad that you already met, at least-- oh! Fei, Lan is the one who told me about bottle walls!"
<Pose Tracker> Citan Uzuki has posed.
"That is good to hear, Elly. I understand there were a few casualties, though nothing that required additional assistance." From himself or others who have medical training but are not Shevat citizens, he means.
Citan shakes his head at Fei's remark. "No, not at all. Indeed, we are only guests ourselves," he says, glancing about himself and the Chu-Chu filling the room. "And... Midori does enjoy having you about, Fei. Ah, Midori!" Slowly, she sets down her toy and looks over at her father for a moment, then turns her head to regard Fei and Elly. Then after a moment's apparent consideration, she hands the doll back to her Chu-Chu friend and stands up, approaching the general direction of Elly and Fei without getting within five feet or so of where they stand. The girl has a particularly serious expression for a nine-year-old, but then again, as Fei and Elly would know by now, that's... sort of Midori's default expression?
She fidgets with her skirt for a moment, just about fisting an entire hand's worth of cloth, before slowly, determinedly, and altogether solemnly approaching Fei to regard him in silence.
"Hmm, I feel as if she may have been worried," Citan attempts to translate. He really needs to learn hand signing soon, doesn't he...
"Please, make yourselves comfortable. It appears we are all simply attempting to pass time, presently... I hope that nothing goes awry." He shakes his head, then glances over at Lan. "Ah, so you three have met? ...I did? Well, that is fortunate," says the doctor, rubbing at the back of his neck. "It would not do to have been inconsiderate..."
<Pose Tracker> Lan Lilac has posed.
"The Photosphere..." Lan trails off, thinking back. "...Oh, yes. I remember, kinda." It had been loud and chaotic, and... "That's right, we fought there, didn't we? I'm sorry. You've got a really good technique though!" she brightens up quickly. "You fight like you could do it in your sleep! You must've been a practicioner for a really long time, huh?" Honestly, it isn't the battle she remembers most clearly. It was what came after, when everything had gone quiet save for the howl of wind. Pensively, she rubs a knuckle against her mouth and looks down to check Chu-Chu's work when Elly comments on friends with tiny hands. "--Oh, you're doing great! Try doing a double crochet now? Remember, where you go back one loop and work in the opposite direction?" Lan slips her hook into a loop in her own work and builds another flower petal with steady motions.
She shifts a bit so that Elly and Fei can look closer if they'd like, though it's not really as interesting after a few loops. "It does! But I heard they have machines in some places that can make a simple kind of lace. Sort of like how there are electric looms to make fabric. Isn't that kind of neat?" Of course, it'll never be as complex as the home-made kind, but if more people can afford something nice now and then it's surely not a terrible thing, right?
Another petal starts to form, the whole flower smaller than her thumbnail, until her hands go still and she looks up at Fei and Elly one after the other. "...I don't think I got the chance to thank you two, did I? For helping Loren get his memory back. Even with Gwen and the Major there, I don't think we could've managed it without you. So, thank you. Gwen and I got here a couple of weeks ago, but I was trying to help people get to safety during the attack. I take it you guys were fighting though," Lan guesses, reaching for the proverbial low-hanging fruit of an idea.
She watches Midori with the air of someone who has been around children, but isn't particularly interested in trying to mother them, as the girl approaches Fei like it's a grave matter indeed. "Oh, don't worry about that kind of thing so much! I'd probably forget about it even if you were," she laughs.
<Pose Tracker> Fei Fong Wong has posed.
Fei's eyebrow twitches a little.
Tch, they probably drugged her out of her mind. Don't worry about it
Sensing that Id is telling him to take it easy, Fei thinks maybe...he should try to be less aggressive than the 'demon' living inside of him. He exhales softly and says, "Well, maybe. I don't have much memory from more than a few years ago but..." Does she NOT know about Id? Maybe he should just keep that the case, honestly. She doesn't seem bad but she does seem... strange... and he's not sure if Solaris still doesn't having fingers on her.
On the other hand, Elly seems to like her. And Lan seems to have given her a good experience involving arts and crafts. Fei rumbles this along in his head for a bit before deciding--if he can break bread with Shevat, he can probably break bread with Lan Lilac whose only crime was asking people to not try to kill each other.
Also stealing a religious icon but Fei doesn't know about that so as far as he's concerned she's pretty innocent.
"How did you--" He begins before saying, "I know it's been a long while, but--we're going to be fighting with Solaris. Are you okay with that?"
Lan reminds HIM in turn about helping Loren get his memory back. HE rubs at his neck and he adds, "Well--I know what it's like to lose your memory. And honestly I kind of pity the guy. It's too bad that he's sticking around in a situation that doesn't really suit him, I think. But you can't force a guy to leave a bad situation."
He now feels super embarrassed for feeling uneasy about Lan and he laughs awkwardly before crouching down as Midori approaches and makes some gestures with his hand that say something along the lines of 'Enjoying Dad Time?'. It's a little rough.
The Chu-Chu before walks up next to Fei, and tugs on his arm possessively.
"..." Fei makes a peculiar face.
<Pose Tracker> Elhaym van Houten has posed.
"It's a miracle... I'm glad that we were able to help protect this place," Elly answers Citan. "I wonder if Odessa followed us up...? The Ethos' seal would have been something they could breach, but if they monitor Drifters... we weren't the only ones who went up the Tower. When they saw several groups going in, and none coming out..."
She then starts eating her sweet potato. This takes a few bites, and lets her gaze upon Midori. Considering, she breaks off the opposite end of it and proffers the morsel to Midori, on her palm.
"... you seem relaxed, Dr. Uzuki... is it good to be here?" Elly asks Citan, with a smile.
Back to Lan, and her project. "It looks so intricate. Wouldn't your eyes hurt, doing it? I suppose the light is very good up here, at least. ... ah," Elly then says, turning red, "You're welcome. I'm glad that I was able to help, even if it was..."
For an enemy?
For someone who hates her?
Elly eats sweet potato for a few moments more. Fei is asking a question she had only half-thought-- but perhaps, she thinks, Lan will give me more courage, or ease the doubts. I wish the Queen hadn't mentioned it at all; now I'm worrying about myself...
When she sees...
"Oh, Fei-- that's's so cute." To the Chu-Chu -- now that she understand they CAN speak -- Elly says, "Do you want some sweet potato too?"
<Pose Tracker> Citan Uzuki has posed.
"Hmm..." Citan muses, rubbing his chin. "It is certainly possible. Though, that makes me wonder about their choice of timing. Had they arrived sooner, they would have met little resistence, most likely. ...Unless, that too was their goal? To strike at those who would aid Shevat..." He folds his arms over his chest and glances upwards at the ceiling.
...There are Chu-Chu hanging around up there, too.
He glances back at Elly. "...Do I? I admit, I am not entirely certain that I am relaxed, just yet... but perhaps 'seeming to be so' is a part of 'being so'? Hmm. That said, it is relaxing here. Midori appears to enjoy it."
Chu-Chus have a less complicated relationship with the world than many people do, but it isn't as if Midori can express that, precisely.
But at least it isn't as 'loud' being around people these days as it had used to be.
He regards Lan and Fei as they converse among one another, remarking on events that he was present partially or not at all for.
"Oh my. Is that so?" he remarks to Lan. "Nevertheless! I am glad that I may have behaved appropriately, let us say?" Given by the way he's struggling not to laugh, he may be having a little bit of fun with this at the same time...
Midori hesitates for a moment, then nods at Fei's question.
'He's distracted. But it isn't bad. Are you okay?', she signs back. ...She's more adept, of course.
"Hmm... it seems as if you may have an admirer, Fei," Citan remarks, stifling a laugh when the Chu-Chu that appears to have taken an interest in him.
"Still, Fei is right. This is... something that you will need to consider carefully, Elly. As I recall, you still have family back in Solaris," he says, folding his arms over his chest again.
Midori takes this moment to glance over Lan's way. She'd given Lan a good look before, of course, and the same is true now...
But her attention is taken more at the moment by the lacework project Lan is working on.
<Pose Tracker> Lan Lilac has posed.
"You lost your memory too? Is... is there something in the water, or--" Halfway through trying to lighten the mood a bit Lan seems to realize just how that particular sentence is going to sound and clamps her mouth shut for a moment. "...That sounds rough," she tries instead. "At least you were able to make new ones! I was worried if that was going to be a thing, if we didn't succeed at the ritual. It'd be pretty scary to wake up morning after morning with a blank slate." Reintroducing herself to Loren once was hard enough. But maybe it would be different for Fei and Elly... she's always acted so much more patient and graceful than Lan is. As far as she knows, Fei has never tried to kill Elly. That's got to count for something, right?!
"It's definitely something you can give yourself a headache doing! So it's important to take a break from it now and then. I have to worry more about my fingers going numb. If you hold the hook too tight, you'll lose feeling for a little while and start making mistakes." Even if it was, Elly trails off, and Lan smiles a bit. "A little weird, huh," she guesses. "He's never been nice to either of you, but you both came along anyhow and helped out. I don't think that's something a lot of people would do."
Her hands still, and Lan puts the thread and hook down in her lap to clasp her fingers together pensively. "Even if there are people I don't want to fight, I can't let them do what they've been doing. It's wrong. It's wrong and until we win or Solaris falls, I can't back away from it. I want to..." she takes a deep breath, seeming to struggle to find the right words. "I... A lot of the time, I miss it. I miss thinking I was with friends. Even if I didn't realize that most of them weren't really, I wasn't lonely. And I... I saw the human side of a lot of people there. And some awful things, too. I want to... Sometimes I want to tear Etrenank out of the sky, and I feel sick afterwards," she admits in a near-whisper, looking down at her pale knuckles. "I want to take Loren someplace where he'll be home." Lan goes quiet before she can say anything else, staring down at the lace she's made. "...Sorry. It's just... it's important to me."
<Pose Tracker> Fei Fong Wong has posed.
"No I think it's more uh." Fei says. "It's complicated." He looks to Elly, perhaps hoping that she can explain the deal to Lan in a way that won't make her head explode. "I don't have any trouble remembering new things, just stuff from before. I'm guessing part of that is because I wasn't... me for some of that."
Fei has indeed never tried to kill Elly. He has tried to get Elly to kill Fei but that didn't work out either. He has, however, punched a dinosaur for Elly and really--in the end--isn't that the mark of a true gentleman?
"Maybe it's-- I know how this sounds and to be clear I don't really wish Loren ill or anything but..." He rubs at his neck. "Why are you so fixated on helping him? I guess you're friends but... How did that even happen?"
Fei is genuinely mystified.
"I can't imagine it could've been easy for someone from the surface to befriend him, let alone--he seemed to care about you too?"
That's honestly the MORE mystifying thing for him. "He doesn't usually seem like a guy who even wants friends." Fei admits quietly.
Midori asks Fei a question. It's hard for Fei to answer because his emotional landscape is 'complicated' at the best of times. Eventually he does the best he can and signs back with an 'I'll be okay,' since that feels like the best way to express it. Midori can likely get a read that Fei is relieved about a lot of things, nervous about a lot of things, and happy to see Midori is okay after the attack. 'I'm glad they didn't hurt you.' He adds.
Fei's face turns bright red as Citan makes a joke at his expense. He deserves it after the crack he gave at Citan's expense earlier, but--
Elly approaches the Chu-Chu. She offers it a sweet potato.
The Chu-Chu turns up its nose and says, "Hmph...! Cradlerobber!"
Fei's expression becomes extremely horrified. "N-now hold on--!"
<Pose Tracker> Elhaym van Houten has posed.
"I don't really know. At the time, they were speaking as if they wanted to seize the place... I imagine for its value as some kind of aerial fortification," Elly says to Citan. "... I can't imagine what they would have done from there." Oh, she sure can, but she doesn't WANT to, which is subtly different.
She smiles, on the happier topic. "Maybe... perhaps it's just 'familiar surroundings.'"
Her family comes up in several directions.
Elly looks at her sweet potato. "... What matters is stopping what they're doing to harm the surface," Elly says. "That has to be the most important thing. And... from there, things have to be made right. But... I hope that they'll change their hearts." Her potato gets turned around. "... I suppose, at least, it's unlikely that we'd have to fight them... my parents, I mean. My father was in a support position..."
That's not really what they were asking about.
However, she can explain Fei's situation to Lan! Or at least, sort of. "The term is I think 'retrograde amnesia'. His memories aren't... accessible before a point that was, about, six? years ago," Elly says, glancing at Fei as if to confirm, "and... well, mm. It's funny," she continues to Lan. "I think it's one of the things that we have in common, since sometimes we both have trouble with little things here on the surface..."
But then at this point, she is offering a Chu-Chu a sweet potato... and...
"Wh.. what??" Elly says, her mouth hanging open as the sweet potato piece falls out of her hand. "Cr... cradle...??" From the ashen look on her face, she understands the idiom perfectly well! And may be about to die!
<Pose Tracker> Citan Uzuki has posed.
Fei's mental landscape is complicated. But most of the people she spends the most time around are also complicated, if in different ways. He signs back the best summation of his feelings and she nods, once, soberly. 'I know', she signs back. That's good enough. 'I was fine. Father was watching me', she adds, the exchange between the two of them earning a glance from the father in question.
"If you are not careful, she just might talk your ear off, Fei." He's already had the opportunity to see her carry on quite complex conversations with her mother that... he hasn't yet had the chance to learn how to understand. "I must ask Yui for that handbook," he muses, on that note.
"Yes, I hear their leader had some interest in Queen Zephyr. Is that right?" he asks of Elly.
Elly, unfortunately, isn't the only one with a very good imagination.
Citan seems for a moment as if he were about to break in on this subject of Fei's memory but instead he glances between Fei and Elly as they explain the matter, themselves, to Lan. "...Seven years now, I believe. It is more or less like that," he summarizes. "In any regard, I do not think..." He pauses for a moment, as if to consider his words. "...It is nothing to worry about, now."
And in the sense that it's not something he has to worry about at this precise second, this is actually true.
He's silent, considering what it is that Elly has said about her father, her parents. "...Yes, I see. However, I do not mean simply 'in battle'. There is also the matter of what it means to fight against another's cause, to understand that you may bring them harm because you are doing what you see as right. Do you understand, Elly? If we are at war with Solaris, we are at war with all of Solaris. Its people, its ideals..."
Understanding that -- what it really meant to be 'in opposition' -- had been a pivotal moment in his life.
Citan watches Lan for a moment, pensive as she tries to sort her emotions on the matter, make her stance clear.
Midori, though...
It's not so much what Lan says or how she says it, but what she feels, how she feels. The girl cringes, grabbing at her skirt as if for some sort of comfort, then eases away from Lan, ducking behind... Elly?
"Midori?" her father asks. It might make the situation with the Chu-Chu a little more awkward, now that Elly appears to have gained a shadow.
A strange expression crosses Citan's face, if only for a moment. He's had a small epiphany of his own.
But at least the matter of Fei's not-so-secret admirer may be a distraction.
<Pose Tracker> Lan Lilac has posed.
It's complicated. It's complicated. It suuuure is...!
"...No, I know how it sounds," Lan admits. Isn't this too far, even for 'friendship'? "He was my handler in Solaris, though I wasn't able to think of it like that. But maybe it's just because I knew him before they found me. I thought we were friends. We did things that friends do, sometimes. We talked--" Lan swipes at her face and pulls her hair over her shoulder to smoothe it. "...We talked about stuff. And we relied on each other. We've saved each other's lives over and over. We just... had stuff in common."
It's too raw to talk about even now, the loneliness she'd seen echoed in him. "I dunno. Maybe there's something wrong with me. But even if I should let him go his own way, I don't want to. Because what he's going along with is wrong, and he knows it. Even if his family is still there, even if he wants to believe what's wrong with Solaris can be fixed..." Lan takes a long, shuddering breath and holds it for a moment before letting it out in a whoosh. "Ugh. I guess... in the end, I couldn't live with myself if I didn't try."
Elly's explanation helps. Lan is, perhaps unsurprisingly, a little familiar with the term. "Oh, okay. Maybe something bad happened," she muses, rolling the lace between her fingers. Maybe Fei is happier, not remembering. Maybe, for Fei, this is a happy ending.
Cradlerobber, the Chu-Chu accuses. Lan, pulled out of the beginnings of a funk by the sheer weirdness of it, looks at Elly. And then at Fei. And then at Chu-Chu. "But... but Fei's the same age as her, isn't he?" Again, the point flew right past her...! Or maybe she just didn't catch the subtle insinuations involved in chutato culture.
<Pose Tracker> Fei Fong Wong has posed.
Fei says, "You're a smart guy, Doc. You'll be twice as adept in half the time. I'm sure of it."
Fei was busy trying to not die to an act of Josie so he isn't going to be embarrassed by not catching all that Ptolomea had said. Guns, it turns out, are very loud especially when they are shot directly into your arm twice at near point blank range.
There are undoubtedly good people like Elly in Solaris. There are many wonderful things about Elly, and she might be very well one of the kindest people he knows--it's a tough match with Riesenlied frankly--but he doubts she's the ONLY kind person in Solaris. That sort of thing is pretty tough to stamp out in its entirety even if it may be possible to squash its effectiveness.
It's impossible for Fei to seperate Lan's situation with Loren from his own with Elly, even if it IS pretty different in some important ways but if he can't at least believe that Lan might succeed in her goal, then what is the point?
What is the point of any of it?
Fei thinks about this for a moment and then manages a smile, "Well... I'll try not to get in your way." He says. "I'd offer to help but I think it'd only make things worse. Even so..."
"I don't think there's anything wrong with you." Fei says. "I don't know if you can help him but--it is important to try. Just... don't kill yourself for it. Eventually he has to offer his hand back. One wing can't make anyone fly by itself."
Fei shakes the Chu-Chu off him. "Yeah Elly's the same age as me." He says. "She's really nice. You should give her a chance."
The Chu-Chu huffs and absconds to stare daggers like jealousy incarnate.