driftfleet | Twin Roses Mingle

[And here's one of the new members - maroon-skinned, a uniform all blues and golds with a yellow stone in his forehead, and it sure looks like he just phased through wall and floated down to the floor. When he notices the unfamiliar face, he lifts a hand in a wave and walks over.]

AH, hello there. I don't believe we've met?

[Mikumo narrows her eyes as she watches him through the long curl that hangs on her shoulder. He is new and she's been too wrapped up in the things in her head to notice the new arrivals.

Although, to be honest, she's never really been terribly friendly before now. And since she doesn't have to fake it as much, she hasn't tried to connect with anyone but Kaname and Messer.

She leaves her hand hovering over the plant she was singing to and turns her head slightly to see him better.]

No, we haven't talked before now.

I am the Vision, and I'll be helping Kitty with the Engineering.

[He gestures toward the plants she's tending.] You've all been doing a wonderful job of keeping the plants here. Do they need anything today?

Hm, welcome to the ship then.

[Mikumo watches him carefully before giving a small smile.]

I'm Mikumo Guynemer. Communications. [Which she still finds as ironic, considering things.] As far as the plants go, I'm not sure. They all seem to be healthy, but I've heard that music helps the as much as it helps people.

Ah, very good. [He'd inferred that there was a Communications officer, but hadn't been sure who it was.]

I believe it does. [He reaches over to touch one of the nearby plants' leaves gently.] It's difficult for me to sense directly - they don't have minds, not in any way I can detect - but you see how strongly they're growing? They wouldn't get that way without love.

[Not every ship has every position filled, but it's both ironic and fitting that she's been chosen as the Communications officer.

At his comment, she can't help but laugh.]

I'm not so sure about love. I'm an idol back home and there doesn't appear to be much call for that here. So, these plants have become my audience for the time being.

An idol--ah, the performing kind? [...Look, he deals with weird things on a regular basis. Someone actually being worshipped as an idol wouldn't be out of the question.]

Yes, I suppose the only substantive audience is the one we're assured actually exists but never see evidence of. The Fleet population is really too small for an ongoing career.

[He tilts his head to one side, curious.] Do you miss it?

Yes, the performing kind, though I suppose some of our fans do take it a bit to the other type.

[Vision, ask someone from Japan about "idol culture" there.]

I don't doubt that we're actually being watched. I've received letters after our weekly shuffles, but that doesn't really mean I want to appease them as I did the crowds back home.

[She caresses a finger down the soft leaves of one of the plants as she considers his question.]

I haven't been here very long, but I suppose the answer to that is both yes and no. I miss performing to the larger crowds on the different planets, but I don't miss some of the other things.

[Like being kidnapped by megalomaniacs and being used against the entire system to control them all.]

[Humans. So strange, yet so delightful.]

Ah, yes. Between the letters and the sponsor drops, there is at least the appearance of an audience. Whether we're being watched by one entity or many, though--I haven't been able to determine with any proof.

[He nods. Much like his work at home, he suspects - there are bits and pieces he misses, and others that he's glad to leave behind.]

So you traveled to different planets even at home? I admit, I was more or less confined to the Earth in my timeline. Though I knew several persons from other worlds.

[Humanoids, Vision, are weird.]

You know, I would like to maintain that there is an audience. Otherwise, the Atroma's dedication to faking it is.... chilling.

[She is willing to believe that multiple people are writing her a lot of letters and offering marriage. Otherwise, there's a really dedicated stalker and she would like Major Johnson here now.]

Yes, the planets in the system all had their charms and deficiencies, but I enjoyed interacting with the people while singing the most.

[No argument there.]

With no definitive evidence either way, I don't see why you couldn't assume the audience is real. Perhaps you'll make more money than I do that way.

[Aside from upgrades - most of which the ship has, by this point - he's never really used his credits for anything but buying plants from the planets they visit., so pleasing the audience for money is not exactly a priority.]

Which system did you come from, if I may ask?

I doubt that making money is really something people here are worried about. Or there would be more interpersonal drama. [She gives him a faint smile.] And since I don't see anyone coming over the devices to cry about how their boyfriend, K-kun, cheated on them with B-ko, I think you're in good company.

Besides, there are jobs down on the planets and systems from what I can tell. I worked as a bodyguard in the last one.

[Actually, what she did was annoy Messer, but she did look out for the cargo they were guarding.]

I don't know if you know the name it, but it's called the Globular System. It's quite a few light years from Earth.

[He gets a distant look for a moment.] I always had more money than I could use, the first time I was here. But it did end up funding several of the improvements to the ship, so I suppose it went to good use. [Which is what happens when you don't feel the need to collect personal belongings or buy food for yourself.]

I'm afraid I haven't heard of it, but considering the general lack of faster-than-light travel available on the Earth of my time I can't say that's surprising. There are several habitable planets? Was there terraforming involved, or were you extremely lucky?

[She looks at him fully before laughing.]

That's because you're not a girl. And I assume you don't have a girlfriend. Most of my money is usually spent on the planets to get different clothes and hair goods.

[And when you have hair like hers, it costs a lot.]

Well, there were humanoids in the Globular System long before humans from Earth arrived, so the planets were all inhabited. At least 500,000 years or so. Perhaps closer to 700,000, what with the level of technology we've found in the ruins on some of the planets. And it's hardly the only system in the universe with life.

[An expression crosses his features that's half regret and half guilt, with a nice dash of pain in there for good measure.] Ah, no. That is, I do not have a girlfriend here. [And then his face lightens a bit.] And, as you perceive, I do not have hair at all. Aside from a general need for "shampoo" and "conditioner", I find hair care a very opaque science.

[Because of course it's a science.]

Oh, that's wonderful. In my own timeline there are many inhabited planets as well, though Earth has only come in partial contact with them and under extreme circumstances. Humans are largely planetbound at this point, I'm afraid.

[Now that is a curious flash of emotion there. Something she can put aside for a later time's perusal.]

Oh, no. A woman must take care of her hair. Especially when she is in front of others that will judge her. Hours of proper care is needed to keep a beautiful head of hair.

[She should know.]

Earth had no choice but to make contact. When a group of aliens attempts to take over your planet, contact is the least of things.

[He nods slowly, thinking of his friends that change their hairstyle more often compared to those that don't.] And it can be an indicator of one's emotional state. That you put great care into yours is an indication that you value yourself, isn't it?

[After all, there are no audiences they can see here. Who else would she be taking care of her hair for, besides her friends and herself?]

Oh, I agree. Aside from a few isolated incidents, an attack on one of the largest cities was my Earth's first experience with extraplanetary civilization. It's made us quite defensive, as you can imagine.

Hm, yes, that's true, but I don't really have much of a choice in the matter. Back home, I'm an idol. If my appearance is anything but perfect, well, that would make my fans very disappointed.

[Besides, she would be disappointed in herself. There is never a reason to go out and look anything less than beautiful and ready to be in front of a camera. For herself or any of the other girls.]

Yes, well, I've found that people don't really know who and what they are until they're pressed to the absolute limit. An attack from outside forces usually is what makes that come to fruition.

There's always a choice - you could choose to be a bad idol, for example, but I concede the point that you'd face greater consequences than someone with a different career might.

[He nods.]

Though it can also happen with internal stimuli, an external attack is certainly efficient at doing so.

What sort of choice is that? My job is incredibly important. Not only do I get to sing, which I love, but I get to save people who have been made ill with the power of my voice. The other option is to not do those things and....

[She shudders at the thought. She's literally been made to sing and to not do so just sounds anathema to everything she is.]

Well, efficiency is all that matters, you know.

It's important to like what you do. I've thought many times about giving up the responsibility that comes with being an Avenger so I could live a normal life, and yet--[He shrugs, smiling wryly.] Yet I'd be betraying everything I stand for if I didn't help when I could, if I let people suffer when there was something I could do about it.

Though you say you can heal people? Is that some sort of magical ability, or is there a science behind it?

[Yes, yes, it's all energy manipulation in the end, but he likes hearing the different explanations people have.]

There is a lot of science behind it.

[She knows a great deal of it as well.]

However, I'm not a scientist. It's enough to say that music has been variably weaponized to fight against the Var epidemic that our system is under.

[He nods, looking satisfied. Science he can always eventually understand, given enough context. Granted, the context is sometimes missing....]

That is fascinating - I'd love to discuss it with you some time, if you're up for it. Two of my fathers were research scientists, so I've something of a curious bent.

I hope your system is winning its fight?

[If you like that sort of thing, yes, it can be fine, but...]

I suppose I don't mind talking about it.

[What's the worst thing that can happen? He doesn't believe her? Well, she can prove it if Messer has another attack.]

Mostly, yes, a great deal of the concerts that the Tactical Sound Unit, Walküre, that I belong to are preventative instead of curative.

Excellent. Do let me know when you've some free time. I'll bring plenty of questions.

[Neeeeerd.]

I'm glad to hear that, and I hope things continue to go well for you.

Twin Roses Mingle

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