RP: Cirrus Station [Episode 9] The Silver Lining

[Kokuten]

"Mmmm." Fidela's lips pursed as she hummed quietly. Her finger twirled over and around the different options on the leather-bound menu. Even with a few seconds spent, she still couldn't make up her mind, and began tapping her finger down the list, one at a time. "Eenie... Meenie... Mienee... Los." Her finger stopped on the linguini. "Los Apagos, I'll get the liguini. I haven't had any stuff from home in a long time." She looked around at everyone else, and then up at Stovaa. "Ms. Montreal isn't going to think bad of me if I have a little wine, hm?"

----

Kokuten set his menu down to the side, having already decided and set out his order, and waited on everyone else. In this time, he allowed himself to be quiet for a few moments, to let himself quietly perceive the rest of the room as it was. George seemed to be engaging Tweak rather shyly, it warranted an arched brow, and an amused smile, but nothing more. The disguised Freespacer was handling herself well enough in the face of Marrisa's somewhat knowing question. In fact, she somewhat more social despite her usual withdrawn nature. That's when his eyes were drawn over to Maximillian. He seemed to be whispering to Purina about something, somewhat like how she and Marrisa were a moment ago. It made the Captain somewhat curious to just what exactly they were talking about, but decided it was little of his business and looked at the other end of the table.

Stovaa was also going back and forth with Fidela, the two of them seemingly already rather friendly with one another. To Kokuten, he thought that the usual, cowboy-masquerading ID-SOL would be somewhat difficult to warm-up to. But... It was easy to forget Stovaa wasn't exactly the typical ID-SOL. Blake was doing just as well, getting along with Nell. This was good, recalling the man's current track record with... People. The man was genial, if not a little eccentric, which seemed to be the opposite of who he was talking to. Nell was up-front, and about as normal as they come when it came to Nepleslians. It was actually rather interesting to watch.

Then, his attention came to the two heads of the table. Laj was still rather in his element. Kokuten was unsure whether to put it as him playing in a comfortable zone, or just knowing he had all the cards. He decided not to let this cloud his thoughts as he brought his attention to the somewhat befuddled Administrator at his side. The health-conscientious woman was giving her menu a discerning stare. Now, if it were any other person, Kokuten would've offered a suggestion right away. Though, each time he ever offered a suggestion for something, or offered advice, she often bit or nipped back, a response which drove him crazy. Still, the hesitation overrode the desire to be helpful, and he spoke quietly.

"You know, the Yamataian Sea Bass likely came out of Malifarian fisheries, which are well-organized and take from the cleanest waters in the galaxy. If so, it's the best, and most healthy option on the list. In this physician's opinion, at least." Kokuten said, before looking back towards his menu.

 

[MoonMan]

George fumbled a bit with his menu when Tweak asked him what he himself was going to order. "I-uh-I'm gonna get the..." George hurriedly scanned over the leatherbound pamphlet, his eyes fluttering across the page as he spoke. "The lobster tail! Yeah. And, uh, a baked potato. With the soup. The, uh..." George took another glance at the menu to confirm, however upon seeing it again, the man's face sank a bit when he realized just what kind of soup it was. "... the asparagus soup."

George grimaced a bit.

Marrisa was not near as frantic as George when it came to ordering. In fact, she remained very quiet as the Nepleslian man bumbled about in his response, staring quite intently at Tweak the whole while. When George had finished, Marrisa looked upwards whimsically, humming aloud in thought. "I don't know, really. I thought perhaps I'd just have what you were having, miss. You look like you have some decent taste in seafood."

"So!" Marrisa turned her grinning stare back upon Tweak. "What will you be getting?"

---

"D'aawww," Nell gave Blake a friendly shove in embarrassment; a little too friendly, perhaps, as she pushed him rather hard in retaliation to his flattery. "Quit tryin' tah buttah' me up, big guy, I ain't that kinda gal!" Nell laughed jokingly as she turned to the waiter. "I'll take th' salad an' the Gold City Strip. With a potatah'."

When she noted the waiter nodding along as he punched in her order, Nell returned her gaze back to Blake, waiting for him to recompose himself before making a move to answer his question. "Weeelllll, lemme see," Nell said thoughtfully, putting a single finger to her lip as she batted her silver lashes skyward. "I used tah work on mah dad's ranch for like a long time. But when he died an' mah big brother took over the business, I thought it was time to be a'movin' on, yannow?" Nell nodded once, recalling the events quite clearly. "Thought I'd sign up for a diggin' job, but I met Odie here," Nell reached over and grasped Oddete's shoulder. The two friends smiled kindly at each other for a moment before Nell turned back to Blake. "An' Odie got me a job in security. Which suits me just dandy, 'cause I can tough it up with th' best of 'em, yannow?"

---

"Professor Purina Popjoy," Purina returned an introduction to Max with a soft smile and a single nod. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Keno. It all sounds so very good... I think I will be getting the fruit and... oh my, the shrimp sounds lovely. I've never heard of Azorian shrimp before, though," Purina looked over her menu passively while the waiter behind her silently stenciled in her order. "I suppose you're a new addition to squad 35, Mr. Keno?" Purina asked suddenly as she closed the leatherbound menu, handing it over to the waiter. "Captain Chiaki's squad has been of great help to me in the past. I hope that we can become good friends."

---

"You know, the Yamataian Sea Bass likely came out of Malifarian fisheries, which are well-organized and take from the cleanest waters in the galaxy. If so, it's the best, and most healthy option on the list. In this physician's opinion, at least."

Cassefin's eyes trailed downward to glance at the Sea Bass selection upon hearing Kokuten's strange sideways explanation. After putting a little thought into it, the sea bass did seem like the most health-conscious choice... the rest of the menu was a little off-putting to the Administrator's palette. "Hmm. Maybe..." Cassefin said thoughtfully, nodding along with Kokuten's suggestion in acceptance. After a moment, however, Cassefin's glance shot up from the menu, turning hotly onto Kokuten for a moment as she gave him a short glare. Luckily, he did not look as though he was watching for her reaction; after making sure that the gentleman wasn't going to attempt to coddle her any further, Cassefin cleared her throat and motioned for the waiter to approach her once more.

"I'll have the sea bass, please, with the spinach. And a Gazpacho Andalouse to start," Cassefin whispered to the waiter as she handed him her menu. When the waiter finished attending to her, Cassefin went back to sitting upright in her seat, doing her best not to let her gaze wander back to Kokuten to see if he was smugly grinning at her while she had been preoccupied.

 

[MissingNo]

George fumbled a bit with his menu when Tweak asked him what he himself was going to order. "I-uh-I'm gonna get the..." George hurriedly scanned over the leatherbound pamphlet, his eyes fluttering across the page as he spoke. "The lobster tail! Yeah. And, uh, a baked potato. With the soup. The, uh..." George took another glance at the menu to confirm, however upon seeing it again, the man's face sank a bit when he realized just what kind of soup it was. "... the asparagus soup."

George grimaced a bit.

He really is nervous about this, isn't he? the 'Spacer neko thought as George talked his way into ordering a dish that didn't seem to really appeal to him. She was about to tell him to take his time, to try calming him down, but didn't have a chance.

Marrisa was not near as frantic as George when it came to ordering. In fact, she remained very quiet as the Nepleslian man bumbled about in his response, staring quite intently at Tweak the whole while. When George had finished, Marrisa looked upwards whimsically, humming aloud in thought. "I don't know, really. I thought perhaps I'd just have what you were having, miss. You look like you have some decent taste in seafood."

"So!" Marrisa turned her grinning stare back upon Tweak. "What will you be getting?"

This...performance Marrisa was putting on (it certainly wasn't genuine friendliness) was making Tweak uneasy. At least no one else seemed to be paying attention to Marrisa's strange behavior. "But...I've never had any of these before," she answered slowly while looking confused at Marrisa. "That was why I was asking you." Her eyes turned back to the menu. "The mushrooms sound good, but you probably season them differently, don't you?"

 

[Kokuten]

Cassefin's glare was less seen and more felt on the side of Kokuten's face, as he idly played at his menu. For some reason, it felt like the ideal thing to do as a quick escape of putting the woman out of his perception. He put his hands in his lap shortly afterward, letting his eyes come up to look about the room again. Nothing out of the ordinary, at least in comparison to his last glance across the table.

Despite the comforts and luxury of the room around him, it was difficult to get the vibe it tried to reflect on him. He felt no opportune moments to speak up, and felt taken the table for longer than he needed to. So, he contented himself to just stay silent, perhaps keep an ear open to the conversations going across the table. The Captain sighed a bit as he strayed his mind off his worries, with the exception of how good the food would taste.

 

[Stovaa]

"I wouldn't have thought so, just don't get really drunk and insult her clothing, or pass out naked in the hallway. You know, the usual stuff you try not to do in an interview." He laughed half-heartedly, distracted by the menu. Trying to talk or laugh and think about a food/booze combination never worked well with Nepleslians, especially ID-Sols. It was fine normally, but give them the chance to glimpse a well-stocked bar... hell, a glimpse wasn't needed. Some of them could smell a good tipple a room away.

"Ah, can I have the tropical prime fruits, grilled sea bass and the baked potatoes? I'm a growing boy, after all..." Another half-hearted chuckle and a smile, brushing back an errant hair. Trying and probably failing to be at his most distinguished. "And to drink... Do you have any Skullhead? If not, I'll have a double of your single malt whisky and a pint of your cheapest double malt whisky."

It didn't strike him till afterwards that his usual drinking method probably didn't fly here.

 

[Dragonnova]

"There you are."

The familiar voice of the redheaded Geshrin sounded chastising but it was unclear who it was directed at. Whatever the situation, it seemed Claire had finally found their little dinner party and had caught up. Surprisingly, she had actually dressed for the occasion; A long crimson dress with slits in the sides for her legs to be glimpsed and of course low cut enough to show a little skin. Even if it was a formal wear it was still Claire who was wearing it. Somewhat lower heels than would be expected tapped the floor, the woman despising the things in the first place, but likely relenting on the advice of others.

"Cassie, I have a PDA, silly. You have my contact information so you could have just told me where you went." Apparently somehow her device hadn't actually received the notification, (She likely had turned it off or something) or simply Cassefin didn't send it. Whatever the case, she seemed to be gently scolding her boss. In front of everyone. Needless to say she was still at her old tricks. If nothing else she seemed to be in a pleasant mood.

Regardless she strode up to the table, as there were no empty seats she ended up being by Stovaa and Fidela, on Stovaa's side. She apparently noticed their friendly conversation. "Wow, Stovaa. We haven't even been here half a day and you've already got a local girl on your arm, you dog." Claire's playful grin was amused, and she stole a look at the scientist before scanning her eyes at the rest present. She only paused for the briefest of seconds on Marissa, before quickly darting away.

"Sheesh this high class, might be a bit rich for my blood. Whatcha got on the menu there, Stove?" Claire unsubtly trying to peek at his menu.

 

[Cora]

Serra wordlessly walked in behind Claire, she didn't say anything, or look at Cassifin. She was also dressed for the occasion, wearing, by most standards a simple dress. It was a high collar, solid black number without sleeves, a square hole cut to make a window to show off her cleavage and a high cut up the side nearly to the lower part of the hip on the right side. She wore matching black low heel shoes an cloth anklets.

Wordlessly, she walked to an empty seat, and waited for her place to be set before she looked at the menu.

 

[MoonMan]

The waiter quickly looked over the list to see if Stovaa's choice of drink was in stock as he took the ID-SOLs order. "... well, for a guest of the senator, we will most definitely be able to procure some for you sir," the man said with a hasty nod.

---

The color in Cassefin's face seemed to drain a bit when she saw the two familiar female faces approach from both sides. Claire, dressed in a manner that Cassefin had come to expect but was never fully prepared for, and Serra, walking in as though nothing was wrong and their late arrival was completely normal. "Well I-I thought you were, ah, busy, and-" Cassefin started to stammer as Claire trailed her way over towards Stovaa and Fidela, the color returning to her as she exchanged frantic glances between the two ladies and the two heads of the table, doing her best to mask her embarrassment.

However, Laj Vinross Yu looked entertained, rather than annoyed with the arrival of Serra and Claire. "My my, so many lovely ladies in your employ, Miss Montreal," Laj said as he waved a hand to summon one of the waiters to his side. "Any more and I might have Marrisa start selling you some Unique security suits to do them a little more justice. Sir, can you bring in a few more seats for our guests?" The gentleman nodded hurriedly before hustling his way out of the rocky entryway into their secluded dining grotto. In another moment or two, two more waiters from the nearby dining section came in, carrying chairs for both Serra and Claire in two. When they were seated, the other attendant handed them both a menu, bowing graciously as he left them to decide.

Marrisa didn't seem as pleased as Laj. When Claire and Serra appeared, the blonde businesswoman turned her attention away from harrowing Tweak to give them stern glances. Claire, in particular, seemed to force Marrisa's coy smile into an unamused frown. "And I see your friends have made it here," Marrisa answered Tweak's question with a direct change of subject, apparently no longer finding her teasing of the disguised neko any fun. The Vinross Yu-Cranker CEO leaned back into her seat, crossing her arms as she gazed lazily across the table to where Claire had slinked off to. "Fashionably late, you two?" Marrisa chided aloud, a small smile playing across her expression.

 

[MissingNo]

The arrival of Claire and Serra was welcome, but Marrisa's sudden cessation of challenging Tweak's cover took Tweak off-balance. The neko blinked, then shrugged and sighed quietly at her menu. She really was at a loss at what to order. The mushrooms and...what else? Hmmm.

Wow, they really used a lot of mushrooms in these dishes. Tweak had only noticed the Kohanian ones because of the relation to the Salmon, but looking back over the listing, they were in several other dishes. She finally decided and, after looking around to see what everyone else was doing, followed Kokuten's lead and set her menu aside.

 

[Cora]

Serra gave Marrisa an elegantly contemptuous look, as even addressing her back was something that Serra was forcing herself to do.

"My my, the snake tongue just flicked at me," She said with an aristocratic chuckle. "One must never be early, nor must one be late, one must arrive exactly when they mean to."

 

[Dragonnova]

Claire gave a warm smile to Serra as she came in behind her, giving her an approving nod for her choice of attire. The geshrin seemed unusually calm considering who they were in the presence of. Even Laj's compliment only earned a polite smile.

Then Marissa had to talk.

Serra had already taken to her theatrics, which she had no problem with. But Claire's smile, although technically hadn't changed, lost all sense of friendliness and civility. It was the coldest smile to ever cross her lips and it would chill her to the bone to see it reflected. "We had other business to attend to that delayed our arrival, I'm sure you can... sympathize with delays to urgent business elsewhere." Though on the surface to the uninitiated, this sounded like a normal explanation, if a bit worded too carefully. To anyone else that had even the most basic knowledge of what was between the two women, it could easily pass as a threat.

She nodded to the waiter and thanked him courteously as he brought a chair and menu, sliding her seat up next to Stovaa as she pretended to be interested in what the menu had to offer.

 

[Kokuten]

Kokuten blinked, eyes clacking, at the arrival of Claire and Serra. For one, the Captain had thought Serra had decided to stay behind on the station, and two, he had nary an idea where Claire had been for the last few hours. Nonetheless, he was glad to see the both of them again with the group. He would have hated to have them miss something they both had the right to attend to. Nobody should miss the chance to have good food, especially on a level such as this.

He looked down at Cassefin, his smile remaining on seeing how well she was taking the situation, as he had expected a worse reaction. Then again, Tweak had also come in her own arrayed dress, one that had captured a lot of attention at that. Kokuten had had many reasons to be surprised that night, and was beginning to wonder about his own judgements before her caught Marissa's cutting glib, Serra's stabbing response, and Claire's jab into it.

Kokuten laughed a bit at that, bring a fist in front of his mouth before bringing that hand out.

"Please, Miss Cranker, keep in mind that this our vacation as much as anything. A lot of us had to set aside our own plans to make the dinner, and I'm sure Miss Evangelle and Claire were just taking care of their own business, short notice or no." mentioned Kokuten waving his hand idly. "And on that note, you two are looking very enchanting this evening." He smiled over at red-dressed Geshrin, "Claire, your dress is very winsome, it accentuates you very well!" He chuckled, turning his attention to Serra, "And Miss Evangelle, you look resplendently noble, as always. I'm glad the both of you could make it here."

With that he held up his hand, signalling one of the waiters to come on over, wanting to speak rather quietly.

"I'm terribly sorry, but do you think you could supply this glass with Industrial Cleaning Alcohol?" The Captain held the empty glass of water up to the man, whispering to him in hushed tones, "I know it isn't classy for this sort of establishment, but it's been several months since I've actually felt a distinct buzz from my alcohol. Believe me or no, it's the only drink that does. So... Would it be too much trouble? It looks just like water out of the bottle, no one will know."

----

Fidela squirmed in her seat when Claire and Serra busted in. There were even more people? Were they important? Did she have to impress them, too? Serra looked like another Administrator from the station with how she handled herself into the room. Claire, on the other hand, seemed to be important figure just by her defiant dress, and familiarity with Cassefin. The Los Apagos native looked up at Stovaa and then across the room.

"Wow, Stovaa. We haven't even been here half a day and you've already got a local girl on your arm, you dog."

That sent a quick shock up the woman's spine.

"W-what?" squeaked Fidela, turning pale, as if she had been asked to join another threesome. "I--..." And then conversation turned on elsewhere. The change made the young Jacinto bounce her heel off the floor anxiously, brushing some of her chestnut hair out of her eyes.

 

[Stovaa]

Despite the sudden appearance of his colleagues, Stovaa tried to take it in his stride. Willing Claire not to screw this interview-date-obfuscated mess up. It wouldn't take much and it'd make the meal awkward as-

"Wow, Stovaa. We haven't even been here half a day and you've already got a local girl on your arm, you dog."

"Ah, Claire. I had wondered where you'd gotten to. Claire, the 'local girl on my arm' is Fidela Jacinto. Fidela, this is Claire Winters. She's another member of my squad. She's a bit zesty sometimes." A grin crossed his face and he tried to look as little like a playboy as possible. Dressed like he was in the situation he was in, it wasn't easy and to be perfectly honest, he wouldn't have been able to deny being one.

"Fidela is hoping for a job on the station and this was a free meal as well as a good way to make a fast impression on Cassefin, so..."

Laj's comments caught Stovaa's attention and his head turned to face the Senator. "I personally always felt the Uniques suits looked somewhat common. Everyone looking the same, like some factory-produced security prostitute. Besides, Squad 35's job is to get shit done, not look pretty."

He turned back to Fidela quickly, eager to avoid being drawn into a heavy discussion with their host.

"Where was I? Oh yes. It seemed like a good idea to bring her along. Not jealous are you, Claire?" he said over his shoulder, winking jokily to Fidela.

"The other woman is Serra Evangelle, another squad member. She's Elysian, so forgive her for her haughtiness." He'd turned and indicated in Serra's direction before running his fingers through his hair and sighing. "Food's pretty classy Claire, but I'm sure you'll find something you'll like."

There was a lot going on here, sooner or later he hoped food would arrive and all the craziness would die down. Considering some people had yet to order, he doubted it'd be for a while though.

 

[Lamb]

Blake sat too dumbfounded by the new arrivals to immediately reply to Nell. He recognized Claire and Sierra from earlier in the day, and previous missions, but he'd never seen them in this light. So immaculately dressed, so prim and proper and for Claire at the same time, a little seductive. He caught himself gawking and shut his mouth up in a grim expression. His youth was showing, for the first time in years. He really needed some barbiturates or something.

Wanting to avoid that path, he turned back to Nell, and continued their conversation. The woman she'd gestured too, Odette, was supposedly her friend. Yes, quiet, classy, sophisticated Odette was her friend. Blake sighed at the drumbeat of self-defeatism evident by such a relationship. Still, his question was answered, it was because she was tough that Nell was a Unique, not because she was classy. Blake nodded, satisfied by the answer. "I see." he began, prodding his glass of water, "It looks like the two of us are both fish out of water in the security environment. Although, I would like to say that I'm proud to be here and serve Nepleslia, my true calling is in the arts. But, I do love to travel and meet new people. I like to meet interesting people, such as yourself, and I like to experience other cultures' way of living."

He smiled wistfully as he remembered something from a few years before. "The Elysians, for example, they really know how to eat."

 

[MoonMan]

"I'm terribly sorry, but do you think you could supply this glass with Industrial Cleaning Alcohol?" The Captain held the empty glass of water up to the man, whispering to him in hushed tones, "I know it isn't classy for this sort of establishment, but it's been several months since I've actually felt a distinct buzz from my alcohol. Believe me or no, it's the only drink that does. So... Would it be too much trouble? It looks just like water out of the bottle, no one will know."

The gentleman gave Kokuten a disheveled look; he had just gotten back from running in more chairs from the nearby table set himself, and then there was another drink order that was less and reputable for the establishment. Never the less, the waiter nodded solemnly. "Cleaning al... oh,N-Nepleslian Green? Of course sir, we'll bring in some right away. Peter," the head waiter waved for one of the attendants. "Head down to the sports bar on floor 6 and get a bottle of green. And hurry with it."

The attendant nodded quickly, swallowing hard, before briskly walking towards the exit of the rooftop restaurant.

---

Nell's eyes lit up a bit at the thought of traveling, growing a bit wider at Blake's mention of the Elysians and Elysia. "Oooo," she cooed, impressed. "I always wanted t' see that place. All them big white buildin's, glass 'n marble. I never saw none a' that kinda stuff back home."

"You were born in a very industrious part of the city, Nell," Odette confirmed her friends story, attempting to perhaps quell Nell's disappointment. "With such an area, I doubt they had much need to spend it on cosmetic touches."

"Yeah yeah, I know I know," Nell waved her hand dismissively, Odette holding her hand up to her mouth and releasing a short chuckle as Nell shrugged her shoulders in defeat. "Ever since I left home I wanted t' see some a' the other places 'round the universe. Gettin' to be here in Fortuna... I'm just happy to be here, ya know? This job gives me plenty a' opportunity to see new places... is the Cirrus like that, too?"

---

George had remained relatively silent as Tweak and Marrisa had their short conversation, minutes before Claire and Serra made their unexpected appearance. Once things had settled back into their place, however, George glanced over at Tweak once more, his eyes squinted slightly in contemplative thought. "Psst, hey Tweak," the shifty-eyed Nepleslian hailed Tweak with a whisper, attempting to get her attention once more. "Hey, is it just me, or was Cranker, like... picking on you? Did you feel anything like that?"

---

Despite Claire and Serra's thinly-veiled remarks, Marrisa took them with a coy grin, leaning a bit back into her chair with a little laugh. "Oh, I'm sorry. It's just that this was a dinner date... usually one would try to make it on time. But then again, these days everything thinks they can get away with murder..." Marrisa held her arms to the side and shrugged loftily, pointing her face to the side and tilting it upward slightly in a haughty, slightly-aloof manner. "Oh well. I supposed I should have come to expect it by now."

Laj's comments caught Stovaa's attention and his head turned to face the Senator. "I personally always felt the Uniques suits looked somewhat common. Everyone looking the same, like some factory-produced security prostitute. Besides, Squad 35's job is to get shit done, not look pretty."

Laj simply stared across the table at Stovaa as he made his comment, one hand positioned under his chin, smiling through analytical eyes. Nell was far too busy flirting with Blake to heed Stovaa's comment, but Odette had heard it rather well. The raven-haired woman's smile dwindled a fair amount as a twinge of red lined her cheeks, holding her hand to her mouth again and coughing a little, perhaps out of instinct in reaction to his rather scathing words.

Cassefin was also quite aware of Stovaa's words. Her lip curled up into a wry grimace as her stare seemed to penetrate his skull. In a flash, the Administrator picked up the small salad fork laid in front of her and held it back, reaching a ready position to send it sailing straight for the ID-SOLs tender facial bits...

"Now now Marrisa," Laj said as he lazily turned his head to the side towards her. "Don't be so jealous; if you wanted to wear a red dress, you should have. I'm sure nobody would have stopped you," the suave businessman said with a simple chuckle. His CEO partner gave him an unamused stare for a moment, before turning her head away with a "Hmph." Laj turned back to Cassefin, not at all looking surprised at her raised makeshift throwing weapon as he eyes darted from it to her face. "I'm sorry, Marrisa just detests being shown up at our events. You can't blame her for being a little envious, can you?" As Laj spoke, he simultaneously reached and and lightly patted Odette's shoulder once or twice; the effort was apparently appreciated, as the young woman's face came back up to a polite smile.

It would appear that Laj had just saved Stovaa's life. Instead of sending the fork careening into Stovaa's brain box, Cassefin turned her eyes over to Laj and quickly lowered the fork with an embarrassed laugh. "Eh heh heh, no no, it's... fine. I didn't think Claire would be coming, so I didn't tell her to wear something more in tune with our outfits. Stovaa, Claire, Serra," Cassefin turned to each of the people she named, giving them a smile that was more threatening than amicable. "No need to be so confrontational."

"Er, yes!" Purina added into the conversation with a cheery yelp before Cassefin could further lose her temper. "I mean, we are all friends here, we should be getting to know each other better. Don't you... think?" Purina ended her question with a slightly nervous laugh, apparently aware that her words could have possibly been very far from the truth.

"Oh Purina," Marrisa answered the pink-haired woman's bid for peace with a coddling tone, throwing her arms around her near-seated companion. "You haven't changed a wink, always the finder of peaceful solutions, always ready to clean up me and Finny's messes when we got a little too emotional," Marrisa thought back fondly, laughing along with Purina's chuckle as she rubbed the top of the Cirrus Administrator's head as though she were rewarding a faithful dog. Cassefin didn't seem as enthralled with it as they were, but she couldn't help but smile at Purina's strange ability to garner the less-violent solution.

 

[Dragonnova]

And Marissa responded exactly like she expected her to. Regardless, Claire had made her point that it wasn't forgotten or forgiven, in spite of orders. She inwardly made a positive note on the account of predictability. She offered a smile to Marissa, nonetheless, a far less cold one though the intrusion of a mocking expression didn't help matters any. "Sometimes we can." She gave a courteous nod as she basically admitted what happened to Bell to the woman's face.

Now that the score was known, she decided to devote her current attention to more leisurely pursuits. Namely responding to Stovaa and his companion. "Jealous? Jealous that you got her first maybe." She leaned back in her chair a bit to get a good look at Fidela around the Id-Sol's hulkish stature. "Well, if that's true, then welcome. Cirrus is a really fun place to be. It never gets boring and there's a lot of friendly people. Cassie appreciates talent, so I'm sure you won't have to worry." She offered a friendly and warm smile to the woman, as if trying to reassure her.

She accepted the menu with a polite thank you and began browsing the menu, raising her brow as she found herself thankful she wasn't picking up the tab. She chuckled quietly at Stovaa's comment and the subsequent reaction. "Hey hey, don't be like that. There's something to be said for doing things well and looking good while doing it, no?"

When Cassefin and Purina overreacted to the jabs, she shook her head and laughed. "Calm down, girls. We're in our best clothes, nobody wants to ruin that. This is a classy place and has no place for such games." A not so subtle reminder of Cassefin's own failed dinner and the following game. She offered a smile to Laj when she mentioned the fancy clothes everyone wore.

 

[Kokuten]

Kokuten smiled at the acceptance of his drink order, giving the man a gentle smile before squaring back into his seat. It was then that sparks began to fly rather harshly, the Captain watched it go back and forth, and watched himself carefully as it unfolded. He knew that the comment on the Unique's battle armor would not be taken well at all. Anyone who put that much effort into the style of their armor would take great pride in it. The commander of Squad 35 rubbed his bearded chin before his ears caught on something that he hadn't been aware of.

"I didn't know you three knew one another." said Chiaki, his blinking eyes clacking in surprise as he looked between the Cassefin, Purina, and Marissa. "Before business, I mean."

 

[MissingNo]

George had remained relatively silent as Tweak and Marrisa had their short conversation, minutes before Claire and Serra made their unexpected appearance. Once things had settled back into their place, however, George glanced over at Tweak once more, his eyes squinted slightly in contemplative thought. "Psst, hey Tweak," the shifty-eyed Nepleslian hailed Tweak with a whisper, attempting to get her attention once more. "Hey, is it just me, or was Cranker, like... picking on you? Did you feel anything like that?"

"Huh?" Tweak glanced back at George. "A little, I guess...maybe she doesn't like Freespacers." She twitched a shoulder in a shrug that looked more like she was trying to get comfortable again in her coat.

 

[Cora]

Serra for her part was reading the menu, and politely ordering the Tropical Prime Fruits, hold the tequila. The Sweet and Sour Shrimp. requesting they hold the garlic, and a side of Sautéed Medley of Fresh Kohana Mushrooms, light on the oil. She only responded after she placed her order and then requested their finest white wine to go with her meal.

"The other woman is Serra Evangelle, another squad member. She's Elysian, so forgive her for her haughtiness." He'd turned and indicated in Serra's direction before running his fingers through his hair and sighing.

"I am actually politer and less racist then just about every other Patriarch that I knew back home." She said, chiming into Stovaa's conversation for a second. "It comes with being on the other side of Elysian elitism first hand."

Nell's eyes lit up a bit at the thought of traveling, growing a bit wider at Blake's mention of the Elysians and Elysia. "Oooo," she cooed, impressed. "I always wanted t' see that place. All them big white buildin's, glass 'n marble. I never saw none a' that kinda stuff back home."

"I honestly doubt much is left unless the occupying NMX forces stopped their assaults on my homeland after the Yamataian's helped them escape." She mentioned off handily, waving her left hand in the air like she was mentioned just random stuff.

It would appear that Laj had just saved Stovaa's life. Instead of sending the fork careening into Stovaa's brain box, Cassefin turned her eyes over to Laj and quickly lowered the fork with an embarrassed laugh. "Eh heh heh, no no, it's... fine. I didn't think Claire would be coming, so I didn't tell her to wear something more in tune with our outfits. Stovaa, Claire, Serra," Cassefin turned to each of the people she named, giving them a smile that was more threatening than amicable. "No need to be so confrontational."

"Over what Ms. Montreal?" Serra asked casually sipping the wine she ordered, apparently rating her "rebuttal" to Marrisa as to being so inconsequential that she seems to not even remember it.

 

[Stovaa]

"Sorry, Mistress Montreal. I've spent too long speaking my mind and the truth in the company of killers and criminals to ease out of it so fast. I don't mean to be offensive, I apologise."

The Id-Sol sounded like he meant it, and to all intents and purposes he could have, but he didn't. He remembered that the hands of those at the other side of the table were stained with blood. For a split second, he wondered if he could kill them all before help could be summoned. Just for a split second. He wasn't an idiot, not totally at least. He'd learnt, payback comes with interest. It would happen one day.

"Jealous I got there first? Aw, poor baby. I was planning to back to the hotel room later and help her fill in the necessary paperwork and sign the liability wavers, whatever is in that wad of paperwork. I can't remember filling mine in, I think I just signed on the line and shipped up." He paused and looked at Fidela.

"Uh... Ms Jacinto, you want Claire to help us later?"