What's new
  • If you were supposed to get an email from the forum but didn't (e.g. to verify your account for registration), email Wes at [email protected] or talk to me on Discord for help. Sometimes the server hits our limit of emails we can send per hour.
  • Get in our Discord chat! Discord.gg/stararmy
  • 📅 May and June 2024 are YE 46.4 in the RP.

RP: YSS Miharu Kyoto: Interview with a Neko(s)

Status
Not open for further replies.
Doshii Jun

Doshii Jun

Perpetual player
Retired Staff
Yukari wanted to absorb more of the beautiful smell of Yamatai's pristine, cool spring air. But there wasn't necessarily time for that, and besides — she had forgotten her all-weather coat. At least the rain was not too cool on her head as it fell on her. With Sora and Miyoko with her, she dashed into the dry door portal of Kyoto Base from Shuttle Bay E59.

The room they had set aside was near the end of the east wing of the base, where they were less likely to be disturbed, and it would take a good 15 minutes to arrive by foot. Yukari was not willing to be so patient, and did not wish to wait for a personnel cart to come by, so she took to the air and flew up close to the 15-foot-high ceilings toward their destination.
 
Aoiko, fastidious as she always is, was already in the meeting-room five minutes before Yukari arrived. Wearing a skirt-type uniform, along with a pair of trousers pressed into razor-sharp creases, she waited quite patiently, watching out the window with her hands clasped behind her back. Of course, her stately pose quite nicely concealed the volumetric window projected directly in front of her eye, from which she read a chanbara novel.
 
As it turned out, Miyoko's rather sunny choice of headband pattern didn't fit with the weather. Still, she was legitimately interested in the rain--having never spent much time planetside, she'd never quite gotten used to water falling out of the sky. She'd intellectually known about it since she was born, but knowing of its existence and jogging through it were two rather different things. Stop staring, she chided herself as she hurried to catch up with Yukari. You probably look like a youngling on her first time out.

When they reached the meeting room, she stood quietly behind the other two, waiting for the superior officers to handle things. Yukari probably wouldn't care if she spoke out of turn, but she still wasn't too comfortable at greeting new people. There were times when it was beneficial to have a low rank.
 
"Ahem," Yukari said to the dark-haired figure standing near a seat, seemingly watching the clouds roll by over the tanks rolling out of a small garage. "Chui Murasaki Aoiko?" She did not sit.
 
Aoiko watched the door open in the reflection in the window, and quickly dismissed her book with a mental command. With a practiced motion direct from the etiquette books, she turned to face the group and bowed deeply. 'I am, yes,' she said, waiting the properly respectful amount of time before rising. 'Chui Murasaki Aoiko. A pleasure to make your acquaintance - you must be Shosa Suzuka Yukari? Thank you so much for meeting with me.' She paused to bow to the other two.
 
Sumaru was also already there, it'd take a moment to spot him walking into the room because he would be hidden by the opening door. He had remained quiet the whole time, only offering Aoiko a simple hello when she arrived, seeing how he had been there even earlier then her, Sumaru only took a half hour to get to the meeting after he had received the letter. 'I guess Samurai just had better resources for travel on the capitol's surface' was the thought he had, but left it without conversation, after all it seemed the other neko sharing the room with him was more interested in her book, it was like that as well during their trip back to Yamatai on the Amaya, so he had grown accustom to it.

Then as the three entered to begin their interviews he promptly rose to his feet and waited as Yukari passed in front of him to get Aoiko's attention. His eyes trailed over to the two others who followed her in stopping on Sora for a slight moment when he assumed she could not notice his gaze, he'd smile ever so slightly seeing that she was in good health. Then as Aoiko introduced herself, Sumaru turned his attention back on the one who appeared to be the ranking officer amongst them and waited to be noticed.
 
Sora smiled brightly as she entered the room after Yukari and Miyoko. She nodded to the Chui and then to Sumaru. She politely returned Aoiko's bow. Upon rising, she ran her right hand loosely over her rain dampened long red hair as she smoothed it back behind her ear. She waited for Yukari to sit or continue with her introductions before speaking.

She curiously watched Sumaru for a few moments before returning her attention to her XO and the possible new Chui.
 
Yukari, seeing Aoiko's eyes move briefly, turned and looked behind her. "Ah. Hasegawa-Juni, I presume?" She offered a small bow, then let everyone settle in. The setting was casual; there was only one round table and enough comfy office chairs for everyone. Yukari took her seat, which put her back to the right wall. That way, no one was looking into the window.

"Murasaki-Chui, Hasegawa-Juni," she started, gesturing to Sora. "I believe you are familiar with the Shoi Kohosei, Ketsurui Sora-sama." She gestured to Miyoko. "This is my adviser, Saito Miyoko-Hei."

Introductions quickly swapped, she dove in. "Hasegawa-Juni, I would like to know how you obtained an NH-27 body in male form. Could you please explain that?"
 
"It was created for me here in Kyoto with the permission of Empress Ketsurui Himiko-dono, it was my last step in the process of being intergraded into the Ketsurui Samurai. Before this body I was a male Yamataian, so I only thought it proper to request that I remain male when I became a Nekovalkyrja." Sumaru answered simply, his voice however carried a slight female tone, that when matched with his appearance almost made it believable that he was a female neko anyway. He sat with a unwavering straight posture, his hands folded calmly in his lap on top of his crisp and clean red hakama pants, part of his new Ketsurui Samurai uniform which was so clean and pristine, after all; it was the only clothing he was permitted to wear outside of the palace, so obviously he kept it in the best condition he could.

But to Sora's eyes though, he’d appear much different for sure, he had grown a lot since the last time the two were together. Physically he transferred his body into this new one that made him almost seem as if he had grown at least an inch in every direction. And with his slightly exposed muscles that tightly packed over his frame it’d give off a new aura, he had of a hint of masculinity that he never had in the past. Then his facial features; though still somewhat soft and feminine were now more mature then the last time she set eyes on him. His previously short platinum bangs now were long and passed over the same frost blue eye as before but now came to a point under his chin, and the exposed eye had a small black gem like star sticker under it in the corner where brightly colored ones once sat.
 
Advisor, huh? Miyoko wasn't quite sure how she felt about the title, but it seemed fitting enough. She had been working a lot with Yukari recently. Of far more interest was Sumaru; Miyoko had already been losing interest in the proceedings a few minutes in, but the 'male neko' part drew her attention back to the discussion. She'd vaguely been aware that at some point, male nekos had probably been made, but she'd sure as hell never met one. And he was a Samurai, too... she didn't quite know the odds, but they had to be way up there. If nothing else, this meeting had given her her conversation topic for the day.

So I, the neko masquerading as a Yamataian, get to help interview the Yamataian posing as a neko... cute. Maybe the entire universe will explode if we touch each other. She gave a wry smirk at the thought, sinking back down into her seat and watching the interview continue.
 
Sora took a seat and adjusted the skirt of her uniform down, before she placed her hands neatly on the table in front of her. She continued to smile brightly, "Congratulations on the completion of your training as well as your promotion, Hasegawa-Juni. You trained under Midori-san?"

She was indeed quite proud of Sumaru's advancement and his determination to see his dream through in the time that she had left to join the Miharu... but she couldn't help but feel that she had been left behind. She was still Shoi Kohosei at her own refusal to accept her Grandmother's offered loyalty promotion.

Her attention shifted slightly to Aoiko whom she did not recognize and gave the Chui a friendly acknowledging wave. "Where you also with the Asamoya, Murasaki-Chui?"
 
Aoiko settled comfortably in next to Sumaru, facing the three interviewers, and folded her hands in her lap. She listened quietly as Sumaru told his story, and then offered a respectful nod as Sora addressed her.

"I was the executive officer of the YSS Amaya, Shoi Kohosei," she said, "which was directly under the Asamoya. I was, in fact, under the command of..." She nodded to Sumaru. "... the aforementioned Jo Midori-sama. It was a comfortable position, but aggravatingly short-lived.'
 
She had used his last name and ranking, it almost felt like a cold icy dagger across his heart for a moment and so distant, even from her bright and beautiful smile. Then he realized how absurd he was, he forgot the setting they were in, but he could not be blamed too much, he had spent months waiting for this day. But he couldn't expect her to have greeted him in a friendlier manner in this setting; after all, this was an professional interview. The reunion was later; or at least, that’s what he hoped. His eyes slowly shut for a moment as he contemplated his next words, keeping in mind that his new customs included maintaining a high standard of language in speech. It wasn’t any longer then a second though before he decided how he was to answer. "Though your thank-you is more than appreciated Ketsurui-Hime-Sama, it is unnecessary. I promised you that I'd be here, and so I am." His words were not condescending or cocky in any way, they were more like that of an old friend. His piercing blue eyes then drifted back open to catch her own gaze for a moment; he smiled softly with a kind and serene sort of expression.

Then with the calm moment passing and his words faded away from the conversation while Aoiko went on to explain her position. He nodded once more agreeing with Aoiko, as he believed too; that Midori's time with the Star Army was too short. His calm expressionless complexion returned as he began speaking again to answer Sora after Aoiko had finished her explanation. "Yes, Midori-Dono was my Sensei, in many aspects, much beyond combat and being a samurai." He answered the next part of her question simply, he could go on about how grateful he was to Midori, but thought it'd be best to save the stories for later.

The curiosity obviously played on Miyoko’s face as she wondered about him, and if it was there, he would already paying attention to it. Though Sumaru was not looking at her with his eyes, he could literally see all over the room through his skin and was keenly trained to always be aware of his surroundings. So he curiously paid some attention to her, but still most of his thoughts and attention were on the meeting at hand, his expressionless body language gave off no hints of his unseen gaze another useful skill he had learned from his mentor.
 
Yukari listened to the words exchanged, then nodded. "This is a kind of quest, is it not, Juni-san? To train to be Samurai, and be accepted, even as a male, is an accomplishment. And in a very short time, as well. What caused you to adopt this path?"

Aoiko she was not concerned about, yet. The Chui seemed to speak as a professional would. That was heartening, but certainly not defining. Sumaru, however, spoke as an idealist. Idealism he perhaps believed in, or perhaps felt the need to espouse. What she knew of Kôsuka, and had experienced of her, was an idealism tempered by professional ethics and military training. Sumaru was 18, a talented armor pilot with combat experience, and now a Samurai. It was hard to measure how sturdy he was on his path through life, but Yukari knew she needed some kind of reassurance.
 
There was a muffled roar overhead as the Eucharis flew over the base towards the landing area.
 
"A quest?" A thin brow of the young samurai rose, the nineteen year old never quite thought of it in that sense. Ever since he had made his choice about protecting Sora it had been beyond just a simple pipe dream, it had became his purpose. With those thoughts in mind he answered the Shosa, "yes you can say that, but coming this far was not a simple objective to prove something. I once was in a position where I could not protect someone very important to me, I was powerless. Because of it, the ship I was serving on was downed and I could do nothing. When the crew was brought back, they were missing memories, some of those were very dear to me." He paused turning to glance at Sora once more. "I vowed that I would become someone who could defend that person, and protect not only her life, but her ideals, memories and dreams." He then took a moment to turn back to Yukari, his calm expressions were very mature and even with his inspirational words, they still carried a sort of serene dignity common to samurai, almost completely lacking the headstrong zealousness of a new and young Star Army soldier, in the short amount of time it took him to get to where he was; Sumaru had grown rapidly from the curious Yamataian who had no direction in life.
 
Yukari snorted as the loud distraction flew overhead. Such flybys were not proper; perhaps it was a new pilot.

The impression Yukari initially had was lovesickness. Sumaru clearly cared for Sora in ways she did not have context for. That kind of emotion was not the way of the Samurai as she understood it ... but then, Kôsuka cared for her daughter in ways that did not represent the way of the Samurai, either. For all his perceived sincerity, Yukari was wary. As far as she knew, Samurai were protectors first, servants second and confidants last.

Sora would have to be the deciding factor, as Yukari expected. She nodded after a brief pause. "What is your primary combat focus, Juni-san?"

As she waited for the answer, she sent to Miyoko. Her words were personally encrypted, but she wanted the two candidates to know she was using telepathy. "Saito-Hei, keep your eye on the the Chui, please. I want to know if she is attempting to decipher my telepathic encryption, and she might present evidence of an attempt." She paused, her facial expression having not changed. "I am unsure of this Samurai ... but I feel my questions are formalities."
 
Through the entire interview, Aoiko had not yet smiled - but nevertheless, her body language was exceedingly expressive. She was clearly paying attention to the samurai and his conversation, but she winced slightly at the fly-by, and her eyes flicked momentarily upwards as she send a transmission to the PANTHEON - she wanted to know just who that was. And a moment after that, her head tilted just to the side, her eyes again tilting up, and her lip twitching a second after. She turned her attention back to Yukari and Sumaru, in much less time than it would take to do a decrypt.
 
Sora smiled softly at Sumaru's idealistic words and was glad that training and further combat had not embittered him but she had to be rational. "It's nice to want to protect those that you care about as well as to be able to complete your duties as a member of the Star Army... and as a member of the crew. But you have to remember, completion of the mission has to come first. To me, protection of the ship that we serve on is a higher priority than the life of one individual- if the ship is destroyed without a Soul Saviour pod getting launched then everyone dies, and that sort of sacrifice to save one person... isn't the type of guilt that should be on anyone's shoulders," the young Ketsurui commented softly. "I don't think you've forgotten that but I would like to state that personally, I would rather die a martyr to achieve victory than to live with a crushing defeat."

She paused as she watched Sumaru's face appraisingly, he had grown, trained and became stronger but where could he go from here? "I have always appreciated your loyalty and your dedication, I have no doubt that from the swiftness of your completion of your samurai training that you are also highly motivated and good at what you do. If you achieve this goal, what will you plan to do next? How long do you plan on continuing to serve now that we have enlistment contracts?"
 
"Power armor," he said to answer Yukari. Then as Sora spoke, he lowered his eyes as he listened intently to what she had to say. He waited, a second, after letting her words sink in, suddenly reminded of another conversation they once had that put him in the same feeling he had welling up in this moment. He had come to peace with it, and himself since then. So instead of dwelling on it, he answered her with the subtle grace Midori had gifted him with in her teachings. "As one of the Ketsurui Samurai, I exist to serve the Ketsurui Clan; your wishes are my commands. I will be your sword, and if it is something you believe in, then I will serve that cause. In this case, it is the completion of the mission first." He paused taking a breath, his eyes drifting up to Sora's, a flame behind his eyes flickered as he spoke, "I don't mean to sound as if I'm boasting, but if the ship is destroyed, then I would already have died defending it."

"As for retiring, I have no such plans at this point. As far as I'm concerned, I am a samurai; one of the warriors that serve the Ketsurui Clan. I have sworn an oath to defend and die for the Ketsurui clan, so unless I am lost to history, I will always be a servant to you and this great Empire until I can no longer physically and mentally serve." Once he was finished he simply sat, his face remaining stoic.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
RPG-D RPGfix
Back
Top