RP: YSS Eucharis [Mission 12.4] Warm and Wet

After checking the group in in the large marble-floored lobby, Hanako went into women's changing room and fully undressed, putting her uniform in one of the locker, entering in a passcode on its small electronic display. She then went out into the gender-neutral large bathing room and sat on a short wooden stool while she gave herself a shower in compliance with the local rules.

Blueberry took the stall next to her, commenting "Sunflower told me she got a pass to come here. Hopefully she can make it soon."

"Ah, you two have not seen each other in...too long!" Hanako smiled.

"Yes!" Blueberry grinned.

A sigh left Helen's lips as she walked past Sune and Michael, hearing the scolding take place as she walked with the others into the Onsen. Upon walking in, she found that it was a rather respectable looking establishment, certainly a place in which one could relax. She set her sights on just that, relaxation, as she walked into the locker room and removed her attire, storing it in a locker before casually strolling out to join Hanako and Blueberry in bathing.

As she washed, Helen simply listened to the conversation which was taking place. For the time being, she really had nothing to contribute to the chat, so she focused on the matter of washing up in preparation for actually getting into the relaxing waters.

Outside of hot springs

"Well, depending on any plans that develop, perhaps it would be okay if I come along to see her briefly. I would not wish to impose on your family time." Sune replied to Takeyu.

Inside the Onsen
He then entered the building, looking for the changing room for the men. He was pleasantly surprised that the facility was very clean. The changing room did not have that unpleasant 'locker room' fragrance. He selected a locker and put his possessions in and changed out of uniform. He then secured the locker and his possessions with his personal passcode.

Then with his towel in hand he walked over to the shower area. He noticed Hanako, Helen and Blueberry showering. Tradition required that all bathers clean themselves. Sune could understand the rationale for it, but having just showered before eating it seemed redundant. So for tradition sake he choose one of the showers and proceeded to clean himself again.

After ensuring that his body was clean enough to perform the most delicate surgery without fear of contamination, he stepped out of the shower, grabbed his towel and wrapped it around his waist. He left the cleaning room leaving the ladies to their discussion and walked into the main hot spring room.

Warm rain lightly drizzled on Sune as he entered the main bathing pool area, a large basin bordered by huge, neatly stacked smooth rectangular rocks. The water was slightly murky from the natural minerals in it and it has a faint fog of water vapor rising from the surface. Behind the pool was a beautiful flower garden with a series of small waterfalls running down where the water made its way from the rocky spring to the pool.

The pool was divided by bamboo walls so that there was a portioned-off section for men and one for women, but these sections were only a portion of the size of the main area.

Looking from the pool, the onsen seemed lost in time, with ancient traditional architecture, mossy rocks, gardens, and trees filling the courtyard. The only modern thing in sight was the five-story hotel attached to the onsen. The entrance was across from the restaurant. A wooden sign near the edge of the pool pointed it out, saying "For the matters of love, please bring these to the hotel room," in Yamataian.

A staircase with a railing led down into the pool, which was about a meter deep and soothingly warm.

"I'm certain Layven would love that," spoke Takeyu as he headed toward the mens changing room. He looked around for a moment before picking out a nearby locker and undressing and placed his uniform inside. He took a towel and wrapped it around, then closed the locker and keyed the passcode.

In the shower area he cleaned himself off, having done a bit of work on the Eucharis, he actually needed the shower. After he was done cleaning, he placed the towel back around his waist then headed into the gender neutral spring.

"Now this .... this is beautiful," commented the Chief Engineer as he walked out into the main pool area and looked it over. "Makes me wish we had one on the Eucharis," he said whilst grinning

Sune smiled as he looked down at the pool, he then looked over at Takeyu, "Actually Nayacesen-San, you might want to refresh your memory on the Plumeria design. They do include a simple version of Onsen on the Eucharis. We just have not had the opportunity to make use of it. But it is nothing like this." he said with a grin.

Sune then walked down the stairs to the pool, he removed the towel before it got into the water and placed it on the side of the pool for later retrieval per proper etiquette. He then walked deeper into the pool and lowered himself so that only his head and neck were above the water.

"Now this is very nice." he said.

"Huh. This is actually a lot like the public bathhouses we have in Elysia." Michael pointed out as he finished up in the shower. The Elysian had a towel wrapped around his midsection, and was stretching out before slipping into the onsen itself. After Sune's earlier chastising, he had quieted down, and wasn't so openly talking about things.

"I suppose there are some differences though. Bathhouses tend to have the actual bathing be in a shared pool, with the afterward relaxation being in a sauna, or Dacha. But I suppose y'all don't want to hear about Elysia right now." Michael followed Sune in, using the same procedure as the first officer, being sure to keep his feathered wings above water.

"Aaah~, this is great. I'm beginning to see the advantages of staying under Princess Hanako's command."

Hanako emerged from the changing room still a bit damp, carrying her towel in front of her with both hands. She placed it on a clean, stately-looking stone at the edge of the pool and then carefully held the railing as she went down the steps and slowly eased herself in.

"It is warm," Hanako said aloud as she descended to neck level, looking up to the cloudy sky and holding her hands out to catch some of the light rain and feel the contrast of it versus the hot spring water. She waded over to an underwater bench facing the waterfalls and garden and looked to the others. "I love Yamatai," she told everyone with a cheerful smile. Truly this was their homeland.

...Except for Michael. The Elysian's extended wings caught her attention and it looked a bit silly. "Are they not waterproof?" she asked him.

YSS Eucharis - Crew Cabin 6

Armundo opened his eyes slowly, his vision clouding for a moment before clearing up again. He was looking up at the ceiling of the Eucharis on the top bunk of Cabin six. He had managed to get a bunk with Tachihara Reika, which pleased him to no end. He had been sleeping for who knows how long, his body exhausted from the strain and stress of combat and the drugs that he was taking to help heal his body.

His right shoulder was all but gone. He was lucky that he didn't lose it completely with that shot. His shoulder joint had had to be replaced all together, giving him a artifical shoulder. His left had been shattered and dislocated from the fall off the tank. His last memories had been trying to contact the Eucharis and back the tank up, but everything went dark afterwards.

Armundo swung his legs off the side of the bunk, wearing nothing more then a pair of shorts and his slings. He slid down to the ground, wincing as the jolt stirred his shoulders and upset stomach. He had been out of it for..days at least. He knew that he was on Yamatai, but that was about it. He went to his clothes hamper and stood, staring at it for a few moments before leaning his head against the wall with a tired sigh.

With some effort and plenty of time, he managed to dress himself. Not as sharply as he would like, but he was at least dressed. His long black hair was left unbound, giving him a very different look then what everyone might be used to. He had a thin black beard on his chin and dark circles around his eyes. His earring was gone, either taken out or lost in the attack. Armundo reached over towards the medicine bottle containing his Mrfixit drugs and another containing his anestetic pills , taking one of each before he made his way into the hallways of the Eucharis slowly.

Onsen

Michael shook his head, grinning somewhat at someone taking notice of his wings. Flapping them softly in a stretch, he lowered his wings just enough so they could rest on the rocks of the onsen, hopefully not getting too wet.

"No Ma'am, not entirely. It probably wouldn't hurt for them to get a bit wet, but feathers and water tend to... not react all that well. My wings tend to get heavier when wet, which makes me just a bit off balance, and I have to wait at-least half an hour for them to dry before I can fly with them again. Not to mention, they -are- sensitive and are essentially a third pair of limbs, so having them go to sleep because I sat on or leaned back against them would be fairly unpleasant." Michael stretched his arms out again, enjoying being able to relax like this.

"Still, I wouldn't give them up just because they get heavy when wet. Along with my red hair, they give me character. Just like Takeyu's mustache, or Blackberry's pinkish purple skin, or your hair. You know what I mean, right Ma'am?"

Takeyu nervously rubbed the back of his head, having looked at the specs many times already over the past two years, there was always the chance you'd miss some detail or two and in this case, he missed that kind of a detail. Guess it is time for a refresher.

He walked down the stairs and into the spring, setting the towel aside to use when he got out. It felt pleasant to his skin, and he was felt more at ease now than before. He moved deeper in before finding his own bench to sit on and relaxing his back against the wall.

Sune had watched Hanako's entrance to the hot spring. Her moving through the water half shrouded by the mist only accentuated her. Sune had seen Hanako's body nude in medical shortly after joining, and while he had to admit she had an attractive body, he preferred seeing a woman's body with a sense of intrigue. Be it the mist of the pool, or a dress that gave hints of what was held with in.

The site of her moving through the water is definitely inspiring. he thought.

The sight of her smiling and happy brought a sense of joy to him. He had been concerned about the weight of the war and all it entailed taking its toll on her. This trip to Yamatai was perhaps the best curative of all.

"Papadopoulos-San, since the subject of your wings has come up. Is it uncomfortable for an Elysian to sleep on their back or for that matter to lie on their back to look up at the sky?" he inquired.

While he waited for a reply he watched Hanako, being here she was showing a side of herself that he had not seen since his first New Years on Hanako's world. Dancing with abandon on the shore of that distant ocean. But she was different here, this world was truly her home. She had a connection to it unlike anything he could know. This world is where she was born, she grew up here, she had family and friends here.

The experiences Hanako had were at best abstract concepts to him. He tried to imagine what it would have been like to 'grow' up in a normal fashion. He quickly realized that it was too alien of a concept for him to fully grasp. He had no real frame of reference on which to base such a mental diversion.

Sune's life began when he awoke on the Bouken, and even though the people on that ship were his 'family'. He was still different and an outsider, he realized that now. Raia was the only one who seemed able to see past his difference. With the exception of his Star Army training the majority of his life was spent on ships. He was a spacer, being on board a ship was what felt natural to him. Planets where were places to visit, to conduct business, to meet people, these days to fight for survival, and watch people die. Yamatai with its cloud shrouded sky would never be home to him, not like it was to Hanako.

For a moment he tried to imagine Hanako on Yamatai, walking with a child, sharing the places she lived with a youngster. It made for in interesting diversion, the thought Hanako with a true child.

After stripping and placing her belongings within the woman's locker room, Reika too proceeded to the washing area and scrubbed herself down in preparation for entering the hot spring. Once satisfied that she had done a thorough job, she wrapped her bathing towel around the wet contours of her torso and moved in to join the others within the murky warm waters. She removed the towel, setting it upon one of the rocks beside the pool and slowly slipped herself in, feeling the heat suffuse her body.

The neko leisurely waded through the water until she found herself a submerged bench to sit herself upon and soak. For a short while, she merely listened to the conversations taking place with a pleasurable expression upon her face, letting the warmth work its way through her limbs.

"Yes and no." Michael responded, keeping his eyes closed as he soaked, a pleased grin on his face as he did. "If I just laid back without moving my wings off, it'd hurt, but its pretty second nature to even a kid to just move them to the side or wrap them around yourself." The Elysian opened his eyes, leaning forward to stretch his wings.

"But its like I said, we're born with them and they're just like arms or legs to us. I have to ask how you wingless people can deal with living in such cramped spaces all the time, but I figure that I'm just used to having enough room to stretch out."

With bathing complete, Helen wrapped a towel about her body, before she strode over to the same area as the others, choosing to set aside her towel before descending into the water. Once she was in the warm liquid, she waded through the water until she found a comfortable spot to merely take in the moment, submerging herself neck deep as she listened to the others speak.

Armundo stepped off the ship, looking up at the cranes that were working on the ship. He was going and try to find his shipmates. He imagined that they were on base right now. He should be able to locate the Taisa if he asked for her..but he had to get to the base first. He looked around the yards before heading towards the city.

It took him a while, but he managed to exit the shipyard and decided to take a rest, leaning on the side of a building to catch his breath. His medicine seemed to drain every spare ounce of energy that he had. He took a moment to look around the city. It was incredible how different it was from Funky city..it was so...clean. Living on the streets here would be a breeze. He took a moment to look at the people, they were..quite soft in his opinion..it was really refreshing. Back home, you were likely to get shot if you approached someone the wrong way..but he didn't think that it was like that here.

He finished his break and continued on his way, just walking the streets of the city, trying to find something that could direct him to the base. He was starting to wonder why his shipmates had not thought to leave him some kind of notice as to where they were going..Well, he was bottom of the totem pole, so to speak, a peon and a disabled one at that.

He spied a pair of black coats approaching, two Nekos heading down the streets towards him. He perked up a bit and placed himself somewhat in their way, smiling as the approached Good mornin' Can you tell me where the military base is. It seems that I've misplaced my crew ." he said. He stood as he got the stink eye from one of the neko and a grin from the other, who pointed him down the street and gave him some directions, much to Armundo's releif. He was surprised when he was asked what crew he belonged to by the pink haired, rather adorable looking Neko.

" Oh, I'm a cook about the Eucharis." he said. The sour faced Neko seemed to perk up at the news, her cyan eyes focusing on Armundo now "Really ! I heard that they were in port and that they reserved a hotspring on base." said the pink-haired Neko.

Armundo blinked twice slowly " Hot Spring ?" he asked " Hai I saw a bus drop a crowd of people off at Kyoto no Hoshiguntai Ichiban Onsen about a half hour ago." she said. Armundo sighed..they went to a hotspring..well, at least he knew where they were now "Thanks for helping me out, ladies." he said, parting ways with the pair.

He ended up having to flag down a taxi to carry him to the hotub, he was just too tired to walk on his own. It took them about thirty minutes to make their way through traffic before he was dropped off at the gate of the Onsen

Sune dunked himself under that water and then surfaced. His response made no sense, not after his earlier comment. It would be interesting to run genetic regression sequence on the Elysian DNA. Wings on a human body type are not evolutionary sound. They are probably the result of genetic manipulation centuries ago. While intellectually intriguing not really important at the moment.

He looked up at the cloud covered sky and let the light rain fall upon his face. While he doing so he pondered the comment that Hanako had made about the AMTC unit and the gunship. The AMTC's were modular for ease of repair, the answer had to lie there.

Wanting to get more conversation going he asked. "Here is a question for all of you. What experience in your life would you say gave you a sense of home?

I will start since it is my question. For me it would be back aboard the Bouken, its 5:30 in the morning sitting on the bridge, the majority of the others still sleeping, sharing a cup of coffee and looking at the stars with Raia. Neither of us would speak, the only sounds would be the hum of the equipment and the soft whir from the ventilation system. It was a special time we would share."

"My cabin...the bridge, Kyoto, my bedroom in the palace, Yui's bedroom in the palace, the garden," Hanako listed, viewing them all in her mind. "Places that are rich in good memories and where I have been for a long time feel like home to me. The Eucharis has served us well. I was offered a bigger ship when I was promoted but I am not ready to leave her. We have been through so much in the last four years."

The light rain seemed to let up for now, allowing them to better hear one another.

Sometimes, there were questions which were truly innocent, which could cause some deep contemplation. Questions of home, would certainly fall in that category, there was no doubt about that, not in the least. As Sune spoke, Helen could not help but to feel out of place, she really had no distinctive home, though, as she heard Hanako, she did realize she could wing it a bit if she kept it vague and impersonal, but somehow that just seemed to be worse than the truth.

"I really have not found that feeling since my youth. I suppose it is part of the job. I think the closest I get to that feeling is when I am in my quarters or at the home I keep, perhaps with one of my few trusted associates. Though, I suppose, perhaps I feel most at home when I am in a situation in which I can appreciate the fruits of my labor... I won't go into details about that though, that is private. Really though, at my age, feelings of home become rarer and rarer, and are replaced with feelings of nostalgia." Helen spoke, as she felt the rain let up, and she found herself missing it. Alas, that was the trouble of being in SAINT, she was not part of the science and engineering team that handled nodal control over the weather.

Takeyu gave that question some thought, it didn't matter to him where he was, as long as he was on a ship it felt like home to him. "I guess for me, it doesn't matter where I am, as long as I'm on a ship, with the humming of an engine, the sound of working computers, I am always at home. It just brings me a sense of calm."

He lowered his head further in the water, above his mouth for a moment then looked up at the sky before relaxing a bit against the wall and letting out a pleasant sigh of relief.