YSS Kaiyo, Wardroom
4日 2月 YE 39
While the rest of the crew off in the medbay getting their Soul Transfer data backed-up, Princess Ketsurui Aiko sat calmly in the Kaiyo's wardroom enjoying breakfast alone. It was the way she'd been taught by her samurai teachers back at the palace on Kyoto, and it was the way she enjoyed to have it now—in seclusion. Except for her yojimbo's student William, a Nepleslian boy who'd come along on her journey to make sure the young Imperial maiden didn't miss even a single social beat. Rei, Aiko's samurai guardian, stood watch just outside, content that her charge was safe.
Unbeknownst to the princess, today was Love Day. Though it was a special holiday created by a sister she'd never met—a day that promised to encourage romantic pairings between the Empire's citizens—Aiko had never heard of it. Similarly, she and Wil were unaware of the L'Kor pheromone outbreak taking place in the medlab a deck away, providing most of their comrades on the Kaiyo with an amusingly thematic bout of lusty flirtation and sensuous flare-ups.
"Wil-kun," Aiko asked quizzically, stony-faced and rigidly proper, as always. "Why are my eggs fried into the shape of hearts?"
Indeed, the ship's cooks had prepared breakfast as such, alongside a variety of flat Abwehran pastry discs with jelly in the center. Plus bacon. There was always bacon on the YSS Kaiyo.
William had recovered from his self taught training session and was keeping Princess Aiko company inside the wardroom. After smelling that weird stuff by the medlab, he had some odd dreams. And they included Aiko. Hell, he couldn't get her out of his head! When she spoke, it shocked him from his reverie.
"Oh, it is Love Day, your grace," he replied quietly. "Shall I ask the cooks for something else?" he asked, walking over to her. He was fixated on her jet black hair... the flowers in it... 'Damn it, pay attention...' he scolded himself. He was doing that a lot lately.
"No, it is quite alright," Aiko responded, delicately cutting her food into smaller pieces, anyway. "Odd that whatever traditions this holiday carries with it include stuffing yourself with themed food. Or do you think it's just our ship?"
The princess shifted her legs underneath the table, cadet blue tights gliding against themselves freely and easily. As she switched which leg was crossed over the other, her left toe brushed against the Nepleslian's pants. It was momentary, but enough to startle Aiko nonetheless. She was usually so careful to keep out of contact with others unless it was necessary, like it had been that night in Kyoto.
"Ah, apologies, Wil-kun," she offered, unaware that he'd passed by the medlab on his way here just as he was unaware that he'd caught a whiff of potent L'Kor mojo. She saw something strange in him, though, as she looked up from her plate at his face to apologize. "Is something the matter? Shall I ask for Rei-san's assistance?"
When Aiko's toe touched William's leg it sent a shock wave through his body. 'What the hell just happened?' he thought to himself as the wave passed over him. He looked down and shook his head. "N-no your grace, it's quite alright. I am fine," he answered, giving a slight bow. "Do you require anything?" he asked, his eyes dropping to the floor. 'What the hell is going on...?' he thought again as he tried to calm his racing heart.
Aiko cocked an eyebrow at William's response, examining him there in his seat. After a few seconds, she gave him a sidelong smile and returned to her food. But she only wanted another bite, so took it and then pushed her chair back and away from the table.
"Nothing, no," she replied at last, standing up from her seat and immediately moving toward the main passage and her sword, which sat leaned next to the doorway. A proper weapons rack for it hadn't been installed there yet, so both she and Rei had to make do for now—and perhaps forever—but it was no matter. Except for moments like this, when she'd reach out and miss her mark, sending the blade clattering disgracefully to the floor.
"Hmpfh!" Aiko huffed, irritated at her own moment of clumsiness for a moment before turning back to William. "Don't tell anyone!"
William had finally looked up as she stood and moved to follow her. He stopped, however, when she dropped her sword. William studied Aiko as she huffed. 'She is even cute when she is mad...Damn it stop that!' he scolded himself again.
"Of course not my lady, I wouldn't tell a soul," he replied, bowing slightly again. As he stepped over to her and tried to grab his own swords, he accidentally bumped against her shoulder. Another shockwave radiated out from the point where they touched. "I am so sorry your highness... Please forgive my clumsiness..." he said, stepping away and bowing. 'What is wrong with me!?!' he thought again.
"You don't do that again and I'll remember not to dishonor my ancestors like this again," Aiko replied as William stepped back, kind of annoyed that he'd touched her this time, but not letting it show too much through a face of good humor.
And then she made for her sword. From her perfectly posed stance, upright and straight, she bent at the waist and reached down for the white blade laying across the wardroom's doorway. As she did, her legs stayed straight, though she had stepped one in front of the other and offset their placement for a more solid balance. Every inch that her hand reached down to grab the katana, her standard issue Star Army pleated skirt slid up those cadet blue tights and over her plump, statuesque rear. Then, just when her fingers wrapped around the weapon's sheath, the Nepleslian boy could catch a peek of her black Star Army panties that gently kept everything wrapped up and secure.
For the length of time it seemed to take her to retrieve her sword, Aiko was back to her impeccable posture in a flash. She glanced back and gave William a nod.
"Our secret, then," she said with an awkward grin that seemed pretty fake. "Right, Wil-kun?"
William's eyes bulged and his face went from pale to various shades of crimson in the matter of milliseconds. He quickly averted his gaze as she stood up. When she spoke to him he nodded. "Hai... What do you plan on doing with the rest of your day your highness?" he asked, his face slowly returning to normal.
She regarded him with some scrutiny again, brow angled with wonder at his odd behavior. The Princess Aiko really was oblivious about such matters, though surely it wouldn't make a difference if she wasn't. The boy was hopped up on fresh L'Kor lust, after all!
"Whatever Eden-taii directs me to do," Aiko said plainly, as if there was no other answer. "Do you know where she is? I should be on duty by now, in all honesty, and she should be attentive enough to make sure. That's how a Star Army captain should be!"
More scrutiny was extended in Wil's direction as she paused, removing the thought of Eden's failure from her mind.
"What about you?" she wondered, still looking the Nepleslian over with her big red eyes. "More training with my yojimbo? Or is there something else you'd like to do?"
He knew exactly where the Captain was. "Umm... The Taii is indisposed at the moment, your grace, My sincerest apologies," he said to her. "Last I saw her they were doing some kind of backup?" he said more as a question than a statement.
When Aiko asked her question he nearly blurted 'Just hang out with you!' but managed to catch himself. "I... I already trained, and Sensei Rei allowed me to take the day off from training. So... I can assist you in your duties if you would like," he offered.
'Smooth...' he told himself.
"Look, Wil-kun," Aiko said, uncharacteristically breaking the back and forth niceties and assumption of sincerity between them. "Are you sure you're capable of assisting me today? What with the sweating and stumbling more than usual. Is your demeanor part of the 'holiday cheer,' as they say? What exactly is Love Day, anyway?"
She really didn't get it—any of it. From a holiday that didn't celebrate her dynasty or the Empire's glory to William's kind of blatant crush—even if it was enabled by alien pheromones—the Princess was lost. Not in the helpless way, but in the way that frustrated and confused her enough for her to drop even a modicum of formality and well-practiced procedure.
William's face fell as Aiko spoke. He realized that, through what functional parts of his brain that were working, that he had screwed up. He let his head hang. "I am so sorry, Princess... I don't know what the matter is... It must just be the holiday..." he said ashamedly. "Love day is..." he tried to find the right words to describe it. "...it is the celebration of love between people. Some look for it on Love Day and some celebrate the love they already share with others... if that makes sense..." he said in an attempt to explain.
Attentively listening to William's account of the occasion, Aiko simply glared at him for a while and continued to do so after he finished. Complete silence reigned between the princess and the samurai's ward for what seemed like hours—probably for both of them. After a few seconds, though, Aiko's cheeks flushed a rosy red so intense that she could definitely feel it enough to turn away to hide her face and stare at the door nearby. Long, thick ribbons of her hair fluttered with the centrifugal motion of her core and bombarded William with her pretty scent.
"Alright, then," Aiko said after a time, still facing the bulkhead. It was very unlike her to not address anybody face-to-face. But then she did turn, the blush gone from her expression, looking determined and noble as ever. And without warning, she reached out and grabbed him by the wrist. "Since Nepleslians love guns so much, you will help me practice and perfect my Service Pistol drills. Guide my stance and tell me where it is wrong. In this, you have permission. Not even Rei-san may object.
"Come."
With that order, she moved toward the doorway and it opened in her path, pulling William along behind her.
4日 2月 YE 39
While the rest of the crew off in the medbay getting their Soul Transfer data backed-up, Princess Ketsurui Aiko sat calmly in the Kaiyo's wardroom enjoying breakfast alone. It was the way she'd been taught by her samurai teachers back at the palace on Kyoto, and it was the way she enjoyed to have it now—in seclusion. Except for her yojimbo's student William, a Nepleslian boy who'd come along on her journey to make sure the young Imperial maiden didn't miss even a single social beat. Rei, Aiko's samurai guardian, stood watch just outside, content that her charge was safe.
Unbeknownst to the princess, today was Love Day. Though it was a special holiday created by a sister she'd never met—a day that promised to encourage romantic pairings between the Empire's citizens—Aiko had never heard of it. Similarly, she and Wil were unaware of the L'Kor pheromone outbreak taking place in the medlab a deck away, providing most of their comrades on the Kaiyo with an amusingly thematic bout of lusty flirtation and sensuous flare-ups.
"Wil-kun," Aiko asked quizzically, stony-faced and rigidly proper, as always. "Why are my eggs fried into the shape of hearts?"
Indeed, the ship's cooks had prepared breakfast as such, alongside a variety of flat Abwehran pastry discs with jelly in the center. Plus bacon. There was always bacon on the YSS Kaiyo.
William had recovered from his self taught training session and was keeping Princess Aiko company inside the wardroom. After smelling that weird stuff by the medlab, he had some odd dreams. And they included Aiko. Hell, he couldn't get her out of his head! When she spoke, it shocked him from his reverie.
"Oh, it is Love Day, your grace," he replied quietly. "Shall I ask the cooks for something else?" he asked, walking over to her. He was fixated on her jet black hair... the flowers in it... 'Damn it, pay attention...' he scolded himself. He was doing that a lot lately.
"No, it is quite alright," Aiko responded, delicately cutting her food into smaller pieces, anyway. "Odd that whatever traditions this holiday carries with it include stuffing yourself with themed food. Or do you think it's just our ship?"
The princess shifted her legs underneath the table, cadet blue tights gliding against themselves freely and easily. As she switched which leg was crossed over the other, her left toe brushed against the Nepleslian's pants. It was momentary, but enough to startle Aiko nonetheless. She was usually so careful to keep out of contact with others unless it was necessary, like it had been that night in Kyoto.
"Ah, apologies, Wil-kun," she offered, unaware that he'd passed by the medlab on his way here just as he was unaware that he'd caught a whiff of potent L'Kor mojo. She saw something strange in him, though, as she looked up from her plate at his face to apologize. "Is something the matter? Shall I ask for Rei-san's assistance?"
When Aiko's toe touched William's leg it sent a shock wave through his body. 'What the hell just happened?' he thought to himself as the wave passed over him. He looked down and shook his head. "N-no your grace, it's quite alright. I am fine," he answered, giving a slight bow. "Do you require anything?" he asked, his eyes dropping to the floor. 'What the hell is going on...?' he thought again as he tried to calm his racing heart.
Aiko cocked an eyebrow at William's response, examining him there in his seat. After a few seconds, she gave him a sidelong smile and returned to her food. But she only wanted another bite, so took it and then pushed her chair back and away from the table.
"Nothing, no," she replied at last, standing up from her seat and immediately moving toward the main passage and her sword, which sat leaned next to the doorway. A proper weapons rack for it hadn't been installed there yet, so both she and Rei had to make do for now—and perhaps forever—but it was no matter. Except for moments like this, when she'd reach out and miss her mark, sending the blade clattering disgracefully to the floor.
"Hmpfh!" Aiko huffed, irritated at her own moment of clumsiness for a moment before turning back to William. "Don't tell anyone!"
William had finally looked up as she stood and moved to follow her. He stopped, however, when she dropped her sword. William studied Aiko as she huffed. 'She is even cute when she is mad...Damn it stop that!' he scolded himself again.
"Of course not my lady, I wouldn't tell a soul," he replied, bowing slightly again. As he stepped over to her and tried to grab his own swords, he accidentally bumped against her shoulder. Another shockwave radiated out from the point where they touched. "I am so sorry your highness... Please forgive my clumsiness..." he said, stepping away and bowing. 'What is wrong with me!?!' he thought again.
"You don't do that again and I'll remember not to dishonor my ancestors like this again," Aiko replied as William stepped back, kind of annoyed that he'd touched her this time, but not letting it show too much through a face of good humor.
And then she made for her sword. From her perfectly posed stance, upright and straight, she bent at the waist and reached down for the white blade laying across the wardroom's doorway. As she did, her legs stayed straight, though she had stepped one in front of the other and offset their placement for a more solid balance. Every inch that her hand reached down to grab the katana, her standard issue Star Army pleated skirt slid up those cadet blue tights and over her plump, statuesque rear. Then, just when her fingers wrapped around the weapon's sheath, the Nepleslian boy could catch a peek of her black Star Army panties that gently kept everything wrapped up and secure.
For the length of time it seemed to take her to retrieve her sword, Aiko was back to her impeccable posture in a flash. She glanced back and gave William a nod.
"Our secret, then," she said with an awkward grin that seemed pretty fake. "Right, Wil-kun?"
William's eyes bulged and his face went from pale to various shades of crimson in the matter of milliseconds. He quickly averted his gaze as she stood up. When she spoke to him he nodded. "Hai... What do you plan on doing with the rest of your day your highness?" he asked, his face slowly returning to normal.
She regarded him with some scrutiny again, brow angled with wonder at his odd behavior. The Princess Aiko really was oblivious about such matters, though surely it wouldn't make a difference if she wasn't. The boy was hopped up on fresh L'Kor lust, after all!
"Whatever Eden-taii directs me to do," Aiko said plainly, as if there was no other answer. "Do you know where she is? I should be on duty by now, in all honesty, and she should be attentive enough to make sure. That's how a Star Army captain should be!"
More scrutiny was extended in Wil's direction as she paused, removing the thought of Eden's failure from her mind.
"What about you?" she wondered, still looking the Nepleslian over with her big red eyes. "More training with my yojimbo? Or is there something else you'd like to do?"
He knew exactly where the Captain was. "Umm... The Taii is indisposed at the moment, your grace, My sincerest apologies," he said to her. "Last I saw her they were doing some kind of backup?" he said more as a question than a statement.
When Aiko asked her question he nearly blurted 'Just hang out with you!' but managed to catch himself. "I... I already trained, and Sensei Rei allowed me to take the day off from training. So... I can assist you in your duties if you would like," he offered.
'Smooth...' he told himself.
"Look, Wil-kun," Aiko said, uncharacteristically breaking the back and forth niceties and assumption of sincerity between them. "Are you sure you're capable of assisting me today? What with the sweating and stumbling more than usual. Is your demeanor part of the 'holiday cheer,' as they say? What exactly is Love Day, anyway?"
She really didn't get it—any of it. From a holiday that didn't celebrate her dynasty or the Empire's glory to William's kind of blatant crush—even if it was enabled by alien pheromones—the Princess was lost. Not in the helpless way, but in the way that frustrated and confused her enough for her to drop even a modicum of formality and well-practiced procedure.
William's face fell as Aiko spoke. He realized that, through what functional parts of his brain that were working, that he had screwed up. He let his head hang. "I am so sorry, Princess... I don't know what the matter is... It must just be the holiday..." he said ashamedly. "Love day is..." he tried to find the right words to describe it. "...it is the celebration of love between people. Some look for it on Love Day and some celebrate the love they already share with others... if that makes sense..." he said in an attempt to explain.
Attentively listening to William's account of the occasion, Aiko simply glared at him for a while and continued to do so after he finished. Complete silence reigned between the princess and the samurai's ward for what seemed like hours—probably for both of them. After a few seconds, though, Aiko's cheeks flushed a rosy red so intense that she could definitely feel it enough to turn away to hide her face and stare at the door nearby. Long, thick ribbons of her hair fluttered with the centrifugal motion of her core and bombarded William with her pretty scent.
"Alright, then," Aiko said after a time, still facing the bulkhead. It was very unlike her to not address anybody face-to-face. But then she did turn, the blush gone from her expression, looking determined and noble as ever. And without warning, she reached out and grabbed him by the wrist. "Since Nepleslians love guns so much, you will help me practice and perfect my Service Pistol drills. Guide my stance and tell me where it is wrong. In this, you have permission. Not even Rei-san may object.
"Come."
With that order, she moved toward the doorway and it opened in her path, pulling William along behind her.