RP: YSS Miharu Prologue, Day 2

Yukari wasn't sure what to think. All she knew is that she was starving and slightly irritable. And while she could understand Kotori's actions, she could honestly say she did not care.

"Freeman-Hei," she sent via encrypted telepathy. "Follow me to the briefing room. I will not suffer 20 more seconds of this without nourishment."

Tom nodded to Yukari, his eyes lighting up at the mention of food.

He quietly took a couple of steps towards the Yamataian before he looked back to Kotori and Leutre.

I hope the Taii goes easy on him. Don't worry buddy, I was in your shoes one day!

With that thought, he silently followed Yukari, taking the utmost care to be unobtrusive to the others in the room.

The small lounge held couches ringing three of its walls, with the other wall leading to a snackbar on one side and a restroom on the other. There was a table layed out in the middle with cushioned fold-out chairs ringing it. The table itself was filled with plates bearing cold meats (from sliced ham to bite-size tuna), slices of bread, meatspread, varied cheeses (including a spreadable kind with nuts in it), sliced fruitcakes, fruit salad and an assortment of nuts (hazelnuts, cashews, pecans and peanuts). There were two large pitchers - one filled with orange juice and the other with clear water.

Disposable dishes and glasses were stacked on one corner of the snackbar along with a set of ustensils (fork, spoon, knife and chopsticks).

The curly haired Juni was sitting on one of the couches, reading over a pad and furiously tapping notes.

The Yamataian woman saw nothing but tuna as she came within visual range of the table. It danced before her eyes, did pirouettes atop the cruel Juni's head, frolicked toward a plate and lay there, waiting to be devoured.

"Oh my," she breathed, gravitating toward the snackbar for her proper utensils. Once she had them below her plate, she went to the table, sat and simply gazed at the tuna. She noticed there was also pepperoni -- she had tried that before and found it delicious; she would have to try it again. But not before tuna. Never before tuna.

She hadn't even paid attention to Tom, who she didn't see immediately after raising her head from the tuna. Magically, when she looked back down at her plate, it was already loaded with tuna, white cheese and some bread. She stopped her hand from pouring the orange juice.

My body is operating without my brain again, she thought. At least it has reason to. She waited for Tom to sit.

Tom had watched the hungry Yukari load up her plate, smiling the entire time.

"Healthy appetite for a healthy life," Tom recited from memory. "Like the animals of the land, so must we adequately nourish ourselves for the coming winter."

The Raltean adage, which Tom knew since childhood, overtook him with a moment of respectful silence as he filled his plate with an assortment of foods.

The Yamataian's movements were measured and elegant, his steps graceful, as if he were performing before an invisible audience. But at the same time, his relaxed smile remained. There was something important in this change of bearing, a near infinite importance being placed on something perhaps so trivial.

He took his plate and utensils and sat next to Yukari, the characteristic grin returning to his face.

And just like that, Tom was back.

"Pretty hungry, eh?"

Yukari was more than a little mesmorized by the sight of Tom and his movements, just to get food. She didn't understand ... but she giggled a little behind the side of her hand. She was glad to see him similing again. When he mentioned her plate, however, she became a little embarassed. "Ah, yes. I -- you see -- anou ... sa." Her brain had run out of energy to form sentences.

"Don't worry about it, just eat up." Tom picked up a bit of ham by hand and chewed it.

Yukari did just that -- she had chopsticks in her hand and began eating some of the tuna. The look on her face after only one bite was, in essence, like that of an orgasm. She couldn't remember the last time she'd felt so good about plain tuna.

"So, how's it taste?" Tom offered the statement only after some time had passed. He smirked at the expression on her face.

"Exquisite," Yukari said with a sigh. "Combat makes bad food taste much better."

Tom gaped at Yukari, her words surprising him deeply. "What do you mean bad? Wow. I think this stuff is fantastic!" He munched another piece of ham.

"This is very good," Yukari said quickly between bits of tuna. She helped some pepperoni to her plate. "But it is combat that makes it taste as heaven must." She smiled.

"Ah, well, uh, I'm not sure what heaven would taste like, or if it actually has a taste," Tom said, confused. "But yeah, it's good that we're done with the scenario."

"Mm," Yukari murmurred, trying some of the pepperoni. She blanched a little and gulped at her water, a small ribbon of it running down from her lips.

Tom chuckled. "You eat like a true Raltean man after a hard day's work is done." He nibbled a piece of cheese to follow his ham. "But please, do not choke, ma'am."

At that, Yukari had to hit her chest to make sure everything went down. "Yah," she said, barely. "I will slow down now!" Half the tuna from her plate was gone already.

Tom nodded and ate quickly, finishing his plate. "Great food. Now only if this briefing room had a shower, right there in the corner, I'd be set."

Yukari blushed a little. Though no one was looking their best at that moment, she still felt particularly unclean. "A shower would be nice," she said. "With very fragrant soap."

"Back at home, we didn't have too much hot water, for reasons I'm not entirely sure of," Tom said, stretching his arms in front of him. "I think it was a combination of the cold and the culture."

A world without hot water was a very hard world, Yukari thought. "How did you wash yourself?" Her eating had slowed, at least.

"Sometimes snow, sometimes cold water from the lakes," Tom said casually. "Although we did have hot water heaters, they took quite a bit of time to warm up in those temperatures."

"Snow ... " Yukari shivered. "I would rather wait for the heater."

"Snow is very beautiful and living in the cold becomes second nature once you get used to it," Tom said matter-of-factly. "But I don't blame you, ma'am."

"I am surprised there are not hot springs near where you lived ... I remember being told about hot springs in the mountains." For the life of her, Yukari couldn't quite recall where. Odd little trace memories were lost when she converted to a Yamataian body.

"Oh, there probably are, but who wants to go out that far into the hills? We're perfectly happy where we are." Tom yawned a bit, the adrenaline from the simulation having run out of his body. He kept silent.

"Ah. Sou." Yukari drank from her water cup and remained silent for a moment. But when she looked back at Tom, he was still looking at the wall. "Freeman-Hei? Are you well?"

"Hm?" Tom glanced at Yukari. "Oh. Yes, I'm fine."

"You were thinking about something?"

"Ah, yes. I was just thinking about home again." Tom said. "Surprising what little things you see that can make you feel a bit homesick."

Yukari smiled a little. "You miss home so much?"

"It's strange, really," Tom sighed. "A few years ago, I couldn't wait to get out of that place. It felt like an ice prison sometimes, how everyone seemed so attached to tradition."

He shook his head sadly. "So I left and had a blast of a time in the cities of Yamatai. Endless nights of dancing and fun with people I'd never meet again. I loved it." He stared off once more to a spot on the wall. "But now I realize how much I took for granted the simple life. I should have appreciated it more."

"You will see it again," Yukari said simply. She suddenly seemed to be staring too, though it was down at her clammy, gloved hands. "I am sure of it."

"Back on Ralt, we didn't have to think about such deep things as war," Tom whispered as his head tilted down to face his lap. His hands gripped his empty plate tightly. "I don't much like it, ma'am." He could feel tears welling up in his eyes. "I don't think... I don't think... that I'd much like..." He couldn't finish.

Yukari was a bit surprised by the telepathy coming from Tom. She flicked her glance to his grey eyes, but when she saw there were tears in them, she felt trapped by them. She had never seen a man cry before, but she knew it was not from pain. " ... Tom ... " she sent along her encrypted channel. "It will be well ... I promise you. We will protect each other ... "

Tom blinked back the tears with a nod. "I hope I have the strength next time..."

"Haha, why am I being so silly?" Tom forced a smile. "Everything will be fine, right?"

Yukari's serious look hadn't changed. "Hai," she said, completely sure. "It will."

James had excused himself from the congregation and wandered to the corner, pausing only briefly to regard Tom and Yukari before piling his plate high with meats and pouring himself a cup of orange juice. He felt famished, although he was sure it hadn't been that long since they had eaten breakfast.

Popping a chunk of ham into his mouth, he sat down next to Tom.

"How long were we in there? I always lose track of time when I go into a battle."

Nyton's stomach had definately begun to roar at the prospect of food. Simulated warfare and dying had given him an appetite and he approached the table. His goal lay in sight and he immediately began filling his plate. In the spirit of experimentation Nyton then began to apply the cheese spread to the meat slices and then wrap the meat around the tuna before placing it on some bread. He then did the same with the meat spread on some cheese and meat slices. Nyton didn't stop until he at least had a variety of experiments using the different types of meat and cheese combinations. He then poured himself some orange juice and without realizing it himself, took a long swallow from the glass before he stopped. The word 'thirsty' had escaped his lips in a low gasp which was inaudible except to anyone who stood next to him when he had done so. He refilled the glass and then proceeded to walk over to Tom, James and Yukari.

"Looks like I'm not the only one who's hungry here." Nyton said with a glance to Yukari's tuna laden dish and James's meat flowing dish. "By the way Tom, I must say that pre-meal ritual dance you did was intriguing." he remarked offhand. When he heard James question Nyton thought for a moment. "I would say we'd been there for about forty five minutes. Then again I was held up with Kotori Taii for some time before I joined you so my estimate may be off."

Leutre took his time looking over the different foods, carefully poking and prodding each before adding a sample to his plate. Slowly but surely he made his way around the table until his plate contained a sample of everything offered. Even small gobs of sandwich spreads were scattered along the outer edges of his plate. Carefully balancing the dish with one hand and picking up a handful of utensils with the other he made his way over to his companions with small steps.

"I hope everything in here is properly dead," Leutre mumbled as he sniffed one of the meats on his plate. "I still have nightmares about the last time I ate fresh meat." He let out an involuntarily shudder, but quickly shook his head to rid himself of such thoughts. Turning his attention back to his plate, he began to idly poke away at his food as he listened to the conversation around him.

"Oh, hello guys," Tom said as the newcomers came around him. "I'm not sure exactly how long we were in there. It sure felt like a long time."

Tom tilted his head to Nyton.

"Pre-meal ritual dance? Huh?" It took him a few seconds to register the comment. "OHHHHHH! Yes. It is common in Ralt to demonstrate respect for a meal before you eat it. We do this usually for dinner and buffet-style feasts, as a presence of so much food was, and still is to some extent, quite rare. It's just one of those things that remained with me since childhood, like saying something when a person sneezes."

He went to the table to pour himself a water.

"What did you think of the simulation? How do you all think we did in there?"

"Well, I could accomodate you people on that level." The curly haired Juni, nicknamed 'the cruel Juni' by Yukari, said, looking up. "As soon as we have ev-" She paused as she saw Kotori walked in after Leutre. "Uh ho." The brunette said, feeling tension in the room all of a sudden.

The smaller long-haired nekovalkyrja poked the Nepleslian behind the shoulder. "Veressis-Hei, you did not do as I asked." Kotori coolly pointed out.

(OoC: Leutre seems to have ignored the last post from Kotori. She asked him to greet her again, this time properly with a bow. She also suggested he review the Star Army Regulations and Customs later to avoid any future mistakes on his part.)

"Eh? Oh. I thought... Oh dear. Well, you see, all you Nekovalkyrja look the same to me. Heh, heh." Leutre's nervous laughter faded as he shrunk under her glare. "Please don't report me, I'm already on a probationary trial! One step across the line and they'll revoke my citizenship and my medical treatments!"

Leutre sank to his knees and grasped her hands. "I'll be deported! I'll be forced to join the Nepleslian army to support the cost of my treatments, where I'll die a few years from now on some mudhole of a planet! Or be forced into a life of crime smuggling to support not only my treatments but a recreational drug addiction that I would eventually obtain from a visit to a pirate starbase after a night with two beautiful slave girls! You wouldn't condemn someone to a harsh life for such a minor infraction, would you?" He looked up at her pleadingly, awaiting an answer.

((OOC: For some strange reason I had thought Kotori had gone up with the others, I was a bit distracted with other things at the time. I'll try to avoid making any more silly mistakes.))

Tom had to struggle to contain a laugh. He just BARELY did, but he rocked back and forth a little, silently, before bringing a hand up to his face to recompose himself.

Kotori blinked incredulously. "I just wanted you to give me and any other officer you greet a polite bow, that's all." Kotori looked at the assembled people sitting about self-consciously and then frowned at Leutre. "Get down and do thirty push ups for me and you'll be considered forgiven... as long as you get the military courtesies straightened up for tommorow morning."

James tried to focus on his food.

Tough X.O. we've got, it seems, he mused, picking a slice of meat at random and popping it in his mouth, chewing thoughtfully. Ah well, i guess it's to be expected. Poor guy.

He swallowed it down with a sip from his cup and stretched his neck.

"Well, as far as the simulation went, I think we all had our moments of...lack of judgement, for lack of a better term."

Yukari was quietly nibbling on some cheese, not paying too much attention to the conversations around her. She seemed lost in thought, though she noticed Kotori and her struggle with the new recruit. There was little to say about the matter, so she avoided it and continued nibbling. She had less to say about armors than ettquette anyway.

"I have a fair amount to say regarding the sim run." Nyton said inbetween bites. He watched as Leutre flustered about regarding his deportation to Nepleslia and shook his head. New recruits. he mentally sighed. "Our squad tactics need much more improvement. We only managed to pull it off on that last Armor. There was also the occasional disregard of orders that some of us showed. Plus our lack of knowledge regarding the capability of the NDI Armor was against us. There wasn't even much of a mission statement at the onset either. We were only lucky that Yukari got a hold of that ship to initiate an evac. Next time we need to have a preplanned means of movement and escape." he said flatly. I will definately be studying the NDI weapons a lot closer after this. he thought.

Nyton then paused and finished eating another combo creation he had made with turkey, pepper jack, and cheese spread on a slice of bread before he continued. "On the other hand we did learn a lot about the abilities and limitations of the Daisy and Harpy models. We also learned the importance of keeping a reserve Armor for backup such as with Kotori Taii's entrance with her Mindy. You all managed to keep fighting despite the odds going against us and with a little more training I would say we could improve our chances considerably." he finished. Another bite from another combo made him pause a second. "Anyways that's just my initial outlook. Why don't we let the Juni get started on our debrief so we don't hold her up any longer."

As everyone quickly piled food upon their plates and sat down, Masako took her time going through the table. Taking a little bit here and there, seeming to balance out the types of food on her plate. Only she was piling on quite a lot even while balancing it out. The mixture of meat, cheeses, and fruit seemed to reach nearly four inches in height when she finally left the table, glancing at the scene being created by both her CO and the new recruit. She took only mild interest, mostly taking note to be sure to keep an eye on the young Santô Hei of the crew. If it came down to it, she personally may have to teach them proper manners just so that the officers wouldn't have to bother with punishing the enlisted for trivial things.

"Excuse me," the young neko spoke up as she bowed to her crewmates sitting down before sitting down beside Nyton. She had heard a bit of what the other Juni of the Miharu crew had spoken of and nodded slightly in agreement as she began to slowly eat what she had gathered.

"What? Really?" Leutre looked up at Ketsurui and broke out in a grin. "Fantastic! I'll pick up a proper copy of the manual next chance I get. I'd hug you in appreciation, but you look like the kind of person who'd probably break my arm for that."

He stood up and brushed his uniform off, then smiled. "It's nice to know that not all you officers are soulless bureaucratic swine whose mothers--" Realizing what he was saying, he quickly stopped. Lowering his head he said, "Erm, I actually meant to say that I will start those push ups now. All thirty," he let out a quiet sigh, "I suppose I'd better make it forty of them."

Dropping back down to his knees he slowly began his push ups. "One... Two..."

Nyton nodded at Masako as she took her seat. Another combination had been consumed and he proceeded to start on another. He then looked over at Leutre and was barely able to hide his expression as he rolled his cybernetic eyes at the man doing push ups. "This one looks to be a troublesome spot now, don't he?" he muttered quietly to himself.