Description: Already determined to head into the heart of the Suiryuu and get his facts the old-fashioned way, Soma goes to the only friendly face on the ship for help with a subject -- chi -- he knows nothing about. With nothing left to barter but the reasons why he's truly involved in Jinchuu, the ICPO agent bets the house on what his supernatural senses tell him about a certain guitar-playing kingpin's roommate...
The day has been spent watching fights, ever the interested spectator. But while during the early rounds the girl was merely curious, the way Hotaru observes the going ons aboard the boat have shifted a little. Far more interested in the details of the fights themselves, especially in watching how the ship itself reacts. It's a strange thing, having to wonder how an unliving vessel /reacts/ to people, but that's far from the strangest thing afoot here.
But now that the day's chaos has come to an end... or at least, she suspects so, Hotaru returns to the cabin level to retreat back to her room. If she's lucky, Elle won't be around, and she can just straightaway get to bed without having to play twenty questions from the most paranoid person on the planet. If she's unlucky, well, she's managing to get by on the reduced sleep from lying awake at night trying to turn over all the questions the strange woman keeps planting in her head.
At the threshold of her room, Hotaru struggles with the door handle, rattling it back and forth, giving the door a nudge with her other hand every few seconds. "Che," she mutters beneath her breath. Elle never seems to have any problem with it. Why is it always being obstinate to /her/? Getting ready to apply a bit more blunt force to the door, the young martial artist glances up and down the hall real quick to make sure no one's looking. After all, if she ends up knocking the stubborn thing off its hinges, it would be good to not have any witnesses!
It's been an interesting few days on Suiryuu for Soma. Hotaru herself provided some of the entertainment, giving him an entire new angle to work. Zach Glen unwittingly provided the other, with his accidental display of power on the main deck the previous day. As much as Hotaru has been watching the ship's reaction to fighters, Soma has been considering the fighters who were invited in the first place. Do the Ryouhara know the difference between chi and the 'mysterious power' that both Zach and Soma possess? Their invitation says nothing about that question; either they know and don't care, or don't know and get the unexpected bonus.
Having found that exercise clears the head, the ICPO agent is dressed differently than normal, an infrequent occurance. A black tank top hangs loosely off his torso, floating over the top of canvas hiking shorts, and black sneakers with silver piping round it out. Apparently even in casual gear he sticks to a color scheme. But it's obvious from looking at him that he's been doing some kind of workout; beyond the occasional bead of sweat he just has the 'glow' of endorphins that seems to go along with vigorous physical activity.
As he walks down the hall to his own cabin, what should enter his sight but Hotaru Futaba... and with a blink, he realizes this is his big chance. Things are starting to come together. He just needs to get the information that will push him from theory to certainty... and if he has to go outside usual channels to get it, so be it. Walking up toward the girl, Soma leans against the wall and gives her a faint smile. "If you'd like, we could get someone down here with a crowbar."
Erp. Eye witness spotted! Hotaru pauses, having been just about to ram her shoulder against the door - the only reliable technique for opening it that she's found to date. But it's still obvious enough as to what she was /going/ to do, given the way she was turning her side toward the door and leaning into it just a little. Aborting that little operation, the girl just kind of turns the rest of the way such that her back leans against the door, her hands clasped together in front of her as if trying to appear like nothing is at all amiss.
But that would mean that she's just idly standing in the hall, leaning against her own door, for no particular reason. And it's hard not to look a tad sheepish at that forced attempt at appearing 'relaxed and natural' either. So it's no wonder Soma is able to put together the trouble she was having as he leans against the wall near her.
"Oh, hello Soma," she laughs lightly, one hand in front lifting to rest at the back of her neck. "I, ah, seem to have the hardest time with this door. I'm not sure what it is. But I /can/ get it open if I have to. Staff hasn't been too helpful with it." she explains as she pushes off to stand up straight, lowering her hands to her sides as she eyes the door suspiciously. "How are you?" Convenient topic shift.
Although the girl might not know it, Soma wasn't particularly suspicious until SHE became so tense. An eyebrow goes up, but he doesn't seem about to bust her on it. Lord knows he wouldn't mind prying open a few doors and rummaging through the contents himself. "It could just be that they had so much else to spend their money on..." he says with a shrug, running a finger along some moulding on the wall and frowning as he sees the little sigils patterned over it, like some sort of bizarre ninja dormer. "You know how it goes with building massive ninja superliners."
He pauses, then realizes he's been somewhat remiss in responding to the lighter question buried in Hotaru's statements. "I'm alright. Better than I should be, actually." He runs a hand through his hair, eyes catching momentarily on the silver tips he never seems to be able to do anything about before he turns back to Hotaru. "I'm... planning some things. Been sitting on my backside taking notes too long." He pauses again, giving Hotaru a moment of intense scrutiny, and then continues in a tone that suggests the idea has struck him out of the blue. "Actually... you might be exactly the person I need to see."
"Can't say I do," Hotaru replies at the comment about building ninja boats. The entire undertaking that must have been involved in creating this thing is completely beyond her. But her tone is one of simple, honest admission rather than just giving him sass. "But yeah, who knows. Sometimes I think my roommate rigged it just so she'd always have a big warning before I enter." she states with a shrug and faint smile.
Then the topic shifts toward him, as she would prefer to some extent. She looks the young adult over from head to toe, studying his build and idly pondering what she remembers about the times she's seen him in combat. His normal attire covers a lot more, leaving it less clear what his build is like. The idle inspection is cut short, however, when he seems to realize that she might be able to help him with something.
Blue eyes come to rest on his violet ones, her head leaning to the side a little as she seems to perk up a bit. The girl likes to be of assistence whenever possible. "Oh? Guess it's good we ran into each other then." she replies with a ready smile. "What can I help with?"
Soma's brows furrow for a moment at the concept of roommates, and he suddenly glances off to the side. "Ha, I'd almost forgotten we're two to a cabin. I am supposedly bunking with someone named Kasumi, but we've never met and appear to be, if you'll pardon the pun, ships passing in the night. Considering they put a man and a woman in the same room, though, maybe that's for the best." He turns to Hotaru with a grin. "Hopefully they stuck you with someone agreeable, at any rate."
But he knows in his heart the time for idle chitchat is slight, and thus dives right into business, instincts forcing him to look over his shoulder before he starts talking, only shifting his attention back to Hotaru when he is confident there's nobody around to eavesdrop... and he's got plenty of ways to find such people. "I've seen you fight... a few times, anyway," he adds with a faintly rueful smile, hearkening back to Hotaru's impressive showing against him in Korea. "You seem to be pretty familiar with 'chi'," the quotes around the word being almost audible, "...and I am not. In fact, other than the fact that it's a word of Chinese origin, I don't know anything about it at all. I certainly can't use it, though I can sense that there's...something about the sigils either way." He turns his eyes to those drawn on the hallway wall, before turning back to Hotaru. "I'm guessing you know someone who's an expert in the field, or at least knows enough to give me some headway on what, exactly, these sigils are doing."
"Kasumi? I wonder if that would be Kasumi Todoh..." The girl muses out loud. Kasumi is a fairly common name in Japan. But Todoh's daughter is the only one that comes to mind as a potential participant. "You might be lucky you haven't bumped into each other." At the comment about her bunkmate, there is a smile. A very strained one. It would be easy for someone with his attention to detail to pick out that 'agreeable' is probably not the adjective that comes to Hotaru's mind with respect to describing whoever they put her with.
But that is neither here or now. Though if he knew who it was, he might be more interested in that detail. The topic shifts to one that she's at least more comfortable being broached, even if she might not be able to explain things as well as she would like. The compliments to her ability are taken in stride, eliciting only a slight acknowledging nod. There is a blink of uncertainty as he mentions not being able to draw upon the breath of life to power attacks of his own. "But-" she starts to interject, thinking back to the little demonstration with the pencil in lounge the other day as well as things she's seen him do in fights.
The sigils are mentioned, however, and she falls quiet, eyes straying along the walls then. They are all over the place. Easy to miss until they light up in the presence of the energy the various fighters bring to bear. His leading statement, the implied question easy enough to catch, leaves the girl quiet for a long moment. She's clearly weighing something out in her mind. She seemed very forthcoming with information the last time they met, but right now it would be hard to miss the uncertainty. Maybe she is starting to wonder if /he/ is a plant of some kind? Worried, perhaps, about the same concerns that he might have had initially when they last spoke. "I might be able to think of someone..."
You'd have to be stupid not to pick up on the hesitation, but perhaps in Hotaru's favor he doesn't chalk it up to anything ulterior. Kasumi is mentioned and forgotten; even if he did know her last name, he wouldn't have anything to say, and it's not so surprising that Hotaru might know another high school-aged girl fighter with a Japanese name. "I thought you would be," he says with a faint smile. It's not particularly malevolent, but there is a certain... hard edge to *everything* Soma says, as if the times when he would sit back and actually enjoy something are a far distant and infrequently visited countryside.
There's a pause, and then the ICPO agent crosses his arms over his chest. "You don't need to actually show up or bring the person to me or anything. In fact, I'd prefer if that's *not* the case. It'll only put you in the line of fire. But if you give me a name, I can probably find whoever it is you're talking about." He doesn't say exactly how, not yet; Interpol keeps a database of fighters -- and her suggestion is almost certainly going to be one -- for the same reason that Soma's undercover mission exists at all: where fighters go, trouble follows. Knowing who they are and their background is pretty vital.
As he expresses the ways that she could provide a name yet also stay out of harm's way, the young fighter's smile warms a little. He seems like a pretty sincere guy, mindful of the risks he might be placing her in if she were to be connected to his investigation. Her right hand comes up, finger resting lightly against her temple where she begins to rub slowly, clearly thinking about what he has said.
"Well..." Hotaru begins, her voice hesitant. "If I am to give you a lead, it's only fair that you give me one too." After all, she's pretty sure that she's already provided him with a major leg up with what she told him before. And she also suspects that he hasn't been idle since that time. Surely with his background, he's uncovered some tidbit that she doesn't know yet.
"I might even be able to point you to where to turn on this very boat to answer your questions. But I don't like being left in the dark. I have a right to know what's going on as much as anyone else. So if there's something you know outside of what we discussed last time..." It's her turn to finish with an implied, leading question of her own. But her tone is wavering. She's not used to insisting on quid pro quo style exchanges. He might be able to pressure her if he tries harder. Or he might just cause her to button up. It's hard to predict what a reluctant 'informant' might do.
When Soma smiles again, it's not a friendly smile at all. It's definitely got a knife's edge to it, but his tone hasn't necessarily changed. His words, however, may have. "You've spent too long on the ninja boat, Miss Futaba," he says, brushing a hand to the back of his head. "Perhaps the whole point of the seals is to make a hardened mercenary out of you." He doesn't sound amused, but it could be that the sarcasm is what's keeping him going in this situation.
And then, rather surprisingly, he comes to a very troubling realization as soon as the words leave his mouth: he's become the Elle in this situation. Not cool at all.
With a sigh, it's Soma's turn to run a hand through his hair again, exhaling sharply in frustration. "What do I know? A lot of nothing, and that's a fact. I know that there's a Russian mobster who's former KGB running around on this boat somewhere, and I don't know why. I know that the Ryouhara are running this tournament like a game show and they don't quite care who wins or loses the gimmicky matchups they're creating, and I don't know why that's happening either. So while I appreciate your wanting to know the whole story, I suggest you find yourself a ninja and beat an FAQ out of him!" Finally, some emotion cracks out of Soma's voice, his tension having vibrated dangerously close to the live wire stage.
There's a pause while he takes a breath, pinching the bridge of his nose, and then gives Hotaru a level expression. "You don't owe me anything. You're a civilian caught up in... whatever the hell this is. But I'm not asking you for your help because I care about what you're getting out of it, Miss Futaba, and please forgive me for saying so. I'm asking because you showed an interest in protecting people. That's what I'm doing, even if you don't believe me. I won't be angry if you decide not to help, but you've got to understand I'm not here to play information merchant. Sometimes in the pursuit of a higher calling I need to be a *right bastard*, and this is one of those times."
When his expression shifts she can feel the difference moreso than see it. She expected things to take a bit less amiable turn the moment she popped her own indirect demand, so that's not a surprise. It doesn't make it comfortable, of course. Just expected. The initial accusation is met with a neutral, thin-lipped expression. Mercenaries. That might be one way to look at it, she muses, in light of what she thinks she knows. Only. Mercenaries at least get /paid/.
But as he begins to speak about some of the details he has her expression changes slightly. She's clearly picking apart everything he's saying, shuffling things into already-known or new-info files in her mind. A mobster, huh? Something about that sticks out in her mind, but she can't quite figure out why. At the suggestion that she beat the information out of a ninja, there is a faint smirk, "Surely you know it isn't as easy as that." Maybe he's even tried. Hell, at this point, over half the boat probably wants to wring a ninja's neck to see what kind of information spills out. "Do you know the mobster's name?"
But then he lays it on the line, making a strong appeal to her sense of wanting to make sure people get through this wild ride as unscathed as possible. The girl inhales deeply then exhales slowly, sounding a triffle annoyed that he doesn't seem to have any more information. She doens't know how alone the young man is in this endeavor. Though the fact that he's turning to her for another hint should probably clue her in on that.
There's a long moment of silence after he finishes where the girl just looks back at him. There's a certain expectant look in her eyes. A 'so that's it?' sort've question that is impossible to miss. "The lines in the walls are collecting the residual energy all of the fighters are throwing out there with their attacks. If you go lower on the boat - to the lower hull, you'll feel it easily there. The air is charged. This boat is a giant battery and the fighters here are tasked with charging it. They just don't know it." She falls quiet then. She has provided no name to go by. But she did just give him information that he'll either have to believe or spend a lot of time trying to come up with a reason to disbelieve it. Because it makes a frightening amount of sense. Perhaps trying to prove that she knows stuff and she is still trying to get him to reciprocate. Maybe she still thinks he's holding out.
"You seem pretty well informed for a spectator," Soma says slowly, and it's the truth. Why is it Hotaru knows everything she does? She seems astute and observant, but astute and observant only gets you so far. And much to his chagrin, everything Hotaru has to say about the boat isn't exactly a shocking revelation. You don't need to manipulate chi to be able to tell the spiritual humidity of the Suiryuu is greater the lower you go... and all you need to do is jab a Psycho Power dagger into the wall and watch the movement of the line of blue light that follows to figure out where it's going.
Still...
He frowns. He's not going to tell her he's with Interpol... not yet, anyway. She may seem helpful and genuinely protective but that's not the same as 'trustworthy'. However, he doesn't have any real concept of how dangerous to him what he's about to say can be... and at the very least, he'd be able to narrow it down to Hotaru and Zach as the snitches. Holding out a hand, he concentrates, and a 'dagger' of black-lined silver springs into being. "This? This isn't 'chi'. I don't really have a name for what it is. But you saw before." He twists his wrist and drives the knife into the wall. As the dagger disappears, the sigils predictably light up, sending lines of blue light toward the floor. "But the ship reacts to it anyway. Why? I suppose I'll find out when I go below decks for myself. Pawns are most useful on the first turn, when they can move two squares. Well, I'm moving my two squares."
There's a pause, then Soma shakes his head sadly, frustration finally evident in his face. "His name is Nikolai Tippin, by the way. And have you noticed, there are fighters here who don't use flashy energy attacks. Why were they invited? If the ship is a giant energy battery, that's not the whole of the thing. And if all they wanted was pure power, why invite inexperienced fighters who likely can't channel as much as their experienced counterparts can? There's more to it than that. If they didn't mean for people to see the sigils, they wouldn't be visible."
"I've been doing a lot of asking and listening," Hotaru replies when he remarks on the level of information she seems to be carrying around in that head of hers. She's spoken with a fair number of contestants. Watched a lot of the fights whenever circumstances permitted. And, of course, presently bunks with someone who sits at the center of a network of information aboard the boat.
She's otherwise quiet as he manifests the dagger, eyes watching him drive it into the wall, provoking the expected reaction from the lines there. 'Tell people to stop feeding this thing,' Elle had told her, and the thought comes back to mind when she sees him do just that. But she isn't going to interrupt. Not when he's sharing something of particular interest. Hmn. It isn't chi manipulation. What does that make it then? He isn't the first she's seen fire off energy powers that completely fail to resonate with her own senses. But she's skeptical that they're all related instances either. "Be careful when you go down there... The boat's staff seems to find out real fast somehow." It sounds like she's speaking from experience.
When he points out the presence of fighters who lack energy associated with their attacks, Hotaru pauses for a moment, eyes averted as she considers that quite valid point. "It could be just to make it less obvious... But it is interesting to note that the fighters who do not demonstrate a lot of energy in their attacks have actually been held off the boat in other settings. Perhaps because the sponsors don't care so much where /they/ fight..." She finishes, looking back toward him, only to shrug a little. Guessing at the minds of ninjas can be a painful, mind-bending exercise.
That earns a shrug from Soma, who grabs his right elbow with his left hand, looking more frustrated than ever. "They're a rare commodity nowadays anyway. And nobody's ever thought about how dangerous that is, people without the necessary years of experience wielding some sort of ill-defined spiritual 'power' simply because they can." This has always been his problem with the fighting world, and it shows. Is it an arrogant way of thinking? Possibly, but if it is that doesn't seem to trouble the ICPO agent at all. "Instead we give them free reign and no sense of right and wrong. The result is this," he bites out, sweeping a hand across the hallway to indicate the Suiryuu and, by extension, Jinchuu.
Shaking his head, Soma half-turns away from Hotaru, glancing out at the sea. No real allies, nothing to justify his actions beyond a desire to keep the peace and uphold justice... cold comfort, all things considered, in the lion's den. "Oh, they'll know. How could they not? We're in a gilded cage here, and they built it... the first step down there, they'll know. The question isn't if they know, it's what they do. Send Koganei to fire off pithy little comments like they did in Thailand?"
He turns back to Hotaru with a faint smile, but there's disquiet hiding behind it. "Did you know about that? In Thailand the Ryouhara ninja clan gave away the location where an important Thai military leader was being held. Boonyaratglin... the one who pulled out the charge of the Light Brigade at the last minute after..." He pauses here for no more than a fraction of a second, but the hesitation to include his own involvement might be suspicious if Hotaru is paying close attention. "...Lieutenant Guile of the USAF broke him out of a Shadaloo prison camp. Information they provided to resistance forces free of charge. Does that sound like typical ninja behavior to you?" With a sigh, Soma turns to look back at the sea. "I can't make it connect to Jinchuu, however. You'll find I'm not good at tit-for-tat with information because what I have a lot of is coincidences and conjectures and very little in the way of actual *facts*, Miss Futaba."
Soma's gripe about fighters drawing upon enegy attacks earns the slightest quirk of an eyebrow from Hotaru. "How many years does it take before one is qualified to draw upon the breath of life, I wonder," the girl asks, hands clasped behind her back now as she leans her back against her stubborn door. It isn't like firearms. You can't just take it away from people or make them submit to thirty day waiting periods before their first chi ball.
As he turns toward the sea, Hotaru leans her head to the side a little. "Riko? Hm... I haven't seen her for a couple of days now. If they send her, it'd only be by pulling her away from whatever it is that's caught her attention for the last while." He goes on to speak of the Ryouhara's involvement with how things ended in Thailand. She was very much aware that the resistence got information on the imprisoned military leader. She, herself, was sent to help scope out that very sight before the multi-pronged assault a few days later. But she hadn't known /how/ they got that information.
"If they told the resistance where to find him, then they had something to gain from it. A deal, or some kind of exchange." the girl states without a shread of doubt in her voice. "Nothing I've seen them do suggests that charity is anywhere on their list of reasons for what they do. I'm certain this tournament is no different. There may be a winner out of all the fights that stands to make a large amount of money... and I know many of the participants could sure use it... but this event isn't about TV ratings or giving away big prize money. Those are just the wrappings. That's what they want people to focus on while they try to get away with whatever it is they're doing."
The girl pushes off from the door and moves back into the center of the walkway, turning to stare at her room thoughtfully for a long moment before turning once again toward Soma. "To be honest, I didn't find out much first hand, myself. I've only been collecting what others have seen, heard, learned, or figured out by just thinking about it. If you want to talk to someone who really knows what's going on around here," the girl pauses, fowning a little as she falls quiet as her eyes stray toward the floor. "You know of a woman named Elle Belmounte?"
"How many years does it take for someone to be qualified to use a gun?" Soma throws back, suddenly conscious of the weight of his old-model M9 service handgun strapped tightly in a hidden holster on the inside of his thigh... even when he's working out, the policeman in Soma is unhappy with the idea of leaving the weapon out where any casual searcher -- such as the aforementioned Kasumi Todoh -- could find it and start asking troublesome questions. "A lot longer than it takes to get a permit and learn to fire one."
As for the rest of what Hotaru recites... the Interpol agent's face becomes very neutral, very measured. Hotaru's not saying anything new; in fact, his question about 'typical ninja behavior' was all but rhetorical. Soma himself asked it of Riko point-blank in Bangkok, and certainly didn't receive an answer to his satisfaction from her. Jinchuu's 'tournament' being a front, the Ryouhara only doing something that benefits them... none of this is news. He opens his mouth, and words begin to form... "Exactly, but tha--"
Then Hotaru drops the proverbial atom bomb, and the undercover cop's violet eyes narrow to slits. The neutrality drains out of his expression, and when he does find his voice again to say something, it is in a tone that could freeze the air solid.
"I should have known," Soma says darkly, "that I'd hear that name from you sooner or later."
Of course Hotaru already knew he'd know her. Elle had told her that she and Soma had already had an encounter of some kind. But dropping the name semi-indirectly seemed the better route. After all, the girl has already been playing a little coy with what she knows and she's not sure how much more she wants to be responsible for revealing. Eyes come up from studying the oh so interesting floor as Soma speaks, her own jaw set as she seems to study him carefully for a few seconds. The remarks about firearms aren't lost on her - but that was just a side topic anyway. Now the meat of the matter is on the table and she's going to stick to that.
"She's on this boat. In fact, she's in the tournament. But she isn't here alone. She has... I don't know how many people feeding her information. Sometimes moves around with a giant thug who has a pocket full of knives. If you want to talk to the most networked person on this boat, I'm pretty sure you'll have to go to her." Hotaru's tone is guarded then. She sounds wary, perhaps worried that she's about to get connected to Elle by someone who clearly works for some kind of large organization and that isn't exactly a connection she'd like to have made.
"Elle... well, I probably don't have to warn you about her." Hotaru continues, looking away again. Discussing the Blackjack leader isn't high on her list of favorite topics, admittedly. "All she cares about is business. If you want to get anything from her, she'll probably want something from you. But if you keep it to just that... I don't know. She's creepy. But right now, she's the only person I've seen who seems to have the big picture around here. About all I can say."
"I already know she's on this boat!" Soma snaps, clearly angry, but almost immediately afterwards he stops moving, stops speaking, and pinches the bridge of his nose. None of this is going even remotely how he wanted it to go, and his regret and, to no small amount, *shame* that someone Soma considers a petty favormonger is not only 'taking' his case but has better connections and more manpower... it radiates from him like heat. And in a moment of supreme frustration he just took it out on a girl of no more than 18 and probably younger who he knows next to nothing about.
Shaking his head, Soma runs his hands through his black and silver hair, breathing out sharply through his nose. "You didn't deserve that. Sorry." He sounds sincere, if still annoyed, and he does Hotaru the courtesy of turning and meeting her gaze with his own. "I know she's here. I am not entirely sure why. I know she was involved in running black market arms from Russia into Japan, and that business involved her with Tippin... but there's no way that her interest in this has anything to do with him." It occurs to Soma that Elle's reason for being here MIGHT be at least parallel to his own: stupid curiosity and a complete inability to leave it alone.
There's a pause, before Soma clears his throat and looks at Hotaru carefully. "It's funny. Why do I feel like I can trust you, even though I know you're going to tell Elle Belmounte every last word that comes out of my mouth?" He actually laughs at that, shaking his head. "I'm never wrong about people." He pauses and points a finger at his head. "I have a sixth sense about them. I may be wrong about their motivations or their personalities but I'm *never* wrong about their true character."
Reaching into his pocket, he withdraws an ID holder, and flips it open. Intercontinental Police Office, nee Interpol or the ICPO. It's certainly his picture, and their seal. "This is why I'm not going to Elle. She could offer me the whole mystery on a platter and I'd throw it back in her face. I cut a deal with her once, and only once... and that was a promise of her neutrality, something I felt was worth it. I'm here to protect the public. And now I've not only laid all my cards on the table, I've thrown my head on the chopping block and handed you the axe. But I have that sixth sense and I think you'll do the right thing."
His outburst actually is rather startling and it shows in the way the girl's eyes widen a little. She doesn't take a step back, though the inclination is certainly there. His aplology comes soon enough though and she visibly relaxes, shoulders slouching just a little as she adopts the same guarded but not too frightened posture of a moment prior. So the Blackjack woman has connections with the Russian mobster? That's interesting. What's the connection? How did they both just /happen/ to get invited to this? Wheels turn rapidly as Hotaru muses the revelation.
At his statement about trusting her, Hotaru's mouth curls into a faint smile, a somewhat guilty-as-charged expression crossing her features. But then the badge comes out and the girl squints to look at it before her eyes widen again. That he's with something isn't a surprise. He pretty much told her that already. But it's /who/ that causes the girl to reel a bit. "Interpol," the girl mumurs thoughtfully before looking back into the face of the young man, leaning back against her door once more, her brow furrowed a bit.
"All right," the young fighter concedes, folding her arms in front of her. She looks somewhere between annoyed and somber. Elle has nearly all the cards. Soma wants to know what Elle knows, but refuses to go to her. Hotaru would like him to have a big picture view of this whole mess, because resolving this thing might require someone who can call on a government agency for back up. "It doesn't matter what I say to Elle. She already knows you're here too and she already knew you're an investigator for something. I don't need to tell her that it's ICPO. I don't see what that matters any."
She unfolds one arm, hand coming up to tap at her chin as she continues, "I listen to Elle because I want to know as much as possible so I can try to help if the time comes where it matters. In order for that to happen though, I have to tell her things as well. It's how she works. I wanted to know if you had anything I could tell her because that means she'll open up more and let me in on what's going on and I think that's worth dealing with someone like her for. I doubt I could find anyone on this boat who has more people in place to gather information than she does. If finding out what she knows by having me tell you is more agreeable to you, then I guess that's okay with me. All I ask is that you don't leave me out of anything you uncover either. I have to tell her new things when I can. It's the only currency I have to offer with a woman like her." It sounds like she's offering him a new deal since the last one didn't go too well. More of a layaway program. An agreement to share information going forward.
Be his 'spy' on Elle. Of course it's not without strings, but that's certainly what Hotaru is suggesting. And it's a tempting offer, to be sure. But something's not right about the scenario, suddenly, to his eyes. And for the first time he gets the sense of Hotaru as someone drowning in something way over her head. Not that she's incapable of dealing with it, but that her life is on such a smaller scale, overall, that this entire affair is outside her scope. It's the equivalent of someone signing on to mop floors and suddenly being handed a zamboni and told to wax a hockey rink. It's DOABLE, but it's not exactly fair.
After what seems like too long a time thinking about it, Soma finally shakes his head. "No. Because... because I don't want to become the arbiter of favor, see?" he adds, putting a hand to his temples, as if even he doesn't really know what he's talking about anymore. "I don't know how to put it. A part of me wants you never to speak to Elle again, because I can tell you the rates of information exchange are never going to be in your favor... and if you're at all useful, there's no such thing as terminating the business relationship. So maybe I just need to make the same deal with you I did with her... for your neutrality. I'm going to find out what's really going on down in the holds one way or another because the only person I can reliably put in danger is myself, see."
Sighing, Soma stops talking and then half-turns, clearly intending to leave. "If I find something important, I'll let you know. But while I appreciate you being honest with me... I'm not going to tell you anything I *don't* want Elle to know... and until I know what her intentions are, that might be a lot. But I'm not going to put you in danger, either. I know that's not 100% what you just offered, but it's about the only thing I can agree to."
As he turns down the second offer, Hotaru remains quiet. His evaluation is pretty accurate. The girl is involved in a dangerous game well above her head and just flitting from source to source like a bird eager for gossip is barely keeping her head above water thus far. But his reasons provoke a faint smile and even a slight nod of agreement. "Thank you for the warning," she speaks, her voice sincere even if he would be spot on to figure that he hasn't swayed her from her present course of activity but merely given her something more to chew on, thought-wise.
"I'm not going to get in your way," she adds, sounding both amused and just a little offended at the same time. It shouldn't come as a surprise though. Deal with cutthroats and you're apt to get treated one. "And while I don't agree with you taking all of this on yourself, I do understand why you feel it's what you must do." She takes a step back then, turning toward the door to the cabin that is presumably hers, right hand reaching down toward the handle while her left hand presses flat against one of the door's panels as she prepares to apply the direct force it takes to get into the blasted room.
"Good luck with your investigations, inspector. I hope that you find out what you need in order to crack this case." There's a tired smile followed by a turn of the handle and a slam of her palm against the door, managing to get the stubborn thing to open at last. She pauses then, glancing over her shoulder, one last inspection of the agent. "All I know is that I don't believe things coming together here are by coincidence. To get through this you might have to knock on a few doors you would rather not."
He certainly doesn't look like much. After all, Soma's martial arts training was more about human physiognamy and basic flexibility and acrobatics than it was about being able to drive a 2x4 through a man's skull. He's not visibly armed and Hotaru herself has beaten the living daylights out of the man on at least one occasion. Never mind that he's dressed more like a track star than a policeman at this point anyway, and even his normal clothing looks more like casual eveningwear than any sort of uniform.
But when she gives him that final warning, he can't help but smile a crooked smile. "The trick is to always know what's on the other side before you knock," he says, before turning and walking down the hallway. A lot to do... and increasingly less time to do it in.
Log created on 13:04:07 09/12/2007 by Soma, and last modified on 16:23:35 09/15/2007.