Description: The ship is sinking. There's little time for actual rest. There's a match scheduled shortly, and the punk princess is trying to gather her important things from her cabin. A little heart to heart with Kasugano and suddenly things between the two seem a lot less tense. Could it be that they've come to an understanding? Before that can be answered, another visitor appears and leaves the diva with a mysterious scarf of luck! Can the spirit of Hurricane Hime help her through this? So long as everyone makes it off the ship in one piece (relatively speaking), that's all that matters now.
So... half the ship's gone. Sakura -was- irked about this, but mainly because she was caught in the brunt of the blast. Now, well... she got the answers she was looking for, and she's mildly pleased about it... if not terribly confident of how the crew and the Jinchuu agents will be getting out alive. But really... there's someone she has to see first, to get some things off her mind.
One very obvious clue: she's knocking on Arika's door now.
Rap, rap, rap.
Coincidentally...
Arika actually happens to be -in- her room. Contrary to popular belief, one cannot fight continually without at least a little rest. Or, well... the diva really isn't resting. She's of the mind that when the ship is -sinking-, it's best not to be asleep during it. What she has been doing is reapplying bandages and tightening the wraps over those nasty gashes Birdie just happened to leave in her. Hearing the knock on the door, she tosses a long camisole over her bandaged torso and heads to the door. Pulling it open quickly, she says, "Gimme another minute, Eva. I just need to grab a few thi-- oh."
Blinking several times, she gives Kasugano a confused look and then draws the door open wider. "You can come in if you want..."
Kasugano grins back at Arika, twiddling her fingers in a cheery wave. She's back in her Taiyo uniform, even though she no longer goes to Taiyo. It's what she had on hand, after all. Though when she's referred to as Eva, she doesn't miss a bit, "Sure thing, Leader, I'll just--"
At which point she grins and lets Arika sort out her own confusion.
Nodding slowly, she steps inside as invited, looking around for a bit. "Figured you'd be gettin' ready for your fight... " She shrugs mildly, lacing her hands behind her head as she leans back against a wall. "And I just wanted to thank you again for helpin' out so much around here."
Smiling a bit more openly, she adds, "And fightin' so hard for somethin' you don't even fully believe in, yourself."
Leader? Oh. Right. -That-. Man, if -that- ever gets out to Drake, there's a certain little punk princess that may just find herself on the hurting end of a pile driver.
Making room for Sakura, Arika steps into the room and releases the door. "Guess I am... need to get these people off'a this bloody ship befor' they all wind up as chum." Shoulders lift up in a weary shrug and she turns back toward the bunks to stuff the rest of her important belongings in her bag.
"Heh."
The single word, offered after receiving the thanks, is all she says for a long period. Carefully, she spins to face Sakura once more and shakes her head. "Don't be thankin' me. 'ad to do it. Lesser of two evils and all that."
Kasugano snickers inwardly at Arika's brief hesitation over her appropriated 'Leader'. But she doesn't say anything more -- it just proves she was kinda paying attention to the little tea party.
But... her friends will all... wind up as =chum?= The dialectic variation strikes Sakura a bit oddly -- really, wouldn't it be =good= for everyone to be chummy? But, aside from a furrowed brow, nothing really more is said on that: Kasugano just figures Brits have some -weird- language.
"Even still, I appreciate it! ... though, more an' more, I'm reminded of how much I trust those two." Two, now, not three. "Dunno if you heard, but Riko was serious about protecting the folks here. Whatever it is they wanted to get goin' here, our safety had to come first, y'know?" Kasugano says this despite the mild bruises and rashes still fresh on her forearms and face, remnants of that huge explosion and all the shrapnel that resulted. "Rugal, on the other hand... there's some badness, right there."
Kasugano closes her eyes for a moment, thinking to herself. She doesn't want to bother Arika too much if she's packing and all.
Chum. Yummy bits of fish food, tossed overboard to feed the abundance of fishies in the ocean. Doesn't matter if Sakura knew what she meant, Arika knows what she meant!
But yes, Brits do have some weird language.
"Glad someone appreciates it," the diva mutters as she stuffs some sheet music into her bag in a haphazard manner. "Glad to 'ear -that- though. Y'know, our safety comin' first and all... wonder if that's why they tried to throw Eva out with the trash..."
Though, she's got to agree. Rugal -was- some badness. "Mm. 'e's gone now, ain't 'e? Blown off this ship at any rate and if 'e ain't in pieces, 'e'll be needin' to regroup befor' comin' after anyone again..."
"Oh, everything was televised. It's not like you weren't being -watched!-" Kasugano chirps, making herself comfy against her wall while Arika packs. "And yeah. Couldn't think of a better person to be blasted into low Earth orbit, y'know?" She twirls a finger, smirking, "Great guy. If you took all the evil you think Sei and Riko are capable of, and multiply that by two thousand, you might get this Rugal character."
Still... Kasugano feels she's missing something here. "... Hey, is... somethin' on your mind? Can I help you, maybe? ... Or get the heck out of your way? Anythin', really..." Even if Arika still has her back turned, she ought to be able to hear Sakura's weary smile: "I just feel, like... I dunno, that maybe you an' me ain't the vicious enemies we came here as, y'know?"
"..."
Granted, Arika -knew- most things were televised, it's just there are some things that are better -not- to be televised. Like showers. And eating. She's now got this imagery in her head that they've been on the Big Brother ship from Hell the last little while. Televised reality television at it's best!
"Mm. I know that first 'and, actually. Tossed me in this," she says, rummaging in her bag and extracting a small collar. Next to it is a remote control for it. "'andy lil' thing, it is. Snap it on someone's neck and threaten to blow them to smithereens if they don't act like you want'em to." A frown furrows her brow and shoulders slump forward a little before she glances back at Kasugano.
"Maybe," she begins slowly. "Maybe if you're tellin' the truth 'bout wot 'appened back in Thailand... maybe I just -might- know wot you were goin' through. Difference is, I -knew- wot I was doin' and I still couldn't stop." Is that as close to an apology as the diva can manage?
There's no cameras in the bathroom. Sakura can attest to this.
At least, she didn't -see- any live feeds from a bathroom.
Anyway. Kasugano wriggles her nose at the mention of the collar, then leans forward and reaches for it, so she can examine it. If she's given the thing, she'll sniff at it, but otherwise not a whole lot more. Sakura thinks it was just a hollow threat with unprimed, untriggerable explosives, but maybe it's the real McCoy!
But regardless... the mention that she wasn't telling the truth is a bit frustrating.
"Then there's no difference at all." She's still smiling, but that's fading rapidly -- nothing like a chirpy, Riko-like smile to take away from the sincerity she was trying to muster. "Told you, I =knew= everything I was doin'..." she mumbles, tapping the back of her head to indicate the way her true self was stuffed in the back of her mind's control room. "Just couldn't gain control."
But, lo, that smile comes back. "Unlike here, where I know what's going on, and I know I'd rather trust my lives to those two ninjas than Rugal, or Vega, or anyone else who's got a totally nutzoid view of the world!"
But then Sakura steps back a bit. No sense in crowding Arika. "Anyway. Wishin' you the best of luck in your fight. You =totally= deserve to win this."
If Sakura's prior smiles were considered insincere, the smile she wears now would be the most believable. If they =were= sincere -- and they are -- then there should be no doubt at all.
"No?"
Arika presses her lips tightly together at that and then nods slowly. "Whereas, I could've gained control 'ad we gotten the remote earlier on in the fight. Still, I think I would'a offed myself befor' 'urtin' anyone really seriously..." That's the one bonus to having your mind fully intact when forced to fight against the friendly's.
Probably for the first time since they've ever spoken, the punk princess smiles. "'ey... thanks for that, Kasugano. I'm likely gonna need the luck to even stand 'alf a chance..."
Pause.
"But 'ey, if I don't win, it ain't that big a deal, right? I mean, people'll still get off this ship safely and all, won't they?" It'd really suck for this to all be resting on her shoulders after all.
Remote? ... Sakura was in the midst of defending the ship at the same time Arika was, so she's not =quite= sure what Arika's talking about. But the fact that Arika seems relatively pleased about her performance, considering the alternatives, is enough for Sakura.
"Ah, Tiffany's not so bad. Just don't get hit!" She can pack a whallop, that's for sure!
But with Arika being all... concerned and stuff, Kasugano can't help but give a typically Riko-like response.
"Which answer would inspire you to fight harder?"
Kasugano starts to slip out of the room with an impish grin across her lips. Her eyes seem to indicate the answer -- that folks would =probably= be safe... but she's not gonna just come out and say it or anything!
"I've never seen 'er fight," Arika admits with a shrug. Yep, she's shrugging an awful lot tonight, but it's one of those things. If she doesn't act nonchalant about things, she'll start to stress and for the sake of her friends and for -Drake- she wants to do her best. Not like he'll see it that way, but she's got to try anyhow.
"Heh." Amused, she turns back to her bag and shoves the collar and remote control into it, pushing them deep inside so as not to accidentally set them off. Even if the collar -is- a dud, it'll make a rather interesting souvenir.
"'ey, look... Kasugano... you just make sure they get off the ship, no matter wot 'appens, alright? I lose this fight, I don't deserve to make it off, but you make sure Eva and them are safe..."
Kasugano smiles brightly, even as she swings the door between her and Arika. "You'll do fine, and no matter what, I'll make sure you all get back to land one way or another." That's 'I', not the 'we' she's been saying all throughout this twisted three-hour-tour of a boat ride.
"Take care!" And with that, Kasugano backs out of the room to let Arika finish packing up!
Packing up? Packing in? Let me begin?
Things have been bummy and dreary as of late- Things have certainly been taking things for the worse, but there's still one person aboard who insists on getting out of her seat and jumping around. A spunky superheroine, Hurricane Hime just so happens to be making a break down the hall, her oversized black scarf whipping behind her with each quick step, a beeline right toward, throu- I mean past Sakura, "Hold that door!!" And right into the punk rockers room.
Er, hmnnn. Actually the young woman she passed looked extremely familar, she looked like the prized former-student Dan was always talking about but... NAAH SHE WOULDN'T BE HERE! "Citizen Fade!" the pink-clad girl pipes with a salute, her outfit a bit knicked and worn and overall looks a little bruised up. "I heard the news, I heard the news, congratulations!!"
When one door closes, another opens? Hearing the hyper chatter, Arika nearly drops her bag and jumps. Thankfully she recognizes the voice, and her bandaged body is given a reprieve from any hasty movements. "'ime! There you are. You made it back to the Suiryuu? Just in time for it to sink?" The irony in that is spectacular, but she doesn't dwell on it. Rubbing the back of her neck, she lifts her shoulders in yet another shrug. "I don't know. Zach could totally 'ave won that last match 'ad 'e not been restrainin' 'imself from usin' 'is energy..."
Hime blinks a few times, seeming a little.. Suprised by Arika's condition, even despite the general condition of the ship and explosion and whatnot. Perhaps she's just not used to seeing the rocker in her current state, but.. She grins still, shaking her head, "Pshaw, it was a piece of cake, though I'm still really really confused about what's going on.. I'm just glad that you've made it back too."
The girl rubs the back of her head sheepishly. "When I realized that Eva didn't come with me, nor Naerose.. I kind of felt like I did the wrong thing, I felt really lame about it, so I was too embarassed to try to find you sooner. I uh.. Guess I'm not a very good superhero after all, huh.." The little Hurricane rubs her arm, really looking apologetic. But then brightens a little. "As for the boat exploding, I mean.. It was inevitable, right? Anyway, Zach didn't seem like he was restraining to me, he seemed really tired." Did she actually see the match? That's a secret! "If anything he overexerted himself! So don't try to play that card on me." Sagenod.
Yeah, well, Arika's not used to being in this condition. She's used to getting healed between matches and fights with those big nasty people like Vice, Birdie and Rugal. She's -not- used to being bandaged like this, or having to change the wraps so that she's not just oozing blood from them for the next fight. "Wot's there to be confused 'bout? Seishirou was 'idin' the whole time as Hiretsu... decided that blowin' up the ship was better'n lettin' that guy Bernstein 'ave it. As for makin' it back, that's all thanks to Eva and Naerose and the rest'a you actually... without you guys showin' up on the Noah, I'd be in a mite bit more trouble than I was."
Pausing, she grabs her bag and turns to face the little superhero. "You did wot was right for you. Ain't nothin' wrong with gettin' outta a bad situation to keep yourself alive." After all, it's what Arika would've done had roles been reversed -- bad as that is to think about. "I still think 'e was restrainin' 'imself, but wot do I know, eh?"
"What's there to be confused about?" Hime repeats, tapping her chin. "Why does the fact that Sei was hiding as Hiretsu make sense to you? I don't get that at all. But we all already decided that the ship was being used as a weapon.. It seems like a real waste though. I dunno, I guess I just don't understand."
Hurricane Hime didn't run away because she wanted to, but she doesn't feel that's an issue she should press right now- She'll deal with that by herself. She ends up snickering in the end though, looking a little peppier still. "Well I can't tell you how to feel, but even if that is true, I'm sure there was a good reason for it. I've fought him a couple of times myself, and he seems to be.. Struggling with something."
"But more importantly, you should think hard about your last match, you being the champion of a tournament would be really amazi-" Blink. Blink blink. "Er, what are you packing up for, anyway?"
"I watched 'im change from Hiretsu to Seishirou. 'ow could that -not- make sense, mate?" Arika rubs a hand over the back of her neck and then turns to face the little Hurricane. "Not a waste, really. 'e blew the ship up to keep Bernstein from gettin' it and to keep me'n'Eva safe. Not that I can figure out -why- 'e bothered to keep us safe, but 'e felt 'e 'ad to." And yet another shrug can be seen.
"Zach? 'e is strugglin' with things. Not my place to say wot, but I can say 'e did really well in our fight."
"I'm packin' because the ship is sinkin' and I'd kind'a like to keep some'a the things I brought with me, y'know?"
Hmmns, as she closes her eyes a moment. "Well.. I guess it was because I wasn't paying attention. But I don't know why he felt he had to hide his presence in the first place. I mean what's the point in running around hiding your name and face when you're already running the tournament?" The heroine inisists, as she opens her eyes. "But either way, I'm glad it kept you all alive in the end, I really mean it. Uhh. I don't know if I want to thank him or punch him in the arm still though. But hey, that's a good point! I'd better go and do the same but can I ask you a little favor?"
Hime clasps her hands togeather. "Could I borrow a t-shirt from you for a little while? Pretty please?"
There are a lot of reasons Arika can think of. None of which she agrees with, mind, but she can think of some. In fact, she says so. "Probably 'cause 'e didn't want anyone to try'n kill 'im. And it's easier to get work done when no one knows it's -you-, y'know? S'wot I would do if I were runnin' one'a these things anyway. Even if 'e -is- an evil cult leader." Yeah, she's not dropped that. These ninjas may be the lesser of two evils, but that doesn't make them any less -evil- in the diva's mind. Besides, they're still totally holding people hostage until this tourney is done and someone is crowned the winner.
"'eck! I want to do both. Thank'em for keepin' us alive, and beat the livin' tar outta 'im for 'oldin' us all 'ostage while the ship is -sinking-."
Blinking, she laughs and then nods. "Sure, you can borrow one. 'ang on." Heading to the little chest at the foot of the bunks, she pulls out a nice dry t-shirt. Extremely long in length. It's even pink! "'ere you go. Just tie the bottom in a knot and you should 'ave no problems with it."
Hime suddenly looks like as if a lightbulb went off in her head, "Ooooh, hey yeah that makes sense! Though that is kind of sad to think about, to have that many people dislike you.. If I ever hold a tournament, it won't be like this at all, that much is for sure. But it's good that you and I are on the same wavelength. Maybe when we get a chance, we can do both! That's a good compromise, don't you think?"
The heroine seems pretty psyched by her suggestion, but she's even more ecstatic that the t-shirt she's lent.. Is pink! How handy is that! With a squeal she gets it on pretty quickly. "Thank you very much! And as for you, you can borrow this for your match!" The girl then takes off her big black scarf, and hands it over to the punk rock princess, grinning ear to ear. She's used to the oversized thing, so the shirt being a bit big doesn't bother her at all. "I'm going to lend you a little of my spirit and gusto! I'm sure the final match is going to be dead even, that can go either way, so whoever has more spirit is going to come out on top.. So.. Here! But you have to give it back after, ok?"
"Yeah. Once this is done, let's 'unt 'im down and give 'im a few good punches. Might be a wee bit too tired to do much more'n that," Arika admits with a sleepy little grin. Fighting almost non-stop for the last little while is apparently wearing on her.
"'ey! I can't take this!" She does take the scarf though and loop it around her neck. Even if she doesn't feel she can take it, she's apparently very appreciative of the gesture. "Thanks, 'ime! I know this means a lot to ya. I 'ope I win, but if not, knowin' that you're willin' to 'elp me go the extra mile means a lot."
Hurricane Hime gives Arika a big thumbs up in agreement. So it's a plan! She'll definatly be around for it. However as Arika insists that she can't take it, Hime crosses her arms quickly, not allowing the girl to place it back into her hands- Which luckily isn't the case. "Hee hee, well we'll just see what happens, right? But I'm definatly putting my bet on a rocker over a cheerleader! ... Wow, that is the craziest finals match ever now that I think about it.. Weeeeird."
"Well anywho, I think I'd better start getting packed up too and see if I can find some of my other buddies. Be sure to get plenty of rest, ok Arika?"
"Could be crazier," Arika says with a snort. "They could lock us in a room filled with water, force us to wear bikinis and toss pillows at each other." And she's almost -certain- that must have crossed their minds at one time or another. Devious, evil, ninjas! "Just don't be disappointed if I lose, alright? I'm gonna try my best, but that's 'bout all I -can- do."
Nodding, the diva reaches into the chest by the bunks again and pulls out one last thing, quickly stuffing it into her bag. "Okay, 'ime. You be careful, alright? I'm gonna go find out where I'm s'posed to be for this last match and win or lose, I'm gonna make sure everyone gets to shore safely!"
Hime thinks that match sounds like -fun-. Ahem. But with another salute, she pipes, "Yes'm, and I won't be disappointed! But.. If you do, I'll buy you an ice cream."
"Don't worry about me though, I am a heroine after all, and I always come out on top in the end. I'll see you after the match!" And with that said, it's her turn to storm back out of the door, feeling her steps a little more odd without the scarf flapping behind her. Alas!
Log created on 18:00:00 10/29/2007 by Arika, and last modified on 19:34:58 10/30/2007.