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Angela The toughest part about dealing with some Rats who ambushed Finn is, lets face it, finding them. They are decidedly the sort of people most pretend to not see and they certainly didn't stick around at the scene of the crime. Finn was able to give a description of some of them but in the flurry of battle, he certainly couldn't say he had perfect recollection.

But you have former Rats on staff and Pete recognized one of the people Finn described and knows the haunts they tend to linger at. He has volunteered to guide Xion (and friends!) around to these locations until they find the Rats they're looking for. He has also, like, suggested to Sarracenia to maybe dress down a bit since going around wearing a crown is asking to be ambushed by at least four stages of encounters vs muggers.

He has been excited about this mission because he has just used his new salary to purchase a fancy civilian-grade bag. "These kinds of bags," Pete says, describing hammerspace to the multiverse. "Can carry a ton more than they look. The stuff you put in here is put into some kinda sub-dimension or whatsit and I got a good deal on this one because I got a card from that kid who was goin' 'round handing out cards at the Naming Ceremony." The bag in question has a little red bear patch on one side which seems to be a kind of maker's ark. "Man...! It feels like it's almost ''empty'', that's sick! I filled it up this morning and I'm good to go!"

He leads the other three to two locales. The first is just a thin alleyway between two cheap augmentation shops--a cheap looking tattoo joint and another store simply titled KNIVES--but the place is deserted entirely. The second spot is a broader sidestreet where an old woman is quietly snoozing on the street in a sleeping bag. There is movement through the side-street by various sorts. The fashion in the area seems dated--most people area wearing suits, most of which look cheap though the occasional Fixer passing through has something fancier going on. A Liu Association operative is eating a meatbun while conversing with her senior about an ongoing conflict between the Blade Lineage and the Kurokumo Clan but when they see the Trideag Fixers arrive they quiet down, watching after them with open curiosity--before turning away and resuming their conversation.

"Tee's not here. Don't see anyone matching the other descriptions either. Let's try the warehouse." The Rat he recognized seems to be named 'Tee'.

The last location is broken down three story warehouse that has a padlock out front (not broken). The padlock is--well it doesn't really matter, you have a Xion, but there's a little digital pad and the word LOCKED is lit up dimly on a little screen on front. A QR Code is on the bottom of the padlock too--there doesn't see to be a way to open up a password entry screen.

Broken glass and long dried blood litters the streets, fifty year old man is sitting on a bench (with bars dividing sections of the bench off) smoking as he stares at the Trideag members with mild curiousity. He blows smoke in Odette's direction while just sitting there. He is not one of the targets either.

"They'd probably be laying low if the attack failed. Retaliation is something they'd expect," Pete murmurs. "But if they're not here I have no idea where they could be." He looks to Xion. "What's the plan?"
Odette Raskins Odette's here! She's friends! Maybe? Eventually, perhaps, if she tries  harder since she really only knows Xion through the Association and little else. The Rats are largely only known to her through the Association, too, so there's actually plenty of new people to get to know once things settle down with this mission. That's why it's doubly important that she makes sure not to make a fool of herself here.

It helps, then, that Pete breaks the ice with his fancy new bag. "Whoa... That sounds so convenient! Do... Was it expensive? I-I don't think I caught that kid or any of those cards, and my bag's always way too packed." She sighs a little dramatically as she reshoulders her duffel bag that is most definitely stuffed with all sorts of medical tools and supplies while being the complete opposite of almost empty.

After tapping in a little reminder for herself to look for one of those bags sometime, it's off to work! Odette's likely to balk a little at the tattoo joint and KNIVES purely from worrying too much about the hygiene situation there, and she can't NOT leave a little juice can (with 100% Real Fruit(TM)!) by the sleeping woman in passing, but she keeps her footsteps light while heading on through with the crew. The gawking is a little hard to get used to, though, when it's not coming from her actually doing her job (directly).

"Tee, huh? That's... Hmm. Wonder if we'll run into a friend of theirs named Coffee or something." She comments with a light giggle at her own joke, then quiets down once she realizes that might actually be someone that exists somewhere. "It'll be way harder to find them if they're trying not to be found, though, yeah... A-and we don't happen to have anything of theirs, do we?"

As she tries to ignore the stench of smoke hitting her face, Odette wrinkles her nose a bit before coughing quietly into her hand and looking over at Pete and Xion and Sarracenia again. Mmn. If I had some kind of super... Sniffing power, that'd be just the thing to help with this, too. But as things are... I-I mean, we can't just sneak in, can we?"

She looks up at the warehouse's third story, then rubs her neck lightly while fidgeting in place. "That'd just... Er. Would it make the Association look bad if we had to get in that way? Er. Instead of just busting the doors down and-" Another pause, and she shakes her head again. "No, that'd just make us look like jerks in that case... Mmn. We could... Call out for Tee?"
Sarracenia      Dress down? Dress down?! Dress down AND don't wear her crown?!?!

     When Sarra was told this it very clearly created a 404 does not exist error in her brain, and she stared at Pete for a rather long time trying to comprehend it. She can dress differently, dress to a theme, or even just dress in a normal-ish dress...she has done those things before. But, the big sticking point is the crown. Pipeland princesses do -not- take off their crowns. Through all outfits and tasks, they keep the crowns on.

     It actually kept Sarracenia up at night, trying to figure out how to wear her crown without standing out. And...just how to not stand out in general. She never tries not to stand out. It is practically antithesis to her nature.

     It is only after staying up all night that she has an idea. An idea that -could- potentially (small chance) insult her newest friend.

     So, when she meets up with the others...the princess in in a hooded red robe obviously styled after Xion's robe. With the hood up she looks like just a mysterious stranger with her head and face obscured by cloth and shadow other than her mouth and chin. It covers her completely other than that and her black-gloved hands. She has her satchel purse slung over her shoulder as well.

     The obscured features do not really keep her mentality in check, though. When she sees the others she waves excitedly and calls out to Xion in particular. "Xion~ Good to see you!"

     Sarra also greets whoever else is here (presumably Odette) with a friendly wave as well. "I look forward to working together!"

     Then, they are following Pete. He regales them with the perks of a hammerspace bag, which Sarra can't help but smirk at since she carries one as well. "I have enjoyed my purse for many years now. Having a purse that can carry an entire warehouse of goods is invaluable!"

     She takes note of the tattoo and knife shops (as places to avoid) and eyes the Liu Association operative at the talk of the Blades and Kurokumo. "...Tee?" she wonders aloud.

     Sarra has rarely if ever been in an actual slum-like area, and when they pass people sleeping in the open or some other obviously homeless-looking type she can't help a bit of a distasteful face. Still, she leaves each one they pass a pre-packaged bento box of some kind.

     She also offers a frown at the man who blows smoke at Odette. "Hey. That is not nice, you know. Do you realize how damaging smoke is to the skin?" she says...even as she leaves a bento box with him. Guy sitting on a bench smoking is probably homeless, right? She then pulls out a large paper fan to blow the smoke away from Odette.

     There's a QR code, so even if Xion does unlock the door Sarra scans the code on her phone while giggling softly at Odette's joke. "Or perhaps crumpets?" she adds.

     And it should be noted that Sarra has been a bit slow today because...she has been carefully stepping around or over any broken glass or blood.
Xion Xion's 'carefully selected group' for the mission had been the two people Most Interested in helping out: The violence princess, Sarracenia, and the bravely desperate medic, Odette. To a point: this mission was one Xion could, and would, confidently handle alone with the gentle directive guidance of the Tridaeg's commander, the Dame Commander Lilian Rook and her mysterious ability to know what and where things transpired.

But, she didn't have to - didn't want to. 'Handling everything yourself' was an act of final and overwhelming desperation, the sort of thing one did when it simply had to go right. There was no training value, no practice, little chance of skill improvement if the strongest person for the job was repeatedly deployed to finish things.

It didn't help 'Tridaeg' to end the problem at the tip of her Keyblade. It didn't really help the city, either. It was just a hammer to a bent nail.

'These kinds of bags,'

Xion, dressed in a black collared shirt, black tie, tight black pants and black sneakers with black socks, wears her Tridaeg jacket on, and then a black coat over top like a greatcoat or mantle, neither arm stuffed into the sleeves - in the style of the city. Hearing about the bag, she's genuinely interested. "Oh? That's great! Those sorts of things are really handy. I'm glad you're enjoying it! My suggestion is to get a little basket or pouch to tie to just the inside, maybe some holsters and stuff - you know, so you don't lose things at the way bottom! My robot master assistant, Wendy, helped me make a tracker app for my parazonal inventory. I've got a lot of stuff!"

Xion is excited to check the KNIVES store, but it's a bust, and she can't even buy any sharp objects with jellybeans! Awful, the worst.

Eventually, they head to the warehouse, with Xion summoning the Kingdom Key to tap her way through the keypad lock and gesture the rest of the party in. "Now, remember. We're here for the Tridaeg association, we just want to reach an agreement with the locals, and -- Odette, if they need help, feel free to give it to them... as long as you're confident it won't be used to hurt us later. Make sense? We want these people to understand what Tridaeg is all about. Since Princess Sarracenia was really good with the mushroom people in that not-place, if we treat things likek that and use our patience, I'm sure a good result will be reached."

Shouldering her keyblade with a casual marching saunter, Xion continues inside. "The plan is to apply our incredible strength to cut off all hope of winning against us, and then reach out anyway, because that's what power lets you do. To prove we're built different, and to make sure they understand that. We're not here to 'retaliate' - but we are here because they attacked us."
Angela ''Was it expensive?''

"Oh yeah." Pete, a guy on the lowest rung of the social ladder in the City. "It was real expensive. But not unaffordable with the Dame Commander's salary. Even Wings are interested in multiversal currencies." He pauses and looks to Odette. "Hey, you're a medic right? You should chat up Lenny sometime. She's been trying to get back into medicine. I know she's good at surgeries or--uh--at least...removing organs. I don't know how much she knos about fixing them--"

''Wonder if we'll run into a friend of theirs named Coffee or something''

"Ahah... It's T E E. I doubt it, though."

The old man blowing smoke just goes back to watching her after. He doesn't seem to be inclined to pick a fight any more than with that and he just seems broadly wary and shitty.

Pete isn't sure how it'd make an Association look if they snuck in. "Doubt any bigwig's gonna care. This place has been closed up for at least a year."

Pete had kind of returned Sarracenia's vacant stare with his own like he doesn't really get the confusion here. Surely, a wealthy politician wouldn't think they are so invincible that they wouldn't take a small concession to reduce the risk of being stabbed in an alley right?

Well, he figured she'd figure it out and when Sarracenia returns in a hooded red robe, Pete figures this is... fine enough? He doesn't think too much about the robe being styled after Xion's. Plenty of people wear cool hoodies in the City. He gives her a thumbsup and says, "Er, an entire warehouse? Mine's not that good. Maybe a really small warehouse." Pete says, marveling at the idea.

''Hey. That is not nice, you know. Do you realize how damaging smoke is in the skin?''

The smoking man looks towards Sarracenia.

In the world's most foreseeable act, he promptly blows smoke in Sarracenia's face. Fortunately, nobody mugs Sarracenia for leaving bento boxes, though most seem more confused by the gesture than grateful. At least one randomly generated street urchin snatches it out of Sarracenia's hand and promptly runs away at top speed.

Sarracenia scans the QR code. It opens up to a webpage. The webpage says to download an app. The app says it is no longer compatible with Sarracenia's phone and directs her to a place to buy a new phone which, Sarracenia will soon notice, is labeled as having been closed for six months. It was also a store that happened to be two Districts over.

While Sarracenia is doing this, Xion just opens up the door with a key tap.
Angela "Is that Fairy Tech? Dieci keys don't do stuff like that." Pete says. He's thinking about Xion's ideas to make it more usable but he's a little nervous about messing with the insides now that he bought it. It still FEELS expensive to him. Maybe he can get someone to modify it? Someone who ... knows what they're doing?

The Warehouse isn't empty. It seems to be a storage facility for food, though most of it has long since rotted away. It was just sitting here and even after being abandoned, they never bothered to make use of the perishables inside. It's not a pleasant smell, either, and it's dusty. ANd there doesn't seem to be anyone inside.

But there are rusted ladders and walkways leading up higher into the warehouse and an unfortunate looking rickety ladder leading up all the way to a hole in the ceiling, surrounded by bits of architectural debris.

"Must be up there." Pete says, drawing his Trideag sword. "Rats will give up quickly if they don't see a way out but they'll also bolt at the earliest sign of trouble. Someone might've hired them but I doubt they'd be lingering around here. They'll think we want something from them the moment we show 'em charity. ... Just cause that's usually how it is."

There's some coughing noises from the roof. And some movement. Pete carefully starts making his way up there. He can be pretty quiet when he needs to be and is taking a slow approach so as to not make a racket.
Odette Raskins Sarracenia proves to be pleasant as ever to Odette, granting the EMT no small amount of relief at her presence (and not just because she could be applied as a hammer to problems if needed). Xion, being the one that has the feel of a veteran, also eases her mind quite a bit, and comfortably settles into pace with them even while moving along. She can't be too comfortable even tagging along with them, though, since this is exactly the sort of mission she's hoping to really make an impact in. She knows full well that Xion and Sarracenia could probably resolve this on their own, but...

That wouldn't really help anyone at all. She needs to be able to pull her own weight, and this is the perfect opportunity to do so! That's why she has to stay doubly alert and focused on not letting the little things bother her, even if the smoke smells really bad blown right in her face.

"Odette, if they need help, feel free to give it to them... as long as you're confident it won't be used to hurt us later."

"R-right. Medical care so they aren't too messed up and can't survive, but no combat-grade stims. I've got plenty of both, but I know exactly which ones are safe to treat civilians with and which ones need to be reserved for..." She affirms with a light, confident noise, but pauses to try and figure out the right word to use. "Um. Combat... Personnel?"

Good enough. "Proving that we're built different is... Hmmn. I-I'll need to... Think about that more, yeah. I mean, I know you and Princess Sarracenia are real strong already, so..." She adds, sounding just a little less confident about that part as she trails off. "Maybe if I could get faster or something...?"

"You should chat up Lenny sometime."

"Oh! Really? D-definitely! It never hurts to have more people around that can treat people, especially during emergencies. I'll have to borrow some textbooks from the library sometime, too. I've mostly just got practice on the field, so the more technical stuff... We can review that together."

Odette does a double take when Xion opens the door with her keyblade, realizing getting in really is that much easier without having to break it down or or crack open a keypad. "Oh, that's... That's so cool! Does that do something to the electronics, or does it work some other way? Maybe..." She starts excitedly, then stops herself when she realizes what she's doing. "Er. S-sorry, Miss Xion. Work now, questions later."

Odette claps her hands to her own cheeks, then heads on into the warehouse. The stench hits her first and she flinches briefly, then slips a hand into her bag to pull out and pass out surgical masks to everyone. They probably won't help with the stench one bit, but the placebo effect might still be worth something.

"If they're still up there even after what you're saying, Mister Pete... Nn. There must be something keeping them here, then." The EMT furrows her brow lightly as she follows Pete up, keeping her hands free on the way up one of those rickety ladders. She pauses halfway up one to glance at her gloves, then shrugs and just keeps going up. She's got extras, anyway.

What has her hesitating a bit more, however, is wondering if it'd be wise to introduce herself on the way up. It's not like whoever's up there won't hear her coming, but Pete's being careful not to make a lot of noise. Then again, if he's going for the quiet approach...

"Hello? Is anyone home up there?" Odette calls out gently, apparently trying to draw attention to herself while she's still climbing. "I'm here from the Trideag Association. Is... Um. Is everyone okay in there?" She feels her palms sweating more just from the climb, and there's some apprehension as to how stable this thing really is, but it's too late to climb back down now!
Xion Xion certainly doesn't appreciate someone blowing smoke into Sarracenia's face. Back when that happens:

"Okay." Speaks the noirette, pulling on a black glove over her right hand in a smooth motion. Regardless of how the Princess reacts -- Xion doesn't have an ongoing comment for it. What she does do is snap from her standoffish passing-through posture to pinch the end of the cigarette and then drag down, ripping it in an instant to the filter and dropping it on the ground to grind it under bootheel.

"Sorry. That one was bad." She declares, and continues on.

After a moment, on the way to the warehouse, Xion asides to Sarracenia: "Retaliation is an artform, as is aggression. Doing exactly enough to prove your point and no further is a hard thing to do, but, you'll get a feeling for it."

"And, you don't just have to take things and like it. Respecting ourselves *and* being kind is our mission, right?"

---

Later, just after opening the door, Xion answers Pete's question with tutorializing narrative tone. "Oh, no, it's a Keyblade." Xion answers, walking through the door. "They're special kinds of weapons that are formed from... Well, complicated magic stuff. This one-" Xion lifts and lowers her hilt-holding fist to indicate the cartoonishly broad yellow guard and black handle. "-is the first one I held, before I even had a real name. I think Fairy Tech is 'in the same family' as the Keyblade, but like relatives, they're different and express differently. Garion showed me the fairies, and they're pretty neat! But opening - like a knife opens cloth, or an axe opens a tree trunk - isn't the same as a key opening a lock, or a heart's vulnerable opening to send and receive. But they're close! Cleaving can be done together or apart, you know?"

Perhaps people don't, but Xion has an infectious kind of smiling faith that Pete would get it. He has the bag! He's one step closer to understanding the freak status of the noirette Nobody.

But...

There's still nobody there, or hiding, and letting them all bolt would be bad. So:

"Hey, both of you-" Odette, Sarracenia. "-go upstairs, protect each other, and do what you're going to do. Pete, keep an eye on the sides and see if they break for an alley or the rooves. I'm going to head in behind them. I know a cornered rat is fierce, but we're not trying to herd them - we're trying to help them. And, of course, represent Tridaeg. Okay?"

Without waiting for a real confirmation, Xion steps through a suddenly-snapping open Corridor portal and disappears suddenly.

After a few moments she might re-appear on the roof or the upper-story back-entrance or access point, intending to zip behind the Rats and do exactly what she said: Cut off the scattering escape routes.
Sarracenia      Sarra can't help but beam a smile at Xion once again complimenting her performance with the mushroom people. "Exactly! We can resolve this without violence." she agrees with a smile...that is immediately a frown again as that cigarette smoke is blown right at her. Both Xion and Odette would be able to tell that the princess has just been triggered. There are few things that get to her faster than blatant disrespect, especially if it is aimed at her. "Oh dear...it seems you are on fire. Here, let me help you with that." she says in that kind of calm that only comes from being overcharged with rage.

     So, she pulls out an ice flower even as Xion does her thing. She holds it up in front of the man...and blows across the petals. A mist of biting cold flows off of it, freezing the cigarette solid, forming ice crystals quickly on the man's face, and leaving him chilled to his core in only a few seconds. "Perhaps consider the matter the next time you are rude to members of the Trideag Association." she says, her voice as cold as her flower power.

     'And, you don't just have to take things and like it. Respecting ourselves *and* being kind is our mission, right?'

     Sarra brightens a bit at this and nods firmly. "Indeed. But, you do not have to worry there. I very rarely just 'take things and like it'."

     Afterword, she follows that maze of links while she follows the others into the warehouse. She isn't quite paying attention until that smell hits her. "Oh my---!" she exclaims, quickly pulling out a cloth and covering her mouth and nose. She has to take a moment to collect herself, then looks around at all the rickety architecture.

     'Hey, both of you, go upstairs, protect each other, and do what you're going to do.'

     "Of course~" Sarra responds. Sarra, really wanting to be clear of this stench, pulls out a leaf and sprouts her raccoon ears and tail, then runs out the door and flies her way up to the roof. And heading into danger first is a good way to protect someone, too!

     Since the Rats might run at signs of trouble, she does not draw her own weapon and instead calls out to them. "Hello, Rats! Fear not, for we are not here to cause you harm!"

     She then just hovers there, trying to make it clear that escaping would be difficult with a flying opponent to deal with. "We are here to help the city and everyone in it. Harming us harms you just as much. And while we cannot simply let it slide, we can offer you a bit of good will to prove it."

     She reaches into her purse slowly, and pulls out...several solid gold coins the size of her hand. "Work alongside us, and it is sure to be rewarding for both our organizations~" she says, spreading the coins out like a hand of cards. "What do you say?"

     She looks to Xion after that, deferring to her on just what they can actually offer since...well, is Sarra even actually a member of Trideag?
Angela Earlier...

Xion snaps the cigarette out of the man's hand and Sarracenia ices it just in time for Xion to grind it under her feet with the sound of crunching ice.

"...arright." The man says, standing up and walking off without another word. PRIDE OF TRIDEAG: MAINTAINED. Pete let out a low whistle, grinning. He has never been anything but the kind of guy who gets smoke blown into his face so he digs this maneuver.

He gives a thumbsup to Odette and seems to consider his job done in that regard. It's getting to be pretty clear that Pete has ended up the kind of defacto leader of the Rats just by virtue of also being willing to fetch Knifty out of drain pipes or whatever else she gets stuck in. He was the ideas guy and though his ideas weren't good ideas, he had the ambition to actually try to come up with them. His ultimate ability, while it's not really much, is being a guy who is willing to think up ways to make things better. For Trideag and his buddies in the Trideag first, and then maybe the City itself someday.

Pete gives a nod to Xion. "Garion?" He asks. "Who's that?" It might occur to Xion that telling Pete she is bffs with one of the oft whispered about arbiters might result in a Reaction. But it might not! Either way, Pete stopping by a window that gives him a good view of at least one side of the building. He's gonna have to sprint to check out the other side.

Odette and Sarracenia call out. No response, but the noises on the roof get real quiet. Even the coughing stops.

Then there's the sound of running. They're not hearing Sarracenia's offer of GOLD, or at least two of them aren't because they are on the move.

Xion appears on the rooftop. She (and, afterwards, Sarracenia and Odette) sees a man, a woman, and a Tee up top. The man is lying on an air mattress and does NOT look good. He makes no attempt to flee but is coughing in a way that suggests, to Odette, to be some form of pneumonia.

Tee and the woman immediately start to flee. "We have to leave Koffee, Sohda!" They shout. "Split up! Meet at rendeavoux!" And they make a run for the edge of the building.

Sohda is a little faster and just hops off the edge of the roof, some kind of fancy boots immediately reorienting herself so she's running down the side of the building.

Pete sees her running and leaps out the second story window to tackle into her.

"Shit shit shit I knew messing with an Association would be more than we could handle...!" Tee says, clearly intending to take their chances by throwing themself off the roof and they don't seem to have any kind of fancy boots. But you never know.

Meanwhile Koffee blinks blearily at Sarracenia, finally noticing the coins.

"Whuh....? You making..HRRRK...fun of us?"
Xion Xion truly trusted Odette and Sarracenia to take the front, as between Xion and the Violence Princess of Sundew - Sarracenia was much more physically imposing, tall, and well fed compared to the slightly noodly-wibbly Nobody who was built like a compact adventure heroine, and, Odette (who was an Odette).

Holding the back while Pete tackles the runner, Xion moves from holding her Keyblade ready to shouldering it again, shaking her head at the abandonment of a sick friend.

"Gravija." Xion intones, as Tee starts to make off and with Pete having lept out of a window to grab Shoda bravely. The plan was a little stupid, but,

A singularity like a black hole appears as a mass of imploding energy, rippling tendrils visually dragging *just* Tee back towards the roof, and up into the air, monstrously powerful para-magic grabbing up the Rat to orbit the sphere. It *would* do something like reduce Tee's health by 1/2 entirely arbitrarily, but since Xion is only trying a bit of shock and a lot of grabbing, the effect is a lot more like a reverse slingshot.

"We're not here to make fun of you. We're here to discourage you, then help you, then offer you a job. Roughly in that order. Feeling discouraged, yet?" Xion asks, lowering her casting hand and exhaling a tired breath from having shot her whole MP wad right at the start and needing a second to recoup.

"Odette, can you skip to the helping step? They look really bad-off."

Sarracenia's offering of gold coins and hope gets a quiet thumbs up, though Xion is being a little conspiring and trying not to undercut the princess applying the Power of Money.

"You're *right*! Our association is too much for you - but you might be able to get with the times still! Pete did, and now he's a leader on these streets! Aren't you *tired* of sucking smoke and tasting blood? Be honest!"
Odette Raskins EARLIER

"And, you don't just have to take things and like it. Respecting ourselves *and* being kind is our mission, right?"
"I very rarely just 'take things and like it'."

Another thing to keep in the back of her mind. The smoking man might have been a flub on her end, but Odette's got it set in her head to let that be the last! Or at least not need Xion and Sarracenia to pull her weight again in that respect. "R.. Right. I'll be stiffer with the next one." She declares with a quick nod, really trying to psyche herself up and hammer that directly into her head for the next confrontation with... Anyone? Anyone.

"Hey, both of you, go upstairs, protect each other, and do what you're going to do."

"Right! Y-you can count on me, Miss xion. Princess Sarracenia. Mister Pete." She calls out with more of that confident energy returning once again. "I've got plenty of meds, and... I mean, I don't think we'll need them for ourselves, but I have them! And hopefully, nobody up there really is sick."

Xion describes the Keyblade, and Odette nods slowly as she lets the implications of that kind of tool dance around in her head some. "So it's not mechanical or electrical... Huuuh. It sounds pretty magical, yeah. And if it can open things up like a heart, then... Huh. I wonder if that could help clear up someone's sinuses..."

NOW

With the lack of noises coming from further up, Odette's confidence freezes in her chest a bit. Should she be worried about an ambush? It's not like she's expecting the Rats to be all that dangerous considering who else is here, but the idea of getting beaned with a cinder block or something still isn't appealing. Then again, if they come after her instead of anyone else... At least the situation can be handled?

Wait. They're yelling about something up there. Blinking slowly as she takes in her surroundings on the rooftop, the fleeing pair startles the EMT at first as she finishes climb. "W... Wait! We're not here to chase you! We..." She starts, but doesn't finish all that once she sees the one really sick guy. The continued flight and the names being shouted barely register in her mind at that point as she beelines for the man on the air mattress, nodding quickly at Xion when directed to press start and skip a cutscene

"Not good... How long have you felt like this?" Odette asks as she raises a hand to her visor and taps it a few times, then sets her medical bag beside Koffee. "Any recent injuries or... Never mind." She stops in mid-ask and shakes her head while taking out a weird little handheld thingy that looks kind of like a Gameboy Advance and waves it over him slowly to do a quick medical scan. Of course there'd be injuries everywhere. This place is full of injuries. "Might be an infection... Have you been able to keep food in?"

Out comes a bottle of water and a really long bendy straw, which Odette opens with her free hand and then sticks the straw in before holding them both out to Koffee in the same hand. "Sip slowly, stop if you need to cough or throw up or anything. Princess, ice... Thingy, please!" She glances over at Sarracenia and gestures towards Koffee, pauses, then hastily pulls a towel out of her bag and lays it flat over her bag. "O-on here, if you could. Not directly on him, since we don't want to shock his fever and weaken his immune system even more. Miss Xion, do you..."

A beat. "Can you open up his airways a bit? D.. Does it work like that?" She's got injectors for that, but she's really curious to find out if Xion can actually do that with her Keyblade.
Sarracenia      Earlier...

     Sarra hmphs at the cigarette smoking man as he walks off, and makes sure to do it loud enough for him to hear it.

     Now...

     Sarra blinks in surprise as the only one she ends up making a speech to is a man who should be in a hospital. She floats down to land on the roof, forgetting about the two that fled and putting the coins away. They left their sick friend behind? Minus hero points in her book and not worth chasing.

     She floats her way down, then looks at him before pulling her hood down. It feels like they are beyond the mugging threat at this point. She pulls her shimmering copper-colored hair free and lets it flow in the breeze. She also reveals her crown along with the fancy metal lotus hair pin. "No, I am not making fun of you. I am simply trying to broker peace. The alternative is something neither of us want, I think. I am Princess Sarracenia Sundew, Crown Princess of the Sundew Kingdom. And as I said, Tridaeg is here to help."

     Odette asks for an ice thing! Sarra blinks in confusion a moment, then her eyes widen a bit in realization. She pulls out that ice flower again, then blows that freezing mist over that rag. Frost forms on the rag by the time she stops, and the princess seems impressed by Odette's ingenuity.

     The gravity magic catches Sarra's attention, as do Xion's words to the Rats. "I hate smoke and blood, personally." she adds. "I would much prefer flowers and spa days. And with your help, we could bring both of those things to the people of the city." she says, even as she stays close so she can be of use to Odette.

     Though, despite all that, she can't help recoiling slightly when the man coughs. She does not want to get sick after all! She places a cloth over her mouth once again as a sort of mask. "Perhaps some steam if the keyblade does not work that way?" Sarra pulls out a fire flower to go with the ice flower.
Angela Yes, Sarracenia is a member of Trideag now. It's on the books, whether she wants to be or not!! She's even a Grade 8!

Koffee isn't in a position to escape or refuse Odette help. He is skeptical--and naturally has more pressing issues right now than gold. He does seem to have some kind of infection in his lungs and also, like, seems like he might be starving? He hasn't had a proper meal in at least 3 days. Which isn't helping the pnuemonia.

"Haven't had a chance to test..." Koffee manages, suggesting his sense of humor is stilll alive even if he won't be unless Odette acts fast. This kind of sickness is easily preventable and treatable with City tech but, well.

Tee is still a little scuffed from a previous fight (likely from Finn) as is Sohda (also from Finn) who has a bandage across her right arm that looks scavenged.

KOffee drinks the water, managing to keep it down at approximately a 50 percent rate. Sometimes he coughs and some of the water spills out onto his chest. Would a key be able to open up the airpathways? THe issue seems to be the pneumonia in the lungs. Antiobiotics would probably help.

''I am Princess Sarracenia Sundew Crown Princess of the Sundew Kingdom.''

"...Are you cracked?" Koffee asks, in genuine disbelief that a princess would be here, let alone one with an alliterative name. "..Must be seein' things. Hearing things." He mutters a moment later. Most people in The City aren't really that cognizent of the multiverse. Even if they know it's a thing that exists, they don't expect it to intercede on their daily lives.

Tee is seized up. BY GRAVITY. Tee screams like they are being murdered. For all they know, that's exactly what Xion is planning to do. But then they just sort of get deposited on the roof a bit roughly.

Meanwhile, Pete and Shoda have an alteraction that threatens to send them both tumbling to the ground.

"Come on, don't fuck around! I got food!" Pete shouts.

Shoda pauses and gives a look at Pete who, despite being well showered and in a nice outfit... still looks pretty scuffy.

"...This isn't revenge?" Shoda asks.

"No!!" Pete says. "C'mon I used to be one of ya!"

And moments later, Shoda and Pete have returned to the roof too. Pete digs into his hammerspace bag while Xion explains the situation.

''Aren't you *tired* of sucking smoke and tasting blood?''

Tee stares up at Xion, uncomprehending, then over to Pete, then back to Xion.

"...Well...yeah. But if we could make it in an Association...we wouldn't be Rats."

They look over to Pete. "You only picked them up until you can get real Fixers in your Association, right? ... Yeah, we're sick of smoke and blood, but we already failed out of the system. What makes yours different?"

"Well..." Pete says. "Happy to explain---what the hell..." He re pats around the inside of his bag. "...Is this...hair?"

He seems bewildered as he reaches in and tugs.

"Ow!" A young girl's voice says. "Watch it!"

Pete, unleashing an obscenity a second, reaches further in and pulls out a familiar little girl out by the face. Not all the way, mostly just down to her shoulders.

"...Aww did I miss you beating them up?" Cheer pouts.

Pete shoves her head back into the bag. "Um Xion, there's a problem."
Odette Raskins "Don't test it now. Drink up, then..." Odette takes her attention away from Koffee briefly as she takes the Sarracenia-frosted towel to start dabbing at his forehead, pausing every now and then to see if that's helping him with the symptoms. "Hold this, ask the Princess for a refill if it starts getting too warm. And..."

Back into the bag. Odette sorts through a few things in her bag before settling on a specific pill bottle, then pops out a pills for Koffee while setting the rest of the bottle beside him. "Antibiotics. Take these twice a day until the bottle's..." Wait. She checks the bottle again, counts the pills up, then closes it back up. "Until the bottle's empty. It might go down a little easier if you take them after eating something, if that helps later." She explains, also taking out a half-eaten chocolate bar and offers that to Koffee as well.

Considering what she's seen and heard of the City, she's not even sure calling anything he eats a 'meal' would be correct. The chocolate certainly isn't a meal, but it's good chocolate! "We'll have to keep.. Um. M-monitoring you in case the symptoms don't get better, but this should help with the worst of it. Just make sure to rest up, and if the..." She gestures at Kofee's chest vaguely. "If it still feels jammed up in there by tomorrow, we might need to get the liquid out manually."

Even after all that, Odette keeps the monitor held over Kofee, but there's some visible relaxing once/if he gets those pills down and keeps them down. She finally allows herself to pay look over, too, and stiffens up considerably when she hears Tee screaming and Sohda fighting with Pete. She inhales sharply behind her mask, then looks over at Koffee again with a shaky smile that's somehow visible even with her surgical mask on. "Er... They'll be okay! Just... Need to let the adrenaline wear off. Y-yeah."

There's a pretty clear divide between how she sounds now compared to how she sounded when she was working on Koffee just a minute ago. Her face freezes up again as she hears someone else that she wasn't expecting to hear at all, and she has to try REALLY hard not to look over at where Pete is. Maybe she just needs to act like one of the Association's members having a child in his bag is a normal thing, and that'll inspire more confidence!

It'd be easier if she wasn't sweating.
Sarracenia      '...Are you cracked?'

     Sarracenia's expression goes deadpan. "Come on...I even did the dramatic reveal! With my hair flowing majestically in the breeze! And I have a crown!" she says, her tone more pouty than anything. She forgets that some areas aren't really aware of the multiverse. But, after that she looks around slightly worriedly. Could she get Angela in trouble by announcing her princessness like this? After all, Angela and the Combaticons seem ready to go to war over something that seems just as trivial.

     Sarra sighs softly. "Well...anyway..." She watches quietly for a moment after that until Odette gives half a chocolate bar as a 'meal'. Sarra scoffs. "Come now, we can do much better than that!" She thinks for a moment, then gasps! "I have it!" She reaches into her bag and...

     Stares at Pete and Cheer for a few moments. "...um...you really should not keep -people- in your bag." she says before rummaging some more. She eventually pulls out...some mushroom risotto! The gravy infused rice dish promises plenty of vitamins and minerals -and- should be easy to swallow for even a sore throat. She also produces a spoon, and even spoons up a bit and offers it toward the man. "Now, say aaaah~" she says.

     Unlike Odette, she's been around long enough to just kind of ignore the other things going on. She notices Odette having a bit of a hard time though and takes up the ice flower to blow a cool breeze over the EMT. Then, she continues feeding Koffee if he so wishes it. "Tridaeg is a different sort of organization. No one is going to get thrown away just because they are or are not a Fixer or something silly like that. If you want to help and make an effort to help, I am sure you will have a place there."

     Pete mentioned food, so Sarra pulls out another couple of bento boxes. "And...as he said, we have food~"
Xion 'Who's Garion' didn't get a good answer not because Xion was withholding information, but, because Xion was very busy being a weirdo jumpscare girl! Maybe it'll come up later.

Xion's deadpan expression, even to howling and screaming, for her overwrought gravity grab carries until Tee is set down on the roof, closing her fist and the purpleblack implosion lenses shut and ceases to bend and ripple the space around it. Tee is only a *little* yanked, it's totally fine, and Xion's flatfaced confidence is part of the ruse.

She needs to make it seem like it's not a big deal, the overwhelming force.

"Oh, I could use one of my medallions, but I'm pretty sure it'd be way too much. I'd like to defer to the doctor on this," The noirette favors Odette, who had immediately moved towards the sick person without delay, and nods firmly, stepping over to Koffee and crouching down. As she does, she releases the Kingdom Key, which evaporates into pale-light sparkles and a wafting-away of released magic.

"Our association employs a lot of Rats. They're the locals, the people here, and they're desperate for opportunities - aren't you? It doesn't look like anyone here's eating well."

Xion frowns at that, but Pete's arrival steadies her. "Pete did used to be one of you. Then we gave him opportunities, and work, and *food*, and a place to stay, and no, it's not free - but it is available."

'You only picked them up until you can get real Fixers in your Association, right?'

"It's the opposite." Xion answers. "We need people to staff our agency, to do the work that Fixers don't, and to help us build better. Our organization, Tridaeg," Sarracenia is already explaining well, and Xion nods along. "-is already really full of high-power combat Fixers. I'm one of them, obviously, and so is Sarra here, but we also have medical personnel, like Odette. And we need hands, we need help, and we need people who know the streets and can spread the word. Our 'reprisal' is... understanding you're hurt and desperate, and showing up anyway. For this."

Xion looks over to Odette. "Can we move them? They'll be safer and more able to take medicine and eat back at the headquarters." And, of course, it would be 'a hostage', but after the stress reaction came the slow steps of understanding.

'Um Xion, there's a problem.'

"Hmm?" Xion looks over to Pete. "Oh, that's clever, did you get a stowaway?" She laughs lightly and smiles with a little knowing smirk. "Sarra's right, that's a little dangerous. But if they're okay, it's fine. We didn't *come* to beat them up, unless they decided to start it. I'll end any fight that happens to me, if I have to -- but we didn't have to. And that's Tridaeg too."

"This is a form of ending the fight."
Angela Koffee's tone seems to be more bewilderment than planning murders due to the violation of a social taboo but you never know.

''Did you get a stowaway?''

"Yeah..." Pete says with the tone of someone who is real drained from repeated instances of ''situations''. "Must've snuck in when I had to get Knifty out of the washing machine."

Pete shrugs his shoulders and upends the bag,, shaking it a little. Several ham and cheese sandwiches tumble out, including one that looks partially eaten, and Cheer, who looks like she has partially eaten a sandwich.

"Arright, Missy. Why'd you do it?" Pete asks.

"Cause I'm booored duhh. We don't get to go outside anymore... I miss the Outskirts." Cheer, laying on her back, says. "Oh is that a dead body?" She says, looking at Koffee.

"I'm not dead HACK HUGGH."

"Uh-huh..." Cheer doesn't quite believe it. "Huh...? You didn't come to fight? Well at least I got sandwiches..."

"Solace is gonna kill me." Pete mutters. "Lilian's gonna kill me."

Shoda uses this opportunity to steal a sandwich and an entire bento box and rushes off to the corner of the roof to devour them like she expects it to be taken away if she stays too close, practically scampering as she does.

Tee is more patient. They seem the best fed and broadly in charge of this cell. They give Pete a long look before turning back to Xion. "...Guess that makes sense. You don't need combat power, you need people who know the streets. But I can't say I know much more about the streets than Pete there--"

"Yeah..." Pete says, not willing to not sound a little smug about that comment being directed at him. "But I'm really overwhelmed, Tee. I could use some help with all the wrangling I gotta do. Otherwise I'll keep finding kids in my backpack."

"You can't escape me." Cheer is defiant.

Meanwhile, Odette is tending to Koffe. She'll need to help him swallow the first set of pills but after about a minute he is able to work on the chocolate bar. It's not a meal but you don't exactly want to get a guy who hasn't eaten in three days to start gorging. The body can react badly to that sort of thing (mushoom rissoto would be a bit much but Shoda's happy to take that). A little tiny bit of food and water and medicine is going to help him. He is already breathing a little easier, but he's gonna need some more medical care back at the Association.

"Hey are you actually a princess?" Cheer asks Sarracenia. "Why are you a Fixer if you're a Princess? Can you swing a sword? Have you ever killed anybody?" Cheer badgers Sarracenia with questions before looking to Xion. "The Commander thinks you're really tough I wanted to see you in action..."

Tee exhales slowly. "Arright... We'll come with you." Tee says eventually. "And I'm guessing you want to know why we attacked your guy. We were given orders to do it. Stray Dogs, you remember, right Pete?"

Pete grimaces. "Ugh... Guess they stuck you with our old work..." Pete mumbles. "...If we didn't take a chance on Trideag they'd be strongarming us into attacking you guys." Pete looks to Xion. "And I'm afraid to admit I'd've done what they asked too. They're a low level gang, usually a problem a Grade 8 or 7 office would deal with. But they're tied to The Thumb so they've got some big league protection."
Odette Raskins "...Are you cracked?"
"Come now, we can do much better than that!"

After hiding a giggle behind her mask, Odette lets out a questioning noise at Sarracenia's declaration. "W-we can? But if we give him something too heavy..." She starts, finding it hard to reject what Sarracenia's putting out there even though she's pretty sure that sort of thing might be too heavy for Koffee in his current state. It probably helps that she's kind of hungry herself and the risotto looks real good, but...

No, she has to focus, and food for herself can come later! Thankfully, Koffee does the work for her of slowly munching instead of gorging, and Shoda makes sure the food still goes towards someone that probably needs it more than Odette. The breeze is a welcome distraction, too, and she lets out a relaxed sigh for that momentary reprieve before nodding gratefully at Sarracenia. "Th.. Thank you, Princess! We might need a little more on the towel later, but..."

Her gaze shifts back to Koffee, and she lets out a relieved sigh when it seems that he's starting to recover instead of just wallowing like he must have for who knows how long. "Getting better... Good! Good."

"I'd like to defer to the doctor on this,"
"Can we move them? They'll be safer and more able to take medicine and eat back at the headquarters."

"Eh? A-aw, come on. I-I'm not a real.. Like... DOCTOR doctor or anything." Despite her protests, Odette is clearly finding it hard not to audibly smile and blush at that. After clearing her throat, she inhales once before letting out a thoughtful noise. "At this point... Hmm. I-it'd definitely be better in the long run to get everyone somewhere cleaner than here." She nods in agreement with Xion at first, although she still looks like she's hesitating.

"We'll just need to be careful moving him because he started recovering. Don't wanna.. Um. Aggravate any of that while he's still weak or anything." She clarifies, wincing a bit as Cheer calls him a corpse and he starts coughing again. "D.. Don't worry! I won't let anyone become a corpse on my watch. But-" She nods at Pete. "He's right. There's only so much any one of us can do, you know?"

A little white lie there when she thinks about everyone that isn't herself, but she can probably angle on this. "Other than the Rats with us, most of us aren't.. Um. Living here, you know? And having more people willing to learn, train, and help out works out for you, too. Clean beds, clean food, not having to scrounge around for stuff, new clothes... A-and you'll learn stuff you can use anywhere!" She adds with a helpful little uptick in her voice.

The news that Pete was targeted by a gang specifically, though, has Odette's expression firming up a bit. It reeks of 'imminent beatings', but she's not about to say that out loud. Instead, she zeroes in on something more specific: "The Thumb? Is that a... A big gang boss here? Or something bigger than that?"
Sarracenia      Sarra eeps as the risotto is taken along with a bento box, but since they are going to be moving Koffee she lets it go with a shake of her head and a slight giggle. And she asides quietly to Odette, "...you were right. She did have a friend named Koffee. And Shoda as well!"

     Cheer's defiance gets another giggle out of Sarra, but Cheer's barrage of questions kind of throws her off balance. "Wh-of course I am! I am a Fixer because I want to be! I can swing a sword! And-" The question of has she ever killed anybody makes her freeze up like a deer in the headlights.

     It is an issue she is not happy to discuss, and one that obviously makes her deeply uncomfortable. "...I do not kill people." she says finally.

     'The Commander thinks you're really tough I wanted to see you in action...'

     This perks Sarra up for about half a second until she realizes Cheer meant Xion. Sarra mmphs softly and crosses her arms in a bit of a pout. She should have known better of course, but getting the Commander to admit Sarra is tough and strong and useful is one of Sarra's lifegoals now.

     'But they're tied to The Thumb so they've got some big league protection.'

     "The Thumb? What is that again?" Sarra asks. "And do they think they are clever or something? Calling themselves that because they have everyone under them?"

     Things seem settled, so Sarra can't help a haughty smile. She helped, no one got hurt, -and- they recruited new members! Her smile fades into an annoyed expression. New members for Lilian's organization. Sarra is just not sure she will ever be fully okay with that. "Well, whatever I think of our illustrious leader, one thing I can guarantee you is that you will not have to worry about these Stray Dogs as part of Tridaeg." she says.

     Koffee starts coughing again, and Sarra mmphs. "Here, try this." she says, then pulls out one of her green mushrooms. "It may not cure him, but it may heal him enough to make it safer to move him." she says. And if no one objects she applies it to him. A flow of healing green sparkles moves over him. It doesn't remove the disease, but it does heal some damage to his lungs and some of his general fatigue.

     And all the while, Sarra soaks in Xion's approval and praise. Each time she catches some of it Sarra's smile returns or grows.
Xion "We came to end a fight. It's different! It's like fighting, still, but it's not done just by swinging a sword or casting a spell." Xion explains patiently, before grimacing as Koffee hacks and coughs. The state of things - of malnourishment, of lack, of dirt and disease...

Xion is used to rooms of pure, clean white and clothes of pure, protective black. Everything neat and upkept, everything kept in its place to help build a structure for the people living there.

Nothing like this place. Fighting - clean up - was waging a war.

"Nobody's going to kill you, Pete. This operation is basically us Fixers supporting you. We're here as escorts. Es-corts!"

The bento and risotto disappearing towards the hungry-enough-to-steal-a-meal Shoda gets a scoff and nod. "There's more of that back at the Organization house. We're hiring you, if you'll work with Pete. After a trial period, you can become full members, if Pete approves, and you'll work directly with him to help this place."

Xion leans over towards Pete, sotto voice for a moment. "I'll say the operation went perfect and you were instrumental in catching the Rats, and I'm sure Lilian will do a little nod and baaarely smile and go 'I expected nothing less', and that means 'good job'."

Coming off of it, Xion flashes a thin grin at Cheer. "This sort of fighting is harder than just marching through the problems and running them through. But, to get them out from 'under the Thumb', we'll have to work extra hard. Killing someone because they're needy... That's just saying 'the things that made you needy are right'. Were the things that made *you* needy right?" A little sigh follows, and then Xion shifts back to standing. "You missed the spell I cast - but if you're good, I can show you later. Okay? We've still got an operation to finish!"

While Sarra applies her Life giving mushroom, Xion looks around, deferring to Odette after a second. "If there's something suitable to stretcher them, we can move them back to our base for treatment. It's got walls and a gate, too - so there's no strays to worry about. Sarra's right. She's on a roll for that - so if *you* want to follow along," Xion's blue eyes trace over the Rats, and end on Pete. "Well, I guess you'll just have to trust us a little. Is there stuff around here we could move your friend? And a safe path back? Even if there's not, between Sarra and I--"

Xion pumps her fist and uses the opposite hand to pat her bicep. "--there won't be a problem. So, just trust the doctor!"

Xion keeps trending on that 'doctor' line, but, it's a magic wand for getting people to believe your help. Plus, food and medicine... Are doctor's orders!
Angela The risotto does look real good. As the heat he's feeling dies down some, and he gets some food and water (and healing mushrooms) in him--Koffee promptly passes out. Odette got to him just in time.

''I'm not a real.. Like... DOCTOR doctor or anyting.''

Pete gives Odette an odd look, an Oddette look if you will. "Hey, c'mon, you just said you weren't gonna sit back and take guff before, and now you're doing it to yourself. You're the next best thing to K Corp, you know? And I doubt they're spilling their secrets any time soon."

When Odette mentions having to carefully move him, Cheer suggests, "You could put him in the backpack. You don't even feel it moving on the inside." Cheer suggests.

Pete grimaces. "Yeah but it's gotta be a bit of a tumble... Maybe ... if someone was on the inside...??" He looks to Xion as if hoping that she'll come up with a smarter plan here. She did just teleport after all.

Shoda seems to be calming down. "Learning stuff...? Not having to scrounge? ... You really are from another world huh..."

''The Thumb? Is that a... A big gang boss here?''
''And do they think they are clever or something?''

"I have no idea why they call themselves that. They aren't ''one'' guy. They're probably the biggest Syndicate in the City--only really the Index compares--but that doesn't mean they're the strongest. Personally I think the Middle and Index are scarier. You know the rules of the Thumb and you can get by just fine. But the Index and Ring are full of maniacs and the Middle will kill everyone around you if you cross 'em. Doesn't matter if it's accidental or not." Pete explains thouhg, of course, he used to be INTERESTED in the THumb himself so he might be a bit of a biased account here.

''You will not have to worry about these Stray Dogs as part of Trideag''

Tee frowns. It's not the Stray Dogs they are worried about. Well, that is a lie. They are worried about the Stray Dogs but they are sure the Trideag can handle the Stray Dogs. They're worried about the Thumb.

''I do not kill people.''

Cheer looks disappointed but understanding and does not press.

Pete has noticed that Sarracenia seems to really soak in Xion's approval at this point. He puts two and two together and makes a completely incorrect conclusion. He does not comment on it.

''Nobody's going to kill you, Pete.''

"Well you know her best. Just don't want to disappoint her. Was really hoping to be helpful today." Disappointing the DAme Commander seems to be almost as bad as dying to him.

''Xion gassing him up''

Pete's eyes widen. "W--If I approve? Uh. Sure." Pete says, startled by Xion giving him something he never had before in his life.

Actual responsibility.

Sure he went around and looked after the Rats but that was elective and, generally, was largely a role he stumbled into by being louder and more hopeful than the others and being hopeful when you are a Rat requires some amount of idiocy.

Until recently. Now it doesn't seem so stupid.

''Lilian will do a little nod and baaarely smile--''

"Heh..." Pete does smile there. "That sounds like her. Arright, let's get ready to move out. We don't want to be here when the Stray Dogs pay another visit." Less because he feels Xion couldn't handle them, more because they'd have to fight them while defending the other Rats here.
Angela ''Xion teaching Cheer life lessons like it's a disney speci--oh wait.''

Cheer says, "...Tougher huh..."And gets a little quiet. She thinks of her sibling in that moment, the one who seems more thoughtful and levelheaded. Were the things that made ''her'' needy right?

Cheer ''has'' suffered. Her parents are dead and she's from the Outskirts but she never minded the Outskirts or saw that as ''need''. And once she was in the City, Solace made sure she didn't go hungry. She knew things were tight, but she wasn't quite as needy in the same way as these Rats--despite what the City would say about the Outskirts. But she does know that the City would say that anybody who died in the Outskirts deserved it by eschewing the City's protection. That part, she does get. "...No. It's not right to do that. I think I get it." Cheer says grudgingly.

''You missed the spell I cast - but if you're good..''

Cheer's eyes widen. "I'll be good!" She says. "I can make keep the towels on while you're heading back!"

Tee nods. "I'll trust you. We don't got much choice anymore. Pete would say it's better to gamble than give up anyway."

"Damn straight." Pete says. And that seems to be that.
Odette Raskins "..you were right. She did have a friend named Koffee. And Shoda as well!"

It's a good thing Odette has a mask on, because she wouldn't be able to hide her snickering otherwise. It's probably still visible in her eyes, though, despite her modest efforts to hide it.

She has no objections to Sarra applying the grene mushroom, either, although Odette does observe the whole process just to see how that might even begin to work.

". . . I'm sure Lilian will do a little nod and baaarely smile and go 'I expected nothing less', and that means 'good job'."

"Y.. You really know a lot about the Dame Commander, huh?" Odette chuckles lightly and strokes her chin, considering the potential deeper meaning behind Xion's translation. "If that's how it is, does that mean she doesn't really...? Huh."

She doesn't make a complete sentence for that thought, but she does seem to perk up just a bit more at that.

"Hey, c'mon, you just said you weren't gonna sit back and take guff before, and now you're doing it to yourself."
""--there won't be a problem. So, just trust the doctor!"

Pete's and Xion's words of encouragement work wonders as Odette's lingering awkwardness fades again in favor of that confidence she was sporadically showing from time to time. "Y.. Yeah! No, you're right. This'll just be the start. First Koffee, then... Er. The rest of the Backstreets! Eventually!"

Explanations about the Thumb, The Index, The Middle, and the Ring

Odette finally gets the naming structure, and she's very glad she has her mask on. Sure, knowing that they're dangerous does temper her reaction considerably, but thinking about a Syndicate called the Pinky is still hard not to grin a little even then.

"I-I guess they must have a lot connections, then? That could make things tricky to work around if they're too nosy or something. Or..." Too many fingers in every pie? She's really struggling not to say that out loud. "Having more eyes on the-er. Ears on the ground and eyes on the rooftops definitely couldn't hurt, then, especially if we're working somewhere else on the field."