Scene #9705: The Great Matilda Birthday Bash

Owner	Pose
Foundation Scions	Matilda Bouanich is one to always be highly prepared, and never behind-schedule. She plans, predicts, and schemes! Such a habit marks it as an oddity, of course, that around the dormitories of the Trídéag campus, only in the last few days has she been putting up hand-written notices of a 'magnificent birthday bash', rather that weeks or months ago. They've been paired with Matilda spreading word, through the association, or simply bringing-up when her birthday is ('The brightest day following the summer's solstice!') in order to garner interest so last-minute. Since having the excuse again, following the Storm, to spend time around the campus, Matilda has been spending more of it there than before. Some of it, of course, is in preparation for said birthday bash, as cakes don't cook themselves, some of it just as a location to use up her meager downtime. The Foundation's campus feels weirder, lately, with all the talk of the rebellion, and with Vertin indisposed. The office of the FDMO is too quiet, and Mesmer is distressing. Even stranger, for Matilda Bouanich, on the day-of for her apparent birthday bash, the taped-up posters, save for a few that she missed, she's taken down. Whether that means the bash is off, or still on, isn't clarified, and the location pointed to (Matilda and Sonetto's 'shared' dorm room) is evidently very decorated, more so than only by the ornamentations carefully arranged for divination purposes. Crystals and candlesticks are always there, but glittery streamers are new, and the slow-burning citrusy incense is a celebratory sort more than for any ritual. Arranged on a tableclothed table is, of course, a cake, and sat near it, looking somewhat less over-excited than her usual, is none other than Matilda Bouanich. At least she's scrounged for extra chairs from out around the other rooms of the building. She's wearing her Monitor Assistant's uniform, rather than the light green gingham dress clearly hanging in the open closet of the dorm room, the only other sign of disorder in the room's organization is an unsealed Foundation-stamped letter haphazardly tossed on her (lower) bunk-bed. "Ah! You came?!" is a strange exclamation for anyone to make upon seeing guests arrive. She scrambles to sit up-right, and quickly adds, for some reason, "Happy Birthday, to me, of course!"
Timekeeper	Has Sonetto ever attended a birthday party of Matilda's literally ever before? Maybe one year, during their shared time in the SPDM, there was some kind of event that Matilda had in the same room that Sonetto was in anyways, and Sonetto participated by default, but that would be it. So why would she possibly be here today? "... Oh, hello, Matilda. -- Ah, that's right, it's your birthday!" That makes more sense, crushingly. Sonetto closes the door behind herself absently, having been on Trideag grounds and passing by the dorm room by circumstance. She's still in her Foundation uniform, but rather than just picking up her Trideag outfit and leaving, she gathers the hangar from the closet and then ambles around the room distractedly while holding it. Like a roomba trying to process a new interior layout, she eventually comes to a stop for a few seconds in the arc of her circular path, then decides to place her uniform on top of her higher bunk instead. She gravitates, then, to actually sitting nearby Matilda, carefully as if unsure whether the chair is going to bite her. Once she's already seated, ramrod straight with her hands in her lap, Sonetto uneasily worries her thumbs together and looks around the room's decor. What she says after a bit, incomprehensibly, is, "Would it be alright if I stayed?"
Angela	Naturally, Trídéag has plenty of people who are fond of Matilda but also a lot of them got work to do. She's gotten 'Happy Birthdays' in passing by those who were the sort to remember, but by and large it's two members who have actually had both the will, the time to go, and the belief that a birthday party was still going to happen: Joanna the Silver Flash, recently demoted, and Finn who has meticulously manipulated his schedule to make certain he'd be free for the day. They've both brought gifts too! Joanna has brought a bottle of fine wine that she bought off of Ceri. It's wrapped up and tied with a pretty bow, but it's very clearly shaped like a wine bottle. Finn has brought a more mysterious wrapped giftbox and has even written a card signed by both him and his sister. "Hey Matilda! Happy Birthday!" Finn cheers. "Sis couldn't make it, but she sends her best wishes." "May this day blessed be to ye," Joanna chortles. "Hope you don't mind a couple extra, if the party still be happening?" There seems to have been some concern that it might have been cancelled. "Good to see you too, Sonetto." Finn adds. And then seems to notice the unease, naturally assuming it's because she seems to have forgotten the birthday. "Sorry I forgot to remind you we were doing this today." He's trying to be so helpful.
Lilian Rook	Lilian has her Fixers' birthdays copied down in a tracker in as much as their birth dates all exist in the Association's computer systems; some guessed-at, when unknown, or simply allowed to be arbitrarily chosen within reason. With the number of Fixers that now reside on company property, the most that can really be done is an internal announcement of a staff holiday on the private portal, PTO for the day, a pass to choose any of the cakes from the ground floor vendors (company-compensated). She remembers some and not others, for reasons both significant and meaninglessly random, and seldom does more then drop by to say hello; a practice doomed to go extinct as the number of Fixers eventually exceeds the number of days in the year. But she remembers Matilda's already, from before she joined Trídéag against her urging. Phrased in terms of celestial events, it's harder for her to forget than a dry date, but more than that, Matilda's sudden reappearance on the radio had worried her enough to think about it again. And so even if it isn't strictly professional . . . 'Ah! You came?!' "Was I not meant to?" Lilian stops at the door, and glances both ways down the hall, as if she expects to see some alternative explanation; but this time it's just for show. 'Happy Birthday, to me, of course!' "Well don't just go and beat me to it." Lilian says. She has more in the chamber after, but seeing that Sonetto has arrived ahead of her stops her dead in her tracks. A switch flicks on behind her eyes, and her parted lips come together again. 'Would it be alright if I stayed?' Lilian makes the snap decision to say "Well it'd be rude if you suddenly left." based on her slowly growing wellspring of knowledge regarding Sonetto's relationship with decorum and authority. "Though, I'm being a bit rude by intruding-- as your boss, that is-- I hope you'll forgive me." She doesn't really hide her eyes wandering to the envelope, because she doesn't really expect anyone to be watching anyways. She lands on the dress instead, and asks "Are you going out somewhere later?"
Lilian Rook	Lilian is, in fact, supposed to be in Trídéag on Mondays, for a 'short' while in the evening. Coming straight from Laplace, she hasn't had time to do more than throw her Director coat on over her uniform, which she has to take off again here and hang somewhere from the corner of the top bed poster. Which reveals that she apparently never put on her Laplace uniform anyways; just the one that loosely implies 'I'm here with the Foundation' if you don't look too closely. She had worn it when she went to see Marian in the morning, and after that meeting, she didn't feel like checking in at Laplace for the rest of the day. She had deliberated with untying the little blue ribbon tied around the sword-mounting ring on her belt, but her usual loathing of non-committment left it there. It at least means that she doesn't have to set aside her Trídéag service weapon before finding a seat, and watching Matilda for her implicit approval. "I'm afraid your gift is still in my lab. It seemed inappropriate to give it 'at work', where I'm your superior officer." she says. "I'd prefer to give it as just a friend. All I've got on me is a little tea and rum."
Foundation Scions	'... Oh, hello, Matilda.' Yes! YES! YESSS!! This, clearly, is how all of this starts, with Sonetto the first in the door to her birthday party, having somehow come-around to being interested in Matilda! Could it be, amongst all things, that Sonetto has felt some spark ignite, and the thought of not just missing, but allowing others to take the all-important role of first to the party, has become unbearable? Is that spark a spark of romance, perchance? 'Ah, that's right, it's your birthday!' Ah. Matilda startles when Sonetto opens the door, anyways, and actually stands up from her own place at the (head of the) table. "Hmph! It certainly is!" As Sonetto circles around the room, Matilda's eyes follow her, though she does sit herself back down shortly. A little "I thought to put together a little celebration, as you can see, though, given the circumstances I was-" Matilda shuts up immediately as Sonetto sits down nearby, rather than (as expected, if not as hoped-for) the furthest possible point from her. Matilda mumbles, "Tout comme mon rêve..." But, something's not exactly right. Sonetto is tense, as a person, but she isn't always this tense- Matilda'd have seen that through her evil evil ways. Kind of shamelessly desperate, Matilda says, "Please, stay! It is entirely alright! Er, but, is something the matter?" 'Was I not meant to?' "Hein? No, er, yes, although, er- well, there is a cake, still! Hello, Mrs. Rook!" A goofy, awkward little wave-beckon. 'Well don't just go and beat me to it.' Matilda giggles. "The marvelous Matilda Bouanich is, of course, first! But second place is still highly respectable!" Finn and Joanna get, of course, a little giggly-teasing 'or third' and 'fourth', respectively, to the well-wishing. It's not, of course, the first time she's talked with Joanna in the majority of a year it's been since that adventure, so it's easier for Matilda to smile and welcome her in, well-wishing. On a shelf in the room, actually, is the (polished up) silver spyglass she'd been given. "Please sit," she says, excited. Caught up in the giddy excitement of people bothering to stop by for the sake of her, and going through the motions of pointing-out where to place little presents (winebottle on the table, the rest off on a little wall side shelf with various faceted crystals,) Matilda is caught a little bit off guard by Lilian's question. Only after she tracks Lilian's gaze to the closet does she form an answer. "Going out? No, after this, I very-much ought to head back to the Foundation's grounds. It seems I readied myself for that too soon! I must have gotten too excited. Hahh, er, but perhaps, this is now, in a way, a themed costume party?" Matilda looks between Lilian, Sonetto, and herself, all dressed as though they should be at the Foundation, and not here.
Timekeeper	"Well it'd be rude if you suddenly left." "Oh. Yes, that's right." Sonetto nods, placated by that comment rather than scolded. Lilian really is learning to be a Sonetto whisperer, because that does shave off a solid quarter of Sonetto's tension over the next minute. She attempts to settle down more in her chair to sit like a person, and does not really succeed. "Please, stay! It is entirely alright!" "Okay. Thank you." Claiming fifth place in the rankings, but with the sort of record breaking je ne sais quoi that shoots her up to the top of the charts, Sonetto gives Matilda a little smile like she's grateful that Matilda let her stay. "Then, happy birthday, Matilda." "Er, but, is something the matter?" Having been formally invited to the party now, Sonetto remains stock still in her chair as the others come in and sit down. In a reversal of the natural order, but one Matilda is certainly well-prepared to notice, it's Sonetto that seems to be stealing glances at her whenever she's busy with greeting the other guests or fussing around with decorations or the cake. At the question, she tilts her head uncertainly, fiddling with the small braid that frames her face. "Something the matter...? Ah... no, I have just been distracted today, because of.... I will be more mindful of the atmosphere I am presenting in your birthday party." Then she startles, looking around the room. "... Ah! I don't have any birthday gift!" She gets up out of her chair to amble over to the closet that, obviously, she and Matilda share, though almost never at the same time. She looks through it to search for a present to give Matilda, from the same room that they are both in, where Sonetto has extremely few personal belongings to speak of, much less gift-appropriate ones. "Good to see you too, Sonetto." "Hello, Finn," She says pleasantly while looking through the closet. "Ah, it is alright; I did not need to be reminded. I had simply come to do training in order to clear my mind... but this party will work just as well." "Hahh, er, but perhaps, this is now, in a way, a themed costume party?" "Costume?" Sonetto looks down at herself, trying to process that her Foundation uniform could be a costume in any context at all. "Oh, because I am in the incorrect uniform... should I change?"
Lilian Rook	'Hein? No, er, yes, although, er- well' Thus begins and ends the one and only time Matilda Bouanich drew blood from Lilian Rook. A single hit point amongst thousands, worth a faintly startled and unhappy double-take, and no more. 'The marvelous Matilda Bouanich is, of course, first! But second place is still highly respectable!' "Be careful how broadly you apply that philosophy in life, Bouanich. You'll find that it doesn't always hold." she says, side-staring at Sonetto as infinitesimally petty revenge. 'Going out? No, after this, I very-much ought to head back to the Foundation's grounds.' Pulling in a chair and folding her hands in her lap, Lilian first says "That's a shame." without really thinking. "They really don't even try to hide it, do they?" Lilian privately thinks about just reading the letter, then thinks about Sonetto informing her that doing so is a federal crime of some kind, and then thinks about how many federal crimes she's committed without Sonetto's knowledge, which causes her to quietly laugh about something out of nowhere, hair-raising in its tone, and mercifully short-lived. 'Hahh, er, but perhaps, this is now, in a way, a themed costume party?' "Oh, I just got here, so I haven't had time to get changed into my dress clothes." Lilian says. She waves her hand down for emphasis. "It's not as if I pay myself for my hours here. The routine is mostly for everyone's convenience." Knowing that this still requires an elaboration on her Foundation white instead of Laplace silver, Lilian pinches the end of the ribbon between her finger and thumb under the table, letting her eyes conveniently wander around the dorm room. "I volunteered to handle something at the Foundation, and then I had a meeting. I suppose it is a funny coincidence." '... Ah! I don't have any birthday gift!' Lilian tries not to snort, and gives up on the giggle. "Come on Sonetto. It's too late to go looking for one now. We can all see you." Patting the tabletop where she just was, she tries to coax her back with "I'm certain Matilda Bouanich would magnanimously accept a slightly delayed present, given the circumstances." Like Sonetto having not actually planned to be here. 'should I change?' "Well I'm not going to."
Angela	Joanna's been doing her best to be a model Trídéag officer since she was allowed to join, though there was still that no doubt familiar to Lilian period of a new recruit where they're confused that things aren't done like other Associations--even when they expect Trídéag to be different, they still find their own little unique ways to be surprised at how differently this one operates. Finn at this point is pretty comfortable and happy. He's just so glad to be here and reacts to the world with optimism and gung-ho attitude. But he can't help but wonder if Sonetto's mood might be because of something that happened back at their home. He's learned some basics about the Foundation through gradual osmosis of working with Sonetto and Matilda, but it's hard to say he's entirely comfortable prying. Joanna's breath hitches a little once she sees the spy glass and puts the bottle of wine near it before sitting herself down by Finn who is holding his in his lap. But Matilda does give him an avenue to maybe pry a little bit. "I hope everything's alright back home. I'm sure you've been missed, but I can't say I'm glad we caught you before you left." Finn says. "It's best, lass, to return home with a tale or two." Joanna adds. It's impossible that she hasn't noticed the uniforms aren't matching, ''I had simply come to do training in order to clear my mind...'' "Well I'm glad we can help." Finn smiles. "We're teammates after all." ''They really don't try to hide it, do they?'' Finn gives an uneasy look to Lilian. He senses something's wrong. Does the Code end at the borders of their world? He doesn't think so, but if makes a suggestion or acts with the understanding that he has, he'll surely beef it. "It's a party, wear what you like." Joanna says, despite also being in uniform. Finn quietly places his gift down somewhere out of the way but within easy reach.
Foundation Scions	'Then, happy birthday, Matilda.' The whole table can watch as Matilda's face goes red, and she nods, and then forces through the (still extant blush) to a proud expression and posture, arm-inwards-towards-her-own-chest, to say in response, "I've completed now my nineteenth year, and, you are all very welcome for my company!" There's no shaped candle arrangement in the cake to give that number away, but there are candles, blue and white spiral-patterned, above a fairly plain, hand-frosted layer cake of some variety. Matilda mutters out an incantation- "Flamo flicker," and the wicks sparkle alight into similarly blue-and-white flames. She doesn't seem in any hurry to blow them out, instead just watching the (maybe expensive) little cake-candles sparkle. 'I will be more mindful of the atmosphere I am presenting in your birthday party.' "Worry not! I am sure that the spirit of celebration will find you, regardless!" Matilda hums, happy, but also confused, to spy any of the glances Sonetto's making her way. '... Ah! I don't have any birthday gift!' Matilda, first, vocalizes a "Oh, please-" and hard-stops before 'do not worry yourself'. Wasting only a single breath, Matilda jumps immediately to, "It would be a suitable birthday-gift to me if you accompanied me, sometime, to a dining outing at none other than Paris' own Pizza Hut, Sonetto!" Oh my god. 'Come on Sonetto. It's too late to go looking for one now.' Matilda flashes Lilian what can only be described as a 'knowing look', that owing a present is, actually, a fine position for Sonetto to be in! Matilda's got this! That's scary! Why's she using it for Pizza Hut?? 'I'm sure you've been missed, but I can't say I'm glad we caught you before you left.' Matilda glances down again at the candles, a little bit entranced. They've barely lost any wax, even! Quiet, "Hein? Of course I've been very-much missed, but, my duties have not been! Er, missed, by me, I mean! I finished before arriving here, though I'll have much-more to do." Humming again, this time actually the first trill to 'happy birthday', "Oh! This, of course, is un gâteau au citron avec de la confiture de myrtilles~! Quite seasonal!" She probably bought the jam and frosting. "Er, here, pass these paper plates out, please," Matilda asks, pushing a pile of them towards Finn. Good luck Finn. 'That's a shame.' "It is not fully a shame! I've received a strong response, albeit, on very-short notice, to the considering of my Field Investigator application!" If that's truly only exciting, she should sound a little bit more excited. However, she, like Sonetto, is trying to be a bit mindful of the mood. 'Oh, because I am in the incorrect uniform... should I change?' Matilda is too quick to blurt out "If you wish to." Nefarious.
Timekeeper	"I volunteered to handle something at the Foundation, and then I had a meeting." "Oh. Was it...?" There's a little flicker of something besides stiffness in Sonetto's expression when she looks at Lilian. Each of the few times Lilian's seen her ever since 1929, it's felt like Sonetto's been relearning how to stand and walk like a human being piece by piece. Neither 'emotionless' nor 'deceptive', but giving off the impression of being hollowed out somehow in Vertin's absence, only otherwise when talking with Mesmer in the radio, or for a moment right now. "Was it anything, um, to be concerned about, Director?" The only method she knows for attempting to express care is by asking whether it's a job she needs to be assigned to also, though. Even Sonetto knows how rough the post-mission quarantine would've been on Lilian, and that's the last Foundation-specific thing she can think of. "It would be a suitable birthday-gift to me if you accompanied me, sometime, to a dining outing at none other than Paris' own Pizza Hut, Sonetto!" Sonetto's closet contains such wonderful gifts as: a spare comms device, a calendar of Sonetto's contract jobs in the City and her training sessions, cassette tapes, hangars, and multicolored pens for organized notetaking at a glance. Sonetto is staring at the pens in her hand, trying to determine whether Matilda has a favorite color-- has she literally ever gotten anyone a gift before in her life?-- when Matilda gives her a way out of this situation. "Ah? A gift, to accompany you?" The prospect is so mysterious. Of course, the gift of candy Matilda received on the previous year that was signed from Sonetto and Vertin was actually entirely chosen by Vertin, but this time, Vertin is too unconscious for any gift-giving in Sonetto's awkward and alien place. So instead, Matilda must be the authority on what's a normal gift. Sonetto nods, pleased. "Okay. I would be happy to." Several seconds pass, as Sonetto progresses from 'being relieved that this problem is solved' to 'actually seriously considering the prospect of the trip', and to Matilda's unspeakable delight, this seems to make Sonetto more enthusiastic. "-- In Paris? I have not been to Paris, or to a Pizza Hut, but I have heard that it is very pretty." Heard from, Matilda. "Then the gift will be-- paying for your pizza?" "Hein? Of course I've been very-much missed, but, my duties have not been!" A little bit to Finn and in response to Matilda, Sonetto slides sideways on the dialogue tree. "Ah... it has been quite busy lately. It cannot be helped, when it comes to a new era, but... I have had many additional duties as well. The next stage of my investigation will involve informational collaboration with the Concord Partner Flamel Parsons, in fact." Why would she say his name like that after spending nearly two full days around him just a couple weeks ago? "If you wish to.")] Lilian: will not change. Joanna: doesn't care. Birthday girl: seems to encourage it? Sonetto looks down at herself, and then to her closet, where there is a single set of standardized pajamas lined up along with her uniforms, and no other clothing. A little baffled but following through on perceived momentum, she picks up her clothes from off the bed, and then motions towards the bathroom. "Okay. I will be back momentarily."
Angela	Finn hops up when given the opportunity to be helpful. He's being helpful! He just has to hand out paper plates which will improve the situation in some small way by not making Matilda do it by himself! This is amazing! This is wonderful! Finn has been thoroughly minionized but honestly he started a little bit minionized. He's always been eager to please. He hands out Matilda her plate first, then Lilian, then Sonetto, then Joanna, then himself. This has been the proper order that has been drilled into his psyche from his experiences as a brother who had to prepare birthday parties. "Wow, they're finally promoting you?" Finn beams, happy for his friend! "Took 'em long enough but hey, good things come to those who wait. Nice going. Will that mean we'll see you around more?" Not that he hasn't seen her a fair amount already. ''Ah... it has been quite busy lately. ... informational collaboration with the Concord Partner Flamel Parsons.'' Nobody in Trídéag knows who that is so they don't immediately get concerned and worried. "Well, I'm sure those Concord people know what they're doing, from what little I heard a lot of Wings want to get in good with the Concord." Finn says. Joanna is a little more cautious about it but she says, "Don't let them burn you out." She waves Sonetto off, casually.
Lilian Rook	'I've completed now my nineteenth year, and, you are all very welcome for my company!' Lilian has a great way of laughing at something genuinely ridiculous as though it were only an expression of fondness. Studiously learned from Tamamo, she employs it to full effect here. "My my, you've reached the age I started in the Paladins. Well done~" she says, not unseriously. "We're glad to have you." She gives the incantation a too-long stare, lingeringly strange and late to look away. She has to force her smile for a minute after that, in order to return it back to normal; contributing to the already uneasy atmosphere any further is just unacceptable. Lilian, of course, still doesn't really know anything about Pizza Hut. She keeps meaning to look it up, but it's never important enough to linger in her mind. Each time she hears that name, though, she feels the same inexplicable dread a little bit more clearly. 'I finished before arriving here, though I'll have much-more to do.' "Hm? Did they call you right back after you'd already left?" Lilian says. The idea that the St. Pavlov Foundation delivered mail here snaps her out of her looping thoughts, though it's quickly dismissed. It's much more likely that Matilda was handed the letter on her way out the door. 'Was it anything, um, to be concerned about, Director?' "No, no. Of course not." Lilian says to Sonetto, all gently maternal tones and nervous ribbon-fidgeting. "I . . . spoke to some people that Vertin would appreciate knowing that I did. I checked in on her, and followed up on something unrelated with Mesmer Junior. And then I took some time to speak to Marian Greco." She hesitates for the awkward topic; herself more than Marian. "I pulled some strings to gather together some photographs and mementos of Schneider Greco. It felt wrong to just leave her with nothing. We talked a little bit. And I told her I'd find the forms she needed to submit to request permission for me to cross the picket line and retrieve any more belongings she might still want." She trails off inconclusively, despite already saying everything there is to say. "She's a sweet, devout young lady. It bothered me." Lilian shakes her head. "Ah, I shouldn't say it that way. That makes it sound like your fault. I know how busy you've been." 'It is not fully a shame! I've received a strong response, albeit, on very-short notice, to the considering of my Field Investigator application!' "Oh that's wonderful!" Despite the mood, Lilian finds herself clapping her hands together in delight before she even knows it. "Finally! Finally! See? I told you they would. Didn't I? And when have I ever--" Lilian bites her tongue for a split second. "--lead you astray? It's precisely times like these, where it seems like everything is falling apart and nothing is right anymore, when you start to see the naked core of what people are really made of, and it's winner-takes-all to the ones who can hang in there until the end." "I know you can do it Matilda! I really, really do." 'Okay. I will be back momentarily.' Sonetto, acting like Sonetto, is capable of interrupting even Lilian's giddiest, most saccharinely protogé lined thoughts. She turns her head and mumbles "Well I suppose it is your bathroom too."
Angela	''I know you can do it Matilda! I really, really do.'' "Hurrah! Hurray!" Finn and Joanna cheer on.
Foundation Scions	'My my, you've reached the age I started in the Paladins. Well done~' Matilda makes a humming noise, highly pleased at the imagined notion she'll rise to Lilian's sort of level of accomplishment, only perhaps a year sooner. "I am sure there will be many more such years!" With the candles lit, and the plates passed around, the cake in front of her softly-aglow, Matilda, tongue bitten in focus, takes up the noble weapon of the cake knife to squish-cut slices out of the round, carefully avoiding letting the candles topple, or be extinguished, as they're placed on the plates. Maybe Matilda isn't used to the singing ritual? 'Then the gift will be-- paying for your pizza?' The real gift is being there, obviously, but even Matilda knows Sonetto can't figure that out. So, she nods! "Yes! That would be a highly appropriate gift! Of course it would not be right for you to not share some!" She wants to feed Sonetto pizza off of her fork so bad it makes her look stupid- also, she's hedging her bets against Sonetto simply not eating any at a sorta-dinner-date. "I think you will like Paris!" Only after does Matilda seem to properly have the steam-pressure build in her head to really get red in the face, excited, mutter-y, and so so happy Sonetto's finally agreed to something even similar to a date. She has to remind herself to breathe deep to calm down, as conversation progresses. She's still daydreaming about the pizza, though. With Sonetto having had one picked for her, and Finn and Joanna having presented theirs (wrapped), and Lilian promising one, Matilda says, obligated-excited, "Thank you all, of course, for the birthday gifts!" Then, giggling to herself, "Hah, I could say I have already seen what fate holds to know the presents' contents, and that would be believed! That would be a bit of Diviner humor..." Matilda murmurs, "Greco?" at Marian's name, and then her eyes widen at Schneider's. She never met Schneider, nor her family-member- sister? Mother? But, that's someone she's heard some mention of as being enemy-aligned, some mention of as being Vertin-aligned, and some mention of having died. Matilda stays quiet, but isn't able to be still, and just fidgets a little through the explanation- and she stays quiet a little longer after Lilian's done. 'Wow, they're finally promoting you?' "They might be, yes!" 'I know you can do it Matilda! I really, really do.' 'Hurrah! Hurray!' Matilda smiles, but also looks a little bit more and more worried, as the certainty and praise continues. "I, too, am hopeful! Er, but, it is not (yet) a certain matter!" Still, that's a lot of praise, so she can't not continue talking- "My performance is going to be watched, in a newly-assigned task to the FDMO! To, er, assist in the quelling of the unruly rebellion." Matilda pauses after that. It's a weird topic! The rebellion is upsetting, and something nobody really wants to talk much about, isn't it? "The Foundation, they really want all those people to cease the behavior! I, will have to find something to do about it." 'Okay. I will be back momentarily.' Matilda is winning! A pizza date, and Sonetto in pajamas? Wow! Yippee! It must be her birthday!
Angela	''It is not yet a certain matter! My performance is going to be watched--'' Naturally, the mention of the rebellion gets Joanna and Finn looking concerned! This is the first they're hearing about it! Finn has the werewithal to not offer to help quell another organization's rebellion without being asked but Joanna, as a former Color, doesn't think twice before saying... "You want some backup? Can put a stop to that in no time." It might not be a great idea to get Joanna to help with quelling the rebellion and Finn has a similar instinct to this metatext because he says, "Um, Joanna, it's a whole other organization--unless they make a deal with the Director, we probably shouldn't make any offers like that. Besides it's also a performance evaluation, so it can't be so dangerous she'd need you as backup." Joanna's braincells slowly put things together and she says, "Oh--yeah, yeah, I guess that makes sense." Maybe there's still some lingering need of hers to make up for the time that she pointed a weapon at her! Finn looks at Lilian, putting a few things together by the mention of this picket line. "I know our job's here, Director, but if you do need a hand, we'll do our best to support you."