Scene #8378: Shadows Without and Within

Owner	Pose
Hibiki Tachibana	The expansive campus of Lydian Private Music Academy, with its many glass-paned buildings and skybridges connecting them together, rests on a verdant hilltop within a bustling residential part of the greater Tokyo area. Hibiki's school offers an expansive view of the rest of the locale - whether it's the city proper, the surrounding mountains, or the sweeping bay leading out to the ocean, where the silhouette of a grandoise concert hall can be seen against the backdrop of the setting sun. That is, unfortunately, not quite the view that assembled Elites will get to enjoy much this time around. Prior visitors might remember using the school's front entrance; this time, they're all directed to a location near the very base of the hill, an unassuming and out of the way spot running parallel to a water channel. Only upon arrival will they find an artificial passageway built into the side of it, the entrance very obviously having risen up from a normally hidden position beneath the turf to allow them underground access. They'll also find a singular brown-haired and modest-looking young man in government standard suit and tie, ready and waiting to recieve them all. Shinji Ogawa, the aide-de-camp to the Special Disaster Response Team's heads, is his introduction to fresh faces. "My apologies for needing to take the long way. The Commander thinks it's prudent to play it a bit safe today." The opening to the tunnel descends shut behind them once they're all on their way, onward and downward. The sleek and wide metallic hallways underneath Lydian are long and just a little labyrinthine with how many intersections there are, as one might expect from the secret headquarters of a magical girl-using organization. Right when the spotless surfaces and possible turns into other identical-at-a-glance corridors is beginning to get old, the monotonous sights start being broken up. Rest spots tucked away in notches in the walls, well stocked vending machines, and blue-uniformed staff going about their business become a regular sight. The atmosphere changes from 'sterile secret facility' to 'pleasant workspace' in surprisingly short order. And not long after that, Ogawa is bringing them to a side doorway, sliding open with a pneumatic hiss as he steps aside and gestures inward.
Hibiki Tachibana	The room is less any kind of meeting room, and closer to a sort of lobby. It's plenty spacious for one thing, with a long central table resting in the center and two sofas matching its length sitting on either side. One-off single seating exists further back from it, pushed against the walls of two slightly raised, railed walkways running along the circumference of the chamber. There's a water cooler and some paper cups stacked up right by the door. Hibiki is already here as one of the room's two existing occupants, down in one of the one-off chairs. She looks to be idly fiddling with the pendant hanging from her neck, lost in thought until she hears the door opening and turns her head up. At the sight of at least a few of them - and realizing they'll all be in the same space together - she tenses up just a little bit, but otherwise settles in place. For the moment. By contrast, the man at the head of the table isn't seated at all, but rather stands tall with folded arms. Tanned skin and dark crimson hair, swept back in a spiky mullet and styled into a goatee, give him a fierce appearance - not helped by his obvious musculature on display, thanks to the rolled-up sleeves of his red dress shirt matching his white slacks. The effect is somewhat offset by the bright pink tie loose around his neck, the end of which is tucked into his shirt's breast pocket for no apparent reason at all. He doesn't need to do that. There's a good-natured grin on his face as he turns away from the girls towards everyone shuffling in. It sure doesn't feel like any kind of official meeting so much as a get-together. "There you all are. Just in time! Make yourselves comfortable however you like." Without unfurling his arms, he gestures to himself with a thumb. "Genjuro. Genjuro Kazanari. The /other/ head honcho around here, besides the illustrious head researcher some of you have met. And very technically, Hibiki's boss. There are...a few things to go over today. Things that we can't exactly solve on our own. ...So I'd like to thank you all for coming, on her behalf."
Ishirou	Ishirou is here! Though uh... People probably don't immediately recognize him. He's not in his usual body, but rather in a fairly generic chassis. Nothing stands out about it, to the point that it's so generic makes it stick out like a sore thumb itself. Regular metal joints, four limbs, and a solid metal core. His head is the only thing that stands out, as it's a screen face, with a very simple facial expression on it. In fact, it's more emoji man than a human face. He's a little lanky too, definitely taller than he should be, and his arms are longer than they should be, but his legs are right so it gives him a slightly hunched look. He waves as he gets into the primary facility, sits down next to Hibiki, and bows to Genjuro before he does sit. "Nice to meet you, I'm Ishirou.." he says, "Though I'm not quite in the right form right now, I'm waiting on a more stable body after an incident made m old one uh...nevermind, it's a long story."
Angela	The Control Team has arrived. As of late, Angela has been making more appearances on those little pads they've been taking along with them--in fact, they've brought two along. Well, it's more accurate to say that Rook has come from the Control Team and OHNO has come from the Training team. This is supposed to be a pretty light 'mission' from Lobotomy Corp, largely to get a feel for this world that one of Lobotomy Corp's Persons Of Interest happens to be from. Rook was chosen because he is part of the Control team and they tend to be sent for First Contact. OHNO is being sent, however because, "Scabady doo da dee badadadeewaa." She apparently is into music. She's a green haired woman with a mohawk and an earing in her right ear. She has an ipod device in both her ears. And this is a Music Academy! This is the amount of thought that Lobotomy Corp put into this. Each of them have a pad, indicating that Malkuth and Angela are listening in. Angela is still quite curious about the Magical Girls who are, strangely, a little less murderous than she knows them as. "Ah, like her manager. A pleasure to meet you, sir." Angela says. "We are here to provide assistance. I have sent Captains from the Training and Control teams to help determine the best method to do so." Angela is as clinical as ever. Her gaze flickers over to Ishirou. She doesn't say anything for a moment. Rook ends up sitting next to him. OHNO aims to sit closer to the back like a kid who doesn't want to get called on by a teacher. "Well we finally meet face to face, sort of, eh?" he asks him.
Rita Ma	Rita wears her usual. It isn't as if she has to change her 'clothes', and she hasn't had much energy to be creative lately, somehow. The rolling green hills of the campus are still pleasantly exotic for her; the sterile hallways of the base below are soothingly familiar, not too far removed from the lower decks of a ship. It's the office space that she feels the least at home in. She lags behind the group at one of the vending machines, dazzled by its colorful contents. Her eyes dance from candy to chips to brightly-colored drinks. Then she remembers. A bottled water is fine, instead. Even though she's a little despondent, she clutches it to her chest like a precious treasure. Getting something lets her feel like she's not completely excluded. "It's good to meet you, Mr. Kazanari! I'm Rita Ma, a friend of hers," she says, with more energy than she feels and a polite from-the-waist bow. "I didn't really know you had a boss, Hibiki?" She finds a place near the foot of the table and slides into an office chair. She doesn't know how to adjust it, so she's a little short. A moment later, she chokes on her water. Her eyes dart to the robot she'd been neglecting before. The first words she can manage are: "Mr. Ishirou?!"
Cantio	It feels like ages since Cantio's last visited Lydian. Maybe it has been, but it's hard to tell how much time has passed these days. The school itself look largely the same, at least, so it couldn't have been that long. She arrives at the designated hill in a light cropped jacket (black) with a blouse (white) and plaid skirt (gray/white) underneath it, her trusty Concord-logo'd attache casedangling from one hand while she fiddles with her phone in the other. She puts the phone down by the time she sees Ogawa, then waves lightly in greeting to him and everyone else arriving. "None needed, Mister Ogawa. A little discretion never hurts if it involves matters of public safety." She reassures, following him into the tunnel. On the way in, she takes note of the unfamiliar robotic figure, only realizing it's Ishirou when he finally speaks up. She stares at him for several moments, opening and closing her mouth several times in utter confusion, then clears her throat before turning away. She's trying not to grin, but it's totally creeping onto her face at the corners. "Hey, Hibiki! And Mister Kazanari, too, hello. It's involving the Noise again, right? Hmm... More movements, or...?" There's a long pause, and then she realizes that there are, indeed, new faces here! Following all those cues, she too joins in the self-introductions with a formal bow complete with arm going across her midsection. "Cantio, second-in-command of Cadenza, and Member of the Concord." It's good to meet you all!" Rita's outburst, of course, has her snickering outright. "R-Rita, please. He's... Might be going through some things!"
Meika Kirenai	It's a little reassuring that for her first time travelling outside her own world, Meika won't even be leaving her home country. Well. Not really. But as the monochrome flash that ushers her travel dissipates, and leaves her on the outskirts of a beautiful school's grounds, the surroundings aren't far enough from familiar to be more uncomfortable than normal. She doesn't dally much on her way to finding the meeting zones, other than to take in the setting sun for a moment, and how it washes over the campus, and paints long, distorted shadows. It's only fair that here, they don't want disturbances either, downhill and away from the ambient foot traffic. She gets it. This must be a real school, too, for people to think about other things than whatever warrants multiversal calls for aid. Or for thinking why a girl dressed the wrong way in the wrong uniform is scampering nervously around the pathways. She manages a small greeting to the unfamiliar faces, and the aide ushering the group down, but once she's in the thin, sterile passageways she lets the ricocheting echo of her and everyone's footsteps wash her focus away. And then they're in a meeting room. That's what this is. Another meeting, with the people in charge, even if it's.. cozy, seeming. It doesn't set her much more at ease when Hibiki isn't the first one to speak up, so as she tucks herself up at the far corner of one of the couches, Meika makes sure to say something to her first. "..Hi, Miss Hibiki. Mister Kazanari. I'm.. Meika, Paladins Chevalier and.. Magical Girl Chevalier Vermillion." Is this government? Some other organization? It seems well funded... She coughs into a hand, a red band-aid plastered around one of her fingers. "...I.. I'm new. Sorry if that's a bother. But... Hibiki put work into helping me and my.. the world I'm from, and so I thought I'd try and pay it back.." Really, she just wanted to help anyways. Her hands get firmly deposted back to her jacket's pockets.
Lilian Rook	"You know, now that I really stop to look at it, Tachibana's hometown is actually quite nice." Lilian says from the peak of the hill, looking from the glittering modern school building and sweeping out to the gorgeous concert hall and the scenic seaside. She sighs. "I'm sort of pissed off about it now." Down in the sterile, steel plated tunnels, Lilian's thoughts drift more to comparisons to a poor man's Arx Zenith, hidden from the public view. Walking in silence, the corner of her lip twitches at the mixed feelings stirring in her from the comparison. The knowledge that Hibiki spends so much time in these spartan halls nags on her conscience, for reasons she hasn't quite been able to pin down before she nearly walks into Shinji. "Ah. You're Lan-- It's a pleasure to meet you, Mister Ogawa." Her flawless Japanese has been paying off a lot lately. "Dame Commander Lilian Rook. A . . . friend, of sorts, of Tachibana. I'm certain you're aware. And I understand the need for caution in certain circumstances. I'll hardly begrudge you for a few more minutes of walking." When she arrives in the meeting room, however, Lilian stops dead, momentarily stunned by Genjuro. Two thoughts occur to her at the same time, freezing her in place, wide-eyed, as she processes both of them: §Kazanari? Like Tsubasa?§ and §Oh my god he's bisexual Gerart.§ Lilian coughs. "Ah, now I'm certain we've never met." she says, and then repeats her introduction, this time with a little bit of a bow, just to be safe, given his assumed rank of operational command (and force of habit). Her gaze wanders awkwardly to Hibiki, but ultimately Lilian seats herself without saying anything. A cup of water is in her hand. Don't worry about it. She places her bag on the seat next to her, to bogart the space, and smooths out her skirt. "I have some operational experience with the Noise, as you might remember. I'm willing to lend my assistance, should it be required. Please, continue." Seeing Rita, Lilian occupies herself with drinking her water for slightly too long, wiping her lips with her thumb §Tastes like copper.§ and trying to smile a little. "We sort of scraped him back together. If we'd gotten to him any later-- well, I don't know. I wasn't the miracle worker involved. It's fortunate large parts of his brain were still cybernetic, though." She spots Rook, and reflexively tenses up.
Candy	A familiar four-stroke buzz rises up through the campus. Candy's motorcycle is like the great grandparent of what might commonly be seen in Tokyo--brand new, but betraying its relative antiquity in its design. This is most apparent, if not from the sound of the archaic engine, then in its profile; the flatness of the seat and the orientation of the handlebars. When he pulls up at the base of the hill, he dismounts, pulling a rectangular kickstand out and under the rear wheel. Adjusting an earth-toned newsie cap and pulling down a pair of motorist's goggles, Candy heads inside. Met with Ogawa, he shakes his head and stows the goggles away, in the pocket of an unbutton moss green vest. "You already know how I feel about 'playing it safe.'" He's never really trusted that secrecy was the best option. As usual, the work shirt beneath his vest is unbuttoned. He reaches to tug at his collar impatiently, then continues through the tunnel. He's content to let Genjuro do most of the talking (more out of imperious silence than genuine respect), until he notices who else is here. Who's speaking through that chassis. "Ishirou..." He stops, his irritation softening, taking a step closer, his hand extended, fingers brushing across the monitor serving as Ishirou's 'head.' His eyes brim up to make his weak smile a teary-eyed one, as he pulls him close and rests his forehead against the screen. With a palm slowly finding its way to either side, he pulls back after a moment of silently holding Ishirou's head to his. His eyes--at some point they'd shut, but they open, slowly, revealing something mixed in with the relief and care--anger. "The only reason I don't slap the shit out of you is 'cause I can't figure out how to make it sting with that stupid thing they put you in," he says, settling for shoving Ishirou's head with the palm of his hand. "I love you, stupid," he says, finger poked accusingly into the chest of the chassis. Candy fumes angrily for a moment more, his eyes softening the longer he looks at Ishirou, until he turns and sits back in his seat with a sigh.
Rita Ma	An unidentifiable emotion tugs at Rita's face when Lilian sits down. It intensifies when Candy is so playfully affectionate with Ishirou. She can't look at them. Her arms cross over her stomach; her eyes linger on the patterns of shadow her water bottle makes on the table. "I'm glad he's okay," she says, and means it, but she means a lot of things she doesn't say too.
Candy	"So am I," says Candy, head propped up with his cheek resting on his palm. "...But it didn't have to happen. Especially not for such a stupid fucking reason." He runs his fingers through his hair, tucking an errant lock behind his ear.
Ishirou	There...there are a lot of things that just happen at once and he's not sure how to respond to them all! It's overwhelming! Especially with Candy, both embraced and then Candy being angry with him. Ishirou... knows he deserves it, and he doesn't deny it or get angry about it. He sighs, nodding as he acknowledges it. He was stupid, he ran out alone and got killed. He...put everyone in danger, including Lilian. "Also if you hit it, it'd break very easily. This form isn't very...it's very fragile right now." But he does lean into Candy's arms and just sits there for a time, very happy to be able to feel this again, even if he doesn't feel like he's in the right form. "Thank you.." he says, "And I'm sorry.." "...To all of you, honestly. You...you were all there for me and I..." he swallows, "Made a huge mess out of things," he says, and looks to Rita, and Hibiki and then back to Candy. He looks back to Rita, who he sees as uncomfortable with all of this. "I'm...lucky, to say the least. I...put you into a very shitty position and...I'm sorry." He finally has a break from this to finally look at Screengela, and Rook. "Oh, you must be Rook (no relation)! Nice to meet you finally.." he says looking around. "Could...be a slightly less awkward time for it," he says, with a little nervous laugh. "This isn't a final form, so...don't get used to it," This was more aimed at the room than /specifically/ Rook.
Hibiki Tachibana	Hibiki, seeing Ishirou's (temporary) body for the first time, looks just as surprised as you'd expect. A little less surprised than Rita, if only because she knew he'd be in something else. Just not--this. She can't help but shake how weird it feels - or if he'd still be here the same as ever if things went differently. "...I'm just glad you're still here and okay," she murmurs, slumping a bit in her seat next to him. It also doesn't feel right to stare or even look that way while Candy is having his moment. She gives Rita a moment to recover, which lets her give a slightly awkward wave to Meika as she also sits. Her, Angela's group, and Rita just a little bit are probably the ones who need context the most. And explaining helps her not feel off around Lilian, either. "Right, um. Long story short, the Special Disaster Response Team is pretty much the government branch in charge of dealing with Noise - pretty much our Temptations...minus the part where the public doesn't know about them." she offers to Meika. "There's other stuff, like how they're the ones who make the Symphogears we use, and handling dangerous relics. I guess it's kinda different from the Holy Refulgence, since they're able to be more hands-on even if they can't fight directly..." She realizes that might come out the wrong way a moment late, but she's already said it. Genjuro, for his part, seems to be cracking a somewhat bigger smile at Candy and Ishirou before looking to Meika. His voice is awfully good at cutting through any awkwardness in the atmosphere. "It's no bother at all. We're glad to have you - and I know she is, as well. Helping one another is a foundation of the world we live in, isn't it?" And to Lilian, after some mild bemusement at her momentarily locking up, he actually gives his own bow back. "Dame Commander. I certainly do recall. And we truly do appreciate it. I wish today's meeting was only on the issue of the Noise, but it's unfortunately a little more complex than that." He clears his throat, which seems very fortuitiously timed for diverting attention owards him. He may or may not have picked up on the current feeling in the room. Best to give them something else to focus on.
Hibiki Tachibana	"I'll start from the top and keep it simple. Especially for the benefit of the new faces. Some time ago, the girls - and quite a few of you - looked into an 'abandoned' factory at the edge of the city on our behalf. ...Only to find both Noise lying in wait, and individuals who seemed to have some form of control over them. This meeting would have been called sooner than this, but...there's been no small amount of chaos kicked up in our ranks as a result." "We've operated on the knowledge of several things regarding Noise: they're monsters that appear entirely at random, act on genocidal instinct, cannot be communicated with...and only our Symphogear users, and outside help, are able to combat them. An effective natural disaster that we can only respond to as they show themselves. The idea that there's anyone or anything that can actually manipulate them to any extent is enough by itself. But, in no small part due to young Ishirou's skills," Genjuro gives a nod and a grin in his direction, exuding some Fatherly Vibes. "And our questioning of those we captured, we at least have an idea of the identity of those responsible." "...Going off of nothing but what we know for certain, we've established they're a secretive group of alchemists, bearing the name of the 'Bavarian Illuminati'. I'm aware in some worlds, that name represents a secret society founded hundreds of years ago. Whether 'ours' is the same or they're simply using the title, or if they're even local to our world in the first place, I couldn't tell you. But they seem to have had some hands in our business for some time now. Including arranging a prior Noise attack on a scale that required emergency Multiversal intervention." "Despite their best efforts to scuttle the evidence, we've confirmed they kept records of not only that event, but several others that included offworld visitors here." He focuses on Ishirou and Cantio in particular for a moment. "I'm sure you two remember a certain concert hosted here before. To exactly what end, we're not yet sure." Genjuro closes his eyes, inhaling deeply before sighing. There's the sense he's broaching a topic that's caused him no end of grief. "Which is all...a problem. In more ways than just the obvious. Until now, Noise disaster response has been our branch's primary concern. You can imagine why a human factor, especially a supernatural one, suddenly becoming involved has gotten the entire Ministry of Defense up in arms. I'd rather not get most of you mixed up those sort of affairs if I can help it, though. That's our headache to deal with. Rather, especially given this mystery group seems to have some peculiar outside interests, I'd like to ask for your help in dealing with them more directly, in a way that we can't by ourselves."
Angela	The normally chill Justin Rook's (still no relation) shoulders push up like 3 inches when he hears Lilian Rook speaking. He does not look over. He cannot look over. People might start making presumptions if he isn't careful. Such as Malkuth spotting Lilian and saying to him, "Oh wow... She really does look like you." "We're not related. And no I don't--" Rook whispers. "You have really similar hair and faces...If it bothers you you could change it." Malkuth whispers. "I like my hair." Rook says, still softly, that cool customer persona fading somewhat due to the topic at hand. "Babadeedoo da waaa." OHNO says. She swings the Angela tablet around a bit so she can get a look at everyone but... ''I love you, stupid.'' Angela's eyes open and now she really is looking at Ishirou. What kind of love is that 'I love you, stupid'? Friendship? Romance? Familial? Platonic? Rook bristles as subtext is sneakily approaching text in Ishirou's words. "Justin Rook." He says. "Of the Control Team, yes." Angela looks at Ishirou. ''Are you serious? Isn't-aren't we supposed to be focused on /helping/ right now?'' Angela closes her eyes again. "You COULD just go my Justin." Malkuth suggests. "I like being Rook..." Justin buries his face into the tablet he's holding onto. "She was here first." "I think I'm older than her... And why should that matter-- Look. We're here to help so let's help." The murmuring stops as helpful exposition--especially for the newcomers--is provided tough Justin does nod briefly to Rita so she knows he was listening. And the team DOES listen, especially as Genjuro gets into the meat of it. Angela bobs her head as he mentions the chaos in the ranks. That's certainly a familiar concept. And the Noise situation seems similar enough to an Abnormality breakout. The important thing, of course, is that they actually are able to help. All seems pretty basic as far as-- ''We've established they're a secretive group of alchemists, bearing the name of the Bavarian Illuminati'' The Lobotomy Corp team gets very silent and very still because THAT sure is atypical. Humans helping abnormalities? That's... ....Well, that does happen from time to time, sure, but not in an organized fashion unless you count how they're being used as power by L Corp as helping them. "Lobotomy Corporation specializes in suppressing abnormal forces such as the Noise. Human conflict--while not something we are wholly strangers too--is not our specialty. We are still willing to lend our assistance but if you would rather keep to the specialists, we will not be offended."
Candy	Candy whispers something to Ishirou. It looks like he's still a little upset, if in a less actively explosive way. >Helping one another is a foundation of the world we live in, isn't it? Candy looks up from his pointed staring at the table. It looks as though he's attempting to gauge how much Genjuro means that, with the sideways kind of way he's peering. His attention remains on Genjuro through the rest of the explanation, nodding every so often in time with the older man's pauses. He leans in, when Genjuro's feelings about the Illuminati's involvement are shared. "'Up in arms,'" he says. "I guarantee you, someone in that office is drooling, thinking about how he is gonna cut this place up. For whatever shitbrained reason," Candy waves a hand dismissively. "So--" he taps the index of the opposite hand onto the table. "Tell me about this 'direct' business, because you got the right idea there. Better than trying to talk sense to polished-table people. What do you have, ah, for 'leads?'" He can always get local or local-ish Watch contacts and sympathizers on the horn, too...
Ishirou	A...human element to this. Ishirou was thinking it was just some manipulation magic, but yes they did find out that the control was stronger than they expected. This group was also trying to burn a site down, but thankfully they didn't get /everything/. He helped recover a lot of information...but the bureaucracy was getting in the way again. Ugh... How could people distort such a lovely thing, as bureaucracy? Truly, nations truly don't understand the beauty of these things, and always something like this gets bloated and made overly complicated especially when it was supposed to help! Ishirou is very upset at this abuse of power and inefficiency...but he tables the thoughts for now. For now. He'll come back to these someday, Japanese ministry. And he'll destroy whoever is using it for their own benefit. He notices Angela staring at him, and he turns to her with an emoji smile. "I guess we only talked on Radio, nice to meet you finally...Angela right?" he asks, calmly and politely. "Sorry about the...drama earlier. It's...a complicated story." To Rook, he frowns but shrugs. "I'd just go with your first name...it's...complicated and for your ultimate benefit," he says to the agent, trying to be helpful. "Please. Indulge me on this, could you?" "I guarantee you, someone in that office is drooling, thinking about how he is gonna cut this place up. For whatever shitbrained reason," "I will destroy them," Ishirou says suddenly pointedly at the threat. "Bureaucracy is not made to be misused in this way."
Cantio	The affection between Candy and Ishirou, the tension between Rita and Lilian, the lingering words about not wanting someone back... Hibiki's reaction to Ishirou's body gives Cantio a few clues, too, even if it's not completely clear to her just yet. Just based on seeing how strained things are, though, she opts not to bring more attention to it and instead punches her palm a little too loudly to try and get her own mind focused on what Hibiki and Genjuro are saying. "More complex? Ah, the ambush. So we've got a name for this group now." Cantio nods slowly while murmuring the name 'Bavarian Illuminati' to herself, looking only briefly confused before shaking her head. "I remember reading a bit about a conspiracy theory in certain worlds, but not in anything involving mine. I wonder if naming themselves this is... A sign they're trying to court people that believe in it? Or if they're actually connected already." She speculates on that for a little bit longer, then shrugs. "It doesn't matter too much yet. They're already showing their hand with these stunts, and I can't imagine anyone wanting to ally themselves with someone so quickly making themselves a target and-" She nods at Genjuro firmly. "-failing to erase the evidence and witnesses." Genjuro gives them more details about what the situation is, and Cantio closes her eyes as she lets out a low, contemplative noise. "I understand. Your hands are full enough dealing with maintaining the peace here and responding to Noise appearances already, never mind actively chasing down whoever's controlling them if they can just launch scattered attacks whenever they want." Candy gets Cantio's mind going on the other implications of 'direct' dealings, and Ishirou making his own intentions clear has Cantio breaking into another smile. "It sounds like we're roughly on the same page then. That'll give us more time to come up with good-sounding statements for the public, too, since I doubt we'd be able to keep everything under wraps the entire time. Just let us know how..." Cantio waggles her hand vaguely, then gestures at her attache case with her head. "... Direct you want us to be. I can handle monstrous opponents and humans, so I can fit wherever I'm needed." She adds, nodding towards Angela after she mentions Lobotomy Corporations' strengths. "Monster elimination specialists could be a boon for training local defenders, though, especially if we can get them armed with something that works."
Rita Ma	"I...put you into a very shitty position and...I'm sorry." Rita's face scrunches up. She takes a little steadying breath, eyes still on the table. "You're being very kind, Mr. Ishirou. But let's not talk about that right now. We're here to help these people, aren't we?" When she finally does look up, it's with a brave, tired smile that doesn't reach her eyes. What she really means is, 'I'm not ready to talk about that.' As Genjuro elaborates, Rita reaches into her little leather satchel, pulls out a small pink notebook, and starts to jot down notes in pencil. After a few moments of scribbling, she says: "You mean, they're making files on the Elites trying to stop them, Mr. Kazanari?" Ordinarily the thought of someone building a dossier on her would make her skin crawl. Only her fatigue is sparing her the goosebumps. Then, later on: "Mmmm. So the 'Ministry of Defense' is trying to go over your head, because they think it's their business more than yours? It sounds like it'll be really hard for you to support us. What kind of leads do you have?" She sounds a little absent-minded. In the margins, she keeps trying to doodle pretty things, messing up halfway through, and abandoning them.
Meika Kirenai	"...Pretty much our Temptations..." Meika's heart sinks, a little bit, to hear the similarity drawn. The point, and the threat, comes across loud and clear. And it's a relief, just a bit, that here, it won't be secret or ignored. <J-IC-Scene> Rita Ma says, belatedly, "It's bad to let them touch you. They just 'burn' through people. They can be like ghosts and move through things, and then you can't really hurt them, but they have to turn solid again to touch you. Stay away from walls so they can't ambush you through them." When Rita gives the overview of the combat threat the Noise pose, Meika shifts her posture, first, shivering at the image that 'burning' through could imply, cross-referenced with things painful to recall and worse to forget, and second, looking away from her and towards the table, at the description of how they move. "...Individuals who seemed to have some form of control over the Noise." At this, Meika visibly startles. "What? Why would anyone-" Her voice cuts off, when she gives it even just a shred more thought. You can't even think to weaponize something you can't percieve, and don't know exists. But the people here aren't limited like in her world. It's shocking, but not surprising, and leaves Meika's stomach turning. "...I've never fought people. Not like.. that. Not in the same way I fight..." She wants to say Temptations, but they aren't that, here. And it'd be a lie to say Noise. "..The way I fight monsters." Her phrasing tastes bitter, so she bites the inside of her cheek. "...It's.. I get it, if it's.. a question that doesn't matter, or.. doesn't have an answer... but why are they called that? The Noise?" Her eyes haven't moved up from the table again.
Lilian Rook	'I wish today's meeting was only on the issue of the Noise, but it's unfortunately a little more complex than that.' Okay. Now Lilian is paying attention. "I certainly do remember, yes." Lilian says. It's true, but the oddity of the situation isn't why she remembers that day. "I've been patient awaiting your findings, to tell you the truth. I'd begun to suspect it'd have to stay under wraps as a matter of security." She blinks politely at the words 'Bavarian Illuminati'; reflex takes over, to seem gracefully credulous. Thankfully she can let Genjuro keep talking while she processes that one. §He's so easy to listen to. What a voice.§ "Beg pardon, commander, but are you able to suggest with confidence that the Noise are a form of alchemical weapon?" Her hand slides out of her lap, rubbing absently at her upper thigh. "That is to say, that they function by principles of alchemy and have likely been directed by human intelligence for some time?" She leaves some room open to patiently wait for an answer, but moves forward regardless. "Then, please pardon my saying so, but this is actually good news. A natural disaster is something that might continue to happen, and to take lives, for centuries into the future. If there's a shady cabal of malicious actors behind it, however, then we can eliminate the Noise threat by eliminating them. Isn't that good? To have a concrete enemy to strike, rather than . . . formless, apathetic chaos." 'You have really similar hair and faces...If it bothers you you could change it.' Lilian slams her hand down on the table, quivering from the sharp application of force. "I would appreciate it if you could remain on-task, rather than continue gawk over the coincidence of a similar last name." §And he doesn't look like me.§ "We have no relation, and there is no resemblance. I'm growing tired of it. §I'd never look like that. I've never looked like that.§ Lilian clears her throat, breathing out to gather herself. "I understand your situation. Taking action against a human organization, even a malicious one, endangers your position as a disaster response agency, and places you precarious on the border of a paramilitary group. This sort of thing is best handled legitimately by the Paladins-" A glance aside. "Or discreetly taken care of by the Watch, rather than risking your position of governmental approval." "Moreover, because our opposition can be classed as insurgents, the government is attempting to maintain its force of jurisdiction by handling the matter internally, wherein, I suspect, you already have cause to believe there may be informants, corruption, or other forms of obstructionist leverage. For whatever reason, you cannot confidently trust the Japanese government to dispose of the issue. Am I on-track here?"
Rita Ma	Meika's a nice distraction. Meika doesn't have anything to do with all of that. So Rita's able to summon up a little more energy, a little more sincerely smiling compassion. "Fighting humans really is different, Meika. It's okay if that's not something you can do. I'm sure there'll be plenty of Noise for you to help with, so don't feel like you have to push yourself. Okay?" It might be difficult to believe that the 5'2" adorable girl knows what fighting humans sounds like, but she sounds so earnest.
Meika Kirenai	"...Yeah." Meika manages a small nod, finally looking back Rita's way. It feels wrong, in some ways, that it's even being considered. Harm to people, to civilians, avoided at whatever cost. But real knights don't just slay dragons. They carried lances and swords to fight monsters, and protect people. It wouldn't matter to them, if the monsters had faces and names. But faces and names still matter oh-so-much to her. "...I'll.. I'll try and stick to the Noise. I don't know, yet, how... my magic would work on other people." Meika smiles, faintly. Does that make this just play-pretend?
Cantio	Meika gets Cantio's attention when she mentions not fighting people in the way that everyone else means it. Rita offers her some advice, and Cantio follows up a moment later with a reassuring smile and smacking her own chest once with a confident grunt (and only the slightest of winces). "When it comes to handling people that way, you can leave it to me. I've-" Wait. Isn't this going to make it sound like Cantio's killed plenty of people before? It's not like that'd be a lie, but... Someone has to play that part here, and she's not about to let Rita do it. "-done my share of fighting people before and... Other things. If you want to learn, though, maybe I can give you some training on fighting a person-sized opponent after we get things figured out here."
Hibiki Tachibana	'We are still willing to lend our assistance but if you would rather keep to the specialists, we will not be offended.' "Make no mistake. If you're used to dealing with monsters, we'll welcome the help. Ordinary Noise outbreaks are well within our wheelhouse, even with only two Symphogear users. Used as weapons by human hands...that's what really gives me a bad feeling. If anyone here has no wish to fight against humans, you're more than free to decline. But if you're still willing to offer assitance, you have my gratitude." 'I guarantee you, someone in that office is drooling, thinking about how he is gonna cut this place up. For whatever shitbrained reason.' 'Mmmm. So the 'Ministry of Defense' is trying to go over your head, because they think it's their business more than yours?' 'Bureaucracy is not made to be misused in this way.' As far as Candy can tell, Genjuro was entirely serious about what he's stated. There wasn't a hint of not believing his own words, or saying it simply to say it. And at that particular mention of both his and Ishirou's, he shuts his eyes and lets a grunt rumble from his throat. "The other arms of national defense would love to take full control of the situation, if they could. Our personal jurisdiction isn't people or foreign insurgents, it's Noise. Ironically, it's only thanks to their involvement that they don't have solid ground to entirely stonewall us from involving ourselves." "...Truthfully, they have plenty to say about Multiversal aid in this, too. Including that we should've dealt with the problem on our own from the start. If some of them had it their way, I'm sure they'd make it so outside help was never possible in the first place..." '...I've never fought people. Not like.. that. Not in the same way I fight...' "...I get it,"" Hibiki is the one to murmur from off to Meika's side, leaning forward a bit to look at her after Rita gives her own reassurance. "Especially because it's not..." She clearly struggles with the words for a few seconds, before looking down at the fist in her lap. "It's not what these powers are meant to do, right? But...if you're fighting for more than just to hurt who you're fighting...I think there's something to that." She pauses, then slumps back in her chair some. "...Well. Sometimes. Sorry. I'm probably not making much sense."
Hibiki Tachibana	'... But why are they called that? The Noise?' "Mm. Back when the United Nations gave them an official designation, it was probably due in large part to their appearance. When they're phased out of this world and unable to interact with it, their bodies take on a quality almost like static noise. They have distinct sounds when moving, as well. But..." Genjuro goes from thoughtfulness to giving Hibiki in particular a small smile. "...It's a happy coincidence, that the singing of our Symphogear users is the best weapon we have against them." 'Am I on-track here?' From the decisive nod Lilian receives, she can tell she's right on the money. "I couldn't have put together a better summary of everything myself. Even pushing the idea of any foul play going on elsewhere in the government aside, we're going to have our hands full running the issue around in circles, if it ever reaches a point where we'd be able to act ourselves. For that reason, we don't have much choice but to put things in your hands for now. Leaving things to everyone else never did sit well with me, but..." He gives a sigh, closes his eyes for a few seconds, then sweeps his golden eyes across the room. "It's completely possible they might have something to do with the Noise's existence in our world. It can't be discounted. If solving this situation leads to ultimately stopping them for good, that'd be the best possible outcome. You'll have every bit of support we can offer. As for leads..." Genjuro crosses his arms over his chest. "Among the few unburned records we were able to recover, we've found more than one instance of coordinates pointing towards a location in the rural countryside. Satellite imagery hasn't revealed a single thing, other than untouched forests and hills - but given that they've already had one hiding hole hidden right under our noses in plain sight, it's a fair bet that we'll find either another of their bases...or something of importance to them there. They'll probably be expecting it this time around. But investigating there will hopefully give us more to go off of. And maybe shed some light on the driving forces in their organization behind this." "Obviously, handling that ourselves is out of the question - especially when we only have two real combatants of our own able to handle something like this. But no one would be able to say anything about the Paladins or otherwise investigating a mysterious group keeping tabs on them, would they?" That's a rather wry grin on his face.
Angela	"Buddy," Justin says to Ishirou. "You seem like a nice guy, but a good Fixer learns patience or they'll just step into a mess they can't get out of. Nice guys who step into every hot zone without feeling things out will die--or be sacrificed." Whether he means the stuff about his name or about his willingness to speak directly to Angela is something he doesn't specify. Angela gets an emoji smile. Her eyes open again as she stares at them. Is this how A saw her? A series of basic simulated emotions? Is that why A turned away and never looked at her? Because he saw it as mockery? He did, she knows, he saw her as a mockery of someone whom she wasn't. Someone she doesn't have a desire to be. Did her attempts to reach out seem just as tactless-- She stares at Ishirou's smile. She stares at Ishirou's smile for ten seconds. She stares at Ishirou's smile for 16 minutes. She stares at Ishirou's smile for 32 minutes. She stares at it like a train wreck she can't turn aay from, or a lab experiment she can't interpret the results of. She stares at Ishirou's smile for 64 minutes. Then a hundred twenty eight minutes. She wants to close her eyes again so she stops seeing it but it's another thirty to minutes before she closes her eyes again. Her mind may be racing but her body is stuck moving as slowly as the rest of them. No, it is not the same. He gets to sit here in a body with legs. He gets to be poked in the center of his chest in an unfamiliar territory. "That i correct. I am Angela. It is a pleasure to meet you--where we can see each other." Angela says eventually--she almost said 'in person'. Time hasn't slowed anywhere but in her mind, Time is always so slow in her mind. "Have you ever heard the story of Today's Shy Look?" Angela asks. "It take place in a city and is the story of a woman inside that city. In that city, sacrifices for corporations were to be highly praised but sadness struck the woman suddenly while she was drying laundry. 'What's with that look on your face? That kind of facial expression isn't recommended for our city.' 'Goodness, why are you making such a face? You're making others feel gloomy too. Be more considerate.' 'You are very poor at expressing your emotions, you must be very shy. Try to look more pleased so those on the Outskirts will be more envious of us. Put a bigger smile on your face.'" "Then one sunny day, she went out to draw her laundry again but this time, it was their own flesh they put out to dry. Everyone was always happy when that dried skin showed a bright smile. If anyone asked what was wrong, they'd say they were just shy, just shy..." "Trying to look at the face behind the skin... I am curious as to your thoughts on the tale. What can be derived from it and what lessons we might derive." Neither Rook nor Malkuth expected Lilian to lose her cool (so far she seemed like a pretty cool customer all told, if a stern one). He opens his mouth to say 'That makes two of us' but he firmly presses his lips shut once he realizes that's only going to invite more of it. Maybe not today, now that Lilian has put her foot down, but out of sight. "She's completely right." Malkuth, chagrined, manages a "Sorry. sorry ma'am... I'll work harder and won't make the mistake again." Malkuth says, even going so far as to write it down in her notepad. Angela turns her attention to Genjuro though and says, "Do not worry, we have no compunctions about fighting human beings. It is just not our specialty. Our government takes a similar attitude so we will use similar amounts of discretion as in our home world." But Rook isn't sure about this one, all told. Not because it involves fighting humans--he's had to do that before--no, it just gives him a bad vibe--like whatever is out there might even want them to investigate so it can devour them whole. 5rStill, his job is his job.
Cantio	'If anyone here has no wish to fight against humans, you're more than free to decline.' "I've got a personal interest in how things are going here, so that isn't happening." Cantio confirms easily, glancing over at Hibiki and giving her a quick thumbs up. She goes quiet for several moments afterwards, then finally speaks up after Genjuro confirms Lilian's summary of the matter (and the desk smack). "Besides, if worse comes to worst and they do try to keep Multiversal involvement to a minimum? I'm sure the Concord and the Paladins can keep their eyes on us while our more discreet operatives take care of things where they aren't looking." She gives Candy and Rita a knowing nod in particular, then turns her attention to Genjuro again once he starts describing the lead they've got. "The countryside, huh? I haven't been out somewhere liket hat in a while. It'll be a nice change of pace from the usual." Cantio hums briefly as she considers the possibility of actually enjoying the trip out to nature, and then she quickly gets her head back into the matter at hand. "Ah, coming up with a reason to be out there should be easy. Cultists, mobsters, mad scientists, whatever should work fine. It's not like I-er. The Concord doesn't have its own share of enemies." She laughs, she pauses, and then she looks off to the side slightly awkwardly.
Ishirou	Ishirou is a little jumpy at the hand slam and the friction between Lilian and Rook. He sighs, this is going to be one things isn't it..? Hopefully, it won't end in reality needing to be torn apart again, then again...that was because of that fuck face from the Concord. Yeah, Ishirou was sure he learned his lesson after Lilian and Persephone taught it to him. Angela is talking to him now, and he is oblivious to how long she has looked at his smile. However, he listens to the story, thinking about it seriously. It was definitely a little horrific when considering it, but it wasn't about the horror in the plot...there was something else here. He looks over to Lilian and Rita for a moment, and then back to Angela. "How the expectations of others can hurt us. I think that's it. The person was being told repeatedly that they shouldn't be sad, that they had no reason to be sad. That they shouldn't express themselves in the way they wanted to, and instead they mutilated themselves so that they could express themselves the way everyone else wanted them to.." "What makes it sad is that they can't even admit that it was the fault of the pressure and society around them, and instead fell back on it being a personal failing...that being shy or sad is something they could help. That it was a personal failing or weakness." Ishirou sighs, his smile dimmed by the story and the analysis of it. "The way some people use society...use the structures of government and bureaucracy to hurt others around themselves, so that they themselves don't feel uncomfortable at best...and for their own greed at worse." He turns to Genjuro, "Is it possible that I get access to your files on the attacks? I need to look for patterns. I should also, reexamine a Noise with the information we have now..." he says, looking at Lilian, "If Lilian's hypothesis is right, then I can provide her formula to help combat them, or at the very least make their assaults less deadly.." he says considering things. "I also have an idea for long-term planning, to help make your position stronger, if you're willing to listen, but this is not about the current situation. If you want us to look at this sight, I could probably spring some things on them to make it also above board in a way they can't counter, without hurting your position. It...might reveal our hand a touch early, but...It would confirm some things."
Candy	Well that just fucking figures, don't it. I was right. And these people, they are even stupider than most polished-table people. Candy's hand, laid across the table, balls slowly into a fist. After a moment, he relaxes it, leaning back in the seat. "I was there when we fought 'em the first time. So I know a little about what they can do." He doesn't feel the need to bring up his experience fighting people, as opposed to monsters. "It'd be better if they weren't already wise to us, but it's not the end of the world, ah? Besides... we scared them good, showing up when we did. And we won't be going out there blind, like we did before," he says, motioning behind him with a thumb. "Sure." Candy nods. "I can, ah... 'keep tabs.'" He's pretty good at doing it without being spotted, even. Whatever else he might have had to say never makes it out--because he is instead captivated by Angela's story the further it goes on. The expression on his face, as he scans the others in the room--Lilian, Ishirou, Hibiki and Rita first--is one of mute disbelief. In this particular case, the message behind the story is utterly lost on him, for his inability to overcome the trappings of the story. "Is that real?" he asks. "Did that really happen?"
Meika Kirenai	Hibiki's reassurances are welcome, even if they're mostly reassuring in the way that it helps, a little, to hear someone else also struggles, or struggled, with the same something. But thinking of it her way doesn't really make it easier. It's not hard to think fighting people could help protect other people, it's hard to have to realize that here and now, it could be worse if she /didn't/. It hurts to know someone has to get hurt. But that's just part of the job, isn't it? "..I'm still going to try and help." Of course she is. It's what she came all the way out here for. She looks between Hibiki and her boss as she says this, though there's not much confidence in her posture. Static noise. Fought by perfect, orderly singing. "...Oh, good. I was.. a little worried, the name would mean I'd struggle fighting them." It's not all that was worrying her. "I use.. my powers are sound. The noisy- the loud, discordant kinds. Not music. If they wouldn't work on them, or would be a danger.. I'd step out." Her heel taps against the ground, erratically. "But if they aren't, and if you'd have me still.. I want to help." "Do the... alchemists, was it? Do they have magical abilities of their own...? Can they hide things in plain sight? Um." Her foot taps faster. "What I mean is... when things look different than they're shaped, I can tell it a bit. And I can get around and through things quietly. If.. we're finding somewhere to break into, even if It winds up I can't fight the Noise, or the others, I might still be able to lend a hand." "But if I can fight the Noise I'm going to. I'd be good at it." More than confidence, there's a hint of desperation in her voice.
Angela	Angela would be terribly embarrassed to humiliate herself by just pushing her feelings out in the open. This indirect method is her only option. A machine must be as a machine, after all--but let's face it, even if she wasn't, she'd be mortified if she was seen as acting out. Even saying this much made her feel like she was peeling back the skin a bit too much. "While I do believe some find some wildly inaccurate takes from a tale, I do believe that there is often still room for interpretation." Angela says. "There is a certain horror in expectations you never asked for, and the horror of successfully shaping yourself into those expectations... But in the end, she gets to keep her true feelings hidden behind her mask. A small little triumph." "Still, I doubt any of her neighbors meant any harm. The bureaucracy was hardly involved here except distantly. It was for the woman's own good, in their eyes, but it suggests to me that between thoughtless cruelty and thoughtful cruelty..." "The former digs its hooks in more deeply, don't you think?" She 'looks' at Candy in the sense that her head turns, but her eyes remain closed. "I wouldn't know." Angela says to him. "I've never once set foot in the City. But none of our Abnormalities are lies." That uncomfortable look in Rook's eyes, despite what Angela said, carries a barrel full of suggestions but he does simple mutter, "For the Backstreets at least..." He has seen enough of these outside worlds to recognize that some things might just be difficult to understand about where he comes from. It isn't exactly the darkest place out there and everywhere has their own problems but... "In the backstreets we'd call that a happy ending." Angela's head turns to Rook now. Silent.
Lilian Rook	'It's not what these powers are meant to do, right?' "It's not as if you have to kill them." Lilian says, a little tensely. "I'm not about to." She glances sidelong at Hibiki, and her voice cracks just slightly. "How can you talk about fighting to communicate and show your feelings all the time, and say those powers can bring each other together, but then say they can't be used to fight people? You know what fighting is, don't you?" She slowly looks away again, back to Genjuro. "I'm beginning to miss the Tachibana who would take action when people are wrong."" 'They have no idea why they keep you around. A fucking 'good heart'.' "So, we're looking at an organized raid. If they know we recovered their documents, they'll have already moved shop, and if they don't, we'll need to perform a deep surgical strike into an unknown lair as fast as possible to prevent them from destroying more data; so it doesn't hurt to prepare either way." says Lilian. "It'll be rather dangerous in close quarters, if they really are creating manmade Noise there. We still know very little about their abilities; the last investigation turned into a dangerous ambush too. It'd be best if we could avoid tripping an early warning net, but . . ." She trails off into thoughtfully biting her thumbnail, staring into the middle distance. "Well. That's a tactical concern, not a strategic one." Lilian finally concludes. "That is to say, our problem and not yours. I'll draft a plan of attack to prevent us winding up with a dead end." She looks up to lock eyes with the commander for a moment. "And I'll be disseminating information, as well as any potential captives. to S.O.N.G. I'll trust your own operational expertise as to what should be safe to share with the Ministry of Defense." 'Sorry. sorry ma'am... I'll work harder and won't make the mistake again.' "Apology accepted." Lilian says, briskly. "I wish I needn't be so strict about it, but it's become a repeating pattern as of late. Your first time is my third time and all." She breathes out, most of her volume disappearing with the air. "Or thousandth time. Not understanding is inevitable." 'Is that real?" he asks. "Did that really happen?' "It happens all the time." Lilian says, before she catches Candy's look, and realizes Ishirou is looking too. "Usually in a less gory, but hardly metaphorical way. Don't fall for a trick question; it's not a parable, but stating how things are. If you know, you know, and if you don't, there's nothing you'll learn from it." She shrugs. "Though, I wasn't asked, so that's all I have to tell you."
Meika Kirenai	"There is a certain horror in expectations you never asked for, and the horror of successfully shaping yourself into those expectations... But in the end, she gets to keep her true feelings hidden behind her mask. A small little triumph." As Angela talks, and as she mulls over her words, Meika bites the inside of her cheek. Hard enough to taste copper. "...Is that a triumph? To hurt to still hide like that? Wouldn't... the triumph be..." She trails off. Who am I to talk?
Ishirou	Ishirou thinks about the words, the response to his own words, and to Angela. He sighs, introspection is a bitch, and he feels bad. There are too many times he was thoughtless, or cruel without realizing it. He takes a long breath, and says something over the radio, and then to Angela he smiles again, a bit more thinly. "Thanks for the story, and...the lesson. It's something I'll think about more." He looks to Meika, "You're right, it's not a triumph. People shouldn't be afraid to express who they are...and if people want to be one way, then their existence shouldn't hurt others.." he rubs his face. "It's...something I know I want to change."
Lilian Rook	Lilian takes a sharp breath, and then immediately breaks her own rule. She trusts Candy to take away the right idea. She can't leave a teenager, her junior in the Paladins, alone with it. "It is. The way you feel inside is all you really have in the end. What they want isn't for you to smile, but to colonize your mind. They want you to think that you should be smiling, all on your own." "Whatever you can do to keep that from happening-- to separate what you know you feel and what you have to show the world-- is something you have to try. Giving up on something, and keeping it a secret until the right moment . . . There's a world of difference between them."
Hibiki Tachibana	Angela receives a hearty nod of her own in thanks, although it's Rook that Genjuro's golden eyes settle on briefly. Detecting some of his misgivings, maybe. But as he keeps them to himself for now, the Commander doesn't bring himself to pry. Meika, who's much more open about her thoughts, is the one who gets his attention after. After her declaration, picking up on her tone, he's silent for maybe a second longer than he has to be. Before she gets a nod directed at her as well. There's a sense there's something he wants to say, but it vanishes all at once as he gives a genuine, "We'll be counting on you every bit as much as the others." He lets that linger very briefly before adding on. "Given we've only had the one run-in with them thus far, we're unsure of their capabilities. They've shown control over fire and wind, on top of manipulating the Noise, so I wouldn't put anything past them as of now. To my understanding, 'alchemy' takes all sorts of different forms across worlds...and this is our first encounter with it here. Anything is on the table," he offers towards both her, and Lilian's planning ahead. 'You know what fighting is, don't you?' 'I'm beginning to miss the Tachibana who would take action when people are wrong.' Hibiki, who was content to stay on the sidelines and mull over the meaning of Angela's story herself, momentarily locks up. Candy can tell, when he looks at her. The way the fist in her lap clenches in tighter, shaking just a little bit. Yesterday was like unstopping a cork on some of her piled-up emotions. Hearing that from her, face to face, while her heart is still raw... "It's not /my/ fault that that's gotten a thousand times harder to do! Just what do you want me to say!? I can't make /everybody/ happy! I'm not perfect, damnit!" She forces it out with squared up shoulders and her head low, eyes scrunched up for two seconds before they go wide, a little bit wet, and she realizes what she said. In front of everyone. Her expression goes from surprise to frustration as she bites her bottom lip, pushes out of her seat, and goes to leave the room fast enough that it's just short of a run. Ogawa, outside the door, is taken aback enough that he isn't able to stop her from brushing past on her way down the hall. And inside the room, Genjuro puts on a look that's somewhere between strained and deeply pained before a hand comes up to run back through his hair and he exhales through his nose. "...You can look through our files as much as you like," he offers to Ishirou, clearly having to work to keep his voice level. "I'm sure Ryoko would be happy to help. And...we can discuss your plan in detail, while we're at it."
Meika Kirenai	A sharp breath from a superior isn't a fun thing to hear, but Lilian's explanation comes softer than Meika was expecting. She takes her hands out of her pockets, and scratches at her thumb, absentmindedly, as she listens to her talk. "Oh. That.. makes more sense. 'Until the time is right.' I wasn't... really thinking that.. could be a part of it. That's a lot different than giving up." Meika doesn't respond to the first half of the explanation. It doesn't need further acknowledgement. It really is a triumph, to avoid that. "..Thanks, Chevalier Rook." There's a faint, small jolt in Meika's posture as she defaults to that title for her.
Angela	Angela realizes that Lilian Rook understands something of her. That's twice now that she felt like someone had the capacity to understand her. She wants to tell her so, right here, right now-- but that would be going against the tale, wouldn't it? Giving up on something and keeping it a secret until the right moment. There IS a world of difference between them. Malkuth and everyone was wrong. There really is very litlte similar about Justin Rook and Lilian Rook. She sees a world of difference, anyway, chief of which (to Angela) is that Justin Rook would never have understood the statement of triumph. It isn't a parable. It happens all the time. Less gory, perhaps, but not metaphorical. Even if it means you have to rip off your own flesh and staple it to your face... You cannot absolutely cannot let them take how you feel. But maybe the most understanding comes from her words about that right moment. The Dame Commander is a dangerous woman. Angela doesn't mind that at all. While she could hardly say that she knows Lilian, it is nice for that little piece of her to be understood. But it doesn't feel the same way as Persephone's promise. It's strange how different it feels. Rook would describe it as the difference between an old hat at being a Fixer, and an old hat at running a Fixer Office, but it isn't as if he knows Lilian that well either but he's quietly grateful. Maybe this'll be the end of it. In gratitude he elects to not comment on any of this stuff and actually focus on the mission which he does by finally admitting to Genjuro, "It feels like a trap honestly, if everything's pointing in noe direction. Can't imagine an Office that survived that long wouldn't be expecting us. I know that doesn't mean we can avoid paying them a visit but it sounds like a dangerous one. 'Specially if you had a run-in already." "...Indeed, Commander. I appreciate your ability to comprehend these things quickly." She says this despite how dangerous it can be when someone knows you are waiting for the right moment. Angela thinks about Ishirou's words but doesn't answer them. Maybe when she was still young...
Lilian Rook	"I don't care if it's your fault, Tachibana. It's your obligation. It's fine, if you fail because it was hard. Nobody will blame you for screwing up because you aren't that good at it. But when you sit there and tell me with a straight face that there's nothing you can do, and you just wait and watch it happen, we can all tell which side you're really on. All the tears and fist clenching in the world won't change where you drew your line when you split 'had to try' from 'not meant for it'." Lilian stands up from her seat, picking up her bag and smoothly looping it over her shoulder. "Think nothing of it, Chevalier Vermillion." she says, defaulting into what comes to mind when responding in kind. What she knows about magical girls is somewhat skewed. "I'm happy that you caught on so quickly. You're quite bright, despite that disinterest in school." she adds. "Or perhaps because of it." She dips her head again towards Genjuro on the way out. "I'll pick up a hard copy of my own while I'm here; it's probably best not to transmit them wirelessly. Justin has a high probability of being correct. A trap isn't necessarily a bad thing, however. It means they'll have gathered defensive assets into one place; they stand to reveal more of their hand and sustain greater losses if we can deal with it anyways. In other words, you can run an outpost without an experienced officer or valuable materiel, but you can't organize anti-Elite operations that way. I'll inform your subordinate as soon as I have something available."
Ishirou	Ishirou is about to say something else when Hibiki explodes. He is startled and leans back and listens...looking between her and Lilian...especially with Lilian clapping back. He holds his breath in his mouth for too long... Or would, if he could still breathe. When the tension literally leaves he sighs, looking dejected. Was this his fault..? By going out there did he really injure them, even if he was the person who died..? He... He sighs again. No, he doesn't know what to do...but he can't sit around and do nothing either. He can't be passive, because it was pasitivty that got them here. Emotions were complicated in a way Ishirou doesn't like, he can't analyze them, he can't predict them, he can't map them out like data and make sense of them. They are beyond his ability to truly 'understand' in a way he can with other things...and emotional intelligence was hard. Even methods that could let him look at others' hearts weren't the same as /feeling/ things. He... No, he didn't have to do this himself. He could get better, he could listen to the right people. Calm down Ishirou, you can do this...you can be better. You can't turn back time, but you can be better. In and out, Ishirou, just pretend you are breathing and ignore the fact that you can't right now. His screen head hits the table. "Ow," he says.
Meika Kirenai	"We'll be counting on you..." As Commander Kazanari starts up, Meika almost, barely smiles- ...Every bit as much of the others." -But it's what she should have expected in the first place. New recruit, new meat, of course nobody would trust and treat her differently. This isn't back home, or like before. Here, she's just one in a crowd. As Genjuro keeps talking, Meika makes halfhearted mental notes of the threat assessments, but puts more stock in the 'we don't really know, so be cautious'. It'll pay to be wary. At least a bit. She'll have to get home, hopefully in one piece, at the end of the day, and so will everyone else. Hibiki's outburst almost makes Meika flinch to cover her ears, but the expression on the other magical girl- No, Symphogear user. If that's what she is, to her world and herself, then that's what's right, isn't it? -draws out a sympathetic softened gaze from her. She doesn't know the specifics of why, or who, the exchange between Lilian and Hibiki is about, but there's hurt there. Lots of it. In both of them. Nobody wins there. It's hard to not do anything, watching the two of them, but there's not even time for Meika to whisper something to Hibiki as she rushes out, even if she had any words to say. Later. Maybe later. She perks up at the name used, but almost immediately afterwards, Lilian calling her bright elicits a strange almost-pout from Meika. I should have got it wrong. "...I don't think it's because. And.. I'm.. not. My sister's the bright one. Everything she does is bright. It's.. at best, a little rubbed off on me. Maybe she's talked about this kind of stuff." She pauses, and looks between both Commanders. "...I should grab copies, too. I'd get in trouble if I didn't bring back something to go over." A nervous laugh that doesn't match the concern on her face, and Meika stands herself. She dusts off her coat for a second, useless at cleaning its countless scuff marks, and starts towards the exit. "..Can I follow you out, Mis- Chevalier Rook?"
Candy	Candy listens to Angela and Lilian in turn, frowning thoughtfully. "Huh. Thanks for answering, anyway," he says to Angela. Lilian gets a shrug from him. "I don't know if I know," he says. "Probably not." He does, actually, if she bothers to look--his mental defenses are hardly ever raised for certain people, and she's among them. For his part, there's no rule--he just happens to be so confused that he thinks the exchange was about some secret third thing he wasn't privy to, and happens to trust her intentions enough to 'defer' to her. Thus--"Oh, that." His expression sours from contemplation into annoyance, and he pushes back from the table, one leg crossed over the other. When Lilian offers her advice to Meika, Candy nods, pointing at Lilian with an index without sitting up. Again, he finds himself about to say something, when Lilian's remark towards Hibiki sets her off. "Hibiki--" That has him sitting up straight, getting out of his chair to take a step towards the door as she hurries towards it. She's already left the room by the time his second foot catches up. "God damn it." Watching as Lilian leaves next, he shakes his head. Everything's fucked again. Well, to hell with that, ah? "Hey," he says, looking over his shoulder at Ishirou. "I know it's shitty. But it's not gonna be this way forever." He doesn't know exactly what's got him bothered, but it isn't hard to guess it's for similar reasons as his own frustration. It isn't easy to watch two friends you respect and admire go at each other like that. "Just come and find me when you get a minute. We can talk about the work here, and... other stuff. If you want. I'm gonna go get some things together, make some calls." He turns, hugs Ishirou from behind, and then procures a playing card. Candy crushes the card between his fingers, and promptly disappears from the room.
Lilian Rook	Lilian stops near the door, looking at Meika oddly when she disagrees. A single beat of contemplation goes by. "She is." Lilian says, slow and measured. "And she's also not here." She adjusts the strap of her bag. "I believe in making sure to show appreciation when people try to engage with things they might not be used to, or when they have to try harder than usual. I imagine Chevalier Cobalt gets enough praise already." 'Everyone fucking worships you. I hate them too.' A second goes by. "Very well. We'll go together. This is the most convenient time for it, after all." It seems as if she's about to say something else, then uncomfortably refrains from doing so. She remains silent while she leaves. The sense is that of her trying to be tactful in a way she isn't used to being.