RE: [IC][Story][Arc 1] Rob and Brent's as-yet-untitled sidestory (Rob's #10, Brent's TBD)
08-01-2020, 09:16 AM (This post was last modified: 08-01-2020, 09:17 AM by robkelk.)
08-01-2020, 09:16 AM (This post was last modified: 08-01-2020, 09:17 AM by robkelk.)
It's "eventually".
Blossom Apartments, Ottawa, ON, Canada
Saturday, January 14, 2017
12:57 PM ET
"Why don't we both go skating like this, Mako-chan? It'll be fun!"
Makoto looked at Eternal Sailor Moon for a long moment. "Is Hyoga-san going to show off her wings, too?"
"Oopsie!" Usagi transformed from Eternal Sailor Moon to Sailor Moon. "So much happened today that I forgot which form I was in. Is this better?"
Makoto nodded, then grinned. "Sure, let's pretend to be cosplayers today."
Somewhere in Russia
Same time
"I just had the strangest feeling."
"We don't have time to talk about strange feelings - the tournament in Japan is only two months away. And you still need to polish that 'transformation' in the middle of your routine. Get back onto the ice, Evgenia; I'll start the music from the beginning."
Blossom Apartments
Same time
"Let me put the leftovers in the fridge before we go," Makoto continued.
"We have leftovers? After how much we served everyone?" Usagi couldn't believe they'd reached the end of a meal and there was still food left over.
Makoto grinned sheepishly. "That's my fault. I bought enough to feed everyone... then you and Sakura duplicated it."
"I guess we're having leftovers tonight, ne?" Then Usagi grinned. "Can I have another one of those -?"
"Not if you want to go skating any time soon, you can't."
Meanwhile, Rob was chatting with some of his guests when Mii caught his attention. "Excuse me," he apologized before walking over to her. "What's up?"
"Did somebody order a tour bus?"
"Why?"
"One just pulled up. Empty, except for the driver."
"I'd better go take a look at it, then." He stepped out into the lobby, grabbed his coat, and headed outside to discover a bus, not quite big enough to hold everybody, with "Funtom Tours" painted on the side. Rob nodded to himself as he walked to the bus door, which opened to reveal Sebastian, with a large box filled with pairs of skates sitting on the seats immediately behind his. "Why am I not surprised that you're driving?"
"Hello to you too. And you're welcome."
"Yeah. Thanks. I assume this is coming out of the operating budget for this month."
Sebastian smiled a toothy grin. "You assume correctly."
Rob sighed. "Yeah, we can settle that later. I am happy you're here, though - that leaves me with a lot fewer trips to make carrying people in the building's minivan."
"What's the route?"
Rob thought for a minute, then pulled out his cellphone and started the map app that Kazari had customized from OpenStreetMap. "A bus this big won't fit on the side streets where most people get dropped off - it'll have to be at the National Arts Centre." He traced the route on the screen. "Be sure to point out Vincent Massey Park, the Agricultural Museum, and the Museum of Mature along the way."
"I'm a driver, not a tour guide."
"Right. We have tour guides."
Sebastian's toothy grin re-appeared. "You're going to make your guests work? There's hope for you yet."
Rob frowned, then thought for a quick moment. "All right, we have one tour guide. She'll ride with you and point out the sights. I'll take a few people in the van and lead the way."
A few minutes later, Rob had tracked down Usagi. "But I don't know anything about being a tour guide!"
He sighed. "Weren't you undercover as a tour guide when you met Rei?"
"Oh, yeah. Hey, Luna, where's the Disguise Pen?"
Rideau Canal Skateway, Ottawa, ON, Canada
Saturday, January 14, 2017
1:21 PM ET
"Rob-oji, how can you be so sure Mimi isn't Mimete?"
He didn't turn to look at Minako - he was busy driving. "You never wear the glasses that Skuld gave us."
"I don't need glasses. And what does that have to do with Mimete?"
"The glasses let their wearer see what's really in front of them. Mii and I find them very useful, and so does Ami when she wears hers. We're getting good at spotting sluagh and other things that can't be seen with normal eyes."
"So?"
Mii decided to join the conversation. "That includes the thing that was possessing Mimi. We saw it leave her body, and we saw you destroy it. It's gone."
Kuroko decided to weigh in. "Unless there was more than one thing possessing her."
"Urd said she was clean," Rob pointed out.
Minako frowned. "Urd has been known to lie."
Rob clenched the steering wheel as he pulled over to the side of the road. "We're here," he said through tight lips without taking his hands or eyes off the steering wheel. "Cross the road at the temporary crosswalk, head down the steps, and put your skates on in the hut on the ice. We'll finish this discussion later."
Mii waited until everyone else was out of the van. "Do you think they're looking for reasons to distrust Mimi?"
"Yes," he all but growled. "And I'm getting angry again."
"Right. Move over. I'll drive back."
He finally turned to look at her. "You were looking forward to trying skating."
"I can do that any time. Right now, you're in no shape to drive."
Rob sighed. "Thanks." Then he had a second thought. "You aren't doing this because you want to get closer to me, are you?"
Mii shook her head quickly. "No!" Then she calmed down. "Maybe I would have three weeks ago, but now I just want to help out a friend."
Rob smiled - only slightly, because he was still angry with Kuroko and Minako, but a smile nonetheless. "We're still friends? Thank you." He got out of the driver's seat and walked around the van, tossing the keys to Mii who was walking in the opposite direction. "Better hurry; Sebastian's almost here with the tour bus. And I should apologize to Kazari the next time I see her."
"Why?"
"I raised my voice when she implied you and I were still closer than friends, earlier today," he answered while closing the door and doing up his seat belt.
"That explains her bad mood this morning," Mii replied while starting the van's ignition. Rob chose not to enlighten her as to the other circumstances in play at the time.
Rideau Canal Skateway, Ottawa, ON, Canada
Saturday, January 14, 2017
2:13 PM ET
Some of the residents and visitors were better skaters than others. A few decided to stay at Blossom to help Touma, Index, Accelerator, and Mimi Misaka move into their new apartments rather than risk frostbite.
Then there were the people who thought they could handle skating...
"Hey! Watch it!"
"Oof!" Ruiko hit Mikoto, then hit the ice.
Kuroko gasped, then angrily said, "I cannot believe you! How dare you, Saten-san! Nobody gets to do that to onee-sama except me!"
Kazari looked as if she was about to cry. "I thought you... How could you... With Misaka-san, of all people..." She turned and skated off.
"What?" Then Ruiko realized where her hand was. Letting go of Mikoto's skirt, she added, "Oh, no. I'm so sorry. Misaka-san."
Mikoto sighed as she readjusted her clothing. "And Kuroko wonders why I still wear shorts under my skirt."
Then there were the people who were willing to help others learn how to skate.
"People do this for fun?"
Sakura smiled at Mimi Hanyu's question. "It is fun! It isn't exactly like in-line skating, but it's close."
"How many times have I fallen down?"
Noike offered her arm to Mimi, and helped her steady herself once she was back on her feet. "We have no idea. Nobody counts, when you're still learning."
Then there was the smallest group of displacees: the people who were both skilled and graceful at the sport.
Makoto and Usagi - or, rather, Sailor Jupiter and Sailor Moon - were skating along, weaving back and forth so that sometimes Makoto was on Usagi's left and sometimes she was on her right. It didn't take them long to notice that there was a crowd just watching them... and commenting on how much they looked like the "Sailor Scouts".
"I keep forgetting how famous we are."
Makoto nodded. "Ami told me about how everybody in the Windsor group knew her name."
Tomoyo skated by, careful not to disrupt the pattern that the Senshi had going, then turned around and trained her camera on the two of them while skating backward. While Sakura wasn't taking part in this particular skating routine, Tomoyo knew that her closest friend would want to see Usagi's performance on ice. After a minute and a half, she turned the camera off, waved to the older girls, then changed course to head back to Sakura... passing Mihoshi doing pirouettes on the ice. "I didn't know that you were so good at skating, Mihoshi-san."
"Oh, I'm not very good. Not compared to everybody else in my family! We live on a planet that has winters a lot like this winter, so we need to learn how to skate in case our hovercars break down or run out of power and we need to go home on foot. Sometimes we have to skate for kilometers! Or at least sometimes I have to skate for kilometers. Don't tell anybody that I forget to charge my hovercar sometimes, okay?"
And, finally, there were the displacees and managers who knew how bad they were at skating but were giving it a try anyway.
"Come on, Sosuke!"
"I'm unfamiliar with this mode of transportation, Kaname-san."
Tessa skated over and held Sosuke by one arm. "I'll just have to teach you, then," she said with a grin.
Kaname glared at Teletha. "Tessa... I was teaching him!" She then took Sosuke by his other arm.
Sosuke was not completely oblivious to the situation he was in. "I appreciate the assistance that both of you are giving me," he stated in an attempt to get the two girls to work together instead of putting his health at risk. Amazingly, it worked. The three of them skated, slowly, past Fate and Nanoha - Fate was skating backwards, helping Nanoha keep her balance until she was comfortable, and both were carefully not watching Ben and the other Mimi Hanyu leaning on each other for support as they tried to make their way down the ice in a straight line.
"I wanted to say thank you, for earlier."
Ben gave Mimi a wan smile. "It's okay. To be honest, I've kinda been there before myself. No real need to thank me because I just said what I felt needed to be said."
"Even so... do you want to get a coffee or something?" She nodded toward the closest hut that had been placed on the canal's bed before the freeze.
Ben paused and looked at Mimi thoughtfully. "We could, but I feel it's best that I head this off."
"What's wrong?" quailed Mimi, the hurt evident in her eyes.
"It's not you, Mimi, it's me."
"What?" she said as her train of thought derailed like proverbial train wreck.
"I wouldn't be good company for you," said Ben. "I mean, sure, we'd get along alright. But the fact is that I have issues that I'm trying to work out. I barely survived my own childhood because my step-father took every opportunity to tell me how much of a failure I was. And for a long time I honestly believed it. I know that it's wrong to think like that, but depression and anxiety are about as far from logical as you can get before it starts to circle back around again. And right now? You don't need someone like that in your life. It'd be like the blind leading the blind. I am very sorry about this. I would love to... But I don't want to accidentally hurt you. You've already been hurt enough."
"Does this have anything to do with those two girls?" asked Mimi defiantly, pointing at the two young combat mages who were now skating side-by-side.
"A bit," admitted Ben sheepishly. "The thing is that you'd have to learn to get along with those two, because they won't settle for anyone else but myself and each other."
"But why those two? They're so young!"
"Fate and I have a lot of common ground. We're both victims of child abuse, and I've been helping her to avoid the same pitfalls that I ran into. And Nanoha... I'll put it bluntly. She's a lesbian and yet she went head over heels for me."
Mimi's eyes went as wide as saucers. "What!? But... how!?"
Ben shrugged helplessly. "Sometimes, some people just suddenly click. There aren't any words - you just see each other and it's like being struck by lightning. And that's what happened. We just looked at each other and it was like the whole world suddenly stopped. The fact that I help bring her closer to Fate by articulating her anxieties into something Nanoha can understand is just icing on the cake."
"I meant 'how can somebody that young have a sexual identity already,' but..." Mimi slumped in defeat. "You're right. There's no way I can compete with that."
"Well, we can still talk if you ever want to."
Mimi looked at him in surprise. "But you said we'd be bad together."
"As a couple, we'd be bad. But as a support group? That would be a lot better. That way we can talk about what's eating us without romance to get in the way. Because if we were involved with each other? We'd avoid topics that need to be discussed because we're too worried about harming the relationship. And I think you can imagine how bad that would be."
"Ugh, you're right," said Mimi. "Do you ever get tired of being right?" she asked, semi-crossly, semi-playfully.
Ben scoffed. "More than you think. It's like that scene in Jurassic Park where the T-Rex is breaking out and Ian Malcolm goes, 'Boy, do I hate being right all the time.'"
That got Mimi to giggle. "I can almost picture you in that scene."
Ben scoffed, this time in amusement. "God, that'd be so typical for me at this point. 'Yeah, everything was just dandy up until a frickin' dinosaur showed up.'"
Since Ben was ignoring the coffee huts that had been placed along the side of the canal before the water froze, he didn't notice just how special one of the huts was. But the hut didn't go unobserved.
"Hey, Brent, buy me a hot chocolate!"
He looked at Tomo skating over to him. They were both wobbling on their skates, but had passed the stage of falling over every two or three minutes. "If you want a hot chocolate, why can't you buy it yourself?"
"Canadian money doesn't exist."
"I'm pretty sure that it does..."
"Nope! Chiyo-chan told me that Canadian quarters have reindeer on them, but reindeer don't exist, so Canadian money doesn't exist either. I can't have something that doesn't exist, can I?"
"Are you still on about that?" Brent remembered a certain scene from her high school life.
"On about what? I'm just a baka ranger, I have, like, no idea what these foreign monies are about and stuff." Tomo had already spent too long in Southern California.
"Don't be a loonie. Anyway, I'm pretty sure that Ben brought hot chocolate to share with everybody after we get back to the apartment building. Buildings. Why do you want some now?"
"I want to see if they have a frequent buyer program."
"What, like 'buy nine and the tenth one is free'? We aren't going to be here that long."
Tomo grinned. "More like 'buy fifty and get a free persocom'."
"I told you when you moved in: nobody makes persocoms here."
"Oh, really?" Tomo pointed at one of the huts, just past where River was lazily skating a figure-eight into the ice. "Then explain that."
Brent looked at the hut and read the name on the signboard above the order window: Chiroru. "Well, what do you know? We'd better go get some hot chocolate."
They skated over - slowly - and joined the line at the order window. It only took then three minutes to reach the front of the line, where they were met by what looked like a blonde girl Tomo's age, wearing odd hair ornaments. "What may we serve you?"
"Two hot chocolates, please," Brent replied.
"That will be six dollars."
While Brent gave the girl the money, Tomo asked, "Where do you sell hot chocolate when there's no skating going on?"
A young man behind the counter answered before the girl could. "We have a small restaurant in the business sector at the south end of St. Laurent Blvd. Our address is printed on our cups." He handed two of those cups, each filled with hot chocolate, to Brent.
"Thanks."
"My pleasure!"
Brent handed one of the cups to Tomo as they skated away from the hut. "It looks like you were right."
"I'm always right! You should know that by now. And those two were obviously Chii and Hideki."
"Just like you were right about reindeer, Tomo-chan."
Tomo glared at Brent.
"Hey, it was actually funny, even if it wasn't the funny you were going for."
"Yeah, real funny to be Reindeer Girl to the world."
"I don't pretend to know what it's like to have your life out in public like that. But everyone else is so worried about their own mistakes they don't even notice little things like that."
"You noticed."
"Umuh..." Brent took a sip of cocoa to gather his thoughts, "I also noticed that you're only a fool when you want to be. The rest of the time, you're as smart as Yomi."
Her tone was harsh, but her body language was much happier. "So, I'm smarter than you then?"
"You're a hundred years too early for that, girl!"
Tomo claimed her points in her latest competition, "I spotted them first."
"You sure did. We'd better keep these cups, and give them to Rob later."
"One for Rob, one for Taeko. This is pretty good chocolate."
Standing on an overpass near the hut, Rob and Taeko both sneezed. Then they looked at each other for a brief moment, grinned, and went back to using their cameras and zoom lenses to get photos of as many skaters in the impromptu multi-residence party as they could. They weren't skating, but at least they were finally taking part... and they hoped to get photos of everybody to show off at the end of the day.
Ottawa, ON, Canada
Saturday, January 14, 2017
5:44 PM ET
Cocoa had been sipped, chilled feet had been warmed, and photos and movies had been shared. But by mutual consent, the visitors from American apartments were going to have supper back at their own homes, not in Ottawa.
"It's time."
Mimi and Mimi looked at Rob and Brent. Then they turned back to each other.
"We haven't known each other for very long, so why am I so sad that you're leaving?"
"We've known each other our whole lives. I don't want to go... but I can't stay."
Mimi sighed deeply. "You're right. We can't pretend to be twin sisters. But keep in touch - I want to know what it's like to be a Hollywood star, even if it's just through your eyes."
"Our eyes. And I will. I'll let you know my address as soon as I know it."
Rob cleared his throat. "I hope you mean email address, because we already know where you're going to hang your hat."
"I don't have a hat. I need to buy a hat."
"It's a figure of speech," Brent said before Rob could reply. "You can stay with us until you hit it big; we still have some bedrooms available. I'll help you get a legal ID, somehow, and then you can get a job and an internet account."
"About that..." Rob grabbed two stacks of paper from the table and walked over to stand beside both Mimis while he continued talking. "You have appointments Monday morning to go pick up 'replacement copies'" - everybody could hear the air-quotes - "of your ID cards, courtesy of HAL 9000. SSN, birth certificate, and California ID for you, and SIN, birth certificate, health card, and Ontario photo ID for you. You just need somebody who already has ID to vouch for you." Rob looked at the stacks of paper in each hand, crossed his arms in front of his torso, and handed a stack to each Mimi.
"Oh, in that case, there might be a problem," Brent replied, completely deadpan. Then, seeing the Mimi who was leaving with him freeze in panic while putting her paperwork in her bag, he quickly added, "I won't be in Ottawa on Monday." As Mimi and everybody else smiled, Brent continued, "No driver's licenses?"
"We don't know how to drive," the Mimis said in unison. The LA-bound Mimi continued, sadly, "That was Eudial's special skill."
"It's a pretty common skill here," replied Rob, "and I've been lead to believe it's even more common in Los Angeles." Brent nodded at that. "You'd better learn."
"I suppose we'd better," the Mimi who was staying in Ottawa replied. Then she turned and looked into her own eyes. "Knock 'em dead, me."
"You too." They hugged... then let each other go.
Tomoyo took Mimi's hand and lead her toward Hollywood, while Usagi took Mimi's had and lead her to her Ottawa apartment.
Rob watched them go, watched the portals close, and sighed quietly.
Ruiko interrupted his contemplative mood. "Rob-oji, wasn't the idea to have everybody sleep over tonight and go skating again tomorrow?"
"We've had a very busy day, Rui-chan. And everybody except the folks from Montreal are used to much warmer weather. You can't blame them for wanting to get out of the cold and into nice warm beds."
"At least we can go skating with Rin and Saber tomorrow," Makoto added. "And this time, Rob-oji and Mii and Maika can come along."
"I'll think about it," Rob replied. Then he turned to Kazari and changed the subject. "We have a project."
"A project? What is it?"
"It's a planned undertaking usually carried out by a group," replied Rob. After a quick moment, he, Mii, Minako, and Nana added "But that's not important right now."
Kazari sighed. "I should have seen that coming. What's the project?"
"We need to wire the two buildings together."
She knew he wasn't talking about the buildings' electrical circuits. "Why not just use wi-fi?"
"Because I don't want our discussions being tapped. I know they're encrypted, but I also know Chii can break standard encryption schemes."
Mii nodded. "And you don't know who else has that capability."
"Ah." Kazari nodded as well. "We'd better get to it."
"Tomorrow is soon enough, while everyone else is skating."
That comment earned Rob a disgruntled look from Ruiko. "So much for thinking about it," she muttered.
Off to the side, Kuroko shuddered. "Sysadmins with screwdrivers. Be afraid."
"Mou..." Kazari's pout was adorable.
Blossom Apartments, Ottawa, ON, Canada
Saturday, January 14, 2017
12:57 PM ET
"Why don't we both go skating like this, Mako-chan? It'll be fun!"
Makoto looked at Eternal Sailor Moon for a long moment. "Is Hyoga-san going to show off her wings, too?"
"Oopsie!" Usagi transformed from Eternal Sailor Moon to Sailor Moon. "So much happened today that I forgot which form I was in. Is this better?"
Makoto nodded, then grinned. "Sure, let's pretend to be cosplayers today."
Somewhere in Russia
Same time
"I just had the strangest feeling."
"We don't have time to talk about strange feelings - the tournament in Japan is only two months away. And you still need to polish that 'transformation' in the middle of your routine. Get back onto the ice, Evgenia; I'll start the music from the beginning."
Blossom Apartments
Same time
"Let me put the leftovers in the fridge before we go," Makoto continued.
"We have leftovers? After how much we served everyone?" Usagi couldn't believe they'd reached the end of a meal and there was still food left over.
Makoto grinned sheepishly. "That's my fault. I bought enough to feed everyone... then you and Sakura duplicated it."
"I guess we're having leftovers tonight, ne?" Then Usagi grinned. "Can I have another one of those -?"
"Not if you want to go skating any time soon, you can't."
Meanwhile, Rob was chatting with some of his guests when Mii caught his attention. "Excuse me," he apologized before walking over to her. "What's up?"
"Did somebody order a tour bus?"
"Why?"
"One just pulled up. Empty, except for the driver."
"I'd better go take a look at it, then." He stepped out into the lobby, grabbed his coat, and headed outside to discover a bus, not quite big enough to hold everybody, with "Funtom Tours" painted on the side. Rob nodded to himself as he walked to the bus door, which opened to reveal Sebastian, with a large box filled with pairs of skates sitting on the seats immediately behind his. "Why am I not surprised that you're driving?"
"Hello to you too. And you're welcome."
"Yeah. Thanks. I assume this is coming out of the operating budget for this month."
Sebastian smiled a toothy grin. "You assume correctly."
Rob sighed. "Yeah, we can settle that later. I am happy you're here, though - that leaves me with a lot fewer trips to make carrying people in the building's minivan."
"What's the route?"
Rob thought for a minute, then pulled out his cellphone and started the map app that Kazari had customized from OpenStreetMap. "A bus this big won't fit on the side streets where most people get dropped off - it'll have to be at the National Arts Centre." He traced the route on the screen. "Be sure to point out Vincent Massey Park, the Agricultural Museum, and the Museum of Mature along the way."
"I'm a driver, not a tour guide."
"Right. We have tour guides."
Sebastian's toothy grin re-appeared. "You're going to make your guests work? There's hope for you yet."
Rob frowned, then thought for a quick moment. "All right, we have one tour guide. She'll ride with you and point out the sights. I'll take a few people in the van and lead the way."
A few minutes later, Rob had tracked down Usagi. "But I don't know anything about being a tour guide!"
He sighed. "Weren't you undercover as a tour guide when you met Rei?"
"Oh, yeah. Hey, Luna, where's the Disguise Pen?"
Rideau Canal Skateway, Ottawa, ON, Canada
Saturday, January 14, 2017
1:21 PM ET
"Rob-oji, how can you be so sure Mimi isn't Mimete?"
He didn't turn to look at Minako - he was busy driving. "You never wear the glasses that Skuld gave us."
"I don't need glasses. And what does that have to do with Mimete?"
"The glasses let their wearer see what's really in front of them. Mii and I find them very useful, and so does Ami when she wears hers. We're getting good at spotting sluagh and other things that can't be seen with normal eyes."
"So?"
Mii decided to join the conversation. "That includes the thing that was possessing Mimi. We saw it leave her body, and we saw you destroy it. It's gone."
Kuroko decided to weigh in. "Unless there was more than one thing possessing her."
"Urd said she was clean," Rob pointed out.
Minako frowned. "Urd has been known to lie."
Rob clenched the steering wheel as he pulled over to the side of the road. "We're here," he said through tight lips without taking his hands or eyes off the steering wheel. "Cross the road at the temporary crosswalk, head down the steps, and put your skates on in the hut on the ice. We'll finish this discussion later."
Mii waited until everyone else was out of the van. "Do you think they're looking for reasons to distrust Mimi?"
"Yes," he all but growled. "And I'm getting angry again."
"Right. Move over. I'll drive back."
He finally turned to look at her. "You were looking forward to trying skating."
"I can do that any time. Right now, you're in no shape to drive."
Rob sighed. "Thanks." Then he had a second thought. "You aren't doing this because you want to get closer to me, are you?"
Mii shook her head quickly. "No!" Then she calmed down. "Maybe I would have three weeks ago, but now I just want to help out a friend."
Rob smiled - only slightly, because he was still angry with Kuroko and Minako, but a smile nonetheless. "We're still friends? Thank you." He got out of the driver's seat and walked around the van, tossing the keys to Mii who was walking in the opposite direction. "Better hurry; Sebastian's almost here with the tour bus. And I should apologize to Kazari the next time I see her."
"Why?"
"I raised my voice when she implied you and I were still closer than friends, earlier today," he answered while closing the door and doing up his seat belt.
"That explains her bad mood this morning," Mii replied while starting the van's ignition. Rob chose not to enlighten her as to the other circumstances in play at the time.
Rideau Canal Skateway, Ottawa, ON, Canada
Saturday, January 14, 2017
2:13 PM ET
Some of the residents and visitors were better skaters than others. A few decided to stay at Blossom to help Touma, Index, Accelerator, and Mimi Misaka move into their new apartments rather than risk frostbite.
Then there were the people who thought they could handle skating...
"Hey! Watch it!"
"Oof!" Ruiko hit Mikoto, then hit the ice.
Kuroko gasped, then angrily said, "I cannot believe you! How dare you, Saten-san! Nobody gets to do that to onee-sama except me!"
Kazari looked as if she was about to cry. "I thought you... How could you... With Misaka-san, of all people..." She turned and skated off.
"What?" Then Ruiko realized where her hand was. Letting go of Mikoto's skirt, she added, "Oh, no. I'm so sorry. Misaka-san."
Mikoto sighed as she readjusted her clothing. "And Kuroko wonders why I still wear shorts under my skirt."
Then there were the people who were willing to help others learn how to skate.
"People do this for fun?"
Sakura smiled at Mimi Hanyu's question. "It is fun! It isn't exactly like in-line skating, but it's close."
"How many times have I fallen down?"
Noike offered her arm to Mimi, and helped her steady herself once she was back on her feet. "We have no idea. Nobody counts, when you're still learning."
Then there was the smallest group of displacees: the people who were both skilled and graceful at the sport.
Makoto and Usagi - or, rather, Sailor Jupiter and Sailor Moon - were skating along, weaving back and forth so that sometimes Makoto was on Usagi's left and sometimes she was on her right. It didn't take them long to notice that there was a crowd just watching them... and commenting on how much they looked like the "Sailor Scouts".
"I keep forgetting how famous we are."
Makoto nodded. "Ami told me about how everybody in the Windsor group knew her name."
Tomoyo skated by, careful not to disrupt the pattern that the Senshi had going, then turned around and trained her camera on the two of them while skating backward. While Sakura wasn't taking part in this particular skating routine, Tomoyo knew that her closest friend would want to see Usagi's performance on ice. After a minute and a half, she turned the camera off, waved to the older girls, then changed course to head back to Sakura... passing Mihoshi doing pirouettes on the ice. "I didn't know that you were so good at skating, Mihoshi-san."
"Oh, I'm not very good. Not compared to everybody else in my family! We live on a planet that has winters a lot like this winter, so we need to learn how to skate in case our hovercars break down or run out of power and we need to go home on foot. Sometimes we have to skate for kilometers! Or at least sometimes I have to skate for kilometers. Don't tell anybody that I forget to charge my hovercar sometimes, okay?"
And, finally, there were the displacees and managers who knew how bad they were at skating but were giving it a try anyway.
"Come on, Sosuke!"
"I'm unfamiliar with this mode of transportation, Kaname-san."
Tessa skated over and held Sosuke by one arm. "I'll just have to teach you, then," she said with a grin.
Kaname glared at Teletha. "Tessa... I was teaching him!" She then took Sosuke by his other arm.
Sosuke was not completely oblivious to the situation he was in. "I appreciate the assistance that both of you are giving me," he stated in an attempt to get the two girls to work together instead of putting his health at risk. Amazingly, it worked. The three of them skated, slowly, past Fate and Nanoha - Fate was skating backwards, helping Nanoha keep her balance until she was comfortable, and both were carefully not watching Ben and the other Mimi Hanyu leaning on each other for support as they tried to make their way down the ice in a straight line.
"I wanted to say thank you, for earlier."
Ben gave Mimi a wan smile. "It's okay. To be honest, I've kinda been there before myself. No real need to thank me because I just said what I felt needed to be said."
"Even so... do you want to get a coffee or something?" She nodded toward the closest hut that had been placed on the canal's bed before the freeze.
Ben paused and looked at Mimi thoughtfully. "We could, but I feel it's best that I head this off."
"What's wrong?" quailed Mimi, the hurt evident in her eyes.
"It's not you, Mimi, it's me."
"What?" she said as her train of thought derailed like proverbial train wreck.
"I wouldn't be good company for you," said Ben. "I mean, sure, we'd get along alright. But the fact is that I have issues that I'm trying to work out. I barely survived my own childhood because my step-father took every opportunity to tell me how much of a failure I was. And for a long time I honestly believed it. I know that it's wrong to think like that, but depression and anxiety are about as far from logical as you can get before it starts to circle back around again. And right now? You don't need someone like that in your life. It'd be like the blind leading the blind. I am very sorry about this. I would love to... But I don't want to accidentally hurt you. You've already been hurt enough."
"Does this have anything to do with those two girls?" asked Mimi defiantly, pointing at the two young combat mages who were now skating side-by-side.
"A bit," admitted Ben sheepishly. "The thing is that you'd have to learn to get along with those two, because they won't settle for anyone else but myself and each other."
"But why those two? They're so young!"
"Fate and I have a lot of common ground. We're both victims of child abuse, and I've been helping her to avoid the same pitfalls that I ran into. And Nanoha... I'll put it bluntly. She's a lesbian and yet she went head over heels for me."
Mimi's eyes went as wide as saucers. "What!? But... how!?"
Ben shrugged helplessly. "Sometimes, some people just suddenly click. There aren't any words - you just see each other and it's like being struck by lightning. And that's what happened. We just looked at each other and it was like the whole world suddenly stopped. The fact that I help bring her closer to Fate by articulating her anxieties into something Nanoha can understand is just icing on the cake."
"I meant 'how can somebody that young have a sexual identity already,' but..." Mimi slumped in defeat. "You're right. There's no way I can compete with that."
"Well, we can still talk if you ever want to."
Mimi looked at him in surprise. "But you said we'd be bad together."
"As a couple, we'd be bad. But as a support group? That would be a lot better. That way we can talk about what's eating us without romance to get in the way. Because if we were involved with each other? We'd avoid topics that need to be discussed because we're too worried about harming the relationship. And I think you can imagine how bad that would be."
"Ugh, you're right," said Mimi. "Do you ever get tired of being right?" she asked, semi-crossly, semi-playfully.
Ben scoffed. "More than you think. It's like that scene in Jurassic Park where the T-Rex is breaking out and Ian Malcolm goes, 'Boy, do I hate being right all the time.'"
That got Mimi to giggle. "I can almost picture you in that scene."
Ben scoffed, this time in amusement. "God, that'd be so typical for me at this point. 'Yeah, everything was just dandy up until a frickin' dinosaur showed up.'"
Since Ben was ignoring the coffee huts that had been placed along the side of the canal before the water froze, he didn't notice just how special one of the huts was. But the hut didn't go unobserved.
"Hey, Brent, buy me a hot chocolate!"
He looked at Tomo skating over to him. They were both wobbling on their skates, but had passed the stage of falling over every two or three minutes. "If you want a hot chocolate, why can't you buy it yourself?"
"Canadian money doesn't exist."
"I'm pretty sure that it does..."
"Nope! Chiyo-chan told me that Canadian quarters have reindeer on them, but reindeer don't exist, so Canadian money doesn't exist either. I can't have something that doesn't exist, can I?"
"Are you still on about that?" Brent remembered a certain scene from her high school life.
"On about what? I'm just a baka ranger, I have, like, no idea what these foreign monies are about and stuff." Tomo had already spent too long in Southern California.
"Don't be a loonie. Anyway, I'm pretty sure that Ben brought hot chocolate to share with everybody after we get back to the apartment building. Buildings. Why do you want some now?"
"I want to see if they have a frequent buyer program."
"What, like 'buy nine and the tenth one is free'? We aren't going to be here that long."
Tomo grinned. "More like 'buy fifty and get a free persocom'."
"I told you when you moved in: nobody makes persocoms here."
"Oh, really?" Tomo pointed at one of the huts, just past where River was lazily skating a figure-eight into the ice. "Then explain that."
Brent looked at the hut and read the name on the signboard above the order window: Chiroru. "Well, what do you know? We'd better go get some hot chocolate."
They skated over - slowly - and joined the line at the order window. It only took then three minutes to reach the front of the line, where they were met by what looked like a blonde girl Tomo's age, wearing odd hair ornaments. "What may we serve you?"
"Two hot chocolates, please," Brent replied.
"That will be six dollars."
While Brent gave the girl the money, Tomo asked, "Where do you sell hot chocolate when there's no skating going on?"
A young man behind the counter answered before the girl could. "We have a small restaurant in the business sector at the south end of St. Laurent Blvd. Our address is printed on our cups." He handed two of those cups, each filled with hot chocolate, to Brent.
"Thanks."
"My pleasure!"
Brent handed one of the cups to Tomo as they skated away from the hut. "It looks like you were right."
"I'm always right! You should know that by now. And those two were obviously Chii and Hideki."
"Just like you were right about reindeer, Tomo-chan."
Tomo glared at Brent.
"Hey, it was actually funny, even if it wasn't the funny you were going for."
"Yeah, real funny to be Reindeer Girl to the world."
"I don't pretend to know what it's like to have your life out in public like that. But everyone else is so worried about their own mistakes they don't even notice little things like that."
"You noticed."
"Umuh..." Brent took a sip of cocoa to gather his thoughts, "I also noticed that you're only a fool when you want to be. The rest of the time, you're as smart as Yomi."
Her tone was harsh, but her body language was much happier. "So, I'm smarter than you then?"
"You're a hundred years too early for that, girl!"
Tomo claimed her points in her latest competition, "I spotted them first."
"You sure did. We'd better keep these cups, and give them to Rob later."
"One for Rob, one for Taeko. This is pretty good chocolate."
Standing on an overpass near the hut, Rob and Taeko both sneezed. Then they looked at each other for a brief moment, grinned, and went back to using their cameras and zoom lenses to get photos of as many skaters in the impromptu multi-residence party as they could. They weren't skating, but at least they were finally taking part... and they hoped to get photos of everybody to show off at the end of the day.
Ottawa, ON, Canada
Saturday, January 14, 2017
5:44 PM ET
Cocoa had been sipped, chilled feet had been warmed, and photos and movies had been shared. But by mutual consent, the visitors from American apartments were going to have supper back at their own homes, not in Ottawa.
"It's time."
Mimi and Mimi looked at Rob and Brent. Then they turned back to each other.
"We haven't known each other for very long, so why am I so sad that you're leaving?"
"We've known each other our whole lives. I don't want to go... but I can't stay."
Mimi sighed deeply. "You're right. We can't pretend to be twin sisters. But keep in touch - I want to know what it's like to be a Hollywood star, even if it's just through your eyes."
"Our eyes. And I will. I'll let you know my address as soon as I know it."
Rob cleared his throat. "I hope you mean email address, because we already know where you're going to hang your hat."
"I don't have a hat. I need to buy a hat."
"It's a figure of speech," Brent said before Rob could reply. "You can stay with us until you hit it big; we still have some bedrooms available. I'll help you get a legal ID, somehow, and then you can get a job and an internet account."
"About that..." Rob grabbed two stacks of paper from the table and walked over to stand beside both Mimis while he continued talking. "You have appointments Monday morning to go pick up 'replacement copies'" - everybody could hear the air-quotes - "of your ID cards, courtesy of HAL 9000. SSN, birth certificate, and California ID for you, and SIN, birth certificate, health card, and Ontario photo ID for you. You just need somebody who already has ID to vouch for you." Rob looked at the stacks of paper in each hand, crossed his arms in front of his torso, and handed a stack to each Mimi.
"Oh, in that case, there might be a problem," Brent replied, completely deadpan. Then, seeing the Mimi who was leaving with him freeze in panic while putting her paperwork in her bag, he quickly added, "I won't be in Ottawa on Monday." As Mimi and everybody else smiled, Brent continued, "No driver's licenses?"
"We don't know how to drive," the Mimis said in unison. The LA-bound Mimi continued, sadly, "That was Eudial's special skill."
"It's a pretty common skill here," replied Rob, "and I've been lead to believe it's even more common in Los Angeles." Brent nodded at that. "You'd better learn."
"I suppose we'd better," the Mimi who was staying in Ottawa replied. Then she turned and looked into her own eyes. "Knock 'em dead, me."
"You too." They hugged... then let each other go.
Tomoyo took Mimi's hand and lead her toward Hollywood, while Usagi took Mimi's had and lead her to her Ottawa apartment.
Rob watched them go, watched the portals close, and sighed quietly.
Ruiko interrupted his contemplative mood. "Rob-oji, wasn't the idea to have everybody sleep over tonight and go skating again tomorrow?"
"We've had a very busy day, Rui-chan. And everybody except the folks from Montreal are used to much warmer weather. You can't blame them for wanting to get out of the cold and into nice warm beds."
"At least we can go skating with Rin and Saber tomorrow," Makoto added. "And this time, Rob-oji and Mii and Maika can come along."
"I'll think about it," Rob replied. Then he turned to Kazari and changed the subject. "We have a project."
"A project? What is it?"
"It's a planned undertaking usually carried out by a group," replied Rob. After a quick moment, he, Mii, Minako, and Nana added "But that's not important right now."
Kazari sighed. "I should have seen that coming. What's the project?"
"We need to wire the two buildings together."
She knew he wasn't talking about the buildings' electrical circuits. "Why not just use wi-fi?"
"Because I don't want our discussions being tapped. I know they're encrypted, but I also know Chii can break standard encryption schemes."
Mii nodded. "And you don't know who else has that capability."
"Ah." Kazari nodded as well. "We'd better get to it."
"Tomorrow is soon enough, while everyone else is skating."
That comment earned Rob a disgruntled look from Ruiko. "So much for thinking about it," she muttered.
Off to the side, Kuroko shuddered. "Sysadmins with screwdrivers. Be afraid."
"Mou..." Kazari's pout was adorable.
--
Rob Kelk
Sticks and stones can break your bones,
But words can break your heart.
- unknown
Rob Kelk
Sticks and stones can break your bones,
But words can break your heart.
- unknown