ic contact;

[psycholawgy]

You've reached Athena Cykes. I'm currently unavailable, but leave a message and I'll get back to you pronto. Danke! (voice/call → text → video → action)

Comments

[faithfulflame]

Yes. I said I'd handmake it.

[Stepping closer she opens it and shows two large bento boxes.]

Roman-style chicken, pasta bolognes, and Risotto alla Milanese. A little of all three.

[psycholawgy]

Oh, bento! [ shirou taught her that word! ]

Where are we eating, then?

[faithfulflame]

Well, it's a nice evening, and there's a place I know of we can go in the park that's secluded so we can eat and talk without being bothered?

[Rei offers her arm genially, if Athena would like to take it.]

And it will let Phobos and Deimos stretch their wings a little bit.

[psycholawgy]

[ well then! she links her arm to rei's. ]

Just make sure they don't peck my hair, okay...?

[ she is traumatised by taka. ]

[faithfulflame]

They won't peck anyone who's not an evil spirit.

[The two birds eye her, one croaking and hopping over to Athena's shoulder. It's even mindful of it's claws, not digging them in.]

Phobos and Deimos are my first friends. They won't hurt anyone, and they like people.

[Except little kids and moon rabbits.]

[psycholawgy]

[ she tenses because she's not used to this. her shoulders go up slightly as they keep walking. she keeps on looking at her shoulder, though, and giving weird looks at the crow. ]

R- Right. Okay...

[faithfulflame]

[The crow? looks at her and nuzzles her cheek with his head. A bit like a flying dog.

And oddly enough, the bird's heart is very, very audible. A happy, upbeat, almost human feeling. Mistress's Friend. Good person, you make her smile it says, loads of gratitude towards Athena there.]

I promise, really. See, Phobos likes you.

[How do you tell them apart, Rei?]

[psycholawgy]

Hey, hey, Phobos is a name of a moon, right?

[ the hearts totally put her in a good mood, hence the smile on her face. ]

[faithfulflame]

Yes. It is. One of the moons of Mars.

[The bird dips forward, like a bow.]

And this one is Deimos. The twin moon.

[psycholawgy]

You know, my earring is made from a real life moon rock.

Pretty cool, huh?

[ she'll try to pat phobos with a finger. she's nervous about it, though! ]

[faithfulflame]

[Rei chuffs a small laugh.]

Does it have special meaning?

[Phobos nuzzles her finger! Yay! Friend!]

[psycholawgy]

This earring, [ she starts poking at it. ] and Widget are the only things my mom left me before she died.

[faithfulflame]

[That...gets a response from Rei. Her eyes shift, softening and her steps slow a fraction. They're near the park anyway, so no reason to be in a hurry. Her own necklace feels a bit heavier on her neck at the statement.]

I...how old were you?

[psycholawgy]

I was eleven then.

I had nobody else in the US, so my I stayed with my relatives in Europe after that.

[faithfulflame]

Nobody else? What about your father?

[Heading towards a secluded glen!]

[psycholawgy]

My dad? He's gone.

[ that's all she can say about him. and athena just follows rei, wherever they may be going. this picnic sure looks like it's going to be fun. ]

I don't know him very well, either.

[faithfulflame]

Ah.

[Rei's heart? Wrinkles just a bit. She doesn't have a high opinion of fathers in general.

And inside the glen, there's a table already prepared. Rei sets down her basket and holds up a hand, sending will-o-wisps up to light the area.]

Well, tell me about your mother then? That's my first question for you. What was she like?

[psycholawgy]

[ woah... she kind of stares at the little embers for a while before moving on to answer the question. ]

Well... she was married to her work. Simon actually knows her better than I do. My mom was a psychologist who worked for GYAXA - the company who runs the Cosmos Space Center. She was working with Simon's sister, Aura, in making robots who had emotions.

Simon knows her better since he used to go to the space center all the time to ask for tips in psychology. It's his brand in the courtroom; that, and using the power of suggestion.

[faithfulflame]

[While Athena stares, Rei sets out the boxes of food and drinks, doing her best to be a legitimate host.]

So, that explains why Simon's so important to you, too. But when you say robots that have emotions, do you mean ones that you and I could understand with out...gift?

[She twists that word, it comes out awkwardly. She's never seen that particular talent as anything but trouble.]

[psycholawgy]

[ gift... she looks nostalgic for a moment before putting up a bright smile again. she never really considered her special hearing as a gift when it gave her so many headaches before. it's only very recently that she has, especially when hearing hearts of certain people bring her happiness. ]

That's right.

They were supposed to be robots for the space center, to help astronauts. When astronauts go up into space, their companions will be those robots. And they need to be able to feel emotion to be good partners.

[faithfulflame]

[Rei is probably the one person who can relate to that particular problem. It took her most of her early life to not feel terrified of using her talents and the heart of an idiotic girl to really make her okay with them.

Now, discussing Metis surprises Athena, which is another oddly appropriate name for her mom. Not because she was thinking that her mom was up to no good, but because of the nature of that research project.]

That's an amazingly complex sounding project. She must have been a genius, Athena-chan. I...assume she was very intelligent? Like yourself.

[psycholawgy]

Of course, she was.

[ she doesn't need to know much about her mother to have some pride regarding her intelligence. ]

Remember when I said that I had to save someone, and that's why I became a lawyer? It was because when mom died, Simon was arrested for her murder.

[faithfulflame]

I remember.

[She'd told Rei when they'd met, initially. But Rei never asked why. It felt impertinent and rude. But now? Well, now she wanted to know.]

How...did she die? And why was Simon-san accused?

[With that, too, the raven haired girl sits, sliding a mug across the table.]

[psycholawgy]

She was in the room when The Phantom - an international spy - was there to steal the moon rocks collected by the satellites.

[ she pauses... sitting across rei. she just lets her fingers play on the mug before answering- ]

As for Simon, there was nobody else there but me. . . in the crime scene, I mean. And he knew that, so he pleaded guilty to protect me. I never knew his reasons until the case was put back to trial, and I was the defendant that time around.

[faithfulflame]

This spy...? He killed your mother?

[Rei's face lowers, suddenly feeling a little bit guilty for asking Athena to tell this story. It was something that she needed to know, sure. A way to better understand her dear new friend, but...it was still troubling.

Her esteem for Simon Blackquill, however, grew immeasurably in that moment. She liked him, yes, but...knowing why he was jailed? That he'd given up years of his life for Athena? That was something that truly marked him.]