Scene #3637:

Owner	Pose
Kenji Kawasaki	Kenji Kawasaki's life has been full of weird shit since Sambo-Kojin fused itself to his soul. He's been inducted into a secret government organization, sent off into the multiverse to help deal with monsters and magic on a cosmic scale, fought things he could never have imagined existed in his own world, and met a lot of really weird and interesting people. He's dealt with all sorts of challenges. To be extremely cliche, though, there's no challenge he's dealt with quite as challenging as women. Kenji is waiting for Allenby off-world, in one of those places where no one would blink twice at a little bit of weirdness. He's dressed as he almost always is, in his leather jacket and pants, his tank-top, his...usual. There's a bit more nervousness in his stance as he rocks back and forth, watching the rainbow of trees in Fall with the eye of one pretending to be interested but actually kind of not. No, Kenji is definitely not a guy all that interested in trees. A little puffball of fire floats beside him. It is invisible except to Aurics. It hangs in the air in much the same way that fire should not, crackling peacefully. Kenji checks his phone. You've done that literally every second for the last hour. "Shut up!" I'm just sayin'. Your weird insecurities are gonna drive her off faster than your apartment. "Screw you, you asshole god. I'm not insecure." You literally spent all of last week moping about how you lost to that exploding chick with the rack. You are as insecure as a lockless vault. "I am not!" Yeah you are.
Allenby Beardsley	Gosh it's been a while since Allenby's really been out. She has, in fact, been quiet for the last few weeks, ever since she heard HK getting very vocal with the rest of the Confederates. She said some things, some certain...attention followed, and since then...well... ...she's been a /little nervous/. Instead of her usual bodysuit and pink vest combo, she's gone for a pair of blue jeans with a forest green tank top. There's a small backpack/purse sort of thing with her, dangling from her back that looks vaguely futurific. The last she heard from Kenji was actually vague whining about how he wasn't really strong enough to deal with the Multiverse. Admittedly, she's curious to see what he's done about it. "Hey Kenji!" she waves, still putting on that cheerful front she's semi-well known for.
Kenji Kawasaki	Kenji doesn't exactly get out much either. He's got a busy life fighting monsters and junk, after all! His time for actual socialization is pretty low. When Allenby arrives, Kenji straightens up like he just had an iron bar rammed down his spine. "Hey," he replies, "You, uh...you look..." cute Kojin supplies silently. "Cute was what I was gonna say!" Kenji snaps at the little puffball (which, of course, has not made a noise Allenby can hear). His face turns a bit red, and he looks away from her, staring intently at a tree. Oh look, it's orange. Orange is great. "...it really was," he finishes, "You look really cute. The tanktop goes really well with your eyes." If nothing else, he doesn't look mopey anymore. That is at least a huge step forward. He looks more or less back to his old self - a little bit angry and a little bit twitchy, but not mopey and sad about stuff. "I, uh, I just...I was wondering if you wanted to go flying today. And then maybe out to play some games at an arcade or something?" "Last time we went flying you didn't really get to enjoy it because of those guys following you, so I figured I'd try again and maybe this time we can have some fun. And I made Kojin promise to keep his smartass mouth shut, too." The red puffball bobs up and down, as if nodding.
Allenby Beardsley	Kenji calls her cute-well, partially, because based on his words she can tell that he was probably arguing with Kojin or at least just got trolled by Kojin. /Probably/, because she can't hear the fire kami. This earns a laugh from her, followed by smirking. "It's okay for you to say I'm cute, Kenji. I /do/ know that you like me." She slides up to him, casually stuffing her hands in the pockets of her jeans. "Heh, thank you, by the way. For the compliment." The offer to hang out and, best of all, go flying draws a smile out of the Gundam Fighter. "It's true, my handlers were being a pain. They won't today." She slips an arm around his shoulders, then hops upwards against him, probably expecting him to put his hands out so he can catch her right then and there, making it extremely clear that she is very much interested in some flying. "I...want to talk to you about something, though. Once were up there, however, not down on the ground. Preferably where less people can hear."
Kenji Kawasaki	Kenji is about to protest.../something/, probably Kojin's trolling, when Allenby literally jumps into his hands. Kenji catches her, bridal-style, and turns even redder. "Okay, well...hold on tight, alright?" Heh heh. Kenji gives the little puffball an angry glare as the puffball flits up, then vanishes into his chest. Allenby, being in direct contact with Kenji during his transformation, feels oddly warm as Kenji's clothes burn white, his hair turns the color of fire, and all the rest of his Magical Gi-, uh, Tokusatsu Transformation Sequence goes down. It's a comfortable heat, but a heat nonetheless, one that persists as they rise off the ground and go shooting upwards. It's only once they break through the cloud layer that they stop accelerating. Kenji is fairly sure Allenby (being a space kung fu heroine) is used to high places without a ton of air, and that's she'll probably be fine. He's also fairly sure that she'd like to skim along the clouds and touch them, so he obliges, floating over to a cloud. "We're basically alone up here," Kenji notes, a little nervously, "Kojin won't say or hear anything. He swore, and he doesn't swear often. He won't even pay attention to us." "S-so...what do you, um, want to say?"
Allenby Beardsley	Allenby keeps that arm looped around his shoulders just as extra insurance to hang onto him. Not that she expects him to actually /drop/ her. Well. Maybe he will once she tells her what she needs to tell him but that's not an outcome she wants to think about too much. "Speaking of cute things, though, Kojin looks pretty cute like that." she casually mentions before the kami disappears into Kenji, merging and transforming into the flaming style of his she's glimpse of him once before. It was a while ago so now... Well, now she feels the need to indulge in a long look-over of the teenager. It's a fantastic combination-a hot guy (sort of literally too) and /flying/ without the aid of a mobile suit. Flying like a saiyan would. Flying in a way she thought the Psycho Power would grant someday. She'd yet to figure that out and found herself growing more and more frustrated, incidentally fueling the power further. "That's good." she says, looking down at the clouds below, "I...I need to be straight about something. I don't know who you run with, but I know it's definitely not the Confederacy. Because I'm a part of the Confederacy. My country allied to it for aid in the Gundam Fight so they could become president of the colonies and Earth." Yeah, she'll just let that hang there for a moment.
Kenji Kawasaki	There's a moment of extreme silence as Kenji just hangs in the air. There's literally no sound up here, exaggerating the silence even further - just the wind and their breathing, and the crackling, quiet flames of Kenji's firey aura. He's probably processing this, right? He probably wouldn't just drop her, right? Kenji's never seemed that cold-blooded, not at all. He seems like the kind of guy who solves his problems by hitting people, so... Still, it's a long awkward pause. Maybe he's discussing it with Kojin. Kojin, after all, is a lot wiser and older than he is, despite also being an unrepentant troll. And with something like this, Kojin would never...right? He'd give good counsel. He'd be thoughtful. ...probably. After what probably seems like an eternity of deliberating and silence, an awkward and uncomfortable period in which Allenby is probably forced to strongly consider just HOW FAR DOWN the ground is, Kenji shifts. He swings her up in his arms, hooks one around her waist and the other around her back to keep her from falling, and kisses her.
Allenby Beardsley	The silence is a little terrifying. When it starts, Allenby freezes and, at this range, Kenji can feel her heart start to beat faster. Her grip around his shoulders tightens just a little bit, perhaps in preparation. She didn't think he'd drop her, though...most Elites didn't just casually kill each other like that and Kenji just wasn't a cold-blooded killer. Allenby had hung out around him enough to know at least THAT. He was a rude punk, sure, but he didn't have the disposition to be a killer. The silence does make her wonder if there's a discussion with Kojin but if that was the case, wouldn't Kenji be talking out loud? Unless they communicate psychically while linked? "Kenji...?" she asks, unable to take the silence for much longer. "...are you-" her breath hitches as he suddenly shifts her around and for a scary second she actually does think he might drop her. Both arms move to cling tightly to him, one arm around his shoulders and the other snaking beneath his left arm, wrapping around his back tightly. But rather than falling, she finds the Kojin-powered teenager kissing her square on the lips. She freezes up anyway, too shocked, and clearly thrown off her usual Gundam Fighter swagger. As the seconds pass, her cheeks color red.
Kenji Kawasaki	Kenji pulls out of the kiss after a little bit, looking away from her. His face is as red as hers is. After another long moment of uncomfortable silence, he gets her back in the bridal carry (presumably to avoid dropping her, because it's actually way easier to make sure she doesn't fall like THAT than in kiss position). He coughs. "That's gonna make dating kinda rough," he admits quietly, "'cause Shinra's working with the Union." "So...so, I wanted to kiss you just once. Because it's gonna...that's gonna change things, I know it is and I know it can't help but change things, and I'm gonna have to make a report and..." "...I just wanted to kiss you once, in case I'm right, and everything does change." "That's...that's all." Kenji keeps staring off at literally nothing, trying very hard not to meet her eyes. "I didn't want to have to let you leave without..." "God dammit."
Allenby Beardsley	Allenby's silent and still red in the face long after Kenji readjusts his grip so he's carrying her more securely again. But after he coughs, she blurts out suddenly: "Wow! That took some guts, Kenji. I'm pretty impressed." There's actually an appreciative smile on her face, perhaps for the sheer directness of the act. But she sobers a little, "Yeah...yeah it is. I mean...it's not allowed, is it? I haven't seen anyone say anything about it, but I haven't seen anyone /doing/ it either. With the Union." Her eyes drop a little when he says he'll have to make a report, "You will? I mean...right now I'm not really...doing any Confederate stuff." But in her heart she knows he'd probably have to anyway. She hasn't exactly been open about her affiliation and while she wasn't a Wraith, nor was Neo Sweden's alliance a secret, the consequences of them winning the Gundam Fight and thus turning the whole world over to the Confederates had not been implicit until now. "Kenji..." She looks up at him, trying to get him away from staring at clouds, "I don't want to have to leave."
Kenji Kawasaki	"Heh," is all Kenji says at 'that took guts'. "I've been in a funk. I'm not completely spineless." "Dating across enemy lines...it almost never ends well, right? I mean that was the whole point of that one play. I really like you, Allenby. I don't want you to get hurt if somebody on your side objects, or if somebody on my side objects, or..." He shrugs. "I don't want you to get hurt. Plus, those old guys, wouldn't they...I mean, would they do something?" He gets quiet. Then he shrugs. "No. I guess I don't. You're not doing anything Confederate, and it might get you hurt. I guess I don't really need to make a report, do I? What would I even say? 'I was on a date with this really cute girl and she told me she's a Confederate, what do I do'?" He laughs, a nervous tensiony laugh. Then he looks down at her. "...leave what? Leave the Confederacy, or...?"
Allenby Beardsley	"I didn't think you were spineless but I did know you'd usually get all goey around a girl. /Me/ especially." Allenby smirks, clearly remembering their earlier encounters well. Again, the smirk fades. "Those all turn out bad. Suicides, traitors getting killed." she shudders a little, "I don't think they'd...hurt me. In fact I don't really know what they'd do." Sure, Allenby can formulate ideas with the doctors on her team but she doesn't dare voice them out loud. She's pretty sure Kenji might do something. "The Union sounds like it's a bad place to get dating advice, if what their members say on the broadband are any indication." Allenby also lets out a nervous laugh of their own, "But....those 'old guys' you're talking about. They would do something...both to me and to you. I can't really get away with them. I don't want to leave /you/ though. Ugh. I'm tempted to just say 'fuck it' and try to, you know, work something out with you in secret."
Kenji Kawasaki	"So I'm not great with girls!" Kenji manages. "..." Kenji starts flying forward a little. He dips lower, parting one of the clouds with his feet as they move. He doesn't even leave a contrail if he doesn't feel like it, which is probably pretty damn convenient, because a ball of fire through the sky would be pretty damn noticable. "I don't know what they'd do, either. But I don't want it to happen to you. Uh, yeah, I don't...have any idea what any of these people know about dating. One of my friends said they'd help me bust down the doors and rescue you, but I don't know if that's...even possible right now." "Fuck them, they can come at me if they want. Shinra'll keep me safe, and it's not like I'm a slouch myself." Kenji shrugs. "I'm not afraid of some twisted old fuckers trying to hurt me. And if they try and hurt you I'll burn my fucking hand into their faces." Kenji puts on a little grin. "Yeah? I didn't know I was worth that. You know I'm just some punk-ass kid from Tokyo, right? I'm not all that amazing. Just, you know, making sure, before you say something like that." His grin fades. "...I really don't want you to get hurt, Allenby. Do you really think we can pull it off? Take some time and think about it, okay? And if not..." He winces, visibly. "If not then at least I'm pretty sure that karate asshole'll take care of you alright. And you probably won't get hurt." That must've hurt him a lot, based on the look on his face. "...but, hey, let's...right now, let's just...let's go for a flight and then hit the arcade, okay? And we can figure this shit out later. Right now let's...just pretend we're two ordinary kids on a date." He pauses. "Two ordinary kids at like eighteen thousand miles up, but whatever."
Allenby Beardsley	A mysterious video starts circulating amongst the internet and Galianda's Mognet, posted on popular video upload sites from hundreds of freshly-made accounts that were created behind proxy addresses. It starts with darkness that brightens from below to show a figure in a completely black, face-obscuring helmet and all, outfit that appears to be made out of a combination of kevlar and rubber. It's impossible to tell the gender of the figure. Those of the Murasame Zaibatsu might recognize this figure from some of the recent attacks. "I am Rabbit." The figure speaks with a voice ripped directly from a text-to-speech program. The view on the screen changes to rapidly changing news clips of two of the the three most recent hits on the Murasame Zaibatsu, blasting enough information in dampened static so viewers can tell their origin. The computerized voice continues: "We are Ground Zero." The video abruptly cuts back to the figure in black. "The Magic Particle Cell is too important a technology to be kept in the hands of one company. Especially the Murasame Zaibatsu. We will not stand idly by and allow the Murasame Zaibatsu to assume complete economic domination of Galianda. Especially..." The screen cuts away to a picture of Dmitri Greaves, the head of Murasame Zaibatu's RAIJIN, the Internal Security Division. A call plays between him an a man named Doan, a middleman or John of Happy Valley (Shadowrun world), where Greaves arranges for a mercenary group to perform a 'smash and grab' on some 'Russians'. The call ends and news reports of the Ork raid on a Shivan dome from months ago, Orks of the Shadowrun world. This blends in to clips of Harald Wolf-Lord and footage from the Shivan War, culminating in the attempted summoning of Phoenix. The screen cuts back to the figure in black. "...one that will go so far to start wars to feed their bottom line. And that is where we're going to make you bleed. Your bottom line." The video cuts abruptly after that.