The greenscarfed couple
They were on hannabrid, two young folk with not a care in the world.
They chose a small, forgotten island in Alessia.
There's a colony of Emerald Sloths there
They want to be left alone.
This innocent Kagomei couple will discover, to their sorrow, why it wasn't a good idea to mess with them.
"Hey, you wanna go see a movie this weekend?"
"What did you have in mind?"
"Just senior squadron staff, do a bonding activity, we all have leave coming, I can ask one of the other squadrons to advance leave so we're all free at once."
"Hmm, so who's senior staff, exactly?"
"Piersa, Me, you, Tendrig Valladolid"
"But none of the other Kons?"
"They're all under quota, so not senior..."
"I'll grant you not inviting them will make this possible at least, invite +1s or not?"
"Definitely +1s, who do you think Piersa will invite?"
"No idea, she didn't mention being steady with anyone."
"Hmm, hopefully she invites someone, otherwise it'll be awkward."
"Why would it be awkward for her, specifically?"
"That letter..."
"Oh, her crush on you? It won't be awkward, watch me handle it."
"You have a plan?"
"When don't I have a plan? I had a plan when we knocked out a spaceship with some land-based aircraft, missiles and flying armored suits!"
"You did! And made it look stylish too..."
She giggled. "You big flirt, it's on."
"Now, about this invite?"
"Yes, Piersa?"
"This is a team bonding, but we bring +1s?"
"Low-level team bonding, see each other in a social setting."
"And it won't be awkward that I've hit on your grib?"
"It won't be more awkward, you plan on hitting on him again?"
"Well, no, I planned to bring a hunky date and make him jealous."
"Maybe make me jealous too, Amarat is many things, but he's got to work on his pecs some more before I call him a hunk."
"He's also short, I have my eyes set on someone a head taller than Amarat, might be interesting..."
"And Tendrig?"
"He's bringing his grib."
"Oh, not many girls coming huh?"
"Well, we could equalize the genders, invite Mariwolfe Tannenbaum and her miptun.
"Oh, fleet Kon?"
"Fleet XO. Now that she helped build the ships we use."
"How good friends are you with her?"
"Good enough friends, we've been working together for an arnd now.
"Have you met that miptun."
"Not the current one, apparently, she's new."
"You two want me to come with you to a horror movie, and bring my miptun?"
"Yeah, we got a bit of a bind of too much boyos for our night out."
"Oh, Tendrig and his grib, huh?"
"Yeah, nothing wrong with that, but it'd be more fun if we are kinda balanced, plus, you're fleet XO, we want to get to know you better."
"And my miptun?"
"Well, can she make the trip?"
"She is visiting this weekend, so I think we can make it, it's a quadruple date?"
"Yup, Tendrig, Piersa, me, you. How many merits?"
"Personal awards, four.
"Ugh, good thing they don't have a regulation for that yet. That's a big chunk of the Honour Convention"
"Your grib is a big chunk of the honour convention, by himself, by now."
"And your point?"
"Are you worried it'll go to his head?"
"No, his head is just fine. He's got better principles for dealing with attention than I do, and more practice."
"Sounds like you found mister right-priest."
"I did, didn't i?"
"If he was my grib, I'd so be going down on him on the regular."
"None of your business! But I do try to make sure he's happy..." She was blushing so red, she felt she was probably visible from orbit.
"Aw, don't be so stiff, you're both members of the priesthood, we don't have to pretend we don't enjoy it..."
"I don't, I just don't know you that well.. I mean..."
"Do you have someone you know and trust that much?"
"I guess my mom, but no one else..."
"Oh my, and you tell your mom?"
"Err, no."
"Something to think about, red. Having a friend you can talk about is a healthy thing when you're second in-command of a fleet, you'll need the relief. And I'm an XO and a NCO, I'm not a threat to you moving up, you got exactly zero people between you and [Ria, so when she moves up, so do you."
"Yeah, sure, but why specifically about this?"
"Imagine you want to tell your mom you're upset about Mister right-priest and his behaviour at the movie? No way that's not awkward. Besides, nothing wrong with getting a second opinion."
"Thanks, wise old mentor."
"Oh, you saucey wench!"
"I mean, it's certainly something I gotta think about, how me and Amarat are about 10 years younger than most of our peers on flag bridge."
"Would be closer to 15, if you go by average. Maelle's got at least 20, I'm older than she is, and Ria is two years younger than Maelle, at most."
"Did we ever try to do something for flag bridge?"
"No, because until you two showed up, we had been handpicked friends of Maelle."
"Oh, a clique huh?"
"Just how it's done, a Thistle picks a flag group."
"So you picked em?"
"Maelle asked your mom, who declined, I got the job by default. Helps that I had served with your mom, your dad, Andei and the like. Even Ria was someone we had shared a bridge with."
"Oh, so do we...?"
"Do we.. oh, you mean, how do we get you two to integrate with us? That's easy, next Innuday, bring credits for a round or two, at Kannie's, after your shift."
"Why then?"
"Ship will be in port for refit, and Maelle's being recalled for orders the next day."
"For order?"
"Red leather, by my guess."
"Wait, she's a Nessuna?"
"There's this rank, you know NFOF-10 Nessun-Honour of Meihomei's Imperial Kagome Navy, I'm sure you've heard of it."
"Where would that leave sixth fleet?"
"Ria, then..." Mariwolfe just stared, hard, at Flora.
"You're effing kidding me!"
"You're the one kicking so much enemy bottom, they keep adding boxes of honour for you, you're the one worried about teambuilding the flag staff, when we've been isolating you, mending bridges, humbly, doing all the right things. Your XO, my second in command, is making me look so incredibly good, I passed for Telbun!"
"What? Congradulations!"
"That's a secret though."
"Secret or not, Maelle's not the only one with red leather right?"
"Red leather seldom hits only once."
"But I'm brevet Falcon, I can't fleet up that high!"
"Oh, with that Merit, you ain't staying brevet anything very long... Besides, everyone's seeing you're doing the right things, moving things along, and Amarat's a natural XO, he makes everyone above look good."
"Please excuse me, Falcon, Falcon Rolli?"
"Brevet-rank Falcon Rolli, yes?"
"I bring orders from Meihomei, you are invited to the Nessun College on Analectaday, Novem 9th, at first light."
"First light?"
"Officer Rolli willl make a point to be on-time, thank you messenger." Snapped Mariwolfe.
"What, why first light?"
"Because an induction into the Eyrie is always at first light."
"The Eyrie?"
"Yeah, first time we'll have a mother and daughter, both OF-09s, I bet."
"Frag me sideways and hit me with shrapnel!"
"My, you've been listening to Kons using Utility Language lately, haven't you?"
"Kinda. You... aren't serious are you, I mean, I can't be an Eagle, I'm just 25 arnds of age."
"Oh, Maelle put some noses out of joint for a while when she became a Nessuna before 35, you, however, will probably make sure they stay out of joint..."
"How old is she now?"
"She'll be thirty-six pretty soon..."
"And Honour of the Navy?"
"Honour of the Navy, because the old Honour of the Navy is now the secretary of Defense, and we gotta keep those jobs filled, bless OPM's little hearts."
"Whew, that was a cool, scary movie."
"Speak for yourself, I was bored."
"Tendrig, Bassaron, keep it down, will you?"
"What did you think of the movie, Amarat?"
"Full marks from me for that movie." He looked... smug, which looked out of place on his normally humble countenance.
"What was so good about it Amarat?"
"Oh, I just don't get hugged from both sides in a regular movie."
"I just reached for the wrong side, dammit, I'll never live that down, will I?"
"You will, you just have to be nicer to me for a while. That was a nice first date though, you recovered gracefully." Her hulking date, Dentrag, the sommelier and sometimes host of nearby Kannie's, just pulled her tighter, like he was trying to merge their bodies.
"What about you, Flora?"
"Hm, I just had too much on my mind to really enjoy it. That was quite a twist at the end though, with the couple..."
"Anything you want to talk about, Flora?"
"Yeah, later, when we're alone..."
"I hate that all the movies made in Alessia about that legend are all so predictable, they always defend the island from the Lollandese , Blegia and Brunswick.
Amarat interjected: "That's' politics for you, the Alessians aren't likely to show the power of the scarf can make them lose."
"But that's why the power of the scarf is so scary, no? It can make animals do anything!"
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