398/Flour for the Rumor Mill

Flour for the Rumor Mill
Date of Scene:	10 September 2023
Location:	Administrative Office
Synopsis:	Chrono and Rashmi decide to visit Setsuna with a gift of AMAZING food! Then they discuss shared fiction... also, dragons. Dragons are real.
Cast of Characters:	Chrono Harlaown, Rashmi Terios, Setsuna Meiou

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Chrono Harlaown has posed:
Chrono Harlaown had, well... had been in the military for a while. Sure, it was magic military, but there were certain things that one did as such. First, treat superior officers with respect (though that seemed to be hit or miss some days with people). Second, save as many lives as possible. Third, there was always a 'cost too high'. Fourth?

Respect your healer. And he could do healing magic, as could Rashmi. But that kind of magic only goes so far. When you get hurt, maimed, cut open and are on the verge of death? Well... You learned to respect your healer.

So, it was during one of those days that he'd noticed Setsuna about the school because... reasons, don't look into it too closely. And, as such, he'd decided to swing by and bring her lunch! As well as grab his apprentice. Why?

Because he wanted Rashmi to live a long, successful life and knowing where a proper surgeon was who could handle the magical stuff was... good. And bribing her? Wise. Since Rashmi was the expert, he'd decided to let her decide what a proper meal for someone working weekends was. Either way, though, Setsuna would, eventually, hear a knocking on her door.

Rashmi Terios has posed:
Wearing the off-white polo, green slacks, and mascot-bearing ballcap of a Korma Chameleon employee, Rashmi took to the plan with excitement, and set about crafting an order for desk work, that could be picked up and put down to come back to later at need. An assortment of onion and sweet-corn bhajji fritters, and the current seasonal fusion special; Jhol Tsukemen -- dipping-ramen -- with a bowl of tomato-spice-cilantro gravy to dip freshly-cooked noodles in, as well as some standard and nonstandard ramen accoutrements to match. As an extra bonus thank-you, a sampler of all the portable, purely Bengali sweets her father had on hand; dry cookies made of fresh cheese and almond milk, flower-syrup-soaked chom chom, and more.

"After all," she said as she stuffed the meal into her carryout bag, "Nothing says 'I really appreciate everything you did' like giving them something they might never have had before!"

And as Chrono knocks on the door, Rashmi cheerfully sways back and forth on her feet behind him, pleased if nothing else to meet the woman who saved Chrono's life for the *second* time in the course of a week.

Setsuna Meiou has posed:
The infirmary at the Radiant Heart Academy is, as perhaps expected, just as swank as the rest of the school. It's a large, well-supplied room separated with some of those rolling medical divider walls. Fairly nice beds can be seen here and there through gaps, and the main area is set up like a typical waiting room/nurse's station, complete with posters giving info about various adolescent diseases/conditions/problems.

Of slight note is one poster that catches the eye due to being a large black field with an image of a skeleton in the middle. Above and below are the words: "The Average Human Body Contains Enough Bones / To Make An Entire Human Skeleton"

As she hears a rapping, an insistent tap-tap-tapping upon her chamber door, she blinks and calls out, "Enter freely and of your own will."

Chrono probably won't get that reference. Rashmi MIGHT.

As the door opens easily, Nurse Meiou sits there, leaning against a counter in her labcoat/dress and three inch heels, absently reading a book. The cover shows a tall, scruffy man in a longcoat and wielding a staff and a MASSIVE revolver. In her off hand, she's absently spinning a pen through her fingers." As she sees the two enter, she smiles a bit...and the pen vanishes from her fingers to be replaced by...a hole in the universe. Honestly, it's kind of hard to look at...it's just sort of an oddly-shaped bar of what appears to be the absence of anything...except for a gold, stylized capital P seemingly hovering at the center of this bar of nothing...which Nurse Meiou then uses to mark the place in her book.

As she closes said book, it's title is revealed to be 'Small Favor' written in english letters.

"Please, Mister Harlaown, Miss Terios...come in, come in. What seems to be the problem?"

A moment later, the inevitable smells reach her, as well as noting that both look to be in fine shape, "...Lunch?"

Chrono Harlaown has posed:
Chrono Harlaown was pretty pleased to be able to introduce them during a circumstance where he wasn't dying. Also, more chances to share korma. He really had eaten wayyyyy too much of that in the last...

... He'd probably been eating too much of it. But. It. Was. GOOD. And spaceship rations were pretty okay considering their technology, but still nothing compared to family honed recipes passed down through generations.

He had no idea what that meant. If someone needed help, though, could they really just enter freely? What if they needed her help and... ehhhh. Over thinking it. Also, yes. Most human bodies do contain enough bones to make a full human skeleton.

However, upon seeing the girl use something that looked like... a void... to mark her page? Meh. Magic. It likely wasn't actually a cosmic anomaly. Likely just... dark. Or something. He didn't know. At this point it wouldn't really surprise him if they did grab the concept of 'darkness' itself to make book marks. Why not? Maybe next they could make tuning forks out of echoing songs.

"Nothing," Chrono said. "But I felt it might be a good idea to bring the person who saved my life something nice and I wanted to introduce you to the young lady who I've been training with. It is never a good idea to know where to find the person who can stitch you back into one piece if things go poorly." The life you save might be your own! Or his!

Rashmi Terios has posed:
"And *I* wanted to thank you too, for putting Chrono-kun back together," Rashmi says. "So, yeah. Lunch! And snacks for later. ...You're not lactose-intolerant, I hope?"

Because of course, dietary needs are the first thing on the mind of the daughter of restauranteurs.

The sight of the hole in space used to mark the pages of a book has her eyebrows rising... But with everything she's seen, the redhead seems to be willing to take it on faith that a) she'll understand sooner or later, and b) it probably wasn't precisely what it looked like. Thinking back to the announcement, she snorts in laughter.

"Well you're no Dracula, Meiou-sensei, but we'll *definitely* be leaving something of the happiness we brought!"

Setsuna Meiou has posed:
As both Chrono AND Rashmi reference her having saved Chrono's life, Nurse Meiou arches an eyebrow and gives Chrono a bit of a stern look...for all of about two seconds, then she smiles once more and waves everyone over to a small table with some chairs off to one side that looks to be where she does the occasional bit of paperwork, but is at the current momement mostly clear of any obstructions, "Well, well...I can assume then that Miss Terios is also 'in the business', as it were?"

She shakes her head slightly and helps Rashmi with the containers as she says, "As far as I am aware, I have no food allergies or intolerances...though I'll admit to not being a fan of the 'hotter' end of the curry spectrum."

She gives Chrono a look, "I'm not sure about how it is where you come from, but I imagine that during your time living with Miss Terios' family, you discovered that here on Earth, we often use neurotoxins to spice our food."

Then she gives Rashmi a smile, "And good job recognizing the classics."

Chrono Harlaown has posed:
Chrono Harlaown nodded. "She is, indeed. Quite a talented support mage-in-training," Chrono said proudly. Well, she'd survived a training session or two. So she certainly had potential. "Lactose intolerance?" Chronos asked. "That's a thing here, too? Sometimes I wonder about this place, then other times it feels more like our planets are distant cousins," he said with a light, amused chuckle.

He then glanced towards Setsuna and gave a small nod. "Oh, no, that's... actually fairly common where I'm from as well. Our spices may have... more variety in some cases? But also, it feels like less at times. But there will always be a human, somewhere, who looks at a thing and goes 'In high enough doses this will kill me. I should eat it,'" Chrono said with an amused chuckle.

"I was also hoping, if you had the time, if you could give Terios-san a look over. I'm not... actually a medical expert and the most I know how to do is basic triage. But I figure if there is a specialist of medicine in our line of work, it can't hurt to ensure that she's getting the proper care she requires. Especially since, well, the training she is relenting to is far from gentle."

Rashmi Terios has posed:
All statements to her potential are blithely ignored as she helps set out the food, though she *does* seem just a bit more pleased. Accepting compliments openly? Well, that's not nearly part of her skillset, quite yet.

"I mean I was asking, because Bengali desserts are like 86% cheese, usually made on the spot. And don't worry; Mami considers herself an actual spice artist, three-star out of five is about as high as she'll go on an order before it starts to annoy her. The only reason we even *offer* higher than that is, well, Papi'd never leave money on the table if he can help it." With a shrug, she opens the box of sweets, arranging them on a paper plate and setting them to one side of the table, nearest Pluto. "Because those are *all* for you."

Clearing her throat, she looks from Chrono to Pluto, and back again. "...And yeah, he told me. Mostly because I was sick with worry after the spaceship thing, and I hadn't heard from *anyone* before I got his message."

Setsuna Meiou has posed:
Nurse Meiou frowns a bit at mention of the wounds Chrono took, then gives him a little look, "How are you feeling now, anyway? Have all the stitches passed? I made sure to use ones that would either fall out or metabolize on their own...and I believe you mentioned you had some access to magical healing? How's that interacting?"

She then absently pushes the sweets aside in a way that obviously conveys the sense of 'for later' before she grabs a bit of the layout to sample.

Snapping her fingers, she smiles and pitches her voice to carry a bit, "Niti? Please fire up the electric kettle."

A moment later, a pleasent young woman's voice responds, "Certainly, Nurse Meiou." And a moment later, a soft click can be heard from a corner of the room along with the sound of heating water, "Give me a moment, what kind of tea would you each like?"

Once she finds out, she steps behind the partition into the corner and returns with three large if plain mugs, a small rack with an assortment of bagged teas, and a large kettle of boiling water, "Well, I'm glad he took my advice and called, though I'll forgive him for at least having an honest excuse for being too preoccupied to think of calling you before he was reminded."

Chrono Harlaown has posed:
Chrono Harlaown couldn't help but agree. "I'd certainly say she was an artist of some sort, my tongue wouldn't mind if she... painted... on it and wow that... that statement sounded so good in my head before I said it out loud. I used to be much better at that," Chrono mumbled. Actually, he wasn't. He just talked less.

Of course, the mention of Rashmi being worried made him go a little red and cringe... then... cringe again when Pluto mentioned that she'd reminded him. He... hadn't actually told Rashmi that. To be fair, he hadn't thought it was that important, after all. Dying. He felt it was okay that he didn't remember a thing like 'Calling to tell people he wasn't dying' when he was only barely conscious.

"I'd actually like some earl gray, if that's an option. Your electronic assistant sounds well coded, I haven't seen anything like that yet." To be fair, he hadn't really... looked. "There... was also something I was hoping to ask you about, Meiou-san," he said before taking a deep breath.

And then he looked serious. Deathly serious. As if bracing himself for some grand, mighty war. "Terios-san mentioned a... guardian... of the moon. I wanted to ask if she was connected to you in any way?" he asked. Because if she was... No. He was hopeful it was just... coincidence. A moon girl, a planet girl...

Rashmi Terios has posed:
"Earl Grey sounds good!" says the girl who refuses to put others out if there's another option. Catching the edge of Chrono's cringe, she chuckles, ruffling his hair. "Look of all the reasons you could have to forget, 'losing most of my blood, again' is the kind you can be forgiven for!"

But as talk turns from light conversation to more medical matters, she clasps her hands on the table and starts listening, allowing the big topic to have its time to shine.

Setsuna Meiou has posed:
Nurse Meiou puts everyone's desired teas in to steep (green for her), then ducks around the corner for a second to put the kettle back and come back with a small box with packages of various sweetners for those that desire them, which she puts in the center of the table where all can reach them. That done, she starts eating finger food, and after a moment, she smiles and sighs, "Ah...this reminds me of the time I visted Pataliputra. It's been a while since I visted the subcontinent."

Someone familiar with Indian history might note that Pataliputra hasn't really been a 'city' for...1500 years at least.

She settles in, sipping her tea every so often, "Ah. Yes. Sailor Moon. She is indeed connected. She's a part of the Inner Court. She's quite the sweetheart...and is coming along fairly well from what I understand. She's only just recently awakened and from what I hear, she's faced down a fair number of threats already."

Siiiiiiiiip

"Why do you ask?"

Chrono Harlaown has posed:
Chrono Harlaown let out a soft sigh of relief and nodded. "Indeed. I suppose critical injuries are a bit of a... special situation." He reached up to his chest and stroked a finger along them. "OH! I don't think I actually answered you, Meiou-san, my apologies. Aside from an occasional soreness, I haven't had any issues. I've been making sure to pace myself and not overdo it since, just to ensure my range of motion isn't affected." He down and pulled up the bottom of his shirt, revealing the mark, now red. Most of the stitches were gone, as well... possibly due to the magic. "I've been accelerating the healing, as it were. It has required me to eat a lot more calories than I normally would, but considering the rapid pace at which both injuries were inflicted, I felt eating more beat risking going out into the field while already wounded."

Pataliputra... sounded like another continent he didn't recognize. But then, this world had many. "I'm not familiar with it, my apologies," he said before picking up a small packet of sugar and lightly pouring half of it into the tea, stirring it up.

"Inner... court?" Chrono asked. "Royalty? Oh dear. Is there a royal family I'm unaware of, or is it from a different country? As for the reason... well... I still am at the 'learn what I can' of this world stage. I've run into a few different magical girls, but have yet to have seen anything that could offer a way to get the crew of the Arthra off this planet and back to TSAB space. That was the next thing I wished to ask you. Do you know of any way to escape this anomaly? As you mentioned some... fascinating things in our last discussion which, if nothing else, pegs you as a possible lead."

Rashmi Terios has posed:
"Apparently nothing about this world acts according to the rules of, like, a good chunk of outer space. ... ....-time," Rashmi corrects herself, bobbing her head in thanks as the tea is set before her. "So even though I'm pretty sure most of us are making it up as we go along, Chrono-kun's got the extra handicap of knowing how it's *supposed* to work but doesn't."

Setsuna Meiou has posed:
Nurse Meiou stretches a little to look at the revealed bit of skin. She's a medical professional and she's literally seen it before, so the young man showing off some of his torso isn't particularly odd to her, "Hrm...looks fairly good. Let me know if there are any problems, but eating extra for a while is something I'd reccomend anyhow."

She glances over at Rashmi and nods, "That's the impression that Mister Harlaown gives me, for certain. He seemed rather confused by things we find rather normal." She shrugs, then absently reaches over and pats Chrono on the head, "Don't worry, Mister Harlaown...you'll get used to it..." She trails off, tapping her chin for a moment before she shrugs, "...or you'll have a psychotic episode."

She then absently goes back to partaking of lunch for a bit before answering the other question, "Well, not yet. And technically the 'kingdom' in question hasn't existed for a LONG time, so that's not TERRIBLY important right now." She then shrugs, "Sadly, until you told me, I didn't know there WAS an anomoly." She trails off, "...though...well..."

She frowns a little, "...there WAS a major magical event here, but it was a LONG, LONG time ago."

Chrono Harlaown has posed:
Chrono Harlaown gave a small nod. "Oh, don't worry. I've had plenty of magical medical experts give me that advice before. My trainers made sure, if nothing else, I understood how to take care of myself in regards to wounds." Yes. He did, in fact, choose his words carefully.

"As for a psychotic episode... eh. Entirely possible. I imagine if I'm still here when I'm twenty, my mind may entirely shatter just from trying to process losing a rather sizeable amount of it. Magic has had an... incredibly... formative effect on my existence. For now, I'm taking things slowly, but carefully, and working to adapt to the situation as it comes.

He uhhh... was perhaps a bit too calm about that. But well, that was something that was at least six years in the future. For now? He could focus on what was. "Not... yet," he said slowly. "And yet, hasn't existed for a long time. I see. And I'm guessing, then, that the two of you are related to this... magical event, then?" He held up a hand. "If you do not feel comfortable telling me, please. I understand. From my current experience here? This entire... region of time and space is caught in a lost logia. One that, if you yourself aren't a part of, has at least had a dramatic impact on your life."

"I've spent my entire life working to prevent lost logia from getting into the wrong hands. Or any hands. And I understand if you feel a need to keep information about this one to a minimal level. There will always be someone who finds a reason why 'they' are the ones who should have access to a lost logia's power, regardless of the consequences."

Rashmi Terios has posed:
"'History became legend,'" Rashmi quotes back, sensing a fellow fiction fan. "'Legend became myth. And for two and a half thousand years, the Logia passed out of all knowledge.'"

Chuckling, the redhead then flushes faintly. "...I never actually got all the way through Dracula, honestly. Too many nightmares, even with all the translator errors." But that is about as far as her understanding of magic and the world keeps her an active part of the conversation, and she returns to absorbing the knowledge flying around her head.

Setsuna Meiou has posed:
Nurse Meiou takes a deep breath...and then when she speaks, it's in a different cadence. There's...power there. Just a little. Just a TINY bit...but it's there...and it gives a bit more weight to her words as she says, "...the world has CHANGED...I feel it in the water...I feel it in the earth...I smell it in the air. Much that once WAS is lost, for none now live who remember it."

She holds the serious tone for a moment, then smiles, "Ah, Sir Tolkien did have such a magnificent way with words."

She takes another bite, then a sip of tea, "...and intentional or not, knowing or not, there are some truths to be found in his writings."

She then looks over at Chrono, "That's not the first time you've referred to 'Lost Logia'. What ARE they? Because I suspect the event that caused this may have been quite a bit further back than a mere two and a half thousand years."

Chrono Harlaown has posed:
Chrono Harlaown blinked a few times before... "Actually, most lost logia are lost for longer than two thousand years, I'd be amazed if this one was that young." Completely missing the references of the two girls, but aside from a confused look, he merely continued on.

"You see, Lost logia tend to come about when ancient civilizations... for lack of a better word, destroy themselves. Advancing too quickly, too violently. The lost logia is the term we use to describe their relis. While some are harmless, many are not and they serve as a rather.... tempting prospect for treasure hunters or those who feel they have a need or even a right to their power. The TSAB works tirelessly to procure and isolate these relics, to avoid them falling into any hands." Not 'wrong hands'. 'Any' hands.

He tucked his shirt in and adjusted it, making sure it was all neat and precise again. Seriously, he was a liiiiiil bit too uptight sometimes.

"In the end, Lost Logia is more of a... catch-all term for 'Objects that originated from destroyed civilizations'. Often of such power and destructive capabilities that they pose a threat to worlds and even solar systems. In a few cases, they are nowhere near as destructive and can be seen as just ancient heirlooms of a lost civilization, but those are hardly the type I work to contain."

He took a slow, deep breath. Looking between Rashmi and Setsuna... "Lost Logia known as Jewel Seeds are the reason I'm here. They were, for lack of a better term, sucked into this region and we were unable to stop them. Now I believe they are what Precia is after. Were she to get a hold of them, the consequences of such an event would likely be... terrible. Possibly putting this world itself at risk."

Rashmi Terios has posed:
Oh, that was a reading that gave Rashmi *chills.* Something about it, could almost make her feel like Setsuna *meant* the quote...

Shaking the thought off, she listens carefully to Chrono's explanation. "Jewel Seeds," she murmurs, nodding slowly. "Okay... How many of them are there, Chrono-kun? And how'll we know when there's one in the area?"

Setsuna Meiou has posed:
Nurse Meiou nods, "Ah. Enlightenment. Yes, well the existing relics of this Long Lost Civilization ARE indeed quite the kind of thing to be kept out of the wrong hands. Fortunately, by default most of them are attatched to souls of the people best able to care for and use them."

She then sighs, "Oh, lovely. Well, that's the second?...third?...Potential world-ending threat distantly looming on the horizon I know of. Some days I really hate that I *NEED* to know the plural form of 'apocalypse'."

She shakes her head, "Well, frankly that's why we do what we do."

She takes a long look at both of the other people in the room, and there's a moment where she looks...sad, "...you're both so YOUNG...I REALLY wish you didn't have to be a part of this...but you're both already up to your necks in all of this and I seriously doubt Destiny will let you go at this point...so I'm afraid you're in this for the long haul."

Chrono Harlaown has posed:
Chrono Harlaown just blinked a few more times at 'attached to the soul'. "Ah... that's... good," he said. "Then hopefully they can avoid creating any downfalls of... civilization." Yup. Just gonna... push that soul comment away. Not his problem. Noooope.

As for the apocalypse comment? well, he just sighed. "I know, right? You'd think the fact many of these Lost Logia often being the downfall of past civilizations would make most people decide against tampering with them, but nope. So many people become absolutely certain that they will be the ones who can fully utilize and wield them 'properly', even better than their creators. Greed, anger, hate, desire, the reasons are countless but the result always seems to be the same. Destruction on a terrible scale and the loss of... so many lives that never should be," and there he went again. Looking, sounding, so much older than he was. As if he'd seen and been a part of so many of these 'deaths'.

"Indeed. Someone has to. It might as well be us," Cronos said. He shook his head and met Setsuna's gaze. "I can't... deny I am young. But I feel there's one important thing to keep in mind. I chose this life. I had the opportunity to let Lost Logia stand and allow others to fight this battle. I chose it. I will always choose it, be it for six more years or sixty. My... greatest concern?" he said before glancing to Rashmi. "Are those who are dragged into it without a choice. Though many I have seen appear to be willing to carry the burden... the fact so many of you do without the support or training you are wrongfully denied is what concerns me the most."

Rashmi Terios has posed:
"...So that's the *second* person I'm hearing that from," Rashmi says, turning her teacup in her hands. "...And like I told Chrono-kun, it's sweet of you to care, but..."

She looks up, meeting Setsuna's eyes, if briefly. "I *grew up* reading Tolkien, sensei. And Lewis and Kurimoto and Traci Chee and, and... I *know* what's expected of someone who stumbles over the Ancient Artifact and Suddenly Has Powers. So maybe the thingy is from space, and maybe I'm too young to be expected to do what Chrono-kun does. But I'm going to do it, because I *know* the duty of power. As for the training..."

She glances at Chrono, then sips from her tea. "...Better now than never, really."

Setsuna Meiou has posed:
Nurse Meiou listens to chrono's comments about destruction and Lost Logia...and her voice takes on that same depth and cadence as she once more quotes, "...and nine...nine rings were gifted to the race of Men...who above all else...desire POWER." A heavy note of disdain colors that last word.

The older woman's mein turns dark, and she scowls...but then Rashmi...Rashmi Terios makes that comment...and the Nurse suddenly smiles...then takes another deep breath and puts some force into her voice...her voice drops a bit...perhaps not enough, but close enough as she repeats a line she watched over and over until she could repeat it verbatim in that low country accent:

"I know...It's all wrong. By rights we shouldn't even BE here...But we are." There's a short pause, then she goes on, "It's like in the great stories Mr. Chrono. The ones that really mattered. Full of darkness and danger they were..." Another short pause, "...and sometimes you didn't want to know the end. Because how could the end be happy? How could the world go back to the way it was when so much bad happened?" There's a moment as she seems to gather up then she goes on, "...But in the end, it's only a passing thing, this shadow. Even darkness must pass. A new day WILL come. And when the sun shines it will shine out the clearer. THOSE were the stories that stayed with you. That NEANT something. Even if you were too small to understand why. But I think, Mr. Chrono, I DO understand. I know now. Folk in those stories had lots of chances of turning back only they didn't. Because they were holding on to something."

Nurse Meiou trails off for a moment...and Rashmi proves that she's on the ball as she helpfully provides the next line in a soft, almost defeated sounding voice, "What are we holding on to, Sam?"

Nurse Meiou opens her eyes and pins Chrono with an intense stare as her voice surges back with intensity, "That there's some *good* in this world, Mr. Chrono. AND IT'S WORTH FIGHTING FOR."

Chrono Harlaown has posed:
Chrono Harlaown looked between the two of them and, about midway through Setsuna's stirring rendition of the greatest force amongst the ringbearers... Chrono just sighed. A hand to his forehead, rubbing it.

And then RASHMI joined in. And he gave her a bewildered look. Then... finally, they performed the entire rendition in stunning glory.

In a moment of utter defeat he muttered something that DEFINITELY wasn't from this world. Or possibly any world they'd ever even heard of, before looking up at the two of them. "Okay. Just how much of this entire conversation have you two been quoting literature back and forth?" he asked. "And have you two been doing this just to see if I'd notice? And finally..."

"Which literature, because I think I'm going to have to read it now if it's causing this much of a stir amongst your two?" Oh, he was going to be in for a treat and/or torment from these two...

Rashmi Terios has posed:
Chrono's response actually produces a bit of laughter from Rashmi. "Less than you think, actually, and it's from the Lord of the Rings books. ...Or if you don't feel like reading it, I do have the extended version of all the movies! ...And I completely haven't been marking my copies of the books while watching the movies to help me learn English. Honestly." Eyes sliiiiide to one side. "But I mean, the story's almost seventy years old, and transated into fifty languages. So... probably there's something for everyone to like."

"Nerdery aside, sensei, that's... pretty much it. So you can understand why I'd really prefer nobody get all sad that a girl like me's gonna be shooting kaiju. It just can't be helped."

Setsuna Meiou has posed:
Oh, Chrono. You poor, poor doomed fool. You've just uttered the words that shall seal your fate. You've just asked two tremendous nerds for BOOK RECCOMENDATIONS.

<clap> <clap>

This is Fate.

Still, Setsuna raises a hand over her mouth to cover a giggle, "Miss Terios is correct. Far less than you might suspect. While I DO love the books, I'll admit that the extended movies Mister Jackson made are a MARVELOUS rendition of them. Then, once you have those as a point to build off of, I shall introduce you to the unparalleled genius of GNU Sir Terry Pratchett."

The grin she gives then is very nearly predatory.

She then looks over at Rashmi and her smile softens...and then widens a bit as she goes on to provide ANOTHER quote. This one from a rather different franchise, but one that SHOULD be recognizable pretty much anywhere in the world at this point, "...with great power comes great responsibility, eh?"

The greenhaired woman closes her eyes...then blows out a heavy breath, "Fair enough. I'm sure Mister Harlaown can help you with the hows...but it's also a good idea to learn some of the wheres, whens, and whys as well."

She closes her eyes for a moment of thought, then nods, "Well, to keep them short and memorable, a few bits of advice that be very broadly helpful:"

"If violence wasn't your last resort, you failed to resort to enough of it."

"Never turn your back on an enemy."

"Friendly Fire Isn't."

"Your name is in the mouth of others: be sure it has teeth."

"There is no 'overkill.' There is only 'open fire' and 'I need to reload."

"Watch your back."

"Conserve ammo."

"OH! And NEVER make a deal with a dragon."

Chrono Harlaown has posed:
Chrono Harlaown has already been cut down by Fate once, he's apparently one to test it a second time. "It sounds like a classic. Remind me to share some of midchildian literature eventually. I have quite a bit more of it than I would have expected. It helps that a lot of digital formats for books is rather... miniscule. Especially when compared to the very, very, very, very large amount of time a TSAB agent has to spend waiting," Chrono said firmly.

He did smile at seeing such excitement from Rashmi. "Well, if you'd like to bring them over, my roommate has quite a large television and he seems to be a bit... lonely, so perhaps we could even make an evening of it. I'm sure he'd appreciate being included. Worse comes to worse, I can probably cobble together a projector of sorts if the television isn't enough for what you'd desire it to be viewed as," Chrono said. Because, frankly, he didn't fully... get... earth tech.

As for Setsuna's comments? He nodded with them... until the end. And then frowned. "What's wrong with making a deal with a dragon? They're as good as any other creature to form a pact with. Well. In most situations. Perhaps a bit more difficult at times, but other than that I see no reason why you'd push them aside in such a manner."

... He was dead serious.

Rashmi Terios has posed:
Setsuna's advice is received with the puzzled-but-earnest blank face that speaks of someone who doesn't get the reference, but is considering it Important Information anyway, and the 'power and responsibility,' well... *everyone* knows that one. Her head tilts to one side. "...Sensei... would it be okay if sometime, I asked about the whys of things it sounds like might be connected to... well, your people? Because you're right, understanding things like that *is* important."

At the idea of a movie watch night, especially with a poor lonely roommate, Rashmi brightens severely. "Oh, *definitely!* But each movie is like three hours long apiece, so it'll have to be over a stretch. But I'm *absolutely* okay with that!"

...Then he mentions dragons, and now *Rashmi* is the one to give the blank-faced, broken-world stare. "Wait... you're serious. You're serious? Dragons are a thing? *Space Dragons Are A Thing?!"

Some girls are Horse Girls. Some girls are not.

Setsuna Meiou has posed:
Nurse Meiou does NOT geek out over Space Dragons.

Visibly.

Inside her head, she's taken advantage of her ability to alter her personal perception of time to have a good ten percieved minutes of internal squeeing at the thought that somewhere in the vastness of the universe, DRAGONS ARE REAL

On the surface, however, she manages to not slip up as she arches an eyebrow and says, "As a rule?"

One finger goes up, "...they're older than you."

Another finger, "...they're SMARTER than you..."

A third finger, "...and they're highly unlikely to have your best interests at heart. Any deal you make is extremely likely to work out poorly in your favor."

Chrono Harlaown has posed:
Chrono Harlaown actually frowned, crossing his arms. "I mean, yes. But most things are older than me and as much as I hate to say it, a lot of things in this world are smarter than me. In specific niches, even moreso. But just because they may be that does not necessarily make them less trustworthy than other creatures. Certainly there are some worlds where they are more vicious than others, but they are no different from any other animal in that case, at which point they can make fine, if difficult, familiars."

"Now, as for them being unlikely to have my best interests at heart, that's a challenge with any creature in any location or time. Lots of people have ulterior motives. *I* have ulterior motives, as I am certain both of you two. I am merely trusting that our motives, in this case, match. Why are..." Then he trailed off and glanced towards Rashmi. "Wait. So... there aren't... dragons on this planet? Then why..." He looked between the two of them, even more clueless before, softly, giving another sigh and giving Setsuna a 'Really' look. "... That was another reference to something, wasn't it?"

Rashmi Terios has posed:
"Fiction is what happens when magic is a *dream,*" Rashmi says, rolling her eyes and sounding like those words are becoming the start of a very well-worn path. "This world has almost eight billion people on it, and if even one hundred people can use magic, then it may as well not *exist* as far as cultural development goes. But I mean, I guess people can get *inspired* even if they don't remember."

Upon saying this, Pluto gets a verifying look.

"But just like... Assume anything even halfway adjacent to magic in the TSAB? Either never happened, or happened so long ago in such a confined space, that it fell out of living memory."

Lookit you, Rashmi, talkin like you know things!

Setsuna Meiou has posed:
Nurse Meiou gives Rashmi a very respectful nod, "Truly, Miss Terios, you possess wisdom beyond your years." She looks back to Chrono, "She is quite correct. For the vast majority who are unaware, magic IS a dream...but by the same token it is a DREAM...an IDEA...and ideas can be both great and terrible things...things that some very wonderful people have spent a lot of time speculating about...dreaming and hoping about. So yes, there are tales of dragons both monstrous and terrific...wonderful and terrible...brilliant and dark...and very nearly universally every single one of them agrees that good or bad, lawful or chaotic, helpful or harmful, dragons are very nearly always proud, vain, greedy creatures."

She pauses, tapping her chin for a moment before she goes on, "For those that grew up on this world, those tales form the base, the underlying concept of magic that the average person will have when they awaken. They'll have heads full of stories and knowledge...and unless they have some kind of teacher, no way to tell what tales contain truth and which are mere fripperies until they experiment. It doesn't help that your form of magic seems to have developed in a VASTLY different way than my people's did. Yours is all math and direct manifestations...ours was all bound to Things and Concepts. There are some things I've seen your type of magic do casually that ours struggled with...but I imagine that there are probably some things we could do that your magic would similarly struggle with."

She shrugs, "Which I suppose is a good thing. I imagine your enemies will largely be expecting to face those such as yourself."

She then grins a somewhat more savage grin, "...all the better for us to surprise them."

Chrono Harlaown has posed:
Chrono Harlaown blinked a few times and then gave a small smile, then nodding. "You know... That's really wise, Terious-san. Sometimes I think I forget that. And... it really doesn't help that, culturally, your planet is a black hole. We've... vaguelly... known there was something here. Possibly a planet, a civilization. But it was all just rumors. As far as I know, nobody has come here, or left here, in ages. That includes the literature, the jokes. It does make it hard for me to... follow, at times, what you do and don't know."

"For example, dragons. There are some powerful ones, ancient, wise ones. But there are also dragons about as wise as your common house cat. While there is some carry over between our worlds, finding where things overlap can, at times, be a challenge. I... will admit, I was unaware that your world didn't have dragons. I would have imagined you at least had non-magical ones. I've seen statues and the like. But I haven't had the time to research that. Or the energy to explore. So... I must ask you please be patient with me as I still attempt to learn more of your world and culture," he said, bowing his head politely. Even... asking forgiveness for not realizing what was and was not mythos in their world.

"As for our magic... yes. So far, your magic is considerably different. But it's impacting my own magic. Taking time to learn to harness myself. A lot of the magic where I'm from is absorbed into our bodies from the environment and stored in our linker cores. It makes sense that, as time goes on? More and more your magic will affect me as any semblance of the magic I had outside of this world is replaced by the magic that is native to this world. The fact Precia can wield magic likely means she is already more along the path of harnessing this world's magic than I am, considering her age."

Rashmi Terios has posed:
"Oh, Chrono-kun," Rashmi says fondly, "that just means we get to give you *fun* homework. Maybe. I mean, nobody likes *everything* but there's so much out there it'll be easy to narrow down what you like. And then you get to take them in for the first time, and we get to see that!" Forgiveness, bah. Nerd-blanks are the *best.*

When Chrono's conversation turns to magic, Rashmi tilts her head. "So yeah... I was wondering about that. She's definitely an adult, but... it doesn't look like she was having *any* trouble at all when she was trying to almost-kill us."

Setsuna Meiou has posed:
Nurse Meiou leans back a little nodding at Rashmi, then frowning momentarily before she lets out a small sound of revelation, "...ah...this is another of those moments of confusion. When I said 'us', I was referring to Senshi such as myself and Sailor Moon. Our magic is NOT modern magic. It's from a time far gone and much different. As that guy that Countess Steiner was trying to fight found out the hard way. I threw an attack at him, he tried to defend with multiple shields and came out rather the poorer for it."

She judiciously leaves out the fact that he took advantage of her comparatively weak short game to mess her up nearly as bad. Nobody else saw that, so SHE'S the one who gets to tell how it went.

Chrono Harlaown has posed:
Chrono Harlaown couldn't help but chuckle at that. "Ah, I see. Well, I imagine learning the culture of this world from you two will be far funner than learning anything from my last mentors," he said with a playful grin.

The comment about Precia, however, made him frown. "Yes. There seems to be ways to bypass the lost of magic after a time. Not... good methods, however. From what I've seen, it requires one to give up a part of themselves. So whatever Precia gave up... I imagine it must be severe," he muttered. "Who knows? Perhaps it'll be a blessing. If she is weaker, even without the support of the TSAB I may be able to take her into custody alone."

He then glances towards Meiou. "It... seems that the 'senshi' will be another group I will need to learn much more about." Oh, he had *so* much studying to do. As it was, though... "So, our food may get cold if we wait too much longer. Why don't we take a short meal break and then you two can let me know what 'homework' you desire for me to read? In fact... I'll do the same. I'm certain there will be a few stories from my world that you would find absolutely amazing."

Rashmi Terios has posed:
New fiction. *New Fiction From Magic Space Writers.* The look on Rashmi's face could definitely be called greed. "That... I think is an *excellent* idea, Chrono-kun. I'll let Meiou-sensei start, most of what I've been reading lately is... Well, older light novel series," she admits with a flush. "But I do my best book shopping at second-hand places, so it's practically like treasure hunting to get a complete set."