2076/Act 14: Petite Etrangere

Act 14: Petite Etrangere
Date of Scene:	17 November 2024
Location:	Mamoru's Place
Synopsis:	A light housewarming becomes chaos when a strange, pink-haired girl falls from the ceiling in Mamoru's apartment. When she declares herself Usagi Tsukino and demands the Silver Crystal, everyone knows they're in for a taste of the weird. Welcome to the 21st Century, Chibiusa!
Cast of Characters:	Mamoru Chiba, Jadeite, Usagi Tsukino, Takashi Agera, Rashmi Terios, Ami Mizuno, Amanda Faust, Chibiusa Tsukino

---

Mamoru Chiba has posed:
Earlier-- yesterday-- over takoyaki *and* taiyaki-- Mamoru told Takashi he was moved in, and handed him the address. Today, he finally did text Amy about karaoke, and asked her if she could come over and help them figure out where to set it up and how to set it up and what to set up...

Mamoru's new address has also been posted in the Shed and he's installed a doorbell on the roof access, but there are also balconies, there are plenty of places for a mahou to land. (The balcony has been suggested for midnight 'my friend is bleeding everywhere oh god' visits.)

Ami's around somewhere, and at the moment Mamoru and Usagi and Tamaki are moving a reasonably large platform from one corner of the big big big big living room to another place in the vast expanse of floorspace.

The rest of the floorspace has a polished hardwood floor, and all the walls are a warm off-white with polished wood trim.

There are small rugs by big heavy pieces of antique furniture with weird or interesting carvings on them, and around the walls are some tapestries, and since it's afternoon, the curtains around the vast curving window wall are open to let in the light from special windows that reflect instead of letting people see in--

Around the top of the place is a cat run.

There is a cat in it, chasing a jingleball through it back and forth. This is Chekhov's Cat Toy.

The kitchen's over there; it's also big, and has a mosaic tile floor because Mamoru's apparently a masochist who wants to replace tiny tiles on the regular.

"Okay, maybe here? Or maybe I should wait for Amy before trying to make us move it again..." says Mamoru, straightening up and wiping his face on his t-shirt.

Jadeite has posed:
Tamaki puffs for breath as he puts the platform down, scrubbing his own face. "I think we should wait. If nothing else, it'll make dealing with the corners a lot easier."

Also because. Hoo boy. He needs a drink. And perhaps to watch kitten nonsense for the next couple minutes. Who thought the hardest part of moving in was not MOVING the furniture but deciding where it needed to go??

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
"We should definitely wait," Usagi huffs and puffs too, arms straining right until they lower the platform into its new place. "This stuff is so heavy! I guess it has to be so it doesn't break, but..."

As soon as it's down, she flops onto her back, starfishing. The wooden floor is nice and cool, perfect for curing all that exertion.

"Tamachan... save me... with cool refreshing beverages..."

Takashi Agera has posed:
    Takashi didn't have to actually walk (or fly, or teleport) too far. Juuban was still close enough to Mitakihara and Obsidian Tower that there were plenty of the organization's Doors to cut down on travel time. And it's not like he can just teleport and appear into the front room of a place he's never been - and he probably shouldn't do so if there's anyone but Mamoru there, or that leads to a lot of expl-lying. It would lead to a lot of lying.

    So would flying in or even just hitting the rooftop, since Takashi Agera is supposed to be nonmagical, which means the only thing he can do is, from the nearest Door, make his way there via totally mundane means. Which is kind of lame but oh well. Takashi knocks - but he does so at the same time he's stepping inside. "Mamoru-san, I'm here." he calls as he kicks his shoes off. He doesn't know if anyone else is here, or maybe just doesn't care, given Mamoru is the one he's really here to see anyways.

Rashmi Terios has posed:
The moment she'd heard that Mamoru was getting his own place, a proper housewarming gift was in Rashmi's thoughts. A rice cooker seemed like the obvious pick... and it turned out to be correctly spotted, after Chiyo told her she'd gotten a family-sized one for the apartment. So, back to the drawing board... Until an idea came, that required her mother's help after hours to work on.

Landing on the rooftop, Rashmi de-henshins in a flash, retrieves a slightly bulky box from Nicomachea, and rings the rooftop doorbell, humming a jaunty tune as she waits to be let in.

Ami Mizuno has posed:
Ami Mizuno was not a heavy lifter. She could if asked of course but she was currently occupied with a tablet looking up various topics such as 'Best Sound Placement for Speakers' and 'How to set up wifi Karaoke' just in case Amy couldn't make it. Plus she was curious, and this did sort of fall under her area of technical expertise.

The other thing she was doing however was making sure (per strict directions from Mako-chan) 'Make sure they eat properly!' Several drinks were arranged on a tray and the Mako provided snacks were also ready for the time that the furniture moving crew decided it was breaktime.

Hearing the little kerthump of the platform being placed down her gaze flits up in time to see Usagi and the others practically melt from the exertion. A little grin comes as the tablet is set aside momentarily in favor of taking hold of the drink tray to carry over. "I think I can help with that part, Sagi-chan," she offers with a little chuckle of amusement. "You're all looking a bit dehydrated. You know you can get just as dehydrated in Winter as in Summer, maybe even worse, because you don't think to drink what you ought to."

Amanda Faust has posed:
    Amy steps out from the stairwell after going up seven flights. "Whoo! I'm in... hahh... I'da gotten winded in... hahhh... three flights before... hahh... okay maybe that's more from... hahh... being in shape from magical girling..."

    After catching her breath, she takes in the preparations. When asked about things like 'where do you put the stage' she looks a bit flummoxed. "Umm. I mean. I'm just the guy with the notes about avoiding obvious accidental dramatic pitfalls of using magic like this in a more public meeting place..." And then she hears Takashi and startles. Okay, don't talk about magic! She surely won't slip up!

    Oh, hi again Agera-san!" Amy holds her hand to her chin and considers the room. "I dunno what makes a good stage layout... although I guess we could see how people singing in different parts of the room sound to test for acoustics. But more likely I can maybe help us find whatever computer programs or smart TV apps or whatever we're using to set up karaoke... I kinda... didn't think about how involved it'd be!"

    She's smiling, she's surrounded by friends and their friends and family and she's smiling, it's nice to have a moment like this these days!

Chibiusa Tsukino has posed:
    Up near the ceiling, a mass of pink clouds suddenly forms, swirling like a vortex before reshaping into a fluffy circle. Those with devices, scanners or magical senses can detect/feel a spike in magical energy coming from within. A black cat-like toy, roughly the size and shape of a beach ball, falls down directly towards Mamoru's head and, if not caught or interfered with, bounces off and lands near Tamaki's feet and rolls for about half a meter.

    Less than a second later, the circular cloud explodes, flooding the area with neon pink light for a second or two as something small and very pink drops into the room. It's a child. A very small child with pink hair tied into pigtails with pointy, conical buns. She's wearing a blue sailor fuku school uniform, though it might be hard to tell all of that before she lands.

    Her arms and legs are splayed out like a sky diver's. Oh no! Someone better catch her. Or y'know, she could land on the starfishing, exhausted Usagi. That works too.

Mamoru Chiba has posed:
"Ahaha heh," Mamoru says a little sheepishly, reaching up to rub the back of his neck and surveying Tamaki, and Usagi on the floor. "Well there's plenty of pineapple soda still..." he starts, but thankfully Ami's got the situation well in hand. (From above, jingle jingle jingle.)

Then Takashi comes in, and Mamoru brightens. "Hey--!" he starts, and then the roof doorbell rings, and Mamoru holds up a finger and does a running slide out of the room in sock feet to get the roof access door. "Come in!" he says as he opens it, and he looks startled and then grins. "Rashmi-chan! Welcome! We're setting up to set up for a thing," he says, then opens the kitchen door to the side so they can shortcut back in that way.

Then Amy comes in and is totally winded, and he looks alarmed but lets her catch her breath before saying, "I guess I forgot to tell you about the elevator..."

He reaches to offer Usagi a hand up as he says to Takashi, "There are awesome snacks, and things to drink and some of those things are pineapple soda, and... "Ow, what?!" he yelps, letting go Usagi's hands to put his hands on his head and look up-- and LOOK ALARMED--

Jadeite has posed:
"Ami, you're a lifesaver," Tamaki says, taking one of Ami's cold drinks and setting it next to Usagi. "We're all about to shrivel up until papery blades of grass, you know."

And he carries one over to Mamoru before picking up his own, knocking back half the glass in a single desperate gulp.

"Rashmi, Takashi, Amy, thank you all for coming!" He hadn't, ah, expected all of these people, but! It's good to have help. He's been hauling things all DAY! Which he's happy to, of course, but he is a delicate artist who needs rest as well as a bodyguard. Who'd have thought just - living and doing things as a person would be so tiring?

And then there's brilliant light and Mamoru's cry of pain and Tamaki drops his cup to grab the thing ATTACKING MAMORU - the large ball is scooped up before it can bounce away, and then there's something else flying -

"Usagi, roll! Ami, from above!" he snaps, trusting in his fellow guard to keep the princess safe.

Rashmi Terios has posed:
"Welcome home, Mamo-kun!" Rashmi singsongs as the owner of the apartment opens the door for her, and she follows him down the stairs. "I can't wait to finally see what you all have done with the place and WHAAAAA--!"

Once she emerges into the apartment proper, she just... has to look around, wonderstruck at the sheer teenage majesty of what was referred to as 'an apartment.' Mouth agape, eyes wide, head on a swivel, she just... drinks the sight in for a bit, then shakes herself with the realization that other people are here, thus must be paid attention to as well.

"Hi, everyone~! Wow this place is *amazing* I think it's bigger than the restaurant and the apartment *combined* I can't believe you got all this done i-- IS THAT A MOSAIC IN THE KITCHEN?!"

Takashi, as an unknown, gets a cheerful-if-puzzled wave once the housewarming present is set on the nearest countertop, and just as she's about to introduce herself?

Chibifall.

....Okay, *what.*

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
At Ami's reminder about drinks, Usagi sits herself up, and as such, is slightly better off when Takashi, then Rashmi, then Amy arrive. She waves at them cheerfully and takes a cold melon soda, drinking it right there on the floor.

"It's good to see you all," she says once her parched throat is soothed. "Man, you're right, Ami-chan, I really was super thirty - eh?!"

That last is uttered when clouds form on the ceiling, and a ball drops right on Mamoru's head. "EH!? Mamochan, you're okay right -"

And Tamaki is snapping at her and the cloud explodes in light and smoke and is that a fucking gREMLIN -

Needless to say, Usagi does not roll. She stares in dumbstruck horror and confusion, and the tiny sky diver who appeared inside the apartment drops right out of the sky onto her stomach, her forehead smacking into Usagi's chin.

"OWwwwwwww," the Moon Princess wheezes as literally all of the air is forced out of her lungs. She flops back on the ground, hands clutching her chin. "Why.... meeeeeee....."

Amanda Faust has posed:
    People never look up. But a cat beachball bounces off Mamoru's head, and that makes her look up and there's a small person in a schoolgirl uniform and she's dashing forward, diving, trying to grab them by the back of the shirt (or the randsel, if present to go with the uniform) after they land on Usagi (or the floor). "Who are you?!"

    The revelation that it appears to be a human child gives her pause, though, she kinda figured kid-size youma? Or spirit or something weird?

Takashi Agera has posed:
    Takashi waves to Mamoru for just a moment while the boy invites other people and he's a little annoyed that he's not the sole person, and a little bit more annoyed that he seems to have been invited as work was being done. He'd better not be only called in to help him get his place set up! Especially with people around so he can't 'cheat at it'.

    Of course he can't say that because it would be equally as rude to call it out directly, wouldn't it? Especially if that's not the case.

    And then of course, a pink surge of chaos appears in the room. Tamaki and Ami are used to being bodyguards, but Takashi is used to being the one under attack. And he's not in henshin or in Obsidian. He draws back his hand with the fancy smartwatch on it and for just a moment there's a flicker of purple energy over his shoulder, until his brain and the AIs in question have time to register the 'threat' as a pink haired five year old. This doesn't entirely remove the threat; he's met both Nanoha and Fate - but it does reduce it and confuse the heck out of him.

    "What the hell, why are random children dropping out of the ceiling in your apartment? Are you okay, Usagi-san?" He asks, unknowingly asking both girls as he moves slightly closer, still a little bit wary. He knows Tamaki will take care of Mamoru, but everyone else is more of a mixed bag right now. He -does- notice that a lot of people in this room take it with more stride than you'd expect for normals... but he's doing the same thing so that sword has two edges. He does move by Mamoru and, probably loud enough for Tamaki to hear as well, clarifies 'not mine, not a youma' in a quick whisper, since both of them know who he is.

Ami Mizuno has posed:
The only issue with being called into guard duty at *right this moment* is that Ami's hands are full of the tray. The bottles of soda still on the trah clang to the floor creating quite a mess as she dives and--Doesn't get there in time to save poor Usagi.

Instead she automatically wraps her arms around ChibiUsa to lift the child off of Usagi even as it registers that (this is a child) so she ends up just standing there holding a five year old in a princess carry. At least she didn't weigh much.

"Uhm." Blinking rapidly she looks from Usagi to ChibiUsa, and asks the pair with great concern, "Are you all right?"

Of course she means everyone in general and not just the small unknown child, she's not ignoring her girlfriend, really! Though it may seem that way as her puzzled, concerned expression is fixed on the suspiciously pink girl.

Chibiusa Tsukino has posed:
    The offending catball is caught rather easily. It weighs about as much as a basketball, and squishes like one too. It stares up at Tamaki with a comically wide smile and big bright anime eyes. A familiar crescent moon rests on its forehead, and it has a tiny antennae popping out between it's very large ears. It seems dormant for now, but can you really trust that smile?

    As for Chibiusa, she sits on top of Usagi for a moment while rubbing her forehead. Ouch ouch ouch that hurts. Before she has time to think things through, Amy has her by the collar and she's flailing with her tiny arms. This leaves her vulnerable to getting picked up by Ami, which means that Usagi is spared the misery of having a tantruming child on top of you while you're already tired.

    When she hears Takashi ask if 'Usagi' is okay, and Ami asks the same question, she gives them both the silent treatment, frowning as she tries to process the sudden weird reality of her situation. Instead she says to Takashi, "I don't remember giving you my name."

Mamoru Chiba has posed:
'Welcome home--' oh how Mamoru appreciates that, and will have to tell Rashmi later, as well as answering her! And giving her a tour, and Takashi and Amy too! And--! There's a Situation for now, though, and Tamaki and Takashi are close to him ish and he can feel the back-of-the-neck tingle of magic but of course he can there's a small child come from the ceiling and Amy's diving and Mamoru is so confused.

He nods to Takashi, then starts to step forward to separate pink from blonde, and that's also already taken care of. They were just going to plan out the karaoke space and now everything's incomprehensible.

"Hey what the f--" he starts to say, but there is a small child in the room, and he looks to Usagi and holds out his hands again, and he ignores -- with dignity -- any bottles that have smashed or opened on being dropped, as well as Tamaki's drink, and he says, "Tamaki, please get the mop? Bucket's in the closet next to the second bathroom to the north. Little girl, you just landed on Usagi." He bends a little bit, so he's not so towering over Ami and the smol pink. "Is your name Usagi too? Like your cute hair?"

Rashmi Terios has posed:
For a brief moment, utter chaos reigns, and Rashmi just... sort of spectates, from the kitchen. Part of it is just trying to process Usagi getting People's Toddler'd. Part of it is trying to read the magical signature that spiked and subsided, and part of it is watching the incursion herself, and her reaction to her friend's name being called.

Glancing at Takashi, still an unknown entity, Rashmi tries to couch her question in the most magic-neutral way possible.

"...Are you okay? Where did you come from?"

Her voice is genuinely gentle and curious and full of Big Sisterly Patience, because if this is *actually* a small child, one's approach can determine a *lot* about future interactions.

Jadeite has posed:
Tamaki squints at the ball. The ball squints back at him. He does not trust that cute and adoring smile. He was also cute and adoring oncea and now look at him.

"I'll get the mop, give me a minute," he says, and he is tucking the ball under one arm because this suspicious thing is NOT going anywhere. Especially with Takashi around.

And he looks at the kid, then down at Usagi as he makes his way to the closet. "You didn't have a phase when you were a little kid where you dyed your hair, did you?"

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
It takes a couple of minutes for the pain in Usagi's chin to fade, her hands clamped there as she hisses, little oohs and aaahs of pain escaping her as she tries to wrap her mind around everything that just happened. One moment, the world was normal and bright, greeting friends and the next she was being viciously attacked by a gremlin creature -

And then she looks up and sees Ami holding the thi- person?! who attacked her like she's some precious angel baby instead of the thing that dropped out of the sky on her! HELLO?! Where's the love and affection for her, huh?

Her stomach aches from taking all of the little pink-haired kid's weight and her chin hurts from their skulls smashing together and now her girlfriend is worrying about her?

"You didn't give anyone your name, because you, you dropped out of the sky uninvited!" At least Mamoru isn't too preoccupied with her. She grabs his hand, pulling herself up and wobbling a bit. "I'm okay, her head is just hard. Thanks for asking, Takashi-kun..."

Takashi Agera has posed:
    Takashi pauses and looks at the strange girl with the strange hairstyle and the manner of talking, secured in the bluenette's arms. "Well, I don't recall asking you your name, so or anything else, but seeing as how we are talking now, who are you and why did you fall out of the ceiling?" he asks. "Do you live... upstairs? Nope, top floor, right?" he says, scratching his head.

    He's got a lot to process because he recognizes Faust-san from the tako trip, but Mizuno-san is triggering a much longer-ago recall, and Rashmi is absolutely one of his enemies, at least sometimes, so... he's got to be careful here. But he's already posed the question to the kid. Honestly, the kid's the safest place for him to look and focus right now, especially given that Mamoru is there.

    And then after a moment he blinks. The ball's magic. It pulls his attention away for juuust a moment for his eyes to follow it before he returns to looking at the small pink girl, waiting expectantly for an answer. He does look at Usagi-Usagi when she replies that she's doing well and adds. "Good, good. And yeah, heads tend to be hard." Takashi would know.

Amanda Faust has posed:
    The ~~gremlin~~ child is also named Usagi? What?

    "I guess it's not the sky, more like the ceiling..." Amy looks up to see if the clouds and portal (possibly?) are still there, and then back at Usagi (the small pink one. Two Amies and two Usagis, this could get confusing fast!). Then Usagi standing up draws her eye, but she says she's okay, so she looks back to Other Usagi "Who are you? How did you get here?"

    She looks back to back to Usagi (her friend) and Mamoru: "I don't suppose you invited a magical ceiling child to Karaoke and didn't mention it?"

Ami Mizuno has posed:
Okay. Everyone was okay. Ami looks up toward Usagi to flash her an apologetic look but she doesn't exactly just drop the child either. Especially as Mamoru leans down to ask Chibi her name as well.

With a patient, warm smile she turns her attention back to the pink haired child she's currently cradling in her arms. No one was hurt, it didn't appear to be an attack, and that just meant it was Magic Issues of some sort that needed to be sorted out. This wasn't exactly a Hotaru situation.

"Hello, I'm Ami," she greets the girl politely--No baby talking here, either. "I'd put you down but it may not be safe until the glass is all cleaned up. Would you mind if I move you over to the couch instead? Then we can all talk." A reasonable suggestion she hopes!

Chibiusa Tsukino has posed:
    The small pink gremlin (who is also a small child) looks over to the gentle, sensitive boy currently addressing her. She squints at him for a moment, but then her gaze softens a little. His tone of voice and manner of address gives her something familiar to latch onto. Something comfortable. Ami, also, has a similar effect. Yet even so, her gaze remains hard, and she doesn't yet spare a glance for the poor teenager she landed on.

    "My name is Usagi Tsukino," she says. In a tone indicating that the name very much belongs to her and her alone, and she finds it offensive that anyone else would dare have it. (Nevermind the fact that it's also her mom's name). Rashmi's question isn't answered, and is instead met with a stare and the silent treatment. When Takashi speaks up, the stare is aimed at him instead. Usagi's comment is ignored outright.

    The Luna-P Ball doesn't want to get dragged to far away, so it suddenly comes to live and wiggles its way out of Tamaki's grip. As it floats closer to Chibiusa, the tiny pink girl shouts, "Abracadabra! Transform into a gun!"

    With a poof of pink smoke, the Luna-P ball transforms, and Chibiusa points the resulting weapon at none other Usagi Tsukino. While still being princess carried by Ami.

    "If you're Usagi then... give me the Ginzuishou! Right now! Or else!"

    As for the magic cloud portal and the pink lights that Chibi dropped from, all of that is gone by now.

Mamoru Chiba has posed:
Mamoru grabs Usagi's hand, his own hand abruptly glowing. (Calm calm calm. If she shoots I'll fix it--)

And he knows exactly what to do.

He sleight of hand "picks Usagi's pocket" and produces a silver crystal lollipop, eyes wide. He holds it out emphatically.

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
Usagi is sputtering the second the little pink brat declares her name. "Uh, no you are not! I'm Usagi Tsukino, and there's only one Tsukino family in Tokyo, and it's mine! Look here, you little pink brat, you might have dropped out of the sky but -"

And then the Luna-P Ball is flying back towards the faker Usagi, who shouts out -

"WHAT?!"

And then she's being held up. At gun point. In front of all her friends. As a little girl points a gun at her and demands the Silver Crystal.

Usagi's free hand goes up, and it's only the rush of calm calm calm from Mamoru that keeps her from snapping, though Mamoru will feel the way she very much does not want to experience getting shot, even if he can fix it. Her wide eyes have all the sharp focus of an experienced magical girl, even as she swallows nervously - and then, playing dumb, she forces a shocked look to her face. "Mamochan! You can't just give that to her!"

Yes, little girl with a gun, that is totally the real silver crystal. Ignore the stick.

(Maybe she shouldn't play that dumb.)

Amanda Faust has posed:
    After smol Usagi declares her name, while the cat beachball is wiggling outside of Amy's vision, she also asks regular-size Usagi "I don't suppose you thought about dying your hair pink in an alternate timeline? Wait, her eyes are red..."

    Gun. Magic gun. Finger on trigger. Did she say Ginzuishou? "Woooah woah woah woah woah..." Amy holds her empty hands up while trying to sidle in between the Usagis, facing the little one. "Can we talk about this?"

    Only after she's standing in front of a gun does she wonder if her regeneration will work out of henshin. Uhhh... Mamoru can heal her, right?

    Chibiusa is faced with a red-haired girl in a green T-shirt with a chibi cartoon tiger saying 'nyo' on it and dark slacks. Look, she was expecting Karaeoke planning and prep, not drama and guns! Or she might have worn a shirt with more gravitas.

Ami Mizuno has posed:
Ami Mizuno lifts her head up in surprise at this news. "You're also named--" She begins, mind whirling, trying to consider possibilities. Alternate timeline? She did arrive via magical means after all. There's no chance to even suggest this though as Luna-P comes bouncing back only to turn into a gun that the child points at HER Usagi.

Ami was holding a girl, holding a gun, pointed at her girlfriend.

Eyes lighting with anger she does the most sensible, practical, immediate thing she can given she's holding the child and she just--Turns around. "No. NO, you are not going to shoot my girlfriend!" She blurts out. "This is Japan, we do not use guns here, we use our words like civilized people!" HUFF.

"I don't want to drop you but I will if you keep this up!"

Jadeite has posed:
There's a sudden shock of cold in the air as Tamaki henshins. This is his job, after all. His duty. Crisp white and blue fabric overtakes him, and a shield made of ice manifests in his hand -

And holds it between the gun and both Amy and Usagi. And does nothing else, for now, as Mamoru pulls a candy and most of hte others try to talk the susupcious child down.

"Please don't shoot. There's a lot of paperwork for illegal gun use here," he says, voice forcibly calm.

Takashi Agera has posed:
    Takashi listens to the girls insistent commentary pretty patiently, and even though she doesn't answer his questions, the information she does give is useful, even if he takes it to incorrect conclusions. "Usagi from another universe? A... kid universe?" Well, he's seen a world of equines and his subordinates come from two OTHER different worlds. "Like, it's possible she's a Different Usagi." he surmises. Of course, then there's a gun and assumptions are out the window, except then a lot of other things happen; Mamoru's holding out a lollipop, Amy's getting in the way of Usagi. Takashi quirks an eyebrow at the presence of the gun, but - girlfriend, what? That makes him pause for a moment, but whatever it's not really his problem. Technically the gun isn't but if anybody here got shot Mamoru would be sad which is about as close to a problem as he can make it feel like. Also he can't exactly just leave right now.

    "I don't think she's ever held a gun before." Takashi says after a moment. He -did- date Mami Tomoe. "Someone that small, you're gonna want to hold it with both hands for the recoil." he notes. Like this is a normal thing to say about a child with a gun.

    Then he pauses. "You must be pretty desperate to fall out of the sky and use magic in front of like six people twice or three times your height. "Scared?" he asks the small child, walking around to the side Ami's moved her to.

Rashmi Terios has posed:
Chaos has not ceased erupting. In fact, chaos got a gun.

Like Jadeite, Rashmi just *instinctively* henshins, a bubble of gold light forming and shattering to reveal technology, frills, and a giant floating book. But through it all, Rashmi doesn't *move* from the spot. It's possible she's frozen, because in what world does 'five-year-old mugging someone for an ancient miracle-working relic' not require some time to process?

Chibiusa Tsukino has posed:
    Chibiusa did not expect to be foiled so easily by Ami turning around. Frustrated, the child leans forward, and then back, trying to see around Ami and keep the gun pointed at Usagi. "I just... I need it!" Spotting totally real Ginzuishou in Mamoru's hands, her eyes light up as she reaches out to grab it. Feeling it in her hands, it seems a little off and slightly sticky, but maybe modern Usagi just dropped it in the dirt or something. Whatever, soap and water exist for a reason.

    Between the jostling around and desperate grabbing, Chibiusa demonstrates the exact reason why trigger discipline is so important. The gun is aimed right at Amy (and Jadeite's ice shield in front of her) when she accidentally pulls the trigger. There's a loud *POP*, not a bang, and a bouquet of flowers bursts out of the barrel of the gun. Petals fly through the room until air resistance slows them down enough for them to just flit to the ground.

    Chibiusa looks down at the gun, and then down at the Ginzuishou lollipop in her hands. Wait... lollipop?!A fake gun in one hand and a fake gem in the other. A sucker holding a sucker.To Takashi, she frowns and says, "You have no idea. I don't need candy!" After a moment, she reconsiders the use of candy, and then puts the sucker in her mouth. "Okay, now give me the real one!" she says, while waving her totally obviously fake gun at Usagi. The bouquet is still resting in the barrel.

Mamoru Chiba has posed:
"Everyone needs candy," Mamoru opines, his heart finally beating again after the hammer went down, his lollipop-free hand gone to his chest for a second. "Thank you everyone for coming, I didn't expect everything to happen at once..."

Then he sighs and takes another lollipop out and sticks it in his own mouth, and he reaches over to offer one to Takashi, too. A quick squeeze of Usagi Major's hand, and he returns his attention to the five-year-old waving a flowery gun around on the other side of Ami. "Since we already have a Usagi, and she's older, how about we call you Chibi-Usa? Let's sit down like Ami-chan suggested, and we can sort all this out."

He looks around at everyone else, reaching up to rub the back of his neck and looking rueful all over again. "If anyone wants to dip, I don't blame you, this is neither the visiting nor the karaoke-planning that I expected today..."

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
"I have definitely never imagined dying my hair pink," Usagi answers lowering her hands the second the gun isn't pointed at her. "And it wasn't pink when I was a little kid, either. And my eyes are blue. There's no way this kid is me!"

She's reaching out to grab Amy's shoulder when the little kid twists and squirms and fires - a bouquet? Sticking out of the gun? Aaand she drops Mamoru's hand to facepalm, as the sucker holds a sucker, and tries her hand at mugging her again. With a fake gun. Again. The ice shield, definitely not necessary now, is pushed with her fingertips so it's out of the way, and she puts a hand on her hip.

"I know it's fake now, Fake Usagi," she huffs, "So there's no way I'm giving anything to you! So why don't you just - just... do what Mamochan said, and come sit down and talk to us about all of this, alright?"

She'd been all wound up, ready to tell her that there was no way she was giving her the Ginzuishou, but... now... with everyone still trying... it seems a little mean. Even if she is still suspicious.

Takashi Agera has posed:
    It's safe to say the moment the boquet comes out of the gun, Takashi ditches a lot of worry (and two AIs go back to standby mode). "Oh come on, everybody needs candy from time to time." he says, shaking his head - then looking up and taking the offered lollipop from Mamoru. She's aiming the boquet-gun at Usagi but the number of people who can take care of -that- in this room is high, so he slips his hands into his pockets and walks back a few steps.

    "Candy's especially helpful if you're in trouble, because it gives you time to stop and think about a better plan that pointing a fake gun at someone in front of a bunch of her friends." he says. This is about as child-friendly as he gets at the moment.

    "Maybe if you stop threatening everyone and tell them why you're here and what you need, you might find more success. Nobody's just going to give you something precious to them for no discernable reason." Only a few people in this room know how amazing hearing those words come out of his mouth is.

    He looks to Mamoru. "Nah, it looks like I'm pretty well along for this ride, wherever the hell it's going is."

Amanda Faust has posed:
    And there's the ice shield! Good. Amy was wondering how quickly Jadeite could do that from out of henshin.

    And then there is not a gunshot, but a pop. It was a fake, and thank goodness, because this is why we do not play with guns, it's obvious the kid accidentally fired.

    Amy steps around the ice shield and reaches out to try and pull away the toy(?) by the barrel. "Okay. As you can see, you are numerically and magically outmatched. Can we please talk about what is going on here, and what you are trying to do, that... that made you come here and threaten Usagi for the Ginzuishou? How did you get here? You obviously..."

    Wait, Agera-san mentioned magic like it's nothing. And also didn't react to the ice shield. Oh. Amy glances at Takashi, who somehow turned the logic of an old "gimme a break" ad campaign into something that sounds like serious advice, and then back at chibi-Usa. "You obviously must be pretty desperate, and... we're heroes, you know? ...Wait, do you know?"

    The kid may not have an actual weapon, but teleporting here -- or coming from an alternate timeline -- probably involved substantial magical power, so Amy's not assuming that the kid isn't dangerous; but if she had a bigger threat she could intentionally use, and was willing to use it instead of a fake gun, she would've, right? Still. She's also shown carelessness, and...

    Well, the implications of someone possibly dimension-hopping being careless are worrying. Best not to drive her to do anything rash. Well, even more rash.

Jadeite has posed:
Jadeite stares at Takashi with something like shock. "I never thought I'd say this, but right now, you're my favorite brother in law."

Takashi said that? Their Takashi?? The one he'd had to shove off an ice slide last month because he was trying to steal magical technology for shits and giggles?

The ice shield is lowered but not popped out of existance yet - the gun may be fake, but the other magic is real and someone has to keep their guard up!

Everyone else seems to have the small child mostly dealt with, anyway. "In general, Mamoru-chan has never had a bad idea in his life, so it's a good idea to listen to him," he adds anyway, attempting to help deescalate.

Ami Mizuno has posed:
For one heart stopping moment Ami's grip tightens on Chibi as the trigger is pulled. The air around the pair seems to have dropped significantly in that span of time as she was preparing to henshin herself--But thankfully she doesn't need to as *flowers* bloom from the barrel of the gun allowing her to breathe once again.

She's going to have a heart attack at a young age at this rate.

"The eye-candy is right, there are alternate timelines, but she doesn't look as if she's *our* Usagi," Ami agrees as she can't *quite* remember Takashi's name at the moment and it's not important right now. Amy makes for the gun, so she moves on, toward the couch, to deposit Chibi-Usa there with a solid nod.

"Yes, let's listen to Mamoru-kun, he's very smart. Let's all sit and talk and figure this out. Maybe you're from an alternate dimension or timeline where you have a similar name, Chibi-Usa." It's certainly not like Usagi would give her daughter the SAME NAME she has, right? RIGHT USAGI? With a sigh she steps back next to Jadeite, hands on hips to regard the child as she asides to him, "I certainly hope our child never acts like this."

Rashmi Terios has posed:
There's a moment of terror when the gun goes off... only for it to suddenly sprout flowers. And the crystal lollipop is placed in toddler mouth.

At this, Rashmi relaxes. This is so obviously ridiculous insanity it could *only* be serious magical shenanigans, and not the lethal kind...

She feels on much firmer ground, here.

"Jadeite-san I'm already in the kitchen, I can start cleanup and tea," she calls, still not dropping henshin -- because, let's face it, what would be the point? -- "Where's the mop again?"

Waiting for an answer, she busies herself exploring the kitchen, learning the layout, finding the kettle, and getting the water on.

If alternate-reality shenanigans are indeed afoot, they can at least be civilized about it.

Chibiusa Tsukino has posed:
    "If I wanted candy," says the child with candy in her mouth, "I would've asked for candy! I need the Silver Crystal!" As for the comment regarding her name, she turns her head to Mamoru with a still-frustrated frown and says, "I don't mind if you call me that." Usagi calls her Fake Usagi and she objects. "I'm not fake! That's my name!" Others try to reason with her. Takashi tries to reason with her. Her big red eyes dart around the room as she considers her situation and the likelihood of getting what she wants right now, of being believed, and of actually being listened to.

    The fact that people are already talking about alternate realities and timelines makes her think that maybe her story isn't that unbelievable, but... Takashi is right about one thing: She needs a better plan than this. She hasn't taken a single moment to think things through since The Incident and her big play did not pan out.
        As Amy reaches for the gun, the pink gremlin pulls it away protectively and holds it close to her chest. It turns back into the Luna-P ball, again with a puff of smoke. She sits on the couch after having been placed there, holding her catball in her arms and off to the side because she's not letting anyone take it! Instead of answering their actual questions, she looks at Rashmi's henshin and asks, "Is that magic, too?"

    Chibiusa remains cagey. Will she be believed, even if she tells them? Can she rely upon the people of this era? Can she even trust them if they aren't the people she knows? No, she shouldn't be trusting anyone. Her eyes dart around the room as she notices just how many unfamiliar people are here right now. She spends a moment or two looking at the balcony.

Mamoru Chiba has posed:
Through all of this, Anko the cat has been up in her long exciting cat run, watching from a window in one of the box parts as the drama has unfolded.

There's a tiny soft *bap* and a jingle, and the cat toy she'd been chasing around and around lands on the floor next to Chibiusa. If the girl looks up, she will see a fluffy calico cat looking back down at her.

In the meantime, Mamoru's nodded to Takashi and looked something resembling grateful; he calls out to Rashmi, "If you go down that hallway, there are two bathrooms, and it's in the closet next to the furthest bathroom."

Takashi has good suggestions, Amy has excellent suggestions -- but -- "Hey, don't crowd her," Mamoru says gently, not raising his voice, "you guys are overwhelming to me right now." And he's getting talked up, okay, sure; he crouches next to the couch and holds out a hand. "She's magic, yes. I'm magic too. Do you want to take a time out?"

Amanda Faust has posed:
    The eye-candy?! Two people here proposed alternate timeline as an explanation, and Ami is self-evidently into girls, and Amy did wish to be cute...

    No, shouldn't we be academic rivals?! But I've been letting my grades slip with the magical girling and not taking school seriously this time around... Amy's shoulders slump slightly, just a little. Aww, dang, am I no longer one of the smart ones after all??? Amy's thoughts spiral, but there are more pressing matters, after all.

    Red eyes -- slightly pinker than Chibiusa's -- widen in surprise as the gun changes back, and Amy pulls her hand back. She won't try to take the catball. She wonders if it's like the disguise pen, but turning into... any toy, or some other category of object, rather than costumes? It clearly can't do weapons, after all. "Sooooo. If um. You don't want to tell us what your deal is, I guess we could talk about something else first? I like manga and videogames. Do they have those where you come from? Do you... have a favorite TV show?"

    Something in the back of her mind slightly irks her about what she just said though. "I also like learning things! Especially about how the world works. It's fascinating! I wish I could study magic. I've also-- I like reading books! I just haven't, lately." What no she's not defensive you're defensive.

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
Mamoru's close, and Amy's close, and Ami's close, and Mamoru of course, is right, that everyone is crowding (except Rashmi, who's offering to help clean even though she's friend and guest, which Usagi will have to thank her profusely for later).

And the little girl... she's right. She's not a fake. She's a real girl who's right here in front of them and she's obviously scared if she brought a weapon. Plenty of people want the Ginzuishou - but people have wanted it for good reasons too. There was another little girl who wanted it's power, once, for very good reason.

And seeing that - the stubborn girl looking around, asking if this is magic, if that's magic...

"You're right," Usagi says, forcing herself to be patient. "I'm sorry. I didn't expect someone else to have my name."

In spite of Mamoru's warning, she gets a little closer, though when Amy starts talking more, words bubbling up, trying to make conversation, she giggles a little, shaking her head. Tapping Amy on the shoulder, she says, "Ami-chan was talking about Takashi-kun. She knows your name, but I'm pretty sure this might be the first time she's met Takashi-kun. But Mamochan's right, that might be too much for her. Even if all of this is weird... she's still a little kid. Asking so much might be overboard."

And with that said, she sits down, not too close to Chibiusa, but definitely within grabbing distance, and says, "I'm Usagi Tsukino too. This is my fiancé, Mamoru Chiba. This red-haired girl is Amy, that boy with the blond hair is Tamaki, that guy way over there is Takashi, the pretty girl who picked you up is Ami Mizuno, my girlfriend, aaaand the girl with the book is Rashmi. And we all know about magic, here. So... why don't you talk to us?"

Sitting this close, leaning in a little the way she is, Chibiusa will be in the perfect position to see that there's a little chain around her throat, a silver one, and tucked inside her chest, at the end of that chain - is the very Maboroshi no Ginzuishou she's looking for.

Jadeite has posed:
"Tea and clean up would be perfect, Rashmi," Jadeite calls back. "I think we have some of Mako-chan's cookies left? If there are any, can you plate them and bring them in? Mop's in the tall cabinet in the back, you can't miss it."

Right. Everyone is talking all at once and Mamoru is trying to talk them down, and calm the kid down, and Tamaki isn't going to be one more screaming voice. He's going to do sometihng useful.

So he follows the kid's eyes, and goes to the balcony doors when she isn't looking, and ices the handles together so she can't make a break for it. If the gun was fake, then so could any parachute magic she had on her, and he wouldn't take that chance.

To Ami, he murmurs as he sidles back: "We're teaching our kids about trigger discipline."

Takashi Agera has posed:
    "It's not the first time, I think." Takashi pipes up into the conversation. "But that time was so long ago as to be functionally irrelevant. We're talking way before Mamoru-san quit his last job and then some." he adds. "Long enough for him to grow and be a very different person, so you know... on that note, it's nice to meet you for the first time a second time, Mizuno-san." he says, laughing a little.

    "I'm going to let you guys talk and just listen. Unless somebody wants to let me have a look at the ball, but it looks like she's keeping a pretty tight grip on it and I wouldn't want to take away a kid's magic safety blanket." He's not a MONSTER, you know?

    And then he leans against the wall to continue doing just that, for now.

Rashmi Terios has posed:
Touching two fingers to her brow in salute, Rashmi... simply flies over the counter and down the hall. Perhaps in the future, there will be a rule about flying indoors, but for now, the important thing is to not step on broken glass, even with a Barrier Jacket on.

Locating the closet, and the broom, dustpan, mop and bucket therein, she gathers up the cleaning supplies, and flits back to her place in the kitchen. A part of her is just a little disappointed at the turn the party has taken, but boxes can be unwrapped later. Magical nonsense is always the highest priority, especially if toddlers are involved.

Agera-san's talk about wanting a look at the ball *is* tripping some flags, but... it couldn't be, right?

Ami Mizuno has posed:
Ami Mizuno has the decency to flush a little when Usagi actually points out that, yes, she was referring to Takashi. The name is provided now though and she offers a slightly guilty smile back. "Ah, yes I remember now. I'm sorry Takashi-san." Mamoru's brother. Right. That Takashi. "It has been awhile."

As Jadeite steps off to ice over the handles to the patio, she looks toward Chibi-Usa assuming that perhaps that was why. Though that would likely make her feel trapped as well it was also a safety thing. "We're seven stories up. It's not safe ou there." That was true.

"And conflict resolution as well," she adds to Jadeite's list of things to teach future children potentially.

With the major tension out of the way (hopefully) she allows herself a long sigh. "We're really rather reasonable people, honest. If you're in trouble we may be able to help."

Chibiusa Tsukino has posed:
    Chibiusa hears the jingle, looks down at the cat toy, and then looks up to see Anko. A cat with no crescent mark. Weird. Must be the not-talking kind. Mamoru offers her a time out. Amy asks her if she has a favorite show. Usagi's sitting next to her, wearing a necklace that... oh there it is. A plan starts formulating in her mind, but to her credit she doesn't actually act on it right away. When Usagi starts introducing herself and others, especially when she introduces herself and Mamoru by name, and refers to him as her fiance...

    A few puzzle pieces start fitting together into her mind. Namely: She took a wrong turn at some point between Then and Now. Also: She now understands why she felt comfortable around the young boy.

    Then Jadeite ices the doors closed. Chibiusa frowns. If it was normal ice she could get through it easily, but magic bulletproof ice...

    Ami talks. A lot of them talk. All of them trying to ask her what her deal is... but she can't tell them. Not just yet.

    Besides. What she wants is right in front of her. There's no need for further conversation.

    Chibiusa suddenly shouts, "Abracadabra! Become a smoke bomb!" and throws the catball against the ceiling, where it bursts into one more big cloud of smoke that fills the whole room. Usagi might feel tiny hands reaching for the necklace around her neck, and the gem resting on it, proving that Chibiusa does indeed know the Silver Crystal by sight. When that attempt obviously fails, Chibiusa flees the couch, and the pitter patter of her tiny feet can be heard fleeing out the front door.

    When the smoke finally clears, both the girl and the catball are gone.

Mamoru Chiba has posed:
Mamoru closes his eyes because everyone is still talking-- and that's a mistake too, because abracadabra--! and Mamoru starts to lunge to catch her, but then tchs, waving the smoke away as he hears her go.

"Anko, babycat, I'll get you sashimi if you follow her and don't let her get--OOF!" This because Mamoru's suddenly got like fifteen pounds of fluffy calico cat on him. "Here, take this, and don't let her get lost."

Mamoru takes a schmancy bracelet off his wrist and puts it around Anko's neck. "Don't lose that, either, Luna will be able to find you both and then you can come back. With it. Please don't leave it there."

The cat knocks the wind out of Mamoru again as she launches herself off the tall black-haired boy, and then there's the sound of scrambling cat on polished hardwood, and then Anko is gone too.

Takashi Agera has posed:
    The smoke bomb goes off and Takashi instinctively brings his jacket to his mouth to cover it. Smoke can be a lot of things, but this is mostly just dense, harmless smoke. He could have put Night Hope or Axion on to trying to track the kid through the fog, but that would have also required one of them to come out of standby mode, potentially putting off trackable energy signals, and among other things, he didn't want Rashmi telling Chrono that his next dorm neighbor was Riventon. Which means all he can really do safely is cough through the smoke and try to feel his way through it to the door. But by the time he gets there, there's not even the sound of little feet in the hallway. Though there is a scampering of paws in the distance.

    "Well." Takashi says. "I heard you send the cat after her, but I figure we're all going to go out and look for the lost five-year-old in the city where Weird Stuff Keeps Happening, ne? Don't want the Corporation being the ones to stumble on a lost kid with a magic ball." he offers.

    "Drop me a message if someone finds her first, Mamoru-kun." he adds. And Takashi is out the door following kid and cat, though it's not hard for her to lose him before he feels as though he is safely away to turn on his magic.

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
Abaracadabra what -

"Hey, get your hands off!"

Luckily, her papa hadn't skimped on the silver, and Chibiusa isn't able to yank the Silver Crystal. Unfortunately, it reacts with a bright light, a blinding (but luckily for Takashi, not actually full of purification) flash for a moment. When it and the smoke clears, the front door is wide open and the girl is gone, and Usagi clutches the Silver Crystal with one hand and her face with the other, groaning.

"This was supposed to be a normal karaoke day," she grouses, as Mamoru sicks Anko on the girl, and then Takashi leaves and she rises to sit properly on the couch, instead of the floor. "She knew exactly what the Silver Crystal looks like. And she knew my name. I don't know who she is, but I don't like that she knows so much.... so here's hoping Anko finds her before she falls out of a ceiling on us again."

She did it once, who's to say she can't do it again?

Jadeite has posed:
The smoke clears.

"Huh," Jadeite says as the girl makes a break for it. "Mamoru-chan, do you want me to block the doors? I can ice them up if I head out via the balcony. She was looking to it as an escape route so she may try and take a window anyway, but it may be more effecient to trap her in here."

Ami Mizuno has posed:
Ami Mizuno coughs a few times into her elbow which is brought up to block nose and mouth as the smoke comes up. Hearing Usagi yell again she asks, muffled, "Usagi-chan?" It becomes apparent with the flash of the Silver Crystal going off that it's still there though and that Usagi is as well.

"Maybe we should just let her go...? If she has access to magic, she could probably protect herself." Besides, she was walking to school alone at that age! Most kids were. Who would bother her? Mostly.

Takashi's remark about 'the Company' though does remind her about Obsidian so she has to rethink that suggestion with a frown. "... Do you want us to go look for her, Usagi?" It's her call. Really.

Amanda Faust has posed:
    Ami-chan was talking about Takashi-kun.

    Amy blinks at Usagi in confusion for a second, then realizes that Usagi must've seen the look on her face a moment ago and looks suitably shocked and embarassed, blushing and looking away, muttering defensively, "I-I mean... I did wish to be cute... And she likes girls, it was an understandable mistake..."

    Agera-san thinks there's a reason people might want him to check out the magical catball. Is his magic some kind of artificing?

    If it's not Usagi from another timeline but just some kid named Usagi... Wait, why did they think she was the same? Oh right, she called herself Usagi Tsukino...

    SMOKE BOMB!

    Amy's train of thought is interrupted. In the smoke, she hears Mamoru direct his magic cat, and she heard footsteps run towards the stairs...

    In the smoke, others see the fiery light of a transformation, and then hear more footsteps racing to the stairs. In the stairwell, Magical Rocket Girl Red is trying to leap down from the railing on each level to a level or two below, but it's kind of fiddly and in her hurry she slips and falls, grabbing on to the railing and having to recover, losing precious seconds as Chibi-Usa runs further down...

    She tries again, PINGs off a railing and down to the next one, but hits THAT at a bad angle. This is really awkward to do, okay?!

    Small comfort to the pinkette who can hear her dropping down and hitting the railing on each level, and see her if she looks up. By the fourth floor, Amy decides to just run down the stairs, and her footsteps echo through the stairwell, but the smaller Usagi has a lead Amy can't quite make up that way.

    It does make it clear that the pinkette can't afford to stop, though, chased until she's outside and can get lost in the crowd.

    ...Eventually, the elevator DINGs and opens on the seventh floor and the Puella Magi looks out grumpily at the group, catching her breath but not nearly so out of breath as earlier. "She got away."

Rashmi Terios has posed:
*sweep* *sweep* *sweep*

Rashmi's own Wallflower Tendencies are cringing against the wall of noise that could *only* be produced by a gaggle of well-meaning teenagers, each falling over each other to have their chance to help. When the poor little girl turns her toy into a smoke bomb, Rashmi blinks, looking up... Then coughs at the prodigious amount of smoke, that eventually clears... leaving an open front door and a missing toddler.

Well. *That's* concerning.

"Mamo-kun," she says after the silence has stretched far enough, "Just let us know and we'll go. Also if your cat deserves sashimi, we can go to the fish market early tomorrow morning and get Anko the *best* sashimi."

Given what happened when everyone acted on their own initiative, it seems like the better idea to just... defer to Mamoru on what to do now.

"Nicomachea, can you follow that magical signature? Was it the same one as when she changed the ball?"

Chibiusa Tsukino has posed:
    Chibiusa is out.

    At some point a half hour from now she will turn around and tell Anko, "I know you can talk!" in an accusatory tone, before trying to shoo the catte away.

    For now, though, she's running as fast as her little legs will carry her and turning Luna-P into a poncho so she can't be recognized from a distance.

Mamoru Chiba has posed:
"Will do-- and thanks, Taka-kun," Mamoru says, reaching to clap a hand to Takashi's shoulder as the other boy leaves.

"Thank you so much, Rashmi-chan," he says apologetically, then, and leans a little against the couch so he can in truth lean against Usagi a little, or enable her leaning on him, and he puts his hand on her head for a moment, warm. "Here's hoping Anko finds her before anyone else does. Can you tell Luna to track my communicator? I... forgot to do that first."

Amy comes back in and Mamoru looks unsurprised. "That's okay," he says, "you should definitely have a snack and something to drink, now, though."

He sighs, knuckling his eyes under his glasses. "Yes, please. I mean, Anko is really, really good at following, and she has really good motivation right now... but if you can also track whatever magic signature that was, yeah..."

---at some point tonight, Anko will stop and blink owlishly at Chibiusa, and say firmly with a headbutt to Chibiusa's shooing hand, "Anko follow! Sashimi."

But that is neither here nor there.

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
"We need to leave her alone, I think," Usagi replies to Ami. "I mean, us, not Anko. Anko probably won't scare her unless she gets big on us, while we... would be a group of teenagers chasing a scared, bratty little kid. Trust me, that's not going to help anything. I'll tell Luna to keep an eye out on the location, she keeps an eye on us at least once a day."

For reasons she doesn't think she needs to explain, though some people would probably find that creepily concerning. But... the truth is? Given how often they've been kidnapped, terrorized, or dropped into another dimension? It's warranted.

She rubs her temples.

"...well, we might as well all help clean this place in. Poor Mamochan's floors, we didn't even throw a raging party to get them this dirty..."

Amy rushes in, and Usagi waves it off.

"As worried as I am about Obsidian finding her... Anko is going to be better at tracking her. And if she's after the Silver Crystal, she probably will come back. Man, I'm gonna have to tell Mama and Papa to keep an eye out..."

Rashmi Terios has posed:
"Not ever a problem," Rashmi chuckles, tipping a full dustpan into the garbage bin, then sweeping up a second load. "And Nicomachea says he can tell me when she *uses* it, but otherwise it's like trying to find a Device in standby mode. So... I'll keep an eye out on my way home, but I think Usa-chan's right. Going after her would just make us scarier."

Sweep. Sweep. Sweep.

"So I was looking forward to you opening your housewarming gift, Mamo-kun, but if you want I can just *tell* you. Hint: Mami had to help me out a lot."

Welcome home, Mamoru. Falling armed children and feline operatives paid in sashimi are an extremely under-reported part of living on one's own...