168/Bad News Brigade

Bad News Brigade
Date of Scene:	28 July 2023
Location:	Dorms
Synopsis:	Usagi takes a moment to catch Ikiko up on what she knows. The conversation is good for both of them (even if Usagi still can't believe Ikiko wants to volunteer for more school. With *Luna!*)
Cast of Characters:	Usagi Tsukino, Ikiko Hisakata

---

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
It's a day or so after the incident at the mall - the explosion at the mall, as far as the news is reporting. Usagi Tsukino feels sick every time she thinks of it; the blood and the screams, the monster so unlike any of the others she's seen, the damage. It didn't feel like they'd saved the day, even if they had killed the monster. So many people were in the hospital, and so many more had escaped hospitalization but sitll come home with injuries - Usagi felt sick every time she saw Naru's bumps and bruises, her cuts and scrapes, and even worse about the fact that she'd come out okay, especially with her henshin taking the brunt of the damage.

But there's not much she can do about that. She's not like Yellow Pearl Voice, who could heal the wounds those monsters created. The only thing she could really think to do, besides carrying about her regular life, was talk to the people she knew were in the know - the other magical girls. And Ikiko-chan, at least, she could pretty reliably find.

Case in point.

"Ikiko-chan! Do you have some time to talk?" She'd been loitering a bit, after knocking on Ikiko-chan's door only to find her gone, and her patience is finally rewarded.

Ikiko Hisakata has posed:
Fortunately, Usagi had come over when Ikiko was briefly out of her dorm -- out on a snack run, instead of elsewhere in Tokyo visiting stray dogs, so the wait wasn't too long. "Sure, Usagi-chan!" the younger girl smiled, opening the door and inviting Usagi to enter at her own speed for once.

"What's on your mind?" Ikiko asks as she puts away the snacks and takes a seat. It's not like Usagi was particularly somber, but there was definitely something weighing the older girl down.

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
"Great, great."

There is a distinct lack of energy in Usagi's step as she follows Ikiko - none of the frenetic energy of the picnic, that's for sure. She takes the empty would-have-been-the-roommate's chair and drops into it with a sigh.

"You heard about the explosion at the mall, right?" She might as well start with the most recent incident and work her way back.

Ikiko Hisakata has posed:
"Hard not to," Ikiko confirms with a grimace, leaning forward to pay attention to Usagi. While Ikiko's not one to pay extra-close attention to the news, headline-grabbers such as that do get noticed and remembered, not to mention overheard from other people talking about them.

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
"It wasn't an explosion. Not - not because of gas main or anything, like they're saying. It was a monster. A - weird one. Most of them are kinda... almost goofy looking you know? Or they talk! Want something, like to drain energy or, I don't know, smiles," Usagi throws her hands up a little, and shakes her head. "But this one - it was like... an orb? With teeth and a huge eye, and it made a shockwave that blew up that whole area of the mall. I was there. We beat it, but..."

"I don't know why it was there, or what it wanted. It just... appeared. Out of this - hole, in the world or something."

Ikiko Hisakata has posed:
"Yikes!" Ikiko winces. "I mean, I know that monsters can be vicious, but you'd think that they'd only be vicious like that towards the magical girls trying to stop them, not... everything in their vicinity!"

That last is said with a broad gesture and a slight shake of the head; not a headshake of doubt, but one of 'I cannot believe that there are those ridiculous enough to do that'--

    --and in the corner of her eye, she spots the repotted succulents sitting on the windowsill, each one with its respective shard of pottery next to it.

Ah. Right.

"Guess there are those who are that vicious out there," she sighs.

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
"I know! I just - who even does that? I don't even know what the monster was getting out of it. We didn't let it get far - me, Sailor Mars, Yellow Pearl Voice, and another magical girl I didn't recognize were all there, plus..." she trails off for a moment. "Plus Hematite and Pyrite. I don't... think you've run into them yet."

Where there's exasperation when she talks about the monster, it's all hesitation when it coems to Hematite and Pyrite. She doesn't know what to think about Pyrite, who had been - honestly a little hilarious, in her interrupted injustice speech, but Hematite? She definitely doesn't know what to think about him, aside from trusting him more than Luna thinks she should.

When Ikiko's eyes drift to the succulents, Usagi's follows it, and her eyes widen to see the shattered pottery and the little group of plants. There's the vaguest memory of Ikiko taking them, but...

"Yeah," he voice is quiet. "I don't have any like, proof? But I think this has to do with that guy. Fire Eyes, who said he'd be hunting us."

Ikiko Hisakata has posed:
Ikiko nods grimly. "No proof that it is, and no proof that it isn't, she agrees. "And honestly, I'm not sure which is more worrisome -- a barely known enemy upping the stakes like that, or a completely new foe seeking to cause trouble."

And that's not to mention the minor threat of those who summon youma just because their nap was interrupted!

A small smile crosses Ikiko's face when she notices Usagi's reaction to the succulents. "I refused to let Fire Eyes' destruction be the last word on them," the younger girl says softly. "Those three are yours, mine, and Chiyo-chan's -- I recognized them by the pottery remnants they were in. As long as they're growing, it means that Fire Eyes failed to have his way with them, and that defiance can help inspire us to be defiant against him."

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
Yeah, and just thinking of that... she knows she has to tell Ikiko-chan about the man in Juuban Shopping District. The one who'd been after her, and maybe even on more than just Fire Eyes' orders...
ut it can wait, just a moment, anyway, because Usagi feels a tightness in her throat looking at those three pots, and the little plants still growing inspite of everything. She'd thought they them toast. And instead, here's Ikiko-chan keeping them going, helping them through it, the same way every magical girl kid she's met has helped her through every fight they've fumbled their way into.

"That was really smart - and - I like that. Saving them like this, keeping them going - it's exactly like what we have to do. He might be angry that we're as good at this as we are, but we're not going to let him beat us. If he doesn't like it, he can stop treating this like a game, and hurting other people!"

There's an edge of passion in her voice, the kind that comes out in every one of Sailor Moon's justice speeches, and she has to clamp down on it a little before her voice gets too loud for a dorm room. Even with everything that's happened... people got hurt, and people were scared, but what have people like Fire Eyes and that Lightning Guy (as she's dubbing him for now) actually managed to do? No one died (yet), and everyone - everyone will get to go home.

"There's something else, too. That day I had that picnic, I think you could tell something was...different, right? I know Hotaru-chan and Niji-chan noticed all my bandaids," with how many sparkly Hello Kitty bandaids she'd been wearing, it wouldn't be a surprise if someone could see her from the moon. "That was from another fight. But it was against a guy, not a monster - well, no, he had these gross bug monsters, but - it was a guy. An actual guy."

There's still a trace of disbelief in her voice. Inai-sensei had told her there were people out there, had made it clear Fire Eyes might be a people, but it's still baffling.

Ikiko Hisakata has posed:
"I was wondering if it was magic-related," Ikiko frowns. "I would've asked at the time, but not around those not in the know, y'know?"

Still, this is disturbing news. People throwing youma out like gatcha pets? Troublesome enough. People joining their monsters in the thick of battle? Definitely a threat, if they think they don't have to hide behind their 'pets'.

"I wouldn't want to fight someone like that on my own," the younger girl nods. "Youma can already be a handful, but a leader with enough confidence to wade into battle? That's not good."

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
"I got struck by lightning," Usagi says pitifully. It's mostly put upon, an act - but there's a real hint of emotion there too, the sense that that whine and thhe upset aren't just for show. "And I lost my Tiara.

That's the more important problem, and she's not sure what to do about it, even now. Realizing that she could imbue other objects with her power (that rose, darkness transformed to luminous red comes to mind) has buoyed her spirits, but she's not forgotten how terrifying it had been, to realize she was nearly helpless. She swallows hard.

"You definitely shouldn't fight him alone. I didn't get his name, but, I think he works for Fire Eyes, and Ikiko-chan - Ikiko-chan - he hated me." Her voice breaks a little when she says it. "I don't think he came after us for me, he just - he was attacking people, making them scared, but when he saw me and Mars-chan - it was me he hated. Sailor Moon."

Ikiko Hisakata has posed:
In an instant, Ikiko closes the gap between herself and Usagi, and gives the older girl a big hug. "I remember Luna mentioning that if you've awoken into Sailor Moon, that your enemies have awoken, as well," Ikiko murmurs. "I guess this means that we both now know what the implications of that are."

On the plus side, being an Automatic Threat to an enemy means that it's easier to draw their wrath away from those who can't defend themselves... but by the same token, it also means you always draw their wrath, even if you're in no shape to deal with it.

And that is a sobering thought.

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
The hug is much appreciated and even more wanted - Usagi is quick to return it, wrapping her arms around the other girl. Despite her best efforts (which aren't very good) there are tears welling up. "Yeah," she says, voice thick, "Luna - she's going to tell me about it. With Mercury-chan and Mars-chan, because we all have the same enemies, but I don't think she expected this either. Or maybe she did and she just didn't tell me."

It's a possibility, but she doesn't know what she'd prefer - that Luna is keeping more secrets, or that Luna is as confused by all of this as she is."

"But yeah. He - came for me. And I think he must have been working for Fire Eyes, I mean - he tells us he's going to start hunting the people who fight youma, and the very next day someone comes after me?" It can't be a coincidence; what were the odds of that, that she, some random fourteen year old girl, would just have all these enemies crawling out of the woodwork like weevils, all at once?

Ikiko Hisakata has posed:
The hug continues, with Ikiko patting Usagi's back in response to the gathering tears. "I should probably meet Mercury and Mars someday," the younger girl murmured. "Possibly with Luna to introduce us, if we're meeting in street clothes." Because having the mascot you work with say 'yeah, this person is in the know' adds an extra layer of trust, right?

Eventually taking her seat again, Ikiko sighs thoughtfully. "I don't think I have enemies in the same sense that you do," she admits frankly. "On the other hand, I also don't think I have 'naturally part of the same team' allies like you do, so... it might even out?" Small comfort, that.

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
"Probably should," Usagi agrees, sniffing once, and then - when the hug ends, scrubbing her eyes and trying to pretend she didn't tear up. "Mars-chan and Mercury-chan are really cool, they're amazing. And Luna likes you - so... it's up to them, but one way or another, I want you to meet them, Ikiko-chan. Cute Wolf Tsukiko is a hero too, and our ally!"

She's trying to pep herself up. Be a little less scared and wobbly, a little more senpai you can rely on. Whether it's believable or not is a different story - Usagi isn't exactly used to being relied on, after all.

"I'm really glad for that, Ikiko-chan. Really glad. That guy, he was talking kind of crazy, about ruling and exiling or something, and he was... old." She makes a face. "Like a teacher, old. I thought enemies would be - kids like us, not grown ups."

Ikiko Hisakata has posed:
Ikiko beams at the compliment~! Knowing that you're doing good in the world is an important thing, but hearing someone else confirm that definitely makes your day!

"You'd think adults would have enough options of their own for ruling stuff, like business or politics," the younger girl agrees ruefully. "Or even a hobby, like painting overly complex figurines they can march across the table with dice!"

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
"Or putting a ship in a bottle or something, not throwing lightning at us. Like, I know we're not little kids, but he was ancient! He made Inai-sensei look our age." Kyouka Inai might not appreciate this nearly as much as Usagi thinks she should, but it's the truth. "I didn't get a good look at him. Everything was still kind of bright, from my tiara exploding and all, but he was like... my dad's age."

Her voice is filled with the ruthless honesty of a teenager. "I thought adults who hated kids just complaiend on Facebook, or shook their canes, not summoned lightning."

Ikiko Hisakata has posed:
Ikiko nods in agreement with Usagi. Adults should deal with their problems and their attitudes in an adult way, with maturity and at least a shred of dignity, and...

    ...wait, rewind that again?

There's a bit of confused blinking, then Ikiko's eyes go a bit wide. "Your tiara exploded?!?" she yelped.

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
Adults should be mature and cool, not terrifying villains that make the earth shake with the force of their hate. Or at the very least, they should be goofy. They definitely shouldn't be -

"Ahaha... yeah. I told you I lost it!" In her defense, she did! But there's a difference between lost and exploded. "I had to - that guy, he was so strong. He took Red's attack, and Sailor Mars', and Ginga Otome's, and it was like it did nothing. I was... kind of hoping it would come back..."

Ikiko Hisakata has posed:
"...okay, I am going to need either your cellphone number, or Luna's, because if this guy shows up when I'm fighting, I am definitely going to want backup," Ikiko gulps. As Tsukiko, her Soulful Howl doesn't have much physical kick, and the Silver Wolf Tackle usually leaves her short on speed afterwards. If this guy can shrug off most finishers, the last thing she wants is to be unable to dodge a counterattack!

The corners of her mouth quirk up in a smile. "Too bad the tiara physically exploded," Ikiko notes. "Having it give off a blast of energy instead of a blast of itself could've been useful, but at least it wasn't, like, misplaced lost." Like rolling down a sewer grate, given how wobbly the tiara toss was back when they fought the two-headed bear youma.

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
"Definitely. I should have given it to you last time, but I totally spaced. And Luna doesn't..." a pause. "Does Luna have a cellphone number? She could totally have a cellphone. If she has a cellphone -" how could her very own cat not tell her that she has a cellphone! If she has one. It's a little lightening of the mood, but Usagi quickly grows serious again.

"I'm giving you my number for sure, and if you see him, call me, because even if he's scary, I don't want you to take him on yourself, Ikiko-chan. I don't think anyone should take him on themselves. The one thing we have over all these monsters is that we can team up."

It was why it had been so scary that that guy had multiple monsters, attacking in groups.

And then she huffs, "I wouldn't have misplaced it! I would have found it eventually." She thinks about her disguise pen and quickly hurries past that thought. "But - I think I found a work around. When we fought the monster at the mall, Hematite gave me one of his roses, and I was able to use that, just like my tiara."

A pause.

"Well, except for the part where it didn't come back. ...like my tiara."

Ikiko Hisakata has posed:
Ikiko blinks. "Did the rose explode, or was it more of a 'I am not built for this' one-shot usage?" she inquires -- not that it's super relevant, but thoughts of improvisation and/or combination start coming to mind.

Still, there's one major question that needs to be asked...

"Usagi-chan, are you okay?" Ikiko asks softly, concern clear on her face.

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
"More the second one," Usagi decides after a moment, having thought back to the moment and considered - considered - "My tiara was special, I guess, to be able to handle so many attacks. The rose was just a rose." She thinks, anyway. It was Hematite's rose, at least. That made it special, even more than the all black color.

And then she blinks, smiling at Ikiko-chan's concern. "I'm okay. I mean - I hate that all of this is happening, and I wish summer was just fun, instead of all these worries - but Inai-sensei told me I had a lot of power, and she was right. I don't want it, but I have it, and it looks like the bad guys are going to make sure I use it."

Ikiko Hisakata has posed:
There's a nod, then Ikiko glances contemplatively out the window. "My dad once told me that Americans have a saying about power and responsibility," she muses, idly watching a spider meander by on the outside windowsill. "I don't recall the exact phrasing, but I took it to mean that one should not strive to obtain more power than they're willing to be responsible for."

She turns towards Usagi again. "But sometimes, when you seek to protect those who are important to you, you have to claim the power that's available to you, even if you don't think you're ready to handle the responsibility that comes with it," Ikiko admits. "Because otherwise, you're basically responsible for what happens if you don't step up to the challenge, and that can be even worse."

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
It's funny; if this was the start of summer (and maybe that's what's funny, because they've been on summer break for not even two weeks) she would have complained about a lecture on responsibility, even if that's not what Ikiko is doing. She would have complained about how she didn't ask for responsibility, didn't want it.

She still doesn't want it, but she's not going to complain about that now. In the future, certainly, but in this moment?

"If I only had the power I strove for, I'd be in good shape."

Her smile is rueful though, and she understands the point. "I know. I don't want the power, but I have it. And - I was always going to have it, so I might as well get used to it, right? At least I can do something. If I didn't have it..." she shakes her head.

She's not going to be the one to put it into words, that Naru would have died that night.

"I wish we could get a break on our homework for it, though."

Ikiko Hisakata has posed:
That last sentence draws a rueful giggle from Ikiko. "No rest for the wicked, or those who vanquish them," she agrees. "Sometimes it feels like it'd be nice to put off homework until the last minute... but then you'd have the occasional problem of a youma rudely scheduling their rampage to take place during that last minute!"

Although, that mention of homework does give her an idea...

"Maybe I should ask Luna for lessons on speaking Feline," the younger girl muses. "I know my syntax is horrible, but it's hard to learn when your previous options for 'teachers' are ordinary cats that don't speak Japanese."

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
"Just think, having to tell your teacher a youma ate your homework, and worst of all, they don't believe it!"

The humiliation. The devastation. Ms. Haruna was already quick to put her out for eating in class; she'd never buy that a youma ate her homework, even if it really did. "It's the worst. And I thought summer vacation would be better, but there's monsters everywhere."

All the time! Every which way!

And then it registers what Ikiko has said, and she looks at her in horror. "You want to do more school? Luna would probably love it. She's always trying to teach me things."

Ikiko Hisakata has posed:
"I wonder if the monsters have their own school, and the reson so many are showing up now is because they're on summer break as well?" Ikiko wonders out loud, followed by a mental image of various youma in school uniforms doing assorted slice-of-life/rom-com scenes.

...okay, that's a bit too weird, she thinks to herself as she shakes her head to clear the image away.

"It's not so much 'yay, school!' as it is 'I have a skill, but I'm not good at it' practice," she explains. "Like, if I want to secretly relay a message to -- or from -- Luna, it'd help if I could get my words in order instead of sounding like a shuffled deck of vocabulary cards. Especially when precision is important!"

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
"Can you imagine? If the monsters were our class...mates..." Usagi freezes, thoughts coming to a hard stop. She remembers, suddenly, what Inai-sensei had said - how obvious she thought it was that the bad guys out there would know that Radiant Heart Academy was where they were gathered. But. Surely she didn't... she would tell them, right? "The enemy, there's no way they could attend our school, right?"

Her voice is weak.

"I mean! That guy - he was an adult. So he couldn't be at our school, and Fire Eyes, he might not even be a person, a human person, who knows, right?" she's trying to convince herself, now, more than Ikiko.

"...maybe that practice is a good idea. Luna would probably love to teach you, and it's not like I can learn Feline."

Ikiko Hisakata has posed:
Ikiko gives Usagi another hug, the volleyball-net Akanbe fresh in her memory, as was the 'staff member' youma involved with the succulents. "I honestly don't know," the younger girl eventually admits. "I think the best we can do is to be cautious and prepared, but not paranoid." Prepared, like, say, remembering to keep one's henshin device with them whenever possible, instead of leaving it behind at the dorms.

Still, that was definitely food for thought, and something Ikiko would have to chew on in her spare time.

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
Another hug, quick, and Usagi tries - to shake the thought off. Ikiko-chan is right, after all, and paranoia will get them nowhere; especially not when they can try and be prepared. Especially when she knows she was the one unprepared, before. "I guess it's just something to keep in mind, but, it's not like we're not cautious. We're pretty good with keeping our secrets, and if we're - ready - then we can be safe. Even if it's the school that's under attack.

Her thoughts go to the youma in the library, the one they'd fought when Ami awoke as Mercury, and the man who had offered them the succulents, the Dippin' Dots ice cream man... "I guess anyone could be a monster, but anyone could also be a guy, too."

Ikiko Hisakata has posed:
"And sometimes all it takes to find those with the courage to face down youma is to be the one facing down a youma, inspiring those who happen to see you," Ikiko agrees, thinking of Cure Peace and Cure Sunny. "People have the capability to be good or evil, and it's up to them to decide on which one they want to empower."