11:45, meeting with head of Corporate West
12:15, lunch with Premier Zedong at the Revocs Bistro
1:00, attend Distribution inner-department brainstorm session; discuss South American supply lag
1:45, check progress of the Shinra-Koketsu with the Grand Couturier at Honnoji
2:30, meet with board of directors and announce acquisition of Chinese and Indian markets
Afternoon, join Lady Ragyo aboard Genesis
Hououmaru Rei flipped her phone closed after a quick itinerary check. Lunch with the Chinese Premier had gone far over schedule when he'd decided to try and haggle about how much of a cut his government would get from COVERS. In the end, just to get away and keep some semblance of her schedule, she agreed to a fifteen percent increase on what was already going to China under the table. It really wouldn't matter in the end considering what COVERS was going to accomplish, but it left Rei in a bad mood nonetheless. Zedong was such an annoying man to deal with; the thought of not having to see him again brought a slight smile to Rei's lips.
Since it was nearly one thirty already Rei decided that Distribution's problems with South America could wait for a day. The brainstorming would go on with or without her there anyway, but Ragyo had made it clear that Shinra-Koketsu was the primary project at the moment. Making sure that Nui was still on schedule and not getting distracted was paramount, especially before the 2:20 meeting with the board.
Stepping onto the corporate chopper, Rei wondered how much trouble it would be today to keep Nui focused. At the best of times the Grand Couturier was flighty; after today's distractions she was sure to be bouncing off the walls. Rei had never seen the young girl quite so manic than she'd been on the helicopter ride back to Honnoji after Lady Ryuuko had left. She'd been chattering so much that Rei had actually tuned her out, though Ryuuko seemed to be the main thrust of her meandering conversation. Truthfully, Rei had been a bit surprised by her new Lady's amour toward the Grand Couturier, but Lady Ragyo seemed to be more amused by their antics than worried. As long as that attitude continued she wouldn't worry about it.
Oh, but Lady Ryuuko had taken to Junketsu so well! When she'd learned with the rest that Matoi Ryuuko was really the daughter of Lady Ragyo, Rei knew that the girl would be so much better with Junketsu than Satsuki ever was. After all, wasn't the youngest daughter the one that Lady Ragyo had spent so much time on? Life Fibers were woven into her heart; she was the perfect being for wearing Junketsu. Everyone at Revocs had been so happy at finding her, especially considering what had happened with Nui…
Rei smile slipped. She felt sorry for Nui. That the Grand Couturier was also Lady Ragyo's daughter –in a certain type of way – wasn't something known to many. She'd never been acknowledged as such due to her not turning out the way that Lady Ragyo had intended, but Nui had been as devoted and loving as a daughter could be. She'd risen to the tops of the company but Rei knew that Nui had wanted more from her mother when she was younger. Satsuki had, as the heir to the company and the chosen human for Junketsu and Shinra-Koketsu, been the focus of everyone's attention. Nui wasn't allowed to have the Kiryuin name; she had never held a position with any kind of authority within Revocs; and, even though Rei was not enlightened on the true nature of what would come to pass in the next few days, Nui seemed to be only the hands that would craft Shinra-Koketsu – she would not be its centerpiece.
It was good that Lady Ryuuko took such a shine to Nui, Rei decided. Now there was someone that would give the girl some real attention.
The pilot announced that they were closing in on Honnoji Academy a few moments later. The COVERS suits were still patrolling the streets, but Rei knew that for the most part everyone the small city was deserted. For all intents and purposes, Nui was Queen here now that Lady Ragyo had moved back to the mansion. Rei was certain she was the first non-influenced human to come back since Satsuki had escaped.
Honnoji's COVERS guardians didn't react when the helicopter touched down in the main courtyard. They wouldn't so long as it were her, but she told her pilot to stay with the chopper anyway. She shouldn't be more than a few minutes after all.
Nui had taken over the former goku uniform production facility under the academy as a place to create Shinra-Koketsu with the mind controlled Sewing Club as her helpers.
Rei could see them all now on the production floor though the grating on the catwalk she was walking across. They moved like robots, dutifully cleaning up the whirlwind of clutter that Nui operated in. The corporate assistant was no tailor, but she thought that Shinra-Koketsu looked rather impressive. Not a uniform that she could imagine anyone wearing, though. Likely that was due to it not being completed; Nui had never yet failed in creating something amazing when she set her mind to it – Rei's own spectacular suit as a prime example.
Something was wrong, though. Rei glanced at her phone and frowned at the digital "1:47" shining back at her. It was far too early for Nui to be wrapping up for today, especially when things were at such a delicate phase. Looking around, Rei couldn't even lay her eyes on the Grand Couturier. Usually Nui would be prancing around and talking to her "assistants", making idle chit-chat as she worked. Everything was quiet; something that didn't lend itself to the notion that Nui was doing her job.
Rei stepped up to the handrail and cleared her throat. The nearest Sewing Club members looked up at her.
"Where is the Grand Couturier?" she asked. "Is she working in a different area today?" Rei hoped that was the case.
"The Mistress is in her room. She is finished for the day."
Well, that couldn't be right. That couldn't be right at all. Rei indulged in a bad habit and clicked her tongue. She didn't have much time before she had to be back at the headquarters for the board meeting. If Nui was being difficult, it could cause serious problems with today's timetable.
With a deep sigh, Rei picked up her pace down the catwalk. As much as she wanted to order the puppets to keep working, she couldn't. Nui was the Grand Couturier and in all matters pertaining to Shinra-Koketsu she was the final authority outside of Lady Ragyo. The most Rei could do was remind her that she had a job to do that Lady Ragyo was counting on her for. That usually motivated Nui to stop being such a scamp.
Ragyo's erstwhile daughter had taken over the Sewing Club's former rec room as her residence. From the landing of the catwalk, Rei could look right into the room through the glass windows that made up half of one wall of the converted bedroom. Nui was inside, flittering from one side of the room to another, looking entirely too pleased with herself. Despite her lingering annoyance, the girl's mood proved once again too infectious to keep the assistant's lips from twitching into a small smile.
Rei wrinkled her nose and forced her rebellious mouth to behave. She had to be firm with Nui and get her back to work, not get drawn into her pace. Once her face came into line, Rei gave the window closed to her a firm knock. Nui, in typical fashion, reacted by jumping so high her head cracked the ceiling. The poor blonde's cheeks puffed as she rubbed her head and she stumbled over to the door to open it up.
"You shouldn't sneak up on people, Rei!" she mumbled through pursed lips.
The assistant sniffed. "I simply knocked," she said, following Nui into her bedroom. It was, Rei thought, an accurate outward projection of its owner. Pink, lacy curtains covered the metal walls of the enormous room and the floors were covered in cute rugs that were cut in the shapes of hearts or animals. Nui skipped far ahead of Rei and now that she was in the room she could see what the Grand Couturier had been up to.
Dresses. Tens of dozens of dresses covered the floor, the giant princess bed that Nui slept in, and every available vanity top. All of them were styled after the same pink one that Nui always wore, but the blonde was examining each one with an intensity she usually didn't show outside of her work at Revocs. Rei looked at two of the dresses lying near her feet; she couldn't honestly see a difference between them.
She stepped over to Nui. The girl was halfway into her closet and furiously tossing more and more identical dresses out of it and making an even grander mess of her room.
"Nui," she began, "I heard from the Sewing Club that you have already finished working on the Shinra-Koketsu."
"Sure did! It's going to be so amazing, Rei-chan! It's a masterpiece!" Nui chirped, her voice only slightly muffled by the pile of dresses she was currently burying her way through. Suddenly, the pile exploded in a burst of pink cloth and Nui zipped past Rei to her bed where a slightly smaller pile of dresses awaited inspection. "Satsuki is going to look so cute in it before she's eaten!"
Rei followed. "I'm sure she will – if it's finished in time. Which it won't be if you take days off like this."
"You worry too much," Nui said as she started holding up the dresses to the chandelier hanging over her bed like they were bank notes. "Everything will be all ready when Ragyo-sama wants it to be!"
Well, Nui certainly sounded sure of that. The girl usually had her head on straight when she was running errands for Lady Ragyo. "As long as you realize that things are progressing faster than they were, Nui." Rei decided she could leave it at that. It seemed like Nui understood that this couldn't be an everyday occurrence. Now, if she hurried, Rei could still get her schedule back to some normality!
Unfortunately for Rei, a slender arm shot out and grabbed her sleeve. "Oh, Rei-chan! I need a favor!" Before she could answer to the negative, Nui shoved something into her hands.
They were tickets. Cinema tickets, to be exact, for something called "Love Love Hurricane: The Movie" that was playing at the theater downtown. Rei wondered just how Nui had managed to get tickets for something that technically shouldn't even be open, but she chalked it up to Nui being Nui.
"Do you think she'll like it?" Nui asked.
Bewildered, Rei floundered for a moment. "Will who like it?"
"Ryuuko-chan, silly!"
"Lady Ryuuko? You're going to a movie with her?"
Nui nodded her head emphatically. "That's what couples do, isn't it? We'll go to a movie, have dinner, and then…" She trailed off and looked down at the floor, blushing.
Rei certainly felt like blushing herself. "That sounds like quite a night out," she neutrally answered. Nui was still waiting, though. What had she asked? Would Ryuuko like it? Really, why would Nui think she'd know about what teenagers liked to watch in a movie theater? "I don't know much about Lady Ryuuko's likes or dislikes, but perhaps 'Love Love Hurricane: The Movie' might be a bit too…" Girlish. Cute-ish. Nui-ish. "…a bit too tame for Lady Ryuuko. She seems like an action movie type." Probably. Possibly.
That seemed to deflate Nui somewhat. She looked at the tickets Rei had handed back with a blank stare. After a moment, the spell was broken and she smiled again, perky as ever. "We'll decide when we get to the theater!" she declared and slipped the tickets into some hidden fold in her dress.
Rei shuffled from one foot to another. She knew that let her off the hook and that she could leave, but there still seemed to be some kind of lingering tension in the air. It wasn't her job to look after Nui. Rei knew that the Grand Couturier could be a bit manic about things and that she would normally work herself out, but she looked more stressed than usual. What if Nui was so stressed that she couldn't work on Shinra-Koketsu? That was in her job description, wasn't it?
"Nui, what is all this? With the dresses."
"Well, I'm trying to pick which one to wear! I just can't decide, though!"
"For your date?" Rei shook her head at that, now not trying to hide her smile. It would take some getting used to asking Nui about things like that. "Nui, Lady Ryuuko most likely won't be back for several hours. She has to capture Miss Satsuki. There's really no need to worry yourself over it right this second."
The petite blonde laughed in her unique musical way. "No, no. I'm going to go pick her up!"
Warning bells went off in Rei's head. "You're going to what? From the Nudist Beach ship? Do you think that's wise?"
"I miss her, though," Nui pouted. "And I want to see how amazing she is in my gift! Those naked monkeys won't appreciate Junketsu. We can go right to the theater after we drop Satsuki off!"
"Lady Ragyo said that she was leaving that to Lady Ryuuko. We all have our own jobs, Nui. Lady Ryuuko's is to capture Satsuki and yours is to finish Shinra-Koketsu."
Nui spun on her heels and stomped over to the other side of her room. She didn't seem too angry, which Rei was glad for, but obviously the truth wasn't sitting right with her. The girl was grumbling to herself and angrily sifting through a few more identical dresses as she did so.
"It isn't just about a date, is it?" Rei guessed. "Nui, what is it?"
It was a long moment before Nui said anything. Rei stepped closer and caught the faintest whisper of, "I'm worried about her," come from the girl.
"About Lady Ryuuko?"
Nui nodded. Rei resisted the urge to wring her hands. Nui being worried about something was never good. In fact, Rei had never seen Nui turn to worrying about something; not in all the years she'd served Lady Ragyo.
"Why?" she asked.
"I don't know. It's just a feeling."
A feeling? Nui just 'had a feeling' that something was wrong? Rei let out a deep breath and slipped her phone out of her pocket; no calls. That meant that Satsuki hadn't been captured yet. It'd been nearly two hours since she'd taken off after the Nudist Beach ship. Given how far it had been allowed to travel since helping Satsuki escape, Ryuuko should be there by now. What was happening onboard was anyone's guess.
Lady Ryuuko wouldn't lose. Honestly, Rei didn't know how something that that would be possible. She was like Nui and Lady Ragyo: a being of flesh and Life Fibers. Junketsu was there too and Lady Ryuuko was already an accomplished fighter.
Everything was in their favor; there wouldn't, couldn't, be any more surprises.
Rei walked over to the large four-poster bed. She looked at the dresses there and, closing her eyes, grabbed one at random. "I think this one is the prettiest. It has the best ribbons."
Nui bounced over and held it up. Her tongue peaked out over her lips as she scrutinized it. After a moment her face lit up like a thousand-watt light bulb. "You're right, Rei-chan! This is the best one for sure!"
In a whirlwind of fabric, Nui somehow managed to get into the dress in just a few seconds. Rei knew better than to try and analyze how the girl did it and simply watched Nui straighten out the various creases and wrinkles with a wave of her magic hands.
"So cute! I love this dress!" Rei didn't bother to ask how it was any different than the one the girl had just been wearing. Nui stopped midway to the door and looked around, but the assistant was a step ahead of her. From Nui's old dress Rei pulled out a long purple scissor (well, half of one, she amended), and held it out.
"Can't forget this," Rei said, smiling indulgently.
Without her characteristic swiftness, Nui took it. "Can't forget it," she agreed and slipped it into her dress. With one last little wave, the girl was gone; probably bounded off somewhere high up where she could blow off into the breeze like a piece of paper.
Rei shook her head. Don't think about how she did that, she reminded herself.
The Sewing Club had finished their cleaning and were nowhere to be seen when Rei passed back by the production floor. She realized that she felt better now, like a weight was lifted off her shoulders. Perhaps she too had been a bit worried about Lady Ryuuko. Satsuki was resourceful after all and she did likely have the other god robe with her. Now that Nui was on her way, though, everything was going to be a cinch. No delays; no problems.
Her helicopter was prepped and ready. Rei stepped inside and flopped down into her chair, enjoying the slight sense of vertigo she got when it lifted off.
"Are we going back to headquarters?" her pilot asked from the cockpit.
"That's right. The two-thirty board members meeting will be starting soon."
The pilot nodded. "I saw the young lady float by a little while before you came out," he said. "Wish I could do that."
"Think of how easy it would be to get from meeting to meeting," Rei agreed, smiling as she thought about it. "Never late again."
"That would put me out of a job real quick, Miss Rei," the pilot laughed. "I suppose once you get back to headquarters you won't need me again today, right?"
Rei almost confirmed that. It would have been easy to tell her pilot to put the copter up for the night; she'd be on Genesis with Lady Ragyo and would have no need of it. After all, whatever happened now wasn't any of her concern. She'd done her job and everything now was in someone else's hands. Nui's and Lady Ryuuko's hands, to be exact. Those weren't toes she'd ever want to step on.
"Can you fill up the tank and keep it running for me?" she asked, mentally cursing herself. "There might be somewhere I need to go after the board meeting."
"Of course I can. Is there a problem, though? I thought all the big-wigs were staying at the headquarters today?"
Rei looked out the circular window next to her chair. From here, the ocean stretched out as far as the eye could see. Somewhere over the horizon… "Just a…feeling," she said, closing her eyes and sighing.
Leaving this as a complete one-shot, but I might add more depending on how the last few episodes of the show go.
I'm writing this for some good friends of mine. Nui strikes me as a real sympathetic character when you stretch a few lines in the show and play with them, so I wanted to write something for it before the idea ran away.
I really like Kill la Kill; it's probably my favorite show in the last few season cycles. I hope people really get into writing for it because I think it would be a shame if its popularity didn't coincide with fan fiction. That's the best part of new shows, isn't it?