StevieBond: These chapters are getting longer, aren't they?

Ranpha: How long are these chapters gonna be?

StevieBond: That depends on what I'm writing in.

Ranpha: That doesn't quite explain it...but whatever.

StevieBond: Okay, new chapter...enjoy!


The Language Of Touch

Pulling out of our embrace with smiles, we got off the bed and I slipped my shoes back on. We left her room, holding her hand and she walked with me to the viewing park where it seems everyone else was waiting.

"Ohhh!" Forte noticed. "You two are finally here."

"I wonder what it could mean when a couple arrives late." Mint added.

"Well, at least they didn't come empty handed." Ranpha said with raised eyebrows.

Tact giggled. "The teasing continues I see."

"Arnold, your skin colour is normal again." Vanilla said.

"Oh Arnold, are you feeling alright now?" Chitose asked.

I smiled and nodded. "Yeah, thanks to Milfie, I feel a lot better."

Milfie blushed, smiling at me. "Anyways, it seems you've brought a lot for this picnic."

"Ta-dah!" Ranpha said. "Snacks and drinks from the convenience store. We bought a ton of them."

"We also got a cake wrapped up for us from the lounge." Tact added. "Vanilla, Chitose, can you take care of that?"

"Yes, I'll take care of the packages." Chitose replied.

"Yeah, be careful." Tact lightly warned. "It's a little heavy."

"Understood, we'll take great care." Vanilla replied.

"Although I must say." Mint said. "When I saw Tact and Ranpha coming here before you two did, they looked like newlyweds coming home from shopping."

"Mint, don't say stuff like that." Forte responded. "You know that's going to lead more awkwardness."

"I think it's a little too soon for that." Tact said.

"Huh?" Ranpha perked at him. "You mean…some day?"

Their faces began to blush.

"Why are your faces so red?" Milfie asked.

I started laughing on the inside, I needed some laughter.

"Umm, just what are you thinking about, Milfie?" Mint asked.

"How to put it…" Forte pondered. "…I think I prefer it when they just openly flirt."

"Indeed, they're blushing for a different reason."

"What lies under the surface definitely isn't something sugary like that…"

"Ahem!" I intervened. "They're not the only couple on the ship you know."

"Yeah, don't forget about us." Milfie added. "Just relax, everyone. Let's sit down and enjoy our picnic."

"Ahhh, good enough reason." Forte replied. "Let's sit here."

"Okay, here's our huge picnic mat." Ranpha said as she laid it out on the grass.

The other girls put down a pair of baskets along with other snacks and drinks on the mat and we all sat down together. It was only then I noticed Wein and Lushati sitting on the other side of the food that was in the middle.

"Oh, hello you two." I greeted them as I sat by Milfie who on my left and the two were on my right. "You probably didn't see me earlier."

"Ah, no we didn't." Lushati replied. "You must be the male member of the Angel Wing, Arnold?" she shook my hand.

"Yep, that's me, pilot of the Silver Speeder with a one-of-a-kind driller."

"I see…good to meet you, mate." Wein said, shaking my hand.

"So you two, what do you think of this park?" Ranpha asked. "I really like spending time on the Elsior here."

"The sun and the sky are just holograms, but the plants and soil are real." Milfie added. "Don't they smell just like nature?"

"This place…is very similar to…the Sky Palace." Lushati replied slowly.

"The Sky Palace?" Tact asked.

"What's that?" Ranpha asked as well.

"The Sky Palace is Eden's…" Lushati replied.

Milfie suddenly cut her off by sitting up on her knees. "Yes, enough talking everybody pay attention." I held on to her hand, smiling at her.

"Does everybody have a drink?" Mint asked.

"Yes that's everyone, we're all finished serving the tea." Chitose replied.

"There were no issues." Vanilla added.

"Okay, first let's have a real greeting from Tact." Mint said.

"Huh, don't just dump things on me." Tact moaned. "And why me?"

"It's because you're our commander of course." I replied. "I guess you might say that you're the greatest of us."

Tact sighed. "I'd be a lot happier if you kept that off."

"Don't worry Tact, I'm on your side." Ranpha assured, as she put her arms around him.

"Yeah…you still have faith in me."

"No matter how lazy you are, how much of a slacker, how irresponsible…I don't mind. Because even though you're like that, you always come through at the end. I know that."

"Well, as long as it's just one couple declaring their love, that's all there is to it." I said.

"One couple?" Lushati asked.

"Well yeah, Milfie and I are a loving couple too, so there's plenty of love to share across the ship."

"Good grief, Arnold." Forte sighed. "Oh, what's up Vanilla?"

"They are scared." She replied, looking at Lushati and Wein who seemed quite shocked.

"Even for the legendary Eden, our friendship is very mysterious." Mint said.

"I'm sure there are soldiers like me in Eden too." Tact replied. "They've probably also got it rough."

"Are you two okay?" Chitose asked them. "Wein and Lushati, please be at ease. It may be difficult to understand, but this is normal on the Elsior. It's confusing at first, but you'll get used to it eventually."

"Ohoho." Forte commented. "You're sounding like a senior now, Chitose."

"Hehe." Milfie giggled. "Until last month, you always thought about like that about us."

"You've completely grown up." Mint added. "I'm happy for you."

Chitose was startled by the praise. "Wait, I d-d-d-don't think I am like that at all." She began blushing. "I thought I could help them since I experienced the same thing."

I smirked a tiny bit, watching her blush, I wonder if it's to do with Clayton.

"Well, there's a lot about the Elsior that's far from usual." Tact said. "It'd be especially confusing to people from Eden. So Wein and Lushati, think of the Elsior as your second home, how's that for a greeting?"

"Pretty good for you." Forte praised. "Okay, we're next. I'm Forte Stollen, I'm kind of like the Angel Wing's mentor."

I moved forward a bit. "I've already said my name but I'm Arnold Williams, I am second in command of the Angel Wing and a specialized tactician."

"The name is Milfie, my hobby is baking foods, so I'll make something for you next time."

"I am Mint Blancmanche and I would to hear about Eden from you."

"Vanilla H…I like animals."

For a minute I thought she was gonna say that she liked trains.

"I'm Chitose Karasuma, the newest member of the Angel Wing."

"Like I said before, I'm Ranpha Franboise. If you're ever in trouble, ask me anything."

"That's all seven." Tact said. "The Angel Wing, the strongest group in the galaxy."

Lushati seemed surprised. "That means, you're the Angel Wing?"

"Oh even Eden knows about us?" Ranpha asked. "We're kinda like celebrities."

"Really, where's the flash photography?" I asked randomly, causing Milfie to giggle.

"Tact's name reached our ears thanks to his fame from defeating Nefuria." Wien stated.

Hmm, that sounded a little forward and why is he looking like that? I wondered why he was quiet, I started to have some doubts about him, but I kept them to myself.

"But for people like you to be the Angel Wing." Lushati said.

"Well anybody would be surprised to find out that a group of such talented stars like us are the strongest pilots in the galaxy." Ranpha bragged.

"And it's even more surprising to find out who the ace pilot is, right?" Forte asked.

"Well, who could you mean?" I asked with a smirk.

"We mean Ranpha, Arnold." Mint teased. "She is the most skilled of the Angel Wing." I know what you're trying to do, Arnold, but please save it for another time.

I blinked a little, looking away. Was she trying to send me a message through telepathy?

"It feels like you're up to something." Ranpha said.

Mint put on her innocent look. "I assure you that I am not."

"Ranpha's skill is real, I guarantee that." Forte said.

"That's right, we have made it through many difficult situations thanks to Ms. Ranpha." Chitose added.

"May I ask one thing?" Wein asked.

"Sure." Tact answered.

"Um, why have you and Ranpha been holding hands all this time?"

Ranpha and Tact looked at each other, their hands holding on. Least Milfie and I held hands behind our backs.

"Oops, we did it again." Ranpha sighed.

"My, my." Mint commented. "It's too late to snatch your hand away."

"They have intensely proclaimed their destined love for each other!" Chitose exclaimed happily.

"No, I do understand that kind of relationship." Wein said.

"Geez, you girls should talk about me and Tact like that." Ranpha replied. "You love the person you love. So you have to do thing to make sure they know how you feel."

"Wow, it's so nice to see you being so lovey." Milfie said who had stars in her eyes, I've fallen in love with Milfie all over again, I said in my head with a bit of laughter.

Mint's bunny ears flapped, although I don't think Wein noticed it.

Ranpha was blushing. "Come on, we didn't mean to hold hands…it just happened."

"If you are unable to hold for a long time, you will be unsure of how the other feels?" Lushati asked.

"Huh…oh I'm sorry about that." Wein apologized. "My sister is a little inexperienced with the world."

"No don't worry about it." Tact replied. "It must be a little strange for you, that's why we're having this picnic to welcome you."

"Okay, let's enjoy it everyone." I declared as Milfie and I let go of our hands from behind and grabbed the nearest snacks and drinks to us.

Things were quiet for a while and we were enjoying it as good as we could. Then I felt a tiny drop from above, then another and then a few more at once.

"Uh oh." I said.

"Ahh!" Lushati exclaimed. "It's cold!"

Wein looked confused. "Rain…indoors?"

"Ahhh, the bad luck…and to think I let my guard down." Ranpha sighed.

"Did the sprinklers malfunction?" Chitose asked.

Milfie looked sad. "Awww, I'm sorry, it's my fault again…"

"More importantly, we're going to be soaked." Mint complained.

"Okay, let's take shelter under the Kafukafu tree." Tact said.

We got up quickly and rushed to the nearest shelter, I grabbed two hands and rushed to the tree, thank goodness it was large enough to cover all of us.

"You okay Milfie?" I asked.

"Ummm, Arnold." Milfie replied with a sad look.

"Um Tact." Lushati said.

"What is it?" Tact asked.

"My hands…"

I looked down…there I was, not only was I holding Milfie's hand, but also Lushati's hand and her other hand was being held by Tact! We immediately let go of Lushati's hands.

"Ah! I'm sorry…" Tact apologized.

My mind had a different reaction…What is your major malfunction, jackass?! I yelled at myself in thought. Now I was worried again and I wasn't feeling happy anymore.

"I couldn't help it." Tact continued. "Lushati's not used to Milfie's luck. I just grabbed her hand without thinking."

"Well Arnold." Forte said. "What's your excuse?"

"Uh I-I-I-I didn't know which hand I was holding on, I was too busy trying to get away from the rain." I explained. "Milfie…please for all that's holy and bright, forgive me for my blurted reaction. I went to g-g-g-grab your hand but then I grabbed someone else's hand and just r-r-r-r-ran. Now I'm just t-t-t-torn on-"

"Arnold…calm down!" Vanilla advised. "It's not good for your health to be agitated."

"And I worked so hard to cheer you up earlier." Milfie moaned. "But Vanilla is right, don't say or do anything else until you're relaxed."

I nodded and took a deep breath, at least it was working for now. Then Ranpha and Wein came by us. She looked soaked, I then realized that Tact may have just made the biggest mistake in all of his military career.

"Ah, are you okay, Ranpha?" Tact asked.

"I'm fine, this is nothing." She replied. "Thanks to Milfie, I'm already used to stuff like this."

I spoke in my mind that I was not convinced at all and Mint seemed to agree as her bunny ears moved again.

Milfie pouted. "Awww, so mean."

"It's the truth."

"You two are not wet?" Vanilla asked.

"Yes, I am fine." Wein replied.

"Me too, thanks to Tact's and Arnold's hands." Lushati replied, did she have to remind us of that?! "Um, thank you very much Tact and Arnold."

"You're welcome…but still, I feel so horrible for forgetting just about everything I was taught." I sighed sadly.

Lushati seemed to be smiling. "It's alright Arnold. I can see that you and Milfie love each other very much. You may not show it as much as Tact and Ranpha do, but it's a wonderful relationship all the same."

I had to smile at that compliment, I was glad that she understood my feelings well. I looked at Milfie and I held onto her tight.

"As for me, I was doing what was natural." Tact said.

"Lushati, please do not be trouble for Tact." Wein told her.

"Arnold, don't worry about the little stuff." Ranpha assured. "I can see that you're sorry and I'm sure Milfie will forgive you later." I nodded. "And Tact, you're going to help Lushati and make sure she's not in trouble, right?"

Alright Tact, choose your words carefully! I said in my mind.

"Yeah…" he replied.

I face palmed in my mind, nice going, dumbass!

I looked into the sky, it had stopped raining. At least that was gone.

"Looks like its back to normal…" Forte said. "…although."

"Yeah, the entire picnic's been ruined, we shan't be eating or drinking here now." I added.

"I thought we were finally about to get along with Lushati and Wein." Milfie said as she sighed. "It's too bad…"

"You too Milfie, don't be so sad." Ranpha replied. "You didn't do anything wrong."

"Woah folks…look at the sky." I intervened, pointing towards…a rainbow.

"Wow!" Milfie exclaimed.

"A rainbow…it's a particularly beautiful arc." Chitose said.

"It refreshes the heart." Mint added. "Now how about we give you a tour of the Elsior?"

"Yes, let's go, Lushati." Wein said.

"Yes." She replied.

We then left the park, not realizing that Tact and Ranpha weren't with us.