The café was quiet.
Springfield stowed her cleaning rag underneath the counter, satisfied with the state of her bar. At the band's request, she had made numerous changes to the premise: first, the booths on the back wall were shifted aside for a stage, then the tables were rearranged so all the seats faced that wall, then the lights were dimmed to add atmosphere. For someone of her disposition, BAR had been quite particular about this show. Springfield guessed that M1919A4 was rubbing off on her.
The diminutive doll was busy arranging her drum kit, reaching about and trying her best to set it the way she wanted. Springfield watched her move the snare drum a little closer. The rest of the stage was taken up by other instruments – BAR had pushed her piano against the wall for space while M21 and M1911 sat center stage, M14 plucking her guitar and twisting it into tune off to the side.
Numerous patrons had already filtered into the bar, ordering drinks and talking a seat at one of the tables. Most of them chatted as they waited for the show to start, and a few had taken seats at the front of the stage, conversing with M14.
"Gilberto was a master," said the doll, holding her guitar underneath her arms protectively. "His technique… without flaw. Misplace one chord, and there would be diminishment."
"I prefer Reinhardt," replied Ballista. M14 shrugged. "Not my style…"
"Springfield!" greeting M60, appearing in front of the bartender's field of view. Springfield focused on the smaller doll, who had taken a seat on one of the barstools and was tapping her fingers on the countertop.
"Yes?"
"Can I have a Coke?"
Springfield reached underneath the counter into the cooler and extracted a bottle of the fizzy beverage she had stocked it with for this event. With practiced ease she popped the cap off and caught it midair, sliding the bottle over to M60.
"You do that a lot?" asked the doll.
"Every time," replied Springfield. "How long do you think this show's going to run for?"
M60 took a gulp of soda before replying, savoring the taste. "Depends. M14 mentioned some stuff we hadn't planned on originally, so I guess it depends on if we have energy left after the program. And MT-9 said she wasn't sure about doing vocals last time we asked…"
Springfield sighed, yet said nothing. M1919A4 had a habit of letting the band run itself, which often resulted in everyone adding their own flavor to events. M14 insisted on guitar, M21 liked long solo pieces, and M1919A4 herself insisted on a guest vocalist as often as she could get one. Usually, Spitfire was willing to sing, but MT-9 had been asked to provide Portugese vocals for the bossa nova event that was intended for tonight. Springfield herself had once been asked to join as a guest flutist, but was hard pressed for time when BAR mentioned that she wanted to do her own piano solo.
"Just let me know," she said to M60. The café door squeaked as it opened, and Springfield looked up to see StG44 step through into the café. Even for tonight's event, she kept her cap tight on her head and jacket buttoned.
"Welcome to the café," smiled the doll. StG44 glared at Springfield for a moment before her gaze softened, and she nodded in what passed for an amiable acknowledgement before making a beeline for a back table. AS Val was already sitting there, and the two started conversing shortly after.
"I'm surprised you came," said AS Val as StG took the seat opposite hers. A single large candle lit the table, the flame's reflection dancing in AS Val's glasses. "This is such an odd event, after all. Have you been before?"
StG looked at the stage briefly, identifying M14 and BAR. "No."
"Me neither. Americans, right? I was never one for jazz myself…"
"Is that an American trait?"
"Well…" AS Val pushed the ice in her drink around with a straw. "I guess it is. But none of those dolls are really American… just like you're not really German." StG's mouth briefly creased in a frown. "I'm Russian, though. Griffin being a Russian PMC, and us being in NSU territory. How's that for a technicality?"
"Yeah," StG said distractedly, still staring around the café. Val had chosen a table removed from the other patrons, but StG expected that the gap would fill up soon. Z-62 was sitting at a table with a few other SMG-class dolls: SR-3MP, m45, and Sten were all seated around a large table, hands cupped around various beverages. Z-62 had made no indications that she was aware of StG44's presence, and if she was she clearly didn't care. StG appreciated that.
"Can I order you anything?" Val asked. StG thought for a moment.
"No."
"Hm." Val sat back in her chair, looking down at the tabletop. What do you want, pondered StG.
As a new wave of patrons made their way to their seats, M1919A4 approached the mic. "Hello everyone! I think we've got a pretty big audience already, so we'll probably start now! Uh, MT-9 doesn't seem to be here right now, so I think we'll start with…"
"Ruby My Dear!" M21 said loudly, smiling.
"Ruby My Dear," echoed M1919A4, mirroring the smile before she returned to her drum kit.
"Right, I think I can finally tell you what you're here for," AS Val said, leaning across the table. "This is top secret stuff…"
"Looks like the show's already started," NTW-20 whispered to SASS once they were inside. Springfield gazed at the two of them as they made their way across the café floor, trying to find an open seat. Several rows of chairs had been set up on one side without tables, and NTW-20 made for the second to last row, but SASS caught a glimpse of M9 in the row in front of it.
"Let's sit somewhere else," she muttered, starting to turn away. NTW-20 shook her head.
"No time."
"Look, there's a table over there…"
"You'll be fine with me," insisted NTW-20, taking SASS by the arm and pulling her along. The doll blushed as NTW inched to the seats and sat down, yanking SASS into the seat next to her. "Be quiet," she murmured before SASS could apologize.
As they settled, M1911 and M21 finished their last notes, letting the sound resonate into nothing before taking their mouths off their instruments. M1919A4 returned to the mic amid clapping from the crowd. "Thank you everyone! That was Berkeley Square… Now we're gonna change it up a bit with the help of MT-9 and M14!"
The two dolls climbed up onto the stage, M14 taking M1911's seat as the trombonist stepped down into the crowd. MT-9 slid up to the mic.
"So, everyone wants to hear some Portugese…" The crowd clapped and cheered. "Everyone seemed to like the last one, so I mixed in some old songs with new stuff you haven't heard."
"Bossa nova?" NTW-20 whispered, sitting up. "This should be good."
It was very dark in the café, SASS realized. M9 will never know I was here. She could hardly identify NTW next to her, let alone the dolls farther away. Everyone was focusing on the stage in a happy camaraderie as M14 brought her guitar under her arm and began strumming. MT-9 approached the mic.
Quiet nights of quiet stars,
Quiet chords from my guitar,
Floating on the silence that surrounds us…
NTW took a deep breath and sat back as MT-9 began singing. The doll had a pretty voice that carried well, and for the first time since entering the café SASS finally started to relax. She could not shake the unease in her stomach, however. It's the perfect opportunity, she reasoned. Dark, discreet, no one from her echelon was around, no one from NTW-20's squadron was present either, and the crowd was focused on the stage. SASS looked to her right. NTW had her eyes front and her hands folded in her lap. SASS leaned over to her shoulder.
"Senpai…"
"Yes?" NTW didn't tear her gaze off from the performers. SASS swallowed her anxiety, sitting with her mouth hanging open for a few seconds before she could make the words come out.
"I like you."
NTW kept a poker face, still not looking at SASS. Maybe she didn't hear. The doll started to lean away, dejected, when NTW raised a hand out of her lap and reached over to SASS, taking her right hand in her grip and resting it in between the both of them. The doll had removed her glove, and her hand was warm and soft underneath, a little bigger than SASS's. Her grip was firm but gentle, and NTW squeezed gently in reassurance. SASS waited a beat before sliding a little closer to NTW and resting her head against her shoulder, setting her other hand on NTW's arm. The schoolgirl uniform she wore was of fairly soft material, and the warmth underneath was just the right temperature.
SASS smiled.
StG felt a grin coming on. "That's not real. Tell me you're kidding."
"It's real." AS Val sipped on her drink. "All of it. IOP hasn't released official information, but it's only a matter of time… AVS-36 wouldn't lie, I'm telling you."
Digimind Evolution. A phrase StG had both coveted and loathed, far out of her reach… until now. AS Val had unveiled a whole new path for her. Digimind Evolution would raise her IOP commercial rating as well as hardware upgrades that would seat her comfortably above FAMAS and maybe even on par with five-star elites like FAL. The prospect certainly excited StG, but at the same time she felt incredibly conflicted over the matter. Any value in skill lay in trained improvements made with time and effort, not an IOP enhancement program.
The band went quiet as MT-9 called an intermission, the café lights brightening up just a little. StG had given into her craving and bought a small serving of cut fried potatoes from Springfield, which AS Val had stated was one of the best ways to serve potatoes she had found. StG couldn't help but agree as she ate the final few fries, licking the salt off her hands. She had removed her gloves and set them to the side while eating, and before that had taken off her jacket when the café began getting too warm. Perhaps it's too much to unwind, she thought, but AS Val had only a thin tank top on underneath her military jacket, so she supposed it was all right.
The doll was undeniably happy. She had wrapped up the earlier combat deployment with CBJ-MS without a hitch and had even gotten to show Kerr the room where she had found the half-broken Prowler and notepad. Kerr had barely acknowledged her presence, nor any of the other dolls, but such a fact hardly dampened StG's spirits. She was on track for a Digimind overhaul. Despite how controversial she might have found the prospect, it was still uplifting.
As several members of the crowd stood up to get drinks or food, StG looked over to see NTW standing up and stretching her arms. The sight of her team leader was enough to wipe the smile off her face, but StG felt much less apprehensive than normal. NTW turned her head to see StG and started making her way over to the doll, taking long strides across the floor.
"Didn't think you'd be here, 44," said the pink-haired doll, stopping at the edge of the table. StG's high seat let her look NTW in the eye.
"AS Val invited me," replied the doll, reluctant to mention the news just yet. NTW looked over to Val, who smiled and waved.
"Good seeing you outside the command checkpoint!" she greeted cheerily.
"Mm," grunted NTW. AS Val grabbed the vodka glass and left for the bar. "Are you enjoying the show?"
"It's not my type of music," StG admitted, seeing NTW-20's eyes shift to the removed gloves and jacket. "But I appreciate the skill of the artists, and it's not all that bad."
"I'm glad to hear that you can say that," replied NTW, and her tone was genuine. "How's CBJ-MS going?"
"There were some bumps, but I think I can work with them," said StG. "K11 is a bit odd, but they're good."
NTW nodded. "Good. I'll let Kerr know."
StG had no time to consider the statement before another doll came up behind StG, a small serving of fries in her left hand. With her right, she reached for NTW-20's left hand, and the two laced their fingers together. StG stared for a split second before looking up to see the new arrival's face.
"This is SuperSASS," said NTW-20, taking a fry from the container. "SASS, this is StG44. She's one of the dolls from Hunter."
SASS was the doll from the hilltop, StG realized. She was on RFB's team, she was the one Hunter had saved, the one NTW-20 had talked to and sworn at StG for interrupting them. She smiled at StG, soft blue eyes surprisingly calming. The doll looked a great deal less out of place than she had been a month ago.
"I've been training her ever since the battle," NTW said. "She's done quite well for herself, right?"
"I wouldn't quite put it that way," the doll replied softly. StG furrowed her brow. Training? Was this what NTW had been spending her time on? The doll was cute, by all means, but hardly material for an apprentice. The doll barely handled a minor skirmish as part of a defensive, so how would she fare against whatever regimen NTW-20 was putting her through? Certainly not material for fighting a Ringleader.
"She was the one who fought the Ringleader a couple days ago," NTW said matter-of-factly, chewing a fry. StG was glad she didn't have anything in her mouth to spit out. "She's a good doll, even if she still needs practice.
StG reconsidered the doll. She supposed that she had once been young and naïve and inexperienced and in need of practice. Agent had taken that away from her, however, and Kerr had denied her the opportunity to fix herself. But StG realized that Kerr had only transferred her into Hunter. StG had been the one to tell herself that it was time to grow up. Maybe I cut out the part I needed to keep. SASS certainly seemed to be doing it right. StG called it luck. She had been shot dead, while SASS had been saved before anything bad happened.
Maybe SASS had it right, regardless of her luck. Maybe StG needed to reconsider. The doll's serenity reminded her of CBJ-MS's quiet, even tone of voice when giving orders. The latter had smiled at StG at the end of their deployment, and again when she gave her permission to go to the show. StG thought about it, feeling inspired. Maybe her assignment to Chrysanthemum was a chance for something new, not a punishment. Did Kerr know that?
"Looks like the show's resuming," said NTW-20.
"It was nice meeting you!" said SASS, smiling again. StG looked up and smiled back.
"You too."