Chapter 19 - Return to Lastation
The situation before them was one of comedy, but it didn't last for very long, as there were more important to attend to. Compa looked over to Neptune when she remembered that the preteen had been calling her name for a reason she didn't know yet. "By the way, do you need anything, Nep-Nep?" Compa asked her.
Realising the same thing, Nico looked over to the blackette again, this time at her injured state. 'Hmm… those wounds seem suspicious… and why do I detect demonic energy within her?' the male wondered, and after a few seconds something was sparked in his mind and his eyes widened briefly by a slight margin. 'Oh shit, if she's who I think she is… then it also gives my final piece as to who Neptune is as well!' he realised, remembering what he had thought when they were at Planeptune's Basilicom. While he frowned at the thought of that pervy worker, it was also the place where he had formed the 80% complete theory of who Neptune truly was.
Now, it was practically 100%.
Unaware of his thoughts, Neptune nodded over at her friend. "Yeah, she…" she began, pointing at the blackette and was about to say her name… when she realised that she didn't even know it. an embarrassed look crossed onto her face as she bopped herself on the head for the blunder. "Um, oh, right. I haven't gotten your name yet." she then patted herself on the chest. "I'm Neptune." The hand she put on her chest moved to the rest of the party, with Nico last. "She's Compa, that is Iffy, and the black wearing stud muffin there is Nicky." Neptune ended, smirking with her 'troll face' on as she remembered what she did to him in HDD form earlier.
Nico blushed as well, obviously catching on to what the purple haired amnesiac was thinking. "It's Nico, not stud muffin, Neptune!" he shouted, trying to not get any more embarrassed at the memory than he already was. Goddamnit, he was acting stupid! He wasn't Y##ki R#t# for goddesses' sake! He didn't have that kind of luck, did he?!
Note to self: Commit seppuku if it was proven that his luck was like that guy's.
IF rolled her eyes at the teasing that Neptune was doing. If her landing on him in HDD form was enough to get him, then the guy would have a hard time with her from now on. Especially when Neptune transformed again. "And that's IF. Nice to meet you." She said after rolling her eyes. And once again the brat hadn't introduced her right, this was why she did it when they were with Chian in the beginning.
Turning over to the blackette, Neptune finally inquired as to the name that she had. "What's your name?"
The blackette mumbled a little something under her breath while looking away from the preteen. "…re."
"What?"
Now the blackette looked a tad more pissed as she glared heatedly at Neptune, though her red blush didn't seem to help the intimidating factor. in fact, it made her look cuter in their opinions. "Noire."
A glint shone in Neptune's eyes that only the party recognised as when she was going to try to make a joke that obviously wouldn't be funny. Nico groaned as he got himself ready for what the preteen was going to do. 'This is so not my day…'
"Noire?" Neptune repeated as she tested the name on her tongue, pronouncing the 're' bit with more stress than the rest of her name. She hummed thoughtfully, an index finger on her chin as her eyes looked upwards. Soon she waved her hand before letting it drop as she continued with her gaze directed back at the girl known as 'Noire'. "Fancy name, I bet you don't have any friends and stuff." She said with an innocent, bright smile with a sunny background behind her.
"Wha-?!"
BONK!
"Owwie!"
Nico glared at the preteen's form which was now in the fatal position, cradling her head which had a pulsating lump on top of it. his fist was steaming, the culprit behind the act that resulted in Neptune's cry as it shook in anger, tick marks on Nico's hand and around his forehead while his eyes were an angry white. "Neptune, why would you say something like that?! That's not what you say to someone when you meet them the first time!" he yelled.
"But I was just trying to be funny here!"
"What part of that was being funny?!"
The others watched as a Chibi Neptune holding her head with the bump on it, crocodile tears rolling down her cheeks with X's for eyes as she was scolded by the chibi Nico who had multiple tick marks around his head, said facial expressions still apparent. They could only sweat drop as the blackette or Noire had to speak on what she was seeing. "Is this… a common thing, between you guys?" she asked them unsurely as she turned her head to face the other two girls. While her anger at Neptune was there, it seemed that guy... she let out an involuntary shudder at the sight of him, was somewhat of a caretaker for her antics. It was... somewhat relieving and ye somewhat concerning at the same time. Seriously, considering what kind of power he had in his possession...
Compa nodded, smiling as she interpreted the sight in her usual manner. "Nep-Nep and Ni-Ni are such close friends. Ni-Ni usually scolds her when she is doing something silly, so we're used to this."
IF nodded her head in agreement, crossing her arms under her chest. "You can say that again. He worries about her a lot, hence what he's doing… although right now I think there's a grudge somewhere in there…" she said, before muttering the last part to herself when Nico produced a folded fan out of nowhere and whacked Neptune over the head when she said something stupid that they didn't hear. She thought Nico was maybe enjoying giving Neptune the torment. "Nep does need to learn the "when" in being funny, though." She then turned away from the spectacle towards the Nurse-In-Training. "Compa, will you?"
Already knowing what she was asking, Compa summoned from her Inventory her medical kit. Her eyes were positively glowing with the chance to use it again as she hopped up and down from one foot to the other. "All righty, leave it to me!" she exclaimed joyfully as she sat the black-haired girl, who had given up on resisting at this point, before beginning to treat her wounds.
Neptune, noticing this, escaped Nico's lecture and glared over at IF. "Hey! Iffy! You took my line!" she whined in disappointment, much to the brunette's irritation. She was going to say that when Nico was done with his lecture, but IF stole it from her!
Said girl released a tired groan, but when she was about to say something, a looming shadow behind her made IF pause. A small, slightly evil and sadistic, smirk formed on her lips as she wordlessly pointed behind her. Neptune paled when she felt the KI, before Nico grabbed her by the shoulder. His grip was as strong as solid steel, with Neptune shaking like a leaf as she silently pleaded with him for mercy, which was not given as he went and pulled her back into his 'lecture from hell'. While that was happening, IF shook her head in amusement, part of her cheering at the girl's plight. "Leave it to you, and we'll never get things done…" she commented though nobody heard her since they were focused on their own things.
After treating Noire's injuries, although she didn't say how she was still hurting internally thanks to the energy Nico used still running wild within her, and IF carefully watching for how many bandages Compa used on the request of the remaining Planeptune natives, everyone was back into the group discussion. "Here you go! All patched up." Compa cheered as she presented the treatment of the wounds Noire's body had sustained. "I just cleaned the cuts and bandaged them." She said. It didn't seem that she had done anything about the internal damage though, probably because that would heal itself in time.
Nevertheless, Noire was indeed thankful for the help. Since her outside injuries were treated, she could feel her power focusing more on her internal damage done by that foul energy. Remnants of it still lingered, but most of it was dispelled by her own energy. "Thank you, this helps a lot." She thanked her truthfully. She tried to think of who she was from the intro Neptune did, and it came to her a second later. "Ah… was that, Compa? Are you… Neptune's friend?"
The Nurse-In-Training nodded happily with her bright smile on full blast. "Yes. We've been best friends since Ni-Ni and I fund her speared to the ground!" she cheerfully responded, causing a sweat drop to form on Nico's forehead as he remembered that time. Plus, with how Neptune unconsciously acted back then… perhaps he should have expected that flirty behaviour, based off those actions.
"That's not even the half of it…" he remarked carefully. He had long since finished his lecture from hell and was now standing with the others, feeling much better than he had in a long time. Perhaps Neptune's antics had gotten him gradually more stressed each time she did them. Nonetheless, the male felt better, plus he got Neptune back for her previous teasing's, both in human and HDD!
IF then went and got things off track when she realised there was one detail that hadn't been considered yet, one that Neptune had already asked but didn't receive an answer. "Speaking of… Noire, what were you doing in this dangerous place?" she asked the girl, who tensed up at the question.
"And, all scratched up!" Compa added with an expression of concern and a stern tone to match the graveness of the situation.
The girl remained silent, trying to come up with a believable answer without revealing the truth. She couldn't tell them that yet, they would figure out things she didn't want them to. Though if she didn't hurry up and think of something to say then they would become increasingly suspicious, and eventually she would blow her cover! 'This is so not my day!' she screamed in her mind.
"Something's fishy here…" IF frowned as she waited for an answer with a 'you better answer or die' look on her face. She could tell Nico was thinking similar thoughts if his face was anything to go by.
Knowing that her time was short, the girl tried to form a response, however her brain was blank on what to say. "Well, um…" her mouth moved to formulate a response, but like previously mentioned her mind couldn't think of a proper excuse without sounding like a complete total idiot. Her pride was also a factor, as was the rising panic building in her chest as seconds passed.
'Hmmm, she's not formulating a response…' Nico thought to himself while watching Noire's reactions. 'Well, this all but confirms it. This kind of behaviour means that she has something to hide. Something she doesn't want us to know. Add in the wounds and the fact that MY Demonic energy was inside and it's all but confirmed who she is. Now, the only thing left to find out was her motives, though I can pretty much guess what they were with the pieces that have been put in place.' he mused mentally.
That was when Neptune went and made things… difficult, but hey, who would she be if she didn't, right? "What? Then… you're…" it looked like Neptune of all people was about to call Noire out on her identity! Nico would have felt proud of the girl… "a fellow amnesiac?!" if she didn't indirectly offer the girl a way out of her situation.
'#SIGH# Neptune… you just don't get it, do you? Well, you're not the brightest tool in the shed, I guess…' Nico groaned as he pinched the bridge of his nose. If this girl was who he suspected she was, he wondered how Planeptune had survived so long.
"Huh?" Noire blinked for a moment, but that lasted only a second before she latched onto the escape route that Neptune, bless her oblivious soul, had provided for her. "Oh, oh yes! That's right amnesia! I can't remember a single thing! It must have happened when I was attacked." she quickly hurried, laughing awkwardly.
Both Nico and IF gave her dull stares, as if they would buy into that bullshit. "Way to make it real there…" they both muttered under their breath. Nico wasn't fooled in the least, and judging by the gaze that IF gave the blackette, she wasn't buying it either. Were they the sole members of this party who were sane? Well, IF was probably of the sanest mind when compared to him, with what he does sometimes.
"Uh oh…" Compa moaned with dismay, concern in her eyes as she easily bought the obvious lie fed to them like a sponge soaking up water. "Then how can we get her back home?" she asked the rest of them.
Neptune nodded in agreement, standing like a wise sage while she spoke, "I know how you feel, Noire. It must be harsh without your memory." She said, recalling the difficulties that she had to deal with herself. True she had her friends Nico and Compa when she was found with Amnesia, but this girl didn't seem to have anyone, which earned her sympathies.
"Wait, we're believing her…?" the brunette exclaimed. She saw the two girls turn to her and nod, as if it were the most instinctual thing to do. Now it was IF's turn to pinch the bridge of her nose. 'How did Nico last so long with these idiots?' she asked herself. How many times had she asked herself that question, also? She would need some aspirin for the headaches these two idiots cause.
Ignoring the brunette, Neptune bounded over to Noire, stopping right before her so their faces were inches apart. Noire blinked before pushing herself away, but couldn't get far when her hands were grasped and held tightly within the preteen's own. "I know! I'll help you! Like, I've been without my memory longer than you." She said, eyes full of sympathy that was not necessary at this point. But hey, they were buying the bold-faced lie that Noire was an amnesiac, so hey.
"Plus," the preteen then shifted one of her hands away from the pair of hands she was holding and pointed at Nico, who raised a brow at the gesture. "Nicky here is also an Amnesiac, he can help too!" she proclaimed, looking at him with a wide, dopey smile that would melt the hearts of many. "Isn't right, Nicky?"
The male Spec Ops Agent furrowed his brow in mild irritation as he folded his arms over his chest. "While I know your happy, Neptune, I'd like it if you didn't broadcast our… condition nationwide." He stated with a low growl, before he forced himself to calm down. He would let her have this moment, because it would be rare for Neptune to find one person with amnesia like her, but 2 would be like finding a legendary item by just walking about.
Said black haired 'amnesiac' looked like she was having trouble coming to terms on what Neptune was talking about, but she did say something with an awkward manner. "I… guess that helps." She managed to say in the face of how energetic the preteen was being. Though, the fact that their male party member had amnesia just like Neptune had was news to her. She would look into that when she had the chance, as it seemed to be a personal matter for him.
Compa then brought the conversation forwards by asking the next topic question. "So, what should we do with Noire? How can we help get her home?" she looked around at them, seeking an answer to this admittingly good question.
"Well…" IF began, crossing her arms and proceeding to think of a plan. An idea came to her, one she shared with the rest of the party. "Why not take her to the Basilicom? They should keep her safe in custody."
His head sharply turned to her so fast that it almost snapped off. Nico couldn't believe what the brunette had just said, if he had heard her correctly. "IF, that is a stupid idea." He started bluntly, idly making note that Noire had tensed when they mentioned the Basilicom as a possible option. "Remember the treatment that we got? I'm pretty sure that those assholes wouldn't think twice about doing something nasty to Noire here. And nobody would come to her defence since the Basilicom holds all the power."
Noire glanced at the male member of the party. When she saw him first, she had thought he was a decent person, at least. He helped her by confirming that there were no goons from the Basilicom who had caught wind of her activities, and when she saw him transform her opinion of him decreased to that of a brute. A silent brute that was willing to torch her to ashes with his grotesque sword. Seeing him now however, made her regain some of the respect for him that she lost. It seemed that whatever happened back there was not something he intended, no it seemed more like an accident or an unforeseen consequence. Perhaps she could find out what that power was some time? It would be important for the future if she were to face Neptune again.
"Not over there!" Compa shook her head vehemently as she agreed with her childhood friend. "Ni-Ni has a point. Those goons wouldn't know how to handle a girl right!" she declared with a passion. IF momentarily got taken aback by how fierce those two shot down her idea. Although now that she thought about it, her idea did seem kind of stupid. It also wasn't a good idea to bring someone like Nico there, whose instincts would goad him into acting out like he did before.
Another idea came, this one from Neptune's mouth instead. "I know!" she exclaimed after thinking for a moment and having the idea come to her in a flash. She then grasped Noire's arm and brought it to her chest like she was dragging a toy the size of a human around a toy store. "Why not just have her tag along with us until her memory returns.
Caught off guard by the gesture that the preteen made, Noire briefly failed to register what she had said. Though, she couldn't help but sigh in relief. 'Th-That was close… if they took me back, my cover would be blown, and I would look bad, too. I better just do what Neptune says and tag alon…' before she could finish the thought, something clicked in her mind as it fully registered what the preteen said. A cry off surprise tore from her lips as she broke free of Neptune's hold, some of her strength having returned. "Wha-?! Tag along?! As in, together?!" she cried out in shock, her face flustered.
Seeing her reaction, Neptune grew concerned as she feared she might have overstepped her boundaries… again, regarding her antics. "You don't like it?" she asked sadly. "But, we are memory loss buddies, so let's stick together!"
"Well, I guess it's better than the alternative." Nico reluctantly admitted to the idea. It was the best one they had aside from taking her back to the Basilicom, something that he would venomously refuse to do unless no other option was available. After all, what happened the last time was still fresh in his mind. 'Also, it'd make us look like scumbags for dragging her to that place with the way it was right now, plus if Noire remains away, I can talk to her privately about my theories, see how she reacts.' He thought after saying his peace.
Compa beamed happily, she could support the idea of Noire travelling with them. The more the merrier, as her grandfather would say! "Yes. It's safer than being at the Basilicom. It's fun with more friends, too!"
Noire stammered as she tried to form a reply. While she wasn't opposed to the idea, well, she was slightly since it meant being close to someone she detested, but the offer had caught her unawares. It wasn't often that someone would show such charity. "Um, ah, it's not like I don't like it, but... Ah, I was just… surprised." She finally managed to say without sounding like a complete idiot.
Neptune's previous sadness disappeared into the winds at the blackette's response. She felt happiness course through her being that she got to travel with yet another amnesiac buddy! "I'll take it you don't mind, then! Again, nice to meet you, Noire!" With the addition of Noire, Nico and the others returned to Lastation.
Throughout the journey, Nico was occasionally teased by Neptune for his reactions to her body. she would do it in either her human or HDD forms, amusement shining in her eyes whenever Nico would get embarrassed around her. During those times Compa would glare in jealousy, sometimes she would stop Neptune whenever she went too far, which made her teasing manageable in Nico's eyes. Noire and IF remained out of it though, not wanting to get into that can of worms.
Meanwhile, Nico would think to himself, 'why me?'
When they reached the capital of Lastation, the party walked through the streets to Chian's factory/Café, slowly to give Noire the chance to look around at the scenery. Since she had 'amnesia' as she claimed, Noire seeing this should spark some memories for her. At least, that was the plan.
The silence was then broken when Neptune, who had somehow climbed onto a lamppost, stood tall with her arms spread out as if waiting for an embrace from the city itself, before she intake a massive amount of air. She then shouted at the top of her lungs. "Lastation, I'm home!"
"Nep, what are you doing up there?!" IF yelled up towards her, her hands around her mouth as she called up to the preteen. Neptune laughed uproariously as she hopped down, doing several flips in the air and landing in a kneeling position. With a quick cheer to herself, she looked up and saw everyone looking at her dully. "You just tried to copy Nico's entrance, didn't you?" the brunette asked rhetorically while shaking her head, as did Nico himself considering how bad that looked. "And one more thing. Could you quit with that creepy smile of yours?"
A laugh came from the preteen amnesiac as she walked up to them again. "Well, I felt something shining on me. Like, I felt I was back "home."" She explained, although it proved to make them even more confused. Neptune's attitude turned more energetic as stars danced across her eyes. "But didn't you think Nicky's entrance was way awesome! I wanna be just like that." She commented, remembering how Nico came to them in the West Wind Valley Dungeon.
Turning from the party to Noire, who had stood back while they did their usual antics, Neptune's next question was aimed at her. "Noire? Do you remember anything? Does this place spark a light in you?" she asked while placing her hands behind her back and leaning forwards slightly.
Glancing around for a bit, Noire's gaze fell upon Neptune's as she shook her head no. "No, nothing at all." She said carelessly… a bit too carelessly but only Nico and IF noticed.
Neptune pouted in dismay at this, still wrapped in the idea of Noire being an amnesiac like her. "This place was close to the dungeon, so I figured you were from here…" she whined as she voiced here complaints about her idea being wrong, again. Though this time, it had a sense of logic to it. Since Noire's clothes reminded them of Lastation's designs, it only made sense for her to be from somewhere with those designs. And the Capital was the closest spot to the Dungeon with the smaller cities and villages dotted too far from the Dungeon's entrance to make them viable candidates.
Noire glanced to the others, before her gaze fell back on Neptune after lingering on Nico for a moment longer than the rest. "You said you lost your memory, but are you okay?" she asked her. She was gesturing not just her memories, but also how she felt about being amnesiac, questioning her desire to regain them. She could tell from Nico's attitude that he cared deeply about his lost memories, and wanted to regain them as fast as possible. There was a drive to him that accompanied that, and there was the attitude he displayed when Neptune told her about his amnesia, how he treated it as something deeply personal.
On the other hand, Neptune was none of that. She didn't look like she cared at all, just went with the flow and hoped everything worked out in the end. Her cheerful, happy-go-lucky personality didn't seem affected by her lack of memories one bit, which made her wonder if she even cared about her memories like Nico did.
Her answer came when Neptune laughed, though it wasn't her usual laughs. This one was filled with bitter mirth, her eyes closed as an awkward bead of sweat rolled down the side of her forehead. "Heh, well, not that great, really." She admitted, scratching the side of her chin as she tried to put on a fake smile.
A smile that the others saw through though.
'I guess even Neptune's affected by her memory loss. When she normally acts all funny ad goofy, it hides away that deep down, she does have feelings just like everyone else…' Nico thought with a solemn gaze in his eyes. He felt a bit bad by wondering if she even cared, not seeing past the façade Neptune put up. No, it wasn't a façade per say, it did seem that Neptune was naturally like a 14-year-old kid, but there was lurking darkness inside her mind, darkness she pushed aside to be funny and break the ice.
Ice that was broken once again without hope of ever being repaired by her next sentence. "I know!" her solemn gaze vanished and her usual cheeriness returned to her face. It was like she had never lost her happy face for a second. "Let's bang our heads! I'll try it on a pillow and you try a wall!"
If one could hear it, they would swear they heard a Disk being played by a DJ suddenly scratch to a stop after Neptune cheerfully said those words. A small silence erupted between them, before the Noire bomb exploded. "Wha-?! Why do I have to do that?!" she shrieked with an angry red hue on her cheeks as she stomped on the ground and thrusted her arms downwards. Then, another realisation crossed into her mind as she asked another question with an even louder volume. "Wait, why the pillow for you?!"
Another laugh came from the purplette as she tried to explain her reasoning sheepishly. "See, I'm really delicate," she began, hugging herself as if to further pronounce her point. She then pointed a finger towards the blackette, "and you seem hard-headed, so I figured…"
Now Noire's anger meter had skyrocketed, even more than when gamers rage quitted as her face lit up like a flame. She was grinding her teeth like a paper shredder, sparks flying from the friction. "Figured what?!" she shrieked, before she noticed a pile of pillows nearby. A dark smile formed on her lips as she didn't question the reasoning why a pile of pillows was just conveniently lying on the street. Grabbing some from the pile, Noire turned to face the object of her ire. "Oh, here, let me cover your face with a pillow instead." She suggested with a sickly-sweet smile that didn't reach her eyes.
Neptune's face began to lose colour as Noire advanced, holding the pillows in her hands with an ominous aura around her, giggling like a crazy person all the while. "Ah?!" she cried while stepping back every time Noire stepped forwards, looking like a cornered mouse. "Oh, come now Noire. I'm just joking. Your eyes… they're scary…"
Unfortunately for her, every plea passed through one of Noire's ears and out the other, completely ignored as she began pacing even quicker. "So, stripes or plain?" she asked with her smile becoming increasingly frightening. "I'll at least let you choose your demise… design." She corrected herself, though she shouldn't have bothered.
"W-We're not simulating a murder scene here! Help me, Iffy, Nicky, Compa!"
The three-said people stayed out of this one, watching Noire try to choke Neptune to death with a set of pillows, running after Neptune when she began to hightail it away from her wrath. Compa gave an innocent smile as she saw the spectacle. "Oh, Nep-Nep is already friends with Noire…"
"I'm pretty sure Noire's trying to Murder Neptune, though. Well, we'll let Neptune handle this one, she dug her grave this time so she should find her way out." Nico said while shrugging his shoulders. Although if one looked, there was hints of a gleeful glint in his eyes. Served Neptune right for all the teasing she gave him! Was it wrong for him to find amusement of a dark sort in this?
…
…
…
Nah, probably not.
IF then brought up another topic as she felt a small grumble within her gut. "Speaking of pillows, I'm getting a bit tired, and hungry." She informed them. All the drama of today had given her a small appetite, and had worn her down as a result. Though nobody could blame her, this was one exciting day.
Compa hummed for a moment as she thought of what to do about this new dilemma. An idea popped into her head after a few seconds, that she shared with the others. "I know! Let's have dinner for Noire! We can have a pillow fight afterwards!" she cheered, images of them having pillow fights in their PJ's entering her mind.
Glancing at Nico, who was too busy watching the show to notice the pillow fight comment, IF turned over to her friend and decided to shift the topic away from that. She didn't know if she would be able to survive or not against people like Neptune, the male Spec Ops Agent, the blackette or the ever innocent Compa. "Pillow fight aside, dinner sounds good. Let's go."
It took them 2 hours to finally settle Neptune and Noire down, and as a result, the party was mildly hungry. Well, all but one, though that person wouldn't show it. They then continued their journey to Chian's, thankfully with no more interruptions from their resident purplette Troll and their new member. Noire however, glared at the girl all the while, who shivered at the amount of Ki that she was radiating towards her.
When they got back to Passé, Neptune took charge and swiftly kicked open the door to the Café. "I'm back!" she cheerfully called out. She then switched to a pose with 2 fingers in a V shape over her eye with said eye winking. "I beat up that monster real-good!" The rest of the party followed in at a normal pace, in contrast to their leader's energetic one. they were giving her looks tat basically boiled down to 'I can't believe this girl…'
Chian, who had been in the middle of cleaning a glass, nearly jumped at the sudden exclamation, but when she saw who it was that made it in the first place she let out a sigh of exasperation. She then opened her eyes and smiled widely at her, joy filling her up inside as she registered what the preteen had said. "Really?! That's great! Now I won't have to worry about the supplies."
IF smirked as she put a hand on her hip. "I guess our first assignment in Lastation is a success." She commented as she looked to the others of the group, who nodded in agreement with her. There were 2 exceptions though, Noire and Nico. Noire because she was an amnesiac and Nico because he had already undertaken missions in other Nations before, Lastation being one of them.
It was then, that Chian looked at them and noticed that they had an additional member standing beside Compa. "Hm? Looks like you've got someone new there. Who is she?" she asked while gesturing to the blackette.
"She's Noire. She was hurt and lost her memory, so we brought her with us." Was the Guild Agent's reply as she gave a summary of what went down in the West Wind Valley Dungeon. She mentioned about how they beat the monster, then as they walked back they found Noire in an injured state so they helped her and brought her back to Lastation. She didn't mention the white-haired woman because that would lead to territory that was inappropriate for their professional relationship with the mechanic.
At the end of it, the said mechanic hummed in thoughtfulness as she held her chin while looking the girl up and down. "Is that so…?" she muttered under her breath, before her eyes narrowed. "Wait… I've seen her before…" a second later her eyes shot open in shock and disbelief as she recognised the girl before her, something that Nico noticed. "C-C-C-Could it be…? Lady Black Heart?!"
Shock ran through the party as gasps of surprise rang through the Café. 'Yikes!' Noire thought to herself, horror and dread mixing together to form a sensation akin to her gut-wrenching within her. Shoot, someone who knew her by appearance!
"Noire… Lady Black Heart?"
"What? News at 10: "The girl who lost her memories was actually the CPU?!""
Those were Compa and Neptune's comments and opinions on this new revelation, in that order. Compa had a stunned expression as she tried to take in what this was meaning for them, while Neptune had that 'Troll face' on while a gleam of sinister intent sparked in her eyes.
'Huh, so that's her response to that scenario…' Nico thought while giving the blackette a stiff gaze. His eyes were filled with caution as he made to predict how Noire would react to this. If she did what he thought she would, then it would be confirmed to him in all but words, her identity that is. And that would lead to the confirmation of his other ideas regarding both her and their party Leader.
Quick to act, Noire hastily tried to deny their claims of her being the Goddess of Lastation. "No, wait! What are you talking about?!" she cried while waving her hands in front of her. "I'm, uh, into cosplay and, um… I totally love Lady Black Heart, so…" she began to say, while struggling for her next sentence as she tried to deny anything relating to her being the Goddess. However, even she could tell that her words were sounding pathetic. 'This is just getting worse…'
Much to her fortune however, Chian seemed to take the explanation well, as she exhaled a breath as her gaze fell to the ground. "Is that it? no wonder you were wearing clothes just like Lady Black Heart." She then levelled a stare towards her as she admired the 'cosplay outfit' that she wore. "You had me fooled there. I seriously thought you were the lady in person."
A twitching brow was on Nico's forehead as he stared at the scene before him. 'Normally I would be questioning their sanity at this point… but Lady Black Heart has a seriously large fanbase that like to cosplay as her and various other characters from different media. Still doesn't detract much from my theories though.' He thought to himself. Nico knew this to be true because on one of his Missions in Lastation he had to track the target down to a Cosplay Convention. The target was a criminal that had been threatening the Nation's safety and had been too much for the military to handle.
Then again, with how pathetic the military was these days, that was of no surprise.
Compa pouted with disappointment at the fact that the revelation earlier was false, and that Noire wasn't the CPU of Lastation. She had her lower lip stuck out as she whined at their misfortune. "Too bad. If Noire was Lastation's CPU, I'm sure Chian's prayers would be heard." She complained as her dreams of this situation being over already shattered like glass.
In addition, Neptune herself looked a little disgruntled at this fact, but once she noticed that the 'spotlight' was on her she instantly brightened up and patted Noire on the back. "Oh, you, Noire. Causing all this ruckus." She said with a teasing undertone that nobody didn't detect from her tone.
Noire was too busy feeling relief though, especially in her mind. 'Th-That was close…' she thought to herself. A part of her did feel guilty though, because it looked like Chian had really hoped that she was the Goddess, and that would mean that the times would be easier. It looked like things were bad for her people after all… something Noire mentally frowned upon. Was this the extent of what happened to her Nation when she was in Celestia? Or were there even more horrors she had yet to uncover. The raven-haired girl almost didn't want to find out.
"But, someone like you cosplaying like a Goddess all the time is, well, kinda creepy." hearing Neptune's voice, Noire turned her head to look at her. She saw how her smile seemed to be faltering as a mild look of being disturbed mixed with Neptune facial features.
An embarrassed hue took over her cheeks as Noire fought verbally to defend her pride… and her activities, from Mt Neptune's vicious offensive. "Wha-?! Don't call me creepy! I can't help it, I have my reasons!" she shouted, stomping on the ground in anger. This elected a humour-filled laugh. The rest rolled their eyes at the duo's shenanigans. Neptune just seemed to love teasing Noire, and Noire got a rise out of it every time. It was like Neptune was trying to make the girl ease up from a hard day's work by acting like a mischievous gremlin, and Noire being the unfortunate victim.
Fortunately for Noire, someone else saw fit to stop anything from going further. IF stepped forwards as she pushed the two away from each other. "Now, now, you two. This isn't the place to argue." She told them both, giving a stern look to Neptune first and then the raven-haired Amnesiac. After she settled their dispute, the brunette turned to look back at their client for the Quest. "Chian, we're going to be leaving now, but is there anything else?" she asked her. The Guild Agent wouldn't miss the chance for extra work they could possibly do to make more credits, as it seemed that work was scarce in Lastation right now with the way things were.
Chian frowned when she heard that they were about to leave. "So soon? Let me at least treat you all to some good eating." She offered. From the corner of her eye, she noticed Nico tense at the word food, which made her eyes narrow at him for the briefest of seconds, before returning to the girls.
Everyone seemed to be on board with the idea, since they were hungry. Neptune's stomach growled like a lion, which elected a nervous laugh from her and sealed the deal with the Party's next choice. Unknown to them however, Nico was feeling dread in the pit of his stomach. Eating meant food, and food meant that he would have to go to the bathroom thanks to his condition. 'Oh boy, I hope I can survive this...'
Special Event - Nico - Foodgasms
While Chian went off to go prep the meals, Nico gave an uncharacteristic shudder of intensity, something of which IF noticed. "What's up dude? Why do you look so nervous?" she asked him.
"Let's just say that in the time I've known Chian from past missions, she tends to cook her food so good that she can make people experience the phenomenon known as 'foodgasms'."
The males shuddered when he said that last bit, causing IF to give him a dull look at what she thought was something stupid. "Foodgasms? Really?"
He then gave her an intense look that startled the brunette."I kid you not, girl. I have half a mind to think that one of her ancestors, a shy, timid person who helps a red haired cook with some of his more disgusting recipes, went to that competitive cooking academy to get that ability." Nico answered her with such a deadpan that IF... may have gotten a little bit nervous.
"And considering Nep's overall personality, plus Compa's naiveté..."
The teen nodded, his eyes shining with seriousness at the potential danger. "Yep, you'd be right, IF. Now that I think about it, there were times when some of my colleagues would challenge Chian to Cooking battles, shoku-something or other, can't recall the name. That's where te cooking intensity usually resides."
He could remember it well, a combination of flavours battling each other, cookware worn down to their very foundations, and steaming hot plates filled with the life's work of every chef involved. That battlefield may not be the one Nico was used to, but it was just as intense and life-threatening. Especially for someone like him.
At hearing his words, IF glanced over to the two girls, more specifically their own resident 'cook' who had the job o healing them when in dungeons. "Let's pray Compa doesn't know this."
"Oh believe me, I've done everything in my power to hide this from her. And she must never know, IF... EVER."
