The room was mostly bare, a few chairs and desks to the far end marking some sort of in processing station while the sizable banks of uncomfortable plastic chairs anchored into the floor provided somewhere to lock up the less reputable members of society while the police figured out wether to topake them down the short hallway leading to the entranceway and release them or down deeper into the cells for further processing. Such a chair was one Iowa found herself firmly fastened to by several restraints.
A small part of Iowa felt a need to slip into stereotypes and begin playing a harmonica to highlight her current predicament. The two problems of course were her current lack of harmonica and the fact that she was currently handcuffed. That and the dozens of fairies sitting atop her bridge all playing dozens of different out of tune jailbird songs enthusiastically were making the prospect of playing it herself rather unappealing.
Still a comparatively small part of her was happy that the irritating cacophony helped to distract her from her current predicament.
The police for their part seemed determined not to let the music bother them and instead focused on their own conversation. Leaving Iowa to sit and sulk.
The two officers who had brought her in, an older and a younger officer seemed to be having an intense debate between each other and the phone, or more accurately, whoever was on the phone.
Iowa sighed, propping her head on her hands, the faeries still continuing their jailhouse music.
"Okay, I get it, I got us arrested, you don't need to rub it in." she admitted to her crew, exasperated.
The faeries continued playing, she could swear it got both louder and more out of tune. Jerks.
"Come on guys, I just need to talk to the police and get a call out, if you could just stop playing, it'd be great as is you're just making them mad."
The crowd of faeries turned their backs to the battleship in synchronization, they were now definitely playing their harmonicas as loudly and as out of tune as their tiny reddening cheeks would let them, creating a horrifyingly bad concert.
"Come on guys, we need to work together."
A fairy turned around, glaring at Iowa with its tiny beady eyes as it played its little heart out.
"Come on, please." The battleship begged. "I was just trying Gunboat Diplomacy out again, we now know it's not a big thing anymore."
The fairy stopped briefly, delivered a series of angry squeaks in an out of breath voice and then violently began playing her harmonica again.
Iowa let out a frustrated growl, throwing her hands into the air in desperation, an audible metallic snap accompanying the gesture. Confused she glanced towards her wrists, where two handcuffs bearing now slack and separated chains were still firmly locked, though now completely useless at their original purpose.
She quickly threw her hands back together, between her legs to hide her unintentional bout at freedom. Red in the face she gave a pensive glance at the two police officers.
Thankfully, they still continued their angry debate. Also her crew were now too busy trying to look uninvolved in her accidental breakout to worry about harmonicas. She was torn between calling them turncoats and being thankful for the quiet.
"Um, excuse me?" She called to the bickering officers, taking advantage of the lack of an uncoordinated harmonica orchestra interrupting her.
The two men continued talking, arguing either with each other or the phone. One of them glanced back, confirming their disinterest in talking to her.
"Is Ushio still okay?" the American called over, more demand in her voice this time.
One of the police turned, at hearing the voice and offered a half-assed thumbs up. Iowa's hard expression still didn't convey confidence in her situation. Pressing the issue was like to cause more problems than solve though, as proved by the still functional restraints on her legs.
She crossed her arms over her chest and decided instead to wait.
And one of her fairies picked up the harmonica again. Her slight frown intensified to the level of "definite annoyance".
The conversation on the phone stopped suddenly with the younger officer throwing his hands into the air in exasperation, picking up several papers and heading down the hall. The second man turned and his frustrated expression turned to vague panic at the notice of Iowa's lack of handcuffs.
Iowa offered a shrug and a bashful grin, hiding her hands between her legs again at a vague attempt at hiding it. Her Fairies, again abandoned their harmonicas switched over to 'don't look guilty' mode.
The man's horrified expression moved over to frustration and he announced something angrily in Japanese as he pulled a second pair of handcuffs out, with clear intent. The battleship, obliged him, holding out her hands as second pair of handcuffs joined the battered remnants of the first, Iowa shurgged.
Intereupting her focus on the man's vain efforts to hold back over 10,000 tons of warship, a series of voices, both in Japanese, a male and a female with a slight accent, began coming from down the hall. Iowa struggled to turn down the hallway, but glancing at the cold glare of the remaining police officer as he locked the restraints in place and decided to remain seated.
"Is that harmonica music?" San Juan asked rounding the corner and grinning wildly at either the ridiculous antics of Iowa's crew or Iowa's current predicament. Probably both. Behind her followed Ushio and the older policeman.
Iowa offered a sheepish shrug as the music died at the light cruiser's entrance, "They've been doing it regardless of what I say."
"Consider treating them better, the more they like you, the more they listen." the light cruiser lectured, not abandoning her expression.
"Anyway, apparently I'm here to bail you out of the big house." San Juan explained, doing absolutely nothing to hide the smug expression on her face, "always figured it'd be Haggard first, or Willie d."
Ushio smiled slightly and waved. Iowa decided to return the expression, ignoring San Juan's rant.
"You okay?" Iowa asked the destroyer.
Ushio nodded, "they were just giving me somewhere to sit while they figured things out." She explained quietly, "I even got a sticker."
She added, pointing to a shiny police badge on her schoolgirl outfit.
"No justice for you Iowa!" San Juan laughed. "Well, at least you picked a good time to get arrested with Atlanta busy elsewhere."
"What's Atlanta doing?" Iowa asked with confusion.
San Juan's expression lost a small amount of it's mockery, replaced by an odd mixture of worry and optimism, "I'll brief you on the way back, right now, we need to get going." The Atlanta class called something in polite Japanese to the two officers.
The older and younger policeman began bickering again. Before the younger one removed his keys and accompanyed by an expression that did absolutely nothing to hide his anger, began working on removing the Battleship's restraints.
"I owe you one." The battleship exclaimed to San Juan, rubbing her previously handcuffed hands compulsively.
"Save your gratitude for after whatever Atlanta and our superiors have to say." San Juan dismissively stated, before having a quick exchange of Japanese with the two policemen. The light cruiser patted Ushio affectionately on the head, making the smile on the smaller girl slightly more evident, "come on, let's head out."
Iowa's brief happiness at her newfound freedom died soon after San Juan led them out the glass doors of the small local station and into the cramped and shaded streets of the edges of the city.
"Holy shit she really did get arrested!" Called a familiar voice from the street side.
Iowa shot the destroyer an angry glare, "How was the arcade Haggard?" The battleship asked dryly, searching for a witty rebute.
"Not as fun as this!" The destroyer exclaimed, crossing her arms smugly and adopting a grin to match. "What was it you said about flares?"
"Please don't mock Iowa" Franks quietly pleaded, tugging her sister's sleeve lightly. "You'll just make each other mad."
"But I guess cannons are okay?" Haggard added, ignoring her sister's pleas.
"She was just trying to help!" Ushio defended quietly.
Haggard shrugged, "She still got arrested, which is funny."
"Gunboat Diplomacy." Iowa added dryly, patting the Japanese girl appreciatively on the head "it worked."
Haggard just laughed at the Battleship's expense, "I guess the Spanish never tired arresting you."
"Hey Haggard?" San Juan butted in sternly.
"Yes Juan?" the destroyer asked, lowering her arms from the smug position.
"Shut the hell up." The light cruiser admonished. "Believe it or not we actually need Iowa."
"Well that's a first." The destroyer mocked, slightly less smug in her voice now that the light cruiser had taken arms against her.
"Again, shut up" San Juan explained with more seriousness, "we can make fun of Iowa later, right now we have things to do."
"What's the problem?" Iowa asked, not abandoning her ruffling of Ushio's hair but still concerned over the news.
"Well, apparently we've got a second battleship."
All heads turned.
"And we want Iowa to try and convince her that the war is over and no one is trying to kill her" San Juan began explaining, as she headed towards a waiting series of parked military vehicles, "also making sure she doesn't get scared enough to kill anyone in return."
Haggard laughed again.