Phase Seven: Passing through

[emorangerpink]

1.
[A dose of Rim's coffee may have revived Laura enough to help out against HALO and Alessandra's strongest tea may have kept her going through a little of the post-victory jubilation, but it didn't take long for fatigue to return in force and only now, hours later, has she revived enough to potter about the ship looking for people to congratulate

Comments

[mecha_eihwaz]

Oh? Ah, Laura! You're awake already!

[Lily hides something behind her back quickly.]

[emorangerpink]

Mhnmnh.

Hmmm?

[A groggy Laura sits upright.]

Eh? Lily? Oh... right. I'm here. How long...

...

[She looks curiously at the motion but doesn't say anything - brain isn't quite up to speed yet.]

[mecha_eihwaz]

Um, just half a day, more or less. I thought you'll sleep for longer - if I knew, I'd work more on it in the meantime...

[emorangerpink]

Hmmm?

[Laura rubs blearily at her eyes.]

What've you got there?

[mecha_eihwaz]

Well... Remember how I told you I'll make another plush Pepen just for you? I wanted to finish working on the details, but since you woke up already...

Here!

[Lily presents the object she was hiding. The stuffed animal has the shape of an irregular blob, a pair of non-evenly sized flippers and two other flippers for feet, only yellow. Its beak looks more like a dinosaur's snout, complete with teeth, and it has one button eye - the other one is drawn on with a marker. At least the colors suggest it might be a penguin. Might.]

[emorangerpink]

[Laura's smile is totally genuine - as ridiculous as the plushie looks, the effort on Lily's part is adorable.]

Oh, Lily -

[Hugging tightly! The plushie - and Lily's hands, for that matter - have to endure a little squashing.]

It's lovely. Well - if there's still work you want to do, I won't steal it away right this second. But I'm tempted.

1/2

[mecha_eihwaz]

Wh, wha...!

[Lily is easily startled. Have you noticed yet?]

2/2

[mecha_eihwaz]

[It doesn't last long, however.]

Aww, I'm happy you like it! It was my very first attempt ever and I had no idea how it'd turn out... Umm, I still broke several of Eri's needles, even though I was careful. But if you like it, you can have it as it is!

[emorangerpink]

[On the one hand, it'd be nice to let Lily finish it. On the other hand, it might be mean to make her keep going, given the chances of collateral damage to either herself or the surroundings...]

I love it! It's perfect just as it is. Does it have a name?

[mecha_eihwaz]

I haven't really thought about it. None of my Pepens have names... You can give one to yours though!

[emorangerpink]

Well, we've both been calling your stuffed Pepen "Pepen"... I'll call him Nenep!

Thank you, Lily. This... is really nice.

I'll do something for you too, just wait!

[mecha_eihwaz]

Huh, that's almost "pepen" backwards! Do you think that if you say his name backwards, Nenep will come to life and start breathing fire at your enemies?

[emorangerpink]

I...

...Is that a thing that plush toys do on the Ark?

[mecha_eihwaz]

Oh, no! Well, not normally... You can easily put a small robot into one, and I heard that one urban legend...

[emorangerpink]

I'm sure Nenep is too gentle a soul to breathe fire at my enemies. Softening their hearts with cuteness is more his speed.

Besides, if anything, he'd breathe ice, right?

[mecha_eihwaz]

Ah, but if you look in the mirror at midnight and speak his name three times backwards, he comes to life as the complete opposite of his normal self!

...Or something. I forgot the details.