Do not operate heavy machinery...

[actuallyselfish]

[Dated after "The Prioress"]

[1]

"Whoah, whoah! Chill out, dudes! I get it: hands off!"

While walking through the hanger, you look up to see Dido getting frog-marched out of a high security bay area that currently holds the Saber units, two security guards on each side gripping her shoulders and forearms. They roughly release her and walk off.

Dido stumbles, sets down the oil-can she was carrying, and dusts herself off. "Dammit. Why can't people take an honest bribe these days?"

Ask her what's going on?

[2]

After maintenance hours, when everyone's gone home for the night, you stumble across Dido lying on her back atop a set of boxes, taking puffs from...something burning inside a roll of paper.

She sighs, and then sits up, starring at the ground. "Dammit..." You hear her mutter. "This is what happens when you try and act like Mom..."

She spies you coming and hastily flicks the burning roll paper behind her. "Ah...Hey! Fancy seeing you here! How, uh, are you?""

Comments

Re: 2/2

[actuallyselfish]

"Probably just some residue from a welding job." Dido lies. "Try not to breath to much of it, because...well, because it isn't actually from a welding job." She admits. "It's from a psychoactive drug...dammit, I feel guilty when I lie to you!"

[empress_without_a_throne]

[Mizuki sorta... half-frowns, putting a hand on Dido's shoulder.]

There's a time and place for lying to be sure.

... At least you felt this wasn't one of them. And...

[She sighs again.]

... Well, we've been through a lot recently.

[actuallyselfish]

"Yeah." Dido says, rubbing at her face.

"Christ. I thought Ilinka was the sane one among those kids. I thought that if I gave her a nice talk about feminism and self-worth, she'd assert herself more and keep her friends from doing stupid stuff."

She looks at Mizuki. "I know she probably would have blown up Birmingham anyway. But...do you think I could have talked her down, if I said something different? Or if you'd talked to her instead?"

[empress_without_a_throne]

Who knows? People can take wildly different things from the same pieces of advice.

And I wouldn't have done any better. Not with how Loni and I stand.

[actuallyselfish]

"You never were one to tolerate fools." Dido says with a snort.

She shakes her head. 'But what is with those guys? All the time I've known them they just..." She searches for the right words.

"Refuse to grow. " She says at last, snapping her fingers. "That's who they remind me of! A bunch of robot piloting Peter Pans that refuse to grow up! Because growing would mean they weren't perfect to begin with! How spoiled do you have to be to get like that?"

[empress_without_a_throne]

We might have to look into Loni's childhood to get the answer for that, considering how things with his uncle seem to go. Not that I have any intention of wasting time with that.

[actuallyselfish]

"Point." Dido admits. "I'm sure as hell not gonna waste my time repairing the Saber units either."

She rubs at her face. "But truth be told, all that's not what I'm stewing over. It...it's what I said to Ilinka during that fight. That crock-and-bull story about how her becoming Loni's friend was all an evil scheme of his uncle."

Her hands drops down into her lap. "What I said back there...it was just plain cruel."