[IC] Killbot Phantasm: Redux

[princessences]

She...wasn't quite sure she understood it, though not for a lack of interest. (Maybe a little, at least initially.) It was a game--a game from Earth, so something she has little familiarity with. She'd turned down previous offers to join in on the fun, as it were, which made her feel a little like a spoilsport. Not that she wasn't used to turning Lance down or that she disliked games. Quite the contrary--Allura liked games as much as the next person and happened to be a little on the competitive side once she got to it.

Allura just got busy. A raincheck, or an apology "maybe later". At the end of the day she did feel a little left out, but it was her own fault. Everyone did seem to be very excited about this Earthly artifact. Still, in the grand scheme of things her efforts and energy were best spent elsewhere.

Right?

Stepping down and away from the command deck, she ends up in the path of the Castleship's newest crew members. Might as well be congenial, so she offers a smile.

"Hello, Matt."

Comments

[prioritised]

[ They've plotted for this day.

Formally, The Plan (TM) had started on Lance's fifth turn at the game, when he'd tapped and ticked his way into 9th place out of twenty on the high scoreboard, a mere 24,000 points beneath Matt's lowest score. It wasn't bad for a paladin with limited time between rounds of saving the universe to work on his thumb game. But then he'd rounded on Matt, jabbed a finger between his brows, and accused him of plugging cheat codes - right in front of Pidge's narrowed eyes.

Much can be said of Matt's little sister, but underdefensive's nowhere close to the list.

So the war began. They roped Hunk into a few rounds during evenings while Lance did double-time on the training deck, snapping his new sword forth and back. That took care of spots #13-16 and knocked Lance down to #17. In a sleepless flurry, stretched over three nights while the castle drifted into its next sector, Pidge and Matt managed to whittle Lance's hold off the board, stripe by stripe.

And yet, days after the offense, Lance's final top score still clings to the board at #19.

Asking Shiro to play's out of the question. Coran lives in a constant whiplash between hair-care routines and castle maintenance, and could never be persuaded to sit still. Slav, offendingly, played with brutal, nervy speed as soon as he was introduced to the game, and settled as incomparable champion at slots #1-3; there's no fear of conquest there.

That leaves only one target.

(To be fair: they did try the mice first.) ]

Princess! Hey!

[ Allura's a busy person. The whole castle knows it. She moves in courtesies and probably dreams of treaties; her every breath pulls in new battle strategies and exhales royal duty. This is, technically, a very irresponsible thing to ask of her - which explains why Pidge's made herself grimly scarce for this particular recruition. Avenging the Holt family's honor is important, but not so much that it can't be delegated to a useless brother.

Vaguely, Matt tries to remember where to keep his hands to look like a normal person. At his sides? Tucked behind his back as a sign of respect? Cradling his nape in a devil-may-care gesture? He's still sort of fluttering as he talks. ]

Are you busy today?

[princessences]

[ Allura is used to the formalities of delegation and her status. While there's a certain comfort in them, she doesn't expert nor ask for it of those she considers her colleagues and friends. Pulling rank is saved for the bridge. Mostly. (Her stubbornness would be no less without a royal heritage, it's only through it that people are more inclined to back down.) She likes feeling like "one of the team".

It's a casual enough question with an answer that is an obvious, "aren't I always?" But, ]

No more so than usual.

[ She doesn't sound particularly upset about that. ]

We've made some good progress thanks to information provided by Keith and your sister, though our next mission is still a few days out.

[ Strategy is important, but so is being a good host. ]

How are you finding the castle? I haven't had a chance to ask since you arrived.

1/3

[prioritised]

[ Score one for Pidge's sense of timing. He pumps his fists a little, more for the sake of doing something with his hands than anything else. But his smile's already brimming, delighted and sincere. ]

Honestly? It's amazing. I could go on for hours. Me and Pidge spent a day testing out the Green Lion's customisations. The way your scientists figured out how to bypass binary data protocols is just ingenious. I barely even understand how they did it. It's almost unbelievable that any culture could've advanced to this level of technology ten thousand years ago.

[ Look at him. He's still a little babbly, but this is nearly a normal conversation that he's having with a space princess, heir to an incredible legacy past imagining, competent and luridly brilliant in her own right, with hair bright as light spun out of Sirius and Alpha Carinae, her steady eyes set like a sword's edge - ]

2/3

[prioritised]

Though any planet that could come up with a miracle like you obviously must've been capable of anything.

3/3

[prioritised]

[ ...

There's a brief silence.

It's helped a lot by the palm he's just smacked into his own face. ]

[princessences]

[ She listens with a smile. There's always a sense of pride that swells in her chest when people express awe at the accomplishments of her people. Altea may be gone, but it is not forgotten and its reputation and abilities live on through their combined efforts, not just through her. This is a legacy she is always ready to bask in.

Well, except...for that last comment. Which earns a raised brow in surprise. His embarrassment speaks for itself, so her natural inclination towards diplomacy lets it slide. Instead, her expression smooths out and she chuckles behind her curved finger poised just over her lips. ]

I'm glad to hear that you're enjoying yourself. Your contributions are appreciated, of course, but it's also nice to have another person on board and shake up the dynamic a bit.

[prioritised]

[ Her gentle diplomacy floats through the air, and gets left to disintegrate as his hand clings to his face. In cruel reality, Matt's about eighteen years too old to buy into the infant delusion that the world disappears once you aren't looking at it. In fantasy, he's alone right now, in a boundless, timeless void, and his mouth isn't crammed with anime pick-up lines.

Eventually, his palm detaches. ]

Do you guys actually need shaking up? You guys're so busy, it almost feels like you have your crises scheduled. Like - two PM: start and take out sudden wildfire in the kitchens. Five PM: deal with space mouse revolt.

[ The words still come at too quick a clip, but at least he isn't saying anything about her hair. Thank all the stars. ]

[princessences]

[ At the very least, any references to anime or internet memes will go right over her head. On the downside, she won't be able to appreciate the cleverness and acute loss of vine. It's a mixed bag being a space princess. There's a pause. He's trying to be funny, yes, she knows that, but with the very real possibility-- ] ...I hope you're not saying there was another kitchen fire? [ Just! To be sure. ]

[prioritised]

I mean, I haven't hit the kitchens for a couple days now. But I'd expect a lot more screaming and food goo at dinner if something happened.

[ He glances at her, and behind the melting-dreamy-romantic shine of his eyes, there's something a little assessing. ]

You would've heard something by now. You keep a pretty tight rein, huh?

[princessences]

Hmm...

[ Perhaps she should have done a final sweep before leaving the bridge, a scan of the decks to make sure everything was in working order. Usually Coran takes care to alert her of any maintenance needs. However...

Matt's comment pulls her out of whatever fantastical scenarios she can come up with regarding new ways to ruin the ship through teenage antics, and her Diplomatic Smile™ sets in. ]

It's important to be attentive to the needs of the ship, which includes all those on board.

[ So, yes. Yes she does. ]

But that's also why it's nice to see that everyone is getting along and enjoying themselves.

[ A beat. ]

As well as they can, anyway.

[prioritised]

"It's nice." You say that like you don't have fun with the rest of 'em.

[princessences]

[ Ah, well...that catches her a little off guard. Recently, definitely...] We all have different ways we unwind. [ Ahem. ]

[prioritised]

That sounds awfully general.

[ Giddiness puts a few more cracks in his poker face than usual, but Matt makes an OK show for someone perpetually floating on the cusp of a royal swoon. ]

...nope. I'm not sure I buy it. When's the last time you did just something for fun?

[princessences]

[ She definitely has a few hobbies, but she doesn't feel that she's at liberty to share them with everyone, per say. Still, she does feel a need to defend herself. Allura has fun! Really! ] ...Well, last night the mice did my hair while I finalized our most recent mission reports for the ship log. [ It's a full life. ] It was more enjoyable than I'm making it sound!