The Grandcypher

[Apollymi]

Soon enough, Arjuna was approaching Miki and Bulma, and along with him was Hikari who seemed more than a bit amused. In fact, there was devious light in the lass' eye. "Yare yare, I told you any problems with the decor don't have anything to do with m...." there was a pause it seemed the issue wasn't really one. According to him, there was a decision to be made regarding their captains and where they would be sleeping. "Sou ka," Bulma said. Although she didn't retain the same vested interest in the budding relationship between Kou and Miki, she was just as likely as the others to observe it. She didn't have any problem letting the rest of the group at large, have their fun at these two's expense.

Miki for her part in this, was exceedingly distracted, watching Kou. Until of course, the aim was to get her attention. Then and only then did she finally draw her eyes away from the lad, only to turn and find most of the people of this group standing around. Her eyes widened, and she felt like she had been caught. Little did she know she was being trapped instead. "Ah, well... I mean we," Miki started. It looked as if they were already planning this. The claim being they should share the room, or give it to the navigator which he advised against. "You seem like you've put a bit more thought into this than I'd like," this was how Miki chose to phrase her present discomfort. Now if she were being truthful, she had no problem sharing a room with Kou. In fact, before anyone else had joined them, she'd forced him into it. "I mean I don't really care where I sleep or anything. It isn't so big a deal..." said Miki, crossing her arms over her chest. A lighter flick would sound and Bulma began another cigarette, "You don't have to worry on my account. I'd prefer to sleep in my workshop, and set it up as such..." Bulma said laxly. "Yosh! No reason then, that you and Nii-san, can't just share the Captain's Quarters then, right?" said Hikari with her wide eyes shining at Miki. She was put on the spot so hard by this notion. Where was Kou, obviously he could help her out of this.

[Bloodedge]

As Kou continued to fly around the Grandcypher, he considered a great many things. One of those things he offered thought to, happened to be something which disturbed him greatly. They had so recently departed from Eonis, but there was one thing... one vital thing he'd gone without addressing during his time there. They were all quite busy, yes, but something was missing. "FUCK!" he yelled without much forethought. "I didn't get the fucking Dragon Glass!"

Meanwhile, deliberation regarding the captain's quarters began properly. Miki was right. Arjuna had, indeed, put quite a bit of thought into this sales pitch after scoping out their new shared living space. This option, above all others, was integral to the majority's desire... to force their leader figures into a relationship, since the pair of them were so skittish about it otherwise. Miki claimed she didn't care where she slept, but that was just more reason for it to work out just the way he suggested. "No qualms, then? If nothing else, having the captain well-rested from the best setup is ideal for crew morale. Looking at the rooms here, I imagine there will be some sort of... buff from the room."

[Apollymi]

Strangely, there was an outburst from Kou, about forgetting Dragon Glass. It had been a thing, that he'd previously asked for from the player Princess Madoka in Eonis on their earlier visit. All things considered, it wasn't really strange it had been forgotten given the state they'd found Eonis in when they'd returned to it. Bulma ever the nice person looked up at the lad. "I have Dragon Alchemy, if the combination of the right materials can be reached. I can make Dragon Glass..." she mentioned through an exhale of smoke. Of course, she had every reason to believe that between her and Miki such an amalgamation of materials could be found, but alas this wasn't the point of the conversation being had by the crew members at present. Hikari's eyes were still shining brightly with that hint of devilishness in them. Miki was managing to avoid eye contact though the words being spoken by Arjuna made her huff.

"Crew Morale and buffs? You want us to share a room for crew morale and buffs..." she said looking at the man as if he was up to something. She couldn't quite put her finger on it, maybe it was just knowing the lad was also Karna that made her mistrust his words a bit. Maybe, it was just the idea of such a thing being sprung on her without reason. She couldn't really tell, but it definitely seemed as if everyone present had some strange vested interest in the idea of her and Kou sharing the Captain's Quarters. She had no real problem with doing so, but she wouldn't make such a decision. After all, their whole working relationship was based on the equality of their input. So, the approach to take, would be the one she always did, the one of tentative neutrality. "There is no reason we can't share it, but... that isn't really a decision I can make on my own," Miki mentioned still not making eye contact. Bulma took note of this and found it interesting. She'd known Ashikaga Kimiko for a great deal of her life, and had never seen her outright defer a decision in such a way. In fact, she was much more likely to watch the girl argue her point into the ground before leaving something up to someone else. Taking such a statement as cue Hikari looked to her brother, and asked the lad a question in the most direct manner possible. "Nii-san! Miki-nee wants to share the Captain's Quarters with you... that's cool, right?" she mentioned taking the liberty of interpreting the elder lass' neutrality. This widened Miki's eyes, those weren't the exact words she'd spoken but they could be taken that way, 'She's dangerous...' she realized of the lad's younger sister.

[Bloodedge]

Kou's outburst had been heard by none other than Bulma, who thought it imperative to mention her own ability to produce Dragon Glass. It wasn't so much a thing he needed, but rather something he saw the potential uses of in future. Moreover, he wouldn't be capable of acquiring it from Princess Madoka for quite some time after this journey to the skies began. It was overall nice to know he could receive Dragon Glass, or even something like it, through a member of the current group. "Sugoi!" he said while flying closer to the deck where others seemed to be grouping up. "I made an arrangement to get tons of it, but... I might be needing a few pieces while we're upstairs. I'll let you know!"

There was one more matter which kept Kou closer to the ship. Why was most of the crew hanging out in this one spot on the deck? He'd soon be finding out in a roundabout way, and through none other than Hikari at that. His board lowered until he could hover just over the surface for a bit. She couldn't h ave been serious, right? To imply that Miki had a desire to share a room was ridiculous, or at least it should have been. There was a memory in his mind of her suggesting a shared room at the start of their journey together, though...

"... Eh?" he questioned aloud. It took the young man's best effort to keep any amount of shock and embarrassment from his visage, but he may have been failing just a bit. He couldn't manage eye contact with a single person at the time, knowing a handful of eyes were on him during this moment. "Uh... yeah. I mean, I guess? Are there buffs?"

[Apollymi]

Apparently, whatever the lad had planned for the Dragon Glass, he didn't need much of it at first. Perhaps he would only need it after a while, with this, Bulma could at least nod her head knowing that her services would actually be used at some point. "Hai hai..." she managed knowing she'd caused this pair of youngsters a bit of discomfort when she'd showed up wanting their Wish Gems, she figured she might as well make herself as fully available as her contract with them was one which was mutually beneficial.

Moving right along the lad would soon be stopped along with everyone else, wondering about the gathering, his younger sister's words caused a strange reaction in him, and she looked on with that same bit of deviousness before turning her head up in the air. 'I hate that I know him this well. A pretty girl doesn't need buffs to want to room with you... but you agree to it because of that... Baka-nii. Looking after you is so difficult,' she thought, giving Arjuna a knowing look because she'd said this exact thing when they were discussing the plan. "Hai hai, well-rested bonuses and whatever they trickle down to for us. And Crew Morale is always a thing to consider," said the girl with a triumphant face. Miki heard out this explanation and though she'd never had any qualms about the idea of sharing the room with Kou, all of the words mentioned made it seem like more of a good idea than a bad one. Kou had even already agreed though he seemed a bit hesitant, Miki managed to smile as she hazarded a glance his way. 'I really don't mind sharing with him. Actually, it's kind of exciting we'll be able to talk, hang out and maybe...' Miki's mind began to wander. Late night chats, a progression to their potential dating, midnight snacks... stolen romantic moments. Her face was blushing at the thought. And Bulma was watching the girl as she smoked her cigarette and wondered if being forced to be more normal had ended Ashikaga Kimiko with a different set of problems from others like them.

[Bloodedge]

It made sense. If the two who were in charge benefited from the same rest bonus achieved via the captain's quarters, the entire group would benefit whether they were in the Party or not. As awkward as it was to agree, there was logic behind their placement in the same bedroom this time... and it wasn't as if he minded, or anything. 'Kuso. I've got a strong feeling this is all some devious plan of Yumi's to hook me up with hot, rich gamer chicks. Well... it's whatever, but─' His thought reached no proper conclusion. He had already agreed, so it was settled. It wasn't as if they would ever be outside of this world again, right? If he could keep that in mind, perhaps he could commit to the lass who already admitted some attachment to him, even in a roundabout way. He reciprocated... so there was likely an additional expectancy lying in wait.

Either way, Kou hopped off his solar sailer to join the others aboard the ship once more. If he was to commit to yet another room in Miki's company, that was fine, but he did have an interest in seeing it. "Well, let's see it then. I've... got no problem with sharing a room and all. Still, I haven't even had a look around yet."

[Apollymi]

Miki's mind had traveled a great deal down the path of potential romance. Hikari watched knowing that her brother thought this was some plot of hers. She didn't really care though, what he couldn't know was that he was wrong. She wasn't just plotting to hook him up with rich gamer chicks. She'd decided that Ashikaga Kimiko was the only one to properly fit her brother's personality. There was also the fact that she wasn't alone in this idea, the whole of their group seemed to want this to happen, even if for various different reasons. "Yosh! Good, Captains are all set..." Hikari said seemingly pleased by the agreement reached.

Moving on, Kou seemed to want to explore their new vessel and though Miki had already agreed to sharing the room, she also hadn't seen it. "Oh... I haven't really looked around either..." Miki mentioned. Figuring that if they'd already agreed to sharing the room, she might as well see what all the fuss was about. "Ikoka..." she said basically offering to join the lad on his exploration of this place. Seeming to have forgotten at base her blushing expectations and seeming to be overly pleased about the rooming situation though she'd been arguing about it herself for quite a few moments.

[Bloodedge]

"I guess so," Kou said in response to Hikari's assertion. Still, he remained skeptical even in his expression toward the girl. Whatever the case, things were business as usual. His sister would always meddle in his business for what she thought was 'best' for him, and apparently this entire world would always push him closer to Miki. Inside, he didn't mind at all... so long as the balance between them remained.

Speaking of Miki, she made it clear that she, too, intended to view the captain's... or rather, captains' quarters. Bashful as that claim made him, Kou understood that they had to make that journey together at some point. What better time than the present to do so? "Hai. Let's have a look," he said with only mild hesitation, taking that first step toward a scenario he didn't know the outcome of.

... Oh. That was a thing, wasn't it? Perhaps, in all this time, he had been failing to realize that Miki remained an unsolvable puzzle to him. As he walked into the ship, he thought back to earlier moments in this journey. Even as early as Dwargon, his usual understanding of things didn't apply to how the blonde functioned. Now, he understood just as little. Mentally, he considered her to be an impossibility, a curiosity that always twisted in a different direction... much like the Artifact he'd gifted her in Atlantis, and the smaller treasure hidden away inside it. Maybe his attachment was a simple matter of this curiosity. No, that surely wasn't the case. At some point in time, yes... his interest came from a point of wonder. That time had long since gone.

His mind continued wandering, always back to the same simple fact. As a result, Kou said nothing on his journey toward the captains' quarters, seeming quite out of his wit all the while.

[Apollymi]

'Baka.' this was Hikari's only thought as her brother and Miki began walking off together. She couldn't believe how much extra it took to get him to leave with the lass. At least it seemed, that Miki was just the side of direct enough, when knowing the lad had some interest in her, to push things forward at her own pace. Strange as it was, Hikari had no problem leaving her brother in Miki's care, because she knew the blonde lass wasn't using him. They truly were a match, even if they didn't quite realize it yet.

Speaking of not realizing their compatibility, Miki was walking along side the lad after her agreed to her company. She couldn't have been more pleased, in fact, it was showing on her face. Acceptance. That was the feeling, which seemed to provide her some unknown amount of giddy pleasure. 'Hm, I'm kind of excited...' the girl thought with happiness. The idea of sharing a room with this lad was exciting. Admittedly, the first time she'd mentioned such a thing, it'd had some different meanings. Now, it wasn't simply a matter of fairness and not wanting her to be alone. No, even in moments of quiet like this, she felt at ease... his presence was calming and his desires were simple. Perhaps, this was what she enjoyed? Was it why she wanted to give him those simple desires... to see him smile? Perhaps because, he offered it to her as well, reciprocity? Maybe because she considered him in such a way, she thought of his comfort before her own, but was never disappointed by what she got in return.

As they walked they would eventually make it towards the upper deck once more, her hand rested against a door and she smirked. "Alright then, shall we?" she asked as she prepared to push open the door. She smiled at the lad directly and waited. After all, this room wasn't just hers, it was theirs, and they both deserved to see it with fresh eyes and appreciation the first time. Whenever the door opened, they'd see inside of it. It contained six large windows against the far walls, framed in curtains of red and gold. A table in the middle atop a well designed area rug underneath a chandelier. Beyond this, several dressers lined the left wall and on the right, tucked between some deep bookshelves was a king-sized bed. Nearer to the front a private bathroom for the couple to share, but that was something for later. The room itself was decorated in hues of red and gold with royal blue and gold accent pieces. It seemed to be designed with them in mind.

[Bloodedge]

Kou's mind continued to wander, to race even, as they approached their designated room. By the time Miki spoke to him about entering, he was completely zoned out. He, too, had begun to think about the potentials of this shared space. There was so much that could be done, from collective relaxation, to...

Oh. He was being addressed. His expression couldn't have produced more shock than it did the moment he realized he was several seconds behind on answering. His face was red, his eyes were wide and unfocused, and his mouth was just slightly agape. "Oh─ yeah, right. Gomen," he said. Nevertheless, he was keen on making his way into the room, which he immediately found to be a thing worthy of awe. Seeing the windows to let in a great quality of natural light from a technical lower point, the half-hidden placement of the bed, and the spaciousness of everything... none of that did any good to help quell his train of thought. Of course, Kou had been more than some simple shut-in during his life in their original world. He had been a bit of a pervert, as many lads of his age group typically were... albeit with excessive access to two-dimensional stimuli aplenty. "This would be really good for..." He didn't mean to speak aloud. He was off on a mental tirade, nearly gone from the conscious world when his mouth simply opened to produce the sounds. Upon realizing he was talking, he froze immediately.

[Apollymi]

Miki found the lad a bit more spaced out than normal. Though she didn't require conversation from him, she found his shocked expression after being addressed directly to be odd. No, that wasn't the right word, she found this look, cute. "Iia," she said brushing aside the apology she was offered. She didn't care if he was a bit spaced out, looking at the lad while he was deep in thought was something altogether different for her. She couldn't help but enjoy the quality of such moments figuring them to be a rare treat. Soon, there was something else to focus on, and focus she would. Her eyes traced over their new shared room space and she found it to be quite good. It was cozy, compared to types of spaces she'd inhabited in her life, but still roomy enough to move around in. She began doing exactly this, walking around the table. She ran her fingers absently across it. She took note of the height of the table the spacing of the chairs, the amount of light being let in by the windows. All of this seemed to give the lass some strange ideas.

She was used to being in such spaces by herself. The idea of sharing a space this intimate with someone else led her to think about the space differently. Instead of thinking of things she could do in this space alone, she considered things they could do together. Yes, normal things crossed her mind, like puzzles and mapping and taking meals. But beyond that, deep in the recesses of her mind, were thoughts of a more perverse nature... Her mind shifted to the height of this table, testing its stability wondering if it would support the weight of two people. These were the sort of thoughts she gathered from her reading of certain series and by ingesting certain other media. Her eyes went wide as she considered these things, and the random speech of Kou invaded her mind and brought her eyes up just a bit, her face lightly aflame. "Huh? I uh... missed a bit of that," the girl managed before turning towards the window and walking to look down it, her mind instantly wondering if they could be seen from below... for reasons and thus making her not want to turn and face the lad again.

[Bloodedge]

His apology had only been spoken in passing, but it seemed it was to be pardoned regardless. He could be thankful of that, but more so of another event yet to happen at the time. As they both let their minds wander in whatever directions they chose regarding this room, it seemed Miki's train of thought veered off enough for her to miss his accidental speech. Good; that meant he could recover, and there was much he had to recover from. When she walked by the table and made direct contact with it, he saw her. In that very moment, his own mind saw a series of events transpiring in the moments immediately following that moment of contact, and those thoughts were none too savory. He certainly couldn't be letting that out of the proverbial bag. "Huh? Oh, uh..."

He had to think of something. She wasn't looking at him directly, so he could bend the truth just a bit, right? No; he could omit the greater truth, however. "I was just... thinking out loud about how great the room is. I was saying it'd be awesome for doing a lot of stuff, you know?" That was all he chose to say. He was being completely honest about the matter, and he meant those words even without the sultry-natured things that consumed his mind more than any other thoughts. This was going to be one hell of an adjustment period, he thought... unless this room happened to come equipped with a certain aphrodisiac gas he'd seen used in a specific series once, in which two characters were forced into a shared living space for the sake of mating.

[Apollymi]

Kou stumbled through a bit of a reaction. At least initially, but as she was turned away she couldn't really see the look on his face to determine the reason for this. Ah, that was too bad though wasn't it. It seemed that he was simply thinking about the space they'd share and how nice it was. His words about it, seemed to lack a bit of depth but... Miki wouldn't pry. Or rather, she had no room to pry when she considered her own thoughts were very far off the mark and needed to be kept deep within the recesses of her mind. "Ah, right. It's a great space, I'm actually pretty shocked by it," she said finally managing to tear her eyes away from the window. She felt as if her face was no longer the stark shade of red it had been when her thoughts first started to wander. And with this she turned to the lad and offered a smile.

"I don't think I've ever shared a room for longer than a day or two before... I'll try to be a good roommate~" she offered, though she meant that in a way which wasn't really about sharing the space. This was more of a cover for her own thoughts than anything else. Ashikaga Kimiko had lived very much outside of what could be considered normal. Knowing this, the blonde lass she was right now, wanted to make sure she didn't dominate the space they now shared, especially not with the kind of thoughts and activities her mind seemed to enjoy. She fully acknowledged that living with her would probably be weird to most people. Even so, she couldn't help but be happy about this new turn of events. In fact, she could even see it playing out like a certain series she favored. 'Hm, if we get past this part... we could move on to something more like that...' she thought as her mind once again took to a strange place of romance and perversion. But... first, she had to cross the bridges that presented themselves.

[Bloodedge]

"Yeah, same..." Kou said, doing his level best to escape the thoughts plaguing his consciousness. He failed, though that much was to be expected of a lad in his teens. As if he needed to make things worse, his legs carried him closer to the bed so carefully tucked away in the wall itself. There were even curtains surrounding the opening left for said bed, which he thought to be an excellent source of additional... privacy, as it were. Something about being 'sealed' within an even smaller closed space was incredibly appealing, but he had to stop! Any more, and he'd begin showing physical signs of what he was thinking.

At least there was a spark to create a normal conversation. It wasn't doing much to deter the brain below his waist, but it was a start. In hearing talk of Miki being a 'good roommate' in attempt, he opted for a bit of jest that carried with it the thoughts he pushed off. If he couldn't easily rid himself of them mentally, he could at least joke them away as he sat at the bed's edge. "I've had to share rooms long-term before, but not with someone I didn't happen to be related to. I'll make an effort to avoid being a creeper. Mm. Strong effort; just don't hit me with a frying pan if I screw it up."

[Apollymi]

By the time Miki looked at the lad properly, he was looking at the bedside, then sitting on it. She was used to having a bed surrounded by curtains out of the general view of other places. Such a thing felt safest to her. But... that wasn't at all the thought she had in the moment she looked it over. No, right just now she thought of being in an even cozier space with Kou, shut off from the view of the world. What kind of trouble could they get into when others couldn't watch them? That was a bad line of thought. She went over casually and sat down beside him at a range she thought was neither too close nor too far away. But unlike other moments, when she crossed her legs at the knee the one which met the floor seemed to bounce just a little. It would seem a bit of a nervous tick but that wasn't it at all... 'I really might like this too much...' her thoughts needed to be shut down, and she needed to stop doing what she was doing right now before this wholesome situation became something else entirely.

Ah, Kou was talking again. Apparently he'd shared rooms more often, but only with people he was related to. He claimed he'd try his hardest not to be a creeper of any sort. But he didn't want to be hit with a frying pan, if he failed at it. Strangely, Miki wouldn't actually mind if he was a bit of a creeper, as she didn't mind his attention in any way. Maybe, that'd be something worth saying later. When things were a bit less tense between them. For now she managed to make her leg stop bouncing, thus stopping that discrete stimulation and laugh at his joke. "Tehehe Hahahahaha!~" happened first but then was followed up by her own joke. "I'm pretty sure I could manage a paper fan or a giant mallet if you prefer..." she joked as well, knowing that she didn't innately find him creepy because she wanted his attention. In fact, it only made her curious about what he could mean and maybe she'd find out... some other time.