Meet and Greet Part Deux: The Socialing

[cityship]

The new people will find themselves ushered out of Obs Deck, so it can be shot down to the planet again, to pick the crew up. Eventually, the crew members on the mission are brought back up, and the doors open to let the two groups meet.

The newbies are likely not expecting their new crew-mates to come back bearing presents--which some of them are.

[ooc: This time anyone can post in. REMEMBER TO TAG OTHER PEOPLE, THO. This is set after the mission so mission peoples can meet the newbies. Latecomer newbies, if you want, you can just tag your guys into this one to make things easier.]

Comments

[morphitudinous]

Billy may be somewhat late to the party. He has to slip off to retrieve some of the projects he'd hidden in the labs and wrap them in messy blue paper. The timing is convenient, and he enjoys participating in the holiday festivities. His allowance had gone a long way toward completing some much-desired projects that would now be gifted to his friends.

Newly invigorated by both the cold atmosphere and the weight of what they had just accomplished, he slings his sack of fun science-y toys over his shoulder and greets the gathered people with a smile.

If only I'd thought to hang a 'ENGINEERS MEET HERE' sign over this area, he thinks, trying and failing to discern which new podmates he needs to talk to. Oh well. In the spirit of socializing with everyone, he would continue to wave and look friendly, in a manner that might otherwise be called 'dorky'.

Oh, and he has a terrible case of hat hair. Feel free to laugh.

[bonnypiperlad]

Jamie is trying to peer over some of the taller crew members to see if he can spot a few people that he needs to see, when he spots a terrible case of hat hair and a Billy attached to it.

"Billy!" He's got something small in his hands, wrapped in plaid wrapping paper, and a big grin on his face.

[morphitudinous]

"Hi, Jamie! How did your mission go?"

As soon as he sees Jamie's hand, he reaches down into the bag and grabs a lumpy package wrapped in blue. It appears they'd had similar thoughts on their downtime. Twitching his fingers against the lumpy thing, he really hoped Jamie would like his selection.

[bonnypiperlad]

"I think it went verra well, really." He's looking rather satisfied - after all, he thinks it was a job well done. "It's surprising what ye could pull out of those bags."

He was about to ask Billy how his mission went, when he catches a glimpse of the lumpy package wrapped in blue and eyes it curiously. "What do ye have there?"

[morphitudinous]

"I agree. This is the first time in a while that I've come away from a mission feeling that I've really accomplished something. For once, we've given people hope." And that thought makes him smile broadly.

Upon hearing Jamie's question, he nervously averts his eyes. "We've spent so much time today giving to complete strangers. I thought it would be sensible to give to the people I live and work with here as well. This is yours, Jamie," he says, thrusting the lumpy blue thing at him.

If he chooses to open it, Jamie will find a high-quality classic bagpipe maintenance kit with clear instructions attached and a green plaid hat. Maybe they can have matching hat hair someday.

[bonnypiperlad]

"I wouldna have said 'sensible'," Jamie comments, "But there were a few friends I wanted to get some things for." He offers over his gift.

If Billy opens it, he'll find a small clan badge that looks like this.

"They didna have any fierce unicorns," he adds, dryly. Meanwhile, he's enthusiastically attacking the wrappings on his gift. The hat is immediately put on his head, hat-head be damned. He wants to try it on. He's also looking extremely happy about receiving the kit - especially since his old one was cobbled together from what he could find in Weapons and Storage. If his hands weren't currently full, he'd be trying for an friendly arm-thump by way of thanks. Hopefully the pleased look on his face will serve, instead.

"These are great! Thank ye, Billy."

[morphitudinous]

Billy might've been holding his breath a little. Upon realizing that Jamie appreciates the gifts, his face looks just as pleased as Jamie's. He'd chosen someone's gifts correctly, at least. "You're welcome."

When Jamie says he couldn't find any unicorns, he chuckles: "How disappointing." Not that he needs one. Billy has the only fierce unicorn he'll ever need sitting down in the hangar. At the same time, the comment stokes his curiosity about the contents of the small package.

When he opens the gift, the clan badge sits in his open palm for a moment while he studies it. It's finely crafted, elegant, and, he realizes, incredibly meaningful. Highlanders, he remembered, often wore badges like this to denote their allegiances to their families or clans. That Jamie would share this piece of his heritage with Billy was something to be treasured.

"I'll wear it with pride. Thank you, Jamie," he says with quiet sincerity and a smile, lightly patting his friend's shoulder with his free hand.

[bonnypiperlad]

It's certainly an interesting choice of gift, considering Cranstoun is a Lowland clan. "It's funny, ye know," Jamie says thoughtfully. "Back in my day, there was a great divide between the Highlanders and Lowlanders." To put it mildly.

"Before I left Scotland, I'm not sure I would have given the time of day to most Lowlanders. And after we first talked, in the Sensoriums? It took me a wee bit to place the last name." To be fair, he was not exactly in the most observant state of mind at the time.

"When I realized, I wasna sure what to think, really. Ye seemed like a good guy, even if ye use some confusing words. And I don't even know if ye have any Scottish blood in ye to speak of, so the last name shouldn't make a difference, right?"

He studies the kit for a few moments, then looks back up at Billy, and says frankly, "So I decided that I would rather be friends with ye than let that get in the way. And that's why I got ye the badge."

[not-to-be-eaten.livejournal.com]

Tony Tony Chopper was just leaving the Obs Deck when he suddenly could smell some cotton candy! Following his nose brought him up to a familiar face yet someone he hadn't spoken to before. He looked at Billy in a hopeful yet timid manner and he might have been drooling.

"H-Hi..." Chopper didn't know where to go with this.

[morphitudinous]

The sound of a voice broke Billy out of his search for his friends. Lowering his gaze, he found the source---a vaguely familiar small creature looking up at him hopefully. If Kimberly were here, she probably would have cooed at the newcomer. Billy, though, only smiled, not yet sure how to react.

"Hello. Are you looking for something?" Here, Billy wished there was enough space and money to get gifts for everyone, but he was no Santa Claus. All he had were the gifts for his friends and some personal items, with a few long-missed snacks...

[not-to-be-eaten.livejournal.com]

Chopper sniffed at the air again. Yep. He could definitely smell the cotton candy and it was coming from Billy.

"Umm..." There wasn't any other way for him to ask his question. "..Do you have any cotton candy?" He asked, voice filled with hope. The human in front of him did seem kind enough.

[morphitudinous]

That...was just about the last question Billy expected. But hey, they were in the middle of the holiday season, and if he could give this person joy he could keep the spirit of their work going.

"I do, actually. Did you want to taste some?" As he said this, he dug into the bag, pulling out a multi-flavored bag of the fluffy stuff.

[not-to-be-eaten.livejournal.com]

When Chopper's around, no cotton candy is safe.. even if he already has his own. But he's not going to tell you that little detail.

"Is-is it okay????" At this point Chopper was actually drooling.

[morphitudinous]

The drooling was oddly cute. After that, Billy was putty in Chopper's hooves.

"Sure. Enjoy it!" He offered the open bag to Chopper, marveling at the other's sense of smell. Or maybe he had a built-in Cotton Candy Alarm?

[not-to-be-eaten.livejournal.com]

It was really a mixture of both. Reindeers do have a sense of smell and with cotton candy being Chopper's most favourite food in the world, it was almost a cotton candy alarm.

After recieving the bag of cotton candy, he was estatic! "Thank you!" He said. Then he started to eat it.



"I'm Tony Tony Chopper." He was in heaven right there. "You're so cool!"

[savin-ur-data.livejournal.com]

"Hi, Billy!" Mei Ling waved happily at the fellow engineer; her elf hat still sitting happily above her head. In hand, she carried a few beautiful, handmade cards, each carefully decorated to be as unique as each of the receivers.

She fingered through her pile, finding one that had 'Billy' written in small, neat gold letters across the envelope, holding it out for him, "This is for you."

[morphitudinous]

"Hey Mei Ling," he returned, grinning from ear to ear. "Oh---wow, you didn't have to go to this effort for me. It's magnificent," he declared, admiring her handiwork.

"I actually have something for you as well---here," he heaved a book-sized rectangular blue package out of the bag, offering it to her. "I hope you'll enjoy this."

Inside is a hand-stitched physical copy of a new book he'd found on this planet---a tale of the bonds of family as they search for meaning in their lives beyond the stars. He'd been assured by the shopkeeper that it was a classic on that Earth.

[savin-ur-data.livejournal.com]

Inside the card, he will find an inspiring proverb meticulously written in traditional Chinese calligraphy (and of course a translation printed neatly underneath), along with a sincere message written just for him.

She ran a hand gently over the binding of the book. Her eyes literally sparkled. A book! A real book! She couldn't believe it. She couldn't contain her excitement. Billy has one big hug coming his way, "Thank you!"

[morphitudinous]

As Mei Ling opened her gift, Billy peeked inside the card. Did she really go to all that effort for him? He was touched, to say the least. He couldn't believe she could so eloquently inspire him. He'd definitely hold that message close to his heart.

Wait. Did her eyes just sparkle? Correctly recognizing the facial expression from other friends he'd known in the past, he wasn't entirely surprised to find himself wrapped in a hug. He reciprocated enthusiastically. "I'm glad you're pleased with it. Hopefully you'll have some down time to read."

[worm-dancer.livejournal.com]

Sheeana approached and respectfully bowed. "I'd like to apologize for catching you in the effect of the Voice of Command. I am not one to make others bow, no matter how just the cause."

[morphitudinous]

The Voice of Command. So that's what it was called. Billy still felt slightly uncomfortable with the implications of their powers, but the apology was appreciated. And they had saved the holiday festivities. All in all, he thought that it was best to remain on her good side.

"It's all right. We were in an extremely stressful situation, so it's understandable if you couldn't control your command as precisely as you usually do. I'm unharmed, though I wish I could have been of more help to you." ...well, maybe his ego is slightly damaged, but that's all.

[worm-dancer.livejournal.com]

Sheeana put a comforting hand on his shoulder. "You were. That we had your fighting ability in reserve allowed me a lot more flexibility. If my 'miracle' gambit had failed, you would have been the one we all needed."

[morphitudinous]

That small touch gave Billy the nudge he needed to talk again.

"I'm glad you didn't need me. Your miracle was spectacular, and deserved to make a lasting impact there." The confrontation had been resolved with little violence, and using the least amount of force was always his preference. The peoples' happiness, he knew, trumped his irrational desire to feel important.

"Oh, and thank you, by the way. For doing all that you did to make the feast a success."

[worm-dancer.livejournal.com]

Miracles! Hah, i've made a million of them! How many in the Old Empire still worship Sheeana the Holy Child, I wonder? She wanted to cackle but held her tongue. This was no time to brag.

She shrugged. "This was a group effort. If I contributed more than others it was because circumstances favored my skills in the game of leverage this time. Next time it will be someone else's turn to turn the social climate of a region. Perhaps yours? Do you have a taste for politics?"

[morphitudinous]

Politics? His face scrunched up momentarily, meaning 'no'. "I'm somewhat interested academically, and I paid attention in history class, but I don't have a particular taste or talent for it. My friends were diplomatically inclined---I try, but I don't understand people as well as they do."