trans_9 | Hugging Booth Mk-II [OPEN]

Busy as she was recovering from her bomb-defense wounds and describing what she knew of Cassie's death, Starfire hadn't had time to return to Sasami recently. She floated through the City, wondering why there were so many signs pointing to her home---unfortunately, her language gift did not include reading ability.

Finally, she found her roommate. "Sasami? Why are there signs pointing to our home?

Sasami blinked as she heard Starfire ask the question, just a tad confused.

"I've set up a hugging booth!" she said, as if it was obvious. "...you didn't know that? I mean..." she looked at one of the signs.

And then it dawned on her.

"...not everyone can read that, can they?"

Koishi understood death. Before getting stuck here, she lived in what used to be Hell, so it would be weird if she didn't. So she could understand why so many people were upset and angry... but she didn't feel that way at all.

Instead of mourning like what seemed like most of the crew, here she was, humming cheerfully as she headed through the city towards her most recent hangout spot: the Hakurei Shrine. She paused, though, when she noticed Sasami's booth and signs.

"Whatcha doin'?" She asked, head tilting to the side.

"No," Starfire shook her head. "I can learn to comprehend and speak languages instantaneously, but the same is not true for reading. I can only read and write Tamaranean with complete fluency. Others without such a gift have the same trouble."

She smiled slightly when she heard the idea, though. "You are offering hugs? Do you intend to exchange them for other items?"

Ashley after hearing that people had been killed, didn't quite know what to do with herself. She had stayed behind as ordered but... She didn't feel right then not going into the fight and disarming of the bombs, and she certainly didn't feel right now. So, she walked. She walked into the city to clear her head at was a bit surprised to see signs in Japanese, but didn't know what they said.

Spying the girl responsible didn't change the awkward feeling she had. "What is with the signs?"

Sasami grinned sheepishly at that realization. And sadly, she can't write English. "Oh, well... I guess it'll be a surprise for others, then!" she said, laughing.

"Oh, no! Not at all!" she said. "They're for free! Like this one!" With that, she reached over and hugged her roommate.

"Koishi, hi!" Sasami said, noticing her friend. "I've set up a hugging booth! Everyone's so upset and hurt and... well... they need something to cheer them up!"

Sasami blushed, finding another person who couldn't tell what she wrote.

"I-I've set up a hugging booth!" she said, grinning sheepishly. "Everyone's so upset and depressed, so... I figured the best thing everyone needs is, well... a hug!"

"Then I will help you find someone who can translate the signs in other languages," Starfire decided, moments before being wrapped in a surprise hug.

"I see now" she answered, carefully hugging Sasami back. "We have great sadness among us, and it is your goal to ease our crew's pain. In this, I will assist you if you will allow it."

That spark of determination was appearing in her eyes.

"Thank you, Starfire..." Sasami said, enjoying the hug she was getting in return. "...and I would love the help. Can't do this all by myself, right?"

On the outside Ashley was concerned for the girl, but on the inside well... Sometimes things like this affected the youngest just as much as the oldest.

The briefest of smiles was seen as Ashley gave her thoughts on the subject. "That might be a good idea. It might help with the younger crew members and those that aren't used to such losses before."

"Hey!"

Zetta burst in -- or rather, the girl who was carrying him burst in -- on the booth. Which was odd, because the booth was outside the home, and really there shouldn't be any way to 'burst in' on it except in the most abstract of ways. Somehow, Zetta had managed.

"Who's been putting up signs on my plaza?" Zetta, it was like fifteen feet outside of your plaza. "Is this a duel challenge? You have no idea who you're messing with!"

That's right. He couldn't read it. The language option was set to English. But he'd known to come to this booth, because, well, it was the next stage.

"Bring it on! Hyaaa ha ha ha ha!" Yes, the book is cackling manically. Did anyone here, at any point, think, "Hey, this day can't get any weirder"? You have only yourselves to blame if so.

"I will assist in any way that I can!"

There was no getting rid of her now. She took her place next to Sasami, searching out anyone else who might be in pain.

"We are not seeking a duel, Lord Zetta," Starfire assured. "I am helping Sasami to operate a 'hugging booth'."

Who would hug Lord Zetta? Well, Star would try, but the reaction would likely be volatile. She decided to wait for his reaction.

"You're right, they do need to be cheered up..." Koishi said, smile seeming to flicker for a moment. "Can I help? I bet it'll be even better with more people!"

Zetta's mind didn't actually make a horrible crunching noise as it shifted gears, but he did blink once, very slowly. Then there was something of a pause.

"Oh. Hello, Starfire. I hear you did good work with that whole bomb-thing." He hadn't heard a thing of this nature.. not from anyone else. But he knew she'd: (a) responded, (b) was a hero, (c) not been blown up, so he cheerfully counted his own sense of warped logic as a source from which he could hear things and said it anyway. Though, on that note, he paused to check her status screen, to see if her HP was lower than maximum.

"This may be none of my business but... a hugging booth? Down here in this gloomy dump of a... huh." He'd just noticed that said booth was in front of a tree. "What's with the livable larch?"

"Uh-huh...!" Sasami agreed, nodding. "That, and if anyone else needs one just because, I'm here for that, too!"

She stopped a moment before asking, "You want one?"

"Would you? Really? Please?" Sasami said, her eyes and smile widening at the thought. "It would be a great help if you could!"

Starfire slowly nodded in greeting, slightly bemused.

"This is my friend Sasami's palace and our home. The interior is quite beautiful. We chose this location because we did not wish to disrupt the hallways on the upper level. It is our hope that we can help to alleviate everyone's pain."

While Ashley may wholly agree with most people, she saw nothing wrong with indulging the girl. "Sure. I'm Ashley, by the way." She shared a small smile with her.

"With hugs? How the hell does that work?" Pretty straightforward honesty from a demon and an Overlord. Really, he knew heroes and defenders of justice DO that sort of thing, and it seems to work, but... how the hell?

"I mean, if it's physical healing, I didn't spawn a healer for nothing." The book's eyes squinted at Starfire. He figured he'd better ask explicitly. "On that note, how are you doing, physically? I'm not about to have my minions walking about wounded."

Hugging booth. Zetta stared at the booth and the girls manning it again. He just... doesn't get it. At all.

"I'm Sasami! It's nice to meet you, Ashley!" the little girl said, hopping up from her position and moving over to give the older woman a hug. That's another one down!

"Hugging causes most of us to feel positive emotions. It is a supportive action that many humans enjoy." There were other 'supportive actions' that people enjoyed more, but they weren't about to run THAT kind of booth.

Starfire pushed her hair back behind her ear---he might note that it's shorter and more ragged than usual. The turrets had burned some of it off. "I sustained moderate injuries in our attempt to disable the bomb. It was heavily guarded, and I needed to absorb attacks for my partner so that he could concentrate. I was brought to a healer, but the recovery is not yet complete."

That was that. It didn't seem to bother her too much, just make her sleepy and a little tender.

"Of course I would!" Koishi laughed a little. "I wouldn't have offered if I didn't want to, silly."

"Oh, thank you!" Sasami said, reaching over to hug Koishi. "This means so much...!"

"Why?" Zetta , well, let's say, more familiar with those 'other' actions. But aside from not being actually in the proper shape for those actions, and aside from having actually been an Overlord well over two thousand times Starfire's current age, there are limits on the amounts of fanservice he'll accept from a loyal minion. Hugging booth? Just right. Cosplay would also be acceptable.

"Anyway, if you need more healing, and you're not crazy-allergic to magic or something, let me know. So why do humans need hugs anyway?" Believe it or not, he's sincerely curious. Remember, kids, he may be a book, but he's also a demon!

"I do not have a magic allergy unless the magic involves metallic chromium in some way, but I am certain that I will heal shortly."

Starfire turned this over in her head. She couldn't articulate it in terms of endorphins and chemical responses, not quite, but she could say something.

"They are not a requirement for survival, but if the person is not afraid of hugs they can cause an uplift in emotions. In times of great sadness such as this, they serve as emotional support to let the bereaved know that they are not alone. We will also hold people upright if they need to cry."

"Heh. Humans." Then Zetta thought better of his statement, considering who he was talking to. "I mean, heh, non-demons. I guess there's no harm in it, but wouldn't it be better to move past the problems, instead of dwelling on it? It's in the past. Can't be changed. Accept it and move on."

Heartless? But that sort of thinking kept Zetta moving forward when other people would have broken down or been emotionally crippled. He'd lost his body, but Zetta always hit the ground running.

"My friend Raven would say something similar if she were present. Most humans, however, need to process their emotions regarding sudden loss before they can move past it like you say. Hugging can help with that."

Tamaraneans needed hugs too, but they could possibly prove lethal to humans.

Humans! Hyaaa ha ha ha! Humans are weak!

Still... he'd started to get Ideas. The wheels in his head were turning... or was that the pages in his binding? Either way, he listened to Starfire's words with far more plotting than was probably safe.

"Okay, you're pretty good at interpreting all this for me, so interpret this. We won. Hell, we kicked ass. Eight pretty badass bombs and a hostage, and we saved the hostage, disarmed seven bombs, and from what I hear the last one didn't do too much damage. With only one casualty. If eight rival Overlords burst into my castle while a ninth took hostages, I'd --"

Wait, what the hell was he saying?

"Hold up, bad example. I'd be bored for lack of challenge. But if an average Overlord went through similar crap like we just did, and came out that clean? People'd freak at the victory. I'd think there'd be celebrations. Parties. Instead all I see is moping. Is one life really that big a deal to everyone around here? And if it is, how is anyone getting by knowing that hundreds of trillions of other people have died at the hands of the Ohm?"

Bella's home is in the city, she knows it well. After being spilled out of a chute after a good deal of time at the mercy of the "GLaDOS" spirit's challenges, she finds her way back down here immediately. It's calming. She hasn't run into anyone she knows yet, but she's working on it.

Oh, this is strange. Signs? Bella sniffs at one inquisitively, but she can't read it. Even if Stacy's translation matrix were picking them up, she wouldn't have been able to understand anyway. Most wolves don't know how to read.

She wanders, following the loose path they lead to its source.

"What are you doing?" she asks finally, having reached the perpetrator.

"You are correct that the situation was far less devastating than it could have been. We are grateful for that, yes."

This was the hard part to explain, but she would give it her best. "We form emotional bonds with people we are interested in, who are connected to us in some way. Our interpersonal relationships are fulfilling because we share parts of ourselves with each other. It is this emotion that connects us with each other---even among my people, this is the case. Emotions of good and righteousness fuel our powers."

She ran a hand through one of her shorter tendrils of hair, looking sad. "Because we are bonded to each other, we experience great sadness when someone close to us is removed from our lives. The Ohm's destruction of most of our people was painful too, but we highly value the people in our personal lives whom we know and share things with."

"So someone you knew matters more than someone you didn't, just because you knew them." Zetta paused for a moment to consider that, then grinned. "Hyaa ha ha ha ha! I like that!"

A (very) little less callously, he continued, "I guess that person who died must have known a lot of people, considering all the moping I've been seeing. I never envied non-demons to begin with, but now I know we've got it better."

Zetta had no illusions. No one would mourn his loss if he died. Not that he would. Not that he could! But even if: demons didn't mess around with this 'bonds of togetherness' crap, and Overlords were a breed apart even from the normal Netherworld schlubs.

But something Starfire had said made him back up his train of thought a moment. "Hey... Does this hit you worse? If your powers and stuff are bound to your feelings... are you taking this extra-hard? Comparatively."

Starfire sighed. "I did not know either of them, but the girl who perished in the bomb was not far from my bomb's location. If my partner and I had known, we would have gone to assist her---as it was, we saw no signs of danger until it had already detonated. I am upset, yes, but I am still able to function by drawing on my conviction to fight."

Zetta regarded Starfire sternly for a long moment. "Are you upset because someone died? Or because you're thinking about what you might have been able to do to make a difference?"

"I regret both things, but my frustration at being unable to make a difference is stronger."

She bowed her head, dearly wishing she had spoken to Cassie even once.

Yeah. That's what he'd thought. "Well, stop it," Zetta said, harshly but with an odd no-nonsense undercurrent. "This is exactly why I said people need to move on instead of dwelling. You're a hero, right, Starfire? That means one of two things happened -- either you didn't do the best you could, which I doubt... or you DID do the best you could.

"What'd you just tell me? You didn't know there was trouble until it was too late. You gonna tell me you should have known there was trouble somehow? Ha! If you'd been paying more attention to other people's jobs, your own would've gone that much worse because your mind wasn't on it."

Zetta stared at her with as fierce an expression as the book had ever worn around her. "You don't live in the past. You don't regret not doing the impossible. You wanna grieve because someone was lost, fine. But if I had to lay a bet, I'd say this girl would just be pissed that you were frustrated because you couldn't make a difference, when you were off making a difference by disarming a different freakin' bomb."

All through the lecture, Starfire's face froze in an expression halfway between shock and shame.

"I...apologize. I was not thinking rationally about our situation." She remained sad, though. Violent deaths were almost always regrettable.

"Yeah, that happens." Zetta almost sounded a little sheepish. Did he seriously just deliver the Standard Lecture on Regrets in Heroes? "But look at it this way. You may not have made a mistake during the whole incident... but you made one afterwards. Now you can learn from it."

Sasami blinked at who was approaching her. A talking doggy? No... a wolf, it looks like. She smiled a bit as she recovered.

"Hugging booth!" Sasami said, giggling. "I figured after what everyone went through, they all deserve a hug to cheer them up and, well... here I am!"

Bella pricks her ears up and tilts her head to one side. What?

"I have been gone. Did something happen?"

Sasami lowered her head, a little worried. The bad thing about working with Nathan? Was that she, too, knew what was going on.

"...one of our crew, a "Kawalsky", ended up being used by a creature named Shiva. He kidnapped one of our crew and planted bombs across the ship. He threatened to detonate them unless we all surrendered."

Her voice lowered a bit. "...one of the bombs went off when he panicked. It killed one of the older children - Cassandra Lang. One of her friends... o-or someone close to her... confronted Shiva... and killed both it and Kawalsky."

Bella growls. "I am sorry I was not awake. I would have liked to fight the Shiva creature."

"The Wyrm is dead but his taint is not clear of this place, it seems. I had hoped the Yeerk creature was the last of such troubles we'd have."

Sasami shook her head. "I don't know much about the Yeerk you know about, but... it's really brought up bad memories, especially after what happened."

She patted where she was situated. "That's why I went and set up this booth. I figured there would be someone who'd enjoy a comforting hug... and with Starfire and Koishi helping me, I'd be able to get three times as much done!"

Hugging Booth Mk-II [OPEN]

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