[Day: Wed. Feb 1st. Time: 3:00 p.m. Location: Whatever hotel the gang ended up in after showing MMO who's boss.] [Shiho is backin the T-shirt and skort she was wearning earlier that day and loitering in the hallway outside of Sonia's room. Her sword is at her waist, garnering a strange look from the single passerby. After a minute or two of looking extremely indecisive, she straightens up and knocks on Sonia's door.] [Start!] * Sonia comes to the door after a few seconds, hoodie on but unzipped to show her wearing a dark green tank top over a sports bra, sunglasses off, so the dull glow of her purple eyes is visible. She looks Shiho over a moment. "Afternoon." * Sonia shakes the hood off her head, with the rainbow dreads falling out. "I didn't get any brain on you two, right?" Hi, no. Well, not that the boss mentioned. Good enough. * Sonia pulls a bag of gummie bears, half-eaten, out of her pocket. "She send you over?" * Shiho smiles cheerfully, showing none of her previous uncertainty. "Nope. If you're not busy, I was hoping we could get better acquainted. I don't know anyone on the team very well, and to be perfectly honest, it's kind of lonely." (Oh, right, how tall is Shiho?) (5'3") * Sonia smiles just a touch, then asks, "Not used to working alone? You sounded like a bodyguard." Oh, I was. Am! But I was with my last team for seven years, and there were three people other than me and Harry, my last boss. I got used to working with friends, you know? * Sonia nods slowly, shrugs, then says, "I got nothin' but time, since they keep rentin' me new vans. Not much I can do to improve on a box with wheels." Great! Do you want to go somewhere, or can I come in? * Sonia eats another bear, stuffs them away, zips up her hoodie, and says, "Montana's in the shower, so if you want to catch a glimpse." It's no matter to me. I think I'll skip on seeing nude Montana, but thanks. Hotel lobby? * Sonia chuckles lowly and says, "Boy's got some modesty and quick reflexes. Doubt you'd see the full Monty." She nods slightly and pulls her sunglasses out of her pocket. "Good a place as any at 15:00." * Shiho says, "Great!" and presses the 'down' button on a nearby elevator. She's quiet on the way down to the lobby, waiting to speak until she's settled on one of the couches. "So, what were you doing before the boss snatched you for her team?" * Sonia follows, and says, "She swooped in on me delivering something Montana got for a supposed art dealer who tried to pay with bullets." * Shiho winces. "Ouch. Wait, she came in in the middle of a firefight?" Her, Gordon, and Nigel, yeah. * Sonia sits down across from Shiho and drums her fingers on the armrest as she adds, "Not much of one, but." Had Pavla with her too. * Sonia frowns for just a moment. "Not happy she had such close tabs on me, but for now, I guess that ain't a problem." * Shiho had a distressed expression until Sonia mentioned Pavla, and the look clears right up. "That's a little better. Ms. Novakova's... amazing. She has an incredible reputation. I might need to remind the boss that I'm not exactly on that level, maybe she'd be a little more cautious." * Sonia smirks slightly, then says, "I only saw a little of her in action, but either she's an idiot, or so good she can afford to be an idiot." How it always goes, yes? I wouldn't know, Harry never pulled this stupid shit. Be glad you weren't at the meeting today, I thought she was going to antagonize Nazarenko into killing us before you guys took out the snipers. * Sonia mms and says, "She's a smug doll, no lie." Snipers didn't have bodyguards, though. * Sonia drums her fingers again. "Just had to find 'em." I guess. I mean, I'll take a bullet for the girl, no question, I'd just really rather not. Bad line of work if you're worried about your personal safety. * Shiho shakes her head. "Sorry, I didn't mean to start a bitching session." * Sonia smiles slightly and looks Shiho over again. "Bad line of work if you aren't hiding armor under that skin." * Shiho slaps her own arm. "No armor, just a lot of diving for cover. I've thought about getting cybernetics, but it's not really for me." * Sonia nods. "Might want to let someone else take the bullet, then." She manages another slight smile as she eats another gummy bear. "Probably throw off your balance anyway." So, I've been doing this since I was a teenager, but what made you decide to take the job? * Sonia half-shrugs. "It paid money?" She gives Shiho a slight smile. Didn't have anything else lined up, seems solid. VA's a good company. Oh, if you have any questions about the company, I'll try to answer them. * Sonia squints a little, then says, "Have you been working for them the entire time?" What's really important is that the medical is good, and they always pay on time. Yup. Harry hired me himself. I helped him out once, and he told me he'd have a job waiting for me if I could get to LA. How long have you been with Montana, if you don't mind me asking? * Sonia looks back at her, then gives a slight smile. "We've worked together a few times. He takes things, then I get him far away so nobody bothers him about it." * Shiho smiles widely. "That's the most political way I've ever heard that line of work described." Oh, I got plenty of 'em. Yeah? * Sonia chews another gummy bear a moment, then says, "Yeah. You start using the same words over and over, people think you're boring." If it boils down to 'get something from A to B', then I've probably done it at least once. I don't think I'd be any good at that. Actually, I can barely drive. I had to test five times to get my driver's license, and I could only go during downtime between the trips to South America. * Sonia looks at Shiho a long moment. "In the US? You couldn't get a driver's license in the United States?" Well, I certainly didn't need one in Japan. I'd never been behind the wheel until I came to the US. * Sonia mms a moment, then just says, "You look like you started young." I was nineteen when I came over. * Sonia grins slightly. "Then you look good for your age." * Shiho grins back. "Thanks. If I go the way my family did, I'll keep looking young until all the wrinkles pop out at once." * Sonia eats another gummy bear, then replies, "Ah, there are worse things. And odds are decent you'll never have that problem, yes?" Very true! But I function on the theory that I'm going to work until I become a badass like Ms. Novakova, then retire peacefully. Also, may I have a gummy bear? * Sonia starts to raise her hand, like a mock toast, but then she pulls it back, grabs a gummy bear, and lightly tosses it Shiho's way. "Apparently big in France." And made in Germany. Who knew they'd come together over rubber candy. * Shiho snatches the gummy bear out of the air and bites the head off. "I don't even like these that much. But you kept eating them, and then I wanted one." * Sonia smiles a little and says, "Find me something else from around here and I'll eat it instead. That's what they say, right, 'eat local'?" Do they? I always end up buying my snacks from the closest J-town, if there is one. * Sonia shrugs and replies, "Heard it once. Nothing's local anymore." At least Japanese snacks try and be interesting. I think so too, but I'm pretty biased. * Shiho glances at her watch and sighs. "Okay, I should head back up and make sure the boss isn't trying to plot world destruction or something. Thank you for indulging me in this." * Sonia shrugs, then says, "How many american snacks are 'hot dog' flavored, or 'pizza' flavored, or... ah, I don't know what plants they have." * Sonia gestures idly. "At least japanese snacks are themselves. Go ahead, then." * Sonia slightly smiles again, adjusting her shades. "At least you looked like you enjoyed it." * Shiho smiles happily as she stands. "It was really nice just talking. See you!" * Sonia nods and says, "I'm sure." [End!]