(4/21/02)
The Holy Mother is less than a happy Holy Mother right now. And yet, who can truly blame her? This entire incident has become akin to a nightmare. She thought she was doing the right thing, coming to Nisan to talk to the Shevvites. She thought she was doing the right thing humoring them, working on the treaty, signing the darned thing... And for all of her work and all of her good intentions, she was just neatly smuggled out of her country and cheerfully handed over to the enemy. With neat little threats to boot. ...It didn't do much for her mood, mind you. And yet... It's -hard- to be nothing but angry, although Margie certainly is upset. Instead... It's odd how such irritation so readily tries to bend back into worry, into guilt, into a sort of hopeless wonder at just what she's supposed to do to make this -better-. But what can be done? With nothing to do but brood and wonder, she sits on the edge of a chair, looking over the room she was kept in. It was.. Odd, wasn't it? And lightly disconcerting. This entire vessle seemed to be so much like the Yggdrasil on the outside, although it was so entirely different within. It's almost surreal. Familiar, yet anything but. Just another thing to unsettle her, one supposes.
And the Holy Mother has all good reason to be mad, though Tifa likely doesen't know the gist of what she went through. After setting up the temporary at best accomodations to suit her, Tifa slept through Margie's arrival...and is only just now coming to meet her. The door slides open, and there stands the captain of the Dark Yggdrasil. Her hair completely unbraided and hanging behind her, and she wears a casual blue dress, which matches the aquatic color of her eyes. In her hands, however, she holds a tray with none other than a simple offering to the Holy Mother- Milk and Cookies. "Am...I disturbing anything, Miss Marguerite? If not...do you mind if I come in? I've brought you something to eat."
Margie tenses a little as the door opens, focusing a look on the door that is at first simply wary and somewhat critical. Oh, she has every right to be rather immature and pouty now, too, as far as she's concerned. But that odd little offended look dissolves into just a sort of quiet confusion. This isn't one of the Shevvites, so... Is this woman a member of the crew of this ship? Silent for a long moment, she blinks at the tray she holds, then up at the blonde woman. And then just settles on a little shrug. She has no intention of being rude to someone who hasn't really done anything to her, but Margie is yet not in any means of a good enough mood to manage any more than this. "What's to disturb? Come in if you want."
Tifa walks in, removing one hand from the tray to pull a stool ready in the room closer to the bed, so she can place the tray on it. After doing so, she sits down, and looks to Margie. "You've been through a lot...i'm sorry. I hope the accomodations are adequate, I tried to make them as comfortable as I could. Your stay wont be too long, so...I wanted you to enjoy what little there was of it," she gestures to the tray. "Please, try some if you like. I usually don't bake, but I thought they might help you feel better...even if only a little."
Oh, uhm... Wow. Marguerite certainly wasn't expecting anything like this. And it seems really just -strange- to have someone be so needlessly kind when, for the last few weeks, she has been dealing with people who were kind-but-still-happy-to-screw-her-over. Yech. But this catches Margie off guard.. Enough to just stare for a long minute. But, where are her manners? "Oh.. um.. Thank you." That sounds so odd to say to someone who's on the other side. But.. What else is she to do? This does seem unnecessarily kind. Unless those cookies are poisoned. And Margie takes one almost warily, looking somewhat confused all the while. And her voice is a great deal softer now, simply sounding.. Down, really, rather than irritable and upset. Tifa is rather disarming, apparently, "You didn't need to go to any trouble, really.."
Tifa shakes her head, "It was no trouble. Please, eat all you like," a smile comes at that. "I'm sorry we couldn't meet formally earlier, but i'm sure if you'd met me in uniform, that wouldn't have helped you with what you'd gone through. I...really don't agree with how Yui handled all of this, but I guess she had her reasons for it all. Please don't think badly of her. Yui is truly a caring woman." At least, as far as Tifa knows. And...off the side, "...how are they?"
Margie rather carefully nibbles at the cookie she took while she listens, her first few bites very cautious. But.. Well, it doesn't seem like it's poisonous. And she hasn't choked over and died by the first bites, either. So what the heck? Margie hadn't even realized that she was hungry, after a night as distressing as the one before. Realizing this, she finishes the one she took off before she even offers a small, if not fragile, smile to Tifa and responds, "They're good.. Really, thank you." A pause then, before she backtracks a moment while she reaches for another cookie. Hey, better than nothing. "Met you in uniform? What do you mean? I doubt anything last night could have made things worse..." She trails off, bitterness touching her voice for a moment. But just as quickly as it is there, it is gone, "...I'm sorry. She's.. an ally, right? I know I shouldn't complain to you about it. But I don't think even knowing the reasons behind what she's doing would help.."
"You sure? I don't think it'd have helped, either way," Tifa replies. Disguising intentions, subtle force, and now spying. These are all such underhanded tactics...but it's a job. "Well now. I probably should tell you what's going to happen. You'll be here for a couple of days, a week at most probably...then you'll be sent back home with...a guardian, an escort if you will. I've not appointed this person yet, but I want it to be someone you feel you can trust. Is that alright?" like she has much of a choice in the matter. But Tifa's just trying to be polite.
Just a job, just following orders... That really doesn't cut it for Margie. Say that she's too upset and offended by everything going on right now to just pass it off on so simple an excuse, but she just can't convince herself that everything that's going on isn't these people's faults, just because they were told to. Sigh. She pauses at Tifa's words, her expressions growing a little bleaker.. And the Holy Mother falls off into quiet while she rather numbly finishes off the second cookie. And even then, she's long in responding. And quiet when she does. "I don't mean to be rude, but I don't think I -can- trust a person like that. One of yours accompanying me to the Yggdrasil doesn't really sound like a 'guardian'." Sounds kind of fishy to her. But.. even this twist is not completely unexpected. Although that doesn't make it any less unpleasant a thought.
Tifa sighs at this, "I know it's too much to ask, but if I didn't send anyone then you would tell. Normally, I couldn't care less, i'd much rather just let your suffering end there than have someone constantly keeping watch on you...but I have an obligation to Yui- no...really the Shevites themselves. I'm sorry. I want to make things easier on you, now," she seems honest enough in that, and stands up, looking down at Margie. "You'll be free to do whatever you like here, there will be no leaving this ship, but you can walk around as you please otherwise."
Yet again, someone is wording a less than enjoyable in a way that makes it sound so inevitable and so regretable that Margie finds it hard to be outright upset. Mind you, she doesn't like anything that's going on one bit.. None of this settles well with her at all. But... "I understand, then. I can't say I like it, but I guess I can see why you feel you have to do it..." So much trouble to make sure that Margie doesn't talk. Just how grandious -is- this plan these people are working on, that so many precautions need be taken? It really does baffle the mind. Although Margie does blink a bit then, drawn away from these thoughts to wonder at what Tifa just said, "Really...? That's..." It seems odd to say that it's kind after all of that. But Tifa really is trying to be nice here. And so it's all Margie can really do to give another bare and thin smile, trying to polite if nothing else, and say, "...Well, thank you."
Tifa smiles in response. Then she blinks, and pauses. "Oh, I should introduce myself. I apologize for not doing so earlier," she bows, "my name is Tifa Marabat. If you hadn't figured it out already, i'm the Captain of the Jyakku No Kenshin Yggdrasil. I'm sure my counterpart has had...charming things to say about me," and after this, she rises. She's always curious as to what he says about her, even though she can probably guess offhand.
..Oh, well... Actually, no. Margie hadn't figured that out on her own, actually. Call it a sort of psychological wall. To assume that this lady was the captain would be to assume that she's talking to, yes, the 'counterpart' of Bart. ...And she's in a dress. Yes, well, she knew that the mock-Bart was a woman from the tournament, but... But meeting her herself is quite a different matter. My. So, do pardon if Margie looks quite surprised. "You... You're the Captain of this cruiser?" Eh-heh.. Come to think of it, this is actually kind of amusing, in a crazy way. In a very weird way. "And.. your 'counterpart'? Then.. You're the woman who dresses like..." Blink. Margie really can't figure out wether to be amused or surprised by that little bit. What a bizarre image this is! Instead, with a rather smothered laugh, she shakes her head and quickly dodges the thought, "Ah, I'm sorry! I just.. I guess I wasn't expecting Bart's counterpart to be so well mannered! It's nice to meet you then, Tifa."
Tifa chuckles herself to that, "I'll take that as a compliment, Miss Marguerite. Yes, I am the woman who dresses up as the Fatiman Prince." Though if you were to take note of it, her right hand starts to fiddle with her left armguard. A nervous habit of hers. "Is there anything else you need, at all? It's no trouble for me to get anything for you. There's no real problems for me to attend to right now. I could show you around, if you like?" if you've seen one Ygg, you've seen them all...so showing Margie around a Ygg she knows looks exactly like the other one inside and out is a pretty harmless task.
And Margie can not help but really chuckle a gentle bit at that, "It was meant to be, Captain. Bart is not always the most tactful of people. It's... Strange to think of a woman, especially one like you to..." Gyah, it's hard to say and hard to think. Because it's so remarkably.. -silly-. Well, anyway.. That thought having led to an amusing, if not softly disconcerting, ending, Margie nods a little, finally standing, "I can't think of anything, really. But.. A tour sounds nice, actually." Margie is somewhat anxious to get out of this room. And double checking that this ship is identical to the one that she knows couldn't hurt if the situation, say, suddenly required it. "As long as you don't mind, that is."
Tifa smiles. Less than tactful? What she'd expect of him, indeed. "I don't mind at all, Miss Marguerite. I'll even introduce you to some of my co-workers." The more Margie grows to like Tifa, the better after all. Tifa trusts you, and is a kind and caring person. You wouldn't want to do anything to inconvenience her, since she was so kind to you. Look, she even baked you cookies! Isn't that right, Miss Marguerite?