D12:LA:Hangar

[Richard Winter]

Richard stood in the hangar, extinguishing his cigarette, the third he had smoked, and stared out the gate into the distance. The news from HQ that Yori was under attack by Kuritans worried him, though he had been assured that she and her lance were fine, yet,.... He could not imagine how bad it was or how good it was, his overthinking self imagined far too much.

[Yori Hakamada]

Richard only has to wait a few moments longer as, finally, the battered lance limps into views. All the mechs had taken quite a beating. The Jenner was missing an arm while the Shadowhawk and Crusader appeared to only have one fully functioning leg. Even the notoriously heavily armoured Hunchback's internals were showing.

But they were all under their own power.

It takes a few more minutes for the mechs to enter the perimeter and reach the hanger, the agonised sound of damaged servos filling the air as they take up position and one by one begin to power down.

The hatch on Yori's cockpit pops open and the sweat drenched, and exhausted pilot heaves herself out, settling a now cracked pair of spectacles on her face. The rest of the lance is no less tired as they exit, Tsuge moaning in pain, Mori yawning and even Kawabe rolling a bruised shoulder.

[Richard Winter]

Fuck, that's a lot of damage, he thought to himself, moving toward the group. "Are you alright?" he asked Yori, he was relieved to see them all in one piece, "How are you?" he asked the rest and stared at the mechs uneasily, Ninovo was supposed to be the softest target in the region, what the hell had happened?

[Yori Hakamada]

Fuck, that's a lot of damage, he thought to himself, moving toward the group. "Are you alright?" he asked Yori, he was relieved to see them all in one piece, "How are you?" he asked the rest and stared at the mechs uneasily, Ninovo was supposed to be the softest target in the region, what the hell had happened?

Yori nods, heading over to meet Richard as the rest of the lance files in.
"We are all okay."
Tsuge mutters something in Japanese which earns him a kick from Mori which he then hams up even more.
Kawabe: "We got ambushed, ending up having to fight two enemy lances."
Another rapid fire round of Japanese between the four before Mori rolls her eyes and slings Tsuge's arm over he shoulder to help him limp off to the medbay.

"I-"
Kawabe pointedly looks at her and grunts.
"-We have a blood feud with a Draconis Combine colonel. I apologise, this is somewhat earlier in our relationship than I had intended for the airing of dirty laundry. He sent a kill team after us, it was close."

[Richard Winter]

He nodded and looked back to the evening when the two of them had broached the subject of the past and dropped it. "I'm glad you guys made it out. I don't think the guy was there in person and the story is over?"

[Yori Hakamada]

He nodded and looked back to the evening when the two of them had broached the subject of the past and dropped it. "I'm glad you guys made it out. I don't think the guy was there in person and the story is over?"

Kawabe, gruffly: "It would have been simpler if he had, then I could have crushed the life from-"
Yori: "No, he likely was attending to other duties, so he sent a protege in his stead. I am moderately hopeful that the loss of the lance will keep him busy for some time. It may even be a positive, I know of your particular interests in Marauders and I think we can salvage a new one."

A long pause.
"I understand I have perspired more than usual, but would I be able to ask for a short moment of physical contact? The combat was reasonably stressful and I fought I was about to perish 2.5 times."

[Richard Winter]

He smiled "You don't have to ask" he gave her a kiss and pulled her tight in his arms. "To be honest, I wanted to do this from the beginning, but I didn't want to take you by surprise."

[Yori Hakamada]

He smiled "You don't have to ask" he gave her a kiss and pulled her tight in his arms. "To be honest, I wanted to do this from the beginning, but I didn't want to take you by surprise."

"I appreciate your respect for my personal space, it is my 7th favourite thing about you."
Yori's body was still running hot indeed and she sags ever so slightly, evidently even more exhausted than she let on.

Kawabe grunts and lights up a cigar before muttering something about a 'debrief in 20' and excusing himself, giving the two some small privacy.

"I apologise for not bring up the kill order on me earlier."

[Richard Winter]

"I appreciate your respect for my personal space, it is my 7th favourite thing about you."
Yori's body was still running hot indeed and she sags ever so slightly, evidently even more exhausted than she let on.

Kawabe grunts and lights up a cigar before muttering something about a 'debrief in 20' and excusing himself, giving the two some small privacy.

"I apologise for not bring up the kill order on me earlier."

He nodded towards Kawabe and turned his focus back to Yori.
Even though she slumped a bit he was there to support her, "Apology accepted," he said and hugged her a little tighter and gave her a kiss on the forehead.
After a while he said, "I don't need to know everything, even if I admittedly would like to know everything.... but your past is yours,..... my only question would be how dangerous the Colonel is and how we can best bring him down."

[Yori Hakamada]

He nodded towards Kawabe and turned his focus back to Yori.
Even though she slumped a bit he was there to support her, "Apology accepted," he said and hugged her a little tighter and gave her a kiss on the forehead.
After a while he said, "I don't need to know everything, even if I admittedly would like to know everything.... but your past is yours,..... my only question would be how dangerous the Colonel is and how we can best bring him down."

A slow blink.
"We? Richard, it would not be appropriate for me to ask my new boyfriend to join my fight against a DCMS Colonel. He is very dangerous and if you were hurt...I would be responsible."

[Richard Winter]

A slow blink.
"We? Richard, it would not be appropriate for me to ask my new boyfriend to join my fight against a DCMS Colonel. He is very dangerous and if you were hurt...I would be responsible."

He looked Yori in the eye and his brow furrowed, he was thinking, he looked like he was weighing his words well, "I dragged you into a cave where you got shot, it's only fair I catch a bullet for you too, besides, . ." he looked at the smoking mechs of Yori's lance, "We're MechWarriors, every time we get in the cockpit we're playing with death, whether you're responsible or not, eventually I'm going to get hurt. And when I have a choice, I choose to fight for someone I care about." His look and voice were determined as he said this.

[Yori Hakamada]

He looked Yori in the eye and his brow furrowed, he was thinking, he looked like he was weighing his words well, "I dragged you into a cave where you got shot, it's only fair I catch a bullet for you too, besides, . ." he looked at the smoking mechs of Yori's lance, "We're MechWarriors, every time we get in the cockpit we're playing with death, whether you're responsible or not, eventually I'm going to get hurt. And when I have a choice, I choose to fight for someone I care about." His look and voice were determined as he said this.

Simply "Thank you." She squeezes him gently, meeting his eyes.

"There is one other issue we should discuss, regarding why the Colonel is after me. If it causes you to retract your earlier offer I understand and do not hold it as binding."

She takes a moment to centre herself and adjust her glasses before continuing on in a neutral tone.
"As part of my service in the DCMS during a campaign to wipeout a pirate band a miscalculation and then my own direct action resulted in the deaths of several hundred non-combatants. It..."

She clears her throat.
"...Reasonably meets the standard of a serious crime and failing on my part. It was part of a campaign I had proposed to the Colonel. Afterwards he took the credit for my planning but then stated my lance was not following orders and absolved himself of responsibility."

[Richard Winter]

Simply "Thank you." She squeezes him gently, meeting his eyes.

"There is one other issue we should discuss, regarding why the Colonel is after me. If it causes you to retract your earlier offer I understand and do not hold it as binding."

She takes a moment to centre herself and adjust her glasses before continuing on in a neutral tone.
"As part of my service in the DCMS during a campaign to wipeout a pirate band a miscalculation and then my own direct action resulted in the deaths of several hundred non-combatants. It..."

She clears her throat.
"...Reasonably meets the standard of a serious crime and failing on my part. It was part of a campaign I had proposed to the Colonel. Afterwards he took the credit for my planning but then stated my lance was not following orders and absolved himself of responsibility."

Richard listened to Yori's story and nodded slowly. "I am a man of my word. From the sound of it, your colonel wanted all the benefits of the Campaign for himself and to dump the shame on you and your lance, besides,.... " his voice softened a bit and his eyes darted around a bit, "you're not the only one who has non-combat personnel on your conscience..."

[Yori Hakamada]

Richard listened to Yori's story and nodded slowly. "I am a man of my word. From the sound of it, your colonel wanted all the benefits of the Campaign for himself and to dump the shame on you and your lance, besides,.... " his voice softened a bit and his eyes darted around a bit, "you're not the only one who has non-combat personnel on your conscience..."

Yori slowly raises one eyebrow, which is on odd look with the rest of her expression remaining unchanging.

"You...understand then. I appreciate that. Maybe we are even better suited for one another than I thought. Although statistically if any warrior fights long enough the risk of something going wrong always increases."

Catching his gaze as it darts around.

"I'm a woman of my word too, and I still believe you are a good man, pending any revelations your warcrimes were worse than my warcrimes."

[Richard Winter]

Yori slowly raises one eyebrow, which is on odd look with the rest of her expression remaining unchanging.

"You...understand then. I appreciate that. Maybe we are even better suited for one another than I thought. Although statistically if any warrior fights long enough the risk of something going wrong always increases."

Catching his gaze as it darts around.

"I'm a woman of my word too, and I still believe you are a good man, pending any revelations your warcrimes were worse than my warcrimes."

"I,.." he sighed, "I told you that my parents were mechtechs,... and got me a job as a test pilot, right? That went pretty well,... for a while, I piloted many different mechs back then, I was still green, but it was enough to test the functions and pilot them through courses. One day though,"

he sighed heavily, "I stumbled. Actually totally banal, it should not come to that, but it happened, the mech collapsed under me. I panicked and pressed all possible switches and triggers,... normally there were dummy rockets loaded for testing but, when i pulled the triggers, everything around me exploded, starting a chain of exploisons,.. the auto ejection system kicked in and shot me through the whole factory, I can barely remember what happend afterwards, only that I was recovered somewhere,... that's when I lost my arm,... my parents and about 60 friends and colleauges,.. "

He looked away in shame, "And i wish that that was everything,..."

[Yori Hakamada]

"I,.." he sighed, "I told you that my parents were mechtechs,... and got me a job as a test pilot, right? That went pretty well,... for a while, I piloted many different mechs back then, I was still green, but it was enough to test the functions and pilot them through courses. One day though,"

he sighed heavily, "I stumbled. Actually totally banal, it should not come to that, but it happened, the mech collapsed under me. I panicked and pressed all possible switches and triggers,... normally there were dummy rockets loaded for testing but, when i pulled the triggers, everything around me exploded, starting a chain of exploisons,.. the auto ejection system kicked in and shot me through the whole factory, I can barely remember what happend afterwards, only that I was recovered somewhere,... that's when I lost my arm,... my parents and about 60 friends and colleauges,.. "

He looked away in shame, "And i wish that that was everything,..."

"Well, that is not so bad."
pause
"Actually that is terrible and life destroying, but from a fault point of few it is not so bad."

It's now Yori's turn to squeeze Richard firmly, as though forcibly dispelling the bad memories.
"Then something else happened?"

[Richard Winter]

"Well, that is not so bad."
pause
"Actually that is terrible and life destroying, but from a fault point of few it is not so bad."

It's now Yori's turn to squeeze Richard firmly, as though forcibly dispelling the bad memories.
"Then something else happened?"

He nodded, "I was in the hospital for quite a while until someone from the AFFC showed up and told me that I was a victim in an industrial sabotage. But he was not allowed to tell me any details, unless I move up in the AFFC,... that was the exact moment I decided to join them. With the money from my parents' life insurance, I was able to afford the hospital bills and the prosthetic arm, and with the return of a few favors, I was accepted into the Junior MechWarrior program. When I was sent out on my first missions I did my best to rise in the ranks and get info,... I was,... far angrier then than I am now and was less 'prudent' when it came to meeting mission objectives. My deviese back then was shoot first, then ask. I have had a few disciplinary proceedings on my hands because of this. I took some time but,..."

His gaze lost its focus now that he was recalling those days, "On Campertown, I finally got what I was looking for. Cappelan saboteurs were trying to sabotage our garrison and its mechs and then attack with proxy troops to cause as much damage as possible. However, they were caught in the act and we were able to repel the proxies." His gaze darkened, " I learned in a roundabout way that the saboteurs confessed to have carried out attacks on Hesperus as well,... "so I gained access to the prisoners and... " he became silent, "I killed them all. " he said dryly, but also with some bitterness. "Command had had enough of me, they recognized my talent as a MechWarrior, but I had become too much of a burden, they gave me the chance to leave the AFFC on the condition that I gave up most of the bonuses you normally get after your service,..." He took one heavy breath, "I've got my revenge, so I left the AFFC, went to Galatea and signed on with the Knights."

He put Yori's face into his left hand and gave her a soft kiss, “And in the last few years, I've come to terms with myself through Alpha and Mei." He laughed, "If the old man wasn't so attached to me and Mei wasn't always digging so deep, I probably never would have started to process the whole thing."

[Yori Hakamada]

Snip

Yori listens solemnly and unblinking to all of this with no change of expression on her face.
"Thank you for trusting me with your warcrimes. I believe I can sense the rage and the injustice you felt. Had I been in a similar situation I do not know what I would have done. Well, I have planned for it but planning for something does not necessarily equate being able to do it."

She kisses him straight back without hesitation.
"You seem so... normal, and well adjusted. I did not realise that there was this behind you, but perhaps that is just a sign of how hard you have worked to become a better man? Now you have friends, a new family, and your manga. And you share them with people and do not kill prisoners, I believe that is good."

Thinking for a moment.
"Would you like to retire to one of our quarters so we can show more emotion than is commonly permitted in public?"

[Richard Winter]

Yori listens solemnly and unblinking to all of this with no change of expression on her face.
"Thank you for trusting me with your warcrimes. I believe I can sense the rage and the injustice you felt. Had I been in a similar situation I do not know what I would have done. Well, I have planned for it but planning for something does not necessarily equate being able to do it."

She kisses him straight back without hesitation.
"You seem so... normal, and well adjusted. I did not realise that there was this behind you, but perhaps that is just a sign of how hard you have worked to become a better man? Now you have friends, a new family, and your manga. And you share them with people and do not kill prisoners, I believe that is good."

Thinking for a moment.
"Would you like to retire to one of our quarters so we can show more emotion than is commonly permitted in public?"

He nodded, "I,... was lucky to have made good friends, After my revenge, I learned pretty quickly that I felt better knowing I had done it, but I lacked the drive to do something new. Alpha asked me where I wanted to go, what my goal was and what I wanted to do with my life. The old man always seems harsh, but he gave me support and direction. And Mei contributed her part by kicking my former grumpy ass and helped me to leave the past behind me."

"I also feel better now that we have a clean table. You are right, we are probably better together than we first thought" he said and smiled, and grabbed Yori's hand, "Let's go, your place or mine, which do you prefer?"

[Yori Hakamada]

He nodded, "I,... was lucky to have made good friends, After my revenge, I learned pretty quickly that I felt better knowing I had done it, but I lacked the drive to do something new. Alpha asked me where I wanted to go, what my goal was and what I wanted to do with my life. The old man always seems harsh, but he gave me support and direction. And Mei contributed her part by kicking my former grumpy ass and helped me to leave the past behind me."

"I also feel better now that we have a clean table. You are right, we are probably better together than we first thought" he said and smiled, and grabbed Yori's hand, "Let's go, your place or mine, which do you prefer?"

"I shall have to thank her when I next meet her, good friends are important, it is easy to die without them."
Yori considers for a moment before cocking her head

"My quarters have better tea, we can relax there. Also the fish are very helpful in lowering stress and anxiety, they never judge anyone. Please lead on."