[PRP] Back to Basics

[TawnyAngel]

It was lunchtime and it was busy in the canteen, as usual. KO managed to get tomato soup with bread and a glass of coke, though he resented the process of waiting in line there was nobody ahead of him he knew well enough to cut in with today. Oh well, he'd survived the ordeal and now he just needed to find a place to sit in the crowded room. He spotted and waved to groups of friends but there were no seats available near them, which sent him sauntering to the further edges of the room in search of somewhere to eat.

Trailing along beside him, and keeping close to avoid being kicked, was a Ralts which was looking around with apparent interest.  

[Suudonym]

The outer limits of the dining area were a bit more sparsely populated in exchange for being in the midst of all the people who were coming and going, although even here free seats were a bit of scarcity this time of day. A lone girl sat at the end of one of the tables - two seats open beside her, two seats open across from her, and the rest of the table occupied by a group of grunts who seemed, by their chattiness with one another, to be together. She picked absently at a sandwich, largely trying to ignore the excitedly told stories and bursts of laughter too nearby.  

[TawnyAngel]

Humm, new face? He certainly didn't recognise her. Well there were free seats by her and that was the main thing for now, if interesting conversation came out of it so much the better. Decision made KO took a seat opposite the trainee and offered her a charming smile. "Hello, I don't think I've seen you around here before. New recruit are you?"

So what could he make of her so far? Small, dainty thing. Picking at her food and sitting by herself, which must have been quite deliberate given how crowded it was in here. Humm, well maybe she wouldn't welcome his company after all then? Oh well! She was going to have it for at least as long as it took him to eat, if conversation was as stale as he feared his roll might be - actually it was quite fresh - then he'd leave as soon as he was done.  

[Suudonym]

The girl glanced up when she perceived someone approaching, and her attention lingered on the new arrival when it became apparent that he was seating himself. If facial expressions could be vocalized, hers would have been an entirely neutral "oh, okay." She nodded in greeting in return to the smile. "Yes, sir," she replied. "I arrived yesterday. Today is my first proper day."  

[TawnyAngel]

Neutral? She was just... neutral? KO was not used to neutral, he was used to provoking a reaction! Not necessarily a good one of course but still, a reaction.

Not to be deterred however he nodded, million watt smile still in place. "Ahh, I remember my first day; I spent quite a lot of it sewing and measuring long legs, though of course that was back at the old base." Ah Star, the old Commander never failed to be entertaining. But he was digressing. "So what do you prefer to be called then? I can hardly call you trainee. My codename's KO but Kirk works fine too, I don't think there's any need for sir over lunch do you?" He actually quite liked being called sir but unlike some people he recognised that when you belonged to an enclosed community there was a time and a place where it didn't fit.... Least for the ordinary ranks, you probably had to call Executives sir or ma'am all the time.  

[Suudonym]

She kept her attention on her companion to be polite, but she was unsuccessful in attempting to relate to what he recalled about his first day. She'd yet to have any reason to give much thought to clothing. "There are actually some who call me 'trainee,'" she said, moving on. "I find it a bit rude, but I fear it's not within my rights to correct them. My proper designation, however, is 'Gaia.' It's a pleasure to meet you."  

[TawnyAngel]

"Mmmh, some people just have no class," KO said with a tut and a shake of his head. "Put them a rank above somebody else and they suddenly forget they ever held that position themselves, or perhaps even claim they never held it in the first place. Walked right in as an Agent you understand, far too good to have ever been a grunt or trainee. Anyway, pleasure to meet you too Gaia." KO paused to have a spoon of soup before continuing with; "So what do you make of the place so far? It can be a bit of a maze until you get used to it with all the halls looking more or less the same." When they'd all first moved in there had been a couple of weeks during which most people had got turned around at least once, or at least most people he knew had.