open to any Go-Busters players from any universe incl Mushverse, ogods what am I doing

[loveenetronkurorin]

I sit back in my chair, tapping a pencil on the desk idly as I think about the latest reports.

We've made so much headway. But there's still so far to go.

Comments

[greypleather]

I keep in mind that he wasn't even present during the malfunction, so he might not even know the details of what happened, if Takosawa kept his stupid beak shut anyway.

"You mean being stuck in the shooter? Ah, non, no ill effects."

[loveenetronkurorin]

I nod. He looks unsettled anyway, and I don't like it.

I don't want to be involved in the least with these children's romantic lives. None of my business, and they ARE children. But if it affects the team...

"Everything all right with Hiromu?" I ask at last.

[greypleather]

I wince a bit at that, and turn to look at him sheepishly.

"You heard, then?"

[loveenetronkurorin]

"I heard that you were in there together, yes," I say, sighing inwardly. These children need to learn to hide their emotions better. "Is everything all right?"

[greypleather]

"Everything's fine." I respond gruffly. None of us really think of him as a father, but he's still important, and I know he cares, somewhere.

"There was a situation. It was handled. I'm frustrated with Takosawa's reaction, but since when is that new?" I frown towards the floor and drag my toe.

[loveenetronkurorin]

These Buddyroids were created to assist the children. They were not meant to be quite so overbearing, or to have quite so much of their own personalities.

It's a difficulty, at times. I recognise their personhood. They're not just lines of code.

But there are times when I wish I could go back and grab the main programmers by the collar and shake them until they developed some goddamn sense about how to design the Buddyroids.

"Do you want me to talk to him?"

[greypleather]

I turn away from the coffee pot to give the Commander a long squint.

"Je ne sais pas," I admit at last. "He thinks that I was... overstepping my bounds somehow. I disagree. But if an argument comes out..." I sigh and take a sip of my coffee to give me time to think.

"Commander, you're not going to let him restrict my duties, are you?"

[loveenetronkurorin]

I rub my forehead and stare back at him.

"Why on Earth would I do that?" I ask, honestly cranky. "The placement of your lips has nothing to do with your ability of, or commitment to, fight. Takosawa is not in charge."

[greypleather]

The tone of his voice catches me off guard and I take a step back.

"I didn't mean to be rude, Commander." I grumble, turning away. "I'm not oblivious. I know what he wants. I just want to be sure that he's the only one who feels that way."

[loveenetronkurorin]

"What Takosawa wants?" I confirm. "Don't worry about that, Etienne."

I run a hand through my hair. While I'd like nothing more than for these children to be allowed to be children, to be cared for, to have proper childhoods, he's over 20 now and it was never an option for him. Never. "You're not a child, and if Takosawa brings this to me and tries to sell it as an actual health concern, it won't do him any good."

[greypleather]

"He still treats me like a child." I complain, maybe a little pathetically, but what else can I do? "He's managed to keep me from piloting OS-04 into battle, after all."

[loveenetronkurorin]

I don't want to piss him off, but it's a secondary concern. "Takosawa's right about that," I say baldly. "We need to work on ways to make you more safe in OS-04 but for now, he's right. You're too much at risk."

[greypleather]

I open my mouth to argue but give up before I can find words.

"Fine." I grumble petulantly, feeling a bit childish but no more so than I feel every time the others risk their lives fighting giant robots and I stay on the ground, worse than useless.

[loveenetronkurorin]

"Etienne." I make notations with my stylus, then tap in my authorisation code, to reassign him for the next day. He can still come out to fight if necessary. "You're with the engineers tomorrow. Work with them. See if you can find a way for OS-04 to safeguard you if you black out."

I look at him severely over the top of my screen. "I'm not guaranteeing that I'll authorise any scheme you may come up with, but you're right. You should be in the field."

[greypleather]

I'd drifted over to the little alcove to retrieve a cup of coffee, but I spin when he reassigns me. My heart's in my throat for a second, but then he elaborates and I dash back over to stand in front of his desk.

"You mean it? Really?"

I'm not hugely optimistic, I've been trying to figure out my Weak Point in vain for thirteen years. But even the little show of support...

"Merci, commandant, merci beaucoup!"

[loveenetronkurorin]

I raise a hand. "Don't thank me yet. You may not find a workable solution, and you know the realities. You know being in the field isn't exactly a walk in the park."

But I can't help smile, a little, at his enthusiastic gratitude.

[greypleather]

I take a step back at the near-reprimand, hunching my shoulders and sighing a little.

"Oui, oui, I know." I glance up at him again and then offer a salute. "But still. Thank you for the opportunity."

[loveenetronkurorin]

Good, he's still optimistic but quieter, now. I don't want him going in there tomorrow expecting to find some perfect solution, then mooning around for days because he hasn't.

He's a good kid. They all are. But they're *kids*, who let things affect them too much.