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Zelan wanders into the restaurant hiding a yawn behind a hand. Groggily, she meanders her way in the general direction of the bar. Sitting down there, her head promptly falls down to the bartop. Zelan says, "Urrrg... I think I went a bit overboard last night..." Sae manages to calm down at least a little by the time Zelan arrives, though she'd probably grab everyone's attention by the 'hnnnnng!' the schoolgirl gives as she drags a giant beanbag out from the other room! Looking over her shoulder at the redhead, she smiles wide and waves! "Hiya Miss!", then contiues dragging the beanbag over until she can sit riiiight next to her new friend! "I'm Sae! You must be..sleepy?" Zelan slowly lifts her head and looks to Sae with slightly bloodshot eyes. "Yes. I am sleepy. It's called being out drinking far too late." She blinks slightly, looking at the beanbag that she's pretty certain wasn't there a minute ago. Sae grins at that. "Nice to meet you sleepy!", giggling as she streeeeetches up to peer over the bar and order. "Coffee, please! With extra whipped cream and extra-extra mocha! Thanks!", then flops back down in the overstuffed beanbag. "Did you want a cup too? Flan gave me abuncha money for stuff like this! Here!". Without even waiting for an answer, she orders another cup for Zelan, also with copious amounts of sweetness. Zelan reacts far, far too slowly to change Sae's order for her. "Act..." As the tender leaves, she sighs and faceplants into the bar again. "Thank you," she manages to mumble, however. "But I don't need charity anymore, thankfully. Zelan." Sae reaches up to pat Zelan on the back. "Isn't charity! Lovelove seeing people smile when they taste something nice!", giving the sleepy girl a thumbs up. "Whatcha do for money anyways? I used to work at as a waitress at the other Usual til I moved here! Is soooo fun! Dropped off an application at the one they've got here. Being a waitress is the best though! Get to meet all sortsa people and get paid for it. Plus got to put all the whipped cream and sweets in my coffee as I could want, for free!" Zelan shudders slightly at the mention of being a waitress. Apparently she would disagree about that being the best. "I'm a mage-engineer. Currently setting up for research on local magic. More than I'm used to. Sensors need more precision here," she says without lifting her head. Sae purses her lips and 'uuu's at the mage..thing. "Magengineer? That sounds really cute too! Don't really get it, but it's cool!", giggling as the bartender sets their coffees in front of them. Sae picks up her's and gently blows over it in Zelan's direction, wafting lots of sweet chocolate to her nose. "What kinda stuff do your sensors sense? Can they find ponies?! Catch ponies?! I've been trying to do that lately, but Fluttershy is so fast!" Zelan twitches at the smell of the mocha and finally sits up, but she winces slightly at the mention of ponies. "...No. They're mostly related to electromagnetic radiation, various elemental and other types of magic, as well as aural analyzers." Yes, she managed to say all that while still sounding groggy. She takes her cup of coffee into hand and starts drinking, holding her head to let as much of the aroma flow into her nose as she can. Sae takes the entirely wrong conclusion from that. "Magnets, got it! Magnets can catch ponies!", reaching into her purse to scribble something down. "Does that magic stuff mean mean you work at that umm..magic store nearby? Forget it's name! Can't be more than one, right?". Zelan slowly turns to look at Sae. "....No. Not magnets, though I do have electromagnetic field sensors as well. It's more... Cosmic rays, X-rays, Ultraviolet, visable, infrared, microwave, radio... The whole light spectrum." She shakes her head. "No, I don't work at Frey's. Or any other place that I've not run across. I've stopped by in Frey's for a look around, but where I work is more the engineering side of things. The owner doesn't really do the magic thing, or the large scale work I'm used to, so I'm able to fill in the holes of her experience fairly well." "That place! Frey's!" Sae nods to all that at increasing speed, reaching down to scribble more stuff in her purse. "Gotcha! Microwaves! I mean, I really wanna catch a pony to snuggle one, but even I wouldn't microwave one to do it!". What?! Before Zel can really object to her conclusion of 'microwaving ponies' the girl pulls a long, noisy sip from her coffee and asks. "SO! What's your name anyway Miss magic redhead! Unless it really is Sleepy?" Zelan pauses a moment with a twitching eyebrow. "Zelan. Zelan Darkflower. And considering the pony I've come across... you should try just talking to them, first. Making sure it's okay with them." Sae awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww! "Darkflower! You've got cute names like all the ponies do! That's awesome!", giggling softly. "And I tried! But Fluttershy just fluttered away all scared like! I think it might'a been because Flan was flying without using her wings..that tends to creep people out.", seemingly ignorant of the fact that their talks of cuddling and brushing a shy pony didn't go over well with said pony! After all, Sae can't fathom a pony not liking being pampered! Zelan looks bearily at Sae for a moment before saying, "...It sounds like that particular pony doesn't want to be snuggled." Sae freezes. Blinkblink. "..is that possible?" Zelan's brain seems to be operating relatively slowly for her this morning... that or it crashed with the fact that Sae doesn't seem to realize that some people don't like snuggles. Eventually she says, "Yyyyeeeeeeees?" Sae blinks more. Rubs her eyes. "Are you..sure?". When it becomes clear that Zelan is serioues, she looks down into her coffee mug. "WHAAAAA?! I've gotta tell Flan this! Oh gosh!". Sae downs what's left of her coffee in one gulp, sets the cup down, then picks up her bean bag and heads towards the door, bouncing from foot to foot! "ZELAN Zelan! I've gotta go tell Flan before she tries n snuggles someone else! Was nice meeting you! Zelan blinks slowly as Sae suddenly runs for the door... without paying for the coffees. She sighs, hanging her head and shaking it. "Well... Time to pay back some of the charity I've gotten, I suppose." Lee seems to have just missed Sae while jogging up to the restaurant. Bouncing to a stop at the door, they pop inside for air conditioning and drinks. Lee isn't wearing any wares, but does have a vest pocket stuffed with a plastic cup and another with the top of a sock hanging out. Lee doesn't even wear socks... "Heya, Zelan!" Lee greets her cheerily on spotting her, if maybe a little less affectionally than some. Azusa is just then sidestepping an escape velocity girl, although she doesn't seem the least bit bothered by it. In fact, it's like it was out of pure instinct, is her movements were any indication. Not so much as bothering to look behind her, she plants her weight on one foot, left hand on her hip with her right raising her glasses over her eyes, the reflection off the lenses just happening to obscure her eyes as she surveys the establishment. Quaint. How very quaint, she opines to herself. In fact, she'd rather like the atmosphere here over that of the Usual if it weren't for the fact that it can't seem to make up its mind as to what it wants to be. Tilting her head to one side, she purses her lips as she regards the lizard creature that has just also arrived. Nice feathers. Zelan looks up from her coffee a bit groggily at Lee, waving stiffly. "'Morning, Lee. How're you doing?" She gives the other woman with glasses a breif look, but not recognizing her, she doesn't say anything to her. Lee flashes Azusa a slightly fangy smile and plops down next to Zelan. "Doing pretty well. I'm saving orphans from the street so they don't end up in the gutter!" Lee pulls a plastic baggie out the cup, which contains a collection of screws, metal fragments, rusty sand particles, and some little metal and circuitry bits that might've come from a car crash. "New job's pretty fast-paced, huh?" Lee adds, offering a sympathetic smile. Azusa regards Lee with a polite smile of her own. That's when Lee might be able to notice a very distinct resemblance to somebody he might already know, Natsuki from Frey's! A lone finger resting against her chin, she thoughtfully decides that the bar will do this time, even if it's never really been her preference. So, she makes her way over, the fact that it's right out of a movie not lost on her. In fact, it is rather amusing. Her eyes rest on the woman who greeted Lee as she approaches, looking to find a seat relatively nearby to the pair. She'd be more concerned with that to order now if the contents of Lee's baggie didn't capture her attention right then. How strange. Zelan peers at the baggie with a light laugh, then shakes her head. "It's relatively relaxed, actually. I have to try to keep myself busy. Everything is up to me, as far as what I do, so I'm coming up with my own projects. I'm currently working on some plans to determine feasability of construction given materials currently on hand, though we can get more easily enough. I still need to get in contact with the local Magic Guild so I can study the wide array of magic here and update my sensor suite." Yes, she said all that while barely looking awake. She takes a good long swig of her coffee before sitting it back down. "I should probably get moving for the day, though. I wanted to go out and properly observe and take notes on magic in the area, so I need to get moving." She doesn't seem to notice the other woman's gaze, but does give her a nod of her head as she sits nearby. Lee glances back briefly for a second look at Azusa as she sits before turning attention to Zelan. They nod as Zelan explains. "'Construction with materials on hand' can be awesome for the creativity," Lee remarks brightly. "Really glad your freedom there's living up to the sales pitch, too." As Zelan excuses herself, Lee says, "A'ight. Catch ya later." Lee grins and adds, "Not sure how much of it I'd understand, but I'd love to see the lab of mad science at work sometime." Azusa blinks once, finding it difficult not to eavesdrop while regarding the drink selections. Leave it to a dimensional crossroads such as this to inflict an overabundance of options. What are a lot of these, anyway? Well, then, she supposes she'll start with the familiar, "I shall have Arnold Palmer." Nice, distinct British accent, there. Glancing back towards Zelan and Lee, she wonders just how much influence the Magic Guild must have here. She's certainly heard no end of it when visiting her sisters at Frey's. Zelan sets down money for both her drink and Sae's, then stands up. "Well, it can narrow down the ideas jumping around my head, that's for sure. Though sometimes I wonder if that much freedom is a good thing when work is concerned." She grins to Lee. "Sorry, the place is private property. I don't have the authorization for guests... Raven and her family actually live in the building. But I can ask about it." Notcing the gaze this time, she raises an eyebrow at Azusa before saying, "I'll see you later, then, Lee. Off to semi-work I go." With that said, she steps away from the bar and makes her way to the door. Lee grins in reply. "Cool. I'd appreciate that." With the help of their tail, Lee leans out from the seat for a moment to wave to Zelan, then straightens back up. "Light beer, please," they ask rather less specifically of the bartender before turning to Azusa. "Heya," Lee says cheerily. Azusa is interest is piqued at the mention of a Raven. Well, it might not be the Raven she knows of, although that is a bit of an unusual name, regardless. Perhaps it's but a coincidence, or it truly is a small world after all. She decides to leave it at that, though, as she does not know this person. Taking a moment to remove her glasses, looking them over should they need a bit of cleaning while she waits for her drink, she glances at Zelan's departure, her eyes returning to the lizard creature just in time to see just what they are doing with their tail. Be it out of being intrigued by this or the fact that she is looking without her glasses, she squints, about to turn back to the bar as she dons her glasses once more before perking at what appears to be a greeting directed towards her. "Hello there," she smiles cordially. Very British accent. Lee's accent is a bit hard to place on account of the multiple universes and all, but it sounds a bit like southern US with a hint of Scots. "I'm Lee," they offer to Azusa along with a hand, leaning over the intervening seat. "You know Zelan, too?" Lee asks, nodding toward the exit. They don't look likely to repeat Sae's move, instead fishing out some money from the Jackson-Pollack-style tactical vest to pay the bartender right away. Azusa, now that she thinks about it, is fairly certain that she has heard of a reptilian looking creature named Lee from the ever talkative Natsuki. The feathers, in particular. Well, when she wasn't going on and on about the mess of feathers Mina left, but that's another story altogether. "Azusa Kurihara," she extends a hand to take Lee's. Mm, strong, firm grip, "A pleasure." Glancing back towards the door then, peering over her glasses, she gives a slight shake of her head, "Zelan, was it? I do not believe so, no." Ah, speaking of drinks, she smiles in appreciation as hers arrives, as well. Ah, lemonade and iced tea. Refreshing. "Nice t' meet ya," Lee agrees. Their body temperature seems a little on the high side despite the cooler indoors- definitely not cold-blooded. Picking up their beer, Lee thanks the bartender and takes a sip. "Recently-arrived friend of mine just started a job she thinks is great, especially after one that was... not so much," Lee relates. Grinning conspiratorially, Lee adds, "Think you're probably okay listening in folks' conversations now 'n then without interrupting. I always save my secret plans for conquering the universe for someplace a little more private, y'know?" Azusa does pick up on that, which prompts her to evaluate the creature's scent. Vampire and all, not that she's outwardly showing it, being discreet about the show of fangs. She also decides that the time has come to sample the taste of her drink. Mm, not bad, although it could use more sugar, and none of that artificial sweetener rubbish. Raising an eyebrow, she can't help but observe, "Rather talkative, I see," before raising a hand to adjust her glasses, "Well, this world has many curiosities to offer. I am not the kind of girl to simply let such things pass." She does smile rather amusedly at that last part, "Mmhmm.." Lee is just a little tortilla-scented on account of the recent exercise, at least as far as someone with a human nose would notice. Besides that, maybe a little bird-like, or theropod-like, if one has that experience. "Yep! If we've gotta be here, would be a real waste not to check out all those 'curiosities', learn a thing or two, have fun with 'em," Lee agrees. "And I'm totally okay with obliging ya if you like listening." They take a sip of beer before continuing with a smile, "But whatcha interested in the most, in NeoTokyo?" Azusa unfortunately does not have such experience. Pretty much all of her affinity is with humans, and some demon blood. Her curiosity is piqued, though. Getting a bit of a spark in them, her eyes narrow ever so slightly, "Indeed." They do appear a little more luminous than they should. "I certainly don't mind," she instead minds her drink, sipping once more through the straw, careful not to knock the slice of lemon on the rim of the glass off of inside. Glancing about her in thought at the questing, she shifts in her seat before crossing one leg over the other, "That is a difficult question, being that there is so much and not just in the city. After all, there is a whole wide universe out there. I would say..." A pause. "Why, the ladies, of course," her own smile widens. Lee leans on the bar and listens in attentively as Azusa considers. "Ooh, gotcha!" Lee remarks with a laugh at her answer. "Not real hung up on comparing folks for hotness myself, but I can definitely see how the diversity might make that a little more interesting." Lee adds in a more thoughtful tone, "As somebody who comes from an almost completely human place, though, gotta tell ya t' be careful. Nothing wrong with thinking somebody's hot partly 'cause they're exotic, but really kinda discouraging when that's the main reason." Azusa decided honesty was the best answer, in this case, and takes a lot sip of her drink as she assimilates what follows, making sure she doesn't let the ice water it down too much. "Oh, I do understand your meaning, dear," her smile takes on a more knowing look as she runs a hand through her radiant mane of hair, "Not that I am one to turn a girl down when that is the main reason, as I myself am usually not so discriminating, but..." She bites lightly on her lower lip, leaving it best unsaid that she'd not turn down a snack in that manner. Of course, a beautiful Asian-looking woman with eyes like hers and, most of all, that hair. "No?" Lee says with a grin, mimicking her gesture with her hair. The thread-feathers are frizzy and floppy, even if they are more colorful. "Guess if your self-confidence and hers are just that awesome, lotsa chances for some fun." They take out that baggie of junk again to hold it up. "Lotta times I'm trying t' attract attention, it's more the customer kind. I love creating new stuff outta junk and telling folks stories 'bout where it came from." Azusa looks more amused than anything at the mime, really. She does admire the feathers once more, though. The first question she asks herself in her mind is if, in terms of sexual dimorphism, the male's are distinctly more colorful than the female's in that species. Like with peacocks, as an example. Or, well, ducks. "The potential is there, yes," she keeps those cards close to her chest, at the first comment. She then is compelled to tilt her head once more, curious. The hand how holding her drink comes up to readjust her glasses, "An artisan, I presume?" Lee does seem to notice Azusa's attention for their feathers, but definitely doesn't seem to be reading her mind about the reasons for it. "Yep!" Lee agrees. "Done a lot of outdoor murals and junk sculptures back where I used to live, but been focusing mostly on jewelry and little doodads for interior decorating here." Lee motions toward Azusa's outfit, "Something elegant'll pop into my head now 'n then, but mostly I like doing stuff that's fun and flashy and quirky." "Now I am truly curious," Azusa states, her fingers pushing her empty glass away a few inches, "Where are you from?" stopping short of noting that Lee is the first of its species that she recalls seeing around in the city, and she has seen a lot in her time here. The mention of jewelry also brings her to ask, "Oh? Do you make jewelry for Frey's, as well?" before quirking a brow as she's motioned at, then her smile takes a turn for the quirky itself, "I must say I do appreciate fun, flashy, and sometimes a little quirky." Lee sits at the bar with a beer, not far from Asuza. "I'm from Allegania, country on an Earth kinda like this one but a little less crazy." Lee seems to catch at least some of the implication of the question and adds, "But my grandparents're from a different version of Earth connected to where I'm from." Lee grins at her remark about the jewelry. "Nope, haven't made anything for Frey's. Have talked with Lenn about maybe learning a thing or two about enchanted jewelry. Lotta fun people around there." Lee takes a steel hex nut with a bit of twine attached from one of their vest pouches. "Don't have any finished pieces of jewelry on me. Usually do, though. Maybe gimme a call later on and see if I've got something that catches your eye?" Lee leans over to pass her the hardware, whose flat sides are inscribed with an email containing 'Lee Mavwoin' and a phone number and rubbed with black pigment. Looking a bit more tired than before, and perhaps a bit embarrassed, Zelan trudges back in again and retakes her seat at the bar. She promptly faceplants onto the bar again, much like as was not seen by these two earlier today since she arrived well before them earlier. Her voice slightly obscured, she says, in explanation to questions not asked, "It's Sunday." She raises a hand without looking up, trying to flag down the tender again. "Another coffee. Make it a double." Azusa's smile takes a turn for the mysterious, particularly at hearing of a less crazy Earth. An alternate dimension, she's fairly certain, now. "Were they travelers?" Then, on the subject of Frey's, she leans back a little in her seat, "Ah, yes. It has come to my attention that her shop has become rather popular as of late. A lot of interesting personalities have visited, my sister has told me." Eyeing the hex nut, she mentally tells herself to keep an open mind, "Very well," reaching with one slender hand, the one that was running through her hair previously, to pluck the object between her fingers, "Thank you." This is right before she's a little surprised by Zelan's return and subsequent faceplant. "Are you alright, dear?" she tilts her head, leaning over. "Why, yes," she blinks, reaching up to readjust her glasses again, "Yes, it is." "Blackberry jasmine green tea for me, please," she adds. "Nah, was pretty safe when they immigrated. My grandparents were just feeling kinda stuck economically and culturally. Can't get any less stuck a new planet." Azusa's remark about the shop gets an enthusiastic nod, then a question, "Your sister?" Lee takes a swig of beer as Zelan returns and waves to her as she takes the seat. Lee looks on with a little concern when she puts her head down, but narrowly avoids spraying the mouthful. "Ooh..." Lee remarks after they finish coughing. "Thought you were just really that into your work!" Zelan slowly sits upright, the motion rolling up her back rather than just shifting upright all at once. With a single fingered push of her glasses back into position, she offers a smile at the two. "I'm fine, thanks. I just got used to my last job, where I never got two days in a row off. Now it's different, more akin to a... well, a real job." She flicks a red lock of hair out of her face and properly introduces herself to the unknown woman, as she's clearly in a conversation now with Lee. "Zelan Darkflower, former lead of Design Team Petal of Magus Spaceworks." As her coffee arrives, she almost greedily accepts it and takes a good sip from the cup. Azusa does take a moment to answer Lee's inquiry whilst she looks over Zelan, a little concerned, "Natsuki, yes. Flaming red hair, a little bit tanned (understatement), and one hell of a potty mouth." Returning her attention to Zelan, she settles back into her seat, "Aah, I see." She can see how one could appreciate the two days of relative freedom. "Azusa Kurihara. A pleasure to meet you, Miss Darkflower," she smiles politely, briefly interrupted as her drink also arrives, "...thank you." It's still not lost on her how the surname greatly resembles something like the moniker her brother used for himself for many years, very much prior to their meeting. "You should be introducing yourself with your new position!" Lee says encouragingly to Zelan. "Yeah, your employer's got kind 'f a problem with rep, but can't fix that unless somebody's getting the word out." Lee nods at Azusa's description, regarding her facial reatures more careful now that they have a basis for comparison. "Gotcha. Must be keeping the potty mouth under control on job, least while I was there." Zelan nods to Azusa with a smile. "A pleasure as well, Miss Kurihara." She slows down her speach slightly when saying Azusa's name, ensuring she pronounces it correctly on her first attempt. She frowns a bit as she glances to Lee. "I suppose, but I don't believe my new employer has a formal company name just yet. I am Raven's only formal employee, after all. Magus Spaceworks, on the other hand, is a major military contractor." She then frowns slightly more. "Well... not as major as we'd like, but still." She then glances down at the well-tanned skin of her own hand, then at a lock of the red hair that's fallen upon her face again... not really fiery red, but still. She offers Azusa a slight grin and a shrug. Azusa's eyes briefly disappear behind the reflection off her glasses while she regards Zelan, giving a soft nod of approval. At least it's not the bloody mess her brother had made up all those years ago. Kurohihana? That's not even a real name. Alas, it was before her time. "That, I find rather surprising!" she then looks, and sounds, nothing short of amused at Lee's news, "Of course, the silly girl has been seen in slightly more professional attire. Therefore, I do believe that your observations have merit." Okay, time to take a good, long sip of her drink. Ah, yes, that's more like it. And, no, the resemblance, however coincidental, is not lost on her, "I would have mentioned the glasses..." Her smile, still quite amused, is directed back towards the redhead before her, "Quite a coincidence, dear." "Maybe it was 'cause a kid was present? Not gonna fault anybody for putting on a different look for work," Lee offers to Azusa. "What about Nova's partner, the secretary, uh... Quark?" Lee mentions to Zelan. "But yeah, not having a name for the thing's a pretty good reason not to advertise it yet." Lee finishes off their beer and grins at Azusa's amused remark while looking from one to the other. Zelan taps the bridge of her glasses with one finger and a light smirk. "A computer peripheral. Completely unneeded for my eyesight, but extremely useful." She closes her eyes as she shakes her head. "Quark is more of a... personal assistant. He doesn't do anything remotely like the work I do. I've actually not really seen hardly any of him around. Perhaps because he's worried about the temptation of all that relatively rare metal in the workshop, especially with the analysis equipment I've been putting together." Her eyes open again, she smiles as she takes another sip of her coffee. "I like a good... slow day sometimes." Azusa takes a moment to stir the ice in her drink as she considers, "Mm, yes, that might clean things up." Oh, she's seen what she puts on for shop duty, and can only grin at how inappropriate it still is. Well, when she's dealing with other women, at least, "Not that I am one to complain about the hemline." She does manage to subdue the small laugh that was to follow, instead electing on another long refreshing sip of her tea, wondering how well it would mix with lemonade. She will have to try this. "Those tend to be some of the best," she then nods in agreement to Zelan. Lee nods at Zelan's guess about Quark. "Getting your tools and materials together's a good productive thing t' be doing when you're still deciding what ya wanna make," Lee remarks encouragingly. "Still rebuilding my collection and gotta figure out how t' store stuff in my shoebox apartment without making a mess." It's hard to say if Lee really didn't notice the hemline on Azusa's skirt until she mentioned it, but Lee does lean back a bit in their seat to see what she's talking about. "Speaking of slow days, wonder if folks around here would be interested in indoor hammocks, maybe in the own frame." Zelan nods and takes a deep breath of her coffee's steam. The two seem to be talking about someone she doesn't really know, so she had started to zone out the conversation slightly. "Hrrm? Oh, yes, yes. I'm really still situating myself. Actually getting the R&D lab up and going in there is a big part of it... But I'm probably going to continue with my first idea on what to start with, the small magic-boosted arms. Or just magic arms, more likely. I'd say probably no on the indoor hammocks... part of their charm is the breeze flowing through them." "I meant my sister's, dear," Azusa can't help but grin at not being able to help but notice that Lee is taking an extra detailed look at her. The general conversation is bringing back memories, though, of her sisters keeping busy in their own little projects while she herself broke away in pursuit of something, well, bigger. Not that she isn't enjoying the fruits of their labors, but.. "I am quite certain there are, although I would say it could prove to be somewhat of a niche item." She can't imagine using one indoors, at least. Maybe it's more of a guy thing; she wouldn't know. She nods in agreement with Zelan. Lee grins at Azusa's comment on her sister. Lee listens thoughtfully as Zelan describes her workplace, frowning slightly as weapons come up. "Not really thrilled 'bout the idea of adding more guns to this city. Just that Cat's club looked like they had enough for a small army." Lee shrugs a shoulder. "On the other hand, Raven seemed really into the idea and ya gotta keep the boss happy. And guess I /might/ want some kinda personal protection if I didn't already have it built in." They add with a smile, "Also, designing guns's probably more glamorous than new and creative kinds of electric fans, huh?" Zelan nods once again at Azusa's agreement, but doesn't seem to notice Lee's frown. "I do have a fairly solid military equipment background, you know. Work with what you know... And I absolutely could make a new kind of fan, but the costs involved would make it... not be very popular, to say the least. Would you pay a six times the cost for a fan just because it's twice as powerful and silent?" She shrugs, tilting her head slightly in the process. "I don't care so much about the glamour, usually. I care more about the challange and the utility. If I want glamour, I'll stick with improving my appearance." She offers a grin at the two, sliding a lock of hair back into place after her head tilt. Azusa goes quiet, seemingly lost in thought for the moment. So, this girl crafts weapons, while her sisters' focus is more on battlesuits and the like. Typically not very glamorous, either, until they make it, and her faint smile fades altogether at a certain memory. For a moment, she looks sad, gazing into what little remains of her drink swishing around in circles, the mostly melted away cubes almost appearing to meld with one another. Raising her eyes to look upon the two again, Zelan reminding her of a certain someone, she looks the girl over once more at that last comment. "You are quite attractive, I might add," her smile returns, somewhat slyly. "I wouldn't buy your fan, but your advertising pitch's gotta catch somebody's fancy- 'Amazingly powerful and silent fan, built from military-grade composites and designed by a fighter-craft expert'," Lee offers. They answer Zelan's grin with one of their own, glancing to Azusa to see what affect her words on glamor might have. Lee keeps quiet for a few moments after Azusa's reply and looks back to Zelan. Zelan blinks in surprise at first at what Azusa says, but then narrows her eyes with a bit of a smirk. "Well, I do try, you know. In a city with as many beautiful women as this, it can take a lot to get noticed. To narrow it down to not stand out too much, but just enough... That's the challange, really. Draw too much attention and people get the wrong idea, you know?" She pauses a moment, holding her smile before she blinks and reacts to Lee's comment. "Oh, please, why specify it down to fighter craft? Starship design expert, I've designed successful ships and components well above fighter class." She then tilts her head again. "Oh, but most people do think of fighter craft as a bit... sexier, don't they? I suppose that would be a better line." "Indeed," Azusa replies, knowing just what kind of attention. Then, there's the other kind of attention, which she is thankfully free of in this city, unlike the following she had come to gain in Metropolis. In a way, it does feel liberating to start over, even if she must jump through all the career hoops all over again. She gives Zelan the onceover one more time, lips pursed, before her own eyes narrow behind her glasses, "I do concur, dear, and noticed you are." Deciding to leave it at that for the moment, she turns to ask for another iced tea like the one she had, only this time half and half with lemonade. That's when Lee's marketing gets her attention. "That certainly will get someone's attention," she comments, then nodding to Zelan as she listens to her elaborate on it, "You sound like quite the salesman." "Yeah, gotta think of your audience when you're advertising," Lee agrees. "I might be disappointed, too, if an ad agency were hyping some relatively easy thing I did instead of some giant project I worked on for years. Personally, I'd think a space-yacht designed to look like collection of yurts or something would be way cooler." Lee apparently isn't completely oblivious to a subtext of the conversation, though. After blowing a note across the top of their beer bottle, Lee asks with a grin, "You wanna trade seats with me, Azusa?" Zelan smiles at Azusa, looking at her at her a bit longer than she needs to before her eyes flicker about oddly. Close, careful observation may even spot her eye color and iris shape shifting slightly as she flicks her eyes, though that would be rather difficult for most people to notice. Lee's comment seems to snap her out of it, however, and she looks at them with a look of confusion. "What's a yurt?" Azusa has definitely heard that before, about having to cater to one's audience and their preferences when putting oneself or one's product out there, building one's brand. "Alas," she does add, "It can happen when they have a different vision of what the customer wants. Sometimes what resulted in that easy thing could be seen as a stroke of genius.." She says this before returning her gaze on to Zelan, although a little too late to notice the change in her eyes. Hmm, she thinks to herself, her own eyes softening. Was that a flash of purple in them? "If neither of you mind," she glances back to Lee, "and yes, what is a yurt? I must admit that I too am quite curious, now." She thinks she might have heard that word before. Or was it a name? Lee does notice Zelan's gaze lingering on Azusa but doesn't seem to notice her eyes. Lee gives Zelan a playful nudge with an elbow before hopping out of their seat and taking the spot two seats down from Zelan. "Kind of tough decision, deciding if ya wanna take special credit for something other folks're more impressed by than you," Lee remarks thoughtfully. "Oh, yeah," Lee answers, wrapping their tail around the new seat. "Yurt's like a cylindrical hut with a conical roof, felt held in place with wood and rope lattice, traditionally. It's a low-tech nomad thing, so making one for a high-tech nomad would be kinda appropriate." Zelan smiles a bit sheepishly now as the two switch positions around her, now a bit more self conscious. "Aha, yes, well, that's why I never worked in sales. Just engineering... and let the higher ups determine what actually needs to be done. My current job, with its more or less... total freedom, is kind of new to me, though I have had some personal projects in the past." She smiles fondly, recalling a project she completed when her long-lost uncle suddenly showed up again. She then shakes her head. "Either way, I've long since learned to distance myself from the general public opinion. The people that mattered knew what I could do, and that was the important part." She looks to both of them back and forth, with a smile that fades slightly at the explanation of what a yurt is. "Ehhh... We tried a mobile castle design once for a civilian design... it... really didn't sell hardly at all. Most customers of starships want it to look sleek and fast... not like something nomads would lug around on a relatively undeveloped world." Lee nods as Zelan explains her thinking on public opinion. "Definitely doesn't hurt to know what people're gonna think of your work, even if you wanna do something totally different from what they'd want," Lee remarks. "Rich patron who's not gonna micromanage sounds like a really good buffer between fun ideas and a general public with boring tastes." Lee takes out their phone to glance at it and blinks. "Oh, sorry, y'all. Gotta run!" Lee says to Azusa, "Was nice meeting ya. Gimme a call sometime and I'll see what I can do for ya with some quirky jewelry." And to Zelan, "Don't forget that offer I made when you were working at the clothing store." Lee grins and looks from her to Azusa before hopping up. Azusa takes Lee's relinquishing his seat next to Zelan's as her cue, and sliding out from her own seat, she moves to swap seats with the reptilian creature. Just in time as her third drink arrives, as well, and she is certainly appreciative of the timing. "I am not too keen on that particular design. Perhaps it would be more appropriate to the more eccentric?" She's trying to visualize a space yatch designed around high tech yurts and is simply having some trouble doing so. "And you, dear," she turns her attention to Zelan, "sound a lot like some of my sisters." Ah yes, freedom, though. That is what she is feeling now, at least until her career gets on track on this world, and it is somewhat overwhelming in the sheer loss for what to do, specifically. While she's considered one thing in particular, even briefly, the very thought brings a faraway, wistful look to her. She considers further what is said, particularly from Lee's side before he inspects his phone. "Likewise, dear," she smiles to them, "I shall." Watching him go, she then turns back to Zelan, her smile blinking away as her own phone goes off, "Hmm?" "Excuse me, dear," her eyes vanish behind her lenses as she produces the thing to have a look. Pressing her lips tightly together, she bites back... something. "I am truly sorry, dear. I am being summoned," she frowns slightly before slipping out of her seat, "Perhaps we'll see each other again." Zelan grins and nods to Lee. "It's nice and liberating, I'll say that, but I honestly like to have my options narrowed... slightly when it comes to work." She looks slightly confused as Lee gets up to leave. "Uhhh... okay? See you later then, Lee." She scrunches her brow after the dino turns away... it would seem that perhaps she already has forgotten Lee's offer. As Azusa announces her impending departure, Zelan clearly looks disapointed. "Ah... Well, it was a pleasure to meet you, Miss Kurihara." She pulls out her own phone as her eyes flicker, and a contact number is floating over it as an apparent hologram. "Feel free to contact me if the desire to comes." She offers her a smile with her eyes half-lidded. | |
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