True. On the other hand, they already get a bad rap in some circles for ostentation. :)

>Sosuke is smarter than he acts.

"My dear, I don't think he's as stupid as he seems."

"My dear, nobody could be as stupid as he seems."

>>he might be setting off for an expedition to Ice Planet Hoth.
>
>Ice Planet Halloran V sheds a single tear at being passed over in
>favor of it's flashy older brother Hoth yet again. :)

In this case (I did that bit) I particularly wanted to put people in mind of that parka Han Solo's wearing in the "I thought these things smelled bad on the outside" scene, so, Hoth. :)

>A bit unfair on Kaname's part, given that Sergei is a giant damn
>tiger, although she's had a long day.

A whole succession of them, by this point.

>I question just how well his company briefed Sosuke on this assignment
>before inserting him. Sergei's presence on campus was the subject of
>significant legal wrangling, and he has a paper trail that's part of
>the public record that is a mile long.

True; on the other hand he hasn't lived there since 2407. How far back do you want these files to go?

The Rhodos Group does seem to have been a bit slack about their due diligence, though. This might be expected of an organization that, until recently, specialized in providing a sort of "mallcop SWAT" service, but... well, like I said before, wait for it. You're not completely off the reservation with these reservations.

>Although I'll also note that part of me has been wondering for awhile
>now if Sosuke is a total decoy and Melissa and Kurz, the ACTUAL
>bodyguarding team, are hanging out in the background doing a much,
>much better job at the whole 'covert' thing than he is.

I can't speak to the first part, but I can tell you that if he does have More Covert Backup in place, it isn't Mao and Weber. In UF, they're with WDF Mars Division, same as Kaname's parents, and have since long before Kaname (or Sosuke, for that matter) was born.

>being a total badass is likely to INCREASE your need for things like
>bodyguards and food tasters; there's a reason viking kings had house
>carles.

Heh, I think Rory would probably enjoy being described as Amy's housecarl, though it would invite the question of where exactly she's thane of.

>Let's be fair, Kaname. You probably know more than a few ladies who
>also turn into crazy people when their body decides "today is a great
>day to flood myself with natively-made chemicals!" One of your fellow
>RA's is Natsuki Kruger, for heaven's sake. :)

True, although in this instance she's thinking particularly of the whole "hundred-handed giants of gropitude" thing. ... though, I suppose, if we're being fair, Natsuki might be like that too when the moon is full. Awoooooooo.

>"So who won the pool?"
>
>"Kozue and Chip split. You'd think other people would have had money
>on 'harem', but no, it was just them. Hell of a payout, too."

Two thoughts on this:

1) Kozue, of all people, is hardly going to be making jokes about Corwin's life-partner prospects. Not now, and possibly not ever. Think about it for a second.

2) If Chip ever made any such remark in Corwin's presence - or in his own sister's, for that matter - he might well find himself serving as the chief eunuch.

>"Do NOT let Kozue plan your bachelor party."

Again, what, just no, dude. Have a little consideration.

Also, technically that's Nall's job. And he didn't even do it. He's such a little slacker.

>I know that, at the meta-level, a big part of why Kaname is still in
>the dark about this is because it also leaves the readers in the dark
>until a huge, awesome reveal comes along.

Then why make an issue of it? Seriously, what purpose does it serve? It's like complaining that you know why suspension bridges have to have those upright bits in the middle, but man, they break up the view something awful.

>Even if Kaname isn't the type to ask other people for help except in
>dire extremes (advice yes, help no) you'd think Miranda would have
>gone "Huh. Someone paid money for a mercenary to attach himself to my
>daughter, who won't tell her why, or why she might be in danger. And
>he's doing stuff like bugging her room. Maybe I'll make some calls and
>find out if some people want to hurt my family that I don't know
>about. Then I can tell Kaname and she can be prepared."

You think she hasn't done that just because you haven't seen her deliver her report yet? Hmm. Here are a couple of things:

1) Inside the story, it's only been a month. Miranda's sources work fast, but they're not seers. (Except Ariel, but - well, we'll get into that later.) Besides, like her father, Miranda - who did say in DSMP2.5 that she'd look into it - is a meticulous soul. One might almost say persnickety. She's an intel officer by nature, and that means that barring imminently apocalyptic developments, she's not going to sit anyone down and issue a report until all the Ts are dotted.

2) More importantly, perhaps, it's the middle of the school term. Kaname's got a lot of stuff to do. She doesn't need that kind of distraction right now unless it's really, imminently, emergently, the-computer-is-the-only-thing-speaking-get-out-get-out-of-there urgent. Which it apparently is not.

So, you know, consider easing up a little. We're gettin' to it. :)

>That's Shizuru for you. The world could use more people who understand
>the sublime beauty, and terror, of a properly filled-out form.

Perhaps to whatever gods she reveres, "I've done the paperwork" is equivalent to "my math is right."

>(cr10 says that her penmanship is EXQUISITE.)

But probably in kind of an irritating font. Lots of curlicues. Little hearts instead of dots on the dotted lowercase letters. ... well, maybe not that last part.

(Saya Otonashi does that, though. Except in her case it's vampire smiley faces. Also, I might be lying.)

>What's running through Sosuke's head right now is probably something
>like "Survive the initial swing. Once inside her guard, secure the
>weapon and proceed with CQC. She's taller than me; this limits my
>takedown options. Sweep the legs."

I like the ambitious nature of step 1. That's like starting a business plan with "1) Make $1,000,000." :)

>(I like to imagine Sosuke lives by the Code of the Sniper: "Be polite.
>Be efficient. Have a plan to kill everyone you meet.")

This is probably true.

>(Second best kind of sledding: drunk sledding. Best kind of sledding:
>drunk, night sledding.)

The year before I got to WPI, someone got very seriously hurt doing that - drunk nighttime sledding down Institute Hill, over near the library, using the old-fashioned fiberglass DĀKA trays. That had rather killed the enthusiasm for such activities around the Institute in my day, I'm afraid...

>Lindsey may not be as cute as Kyoko

I consider that point debatable, although in her natural habitat, I will concede that she is generally less precious. :)

--G.
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Benjamin D. Hutchins, Co-Founder, Editor-in-Chief, & Forum Mod
Eyrie Productions, Unlimited http://www.eyrie-productions.com/
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