Christmas presents... [RP scene: DR continuity]

[forza_del_bene]

While in many worlds, this is the time for festivals celebrating the rebirth of the year, calling forth the sun again, remembering ancient traditions and ancient myths... there's no sign of any of that here.

It's Xeha's laboratory. A crisp, clean place, though one with the odd sign of human personality stamped on it. Photographs and a toddler's plushie with a missing eye sit on a desk alongside any number of notes and a tablet computer. Plenty of work seems to have been going on around here: things produced, things trialled. A familiar black coat and a white labcoat hang together on a stand.

More important than all that at the moment, though, is something currently set up in a side room. A forcefield of soft red light screens it from the rest of the world, and the walls seem to be crossed with lasers.

An ornate blade set on a simple stand, with equipment around it.

Its creator's waiting just outside the doorway.

Comments

[youstillneedme]

Braig's never really seen the coat as a mark of shame, but even he has to admit it's nice to see Xeha out of it again. It's always a little weird, after all, given that he's far more used to seeing Xeha in other things.

The mention of tests is honest unsurprising. It's so new that of course there's going to need to be tests.

"You got it."

[forza_del_bene]

Stating the obvious, he might be, but better confirm the expectations early on. A present like this doesn't come without conditions - even if these are far more minor and manageable than those the old man would have given.

Xeha leads the way out, hanging the coat up as he goes. "I don't know about you, but I could use a rest," he says a little dryly. Some time off - yes, that sounds good. As much as he's loved every step of the blade's production, the idea of downtime has its appeal. Time to just think, spend time with other family and friends... get out of the laboratory.

[youstillneedme]

Far more manageable indeed, for all that Braig knows nothing of what the other conditions might have been. Instead he nods, and lets his new blade vanish away.

(He does immediately resummon it just to prove to himself that he can, but after that he lets it disappear once again before following Xeha out of the lab.)

"Y'know, I think we've earned it after this."

[forza_del_bene]

Heading out, back upstairs, he can't help but laugh a little, catching what Braig's doing out of the corner of his eye. "Indeed."

A little later, after a brief thought, he adds: "Are you expected anywhere any time soon? I was considering stopping somewhere to ... celebrate." He's smiling, here. The weight of the worlds off his shoulders.

[youstillneedme]

It's no less than Braig would expect anyone else to do, and though he notes Xeha's laughter he doesn't comment on it. He can't think of anything that doesn't sound needlessly defensive, and so he focuses more on what Xeha's actually saying. It's more interesting anyway.

"I could find some time, if you're offering."

[forza_del_bene]

Xeha'd set enough time aside for things to go wrong, made sure that his daughter had a sitter for long enough, that a diversion's far from out of the question.

"Tifa's bar, perhaps?" he suggests, with a slight shrug.

[youstillneedme]

"Sounds like a plan."

There's enough to celebrate here that a drink or two won't go amiss. Besides, it's not as if either of them will need to worry about vehicular transport afterwards. They may need to walk as opposed to simply take advantage of Braig's habit of teleporting, but that's really only of minor concern.

[forza_del_bene]

Smiling, he just reaches out: "A ride, then?" he asks, though he'd be greatly surprised if a quick journey down there wouldn't be an option.

[youstillneedme]

"Sure thing."

There's not any problem with getting them there, and it's only a moment later that the familiar twist and pull of Braig's teleportation lands them outside the bar in question. Let the celebrations begin!

[forza_del_bene]

And still happily, he'll head on in, waving to whoever's behind the bar and head for his usual table.

"Anything you're after?" he asks, idly, not entirely judging his abilities to order something suitable by Braig's standards.

[youstillneedme]

There's a moment of silence, as Braig considers the options. There isn't anything that he particularly wants, and the point of a celebration is less to try and confuse the bartender than it is to simply mark something worth of celebration. As such after a moment he simply shrugs.

"Surprise me."

[forza_del_bene]

With a chuckle, he quickly makes a couple of orders and wanders over with the drinks, to sit down with a smile on his face.

"You know, I almost thought this'd never happen."

[youstillneedme]

Braig takes his drink without question. Asking more than what he can tell on sight would go against the idea of a surprise in the first place.

"I'm just glad it did."

[forza_del_bene]

"I can imagine."

By Braig's standards, the drink's probably pretty tame. Xeha calmly sips at his own.

"After all this time waiting, after what the old man said... although -" He pauses, and continues lightly, "Perhaps I owe him some thanks, right now. For the inspiration to do this the right way."

[youstillneedme]

Yeah, a bit. But tame's not so bad, all things considered. He's gotten more than enough excitement from the other events of the day. Besides, tame means he's less likely to get drunk out of his gourd too fast to hold anything like a decent conversation.

"All that research, hunh?"

[forza_del_bene]

Xeha simply nods. "All that research. Though I suppose I knew it wasn't going to be an easy task as soon as I decided to do it."

[youstillneedme]

"Ahh, it wouldn't have been as interesting if it were easy." Sure, he'd have ended up with a Keyblade either way - or so he suspects - but that's surely only part of the point, right?

[forza_del_bene]

"The best things never are." He'll never be one for living the simple life, he knows. Not that he ever really could be in these circumstances.

[youstillneedme]

"Exactly." There's a grin to match his words. Easy is boring, and that's something Braig has never much cared for, not that this is a great surprise.

[forza_del_bene]

"I'd suppose the next question is-" and he takes a long, thoughtful sip at his drink- "What now?"

[youstillneedme]

Braig falls silent for a moment as he turns to his own drink for a moment. He's never really thought about what would happen after he earned a Keyblade of his own. He'd always been too busy thinking about how nice it would be to have one.

"I suppose that's up to you?"

[forza_del_bene]

Xeha nods for a moment.

"Something'll come up. I know it." A pause- "I suppose the break won't do me any harm, though. It'll be good to spend time with the kid."

[youstillneedme]

"Yeah," Braig answers, leaving off anything further to indicate exactly which comment he's agreeing to. Both of them are perfectly agreeable and perfectly understandable; he'd have to be a fool to not see how they'd be perfectly likely.

"Probably gonna be nice, hunh?"

[forza_del_bene]

"I just hope she's not calling Aeleus 'daddy' by now." While there's humour in his tone, he'll freely admit that he's not been around as much as a young child needs. He knows he needs to change that.

[youstillneedme]

"As if he'd really let her." Admittedly, what Braig knows about children is limited at best, but he knows Aeleus fairly well. Enough to assume that he'd likely do his best to make sure she knows who her father actually is, anyway, and that's hopefully all he needs to know.