CRASH BANG BOOM enter Manus [action + video]

[icequeen_aran]

[ACTION]

[Late, late at night Friday evening (or early Saturday morning if you prefer) something broke through the summer sky. It wasn't one of those strange purple streaks but it was coming in hot and fast. A fireball looked like it was heading on a crash course for the dorms but banked hard at the last moment and plowed through the nearby forest bordering the school. The result was loud and thunderous, and left an ominous billow of smoke somewhere deep beyond the tree line. Perhaps it was a metroidrite meteorite? Dare ye investigate?

Should you bravely venture into the poorly lit forest you might discover what looks like the smoldering remains of a crashed spaceship. Half the hull was buried deep into the ground jutting out at a 45 degree angle, heaping up dirt and rock where it impacted. A neat line of toppled over, half-mangled, half-burned trees points in the direction it came from--seemingly none other than "up".

Samus was surprised he survived that at all. He can thank his suit of armor for absorbing most of the impact but now it too is mangled beyond any good use. Stripped of his Power Suit he's nearly defenseless, not to mention sore and grumpy. All he has is a rather useless emergency pistol and his tattered skin-tight Zero Suit. Attempting to crawl out of the wreckage only so armed may have been foolish, but he had no choice.

Some distress signal that turned out to be. At least he was alive, and he planned on making that much count.]

[VIDEO]

[SOME TIME AFTER THE CRASH... (perhaps a day or two later) Samus attempts, very begrudgingly, to get settled in this Smash Academy place until he can make repairs on his poor broken ship. Not that anyone needs to know about that and frankly he'd prefer no one did. That's a problem he plans to tackle on his own but in the meantime he has another one.

On the video there's some blonde grumpy guy I am shit designing clothes just roll with it he could be blonde Han Solo apparently using one of the library's public computers.]

My name is Samus Aran. I'm not one for formalities—you can call me Samus, or Aran, whatever you prefer. I'm new faculty and as much as I'd love to get settled in [There's some very light sarcasm there to the trained ear.] I'm running into a problem.

[He holds up a set of keys, upon which are inscribed with the letters: TD-01.]

The Headmasters insist this is my new designated room to board in, but it's already obviously occupied. I'd prefer not to kick anyone out of their room or take it by force unnecessarily, so show yourself so we can negotiate.

[[OOC NOTE #1: Lady Samus definitely would have at least told Ian she was jetting off to space with Falcon for an indefinite period of time. SORRY IAN, YOU'RE THE MAN OF THE HOUSE.
OOC NOTE #2: Because of this exchange, Lady Samus, before leaving, would have made efforts to encase some bombs in ice with her pew pew arm cannon's ice beams and booby-trap the hell out of the bunkers. More heavily (and more deadly-ly!) the areas surrounding the bombs, and should this put a damper on any plans I'm super flexible and willing to roll with anything; she missed a bomb, made human error, setting off one of her traps exposes a bomb or something. She definitely would have gone through the efforts to not make it easy on anyone, that's all.]]

Comments

video

[raw_angel_power]

[ONE CONFUSED ANGEL, COMING RIGHT UP.]

Uh, Samus?

[hunter_aran]

[THAT SURE IS A CONFUSED LOOKING uh... pseudo Chozo-esque kid? It's got back feathers, it is probably part bird of some kind.]

Yes?

[raw_angel_power]

Are you... feeling okay? Your voice sounds kinda funny.

[NOT TO MENTION SHE'S ACTING LIKE SHE'S NEVER BEEN HERE BEFORE. Oh no, don't tell him she's forgotten all their established CR everything they'd ever done together! That's too possible! The silent devastation casts its shadow over his face as he stares at her. Please be sick, please be sick...]

[hunter_aran]

This is how I always sound.

[He's sincerely hoping this isn't another case of mistaken gender, but surely this boy would be perceptive enough to figure out who he was talking to and who he isn't.

...right...]

.........I'm male.

[pitticus]

[The confusion intensifies. A magical sex change? But there's more than that!]

Uh. You are Samus Aran, interstellar bounty hunter, right? Protector of the galaxy? Destroyer of space pirates? That's you, right?

[private]

[hunter_aran]

[His eyes widen then quickly narrow. He was starting to build an understanding that some female version of himself had made a life here, but to what extent he's not sure. In space his reputation preceded himself frequently; interstellar bounty hunter, Protector of the Galaxy, Destroyer of Space Pirates and so on. Usually it just wasn't so immediately associated with his face.

Said face is tight, scrutinizing, but he won't deny the accusations.]

Hunter of Metroids and Former Affiliate of the Galactic Federation.

[And now this feathered kid has his undivided attention.]

Who are you?

[private]

[pitticus]

[Yeah, she's... he's completely forgotten. The bewilderment on his face crumbles away to meet a defeated sort of sad acceptance.]

Pit. Angel of the Goddess of Light, Lady Palutena. Captain of her royal guards. Sophomore at Smash Academy.

...Also destroyer of space pirates.

[private]

[hunter_aran]

[His intrigue is obvious as Pit introduces himself, at least until he gets to that last line. Samus feels his lips part slightly in disbelief, his brows furrow deeply.

Space Pirates were space scum anyway you sliced them--any space pirate's death was one to be celebrated in his book, no matter who delivered the final blow--and Samus knew he wasn't entitled to their heads, but given how they were his favorite kind of space scum to destroy he was, yes, now extremely scrutinizing of Pit. He was also pretty sure he'd be aware if someone else was making waves in space scum territory, and if any name they were whispering in collective pants-shitting fear was something other than The Hunter.

Maybe it was a case of mistaken identity--"Space Pirate" was as generic of a name for space scum as you could get. Samus had doubts given the weight of the delivery, and the fact Pit knew fully well who he was prior to this conversation.]

Do you mean Zebesian Space Pirates?

[His voice has definitely taken on an interrogative edge to it.]

[private]

[pitticus]

No, more like Galactic Sea pirates.

[private]

[hunter_aran]

Ah.

[Maybe not the same thing, though this piece of information now directs Samus to the fact this appears to be a very young boy--no, Angel and Captain as he put it. After a few more seconds of hard staring Samus's expression slowly softens. He feels like Pit is speaking in earnest. I've made some interesting acquaintances, apparently.]

...You knew me.

[private]

[pitticus]

Yeah. I did. Um, this kind of thing happens sometimes... Not often, but it does. I've had a handful of friends and teachers forget everything and appear like they don't remember ever being here before. It's normal. I'm used to it.

[By the tone of his voice, he's not too happy about being 'used to it'.]

But this is the first time someone's come back the opposite sex...

[private]

[hunter_aran]

[It's mildly relieving on one hand to hear Samus's apparent "ship malfunction" was likely not some unexplained isolated incident after all, and on the other hand it was disconcerting this wasn't some isolated incident after all. Disconcerting this isn't the first time the kid's 'lost' someone. An angel shouldn't get used to that. No one should.]

I'm not sure these are simple cases of amnesia. Has anything like this happened to you? Like you've lived another life in another life?

[private]

[raw_angel_power]

[Pit's mouth unhinges and he takes on a look of thoughtfulness, taking his eyes away from Samus as though to gather them at the corners of his vision.]

Uhh... That's a good question, actually. Another life in another life? I guess if I did, I just don't remember it.

[But did he... HMM... He's thinking too hard about this.]

[private]

[hunter_aran]

[HE CAN TELL. He raises a hand placatingly to the screen.]

Don't... think about it too hard. You probably would have heard about it by know from someone you know.

[private]

[raw_angel_power]

Good point.

Um... as for the room problem, maybe you should go back to the office and ask for a new key? Unless they expect you to room with that person. Normally the staff members have an apartment all to themselves, though.

[private]

[hunter_aran]

I'll look into it. One of the... hands is [how to put it eloquently...] more ideal to speak with than the other.

[private]

[raw_angel_power]

[Pit laughs it off a little.]

Yeah, one's a little more... manic than the other. I guess that's why he's called Crazy Hand!

[private]

[hunter_aran]

Crazy doesn't even begin to describe it.

[Really, he's thinking he'll just camp out in his ship like a hobo for the time being.]

I take it you've been here long, huh?

[private]

[raw_angel_power]

Yup. It's been a few years. I took a long break in between, but overall, yeah. It's been a handful.

[He pauses to think about something.]

...I've known you all those years, too.

[private]

[hunter_aran]

[His eyes fall off-screen, still trying to wrap his head around this relationship; their year-long relationship that he was yet somehow a complete stranger in. He almost doesn't want to oblige his curiosity as he fears it will only result in heartache.]

Were you close with her--?

[Not just at reminding Pit the Samus he knew was gone, but knowing somehow, in another life, he might have managed to allow someone precious into his heart and that was gone too.]

--with me?

[private]

[pitticus]

...Yes. That's what I think, anyway. It's not always easy to tell with someone like you, but I know you liked me for sure. You smiled at me sometimes. You were one of my most favorite teachers.

[And then, a profound regret plummets inside him. Talking about how close they had been were the keys that opened the gates to wonder about what could have been. What personal feelings she might have lent him, secrets he might already know but want to hear anyway, just because she trusted him enough to give it to him herself. The personal quality of the equation. That kind of close. But he also missed the casual everyday side of their relationship he was already so used to. Conversations they could have had about anything else, it didn't matter what- the monsters they've fought, how teaching was going, what classes he was taking, what living with Falcon was like, if he could ride her bike with her sometime maybe. Conversations... he could never have anymore. Not with the same Samus who remembered him fondly. He treasured them and he never knew just how much until now.]

I... would have liked to get closer.

[private] KILL ME

[hunter_aran]

[He frowns as the angel's words struck a troubling chord. That sounded like him. Distinctly like how he was. Samus still had some difficulty imagining settling into a life of a teacher, but if he ever did by some series of extenuating circumstances just like this, he...]

...If you actually got someone like me to smile [He offers something of a bitter sweet half smirk, not able to muster the actual thing. That sort of trust took a long time to build. Pit probably knew that.] I'm glad you did.

[And if Pit already knew that he'd probably understand that it was becoming increasingly more difficult for Samus to stand this conversation. He didn't want to get his hopes up. He didn't want to make promises he couldn't keep. He didn't intend to stay. He turned the feed off.

Then again, maybe that's what his female counterpart thought the first time she came here, maybe even also by way of extenuating circumstances too. If she didn't intend to stay that didn't seem to work out.

...Until now, anyway.]

[private] SAMUS DON'T LEAVE

[raw_angel_power]

[Just as soon as he broke into a smile, he dropped it and stared at the blank screen startled.]

Samus...

[He hung there for a while in stunned silence, processing her action. Then, he smiled to himself again. It too grew sweet with bitter notes.]

...It's okay if you don't remember us. I'll keep my memories of you safe inside my head. Not even death can take that from me...