[Special 003] Body Switch: Usagi-chan

[no_use_running]

[Well! The picture in the journal is most certainly not Mizuno Ami. It is, however, still an Asian girl, but a few years younger, with an unusual hairdo of buns and pigtails.]

I'm Usagi-chan!

[And something in Ami realizes that while some people in Luceti will remember Usagi in blond form from while she was here, many won't, and they won't know

Comments

[Voice]

[semper_cogitans]

[Well. When Robert was worrying about what sort of form changes that his friends might have, them turning into their best friends was not one that immediately came to mind - though in retrospect, it was perfectly logical. Nonetheless, he was more than a little surprised to see the somewhat-familiar face of Ami as something not-so-familiar.]

Ah, Doctor Mizuno, so they have affected you too... And your best friend? That must be... poignant for you. [And painful. Robert doesn't even want to think about how much that might have hurt him if he'd turned into a certain person.]

... Do you perhaps need any assistance, or are you alright at the moment? [Robert was serious when he said he wanted to help Ami if she had a problem. After all, it's the least he can do. She basically singlehandedly stopped him from freezing, taught him to use the journals and gave him a place to live.]

Re: [Action]

[no_use_worrying]

[He's talking to the queen of 'in my head, I understand, but...' Feelings and knowledge don't always match up, and Ami's had a long journey to start making it so that hers do. So her advice comes from experience when she speaks.]

Sometimes it takes a lot of work to make the head and heart match up.

[She tries to dispel the sudden seriousness with a smile.]

Would you like tea now?

Re: [Action]

[semper_cogitans]

It's strange... For me, normally logical reasoning is simply the default. But there are some things... some situations... that I can't seem to deal with rationally. Then I sometimes regret having emotions at all...

[Robert trails off, looking wistful, until Ami mentions tea. Oh, tea. It's a beverage that Robert hasn't had in quite a long time. (He may have a slight Queen's English accent, but that doesn't mean he's a stereotypical Englishman!) But he's curious to try some again.]

Why, certainly. Thank you very much for the offer.

Re: [Action]

[no_use_worrying]

[Ami starts to move towards the kitchen.]

You shouldn't regret it. Without those emotions, you wouldn't be yourself.

[This seems to be quite important to her, considering that was her main worry about the changed appearances in this experiment.]

Re: [Action]

[semper_cogitans]

[Robert turns toward Ami, with a sort of resigned look.] I suppose you're right. Even if some emotions make one want to stop feeling anything. [Robert's gaze is on his wrists. He absentmindedly runs a finger along a faint scar that may or may not have been made by a needle.]

Re: [Action]

[no_use_worrying]

I don't think we can choose which ones we feel.

[Her eyes flicker to that gesture, but she politely excuses herself to brew the tea. Once the water is heating, she returns.]

Re: [Action]

[semper_cogitans]

[Robert catches Ami's eyes on his wrists, and for a moment something like panic grips him. He sort of releases his wrists and looks off to the side; he can't help the sudden light flush on his face and he glances downwards to sort of hide it.]

Er, my apologies, Doctor Mizuno. I should have been looking at you. [Robert wonders if it's obvious what the marks on his wrists mean. They may not be particularly obvious, but what with how close Ami is to him, and the fact she's a doctor... Well, perhaps it's more evident.]

Re: [Action]

[no_use_worrying]

[She's torn between asking and ignoring it. It's not her business; it might be prying to ask; she shouldn't force him to talk about something. She decides to acknowledge all these things, but press on anyway.]

This might not be any of my business, and I'm sorry, but, is everything alright now?

Re: [Action]

[semper_cogitans]

[For a moment, Robert doesn't say anything. He seems to be deliberating on how best to put it. Perhaps there isn't any good way to do so.]

... No, not really. But I'm not... er. I'm not engaged in this particular practise anymore, no. [He bites his lower lip. Of all people he should be able to confide a former drug habit in, a doctor would be the sort of person. But for some reason he's slightly ashamed of himself. He knows he shouldn't be... he didn't do anything wrong... but he is. It's strange. Perhaps it seems unprofessional, or it's simply the newness of letting somebody into his life, his past... even in a small way.]

... This is meant to be about your problems though, not mine. Not that mine don't need to be dealt with at some point. [Heavens knew that they did.]

Re: [Action]

[no_use_worrying]

Do you mean, about Usagi-chan? [Although it's not exactly unheard-of, it says something that she still calls her friends this way as a grown woman and a professional.]

It's unusual and unexpected, but it doesn't bother me. I think it's sort of interesting. I used to wish I could be more like her.

Re: [Action]

[semper_cogitans]

[That surprised Robert.] When you are so admirable a person yourself already? I am certain your friend Usagi-chan (OOC: Robert doesn't know what the honorific means, or even that it is one) is just as capable a person as you, but that by no means detracts from your own greatness.

Though it does seem to be interesting to be in the body of one's friend. Sort of a perspective-changing exercise, almost. Though it is purely your consciousness, at present; simply within a different body. [He muses a little.] I suppose it might be interesting, then, if I had been in Professor Brooke Garcia's form for awhile. I always wondered what it was like to carry a form such as hers. She did it quite well... spry for her age, even after being a surrogate.

Re: [Action]

[no_use_worrying]

[Ami deflects the compliments with equanimity.]

You shouldn't praise me so highly. I'll become embarrassed.

[And voila, subject change to seal the deal of getting away from the topic of herself.]

By a surrogate, could it be you mean a surrogate mother?

Re: [Action]

[semper_cogitans]

[Robert nods.] Yes. She carried the child of a couple I knew who couldn't do so themselves. An unusual request in Terra - most families don't birth their own children to begin with - but Professor Garcia was a friend of the family and seemed willing to be pregnant herself. [Robert muses to himself a little.] She always struck me as a very strong-willed woman, so I suppose she would be the type to do something of that sort. Regardless, I admire her courage. It must be a daunting sort of job to take on - not just the physical and mental discomfort of pregnancy, but the acknowledgement that you must shelter another couple's potential child.

Re: [Action]

[no_use_worrying]

[It's an oddly poignant subject for Ami. Because of the past life, she was once born to a different person than the one she calls her mother in this life. But, that doesn't change anything. In this life, the woman she calls Mama gave birth to her, sheltered her, raised her, supported her, loved her. She is certainly Ami's mother.]

It's a lot to be willing to do for them.

Re: [Action]

[semper_cogitans]

It certainly is. Much more than I could consider, of course. [Robert laughs a little bit.] Not that I'm particularly viable for pregnancy, even if I wanted to do it. I don't have the abdominal size for it to work well, and the hormone regimens are always touchy. [Robert says this like there's nothing unusual about male-bodied people being pregnant with medical assistance.]

I never knew my own birth parents, of course. I am one of the many foster children of Terra... the most common family setup. [Robert looks thoughtful.] Sometimes I do wonder, idly, where my particular blend of genetics come from. But I never pursued the question and I am not sure if the adoption centre would have the information anymore.

Re: [Action]

[no_use_worrying]

[If she was here as Mercury, she could explain of those thoughts of hers. But as Ami, the thoughts stay unspoken.]

Medical technology must be very advanced to allow a man to carry a child.