Doronday

"You're all mysterious today, what's up?" Flora's body language was agitated, perhaps something bothered her at work... Amarat was glad he'd decided to take her out today.   "Just got an invitation to a new restaurant opening this week, Linni always seems to know before everyone."   "Oh, so you're taking me, in your aircar?"   "Oh, no. Nellun's bringing out a groundcar."   "What, why?"   "I just decided I wanted to have a chat with you, and being bounced around doing it didn't appeal."   "But it'll take so much longer."   "We're crossing into mid-town, it always takes longer."   "Midtown? That far?"   "You going to be ok? I'm worried, you sound stressed."   "Of course I'm stressed, I'm on five different promotion boards!"   "What? How come?"   "Three flyforce, one navy, one specforce."   "Anyone I know?"   "Navy, I can't believe they think I should sit on Kneecole's boards."   "And FlyForce?"   "Piersa."   "What? How high she reaching for?"   "She's moving up, I blazed a trail..."   "Oh, right. So, talon?"   "No, I moved up to group, she's offered first wing, CAW, first wing, just to be clear."   "Noyjitat."   "What?"   "I recommended her for _squadron_ not even six months ago. She's skipping Talon?"   "Both are empty, we fill the bigger boots first, always."   "Oh. How'd that happen?"   "We never had that many group officers." Flora was using understatement, it was super-effective, since she was the first officer, ever, to actually lead a Kagomine Air Group in combat operations.   "Oi, I bet. How're you holding up?"   "Badly, I'm having trouble evaluating people I know."   "You're having trouble, or you just feel like giving people you know grades that say: 'at their limit'?"   "I'm having trouble, I feel just too partial, and with insufficient data."   "Can I help?"   "No, it's my name on those recoms."   "I can help in other ways, like taking you out, giving you backrubs, helping you relax, so you feel up to those decisions."   "Hmm, is that your job now?"   "You mean, as your hérévallin?"   "Yeah." Her eyes were hooded.   "I guess it's one of my jobs."   "Oh, what other jobs do you have?"   "Making you scream my name comes to mind, and taking you out to new restaurants, seeing the sights..."   "Hmm, how interesting."  

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  Flora hadn't expected this, the restaurant looked like a small castle, perched on its own small hill.   "Wow, quite like what I expected, from midtown, I thought a block-building."   "I hadn't heard the scale of the operation, but it fits."   "How?"   "At this point, half of Linni's contacts are restaurant owners, chefs, club owners, thought influences, Jade schedulers."   "Oh, thought influencers?"   "Not inaccurate."   "He's such a shy influencer though."   "Oh, don't mistake me, the influencers are courting him, he just wants to stay home and pet his cats."   "How does that Shibue affect that?"   "She's the unknown factor, they all got to know him when he was single."   "Single?"   "What? He's herevallin now!"   "I mean, I know he's herevallin, so it feels odd to just say he was single."   "He's officially single, oddly enough."   "What?"   "Their herevallin is secret. Shibue is hardly a person, by current rules."   "And Jor-Jie?"   "Jor-Jie's existence and residence are classified."