[Sonya Chernovna]

dont fret, dearie The message arrived at Yanai Hebiru's computer promptly. It was a short note, but it said what it needed to say and then some; Hebi-chan, Hiii! I hope this message finds you well dearie. I'm going to be in Akihabara today and wanted to see if you would be willing to sit and have a meal with me. I'm working on some new prosthetics at the main branch and wanted your opinion. It'll be fun, we could call it a date if you like~  Call me~ Sonya Chernovna CEO, Allied Support Technologies Association International The attached address would lead, inevitably to a maid cafe on the main drag. A small crowd had formed in front of it as there were people craning their necks to look inside. Muttering about someone famous. Apparently the spot hadn't been bought out or reserved, they just walked in and asked for a table! Crazy! Inside, being peppered with stares that she paid no mind to. Sonya Chernovna sat in her favorite white suit and pink tie, legs crossed, peeking at a menu. While a frantic waitress with no training for handling a vip stood terrified next to her, a flower in her hand. I just want to play Yanai Hebiru

made by eden @ gs and thq

[Yanai Hebiru]

The Doctor is In

Sipping her cup of coffee while browsing through correspondences Hebiru had skimmed Sonya's message at first before going back and rereading it in full. She supposed it had been a while since they'd last met. Keeping her message open on a separate tab she went over the rest of her inbox to see if anything else that was important had come in. Given that it didn't seem like it she decided to address Sonya's request first.

"Hello. Yes, I got your mail, Chernovna-san." Hebiru tittered. "I'll be there, I'm sure my assistant can handle the rest of today's matters. Yes. I'll see you soon."

While her social life wasn't the best, both due to her profession and her lack of interest in needless conversations, she was still more than aware it'd be rude to show up in her work clothes. She let out a small sigh. Her apartment wasn't exactly close to campus but it wasn't far away enough either that she could justify not changing her clothes.

"Shirei-san, I'm heading out for now. Call me if anything comes up."

"Yes, Yanai-sensei!"

Heading home she browsed through her closet for something appropriate. Failing to find anything on the first check she lowered her expectations and checked again, still not seeing anything that would be appropriate to wear. She furrowed her brow. Even though it had been a while she had attended formal events in the past. Where was- Ah, yes. Closing the closet again she went over to her bathroom and spotted it on the outside of the door. She vaguely remembered using a coat hanger to put it up there after her dress had come back from the cleaners. Oh dear, that had been at least a month ago. Had she left it there all this time?

She supposed it'd be fine. Taking it out of its cover and doing a check just to be sure she quickly entered the bathroom to freshen up before changing into the blue long dress. She checked the time and noticed she still had more than enough to walk there instead of calling a cab. It wasn't like she had to worry about sweat anyway with her unique biology.

The venue Sonya had chosen was quite unique but from what little she knew of her Hebiru supposed it'd have been more surprising if it wasn't. It took her a moment to get through the crowd and she certainly noticed how twitchy the girl greeting her when she entered seemed to be. 

"Hello, I do believe the one I'm meeting is already inside." 

------

The outfit

Tags: Sonya Chernovna  Yanai Hebiru

[Sonya Chernovna]

dont fret, dearie The hostess blinked a few times as Hebiru approached them, reaching for something in their apron and pulling out what looked like a doodle drawn hastily on a napkin. The drawing was a pathetic attempt at drawing a stick-figure of Hebiru, emphasizing her figure and hair. Little arrows were pointed to her image saying things like 'legs for days' and 'those eyes' along with Sonya's phone number and a winky face. The poor hostess stared at the note, her face turning red, and looked up at Hebiru. "Y-yes we have a table set out for you." A moment later Hebiru was lead away from the crowd, the door closing behind them and over to the ordinary table where Sonya was sitting, pouring over her menu carefully. When they got close enough she set down the menu and glanced up at Hebiru, a smirk on her face as her mechanical eyes clicked and whirred, "You are as gorgeous as ever, Doctor," She enthused, getting to her feet and stepping around to pull out a chair. "How are you dearie?" She glanced over to the hostess and passed along a paper note attached to what looked like a heavily used punchcard. She winked and shooed her away while she helped Hebiru settle in. I just want to play Yanai Hebiru

made by eden @ gs and thq

[Yanai Hebiru]

The Doctor is In

Following the hostess it did not take Hebiru long to spot Sonya. In fact, one would have to be blind not to notice even before she came into view. The very surroundings almost seemed to warp around her, people acting just a bit differently when in her vicinity and seeming to orbit her from a distance. Too awed or afraid to get close yet unwilling to stay too far away lest they miss something. Spotting the woman herself Hebiru made sure to put on a smile as she returned her greeting. 

"I could say the same, Sonya. Why, you're positively glowing." Hebiru replied with a soft titter. "Work has been busy as always but I have been well. What about you? How have you been?"

She feigned a quick eye roll as she allowed the white haired woman to fuss over her as she got seated, exchanging a bit more small talk as she did. Resting her arms on the table she waited until Sonya herself was seated as well before she got to the meat of the matter.

"You mentioned you had something I could assist with? Shall we get started on this matter before you make the poor girl faint?" Hebiru said referring to the fidgety waitress returning with their drinks. She hoped hers was coffee somehow. Sleep was not something she'd been able to fit nearly enough of into her schedule these past few days and she felt like she'd need her energy to keep up with the person in front of her.

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Tags: Sonya Chernovna  Yanai Hebiru

[Sonya Chernovna]

dont fret, dearie Sonya tittered out a laugh at the small joke at the expense of her publicly known quirk; Glow. "Hahaha~ You're a tease," She giggled, nodding along as she helped the woman get into her seat. "That's good, better to keep busy," She said and walked back over to her seat and slipped in, letting out a sigh. "Me? Oh dear, I've been all over, politics, business, I'm getting ready to do my annual meet-up with the UA students to discuss scholarships, internships, the days just go on. Looking forward to a pleasant evening soon," She griped, waving her hands as if she was talking about an unpleasant significant other rather than work that had an effect on the lives of many. Sonya snorted and glanced up at the waitress, the poor girl had read the note attached and had hurried to the back to place the order. Within moments beverages were placed in front of the two women with practiced ease by the waitress. Coffee for the both of them. There was a bit of sweat and nerves on her brow but she stuck to her role perfectly. She stepped back from the table and bowed; "Your meals will be ready in a moment ladies," She said cutely, offering a small curtsey before creating some distance. "Just wait until she reads the rest of that note," Sonya said with a smug shrug, reading down and picking up the cup with a gloved hand, "Mm... lovely," She hummed and sipped, glancing up at Hebiru. "I have a schematic on this card here," She set a small card between them on the table, "For a full body subdermal prosthetic nervous-system, specifically for bypassing paraplegia," Sonya said flatly, as if she was talking about the weather. She didn't explain where she'd come through such an incredible piece of technology, not unless asked, anyway. It wasn't comfortable explaining to someone that she was actually paralyzed from the neck down without her own kit. "I want to make improvements on this design, it's actually over fifteen years old. My engineers are good, but they don't hold a candle to you..." She purred. She would have hired Hebiru for herself if given the chance. . I just want to play Yanai Hebiru

made by eden @ gs and thq

[Yanai Hebiru]

The Doctor is In

Seeing the arriving cups of coffee Hebiru considered jokingly rolling her eyes again. She quickly discarded the idea realizing she'd already done so moments before and doing so again already could give the misconception she was actually annoyed. Instead she quirked one side of her lips up in a knowing smile. Raising the cup she inhaled deeply to take in the fragrance.

"Oh my~" Hebiru continued with one eyebrow slightly raised. "Does this cafe always serve coffee of this quality?"

Her attention was quickly taken by the card in front of her. Small it may be it was more in depth than she'd been expecting. Far, far more in depth. She supposed it was only to be expected that an incredible amount of thought would be put into a piece of technology as advanced and invasive as this one but it still took her off guard. Her eyes narrowed. To produce something like this...

Absent-mindedly she nodded at Sonya's request, too focused on the card in front of her to provide an appropriate reply to the compliment. If it had gone through fifteen years of development it would make sense that it had gotten this far. She charitably ignored the more likely interpretation of miss Chernovna's words, that this design had been fully completed fifteen years ago. After all, this schematic looked like it had gone through a lot of revisions. The kind that is made after flaws or inadequacies in the design were found or specific improvements in certain areas were requested. While the former of the two could be explained by animal testing the latter very much could not.

She had never heard of ASTA taking part in human experimentation and given their sterling reputation highly doubted they would risk engaging in such a thing without going through the long-winded legal requirements even if it could serve the greater good. It is only with that thought that she briefly managed to draw her attention away from the card and look back up into Sonya's appraising eyes. Hebiru didn't think keeping her waiting would be a good idea yet she needed a bit more time to mull things over before she could reply. Downing her cup of coffee ignorant of its temperature and offhandedly gesturing for another a thought occurred to her.

Sonya had not stated her company was the one to develop it. Simply that it was fifteen years old and she was looking to improve upon it. Had it been anyone else Hebiru would have considered the vagueness to be some kind of test to judge her qualifications but that did not line up with what she knew of miss Chernovna. No, it made far more sense that this design was obtained from a different company or organisation that simply paid much less attention to ethics during its development and Sonya would rather not dwell on such a thing.

Taking the hint Hebiru made sure she herself would not bring it up either. Ethics aside the design held a level of potential that could not be ignored and would be very valuable if it could be adapted to see more widespread usage. Testing, retesting and confirming the safety of such a marvel would have them run into the exact same problems she would should she try to create something like this by herself however with a schematic as elaborate as this and likely fully functional it is highly likely a great many steps will take far less time. Not to mention that with ASTA's budget they could progress much faster than the norm even without her. With her expertise thrown in however...

It was rare that something made Hebiru's breath catch but this certainly did the trick. In her search for a solution to her quirk related woes she'd devoted a great amount of time to the study of neuroscience. While she'd eventually ran into bottlenecks and difficulties adapting the field of study to the physiology of one without a central nervous system those very problems she'd encountered made her uniquely suited to this project. Not to mention there was a good chance that the data and insights gathered during it were likely to be highly beneficial to her own studies.

She had to take a moment to gather herself. Muted as her emotions were she could nonetheless detect them affecting her physically in moments like these and had to consciously bring everything under control before she could trust herself to continue the conversation without letting them get the better of her. Even though little more than a minute had passed since she'd began analyzing the card it still annoyed her greatly to have to spend several seconds on such a thing.

"My, miss Chernovna, you certainly never fail to impress. I must admit I have a great many questions but let us focus on the most important matters for now. First off, I am indeed confident I can refine this design further and am most interested in taking part in this project. The main questions I have however before I agree to anything are to what extent ASTA intends to prioritize it, what manner of resources the company intends to allocate to the development of such technology and what direction the developmental process is meant to go."

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Tags: Sonya Chernovna  Yanai Hebiru

[Sonya Chernovna]

dont fret, dearie Sonya nodded with delight, "As a matter of fact they do, I actually turned in my punch card as part of the service today," Sonya said with a shameless laugh, sipping at her coffee as her finger lingered on the data-card. Nearby a few of the waitresses came over, in full moe performance mode, and shyly offered different meal items. Sonya delightedly selected a few morsels before turning her attention back on Hebiru. The woman's mind was working a mile a minute. Her hesitation obvious. Sonya's eyes twinkled as she sipped at her coffee again and released the data card, allowing Hebiru to put it in whatever device she was using and examine the contents. Sonya nodded slowly as the woman reviewed it and thought harder. She had a feeling about what was going on through the woman's mind, that was fine, she could think whatever she wanted. That said, Hebiru kept things professional, which was lovely. But Sonya wasn't the type to keep things like that. Her company had a reputation to maintain, and if she allowed it to be released even through one of her subsidiaries, she would have to answer many questions. If she had the moral endorsement of heroes like Yanai Hebiru, on the other hand, Sonya saw a bright future in medical technologies for her company. She would have to be honest first, "Before I answer your question, I'll answer another that's probably on your mind," Sonya said and sipped her coffee, "I am paralyzed from the neck down, doctor," Sonya said in a low voice so the girls around them couldn't hear. "That design has been inside my body for fifteen years," She said simply, "I've finally managed to get a complete scan and I want to make some improvements, not only for myself, but to make it available to people who truly need it at an affordable price," Sonya said seriously, setting down her cup. "I will be building a new facility for a new ASTA Medical Division if you are interested in the project," She said and set her hands in her lap. "I understand what it means to need something like what's in your hands. I was thirteen when mine was installed..." She let out a breath, "I'll gladly bend over backwards to see that no one else has to suffer as I did." I just want to play Yanai Hebiru

made by eden @ gs and thq

[Yanai Hebiru]

The Doctor is In

Yanai Hebiru's mind was going a mile a minute. The revelation she'd received was highly unexpected but slot into place like the final piece of a puzzle, finally revealing the full picture.

Being unable to move for the majority of one's formative years was bound to bestow anyone with a certain perspective of life. One that shows clearly how fragile it is, how many things are taken for granted and how easily said things can be lost.

It certainly explained much. Why the woman before her seemed to chase whatever she desired with almost reckless abandon. Why she moved at her own pace without caring what others thought and why she sought closeness in abundance that she would not have been able to reciprocate without her implanted support. Above all, it explained the sheer amount of resources she was willing to pour into this project.

Hebiru could have offered condolences or sympathy but she strongly believed neither of them had any interest in such a thing. Instead she put her tablet down for a moment and nodded in agreement.

"My, you have accomplished quite a lot despite the lack of a headstart, miss Chernovna. I am most certainly interested in participating in this endeavour."

Tapping her touchscreen keyboard while she talked Hebiru navigated to her agenda, highlighted a rather large amount of hours within it and turned the tablet to face Sonya. She was certain she did not need to elaborate on why she was interested in participating. Her past research was into similar subjects and the 'mutation' part of her quirk was common knowledge. The way it affected her sensory input was not of course but she had no doubt someone looking hard enough might be able to intuit it.

"While I cannot abandon my job as UAU's resident medical professional for obvious reasons I am capable of putting these fifty-six hours aside every week to assist with the research and development of this technology. Am I correct in assuming you already have a contract in the making?"

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Tags: Sonya Chernovna Yanai Hebiru

[Sonya Chernovna]

dont fret, dearie Sonya appreciated the deftness with how Hebiru handled the conversation, condolences would have fallen on deaf ears. Her personal version of the cybernetics had been tuned up and amplified with the help of her engineers, giving her superhuman physical traits. The weakness to electromagnetic waves was a mild consequence by comparison. She hardly saw her condition as a disability. Besides, with Hebiru's help, she'd be able to push the gear past the human limitation. She didn't say that, though. "Thank you," She smiled easily, "I'm relieved by your enthusiasm! That energy is a good look on you, you know." Sonya watched the woman work for a moment and then eyed the screen that was presented to her. Her eyes widened and her lips twisted into a barely restrained snort of humor, "Do you not sleep? I couldn't live with myself if I took you away from UAU in any respect. The young people are your priority. I'll give you access to the servers specific to the project and a badge so you can come and go from the lab that I have built. You can do most of your work from your office at UAU and come in to meet with your team. A fraction of those hours, darling, please. Don't kill yourself," Sonya waved her hand dismissively, "I care about your health." With that she nodded again leaning forward with a flirtatious smile, "Yes I have a contract being whipped up by my legal team, they'll have it ready for you by the time we're done enjoying ourselves." I just want to play Yanai Hebiru

made by eden @ gs and thq

[Yanai Hebiru]

The Doctor is In

Hebiru considered Sonya's words carefully. She'd need to see about having a new computer installed in UAU's infirmary. While her current one certainly wasn't bad she doubted it had the kind of security required to work on a project such as this. Porting everything over and making sure all the correct systems were in place would take a while but it would improve things for years to come. Yes, sacrificing the short term to improve the long term was an easy choice to make.

"Please do not be concerned. UAU's students will remain my top priority. There is likewise no need to worry about my sleep schedule. I will rest much easier once sufficient progress has been made."

She made sure to put a grateful smile on her face when Sonya mentioned caring about her health. Even if it was unnecessary. Hebiru barely had a 'health' that could be cared about. Her complete lack of internal organs made sure of that. She supposed everything had its advantages and disadvantages. While her form still seemed to either mimic of suffer from many of the same problems as anyone else's, things such as disease or illness rarely managed to take hold.

"Excellent. I must admit, it has been a while since I've enjoyed the company of a peer outside of a professional environment. Albeit I suppose that is what this will soon become too. No matter."

Hebiru shrugged. She hadn't been lying when she said it had been a while. With muted emotions she had little interest in socializing and with a physiology that only made sense skin deep any form of deeper intimacy would be impossible leading her to mostly avoid social interactions unless they were necessary. Yes, she'd much rather focus on her research instead.

Still, it couldn't hurt now and then, could it? She'd have a few drinks, dinner and enjoy a pleasant conversation. What more could she ask for? While she didn't have one she vaguely felt the equivalent of her stomach churning. She really couldn't ask for more until she progressed further, could she?

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Tags: Sonya Chernovna  Yanai Hebiru

[Sonya Chernovna]

dont fret, dearie Sonya laughed at Hebiru's comment about an unprofressional environment becoming professional and waved a hand. "Hardly! Ha ha ha! We can be as unprofessional as we want, I know I am," She teased, glancing towards a few of the wait staff with a playful look on her face. She cleared her throat and leaned back in her chair. "You can never have too much fun, dearie! Seriously, live a little. I get the desire to do research all the time, I do." She reached up and tapped the side of her head, "I've been working on my eyes for years, it was an obsession to get them just right. Someone used to remind me on more than one occasion that it's best to live a little now and then." Sonya relaxed a little and smiled gently, "What's the point of life if you aren't smiling now and then?" The CEO waved her hand towards the waitress and before long they were placing proper meal orders, their business concluded, they could enjoy themselves a little more. She let out a sigh as she watched the watiress retreat to deliver their orders to the kitchen and glanced back at Hebiru. "Ever been to a night club?" I just want to play Yanai Hebiru

made by eden @ gs and thq

[Yanai Hebiru]

The Doctor is In

"I assure you, I find my research most satisfying." Hebiru countered with a nod, not entirely disagreeing with Sonya's words but not feeling like outright accepting them either. "Though I suppose variety is the spice of life."

Gods knew she needed a lot of spice to properly taste anything. Perhaps it might not be too bad of an idea to apply that approach to the rest of her life as well. Then again, what is short term fun compared to being able to fully experience things in the long term?

Nevertheless Sonya's words were beginning to take root in her and she made sure to put on a smile in reply. Letting herself be lost in thought for a moment while the woman places their order Hebiru determines she does not have sufficient data to come to a proper conclusion. So as much as she'd like to refuse out of hand and get back to work when the conversation turns to the subject of a night club she doesn't. 

"I cannot say I have. Unless I'm reading things incorrectly I'm assuming that's about to change?" Hebiru said more than asked. Pulling out her phone she sent a brief text to Shirei to close for the day and was slightly surprised when she received an enthusiastic emoji-filled reply back within seconds. Little did Hebiru know her assistant had figured out exactly where she was through the use of social media and was practically squealing the moment she received the text. She'd be facing many 'subtle' inquiries over the next few weeks, but that's a story for another time.

"It appears I do not have any remaining responsibilities for today. Of course I do not wish to impose should you have any but otherwise I do believe I shall take you up on the offer."

After all, what's the worse that could happen?

Tags: Sonya Chernovna  Yanai Hebiru

[Sonya Chernovna]

dont fret, dearie Sonya smirked and rest her elbows on the table, leaning forward and placing her chin in her palms. "I like a woman who's quick to catch on," She said wryly, using her mental hud to send a message to her secretary, Kaede. She could almost hear the woman sigh in resignation over Sonya yet again skipping out on meetings for a playdate with a beautiful woman. She cracked a wide smile and glanced up at the waitress who returned with their food. She did her best to put on a cutsey act for the two vip patrons, smiling and curtseying before placing the food down between them, there were even little doodles drawn with the sauce. Sonya, delighted as always, dug in with gusto. She popped a piece into her mouth and sighed with delight, "Oh no worries at all dearie! Please, I haven't been to a night club in a few days and I'm aching for a night out. So many meetings, and greetings, and signings, and the politicians Hebiru darling," She groaned dramatically. She took a sip of her drink, "You like a particular kind of music?" She pressed, already pulling up a vast list of nightclubs, official and unofficial, legal and dubiously so, across the city in her hud.  I just want to play Yanai Hebiru

made by eden @ gs and thq

[Yanai Hebiru]

The Doctor is In

Hebiru weathered the waitress's act with only the slighest bit of second hand embarrassment. It was quite clear that the young employee had no idea how to behave in Sonya's presence. She couldn't help but wonder what exactly had been on the paper the CEO had handed her earlier. Perhaps she was overthinking matters, after all, Sonya is practically a celebrity in her own right. It only makes sense the young woman would be a bit nervous.

"Fu fu... I can understand that. Life is certainly busy when you're trying to make a change."

Taking a bite of her omurice she briefly savored the taste, muted as it was, before refocusing on the conversation. Eggs had always agreed with her no matter how they were prepared. 

"Hmm, if I had to pick..." Hebiru took a moment to think, her finger tapping her lip as she did. "Perhaps R&B? Jazz now and then?"

She did tend to listen to those two genres whenever she tried to relax. Those times were few and far in between however. When she was working her way through a crunch, something that happened much more often, she tended to use nightcore versions of death metal instead to keep her thoughts in line. As much as she didn't think Sonya would judge however Hebiru wasn't quite interested in sharing that little factoid.

Even so the decision to bring up those two genres wasn't solely because she liked them, no, it was mostly because they tended to be soft enough to allow listeners to hold a conversation during it. For while she wasn't against relaxing per se her research still took priority. She was sure Sonya would prefer not to talk about work during their outing so she'd have to dance around the subject and perhaps stick with tangibly related questions but she was confident she could still make some progress.

There was no way she could feel comfortable simply enjoying herself after all. It would grate the entire time she'd try, no, she had to work towards something to keep herself occupied throughout it. Still, so long as she kept things light she was sure it'd be fine.

Questions like who was in her team, what they were like and whether she could get to know them before the start of the project were innocent enough after all. She wasn't entirely sure whether it was Sonya or herself she was trying to fool but she supposed it mattered little in the end. The result would be the same.

"What about you, Sonya? Which genres do you like?"

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Tags: Sonya Chernovna  Yanai Hebiru

[Sonya Chernovna]

dont fret, dearie Sonya nodded emphatically along with Hebiru's words, a smile blossoming on her face. She opened her eyes with a half-lidded glance, the eerie hot-pink glow gleaming from beneath her eyelids. She sipped at her drink and took another bite of the omurice, delicious, and made by such delicate and beautiful hands, and the little notes written in ketchup. She was positively giddy! She hummed to herself as her joy reached new heights again, how easy was it to please the queen of the underworld? Apparently, very easy. She glanced up at Hebiru, "R&B and Jazz?" She chuckled a little bit into her fork and leaned forward on her elbow, raising her eyebrows. "Sounds like someone's a closet romantic," She teased with a wink and leaned back. She didn't say anything as she watched the thoughts working about behind Hebiru's eyes. She wasn't sure what she was thinking, but there was a moment of hesitation there that was hard to miss. She held onto that for later. Instead, she sipped her drink and swallowed quickly when Hebiru shot the question back at her. "Me? Oh dearie I love music in general, it varies based on what I'm doing, to be honest," She said and started counting down on her fingers casually, "When I'm working in the lab or in my workshop, it's hard to hear much beyond heavy metal or american classic rock, so I'll listen to that," She drew out another finger, "Reading it's usually some manner of lofi or light jazz, I love to dance to swing," She continued dropping a third finger and then a fourth, "I'll make love to just about anything, though nothing relaxing, I tend to be a bit rough," She said casually, drawing a series flustered gasps from across the room that she ignored. "Oh! Research, nightcore covers of all sorts of things and synthwave," She offered with a shrug, "Different music for a different mood, yes?" She said sweetly, offering the prettiest smile she could with closed eyes. "How about a Jazz club for the evening, dearie?" She moved on. I just want to play Yanai Hebiru

made by eden @ gs and thq