how brilliant, to be good

"Oh, Fifi, my dear, I've missed yer sweet face."

It was not one week ago that he'd last clapped eyes on it, yet Triton seemed even more openly emotional than usual, under Fiona's gaze. Not that she had long to make her estimation, after all, since she was swiftly swept into a crushing hug, Triton's cheek squished against hers as she was lifted far too easily off the ground.

(Luckily for Fiona, he'd remembered to remove his helmet in the process of his gleeful approach.)

"Too good for us Colony pals now that you've moved to the City, Cap'n?" she got out in a cheery tone broken only by the force of her automatic grin as her soles met the ground once more. Triton was, in fact, much easier to taunt than she'd ever expected - even Lan-Lan still struggled to get one over on Colony 15's jolly commander, but not Proudbanner Fiona.

Said captain, meanwhile, waved a meaty hand, face just as powerfully rent by joy. "Well, but ye young folks keep each other occupied, don't ye?"

Oh, Fiona surely did try her best. She, Tallow, Hildemarie, Nico (for sure, Nico!), and so many other names she was sure Triton'd have a hard time remembering if he didn't already have a hard time remembering...well, everything!

When Fiona seemed to fall silent at the semi-rhetorical question, Triton gave her another (literal) nudge, and watched the ribbons in her hair sway to one side as she buckled in distraction. He let her catch herself, then: "So, what's news?"

News! News, news, news... What was there to say, anyway? Nothing much about the newly-freed commander herself, and anything that affected them all, by way of the City, Cap'n was sure to know himself. In all the excitement, Fiona wasn't sure that she really could come up with much of anything worthy for the chatting. It was strange, she always found so much to talk about with Sennie and Mimi, but if she were put on the spot, suddenly she felt as if she were nothing more than a flag waving over her friends' heads, overseeing all their fascinating accomplishments.

Oh! But speaking of Mu, "I can tell you what Tussore's been up to. Tussore - she's...the one with the ears, you know?" Fiona used two fingers to recall the catlike Agnian trait, cocking her head as she did so.

It probably wasn't the best start to a conversation, but Triton latched right on, with gusto. "Oh, right! The tiny one!"

Fiona's consideration of that response was that they were all tiny, weren't they? But, "No, no, Tussore's taller than Hildie. Her skin's a fair bit darker, too."

Triton scratched his chin. "Would I be able to tell 'em apart, at the sight?"

"I suppose you wouldn't. But it's no matter! About Tussie - she got Ouroboros together and figured out how to get what we need to raise Armus, at Colony Mu. In the City, they sell a textbook on Armu and Ardun. Lotus - that's someone different, you'll see, she's not got the ears - helped plan it out too. Feeding them, and pairing them together based on their personalities and how they might get along. Actually, they're getting along so well, there was even a baby born!"

Triton's eyes were nothing short of sparkling. "You don't say!"

"Just as shiny as a treasure, is Nandun!" proclaimed Fiona, sparkling right back.

Surely that would pique the captain's interest. And maybe it did, but he only seemed to nod nostalgically along just as he'd done thus far. "Sure, I'd like to see that," he mused.

As Fiona was about to launch into further detail of the rainmaking Nopon, and what Hildemarie actually had been up to, Triton fixed his gaze upon her once more, saying softly, "It really is good to see ye doing so well."

"Oh, but I've only told you about what my friends have been up to. I-"

"Truth be told, I was lookin' forward to it."

"I thought," Fiona began, lips twitching again despite her defiant fists propped on hips, "you said you'd given up thinking ahead long ago."

"Whaa? Now, just who told you that?"