" Where's William?"
" Off doing his job, for the first time within the past year," Nova said, flopping down in the east wing's rec room.
" Oh yeah, this is his job, isn't it?" Prima observed, bouncing a ball back to a machine opponent with a racket. It predictably countered him, and as he leaned to hit it back, he missed.
" No, Prima, he's just the captain of a pleasure cruise," Nova replied, deadpan, sinking down into the cushioning of his recliner. Prima picked the ball up and served it again.
Prima paused, for just a moment, and missed the ball when it was hit back to him.
" Is something bothering you?" he asked.
" Your terrible playing."
" No, but like, for real."
" Hhhggghhhh," Nova huffed and sank down further in the cushioning. " I want Wille."
" That basically goes without saying, you know. You've got it pretty bad."
" Die."
" Rude. I'm trying to help."
" Stupid idiot bimbo of a man... How do I make him come back to Sturm with me? When this diplomacy tour is over? He said he couldn't because he's with DASS... how do I make him give up DASS...?"
Prima's score was 4-5.
" You could always let me be Lyena and stay here with him," he replied.
5-5.
" Of course you'd be over here concocting schemes."
" It'd be more like taking one for the team, but alright."
" I have no intent of voluntarily abdicating my position."
" Why, though? It kind of sucks."
" That sort of mindset is exactly why I can't just let you waltz around doing whatever you want. You'd drown all of Sturm in a sea of sexual harassment scandals."
" Why do you want to be Lyena so bad? It's not like you're happy with it."
" I don't need to be happy."
" What, you want to be miserable all the time?"
" You should consider your social position before you speak to me like that."
" So I'm right and you're mad about it, is what I'm getting out of this."
" I should've let Mordau follow through on his little plan," Nova complained. " You've gotten far too confident."
" If you don't like being Lyena and you like being with Wille, it seems like a kind of obvious choice to me."
" I never said anything about it being a choice."
" Seriously, though, you need to like... Consider what's actually important to you, right now, not just whatever baggage you have weighing you down from the past."
" ....You really do sound like a spoiled brat that never had to live with the war."
Prima missed.