Still in uniform, Hyeon-ju was taking the long road back to the inn by exploring the city some more. Word was that they were setting up tents for a meet and greet later in this garden, but she could still take in the sights that the exotic location had to offer.

Paying one bu for the special UV-glasses, the Utaku put them on as she began her stroll.

Around a bend in one of the paths, a Lion Clan bushi in fatigue dress is contemplating one of the iridescent UV flowers through the stock UV glasses. He removes them, shaking his head and making a face at the strange plant.

A Lion. So probably yet another miai attendendant.

Armed with this assumption, Hyeon-ju approached, waiting a respectful distance away to not interrupt him at first with the glasses.

Focused as he is on the strange plant life, Akihiko hears the gentle footsteps and turns to regard the other samurai.

"Good afternoon, Unicorn-sama," he says as he bows politely, voice betraying he started to speak before noticing any mons she might be wearing. As his head rises he smiles pleasantly. "This one is Akodo Akihiko, gunso of 4th Flight...." The smiling Lion catches himself being too formal. "I'm a Lion navy pilot."

She raised an eyebrow at his decision to not be formal, which to her seemed an odd thing for a Lion.

"Utaku Hyeon-ju, hohei of the 7th Sky Rider Wing. Also a pilot. An honor, Akodo-sama." Wide hazel eyes looked to his UV-glasses. "Were you having technical difficulties with your glasses?"

Akihiko looks at the glasses in his hands and chuckles. He folds them and puts them gently into a pocket.

"I'm sure it's operator error," he smiles. "The garden is reminding me how used to being aboard ship or in a cockpit I am. Plants of any kind, and even more so when brought up to this scale," he gestures toward a particularly tall specimen, "haven't really been a part of my life recently."

"But perhaps it is different among the Sky Riders?"

"More or less the same. We spend a lot of time on space-stations or on ships, it can go long periods of time before we're planet-side again," she confessed in a calm and mannered tone. "Once we're rotated off active duty, the majority spend time planet-side... quite often the places that still have a lot of wilderness. Not like this though. The mushrooms I mean."

Hyeon-ju paused to look at the surroundings again.

"I was fortunate enough to have some time off before coming here, with time to visit one of the holdings of my Family."

Akihiko nods politely, smiling at her comment about the mushrooms. Yeah, these mushrooms are just ridiculous.

"It's nice to spend time in familiar places," the Lion says a bit wistfully. Then he chuckles a little. "About three years ago I did a tour of duty -- my first tour, actually -- in Unicorn space, chasing pirates. Some lovely planets, but it sometimes feels like that was three lifetimes ago."

She did seem a little surprised. "In Unicorn space, you say? Which places did you visit?"

It was always a rare thing to have clans visiting eachother like that.

"We were based out of the Far Plains system. Basically a small frigate squadron and a couple of tenders, only there for about seven, eight months of a nine month deployment. I think it wasn't intended as much more than a training and good will mission, but I did get my first partial kill in that campaign," the Lion says matter of factly.

"Ah. It must've been with a different unit than mine then, as I had just graduated from the academy right before that time," she nodded with appriciation in her expression.

Of course, Hyeon-ju knew what he had probably gotten his first kill against back then. They just couldn't say it outright who it was.

"Picking off Spooks has certainly been an activity the past years. Your assistance is greatly appriciated, Akodo-sama." If he had spent some time with the Unicorn fighters, he might've picked up on the slang Spooks for 'Totally-Not-Spiders'. "I hope I get the chance to do something similar - fly in other systems that is, with our allies."

"I hope you get that opportunity too. It is helpful, thought-provoking, to have that different experience. And of course, fighting pirates," he says, clearly using the euphemism for enemy clan forces avoiding identification, "is different than regular combat operations. Have you been in any large combat operations, Utaku-san, or just 'spook control'?"

"Both. I've been involved in larger confrontations with the aforementioned pirates and spooks, as I've been in my unit for about three years. Most of the time it is simple patrol and 'spook control', which has become quieter as of late." Understandably as the Spider were busy elsewhere now.

"But I've been in two larger battles that happened while on patrol. Got at least 10 spooks on my scoreboard, and no losses on my unit, but I won't claim sole responsibility for those successes as such is achieved through superior teamwork rather than individual fighters."

Akihiko nods emphatically. "Hai, it is the quality of our squadron mates and all those that care for our ships and equipment that keep us alive and able to get kills." He shakes his head. "Some aces act like they alone are doing the work, when the spear tip alone can win no battles at all."

She gave a dry chuckle, feeling a little relieved that she had found someone of a similar opinion.

"Quite right. I feel half my job sometimes is to keep some of the mavericks in line, remind them that we have formations and routines for a reason. Alas, that earns me a reputation... not that I mind, I take great pride in our unit's successes. It's how I get my callsign Wasp." Hyeon-ju smirked with some humor at that. Like most, you just come to embrace your callsign.

Akihiko smiles and nods in agreement. "I have told fellow pilots many times that a glory-hound who forgets the importance of his team will not live long in a starfighter. Unfortunately, some don't find that advice very palatable from someone with the call sign 'Goldenboy.'" Akihiko gives the slightest grimace at sharing his call sign, understanding that it isn't flattering, although he's made his peace with it. "I would think young pilots more likely to listen to a Wasp than a Goldenboy," Akihiko says with a smirk.

"You say that now," she gave a wry smile, knowing very well how others spoke of her. But hey, he had done the Pilot-rite now of sharing the Pilot Callsign, so that meant he earned an extra mark on her scoreboard.

"Goldenboy, huh? Top of your class?" Hyeon-ju knew some callsigns were even more rude. "... You don't have to answer if the reason behind it is too... improper for polite conversation. I know how these things go very well myself."

Akihiko guffaw at the idea he was head of his class, and he chuckles knowingly as she mentions how improper call signs can be.

"Ah, no, no great accomplishments. Well, I guess to some people." He shakes his head, adjusting his feet as though sharing the story requires bracing himself. "During that tour in Unicorn space, one day I was piloting a shuttle up from planetside, when I saw a, a spook trying to break off from an attack on one of our frigates. It had been hit but was flying fine. Anyway, that shuttle had a radiant cannon--I'm still not sure why, but I was young and crazy enough to think I could finish off that spook, and somehow I turned out right. My first partial kill." Akihiko smiles,but shakes his head. "It was accomplishment enough to have Ikoma Widecast turn my advanced flight training experience into a reality/docu-series, which meant when I arrived with the Long Claws, I was a Widecast star who'd never really been in combat. My flight mates, fairly understandably, assumed I was just a 'Goldenboy.'"

"Ahh..." now the image fell into place, and she could see why he had his nickname.

"I'm sad to say that my own story isn't as thrilling as that. Some in my squad felt I was like a worker bee... always busy, always something, always working on something. And well... there was a remark that I almost behaved like the Queen Bee of the team." There was a slight frown. While she owned up to it, it was still a small - a teeny tiny - point of annoyance.

"To which another responded; Hyeon-ju ain't no bee, because you won't get any honey from her. And then it was decided that I was a wasp." Breathing in deeply, she gave a shrug, showing her own acceptance with the nature of how these names were given, but also the level of trust and appriciation a team had for eachother to often tolerate such nicknames. "I'm not bothered by it - I simply just take great pride in doing the best I can, and to seek to do better. Every time. If I am still with the Utaku after this miai, I will begin on the track for officer-training."

Akihiko starts to smile at the beginning of the Unicorn's story, but by the end his lips are pursed and his eyes look angry.

"Utaku-san, I commend your attitude. Your service brings you well-deserved honor, especially in the face of that experience." He shakes his head, clearly trying to quell some anger. As he speaks again, it's with fire that few people in his life have seen: "Please forgive my saying, but every time..." He battles back, trying not to offend. "It is most unfortunate that bushi -- not just your clan, of course, mine too, and probably the rest -- pilots especially..." He clenches his fists, and pauses to breathe deeply. After another breath he looks back at her. As he speaks, he goes slowly, still visibly unsettled.

"I think it's very important that we hold ourselves and our comrades to higher standards. We know samurai, but especially those in positions of regard, like pilots, will set the example that others follow. When the example is..." He clearly struggles for a more proper word than what first came to mind, and finally gives up. "When the example is that..." More head-shaking disbelief.

Finally, he pulls together what he really means: "Stupid things like that are what puts weak spots in the armor that a team needs to survive and win. It won't seem so funny to them when they're calling Wasp for help, and that half second flash of bad memory is the half second when they're killed." The stern look on Akihiko's face isn't directed at Hyeon-ju, but is hardly appropriate for the gardens.