Shigure was with her team, enjoying a well-earned break in the pub that was the Shinsengumi after a day of harsh training, the bar managed by the mother of all carriers, Houshou.
A dark-haired ponytail atop a gentle female adult's gently parted hair with a scarlet kimono top, and a dark hakama, or a form of heavily pleated loose trousers, beneath.
She was smiling down on the 1st Fleet, patiently listening to their troubles as she served them some food and drinks.
Or to be more specific, Junyou's complaints as she rambled on while drunk. The light carrier had certainly kept her promise to Shigure, trying to lower her alcohol intake, but this was a Friday, which meant that she didn't have to worry about staying sober, since there was no official training on the weekends.
"… And then, that damn drill freak commended on our Fleet performance, and you know what she did? She ran us through another set! AGAIN!
Oh my god, I was so lonely without my best friend sake right here…chu, chu!"
Junyou started making smooching noises as she puckered up her lips to kiss her sake bottle. The team simply sighed, accepting their teammate's alcohol dependency as her coping mechanism.
Tatsuta was sharing her well-done steak with Tenryuu, the name ship trying not to look grateful for having a bite of that oily, yet delicious and tenderized meat that her sister ordered. Tatsuta certainly seemed to like spending quality time with her, and didn't seem to mind the company of others.
Hiei was a passive observer, drinking her soda and observing both Shigure and Junyou. Ayanami was chatting to Shigure about her sisters, and about her past experiences on this base.
Shigure was content to sit back and enjoy the company of her Fleet, especially its livelier members. She would enjoy their boasts and their exuberant natures as they filled the bar with their jovial voices that helped to keep Shigure busy with trying to keep track of everything they said.
She then focused her attention onto the manager of the bar.
According to Houshou's introduction, she constructed the Shinsengumi to accommodate the ship girls, and also as a way to help out in her own base after her "retirement".
She wasn't an active ship girl by any means, considering her own design to be too antiquated to be of much use in the field.
However, she was one of the few ship girls who also garnered everyone's respect through her seniority and dedication to serving the base and the ship girls who still fought on the front lines.
Tearing her eyes from the light carrier that was behind the counter, Shigure finally asked Ayanami,
"So, what do you think of our team so far?
I think we're a pretty good team, with good teamwork and a pretty good Fleet composition."
Ayanami looked down to consider the question, taking into account the characters of its individual members, and their performance in practice, and potential problems in the future. She didn't seem to want to give a half thought-out answer to such an important question.
"I think that we can accomplish a lot together, but something of concern may be our personalities, especially our interactions and whatever individual issues that might need to be addressed."
"Oh, I agree with Ayanami-san here, but I also believe that if all of you learn to trust in each other to listen to you voice your woes, you'll certainly mature as a team and further improve your team dynamic."
Houshou politely interrupted, adding in her own opinion to try and help out the duo and their team.
"But the important thing is whether you learn to trust each other to such an extent.
If you don't, then there's only so much you can do."
"But how are we supposed to do that? Bonding time? Living with each other?"
Junyou drawled lazily as she sipped from her bottle.
Houshou only smiled, and replied.
"If that's what it takes."
Shigure wondered about that. She certainly understood the importance of Houshou's advice, but as she looked around the table at her teammates, she wondered how she was going to achieve such a level of trust with her current teammates.
Junyou was a drinker, her reliability and ability to garner respect as a senior rather questionable, despite her inner kindness that was hidden beneath her indifferent and drunk exterior.
Ayanami as well as Hiei could be trusted due to their trustworthiness and desire to do their best as teammates, and with their good service record.
Tenryuu was a good senior, but she was always trying too hard to impress everyone in battle and be stronger, not unlike her own attitude to try harder at the expense of her own safety, and seemed as if she was aiming to protect everyone by risking her own life in battle.
Tatsuta was downright scary, and Shigure wasn't sure if she could even approach the light cruiser without being downright terrified of her killer aura and her creepy smile.
But she wasn't going to sit around and theory-craft all day, and determine that such an effort wasn't worth attempting without actually trying.
She really wanted to go far with her team, and help them all through their problems, whatever they may be.
And perhaps they'd help her in return.