"Not lucky. Not lucky. Family is not luck."

Mirror shakes her head. Her tail reaches up from behind her shoulder and presses its fluffy tip against Isabelle's lips, as if predicting a possible interjection.

"Not skill, either. Family is not skill. But, deserved. Hard work. Family is... effort. Reaching out. Connecting. Growing. Changing. Expanding. And sometimes... contracting. Cutting off. Because family. Is not blood. Often, yes. But sometimes you must choose. Between the family that will have you and the family that assumes you. I have made this choice. Before. I have walked away. Debts are not forever, Isabelle Lozano."

The dance continues. Mirror is a very stubborn instructor, though she is fluid in the way she moves there is no budge in her when it comes to the nature of the dance. Her only two forms of momentum are the one that she controls and the one where she doesn't move at all. On the surface, a control freak. But that information's at odds with the group she's surrounded herself with, and the way they look at her (and feel free not to, just look at Matty getting sucked deeper and deeper into her own little world). There is a point to it, then. Possibly. Or she just thinks this girl needs permission not to think.

"It is maybe difficult to contemplate. I do not know. Mothers, fathers, sisters, brothers. These may ensare us. Or enrich us. Or one and then the other. But if they harm us. They cease to be family. Because. Family is effort. Family is hard work. Family is earned. Ada Smith, Unseen Goose knows this. It is why she defeated you. Not because she outsmarted you (though she did). Not because she outpiloted you (though she did). You lost because you [i]were[/i] lost. And she was not.

"She is a pirate. This you know. Are you aware of what that means? Mother. Older sister. Wife. Power. She is a protector. Of things, of people, that cannot thrive within the main systems of your society. Consider this: existence where work is impossible. Existence where all the parties feel... askew. Like you cannot belong where they are. Existence where your talents are not valued. Because you need special consideration to thrive. Consideration that is not given. Because it does not occur to others around you that you might be struggling."

Here, she smiles. There is a genuinely pleasant memory at the forefront of her mind, and her body radiates warmth and healing vibrations from the strength of it. The dance mellows considerably, and Mirror is content to follow the beat exactly, if only for the moment.

"I am a mercenary. This you may also know. A different. More limited path. To the same end. I have contracted to Unseen Goose before. A favorite client: she pays me in [i]paper[/i]. Very precious. No one understands. Are you aware of how she operates? To live on the edges means to be free of rules. But free of help, also. And there is... mm. There is a tradition in the Fisher Clan. One which Huntresses scoff at. When we sense a hungry mouth. We forget to guard our meals.

"Do you. Understand? There is pride. In being hungry. There is compassion. in offering the sport. There is dignity. In giving up the chance to have more than you need. That is our way. [i]My[/i] way. And it is how the Unseen Goose lives as well. Were her pirates the sort like in the animes, she would be dead twelve times over. Stronger than me. I hope for my sake she is defeated before I reach her. Or I will disappoint Marcina Villajero. Who is looking forward to me eating her."

A lick of the lips. A curious stare, up into the eyes of Isabelle Lozano. 

"...Hm. You are not. You do not. You would not. I see, I see. You are more effort than that. There are few in your life who might measure up. Isabelle Lozano, whose star name I have seen to be Thirteen Citallic. Your destiny is crushing you. I give you a new name. A gift. In the tradition of my people. Of [i]my people[/i]. You are Distant Gate. A pathway to extraordinary things. To new discoveries. To, mmmmmmmmm."

She walks two fingers up the length of Isabelle's arm, teasingly indicating the spots she'd seen handle those drones from earlier.

"To 'unusual control schemes'. But the walk to you is long, and difficult. And not many have attempted it. And so your heart is lonely. And so your path is quiet. But if you close the distance... I see the potential for many things. Some I love. And some I do not. This name is my gift. If you wear it you need not be Thirteen Citallic any longer. Need not heed your destiny, but make a new one where its corpse lies. All this. A much longer road to say:

"I will not tell you my wish. You must take it without knowing what it is. You will learn it! But I will not speak it aloud for the first time here, of all places. And in the spirit of your greatest business animes I offer you this job. To be part of a team. I have assembled. Am assembling. To deliver a message. To broadcast it over whatever might be happening at the time of my choosing. I assure you it is quite illegal. Fun, yes? Fun, yes! My goals. Twofold. One: to destroy the villain Mayze Szerpaws, and expose her lies to the galaxy. Two: to make the Zaldarian outcast known as Solarel my family."

Mirror stops dancing entirely. Her body is electricity and tension. She almost seems as if she might glow, release some radiant blast of energy from her breath in the way of that people, but she does not. Cannot. She is just a Fisher, after all. Now she heaves a sigh, and for the first time consents to be lead to the beat of another person's heart. To let Isabelle take her where she will, or to let her go entirely.

"I love her. And I will save her. Whether you help me or no. Though I offer recompense for your services. Naturally. The wish is not your payment. The wish is merely information that will be revealed by the job. My offer is this: Hybrasil barter. One favor begets one favor. I ask this, I give this. However humble. Or impossible. The task. I will perform it. I will knit you a sweater. Or I will shatter the chains that shackle you to your wealth. I will make you a pirate. Or a traveler. Or a Queen. It is within my power. This tournament cannot give you everything, Miss Isabelle Lozano. But you can find them here, regardless. Winning matches is unnecessary for all but one. It has. Always. Been a distraction."