Rita

Concept art by Sharon Oh

—Rita[src]

**Rita** is an extremely proficient hacker and Juno Steel's secretary and best friend. Quirky and energetic, Rita may seem shallow at first glance, but she merely has unconventional ways of working and getting what she wants. She has repeatedly broken into Dark Matters' database and lived to tell the tale.

## Early Life

Rita met Juno fifteen years before he worked the case involving the Death Mask of Grimpotheuthis, back when he was still working for the Hyperion City Police Department. She was hired to be his secretary while Juno still worked with Puck Falco. Upon first meeting, Juno was intimidated and somewhat unsettled by her high energy, and he eventually interrupted her lively tangent by demanding she shake his hand. Rita enthusiastically shook his hand, dusty soy-flavored fingers and all, much to Juno's disgust. He then asked if Rita had any hand wipes. When she expressed confusion at what hand wipes were, Juno begrudgingly decided to go to the convenience store on his break and buy a pack for her. Rita was delighted to have her boss buying her gifts on her first day.

Over the next week, Juno repeatedly tried to fire Rita and then rehire her whenever he couldn't figure out whatever technology he needed to use or if he needed someone to get things done. When Juno tried to fire her again, Rita pointed this out, then proposed that they use "*you're fired*" as a code for Rita to step in and help Juno. Eventually, Juno begrudgingly began to accept her as an employee and a friend.

After Juno was kicked out of the HCPD, Rita managed to have Juno registered as a private investigator and obtained an office for his new practice -- the latter was done presumably with her own money, as she told him that she was his only investor after Juno reacted with disbelief and doubt. She recognized that Juno wanted to continue to do good things and wanted to help him along the way. Thus, the two began their adventures in the private sector.

## History

Rita has worked as Juno Steel's secretary for years, helping him with his cases and digging through whatever databases he needs her to to find more information.

When Juno tells her he wants to leave Hyperion City to work for Buddy Aurinko, Rita agrees to come with him. She subsequently learns her hacking skills make her an even more desirable recruit than Juno himself, and she joins the Aurinko Crime Family with great enthusiasm and excitement.

## Personality

Rita is energetic, loud, and enthusiastic, which is apparent in just about every appearance she makes. She enjoys snacking, frequently mentioning it -- pretzels and salmon paste are one snack mentioned, and Noah Simes, the voice of numerous Penumbra Podcast characters, has noted that she would likely eat something covered in chocolate that shouldn't be covered in chocolate. She is "all for adventure" until one of her *"three S's*" ("*shoes, snacks, and salmon-sausage snacks*") get wet. This gal takes her snacks seriously.

Rita frequently enjoys movies and shows, getting hooked on a paper spaceship construction marathon at one point, and watching several "streams" while working for Juno to the point of getting scolded for it. She has a tendency to excessively explain and allude to different programs she's watched in many conversations. When recounting things she's watched, however, she often seems to frequently forget crucial pieces of information about them.

Rita is patient enough to have dealt with Juno's moods and incredible ineptitude with technology for many years, though she isn't afraid to tell him off when she needs to.

She seems to be easily flustered around people she finds attractive, which, since she "ain't choosy," turns out to be quite a few. She is easily distracted by Rex Glass when he entered Juno's office, splutters immensely when offered services at Valles Vicky's Vixen Valley, and is easily swayed by Yasmin Swift's flirtations.

Rita appears to have a fondness for animals, demonstrated by her protectiveness for the dogs Juno encounters inside Saffron Pharma in Juno Steel and the Prince of Mars (Part 1) and her affection towards the cat she sees Juno carrying in Juno Steel and the Kitty-Cat Caper (Part 2).

## Abilities

Rita is an incredibly skilled and speedy hacker, able to break into encrypted databases and searching for relevant information for Juno's cases. She has previously shown that she is able to break into encrypted commlines, such as the ones Dark Matters uses, and even invented a way to remotely hack through Juno's comms after he placed it on top of a computer. She was able to write a program that allows her to hack through security systems just by typing quickly. Her technical abilities would likely allow her to take down the Martian government, if she ever wanted to. On a smaller scale, she was responsible for Cassandra Kanagawa's successful escape from Mars.

She also has an extremely good memory. Rita is able to make extremely complex paper spaceships just by seeing a picture of them and quickly takes notes by drawing things (and remembering what they mean by association). While Juno was interviewing Julian DiMaggio, Rita drew a picture of Julian on a horse and was able to fully recall the conversation mnemonically. Upon seeing an origami figure of a spacecraft on a stream, which was noted to be the most complex to date and took years of research to achieve, she was able to immediately reconstruct it in seconds. Additionally, she knows CPR.

As of season 3 she has showed that she can build robots, overcome pretty much every security system (except for the one she made herself when she was a child) and received a knife from Vespa Ilkay which she uses to overwhelm Director W.

## Relationships

### Juno Steel

Rita and Juno have been in close acquaintance for about sixteen years. She considers Juno family. Rita cares deeply for Juno, working hard to throw him a birthday party, worrying about him when he disappears, and taking note of his change in mood after he loses his eye. Juno has stated that trying to replace Rita would be "*pointless*." He depends on Rita for technological and informational resources in the workplace, and furthermore, she is one of Juno's few friends. He shows extreme distress when he believes that he has lost her in the sewers beneath Old Town, going so far as to admit to her that he wants to "get better". She embraces him when they reunite in the Old Town sewers and she is brought to tears by the length of the hug. They both express that they missed each other during their time apart.

### Franny

Franny is Rita's best friend, whom she frequently gossips with over the comms about celebrities and life in general. Rita seems to be very close with her, considering her family, constantly citing Franny's wisdom and telling Juno about what she's been up to. Franny is apparently interested in the arcane, having given Rita a moonstone reading, free of charge.

### Yasmin Swift

Upon meeting each other, Yasmin and Rita immediately lay on the schmooze. Rita thinks she's "preeettyyy." However, when Juno and Rita determine the truth behind Yasmin's actions as a killer, she no longer seems as interested in pursuing Yasmin's affections. When holding Rita hostage, Yasmin does call her "very pretty." Nonetheless, Yasmin's demise means that she and Rita are not meant to be.

### Peter Nureyev

When first introduced to him as Rex Glass, she is very much taken by his charms. Aboard the Carte Blanche she grows closer to him, saying she is glad he makes Juno so happy. She trusts him enough not to reveal his real name to the rest of the Aurinko crime family, having researched him when his loyalties were in doubt, although she says the information was "very hard to find" - a testament to her skill with a computer since the information is supposed to be non-existent. She also invites him to watch streams with her and Jet Siquliak; however, he declines, saying that he may join them another night. When she talks to Juno about their relationship she says that she was not sure about him at first, but that has changed.

### Jet Siquliak

Rita's first meeting with Jet was outside the Juno Steel Investigations office building after she and Juno closed it. Right away, he expresses admiration for Rita's skill as a hacker. When she asks for his name, he tells her immediately, which he had refused to do with Juno, saying that they "were not there yet." As it turns out, Rita has also unknowingly been a fan of Jet as well, having seen and liked many of the action movies that were based off of his earlier life. When she and Jet are trapped together in M'tendere's underground laboratory with them, she asks him how many people he has killed and if a person has to do so to be a thief. Despite his answer, which is both more and less than she is expecting, she tells him that she is glad to be there with him. Rita and Jet can frequently be found together aboard the Carte Blanche.

### Vespa Ilkay

At first Vespa seems to consider Rita just as baggage that will hold them back during their heist. Eventually she seems to grow fond of her and even gives her one of her knives, which is probably a very big gesture of respect for Vespa.

## Episode Appearances

* Juno Steel and the Case of the Murderous Mask (Part 2)
* Juno Steel and the Case of the Murderous Mask Update (Part 1)
* Juno Steel and the Case of the Murderous Mask Update (Part 2)
* Juno Steel and the Prince of Mars (Part 1)
* Juno Steel and the Prince of Mars (Part 2)
* Juno Steel and the Day That Wouldn't Die (Part 1)
* Juno Steel and the Midnight Fox (Part 1)
* Juno Steel and the Midnight Fox (Part 2)
* Juno Steel and the Train from Nowhere (Part 1)
* Juno Steel and the Final Resting Place (mentioned)

Season 2
* Juno Steel and the Kitty-Cat Caper (Part 1)
* Juno Steel and the Kitty-Cat Caper (Part 2)
* Juno Steel and the Lesson Learned (Part 1) (mentioned)
* Juno Steel and the Dragon's Den (Part 1)
* Juno Steel and the Dragon's Den (Part 2)
* Juno Steel and the Stolen City (Part 1) (mentioned)
* Juno Steel and the Stolen City (Part 2) (mentioned)
* Juno Steel and the Long Way Home (Part 1) (mentioned)
* Juno Steel and the Long Way Home (Part 2)
* Juno Steel and the Man of the Future (Part 1)
* Juno Steel and the Man of the Future (Part 2)
* Juno Steel and the Soul of the People (Part 1)
* Juno Steel and the Soul of the People (Part 2)

Season 3
* Juno Steel and the Man in Glass (Part 1)
* Juno Steel and the Tools of Rust (Part 1)
* Juno Steel and the Tools of Rust (Part 2)
* Juno Steel and the Mega-Ultrabots of Cyberjustice (Part 1)
* Juno Steel and the Mega-Ultrabots of Cyberjustice (Part 2)
* Juno Steel and the Heart of It All (Part 1)
* Juno Steel and the Heart of It All (Part 2)
* Juno Steel and What Lies Beyond (Part 1)
* Juno Steel and What Lies Beyond (Part 2)
* Juno Steel and What Lies Beyond (Part 3)

Season 4
* Juno Steel and the Embrace of Ice (Part 1)
* Juno Steel and the Embrace of Ice (Part 3)

Bonus/Other
* Bonus: The Rita Minute
* Bonus: The Rita Minute 2 - The Rita Detective Agency
* The Rita Minute 3: Happy Birthday, Mista Steel!

## Trivia

* Rita's last name is unknown. Whenever it might come up in the series the speaker is interrupted.
* Rita watches a lot of streams, especially marathons of stream series.
* She appears to find people of all genders attractive, saying that "[she] ain't choosy". She ogles at a male dancer at Valles Vicky's Vixen Valley and becomes infatuated with Yasmin Swift.
* Rita has only ever lived in an apartment.
* Rita once confused a dozen for sixteen.
* Rita wears a child's size three in shoes.
* Her favorite snack is salmon-flavored dusty crunchies.
* Rita is older than Juno, though her exact age is unknown at this time.
* Rita has her driver's license but does not have her own car.
* Rita's exact height isn't known, although it is not that much more than four and a half feet.
* Rita thinks that werewolves are handsome.
* When she was a child, after she broke through the neighbors’ security systems, she made her own system to break into.
* Rita is possibly aromantic

## Reference

1. ↑ Juno Steel and What Lies Beyond
2. ↑ Juno Steel and the Mega-Ultrabots of Cyberjustice (Part 1)
3. ↑ Juno Steel and the Soul of the People (Part 2)
4. ↑ The Rita Minute 3: Happy Birthday, Mista Steel!
5. ↑ Juno Steel and the Kitty-Cat Caper (Part 2)
6. ↑ Bonus: The Rita Minute
7. ↑ Juno Steel and the Kitty-Cat Caper (Part 1)
8. ↑ Juno Steel and the Prince of Mars (Part 2)
9. ↑ The Rita Minute 3: Happy Birthday, Mista Steel!
10. ↑ Juno Steel and the Man of the Future (Part 1)
11. ↑ Juno Steel and the Midnight Fox (Part 1)
12. ↑ Juno Steel and the Dragon's Den (Part 1)
13. ↑ Juno Steel and the Prince of Mars (Part 1)
14. ↑ Juno Steel and the Soul of the People (Part 1)
15. ↑ 15.0 15.1 Juno Steel and the Soul of the People (Part 2)
16. ↑ Juno Steel and the Mega-Ultrabots of Cyberjustice (Part 1)
17. ↑ 17.0 17.1 Juno Steel and What Lies Beyond (Part 1)
18. ↑ The Rita minute four: 4Ever Love