compnetwork | ☼ 001 [video]

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☼ 001 [video]

[The feed flickers on and Lea fiddles with it a moment, turning the screen sideways briefly before making a face and righting it. Crazy newfangled technology. He's not wearing the watch, rather has it set on the table in his apartment like it's a tiny tiny computer. After making sure the little screen will stay upright by itself, Lea frowns at it a moment before scratching his head.]

So they tell me this watch thingy posts live to a network everybody in the city can see. Wow, that's pretty impressive--not just in technology but in trust! [He leans forward a bit, folding his arms on the back of the chair he's sitting backwards in and plunking his chin down on them.] I mean, I could say anything, and I wouldn't even be censored? [A low, appraising whistle.]

I mean, not that I'd ever do anything like that. [Grin~]

So where can a guy find the best ice cream in town? I've had a long day you guys wouldn't believe.

[Nothing like being dead and then waking up and finding out you got your heart back and wrangling with the idea of having real emotions again and debating whether or not you should track down your old friends who think you're dead and then getting pelted by children falling out of trees to wear you out. Yup. But he's not gonna go into details.

[A beat of silence and then he glances around as if making sure no one's watching before he cups a hand beside his mouth and says in a stage whisper,] Xemnas is an insufferable ass. And his briefings were boring as hell. [Just checking on that censorship thing. Yup. Nothing to see here.]

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So you three do find me.

[It had been mentioned before, but--

It's probably a good thing she'd been sitting down when the conversation started. Otherwise she'd likely be on the floor right about now. Though she can't help but wonder: at what price....]

Looking for Aqua... but hadn't found her? [That makes... absolutely no sense.

[He doesn't really have too much time to ponder this before Super Helpful Carryover Private Filter happens, and he just sort of stares at Xion for a good fifteen seconds. This has got to be some elaborate prank or something.]

[He pinches the bridge of his nose and furrows his brow a moment.]

So... you're telling me that somehow or another, Roxas has regressed to a point in time like two years ago?

[Okay, Lea... think. How could something like this have happened? Luxord is the only member of the Organization who has control over time, so it's not like Roxas could have literally gone back in time or anything. So how could he have lost those memo--

[Wait.

[A look of something akin to genuine horror washes over Lea's face then, and he nabs the little watch to pull the screen closer, as if he could grab Xion's shoulders through the image.]

Wait, how did that happen, Xion? Did... did DiZ's programming not work? Did that bastard lie to us? [And the horror is replaced with sudden anger.] If he's responsible for this, if he put some kind of... I dunno, virus or something into you... After everything we went through, if he's to blame for this I swear I'll string him up by his own spine.

[No this is not as planned at all. Her feelings about DiZ are still mixed ~~and mostly negative~~ but the idea that he did this not only doesn't make sense... it's also clearly escalating this situation in a way that was a bad idea.]

N-no, Axel that's not what I mean at all! I mean... if... if he'd done something, if I'd taken Roxas' memories or something like that- I-I'd know, wouldn't I?

[She's trying to explain this as calmly as she can. She's not entirely succeeding]

Axel he's shorter than me. I don't think DiZ could do that.

[Because Roxas had been a good inch or two taller than her back home.]

It's like... if time freezes while we're here, then we can go home and it's like we were never gone. It's like it really is him from back then.

[He watches the emotions play across Aqua's face, from surprise to genuine shock through half a dozen things he can't quite put a finger on, and then finally land on something like desperate relief. He's seen that look before.

[It's the same look that crossed her face when they'd found her in that dark and horrible place. But... why does she seem so surprised about this? Doesn't she remember being found? She obviously recognizes him, she knew him by name, after all, even if she doesn't seem to realize he died...

[Something's fishy here.]

Aqua. You okay there?

[Did he somehow go back in time when he died? That doesn't make any sense, wouldn't that unravel the fabric of the cosmos or something? What if he went to the Realm of Darkness and prevented his own death or something? Would the universe implode? (Not that he would have; getting his heart back had been the best unexpected side effect of being dead besides the suddenly not being dead anymore part!)]

What do you mean we do find you? ... We did find you. You were, you know... there for it. Remember? How else would you know who I am? That was the first time we met.

Edited 2012-11-10 10:41 (UTC)

[His anger fades as she flounders. He knows what it would do to her--to them--if Xion started absorbing Roxas' memories and powers again, and if she's this quick to not accuse DiZ of being responsible for it then he'll believe she honestly doesn't think he's to blame, but...]

But how is that even possible? [It's more rhetoric than that he actually expects an answer.

[This really makes no sense. Okay, so if time freezes when they come here, and Roxas came here that long ago... then who did they spend the next two years with? Had the Organization made a copy of Roxas? Were they in league with whoever that man in the butterfly mask had been? That feels a little too elaborate; that was long before any of them had defected... if Xemnas had known they had planned to do just that, why not just take them out back then? Why go to the trouble of creating a copy and bringing them here to this strange world?

[Did this have something to do with that destruction or salvation of the worlds she had mentioned?

[Ugh, this is giving him a headache.]

Okay... just... [He holds one hand up, a silent request for a moment of quiet to collect his thoughts. This is a bit much to try and swallow all at once: the not being dead anymore, the having his heart back, the decision to return to the kids after all, all that had been headache enough, but now all this on top of it?

[He kneads his brow and then sighs heavily before lifting his eyes to Xion.]

Okay, I don't really get it, but I think you're probably right: if you had absorbed his memories, you'd know. You've always been able to tell before, right? Once you knew what was really happening to the two of you...

[There's something like apology in his eyes. He doesn't like losing his temper in front of the kids, and it doesn't happen often, but DiZ has always had a knack for pushing the wrong buttons, and even mention of the bigoted old bastard is enough to make Lea's lip curl with contempt. He doesn't care if he's 'gotten better about it', he's still a bigoted old bastard as far as he's concerned, and the idea that he might have been behind this was more than enough to get his hackles up.]

I dunno, if... if Roxas has physically regressed, that seems like a whole other ballgame. [He rubs his face with both hands and sort of groans.] Ugh, this makes no sense at all; what is this crazy place?

[And he lifts his head again to give her a serious, if confused look.]

So you really don't remember actually finding Aqua?

[Maybe he'll just keep the part about dying to himself for now. He knows now that lying because he thinks it'll save them pain isn't the way to go, but somehow adding that to the table feels like overload right at the moment.]

[Attracting all the Keykids today, isn't he? Riku looks certainly kind of amused in any case.]

Hm. Figures somehow.

[Both, that Axel would ask for ice cream ~~since everybody aside of him seems to have some kind of strange obsession with it.~~ and that Xemnas holds boring briefings. ~~All incarnations of Xehanort that Riku has come across so far are insufferable, so that really isn't anything all too new.~~

There is still the question of timeline and universal shenanigans to be solved though... Hmm. First at least should be easily answered.]

[Private Filter]

So... is it Lea or Axel?

[Since... as far as Riku is concerned there really isn't much of a difference, physically at least.]

[Lea stares for a moment, one eyebrow inching toward his hairline. Man, he wasn't expecting to find anybody he knew here, and the first three people he's talked to after the little welcoming committee have been familiar faces.

[Well. At least mostly familiar. It looks like Riku, and sounds like Riku, but...]

Finally got that haircut I've been telling you to get forever, huh? 'Bout time, sheesh.

[And then he gives a start.]

Wait, how did you--? [Suspicious squinting goes here. There does seem to be some kind of temporal discrepancy going on, so far as he's garnered, but so far everyone's been behind him. So far as he knew, he hadn't even made it home yet--how does Riku know about the name change? Srs face.] Are you from the future?

[Yeah... places like Promenade and Hinoto-Ri are funny like that.

Riku makes a bit of a face at that comment - half annoyed, half confused (the hair cut had been totally his idea, thank you. ~~Okay, Kairi had maybe prodded just a little about it, so what.~~), but then just shakes his head once.

Well, that reaction at least answers it.]

Lea, then.

[He frowns a little, because while he wishes he could just say yes... the possibility that it isn't quite that simple still remains.]

...Maybe. It might be something entirely else though.

[Xion waits patiently while he tries to sort it out, though she doesn't blame him for being as confused as she is. This place seems to defy the laws of even their own universe, as complicated as those are.

At last, she shakes her head]

No... we were still looking... Does that... mean we found her, though?

[And then at that moment something else sinks in.]

Wait... you remember? You remember everything the same way I do?

[After Riku and Roxas she'd... she hadn't known what to think, the full implications hadn't really sunk in yet. But he remembered the same things she did.

She feels a little silly for not realizing it sooner.]

Where are you now?

[It looked like he was in an apartment room, from the camera, but which one? Was it close like Roxas' was? Speaking of which, Roxas... she needed to figure out what to do about him.]

[He just nods slowly, a little unsettled. He supposes that, all things considered, Riku knowing the truth unexpectedly early is certainly not the worst possible thing that could have happened, but it's still unnerving. Curious, he rests his chin on threaded fingers, his elbows propped on the table.]

Something entirely else? You don't say~ [There's a beat of silence and he lifts his eyebrows inquiringly.] Do I get multiple choice options, at least?

Yeah, we found her. [He clears his throat a bit awkwardly, then gives her a curious look.]

Are you implying my memory retention isn't up to snuff, young lady? [And he snorts a sharp laugh, as if to remind her that, as usual, he's mostly joking.] I can't say for certain that I remember it exactly the way you do, since I can't read your mind or anything, but... [That's actually kind of a bizarre question, Xion.]

Uh... apartment 8-06, in the... [He reaches into his pocket and pulls out that ID card they gave him.] Oh, Pisces. Pisces building. Or ward. Or something.

[He puts the card back in his pocket then and gives her a stern look.]

Sounds like we've got a lot to talk about; if you'd rather continue the conversation in person, I'm game.

No, it's... a little more complicated than that...

[She's not sure how to delve into the topic, even with things filtered as they are. Meeting up is probably best for now... made all the easier when Lea gives his location

Xion can't help but laugh and stare up at the ceiling of her own apartment.]

You're two floors above me, this whole time. I'm in 6-07. Roxas is in 5-06, but we've been staying together since he got here.]

Should I bring Roxas too? He'll probably be really confused but...

[She doesn't like leaving him out of this, even if... even if he doesn't remember most of everything.]

Seems like everything's complicated around here.

[And then he sort of laughs.]

Figures--I get lost looking for you two and you're both right here. I just can't win.

[A nod then with a wave of one hand.]

Well of course--if he's actually somehow... gone back in time or something to that long ago, something tells me leaving him to his own devices might not be such a good idea. You gonna come up here or should I meet you down there?

Depends. What type of ice cream do you like?

...... and no, things don't seem to be censored. [ He has no idea who Xemnas is, but he supposes it's good that it wasn't censored? ]

Sea salt is my favorite, but I get the feeling that's a... regional specialty. I've done my share of traveling, you could say, and it's not something you find everywhere. In a pinch, vanilla with a caramel swirl's pretty nice. I suppose I'd be willing to just peruse the menu, though.

[And then he laughs a bit.] Oh, good--people need to know these things, after all. Don't hire anybody named Xemnas to give company briefings: he'll put everyone to sleep, got it memorized?

[He realizes half a second too late that if Xion and Roxas and Aqua and Riku are all here, Xemnas could be, too... but... well, he defected from the Organization a long time ago, so it's not like the announcement that Xemnas is boring will cost him his job or anything. Honestly if Xemnas thinks that anybody thinks he's interesting he's rather in for a bit of a shock, but that is neither here nor there.]

[ He smiles faintly. ]

Sure, I'll remember.

Ah -- welcome to Hinoto-Ri, by the way. [ It seems pretty obvious that Lea is new. ]

As for ice cream... we don't really have sea salt here. But there's a good place in the Virgo distract called The Whole Scoop. There's also a cafe in the Sagittarius that serves ice cream sundaes.

Not everything is, but... a lot of it, yeah.

[She wouldn't call her job complicated, or buying food to eat and things like that. But when it came to the hows and whys they were here, the people from their worlds and from others?

Yeah, it was pretty complicated.]

I'll find Roxas and meet you up there. [Then she pauses, and adds one more thing. It was better Axel knows now] Axel... back home Roxas was just told one of the people who went to Castle Oblivion got destroyed. He's really worried about you. I told him you were okay, but...

[Just... be prepared.]

I'll see you soon, okay? Don't go anywhere!

[She cuts off the feed there and runs off to find Roxas - and make sure he isn't getting himself int trouble somehow. True to her word though, around five minutes later there'll be a knock on Lea's door, and on the other side, Xion with Roxas in tow.]

Er... thanks, I think. I'm still not really sure how the heck I got here, but it saves me the rest of a trip, anyway: the people I was looking for are here already, so I guess if it ain't broke...

[Lea counts on his fingers a moment, then gives the boy on the screen a curious look.] Pisces, Virgo, Sagittarius... those're all a set of something, aren't they? When the welcoming committee asked me when my birthday was, they said it meant I was a "Leo", and I thought they were just pronouncing my name wrong at first, but those things are like names of stars or something, aren't they?

[The stars in Never Was didn't have names, but he'd heard these words before, around other worlds.]

[Guess who doesn't have even the remotest idea how the watch works yet? This guy. So he misses Axel's missive completely-- it's harder to miss someone latching onto your arm and dragging you two floors up the apartment building, however.]

But you haven't told me where we're going yet!

[Explanations would be good. Sure he's been a bit of a restless couch potato aside from when he'd tagged along to Xion's work, but that didn't mean he wanted to run into something blind...]

[Even if it looked like they were just bothering one of their neighbors.]

[Seriously, Xion? Warn a brother.]

[ Minato nods and then explains as succinctly as he can. ]

They're names of constellations you can see from Earth's sky. When they say you're a 'Leo' that means that the Leo constellation was dominant in the sky when you were born. In that context, we call it your zodiac sign. Some people ascribe symbolism to them, associate certain personality traits and use them for fortune telling.

[Lea looks a little uncomfortable as she explains Roxas' concern, and rubs the back of his neck.]

Well, clearly I'm fine, so that's one less thing for him to have to worry about, right?

[Right. He'll save explaining that he wasn't so fine after they found Aqua later. Giving a nod, he waves at the feed.]

Noplace I'd rather be.

[And as the feed cuts off he groans and smears a hand down his face. Wow, Lea, way to win Cheesy Line of the Day--the hell was that? Sure, it's true that anyplace the kids are at is where he'd want to be, but... really? Ugh. Maybe she didn't hear him.

[A few minutes later there's a knock at the door, and he goes to answer it, giving her a feigned look of incredulity as he leans in the doorframe.]

You could'a just portaled in; since when is mi casa not su casa, huh?

[He's... really happy to see her--to see both of them--but he can't let on why just yet. Part of him wonders why he even bothered to worry that they'd be angry or upset if he came back after having died. He can still remember very clearly the look of relief that had lit up Roxas' face when they'd met up again after the debacle at Castle Oblivion. He hadn't expected to have the opportunity to see it again, for that matter.

[Reaching out and ruffling Xion's hair fondly, Lea leaned slightly to one side to peer inquiringly at Roxas behind her. He does look smaller (which really, Lea hadn't thought was possible). Curious indeed--he really can't figure how this could have happened, but... well, in a way that just means they get to start over from there. He'll know a little better this time around, at least: no more lies.

[He gives Roxas a jovial wave.]

Well if it isn't my favorite chatterbox.

Fortune telling, huh? You don't say~ Might have to do a little light reading, in that case; knowing my future, that'd be pretty useful, I think. Thanks for the intel, uh... didn't catch your name, there.

[He gestures to himself.] I'm Lea. And apparently also a Leo. You can see why I was confused.

Mm. I can. There's a library that might have the information you're looking for.

[ There's a pause as he nods to Lea. ] My name's Minato Arisato. Pleased to meet you. ... I'm a Gemini, so there's not much to confuse.

[Well she did hear that cheesy like, and maybe she'll tease him about it later, but at that moment she was much more focused on finding Roxas and taking him up two flights of stairs.

Xion just gives him a half-exasperated look at the teasing. She might've given him some kind of comeback - really what if she'd gotten the number wrong and portaled into someone else's room? Again, though, there was something a little more important here. She turns to Roxas, grinning slightly.]

See, Roxas, I told you he was okay.

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☼ 001 [video]

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Super Helpful Carryover Private Filter

It is the best filter

Handy Private Filter!

yes good

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[video | handy carryover private filter]

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[video | handy carryover private filter forever]

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Action time!

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Jumping in like a jumping thing!

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/dramatic music

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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y8Kyi0WNg40 also man I am spamming this icon in this thread orz