Introduction Log || It's Happening Again (Again!)

[eternitymods]

Who: All characters (New Arrivals, Previous Arrivals, and Native OCs) When: June 5th Where: The Dream Width (Airship), the Curti Center, and the Housing District What: It is happening again. More outworlders have arrived in the Dream Width and must be rescued and brought back to their new homes on Vaikuntha Warnings/Notes: Only new players can put up a toplevel. Previous arrivals and native characters can respond to new characters' toplevel posts. MEMORY [ You've been here before...? No, wait, why would you think that? You're here in the moment, everything is as it should be...(?) The memory you are trapped in has completely enthralled you. You stop questioning and accept, you relive and repeat. Luckily, you are not alone. Others have arrived to help you. The travelers in the airships will enter the nebula formed by your memories and attempt to wake you up and bring you back to the present. The dreamer's mind will shape how these newcomers are perceived and how the NPCs in the memory respond to them. For more details on the mechanics, please refer to this post] ARRIVAL [ You wake from your dreams, from your memories, on a narrow cot. There are fleeting impressions- recycled air, humming machinery, movement, strangers waking around you. The room you wake in is lined with cots, with barely enough space between them to walk to the door, though not all of them show signs of having been occupied. The makeshift infirmary seems like it was prepared to hold many more than are here. Stepping out, there is a lobby space that bears the signs of having once held some furniture, now cleared away to make space. Your footsteps echo in the emptiness. As the automatic door slides shut on the infirmary, a light flashes on the far side of the room. A flickering holographic projection of a man’s face and gloved hand appears projected in the space above the arrivals’ heads. He backs up so his upper body is in frame for the recording. An arm, covered in the same orange flightsuit sleeve, hands him a tablet. The man begins to read. A written version of the message scrolls along the bottom of the projection as he speaks. ] ’Welcome travelers’… That’s way too formal. Hey everyone. Hi! [ The second man leans into the frame to add his greeting. ] Don’t panic. You were floating out there, but we pulled you in and rescued you. Yeah, we’re heroic AND handsome. And also the only ones crazy enough to come out here to get you. [ A woman’s voice calls from out of frame. ] Can you two be serious for ONE moment and stick to your scripts? [ The two men give each other a conspiratorial eyeroll. This does not appear to be their first take. ] Anyways, no need to panic. Seriously, don’t do anything reckless. We got our fill of that with Skywalker. [A huff is heard offscreen, and the men finally spare the tablet another glance.] ‘Your pilots will be navigating treacherous environs as this message plays…’ Claire, seriously? Nobody talks like this! [ The tablet is tossed to the side and lands with a thunk offscreen. ] We’re gonna wing it. Look, everyone, we’re workin’ hard to get you planetside safely, and it’s gonna take some tricky flying to do it. So the door to the cockpit is locked so we can focus on not getting us all killed. Don’t try to open it, unless you want to be stardust. We promise you’ll get answers about what’s going on once we land. But for now, please trust us. Right now, we’re your only hope. [ The second man leans forward, close to the recording device, and presses a button. The projection freezes for a moment, and then the message starts on the next recorded message. ] CURTI CENTER [ Finally after hours of flight, you arrive at the Curti Center. The other NPCs await you having been notified of your retrieval in the Dream Width. Cid gives a short and to the point welcome speech, explaining what the situation is: you were lost in a space called the Dream Width. You are now on a planet called Vaikuntha: for ages, the people of this world have used Airships to rescue people lost in the Dream Width, with one person being found roughly every ten years. No one knows why this happens, but this has been a mutually beneficial exchange, with the people from Vaikutha rescuing people lost in the Dream Width and the rescued ones sharing their wisdom with the people of Vaikuntha. Ten years ago, something unusual happened: two people were found at once, Biggs and Wedge. But that was nothing compared to what happened two months ago. And now, here you are. No one knows why such a large number of people has arriving lately, but the Curti Center is a place dedicated to piercing the Dream Width's secrets. Cid also introduces the other ones: his assistant Jessie, a young woman fascinated by the new arrivals, Claire, the woman sighing and writing in her schedule book upon being pointed out as the bookkeeper, Kupoto and Mogaruru, their Mognet representatives and finally the Native OCs: those brave and kind souls who have accepted to help you all on a daily basis. After Cid finishes (and Claire grumbles at her work never being done), the employees, including the Native OCs, provide a tour of the facility and help the newcomers navigate their future lives. Now is the time to ask questions and look over pamphlets regarding locations, Jobs, life in Vaikuntha... ] [ If you want to contact an NPC, you can do so on the NPC Contact Page. ] A BALL OF FLUFF NAMED MOOGLE [ It has been a long day, perhaps now you would like to find your way to a place to sleep? Or perhaps you'd like to get some answers, but you can't be bothered to go seek people out? And lo, just as despair begins settles in, a Moogle slams into you! Or stops by your side if their aim is decent... It's the Moogle Cid mentioned in his speech earlier! And they'll be informing you that now, they will stick to you like your shadow and help you in anyway they can! They're also giving you your iMog Slate- Now you can get onto Mognet! Isn't it great? ] A QUICK CHECK-UP [ Whether it's your Moogle, Native OCs or NPCs, all will urge you to stop by the hospital wing for a basic check-up. You may disagree, but listen. You've just been thrown into a space between worlds, rescued, and brought to another world. For your own sake, that's a good idea. Should you give in and go (or should you be dragged by your Moogle or a Native OC), you will find yourself in the cold and white space very reminiscent of an hospital. For characters with specific medical conditions necessitating help, this is where they will receive it if asked. The doctors and nurses are all White Mages or Chemists, with various levels into their Job as well as medical knowledge. Don't mind the confused looks if you look like nothing they've ever seen before... It's hard for a doctor to be unable to give a proper diagnosis to a patient! For everyone else though, they'll be let go with smiles and be given a candy as they leave. No one likes medical check-ups, but it's a very quick and basic one: testing reflexes, taking your temperature and the likes. On the bright side, while you're grumpily sitting on a bed with a thermometer on your forehead or in your mouth, it might be a good time to socialize with your fellow new arrival who's having lights flashed into their eyes by a doctor. Misery loves company, after all. ] PRETTY SIGHTS [ There's plenty of rooms to wander about in, with several points of interest apart from the offices. The Airship Hangar is where the airships are kept and the first room you entered. Workers keep guard to prevent the outworlders from getting too close to the vehicles. Airships are expensive and they don't want you messing with them, after all. Venturing into the Research Section, you can walk through public exhibitions on astronomy, airship design, and asterisk studies. A good place to get used to the basic science of this world. The laboratories lie behind a thick locked door with a sign reading "EMPLOYEES ONLY". No going there, for now anyway. Not too far from there are the Employee Quarters - work stations, apartments, and lounge areas. The latter are available to the public, whereas the rest is locked to Native OCs. But if you get them to be friends with you, perhaps they'll let you visit? Also open to all is a Cafeteria - a standard food court with stalls serving all types of Vaikunthan cuisine. The Chef is a very jovial and absent-minded Hypello. Beware of long lines and crowded tables. Should you prefer open spaces, then the gardens are for you! There are different sections in the gardens around the center. One boasts a wide array of blooming flowers, another more practical with herbs commonly used in Vaikunthan cooking. One had been cultivated for butterflies and hummingbirds to visit. Paths have been laid through so that visitors can safely navigate, and moogles will swoop down and shout at anyone who strays into the flower beds. Or perhaps, you want to wait till the sunset. Dusk on a new world, but a beginning of a new life... The sea shines bright in the orange light. A good moment for quiet contemplation. ] HOUSING [The housing accommodations are the best the Curti staff could provide, given that they are still also sheltering most of the previous arrivals from the Dream Width. The keys have been entrusted to the moogles who will be guiding the new arrivals. The new arrivals can stop by the Curti Center storage room to collect some essential supplies that have been donated by charity organizations from around the world (there are boxes of toothbrushes and whitening toothpaste sent from the Zora, hair brushes from the Elezen, quick-drying towels from the Hypello, among the various donations of clothes, toiletries, and blankets), before heading to their temporary homes. The people of Vaikuntha have done their best to provide for their new neighbors and help them get on their feet. Still, things will be a little cramped until the off-worlders can find employment and move into better housing. The staff hopes they can get along with one another until alternate arrangements can be made. You can survive living with roommates for a few months, right?] THE JOB FOR YOU [An important part of life on Vaikuntha is the Job (or Jobs) you choose to take. No, not the way you earn your living. Your Job Class. Most Natives only choose one or two, but you'll have an opportunity to take on more Job Asterisks after you master your first Jobs. The Curti Center's resident Job Master, Ganeshan, is more than happy to arrange transportation to the various Guilds so that you can claim your first Asterisks. ]

Comments

Suzaku Kururugi | OTA

[promisedtolive]

[ A: Arrival ]

[ He snaps awake, feeling completely unsettled and disoriented. There's a shaky feeling to his limbs, as though he was waking from a nightmare he can't remember (not an unfamiliar occurrance). Another moment of panic descends when he realizes his mask is off. Thankfully, it's beside his cot, unharmed and hopefully unaltered. He pulls the cowl back up over his mouth and fits the Zero mask into place, listening to its tiny pneumatics hiss as it closes safely over his head.

With that taken care of, he can pay attention to the hologram and its two speakers. Not that it makes much sense. "Planetside"? He knew space travel was possible; before the Requiem, he would listen to Lloyd and Cecile would discuss the theory over late night drinking -- mostly Lloyd trying to figure out how to get Lancelot properly equipped so its devicer could achieve orbit. But had they achieved it already? And how had he missed something like that?

Still puzzling over the message, he takes a moment to shift his position so his back is facing the wall, and makes a cursory glance over the room, looking to see if he's the only person there. ]

[ B: Curti Center ]

[ Landing and being able to leave the ship helps his state of mind somewhat. He's never been very good with inaction, though he has enough self-discipline to sit still. But disembarking helps to alleviate some of the tension which had grown over the hours of travel.

Cid's speech provides more information, but all the information is still so much to take in. They aren't even on Earth anymore? What about all the people he's left behind? What is going to happen if he's not there?

How is he going to get back?

He keeps some distance from the majority of the group taking the tour, but he goes along, trying to understand better what in the world has happened, and what it's all going to mean. ]

((OOC: Suzaku arrives dressed like this, without the blood on the mask or the sword. He always wears his mask unless he explicitly takes it off, or if someone saw him asleep during arrival.))

[ D: Check Up ]

[ He has been advised to go get a check up. He's going to ignore that. Walking right past the clinic, thank you very much. ]

[ E: Housing ]

[ Later, head aching and emotions fraying, he accepts a bag of donated goods and a key for House A-01. All he wants is some space to be alone and quiet and try to piece himself back together. ]

B

[likewishes]

[ It's a bit hard not to take note of the group being escorted through. New arrivals? Probably, given the fuss. There are a bunch of Moogles he's never seen and more faces likewise. While it's so, so tempting to just follow the group and check out everyone that could have been brought here for potential threats...

That's actually not what he's here to do. The angry cry of the furball at his ankles sees to that. The otter is hungry and that's actually what Lelouch is out there to do. With an irritated huff, he takes a side long glance at the group before walking away. Otter following behind at his heels. ]

[promisedtolive]

[ He doesn't have the connection to Lelouch that C.C. does. There's no supernatural force telling him that he's there. However, he would know any part of him, anywhere.

He sees the back of him, and an irritated hand gesture toward a small animal on the ground--

His heart feels like it's stopped. He can't breathe. What is... how can this happen?

Without even pausing to think it could be a hallucination, or some kind of trap, he breaks off from the group to follow that back. He reaches out to grab his shoulder--

But he can't. He can't he can't what if it's not real?

But he's walking away, still. Back out of reach. No no that won't work, he has to-- ]

Lelouch.

[ His voice is strangled, rough, and dry from disuse. But he gets the name out. ]

[likewishes]

[ Not that Suzaku would have had much luck with that hand. Upon reaching out for Lelouch that pet otter had already been scrambling up. On a shoulder. Teeth bared and whatever the equivalent of an otter hissing/snarling might be.

That's not really what gets Lelouch to stop. It's a thing that happens, honestly. The whole purpose had been to train the thing to protect him and those he cares for. So the thing is just doing its job. That name, though... That makes Lelouch pause and turn.

To look right into a mask he's worn so many times that he knows it better than his own home at Ashford. It's still odd - staring out and looking in instead of looking through it. That suit had been like a second skin to him and seeing it on another just doesn't seem right. But there's really only one person... ]

Suzaku?

[ He looks surprised. And also the realization that this might be not a good thing... If Suzaku is here then who else could have arrived with that group? ]

[promisedtolive]

[ He barely registers the otter hovering on Lelouch's shoulder; really only enough to not try touching him. His hand shakes as he takes the mask off, revealing a much thinner, paler face than Lelouch will remember.

His eyes have dark circles beneath them, and are red but he's managed to will them to stay dry. So many emotions flicker over his face -- shock, fear, confusion, wisps of anger and hurt, wonder-- ]

How... how are you here?

[likewishes]

[ There's the question, isn't it? How. The reality is... ]

I'm not sure. I woke up on the ship like I assume you did.

[ With no answers provided. A look of irritation passes over his features. A clear indication that he actually isn't happy with that particular turn of events. But Lelouch expects Suzaku to be conflicted like he is. The only problem is Lelouch doesn't know what to say in this situation. "Sorry I'm alive you must be disappointed?" ]

You don't look well.

[ Which is not probably the best thing to say. ]

[promisedtolive]

[ On impulse, he steps closer and places a hand against Lelouch's chest, over his heart. As though he could feel a heartbeat (or a scar) between layers of clothing and the gloves he is still wearing.

Lelouch doesn't know how this happened, either... that takes all the sting out of the situation; it's not a trick, not some last-minute plan cooked up with C.C. or anyone else to save Lelouch without telling him. ]

[likewishes]

[ Buttons doesn't seem on edge now at least. If anything she sniffs at Suzaku's hand before deciding he's no threat. All the while Lelouch takes that hand and presses it more firmly there. Maybe the scar can't be felt. But the heartbeat? If Suzaku needs that reassurance that this isn't some trick of the mind... ]

I have no answers. Yet. [ Lelouch is determined to find them. ] Then I will find a way to send you and the others back.

[ But not him, of course. Lelouch is determined about this too. ]

[promisedtolive]

[ He really should be apologizing to Lelouch. Usually he's much sharper, much more attentive. But he's just staring at the hand pressing on his own -- it's warm, and there is a heartbeat -- and having some trouble immediately recovering. ]

"Others"?

Cor Leonis - OTA

[immortalmarshal]

1 - Lost in Memory

For anyone stepping into this memory, they might be able to recognize the layout immediately as a kitchen. Definitely one that would come across as 'modern' for those from such worlds, but still has that feeling of a recently-moved-into home. Two men sit at table as the afternoon shadows slowly growing longer by the hour.

"...don't exactly remember going in there by myself," A brown-haired man in his mid-40s state humorously to a much older man, sipping on some dark coffee in his mug.

"Garula shit, Cor," The older man huffs. "The only reason it didn't feel that way was because Clarus had enough smarts to catch up with you. That big lug made sure you din't do any more stupid stuff that day. At least...nut'in that wuldn't get yer sorry ass killed."

"He was good about that..." Cor's smile slowly fades into a forlorn look. "He...certainly was..." He stares into his mug for a few moments. "...I forgot to apologize."

"Hn?"

"To Gladio. All that time at the Tempering Grounds, and I couldn't even think to apologize for not being there...for his father..."

The old man sighs wearily. "Like I said before, there was nothing ye could've done, back then--"

"Cid." Cor looks at him in that serious, stoic manner of his. "They were my brothers, Clarus and Regis...our brothers. I swore an oath that I would always be there for them, no matter what. And--" He voice breaks for a moment as he looks down into his mug. "...they sent me away when they needed me the most. By all rights, I should've followed my instincts and disobeyed Regis. But...I didn't."

Silence hangs in the air for a few moments, as the old man eyes Cor.

((OOC: not the end of the memory, but feel free to try and start waking up Cor anyway))


2 - Touchdown at the Center

Cor still feels rather disoriented, even after being given the basics by his rescuers. The speeches from the Center officials only helped with the slightly more basic stuff. But he doesn't stay still for long, instead opting to slowly make his way around the gathering in hopes of finding any familiar faces.


3 - Tommy

Cor still side-eyes his newly assigned companion, even as he slowly works on getting his iMog slate adjusted to his personal taste. Said companion is a Moogle - an honest-to-Astrals living Moogle - but one that has dyed his fur green and is wearing a burlap hoodie. There's even a little Moogle-sized lantern hanging off his belt on the side. If anyone's passing by, they might hear the following snippet:

"I said I'm fine. I don't need to be seeing any doctors right now."

"But you must! Kupooo...it's standard procedure. Please, Mr. Leonis?"

"I told you, just call me Cor."


Wildcard

((OOC: Anything else you wanna thread out with this guy? Use this option and toss up your thing~!))

2

[warpstriking]

He's exhausted. Not just from helping locate the new arrivals, but their rescuers as well. Hell, he even had his own moment out there, yet it isn't something he wants to think about. Instead, he focuses on scanning the crowd, hoping to find Ignis and Prompto somewhere in the mess that is the airship hangar. That's when he spots that familiar buzz cut and beard combo, and his eyes widen.

"Marshal?" Well, shit. That's one face he never expected to see again, yet was glad to be proven wrong all the same. "Marshal!"

It's annoying how he has to cut through the people to the older man, but he'll deal. He's dealt this long, after all.

[immortalmarshal]

That is a voice he had not expected to hear here. In fact, it belongs to the last (living) person he expected to find here of all places. Cor immediately whirls around to find that shockingly familiar, raven-haired man slowly working his way towards him.

"...Noctis?"

But Cor's only shocked for a moment, before he immediately starts shoving his way closer to the younger man. As soon as he got close enough, he let fly the first questions on his tongue: "Why are you here, Majesty? Where are the others?" Because it's so very unusual to see him without at least one of his retinue nearby these days.

[warpstriking]

He finally breaks through the crowd to be in a decent speaking distance. Thank the stars, another from home. Though he finds it disconcerting, considering... No. Not going down that rabbit hole again. Not right now. But, welcome to the club of 'should probably have expected the unexpected'. It's a rather large one right now.

"Same reason as you, I guess." He rubs the back of his neck, realizing it isn't much of an answer, and yet, "No one knows; just woke up in space a couple months ahead of you." Yes. Months. Time is a touchy subject around here, it seems.

"Should be somewhere in the crowd. Got split up into different search teams," he explains, realizing he should probably say who exactly he means by that. "Ignis and Prompto arrived the same time I did. So did Clarus, Cindy, and Nyx Ulric. Haven't seen the last two in weeks."

Cornelia li Britannia | OTA

[arosetowar]

A. A Ball of Fluff Named Moogle
[It's a thorough frustration which grips Cornelia now, tightening around her, making her stiff and tense and overextended like an elastic band on the verge of snapping. She doesn't walk through the crowds but rather marches past them as if she is less lost than they are, as if she has somewhere to be, something to do, as if any of what's happened to her thus far makes enough sense for her to find comfort in the facts of her circumstances.]

[So when her moogle comes flying towards her, oblivious to or else indifferent about the inevitability of its collision with her, she not only dodges out of his way but also reflexively thrusts her arm after him, knocking him flying in whichever direction he's headed. Whether he slams into someone else, is caught-mid air, or falls disgracefully to the ground, Cornelia will stop, turn to look at him and whoever is closest by, and say with a clear grumble,]

These damnable creatures...

B. Pretty Sights: Gardens
[Ordinarily, Cornelia doesn't mind loudness. Both the battle of war and the battle of politics have acclimatised her to having to think above distractingly high noise levels, but something about the chaos of new arrivals and old residents colliding at the Curti Center is dampening her thoughts into a meandering murmur. This doesn't suit her. Her arrival, alone, in this strange world has put her at a disadvantage more limiting than any she has ever faced and she needs to be able to focus so that she may come to a tentative understanding of her surroundings.]

[It's only natural that in her wandering attempt to distance herself from the crowd, she finds herself at the gardens. They're quiet and empty and soothing for the beauty of their flowers, and the softness of the breezes which tickle across the grasses, and the sounds of birds as they sing, flitting about between the trees. She sits down somewhere there's a lot of shade, takes out the pamphlets and books and brochures she's brought with her, and begins to read.]

C. Pretty Sights: Hangars
[Cornelia wasn't sure what to expect of the airships; now that she's at the hangers, standing as close to them as she can manage without getting scolded, she feels even less certain about them. They are nothing like the Avalon, or the Ikaruga, or even like Damocles. There's something fantastical about them, something whimsical—something, like everything else in this world, which makes them seem uncomfortably unreal. Like a trick of the mind. Like a lie told through supernatural forces.]

[Still, her curiosity easily dominates all other thoughts, at least for the moment. If anybody comes up beside her, near enough to make conversation with, she will turn to them and ask,]

Do ships like these exist where you're from?

D. Quick Check-Up
[Having to undergo a check-up doesn't bother Cornelia in theory, though she's certainly making it seem otherwise. Not simply through the clearly displeased expression on her face, but also through the multitude of negligently-treated scars she bears on both arms. Bullet wounds. Lacerations. Electrocution marks. Look, sometimes a woman has to ditch hospitals against medical advice in favour of heading out on vengeance quests or leading rebellions.]

[Her moogle is floating beside her, holding her jacket and looking halfway dejected.]

Ahh… I've got my work cut out for me, don't I, kupo?

[She ignores both her circumstances and her moogle, choosing instead to focus on whoever is closest to her in the reception area.]

Have you been waiting long?

E. Wildcard.
[Have at me, I'll roll with whatever.]

((OOC: Will match style! Am also willing to count TDM threads as game canon, just lmk!))

E

[arosetowar]

[Quiet is too easy, though. Alone, too much to ask. Cornelia will be there when he arrives, seated on the sofa and scrolling through old network posts on her iMog. None of what she reads is registering. The oppressively baffling forces of Zero Requiem and this inexplicable new world have fractured her thoughts into such small fragments that she can't bring a single one of them into focus, and she isn't really trying to work against that anymore.]

[She'll give in and go to sleep soon, but first she'll wait another hour to see if anyone arrives to claim the house's second room. As loathe as she is to waste her time idling, she is even less accepting of going to bed without first knowing whose presence she might awaken to in the morning.]

[immortalmarshal]

Cor looks a little surprised and concern at the first part. "Months? But how is that even..." Any further questions, however, are immediately swept aside as soon as he hears who the 'others' are here on this...planet? Star? Prompto and Ignis doesn't surprise him one bit, and it's only a little more surprising to hear Cindy's name.

However...the last two names makes him feel like the world's skid to a stop for just a few seconds.

"...Clarus? And Nyx Ulric? Impossible...they're dead."

1

[chocobosnap]

The two men before him were familiar, although it had been awhile since he'd seen either Cid or Cor. Even if it hadn't been that long, it felt like it had been awhile.

Prompto was already wrung out from his own memories, but there were still people to save and after he'd shaken his way back into some kind of better mindset and he was back in the frey, because like Noctis he couldn't help but want to help others.

It was just luck that he happened to be in a memory he hadn't seen but he knew the two people

The conversation itself was heart wrenching and he wondered who it was lingering in the Dream Width, lost in the memory.

"Hey." Prompto called softly, raising his hand. "Hey." If he couldn't be heard at that, he would have to try something more drastic, but seeing Cor reminded him how much he missed the Marshal.

B.

[euphemia]

[ Maybe it was just the natural appeal of the area right after lunch at the cafeteria that drew her there. Or perhaps it was the fact that it reminded her of places she was long gone from. Whatever her reasons were for visiting the could have been numerous, but the fact was she found herself here today, of all days, and began to idly make her rounds of admiring the garden.

She needed it for inspiration on designing her own garden, you see. One she would have to redesign when it was time to leave the free housing and choose a more permanent estate. Dressed in a simple dress of Vaikuthan fashion, Euphemia didn't really stand out as much as she did when she was a Princess in their world. However, her hair was unmistakable. As was Cornelia's from a distance. It was that unmistakable hair that made her pause from a distance and stares quietly. Did she ... fall asleep again? It was the only time she was able to reunite with her before.

But after a bit of staring and a few locals who idly waltzed by wordlessly, it was becoming clear that maybe, just maybe, this was real? She didn't know. Words failed her. Calling her name felt like it would just be a disappointment, but. Quietly... ]


... Sister?

[immortalmarshal]

Unfortunately, neither men seemed to have noticed Prompto. Cor glanced to one side, towards Prompto, but he doesn't act like he's seeing the young blonde there. He thought that he heard something...but maybe his guilty heart's just making things up to mess with his head again...

Cid just sighs, long and weary. "You wanna know why they sent ya away, kid?"

"Hn?" Cor looks back up at the old man.

"There's three reasons why..." Cid points to a nearby window. "...and one of 'em's out there with the lil kid."

Cor glances out that window. Should Prompto look as well, he will see Iris teaching Talcott how to play 'Patty Cakes' out on the walkway.

"Reggie and Clarus knew that ye would look after their kids, especially since ye probably helped raised them at some point. Six knows they needed it - especially considering how green Reggie's son was when I first saw 'im..."

[warpstriking]

"Wish I knew. Been trying to wrap my mind around that for a while, now." It's easier to answer the unfinished question, and yet somehow, it answers both. Though he doesn't stop there, pulling out his iMog slate and goes through something. Hearing is one thing. Seeing, however...

"I thought the same thing, until my first day here. Walked into the kitchen we were assigned to, and who do I see rummaging through the cabinets but the old bear himself." Ah, there it is. He flips the device over in his hands so Cor can see it: a shot he got from Prompto of Ignis and Clarus sparring in what appears to be a residential area at dawn. "Never saw Ulric myself, but I doubt they'd lie about something like this."

Though there's something else that's likely sticking out to Cor, and that's one very distinctive black band on his right hand.

[arosetowar]

[Sister. It is still a cruel word. It still wounds her in ways worse than a lance through her cockpit, than bullets biting into her flesh. She cringes, somewhat, at the sound of it, just a tight lifting of her shoulders, just a barely-there twitch of her head. Her only surviving siblings have never called her, so simply, sister and with no reason to believe that the dead can live again here she doesn't think to respond. She doesn't even look up from the pamphlet she's reading.]

[It is someone else's sister, calling out for another woman. It has to be.]

[chocobosnap]

He had the feeling he shouldn't be listening to this conversation. It was so private and intimate to Cor and how he felt about losing the king, and his shield and the people from Insomnia.

Prompto swallowed. He felt guilty for not feeling bad for the loss of the people there. It wasn't that he didn't care, he just wasn't connected. He was lucky. Everyone he liked made it out alive.

It made sense though, that they might want someone to look after their kids. Noctis needed Cor's kick in the pants when it happened, and he was a support for their trip.

He tried first to touch Cid, but his hand didn't make contact. It was Cor then, and he moved over and tugged on his sleeve.

"Hey. I'm here." Prompto tried again.

A

[modelcivilian]

Hey...!

[The person that just so happens to catch the moogle sent off course is a blonde boy accompanied by his own moogle, and for once, Blanc's grumpy glower is focused on someone else that's not him. They were here to help newcomers from the Dream Width, but what the heck?]

They're called moogles and they only want to help. But, you guys should slow down... You okay?

[So, while this woman didn't have to smack this guy aside, shooting around as they did wasn't doing them favors.]

[euphemia]

[ Her shoulders sink. Deeply, at that. Of course it isn't here. Just someone who might look like her. Or maybe another dream. Why would she be here? She wasn't dead like apparently the only other one here with her. She was back there with the rest continuing whatever path she sought after the demise of their half-brother.

At least she could stare. If this was just a dream, then surely she was free to talk as she usually did when she encountered her? It was an opportunity granted. And one she wouldn't waste. ]

... I think I'm beginning to miss you more each and every day. [ A pause. ] Perhaps this is the fourth time you've appeared in these moments. I'm thankful that my memory of you hasn't faded, at least.

I can't remember the last thing we said to each other. Aside from the fact I know you weren't too happy with me, but ...

[ She isn't going to cry this time. Not like the many others. It was easier to just accept that this, too, was a moment she'll rouse from and be grateful for at least seeing her there at least. ]

I miss you. And I'm so sorry. I hope you'll forgive me. For everything. And someday, I hope I'll see you again...

[ Eyes lowered and hands fumbling, she decided that was more than she needed to say and turned to try and excuse herself from the torture of someone she could never see again. ]

[arosetowar]

[Under less aggravating circumstances, her temper might have parted enough to reveal something apologetic, or concerned, or perhaps something that suggests she's impressed by the catch. Instead, her glare sharpens. Help? She doesn't want its help.]

I'm sure it's fine.

[Sure enough, the moogle shakes himself off in a very exaggerated, theatrical way and flaps his wings in gratitude. Speaking to Adrien:]

I'm okay! I'm okay! And I'm sorry. I really wanted to meet her.

[This does nothing to improve Cornelia's thoughts on the matter.]

Are they all like this?