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entrancelogs2006-11-21 08:54 pm
red-gunner.livejournal.com) wrote in entrancelogs2006-11-21 08:54 pm
Ritsuka and Jr
Who: Jr ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
red_gunner and Ristuka sleeping_memory
Where Outside
When: Afternoon
Rating: G-PG at worst
Summary: Hanging out and brother-talk
the Story:
It had definitely been a while since Jr had gone out and done anything fun. Most of the people he'd gotten to know or had known already were mysteriously quiet, and he could only guess they'd somehow gotten out. Kyou had been silent and Albedo hadn't come back to their room in weeks so it seemed a safe enough assertion. Perhaps it was better that he didn't see the younger version of his brother. Still sane, and not yet obsessed with oblivion. Before everything had gone to hell.
But he wasn't going to think about things like that today. He was going to hang out with Ritsuka, while trying not to gawk at these cat ears he apparently had. It... sounded really cute, if not entirely strange in his experience. But he supposed the other might think cyborgs or genetically engineered bioweapons were a bit on the odd side too. So they were even, Jr concluded as he paced about the courtyard, spinning the volleyball on his finger. It was a nice day out. Good weather, lots of sun. Reminded him of things back at the Foundation... before things had gone wild with the gnosis, anyhow.
Ritsuka pasted the picture he had taken with Vexen on his wall before he left to meet Jr in the courtyard. He brought with him his camera which hung around his wrist. He was in a good mood today. Lately he had been getting along with everyone and they were all equally nice to him. Some even tried to help him. Like Jr. Ritsuka thought Jr was someone important, like he knew what Ritsuka was feeling. No one could ever relate to him about Seimei.
Ritsuka was at the courtyard in no time. He saw Jr spinning a volleyball. He walked up to him and said in a small voice, "Hey.." Ritsuka still hadn't gotten the hang of starting conversations with new people and friends.
Jr hadn't noticed that anyone else had come outside, mixed thoughts having been enough to occupy him while he was waiting, but hearing the greeting made him halt. Shifting the ball to hold it under an arm he turned to flash a grin at the other, trying not to be too derailed by the fact that this kid--who had to be Ritsuka--did indeed have kitty cat ears. And a tail. He'd never seen anything like that unless it was some costume a girl wore. There were some unique people out there.
"Hey there. How's it going?" Jr never did have trouble greeting people for even a day in his life, and had always been inclined to be friendly. Everyone at the Foundation treated him like their neighbor even though his 'father' ran the place. He enjoyed people. And Ritsuka had seemed like a nice guy. Funny that they were about the same size.
Ritsuka blinked, Jr was smaller than he expected, he was the same height as Ritsuka. If he wondered about it, he would be left with alot of questions and the last time he asked someone questions, they didn't seem too keen on answering him. "It's okay." He noticed Jr had really interesting eyes, like none he had ever seen before. He couldn't even give a name to the color they were, "How are you?"
"I'm alright. Glad for the fresh air. Might've grown roots if I'd stayed in that room much longer." Jr replied with a shrug, still showing a cheerful expression. He really was feeling fortunate that someone actually wanted to go out rather than camp in their rooms. It seemed that a lot of people just holed up like rabbits, and that was something that tended to leave him restless. How the rest of them could stand it, he'd never know.
Part of him wanted to ask Ritsuka if he'd seen that brother of his yet, but he wasn't sure he wanted to address that issue. "Place gets really dull sometimes, it seems like."
Ritsuka smiled slightly when Jr made a joke. "Like a tree. I don't know, alot of people are doing their own thing. They don't want you to bother them with questions or anything.." Ritsuka fiddled with his camera as he talked to Jr. Was he really older than him? He didn't look it, but he acted like it.
Jr didn't doubt that people had their own business. He certainly had his, but it didn't seem right in his mind to isolate himself from everyone else when they were all in the same situation and facing the same problems. Everyone had their own past but the present was something they all shared and people who couldn't work together weren't going to fare well. "Some people are like that, I guess. It won't help them figure the place out though. Acting like grumpy old men never solved anything." At that, Jr made a face. With his appearance, the expression was markedly childish. But these people really were like the Senate in some ways. Had to have sticks up their rears.
He nodded. That did make alot of sense. Some people even thought they were elite. Or at least in Ritsuka's mind it seemed that way. Ritsuka pointed to the volleyball, "it looks alot like a soccer ball." He never played volleyball, he saw people at his school play once before but he never went out of his way to try a new thing like sports. Maybe that card meant something, maybe if he tried something new...that did count as change, didn't it?
"Ah, right." For a moment Jr had forgotten the item in his possession, shifting it to both hands so he could hold it out for better inspection. Or Ritsuka could grab it if he wanted. He very much doubted the volleyball would be offended by all the attention. It was like a soccer ball in a way, he supposed. They were about the same hardness and size, but the materials were treated differently. At least, that was what he'd understood. "Yeah, they're about the same thing. I'd guess they're made differently, since you're supposed to try keeping a volleyball in the air."
Ritsuka cocked his head to the side, "I've seen kids at my school play volleyball before. They usually hit it over a net.." Ritsuka looked around the courtyard, he didn't see any nets around. Not that he expected to. The ball looked hard too, why would people hit something on their arms like that.
"Yeah... If this were the Foundation I'd have one. But since it's just for fun we don't really need a net." Not that Jr had ever seen the game as anything but fun. It was something to do with his friends and that was all that had mattered to him. "We can see how long we can keep it in the air, something like that." They could come up with any number of things, he supposed. See how far they could hit it, whatever was fun.
"O-okay," Ritsuka didn't know what to do, so he tried to remember what the kids at his school did. He walked a few paces back so that there was room in between them, and when the ball came flying up into the air and down towards him he tried to hit it. However, the ball ended up going between the gap in his arms much like a basketball going through the hoop. Ritsuka bent down and picked up the ball, feeling slightly embarassed that he couldn't hit the ball. "..I don't think I'm very good at this."
Jr resisted the urge to chuckle just a little at the ball having evaded Ritsuka. It wasn't that he thought any less of the other for not having hit the ball. The fact that it was his first try meant that it was fortunate he'd even come close to it, but it having slipped through his arms was amusing. Not wishing to give the impression that he was mocking in any way he decided laughter wasn't a good idea. "Most people have trouble the first time they try. I think... Old man got hit in the face when he tried playing." Subsequently, Ziggy had decided to leave the game to chaos and MOMO and himself, but he was like that.
"Old man?" Ritsuka held the ball in hand hands tossing it up slightly to hit it, it wasn't a bad pass, although it did land a bit short, but he did hit it. That's what counted right?
Unable to hit the ball back, Jr resorted to catching it, standing back before hitting it back over to Ritsuka again. "Yeah. He's always so serious and stiff about things. MOMO calls him Ziggy, but his model number's Ziggaurat 8." Then of course he reflected that like he wasn't used to kitty ears (damn were those distracting), cyborgs might be foreign to the other. "He's a cyborg. During the Conflict there were a lotta them."
Ritsuka blinked, he had no idea what Jr was talking about. It sounded like he was talking about a video game. Cyborgs and robots. "You're saying that robots and cyborgs are real?" He managed to hit the ball back this time.
"Where I'm from..." Jr started, pausing to move under the ball and hit it back. From the look on the kid's face it was likely that his world indeed was without such differing races invented by technology. Really, all the races that had been created were the result of the wars and life recycling acts. "Myself... I'm from human parents, but I was mutated. It's why I have powers."
Ritsuka caught the ball. He wanted to hear what Jr had to say. He found it important. Anything he could find out about people and the mansion he might be able to further his search for Seimei. "..we use spells in my world just by calling them out.." He shifted his feet into the sand, kicking it lightly.
Spells... That sounded a bit like ethers. Jr wondered if the two things were wholly congruent, or simply similar in nature. It was true that if one was silenced by an opponent they couldn't use ethers, though they didn't have to call them by name. "We use ethers were I'm from. By executing an ether drive, I can start fire or heal someone. Things like that." Although, MOMO was far better at it than he was.
Then perhaps Jr did understand what he was talking about. ethers sounded similiar to the kind of spells Soubi would use. They would do certain damage to enemies or defend himself and Ritsuka. "What do you do?"
"Do..?" Jr frowned slightly, speculating what was being asked of him. It was probably safe to assume he was being asked how it was that he used ethers. Though it was an easy task to him he supposed it was entirely foreign. "Generally focus, and open links to that power." He turned, holding out one of his hands, and called ether, fire springing into the air and then vanishing. "Different for everyone in a way, but most people can access ethers."
Ritsuka's eyes grew wide as he ears stood up straight, out of everyone in the mansion, Jr was the closest to what he was used to back home than anyone. That looked like something Soubi would do, but Jr didn't seem to need to call out any words. "Do you..have someone by your side to take any damage?"
"There are ethers that can let me take damage for other people, or the reverse. Generally I try to protect MOMO." Jr didn't like the idea of someone getting hurt for him. Albedo had taken hits for him in the past when they were kids and even then he hadn't felt right. His twin could regenerate instantly but there was still pain. "...Is that how things work for you?"
Ritsuka hesitated to answer the question, he didn't know how much to tell Jr. It wasn't that he was suspicious of him, he just didn't know whether he should or not. Maybe there was a rule against telling other people from different places about Spell Battles. "Well.." The toe of Ritsuka's shoe dug into the sand, "there's always a Sacrifice and their Fighter..they end up battling other Sacrifices and their Figther. The fighter battles but the Sacrifice takes the damage.."
"Ahh... Kinda like if I stand in front of MOMO and block enemy attacks... Kinda." It left MOMO free to cast ether spells without getting pummeled, and being a bioweapon he could take more than she could. Ziggy did better as a living wall though. The big guy was tough, and being half metal it made sense. Their modes of battle probably weren't exactly the same from the sound of it but there was similarity as far as how combat might work. However... it didn't sound like Ritsuka made use of weapons. At least, not from what he said. "Aside ethers, I also use these." Jr drew his handguns from their holsters with expert fluidity, pointing them toward the ground. They weren't loaded but it was a safe measure.
"Oh.." Ritsuka watched Jr carefully as he took out the guns. He wasn't used to seeing someone carrying them around so casually. It made him feel a bit uncomfortable, that he wasn't protected. He didn't have Soubi to call on if anything happened either. Guns killed. "So you..." Guns were for killing. In Ritsuka's mind that was their only function.
That look definitely did not mean a gun fan. Jr much preferred collecting them to fighting akimbo but there wasn't much to be done about that. The universe was filled with war and gnosis and insane cults and civilians couldn't stand up to all of that on their own. As much as he didn't like it, he was a weapon. From the time he was the same age as Ritsuka he'd understood that there were kill or be killed circumstances. "Where I'm from, there's a war going on right now. Entire worlds fighting over this power nobody should have. And there's monsters that kill anyone at all."
It was no excuse, but that was all he had.
Ritsuka didn't understand. Monsters? He only heard of monsters in bed time story tales and horror movies. They weren't real. They couldn't be. The boogieman was made up. All the movies were made up. The stories too. Ritsuka never saw a real monster. "Monsters don't exist."
"In my world they are. I should know." The others like him had called him one. He and the other Variants. They had unique powers, different wave forms. Not like the first 665 URTV units. And for that, even as their leader, he was a monster. There were many shapes and forms to monsters really. And he knew in some way he was one, barely keeping control over a power so strong there were people made specifically to take him down if he lost it. The gnosis... they were even worse. "Gnosis kill. That's all they do."
Ritsuka frowned slightly. There was so much he didn't know. He thought he knew alot, but in comparison to Jr, he knew nothing. He sat down on the floor, grabbing hold of some sand and letting it slip through his fingers. "Do you want to make a castle?" He asked, looking up at Jr. He didn't want to talk about fake things anymore.
Jr wasn't going to ask about the shift in attitude, though wishing he hadn't pulled his guns out at all. He replaced them quickly, trying not to reflect anything about the change in mood. His world was very different from Ritsuka's and he was glad for that. He wouldn't wish the gnosis or anything else on this guy. Taking a seat he watched the sand for a moment before giving a lopsided grin. "Alright, but I might not be very good at it."
"You don't have to be good at making sand castles. You just pour water on the sand and make whatever shapes you want." He looked around for some water or maybe a hose. Otherwise, the sand wouldn't stick together and they wouldn't have a castle. "It doesn't have to look like a real castle."
"...Guess it's kinda silly, not knowing how to do that." Jr could hack into just about anything but he'd never once done this. Water was something simple enough to provide, another ether that he was able to use, though perhaps it was odd to make water fall on the sand with little more than an odd bit of force in the air. Better than hunting around for a hose as long as he didn't have to do it too much. He wasn't the worst ether user but he wasn't the best. "I... haven't seen an actual castle before. Does your world have them?"
Ritsuka watched as the water fell into the sand and soaked it. Ritsuka moved the sand, forming it into a odd shaped tower. "Yea, but I have only seen them in pictures. They're really big and many of them are made stone." He pushed some of the wet sand towards Jr "You try." he gave him a small smile.
Jr wondered where Ritsuka's world was, if they were even in the same universe. He'd very rarely seen or read about references to castles. None of them existed in his time, he'd wager. Taking his hands to the wet sand he tried imitating what Ritsuka had done. Strange that he'd never been able to act like a kid when he'd been one. Having some kind of shape completed he looked up, the idea coming to mind. "Hey, do you have wooden buildings and paper books where you're from?"
Ritsuka looked at Jr oddly. "Yea. We do. I read all the time. Some buildings are made out of wood, but most are made out of concrete nowadays. The big buildings are at least." He made another tower and sprinkled some dry sand on top of the two. It looked like snow to Ritsuka. Kind of like back home. Making the sand castle with Jr brought back memories of Seimei. Ritsuka didn't remember actually making the castle with him, but he knew they had once. Maybe this is how Seimei made them. How else would Ritsuka know?
"That's.... really cool." That reaction was subdued compared to his general response to wooden buildings and actual books rather than metal and data files. There was something so much more engaging about holding a book in his hands rather than looking at some screen. But trees were fairly scarce and weren't used for such things anymore. Jr wondered how strange it was that he was impressed with what Ritsuka had considered normality, but he couldn't really help it. "We don't have many books where I'm from anymore. Jin had a shop though. The building was even WOOD. It was awesome."
Ritsuka smiled, "Really? Well..I have some books in my room if you want to read them." not everyone shared Ritsuka's interest in books. Ritsuka wiped his sandy hands on his pants and grabbed the camera. "Do you want to take a picture of the sand castle first?" It probably wouldn't be there by tomorrow and Ritsuka wanted to capture the memory. He'd gone back to doing that as of late. Maybe because he was in a different place old habits came back into play.
The notion of new books to read definitely was exciting, and Jr had already raided the library a good number of times. His first visit had been a rather vocal one and some guy named Zexion had gotten on his case about getting so enthusiastic and downright noisy, though he hadn't thought he was terribly loud. Had chaos been there he probably would have been talking far more. "Take a picture? Sure." He wasn't too sure why they were taking a photo but Mary had always been rather fond of snapping pictures of a good number of things.
Ritsuka nodded, he turned around and sat by the castle. Holding up the camera so that the lens faced them he snapped the picture. Afterwards, he went into the memory to look at it. "Now we won't forget," Ritsuka said rather automatically. He stood up and waited for Jr so he could lead him to his room where the books were.
Jr wondered if he should say that his memory was rather good because of modification, but he didn't think that he should. Somehow he didn't think it was a matter of whether one had a vivid memory or not. "Yeah... photos can capture a moment." He stood up after a few moments, brushing sand off on his pants.
Ritsuka lead Jr out of the courtyard and towards his room. He was becoming quite familiar with the first floor hallways. He had only been on this floor, he hadn't tried to search the other floors. He didn't want to get lost in an unknown area. "Yea, I'll print it out too." Ritsuka opened the door to his room and let Jr in. On his one wall near the window he had started a collection of photos he pasted onto the wall. Memories. His and Jrs picture would go up there next. There was also the picture Ritsuka had of him and Seimei. It was the only photo on the wall that looked aged and worn.
Entering the room Jr took initial note of the window but didn't pay it particular mind at first. He and Albedo had not done much with their room, save some damage on days when the mansion had capitalized on their memories in order to... something he didn't know. Why the mansion used memories against people, he wasn't sure. Memories. The same thing, always, but attacking them in different ways. At least... that day their minds were linked, he was certain it was because of his memory. And the more people talked on certain days the more he thought that was what it was. But he'd no how or why, no proof that it was coincidental pattern. When his gaze drifted back to the photos again he recognized a few faces. "Got a collection going?"
Ritsuka was at the bookshelf. All the books were in his room already. He picked out a few that he enjoyed reading and thought Jr might like them. Alot of them were old classic books. He brought the books over to Jr. "Its..a good way to keep busy," he shrugged, "and that why I won't forget my time here when I get back home."
"Makes sense..." Jr watched the photos for a moment before looking at the books and trying not to spaz over them. Those were ANCIENT where he was from. He couldn't find those anywhere. It must have been awesome to live in a time where books weren't some fast fading commodity. "Especially with nobody sure what happens when we get outta here."
Ritsuka handed the books to him, "Here, take them all. These ones I read already," He noticed Jrs reaction to the books. He seemed really excited. "Do you ever make up your own stories?"
"...Make up?" Jr imagined that everyone came up with some sorts of stories, though whether they wrote them or merely thought of them clearly varied. And some didn't like to write so that made enough sense. He looked down at the books that had come into his possession, making note that he'd have to do something in return in the future, though he'd have to mull over what. Being in another world Jr lacked the resources he was used to. Realizing he'd drifted a bit he looked back up at Ritsuka. "Yeah... Don't have time to write much of anything usually though. How about you?"
Ritsuka went to his computer and turned it on. He hooked up the camera to the computer. A printer was also on the desk, which was how he was getting the photo printed out. "No. I just read. Did you..tell your brother stories?"
"Albedo? Well..." He was sure that he and his brother had come up with all sorts of things. They lived in the Institute and weren't allowed beyond the grounds, yet they were aware of what the outside world was like. It seemed only natural that they'd come up with things. Plans on what they'd do and be, even if they both realized it wasn't likely to ever turn out that way. "Sometimes. We liked to talk about what we'd do when we were older. And he used to ask me to come up with stuff because I read so much."
After uploading the picture, Ritsuka printed two out. He opened the desk drawer and took out a pair of scissors. He carefully cut out the two photos. He made one for him and one for Jr. "Really? Tell me one." He handed the picture to Jr before going to the wall to tape the copy up. Being that he was short, the pictures were only an arms length above his head and most of them were pasted at his eye level.
Jr wondered if he could just rattle one off. What was there for him to tell that wasn't all that long? He wasn't sure what all he could come up with and it had been fifteen years. "Not sure I remember them all that clearly..." Which made him feel pretty old, considering the fact that he'd remembered most anything he'd ever picked up. "A lot of them were about just exploring, really. Being kept in one place for so long, the idea of seeing what else was out there was always interesting."
"Exploring? Did you find anything interesting?" Ritsuka sat on his bed and crossed his legs, he was feeling like a kid again. It was a nice change from his usual persitance in questions that often complicated matters. These questions were just out of curiousity.
"Well, we used to like the idea of finding places nobody else had, much as the universe had been explored. Seeing something that no one else did, though... Would have been amazing." Jr wondered what would have happened, had they not been sent in with the third deployment in the Conflict. "I've seen some interesting places though."
Ritsuka smiled, "Secret places? Just for you and him." He rocked back and worth slightly, looking down at the floor, "I want to find a secret place. Maybe he'd be waiting there." This was the first time he brought up Seimei willingly in a conversation. He hardly ever talked about him with people, especially one he just met. But Jr was different. He had a brother who was also gone. He understood.
Jr supposed that was right. He and Albedo were Variants, but even then Nigredo wasn't the same. He and his twin had shared a heart. They could even feel one another, hear that second heartbeat. With it silenced again he was reminded of what was gone. "You think he'd be there?" It made him think of that White Testament. Somehow he'd felt it had to be his brother, but... "I'm sure there's plenty of places."
"You don't know until you try," He looked up at Jr. "If you've seen your brother already, then he's bound to be here. He has to be. People say that you can't leave the mansion. Maybe he's somewhere secret too."
"...Maybe." Jr smiled, though in his mind he didn't feel like showing cheer. Rather that than get down about it. He'd burdened too many people with his concerns already. If Albedo was around he should have been able to feel that second heartbeat. He always had. Even then... that Testament felt different. As though the other half of himself was back again. "I'll just have to keep looking."
"I'll help you if you want," but then Ritsuka thought about what he was saying. If he helped then it wouldn't be a secret anymore. "well..I mean, maybe..I don't know," He sighed slightly.
Requiem Angelic: Jr shrugged. "Albedo's pretty stubborn. When he wants me to find him no doubt he'll make it known." That was how it'd always been, really. They were both stubborn but his twin was clever enough to accomplish what he wanted.
"So its like a game then." Ritsuka began to miss Seimei even more. Everyday he remember more about him and how things used to be. His memories were coming back to him alot easier than they had been back home. "Are you sure you haven't seen anyone with ears like me?"
"Designer children have photographic memories, usually. One of the base trai--" Right, Ritsuka had looked at him funny when he'd mentioned cyborgs so genetically modified children were probably likewise weird. Probably. He sighed, hand rubbing at the back of his neck in a typical gesture. "I mean... I was kinda born good at memorizing. If I do spot him I'll definitely tell him his brother's looking for him."
"..Thanks." He pointed to the picture. "You can keep it. Even if you'll always remember. Maybe you can take some wiht your brother when he comes back to you." Ritsuka was feeling a bit down which meant he wasn't as excited about having company any more.
Jr gave a nod before electing to shift the books to one arm and ruffle Ritsuka's hair. "I'm sure you're going to find him." Really, he was almost relieved that the younger version of his brother wasn't there. He didn't know all of the things that would happen, all of the anger and misfortune and pain that came in the future... And Jr wasn't sure he could pretend to be the child that Albedo knew. If the twin from his own time showed up, he didn't know what he'd do about that either. "As long as you keep at it, I know you will."
Figuring it was best if he left he turned to go, pausing for a moment at the door. "Thanks for the picture. I'll take good care of it."
Ritsuka watched Jr leave. "Okay.." When he closed the door, Ritsuka got up to lock it. He was going to do some research. He wasn't going to give up and Jr gave him hope.
red_gunner and Ristuka sleeping_memoryWhere Outside
When: Afternoon
Rating: G-PG at worst
Summary: Hanging out and brother-talk
the Story:
It had definitely been a while since Jr had gone out and done anything fun. Most of the people he'd gotten to know or had known already were mysteriously quiet, and he could only guess they'd somehow gotten out. Kyou had been silent and Albedo hadn't come back to their room in weeks so it seemed a safe enough assertion. Perhaps it was better that he didn't see the younger version of his brother. Still sane, and not yet obsessed with oblivion. Before everything had gone to hell.
But he wasn't going to think about things like that today. He was going to hang out with Ritsuka, while trying not to gawk at these cat ears he apparently had. It... sounded really cute, if not entirely strange in his experience. But he supposed the other might think cyborgs or genetically engineered bioweapons were a bit on the odd side too. So they were even, Jr concluded as he paced about the courtyard, spinning the volleyball on his finger. It was a nice day out. Good weather, lots of sun. Reminded him of things back at the Foundation... before things had gone wild with the gnosis, anyhow.
Ritsuka pasted the picture he had taken with Vexen on his wall before he left to meet Jr in the courtyard. He brought with him his camera which hung around his wrist. He was in a good mood today. Lately he had been getting along with everyone and they were all equally nice to him. Some even tried to help him. Like Jr. Ritsuka thought Jr was someone important, like he knew what Ritsuka was feeling. No one could ever relate to him about Seimei.
Ritsuka was at the courtyard in no time. He saw Jr spinning a volleyball. He walked up to him and said in a small voice, "Hey.." Ritsuka still hadn't gotten the hang of starting conversations with new people and friends.
Jr hadn't noticed that anyone else had come outside, mixed thoughts having been enough to occupy him while he was waiting, but hearing the greeting made him halt. Shifting the ball to hold it under an arm he turned to flash a grin at the other, trying not to be too derailed by the fact that this kid--who had to be Ritsuka--did indeed have kitty cat ears. And a tail. He'd never seen anything like that unless it was some costume a girl wore. There were some unique people out there.
"Hey there. How's it going?" Jr never did have trouble greeting people for even a day in his life, and had always been inclined to be friendly. Everyone at the Foundation treated him like their neighbor even though his 'father' ran the place. He enjoyed people. And Ritsuka had seemed like a nice guy. Funny that they were about the same size.
Ritsuka blinked, Jr was smaller than he expected, he was the same height as Ritsuka. If he wondered about it, he would be left with alot of questions and the last time he asked someone questions, they didn't seem too keen on answering him. "It's okay." He noticed Jr had really interesting eyes, like none he had ever seen before. He couldn't even give a name to the color they were, "How are you?"
"I'm alright. Glad for the fresh air. Might've grown roots if I'd stayed in that room much longer." Jr replied with a shrug, still showing a cheerful expression. He really was feeling fortunate that someone actually wanted to go out rather than camp in their rooms. It seemed that a lot of people just holed up like rabbits, and that was something that tended to leave him restless. How the rest of them could stand it, he'd never know.
Part of him wanted to ask Ritsuka if he'd seen that brother of his yet, but he wasn't sure he wanted to address that issue. "Place gets really dull sometimes, it seems like."
Ritsuka smiled slightly when Jr made a joke. "Like a tree. I don't know, alot of people are doing their own thing. They don't want you to bother them with questions or anything.." Ritsuka fiddled with his camera as he talked to Jr. Was he really older than him? He didn't look it, but he acted like it.
Jr didn't doubt that people had their own business. He certainly had his, but it didn't seem right in his mind to isolate himself from everyone else when they were all in the same situation and facing the same problems. Everyone had their own past but the present was something they all shared and people who couldn't work together weren't going to fare well. "Some people are like that, I guess. It won't help them figure the place out though. Acting like grumpy old men never solved anything." At that, Jr made a face. With his appearance, the expression was markedly childish. But these people really were like the Senate in some ways. Had to have sticks up their rears.
He nodded. That did make alot of sense. Some people even thought they were elite. Or at least in Ritsuka's mind it seemed that way. Ritsuka pointed to the volleyball, "it looks alot like a soccer ball." He never played volleyball, he saw people at his school play once before but he never went out of his way to try a new thing like sports. Maybe that card meant something, maybe if he tried something new...that did count as change, didn't it?
"Ah, right." For a moment Jr had forgotten the item in his possession, shifting it to both hands so he could hold it out for better inspection. Or Ritsuka could grab it if he wanted. He very much doubted the volleyball would be offended by all the attention. It was like a soccer ball in a way, he supposed. They were about the same hardness and size, but the materials were treated differently. At least, that was what he'd understood. "Yeah, they're about the same thing. I'd guess they're made differently, since you're supposed to try keeping a volleyball in the air."
Ritsuka cocked his head to the side, "I've seen kids at my school play volleyball before. They usually hit it over a net.." Ritsuka looked around the courtyard, he didn't see any nets around. Not that he expected to. The ball looked hard too, why would people hit something on their arms like that.
"Yeah... If this were the Foundation I'd have one. But since it's just for fun we don't really need a net." Not that Jr had ever seen the game as anything but fun. It was something to do with his friends and that was all that had mattered to him. "We can see how long we can keep it in the air, something like that." They could come up with any number of things, he supposed. See how far they could hit it, whatever was fun.
"O-okay," Ritsuka didn't know what to do, so he tried to remember what the kids at his school did. He walked a few paces back so that there was room in between them, and when the ball came flying up into the air and down towards him he tried to hit it. However, the ball ended up going between the gap in his arms much like a basketball going through the hoop. Ritsuka bent down and picked up the ball, feeling slightly embarassed that he couldn't hit the ball. "..I don't think I'm very good at this."
Jr resisted the urge to chuckle just a little at the ball having evaded Ritsuka. It wasn't that he thought any less of the other for not having hit the ball. The fact that it was his first try meant that it was fortunate he'd even come close to it, but it having slipped through his arms was amusing. Not wishing to give the impression that he was mocking in any way he decided laughter wasn't a good idea. "Most people have trouble the first time they try. I think... Old man got hit in the face when he tried playing." Subsequently, Ziggy had decided to leave the game to chaos and MOMO and himself, but he was like that.
"Old man?" Ritsuka held the ball in hand hands tossing it up slightly to hit it, it wasn't a bad pass, although it did land a bit short, but he did hit it. That's what counted right?
Unable to hit the ball back, Jr resorted to catching it, standing back before hitting it back over to Ritsuka again. "Yeah. He's always so serious and stiff about things. MOMO calls him Ziggy, but his model number's Ziggaurat 8." Then of course he reflected that like he wasn't used to kitty ears (damn were those distracting), cyborgs might be foreign to the other. "He's a cyborg. During the Conflict there were a lotta them."
Ritsuka blinked, he had no idea what Jr was talking about. It sounded like he was talking about a video game. Cyborgs and robots. "You're saying that robots and cyborgs are real?" He managed to hit the ball back this time.
"Where I'm from..." Jr started, pausing to move under the ball and hit it back. From the look on the kid's face it was likely that his world indeed was without such differing races invented by technology. Really, all the races that had been created were the result of the wars and life recycling acts. "Myself... I'm from human parents, but I was mutated. It's why I have powers."
Ritsuka caught the ball. He wanted to hear what Jr had to say. He found it important. Anything he could find out about people and the mansion he might be able to further his search for Seimei. "..we use spells in my world just by calling them out.." He shifted his feet into the sand, kicking it lightly.
Spells... That sounded a bit like ethers. Jr wondered if the two things were wholly congruent, or simply similar in nature. It was true that if one was silenced by an opponent they couldn't use ethers, though they didn't have to call them by name. "We use ethers were I'm from. By executing an ether drive, I can start fire or heal someone. Things like that." Although, MOMO was far better at it than he was.
Then perhaps Jr did understand what he was talking about. ethers sounded similiar to the kind of spells Soubi would use. They would do certain damage to enemies or defend himself and Ritsuka. "What do you do?"
"Do..?" Jr frowned slightly, speculating what was being asked of him. It was probably safe to assume he was being asked how it was that he used ethers. Though it was an easy task to him he supposed it was entirely foreign. "Generally focus, and open links to that power." He turned, holding out one of his hands, and called ether, fire springing into the air and then vanishing. "Different for everyone in a way, but most people can access ethers."
Ritsuka's eyes grew wide as he ears stood up straight, out of everyone in the mansion, Jr was the closest to what he was used to back home than anyone. That looked like something Soubi would do, but Jr didn't seem to need to call out any words. "Do you..have someone by your side to take any damage?"
"There are ethers that can let me take damage for other people, or the reverse. Generally I try to protect MOMO." Jr didn't like the idea of someone getting hurt for him. Albedo had taken hits for him in the past when they were kids and even then he hadn't felt right. His twin could regenerate instantly but there was still pain. "...Is that how things work for you?"
Ritsuka hesitated to answer the question, he didn't know how much to tell Jr. It wasn't that he was suspicious of him, he just didn't know whether he should or not. Maybe there was a rule against telling other people from different places about Spell Battles. "Well.." The toe of Ritsuka's shoe dug into the sand, "there's always a Sacrifice and their Fighter..they end up battling other Sacrifices and their Figther. The fighter battles but the Sacrifice takes the damage.."
"Ahh... Kinda like if I stand in front of MOMO and block enemy attacks... Kinda." It left MOMO free to cast ether spells without getting pummeled, and being a bioweapon he could take more than she could. Ziggy did better as a living wall though. The big guy was tough, and being half metal it made sense. Their modes of battle probably weren't exactly the same from the sound of it but there was similarity as far as how combat might work. However... it didn't sound like Ritsuka made use of weapons. At least, not from what he said. "Aside ethers, I also use these." Jr drew his handguns from their holsters with expert fluidity, pointing them toward the ground. They weren't loaded but it was a safe measure.
"Oh.." Ritsuka watched Jr carefully as he took out the guns. He wasn't used to seeing someone carrying them around so casually. It made him feel a bit uncomfortable, that he wasn't protected. He didn't have Soubi to call on if anything happened either. Guns killed. "So you..." Guns were for killing. In Ritsuka's mind that was their only function.
That look definitely did not mean a gun fan. Jr much preferred collecting them to fighting akimbo but there wasn't much to be done about that. The universe was filled with war and gnosis and insane cults and civilians couldn't stand up to all of that on their own. As much as he didn't like it, he was a weapon. From the time he was the same age as Ritsuka he'd understood that there were kill or be killed circumstances. "Where I'm from, there's a war going on right now. Entire worlds fighting over this power nobody should have. And there's monsters that kill anyone at all."
It was no excuse, but that was all he had.
Ritsuka didn't understand. Monsters? He only heard of monsters in bed time story tales and horror movies. They weren't real. They couldn't be. The boogieman was made up. All the movies were made up. The stories too. Ritsuka never saw a real monster. "Monsters don't exist."
"In my world they are. I should know." The others like him had called him one. He and the other Variants. They had unique powers, different wave forms. Not like the first 665 URTV units. And for that, even as their leader, he was a monster. There were many shapes and forms to monsters really. And he knew in some way he was one, barely keeping control over a power so strong there were people made specifically to take him down if he lost it. The gnosis... they were even worse. "Gnosis kill. That's all they do."
Ritsuka frowned slightly. There was so much he didn't know. He thought he knew alot, but in comparison to Jr, he knew nothing. He sat down on the floor, grabbing hold of some sand and letting it slip through his fingers. "Do you want to make a castle?" He asked, looking up at Jr. He didn't want to talk about fake things anymore.
Jr wasn't going to ask about the shift in attitude, though wishing he hadn't pulled his guns out at all. He replaced them quickly, trying not to reflect anything about the change in mood. His world was very different from Ritsuka's and he was glad for that. He wouldn't wish the gnosis or anything else on this guy. Taking a seat he watched the sand for a moment before giving a lopsided grin. "Alright, but I might not be very good at it."
"You don't have to be good at making sand castles. You just pour water on the sand and make whatever shapes you want." He looked around for some water or maybe a hose. Otherwise, the sand wouldn't stick together and they wouldn't have a castle. "It doesn't have to look like a real castle."
"...Guess it's kinda silly, not knowing how to do that." Jr could hack into just about anything but he'd never once done this. Water was something simple enough to provide, another ether that he was able to use, though perhaps it was odd to make water fall on the sand with little more than an odd bit of force in the air. Better than hunting around for a hose as long as he didn't have to do it too much. He wasn't the worst ether user but he wasn't the best. "I... haven't seen an actual castle before. Does your world have them?"
Ritsuka watched as the water fell into the sand and soaked it. Ritsuka moved the sand, forming it into a odd shaped tower. "Yea, but I have only seen them in pictures. They're really big and many of them are made stone." He pushed some of the wet sand towards Jr "You try." he gave him a small smile.
Jr wondered where Ritsuka's world was, if they were even in the same universe. He'd very rarely seen or read about references to castles. None of them existed in his time, he'd wager. Taking his hands to the wet sand he tried imitating what Ritsuka had done. Strange that he'd never been able to act like a kid when he'd been one. Having some kind of shape completed he looked up, the idea coming to mind. "Hey, do you have wooden buildings and paper books where you're from?"
Ritsuka looked at Jr oddly. "Yea. We do. I read all the time. Some buildings are made out of wood, but most are made out of concrete nowadays. The big buildings are at least." He made another tower and sprinkled some dry sand on top of the two. It looked like snow to Ritsuka. Kind of like back home. Making the sand castle with Jr brought back memories of Seimei. Ritsuka didn't remember actually making the castle with him, but he knew they had once. Maybe this is how Seimei made them. How else would Ritsuka know?
"That's.... really cool." That reaction was subdued compared to his general response to wooden buildings and actual books rather than metal and data files. There was something so much more engaging about holding a book in his hands rather than looking at some screen. But trees were fairly scarce and weren't used for such things anymore. Jr wondered how strange it was that he was impressed with what Ritsuka had considered normality, but he couldn't really help it. "We don't have many books where I'm from anymore. Jin had a shop though. The building was even WOOD. It was awesome."
Ritsuka smiled, "Really? Well..I have some books in my room if you want to read them." not everyone shared Ritsuka's interest in books. Ritsuka wiped his sandy hands on his pants and grabbed the camera. "Do you want to take a picture of the sand castle first?" It probably wouldn't be there by tomorrow and Ritsuka wanted to capture the memory. He'd gone back to doing that as of late. Maybe because he was in a different place old habits came back into play.
The notion of new books to read definitely was exciting, and Jr had already raided the library a good number of times. His first visit had been a rather vocal one and some guy named Zexion had gotten on his case about getting so enthusiastic and downright noisy, though he hadn't thought he was terribly loud. Had chaos been there he probably would have been talking far more. "Take a picture? Sure." He wasn't too sure why they were taking a photo but Mary had always been rather fond of snapping pictures of a good number of things.
Ritsuka nodded, he turned around and sat by the castle. Holding up the camera so that the lens faced them he snapped the picture. Afterwards, he went into the memory to look at it. "Now we won't forget," Ritsuka said rather automatically. He stood up and waited for Jr so he could lead him to his room where the books were.
Jr wondered if he should say that his memory was rather good because of modification, but he didn't think that he should. Somehow he didn't think it was a matter of whether one had a vivid memory or not. "Yeah... photos can capture a moment." He stood up after a few moments, brushing sand off on his pants.
Ritsuka lead Jr out of the courtyard and towards his room. He was becoming quite familiar with the first floor hallways. He had only been on this floor, he hadn't tried to search the other floors. He didn't want to get lost in an unknown area. "Yea, I'll print it out too." Ritsuka opened the door to his room and let Jr in. On his one wall near the window he had started a collection of photos he pasted onto the wall. Memories. His and Jrs picture would go up there next. There was also the picture Ritsuka had of him and Seimei. It was the only photo on the wall that looked aged and worn.
Entering the room Jr took initial note of the window but didn't pay it particular mind at first. He and Albedo had not done much with their room, save some damage on days when the mansion had capitalized on their memories in order to... something he didn't know. Why the mansion used memories against people, he wasn't sure. Memories. The same thing, always, but attacking them in different ways. At least... that day their minds were linked, he was certain it was because of his memory. And the more people talked on certain days the more he thought that was what it was. But he'd no how or why, no proof that it was coincidental pattern. When his gaze drifted back to the photos again he recognized a few faces. "Got a collection going?"
Ritsuka was at the bookshelf. All the books were in his room already. He picked out a few that he enjoyed reading and thought Jr might like them. Alot of them were old classic books. He brought the books over to Jr. "Its..a good way to keep busy," he shrugged, "and that why I won't forget my time here when I get back home."
"Makes sense..." Jr watched the photos for a moment before looking at the books and trying not to spaz over them. Those were ANCIENT where he was from. He couldn't find those anywhere. It must have been awesome to live in a time where books weren't some fast fading commodity. "Especially with nobody sure what happens when we get outta here."
Ritsuka handed the books to him, "Here, take them all. These ones I read already," He noticed Jrs reaction to the books. He seemed really excited. "Do you ever make up your own stories?"
"...Make up?" Jr imagined that everyone came up with some sorts of stories, though whether they wrote them or merely thought of them clearly varied. And some didn't like to write so that made enough sense. He looked down at the books that had come into his possession, making note that he'd have to do something in return in the future, though he'd have to mull over what. Being in another world Jr lacked the resources he was used to. Realizing he'd drifted a bit he looked back up at Ritsuka. "Yeah... Don't have time to write much of anything usually though. How about you?"
Ritsuka went to his computer and turned it on. He hooked up the camera to the computer. A printer was also on the desk, which was how he was getting the photo printed out. "No. I just read. Did you..tell your brother stories?"
"Albedo? Well..." He was sure that he and his brother had come up with all sorts of things. They lived in the Institute and weren't allowed beyond the grounds, yet they were aware of what the outside world was like. It seemed only natural that they'd come up with things. Plans on what they'd do and be, even if they both realized it wasn't likely to ever turn out that way. "Sometimes. We liked to talk about what we'd do when we were older. And he used to ask me to come up with stuff because I read so much."
After uploading the picture, Ritsuka printed two out. He opened the desk drawer and took out a pair of scissors. He carefully cut out the two photos. He made one for him and one for Jr. "Really? Tell me one." He handed the picture to Jr before going to the wall to tape the copy up. Being that he was short, the pictures were only an arms length above his head and most of them were pasted at his eye level.
Jr wondered if he could just rattle one off. What was there for him to tell that wasn't all that long? He wasn't sure what all he could come up with and it had been fifteen years. "Not sure I remember them all that clearly..." Which made him feel pretty old, considering the fact that he'd remembered most anything he'd ever picked up. "A lot of them were about just exploring, really. Being kept in one place for so long, the idea of seeing what else was out there was always interesting."
"Exploring? Did you find anything interesting?" Ritsuka sat on his bed and crossed his legs, he was feeling like a kid again. It was a nice change from his usual persitance in questions that often complicated matters. These questions were just out of curiousity.
"Well, we used to like the idea of finding places nobody else had, much as the universe had been explored. Seeing something that no one else did, though... Would have been amazing." Jr wondered what would have happened, had they not been sent in with the third deployment in the Conflict. "I've seen some interesting places though."
Ritsuka smiled, "Secret places? Just for you and him." He rocked back and worth slightly, looking down at the floor, "I want to find a secret place. Maybe he'd be waiting there." This was the first time he brought up Seimei willingly in a conversation. He hardly ever talked about him with people, especially one he just met. But Jr was different. He had a brother who was also gone. He understood.
Jr supposed that was right. He and Albedo were Variants, but even then Nigredo wasn't the same. He and his twin had shared a heart. They could even feel one another, hear that second heartbeat. With it silenced again he was reminded of what was gone. "You think he'd be there?" It made him think of that White Testament. Somehow he'd felt it had to be his brother, but... "I'm sure there's plenty of places."
"You don't know until you try," He looked up at Jr. "If you've seen your brother already, then he's bound to be here. He has to be. People say that you can't leave the mansion. Maybe he's somewhere secret too."
"...Maybe." Jr smiled, though in his mind he didn't feel like showing cheer. Rather that than get down about it. He'd burdened too many people with his concerns already. If Albedo was around he should have been able to feel that second heartbeat. He always had. Even then... that Testament felt different. As though the other half of himself was back again. "I'll just have to keep looking."
"I'll help you if you want," but then Ritsuka thought about what he was saying. If he helped then it wouldn't be a secret anymore. "well..I mean, maybe..I don't know," He sighed slightly.
Requiem Angelic: Jr shrugged. "Albedo's pretty stubborn. When he wants me to find him no doubt he'll make it known." That was how it'd always been, really. They were both stubborn but his twin was clever enough to accomplish what he wanted.
"So its like a game then." Ritsuka began to miss Seimei even more. Everyday he remember more about him and how things used to be. His memories were coming back to him alot easier than they had been back home. "Are you sure you haven't seen anyone with ears like me?"
"Designer children have photographic memories, usually. One of the base trai--" Right, Ritsuka had looked at him funny when he'd mentioned cyborgs so genetically modified children were probably likewise weird. Probably. He sighed, hand rubbing at the back of his neck in a typical gesture. "I mean... I was kinda born good at memorizing. If I do spot him I'll definitely tell him his brother's looking for him."
"..Thanks." He pointed to the picture. "You can keep it. Even if you'll always remember. Maybe you can take some wiht your brother when he comes back to you." Ritsuka was feeling a bit down which meant he wasn't as excited about having company any more.
Jr gave a nod before electing to shift the books to one arm and ruffle Ritsuka's hair. "I'm sure you're going to find him." Really, he was almost relieved that the younger version of his brother wasn't there. He didn't know all of the things that would happen, all of the anger and misfortune and pain that came in the future... And Jr wasn't sure he could pretend to be the child that Albedo knew. If the twin from his own time showed up, he didn't know what he'd do about that either. "As long as you keep at it, I know you will."
Figuring it was best if he left he turned to go, pausing for a moment at the door. "Thanks for the picture. I'll take good care of it."
Ritsuka watched Jr leave. "Okay.." When he closed the door, Ritsuka got up to lock it. He was going to do some research. He wasn't going to give up and Jr gave him hope.