prismatica | [Video]

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[It's a video post, mostly because he won't be assed to try to write anything down right now. The man in the video looks like hell. Those who know him know he's always kind of grouchy and terse, but now it's much, much worse.]

So what the hell happens to people when they leave this hellhole, again? Does anyone even know?

I swear, if she isn't safe, there won't be a single...

[He stops himself before he gets himself more worked up. That's not a goddamn thing he can do right now, and he knows it.]

Right, whatever. My partner's gone.

The apothecary's closed until I figure out what I'm doing. If you need anything that badly in the meantime, just find me.

[And with that, he shuts off the camera.]

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[She doesn't recognize him by sight. She only saw a couple of his pictures the one time on Prismates. When he mentions the apothecary, that triggers the recognition switch.]

[Should she say his partner is okay? It seems like a lie, since she doesn't know what their situation was on his homeworld. So...just reassure for what she does know, and make sure he's okay. Okay-ish. He's probably not 'okay.']

They go home, to the same point from where they left, so it's like nothing here ever happened.

[She looks down at her lap, where her other hand rests there for a moment. It's been a while, but she remembers feeling pretty guilty when she found out Ichigo was gone too.]

I'm sorry. It's still hard when you're the one who's here.

'Home' is an even bigger shithole where she isn't even treated like a person!

I'm supposed to be there fighting off their apocalypse for them, and now she's back in the middle of it while I'm stuck spinning my wheels here?

[Guilt would be one thing, but what he's feeling goes far and above that. He's furious, and clearly doesn't mind letting that fact show.]

You'll be there, too.

[The last thing she's going to do is tell him to calm down, or to stop being angry. Who could blame him for feeling that way?]

Whether you have to be sent back to fix your chroma generation, or if you're here to the end where the planet is safe again, you'll go back to that one point, as if you'd never left.

[She presses her thumbs together.]

It's okay to miss her in the meantime, though.

I just have to believe that, huh?

What a load of shit.

[He scoffs, but then immediately seems to just... deflate.]

You know, just once it would be nice to asked 'hey, you want to get sucked into some new world' before it just happens.

Yeah...

[She can at least agree with his frustration. She's seen people mention their experiences when they went to their worlds and came back, but she doesn't know anyone who returned to their world for longer than a week. So hope is all they've got.]

[She perks up a little as he grumbles about their circumstances.]

It would! Or even just a notice so there's time to prepare for it. Has it happened to you before?

[That's the part that really interests her, the way he says it like this is a common or regular event.]

Yeah. I'm not actually from that world, they just summoned me there to be this great legendary hero.

Right before they decided they'd rather treat me like a criminal and leave me to rot.

Really? That sounded exciting at first.

[She would love to be a great legendary hero...]

You said there were others too, though? So did they just summon a lot of people?

That's what I thought, too. I was ready to have an adventure just like some light novel or anime. Probably what made it so easy to take advantage of me.

[Never again.]

There were three other guys, so four of us. One for each 'legendary weapon'. Sword, Spear, Bow, and Shield. Everyone loved the other three, but apparently the Shield was the 'dud'.

They still expect me to help save their sorry world, too. Won't send me back unless I do. I was happy when we got brought here, instead. I thought the joke was on them, but turns out it's still on me after all.

...Do you think you're a dud?

[Because she doesn't think he is. Given how angry and fierce he is, she doesn't think he believes that either. But if he does lack that confidence, it's going to compound and make him feel worse.]

I think I drew the shortest stick. I had to work ten times harder than the other heroes just to keep up.

That's a relief...

[Not that he had to work extra hard, but she's sure he knows what she means.]

That means you're more experienced than they are, right? And this place picked you. Not them. So you have something they don't that makes you valuable.

I'm the only one of us actually trying to pull my weight, not living out some hero fantasy pretending I'm in some sort of real life video game.

I don't know why they would choose me, but I can think of about a dozen reasons not to choose any of them.

I think you'll figure it out eventually.

[She gives one confident nod. He seems like he's been through a lot, and having someone from his world probably helped him not to feel lonely. Liked, even. Maybe he's not ready to hang around someone else, but she should reach out. She wants to, anyway. He's been pretty nice to her, and with them both being shield specialists, it makes sense that they'd probably be friends.]

[...He's also tall dark and handsome, just like her neighbor Milly said she liked in a man.
If he can tell Milly nice things too, then maybe...!]

...Do you want to come over? We can eat ice cream and watch a movie. I can invite my neighbor too, if you want.

[He visibly pauses, obviously conflicted. Is this an angle? No, what would she have to gain? Raphtalia would probably frown at him again for not trying to trust people.]

[So, against his own better judgement, hesitatingly-]

...Yeah, okay.

Okay! You can pick the movie when you get here. I don't have too many, but if you don't like those, there might be something good on TV.

[Possibly. There are a few shows that don't get that explicit anyway.]

Have you eaten? I can order a pizza right now, then it'll arrive about the same time. Here's my address.

[Just one of the many apartments that was given to newcomers, neither luxurious nor excessively humble. It might be close to his, it might not.]

Alright, I'm on my way.

[It seems so... normal. Is that what he'd be doing if he'd never been Isekai'd? Who knows.]

See you soon!

[She waves, and hangs up. ...Oh, she didn't ask what kind of toppings he wanted...hrm. Well, that's okay. She'll order half pepperoni, and half everything else. Then if he wants the works, all he has to do is eat two pieces stacked on top of each other, and if he prefers something simple, he can eat the pepperoni alone. Ha, she's a genius!]

Ah, Raphtalia, was it?

[Sure, Rey's never met this guy before but it was inevitable information to pick up since she kind of -- sort of -- bidded on his partner during the charity auction. Oops.]

Guess apologies probably doesn't cut it. Not much comfort knowing anyone can just come and go with no warning.

Yeah. You know her too, huh? Good. I'm glad she had other friends here.

I knew it could happen at any time, you see people post about it all the time. It's my own damn fault for pretending like it didn't have anything to do with me.

[ She went back and forth on this for a bit, trying to decide if she really wanted to talk about the fact that she went home recently. In the end, she decides it sounds like the kind of thing he might need to hear. Her voice is soft, wanting to be of comfort for him. ]

I went home recently and I returned to the very moment I'd been taken from.

[ There's a short pause before she adds ] I'm sorry your partner has returned home.

[He'd heard that was how it worked, but personal experience was more valuable than hearsay.]

She was safer here than she would be there.

[There's a sigh. He's gone past his original incandescent rage, and now he's slipped into a dry resignation.]

Thank you for telling me. At least I know she's not scattered to the winds.

I don't doubt that's the case for many here. [ She wouldn't say she's any safer her than home, but her life might actually be better here. ]

The magic of this world is strange but at least she's alive.

And, um, I know we don't know each other but if there's anything you need help with I don't mind lending a hand. [ She always feels a little awkward putting herself out there for complete strangers and it certainly shows in her voice. ]

[There's a pause. As a rule, he doesn't trust strangers. Least of all strangers making offers, even if it's just for unspecified 'help'. On the other hand, she doesn't know who he is, so she's probably not actually angling to take anything from him...]

I'm Naofumi Iwatani. The Shield Hero. [A shortcut. If he introduces himself, he can see if she has a reaction to the name, and if nothing else he'd be less of a total stranger.]

It's nice to meet you Naofumi. I'm Persephone, Goddess of Spring. [ He can't see her smile but maybe he can hear it in her voice. ]

Though I have to ask, what's a Shield Hero?

[Good. If she doesn't know what it is, she isn't pre-judged against him. That's been the norm in this world, but it's always a small relief.]

The short version is it means I was taken against my will to help save a world I never heard of.

Oh. That's terrible.

[ Though is that not a similar situation they've found themselves in here? ]

Still, that doesn't really tell me what a Shield Hero is.

It's part of the legend.

Four legendary weapons, four summoned heroes. Mine is the Shield, so I'm the Shield Hero. It all sounds great, but it was basically hell.

I see.

[ She'd like to know more but it doesn't really seem like the kind of thing she should ask.

Instead, ] How long have you been running an apothecary?

We weren't exactly friends. Just met her a couple times. Plus, needed someone to spar with, so...

[Yeah, that was a thing.

[sigh]

Seemed nice.

One of my abilities lets me compound medicines. I sold them to get by in the other world, so as soon as I had the chance, I started doing it here, too.

Oh. That's really neat. I just know how to make a few things by hand.

If you sparred with her, she probably thought of you as a friend. I don't think she had very many of those, so thank you.

Oh? That's practical experience, then- the real deal. I'm basically just cheating.

That’s okay. I cheat when it come to growing plants.

Oh. Well.

[Truth be told, Rey doesn't have many she can think of as friends, mostly because she has know idea how friendship is actually gauged. Apparently it's not just something you tell someone, at least in Raphtalia's case.]

No problem. Found sparring to be a more comfortable kind of Moonlacing than the... alternative, so. She helped, is all.

Yeah, that sounds like something she'd do.

Since you two helped each other out, you can look me up if you need to spar again. I can't do anything except defend, do don't get your hopes up for a real fight or anything.

Should be fine. Am something of a... heavy hitter-- [wow, now that's an understatement] --so if your defense can handle that, we're good.

One way to find out, I guess. Just don't go for the kill until I'm sure my shields can tank it.

You control plant growth, too? You're starting to sound a little like competition.

Goddess of Spring, remember?

Don't worry, I don't know enough about making medicines to be much competition.

You don't use any other weapons to fight?

Not won't, can't.

Part of the 'fun' of being me.

Sounds more like a pain in the ass.

[Yes, she caught the sarcasm when he said "fun", but wow.]

Then you get the idea. That's why I needed a partner in the first place.

[She'd say "that makes sense" except it... doesn't, really.]

So... what happens if you do try to use weapons?

You know what an error message is? It's kinda like that.

Just flies straight out of my hands. I gave up on even trying a long time ago.

Of course--

[Well, okay, she can't get too offended by someone asking if she knows what an "error message" is, of all things. She knows quite a few who wouldn't have a clue.]

So if you try to fight on the offensive, you just physically blue screen? [Then, a pause.] You're not a synthetic, are you?

[Look, she has to make sure, okay? Humans don't talk about experiencing error messages and having their weapons fly away.]

If I was, it'd be news to me.

That a thing where you're from?

Unfortunately, yes.

[But she'll just take his response with some relief now.]

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