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[leane is a small village, located at the north crest of fitzgald—a continent filled mostly with farmland and now-abandoned mines that the oberon corporation once used to mine lens for their business.
there isn't much in the way of population; noischtat is the big city at the southern tip of the continent. aside from some assorted places throughout the continent, there's little else but leane, which is also a farming village. on most days, he can be found tending to the sheep on the pasture that lies around his home. today, though, he's headed to the center of town at lilith's request to pick up ingredients for that night's dinner. he greets the other villagers brightly—but it's hard to miss the whisperings that come when they pass about how he still seems to melancholic even though he's a world-renowned hero that's saved the world.
(but maybe that comes with missing so many people that are dear to you, and wondering if you'll ever have a way to see them again.)]
there isn't much in the way of population; noischtat is the big city at the southern tip of the continent. aside from some assorted places throughout the continent, there's little else but leane, which is also a farming village. on most days, he can be found tending to the sheep on the pasture that lies around his home. today, though, he's headed to the center of town at lilith's request to pick up ingredients for that night's dinner. he greets the other villagers brightly—but it's hard to miss the whisperings that come when they pass about how he still seems to melancholic even though he's a world-renowned hero that's saved the world.
(but maybe that comes with missing so many people that are dear to you, and wondering if you'll ever have a way to see them again.)]
[ He sure will! And by that, we mean that Otome actually doesn't have any idea what happened-- she'd just settled down enough in her own world, starting to co-host lectures at universities with Fumi, and then she'd... merely woken up here.
In an entirely unfamiliar place yet again, with faces she can't yet place, and no demons to summon because all of that is finally over. So for now, she's trying to learn more about where she's woken up in, and Stahn in his pursuit of ingredients, may see a blonde lady in a white coat gently turning down an offer to buy apples.
Some things never change. ]
In an entirely unfamiliar place yet again, with faces she can't yet place, and no demons to summon because all of that is finally over. So for now, she's trying to learn more about where she's woken up in, and Stahn in his pursuit of ingredients, may see a blonde lady in a white coat gently turning down an offer to buy apples.
Some things never change. ]
[she's not the only one without her abilities—dymlos is not longer at his waist, after all. but that's neither here nor there.
what is though is the whispers of an unfamiliar face in the town, and though the descriptions don't seem to connect, there is a bit of a curiosity that accompanies it—they don't get visitors to leane too often, after all. so as he passes through, he'll peer over—
and when he sees the person refusing the apples, his arms go dead... sorry lilith, your grocery list is going to be taken away by the breeze.]
It can't be...
[he murmurs quietly, but... of course it can be. because stahn couldn't possibly not recognize that woman. everything about her is etched into his memory. so he edges closer, and when he's close enough:]
Otome...
Is that, is it really you?
what is though is the whispers of an unfamiliar face in the town, and though the descriptions don't seem to connect, there is a bit of a curiosity that accompanies it—they don't get visitors to leane too often, after all. so as he passes through, he'll peer over—
and when he sees the person refusing the apples, his arms go dead... sorry lilith, your grocery list is going to be taken away by the breeze.]
It can't be...
[he murmurs quietly, but... of course it can be. because stahn couldn't possibly not recognize that woman. everything about her is etched into his memory. so he edges closer, and when he's close enough:]
Otome...
Is that, is it really you?
[ She didn't expect to hear her name, and the look of surprise on her face is all too genuine when she turns around and spots him. But from there, the surprise turns to sincere shock when recognition settles in.
Otome had never once thought it was a dream. How could she? Leon, Stahn, the others... they were all too vivid, and a day had never gone by that she didn't think about them and have to press a hand to her chest to suppress a surge of loneliness. Finding family in another place, only to lose it when returning to her own time and place-- she ought to be used to that by now, but it had still hurt.
But-- ]
Stahn...
[ She breathes his name now, and blinks back tears. It's... him. He's here. ]
Otome had never once thought it was a dream. How could she? Leon, Stahn, the others... they were all too vivid, and a day had never gone by that she didn't think about them and have to press a hand to her chest to suppress a surge of loneliness. Finding family in another place, only to lose it when returning to her own time and place-- she ought to be used to that by now, but it had still hurt.
But-- ]
Stahn...
[ She breathes his name now, and blinks back tears. It's... him. He's here. ]
[he'd missed her every single day. every day, even through the rest of his journey, even when facing the end of the world, and especially in the nights where he lay awake, thinking back on experiences nobody else could remember—leon wasn't even around anymore for him to confirm it with—he remembered and thought of otome.
she wasn't just a friend, she was family, and no matter how strange and distant those things seemed, they were a part of him.
so seeing her now, seeing her in front of him... it's so shocking, but so relieving at the same time.
and while she may be blinking back tears, stahn isn't. he can feel his throat closing, he can feel the sting at his eyes—but he doesn't push them back. instead, he just presses forward, abruptly hugging her even though other people are watching.
awkward. probably.
but his head dips and he sucks in a breath, and all he can really say to her is the thing he's most curious to know.]
How...? [how is she here? he knows... he knows it's her. he knows this is real, she's someone he can feel in his grasp, and everything from her tone to her expression confirmed that this was the very same person he'd been missing all this time.]
she wasn't just a friend, she was family, and no matter how strange and distant those things seemed, they were a part of him.
so seeing her now, seeing her in front of him... it's so shocking, but so relieving at the same time.
and while she may be blinking back tears, stahn isn't. he can feel his throat closing, he can feel the sting at his eyes—but he doesn't push them back. instead, he just presses forward, abruptly hugging her even though other people are watching.
awkward. probably.
but his head dips and he sucks in a breath, and all he can really say to her is the thing he's most curious to know.]
How...? [how is she here? he knows... he knows it's her. he knows this is real, she's someone he can feel in his grasp, and everything from her tone to her expression confirmed that this was the very same person he'd been missing all this time.]
[ Oh. She has just enough time to see his expression crumple before he's rushing forward, and even if Otome's knees almost buckle from the sudden embrace, she's just as quick to wrap her arms around him. Stahn is still family, and this is still so familiar, that before she realizes it, she's moving a hand up to stroke his hair and press it gently against his head. ]
... I don't know. [ softly, and honestly-- has he grown? Has she shrunk? It feels as though he's taller than she remembers, but it's certainly been a while. ] It's something I'll have to figure out.
But I'm here.
[ And she's not willing to let him go anytime soon. ]
... I don't know. [ softly, and honestly-- has he grown? Has she shrunk? It feels as though he's taller than she remembers, but it's certainly been a while. ] It's something I'll have to figure out.
But I'm here.
[ And she's not willing to let him go anytime soon. ]
[things have definitely changed a bit, though it won't be as easy for her to tell until they get past the initial shock of things.
he's not willing to let go either yet though, the murmurs from others something that falls so completely deaf on him right now; it's almost like nobody else is there, like he's forgotten just where they are.]
I'm glad. I thought... I wouldn't see you again. [there's a lot to figure out, like how she got here and why, and what to do because she's obviously not supposed to be there, in his world like this. but he can't be worried about those things when otome is right here, right now.]
he's not willing to let go either yet though, the murmurs from others something that falls so completely deaf on him right now; it's almost like nobody else is there, like he's forgotten just where they are.]
I'm glad. I thought... I wouldn't see you again. [there's a lot to figure out, like how she got here and why, and what to do because she's obviously not supposed to be there, in his world like this. but he can't be worried about those things when otome is right here, right now.]
I know.
[ Otome says it gently, because she'd thought the same, for as much as she'd scolded herself for thinking that maybe this was truly it. She'd never see anyone again. But she's survived (sort of) three world resets, and seen some pretty impossible things in her rather young lifetime. Arriving in a different world, Stahn's home-- it probably hadn't been entirely implausible, and she draws back a little to look at him. ]
But Stahn, we're family. I could never abandon you completely.
[ Otome says it gently, because she'd thought the same, for as much as she'd scolded herself for thinking that maybe this was truly it. She'd never see anyone again. But she's survived (sort of) three world resets, and seen some pretty impossible things in her rather young lifetime. Arriving in a different world, Stahn's home-- it probably hadn't been entirely implausible, and she draws back a little to look at him. ]
But Stahn, we're family. I could never abandon you completely.
[when she draws back, it'll be easy for her to notice a couple of things right off the bat. the first is obviously that he's a bit teary-eyed, even still.
but despite that, there's a small smile on his lips, and he looks very obviously less broken down and tired than he had in the past.]
I know... You're not that kind of person at all. Family... is always family, no matter how far apart we are.
but despite that, there's a small smile on his lips, and he looks very obviously less broken down and tired than he had in the past.]
I know... You're not that kind of person at all. Family... is always family, no matter how far apart we are.
That's right.
[ And because Otome is still very much a mother-type, she's pulling a handkerchief out of her coat pocket to get to work delicately dabbing at Stahn's eyes. ]
I may not know how I got here, but I'm glad I was able to see you again. It's been far too long, hasn't it?
[ And because Otome is still very much a mother-type, she's pulling a handkerchief out of her coat pocket to get to work delicately dabbing at Stahn's eyes. ]
I may not know how I got here, but I'm glad I was able to see you again. It's been far too long, hasn't it?
Ah...
[he'll draw back a bit more, gaze shifting before letting out an awkward laugh. he sure is going to have a lot of explaining to do later.]
Ye... yeah. I'll take you back to my house, and we can talk more there. [clearly, he's forgotten about his errands already. which were going to be useless anyway since he dropped the list when he say her.
(lilith is going to be pissed, but it's fine.)]
[he'll draw back a bit more, gaze shifting before letting out an awkward laugh. he sure is going to have a lot of explaining to do later.]
Ye... yeah. I'll take you back to my house, and we can talk more there. [clearly, he's forgotten about his errands already. which were going to be useless anyway since he dropped the list when he say her.
(lilith is going to be pissed, but it's fine.)]
You're a guest, Otome... We can worry about that if it changes, but nobody's going to want you to pick up and start doing work. We have a lot to figure out before that, don't we?
[like how she got here, if there's a way back, how to even explain this to his family...]
[like how she got here, if there's a way back, how to even explain this to his family...]
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