redacted ★ xie lian

[infreefall]

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week 0, saturday

[infreefall]

[ not much to do around here, is there. sooooo back to the arcade it is! might as well get the most out of it while they don't have to pay, ehehe.

she spots xl just outside the arcade, and waves him down cheerfully. ]

Hey, hey! Wanna play with me?

[dianxias]

[ the arcade sure is an interesting place. xie lian's never seen anything quite like it. he's rubbernecking a little bit when someone calls out to him, and blinks, surprised - ]

Ah! Play...? [ help him he's just a ye olde ]

[infreefall]

[ he looks so confused, she just laughs. ]

Let me guess - you've never seen an arcade before? There are a lot of you that haven't, huh? I didn't know they were that uncommon anymore!

[ anyway she'll just lead the way in, chattering along the way. ]

Arcades just have a bunch of games you can play! Usually the vintage ones, I think, but I've never actually played at one before now - too expensive, you know? But since we don't have pay here, we can play as much as we want!

week 1, thursday

[infreefall]

[ knock knock… where are you xie lian. a good girl is coming to find you, and now she has fresh bandages! nice. ]

Xie Lian-san… did you get your injuries looked at?

[dianxias]

[ xie lian has a small smile for ochako when she approaches him. he's set up on one of the couches in the inn with a cup of tea. he's clean, and in fresh (and ugly) space clothes instead of his white robes! ]

I did. It's nothing so serious - merely time will be needed to heal what is left.

[ he's alright! his voice is still really hoarse when he speaks, but eh, whatever. ] And you, Miss Ochako? How are you feeling?

w2 thursday

[dianxias]

[ hello ochako!!!

today, xie lian is coming to find you after all of that mess from yesterday... he's heard from san lang a bit about what his group was doing, and wants to make sure that ochako's doing okay.

plus!! he can be helpful, so! he's coming to find her wherever she is, armed with a roll of bandages from the first aid station. ]

Miss Ochako, do you have a moment?

[infreefall]

Oh - hey, Xie Lian-san. Sure.

[ why wouldn't she give him the time? she eyes the bandages curiously. ]

What's up?

week 2 post trial!

[dianxias]

[ wow!! we did it!

xie lian's got ochako on his list to check in with after all of that. so, having been shamed a little into removing some of his snacks and replacing them, he figures the least he can do is come and share.

she's not hard to find, so. as xie lian steps into the planetarium, he makes his presence known easily, folding his hands behind his back as he speaks. ] Hello, Miss Ochako - do you mind if I join you?

[infreefall]

Of course not. There's plenty of room for both of us.

[ she's sitting in the middle of the room, legs pulled up to her chest, as she looks up at the stars. ]

This was always one of my favorite places here. I don't know all the stars here, but there's enough that it feels like it's a little closer to home than the rest of the Realm.

week 3, wednesday.

[infreefall]

[ ochako is being a good girl and sticking to the southern part of the realm on wednesday! inside the storybook shop, she’s seated in a corner with her injured leg stretched out, an array of books before her. they all seem to be jungle themed?

she’ll wave at xie lian when he comes in! ]

[dianxias]

[ oh! a familiar face.

xie lian smiles when he spots ochako. he's returning a book to the bookstore, having thumbed through the pages, so when he sees her, he sets it down and trots over. ]

Good day, Miss Ochako. This place is wonderful, isn't it? What are you reading?

week 4, tuesday

[infreefall]

[ time to check out the saloon! ochako is, of course, appropriately dressed, even for a teenager who has no business hanging out in a bar. she smiles immediately when she sees xie lian, though, and bounces right over. ]

Hey, hey, Xie Lian-san! [ she’s just always so happy to see him, wow. ] Have you tried the food here yet? Is it good?

[dianxias]

[ tuesday has been kind of a rough day for xie lian. he looks a little more tired than usual when ochako bounds up to him, but... like always, he has a smile for her anyway, and he tucks his hand to fist to bow to her in greeting. ]

Good day, Miss Ochako. I have - it's very delicious. Would you like to share a meal with me? I was just thinking of grabbing a little more.

week 4, saturday.

[infreefall]

[ usually, when ochako is feeling off-center, the first place in the Realm she'll go to is the planetarium. even back home, even as a little kid, the stars always brought her comfort, but now...

another innocent person is being sent to death, come morning. bucky doesn't deserve it, and ochako... well, as grumpy as he is? she's attached to him. and she's determined not to forget what he's taught her, so tonight, as if to drill everything he's ever told her into her head so hard that the Realm can't take it from her, ochako is at the gun range. she hasn't even bothered to change out of her halloween costume.

in her focus, she doesn't notice xie lian's approach. she simply raises the gun toward the target, takes a deep breath, and pulls trigger. between shots, she pauses to readjust the gun after the recoil, but doesn't stop until it's out of bullets. her shots have gone wild, riddling the target with no pattern to it, and it's only when she turns away in frustration that she sees xie lian. ]

Ah - Xie Lian-san. I'm sorry, I didn't know you were there.

and then i passed out like right as you sent this im gomen

[dianxias]

[ xie lian has been making the rounds this evening. it is one of the only things he really does to clear his own head, and the loud sound of a gun being fired catches his attention.

when he realizes that it's ochako, he waits, quietly, leaning against the back wall of the gun range and resting his hands behind his back. it's only when she addresses him that he speaks, offering her a small, tired smile. ]

It's alright; I've merely been observing.

[ he shifts, pushing off of the wall and coming a little closer. ] ...Were you one of the ones Vezda was teaching, Miss Ochako? These things are quite difficult to use.

week 5, monday.

[infreefall]

[ with a new week, comes a new room, and a new roommate. it's like clockwork, and yet, a certain sleepy teenager is never ready for it when she wakes up. and she's always slow to awaken, so when she opens her eyes to squint at the new room, at first she's just confused. it takes a moment to realize that the bed is larger than before, that it's pretty lavish, and -

wait. there's someone in it with her? THAT'S NOT NORMAL?

she's immediately yeeting herself out of the bed, landing in a heap on the floor with a startled yelp. ]

[dianxias]

[ good morning! well! xie lian was sleeping just fine. he had fallen asleep last night not even in his bed, instead sprawled at the manor, so waking up feeling like he's suddenly wealthy again would probably be pretty nice.

except! that is not happening, because xie lian only wakes up because ochako yelps and falls out of bed. in response he does -- the exact same thing, a squawked half awake "AH?!" noise, as he jerks back, ready to fight, gets tangled in the sheets, and hit the ground on the other side.

....

his head pops up a second later, bedhead hilarious, and looking very confused. ??? ]

week 5, post deda

[dianxias]

[ the minute xie lian gets to his room with ochako, the first thing he does is go straight to her to sweep her up in a hug.

that's all you get. ]

[infreefall]

[ ochako was already struggling to hold it together. she's cried once already, and thought maybe, that would be enough. but the second she hears xie lian enter, and feels his arms around her, the dam breaks, and she curls into the embrace with a quiet sob. ]

week 5, sunday.

[infreefall]

[ when ochako makes it back to their room, red panda dangling miserably from her arms, she's looking absolutely ragged. perhaps it's just the poison? she sits down heavily on the bed and lets the daemon go curl up on a pillow. ]

Xie Lian-san... Your team has lost a lot of people, hasn't it?

[ ...maybe not just the poison, after all. ]

[dianxias]

[ ohhh, poor ochako. xie lian's... if he's not doing well, it only really shows in his eyes - they're betraying a tiredness that is much more suiting of his age. he's seated on the bed, and scoots over a little to make room as ochako comes to join him.

his daemon shifts from qilin to ferret, and starts wriggling over to nudge its face against her panda's foot, and at the question, xie lian glances at her for a moment before he looks back at the covers.

he speaks quietly, but honestly. ]

...My team is almost gone.

week 6, wednesday

[infreefall]

[ sometime after... whatever that was, ochako is going to find xie lian! despite everything that just happened, she's absolutely beaming. ]

Xie Lian-san! I got a message from Shigeo-kun!

[dianxias]

[ !!!! ]

Oh! Wonderful, Miss Ochako. What does it say?

week 7, friday.

[infreefall]

Xie Lian!

[ he is the first person she was looking for. so when she spots him, she just

immediately throws herself at him for a hug. it's only been a week? but she missed him more than anyone. ]

I'm back!

[dianxias]

[ standing a bit back from the rest of the participants is xie lian, still lingering near where lessa just came from - but, spotting ochako gets him to stop in his tracks, wide eyed.

...and then he just

starts to smile? it's genuine, even if he's exhausted, and when ochako runs at him for a hug, he receives her easily, catching her like she's made of paper and hugging her back. there's a brief moment of hesitation, but, he curls his hands tight in the back of her shirt, and hugs her too. the last time he saw this young lady, it was on the silver tables at the trial.

breathe in, breathe out. ]

...Miss Ochako... welcome back. [ soft, affected, and... relieved. ]