[ it's weird to have to hop the turnstiles. but ochako is here, sitting on a bench with her legs swinging idly. there's a small plush beside her as she just... looks off into the distance.
when she hears jeanne, though, she'll look over and smile. it's... a little unsteady, maybe, but she's trying. ]
Jeanne-san, right? [ her voice turns apologetic. ] There aren't any trains coming. Makes you wonder why this place is even here, huh?
Huh... Maybe you're right. I never would have thought of that... Can trains forget?
[ philosophical questions for the ages ]
I dunno. Having some more help to gather nova might be a good thing, but if it means there's less people to get hurt again, then... yeah, it's probably better if it's just us.
It depends. [ She is answering this philosophical question seriously. ] The conductors could, and there's nothing to say a train can't be something that remembers eventually.
[ Her smile is faint. ]
I wouldn't want more people to lose pieces of themselves, is all, if they're pulled in the way we were. If they were asked and volunteered, I wouldn't protest.
[ after all the fuss, all that ochako's managed is to change her clothes and bandages before her body needed a break. she's in the lobby, seated on a sofa and grimacing, but she does manage a strained smile for jeanne. ]
Ah, good. [ she really does just breathe a sigh of relief! ] I was worried when he left like that, but as long as he has some help...
That's a little hard to explain. I think we might have been teleported somewhere? Or it was all just an illusion - I'm not sure which. I don't know about Xie Lian-san or Soo-won-san, but Archer-san and I... we had to fight monsters. Twice, kind of.
...No, it felt real. And our wounds didn’t go away, so it had to be, somehow.
[ otherwise, it doesn’t make sense, does it? still, she shakes her head. ]
I’ve never seen anything like them. They were huge, and had these really long arms that they attacked us with… that’s what happened to my shoulder. And they could shoot some kind of fire.
But they shrunk, after a while. That’s how we managed to kill them.
[ was she brave...? it doesn't feel that way, to her. ]
We found Xie Lian-san and Soo-won-san after that, in a base nearby. They had all the same injuries as the monsters, like they'd been there instead, and they... they were dead, too. That's why I thought it could have been an illusion.
But we found this serum, too, one that said it could revive people in that dimension? So we tried it on them, and it worked - but it had some side effects. So when they they woke up, they both attacked Archer-san.
[ did you know the sheriff’s office has a calendar? well, now there’s a certain teen squinting at it in disbelief to draw your attention to it! ]
Wow, it really is almost Halloween… Guess that’s why we got costumes, huh? [ she glances over, smiling. ] What’d they give you for this weekend, Ruler-san?
[ Jeanne smiles back because Ochako is the cutest, but for a moment, Jeanne stills, almost minutely, and confusion flickers across her expression before a smile settles again. ]
I've never really celebrated Halloween before, not like how it's done in modern times. And you'll have to find out on Saturday.
I guess I'm just not sure if rotting flesh is my color?
[ she laughs. ]
But yeah, it's just for fun! You can just pretend your someone or something else for a night and no one will bug you or think you're weird for it, because they're probably doing it, too. And I think it's good to do something different, once in a while.
Rotting flesh isn't anyone's color, but that doesn't mean you'd look terrible, if that's how you're supposed to look.
[ Flexible thinking. ]
I don't necessarily want to be anyone or anything else, but it would be fun to look a little different. Dressing up... isn't something I've ever really been able to do.
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week 0, sunday.
when she hears jeanne, though, she'll look over and smile. it's... a little unsteady, maybe, but she's trying. ]
Jeanne-san, right? [ her voice turns apologetic. ] There aren't any trains coming. Makes you wonder why this place is even here, huh?
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It might be that it's a place trains forgot. [ Or the Realm forgot to include trains when making this place. ]
But if we can't leave, it might be better if no one else can come.
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[ philosophical questions for the ages ]
I dunno. Having some more help to gather nova might be a good thing, but if it means there's less people to get hurt again, then... yeah, it's probably better if it's just us.
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[ Her smile is faint. ]
I wouldn't want more people to lose pieces of themselves, is all, if they're pulled in the way we were. If they were asked and volunteered, I wouldn't protest.
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...That’s true. It’s different if they make the choice, instead of basically being kidnapped, right?
Like how the leaders gave up their memories to help us.
week 1, thursday
Hey. Are you getting ready for the curfew?
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[ Jeanne takes a seat next o her on the sofa, so Ochako doesn't have to strain herself too much. ]
It's very easy for people to brush off their injuries.
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[ but she nods. ochako is well aware that she didn't just take light injuries. ]
The bleeding has mostly stopped. It mostly just hurts. [ she holds up her arm for a moment. ] Especially the burn.
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[ There's no bias here just because Ochako is the youngest of that group. ]
Can I hear what happened?
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That's a little hard to explain. I think we might have been teleported somewhere? Or it was all just an illusion - I'm not sure which. I don't know about Xie Lian-san or Soo-won-san, but Archer-san and I... we had to fight monsters. Twice, kind of.
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[ She's firm in that, not unlike a judge delivering a verdict. ]
Did it feel like an illusion? What kind of monsters were they?
[ She doesn't question Ochako's ability to fight. You don't have to be old to know how to fight. ]
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[ Her smile is kind. ]
If I remember, you said something about being a hero during the trial, didn't you?
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[ otherwise, it doesn’t make sense, does it? still, she shakes her head. ]
I’ve never seen anything like them. They were huge, and had these really long arms that they attacked us with… that’s what happened to my shoulder. And they could shoot some kind of fire.
But they shrunk, after a while. That’s how we managed to kill them.
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[ her voice is light - she knows what jeanne’s getting at, she’s just a little stumped with the whole… situation, and how to deal with it.
still, she nods. ]
I’m not a pro hero yet, but yeah. I’m going to be one, someday.
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[ She smiles a little. ]
Being a hero is all about, isn't it?
[ As long as you don't betray yourself, it should be all right. ]
Set your sights forward and make a path that's right for you.
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[ It sounds like Ochako was a bit out of her depths. ]
Was there anything else?
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We found Xie Lian-san and Soo-won-san after that, in a base nearby. They had all the same injuries as the monsters, like they'd been there instead, and they... they were dead, too. That's why I thought it could have been an illusion.
But we found this serum, too, one that said it could revive people in that dimension? So we tried it on them, and it worked - but it had some side effects. So when they they woke up, they both attacked Archer-san.
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Yeah, you're right. A hero can't give up, can they? That's what "plus ultra" means.
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[ Jeanne is firm in that, but she is quick to add: ]
I do not think you are incapable. It is never easy to fight someone who you know and like.
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week 4, tuesday
Wow, it really is almost Halloween… Guess that’s why we got costumes, huh? [ she glances over, smiling. ] What’d they give you for this weekend, Ruler-san?
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I've never really celebrated Halloween before, not like how it's done in modern times. And you'll have to find out on Saturday.
[ aka i haven't made up my mind ]
What do you have?
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[ there is nothing to the complaint. ochako just laughs. ]
I got a witch costume, nothing too crazy. But it is cute.
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[ she’s a little sheepish. ]
You would make any costume cute, Ochako.
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I'm pretty sure there's some that wouldn't work for... I can't imagine a zombie would be that cute.
[ anyway, ]
There's a lot of people here who could help you figure it out, Ruler-san. But no one's gonna make you wear it if you don't want to.
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[ Jeanne tilts her head curiously at something Ochako says before nodding. ]
I know. I don't mind joining the festivities. It only seems... Well, I suppose the whole point of a costume is to look different, isn't it?
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[ she laughs. ]
But yeah, it's just for fun! You can just pretend your someone or something else for a night and no one will bug you or think you're weird for it, because they're probably doing it, too. And I think it's good to do something different, once in a while.
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[ Flexible thinking. ]
I don't necessarily want to be anyone or anything else, but it would be fun to look a little different. Dressing up... isn't something I've ever really been able to do.
[ To do something like this.... wild ]