(no subject)

[metachrosis]

Who: Espio + anyone
What: One very belated intro
Where: Here and There
When: "November", if November exists
Content Warnings: Likely references to him being from a sex-or-die CRAU in the tags.

1. The Sky

[Why, you might ask, is there a short man with a lizard tail standing on a rock, arms spread wide as he laughs almost maniacally at the sky? There must surely be a reason, right?

Before he can be interrupted, he notices whoever approaches him and his laughter trails off as he turns to face them.]

Look at that! Five years, and they give me this - it's like going home! How long's that been like that?

[He jabs a thumb towards the sky behind him, where shapes are twisting and coiling just like in the weird part of the Special Zone. It has been so long since he's seen a sky as colourful as the one he was once used to that the little taste of home actually makes him feel slightly ill... still, seeing it, all he can do is laugh, even if it's not a happy laugh.]



2. How to Be Social

[Still convinced this is only an illusion, just like the countless illusions he's experienced in the past several months, Espio has not been particularly inclined to socialise. The problem with that is that while he does not want to go through meeting and greeting new people who might not even be real, being alone is... well, it's lonely! So while he has mostly been steering away from more obvious social hubs and has instead wandered what feels like the entire habitable area for he doesn't know how long, eventually he gives in and shows his face somewhere with people. What few people there are in this place, anyway...

The Heavenly Blanc is as good a bet as any, but he can also be found somewhere in the Underground Academy. Either way, his idea of a greeting is questionable:]

Still haven't seen anyone I know. How 'bout you?

Comments

[abeautifulgame]

[Damien has had worse greetings, so he's not really bothered by Espio's introduction. plus, it's a bar. sort of. regardless, this kind of abrupt small talk isn't unfamiliar, given at least part of the setting]

[all that said, he shrugs]

No one here but us chickens. [no one here from his world but him] But in my case, that may be a blessing.

[metachrosis]

[That gets a somewhat puzzled frown from Espio, who's unfamiliar with that phrase largely because chickens are people too and this person looks very much human. He gets the idea though, and leans back in his seat with a small 'tch'.]

Great.

Can't believe I gotta do this all over again. Money's still on mass illusion, but if I've been thrown into another dimension again it's not even a surprise.

[abeautifulgame]

I'd go with simulation, myself. [or that this is some sort of shared cognitive reality, like Mementos, like the Phantom Thieves and their Palaces, but that's -- a little harder to explain]

[either way, after a beat, he tells him:] Either way, I can promise you I'm perfectly real.

[metachrosis]

Simulation's a fair guess too, but I've seen enough illusions to guess this is more of the same... good thing you're so sure you're real, though. Last time I met illusions of people, their faces melted off.

[He'd rather not recall the details of that, even as the image decides to replay in his head.]

Hopefully I'm real, too. You can never be sure these days.

[abeautifulgame]

[ ... ]

Well, that's horrifying. [and while he's also not trying to think too hard about that one, he can't help but ask:] Where were you, when this happened?

1

[blue_eyed_obsession]

[Kaiba might have asked that, but really that sort of reaction was part for the course here. That being said it still was a little unnerving]

If you're completely unhinged, at least do me the courtesy of waiting until I leave before it escalates beyond laughter.

[As for the rest of it... ]

What are you going on about?

[metachrosis]

If you'd been bounced back and forth between dimensions like a ping-pong ball, you'd be unhinged too.

[He turns slightly to look back up at the sky, and takes a moment to think before he explains himself.]

I'm talking about the sky - that's how it looks back home. Like I wasn't homesick enough already.

[blue_eyed_obsession]

Who says I haven't?

[Kaiba was joking, mostly, but he had been gifted with forerays into Atlantis, and Ancient Egypt.. and two virtual worlds before this one. Those counted. Sort of. ]

Oh- like a lava lamp exploded. Heh, sorry for you. [Not being able to see why you would miss that ] So where have you been if it wasn't home?

[metachrosis]

Point. If it can happen to me, it can happen to anyone.

[He huffs a little at Kaiba's 'sorry' - what's there to be sorry about, the sky is supposed to look like that! - but lets it go without comment.]

...here and there. An alien world, an apocalyptic wasteland... several illusions... here, but I think 'here' probably falls under the 'illusion' category.

[blue_eyed_obsession]

[It was all about perspective really. What was normal for one was peculiar for the other]

I would call it a simulation myself, but I'm in the minority.

[Either way, it sounded like lizard boy had been through several hells and... Not quite back. ]

Most seem to think this place really is an alternate dimension.

2!

[menaretrash]

[ Poor Espio. Ann practically lives at the cafe, thanks to Ren, and today's no different. She's sitting at what would be her seat at home, sipping on some of the delicious iced coffee that Ren's prepared just for her, when she notices the young... that's. That's a young man with a lizard tail. Okay, then. Maybe he's related to Bowser.

She's not one to judge or stare, though, so instead she offers him a friendly smile and wave, because she's not seen him before, and she imagines that he's probably feeling a little... down in the dumps, so to speak. ]

Mm? Yeah, I've got some people from home. But I've been here a while, too... just arrived?

[metachrosis]

Lucky you...

[There's a small amount of bitterness in that, but he tries to disguise it by simply making it sound tired instead.]

Guess you could say I just arrived, but I'm not completely convinced I'm not still exactly where I was before. Only thing that puts it in question is all the strange faces.

[menaretrash]

Yeah...

[ She's not an idiot, he can hide that all he wants, but she gets it, and doesn't blame him at all. ]

That sounds confusing. What's your name? I'm Ann. Ann Takamaki.

[metachrosis]

Seen one too many illusions.

[He gives a small sigh, shakes his head, and turns himself to face her properly.]

Espio. Just Espio will do.

[He hasn't been going by his full name, 'Espio the Chameleon' for quite some time now. Not since the 'chameleon' part became so much less obvious than it used to be.]

[menaretrash]

Well, there's lots of theories about this place. My... [ ...boyfriend? She's not sure what to call Seto right now, so: ] friend thinks that this is all a computer simulation. I'm not so sure about that, though... but who can say?

[ Ann stirs her coffee slowly, leaning back in her seat and offering the poor young man another small smile. ]

Regardless, it's nice to meet you, Espio-san. Though I'm sorry that you're stuck here now, too.

Heavenly Blanc

[bridge_princess]

[A grunt and a grumble came from the arguably briefly familiar face of the girl he'd seen the other day shouting at a broom. She was seated in a booth in the cafe, looking like she was a regular here. Admittedly? That was exactly what she was. This place was near where she lived, so she haunted here often.

Sipping a cup of coffee, she shrugged.]

Well, I didn't actually know that broom personally, so ... no. I thought I saw someone from home briefly, but I think I was just having a bad dream. She hasn't resurfaced, and that's for the best. We don't need her brand of trouble here.

Honestly, count your blessings. Last thing you need's someone from Gensokyo here.

[metachrosis]

Trust me, my blessings are counted. I just came out of hell. Just wish others had come with me.

[He leans back in his chair, rocking it slightly on its back legs, his tail coiled around one.]

[bridge_princess]

Hmmm... literal hell or figurative hell?

[She gave him a once-over as she asked, clearly trying to gauge something. He didn't look like anyone from Gensokyo so she doubted it. Besides, the spirits there all favored female forms.]

[metachrosis]

Probably the latter. Probably.

[It was on the somewhat extreme end of unpleasant, as far as he’s concerned, anyway.]

[bridge_princess]

Definitely. If it was a literal hell they usually don't bother to hide the title. Regardless of the point, they take a certain pride in taking the name. So it's probably just a shitty place.

...

Not that you're missing much. Hell's not much to look at in my opinion. [Snort] You've got me curious now. What made it that bad?

2

[bazooker]

[After spending the past couple of days here, Haru started to come to the cafe more frequently. It was the only natural as it was something from her own world and the taste of coffee always calms her down.

That and this place was a good way to meet new people. As she heard a voice nearby, she gave him a quick smile]

I have. Although, I am not sure if I should be happy about it or not.

[metachrosis]

[Another unfamiliar face to get to know... he supposes it's a good idea to try. While he tries to not get involved, he knows full well he gets lonely, so even just a few words exchanged is something.]

I guess, if it means they've been dragged in as well. It could be a lot worse, though. For one thing, at least you have trees.

[bazooker]

Trees? Why would you say that?

[Now that was something odd. As she raised her eyebrows at him, she couldn't help but wonder just what kind of place he's been] I'm assuming you're from a world without such a thing?

[metachrosis]

Not originally... but most recently, yes. Dirt, dust, and ruins, no matter how far you walked. If you were lucky enough to find water, you couldn't trust it.

[bazooker]

I see. Then I apologize, I didn't mean to bring up something as difficult as your world.

[She gave momentary pause before a small frown appeared on her face.]

It must have been difficult to live in such a hostile environment.