soraspace | This is not the best friend you are looking for.

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This is not the best friend you are looking for.

[As Pao-Lin wanders through the streets of Luceti, there are quite a number of questions on her mind. Things like, how did she get here? What is this place? Why does she have wings?

And where's Hubert?

This last one comes primarily from the fact that she's pretty sure she remembers falling asleep on the couch at his house the night before. Did he get dragged to where this place is, too? She's not sure whether she wants that to be true or not. It'd be nice not to be alone, but...he deserves to be safe at home. She's the Hero, not him: she'll deal with danger and protect him.

Not that Luceti seems all that dangerous, being the kind of homey village that it is. But it's unfamiliar, and so Pao-Lin keeps her gaze sharp and observant, keeping an eye out for threats...or her best friend.]

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[Similarly, Hubert is new (yet again) to Luceti after months of sudden departure. And despite the almost year-long stay the last time, he's yet to kick into the old outfits he'd accrued in favor of keeping his uniform on as he roams the streets to refresh his rusty memory.

Pity, that some of his acquaintances seem to have departed in his absence. He's not dwelling on that, though, since he's not keen on wasting a day regretting the inevitable. That'd be selfish.

So there he is, marching down a line of houses with his back to Pao-Lin, completely oblivious to her presence.]

[Pao-Lin's actually heading towards Hubert, but she doesn't notice him yet either because she's too busy gazing inside the window of the nearby bakery, admiring all the goodies on display.

Then she turns and sees him.]

[...!!!!!!

The outfit is a bit strange (though kinda familiar -- doesn't Herbert Osmond from that Graceful Talesgame wear something like that?), but she knows the face.]

[So here she comes, pounding down the cobblestone as she runs to give him a big hug.]

Hubert! You're all right!

["You're all right!"

The cry of relief is understandable, if a little boggling. If he's reportedly been gone for a while, then of course a hero like Pao-Lin would have been worried.

But the hug is another story entirely, and he grunts (almost comically) at the sudden physical contact from behind. He recognizes the voice, hence he doesn't even need to turn as he attempts to straighten with her latched onto his back.]

P-Pao-Lin!?

[His voice is very airy. Too airy to be dignified.

No. No, no, no, this is indecent contact.]

What are you doing!?

[Read: Please, remove yourself. This is painful to the dignity.

Everything about this moment hurts. Even the wings. They're getting crushed, you see.]

[She just giggles, too relieved and gladdened to notice anything wrong about the situation just yet.]

I'm hugging you, silly! [But she does release him, if only so it'll be easier to talk to him.] Are you okay? Where'd you even get these clothes from?

[He immediately whips around when she lets him go, standing impossibly straight now that he's been liberated after those agonizing few seconds. At the second question, he scowls a bit.]

This is my usual attire. You've seen me in it numerous times. [A beat.] Moreover . . . I was informed earlier that you'd departed from Luceti. When did you return?

[Yes, this is more like it. In control, in a state of calm.]

[At his answer, the mirth drains from Pao-Lin's face, like water being poured down a sink.]

Your usual -- ? But this is the first time I've seen you wear something like this! [He had talked about cosplaying Herbert at some point, but...] And what do you mean, "departed from Luceti"? I've never been here before! You know I can't leave Sternbild because of my job.

Pao-Lin, what are you talking about?

[It leaves his mouth before he can rein in it, simply because of the amount of confusion he's feeling at her own bewilderment. He lifts a hand to his chin, thinking.]

You must have forgotten. In Luceti, time in our respective worlds is slowed considerably, if not outright stopped. [Hm.] But that can't be right. You recall that I know of Sternbild and your career as a Hero . . . Could it be selective amnesia?

[She's temporarily setting aside the issue of how Hubert knows so much about this place because she's too busy boggling at how he seems to have forgotten about her.]

Of course you know I'm a Hero! I saved you back when you were, like, thirteen, remember?

[His eyes widen a fraction before returning to normal, followed by the furrowing of his brows.]

That's impossible. We met here in early October of last year -- that I was present -- and certainly not when I was thirteen.

But that's --

[Impossible. For her.]

How do you not remember something like that? [She can think of at least one way, but she's trying not to.] You...you're my biggest fan! You were so happy when you found out that I -- that Dragon Kid was the same girl you met at the library a few months before I had to save you from that hostage situation...

[Her fists clench.]

Hubert, this [isn't like you] isn't the time for this. We should be trying to find our way back to Sternbild, not roleplaying.

[Hubert falls silent throughout her explanation. At the end, he bows his head and fixes his spectacles, carefully picking the words in his mind.

Role playing, hm . . .

Is the Organization behind this? They must have played with her memories.]

I will refrain from commenting on the history itself, but I am not pretending. Sternbild is not my world.

[His tone suggests that that's final.]

[That...kinda sorta really hurts. Pao-Lin has never heard Hubert speak so harshly or so coldly before, not even when he was angry. She suddenly feels a little sick.]

If...if you're not from Sternbild...then where are you from?

[He can tell this is affecting her negatively, but there'll be no babying. It's best to be upfront and truthful. Isn't it?]

A world known as Efinea. I hail from the Republic of Strahta, to be exact.

[Ephinea. Strahta. The names aren't quite the same, but similar enough that Pao-Lin's prompted to ask (perhaps with a very slight touch of bitter sarcasm):]

A desert country, right?

. . . that's correct. How did you know?

[This is heading in an ugly direction. He can already tell.]

[~~technically Asbel told Pao-Lin about it back in February, but~~

Her gaze slides to the side as she tries to figure out how to phrase this.]

The names and the clothes...they're like something from Graceful Tales. [She's still addressing him as the one she knows, not yet fully accepting of the idea that this is a completely different Hubert. She lifts her eyes again, hoping that maybe talking about one of his passions will make him remember.] It's one of your favorite games, and your favorite character is Herbert Osmond from Strahtania. You were talking about cosplaying him one day...and you just joined that roleplaying game or whatever with him as your character... [And he'd been freaking out about it, too, scared that he'd do a terrible job of it or that no one would want to play with him.]

[~~Brother, you are a fool.~~

Everything she's saying comes off as rubbish to him, but he respects her enough that he doesn't say so. Pao-Lin is not a deceiver. It's simply not in her nature. And yet, all this talk about some Graceful Tales . . . ]

. . . I do not roleplay. [He feels the need to emphasizes "play," because in a way, he is projecting a somewhat different character -- someone stricter and calmer, someone befitting a lowly lieutenant. But that's not playing.] I am Hubert Oswell, Lieutenant of the Strahtan Army. There is no place for tomfoolery in the military.

...I see.

[But she doesn't. Not really.

This isn't fair. None of this makes any sense. She'd just seen him the day before, hadn't she? How could he have changed so much within such a short span of time? Was there another NEXT running around with something like Maverick's powers, and just...kidnapping people and changing their memories for some reason? So many questions...]

If you're supposed to be from another world, then how did you get to Earth?

[Earth? Is she still thinking in terms of her obviously displaced memories? Well, they're certainly different to his.]

If by Earth you mean your world, I've never set foot on it. Luceti is where all of our previous interactions took place.

So where is Luceti supposed to be, then?

[Pao-Lin's focusing on the more mundane details now, both as reconnaissance and to distract herself from the feeling of melancholy eating away at her. She hates this new distance between herself and Hubert, and is at a loss to figure out how to deal with it. Even before they started dating, she'd always felt close to him, connected somehow. To have all of those years of friendship just inexplicably gone...]

[Ah. Of course she'd get that mixed up. She doesn't remember anything about Luceti.]

Luceti is part of an entirely separate world. It is a settlement maintained by the Organization, also known as the Malnosso. Here, they experiment on otherworlders, allegedly in search of a way to eject and bring them to their respective worlds. The wings and barcodes are but two proofs of our status as subjects.

We have been brought to this world for unknown reasons, and there is currently no known method of voluntary return.

[At the mention of the wings, Pao-Lin's own pair flutter a bit, as if to wave a mocking hello.]

Barcodes...?

[He gestures toward her neck.]

It's difficult to notice them at first. They're located on the nape of your neck.

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