pc ♠ chrono

[fried]

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[clockpunk]

[ oh transparency of some kind buddies

after a moment, he nods. ]

I didn't know any of them well enough. The victims, the-- culprits. [ he can't say "killers", even though it had become obviously the truth. ] What right do I have to make a choice like that?

[fried]

[ he tilts his head back. ]

Would it have been an easier choice if you did know them well enough?

[clockpunk]

[ the question makes him shudder. a fair one, but -- ]

...yeah. I think so. That's bad, right?

[fried]

[ a little shake of his head. ]

I don't think it's good or bad. I think it's an impossible choice to begin with. The trolley problem, in a sense.

[clockpunk]

...oh. You guys have that too?

[ what a weird universal constant. ]

Ramiel got mad when I insulted their boss. I apologised, but... it still feels like we're bein' messed with.

[fried]

We do. I think you may be surprised to know that I live on a space-faring vessel, as well. Most people are.

[ jiaoqiu like just because i'm a furry, ]

In any case, I don't blame you for being angry. I agree with you - this does feel like being tested. Or, perhaps less charitably, sabotaged.

[clockpunk]

Actually, that's not so surprising. I told you about Cray before, so... they've got space vessels, too.

[ and there's some furries on those too, for sure.

sabotaged. that clicks into place, and chrono suddenly understands why this felt so familiarly awful. ]

Yeah. That's the feeling, for sure. I hadn't realised.

[fried]

You did, yes.

[ his tail sways back and forth behind him. ]

It's not a pleasant feeling. It isn't one that I expected out of paradise.

[clockpunk]

It was my... goal, someday. To go to space.

[ he faint ticking sound is speeding up again. he looks like he wants to say a lot of things, but they're all half-formed and get stuck in his throat. ]

[fried]

[ he glances in chrono's direction as they walk. ]

Was it? [ ... ] It still can be your goal. You can make it to the end of this.

Why is it your goal? [ no judgement or anything, he's genuinely curious - wants to encourage it, even. ]

[clockpunk]

[ he glances away, disbelief etched into his brow. making it to the end? it's been two weeks, and look at all this. he's so tired of struggling.

with a shaky exhale, he crosses his arms. ]

I want to go to Cray. The connection between- the way my world and theirs interacted, it's gone. I... miss my friends.

[fried]

[ fair, honestly. jiaoqiu refuses to stop trying, though - he has to do what a healer would do. ]

Will you tell me about them? Your friends.

[clockpunk]

My friends from Cray, or my friends from home?

[ he looks a little sad, but grateful. ]

It's kind of all mixed together.

[fried]

Any of them. Whoever you miss the most.

[clockpunk]

[ this is not a helpful clarification.

he thinks for a long moment. a lot of people come to mind, but- a memory of silver eyes widening as a spell breaks over them, a hand in his. teasing banter. cardfights on the tables at work, textbooks abandoned. a text at night, its cold up here. makin you come with me next time.

his heart hurts. ]

Well, there's... Kazuma. He's from Earth, not Cray, but we spend nearly every day together. It's weird, not seeing him.

[fried]

[ there's a gentle smile on jiaoqiu's face as he listens. ]

I can only imagine. Do you go to school - is that where you know him from? A childhood friend, maybe.

[clockpunk]

We go to the same school, yeah. I haven't known him that long, compared to some of my other friends, but he's my teammate, and- [ he hesitates, unsure how to word it. ] ...we've been through a lot together.

[ a laugh. was that ever an understatement. ]

We're not in the same class, but we meet up for lunch, and- after school, he'll sometimes come with me to work. Play some Vanguard with the others while waiting, and then since he's way smarter than me, he'll try and get me to study. It's working, actually. My grades were [ ah. past tense finally snuck in.] getting better.

[fried]

Sometimes all it takes is a friend to encourage you along to a brighter path. He sounds like a good friend - I'm not surprised you miss him.

[ a hum. ]

You played Vanguard together? What is that?

[clockpunk]

He was on a solo hiking trip last time we spoke. I guess... he'll come back to some news, huh?

[ tries to say this lightly, and almost succeeds. ]

Ah, Vanguard's the card game we play. The deck I have with me, it's for that. It's part of the connection to Cray, but for most people, it's just a card game.

[fried]

[ a huff, at the first bit, that's a little sad. yeah... he sure will. ]

A card game that gives you the ability to travel between worlds? Fascinating. [ this is 100% genuine he's like O: ] How did you figure out it could do that?

[ i guess this is one way to distract him from how horrible trial was ]

[clockpunk]

[ we're moving on from that, though chrono dwells on it for a moment longer with a sad, tight-eyed smile. ]

Ah, it's not quite like that. Vanguard kind of is just a card game, but there's like... for some of us, a link between us and one of the people from Cray, who are represented through our cards. And... that's kind of my fault? [ pauses. ] My memory's not great since I was really little when it happened, and I'm not good at explaining it anyway, sorry.

[fried]

That's a good enough description, don't you worry. [ a head tilt. ] Interesting. So... perhaps a little like a bond more than travel.

I've never heard of anything like that.