[Oh… Oh, there’s two! For a second, she doesn’t realize they match, but once she listens to it again… maybe… it matches? Her name is really early… and she knows “good” half well enough…
Now if only she knew they were creating a Rosetta Stone…]
👋🍑 🌳🍃🙂👐 🤔 🏘️⛰️🐎💨 🪶😖🪶 😴❌😢 👋
[The voice message that follows,
Hello, Momo… I’m alright. … I suppose, haha… I‘ve been trying to search for a way home, but there’s nothing, and, um, these itchy little feathers keep showing up in my coat, but. I guess it’s not a dream anymore, so. … Hello, again…]
[The voice message certainly helps him with the specifics, though he does go over the images in isolation first to see what impression he forms of the message before checking it.
And ultimately, it's a problem he can very much sympathise with. He wants a way home at the end of all this, even if they have to railroad Patho-Gen into building it themselves.]
Ah, you've heard that as well, then? It's rough to know there's no way back yet (๑ˊ▵ˋ๑) But while we're here, it's best to support each other, right? So nice to meet you again, here in reality~! I guess you have a bird soul, then? Mine is a bug (*/ω＼*)
[In the attached voice message that repeats the text, the sympathy and understanding in his tone is clearly audible, even though he's remaining upbeat.]
[Konoha listens to the voice message a few times. She doesn't need to, to understand it, and she's not trying hard to match the words to the text... but she tells herself she is, just to justify why it takes her so long to respond.]
what 🍑 👂？ now 🛌😴 ☺️ 🌕🌕🌕 🛌😴 ☠️
🌳🍃❌🐓 🌳🍃👧🏽🐎 👧🏽🐎🪶🤒 🤷🏽♀️ 🍑❌🪲
[What sort of things are you hearing... ? I'd be happier if it was still a dream, but. I guess people who sleep for three months are dead, and I don't think we're that, so. (...) It's not my soul. I'm a jinba. Just- ... a jinba with feather fever. Or something. I don't know. ... Momo doesn't seem like a bug to me.]
I've heard a lot of things, but Celia definitely didn't seem to think there was a way home when I talked to her, so that's what I was thinking ꒰✩˙˟˙✩꒱ I should have said the Natural Soul, the extra one they gave us! Have you felt it? I know it's hard to think about, but if you saw me now, I don't think you'd say I don't seem like a bug... (o´艸`) So I just want to help you understand what's been happening with them a bit more
[He can tell she's struggling to come to terms with it, and accordingly, the voice message version has a gentle concern to it, something reaching out. There's lighthearted notes, him trying to keep a certain levity, but he's already assigned himself the role of trying to be a stable pillar for people who are having a harder time adapting, regardless of how he feels about it all.]
[... What's a good puzzle picture for "natural"? Konoha thumbs through the keyboard until she makes her way back to the first page full of faces. Then again. This one? ... Maybe that one? No. She feels herself growing upset that she can't find one that fits right, that she can't even imagine in her head what would be a good one.
... She also knows she's not upset about not being able to find the emoji. But.
[With her switching fully to voice, he figures he might as well do so too.]
That's true, but I think the idea is meant to be that they came from nature...you'd have to take that one up with Patho-Gen, though. It's not the name that's the real problem, though, is it?
[That understanding, coaxing sort of tone remains, wanting to know more about how she's feeling about it right now (moreso than simply the clear upset) so he has a better idea of which angle to take to help.]
They're not even helpful about sending us home, I'm sure they won't fix the name...
[No matter how she just... hates it. "Natural" soul. It's only natural to have... to have one! The one you're born with! She never wanted anything else, and...]
I just want to go home...
[There's a faint sound, a bit of a hiccup.]
My parents probably think I'm dead... and they don't have anyone else... and instead I'm in some nightmare growing feathers...
[What she's dealing with is relatable to a depth Momo doesn't feel free to admit, not when she's breaking down like this and he wants to be stable for her. In his case, it's less parents and more his partner who does not deal well with being abandoned, but there's still that understanding there, of wanting to be with them and not here.]
I think they're more likely to be able to send us home if we can do something about what's happening here. [He doesn't want to completely write off the possibility - there are plenty of people here, even good-natured ones, who would immediately be far less likely to help if there was a way home accessible to them now.] Did you and your parents live in a community, or by yourselves? Being away from the people we love is one of the hardest things about all this.
[A lot of the problems weighing on him would be lessened if he just had some idea of what was going on back home, or just if his absence is known. For Konoha's case, he's not sure how her world structures itself, so he wants to clarify whether it's literally them alone or whether there might be some less direct support around them he can point to as a reassurance.]
I'd do whatever they needed if they'd send us home, but I still don't get it... How we're supposed to get rid of all the killing stones across this whole land...
[Part of her issue stemmed, perhaps, from how difficult Karteria's situation was to grasp to a young peasant woman from 1620, who had no education whatsoever in science to support her grasping the concept of radiation... let alone the magical seeming elements of two souls in one body.
The sound of fabric rustling over the mic might be her trying to wipe at her eyes with her sleeve.]
We live in a village, but they don't... they're getting old, and they lost all their natural children to the wars and then the fevers... without me there's no one to supplement the harvest for the land taxes, or for the food in winter...
[And how long was it going to take, cleaning up "arcane radiation"? Surely more than a season or two...]
[It's saddening to hear what her parents have gone through, and he can understand why she'd be worried. But at the same time, lingering on it is what's going to eat her, and he gives an understanding sort of hum.]
That must be a lot on your mind. I know it's difficult, and worrying...but any way home would be ahead of us somewhere. For now, even if it seems impossible, hope to see them again, hold onto that love. There's so many of us here doing our best to figure out how to solve this - I believe in that, and that we'll be reunited with our important people one day.
[Even though he's not laid out his own situation in as many words, there's a depth of feeling and sincerity to his words that says they're close to the heart. That it's also what he's using to drive him forward for now. Nothing has said there will never be a way back, and so he has to continue hoping for one and let that drive him.]
[... One day. Konoha cannot help but want to protest, to say that she didn't know how much time she had, and that this itself was made everything so painful. If her parents were younger, perhaps, or-
"If". There were too many ifs. And so she quiets, temporarily defeated. But not for so long that she can't help but to ask,]
... Is there someone you need to get back to, Momo?
[Momo often keeps things close to his chest, but this particular one comes up with everyone eventually, one way or another. He can hardly talk about his partner without being asked if he's here too, so the question brings a soft laugh out of him.]
Ah, am I that obvious? [There's a little levity in his tone, that gives way to affection for the person he's thinking of.] My partner, Yuki. We haven't been separated for this long since we met, so it's been weird getting used to not having him around, and he'd be worried about me being gone.
[That's only a fraction of the issues at hand with him being separated from Yuki, but he doesn't want to weigh Konoha down with his own worries on top of her own.]
[She was about to protest, assure him that he wasn't "obvious", she was just stupid and assumed everyone probably had someone to get back to, but... instead, she just bites her tongue and listens. Twiddles her thumbs on the side of her metal talk box. And just, latching on to anything to talk about...]
Eight years. Closer to nine with the time I've been here added. [The answer is immediate, lacking any need to recall. Yuki - Re:vale - entering his life changed it irrevocably.] Six to seven since we started being around each other almost all the time, but even during the early days I saw him pretty often.
[At least a few times a month, so now that he's been here for several months, the feeling of absence is more and more acute.]
[When she had let herself fantasize... She had daydreamed about having that with someone in the romantic sense. In recent months, with a specific someone... But then she had shoved it all down, because... It was selfish. She couldn't leave her parents, and she couldn't ask him to stay, so. It's just fantasies.
But it feels like it would hurt a little different. Missing a lover, missing your parents.]
What do you do when you get lonely here... ?
I tried to go into the city, but. It just made me feel more alone. No one there understands the things we do... or eats what we do...
I usually do go talk to people in town, or see if I can bother another Augmented to hang out! Even if we don't have an understanding now, talking to people, learning things, trying to help create more of that understanding...for me, it's helpful.
[But Momo is also a city-dweller who's used to being around large numbers of people, so it doesn't feel isolating for him. All things considered, while this world is different from his own in many ways, it's not to as intense of a degree as it would be for someone like her.]
So maybe getting to know other Augmented could help you...but you could try chatting to people outside the city, right? There's farms out there, and I bet they don't see a lot of visitors. Something more familiar can help settle those kinds of feelings.
[Even when she says it, though, she knows... If it were back home, she knew basically everyone. But it was different there. Her entire village could fit into the hotel. The entire highway post town, what she considered a bustling settlement... perhaps one of Karteria's districts. It's... different.]
But I guess I'm more of a coward here than I ever was at home.
[Not that it's wrong or bad to be a coward... she thinks she has decent enough reason. It just...]
Of course you can! [He gives a warm laugh at that, because he's absolutely never the type to turn down company. Basically the exact opposite of it, if anything.]
I love being around people, so I'd be happy to hang out when you need. I get why it'd be harder here...it's a big, packed city, there's a whole new culture to learn and everything. It's a bit overwhelming for anyone, right?
[Even him, but not for the reason of crowds - having to relearn the local social norms from the ground up when he's used to working the ones he knows in his favour has been an interesting time.]
Sure, sure! There's that big park near Patho-Gen HQ, or the one with the Peacock statue, but there's a couple of other smaller ones here and there too if you prefer that.
[It's a bit of a pros-and-cons situation, since smaller ones usually have less foot traffic, but are harder to get some quiet on the off chance they do end up busy. The larger ones are more popular, but have more spots out of the way.]
Well, we'll play it by ear, then! Whenever you want to hang out, just let me know.
[He's not always in the city, but he's also not usually out for days at a time unless the expedition teams are pushing for something in particular, so there's a good chance he can make some time.]
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
no subject
Now if only she knew they were creating a Rosetta Stone…]
👋🍑
🌳🍃🙂👐
🤔
🏘️⛰️🐎💨
🪶😖🪶
😴❌😢
👋
[The voice message that follows,
Hello, Momo… I’m alright. … I suppose, haha… I‘ve been trying to search for a way home, but there’s nothing, and, um, these itchy little feathers keep showing up in my coat, but. I guess it’s not a dream anymore, so. … Hello, again…]
no subject
And ultimately, it's a problem he can very much sympathise with. He wants a way home at the end of all this, even if they have to railroad Patho-Gen into building it themselves.]
Ah, you've heard that as well, then? It's rough to know there's no way back yet (๑ˊ▵ˋ๑)
But while we're here, it's best to support each other, right? So nice to meet you again, here in reality~!
I guess you have a bird soul, then? Mine is a bug (*/ω＼*)
[In the attached voice message that repeats the text, the sympathy and understanding in his tone is clearly audible, even though he's remaining upbeat.]
no subject
what 🍑 👂？
now 🛌😴 ☺️
🌕🌕🌕 🛌😴 ☠️
🌳🍃❌🐓
🌳🍃👧🏽🐎
👧🏽🐎🪶🤒
🤷🏽♀️
🍑❌🪲
[What sort of things are you hearing... ? I'd be happier if it was still a dream, but. I guess people who sleep for three months are dead, and I don't think we're that, so. (...) It's not my soul. I'm a jinba. Just- ... a jinba with feather fever. Or something. I don't know. ... Momo doesn't seem like a bug to me.]
no subject
I should have said the Natural Soul, the extra one they gave us! Have you felt it?
I know it's hard to think about, but if you saw me now, I don't think you'd say I don't seem like a bug... (o´艸`)
So I just want to help you understand what's been happening with them a bit more
[He can tell she's struggling to come to terms with it, and accordingly, the voice message version has a gentle concern to it, something reaching out. There's lighthearted notes, him trying to keep a certain levity, but he's already assigned himself the role of trying to be a stable pillar for people who are having a harder time adapting, regardless of how he feels about it all.]
no subject
... She also knows she's not upset about not being able to find the emoji. But.
It's only a voice message this time.]
"Extra Soul" would be a better name.
... It's not "natural".
no subject
That's true, but I think the idea is meant to be that they came from nature...you'd have to take that one up with Patho-Gen, though. It's not the name that's the real problem, though, is it?
[That understanding, coaxing sort of tone remains, wanting to know more about how she's feeling about it right now (moreso than simply the clear upset) so he has a better idea of which angle to take to help.]
no subject
[No matter how she just... hates it. "Natural" soul. It's only natural to have... to have one! The one you're born with! She never wanted anything else, and...]
I just want to go home...
[There's a faint sound, a bit of a hiccup.]
My parents probably think I'm dead... and they don't have anyone else... and instead I'm in some nightmare growing feathers...
no subject
I think they're more likely to be able to send us home if we can do something about what's happening here. [He doesn't want to completely write off the possibility - there are plenty of people here, even good-natured ones, who would immediately be far less likely to help if there was a way home accessible to them now.] Did you and your parents live in a community, or by yourselves? Being away from the people we love is one of the hardest things about all this.
[A lot of the problems weighing on him would be lessened if he just had some idea of what was going on back home, or just if his absence is known. For Konoha's case, he's not sure how her world structures itself, so he wants to clarify whether it's literally them alone or whether there might be some less direct support around them he can point to as a reassurance.]
no subject
[Part of her issue stemmed, perhaps, from how difficult Karteria's situation was to grasp to a young peasant woman from 1620, who had no education whatsoever in science to support her grasping the concept of radiation... let alone the magical seeming elements of two souls in one body.
The sound of fabric rustling over the mic might be her trying to wipe at her eyes with her sleeve.]
We live in a village, but they don't... they're getting old, and they lost all their natural children to the wars and then the fevers... without me there's no one to supplement the harvest for the land taxes, or for the food in winter...
[And how long was it going to take, cleaning up "arcane radiation"? Surely more than a season or two...]
no subject
That must be a lot on your mind. I know it's difficult, and worrying...but any way home would be ahead of us somewhere. For now, even if it seems impossible, hope to see them again, hold onto that love. There's so many of us here doing our best to figure out how to solve this - I believe in that, and that we'll be reunited with our important people one day.
[Even though he's not laid out his own situation in as many words, there's a depth of feeling and sincerity to his words that says they're close to the heart. That it's also what he's using to drive him forward for now. Nothing has said there will never be a way back, and so he has to continue hoping for one and let that drive him.]
no subject
"If". There were too many ifs. And so she quiets, temporarily defeated. But not for so long that she can't help but to ask,]
... Is there someone you need to get back to, Momo?
no subject
Ah, am I that obvious? [There's a little levity in his tone, that gives way to affection for the person he's thinking of.] My partner, Yuki. We haven't been separated for this long since we met, so it's been weird getting used to not having him around, and he'd be worried about me being gone.
[That's only a fraction of the issues at hand with him being separated from Yuki, but he doesn't want to weigh Konoha down with his own worries on top of her own.]
no subject
How long has it been? Since you met...
no subject
[At least a few times a month, so now that he's been here for several months, the feeling of absence is more and more acute.]
no subject
[When she had let herself fantasize... She had daydreamed about having that with someone in the romantic sense. In recent months, with a specific someone... But then she had shoved it all down, because... It was selfish. She couldn't leave her parents, and she couldn't ask him to stay, so. It's just fantasies.
But it feels like it would hurt a little different. Missing a lover, missing your parents.]
What do you do when you get lonely here... ?
I tried to go into the city, but. It just made me feel more alone. No one there understands the things we do... or eats what we do...
no subject
[But Momo is also a city-dweller who's used to being around large numbers of people, so it doesn't feel isolating for him. All things considered, while this world is different from his own in many ways, it's not to as intense of a degree as it would be for someone like her.]
So maybe getting to know other Augmented could help you...but you could try chatting to people outside the city, right? There's farms out there, and I bet they don't see a lot of visitors. Something more familiar can help settle those kinds of feelings.
no subject
[Even when she says it, though, she knows... If it were back home, she knew basically everyone. But it was different there. Her entire village could fit into the hotel. The entire highway post town, what she considered a bustling settlement... perhaps one of Karteria's districts. It's... different.]
But I guess I'm more of a coward here than I ever was at home.
[Not that it's wrong or bad to be a coward... she thinks she has decent enough reason. It just...]
Could I bother Momo to hang out... ?
no subject
I love being around people, so I'd be happy to hang out when you need. I get why it'd be harder here...it's a big, packed city, there's a whole new culture to learn and everything. It's a bit overwhelming for anyone, right?
[Even him, but not for the reason of crowds - having to relearn the local social norms from the ground up when he's used to working the ones he knows in his favour has been an interesting time.]
I wouldn't call that cowardice.
no subject
[It takes her a moment, fussing with the Syntrofos in her hand, but eventually...]
Mmm. It's... really overwhelming.
... And all the paths and the streets are really hard. Maybe we could meet on grass somewhere... ?
no subject
[It's a bit of a pros-and-cons situation, since smaller ones usually have less foot traffic, but are harder to get some quiet on the off chance they do end up busy. The larger ones are more popular, but have more spots out of the way.]
no subject
[Big smile... if she does that, she'll sound more happy, and more sure. She wants to be that.]
no subject
[He's not always in the city, but he's also not usually out for days at a time unless the expedition teams are pushing for something in particular, so there's a good chance he can make some time.]
no subject
I appreciate it. Really.
[So as long as he knew that...]
no subject
[Not trying to find a way around the thanks is progress for him, but regardless, it's a sincere response.]