snowtop | 001. (v2) [audio + commentlog/open]

Entry tags:

001. (v2) [audio + commentlog/open]

A...Again?

[Xanth lets out a hollow, bitter laugh.]

I... n-no, you, you have to be k--kidding. I-I already d--did this. M-My world was... a-already gone. Th--The End took it. K-K'lai, a-and Grams, they... th-they were... already gone.

[He takes in a shuddering breath. His chest tightens, his voice cracks.]

N--Now you say it... it's all g-gone? Unmade? D--Didn't ev--even-- h-happen? How!? I-- I lived that! It-- it can't-- not again--

[There's a small gasp, like a prelude to a sob, but then Xanth slams the book shut.

Xanth takes his record, takes his key, and immediately sets out into the Keep. He's tired, he's so fucking tired, but he has to know if anyone else got snatched into this mess too.]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[It isn't funny, but she's right. If his stay on the Elegante was anything to go by, they would be here for months.

But he just can't talk about it yet. The wound, still fresh, has been struck again and had salt rubbed into it. What he needs is time.

He sniffs again and nods, wiping his face on his rag of a sleeve.]

Th-th--thanks. I-- I-I'm-- I... I'm s-sorry...

[She climbs to her feet and turns to offer him a hand getting up.]

What for?

[Xanth takes Kairi's hand and pulls himself up. Immediately, he takes his hand back He still can't look her in the eyes.]

F-For... fa--falling ap-part, l-like... like this...

[If only he could hold his fucking composure for once in his life, at least until he's alone.]

... It's okay.

[To tell the truth, she was more relieved that the hug now had an explanation... Sort of. It wasn't okay, really. But then he'd been pretty scared the first time they'd had a conversation like this too...

Maybe soup would make it better, or at least something to take his mind off it.

Setting the fishing pole down on the shore - she'll come back for it - Kairi started heading back toward the gate.]

So, there're some things you should know about here.

[Xanth follows after Kairi. Now that he's not running, his limp isn't so bad, so he keeps pace.

He's heard about harsh punishments and something about tattoos, but rather than interrupt, he'll let Kairi explain.]

Y--Yeah?

[He's not sure he could talk for long without starting to cry again anyway.]

Well, if the letters from your journal start appearing on your skin, don't worry. You can just wash them off with cold water after you make an entry.

[Best to cover old bases first.]

They, heh, must really want us to write.

I--I guess. I w-wonder wh-why.

[But Xanth makes a mental note of this. Better to prepare himself for something strange than throw a fit when it happened.]

I don't know...

[She walks on in silence, musing, but breaks it before it can stretch too long.]

So, you still remember what castles are like, right? I mean, this kind of castle.

[Xanth looks from the ground up to the castle before them. He recalls the brick walls; the quarters he awoke in; the great keep he passed on his way to the lake; the stables he glimpsed.

Eventually, he nods.]

Y--Yeah. I-I, uh. [Sniff.] G-Grew up, i-in a p-place that had th--these.

[But that she knew that much brings up another question in Xanth's mind. He sneaks a glimpse at Kairi, wondering if maybe he can look at her as he speaks, but still he cannot. Instead, he looks to the ground in front of him.]

Th-the, um, the m-me you met b-before... w-what was he like?

Well, nervous, heh.

[It's not funny, but it seems like an obviously common trait. Kairi sobers, however.]

I think he - you were afraid. You didn't know about other worlds before you got here. I think a lot happened to you very fast.

But you were okay if you had something familiar. Heh, you taught me to make soup.

[Nervous, fearful, ignorant. That sounds very much like the person he once was. Xanth wonders exactly how alike he and the other Xanth were. How had he lived? How were there even two of him in the first place?

But then Kairi mentions soup, and Xanth manages a smile.]

Y-Yeah? Wh... what kind?

Heh, I don't really know. It had onions and carrots and celery, but no chili.

[She grins at him.]

In case you ever wonder, you don't like chili.

[Xanth's smile widens, and for a moment, he can pretend things are alright.]

Y-Yeah, I'm not... f-fond of s--super spicy th-things. O-Or, uh, super sweet th--things.

B-But, I l-like ice c--cream.

[And he's pretty sure you do, too. Kairi showed it to him.]

Me too! But I haven't been able to find any here.

[She looks at her shoes. Yes, she went looking for ice cream.]

Do they have ice-cream in castles like this?

[Bingo. But to her question, Xanth shakes his head.]

N...No. A-And I don't... know h-how to m--make it, eith--either.

[But he's sure it can be done. And here, Xanth clears his throat and his smile fades into a frown.]

B-But, um. Th-this place is prob--probably not a n-normal castle. At-- at all.

[If it's anything like the Elegante, it's got all sorts of anachronisms, strange features, and dangers. But Xanth reluctant to bring the mood down, smiles again.]

S-So... it m-might!

[She tries to catch his eye again but ends up just shooting him a curious look.]

What do you mean? You said there were castles like this on your world.

I mean, the tattoos aren't normal and it has a fridge...

[She's gotten the feeling that fridges aren't normal.]

[Not for castles, at any rate. Xanth chews his lip - how, exactly, does he explain this?]

W-Well, uh. Th--there were. A-Are. B-But... a-a while ago, I-- I went-- s-somewhere e-else.

[Unable to keep still and unsure of what to do with his hands, Xanth grips the elbow of his right arm.]

It... i-it was... k-kind of l-like here. W-With people from-- from d-different worlds, I-- I m-mean. It was-- a-- a big ship, but... n-not a n-normal one.

S-So, this... th-this castle? P-Probably not n--normal.

[Kairi purses her lips. That doesn't make much sense to her. It is strange that there are so many different cross-roads worlds out there, with people sheltering from the destruction. But it shouldn't surprise her. Traverse Town had been small and there hadn't been many people there. But it had also been pretty normal.]

I've been to a world like this before too.

Heh, a place for people who's world have disappeared, I mean, people from all kinds of worlds. It was a town.

But there wasn't that much strange about it, heh, except for some of the people.

[Talking ducks, a creature that looked like a cuddly plushie, a wizard with a long white beard and a family of dalmations.]

[Xanth's heart skips. For a moment, he has the hope that Kairi will mention the Elegante... but she does not. He feels foolish for ever having thought she would.

That moment where he could pretend things were normal has faded.]

Th-there was... a-a lot s--strange about the El--Ele--Elegante.

[His nervous touching of his elbow shifts up to his shoulder, which is still sore from the battle.]

Uh, h--how far i-is the i--infirm-mary n-now?

Elegante? Is that was the ship was-Oh.

[They'd reached the wall, and the little gate that would take them through to the thermal pools.]

It's not far. It's just through here and past the library, in the Great Keep.

O--Okay.

[Xanth is silent for a few more steps, but then he pipes up again:]

B-But... um. Y-Yeah. The sh-ship was th--the e-- M.S. E-El--Elegante.

[Such an innocent sounding name for such a threatening place. Xanth hopes Kairi will end her questions there, but he suspects they won't. Kairi is a curious girl, after all.]

So, did it travel between worlds?

[That it was a ship between worlds is pretty obvious. But Kairi wants to know if it actually stopped anywhere.]

Um.

[Xanth thoughtfully frowns down at the ground, cogs turning in his brain.]

I'm... I-I'm not... r-really sure. I--I think it did, b-but it was... h-hard to t--tell.

W-We... we only e-ever stopped t-twice, though. A-At-- at least w-when... I was th-there.

[That's strange. How could it be hard to tell? Kairi skips over a stone as they skirt about the edge of the thermal pools and make for the library, but her gaze is still on Xanth.]

What kinds of places did you visit?

[Maybe one of them was somewhere she would remember.]

T--Two beaches. One h-had a little town. Th--the residents w-were, um, s--stone pigs. Th-the other was...

[Xanth's voice falters.]

...d-deserted.

[Commentlog]

[Commentlog]

[Commentlog]

[Commentlog]

[Commentlog]

[Commentlog]

[Commentlog]

[Commentlog]

[Commentlog]

[Commentlog]

[Commentlog]

[Commentlog]

[Commentlog]

[Commentlog]

[Commentlog]

[Commentlog]

[Commentlog]

[Commentlog]

[Commentlog]

[Commentlog]

[Commentlog]

[Commentlog]

[Commentlog]

[Commentlog]

[Commentlog]