destinystrings | The Search for the Newcomers, November 2012 Edition.

Entry tags:

The Search for the Newcomers, November 2012 Edition.

Who: Open to Everyone, but only Newly Accepted Characters can start threads.
Where: All around the city, anywhere from the 5th to the 20th.
Summary: Newcomers arrive and by now the Government is more ready and sends everyone out to go people hunting.
Warnings: ARRIVALS. Also assume the first thread is the ones who tell you about the city, and the other tags for the character can be talking with others in the city and learning more about it.

[FOR THOSE IN THE CITY:]
They were getting much better at this, it was for certain.

The COMPS had been upgraded with a new program, HORUS which allowed them to spot abnormalities; if something or someone showed up suddenly in a city that was constantly scanned, then there was a high probability it was a newcomer. There was also a sort of left energy from the travel; the Wise Men called it leftover Magatama Residue, where the magical energy used to pull them to this world and keep the String intact was still faintly present around them. It wouldn't last more than a few minutes, however, and due to the fact they could appear in most parts of the city, it made finding the newcomers was both easy yet frustratingly difficult. As the blips appear on your radar function, they were nice enough to calculate for you the best transport and destination routes to take to get there.

Now it was just left up to chance and make sure you got there fast enough that you were still able to find them relatively easily. For the most part, the fact they stuck out would most certainly help...

[FOR THOSE WHO JUST ARRIVED:]
You're not in your homeworld anymore. That much is evident. So how do you feel? Happy? Sad? Troubled? A little of all three? No matter what, the memories of a butterfly man named Philemon are fading like a dream; you'll remember the details, but perhaps not everything he has said.

There is one word that stays with you, however.

Persona.

So...here to save the city, huh? First you'll need to find out more information. And who knows, maybe a familiar face or two...

[OOC: As stated above, only new characters can start a thread, but feel free to jump in any of them. characters arrive with their clothing and whatever items they had on them the moment they were taken; the remaining items will be later found in their apartments.]

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Her first question makes him pause as images from Bete Noire flash in his head and suddenly the gun on his hip and under his duster feels heavier than usual. A lot had changed for him...and he hadn't really noticed until he felt like his old self again. His smile dampens a bit, but he keeps it. "No, I went somewhere else first; a different city. Then I came here about a month ago."

He looked around a moment, a little disheartened by the lack of proper cafes in this city, even Bete had those. "How 'bout we go back to my place and I'll get you something to eat. I've actually learned enough about cooking to be dangerous."

"Wow...that's pretty crazy!" Selphie gave him a sympathetic look ~ she hated that she had appeared in another world all over again. But Locke had done that yet another time. She saw the weakening of his smile, and she wandered about what people he might have left behind yet again just a month ago.

At his suggestion, Selphie looked immediately pleased and relieved, giving an earnest nod of the head. "Oh really? Yes, please! I'm pretty hungry!" She was never one to shy away from an invitation, but she was definitely keen to talk more with someone that she actually knew.

His smile brightened again and he offered her his arm to lead her back to the small apartment he'd been assigned. It wasn't exactly homey, but it was good enough.

Once he led them there and opened the door for her, he went off to the kitchen to make something close to edible for her. If he'd been thinking about it, he might have remembered the sketchbook he'd left on the table in the living room...but, for now, he'd forgotten.

"Is there anything you really want? I could try and make that, if there is."

Selphie grinned and happily took his arm, still so pleased to not be alone anymore. And even better, she was with someone that she knew was a good friend. How she knew, she couldn't tell, but she could feel it like an instinct.

At his apartment, she glanced around - it was small, but quite a cute place. "Do you live her on your own?" Just a curious question, because it did really only look big enough for one person. As he headed into the kitchen, Selphie walked around the living room, "Oh, anything you have will be great, really!" And she meant it.

While she waited, Selphie took a seat down next to the table, and her eyes were drawn to the book that was left there. She glanced from the kitchen entrance to the table, and lifted the cover to take a peek underneath.

"Yeah, I do. There's bigger places, but since it's just me, it's good enough." Locke started on making eggs. Breakfast seemed to be the only thing he'd really gotten good at, everything else that required a stove was hit or miss. Hopefully eggs and toast would be okay.

In the sketchbook, Selphie would find the first couple pages filled with sketches of Bete Noire, a dark, abysmal city with neon signs and a few run down buildings. There was the city proper, and the harbor and it's market, about the only place that didn't seem dark and sad, and the large cliff that over looked the city with it's one grave.

After the city, there were pictures of Vatheon, the plaza and the coral, the lower district, middle district, and church. The pirate ship and forest were there, but the pictures weren't complete.

After that were the pictures of people. Genrou, Selphie, Celes, N, Kagome, Italy, Edgar, and Rachel. Each one was as detailed as possible and labeled with the person's name in the bottom corner. These were the ones he'd spent the most time on.

"I think it's a lovely little place!" Selphie smiled as she called through to him. Then she could hear him getting busy with putting things together in the kitchen. She wasn't sure what it would be, but she was happy all the same.

So she knew she had a little bit of time to go through the book. She was surprised to find it was full of sketches, and she smiled warmly, pleased at what she saw, and to know that Locke could really draw. The first few pages were unfamiliar, and she frowned a little at the dark world it showed - was that the place he had been in last? No wonder he had darkened when he mentioned it.

Of course she recognised Vatheon, and it almost made her laugh. She wasn't sure how recent or not the drawings were, but they were definitely good. Then she flicked through the people, pausing over Gen - another face she recognised. Then Celes, and for some reason she didn't want to pause over that one for too long. Then there were faces she vaguely recognised, and some she didn't. Selphie was about to shout through about what a great artist she was, when she flicked through again and landed on a page she'd skipped - a sketch of her.

Her heart stopped in her chest for a moment, and she wasn't sure what to think, just staring at this sketched picture of herself.

Luckily for Locke, eggs cooked quickly, so he was finished with them soon. He put the eggs and toast on two plates and carried them into the living room. "I didn't know if you wanted anything to drink, but I can..."

His voice trailed off as he noticed what she was looking at and the blush from early returned in full force. "I...um..I draw things...when I miss them. Kinda afraid the details'll leave my head when I'm not paying attention...I hope you're not bothered by it."

Self-consciously, he put the plates down and avoided Selphie's eyes by looking at just about anything else. "Do you...want anything to drink at all..?"

Selphie had been so distracted by the picture that she was quite caught off guard when he entered the room, not expecting to see him back quite so quickly. At once she let the sketchbook cover dropped closed, and she moved her hands beneath her thighs, so that she was sitting on them.

"Right! Of course. Sure!" In trying so hard to avoid his gaze, Selphie found herself almost catching it, and she blushed quite pink, clearing her throat. It was easier just to talk about a drink and actually, water was a good idea, "Uhm...water? Please..?" But she was still staring at the sketchbook cover.

He nods, and goes to get some water. Really, he should have moved that book the moment he'd led her here...but he'd completely forgotten about it. When he came back, he set the glasses down and started poking around his food and only kind of eating it, he was still feeling self-conscious.

Luckily, this was the only one in plain view. There were two other, similarly filled, sketchbooks back in Bete that he'd left behind. The only one he'd arrived with was a small, pocket-sized one that was almost full at this point, that was tucked away in a pocket of his coat. Honestly, he'd never thought anyone would look at them.

There were two main reasons he even kept sketchbooks: boredom, and the constant, nagging, fear that one day he'd forget. His memory was pretty good and it hadn't failed him yet...but he was only human and he knew how easily someone could lose their memory; especially when it came to these 'travels.'

"If it bothers you, I can remove it. I..I just didn't want to forget your face."

Edited 2012-11-12 22:15 (UTC)

When he went to get some water, Selphie took another quick look in the sketchbook and smiled, before pushing it slightly away from her. She took a deep breath, calming herself for his return, not wanting to be such a rude guest in his home.

Selphie took the glass gratefully and took a small sip, composing herself and glancing at Locke. She noticed how off put he looked, distracted maybe. She had the urge to put her hand on his, to get his attention, to tell him it's okay. But again, that just seems weird, and instead she shakes her head, "No.. they're beautiful.."

She grinned and took a bite of egg, "And you draw me so prettily too!"

He laughs a little at that and took a bite of the eggs, still not meeting her eyes. "I only draw things the way I see them, whether they're pretty or not...you are...so the picture is too."

He was treating it as a fact, but he could still feel his face heating up a bit. Selphie was pretty, it's not like he was lying.

"But I'm glad you like it. I could draw more for you, if you'd like. Whatever you want."

At that, Selphie found herself almost choking on her toast, so she straight away grabbed the glass of water and took a sip to clear her throat. It was a nice compliment, but she hadn't expected it and she found herself blushing gently.

"They're really good. Maybe..you could do one of you, for me to have, just in case.." After all, it was the nature of these places that she had no idea how long she might stay.

He laughed. It would probably be weird to try and draw himself, but if that was what she wanted..."Alright, since you asked."

He went silent, studying his eggs again.

"You know...even if you went back to Vat tomorrow...I'm glad you're here now. I've missed you."

Selphie smiled at him then, pleased to hear him laugh. Though she felt a bit silly cause it kinda was a bit of a weird idea.

As he looked at his eggs, she looked at him more carefully, noting how his hair was longer. It really had been a long time. Now it was her turn to look at her eggs, "I missed you too." She knew that she did, but as she said it, she was hit hard by just how true that was, with a vague recollection of how miserable she was when he left.

He glanced over to her and set his plate aside. Gently, he reached out to lay a hand on her shoulder and smiled.

"Hey. You know, as long as we're together, I've got your back, right? No matter what." He knew it might sound a little out of nowhere to her, but to him it made sense. He never thought he'd se her again; well, maybe he would have, but he knew it was possible it wouldn't have been her. And the fact she was sitting next to him now after he'd gone so long with no one at all, it made him want to fight to protect this feeling more than ever. To protect her.

Selphie jumped a little as his hand touched her shoulder, more out of surprise than anything given how lost in her thoughts she was.

She searched his face as he spoke, wondering if there was something that she was missing, something she should know but didn't. Selphie looked solemn for a moment, giving a small nod, "Right. And I've got yours."

So far, she hadn't encountered a need for such protection (well, apart from being lost, alone, and hungry) but if Vatheon was anything to go by, she knew that she might need it.

He smiles and nods. If that thing with the scorpions happened again, it was kind've nice to know he'd have someone to look out for. And he knew he could trust Selphie to handle herself in a fight.

More than that...more than that was just looking at her and knowing this wasn't a dream or a hallucination; knowing that, if he reached out, she'd be there. That was what caused him to smile and to have that warm feeling in his chest again; something he'd been afraid he'd lost.

He shook himself of the thoughts and blushed a bit. "Do you want me to help you find your apartment?"

There was something about Locke's smile that made Selphie feel like she really was safe here and like she had something familiar, some feeling like home.

Though she couldn't really guess at what he was thinking, at what had caused him to blush, so she glanced away, concentrating more than need be on taking her card from her pocket.

"Thanks, Locke. I'm really confused here..I feel a bit lost." She smiled despite being anxious, and handed over the card with her apartment number on.

He took the card and flashed another smile at her. "Yeah, I understand. You're not alone, though, I'll help you out."

He looked at the card in his hand...and laughed. "Well, I won't be escorting you very far-" he offered the card back to her. "-you live next door."

Selphie smiled, looking relieved as well as very happy. Just even hearing that she wasn't alone made her feel so much happier.

She took the card with a look of disbelief, "Really? Right next door?!" Selphie blinked at Locke, then at the card, and started laughing too.

He grins and nods, reveling in the feeling just being around her gave him. He'd always enjoyed Selphie's company more than a lot of the people he'd met, but it's almost like he'd forgotten. And yet, when she was sitting right next to him, it felt like no time had passed at all.

He looked away and offered his arm to her again.

"Shall we? We can always come back. Or, maybe go out and get you some things that'll make it more home-like. It'll be sparse at first."

Selphie tilted her head as she watched him, unable to help the slow smile spreading across her face. Memories weren't at the front of her mind, but she felt so comfortable being around him, so she happily took up his arm.

"Sure! Should I go check out my apartment first or...will it pretty much be the same as yours?"
Selphie glanced around her before looking back at Locke, "But - if you're busy, I don't mind looking round the town by myself."

"It'll be pretty much like mine since I haven't done much to mine yet." He smiled at her as he led her from the apartment and out to the hallway. "But, no, I'm not busy; I'll take you to see whatever you want."

Selphie looked about her in the hallway, guessing that one of the doors next to his was hers. She wondered what it would be like, but she wasn't ready to let go of Locke yet, "Alright! What is there worth seeing? You can be my tour guide!"

He took her to the right door and opened it for her, considering her question. "Well, guess it depends on what you're looking for. There's a pretty good shopping district, and there's a game place you might like."

And, just as he'd though, the apartment was nearly identical to his own minus the few personal touches he'd given his.

The Search for the Newcomers, November 2012 Edition.

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