genessia | 1st ✿ video

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This place is too confusing...

[Hello! This sure looks like one confused young woman here, too confused to even remember what an emotional mess she is right now. Really, what is this kind of technology and place even? Sure sure, she got the explanations and read that pamphlet thing, but still. Anyone from the same world as her would recognize her clothes and 3D gear thing too, because wow she's not good with this video thing and the phone flips here and there.

What is she supposed to say to this thing even? Let's start with top priorities! Which is people instead of jobs, but she can look for jobs a chef, security, nurse or whatever later.]

ummm... I'm looking for some people! Oluo Bozado, Eren Jaeger and [pause, longer pause.] captain Levi? I--If you've seen any of them here, please let me know, okay?

[and biting her lip when she almost asks for two others too. Nope, not going to ask for them too.

Sorry, it's not really a good day for long messages either, she's really not good at staying calm for those today. So she'll just leave it at that.

Action is welcome too if you're anywhere near The Bay!]

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[ . . . Well, that ... sure isn't the answer or reaction, that she's expecting to get. Ugh, why is this stupid video box thing on her way, when she just wants to rush to him and give him a hug? Yes, she'd at least try to do that, don't even question it even if she really doesn't know him so well. Or well, even if he doesn't know her at all, it seems. She's so worried about him now, Armin has no idea.

Especially because that ... sort of reminds her of the answer she could give too, if someone asked a question about her situation back home. But let's not connect the dots that way, that would be just her and he is so clearly not okay either, but there can be a ton of reasons for that.

So, there are other worlds, that can do this kidnapping thing too? She won't ask about it, not now.

Time to act like a big sis figure, that she is? Yeah, she can at least try, though she can't quite stop looking sad and worried by that.]

Hey... Armin, it's -- it's okay. You don't -- need to go into specifics about it, not now and not with me later either if you don't want to. Or well, if you ever want to tell me, I'll listen and that's fine by me, but [Petra shakes her head.] I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to upset you like that.

[She takes a deep breath, not wanting to get all emotional here even if she almost could after his answer and everything that's happened today.]

I didn't know that coming from different times was possible, but that explains it then. There's no need for you to apologize for that though, it's not something we choose for ourselves, I ... think. [short pause, but oh right, he doesn't know her, so;] We'll meet in your future and as you said I'm in the Scout Regiment. You can call me Petra.

[Talking to Mikasa has calmed him down a bit, but what he's gone through still isn't something you get over quickly, even for someone who's experienced the inside of a titan's mouth (Armin still has nightmares about that, waking up in absolute terror but unable to move or speak). Still, he shakes his head, trying his hardest to look like he's all right.]

You d-didn't upset me. I w-was just... already upset.

[Then he stands straighter and gives her a salute. Maybe it's unnecessary here, but he never technically did join the Scout Regiment. Besides, he seems a little... less distraught. Like this gives him focus, or perhaps a sense of purpose or belonging.]

It's very nice to meet you, Petra.

[It's okay, Armin. Titan mouths are super scary and she might be a (semi-)vegetarian for a while after what happened to Eld... Because that? Hell sure is going to give her nightmares and horrible nausea for a long while among everything else that's happened today.]

Well, then I'm sorry for ... upsetting you even more, or triggering it like that.

[She didn't mean to do it, but insant worry about people brings out questions like that.

Petra shakes her head at his salute though. Sorry, she feels really bad for dying and fucking things up and not really worthy of that even if she did try to save your best friend with her death.]

It's very nice to meet you too [again-ish], though you don't need to salute me. I mean, I guess I'd call our captains with their military title wherever we go. But really, that's ... about it here, I think.

[LET'S BE FRIENDS INSTEAD!]

Don't w-worry about it.

[That even earns her a small smile, and he looks a little embarrassed as he drops the salute.]

S-sorry, I guess I'm s-still used to traveling with the c-captain and the commander. It's a hard h-habit to break.

[She'll drop it for now, being upset herself helps with that, but she worries about it!!

Well, that mention of captain (and commander, but shhhh, she devoted her life to tiny captain) sure is away to get a sad smile from the girl. Or if the smile isn't sad, then there's also the tears in her eyes. And she's trying to look away, so that she wouldn't accidentally get all emotional here right now but ... yeah, she's sure to have a breakdown sooner or later, she's just kind of trying to hold back from having one right now.]

That's okay, I think those habits might become a bit hard to break for all of us. Or we could just go with the habits, especially in the company of those two. You got to travel with captain and commander, huh? That sounds amazing.

I... [He bites his lip, uncertain. They're right back there again, with everything that happened in the past year. Some of it was amazing, but some was horrifying, and most was somewhere in between. In truth, he didn't really see them all that much, because either he or they always seemed to believe they were someone else.

On the other hand, as awful as he feels and as uncertain as he is, he sees her starting to get emotional, and he really doesn't want see her face fall, doesn't want to ruin her concept of what it must be like to travel with them.

He does his best to conjure a modest smile, dispelling the uncertainty from his voice.] I-it was certainly an experience! Especially because... I had never actually met them before.

[Well, she could imagine that it's not a very fun experience considering Armin's condition, but -- Sorry, she's just a girl, who devoted her life to Levi. And now she thinks she'll never see him again and it's just killing her.

But Petra is not going to actually talk more about that experience of yours, answer above to the what the hell happened question and this newest now is enough to get her less curious about it.

Does it help if what he says next, or the way he says it, seems to actually ... amuse her?]

Well, meeting them both for the first time can certainly be -- an experience in itself even back home.

[He understands - or would, if he actually knew Petra. And the parts that involved them were usually positive! There just... weren't that many of them.]

That's definitely true. It was s-strange when they arrived, because at th-that time, I was the v-veteren...

[Maybe he'll get to know that one day.

Petra is quiet for a moment. Being a veteren to them sounds so weird.]

That sounds like a really strange experience, yeah, but it could repeat itself here too depending if or when they arrive here...

Well, m-maybe I'm wrong, since I j-just arrived here today too, but I don't think being a v-veteran matters as much here...

[It was very strange, and even moreso in that the situation seemed to persist, even after the months they were there together. Armin was still the one they would go to with questions, the one recording everything and figuring stuff out and making new discoveries. Armin still considered himself their soldier, but... it was certainly a strange relationship.]

Oh! I'm s-sorry for being so thoughtless - do you n-need someone to come and find you?

Well, no, come to think of it, I guess it doesn't really matter... This place even gives all those good instructions and everything right from the start.

[and she's so much worse at reading maps than people like Erwin, that no, that term doesn't go here at all. Sorry, Armin, her mind is going all over the place today while she's trying to find all the distractions. She's still their soldier too.]

Oh, you weren't thoughtless at all, don't worry about it. Actually, Mikasa found me, we're walking.

Right. And, w-well, I don't th-think this world n-needs as much explaining, e-either. It just... it seems less c-complicated. [And less dangerous if you don't know what you're doing, but he lets that part go unsaid.]

Ah! Okay, g-good. Is she b-bringing you back here, o-or...?

[If Petra was coming back to their place, Armin would stop distracting her and simply meet her properly when they made it back.]

Edited 2015-02-11 02:29 (UTC)

[... well, that's another line that gets a big sister figure a little, or not just a little, worried. But she's not going to ask about any of it here on these weird video screens.]

Less complicated sounds good, combined with the how this place is probably safer than our home it sounds great even. Let's try to enjoy this, yeah?

Yeah, she's bringing me there. She offered for me to stay too, so I think I'll stay ... for a while at least. So I'll see you when we get there, yeah?

[It's not really distracting, but she also thinks it might be better to meet at the apartment once they get there. Talking with people on these screen is... weird still.]

B-but... shouldn't we be trying to get back? I mean... I k-know this is safer for us, but d-don't they need us back h-home?

[Although if whoever sent him here was powerful enough to take him from the Trumps - or even if they were one of the Trumps - he wasn't very optimistic about their chances at escape. At the same time, after being a Traveler for so long, if he could be sent here this easily then he could be sent somewhere else just as easily at any time - so they couldn't let their guard down, and they should keep up their training too.

But then she says she's staying with them for a while, and Armin smiles - more sincerely than one might expect, for someone he's never really met yet.]

Oh, good. I'll see y-you then.

[ She swallows. Really hard. Well, to tell you the truth, Armin, people won't really need her for anything back home anymore. Or sure, she could go back and experience how that fucking psycho (...yeah, she has a lot of names for female titan today) kicks / crushes her to death. Oh but hey, good people would probably actually need her around, maybe, too bad she won't be around for much longer there. Eren's going to be fine after that with the way how time works here even if she won't go back... Isn't it a soldier's -- ummmm, duty to finish their orders even if they die and have no regrets?? So isn't this just running away from it and refusing to go back even if it was possible is wrong?!

Her end of the screen is kind of shaky because her hands are shaking. What is she even supposed to say to that?? Is it bad if she really wants to just stay here and not find a way back and wishes the same for everyone else from home too? It might be really selfish, they're needed back home.]

... Yeah. Yeah, we should try to get back. Even if this seems like a good place for anyone...

[But literally no one needs to see the bodies of this girl and the guys, who die(d) with her. What the hell is she going to do if Levi shows up? Humanity needs him, but she'd want to keep him and everyone else here forever. Well, at least they can keep up with some training here!! Hopefully.

Petra is actually really surprised to see that smile. She'd smile too, but she's kind of shaken by trying to reply to the thing about trying to find a way home. She's trying though! No reason to not smile at him, especially when the smile from him makes it a little easier right now. It's only a sort of a smile for now though.]

Yeah, I'll see you there. So, bye for now. [wow, super sorry, Armin, she's just going to hang up there. She waves a hand before she does that though? No, that doesn't help much.

But Petra will look for Armin later in the apartment! She'll obviously want to see Eren first if he's home when they arrive, duh, but she will approach the blonde soon-ish after that.]

Hey. Sorry for disappearing from that conversation so soon... [it's obviously not your fault, or anyone else's either.] but I'm here now.

[She's smiling at him this time and looks like she's calm again.]

[Armin may be in bad shape himself, but he's aware enough to realize he stepped on something big there, even if he can't tell what it is. She tried to hide it, but she was definitely upset about something.]

Of course, that doesn't mean we can't enjoy our time here in the meantime...

[And then she's already hung up. Armin bites his lip, uncertain, and curls up on the couch to wait for her to arrive.]

[Armin's still in the same position when she arrives, and waits there for her to talk to Eren first. But when she's done, he gets up to greet her, giving an uncertain smile.]

Th-that's all right. [He starts to offer her a salute, remembers what she said earlier, and offers his hand instead.] It's n-nice to actually m-meet you, Petra.

[The first thing Petra will probably notice about Armin is his outfit. He wears a trainee's uniform - severely beat up, worn and cut and burned - but his cloak seems in fine condition, and bears the wings of freedom. He also wears a golden necklace in the shape of a life-sized aspen leaf.

There are a number of other things to notice, too. The camera hadn't done a good job of conveying Armin's condition - and in person, he looks awful. He has scars all over, reflecting the burns and tears in his uniform.

He has a great number of smaller scars, mostly nicks and scratches and burns, hardly worth notice but for their sheer volume. Some, however, are much more precise and deliberate - intended to bring pain rather than harm, if Petra knows how to recognize these things.

There are a few that stick out as more recent or more serious, however. His left hand holds deep scars across the palm and each of the fingers, as if he'd been tightly clutching an open blade. Then there's the evidence of once-seared flesh on his left leg and the hollow of his right arm - his uniform somehow burned through in perfect circles.

In skin that's gone absolutely white, sharp in contrast even with Armin's pale color, there's a handprint on the back of his neck, and a thumbprint on his cheek. A closer examination will also reveal his hair is slightly matted with blood. Perhaps most significant, however, are the fresh, ugly bruises on his throat - there's no doubt he's been strangled, both recently and so severely it's surprising he's not in worse shape than he is.]

[No, it's really not alright to just hang up a call with that.]

I agree though, we can at least enjoy the life here in the meantime... [not that she has any life left to enjoy back home, but that's not to be said here. Petra reaches out to Armin's hand and shakes it gently.] It's really nice to actually meet you in person too, Armin.

["You look awful." or repeating the first question she asked on the video? Nope, even though his injuries and condition look awful indeed.

Petra lets go of his hand slowly while she's studying all those injuries and everything else. The Wings of Freedom cloak makes her smile, though it's almost a sad smile. The necklace is pretty. The scars, burns and tears on the uniform on the other hand are not, though seeing them is nothing new to her. But she's indeed able to recognize at least some of those, that are meant to bring pain instead of harm and she frowns at them and many other things, like those perfect circles. Who the hell would do all that to Armin? She could get pretty mad here, but nope, the one who did it is not here and mostly she's just really sad and worried to see it all... Yeah, she kind of has instant protective big sister mode here, just be glad she's not as protective of you as Mikasa is.

The bruises on his throat make her swallow hard at least twice. She's not even counting, but then again she's also not trying to think back to things she saw back home today so we can throw counting out of the window here. So, combination of seeing Armin in a condition like that and just -- everything else today, and she's trying really hard to not cry in front of someone younger than her.

Should she ask for a permission to --? Sorry, she's not going to ask. She's an independent, initiative young woman, dammit!]

Hey. [she steps closer to close their distance.] ...Come here.

[So yeah, she let go of his hand earlier, but now she's being a weird sort of stranger by just wrapping her arms around him for a gentle, but tight, hug.]

[He shakes her hand almost solemnly - it's not every day you get to meet a superior from the future, even if they don't want to think in military terms. Plus, he's off balance since he only arrived today, and he's still unsure of what he'd said to upset her on the phone. So he's being very serious and careful - and so is taken by surprise when she comes closer and opens her arms for a hug.

Completely off guard, Armin freezes for a moment, and it almost seems like he will refuse. He doesn't know her... but Eren and Mikasa do, he reminds himself, and they seem to trust her. It's safe here - he doesn't have to be so guarded all the time anymore.

After a long moment, the tension breaks and Armin lets himself be wrapped up in the hug. He takes in a long, shaky breath - the hug is really nice, but it makes it harder to hold everything in. If he hadn't sobbed all over Mikasa earlier, he'd undoubtedly break down right now. Because even though he doesn't know her, he doesn't really have to. She knows what he's been through, and she wants to comfort him. It's enough.

...it's odd. Who'd have thought that actually feeling safe could be such an unfamiliar feeling?]

[She's not surprised by him freezing there for a moment. In fact she's pretty much used to that reaction from people and considering how she's just a stranger to Armin... Well, it's not like she's had a lot of chances to get to know him back home, so he's like an acquiantance there, whom she's met while she's been babysitting Eren. But everything considered -- well, she can't help the hug reaction, she just waits there and sees what happens if/when he gets over the freezing point.

It's a long moment, but he's not pushing her away either so Petra stays there, hugging him like that's the most comforting thing she can do right now. Which it probably actually is. Maybe it's good that Armin doesn't know her, or hasn't noticed her skills at reading people because that long, shaky breath? Sorry, kind of reading right through it even though she doesn't say anything about it. Her side of the hug may come a little tighter by it though if that's any sign of understanding how he feels. She'd be crying right now too if she hadn't had before meeting Armin. Or well, she's also kind of holding everything in because no no, everyone don't need to know about situations back home today. She'd tell him later, not today.

...and right, nope, not going to tell that Armin doesn't need to hold everything in. It would be weird coming from a stranger, right? She really is just a complete stranger to him, ummm. But she should probably say something while she's petting his back gently.]

Hey, it's ...okay. We'll be fine, here, and we'll have each other's backs [and fronts and sides] to hopefully make sure that nothing too bad happens here, yeah?

Y-yeah...

[He doesn't want to voice his worries - that maybe having each others' backs isn't enough. After all, he had people looking out for him when he'd gotten all the injuries he has now. But it's still comforting to hear, at least a little bit. And Genessia does seem more peaceful than most of the places he's been - even if he hasn't been here long enough to trust that yet, no matter what anyone says.

Finally, he pulls back. Then he glances down at the state he's in. Even if she's not saying anything for his sake, she has to be wondering.] ...I must look terrible, huh?

[Honestly she's not sure if just having each other's back is enough! But it doesn't matter when she needs to comfort people, who are younger than her and besides, it could be enough here. Who knows. She's seen the hell outside the walls more than once, that's -- where it certainly isn't enough and it hasn't been enough back home today either, but she can at least sound convincing about it right now.

Petra pulls back too, glances down too actually while she's wondering what now and getting worried about Armin again. ...Huh? The question is kind of surprising even if technically it shouldn't be so much.] ...Only kind of, and not even that. I've been outside the walls quite many times and seen -- [a lot worse!] ...Doesn't mean it makes me any less worried about you right now though. [Let the worrier worry!]

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1st ✿ video

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[Video]// timeskip?

[Video]// timeskip sounds great, will do that in her next! o/

[Video]// oh god, I'm sorry Petra HE DOESN'T KNOW

[Video -> Action]// ........a........ha....ha. oh god. well, okay then!

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[Action]// oh gosh, she's shorter than he is, isn't she

[Action]// yeah, by at least 2 inches! She's 158cm and Armin is even a bit taller than Levi in canon

[Action]// oh, almost exactly 2 inches, yeah, he's 163cm

[Action]// yeaaah, just didn't want to assume it in case he'd have grown taller at Syn