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[Video] > [Action] Reincarnation
"I can't say that this was what I was expecting." he mumbles. "I hope I haven't been out for long..."
At the Bay, a video feed opens up to a young man in what appears to be darkened school uniform. His short hair a little swept over his eyes and his face honestly looking a little tired. After a moment, he fiddles around with an old MP3 player and slips its headphones on, stuffing his hands into his pockets. Behind him, a Genessia new-visitor box already opened and emptied, discarded. He only pulls his hands out-of-pocket to check the phone. His face seems disinterested and tired, or otherwise very concentrated in trying to see how it worked. It seems he left the phone nearby and he tripped the feed by mistake. A small hint of recognition in his eyes.
"It's already on. Huh." A pause as he thinks of what to say. "Hey, if anyone's out there, I wouldn't mind some directions?" He hastily makes sure he's got everything. The boy shrugs as he looks for the button to switch off the feed. "...Might as well take a look around in the meantime."
[Minato's wandering around The Bay for now, feel free to respond for video or action!]
At the Bay, a video feed opens up to a young man in what appears to be darkened school uniform. His short hair a little swept over his eyes and his face honestly looking a little tired. After a moment, he fiddles around with an old MP3 player and slips its headphones on, stuffing his hands into his pockets. Behind him, a Genessia new-visitor box already opened and emptied, discarded. He only pulls his hands out-of-pocket to check the phone. His face seems disinterested and tired, or otherwise very concentrated in trying to see how it worked. It seems he left the phone nearby and he tripped the feed by mistake. A small hint of recognition in his eyes.
"It's already on. Huh." A pause as he thinks of what to say. "Hey, if anyone's out there, I wouldn't mind some directions?" He hastily makes sure he's got everything. The boy shrugs as he looks for the button to switch off the feed. "...Might as well take a look around in the meantime."
[Minato's wandering around The Bay for now, feel free to respond for video or action!]
Re: [Video]
That said, even a loner like him might benefit from having a guide that isn't over the phone. "If you want to come along, I won't stop you. I just don't want to get lost." Great, another person that reminded him of someone else. How many more times would this happen?
He shifts gears so he doesn't have to think about it. "I'm getting the gist of this place, but you're new as well, right? And...you aren't, either? How does that work?" Does that mean people can enter and leave? Now that piques his interest. "I read we might be 'gathered' here somehow. Something doesn't add up. I'd have remembered something like that."
Come to think of it, his memories were a little out of joint. Even after asking around, wandering around, he still felt tired and heavy.
[Video]
He might seems free of cares, but to her, that seemed like a mark of strength. She'd been pretty shaken up the first time she'd appeared here, though she'd done a decent job of hiding the signs and bottling them up until she could get her bearings. Minato, on the other hand, seemed genuinely accepting of his circumstances, and that was impressive!
The moment he gave his agreement, Orihime was out the door and down the stairs, not even bothering to grab her jacket on the way in her haste to ensure that her new acquaintance wasn't left waiting.
"Don't worry about losing your way! Navigating this city is pretty easy. The streets are numbered in one direction, and in the other they go alphabetically. It makes it simple to navigate as long as you have a cross-road to work with!" The door creaked open and banged shut behind her as she hurried onto the walk, glanced both ways to be sure she wouldn't get hit by a car
again, then continued.To answer his question about being new, she nodded with a crooked little smile. "Yes. The total time I've been here isn't quite a month, but there's a big gap between my first day and this one. I don't know much about it...the last days before I woke up again were kind of a blur. Then I woke up in a blur again! I was pretty groggy, and thought I was late for work. ...Ha ha, I guess I was!"
She could see the Bay looming up ahead, so she quickened her steps. "I'm almost there. Can you see me yet?"
Re: [Video]
As for the topic of memories and time, Minato isn't too sure about how any of this works. But he does let slip a few facts. "Where ever this place is, at least you've got something to work with. I don't really remember much else before I got here. Except my...friends, I remember them pretty clearly." He trails off a little. His memories are so vivid, so clear that way, but some of what's in between just isn't...
After spacing out again, he snaps back to reality a little more at Orihime's question. Focus, already. "...I think so?" He hesitantly offers a half-hearted wave from a distance to see if she responds.
[Video]
"I just met someone last night over the communicator who said he was from Iwatodai too! Do you know Aragaki Shinjiro?" With Minato being from Japan and all, she figured it was safe to use the non-western naming convention of family name first and given name second.
Her head jerked up at the sight of movement, and sure enough, she spotted Minato in a heartbeat. Beaming, she thrust her own arm into the air and waved back vigorously, then grinned down at the communicator. "I'll be right over!" she promised, and shut off the feed.
She didn't even wait to find out if he knew Shinjiro or not...
Swiftly she jogged to the Bay, not slowing until she was finally at his side. "Whew! And here we are!" She slipped the radio into her skirt pocket where it weighed heavily in a bulky lump. "It's nice to meet you in person, Minato-san. Where would you like to go first?"
Re: [Video]
Either way, he'd end up looking away from the viewport for a moment in silence. "Yes, I do. He's a friend of mine." he added, quietly. Though his melancholy mood wasn't visible for long.
When Orihime finally showed up, he still felt a little hesitant. Perhaps it wasn't right to have said so much. But if he hadn't, he wouldn't have known. "Just...bring me somewhere interesting, maybe." Minato's gaze focused on the distance, not seeming to look at her directly, a little lost in his thoughts. He turned back to her with a little. "What'd you two talk about, by the way? Shinji's...had his own share of troubles. If he's here, I hope he hasn't found any more."
[Action Now!]
Couldn't you picture it clearly, Minato? Shinjiro, smiling tearfully and laughing with delight to be reunited with his good friend after being apart for so many days. Cue the slow motion open-armed run through fields of flowers and bubbles.
"Troubles? No, he seemed just fine. I think he was more worried about me than anything," she admitted, rubbing the back of her head. "He's really nice!" However, the spark of curiosity had caught in her heart. What kind of troubles would Shinjiro be hiding? It certainly wasn't her place to ask, as she'd only just met him, but she told herself to pay close attention the next time they spoke to see if she couldn't figure it out without forcing Minato to betray any confidences.
Somewhere interesting, though, hmmmm... She turned her head to look around Genessia's streets thoughtfully. Maybe she should have paid more attention to the hub city instead of charging off for Fayren with child-like hopes of spotting a dragon (that had never appeared, sadly). Fayren was too far to walk, though, and he seemed like he might be a little tired.
She looked at the headphones resting around his neck. So he liked music... That gave her a good starting point for suggestions. "There's a music store," she turned to point in a somewhat vague direction. "Or if you're hungry, I think there's a karaoke bar around here too." Orihime doubted he was in the mood to do much singing, but he could listen to everyone else while enjoying a meal and getting caught up to speed.
Re: [Action Now!]
That's funny. And not at all the word he had in mind, but he'll take it.
"Yeah, I guess?" He shrugs once again, shaking his head with a small sigh. "See, I wasn't as close to him as some others might've been. Good guy if you don't mind rough edges." Minato continues with remarkable honesty, stating... "This place seems to be better off than we came from. Makes me wonder who else made it, if any."
For a moment, he couldn't help but let out a bit of an amused - or bemused - little snicker. "...Man, Aki'd be mad as hell at Shinji for going off somewhere without him." It was hard enough not to mention what else he knew. If he told the poor girl about what he'd been through all in one go, she wouldn't believe it. And probably stop being nearly as bubbly and kind-hearted. She didn't really deserve that.
"Oh, right." Yeah, she did suggest going somewhere, right? He was only half-listening. His mind had more than a few gaps since he woke up. "Mm...I'm fine with either one." Her suggestions were a welcome change of subject... "The last thing I want to be in a new place is bored. Surprise me."
[Action Now!]
And what did they make it out of?
She wanted to ask so badly that she had to knot her fingers in her skirt to remind herself that he scarcely knew her and likely wouldn't welcome such prying questions. He'd alluded to them though, so maybe...
"Let's try the music store, then!" she said, making up her mind. "I'm pretty curious about the karaoke bar, but it might be too loud to talk there. We can pick up something hot to drink along the way." Some tea or coffee might perk him up, right? Orihime fell into step beside Minato and set off to lead him away from the place of his awakening.
"I've never been to Iwatodai," she commented, "so I'm not sure what it's like." It was a way to ask about it without really asking. Ho ho, she was getting sharper at this sort of thing!
Re: [Action Now!]
"Iwatodai's defies description, sometimes. It's a city like any other." He nods... "Crowded, unfamiliar, full of people struggling to live their day-to-day lives. And full of foreign street names." That always bugged him. "At least I learned a bit of English and French out of it, I guess."
As he kept making his way to the music store and following her path, he seemed to avoid looking at her, directly. Not really out of any sense of malice. It just seemed like he wasn't used to it. Not with her, anyway. He's more focused on learning the way to their destination...
"It wasn't the city that was the problem, anyway. I had plenty of good times. But...My friends and I got in over out heads. And I haven't seen any of them for a long time. I don't remember having that many friends before that." He doesn't turn as much as tilts his eyes over to her as he continues... "My life's always been a bit of a mess, though. Maybe this place won't be so bad."
[Action Now!]
The more she listened, the stronger her sense of sympathy grew. She thought she could hear the loneliness or pain in his words even though his voice was so calm.
Maybe she'd been wrong to think that he didn't want her to pry. It sounded like he was carrying a heavy burden on his shoulders, and from what she could tell, it might actually be nice for him to talk about it with someone who was willing to listen.
Her head dipped once in a solemn nod before she smiled quietly. "I didn't have many friends growing up either. So I think I can understand that." Unless he literally couldn't remember having friends before that. Genessia did exact a price from those who awoke in its realm, so that might have been what Minato gave up. She was suddenly very glad that Shinjiro had arrived in this place, so Minato had someone he could rely on and trust.
"Well, I like it a lot so far," she replied with a hitch of her shoulders and a grin. She studied the path ahead, pursing her mouth pensively for a moment. It was probably best just to be straightforward with him instead of assuming and guessing what his needs might be.
"Anou...I don't want to be the kind of person who asks you too many personal things, or intrudes on really private matters. But... I mean, I'm a pretty good listener! And if your life was hard before and you need to talk about it, then you should! I wouldn't think poorly of you or your circumstances!"
Orihime paused to take a breath and reflect on what she'd said. "...That didn't sound too weird or forward, did it?" Because it kind of seemed that way.
Re: [Action Now!]
His reply was quick and curt, but not disrespectful. He merely didn't want to get too personal with the girl, just yet. "I lived there when I was younger. Then I moved away and came back. That's basically like coming back to a different place, right?"
Minato, once again, gave a little shrug. "I'd rather focus on now than worry about the past, though. No offense. I just want to get my bearings and maybe see if there's anyone else that's worth talking to."
Naturally, he probably meant his friends. If Shinji was around - which was likely true, the girl didn't seem like the lying type - maybe he could have some good news. And if the others were around, maybe it wouldn't be so bad.
"...I guess being here's better than nothing..." He looked down to his feet. Where was he even going? Every step felt alien to him. Even if it was to somewhere innocuous, something felt off about it. Maybe it was just him. "Is the store close by? You said it's down this way, right?"
A new pair of headphones would do him good, probably. He takes a moment to check his phone, trying to see if it had a map or anything. And probably to check if anyone else picked up on him.
[Action Now!]
"Oh, er...I imagine that would be the case!" she conceded, being careful not to ask any further questions to accommodate his wishes. "I'm not offended."
She was just mentally chiding herself for being invasive and stupid.
Surprise surprise, Orihime was checking her phone too to make sure she wasn't leading him astray. When she realized he was looking at his too, she leaned over and pointed at it. "This is where we're going," she beamed. "I haven't really gone inside before, I just noticed it was there!"
Really, though, she could stand to splurge a little one of these days. As long as they were there, maybe she could look around and see if they sold radios. There was supposed to be a radio show that was really important to listen to, after all, and if they had one that doubled as an alarm too, that would be twice as convenient!
Lifting her head, she pointed down the street. "Yup, we're on the right track. This way!" She quickened her steps, making sure that Minato was close behind.
It wasn't too long before they found the shop in question. Orihime pushed open the door and stepped inside. It had a pleasantly warm musty smell of used record covers and incense. Orihime stepped aside so Minato could enter as well. "This is it! What do you think? Is it interesting enough?"
Gah, sorry for taking forever!
"Yeah, I don't mind this place. I wonder if I can afford something, though..."
The money he had on hand from his pod didn't seem to be quite enough, to him. Unless he could find something on the cheap and snap it up. His MP3 player still worked, too, so he might be able to download more, if he had trouble.
"...I hear I'll probably have to find myself a place soon enough, right?" he added, still looking through for something portable enough to bring back with him. "I wonder if my friends here would let me hang around. If not..."
Thinking it over again, he had no doubts there would be an issue. Aside from the shock of seeing him again. "Whatever, just talking to myself, again." He shrugged... "Found anything cool, yet?"
That's okay!
Huntin' Dat Booty - by Arrrr Kelly
He might not actually be a pirate.
Orihime put it back, content just to explore the selections. Buying music meant she would have to buy a stereo too, and she wasn't about to splurge on luxuries for a good while. "I probably can't speak for your friends, but most apartments hold up to four people. It's a possibility!" she grinned. "Even if they're full up, you can stay in The Commons for up to a month for free. So don't worry about finding a cardboard box to sleep in or a cozy park bench with newspaper blankets."