pc catchall for namine (whitewalls)

[foodbin]

Comments

[whitewalls]

[ she isn't sure what she expected when it happens again. maybe another song and dance number, or... something.

but it wasn't this. once the memory ends, she just blinks slowly before looking wordlessly over at emma, her expression pained. ]

[foodbin]

[She pulls back, her own expression a mixture of startled and nervous. She could have seen something worse, she know, but—]

Shit, sorry, I... No. Pretend I didn't say that, okay? [don't!! let the child swear!!] Just - I didn't mean for you to see that.

[whitewalls]

No, it's-- [ she can't say it's okay because that memory wasn't okay ] not your fault or anything. It's this place.

[foodbin]

[She should have been more careful, but she doesn't say that. Instead:]

Are you okay?

[whitewalls]

I am.

... I'm just sorry for seeing something that private.

[foodbin]

Hey. If I don't have to be sorry, you don't either, okay?

[whitewalls]

... alright.

You don't have to tell me anything.

[foodbin]

No... No, it's fine. If there's anything you want to know, you can ask, okay? I promise I don't mind.

[It's not something she's used to or something she necessarily likes, but she doesn't want Naminé to feel like there isn't any trust between them.]

[whitewalls]

[ she's quiet for a moment, wondering what to say. ]

I don't think that you're a...

[ the word she is thinking is fuckup but something tells her that is not a word she should say ]

[foodbin]

[It takes her a moment to place what she might have meant, but once she does:]

...Thank you. I'm trying my hardest not to be, at least.

[whitewalls]

I think a lot of us are trying.

... was the town really that bad?

[foodbin]

[She shakes her head.]

It wasn't that it was bad. It was just small, and by the time I grew up there I knew pretty much everyone and everything there. I wanted to get out and see new things. Travel, explore, and all that.

[whitewalls]

[ ... ]

Like being stuck on a small island and wanting to see what's beyond it...

[foodbin]

[A small laugh.]

Exactly like that, actually. I remember, when I was younger I used to watch the ferries leaving from the shore. I'd think about taking one to the mainland and just... never stopping once I got there.

[whitewalls]

... I think that's understandable. You can't really help but want to know what else is out there.

[ even if it... doesn't always work out ]

[foodbin]

Yeah. I think most people are like that when they're younger.

[She gives a small shrug.]

The problem is, thinking that you're totally free because you haven't put roots down anywhere isn't quite right. It's just a different kind of limiting.

[whitewalls]

The place you went to... what was it like?

[ she didn't get the jokes ]

[foodbin]

Oh, well... Have you ever heard of South America?

[She's guessing not, given what she knows about her world, but.]

It was warm. Lots of plant life, lots of wildlife. I never really stayed in one area for too long, so it's hard to describe any one place in depth. I was hiking through the entire country until I came back.

[whitewalls]

It sounds like it must have been pretty different.

[ compared to her home. ]

Why there? Instead of somewhere else?

[foodbin]

[She nods.]

I really like the outdoors. It's part of why I decided to study botany when I came back. When I was researching places to go, I kept reading about how beautiful it is. The landscape and the plant life, the wildlife... I wanted to see it for myself, not just see pictures.

[whitewalls]

And was it as beautiful as they said it was?

[ if she had stayed there for so long, then probably, but. ]

[foodbin]

[She nods.]

Yeah, it was. I think my parents expected me to come back within a few months, but then a year had passed, and then a few years... You get the idea.

[whitewalls]

... mm.

When you went back... how long were you there before...?

[ the aliens showed up. ]

[foodbin]

[She pauses, doing the math in her head.]

I think... Almost a year. Right around that, at least.

[whitewalls]

[ so a year before the aliens came. ]

... mm.

Who was the guy?