[Video]

[dontfeartheme]

[She doesn't normally use the video function, but she's making an exception for this. Ryn's nowhere to be found in the video, though, as it's focused on the back of a Furby, which is opened up.]

Megamind, do you want this? It's tech - in a manner of speaking - but as it's not got an engine, there's nothing I can be doing with it.

[Ryn's voice comes from somewhere behind the journal, and the video moves to the front of the Furby.]

Also, it's creepy as hell, so the sooner I can be rid of it, the better.

Comments

[snowtop]

[And they probably would have fit, too. Xanth isn't broad by any means, and he's just starting to get tall. (By human standards, of course. By his own, he's been tall for years.)]

A-At least they're-- y-you know. Not-- th-the, uh, corsets a-and vests, el-- elaborate stuff w-we usually see?

[He loves him some vests and breeches, but a simple tee shirt is so freeing.]

[dontfeartheme]

[She makes a face at the mention of corsets.]

All right, lad, one to you. They're a hell of a lot better than any fucking corset. Never thought I could miss something so much as a tee-shirt and jeans.

[snowtop]

Y-Yeah, those are-- n-nice. I-I mean, I-- I like th-the stuff here, I-I kind of-- grew up w-with it, but... it's-- yeah.

[He misses his blue tee-shirts. He had so many of them.]

[dontfeartheme]

You did? Oh, of course you did, I forgot, you're from one of the worlds with no cars. Makes sense.

[She pauses to consider for a moment.]

How'd you find out about tee-shirts and shit, then?

[snowtop]

Um-- this-- th-this whole, uh, w-worlds-being-gone thing, it's-- n-not exactly new, t-to me.

[He bites his lip.]

I-I got-- picked up b-by a... a big ship c-called the-- th-the M.S. Eleg--gante. I-I was there for... n-nine-- ten m-months? A-And they had, y-you know. Tee shirts a-and--

And stuff.

[dontfeartheme]

[Ryn pauses for a moment as she processes that.]

Wait. So, you're telling me there's more than one of these fuckers going around abducting people from their worlds and telling them that everything's been destroyed and blah blah blah shit happens. And one of them is taking people to a big goddamn ship, and I got stuck with the fucking castle that time forgot?

[...because that's obviously the most important thing to get from that.]

[snowtop]

Y... y-yes?

[That is pretty much the gist of it.]

E-Except, uh, he's... n-not doing the-- the ship thing, a-anymore, because he's-- dead.

I-I think.

[Probably.]

[dontfeartheme]

Of course. Because that's completely my life, way too fucking late for the giant ship, just in time for medieval madness.

[And then she hesitates as that sinks in.]

He's dead? Someone actually managed to take out a guy doing something similar to this?

[snowtop]

Y--Yeah, but, i-it, it's not... that simple. Th-there was this... I-I don't-- I don't know, th-thing, s-sort of like-- I-I guess the best thing to... to call it would be a--a god. L-Like, a-- a real god. A-And he...

[Xanth's voice shakes a little, and he trails off. He remembers that day all too well.

The ship coming apart. The End, that monster, in all its hideous glory. The hallucinations it spawned and the final battle against the beast that took their homes. The way Captain Redd took the weakened End in his own body and commanded them all to shoot.

The Captain's bloody demise.

The ship, sinking.

Xanth doesn't even realize he's stopped speaking.]

[dontfeartheme]

[That's not the reaction she was expecting. When he'd said he'd thought the guy was dead, she'd been assuming he'd heard it from someone, or something similar. This - this is a lot more personal. Not to mention a bit confusing, with the god stuff.

When he stops talking, she waits for a moment before speaking.]

You were there?

[SEALED]

[snowtop]

[That snaps him back out of it and he shakes his head briskly.]

I... y-yeah.

[He doesn't want to talk about it over the journals, but he doesn't want to freak out in front of Ryn, either.

Oh, wait. He can just seal it - and so he does.]

It's-- i-it's not... I can't-- s-sum it up, it, i-it's a really-- r-really long s-story.

Ryn has no idea how to seal, so not sure if this'd stay sealed or not?

[dontfeartheme]

Ah. If it's not something you're wanting to talk about, lad, say no more and it's dropped.

[She knows well enough what it's like not to want to bring up fucking memories like that.]

If you ever do, though, I've no qualms to listening.

it will! xanth can teach her though :D

[snowtop]

I-It's just... k-kind of... hard.

[He sort of wants to tell her, but at the same time, he'd really rather not dredge up the rest of these memories. Unfortunately, whether he'd rather or not, it's all coming back.]

Um.

[He swallows hard.]

An-- another-- a-another time, m... maybe...

\o/ best mechanic-in-training ever

[dontfeartheme]

I've been there. Not exactly where you are, of course, possibly not even something comparable, but I know about death being hard to talk about.

[She'd likely not being saying that here if this wasn't sealed. Or at all, if she didn't actually rather like Xanth, and if this didn't feel at least a little bit familiar.]

No hurry. Door's nearly always open.

[snowtop]

[And that finally, finally gets a smile out of him.]

Th-- thanks, Ryn.

[And he means it.]