guestservices | AUDIENCE FOR: Lup

I'm no flatterer! Just a truth-teller.

The courtyard sounds nice. Want to walk, or shall we cheat with a portal?

Oh, absolutely cheating. Portal me up.

[with a laugh, they wave a hand and a shadow portal opens up ahead of them. stepping through it, they'll find themselves in the courtyard!]

[yeah!!! outside!!! sort of? i never asked if there's a like, sky. here.]

Nice. You wanna sit under the trees? The pretty purple ones.

Like a picnic? That sounds great!

[onward. vulpecula leads the way, and even magics up a picnic blanket out of shadows, because why not.]

Oooh, you fancy. [she says, laughing.]

Alright, dig in.

[don't mind if they do! lup cooked it so i assume it is all delicious]

This is so good. You should eat too! Unless you ate while you were cooking?

[it is delicious yes]

I did, actually! [she didn't, she is lying, but don't worry about it] Thanks. It's always nice to see people appreciate good cooking, you--

[except she gets interrupted by stardust and it's funny because it's not even her memory, necessarily. hysterical!]

[NOT HYSTERICAL I'M SO SAD FOR LUP AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

and so is vulpecula, who seems a little shocked.]

...Lup...?

[give her a second because she is. dealing with a brand new set of memories, and they're bad! they're very bad. and maybe a little triggering, sorry vulpecula!!!

she opens her mouth, and then closes it, staring at the ground.]

[

they manifest the strongest drink they can think of that would suit lup's tastes and hold it out to her.]

[it - makes her laugh, at least, even if it's a bit hiccupy.

she takes the drink, and holds it with both hands.]

Uh... wow. Okay. [she says finally, voice cracking.] Good morning to me and you, I guess.

[they reach out as if to put a hand on her shoulder, and then pause]

I - can I give you a hug, Lup? ...or would that make it worse?

[a pause, and then she nods a little. and then realizes that doesn't answer the question, so:]

You can hug me. [her voice cracks again, and she stubbornly clears her throat.]

[lup gets a hug pretty much immediately, then!]

...I'm sorry. I know it must - be awful, seeing that.

Thank you for asking. [she mutters, turning her face to hide it a little against vulpecula's shoulder.

and after a moment:] It figures I'd get a memory of Taako and it'd be that, though.

Of course.

[lup can do whatever she wants with her face. vulpecula will stay still so it can stay hidden.]

...this place really seems to like messing with you. It seems - more than a little unfair.

[surely there had to have been nice memories of taako lup could have gotten!! and instead she gets that? vulpecula is a little offended.]

[vulpecula is about to reach through my computer screen and dunk me specifically in the garbage]

It's probably because I react. [she sighs out.] It's entertaining to see me struggle.

[a pause.] That wasn't even mine. That was the other one. It must've been.

[yea they are]

...I think it must have been, too. The surroundings looked - different, from... what I would have imagined the station to look like.

[...]

Which means - it would have been the place that had the... memory loss, wouldn't it? But I think people mentioned there were ways to regain their memories, there, and that they all remembered everything at the end. So it must have been very painful for you to see, and for the other you to experience... but you can know that it must have only been temporary, if that helps at all.

[a little nod.]

... I mean, I guess if anything I can just ask Cloud. I'm sure he knows. [exhales slowly.] It does help. Thanks.

...I think he'd be able to tell you, yes.

[...]

You don't - have to be okay with it, though. It's okay not to be okay.

[she blows out a raspberry.]

It didn't even happen to me, really, it feels super dumb to be upset about it.

How you feel is how you feel, though. There isn't really anything logical about feelings.

[she doesn't know what to say to that, so she just. steals bacon off their plate and shoves it in her mouth.]

[honestly that's fair and valid. vulpecula looks a little startled by the bacon thievery, and is about to say something else, when -

there's another shower of stardust! i was holding off on this because i didn't want to just change the subject but since lup is resorting to stealing it's time for a distraction.

You wake up.

It's another day in this place, and you - you're tired, but you know you can't just stay in bed all day, so you resolve to get up. It takes you a moment, because the pillows and blankets are really more comfortable than they have any right to be.

You sit up, swing your legs over the side of the bed, and stand -

"AUGH!"

And fall, because it isn't legs, plural, anymore. It's leg. One leg. You're missing one of your legs, and you really don't have anyone to blame for it but yourself. ...yourself, and the hateful situation you went through, that wretched creature that got ahold of you, but -

No. It's your own fault. Your actions led to that particular outcome, and you shouldn't blame others for it.

One must take responsibility for the things they do, after all.

Gritting your teeth, you use your arms to push yourself back up into a sitting position, then hold onto your bed to keep your balance as you get up on one leg. You have the feeling you'll get scolded if you get caught hopping around, so you'll have to figure out something to use as a crutch. But you'll figure it out. You've always been more resourceful than most people give you credit for, you remind yourself.

Even your brother would be astounded - and you hope, a little impressed? - if he saw what you had accomplished without him.

...one step at a time. This missing leg won't keep you down for long.

You won't let it.

...vulpecula shovels some eggs into their mouth under their veil.]

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject