AUDIENCE FOR: Hope Estheim

[guestservices]

Comments

week 3, sunday

[guestservices]

[hope goes to sleep and never wakes up.




in all seriousness, he goes to sleep and when he dreams, he finds himself in a blank sort of space. it's empty, sort of fuzzy but there. after a few moments though gemini appears before them.]

...hello, Hope.

[highestheim]

[ it's strange, being in the void before gemini shows up, and for those few fleeting seconds, hope actually does believe he may never wake up again. but there they are, their figure exactly as he remembers. ]

Gemini...it really is you. [ beat ] At least, I hope it is.

[guestservices]

[welcome to the void. gemini settles, hands behind their back as they approach with a nod of greeting.]

As far as I'm aware, I am very much myself, yes. I see you've found the suite.

[highestheim]

[ he nods. ]

I admit, I was a little wary when I first felt the urge to lie down, but... I see now it's nothing too sinister. [ ... ] How have things been for the others?

[ the living, he means. ]

[guestservices]

I've had similar conversations with some of them on your side of things, though this suite is...unusual. [but they pause to think.] ...predictably, of course, people are sad. This was the first weekend that everything happened in multiples. They caught Mister Miyoshi, but others went without notice.

...Sundays are usually quiet, really. Unless you count the stardust.

[highestheim]

I can't say I'm surprised. I wouldn't blame people for taking some time to grieve.

...Aikawa and Zuko's killers—were they also under the influence of shadows, or was it just Kazunari?

[guestservices]

Better that they do than pretend otherwise, I suppose. [. . .] I believe you may have to ask them themselves, should they ever wind up on that side. I'm afraid I can't say either way.

Have you spoken with Zuko and Aikawa since your arrival?

[highestheim]

[ he nods... an unsurprising answer, but hey, he tried. ]

I have not. I've yet to see Zuko, and... I'm not sure how to approach whoever is currently residing in the body that was once Aikawa's and Caiman's.

[guestservices]

...what...do you mean...whoever is residing in the body?

[hELLO?]

[highestheim]

Oh.

The individual who woke up on this side is... neither of the ones we're familiar with.

[guestservices]

[




just a very soft whisper:]

What?

[okay. wait.]

Is this something that usually happens to him?

[highestheim]

[ mood ]

I'm... not sure—what about the files in housekeeping? Do they mention anything like that?

[guestservices]

[...they pause.]

I'm...going to have to revisit my notes. I understand who Caiman is and who Aikawa is, but a third personality may have been overlooked. Nevertheless, perhaps they will vacate the body soon enough.

[highestheim]

I suppose it's possible... ah, something to keep in mind—this individual has cross-like tattoos over their eyelids. If there's anything in there that mentions anyone with that characteristic, you may want to look more into it.

[guestservices]

Great. Lovely. [why are there so many personalities in one fucking body.] If anything, I presume Virgo will keep them in-line before any further harm can be caused.

[highestheim]

[ he too would like to know the answer to that!! ]

That's a safe assumption to make, given what I've seen of them so far. [ ... ] Is minding our side a shared task, or is it part of their assigned duties alone?

[guestservices]

...unfortunately, this is as close as the rest of us may come to you. Virgo alone delegates the ongoings of your mansion, but now the rest of us can at least speak to you like this or through messages.

[highestheim]

I see... well, I appreciate the chance to stay in touch with you regardless.

[ hey! guess what! a mem!!

there's a pink-haired girl standing next to a boy in blue, both of them looking like they've both run a marathon. before them stands some kind of gargantuan machine that seems to materialize out of nowhere, which projects images of itself around the platform that they all stand on. it watches them, almost as if waiting for them to move... when the girl takes a single step forward and looks to the sky.

"i hope you're watching this", she murmurs.

then, she yells, "hope, can you hear me?! i've got a bone to pick with you! these machines you built... are driving me nuts!!"

now, gemini might be wondering how they're getting this memory, because isn't it supposed to be hope's...? that question is soon answered as a phantom camera zooms out, revealing that the whole aforementioned scene is some kind of stream being broadcast... to hope, who, in the memory, grimaces when his name is called out.

"sorry, serah..." the memory hope sheepishly mumbles under his breath, even if the one those words are intended for can't hear them. as serah and noel fight the machine on the display, he consults a control panel in front of him, pushing buttons and twirling knobs at lightning speed... before the memory ends, leaving a shocked actual hope in its wake. ]

I...

[ ...for someone who's usually pretty good with words, he's a little speechless right now. ]

[guestservices]

[....

A LOT HAPPENED HERE. they take a few moments to reflect on this, trying to think over what they just saw.]

...am I to assume you were unaware something like that would happen?

[highestheim]

I...actually have no recollection of this happening.

[ ?????? ]

However... I think I understand why that would be the case. This event did happen—in a different iteration of the timeline. While observing Serah and Noel's attempts to solve a paradox in the future with the help of the Oracle Drive, I must have gotten Serah's message and recalibrated the proto-fal'Cie's AI in order for them to be able to defeat it. By doing so, they resolved the paradox and established a future where the proto-fal'Cie never existed in the first place... and the past was changed to reflect that result.

[ ?????????????? ]

[guestservices]

[...]

And by doing so, it means you have no recollection of receiving the message from Serah in the first place, because there would have been no reason for her to send a message as the AI was, essentially, non-existent. And if it didn't exist then she and Noel wouldn't have had to get around the problem in the first place.

A little like leaving your footprint in multiple timelines, then. Seeing how it was caused directly by you.

[highestheim]

Exactly.

[ he, again, is genuinely pleased that gemini gets him without having to explain further! ]

Haha... speaking with you is like a breath of fresh air, sometimes.

[guestservices]

You think so? [they tilt their head in though.] I'm...glad to hear so, actually. I understand it's a bit difficult for people to understand those concepts, and even if I don't understand them in full...I find myself curious anyhow.

[so like. same here.]

[highestheim]

That's the whole point of knowledge, isn't it? We learn, we understand, we innovate, we share—the cycle continues, and we grow and thrive. That is the crux of human nature.

[guestservices]

There isn't any way I could disagree with that. That is the whole point.

[they're ready to say something else, but there's another burst of stardust suddenly, and soon...a memory.

You walk for a while, and you don’t even know where you’re going. Does it matter? You’re together. It’s always been the two of you, even before it was the three of you. And so it doesn’t surprise you when he speaks again.

“I always figured I was better at stuff than you. Are you mad?”

You shrug. “No. I kinda always thought you were better at everything, too.”

There isn’t any room for argument then as you see a light ahead. You respect his wishes to set him down, and the two of you make your way toward the water. You think he’s behind you, and so you idly comment that maybe the two of you are the same. It isn’t until there’s no reply you realize he’s collapsed.

You run. But then you sit down in the sand side by side and watch the waves.

“…if the world is made of light and darkness…we’ll be the darkness.” You hum in your agreement. At least the other side of things is safe. You think that maybe…it wouldn’t be so bad. Being here. Knowing you accomplished something. Knowing you still aren’t alone even if you’re here.

He eventually requests to go to the water, and soon you feel the cool ocean lapping at your feet.

“…to tell you the truth, I was jealous of you. I wished I could live life the way you do. Just…”

You idly think that your best friend is, actually, kind of an idiot.

“Yeah, well, I’ve got my share of problems, too. Like…wanting to be like you.”

His answer surprises you. The advantage of being him…is having you for a friend? After all this time…but no. It does make sense, doesn’t it? After all…

“I’m okay the way I am. I’ve got something you could never imitate, too.”

A comfortable silence settles over you both. The dark sky wraps around you, the sea breeze over your skin and you think that this is it. If this is what the darkness means…you think you can handle it together.

...when it clears...they seem to just...pause.]