Second Breeze

[salvagedlight]

[The video feed turns on to Ven, who's sitting on the low wall around the big plaza in the Second District, a Komory Bat in his lap as he extends the creature's wings, looking at them close like he thinks the Spirit might be hurt. Wheeler is perched next to him on the wall, head leaning over Ven's arm as he makes low chitters at the bat and pokes at it with his nose.]

...Okay, I think you're all right. Just try to watch out for the lampposts next time, got it?

[The bat squeaks happily and Ven gives it a small toss in the air to get it airborn. It climbs up a couple of feet, circles above his head twice - and then drops right back down into his lap, completely ungracefully and making Ven laugh.]

All right, I get it - you wanna stay here. Just for a little longer, okay? Just watch the wings. [The bat gives another squeak and settles down with a batty smile. Ven, meanwhile, gets to start asking the question he turned on the communicator to ask.] I've been trying to decide what to name this guy, but I'm not really all that good with names. I asked the moogles what they thought when they helped me make him, and one of them suggested "Wingman." And then he started... laughing. [He's looking a bit confused at the idea.] Why would he be laughing about that?

[Meanwhile, somewhere close by to you, the rustle of popcorn bags starts approaching...]

Comments

[defrostedpride]

The minds of moogles are incomprehensible. Don't worry yourself about it unless they start trying to charge you munny.

By the way, who...are you, precisely?

[salvagedlight]

They seem all right to me, they're just trying to make a living, after all.

[And then the face registers, and Ven brightens.] Oh hey, I remember you! You were looking for, uh, Ienzo, I think, in Radiant Garden when all the Unversed were out. I'm Ventus, but people just call me Ven.

[defrostedpride]

There's a fine line between making a living and taking flagrant advantage of their de facto monopoly, and the moogles crossed it at approximately half the speed of light.

[He looks around hastily.] Not that that's necessarily a bad thing! [Ahem.]

...Oh. Oh. That was you! You - haven't changed in the least. I presume not a great deal of time has passed, as far as you're concerned?

[salvagedlight]

[You get a bit of a headtilt at that one, Even - he hasn't noticed them being anywhere near that bad, even when compared to the ones he met on his first journey around the worlds.] They are? But the prices all seem pretty normal to me.

[They're taking pity on Ven. Maybe not on Even.]

Ummm... not really? Counting the time we've been here, less than a month. Why, what about you?

[defrostedpride]

...Longer. Much, much longer.

[He doesn't even care about the Moogles and their prices. But wow, offering price breaks to innocent teenage boys. Do they also have dream pieces in their van?]

It's been...more than ten years. I can't say precisely how much more. [He doesn't know how long he was dead for, for one thing. It's a very reliable way of losing time.]

[salvagedlight]

[Yep, not having a way to consciously be aware of how much time you're missing is a good way to lose track of time. He can certainly understand that one.]

Really? ...Well, I guess that kind of happened to a friend of mine, too. But you seem to be doing pretty good. [Ouch, Ven, way to unconsciously twist the knife.]

[defrostedpride]

[Even's face is a study, in some not particularly pleasant subject. "Doing pretty good" is the opposite of how he would describe the past decade, but does he really want to air all that dirty laundry in public?

[He decides that he does not, and pretends Ven never said that. Poorly.]

Yes, well. I certainly would rather be awake just now.

Happened to someone else, you say? Whom?