Day 138 ;; Open

[forhyrule]

Who: Princess Mopesalot Zelda and OPEN
Open: Open
When: Day 138
Where: the Memorial
What: Zelda is paying her respects and being lost in thought again
Format: Action
Warnings: Zilch

--

[ Zelda had finally left the hospital a couple days ago and taken her scant belongings to one of the empty apartment rooms instead. Rather than lay abed for the entire day, Zelda was forcing herself to develop some sort of daily routine. It began when the cloudiness of "nighttime" subsided, at which time Zelda went to the memorial to pray. ]

[ There were no relics related to Hyrulean religion for Zelda to pray to, but she prayed anyway, kneeling solemnly. After her prayers, she sat on a wooden bench and began to write in a blank diary she had picked up at the Lost and Found. Anyone who sees her writing will be unable to read such a strange language. ]

[ Please interrupt her, whether during prayer or while she writes. ]

Comments

[forhyrule]

Forgive my insolence. [ She offered, as reparation for her assumptions. She was not the only one plagued by loss in this place, and solitude was no reason to forget that. ]

[ She turned her gaze to the wall of names. ] They live on in my memory, if nowhere else. [ A few tears stung at the corners of her eyes, but she swallowed them. ] It is a small solace for one left behind.

[hellpyre]

N-no, it's okay...

[Rin knew she didn't really act like it anymore. She had taken to putting all of that inside, keeping a brave face, soldiering on for the ones that were still there that she could actually do something for.

Her own gaze turned towards the wall, and she felt the same sting, though there was little more than an tensing in her jaw to show it.]

... yeah. It is.

[She let out a sigh, deciding to join Zelda on the bench even without invitation to do so.]

I've never seen you before. That's... not so weird anymore, we're gettin' a lot more people here, but I'm guessin' you're new?

[forhyrule]

[ Zelda slid aside to give Rin a little more room on the bench, nodding in answer to her question. ]

I suppose so. I arrived- [ She paused to count. ] -six days ago.

[ Six days? Was that all? It felt more like six years. ]

[hellpyre]

Wow, really new!

[The months Rin had been there certainly felt like longer, too. Something about that place just seemed to make time move slower...]

Well I've been here the second longest outta everyone, so if you've got any questions that you haven't gotten figured out yet I can try to answer 'em.

[forhyrule]

[ Zelda had no shortage of questions to ask, but one in particular stuck out to her, one that she had wished to ask ever since she awoke in the hospital after that first terrible day. ]

... Does this ever become easier?

[hellpyre]

Ah--...

[Not what Rin was expecting, and it startles her for a moment. She makes a face, worried and uncertain, keeping quiet until she finally answers softly.]

Yes and no... I mean... there's... there's nothin' you can really do about it. We're here and you gotta just keep pushin' forward even if it hurts, y'know?

But... makin' friends here, supportin' others, rebuildin'... I think that makes it a little easier. It's somethin' to focus on. A goal.

[forhyrule]

Mmm. [ Zelda listens thoughtfully, folding her hands in her lap and looking down at them. 'Make do' has been Zelda's goal since she left the hospital, and it's a bit disappointing to hear that that's really all there is. Making friends, supporting each other, and rebuilding all sound like admirable goals, but to what end do they serve? ]

Few challenges are overcome without difficulty. [ She chides, more to herself than to Rin. Then she realizes how harsh that sounds. ] Forgive me.

[hellpyre]

[Rin wished there was more she could give than that. Maybe some one else had a better answer...]

I know. You're not wrong about that...

[forhyrule]

[ Maybe it wouldn't be so bad if Zelda had some way to occupy herself, but without her royal duties, she's at a loss. She just has too much time on her hands and nothing to do but think. ]

If I may ask, how do you fill the time?

[hellpyre]

[That has never really been a problem with Rin. She only ever gets bored doing things she doesn't want to do.]

I work in the kitchen, makin' food for everyone here. Or I spend time with my boyfriend, and my friends.

[forhyrule]

[ Everything Zelda did for fun or relaxation in Hyrule is currently impossible to replicate in the Bastion, with the exception of having tea. ]

Boy...friend? You distinguish your male friends from your female friends?

[ Because she has no idea that you mean courting. But maybe it's important in the Bastion to distinguish between friends of different genders. It would be useful for Zelda to learn the Bastion's customs. ]

[hellpyre]

What? No. I've got a lotta friends here who were guys and girls but Bon is... different. We're uhm... more than friends.

[forhyrule]

[ It takes Zelda a moment, but she catches on to Rin's hint. ]

Oh, you mean you are courting. My apologies, I did not intend to pry.

[hellpyre]

Oh, is that what the word is? I was gonna say datin', but I wasn't sure if that'd make any sense.

But... yeah. We are. We were friends back home but uh... I guess I always kinda liked him.

[forhyrule]

[ 'Dating' would've been no better. What do male friends have to do with dates? ]

That must be nice. [ She says with genuine interest. She has heard plenty of stories about people falling in love. It sounds very pleasant, but Zelda has never thought about it in regards to herself. ] And that you and he escaped the Calamity together.

[hellpyre]

[Yeah exactly.]

We did... but... I lost my sister. And he lost the friends he grew up with. We have each other, but...

[But not having the others hurt.]

[forhyrule]

[ ... That's not a good trade-off. Zelda drops her head. ]

Terrible losses. My condolences to you both, for what they are worth. [ Which, in the face of losses like these, isn't much. But it's all anyone can offer. ]

[hellpyre]

Thank you. A... and... mine to you, for... anythin' you lost.

[Because everyone here has lost something. Everyone.]

[forhyrule]

[ She accepts with a nod. ] My thanks.

[ This wasn't exactly the direction Zelda had intended this conversation to take, so she makes an attempt to change course. ]

What sort of recreational past times do people engage in here?

[hellpyre]

[Changing subjects is probably a good idea at this point.]

Uhm... well I work in the kitchen, but I love doin' that anyway so it's sort of a hobby and work at the same time? Most people just work on what they can here, or go out to the Skyway to kill time. There's the Onsen -- hot springs, to relax in, Bon likes to meditate, Kaoru makes clothes... you'd have to ask around to see what other people do.

[forhyrule]

[ None of those are skills Zelda has. Suddenly, her entire upbringing is starting to feel like a waste. ]

And does this place exist without governance? Have you no lawmakers, no village council?

[hellpyre]

[Poor Zelda :c ]

Right now? No... I mean Nathaniel kinda defaults as leader 'cause he was the apprentice to one of the Mancers that knew all about this stuff before he died. Really... we're most organized when we go lookin' for the Cores to give more power to this place.

[forhyrule]

[ It strikes her as odd that a village, even one this small, operates without any governing body. How do all these people from different worlds with different cultures cooperate in such a way that they all mutually benefit and no one feels slighted? That definitely merits examination. ]

I am aware of the Cores, but who are these 'Mancers?'

[hellpyre]

[Rin couldn't tell Zelda how it worked, just that for the time being it seemed to be doing so. How well was open to interpretation depending on who you ask, but if Rin were asked why she thought it was going so well she would have to wager a simple "survival" answer.

It was needed. If they fell apart now, everyone would die.]

Uhm... lemmie see if I can remember this...

So before this all happened, in Caelondia, there were different jobs that people had. Kinda like... uhm... what's it... ... guilds? I think that's the right word. But Mancers were sorta at the top of everythin' cause they weren't just scientists they were inventors that made things for everyone in Caelondia to use.

[forhyrule]

[ A social hierarchy which favors intellect over war-making? Or perhaps it favored intellect for the sake of war-making. The latter seemed the most plausible to Zelda, with knowing that the Calamity was man-made. ]

I see. So it was their power which ran unchecked and led to the Calamity, correct?