Nah, I'm texting you so we can go in a couple of months…yeah, right now! I'm totally happy to take you off of Naoki's hands and cleaning up robot guts gets less exciting the longer you do it. This'll be way better but maybe bring a sweater with you or something.
I'm just finishing up some stuff here and then I'll walk over to the game center. I'll see you in a few?
…okay YEAH but that's not gonna happen this time. Hurry up!
[And he stops talking, waiting for her at the game center a short time later. When she arrives he grins the same way he always does when he's with her, face lighting up just a little more than usual and his eyes drift to the hoodie she's carrying.
…and he lifts his eyebrows, ultimately choosing not to say anything but the smile becomes a little more smug. Surprisingly there's no Baymax today but he's holding what looks like a tan computer chip with a cat drawn on it between his fingers, along with Megabot and, in fact, what looks like a red rag. It might have some dried oil stains on it.]
This was the best I could do, but you can't look until we're actually inside the game. [He also doesn't trust her to keep her eyes shut (because he knows he'd keep his open if he were going in for a surprise, too.)] Once this is on, we can log in and see what happens.
[Don't judge, don't look too closely, she'll get embarrassed. As is, she just holds the hoodie a little tighter and blinks at the blindfold--but hey, she did agree, didn't she? And it's a good color, so.
She just shrugs and steps closer, closing her eyes.]
Well, okay! I'll put myself in your hands, Hiro! [But it's easy to do that, since she trusts him so much. That has never been in doubt.]
... But don't make it take too long, okay? I'm gonna die of suspense!
[Nono no judging here, he's just going to sit on the fact that it makes him extremely pleased with himself. Still, she says something like that? The smug air drops completely and he can only nod.
Right. That's the whole thing, isn't it? She trusts him, and he trusts her and that's why he wants to show her this. So he steps forward, immediately tying the rag around her eyes loose enough that it doesn't hurt her but enough she can't see anything.] Trust me, it'll be worth it. ["I hope."With that, he's silent as he puts the chip into the system and hooks them up for the game, waiting for the fancy digitization process to go through.
It's only when they're logged in that Ruby might hear something a little strange. It's a little windy wherever they are and there's the sound of a trolley bell in the distance. There are some bright lights (neon, really) filtering through the fabric of the blindfold as well and he's still holding her hand.]
I've never shown anybody this before. Tadashi said he kinda made it for me, but also so I could show you, too. It's…I mean, I hope you like it. [A pause.] You can take the blindfold off when you're ready.
[She'll just respond to that oh-so-simply, because she does know. When Hiro gets excited about things and has things he wants to show her, it's always worth it. When it's time to see what he's been working on or what he gets excited about or all of the things that really matter to him... it's always fun and exciting and worth it.
That said, it's definitely a little strange. She can't deny that she gets a little thrill in being told he hasn't showed this to anyone else before--like she's special in some way, but not in the "Ruby you moved up two years you're special" sort of way, a different sort of special that makes her heart skip a beat in weird ways.
So of course she's not going to hesitate to pull off the blindfold immediately, because she's always been gung-ho; she's excited and ready to see what he's brought to show her and... honestly, it takes her breath away.
It's nothing like Remnant. If anything, it's more like Cerealia, but it's not so alien either; it's bright and there's the obvious warmth and chatter of a place full of people, and it takes her only half a moment to place it, because she's seen it before. When Baymax had shown her those flight films--she saw it then, didn't she?
So she turns to Hiro, wind tugging at her hair and eyes bright and excited, and beams with a touch of wonder.]
Hiro....this is your home! Right? This is San Fransokyo!
[Truth be told, he had been nervous about showing her. It's not that he thought she wouldn't like it or understand, but it was a big thing. Ruby knew (and he knew that she knew) that home was something very special to him and that he didn't like revealing a lot of things like this to just anyone. Home was something safe and only those he felt he could trust more than anything in the world would ever see it.
On the other hand, he was hoping she wouldn't think it was lame to bring her to a place like this, so when she turns to face him there's a mildly sheepish smile as he rubs the back of his neck, letting it flop uselessly after gesturing to the area.]
Yeah...it is. [He sounds far too pleased still. Even though he's been in the simulation once or twice it's still overwhelming in some ways. But still he watches an NPC zip past them on a bike and the light change across the street as a few cars drive by, hand coming up to point down the hill.] Tadashi got pretty much every single detail right including the cafe. It's incredible. When he showed it to me I--you're probably the only person I would ever wanna show, and I think he knew that. [Tadashi was weirdly perceptive of his little brother's feelings on things when he felt like it. (Or always, whichever.)]
It's probably not as impressive as your own world but...what do you think?
[He's nervous, and she can tell--but it doesn't bother her. They're both nervous a lot of the time when handling things, it's just how they function, so when he limply drops his hand, Ruby automatically reaches for it with her own. They can hold hands.
Because...she'd always wanted this. And it's not exactly what she'd hoped for, but she can hold out for the real thing. But she'd always wanted to be able to explore Hiro's home with him, and this is...so close to real that it's good enough for now, until they figure out a way to get out of here and bridge the gaps between their worlds.
Until they manage that, they've got this, and she's...well, she's excited.
She meets his nervous look with a bright smile, excited and gung-ho (as ever).]
This is great! I wanna see as much of it as we can--you'll show me around, right? I mean, it is your home so I've got the best guide already, so...
[Without realizing it, he exhales the breath he'd been holding the moment Ruby grabs for his hand and he tangles his fingers with hers, one hand gripping tightly and the other still holding Megabot. There's a reason for that, but it'll come later. The robot is tucked into the pocket of his sweater (a matching blue one since someone is a sweater thief) and he tugs her along to start walking down the hill.]
Duh. [Whether the "duh" is for the fact that he'll show her around or that he's the best guide he doesn't quite say. But they're off.] Tadashi programmed the level with a couple of games just because that's how ViViD is. When we get to the cafe you'll see what I mean...he even programmed some of the NPCs to look like people we know back home. ...except for Aunt Cass. [There's a reason for that, of course.] But I think it's just the cafe which is a total bummer. I wanted to show you the lab and the house and everything but I guess it just means you'll have to come see me whenever we leave Cerealia.
[Casually. He's casual about it as their hands swing lightly between them and they walk toward the warm glow of Lucky Cat.] We can bring Baymax next time, too, and I can show you even more stuff. It's way better from an aerial view. Even if the cafe's only the cafe Tadashi still included a ton of other stuff. I want to ask if maybe I can add onto it. I know I should be doing other stuff but...is it bad to want to work on this, too?
[She follows easily; very little tugging is necessary, because she's honestly excited. She's excited to see, and she's content to listen to him ramble about his home, and she's interested to see what he wants to show her. The rest is sort of...soothing rambling, and while she listens, she's gotten very good at multitasking--listening to Hiro ramble while looking around in awe.
Remnant is nothing like this.
This place is bustling.]
I think you totally should. Keep working on it, I mean. It's not bad! I wanna see more of it too and so do you and I bet Tadashi does too [This is probably the closest Tadashi can get to home until they figure out a way around that too] and that's a good thing!
Besiiiides, we'll have plenty of time to choose sides or whatever and fight creepy robots and uncover mysteries. Doing stuff for us is important too!
[It's the reason he's settled so well in Cerealia, he realizes. Their worlds aren't that different in the end, just less aliens and terrible things happening on a daily basis.
Seeing how Tadashi won't be able to go back if Hiro can't fix it, she gets what he means. It's the closest he can get to spending time in San Fransokyo with his older brother and he squeezes her hand a little as he thinks on it.]
Heh. So you saw that post go up, too. From…whoever that was. [It solidifies that there's a war brewing and they have to choose what to do next, but he's never been so unsure in his life.] I hope you're right about that. But we've had enough time so far. Did you know I've been here for like almost five months already? [Of course she knows. She's been there since day one.]
Speaking of doing stuff for us, wee still should go to the beach like we said we would. You, me, Mary and Roxas. [And by now they're at the bottom of the hill, sakura blossoms/petals floating past them in the wind and they're standing outside of Lucky Cat. The inside is busy with people, the TVs on playing some animated movie and a warm, cozy feeling practically oozing out of the place. They'll. Head in in a moment. He's busy staring inside the window is all.]
Yep. Pretty sure most everyone saw it. [It was one of those things that's hard to ignore. Ruby doesn't seem too concerned about it, though; you can't spend all of your time in Cerealia being afraid of what's going to happen next, after all.]
But heheh, it's been a long time, huh? It's amazing how time flies. [And yet... she's pretty sure that time has gone even faster and better because she has Hiro with her on the daily, and that makes her time so much more fun; with that thought in mind, she just squeezes his hand a bit more tightly.]
But yeah we should! It's been awhile, and we could take on the monsters, it'd be fine! Besides, I think Mary and Roxas will figure out the totally-dating-but-not thing eventually. Maybe.
[???]
Maybe we can help. [Brilliant.
But then she's distracted by the fact that it's honestly beautiful here; she reaches up to pluck a petal from her hair, grinning a little (she does love flower petals) before she tilts her head at Hiro. Hmmm...]
[There's a short huff of laughter, though it's hard to say which part he's laughing at. He watches her pull the petal from her hair and he grins lightly, shaking his head a little after that.]
Yeah, of course I do. It's just like...you know. It's still home even if it's not? I'm kinda psyching myself out a little. We'll go in and it'll be fine and just try not to get run over. [A beat.] And I'm with you on helping Roxas and Mary figure everything out but I don't know if that's gonna be as easy as it should be.
[It's a long story. With that, he's opening the door to the cafe and immediately pull her to the side as someone zooms by. It's an NPC, and it doesn't take long for them to notice it's an example for a mini-game. The cafe itself smells like pastries and caffeine, the chatter dim and the music from the movie floating through the air. The space behind the counter, however, remains empty.]
Normally people just stay out front here. You go through the door behind the counter you get the storage pantry, the fridge, and the stairs leading up to our house. It's been that way since I can remember. I don't know what our house was like before we went to live with Aunt Cass. [A pause.] The apartments in the colony still seem way too cramped.
[She just patiently waits for Hiro to finish his rambling, listening thoughtfully--it's understandable, really. If there was a ViViD level that looked too much like Beacon or like home, that would probably throw Ruby off immensely too. But instead she's not going to think about how Beacon is apparently lost to them, and focus instead on what they're going to see--which is the inside of the Cafe.
Which is bustling, and Ruby brightens up immensely at the smells and sights and sounds, clearly thrilled.]
Oh, wow, this place is great! So this is where you live back home?
[Uwooooh.]
How do you manage to handle so many tasty things right there? [Ruby would probably have no self-control and want to eat all of them.]
... Also, you could probably make your apartment bigger, y'know. CERES barely bothers to do anything when we're plotting actively against them, so I doubt they'd care about renovations.
Aunt Cass usually keeps me out of the kitchen and on the floor working if I'm home and downstairs, that's how. Weirdly, customers sort of frown on it when you eat their food. [Give him a moment to supervise.] It's usually busier than this during lunch and dinner, too. Sometimes my friends and I sit down in the cafe instead of up in the house to work on homework and stuff.
[He furrows his eyebrows together in thought.] Tadashi and I keep talking about knocking out the wall between his apartment and the one I claimed a while ago. It's pretty much empty anyway, but I build machines. I'm not exactly an architect yet. Do you ever think it's weird there's only apartments and no houses in the colony?
Ooooh, yeah, that would work. The wrath of customers and Aunt alike would probably do it.
[A solemn shake of her head.]
It'd be nice to sit here though! Like to work on homework and things... I think I'd like that too. [Perhaps someday...though she supposes she doesn't have any homework to work on right now.
... CHANGE GEARS.]
I dunno if they have room for houses, honestly. It's all buildings, buildings, buildings.
That said, you should totally knock down a wall and see what happens. [Good Influences.]
You do not want to see my aunt when she's mad. [His ears still hurt just thinking about it. It's a side-thought as he nods in agreement, but he's already kind of picturing it, too. His friends, himself, and Ruby at his side with Tadashi working in the background before joining them, too. It'll be perfect someday.
...but that's someday.]
You just want to watch me destroy something, don't you? [A playful nudge.] Tadashi and I were going to do it a while ago, but a lot of stuff's happened. Our room back home used to be huge. We lived in the attic. [He's walking forward, taking Ruby with him to jump behind the counter and pull out two chocolate croissants.]
Not real food, but it'll give you health points anyway. [He's already tearing a chunk out of it with his teeth.] I could stay here forever, but...you wanna see the rest of the city don't you?
[She'd accept that. But yeah... yeah honestly? Yeah.]
you got me. I think it'd be fun! You'll invite me too, right? I've always wanted to knock down a wall.
[Ruby why......... but she's going to accept the chocolate croissant anyway, because...who wouldn't? Yum.]
I mean--yeah, I totally do. [She takes a bite of her croissant as well, considering.] But if you wanna stay here a while, that's fine too. I don't think there's any rush.
[Maybe there's not a rush, but they have croissants and he's taking her hand to lead her back out of the cafe, giving it another fond look before heading for the door. They'll come back later.]
All the more reason we can explore a little more. [Back to the streets they go.] Anyway, you really wanna knock out a wall that bad? I don't see why not. You can help me unpack all my stuff in my new room, too. [A grin.] Tadashi needs to get off of the couch and...I don't know. A while ago I asked him if we could share a room again but now I'm not sure about that either. [He loves his brother, he really does...but privacy's become a thing now.]
[Where Hiro goes, where Hiro leads, she'll always follow, especially in a place like this. This...is all she really wants, after all. His company, the chance to have him show her around, and whatever shenanigans they'll get up to from there.]
Okay! [Easily, so easy to please.] But yeah I definitely do. I've never gotten to knock out a wall. I mean, we made a mess with the food fight, but it got fixed and we still didn't knock out a wall. Just close.
[It was a RWBY food fight, what could you expect.]
... But yeah, I think having your own room's the best. Then you can fill it with your own stuff and nobody can complain! [Yes that's...definitely what he was concerned about.]
You go to a combat school and you've never actually knocked out a wall. I'm pretty disappointed, dude. [He smirks just a bit at the mention of the food fight. Yang's told him a bit about it. Remind him to never get in the center of a RWBY-food fight.
...bless Ruby and her innocence though. Even if the tips of his ears turn a little red he manages to mostly keep a straight face as he nods slowly. Yup. That's totally what this is about.]
The bedroom's already full of my own stuff and I think it bugs him because it's pretty messy. [He finds it amusing still.] I don't know. I'm still not really used to having my own room back home, but being here's kinda made me get used to it. It's pretty nice to be able to shut the door and do whatever I want in my own space without worrying about somebody else.
[He's finished his croissant by then and Ruby will notice they're walking up and down little hills more toward the heart of the city. Things are getting brighter and more traffic (cars and people) are showing up. Welcome to downtown San Fransokyo.] Before I built Baymax's armor, I used to walk pretty much everywhere if Tadashi wasn't picking me up on his moped. I think I remember where we're going. We've got a pretty long walk until we get to where this game's log-out portal is anyway.
Ms. Goodwitch is really good at putting things back together, okay!
[Hmph!!!! Not for lack of trying, but some things don't get past the watchful gaze of Glenda Goodwitch.......
Either way, she grins at Hiro's rambling, nodding thoughtfully. He'll get his own room, and he'll be happier for it, and there's a momentary thought that at least they can hang out together without getting interrupted then, but she doesn't pursue that any further than that, glancing around herself instead with great interest. Things are getting even more bustling, and it's just...so different from home in so many ways.]
That's fine! I like walking with you.
[Eheh...]
Besides... it's really lively here! It's kind of different from back home, but...in a good way. I really like this.
And I really like you. [Which. Is sort of blurted out before he can really comprehend it and he pauses, mouth twitching and twisting as he thinks of how to recover.
...but no. It's true. He--it's why he spilled to Naminé isn't it? He likes her very much, he likes this very much, and there isn't a person or a place that would make him feel the way she does. So it's something to accept, and maybe it doesn't hurt to tell her, too. There are other issues at hand though. Such as:]
--wait your headmaster's name is Ozpin and one of your teachers is named Ms. Goodwitch? [...why does that sound vaguely allegorical?] You've never really told me much about what home's like anyway. Just Beacon itself. I mean I get the place has a lot of Grimm but it's really not a city like this?
[...Cute. It spills out and she blinks at him before turning a little red, but she's beaming too, so it definitely made her happy. Even if she's also embarrassed.
That's just sort of how it goes, right?
But she can only smile in response, even if talking about home in comparison to this is kind of...well. It's definitely not this.]
Ehehe... [But she's not going to call him out on it. INSTEAD.]
Remnant's a lot different! I mean we have cities and things but like... [How does she put this...] Everywhere else is just taken over by the Grimm, you know? The cities are kind of like...last strongholds against them.
[Thank you for not calling him on it, Ruby, he'd rather not lose the man-card he's trying to actually obtain for himself. But he listens carefully and it doesn't take a genius to really understand what she's saying. He's read enough comics to get it.
And...it's sad, isn't it? That the world of Remnant's falling apart and that the cities are their only strongholds, that people like Ruby are the only ones who can defend a world that's succumbed to monsters. So he doesn't think much of squeezing her hand tighter and humming to himself.]
Sounds kinda like this place, too. Look at everything outside of the colony walls. Guess it's just all the more reason I've gotta try harder to make sure you can come visit me when all of this is over. You can meet the rest of my friends and see a normal ocean and when the sun sets in San Fransokyo it's probably the coolest thing I've seen. [Focus on the good things, not what Ruby's going back to.] As long as you don't meet Yama in real life, we'll be good.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
no subject
I'm just finishing up some stuff here and then I'll walk over to the game center. I'll see you in a few?
no subject
but ok ill see you in a few, im ready!
[And she will, in fact, meet him at the game center with a suspiciously familiar looking blue hoodie tucked under her arm.
You're still not getting it back.]
no subject
…okay YEAH but that's not gonna happen this time. Hurry up!
[And he stops talking, waiting for her at the game center a short time later. When she arrives he grins the same way he always does when he's with her, face lighting up just a little more than usual and his eyes drift to the hoodie she's carrying.
…and he lifts his eyebrows, ultimately choosing not to say anything but the smile becomes a little more smug. Surprisingly there's no Baymax today but he's holding what looks like a tan computer chip with a cat drawn on it between his fingers, along with Megabot and, in fact, what looks like a red rag. It might have some dried oil stains on it.]
This was the best I could do, but you can't look until we're actually inside the game. [He also doesn't trust her to keep her eyes shut (because he knows he'd keep his open if he were going in for a surprise, too.)] Once this is on, we can log in and see what happens.
no subject
She just shrugs and steps closer, closing her eyes.]
Well, okay! I'll put myself in your hands, Hiro! [But it's easy to do that, since she trusts him so much. That has never been in doubt.]
... But don't make it take too long, okay? I'm gonna die of suspense!
no subject
Right. That's the whole thing, isn't it? She trusts him, and he trusts her and that's why he wants to show her this. So he steps forward, immediately tying the rag around her eyes loose enough that it doesn't hurt her but enough she can't see anything.] Trust me, it'll be worth it. ["I hope."With that, he's silent as he puts the chip into the system and hooks them up for the game, waiting for the fancy digitization process to go through.
It's only when they're logged in that Ruby might hear something a little strange. It's a little windy wherever they are and there's the sound of a trolley bell in the distance. There are some bright lights (neon, really) filtering through the fabric of the blindfold as well and he's still holding her hand.]
I've never shown anybody this before. Tadashi said he kinda made it for me, but also so I could show you, too. It's…I mean, I hope you like it. [A pause.] You can take the blindfold off when you're ready.
no subject
[She'll just respond to that oh-so-simply, because she does know. When Hiro gets excited about things and has things he wants to show her, it's always worth it. When it's time to see what he's been working on or what he gets excited about or all of the things that really matter to him... it's always fun and exciting and worth it.
That said, it's definitely a little strange. She can't deny that she gets a little thrill in being told he hasn't showed this to anyone else before--like she's special in some way, but not in the "Ruby you moved up two years you're special" sort of way, a different sort of special that makes her heart skip a beat in weird ways.
So of course she's not going to hesitate to pull off the blindfold immediately, because she's always been gung-ho; she's excited and ready to see what he's brought to show her and... honestly, it takes her breath away.
It's nothing like Remnant. If anything, it's more like Cerealia, but it's not so alien either; it's bright and there's the obvious warmth and chatter of a place full of people, and it takes her only half a moment to place it, because she's seen it before. When Baymax had shown her those flight films--she saw it then, didn't she?
So she turns to Hiro, wind tugging at her hair and eyes bright and excited, and beams with a touch of wonder.]
Hiro....this is your home! Right? This is San Fransokyo!
no subject
On the other hand, he was hoping she wouldn't think it was lame to bring her to a place like this, so when she turns to face him there's a mildly sheepish smile as he rubs the back of his neck, letting it flop uselessly after gesturing to the area.]
Yeah...it is. [He sounds far too pleased still. Even though he's been in the simulation once or twice it's still overwhelming in some ways. But still he watches an NPC zip past them on a bike and the light change across the street as a few cars drive by, hand coming up to point down the hill.] Tadashi got pretty much every single detail right including the cafe. It's incredible. When he showed it to me I--you're probably the only person I would ever wanna show, and I think he knew that. [Tadashi was weirdly perceptive of his little brother's feelings on things when he felt like it. (Or always, whichever.)]
It's probably not as impressive as your own world but...what do you think?
no subject
Because...she'd always wanted this. And it's not exactly what she'd hoped for, but she can hold out for the real thing. But she'd always wanted to be able to explore Hiro's home with him, and this is...so close to real that it's good enough for now, until they figure out a way to get out of here and bridge the gaps between their worlds.
Until they manage that, they've got this, and she's...well, she's excited.
She meets his nervous look with a bright smile, excited and gung-ho (as ever).]
This is great! I wanna see as much of it as we can--you'll show me around, right? I mean, it is your home so I've got the best guide already, so...
[...Can they explore it together?]
no subject
Duh. [Whether the "duh" is for the fact that he'll show her around or that he's the best guide he doesn't quite say. But they're off.] Tadashi programmed the level with a couple of games just because that's how ViViD is. When we get to the cafe you'll see what I mean...he even programmed some of the NPCs to look like people we know back home. ...except for Aunt Cass. [There's a reason for that, of course.] But I think it's just the cafe which is a total bummer. I wanted to show you the lab and the house and everything but I guess it just means you'll have to come see me whenever we leave Cerealia.
[Casually. He's casual about it as their hands swing lightly between them and they walk toward the warm glow of Lucky Cat.] We can bring Baymax next time, too, and I can show you even more stuff. It's way better from an aerial view. Even if the cafe's only the cafe Tadashi still included a ton of other stuff. I want to ask if maybe I can add onto it. I know I should be doing other stuff but...is it bad to want to work on this, too?
no subject
Remnant is nothing like this.
This place is bustling.]
I think you totally should. Keep working on it, I mean. It's not bad! I wanna see more of it too and so do you and I bet Tadashi does too [This is probably the closest Tadashi can get to home until they figure out a way around that too] and that's a good thing!
Besiiiides, we'll have plenty of time to choose sides or whatever and fight creepy robots and uncover mysteries. Doing stuff for us is important too!
no subject
Seeing how Tadashi won't be able to go back if Hiro can't fix it, she gets what he means. It's the closest he can get to spending time in San Fransokyo with his older brother and he squeezes her hand a little as he thinks on it.]
Heh. So you saw that post go up, too. From…whoever that was. [It solidifies that there's a war brewing and they have to choose what to do next, but he's never been so unsure in his life.] I hope you're right about that. But we've had enough time so far. Did you know I've been here for like almost five months already? [Of course she knows. She's been there since day one.]
Speaking of doing stuff for us, wee still should go to the beach like we said we would. You, me, Mary and Roxas. [And by now they're at the bottom of the hill, sakura blossoms/petals floating past them in the wind and they're standing outside of Lucky Cat. The inside is busy with people, the TVs on playing some animated movie and a warm, cozy feeling practically oozing out of the place. They'll. Head in in a moment. He's busy staring inside the window is all.]
no subject
But heheh, it's been a long time, huh? It's amazing how time flies. [And yet... she's pretty sure that time has gone even faster and better because she has Hiro with her on the daily, and that makes her time so much more fun; with that thought in mind, she just squeezes his hand a bit more tightly.]
But yeah we should! It's been awhile, and we could take on the monsters, it'd be fine! Besides, I think Mary and Roxas will figure out the totally-dating-but-not thing eventually. Maybe.
[???]
Maybe we can help. [Brilliant.
But then she's distracted by the fact that it's honestly beautiful here; she reaches up to pluck a petal from her hair, grinning a little (she does love flower petals) before she tilts her head at Hiro. Hmmm...]
... Wanna go in?
no subject
Yeah, of course I do. It's just like...you know. It's still home even if it's not? I'm kinda psyching myself out a little. We'll go in and it'll be fine and just try not to get run over. [A beat.] And I'm with you on helping Roxas and Mary figure everything out but I don't know if that's gonna be as easy as it should be.
[It's a long story. With that, he's opening the door to the cafe and immediately pull her to the side as someone zooms by. It's an NPC, and it doesn't take long for them to notice it's an example for a mini-game. The cafe itself smells like pastries and caffeine, the chatter dim and the music from the movie floating through the air. The space behind the counter, however, remains empty.]
Normally people just stay out front here. You go through the door behind the counter you get the storage pantry, the fridge, and the stairs leading up to our house. It's been that way since I can remember. I don't know what our house was like before we went to live with Aunt Cass. [A pause.] The apartments in the colony still seem way too cramped.
no subject
Which is bustling, and Ruby brightens up immensely at the smells and sights and sounds, clearly thrilled.]
Oh, wow, this place is great! So this is where you live back home?
[Uwooooh.]
How do you manage to handle so many tasty things right there? [Ruby would probably have no self-control and want to eat all of them.]
... Also, you could probably make your apartment bigger, y'know. CERES barely bothers to do anything when we're plotting actively against them, so I doubt they'd care about renovations.
no subject
[He furrows his eyebrows together in thought.] Tadashi and I keep talking about knocking out the wall between his apartment and the one I claimed a while ago. It's pretty much empty anyway, but I build machines. I'm not exactly an architect yet. Do you ever think it's weird there's only apartments and no houses in the colony?
no subject
[A solemn shake of her head.]
It'd be nice to sit here though! Like to work on homework and things... I think I'd like that too. [Perhaps someday...though she supposes she doesn't have any homework to work on right now.
... CHANGE GEARS.]
I dunno if they have room for houses, honestly. It's all buildings, buildings, buildings.
That said, you should totally knock down a wall and see what happens. [Good Influences.]
no subject
...but that's someday.]
You just want to watch me destroy something, don't you? [A playful nudge.] Tadashi and I were going to do it a while ago, but a lot of stuff's happened. Our room back home used to be huge. We lived in the attic. [He's walking forward, taking Ruby with him to jump behind the counter and pull out two chocolate croissants.]
Not real food, but it'll give you health points anyway. [He's already tearing a chunk out of it with his teeth.] I could stay here forever, but...you wanna see the rest of the city don't you?
no subject
[She'd accept that. But yeah... yeah honestly? Yeah.]
you got me. I think it'd be fun! You'll invite me too, right? I've always wanted to knock down a wall.
[Ruby why......... but she's going to accept the chocolate croissant anyway, because...who wouldn't? Yum.]
I mean--yeah, I totally do. [She takes a bite of her croissant as well, considering.] But if you wanna stay here a while, that's fine too. I don't think there's any rush.
no subject
All the more reason we can explore a little more. [Back to the streets they go.] Anyway, you really wanna knock out a wall that bad? I don't see why not. You can help me unpack all my stuff in my new room, too. [A grin.] Tadashi needs to get off of the couch and...I don't know. A while ago I asked him if we could share a room again but now I'm not sure about that either. [He loves his brother, he really does...but privacy's become a thing now.]
no subject
Okay! [Easily, so easy to please.] But yeah I definitely do. I've never gotten to knock out a wall. I mean, we made a mess with the food fight, but it got fixed and we still didn't knock out a wall. Just close.
[It was a RWBY food fight, what could you expect.]
... But yeah, I think having your own room's the best. Then you can fill it with your own stuff and nobody can complain! [Yes that's...definitely what he was concerned about.]
no subject
...bless Ruby and her innocence though. Even if the tips of his ears turn a little red he manages to mostly keep a straight face as he nods slowly. Yup. That's totally what this is about.]
The bedroom's already full of my own stuff and I think it bugs him because it's pretty messy. [He finds it amusing still.] I don't know. I'm still not really used to having my own room back home, but being here's kinda made me get used to it. It's pretty nice to be able to shut the door and do whatever I want in my own space without worrying about somebody else.
[He's finished his croissant by then and Ruby will notice they're walking up and down little hills more toward the heart of the city. Things are getting brighter and more traffic (cars and people) are showing up. Welcome to downtown San Fransokyo.] Before I built Baymax's armor, I used to walk pretty much everywhere if Tadashi wasn't picking me up on his moped. I think I remember where we're going. We've got a pretty long walk until we get to where this game's log-out portal is anyway.
no subject
[Hmph!!!! Not for lack of trying, but some things don't get past the watchful gaze of Glenda Goodwitch.......
Either way, she grins at Hiro's rambling, nodding thoughtfully. He'll get his own room, and he'll be happier for it, and there's a momentary thought that at least they can hang out together without getting interrupted then, but she doesn't pursue that any further than that, glancing around herself instead with great interest. Things are getting even more bustling, and it's just...so different from home in so many ways.]
That's fine! I like walking with you.
[Eheh...]
Besides... it's really lively here! It's kind of different from back home, but...in a good way. I really like this.
no subject
...but no. It's true. He--it's why he spilled to Naminé isn't it? He likes her very much, he likes this very much, and there isn't a person or a place that would make him feel the way she does. So it's something to accept, and maybe it doesn't hurt to tell her, too. There are other issues at hand though. Such as:]
--wait your headmaster's name is Ozpin and one of your teachers is named Ms. Goodwitch? [...why does that sound vaguely allegorical?] You've never really told me much about what home's like anyway. Just Beacon itself. I mean I get the place has a lot of Grimm but it's really not a city like this?
no subject
That's just sort of how it goes, right?
But she can only smile in response, even if talking about home in comparison to this is kind of...well. It's definitely not this.]
Ehehe... [But she's not going to call him out on it. INSTEAD.]
Remnant's a lot different! I mean we have cities and things but like... [How does she put this...] Everywhere else is just taken over by the Grimm, you know? The cities are kind of like...last strongholds against them.
[It's post-apocalyptic.]
no subject
And...it's sad, isn't it? That the world of Remnant's falling apart and that the cities are their only strongholds, that people like Ruby are the only ones who can defend a world that's succumbed to monsters. So he doesn't think much of squeezing her hand tighter and humming to himself.]
Sounds kinda like this place, too. Look at everything outside of the colony walls. Guess it's just all the more reason I've gotta try harder to make sure you can come visit me when all of this is over. You can meet the rest of my friends and see a normal ocean and when the sun sets in San Fransokyo it's probably the coolest thing I've seen. [Focus on the good things, not what Ruby's going back to.] As long as you don't meet Yama in real life, we'll be good.
(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)