video; un: natsume.takashi

[natzoom]

[Natsume begins the video message with the best intentions. He's sitting very calmly in his apartment (which is strange, he's sixteen, he isn't old enough to have his own place to live), legs crossed, expression very composed for someone who just arrive in Trench. His voice is even, shoulders squared, like he isn't the least bit disturbed by the circumstances.]

Please excuse the interruption, but I had a quick question. Where is --

[Then he stops, mouth hanging open, eyes widening, staring at something just past the camera. Long, loooong seconds pass as Natsume stares, face slowly turning pale, barely blinking, barely breathing. Then his head moves, eyes fixed on the something as it sloooowly approaches, closer and closer, until he's staring off to his left, watching the thing. It's moving closer, it'll appear in the camera frame at any second...

...but nothing does. Natsume is still watching, still silent, craning his neck around, then turning in his seat to keep an eye on whatever-it-is, as it apparently moves past him, behind him, then off to one side. Either he's a very good actor, or there's something he's seeing that the camera isn't.

Natsume keeps looking off to the right, where the unseen thing had disappeared, for another couple moments. Then he blinks, turning back to the camera. His face is still very pale, his voice quite a bit fainter, shakier when he speaks:]

Where is the nearest shrine?

Comments

video; un: shiro

[shiro2hero]

Hey, everything okay?

[Hello child. Do you need an Adult.]

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[natzoom]

[Oh dear, an Adult.

Natsume immediately plasters a smile on his face, trying to keep his eyes from flicking over to the side.]

Yes, thank you. [A pause.] Mosquito.

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[shiro2hero]

A... mosquito.

[Wow, the skepticism in his voice could stop a train.]

I didn't know we had mosquitos in town. [In the winter.] Has anyone been able to help you find a shrine?

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[natzoom]

Oh. [Whoops. Gonna just....stare at the ceiling to deflect. That'll work, right?] Maybe it was a moth, then.

Ah, yes. [Notes! He took notes. He has terrible handwriting so give him a moment.] There's one in...Cassandra.

[Cue a concerned frown.] Is that a person? [He doesn't want to go inside any people, thanks.]

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[shiro2hero]

No, it's not a person, don't worry. It's a part of town.

[This is... a lost child. Oh no.]

Did you get directions? Or is someone showing you how to get there?

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[natzoom]

Oh, that's a relief. [Have a little bow. He's a polite lost child.] Thank you very much, sir.

...I'm. Sure I can figure it out. I have to take care of myself here, after all. It's probably best I start practicing, right?

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[shiro2hero]

You don't have to look out for just yourself... There are a lot of Sleepers here. We all know what it's like to wake up on the beach.

We help each other, here.

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[natzoom]

...that sounds nice. [He sounds dubious about it, though. Like he doesn't quite believe it.] But I'm all right. I'm old enough to care for myself. [He is literally sixteen but okay.]

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[shiro2hero]

You're also new here, right?

It's okay to need a hand when you first wake up.

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[natzoom]

...finding the shrine would be a nice start. [That word again: nice. It's accompanied by Natsume abruptly looking over to the side again and shifting a little where he sits.] That...would be okay, to have help with that.

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[shiro2hero]

Okay. I can come meet you, if you like?

Do you know where you are now?

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[natzoom]

[Time to look at his notes again! While also...repeatedly glancing over into the corner of his room.] Ah, "Crenshaw". In an apartment.

[Another glance.] Which I'm going to...leave now.

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[shiro2hero]

Okay. I know where that is. Can you show me the street outside?

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[natzoom]

Yee-eess -- [Natsume cuts off, staring offscreen for a long, quiet moment. Then he stands, backing towards the window, then lifting up the Omni so it shows the street behind him.] Is that -- I'll be outside soon.

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[shiro2hero]

Okay. That's perfect. I'll meet you there.

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[natzoom]

Thank you very much. [Natsume pauses to incline his head in a little bow, and then he -- opens the window and climbs out. The video feed ends before he can give any explanation for that, but it sure is an alarming point to end a video on.]

[shiro2hero]

[Well, if he wasn't already about to hurry, the fact this kid went out the window kind of cements the need to do it.]

[Shiro just books it. Lamp teleports and all. Out to where he saw on the video.]

[natzoom]

[He's totally fine! Everything is fine! He's just going to be...in a tree when Shiro arrives.

Natsume hasn't had a chance to change out of his arrival robes, but he did manage to grab his bag before yeeting out the window, so he'll just be perched in the tree, hugging it to his chest. When he sees Shiro, there's a pause before he sort of...waves.]

Hello. Are you all right?

[shiro2hero]

... Are you?

[Says the man wearing a heavy black coat, a little deer bag, and looking up at the tree like he's seen a ghost. His omen has come along, as well - in all her huge lion-y glory.]

[natzoom]

Yes. [Natsume says it in a slow, confused tone, like he's baffled at the implication that he might not be. He frowns slightly at the lion, which is a very...understated reaction.]

You have a lion following you. [Hopefully it's...a lion everyone else can see too.]

[shiro2hero]

Why... are you in the tree? Can you get down?

[Does he need to climb the tree?]

And yeah, I know. She's with me. She's an Omen.

[natzoom]

-- oh, um. [Natsume is quiet for a long moment, fidgeting a little up on the branch. Then he decides to be sort of honest; the guy has a big lion, maybe he's open to...weirdness.] I was...there was something in my room. I didn't think it would follow me into the tree. Usually they don't.

Ah. [Another long look at the lion.] So she's real.

[shiro2hero]

Something? Was it a Beast? [He's stepped closer to the tree, just in case. He'll catch this kid if he has to.] Were you in danger?

[The lion just yawns. Yep, she's real.]

She is, yeah. She'll come with us - handy backup.

[natzoom]

A -- "Beast"? [Maybe that's what they're called here. Natsume looks up at the window again for a moment, then slowly shuffles back towards the trunk of the tree, starting to climb down.] I'm not sure. It wasn't happy I was there, that was...quite clear.

[The yawning lion gets a little smile as he hops down to the ground and brushes himself off.] I've never met a lion before.

[shiro2hero]

Well, that depends. What did it look like...?

[Yeah, he's going to stay here just in case you fall, buddy. Was someone giving this kid a hard time? Does he need to have Words with them?]

She's my Omen. Like... an extension of me? But in lion form.

[You nailed that, Shiro.]