drawnbythesword | 20 [Voice]

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[It was a day like any other in House 28. Or so it seemed, at least. Asbel went to knock on Cheria's door, hoping to ask her if she wants to come with him somewhere, and it didn't involve training. He's definitely felt better about his relationship with Cheria recently than he has in the past, knowing he shouldn't try so hard or worry so much, and just be natural with her.

No answer comes from beyond Cheria's door. It's a bit weird. He didn't see her anywhere else in the house, and if she's stepped out, she usually leaves a note.]

...Cheria? Are you in there?

[again, no answer. So strange. Maybe she's asleep? Normally, he doesn't enter her room without her permission, but against his better judgment, decides to open the door and come in.]

Cheria, are you--

[What he finds... Is an empty room.]

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[His voice sounds hoarse when he goes to deliver the message. He's not sure why it hurt so much more for her to go home than it did when Sophie or Hubert left. Maybe it was because things had changed so much between the two of them? Knowing things weren't going nearly as smoothly for them back home...]

To anyone that might have known her, Cheria Barnes has left Luceti.

[The recording ends there.]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

It's different this time for you. May I ask why?

Cheria was... [There's a pause as he dwells on the words that comes next.] ...My girlfriend.

[Guess who did not know.]

Oh. I see. ...It is harder to lose those you love. [And she doesn't want to pry open his life, so perhaps they should talk about something different...]

What do you intend to do?

[Considering how bad they were about being open with their relationship to others, you're not the only one, Nephry.]

I guess just sit here feeling frustrated with myself for a while.

[Now that's interesting.]

Frustrated with yourself? Not with the Malnosso or this world?

Yeah... Just myself.

That's very unusual. Why are you frustrated with yourself?

I guess... Frustrated with who I was. Frustrated with who I am back home. ...Frustrated with the Asbel that Cheria's going back home to.

[Frustrated with his past.

Not too unusual, in these parts.]

There isn't anything you can do about him, I'm afraid.

That's probably what makes it so frustrating for me.

Do you think that the you of the past can turn into the you that you are now, again?

[Okay...that was a bit complex even for her.]

I think so... But I'm not sure how long that could take, or if Cheria'd wait for me to become that person.

[Nephry is not the best person in the world to hand out relationship advice, though that seems to be the trend of her conversations lately.]

Why shouldn't she? I'd imagine she sees it in your past self already.

It took a lot of work for me to get where I was with her here. I had a lot of help from my friends.

Back home, we're both so busy. I'm trying to lead the people of Lhant, and she's involved with her relief work... It seems like the only time we had together is when we were trying to save our world. I don't know how she could be happy with me like that.

It sounds like you think trying to save the world hasn't changed you.

Well, no... I know, in a way, it has.

Perhaps once your world is safer, you will find that you have more time to spend together, or that you have both changed for the better without realizing it.

I'm worried my duties might not allow that. I didn't exactly have much free time.

...I guess that what makes this place not all that bad to me. Here, I'm just another person.

You will find time for the most important things. [Why does it seem like every conversation brings up echoes of her problems these days?]

I don't believe anyone is 'just another person', but particularly not here. If that were the case, we would not be here.

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