・✥ 𝑏𝑜𝑛 𝑣𝑜𝑦𝑎𝑔𝑒 ✥・

Very far away?

Yes, hadn’t they all.

Rui doesn’t know in what sense this boy means it; he doesn’t know how exactly ‘far away’ clicks in this boy’s mind, so he doesn’t pry. It just isn’t that big of a deal. It’s true of all of them, after all, in some form or another. Rui… Rui isn’t even from sometime like this one. If he’d lived, somehow, would he have seen the times change to become more like this city? He doesn’t know. There are enough similarities, sometimes, in places in Cotes, that – maybe he hadn’t come from somewhere so far away after all.

“You don’t know?”

The boy’s a bit… spacey, isn’t he? It seems like he’s taken Rui’s question far too – literally, perhaps? Is it literal? Rui can’t tell if that’s it or if it’s something else; it’s something he actually can try to give a better explanation to, at least, though.

“To – the city. You have to know how long you’ve been here.”

… huh?

“Even snakes.” For better or for worse. Rui doesn’t mind snakes, but based on the boy’s expression–

“… the middle of your journey?”

And something about a distant star, and recordings… Rui doesn’t understand the specifics, but things start to click into place a little bit more, even if only just. This journey seems to be something very important… to a lot of people, he would assume, based on how he’d just been told about it. But –

“I don’t know if any of us can stay here forever,” he says, after a moment. It’s only with those words that he finally reaches out to scoop Himari back into his own arms; she snuggles safely against his chest as he holds her close, and her purring begins again, as loud as ever. He wishes sometimes that he could stay here forever, and wishes other times that he’d never been brought here at all. Sometimes it all hurts too much to even think about. “But… you might be here longer than you think you will be. Your journey might have to wait.”

' oh! ' to the city. that's a much easier question to answer. "Not long." he keeps track of days, normally, but there weren't many for the length of his stay here. he doesn't leave a long pause before tacking on another answer, "It's been - a day." a little nostalgic, when he thinks about his first days for anything. 

but just after adjusting to something new, he's met with another new thing — at least it's not jarring. and he hardly gets scared.

it's almost as if he doesn't wholly register what the other boy is saying. but he remains attentive - or, his best attempt to be. when he finally looks from himari to rui, he doesn't look disappointed with his answer. he's used to having to wait to continue, used to pausing before it ends; one day he'll complete it. for now, he's needed here — well, maybe that's not the same in this city? when summoned to the first, it was that. he can only draw the conclusion that it's the same for here.

"We can't." they all have to return, don't they? all of them. always. "I will - wait, because - it's necessary." he may be getting kind of restless, as he looks elsewhere. 

There are plenty of people within the city: young, old, inhuman and far beyond even that. At this point, Roman’s given up trying to work the logic out behind who’s chosen to come and go. But that said, he’s still surprised at how young some of the newcomers are - too young to be taken from their parents just yet; too young to be anything but a kid, lost and alone. It rankles. And so, when Roman comes across one such example - just a boy, wrapped in a wondrous gold scarf, crouched in the aisle of a random store - he doesn’t think twice.

“Here you go,” he hands back the first marble, blue as the earth itself. “You have to be really careful with handling these guys. Some of them can be slippery, especially if you trip over them.” Roman pauses to pick up another; squinting as he holds it to the light. “Ohh, you found the space ones! See, if you look at them like this, it’s like you can see the stars. Pretty, right?”

he takes the marble, lacking in hesitation or reluctance. he can see why you need to be careful, considering how they scattered wherever they did when he'd dropped them.. but he doesn't mind trying to pick them all up. nonetheless, he nods as he looks down to the marble, now held in his palm. "How do - you know - which ones - are?" is it how they're shaped? how the designs are within? what is slipperiness measured with...

friendly dispositions felt - how could he put it.. they felt like he was drifting, and that despite this drifting, he was whole. warm. listening and humming to the tones he's had recorded. and so, he smiles as he mimics the motion of holding the marble into the light. there's no attempt to stifle his gasp, completely in awe of the way the light reflects within it - it really is like looking at the stars.

the sound of rushing water is light, but he can hear it. gently pouring from wherever it is, and he can only imagine that since it’s in a forested area such as this that it must be a natural source. he wishes to locate it, so he follows where it leads him, stopping him at a large tree. it’s split down the middle, enough for him to be able to look through and fit his entire head — which he does.

peering into the hollow of it shows he did find it. cool, clear water, glistening within the light of the sun. it seems to collect at the base where the split stops, as if the area it accumulates in was scooped out specifically to hold the water, and it’s probably been replenishing this tree for whoever knows how long. there’s not a lot, but there’s enough for him to cup his hands and fill whatever he can manage to hold. probably others, too. it’s almost icy, and he drinks it before he really considers the consequences.

and it’s incredibly good. unsurprising to him, given how the entire thing was setup, and he almost feels.. rejuvenated. whatever fatigue he’d felt before is gone, but he doesn’t actually know if there’s any magical qualities to it. so he takes a few steps back, looking the tree up and down — and then the area around him, as if charting down the entire layout to memory. he doesn’t want to forget this place.

the noticeboard is a little out of reach, but he can still manage to read it from where he stands. there's a miscellaneous assortment of listings, from 'finding new homes' for pets to 'help!' requests. he's drawn more towards the one with pictures included, and his current sights fell on that of an egg sitting in a nest. there's a couple people around, seemingly also interested in the letters on the board — not enough where people are bumping into him left and right, at least.

he thinks he can reach it, if he jumps. so the following second after the thought, he does - lightly grabbing the paper by it's edges and then pulling it off and landing the next. it mentions finding a specific kind of bird's nest and retrieving it's egg, which he's certain he can do. rather, he's certain it's something he wants to do. which is all that matters to him.

there's rules to follow when it comes to accepting these requests, though. like talking with the woman at the counter, and bringing other capable people with you after getting more details on the - mission? he wants to do it now, though. so after getting the details of it, he stands fully upright on the chair and cups his hands around his mouth and yells ( —in order for his voice to carry, of course. )

     Full glad was the King that the Foreigner was so easy to guide, to instruct. It didn’t take sharp commands or scolding to make the child listen to reason, for he was always seeking to understand what ‘reason’ was. Every opportunity to learn was savored, absorbed ( and yet it never satisfied his ever-present desire to educate himself further on the wonders of the worlds he found ). And though educating him on flora was a simple task for the Caster, a man who had educated himself on all matters of the world, Gilgamesh quietly acknowledges that this is a store. A business in which they were imposing upon if they were not to purchase any of his goods. 

     ❝    Yes, but it would be in our best interests to find some wildflowers rather than to remain here. These are for customers, you see, those who pay for them. We must respect that and leave them be.    ❞

     He removes his hand from the boy’s wrist, and instead places it on his back for a moment, directing him to the exit. A place full of wildlife – the Cotes Ward would serve that pursuit well enough. The trees were always in bloom in that part of the city, regardless of the season, and the other plants that surrounded them were equally as attractive. Safe to the touch, as well.    ❝    Have you ever seen cherry blossoms ?  They are flowers that grow on trees and are quite pleasing to the eye. I can take you to a place where many of those bloom, if it would please you.    ❞

he allows himself to be redirected, following where he's lead. there's not much reluctance, if any at all. he understands well enough not to bother, though sometimes he probably manages to anyway. for now, he's more focused on gathering more information about the plants, so he has little reason not to follow him.

cherry blossoms, though... were not one of the things he'd obtained information on. most of his knowledge was more focused on achievements, creations, and even back in that city... "Flowers on - trees?" there weren't any plants that fit this description. plants in general, yes, but he didn't try to find anything out about them. so he shakes his head to the question, but nods to the rest. "I want to - see them." he knows it'll be worth it to, it always is.

he wonders just what they'll look like. different colors? small? big? but before his imagination gets away from him, he looks around them. whichever direction they are, he's certain he'll be brought to them — but he was kind of hoping maybe he could see them from where he was. that doesn't seem to be the case. he's just - he wants to see them.

he tends to, well, wander. as much as he can, committing everything he sees to memory — as if recording it. while he tagged along with her when he could, while she would show him things that she was able to, there was still a lot that he missed. certain shops he wished he could go through, certain items he wanted to touch. and so he finds himself within another one, holding a bag of what sounds like beads, though they feel a little bigger. he wants to get a closer look, but doesn’t estimate well enough how much he’ll be able to actually hold and the small objects ( —marbles, as it turns out, ) click and bounce around on the floor while rolling here and there. 

he doesn’t know the person who asked, but he accepted their request anyways. ‘please bring these to this shop,’ and he wasn’t reluctant at all to do it. but he doesn’t have a good picture of the layout of this place yet, still building up a memory of it — it’s slow, and... so is he, really. 

He had never quite considered himself good with children, despite how he had gotten along with Gilbert even as a small child. Admittedly, it was painful to think about Alice and Gilbert when they were smaller, and how fond of him they had been, but, well…

He couldn’t simply let the young boy keep trying to reach, or worse, try and climb up himself.

Lifting him under his arms, he holds the bright boy up to reach what he had wanted, and hearing a note of joy, he looks at what is being shown to him with a gentle smile.

“Very pretty.” His own way is quiet, but his expression is genuine. Many similar globes are on higher shelves. “If you would like, I can carry you on my shoulders around the store.” At a bit over six feet, he was taller than most.

he wonders, for a moment, just where erice is — would she like to see this? surely, she would like it, too. or at least something in this shop. maybe he could find something for her here.. while he's still looking for her, it'd make a good gift. it has to be small, so he doesn't have a hard time carrying it.

    okay. that was good. he could hear her and most likely was okay. shoulders sag in relief momentarily before she’s slipping on her shoes and quickly heading out the door, phone pressed tightly to her ear. that’s right, she never got around to explaining to him about phone calls and how they work, so it’s only natural he’d assume she was inside the phone. “ Ah well, I’m not actually inside of it. I have one just like you do right now and even if you can’t see me, it allows me to talk to you from wherever you are. Pretty cool, huh? “

      she’d love to explain more, but later on. “ You can see me soon, though! Can you look around and tell me what you see? It may help me figure out where you are. Anything that stands out or looks cool. “

oh, it’s kind of like back where he was. able to send pictures to home, despite the distance. this means she can probably call him, too. “It’s cool!” followed by a light giggle. the possibilities to communicate truly were phenomenal. and if he can talk to her wherever he is with this, he’s not entirely alone.

it’s unfortunately easy for him to be rather careless. unused to having a body that has so many senses — unused to having to pay attention to where he’s going, doing, touching. he takes up space in a world where he’s surrounded by tons of different things that have no qualms with shoving him out of the way, or flattening him if they could. he’s never had this much around him; he’s never had it so close. this ‘beginning’ of his started back then. back in that other world. he hadn’t had much time to get used to it.

     it’s the feel of her phone vibrating that interrupts her focus on the music playing from the device. Ritsuka assumes it to be one of her friends or coworkes, but the name displayed on the screen is…..not any of them.  it’s a new one belonging to someone that she knew for a fact was not in the city earlier. her eyes widen instantly before she’s swiping the screen to answer the call. most likely, it was an accidental one, but one she was going to answer nonetheless. had he just gotten here? if so, where was he at? was he alone? was he alright? 

        at first, all she hears is silence. brow furrow slightly before she begins to speak. “ Voyager? Is that you? Can you hear me? “ all the while she’s moving about, grabbing her purse and keys and anything else. hopefully he did hear her because then she could ask where hw as and go pick him up. Ritsuka didn’t feel comfortable leaving him by himself if he just barely got here– Servant or not.

he’s surprised, when he suddenly hears her voice from it. he remembers the one before had games on it, he played with those, and he’s staring just as intently on the screen as he was the first time. no closer to his ears, and he doesn’t raise his voice.

That – was easy. Is it supposed to be that easy to make someone smile? Rui knows that people like cats, but comparing his initial response to being given Himari to how much this boy starts beaming just at being allowed to hold her… it’s enough to startle any response to the little pat to his head away from happening, at least. And with Himari off his back, Rui feels like he can properly stand up, now. So he does, as you do.

And brushes the dirt off himself as casually as he can, which mostly just sort of rubs it further into his clothes. Okay. Well. Whatever. (And he still doesn’t know there’s any on his face.)

“You’ve never… seen… a cat?”

This boy must be new to the city, then, right? And from somewhere, or at least having lived a life, where he hadn’t been able to see a cat. Animals typically don’t like Rui due to his being a demon, so he understands – but this boy doesn’t seem like a demon. He sort of just… seems like a boy, one full of wonderment and intrigue in the world. He reminds Rui of himself, in a way. When he was younger.

When he was human.

He lets the boy keep holding Himari. She looks comfortable, anyway, practically falling asleep in his arms already as she purrs so loudly Rui can hear her from where he’s standing.

“… are you new? There are lots of cats, here. You’ll be able to see as many as you like. Dogs, too, if you’d like to see more. Anything you can imagine.”

Rui isn’t used to feeling like he can just talk freely, and he doesn’t quite know what it is that’s driving him to try. Is it just because he would have wanted this when he was still human? He doesn’t know. He doesn’t know his own feelings well enough anymore to be able to tell.

“… I – suppose that’s true, yes. There are – a lot of people here, too, that have shown me I’m not alone. I don’t think anyone has to be alone, if they don’t want to be.” What sort of sentimental – what? What was that?

he nods, "Never." but he doesn't realize explanations as to why normally are paired with this. there were no cats where he was, it's impractical to think that they would be able to come with him. but he knew what they sounded like, although even that was just in recordings. "I've come from - very far away."

himari is something else—he likes her a lot. but even if he knows cats, he doesn't know what they eat. what they drink. he wants to learn.

"New?" he doesn't completely understand the question. new in what sense? he was made twenty-eight years ago, that doesn't necessarily make him 'new', does it? not like other space probes. "I don't know." but—thinking about being able to see a lot of things is exciting. he wants to. anything—anything, "Anything - I can imagine..." that's certainly a lot of things!! that’s.. certainly a lot of things. his expression sombers, for a moment, "Even snakes?"

most likely snakes, too.

     ❝    Voyager.    ❞ 

     A hand reaches out with a gentleness not typically seen in the King of Heroes, fingers wrapping around his wrist, stopping the reach of one so young, so curious. With a look at the shopkeep, a slight nod of the head, the man departs and Gilgamesh is the sole wall between the Foreigner and the plant that had so quickly captured his intrigue. 

     A truly unique Servant, this boy. 

     He was essentially a vessel ⁠— a vessel that had been built on the hopes of mankind. The desire to reach even the stars themselves, a dream that had existed within their hearts for centuries, millennia, that was what had led to his existence. Man was naturally drawn to the unknown, a feeling that would exist within them until the day their light finally expired, and the stars had been with them since their beginning. An untouchable existence, a foreign light. Voyager was to serve as their bridge to that light, a beacon filled with their culture, with their aspirations. The culmination of years spent wishing. 

     It was only fitting that he had been recognized by the Throne of Heroes. 

     ❝    It would not be wise to touch it. Even if you do not fear pain, our Master would be upset should she see you injured.    ❞  And loathe was Gilgamesh to see such an invaluable treasure of man be damaged ( he was not so cruel an owner ). 

oh, he was called that. people called him that. a name given to him by those he cherishes most; though there's no reluctance on his end to share it with other people, he doesn't tend to. this name sounds better in the voices of others. he knows it's him, so it's nice—when other people know it's him too. he remembers when he couldn't remember anything at all. least of all his name.

he does pause when his other wrist is grasped, until the shopkeep leaves and his eyes follow him before drifting upwards to the new man.

so it would hurt, then. most of all, he wouldn't want to upset their master. despite no fear of pain, this seems to be enough for him, lowering his hand away from the plant. there's other things he could touch. other things that would probably be more pleasant than any injury. he should be more careful — more wary, but in pursuit of new knowledge.. sometimes, you do get hurt.