etraya | UN: clicksandgiggles

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UN: clicksandgiggles | Video

Steady... steady...

[ The feed wobbles and keeps refocusing on Prompto's too close face as he adjusts the stack of books he's pressed into serving as a makeshift tripod. His face is pure concentration: lips pressed thin, eyes squinted, nose twitching every time the video tilts to one side.

Behind him, the apartment is pretty empty: a single couch, cost rack rigged up with hangers to "wear" his chocobo costume, and what's either a pile of random shit or perhaps a coffee table under a pile of random shit.

Prompto steps back until more of him's in frame. He nods to himself - the feed looks good. ]

Okay, now I got it.

[ Cue showtime, and it's like someone flipped the on switch. He gives a little two-finger salute and plasters a grin on his face. ]

Hey, hey, what's up, everybody! It's your boy Prompto here, coming at ya from... the apartment.

[ He spins around, arms wide like he's showing off a luxury suite instead of a greige-walled one-bedroom. The spin ends with him catching his balance and laughing. ]

Okay, I know - I've seen roadside motels with more personality. I keep telling myself it's got potential, but I grew up on that whole minimalist chic thing and thought I could branch out. Open to decorating suggestions, by the way - I-I've never had my own place.

[ He rocks on his heels with his hands behind his back, leaning forward toward the camera. It's so much easier to do this with people in front of him feed off their reactions and adjust, but he doesn't want to hide behind text. ]

Anyway... I've been settlin' in, checking out the neighborhood, figuring out where I can do my usual stuff - got my morning run totally mapped out - but, uh, one small problem.

[ He raises a finger dramatically. ]

I can't find a decent place for target practice. Am I missing it? I might've missed it. There's so much here for so few people... it's cool if there's not a real range - I could paint a target on a tree if I had to, but I'd kinda feel bad for the tree?

[ Prompto sighs as he flops down onto the couch with his arms draped over his knees. ]

So - anybody know a good spot nearby? Nothing fancy - just somewhere I won't accidentally shoot up a trolley or window. Close enough to get to, far enough that the noise isn't going to bother anybody?

Outdoors'd work. Maybe something with a nice view? Photog breaks aren't required,but...

[ He tilts his head like he's considering it seriously, then chuckles. ]

No, yeah, they're required. Everybody's allowed mental breaks.

Drop me your best recs in the comments, yeah? And remember to like, subscribe and follow! Heh. I-I always wanted to say that, and I don't care if we don't have those features.

[ He's run outta steam pretty quick, but he's asked what he wanted. Prom repeats the mock-salute, this time as a sign off. ]

Catch ya next time, when hopefully I'm not shooting Cup Noodles offa my windowsill. I'm kidding!

Prompto out.

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[ He rubs the back of his neck as he takes this in. The easiest way to un-stick Prompto from a never-ending philosophical loop that he is not equipped to deal with is to present him with something concrete.

And it's not news, but it's stuff that he wasn't really listening to because he might have been too busy asking where his friends were, repeatedly, while treating Aurora like a voice-activated phone tree and trying to reboot her. ]

Okay, haven't done a mission yet, but there's no gil required at the stores here. Are points - is points the word for the currency here? Or is that what they take on other worlds? Basically are we looting and pillaging? 'cause I have issues with that.

[ Six moons? Whoo boy. ]

Is the calendar here lunar? Does that mean it wasn't my birthday?

[ The introduction to all of this remains lacking, in Dion's opinion. He may have come in mid-mission, and needs must, but the arrivals he's seen since then suggest that it bears refinement. Not that he thinks Aurora is going to change anything.

It may not be something she's permitted to do, to begin with. ]

So your world also uses gil... [ Interesting. Now he wants to ask Cloud, since his world has chocobos. Thoughts for later. ] The shops here require no currency, but the range of supplies are limited. This city is built upon over time, but we cannot predict what will be added to it, unless we exchange points for it.

Those points act as currency with Aurora specifically. If, for instance, you wished for a specific weapon or piece of equipment not present here, you may exchange points for Aurora to supply it to you.

[ Perhaps mercifully, him being here long enough means he sees the source of the confusion readily. ]

Moons are how my people speak of months. I would call your birthday your nameday. Was yours recent then?

Edited (ever just miss an operative word, rip...) 2025-11-05 22:55 (UTC)

Oh - yeah! Most of it does. Or yen.

[ He had to make the switch from yen to gil not too long ago, so he's been trying to remember to say gil exclusively when referring to money, just to make it a habit. ]

It could be just a word that means money though. Or - maybe this thing's translating it? How do I know you're saying gil when I'm hearing gil? Or that your username is actually your username and not an AI having a laugh with both the audio and visual translation?

[ The questions don't have the frantic tone of an existential crisis. He kinda wants to crack the device open and see what makes it tick. ]

Y-yeah, it was a couple days after I got here? Maybe? I dunno; it wasn't as close back home so I don't think it really counts.

I am unfamiliar with yen. During the Earth mission, the currency was called dollars. All of it is referred to as money, from what I've observed. Had I the means to write by hand, perhaps it would be clearer, but I should imagine if we can speak these words and they do not all translate to gil, we understand the same term.

[ This is simply an educated guess on his part, his own voice calm and measured as though it might offer some sort of mooring. For the sake of comparison, Dion is compelled to ask: ]

Does your world have chocobos?

[ Notably with his accent this sounds like "chock-obos", which holds true of many from Storm. ]

If the occasion was recent, then I bid you a belated happy birthday, all the same.

[ Which might be the strangest part of this conversation. Happy Birthday from Bahamut, Prompto. ]

Chockobos?

[ Prompto blinks, processing that last bit with about as much success as he has wrapping his head around anything else about this conversation so far. He scratches the back of his neck, a little awkward smile taking shape when it finally clicks. ]

Oh, chocobos! Heck yeah, we do! But I'm not from Earth, I'm from Eos, so that's why we don't have dollars and do have giant yellow birbs. I’m so glad they have them here, too. It'd suck if we were stuck here with no car and no chocobos.

[ He doesn't want to be rude, ignoring the birthday wishes seems rude. Acknowledging them, though... ]

Thanks, but uh... please don't send me a birthday card. I'm still just... trying to accept that this is a normal conversation to have. You know - this. Talking. To you. Sorry, man. Yech, see? Even the man's off.

[ He hums softly in acknowledgement of the thought of no cars and no chocobos. Owing to the Earth mission, he knows of cars, and learned to drive... Like an overcautious granny, but still. ]

That would make your world, mine, Vivi's, and Cloud's... Cloud is quite knowledgeable regarding chocobos, in fact. Aurora brought them here around the time of my arrival, so they have not always been present.

[ As to the matter of birthdays, he assumes cards must be customary in Eos. ]

I understand. My one nameday went unmarked earlier this year, but a friend found his way here at last, so I consider that in itself a gift.

Edited (how dare i miss best boy vivi) 2025-11-08 03:59 (UTC)

[ Prompto wouldn't know caution behind a wheel if he ran it over and backed up over it. Also, attention span, or that the rear view mirror is not just for checking how his hair's holding up in the wind. ]

Tell me about it, Cloud has a whole chocobo ranch going here. Kinda jealous, but I don't think I'd get anything done if I lived on a chocobo ranch.

[ It would be all birds, all day. Might be nice for the first few months. Eventually, he'd get bored, right? Right? ]

So - what's the traditional name day equivalent of grats? And you can't vaguedrop a friend.

[ Dion has lived a life of such disproportionate personal accountability foisted upon him that he has internalized it. His focus is far too much invested in everyone else, for better or worse. ]

He might not mind the occasional assistance, I should imagine, but be seems to enjoy it.

It may vary, but "happy nameday" is common. One might wish another a blessed year to come, especially in my country. [ As for the rest, he doesn't quite know how to read it. ] I would never drop him, vaguely or otherwise.

Edited 2025-11-09 23:50 (UTC)

Yeah, I know! Got myself an invitation to come help out whenever I want, and I'm definitely going to. They're a lot of work, but they're worth it. Who knows? Maybe a future career plan? Y-Yeah. Maybe someday.

[ Prompto has to pause and reread that a couple of times. He laughs, but tries to swallow it quickly. ]

Nah - I meant like - if you're gonna tell people your buddy's here, you should tell them who he is. I meant like, the opposite of a name drop. Oh hey my friend's here, who is he? Doesn't matter you wouldn't know him. It's cool though. I'm not gonna go looking for your friend.

Anyway, happy belated nameday and another blessed year to come?

[ This is the part where Dion squints at his HUD and figures out he somehow enabled speech to text, oops. Give him a moment. ]

Working with chocobos would be a peaceful life, I should think... Save for when they get wind of gysahl greens.

[ Then comes the ravenous, eager frenzy. ]

Ah, I see. His name is Joshua. Joshua Rosfield. He's a lovely man, and well worth knowing, should you meet him. I've not met another so tenacious and warmhearted, and his curiosity is boundless.

[ He didn't ask for this but yes Dion is going to extol the virtues of his childhood friend. He and Joshua are just like this for some reason. ]

Thank you for the well-wishes.

[ Enh, Prompto is responding with video regardless of how people reply to him. The swap wouldn't have caught his eye. Sometimes you're too busy for video. ]

Sneaking them gysahl greens is the best part, are you kidding?

[ Prompto is the sort of pet owner who must be told multiple times to limit the number of treats his pets are given. He visibly brightens at the mention of Joshua. ]

Oh! Yeah - I met Joshua at the Halloween party. He's totally worth knowing. Doesn't panic when someone randomly drops you at a party either. And I guess now that you mention it, you two do sound alike.

[ Not that Dion mentioned that, specifically, or that they have the same accent, but they both sound educated and formal to Prom's ear. ]

Wait - you know Joshua?

[ There's rapidfire blinking, ending in an abrupt hrm expression and the softest sort of hum and then - nope, right back to nonsense. Prompto definitely had A Thought, but he's not going to put it out for everyone. ]

Small world.

[ Chocobos get so frantic over greens that Dion thinks it quite brave to approach with them. Not that it stopped him when he'd first arrived, the greens were readily available and why not feed the chocobos, but they do get rather frantic in their ravenous enthusiasm.

The ones from Dion's world do, at least.

But the subject of Joshua overshadows that. When Dion speaks again, there's a warmth to his tone, and a certain quiet pride. ]

That does not surprise me to hear about him. [ That Joshua could maintain his composure. It doesn't surprise him at all. ] We are childhood friends, actually. In fact, he is the only other in our world I've as much in common with.

[ He'd been grateful for that from the first. ]

Okay - definitely coming back to that. I need to hear all the crazy stories.

[ Because there are always crazy stories about childhood friends, right? Running all over the city, hitting up a different arcade every day to try to lose the sticks in the mud babysitting Noct - or whatever the oldfashioned equivalent is. ]

But first, like - are there always three people from each world? Or is that just a coincidence? 'cause I know his brother's here too, and I've got two buddies here...

[ Dion's stories may be fewer than he'd like, their circumstances having been what they were, but he doubts Joshua would mind him sharing them. ]

Ah, there are six from my world now. I was the third arrival, however... Perhaps more from your world will yet join you.

[ He's glad Prompto is starting off with two friends. When Dion arrived here, it was two erstwhile enemies. ]

Six? Don't take this the wrong way, okay, not sayin' any of us want our friends here, but that's gotta be nice if you look at it right.

[ Six's a lucky number, if you ask him, and also? It's not too many people to hold near and dear, nor too many to look out for. ]

I'm - not hoping for one more, but there's usually four of us. If three of us are here, I-I'm kinda worried about Iggy. And yeah I've heard the whole explanation and it broke my brain, so you don't hafta give it again. I don't care if he knows or not: still gonna hate thinking we abandoned him.

The two who preceded me are old foes. A third joined them, so I confess my thoughts on our numbers are mixed... But they are formidable enough.

[ Martial might counts for something, doesn't it? ]

You no more chose this than the rest of us, but I understand. There are those I worry for, regardless of how all of this is meant to work. Is this Iggy one who does not fare well on his own?

[ Oh. That does change things - significantly - in Prompto's perspective. Enemy of my enemy is my friend is bull. ]

My thoughts wouldnt be mixed at all. The one person I wouldn't trust - I tried his username. It's deactivated. Good riddance he's rubbish.

[ Ardyn can bite him if he ever finds him again. ]

I - [ He laughs and the bitterness melts away again. ] I've known the guy for five years and would you believe me if I said I have no idea? He's got that sorta job where I don't think he's ever been totally and off-the-grid for more than 8 hours straight. That includes time spent sleeping. That's why I'm worried.

[ He can guess who it is. Dion wasn't personally acquainted with the man, but that was who brought up a god-Bahamut to him originally. That was how he'd known of such a thing. ]

Best to not be forced to work with one you cannot trust. 'Tis exhausting.

[ Even knowing what to expect, the wariness never quite fades even in his case. ]

A childhood friend of mine was appointed my attendant, and for that reason, I can indeed believe it. One given wholly to duty does beg for concern at times.

[ Pot, kettle in his case, but still. ]

Y-Yeah, can confirm. If they leave a bad taste in your mouth, they're about to dump you in the wilderness and steal your car.

[ Okay? Okay. He's totally not still bitter about this, but it's about making clear that we - collective Etrayan we - should still be careful about people.

Buuut this is also kinda public, so he's making it about the problem that's not here, rather than the ones that are here that may be problems. Prompto will bring that up in person, if he remembers. He's starting to lose track of all the things that he wants to ask people that seems like a bad idea over the network. ]

Is this where you tell me that Joshua's your attendant?

[ Which doesn't sound exactly right, but ... it kinda tracks? They both talk like Ignis. ]

[ Give Dion a moment to imagine Odin committing such an act. The absurdity factor is high simply for the involvement of cars, especially when one is capable of flight...

Yet Dion takes his point. Wariness is important, and one's instincts can be invaluable.

As for the topic of his attentant, Dion puffs out an amused breath. It isn't quite a laugh, but the spirit is there. ]

No, no. Joshua stands as my peer in all things, and I'm most grateful for that, for he is the only one.

[ And that gratitude warms his tone. He counts it a blessing, that there was someone in his world who so easily understood him. ]

My attendant... [ Dion trails off briefly, reminding himself of what Vax had told him. Try to have faith. ] His name is Terence, and he has not been brought to this place.

He's your only peer?

[ The gears grinding in his head are practically visible. At first - he half-smirks and looks - almost surprised? Amused, too, because that's ... a statement. ]

Yeah, okay you've only got one peer out there in the world, 'cause you're that -

[ And his mouth sort of - stays open? Hangs there for a moment while he looks to the side, looks back, blinks a few times, tilts his head. Catches his tongue between his teeth to not publicly f-bomb.

Because what exactly does it mean if Bahumut thinks you're his only peer?!? ]

... because y-you're both blond?

[ Literally the only thing he can think of to say. He's texting Joshua after this. ]

What the hell - it better not be that. I-I'm blond too.

[ The only reason he's throwing out nonsense things for them to have in common is because this is an open feed. ]

I would describe his hair as a sandy brown, actually.

[ Dion answers this without missing a beat, because he did indeed go around giving flowery descriptions of Joshua when he first reached Etraya and his friend did not. He'd always thought the color suited Joshua, for that matter. That hue is warm, like he is.

Fortunately Prompto is free of Dion waxing poetic about the Phoenix on this particular day, as he keeps this response concise. ]

We were both born the same year, we are both princes, and in contrast to other Dominants, we awakened to our powers at infancy. Our Eikons, similarly, are winged creatures, though I would contend that the Phoenix's plumage is uniquely respendent.

[ Okay, maybe a little waxing poetic. All of these things are common knowledge in Valisthea, and so, he doesn't consider them private matters. He hardly thinks royalty matters on the scale of a vast multiverse, but it is something they share, an experience they both understand. ]

That is what I meant. No other so intuitively understands as he does, and I've long been grateful I was not the only one.

So-o-o dark blond. Same thing, yeah?

[ Prompto's not gonna die on this haircolor hill, but he also doesn't how to respond to this rest of it. He knows how to respond to this tiny fragment, and apparently all of his efforts to send up a signal that he didn't want to talk about what he was worried was about to be said got missed or just plain old ignored. ]

What the hell, dude. Why would you think telling me all that's okay?

[ Dion's silent on the blond front. He's not seeing blond when he looks at Joshua. ]

What about who he or I am is not okay?

[ He doesn't know how to interpret that. Prompto asked a question, and he answered honestly because not one whiff of that is a secret in his world or even this one.

So he's left to wonder whether Prompto sees something about them as a problem. But he is polite, and he cares to seek clarification. ]

[ OOC: He reads as dark blonde to my eyes, like Mary Pickford or Shirley Temple. ]

I didn't say that anybody wasn't okay as a person or Eikon or whatever?! I'm still tryin' to get my head straight with either ignoring that about you or accepting it? And I don't even know what a Dominant is. Well. I do. Sincerely hoping that's not the context.

[ The issue is less what's been said, although that is murky, and more that Dion's the one telling him this. When he'd asked for funny stories, he meant like "that time I tricked him eating candy that tasted like grass". Not by the way, Joshua's also a kaiju. ]

Just would've rather it come from him.

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oblige - 2025-11-20 23:34 (UTC) - Expand

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