[Date shared to me: December 30, 2022]
On the outskirts of the city lay a well-kept but small library, unnoted by history save for one event that would only be recorded by a set of highly secretive organizations, each dedicated to the research and utilization of ancient technologies. That event in question being when, on an overwise unremarkable day, a pair of beings who were not of this world wandered through the door.
******
The young man brushed a stray lock of golden hair away from his eyes as he turned the book he'd selected over in his hands. Rather than the content of the pages, he was far more interested in the fact that it was a book. He'd seen them, read them, but such casual treatment of one was almost unheard of for him. Books were things of research, restricted to recording arcane knowledge, most often in languages that themselves were in some way or another a danger and could not be kept digitally.
Instead, here on this beautiful blue planet he had left behind, was one was filled with children’s stories, fantasies of dragons and princes and magic... The last word hung in his mind as a small irony, that the things that were in the books he was familiar with would be regarded as “magic” to the everyone he was now sharing this library with.
Well, to almost everyone, at least.
He put the book back where he'd found it, as well as shelving thoughts about what timetable personal projects like libraries might be a possibility. There certainly was... something about a place like this, it helped his mind to drift, to wander to old and irrelevant quotes or ideas rather than focusing on the practical. As he glanced down the aisle to his right one of those quotes bubbled up... something about how a human's memories can... exaggerate. Stories growing grander with each telling, and those who were important to you becoming veritable giants of your past.
His eyes rested on a young girl, who he knew to be only a little older than himself. She had scarcely aged at all since the last time they’d seen one another, her height was, rationally speaking, the same to the digit as it had been when they’d parted on a beach so many years ago.
With that in mind, it felt strange that as he walked toward her, he found himself looking down on the person who he’d looked up to in his own mind for years. All the details were the same, matching memories he’d turned over so many times that they would never be forgotten now. Her silver hair flowing down longer than he’d ever seen someone have. Her hands, that he knew to give gentle and warm hugs, tracing the books in front of her in the same way he’d been doing moments ago.
His rational mind reminded him, it was a differential in time, chronological location jumping forward on “This” end when compared to “That” end, one that thankfully would not continue forever as the device which connected their worlds had stabilized.
“Chris.” He called out to her.
She jumped in place, just a bit, being snapped out of her own thoughts with a “Ha!?” before composing herself and clearing her throat. He couldn’t help but note that she had to remind herself to look up to make eye contact, and that as she did, he could see indignity building in her expression, made all the worse by his own smile unconsciously turning into a smirk.
“Leo....pold.” She eventually said, turning away from the shelves. “Find what you were looking for?”
He pretended to think about that, even though he hadn’t really come into this place for anything in particular.
“Well... that aside, I’d rather you still call me Leo.”
She sighed, looking away.
“It’s a bit awkward... To me, Leo was, you know-” she held her hand out, hovering to roughly his old height. “Besides, I thought you hated it?”
“I might have said something like that at the time,” He scratched the back of his head as their past drifted through his mind. “But now? Now it’s one of my favorite memories. I’ve missed having someone call me that.”
“Alright,” she nodded. “Leo. Did you find what you were looking for?”
“Sort of... this place is nice, and it’s good to think about the future. I want to build one like this, I think.”
“A library? You don’t have those?”
“Not like this. The closest places we have are facilities for research, this is just... Pleasant. Relaxing.”
“Is that what you were hoping to find here?”
“Well I-” He stopped himself short, he couldn’t tell her the real reason he’d come. Certainly not why he’d come now of all times.
“...No, that’s not why I came to Earth. Let’s just call it a vacation. One that happened to align with your arrival.”
Her shoulders slumped as she let out a sigh, “Still so stubborn...” And then, suddenly, her eyes became sharp and locked on his, the giant from his past emerging all at once as she leaned upward into his face.
“And smug. Don’t think I didn’t notice that cocky smirk! Just because you’ve gotten... taller, don’t think I can’t still teach you a thing or two!”
His best effort to keep a straight face crumbled, first into a smile, then laughter, even as he felt himself backing up from her threatening posture.
“Haha, yes, of course. How could I forget? If you wanted to you could probably drag me back to Mars all by yourself.”
“Damn right!” She crossed her arms, every bit as proud and unbreakable as he had ever imagined her to be.
“Then... With the library checked off the list, I want you to teach me a few more things before the day’s out. I'm most curious about ice cream and movies. I need an expert tour guide for these, and a few other things.”
He went to grab her hand, but she took his first, immediately pulling him along toward the door.
“Then just say that, dummy! We haven’t got all week and we’ll never get you anything you want if you don’t speak up!”
She rushed, eager to show him all that and more.
Unbeknownst to her, his smile could only widen at that. They certainly did not have all week, he’d have to return to work... but the ground floor of his projects had been laid, stabilizing their version of Gjallarhorn, the latest in a string of successes. Soon enough he’d have much, much more freedom. The possibility of visiting her in her own world an appealing future that he’d work as hard as ever to achieve.
For now, those thoughts were distant. His mind set to the sole objective of his trip.
Memories. Experiences. Time with Yukine Chris, as many and as much as time would possibly allow.
