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[the message comes at a good time. she's recently finished her second trek through the depths and wouldn't mind a more familiar, less spooky presence in her life.]

Hey, Satoko.
Fire away. Could use a break from catacomb diving.

Rest assured, the feeling is mutual. I'd never thought the day would come I'd be tired of winning at a board game.

[ she DOES win, of course. she's willing to cheat to get there, even. ]

Might we meet in person?
These always strike me as a poor substitute for real contact.

Oh yeah, sure.
I think K got sucked into one thing or another and the big MK is keeping me away from her for funsies.
I know she'll be fine, she'll just want to kick a god's ass when she's back.
What I'm saying is the place is empty if you want to come over.

What a relief. I'll be dying one time less today, if nothing else.

[ someone's still saaaltyyyy. not that salty, though - not enough to stop her from coming, as is evidenced by the knock a few short minutes later. ]

Edited 2022-03-21 19:56 (UTC)

[god. one time. whatever. anna opens the door and steps aside to let satoko in.]

Hey, Satoko. C'mon in, get comfortable. While I think about how worried I should be about the kind of favor you're gonna ask.

Worried? Whyever would you be worried?

[ it's genuinely asked - the thought didn't even occur to satoko. for as sharp a girl as she is, she can be remarkably blunt-headed sometimes. she doesn't respond at first, choosing instead to get comfy on anna's bed - remaining upright, thank you very much! - before finally speaking up. ]

...did she have a family? The piece you were before. [ a beat. ] Perhaps it's a stupid question, but it isn't as if I know much about living robots...

[that's an interesting question. interesting enough to catch her off guard as she follows satoko into her bedroom.]

Uh... not that I ever learned about, no. I don't know if robots have families. But I have a little sister, if that's important here.

That's not what I was asking.

[ it's a bit sharp, though not overly so. she stops, takes a deep breath, and tries again. ]

Who was she close to? Did she love anyone, if she was capable? Was there someone she relied on?

[ah, okay. now she gets it. there's a better answer she can give, then.]

There was an android named No.4 in her squadron. Someone she was responsible for, who I'm pretty sure she was in love with. [a pause.] She sacrificed herself to keep A2 alive.

[ she. satoko watches anna from the corner of her eye, not turning to face her even as she mulls it over. finally, after a great deal of thought and a few seconds of silence, she asks: ]

And you? What do you feel for her?

Me?

[that's less easy. the day she lost her eye, for an extremely brief flash of time, she thought that she was no.4. but that was too long ago and for too little time to leave more of an impression. when she answers, she doesn't sound as sure of herself. she's leaning against the doorframe.]

I guess it's hard to separate what A2 feels and what I feel. I know that I don't know No.4 at all, but when I think about her, there's still part of me that recognizes how much she mattered. [she stares down satoko with only mild suspicion.] Where you going with this?

Nowhere important.

[ satoko is good at setting traps. satoko is good at lying for a grand cause, putting on an act when some machination or devious plot requires it.

satoko is absolutely abysmal at lying just because. ]

It was just... some questions, I suppose.

Mmhm.

[she slowly crosses her arms over her chest.]

I only know you as well as you want me to, but I'm pretty sure both of us know that you don't ask questions that aren't important.

I ask all sorts of unimportant questions! I would hardly be a trapmaster if I didn't, you know. One needs to know when to vary their approach, or it becomes predictable!

[ ...but she's just buying time like this, right now. she falls silent again, looking down to anna's floor, and then finally speaks. ]

...you met me when I was grown, yes? When I was Satoko Kimiyoshi.

[uh huh. sure. trapmaster and all. anna could say a lot of things, but really, the core of it comes out with satoko talking about the older version of herself that she'd met back in january. anna nods slowly.]

I did. You gave me a hug and made fun of me for asking sad questions instead of just getting the hug. [but this isn't really the time to direct anything towards herself. she pushes herself up a little.] Why? Was that not someone I should've met?

It hardly matters, really. It just makes it easier that you remember her.

[ "her." not "me." ]

She's... [ she thinks a moment longer, and sighs exasperatedly. ] It doesn't matter how I explain it. She isn't my future, and she certainly isn't my past. She's a me that never should have existed. But she's still a part of me now.

[ she reaches over, grabbing one of anna's pillows and hugging it to herself. ]

You understand so far, yes?

An alternate version of yourself that got drawn back into the original. [she nods, understanding better than she'd like.] This isn't the first place or time I've run into something like that.

[she pushes off the door entirely, then, and comes closer to the bed. sits down within touching distance of satoko. her hand touches the sheets, almost inviting her closer. it's better than a pillow, if it comes to that.]

Keep going.

[ satoko looks over. she genuinely considers it. and ultimately, she turns back, facing the floor once again.

she's not seeking comfort. not exactly. but she's not rejecting it, either. ]

...she had a daughter.

[ that part speaks for itself, really. ]

[as someone who's never cared about children and who's convinced that she won't ever be able to have any again even if she did, it's hard to relate immediately to what satoko means by this.]

[as someone who has lost too much, it's too easy. she pulls satoko against her chest the way that she'd once done for anna. puts her hand in her hair. breathes and longs for the days she had a heartbeat to calm people with because the slow, glowing pulse of the black box just doesn't work the same.]

I'm sorry.

Edited 2022-03-21 21:41 (UTC)

What for? It's not as if you did anything.

[ but she lets herself be pulled into anna's grip, lying against her chest without even a token bit of resistance. she sighs out as she breathes, and in that sigh lies something inhuman. old - far older than a person should be. tired. ]

I remember raising a girl that isn't mine. I fear for her safety despite knowing her mother is already there for her. And I want to see her again. More than almost anything. [ she shakes her head, manages a familiar scoff of disdain. ] Honestly, how inconvenient. I thought I'd gotten past such mundane attachments centuries ago.

[ she knows better, of course. she's known better since before she ever came here. ]

Satoko...

[she wants to give her a stern talking to right now. she wants to throw the words that ms. kimiyoshi had told her back into her face. about just allowing yourself to be loved. to experience emotions. to not shut things off and pretend that she's better than them. but it won't be helpful right now, so she holds her tongue.]

You don't have to pretend like it doesn't hurt to lose people. She was important to you, and the memories aren't going to disappear just like that. You already know how long memories last. [better than anybody in trench, she would wager.] I'm sorry that this place gave you that and took it away from you after just long enough to get used to it.

I'm aware of that, of course. I'm not trying to pretend otherwise. I'm simply irked that I have a daughter I can't see, from a husband I didn't choose.

[ the irritation is real, of course. but the sadness is still there beneath it. ]

I suppose I might have found out eventually. After I grew tired with this world, perhaps. Or perhaps a few more down the line. It isn't as if there're any shortage of possibilities.

[anna sighs. she could say something right now, but it just. doesn't feel like the right time to talk about—it doesn't matter. christ, satoko. anyway.]

I guess there's not much point grieving when you can jump to a timeline where it's not a problem anymore. [she sounds defeated more than pissed, but there is still some irritation bubbling below her voice. she gives it a moment to stop simmering before she continues.] I can't imagine being that patient. I don't know how you do it sometimes.

Why would I grieve even if I couldn't?

[ the question is genuine, but the emotion is beginning to drain away. this is the satoko anna knows, after all - for better or for worse. ]

It has nothing to do with patience, Miss Anna. She's alive. Her parents are alive. She leads a happy life, with friends and a family that supports her. The Sakiko and Satoko Kimiyoshi of that world don't know I exist, and they certainly don't need my intervention.

[ ...it's strange. she's speaking coldly, evenly - but she's still clutching the pillow, still leaning into anna's touch. ]

If you had proof that Rose was happy, living a life where she succeeded in her goals, would you want her to come here?

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