bibliophile_annex | The First Page: [V i d e o]

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The First Page: [V i d e o]

I haven't the slightest clue why I was brought to...? [What does she even call this place? A forest? A paradise? She doesn't feel entirely settled with calling her new surroundings the latter. Something is definitely off. After all, hadn't she been in the Headmaster's office at Hogwarts a moment ago?

Crossing her arms over her chest, she presses her lips together, a determined glint in her eyes.]

My name is Hermione Granger and I know for a fact that I did not choose to come here. Nor did I choose to have wings fastened onto my back.

[That part is quite curious. Bringing her somewhere against her will is one thing, but attaching wings to her back without her realizing it is another. She wonders if she had been rendered unconscious for awhile.]

Is there any way to rid myself of them? They are...cumbersome. [Not to mention they make her feel like a walking target.

She lowers her voice and adds in an undertone:] It's a shame Luna didn't come with me. This seems like something out of The Quibbler.

[Rolling her shoulders to relieve some tension, she exhales.]

I have a number of questions for anyone who has the time. I've tried to speak to the villagers, but they're not terribly... [animate] ...helpful. I wonder if they're under some spell?

[Hermione shakes her head and shifts from foot to foot.]

I would sincerely appreciate any aid. Thank you.

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It's kind of hard to explain, but the short version is that the afterlife I ended up in isn't exactly the norm. You're only there until you find satisfaction, then you're reincarnated. Naturally, if you could stay hurt or get sick, you'd fall into one of the traps of life where you might end up absolutely miserable again. So, if you get hurt, no matter how badly you'll heal completely. You can't get sick. There aren't any hospitals, just a nurse's office with a couple of beds and no nurse because technically we shouldn't need them. Most of us were in better shape there than we ever were alive. Trust me, even though I'm here because they took me out of the afterlife, there'd still be a corpse somewhere in the ground in the world I was alive in. Or ashes. I'm not really sure, I wasn't there for it. [ A brief pause ] I hope it was one of those, anyway.

[ She nods. ]

The last draft they took a little girl who lives with me and a lot of the people I talk to normally. There aren't a whole lot of elderly people here though, so I can't say for sure about that. I doubt they'd care anyway. I can't say for sure, but I think if you get old and die from old age, you just come back younger again.

Is that like "achieving Nirvana"? [Her expression falls as she hears those last words.] How else would your...remains...be handled? I thought corpses and ashes pretty much covered how most bodies are...taken care of.

[The whole topic makes her think of all of those bodies in the Great Hall. So many friends. So many people she wished she had gotten to know better.]

Children shouldn't be involved in a war! I can't believe they think that's okay. I won't stand for it. [If she can do anything about it at all. Maybe she could raise a public outcry?]

Edited 2012-07-18 07:34 (UTC)

Nevermind, it'd be a pain to try to explain that sort of thing anyway. [ Mostly she'd have to say more than she wants to talk about. ]

No one in here really thinks it is and if you're planning on talking to the Malnosso, it won't work. They've got their own set of morals that include human experimentation. Sending a kid out to do the dirty work isn't something they really care about. It's just whoever the shifts are working with.

I'm sorry. I guess you could say I'm naturally curious. [About everything.]

How many people are in Luceti? Is it a significant amount? [Because numbers could be useful.] I have no intention of approaching the Malnosso. I'd start with the foreigners first.

Maybe some other time. It's a story longer than the rest of the rambling I've done right now. [ And no one ever gets the end of the story anyway. ]

A pretty big amount. More than a hundred, I think. I can probably get a solid numeber for you a little later, I've got a guy. It depends on how many New Feathers we've got though-- New Feathers are people who just arrive, like you.

You haven't been rambling, but I understand not wanting to tell your full story at once. [Or to a relative stranger.]

It's no wonder where the name originates. [A small, breathy laugh.] If there are more than a hundred of us with various powers maybe we could send a message to the Malnosso.

There's nothing about me that's important that I won't share, don't worry. You just got here though, shoving my baggage on you would be a little weird. Especially considering something you are missing that's very important.

Definitely not! Uniting everyone for that's the problem. Besides, there are a few people working on figuring out a good way to send a message.

You're very kind for being so open. I would be happy to tell you anything about my world - or life - in return. [She'll always have baggage and she won't forget the last battle any time soon - or ever - but that's her burden.]

I would like to contact those people if I can. Do you know any of their names?

We can swap stories once you're more settled in.

Yuri Nakamura's their leader. If you ask someone about her they'll either call her Yuri or Yurippe.

I look forward to that.

Alright. [She mentally stores those names away.] I think I should get some rest first before I start on a new campaign.

Did you figure out a place to stay yet?

Not yet. Luke...Skywalker... [That will never not be odd to say.] is coming to give me a tour.

Luke's pretty cool. He'll probably help you find some place. If you need help at any point swing by to House 40, Hermione.

Thank you. I...

Actually didn't catch your name.

[~~Yuri, you made things purposefully difficult, didn't you?~~]

[ There's a teasing smile in her voice. ]

It's Yuri Nakamura. Yuri or Yurippe is fine, though!

You're the one I should contact? [Yes, Hermione has a reasonable memory.] Why didn't you say so?

Because it would've been more amusing if someone had told you where to find me and you showed up, then I could be sitting in a large chair somewhere with my legs crossed in dim lighting for no good reason other than dramatic effect when you entered the room.

That would have been a waste of time. [Now she sounds a little annoyed.] This isn't the proper time to be making jokes.

Time won't pass back in your world, so time's not an issue. If you don't make jokes and have fun every once in a while, you're going to screw up from being too stressed out. Besides, you would've gone around asking, met a bunch of people, and gotten a mini-tour of Luceti too while you were at it.

... [Hearing it put like that makes her feel a little guilty. She shifts from foot to foot before murmuring:]

I'm still tense. [In battle-mode.] I haven't had a chance to joke or even smile for months. It's difficult to just...

[She trails off, clenching her teeth together.]

I'm sorry for being terse.

Don't apologize for it. I can guarantee that I will mess with you to my hearts content if I'm in the mood for it, just like anyone else. Consider it a friendly gesture. But...

[ No chance to joke or smile for a long time. Yuri knows how that is. ]

Don't let yourself forget how to smile no matter what, okay? It's important. Even if it's hard, that's the one way that you know you've still got something to fight for because your smile is the one thing that no one can take from you.

[ Unless they're like.. a dentist or something, but she doesn't think there are any dentists here. ]

Plus it's a hell of a way to shove it down someone's throat when they think they're winning.

[She laughs softly, shaking her head.] Believe me, I'm used to that. I just wasn't expecting it.

[Everything has been too serious for that sort of thing lately.]

I've honestly been afraid to hope for too much. [And that's all she has left. There's not much else to smile about.] It would be easier if Ron and Harry were here. But I guess that's pretty selfish of me to wish for that.

[Or you can just punch them in the face.]

I can take care of myself. [She'll be even better at it once she has had some rest.]

Edited 2012-07-21 10:14 (UTC)

Hey, if dead people can find something to smile about then I expect you to be able to at least try.

[ Yuri pauses for a moment. With this girl's attitude and interest in trying to get to the Malnosso, she'd thought about trying to recruit her, but there was something new she was trying and Hermione didn't quite meet the bill just yet. ]

Anyway, I'm not telling you anything else about this place until you get more settled in.

[But that's just it. After losing so many people, Hermione almost feels guilty about being calm or happy. She's still in mourning, but she won't stay there. She knows there's a future waiting for her and she's ready to see it.]

I hadn't known the dead could smile, though I had hoped they would. [In the after-life, of course.]

I think that would be best. I'm...exhausted. [There, she admitted it.]

Edited 2012-07-21 10:47 (UTC)

You know now. There are probably plenty of apartments open even if you don't know anyone.

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