mirrored [r]

[king]

rondo trotted beside addi, careful not to step on her dress and make her trip. "i wish there was someone here i knew." addi lamented, sitting down beside the bar. "a tequila, please." she knocked back the rest of her martini, settling down on the stool. rondo whined. "and a bowl of water."

the growlithe barked happily.

vertigo w/ iska

[vertigo]

the gala was quite the show. iskander had sampled a variety of food in the gala and found them satisfactory -- they weren't gourmet, but they were relatively palatable by his standards. (tresillian would have frowned upon some of the dishes, though. he would have done considerably better, and iskander was certain that he would agree.)

he wasn't one for drinking hard liquor. wines were generally fine, but there was plenty of it to go around at the gala. he just wanted to walk away from the crowd for a while, take a break from all those people whom he didn't really want to talk to as the scion of the ancient eltanin family.

iskander loosened his tie and asked for some soda at the bar.

king

[king]

addi flicked through her c-gear, having googled some music scores. however, a familiar face piqued her interest. the entire appearance was almost identical to her memory, her memory of the man who played piano beautifully. her breath stopped.

"j?" she reached over to iskander to lay a hand on his arm tentatively, almost scared. it had been so long, she didn't expect to see him here of all places. "it's me... addi."

vertigo

[vertigo]

iskander turned to see someone making contact with him -- he didn't recognize the face, but the name was a source of interest for him. he imagined that it was the name of the person whom he resembled. it wasn't the first time he had been mistaken for someone else.

a2v45_uG <50 plays along

iskander had a firm grasp of who and what he was. he wasn't someone else -- this J definitely wasn't him, and resemblances were just that: resemblances and nothing else.

he placed a hand on addi's hand, smiling softly, before he removed it from his arm.

"it's nice to meet you, addi," said iskander, giving her a nod, "but i'm not J."

king

[king]

"oh!" addi sheepishly laughed, leaning back a bit. "i'm so sorry, you just look exactly like someone i know." the hand on her own was signal enough, she couldn't imagine j doing that. "but it's nice to meet you too." this time she offered a glowing smile. "what's your name?"

vertigo

[vertigo]

"i get that a lot," said iskander, smiling, "is he a popular face around these parts? i would never have imagined myself in that sort of position." he shifted slightly on the bar stool, and took a better look at addi.

"you can call me delta." almost all the people whom he knew did -- aaron knew what his real name was, but that was only by virtue of knowing him in his youth. even he called him delta in front of the rest; there was no point in having a nickname if no one used it, right?

"i'm afraid it's not as succinct a name as J is."

king

[king]

her own name was too long for her preference. "i'm addi." she returned the smile. "and no, i don't believe so. i just haven't seen him in a long time."

rondo barked randomly.

"a name is a name, the value of ones self isn't deemed by the name."

vertigo

[vertigo]

"a profound statement by a young lady," said iskander, sipping his soda pop. "it's what you do that matters, right? i can't say that i disagree with that statement. i may even share the sentiment -- hmm." he set his glass down on the counter, and shifted to look at the bartender.

he requested for himself a new glass of soda.

"has it been long since you've seen your friend? last i've heard of him, he was an acquaintance to a researcher." neo's image flashed in his mind, and iskander remembered a little too much for his liking. "in nerio city, if you were wondering."

king

[king]

glowing from praise, addi took another sip of her drink. "over a year i feel. it's been very long. i don't know if he'll still remember me." she leaned back on the stool, swirling the liquid in her glass. "nerio is quite the trek away. difficult to get there. it'll take time, and by the time i get there he may already be gone."

vertigo

[vertigo]

"you don't have his c-gear number? it seems to be the trend these days, phoning people up to meet them someplace nice. or perhaps if your friend is linked with eos, some people may yet have a way to locate him."

iskander paused.

"i know it is inappropriate, but considering how everything's been in the region nowadays -- turbulent, dangerous, full of scourge -- i honestly hope your friend hasn't met his end. i honestly hope so, addi."

his voice was concerned, and his gaze fell on addi.

king

[king]

"unfortunately no, i don't have his c-gear number. i could ask around if people have heard of him... but last i saw he wasn't particularly friendly." she took a sip of her drink and sighed, looking down at the bartop.

"i hope so too."

vertigo

[vertigo]

J wasn't a particularly friendly person? now this was interesting news to iskander's ears. he supposed that their resemblance was merely on the outside. personality-wise, they sounded completely different.

"not the type for idle chat, is he?" iskander asked, curious, "or the practical sort of person? these sort of people are usually very resilient, you know -- so we could assume he's very much alive right now. i'm sure that's an idea we could all believe in, considering everything."

king

[king]

the smile addi gives iskander is fond, and she sighs. "thank you for the reassurance, delta. it means a lot. not too often these days you can hope your friends from long ago area still alive."

vertigo

[vertigo]

"that seems like a concern of most people nowadays," said iskander, nodding in understanding, "i feel like i'm one of the few who still holds hope." he didn't know what that meant, however, but it didn't bother him. very little did. "do you think he's the type to attend these events? you might find him out in the open instead of this bar here in a corner."

king