(no subject)

[losemyplace.livejournal.com]

[This is certainly a different world all right. No one knows what Tethe'alla or any of its cities are, there are no royal clothes, the houses are for the middle class at best, and Luke doesn't have to continue on his journey to die.

Yet some things are entirely the same. Those heart pains from Asch never stopped nor slowed, and it makes him concerned. His medicine isn't even here, and that makes his condition even worse; the pains last longer and linger, and he's sure it tears apart his heart the more it happens. If he's stuck here... What if he reaches his time? What if Luke had to be there to see it? He can only imagine the panic in his brother's eyes, and the despair.

So, Asch is doing something that he never thought of doing back in his world: searching for a cure, or at least something to slow down the process. He's in the library, and several books on medicine and heart problems are laid out on the table, some open to certain pages, and some closed, having not been touched yet. He's reading one in particular, a rather complicated book on the workings of the heart, yet he seems to understand.

Beside him is a notebook with notes he's taking on the subject as well as his own condition: a sketch of the heart and lines pointing out what certain things are above the notes.

"Right or left ventricle?"
"Maybe something to do with the blood flow or oxygen. Sinoatrial node?"
"No doctors here, I'm on my own"
"Heart attack. But so many?"
"Exercise? I already exercise. Useless."
"Tachycardia? Pulmonary?"
"Ventricular?"
"Always calls for a doctor, how can I do that?"
"My BPM is twice as fast as it should be. It's no wonder I'm so thin."
"Lethal, of course"
"What should I do?"

It may be fairly easy to tell him apart from other Asches, seeing how he's much thinner, paler, and without a lot of muscle despite his training. It's not like he can do a lot of it, anyway... Right now, he's rather absorbed in his studies and note taking, so he might not notice anyone unless they approach him or speak to him.]

Comments

I hope you don't mind an AU bugging your AU~?

[for-her-master.livejournal.com]

[Seeing how she hasn't had much customer base as of yet, Anise is on the prowl for people whose wishes she can grant. Of course Anise being Anise, can easily get sidetracked, especially when she's bored. Yawning, the girl browsed through the library, wondering if she may be able to find a good book to pick up, either for herself or for her Master.

Of course in her aimless wandering, she came across a certain young man who seemed the be researching a bit of information on heart problems. The devil leaned against the table, giving the books a quick look along with his notes before her crimson gaze settled on him. The young man looked worse for wear, he was definitely ill and the devil could easily assume it was heart problems.]

Do you know what exactly is wrong yet? Or is that what you're trying to find out right now?

Not at all~

[losemyplace.livejournal.com]

[He notices her lean against the table, of course, and he gives her a stern look as she looks over the notes and the books. He would like a little respect for his privacy, but he did leave all the books laying out and all. Still, he does flip the notebook over before she can read too much of it.

When she asks that question, Asch just shakes his head and looks down at his book again.]

I don't see why you need to know.

yey♥

[for-her-master.livejournal.com]

Curiosity is no longer a good reason now these days? What a shame~ Though I suppose if you need a good reason I can provide one. I'm able to grant wishes, any wish you may want I can do. But do know that it comes at a price♥

So, what do you think, interested~?

[losemyplace.livejournal.com]

[His answer is one without hesitation, not even looking up from his book.]

No.

[He doesn't believe in wishes. And even if he did, he wouldn't want this to be fixed so easily. Who knows what other price would come with it...]

1/2

[for-her-master.livejournal.com]

[Wat.]

[for-her-master.livejournal.com]

Boo, at least give me a small chance!

[She's giving you her best 'pretty please' smile. Isn't she a charmer~?]

[losemyplace.livejournal.com]

I alraedy gave you my answer.

[He does lift his gaze, if only to frown at her. It's clear he isn't interested. He's not into lolis.]

[royalscored.livejournal.com]

[ Meryl's been in and out of the library lately, finding that reading was one of the only ways to occupy her time here. And it was interesting to learn of the histories of different worlds and the way they lived without the Score.

When she sees him sitting there, instead of approaching him directly, she leans against a nearby bookshelf with her book in her hands, and instead eyes the books he has out in front of him.

Medical books? Why would Asch of all people be interested in medicine? ]

[losemyplace.livejournal.com]

[Asch doesn't notice her at first. This is a topic that Asch is deeply into at the moment, especially since they directly concern him and, in a way, his brother. He jots another sentence down on his notebook: "Something that isn't in the books?", and it's as he turns his head back that he notices that blond hair.

He looks up, and his eyes widen. He hadn't expected to see her here, especially since he's mostly seen other versions of himself and Luke. Idly, Asch half closes the book, though he doesn't want to lose his place.]

Natalia...

[Then another question presents itself: Is this the one he knows?]

[royalscored.livejournal.com]

[ It's with a very slight smile that she responds: ] Not exactly.

[ and now, though she's not quite sure how he'd react to this... ] Meryl Oakland, at your service.

[losemyplace.livejournal.com]

[That certainly answers that question. He raises an eyebrow, the hope that lit his eyes leaving for confusion.]

Meryl? [It sounds as if he's never heard of the name before. Natalia was never known as that name in his world...]

[royalscored.livejournal.com]

[ Well, that confirms her suspicion at least. Obviously this Asch is from a vastly different world from her. Though there's just a hint of relief that he doesn't react with hostility.

Although it was always possible that this Asch was simply from a time where it wasn't yet known that 'Princess Natalia' was once 'Meryl Oakland'. So Meryl still treads carefully. ]

That's my name! But I've found that most versions of me are called 'Natalia'.

[losemyplace.livejournal.com]

That's the name of the one I know.

[Finally, he closes the book. This revelation is a little more important at the moment than trying to figure out how to save his own life. Go figure.]

You weren't raised as a princess?

... holy comment misfire, batman.

[sacrificesmade]

[The reason that Luke is at the library is not all that comlicated, really. Jade's house... truth be told, was... not all that interesting. More interesting than the interior of the medical facility in Belkend, to be sure, but still left him feeling like he was staring at walls a lot when he wasn't asleep. And there were times when he wondered if he was starting to annoy Jade. Who knew if he was or he wasn't, but...

Back in Belkend, the library had been one of the few places he'd been allowed to go besides his room, even when the others weren't there. This was all well and good, until you considered the fact that most of the books in there were written by Jade, or on Jade's level. It'd all been Greek Ancient Ispanian to him, and he'd eventually given up even going. But here... maybe a real library would be different.

Unfortunately, the library might have been pushing it a little bit for travel distance. As such, this Luke - whom Asch might recognize as the one who looks about as healthy as him - flops down at a nearby table, resting his head on his arms. He'll be fine. He'll get back up in a bit. Just... give him a minute to get his strength back.]

oh gorse |D

[losemyplace.livejournal.com]

[Asch hears that thump, and he looks up to see his brother - no, the... other version of his brother. The one who's just about as sick as he is. Sick and dying. The sight makes his chest ache in an entirely different way than usual.

He won't say anything. Instead, he reaches his leg out to tap Luke's shin with his foot. Just to let him know who's there at the table with him.]

gsihgeoif shutuuuup I accidentally hit the enter key after changing the subject line. B|

[sacrificesmade]

[Luke feels the tap and his head sort of jerks up. Who was- ... oh. He... hadn't even noticed him sitting there. That one Asch, the one who was... who was sick too. And dying soon... The very thought makes his stomach clench unhappily. He remembered this Asch's brother, how he'd been so panicked that "they" might've sent Asch on the same journey... and now he knew why...

He sits up a little straighter, though exhaustion still makes him sag back into the char back just a little bit.]

Hey...

so coooooote :3

[losemyplace.livejournal.com]

What are you doing here?

[Sick as they both are, Asch acts like there's nothing different. Sure, he may be a little more watchful of this Luke than potential others, save his brother... But it's best to not dwell on death. He found that out relatively soon.

... He raises an eyebrow.]

Did you get bored?

gahhgeiosjgoes- B| And I can never deny that kind of thing without looking "cuter" or something.

[sacrificesmade]

[... It was kind of unnerving how quickly Asch picked up on that.]

Y-yeah. There's not a lot to do at Jade's house, so... I thought maybe I'd come here. [He pauses for a moment - he's... not really used to being talkative around Asch, but... After a moment's nervousness he adds] The place in Belkend - where I was staying... it had a library, but... all of the books were so complicated. I didn't really get any of it...

Nope you'll never win |D

[losemyplace.livejournal.com]

[It's more because he knows how boring being ill can be.

At that, Asch can't help... smiling behind the book, but enough for Luke to see. What an odd sight it must be for Luke, eh? Not that he knows; his brother's fairly used to it.]

It looks like you never changed. I shouldn't have expected anything different.

[He leans over to pull one of the books he was looking at, the one closest to Luke, back towards him.]

You wouldn't understand any of these, then. [...] Or maybe I could use them to get you to fall asleep.

[fononfailure]

[ Boy, the library has sure been popular lately. Not that it's a surprise given most visitors' problems or eagerness to return home and finish whatever they'd been doing previously, but even replica obliviousness isn't enough to keep Luke from noticing the sheer number of people hanging around. That and some had failed to return materials to their proper place, making for an irritable redhead when the book Luke wanted was gone. It wasn't that damn hard to put things back!

Several times already Luke had passed by Asch's table, unable to help snatching quick glances at his topic of choice and notes. Ventri-what? BPM? Having been forced to start studying biology in earnest, Luke is able to recognize the heart diagram for what it is. Weird... On the next pass Luke plunks down into an armchair nearby, elbows resting atop a stack of basic books about math, physics, Ancient Ispanian, and fononology.

Asch is much more gaunt than he should be, but since he seems busy, Luke chooses to simply stare at him.

And stare.

And stare.

Nobody said replicas were good with manners. ]

[losemyplace.livejournal.com]

[Asch glanced up when he heard someone sit on the armchair, yet not enough to get a good look. So, after that brief little look, he went back to reading. He frowns slightly at a few lines, and he writes one of his own in his notebook: "Heartbeat is irregular, Arrhythmia? Too many to narrow down."

And it's just as he finishes writing that he glances up enough to get a look at the redhead staring at him. ... So that's where that feeling of someone watching him came from. He has to frown for a second because something seems... odd, about this version of his brother. And not just the fact that his hair is longer again, but something about his facial structure...

He turns the notebook over to hide the notes and sets the pen down.]

If you've got something to say, say it.

[fononfailure]

[ From this distance it was hard to make out what the texts were about, save for what looked to be "narrow". In reference to someone's (Asch's?) heart, that didn't sound good at all... Luke was so fixated on the idea that Asch's voice breaking the silence made the replica jump, spilling the stack of books across the floor.

Damn it, damn it, damn it! What a great way to make a first impression; Luke was sure they'd never met before, unless Asch had contracted some acute illness that sapped his health from him in short order. Unlikely from the looks of things.

Luke hurries to gather the books up, wincing at the bent pages -there would be hell to pay- and not meeting Asch's eyes. ]

I didn't want to interrupt...

[losemyplace.livejournal.com]

[... His brother can be such a klutz sometimes. With a sigh, he bends down to help pick up the books, yet he only manages to pick up one when he hears that voice.

... What.

What.

WHAT EVEN.

That. That was not a masculine voice. That was... Is that why Luke's face looked feminine compared to others?! Is he a she?!

Asch just lets the book hang from his hand. Luke might be avoiding his gaze, but Asch is staring with a gape. He knew that the Lukes here lived different lives, yet he was not prepared for this.]

[fononfailure]

[ Luke certainly hadn't expected any help in retrieving the abused books and recoils a hand away when they go for the same title, casting a quick glance up at him. Why was he staring? She had been certain to clean up from practicing earlier, so why...? It takes her several moments to pinpoint his source of shock after having not experienced that reaction in a while.

...oh. Oh yeah.

Back down Luke's head goes, allowing their trademark bangs to hide her face. A-at least she wouldn't have to correct him for making wrong assumptions, though how he'd figured it out is beyond her. There wasn't that much different about her, was there? Their height was the same and builds similar - except for the narrower waist. Or was it that her hips were wider? Not that it mattered when the important part was she had made Asch uncomfortable. ]

Sorry. I'll leave you to your work...

[losemyplace.livejournal.com]

[...

...

...

...

Yeah, no, Asch is acting stupid and he knows it. It's not like Luke can help who he is, no matter what form he might be in. It's still Luke in there.

He leans over a little more to set the book he picked up on top of the books Luke already gathered, and he shuts his eyes to let out a sigh - come on, Asch, pull yourself together, it's just your brother turned into a sister - and pull himself back to his chair.]

Don't apologize over something you have no control over.

[... Or "stay", in Asch's special language.]