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Thread: Lahmu Keep

  1. #11
    Oh? Bars existed for the sake of providing unconditional happiness to all goers. Even the downtrodden could know joy in the face of intoxication; Albertus had quickly become a believer in that. With that, and with a silent toast to follow an oddly-pointed speech, Albertus was right back to downing glass after glass. Humans didn't even drink water with the ease he showed consuming hard liquor, yet Albertus himself could hardly tell a difference between the two. This drink was just far more delicious, and had one hell of a side-effect to boot.

    According to the woman whose name he'd yet to learn, he was... worldly? That was a laughable notion; she didn't know the half of it. "That might be the first time I've heard that. But, if it works, why not? I'll take it," he mused between gulps. Casual discussion was not a thing he'd been exposed to very much since appearing in this world. Even so, it was quickly growing on him. There was something peculiar about this woman. It seemed almost as if he was connected to her in some way he wasn't connected to any other human in this world. Could she have been the one at the other end of his reincarnation? No, surely he didn't accidentally create this world's equivalent of a divine, right? Maybe it was time to take a few things into consideration. . .

    That time would come shortly. For now, there was a question hanging in the air. What had the woman down this night, was the celebration of a birthday not her own. What could that have meant? It was surely something beyond Albertus' understanding. From what he knew, the annual recurrence of the date one was born on had become a thing of joy in this world. "Huh? I thought those things were happy here. Does this area not like aging or something?"

  2. #12
    This man she was with, seemed to vibrant and full of life. Meron almost couldn't explain his level of expressionism. He was pleased by being called worldly. He was excited by the simple existence of alcohol to drink. It was such a strange thing to take in. If she knew no better, she'd assume he'd been some sort of shut-in, or some kind of extra sheltered student maybe? He seemed to be quite intelligent and very understanding of things. She liked that about him too.

    Ah, but they were drinking and talking. And in talking she'd confessed to a birthday being the thing she was celebrating while being so downtrodden. This man seemed to understand birthdays and not why such a thing could be sad. His reasoning was solid enough but her story came with a bit more nuances than that. "I think the matter of aging would only be a problem if it were my own birthday. I'm not young anymore and here, it would most definitely be frowned upon," she said in a gentle explanation of Japanese culture. Another sip this one quite a bit longer. There was no real point in beating around the bush completely. She hadn't even truly intended to be coy after all... she just didn't want to bog down anyone else's mood. But the more she drank, the warmer her chest got and the more inclined she felt to opening her mouth to speak, even if it was just a few words about a situation most were already familiar with. "Birthdays for children however, are happy occasions. I'd probably be happier still... if it was something I could celebrate with the young man of the hour, but I'm not invited. And I never will be..." she said, a casual shrug to follow. How strange, normally confessing such a thing would have led her to tears, here and now she just found the bottom of another glass instead. "And so you have me in your company tonight, for whatever that is worth," she said as she placed that glass down. That was an oddly frank confession, she didn't know what her company was worth anymore, but this man was worth all the distracting conversation in the world to keep her from finding the bottom of the well of pity and sorrow she managed to fall into, each time one of these occasions passed.

  3. #13
    Upon hearing that this woman wasn't young anymore, Albertus seemed even more confused. He'd seen aged mortals many times over. Their flesh sagged from bone, the bones themselves became feeble, and the light of life slowly dimmed in their eyes. This human had none of those features, so he was admittedly at a loss for understanding. He also couldn't fathom why aging was something frowned upon. "What? Are you telling me you're old? And that's a bad thing here?" he expressed.

    She took a longer swig of liquor, so he did the same. It was obviously no matter of sorrow-drowning for him, but he wouldn't waste an opportunity. Apparently, this woman had a son whose birthday celebration she could not attend. It wasn't that she had other arrangements or anything of the sort. It seemed she simply wasn't allowed to take part. "So you have a kid who doesn't want you at his party? Kids can be like that sometimes, but... it's not the kid's idea, huh?" he questioned, seeming to have gained a certain amount of understanding from small amounts of context. "Bummer," he added. With that said, a gesture to the bartender had a round of doubles coming their way. Albertus himself was happy as could be, but one of the two obviously needed a bit more. "So we're both alone and separated from family. I can't visit my kids either. I'm not disallowed, but... it's complicated. I hear they say misery loves company, but what's the point of being miserable about it? It's not good for a parent to be too attached to their children anyway. People like us should just live life as it happens. Eventually, the kids will come back to you by their own choice. I could be finding a way to my kids right now, but... they'll be fine. So, I'll just keep partying. What about you?"

  4. #14
    This man was really interesting. Judging by his general talkativeness and lack of the normally presented boundaries, she knew he wasn't from this country originally. She figured at the bare minimum he came from somewhere west of here. And it was only further confirmed by his questions regarding aging. Not only would that have been considered a rude type of thing to question, but in this place, it was obvious when one could fell short of the expectations of society and in general you'd be shunned for it. "Well, I will not fall into my grave in a year or anything. But I am old enough that I should be married by this point and I am not. It was a really public thing so everyone from around the town I live in knows and... I find myself coming to the city to gain some anonymity," she mused as she drank. "You definitely aren't from here though... no one here would ask those sorts of questions~" she teased but she truly had no problem answering his questions. Surely this was better than those who danced on eggshells around her, only to give her pitying looks and talk about her as soon as she was out of earshot.

    Ah, the complexity of her situation wasn't completely lost upon this man, but its greater details were missing. Even so, he was apologetic, having some rather kind words to offer, even though she'd not revealed everything. "Ah, if it was simply his idea wouldn't be so bad. I did not expect to coddle him too much or anything like that," she stated. Independence was important in children, leaving them to their own devices as they got older showed them coping mechanisms and the ability to problem solve. "I should also say I have four children and two of them probably won't even be old enough to know I was their mother," she clarified the nature of her current level of discontent. She would have been satisfied just to say that, and drown the rest of her drink, but something interesting was being said.

    He understood her situation a bit because he also couldn't be with his children at the moment. He wasn't being kept from them but his own situation was complicated. She could imagine. She supposed he did look more mature, she wondered if he had older children and they were simply content to live their lives without him. Late teenagers tended to get their own apartments and the like here. But what was the point of harping over her lost children. "I suppose there isn't much point in it. But I hardly know what to do with myself most of the time... I had a small child, two toddlers and an infant, it wasn't like I knew things that didn't involve them. Besides, the most likely scenario says they will be told I am dead and they'll never have the desire to look for me," she said giving it a bit of thought. "I'm not sure how to party or let it go if I am being honest. I always end up in one of these places on their birthday to avoid the emptiness of it," she finished. Truly her life had been all about her children and while that might not have been the healthiest option, most people didn't have to deal with an empty nest until their kids grew up. And they had their partners and hobbies to carry them through the emptiness, the hope of the future grandchildren and the like to fill their homes again. As it stood, she was a 30ish, divorcee with no husband to show for the eleven years she'd spent birthing children and being a homemaker. Of course, birthdays and holidays... the times she was previously busiest were the worst for her to experience now.

    "So then, what does a fellow empty nester find himself doing for fun? Surely, coming to bars to chat up depressed ex-housewives is not the most interesting part of your day~" Ah, there it was again, like a shallow defense a mask which drew attention away from herself and back to casual conversation topics. Like she truly didn't intend to dwell or make anyone feel as bad as she did. Perhaps this was why none ever had a kind word to share, she always managed a light smile and cordial conversation, despite the fact that she felt quite broken and empty inside.

  5. #15
    Ah, this woman's matter of age had nothing to do with the years she spent alive. Instead, it had everything to do with the societal structure of this world, humans enforcing asinine rules on each other and the like. She should have been paired with another by their standards, but it was no longer so. Had she not done her duty? She spoke of having four children, which was a greater number than even he managed... and he was called a God of Creation in the original world. "You had four children. Instead of expecting more out of you, others should be raving about what you've already done. I only had a pair of twins," he stated. There was more, of course. The woman sought anonymity in bars and such during times of lost celebration. That alone was almost sinful. She accomplished only hiding, never striving for something more.

    A youngling, two with names, and one yet to grow into its Source. That was about how Albertus quantified the children she listed in terms of this world. Realistically, her situation wasn't so odd at all. It was nothing strange in the old world to leave children alone once they were off the teat, but... time changed all things. "Some might not know about you, but the beauty of life is in its stories. The oldest will remember you. The youngest will hear from the oldest, and their curiosity will take over eventually. Don't sweat it," he insisted. The problem here was that her entire life had been dedicated to her children. That was no way to exist. Each generation was to be allowed reliance on the former, but the amount of codependency this woman spoke of would be good for no one─ least of all herself. The way he saw it, she set herself up to feel this emptiness one way or another. Perhaps the short lifespan of humankind made it easier overall, as they barely had time to suffer the loss in their later years. Even then, Albertus could not entertain that sort of living.

    Worse still, the divorcee spoke of him instead of continuing about herself. Was that all part of her method? Constantly running, but getting nowhere was the state of this human. The question now was whether he'd take the proverbial bait, or turn things around again. Well... maybe he'd do both. "For fun, me? Well today, I stopped by a bar to do some prep before checking out one of those clubs nearby. I just happened to run into a depressed ex-housewife who's running away from everything, but not to anything. Right now, I'm thinking it'd be fun to make sure she knows a better way." As he spoke, Albertus slid out of his booth. His feet hadn't touched the ground in ages, and when they did, he wobbled his way into a standing position. He was quite drunk... but another speech was more important than proper balance anyway. "Always run. Never run away from anything, though. When you run, always run to the next awesome thing. You ever watch birds? When their nests are empty, they do the most flying~"

  6. #16
    This man was truly something extraterrestiral. It was becoming more obvious by the moment. She mentioned the number of children she'd birthed and he seemed surprised, but in no negative light. He made the claim that no one should have expected more of her, instead they should be raving about what she'd already accomplished. "Really? You might be alone in that kind of thought..." she said to him truthfully. Half of understanding was having enough children to work jobs, and do whatever other things the parents needed of them. "Though a pair of twins is nothing to scoff at. Two kids are a handful when they are so close together in age," she said. Ah, once more speaking from experience. If her eldest son hadn't been old enough to be interested, the two children she'd had in the middle of him and her youngest son would have been even more nightmarish. And at the time she'd already felt like she was drowning.

    Ah, but she went from drowning to nothing and now had to occupy her time. She did well enough at it, she thought, but this man still had a few more nuggets of wisdom to share. He claimed that life was beautiful because of stories, he held the belief that her oldest son would share with everyone else the information surrounding her with his younger siblings. He claimed that, there was hope it'd be enough to get them interested in her. How nice. "That is an oddly sweet thought. One I'd not considered..." she mused. Perhaps having conversations with drunk foreigners was actually quite useful. She wondered if he often walked around giving strange advice to people he'd barely met and was led to believe this was in fact a normal amount of activity for him. Why? Well...

    In the moments following her deflection he'd both answer her question and divert the conversation back to her. Strange, she didn't expect such a tactic, and he explained that his evening in this hotel bar was done specifically so he could 'prepare' to visit a club. What a strange word choice. "Hahaha---hahaha~" that was a hilarious thing to say. Even if he was absolutely serious he was planning to live the life of a college student. "You really stopped here just to pre-game? It isn't even your whole night? Wonderful..." she said seeming to find a great deal of humor in his words even knowing they weren't necessarily meant to be funny. Ah but there was more. He wanted to show her a better way... an offer to keep him company. She couldn't remember the last time she'd gone clubbing. She'd have to have been in college herself at the time. He claimed she should always run, but not away from anything but towards something awesome. How strange. His advice had a certain quality of wanderlust to it. Like he was just excited by everything... she hadn't known such a thing in quite a while. "Okay, okay. I'll bite. I can't say I've ever watched birds... but maybe I'll find a new hobby," she said finally. She also stood. There was less wobble in her step, even so, she couldn't imagine going clubbing, especially not without one more thing. His words made it sound like he planned to go and she'd let let him. "I suppose I'll let you get to it then. I am Kujaku Meron, by the way... it was nice meeting you," she said softly offering her name. She didn't have any preconceived notions here. Just some soft conversation with a strange and worldly man.

  7. #17
    Having a higher number of children than expected was the absolute last thing Albertus could fathom as negative. It made no sense. Obviously, humans didn't understand what a magnificent feat it was to create four lives within a single human lifespan. Based on what he'd been told, Albertus understood that this woman spent about a third of her current lifetime creating children and preparing them for the open world. Sadly, this world didn't understand mana like the other one he dreamed of. Based on how things worked in general though... "Even one kid's nothing to scoff at. We're talking about a whole life. Think about that. Four entire living things are out there because you cultivated them. That's awesome. You did that four times, and all it took from somebody else was a little bit of... uh..." Suddenly, Albertus paused. What did humans call it, if not mana? Seamless as he tended to be, a few of these new perceptions eluded him still.

    By the time he stood and answered the woman's redirecting question, Albertus heard laughter. She seemed to be particularly amused by his agenda for the night. Was there something strange about it? Well, she did say 'wonderful' at the end, so maybe she just thought it was a fun plan as well. The strange thing here however, was that she said she'd let him go. That didn't make any sense at all. When he laid out the game plan for his evening, he never said anything that wasn't inclusive. Wobbling around to face her fully, he prepared to correct her line of thinking. Ah, but first there was mention of her name. Kujaku Meron... was a good name. In giving it, she essentially debunked any thoughts he had on her connection to him, but maybe there was something else. Whether there was or not, his response and plans wouldn't change. "Nice meeting you too. I'm Ansh... Al... Albertus. Albertus Animusphere. Now, are you gonna make me ask? You don't look as down anymore, so what's keeping you from the club?"

  8. #18
    According to the man even a single child was nothing to scoff at. An entire life, cultivated by a singular individual and able to function in its own. That was probably something good to think about. Strange, she'd never considered what it would mean long term to birth four individual children, instead, she'd simply felt the emptiness of their leaving. Ah, but there was also something occurring with the word choice of the man she was speaking with. It seemed though his conversational Japanese far surpassed that of any foreigner she'd ever met, but the word for the addition of men was missing from his vocabulary. That was fine, with a small giggle she'd manage to help with that... "Seieki... is the word you're looking for," she stated. She supposed it was fair enough, it wasn't like the openly polite of Japanese society would have taught such a word. "I didn't consider it to be anything too amazing but growing people is not something many would chose to do so many times..." she said giving it a bit of thought. This man would make a reasonable motivational speaker. At the very least, a good friend...

    Moving on, at what should have been the parting of the ways, she received his name, though not without great effort. Perhaps all those drinks he'd been having were taking effect finally. So who was he? Albertus Animusphere, definitely a foreigner. And he wanted to know if he was going to have to ask... Oh? He was inviting her to go out with him to this club he was going to, just because she wasn't so down any more. Foreigners were so strange. She couldn't help but blush and look a bit sheepish. "I haven't been to a club in over a decade, I didn't assume it was an invitation," she said softly. "I don't really have any other plans for the night or anything, but are you sure?" she asked. It was her nature. Japanese culture was steeped in politeness. People often offered things just to be polite and it was rude, needy or greedy to accept the first time something was offered.

  9. #19
    Seieki was the word Albertus had been looking for. Well, wasn't that fun? Even without understanding the purpose of ejaculate, the humans of at least one area had named it properly. Based on his understanding, that single word had multiple meanings, and most could be taken as accurate descriptions of its true purpose. "Seieki? Fitting name," he mused. Surely this woman had no idea the true amount of power that came with childbirth, but with a word applied to mana that fit so well, there was surely some small amount of applied magic. True enough, few would choose to produce so many offspring on a whim. Originally, few were even capable of such feats. Albertus had it on good authority that this notion remained true in humans of this world and era. "I doubt most people could manage it even if they wanted to. That would especially be the case here, but... you're different," he said while glancing up and down the woman's form. However that gesture was interpreted, Albertus was appraising her ability to create as the gods of a bygone world did. The capacity of humanity was limited, though that wasn't the case for all of them, obviously. . .

    Albertus would soon be finding the nearest nightclub and discovering how they allegedly elevated a party experience. He would not, however, be doing so alone now that company was a possibility. Meron didn't believe he was giving her an invitation earlier, and... frankly, she was right. He didn't mean to invite her; he assumed it was only natural that they go together. "It wasn't an invitation, Kujaku Meron. Look at you. Drinking back to back, mixing drinks when you say you shouldn't, having a philosophical chat with a complete stranger... Yeah, you're coming," said Albertus after his gaze finally settled on the woman's face. With that, there was a grin most certain. Albertus downed another full glass of whiskey over ice before stepping fully away from the table... or maybe not stepping. Stumbling? It was more of a stumble, though with a strange amount of flair that onlookers couldn't laugh at if they tried. "C'mon! If you don't have plans, make plans. You're letting a lot of life pass you by otherwise!"

  10. #20
    Fitting name? Well, she supposed if one believed the strange mysticism of the formerly popular religions such a thing would make sense. Of course, she had nothing to say about it one way or another. "I suppose, if you believe certain things it's a fitting name..." she said willingly leaving the subject of words for bodily fluids behind as they moved on in conversation. According to him, most people couldn't manage having so many children even if they wanted to, but something about her was different. What strange commentary. "I don't think there is any thing that makes me especially different..." she said truly not believing. Except for a few medical reasons, most women could have children. In earlier centuries it wasn't uncommon to pop out as many children as possible to help out on farms and help with manual labor.

    Ah, but all of that was an aside. According to Albertus, he didn't invite her. By his own words, he'd made the assumption she was coming along based on her own actions and contradictions so far in their interactions. What was she to say to that? She had gone drinking with the intention of forgetting. She'd mixed liquors knowing that the consequences would likely be terrible. She was having a random conversation and taking advice from a slightly less unknown stranger. "I mean, you're hardly a stranger anymore given how long we've been talking..." she said. Those bits about her were mostly true and she actually wouldn't mind accompanying him anywhere. She watched him stumble away with a strange amount of flair, she couldn't really laugh but a small smirk did cross her lips. "Alright. Clubbing... I can agree to that..." she said, knowing well that given the grin he'd had, she couldn't have said no even if she wanted to. Something about him seemed rather inviting. She felt deeply like she'd regret not tagging along on this little adventure.

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