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[ He chuckles quietly, looking down at his feet. There's so many things he wants to ask; how long it took him to come back, which scenario she's on, if she's at The End. Matters big and small both.

He suspects if he wheedled enough she'd tell him, but -

If he knows the ending, will it change?

He's always believed the first time you read a story you shouldn't look ahead. The temptation is there, but ultimately he manages to ignore it. ]

You know me a little too well for Suyeong at the 10th.

[ He admits the biggest thing he noticed. ]

Still as much of a pain as ever, though.

Edited 2025-07-30 13:50 (UTC)

[If he wheedled enough... ]

[She wouldn't tell him, because she can't. It just doesn't work. You can't skip ahead a couple of chapters and possibly understand the context. Maybe drips and drabs here. "You manipulated Anna Croft in an auction and got sent to hell for it, as per your intent." "Uriel fought Uriel, it was epic." Stuff like that.]

[But the big stuff? "You and Junghyeok failed so badly at communicating I died." "I told you how to solve a scenario by marrying me but you refused because you cared about me too much." "We bankrupted Mass Production Maker." It'd take so long to explain all those that living them would be faster! It's not that she wants to hide the future, to keep secrets -- it's that telling them would make things worse, at best.]

[But his reaction is nothing less than intense relief. If he's angry, or upset, he's at least choosing to hide it, and moreover, hide it behind a little bit of fondness. So she relaxes a little, half-turning so she can bump her elbow into his stomach.]

You're wrong there. I'm way more of a pain now. All you've done is take my shackles off.

You think I'll listen to you just because you're from a later part of the story?

[ He's teasing, and he suspects she knows that. Still, he can't help but push back against her. Especially when she bumps her elbow into his stomach, and he rubs it theatrically like she's hurt him. ]

Suyeong is Suyeong, no matter how where you're from.

[ And just to be obnoxious, he reaches up and flicks her forehead. ]

But I suppose I'll actually need to worry when you get your abilities back.

Wanna die?!

[She smacks at his hand, for a brief moment feeling nothing but the reactive vitriol that boils up instinctively whenever he pulls a stunt like that. The white-hot relief that floods in a moment later is embarrassing, though, which is why she flails a bit longer than strictly necessary.]

It's not like being farther than I said is much of a difference here. I don't need to tell you this never happened as far as I know. You definitely never said anything about it later.

[That, of course, is telling him a few things -- that eventually he gets back into the scenarios, and their paths cross once more. But she assumes those things are so obvious they're giving nothing away.]

[ Those things she tells him were what he was striving to do anyways, so he doesn't consider them a big surprise. Still, her words do make him sober a little bit, raising a hand to touch his chin thoughtfully. ]

It'd be one thing if only I potentially remembered and never mentioned it. But if you haven't either, or Junghyeok... then this place really does exist out of sight of the Star Stream to some degree.

[ His knowledge should include the Outer Gods, but not what they are - the failed timelines all seeking the Oldest Dream. There's still a chance this is some strange timeline cooked up by the Oldest Dream himself.

Dokja doesn't know that, though. ]

And whether it happened or not, the crux of the issue seems to be that returning makes you forget it happened at all.

I think we know too much to say that's actually true.

[She knows a thing or two about forgetting things, after all! Not just from Avatar, but Kaizenix -- why does everything revolve around Kaizenix!? -- and the complete subsumption of her personality beneath Yuri di Aristel. What was that if not forgetting? But she and the others had all come out of it, reminded eventually.]

[A moment's thought is all she needs to come up with an answer.]

It's more likely something stupid is happening with worldlines. If we got dropped back into our worldline, we'd remember, but no other worldline's us would because they hadn't been through it. So if someone shows up here saying that their friend here never remembered this place, them being from different worldlines is probably to blame.

[It isn't the cleanest answer, because she knows full well that the two of them, and maybe the others who weren't characters, are unique as far as the Star Stream goes. But it's still the most logical answer, especially if they assume they're in a different story altogether -- a different system, with different rules, maybe. One in which they are characters, as far as this world is concerned, and might iterate throughout any number of repetitions. How would that affect going back home? A worldline where only they knew, and countless who didn't?]

[Stupid system. Stupid book. Stupid lack of cause and effect. This is way too much.]

Just forget it! Don't worry about that now! It doesn't matter to us right at this moment!

[ He's already falling deep into contemplative thought, mumbling to himself about worldlines, when she tells him to forget it. He startles a little bit, shaking his head, and frowns at her. ]

You can't tell me not to consider something that vast and unexplained ...!

[ He does, obligingly, drop it for now. ]

That does explain why it's harder to get a read on Junghyeok, however. I thought just knowing how the story went would allow me to adjust how I handle him, but I've already influenced him more than I thought.

[ Just the Demon King scenario alone.... ]

Yeah. I don't have a handle on how much he knows.

[About the novel? Yes. About the 1863rd? She has to figure he'd act differently around her than he currently is. Angrier, maybe, if nothing else.]

There's definitely been a lot more than you know. Maybe admit that to him. I think he'd like to at least hear that you understand that you DON'T understand a lot of things. Even if he doesn't admit it, of course.

[That sentence needs to be added to literally every discussion about that man. Groaning, she slaps her face with both hands twice, lightly, like she's trying to knock herself back on track.]

[And then prods him again.]

I'm gonna give you a special forbidden taste of a little actual honesty as repayment for the lying and deceiving you. You guys being at odds is absolutely killing me. If you won't do more to fix things for your own sake, then consider me a little!

[ Dokja makes a face like he's tasted something particularly sour - or tomatoes. He doesn't like admitting when he's not sure of something, and only readily does so with Suyeong. He knows she's right, though, and heaves a sigh. ]

I'll think about it.

[ Which is as good as a promise that he will do it, honestly. ]

Killing you? Aren't you the one always insisting you don't care what we do?

[ The lilt of his lips indicates he knows she does care. ]

And it would sure be a lot EASIER for me not to care if you guys would get back to normal.

[He got all the emotional honesty he's gonna get, and even that might have been too much.]

It's hard enough getting you guys to manage anything when you're working together.

That's not my fault.

[ Yes it is but he's still offended. He's not as stubborn as Junghyeok! Right??? ]

[Again, if looks could kill.]

You still avoiding him even though the main issue right now is that if he's just a character, he doesn't matter, which avoiding him just proves in his mind?

[If she doesn't have to pretend she's not just after Dark Castle, then she's not going to pretend she'd not absolutely sick of these two and their crap. Which considering how she was acting before goes a LONG way towards saying JUST how sick of it she was.]

I'm avoiding him to give him space! He's avoiding me too, you know!

[ But he supposes that does put the issue in his court to resolve, if he's just reinforcing what Junghyeok thinks.

(For someone who professes to understand the character, he often gets his train of thought wrong a lot.)

Grumble, grumble: ]

I already said I'd talk to him about it.

Yeah, and you could technically wait a hundred years to talk to him and still technically not be lying.

[Not that she thinks he'll go that far, just...]

[This is driving her absolutely crazy. This rift.]

[ Offended because he resembles the remark: ] I wouldn't wait that long.

[ Says local man who would rather die than admit secrets. ]

[Because that claim offends her deeply, she sticks a finger out to prod him right in the forehead.]

You say that, but tell me you won't think 'this isn't a good time, there'll be a better one soon' for ninety-nine years and three hundred sixty-five days. I'm assuming that last year's a leap year, by the way!

[ He WOULD wait around for 'a perfect time' so he just glares down at her despite the finger poking his forehead. ]

That's a gross exaggeration!

Okay, okay, the leap year thing was a bit much. I take that part back. Three hundred sixty-four days. And 16 hours.

[She can't hold back a laugh no matter how she tries, prepared to tease him on this subject for quite a bit. Just because it's a little hollow doesn't mean it isn't worthwhile. Like a chocolate bunny, it looks like a lot more than it is, but it is still something.]

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wrap soon? they're probably jus gonna banter from here

As they do! o7