[PP - F22] Such Great Heights

[Lessa 1]

I am thinking it's a sign that the freckles in our eyes are mirror images, and when we kiss they're perfectly aligned.
And I have to speculate that God Himself did make us into corresponding shapes, like puzzle pieces from the clay.
And true it may seem like a stretch, but it's thoughts like this that catch my troubled head when you're away,
and when I am missing you to death.

The snow fell in fat, fluffy flakes. Without a breeze, the fluff came in seemingly endless sheets, more like a movie scene on loop than true reality. No birds flew, no squirrels climbed, no deer picked their way delicately through the drifts. Save for the snow, all was still. Obscured by the heavy clouds, the mid-afternoon sun took a back-seat to the majesty that was winter on the twenty-second floor. 

Though Lessa had seen many snowy days in her lifetime, she never grew tired of them. Her love of snow, and the wonder of a winter day, had been one thing Kayaba had not been able to rob her of. As such, she grinned into the curtain of snowflakes, not bothering to wipe them from her face as they settled there. Tipping her head back, she let the water warm against her flushed cheeks, felt the drops track their way down. And after a moment of solace, spent standing alone in a pristine white forest, she remembered her reason for the trip.

Pulling up her messenger, Lessa composed a quick message to Bahr.

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To: Bahr

I have a pretty big problem. If you'd be up for helping me out, I'm in the forest near Manderley.

- Lessa

Only after she casually perused her sent message did she realize her mistake, and what the tone might accidentally imply. With a flurry of numb fingers, she wrote out a second message.

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To: Bahr

No rush or anything. It's not an emergency. Take your time.

- Lessa

And then a third.

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To: Bahr

But maybe not too much time. Like sometime today, preferably. It's really cold out here.

- Lessa

 

[Bahr 0]

It was three rapid fire messages, their notification pings ringing out one after another in steady procession. Though the rings were indistinguishable from another, they somehow seemed increasingly urgent with each successive chime, spurring Bahr into summoning the menu and navigating to the panel that housed their contents. They were from Lessa, explaining to Bahr that she had some sort of vague problem that she needed his assistance with. Though, despite having sent three messages back to back, she seemed reluctant to actually explain what this problem was.

From the warmth of his bed, where he'd decided to spend most of his day, the idea of burgeoning into the cold of the snow-covered twenty-second floor sent a strange numbness down his spine. Though, if it was Lessa who was asking, he couldn't very well say no. He'd sulked following Oscar's departure from the guild for long enough, and it was probably time to develop the nerve necessary to fill her in on it. Helping her was a bonus, and just getting to see her at all was the icing on the cake.

Location data swiftly led him to her location, where nothing seemed to be particularly amiss. "And what seems to be the issue?" he inquired through chattering teeth, probably coming off quite a bit more terse than he'd originally intended to. "I mean - what can I help with?"

[Lessa 1]

Less than an hour later, she noticed the distant speck of red amid the sea of white. He stood out like a sore thumb, though nothing that brought her such joy could be described as "sore." Instead, the sight of the man plodding through the snow warmed her more completely than any in-game mechanic. Of course he hurried, she thought to herself, pleasure burning hot in her heart and on her cheeks. What had she expected?

It had been a while since they had seen each other. While Lessa secretly wished they could just spend every day together, and sometimes wondered why that wasn't an option, she still recognized that they were different people. They were still very much their own person, with different priorities and paths. When those paths did cross, of course, she was grateful for the chance to spend time with him. Sometimes, they bumped into each other randomly, or met up for quests or guild work. Other times, she coaxed him into a surprise with vague messages and an air of mystery.

Bouncing from boot to boot in the ankle-deep snow, Lessa grinned as she watched him approach. The walk to her little haven was a long one, and she had the joy of watching him travel a good part of the way. Some of that joy died away when she was able to read his expression. Immediately on alert, Lessa's back straightened, her smile slipped away, and she studied Bahr with hesitant concern. Ignoring his question completely, she asked, "Hey, are you doing okay?"

[Bahr 0]

He'd heard the question, but it hadn't quite registered. "What?" he'd heard himself ask, right around the time her inquiry fully sank in. He shook his head in response, realizing his mistake. Then, upon realizing that it may have looked as though he was answering in the negative, he quickly corrected with another shake of his head, followed by holding up his palms defensively. "No - I mean, I'm fine. Just a lot that's been going on."

It occurred to him that he wasn't sure just how aware she was of Oscar's position within the guild, if at all. Had she checked the list? Had he told her? 

"You heard, right? About Oscar leaving." He let the question settle in for a moment, before continuing. "He's been crossing off a lot of names on the Monument of Life. When I went to confront him about it, he didn't have kind things to say. Ended up leaving in the end."

She probably knew all of it. He was just coming off as patronizing.

"No worries. Did you need my help with something?"

[Lessa 1]

"No - I mean, I'm fine. Just a lot that's been going on."

At the same time as her lips curved into a frown, concern crashed into her blue eyes like a sudden tsunami. She reached for him with a gloved hand, but paused when Bahr spoke again. Oscar. Yes, of course.

Letting her hand drop again, she quickly shoved both into the pockets of her cinched black jacket. This was a difficult topic, and while she badly wanted to offer Bahr comfort, he had never struck her as the overly clingy type. More likely, smothering him with affection would only compound whatever already bothered him. So instead she simply nodded. "I know," she stated. "At least, a little bit. I saw that he had removed himself from the guild, and he hasn't spoken to me in a while now. Not that we were ever best friends, but the total radio silence is unusual."

Her jaw worked while she thought on her next words. Player killing was an incredibly touchy situation, which was a really odd concept in and of itself. Alyssa never could have dreamed of a world where she might need to weigh the pros and cons of associating with a murderer, yet she found herself doing so a number of times. Alkor had blood on his hands, as did Pinball. But were Alkor's actions justified? Were Pin's crimes forgotten because he had saved her life? Now to add Oscar to the mix...

"I didn't know about the killing," she eventually admitted. "It's surprising." Finally, she gave into the urge, and reached out to touch Bahr's arm. She squeezed, then stroked it with her thumb as she said, "I won't insult you by asking how you're doing. It's pretty clear it upsets you, and I don't blame you for it. But if you need anything, please let me know, okay?"

Remembering his question, she concluded with, "It's not that important. It's just that Christmas is a few weeks away, and last Christmas, you mentioned you'd be willing to help me cut down a tree. I guess I was just calling in the favor, but it's fine if now's not a good time."

[Bahr 0]

Her words rolled around in his head for a moment while he contemplated. The more pessimistic side of him wanted to take her up on his offer to shirk the work, go back home, and crawl back into bed. It'd certainly be warmer there. But as his mismatched hues scanned the concern that rode along her visage, he could tell that there was a different warmth waiting for him here. Something that could thaw out a part of him much deeper than what lay at the surface. Something that had the potential to pull him back from whatever dismal ledge he was lingering at the edge of.

She had a way of doing that.

"Nah," he concluded, letting that smirk only she could bring out creep across his features. "I gave you my word. On the night of our first kiss, no less." No sooner had the words left his lift than he felt a tingle upon them. Sometimes, when he thought of it, he could still feel the sensations of that very night. "Besides," he redirected, "It'll be a lot more fun than what I was doing. There's just one thing..."

In a flash, Dawn's Demise ribboned into existence in his palm, and he heaved the metal slab against a nearby pine. It didn't budge. No matter how hard he exerted himself, or whatever manner of unflattering grunts and hollers he let loose, an <<IMMORTAL OBJECT>> signal always heralded his defeat at the hands of these woods. To be fair, it wasn't like he'd dug too far into the possibility of chopping down trees in Aincrad. He just knew that, if they were to do it, it wouldn't be with his typical display of one-size-fits-all brutality.

"I, uh, don't know how we're supposed to do it." The sheepish grin that followed only served to cement his coy playfulness. He could have just asked her, 'How do we go about this?' But no. Any opportunity to let her flex her intelligence was a welcome gift. It was, after all, one of the things that had so attracted him to her. "You have any idea?"

[Lessa 1]

At the mention of their first kiss, Lessa felt herself go a bit dreamy. Damn. Even when concern, sadness, and disappointment all jockeyed for position, memories of their time together could momentarily silence everything. "Yeah," she answered him on a heavy sigh. "That was such a crazy night. It's a little embarrassing to think about, even now, because of all of that stuff I was saying. But it still ended up working out, and-"

The words died on her lips as Bahr summoned Dawn's Demise in a flash of light and twinkle of bells. "Oh," she finally managed, but the single word was lost to the obnoxious CLANG of the crimson blade meeting the tree trunk. Over and over, he swung, and over and over, it clanged. Soon, the swordsman's grunts, groans, and shouts joined the percussion in an alarming sort of rhythm. Only once all noises ceased, save for Bahr's heavy breathing, did she crack a small smile. 

A part of her wanted to ask if he felt better, but she knew that would come across as condescending. If the wild display of brute strength and violent aggression had indeed improved his mood, that's all that mattered. If not, perhaps she could help in the process a little. "I do," she answered him on a quick, breathy laugh. Pulling up her own inventory, she selected a weapon, then watched her gloved hand as it materialized there. "I made this in my shop yesterday," she explained, offering her companion the simple axe. "I didn't even notice it in my crafting options until I specifically sought it out."

[Bahr 0]

"An axe, huh?" he inquired quietly as his mismatched eyes inspected the instrument. It was puny and light when compared to his weapon, and all of his natural senses were screeching at him that if the sword hadn't even left a dent, there was no way such a feeble device would fare better. But he trusted his companion and, in a display of that trust, cast Dawn's Demise back into his inventory and poised the axe to strike. "I'm willing to give it a shot, if nothing else."

A single strike was all it took.

The sharp steel of the head's blade carved through the thick trunk of the nearest tree like a razor through paper. An expulsion of air from the site of impact accompanied the deafening crack it let loose, a rapid succession of smaller cracks following shortly thereafter in a building cacophony until it reached its crescendo at the apex of the monolith's pitch. Then, the overgrown plant fell, casting white powder from its evergreen branches before colliding into the ground with a final, mighty thud. The entire event had been so shockingly loud that the silence that followed almost seemed louder. Unnerving and awkward.

"... Well, you know what they say," he quipped in brisk bewilderment. "If a tree falls in the forest and nobody hears it, our illegal logging campaign is a success."

"Still, I hadn't expect a single swing to do the trick. Makes all my flailing with my sword a minute ago look even sillier, in retrospect. Just what the hell did you make that axe out of?"

[Lessa 1]

"Hey now," she countered, jabbing a gloved finger at him. "It's not illegal! I own this property. I think." Then she paused, tilting her head as she studied their surroundings through the softly falling snow. "I mean, I assume I do? I've never seen anyone else hanging around here. But I also never did pick up a formal deed or anything. I also haven't seen any posts indicating my boundary lines." With a quick laugh, she shook her head. "I'm going to assume there are no surveyors in Aincrad. That would be the weirdest profession choice though."

She reached over and eased the axe from Bahr's hands, then held it up to study it. "Just the usual," she answered honestly. "Hunk of metal, and then it gave me the option to add a wooden handle. Altogether, it was a pretty straight forward-" The statement ended in a gasp as the tool suddenly burst into pixels. "Good for one hit." Thoughtfully, Lessa pursed her lips as she watched the data mingle with the snowflakes. "Really should have come with a warning. Or maybe it did, and I just ignored it."

With a shrug, the Empress turned to her companion. "I suppose it's like a one-time utensil. It works better than anything else, because it's being used for it's intended purpose. Then it poofs. Now if only we had a tool for getting this sucker back to the house."