[PP-F1] City of Lights (Adelyn)

[Azide 0]

Azide had always wondered how servers were able to balance so many fragile things atop those trays without dropping them. Sure, he himself had once run around on a regular basis carrying an incredibly sharp sword, but there was a sense of wonder in the more grounded coordination required for the job that this man was doing. It was true that their server was not currently carrying a particularly remarkable amount of objects, but he had still managed to navigate his way up the steps while juggling two piping hot covered plates alongside a pair of delicate and spotless glasses. Sometimes he forgot that not everybody in this world contributed to it through fighting or even crafting- there were plenty of people who had simply settled down in search of something resembling normalcy.

The rail-like man pulled up to the tableside and set down first the Chardonnay, the bottle still so heavily misted that fingerprints were left behind once he'd drawn his hand away. Next came the twin pair of glasses, placed before the pair so gingerly that the act might have gone unnoticed had it not been performed within their full view. Finally, two covered platters alighted the table, before being uncovered simultaneously. One braised halibut and a Cajun seafood pasta, still steaming and freshly prepared. 

Oregano, parsley, garlic freshly ground cayenne... and that was from the girl's plate alone. A little unconventional for a Cajun dish to be missing onion, but the aroma was to die for even then. And from his own, he could smell the warm and comforting combination of tomato, shallot, fennel, and a hint of something light. Sage, perhaps? 

The man produced a corkscrew from his front pocket, but as he moved to uncork the bottle, the young man in green waved him down. With a silent nod, the server set the device atop the table and retrieved the circular tray. "We hope that you enjoy your meal here today, sir and madame," he said, before taking his leave.

[Adelyn 0]

I listened to azide before talk about his worriedness of our food not coming, I was a rather patient girl so I hadn't noticed really until he said something. But I didn't have time to dwell on the thought before the waiter showed up. He gave us our food, as well as the bottle. It was all rather well done, it was rare to find such good service in a restraint that wasn't of impeccable quality. And lets face it, a girl who was barely an adult and before, when I wasn't an adult. Was never treated the greatest at restaurant anyway, the people never thought I was actually going to be able to pay what i ordered, or that my opinion mattered because I was just a little girl, and then I rubbed it in their face by pulling out a 100$ bill and telling them I wanted change. The look on their faces when they realized I could have tipped rather handsomely, priceless. It was one of the only mean things I ever tended to do, but it was the servers fault anyway.

Azide stopped the server from opening the bottle so I figured he wanted to himself, which was fine, I of course had never opened a bottle myself so it would have been embarrassing if he even had me try. I did however look at my food wanting to eat it, but the steam was the warning that I should probably wait to do so, as to not burn my mouth. If that was possible in this game considering there was no pain, better safe than sorry. I looked back at azide waiting for him to open the drink, and hopefully pour it, if not I would of course no big deal, but I was rather thirsty.

[Azide 0]

"By the way, ever had wine before?" asked Azide, as he made a move for the corkscrew. Glancing casually at the device, he made a point not to let his eyes linger too long, so as not to give the impression that he'd never used one before. Naturally, there'd been plenty of price and vintage wines in the household back in the day, and all of them had needed opening- so why shouldn't he be well acquainted with the task? The answer was really quite simple when one stopped to consider it; he hadn't actually become of age until after he'd moved out. With the chilled bottle in hand, he furrowed his brow. So what if he'd never actually popped one open before today? How hard could it be?

After fiddling around a bit, he lined the point of the screw up with the center of the cork and proceeded to twist away. He tittered as the sharp point slipped from its position dragged down the lip of the bottle, faintly scratching the dewy glass. Realizing that he must've been spinning the wrong way, he repositioned the tool at the indent and allowed his shoulders a bit of slack upon seeing the screw work its magic. Glancing sidelong at Adelyn, he continued, "It's pretty much the only alcohol I'll bother touching. If you've ever read any of the studies, it turns out that a glass of red wine every day actually does wonders for your health." With a sharp tug that nearly costed him his balance, the cork pulled free, and he poured a portion into each of their glasses in an exceedingly slow manner. "Of course, this is white wine," he said, clearing his throat as the pale liquid trickled down the side of the wineglass. "But same difference, right?"

[Adelyn 0]

Azide piped up with a question soon after me realization of thirst. I looked at him and answered "You know, just because im a fragile looking little girl doesn't mean ive never had some fun." I say with a sly smile. It was of course to continue the fun, jokiness we had been doing. And it did imply an answer of sorts that I had before. And it was true, I had been to places in the world when my family went on vacation it was never as simple as Florida, or las Vegas. No. we went big, we would go to japan, Netherlands, Italy, Germany, I have been to more countries than years I've been alive, so I had time to drink some wine once upon a time. I had tried other alcoholic drinks as well, and I found I was attracted to more of the fruity things, I never liked straight beer like I saw many other people drink. I would see people just walk up and ask for a beer, and then id be like yeah ill take a bay breeze please, and Id just get a look from the beer guy like "what". And id have to explain that it was a vodka drink with cranberry and pineapple juice, or in some cases orange juice. Men.

But after all I was that kind of girl, I looked like the girl who would be into the more fruity things, more delicate things, and that's just how it was. But as I was beginning to think about drinks, and the men who had no clue about alcohol other than beer, I realized that azide had never commented back on my answer to his question, well my question originally but whatever. I wondered why, I didn't know if it was he had noticed that I didn't care to dwell on the subject or what. It was weird that I was thinking about it so much and wondering why he didn't, when I didn't even want him to. I shook my head as if to make the thoughts go away before looking back at azide as he was opening the bottle. It was humoring as he realized he messed up. I listened to him talk about red wine being healthy, and I had remembered hearing about it, and read on it a little "Yeah, its good for your heart specifically, one glass a day for women, two for men, whatever the difference, but it still has its downsides as well, and I don't know why it is just red wine, so I guess so" I stared at him for a second wondering what made him so different.

[Azide 0]

Hearing the girl's comment, Azide proceeded to cross and uncross his hands quickly and repeatedly, looking like a frantic DJ in the process. "I didn't say anything about you looking fragile," he blurted. Of course, that was exactly the impression he'd gleaned over the course of however long they'd been together- but hearing the words from her own lips was rather unnerving. Had she read him somehow? He was aware that cold reading was very much a real and tangible skill, although he wasn't sure if it were even possible to read things such as micro expressions in a game like this. Would the NerveGear even pick up on those small and subtle gestures?

Pulling his plate closer to him, he unwrapped the silverware from the handkerchief enclosing it, looking back up at the blonde-haired girl. "But assuming that means you're no stranger to it, then at least I won't be seen as a bad influence- if you happen to be American, I mean," he continued. Serving wine to an eighteen year-old would hardly put him in the running for the next Joseph Stalin, but he was vaguely aware of how uptight American parents could be, even when their children were no longer children. "Although fun is something we could always use around here. God knows I'd appreciate a little every now and then," he remarked, smiling as his fingers closed around the stem of his glass. 

"Either way, I'm parched. I think it's about time we do our hearts a favor, don't you agree?" he asked, grinning as he raised the glass.

[Adelyn 0]

Azide blurted out at my comment and I giggled, I had finally gotten him to act out of place. It only took what, an hour or two, I lost track of time a while ago. He stated that he was content not being a bad influence then if I was American. "Yes im American...traveled a lot" I say just to confirm his beliefs and nothing more. I was rather surprised however that he cared about his image in society. Throughout this time I had seen him as someone who never would, as if others words or actions against him (non dangerous) would affect him. He looked like a person back in the real world to me, not caring about the thoughts of people around him, but what do I know, I only met the guy today. He then talked of how fun was needed every now and then, and to that I agreed.

There was a certain need for fun, especially for me. I wasn't one of the people out there risking lives and fighting, no that wasn't fun that's not what im saying, but it passes their time. Me, I just sit in the beginning city watching people or thinking. The latter was never fun as I usually ended up thinking of my life back in the real world, and that never ended well. But now, this present time with azide was a lot more, inviting, relaxing, and it was a nice change from my usual day of walking around doing a bunch of nothing, so I simply nodded at his statement in agreement before hearing his next set of word, and to that I smiled. I was definitely thirsty, I had been since the bottle showed up along with my food. Speaking of food, I looked down at it quickly, and back up, the steam wasn't as intense so it was probably safe to eat.

I raise the glass and in my soft voice. "A toast, to still being alive in this" I look around "As well as night apart from the rest"

[Azide 0]

For some reason, her Americanism did not surprise him very much; with light blonde hair and bright blue eyes, Japanese had more or less been out of the running from the start. Despite Sword Art Online being a Japanese game, there seemed to have always been an abundance of Americans in Aincrad, at a population which was disproportionately higher than one might expect. Japanese and American- these were the two cultures in which most of the front-liners had hailed from. Of course, there were always a few exceptions, such as the Australian Mari, or the British Tristan Delaney; even he himself could be counted in those numbers, as one of the few Canadians in this little world. 

His lips curved into a slight, yet lopsided frown as the girl dropped a passing reference to being an avid traveler. A pang of regret zipped across his heartstrings as he was reminded of all the places he had not gotten to visit. "Americans are fine by me," he started, bringing himself to smile once more. "After all, you guys do make most of the movies we watch, along with the books we read, and the music we listen to..." he trailed off with sigh, more in jest than anything.

It was only as she'd mentioned it that he realized nighttime was quickly approaching, and the sun was no longer quite as high as he'd remembered. Had time really passed by so quickly? It was like that old adage... "Times flies by when you're having fun," he said, realizing that the words had been said aloud only after he'd spoken them. Scratching briefly at his cheek, he brushed aside his little comment and reached across the table to clink Adelyn's glass with his own. "Cheers," he said, before taking a generous sip of the cool concoction, hearing in his head the ghost of an old song.

Edited October 16, 2015 by Azide

[Adelyn 0]

Yes it sure does I think when azide said time flies by when your having fun. Since we met it hadn't seemed like long, but the difference in sky color, and the presence of the sun slowly drifting away signified the passing of time. "Cheers" I say along with azide as he clings his glass alongside mine. I life my drink to my lips as he does the same, but I watch him drink a rather large amount. As he finished I take a smaller sip than him, and set my glass down. I was never one to drink, or eat fast. I was one of the weird people who liked to savor things, whether it was food, or peoples presence. Either way I did my best to make each moment last as long as possible, if I like it. That feeling had gone away a lot since the beginning of my new life in this game, along with many other things. But this night was not like the others and I could see why the old habit would be showing up again, because this diner reminded me of the life I used to live.

I looked back at my food, as always in restaurants the pasta was beneath all of the seafood parts, the shrimp, lobster, and scallops. And I noticed they had forgotten to bring me a extra one to stir with, or I had forgotten to ask, either way I needed another one to stir better. I looked around checking to make sure I didn't have one that I just could see, nope. I did however notice azides. I stared at it for a second wanting to ask to borrow it, but decided against, Cajun and fish didn't sound the greatest mix so I wouldn't bother. I took another sip of my wine before starting to stir my food as best I could with my fork. It was manageable of course, just not what I usually did. I know, im weird because I don't like stirring with one fork, heard it before.

Edited October 16, 2015 by Adelyn

[Azide 0]

As Azide finished his sip of wine, he couldn't help but notice Adelyn fiddling around with her food. At first, the sight had been something of a head-scratcher, and he had been at a loss as to what the girl might be up to. But just when he'd been ready to dismiss this as some sort of American oddity, it occurred to him that she was mixing the pasta as if it were a salad. Thinking quickly, he peeked beneath the table, provoking a soft hiss from his serpentine companion. No words were exchanged, but Lucifer had departed at once regardless, disappearing once more down the steps of the Starlight Cafe.

"I'm pretty sure you're probably a little hungrier than I am," he remarked, lifting up his fork by the end of its handle. Extending his hand towards the girl, he shook it gently, evoking memories of the classic schoolyard trick. Even to this day, the motion still made it look as if the fork were truly made out of rubber. "Take it," he said, stilling his fingers. "I've already sent for our server, so I'll have another one up here before I know it. Heck, he'd probably give me a dozen if I asked." The silverware glinted in his hand as he waited for it to be claimed by his guest and company.

[Adelyn 0]

I heard some noise as azide looked under the table, and a minute later saw the snake slither away from the table. Azide then held out his fork as he stated how I was probably hungrier than he was, which was possibly true, but more out of kindness mostly. In any case I took the utensil slowly as he stated that a server would be backs soon for his own, and I realized that's what the snake had slithered away for, as well as the noise was him..talking...to the snake. It was interesting how he was able to communicate with his familiar, and I wondered if that was a given, or something you had to obtain over time. In any case I began stirring my food at a more efficient pace than before, and was soon done, and taking a bite.

After I swallowed I rolled my eyes at how good it was. "You know, this is much better than the stale bread I had been eating since the game started." I stated in a matter of fact tone. But my face and tone quickly changed back to my soft one, along with gratitude shown. "Thank you, for the dinner, night and company. I haven't had anything like this up to now, and its nice to know this kind of night still exists" I say as may voice wavers a bit. I was always a nice person so it wasn't hard to thank people. But the man across from me made me stumble in my thoughts, which I was luckily able to keep stable, but the game had the effect of making me want to cry at every moment I talked about something that made me happy.

[Azide 0]

As Adelyn stirred away at her pasta, he stole a glance over the edge of the rooftop. Considering the time which had passed since they'd first set foot up here, it was no surprise that the view had change since then. Gone were hues of yellow, and orange and red- in their place was a blue as deep as any ocean, kept from black by only by a fading light. The broad boulevards which stretched into the distance were sparser than before, despite their open beauty. Every once in a while, the glow of a dim lamp would catch his eye; for some odd reason, a handful of these quasi-streetlights would catch flame a bit earlier than all of the others, which otherwise would not begin to flicker until after the sky had gone completely dark. Whatever reasons the inhabitants of this town might have had for deserting the nighttime streets and alleys, it could at least be said that a fear of the dark would never be one of them.

His eyes snapped back to the girl at once as her words recalled him from his daze. Fortunately, she both looked and sounded as if she were enjoying her dish; and not only that, but also the night as a whole. "If you're talking about those fifteen loaves they gave you when you first signed in, I chucked those those into the woods on my first day outside of town," he said, matter-of-factly. Partly out of frustration and partly out of a misinterpretation on the constraints of inventory space, those earlier days seemed so far and forgotten. It had been a different time. 

But as she thanked him, he noticed the way her sentiments had not rolled off her tongue quite as smoothly as they had before, as if they had gotten caught up somewhere before leaving her lips. With a smile, he answered, "I'd be lying if I said I haven't enjoyed it all. After all, I haven't had a night like this in long, long time." Azide paused to swirl the wine in his glass, before downing a second sip. "Days like this? I almost forget that I'm in Aincrad- and even when I remember, the realization comes with a more muted sting. After all... we wouldn't be here right now, if it hadn't been for our circumstances." He blinked, then raised a hand to clutch the back of his neck. "Besides, it's a bit early to thank for the night, don't you think? The night's still young."

[Adelyn 0]

As azide began to respond to my statement, I agreed mostly that nights like this made you forget that this was what it was, but for me the thought of this being a game, a death one at that would always linger in the back of my mind, whether it be during a night like this, or fighting monsters the greatest most relaxing thing you could do in this game would always be that, a game. And although this night was indeed still young, and the sky was still just as beautiful, even more so than I had ever seen in the real world. I would never feel completely happy as I could have in the real world no matter how hard I tried, nothing would shake the feeling.

"Yes, the night is indeed still young" I say back looking at the sky, the sun had completely faded away, however the little sun that was still shining was rapidly departing. "Well, were you going to take me after this" I say softly before taking a small bite of my food. It would be rude and unmannered to fill your mouth with any sort of food, in any sort of company that isn't yourself, and I had grown up not eating much, not every fast, and my family was very strict on manners, so as to anyone who would dine with me at a restaurant would tell rather easily. As of now I was rather lazy though, even though I probably shouldn't be, it was just the lingering thought still holding on to me, all I was really doing was simple stuff that was habit. No elbows on table, napkin on lap the simple stuff that most people knew anyway, I was just glad this wasn't an insanely fancy place where I had to make sure to use the salad fork with salad, and a beef fork for the beef. That got old really quickly, as you must knew or you would be stared at by the other diners, and people think being rich is easy, if you care about your social standings such as my parents, it was not.

But in any case, the night was not about me and my troubles, it was about me and the man across from me. He was rather pleasant company, nice, funny in a weird way, and laid back, or seemingly which I found weird in this game. But as he had said just recently he wasn't thinking about it at this moment, and I admired that in him, as well as his bravery in facing the game itself. I could wish upon a star that I held that trait, able to risk my life to save others, wasn't in my blood.

[Azide 0]

"Oh, I don't know..." said Azide, cocking his head to one side. "I was thinking about a night on the town, if you wouldn't mind a bit of walking." He gestured to the roof-side view of the streets, which though not quite as busy as before, were sure to hold enough fun out there for another two people. In truth, he was not entirely sure what exactly what they might find at this time, as he had rarely ever been out and about past sunset- at least when it came to non combat-related matters. Most people tended to simply retreat to their inns and shops, rather than risk roaming the floors at nighttime; perhaps it was an instinct which had carried over from the other world, which had held no safe zones.

But he did not feel quite ready to let go the events of the day just yet. There had been no grandeur or splendor today- no fall of the Hydra, no vanquishing of Yamato or repentance of an old Crusader; yet, even though not a single weapon had been drawn today, was the feeling in his veins not the very same adrenaline? He wasn't sure, but it was something, at the very least.

A familiar figure slinked up to them from the shadows of the stairway, followed closely after by his actual familiar. After requesting another fork, and downplaying the man's profuse apologies, Azide gladly accepted the utensil before dismissing him. He turned back to Adelyn, his eyes lingering on her own for a moment before he spoke next. "And to ease any worries you might have, I'll make sure that neither of us runs into any trouble down there." He doubted that anyone would bother them, but even if they did, he was confident that he would be able to make them see reason- conversationally, or otherwise. "So," he started, digging into the halibut. "Feeling up for that walk later?"

[Adelyn 0]

As azide said we could go for a walk, I was rather happy at the thought of doing so, no I wouldn't mind walking at all, I had done so much of it already in the city after all, more walking wouldn't hurt. But unlike the other countless times I had marched through the city this time it wouldn't be so boring, I wouldn't be alone watching other people or looking around for something to happen, whether a bad or good thing I never cared I always just wanted SOMETHING to happen to fix the boredom I was walking in. I watched the server show up, the snake close behind and azide was finally given a utensil, sweetie azide giving me his and all, having to wait to eat. I felt bad that he did have to wait but it was still nice that he had done what he did and he didn't seem to mind all too much, so id let the thoughts float away.

Azide brought up the walking, which I realized I never responded to and I quickly did so "Maybe...but my legs are kind of tired, you could carry me" I say with a smile. I made sure to put no sarcasm in my voice, no expression, just my usual soft tone as I looked down at my fork which had some noodles wrapped around it, a scallop at the end holding the noodles in place. I was truly messing with him, but he didn't need to know that of course. "And if you say no, ill cry because your clearly calling me fat the because its too much work." I had swallowed the food I had on my fork a moment ago. before saying the statement, and as I did I pointed my fork at him with a serious expression.

I then changed the seriousness back to that of a happy one, and in my soft voice, but a little more energetic I continue "Just kidding...sure id love to walk around town, and its nice that you'd protect me my hero" I say smiling, that's sort of what it felt like, he had been helping me so much it seemed like he was a hero, not in the like the save your life kind of way, a smaller scale. But he was being amazingly sweet, something not found to often back in the real world, or apparently this one either.

[Azide 0]

He nearly spat out the morsel of fish he'd been working on, stopping to wipe his lips with his napkin. Adelyn was smiling, but not in anyway that blatantly suggested that she was joking. The girl carried on just as he opened his mouth to speak, and he decided to let her to continue before jumping to conclusions. "It's a habit I have to work on, so I might as well start now," he reasoned. On the other hand, she did look awfully serious about it all, and it could be rather difficult to tell sometimes when somebody was pulling your leg... But if it really came down to it, was there really enough generosity in his heart to carry somebody around all night?

Luckily, Adelyn spared him from having to find out, writing off her statements as light-hearted banter. Once again, she spoke in the same soft voice that he'd become accustomed to. Azide shook his head, holding back a grin, albeit with a debatable amount of success. "Had me going for a moment there," he said, setting down the napkin. "But I thought you said that I could forget about you calling me a hero?"

 

 

[Adelyn 0]

As azide back up the hero thing, to be honest I had forgotten about that, but I needed to act as if it was intentional, I couldn't let him think I was forgetful or anything else that was negative about me, not that I thought he would. I was happy that I had finally made him wonder if I was being serious though it felt good to do what he had done to me twice before, satisfying in the least. "Yeah, I may have changed my mind, don't let it get to that cute little head of yours though, a hero is one thing a friend is another"

It was something that came out but I meant it, a hero to me wasn't a friend. A friend would be there whenever you needed it, whether it was as simple as bringing you water in bed when you had a sore throat, or being there when you cried. A hero was more of a major situation type thing and there wasn't the same connection as there was between a friend and friends. Its hard to explain I guess, but there is a difference and I hope he got what I meant. "In any case however, I hope that you don't mind me calling you such." I say to azide as I stared into his eyes, whether he stared back or not wasn't of a big concern but I did it anyway. "A friend that is" I realized I probably should have clarified as it wasn't really implied when I said it. I didn't think hed have an issue, but I just wanted to see if he thought of us as so.

I did wonder if he was like my brother though, as I had thought before they were similar and I knew my brother wasn't the easiest person to make your friend. Not in the way that he didn't like people, although that was true, but his definition of a friend was very strict and only a very few people had ever been considered such, and by a few I mean two, not even including me.

[Azide 0]

For only the second time that night, Azide lifted the fork to his mouth, bringing with it a few flakes of his fish filet. This time around, however, he did not end up nearly choking on his food. He blinked at her retort, finding himself wondering whether she was just being friendly, or if it was something else. It was a tough call, and so he opted to not to make it- he would cross that bridge when he got there, should he ever come across it in the first place. Times like these put into perspective the limits of his ability to read people; it was one thing to get a rough feel for the reasons behind peoples' actions, but it was another to be able to narrow them down to a complete certainty.

His gaze faltered, but he lifted it back to Adelyn, taking another sip from his glass. On some level, he was aware that he wasn't exactly a heavyweight when it came to alcohol, and that his experience with wine had generally been limited to tastings and single glasses at supper. Frowning slightly, he set the glass back against the table, pushing it just beyond reach as he swallowed the last of the liquid. "Sorry, I'm normally not so quick to reach for a bottle," he remarked, with a shake of his head and a stifled chuckle. 

When the girl locked eyes with his own, he found himself looking slightly to her left, then just barely to her right. "You're free to call me whatever you'd like," he offered, willing the usual smile back to his lips. "Friend, hero, Azide- heck, you can even call me Nouel." 

It was funny, that she should bring up the topic of friends; not too long ago, he had spent quite a bit of time in a daze, reflecting on the relationships he shared with various players across Aincrad. In the end, the feeling he'd been left with at the day's conclusion had not been a particularly uplifting one.

[Adelyn 0]

When Azide apologized for his drinking I was rather surprised, I hadn't even noticed considering how used to it I was. My parents had always drank a lot when we went out to parties with their rich friends, it just seemed normal to me so I wasn't used to it being an issue. They never really drank outside of when they were with their friends which I had always thought was weird but I figured it was just that social status thing they had to keep a hold of, stupid reason but not to them of course image was everything. "Its fine, your not that bad" I say with a smile.

As azide said I could call him names, he listed a couple, nouel stood out to me. I had never heard it before and I was wondering if it was some joke or his real name, normally Ida just guessed it as his real name but azide had been filled with jokes today. "Is that your real name" I say hoping I was going to be made a fool, not that I think he ever did intentionally to make me look bad, it was all in good fun I knew. I looked away from eyes and back down at my food, back up to the glass that I hadn't drank from in a bit. I was never a person who drank while they ate...weird I know. But I grabbed the glass and took another small sip, the liquid barely stopping the spice that was already taking up my mouth, it was bad or anything, I could handle spicy. I then put the glass back, behind my plate and ate a fork of my food as it needed to be eaten and this conversing all the time wasn't getting that done.

[Azide 0]

Adelyn smiled, and he found himself smiling back. "Thanks for cutting me some slack," he said, as he sliced off another corner from his filet. Only then did it occur to him that he could have used the dagger in his pouch as a perfectly good piece of alternative cutlery, had he really wanted to. The grip was similar enough, and the knife in his hand reminded him of the battlefield. It was strange, that something so innocuous paralleled so closely a much deadlier instrument. But now was neither the time nor the place to be wielding a knife as anything more than a piece of silverware, and he forced himself to drop the thought. 

Pausing to chew his food, he savored the the comforting flavors as the delicate tastes of tomato and assorted herbs courted his tastebuds. Many of the lavish furnishings of the old days had been too regal, too pompous for his liking. And yet, one could never overdo food- virtual meals like this were nothing more than an imitation of those prepared in the real word, but they sufficed nonetheless in allowing for favorable comparisons. 

"Yes, but at the same time, no," Azide said, as he finished the bite of halibut. "French, if you were wondering- although technically, it's my middle name. But it's sort of what I've always preferred." He shifted in his seat, straightening himself up in the process. "Is it safe to assume that Adelyn is your real name?" he asked, having guessed the answer quite some time ago.

[Adelyn 0]

As azide said his thanks I nodded, just to show that I had heard and a no problem kind of nod. He then explained that his name was French, and it was not even first name but his middle and that's what he had preferred. I knew some who had done that back in private school, I myself could never imagine doing so as my middle name was just terrible, it was boring and common it was nothing like my first name which I had never ran into someone else that had it so I always felt special in that. Azide asked his question but I would have guessed he thought of it earlier, Adelyn just sounded too much like an actual name and not a videogame identity. "Yeah, it is. I was never worried about coming up with a name as I didn't think id be stuck here and it become my life, but im sort of glad I did anyway, makes things easier".

When I had first created my username, I had the though that it wasn't going to be my main character. I knew well enough from experience in games that you tended to mess up a lot during your first time around unless you were just a complete bad a** but I was not, so I didn't care to come up with a username as I would just do it later on. But now that this became my life I was sort of happy I had done so, I knew some people never shared their real names, I was not among them clearly as it was my username. But real names were easier as it was what you are used to responding to and for me it provides a sense of home in a weird way, its one thing that hasn't changed from the real world to this one.

I take another bite of my pasta, and swallow before looking back up at azide, I was staring into his eyes this time just looking. It may have been creepy to him how much I looked at him, it was that weird people admiring thing I did and I knew most people would look away when they saw someone look away, as to not be caught staring, but I was never the same. "So what is your first name if I may ask"