towerofanimus | Of books and lost friends

Entry tags:

Of books and lost friends

Characters: Romeo and you
Setting: Meadow, Library, Graveyard
Format: Either
Summary: Romeo gets a very complicated book as a regain, tries to read his book, then discovers some of his friends are gone
Warnings:

[Meadow] Romeo's eyes had widened when he had seen what he had gotten as a reward. He picked up the book and read the title, he had never known what the book was called before, just that it was by the great master Voltaire and that Alfredo had liked it a lot.

He went to the meadow and sat amongst the flowers before studying the book, it was charred around the edges, with burn marks on the cover, as Romeo opened it two sheaths of paper fell out. They were handwritten and Romeo smiled sadly.

He remembered Alfredo asking him if he could borrow some paper off Angeletta and then sitting and watching as his friend wrote out the sentences from memory of the pages that Citron had destroyed, they had both been worried that doctor Casella would be mad.

Even though he knew this wasn't really the same book, just a copy he was still glad to have it. Because he could read it now, it was something really important that Alfredo had liked, so now Romeo could know it too.

[Library] It did not take long for Romeo to realise that even if he was much better at reading now, this book still had a lot of words he did not understand. So off he went to the library, to find a dictionary.

It was good to have something to do though, being stuck in a room for a week had taken it's toll. He grabbed the dictionary and the book and sat down, frowning as he concentrated.

[Graveyard] While he was in the library he had tried to find miss Tohko, he wanted to show her the book, she would be able to help him because even when he knew all the words it was still difficult to understand.

But she was no where to be seen, he looked around and then went onto the network to check to see if she had posted.

She hadn't but Ken had, to say Yu had gone, Romeo had went to the graveyard to go and help his friend, then since he was there he walked along the line of graves talking to those he knew, which was a lot of people.

He wasn't really surprised when he saw miss Tohko's grave. He sighed sadly and crouched down next to it. "I'm sorry miss, I'll find a way to help you though. Miss Ruana won't eat your soul"

He wasn't so calm a few rows later when he saw Yotsuba's grave. He clenched his fists, Yotsuba was so little and nice she shouldn't have to be all alone. "Keep being a hero Yotsuba and be really brave okay, we'll save you I promise!"

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Prussia was in the graveyard once again today. Enoch's outburst the day before had gotten him in something of a thoughtful mood. He knew about Tohko's grave, and it did indeed break his heart to lose the person who was his first friend in the tower. When he spotted Romeo wandering the graveyard, the boy drew his attention.

"Hey. See some people you recognize?"

"There's lots of people I know here." For a moment Romeo looked far too old for his age as he looked around the graves of the people he had known. Then he smiled, because it was important to keep his spirits up, now more than ever. "Are you visiting someone sir?"

"Lots of people... just how long have you been here?" Prussia glanced in the direction of where he had buried the bird and nest months prior before looking back to Romeo. "Yeah, a few someones. First, a friend without a name. Then... Tohko. She was one of the first people I met in the tower. Now that I think about it, it was almost a year ago that I came here." For a moment, Prussia's gaze grew distant. That bizarre candy-searching game felt like it wasn't long ago at all.

"Two years and then..." He counted in his head, "Four months." Ruana's, Zo's, Jason's and then Riki's, it was quite easy to count months here.

He nodded sadly, "I knew miss Tohko as well, she was really nice and taught me lots of things." He blinked, "How comes your friend didn't have a name?"

"Whoa. Geez, that's way longer than I've been here. You must be really used to the crap the tower pulls by now." Not that Prussia wasn't really used to it. "As for why my friend didn't have a name... he never really had a chance to get one. When I got him, he and his babies were dead." Prussia reached up and pulled the yellow bird off his head. "See this guy? I think he was a relative."

Romeo nodded, because he was used to it. It was hard to imagine not being here and though he held his memories of his home, and of his friends in Milano close to his heart sometimes they all seemed like a really far away dream.

He blinked sadly that Prussia's friend was dead before they even met, but reached up to stroke the bird. "Does he have a name?"

"This one? Yep. This is Gilbird." The little yellow bird gave an appreciative tweet and let Romeo continue to pet him. No, it wasn't the most imaginative of names, but Prussia's sense of naming was a bit... special at times. "Hmm. You know, sometimes I wonder about my memory. I don't think any of my memories from the time before have faded. I still remember things like bits and pieces of my childhood and raising my brother. What about you?"

"Hello Gilbird." Romeo grinned as he petted him. He blinked at the question and then nodded, "I can still remember things, but it was a long long time ago." He sighed softly but then smiled, keeping his spirits up. "You had a brother?"

"Yeah... for someone your age, two years must be a very long time. My sense of time is kinda skewed because of how long I've lived, anyway." The question brings a smile to Prussia's face. "Yeah! He was the nation of Germany. He was a cute little kid, but then he grew up big and strong. I'm proud of him." He's never exactly sure what tense to use anymore; some part of him still refuses to accept that everything he loved is now in the past.

Romeo grinned at that, "I knew mister Germany! He was really really brave, and really nice!" Though it was a bit sad to remember him, because he was gone now and because what had happened.

Wait, what? "You knew my brother?!" Prussia puts his hands on Romeo's shoulders, and his speech intensifies. "Was he here before I was? That'd be before last October. I mean, I met him in February, but I never saw him before then."

Romeo nodded wide eyes at being grabbed. "Yes sir, he was here not last October but the October before that. That's when I met him, he disappeared a bit later but I can't remember when." A lot of people had disappeared, hundreds.

Oops. Way to totally startle the kid. Prussia lets Romeo go. "So... two Octobers ago. That's a long time ago, at least in terms of tower years. Darn... it's like I never even stood a chance of meeting him."

"I'm sorry sir..." He looked down, "I can show you his grave if you want... Then you can still sort of talk to him."

"Could you? That might be... nice, I guess." Prussia was kind of wondering how he had never seen his brother's grave the whole time he was here, but it wasn't like he went to the graveyard too frequently, either.

"Follow me then!" He smiled sadly and made his way round the graves until he found Germany's. There was a pile of pretty rocks in front of it, Romeo tried to put things on all his friends graves, even now that there were so many.

"Here we go!"

Prussia followed Romeo to his brother's grave, then squatted down to examine the grave. "Yep, this is his grave, alright. Has 'Germany' on it and everything." He sighed heavily. "It makes me wonder just who I met in February... I'm guessing he was just my brother from another version of my world or something, but I don't really know what to think."

"I think so sir, there are lots of worlds and sometimes the people in them are the same." He looked at the grave sadly.

Prussia just shook his head. "I think I remember hearing something about how, when we see people we know, they're from worlds where we're dead. I wonder..." He trailed off there as he tried to gather his thoughts.

"Yes... there's only one person got saved from each world. I think it's really hard for Zo to get us." Romeo told him with a nod.

There were so many strange, peaceful floors. It was always startling to find a floor that wasn't inherently dangerous, that wasn't out to get someone in some fashion. For a moment he waited, as though the flowers would attempt to eat him from the ankles up or some other foolish notion.

Of course nothing came of it and instead he strolled forward, eyes roving for anything out of place. He spied the lad, and his eyes were drawn to the book in his lap quickly. A few strides brought him closer though he lingered back, not wanting to seem threatening.

"That's quite the tome you have there, young man. Where did you get it?"

He looked up and saw the silver haired man and smiled, not threatened at all especially since the man was not too close. "I got it as a present, from the bad people." He explained, "Did you get something too sir?"

Xehanort's nose wrinkled at the thought. "I suppose I did, but it wasn't anything nearly as interesting as a book."

Romeo smiled at him and held out the book so the man could see it. "It's a bit complicated sir, but you can read it if you like." He seemed like he liked books, like Miss Tohko did and Romeo wanted to share since he had gotten something nice.

"I'm quite fond of complicated books," he said with a smile, though he waved a hand. "It's yours, though. I wouldn't want to take it from you."

"Well you can read it after me if you want, or if you read fast you can read it first. Because it might take me a long time!" He smiled, he really didn't mind sharing.

"I can read quickly, but even so a long book will still take a while. I would not want to deprive you of your gift, but if you do not mind, perhaps, we can sit and read together for a bit?"

Even if he only made it through a couple pages, that would be fine enough for him.

"Of course we can." He grinned and patted the grass next to him and turned back to the first page, he was only on the second. "It's called Essays on the Customs and the Spirit of the Nations by Voltaire, have you heard of it sir?"

"I have not, though that's little surprise. If I had, I wouldn't remember it as it would be lost with my other memories." He sits next to Romeo, hands clasping in his lap so that he wouldn't fidget or play around with things while reading. "Is this sort of work what you prefer in your reading materials?" It sounded a little heavy for someone of that age, but then again different worlds...

"You lost your memories sir?" Romeo looked at him with surprise and then shook his head. "I usually read story books, but when I was just learning to read before I got here my friend was reading this book, he liked it a lot. He was much cleverer than me, but I think I can read it now, I'm a much better reader now."

"I have no recollection of my time before the tower, no." He's a bit dismissive with the concept, as it doesn't really weigh on his mind too much even if it comes up in conversation. He's working on it in his own way. "Ah, a way to connect to someone outside of here... I hope that it's as interesting a read for you as it was for him. If you have any difficulties, I can try to help you understand as well..."

"Not at all?" That was really sad. Romeo blinked at him but then nodded, "It made him really happy so I hope me reading it would make him happy too." He smiled, "Master Voltaire who wrote this book taught a lot about freedom and justice. Alfredo knew all sorts of things like that because he was really clever and he tried to fight for those ideals too even though he was littler than I am now."

"Ah, so a young freedom fighter to be!" he laughed quietly, though sadly. How many kids were actually here? A cruel twist of fate, to have one's developmental years be in such a place. He couldn't imagine it.

"Reading is the best way to broaden and deepen one's mind. You have a noble hobby, here, young sir, and it sounds like fine material to start on."

"Yes, he wanted to make a world where all children could run free under the blue sky." He told him smiling at the book again.

"Well, this may not be such a place, but that wish can definitely be honoured in as much a way as possible." Settled next to Romeo, he waited for the boy to open the book for their reading to begin.

He opened the book to the first page, for a moment he seemed a bit daunted by the amount of text but then he nodded determinedly and put his finger to the first word.

While his reading speed was much, much faster, he doesn't say anything or do anything but sit still while he waits for Romeo to progress. It's not his book and the boy is being kind enough to share, he can afford some patience. Instead, he lets his mind wander while he waits for Romeo to turn the page.

Romeo grinned at him, "Are you finished?" He didn't want to turn the page before the man was done. "Do you like it so far?"

"Quite," he responded, before shaking his head with a laugh. "It has been but a page, young master! The meat of the book has yet to begin... though the man's writing style is quite pleasant."

"It is! It's got lots of hard words though, but I like the things that it says." He smiled and turned the page.

"If you find difficulty with a word, let me know. I may be able to put it in simpler terms for you if you wish." He might as well be useful to some degree. He smiled as Romeo turned the page, eyes darting to the top eagerly.

"I will sir! I can guess most of them because of the words around it!" He grinned and began to read again.

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Of books and lost friends

Graveyard

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meadow

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