Cloudsea - The Chronicle of Alice Van Vaugen

The afternoon turned into evening. Alice floated on her back, staring up into the sky, which was turning some interesting shades of orange and blue and purple. . .

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". . . Qhen?"

"Yes, Alice?"

". . . What was your childhood like?"

"A-heh... Heh... Mmmmmnnnnooo. No, not yet, Alice. We might be stuck in a situation together for the foreseeable future, but you're not quite good enough to know my life story. It wasn't good though, if that's the kind of answer you were expecting."

"Oh- Sorry. No, I. . . I guess I did want to know more? But that was the kind of answer I was expecting, yeah. I was just wondering. . . You and Viss. You two seem like you're a lot better at... all of this. Fighting, exploring- I mean, you apparently are or... were... crew on an airship. . ."

". . . How much do you know about how the Imperial Sphere governs it's islands?"

". . . . . . . . ."

Alice and Qhen floated out in the ocean, staring up at the sky as stars slowly started to come out, and the last sliver of the sun started go go down. . . And Alice desperately tried to ignore the fact that she was now minutely aware of Qhen floating less than an arms length away.

Meanwhile, back at the table, a figment of Alice's mind had just arrived, setting down a large mug of apple juice with a fairly crazy straw in it, a few bottles of varied flavors of barbecue sauce, a glass of ginger ale, and had finished serving a cup of tea that was probably more sugar and milk than tea.

( No, you do not appear physically to me, but I am aware of where you are, at all times. Like myself, you are part of the narrative. We are tools, means to an end, so I am made aware. It is nice of you to try and give Alice a break. Certainly, it is no secret that she suffers from some deal of poor stress management. I also like your way of thinking, {typeandkey}. And you're right. It's probably time Alice and Qhen got up. Please. Enjoy your drinks, and the stars, for as long as they last, for we return to the shapeless void when they awake. )

Alice stared up at the stars. It was dark now. And cold. But somehow, the cold of the water did not bother her. Nor did it being dark. Nor the knowledge she had received from Qhen about the kinds of things one can find in deep pools of water. She was... at peace. So at peace- that for a brief moment, she considered what it would really mean if she just... stayed. . . asle-

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"... You must be feeling better."

"Sorta. . . How can you tell?"

"The shadows have faded away. I could feel them watching you, but the feeling I got from them was the same feeling I get when you get all quiet after saying something you don't mean. You can't punish yourself for things outside of your control. That's no way to live."

". . . It's not fair. You and Viss, you seem to have a pretty good handle on what I'm thinking. Am I predictable? Simple? I feel like you're treating me like a child, sometimes."

"To be fair, you can get a bit... snippy, when confronted."

"That's-! I... I just don't understand people. I understand books. I understand science and magic and fiction and stories and- and..."

". . . . . . . . ."

Qhen floated there, and made no movement or reaction, lest Alice know that Qhen could hear the irregular breathing that came with suppressed crying. PERHAPS Qhen had gone a bit far- but Alice was going to be filling some pretty big shoes someday, Qhen thought. If she couldn't handle stuff like this, she was going to get taken advantage of, just like everybody else who lacks the power to control their own lives. . .

By the time she had calmed down, Qhen and Alice found themselves laying on the beach. The small waves had carried them here, and they continued to just watch the stars, and the moons...

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". . . Life is a lot less fair, a lot less fun... but in the end, it's infinitely more interesting."

"How do you figure?"

"Well, first- how often do you get to personally fight a giant, strange mechanical monster in your books?"

"Well- I mean, in my mind..."

"You also are learning more about the world. About yourself. The world isn't a safe place, and you can't hide in a lonely house by yourself forever."

"I mean..."

"Also you get to meet new people, and learn how to talk to them, and learn what they think."

". . . What- What do you think, Qhen?"

"That's a pretty broad subject. Narrow it down. What do I think about what?"

". . . . . . . . .N-Nevermind."

Alice quickly scrambled up and was on her way back to her chair to get that dress-

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"I think you're interesting."

" . . . "

"I think you're expecting too much of yourself, and thinking too hard about you, and me, and Viss, and the world around you, and focusing too hard on using every minute of every day to it's fullest. I think we woke up here because you were supposed to learn how to relax- and instead I forced you to go out into the water with me and learn how to swim. I think you need to stop thinking about what other people think about you, and just be you."

Qhen bowed deeply when Alice turned around, then reached up and brushed a hand along one of their horns in what Alice was learning was a nervous gesture.

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"And- I'm sorry. I'm not always great to be around, and I'm generally pretty critical of others, and considering we just met a few days ago, that's incredibly unfair of me. I think you're alright, Alice. I think you got potential to be just as great as the people in your stories."

". . ."

"I wasn't that candid, was I? What kind of face are you- oh."

Alice was looking past Qhen. Qhen turned, and saw the roiling storm clouds, and a truly massive wave of water approaching. Qhen looked back to Alice. She was shivering, and Qhen wasn't sure if it was the rapidly dropping temperature, or the incoming destructive wave of water. Qhen was betting on the water. So Qhen did what they thought might help.

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"Ha!? - Ah- Qhen?"

"Alice. The most important part of living life outside of books, is that there are people who can support you. Me. Viss, heck, the crew of the Brasstack is pretty alright with you. That's the most interesting thing about you. You just sort of- You're genuine. Even when you're trying to hide something like how you feel about someone, it's easy to see what you mean."

". . .O-Oh. I'm... sorry."

"None of that, Alice. I'm here, aren't I? I'm here, and thanks to you, I've found a way to pursue my purpose in life with conviction."

"Qhen. . . You're really good at evading personal questions, you know that?"

"I've been told it's my least appealing feature, second only to my terrifying visage."

The rumbling grew closer. It was now impossibly dark, and the two of them knelt on the ground because they couldn't keep their footing.

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"Well, I can't say I like it! But I don't hate you for it, either! Can you just do me this ONE favor though?! We're about to wake up. . . How bad can a straight answer be?!"

". . .Depends on who you ask. Alice- I don't hate you. But I don't love you, and I don't think you really feel that strongly for me. We've only known each other a few days. You're great- but my heart tells me I'm not allowed to allow someone that close to me. Not yet."

". . .Can you hold me closer, at least?"

". . .Sure."

---

Alice's eyes snapped open. Oh god. Her limbs were half asleep again. Who was responsible for them being dumped into her bed like this?! Qhen was just about holding her- A thought, a brief flicker of a memory flashed through her head. Aw crap. Damnit- DAMNIT- Damnit.

She remembered that entire dream. Of course she did. Because she learned how to swim. So the secret to remembering a dream was to teach herself something new while in it. Great. That- That was the last thing she really wanted! Not the swimming part. That's useful- but the REST of it. She looked closely at Qhen, who was- once again, dead asleep, in her bed.

Thinking on it, Alice was now intently aware of the fact that if Qhen had a particularly bad dream on their own, they could probably break her back just by squeezing a little too hard.

Alice listened for a moment. Outside of the quiet noises of Qhen sleeping, she couldn't hear any shuffling in the house. ... She thinks they're alone now. Maybe she could just- No! That would be wrong- But- Nobody has to know! It's just her! . . . And Qhen. Plus she needed- She needed a way to wake them up! Right. This is a perfect plan, considering her arms are pinned, and she learned what happened the last time she tried to shout Qhen awake. So she just leaned in a little bit...

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". . .So, Viss should come back later, Aliss?"

"Mnrnm-- Viss- That ymgmf??"

Some days, Alice regrets everything. Right now, she regrets these two. Viss, for being there, apparently the entire time while she thought out this plan and enacted it, and Qhen, who apparently wakes up when VISS says something! Qhen and Alice just stared at each other for a moment, before Qhen very awkwardly opened their arms. Alice rolled away and got up.

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"BOTH OF YOU OUT OF MY HOUSE, WE CAN TALK LATER- I AM GOING TO TAKE A BATH AND READ A BOOK AND I REFUSE ANYONE THAT INTENDS TO BOTHER ME WHILE I AM DOING THAT! OUT!"

Qhen and Viss were now standing outside. Viss was still looking like 'the cat that ate the canary', as it were. Alice is somehow pointedly making an effort to shut out everyone and everything, including Empty and the voices. So it looks like it's just you, Qhen and Viss. What now?