Discontinued Western Brisshal Falling from skies

[Hanno Futaba]

Hanno nodded, noticing that his words turned the girl more low spirited. "Yeah, you would be stuck like this. Which at first may sound like a good idea, depending on who you are. But trust me, it isn't." He said, knowing a quite few individuals that were more than willing to get themselves dead if it meant living this world and their new body completely and one hundred percent of the time.

"Not going to be a what?" He slipped the question, curious but also still concerned about the situation.

Before an answer could come, however, Verya was already back to her cheerful self. Hanno crossed his arms, letting out a brief sigh before shrugging and approaching in a jog.

Translucent, teal dragonfly wings formed on the back of Hanno, who as soon as he pushed himself upwards, managed to keep the height he had gained by quickly fluttering his wings, introducing himself to the air and then stabilizing himself.

He sideglanced Verya.

"It seems like you really won't give up on this world... So in this case, I guess I will need to protect you if you get in trouble, huh?" He rose an eyebrow.

@Verya

 

[Verya]

She saw him gliding so struggle-free adjacent to her, motivating her to try leaping into the air again. She began to flap her wings, though she struggled to stay at one altitude, dipping either too high or too low from time to time. She had to land in order to reply to him, as she could feel the effort required to fly properly and talk at the same time each of the several times she tried to begin a sentence.

Verya looked up at the gliding man as she paced quickly beside him long enough to get a sentence out. "Eheh, nothing, don't worry about it, man!" She leapt again and flapped along, though she folded her wings back in to try and stick a quick landing once she had to reply again. She might as well get used to mixing up the flying and walking routine since she wasn't exactly the most talented multi-tasker.

"Protect me, eh? That's nice and all, but like, don't go doing too much for me. I can't promise any payback, after all!

@Hanno Futaba

 

[Hanno Futaba]

Hanno watched the struggles of the beastfolk, continuing to glide and fluttering his wings in reaction at her words. "Nothing to worry, huh? Generally it is something that needs some worrying. But no point on forcing anything out of you." He chuckled, watching her trying to keep the pace.

When she mentioned not being able to payback, he shook his head.

"I will do everything I can. And you don't need to like... payback. It is just what I want to do, if convincing you to leave this place is impossible." Hanno said, looking at her before lowering his height abruptly, holding her from behind under her arms to lift off in an ascending arc.

"Let me give you a hand!" He said, carrying her in the sky right under him. "You need to be more aerodynamic, open your wings when you want to glide, rest them close to your body when you want to dash." Hanno instructed, keeping her in the sky.

@Verya

 

[Verya]

Verya let out a sudden squeal and tensed up as she tried not to let the ticklishness provided her by this Hanno guy suddenly clutching her sides ruin her flying. She began to laugh it off as best she could while following his advice. Her wings unfolded and shifted slightly more spread and closed to try and find the perfect form for gliding without issue. It was difficult to tell exactly whether or not she was doing it right with the simulated flight training wheels hovering above her, but once she thought about it like learning how to ride a bike it quickly became an appreciated gesture.

"That makes sense, it's more just the... doing it part that I'm struggling with. It's like having two more arms to think about, you know?" She looked out over the land, falling silent with a smile on her face as the blue sky and the green leaves of trees and blades of grass appeared like a mesmerizing array of infinite colors. She almost forgot she was being carried for a moment.

"....... So do you have to think about those magic wings you have there?" She snapped back to conversation.

@Hanno Futaba

 

[Hanno Futaba]

The squeal was understandable, but Hanno smiled seeing Verya was enjoying herself in the flight. As she tried her wings movements, Hanno slipped more instructions in her ears, fluttering his wings and making arc movements so he would increase his height with the glide.

"So you are having more trouble with multi tasking, yeah? You will get used to it. The secret is to get to a point your wings will gain enough muscle memory. Soon you won't even need to worry about it." Hanno reassured, swaying in the sky along with Verya, giving her plently of maneuvers to practice when and where to move her wings.

"Hmm... I have to" He nodded. "My wings are magical, but they can materialize in many forms. Like a cloak, or a scarf." Hanno explained, with his wings suddenly shifting and turning into a long scarf, similar to the one that was wrapped around his neck.

As he finished his explanation, he leaned in closer. "If you want to try by yourself, let me know so I can let you go. If you start falling I will be here, so no worries."

@Verya

 

[Verya]

She got a little lost in thought at how cool it would be if she could have transforming wings that could also be a coat and a scarf. At the very least, she could just have something that turned into everything but wings and solve the issue just the same. "Huh. That sounds really cool! How do I get one?" She was silently adding to her theoretical shopping list.

"Yeah, you can let me go. I just, keep them like this, right?" She extended her wings until the point where she felt the most wind catching on them, then shifted them around to a bit less turbulent of a position so she would actually move forward. "I think we're good!"

Despite the safety net and the words of reassurance, she couldn't help but to be a little nervous for one reason or another. She clenched her fists and took a firm gulp, then a deep breath. The everything else about this character was for someone else, but this, the flying, was her paradise, and she was going to work for it with or without the human-not-human safety net.

@Hanno Futaba

 

[Hanno Futaba]

"You can't really get one... Well, maybe someone with Arcanamancy can craft you one, but this I just make myself with my faerin powers." Hanno admitted, looking at Verya and pondering for a moment before shrugging. "I could lend mine to you sometimes if you ever want." That probably would be fine, as long as he could manage the mana mantle to continue working.

When Verya gave him the 'ok', Hanno nodded and held her firmly for a moment. "Alright, get ready... 3... 2... 1..." Hanno counted down, and as soon as it reached 0, he gently released her from his hold, trying to keep a glide near her just in case, watching attentively for the flight as they kept going, faring through the sky.

He wondered how far she would manage to go without his assistance, but he was ready to go and catch her at any moment she needed. The last thing he wished was for her to hurt her wing once again.

@Verya

 

[Verya]

Given the size of Terrasphere as a game world and the vast grasslands and forest that spread all throughout Falderen, the two had plenty of time to work some confidence into that high altitude stride of Verya's, and by the time their destination came into sight, she was gliding almost entirely without Hanno's interference. That being said, the sight of their destination put a less excited grin on her face, instead reflecting a world of gratitude and a personal solace found only in the world below and onwards from her perspective. All those things she praised about her time in the game before were certainly true it would seem.

She glided down to the ground and did one last little sweep upwards before closing her wings and landing a few meters ahead. The falcon girl let out a laugh as she stumbled a bit, and continued to walk towards town while looking back over at her all too helpful guide. "Thanks again, man. I don't mind having to learn things on my own, but sometimes it just sucks. I mean, could you imagine learning to fly incorrectly? Sounds like a quick way to end up on a respawn timer, ehehe!" She gulped as she suddenly remembered the warning Hanno had given her earlier regarding deaths in this game, and immediately went to a new topic.

"Sooo, um, what's this place, anyways? You know, I really like the medieval aesthetic this world's got going on. Like a cleaner medieval sort of feeling to it, anyways."

@Hanno Futaba

 

[Hanno Futaba]

Seeing Verya enjoying and being successful and eventually independent at the glide made Hanno nothing short of proud and joyful along with her.

As they finally landed, Hanno got a good control of his standing, stretching his mana wings before making them shimmer and disappear as he turned to look at the beastfolk. "I mean, if I can help you to learn anything else, count on me, buddy." Hanno nodded firmly. "Learning how to fly incorrectly does sounds like a menace." He rose an eyebrow.

"It really is. I mean, is that even Medieval at this point? There are guns, lasers, and I fought a goddamn armored tank a couple weeks ago." Hanno shrugged with a sigh that feigned a playful confusion.

"Come on, we gotta get some good clothes for you. I happen to know a good tailor, she was the one that made my scarf." Hanno grinned, tugging his own scarf as emphasis, letting it go as he moved, expecting Verya to follow.

Thankfully, the woman happened to be a Lander, so she didn't go away.

@Verya

 

[Verya]

"Wait, really?! There's lasers and tanks?! Aw man! Maybe I should have went with Magitech after all!" She chuckled and stretched with her arms to the sky as she arched her back as far back as she could without falling over backwards. "Well, whatever. I can still pick it up later on. I know a thing or two about fixing planes, so it could turn into something interesting! Then again... Well, whatever!" She said yet again. "So when you say scarf, do you mean like a magic scarf that also turns into wings? Actually- Well, I guess not. I'd love to pick up some magic items sometime. They seem like they'd be fun!"

She brushed her own neck with her hand while she followed along, making sure not to get separated from her chaperone. It would probably be a good idea to add him to her friends list at some point. "And actually, a scarf sounds nice right about now. It gets pretty cold once you get above the trees!" The bird chuckled, with a tiny bit of a... noise of some sort. A high pitched chirp of some sort. Her hand came up to cover her mouth, and her cheeks began to warm over with a mild blush. "I didn't know I could make noises like that! Ehehe..."

@Hanno Futaba

 

[Hanno Futaba]

"Well, Magitech is super cool." Hanno chuckled. "Sometimes I think I should have it myself, but I don't think I'm thaaat creative to make some cool inventions, so instead I get creative at punching things and saving people... Ah, and cooking, I am a chef after all." He smirked with a thumb up.

Thankfully he had a lot of magitech friends to build cool things for him if he needed them, as long as he had a way to compensate them for it. Truly, as long as he had access to all that, it would be fine.

"It would be fun to see you with a plane." Hanno said, tugging his scarf out and following to gently toss it around Verya's neck, brushing his fingers on it and making them softly translucid. "There you go. It won't be like this forever, but nothing stops you from borrowing it sometimes, right?" He rose an eyebrow.

"I'm not sure if they can tailor the same thing, but I'm sure they could tailor a magical scarf that could be similar... I do have my shield that is pretty magical." He said, gesturing to the giant aegis he always carried.

The chirp then caught him by surprise, and he laughed. "Hey, that's cute." He said, finally approaching the tailor shop.

@Verya

 

[Verya]

She practically hid her face as she wrapped up pulled the scarf up over her nose, leaving only her eagle (metaphorically of course) eyes to gaze ahead as she scratched the side of her head. "Ehehe... Thanks..." She didn't necessarily want to say being called cute or given someone's scarf to borrow wasn't exactly her modus operandi, because at the end of the day her character was supposed to fit into scenarios like this like water in a cup. Perfect and adaptable. At the same time, she couldn't help but to get thrown off balance mentally as they finally approached the tailor.

Despite this, or perhaps even because of it, she very quickly became engrossed in looking through the current outfits... for men. She had skimmed over some of the outfits for women as well, but quickly decided she would need an actual expert for anything that looked halfway decent. Fashion wasn't exactly her strong suit, after all, and she wasn't here in a medieval world to wear a T-shirt and shorts.

From the looks of it, what she was here to wear was a tuxedo, which she seemed indecisive about wanting to try on or not. Sure, it was probably going to be too big for her, but she could always have it altered. Having the option for clothes like this would be a great way to establish a comfort zone and have a decent outfit to fall back on. She just wouldn't be able to indulge in them too much.

"'Ey, Hanno! Mind if I try a few things on?"

@Hanno Futaba

 

[Hanno Futaba]

Hanno smiled at Verya's thanks, guiding her to the tailor shop and opening the door for her before joining in, raising a hand in a greeting manner when looking at the shopkeeper.

The faerin couldn't help but take a look at some outfits himself, pulling a few ones to take a more careful look, but also casting a few glances at the bird girl that seemed a bit puzzled. "It is hard to choose, right? Here has some real good stuff." Hanno said, approaching her and casting a glance at the tuxedo.

"I told you, feel free to try anything. We don't have a budget. At least not one that should let you in a dilemma." Hanno said, crossing his arms. "Well, I would rather if you didn't try to bankrupt me or put this shop out of business, but yeah." He said playfully.

He knew she wouldn't pull anything absurd, but he didn't want her to hold back either.

@Verya

 

[Verya]

She laughed again, this time trying not to accidentally chirp or squawk or caw or whatever that was before. "Ahahahahaha~! Don'cha worry, man. I'll shoot for two and stop at five. Outfits, I mean! How's that?" She picked up a few tuxedo coats, sure she could find an undershirt with far less concern, and headed for the changing rooms.

It was tempting to take her sweet time, she wouldn't lie about that, but she also wasn't discourteous to anyone who would pay her way. There was a moment where she stared at the coat like it was that last three grams she got off of somebody who was too drunk and friendly to not buy them for her. This was similar, just mooching off of someone showing her kindness. Was it really the same even though it was clothing and not cocaine?

Of course it wasn't. Especially since she wasn't taking advantage of Hanno. He offered, and Verya accepted, and she wasn't about to let it become a repeat offense. She just wanted some pants and a nice outfit just in case something called for it, or she wanted that extra hit of confidence. The falcon really felt it too as she came out of the changing room with the third coat she had grabbed on and put on a cool pose with her finger to her forehead. The tuxedo was just a bit big for her, but it could always be altered.

"Whadaya think? Pretty snazzy, eh?"

@Hanno Futaba

 

[Hanno Futaba]

Hanno shrugged with a grin. "Can be more if you want, but that sounds like a good start." He said, being patient on his wait for her to get ready with the outfit trying. As she went for it, Hanno made sure to check a few things for himself, humming interested in a couple shirts and pants he soon tossed over his shoulder to bring to the counter whenever they were ready to go.

His gaze shifted, looking at the dressing room as Verya left, looking her up and down before nodding sagely. "Girls on suits work really well. You look great, buddy." Hanno said with a big thumbs up of approval.

There was truly a charm to the clothes the bird girl had chosen, and Hanno pondered in curiosity at it.

"You are pretty tomboyish, aren'tcha? At this point we will choose clothes together." Hanno smirked playfully, wondering what else was in Verya's taste.

@Verya

 

[Verya]

Verya scatched the back of her head as she offered up a chuckle in response. "Ehehe, tomboy's one way to put it. Guess I just like a good suit." She tilted her head to the side and glanced away from Hanno. "I mean, it's more like it's what I'm used to wearing for work." The bird girl sighed and looked herself over, twisting a foot to lean her stance here and there to get a better look. "Guess I can't just wear suits all the time, but..."

That sad sort of smile from much, much earlier in their meeting had returned. "Guess I gotta learn to wear a dress sometime, right? You think we should ask the shopkeep for a hand with it? I can't imagine you've worn too many dresses in your time!" She laughed a bit, trying to make it understood that if nothing else she was just being playful.

"Or we can just get some snazzy suits together and hit up the town. I haven't had a drink in a hot minute!"

@Hanno Futaba

 

[Hanno Futaba]

"I see, so it is all about taste, huh?" He chuckled, then tilted his head.

The sad smile caught Hanno's attention, and while he didn't comment on it, the frame of that expression wasn't one he wished to see on anyone... Did she get picked on for this kind of thing? His expressions became vaguely more serious. "I mean, you shouldn't feel forced to wear a dress. This is just one of the many types of clothes someone can wear, right?" Hanno said, resting his hands on his waist, now grinning.

"You already look pretty good with snazzy suits, so I will grab one myself and we can have something to eat and drink." Hanno said, tapping his belly. "I am pretty hungry myself, and so is Ghast. Right, buddy?" The Shield on his back rumbled, as he turned to go and pick up a suit for himself, one that was navy blue.

"Let's go?" He asked, not bothering to try the outfit. He already knew he would fit it. "I think you can go already wearing it, as long as we pay for it."

@Verya

 

[Verya]

As oblivious as she could be in the real world, Verya seemed to pick up on Hanno's concern almost immediately. What a thoughtful guy he was. It was just too bad that he didn't quite understand the situation, since now it placed her in an awkward spot. She could just not buy half of the clothes she had intended to, but then she wouldn't have his wallet, and she wasn't trying to make this take all year between farming up the gold and working a fifty-hour week. "Thanks! I've looked good in suits since I was... well, since I started wearing them, I guess, hah!"

She gave a nervous laugh as she compiled her thoughts and translated them into words, which became more difficult to manage as she stared at his... was that really supposed to be a shield? At least for a while, until she finally looked off to the side. "I mean, yeah, but it's actually... Uh, it's for somebody else, sort of. I mean, I'm going to be wearing it, obviously- Well I guess not obviously- Ack, what I mean is-" She sighed and put a hand over her face for a moment.

"Don't... spread it around, or anything, okay?" She stepped up closer and began to speak only barely louder than a whisper. "I made this character for somebody else, and she's... not really into the whole suit mess? I guess?"

@Hanno Futaba

 

[Hanno Futaba]

Hanno paused, crossing his arms as the words began coming from the bird girl and he slowly started to understand the whole situation... Or at least he thought he was. The reality was a bit off from what he thought, but that didn't stop him from being the usual nosy guy he was.

"Oooh, I see..." He grinned, taking a step closer as well and wrapping an arm around Verya's shoulder to tug her close as he got them facing a wall, to hide from prying eyes.

"So you are trying to pull some heart skips on a girl you know, but using your avatar huh? You little girl in love-" Hanno teased, ruffling her hair with a grin and gently letting her go. "I think she would like you in your own way. You can't be someone else forever, can ya? You have plenty of qualities yourself anyway." He said, leaning away and unwrapping his arm from her shoulder, only resting a hand on it.

"But I don't think it is a bad plan. So maybe we should grab a dress after all." Hanno grinned.

@Verya

 

[Verya]

Verya glanced away from Hanno while he pulled her over into the corner, and she ended up tugging at her collar just a bit as the first concern on her mind was to avoid embarrassing herself in some way. Apparently she didn't even need to though, since the very charitable faerin seemed unphased. Her really was just a really supportive guy, huh?

"Eheh, well, I guess not, but it's not about forever! Sometimes getting over one rough patch in life is enough to help someone, y'know?" She ruffled her wings a bit, arching her back just a bit as she gave them a couple rotations. "But the thing is, I don't know how to wear dresses, so it's probably gonna take me a few tries. Plus, fashion's definitely not my strong suit... Not that I'm not down for anything! Er-"

The falcon gave him a grin and a peace sign held up diagonally. "Basically, you pick it out and I'll try it on! Sound good?" Verya continued to do her best not to make it obvious that she wasn't a girl in the first place, but thankfully she had already been established as a tomboy. What a nice out that Hanno had supplied her.

@Hanno Futaba