"I believe I understand what you mean, Authoress. Though, you may have a slight misconception about emotions.. I think, in your context, I-"
"Polo-la-pi! Incoming! Incoming!"
It was at that moment that Cledwynn's demon tails started, for lack of a better term, going wild. Two were busy flailing and lashing about to their fullest extent while the third kept evidently speaking- almost yelling- and making incoherent noises while poking Cledwynn's head repeatedly. Which was weird, since they didn't have mouths- it was just emanating a voice.
"Polo-la! Po-po-la-pi!! Incoming! Incoming connection request from ID 3-QUi7-1bR1u_M! Red request! Accept! Accept!
Cledwynn gave a small gasp, and quickly took hold of the bases of the lashing tails, straightened them out, and set them to hang on his ears.
"Ah.. sorry, I have to take this. It's, uh.. it's a call. Sorry. ....Accept."
"Patchiiiiiiiing! ... Aaaaaand... Connected!
Cledwynn turned away from the Authoress, making sure to fully address her sentiment later, but for now there were matters that needed attending.
"Hello..? Bria? What's the issue?"
He spoke in a hushed, panicked tone on the assumption that something bad had happened and was the purpose for the call.
"Oh, stars, you are a cute little thing when you're worried, you are!"
Though it was a call between the two, it was easily heard, albeit slightly hushed.
Cledwynn let out a little grunt, then sighed.
"I should have known.. Bria, I told you specifically not to specify it as a red request unless it's an emergency.."
His breathing shivered, then began to calm down.
"But it is! We miss you, we do! You promised you'd call, you did! But then you didn't call, you didn't.. And we got worried, we did! All of us, indeed!
"Okay, okay, Bria, just calm down. I get it. I apologize." He let out a sigh, because he knew how Bria could get when it came to things like this. The girl was prone to panicking.
"Remember that we love you, we do.. All of us, Cledwynn. You're always out, away from the rest of us.. We worry. We do. .. Where are you, anyway? We've stuff to tell you about the travels, we do!
Good old Bria.
"I'm .. actually, I'm at a restaurant. In space. At the End of the Universe."
"Aw, no good, you know I'm allergic to space, I am!.. I wanted to come visit.. Ah,
well. Can't win them all, I can't. How's it there? Food's good?
"Haven't ordered anything yet."
"... Well, what the John Wick are you doing there if you haven't tried the food?"
"Yet."
"Ehh... Touché, frappé."
"What..? ... Anyway, anyway, you said you had information you wanted me to know?.."
"Yeah, yeah! Supernatural freaky make-your-eyes-widen stuff, it is! I'mma let li'l Malgie-mal tell you the deets on the deets, I will."
"Oh, uh, okay. Sounds plausible."
"Cledbear, I don't even have an idea what that means, I don't. Whatevs, patching you over to Malmalmalmalmal. Equilibria out!
Cledwynn chuckled to himself and shook his head, feeling a little nostalgic.
"She hasn't changed a bit."
"...Who hasn't...?
"Hm? Amalgie, is that you?" He'd asked this, but their voice was far too unique to forget. It was sort of like the kind of voice you'd hear on something classified under the term 'chibi', and honestly Amalgie's look matched the voice well.
"Papa Keddy...! Hello hi..!"
"Hello there, Animalgie. How's time with Bria and Ten? Having fun with your new family?"
"Mhm, yeah!.. Bri and Tenten.. best sis and bro! Ten outta ten- no, no, eleven outta ten..! They.. favorites. ..Amalgie loves..!
"Well, that's exceedingly wonderful, sweetheart. I'm glad you're happy. So what's-"
"Amalgie's happy that Keddy's happy that Amalgie's happy..! ... Oh.. did Amalgie...
interrupt speak..?"
"No, no, it's-"
"Amalgie's sorry..! Didn't mean.. to do..
"No no no, it's fine, Amalgie. I promise."
"Ah... Keddy promises.. always good promises.. Amalgie loves Keddy..!"
Through all this time, Cledwynn realized that he only bothered to correct Amalgie once on how they were to address him.
"I love you too, dear, and the next time I'm with the rest of you and not adventuring, I'm going to buy you some more accessories."
"And... new stuffed bunbun..?"
"Huh? What happened to the old one?"
"... Got burned.. in.. one of Amalgie's portals.."
"Then of course I'll find you a way to get another. Cross my heart, darling." Cledwynn hadn't taken this tone with many people- his motherly aspect came out when he was tasked to protect someone. Usually he tasked himself to do that, and he honestly just loved taking care of people. And Amalgie was no exception. Especially because he found them so adorable.
"Yay..! New bunbun, new bunbun..!" They were saying the words in singsong, which worked well with their rather high-pitched yet soft voice. "Oh, hey.. Keddy wants to talk to Ten..? For informations..?"
"But Bria said you had information-"
"... Uh.. well, see.. Amalgie did a forget. But.. Ten.. has super memory! Ten remembers.. all the stuff!"
"I believe I should talk to Ten then. It'll be nice to hear him again."
"Yeah..! Ten is... mega excited!.."
"Patch me through to him, then. You know how, right?"
"Mhm..! Amalgie knows. Amalgie's.. gonna do..! So bye-bye! Amalgie loves... Papa Keddy..!"
"Bye-bye, sweetheart! I love you too!"
There weren't many people Cledwynn could be very comfortable with. He found himself choosing to be quiet in most social situations, but as he got closer to people, he could open up at least a bit. It was always how he functioned, and it was maybe the one thing about him that was similar to other people.
To normal people.
"Cledwynn..? Requesting some time with you, if that is alright.."
"Oh! Ten! Hello, I didn't think you'd connect so quickly!"
"Hello, Cledwynn! Do not mind me connecting as quickly as I did- I have simply been anticipating this call for.. perhaps hours now. Or it could be years- dimension traversal can cause a lot of temporal misconceptions. It is much like how on other planets, much like the ones in the solar system, days pass within different timespans in comparison to the timespans on the only inhabitable planet in the solar system, Earth."
"That makes sense. It could have been a century since we've talked, maybe. Perhaps a century's worth of decades of centuries."
"Perhaps. It is indeterminable, though hopefully this indeterminability is only temporary. Though, whether or not it is temporary or permanent is insignificant, because either way,
I am able to currently contact you. That is something I am grateful for. I felt a sense of wistfulness before our call.. I believe I have.. 'missed you', as Animalgie and Equilibria have so described my state of emotional spanning."
Cledwynn's smile grew as he heard this. There were a lot of things to smile at- how Ten was so smart, fluent and literate, how Ten had missed him, and how clear it was to see that he was becoming more integrated with the others. Cledwynn then looked up in thought for a moment, perhaps pondering on the time he first met Ten, and how much of a different person he was compared to now.
"I missed you too, Ten."
It went without saying that it warmed his heart.
"I am very happy to converse with you again. While I would like to stay on lighthearted topics, you requested information, yes? Not that I would mind shifting to talks of dimensions, of course."
"Oh! Yes, I wanted to know how your expeditions were going."
"So far, they have been proceeding exceptionally well. We first traveled to a world called Candela, and its residents were very insistent on the color pink. Nearly everything within that world was pink, or a shade or alteration of genuine pink, so when Amalgie, Equilibria and I arrived, naturally I was the only one they accepted. We then had to leave posthaste- Candela's residents are very aggressive towards those who do not utilize the color pink in their attire. Then we arrived at a world called Estibell, which I suspect was in another dimension entirely. There, we met another ghost!
"Oh! Really? What was their name? And what was Estibell like?"
"Her name is Hildamenta. She is an avid poet, and is very passionate about something colloquially known within Estibell as Restructure. Estibell itself is a small city isolated from most of society, and is a habitat and home to many anthropomorphic animal species, especially of the avian variety. There is also plant-based humanoid life there as well. Most of Estibell's residents are kind and welcoming, much like the city itself. However, neither I nor Animalgie could help but feel that there was an underlying tone of despair brimming within the city."
"Oh.. that doesn't sound too good. Well, here's hoping it wasn't dangerous.."
"Agreed. We departed promptly and arrived to our current destination, and its name is the most intricate of the three."
"That's where you all are now? What's it called?"
"Ichberethyn-Cauliquivesta."
"... Beg pardon, Ten?"
"It seems you did not hear me. I will repeat myself. We are currently in Ichberethyn-Cauliquivesta. It is considered a village by its residents, though because of its great size it is split into multiple parts. Currently we are in Vesta, and we have traveled through Ichthys and Cauliquia to reach this area."
"Vesta.. Ichthys and Cauliquia.. It seems to me that the village's name is a combination of all the names of the smaller pieces of the village."
"It is likely that this is the case, given the current information, so I can safely say that I can confirm. We have yet to meet an inherently hostile dimensional plane, however. ... I have been informed that you are at a restaurant, watching the End of the Universe?"
"Oh, uh, yeah.. it's rather bizarre. And .. it's a little beautiful, albeit dreadful."
"But.. something like this is inevitable, much like the consumption of Earth via the Sun, or the constant destruction and reformation of the star clusters Prell and Zaurytch."
"Ah, yes, the Married Couple in the sky.."
"...I sense an undertone of fervent want in your voice. Do you want to be the husband to someone out there, Cledwynn?"
Truth be told, he did. He'd often thought about it, but never acted on it. And he had a reason that he thought was perfectly valid.
"I'd like to. But no one would ever want to put that much love and time into me. I doubt it."
"Cledwynn, I am sure the three of us can say differently. Remember to keep your hope intact. You have an infinite number of years ahead of you, and currently, among all the dimensions and worlds traversed, there are approximately 17 trillion people alive. This number is an estimate and it is ever-changing. There will always be hope."
Cledwynn stayed silent. That wasn't the only reason. He'd fallen in love before, and would likely end up doing so again. The issue was that as a spirit, he couldn't die. But if his spouse wasn't the same, then he'd have to go through each of his love interests dying back to back. And it would eventually really hurt having to sit through that. It was even the same with friends. Getting attached to people was feeble to a ghost, and it was the reason he was so reserved. It was also the reason he could be so close with Ten, Bria and Amalgie- they couldn't die either, since they were spirits. They were the only people he could relate to.
At the end of the day, at the end of life, at the end of it all.. They would be all he had. Just.. the drawbacks to immortality.
"Cledwynn..? You have grown silent.. Are you disturbed or despondent?"
Ten's voice shook him back into reality. No time to ponder now, or rather.. to self-deprecate. He did that enough when he was alone.
"Yes.. yes, I'm here."
"And thankfully so, since Animalgie has just asked if they could spend time with you within the restaurant you are currently in."
"Huh..? Amalgie wants to be here with me?"
"Indeed. Bria cannot, as she is allergic to space. Or perhaps the zero-G environment.
And I cannot accompany you because, while I would very much love to, I must fulfill my directive on charting information about dimensions."
"Aw, that's a shame- there's a dimension-traveler here, too."
"... Is this true, Cledwynn?"
"Mhm. Their name is the Authoress. I think you'd like her."
He looked at the Authoress from the corner of his eye and gave a bit of a sly smile. Ten just had to interact with her, at least once. "Maybe all three of you can stop by for a short while- you could all use some nourishment. Besides, there's oxygen inside the restaurant, I think, so even Bria should be fine."
"In that case, I suppose we could visit.. though, it is not as if we actually need food to survive, with the exception of Animalgie.
"So you guys are coming?"
"Yes, but we will wait for your confirmation. The restaurant is likely overpopulated, and a pressing matter has just come to attention that must be tended to. We will have to end our call for now. The others want to wish you farewell as well, so I will connect them.
"Alright. Let me know whe-"
"Bye-bye, Papa Keddy..! Amalgie hopes that Amalgie can come visit..!"
"See ya, Cledbear! Maybe in a little bit? We'll miss you, we will!"
"I bid you salutations as well, Cledwynn, and I as well as the others hope to see you soon. We love you very much and hope for the best."
He chuckled a little bit like before- by this point it was as if they planned to interrupt him at every chance. Kids will be kids, as they say.
"I'll see you all soon, hopefully! I'll let you know if you're all able to make it! Amalgie, Bria, Ten- bye, all! I love you all!"
"Love you too!"
As he let the devil's tails begin to move freely, ending the call, he laughed to himself. Those three were quite an eccentric bunch, and he swore to himself he'd never have anyone quite like them. There was no one quite like them. Speaking of eccentric, he quickly turned back to the Authoress, a tad bit embarrassed. She probably heard the entire call. Honestly, anyone in the Restaurant could very well have, but he chose not to think about that.
"Sorry about that, Authoress," he said, back to his usual tone. When it came to code-switching, he did it well and in spades. "Where were we, again? I seem to have lost track."
