Private Finished Marching Into a New World

Keen

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Vito was led into the private room rented out for their TWIS meetings. It was a Saturday evening, with Fridays being the second most picked for meeting days, then Wednesdays. Several familiar faces were already seated, some chatting with each other or venting their woes while there weren't many people to hear. Some turned towards the new face with a quick wave or smile before resuming whatever they were doing before

A well-dressed Konpeitō smiled proudly at the scene, then turned to face the slightly taller man. He had already gotten the rundown of TWIS' goals in the email and when they met up thirty minutes before now. Konpeitō made sure to let him know that he was free to speak his mind as long as he had respectful intentions, but that it was normal for newcomers to slip up. "The point here is for people to not feel ashamed in their newness. They should feel comforted in knowing that their struggles aren't silly or unreasonable," he had said.

The meeting was more or less the usual. Vito was allowed to introduce himself and speak if he wished, but overall, conversation bounced around. The most prominent discussion was a human describing her discomfort with the openness of the island. She had been hit on by several people since coming here four months ago. Not subtle flirts either, but outright proclamations for sex. A horned girl related but said her issue was that some people were way too open about violence. She worried that if she spoke up about it and accidentally told off a Wrath demon or similar, she'd get called out for not accepting people's natural differences. The counselor assigned today advised them that it was okay to be uncomfortable. Their feelings were justified. Instincts weren't an excuse to make people uncomfortable.

During meetings, Konpeitō almost always sat back and let the counselors give advice. He helped where he could, but he limited himself to keeping the conversation going or lightening the mood when things turned too tense.

An hour later, most people were downstairs or outside chatting, if they hadn't already left the park entirely. Konpeitō stayed upstairs with Vito, and with his usual bubbliness, asked, "So, what did you think? I hope this meeting answered some questions about how we work."

 

Romi

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VITO DI SAVOIA

Vito couldn't have told you who told him about TWIS. When he'd first arrived, the original priority was to get him medical attention, and everything else had come a very distant second. It was only once he'd been medically cleared that he'd been allowed to think about other things. To really process what had happened.

That he was in an alien world. That he was surrounded by people who were not from his society at all.

The fact that one of his nurses had horns had pretty much sealed that deal. He'd thought they were a demon and that he was in hell, only to be corrected that no, they weren't in hell, and technically they were an oni, which was not the same thing.

It hadn't quite helped.

Somewhere along the line, someone had suggested TWIS to him, and he'd decided to attend, if only to get a better idea of what the island was like. He'd introduced himself during the meeting, but mostly kept to himself, and it wasn't until after the meeting, standing with Kon, that he expressed why.

"It was nice. I think it's good the island has a place like this. A... support group for people who are having trouble adjusting, I would say," he said, giving it some consideration. "Part of me feels like I should have waited a bit before coming, if only because I didn't have anything to say. I haven't seen much of the island, so I haven't encountered many of the things people were talking about."

He didn't even think he'd met a wrath demon, but the most important thing he'd learned on his first few days on the island was that there was absolutely no telling.


This thread has been retconned to take place the week of May 26th.
 
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Keen

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The way Vito worded his comment sent a subtle shiver throughout Konpeitō. For the quickest of moments, his body was a little more saturated. Vito made TWIS sound so much more offical than it was. The fact that someone suggested him to visit TWIS was all the more exciting.

"That's not a problem at all. I made this group for a couple of reasons. One: So people to learn from the experiences of others. From there, they can be prepared to tackle those situations if they ever arise. Two: To help adults find other like-minded people. Those can be friends or more specialized groups if TWIS doesn't suit your needs. Mm... for example, the man with one eye and fiery red hair? He rarely talks, but he comes here almost every meeting because he feels safe enough to speak his mind when he does have something to say. And that's perfectly acceptable."
 

Romi

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VITO DI SAVOIA

He could understand what Kon meant about having a hard time finding friends. He'd had a well established (and very firmly entrenched) social circle back in his home, and here... well, he didn't know where to start. Things were different. Schools were places you went to learn, not where you went to improve the world's collective knowledge. The idea that almost the entire of the city went to school...

Well, maybe that would be a good thing to discuss.

Doing his best not to sound too judgmental, Vito picked his words carefully as he phrased his question to Kon.

"Is it true that everyone goes to school here for... for years?" Years and years. The amount of time being wasted boggled Vito's mind.

 

Keen

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Konpeitō wasn't expecting that question. On the surface, it didn't sound weird to ask, but Vito's hesitance at "years" forced Konpeitō to hold back a raised eyebrow. It was a school. Generally, most people went to school for years.

"Um, yes," he replied, trying his best to not raise his voice in a question at the end. "It's really an 'it depends' sort of thing. Some people learn fast and can test out early for their age, some people only go for one or two classes to catch up. For example, I was a student for a few months to catch me up on anything I didn't already teach myself. I tested out to get a job that didn't require a college education."

The one benefit to Konpeitō's old life was that it got ridiculously boring. Pair that with his need to blend in with his online friend group, and he had a lot of motivation to study everything he needed to know for his age.

Thank you, internet.
 

Romi

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VITO DI SAVOIA

The entire idea from top to bottom sounded exhausting. Just... going to school for years? Not pushing the envelope or anything like that, but just struggling with the absolute basics?

No thank you. Vito's distaste must have showed on his face, and he was making no secret of it.

"That sounds so... so inefficient. Hasn't anyone come up with a better way? Surely people are looking into it. It must take years and years to get you up to standard... that's wasting such a huge chunk of your life!"

He'd always looked at those living their first lives with pity, but this? An entire world of first lives seemed almost unthinkable. How did they get anything done?

 

Keen

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There was no threat of an eyebrow raise this time. Konpeitō was simply confused and it showed on his furrowed brows and tightened smile.

What.

Not a question; a statement. What. Vito's life must have been more different than his modern clothing and way of speaking suggested.

"Er, as far as I know, no. Here and in the Narrow Reality, it's common for people to need decades of schooling for their chosen careers. There are jobs that allow you to stop after high school, which takes around seventeen years of schooling overall. Unless you learn and develop faster than a human, of course."

Konpeitō made a mistake. There was something more important to speak about: "I think it might be easier if you explained the life you come from so I can better answer your questions."
 

Romi

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VITO DI SAVOIA

It was often hard as hell to explain where one came from, but Vito wasn't entirely in the dark. He had a general sense of how things were supposed to go on the island and otherwise, but he didn't quite believe it.

"Well, only first lives really go to school school. Everyone else takes classes to catch up on what's new since they last attended... all the latest advancements and that. We have universities, but they're not for things like... standard education or anything like that. The idea of learning math and spelling and all that over and over again just sounds completely exhausting to me."

He didn't get how they hadn't come up with an alternative. If not multiple lives, something else. Data download, maybe? There were lots of options in Vito's opinion, and using none of them seemed patently absurd.

 

Keen

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Ah. Now the dots connecting. There were many more to connect, but this would do.

"I think I understand now. Most people here don't have multiple lives. They're learning everything for the first time. What you're talking about isn't unheard of, however. Plenty of citizens have multiple lives they may or may not remember. It's also not uncommon for people to be born with important information. I was actually made to know all Narrow Reality languages. That's not a thing I have anymore, by the way."

It was a skill he missed dearly. Sure, he learned so quickly he could probably have basic conversational skills in several languages within a year, but he was a busy man. It was easier to just have what he needed and build off there.
 

Romi

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VITO DI SAVOIA

Oh, that was disappointing. The idea of losing a skill that was so valuable...

"Translation magic is highly sought after," Vito noted. "It's a very popular magic to learn, especially for those early on in their life cycle." He hadn't learned it, but that was only because he was one of the lucky ones: he'd been around long enough to have picked up a multitude of languages, making it less important overall.

"If I'm being honest, the whole concept of how people handle lives here is... almost surreal." It just didn't make sense. It was just such a waste. There wasn't any knowledge going to the greater good, or... or anything.

 
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