I guess most people haven't been to a lot of worlds...
[that's pretty normal. he'll just casually not mention his Many Worlds situation but, whatever.]
If they all exist somewhere then... are they really stories at all? How do they end up being stories? [this is a very serious question here.] Do you think someone who can go between worlds could tell them, or something like that?
That would be amazing! Can you imagine, getting to actually meet these people and telling their stories? Like the Princess and the Frog, or Beauty and the Beast, or Sleeping Beauty or Cinderella!
[ Getting to meet Rapunzel was amazing enough, but she's getting starry-eyed just imagining anyone else. ]
[he offers a smile... there's something about the fact that mary would do that for him that makes him feel really happy. helping him to make memories that belong to him... memories that aren't with the organization, or shared with sora.
[ She remembers what it's like to have lost all of her memories, and Roxas had said he'd had problems with it too, even before he'd said he didn't have any memories of before.
When he'd had a heart, then...
But the Roxas from then isn't the Roxas she knows now, and the Roxas she does know now is the one she wants to give those new memories to.
So Mary steps back, offering up a smile. ]
I can tell you the one about Beauty and the Beast today... that's one of my favorites.
[one day he'll tell her more about how things were... he'll explain things about being a nobody, and how sora is supposed to be who he was before.
but he's not ready to talk about those parts, because he hasn't completely accepted them yet. he knows it's the truth, but he's just not ready to accept that. and since that day isn't today, he'll just smile back at her and let that stay in the back of his mind where it presently belongs.]
That sounds good... I dunno anything about it, but it's probably pretty good if it's your favorite. [he motions towards the couch... they can at least sit down, right?]
[ She nods, moving over to the couch to settle herself down on one end and folding her fingers together in her lap. Will he like it? She's not sure... but at least he'll know the story exists when she's finished. ]
It's a tale about learning to love a monster.
[ So of course the monster herself would be invested in it. ]
[he's in for a surprise with this story, honestly, but... he's totally unaware of that from the description alone. even if it is... vaguely familiar. but roxas is taking a seat next to her.]
What happens in it? [he's interested. tell him more.]
It happens when a merchant goes on a journey and asks his children what they'd like for gifts. While his sons want weapons, his daughters all want pretty dresses and jewelry-- but his youngest daughter, Beauty, who isn't as selfish, just asks for a rose.
[ Mary straightens up a bit, her voice falling into the ease of one who has a story loved and memorized. ]
... Because he met with misfortune, though, the merchant couldn't afford to buy his children anything and had to seek shelter when a bad storm happened on his way home. He came across a castle and begged for shelter... where he found no one there, but a meal and a warm bed had been made ready for him, and he stayed the night there.
In the morning, when he was leaving, he came across a rose garden and found the most beautiful rose to take for his daughter. When he plucked it, though... a terrifying, hideous beast appeared and threatened to kill him for taking advantage of his hospitality by stealing.
The merchant begged for mercy and explained the situation-- and the Beast allowed him to return home, even giving him gifts for his other children, on the condition that the merchant would then come back.
Unhappy, but agreeing, the merchant returned home and gave his children their gifts... but Beauty realized something was wrong and got him to admit the truth. Upon learning, she told her father that this was her responsibility, and went to the castle in his place to stay with the Beast.
[the whole time she's telling this, he listens pretty intently. it's clear to him that the story must really be a favorite of hers, because mary knows it so well that she seems to recite it back to him so flawlessly.
he'd think she was reading it directly from a book if he couldn't see that she's obviously doing it from memory. he's intrigued by the story though, so when she pauses, he's pretty quick to want more.]
[ So he is interested... pleased with this, Mary takes a deep breath to continue. ]
The Beast actually treated Beauty very well, keeping her sheltered, well-fed, and cared for. Even though she was afraid of him at first, because of how scary he looked, she grew to care for him after speaking with him every day.
Every night, though, he'd always ask her to marry him, and she always refused him. But then she'd have dreams about a handsome prince asking her why she wouldn't marry the Beast, and she would tell him that she only saw him as a friend.
As time went on and the two of them grew closer, she started to miss her family, and asked the Beast if she could visit them. He allowed this, on the condition that she return to him in one week, and gave her a magic mirror and a ring. The ring would allow her to return to the castle instantly, and the mirror would let her see the Beast.
... Her family welcomed her back, but her sisters were jealous when they heard about how well she'd been treated-- so they pretended to be really sad and lonely to get her to stay an extra day, breaking her promise with the Beast. They thought if that happened, he'd turn on Beauty and kill her for her betrayal.
Beauty became very guilty about breaking her promise, though, and when she checked on the Beast in the mirror, it was to see him near death in the rose garden. His broken heart was too much for him to bear.
[okay, so he can't remember ever seeing a rose garden in beast's castle, but there are some familiar things about this story. still, there are differences, like the rose gsrden. and the girl's name wasn't beauty, it was belle (roxas, that's the same thing). but no mention of the talking furniture... or how they were all human once.
he doesn't know much about belle, or the depth of the situation there, but roxas knows that they loved each other. that was what he got from it, at least. really, it was beast's castle where he first started to think about love, so this all rings oddly true. as she tells the story, roxas can picture these events happening similarly with the ones he'd seen in that castle.
but there has to be more to it, right? beast had other things he was trying to protect aside from belle, and he never heard anything about him being near death. belle never left, right? roxas' brows furrow, and he looks to mary, waiting for the rest of the story.]
[ It's a curious thing he's mumbling about, like he's trying to confirm something... maybe it's awakened a memory?
Better not to ask right now, though, or ask anything else until the story's finished, so Mary continues. ]
Beauty hurried back to the Beast's side, fearing it was too late... because only now did she realize that she had finally fallen in love with him, even if he was a monster. So she told him, as she cried over him, "I love you."
When her tears touched him, the Beast vanished and was replaced by the handsome prince that she'd seen in her dreams. He told her that he'd been changed into a hideous monster by a fairy in disguise, after he'd refused to let her in out of the rain... and that the only way to break the curse was to find true love... to be loved by someone who could see past his ugliness.
And after that, he and Beauty were married, and lived happily ever after.
[just like what he had heard about in beast's castle. but roxas doesn't have an immediate way of responding to that story. it's... confusing, in a way. so many things match what he's seen, but so many other things don't.
and the last time he checked, beast was definitely still a beast. so maybe it's not the same after all?
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I didn't even know those people were real... [they really gotta talk about beauty and the beast one of these days, apparently.]
That's pretty cool. There really are all kinds of worlds out there, huh?
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[ She's still so awed. ]
I wonder if that means that all of the people in those stories actually exist.
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[that's pretty normal. he'll just casually not mention his Many Worlds situation but, whatever.]
If they all exist somewhere then... are they really stories at all? How do they end up being stories? [this is a very serious question here.] Do you think someone who can go between worlds could tell them, or something like that?
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Or...
[ This is suddenly a serious topic, yes. ]
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[ Getting to meet Rapunzel was amazing enough, but she's getting starry-eyed just imagining anyone else. ]
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[although there is a weird pang of familiarity he can't place. cinderella. had he heard that name before?
...maybe it's because sora knew those stories? but roxas isn't sure.]
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[ Even Mary doesn't know all of them. Those she knows, though, she's memorized. ]
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[he's so hopeless in that way, after all.]
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[ That's... kind of sad. ]
Um... if there are any you want to hear, then... I could definitely tell you.
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[it's kind of sad in a way, but roxas is used to it.]
So you can just tell me the ones you like, Mary.
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Then I'll tell you all the ones I know! Just... not all at once. That way, you'll have the memories for yourself.
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[he offers a smile... there's something about the fact that mary would do that for him that makes him feel really happy. helping him to make memories that belong to him... memories that aren't with the organization, or shared with sora.
(he really hates that last one a lot.)]
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When he'd had a heart, then...
But the Roxas from then isn't the Roxas she knows now, and the Roxas she does know now is the one she wants to give those new memories to.
So Mary steps back, offering up a smile. ]
I can tell you the one about Beauty and the Beast today... that's one of my favorites.
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but he's not ready to talk about those parts, because he hasn't completely accepted them yet. he knows it's the truth, but he's just not ready to accept that. and since that day isn't today, he'll just smile back at her and let that stay in the back of his mind where it presently belongs.]
That sounds good... I dunno anything about it, but it's probably pretty good if it's your favorite. [he motions towards the couch... they can at least sit down, right?]
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It's a tale about learning to love a monster.
[ So of course the monster herself would be invested in it. ]
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What happens in it? [he's interested. tell him more.]
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[ Mary straightens up a bit, her voice falling into the ease of one who has a story loved and memorized. ]
... Because he met with misfortune, though, the merchant couldn't afford to buy his children anything and had to seek shelter when a bad storm happened on his way home. He came across a castle and begged for shelter... where he found no one there, but a meal and a warm bed had been made ready for him, and he stayed the night there.
In the morning, when he was leaving, he came across a rose garden and found the most beautiful rose to take for his daughter. When he plucked it, though... a terrifying, hideous beast appeared and threatened to kill him for taking advantage of his hospitality by stealing.
The merchant begged for mercy and explained the situation-- and the Beast allowed him to return home, even giving him gifts for his other children, on the condition that the merchant would then come back.
Unhappy, but agreeing, the merchant returned home and gave his children their gifts... but Beauty realized something was wrong and got him to admit the truth. Upon learning, she told her father that this was her responsibility, and went to the castle in his place to stay with the Beast.
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he'd think she was reading it directly from a book if he couldn't see that she's obviously doing it from memory. he's intrigued by the story though, so when she pauses, he's pretty quick to want more.]
...What happened after that?
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The Beast actually treated Beauty very well, keeping her sheltered, well-fed, and cared for. Even though she was afraid of him at first, because of how scary he looked, she grew to care for him after speaking with him every day.
Every night, though, he'd always ask her to marry him, and she always refused him. But then she'd have dreams about a handsome prince asking her why she wouldn't marry the Beast, and she would tell him that she only saw him as a friend.
As time went on and the two of them grew closer, she started to miss her family, and asked the Beast if she could visit them. He allowed this, on the condition that she return to him in one week, and gave her a magic mirror and a ring. The ring would allow her to return to the castle instantly, and the mirror would let her see the Beast.
... Her family welcomed her back, but her sisters were jealous when they heard about how well she'd been treated-- so they pretended to be really sad and lonely to get her to stay an extra day, breaking her promise with the Beast. They thought if that happened, he'd turn on Beauty and kill her for her betrayal.
Beauty became very guilty about breaking her promise, though, and when she checked on the Beast in the mirror, it was to see him near death in the rose garden. His broken heart was too much for him to bear.
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[okay, so he can't remember ever seeing a rose garden in beast's castle, but there are some familiar things about this story. still, there are differences, like the rose gsrden. and the girl's name wasn't beauty, it was belle (roxas, that's the same thing). but no mention of the talking furniture... or how they were all human once.
he doesn't know much about belle, or the depth of the situation there, but roxas knows that they loved each other. that was what he got from it, at least. really, it was beast's castle where he first started to think about love, so this all rings oddly true. as she tells the story, roxas can picture these events happening similarly with the ones he'd seen in that castle.
but there has to be more to it, right? beast had other things he was trying to protect aside from belle, and he never heard anything about him being near death. belle never left, right? roxas' brows furrow, and he looks to mary, waiting for the rest of the story.]
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Better not to ask right now, though, or ask anything else until the story's finished, so Mary continues. ]
Beauty hurried back to the Beast's side, fearing it was too late... because only now did she realize that she had finally fallen in love with him, even if he was a monster. So she told him, as she cried over him, "I love you."
When her tears touched him, the Beast vanished and was replaced by the handsome prince that she'd seen in her dreams. He told her that he'd been changed into a hideous monster by a fairy in disguise, after he'd refused to let her in out of the rain... and that the only way to break the curse was to find true love... to be loved by someone who could see past his ugliness.
And after that, he and Beauty were married, and lived happily ever after.
[ A decisive nod. ]
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[just like what he had heard about in beast's castle. but roxas doesn't have an immediate way of responding to that story. it's... confusing, in a way. so many things match what he's seen, but so many other things don't.
and the last time he checked, beast was definitely still a beast. so maybe it's not the same after all?
he's so puzzled right now!!!]
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Did I... tell it weirdly?
[ He looks a little baffled. ]
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[he pauses, trying to figure out how to explain it.]
It's familiar but... not, at the same time.
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