[PP-NK-F12] Pondering (Lessa)

[Grave 0]

I sat at the water's edge, my boots sitting beside me as I wriggled my toes in the enormous pond that took up most of the Twelfth Floor's city. I did not believe I had ever been higher than the Eleventh Floor, so I saw no harm in exploring. Besides, as long as I strayed away from monsters, just taking a nice stroll should not have been a problem. I heard a grunt behind me and turned to look at a somewhat aged man passing by. "Might wanna scram, high tide comes soon." He growled and continued on his jolly way. I gave him a thumbs up, to which he rolled his eyes irritably, and I quickly switched my gesture to that of 'The Bird' and scrambled to my feet, picking up my boots and heading back up to the road into town.

I sat with my back against the wall of a seemingly rowdy inn and dried my feet off, before slipping them back into my footwear. I slipped my hands into my pockets and began stalking back into town, peeking back down at the pond to see that it was, indeed, high tide. How that happened with a pond was a mystery to me. My attention was jerked aside when a screaming pierced the air in front of me.

"Thief! Get back here!" I heard, and a lithe, obviously poor man was running pell-mell for the exit of the city. With a sigh, I stepped forwards once more for good measure, making sure I was well and truly in the safe zone...

And hooked my thumb and forefinger under the deprived rogue's chin, lifting him up from the cobbles and slamming the back of his skull against the ground, purple sparks exploding from under him, a series of 'Immortal Object' notifications peppering the ground underneath him. My hand pressed close against his chest and I tore the sack of jangling metal from his palm, looking up to see a young girl heading towards me. With a smile, I threw the stolen cash to her and released the thief, letting him scramble away to the dark hole he emerged from. The girl had no words; she simply bowed her crimson-topped head to me with a bright smile and turned to head back into town. I sighed and scratched the back of my neck in shame; I probably could have done that a little less violently.

[Lessa 1]

"Thief! Get back here!"

The shout rose above the din of the city, and startled me from my window-shopping. Instinctively, I turned, my gaze immediately picking through the crowd for the source of the cry. It settled upon a panic-stricken brunette, who seemed no older than the middle schoolers I had worked with before Aincrad. A frown creased my features at the sight; robbery was never acceptable, but picking on young people really rubbed me the wrong way. I moved into a jog, coming to rest beside the girl, and only then realizing that she had no curser. It was an NPC. Slight embarrassment warmed my cheeks, and I kicked myself for the oversight. This was just an element coded into the game to make it more realistic. Yet here I stood, ready to come to this girl's rescue.

NPCs posed a special problem for me. Despite my years in the game, I had a difficult time seeing them as anything but actual people. Yes, they were just strings of code, and no, they were not actual humans. But I still struggled to wrap my head around the notion. Though many other players did not feel the same way, it only felt right for me to be polite to NPCs. And in the spirit of that, I spoke to the girl. "Which way did he go?"

The young woman sniffled, swiping at a tear, before pointing toward the city's entrance. "That way."

"Right." I nodded, and trotted off in the direction she had provided me. The situation was ridiculous, when you really considered it. I was chasing down an NPC thief, who had robbed an NPC little girl, and there was not even a quest prompt to explain my foolishness. Yet as I neared my destination, I found another player who appeared to think the same way I did. A tall, gray-haired man had a raggedy NPC pinned against the wall. The vibrant emerald cursor that hovered over his head told me that the individual was an actual player, like myself. As I stood, transfixed by the scene before me, the brunette jogged up. Her eyes lit up as she recognized her robber, and she broke into a grin when her money was returned to her. As she scampered off, and the strange hero stood alone, I finally approached.

"You keep attacking NPCs like that," I commented pointedly, "and you're going to start scaring the players." Then, with a nod of appreciation, "but it was nice what you did there."

[Grave 0]

I turned to face probably one of the most beautiful girls in Aincrad I had ever seen; soft blond hair and glittering eyes. I could not speak for a moment, my jaw threatening to slack off and drop from my skull, but I snapped myself out of my trance and paid attention to what she had said. "Yes... I probably could have done that a little less violently." I admitted with a nervous chuckle. "But I cannot stand to see crime, player-committed or not. Kind of surprised that was not a quest, likely just some kind of scripted event." I pondered, scratching my chin and watching a ragged leg disappear around a corner. "And besides, I am too used to using fists to solve everything. It is what I get for using Martial Arts." I explained, slipping my hands into my pockets, finally approaching the girl. "Anyway... sorry I stole your fun. You probably could have solved that problem much more nicely than me." I apologized with a chuckle and bowed. "My name is Grave, and it is a pleasure to make your acquaintance."

[Lessa 1]

His answer, mixed parts embarrassed apology and lingering anger, somehow worked to calm me. I had expected a cocky, angst-filled bozo who amused himself by beating up NPCs. Sure, it was a worst-case scenario, but the game had left me a bit jaded. But the man surprised me, demonstrating a concern for all people in Aincrad, even those who were merely strings of code. Had I not been thinking on that same point just a moment before? Sure, I could not relate to everything that the stranger shared with me, but we could at least find common ground in that.

"I can't say I have any martial arts experience," I informed him with a grin, "but I've resorted to fists a couple of times." Brawls with my brothers' friends, but it all sounded much more dramatic if I left that part out. "So I can't blame you for it, and I can't say if I could have done any better." At his formal bow, I gave a small, playful curtsy. His greeting was probably out of traditional respect, while mine was merely the semi-awkward gut-reaction of a person who does not know how else to respond. "Its a pleasure, Grave," I said. "And I'm Lessa."

[Grave 0]

I sighed and scratched the back of my neck awkwardly. "Eheh... 'a few times' would be something of an understatement in my case." I replied with a choked chuckle, forced after my nervous statement. "Fists just... get it over and done with quickly, you know?" I clarified with a sheepish smile and a light snicker. "The pleasure is all mine, Lessa." I responded with a respectful smile at the curtsy she returned to me. "Were you busy at all before that happened?" I asked Lessa, pointing my thumb towards the direction the thief had slunk off in. "I was just taking a little foot bath in the water down below before some grumpy old geezer told me it was about to be high tide." I groaned with an acidic tongue, the mere tone of the git sickening me. "So I am not busy at all if you would not mind keeping a guy company."