savetheearth | ~~TO MEET YOU~~

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TO MEET YOU

[ Kallie had suggested to Miles that if the place they held their grand three-of-them-in-one-place meetup was up to her, she'd probably choose somewhere with coffee... and while in the end pizzeria had been chosen instead, the young woman's still managed to secure a cup of black caffeine anyhow, as overcooked and otherwise indistinct-tasting as it is in a place like this.

... She tries to keep her nervousness and uncertainty down, resisting the urge to tap fingers on the table. Sierra doesn't worry her - she's positive the other woman will definitely show up - but "Raven"... she's not so sure about. Paranoia makes for not just a stubborn determination to be able to see her motorcycle through the restaurant's window at all times... but a straightness to her back that almost seems painful to her, too.

All she can do is hope this doesn't turn into a disaster, somehow. Ignoring the curious gaze of a random child, she pulls at the yet again newly-shortened tips of her hair instead, tamping down a frown. ]

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[Miles just hopes he's not late. It's a Saturday and he tends to feel a little too lazy when it's the weekend, hence getting up late and going about things at a slower pace than usual. At least he doesn't have to lie to his mother about where he's going though, and she'd even given him some pocket money.

He does take a few minutes to look for this pizzeria though, since the area around the university is unfamiliar to him. But he finds it eventually and shuffles inside.

He doesn't even need to wonder who he's looking for, because while he knows Liar McLiar's face, he also realizes just who she's with.

Oh. Shit. Suddenly he cant look properly at her because he has such awkward memories of who she used to be now.] So. Uh.

Yeah. Hey.

[ She musters a little smile, if only for the sake of reciprocating and gesturing with her arms in irony a little. If Sierra's still dressed for work and thinks it's cold, Kallie's the one in the clothes suited for driving something that doesn't have any kind of heating at all- stripped off a little for the warmer air inside the restaurant, of course, but still. Not what most people would choose to do in this kind of weather.

She's... actually willing to act friendlier with Sierra this time, despite the awkwardness and tension. So it is possible for her to get that way with other numbereds...!

Naturally, though, that has to be shot almost immediately, right as she's about to note she would have preordered Sierra something if she'd known more about what the girl likes. As soon as she catches sight of Miles she's staring but then trying not to, her pale eyes much rounder than usual.

Fortunately(?), there's no Echoes for her this time. Not yet, at least.

... It takes a moment longer than it should, but after a moment she finally glances down, putting her hand on top of a menu to push it toward the teen even though he hasn't even seated himself yet. ]

I'm paying.

[ Sierra glances up at the new voice, and while there's a decided pause there, she's getting better at hiding her reactions to things, and the most that comes across is therefore a flicker in the smile she'd been giving Kallie, a brief moment of silence on her end as she processes that this is indeed the third person of their little band of...

...whatever they are. Connected-somehow-people? There's apparently a fourth person, too, and thinking about it Sierra supposes Kallie did once ask her if she knew someone named...Jake, was it?

She hadn't. Still didn't. She couldn't assume this was Jake, though, especially since she's never meet the boy before.

Still, it takes a moment to process what comes with the all-to-familiar empty feeling. This boy, holding out a knife to her. Other people standing around. Names she doesn't know...and herself, crying.

Sierra manages a smile. ]

Hi. I'm Sierra - Sierra Callahan.

[ And then, turning back towards Kallie for a moment. ]

Oh, I can pay for myself. I mean...you don't need to do that.

[ Not that she plans to get more than a slice and a drink, but. ]

Ooookay. If you're sure. [Miles readily sits down at the table, but pauses a little before giving his real name. He's just remembered that he has never given out his name to his ~usual correspondent~, and he doesn't even know hers.

But it's ~~Serah~~ Sierra who's introducing herself anyway. And it's not like it's a big deal or anything.]

'M Miles Asher. [He pokes at the menu, but doesn't bother picking it up. He's just terrible at face-to-face meetings, and he can honestly say he's more comfortable talking through a medium like a phone or the network, because of the relative anonymity that it gives him.]

[ She blinks as intros fly (or rather, get reluctantly offered, in Miles' case), wondering but unable to discern if there's already been any Echoes passing around the table by now. Nobody's changed hair colors or had a blast of feathers appear yet though, so... that's good? ]

Kallie Raydan.

[ In reply, her voice is very neutral. Sierra already knows her name though, so it'd be pointless to try and be dodgy now-- as antsy as it still kind of makes her feel. When she'd introduced herself to Jake and Sierra before, it had been before she'd known they were numbered too. It doesn't help that Miles has been... careful with her in turn.

In any case. ]

I don't mind. As... long as you don't want gold flakes on your pizza or something...

[ When Kallie is nervous, she defaults to mild remarks as dry as she can make them. She really is just trying to be nice, though. ]

[ Sierra's immediate response is to widen her eyes on purpose. ]

Oh, really? But those are my favorite. You've never had pizza until you've had it with gold flakes.

[ ...Look, it feels a little awkward and tense and so a joke, however weak, seems like it could maybe break the ice a little bit. So far every conversation she's had with Kallie has slanted towards the serious, and maybe peppering this conversation with a few lighthearted remarks couldn't hurt.

At least it might help the other two relax a little bit.

She's back to a casual smile after a second, though. ]

No, I'll probably just get pineapple? And it's nice to meet you, Miles.

Gross. [Gold flakes and pineapple, seriously? Why would anyone put gold flakes on pizza? They don't even have any kind of taste. They're just like decorations for things.

Besides. Pineapple on pizza. That just tastes pretty bad.]

Cant we all just get something with vegetables on it and just... share? Save on money or whatever.

[ She... she wasn't serious about the gold, guys. She's pretty sure this place doesn't offer sprinklings of precious metals on their pies, and if so it's not on the menu.

In regards to pineapple, she looks a little dubious as well, if not officially Grossed Out - she raises her eyebrows mildly, not quite showing amusement at Sierra's comments in light of Miles' reaction- but almost. She's also pretty desperate for a release from the tension, here. ]

We could probably... get a medium or something. [ And split the toppings 50/50 if there's a need? She taps the heel of a boot against the floor as she peers at the various offered options, but- ] I'm not really a fan of meat, so. Vegetables are fine.

[ Barring objection from Sierra. The pink-haired woman sits back a little though, more or less satisfied with that when it comes to making pizza choices. In her experience it's actually better to feel things out once the order's actually being taken, rather than attempting to plan and then remember it for a server a few minutes later. ]

[ Sierra was joking about the gold flakes, really. Who offers those? It just seemed like a funny thing to say, although...wow, this is awkward, no one laughed and they're all sort of sitting there staring at the menus.

At least Kallie sort of almost reacted to the joke. Sierra at least caught the eyebrow raise. ]

Vegetables are totally fine for me.

[ Since apparently no one likes pineapple here except for her, and Sierra...well, she'd honestly eat pretty much whatever toppings they got. She's far too easy-going to actually mind whatever the other two prefer. Sierra's a college student, besides. She'll eat whatever as long as it seems edible. ]

And so is splitting the cost.

[Miles shakes himself-- Buh. Wuh. Blurgh. Ugh this is probably the most awkward thing he's had to to in his entire life. ... This life anyway. Who knows what's happened in his past life-- he's still pretty sure his past self is a nutcase.]

I guess I'll pitch in too. [Can they get out of this conversation already? It's so awkward, and droll, and he'd rather talk about echoes to get themselves a better understanding about their past lives and who these weird people actually are to him.

So he tilts his head and notices... Kallie's got pink hair. Serah had pink hair. They look kinda alike, especially when he thinks more of Serah in Sierra's place. Serah had been grieving over her sister. Were they what he thinks they were?]

So uh... You know if you guys had met before? Before all this anyway. [And right when he says that, he realizes-- if they were sisters in the past, and Serah's sister was named Lightning, that meant Kallie was freaking Lightning.

Oh god. He scrubs a hand over his mouth, because oh god he doesn't even know what he'd do if he realized that freaking liar is that person he's so damn attached to.]

[ After that whole Blood Keys incident, it had taken him a while to convince himself that it was alright to wander around outside again. He hadn't exactly been cowering in the corner of his apartment or anything but he hadn't been making any unnecessary trips outside work either. In the end though, a combination of hunger, laziness, and being sick to death of Mac & Cheese won out over the thought of getting mugged again. So out he went into a nice public street early in the day.

He doesn't really have a destination in mind. More often than not, he just chooses whatever place seems to catch his eye and his mood first. This time though, the thing that catches his eye isn't the place as much the bike parked out front. He slows in his steps as he eyes it; an older model, Kawasaki, not in bad condition from the outside at least. Nice. Wonder how much something like this goes for now...

He eventually stops and moves his gaze from the motorcycle to the pizzeria. ...Pizza? Ehhh, yeah sure, why not? It's too damn cold to be walking too much longer anyway.

Surprisingly, there's a little bit of a line ahead of him. Isn't it a little early for a lunch ru-- Oh. Right. Saturday. Yeah, everyone's lazier on Saturday. Great. He gets on line before someone decides to cut ahead of him out of nowhere and starts scanning the room for available tables. Cause like hell was he going to walk back out into the snow and go home with frozen pizza. ]

[ She offered to pay, gosh! It's hard for Kallie to understand why anyone in their age frame would refuse, considering she certainly never turns down a friend or family member's offer to put free food into her. If they're so set on paying their share, however, she's not going to argue. The extra money will probably just go towards... saving for a new pair of running shoes or something. NBD.

Aaaand now they're settling into the awkward questions - not unexpected, of course, but. Kallie had kind of hoped to get in the topic of magic or something first before jumping right into the fact that... she's met a girl her Echoes are convinced is her sister. And that this on-edge teenager she's managed to convince to meet them might just be someone Lightning was intensely protective of as well. She already is fairly sure that Hope must have been something like Lightning's relative as well; she does know the Farrons' mother had had incredibly pale if not outright silver hair too.

As for the misunderstanding, she honestly has no idea Miles doesn't know she already goes by Lightning (a decision she may or may not regret by this point). Somewhere in there the information must have just accidentally gone missing- between the incredibly tense way they'd run into each other on the network and have been dancing around everything since then...

She lets out a quiet sigh, and resists glancing at Sierra for help, casting her gaze around aimlessly instead.

-- Then freezes. It's not entirely weird to see people eyeing her motorcycle, but recent crime puts her on high alert and... for some reason the guy looks awfully familiar.

It only takes a moment for her thoughts to catch up and realize that it's Snow - or Jake, whatever - and immediately she has No Clue what to do, thinking crazily for a moment about whether she's sure she didn't accidentally ask him to come along, too.

But no... she doesn't even know his network number and hasn't talked to him in who knows how long. For all she knows, he might not even be numbered any more at all.

Naturally though, he's coming in to where they are anyway, and she's stuck staring with a look of shock on her face. AWESOME. ]

If you mean before the Network, nope. We ran into one another at the bookstore, what back in October? [ She has to look over at Kallie for confirmation; it's been a while, but it was pretty much the day she'd accessed the network, and that had been around then. ] Before, though, we were sisters. Kallie remembers more about it than me, but...I know enough to know she's right about it.

[ Sierra will just dash Miles' hopes into the ground about the Kallie/Lightning thing, since she's completely oblivious to them. And since they'd more or less planned to get together to meet and greet and presumably share information, she...doesn't see the point in pretending that's not a thing.

Starting with the most basic information in any given situation usually makes sense, and that's the most basic information Sierra has available to her. Kallie - "Lightning" - had been her sister. These days she only had a younger brother, but it was...difficult to ignore the things that were echoed back.

For the moment, she's the least unsettled of the trio, up until the point Kallie freezes. Sierra is still getting to know the other girl - though she can't help trusting her, despite the revelations about l'Cie and Lightning's apparent job there - but that's enough to set her on edge, her casual smile slipping into a frown as she follows Kallie's gaze. ]

Kallie? What's -

[ Oh.

That's two out of three who won't be much help; Sierra needs a second to process the new flash. Her brain supplies Snow (she'd called him her hero, when Kallie - no, Lightning - had been holding her), but after a second this must be Jake; Miles wasn't, so it stood to reason. He'd been in that other memory, too. The one with Miles. ]

Oh god. I knew it. [Miles rubs at the back of his neck with both hands, very uncomfortable with this revelation-- not unexpected, but downright fucked up all the same.]

So that means you [he points openly at Kallie] are L-- what are you two looking at?

[He'd been so busy caught up in his own thoughts that he didn't notice the two girls looking at someone until his eyes are on them. He has absolutely no idea what's going on now, so he just follows their line of sight, turning his body around until he sees--

A blond giant of a man he'd seen previously with Serah.

A girl with orange pigtails.

Monsters that look like they were carved out of stone and crystal.

And that blond giant of a man smashing right into one of them.

It's just so utterly ridiculous, the entire scene he gets is so ridiculous that he cant help but let his jaw drop in incredulity. Because it's so weird and somehow more over the top than the rest of his old memories combined. And apparently that guy, some blond guy who doesn't seem to be that tall in the queue, is the one who triggered it.]

[ While scanning the room, Jake zeros in on their little table pretty much right away. For one, Kallie's pink hair stands out like a neon sign with arrows on it in a room like this. And yes, that actually is Kallie, the girl from the party. What are the damn odds, right? That's what he should be thinking. But instead, he's more thrown off by the fact that Kallie and everyone else at her freaking table are all just gawking at him.

Instinctively, he takes a second to glance behind him and down at himself before staring right back. Yes, it's him they're staring at. No, he didn't suddenly start sprouting extra limbs or forget to put on pants or anything.

Kallie staring at him might have made a little sense (though not with that face she was giving him), but everyone together was kind of alarming. Especially since he couldn't say he recognized the other two sitting with her. One was some kid, brown hair... high school? Probably? Yeah he wouldn't know anyone that young. And the other was this girl with her hair in this 80's sideways --

He freezes completely and stares solely and completely on that one girl's face. Serah. That name. It was that name that kept popping up in his head. Even though he still can't say he recognizes her, for some reason, he knows as soon as he sees her. This is her. This is the girl that's somehow important that he's supposed to be remembering.

Under any other circumstance, Jake probably would have just noted Kallie's presence but otherwise would've left her and minded his own business. But with all of them staring at him and then this girl being here, he couldn't really bring himself to just turn around and leave. So after what felt like a really long moment of them all just staring at each other, Jake abandons his precious spot on line and approaches the table. He's trying for casual over here and not mechanical.

It's only once he's within speaking distance that he realizes he doesn't really have a plan here. But he's already over here so, screw it. He tries for a big smile and lifts up a hand in greeting. ]

Hey, Kal. What's up? You out babysitting today?

[ If he looks at that girl, he knows he'll end up staring again. So he's trying his best to keep his focus on the other two. ]

-- Don't call me that.

[ First thing out of Kallie's mouth, her offended tone a definite contrast to the carefully-maintained neutral one she's been in up until now. She glances between the other two. Miles... Sierra... she didn't invite this guy. Please believe her.

Even she's vaguely offended on her tablemates' behalf. She might refer to Miles as a kid in her head from the haughty vantage point of twenty-one whole years, but she wouldn't imply he needs babysitting ~~unless he did something stupid~~. Likewise, Sierra's about the same age as her, so...

She doesn't miss the way Jake's eyes linger on the other girl. Does he recognize her, too? Considering the... connection between their past lives, it definitely wouldn't surprise to know the man's got Echoes enough to do so.

Anyway. Because as wound as she is, she just has to demand/ask: ]

Are you following me?

[ This is so incredibly awkward and Sierra's not entirely sure of all the reasons why, although the fact that she's pretty sure they just got slammed with at least three echoes in succession (four? Kallie was staring, too) didn't exactly help, there. She'd never gotten anything that quick aside from her various chats with Kallie, who was still winning for "causing things to happen". It made talking to the older girl a bit dangerous.

After a moment of outright staring, Sierra is able to regain her composure. Sort of. At least enough to look away from the newcomer - who's now avoiding looking at her, which she finds oddly worrying because what did he remember to cause that - to look back at Kallie. In retrospect, she knew Kallie had known at least two others aside from herself from the echoes, and she'd known only one would be here today...

...She'd never thought to ask why.

The babysitting comment doesn't even phase her, although her eyebrows go up at the "are you following me" question. Sierra just figures that if you are going to follow someone, staring at them from across the room awkwardly is probably not where things would lead.

The new guy looks just as stunned as everyone else at the table.

...Should they invite him to sit down? Given Kallie's defensiveness, Sierra's not sure how well that would fly. She does try to soften the accusation, a little. ]

It looks like he just came to get pizza. [ Kallie didn't actually answer the question, either, so. ] Which is why we're here. It is going to be lunchtime soon, and who can resist an invite to a pizzeria?

[ So that's not entirely why they're here, but. Sierra's not sure why this guy didn't rate an invite to the "so we knew one another in a past life" brunch. ]

Babysi--

[Oh no he didn't.

Oh no he didn't.

Who the hell does this guy think he is?? Swanning in here and then making comments like that. Because mile sure doesn't appreciate being called a tiny kid at the best of times, much less someone who needs to be babysat.

Especially comments like that from a complete stranger.

Okay, so maybe he's not a stranger back then but he sure as hell is one now.]

Oh whatever, just because you're a gigantic adult. [Yeah, that's what he has to say about the whole thing. But at least now he's no longer gawking like an idiot?]

[ Any friendly atmosphere he might have been going for is instantly killed with Kallie's comment and accusation. To be fair, if their places had been switched, he probably would've thought the same thing. But he wouldn't have said it in front of everyone, Christ. Way to make him sound like a stalker.

Thankfully, the other two don't seem to be going along with that kind of thinking... Though "Serah" is the only one who isn't being completely ridiculous. The kid's apparently really damn pissed at the babysitting comment and, ironically, reacts to it in the most stupidly juvenile way. "Gigantic adult?" Seriously? Is there anyone over 5 who would even say something like that?

He looks at the kid, tempted to say something back, when he's suddenly hit by yet another pulse. Compared to the one just a moment ago, this one was a little more disorienting and was probably the longest blip of memory he'd gotten so far. Not to mention the first one with some worrying content. He blinks a few moments, trying to get his bearings before glancing away from the lot of them.

Shit. Does he... seriously "know" everyone at this table? That can't possibly be a coincidence. There's no way. If any one of the four should be crying conspiracy bullshit, it's him not Kallie. What the hell is going on?

Seeing as he has more tact than Kal, he decides against blurting that out and decides to just go along with Serah's flow. ]

...Heh. Yeah exactly. Only thing I'm following here's my stomach. Promise. Just... figured I'd say hi is all.

[ He might have recognized the other two but he had no way of knowing if they knew him back. And it's not like he can just come out and ask... though again, creepy coincidence if that's what this was. The best he might be able to hope for here is getting their names for later reference. ]

[ Kallie's annoyed, but then also mollified too by the others' reactions. She only wishes now that the table was taller, so she could cross her arms on the surface without hunching over.

She's felt and witnessed enough Echoes hitting to know what they look like, and she sees it in Jake's face that he's getting more off of them even as the tension in the air threatens to start precipitating.

As such, she tries to calm herself. She tries really hard, because as abrasive as she can be to those with opinions she doesn't agree with on the network, if asked she'd rather avoid making an enemy out of anyone on the thing-- especially one that her Echoes spell out as... well, 'acquaintance' is probably the most civil way of putting it.

In light of what she's gotten off Jake before now, the thought's already occurred to her: if they didn't get along in a past life, how should that affect their current one...?

... Philosophy aside, she endeavors to gather up a semblance of peacefulness again. Before someone in the immediate area explodes spectacularly. After a quick breath: ]

This is... Jake Harrison.

[ For the benefit of Sierra and Miles, of course; she withholds their names to Jake in turn, however... and quickly switches to another question to avoid leaving a gap where they might fit in. She still frowns but addresses the man neutrally enough... ignoring her previous accusation. ]

I never got your number, before.

[ Sierra is about to try to fit her name in - she doesn't actually mind giving it out - but the topic switch to avoid a space for her to do just that stops her, her mouth snapping shut as she keeps quiet for the time being, not wanting to interrupt Kallie's...

Well, okay, if it gets back to a more accusatory interrogation she'll probably speak up again, but for the moment she's not going to talk over the other girl.

This is going swimmingly, clearly. Although she does have a question. ]

Or you would have...?

[ She doesn't finish the question, aimed at Kallie, but she means "if you'd had it, would he have ranked being at this little get together"? That's the name Kallie had quizzed her on a while back (to no recognition, since she'd used the wrong name to warrant that), so she assumes he's numbered from that and from the awkward pauses at seeing them, but...

She's never sure how to bring that up in public, so she's just half asking Kallie for confirmation instead, assuming the other girl will figure out what she's asking for. ]

[Miles grumbles a little to himself in annoyance. The day's just getting better and better, especially with this guy along. He hasn't exactly made the best first impression, really.

But he'd rather not make a scene in public-- or more of it. He's already paranoid being in public with a lady with pink hair. No need to make the situation even worse.]

Just sit down, sheesh. I'm getting neck pains just looking up at you. This way we all get to chat about coincidences.

[Just to be sure, he eyes the girls to see if they agree.]

[ Kallie raises Jake's hopes by starting introductions... but then immediately dashes them by continuing on before anyone else can supply their own names. Although her mentioning his "number" in front of the others might have been her attempt at giving him a hint? Maybe? Serah seemed to be vaguely asking Kallie something about that and--

Oh. Actually, the kid almost certainly confirms that they might all be on the same wavelength. Not enough of a confirmation for Jake to just start blabbing, but enough for him to agree to joining them. Likewise, Jake glances at the girls for any sign of protest before taking a seat. ]

As long as we get to eat, I'll chat about anything. And I'll give my number if anyone wants it later. Not like I'm shy with it.

[ And here's hoping they ARE all numbered for sure. If not, well, what he said could just be played off as a stupid flirty comment, he guessed. ]

That what I interrupted, then? Everyone gossiping about "coincidences"?

[ Sierra's question is met with a blank, distracted look. Kallie doesn't really have an answer for the girl, because... she has no idea what that would even sound like herself. It's impossible to predict. She probably would have at least talked to Jake again, though- maybe not as insistently as she's tried with Miles, but... they could have maybe avoided some of the awkwardness here? If nothing else she'd know a little more about him outside of her damn Echoes... a better idea of whether or not she trusts him.

Of course, she also didn't spend too much effort on attempting to contact him even without knowing his number. It wouldn't have been impossible... she just hadn't.

On the other hand, it doesn't really occur to her, either, that any of the other three might not catch immediately that they're all numbered. From her POV of already knowing, it seems pretty obvious to her.

She continues her silence for at least a few seconds more-- maybe sulking just a little at this turn of events even if she'd really like to avoid it showing. Casting for something else to focus on, she catches the eye of the server across the room... and shakes her head at him. They're... going to need a few more minutes. ]

[ Well, isn't this awkward. At least the silence from Kallie - whom Sierra supposes she shouldn't keep looking to for answers, here, even if Kallie knew more than she did about who they had been - gives her time to try to ease into something else. At least Jake seems to have recovered from being stunned, and Miles seems to be all right, too. Even if Miles also seems annoyed.

She'd nodded when Miles glanced her way, and since Kallie didn't outright protest even if she's sulking... ]

I wouldn't say it's gossiping, but that was what we had on the menu. Aside from pizza, I mean, which we actually hadn't quite decided on yet. They don't like pineapples or gold flakes, so I think we're going with veggies. Hopefully you like those?

[ And since there's space in the conversation now... ]

I'm Sierra Callahan.

[ Which is just as Irish as it sounds, although she doesn't have the accent. She'll let Miles decide whether or not to introduce himself. ]

Which number were you planning on offering up?

[ ...May as well get this show on the road and ask, even if it's not as direct as it could be. ]

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