lorelei's inbox

[instructus]

the instructor

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[partymagician]

[ Honestly? Fair. ]

I have a few things.

[ He hums softly as he thinks. ]

Are we meant to get close to our partners?

[instructus]

Hmm. In theory, yes.

[ She laughs softly, just a little. ]

That, however, isn't something we can force. Regardless of what people might assume, Florence and I aren't here to dictate closeness.

[partymagician]

So… it’s a good thing if we’re close?

[ Hmm. He hopes that’s truly the case. ]

You’ve just paired us up and hoped for the best?

[instructus]

I suppose so. You know what they say about, what is it now...teamwork making the dream work?

[ She doesn't sound super enthusiastic; perhaps a little dismissive? Who knows. ]

And that's one way of putting it.

[partymagician]

[ Hm. It sure sounds dismissive to him. ]

Is that how you really feel, Miss Lorelei?

[instructus]

Hmm? What do you mean?

[partymagician]

Ah, well… I would have thought you’d be more enthusiastic about team work.

[ Considering all that they’re doing here. ]

[instructus]

Hmm? Was that not enthusiastic for you? I can certainly try to amp up the pep in my voice, if that'd help.

[partymagician]

Give me all the pep you can muster, Miss Lorelei.

[instructus]

[ Oh, boy. Okay. She clears her throat and takes in a deep breath and: ]

Oh, Fai, you know what they say! Teamwork makes the dream work~!

[ Her voice is like. Five octaves higher and it's cheerful, that's for sure. Definitely sounds pretty over the top.

And then it drops back down to normal. ]

Was that sufficient?

[partymagician]

Sure was!

[ He sounds pleased, at least. ]

So, how many people used to live in this town?

[instructus]

If I had an estimate, perhaps around...five thousand?

[partymagician]

And the number of students who attended this school? It feels so empty with just us.

[instructus]

No more than a thousand.

[ It's a small city...! ]

[partymagician]

So, the population here really isn’t that big…

[ He hums. ]

That’s still a lot of people that have vanished into thin air.

[instructus]

Indeed. Are you worried about them?

[partymagician]

Of course I am. It’s concerning to come to an empty world.

[ … ]

Has everyone died, or are they still alive?

[instructus]

Hmm. I don't think "died" is entirely accurate; some of them, perhaps. Some of them might've just gotten...lost to things out of their control. And who knows about the rest?

...Assuming there are others left, anyway.

[partymagician]

Lost to things? How would they be lost? Is it like being under a spell?

[instructus]

You could say that.

[ She pauses. ]

You know, Fai, I appreciate the concern you have for the other residents. But I think it'd be in your best interests, at this very moment, to focus on building your relationship with Hien and...let things run their course for now, hm?

[ Which is clearly not what's going to happen, given the meeting they're all going to have soon. ]

[partymagician]

We’ve done quite a bit of relationship building.

[ That’s all he’ll say about that! ]

It sounds to me like you’re changing the subject.

[instructus]

I am.

[ She'll own up to it, at least? ]

I don't like discussing what happened to the people of this city. It's very unfortunate.

[partymagician]

That makes me want to know more.

[ He lets out a soft sigh. ]

But I know to quit while I'm still ahead, and I don't think you're going to talk about it right now.

[instructus]

Correct.

[ Sorry, Fai... ]

[partymagician]

Well, have a good rest of your day! Here's to hoping no one comes by to bother you.

[ He sure has heard that trombone playing!

Fai hangs up before she can say anything back. Is he being passive aggressive? It's hard to say... ]