"You sure you don't need to change your clothes? Looked like you just got out of bed," Isis remarked.
"I did just get out of bed though," Jin yawned. "It's still so early... whatever you're trying to show me better be worth it."
"Come on, push! You've got the energy to last a whole night yet not a simple morning?"
"I'm not a stamina freak like you. There's something normal people need call 'sleep'? You should try it some time."
"And I should trust that guy that sleeps the entire day?"
As Jin and Isis roamed the streets of Osvain, they enjoyed each others company with brief small talk.
"Where's Tora? I thought I'd be expecting to see him here too," Jin wondered.
"Brother Tora isn't feeling all to well, so he couldn't come along. Oh, but he did tell me to give you this though."
What Isis gave surprised Jin. "Woah this is..."
In Jin's hands was an MP3 player along with some earbuds. MP3 players weren't common in Osvain like the many other old tech from 100 years back. And all the ones that existed right now were barely functioning due to terrible neglect and conditioning.
Yet when Jin analysed it with his all-seeing state, he found that it was still in great condition. For what it was worth, he was holding a real gem.
"It could still work?" Jin gasped, surprised. "How did you even manage to get this?"
"Actually, Brother Tora made it. Since like uh... your house was kind of destroyed, and most of your old things were gone, we thought it'd be nice if you could have this. You always did love jamming on that guitar, didn't you?"
Jin didn't even hesitate. Plugging in the earbuds, he hit play. Pop music started to softly play in his ear. The quality was a tiny bit static, but he could still hear it clearly.
"Wow, this is amazing. Tora really outdid himself with this," Jin praised. "Thanks for giving this, Isis. And tell Tora that I'm grateful. I thought I wouldn't have any music to listen to left."
"Any time~! Just try not to lose it. And this is coming from Brother Tora. 'Making that was a pain in the ass, so if you end up losing it, I won't make another one!', was what he said."
"Right, gotcha."
Jin quickly decided to change the subject.
"Where are we even going anyway?" he asked, taking another step forward with his stick.
Isis pointed upward toward the top of a building. Her face expression deadpanned as if it was obvious.
"....Isis, you can't be serious."
Isis blinked, then broke into a wild smirk.
"I'm dead serious."
She suddenly took off into a sprint through a narrow alleyway. Her feet leapt from wall to wall as she parkoured her way up and latched to a metal pipe.
Then finally, she pulled herself over the ledge and looked down back at Jin.
"It's much easier than it looks!"
The building she halted up towards wasn't tall itself. Jin didn't understand what anyone could see from there since there were plenty of taller places.
But still...
"Isis, I literally can't run right now!"
"Then hobble! I don't know?! Use that warping thing you're so proud of!"
"Again, it doesn't work like that!"
"Ugh, well, I'm sure you've got this!" She threw a thumbs up. A nervous sweat sliding down. "Push past the pain won't ya! You didn't look to be struggling to walk while we were walking earlier!"
Jin casted his gaze back on the walking stick. She wasn't wrong. He sighed as he retracted the walking stick and shoved it into his pocket. A couple testing steps were taken. It wasn't as bad as he thought.
I could work with this.
Immediately, Jin boosted himself up the wall with his first step. Concrete crunching. Just as foot landed on the wall parallel to him, it slid down. He caught himself by the metal pipe, teeth slightly gritting.
Wooh, close!
Jin finally rolled himself up the ledge where Isis helped pulled him up.
"Told ya you've got it," she said, slapping his back.
"Thank you for your kind consideration," Jin sarcastically returned. "So where's this wonderful view you were so adamant in showing me?"
"It's a little further from here. But worry not! There are ladders this time. And absolutely NO using that x-ray vision thingy! It'll ruin the surprise."
"How reasurring." Jin rolled his eyes as he started to follow the girl.
It was a quiet stroll across the rooftop as they climbed further up other buildings.
The temptation to use his all-seeing state grew with each step, but Jin respected Isis's wishes to keep it a surprise.
He was caught within the shadow of the Bridge of Strata. It's figure looming over him as it connected directly to the higher strata.
Just how many times has he seen this sight? Jin had long forgotten counting. It was a terrible day he'd rather push back down his past.
"I keep forgetting how close the Vaen family mansion is to it. It's much smaller than I remember."
"Hmm, you mean the bridge?" Isis tried confirming. "Cause if so, you must be crazy. It's as big as ever!"
"Do you really think?"
As Jin contemplated, he thought about how much more little he was back then. It's more likely he just grew up. It's not like The Bridge of Strata actually changed in any way.
It's been the same long before he was born. Or, that's what Nozomi told him. He wasn't sure about the full history of Osvain. The books he read were only so limited with their information.
"Alright, we're almost there. Just a little more over that ledge and we should be at the spot!" Isis announced.
This better be worth it.
The moment Isis helped pull Jin up, he was introduced to the view of Osvain. Isis had taken him to a place where the sun lined up and could be seen perfectly between the buildings. Where dusk bled with the sky perfectly.
"What do you think. Awesome, right?" Isis asked, her expression filled with pride. "It's the spot me and Brother Tora had found a couple weeks before."
"You could see my district from here," Jin admired, his eyes glimmering in morning blue. "Even the education centre. How did you two manage to find this place?"
It didn't stop from just Jin's district. He could see a vast majority of the other districts from there too.
Isis pressed a teasing finger over her lip and winked. "That's a secret~"
For Isis, that secret was more important than Jin could ever realise. All because she lied. She didn't find it with Tora. And it wasn't found a couple weeks ago.
The girl fiddled her fingers behind her back.
A Couple Days Prior:
Inside the Namil household, two siblings laid on their respective beds which mirrored each other across the room.
"Huh? You're taking him there?" Tora said, surprised by his sister's suggestion. "That's a rather forward move."
"It's not what you think! I… I simply want Jin to see it. It's probably the best view around," Isis explained, her cheeks slightly warming.
"It's also the place dad took us back a while ago. We haven't even been there in years, how are you sure it's still the same?"
"It's there," Isis insisted. "I took a little visit over this morning. It's still as wonderful as ever."
"Hmmmm…"
Taro briefly looked over to his sister. Confusion arose from his expression, but quickly shifted the understanding. Now, he had a cheeky grin.
"You gonna confess?"
"Eh?! Brother Taro, I said it wasn't like that!" Isis exclaimed, throwing a pillow with pure precision right at Taro's face.
Present:
"…Jin, mind making me a promise?"
Isis's sudden question and shift in emotions threw Jin off, but he composed himself.
"That depends on the promise."
"You mentioned that you're going to an academy in Halcendre. And at the same time, you'll be on the look out for your father, right?"
"That's correct."
A gust of wind blew her hair as she looked directly at Jin.
She bit her lip.
Here it goes...
Her mouth opened. Words caught in her throat. Hesitation flashed across her features.
What am I even doing? He's going ahead so he could protect his family and find his dad. I shouldn't let me hold him back from that...
The future wasn't certain. But, Isis wished to believe that Jin would return soon. It might take a couple years, but she is sure.
Then, she clenched her fist in resolve.
"Kick the Vassari's ass," she smiled, pumping a fist to Jin.
His eyes widened; an instance of surprise voiced his expression. Jin wasn't sure why, at that moment, Isis appeared lonely. Her smile felt bittersweet. He pushed it aside before he smiled back.
A small, tired, but real smile.
"Yeah. You bet."
Jin returned the fist bump. Silence strung between the two while they enjoyed the rising sun.
As he looked down, at the corner of his eye, Jin could spot the market from above. He was fixated on a stall selling donuts.
"Hey, what do you say we grab a bite? My treat."
Isis visibly looked puzzled. "I wouldn't but... when did you bring money?"
Jin flexed out his hands. "The money is down there. It'll just take a while to get."
Understanding, Isis laughed. "Alright. Should I help with the cause?" she suggested.
Placing his hand on her shoulder, he said, "Sure. Just try not to vomit when we get down there."
"Huh?"
"I placed a set point just before climbing up here. Don't worry. It's still in range, so we don't have to make the tiresome trip all the way down."
"Wait, I didn't sign up for this––"
"Too late."
Snap!
The second he snapped his fingers, Jin felt a terrible headache slamming into his temple.
Isis caught him before he could trip over himself further.
"Woah," she gasped. "Wasn't expecting that."
"Ugh, neither was I," Jin groaned, massaging his head.
He caught a glimpse of his skin which showed violet cracks across his forearms. He's never seen it before. Isis seemed to be able to see it as well as she says:
"What's going on there?"
"I'm not sure," Jin frowned, examining his arm. "It's strange."
"Hey, then, if you're not in proper condition to go teleporting us out—thankfully—how about we just walk back like a normal person?"
"Alright," Jin surrendered.
***