III - Timeless Contemplation 【ShadowTenshii】
Channel: ShadowTenshii シャドー天使ぃ
Date: 2022-02-26

Chapter III - Anamnesis

“Come, have a drink! Surely you can afford some t͕͓̠̼̻̮͐ͭ̋͘i̷͉̩͎̭̗͕̦̎ḿ̡̭͙̰̞͖̫̟̖̃̂ë̶̲͚͉̗́ͭ̍͑ to relax and contemplate the wonders of life for a little?” the bartender laughed heartily.

‘He has a really light and cheerful manner of speaking,’ Tenshii thought with a small smile, still a little shaky from the abrupt change in surroundings. ‘Reminds me of Mirage, from APEX Legends…’

“I’ll take something fruity if you have it, please.”

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‘...that memory just now…’

Distractedly, Tenshii went back to the counter as she was finishing up the last of her drink.

“Ah, I hope you’re enjoying the Spritzer! It’s one of my favourites to make!” the bartender flashed an easy smile, which turned into a frown when he saw her. “Hey, you doing alright? Cat got something on your mind?”

Tenshii gave a tentative smile, swirling her drink. “Something like that, I suppose.”

“Let me tell you a story about my cat to take things off your mind, then! There was this one time she was chasing this humongous rat…”

Tenshii tuned out the story slightly, nodding politely at the right parts and appreciating the bartender’s efforts at cheering her up.

“...she jumped, you see, from the second story balcony! I was so worried she’d hurt herself, but--”

Tenshii flinched involuntarily, jerking her head to the side a little. The bartender paused mid-sentence.

“Sorry, was it something I said?” he asked in concern. “Did you also have a cat? Oh dear, my a- apo- apologies if that, I- I mean, --”

Tenshii’s lips held her easy smile still through forced habit as she looked back at the bartender with a tighter gaze in her eyes.

“No, I’m sorry. Just a runaway thought that I had to get rid of. Thank you for the drink, though, I really appreciate it.”

Leaving a good tip, she turned around and silently walked out the door to the balcony for some fresh air.

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Tenshii took in the calming sights - the bustling of the city down below, juxtaposed with the quiet whispers of the winds in her ears and the twinkling stars above. She sighed, closing her eyes.

A voice sounded airily from behind. “You know, I don’t really recommend looking back too deeply. It gives me extra paperwork.”

Whipping around, Tenshii frowned as she noticed the Shadow standing behind her, hyperfocused on the clipboard in their hands. “I’m sorry?!”

The Shadow paused in their flipping of the files on their clipboard, looking up. “You know, if you get a strong drink, you’d probably want to sip on it throughout the night and let the tingles wash your worries away gently, instead of dunking your head in somehow and suffering? It’s the same with certain memories, it’s too easy to get caught up in them. Maybe just let them heal, yeah?”

Defensively, Tenshii opened her mouth to retort, “But--”

The Shadow was lost in their own world. “Well, you can sip on it throughout the day if you want to too, no judgment on that front…”

“That’s not the point!” Tenshii exclaimed indignantly. “What paperwork? And why does it matter to you if I want to look back or not?! You’re the one storing lost memories away! At least these ones I can still find within myself, right?”

The Shadow, for lack of a better word, seemed to wilt a little, putting their clipboard away somewhere within their cloak. “I… see. Yes. Well, if you’re sure, just… be careful, yeah?”

They disappeared as the wind started picking up, extinguishing the lights of the sky and the city...
...leaving the world in darkness once more.

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"Timeless Contemplation"
key: B minor (ish)
time: 5/4 and 6/4

music, story, art: 
■  ShadowTenshii (me): https://twitter.com/ShadowTenshii

subs: 3800

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Chapter 0 - Inchoation - https://youtu.be/6lbL9N1gLtA
Chapter I - Snegurka - https://youtu.be/Fb5hjf85voE
Chapter II - Kaitou - https://youtu.be/gxienNW00kY
Chapter III - Anamnesis - [here]
Chapter IV - Crepuscule - https://youtu.be/TKIsvKNShBo

#tiimeless #bgm #calm