voidtreckerexpress

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Who: Inigo, Tidus (aka the two shared braincells duo) and you!
Where: The standard coach
When: Horseshoe 17
What: Inigo and Tidus are handing out free stuff because Tidus is the train's official sugar daddy.
Warnings: Probably nothing, will edit if necessary.

---

Hey guys, forget about that public breakdown the other day. Today Inigo is on the ICP with a big smile, seeming as cheerful as ever. It's fine. It's cool.

"Good day, everyone! Tidus and I brought some things back with us from Irivar to share with everyone. So why not come over to the standard coach and see if there's anything you'd like to take with you, hm? We have quite the selection! Oh, and.. erm, Taiki, Roland, Bryn and Della.. If you could make sure to come see us, we'd appreciate it! Otherwise I might have to send Ti--"

Before Inigo can even finish the sentence, there's an offscreen obviously very Tidus-y voice calling out, "Inigo! Ask for Sakura too!"

Inigo huffs, turning his gaze to the off screen source. "I was getting to that!" (No he wasn't.) Apparently he accidentally pulled his ticket off the ICP as he starts moving away from it too, because the feed just cuts out. Just come get some sweet stuff.

---

Their set-up in the standard car is a simple, if messy, one. They have a few of their offered freebies on the same table they occupy, each guy facing the other, sat by the wall. From the immediate front, fragrant bags sit no bigger than a palm, a variety of scents better to tell when held to the nose. Whetstones sit stacked mostly on top of one another, and then a cluster of hair ribbons and circular hair ties behind them. Behind the bags are a few scent oils--basically, perfumes, if not very big. There's a few to choose from, but...

...not as many as there are the soaps, which take up a half of the table in their choice. It's like a lush shop here of choice, different colours and sizes.

And Inigo and Tidus? Sit there, either playing cards or fiddling through the paper craft book available from the art supplies where the old library used to be.

A chalkboard sits balanced, with the words 'FREE 2 TAKE' written in big letters. In case you missed the public announcement.

1:
Come up, and have a look. Ask about what they've got.

2:
Or while you're here, maybe you can help Tidus, who pipes up to ask-

"Hey, quick question. How long 'til you're comfortable hugging someone?"

(ooc: as a note, all threads on this will be threeways! please enjoy trying to handle both teens at once. you can't seperate them.)

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The sounds they make when they're happy is truly something he'll never really get used to. It won't startle him as it did the first time he encountered them, but Roland wonders where they get all that energy from, squealing and laughing, making sounds left and right. At least Inigo looked the part of the higgle-hugger.

And while Roland would usually shake such a comment off, this time he might take it a bit more seriously. He wasn't a heavy fighter, but since serving as Evan's right-hand, he's never enjoyed a moment's rest, a sword constantly in his grip. If not a sword, his pistol from home, seeing countless magitek upgrades. So, why? Was Inigo on the money...?

In learning something completely and utterly new, without the aid of the Spellworks to grant him the skills in the Arms Band directly, was he experiencing a temporary psychomotor deficiency? Wanting to move in a distinct way, but his mind forcing his limbs to prioritize safety over experience?

He definitely looks troubled. Roland attempts to explain, walking over to Inigo and the higgledies while wiping his brow with his forearm.

"I can't believe I'm saying this, but I think you might be right. All the skills I've learned are kind of preset already. Even the regular forms that make up the sword stance I practice. But this time, I'm forcing myself to move completely differently...with no help except from my own imagination." His finger finds the spot under his chin where it's evident he's back into the depths of his overthinking.

"Hm. I'm not sure how to get rid of this physical hesitation apart from falling a couple thousand times more." Welp. Would Inigo like his grav-con back? Roland's not succeeding in this as he initially expected.

"Heh, well, falling a couple thousand times more is exactly how I'm practicing.." Figuring that he'll get used to the feeling of flying through the air eventually. Then again, Inigo knows their situations aren't exactly the same. Inigo still is genuinely young, after all. He's never had any other body than this. It really has got to be harder for Roland, trying to adjust to his younger body after having to be used to his older one.

He'll take the grav-con back, but Inigo doesn't quite jump back into practice just yet. (He can practice more when Tidus is back, he figures.) Instead he can't help but want to help Roland with his own problem, considering Roland is pondering it so seriously.

"How about doing other forms of practice first? Where you have less danger of falling." And breaking his ~~not-so-old-man~~ spine. "You say that your swordfighting skills are already preset, but how about trying out other kinds of physical exercises and seeing how your body feels about those? Maybe there's a safer move among them you can practice to break through the mental barrier your age shift set up." See, Inigo can take these kinds of things seriously too! It's obvious he speaks right from the heart.

"And if you can't think of any, well.. I'm sure Tidus would love to put you to work."

If not just to see Roland sweat.

Roland doesn't quite shudder at the thought, but he does offer a rather dry expression. "Charming idea. But Tidus is a pro-athlete. I doubt his drills will be anything but simple." Or he would like to assume. He didn't get to spin around in mid-air (water) like that without some form of rigorous training, right?

Still. That's not at all a bad idea. Clearing some space again from the crowd of higgledies around their feet who did not get caught up in Inigo's hug, he recalls old exercise forms and decides on core work again, which he relies on plenty. Start with something familiar before moving on to something more dynamic. The end goal was to break the mental barrier stopping him from using his body the way his mind is intending; and he's close to that breakthrough. He just needs more time, more practice. This is why they were here, right?

"...Planks." Roland suddenly pipes up, looking straight at Inigo. "Why don't we start with planks? Have you heard of it before?"

...

Inigo is giving Roland just about the blankest look the older guy has probably ever seen on his face. In the middle of his confusion, some of the little guys in his arms manage to escape the embrace, jumping back to the ground so they can resume their playfighting.

"Planks?"

He repeats, as if trying to confirm that he heard that right.

And then, a moment later:

"You want Tidus to hit you.. with a plank of wood?" Geez, modern world training sure is weird!

"Heh. Not quite."

Though it's easy to imagine Tidus running around with a plank of wood, asking if he could hit Roland with it for practice...

He shakes his head and the grav-con is set aside for now, somewhere easy to reach. "Excuse me." He says politely to the higgledies which have crowded down by their feet, and the mix of them scatter in understanding, though some linger close to watch. Instead of explaining it to Inigo, Roland decides to demonstrate it instead. On all fours, his elbows sit nicely to the sides of his shoulders and his legs extend out in a similar width. In a second, Roland's body forms a straight, parallel line against the floor. For now, this is no problem as he looks up at Inigo from his spot, neck craned up.

"This is a plank. It engages the core for balance and stability. I was thinking we time ourselves." He disengages, kneeling as he straightens up. "It's not the most innovative exercise, but it'll do the job. Then we can move to more dynamic forms just like you suggested. Whaddya say?" Roland smiles, a slight tilt of his head with the higgledies in close proximity jumping up and down in strange glee.

If this was Tidus explaining this to him, Inigo would 100% assume that Tidus was trying to play some dumb prank on him. There'd be no doubt in his mind. This can't be some actual way to train, right? It looks ridiculous!

But it's not Tidus telling him about it. It's Roland. And sure, sure, even Roland can tease at times, but he'd never tell Inigo to do anything that'd make him look ridiculous as a prank...

.. Right? This is starting to get pretty sus, old man!

He does at least move down to kneel on the floor as well, but Inigo still looks very hesitant, awkwardly rubbing the back of his neck.

"Is this really something people often do where you come from?" Why are all these other worlds so weird!

"It's a form of exercise, yes." He almost chuckles at Inigo at the level of disbelief in his face. At most, his voice rises to a particular pitch, amused. "I swear it! I'm not joking!"

He doesn't assume the plank position yet, waiting on Inigo and his level of comfort before he does so. "Trust me. It's a workout and a half. It just looks silly, but it'll make you sweat. Why don't you try it first? I'll help you."

The higgledies begin cheering up and down, some climbing Inigo as if needling him to do it. If he perks up his ears, Inigo will definitely hear the distinct squeal of encouragement. Young traveler, you have been summoned to participate! Hiig! Show him your bravery!

Meanwhile, Roland is just smiling and waiting, not really seeing this as anything but a stepping stone to mastering the grav-con for the both of them. Inigo's core can get even stronger - already a good base from the sword work he does - and Roland can warm up so his body listens to his mind as it attempts to stretch its limits.

It's funny how he had absolutely zero hesitation about heading down into a dark rat-invested sewer with Roland to fight blighted creatures, and yet this is what makes him pause. Doing something as simple as planking. It's definitely Inigo's embarrassment holding him back. He's going to look so dumb and he knows it!

But it's hard to not give in. Partially because of the insistent higgledies - he can't believe he gave Jumblie to Tidus to go along with him, where is she to defend him from this peer pressure now! - but mostly because of the way Roland smiles at him.

Inigo is so weak to that. If there's anything in this world he'd never want to do, it's disappoint his adoptive dad, so...

His cheeks burn, but he sucks in a breath, choosing to just go for it.

He lowers himself to the position Roland was in a moment ago, trying his best to emulate it. Getting on all fours, leaning on his arms, trying to keep his body as straight as possible.

Inigo isn't even bothered by the effort it takes to hold the position, his thoughts are much too occupied by what he must be looking like right now.. Come on, at least join him, Roland. Make this boy feel a little less embarrassed.

"L-- Like this?"

"Yeah, that's it! Attaboy!"

It's not really something he should be this excited about but he sort of is because it's new for Inigo, and it feels like some form of bonding at the same time. Roland's always happy to see Inigo expand his horizons from what he's used to, or what he's never known, so even a simple exercise makes him support him all the way. And that support extends as Roland follows suit, going into a plank position and advising him still, easily for now since he keeps active as much as possible.

But anyone who's ever done planks in succession would know how deceptive this was, how much pain and struggle follow time as it ticks...

"Keep your back a bit lower, make a straight line as much as possible - " Roland says, head tilted a bit to check on Inigo's form, making sure he's not hyperextending anything, before resumes to his own plank. Eyes leveled, staring ahead, chin neutral. "Here we go then. Let's do one full minute first. Keep it up!"

The only thing Roland doesn't foresee are the higgledies...Which in any other scenario would be quite welcome to join in. But right now, perhaps because it's Tidus's higgledies left with Roland's own bunch, all of them are crowding Roland and Inigo, jumping beside them, dancing on top of their backs, and some sliding beneath them to give them support from below. His eyes grow wide, but he tries his best to keep at the plank, and hopes Inigo was doing the same.

There's a lot that's going on, along Tidus's way to the general supplies. Minding the bizarre not-there passengers and Jublie's presence, and then the feedback he receives from Gibbers that can be described as sharing greatest amounts of positivity during... something. Flipping, right? Jumping around, getting them used to that. Fun with the grav-con. It makes Tidus eager to get back -- or, it's just how empty most of the train cars are to go down, with everyone trying to share space.

( Or, well, empty of actual living beings. )

But for the fuss, it's more the journey to and from the gymnasium from the armoury that has Tidus taking his time than anything else. No trouble from things that aren't actually there, at least. But he has to come back at some point, and so when else would be a good time than when Gibbers speaks the loudest to his heart? Are they getting it? Are they trying some cool move? Tidus has gotta see this--!

And what he sees upon opening one of the gym doors and entering into its wide space is... uh....

...

...

"...Are you two doing yoga...?"

His voice rings out loud and clear, echoing off the walls. This is the opposite of cool jumping flips.

Inigo is so focused on planking that he doesn't even notice the sound of the door opening. He's just trying to follow Roland's instructions, trying to do well so he won't let the other down. Even as the higgledies seem to be insistent on trying to make things a little harder in their enthusiasm - it's just hard to keep your balance between the ones jumping on your back and the ones touching you from below, okay!

But Tidus's voice? Now that's impossible to miss. Inigo's eyes grow wide the moment he hears it, and as if burned, he quickly moves out of the planking position - making sure to move backwards as he sits back on his knees so he won't accidentally squish any of the tiny creatures.

"T-- Tidus!" He glances between the other two in a panic. Was this a prank after all? Did Roland work together with Tidus to pull a prank on him? For a moment Inigo looks utterly betrayed.

His cheeks starting to grow red, Inigo's gaze ends up resting on Tidus's face, the small Jumblie higgledies still sitting in the blonde hair.

"I.. It's called planking!"

That sounds stupidly defensive when compared to the subject he's talking about.

Roland sighs, if only because they were so close to the full minute. "Hey, you broke form." No point in doing it alone, so he does a mountain climber, knees up to his chest before he sits down on his heels, looking at both of them with a slight sheen of sweat on his forehead.

"You know what yoga is but you don't know that was planking, Tidus? Huh." Look at him assuming again. There really must be more differences than similarities with the first world compared to Zanarkand/Spira and Ylisse, though the latter he knew for certain would be a complete jump. "I wasn't so successful with the grav-con, so Inigo suggested a more doable warmup." Let's forget the fact that Roland fell flat on his face for now! But he doesn't get up from his position, instead opting to stretch his arms again, one over the other, then stretched down to his back as if reaching for the middle.

"How was your detour?"

Or unspoken: hope he didn't see anything too unsavory on the way back.

"Eh," comes his answer - to Roland, obviously, not to Inigo, no matter his flustering going on right about now. He's walking on over, Jumblie - the many of her - on his person, a few balanced on his shoulders too. "S'fine. Spider's got a videogame tourney running in the dressing car, went and said hi to her. There's games in the game car too." So, you know, all the important distractions are currently ongoing.

He stops before the two, his look curious, but not really judgmental. ...well, maybe a little. Judging why they went with this and not something more cool.

"Is planking a yoga thing? I know floor exercises, don't know anything about yoga. It's a train thing." You know - a train thing!

"I know crunches and sit-ups. Does that count?" Whether it counts as a yoga thing or something else completely, Tidus, giving his limbs a quick stretch and telling the Jumblies, "Gonna be moving, hold on if you're staying" as he lowers to the floor.

He flattens out his arms stretched above his head, brings his knees up together, folded at the legs. And then, taking his time between each one, he starts to lift up his upper body, pushing up his legs -- trying to make his hands meet with the tops of his knees.

Just gonna start doing knee crunches, no big deal, this is what we're doing now right.

There is indeed so much flustering going on here, even if it goes ignored. Inigo still isn't quite over Tidus just wandering in on that, especially with his reaction to it all. Not to mention there's those initial words coming from Roland, which only seem to make Inigo freak out even more. He's not even sure anymore whether his brain is freaking out more about the embarrassment of a moment ago or the worry that he's disappointed Roland by not sticking to it for a minute. But--

"N-Not on purpose!" He whines, though goes silent after. Not that he's stretching like Roland or starting to do knee crunches like Tidus. ~~Showoff.~~ Inigo is more of a swordfighting kind of guy than a workout kind of guy, after all. Can't take the medieval mindset out of him. He's too unused to this whole thing to be getting into it the way the other two do.

Jumblie, seeming to sense his inner panic and subsequent sulking, is quick to jump out of Tidus's hair mid-crunch - sorry, pal! - before turning back into one full-sized higgledy mid-air and wiggling her way into his arms while he's still sitting there on his knees.

It doesn't stop him from being sulky, but at least encourages him enough to speak up again.

"Roland thinks the reason he can't handle the grav-con very well is that his mind isn't so used to his body being young."

Tidus pauses in his crunch, swinging a devilish look Roland's way.

"Oh yeahhhhhhh?"

Gotta interrupt tag order for that sweet implying tune. YOU GOT THE BRAIN OF A NINETY-TWO YEAR OLD UP IN THERE, GRAMPS??

INIGO, THAT WAS BETWEEN YOU AND ROLAND!!! He was trying so hard to be subtle about it too!!

But now that the truth has been revealed, between Inigo cradling his new friend and Tidus exercising right off the bat, Roland is compelled to say his peace if only because there has been a huge misunderstanding! He'll stand for now, dusting off his knees and crossing his arms again. Go do your crunches, just listen!

"Don't give me that." He appeals, though honestly he doesn't expect Tidus to bite. Roland stifles a sigh. "It's...I'm used to certain moves already, so when I try to deviate, it's like I'm reverting back. My mind's telling me to do it, try a completely different move, but my body won't follow. Like it's...hesitating. Get it?" And he hopes he does, Tidus was an athlete and Inigo was a swordsman. See, it's not so hard to understand!

"I just need to get better and work harder at it. That's all. Especially now that I'll be receiving a new modification on my pistol. I can't be falling behind on my training either."

What?? What happened to the getting into exercise thing? Is this only for train-father and son and not a Tidus? This is Tidus discrimination!

Which, you know, when you're the only guy doing crunches... Tidus sits up onto his butt, not about to be a solo fish in the pack; not when he's already feeling like he tried to get involved in something he didn't belong. But it's not so bad as he listens to Roland, and for the slip of the implication he makes (come on, he had to! but he's not going to be too mean about it), Tidus folds his arms, humming as the tiny Gibber-dies come over to jump in his lap.

"I get that. That's me and Inigo trying to teach me parrying all the time. I hate it." Not to be blunt or anything, and Inigo probably knows by his constant complaining which part he hates (not his sword partner). "What did you two try doing though? Did you do any normal jumps? You know... jumping in place. Doing a small jump into a run?"

Ah. He clicks his fingers, already thinking without waiting for an answer. "We should be in the training gym! Maybe the swinging bars'll help. Get you both used to being off your feet and moving in the air. And maybe that's what you need too--"

He gestures off, down the way towards the training gym.

"The landing mats they have. Do you worry any about your landing 'cause the ground in here's tough? We can go down the bottom and set up down there if you want a softer landing."

Sorry, but do you expect Inigo to ever fully keep something to himself unless you explicitly tell him to make sure to do so? Because this is what happens when you don't do that. Tidus learns about everything.

Inigo is quiet for a few moments though, the sulking at least slowly fading a bit. Mostly due to Jumblie's influence. It feels so hard to keep up the pout when her light always worms its way straight into his heart.

"I'm not really worried about landing.." But it's only him softly saying that rather than a protest. Inigo is used to getting hurt, it hardly even bothers him anymore at this point. But he figures it may be good for Roland? Who knows, maybe the other is a bit too protective of his body, especially if he's used to having an older one.

Also, yes, he did just skip completely over the parrying thing without commenting on it. It probably says something about just how used he is to Tidus's complaints about it. He doesn't even take it personally or Start A Thing about it right here and now. (Which is rare when it comes to these two.)

"Though getting my feet off the ground might help. I'm not used to all this.." He pauses, trying to find a good word for it, before just settling on, ".. air stuff."

Edited 2020-11-03 22:06 (UTC)

"Actually, that might be a good idea. For everyone."

Roland realizes mid-sentence as Tidus talks that they each had to work on something they currently didn't have, or were feeling uncertain about. Sure they came in here to escape the fiasco outside every other train car, but the idea of seriously training is suddenly dawning on the chief consul. Inigo's grav-con was one thing, but it seems even he needed support on creating more varied moves. He also has Jumblie to work with, if he'd allow her to show off. Meanwhile, Tidus's parries were indeed, something they could work on together. Maybe with two swordsmen trained from youth and experience by his side, he'll be able to defend and counterattack better? They've only sparred once, but he can see where the youth was coming from.

And from both of them, Roland is eager to learn how to better approach this dysfunction between body and mind. He knows he can do it...but for certain, this isn't a task he can do alone. He nods and looks around, the entire car littered with higgledies of varying colors.

"All three of us can help each other out with the things we want to get better at. I don't mind making a quick switch to another car that's equipped to handle a spar and a practice session." Roland glances at the twin teens, encouragingly. A fire lit underneath, determined to get the most out of this sad reprieve of voices and ghosts that won't leave.

Edited 2020-11-04 16:20 (UTC)

The most colourful, best car when filled with tiny higgledies.

"No problem, it's easy getting through the cars. Just ignore whatever's happening outside." Advice given with a gesture outward with a hand. "You got any earpieces, Roland? I can let you borrow one of mine, Inigo- and we can listen to music and make a bunch of sound while we head down! Jumblie's got a great singing voice."

Not that Tidus's aim was going to be 'follow the tune of the music' more as it was 'just make the most sound possible', but hey, he's going to throw in the compliments where he can to Inigo's bosom pal!

"And you'll see, Inigo. Air stuff is fun. There's all kinds of moves you can get your body to do! You just need to learn how to move your limbs to pull it off, how you need your body to be on a landing so you don't tumble over. It's just hard for me to describe since it's all in here--" he taps his temple "--after doing it over and over."

The realisation that they really are going to move to a different car is starting to become stronger and stronger, and it makes Inigo's breath feel like it's momentarily stuck in his chest. It's not even really the outside he's as worried about - though he'd prefer to not hear or see his mother or sister, not under these circumstances - as much as he's worried about running into one of the ghost-like beings that haunt the train right now. Inigo doesn't know how he'd be able to hold back a breakdown right in front of Roland and Tidus if he'd spot Yuki again.

But.. it'll be fine, he tells himself. It's fine right now. There are no ghosts in here with them, so maybe something is warding them off. Hopefully nothing will happen.

Inigo nervously wets his lips a bit before quickly speaking up, determined to chase the thought out of his mind. To not look off.

"Yeah, right. Would you believe me if I said parrying was fun?" A joking complaint is always the easiest train to hop on to in order to try and get things back to normal. "But.. sure. It sounds like it'd be a better place to try this all out."

He rises to his feet, Jumblie escaping his lap to hop happy circles around Tidus's legs, filled with joy (heh) at his praise.

"It shouldn't take too long to get there anyway." So hopefully they can skip right past all of the depressing stuff.

Between Tidus's advice on how to avoid the ghosts and echoes outside the train, to Inigo's subtle apprehension...Roland's starting to get a better idea of just how strong the pull of this void storm was no matter how strong-willed he thinks himself to be. His earpieces appear in their case when he summons them out of the band, to which he waves at in gesture so that Tidus and Inigo can share if needed.

If he looks and sounds serious, it's only because Roland wants all three of them to get to the next car without any untoward incidents.

"So make a lot of noise, drown out everything else, and keep moving. Got it." Roland begins to wear the earpieces, but takes some time to reconnect it to his SCA for the music, which Kitty uploaded for him the first time they met. As he tinkers, talk on sparring and parrying as a fun activity for everyone, he silently wills Bambosh and his small army in halves; one to cover Inigo, and the other to cover Tidus. Though it's left him decidedly higgledy-less, Roland doesn't comment on it or at all, minds it even. His arms are already crossed over his chest and he walks in between them like a man on a mission. Just need to get through the cars! Simple!! They can do this!! ~~He'll protect them!!!~~

"Let's stick close together when we leave. Proximity seems to help ward them off."

Tidus's own earpieces are never far off his person, pulled out of his pocket soon after his suggestion - glad to see that Roland had his own too. Tidus offers one to Inigo, a 'you got any?' asked as he holds it out for the guy to take. Would offer them both, but he doubts Inigo will let him get away with it. Even if he's got an impressive pair of lungs, if he does say so himself!!

Jumblie gets a grin at his feet, but Roland, well -- does he think neither of them would notice this particular set-up, exposing Roland's back?? And so come Gibbers in a bundle of squeaks, sprinting and spinning around the man, doing poses, and one even deciding to take a place on his shoulder.

What other command could they have been given than 'bother the gramps'?

"Remember, the most important part," Tidus says in all seriousness, "--is to smile and say 'sup and just pretend it's just another happy day on the voidtrain!"

Okay, so maybe he lost some of that serious by the end.

Tidus knows Inigo too well. Aside from indeed not having earpieces with him - why would he, he only ever listens to music when he's together with Tidus in the first place - he also definitely is not planning on leaving Tidus himself without one. But he'll at least take the one, not wanting to have some big discussion about it when what's important is quickly getting to their destination.

He silently pops it into his ear, familiar with the process by now. Inigo's glance moves across the higgledies, scattered all across them by this point. Over at Roland, looking determined, and Tidus, joking as always.

Right. That's all they have to do. Stick together, and act like everything is normal.

Inigo feels sick to his stomach with nerves, but he forces it down. Don't let it show. Don't let it show.

"I'm starting to think the real reason we're wearing these," he taps the earpiece in his ear, "is so you won't deafen us on the way there."

He manages to make the joke sound convincing enough, the smile on his face practiced enough to look real. Something about the severity of the situation outside of the room they're in right now makes it easier to fake than usually, even in the presence of two people who know him best.

"We're all ready to go now though, right?"

"Yeah. Let's move. If you have to talk to someone, let's just talk to each other. Don't engage them, not even for a second."

He won't deny the blue higgledy pulling his attention, dancing and posing with one arm up in the air, its body tilted in a certain direction like he's ready to roll out too. But his own command to the fiery sprites surrounding the other two by his side is much more serious, more protective in nature. Give them courage to make the trip. And what was Bambosh if not literally, the embodiment of bravery? They squeal, doing flips in the air. The three of them are literally sticking quite close to each other in a formation, and they begin to walk in careful strides. But Roland does remove one ear piece, just in case he needs to hear something else from either Tidus or Inigo; keeps this in his pocket as they finally reach the narrow line of the train leading either direction. Echoes litter the spaces where people are not currently occupying, as if they belong. In response with their three-man shuffle, a button is pressed on his SCA and music starts blasting through his remaining bud. It's a fairly upbeat song from Earth, one he surprisingly recognizes.

"I'd rather Tidus speak at that volume though, it helps." Roland exclaims, but the problem is he's always been more soft-spoken than either of the teens in a way that his voice never really shouts. As if his throat can't really handle that pressure or strain. "Inigo, stick close to him? I'll watch your backs." In case echoes approach from there, Roland can throw them off, easily ignored by the chief consul.

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