😢 voice; @b.potts

[tutee]

[ It happened overnight. The amnesia wore off and she woke up Sunday morning suddenly possessing months of knowledge of a man who'd shown her worlds and times Bill could never have imagined, prior to meeting him. She hadn't believed Cisco when he'd told her about this man called the Doctor who could travel through time, who was her friend. But now she remembers him, and more importantly, she remembers how she hasn't seen or heard from him in weeks.

When she goes to start recording, the camera comes on and she gets a view of how shattered she looks from crying, and quickly switches to audio only. ]

How... How do you know when someone's left? Gone home, I mean, or just... gone somewhere that's not here. Is there a list of names somewhere to check?

[ She pauses, hesitant, before adding, ] Do the ones who've left ever come back?

Comments

[alchemyfreak]

It happens with people from home sometimes, too.

[Nobody's safe, not even the people who haven't been on another world before.]

People not knowing me I can get used to, I mean I have. The worst part was how many times I've seen my brother come in go... In that place you don't want your friends to stay, it was hell.

[Quietly.]

Watching them leave gets lonely though, no matter what world you're on.

[tutee]

[ Bill nods, sadly. Not that he can see, because this is voice only. But she swallows, and finally says. ]

Yeah, it is.

[alchemyfreak]

The good news, I guess, is that anyone can come back at any time. They might not be gone for long.

[He's honestly not even sure if that's reassuring.]

[tutee]

Maybe. Maybe, but there's no way of knowing for sure.

[ Glass half empty. ]

[alchemyfreak]

No, unfortunately there isn't.

[He'd know all about that, for every time Al came back to Purg he disappeared just as abruptly.]

Sometimes they come and go so many times it's almost better they didn't show up at all.

[tutee]

[ Bill isn't sure she agrees with that line of thinking. ]

I mean, I suppose so, if the place you're stuck in is bad, but... Wouldn't you rather see someone you love for a short time than not see them at all?

[alchemyfreak]

After awhile you start spending the whole time waiting for them to leave again. It's not something I'd wish on anyone else.

[It's been almost two months since Al arrived, Ed will settle down eventually.]

In the first world I was in, my brother never really stayed for longer than a month. He showed up a lot, just never stayed...

[She can probably hear the smile in his voice, rueful.]

The last time he was there for almost a year, though.

[tutee]

[ She can hear the sentiment in his voice, and she can't help but be jealous of the relationship he must have with his brother. ]

I suppose I've just... never had someone I cared about losing before.

[alchemyfreak]

[Ouch. He sounds almost guilty after that statement. Ed's never not had someone he cared about, even when he was alone it wasn't for long.]

That... must be tough.