{Pandora Hearts} ℱℴℓℓℴω ℳℯ ∂ℴωη

{Pandora Hearts} ℱℴℓℓℴω ℳℯ ∂ℴωη {Retrace: 1}

“So this is the cemetery around here, huh?” the woman inquires, glancing around at the tombstones and statues littering the ground to mark each of the deceased’s burial place. Behind her the taller of the two chuckled and nodded.

“Yeah, this is it. It’s not much, but you know...” she let the sentence trail off without an end. Instead she watched as the first woman examined nearby gravestones and genuinely seemed interested in the things around her. “Are you really this interested in a place like this?”

“Kinda. I’ve never really got to wander around a grave site before. Always got yelled at. Something about ‘disrespecting the dead.’” came the nonchalant answer.

“Ah, I guess that’s true, Reks.” the second woman chuckled nervously. That thought hadn’t crossed her mind. Reks stood up, spinning around, her hands on her hips as she smirked at her friend.

“But the way I see it is, if you don’t step on their graves you can’t see the names to be able to respect them! Just ripped a big hole in that logic, damnit!” Reks ranted in response, the smirk on her face as if she had just solved the great mystery of the meaning of life.

The second woman began to laugh at that logic, though she did see the rational thinking behind it. “Oh, you like that thought, eh, Isla?”

“Of course!”

The two woman continued to chatter as Isla continued to show Reks around her home town. It was the first time the two had met, face to face, after years of being internet buddies and even conversing with one another via Skype. It was strange, but a welcome strange.

Though Isla soon found out it was harder to keep Reks in line at times than it was over the internet. It was a common joke between the two that Isla was Reks moral compass, often keeping Reks out of trouble over the internet - unsurprisingly that had carried over into real life.

While showing Reks around, Isla had to keep the woman from trying parkour for the first time. The trees and buildings were close enough for it to be possible, where areas Reks came from an area with anything to parkour over was too far spaced, thus leaving her unable to do so. Isla didn’t wish to have a repeat of what happened to another of her friends who had injured himself pretty badly by falling through what he had jumped upon performing parkour. Isla also had to keep Reks from attempting to beat up the old guy that often stalked Isla as they passed him by.

Now they both were on their way back to Isla’s home, where Reks was staying for the few days she was planning on visiting.

“You’re a handful you know that?” Isla sighed, shooting Reks a look. Reks shot a cheeky grin back at the taller woman as she gave a short chuckle. However, the cheeky grin wasn’t what caught Isla’s attention this time, as it had earlier when she had told Reks the same thing.

Reks had been rubbing at a spot on her chest on the left side, under her most recent tattoo that declared ‘NO LOVE’ - above it laid the four card suits with the heart crossed out. Worry flitted through Isla’s mind at this action, every possible worst case scenario running through her mind.

“Are you alright? Do I need to call 9-1-1?”

“I’m fine, really.” Reks grinned again, hiding all indication of pain from her body language. Isla pouted at this, brow furrowing in frustration.

“Than why were you looking like you were in pain?” Isla pursued in her frustration.

“Ah, you know, I got bruised there at work awhile ago.”

“Why didn’t you say something?”

“It’s just a bruise, nothing to brag about, Isla-pretty~!”