Finally clothed in a black, skin-tight thermosuit, he thoughtlessly devoured a bowl of kelp and mushrooms - the one person in Sitabee that did not seem to detest the horrific dish. Luna still had her reservations when it came to having visitors in her room; the stranger with his bowl of stew and her uncle, both seated on her bed. But despite the invasion into her privacy and the boy’s disturbing anatomy, she felt no ill will towards him. In fact, she might’ve even confessed to finding him somewhat charming with his confusion and his disorganized questions, though he answered none they asked of him. It seemed that he was genuinely as lost as they were - equally disbelieving of the story of the shark.
Now that his hair had dried, he looked so normal; so human. Like them, he had red eyes and dirty-blonde hair, a decently sized nose, but with a wider chin and a natural muteness to his constant frown. Despite his regular appearance, he seemed to know his way about the System - navigating panels and even revealing some long-lost features to Luna’s own, private screen. Mars, it seemed, mirrored her own sense of disarmament, as he had placed the knife on the nightstand on the other side of her bed and instead had both his hands folded neatly in his lap; watching the stranger with keen eyes, questioning: “So you understand the plan, yeah?”
The stranger nodded before bringing the bowl up to his mouth to lap at the final drops of the stew.
“Yes. I’m to stay in my room until you’re sure I’m not a monster. Meanwhile, I’ll pretend to be from some other site. Because Luna’s father and your brother is nervous… right?” Mars chuckled and even Luna scoffed with bemusement. Nervous… that was one way to put it.
“Good boy. You’ve got a weird way of talking, so you're probably from one of the other sites. Don’t worry, I’ll keep my ears out. Strapping lad like you’ve gotta be missed by someone, right?” The stranger cocked his head and looked to his male host questioningly, as if not understanding any part of what he had just said. Before he could ask for a clarification, Mars stood from the bed and motioned towards Luna and the door.
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“A word, young miss.”
Outside, in the dark, cramped hallway, they stood in silence until the door closed - leaving the amnesiac to his own devices for the moment. Mars crossed his arms, made for his hallmark sign of scratching his chin and ponderously spoke: “I’m not sure we’re doing the right thing… if it hadn’t been for your story, I’d have flushed him already. What are your thoughts?”
Luna leaned back on the wall and brought her arms above her head, thinking back on the eventful day and the madman who had saved her from the beast in the kelp.
“It’s… weird how he knows about the functions on the screens, right? There’s not a lot of us who know how to navigate them like that… could he really be an Angel?” On any other day, Mars would’ve scoffed at her and likely goaded her into a fight, but… she wasn’t wrong. He knew the System better than anyone, but even he did not know how to access that information from any panel.
“I’m not sure what he is, but we’ll figure it out. I don’t suppose you’ll be able to work your womanly charms on him?” Her brow lowered.
“Can’t you be serious for once? I’m really worried about this… I’m gonna get in so much trouble if anyone ever finds out how dumb I’ve been.” She raised her palm to rub it hard along her face, only to have her uncle tap her on the shoulder. When she looked up, she saw that confident, conniving smile of his as he swore a rare oath: “They won’t. You found him out there with a rebreather that was malfunctioning, all right? You’re a damn hero, not an impulsive, foolish little girl.” He raised his hand and ruffled her hair, as if she was still a child. Without another word, he tapped the display to open the door, finding to their shared display that the angelic visitor had laid down next to his empty bowl - slumbering in deep sleep… on her bed.
“God damnit…”