Private - Magical Melody

With over an hour to spare out of sheer luck and perhaps over-preparation and panic, Jaluna stood outside a small music shop in a little line of stores that felt far less like urban compared to most of what she passed by when she usually came to the big apple. Unlike most of 'the city', this section was quaint and calming in its own right.

She liked it quite a bit. It gave her a reason to be glad she was over an hour ahead of when she'd planned to meet the mysterious @Luna Avalbane, whose name she had forgotten to ask ahead of time as usual. First Ava, now this young lady. I'm really bad at asking for names when meeting people.

Blushing, she watched the clock visible through a shop window tick, before feeling a rumbling in her gut. She'd skipped lunch, mostly out of her innate stress over how to deal with meeting a teenager in a city when she was a suburban hermit crab and generally proud of it. Not far down the road, she saw another thing to catch her interest.

Jaluna

Hi Luna, this is Harveste messaging! Actually, it's funny saying this now, but my actual name is Jaluna. I don't think I actually gave you that detail in our PMs did I? Anyway... Wanted to let you know I made it here.

Since I know you're still in class for probably another hour, I'm gonna grab a bite to eat at the small sub shop near the music store we're meeting at, and then maybe check out this church I see. You know how I mentioned being a minister that time in game? I wasn't kidding... Technically. I'm going to go get some info on my minister status at the UU church just across the street down the block.

I plan to set an alarm for 3:30 so I go back in time to meet you at the store, but figured I should let you know what I'm doing in case you get out early or something. Anyway... Attached is a quasi-old photo, but it fits. Just to note, you're probably still taller than me by a fair bit. I figure knowing I'm short might make me even more noticeable. Even if it's also a bit embarrassing.

Hope your studies are entertaining! Teach me some of them sometime. It'll help us both learn~

-Jaluna Rolik

Hidden: Attachment

The message was sent, and time was of the essence- and quite a bit of it, assuming her timing was on target in the first place. She wandered to the shop for a sub and took her time eating before making her way to the church she'd noted. She found some details that helped her, and was given some packages she might find handy both as a minister (which was apparently legitimate) and a general person trying to understand the 'faith' she'd unthinkingly signed up for.

When she heard her phone buzz, she took a peek to see the time. She exchanged numbers with that church's minister for future aid before running out and towards the music shop, ready to wait. Leaning on the wall that connected the shop to the one beside it, she sighed softly, catching her breath.

"Why do I run when I know I can't run? Seriously... I need to calm down."

With a soft laugh, she began to wait in silence. The clock ticked, reminding her the meeting was ever nearer- and so was the young lady she'd been far too excited to meet in person after recent events and chatter.

 

She'd actually managed to get out of class earlier than she needed, though only as she left the school building itself did Eva actually risk checking her phone to read the message from Harveste, who she now knew was called Jaluna, which was a funny coincidence since it contained part of her name in the game they shared the experience of. She gulped, flicking through her own phone to make sure the picture of herself still existed before glancing down to chance a reply.

Eva

Hi there, um, Jaluna! Yeah we never did actually exchange our real names, did we? Sorry about that, I just got so excited about finally learning the song and I also wanted to make sure I couldn't give myself an opportunity to chicken out of actually asking you to come and meet with me. Sorry if I did kind've spring it out at you out of the blue, but if I didn't I might've never given myself the chance to go through with it.

Anyway, I'm glad to hear that you found the place easily enough, hopefully you like the area it's in a little more than you thought you would. Go ahead and have a look around, I only just got out of class to see your message, but since I'm on my way straight there I should get there by 03:45 at the latest, so don't worry about me too much. And sure, I'll make sure I look for somebody shorter than I was actually expecting, though I should also be easy to spot. Funnily enough, I actually have purple hair since I started dyeing my hair and now I've done it for so long I don't remember my natural color.

Attached is that photo I promised you of me in my uniform, since my school is just about posh enough to enforce a uniform. Also fun fact you can see here, I have naturally amber-ish eyes!

Oh uh, my full name is Eva Fairbrooke, in case you also wanted to know that!

Hidden: Attachment

The journey really didn't take all that long, in fairness, but she did manage to get there by the time she'd said she would, looking around for a woman that matched the image that she'd been sent. Eventually, she found the girl, though for a moment she couldn't quite bring herself to approach her until a few deep breaths had calmed her nerves enough. She put her best smile on, walking closer with her hands behind her back. "U-u-u-um J-J-Jaluna? I-It's me, E-Eva, o-or I guess you'd k-k-know me as L-Luna."

 

Jaluna giggled as she read the nice, long message. There weren't many people who worked so hard to send as intricate and carefully edited texts as she did, so seeing it was quite fun- and some of the reactions she read, she could almost hear 'Luna's' voice in. though, now she knew it wasn't even 'Luna' she was looking for.

Somehow, that fact made her giggle further. Their names are so similar it gives me goosebumps. And they're both adorable young ladies. She'd gotten the text while walking out of the church, still stunned by the information she'd received there. When she finished reading it, since she knew the girl would be on her way, she opted not to bother with a reply for the time being.

There was a lot to keep in her mind while she waited, after all.

"I could tell it was you just from the nervousness~" Her words were mixed with childish giggles, a gentle grin on her cheeks that made her baby face more prominent than she wanted, but it was hard for her to avoid it. "The purple hair definitely acts as a giveaway, but... I have to say, it definitely works well for you. Then again, amber is a form of yellowish, and yellow and purple are complimentary colors since they're on the opposite side of the color wheel."

Wait, was that how it worked? She paused, realizing she wasn't fully certain about her information, scratching the back of her head where a small portion of her front hair was tied behind her to keep it from falling into her eyes. "If it's alright, considering the awkward similarities you probably noticed in my actual name and the one I met you under." Her smile became gentler, even though her small laugh was still permeating through her lips. What was self control again? Why was she so easily entertained?

"Though... Your actual name had me giggling- not because it's funny, mind you. It's a lovely name. But... See, I told you I met with a young lady recently around your age, right? Well... I forgot to mention- because, to be honest, I totally flaked at the time... But actually, it's someone you met too. She told me she'd met you, during our meeting, 'cause she was super excited and I'd been worried for her since she'd just moved recently to the area. Your names are super similar, aren't they? Eva and Ava. But they fit, since they're both for equally cute girls."

More cautious in reality than she appeared in the game, the small woman strained her neck slightly as she looked up at the other girl. Eva was clearly tall, at least to Jaluna- she was probably taller than the youngest of the girl's cousins, definitely taller than her, and maybe taller than the tallest of her generation in the family. She took one step back so it would hurt her neck a wee bit less, and to give more room as she held a hand out.

"I know I said it in my message, but... I should pretend to be more of an adult and be proper sometimes, right? I'm Jaluna Rolik. It's a pleasure to meet you, Eva." Her eyes felt as if they smiled with her lips as she kept her small hand with long, lithe fingers, carefully held towards the other girl. "I'm grateful you built up the courage to invite me. I'm excited to hear your song!"

 

Could tell it was her from the nervousness? Yeah, that sounded like an awfully large tell that it was Luna that Harveste/Jaluna had met, considering just how prevalent her stutter usually was. She just couldn't figure out how to get rid of it, focusing on other things or trying not to be super involved in conversations wasn't an option and she couldn't just remain silent to make sure that she didn't stutter and mumble all of the time. Really, she could only hope that people didn't find her inability to talk with any sort of clarity to be offensive or annoying, since she seriously couldn't stop it.

She blushed, running a hand over her purple hair and playing with the spiky ponytail she usually tied her hair back into, blinking. She'd never thought of her hair and eyes as complimentary, but it was nice to hear that somebody thought that they were nice features. She'd pretty much just picked purple at a whim and never really thought to change it or stop dyeing it, she'd practically almost forgotten what her natural hair color was since she'd been dyeing it for so long.

"Y-y-y-yeah, I had t-t-thought it was a l-l-l-little funny about the similarities in L-Luna and J-J-Jaluna..." Though she had to admit, Jaluna was definitely a unique name and one that she'd never heard before, even in books or films. It sounded like a fairly fantastical name itself, she really liked it. "J-J-J-Jaluna is a n-n-nice name! I-I think it really suits you!" She blushed again, shuffling her feet awkwardly, before Jaluna's next statement had her eyes wide with confusion and interest.

"Y-y-y-y-you know A-Ava too!? U-Uh, I um, I-I tend to c-c-call her Angel t-though since o-our names sound the s-s-s-same verbally." What were the odds that both of them had ended up meeting Harveste and would then go on to meet up with the woman in real life as well? They had to be pretty damn low, considering the player base in TS wasn't exactly a tiny number. "W-w-wow, t-t-that's pretty amazing. S-s-such a s-small world, huh?" She blushed, choosing to not even touch on the 'cute' remark.

She watched the woman extend a hand, taking a deep breath before reaching out with her own hand to take it. She was so awkward at handshakes! Only teachers at parent-teacher meetings ever bothered to shake her hand, so she'd almost begun to associate the action with teachers. "U-u-um, i-i-it's n-nice to meet you, J-Jaluna. I'm um, E-Eva Fairbrooke." God it felt weird saying her real name to somebody that she'd met online. She was pretty sure her IT teacher would have an E-Safety fit if he saw this. "D-d-did you g-get to do what you w-w-wanted whilst you w-waited?"