WHERE:Vallo City: The Streets WHEN:June 10th, 2021 (Backdated) WHAT:LSZ and Keith go get tacos and commiserate over being new to the kind of life Vallo has to offer. WARNINGS:None STATUS:Complete
It had nearly been a week since Shiro had confessed to Keith what his relationship with the previous Keith had been. He wasn’t quite avoiding the other Paladin since then, but he did seem to be finding reasons to not be at the apartment during downtime. Which is why he was out with Lan Sizhui right now, getting street tacos. He still didn’t know what to make of that confession and his traitorous self-esteem kept making comparisons and was trying to convince him that Shiro rather have his Keith around, so filling his days with distractions seemed to be helping.
“So what do you think?” He asked the other man, as they found a park bench to sit and eat. The evening was still young, but it was dark enough for the streetlights to come on. One shined down right on them as they worked their way through their food. “Are we a fan of tacos or are they so-so?” He had already scarfed down two of his three mini tacos and still had a regular sized shredded chicken taco to get to still.
He was going to have regrets later when he would have to go work off all of this excess food, but that was a problem for future Keith.
The past week had been somewhat busy for Sizhui. School was starting soon, and this was going to be his first venture into academia in this setting. He had already picked up his course books and was busy getting a head on the readings. He also finally had some idea of where he could get a job, he just had to convince the person in charge to give him a chance. At home, there were plans that were about to be put into place.
He was feeling a little on edge about entering into so many situations he was unfamiliar with. Excited too, but still nervous. So he was more than happy to focus on something like tacos instead. He was raised to not be picky about food. He had things he liked, and didn’t like, but he also ate what he was provided without complaint. But in this world there were so many choices. This was not his first time having tacos, but he made sure to order the kinds he had not had before.
“It’s hard not to like them?” he said as he finished off the last of his first taco. “Some are better than others, but I haven’t had one that I disliked.” The one he had just finished had been a fish taco, the one he was going for next had mushrooms. “Though someone told me I should avoid them in some places. Burger King does not make good tacos. Or so I was told.” He was going to follow their advice, and not try it.
Keith couldn’t help the laugh that escaped him. “Yeah, if you want sad tacos, go to Burger King. Otherwise, stick to food trucks and actual Mexican restaurants. Taco Bell isn’t the greatest either, it’s been dulled down to appeal to the masses.” He started on his last mini taco. “So I know you’re still pretty new to this place too, but you’re an expert in comparison to me. Got any advice for a newcomer?”
He wouldn’t admit it to anyone, but he was still struggling with the idea he was stuck in this world, that Vallo would decide if he ever went back to his mother, to his friends. That, in turn, made it difficult to figure out a purpose here.
Taco Bell, he was pretty sure he had heard that one somewhere as well. There were so many places to keep track of, he had no idea how anyone settled on a favorite or a constant routine when it was impossible to get to them all. “That’s another fast food place, is it not? I’ve heard mixed reviews on places like that.”
The fact that anyone would be turning to him for advice on this place was not a question he had been expecting. At all. In fact the surprise was probably visible on his face. “This place is very foreign to me.” he said carefully, frowning slightly. “It’s so very different from what I’m used to, I often feel like an outsider, even among Outlanders.” Other members of his family were doing better. Most of them had found places they could fit in with their skill sets. “I’m still trying to figure out how to go about finding a place here. I enrolled in the University? Part time classes, in the summer. If only to get a better understanding of the magic of this place, and maybe meet some others who are around our age.”
In summary, he had no idea, and was just as lost in this place. He wasn’t giving up though, he’d figure out something. It would just take a little time.
School. God, that would be something, wouldn’t it? Keith never really had a mind for book studies, outside of strategy classes and the like at the Garrison, but maybe trying something as mundane as school might help with this feeling of lack of purpose. “Are you talking about the magical University or the regular one?” Keith asked, curiosity evident in his voice.
Could he go back to school? Find a passion outside of fighting and saving the universe? That was the question. He’d talk to Shiro about it, when things were more calm between them and less uncertain.
“Magical. The University of the Unseen.” Sizhui said with a nod aftering finishing off another taco. “I have magic. Though we call it Cultivation in my world. “Senior Wei, another person from my world, teaches there. His focus is on demonic studies. I will likely be focusing on classes that I’d be less familiar with though. “I will be attending part-time over the summer, to see if I enjoy it. I’m hopeful I will be able to find a job as well, eventually.”
How he would normally spend his days and his responsibilities back home did not fit in here. There were no-night hunts, or reasons to respond to reports of supernatural threats.
“It makes sense. I’d ask you what you planned to do with your education once it was over, but that’s getting ahead of ourselves,” Keith said, with a small smile. Who knew how long any of them were going to be around? He was only starting to come to terms with the fact that everything about Vallo was unpredictable, including your stay.
It didn’t take Keith long to finish his food, as he mulled over the thought of school for a bit longer. “You know, back where I come from, I never attended any sort of standard schooling. I might give something like that a shot here, see where it might take me. Anything’s better than sitting around, right?”
“I understand you’re supposed to pick something called a major at University as well, and I’m not sure what that is going to be yet. So yes, a little bit ahead of ourselves.” he agreed with a small shrug.
His education was also nothing like a formal education too, and he shared as much, “It’s the same with me. My education comes from being a disciple of the Gusu Lan Clan. A university setting is new to me, but I think it will be an interesting new challenge? It is better than sitting around. Sitting around and waiting for something to happen will not help us figure out how to adjust to this new world. What was your training in, if I can ask?”
Well, that was a good question, wasn't it? "It's a little complicated," Keith started, trying to figure out how he should explain this. "I was an orphan and I kind of bounced around for a while after my dad died. I met Shiro and joined the Galaxy Garrison to train as a pilot." He had been good too, easily top of the class. "But I, uh, got expelled for disciplinary issues. Then I got tangled up in trying to save the universe with Shiro and our friends and there was a lot of on the job learning after that."
He smiled ruefully. "So in short, surviving, I guess?"
Finishing with his food, he decided he liked the mushroom taco the best, he used the napkin to ensure his hands were clean, and then set the plate and napkin aside to be disposed of when they got up. He turned his full attention to Keith. “I’m sorry about your family. Mine were killed when I was young as well. I was adopted.” On some level he understood, but at least he had been lucky to be brought into a stable clan and grow up safe and loved. He could not imagine bouncing around from place to place until he was older.
“To save the universe?” At this point he had figured out that people came from not just different countries and times, but realities and planets. But it was still odd to hear people talk about saving all of it so casually. “Surviving is excellent training to have.” He agreed with a grin. “I imagine it’s a critical skill if the universe is involved.”
“I’m sorry to hear that,” Keith said, surprised that LSZ was a fellow orphan. But in hindsight, not very surprised since he doubted that the other guy was biologically related to both Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji. It made sense that he was adopted, despite having a perfect blend of temperaments from both his adoptive guardians. “At least it looks like you have a great family now.” Thankfully, he had his own adoptive family and he got his mother back eventually, so it wasn’t all hopeless for him either. The very opposite, really.
“There was an alien empire that was trying to take over and rule it all in their image and...we decided we didn’t like that,” Keith said, shrugging half heartedly. The Voltron Coalition had been through a lot and it wasn’t as casual as Keith was making it out to be, but he didn’t really want to get the heavy and grim reality of dealing with an intergalactic war. “So all this downtime we have in Vallo has been a little hard to figure out. I’m not complaining, but it’s hard to go from one extreme to another.” He started to gather up his trash, nodding toward a walkway. “Wanna walk around and explore things? It’s been one of the things I’ve been doing since getting here.” Thankfully Vallo was big enough that he still had plenty left to see.
He absolutely did have a wonderful family, and thanks to Wen Ning, and now Wen Qing, Sizhui had a better understanding of the family he had come from originally, and knew not all parts were bad. “Yes, I do. This place has allowed me to re-meet family that are gone in my time. It is a gift.”
He was still wrapping his head around the concept of aliens, but this was all very ordinary for Keith. He was amazed at how easy some things came to others that still seemed like a dream to him. He liked it though, it just meant there was so much out there to be discovered and learn to understand. “Generally people don’t like being taken over and ruled, no.” That had led to the extension of his birth-clan, but that didn’t need to be mentioned.
“I understand, I feel the same way, just not from a whole universe perspective. I’ve also been walking around whenever I get the chance, and I still don’t think I’ve managed to cover a small fraction of the city.” Sizhui rose, taking his trash over to the garbage and recycling area near the taco truck. “Let's see what we can find.”