Sitting alone on a half destroyed wall with blood streaming from his nose, Fen was certainly quite a sight to behold - well, he supposed he would of been, had his frankly macabre existence not been seemingly cursed as of late.
It had started off somewhat strange, yet still managable - just one of those unfortunate, slightly uncomfortable moments. Thinking back on it, he of all people should really of noticed sooner. Sure, the amiable shopkeeper near Segment Twenty-Four forgetting him had seemed nothing to rack his brains over - he barely even knew her. The slum dweller nearly blowing his brains out when he came to deliver the usual pilfered newspaper? Well, he had already been pretty far gone, and Fen had seen enough of the Southern Quadrent by now to know that, isolated, it wasn't exactly an impossible occurance.
Together though?
It certainly shouldn't of taken him as long as it did to realise something was amiss - that being said, it only took a matter of days for it to become glaringly obvious.
For an average person, Fen assumed, it certainly would of taken less - something such as your parents assuming you were a home invader might of been a slight giveaway, albeit a traumatic one.
"I suppose I'm free from any such experiences", chuckled Fen bitterly.
"On second thought, maybe not completely free"
A slight grimace falling upon his somewhat gaunt complexion, Fen recalled his moment of comprehension.
***
"Urgh"
Fen stood solitary in a brightly lit, overall homely room. The carpet was pristine and fluffy, dainty plant pots bathed in sunlight covered the windowsill and lampshades littered the room in what Fen assumed was tactful placements, although he had a faint idea it was much more about the overall decor than the light source. Even the wallpaper was… tasteful? Frowning, Fen briefly pondered the concept of a wallpaper being in fashion - before he realised he was certainly out of his depth, moving back to the task at hand.
The task at hand was stupid.
Well, maybe not all of it. The main, very brisk task of watering the aforementioned plant pots certainly seemed to have a point - although Fen had a growing suspicion that many were simply a soil pot, rather than plant. Despite his speculations, Fen was more than happy to apply his watering expertise - he was being paid, and a cushy job like this beat whatever most people in the Southern Quadrent did to survive.
The problem lay in the fact he had also been seemingly employed for his watching expertise.
Unless Fen had suddenly unlocked his outer core and received a particually strange primary ability, he doubted this watching would do very much for the plants. Nonetheless, this is what had been insisted upon him by his employer, and who was he to decline.
His employer certainly was a strange one though. Everyone in block twelve seemed to call her Auntie Iverson - Fen somewhat doubted she was truthfully an aunt, and despite her slight eccentricity severely doubted anybody would willingly go by the name Auntie, so it must of been some kind of nickname. It did, at least to Fen, make some sense. When he'd first arrived at the block she'd been the only one to notice him, the only one to make an effort; someone of such respectable character certainly would have a kindly reputation.
All in all, he undoubtedly owed her a debt; so, grumbling slightly, Fen pulled a lavish violet armchair from across the room and began to… well, watch.
The next thing he knew, he was being jolted awake by the sound of a key moving in a lock. Groggily, he forced his legs up off the luxurious chair and moved it to its prior position. Fen felt a twinge of guilt, he really had tried to watch the plants but the rays of midday sunlight and comfortable embrace of the armchair had proven too much for his already sleep deprived self. Well, on the bright side he was finally going to have some money - although used to often skipping meals, he had been going through a especially bad period for any kind of employment, and hadn't eaten in nearly two days.
His rough yet fairly handsome face moving into a palpable smile, Fen moved to face the door, feeing genuine exuberance at the thought of devouring some kind of sustenance after his unwelcome fast.
"Who the hell are you?!"
The voice was cold, and sharp. It was irreconcible from the warm, friendly voice that Fen associated with Auntie Iverson.
It was devoid of recognition.
'Ah'
If there was ever a time to curse the absolute series of misfortunes that was otherwise known as Fen's life, this would certainly be it.
Brushing his hand through his now slightly raggedy hair, Fen scrubbed his brain for what exactly to say. Unfortunately, all his brain seemed to be able to come up with was the fact he was in dire need of a good haircut.
Seriously though, his life was at what seemed to be a complete turning point, and all he could think of was a need for a haircut?
Sighing, Fen met Auntie Iverson's unwelcoming gaze.
"Ah, well…"
"Would you believe me if I told you the world's seemingly erasing me?"
The incredulous look crossing her pale complexion did not bring Fen much hope.
"Oh - also you owe me about thirty ether"