APPLE ORCHARDS AND TORN DREAMS [OPEN]

[cordibus]

Who: Open Log (All)
Where: Around the city (one prompt at the Green Valley school
Summary: Welcome Ceremonies, Dreams, Stirring a shadow hornet's nest. No big deal.
Warnings: N/A

"Are you ready my black lambs? Let's get to work..."

Apple Picking (General Prompt)

As September begins, the apple orchards of Greenfield Valley school are bursting with thousands of apples of various flavors and colors. There's even an experimental breed that's blue!

Those who have been attending the school know that this means a few important things. The first (and most important of course) is that it means that fall vacation is coming in just a few weeks (despite school having started just a few weeks ago), the second is that the school's menu is going to have a high number of apple-themed dishes until winter, and finally, the opening ceremonies.

The opening ceremonies are - well - one would consider them mostly boring for typical schools. And truth be told, Green Valley is not an exception. A single camera posed at the school's main gymnasium, a large podium in the center. For those who can't be physically there, the school's televisions all synchronized to a live broadcast as does the audio feeds. You can't quite escape it. Yet most people don't - after all it's one of the rare times of the year where the principal appears to wish students good fortune.

The person who stands in the front, Ms Michelle Andersen, is the very definition of an ice queen. Her face is perhaps locked forever into an emotionless stare. Bright blonde hair with blue eyes, both contract to her orange and black outfit.

Behind her, three men, the vice principals, who tend to play the good cops to her bad cop routine and insist that most students call them by their first names unless something really bad has happened; Norman (the most average man on campus that no one would know who he was if it wasn't for his name tag), Jeremy (the tallest staff member standing at over 195cm, thin, a bit of a lisp but he always means well), and Felix (possibly the hairiest man on campus as far as the rumors go, muscular, and a black beard that matches his scowling face when he isn't laughing - which is usually all the time. In fact, he's holding back himself from doing so when Ms. Andersen speaks.)

The presentation is short, as the Principal wishes all the students a great year, gives a bit of data on the number of students (they are up 300 new students from last year), the number of important guests that have passed, then as quickly as she was there, she leaves, explaining that there are additional meetings and events she will explain in greatest detail in the upcoming months.

Afterwards the students are treated to the vice principals singing a welcome song (it goes as well as one would expect it to go), telling the students that they are free to pick as many apples as they want as long as they all get eaten, but everyone is limited to two of the new apples and report to the hospital wards if any of them feel anything unusual after eating them. Just in case.

When the ceremonies are done, students and staff can return to their day...although some of the staff can be heard commenting that the Principal seemed even more...cold this year. Of course asking them for details would just cause them to shoo anyone away and pretend they didn't say anything.

[OOC: Players are welcome to speak to themselves or go have some apples. It's a general school mingling prompt! Additionally, it will be possible to email the vice principals during that week should the characters want to talk with them or ask school questions. Typical school stuff.]

Sound the Rebellion

(Special Prompt for the Unawakened, Monday the 4th)
The school's opening ceremonies aside, the Unawakened’s Monday was rather...strange. The night was plagued with restlessness as they heard the voice of someone laughing. Waking up feeling 'odd', although that differed between all of then - some would feel sick, others have a headache, or some just deciding that wearing a piece of clothing they haven't wanted to worn would look great right now. Perhaps they got a few comments from their relatives about how strange they were acting that day, or a worried glance if they felt sick. It might get dismissed with a wave of a hand.

After all, how can you explain that when they sometimes look upwards, they hear the sound of a child laughing and briefly see a symbol above their heads? Or that this somehow feels...fine?

Maybe in their new state of mind, they might not even notice the people that keep following them around...

Better than a GPS

(Awakened prompt, Monday 4th, day and night.)
"Alright Lambs, time to get to work."

Luci's voice echoed in their phone, laughing. Was he doing a peace sign?

"There's only a few but they'll be useful. I want you to find them and see what you can do. Who knows! Maybe you might be better at this than me, although I doubt it heh heh heh…Now remember what I said! You have to get them to fall asleep...but there's no real rules for that!"

For the Awakened, the symbols above the Unawakeneds’ heads will be as clear as day - Luci will even go so far as play little musical tunes when the characters are close by or distract them using electronics. "Come on! Stop wasting time and do something!"

For the Unawakened who have a relative, it will be somewhat easy. It is the others that will be a pain. Maybe that's why Luci asked for help. Or maybe he just wanted to see his 'lambs' struggle. "Get them to bed! It's not that hard! If you have trouble, just show them the program I've put into your phone and toaster! Or knock them with your toaster first if you want, I don't care! Just go in teams when you go after them, got it?"

It's obvious that 'sleeping' as far as Luci is concerned, is when someone is unconscious - he seems to almost want someone to knock an Unawakened out and then drag him into a room and let themselves go to sleep.

Once the task is done, and the place is secure, the characters will have to do the same. While the hypnotic wheel from the program is the easiest way, there's no hard rule about knocking oneself out either.

MINDJACK
Once the characters get inside, they'll be in the person's mind and dreams. Eddan's memories are predominant, and the unawakened will be standing there wandering around. It will be up to the Awakened to peel back the fabric of reality, much like curtains and show them the true memories of their past...

But beware. Shadows lurk here, and transforming will be necessarily. And if a character dies in someone else's dream...they might never wake up. So be careful...

The main mission is to showcase the person a few memories. Give them an idea that something might be amiss...it can be a little or a lot. Just be careful that the more memories, the stronger the shadows become... When both are done and awaken, ten minutes will have passed. Perhaps it will be time for question afterwards.

[OOC:The Unawakened characters need to be isolated for the program to run, and so do the players, so half the 'fun' will be setting up the traps so that the characters will be alone.

Awakened might decide to have someone stand on guard while the others go to sleep with the Unawakened, or just all stupidly go together, or find an area where they won't be disturbed - everything is up to you.

The dreamscape can be anything the Unawakened desires! It could be good memories of their time in Eddan or bad memories, a mixture of both, or just silly dreams. Whatever it is, the Awakened will need to 'peel' those memories away - for example showing them that their mother was someone else in their other life, or even directing the person to a mirror so that they can see their true selves. But for each memory - both good or bad, shadows will start to attack both the Unawakened and Awakened. Be careful and let the mods know if a mission goes REALLY bad.]

Comments

so that was his secret all along

[whitefox]

She didn't understand, but that was alright. Not everyone knew what it took to make the kind of decisions she had made in the heat of battle. Not everyone could. Some hearts were too fragile, some minds too soft.

But Kit didn't doubt his own potential. He'd lived with the monster inside of him his whole life. Glimpsing the youko earlier hadn't been frightening...it had been a relief.

To finally come face-to-face with what he was, with what he'd known lurked beneath the surface all along...he wanted to know more. To do that again. To unlock everything.

"How do I unlock it?"

He had a feeling it wasn't something that could be picked the way he was used to. Unless this exercise of dream diving was, in a sense, another form of lock picking?

and we just thought it was the stone mask

[failedhandjob]

For a moment she remains silent, expression stilling as she contemplates whether to divulge that truth now or not. It wasn't that she doubted he could handle it, just...could it be done without the presence of shadows? Or, if it couldn't, might they bait it out by seeking those creatures themselves? It would be cruel to give him false hope and then leave him to stew in only partial knowledge of himself.

But there was no way to know without trying, right? Reimi was prepared to give all she had for her companion, and she knows that Kit would do the same to finally see the truth. So she nods to herself before leaning forward on her knees, a hand stretching out until it gently comes to rest on the left side of his chest.

"You have to tear out your heart."

[whitefox]

At first, when Emily pressed her hand over his chest, Kit said nothing.

Her instructions were clear, leaving no room for misinterpretation. What else could those four words mean? Tear out your heart. He believed them. His heart believed them, too. With a gentle thrum from beneath the cage of his ribs, Kit knew it understood as well as he did.

But if he ripped out his heart, wouldn't he die?

Gently, his hand falling atop Emily's, fingers curling such that they held her hand before pushing it gingerly away from him, Kit laughed.

"Is that all?"

He wasn't afraid. Death stood before him, and he had the chance to cheat it. If his memories served him...he'd been reborn once already. Twice, if he counted the life he led now. He had a devil's luck.

The rewards would be his.

[failedhandjob]

She smiles a little when he cradles her hand before shooing it away, the expression faintly wan thanks to the precautionary worry still in her eyes. It wasn't terribly uncommon to be able to face down death bravely, but awakening was so much more than just loss of life. She couldn't let him proceed in good faith until she was certain he completely understood.

"It'll kill you," Reimi begins, settling her hands back into the lap but refusing to lean away. "The person you are right now - that won't ever come back."

That was the price every demon demanded for its use. Not only to permanently discard the skin they'd been walking around in, but to face that loss every single day as they pretended such a bargain had never been struck. There was more to be gained from such pain than just power, however, as she herself knew well.

"Who you'll become after, though...that's the real you."

Such was the conundrum all unawakened faced. Murder themselves for the chance at embracing both truth and pain, or let go of the mystery forever in order to preserve their own psyche. It wasn't a choice anyone but Kit could make.

[whitefox]

With a sigh, Kit pushed himself back to his feet.

"If what you say is true, then it won't matter if it kills the person I am now. He was never meant to exist in the first place." But that is just one perspective, and Kit is well aware of it. In fact, the eye-opening memory of Shiori Minamino has made him consider what the death of Kit Florentine would mean to the family he has come to know in this life.

They were still very new to each other, but that woman and her husband, they were both very loving people, weren't they? They had invited him to stay with them, but he had insisted upon taking up residence at the school and they hadn't even thought to object. Because it had been what he'd wanted. They had provided him with the opportunity to attend the Leviathan Habitat's overnight event, too. They did not judge him for his past, but encouraged the potential they knew he possessed. And promised that their door would always be open.

Could he walk a path leading to his own demise knowing that he would be stealing from them someone they...might not actually despise?

It seemed like it was a choice he didn't need to make tonight at the very least. Perhaps he had time to say goodbye.

"How much time do I have?"

He didn't expect her to know for certain, but even an estimate would be better than nothing at all. Were there people besides that woman and her husband that he would want to see one last time with these eyes? Before the belonged to another? It's a strange thing to find that there are actually names that come to mind when all this time he'd thought he'd built a fortress around himself.

[failedhandjob]

Reimi follows suit soon after, smoothing down the edges of her dress simply to give herself more time to mull over the question. In some ways she's glad that he doesn't want to try it now - not for lack of commitment on her part, but because it means that he's taking the weight of all this seriously. He deserved to have the gift of foresight that had been denied to those who had awakened alongside herself.

"I don't know," she responds candidly, meeting his gaze evenly. "The last time there was a counter, but I haven't seen anything like that yet. If it's similar to what happened to me...maybe a few weeks."

Time enough to get his affairs in order, but still a startlingly brief lifespan to be saddled with. It was a false life they were discarding, yes...but those facades had still been people in their own right. Putting them into their graves was a heartbreaking thing to be forced to do.

[whitefox]

A few weeks wasn't much time at all. Some people concentrated years into planning their final moments on the earth, dividing up their belongings and preparing heartfelt goodbyes in the form of letters or video dispositions their loved ones could review when they were gone. Perhaps, if his death meant that he would leave this world altogether and not remain as some parasite retaining the use of its host's body, it would be easier.

He wouldn't be forced to continue living a life that didn't belong to him, lying to the people who were important to 'Kit Florentine,' few and far between as they were. He wouldn't need to keep up a charade or worry how long it would be before the lies would sneak around his neck like vines and strangle him.

There would be no worries at all because he would be...nothing.

Instead, he must decide quickly what is most important to him and how to proceed following the pseudo death of himself, and the revival of the one called 'Kurama.' It would be unwise to try and tell his family anything. Such would worry them unnecessarily, and many of his peers simply wouldn't understand. He'd made no secret of his interest in occult things. Perhaps they would even think he lost his mind?

And then where might he end up? Another institution like the detention center?

With a sigh, Kit's hands found his pockets.

"It will have to suffice," he answered, because he knew that he had no choice. In this game, ignorance was't an option. Not if he wanted to win. "I'll be ready then."

[failedhandjob]

"It's alright if you aren't," she says softly. "We'll be here for you the whole time."

It was one of the few things that kept Reimi from completely collapsing when she'd realized that the pain of death would be revisiting her every night for the foreseeable future. Knowing that there were people relying on her, that for once she had the power to protect that which she loved best, was enough of a support net to spur her into pushing through the horror with a familiar stubbornness.

Not everyone would take that help, she knows. Pride and fear stymied so many, especially while they were in the throes of inescapable change. But the offer still stood - and would do so even if it was denied. There was only so much respect she could offer when she knows she's capable of helping.

[whitefox]

She was worried, and unnecessarily so...

Kit supposed there was little he could do or say to assuage that concern, either. The harder he tried to convince her that he would be fine, the harder she would insist on being there to support him. That was the kind of person she was proving to be. It was sweet, and he really was touched...but just the same, he could not forgive himself if he didn't at least try to mitigate her anxiety.

"Have you met anyone before who wanted this?"

Implying, of course, that he did. And he did.

Once all was said and done, all of Kit's loose ends taken care of, he could assume a role that, even only partially glimpsed, felt more real to him than any other experience he'd had in his life.

"It will be alright. I promise you, when the time comes...my heart will not hesitate."

[failedhandjob]

"This is the first time we've been allowed to talk about what's coming before it happens. But I'm sure someone must have."

It wasn't so far beyond belief. Not everyone would be satisfied with their current life, or have been gifted with a true self that had lived through unsettling experiences. It was a relief to be herself now, after the fact, but surely another must have experienced that same relief simply by learning there was more to their existence than what they currently had.

Reimi had to believe that, just like she had to believe that her companion was telling the truth now. Without it all the hardship they'd endured up until now would have been in vain.

"That's good, though. The stronger your heart is, the easier the transition will be."

She'd hesitated, that first time. Her body had sensed the awful future waiting for her and rebelled, pushing her to ignore that urge until the last possible moment. No one, not even Reimi, could blame Emily for such a reaction. But she didn't want another person to feel what she had that night.

[whitefox]

Kit wasn't certain his heart was strong, but what it lacked in fortitude his will more than made up for. He could do what was necessary. He would do what was necessary.

If he had to shut down his heart or rip it out to accomplish that...so be it.

He couldn't allow himself to think too deeply about what he would be giving up, in that case. Thoughts of family and friends and what remained in this life that he cared even a fraction for needed to begin and end with preparations for saying goodbye and, in some instances, even cutting certain ties. He couldn't let himself think about how sad it was. For him, it wasn't sad at all, it was simply something that needed to be done. Compartmentalizing that way permitted him to focus on what was most important and shut out all the rest.

It would allow him to keep his promise. When he was finally ready to fully Awaken, however difficult the transition, he would not allow his to be a burden to anyone else.

"I owe you my thanks," Kit said. "You've been of great help to me so far. I only hope I can return the favor some day."

[failedhandjob]

Reimi simply laughs at that, the sound clear and bright in the darkness of the dream world. Her head shakes slightly when she responds, a clear dismissal of her companion's assessment of the situation. "You don't owe me anything."

This was what people did when they cared for one another - they gave themselves freely, without thought or expectation of a return gesture. She was happy to be able to do it, locked away so long from anything resembling the power to act of her own accord. If anything, she'd like to thank Kit himself for trusting her to live up to the promises she'd made. It was a great risk to take with someone he barely knew.

Her gaze shifts away from his slightly, drifting to look out at the expansive nothing around them. When she turns back, her expression is mildly quizzical. "Do you want to see any more? We can keep going, if you need to."

[whitefox]

It was a foolish question, and Kit's expression said as much.

He would see it all if he had the time and if he could be certain his sleeping body could handle the experience without dire repercussions. He wanted nothing more than to unlock the truth at once, to cease this meandering and to take for himself what clearly belonged to him. Being fed scraps was nothing short of cruel.

As if on cue, a glimmer of something silvery white appeared before them accompanied by a tall, darker shape. Kit stiffened instantly, not upon recognizing the youko's presence, but rather the deluge of regret that filled his heart when he was finally offered a glimpse the other's face. Sharp features and horns, long and pointed ears, and raven black hair. He had a cruel mouth, twisted with an insatiable battle lust, but there'd been a time when he had been one of Kurama's favorite people.

That was before he'd outgrown his usefulness and proven himself a liability.

The shapes before them grew separate and a third slipped into the vision. A lesser demon than the youko, but still strong enough to prove a threat to Yomi. And while Kurama had taken no pleasure in the act, he had nevertheless sent that monster to finish off his friend...

Scarlet splashed the darkness before him and Reimi, the result of long tracks left across Yomi's handsome face. He would survive, even though he had been left for dead, but he would never see again. And Kurama would continue on with his life as though the punishment doled out were no more than a sneeze, hardly worthy of his time, much less any deeper consideration. In fact, it would not be until much later in his life when the seed of regret sown in his heart would flourish...

"I'm sorry, it seems I'm not the person you thought I was."

[failedhandjob]

There's a tension in Reimi's body when the shadows materialize, but only at first; after such a close call she didn't have the luxury of assuming that this would simply be another memory. Her shoulders ease back into place once the scene begins to play out, but the solemn look in her eyes never leaves.

It's a tragic scene for all involved, but it doesn't seem as if she has any desire to back away from her companion in revulsion. She can't help but think how many times a similar scene must have played out in Morioh, however. The only use that Kira saw in women was as props to his childish fantasies. Once he'd removed the one part he needed, what were they if not liabilities?

It was both the same and not here in this moment, watching a man's life be torn so cruelly from him. Her chest aches in sympathy, but she can't find it within herself to feel disgust. Reimi wasn't so naive to think that this didn't happen every day in the world somewhere, human or not. But its occurrence wasn't what was most important.

When she turns to look at Kit (not Kurama, not yet) her expression is still unreadable. She regards him silently for a moment, hands resting atop one another, before gently shaking her head in the negative.

"No, that's only ever happened once." And she had already paid the price for that.

His past life had been fraught with callous acts. There was no denying this, and it would be insultingly foolish to even attempt to do so. But it was clear that at some point even Kurama himself would learn the weight of both his actions and regret - and the view of the entire path was what Reimi was concerned with, not a single cobblestone.

[whitefox]

Unfortunately, that cobblestone was proving too large a hurdle for Kit to presently overcome. He wished it was just Kurama's memory, that stopping this exercise would remedy the newfound tightness in his chest or the acrid taste on his tongue, but he was beginning to suspect certain parallels in their lives were not happy accidents.

When he'd been young, much younger than Kurama had been in that vision, there had been someone in his gang who had proven unreliable. Knowing what he did now, he could not brush his actions off as those of a child who didn't know any better, because he knew now that he had a predilection for a certain ruthlessness, the sort that could not be shed.

If there was any scrap of him left that was decent, he would tell Reimi that he had seen enough, or that if he continued from this point on he would do so alone. He wanted to tell her what he thought, that she deserved the company of someone far better than himself in these dreams, someone who hadn't proven themselves to be so hard-hearted in two different lives, but the words didn't come. Instead, Kit found his curiosity piqued by her statement and, instead of running away, he lingered.

And he hated himself for it, for he knew deep down that his reasons were not conceived of sentimentality, but a matter of advantage. The more people were willing to offer him about themselves, the better prepared he would be to face whatever came next.

"I would like to hear about it, if it isn't too much trouble."

[failedhandjob]

His question takes her by surprise, and for a moment Reimi can only blink owlishly at him. But as she mulls it over, it makes much more sense - what better way to ease oneself into accepting such an ugly facet of themselves than by looking at others' for a time? It was an ideal distraction.

What Kit couldn't know was that the story she had to relate wasn't much prettier than the vision he'd just seen. She hadn't imagined he'd become interested in her offhanded comment, or she might not have ever made it. Would it really be good for him to listen to more suffering?

But that was his own decision, in the end. She wasn't ashamed of her fate, and in some ways welcomed the opportunity to tell her tale for the first time in this world. Perhaps if she could manage it with an acquaintance, one day she might be able to divulge the grim truth to her beloved friends.

Still, he deserved a warning. "It's not any trouble. But it doesn't have a happy ending."

[whitefox]

As if reacting to Reimi's feelings or perhaps even Kit's own, the void all around them began to shift.

The darkness ran like wet sand until the setting had become something completely different, and instead of shadows that stretched on for an eternity they found themselves standing on a road somewhere in Japan. It looked familiar to Kit, and at the same time completely foreign. People with blurred faces wandered by like static images, every blink carrying them further down the road and away towards a school. Their laughter echoed softly like chimes blown by the wind, as much a comfort as it was eerie, in particular when he heard murmurings of 'the disappeared.'

As he started walking, following the blurred shapes of those who were presumably students, albeit younger than him and Reimi both, he spoke...

"Happy endings belong in fairy tales."

They were a pleasant enough concept, but not very realistic. Kit wished they were, but even wishes weren't very practical. If one wanted something in life, they had to take it for themselves or fight and earn it. Desire by itself wasn't enough. He had learned that the hard way and he thought...Kurama probably had, too.

[failedhandjob]

"I guess so. But that just makes them even more precious."

As precious as the scene they now found themselves in, wrought with nostalgia as much as a silent sort of danger. Reimi can't help but find herself looking at the faceless students passing them by, checking their uniforms to see if perhaps this were a scene more closely tied to her heart. It wasn't, but that did nothing to dim the familiarity of the whole thing. Even the rumors of disappearances...

It must mean something completely different to the both of them, but it's enough to solidify her choice to share her story. Kit had given her what amounted to a confirmation, anyway. As she walks sedately alongside him her gaze remains fixed on the imagery in front of them, expression carefully neutral as she begins to speak again.

"When I was sixteen our neighbors had a family emergency. They had to leave town immediately, but couldn't take their little son with them. I babysat for him all the time, so they asked if I could watch him for the night."

Relating the memory makes it feel sharper than it had even when she'd first regained it, and there's a bittersweet note to the laughter that rings from her lips. It had all been such a trivial event in the beginning. How could anyone have known?

"I didn't mind. Rohan always liked to snuggle with me in my bed whenever we had sleepovers." The smile drains away slowly, leaving that same carefully blank look in its place. "Except, that night...I woke up to the sound of something dripping in the hallway."

[whitefox]

The school's gates came and went, students filing into the building through the front doors as the bell sounded. Ahead of them was a boy of average height with short, flaming red hair. A dark-haired girl walked closely by his side but, while she seemed to be enthusiastically talking about something, the boy's mind was elsewhere.

The parallel between himself and Reimi caused him to listen more intently to her story, and when she began to tell him about the strange sound in her home that night he felt a twinge of something. It wasn't fear. But anger...perhaps.

Had something happened to the boy she'd been babysitting?

He was fortunate that his hands were already buried deep in his pockets. Reimi wouldn't be aware of the tight fist that he was making, or the fact that his knuckles had no doubt turned white...and he could feel skin beneath his fingernails. Something about harm coming to a child left a bitter taste in his mouth and his heart ready to scream.

"I presume you went to investigate."

Because of course she had. There was no other way for this story to continue.

[failedhandjob]

She shakes her head gently. "I didn't think to at first. Ever since I was little I had a dog named Arnold; at night he'd sleep under my bed, and if anything terrible happened he'd get up and protect me."

Her most loyal companion. There was nothing in any world that Arnold wouldn't have protected her from, and even in the midst of a late-night fright she'd known that. "I put my hand down to check on him, and when he gave me a big lick I knew that everything must be fine."

The thought chills her to the bone, knowing what she does now. But it had been nothing but the reassurance her fretful mind had seen searching for then, delivered with the warm friendliness she'd come to know and love. With Rohan still tucked securely at her side, what did she have to worry about?

Only...

"But the sound didn't stop. It was so strange to me that my parents hadn't woken up to take a look - it was so loud. So eventually I got up and went into the hall to look."

Her gaze (and footsteps) had been following the boy and his little companion this entire time for no reason other than as something to focus on, but now Reimi looks up at the school as the lump in her throat forces her to pause. Even now, the image of what she'd found tore at her soul.

"It was Arnold. Someone had slit his throat and hung him from our coat rack."

She can still see him dangling there, tossed away as carelessly as if he'd merely been a dirty rug. Her friend, her greatest protector...he never deserved to see the end of his life like that.

[whitefox]

The scene before them flickered like an old film that had come off its reel, but the mishap seemed to last only for a second. If Reimi hadn't been watching Kit, she wouldn't have noticed the way he'd stopped with the staggering vision, but standing so close to his side she may have felt his incense at the source of the sound in her story.

And then...it was as if nothing had happened, and Kit continued unflinching toward the school following the younger students.

He was beginning to connect the dots. If Arnold hadn't been under her bed, then the one who had killed him was. And if that person had known how to behave to convince her all was well, he must have been studying her family and her. If he was studying her, then the unhappy ending Reimi was referring to...

...but that's impossible, or is it?

He'd recalled something similar of himself, when he'd buried his soul deep inside Shiori's womb and unborn child so as to ensure his rebirth. If he'd been able to do it, was it really so hard to believe she could, too?

Finally, Kit stopped in the entryway but, holding open the doors, he didn't dare look back at her.

"How did it happen?"

[failedhandjob]

Her eyes had been elsewhere, but Reimi was too attuned to her surroundings to miss the rage that rolled off her companion in waves. She knew that feeling all too well - it's what had been buried deep beneath her own blind terror.

This was why she'd pretended her past had been nothing more than a scary story to be passed around at campfires the last time she'd relayed it. No one else deserved to grapple with these emotions as violently as she'd been forced to.

Her pace slows to a halt just before she reaches the doors herself. Kit may not be looking at her now, but the shift in her voice was all the evidence required to understand that the following words weren't her own.

"Miss, your hand is so cute and silky smooth. I've already taken care of your parents...heh."

It's a poor imitation, but the frightening chill of that lovesick confession came through all the same. "That's what he told me when I ran back into my room."

Reimi passes through the doors at last, shoes clicking softly against the floor of the school building. It's understandable that her companion likely still doesn't want to look her in the eyes, so she proceeds several feet more before halting again to continue speaking.

"I never saw his face, but I found out later that it was a boy I knew from school. I'd even invited him over a couple times, which was probably why Arnold let him get so close."

She sighs, turning slightly to aim a humorless smile Kit's way. "It's funny how that sort of thing happens, isn't it?"

[whitefox]

Kit's response was cold and mirthless.

"I would have dismantled him."

It's a wonder the words didn't paint the scenery red for the blood lust that was present within them. He could imagine it, even. Slitting the throat the way that man had taken care of Arnold would be much too merciful. Instead, Kit would begin with what that man seemed to prize most. He would saw off each hand one at a time for daring to so much as look at Reimi's let alone touch them, and then he would make good on his promise to take him apart. He would unravel his very being and carve away at him until, little-by-little, nothing was left but a husk that didn't even...

...deserve...

...death's sweet embrace...

He clutched his head suddenly, the pain of two memories trying to surface at once bringing him to his knees. The vision wavered again, the musical cheer of children's laughter and chatter distorting. To the untrained ear it sounded almost like the manic amusement of some kind of demon closing in from the wings. His chest felt tight, but it was her voice that drew him back. Calling loudly from across the classroom...

Shuichi!!

[failedhandjob]

This was Reimi's fault.

She'd been so absorbed in relating her own tale, selfishly, that she'd forgotten where they were. This school wasn't just a convenient backdrop, it was memory. And her own tribulations had caused more of Kit's own to surface, hitting his unready mind with too much force.

Orias rises protectively above them both as Reimi immediately drops to her knees as well, one hand bracing her companion by his shoulder. He didn't seem to be outwardly injured, but that was hardly the most important aspect. No level of Dia could repair a damaged mind.

"Oh, I'm sorry! I should've been paying more attention. Are you alright?"

[whitefox]

Kit didn't charge Reimi with the onset of his headache. There had been no way for her to know what would trigger a memory in his mind or what commentary of theirs was truly benign. Besides, she had come here for the sole purpose of guiding him through this dream and opening his eyes. It would have been completely foolish to think they would would be able to navigate such a dangerous minefield unscathed.

What's more, he had accepted her direction and had refused to turn her away.

Reassuringly, Kit placed his hand atop hers and nodded. He was fine. The young girl calling his name had helped deflect the other memory, whatever it had been. Something told him that he didn't want to recall it, not yet. And now he didn't have to.

They were safe. Doubly so with Orias' many arms ready to cage them protectively. Kit no longer felt unnerved by its presence. In fact, he found the creature as curious as he did the new scene before them, a classroom with students congregating in a circle around their desks, and the red-haired boy stopped by the dark-haired girl to discuss the reasons for the possible disappearances.

Kit pushed himself back to his feet slowly, guiding Reimi with him by his grip on her hand, and only once they had both stood did he let go.

"Forgive me, I didn't expect any of these memories to be as forceful as the first." But clearly he would need to be more careful going forward. Kurama's life had obviously been one full of strife. "Betrayal is a soulless beast...I'm sorry that you had to endure such a thing."

But he was sorrier for what he was certain it had cost her.