thenearshore | 33 - Sweet Dreams

Entry tags:

33 - Sweet Dreams

Who: Everyone!
What: A mysterious plague of dreams is sweeping through gods and shinki alike.
When: Jan 30 & 31
Where: Wherever the dreamers go...
Summary: A strange sleepiness is spreading through the Heavens. Those who succumb to sleep find themselves dreaming vividly, and even wandering into each other's dreams. Will they be able to escape the seductive power of their dream worlds and return to reality?

Waking World

Sweet Dreams

Shinki characters

Nightmare

when they're not wearing pants.

Mystery Dreamscapes

A vast, shining building of many rooms is hung everywhere with wooden plaques that rattle like dry bones in the breeze. Each one has an urgent and desperate prayer written on it, and they keep falling from the walls, only to catch fire and be reduced to ash as soon as they hit the floor. The sound of hurrying footsteps is audible, but the dream's owner never quite comes into view.

The street is crowded, packed shoulder to shoulder with strangers who shove rudely and refuse to move out of the way. Their voices make it almost impossible to hear, and the crowding makes it almost impossible to move. Despite this, anyone who enters this dream will have the irrational conviction that there's someone or something at the other end of the street they have to reach. As they push through the crowd, though, the people around them grow angrier and angrier, and might even start to fight back.

A giant crystal glows blue in the middle of a room, surrounded by dozens upon dozens of tiny straw dolls in intricate traditional clothing from all over the world. A middle-aged man is crafting small dolls on the far side of the room, muttering under his breath, "This one, this one." He can't be roused or distracted from his task, except if the room's door is opened, in which case he screams and flees outside into what appears to be an endless, dense, ancient forest full of strange shadows and ominous sounds.

A huge lecture hall is filled with students sitting in folding seats. At the front, a vast man, easily eight feet tall and wearing a tweed suit with patched elbows and a traditional demon mask, is pointing out students in turn and forcing them to come to the board to answer increasingly bizarre, arcane or deeply personal questions. He turns to point at the newest arrival.

A beautiful springtime meadow filled with fallen twigs spreads out around the visitor, who innately knows that picking up one stick in each hand will allow them to fly. Above, other dreamers circle and swoop in the blue sky. As they rise to join them, though, flocks of giant crows almost as big as people swoop in and begin attacking the fliers, trying to knock the twigs out of their hands and force them to plummet to their deaths.

In Summary:

Help out the sleepers
Have a good dream
...or a nightmare
Explore others' dreams
Have fun~

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[ He can’t find it.

It’s lost, somewhere in all this white. He’s lost in all this white. Gojyo hugs his arms tighter to his chest, kicking through a particularly dense snowdrift. His robes are soaked, hanging heavy around his legs, making it that much harder to keep moving forward, but he doesn’t dare take them off. He’s probably going to freeze to death out here, but why hurry the inevitable? If the mountain wants to kill him, then it’ll have to do better than this.

He pushes through the broken snowdrift, pausing just long enough to light another cigarette. The tiny bit of warmth as he draws the smoke into his lungs is enough to get him moving again, working his way ever further up the steep hillside. It’s up here, somewhere. The thing he’s looking for, it’s got to be here. He can feel it pulling him along, like a hand inside his chest. Like a voice calling to him. ]

Shut up! I’m moving as fast as I can.

[He's trembling. From the cold or from fear, Goku can't tell the difference anymore. No, wait, yes he can- he's terrified. He makes a feeble attempt at pulling his hair over his shoulders, but it's too cold for that trick to work. It won't warm him up any. He can't pretend it's a blanket wrapped around his shoulders or a comforting arm pulling him close. There's no one in the world but him and it's only a matter of time before the snow swallows him up like everything else. This is it, after the hundreds of times before, this is the one that kills him.

Goku opens his mouth and screams.]

[ There.

He shouldn't be able to hear Goku's voice -- he's too far away, the snow too insulating -- so maybe he's not hearing it with his ears at all. It doesn't matter how he's hearing it, though, does it? Why waste time worrying about stupid things like that, when there's clearly somebody trapped? Somebody with an annoyingly loud -- and insistant -- voice.

But now he has a direction, more specific than just "up". Pulling his gun out of his sleeve, Gojyo aims it at the sky. He pauses, just for a moment, looking at the gun quizzically -- why does he have a gun? He doesn't like guns, doesn't like how indiscriminate they are -- but the gun in his hand is familiar. It's his, more his than the hand holding it. With a shrug, he fires, the retort cannon-loud. Let the snow try to cover that sound up! ]

[A loud bang echoes across the world, breaking past the deafening snow to reach Goku shivering in his cave. His head snaps up in response immediately, confused and frightened and-

... No, he’s not scared anymore. He knows that sound. Knows what it means while not knowing. That sound means light, it means warmth, it means someone. Fueled by a mix of desperation and eagerness, Goku scrambles for the cave entrance, bones creaking from lack of use, ready to reach out and-

Goku’s fingers brush against snow and the terror returns. He yelps and throws himself back against the cave wall again, pulls his knees against his chest and frantically covers his head with his arms as he curls in on himself once more. It’s just too scary!

Weakstupidpathetic- how am I alive? How am I the only one that’s still alive?]

Shut up!

[ He's got to be close now. That voice is so loud, ringing in his ears until he can barely hear his own footsteps crunching in the snow. It's anger more than anything else that's driving him now, pushing him those last couple yards through the deeper, wettest drifts. That voice is so annoying! He's going to find whoever it is that's yelling and he's going to put a bullet in their head for being such a fucking nuisance. He's going to tape their mouth shut -- he doesn't have tape, but he'll drag them down the mountainside to get some tape, if that's what it takes. He's going to shout at them until their ears ring from it. He's...

The drift breaks around him, and he sees it -- the cave, set deep into the rock, with iron bars across its mouth. What kind of an asshole would put a jail cell this high up a mountain? His eyes narrow at the thought -- once he silences the prisoner, he may need to go find the jailer and have a talk with them, too.

But first things first. ]

Are you the one that's been calling me? [ He stomps towards the mouth of the cave, sodden robes tangling around his legs, face flushed with exertion. Inside, there's what looks like a kid, and Gojyo's blood boils. He definitely needs to have a talk with the jailer! ] It's fucking annoying!

[The mountain and the rest of the world aren't very well defined here. A blanket of snow covers everything to the point where it's almost like there's simply nothing there. A blank canvas. The cave isn't like that. Every inch of the bars and the cave interior is there, every crack in the stone, every pebble in the dirt, Goku has it all memorised. He's certainly been staring at all of it for long enough.

At the sound of a voice, Goku freezes, arms still wrapped tightly around himself. Slowly he moves his head to peek out from between his arms. He's both wary and amazed- he's never heard a voice before. Never heard footsteps like that before. Never seen such a warm light this close to the cave bars before.]

... It was cold.

[So he was scared, so he was calling out all this time. For the first time ever, it's worked and now there's a light in front of him. Goku can't see it very well, can't quite be sure what he's looking at, but it's like-

... the sun, burning bright, warm and intense and strong and vital. The centre of the universe.

... a fire, he thinks. Something warm and hot and welcoming and wild. Something that's alive.

Goku sees a light.]

[ It was cold. Give him a fucking break. ]

That's no excuse. [ So how does this cage open, anyway? Is there a lock he can ~~pick~~ shoot, hinges he can lift, a spell he needs to break? It's got to be a magical cage, for the kid to still be alive -- it's probably a spell, which means they're fucked. He doesn't know how to break a magic spell!

...Or does he? ]

Let's go.

[ It occurs to him that he should be able to just reach between the bars and take the kid's hand, and before he can call himself an idiot for believing such a stupid idea, he's already at the bars, reaching through. ]

But it is cold! [It doesn't matter if it's an excuse, it's true!

Goku watches the light come closer; still too shocked to properly process what he's seeing. The light has never come this close to the bars before- and now it's passing through them.]

... Go? [Go where? Goku is suddenly gripped by fear again. The snow is still falling; it's too scary to go outside! Goku suddenly leaps forward, gripping the light's hand with both of his and pulling it back towards him with more strength than he's used in centuries.] Don't go!

[If they go outside, they'll be smothered by white like everything else. The light will go out. The cave is horrible and cold and dark but it's all Goku's ever known. The cave is safe.]

I'm not--

[ going anywhere was going to be the second half of that sentence, but then something magical happened. The boy grabs his hand, pulling him toward the bars... but he never reaches them. The bars glimmer like something projected onto a movie screen, and Gojyo's pulled right through them into the cave. By the time he spins around, it's too late: the bars are solid again.

They're both trapped. ]

This isn't right! [ The bars were supposed to open and let the kid out, not trap him inside! Gojyo slams the side of his fist against one bar, then swears, shaking the pain off. ] This isn't how it's supposed to go!

[It's not how it's supposed to go, Goku knows that. He can't quite remember what was supposed to happen, but the light shouldn't be trapped in the cave like he is.

Still, at least they're safe in here.]

Don't touch it! [Goku grabs Gojyo by the arm and tries to tug him towards the back of the cave. The snow creeping through the bars of the cave is brushing against his sandal.] You'll die again!

[ He lets the kid pull him back, all his certainty drained away. This isn't right. This isn't how it's supposed to be! ]

I heard you calling, and I came. [ He's feeling the words out as he speaks, one arm wrapped around the boy's shoulders automatically. It's freezing in here, and the kid isn't dressed warmly at all. ] I took your hand...

[ And that was supposed to do it. ]

And then we go down the mountain, and you don't shut up. [ He looks down at the mop of long brown hair pressed to his side -- this is familiar. He knows this kid. ] You never shut up, ever again. You keep calling me.

[ But that's not right, is it? ]

...Him. You keep calling him.

[ Who the hell is him? ]

[ The light is so, so warm, Goku can barely focus on anything else. He can't remember ever having felt anything this warm before. Goku wraps his arms around Gojyo's waist, hands slipping into the folds of his robes- jacket- robes- ... Well, whatever it is, it's more layers than Goku has and he's curling up against Gojyo's side to try and steal as much warmth from him as possible.]

I wasn't calling... [ But he was, wasn't he? He was so scared and lonely. He was calling out for someone to find him and reach out for him.] ... Sanzo.

[The name comes easily, even without any firm memory. It's not clear if he's calling the person here with him that name or just calling out in general- but Goku will keep calling that name forever.]

Sanzo!

[ Sanzo. He knows that word. It's not a name -- it's a magic spell.

Behind him, the bars crumble silently away.

Of its own volition his hand moves, pressing warmly onto the top of Goku's head. ...That's right. The boy's name is Goku. He knows this kid. ]

Goku.

[ Goku presses his face into Gojyo's side, sniffling audibly. Tears stain the cloth there. ] Sanzo...

[ It doesn't matter that the bars are gone. If Sanzo isn't here, Goku's still trapped. It's the feeling of a hand on his head and the sound of his voice that quiets Goku's tears. ]

... I was too scared to go near it back then. [ Goku's voice sounds a little less childish now. A little more resigned. ] Even if it was open... Going outside on my own was just... too scary.

[ Goku moves his head to look out the cave opening at the white world outside, still resting against Gojyo's side. ]

I have to go alone this time, don't I?

[ No, he wants to protest. Never alone -- I'll go with you. But that's not the right answer. That's Gojyo's answer, and he's not really himself right now, is he? ]

That's your decision. I'm not going to make it for you. [ The hand on Goku's head, however, doesn't budge, heavy and warm, and Gojyo's heartbeat -- here, his heart actually beats -- is stubbornly steady. ] But I'm also not going to stay here with you.

[ Goku's heart jumps up into his throat at that last threat- because that's what it is. The only thing worse than spending forever in this cave alone would be doing so while he can remember how it feels to sit next to someone else. ]

That's not fair.

[ And now he's whining. Goku keeps staring at the snow while somehow managing to edge even closer to Gojyo. ]

... I wanna go.

[ Gojyo? That's not Gojyo. There's no stupid, empty-headed perverts here. Gojyo's watching the scene unfold from somewhere near the roof of the cave -- that's him, but that's not him. There's somebody else in his body.

This is turning into a kind of a nightmare!

Goku! he tries to shout. Goku, can you hear me? But there's no sound. He can't move, can't speak... what the hell is going on?

The person in his body leans over, bringing his mouth right next to Goku's ear. Gojyo can't hear what he says, but Goku certainly can. ]

Then wake up, monkey.

[ Defining characteristics of that person are hard to detect. There's light and warmth there, carved into the shape of a human being. This person has hands, eyes, mouth and voice and yet they're made almost entirely out of light.

A solid light, enveloping Goku even as it encourages him to break free. Goku curls up closer next to it, ignoring his name being called from above.]

I want to. [ He wants to go outside, he wants to see the sun, he wants to be with all the people who will call him by his name- ] I want to stay with you.

[ The light person's arms wrap around Goku, warm and safe. But it's a trap. This isn't a hug -- this is what's needed to reach into one of those long hanging sleeves.

The sharp blow of the fan on his head should be a familiar sensation. ]

I said wake up!

Ow!

[ Goku sits up with a snap, rubbing his head and sitting in a snowbank outside Huitzilopochtli's temple. Nearby birds react to the loud noise by flying away in a panic and the yell echoes throughout the trees. ]

Sanzo, that hurts!

[ He's awake. ]

[ He's awake.

Gojyo blinks, and the cave (and the back of his own head) fade away, replaced by the ceiling of his room in Goku's treehouse temple. Usually, his dreams fade on waking -- if he can recall anything about them by the time he stumbles into the shower, it's usually because they were horrific scenes of watching all his loved ones die... or, worse, watching his loved ones turn away from him.

But this dream was different. It was... well, weird.

He doesn't smoke, but he finds himself craving a cigarette. He pads down the hallway (careful to avoid the hallway that goes past Hokuto's room -- he doesn't want to mess with that girl when she's been woken unexpectedly!) and heads for the back balcony. His too-small sweatpants aren't really enough to block out the wind -- it's been a cold night, and it's looking like it'll be a cold day -- but he puts the cold aside, breathing in sharply biting air and blowing out clouds of steam. It's like smoking! Kinda. ]

[ He's outside. Why was he sleeping outside? That's so dumb- he's freezing now- and not like him at all. If he focuses, Goku can remember waking up, having breakfast, heading off to begin his day, maybe visit Nia and then...

... He was in the cave. Not a very unusual dream for him, but it hadn't felt like a normal dream. It hadn't followed the same script. He was there and it was snowing and there was a light- ]

... Sanzo!

[ Goku's indoor voice isn't great and his outdoor one is pretty damn loud too. Everyone in the area can probably hear him shouting. But who cares about that when Sanzo was here?]

Where- Oi, Sanzo!

[ And just like that, it's not just the wind that's making Gojyo's blood run cold. How can...? But it was a dream.

Wasn't it? ]

Goku!

[ He can hear the kid, but can't see him yet. Gojyo leans out over the railing, scanning the grounds. ]

Oi, shrimp! Up here!

Huh- Gojyo?

[ Goku freezes in the middle of searching his surroundings for- for something. Yes, it was a dream, maybe, but it felt realer than a dream. There was someone else there with him. It'd be really weird if it was Sanzo, but lots of stuff here is weird. Now he's suddenly been reminded by Gojyo's voice that other people exist. He quickly runs around to the other side of the treehouse to look up at Gojyo.]

Gojyo! Gojyo, I saw Sanzo! I mean, I didn't but I did and- and something happened!

Were you in a cave?

[ This is a strange conversation to be shouting at one another, but since when have either of them been concerned about things like that? ]

When you saw him just now. Was it a cave in the snow?

33 - Sweet Dreams

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