interstellar5555 | Locked in a Room

[As much as Nariko's been writing, Sora's been doodling. He's got loose-leaf paper gripped in his hand, along with an uncapped pen, and looks kind of lost for a moment as he wanders the halls, stopping mid-stride to give deep thought to something.

It's not until someone bumps into him that he looks around, re-orienting himself, remembering where he is and what he was doing. And he notices his friend by herself, staring off into some distant space, with an unnameable expression.

With a curious tilt of his head, he heads toward her, and sits beside her, silently, waiting until she's noticed him before he gives her a wave.]

[This is probably a bad life decision, Sora, because she doesn't notice much of anything very quickly. Yesterday's events haven't dropped off of her just yet, so she's there just also mostly out of it. But if he's willing to be patient she does eventually glance over.]

Hey. [Sora -- WAIT.]

Sora! [He-He'd texted her when she'd been kidnapped by those Predator fucks and she completely forgot to answer him!] I'm so sorry!

[... And now she's probably going to cry again.]

[Woah, okay, this was unexpected. He'd been perfectly patient, waiting for her to notice. Mostly he just didn't want to pull her out of whatever had her concentration. But this wasn't the kind of reaction he was hoping for at the sight of him. What was she even sorry about? He couldn't think of anything she needed to be sorry for.

He drops the papers he'd been holding onto the ground when she starts crying, and pulls her into a hug instantly. He doesn't know what to say, and it seems like that has been happening more often lately, not knowing what to say. But maybe a hug will just be okay, for now.]

[She probably would have been fine, but the hug means safety and safety means ... Crying a whole hell of a lot more. She'd been mentally dozing off in order to try and push away exactly what is sobbed into her friend's clothes.]

I made you worry. [And she'd been so angry and tired and bothered by the whole thing that she'd forgotten.] Sora, I'm so glad you weren't there it was awful and I thought I was going to die and those assholes didn't even care! They just laughed at all of us and Richard had to do all the work again and I felt so bad --

[It all comes out in one big rush, but eventually she has to suck in air again, by that time she's tries to wipe her eyes.]

[Sometimes it was better to let things out instead of trying to bottle them up though, right? Sora's trying to convince himself of that, a little. Not that he was ever good at hiding any sort of feelings anyway, but trying to get rid of them so you wouldn't have to bother others with them? That was definitely a thing lately. People were bothered enough already.

After the hug, he offers a sympathetic smile.] You had to go through a lot. Everyone there went through a lot. And yeah, I worried, but that's not something you need to say you're sorry for. It was my choice to worry, you didn't make me do it.

[He digs in his pocket for a spare napkin. ~~Why does he keep keeping these things?~~ And offers it to her for her tears. It's not the best option ever, but the only one immediately available that he can think of. Of course, she's always free to use his clothes again.]

[Nariko sniffles and then takes the napkin so she can wipe at her eyes. She doesn't want to mess up his clothes anymore than she already has.]

Still. [It's a thing response and it's clear that he's made his point.] When did you start being all wise and stuff? Geez. I mean, it's not a bad look but I'm older than you!

[And she's still the one falling apart here.] You're sure you're okay, though? Aside from being stuck in a huge building.

[He can't help but laugh at that, a slight tilt to his head as he looks at her.] Hey, I've always been wise! Maybe you just never noticed. And you're not that much older than me... Only two years, right?

[The smile softens, falls a bit.] I'm okay... [Ish.] Though it does suck being cooped up. At least there's balconies and stuff. But it's so weird, everything getting cancelled and all... Seems kinda extreme. And I heard Virgo did it to their bands too.

[Two years can be the difference between great experience or even a massive shift in perception, but she won't get into that right now. Ultimately Sora's right, he's probably always been this good at taking care of people, knowing what they need.]

Really? [... So that meant Krieg, Meril, and Rei were all stuck to. Even considering the idea that they're just as cooped up, and maybe just as upset hurts.] This can't be because of what happened at the Gala, it's way too extreme.

[Sure, Xanxus had been kind of acting up but overall wasn't everyone playing nice?] If they honestly have a decent reason for all this I'd love to hear it.

[Because right now their home feels like a prison.]

What happened at the Gala. [This is him echoing, not necessarily a question. The question is:] You mean like... Strange dreams that came out of nowhere? [So far he's only really talked to a few of his band mates about that, and Yosuke was the only one who shared with him that he'd had an eerie experience that night too.]

Yeah, it would be nice of them to at least give us something to tell disappointed fans! The only clue I've got so far is that the guards have been kinda antsy.

That can't ever be a good sign. [The guards were ... Guards. If they were nervous or upset about something then didn't it stand to reason that something really horrid had to be going on? She tries not to think about it but the idea is a low buzz in the back of her thoughts.]

And, yeah. It happened to Koumei and I, at least. [But if Sora could describe it so aptly then it was obviously a little more widespread than she had originally considered.] Maybe we've all just been working too hard if we're experiencing mass hallucinations.

Edited 2015-11-15 22:29 (UTC)

[It was strange and unnerving, definitely, thus why Sora had been curious about it to the point of kinda snooping. Not that he'd learned anything so far. Mostly he'd just been following guards and other people around a little bit and trying to overhear.]

I guess everyone was kinda tired from all the touring that night. I know I really was! [As they're talking about this, he finds himself pulling a piece of paper from his pocket though. It's folded, and he doesn't unfold it, more just holds it in his hand.] But I think it happened to me again yesterday, too...

[She blinks at that paper, mostly confused by it, but it's not really her place to go tugging at all his business. She just also can't help being curious. Hearing that Sora might have experienced that weird sensation again doesn't surprise her any. It surprises her so little that she doesn't say anything for an extra few moments.]

I'm not surprised. I think there has to be something wrong with us. [It was normal to have weird dreams or something but this stuff was happening while they were (supposedly) in control of themselves.] I've thought about asking Mr. Kim, but ...

[But he's not very interested in anything but art, so it's probably a useless idea.]

[He hadn't intentionally pulled it out, just done it without thinking about it. Now that he's realized he has it in his hands though, he unfolds it. It's a drawing of two people: a boy and a girl. Not really the best artwork ever, it's clearly just a thing that was doodled in his spare time. Yet it's wrinkled and crumpled like he must have been carrying it around for a while. He shows it to her with sort of a shrug. And she's the first person he's actually gone out of his way to show it to, not on accident.]

I've seen these people so far. The guy once and the girl twice, but... I don't know their names. And the things I've seen have been good, they're... I don't know, nice. Calm. But I know not everyone's dreams, or visions or whatever, have been like that... One of my friends... Well, someone died in his.

[She tries not to cringe with surprise. Whatever they're experiencing ... Someone dying in it doesn't sound like a good thing. It's not real, of course, but a lot of this feels incredibly real to them so the shock and stress it must be putting on others with more intense visions must be horrible.

Nariko looks at the paper, though and, yeah, it's not anything Michaelangelo would compliment but it must be terribly important if Sora couldn't bring himself to ever let go of it.] Do you remember anything else about them? The girl or the guy.

[A description, a feeling, something that might be more substantial. Who knows why she's asking, it certainly didn't feel right but neither did leaving him to deal with it on his own.]

She's got red hair, and he's got white. They both have... really pretty eyes. [Geez, what is he saying. It's an apt description though, their eyes stand out a lot to him in his mind, startlingly blue and green.] I felt really comfortable with them. We were talking about going places together. And then the girl made this like... This charm? Ah, this thing...

[He turns the paper over, there's an object drawn on the back, a star-shape made of seashells strung together.] She said it would help us find each other again if we ever got separated. That the three of us would always be together...

[He looks back over at her finally, realizes he's sort of been rambling almost wistfully, and laughs at himself.] I guess it sounds kind of silly. I've never even met these people before!

It doesn't sound any more or less silly than what I saw and felt, or what anyone else is going through. [And while she'd definitely say a whole hell of a lot to make Sora feel better this just isn't one of those times. There's no sense in him feeling out of place about it when they're all in nearly the same place.] Maybe she was your soul mate, and he was your guys' friend.

[If anything it just feels like an educated guess. Obviously he would know them and friends was a basic, understandable assumption. In any case ... She lets herself watch him closely. It's incredibly difficult to be anything but worried, and that makes her options a little scarce. Thankfully she's never been one to think too hard on stuff like this.

Nariko lifts one arm to put it around Sora and pull him into a hug. She's careful to avoid going anywhere near that paper because it didn't feel right to even slightly dislodge him from it.] No matter what it is, Sora, it's obviously important. Maybe you'll find them again.

[Best friends that couldn't be disconnected! For all they knew it was a past life of his and he just missed his soul-friends.]

[Nariko's words clearly reassure him, though there's still always this background feeling he has of "maybe I shouldn't think about it too much" but it also feels too important to just write off.

He considers her guess too, getting slightly red at it because it had never really entered his mind before, not the soul mate thing anyway.] Soul mate, huh? [But it doesn't seem to quite fit, at least not 100%. True, he'd seen the girl twice now, but even the second time she'd been talking about all three of them. Neither one felt more important than the other to him.] They both feel really important, though.

[He lets himself be pulled easily into a hug, sighing softly as he relaxes into it, even puts the paper back in his pocket in order to hug her properly. She deserves another proper hug.] Yeah... I know I will... [That's what she'd said, the girl, in his second vision or whatever. That they'd find each other again, that the three of them would. Even without that charm she'd made, it still feels true.

After a moment, he gives her a light poke in the arm.] Hey, you can tell me about your stuff too, ya know. Maybe I can help.

Maybe it's both of them, then!

[You could have friends that were soulmates, right? Hence soul-friends. She was pretty sure that happened to be a thing. Not that the specifics really matter. He sounds completely sure of it, whereas Nariko could only feel an unwieldy sense of confusion when she tried to consider the specifics of her own vision. When they hug she ends up turning it into a sort of cuddle situation because she slides down a little in order to tuck her head up near his collarbone. He's been designated as the slightly bigger spoon despite being younger than her.]

Sora, I've never really loved anyone not like - romantically. [She loved her band, obviously, and she loved Sora, too.] And that's fine, I've never felt as if I missed out on anything! I'm really busy and sure, I'm gorgeous [Such modesty. Much humility.] but I'm still really difficult to handle. I'm not confident enough and I'm not sure I could ever let anyone be more important than music.

[That's all just a setup for what counts, though:] But when I saw all of that and felt it? I can't help thinking that's what being in love is supposed to feel like. And it's not like I want that now, it feels like I know I was in love at some point but now they're just ... Gone. There was someone, and we were outside together and I kept hearing bells, but I don't know who it was. I couldn't even see their face.

[Even though she'd gotten the sense that they were looking at one another, it felt as if her brain refused to put the image together, keeping it hidden somewhere in the back.]

[That's something that flits through his mind too, after she puts in that it could be both of them: the soul-friend thing. Soul mates were essentially just people who were destined to meet and be together forever, right? Sora never wanted to leave his friends, he always wanted to be with them forever, so that made sense. Maybe he'd been friends with them in some sort of... past life, and was destined to meet them and be friends again.

She begins speaking again, and he focuses in on her, listening to what she has to say. And, well, to be fair, she is gorgeous, so he'll give her that, and the fact she says she is and knows she is makes an affectionate, amused smile tilt his lips, too. Her lack of humility is kind of an endearing quirk, really, all of the diva/princess things about her were, to him.

He can relate to the not having loved anyone romantically before, too. It was something he hoped for one day, but nothing he was actively searching for. But he has to frown at her "difficult to handle" comment. But he waits until she's completely finished, taking in all she has to say, letting her lounge on him comfortably as he thinks. His arms wrap loosely around her shoulders, and he rests his cheek on the top of her head.]

Hmm... You know, I don't think you're difficult to handle, Nari, and neither will someone who loves you. I mean they might get mad at you sometimes because people do that, even when they love each other, they get mad at each other sometimes, but to someone who loves you it will be worth it, because you're worth it... Right? I think... Love is kinda like that.

But I mean, about the other stuff you said, the feeling like you've felt that way before... Well, I wouldn't worry too much; if it's important, if that feeling's still in your heart somewhere, it'll come back to you. You'll figure it out.

[He's grinning now, the first one since he'd run into her. Leaning over slightly, he moves his arms, shifting so he can rest his hands on her arms gently, fingers lightly touching the sides of her wrists.] Yeah... we'll both figure it out. And we can help each other, okay? Like... Do you remember anything else about the place outside? Other than the bells?

[Nariko couldn't say she was really looking for it either. She enjoyed having her fun but was always careful to make things very cut and dry, more for other people's sake than anything else. She didn't want to get any hopes up and for as romantic and giving as she could be Nariko knew herself well enough to admit when it was just about physicality, or just about the moments shared with another person. But ever since that vision she hasn't been able to fight off the sense that there was, or had been someone she loved very deeply.

But it didn't really fit who she was now. Nariko knew how selfish she could be, how demanding her music was and her utter devotion to it made anything solidly romantic nearly impossible. But even though she can easily accept that she's selfish and a little obnoxious and absolutely demanding Sora makes it sound so ... Simple. Just listening to him gives her the sense that maybe she really can find someone - maybe not tomorrow or whatever but eventually. Soon.

And it's right about then, around the point where he's pretty much all out embracing her that her heart begins to pound viciously, and he's - she --] Sora ... [She wants to kiss him and the way she shifts in his hold a little, working to face him is for the sake of completing that but he's - asking about her vision and it's pretty clear she got caught up in the wrong lane, here.]

Oh, it's [She almost kissed him she almost kissed him she almost tried to kiss him. Will the universe be merciful and make Sora oblivious to what she might have tried to do, there? She hopes so.]

I - I think it was a church, actually? I remember a big archway and stained glass windows. I think we were on a hill or something, overlooking it maybe?

[The only reason she can begin to remember anything is because she's so mortified at her almost-actions that she doesn't run into the usual painful mental block.]

[The way she shifts does draw his attention, his expression mostly curiosity and slight confusion as she faces him, but... The universe is merciful, at least in this respect, because he doesn't connect her actions to any sort of desire to kiss him.

He still tilts his head, wondering the reason for her movement, but settles on maybe she just wanted to look at him while she spoke, and he becomes more focused on their conversation as she answers his question, anyway.]

Hmm... A church, huh? Sounds pretty... Maybe you were getting married? You'd definitely be feeling love then, right? But I guess you could have just been there for a wedding or something too...

Locked in a Room

Nov 2

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