dream 01 = happy birthday to me

[bulletic]

Sender: Noel Vermillion
To: Everyone
Subject: Passive dream recording


[ The first thing one can notice when viewing this dream is... nothing. An empty, white void devoid of life, save for Noel herself. She stands in front of a tall mirror, one big enough that it reflects her entire figure ─ or rather, it should, but instead, it shows a girl smaller than her, though she bears similar features, almost as though she's a younger version of her. The silence between them is almost deafening, and neither of them seems willing to break it or even acknowledge the other in any way. This goes on for a while, but finally, the girl ─ the reflection ─ speaks up. ]

Who are you?

[ Noel hesitates for a brief second, biting her lip. It's not that she doesn't know the answer, but─ it's complicated. Too complicated. She's still working on coming to terms with it, so saying it out loud is a bit of a challenge. But she manages to give the little girl a smile, reaching out with her hand and touching the surface of the mirror lightly. ]

... I'm you.

[ The girl doesn't lift her hand to meet Noel's. In fact, she's not even looking at her, gaze fixed on the ground and brow furrowed. ]

Liar. [ A small creak appears on the surface of the mirror as she says that, and quickly grows bigger, but Noel fails to notice that, taken aback by the unexpected response. ] Someone like you... you're not me!

[ The mirror shatters with a loud crash, pieces of glass hitting the ground and breaking into thousands of small shards. Noel stands there without moving a muscle, and before she has a chance to process what happened and retreat her hand, an arm reaches out from the dark depth behind the destroyed mirror and snatches her wrist. A figure emerges from the frame: another girl, this one close in age and bearing a striking resemblance to Noel in her features, although her cold, uncaring eyes are colored red, and her long, purple hair is held up in a high ponytail. Her lips curl up in a cruel, condescending sneer as she pulls Noel closer despite the other's desperate attempt to escape her grip. ]

Don't fool yourself. You can run, but you can never hide from who you truly are... Noel Vermillion!

[ The dream ends abruptly, no doubt as the result of Noel fumbling to the floor and waking up. ]

Comments

[rokubro]

[....Whoa.]

Uh..... You okay over there?

[LET'S ASK HOW THIS GIRL IS FIRST since he feels a biiiiit awkward seeing this.]

[bulletic]

[ It takes Noel a moment to calm down, and frankly she's still a little shaken up from the dream when her gaze falls on her lantern and journal; it's only then that it dawns on her what it means. Oh no. No, no, no. She scrambles across the floor to grab her journal and do some damage control if necessary. ]

Yes! [ Whoa, let's rein in the aggressive enthusiasm, shall we? ] Yes, I'm fine, thank you.

[ That comes off a little unnatural, too, but it's progress. Now... she should probably explain herself, right? ... If only it was that simple. ]

That's... I mean, it was...

[ Okay, clearly that's not working. Backed into a corner, Noel instinctively fall back on what she's used to most: apologizing. ]

I'm sorry.

[rokubro]

[OH BOY even if he can't hear her, seeing the words and how it's written is enough to give him an idea.]

Whoa hey no need to apologize! That looked like a pretty wild dream you had.

If anything, I should be the one apologizing for seeing some of it.

[bulletic]

No, not at all! I don't think this is something we can control? Dreams being recorded, I mean. So it can't be helped that others will see them!

[ She kind of wishes it was the one she had about petting a cute baby panda, but that's neither here nor there. ]

What I'm trying to say is, please don't feel bad about it! You didn't do anything wrong.

[rokubro]

Heh, guess we both don't need to apologize then, right?

Anyway, sure you're okay? I'm not going to pry, but that really did seem like an intense dream.

[bulletic]

I suppose so!

[ It gets a much-needed chuckle out of her, and she's grateful for that. ]

Thank you for your concern! Yes, I'm fine. It was a bit... weird, but at the end of the day, it was just a dream, so... it's okay.

[rokubro]

So long as you're not holding it in.

But you're "Noel Vermillion," right? Guess I should introduce myself, I'm Rokurou Rangetsu.

[bulletic]

[ Oh right, introductions are a thing! Although her name is already up there on full display, so that part's more or less covered for her. ]

Yes, that's right! It's nice to meet you, Mr. Rokurou. Again, thank you, I really appreciate your reaching out to me.

[rokubro]

No problem. Felt it was only right since I watched a bit of it.

And no idea if this would help any, especially from someone you just met, but no matter what, you're you. So next time you have that dream, should shout back at it. If it were me I'd probably challenge it to a duel, heh.

[bulletic]

[ That... is actually really touching. It sounds like something Ragna would tell her, too (down to the part about fighting the dream), making it probably just what she needed to hear (or read) right now. It's... all a bit complicated in her case, but at the end of the day, he's correct ─ she is herself. ]

Yes, that's right. It might sound obvious, but... it's good to be reminded that sometimes. Thank you.

Oh, and Merry Christmas! Do you celebrate Christmas in your world, Mr. Rokurou?

[rokubro]

No problem!

And Merry Christmas! This is the first time I've heard about the holiday since it doesn't exist in my world. Places have their own winter festivals and traditions, but nothing like this. Pretty fun, though.

[silentends]

Noel! How are you feeling? Do you want to talk?

[Nier saw her dream and he became worried for her. The nightmare is concerning and he feels bad.]

It looked like you were in trouble.

[bulletic]

Please, don't worry about me! I'm okay, really.

[ Narrator: She was not, in fact, okay. But she's had a moment to calm down and... well, she's yet to gather her thoughts, but that can wait. ]

I'm sorry you had to see that... it was pretty weird, wasn't it?

[ Casual. Keep it casual. She's been doing this "appear to be fine when not fine" to a greater or lesser extent for a long time now, so hopefully she hold it together for a little longer. ]

[silentends]

You don't have to apologize. You didn't do anything wrong!! If you say you're okay then I'll trust you.

[ He's got no reason to doubt her words. Noel's always been kind and friendly! ]

I'm really just trying to make sense of what's going on. Aren't you a little confused too?

[bulletic]

Oh yes... Dreams can be pretty weird, right? So I guess it's not weird that they're weird...

[ She does have more context for what happened there, but it's still a confusing experience. She really thought she could put all that behind her... ]

Oh, sorry, I'm rambling. What I'm trying to say is... I guess dreams don't necessarily have to make sense?

[silentends]

No, it's okay I understand what you're trying to say. You aren't rambling.

[ He tries to sound reassuring and comforting. ]

Dreams are just dreams, aren't they? None of it is real. If it's bothering you then you can take your mind off it.

[bulletic]

Yes... after all, it's just a dream.

[ It's a bit hard to swallow when she's aware that, technically speaking, her home world is, for all intends and purposes, a dream itself. But no worries ─ Noel can see where he's coming from, and she appreciates the thought behind it. ]

Ah, but not all dreams are bad! The other night I had one about some really cute pandas... Have you had any fun dreams recently, Nier?

[silentends]

You're right! Not all dreams are bad and I hope you can have better ones too.

[ He hopes that Noel can dream of more pandas and cute things. She deserves to get some peaceful dreams. ]

That's a good question. I don't know if I'd call it a fun dream but I had a strange one. I was in a building that I didn't recognize and there was snow. It was really cold.

Maybe I'm just not used to this weather yet so I ended up having dreams about it. Do you like snow?

[bulletic]

Thank you! I hope you have some nice ones, too.

[ Talking about something else does help her take mind of what she's seen in a dream, so she's grateful he decided to help her with that. She'll need to thank him somehow! Maybe some homemade cookies would do the trick? Run while you still can, Nier. ]

Snow in a building? That is a little strange... Oh, but if it's your first time seeing snow, then it's no wonder it's on your mind!

I think snow can be really fun every now and then! Back in my world, it only snows when the weather controls in a city break down... Oh, but apparently it's been snowing non-stop in Akitsu-Kou for over a year now... I imagine living in a place like that must be difficult. Though I've read somewhere that back in a day, snow was common in winter season in certain parts of the world, and that there even used to be places that had it all year!

[silentends]

It's hard to live no matter where you are I think. We might come from different worlds but we still have to survive. That much won't change.

Your world sounds interesting Noel! I'd like to hear more about it. Do you want to meet up somewhere? We can talk over tea.

[ He'd probably eat any food he's given without much of a complaint. Noel is a very nice girl and she's always thoughtful. He's a little impressed at how considerate she's being. ]

[bulletic]

[ She has to wonder what kind of world Nier is hailing from if the matter of just "survival" is an issue there... but she figures this is something they can talk about like he suggested, without putting him on the sport right here. ]

I'd love that! Oh, but I don't want to trouble you... are you sure that's okay?

[silentends]

Don't worry about it! You won't be troubling me at all.

[ Nier's world has all sorts of strange complications to it and he understands now that his home isn't normal. Besides, he'd like to understand Noel better. What's her world like he wonders? There must be more to the story. ]

I should be the one thanking you for everything Noel.