dreamcrystals | [02] three lies, one truth

Entry tags:

[02] three lies, one truth

Sender: Susato Mikotoba
To: Everyone
Subject: Passive dream recording
Warning: Descriptions of death (specifically: falling/burning, stabbing, freezing, drowning) and the crippling fear that comes with that.

When Susato is first seen, she is nigh unrecognizable. There's only a glimpse of her. Her hair is frazzled, long well past her shoulders, and the white dress she wears, accented by pinks, does not match the grim darkness of the cage she is in. Seconds later, there's a loud metallic clang as the cage is shut.

There's movement like a shaky camera, and you... no, Susato is looking into the eyes of one man who looks almost surprised to see her. As if he hadn't been the one to put her there.

"Mr Vigil?"

The voice is small and cracks like glass over the flames below.

Before he can respond, there's the sound of a lever and a deafening scream as a feeling of terrifying weightlessness takes over your body.

You're falling, and you don't know when you'll stop.

* * * * *
Out of the frying pan and into the fire.

When the dream spits you out, you can taste a mixture of blood and dirt as you blink your eyes open. They sting like you've been crying, and when you bring your filthy hands up to look at them, you can see the pink of your kimono sleeves. The loops in your air feel looser and messier than usual as you can feel the terrifying glare of a man before you, bleeding and in chains, and yet no less threatening.

All around you are corpses. You just barely manage to struggle to your feet when he moves to strike you down with alarming quickness, his blade and scythe at his call. Something hard and sharp pierces your stomach as his voice booms:

"You will not tarnish... my brother's memory...!"

You were so close. You can see some of the broken chains you worked so hard at; he was almost free.

But it's too late.

A laughter seems to be coming from the noble in the portrait behind the Reaper, and an eerie red glow bleeds out from the canvas as your consciousness fades.

* * * * *

The laughter transforms into something else, another voice. It is almost pleasant; and the scene is entirely different now. A gorgeous ballroom surrounds you with an air of celebration, you are humbled, taking the man before you in a dance. Here is the face that everyone says you can trust, and yet you can hear suspicious whispers coming from the walls.

Something is wrong.

You feel cold in a way that is inexplicable. Your very core is frozen, and it feels like you will never get warm. suddenly it's a struggle just to move with the music; but eventually you stop listening to that, too.

"Don't struggle." The king pulls you close in what is most certainly a threatening manner. Beneath your gloves, your fingers have already become ice. "Your death is inevitable now. Accept it with grace, and don't scream."

But even if you wanted to, you can't.

Pathetic gurgles escape your throat as ice travels up your chest and your neck. A piece of your white hair falls across your face, but when you go to brush it away, your hands won't move. Nothing will.

There is stillness. For a moment, you have hope, because you can still move your terrified, wide eyes, but soon that too is gone.

* * * * *
In that moment, you're not able to look at anything else.

Your neck is craned upwards and suddenly, the dream has shifted one final time. You're staring at the surface of the freezing cold water from below, unable to breathe, but the Gods above have mercy on you, and it doesn't last long. A glaring white starts to creep into the corners of your vision, filling everything in haze, and the dream ends as suddenly as it began.

* * * * *

[ Back in the comparative comforts of her home, Susato awakes with a start. She gasps for breath like she's just been held underwater, sitting up and gripping at her blankets. For all she knows, they are her lifeline. She is shaking, the faded memories of dreamscapes past rushing back to her, and she feels her arm knock something off the bed she's on.

......All she can do is breathe. ]

(( ooc: tl;dr, just a fun throwback to the fun deaths i've been able to put her through this past year. <3 please assume delayed responses where appropriate/etc. ))

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

imma be right over

[It doesn't take him too long to get to the Harvest. Considering the weather they were having, he still bundled up for the cooler night, wearing a heavier jacket and a scarf around his neck. He shot Susato a quick message in the journal when he had arrived, not wanting to bother the rest of her housemates from their slumber.

The music from his headphones is low, the chill tunes of a city pop song playing in his ear as he waited.]

[ Susato is already lounging in the porch area when she arrives, which is notably larger nowadays. The reason for that is obvious at a glance, though there's quite a set of stairs between the porch and where Beat is, so he wouldn't see her. Susato is relaxed, giving Fang the dragon affectionate strokes with a special grooming brush when the message comes. ]

Ah, he's here. [ 'Coming,' she writes. She's about to leave at that, and then adds: 'Hope you don't mind if I bring another friend.'

... ] What do you think, Fang? Do you want to come?

[ Apparently, that's a yes.

A moment later, Susato and Fang come walking side by side, though as Beat comes into view, Fang starts to trail behind her. ]

Hello, Beat.

...Fang, don't be shy. This is my friend.

Edited 2023-01-27 03:52 (UTC)

[While he wasn't able to reply to Susato's message, it isn't long before he sees her coming up to him. He raises a hand in greeting.]

Yo, Loops.

[Seeing the dragon comes as a bit of a surprise though, and Beat couldn't help but stare.]

Ain't what I was expecting when you said you was bringin' a friend.

[Moving closer, he sticks out his hand towards Fang like one might with a dog. Is this how you introduce yourself to a dragon? He had no idea.]

[ It's fine, she's basically a big dog. Fang is shy at first, but seems to sniff his hand when it's offered. With Susato vouching for him, however, there is a happy chirp, and Fang will even close her eyes as she gives Beat's hand a light nudge.

Susato grins. Atta girl. ]

She sleeps on our porch up there. I suppose you could say she is like our guardian. [ Or, at least... Kazuma's. ] I decided to give her a brushing, and when you said you were coming over, I thought she might like some exercise too.

[The nudge that comes from Fang brings a smile to his face and he proceeds to pet lightly against her snout.]

Looks like she makes one helluva guardian, yo.

[Once she seems to have calmed down to his presence, he retracts his hand from her, tucking it back into his jacket pocket.]

Le's get goin'. Anywhere you was thinkin' 'bout goin'?

Edited (htmlllll) 2023-01-28 19:23 (UTC)

Hmm... [ Susato gives Fang a few more affectionate strokes, which appears to be a signal to the girl that she can open her eyes again. ] A walk around the lake, perhaps?

Where do you often find yourself when you wander around at night?

[He replies with a nod, cocking his head towards the lake as he begins walking at a comfortable pace.]

I don't really know, yo. Just wherever I guess. Made it all the way to the beach a coupla times. Don't see much a' that back home an' I kinda like the sounds of it.

[The music continued to play in his headphones, the volume low enough for him to still hear Susato as they spoke. If he were on his own, he would have them louder, letting them fill his senses as he took his night stroll.]

Lotta the time, I'm jus' listening to whatever I got playin' an' jus' walk, you know?

[ Susato can barely hear it. It's just a low hum coming out of his headphones. Still, she doesn't really question it and leads the way, taking much the same path she took before. First when she met Zelda, and the second, when she met Hans and Sitron.

Fang seems happy enough to follow, though at some point she'll trot ahead of them, sniffing this and that. ]

The waves are quite soothing. I once collected seashells there, you know.

[ That's a pretty far walk, though, and the note she left Kazuma probably didn't tell him she'd be gone that long. The lake would suffice for tonight. ]

What sort of music do you enjoy?

Yeah? Get any good ones when you was lookin'?

[It's amusing watching Fang trot about. He'd never seen a creature like her before so it was a curious sight to take in. Despite it, he keeps the conversation between him and Susato going.]

I like a whole lotta stuff. But I ain't got a lot saved up in my phone.

[He pulls the device out of his pocket for Susato to see. It's a red smartphone, just a bit smaller than the size of his hand. The lock screen facing her depicts some graffiti art as well as the music player app.]

It's mostly hiphop and j-rock, coupla rap songs but been givin' city pop a listen recently. [A recent addition to his library, thanks to Futaba.] You wanna give it a shot?

[ She grins. The truth is, when she collected them, she just found them pretty, and she wasn't really sure what she was going to do with them yet. Then, she decided to pass them onto someone who she felt needed them more. ]

They were for a friend. [ She can sense herself spacing out as they go, her voice airy, so she turns to Beat as a way to keep herself grounded and focused. ] ...But yes, I... I'd love to hear modern music. Do you mind?

[ Sharing music in this way seems kinda personal. She doesn't want to overstep. ]

Course not, yo. Here.

[Pulling off his headphones, he hits pause on the current song before he hands them over to Susato. Well aware that this technology is much ahead of her time, Beat takes his time showing her the basic controls on one earpiece of his headphones.]

You can adjust how loud you want it here, and you hit this when you want 'em it to start. Once you get 'em on, you go to go.

[ She hears the music stop, then waits to hear the explanation, watching and carefully taking in all the different buttons. The symbols are familiar to her, but only barely from some months ago. The memory does come back to her, and out of the corner of her eye, Susato can see Fang watching carefully.

She finishes placing the headphones over her ears, speaking a little bit louder after she does so. ]

I remember Mei showing me once. [ And then she'll hit the button that looks kind of like the head of an arrow, pointing sideways. It's a good thing he lowered the volume. ]

Edited 2023-01-29 16:44 (UTC)

[Once the music plays, Susato will hear the light and chill sounds of the city pop song he had been listening to. It's upbeat with a cool rhythm and a catchy drum beat. Among Beat's choices of music, this was probably the best one to introduce her to when it came to his taste in modern music.]

Yeah, I heard a bit of what Red likes too. It ain't too bad either.

[He walks alongside her as she gives it a listen, catching up to Fang as the dragons continues to wander, head tilting curiously as she watched Susato.]

How you findin' it?

[ Fang is just checking the state of things and making sure she's alright. When nothing happens, she gets distracted, very much happy to do her own thing.

Meanwhile, once Susato has an idea of how loud the song is going to be, she feels comfortable enough that she presses the up button on where Beat had indicated the volume. Her head starts to nod along to the beat, and for a moment she wonders how loud the volume can go.

She keeps pressing the button, but once it gets too loud, she'll start pressing the opposite one.

......Fascinating. ]

Hehe. I like it?

[ She doesn't seem sure, but she starts gently patting her hand against her leg next, so it can't be all that bad. If there are lyrics, she probably doesn't understand them too well. ]

I recognize that it is Japanese, but it still... feels like a different language. I think I would have to write down the words to have a chance at deciphering them.

[It's curious watching someone like her play around with his headphones. While he was well-aware of the time difference between them, seeing that gap was interesting to him as well. A part of him felt like he was teaching some something new, and that wasn't something he had a chance to do often.

So when she begins to tap her hand to the beat, he can't help but smile, feeling a little proud in the moment.]

It don't sound like the Japanese that you used to? Can't even imagine what that's like, yo.

[Susato always had an air of formality about her, but the way she spoke never really bothered him. He knew someone like Nagi after all, and there were similarities in their manner of speech. But hearing her say that reminded him that it might not be the same for her.]

You can keep listenin' while we walkin'.

[ On the other hand, Susato is somewhat used to knowing more than her peers, because it was her job to inform, so this is new for both of them. To experience something that feels largely impossible for her time is thrilling, and there is a childish excitement about her as they walk.

The song in the background, and at the forefront, Beat. ]

Which song is your favorite?

[ Music is important to him, so in a way, she's getting to know him better... She hopes. ]

[While Beat had some appreciation for music in the past, that only grew more in the recent years. He didn't think that she would ask him something like that, but he smiles as they walk, pulling out his phone from his pocket.]

I'mma change the song, aight? Might get a little loud.

[He waits a little bit before he switches the song being played. He doesn't know much about music that Susato might've listened to in the past, but he's at least aware that what he was going to play may surprise her.]

I got a lotta faves but been listenin' to this a lot lately.

[ The warning is appreciated. Susato isn't quite sure what to expect, but her finger remains poised on the volume-down button as she stares in anticipation, but the song and its pace kick in very quickly, giving her a slight jolt. She turns the volume down a few clicks without complaint as her ears adjust... then after a moment, she looks a bit surprised.

The lyrics are in English, which might add an extra layer of difficulty to it, but even if she doesn't understand everything, she can still remember bits of Beat's dream and the conversation that followed.

Take a look at me. I'm not the perfect boy you want me to be.

She can understand. ]

...Do you still feel free here?

[Susato asking more about it takes him by surprise, and it shows as he cranes his neck to look at her. The music from his headphones still continues, only audible due to the stillness of the night, devoid of the village's usual hustle and bustle. Beat stops walking to fully look at her.

That song was important to him, serving as a reminder of his goals and how he didn't have to live under the shadow of his parents disappointment nor their approval. He didn't have that here, yet somehow he still found himself looking for some kind of validation at times. Some encouragement to know that he was doing the right thing and making the right decisions.]

I mean, yeah, kinda. Don't got my parents breathin' down my neck, you know?

But we don't gotta talk 'bout that, yo.

[He at least offers that, not wanting this conversation to be about him if he could help it. He had come here to cheer her up, after all. Not the other way around.]

[ When he stops, she does too, though she is a few paces ahead when she does so. The look she gives him is a curious one; it had been a casual question at best. She wondered if things had changed since that night, whether he felt any different, or if he ever missed them at all. ]

No, we don't. But I like learning about the things that are important to you.

[ She'll allow the song to finish without any interruption. ]

Thank you for sharing that with me.

[He doesn't answer her at first, at least not immediately. Catching back up to her, his hands bury themselves deep into his pockets once more as she finishes the song.]

Course, yo.

[Not taking his headphones back just yet, the next song, begins to play, this time a mix of English and Japanese. Though a lot tamer than the beat of the last song, the message it carried was similar to the last.]

I got other things that's important to me that ain't got nothing to do with my folks. [A smile returns to his face as he looks at the headphones atop Susato's head.] Wasn't really into music before. But got into it 'cause of my friend back home.

[ Susato smiles back, though she does reach up to those headphones to adjust them. Whether they're actually just a little too big for her or she's just imagining it because she caught Beat staring, she can't tell, but she'll continue listening. Naturally it's hard to pay serious attention to the song when she's trying to be attentive to Beat. ]

Because of your friend? Did they play an instrument of some kind?

[ She wonders if his friend was a musician, though she has no real reason to assume it so. Maybe they just shared things, like they are doing now. ]

Nah. If he did, he ain't ever told me. But music was just kinda his thing, you know? He ain't good with people so I guess he uses it to kinda tune them out sometimes.

[He remembers how he and Neku butted heads when they first met, their personalities clashing with one another. But he'd changed over the course of the Reaper's Game. The both of them did and that was enough to get them to a point where they could work together, where they could become close, where they could actually become friends. It's still hard to believe how much Beat trusts Neku now considering their history.]

He's better 'bout it now. A lot better. [A chuckle leaves him, but there's a sadness to it that Beat didn't show very often.] But he went missin' for a while. Didn't know where to find him. An'... I dunno, man, I guess music kinda helped me feel connected to him while he was gone, you know?

[And he did feel a connection with Neku despite what happened. Beat knew that his friend was out there somewhere, he just had to find him. And he did eventually. It was these things that were important to him rather than his broken relationship with his parents.

That importance carried in his voice and in the way his expression changed. In how he smiled and frowned and sighed. Then he chuckles.]

Heh, didn't mean to keep talkin' like that.

[ Her hands idly move up to the headphones as she listens, almost like she's about to take them off for a moment. Her mouth hangs open with interest, and she feels a pang in her chest as he speaks. She can sense a desperation in his voice before he trails off, a sense of longing. ]

You missed him.

[ That's sweet... She wonders if she would have found some way to stay connected to Kazuma as well as they went their separate ways, beyond the letters they would inevitably send each other.

She hopes so. ]

I am glad you had that connection. Is that how you found each other again?

> action

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