Rise and Shine [Traverse Town, Closed]
Although she’d already forgotten it, she knew that she’d dreamed the dream before. It left a residue of nostalgia, some shapeless familiarity that lingered on the edge of sleep, and she resisted the transition into whatever room existed past her closed eyes. Faye didn’t count the minutes (hours?) of semiconsciousness. Through her eyelids, space was a thick, watery red, and as she shifted her weight into a more comfortable position she found something soft and warm against her body.
It had been a long, long time since she’d slept that well.
A distant sound finally yanked her into the realm of the sentient; something like a slamming door. The misty edge of the dream evaporated as if touched by fire and she pushed away from whatever object she found herself against, barely catching herself at the edge of the bed.
Fuck.
Faye severed the scream before it grew louder than a gasp. Screaming would solve nothing. Where was she? Quick.
Traverse town.
The realization did not calm her but it coated the setting in a sheen of surreality that added a bit of emotional distance. She untangled her body from a pile of green fabric that she gradually identified as a coat and slid off of the bed as quietly as possible. Two bodies. Silver hair and blue hair. Touma stirred slightly as she slid off the bed, but he didn’t make the shift to consciousness. The other person remained entirely still.
Faye had the distinct impression that she had not woken up. The room itself was not extraordinary, but the memory of what remained beyond it could only exist in a dream. Still, there are a limited number of ways to deal with a runaway dream, and the easiest was simply waiting to wake. Ride it out. Life as usual, even in an impossible setting.
In the bathroom, she turned the shower to the hottest tolerable setting and concentrated on her plans for the day. First order of business: money. The innkeeper had neglected to collect payment last night, but that didn't mean her stay would be free. If she was lucky, the long sleep might have replenished her bankrupt womanly wiles…if not, there were always things to be pawned.
Faye rubbed the last of the shampoo into her dark purple hair, cringing slightly at the stinging of soap on the cut across her palm. After rinsing the suds from her hair she examined the dark line. It was vaguely comforting: proof that something else had been in the street where she found blindfold boy.
She turned off the shower and quickly dried herself, then pulled on the clothes she'd worn the day before. Second order of business: retrieve spare clothing from the Red Tail. Faye continued to towel her hair as she searched for things to sell. She saw the corner of Touma's bag poking out from beneath the bed, but in a rare instance of respect she decided that her conscious roommate's possessions were off-limits. After all, he'd followed her out of the café when she was hysterical…not many people would do that.
The wardrobe revealed blindfold-boy's coat, sword, and blindfold. Without the blindfold, blindfold-boy seemed to be a misnomer, so after a few seconds of contemplation Faye decided to think of him as the investment. The Investment. It had a nice ring to it…a ring that would only get nicer when it paid off.
After some effort, Faye managed to fit the sword between her body and her coat at an angle where it didn't seem likely to fall out. She made sure to close up the wardrobe, but if Touma noticed the absence, it shouldn't be tough to explain away as someone else's theft…after all, the doors didn't lock.
First, the item shop. Second, the Red Tail. After that, depending on finances, she might finally buy herself a meal.
It had been a long, long time since she’d slept that well.
A distant sound finally yanked her into the realm of the sentient; something like a slamming door. The misty edge of the dream evaporated as if touched by fire and she pushed away from whatever object she found herself against, barely catching herself at the edge of the bed.
Fuck.
Faye severed the scream before it grew louder than a gasp. Screaming would solve nothing. Where was she? Quick.
Traverse town.
The realization did not calm her but it coated the setting in a sheen of surreality that added a bit of emotional distance. She untangled her body from a pile of green fabric that she gradually identified as a coat and slid off of the bed as quietly as possible. Two bodies. Silver hair and blue hair. Touma stirred slightly as she slid off the bed, but he didn’t make the shift to consciousness. The other person remained entirely still.
Faye had the distinct impression that she had not woken up. The room itself was not extraordinary, but the memory of what remained beyond it could only exist in a dream. Still, there are a limited number of ways to deal with a runaway dream, and the easiest was simply waiting to wake. Ride it out. Life as usual, even in an impossible setting.
In the bathroom, she turned the shower to the hottest tolerable setting and concentrated on her plans for the day. First order of business: money. The innkeeper had neglected to collect payment last night, but that didn't mean her stay would be free. If she was lucky, the long sleep might have replenished her bankrupt womanly wiles…if not, there were always things to be pawned.
Faye rubbed the last of the shampoo into her dark purple hair, cringing slightly at the stinging of soap on the cut across her palm. After rinsing the suds from her hair she examined the dark line. It was vaguely comforting: proof that something else had been in the street where she found blindfold boy.
She turned off the shower and quickly dried herself, then pulled on the clothes she'd worn the day before. Second order of business: retrieve spare clothing from the Red Tail. Faye continued to towel her hair as she searched for things to sell. She saw the corner of Touma's bag poking out from beneath the bed, but in a rare instance of respect she decided that her conscious roommate's possessions were off-limits. After all, he'd followed her out of the café when she was hysterical…not many people would do that.
The wardrobe revealed blindfold-boy's coat, sword, and blindfold. Without the blindfold, blindfold-boy seemed to be a misnomer, so after a few seconds of contemplation Faye decided to think of him as the investment. The Investment. It had a nice ring to it…a ring that would only get nicer when it paid off.
After some effort, Faye managed to fit the sword between her body and her coat at an angle where it didn't seem likely to fall out. She made sure to close up the wardrobe, but if Touma noticed the absence, it shouldn't be tough to explain away as someone else's theft…after all, the doors didn't lock.
First, the item shop. Second, the Red Tail. After that, depending on finances, she might finally buy herself a meal.