The Mall had its share of troubled residents - it surprised him, honestly, that such a number of troubled individuals would have been gathered in one place. And as it was his duty to provide mortals and immortals alike refuge from the pains of the world in sleep - there was always, always one obstacle that he faced.
The subconscious; the one that twists the dreams he creates into something truly horrific. He would sometimes let them be, sometimes give them a little nudge, and sometimes, as much as he hates to do so, tell them to wake up.
Tonight, though, as he does his routine dreamwalking - something catches his attention. He just observes, for now - after all, he knows she's weathered through a lot, and perhaps this may just be a passing dream.
It's a nightmare she's had quite a few times over the span of her life, this one; her father, that nightmarish explosion, her name on his lips as he expired right in front of her eyes. Only in this dream, she's standing right there in the lab, untouched by the explosion that claimed everyone else.
Mitsuru's father's voice comes from somewhere, a deep boom as she tries to cover her ears with her hands. 'Takeba wouldn't abandon his little girl...'
In the waking world, Yukari whimpers, sleeping on.
She certainly might need it. She's always been a passive observer before, unable to do anything, but this time she can move. Her first move is to hurry over to her father's body, still cooling on the ground, sinking down to sob into his chest.
Well, he's no stranger to death, but he rarely does ever like to see the aftermath.
He steps out into view, as impassive as he can stand. Just another mortal, he tells himself. Just another mortal. Not one that makes his cheeks colour at the mere sight of her.
That voice. Calm, unphased, simply stating what is. She knows that voice, trusts it implicitly. Her head rises from her father's chest, the labs shimmering around them - dreams never were very solid - the side of her face lightly stained with blood as she looks up.
"Min..." she begins, cutting herself off as she sees the wings. No, not Minato, he can't be here. It's... "Hypnos?"
He remains stonefaced as she clears up her confusion. He knows from her dreams that she holds someone who looks exactly like him very close to her heart - and he can't compete with someone like that.
He nods his head in greeting, and he crouches down across her. "You are capable of stopping this any moment you wish," he says, carefully avoiding eye contact.
She looks up at him, down again; a small, shimmering blue butterfly comes from somewhere and lands on the slowly spreading patch of red in her father's chest. It flits its wings a few times before flying away, Yukari watching after it.
She stands up, and the world moves with her; it's the hallway outside her classroom at Gekkoukan now, empty and dark. Nearly midnight by the clocks on the walls.
"I..." she murmurs; it feels so strange. Was this a lucid dream? "Why are you here?"
He's used to the shifts in perspective, almost all dreams do that one time or the other, so he just leans against a wall and sticks an earphone into an ear.
Wait.
He blinks a little; his clothing's flickering between his normal white suit with a black one. Like a uniform. He stares at you, feeling more than out of place, before shrugging.
A baseball cap flutters down from the ceiling, coming to rest in front of her feet; she picks it up, turning it over in her hands. A masculine laugh cuts through the silence, echoing along the halls before disappearing.
After a moment, she glances over her shoulder at him, seemingly unconcerned by his change in clothing. She saw that uniform so often in her dreams, it was hardly anything new.
"Dreams are unfettered by façades," he replies, walking over with his hands in his pockets. "If your dreams are troubled, it would follow that you are troubled as well."
What he's trying to say is, he's worried for you. But his mentality for humans won't let him say it.
She's quiet again, standing by the window of her classroom now in an unnoticable shift, hands clasped behind her back, staring out at the town beyond. She chews her lip once, twice, before...
"I can't blame my dad. Everything he did was the right thing, but...he left me." she says; her voice grows smaller fast before she buries her head in her hands, letting out a loud sob. "And he's going to leave me as well. Even if I remember everything here and go back and try to change, he'll...leave me. Th-three months is all I'll get."
She whirls on her foot, facing Hypnos, her yelling echoing throughout the darkened, empty classroom.
He's remarkably unfazed by her outburst, and he walks to stand next to her by the window, in the shadow of the window frames.
"Do not think of it as that way," he says quietly, placing a hand against the pane. When you have Death for your brother, you hear these kinds of things almost every day. "Everyone parts ways. You are just...parting ways sooner, that is all."
And Hypnos turns his head, looks at you. "And are you sure of that? That everyone leaves you? Do you no longer have any loved ones by your side?"
Of course he isn't. The room seems to be staying solid as Yukari's shoulder slumps, the Gekkoukan uniform manifesting properly onto Hypnos as she turns towards him.
"I...o-of course not." she murmurs, head hung slightly. "Just...Dad, and him. The only..."
'The only men she's ever loved'. You'd know what she means in that way you just know things in dreams. What's more obvious is how the place shifts to the beach on a half-moon night, the uniforms staying, Yukari's body playing out the actions of one of the worst nights of her life. She clings to the shirt of Hypnos' uniform, sniffling, resting her head against his chest.
The subconscious; the one that twists the dreams he creates into something truly horrific. He would sometimes let them be, sometimes give them a little nudge, and sometimes, as much as he hates to do so, tell them to wake up.
Tonight, though, as he does his routine dreamwalking - something catches his attention. He just observes, for now - after all, he knows she's weathered through a lot, and perhaps this may just be a passing dream.
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Mitsuru's father's voice comes from somewhere, a deep boom as she tries to cover her ears with her hands. 'Takeba wouldn't abandon his little girl...'
In the waking world, Yukari whimpers, sleeping on.
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Should he need her help, he'll be there, but for now, he still keeps on watching, all the while silently urging her to move on.
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"Dad! Dad! N-no..."
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He steps out into view, as impassive as he can stand. Just another mortal, he tells himself. Just another mortal. Not one that makes his cheeks colour at the mere sight of her.
"Calm down." He says. "This is merely a dream."
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That voice. Calm, unphased, simply stating what is. She knows that voice, trusts it implicitly. Her head rises from her father's chest, the labs shimmering around them - dreams never were very solid - the side of her face lightly stained with blood as she looks up.
"Min..." she begins, cutting herself off as she sees the wings. No, not Minato, he can't be here. It's... "Hypnos?"
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He nods his head in greeting, and he crouches down across her. "You are capable of stopping this any moment you wish," he says, carefully avoiding eye contact.
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"A dream...?"
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He nods again, a bit urgently this time. "Yes. I cannot be here if this was not a dream, correct?"
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She stands up, and the world moves with her; it's the hallway outside her classroom at Gekkoukan now, empty and dark. Nearly midnight by the clocks on the walls.
"I..." she murmurs; it feels so strange. Was this a lucid dream? "Why are you here?"
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Wait.
He blinks a little; his clothing's flickering between his normal white suit with a black one. Like a uniform. He stares at you, feeling more than out of place, before shrugging.
"Your dreams are particularly worrying."
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After a moment, she glances over her shoulder at him, seemingly unconcerned by his change in clothing. She saw that uniform so often in her dreams, it was hardly anything new.
"Are they?"
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What he's trying to say is, he's worried for you. But his mentality for humans won't let him say it.
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She's quiet again, standing by the window of her classroom now in an unnoticable shift, hands clasped behind her back, staring out at the town beyond. She chews her lip once, twice, before...
"I can't blame my dad. Everything he did was the right thing, but...he left me." she says; her voice grows smaller fast before she buries her head in her hands, letting out a loud sob. "And he's going to leave me as well. Even if I remember everything here and go back and try to change, he'll...leave me. Th-three months is all I'll get."
She whirls on her foot, facing Hypnos, her yelling echoing throughout the darkened, empty classroom.
"Why! Why does everyone leave me?!"
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"Do not think of it as that way," he says quietly, placing a hand against the pane. When you have Death for your brother, you hear these kinds of things almost every day. "Everyone parts ways. You are just...parting ways sooner, that is all."
And Hypnos turns his head, looks at you. "And are you sure of that? That everyone leaves you? Do you no longer have any loved ones by your side?"
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"I...o-of course not." she murmurs, head hung slightly. "Just...Dad, and him. The only..."
'The only men she's ever loved'. You'd know what she means in that way you just know things in dreams. What's more obvious is how the place shifts to the beach on a half-moon night, the uniforms staying, Yukari's body playing out the actions of one of the worst nights of her life. She clings to the shirt of Hypnos' uniform, sniffling, resting her head against his chest.
"I can't lose him. I can't."
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