[001] → the house

[candyviolets]

You're aware of a deep, chilling darkness that surrounds you. You're in an unfamiliar basement, and there's a terrible potpourri of dust and formaldehyde that creates the stench of the dank place. There's something like a whisper in your ear, voices speaking in undertones that you can't hear, even though there's really no one there with you. A

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[drinkandforget]

She's not the type to be disturbed here. Sailor Lethe lives at the end of the galaxy, where people come to leave behind everything and forget themselves before they start their next life. Just as she holds few things to be of value - she knows just how impossible it is to take it with you - she has few fears.

So Lethe ignores the whisperings, the dank dark, the chill. Her river is hot, but this is fine, too.

"You've been brought here for a reason you know best," she says. "Something inside you drew you here." And after a brief pause, "What was it?"

[candyviolets]

Startled, Violet snaps out of her musing to look at the stranger. Her eyes travel Lethe up and down, trying to decide what to think of this person. She doesn't look like she's one of the ghosts... there aren't any wounds, anyway.

"I--" she begins, not exactly sure why she's responding, "... I don't know. I'm looking for someone, I think."

Violet nods, slowly at first, and then with certainty. "Yeah, there's someone I'm trying to find. But this place... I mean, it's always weird, but something feels different about it."

[drinkandforget]

"Do they often come here?" It's a reasonable question, on the face of it. But in a dream, much like at her river, it can become so difficult to remember things, to find the logic between the search and the location.

Lethe glances towards the tub, and various of the the other objects. "Is this place meaningful to them?"

[candyviolets]

"He--"

She stops, seemingly confused by something. The face of the person had flashed across her mind: a young man with messy, blonde hair. But, she couldn't remember his name. It was right there, on the tip of her tongue! But her brain felt foggy, as if everything was working much more slowly than usual.

"... I think so," she finished, frowning.

[silversouba]

Kadaj was no stranger to the darkness or the chill it brought. The cold air made his skin tighten, but he too, was used that. Even the distant voices he thought he might have heard were normal to him. The remnant had learned to ignore some of them and embrace others depending on the message. He knew this place did not belong to Mother, nor did it have anything to do with her, so he chose to ignore anything that spoke to his mind this time

[candyviolets]

Another weirdo in her dream? Violet crosses her arms defensively, frowning suspiciously at the stranger. She takes in the sharp eyes, the light hair, the confidence. Who does this guy think he is, anyway?

And then he begins with the "Mother" business... ranting away about some absurd shit. The teenager's eyebrow slowly raises in response, in disbelief. Could her subconscious really have come up with something this bizarre?

"What," she began incredulously, "The fuck. Why the hell are you talking about killing me? And what are you talking about with... the planet, and your mother?"

Violet just shakes her head. "Seriously, this is getting to be like an acid trip."

[silversouba]

“Please,” Kadaj curtly replied, his tone lathered with sarcasm. “Don’t play games with me.” He stared he down coldly. “You won’t win.” In a flash Kadaj drew his double bladed katana and pointed it dangerously at the girl’s throat. The remnant’s eyes locked onto hers in warning.

Somehow, this house was connected to ShinRa. There was no evidence or logical explanation. It was just a feeling. Kadaj knew ShinRa was hiding something important here. That’s just how dreams worked sometimes.

“Now that I have your attention,” the blades nestled precariously close to her subtle skin, “Tell me where you’ve hidden her.” A scowl scorned his face. His grip on the hilt tightened as pupils thinned threateningly. “And don’t lie.”

[candyviolets]

Holy shit. And suddenly, there was a blade at her throat. Violet stared, her mouth open slightly, her mind working slowly. What kind of messed up dream was this supposed to be, anyway?

"I'm not going to tell you anything with you threatening me like that," she said coolly, not moving away from the weapon at her neck. "Listen, I've had scarier guys than you threaten me lately, and I'm not easy to boss around. Guess you're a little late on the update."

Violet followed the sword up to the face of the silver-haired young man who held it.

"Who's 'her,' anyway? Your mom again? Look, I don't know what you're talking about, or where you think you are, but I doubt she's here. Unless you used to live here, or something."

Then, yeah, she was probably lurking around somewhere.

[existwithoutme]

Kuja isn't dressed typically at all for someone in the 21st century, more like something from a rococo fairy tale. He wanders through the basement. It's unfamiliar, but he feels he belongs here, in the darkness and the dust. Kuja is not human, or even truly a living thing. He exists to serve as a vessel for souls, and he can feel them now, all around him, reminded of the time he took the souls of the dead into himself, used their power for his own benefit. He won't do that now, but those spirits call out to him, and perhaps he could call back, if he chose.

The girl doesn't particularly stand out to him in the midst of all this, but he turns toward her when she speaks. "Why are any of us where we are? To find the answer, as yourself whether you are here by your own will or someone else's. If you've come yourself, you already know the reason, as it lies somewhere within you, however hidden it may be. If it is another's will that brought you, then that is why you're here."

[candyviolets]

Another weirdo. Violet heaves a sigh at the sight, crossing her arms defensively. If bizarre people are going to keep showing up in her dreams, even going as far as to threaten her, she's going to be on the alert.

"I have no idea," she admits, somewhat stiffly. "I mean, I could be dreaming about this basement, sure. It's mine. But, why would all you people be showing up? I've never met you."

[existwithoutme]

"Don't you have the imagination to dream of things you've never seen before?"

Kuja admittedly doesn't know a great deal about dreams, however, not having had very many of his own before.

"Or can your mind only produce those things it already knows?" He shrugs. "Regardless, my own dreams, too, have changed, of late." From shadows into something more vivid. "As far as I was aware, it was my dream, but you claim it as your own. I'm willing to give you the benefit of the doubt, as I'd be unlikely to dream of something so prosaic as your basement. Perhaps it is something that affects us both, as different as we may be."