Dreamers After Dark (VII)

[wotanon]

[you knew this was coming

please list what you're open or not open to somewhere in your toplevel pls and thank

SFW Post here!]

Comments

[weenwoon]

I. A Walk in the Park (cw: throwing up, eye trauma, Things Growing From Inside, general blood n gore, kels there's some kinda under skin stuff)

[Well, it... is one. Seemingly. A well-manicured path under your feet, lined by trees on either side, although their difference in size and interval between them seem to suggest a natural rather than planned growth. The flowers and shrubs off the path seem to grow a little wildly for a regular park, too.

There are also solitary flowers on the path, lying in little pools of blood. If you bend down to expect them, rather than living flowers they seem to be made of incredibly fine steel threads and glass and crystal. On the first ones you come across the blood is long since dried and the flowers themselves are brittle, snapping under your fingers with a bit of force. As you go on, the blood is fresher, flowers now clusters instead of solitary ones, thicker roots, almost vines. These feel more alive in a strange way... and should you happen to touch one that is a little too fresh, you better be careful: the stem moves, trying to latch onto you with the seeming intent to set roots in your flesh. It's still weak and you can tear it off easily, but it's still a clear sign these things are not particularly good for you.

As you move on on the curving path, there's the sound of someone throwing up. Follow the turn, and there's Levity - on all fours, coughing up blood and another cluster of Fun Flowers. The sleeves and front of his clothes are covered in blood, too, and there's a suggestion of the flowery metal filigree tangling through his hair. He doesn't notice you yet, sobbing and gulping air helplessly before he finally gets to his feet, barely managing it, and tries to set off again, shuddering.]

II. A Meal Shared is Joy Shared (cw: gore, being eaten by an animal, throat wound, blood n assorted).

[A room in a nondescript building, a mix of the hotel and the game tower lobby. Most of the surroundings look normal - sunlight through the windows, coffee tables and sofas lined up as usual, but there's a bit of a mess in the middle of the room. Namely, there's Levity, and he's very much so dead.

His throat is slit, a very definite clue, and rather deeply at that - as though someone was unsure if they really wanted to fully decapitate or not, and then decided against it halfway. His head is thrown back, blood caked around his mouth and on the wound, eyes glazed in that particular way of a corpse. There's blood on the immediate surroundings, too, but that is not surprising, nor is the amount greater than one would expect from a single person bleeding out.

Standing over him, its back to you, is... Levity's assistant, the man-height robotic bird. It seems to move its head periodically, and if you step around just a bit to have a better view - why, it's feeding on its erstwhile master, although why a robot would need to eat is anyone's guess. There seems to be an element of exploration, too, as it worries at the flesh and pokes at organs and tugs at bones curiously. It seems to have started with the soft parts - Levity's abdomen is sliced open and gnawed on enough that at this point it's impossible to tell how exactly it was done. As you watch, the bird manages to sever another little morsel and gulp it down, the metallic not-feathers on its head rising in appreciation. It's certainly acting a lot more like a real bird than normal.]

III. Stepping on Levity Simulator 600 (it's the horny one! have fun)

[This looks to be a cross between the library and a laboratory room, walls lined with bookshelves and cabinets containing Curious Yet Undefined Things. A big table in the middle with lamps hovering above it - for experimentation, examination, reading or taking notes? Who knows. There are maps and diagrams on the walls, their designs seemingly shifting every time you look at them - or maybe you can imagine them to be anything you want.

"Master!"

As you turn, Levity comes up to you - lab coat, glasses, his hair braided, and, unexpectedly, thigh high boots - in case you forgot what kind of dream this is. He pulls off his lab gloves, smiling at you happily.

"I'm signing off for today. Was there anything else you wanted?"

You might, in fact, recall some other things you wanted. Or maybe some demands or promises you'd made earlier in the day, and you would like to check whether he kept to them. The possibilities are endless, and all of them are probably horny.]

II

[innerdaemons]

[ well well well! what have we here.

Absinthe's touring the dreams tonight when he comes across this one. and by default -- he wouldn't really take a physical form, in these dreams. often he'd just go to the next one if the one he found didn't excite or interest him enough, or if it did he'd fiddle a with a few things but never really be there as himself.

but he's curious, now, enough to appear and step before the corpse and give it a poke. as if to check if it's truly deal -- it is a dream, after all! who knows what could be possible. ]

Re: II

[weenwoon]

[It's very much so real! Although it seems like a little time has passed since the death, and the flesh is cooler to the touch than an immediately recent kill. The robot bird, meanwhile, stops its feasting to give Absinthe what seems to be a curious look - not that you can really tell with a robot, of course, but it doesn't seem hostile. As of yet?]

Re: II

[innerdaemons]

[ he smiles at the bird and then offers a wave. he's not making a move to touch him again, at least not yet. ]

Do you mind terribly if I interrupt?

Re: II

[weenwoon]

[It tilts is head cautiously, stepping from one foot to another - neither a no nor a yes. What kind of interruption, seems to be the unspoken question.]

Re: II

[innerdaemons]

Well! I wonder if it would be rude to have a taste, when he is in this state. It is hardly hurting him, after all.

I

[failedsafe]

[Lily is curious about the flowers, in spite of their danger. Or perhaps because of it. She looks at them, many of them, even before catching on that this is a trail before she hears it: someone's not well. She doesn't take her time, rushing for them and then all the faster when she recognises that form.]

Vivi! Vivi, stop!

cw eye trauma baybey

[weenwoon]

[Levity startles at the familiar voice and slowly turns around - as though drugged; the motion almost makes him fall over.]

L-Lily?..

[His face is covered with blood, which is not surprising, but what draws attention to itself most is a cluster of flowers growing out of an eyesocket, the eye itself long gone. The fine metal vines crawl across his skin, seemingly intent on taking the other eye, but seems like he's been breaking them off - bent, crushed wires.]

#aesthetic variety

[failedsafe]

[Well.

This is terrible. But she catches him easily. She might have even without this being a dream--she's very strong--but she rewrites the rules here.]

Vivi, hang on okaay?

[She brushes his face softly and, with a thought, all that plagues him disappears and returns to normal. They're still in the same setting, but he is whole and well again.]

[weenwoon]

[Levity gasps with the shock of the sudden relief, clutches at his chest, surprise etched on his features... and then it seems to dawn on him that it really is gone. He reaches up to touch his face in wonderment, then breathes out shakily, going almost limp in Lily's arms.]

Th-Thank you...

[He was very scared and in pain!! So he can't help the tears welling up in his eyes, nor can he help hiding his face in Lily's shoulder as he curls in on himself, starting to cry.]

[failedsafe]

[She doesn't quiet him, letting him cry it out, and holds him easily, kissing his hair and stroking it.]

It's going to be okay, Vivi. I have you. I won't let anything happen to you here, I promoise.

II

[untiltheend]

[Black has, as far as he recalls, never put much thought into what other people might dream about (such a thing would be a dreadfully dull one to consider, surely)... but this one. My, my, what a fun scene.]

[He approaches the bird, slowly and in a little half-circle.]

Is it to your liking?

Re: II

[weenwoon]

[The bird regards him curiously. A visitor! It doesn't appear hostile, though, but there's a feeling in the atmosphere that that may change, should Black start acting shady.

It looks down at the corpse when he asks the question, tilting its head as though in thought. It seems... that even though the bird can't communicate through words, there are still thoughts and reactions taking place - concepts and feelings rather than clear-cut sentences of someone answering in full.

The response that arrives in Black's mind is...

Fun. Want to do.

There's no malice in the desire - in fact, there's an almost innocent enjoyment of simply doing what one feels is right; the kind of feeling that is normally associated with things like wanting to sing and dance.]

Re: II

[untiltheend]

[Black, acting shady? He would never.]

[Despite the "everything in a dream seems perfectly logical" thing, his smile turns flat when he realises what the input in his mind is-- it doesn't sit well with him to have another creature in his head. Black how did you expect a robot bird to communicate]

Mm, it is my impression that surprisingly many here share your opinion.

[And having it laid out like this, he can't say he doesn't understand. It looks quite enticing.]

Re: II

[weenwoon]

[For what it's worth, the bird can't read his thoughts or anything of the kind, only project its own. Chill out, Black, it's not in your head, at worst it's standing outside the metaphorical window yelling things up at your balcony.

The bird tilts its head this way and that: it's apparently taking it a bit to understand what Black means. Look, it's a bird, ok. Deciding that Black seems to mean something good, though, it turns around, fiddles within the corpse for a bit, then jabs its beak in sharply. Then it turns back and walks over to Black again, offering him... a spleen! It's even whole! That's not easy to get out, you know, you have to nudge other things aside first.

The mental input this time is, once again, almost childlike joy. The bird is pretty happy! It's having fun and Black is possibly friend.]

[420blazeit]

[ she heads down the path not phased by the blood. of course it's a bit worrying but it's nothing she hasn't seen before. the flowers, on the other hand, send an unpleasant shudder straight up her spine to make the hairs on the back of her neck stand on end. she can't stand this sort of shit. her pace slows as she avoids them as best she can, especially once she finds out the sort of shit they're interested in; burying themselves in her. ]

[ no. absolutely not. ]

[ as soon as she spots levity she frowns and dashes for him, grabbing as his hand and setting a tentative hand on his back. ] Levity! [ her hand travels up to the flowers that have rooted into his hair. they need to go, asap. ] Don't move, alright, let's just... kneel down right here. I'll help or, like, try to help.

[weenwoon]

D-D.va...

[He manages to mumble out the name, his mouth still filled with blood - but once he realizes she's trying to pull the flowers out of him, he panics, trying to push himself away weakly. It would be more successful if he had any strength left in his body.]

No, they're--don't...

[He seems more concerned for her than himself, though, and maybe not without reason, because the flowers, too, react to D.va's touch: though they don't need more to feed on than their host, more food is always good. Slowly, they try to reach out for D.va's skin.]

ty for providing horrorgore (I)

[widenessofthesea]

[ she likes flowers quite a bit, actually. all things bright and beautiful, all creatures great and small, after all, but—

hm. she doesn't like this at all, and what's worse, the smell is getting to her, a little bit. The beginnings of gnawing hunger. this is dangerous, but—well, she's better than that, isn't she? she's better than that. she can manage, if it might mean the difference between life and death.

...yikes, though. ]

...ah.

[weenwoon]

[Yikes indeed! Levity doesn't seem to notice Hope at first, but then it looks like the sound of her voice filters into his consciousness. He startles weakly and turns around slowly.]

Hm?..

[That sure is a cluster of the Fun Flowers growing out of his eyesocket, the tendrils spreading across his face towards the other eye in particular, but webbing over his forehead and down his cheek, too. They're not terribly picky! Levity seems to have been breaking them off whenever they go too far. He stares at Hope dully, as though drugged.]

[widenessofthesea]

[ she sort of... grits her teeth, for a moment, not responding, and then drops to a knee, next to him. sort of next to him, anyway—with an extra half foot of distance. ]

What is this devilry?

[weenwoon]

[The distance is a good call! Else the flowers might have tried to grab onto her, as well. As it is, Levity just brings up a trembling hand to his chest.]

D-Don't know... but, here...

[Growing from inside. Unsurprisingly, the front of his clothes is bloodied, too.]

III. YOU ASKED FOR THIS!!!

[failedsafe]

[Ah...this is interesting for a number of reasons. The setting applies to the intellectual of her and though she cannot be as affected by it, she can glean what is meant to be happening, here.

And also change things.

Vivi bounds up to her and he's terribly cute like this, she always adores his energy, but his outfit is beyond precious and she makes a note to see his hair braided more often. You know, as a treat. Lily manipulates the setting subtly but it doesn't matter, it will always be as though this is how it always was:

There's a lascivious subtext and undercurrent to the work they do in the lab, but they still do work, take notes, projects, experiment. Sometimes, it's not even subtext, it's just text. But today is a little different and despite his energy, he's also secretly nervous because he couldn't help himself and had sex with one of his Mistress's project samples without permission. A big no-no, if there ever was one. He could have compromised the data!]

As a matter of fact, Vivi. There is. We'll be heading to my office. Follow me.

[Her voice is pleasant enough, not hinting at anything untoward. They frequently talk about work after the day's done over snacks so there's no reason to suspect anything is amiss, right? Right.

Lily is dressed severely, but with some, perhaps, ah, flourishes. Her pumps are slick and shiny and click almost dangerously against the floor with every step. She wears stockings for modesty, though the effect is ruined with her too-short skirt and the fact that the garter straps are visible. Her labcoat is longer, practically a duster, and she's wearing it over a sharply pressed blazer. Her hair is pinned up, though it is rather large, because her hair is terribly thick, but it is elegantly done. She, too, is wearing glasses.

The walk to her office is a little long (the better for him to stew), but they make it there and she starts to make them some tea and gather some snacks, a little post-work refresher for a job well done.]

Take a seat.

SURE DID!

[weenwoon]

[Levity certainly can't help feeling nervous - really, it was a bad idea from the start, he knows he's not very good at keeping secrets, particularly from Mistress, but--he's just too curious for his own good sometimes. Should he have brought it up right away? He feels very guilty in addition to the fear of punishment. Maybe he should have confessed his slip-up... Oh, he really should have. At least that way it would have been possible to still salvage the data, right?

His thoughts run in circles as he follows Lily to her office, anxiety filling him to the point that his head almost starts to spin by the time they get there... but at least the fact that Lily starts with the preparation for their usual afterwork teatime helps him relax somewhat. Maybe she doesn't know... that doesn't make him feel any less guilty, quite the opposite, but at least his fear is assuaged.

Trying to keep the relief out of his expression, he sits down, casting about for a topic to bring up that wouldn't really do with work (to avoid having A Conversation), nor would be too suspiciously unrelated or small talk-like. Damn, what is there... ah.]

Are you free this weekend, Mistress?

[failedsafe]

[He hides it well, but she can feel it in the dream, and oh, that's just delicious. The power she has here--one way or another--is intoxicating.

And she's only just begun.

The tea is done and she places a cup in front of him before coming back to get hers and the plate of delicious cookies that she sets between them before taking a seat in her chair.]

I am, but I might come in to do more work, actually. We'll see. [she smiles sheepishly]

I know, I know, I probably shouldn't, but I can't keep away, sometimes.

[weenwoon]

[Well, nothing else so far seems to suggest Lily knows, so Levity relaxes some more, his smile more genuine now, reaches out to take a cookie.]

Oh... You really shouldn't work so hard, Mistress. It's very important to rest, and... I do worry for you at times. But... the reason I asked - there is going to be a very interesting piano recital at the concert hall this weekend. I thought to ask whether you would like to go with me.