View source for 329/How To Talk To Your Subconscious

{{Log Header
|Date of Scene=2015/08/22
|Location=Mitakihara/Pikarigaoka - Penguin Public Library
|Synopsis=...and tell it to shut up and stop bothering you. Seishi, Shiori, and Mamoru come together by chance in the library, and Mamoru takes the opportunity to ask the two dream guardians for some help sleeping at night.
|Cast of Characters=38, 43, 71
|pretty=yes
}}
{{Poses
|Poses=:'''{{#var:71|Seishi Tamashige (71)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>"What is all of this?" Leaning to peer over Seishi's shoulder, Akashimaru studies the open pages of the notebook and textbooks spread out on the table in front of her. "Some kind of code, or incantation?"<br /><br />The samurai's long ponytail has slid over his shoulder to dangle beside Seishi's face; impatiently she lifts a hand to bat it away. "It's math. Would you quit looming? I'm trying to study."<br /><br />"You'd do better to practice your swordplay," Akashimaru comments, but he straightens up and sidesteps away from the back of her chair with a shrug. "Is this nonsense going to serve us against our enemy?"<br /><br />Determinedly not looking up at him, Seishi keeps working her way steadily through the equation. "No," she says, "but I still have to graduate." Akashimaru doesn't reply to that, and the seconds tick by until it occurs to her that, if he's here, she is no longer in the library - strictly speaking. <br /><br />As the realization strikes her, she drops her pencil and sits bolt upright in her chair. "Oh, for - I'm asleep? I can't be sleeping now!"<br /><br />"Oh?" Akashimaru comments dryly from off to the side, thoroughly out of place in the dream-library. "It seems to me that you can sleep anywhere."<br /><br />Seishi shoots him a sharp, accusatory look. "I'm not kidding. I have to get this done, I can't let my grades fall behind." Letting out a sigh, she looks back down at the notebook. "If I study in my dreams, do you suppose it'll help at all?"<br /><br />"Doubtful," Akashimaru replies, tucking his hands into his sleeves. "But there is another solution."<br /><br />"Really?" Seishi asks hopefully. "What is it."<br /><br />"You could wake up." On the final word, Akashimaru very calmly kicks the chair out from under her.<br /><br />----<br /><br />A startled shriek escapes Seishi as she wakes up with a jolt, going from passed out facedown on her notebook to sitting up very straight, wide-eyed and nerve-jangled and one hundred percent awake. She is still in the library, books and notebooks lined up on the table in front of her, still sitting in the chair that has not actually been knocked out from under her.<br /><br />Thanks to her yelp just now, everyone in line of sight is looking at her.<br /><br />With a groan, she puts her elbows on the table and buries her face in her hands. "My past life is a *jerk.*"<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:43|Shiori Sato (43)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>As it so happens, one of those people who is now looking at her?  Is Shiori.  He blinks at Seishi from a bookshelf not too far to her right, pausing in what he's doing.  He puts the book he'd been holding back on the shelf and heads over to where she's sitting.  Claiming a chair to one side of her, he asks quietly, "Are you all right?" No sense in getting too loud in the library, after all.<br /><br />He also looks a bit worried.  He's not sure what all the nightmare-killing is going to do to him in the long run.  Part of him worried that this might be his fate too-- never being able to sleep, or always being awakened by bad dreams of their own.  Or maybe something else.  Seishi had mentioned speaking to his past self... and he hadn't yet.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:38|Tuxedo Kamen (38)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>And like a nosy neighbor looking over the backyard fence, Mamoru's suddenly leaning on the other end of their table, his own short stack of unbuttered books next to his hand. "I have," he says in a low-voiced deadpan, "a key to the roof."<br /><br />It's one of those expressions, those tones, that makes it impossible to tell if he's actually being deadly serious or telling the truth in the most trollish manner possible-- but he's clearly telling the truth, because the next thing he does is dangle a counterfeit key in front of them.<br /><br />"If you want to have nightmares out loud, that is. You're freaking the mundanes." Okay, that last line, given how the preppy yuppie rich kid looks, is pure troll.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:71|Seishi Tamashige (71)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Seishi looks up as Shiori takes the seat next to her, a knee-jerk apology in her expression turning to vague relief and back to rueful apology in fairly short order. "I'm fine," she tells him, cracking a slightly crooked smile. "Nothing to worry about."<br /><br />Then Mamoru speaks up, and Seishi resumes wishing that the floor might spontaneously open up and swallow her. Ugh. "It wasn't a nightmare," she says. "My subconscious just has a really bad sense of humor, that's all."<br /><br />A breath; she reaches up to push stray wisps of hair back from her face. "Sorry for disturbing you."<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:43|Shiori Sato (43)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>And then suddenly Mamoru is there.  Shiori smirks at the statement.  And then he picks up a piece of paper that Seishi had wadded up, and pitches it gently at Mamoru.  He's aimed it to bounce off the top of Mamoru's head and then bounce back onto the table.  Of course, he knows there's always the possibility Mamoru could slap it away, or catch it.<br /><br />"Hi there," he greets, that smirk still there.  Looking back at Seishi, "That said, he does have a point.  Did he say something major?  If it was important..."  He can't know Akashimaru was just basically trolling Seishi.  Poor girl woke up form a troll to another, it seems!<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:38|Tuxedo Kamen (38)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Mamoru's bonked in the head with good grace, and the wadded-up paper rolls slowly back across the table like a magnet of frustration. He straightens up, picking up his books and rattling the key again. "It's also nice outside, you two. And if either of you disturbed me, it was fortuitous: I've been looking for both of you, I have some things to ask and some things to tell."<br /><br />And then he leans forward very slightly, kind of like looming but not entirely because there's too much of a cat-that-ate-the-canary grin about it, "Unless you want to get ''away'' from bad senses of humor, Tamashige-san."<br /><br />He glances over his shoulder toward the direction of the stairwell, then looks back at them and looks indecisive. His voice is still low. "If this is a bad time I'll tag you guys separately, but I really don't want to talk in here."<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:71|Seishi Tamashige (71)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Seishi spends a moment looking between Shiori and Mamoru, wheels clearly turning in her mind as she processes what she knows of each of them separately against the way they're speaking in front of each other right now. The conclusions she reaches have her shrugging, still wearing that wry smile. "Nothing unless you count that he thinks I should be practicing kendo instead of pre-algebra," she tells Shiori. "Considering I don't think he understands the concept of grades, his opinion doesn't count for a lot."<br /><br />Coming to a decision, she closes her notebook and begins stacking up her books. "Now's fine," she answers Mamoru. "I clearly wasn't making very much progress, anyway. Maybe a break and some fresh air will help."<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:43|Shiori Sato (43)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>"He does have a point," Shiori notes, about it being nice outside.  "It's gonna get too cold for sitting outside before we know it."  But he doesn't push aside from that.  As for bad sense of humor?  "No, I think that's the curse of most of the people I know, so that's not really going to work."  He chuckles quietly.<br /><br />But since Seishi seems to have made her decision, Shiori nods, and then he stands up.  "It's possible he doesn't," Shiori agrees.  "It's also possible he doesn't really care.  Things were different in his day."  He's careful about what exactly he says-- it's possible they could be talking about her grandfather or something!  But he'll follow Seishi and Mamoru up to the roof, if that's where they're going.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:38|Tuxedo Kamen (38)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>"Excellent," Mamoru says, pleased as punch. He scoops his two books off the table, then wends his way between the aisles until they get to the utility hall, with all the study rooms and stairwell doors and bathrooms and supply closets. He's not being sneaky at all. Just confident and studious and matter-of-fact. (The glasses help.)<br /><br />No one actually bothers them, even when he takes that key back out and unlocks the door that says, variously, 'ROOF' and 'AUTHORIZED PERSONNEL ONLY'. He holds it open for them; the door at the top of the metal utility stairs is unlocked already. It's a quick trip up, only about a floor and a half of height (given the high ceilings).<br /><br />The rooftop itself is an institutional one, primarily flat and tar-and-grit covered; there's not a cloud in the sky, and the temperature's warm but it's not blindingly hot like it has been. A breeze rustles the trees of the park surrounding the building, and a couple of those trees provide some shade to take shelter from the sun, over by this side of the roof.<br /><br />"So, Sato-kun," Mamoru says cheerfully, sitting on an HVAC unit that has a sign on it that says not to sit on it. "There was this ninja girl..."<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:71|Seishi Tamashige (71)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>"Probably," Seishi agrees with Shiori, as she tucks her books into her bag and hefts the carry-strap onto her shoulder. "His priorities are, well..." Trailing off with a shrug, she pushes the chair she was using in at the table before she follows Mamoru's lead through the library. She seems a ltitle bemused by this situation, maybe, but she doesn't ask.<br /><br />On the roof, she sets her bag down on its side and then sits on it, an alternative to getting roof grit all over her jeans. Mamoru's comment about a 'ninja girl' very clearly gets her full attention; eyebrows lifting, she glances curiously toward Shiori, holding off saying anything until she sees how he responds to that obviously leading comment.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:43|Shiori Sato (43)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Glasses might help in Shiori's case too.  He's not that much younger than Mamoru, after all, and he keeps himself looking pretty neat.  So he should be able to pull off the 'I totally belong here' routine too.  Once they're out on the roof, Shiori finds a place in the shade where he can comfortably hear Mamoru speak as the other sits down on the AC unit.<br /><br />And then, without any leadup... the question.  Shiori goes a little red in the face.  At the same time Seishi looks over to him, he looks to her as well, with a nod.  "He's safe.  I found him passed out in the park.  I didn't know if he was okay or not, so I checked for a pulse and... actually I don't know what happened.  Guess it went both ways, whatever it was."  Hooking a thumb at Mamoru, he advises Seishi, "Protip: don't touch him without gloves on."<br /><br />Then he looks back at Mamoru.  Sighs a little, as if trying to figure out how to begin.  "But yeah... about her."  He raises a hand to rubs at the back of his head sheepishly.  "That's, um-- s-she's... me.  Or she used to be.  A long time ago."<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:38|Tuxedo Kamen (38)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Bracing his hands against the edges of the unit he's sitting on, Mamoru leans forward and looks disapproving. "Do you realize how complicated you've made my quest? I mean this basically means the Moon Princess could be a guy."<br /><br />He huffs, then starts laughing. "Luckily, I don't think you're her either way, the ninja girl doesn't look anything like her..." There's pretty much no actual conversational transition aside from the laughing; Mamoru gestures at Shiori while looking at Seishi. "What he's also being kind enough not to mention is that he saw me lose my transformation. You both know I do dangerous things in formalwear. And since I take it you knew each other in your past lives, you probably also both do dangerous things in fancy clothing--?" He looks only slightly more uncertainly at Shiori here; he's seen Seishi's henshin.<br /><br />Then a sort of regally dismissive handwave, as if secret identities are the least important thing in the history of ever. "At any rate, that also makes things less complicated, since I take it you both deal in dreams. I would like to ask your advice."<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:71|Seishi Tamashige (71)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>A look of understanding sweeps across Seishi's face, clearing away any lingering confusion. "Got it," she says, nodding. "And you're right; Sato-kun and I are the same."<br /><br />Looking over to Shiori again, she explains: "You remember what I told you about the things that we can do? Riding through dreams? I met Chiba-san that way, sort of. So it seems as though we're all more or less on the same page." She's tucked her legs up loosely Indian-style, resting her hands on her thighs, and now she looks expectantly up towards Mamoru again. "I can't promise I'll have much useful advice," she says. "There's a lot that I'm still figuring out as we go along. But you can definitely ask."<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:43|Shiori Sato (43)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>At the mention of Mamoru's 'princess' possibly being male, Shiori snorts a laugh, covering his mouth to try to muffle it.  He doesn't even wait for the mention that Mamoru's kidding; just the thought makes him laugh.  But once he's got it under control he notes, "I hope not, for your sake.  If she ''is'' a he this time around, I hope you're into that."<br /><br />Seishi explains how she knows Mamoru, and Shiori nods.  "Oh right... that makes sense.  I haven't started doing that yet.  Haven't even spoken to Akahana yet."  Though he looks to Mamoru, with a nod.  "At least we all know we're not going to reveal anything one of us doesn't need to know."<br /><br />As for dealing with dreams, Shiori nods.  "Well, I've been known to have some success in interpreting them," he admits.  "But not through mystical means.  Normal dreams are just your subconscious taking to you in metaphor.  Once you know the symbols that your subconscious uses, you'll have an easier time figuring it out."<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:38|Tuxedo Kamen (38)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>"I don't think it really matters?" Mamoru answers Shiori's half-joke with a faintly uncomfortable shrug, unable to keep his face from coloring slightly. "I get yelled at for who I like enough as it is. I think more of it has to do with who reciprocates..."<br /><br />Then he glances away and clears his throat, trying to clear the air along with it. "Anyway that's not what I need to ask about. So!!"<br /><br />Forcibly yanking the topic of conversation back to its original-ish track! Mamoru lightly bangs a fist on the top of the HVAC unit next to him, emphasizing the punctuation. "I honestly don't think anything I dream is symbolic, or even normal. If I do have normal dreams, I don't remember them at all. The only ones I remember are the ones with her in them, and she's been in them for as far back as I ''do'' remember. The problem is, last year she started asking me to find something for her and if I did I'd get my memories back. I started out thinking that she meant my memories from ''this'' life-- which most people would say aren't important anyway, because not many people remember much from before they were six anyway, but I'd at least like some confirmation that can't be faked that I really am who the doctors told me I am--"<br /><br />He takes a deep breath, possibly realizing he's rambling a little, then soldiers on with determination, "But now I think she means my past life. And given the type of people who've been coming after me and the sort of things I seem to know without knowing how, that's probably more important than being sure of who I am ''now''. A few months ago, the dreams started getting awful. Now they're more often nightmares than not, and they almost always end up with dying, or being on the verge before I wake up. I know I need sleep so I can't ''stop'' sleeping to avoid this, but I'm not getting a lot of sleep as it is-- and I've tried everything I've been able to find about lucid dreaming to try and take these dreams off the rails, but I can never change anything. I've tried sleeping pills, but they don't stop the dreams either, they just make it harder to wake up, and I'm more tired than I was to begin with. Is there ''anything'' I can do, short of finding what she wants me to find, to get the dreams to lay off?"<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:71|Seishi Tamashige (71)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Seishi listens - actually leans forward a little in focused concentration, as it becomes clear that what Mamoru is asking them about is something very serious indeed.<br /><br />She's silent for a while in the wake of his question, looking down at the surface of the roof in front of her as she thinks hard. A faint, troubled frown comes to her face before she finally speaks. "...That's a difficult thing to answer," she says slowly, with some reluctance. "O-Yasu... my companion, sort of... can eat nightmares. Not like my enemy - he's a baku, eating bad dreams and letting people rest is kind of what they do. But if it isn't a normal dream, there could be consequences, if he's able to eat it at all. Even if it is just your mind screaming at you, I don't think it'd be good to have O-Yasu eat your dreams too often. It's too much like what our enemy does."<br /><br />She stops there, briefly, ordering her thoughts before she goes on. "The other thing that we could try would be what I did before... ride into your dream, and try to do something about it from inside. But that's dangerous, too. It's hard to predict how your mind might react; we'd stand just as much of a chance of making things worse, instead of better."<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:43|Shiori Sato (43)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Shiori quiets to listen to Mamoru's issue.  And he thinks.  He does add quietly, "I've been trying to lucid dream, too.  But for a different reason."  Which he isn't going to go into right now.  But he does have something constructive to add, once Mamoru's done.  "It might be, like in my case... I've had a few dreams where I'm about to die just before I wake up.  "I only just realized they were her memories.  The ninja girl, I mean.  That might be what's going on here-- memories from a past life."<br /><br />He pauses again, as Seishi starts to speak.  And he nods in agreement.  "If it's a memory instead of just a nightmare, it could be a warning you were supposed to get.  And if you don't get that warning, something horrible could happen to you."<br /><br />Again he pauses to think, rubbing his chin slightly.  "Do you know what it is she wants you to find?" he inquires.  "If you can lucid dream, changing things might not be the answer.  Maybe just a verbal acknowledgement that you heard and you're doing your best," he suggests.  "Maybe she's just been calling out so loudly and for so long that she just doesn't know whether she's being heard or not.  If you tell her you heard and understand, maybe they'll ease off some."<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:38|Tuxedo Kamen (38)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>The full attention of this boy is on each of them in turn-- his complete focus, that weighted thing, filling the mental space of their location with his presence, rooted and connected to the world around him. Taking in information, he's not so adrift. Paying mind to things and people outside his introspective self, he's not so lost. But... it ''is'' at the expense of what's generally considered a comfortable level of attention.<br /><br />There's too much 'there' there, as it were. And first it's pointed at Seishi, and then it's pointed at Shiori, and then Mamoru frowns, glancing at the roof surface between them, his hands clasped in his lap and his back and shoulders slouched relatively carelessly. "I don't think O-Yasu eating them would be a good idea, no. Because I think they're real," he agrees with both of them, really, glancing up. "And I don't know whether or not they're warnings, but since they're more or less consistent each time, I would agree they're memories. I pull enough reckless stunts that a warning doesn't seem particularly helpful..."<br /><br />Straightening up a little, Mamoru crosses his arms for a second, then realizes it's defensive and puts his arms behind him, propping himself up as he leans back and regards them absently, his focus inward but searching; the play of sunlight and the shadows of leaves dancing in the breeze speckles and animates all of them.<br /><br />"Would it cost you, or hurt you, to try?" he asks Seishi after a second, head tilted a little. "I know I'm dreaming, finally, but I still can't change anything. If I had help, someone who wasn't there, someone who wasn't locked in-- maybe it could change."<br /><br />Then he shifts his focus back to Shiori and nods. "I know what it is. But I don't know what it looks like or where it could possibly be-- all I know is that it's a crystal, a specific one, but it could be disguised as anything or hidden anywhere. I... I've tried to tell her I'm searching, I've tried to tell her anything, ask her anything, but either I have no voice or she can't hear me."<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:71|Seishi Tamashige (71)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>It's not a comfortable thing, the full weight of Mamoru's attention, but when it falls onto Seishi she straightens to bear up under it, squaring her shoulders and meeting his regard full-on until it moves away. As before, she listens to what he has to say, and what Shiori says, and turns it over in her head before she tries to give an answer.<br /><br />"It's always risky to go into someone else's dreams," she says. "That's what O-Yasu told me, and I'm... starting to find out just what he meant. But it's not like it's something that I can avoid doing. Even if you weren't asking for help, there are still things that I need to look for." Sitting back a little, she clasps her hands together loosely in her lap. "I'm more worried about the consequences to you if something were to go wrong. The last time that I tried to get involved in someone's dream... well, it'd didn't go all that well."<br /><br />She stops there, glancing toward Shiori for a moment, trying to read how he feels about all of this in his expression. She can speak for herself, but she can't very well volunteer him for anything. Soon, though, she looks back toward Mamoru. "If you're willing to risk it," she says, "then I'd like to try to help."<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:43|Shiori Sato (43)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>It's never fun to talk about something this personal.  So Shiori makes certain not to push Mamoru when the other boy seems to hesitate.  He just remains silent, waiting for whenever he feels comfortable continuing.  That does sound like a serious problem.  And Shiori's never had to deal with something like this before.  Normal dreams he'd probably be able to interpret and give Mamoru some peace.  This is something else entirely though.<br /><br />Yeah, he's kind of uncomfortable with having Mamoru's attention on him too.  His past life, now much stronger than before, was a ninja, and they're meant to not be seen.  So where Seishi squares her shoulders, Shiori sort of... slumps a little.  The desire to just not be there surfaces, but Shiori tamps it down.<br /><br />"We could also talk to O-Yasu," Shiori suggests, looking at Seishi.  "Not just 'hey can you eat this nightmare', but 'what can we do about this'?  So instead of just jumping in, we can get some advice about it.  Maybe then we could go in knowing a little bit about what we're doing instead of just jumping in?"  Seems like he's volunteering to help too, if possible.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:38|Tuxedo Kamen (38)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Sitting up again, the upperclassman spreads his hands open, upward, then rests them on his knees like that. An appeal. An unarmed appeal, and in fact, very nearly a plea. "The consequences to me-- they couldn't be that dire, could they? Not if I know going in, and I know while you're there-- did the person whose dream you tried to change, did they know you were there trying to do it?"<br /><br />For who he's been, what he's been like to Seishi, he may sound uncomfortably close to begging.<br /><br />"This is-- there are so many things I have to handle, there's so much going on in my life. This used to be my only driving concern. It's not, anymore. But even as my life has gotten more complicated, these dreams have gotten more insistent, more demanding. I need to be able to find some kind of balance, even if I can't do anything else yet. It's like-- it's like being split in two, and having no control over half."<br /><br />Quick and approaching ragged, Mamoru's voice is so frustrated, and he's trying so hard to keep a lid on it. Grateful blue eyes turn to Seishi, turn to Shiori. "Yes," he says, relief coloring his tone, "yes, please. Let's. Maybe he'll have some idea-- or some pointers for you, for me, for doing this. Because it's-- honestly, even despite all the people after my energy or after me, I'm running out of energy on my own like this. And something's going to happen and it won't have anything to do with what I've been dreaming, it'll probably be falling asleep at the wheel or stumbling in a firefight."<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:71|Seishi Tamashige (71)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Between Shiori's sensible suggestion, and the deep frustration - almost desperation - in Mamoru's request, the last of Seishi's hesitation falls away. "Okay," she says, with a short and decisive nod. "We'll try it, then. We can see what O-Yasu says first; maybe he'll have some ideas. I'm sorry," she adds, offering Mamoru an apologetic smile. "A lot of this is still new ground for us. If we were more experienced, maybe we'd have a better solution to offer. But we can at least try, as long as it's something that you want."<br /><br />She draws in a slow breath, lets it out again in contemplation. "You knowing what we're trying to do might make a difference. It was an accident, before, and I think that person was already expecting everything to turn against her, so... I'm sure that didn't help. It might not be as bad for you."<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:43|Shiori Sato (43)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Shiori keeps quiet at the question to Seishi.  He looks to the girl with wide eyes, wondering how bad it could have been... bad enough that she was this reluctant?  But then Mamoru makes his plea.  And Shiori winces.  "...He does have a point.  If he can't get any sleep, only bad things can happen.  And I don't think science can do anything for him."  Besides, what could they do?<br /><br />Shiori nods.  "I've been meaning to ask O-Yasu how to do that anyway.  There's a lot I need to learn.  She's right, this is pretty new to us both.  I haven't even seen my past self, not the way Seishi has."  Though he smirks a little.  "Of course, if Akahana is as much of a jerk as Akashimaru, I may end up wishing I hadn't."<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:38|Tuxedo Kamen (38)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>The tension that'd been building in Mamoru, and building in the space around them, it melts away at the agreement -- dissipates like smoke in a room that's just gotten a crossbreeze. Hints of it still cling, but the air's clear, and the sun's pooling through the dancing leaves and the birds are singing in the park, and people's voices float up from the paths below, and the sounds of the city's traffic ride the air in the distance.<br /><br />It's a beautiful day outside. It's refreshing, it's rejuvenating. Mamoru stands up and walks closer to the edge, absently tangling his hand in the foliage-- the leafy green branch hanging over the roof a little, close enough to touch. To the fanciful, it's almost as though he were shaking hands with it. "Don't apologize," he tells Seishi, voice detached and kind, "you don't have to help at all, and anything you can do is more than I can do. Besides -- the worst that happens is I die, and this last stretch..."<br /><br />He lets go the branch, and turns around to look at them again, except he's also looking at the caterpillar on his hand. "I've done that every night for a week," he says wryly. "Do you know how to find me on purpose? Or should we be in the same room, in case something goes wrong?"<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:71|Seishi Tamashige (71)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Seishi grimaces comically when Shiori smirks and makes that comment about Akashimaru. "Let's hope not," she says, very wryly. "That's a really high bar, believe me. One's enough."<br /><br />She watches Mamoru as he turns toward the tree, reaches into the branches. When he talks about worst-case scenarious, her spine stiffens. "Hey," she says, trying to keep her tone light and not entirely succeeding. "Getting you killed is not acceptable, okay?"<br /><br />How to find him - that's a more practical question, and one she takes a moment to contemplate. "I haven't tried to find someone specific before," she admits; "it's just been kind of ending up where I end up. Being in the same place would probably be best." <br /><br />As the implications of this arrangement begin to set in, her expression begins to fall. "Although I have no idea how I'll explain where I'm going to my father." Thinking about it a little further, she grimaces. "I guess I'll have to make something up." More lies. She hates it, but what's the alternative?<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:43|Shiori Sato (43)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Shiori snickers at Seishi's comment about Akashimaru's jerkishness being a high bar.  "I can hope," he says.  Though the levity fades when Mamoru talks about dying.  Here he frowns.  "I think that's like the absolute worst thing that could happen, and the one thing above all else we'll be trying to prevent from happening.  I understand it's rough, man... but if your princess needs you to find something, you're the only one who can.  And if you die, you'll leave her hanging."<br /><br />Here's where Shiori can actually be helpful though, when Seishi says she's not quite sure how to ensure they'll find each other.  "Lucid dreaming techniques could work for that," he suggests.  Looking to Mamoru, "You said you can lucid dream?  I'm learning it myself, and I've had a couple lucid dreams.  Avoided being crushed by a rock in one, in fact."<br /><br />Then looking to Seishi.  "Either O-Yasu or Akashimaru might be able to bring you lucid, if you can't on your own.  And then we can just concentrate really hard on his dream.  It sounds simple, but... it's a dream, it kind of is.  Even if it's not that easy to be that easy.  If that makes sense."<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:38|Tuxedo Kamen (38)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>The boy shakes his head. "In the dream," he clarifies. "I know they say if you die in a dream before you wake up, you die for real, but that's certainly not true for me. It just means it's over. Sometimes it's a little while before I wake up, but I always wake up. I'm not talking about dying in real life." He turns to carefully put the caterpillar back on the tree branch, waiting until it's willing to inch onto the leaf from his hand instead of trying to push it off. "Don't worry."<br /><br />Then he comes back to the HVAC and picks up his books, then leans his hip against its side instead of sitting on it again. "Well. If you don't want to explain where you're going, don't go anywhere. I could sleep on the roof or something. Don't laugh. It's not like I haven't done ''that'' before." He's smiling, though.<br /><br />"Otherwise, you can say you're going to a sleep-over because a friend needs a little support, which is true-- I hope-- but I don't want you painting my nails." Then he shakes his head at Shiori. "I'm not sure it actually counts as lucid if you can't do anything you decide to do. But I think you could find me if you were close, physically. It's not like you don't know what the inside of my head's like."<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:71|Seishi Tamashige (71)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Seeming to relax a little, Seishi tips her head back in contemplation. "If it's anything like the last time," she muses aloud, "we'll probably meet the other you... the one that I met before. He knew that it was a dream, I think. That was the whole reason I said anything to you when we met for real," she adds, looking to Mamoru again. "After all, normally you wouldn't just go up to someone and say 'Hi, I met you in a dream one time, do you remember?'"<br /><br />Grinning ruefully, she lets out a short, self-deprecating laugh. "Well, we can figure out the specifics later, I guess. The first step is to talk to O-Yasu and see what he thinks. Hopefully not 'you're out of your damn mind.' Sometimes I don't think he thinks very much of me." Another little laugh turns into a sigh. "Considering what Akashimaru was like, I guess I can't blame him."<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:43|Shiori Sato (43)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>"Not in a normal dream," Shiori replies, to the mention of dying for real.  "Then again, dreams that kill you aren't at all normal, so there's that."  The mention of a sleepover gets a nod.  "That could work.  Unless your dad's the type that goes nuts at the mention of 'boys' and 'sleep' in the same sentence.  Then things could get... awkward."  Though he can't help but tease, "I dunno, Mamoru-kun... I think you'd look good with a nice indigo or royal purple nail polish."  Though... he ''was'' a girl in his past life.  He might be serious.<br /><br />He also nods to Seishi's mention of speaking to O-Yasu first.  "He'll probably have some insight-- he's a baku, after all.  Even if it's just culinary tips on how to properly cook and serve nightmares, it'll probably come in handy."  He's at least half-kidding anyway.  Though he is serious about O-Yasu having some insight on the matter.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:38|Tuxedo Kamen (38)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>"I hope not," complains Mamoru, "I still don't remember that, and I'd like to remember ''this''..."<br /><br />Abruptly he snaps his fingers and points at Seishi. "If you can't get away from your dad, try just using that rose I gave you? I mean, it's obviously magic. And it should still be fine. And it's also obviously mine. So maybe it'll do as enough of a focus, right?"<br /><br />To Shiori, he sort of pffts. "No nail polish," he says firmly. "But, yeah, okay. So-- tonight? It doesn't matter when, if you've got other stuff to do tonight, but--" he glances uncertainly between the two of them. "But this is an every night problem and I'd like to go back to being useful. Things are heating up."<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:71|Seishi Tamashige (71)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>"It's not that exactly," Seishi answers Shiori, looking a little uncomfortable. "It's just - complicated. He gets uptight about things, and we don't really... talk, very much."<br /><br />With a shake of her head, she abandons that topic in favor of the more immediate subject at hand. Mamoru saying 'tonight' brings a flash of surprise to her face, but only for a moment before it's swept away by understanding. "--right, of course you'd want to try it as soon as possible. I'll have to see if I can get away for tonight, and we'll go from there. If I can, where should we meet up?"<br /><br />A beat, and then something occurs to her, and she reaches up with both hands to untie the slim red ribbon and pull it out of her hair. "If we have to take our chances from distance," she says, getting to her feet to hold the ribbon out to Mamoru, "hang onto this? I mean, it's not magic or anything, it's just a ribbon, but... It couldn't hurt anything."<br /><br />Once the immediate details are sorted out, she picks up her bag and dusts it off. "I'll text both of you guys as soon as I know what I can get away with," she says. "For right now, I'd better get home. Talk to you soon."<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:43|Shiori Sato (43)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>"Awww," Shiori teases as Mamoru says no to the nailpolish.  "Have to figure out what to do with your hair in the meantime."  Now he ''is'' teasing.  though the mention of 'tonight' gets a tilted head.  "I don't know if we can talk to O-Yasu that soon... but we can always give it a shot without, if necessary.  Just need to be careful."<br /><br />Seishi mentions texting and he nods.  "I'll be looking for your text, then.  Take care you two."  A reassuring smile to Mamoru.  "Don't worry.  We'll do everything we can to fix it," he promises.  He heads down the staircase back into the library with the others.  Heading home, he has a lot to think about... not the least of which is whether he can actually do anything to help...<br> <br>
}}