dissonates | [Action]

[Action, backdated to October 6th, locked to Luke + housemates if they want!]

[There is a vast difference between seeing nothing and being unable to see at all. It's the first thing that Asch realizes when he opens his eyes, waking up in the cold of the underground tunnel, slumped against the invisible barrier outside of John's domain, and seeing, for the first time in months, some kind of... light. It's blurry, more like a shadow within a shadow, and as he squints at it, it occurs to him that it's entirely possible that his eyes hadn't been fixed correctly at all. People are occasionally stuck with side effects anyway, though, after their penalties have been removed, so he pushes those concerns aside and reaches out with his mind towards his replica.

....

Nothing. Not even a flicker. And there's a moment of panic - that something happened while he was gone, that he's dead again - but memory catches up with him. He's in the tunnels. Luke can't hear him down here. And even though he feels weak, bone-weary, and a little dizzy from his clumsy vision, he pushes off the wall and forces himself upright, edging his way towards the near-light of what he's certain must be the tunnel entrance. There's a ladder, a way up, and as he climbs, he keeps trying to contact Luke, hoping his replica is available to get him home. Just one last time, one more guiding hand. That's all he needs.

Thankfully Luke is available, and he will get Asch home, so he'll be back on the evening of the 6th, sticking close to the house for the most part and waiting for his vision to come back bit by bit.]

---

[Action, October 10th, open to anyone]

[Finally, finally, Asch wakes to find that hey, surprise! His eyes are as clear as the day they'd been before he died. He spends a long time staring at everything in his room, taking in the details, the changes that he'd missed or accidentally caused over the course of the last four months. There's dust in places difficult to clean, his closet is a disorganized mess, and the books on his shelf are out of order. Some of the houseplants aren't doing so well. Star's getting fat. The white in Tsuae's fur is discoloured from treks in the yard- chasing Ginji's birds, probably. He'll need to do a full sweep of the house and nitpick at it.

Tomorrow, though. Today he gets dressed, gets himself a meal and tea without dropping anything, burning his fingers, or bumping into the table. He leaves the house and he goes for a walk. Nothing special- a long, slow, utterly aimless wander through the village from late morning until after dinner, drinking in the sights and watching the people who pass him by, as if seeing it all for the first time. He swings by the shops, the restaurant, maybe even Good Spirits for a bit, a place he hadn't been since before Guy went home the first time. He might even talk to people. He seems curious and calm for once, almost smiling.

It's a nice day. He can see again. What's there to bitch about?

Evening will find him on Amaterasu's hill, leaning against one of the cherry trees, content to sit and watch the sunset. Only after it's finished does he return home at last.]

Threaded | Top-Level Comments Only

[She gets a lifted brow and a vague gesture as he turns away, but at least he didn't throw anything at her, so that has to be a plus.

What a strange girl, though, seriously.]

[... what.]

What the hell are you talking about?

I can do those. Have you seen Ginji yet?

You! Or- your stupid core! It was at least a year ago, but I remember- this red ball came out of nowhere and hit me!

Not yet. [Nor has he seen any giant blue and white blobs.] Is he in the house? I only just arrived.

...

[Okay, "red ball" does sound accurate, but he has no memories of this at all-- of course, he wouldn't if he were in core form at the time.]

Are you expecting me to apologize for something I can't even remember?

... Maybe. I was out all morning and then I stayed in my room, but I don't think I heard him leave.

...Tch. Why can't you remember it? You're not sentient that way?

Have you ever heard of a sentient crystal ball?

I come from a world where sub-atomic particles can become sentient.

[He doesn't even know WTF those are, Asch. AWAY WITH YOUR WEIRD SCIENCE.]

Hmph. No, I'm not aware of what happens when I'm in core form. It's the same with Centurions-- it's a dormant state. We only take that form when we need to regain our energy.

Mm. I'll check, then. [He takes a few steps towards the bedrooms, then pauses, glancing over his shoulder.] ...Thanks, Arietta.

[What he's thanking her for isn't clearly stated, but he's not about to expand on that, continuing onwards.]

Sure, I am. [What? He's supposed to say 'no' to someone else's not!horrible cooking? One thing you learn really fast is you don't say 'no' to food. Ever. (Unless it's really awful.) Besides, dinner wasn't much - something simple so he could work and eat at the same time. Typical mechanic move.]

[That's not such a tall order, and by now Ginji's pretty much got the layout of the kitchen memorized, so he's able to rummage around for the bag of rice and a pot that'll fit it.]

Okay. No celebrating, then. [Although dinner absolutely counts.] But you had a good day out, at least?

["Weird science" to the kettle says the pot who turns into a crystal ball.]

That sounds both useful and utterly inconvenient at the same time.

[Okay, dinner for two (three? He should cook for three, Arietta must be around somewhere) it is, then. He pulls out a few extra vegetables for the task.]

It... wasn't a bad day. That's all I can really ask for.

[And it wasn't; that's the honest truth. And maybe it was a good day, but he's not inclined to say so until it's actually over. Something terrible can always go wrong- he'd entered Eldrant at night, after all.]

You got that right.

Oh. Um, you're welcome!

[ ... what is he thanking her for? ]

...So why is it that you only come out when Emil is in battle? Is it a matter of choice, or do you need permission?

It's because he can't fight without me. If it weren't for me, he'd have been dead a long time ago. He's happy to run and hide if it means I get to do the fighting for him.

I understand that much, it's obvious. I'm talking about you. Don't you have free will of your own?

[It's not like he particularly cares about Ratatosk - the guy's a jerk, no way around it - but even he can admit that that sounds like a raw deal.]

[And pouring the rice, and putting it on to heat.]

Meaning it was a good day, right?

[Stir, stir.]

For someone who expects a lot out of others and even more from himself, you're not really asking for much.

At least ask for a great day. Sounds perfectly reasonable to me.

Of course I do! But as long as I'm stuck like this, I can't just take over whenever I want. I have to wait until he either lets me out, or I have enough energy to come out on my own, and that doesn't happen often.

[Yeah, it... pretty much is. And the worst part is there isn't really a good solution at the moment.]

And yet he's just demonstrated that he's willing to let you out when prompted. In fact, he even offered without me having to ask for it.

[Sounds like the beginnings of a compromise, to him.]

.....

[Ratatosk... honestly isn't sure how to respond to that. It's true, Emil did let him out willingly, but he doesn't want to admit it. That would be admitting that maybe Emil isn't so bad after all.]

[The silence isn't exactly telling, but at least it means Ratatosk is thinking about it.]

It's up to you, what you decide. But if you've got a message for him now's the time.

Page 9 of 10

[Action]

no subject

[Action, October 10]

[action]

[Action, October 10]

[action]

[Action, October 10]

[action]

[Action, October 10]

[Action, October 10]

[Action, October 10]

[Action, October 10]

[action]

[Action, October 10]

[Action, October 10]

[Action, October 10]

[Action, October 10]

[action]

[Action, October 10]

[Action, October 10]

[Action, October 10]

[Action, October 10]

[Action, October 10]

[Action, October 10]

[Action, October 10]

[Action, October 10]