ioduanlogs | [closed-ish] July catch-all

Characters: Kit + others
Date: throughout July
Location: Around Aifaran
Situation: a catch-all log for July! I won't be posting any open prompts, but if you’d like a specific starter, DM me here, ping me on plurk @ ragweed, or on discord @ middlemarching#9936.
Warnings/Rating: None currently, will update as needed.

I. Drink to forget? (closed to Zephyr)

It is an especially hot and humid night that finds Kit--and, presumably, Zephyr--drinking together on the dingy veranda of a waterfront bar, talking--or not--over a game of cards. The night has gotten away from Kit somewhat, but he feels no pressure to pick himself up and find his way back to the Bridge; the Dreaming has seen fit to make it impossible for him to get a good night’s rest.

All the more reason to ignore the time displayed on his yimo, and to deal another hand.

He tucks a lit cigarette into the corner of his mouth and gathers up the cards that are spread across their table, shuffling them again. “All right,” he decides, quirking a crooked smile, “this time I won’t go easy on you, salroka.” The games Kit knows are simple, even if they have journeyed with him to this place from a foreign dimension; the basics of how to gamble don’t seem to change much between universes.

II. I didn't want this stupid thing anyway (Justice 2; closed to Konoe)

"Fine, take the damn thing. I didn't want it in the first place."

The Bresilykian Sentry (who now has hold of the defunct metal detector that had been foisted off onto Kit the previous month) does not look at all impressed by the lip being given to him by the scowling dwarf standing before him. He lifts a finger. "This is your last warning, Gandir," he says sternly. "One more misstep, and there will be consequences."

It's a dire-sounding warning, but if it instills anything beyond increased aggravation in Kit, it's hard to say. His gaze remains hard as the Sentry leaves, but once he rounds the busy street corner and is gone from sight, Kit breathes out and chafes a hand against his jaw. It's good to be rid of the piece of garbage, but now he just wishes he could track down the merchant who insisted he purchased it in the first place, and give the guy a piece of his mind.

Instead, he leans back against the wall and lights a cigarette. A few minutes later, it starts to rain.

Typical.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

It's a weary sort of anger, of the variety that realizes it's impotent and serves no purpose, and so it fizzles when Kit glances up and spots Konoe. The recognition on his face is fairly instantaneous, and he frowns, taking in the sight of the kid in his sodden clothes. He puts out his cigarette and pushes himself away from the wall.

"Putting up with their garbage," he says, gesturing after the Sentry so it's clear who holds his ire. "Nothing out of the ordinary there." He squints, tilting his head some. "You okay?"

"I'm fine," Konoe said harshly, looking him in the eye until he couldn't bear it anymore. His crooked tail twitched back and forth.

"I don't get what they are trying to enforce." The one good thing about ribika being relatively solitary creatures is that even in settlements, conflicts that happened were usually handled personally or by a leader. He didn't quite get the concept of a police force; the closest thing would be bounty hunters, and Rai operated under different rules.

Konoe desperately wanted to ask about the visions, if this man had seen anything, but he was reluctant to trust him even more than he did already. Besides, it was cold and he gave himself a little shake to get off some of the chill.

"I don't get what they are trying to enforce."

"The only thing folks like that try to reinforce is who's in charge." Someone's got an axe to grind with authority, sounds like.

But the rain seems to be intensifying rather than letting up, and Kit grimaces, waving Konoe after him. "Come on, the skytrain station is a block or two this way." The Dreaming Bridge might not be the most exciting of destinations, but it's dry, and there's a lot to be said for that right now.

Konoe stared after the Sentry, the tip of his tail twitching. He'd met far too many cats like that before, who tried to assert their dominance over anyone instead of just defending their pride, and it gave rise to a small flicker of anger. Kit waving him on snapped him out of it though, and he just stared miserably back at the smaller man.

Wherever Kit took him, he just silently followed closely, not wanting to admit he had absolutely no idea how to get back to his room. Konoe didn't know if Kit knew him well enough to know he was acting off, but he just hoped he wouldn't ask.

Learning how to read a stranger was a useful skill for a poor duster kid to have if he expected to survive long as a casteless dwarf in Orzammar. There is most assuredly something 'off' about Konoe, but for now, Kit doesn't acknowledge it; they're out in public, for one thing, and the pissing rain is unpleasant.

He pays the fare for both of them to get into the station and then heads up to the train platform. "Five minutes," he muses aloud, reading the display announcing the wait times for the trains, then glances at Konoe. He tries not to size the boy up too noticeably, lest he give the impression he's trying to scrutinize (or worse, pick up a kid young enough to be his son).

"How're you doing, anyway?" he asks after a moment or two, voice pitched quietly so anyone else nearby on the platform won't be able to easily overheard.

Konoe didn't like these train things; they were loud and usually stuffed with too many people. He just drew his cloak up around him and curled his knees up to his chin. Somehow he knew his usual answer of 'I'm fine' wouldn't cut it here.

"I keep seeing things in my sleep. I don't know who any of them are." His reply was short and curt.

"I keep seeing things in my sleep. I don't know who any of them are."

Kit glances sideways--and then down, since that's evidently where Konoe is now. Huh. He chafes a hand against the side of his neck and gives the area around them a quick onceover, just to make sure no one nearby has any interest in eavesdropping. Then, grimacing, he says, "Yeah. I've had them too. I think everyone like us--Dreamfolk, I mean--is having them."

That wasn't quite news to him, having heard that from other people from what little he could decipher on his magic box and from the actions of his roommates. It didn't make him feel any better about his own predicament, though.

"I wish they would stop-I don't know any of these people, they aren't cats, and it hurts everytime!" Konoe growled.

"Yeah," Kit begins with a sympathetic grimace, "me too--wait."

The visions have been vivid. They've been alarming. They've been downright heartbreaking. But thus far, none have left him in physical pain. He turns to look at Konoe more fully, frowning in transparent worry. "The visions are hurting you?"

That got Konoe to look up at his companion. He knew that he had empathy and it lent a bigger connection to other people than he really wanted, but he'd just assumed it had been that real and frightful for everyone else.

"Is it not supposed to be? Every single time I feel like I am the one trapped and dying, and I wake up still feeling their emotions," he said, his ears drooping.

Well, shit. How are his heart strings supposed to withstand that? Maybe it's the combination of the drooping ears and tail that does it, or the fact that this kid is clearly brimming over with feelings that he doesn't want to experience--both those that belong to him, and those that don't.

He has his own issues with dreams to contend with, but--well, Konoe has enough to grapple with on his own.

"Yeah," he admits, grimacing, "it's like that for me, while I'm dreaming. Once I wake up though, I don't feel like that anymore."

"It doesn't end there. I wish it would end there," Konoe growled, his leg kicking the seat. It still hurt from where the person in the dream broke it. He couldn't even remember when he last ate something substantial, though he was desperately wishing the visions were done. "There's just...too many emotions."

And he didn't want to tell Kit about how he was cursed; he already loathed himself for it enough even if the physical marks vanished.

"There's just...too many emotions."

The platform under his boots gives a tell-tale rumble indicating the arrival of the next train--probably theirs. Kit grimaces and ambles a few steps nearer, then crouches down next to Konoe.

(He doesn't know how to start this conversation, but he can't leave this kid alone.)

"I wish I had some easy answers for you," he admits heavily, elbows on his knees, and watches the train rattle into the station. He glances back at Konoe with raised eyebrows. "I only know what I do, when I get caught up in my thoughts."

Konoe's ears flicked up at the sound of the train, then down again to shut some of it out. Instead he shook his head at whatever Kit was saying, his hands over his chest. "You don't understand-it's not thoughts-it's their emotions! I can't get rid of their emotions!"

[closed-ish] July catch-all

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