Paprika (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
radioclub_jp) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
maskormenacelogs2016-04-30 05:08 pm
radioclub_jp) wrote in maskormenacelogs2016-04-30 05:08 pm
[semi-open] dreamgirl
WHO: Paprika + open to first 5 responders
WHERE: in the land of sleepy dreams
WHEN: late April / early May
WHAT: Paprika finally stops behaving, starts invading people's dreams. Nbd, right?
WARNINGS: none known
Ever since she'd been Ported in, Paprika hadn't had the slightest trouble falling or staying asleep. Maybe it was part of this expanded ability she'd acquired, or maybe it was a product of being here "by herself"... no to-do lists running through her head, no stray thoughts about office politics. The first night she'd thought excitement might keep her awake, but it didn't. The second night she'd thought apprehension might, but it didn't. The third night it was dread.
Dread! Imagine that, the dream detective, dreading going to sleep! But it wasn't for no reason, of course.
She'd lay her head on the pillow and close her eyes, but when she opened them she saw nothing. Even once she entered REM sleep, nothing. She was still lucid, she'd realized the first night, but not dreaming. It would have been a different story if she were simply dreaming about nothing; in that case she'd have been able to shape the dream herself. But she wasn't having a dream. It was as if her unconscious mind had been shunted off to a holding area and forgotten about for seven to eight hours, like an unclaimed bag at the airport. She knew her body needed the sleep, and so here she was, but there was nothing to do.
Or... no, not nothing, exactly. When she held still and quieted her mind, she would catch snippets of vivid color, far-off voices, faint smells... Even without looking too closely, she knew they were other people's dreams. Accessible without a DC Mini, floating there within reach, daring her to look, to touch, to open. Worlds of infinite scope and possibility. Therein lay the true power of dreams.
"It's too dangerous," she said aloud to no one, in the dark. "You know what happened last time." Her own voice sounded like Atsuko's.
Of course she knew. She couldn't forget something like that incident, still (as far as she knew) unresolved. Only a monster would want to see reruns of that. She didn't yet know if this power she had was safe to use. But how was she supposed to find that out if she never tried? Besides, she'd been wondering... what sort of dreams would someone from another world have, anyway?
In the end, it was too much. She couldn't resist after all.
The dreams drew into sharp focus as she approached, as if she were tightening the aperture on a camera lens. There were so many of them, she hardly knew where to start. But that was easy enough to resolve. Paprika closed her eyes and raised her pointer finger.
"Eeny, meeny, miney... mo!"
She opened one eye to peek, then both. Well, that looked interesting... "Yeah, that'll do," she said, and pulling the edges of the hole apart, she slipped through into the dream.
(NOTE: I plan to do the open dream logs on a regular basis, so don't worry too much if the slots are taken - I'm just limiting it to five people for starters so as not to overwhelm myself. Please fill out permissions here!)
WHERE: in the land of sleepy dreams
WHEN: late April / early May
WHAT: Paprika finally stops behaving, starts invading people's dreams. Nbd, right?
WARNINGS: none known
Ever since she'd been Ported in, Paprika hadn't had the slightest trouble falling or staying asleep. Maybe it was part of this expanded ability she'd acquired, or maybe it was a product of being here "by herself"... no to-do lists running through her head, no stray thoughts about office politics. The first night she'd thought excitement might keep her awake, but it didn't. The second night she'd thought apprehension might, but it didn't. The third night it was dread.
Dread! Imagine that, the dream detective, dreading going to sleep! But it wasn't for no reason, of course.
She'd lay her head on the pillow and close her eyes, but when she opened them she saw nothing. Even once she entered REM sleep, nothing. She was still lucid, she'd realized the first night, but not dreaming. It would have been a different story if she were simply dreaming about nothing; in that case she'd have been able to shape the dream herself. But she wasn't having a dream. It was as if her unconscious mind had been shunted off to a holding area and forgotten about for seven to eight hours, like an unclaimed bag at the airport. She knew her body needed the sleep, and so here she was, but there was nothing to do.
Or... no, not nothing, exactly. When she held still and quieted her mind, she would catch snippets of vivid color, far-off voices, faint smells... Even without looking too closely, she knew they were other people's dreams. Accessible without a DC Mini, floating there within reach, daring her to look, to touch, to open. Worlds of infinite scope and possibility. Therein lay the true power of dreams.
"It's too dangerous," she said aloud to no one, in the dark. "You know what happened last time." Her own voice sounded like Atsuko's.
Of course she knew. She couldn't forget something like that incident, still (as far as she knew) unresolved. Only a monster would want to see reruns of that. She didn't yet know if this power she had was safe to use. But how was she supposed to find that out if she never tried? Besides, she'd been wondering... what sort of dreams would someone from another world have, anyway?
In the end, it was too much. She couldn't resist after all.
The dreams drew into sharp focus as she approached, as if she were tightening the aperture on a camera lens. There were so many of them, she hardly knew where to start. But that was easy enough to resolve. Paprika closed her eyes and raised her pointer finger.
"Eeny, meeny, miney... mo!"
She opened one eye to peek, then both. Well, that looked interesting... "Yeah, that'll do," she said, and pulling the edges of the hole apart, she slipped through into the dream.
(NOTE: I plan to do the open dream logs on a regular basis, so don't worry too much if the slots are taken - I'm just limiting it to five people for starters so as not to overwhelm myself. Please fill out permissions here!)
no subject
Paprika realizes at once that she sticks out like a sore thumb in here, bright red against a stark white backdrop. This has happened once before - accidentally showing up as herself from the start - but last time she was able to blend in. Here, there's nothing to blend in with.
The dreamer spots her immediately. It's no one she knows. A tall, dark-skinned man with long grey hair - not grey with age, though, he's still quite young - dressed all in black. He stands out here as well, a lone shadow in a brightly lit room. And he's noticed her. He's staring at her.
He knows she's an intruder.
Though they start at opposite ends of a long hallway, neither of them has to move. Their mutual focus shortens the distance between them on its own, like a camera executing a dolly zoom, and before she knows it, she's right in front of him, barely an arm's length away. That startles her, and she takes an involuntary step back; the light footstep echoes in the cavernous hall.
Something's wrong here. This dream isn't under her full control.
no subject
She's startled too, he realizes. His dream-self cannot move any further with her there, though, so they're relegated to staring at each other, his yellow eyes locked on her dark ones. After a moment he feels something in him change, just slightly -- his mouth peels open just as he realizes he can even do that. His dream has allowed him to speak, at least.
"How did... you get here?"
It's not what he wanted to ask. Not that he's aware of what he'd meant to ask in the first place. Who knows.
no subject
"The window was open," she says. And it's not exactly a lie, just the window wasn't exactly literal.
no subject
She's not a part of his dreams. She's never been there before -- what would make her appear now? If anything, saying this is just making things even more confusing for him.
He sighs, and then his body shifts forward, moving to walk past her. "I've never seen you here before. I... don't see things that aren't part of this already." He has never seen these dreams deviate from things he already knows.
no subject
"What normally happens about now?" she asks. Explaining herself would be an option here, but what is directness.
no subject
He keeps walking, not looking at her, though he'd prefer to be able to see her as he speaks. The hallway stretches out ahead of them. In a dream, you'd think one moment would blend into the next, that you'd be able to kind of skip things if you just went with the flow. But Riku's dreams always feel very close to what real time should be like.
no subject
"Sounds boring," she says, but her tone is sympathetic, not dismissive. "... Would you like me to change it?"
no subject
no subject
Paprika smiles, and although she's still behind him, it comes out in her voice as well. "Sure. Where do you want to go?"
no subject
"Home," he says instantly. Maybe... he can see Kairi there. Sora's here with him, but Kairi.... "Do I need to describe it?" He's kind of guessing no, just because this setting was a construct of his mind, but maybe. He doesn't mind, if need be.
no subject
Then there's a shift. All of a sudden, the floor is just... gone, as if it was never there. Instead, it's just blue skies.
Gravity seems to take its time grabbing them, but once it does, there's no going back up. Fortunately, they're not falling for long; the rolling sea below approaches them fast. Nearby there's an island - the island - but Paprika barely gets a glimpse of it before she has to hold her nose and breaks the surface with a splash. Once beneath, she unravels and swims back toward the sun. A moment later her head pops back above, letting her inhale deeply. Now, where's her dreamer friend...
no subject
He bobs in the surf with wide eyes, blue-green again rather than eerie yellow. Paprika is there, a few yards away.
"I -- it's perfect," he says weakly. This power of hers... it's unbelievable.
no subject
"This is where you grew up?" she infers.
no subject
Riku looks out to the island again -- and then he dives back under the waves, making his way toward the shore.