Heart Game

[neverforgets]

[ So you've encountered Lavi asleep by the lake. Sorry, it seems you have fallen asleep too.

Though now you're stirring.... ]

Comments

Intro

[neverforgets]

[ You wake up to the sounds of a softly crackling fire, cicadas chirping, a breeze blowing and the rustle of tall grass. You smell the smoke from the fire, mingled with the scent of pipe smoke, rich earth, and the sweetness of that grass. The ground under you is soft beneath the well worn wool blanket -- so well-used it's not even scratchy against your cheek. When you open your eyes, you see you're in a little camp.

The fire is starting to dwindle, but it's comforting, welcome; flames still flickering and sometimes the coals pop and send up a few sparks. There's a small iron pot hanging over it, suspended by a stick supported by another pair of sticks. Some kind of stirring tool sticks out on one side. The blanket below you is woven, its colors faded you can barely make out what used to be blues, whites, reds, browns in the striped pattern. Above you, the sky is full of stars. More than perhaps you've ever seen. The feeling here is peaceful, warm and comfortable. Happy.

Once you get your bearings, you notice you're not alone. To your left is a man who appears to be very old. He's smoking a pipe and regarding you calmly, but intently. To your right is a flame-haired child, who might be familiar.

However, he looks as though he's been split into two halves. Nevertheless, he is beaming at you, and he leans forward from where he's been sitting -- apparently restlessly -- and rests his hands on the ground. ]

I wondered if you were going to sleep forever!! [ His voice is just a bit resonant, as if two similar voices are speaking in unison. He doesn't seem to be affected by his appearance. ]

Re: Intro

[lefthandpath]

[. . . why does this keep happening.

WHY IS A TINY LAVI SPLIT IN HALF?]

... er, good morning?

Re: Intro

[stigmatize]

[well that's freaky and tyki is immediately on edge. however, he's also been through enough heart games to have a general inkling of what's probably going on.]

Evening, kid.

[remarch]

[ Nope nope nope.

Lepus sits up fast, taking in his surroundings with wide eyes - and then a narrowed, suspicious glare. But the split kid - obviously Lavi, right? - is enough to give him a moment's pause. ]

... Wow, you are fucked up.

Re: Intro

[imaginemeandyuu]

I've done that before. I don't recommend it. Hello!

[softariel]

[ THAT'S ... a little distressing. Why is this tiny child split in half. Why would this be a thing.

He looks between the boy (Lavi? that has to be Lavi) and the man, a little nervous. ]

Oh-- no, I'm not -- I'm sorry for worrying you?

1/?

[kishin]

[ Well, this is... far, far from what he expected when he tried to wake you up. Suzaku blinks once, then shoves himself to his feet, twisting around to look in all directions. What-- Who-- How-- ]

Re: Intro

[hallucinogenetic]

. . .

What the hell is this.

Library

[neverforgets]

[ When you open the door, you step into the foyer of biggest library you've ever seen. Behind sections of glass, you can see rows and rows of square shelves -- seven feet tall by seven feet wide -- spread out in front of you. The building is so vast you cannot even see the far wall. Lamps stationed between shelves provide a generous amount of warm light that glints off gold or silver embellishment in some of the book spines.

Even from here, you can smell old paper, leather, dust, lamp oil, and ink.

There are two doors with labels - Names and Places

While deciding which to choose, you notice a very faint buzz of conversations. It's soft, like background noise, and difficult to make out. ]

[remarch]

[ He remains quiet and still for a long moment - one second, three seconds, ten seconds - testing the environment, seeing if the chatter bursts into something more dangerous. Seeing if the entire place might spontaneously catch fire.

The usual.

Then he slinks ever so quietly towards Names. ]

[lefthandpath]

[. . . oh, so torch isn't needed so much anymore...

well. whatever. it might come in handy (DO NOT. TORCH. BOOKS. THO.)

for now, TO PLACES!]

Re: Library

[stigmatize]

[yep, gonna check this out. after the necessary gawking period, spend uselessly trying to discern what the conversations are about, he chooses Names.]

Re: Library

[imaginemeandyuu]

Huh...

[wanders through, keeping an eye out for any interesting books, but heading toward the Names door]

[softariel]

Oh...

[ A library! Boy wouldn't he like to just look at everything at once. The conversation doesn't actually even register to him, not much; he's used to his own, and people there talk all the time.

After a moment, though, he turns towards Names. ]

Names

[neverforgets]

[ All the books in this section have, well, names on them. And there is easily a million tomes, all in perfect shape. If you look along them, you might find your name, you might not. Will you take a look?

The din of conversation you heard in the foyer seems a bit louder, in here. But you don't see anyone at all. ]

[remarch]

[ He holds still again, like the frozen hare namesake he denies, and then looks for his own name.

Of course he's going to look for that. ]

[lefthandpath]

[LOOKING AROUND FOR A BOOK WITH DOUG'S NAME ON IT. he remembers from that dream... there was definitely a book like that, right?]

[stigmatize]

[sure, he'll look in his own book.]

Places

[neverforgets]

[ The books in this section have titles corresponding to towns/cities/villages/etc. on Earth, circa 1895-99, and those of ancient locations and other places left to history. Also, as you explore, you'll find artifacts interspersed among the books: a small potted plant that looks like it might be trying to reach out to you, or an old key.

Further in, you see a fat, striped, unlit candle that's sharpened to a point on one end. Another shelf has a red string you might have seen Lavi wearing around his wrist. The books here also say things like "Anita's Ship", "The Bamboo Grove", "Order HQ", "Court", etc.

Do you stop and investigate, or keep going?

In this section, the conversation from the foyer has shifted to sounds of fighting. Guns, cannons, people shouting. There's also the smell of gunpowder. All of it is faint. ]

Re: Places

[lefthandpath]

[m-man-eating flower, hello, long time no see KEEPING WELL OUT OF RANGE CRY.

as he's passing by the books, though, he pauses at the Bamboo Grove, hesitates.

... yeah, okay. carefully taking it down to. look inside.]

The Graveyard

[neverforgets]

[ The area is full of monuments. Old ones, new ones. Some grandiose, some little more than a wooden cross or a stack of stones.

Here, there are all the scents, sounds, and tactile impressions one would associate with the outdoors or a graveyard. Smell of grass, dirt, stone, wood, flowers. Sounds of birds, bugs, shovels digging dirt, etching into stone, hammers pounding things into the dirt, people crying, the intonation of a prayer or memorial over a grave. Rain, shine, wind, snow, humidity, drought, flood, cold, heat-- the details are constant, overlapping and contradicting, and crystal clear.

In the middle of the yard, you see a young, black-haired man with bright blue eyes and a straight back. He is wearing a pristine white uniform. If you're familiar with the Black Order, it's the uniform of a Finder. ]

[lefthandpath]

[. . . so does his eye react to manifestations of akuma or... well. probably not. Lavi wouldn't have known about that sort of thing if not for that one incident.

still, he carefully moves to approach the Finder]

Excuse me...

The Battlefield

[neverforgets]

[ There. Are. Bodies. Everywhere.

A path winds through the stretch of dead, but there are just an uncountable number.

Here, you hear the sounds of battle -- gunfire, cannons, horses, screaming, the sounds of bullets tearing flesh, blades slashing and stabbing, bones breaking, bones being sawed during amputations, and martial orders being shouted out. You smell the gunpowder, the blood; the stench of death and the dying, of illness and human waste; the scents of medicinal herbs. You see bodies in various states of decomposition, skeletons, fresh corpses. Every detail is fresh, vivid, and constant. The effect is almost suffocating.

But there is no door behind you. You have to move on. ]

[remarch]

Fuck.

[ Of course. Of couuurse this is the door. Despite the oppressive atmosphere, he stares at it, takes it all in - and then puts aside. No, it's more than that. Since Lepus can't accept it, he denies it. ]

This isn't real, and it doesn't matter.

[ It's a declaration more to himself than the world, and he starts to walk. ]

The Mess Hall

[neverforgets]

[ This room is full of people milling around, all wearing various uniforms of the Black Order. Some people are eating -- quickly or lingering -- some are playing chess or cards, some are just hanging out with their friends and comrades. Off on one table, you see a stack of plates rising about ten feet high. Everyone you encounter seems pleased to see you. They wave, call out hellos, clap you on the back.

The main smell here is of people in close quarters, and food. Lots of food. Spices, sauces, sweet things, sour things, rich meat, steaming or roasting vegetables, on and on.

The din you've been hearing in various volumes is lower here. There's a feeling of safety, of home. There's a door at the other end of the hall, one to your right, and an ordering counter to your left. ]

Re: The Mess Hall

[remarch]

[ He freezes up at the uniforms, and the attention -- food. Foood? FOOD.

He's looking for a cloth to wipe off all the mess first. Even Lepus won't eat with corpse-gore covered hands unless he has to. ]

The Checkered Room

[neverforgets]

[ The room here looks distorted somehow. The floor is checkered black-and-white, and unlike every other place, you hear, smell, and feel nothing extraneous. Aside from your current state, it's almost a void.

In the center is Lavi, watching you with a measuring, distant expression. ]

[softariel]

[ Oh, that's... kind of odd. Extremely odd. Winter remains wary as he steps in, looking around; when he sees Lavi, he takes a few steps towards him, then pauses again. ]

...Lavi...?

The Noah's House

[neverforgets]

[ You walk into what appears to be a drawing room in the home of someone very rich. The decor is very ornate, there are paintings of men and women in finery on the walls, little porcelain knickknacks on tables and mantelpieces.

Here, you smell blood, sickness, unwashed bodies, sweat. You feel aching and sore all over, tired and dizzy, hungry and thirsty, nauseated. The details are dull, but ever-present.

But the thing that is most noticeable here is the silence.

At the far end of the room, you see Lavi slumped in a plush armchair, head drooped toward his chest. A few feet away, Bookman sits in an identical chair. The old man appears distressed, but his lips are pursed shut. ]

Re: The Noah's House

[remarch]

[ ... THAT LIAR, DIRECTING HIM HERE? THE NEXT TIME HE SEES HIM HE'S GOING TO--

Deep breath in. Deep breath out. He's used to this pain, isn't he? It's nothing. Deny it.

Edging silently towards the slumped Lavi. ]

The Heart

[neverforgets]

[ After everything, you find yourself in a sort of void. There is solid floor under your feet, but you cannot see it. All you can hear in here is a soft, steady heartbeat.

And it's coming from a large, human heart suspended some feet in front of you.

The heart looks... bad. Discolored, diseased, like it might be bleeding. ]

Re: The Heart

[remarch]

[ ... ... He's still forcing himself to calm down, a deranged smile twitching on his face. The void makes him uncomfortable, makes him want to keep looking behind himself.

But he's never been afraid of gore.

... Poke the heart with a finger. ]