Central Park Sogginess

Central Park Sogginess
Date of Scene:	24 November 2012
Location:	Manhattan - Central Park
Synopsis:	Riku wanders Central Park and stumbles over Will Sherman. Perfect dialogue choices lead to hidden bonus cutscenes about Will's past relationships. Extra points gained and Pancakes consumed.
Cast of Characters:	Will Sherman, Riku

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Riku has posed:
Riku is out in central park taking in the view. He has his hands in his pocket, with a hotdog (breakfast of champions) in hand that he occasionally takes a bite out of. His sneakers crunch, crunch, crunch over the fallen leaves as he makes his way to a medium sized lake. He pauses here for a time, then moves on to wind through the trees at seemingly random. Those with Darkness Vision can already sense something different around the teenager.

Darkness levels are high but perfectly contained. Still and silent like a mirror of dark glass or a silent pool. None of the emotional jarring or jags that is the teenagers normal signature, or even from the spikes of Thanksgiving. He seems unnaturally calm, like the eye of some internal storm has passed directly over him. He doesn't seem to have any purpose or direction other than the consumption of this hot dog.

Delicious. Eventually he just leans up against a tree, his mortal foe and scans the park. People watching.

Will Sherman has posed:
Will's head sticks out of the tree above Riku.

"Hey, fancy seeing you here." he says, before dropping down, streatching out with a yawn. "Man, the best place to take a nap...I ran myself ragged last night...I had to stay in the city, ya know? Mercade went missing and the heartless are super active for some reason." he says, with that tone of barely concerned that he manages to speak.

"What's up Riku? You look like you're in a good mood!"

Riku has posed:
Riku smiles up at Will, shaking his head. "Man. I don't dare trying like that. I'd just fall out of the tree again. What were you?

Oh yeah-- this has something to do with Black Friday?" he pauses then takes a bite of the hot dog, finishing it off. "Hey. Will? Um-- thanks for letting me stay at the TDA over the holiday. It's amazing how a little good sleep can hand you something surprising like clarity." Riku pauses, then enquires. "The heartless are out and about?"

Will Sherman has posed:
"No...nothing to do with Black Friday." he says, calmly, "And yeah...they are. Increasing numbers and strength too." he says, shrugging. "I'll tell the others when I get back to the TDA, but..it's concerning." he even sounds like it too. Will was odd.

"And your welcome. I'm glad that you've gotten your center back and everything." he says, sitting down next to Riku. "And don't thank me...Mercade's the one with the lease."

Riku has posed:
Riku shrugs and nods, leaning back against the tree and going back to people watching. He closes his eyes, listening to the sounds of the city as he crosses his arms. "Well. I'm sure people have it in hand. Manhattan's lasted this long."

Will Sherman has posed:
"Maybe." Will says, shaking his head... "Maybe not. I dunno, but I think somethin' is coming. But...what will be will be, I am sure we'll find a way." he says, confidently. He is very trusting of his friends, and allies, and generally humans in general.

"It's a nice place...people suffer, they have hard times...but they still come through. They find happyness...they live full lives. These people, people in general, I just enjoy so much. I think I've spent fifty years in this very spot....well, not all at once.."

A flash back...a young man, bulkier and well more defined than Mercade, but similar in dress, but with an odd mask sits next to Will, they share a laugh, even as the older man grabs Will's hand, who has his wallet, another laugh and a pat on the back.

Will sighs...Boss, where were you now? Will worried...maybe it was his time, though. The man was pretty old.

Riku has posed:
"I think it would give you a sore back and a crick in the neck." Riku responds in a flatly amused voice. "But yeah." he says in response to Will.

"What will be will be." he nods grimly to himself, watching dog walkers and bicyclist and people roaming the park on their own business. His eyes roam over them, not staying for long, never really seeing them as more than movement in the cultivated landscape of trees and lakes and pathways. "It must take a long time, thinking about the past."

Will Sherman has posed:
Will looks up over at Riku, looking at the kid for a moment. "Huh?" he asks, not sure what he means... "You mean, that it takes a long time remembering everything...or that I must spend too much time thinking about the past?" he says, with a grin. "A bit of both sometimes...maybe." he says, with a grin. "There are a lot of things that were sad...and happy...I miss a lot of things, and more then a few memories keep me going even at my worst." he then pauses...

"It's why I like to live in the moment...enjoy what I can. The future will bring what it will bring...but the past? You shouldn't be trapped by it."

Riku has posed:
"No." Riku says softly. "You shouldn't." he then grins up at Will, putting a hand behind his head. "Get out of the damn tree, Will. You're making me nervous. Somehow the tree is going to fall over, or crack in half, and you'll be just fine before you'll LAND on me or the tree will or something." he raises his arms over his head and lets out a deep breath, stretching.

"And you say I need to go fun places. So I'm taking you up on that Will. I know next to nothing, so it's totally up to you. Maybe we'll even stumble over Mercade on the way. That seems to be the only way I run into you guys anyways."

Will Sherman has posed:
"Ooooookay." Will says, and he jumps down, easily landing right infront of Riku without even skipping a beat...the kid is really good at acrobatics. He immediately takes a seat by Riku and takes a similar position. "Hmm...god there are lots of places in New York. Central Park can be full of great places...always something going on in the Big Apple. Small things, big things...video games, amusement parks...not really big ones, but smaller ones. The big ones...they existed outside Manhattan once..." he says.

"Also, the best things for fun..? The small things. Being with friends....yeah, I know corny, but Mercade is persistant."

Riku has posed:
"Seriously corny. I was going to stick a spigot in you and try to sell Sap to people who wanted syrup for pancakes in a minute." Riku chuckles and then laughs whole heartedly. "Don't worry. Somehow, you and Mercade will figure things out, and get the rest of your world back. Just like I will someday. You guys always think of something."

Riku shrugs. "in the mean time.. hmm." he frowns, furrowing his brows together. "Wow." he shakes his head. "I don't do much, do I? I can't remember the last time I did something just for fun." he brushes off his coat and picks a direction. "Well. Let's walk this way for awhile. Tell me if anything turns up."

Will Sherman has posed:
Will stands up, and nods towards Riku.

"Yeah...and don't you worry, we'll help you too." he grins at him. "Lets see..." he says, and walks with the Kid, "I think there are guys doing a play that way today. Maybe.

"And it's okay dude. You've just lost...your home. I can understand...infact, you're pretty much taking it well...you're very mature about it...for the most part kept your head on straight." he says, with a nod.

They walk over a bridge, the small stream flowing under neath them and there are some ducks. Will, pulling some bread out from under his hat tosses some bits out to them.

Riku has posed:
"Only so many screaming nightmares you can have before the whole deal gets pretty old." Riku tells him with a smirk. "And.." he pauses here for a beat, then continues. "Thank you. For everything." he chuckles. "Hmm. I fell.. out a tree not too far from here." he scans the offending shrubbery nearby. "I think I remember that-- AHA. That one. And. You and Mercade were some of the first of the welcome wagon." Riku snorts, watching the ducks start to congregate on this location as they realize there is food to be had. They bob down and quack at eachother, flapping wings and turning around in little circles, feet always churning up the water.

"That seems.. like forever ago. Do you always carry bread in your hat? No.." he shakes his head. "Nevermind. I should know better than to ask." he looks around, then heads towards where Will said there might be a play after he's done feeding the ducks.

Will Sherman has posed:
"Only a few months.." Will says with a grin. To a man who is unaging...it is but a drop in the bucket, but he values it no less than any other passing of time. Will is happy to feed the ducks...every day he does it. "Eh...only to feed them once. The hat is a good way to keep it dry on rainy days." he continues..

"OH yes, I think a traveling improv group too." he continues. "Don't worry about it either. Mercade has dedicated his entire life to help people...I guess I do too, but not quite like Mercade..."

Riku has posed:
"What do you mean?" Riku raises his eyebrows as he meanders across the park without any real sense of urgency. "And don't give me that. Yeah, to you it might not be much but. Some of us still live on the clock, so to speak." he shakes his head. "I don't know how you manage that, by the way. It makes my head hurt to think about it." The ducks glare at Riku for he is not a Chosen One and Provisioner of Bread for all Duck kind, so they meander away to find better pickings once all the bread is gone.

Will Sherman has posed:
"I don't know either." Will says, solemly. He looks down, at his feet as he walks, "It's not all smiles...I make what I can out of it...but..." he says, taking a breath. "I have seen lots of people like Mercade...the first time, I was only interested in myself. I didn't care about others...I helped people when I felt like it...but generally only focused about people important to ME.." He says.

"I met a girl...who changed that. She was so...passionate. She wanted to change the world, wanted to do something...she knew about the other side of Manhattan...the darker side. She herself was special...a witch I think, gifted with foresight."

"I loved her...I loved her a great deal. She ment...more than I could ever admit..." he sighs...

"She grew older...but I still loved her. Then one day...I woke up..." he pauses... "And she didn't."

Riku has posed:
Riku stares off into the distance listening to what Will has to say. He slowly, one step at a time, drags to a complete stop. He looks over at Will, his expression unreachable and a little strange on his face.

In his head, there is a dark cavern. A long.. winding stair.. and a girl who may never wake up again. The thought is almost immediately replaced with that of the vision. Of him. Of who he will be, drawing Kairi up out of the dark. Riku takes in a slow breath and let's it out equally slowly. He clings to that image to survive the obvious pain in Will's voice.

"I'm sorry, Will." he says, and seems to be quite sincere. "It's something I can't even wrap my head around."

Will Sherman has posed:
"I think you can." Will says, "You too have someone in your life that is important..." he takes a breath. "It is not the bad times I focus on. The good times...the fun I had..." he says, smiling. "The light I have from those memories she gave to me. The warmth she brought to my heart...the comfort I felt. I knew it would come...I...I still am sad. However..." he takes a breath...

"I have gained more than I have ever lost. I would do it all over again, just to see her smile once more. That memory is worth more than every possession I have." he says, with a smile.

"That...Riku, is what you must hold onto. She touched my heart in a way that nobody may ever do so again."

A single tear runs down his face, and he removes it, "After all these years, I still carry what it ment to be with her." he says.

"Then the original boss of the TDA...just like Mercade. A bit stronger...but I never met a man who cared more than his fellow man...except maybe Mercade himself." he pauses... "And maybe you too. Though you hide it sometimes."

Riku has posed:
Riku stays silent for a long time. He simply regards Will flatly with a gaze that seems to be trying to see into the King of the Hobo people. He doesn't know what to make of this development, and it's true that it would make him vastly uncomfortable only a few days ago. Like he didn't deserve to be present for these secrets, these pieces of Will's life that he's trying to keep from slipping. It must be very hard.

Riku finds the edges of his own mind and memories fuzzy and vague on certain things, only after a few months. The vision is there to comfort him. It whispers 'You can have it all back. Everything. It can be yours to have.' in images and a feeling of confidence that brushes the self-doubt and the discomfort away. Riku looks ostentaciously from one side and then the other, breaking eye contact with Will to stare with some nonchalance around at the surroundings. He then slides his eyes back to Will, smiling ever so slightly. "I.." Nope. The words are insufficient.

The doubt isn't going to bother him. So. He just decides it's time for some well deserved payback. He then attempts to crush Will in an all too abrupt Siege hug. That is-- a hug that hits someone somewhat with the same sensation as a train. "God. Seriously Will? Okay. That's it. I'm going to pour you out and have /pancakes/."

Will Sherman has posed:
Will laughs a bit as the kid gives a hug. "Ack..." he says, a bit on the tightness. Finally, after being let go, he gives Riku a pat.

"Sorry, didn't mean to get emotional like that." he smiles softly. "BUT if you want pancakes...I know where we can get some." he grins, "You see...there is this place that serves a pancake that no matter how much syrup you put on it...it /never/ gets soggy." Will says with a grin.

"Anyway, I guess what I am saying here is...hold onto the happiness." he says with a smile.

"God I feel old suddenly. Lets go get some pancakes."

Riku has posed:
"Shouldn't you put your teeth back in, grandpa? Maybe /you/ should be the one I keep away from sharp objects and muggers for awhile instead of the other way around." Riku grins and follows Will towards the Promise of Pancakes, and a beautiful day in Manhattan continues, a little soggier for the trouble-- but a moment still worth keeping, worth holding onto.. at least for a little while longer.

Will Sherman has posed:
Will laughs, "Oh back in my day if we wanted pancakes we had to walk FIFTEEN MILES!' he says in his best Mercade impersonation.