Nightmare or Memory?

Nightmare or Memory?
Date of Scene:	09 July 2013
Location:	Fluorgis - Shard Seekers HQ
Synopsis:	Whilst sleeping at night, Morrighan is beset by a strange and horrifying dream. Emi and Imi are present to respond. But was it a dream? Or perhaps a memory? Or something else?
Cast of Characters:	Morrighan Alazne, Emi Dennou

---

Morrighan Alazne has posed:
It had been about a couple days since Morrighan...or rather, Kara had arrived at the Shard Seekers' HQ. There was much confusion and taking advantage of my certain parties that will go unnamed, but she eventually settled in. ...Maybe. On this particular night, the elf managed to not fall asleep in the male dormitory. Instead, she was asleep on the bed belonging to Priel. Her things were still around too, untouched since the wayward dragon still had yet to return.

Her eyes were closed and her breathing was even. Eventually however, her face began to scrunch up as if in pain. "....Ugh.....ah...." Kara mumbled out in her sleep. What was happening? Well, let's dive into her mind for a moment.

It's a forest path in the middle of the night. Kara can feel herself rushing through the trees, leaves and branches parting as she advanced. Soon she came upon the sight of a merchant caravan hurrying along the beaten path. They were holding torches to light their way in the darkness. One of them paused and looked back upon hearing a rustle.

"Eh? You hear that just now?"

"Hear what? That rustle? Probably just some harmless animal! Come on! We're almost through."

And then another rustle as she emerged from the treeline.

"W-Wait a second! What the hell is that thing!?"

"What thing are you-WHOA!"

What followed was an angry roar as Kara felt herself rush forward, the sensation of her mouth opening leaving a strange feeling in her mind.

And then she snapped awake, screaming awfully loudly.

Emi Dennou has posed:
Not falling on Priel is a good idea. Naturally, The Network cannot read minds that aren't their own. Not unless they are digital minds anyway, then it comes a bit more easily to say the least. Still, they wouldn't be very surprised to hear that 'Kara' is having nightmares.

Imi is already present in the Shard Seeker HQ and hears Morrighan screaming. Emi was actually on her way ironically, perhaps, to try and maybe stay the night and talk to Morrighan in the morning. She has no real 'purpose' behind this visitation, she just wants to see a friend(???) again and, certainly, this happens to be a friend who could probably use more companionship than less in the coming days.

Emi rushes in through the front doors, but Imi is already heading on upstairs to the girl's dorm, knocking lightly on it.

"Kara?" She asks.

Morrighan Alazne has posed:
Panting heavily and covered in a cold sweat, Kara just shuddered in her bed, clutching the blanket around herself in fear for several moments after the knocking. She heard a voice on the other side. But she still didn't respond to the tentative greeting.

...But hey, the door wasn't locked.

Instead, Kara just pulled the blanket over her head, covering herself as if it would keep all the nightmares and bad things away from her forever.

Emi Dennou has posed:
Imi pushes the door open.

"Kara, are you okay?" She asks, leaving the door open via Emi's mental request--she is climbing up the stairs as well. She isn't really rushing, she is confident in Imi's ability to talk to people, in fact Emi is wondering if maybe she should just hang back a bit for the moment and let Imi handle matters.

"Aw c'mon..." Imi smiles faintly, approaching the bed. "Do you--you don't want to talk about it?"

She glances behind her briefly but the bulk of her focus is on Kara.

Morrighan Alazne has posed:
"...I...I saw something...bad..."

Kara finally replied after a while, her voice was muffled as she refused to come out from under the blanket. "...It was scary...and messy...and- and...." She stopped talking after that, giving up on trying to explain and just returning to shuddering under the blanket by herself.

Emi Dennou has posed:
Emi rests her hand on the door, looking away for the moment.

Imi is quiet for a moment, too, but then she says, "May I stay with you a while? Or, The Network considers, if you wish to be alone right now we can depart--" She suspects she wants company but she doesn't know the nature of the 'bad dream'. It might not neccessarily be something she wants help with, after all.

Morrighan Alazne has posed:
Kara stayed still and quiet for a while longer after Imi's question, but eventually nodded slowly, or at least it looked like a nod under that blanket. Hesitantly, she peeked out at Imi, and then noticed Emi at the door as well. "...Don't go. Please...I don't want to get eaten."

Eaten? What was she talking about? Ah, it must have been the dream. Is this the sort of thing a girl with no memories dreams of? No, it has to be something else...

Emi Dennou has posed:
Did Garland literally nom down on Morrighan's soul?, Imi wonders. Is that possible? Are souls philosopher stones? Is he going to unite Amestris only to--okay, maybe that's getting a bit ahead of ourselves.

"Don't worry," Imi murmurs. "The Network will watch over you, you will not get eaten. We will politely inform anyone intending to eat you that you are not nutritious in the slightest." Imi rubs Morrighan's shoulder through the covers, making a small joke to try and lighten the mood, she sits on the edge of the bed.

Imi herself has had some issues with not 'being herself', recently. She knows to some extent what it might be like to be Morrighan right now--of course, not to such an extent but she has some idea.

"Hi," Emi notices Morrighan peeking at her. She's a bit awkward at this moment. "This one does not wish to crowd--"

Morrighan Alazne has posed:
"...Thank you." She responds, managing a small smile at Imi as she reached up to wipe her eyes of forming tears. Another moment of silence passed before Kara lowered the blanket from her head a little more, finally revealing herself mostly. She then shook her head at Emi's statement.

"No, it's okay...come in. You're not bothering me, Emi. You're my friend after all." Nodding at that, the dark elf's smile grew a little bit more. "...Maybe if more people are here, I won't be eaten. So please...don't go."

Emi Dennou has posed:
Emi steps inside, closing the door behind her. She smiles a bit herself. The Network rarely feels alone but it's not hard for her to feel lonely at time.

She approaches Morrighan as well but stops near the bed, there's not really comfortable space for them to both sit down.

She poutyfaces at Imi briefly.

"You won't get eaten." She says, pausing thoughtfully. "--Was it a dream or...do you think it's something more...mm..magical? The Network can try to keep a look out--did it look like anything?"

Imi siiighs, "We should be trying to get her mind /off/ of it, Emi."

Morrighan Alazne has posed:
Kara briefly looks scared all over again, but tried to remind herself that both Imi and Emi were here. "...I don't know. I just..." She trailed off for a bit, looking down at the sheets of the bed as she tried to think of a way to say it. In the meantime, she moved aside to give Emi space to sit on the bedside.

"...I was in a forest I think. It was dark. And I was rushing through the trees and the air...and then I found these people walking along the road..." Another pause, and then Kara continued. "...They were holding torches, but when they saw me, they began to yell and get scared."

Shuddering at what was coming next, the dark elf hugged herself, huddling up a bit more as she explained. "...I dove down at them and it felt like my mouth was opening as I got near them. I could feel /something/ going into my mouth. Like meat and sauce ...And then I woke up."

Finished explaining, Kara brought a hand to her mouth, making sure there was nothing there. "...It felt so real..."

Emi Dennou has posed:
"Wait--" Emi says. "The way you describe that." She pauses. "It sounds like from the way you're describing it, you are the one doing the...ah... well, the eating, I guess..." She frowns a bit. Because, really, that is in no way going to make it sound better most likely. "...But it cannot possibly be you, this one supposes, because if it was you would not be in bed." She peers at Kara's mouth as if to see if there's human brains in there or something. She doesn't immediately find any.

Even Morrighan wouldn't have done that, The Network thinks to themselves.

Morrighan Alazne has posed:
"...But I saw the dream from my own eyes...And it felt like it was me..." Kara explained slowly, shaking her head. "...It doesn't make any sense since I'm sitting here now, but...I don't know. I just..." Unable to figure out a way to explain herself effectively, she wound up just quieting down and shaking her head again.

Well, whatever it was, it certainly has shaken her up.

Emi Dennou has posed:
Imi leans over, intending to hug Morrighan herself. Hug. And also: hug? It's basically just hugs, though, it's not tight, it's actually rather light, though Imi does lean in a bit.

"Don't worry." She murmurs. "We'll look into this, okay?" She smiles faintly. "We'll get to the bottom of this, one way or another. You're going to be okay."

She pauses. "Probably."

"The Network suggests it'd be more effective without the probably." Emi adds, deadpan as ever. She looks back to Morrighan. "But we are serious. Any aid you need, we will provide."

Morrighan Alazne has posed:
Kara didn't resist Imi's hug and closed her eyes, smiling a bit in response. "Thanks...I'm sorry for causing trouble so late at night too, but..." It couldn't be helped. The probably bit sailed right over her head though, thankfully.

"But...I'm not sure how you'll even start..." Kara lowered her gaze at that and sighed. "...It was dark and I've never seen that forest before anyway..."

Emi Dennou has posed:
Imi tightens the hug. "Don't you worry. We're detectives!" She is quiet for a moment. "Though hm...reviewing what we know. It was dark, it was in some sort of forest, but with a road passing through it. Hmm...hmm.... ... ... yeah, there doesn't seem to be enough. Oh noo..." Imi presses the side of her head with both her hands.

"...Mm..." Emi considers. "...The only way--would be if there were certain details you neglected to mention or don't recall. Do you know what sort of men they were? Soldiers? Merchants?"

Morrighan Alazne has posed:
Morrighan couldn't possibly stay sad at this point and wound up hugging Imi back, keeping her arms wrapped around the girl while she spoke a little more cheerfully. "Um...Well, those men I saw were pulling some sort of box on wheels....a cart?" That's what they're called, right?

Nodding to herself to make sure, she then went on. "But...other than that, I didn't make out much else. It was dark and the only light came from the lanterns they were carrying..." Well! All that said, maybe there would be an abandoned cart and some snuffed out lanterns in a forest somewhere.

All they needed to do was figure out...which one?

Emi Dennou has posed:
Emi is already at the edge of the bed as well, but even with this extra information...it's not much. Perhaps if they started at forests nearby--maybe it IS nearby--it sounds like a low tech area (relative to where she's from), but she at least gets to a good angle and gives Morrighan a hug. Hey, she's got a lot on her mind too. All the hugs. If only Priel was here to see all the hugs happening on her bed! Would it drive her to madness?!

"We will check the nearer forests first." She says, closing her eyes for a moment, then thinking, "--Ah, that is...unless you've been to any recently yourself--" It might be something following her, she suddenly realizes, too.

Morrighan Alazne has posed:
With a shake of the head, she responded to the question. "I...don't think so? I got a ride to Fluorgis on one of those airship thingies, and I've been here since." Kara had paused then, trying to think of anything that might help. "Um...from what little I saw in the light, there were big roots running along the ground, making the road bumpy. ...The cart kept shaking left and right..."

That said, she pulled out of the hug slightly to look between the two of them. "Is that...any help?" An apologetic look crossed her face then and she added. "I can't think of much more though..."

Emi Dennou has posed:
Emi hmms. "Big roots...." Maybe she should ask the others for help. "It might be." She lets Morrighan pull free and sits aside as well. "But I cannot be sure, this one will have to aks around if they have any ideas. They might have more knowledge than this one on the subject." She nods slowly. "This one will look into it. For now--perhaps--you should try to get back to sleep? We will stay with you until morning ... you have nothing to fear then."

She smiles. "Is that...acceptable? We are not good at lullabies, The Network warns."

Morrighan Alazne has posed:
Nodding, Kara settled back, returning to laying in bed and covering herself normally. "Okay...I'll try and go back to sleep then, but..." A pause as she stared at Emi with a confused expression on her face. "...What are lullabies?" Ah, of course it wasn't complete without a stupid question.

Emi Dennou has posed:
Emi is asked what lullabies are. "Ah..they are songs...they help people go to sleep." SHe is quiet, awkwardly, for several moments. Imi has also gone silent. They look at each other for several seconds.

"....Would...would you like us to try to sing you one?" Emi asks awkwardly. "...The Network isn't good at them, but will try, if you think it will help you."

They look at their laps simultaneously. Neither of them the singing type maybe?

Morrighan Alazne has posed:
"...Songs that help people...sleep?" She asked, tilting her head slightly and only looking more confused. "That doesn't make any sense." As usual. "How can making noise help with sleep? Wouldn't that keep you up instead?" Well, it was logical. Noise generally worked against rest and silence!

...But now she was curious. Even if it didn't make sense, it seemed interesting. And so the dark elf nodded a bit. "I think that I...want to hear one."

They couldn't possibly be /that/ bad after all! ...Right?

Emi Dennou has posed:
Emi looks towards Imi and then towards Morrighan. "Alright." She says. "The purpose of a lullaby is to sing soothily rather than noisily. Words carefully selected to induce a sophoric state ... ... The Network is not so certain in its ability to do this..."

She glances to Imi and Imi back to her again and then they go ahead and start singing together, their voices are not especially special but they can harmonize with each other easily.

"Golden slumbers kiss your eyes~, smiles await you when you rise~, Sleep, dear Kara, do not cry. And I will sing a lullaby~..." And then just spoken. "The Network says while wondering to themselves why lullabies always mention they are lullabies." Emi pauses for a moment, pensive.

But then the two pick up again, "Cares you know not, therefore sleep. While over you a watch I'll keep. Sleep, pretty darling, do not cry. And we will sing a lullaby~"

They cover their mouths this time disrupting their verbal tic.

Morrighan Alazne has posed:
"The network shouldn't worry about such things and simply give it a try. How bad could it possibly be?" She asked, smiling a bit and looking between the two curiously.

Once it began, Morrighan laid back in bed and listened as the twins sang their song. The lyrics honestly made little sense to her, but the tone at which they were singing was enough for her to understand the intent behind it. ...It was relaxing. But still it seemed like a strange way to make someone sleep, using noise which generally goes against that notion.

Despite this though, the elf's eyes gradually began to close. "Uhh...I suddenly...feel..." Tired, was what she was going to say, but the word neve left her mouth. Instead, her eyes closed completely and her breathing began to even out to a relaxed pace. It began apparent soon after that she really had fallen back to sleep since she was unable to offer any comment on the fact that lullabies tend to refer to themselves as such.

It would seem that they had done their job well enough though. Morrighan looked much more relaxed and peaceful now, rather than writing about in nightmare induced terror...

Emi Dennou has posed:
Hey!!

It worked!

Emi and Imi fistbump each other mentally, and then, just as much in their heads, performs a complex sensation of emitted empathic sensations in a preestablished pattern the purpose of which is to primarily to evoke a 'we did it!' kind of dialogue.

Of course the two have little to communicate with each other without the presence of an external observer--they know what each other is thinking, they always do. Emi and Imi shift a bit on the edge of the bed to make themselves comfortable and keep watch throughout the night, as promised.