third punt | dream

[heavyheels]

OOC NOTES: TRIGGER WARNINGS; PLEASE BE ADVISED - GORE, CANNIBALISM, OTHERWISE DISTURBING IMAGERY BENEATH THE CUT. MORE GORE AND VIOLENCE LIKELY IN THE COMMENTS (will be updated as needed). Dream is written prose-style but action tags are more than welcome. This dream is OPEN to all, so please feel free to encounter Chie. n__n

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[notmycreampuffs]

She tries not to come back here too often. It's difficult, Naoki's phone calls and Naoki's letters are an ever present source of conflict, a tugging at a place she thought she'd long learned to ignore and disregard.

At least when it's raining, the town grows a little less stagnant.

Bumped into outside Aiya, she takes a quick step back to keep from losing her balance, one hand out to steady her assailant - or perhaps just to keep distance between the two. Her tone is unimpressed, but not entirely unkind, "Wow, where's the fire?"

[heavyheels]

Chie screeches to a halt, half-gasping for breath from the adrenaline rush. "S-senpai?" No ... no, she can't - not here, not with Souji -

But there's no time to explain. Souji could be right behind her, and if he was determined to turn into a monster, into Adachi, she knew Saki would be an obvious target.

"We have to go. It's not safe, it's - " Souji, Adachi, everything is wrong - She waves the other girl toward her, out into the rainy streets, away from Aiya. "Come with me. Please." She hopes the note of desperation in her tone will be enough to stave off the questions that would cost precious time.

[notmycreampuffs]

Saki takes the opportunity to look at this girl - Satonaka-san, she thinks - as if she’s grown three heads.

“What, is this like - some chase thing? ‘Come with me if you want to live’?” Her tone is partly teasing, partly utterly incredulous, partly soured with disbelief, the latter colouring her expression. “Sorry, kid. I’m busy.” Tugging at the collar of her coat, Saki begins to turn away.

[heavyheels]

"No, Senpai - it's not a joke! It's - " Chie's in such a panic, she can hardly get the words out, tongue tripping over the syllables.

She doesn't have the time to explain; Souji comes out onto the street through the door, dragging the tip of his blood-soaked sword on the ground behind him. There's blood on his face, down the front of his shirt, and his expression is set in a menacing smirk.

"Where do you think you're going?" he says, voice distorted. Chie shrieks.

"Senpai! Come with me!"

[endofdaydream]

[ She doesn't recognize these streets. Ange has been in fairly different sorts of places with her investigation back home, from upper-class neighborhoods to backalleys, but yet she doesn't recognize this specific place. Not to mention that it's raining and the wind is tugging on her and--

That's when she notices someone who does look familiar running there, even if the look on her face isn't quite what Ange expected her to see. But with these unfamiliar surroundings Chie is right now the only thing she can hold on to as a familiar point, and so she calls out, running over to her. ]

-- Chie!

[heavyheels]

[a voice, calling her name - chie glances over and sees ange, and the intense feeling of panic redoubles.]

Ange-san?

[chie skids to a halt and stands, waiting, in the rain. she can't let ange see souji. she can't let souji see ange. he'll kill her, and she's already died once at adachi's hand, because chie failed to protect her. she can't let it happen again.]

Ange-san, we have to go, now. It isn't safe! [the blood splattered on her clothing should be a glaring indication, at least.]

[endofdaydream]

[ She doesn't notice the blood until now, and while the blood itself doesn't faze Ange - she has seen enough of that in her life by now already - there's enough off about it to trust Chie's words on this one, so she gives a slight nod. ]

Why.. What's even going on?

[heavyheels]

Something's wrong with Souji.

[a BIG something, yes.]

We have to go. We can't let him find us!

[dragon_savior]

[The city of Inaba is something wholly new to Ryu, the modern look of the buildings was a far cry from what he was used to, and he probably looks just as out of place with his sword and armor. With his hair matting against his forehead from the rain, he's looking for a place to duck into and dry off.

It was when he saw Chie, and the expression on her face that he was a little worried.]

Chie? What's the matter?

[heavyheels]

Ryu?

[chie'd hoped she could run fast enough and get to the police station, or maybe even find dojima before anyone could get near the diner and souji. no such luck, apparently.]

Ryu, it isn't safe! We have to get away.

[dragon_savior]

What do you mean it isn't safe? What's going on?

[He hadn't seen her this worried since the fight with Adachi.]

[heavyheels]

[she hasn't BEEN this worried since that fight.]

It's Souji - s-something's wrong with me, and he's - he - he's going to kill us. We have to go, now! [she waves, signaling for him to follow her down the street, toward the south end of the shopping district.] This way!

i've been waiting for this

[theloverscard]

[The first thing Rise did, suddenly running through the rainy streets of Inaba, was try to go to her Grandma's tofu shop for shelter. But finding it locked (even the spare key was missing for some reason), she decided maybe to head to Kanji's place for help. Surely somebody had to be home around here, right? She was gonna freeze otherwise!

Passing Aiya's, she was nearly run over by Chie.]

Ah-... Chie-senpai?! [She exclaims in surprise.]

my body is ready n_n

[heavyheels]

[chie stumbles to a halt just short of knocking the other girl over, gasping.]

Rise-chan! Quick - come with me! We can't stay here ...

don't overdo it

[theloverscard]

Uhh... Wait, what's going on? Why're you in such a rush? Did something happen?

n__n

[heavyheels]

It's Souji-kun. He's - he's gone crazy or something ... he's going to kill us!

[toplay_thefool]

He's seen it all.

He dreamed he sat in Aiya, along the bar. He dreamed he saw himself come in, saw Chie with him. And he'd been - he'd felt -- heartened, seeing it. It had been reassuring, a reminder of their friendship, a reassurance that they'd work things out, this rift, this wall between them.

He's watched himself as he ate that head, Adachi's head, delicately at first, with precise movements of his chopsticks, and then - then -

As Chie runs from the store he's left at the bar, watching himself, watching his hands dig into the bowl and - bile rises in his throat and it's far, far too difficult to look away.

He knows what this is, knows vaguely that this is a dream, and not his, but hers. That she's dreaming this - he can't even begin to consider that right now, can barely even consider the things he said to her when Chie has fled and he's sitting there, left at the bar, watching himself, watching his hands dig into the bowl and

[heavyheels]

Chie only gets as far as the bulletin board outside Aiya before her limbs grow too heavy to move and she has to stop. It's as if there's some unseen force around her - the harder she pushes against the ground, the more resistance she meets, and the slower she moves - like trying to sprint through the deep end of the pool. She stops, bent over to catch her breath, and looks back to the door of the diner.

She sees Souji standing there, and she all but screams: "No!"

[toplay_thefool]

"I'm not -" he manages, stumbling backwards in an attempt to put her more at ease. He's not what? Not a cannibal? Not the thing behind them in the restaurant? Not a murderer? Not that cruel, that cold?

He gulps down air, swallows hard, hands coming up before him to say he doesn't mean harm. His eyes sting - he ignores it, can barely bring himself to look at her, feels like collapsing on the pavement.

"That wasn't me," he manages, and it surprises him - the way his voice wavers, cracks.

[heavyheels]

"Stay away from me!" Chie's voice is thick with both anger and tears as she spins around to face him, ever fiber in her body on the defensive. She should run, she knows she should run far away, yet she's rooted to the spot.

It doesn't matter what Souji says, or that his approach is nonthreatening. All Chie can remember is what happened in the diner, and that's all she sees when she looks at him.