deercountry | (no subject)

[that startles mob a bit. going to someone else's house? that... sounded nice.] I'd like that. If it isn't too much trouble.

[what an oddly nice day. it makes him... nervous. happy.

something about the world shudders. down the path they're walking stand some figures, faces hard to make out, one with a mop of dark hair and one with hair vividly pink.]

[Sunny shakes his head.] It's no trouble. [He wasn't the sort to offer if he wasn't serious about it.

Though, perhaps, the thought does make him nervous. Not because of Mob, really, but because of the strange feelings he's been getting ever since he had started school earlier that day.

His eyes drift off, slowly falling onto the figures down the pathway. For some reason, his heart skips a beat. He's not entirely sure why, he can't even see their faces. But...

Maybe turning down a different way would be better. Sunny takes stock of the area around them, seeing if there was a path they could turn off at.]

[the problem with the people down the path isn't entirely obvious. there's just something off about them, like someone only glanced at their faces and remembered them from memory. the gaze slides off them easily.

mob doesn't bat an eye. the pink haired one holds a bat.]

Where are you going? [she asks. even mob looks a little confused before glancing down. something about all this felt off even to him, something wasn't right.]

[No, no, there was definitely something wrong about these people. Sunny isn't even sure what, just that they make him want to Run. It's a visceral reaction he can't even put a name to.

They were familiar and entirely foreign at the same time.

He freezes at the question, eyes going wide. She was... talking to him, wasn't she? For some reason he felt sure she wasn't directing it at Mob.]

How fast can you run? [An anxious question for Mob. They needed to not be here. He needed to not be here.]

[mob blinks and glances over, sunny's fear spiking his own. the girl walks closer.]

this is the world. you hurt them. they'll hurt you.

I- [mob starts to turn but he's not fast, no, and the girl grabs his wrist. he pulls uselessly.]

run away. that's who you are.

[Sunny wants to run. He wants to run. He wants to run. He takes a few steps back without intending to, eyes going wider as he watches the people in front of him. Takes in the girl grabbing Mob's wrist.

Who was that? Who was she? Who were they? Why- why were they making Sunny feel this way?

Like he'd done something to them. Something horrible. Something unforgivable. If they hurt him... that was something he deserved. He deserved it, didn't he? But he- he didn't want to deal with it.

He never did. He never could.

And, there was Mob. Mob didn't deserve it. Did he? No, this was something Sunny had coming to him.

Sunny clutches his hands to his head, shutting his eyes tightly as his heart pounded and the world spun around him. No, no, no. There was something- there was something about this that wasn't right. It wasn't.

That girl had pink hair. He didn't know anyone with pink hair but-

But hadn't Aubrey and Mari said they were going to dye their hair together.? Aubrey's would be pink and Mari's purple but she never got to do it because-

Sunny's breathing hitches further. Because- Because why. Why.

What had he done?]

S-stop. [He doesn't even know who he's directing it to. Himself? The people in front of him? Something else?] What is-

[the bat lifts. the butt of it goes into mob's stomach with a jerky motion, making him double over, a vice grip still on his wrist. the bat lifts again. mob is on his knees, gasping.

run away, you'll only make it worse. you only make everything worse.

the other teen with her, the boy, stares at sunny. the bat bat starts it swing downward, for mob.]

[No. No. No. Sunny can't breathe. He didn't want this to happen to Mob. But he was afraid. He didn't want to be there. He wanted to run away but he also didn't want to. He was trying to be better.

He was trying to be better because of why?

Because-

Because he'd hurt them.

The sound of Mob's gasping makes him wince.

But Aubrey- it was Aubrey- it wasn't Aubrey but it was. She wouldn't hurt Mob. Even if she'd hurt Sunny for what he did (you killed her) she wouldn't hurt someone like Mob. She'd never do that.

Kel- Kel would never just watch this. Never. Never.

He couldn't do this. He couldn't. This wasn't right. They shouldn't be here. They needed to go. They needed to.

As tears run down Sunny's face and he still clutches at himself, the world starts to fade. It loses what little color it has as outlines fade into white. The bat never reaches Mob again, as it's white. It's nothing. It's nowhere. They are the only people. Sunny and Mob. The only color in this world.

Mewo sleeps peacefully on a white cloth over a white floor. The world is white. There is single light bulb radiating black.

Welcome to White Space.]

[mob blinks.

he's kneeling still, though the aches and pains he's grown accustomed to are gone. no bruises on his knees from falling, no scrapes up his arm for being shoved, no loose teeth. not a bandage in sight and he stares at his hands for a moment, confused.

ah. that wasn't real. it was never real. it was just a memory of a fake place. the trench did that sometimes.

(71%)

he glances over to mewo, then the lightbulb, then sunny. sunny was never in that world, why was he part of it? mob vaguely remembers that day but it didn't go like that. there was no new students. no one ever stood up for him. everyone laughed.

it wasn't real. he blinks once more, standing slowly. was this a dream?]

Sunny...?

[Sunny is still panicking, but was growing calmer as the moments went on. Slowly he drops his hands from his head, expression becoming less tense. More neutral.

There was nothing that could hurt them here.

He hadn't wanted to rely on this place. He hadn't been back here since he'd arrived in the trench. But he was here now. Sunny, not Omori.

And so was Mob.

Sunny lifts his head to look over at Mob when he speaks.]

Mob. [He takes some deep breaths in, calming himself some more.] I must have brought us here. [Another pause.] Are you alright?

I'm alright. [72%, 73%

he walks over, gazing around again.] Where are we? I think we were in a memory before. [but where did sunny bring them? it's

nice? maybe that's the word. it feels safe. quiet. that's nice.]

Okay. [Sunny does regard him for another moment or so, concerned, before he moves on.]

This is White Space. There isn't much of anything here. [Do not start thinking this is a cool comfortable place, Mob!!

But anyway, Sunny pauses to think for a second about what Mob said.]

That was... your memory?

It's nice. [too late...] Oh, did your power bring us here?

[he's never seen a psychic with a... pocket dimension? or something? maybe they're in sunny's head? which is a bit unsettling, in a way, but not too bad because it was sunny.]

Oh, yeah. It's okay though, it wasn't real. [he moves over to mewo, crouching to give her a pet. looking to sunny after a moment.] Are you okay? That place is pretty upsetting.

[No, it's not nice!!!!] I think so. I didn't know they could do that...

[Which raised questions about what else they could do. He glances down, not to divert his gaze, but as though he's looking through the floor to something below it.]

It felt real. [That was what mattered, wasn't it? Mewo lifts her head and gives Mob a small 'mrr' in thanks for the pets.] I'll be alright. I wasn't in there for that long.

[Unlike someone else!!] ...I'm sorry that happened to you.

Thank you. [that's said after a beat of quiet. bringing them here, away from all that- it could have gotten worse. so much worse. for him, for sunny.] You're brave, Sunny.

[for standing up in that world. for helping them escape. sunny was a good person. a good friend.

mob was grateful. he needed to make sure sunny knew it, too.

his hand pauses over mewo for a moment, thinking of- not thinking of something. everything's fine.] It was during a job. [he feels he at least owes sunny this.] An evil spirit possessed Asagiri, that girl in our- in class. I had to go into her self to try to kick him out from the inside.
The spirit made that world. [very flat.]

I got him out, she was okay.

...You're welcome. [Sunny didn't feel brave. Not at all. The entire time all he wanted to do was run away. That's what he had done, in the end. Run away. Though at least he'd been able to take Mob with him. He hadn't abandoned him, which was an improvement over how he normally was.

He moves over closer to Mob, listening carefully to what the other teen was saying.]

She was mean. [Blunt.] It was kind of you to help her. [Mob was a really good person, wasn't he? Sunny didn't know if he would have done the same in his shoes.

He sits down on the white-on-white blanket, still watching Mob.] You can talk more about it. [Since that description had been a little sparce.] People tell me I'm good at listening.

She wants to change, I think. [a very long beat of staring at mewo a little spacily. everything fine.jpg.] They made me realize a lot about bad people, and how easy it is to get trapped in that sort of thing. It's hard to snap out of it, I think. But people can and do.

[he's seen it a lot. it's nice to see.

(deep down, pressing against the walls of this place might be the raging thing that wishes it didn't always have to be his burden to bear for them until they did. if people would stop using him to figure themselves out. it scratches against the walls.)

he looks to sunny.] You are. [sunny was easy to talk to. but-] I'm not sure what there is to say. I'm just sorry you had to deal with it.

I saw one of sensei's memories but I couldn't interact with it at all. I wonder what happened...

[That's a good take on things.] Yeah... I want to imagine it's possible to become a better person, even if you've done terrible things. [Because he thinks of himself as an awful person but you know.

Sunny finds himself looking down again, but whether it's because he senses something or because he's simply aware of the fact that black space is down there, it isn't clear. Maybe it's because he can tell Mob definitely has more issues with that horrible world than he was letting on. Who wouldn't?]

Hm, how it hurt you? Venting. [He glances back up again.]

Was it a bad memory?

[sunny you are going to get suplexed with affection and admiration one of these days, mr 'bad person.' regardless mob nods.] I've seen a lot of really bad people change. It's possible. It always is.

[he didn't want to exist in a world where it wasn't.

venting, huh? he tilts his head, eyes straying to the lightbulb again. what an odd place this was.] I'm not sure how that would help. Wouldn't it just be stewing on bad things? [okay mr repression.]

Hm... in some ways. It ended well, but it was really stressful and scary for sensei at that time. Someone wanted to fight that he didn't want to fight. [daniel is such a mood, tbh] He was the only one who could do anything. It's... he's really reliable, and handled it, but I wish he didn't have to.

[It always was, huh? Mob seemed to believe it, so Sunny would try to, too. People could change. Sunny could change.]

No, I don't think so. The things are still there, even if you try to ignore them. [He rubs his thumb against the fabric of the rug.] They'll keep getting louder. [Until you couldn't ignore them anymore, and that was when things got really bad.]

I wish he didn't have to, either. Sometimes things don't work out like that, though. [He lays down, staring up at the lightbulb. This was too familiar.] I'm glad it turned out alright for him.

[mob says nothing for a beat before he shifts to lie down a little bit away from sunny, side by side. watching the lightbulb, embracing the quiet.]

Is that why you have a quiet place like this? [for things that get louder. that- he couldn't deny things eventually got too loud. but his emotions weren't normal. when they came out bad things could happen. bad things did happen. strange things. people wouldn't want to be around him, like that world.

sunny wanted to be around him there. that didn't mean he'd want to otherwise, but it does stick a little.]

That's a bit like what he said. He said it was okay to be scared when those things happened and that people here would come if you called when you were scared. [reciting, then a pause.] Sensei's a really good guy, isn't he?

Yes. [Though he was determined not to fall back into old habits. Maybe it was okay this one time, since it got them out of that horrible world.] Those Things rarely get all the way up here. [Rarely, but not never.

He turns his head to look at Mob.]

He is. I like him. [He pauses.] Everyone here seems so willing to help each other.

But they do get up here. [relatable, in a weird way. all of this, really.] There are some things you can't change, I guess.

[he doesn't sound happy about that, though the tone is very faint. if only there were things that could just... go away. gone, forever. they weren't needed.]

The spirit that trapped me, Mogami- [a beat there, looks like he's willing to talk about it a little, after a moment's hesitance.] -he wanted me to think the world was cruel and people will always use you. This place is so dangerous but people still try to help. I wish he had been lucky enough to see that side of people.

They do. [Staring upward silently for a long moment, thinking of what to say in response to that- talk about his own experience- when Mob continues. He turns his head to face him.]

Maybe he has seen it, but he couldn't bring himself to believe in it. [A pause.] The world can seem really dark sometimes. It isn't all bad, but it can be hard to convince yourself of that sometimes.

I guess so. People say it's easy to get pulled into things like that. Hating people, being angry.

Maybe they get tired of trying. But then they just become the reason other people get tired of trying. [a slow blink to the ceiling.] I hope I never get tired of trying.

[who could stop him if he did?]