towerofanimus | [OPEN]

Entry tags:

[ou] naminé

[OPEN]

Characters: [OU] Naminé and anybody who finds her/her Shadow.
Setting: All over the tower
Format: Up to you
Summary: Naminé's shadow is running around... being nice to people? For the most part, anyway. (Watch out, she's kind of emotional.) Still, this is probably going to get awkward once the real Naminé catches up to her. / Yeah, it gets messy.
Warnings: Emotional Shadow, denial, Shadow Boss Fight and all that entails.

[NORMAL MODE]

[Naminé - or at least someone who looks exactly like her - appears to be in a very strange mood today. Every little thing seems to effect her; one second she's smiling fit to put the sun out of business and the next it looks like rainclouds are what she'll be replacing. The longer she spends on her own, the more distraught she seems to get, but since she appears to be seeking out anyone she(?) knows or recognizes, chances are she'll remedy that problem soon enough. Anybody that's ever met Naminé is likely to be mercilessly hunted down and... smiled at? Whatever the reason, she seems to be very happy to see anyone, anyone at all, but especially the people that she's already met before, and even more so the people she's formed more proper a friendship with. So, anybody that she sees will likely be accosted upon discovery by a very cheerful young lady. (Careful, though - she's liable to be very sad if she's not treated well.)]

[The real Naminé will be searching the tower herself, trying not quite frantically but about as close as she gets, to find her double. Passersby may be accosted by this Naminé as well, only this one appears to be consistently grim and concerned, and she's looking for information regarding the location of her duplicate.]

[BOSS MODE]

[Whoops. So apparently, someone had trouble accepting that this strange person wandering around was part of her - not only due to her own issues with denial but also because come on, how could she trust something like that in this particular Tower, infamous for screwing with people as it is?]

[Floor to ceiling, it seem like everywhere you look there is a giant mass of chains, shifting as though they're alive. In the center of it all is the Shadow Naminé, held aloft by those chains. Clothed in a dress that seems to go on forever, she's draped head to toe in white fabric. The bottom is loose and flowing, the ends cut in a pattern of semi-circles. The front is short enough for the ends of her toes to almost show, assuming she has them, but the back forms quite the train. The middle and bodice are the only things that seem to be tight, and quite tight at that; in combination with the bottom and the long, flowing sleeves that repeat the pattern of semi-circles but go so far past her hands as to totally obscure them and hang off, flying about with her motions when she makes them, she almost seems too thin in the middle. Veiled as she is, the only part of her skin that shows is the space between her nose and about where the line of the real girl's dress usually is. The Shadow's skin is just slightly paler than its counterpart's, though her lips and cheeks are darker, more noticable and expressive, almost, despite the fact that her eyes are obscured. She's almost reminiscent of some the lesser Nobodies, with their wasp waists and strange limbs and flexibility and their apparent lack of eyes, only what's underneath seems almost disturbingly human, for such a creature.]

[It'd likely be hard enough to get to her with just the chains everywhere, but what's worse is that she also seems to be making use of Corridors of Darkness. Fortunately for passersby, she only seems to be interested in attacking Naminé, both with the chains (which the girl is doing her best to block with Reflect, though she'll soon tire at this rate) and with less obvious means. This is also a clash of similar powers, powers over the mind and heart; at first it is visible only in Naminé's apparent distraction, but as time goes by and the battle gets more intense, something about the whole area just seems wrong, like it isn't quite real. Those who are sensitive to such things may notice a fairly terrifying amount of magical/psychic energy that just keeps building up.]

[Those who choose to interfere will find that, unless they attempt to attack her directly, the Shadow Naminé will not attack them. She will say things to discourage them from doing so, but only if they persist to the point of injuring her will she actually fight back. Mental attacks on those susceptible include attempted memory removal and causing intense headaches and/or hallucinations, but the real Naminé will be doing her best to block such things with her own influence. Aside from that, there's the kind of stuff that Naminé will not be able to help much with, like direct attacks from the chains. For the most part, such attacks will be limited to attempting to restrain the interloper and/or cast them into a portal and send them to another part of the tower, usually a benign one where they will not be injured but are nevertheless removed from the fight until they can get back to where it is, should they choose to return. Actually attempting to hurt someone will only happen if they have repeatedly damage the Shadow Naminé and will be limited to attempted knockouts with as little permanent/fatal injury as can be managed.]

[Needless to say, Naminé is going to need some help.]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

No.

[His answer is firm.] I'm not just going to leave you to this. What type of fucking friend would I be if I just ditched halfway through?

Sorry, but you're kind of stuck with me. You'll just have to deal.

[For a second, it looks like she might continue to protest, but once that moment is over, she stops, shuts her mouth, then... nods, not quite but almost smiling.]

Alright. I'll deal.

[That said, now comes the unfortunate time where she has to turn her attention back to her Shadow, who's smiling like a cat who caught a canary (only more calmly, perhaps.)]

... Funny, isn't it, that you've made so many friends here.

[Which seems to somehow be offensive to the original Naminé, if the slight shift in her expression is any indication.]

[Dave doesn't say anything, but he frowns a bit.

He wasn't sure what her Shadow was implying.]

[The real Naminé glances sidelong at him for a moment, almost as if checking for any sort of realization, but turns her eyes quickly back to her Shadow.]

... I wouldn't call it funny.

But you know what I mean, don't you? What it's proof of?

-- It's not proof of anything. It's--....

... An indiscretion?

[The real Naminé falters, then frowns deeply.]

I didn't mean--

I know exactly what you mean. I'm you, remember?

[Wow. This conversation means absolutely jack shit to him.

He doesn't say anything though, letting the two converse. It's not like he can do anything right now. He can just be here and make sure that Namine is safe. Or try to keep her safe.]

[Which is... a pretty enormous relief, to tell the truth. Inasmuch as she can tell, him being clueless about it is a welcome development, because this would only be more difficult if it were to cause some mess with him, as well.]

... If you are, then you should know the truth as well as I do.

Has it ever occurred to you that maybe I know it even better? Unlike you, I don't lie to myself. Wouldn't things be so much nicer if you were like this all the time? Happy? Free? Even sad - we both know how much it would mean to us.

But it's not--

It is, Naminé, no matter how long you ignore it. Just because everyone told you that doesn't make it true.

[Gosh, this shadow is infuriating. The real girl stops to press her lips together, visibly conflicted.]

[Dave would almost be inclined to agree with the shadow though. At least in terms of not everything said is true.

But he doesn't voice his opinion. This is something between Namine and her Shadow.

He doesn't quite know what's going on though. Is Namine not usually these things? She always seemed fine, even if a little guarded at times. But it's one of those moments where he really doesn't know much about her.]

[It's one of the many times todays she's wished her Shadow would just shut her mouth and keep it shut. Dave does not need to hear those things, at least not like this, but he's already made his position on leaving clear.]

We've never-- I mean, I've never... found proof that it wasn't.

Tears aren't proof enough? Can you really say that you did all of that on purpose?

....

[The real Naminé falls silent, staying that way for some time, and her Shadow smiles, almost as if she knows she's won some game.]

... What do I have to do to get you to go away?

[It's not as angry as it could be; mostly, it's just tired.]

Accept me. Accept the truth. That's all I want.

[Dave doesn't say anything but he cautiously puts a hand on Namine's shoulder. At least in an attempt in being comforting. Or at least so she knows she has support in whatever she decides.

He can't really do much else in this situation.]

[She sucks in a breath, slower than it could have been but still a bit sharp. It's out of surprise, and only a quiet sort of it. She turns to look at him, eyes meeting his - or his shades, at least - and it's obvious that she knows what he means to do, at least. It is comforting, in its way, even if this is something part of her tells her she should be doing alone. There is a slow, shallow nod his direction, and then she turns back to her Shadow.]

... You... may be a part of me. Or at least - something like that.

[She knows too much not to have some kind of insider information, at least. The Shadow eyes her, expression just a little bit amused, and then,]

That's all?

[Naminé falters, hesitates, struggles with a frown, and then,]

I'll... think about what you said. ... I promise.

[The Shadow pauses, that quiet amusement growing, then, finally,]

... Good enough.

[She stretches out a hand. Naminé, uncertain though she is and is the glance she casts Dave's way, moves cautiously forward to reach out and take that hand. Right as the Shadow begins to disappear, she turns just enough to look directly at Dave, and she smiles.]

[And then she's gone, and there is only Naminé herself standing there, looking quietly perplexed but more than a little relieved.]

[Dave is kind of taken aback when the shadow turns and smiles at him. Oh. Well, okay that happened. He isn't sure why, but he doesn't question it either. He can't ask anyways now that she's disappeared. Still, it makes him wonder what her shadow knows. Or at least knew.

He turns his attention back on Namine when the shadow disappears, tucking that memory off.]

Hey. Uh...you okay?

[It takes her a moment to respond, almost as if there's still something going on her mind, but she does eventually shake her head slightly - not at him but to clear it. Then she turns back to him, eyes serious, and nods. There's a delay, and then she smiles.]

I'm fine, I think. Just... a little shaken.

Yeah...you want to just head back to your room and call it a day? [He imagines that she's pretty much done with today. It's been kind of a long day for her especially.

He can imagine she's not the only one having trouble either.]

[She takes a deep breath, seems to reconsider what she'd been about to use it to say, and ends up with,]

I think that might be for the best. [Unconsciously, she casts a hand over her hair, a frown tugging at her lips for a moment before she turns her eyes back up to him. She watches him a moment, then,]

Are you okay? You were doing most of that...!

Huh? Yeah. I'm used to the whole fighting thing. You get used to it when you got time at your fingertips. [He's live this day way too long. He thinks he's pretty much done with it too.]

I'll walk you back to your room. [Just to make sure no trouble comes her way.]

[Her eyes drift for just a moment to where the Shadow was, then back to him. She's frowning slightly.] Good. I'm... so glad she didn't hurt you too badly. [It would have been twice as bad as him getting hurt in general, knowing it had been on some level her fault. She cannot, however, help looking him over again, eyes quietly concerned. She's... frustrated with herself - more than she would be able to admit - that she couldn't have dealt with it sooner, without involving him.]

-- Are you sure it wouldn't be too much trouble. You've already done so much. [Even if the idea is a distinctly comforting one; she could use the sense of security both of having his company and knowing he's not getting into trouble elsewhere.]

Just a flesh wound. [Or would have been. He isn't a stranger to injuries, so he probably would have been okay with getting hurt if it meant protecting her. That's what knights do, right?] I'm more glad you didn't get hurt or kick the bucket.

Naw. I think we both could do for a nice walk that doesn't end in some magical boss fight. [His tone is light.]

[Her frown stays nevertheless, even as she studies him.] I'd have to say the opposite. [She's more glad that he didn't--] If there's anything I can do to help, just... let me know.

[But she knows she's more or less useless in such a situation, and it troubles her. Anyway--] I... think that would be nice, yes. [Although, now that it comes to mind - what was going on with him and her Shadow before--]

I'm fine. Honest. Maybe I'll be a bit sore after, but that's normal.

[He motions at her to head back to the staircase with him. It takes probably every ounce of his being not to instinctively grab her by the hand.] Lets go. It's been a long day.

[It seems to satisfy her for now, though there's still concern in her expression as she nods.]

[She moves to walk next to him without hesitation, but she does spend perhaps an unusual amount of time considering him as she does.] ... Hey, Dave?

What's up?

[He keeps walking, but he turns his head slightly to glance at her.]

[She's already watching him, though she doesn't answer right away.]

... What was going on before I found you?

[With her Shadow.]

Oh. [Welp.]

I was looking for you and I ran into her. All the other Shadows have been kind of off their rocker crazy or creepy as shit that I didn't really think much of it. I mean, she kind of reacted a lot more to some of the stuff I said, but she was pretty normal comparably to others.

[Really reactive and much more forward in conversation. In retrospect, he probably should have realized the difference. Whoops.]

[She's not quite sure how to take that, really, or what it's supposed to mean. (Either the shadow's nature or his assessment thereof.) Her hesitation to ask the next part is obvious, but ask it she eventually does.]

... Did you... know she wasn't me?

[--....]

Or... not the right me.

[Just in case it's still listening, somehow.]

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