☠ 003 | tell me about the dream where we pull the bodies out of the lake

[destructiveprinciple]

Characters: Avenger and OPEN to all.
Setting: Dormitory levels, and then the first floor, the tenth floor, and the hundred and one floor.
Format: Preference for action spam.
Summary: Backdated aftermath from last month's event along with an open log for this month.
Warnings: There... is... Angra Mainyu in this post? Fair warning?

[ SCENARIO A || DORM LEVELS: CLOSED TO SABER OF WHITE (backdated to directly after the event) ]

[ Saber hadn't turned up for breakfast. Or lunch. Or dinner.

She hadn't attended their sparring sessions for two days in a row now either. It was troubling to Shirou; while he had not crossed paths with her during the entire mess himself, all of the other residents who had been victimized by the administration's operations and brainwashing been restored to their normal selves. So, surely she had been no exception to this small kindness. Yet, try as he might to be patient and wait it out by reasoning to himself that the Servant had much more pressing matters to attend to than personally visiting a former Masters of hers, he'd cracked after one day and attempted to seek her out.

He'd failed to find her, of course. Miserably. (No surprise, a voice in the back of his head taunted him. You couldn't even save a single person when they were suffering right front of you, and you expect to able to fulfill a simple task like locating Saber when she clearly doesn't want to be found? Don't make me laugh. Shut up. Shut up.) He'd gone and done something stupid like die when Rin had died for him to stay safe from a maddened Archer. Stupid moron. He wasn't going to sit back and just leave Saber to her own devices.

Not that failure had discouraged him. If diligently looking floor by floor on foot would be fruitless, Shirou would resort to more under-handed measures. Like cooking some pastries, putting them in a basket and setting out for Saber's room several days later. The restaurant on the twenty-first floor had been a pain to bargain with for the high quality ingredients he had wanted, and the tasks that had given to him as a method of payment were just as grueling, but Shirou felt little annoyance in accomplishing them. It was an unimportant detail compared to the results.

If Saber was injured or didn't wish to speak to him, at least he'd be able to feed her before making himself scarce or... Finding somebody to fix her injuries. Unless she wasn't hurt at all. Which would be great, really it would. He didn't want her to be harmed.

Shaking his head to cut off the mental babbling, Shirou raised his fist and knocked politely on the room's door. ]


[ SCENARIO B || FLOOR 1: CAFETERIA ]

[ Now, the person busily cooking his feelings about injustice and being unable to fix all the problems in front of him and confusion regarding emotions, in the kitchen is probably a terribly familiar face to whose who frequent the cafeteria regularly.

As reliable as clockwork, the teenager comes in very early in the morning to place the food inside the oversized oven to be baked and then removes it from the oven to transfer the food to clean plates, before taking the neatly ranged dishes out in the cafeteria for any resident to eat as per the job the administration had assigned to him.

Once that was done, it was back to the kitchens to cook even more, and that is what brings us to our current state of affairs: Emiya Shirou engaging in one of his favorite hobbies—cooking in times of crisis. And rather oblivious to any possible incoming threats of being talked at, and bothered by other people. He was actually much more pleased with the wider range of ingredients available this month, and honestly didn't mind the persistent flower theme that came with it. It had definably won the administrator in charge of this month—Riki—points in his book. ]


[ SCENARIO C || FLOOR 10: AQUARIUM ]

[ Angra has strange ways of amusing himself to pass the time. Such as going down to the futuristic aquarium in the middle of the night, wandering away from the post he normally took beside his Master's dormitory, and playing with the fish.

The glassless tanks of water suspended in place contain a countless, teeming multitude of fish, all darting to and fro or drifting lazily through the blue, and caustic light dappled the ground and the black figure of the Servant in rippling patterns. Schools of the fish swirled and dove in unison, faint light glimmering off their scale. Down further, it was possible to make out the distant blue shapes of larger marine creatures. A shark swam past, its mouth of sharp and jagged teeth visible.

He dipped his arm into the horizontal surface of the water, dozens of bubbles flying upward inside, and after several patient attempts, snagged a small fish. Pulling his dripping wet arm out of the aquarium, he inspected the fish that wiggled and squirmed in his grip, the curved lines of the gills flaring pointlessly for oxygen, and considered gutting it. A few drops of water dripped down onto the floor.

Sometimes he would only let them rapidly suffocate from their removal out of the water, doing nothing until they perished. Another option was he'd pull them apart and rip them into two and three and four before tossing the bloody bits back into the aquarium so the carnivorous fish could have an easy meal.

Or there were times when Angra just held the fish for a few seconds before sticking his arm back into the aquarium and releasing it unharmed into its proper environment. ]


[ SCENARIO D || FLOOR 101: GARDENS ]

[ —The surroundings around him were a verdant paradise; hundreds of pots of plants, thriving green gardens, trees coated in vines, and thousands of kinds of vegetation that broke over the edges of the floor and spilled onto the others below and above it. The hanging gardens were a floor rarely visited and he had assumed he would achieve a small measure of solitude here for awhile to be alone and be lazy.

And Angra is seated crosslegged in one of the more obscure spots, engaging in an activity that would likely surprise anybody who knew of him.

Reading.

He was reading a strange packet of papers bound tightly by a worn cover; if somebody got close enough to look, it becomes even stranger given that text is constantly appearing on the yellowed pages and scrolling across the paper of its own volition like an automatic typewrite that was operating itself without the hands of a person to type in a message. The words are in an old dialect and untranslated.

We suppose you can try to start up a conversation. Or something. ]


[ SCENARIO E || ANYWHERE IN THE TOWER: YOUR PICK]

[ Generally, Angra wanders through an assortment of floors at night and shows little concern for which ones he ends up on as long as they are neither overly threatening or extreme. It's possible to find him sitting on tombstones in the cemetery staring at the fabrication of the skies on one floor, slinking through the sandy caverns on another floor, or walking over the farmland on one of the lower floors. And elsewhere.

'Shirou' is much more easy to run into during the day, tinkering with dented toasters in the workshop, hanging out in the media room, or obsessively patrolling the hallways and floors of the Towers as normal. ]

Comments

Media Room, "Shirou", sup 8)

[sawthelockdown]

[Asako has been in the media room more often lately. Mostly, of course, it's to distract herself from the utter bullshit over the last few months. What better way is there to recover from a meltdown and from seeing the end of everything than to beat up zombies in a video game?

There isn't a better way.

So, when "Shirou" walks in, the tiny girl in an oversized cape and cat-eared headphones will pause the game and nod at him.] H'lo.

Media Room, |D fate/drama

[heroicprinciple]

[ The media room is a popular place in the Tower, so seeing other people using the consoles isn't surprising... Oh, that's a cape wrapped around her shoulders. It's a little big on this girl, he can't help but notice and wonders she had absent-minded tailors to be so careless as to give her the incorrect size.

'Shirou' responds to her greeting in a relaxed manner. ]

Hi. Uh, good morning. [ He waves a bit before walking over in her direction. Not gonna lie, he is intrigued by the beaten up zombies on the television screen since it seems like a decent outlet. ]

fate/drama indeed

[sawthelockdown]

[Careless, trolls, demons, any and all of the above! Speaking of which, this kid ain't human. Obviously. She might've been at some point, but right now...

Right now she's a demon playing a video game. Go figure. When she notices Shirou looking at the game, that grin of hers widens.] They're fun, aren't they? The games here, I mean. I'm pretty sure this one's co-op, so you can hop in if you like!

|DDD yep

[heroicprinciple]

[ Her state of inhumanity will be something that goes unnoticed by him since yeah, there are no reliable supernatural radar to be found in him, unless you're a Servant or variation thereof, beyond a vague sense of this girl is strange that lingers in the back of his mind.

He isn't opposed to her invitation since huh, what's the harm in it? She seems like she wouldn't mind some company, and the video game did look fun. Sitting down and grabbing a control for himself! ] I can't argue with that. They have a nice variety of them for a supposed post-apocalypic world... Hm, thanks. You don't mind?

[ Guess we're hopping onto her game to beat the gory crap out of the evil zombies. He briefly fiddles with the buttons to set up his part. ]

cafeteria.

[madokacries]

[ Food!

Food reminds her of Papa's cooking, and she doesn't know her way around enough to wander the tower. So naturally, she gravitates towards the cafe. Sadly, though, she's only able to eat Oatmeal because she doesn't want to throw up. She'll be watching Avenger from some tables away, picking at her bowl of Oatmeal despite not being very hungry. ]

cafeteria.

[heroicprinciple]

[In the midst of setting the trays of food, Shirou looks up and notices an unfamiliar resident seated at one of the tables he is yet to get around, picking with an unenthused expression at her oatmeal. It's only after he's doled out the trays to each table on the way with several trips back and forth from the kitchens, he stops at hers, a tray in hand.]

Hey. You're one of the new arrivals? [Shirou spoke kindly. '-' Do you need a sympathetic ear? Any help? Some decent food?

He wants to feed you because the oatmeal here in the cafeteria is crap.]

[madokacries]

[ Madoka nods, albeit a bit nervously. She's not exactly comfortable with being completely alone and talking to a stranger, but he's probably the cause of the nice aroma and good food that she smells. She doesn't say much though, only glancing up at him with curiosity but mostly fear in her eyes. ]

Y-yes, I woke up in my dorm room this morning...

D

[pinnaculum]

[No floor is safe from Sephiroth, who patrols all of them. When he spies Angra (his friend? associate? acquaintance?), he quickly draws nearer.]

Hello. [He provides his usual simple greeting.] What are you reading?

[It's a natural question for Sephiroth to ask. He enjoys reading himself, and he's endlessly curious, in general as well as about Angra in particular. Also, he's never seen a book quite like that one before. He can't make out the text itself, but his keen vision spots the movement.]

Re: D

[destructiveprinciples]

[સ્̌́ઇઇઅઓથઅના। The language it's written is old, more suited to be scratched onto stone relics than paper. More words appear on the open pages of the book, accurately describing events as they take place and one of those events is Sephiroth approaching him, curiosity chewing its way inside him. Angra temporarily takes his attention away from his book, laying one hand down onto the paper and looks up at him.]

Mm. Hey. [That's the normal response Sephiroth's greeting receives from him.] This? Oh, it's an old scripture.

[And his third-rate Noble Phantasm, but he doesn't mention that.]

[pinnaculum]

A religious text?

[Religion is something Sephiroth just doesn't understand. Believing in imaginary things without empirical evidence makes no sense to him.]

Why does the writing change?

[That's the most interesting thing about it.]

C

[lightofhumanity]

[Occasionally, chaos came into the aquarium to watch the fish, but when he saw and sensed a person pulling out one of the fish, he felt he had to warn them, even if they were capable of taking on some fish.]

I should warn you that the fish might attack you if you keep bothering them.

[destructiveprinciples]

[Angra looks over his shoulder at the newcomer, the small fish still flopping about in weak distress in his drenched hand. The watery patterns of light reflected from the aquarium cover the floor.]

I know that.

[lightofhumanity]

I see..

[The boy must have liked tormenting them then. While it was not something that chaos agreed with, it wasn't something he was going to judge either.]

Might I know why you are pulling them out then?

Scenario C maybe? If we don't want them to "meet", I can gladly do another

[angramaintsu]

[ Wandering at night is something Rin does often. Now that she's more human than grail (the deteriorating process "reset" every time she dies), her curious manner about the tower draws her to floors she's rarely visited before.

Something's off.

It feels familiar? A calling she shouldn't have reaches her ears, but when she looks around, there's only a strange boy tormenting a fish. ]

Hey... [ A scowl crosses her features as a hand rests on her hip. ] Put that down.

Scenario C well. I'm good with this, so it's alright.

[destructiveprinciples]

[The approach of the girl doesn't go unnoticed. After all, it would be difficult to not the taint deeply rooted into her body, vile tendrils entangling her self. It's his own taint. Unlike Sakura, the connection between all the vice in the world and Rin is not severed. A bit of a puzzle.

Angra would wonder what Rin was doing up so late in the dead of night, but he doesn't exactly need to.

He turns sideways on the spot where he is standing, not frowning but not smiling either.]

Huh? [Dark eyes gaze in her direction.] No.

[angramaintsu]

What gives?

[ It doesn't dawn on her. His voice, while vaguely familiar, doesn't ring the same way as the one she hears often. Therefore, it is easy to dismiss any relations between the two in favor of raising her tone. ]

Torturing small creatures like that. What is your problem?

C

[blackwitch]

[ .. Hey, she actually recognizes that sort of thing. After all, she can't say that she hasn't spent days here torturing the fish either, so when she walks in only to find someone else doing it for once, it's almost a little confusing. Or at the very least surprising.

It's why she stands there and just plainly stares for a few moments before realising it's the person from that one time..

Evatrice watches him release one of them again plainly though and then feels she has to speak up. ]

He-y, that's no fun!

C

[destructiveprinciples]

[He doesn't pay any attention to the new person intruding on this floor and the obvious sense of eyes staring at him pressing onto his back, until she speaks up. His arm, wrappings and fingers and all still wet from the water, drop back to his side and he turns to look at her. The fish he had released turned in dazed, wavering circles once or twice before swimming away, lost in the blue.

However, his fingers still have the blood from dead fish on them.

He blinks, nearly a black silhouette in the dim lighting, dappled only by the watery patterns of light cast by the tanks of aquarium.]

Isn't any fun? Letting it go? [Pffff.] Tough luck for you, I guess.

[blackwitch]

"Tough luck"..? No way.

[ She steps over towards the tank - as far as there is a tank, either way, with the lack of glass and all. She glances at him for a moment, but her attention is more focused on the various fish swimming by. When she raises her arm, her golden staff appears in it, and she swings it in the direction of the aquarium. She doesn't even have to touch the fish, her magic does the job for her. Countless fishing hooks seem to appear out of nowhere, digging themselves into one of the fish at once and completely tearing it apart. ]

.. I just wanted to show you how it's properly done, that's all! [ Yes, she's gloating. ]

[no_longer_a_king]

[Arturia, while actively avoiding Shirou, had not realized how extensively he had been looking for her. Not simply because he's Shirou, but because she doesn't believe she deserves it. Not after failing him so miserably, not after being manipulated into killing Archer by the man himself. So she tries to remain in seclusion, only going out to hunt and cook meager meals for herself because she refuses to eat those stupid "nutrition bars" they deign to call food.

She's being selfish, she knows, not handing out food and keeping to herself, but Arturia feels as if she is too much of a mess to be of use to anyone right now. Not to mention she's just tired after first the infiltration downstairs, then the kidnapping and brainwashing, then Archer's manipulation. It's safe to say Arturia wants nothing to do with people at all for the time being. The only reason she's even in her room is to sleep, as she had discovered long ago what not sleeping in your own bed every few days could do to a person.

The knock on the door woke her and she rolled onto her back, running her hands over her eyes before sitting up. With a snap of her fingers that was more out of her own amusement in the moment than necessity, the nightshirt she wore changed to her dress and she rose from the bed. She reaches a hand up to check that, yes, her hair is indeed up and heads to the door to see if it's a visitor for one of her roommates.

She looks visibly shocked to see Shirou there, even if she had known he would return back to life in this place. There's something about the fact he's in front of the door to her room that makes her stomach do a nervous flip. For the first time she understands his hesitance in letting her sleep in his room when they had been Master and Servant.]

Shirou? What are you doing here?

[Her eyes are instantly drawn to the pastries for a moment. She hasn't hunted in days!]

Where did you get that?

[heroicprinciple]

[ Even barring that visible expression of shock that seeped into Saber's face at the sight of him when she opens the door, she looked worn-out and like she'd just woken up from resting. That's troubling. That's really troubling even when he's terrible at things like empathy. Shirou resisted the urge to shuffle his feet in place when her bewildered stare pierces him; there wasn't anything amiss about concerned for a dear friend and visiting them to make sure they were alright. Guilelessly; ]

You've been skipping meals, which is unlike you. I was worried.

[ He blinks at her next question and hefts up the basket of pastries, still warm and soft from the oven. There's a few varieties tucked inside; sugary ones, one or two cream-filled ones, and some Japanese-homecooked style ones. ]

Huh, these? The restaurant on the twenty-first floor provides decent ingredients for cooking if you fulfill requests for them. [ They would have just give him the food already baked, but Shirou had preferred to do that himself. ]

[no_longer_a_king]

They did not make you cut out someone's kidney? [She is completely serious as she asks him that. Arturia has heard stories about that restaurant, even spoken to a few of the drones staffed there to confirm it. Getting anything from that place requires dangerous things and seeing just how many baked goods are in that basket she has to wonder all the things Shirou had been made to do to get them.

She's speechless as she looks at him, honestly speechless. Why would he go to this much effort for her? Hadn't he been more worried about Rin the first time they had desperately made love? Hadn't he left her alone on the rooftop to go after Shinji?

Hadn't he also gone searching for her after their fight on the bridge, convinced her to come home when she'd been determined to fight by herself to keep him safe? Hadn't he defended her when Gilgamesh came for her as she nearly bled to death upon the street almost costing him his own life?

Arturia steels her heart. Touching as the gesture is, she knows if she isn't careful she'll fall in love all over again and that is the last thing she needs at this point. The last thing either of them need. She might still have some affections for Shirou, but there were more important things to worry about than love.]

The events of the last few days have left me weary. I apologize if I worried you. [He didn't even know how Archer had manipulated her, did he? Of course not, he had been dead at the time. She'd stayed with both bodies until the retrieval units came for them.]

E - Graveyard, daytime

[warriorscribe]

*"Shirou's" patrols might take him to see a strange sight. There's a man in blue jeans and asymmetrical armor tending the graves, the sunlight making tears on his cheeks that would otherwise be hidden glint briefly. As he places some dried flowers on a grave near the staircase, he can be heard, speaking quietly.*

Keep holding on, whoever you are. You won't be alone forever.

E - Graveyard, daytime

[heroicprinciple]

[Walking between the endless rows of tombstones, both those weathered with age, and fresh and smooth with a frigid sort of newness, Shirou wasn't expecting to come across a sight like this on one of his regular patrols so close to the staircase. His footsteps slow.]

... Ah? [ He hopes he wasn't interrupting anything too private. Scenes of grief shouldn't be intruded upon.

Was the man crying? ]

Re: E - Graveyard, daytime

[warriorscribe]

*At the sound of someone else's voice, Enoch looks in the direction it came from. Facing him directly, it was much easier to tell he'd been crying, though not very heavily judging from his eyes.*

You've come to see someone's memorial?

*He could easily point someone in the direction of a name that seemed familiar, at least...*