[Eight] Video

[buymedumplings]

[It's a dark room when the feed starts. There's a little whine from behind the camera and if you know your Dream Eaters it sounds like it might be a Meow Wow. The creature shuffles closer and the dim light from the doorway can now be seen bathing the face of a familiar young man: Bolin. He's broken out in a sweat and is tossing and turning like he's restless but he's also not waking up.

He whimpers and curls up on himself.

Ping whines again and then there's a bleating of as a Tama Sheep, Chi, appears. Chi has had enough of this apparently and she bleats again and then rams herself into Bolin's stomach. He yelps and falls out of bed from the impact, disappearing for a moment on the other side of the bed. Ping drops the communication device and jumps over the bed with Chi.

Bolin groans and finally appears on the other side of the bed, rubbing at his face.]

Bwuh? What are you guys doing?

[Ping nuzzles Bolin and he notices the fallen communication device.]

...Seriously, what are you doing? I was sleeping.

[He rubs at his face and then stops. He shudders, recalling the dream or nightmare he'd been having. Chi nudges him with her horns again, this time a bit more gently though it still causes Bolin to tilt sideways a bit.]

Oh...uh...better get the communicator before we wake anyone.

[Kyoshi, the Kooma Panda, picks it up in her claws and hands it back to Bolin. He avoids looking at it because he knows if he does they'll see the troubled and sad expression on his face. He shuts if off.]

Comments

not here

[raisethemoon]

[...well.

It looks as if it shall be another of those weeks. Luna quietly shuts off her communicator and starts packing up her work. She'll be of much more use to everyone in the dreamscape anyhow.]

[unlucky_hero]

[Had the communicator on in the background while he did a few things and might've forgotten about it till he heard some voices. One of which sounded a bit distressed. He was right about to ask if everything was alright but, oh, it's gone now.]

[... Never mind.]

[dork_of_keys]

[Bolin's not fooling anyone. The nightmares were the exact reason Bruce had first started messing with the communicator.]

Here we go again.

[Of course, that Sora's up now should be telling. These nightmares or more normal nightmares are the only things that really keep him from sleeping and since he isn't having normal nightmares lately...]

[buymedumplings]

Sora? I didn't wake you up did I?

[Bolin looks tired but he can't go back to sleep either.]

Hmm...yeah looks like nightmares are back. I wonder why this keeps happening.

[dork_of_keys]

No, I was up already.

[Of course, Sora was awake rather than still tossing and turning because Jelly Bean had decided he had enough of not being able to do anything about his person's Nightmares and decided to drag him out of bed by the seat of his chocobo-printed pajama pants. Incidentally, Sora's current activity to keep his mind occupied is mending said pants.]

Well, they weren't much a clue the first time. The second they showed stuff, well relationships, breaking and then being mended and after the boss we found the Keyhole by gathering three people around it. I'm not sure what to make this theme. It's... conflict, I guess, and there is an enemy to deal with on that ship.

[buymedumplings]

Do you usually wake up this early?

[Bolin leans back, apparently getting comfortable.]

Maybe we need to find the invisible guy first. Or...you don't think it's encouraging us to get in a fight with each OTHER do you?

[dork_of_keys]

... No.

[Sora checks his work on the pants before turning the communicator around. The rustling of fabric is a good hint as to why he did so. It's still turned away when he starts talking again.]

I wouldn't be surprised. That guy, or monster or whatever, it pretty dangerous...

[And then the latter statement registers.]

I should hope not! I can't see that doing us any good.

[buymedumplings]

Yeah, I've been avoiding the ship myself. I can't use earth bending on a metal ship unless I'm bringing in my own rocks. But that aside, it's still going to be hard to fight something we can't see.

[He hasn't encountered it obviously since he hasn't been aboard the MoI much. He nods.]

You're right. Why would we need to fight each other anyway, that'd be silly.

[dork_of_keys]

It hits pretty hard. And it's fast. I'm not sure how much help it would actually be to be able to see it.

[He's lucky then.]

I just wish we had some idea of what we do need to do in this case...

[buymedumplings]

Well we'd be able to counter it a lot more effectively. Just because it's fast doesn't mean we can't hit it...eventually.

The hints are never very clear, are they?

[dork_of_keys]

[Sora shakes his head. Yeah they could eventually hit the thing once they could see it. But how much damage would it do before then? Although, thinking about it now... he's starting to get an idea.]

No, they're not.

[buymedumplings]

I was never very good at riddles either.

[Sigh.]

[dork_of_keys]

Me either.

[Nor any other real brain work, now that he thinks of it. The puzzle in the mansion was easy enough, but that was because it was a video game type puzzle and Sora's not too bad at those.]

[colorbymemory]

[From the look of things, Namine was having difficulty sleeping as well. Theres a few crayons and pieces of paper scattered about, as if she was drawing to keep her mind off things.]

Bolin? Are you okay?

[Obviously he isn't, but it's an invitation to talk if he wants, at least.]

[buymedumplings]

Hm, not really. I can't sleep and when I do fall asleep I keep having this nightmare.

[He's slow to elaborate. He hasn't talked much about some of the things that were happening back home. He wasn't sure he wanted to now either.]

[colorbymemory]

The one where the keyhole appears, again? I think it's back.

[Namine's not going to quiz him on details--she knows the nightmares are specific to the person except for keyhole. That sort of thing is personal. If he wants to talk, though, she'll listen.]

[buymedumplings]

Yeah, it is. I mean...I just had a dream about one...so.

[He sighs.]

But, some of the stuff, I've had nightmares about it before. It's scary.

[colorbymemory]

[Namine offers a sympathetic look. Even if some aspects of the nightmares are shared, the overall effect is unique to each of them, especially when parts of personal nightmares are added.]

I'm sorry. Is there anything that usually helps?

[buymedumplings]

Usually I'd talk to Mako or Pabu about it...I sort of shared it with Korra once, but I was also trying to impress her at the time so I kinda played it off as just a passing fear.

[But, none of them are here. It's moments like these that Bolin really, REALLY misses his brother. The brother that was always there for him for ANYTHING. He'd never been without him before, especially not for so long. Bolin sighs. He's not sure he wants to spill it all out for Namine either, she's probably having nightmares too.]

[colorbymemory]

I see.

[Well, the part about thinking passing something serious of as less than it really is being used to try to impress someone is a little confusing. However. it's clear that he'd upset, and the people he'd usually talk to aren't here.]

Well, I'm sure most of us here would listen, if you wanted to talk.

[buymedumplings]

[Bolin still seems unsure but his Tama Sheep headbutts him again in the arm and he grunts before rubbing at the spot. She doesn't want to see Bolin like this apparently and is encouraging him to speak up.]

Awhile ago, before I came here, this nasty dude who went by the name of Amon was going around and kidnapping benders and taking their bending. He did other stuff too, like blow up the place I was living and everything...but I keep having nightmares about the being kidnapped. It was...really terrifying and there wasn't anything I could do. In the nightmare it's even worse because my brother isn't there to rescue me in time.

[Private to Bolin]

[colorbymemory]

[Since they've gotten to the serious part of the discussion, Namine sets the connection to a private one before answering. The time it gives her to consider a response is an added benefit. Some of the elements of Bolin's nightmares are similar to those of her own--it appears they've both had experiences being held captive.]

These nightmares seem to like making us relive the worst parts of our pasts, or adding to them. You're brother was there to help when it really happened?

[Private to Bolin]

[buymedumplings]

It's definitely based on what happened. But, yeah, when it actually happened Mako and Korra came to save me.

[Private to Bolin]

[colorbymemory]

That's good. Did you stop whoever was trying to hurt the others, too?

[Private to Bolin]

[buymedumplings]

Not in the dream...and not that night. But...yeah, Mako and Korra exposed him for what he was.

[Private to Bolin]

[colorbymemory]

So, eventually they did.

[Revelations of that sort do tend to have an effect.]