[mingle] what's the dream and what's the reality?

[lovetheme]

Lately the castle's nights have been very clear and almost warm, even up so high among the clouds as they are. But regardless of the weather, they are generally peaceful nights, and few things seem to stir during them...apart from the castle's inhabitants, be it with late-night roving or with sleep. The dreams, by extension, are at least undisturbed...if maybe not always pleasant. That sort of thing tends to vary by the person, of course.

But now--and for several nights, consecutively--the castle residents may find their dreams starting to take on stranger shapes: memories they've never had, friends that don't usually arrive, strangers they've never seen. These odd impressions might cling and continue to confuse even upon waking, vivid as they were; was it really just a dream, or maybe something more...? Does that newcomer in your dream remember you there too, in the daytime?

Either way, there seems to be an strange energy in the air during these nights. And it's bringing dreams together.

((ooc: And here's the catch-all post for the dream-sharing event! Feel free to top-level with your character's dreams here, or thread around in others! The event should only last about a week, but backtagging is eternal c: The ooc planning post can be found here!))

Comments

[dr_awesome]

A

The air is warm and stagnant in the castle, but a cool breeze blowing past you will alert you to the fact that you've entered a new dream.

You're up on a hill, and the sound of crickets chirping suggests it must be summer. Apparently nearby, there is a pair of humans taking part in one of the great summer traditions. A tent is set up under the shade of a tree, with an elderly man tending the fire. He calls out into the cool evening air.

"Neil, the hot dogs will be ready soon!"

There's a rustle from a nearby bush, before a small child with a messy head of curls and thick glasses bursts out.

"Not Neil! I'm the mad scientist Dr. Watts!"

The old man laughs softly.

"Yes, yes, of course. But mad scientists need to eat too!"

Neil rushes over to a spot where a telescope is set up. "Fine! I'll be right there!"

He apparently isn't going to be 'right there', as he's now eagerly looking into the telescope, up at the array of stars.

B

The scene abruptly changes into the interior of a rustic cottage, perfectly in time with the slam of a door being thrown open. Watts is leaping down the stairs two at a time, desperate to get outside.

A woman's voice calls out to him in confusion. "Wait, where are you going?" Neil halts halfway through vaulting over the banister. His steps slow, still bringing him closer to the door, even as he clears his throat and attempts to sound calm.

"I... gotta go take a leak."

Without another word, he's out the door. Will you follow him?

B

[lostinmyway]

Of course she will. Neil looks upset. She can't leave him to be upset alone.

"Neil, dear, where are you going?" she calls after him, even as she closes the door carefully behind them. It's important to have good manners, no matter what.

[dr_awesome]

He looks behind him in surprise, but his anger seems to die just slightly at the sight of her, turning into a gentle dismissal.

"I said already. Gotta go take a leak."

He turns back and starts running down the stone steps out into the forest surrounding the house, ignoring the squirrels that try to block his path.

[lostinmyway]

She follows him, walking instead of running. She's sure he isn't lying, because Neil is such a nice person, but...she doesn't know if he's telling her all of the truth right now.

[dr_awesome]

He keeps hurrying along, but even if he eventually goes out of sight, Grune will catch up to him fast, standing on the edge of a little drop, just above a stone outcropping of steps. At the foot of the stairs stands a dark-haired woman.

"Neil..."

Her tone is already warning, already worried, as she holds out a hand with a bottle clenched in it.

"These painkillers... I think they are yours."

[lostinmyway]

Grune takes her place beside him and looks between him and the woman below. "Oh, did you drop them?"

[dr_awesome]

Neil inhales sharply, glaring between the two of them, before he snatches the bottle up.

"Uh, thanks. We should get back to work-"

"Neil."

Her voice is gentler now.

"Why are you on them?"

[lostinmyway]

Grune waits to hear the answer. It would be rude to interrupt, especially someone who loves Neil a lot and is worried about him.

[dr_awesome]

"Ah..." Neil looks sheepish. "This is embarrassing, but uh... I ran into a wall the other day. Hit my head pretty hard."

It's a ridiculous excuse. No one should believe that, and it doesn't really look like Eva does either. But Neil knows how this goes. She asks a few questions, eventually lets him go, and doesn't bother to find out the truth.

Eva's hand slowly lowers, and she looks from Neil, to Grune.

"...There's no point in even trying, with him. He'll never tell me, will he?"

Neil freezes up.

[lostinmyway]

Grune immediately shakes her head. "Oh, no. It's very important to keep trying. Neil is just scared, that's all."

She looks to him. Isn't that right?

[dr_awesome]

He's never going to admit she's right. He can't. It just doesn't work like that.

"...Sure, I'm scared. Scared of looking like a weenie, or something, right?" He laughs quietly.

"So whatever. Try if you want, but uh... not a lot of point to it."

[lostinmyway]

Once again, Grune shakes her head. "No, that's not right."

It's all she says.

A

[lostlegacy]

Sans has since explained to Sophie what "hot dogs" are (...mostly), and so when she hears the old man calling, she follows the kid that's holding up the food.

"Come on, Neil, they're gonna get cold!"

...Wait a minute. She squints at the kid. That's not....

[dr_awesome]

The child turns to her, beaming, and though he's a good twenty years younger, he does appear to have similarities to a certain scientist.

"Fiiiiine. I'll look at the stars later."

"It's not like they're going anywhere," the old man points out. "Unlike these hot dogs! I might just eat them all myself."

Neil looks horrified and rushes over with a yell. "Noooooo!"

[lostlegacy]

...That's really weird.

But then she's completely distracted.

"No!" she yells right along with Neil and runs over as fast as she can.

[dr_awesome]

Thankfully, it seems that Neil's grandfather was only teasing. By the time they've run over, he's holding out two hot dogs already wrapped in buns. Neil takes his and heads over to the picnic table with an eager grin.

[lostlegacy]

And Sophie takes hers with a "Thanks" and follows. She doesn't even wait until she's sitting down before she takes a big bite.

"It's really good!" she says with her mouth full. She can't actually taste it right now...but her brain says it's good, so that means it is.

[dr_awesome]

"Yeah! Grandpa makes the best hot dogs. Especially with a bunch of ketchup!"

He starts dousing his with a larger serving before taking a big bite.

"D'you wanna stargaze after supper?"

[lostlegacy]

Sophie shrugs. "I guess."

Gee Girl likes looking at the stars, but Sophie's never really seen the appeal. They're just bright dots.

[dr_awesome]

"You guess? Aw, c'mon! It's really exciting! I know a bunch of the constellations and everything!"

Grandpa's taught him a lot. He even knows how to adjust the telescope all by himself!

[lostlegacy]

"What're those?"

She has another bite of the delicious, tasteless hot dog.

[dr_awesome]

"They're like pictures made out of stars! It's super cool. I'd bet you like them!"

Better than tasteless hot dogs anyways.

[lostlegacy]

"Really?"

She looks up at the starry sky above them. She can't see any pictures....

A

[sansational]

It's a beautiful hillside, and so it probably isn't too surprising that every so often, another family camps out on it. At least the trio of newcomers have been pretty good neighbors, all things considered. The older brother has been helping mind the fire and keep the campsite tidy. The two younger brothers have been playing with Neil - one shows more interest in the telescope, the other in valiantly battling against the evil Dr. Watts.

Though when the call that dinner is ready goes up, Papyrus is off like a shot back over to the fire. Sans lingers at the edge of things instead, following Neil over to the telescope. He stays there for a moment, rocking back on his heels, staring up at the stars, but finally he reaches over to tug on the other child's sleeve.

"come on, neil. pap's gonna eat all the hot dogs!"

And he wants a turn with the telescope.

[dr_awesome]

Neil is obviously pretty pleased to share the hillside with another family, especially ones with kids that seem like pretty cool friends. This is setting up to be one of his favourite camping trips, especially with Sans taking such an interest in the telescope.

At the tugging, Neil tries to nudge Sans away.

"Naw, he won't eat all of them. He's too small. Where would he fit them all?"

That said, he's not completely oblivious, and he can tell Sans wants a turn before supper, so he moves away and gestures to the lens with a grin.

"Check it out! You can see Orion now! I'll go save us some hot dogs, okay?"