songerein | open 🌠 you see the shadows

Who: Tifa Lockhart & you!
Which: Open log + interactive dream
Where: Around Reverein, Mount Nibel
What: Mount Nibel Incident dream, and a couple of dream board postings.
Warnings: N/A for now

✨ i. "the day mom died..." — interactive dream

[There's a winding, rocky path overlooking the town of Nibelheim below, but where it should be clear, the mountain the path leads up is shrouded in a fog that only grows thicker with each passing moment, with what the eyes can see morphing and twisting in and out of view, almost as if the entire landscape isn't sure what it should be. There's an unshakable sound of static in the air, and a rumbling underfoot that isn't too threatening, but it's noticeable enough that it makes itself known.

On one ledge of the path up the mountain are four children. Three boys, whose faces fade in and out of clarity, and a girl with long, dark-brown hair, all looking up at the mountain as they talk, but their words are cut out by the static.]

"Mt. Nibel is scary. Many people have—there."

"—one crosses that—alive."

[The girl turns to face them all, revealing a much younger Tifa, not a day older than nine-years.]

"How about—died? Did—pass through—?" [Tifa wanders past the boys watching her, up the path.] "I'm—"

[Two boys follow while one runs the other way, threatening to bump into any dreamwalkers as he rushes back in the direction of the town. If Tifa is followed, they'll reach a bridge that she crosses fearlessly and without a word, but like the rest of the mountain, it fades in and out of view as well. There, the two boys who remain rush off, leaving Tifa to venture up the rest of the mountain alone.

...

But they stop upon seeing someone new. Someone who might be able to help?]

"Please, you have to stop her! It's dangerous up there! We're going to go back down and get Mister Lockhart."

[And off they go together without another word.]

** ( ooc: Because Tifa doesn't remember this event in full, I fully encourage anyone to have your character influence the setting as much or as little as you'd like! )

✨ ii. freeloading reindeer

[Having done some work on the communal gardens already, Tifa's grown handy with a hammer and nails. Not that she wasn't already proficient enough, but there's a difference between fixer-uppers around a bar that she knew like the back of her hand and building wooden flowerbeds and fences, and the latter has allowed her to at least learn some proper techniques in woodworking. Hell, she's even started learning how to sand and polish, so something like this should be a piece of cake.]

There. I think that's the last of it.

[She'd been hauling wood around all morning, the large planks thrown over her shoulder before she sets them down out in the middle of the farm where there's plenty of room to build out. It's nothing but a pile of wood and a bag of tools, and whoever else has come all the way out here with her, and around them, the reindeer will be grazing and curiously watching from afar, still not sure if it's safe to approach.]

So, it was a new stable for them and a fence, right? Gotta say, biggest thing I've ever built was a flowerbed so this'll be new to me.

✨ iii. new year's noctaere

[It is a little terrifying going up against the Noctaere, especially when she knows little of what to expect upon entering the dreamscape, but Tifa was never one to sit back or sit still for very long. Not when there were threats that needed to be taken care of. She might not be the most experienced partner in the dreamscapes, with her skills in dreamotion magic leaving plenty to be desired, but she can pack a punch when needed, and it has come in helpful in a lot of cases.

That isn't to say she's completely useless at magic, but she'd prefer to let her fists and feet do the talking if it came down to it. Which it will.

And just before stumbling into the dreamscape, she looks over to whoever has volunteered for the job with her, and gives a firm nod.]

You ready?

** ( ooc: if you have a preference for the dreamscape, then please let me know in the subject line! Otherwise, I'll randomize which one we end up getting! )

✨ iv. wildcard

[None of these prompts work? You know the wildcard drill! Feel free to leave something else below, or contact me via PM or @ crystariums if you'd like to plot out something! Tifa can be frequently found at the communal gardens, at the edges of the forest training, and just in general wandering around Reverein, so she's easy to bump into. Also okay with any of the dream board postings!]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[Toge blinks in surprise at the address, but nods to her, a determined look on his face.]

Salmon.

[He can do this... they can both do this. Working together, they can take this monster out.]

[He watches her as she conjures the fire, and then hurls it at the giant kraken-noctrae. He watches those arms burst up around them, his eyes widening a bit. Holy shit... Wait, no, he can do this. They can both do this. He takes a breath, watching... waiting... and then, when those arms begin to descend down, he yells out, channeling as much Dreamotion and Cursed Energy as he can.]

Get twisted!!

[The arms freeze in place, twitching in place, before suddenly, violently, twisting and contorting like they were made of rubber. They wave in the air, as if the noctrae is trying to figure out how to un-twist its mangled limbs, but Toge doesn't give it a chance to try.]

Burst apart!!

[The arms tremble again, and from underneath its flesh, Tifa could probably see ripples begin to form. Suddenly, loud, bursting blasts erupt from within the arms, explosions rocking through those kraken arms in a way that would cause them to burst into pieces. The noctrae howls from under the water as its limbs take the damage.]

[Toge, meanwhile, has to fall to a knee, coughing and covering his mouth. Egh... that's going to burn, and not in a pleasant way.]

[Shiva's... tits...

Is the only thought that passes through Tifa's head when each of the arms stop and then burst, pieces of the giant kraken's arms flying every which way, raining down onto the deck of the ship as its shrill screams fill the air, drowning out the thunder that roars and claps above. Without its hold on the boat, it violently rocks back, crashing against the water with a force that has Tifa teetering to keep her balance, but she can feel the shockwaves of the impact spreading up her legs.

But with the arms of it taken care of, all that's left is the rest of it, and she can get a cleaner shot now that she doesn't have to worry about being swiped or slapped by them. Tifa casts a glance back at Toge when she hears him coughing...]

I've got this.

[Said more to herself than to him, but loud enough that he'll hear her before she's on the move. With the rope in her hands, she's climbing back up onto the railing again as it pushes itself up out of the water with the half arms that it has left, giving her just enough room to work with. With enough focus, she's able to summon fire again, but this time, it rises up out of the water as if it were never water to begin with and consumes the kraken's body in a wild burst, the explosion knocking her back away from it and shattering the wooden rails that line the edge of the ship.

Surely that did it, but before she checks, she rushes back to Toge.]

You okay?

[The fire engulfs the noctrae kraken whole, consuming it in a ball of flame as it explodes quite violently under Tifa's assault. The boat rocks as the blast displaces the ocean water around them, but they soon begin to even out as the monstrous noctrae sinks beneath the ocean's waves. It definitely looks like Tifa's last hit was the killing blow.]

[Toge, for his part, isn't knocked to and fro by the explosion's shockwave and resulting waves crashing into the boat, but that's because he's currently on one knee, coughing through the pain of his throat. Agh, he overdid it... mixing Dreamotion Energy and Cursed Energy like that really was a bad idea, even if it did get good results. By the time he's finished coughing, he's trembling a bit and there's a small crimson puddle beneath him. As Tifa comes to check on him, he looks up at her, small trails of blood streaking from his lips and down his chin.]

Mustard leaf.

[His voice sounds awful, like he's got severe laryngitis or something. But he still offers a weak thumbs up. He's good, really.]

Edited 2022-02-23 04:01 (UTC)

[Tifa returns the thumbs up with one of her own, her hand slapping gently on his shoulder as she kneels down beside him to wait for the boat to even out. And no sooner than that does the world begin to shift around them. As the noctaere sinks into the ocean, or what remains of it, there's a single ray of sun that shines through the clouds, and Tifa has to raise a hand to block her eyes.

Slowly, they begin to part to reveal a deep blue sky behind it, and the water slaps gently against the hull of the ship, rocking it in gentler motions compared to before.]

Well, would you look at that...

[There's a splash and a dolphin rises up from the ocean below, chirping at them before it dives away, and for a moment, she feels a small pang of fondness, thinking back to her days in Camelot, and to her familiar. It makes her wonder, as she stares out at how they're suddenly surrounded by sparkling water all around.]

Looks like that did it.

[While they wait for the ship to settle, Toge reaches into his pocket to pull out a potion bottle, one likely from the apothecary in town. He takes a moment to wipe the blood from his chin and drink down its contents, feeling the magic potion soothe his sore vocal cords. And as the noctrae sinks to the bottom of the ocean, he can finally breathe a sigh of relief as the waves jostle the boat a little less, and the pounding rain abates.]

[As the sun peeks through the clouds, Toge blinks and peers over the ruined railing, out at the beautiful waters below.]

Ikura...

[He says it kind of softly, since it still hurts like a bitch to talk. But looking up at the brightening sky and the calming ocean, he can't help but be in awe at it all. They really did do it, huh?]

[Turning to Tifa, he nods to her and smiles silently. Putting his empty potion bottle down, he lifts up a hand for her. Hi-five?]

[He's met with an enthusiastic hi-five back, but that hand is immediately going to his other shoulder to keep him steady.

She's going to conveniently ignore the remains of the kraken scattered all over the deck of the ship—whoever is in charge of the boat in this dreamscape can take care of that once they're long gone, but for now, she'll guide him to the edge of the boat to look over into the water, sparkling and blue.]

It's really tempting to just jump in.

[She isn't going to, but it looks so refreshing, as if nothing had even happened in here.]

But we should probably get out of here. I could use a bite to eat.

[Hi-five! She's got a hard smack, but he's familiar with his friend Maki's strength, so he's not tossed around too much by it.]

[Toge's fine to ignore the kraken bits lying around as well, in favour of looking out at the beautiful ocean. He's reminded of beach trips back in Tokyo, and he lets out a small sigh. It really does look perfect enough to go swimming, doesn't it?]

[At the mention of food, Toge realizes that he could also use something to eat. He glances down briefly, resting a hand on his stomach, before turning to Tifa and nodding.]

Salmon.

[Food sounds great, as well as some nice hot tea for his throat.]

[With a firm, agreeable nod, Tifa glances around.]

Now, how do we get out of here?

[Her gaze moves up to the sky, and she takes a deep breath in before she shouts—]

Hello!? We're done in here, if you wanna let us out now!

[This may or may not be Tifa's first time trying to willfully force her way out of a dream, and there is no exit sign to be found. And just like that, as if right on cue, she feels that familiar pull from reality, or rather, the dream world that is their reality, and she peers back at Toge.]

There we go. See you on the other side!

[Oh, it looks like there's that familiar pull to tug them back to Reverein. Toge looks over at Tifa as they're being pulled, nodding and holding up a peace sign to her.]

Kombu!

[See you on the other side! Maybe they could celebrate a job well done back home or something.]

open 🌠 you see the shadows

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feels like a good wrapping point! :3

Works for me!