Interactive Dream 🛸 Days When My Mother Was There

[mwehehe]

Who: Futaba and YOU!
Which: Open Interactive Dream!
What: Just because you think you're over some trauma, doesn't mean a weird moon in a dream realm won't fuck that up and bring those feelings back to the surface! :D
Warnings: There is some heavy suicide themes/mentions involved in Futaba's backstory, and some will be brought up— regardless if they're true or not (they aren't.) Tread lightly.

Bonus is some mood music because her Palace has the most chill music in the game tbh.



Somehow, you've ended up in Egypt. Or at least, what looks like it? You're between a great pyramid and a small, rundown town. Should you explore the town, there's naught there but some bandits who talk about stealing a "great treasure", but all you find (if you beat them up and beat the treasure out of their pockets) is a map of the pyramid.

Well, maybe that'll come in handy. Otherwise, there's not much here but the weird bandits who turn into bird gods once you begin to fight them.


Inside the pyramid

Once you're in from the heat of the desert, the pyramid is actually cool... almost as if there's air conditioning on inside? Huh. There's a long corridor going up to a barred gate, and upon getting up too the gate, a familiar face(?) greets you, and she has a simple question:


"Why are you here? Why are you defiling my tomb?"

Depending on your answer, she may chat a while with you... or disappear and you get to Indiana Jones it by running away from a giant stone ball that tears down the corridor. Lucky for you, there's some narrow paths over a big pit of quicksand. Going back up the stairs will net you some extra rooms to check out. Maybe something will lead to the top, where the Noctaere Futaba has gone? In fact...


Murals

Three of those rooms, after some initial puzzles and trap-dodging, have giant murals that look like a slide puzzle itself. Solving these slide puzzles will show off one of three murals:

One of Futaba being read to off of a paper,
One of the woman throwing herself in front of a car,
And the final one of Futaba pulling on a woman's clothes, as if wanting something from her


Each one will have specific whispers, other voices talking about Futaba in a negative light.

"'I wish I had never had Futaba, she was always such a bother...' you caused your mother a lot of trouble, didn't you, Futaba-chan?" is heard from the mural depicting her hearing what is called her mother's suicide note, her mother yelling at her how it's her fault at the second, and Futaba asking her mother to go on a trip with her and being denied. It's not a great sight, but solving these puzzles open each gate to the top room...

But first, Noctaere Futaba appears again, in front of the last mural.

"I killed her. It's my fault. Before, maybe it wasn't, but something keeps nagging me, in the back of my head. Maybe it really was? Maybe I was mistaken. She was so angry at me for asking to spend time with her while she was busy..."

No matter what happens here, the Noctaere will disappear at the end of any dialogue, but perhaps you'll give her something to think about.


Pharaoh's Chamber


The doors to the chamber are barred, but luckily this dream doesn't have to have you change her cognition (unless you want to try to reason with her on why she should open the door!)— break part of the caution tape on the door and it'll open, bringing you to a platform on the top of the pyramid, where Noctaere Futaba stands. There's no Sphinx monster this time, just Futaba herself.

"Just leave me here. It's mine to rule over, anyway. Why have you bothered to come here? I'm not that important, just a selfish child who drove her mother to an extreme ending. You saw it, didn't you? You had to have seen it to have gotten here."

She's not a fighter, but she does have some abilities should any negotiations go wrong, knocking you back through the door, and sending another stone ball after you to dodge before going back and trying again. If you're successful... well. If you're successful, perhaps she'll tell you what really happened.


Wildcard

I don't mind some wildcards either, if you want to use one of these prompts for something else entirely! If you're familiar with her canon and want to use a different part of her Palace, I'm also down for that as well! Replies don't necessarily need to be prose, they can be action brackets as well :) If you wanna plotty something for this, hit me up in the Song discord (raini) or on plurk at infel~

Comments

Murals (CW: emotional child abuse)

[hashtagwoof]

Hunter thought trying out dreamhopping would be a good respite from the nightmares he's been having, and at first it seemed like his plan had worked. Sure, the town had seen better days, but taking a mini-holiday in Egypt was pretty sweet.

Or, it was pretty sweet. But then bandits showed up and chased him into the nearby pyramid.

The entrance sealed shut behind him. He couldn't just leave, and he had no good answer for the ancient Egyptian(?) girl with the ginger hair and glasses... So his only option was to press on into the tomb. Alone. At least he could easily navigate the catwalk to avoid getting crushed. That was the easy part.

The murals were much worse. Not that they were that hard to solve, but the images... The whispering... He tried to ignore how familiar it felt, even though he had never met any of these people. Yet, as he was fixing up the final mural, Hunter felt a sense of dread well up inside. Was he being watched? Impossible. He clicks the last square into place and steps back. . .

. . . The girl again. She's begging her mother to spend time with her, he can see that plain as day. The voices whisper, familiar sentiments that hit just too close to home...

"Can't fall much further than the gutter now, can we?"

"Huh?!" Hunter turned around as a third voice chimed in. "H-hello?"

"You got something for me?" He knew that voice. That voice echoing around him was way too familiar. "Fashion from my favorite family of soft, sleek, silky... Dalmatians...?"

Oh god. He thought she... "G-great auntie..? How...?"

No, he wasn't gonna go through this again. Not after what he learned. But the voice asked him, "Have you got it?"

All he could manage was a quiet no.

"USELESS BOY!" The voice screeched from all directions, knocking Hunter to the ground in fright. "YOU SNIVELING SNOWFLAKE! ARE YOU A DE VIL, OR A DOG?!"

The boy's heart was pounding in his chest as he scrambled to his feet. "W-w-wait! Please! I-I don't-- GAH!"

And the girl from the mural was right behind him. Claiming to have killed his great aunt- No, wait. He lets her continue, and it's immediately obvious this isn't about his great aunt.

"What...?" Right. That's... Hunter attempts to collect himself a bit, even though there were tears beginning to well up in his eyes. "Oh, you mean... You mean the woman in the mural back there?"

At least the voices shut up now, though he still felt like he was being watched.

[mwehehe]

Noctaba watches Hunter, tilting her head some. Was he hearing something too? Some of the whispers overlap, and she hears a few as well.

Ah, a kindred spirit. Pain in the same things.

"Yes, her. My mother. It feels like you've been through the same thing. Adults telling you it's your fault, that you shouldn't exist. Am I right?"

Though for Futaba, it wasn't just some shitty adults telling her she was worthless, it was herself telling her that eventually.

"You probably have yourself locked up like I do, in your heart." In his subconscious, where his cognition tells him the very same things she hears. "It's too much to bear."

[hashtagwoof]

Hunter has no idea what she has told herself. All he knows is... All he can do is nod. "You heard her too, then?"

The boy rubs at his arm, considering the girl's words. "Look, it's not like I ever asked to be locked up. I mean, I only wanted my great aunt to notice me, but all I ever got for my trouble was six months trapped in a box and... Cursed."

He's not entirely sure why it came out like that. Maybe the nature of the dream has something to do with it? Whatever it is, good to know that he's not alone right now.

[mwehehe]

"Yes, I did."

A simple answer, but even with how emotionless she seems, there's a bit of empathy in her eyes, especially the more he goes on. While Wakaba certainly never did any of that to Futaba, sometimes she really just wanted to spend time with her mother and just... wasn't able to. But with nightmares exacerbating the issue, it's made much worse here.

"Cursed? Cursed how?" She was too, but... it could be different. "Adults have no right to treat us like that, even if we feel like we deserve it." Much like she does now. " I'm sorry."

Pharaoh's Chamber

[fatedmahou]

[As compared to the chill before entering the dreamscape, the warmth was unexpected. Part of her wondered if it was any better or worse that she felt warmer. Too warm. She really needed to take her winter coat off as she made her way throw town and eventually to the pyramid. The bird gods were a bit strange, but seeming as she deals with Cadavers back home, they were no sweat. Dodging the traps wasn't too much of a pain, but she was hoping to help Futaba sooner than this.

The murals were, needless to say, distressing. The content in them alone was enough to be considered so, but it was something that Mirai could -- in some way -- relate to herself. Seeing Futaba believe that it was her fault that her mother killed herself was hard to watch. Mirai had often believed that anyone who became close to her died or had some terrible things happen to them. To this day she still felt it, struggle as she may to tell herself otherwise.

Finally reaching her Noctaere, it was enough. She couldn't help but shake a little, not masking how she really felt this time.]

I... I admittedly know very little about you, but I refuse to believe that it's true. There has to be more to this story, Futaba.

[She didn't have all the information she needed to make that a confident answer, but that didn't matter. She just wanted to help Futaba feel better. She knew all too well the aches of losing someone you loved.]

[mwehehe]

There's nothing more to it. I wanted all of her attention, her note said she had maternity neurosis, and I drove her to her end. She cursed me until she was gone, just like in the mural of my memory.

[Very deep down, Futaba knows it's not true. She knows the answer and this isn't it. But traumas, when they come back to rear their ugly head, say differently.]

But that's why I'm here, it's already mine to rule over until I'm gone. I can live with what happened without hurting anyone else. That's all I would do anyway, hurt more people until they leave.

[fatedmahou]

That's not true. We had only met once before, but I want nothing more than to be your friend.

[Though her family consistently plagued her thoughts. May it be her own parents giving their lives to give her a chance to survive or the relatives who decidedly wanted nothing to do with her. She wanted nothing more than to confirm that her mother likely loved her, but how could she knowing her own relationship with her family?

In a normal situation, she would mask away her own pain, but she made no effort for now. Not when she sympathized with her.]

... I'm sorry, Futaba. It's lonely, isn't it? When all you want is for the people around you to love you and care about you. Deep down, I want to say she probably didn't feel that way, but I don't think I'm the best person to say anything about that.

Just know that, though I'm not a suitable replacement, I don't intend to let you feel lonely. If there's anything I can do to help, please let me know. You're my friend, new or not. You'll never have to feel alone again.

[But she doesn't make that sweeping statement with the idea that she alone can solve that. Mirai means that as a collective statement that she was certain there were other people who felt the same as her; maybe even stronger?]

[mwehehe]

[Her friend? Did she have those? She couldn't remember. Maybe she did, if she really tried to remember. Futaba stays silent as Mirai talks, listening. She won't not listen, since she can at least do that for those wandering into the pyramid.

But it strikes a chord in her, and she frowns.]

Of course it is. I'm creepy, people were scared of me and how I am. My own mother wouldn't...

[Sigh. But wasn't it useless to talk about? Words were usually empty.]

You don't have to force yourself to be a friend. I'm not worth it.

Murals

[crystalized_hope]

[To understand how to better implement an aetheryte system here, G'raha has been doing various tests and research. One such method was to understand dreamwalking and how it could possibly be used for his project. Thankfully the pyramid inside was cool, unlike outside. His chat with her Noctaere at least went well enough not to spring some traps.

The murals caught his attention immediately. Dodging traps and solving puzzles were easy enough at the very least, but the murals themselves held troubling messages. He had no way of knowing just who she was immediately due to the nature of their first conversation, but hearing the name "Futaba" was enough to piece together that it must be the person who was a little uncomfortable with meeting in person just yet.

Turning to her Noctaere, her shook his head before bowing to her in respect.]

My apologies. I know you did not wish to meet in person just yet. [Sort of?] If it would put you more at ease, I would be happy to leave you be.

However, if you are willing, could you tell me why you believe that to be true?

[He didn't know anything about her, so anything was probable, and yet... Being a sort of father/grandfather figure to Lyna, there was something about this that seemed wrong. There was a possibility that this was all true, but it was hard to believe that a mother would despise their child like this. It was true that he had not technically adopted Lyna, but there wasn't a day that passed that he didn't miss her. He always worried about if she would be okay, despite knowing how strong she was. Could he possibly even fit the mold for "parental love"? It just didn't seem right.

That said, he wasn't about to push anything, especially considering how she was now. If she really didn't want to talk about it, he did not want to make her that much more uncomfortable. At the very least, as long as she would be okay, that's what mattered.]

cw: more suicide mention in here

[mwehehe]

[Grandpa Raha :') He'll just have another person to tell him not to use a fish to open letters here after all this!!!

While mostly emotionless, Futaba's golden eyes lock on to G'raha before looking up at the mural they stood before. There's a scoff (or what sounds like one) before she turns back toward him.]

I can indulge your curiosity, I guess. My mother worked hard, delving into cognative psience— she had me, and from the note I was read after she killed herself in front of me, cursing me as she did it, it was because she regret having me at all. All I was was a selfish burden on her.

[Normally her Palace would be guarded by a hideous monster that had the body of a sphinx and the head of her mother, but that hasn't manifested yet— just a lot of things that Futaba had lived with long enough that it was bound to resurface eventually here in this dream. She saw enough of her own Palace to rebuild it in a dream world.

However, talking about the triggers of her mother being angry with her brings up more whispers of how Futaba is a creepy child, how she 'killed her', how she's a curse. It's enough to bring a pained look to her face as it happens, fading just as quickly as it started.]

They're all right, I killed her. I drove her to it.

[crystalized_hope]

[ONE TIME. HE TRIED TO DO THIS ONE TIME. He'll never hear the end of it.]

Cognative psience...

[That was something he hadn't heard of, but it intrigued him. This was not the reason why he was here talking to Futaba, though. Focus.]

A note...? So you don't know this for yourself? How can you be sure that it came from your mother?

[He's not on to anything in particular, but it sounded like she wasn't speaking from direct experience. There was room for doubt there. And while maybe things were as they were stated, but that detail struck him as odd. The voices troubled him all the more as he saw the effect they had on her.

He couldn't help but wonder how Lyna must have felt at that moment... When her parents had been killed by sin eaters. If only he had been faster... Ears deflated as they drooped, he let out a sigh.]

... Mayhap it is just reflex now or simply naive thoughts, but I doubt that she regrets having you.

Most parents love their children and want the best for them. Kids are hard to raise, this much I know to be true. I never would have known had I not taken in a small girl who had lost her family. No matter how much of a 'burden' that they may be from time to time, there's plenty of moments that tell you it's worth all of the trouble. Seeing her smile and grow strong was rewarding enough. Even now, I know she's okay back home, but I still worry.

Have you considered that she may have just been busy trying to make a better life for you? That all of her work and long days had been so you might grow up in a brighter future? I won't claim to know you or your mother, but there's something deep down inside that tells me that there's more to this than meets the eye.

GRANDPARAHA TIA ;;

[mwehehe]

That's what I was told, that's what they were reading. [She motions to the mural that shows her mother jumping in front of the car next.] It made sense after seeing that, after all. Why else would she be so angry with me before doing that?

[However, she listens quietly to Raha, letting some of it sink in. Perhaps he was right. Perhaps he was wrong. While she's frowning, she's thinking. Eventually, Futaba grips her head as if in pain and disappears, instead appearing elsewhere, but still near enough to talk to him.]

She could have talked to me. Had lunch with me. Something. Even children need their parents from time to time. I just wanted to see her... I didn't want her to work all the time! Just to say hi, and give me a hug, tell me I did good in school...

[More whispers of how she was creepy come, reminding her that she was really alone save for her mother, and even then... even then...]

I just didn't want to be alone.

Inside the pyramid

[silentends]

It's dangerous here so we should really get you some place safe.

[Nier thought it might be a little warmer inside the pyramid but it's surprisingly cooler! He doesn't really know the significance of this place, but he's trying his best to not take the wrong step and tread down the wrong path. The pyramids kind remind him of the Barren Temple located in the vast desert.]

I just want to help.

[mwehehe]

[Big brother.... :') doing big brother things here!! And while she would normally appreciate it... it is her tomb, her place that she has some control over while dreamwalking.]

You can't help, and I can't leave. It's my tomb, and it's where I'll die. Why would the pharaoh leave her own tomb?

[A theoretical question, yes, but really, why would she? Especially when feeling like she does through this dream here. Futaba appears at the top of the steps, watching Nier a little cautiously.]

I can pass through here unbothered, but you won't be able to. So how will you help me?

[silentends]

We can leave together! You don't have to die here. That would be too sad.

[ Nier doesn't know Futaba too well, but it didn't matter to him. He cherishes life all the same and to just leave Futaba here wouldn't sit right with him. ]

I promise I'll find a way to get you out of this place. So..can you tell me more about it? What do you know?

[mwehehe]

Sad? Why would it be sad for me? What if I deserve it?

[But Nier wants to know, so...]

It's my tomb. My place to die. A monument to everything I've done and failed at. A reminder of what I've done, who I... who I killed. Do you still want to help me, knowing that I killed someone? Drove someone to do something unthinkable?

Mural

[chippedsoul]

[There seems to be a continuing uptick of nightmarish dreamscapes this month, for this is not the first, nor likely the last dreamscape Kazuma will find himself thrust into. Once again, his form is distorted to look more like the beast he had become two months ago, drawn out by the nightmarish energy within the dream. His mind is still his though, and he is not freakishly giant. Just appearing with horns, yellow slit eyes, a snake's tail and claws. Perhaps this dream being Egpyt-esque is a factor? More importantly whose dream was this?

He'll encounter his answer when he climbs the steps and reaches the gate. It was Futaba, but also not quite Futaba? He doesn't get an opportunity to say anything when a giant stone ball threatens to flatten him. The one time he's rather grateful his tainted form allows him to transform into a snake and slither out of harm's way. Going back down the stairs, he'll discover side rooms have appeared.

He scoffs at the puzzles within (he won't admit he had some trouble with them), eventually revealing the murals, and the unpleasant voices that came with them. The story starts to come together in pieces, Kazuma pondering whether he should be seeing or hearing any of this without Futaba telling him these things directly.

It does bring back their talk from a few months ago, about how bad things still like to cling onto people. Perhaps these are memories that still haunt her, despite having moved on...?

He blinks, tail swishing behind him as the figure portraying Futaba appears before him again.

"It's my fault." Hm. Feels like he's having a bit of deja vu.] Futaba. [This time, he manages to say something before the figure could go again. His tone demands for her to stay.] Talk to me. You don't really mean what you're saying, do you...?

[mwehehe]

[They're more alike than he probably thought, at least in this way.

Futaba had watched him as he made his way through the pyramid, impressed that he had even made it as far as he had, almost to the very top. When she finally shows herself at the murals, she frowns slightly at his demanding tone of voice.]

Of course I do. I wasn't wanted, I'm too creepy, I'm a murderer. I should stay here to die, like all the whispers want me to. You saw it, didn't you?

[She disappears again, reappearing next to the one with her mother jumping in front of the car, looking up at it as if studying it.]

Just like the note said, she couldn't take it, and that I shouldn't have been born. Why shouldn't I carry out her wishes, and stay here alone like I belong?

[chippedsoul]

[He tenses, hearing this Futaba casually claim she was a murderer. Faint sounds of people screaming in terror echo through the chamber. He closes his eyes for a moment, shutting them out.]

...I heard what you want to believe it to be. I certainly don't find you as any of those things, nor do I want you to die. I doubt I'm the only one who feels this way. [The mind has a way of twisting reality, though there's probably some truth somewhere in all this. He looks over the mural once more.] I cannot see what was written on that note, only what the voices and you claim was on it. And from what I can see of this picture, it looked like she was trying to protect you.

inside the pyramid + a little bit of wild carding

[masqueraid]

"It's you..."

The desert, the pyramid— it was all a familiar sight for Ren, who stood before the pharaoh, in his plainclothes. At least, for now, it seemed that he wasn't a threat?

"I feels like I should be the one asking you though— what brings you here?" A stupid question, probably. Though Futaba had made great strides in trying to overcome the traumas she had lived through, it was clear that those heavy feelings still plagued her, from time to time.

"This place, this tomb... you don't have to stay here, anymore."

[mwehehe]

A familiar voice, a familiar face. She's almost ashamed Ren had to see her like this again. Worse was that he was family now, wasn't he?

"It all feels fake. Like I never left."

It could be the nightmares talking, it could be her subconscious, she wasn't really sure.

"Like I'm living a dream where everything I want is what I have, but it's not really real. I'm just running away again, like I was before."

[masqueraid]

He was family. Which is why now, seeing Futaba like this, there's no judgment in his voice. As he meets tries to meet her gaze, he doesn't falter— a glint of concern the only indication that he felt anything at all.

"A lot happened to you, back then." She had faced things no one, let alone a kid, should ever have to. "I can't imagine those feelings are something that you can just process overnight... or even just a year."

He finally glanced away, looking over the walls of the tomb, its carvings and the floating glyphs. "But to become consumed by them..."

Pharaoh's Chamber

[burnttoashes]

Nuadha saw the murals on the way, of course, and while he might not know what a car is, the meaning of that one particular mural was clear enough even without that knowledge. In his mind's eye dwells the image of his own mother and the painful memory of learning of her death at her own hands... that nagging thought that perhaps if he hadn't died, she wouldn't have been driven to that level of despair, that she would have stayed alive and Mercuria wouldn't have lost her only remaining family...

He understands. He understands, and that's what gives his voice a softer tone than its normal brusque edge. "You believe you bear the responsibility for what happened?"

[mwehehe]

Ah, another who wants to try their luck. He's not immediately trying to placate her, but his question— both in how he asks and what he asks— is a little different than others. Curious. Futaba watches him before answering, trying to see if there's another motive behind him asking, but ultimately decides to answer. Why not?

"I do. I know I do. I drove her to it, and this was the response to be carried out in front of me."

[burnttoashes]

She's young... not that much older than Mercuria, it seems, and it's in part for that reason that he chooses his words far more carefully than he would otherwise. Someone so young shouldn't be bearing such a burden, regardless of the role she believes she played in what happened-- a role he very much doubts she did in fact play.

"But you were not the one who placed her in that physical situation. The actions she took were ultimately her own."