songerein | open ⚔️ cold

Entry tags:

open ⚔️ cold

Who: A plush prosecutor & dreamwalkers
Which: Interactive dream
What: A sad Nyan Zieks in the snow...
Warnings: Huge spoilers for Great Ace Attorney 2! Like literally the last 10 minutes of the game or something.

[It's the dead of winter for the residents of a particular brick flat, a blond man lounging on a red couch next to a roaring fireplace as a pink-pigtailed girl of ten years taps away on her typewriter. He turns his attention to a box of toys in her corner of the suite, in particular a felt toy with a top hat and cape, a peculiar cross stitched over its nose.]

My dear Iris, don't you think that old doll is rather... ratty?

[The girl perks up with some curiosity, turning to where the purple cat lies. After a moment of consideration, she picks it up carefully in her gloved hands, as if with some distaste.]

Hmm... it is unpleasant-looking, isn't it? [With that declaration, she nods her head with confidence, offering it to the man.] Could you get rid of it, please, Hurley?

[Acquiescing to the girl's request, he rolls off the couch to his feet and strides over to accept it, holding it up to briefly acknowledge the toy.]

That's goodbye to Mr. Reaper, then. [With a casual, fluid motion, the man opens the window and simply tosses the doll out into the snow, closing it soon after to keep out the bitter cold.

But then—doll begins to stir, struggling to move its limbs out of the white pile and get to its feet. It can't quite make it that far, but it manages to lift its head and watch as the man and girl smile at each other before both busying themselves with the company that appears—a moustached man in a hat and slick suit first, then a man with a dark ponytail, and another man in red regalia accompanying a woman with long, curly hair—all of them pleased to be there, clearly smiling with the pair of residents even as their faces blur, indistinct.

A pathetic wheeze leaves the stuffed cat as it trembles:]

W-wait...

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[Kazuma is no stranger to the cold winters of London, though the street he finds himself suddenly walking was one he was not familiar with. He could guess by the name Baker Street, that he must be at least somewhere near the home of the famous detective. Susato and Ryunosuke lived with him and so he assumed for a moment, that he was walking through one of their dreams. He is himself in this, though wearing the Masked Disciple attire once more. The mask could not be remove for some reason, so he'll just have to deal.

He stops at the corner of the street, seeing a group of people walking toward someone's home. He felt his inside freeze. Their features may not be fully realize, but there's no mistaken the silhouette of his father among them. Nevermind that wouldn't make much sense if this were Susato or Ryunosuke's dream, his father was right there. He could feel his feet moving forward, but his mind forces him to stop. He can't see him like this. And his father looked happy...

Like part of the background, he remains standing, watching them as they all go inside the home. When he felt he could move to the front of home without bringing attention to himself, it's then he saw something small wiggling in the snow. An animal? No, it was wearing clothes. It was a plush toy and....ah. He's putting together whose dream this might be, even if it still confused him. Why was he being ignored by those he assume were his friends and family? Why did he have to be a cute plush cat?

He shakes his head, coming forward as he kneels down beside the toy. No matter his feelings towards the Prosecutor, he cannot just ignore someone in distress. Carefully, he'll lift him a few inches above the snow. Closer inspection, he could see how worn this "toy" was. Stop making him feel bad, goodness.]

[Despite the doll's form, it shivers as if very much alive, and a startled breath leaves it once Asogi takes it in his hands. The feeble swipe of one felt arm isn't meant to push van Zieks away from the hold, but rather as an attempt to find some leverage to steady himself.]

L-let me...

[The removal of the direct contact with the frozen slush does at least allow him some easier movement, and though he should likely be concerned with the man directly handling him, his attention and gaze turns once more to the closed window that's gradually beginning to fog over. His brother chats amicably with the two exchange students and the famed detective, and the two ladies share a close discussion about something or other. The warmth from the scene only serves to make the street that much colder.]

[...It is really hard to hate this man like this. Small and pathetic, he felt like he would crumble in his hands. He follows the toy's gaze, up to the foggy window. Nothing needed to be said, Barok wanted to be where the people are ~~and see them dancing~~. He slowly straightens back up on his feet, keeping plush Barok in his arms.

Seeing as nothing is barring him in the dream, he will walk forward to try and open the door.]

[Though the cat's gloved paw reaches briefly towards the window as the masked man moves, it's only a brief movement before he drops the arm and focuses on staying steady in Kazuma's grip. His attention, like the other man's, then turns to the door.

Nothing visible is barring them, it's true—but when Kazuma tries the knob, he'll find it to be solidly locked shut. Another glance at the knob will reveal a shape of a unicorn that wasn't there before, ostentatious and out of place, over the lock.

The both of them were kept from their families and the truth, but in Barok's mind, Asogi was the one to suffer from that man's machinations the most. The young lawyer may have had more strength to fight through it than the Reaper had, but more obstacles had been placed in front of him.]

... it's too late.

[It's hard to tell with his mask on, but he had a defiant expression when he saw the unicorn shaped knob. Even here, that man's influence can be felt. Keeping his hold of plush!Barok in one hand, he rams himself into the door, a desperate attempt to break in.

Tch. Should that fail, it's not going to stop Kazuma from pressing forward. Barok aside, there was someone in this dream he wanted to see, even if it was just a fantastical phantom. He wanted to just see him again.] We simply find another way.

[The effort rattles van Zieks somewhat, his tattered cloak askew after the forceful attempt. His grip tightens around the masked apprentice's hand.]

What are you thinking...?

[It's a deeper question than whatever methodology Kazuma might be considering to get inside. He's cognizant enough to realize the young man wishes to see his father—a wish he'd be able to respect in most circumstances—but the doll was discarded for a reason.

Klint and the others kept so much from him deliberately... but Genshin, he nearly sold his soul to return to his son. Perhaps he would be welcomed inside.]

If you are to break through... you must leave me.

[That's a dangerous suggestion to give him, Barok. How desperate did he want to see his father? In a different time, he would throw everything to get what he wanted, but now...it only makes his grip on Barok even tighter.]

I will not. [They will get through, together or not at all. He tries the knob again, but he'll just be met with the door still refusing to budge. What if he somehow broke off this gaudy doorknob? After one disgusted look at the knob, he'll start walking around the premise. Find another way in. Maybe someone was foolish to leave the window open a crack in the middle of winter-]

[It's a suggestion dangerous to no one but Barok, and he's fully willing to sacrifice the chance he already never had for the sake of the younger man getting a moment with what was left of his family. After all, he was already discarded by those he knew, those he thought of as family. What's another dismissal from someone who was already distant?

But the offer is refused outright, and van Zieks doesn't understand. He tries to look up to Asogi's face, to discern his motives from whatever might be there.]

Why?

[Sadly, none of the residents inside are ~~stupid~~ careless enough to leave the windows open. But the building surely isn't impenetrable, even in a dream where everything seems too large for its creator to surmount the obstacles therein. For instance, where a plush might struggle to climb even a brick or two, the trim on the exterior of the building could be easier to grasp with human hands...]

You don't belong out here. [Simple as that. And besides wanting to see his father, maybe he wants to know why this plush thinks he's been "tossed away". Just a little. Scaling the Baker Street home does look to be the only option he has. His plan, get to the window with all the people and force their attention onto him.

He looks around the building to find a footing to start his climb.] I'm putting you inside my cloak. Hold tight. [He lifts Barok so that he may sit inside his hood, by his collar before starting the climb.]

[What an absurd claim. When all the rest of those inside thought it fitting to leave him out in the cold, that this man of all people would deny it...

Despite some level of humiliation in the whole situation, he does as instructed and grips Asogi's collar; he doesn't want to fall back in the snow where he very well may have perished from the plush version of hypothermia. ... it makes sense in dream logic.]

... you are one of few to think so.

[Watch out for any loose bricks. The residence is nice enough, but it who's to say what will happen in a dream where the place represents something more than a building?]

Tch. I know two others who would say the same. [And they're both far more forgiving of Barok than he is. The climb up is relatively smooth at first. Just get on the window sill, dig some claws he suddenly has into the brick wall. No big deal.

What he hadn't expected, was water to start falling down the side. It was still snowing, not raining. Looking up, he's suddenly met with a cold steel wall.] What...?

[Gravity also seems to have shifted as he "falls" onto the wall that is now a wooden floor. Well, they're inside, but this was definitely not the inside the Baker Street home. It looks like the inside of a foreign cabin, dimly lit by a light above. There was nothing inside besides a bed in the corner and a what looked like a wooden casket in the middle of the room. It was subtle, but he was also swaying slightly, like they were move along a body of water. They were now out on the ocean? Outside the room, voices can be heard mumbling, but no words could be made out.]

[And they're both idiots too—

While nyan Zieks's brow furrows unseen at the appearance of those claws, the concern that arises isn't able to progress to a proper remark as the dream suddenly morphs into a decidedly different setting.

Don't mind if the force of the drop forces a squeak out of the plush before he attempts to compose himself once more, still holding onto Kazuma's collar.]

What in blazes...?

[Though he's familiar enough with the inside of ships like these, he hasn't stepped foot inside one in some time; the most recent was the dream of one of those aforementioned two, who had a much more remarkable experience than Barok ever had. He wonders...

Though slightly damp from the water from before, the cold and height is no longer such a concern that he feels the need to cling any further. Nyan Zieks moves out of Kazuma's hood, heading towards that strange box to investigate properly. He can at least climb this thing, with enough effort.]

[Kazuma simply stares at the casket at the center. It remains closed, the contents within a mystery at this time. He watches as the small plush tries to climb his way up. What happened to the sad and depressed cat that did not want to move a minute ago? Either way, this place was not of Barok's making. This space was something created from his own mind, whether he was aware of it or not.

He will ignore the casket and the plight of Nyan Zieks as he checks the door. The handle is cold to the touch. Try as he might, he cannot open it. There was peephole though, and what he could see on the other side...was not the ocean or even a hallway. It was the street they were just on, Baker Street. The home of the Great Detective was just across from them.]

Hello?! [Any shouting and banging at the door is only met with silence. Seeing no other immediate options to get out through this path, he turns back around to see Nyan Ziek's progress. As he does so, his attire changes in a blink of an eye. Old and tatty clothes that he had worn on his long and brutal journey to Great Britain.

There were more objects in the room as well. Old books, handmade metal plates with bits of food and bloodied bandages, laid all around the floor. He's starting to not like where this dream was going.]

What are you doing? [He finally, turns his attention to his plush companion. A distraction and only object that has remain constant from the ever shifting room.]

[He's still miserable, don't get him wrong. It's just now that there is a strange and unknown thing in front of him, and it serves as both a distraction and focus. With Asogi more capable of testing the door, it only makes sense that he'd investigate the casket.

It takes him several seconds to reach his destination, but his attention is then diverted by the changing surroundings, used objects appearing out of nowhere and even his companion's appearance different from the moment before.

He folds his arms as he's addressed, observing the younger man for a moment.]

Attempting to understand.

[He kneels down, and his plush fist manages the very slightest of knocks, testing to see if the large box he hopes is hollow... is indeed hollow.]

[The knocks seem to indicate the casket was hollow, but then a moment later, there was a knock in return. Then several more. Kazuma walks over to pick up his troublesome plush companion.]

Don't touch anything. [The knocking from the box subsides. Whoever or whatever was in there, remains locked inside.] It feels like we're inside a ship, but that detective's home is still outside.

[There's a long creaking noise as the "boat" seems to be turning in one direction. The sound of thunder can be heard in the distance. A storm at sea. The light in the room dimly flickers. Various images of his time on the boat flashes in the darkness. A fight in ship cafeteria, being forced to carry the heavier loads. Hardly any food, and tending to injuries he obtained just to survive on this damn ship. There are marks on one of the walls, indicating he had been marking each day he was out at sea. This was not his dream, it was this foolish prosecutor's dream dammit. So why were they suddenly here?]

...We need to figure out how to open the door.

[Though displeased at being abruptly retrieved after his brief investigation brought forward something of interest, van Zieks keeps his remarks about being handled in such a way to himself.

There is something in him that's aware of the nature of this space, distantly. There's a connection to the other man here made even more obvious by the images that flicker and disappear. Is there something to the idea of... being trapped, for Asogi? He looks around the room, then down at the casket; a key lying about would feel too simple. If the other was unable to open the door through simple physical means...]

It would be foolish to ignore the obvious.

[He's staring at the casket, still sitting silently at the center of the room. And then he proceeds to investigate anything, but the casket. He'll set his plush companion on the desk to continue his search.

Another knock from the casket can be heard while Kazuma discovers his old and worn journal he kept on the ship. He's scanning through the pages in hopes perhaps one of the pages held a key. Problem is, all the writing is just a garbled mess.

Another knock as he walks over to check under the bed.]

[This time, at least, nyan Zieks remains where he's placed. His little legs could only take him so far even if he was fully energized, and he has the feeling the man would stop him from attempting what he'd like, anyway.

So for now, he watches. Watches as his not-apprentice looks about, apparently finding nothing of value. Perhaps it is unwise to express this sentiment, but—]

What is it you so fear?

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