seaofhearts | BETA ROUND END

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BETA ROUND END

Who: The Alices of the Beta Round remaining (Sasuke, Harley, Hinata, Ken, Lalli, and Liao)
What: Everyone has a choice to make. Specifically, it begins as Sasuke's choice.
Where: The World's Hub, the room the Rabbit normally stands.
Warnings: Definite violence. Somebody got... something.

A smile reaches the White Rabbit's face as he hands the sharp key to Sasuke.

"... I'm certain you recall the choice you made," he says slowly. "But it's up to you to decide if you really want to uphold that. Who is 'most evil' in this World? You've seen so very many Hearts, after all--I'm sure you could reach a decision. ... The Cat and I, of course... well, we hardly count. We've never been human, after all."

And he'll remain in that same spot he's always been in, of course.

"While you all decide, your rooms will wait for you. Or you could all stay here and fight about it. Either way, sweet dreams, Alices."

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I cannot. I'm not God.

[ ... So. Why bother? ]

There's no point in me pondering the "what if"s. ... Even so, it would be nice to visit a library once in awhile. It has been hundreds of years since I last read a decent book that wasn't a shadow of someone's memory. To be able to touch one would be... nice.

[ ... That's all. It might seem stupid, he supposes, but... well. He'd never real thought about it, before. ]

[... That... it'd be nice, huh?]

Why does this 'god' never show up?

[They took down the Nyx Avatar at home... maybe they could force a change in the rules here.]

He just doesn't. It's easier to manage things by being behind them, I assume. That's why we're down here.

[ ... There's a long pause. He's been... somewhat smart. Perhaps the kid deserves a reward. ]

... You don't understand as much as you think. God isn't someone that can be bargained with. I cannot leave this space for reasons beyond just the rules. Even the Cat can only leave for brief periods.

Then what kind of reasons are there? Why can't you leave? That seems... unnecessarily restrictive.

[That's the right word, isn't it?]

... I cannot tell you that.

[ You've crossed into something he's not comfortable talking about, sorry. ]

It has nothing to do with you, anyway, so it hardly matters. I would think it best to free your mind of any ideas pertaining to our God now. He is a more ethereal figure than solid one, not something you can fight or reason with, unlike what you dealt with.

This is a place of the sleeping, of dreams. ... Bear that in mind.

We beat up Takaya's Hypnos Persona which is the god of sleep, but fine.

[Grumble mumble.]

I just... wish I could help you more...

... Why are you so preoccupied with me? I hardly matter.

[ He means it earnestly; he really doesn't seem to think much of himself. ]

Because you're stuck here. And that's kind of terrible.

... There isn't anything out there for something like myself, anyway, so it doesn't particularly matter. This is... where I belong. Someone has to watch this place, anyway.

[ It's his job. And he has... take care of it. ]

I think the real world is much worse. You have to feed yourself, struggle to survive, force yourself to learn or do things you don't want to do... for me, I prefer the World to the world.

There's a lot of worlds out there. I'm sure you could find a place.

[To not have a choice...]

It... can be terrible out there, yes. But... there's good out there, too.

... You still don't understand what this place is, do you...?

[ He holds the bridge of his nose in annoyance. ]

I thought by now you would understand. You've talked to the Cat for long enough, surely you must have figured something out about us.

It's a dream world. A place where you can look into someone's heart, because... I don't know. People are less guarded when they're dreaming.

What I don't understand is why. And why does the fact that we're dreaming mean it's any less real?

...

[ Maybe he should be blunt. Ken doesn't seem to be getting it. He was... so close, but he lost it. ]

We both died a long time ago.

We have always been dead. For a very long time. Longer than any of you have ever existed, we've lived here. We cannot leave, because if we did, we would cease to exist.

That's -

[... He slumps slightly. That's... oh.]

So... you can't...

[But if they were alive, and now they're here... but they don't count...]

... You've never been human. But you've been alive, so -

[But if they don't count for making a Door, they don't count. There's... not much he can do to change that, is there?]

... For what it's worth... I'm sorry.

[He really means it, too. He's sorry that he's stuck here, sorry that he died... have they been here so long that they're both just clinging to the parts of their personalities that are the strongest?]

[ He's about to say something, but there's... a pain. A pain somewhere... is it his head? Or his empty chest?

He holds a hand to his head. Ken--and the others around them, too--will hear the beginning of a conversation. It seems to be between two people, their ages and gender difficult to discern. It's buried in static, like their voices are waning in and out. Preceding them is another voice, androgynous, difficult to make out, but it can be clearly heard at first before they cut in:

"...This is what happens when you cling so desperately to who you are. Even they can barely remember anymore. Turn to foam, turn to foam... all these bubbles... what will you all do, I wonder?"

"C▇▇▇▇▇▇e, I d▇▇▇t w▇▇▇ ▇▇ ▇i▇. Are ▇e ▇▇▇ll▇ ▇▇▇d?"

"Th▇▇ ▇s ▇l▇ ▇▇u▇ ▇▇▇lt, B▇▇▇! You ▇▇▇▇▇▇ us!"

"My ▇▇u▇▇?! It ▇▇▇ your ▇▇e▇ in the f▇▇▇t ▇▇ac▇!"

Arguing and fighting sounds like it erupts, and it cuts off there. Then, a piercing child's scream can be heard--

"You ▇▇or▇▇ off m▇▇ EA▇▇!"

Then, a quiet laugh can be heard, and nothing more. The White Rabbit shakes his head, frowning. ]

... This is why... I hate him... it seems even our God likes you. ... I don't... really care what you think about me. It doesn't... really matter.

Edited 2016-05-12 04:02 (UTC)

[He hesitates once the Rabbit is done speaking, once he hears what he hears... but he reaches out to put a hand on the Rabbit's arm.]

... Doesn't it?

[If he can reach them... if they can find something else... and even if they can't, to be stuck here with no hope of leaving... at least if he has some kind of connection, maybe it'll... help.]

[ ... He shakes his head. It still aches, just a bit, but more importantly... what on earth does this child think he's going to get out of this interaction? Touching him? Trying to coddle him? He doesn't need this sympathy. ]

... It wouldn't help you. What exactly do you think "reaching us" would accomplish?

[Hope. Maybe. ... It's also a bit annoying that both of them can read his mind like this, but... he can't stop them, really.]

It's not about me.

[Not really. He takes his hand away, sighing.]

... You don't deserve this. Neither of you, no matter how awful that Cat is.

... I suggest you prioritize attempting to secure your exit rather than this avenue of conversation, Alice. It won't get you anywhere.

I'm losing my patience.

[ A warning: quit while you're ahead, you're not going to get anywhere like this with him, nor will he allow it. ]

Mm.

[He looks over at the others.]

All right.

[If that's how the Rabbit wants to be... he can't stop him.]

[ Ken can't see it, but he's obviously crossed an obvious line in the sand, so to speak. Rabbit doesn't like revealing anything about himself, or talking about himself in this fashion, much less ever thinking like that.

It's pointless to hope.

He discarded hope a long time ago. ]

A word to the wise: hope is a pointless emotion. All it can do is die.

Maybe in one person. Not in everyone.

[And with that said, he heads back to the main group.]

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BETA ROUND END

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