complexrestart | 008 [action/video]

[The video turns on, and Rika's facing the screen. It's late at night, and yet she's wide awake. She was asleep not too long ago, however she was jolted awake suddenly from a nightmare.] ... It seems as if I wasn't able to escape the nightmares either... [Her hand touches her throat for a moment, and she catches herself and places her hands in her lap.] This fog... it has something to do with it, but... I don't know what it is. It seems that everyone's dreams are very realistic, as was mine.

When I woke up, I didn't know what was real and what wasn't. I'm surprised I managed to calm myself down... [Her hand goes up to her throat again, and she scratches it lightly as she thinks of her dream. She catches herself again and quickly moves her hand away. Why is she doing this? She never reacted like this before... yet, the nightmare seemed to have had a deep effect on her.]

[She shuts off the video, but before it shuts off there's a slight mumbling--] Please... stop apologizing. I thought you were no longer doing that.

((ooc: Rika just had a dream about Hinamizawa Syndrome appearing in Johto, so she's pretty shaken up at the moment.))

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... If you don't want to talk about it, you don't have to lie to reassure me.

... Then I will not lie.

I haven't had any nightmares in my stay here, yet the one I had was so realistic. I... thought it was actually happening for a few moments when I woke up.

You're not alone in that respect. I had a dream like that, too.

What was it about?

... My brother. [ which is true, but adding POSSESSED BY DARKNESS isn't something she's sure she wants to add yet. ]

I'm sorry.

... I had a dream about my hometown. [Sort of. She doesn't exactly want to say that she had a dream about everyone going insane.]

Are you feeling homesick again?

[Rika's quiet for a moment as she decides whether or not to answer honestly. However, with how shaken up she is at the moment, she can't hide how she's truly feeling.]

... No.

... [ Asuka's not even stopping to consider, just sitting down beside her and reaching out to gently pull Rika against her. ]

[Rika lets Asuka do just that, and she sits in silence.]

You're not alone, Rika-chan. This won't last.

[She hugs Asuka.] Thank you. I really needed to hear that.

[ Asuka softens, returning that hug. She's grown pretty fond of her. ] I'll be more than happy to remind you. Would you like me to stay with you for awhile?

[She smiles a little now.] I would. With the nightmares and this fog... I really don't want to be alone right now.

I'm sure anyone else would feel the same way.

You're right. I'm sure that most people at the moment are feeling that way, since it seems that everyone has been having nightmares.

There should be some source behind it, other than just unease...

Yes. It looks as if the fog has something to do with it, at least.

Fog can only last so long. Once it burns away, we may be able to do more than wait.

Do you think something else other than the fog is behind this?

... Yes. On its own, fog should be harmless.

You're right. The fog may be making the nightmares worse, but it definitely isn't the cause, if that's the case.

So then we should be focusing on the exact cause. If we can figure that out, we should be able to stop this.

Yes. Except... where do we start?

First the crystallization of Johto and now this... I'm beginning to think that this world may not be as safe as I once thought.

Rika-chan... [ glancing down at her, then up at the sky. ] There's no world that's completely safe. But as long as we don't give up, there's also no situation that doesn't have a solution.