eyeswideopen | Messenger Box

eyeswideopen

If you need to get a hold of Komaeda, here's where you do it.

Messenger birds, action, what have you.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

From:

gottacatch

[ The hum of the connection comes with a pressure to it, a strong insistence to be answered in the early afternoon that doesn't usually announce Red's calls. Where those were a lighter, cheerier set of knocks, these could only be compared to a more forceful rapt of knuckles urging for the door to be open. And, once Komaeda should answer it-- ]

Komaeda. [ Red speaks instantly, some pulse of another's bubbly emotion joined behind the name, a contrast to his voice that's attempting to keep steady under the emotion present. The line itself is tense, uneasy, hollow; there's nothing visual to the link, but there's a bed of emotions that can be felt quivering over some lower portion of the space, focus from the trainer pushing them down to that lower level to the best of his ability.

But the emotions are like a land-level fog, rolling by some unseen force, where one stands out as existing more than the unease of the trainer himself. It's a hopelessness, an utter despair with a signature not unfamiliar to Komaeda, and definitely not Red's. It tries to ascend like curls of smoke upward, but some unknown third party exists beneath everything connected to Red by a line that can't be touched, a low hum of happiness -- like inhuman chuckles -- rolling over it to smother it back down.

It's an odd mess as Red tries to speak through it, but his beginning message is short enough. ]

Junko didn't -- [ a distant laughter, a soft hushing hiss. ] -- die in that place.

From:

eyeswideopen

[Creepy is about the right word he'd use for a weird moment like this. He has no idea how to take the fact he's dealt with worse. Komaeda had been about to call Hinata, and start their morning chat. He sucks in a breath, and lets it out.]

Where did she die, Red? Do you know?

[He snags a journal from the bookcase and a pen, while he's talking. His end is filled with a steady calm.]

From:

gottacatch

In the woods, from the south exit. We're here. Gengar can feel it... [ Another sound, a whoo-ing that sounds so distant. She's listening. ]

We can show you the way.

[ The call may have no visuals, but that doesn't mean the soft beckoning in the connection isn't unlike a monster's transparent claw in sensation, wordlessly inviting him. A soft 'Gengar' can be heard whispered after, not exactly chiding but still telling, and it fades into nothing. ]

From:

eyeswideopen

[He writes it down and snaps the journal closed. It slides easily into his back pocket as he grabs his coat from the rack by the door. The sensation is odd, but he just lets it be. They're guiding him. That's enough for him.]

I'm heading out now. I'll stay connected with you so we can keep talking.

...

I'm not surprised she didn't die there. It's also interesting to note the marks of a blade at the scene. Whoever did those isn't as tall as Hajime.

Edited Date: 2016-07-25 08:08 pm (UTC)

From:

gottacatch

I didn't see anything there-- it's all gone. When we got close, Gengar, she...

[ Now there's a image, a flash taking them somewhere deep within the woods, but it's hard to get a clear idea of much from the point of view, or what exactly is even going on beyond the despair that comes flooding over the link. Bark curls and tears away from the trees, the grass shrivelling up into small lines of smoke; there's nothing slow about the corrosion that can be seen, when it can be seen, the last thing that had been on Junko's mind to so much witness as to feel.

(In this particular case, that is.)

There's a pain somewhere in there, but it's a drop in comparison to all the utter focus put behind the intensity of her emotions. The corrosion spreads over the wildlife, eating away at it like a flameless fire without thought, that can only be stopped by-- ]

Heh-hehehaha! Aha-- haha-!

[ ...a sudden random laughter coming over the line from Red, the clips and pieces of memory from Junko's point of view stopping completely.

Please standby. ]

From:

gottacatch

[ Well.

Once he's done, there's an alarm of embarrassment that comes through with the despair now lowered to more bearable levels, and a shame apparent in the trainer's voice. ]

I'll-- I'll have Gengar meet you. Sorry, I need a moment! I'll see you when you get here! Meet her at the woods outside the south gate!

[ Sorry, some trainer needs to compose himself because his gengar was loving that despair too much. But true to his word, once Komaeda should make his way outside the gate and sees the gathering of trees, a glow of red eyes will shine brightly in a space high off the ground, before an entire figure surrounds it, floating down to the ground.

She's big, just a little shorter than Red himself, and she's swaying from side to side as she waits for Komaeda to come over to her, her eyes sometimes closing to a more gleeful look than just a huge grin can get across, and even waving her arms out playfully with childlike noises to match.

What a beautiful day it is! ]

From:

eyeswideopen

[There's no sky.

No ground.

Only the empty darkness as his thoughts fracture and shatter like countless shards of glass. He's lost in the dark until a chain rattles, and he pulls at the empty darkness.

Hatred. Despair. The bleak sense that death is coming.

Kneeling before children as his chain pools at his feet. Staring down a pair of sharpened scissors and not caring what might happen next. A mis-]

From:

eyeswideopen

[The same time Gengar laughs, he slams his fist into his stomach and doubles over it with a curse. He'd let the despair enflame his own. His voice has a faint note of strain to it, when he replies.]

It's fine. I'll see you there.

[He steps outside of the south gate, much more composed now. It had taken a few minutes to focus and channel a balanced blend of hope and despair so he might venture into whatever blight Enoshima Junko had unleashed. With his cat-like spyite on his shoulder he walks until Gengar appears and comes to a complete stop.]

Sorry for being a little late. I needed a moment myself. Lead the way when you're both ready, Gengar.

From:

gottacatch

[ Both. The word makes purple smoke come off from the side of Gengar's body, transforming into another of the same being, and then another, and then another, and then another, multiplying and taking up the surrounding space while the original looks around herself curiously.

It happens for a few seconds, and then they poof away into nothing, no delay between then and the pokémon sliding off her feet and into the air like it's nothing, head--or body--tilting curiously at Komaeda. Her form may be plump, but she's quicker than looks can speak, she circling around him once to inspect him, but only stopping at the front of him to really peer. At least she knows personal space when she does it, but there's something about those eyes that look like they could dig ever deeper without needing to so close in the first place.

She lingers with it too, quietly, that gaze--before she'll turn to the forest, a dark shadow beneath her forming and the same claw that he had felt in the connection between himself and Red beckoning him to follow as the body begins to move.

Ready to follow still, Komaeda? ]

From:

eyeswideopen

[Komaeda walks after the ghost as he pulls on gloves. If he's to inspect the scene at all, he won't be leaving fingerprints. As unsettling as Gengar is, if they're acting as a suppressant of darker emotions, well.

That's a damn good thing right now. He's been off balance since he surveyed the crime scene and holding himself to normal human standards isn't working. He walks slowly, giving himself time to put his mind in order.

He needs to be at his best. Or he'll never be able to transfer information to Kirigiri.]

From:

gottacatch

[ Unfortunately, there's only one who Gengar can help suppress those emotions for, and one she would only bother to for -- except, perhaps, her team mates, but while Komaeda is obviously someone to her trainer, her kindness extends to leading the way as asked.

But maybe fortunately, perhaps, is the distance between Komaeda and the site he's being led to, which means he has time between normality and whatever Junko's despair has left behind. It's no short walk for a human, but it gives Red the chance to come through to the older guy again: this time, however, with a line more steady than the last, a calmness present that's accompanied by a refreshing chill not unlike someone switching on a fan, or opening a fridge door.

Now this feels more like a calming aid. ]

Komaeda -- sorry about before. Are you okay? [ Red even sounds more together, a faint touch of the unease that was once there, beneath the soft shame in the trainer's voice, but nothing like how it was before. ] I didn't want to wait to contact you. It isn't a short walk; Junko didn't plan to have this place found so easily, but Gengar sensed it soon after I entered the forest.

[ You can never keep a good despair-site away from a ghost-type like her. ]

From:

eyeswideopen

Enoshima's despair isn't unfamiliar to me. [Maybe, it's time to admit a few things to Red. It would make things make more sense. If only to explain the motives behind what Junko is doing right now. His calm is like a warm breeze spilling through the link.

That's what that was, wasn't it? [The more he mulls it over the more he's sure of Enoshima's motive for targetting Hinata.]

I'm alright, it just caught me off guard to feel it in that depth...almost nostaligic. [Well, that's weird.] How much did Hinata Hajime tell you about himself?

From:

gottacatch

It was. [ was the answer in regards to what had been filling over the connection before. ] It's all over where she-- [ Where Komaeda is, Gengar chuckles, turning herself halfway to grin at the human. ] If she didn't die here, she did something here. Something big.

[ Just thinking about it recalled a tingling trace of what had made its way into his body, but he has Lapras and her soothing presence to help keep him keep it under control.

There's a pause before he speaks again after Komaeda has, his thoughts focusing on the question. ]

He told me about Kamukura and the school that made them exist. [ Them, Kamukura. ] I know the school was for people with 'Ultimate' talents... like you told me about yours. And how Junko spread her despair to other people before it finally spread through the world.

[ There's a calm to his voice, but not without the sombre recognition there of what he's saying. It's about more than Hinata--but then, was it really? ]

From:

eyeswideopen

She spread it through out my class first. Not a single one of us escaped it. In the rotten school system we were already vulnerable. She just gave us all a push. Not that I remember any of that.

[He looks to Gengar thoughtfully and then about him. Yes, it all feels so familiar. He can already feel the bubble of high laughter in his chest. Komaeda spreads his hands and chains rattle like the toll of a funeral bell.]

Kamukura was easy for her to break. In ways Hajime will not be. But this wasn't just a shot at him. It's sloppy compared to her usual schemes but, well. [His expression has been blank, like a mask this entire time.]

It's a lot like shooting arrows into an advancing army. Someone besides the main targets will be hit. [He pauses, despite the swirls of despair and hope curling in the air like splashes of paint.] I'm not 'Servant' anymore than he's 'Kamukura.'.

From:

gottacatch

[ 'Servant'. The word doesn't echo loudly, but that Red repeats it in his head can be heard most quietly, in a non-deliberate fashion, somewhere far off. It's the only word from him for a while as he takes in what's been said, and the conversation they're getting into.

The indication that he is about to speak, though difficult to take for one, is when Gengar stops where she's going, then turns properly to Komaeda. ]

Gengar can carry you here quicker, if you're okay with it. It'll be cold, but she can keep you low to the ground. Just approach her or shake your head. [ The offer breaks his silence, and Gengar's body dips halfway into the ground while the darkness raises up to her arms, dangling off from them. By appearances, it doesn't look like she should be able to carry anything at all, but it was up to Komaeda to give a signal that he would take the offer or not.

Regardless, Red continues. ] Hinata's never been Kamukura to me. He agreed to their experiment, but he didn't agree to stop being Hinata... They took that away from him. I don't hold Kamukura's action against him.

What they did to him-- they were bastards for how far they went.

[ The words were clear and decided, the last not hiding his disgust. Whatever uncertainties had been with Red a week ago when it came about rights and wrongs wasn't present now, and that-- it had never been over Hinata. ]

As long as all of you don't want to hurt others for a reason like despair, your past... I'll judge you for who you are now. Not who you were.

From:

eyeswideopen

[For a second he just stands in place. Every time he reveals who he was people don't leave. It doesn't make much sense sometimes. Komaeda strides for Gengar, trusting the ghost and Red. After all for all his fears, Charizard had brought him safely to land. What to say to that?] I want to fix what I can fix. I'll only hurt others to protect myself and protect others.

I'll never kill again unless I have no choice. ...even as I remember more of that time, I'm not a danger to you or anyone else.

[But he might become one, if healing erases him completely and leaves behind Servant. He hasn't talked to anyone about that but his partners and Mu.]

...as for the school. They did things no human should to another. Whether my Hajime knew or not, what they did was unforgiveable. Hope that desperate and high, only falls to earth as despair. ...hope should never be at the cost of a life.

[Especially not that life is heavily implied. His affection and love for Hinata not hidden in the slightest.]

From:

gottacatch

[ Her shadows scoop him up, and it's more sudden than as gently it could be, a sing-song sound to tease how he's now cradled by the darkness before her form. But everything else -- other than that odd chill that'll touch at his skin -- is as considered as promised (by Red). Her body keeps sunk half-way, and Komaeda's feet could near graze the dirt and grass if Gengar was to play any nasty tricks, resuming their journey at a speed that's faster than a run.

There'll be no nasty tricks, of course, and Gengar even watches out for the space of the trees and how he'll fit, and if the support at his back will need to prop him up not. He's so lucky she's in a good mood!! ]

You two sound closer than before. [ Red hadn't not recognised -- something. Felt affection, of course, understood love in his own way, but that's his first thought from that, and 'my Hajime'. He remembers that part of Hinata's full name. Where he is, he breathes in the sea scent from Lapras's body, a tree to his back and her at his side. ]

I've heard a lot of terrible things since coming here. Stories about peoples' worlds and what's happened here too. To be honest... I never understood any of it. It made me feel angry, or hopeless. I just started to accept it, that I might hear things like that from anyone. [ ... ] It was hard enough to accept back home people would want to torture pokémon for profit.

[ Komaeda didn't ask, but something compels him to share it, as ignorant as it might make him sound. Some things were different now, at least about his state of mind, only implied for as far he goes, as there's a direction to for instead than to continue on a more personal reflection. ]

Someone like Junko is harder for me to understand. [ A pause. ] But I spoke to her during the festival. That arrow -- Junko... it wasn't just an attack on Hinata and everyone around him, but on herself too, wasn't it? Despair makes her happy. She knows she won't stay dead, so she enjoyed it, and she gets to hurt the people she has a connection to here and come back to a bigger mess.

[ It's hard to understand, yet there's another thought on his mind, like a small heavy weight. ]

That thing-- the one that went after Kylo Ren... what would it do to someone who would plan their own death this way? Would it be able to tell her intentions? What if she's aiming to get the same treatment as he did? Wouldn't that make her happy?

From:

eyeswideopen

I think it would. But like always, I can only guess what precisely is her goal. She's quite...chaotic. Even to Servant, her motives weren't always clear. [It's an odd sensation riding a ghost. It feels a bit like drifting in cold water. While he's thinking on that he might as well answer Red's other question.]

...but, you're right. Hajime and I are closer. I have to be careful with how I operate for this case. Enoshima might be able to get whatever I testify or submit as evidence thrown out since my bias is...very much on my boyfriend's side.

For a lot of reasons aside from that. But she'll fix on that.

You're also right she loves despair. ...she killed her own sister to further her own despair. If I could I'd submit that as part of a testimony on her character. But I don't have the memory petal. She does.

From:

gottacatch

Boyfriend? [ Like before, the word gets fixated on, repeated--yet there''s nothing yet emotionally to it. It sticks out, but why it does--well, Komaeda calling Hinata his boyfriend is...

... ]

From:

gottacatch

[ ...wait

WAIT

WAAIIIITTTT ]

From:

gottacatch

--You and Hinata are d-- d-- together!?

Dating!?

[ Sorry, was there a more important conversation going on here involving the murder of sisters? Because there's nothing but fluster and high emotions on Red's end that one might be able to translate as oh my arceus they're together?? A couple?? Two guys??? REALLY???? despite being wordless. ]

I mean-- uhhh, Junko-- umm!

[ He's scrambling to get back on topic here, give him a second!! GIVE HIM A SECOND!! ]

From:

eyeswideopen

[Apparently everyone will fix on that. He sighs. This is going to be a very long day.]

Yes, we're dating. Us and our partner, but let's get back on topic, please. Are you familiar with the girl Ikasaba Mukuro?

[He projects an image of Junko Enoshima and Mukuro Ikasaba standing side by side, and the resemblance is almost perfect. Junko's prettier, but minus some freckles on Mukuro's face they are definitely sisters.]

She was from a different timeline than ours. In hers, she survived, in ours Junko Enoshima killed her at the start of the first killing life murder game she set up on a whim.

Edited Date: 2016-08-01 05:09 pm (UTC)

From:

gottacatch

[ His embarrassment finds some lower level to exist in, quivering like a field of Aiada's sprites huddled up, bright red and shamed and flushed. It's useful that Komaeda's explaining what they're meant to be speaking about or where they were--Red had, as one might guess, entirely been distracted by the revelation of a certain love life. And a third?? --now's not the time to think about that. ]

I...no, I've never heard of her. [ Right, this is actually serious stuff. Red tries to focus on what he's supposed to be thinking about. ] Would... a memory work against Junko? What if...what if I could get the memory I saw onto a memory petal? If I make Gengar pick up on it again and I see it...

[ Couldn't it work? ]

From:

eyeswideopen

It would keep your testimony from being thrown out. A memory will back your words. The prosecution will be doing their level best to throw out anything they can. Always keep in mind that evidence used needs to have impact that sways opinions in our favor.

Any cross-exam is done with the lawyer or detective, or questioner trying to control you. They will ask things with a goal in mind. Or to discredit you.

[He could get the memory where she admitted killing her sister, but how much relevance does that have? He'll discuss it with Kirigiri.]

Anyway, the members of the first killing life Enoshima established, were her own classmates.

From:

gottacatch

... Komaeda... before you continue, can you wait until you get here? I don't want to hear something like this inside my head right now.

[ He doesn't know if that's strange, but calmer as he might be (both compared to a moment ago, and when he firs contacted Komaeda), it's unsettling to hear in a place so close to his thoughts.

He's not sure if he wants to hear any of it any time soon, but better in person than through the amulets. ]

You're nearly here. I know Gengar's getting closer.

[ Gengar leans her bodied face closer to Komaeda without any effect to how she carries him, a sing-song tune coming out from behind her teeth with a look that might translate as questionable, but was it? The darkness cradling him, the same which surrounds her too, seems to bleed out into tendrils that burst into smoke when they smack into the trees, as a distant feeling can be caught in the air, something ever so hopeless, making her ever the more energised.

Those shadows take it in, a laughter rippling lowly within the shadows down below under the surface, as faint as a whisper--manic, choked, unhinged. Female. Familiar.

Even cartoonish. ]