This turned out long, which is why it's here and not on the main comm. And it's all dream sequences. I meant to do one journal post per day, which would have left room for - other stuff, but I procrastinated, so here is the condensed version of the crazy vision quest.

Warnings: possibly NSFW, involves sex and death and injured mice and parental issues, not all at once.

( if wellness is this what in hell's name is sickness )

((for always_ashes, right after this, so backdated a few days.))

Angela?

[Teru's home, finally. It's been a long day. A's expecting him to be back late, of course, but he knows she'll still be worried.

At least he almost has good news.]

((Private to siafukira, after this.))

Fetch me if you find him.

Technically, of course, he found Teru, and is apparently less in need of help than ever. But the other Light needs to know that, so now Teru's on the second floor, looking for the room with a chalk circle. It's not hard to find. He knocks, then steps back a little, waiting.

( A would probably agree with this. Teru has his doubts. )

ETA: took the same quiz for Boomy, by way of contrast.

( ...just a little misanthropy, yeah. )

[No one ever cleans around here.

Teru's in a kitchen. An ordinary kitchen, not one that writes on you or changes when you least expect it. He's down on his hands and knees, scrubbing at the tiles, occasionally coughing as artificial lemon scent hits the back of his throat.

To an outside observer, the tiles would seem clean enough already, but that's not the point. They can always be better.]

[Days spent together are a lot more pleasant now Teru doesn't have to force himself to appear happy about them. He's wandering the halls with Angela and a picnic basket, as they do every week. Or as close to every week as possible given the Mansion's sense of time.]

Where today, then? The beach again?

(sort of a followup to a previous chat in which Vashti and I stretched the moth to a flame analogy for big-Teru about as far as it would go. This time we were talking about Stalky.)

21:00 vashti take away the fear and all the spider is, is a small arthropod you could crush with a thought.
21:02 vashti also, poor kid!Light is getting so excited about his English lessons. it's almost cute.
21:02 phoebonica ...I'm trying to come up with an analogy about flushing Light down a plughole but it's not working. Fun mental image though.
21:02 phoebonica he is eerily cute.
21:03 vashti well, the tap is a shower. you turn it on, rinse away the blinders and the obsession and the intimidation, and down he goes.
21:04 phoebonica yes.
21:04 vashti *improvises*
21:05 phoebonica yay minibeast analogies.
21:05 toph i love the word 'minibeast'.
21:06 vashti it is a great word.
21:06 vashti and a new one, for me. \o/
21:07 phoebonica and, um. Teru isn't sure whether to step on Light or to pick him up carefully with paper and carry him outside. But he wants him out of the house.
21:07 phoebonica the house is his *soul*.
21:07 toph i was really into bugs when i was little, and i had a book called MINIBEASTS :D.
21:07 toph *lolling*
21:07 vashti where he showers in the sink.
21:07 toph I also love this metaphor.
21:07 vashti This is a wonderful metaphor. :)

[insert discussion of the word 'minibeast' for a bit]

21:10 vashti and Light is entirely struck on staying inside. it's warm, and there's shelter, and he gets to scare people and snare flies (which are conscience, doubt and so on) that flit in.
21:13 phoebonica ...so apparently flies are good. In metaphor-land.
21:13 phoebonica maybe they're actually moths.
21:13 vashti oh, possibly.
21:13 vashti or .. hm. ladybirds.
21:14 vashti from Light's perspective, they're flies. flies are bad.
21:14 phoebonica *nods*
21:14 vashti teru ... probably sees them as flies too. but they're actually tiny moths.

[The worst part about the mansion is the things it knows. Monsters are all very well, but they're nothing compared to having your deepest insecurities pulled out of you and put on display. Especially when the cause of them is standing there to watch, and smiling, and you know you deserve it.

Teru's out of the insecurity room now, along with Beyond and A. The ink is gone from his body. On the outside, he's clean again. But he's still shaking.]

[[private to happy_irthday and always_ashes. Posting order B/A/Teru? We'll figure it out.]]

[For the past week, Teru has managed not to let A find out that he's been leaving in the early mornings, or where he's been going. Today, though, he's a little late back.

He opens the door to their room, quietly, and tells himself it doesn't matter. She's probably still asleep. Not awake yet, not worried about him and coming to find him and putting herself in danger. Because that's why he's been keeping this from her. To protect her.

Of course.]

[This is the first time in a few days that Mikami's been out of his room alone. A seems to want to stay closer to him than usual, and... to be honest, he's relieved.

But today, for the moment, he's by himself. And trying to find his way back from the library. He was sure he'd taken the right turning.

At least he hasn't run into - anyone else in the corridors.

Yet.]

[Teru lets A lead him home from the karaoke room without saying anything. He holds onto her until they're back in their room, then he lets go of her hand and collapses onto the couch.]

Angela...

Tag this post with your character's (characters'?) journal names and I will write a one-line drabble about them from my character's perspective. "One line" means 15 words or less.

Then post this up so you can do the same.

Open to people from hogwarts_hocus and DNDR. I can also write one-liners from the perspectives of any of my other characters, if you like. (oneof_me at h_h, and terusagoodboy, kirabait and bherself at DNDR.)

[Teru is waiting for A, again. He's sitting on their sofa, with a blanket and a large wicker basket on his lap. They came from the wish room. He doesn't know what's in the picnic basket yet, he hasn't looked. All he asked for was 'things Angela would like'.

Maybe they'll soften the blow, a little.

He doesn't want to do this. But. He's going to have to tell her sooner or later.]

Rising Sign is in 19 Degrees Aquarius
You like new ideas and concepts, but you prefer to discover them by yourself -- it is not easy for others to convert you to anything. You form your own opinions, but once you do form them, you then want to convince everyone else that they are correct. Try to be more tolerant of the opinions of others. You have a deep and abiding interest in science, mathematics, and the great social problems of the day. Very sympathetic toward the downtrodden, equality is your battle cry! You demand that those in authority be fair to all. You are an intellectual -- emotions and emotional people are difficult for you to understand. You are known for being calm, cool, detached and objective.

Sun is in 16 Degrees Gemini.
You have a quick, bright and agile mind, but an extremely short attention span. You love the external, kaleidoscopic aspects of life, but you tend to avoid (and even fear) deep, close emotional involvements. As such, you seem to enjoy travel and sightseeing and generally being "on-the-go." You get quite listless when things around you become static and dull, but your excitement returns whenever you are stimulated by a new idea. Chatty, inquisitive and quite playful, you enjoy practical jokes and games in general. Your moods change quickly and often -- you are very restless and constantly in motion. You are known for your versatility and adaptability. Your vivaciousness enlivens any social gathering.

Moon is in 26 Degrees Sagittarius.
An idealist, you prefer the grand, the beautiful, the good and the noble. You get very disappointed when your high expectations in life are not met. Very curious by nature, you enjoy traveling and learning about other peoples and cultures. Try to avoid your tendency to ignore the small but important details of living. You are independent and free, and you want others to be that way, too. Optimistic, buoyant and cheerful, others like to have you around. You have an incessant desire to learn as much as possible about metaphysics, religion, philosophy and any other broad, deep subject. Your life tends to be punctuated by bursts of energy and frenetic activity.

Mercury is in 08 Degrees Gemini.
Your mind is active, quick and agile. You are very restless and you get bored easily. Unless you receive constant mental stimulation, you become extremely nervous and begin to act in an unstable manner. You are probably a good student because of your natural inquisitiveness. You also love to travel. Your learning tends to be superficial, though, because you have a relatively short attention span. Try to develop the mental discipline to finish what you start. Also, you tend to talk on at times seemingly just to fill space -- make sure that your conversation has some substance to it or others will start avoiding you.

Venus is in 08 Degrees Taurus.
You are known to be a warm and affectionate person, and you tend to form long- lasting attachments. The reverse of this is that you can also be quite possessive once you have made a commitment. The beauty, luxury and comfort of your surroundings are important to you and you will devote much time and energy to making your home just right. Beware of your tendency toward self-indulgence, especially with respect to eating incorrectly. You also need outside stimuli to get you in gear When things come too easily for you, you can be lazy and indolent.

Mars is in 04 Degrees Libra.
You are very aware of the need to cooperate with others in order to further any effort. You are usually willing to compromise with others, although you can be quite competitive in a friendly way. Very fair- minded and impartial, you have the ability to sense injustice and the desire to take corrective actions to make proper compensations. You see both sides of issues and questions, but you tend to be undecided or wavering when forced to make choices that might make you vulnerable or unpopular.

Jupiter is in 01 Degrees Scorpio.
You love to dig deep beneath surface appearances in order to find out what is really happening. A persistent researcher, you are very interested in the psychology of any situation. You tend to become overwhelmed by the complexity of what you uncover, however, and that makes you a bit gun-shy about explaining things to others. But you must learn to try to communicate as best you can because what you know is really very valuable to others.

Saturn is in 15 Degrees Libra.
Although you take quite a while to make decisions, you usually consider all sides to a question, all the pros and cons, and the solution you come up with is very often the correct one. You tend to be very reserved and shy, but, once you make a commitment to someone (in either a business or personal relationship), the partnership is forever. You have a strong sense of justice and fair play and greatly respect the laws and institutions by which you are governed. As such, you are outraged when others break laws or show contempt for authority.

Uranus is in 02 Degrees Sagittarius.
You, and most of your peers, have the tendency to think that all ideas, customs and traditions from the past are outmoded and irrelevant. You are attracted to radically new ideas, philosophies and religions that will, hopefully, cause sweeping changes throughout the world.

Neptune is in 25 Degrees Sagittarius.
You, and your entire generation, are heavily involved in investigating and idealizing foreign and exotic intellectual systems and religious philosophies. The most extreme ideals will be pursued with gusto. You will be at the forefront of humanitarian attempts to improve the lot of those who are in need of assistance. You will be comfortable with the concept of the "global village."

Pluto is in 24 Degrees Libra.
For your entire generation, this is a time of radical changes in society's attitude toward marriage and interpersonal relationships. There is a general fear and awe at the power inherent in making emotional or contractual commitments -- they will not be entered into lightly.

N. Node is in 13 Degrees Cancer.
You genuinely enjoy meeting other people, but you're at your best if you can do so from the comfort of your own home. You prefer others to come to you and tend to feel uncomfortable about leaving your home or neighborhood for any extended period of time. Those who do come in contact with you are struck by your caring and obliging nature -- you really make them feel at home. You form the closest ties, however, with members of your immediate family, especially your parents and children. You're at your best attending or organizing family reunions!

[Teru is slightly lost. The library has a magical theory section, somewhere, but he can't seem to find it. So now he's heading back to the history section, to start again from there.

He's not expecting to see anyone else, particularly.]

[Mikami can use his right hand again, a little, and is taking advantage of this to make himself some coffee.

The kitchen is otherwise deserted, for once. He's waiting for the water to boil, lost in thought.]

[Teru didn't dream much after the bar room, strangely. At least nothing that he remembered. He wakes up the next morning next to A, head as clear as it gets these days, and watches the ceiling for a while.

They're supposed to go to confession, today. If he still wants to. He doesn't know. He's gone over everything again and again, Matt's right, so how will this help?

But it's something that could make a difference. Maybe. Even if nobody's listening.]

[After speaking with Ryuzaki, Teru goes back to his room, to ask A where the mistletoe room is. And then back to his old room, to get the remaining sheets of Death Note paper out of the treadmill.

He's not ready to do this. But there's no other choice. If the pain in his arm tells him anything, it's that he can't be trusted.

The next morning, he's waiting outside the mistletoe room, carrying fourteen sheets of notepaper.]

[It took a long time to find the good and evil room. Teru hesitates before entering. He doesn't want to see his own evil.

But if he sees it, maybe he can fix it. He takes a deep breath and goes in, and then there are two of him.

The one on the left is neat, smartly dressed, as if he's on his way to work. He wears his glasses, still, and looks a little bewildered, but a lot more together than Mikami as a whole does, these days.

The other is - taller, possibly, or maybe it's just the effect of his hair, flowing around him like a dark halo. He has no glasses and no tie, his collar is unbuttoned and his eyes flash red and before the first Teru can react to any of this the second one grabs his shirt and slams him back into the wall.]

You!

[Firm, but noticeably anxious.] Let go of me. [He looks toward the doorway.] Angela, maybe you shouldn't be here.

[Ghost-B told him to go find A. Which isn't exactly difficult. All he has to do is go back to their room and wait.

When she gets back, she'll find him vacuuming the carpet. Just because.]