御手杵 - O T E G I N E (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
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thegreatfurnace2022-04-24 08:29 am
passthrough) wrote in thegreatfurnace2022-04-24 08:29 amserling
[psl space for post-serling]
passthrough) wrote in thegreatfurnace2022-04-24 08:29 am
DIMITRI
What misfortune, to have clarity to his thoughts now of all times. To know, at least for the passing hour, that his paranoia is out of place... that his weapon was drawn against an innocent. He tries and fails to find Noah. Tries and fails to find his weapon.
Maybe it's for the better.
It takes time. Time to escape the morgue, time to stumble through the halls that twist and weave over themselves with no logic to them, shadows visible at every corner. The twinges of illogical thought crawl back in to claw at him when he finally meets a living person - the fires await him at the end of the day, don't they? Falling asleep after all this will kill him, won't it? -- but for now, at least, he has a small amount of willpower left. Enough to know he needs to find himself... and to find Dimitri, before anyone else is ripped apart.
--
Kashuu finds him first, in both aspects. Otegine can't hold back the taste of bile at the pile of shards and splinters wrapped in cloth. But the Shinsengumi isn't a stranger to being broken, to the feelings that arise from it. It's... disturbing. If this were home, to see himself in this state and to still retain clarity, retain his form, would be impossible. So what the hell was happening in this horrible place to keep him together, despite everything?
...
An old man stops them in their tracks on the way back to Maple Street. He offers a solution, though it doesn't come without a price. Though Otegine doesn't walk away with his weapon whole, he does take a parting token, the charm for three whole night's sleep tucked away. It sits heavily in his pockets, even as he returns home, cleaning crystal from the floor, snapping the end of a leaf rake off to make use of the pole, cleaning shards of metal from snow, wrapping them double over and tying the bundle close to him, like a father with a babe swaddled against his chest. If he couldn't find a fix to his blade before this place let them go... then he really would be worth nothing in the end.
With a painful amount of caution, the Touken makes his way down the street, his makeshift pole gripped tight as he carefully tries for the door of Dimitri's home. Whether or not he catches the blond by surprise, he knows he will still be at the disadvantage. But at the very worst... even if he was injured again, if it could earn the troubled royal a night of sleep and a break from his apparent slip into insanity, maybe it would be worth it.
So his voice stays quiet, rapping his pole against the doorframe for now, trying to keep his eyes on the windows.]
...Dimitri?
[Is... he even holed up in here?]
no subject
Sleep has been as elusive as physical touch would be with the ghosts that trail him, that haunt him, that jeer, and prod at the edges of his reality as he continues to forgo sleep in its entirety.
The blond-haired male recalls the events that have led to him committing an act that he can't undo either.
So here he is, undeniably in his home, holed up for some time.
And then he hears it. The call of his new ghost.
Dimitri rises to his feet, trudging downstairs, and then heading to the door. As for the windows...the curtains have been drawn to block out sunlight or any sight, but the sound of footsteps and the door being thrown open proves that the delusional prince has been contained within. ]
So...you have joined them too, Otegine.
[ Dimitri doesn't elaborate, and a single eye stares at the brunet, fatigue etched into his features. At least this time he's not in armor, but in a simple white shirt and pants, so it seems battle isn't on the forefront of his mind. ]
...I suppose you have decided to haunt me as well, which is your right. Do what you will.
no subject
With hesitation, Otegine lowers the rake handle in his hands.]
Haunting??
[...Ah. Was Dimitri truly THAT troubled, to think he was seeing the dead?]
A-ah, no, no, I'm not -- I-it's not an option for me. Even if my spirit stuck around, I couldn't make a ghost if I tried! [You have to be human for that, after all.
His smile holds too brief, fatigue of his own mixing with the twisting in his chest on looking the blond over.]
I guess... it's not exactly easy to believe, but I'm not dead yet. Or... dead anymore, maybe.
...
[quietly:] Have you still not slept?
no subject
But as the brunet starts to chat, insisting that he's not dead, he looks like he doesn't believe a single word. Though, there is definitely a moment of muted confusion. ]
...I've no idea what you mean. But, if you can die, you can become a ghost.
[ He'll just state that plainly.
As for the question, he'll just shake his head. ]
There is no reason for me to obtain any bit of rest whatsoever. The fakes are everywhere, and this land attempts to kill me in a single moment's notice. I have to carry out my vengeance against that woman, so though my death may be deserved, I can't afford to let myself fall so easily...
[ So at the very least even if it's a twisted reason, no one can say Dimitri wants to rush head along into death. Unless it's in a battle against Edelgard. Then all bets are off. ]