Room 322, Thursday Morning

[living_endless]

Death was on a rocky peak on the Dreaming, rain battering down on her as she talked to her brother for what she knew would be the last time.

"There's personal responsibility, too, y'know? Not only the kind you're always talking about," she told him. She fought with her umbrella as she did so he couldn't see her start to cry. "I just want to know why."

"I did not plan this, my sister," Dream began. "I had imagined that I would be able to keep events here in check. ..."

He kept talking. Death's umbrella was now up, then it flew away in the storm as her anger and impatience with Morpheus rose in her throat. "Destruction simply left," she reminded him. "Took down his sigil, said he wasn't responsible for the realm of destruction anymore, that it was no longer his affair, and took off into the forever. You could have done that."

Dream's answer was simple. "No. I could not."

As Death nestled into his bare, wet shoulder, she could only say, "No, you couldn't, could you?" She might have stayed like that for a while, let the rest of the world do what it was going to do, but a voice came from above her.

"Did you feel that, Dream King?" it taunted. "We are ripping your world apart."

Death could feel Dream's already weak will to live slipping even further as she frightened the Kindly Ones away. "There," she said, once they'd retreated, then: "Well ... what are we going to do with you?"

"They are destroying the Dreaming. What else can we do? I have made all the preparations necessary," Dream said. He'd sat on the edge of the cliff, letting his feet dangle into the nothing below.

"Hmmph. You've been making them for ages. You just didn't let yourself know that was what you were doing," Death said crossly. And for once, Dream didn't argue.

"If you say so."

She steeled herself. "Dream? Give me your hand."

As they touched, he turned into the light that took him wherever dead dreams went.But this was where Didi's dream split from reality. The flash was warm as sunlight, and Dream's voice came from it. "Dream of me, and I will come."

Waking, she knew it meant more than the vague promise it might have seemed. The rock had told her that much.

Her only question was how Del would react.

[OOC: Dream text borrowed from Sandman #69 by Neil Gaiman. Thank you to icecoldfrost for finding and uploading a scan of it for me. Closed door, open post!]

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[mania-endless.livejournal.com]

Not having classes the last two days was pretty awesome for Del; it was like an extended weekend!

The weird dreams were not so awesome. Those made her feel both happy and sad. More on the sad side, actually. She had all kinds of weird dreams, but none had ever been as detailed and left her with a feeling of warmth than the one she had hours ago.

It was only natural to visit her sister, regardless of the time. If Didi was sleeping, then she could probably just hide on her sheets and wait like a creepy little multicolored thing. The door was closed. Knock or knock down?

For her sister, she would knock.

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"C'mon in," Didi called. She was way too lazy to get out of bed, and she could tell it was Del anyhow. "Jaime's ... somewhere else."

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Oh, Didi was awake. And yet, she was still on her bed. Perfect chance to sneak in. Fortunately Del had the tact of not killing all the personal space her sister might need while being in her own bed, but she could take a good look at her face from the other extreme of it. "Somewheresomewhere?" Saving the world maybe?

"I dream of Dream. Do you dream of Dream?" Things like these needed to be spoken with all the bluntness she could muster.

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"I dream of Dream," Didi confirmed, sitting up to wrap her arms around herself. "It's like he wants to come visit us."

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Del stayed with her head on a pillow, eyeing her sister's profile.

"He wants." There wasn't much of doubt on her words. "Would that be, um, nice?"

[OOC: And now I'm reading The Kindly Ones again.]

[living_endless]

"Nice?" Didi repeated doubtfully. Of all the adjectives she had ever used to describe her brother, nice did not come into it so much as hard-headed, stubborn, sullen and utterly impossible. She flopped back, hands folded behind her head.

"Probably not. Well, maybe." One shoulder rose and fell. "Are you still afraid of him?"

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Del regretted her words for a moment. She couldn't help but think that it had actually felt nice to see Morpheus, but the idea of having him around and alive -or not dead, in a fashion- carried a number of implications than even her insanity wasn't capable of cover. "Nice to, hm, have him back. For a little while?"

And yes, Didi had a point, as usual. "Um, dead ones aren't scary." Unless they looked the part, of course. Her fear towards Dream had more to do with his very own nature, perhaps, and that she was just insane, really. But she had been equally hurt when he died.

"Maybe a little."

[living_endless]

"It will be nice to have him back," Didi had to admit, considering her sister. "I love him. I just ..."

She let out a deep breath. "I worry. Though it's always kinda funny to see him try to get by with humans, right? Funny, not scary?"

[mania-endless.livejournal.com]

That got a giggle from Del. "Funny or, um, awkward." Pretty much the safe version of herself trying to interact with humans. Or at least the humans not in Fandom; this ones had a certain something about them...

"So he will, um, come back? For a little? Yes?" If he did, he was totally taking her to eat. And Didi. And he would pay.

[living_endless]

"The awkward is funny," Didi decided -- though, yes, the humans in Fandom dealt better with it than most.

"And yes," she confirmed. "There's a stone in the preserve. That's what it's doing, calling the dead. I haven't been telling people. I think it's supposed to be a surprise, and I can't stop it anyhow."

"He's on his way."

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Delirium rolled quickly out of the bed, eyes closed. That meant she actually fell off the bed with a simple thud. "I'm alright", said as she sat quickly. "We shouldweshouldweshouldweshould...prepare something."

She knew nothing of rocks and calling the dead besides her own dreams, but it was only polite if they were going to greet a brother.

"Shouldn't we?"

[living_endless]

"Don't hurt yourself," Didi commented. "We could! Like ... a card? Mix CD? It's a nice thing to do no matter how he feels about it."

Which made it the right thing to do, yes.

[mania-endless.livejournal.com]

"Music! I, um, sell music. Although not really. Fifty percent of discount, though." Yes, she had remembered the most important part.

"Whaaaaaaaaaaaaaaat...kind of music?"

[living_endless]

"Jono gave you a job?" Didi asked, surprised. Mostly because: Del. Taking a job. It was weird. "Ummmmm .... I don't know. Instrumental, I think. Or electronica?"

[mania-endless.livejournal.com]

Del nodded. "So I can have money. So I can take Ino out." Yes, that was all what she wanted a job for. And maybe selling music, but not really. The whole concept was not quiiiite there yet on her mind.

"Or piano. It's cute. Peter knows." And so did she, but Delirium had forgotten for the moment.

[living_endless]

"Why do you want to take Ino out?" Didi asked curiously.

[mania-endless.livejournal.com]

"Because....she gave me flowers for Hi-na-ta."

The plot; it thickened.

[living_endless]

"Hinata's sweet," Didi decided. "She should have flowers."