[The City] IC Contact

[hypnagothic]

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[hypnagothic]

[ maybe it's because she knows he's good at keeping secrets without judgement, too. well, too much judgement, and that he wouldn't use such vulnerable moments against her. he glances sidelong at her again, quiet while she spouts off until she's finished. ]

Hope can be a powerful tool as well. You should not discard it so easily.

[keepgodwaiting]

[ Several extremely snarky responses suggest themselves. She glances over and meets his gaze, though, and huffs instead. ]

Sure. I probably shouldn't.

[hypnagothic]

Probably not.

[ he falls quiet while they turn some corner, taking a few steps more before speaking again. ]

Are you still troubled by nightmares?

[keepgodwaiting]

[ Oof. Does she. Constantine takes a deep breath, rubbing her forehead again. ]

I appreciate you didn't go looking to find out.

[hypnagothic]

You mentioned your lack of sleep.

[keepgodwaiting]

Yeah. [ She grimaces. ] I ... was in the mall for longer than a night.

[hypnagothic]

... How long?

[keepgodwaiting]

[ Hey, remember when she was being vulnerable a minute ago? Fuck that. Her tone now is determinedly light and exasperated. ]

Oh, hell if I know. Long enough to see Astra and Rachel again and exchange how-do-you-dos.

[hypnagothic]

And for the woman with you, as well, presumably.

[keepgodwaiting]

She just saw Astra. [ No, that's not fair. She winces a little. ] Just something pretending to be Astra.

[hypnagothic]

As well as your reaction to it.

[ he glances to her again. ]

[keepgodwaiting]

[ Yeah, she's avoiding eye contact. ]

Did you get chased by any of them? I mean, do you know what was happening in there?

[hypnagothic]

I did not, but the woman I came across was already being pursued.

[keepgodwaiting]

[ Flat: ] When they caught you, they murdered you.

[ She remembers the encounter with Kim and amends: ] Or you murdered them. And the people around you experienced it. Hallucinated it with you.

As my counselor used to say, it's the sort of thing that can undo your progress.

[hypnagothic]

I did experience such an occurrence with her. Thankfully, that seemed to bring the event to a lull for the night until we could leave the following morning.

[keepgodwaiting]

--Was she all right? Were you?

[hypnagothic]

She was understandably upset, but a night of uninterrupted sleep aided her a great deal.

[keepgodwaiting]

And you?

[hypnagothic]

[ he tilts and turns his head back to facing forwards in a way that suggests a shrug. ]

It was not dissimilar to dreams of one's death.

[keepgodwaiting]

[ Constantine blinks, genuinely a little surprised. ] Do people have many of those?

[hypnagothic]

They can be more prevalent in certain cultures and worlds.

[keepgodwaiting]

Huh. I think I always wake up before I die. Before I hit the ground, or they catch me ... whatever it is.

You don't dream yourself, though, do you?

[hypnagothic]

[ he nods. ]

Most creatures wake before that point. But no, I do not.

[keepgodwaiting]

You're just responsible for ours.

[ There's no heat behind the statement, though there's some wryness. Not responsible like she blames him for her dreams -- responsible like a teacher is responsible for his students. ]

... People still dreamed when you were down there. I know I did.

[hypnagothic]

Mortals may still create their own dreams and nightmares. Those who were sensitive to such changes were the ones affected by my absence.