[As always, it feels like it lasts two seconds, AKA a goddamn eternity. Aubrey doesn’t move; it exhausts her. Doesn’t it drain people, getting aggravated over every little thing all the fucking time? She implodes once and she’s useless for the day. They’re not the same. She’s not like him.
[And then a very strange thing happens.
[Eren cleans up.
[No one’s home, so no one’s going to stop him from shuffling shit that isn’t his, or tampering even further with what he broke. The sight is so… bizarre, maybe more surreal than anything else that’s happened recently (and what a bar that is), that—
[Well. It’s not her house.
[Aubrey’s eyes watch Eren move, back and forth, back and forth, like an ant piling corpses in the corner of a farm. He purges like he was born to do it. Strange....
[She finds herself standing by the overturned cabinet. That’s not furniture. She kicks it, lightly.]
[Still here; momentarily forgotten. Eren straightens from where he's stooped by another pile of trash. He looks at her.
[He'll finish piling up the rest of this shit before he checks; after that, he leans down and pulls the cabinet upright. A message flashes on the screen - another video game. Of course.
Here somewhere. There's still shit all over the goddamn place. [It's not her fault, but he says it with enough venom that it might not matter.
[He figures she's pissed for the same reason he is - that's all. And he's pissed.]
We're back to playing his game. We never get any closer.
We find that coin, we get fucked with, we go back to our cages and wait.
You still want me to look? [Genuine question. He's at a goddamn loss. Something has to give. He doesn't want to follow directions flashing at him on a screen - he wants to yank the goddamn curtain down and rip Vaeros' throat out with his teeth.
[There is just the slightest, slightest flinch at that accusatory tone, but it’s expected. Aubrey manages. She keeps her own space clean, thank you; no one has to make her do that.]
There’s nothing better to do. [It should be a neutral statement, and it is, but it’s joined with re-folded arms and comes out as a grumble. He’ll yell again no matter what she says.] It’s a cage out there and a cage in here. Pick your poison.
[No yelling, actually. Eren's lip ripples into a one-sided snarl, his hands flexing and clenching into fists. His eyes dart back to the screen, and he rolls his head to crack his neck again. He wants hearts to stop beating.]
I'm sure as Hell not picking the poison they tell me to drink. Fuck this...
[No coin, then. He kicks the cabinet back over and goes back to cleaning.
[The coin is found quickly; tossed carelessly into the growing pile in the corner.]
At least we'll find out what happens if you don't do shit, right? [Alright. He yells a bit when he says that.]
[Oh, the not yelling is worse. Eren snarls and kicks, and Aubrey’s arms are half-raised in a guard when he turns around. He might notice that, might not; she suspects it doesn’t matter.
[Mm. Yeah. Making real good use of the time they have left, and all. It’s not like Aubrey doesn’t get Eren’s frustration, though; it’s not his fault the environment is familiar to her.
[She does decide she won’t be sharing that with him, though. Not like this.
[The coin is noted. Aubrey keeps by the cabinet, for now.]
Guess we will....
cw: oh this is so fucking cringe EREN REAL ABUSIVE BOYFRIEND ENERGY HERE
[Urgh. Forget what she just told herself. They have to talk. It’ll come out somehow. Aubrey can trust Eren. There are things he hasn’t told her, but she wants to…]
I mean… [She watches his hands. Watches for a snarl.] …it’s not… [Mumbling.] …completely new, to me....
[The pieces aren't difficult to put together, really; somewhere Aubrey knows, or close. They're in a living room - there would be a kitchen. Eren thinks of his home - thinks of how it would feel to open a door and walk into it, trashed.
[He feels cold, rotten, rage. It's time to stop pacing. He sits on the couch. He takes his eyes off of Aubrey.
[His hands twist in his lap...]
Tell me more...[His voice has gone quiet; it's not soft, but...comparatively, there's...care to it. It's always been there.]
[It feels wrong, somehow, that Eren would know this before… not anyone else, exactly. But does Sunny? Kel? If Aubrey had her way, they never would; the future they know doesn’t go the way she would have wanted, though.
[Fine. Whatever. It’s just a house.
[Sucks to be hers, is all.
[Eren sits on the couch, and Aubrey moves to sit… by it, actually. On the floor, at the corner. The person sitting there cares. She can believe that, from Eren.]
It’s… been like this, for years now. [Four years? Aubrey lets out a sigh. She pulls up her knees and crosses her arms over them, head resting sideways on top.] Well. Kind of like it. [The walls aren’t cracked....]
I used to hate calling it home. Then I did, for a while. And now I just…
[It's just what he suspected, and what Maruki's been trying to explain to him. They're here - not "home," but in a place Aubrey hated to call home - because Aubrey's mind knows this place...
[He can't pretend to understand everything that Maruki has said about cognitive manipulation and the collective unconscious - whoever's in charge fucks with all of their minds, and makes their minds fuck themselves back, too. That's what Eren knows. Now, Aubrey is a target.
[His rage hasn't died. It festers just like everything else.
That. [He says it like he doesn't believe it - like "that" is being dismissed entirely.]
Or, you expected a consequence, so you found one...[His voice has gone idle, like he's talking to himself more than anyone - just thinking out loud...
[He looks at Aubrey. He didn't notice himself mirroring her, his knees drawn up to his chest where he sits on the couch, arms folded over them.]
There could be something to this. I can't pretend to know exactly how it works. There's power to our memories, the things we think...
[They haven't learned nothing, actually - just not much more than people like Maruki already know. Eren's not sure how much he's supposed to say, but he trusts Aubrey with it all.]
I don't think it's a coincidence, but I don't know if it's a punishment, either.
[Ahead; they entered through the one behind them. There shouldn’t be a door here in her real house, but there shouldn’t be an arcade cabinet or coin or off-white couch, either. Best not to focus on the discrepancies now, though.]
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: )
[As always, it feels like it lasts two seconds, AKA a goddamn eternity. Aubrey doesn’t move; it exhausts her. Doesn’t it drain people, getting aggravated over every little thing all the fucking time? She implodes once and she’s useless for the day. They’re not the same. She’s not like him.
[And then a very strange thing happens.
[Eren cleans up.
[No one’s home, so no one’s going to stop him from shuffling shit that isn’t his, or tampering even further with what he broke. The sight is so… bizarre, maybe more surreal than anything else that’s happened recently (and what a bar that is), that—
[Well. It’s not her house.
[Aubrey’s eyes watch Eren move, back and forth, back and forth, like an ant piling corpses in the corner of a farm. He purges like he was born to do it. Strange....
[She finds herself standing by the overturned cabinet. That’s not furniture. She kicks it, lightly.]
You forgot something.
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[Still here; momentarily forgotten. Eren straightens from where he's stooped by another pile of trash. He looks at her.
[He'll finish piling up the rest of this shit before he checks; after that, he leans down and pulls the cabinet upright. A message flashes on the screen - another video game. Of course.
[He looks at Aubrey.]
We'll get sucked in. Right?
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[He can take as long as he wants. Aubrey’s not in the mood to move right now.
[Still. It’ll be good to leave this place. There’s no going back to her room. Fresh air is nice. The trash is piled but it’s still here.]
[Eren finally talks to her, and she shrugs.]
Guess so.
[Flash. Blink.]
I didn’t see a coin.
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[He figures she's pissed for the same reason he is - that's all. And he's pissed.]
We're back to playing his game. We never get any closer.
We find that coin, we get fucked with, we go back to our cages and wait.
You still want me to look? [Genuine question. He's at a goddamn loss. Something has to give. He doesn't want to follow directions flashing at him on a screen - he wants to yank the goddamn curtain down and rip Vaeros' throat out with his teeth.
[He can picture what it might look like now.]
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[There is just the slightest, slightest flinch at that accusatory tone, but it’s expected. Aubrey manages. She keeps her own space clean, thank you; no one has to make her do that.]
There’s nothing better to do. [It should be a neutral statement, and it is, but it’s joined with re-folded arms and comes out as a grumble. He’ll yell again no matter what she says.] It’s a cage out there and a cage in here. Pick your poison.
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I'm sure as Hell not picking the poison they tell me to drink. Fuck this...
[No coin, then. He kicks the cabinet back over and goes back to cleaning.
[The coin is found quickly; tossed carelessly into the growing pile in the corner.]
At least we'll find out what happens if you don't do shit, right? [Alright. He yells a bit when he says that.]
no subject
[Oh, the not yelling is worse. Eren snarls and kicks, and Aubrey’s arms are half-raised in a guard when he turns around. He might notice that, might not; she suspects it doesn’t matter.
[Mm. Yeah. Making real good use of the time they have left, and all. It’s not like Aubrey doesn’t get Eren’s frustration, though; it’s not his fault the environment is familiar to her.
[She does decide she won’t be sharing that with him, though. Not like this.
[The coin is noted. Aubrey keeps by the cabinet, for now.]
Guess we will....
cw: oh this is so fucking cringe EREN REAL ABUSIVE BOYFRIEND ENERGY HERE
[It makes him angry; he looks it.]
No one's going to hurt you, Aubrey.
I'm on your side.
I realize retroactively I should’ve put a cw for implied abuse on this whole thread SO
It’s not you.
[And yet they stay crossed. Third fold, now; firmer.]
Don’t worry about it.
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No one, I said. Not while you're with me. [She says he's not the one scaring her.]
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[It’s not his fault. It’s really, really not his fault.]
No one. Yeah.
[There was no one in that couch. Not that Eren checked.]
This place. ’m on edge. That’s all.
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Yeah. [Short. Sharp.] I know...
I don't know what I was expecting. Not this. [They're on two entirely different pages; he doesn't realize.]
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[Not entirely…!]
Mmh… me neither.
[Urgh. Forget what she just told herself. They have to talk. It’ll come out somehow. Aubrey can trust Eren. There are things he hasn’t told her, but she wants to…]
I mean… [She watches his hands. Watches for a snarl.] …it’s not… [Mumbling.] …completely new, to me....
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[Something clicks instantly. His hands stop flexing; demeanor...relaxes, but his eyes are sharper, more focused. He watches Aubrey.]
What do you mean? [No. He knows what he wants to ask.] You know this place?
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[She feels spotlighted. It’s not always a good feeling.
[The disclosure is in motion, though.]
Not… exactly, this place. [Aubrey stares at the floor. Small nod, across the room.] There’d… be a kitchen....
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[He feels cold, rotten, rage. It's time to stop pacing. He sits on the couch. He takes his eyes off of Aubrey.
[His hands twist in his lap...]
Tell me more...[His voice has gone quiet; it's not soft, but...comparatively, there's...care to it. It's always been there.]
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[It feels wrong, somehow, that Eren would know this before… not anyone else, exactly. But does Sunny? Kel? If Aubrey had her way, they never would; the future they know doesn’t go the way she would have wanted, though.
[Fine. Whatever. It’s just a house.
[Sucks to be hers, is all.
[Eren sits on the couch, and Aubrey moves to sit… by it, actually. On the floor, at the corner. The person sitting there cares. She can believe that, from Eren.]
It’s… been like this, for years now. [Four years? Aubrey lets out a sigh. She pulls up her knees and crosses her arms over them, head resting sideways on top.] Well. Kind of like it. [The walls aren’t cracked....]
I used to hate calling it home. Then I did, for a while. And now I just…
Can’t.
[She shuts her eyes.]
Maybe that’s the consequence.
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[He can't pretend to understand everything that Maruki has said about cognitive manipulation and the collective unconscious - whoever's in charge fucks with all of their minds, and makes their minds fuck themselves back, too. That's what Eren knows. Now, Aubrey is a target.
[His rage hasn't died. It festers just like everything else.
[He's still listening.]
Consequence.
Your post?
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Yeah.
[She moves her head just enough to glance back, up at Eren. Weird from this angle.]
I mean, you don’t seem to recognize it… but I’m not great at theory stuff.
Could be dumb luck.
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Or, you expected a consequence, so you found one...[His voice has gone idle, like he's talking to himself more than anyone - just thinking out loud...
[He looks at Aubrey. He didn't notice himself mirroring her, his knees drawn up to his chest where he sits on the couch, arms folded over them.]
There could be something to this. I can't pretend to know exactly how it works. There's power to our memories, the things we think...
[They haven't learned nothing, actually - just not much more than people like Maruki already know. Eren's not sure how much he's supposed to say, but he trusts Aubrey with it all.]
I don't think it's a coincidence, but I don't know if it's a punishment, either.
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[Expectations. Memory. Power. Reality.
[Aubrey sits up straighter.]
You get that from Maruki?
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Yes. He's a good friend of mine. There's a lot of truth to what he says, Aubrey. I know that for a fact.
What has he told you?
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[“Good friend.” Oh. Wasn’t Eren seeing him for counseling…?
[Whatever. More important topics at hand—]
A lot. I mean, maybe you know more, but—
Memory shapes reality. [She knocks her knuckles back against the couch. It’s not quite the right shade.] That was the big one.
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I wonder what may happen if we try opening one of those doors while thinking of something specific.
[Memory begets influence begets control, no...?]
This wasn't a waste.
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[Aubrey’s on her feet. She nods.]
Right. Then this one—
[Ahead; they entered through the one behind them. There shouldn’t be a door here in her real house, but there shouldn’t be an arcade cabinet or coin or off-white couch, either. Best not to focus on the discrepancies now, though.]
—leads to a hallway.
[Hand on the knob, firm. She turns it, and—
[Well.
[Fucking nothing.
[It doesn’t budge.]
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they were supposed to go insane!!!
THEY WERE SUPPOSED TO GO INSANE!!!
the confidant only ranked up I fear
TEEHEE
8,)
I GUESS WE CAN WRAP? OKAY AUBREN! OKAY!!!