logsinthenight | EVENT LOG: TURN THE LIGHTS OFF

characters: everyone.
location: around town.
date/time: january 20-29.
content: the lanterns begin to malfunction.
warnings: body horror and psychological horror. please cw tags appropriately.

you'll become one

January 20th arrives the same as all the days before it. There's no great pulse of warning that throbs through the air, no ominous wind that causes the bonfire to shudder. The spirits are neither agitated nor do they hide. You could almost miss the change, if the lanterns weren't always by your side. There's no explanation that comes with the way that it's changed, but it's impossible not to worry when it's happened so suddenly.

Maybe it takes a few days, or maybe it only takes a few hours, but suddenly it isn't just the lanterns that have changed. You, yourself, have become somehow different. It's possible that you won't even have the right state of mind to wonder how long it will last. At the very least, it appears you aren't alone. All across Beacon, lanterns are changing, and changing the people with them.

Out in the distance, the lighthouse's beam has turned green.

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"Huh. Steve." Sora will shove a quarter cookie in his mouth, because he has a Thought and it needs to come out more quickly than the last one. "He must be important if you remember this much about him this early. Has to be."

"I asked Aziraphale to find a happy memory for me," Soldat explains. "So I knew I had them. Steve is what he found." Pretty much every good memory except the dance hall one has Steve in it, so far. Even the reading one.

They polish off their first cookie, starts on a second, and offers another to Sora, too.

Sora grins. He doesn't know it yet, but he's about to invoke some law of large numbers bullshit. "So out of every happy memory, Aziraphale randomly found one of one guy, whose name you remember and stuff?" He accepts the proffered cookie, puts the quarter cookie he has left on top of it, and slamjams that into his mouth. Quarter cookie? More like more-ter cookie.

"Skyler's first memory was of Kairi. He ended up getting so many for her." Kairi is a slightly less painful topic, although he mentally has to step around a few things to get there. "You're lucky. You got his name so early! We just had guesses to go on for the longest time. Still, I figure that, like, the chances of me getting lots of memories from someone who didn't matter at all would be pretty weird, right? Even if you don't have much to work with, most of them are gonna be with people you were with a lot." Sora grins before taking another cookie bite. "Steve. I'd like to meet him someday."

"Or else I just don't got a lot of happy ones to choose from," Soldat offers instead, soberly. "Aziraphale had to look pretty hard for those two. But he was important, I'll give you that."

They finish their cookie, grab a third. It's fine, they need the calories, and it's comforting putting sweet-tasting food into their mouth. Also, they don't find they want to talk about this anymore. It's just going to make them sad again, because either way, Steve has to be dead now. They pick up another cookie for the road. "I need to check on Misty. I ran out on her. Before. She's probably worried."

In Sora's opinion, the fact that the happy memories are so rare and they have Steve in common makes Steve super extra important... but the mention of Misty makes him immediately frown. "You did? Is she okay?" A beat. "Are you gonna be okay to talk to her?"

"I heard the Asset-voice in her cabin and panicked," they admit. Shit, it's been two days since they checked her hand, too. It might be infected, by now. "I'll be fine." They head over to the couch to replace the blanket. Then, after a beat of hesitation, add, "Maybe I'll write down what I want to say on the way. In case it won't come out."

It happens sometimes. Words just go away. Maybe being prepared will help.

"Yeah, yeah! That's a good idea. There was a guy from, m-my world, who always carried around notecards to remind himself of his objectives. You can do the same thing!" Granted, Demyx had been a bit of a goober, and also a little evil, but those notecards sure did do their job.

(He's also not really sure about saying that that was his world, but it feels better than constantly trying to separate himself from his memories. It reminds him of Jason telling him about how the Greek and Roman sides of the same gods in his world tore themselves apart trying to be who people thought they were. Sora thinks he understands why he'd understood that conflict so quickly now.)

"Let's go find paper so you can write it down. It shouldn't take long." Sora grabs one last cookie and jams it in his mouth before pushing away from the counter. Little things like not really knowing where the paper is in this house currently do not matter to him. Adventure time.

For a beat they watch him move with obvious confusion, then a little bit of amusement. "Kid. Tablet. I'm gonna write it on the tablet. Don't waste paper on a note, that way." And can maybe use it again sometime, if they have to tell someone else the same thing. Like Aziraphale, if he ever comes back, or Crowley if he ever wakes up. (Let's not go thinkin' about those as "ifs", pal. Just make yourself upset again. Okay. Yeah, sorry. No.)

A beat. Another beat. Another beat. And soldier, this is the deepest beet red they have probably seen Sora, ever. "I knew that!" He tries to make a straight face! And fails. "I didn't know that, but I wasn't thinking!"

And he's just. Gonna hide his face against the refrigerator. "C'moooon," comes Sora's muffled voice, "gimme a break. I hate technology."

"Why? Technology is great. I'm technology." They hold up their metal hand and wiggle the fingers-- the rest of them has technology involved, too, but slightly less benign than a high tech weapon attached to one's shoulder... which isn't saying much-- then sit to put their boots back on. At least they're being nice and not looking at Sora during his embarrassment.

"You're great, and technology. I'm also pretty good and technology. I just don't remember that it's there." Sora will pull back from the fridge once the mortification passes to watch them pull on their boots and wander out with them to the door, snagging his own blanket burrito and snuggling under it. "Tell Misty I said hi. And tell her I'm gonna visit as soon as this is all over!"

"Good. She needs people to visit her." They finish tying up their boots, and get up again to collect their coat. Sora gets a glance in his general direction, expression weary. "Send me a message if Crowley wakes up or. Aziraphale comes back?"

"I'll keep checking on both of them." It's weird to be in this cabin with just a sleeping demon for company, but Sora's determined to stick it out. He's as goal-oriented as the soldier in his own way. "Text me when you get there, okay?"

Yes. Yes, it is weird, and Soldat kind of hates it themselves, when Sora isn't there. And right now he's run out of energy for Sora, too, which they hate, too. "I will," they promise, give him a wan smile, then they duck out.

It's going to be maybe an hour before they manage to actually approach Misty's house, but Sora does get a text before they knock, and then another maybe an hour after that saying Misty wants them to sleep there. Sorry, kiddo. They'll be back in a few hours.

[[ ooc: U GOT THIS SOLDIER HE L*VES U!!!!! ]]

EVENT LOG: TURN THE LIGHTS OFF

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