☆ 01

[guiltapalooza]

[Willow's been practicing, and practicing with intent. This is the second or third night of sleep that she's been at this. She's at a point in her life where she feels responsible, like she's the one who has to step up and take care of things now that Buffy's gone, so when Anya tells her that A, she's seen Buffy and it wasn't the Buffybot, and B, this is probably a dream, she immediately tries to deduce what's going on.

Conclusion: shared consciousness, as she'd thought. It explained a lot. Willow stands from where she'd been sitting cross-legged in absolutely nothing, and decides to try something else out. The current surroundings of pure, unrelieved white, massive blankness, are challenging to keep up. She'd had to stay in meditation for a good while to get it down, but she thinks she's getting the hang of this now. It's not so different from magic, just all mentally based and without the props.

Anyway, her new experiment. This takes a different sort of concentration, and in the fringes of her vision as she tries, the Summers house starts to bleed into the blank environment like paint on a canvas. An open, cheerful, lived in two story, it's a bit cluttered but clearly loved. Willow frowns in frustration, and it vanishes completely.

She tries one more time, and thinks she has it. When she speaks, it's directly to you, wherever you are - and if you answer, you'll find yourself suddenly, mysteriously beside her, in the way that abrupt shifts in dreams feel natural and unsurprising.]

Buffy, if you're out there, I need to speak to you. [The hard cast to her face, set and determined, relinquishes into an edge of vulnerability.] ... Please.

To everyone else - we're dreaming, and we're dreaming together. If you concentrate, you can learn how to change things, but it takes some effort to get the trick. Like riding a bicycle or learning to swim. I'd be interested to know what you've experienced so far; this is more than a simple dream.

[ooc: IF YOU DON'T WANT YOUR CHARACTER TO KNOW THEY'RE DREAMING YET, her mental 'call' failed for your character and they never got it. As in, feel free to ignore this. Otherwise, proceed. This post is a placeholder - I'm going to bed and will get to tags tomorrow. |D]

Comments

[guiltapalooza]

Do you know if he's around, or did you ever pick anything up from him? [she asks instantly. Again with the naming schemes, she thinks, wondering if there's other gemstone-themed people in Mercury's world.]

[waterfell.livejournal.com]

[Willow should ask - there are so many gemstone-themed names where Mercury is from! The four shitennou, and almost all of their enemies even also derive names from stones.]

He hasn't entered these dreams. I'm sure of that.

[It would have been reported; something like this is too close to the Dead Moon spells to let it go without a word to the others. Mercury will be speaking with them, too.]

Guess I'll work on finding out if I can achieve that sort of power.

[guiltapalooza]

I wouldn't ordinarily think it was so handy, but this place is putting a new perspective on my to do list. [She's frowning as she says that, as if to punctuate it.] Let me know if you come up with something?

[waterfell.livejournal.com]

Do the same, alright?

[guiltapalooza]

[She nods.] You got it.

[waterfell.livejournal.com]

So if this is a dream...

Want to experiment with just what we can do inside it?

[guiltapalooza]

[perking up] I've been experimenting for a few days - nights? nights - but we might be able to accomplish more together. Did you have something in mind?

[waterfell.livejournal.com]

What have you done so far?

[guiltapalooza]

Let's see... suddenly changing locations, or rather teleporting; building locations; altering currently existing locations and the laws of physics within them; eliminating currently existing objects and maintaining nothingness.

I was thinking of trying to make fake people next, at least a background populace like for public spaces, but that's more challenging. And frankly a little creepy in my book.

[waterfell.livejournal.com]

[She has a sudden urge to do it, to make these theoretical people in the image of certain people she knows. It's a ridiculous thought, and she brushes it aside.]

So you'll go to your favorite place?

[guiltapalooza]

To practice making the people, you mean?

[waterfell.livejournal.com]

It stands to reason, if you're already experimenting with the locations. Familiarity will help you work on the next step without the worry of maintaining what you've already done.

[guiltapalooza]

Sound logic. Ordinarily I'd say we put our efforts together and work on a place we both know simultaneously, but I don't think there's anywhere like that... [A frown knits her forehead as she thinks.]

Familiarity does help, but we could try making something up completely, too. It's a good skill to work on, and then we can populate it once it's detailed enough.

[waterfell.livejournal.com]

Unless our worlds are very different, there should be places we both know. A palace or monument, or a temple. Somewhere famous.

[guiltapalooza]

Oh! Oh. Right. It might not be as easy as if we'd both been there, but that could work... Where do you think we should pick? Pick a challenge. [Willow's definitely getting into the power-addicted side of things lately.]

[waterfell.livejournal.com]

[Ami is all about power-addicted. And challenges. She grins widely.]

How about the Eiffel Tower? France could be sort of nice this time of year, right?

[guiltapalooza]

Let's give it a shot. Worst thing that happens is we wake up. I'm sure we can handle everything else.

[waterfell.livejournal.com]

Let's go!

[Everyone knows what the Eiffel Tower looks like - the reason for choosing it of course - even from memory, even if not totally distinctly. Mercury glances towards the site, and the base begins to build itself. She smiles, pleased.]

[guiltapalooza]

[Willow stares at the base intently, frowning in concentration. The intricacies of the steel gurders are definitely challenging, especially from memory; Willow hasn't spent a lot of time practicing something like this until the past few days.

But just as with Tara, two people are capable of much more than one alone, and slowly the Eiffel Tower begins to take shape and loom above them. It looks odd and out of place in the middle of the nothingness, an odd piece of perspective in the middle of nowhere.]

[waterfell.livejournal.com]

[Oh, yes. Even as she is now, Mercury knows the value of combined strength. She doesn't bother with the rambling about friendship, but many hands do make light work.

What she notices now, is that when her pieces lean, Willow's prop them back into place. When Willow veers off-course, Mercury's efforts act like a brace to bring it back into line. Maybe there was more to this after all. The creaking of bending and shaping metal becomes an almost eerie sound in the quiet.]

[guiltapalooza]

[Once they finish, Willow gains a triumphant smile, and turns to her eagerly.]

What next? The Champ de Mars?

[waterfell.livejournal.com]

[Their smiles are mirrors of each other.]

How about the imperial palace?