Pleasantly Depressed, Ch 28 – "Of The Color Mauve"
By Skandranon
Summary – Alright, pay attention folks. This entire chapter is nothing but dialogue, so it'll probably be a little confusing. Each character is defined by a different style of speaking. I tried to make it clear who was who with frequent name drops.
(Hold still, this is going to hurt.)
I know that, Ifrit. Just get it d-YGGHJFRICKinFSKHOLYMOTHEROFJJJDDGGSNNGRRKKTTOHYNEFUCKFUCKMOTHERFSKERHOLYSHTSTOPSTOPSTOP-oh.
(Yeah, they always say that.)
They who? Okay, it's very black in here.
(What color did you expect the inside of your head to be?)
Honestly? Mauve.
(Concentrate Irvine. The next part's going to be a little tricky.)
The last part wasn't?
(No, that was just shoving your head through a brick wall. The next part's surgery.)
Look, just tell me what to do.
(You're going to be the connection. I provide the energy, but you have to keep us in contact. You'll need to concentrate. And I think it's going to hurt.)
You think?
(That or make you go crazy. Sorry, it's been a while since I last did this. Listen. Any time now, the drugs are going to kick in strong enough for Squall to hit REM state. When that happens, I'll give you the signal. You'll have to reach out-)
Reach out how?
(It'll come naturally. You'll have to reach out to Shiva, and latch on to her.)
Will that come natural too?
(Less so, but she can help you with it. Assuming his brain's not screwed up enough to block her.)
Assuming. Great.
(Would you rather we stop now?)
No. Then what?
(Then, you'll reel the connection in-)
How?
(Naturally. Just imagine pulling in a rope. You'll pull it in close enough for me to fortify it, and then we'll have ourselves a nice little ether bridge.)
Ether whatsit?
(I'm speaking plain Languic here, Irvine. Keep up.)
Sorry. Then what?
(We'll get to it when we get to it. He's reaching REM state. Go.)
Okay.
…
Um. Ifrit? There's nothing there.
…
Ifrit?
(…eeene?...)
Hello…
(…Irrrrvine?...)
Creepy voice!
(…Irrrrvinnne? What are you doooing?...)
…Shiva?
(…Yeessss…)
Oh, okay. Um, Ifrit says I have to latch on to you.
(…Gooood…)
…Uhm, I need a little help.
(…Fffollow my voicccce…)
Following. Ah, okay, now it's mauve. SHTFRICKINFSKGHOLYSWEETHYNEHELPSOMEBODY-oh.
(Heh. I certainly am glad to see you, cowboy.)
Squall?
(No, I'm afraid he's further down. This is still Shiva.)
You sound different.
(Well of course I do silly. We're face to face now, instead of yelling across a ravine. Now. What on earth are you doing here?)
Trying to save Squall, obviously. Ifrit says we can make a bridge.
(…Ifrit? Oh my… yes, that could work. Okay, are you connected to him?)
I junctioned him?
(Yes, that's fine. Draw him closer to us.)
He said I was supposed to draw you closer to him.
(He would, wouldn't he. Stubborn imp. If you want to help Squall, you'll need to be closer than your own head. We'll have to work from in here.)
…Here is Squall's head, isn't it?
(The boy learns.)
Why does he get to be mauve and I don't?
(Irvine, pay attention. Draw Ifrit in.)
Right, right. Hey, Ifrit!
(RRROOOAGHRR!)
Yipe!
(That HURT, Irvine.)
Heh, sorry.
(Wimp.)
(…Shiva.)
(Ifrit.)
(It's… good to see you.)
(…And you… I…)
Guys?
(…I believe you're here to help Squall, aren't you? I hope you have a better plan than the one I think you're thinking of.)
(It should work, shouldn't it? You couldn't ask for better candidates.)
(Squall is wounded, and neither of them have any experience with this sort of-)
(But they're both strong, and stubborn. And you can't deny the emotional attachment.)
Guys. It's my decision, and it's made. Enough chatter, let's do this already.
(See? Strong and stubborn.)
(Tch, fine. Alright, this way.)
…Oh, so it's only mauve on the outside?
(Enough with the mauve. Irvine, you'll be stepping into Squall's dreams. Whatever you see, you must remember that it's not real. You need to convince him to follow you out, so we can fortify your connection with him.)
"HEERRYAAAAG!"
CHIMERA!
"Grrvi?"
What tha… how'd you get in here, little bugger?
;D
(It's because I was junctioned to him, and his affection for Squall. He's offered to help.)
Can he? Help? He's just a kitten.
v.v
(He can guide. Most importantly, he seems to have an innate knack for tracking Squall, which we need right now. Alright then. Grrface?)
"Yshysh."
(Lead Irvine to Squall.)
o.o?
(Squall. Go to Squ-)
Take me to Laguna, little bit.
"RAGOOOONA!"
Not so loud!
XP
Same to you, furball.
n.n
So, I suppose you can speak, can you?
"Gwoonjiyeniiiewrannaktu."
Or you just think you can.
…s…at?
"RAGOOOOONA!"
…ace!
;P
…Ick, get off. No licking.
Good job little bit, you found him.
Irvine?
What. Are you wearing.
What? I always wear this.
Yeah, when you were a kid and could get away with yellow and stripes. For the love of Major Hutch, man.
You're one to talk. Feathers? Body paint?
Hey, I pull them off, don't I?
Is that glitter lipgloss?
…Maybe. Anyway. Squall, you're dreaming.
Duh.
…Right. I guess you knew that.
Come sit down.
This is the palace garden in Esthar, isn't it? I don't remember it having a bench.
I added it in. The tree was too scratchy to sit against.
"Ragoona! Drrjarufme?"
Yes, I love you. Now go bother the fish.
"Fshfsh!"
Nice setup you got here.
Yeah, it's peaceful. I added more stars, and some dim lights in the pool. See them?
Yeah, I see. Hey, Squall...
Can I ask you a question?
…Sure.
Do you love me?
…Wow. Came right out and said that, did you?
It seems easier to think about it here. I know I love you. I think. I mean, I'm pretty sure… things have been confusing lately. I thought I wanted to kill my father, but…I think I only wanted to knock him around a little. Then things got so crazy and loud…
You've got this weird brain damage thing going. Ifrit thinks we could do something about it, but you have to follow me out of here.
…And if it can't be fixed? What's going to happen to me?
I… don't really know.
…Do you think it's peaceful here?
…Yeah, I suppose… you've got a nice blue theme going here, with the sky and the lights. Weren't the flowers in the real pond red?
They didn't look right, so I switched them with white ones.
Well, you do get a better contrast with the lilypads. Yeah, it's a nice, peaceful place allright. Seems a little dull though.
Sometimes I like dull. Do you?
I suppose, after a long day's work. It's nice to kick back and watch the view every now and then.
Gets kind of lonely, though.
Yeah, it does.
Doesn't have to be.
…Squall? What are you doing with your hand?
Do you want me to?
What… what about Selphie.
Fuck her.
That's the point. I do fuck her. Regularly, in fact. Let go of my belt.
What if I say no?
I punch you. Probably.
You don't want her.
Stay out of my head! I want her more than you.
…Asshole.
…I… I didn't mean it like that.
Yes you did.
I didn't. I…Hyne, Squall, I don't know what I mean anymore.
Looks like you answered my question.
Stop it. Look, I…we can't. Be. I'm taken. I'm getting married!
Why?
It's what I'm supposed to do!... shit.
You meant that one.
…Looks like I did. Hyne. Didn't realize I thought that way.
You're only with her still because you feel obligated.
…That's a good reason, isn't it? Is it? People get married for all kind of reasons…
Do you feel obligated to me?
No! No I…yes. Maybe. A little. Because you're sick. But if you weren't, I'd still-
Still what?
…Um.
Still what?
Let go of my shirt.
Do you want me to?
…Yes.
Do you really.
…No.
Do you want me to do this?
…I…yes.
This?
…Squall…
"GRRWARRWH!"
…I'm going to kill that fucking moomba.
Kiss first, kill later.
"Knaadrudriis! KRCHK!"
Fucker! Little bastard bit me! On the EAR!
Grrface! Bad moomba.
"Nyenye! Grrvi knaastii!"
What do you mean he can't stay?
Wait. I'm Grrvi?
"Gwangitshtruuk!"
Stuck? Stuck in what?
Shit. Aw shit. I almost… Squall, you gotta follow me out of here.
To where?
It doesn't matter. Look. Do you trust me?
I… yes.
…Wow. Really?
I guess so.
That's… kinda wow. Okay. Off we go. Shit.
What?
I lost the entrance. Furball!
XP
Yeah yeah. Get us out of here.
vv;
Pretty please?
….;)
Follow the bouncing kitten. Ah, here we go.
…I don't like it here.
It's not too far.
I want to go back.
I'm right here. Just hold onto me.
Why's it so dark?
What color did you expect it to be?
…Honestly? Mauve.
(Squall? There you are honey.)
Shiva!
(Been worried about you, sweetie.)
I can tell. You're back to the 'sweetie honey' routine.
(What, I'm not allowed to dote?)
Dote all you like, I missed it.
(Then I shall dote to my heart's content, lovely.)
Gah! Could you two get any more diabetic?
:P
See? You're even making the moomba sick!
(I'm afraid we don't have time for small talk.)
...! Who's that!
(Relax honey, that's Ifrit.)
THAT's Ifrit?
(You were expecting fur and horns, I imagine.)
Well… yeah.
I had the same reaction first time I junctioned him.
XD
The kitten apparently finds this funny.
(Like I said, no time for small talk. Now let me explain things to get us all on the same page. Squall has suffered an unusual form of brain damage, or more accurately, mental shutdown, caused by his excessive and long term junctioning of Shiva.)
Thought you said we were in a hurry.
(Hush. This mental shutdown is not actual damage to the brain, but merely miscommunication between the different areas, due to long term magic interference and the delegation of some mental actions to his symbiotic host.)
Languic, please.
(Magic made him do the wacky.)
Got it.
(And magic can undo it, but this sort of jumpstart needs a large battery. And it's going to hurt.)
Squall, when he says that, believe me, he means it.
(Hush. Now, Irvine's the battery, and Shiva and I will act as th-)
What!
Woah woah, what was that about a battery?
(You should have told him beforehand.)
(He said he was willing to do whatever was necessary. I assume he included this in that statement.)
I meant what I said. I just don't get how I'm a pink drummer.
(You have lifeforce, don't you?)
NO!
What, this would… kill me?
NO, DAMMIT!
SHUT UP! Ifrit. Would this kill me?
(…Probably not.)
Probably. Great.
(If everything goes right, it shouldn't leave any lasting effects, and you should fully recover within a few months.)
Months!
I said shut up!
Fuck you! You're not doing this!
Yes I bloody well am!
I won't have anyone sacrificing for me!
Oh, I'm anyone, am I!
(Enough, both of you! Ifrit!)
(Don't look at me, they're always like this.)
Ifrit! What do I have to do.
I won't let you!
It's not your decision to make.
I don't want to lose you!
Ditto, asshole!
…I…Irvine…
Squall. Let me do this.
What…what about Selphie.
What about her?
If you die…you're so selfish.
I'M selfish!
Yes you're selfish! You're not supposed to die for me! You're supposed to go get married to Selphie!
Fuck Selphie!
…Really?
…shit.
Really?
…I guess so.
Do you love me?
(I think we should focus o-)
SHUT UP!
XO
(Hush, Ifrit, I want to hear this.)
Terrific, I've got an audience.
(You better believe it. Answer the question, Irvine.)
Not now. Look, what do I have to-
XO
Answer me, Irvine.
I can't answer when put on the spot like this! I can't even think straight.
(Thinking "straight" wouldn't be your best skill anyway, now would it?)
…Low, Shiva.
Irvine.
Yeah, Squall.
Do you?
…Maybe.
Maybe?
Maybe a little.
A little?
Some, yeah.
Some?
Yeah, some.
Yeah?
Yeah, pretty much.
Pretty much?
Squall?
Yeah?
Do you?
…Yes.
…Ditto.
(Finally! You two have been giving me such a headache.)
(Can we get started now?)
Squall?
…It's your decision.
What do I do?
(Hold still.)
I can do th-FSKINSHTGRRAKKTSHSHTNNGHGGSNNGRRKKTTOHYNEFUKHOLYMOTHEROFHYNEMAKETISTP-
Author's Notes - All moombas can speak in emoticons. Didn't you know that?