#fivefates 01

Exhausted from these new surroundings, Cheryl tried to find some calmness in a nearby coffee shop. As it turned out, there weren’t any immediate threats in the city- she didn’t have very much to worry about. Well, other than getting back home. Her dad may be gone, but Douglas still needs somebody. 

Ah... There wasn’t much use in stress. As she tried to push those thoughts out of her mind, she ended up falling asleep in the cafe.

... It wasn’t until she felt an employee touch her shoulder that she jolted up- nearly elbowing the girl in the stomach as she frantically tried to remember her surroundings.

“Sorry...” She sighed. “... I’ve just been having these really crazy dreams lately.”

At least, they didn’t seem like premonitions anymore. Silent Hill was no longer trying to call out to her. 

Rung’s earlier, tentative excursion into the realm of water-based drinks had gone unexpectedly well. It was probably due to the fact that his tea had been cut with oil, but beyond a slightly unsettled feeling in the pit of his tank, he had come out of the experience oddly unscathed. Emboldened by his frame’s apparent resilience, the next time Rung passed a familiar-looking coffee shop on his way home, he surprised himself by stopping to enter.

He had noticed the sign for Kohimasu Coffee a few times during his exploration of his home Ward, but this was the first time he had seen the shop’s interior. It was pleasant, full of soft lighting and wood that appeared elegant (at least to his untrained optic), and it was much, much closer to home than the tea shop he had begun to frequent.

Carefully approaching the red-haired humanoid behind the counter, Rung spared a moment to regret forgetting to make use of his newly-restored holoform and gave the barista as friendly and non-threatening a smile as he could manage. He wasn’t the most startling creature to exist in Spirale, but it was still frustrating how effortlessly imposing some of the other residents seemed to find him. Hopefully, working in a shop like this one would have helped the young woman in front of him grow used to strange sights and stranger customers.

“Good afternoon,” he said pleasantly, his optics flicking back and forth behind his glasses as he scanned the menu. Everything was comprehensible, but--

Rung’s smile turned a little sheepish.

Already, this odd realm has been tearing at her senses like the claws of some unseen monster. As the primal beast of life and death, Death is always aware of the flickering nature of mortal life, of how fragile and precious it can be. So sad, so sad that each one of them is doomed to waste away. And so, so sad that this strange place keeps them from her.

When she feels that unknown sensation, the suggestion of someone who has slipped her grasp time and again, she cannot help but be curious. Despite her Evoker’s worries, Death emerges from her pocket realm and moves towards the source, sifting through walls as she does so. Perhaps other people will see her, but she does not care at the moment, the only concern she has is for the red-haired woman who crosses her path before too long.

“Aahhh... There you are...” she coos, floating closer. “Why do you continue to run away? Is there something you’re afraid of? I promise there is nothing to fear. So sad, so sad...”