made it out of the torture labyrinth together :thumbsup:

[vacantis]

Silence...

A boy who everyone called Ventus couldn't believe how little he once considered the world. Foolishly he'd once thought of silence as just an absence, a background when things were a little boring, nothing to be given any thought. How wrong he was. Silence was, as teacher who were people once said, golden. Silence was a sanctuary where no one could hurt you.

It made him so happy, curled up in a bed in a bunk he didn't want to think about, that Ventus didn't quite trust it. Sleepy, safe, quiet. Alone in his own head, not thinking about anything. It didn't seem real. A bit of safety like this felt so foreign after a few months that he couldn't wrap his head around it. Could't move, for fear of breaking it. Whatever. It didn't matter. Anything he said yesterday felt stupid the second he'd gone home, slunk away from that silence and back to...too...

For a second he flipped one of the earmufflers up just to test that he wasn't crazy. The roar of machinary, the shaking of this building, the sound of a hundred other children yelling or crying or just...breathing to close was enough. Ven curled up around his tiny corner bed, and absolved himself to stay here forever. He wouldn't even leave this place to eat, if it meant taking his quiet away.

Comments

[vapidus]

Guess who's skipping school. Or rather, guess who couldn't believe Ventus had the idea of skipping school before him. He's the local black marked delinquent here... it gives him practice at disappearing into the roar of the crowd, boots stepping on people's feet strategically. It's a good thing Ventus told him what level he's on, and that they're all the same in layout. The hardest part is figuring out which of the many, many bunks is his.

At this time of day it's mostly empty, apart from one or two sitting on the edge of their beds, older kids watching younger kids, someone hitting their head against the wall and several blanket lumps, one of whom is pointed out to be Ventus. Vanitas didn't even need to pretend to be sent by their school.

He grins, casually walking up, and then brings both hands down on the curled huddled form and starts shaking it.

"RISE AND SHINE, VENTUS!" he says at the volume someone rendered ever so slightly deaf just from living here can muster.

die die die die die

[vacantis]

Don't tell his parents he skipped!! They didn't raise him like this!

Ventus is enjoying his silence, his sanctuary, and then he feels hands on his shoulders and quite literally, flips out.

See, it's probably Vincent or Marco who's doing this, because this bunk used to belong to a boy named Hayner who they'd been friends with (or were Hayner and Marco related?) but something bad had happened and Ventus had gotten this bunk. Bullying was a minor way of putting it. There were scarce little limits to what you get away with one dorm supervisor to manage every kid on this floor, but they couldn't change bed assignments no matter how hard they tried. It doesn't matter if its only shaking now because it's probably going to escalate and the only stratagy Ventus figured out in the last year to stop it from escalating is to well...be worse then them so they'll give it up right away.

Suffice to say before Ventus even opens his eyes he's already moving in a flurry of blankets and limbs, trying to grab Vanitas by the hair and knock his lights out.

ten thousand years agony

[vapidus]

Vanitas isn't a stranger to scuffles, but also his only child syndrome is showing in that he wasn't expecting Ventus to escalate that quick; he's used to there being some posturing and sizing up first. He's never been crammed in with a thousand other unsupervised kids in this way.

Which means suffice to say his hair is grabbed and his forehead smacks against the side of the bunk above and he's now dazed and pissed, grabbing Ventus's arm and kicking at him with a free leg and a hiss through gritted teeth, which is harder than it sounds because Ventus is a blanket ferret, but he's probably connecting.

Let go of his hair! What the fuck!

[vacantis]

Look at little Mr.Rich boy over here with his "house" and guardian figure! Ventus hope you choke on your extra showers and slightly nicer shoes!

Vanitas does kick Ventus in his stomach, making him gasp and more importantly dislodging the headphones (DIEDIEDIEDIEDIEATHOUSANDDEATHSHELLWORLDIEDDIEDIE), allowing the sounds of the city and dorm to once again echo in Ventus's head. This only enrages his further, and when Vanitas grabs his arm, Ven lurches forward to try hitting him in the face again. They both end up tumbling off the bunk, falling a few feet to the floor where they are paid zero attention whatsoever by anyone else in the room.

At this point, the blanket has fallen to reveal Ventus, face scuffed from their fight glaring down at Vanitas from where he's holding him by the shirt. He pauses from where he'd made to hit Vani again, loathe to waste this golden opportunity to punch someone (even a...friend?).

"Vanitas?" Then, before he can remember his parents reminders to always be polite. "Are you kidding me? What the FUCK was that for?"

[vapidus]

Hey, you had an even bigger house and warmer showers! It evens out!

"Woke you up, didn't it?" says Vanitas, like this was at all part of the plan and he's not just slowly lowering his own fist to nonchalantly wipe a trickle of blood from his nose with the back of it, snorting it up. "Ugh. Don't tell me you forgot our deal yesterday." He swipes his arm down at the hand holding his shirt. Let go of that.

It wasn't a deal so much as an argument and agreement, but they're going to prove this surface thing one way or the other or bust. It's the most galvanized Vanitas has felt in years, and his pockets are stuffed with protomush cakes, which is half of why he had to kick so many ankles and run on the way here.

"Anyway, I'm taking this," he says, of the blanket, pulling it up. It's thin and standardized, finders keepers. "Put what you're bringing in it or you're carrying it yourself."

If this is an apology it's an extremely weird one.

[vacantis]

That was a year ago and doesn't count.

Ventus also doesn't apologize for knocking Vanitas's nose or swearing at him (though a little voice says he should). Instead he drops to his hands and knees after Vanitas grabs the blanket, looking around for where his headphones could have dropped in their scuffle. If they broke... the idea makes him feel fuzzy so he focuses on Vanitas's smug expression instead.

"I was awake." Is all he says at first. It's nearly impossible to sleep here, even with his newfound quiet. It's not safe.

"Your idea was stupid." He glares at the blanket woefully. "It's not going to work. There's nothing here but a stupid pit in the ground that eats everyone up. They'll catch us and put me back in the hospital."

There's a bit of vigor in his voice from the irritation, the slightest hint of interest but its scraping against a scared, long running apathy. Too many patterns, too many days spent banging his head against walls trying to solutions to a problem that never went away. Yesterday he rode the high of someone helping him, someone trying to understand him but when he went home that hope was scarier then the dirt and grime and misery Ventus knew down here.

It was strange, but somehow Ventus felt like he had more to lose right now. The risk of failing again was too daunting, his little bits of safety too precious. If he didn't try, he couldn't fail. That was the winning strategy of a years underground.

[vapidus]

Vanitas has already failed. It lends itself to a certain amount of 'fuck it'... even with the slightly higher measure of insulation from consequences, it doesn't mean there won't be any. But they're already in trouble just being readers and fraternizing instead of going to school. Vanitas wants to move fast, while they still have their best shot of getting any resolution. It's only going to get harder if this fails.

"YOUR idea was stupid," he retorts. "We're trying mine."

Which is clearly much better. The talk of the hospital does give him pause, though. Everyone knows all the rumors about the hospital. There's precious little choice in the matter.

"Tell them I threatened you or something. Then it's not you being crazy." His tone isn't as breezy about it as he'd like it to be. "They'll believe it." Probably. Probably Ventus is already marked down as being a flight risk, if he's tried before.

"That's if we're even caught. The quicker we are, the less chance. I'm not sticking around."

He's going, with or without Ventus, is the implication in his tone... largely to get Ventus with.

[vacantis]

"There's no way my idea could be stupider then yours, stupid." It's almost calming to fire back like this. "Stupid. Everything down here is awful. I don't want to try or go to school any more. I want to stay here until they do whatever they do to crazy kids."

Then Hayner can have his bunk back. Nice and neat. Ven's hands close around the headphones. He could put them on and ignore Vanitas until he went away. That's what he's implying.

...

"I wouldn't do that..." It's another emotion that makes him hesitate. Vanitas isn't saying this lightly...but Ven won't take it either. It's kind, but he doesn't like it. "What if you went to jail? Even if they probably wouldn't believe me, I don't like lies like that."


He shuffles to his feet, trying to grab the blanket back half heartedly.


"Besides, why do you even care so much? Stupid... Just go."

[vapidus]

Why DOES he care so much?

"Takes one to know one," Vanitas shoots back. I know you are but what am I. This is kind of fun. He's... missed stuff like this, weirdly, and it's a thought that hurts to have. He hadn't thought of Skuld for a while until just yesterday.

"I'm already going to jail, Ventus. It's just a matter of time. Doesn't matter, anyway." It's matter-of-fact. He tugs back on the blanket, trying to whip it away to stuff it under his shirt. Warm AND doesn't make him stand out. Fight him for it Ventus.

"If you're just going to wait for it to happen anyway, it's stupid to pass up getting another chance in. Or," and a grin splits his face. "You just don't want to admit I'm right."

It's full on needling smugness. It's not the same doing it without Ventus, even as he's deciding not to unpack the whys and wherefores of that.

[vacantis]

"You actually have jail down here!?"

The blanket is tugged, and Ventus with it. No he won't let go. It's his. He blinks a little in surprise, his own depressed apathetic train of thought trailing off into shock that Vanitas actually understands a concept like jail. Ven didn't think these people even knew what crimes were. Their views of good and bad were all wrong!

"Ugh! It's not about being right!" What really scares him is if Vanitas is wrong. But the boy is so laissez faire on the prospect. Of going to jail, of being wrong.

"Aren't you..." Ventus doesn't want to ask if he's scared. That would be like admitting he's scared.

"If you go to jail I want your boots."

[vapidus]

They're going to tug of war this blanket forever, but Vanitas's yanking is now more in contrary fun.

"Yeah? Where else do you think people who make too much noise go?"

Nobody cares if things get stolen from you, or if someone grabs you in the street. But there's a reason there's Watchers. There's a reason people just go missing sometimes. Not every time. But often enough. It's the hospital for people they don't even try to pretend to 'fix'. Maybe it's just Vanitas has more connection to the underworld by default.

Also a reason that, apart from the initial yelling, he's been pitching his voice slightly lower than the ambient sound, just by years-long habit.

"How can you be a r-e-a-d-e-r and not know this?" Honestly the way Ventus says 'down here'... did he decide that jails were only a Surface thing, or something? He doesn't ask 'aren't I what?'. There's fear underneath, but he won't admit it either.

"You'll have to come and take them, Ventus." He sniffs. These are his boots! They might as well be made of solid gold. They're steel-capped things, meant for workers in the production lines, and they're just a little bit big on him. "From my cold dead body." That's how it works here after all. No way is he just giving him them, even in principle of prior agreement.

[vacantis]

"Oh I don't know. I thought you just left them on the street so they could yell at kids trying to go to what you call school here."

Or worse. Being mean about this place and everyone he hates in it is the only thing that makes him feel better right now. Look, he'll even let go of the blanket and hope Vanitas falls over.

"This just doesn't feel like a place with a j-u-d-i-c-a-l system." There's a new word to chew on. If Vanitas knows what judical is, ok fine, Ventus really will believe him.

Its annoying, but Ventus does stand up in a huff, hugging one arm and listing against the wall half heartedly. He clearly doesn't want to even consider going with Vanitas, but at the same time no matter what he does, its clear Vanitas won't leave. So that leaves him...

"I won't wait that long. Someone is going to try and steal them first. I have to stand right next to you to make sure I get those boots." This is why he's actually maybe kind of following you. It's not that he thinks escape will work, or anything, tch. The steel toed boots are just way to inviting. He's like a real pit person now.

[vapidus]

"That's what's called the intermediate step."

See he knows big words too, Ventus. It's not entirely accurate, since it's largely down to how much the system cares enough to act or neglect, but it does happen. There's always more misfortune to fill the gap. The usage of 'you' annoys him a little, as it always does. You're here despite your dreamland, is his opinion.

Vanitas does stumble with the combination of the sudden slack and word mastication, but sadly doesn't fall over. Gotta have a good center of balance in crowds by habit. He's not going to admit the idea is turning up blank, with only the connection to jail to go off of, so:

"Like you really need one of those." Clearly jail seems to work without it. As much as any other part of the City at least.

He rolls up the blanket in his arms, then ties it around his waist under his clothes, glancing around at the surroundings before surreptitiously slipping the protomush cakes into the roll before dropping his shirt. Much safer than pockets and in it's own way a measure, doing it in front of Ventus.

He grins. That's more like it. More normal, and equally as importantly more galvanised. He lifts one of the boots, knowing that envy well.

"What, they don't have these on the Surface? They don't come from the earth?"

Now he's just being mean, in his own good mood. He's ready to start walking, so he's just getting a little needling in.

[vacantis]

Fuck, he used intermediate and maybe he knows judicial??? Ventus needs to think if he can remember any obscure agricultural lingo that Vanitas absolutely can never have heard of. The idea of just making up a word and pretending it exists does not cross his mind.

"Does too. You can't just send people to jail because you want to. There's like..." Local teen tries to remember how court works. "A jury of your peers. Otherwise you live in...um I can't remember the history, but before everything fell apart there was one."

He is eying the food, but not with as much interest. Eating is one of the first things you stop caring about under stress, and while Ventus will neurotically defend his space and his right to silence, right now the idea of eating just feels like boring nonsense.

"Don't be a...dick." Grimace. "They show how to make shoes at your school."

He had shoes before. Better shoes. Best shoes. They're gone forever, so fuck you, give Ventus yours.

[vapidus]

You can do it Ventus. You could probably stump him with something as simple as 'hoe' there. He's completely lost at sea with 'jury' already.

"Yeah, I can't." Vanitas knows it's a general you but he's being pedantic about it. "It's all the Watchers' deal." It's so arbitrary and inscrutable it might as well be 'because they want to'. Local teen understands court even less.

Vanitas devastates me by not enquiring after the apocalypse and assuming Ventus is just talking about the entropy all around them in general. Thematically they're technically the same thing but still. He sees Ventus's disinterested look and has a kneejerk reaction of 'good'. Vanitas has the rare allowance of hoarding, and these have been immaculately counted down to the broken bits.

Someday Vanitas will experience the joy of sneakers. Someday. Ventus calling him a dick makes the grin wider. Were you going to call him something else? "Ughhh... don't remind me." He could recite those lessons verbatim with his eyes closed if he wanted to (he does not want to). Well, he could reflexively hit the right answers without paying attention. "I skipped school today for this, I don't want it from you."

Speaking of. "Let's get moving." While they've still got that window of lost or late as an excuse. He's heading out.

[vacantis]

"Yeah but who tells the Watchers who to pick? Don't you ever wonder who bosses you around down here?"

It's all faceless cameras and disappearances. Even the doctor who looked at Ven just pushed a few buttons, and listened to the diagnosis being read out. Ven might be new, but he's keyed in enough to Vanitas' life to know that if anyone might know anything about the inner workings of the city, it might be him.

"If you skipped for me, then you should be thanking me for the excuse. I think this is the day they talk about street signs for eight hours."

He does move, but in the same aimless way. He's got nothing to grab so he just picks up the pillow from his bed and holds it as he starts towards the door. He doesn't want to look to Vanitas for direction, but if the other boy has a plan, then Ventus is sure he'll drag him some way or another once they get to the street.

[vapidus]

"Does it matter? A boss is a boss. It's all the same. Everyone does what they get away with."

Vanitas is keyed into the City, but his ennui is a disadvantage. He has more of an ear to the ground than the average person through Xehanort and all his shady dealings, but his concern is narrowed to the personal. The shadowy politics and chess moves are something the old man has given up on his disappointment inheriting, and that's it's own kind of spite. Unbeknownst to Vanitas (or maybe knownst in the sense of picking up on it) he looks for his legacy elsewhere.

"Hey, what did I say." The fact that this is karma goes whoosh over his head completely. "Besides, you're skipping too now."

They are complicit together. Vanitas walks like he knows where he's going, which is true, and like he's taking Ventus to where he's supposed to be going, which is true only in a very broad sense. He puts his headphones on and leaves one open so he can hear if Ventus starts screaming or something, the one nearest the wall. "Straight shot to the stairwell." Even Ventus probably knows where that is, but Vanitas is going to grab at his hand or wrist to tug and run anyway. He does not want to have to double back and hunt him down.

Those are still noisy and busy, especially at this time of day, but still a little easier to talk in. It's going to be a long climb.