morphogenetic sorrow

a roleplay blog for clover from 9 hours 9 persons 9 doors. affiliated with the tumblr-rp, "fabricated world". holder of the black rose, B1. "truth had gone, truth had gone, and truth had gone. ah, now truth is asleep in the darkness of the sinister hand."

[truth-hadgone-blog]

❀forgetmenot❜ ..↓ » fw event open

Clover couldn't remember when, or how, she fell asleep ― she could only remember that she had fallen asleep, and was just now waking up from her state of unconsciousness. The rays of light from the ceiling flooded into her sight, as her eyes slowly adjusted to the intrusion in response, and the sounds of chatter and children screaming filled her ears with bitter music. Clover wasn't particularly used to sleeping on the floor, especially on the tiled, cold floor of a gallery, so the creaks and cracks of her stiff bones as she moved to a sitting position didn't faze her one bit. Instead, she moaned, feeling groggy and ridiculous for falling asleep in the middle of ― Wait.

The lights, people, chatter. It took a few moments, but it soon hit her like a ton of bricks. She was back. Clover got to her feet, slowly, and .. stared for a few moments. Was everything that happened earlier just a dream? It seemed so real, too real to just be part of her imagination, but .. she knew all too well the powers your brain actually possessed. It was possible, but for some reason, she couldn't shake the feeling that something was still .. wrong. Unless she had just gotten a little too used to the neverending darkness and frightening atmosphere, something just felt off. Leaning against the wall, she stopped to think ― until a part of a frame hanging dug into her spine, and she jumped, facing whatever it was to disturb her. She recognized it immediately: 'Fabricated World'. It was like she had gone back through the portal, or whatever it was that swallowed her up previously. A small chuckle played on her lips, pleased at her escape, and she knew exactly what to do next. All she needed to do was find her brother, and this whole nightmare would be over.

It took the girl less than a minute to spot him. "Light!"

She did it! She found him, and all on her own! Smiling wider than ever, she began to run over to him, tears of pure joy and relief forming at the brim of her green eyes. Nothing mattered now ― none of what she saw or felt back at the other realm. All of that fear had vanished now that she was with him again. "Light!" Or. .. was she?

Slowing down her run, her smile faded into confusion. A girl stood next to him, one that looked very, very alike to herself, and they both were staring at a painting on display. A pout formed on her lips, not grasping the situation at all. "Light, listen to me! I was really worried!" But still no answer. Fuming a little, she stomped her way over like a child who wasn't getting his or her mother's attention away from the phone, and stood there. "Light, I know you can hear me. You're blind, not deaf! Stop kidding around!" But still, nothing.

Now something was wrong.

The girl next to him turned to her with a dark glare, smirked, and then proceeded to hug his arm as if she owned him. Clover glared back, but soon turned to her brother, desperate for his attention. "Light, did I do something wrong? Why are you letting her do that? You barely let me do that. .. Light!"

"That's because you aren't his sister anymore. I am."

Blinking, she turned to the girl, who still continued to stare at the real Clover with spiteful eyes.

"Did you think he would actually forgive you for what you did? You took his sight from him. You took away his chance to be something great in this cruel world. And how do you make it up to him? You cry and complain and stomp your feet like a little child. You're pathetic."

Her mouth never altered that evil smirk, but the fake Clover's neck swiveled to talk to Light, who only nodded and smiled in response. The real Clover couldn't tell what the impostor had said to her brother, but what the other had said to her stung. Unable to speak, she immediately lost her bratty attitude, and withdrew into a wimpering mess of regret and sadness.

"But I .. he told me .. He ―"

"What? That he would forgive you no matter what? Oh, come on. No one's that forgiving. Not even God. Just take your little sob story and leave. He doesn't want you anymore. Neither does Junpei, or Seven, or Lotus. Who would want a no-good, annoying brat like you anyway? I don't blame them for leaving you behind. You're nothing more than a nuisance. No wonder you have no friends."

"Am I .. really a nuisance?"

She regretted what happened all those years ago more than anything else. The cliff, the fumble, the stones, the fall, the sirens: it was all her fault. Was that why he was ignoring her? Did he change his mind? On the day he lost his sight and arm, he told her to not cry, that he was just happy she was okay. He seemed so relieved, he even smiled. Was it all a lie? Was what Junpei said, back in the operating room, back when they played the second Nonary Game, a lie?

Was this her punishment? To never see her brother, her best friend and only loved one, again?

The tears came back, but they weren't happy at all. They were miserable ones, filled with all the regrets of the past. Her impostor and her brother had left, but she couldn't even bring her head up to watch them leave. The words echoed in her head, bouncing around until nothing else was there. She stood there, defeated, as her knees wobbled to try and keep her standing. "Light. .. do you really hate me that much?"

Clover bit her lips as she fought back the hot tears that overflowed and dripped onto the floor. She could barely see through her blurry vision, but with the last of her energy, she looked at the painting the other two had been staring at for so long: 'The Forgotten One.'

It was her there. She was the forgotten one now, and there was nothing she or anyone else could do about it.

Clover had no friends, after all.

[truth-hadgone-blog]

★❜〈 worst nightmare » // intro & open

[respectit-yo-blog]

Beat had waited some time for some kind of response to his question before he decided it was time to start moving again. Part of him — probably the part that coincided with the sinking feeling in his gut — knew that he wasn’t going to find anyone in this place that could help. At least, not right away. The other part, however, still clung to the idea that someone would come help him. As he waited, the skater tried to keep himself calm with the idea that this was all some kind of a joke. “Yeah! Why else would Rhyme’ve been so set on bringin’ me to some cheesy art gallery? This is pro’lly just her idea of a joke .. And y’know what else? Phones an’ Shiki are probably in on it, too.”

He was likely in denial, he knew it deep down .. but these thoughts kept him calm for the time being, how far fetched they were. He absolutely could not lose his cool, no matter how bad things seemed at the moment. Usually Beat was prone to such things, to “freaking out”, but he couldn’t afford it right now. He would get out of here and he’d find his sister, he was sure of it. And if it turned out that all of this wasn’t just a prank that his friends and Rhyme were playing on him, maybe it was a dream. The teenager closed his eyes tightly, with the idea, “maybe if I shut my eyes real tight, and then open them up, I’ll be back in the living room at home with my sister”.

.. Of course, it wasn’t that easy. When he opened his eyes and was greeted by the blue walls and the blood-red messages on said walls and the floor, he knew that much.

”.. Gotta keep movin’.” Those were the last words he spoke before he actually started to head off, away from the crudely-written message on the floor calling him a thief. He was tired of looking at it — what had he really stolen in the long run, anyway? A half-dead rose, which was probably forgotten and of no use to anyone, considering the vase was bone-dry. There was also a key that was lying on the floor in the previous room, but .. if it wasn’t meant to be taken, why would it be sitting there? A loud sigh escaped the blonde’s lips as he reached the place he’d first found himself, after he’d been sucked into the sea-creature painting. He’d just come from the right side of the hallway and found all that there was to be found, so he figured the left side of the hallway would be his best bet. “‘s gotta be a keyhole for this key, an’ I’m gonna find it.”

However, he never actually got the chance to find the keyhole he was bent on finding. It wasn’t too long after he’d actually started down the left side of the hall that he heard the voice. It sounded like a girl’s voice .. what’s more, it sounded like it was close.

“Hey! Is anyone out there? C’mon, say something!”

It took him completely by surprise, especially because of where it sounded like it was coming from: the right side of the hallway. Hadn’t he just been there a moment ago? He didn’t see anyone .. well, save for the weird lady in that painting, but he doubted that she would even count. He did a full turn, so that he could look back in the direction that he’d just come from.

If there was someone down that hallway .. He had to find them. Not only to have someone beside him to help him out, but to make sure they were okay.

If he did get there and it turned out this was just another one of this place’s tricks .. Well, he’d deal with that when he got there.

“Yo — hang tight, aight? I’ll be there in a sec!”

With that, he charged down the hallway. It didn’t take him too long to reach the spot he was standing at before and see that there was, in fact, someone standing there. She was a fairly average height, and had almost-bushy pink hair, tied up into a set of pigtails. The sweater she was wearing looked a little baggy, like it might’ve been a size too big. And, for the most part, she looked okay — she didn’t look hurt. Overall .. she looked real.

A wave of relief washed over him as he slowed his “charge” and stopped a few feet before her. She was real. He was sure of it. Bending over to catch his breath, he looked up at her from beneath his skull-cap and gave (or tried to, it proved to be pretty hard while he was out of breath) a short laugh.

“Heh, that .. that might ‘a taken a little more than just a sec. But I’m here like I said!” He took just one more second to catch his breath before straightening up, giving the girl before him a quick once-over. He was sure he’d never seen her before, but her style kind of reminded him of the girls in Shibuya; maybe she came from there and he just .. hadn’t known? Or .. maybe not. Either way, standing around gawking wouldn’t get him anywhere. He’d actually have to ask, but that subject would probably have to wait until later on.

“So .. you get sucked into th’ weirdo-fish painting, too? ‘Cause that’s how I got here.” Beat pauses a second, then goes on. “‘s probably good we found each other, y’know? This don’t seem like the kinda place you wanna walk ‘round in on your own.”

[truth-hadgone-blog]

A few minutes of silence past after she yelled out towards the unknown, and she began to wonder if that was a good idea or not. Clover didn't know exactly what she was dealing with in this situation, but she's seen enough horror flicks to know that drawing attention to yourself in dark rooms is usually a one-way ticket to a game over.

Even still, she wasn't sure if she should move from her spot. It seemed as though the area was safe — maybe a quick breather will do some good. Her mind wasn't all that focused on the gallery, either. She could only think of her brother. Where was he? The last time this happened. .. The discarded memories bobbed at the surface, haunting her as her hand subconsciously came up to her lips, and her teeth on her nails. The corpse in the bathroom, the growing nervousness and fear she felt from his absence, the seemingly lack of concern by the others — 'The others. .. What would they do?'

Junpei, Lotus, Seven. .. What would they do if they were here, trying to find their loved one? She figured Junpei would keep moving — he didn't seem like the kind to sit still. Should she take his advice? Or Lotus's — stay where you are until help arrives? What about that mountain of a man, Seven? He'd probably do something heroic, she figured to herself, try to find and help any others. Sighing restlessly, she gave up trying to decide. She wasn't them. She would have to choose a plan on her own terms, with her own advice. She had to find Light, and she had to get them both out of here.

Clover played with the key in her pocket, figuring it had to lead her somewhere, but before she could take a step to try and find the keyhole for it, she heard a voice call back — a boy's voice.

“Yo — hang tight, aight? I’ll be there in a sec!”

The voice had a moderately thick city accent laced between the words, but it didn't sound threatening or coarse or anything bad at all. The boy spoke with a tiny mix of concern and excitement in his tone, if anything. "Ah, yeah, sure!"

Sure she was happy someone heard her, but at the same time, she was a little surprised. She didn't think it would be this easy to get a companion in this weird place.

Clover could hear his footsteps coming closer, and closer — and the more the distance shortened between them, the tenser she could feel herself become. She was prepared to run if need be, but as his portrait came into view, she loosened up a bit. He looked to be around her age, with messy, blonde hair that was hidden beneath a black beanie that featured a skill. He seemed like the total opposite of her: tall, muscular, big, filled with a sense of childishness. The girl in the oversized jacket couldn't sense any ill will towards her from him, so she managed to relax a little, for now at least. Still wary, though, she gave him a once-over while he bent over to catch his breath, nearly glaring at him with distrusting eyes until —

"Oh, good, so you are real. I was a little worried that you might be one of those creepy mannequins on wheels or something."

She knew she didn't trust him, but she could use the company (she absolutely hated being alone, especially in dark rooms like this one) — so she took whatever he said and did with a grain of salt. She couldn't drop her guard just because another person was there. She couldn't afford it.

She had to find Light, and nothing would get in her way of accomplishing that.

“Heh, that .. that might ‘a taken a little more than just a sec. But I’m here like I said!”

With a small smirk, she crossed her arms, shifting her weight to her left hip. "Yeah, more like 39 of those, but who's counting?" She waved her hand slightly, dismissing her own words, as she continued. "But you're right. Thanks for coming, .. uh."

She then realized, she had no clue what to call him. After a thought or two, she spoke again, this time holding her hands on her hips. ".. We should probably think of something to call each other. Like code names, you know? .. Just in case whoever's running this is listening in. I don't want him to go after like, my friends or family next. .."

“So .. you get sucked into th’ weirdo-fish painting, too? ‘Cause that’s how I got here. ‘s probably good we found each other, y’know? This don’t seem like the kinda place you wanna walk ‘round in on your own.”

She nodded, a little perplexed at the similarity. Seven's words echoed through her head, of finding a point of commonality that leads straight to the perp, though she didn't bring it up, thinking it to be of less important.  "Yeah, it was that dark fangly-toothed fish painting! But it didn't really start until after I saw that other painting. .. What was it called —" She paused, before perking at the sudden remembrance. "Oh! 'Fabricated World'! Yeah, that was when the lights flickered, and I lost my —"

Her brother! How could she forget?! Her eyes widened, and in a fit of both hope and impatience, she grabbed his shirt with both of her tiny hands, and completely dropped the last conversation.

"My brother! Hey, have you seen him? He's like," She let one of her hands go, and got on her tippy toes to try to reach what she remembered Light's height to be at, "this tall, maybe, and has silver hair, and he's blind." Desperate for any information, she waited for a response from the other, not even caring that she was probably breaking around 4 social rules. "It's really, really important that I find him!"

[truth-hadgone-blog]

★❜〈 worst nightmare » // intro & open

It wasn't very often that Light wanted to go out into the world — in fact, it was even rarer that he should suggest it himself — so when he asked her if she would like to go to an art gallery with him, she jumped at the first word.

She didn't, however, jump at the chance to be the tour guide to her blind big brother. But she is first and foremost his little sister. As much as the historical and cultural significance of this or that piece bored her, she had a responsibility. She promised to care for him, through thick and thin. She would be his eyes. She would be there for him. It was her fault, after all, that he was handicapped. 'My fault', she reminded herself. 'It's my fault.'

Was there anything worse than knowing you put the person you love the most into such an awful state of being? Not that she could think of. Regardless, it was time to put pessimism aside. This was supposed to be a day to put all those things behind them, to start fresh! There was no need to be gloomy! With a quick turn of the shoulder and neck, and a bright smile, "Hey, Light, Let's go t —! ... Huh?"

She saw nothing, no one. Weird, but it wasn't too unusual for him to go wandering off deep in thought. Still, she swore he was standing right next to her a moment ago. She knew he wasn't lost, except maybe lost in thought, but .. an unsettling, familiar feeling in the pit of her stomach grew with each passing second. Anxiety grew, and grew, and grew as Clover searched for him to no avail. "Light! Where are you?! If .. If this is some kind'a sick joke, it's not funny! Light!"

Her feet lead her astray, passing the strangers that congregated around all different kinds of paintings and sculptures, into a room that featured the largest painting she has ever laid eyes on: "Fabricated World," it read on the plaque. It didn't look like a worthy monument — to her, all she could see were miscellaneous scribbles and colors that seemed endless. Not only that, but the feeling in the pit of her stomach seemed to have worsened with just one glance at the painting. Something didn't feel right, not at all. 

That's when it started: this nightmare. The lights flickered rapidly, sending her body into fight or flight. Panicked, she threw her head around, checking her surrounding with a distrusting glare. "BANG!" — a loud noise came from what seemed to be the lower level of the art gallery, and she found herself involuntarily throwing her head in that direction. Sweat beaded on her forehead as she gulped loudly. It felt too .. planned. Clover looked around once again, more calmly, to see if any of her surroundings changed. Nothing. Sighing in (somewhat of a) relief, she continued her search. She walked lightly, her tiny heels making a click, click, clicking sound against the empty tiles and a thump, thump, thump in her chest. Both sounds echoed throughout the place, but she wasn't about to give up. She had to find him. She just had to.

She made her way downstairs, but was stopped completely by a second flickering of the lights, then .. blackout. She could barely see in front of her. With deep breaths, she continued down the stairs, to the left. 'Maybe he went outside?'  The doors were locked, but there was always the window. .. Trying to keep calm, she walked towards it. Slowly. Walking. Towards. The. — ! Oh god. That was blood. No. Get out. Getoutgetoutgetout. Her mind flew into a frenzy of fear as she made a dash for the stairs. Nothing good came from blood. She knew that much. It was safe upstairs, she checked. At least, safer than here. ..

She ran as fast as her little legs could carry her, past the mannequins, past the wired couch, and back to the painting that started it all: "Fabricated World". She caught her breath, bending over as her petite chest rose and fell rapidly. It was just too much. Where was he? She couldn't have lost him. .. She has to find him. .. Where is he?

A blue splotch of paint dripped from the piece, catching her eye. Curiously, she found herself drawn to it, and touched it ever-so-lightly with the tips of her fingers, when —

A thump, and letters in red soon scribbled onto the floor, almost angrily.

COME CLOVER

Come where? Skeptically, though shaken, she stared at the sprawled words on the ground, refusing to believe it might be blood. She turned her head back towards the mysterious painting, to find writings where the blue splotch used to be.

come down below clover ill show you someplace secret

A huff, though a frail one, "That's just creepy and gross." She couldn't afford to lose it now. She had to keep going. She had to find her brother. Plus, it really did take on a new meaning if you added .. well, scandalous conotations. Regardless, she marched on to her own beat, figuring that there was only one 'down' at this point in location — downstairs. She really didn't want to go back down there, but it was the only lead she had. She wandered a few steps until she found herself at the center piece of the first floor gallery, the work Light had pondered a great deal over — "Abyss of the Deep". She had described it to her brother not all that long ago as a "dark fangly-toothed sea monster thing that was in serious need of a flashlight". The mere memory of 20 minutes ago brought paleness back to her face, as she bit her bottom lip. She didn't notice herself being subconsciously pulled into the painting, little by little, step by step.

Dazed and confused at this point, she found herself in a long hallway of blue unlike the white walls she had just gotten accustomed to. The pit in her stomach came back, as she took her first look around. Nothing worth noting, except an unprecedented feeling of dread and fear. Wanting to keep moving, she began her march to the right, walking with churchmouse steps and darting eyes.

Not a second later, another message scribbled its way onto the wall. Clover began to suspect the suspect was broken in some way, as it only spelt one word over and over again: "COME." She gave it as little mind as she humanely could, thinking it best to ignore it for now. It was then that Clover noticed it: a black rose, wilting, sitting longingly in a vase. Drawn by its lonely beauty, she took it without thinking, and stared at it for a few good minutes. Paying next to no mind to the end-table, she made her way to the door, staring at the rose, only to have her smack into it like a blundering fool. "Ugh, stupid table — !" With a hard kick, she knocked the end-table over, muttering under her breath as she opened the door carelessly.

Inside was a painting of a woman, with hair so long that it .. came out of the frame? Clover cocked an eyebrow, more skeptical than ever, until a glint caught her eye. She made her way over, to find a key in the center of the room, which she soon stored in her oversized jacket pocket. Before leaving, she turned to see the paper underneath the portrait, and to read whatever it had to say.

When the rose withers, so too will you wither away.

This was becoming more and more ridiculous, and nerve-wracking at the same time. The dark rose still in her left hand, she left the room, pretending she didn't hear a thud come from behind the door she just left through. That's right, everything would be okay. She would find Light, and this whole nightmare would be over. Everything would be okay.

Everything was not okay. One step, and even more words sprawled out onto the floor and walls, spelling only one word over and over again: "THIEF".

What? How could they have known she took the key and rose — The rose! She looked at her left hand, but it was gone. Did she drop it? She turned around, and lo' and behold, there it was, lying motionless on the ground. With a sigh of relief, she picked it back up, and decided to store it safely this time in her other pocket.

"That could have ended badly. .." Mentally kicking herself for being so careless, she then realized, what was she doing? Why did she panic over a stupid rose? Still unsure about her own motives, but deciding that it was pointless to think too hard over that, she looked around. Time's ticking, and she was tired of wandering around in silence.

"Hey! Is anyone out there? C'mon, say something!"