Lady Reiki/Anniversaries
From Unofficial Handbook of the Virtue Universe
((The following events take place on 4/22/08. They may or may not be related to plot.))
He drifted for ages, seeing nothing in the mists of the vision – just like always...
It would end soon and he would return empty-handed – just like always...
The mists wavered and he prepared himself for the lurch as his guides returned him to his body – just like always...
“Thank you for coming!” A child’s voice...
At last! Focus and follow. How much time did he have left? The mists parted and he landed in the... Memory? Dream? Wish? Realities were overlapping here. No matter, it was the first possible sign in years. Focus on the projection that is the strongest. Settle in. Blend in. He followed the guide’s instructions. There. He looked around, seeking clues to where this might be.
A small room decorated for a child’s party with colorful streamers and balloons. A single door to the room, shut, and no windows, but the room is brightly lit. The young girl was smiling, her black braids swinging as she danced around the room, her laughter filled with delight – just like he remembered...
The... party guests wavered in and out of existence, coming into focus when his attention was on them, fading when he turned away.
Ah, he was in her psyche.
The girl stopped in front of him. The vision wavered and he felt the mists returning, pushing him away.
She is aware. Project familiarity.
Her blue eyes sparkled and her grin returned.
“Thank you for coming to my party!”
The room and guests solidified around him. I am now a part of this. Play the role.
“You are quite welcome.” Assess the situation. Deduce. “Happy birthday.”
The girl’s grin broadened. She grabbed him by the hand and led him to the table where most of the other guests were now gathered.
“Everyone, another friend has come!”
His arrival was greeted with nods and congenial smiles. After all, he was 'a friend'. The smiles are wrong – ah, it is the same smile fixed on all their faces. The child’s impression of people she knew or had known. He peered at them, looking for any hint to who they really might be. A strange assortment. But, too many to all be imaginary, right?
Taking a chance, he leaned over to the child and asked, “Will you introduce me?”
She nodded without hesitating and went around the table.
A man of blue skin, garbed in black and... are those teddy bear ears? “That’s Sammy!”
A curvy woman, also blue skinned. She was feeding cake to amorphous creatures of fire – “Pyra!”
A knight in shining armor... and numerous weapons made of tinfoil. “Sir Parzy!”
“Ebry’s his wife!” The woman was cloaked in robes, mystical amulets, charms, and crystals.
A white ghost shuffled cards. The only color came from a metallic badge pinned to his transparent shirt and an impossibly elaborate feathered headdress on his head. “That’s Trey!”
The slightly nervous man sitting next to him took the cards and attempted to perform a magic trick. Something on his wrist mocked his efforts. “Zwei an’ Herzy!”
A pale man with chunks of ice that appeared and fell off at random. “Perry!”
A young man with strange tentacles waving around from his back. “Nicky an’ Luxy!”
A smoking hot girl, literally, sipped her Snapple – “There’s Krys!”
“Mister Doctor’s real nice!” The man in question had a long red coat and a hat pulled down over his eyes. He kept passing around an endless supply of candy.
An armored figure was setting off all kinds of explosions in a corner of the room. Nobody seemed to be worried. “Herr’s awesome at fireworks!”
At the farthest end of the table, the figure of a no-nonsense woman. “That’s Ms. Bridget!”
There was a DJ in a leather trench coat dancing as music emanated from him. He, too, has bear ears perched atop his head. “DJ Tempy!”
A man decorated cakes on the side table while talking with a swashbuckler. “There’s Bry an’ Bri.”
The strange names and faces continued until she was back to where she started. There was still one she had not named. He floated above them, his eyes hidden by a stream of light. “Oh, that’s Thanny. He’s...” Uncertainty. Wistfulness. Focus. This could be key. The girl gave a small nod as she decided something. “He’s my guardian angel.” Feathery wings and a lopsided halo appeared on the floating man.
“Is this his seat?” A chair next to the girl remained empty, a plate and silverware at the ready.
The room darkened and the mists began to return.
“No, that’s for Sarah. It’s my birthday. She wouldn’t miss my birthday.”
Her voice was so small. There was Something here she did not want seen. Something that could not be touched. The limit is reached. His guides were pulling him back.
As he hovered at the edge of her psyche, pulled back by his guides, pushed out by her, a loud knock shattered the vision. He finally caught a glimpse as reality asserted itself of - a young woman with long green hair sat at a table with her head bowed in a darkened room, surrounded by dolls – and then the mists obscured everything.
Kina started as the knock on the door broke her reverie. She looked at her watch and frowned. Too much time had passed without her noticing– she had been ‘drifting’ again. Another knock, louder – “What is it, Chitt?”
“Chrr rygkdy mrwa.”
“Oh? Jist a sec, I’ll meet ya in th’ garden.”
The trailer she lived in occupied a small dirt patch in the Row. Having recently figured out a way to keep the pesky Vhaz zombies from trampling across the yard (and puking over everything) her garden was finally flourishing. The recent round of Rikti attacks though had left some unsightly scorch marks. With any luck, though, the Rikt-E-Raser she had ordered would take care of it.
She blew out the mostly melted candle in the small cupcake and tossed it in the garbage. The Polaroid sitting on the table was gently picked up and returned to envelop with a few other treasured photographs. The dolls were left as is; she could put them back on their shelves later.
She shut the door behind her, putting the day’s anniversaries out of her mind.
