voidtreckerexpress | Movie Night!

Movie Night!

Who: Romeo, Tidus and YOU (You may mingle!)
Where: Cinema carriage
When: Grasshopper day 2, evening
What: Sports anime movie night with popcorn!
Warnings: There shouldn't be! But I will add if anything comes up

POP, POPPOPPOP...

~~anime~~

sports

freshly popped popcorn

see it

pop, poppoppop

Salt and sugar shakers

cinnamon

mixed (sweet) spice

paprika

hot chilli bottles

juice

BORN TO REVIEW

Born To Blitz

Swing-It Like Seccam

Magical Detective Heartlines

Born To Blitz

blitzball

Swing-It Like Seccam

not

Magical Detective Heartlines: Goal In Life

Heartlines

and

END OF FILM REEL...

Sports Night

void

( OOC: It's a fun little mingle! Have your characters bring their own food and snacks, cause some mischief, complain or be too loud. :) There will be small breaks between each showing and the blitz anime will be the same length as the movies altogether (so about 20 mins a piece).

Also full disclaimer, Ree wrote this! All credit goes to her!)

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"Was hopin it'd keep me awake." Duo replied to the question in a low enough tone Alice could hear him but he hopefully wouldn't bother anyone. He was slumped down in his seat, eyes darkened and heavy, but he still glanced Alice's way and gave her a lopsided smile.

So far he'd come into the little cinema a few times over the last few days to try and help keep him awake. Or at the least to mask when he did fall asleep...

"It's not doin a good job." He continued and moved a hand to cover his mouth when he yawned.

"I can see that."

And it's not the only thing she can see. Alice has seen some people in truly awful conditions - yet another one of the downsides of having lived in the asylum for so long, even though she didn't get to leave her room much - but Duo's eyes are looking particularly bad today. He looks like he can't have slept much in a week or two.

It's concerning. Because for all of Alice's attempts to hide the fact that she cares about people, she does care about Duo. He bothered to share his story with her, even though Alice felt like no one would trust her with that sort of thing. She can even relate to him in some ways.

.. he called her a friend. Isn't worrying about each other what friends do? Probably?

"Why shouldn't you sleep? To be frank, you look like you could use it right now."

Duo brought a hand to his face and rubbed tiredly at his eyes for a moment. They felt gritty and sore, but that was the price you paid for forcing yourself to stay awake.

Then he pushed himself up to sit up a bit more and flashed Alice a smile, not as bright as his usual smiles.

"Look like shit, huh?" He tried to joke, but knew it fell flat. So he sighed and tipped his head back, eyes closing for a moment. "Can't sleep... That's where the dreams live."

Ah. Nightmares. Even if he would have spelled it out in a less obvious way, Alice would have caught onto that fact - she's dealt with it plenty herself, after all. In fact, she's never really stopped dealing with them. It's only recently gotten a little better now the younger Alice sleeps with her.

So she gets the temptation of staying awake to escape them. Yet at the same time, she knows it's not quite a realistic approach.. And that is once again made obvious by the way Duo looks right now. It's almost a little painful to see him try to smile like usually, only to fail.

"If you just keep going like this though, you'll inevitably end up passing out in the middle of the train." Usually that would just have been said harshly, but there's an odd fondness around the edges of her tone. It's the worry she can't quite hide creeping into it. She doesn't want Duo to be caught off guard and fall asleep in a random place when it's already been proven someone was willing to commit murder here on the train.

(Well, someone other than her, anyway. Ssh.)

He didn't exactly mean to do it, but he started to sink down into his seat again. This time with a heavier sigh.

"I can keep going as long as the coffee is hot." He muttered, a small note of irritation in his voice. And then Duo flushed and looked to Alice with a tired, apologetic smile. "Sorry... sorry. I just... I know I should, alright? But I don't..." Duo took a slow, deep breath... "I don't wanna hurt anyone."

And that was the sticky point. The screaming nightmares were one thing. It was the risk of actually hurting someone should they get close to him while he was having one. To a lesser degree, hurting himself. Because it wasn't always him in the drivers seat when he had those dreams.

He wished he could reassure Alice. Wished he wasn't such a basket case. Maybe he would just crash out and make an utter show of himself in front of the whole train? Wouldn't that just teach him a lesson on being an idiot? Maybe that's what he needed. Stick it to his subconscious for making his life a misery.

For what it's worth, the moment Duo glances over at her with that apologetic smile, Alice doesn't seem offended by what he muttered earlier at all. Stubbornness is something she's often seen, both back home and in this place, and.. honestly, in this case she can't fully blame Duo. Sure, it is a terrible idea to stay up forever and it's clearly not going to pan out for him, but she can understand he's just trying to escape a difficult scenario.

It makes her think of a good solution for a moment, especially with the added information of what he in particular fears. It seems she's at least thought of something after briefly glancing at the filled up seats between them and the movies.

"Why don't you sleep here?" Not right now, of course, because she's pretty sure the last thing Duo would want to do is draw everyone's attention mid-movie by screaming due to a nightmare.. "Once the movie is over and all the children are gone, anyway."

Is it hypocritical to call people not too much younger or within the same age range as them children? Maybe, but Alice hasn't felt like a child in a long time. She's pretty sure the same goes for Duo. You don't go through the kind of stuff they do and don't see yourself as beyond that innocence.

"I could stay here. Watch another movie. Or get a book to read. If you turn violent upon waking or in the middle of your nightmare, I should be able to handle it." She sounds confident enough about that. Alice might not look strong - all pale and thin - but she's a lot stronger than she looks. Sure, it won't help him still having the actual nightmares, but at least he won't have to fear hurting someone around him. It's better than nothing. Or passing out in the middle of the train.

"... I kinda have. Some." Duo admitted. He'd leaned more to the side without fully realising it. His shoulder against Alice's. This close he was able to keep his voice low enough no one else would be able to overhear them over the sound of the movie. He hoped.

"It helps... Can't stay asleep too long with that sound. And someone always comes in. I always wake..." But wasn't that just as bad? He knew it was. Rationally he knew. But he also knew it was a risk he just couldn't take until his mind had settled down. It was in a kind of fight or flight mode and Duo was struggling. But he was trying.

But he had to tilt his head and give Alice a tired smile. She was tough. He knew she was tough. And maybe if they were fighting just him and her, she'd be able to hold her own. But grappling with Duo's demons wasn't the same as grappling with Duo. And he was genuinely afraid he would hurt her. He'd never forgive himself.

"Don't give me that look!" She hisses, though trying to keep the volume low so it's just between the two of them. It's not even that she dislikes him smiling at her - not at all. It's just that Alice doesn't know how to handle it. People just don't.. smile at her, that's not how it works! Especially when he looks so tired and she assumes it has to take him quite a bit to smile in this situation. She's rather glad the carriage is dark, so the way her cheeks faintly light up in embarassment doesn't show as much.

"I meant it. I don't mind helping you out." Even though she can't be sure what reason for refusing her help must be crossing his mind as he doesn't seem to fully reply to the offer. She doesn't want to guess at it and assume things either - it wouldn't be fair to him. "That is.."

She starts. Then stops. Ugh. This is so hard! She so wasn't prepared for this today of all days.

"That is.. what friends do, isn't it..?"

For the briefest of moments a look of confused hurt crossed Duo's expression. What had he done? What look? He didn't understand... But as quick as the hurt was there, Duo quickly shut it down. His smile went away, closing himself off some he made himself sit up a bit straighter so he wasn't nearly leaning against Alice. Then he turned to face the screen, there was a movie he should have been watching after all.

Duo heard her then. Her whispered words, and gave a low little laugh and a shake of his head. "Relax, Alice. I'm fine, really. Just a bit tired." He smiled again then, forcing a little more of his usual cheer into it. "You're a good friend, and it really means a lot you offerin. But... it's not as bad as it looks. I'm gettin some sleep."

This would be so much easier if she was used to social interactions and situations, she thinks. If she would have had regular human friends back home, rather than all sorts of creatures born from her own mind. Without that experience it feels so hard to figure out what to do here. Does she just believe his word? It doesn't sound like it could be true. If Duo is looking this bad, it really has got to not be great. Her instinct is to push on, but that immediately makes a worry arise inside of her that she's never felt before she got onto this train. The fear that she'll push him away without meaning to, just because she doesn't know how to apply tact. The fear that she'll hurt him, because that's all she ever seems to do.

Someone really ought to have prepared her for this before dumping her onto a train with people she can't help but start to feel attached to.

"I'm not-- I'm not going to relax." The word sounds so weird, coming out of her mouth, but that effect is probably overshadowed by the fact that she actually sounds like she's pouting. Because she is. "Not until you are fine. You can't call me a good friend and then imply I shouldn't worry. That is not how it works."

.. She thinks, anyway. She's so new to this, but she's trying so darn hard.

"You need some proper rest before it kills you."

Wow. Now he felt like a dick. Alice was a good friend, she really was. He wished he could do what she asked, but he was just too afraid to. He didn't want to hurt her, or anyone else.

But... he sighed and rubbed at his tired eyes... He had no choice, did he? The only way to prove that he shouldn't sleep was to try and sleep for her and show her just why. He just hoped Alice wouldn't hate him too much. If he could sleep at all. Duo wasn't sure if he would be able.

"... Alright." Duo said with a nod. "I'll try... if you'll stick with me. I'll do my best to get a few hours. Is that good enough?" He looked at Alice then and smiled. "Best I can offer."

Alice lets out the slightest breath.

"Even ten minutes would have been fine with me." It's the principle of the matter, mostly. Sure, it'd be better if Duo slept for a longer time, but if he felt like he couldn't do that, just a little while might be fine. As long as nothing awful would happen, maybe it'd be enough to make the other feel at least a bit more at ease about sleeping this way. "Then I wouldn't have to.."

She pauses. Her voice trails off, the end of that sentence just left hanging in the air. Alice's hands slowly forms fists as they lay on her lap, something more awkward and rigid about her posture. She's so bad at saying these things, but she also doesn't want Duo to get the wrong idea.

Ugh.

So she forces it out.

"Then I wouldn't have to worry as much about you."

In case it wasn't obvious yet that that is what she's doing!

He looked over at her and smiled before he reached over and softly patted Alice's forearm. "Don't worry about me, Alice. I'm tougher than I look." And while that was true, he knew that he should try and get some sleep... He'd been getting little bits here and there after all. If he'd been awake all of this time he'd probably be dead by now without getting some sleep now and again.

"Promise, just a few hours... Two... three tops. If you wake me up before I get too deep, it should be alright." He hoped so anyway. The time was different each time, but he hoped that would be the shortest amount of time he could sleep without getting into a deep REM sleep where he could potentially hurt someone. The last thing he ever wanted was to hurt Alice.

"I know you're tough," she admits. Of course she does. Duo told him so much of what he's been through. No one could go to hell and back like that and actually make it out on the other side without being tough. Sure, you'd probably have to end up a little screwed up for it too, but tough all the same.

"But it's exactly the toughest people who need someone to look out for them." Because they tend to think they can just do everything by themselves! Look, Alice gets it. She's like that too. That's exactly why she knows how this works and isn't about to let Duo get away with it. She likes to hope he'd do the same if she were to attempt to do something stupid. "So I will wake you up in time. Do you have any prefered way for me to do it?"

Since he seems so worried about the idea of flipping out when he wakes up and all. Even if he might not be too deep into sleep yet at that point, she'd like to minimize the risk, if not just to put him more at ease.

How many times had he said something similar to Heero and been brushed off? He almost laughed at the strange twist in his perceptions. But the difference was that he was giving in. If only a little.

When she asked her question, a very reasonable question, he had to think... He sighed and closed his eyes, head tipping back as he tried to think of a safe way for Alice to get through to him. In the end, he could only think of one thing, and he knew it would sound strange.

"Mr Black." He opened his eyes and tilted his head to look over at Alice. "Don't touch. Just call out for that. And it should get through... and wake me up."

He's very much right about it sounding strange. Not that Alice has any problem with accepting this answer, since it's not like it's anything too embarrassing to do, but it still makes her a little curious.

So even though she nods, she can't help but ask--

".. Mr Black?"

She leaves the question a little vague on purpose, so it's easier for Duo to avoid having to answer anything he doesn't want to talk about.

He knew that, out of context, it probably sounded weird as hell. Duo could understand her confusion and her need to ask. He smiled at her and pointed to himself.

"Me... My call sign." He sighed softly and turned away to face the screen. "Back home, if we were on a mission we used call signs instead of our names. Either numbers, Zero Two, or the name... Mr Black."

"If a mission went sideways and we were stuck and needed extraction, we'd use call signs. There's be someone at base, they'd keep the comms open waiting for that call... Calling out to Lost Boy. So.. uh... if a name's gonna get through to me, it'll be that one."

Honestly, all of this is new to Alice. It's not like she's ever been remotely involved in anything mission-like before ending up in this place. She's never even had the exposure to action movies the way some more modern people might have to know the trope.. So everything Duo tells her is new information to her. Even the missions here have never used anything like that - but she supposes it's maybe meant for more covert missions? Whatever you'd call the ones they do here, they're pretty much anything but covert.

So she slowly nods.

"I understand." Judging by her tone, Alice doesn't seem to think anything too strange of it with that explanation. "I will use that, then."

It's easy enough to remember.

"Then.. attempt to sleep. I will wake you up."

Duo let out a relieved sigh. Trust Alice not to make a big deal out of it. He knew she wasn't military trained so he understood it probably sounded weird as hell. But she accepted it and moved on and that's what he really liked about her. She didn't make him feel like a lunatic for the simplest of things.

And yet he was still nervous.

Knowing she'd say the word, knowing she would keep watch over him and make sure he didn't do anything stupid was all well and good. But he was still nervous.

Luckily he was more tired than nervous. And when he closed his eyes he realised just how heavy they were. Slumping down in his chair a bit, he crossed his arms over his chest and let his chin fall forward. Was it the most comfortable of places to sleep? No... But was he asleep in seconds... You bet he was.

Throwing all of his trust at Alice, the moment that Duo closed his eyes and let himself go, he fell straight asleep.

At first she makes sure to keep a careful eye on him. Mostly to see whether or not he really is going to sleep. But there's no doubt about it - Duo really can't be fooling her. The way he slumps like that, the way his breathing slows a bit.. He really is asleep.

And while Alice knows that such a short period of sleep won't do much for his sleep deprivation, at the very least it's something. A start. Maybe he might feel just a tiny bit better waking up - either because he's actually slept some, or because he was able to sleep without anything disastrous happening. Because honestly, Alice isn't afraid at all that anything all that bad will happen when she wakes him up with that word. It'll be fine.

So all the girl does is settle in herself, waiting for the right time to wake him up. She'll have plenty of daydreaming to keep her occupied until then.

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Movie Night!

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Wrap?

yes!