[PRP] Pictionary (Jamie & Sunday)

[saedusk]

The best course of action in light of recent events, Jamie decided, was taking Renard's advice. Their task of nixing the old charter and creating a new one was absolutely daunting. Not only did it have to make sense, but it had to be fair and cover every single loophole imaginable. Jamie wasn't sure where to start, but it never hurt to learn as much as he could before this was all over, right?

With the spell schema tucked away in its usual box in his brightly colored fish bag, he traveled to Other Ashdown, to the library. All that was left was how literally he planned on following Renard's advice. Would he really shout at the door?

No. No, he wouldn't. This was Jamie Delacroix, after all, quiet and shy until you got to know him. There wouldn't be any yelling unless all else failed.

"Sunday?" he asked the door instead, raising his voice at least a touch above average in case it was difficult for doors to hear—since, you know, they had no ears. "Um, are you... here?"  

[shibrogane]

The door creaked slowly open, welcoming Jamie inside.

It was a normal enough library. There was a door on the far side of the room.

saedusk

 

[saedusk]

Well, that was easier than he thought it might be. Clutching his bag to himself the way he did when he was vaguely nervous, Jamie stepped inside. Whatever he might've been expecting, it almost wasn't a normal library. Almost.

"I... hope I'm not bothering you," he said to the air. If Sunday really was the library in a literal sense, then he thought she could probably hear him. "I was wondering if we could, um, talk... is all..." As he spoke, he made his way over to the door on the far side. There was hesitation, but it was short, and eventually he knocked.

shibrogane

 

[shibrogane]

That door swung open too. Behind it was Sunday's anteroom, the same as Jamie had fallen into on that day in November. It had hardly changed at all.

There was no sign of Sunday.

saedusk

 

[saedusk]

Though Sunday might not be present, Jamie at least recognized the anteroom. Back then he'd been too worried about everything else to really appreciate it, but now he took a moment to step around. It felt like a nice, comfortable place to sit and read. Perhaps that was why—he looked back to the door he'd entered—it was connected to a library.

Then again, Jamie assumed there was much more going on with the Other Ashdown library than simply collecting books to read. And, well, hadn't Sunday summoned her own books from the very walls, anyway? Curiosity had Jamie reaching out to see if he could replicate it.

shibrogane

 

[shibrogane]

A book drifted down to Jamie's hand, the spine plopping gently into his palm. Still no sign of Sunday, but the book fell open to reveal it was a photo album. The four images looking up at Jamie were...

There was the Jamie of the 80s, an arm around Eightiesloh's waist. Another of Sunny, or Sonny, one of the two, her back to the camera, her shoulders hunched forward. And two of Renard and something glowing in his hands.

saedusk

 

[saedusk]

Oh, it had worked. Even if Sunday hadn't come to greet him yet, assuming she even would, this whole area seemed to be responding to his inquiries. That was a good sign, he thought. Maybe he would find what he'd come to learn here.

Carefully balancing the open book between both palms, Jamie settled into a seat in one of the lovely, plush chairs. It was very comfortable. For what felt like forever, his fingers set delicately over the photo of himself and Shiloh from a past life. The clothing, the hair, the fact he'd met them (kinda sorta) in person, Jamie had a strong feeling these were their selves from the 80s. It made him feel nostalgic in the weirdest of ways.

But this wasn't necessarily what he was here for, even if he'd so desperately wondered for more information about those two. Would it be selfish to ask? He looked to the other three pictures.

Sunny or Sonny, he couldn't tell. He'd met them both in person once, but only briefly. Sunny from afar, crazed and manic, and Sonny when they'd coaxed Shiloh into the mutual punch out in the Denny's parking lot. Jamie sighed. He was a little bitter, and that was dumb, but he hoped Sonny was doing alright.

Finally there was Renard, his hands glowing. Jamie immediately assumed that had to be the schema. "This is kinda what I'm here for," he said aloud, pointing to one of the pictures. "I, um, I want to use the spell schema to study sigils."

shibrogane

 

[shibrogane]

The photograph flickered to life. Jamie was pulled into a shadow of a memory. He could still see Sunday's little anteroom around him, the outlines of plush chairs, but overlaid like a bad hologram was a room Jamie wouldn't recognize, decorated in soft buttery yellows and slightly dingy whitewash. Renard, visibly older than the last time Jamie had seen him, held the gelatinous form of the schema in his hands. "Still need more information," he murmured, "there's next to nothing here about the effects on the nervous system..."

He reached over for a pen from a nearby desk (the shape clipped awkwardly with Sunday's bookshelves) and made a note. A note, well, it was a circle with some weird squiggles around the outside, slashed through by a vertical line.

There was a loud noise somewhere nearby. Renard looked towards it, the silver in his hair catching the light. "Ming?"

The memory faded.

saedusk

 

[saedusk]

The memory, at first, was mesmerizing. It captivated Jamie like a good movie. Renard was older than he remembered seeing him before, but still warmly familiar in that 'I'm unsure, but I want to believe in you' sort of way. It wasn't until he began to write that Jamie was startled back to attention.

Whether or not that weird circle symbol was important to anything, he scrambled in his bag for a small fish-patterned notebook and pen so he could jot it down, too. In fact, he made a small note of everything he saw in the memory, straight down to Ming. Couldn't hurt, right?

Then the vision faded and Jamie was left wondering what it meant. If this was what the photos could do, though... he couldn't help but be a little selfish. Looking down at the photo of their 80s selves again, he asked, "Can I, um, see them, too...?"

shibrogane

 

[shibrogane]

The image flickered to life around them. A different room, this time, a messy double bed behind the two boys as they laughed. Shiloh cupped Jamie's cheek in one hand and kissed the other one, and the photographer laughed, too, and said, "So? How's it feel?"

"Weird," said Jamie, a little shyly, just a flash of his teeth. "Weird but... cool."

Shiloh was grinning. Had Shiloh ever smiled like that in this world? "I know what the hell the fish are talking about now."

"And I'm sure it's enthralling," said the unseen photographer.

saedusk

 

[saedusk]

For as many unanswered questions as Jamie had—who was the mysterious photographer, what weird but cool thing were they experiencing, what had the fish talked about—he was happy with what he saw. The grin that spread to Shiloh's eyes made Jamie's heart feel full, made him warm. It was nice to know that despite the universe, despite everything that happened, they could find some happiness in each other. Maybe it was silly, but Jamie felt good.

"Thank you for showing me that," he said, quiet but pleased. "I'm really glad I got to see." It was impossible to hide the big ol' smile on his face and boy, it sure was tempting to request a re-play of that memory, but he laid his hand over the photo of Su(o)nny instead.

"What about this one?" he asked.

shibrogane

 

[shibrogane]

The world formed up around him again. Ascencion's hands were locked in her lap, hands clenched over each other, and now that Jamie was inside the memory he could hear them sobbing. It wasn't full-throated sobbing. It was little, soft hiccups, like she was trying to smother them. Her hand came up, smudged the tears away. "No more," she said, "No more, no more. Please, just let me go, I won't tell anyone you were here..."

saedusk

 

[saedusk]

After how pleasant the memory of his and Shiloh's 80s selves had been, seeing this one was jarring. It sat heavy in the pit of his stomach. Still, he couldn't quite understand what was doing on. Who was there and what in the world had they been doing to Ascension. As much as Jamie wanted to focus on his original goal, it felt wrong to ignore this.

"Do... do you know who they're talking to?" he asked the room.

shibrogane

 

[shibrogane]

The room didn't answer. The pictures in the book stopped glimmering.

saedusk

 

[saedusk]

Oh, silence. For a long moment, Jamie waited and waited, just in case there was something easily missed. When nothing happened, he sighed and gently slid the book shut.

"I guess that's it for the... the memories?" he asked, standing up to return the book to the shelf. As much as he wanted to see if he could continue to pry, he had come here with an entirely different goal in mind. Maybe this was a sign he should get to it. He tried not to feel too antsy about it.

"I was told if I came here that I could... maybe... access the sigil. Y'know, the one that was made in the void...? I really need to study it."

shibrogane