Winter Born

[Ken's set the Dreamberry up against a book; he's slumped opposite it, chin resting on one wrist. The picture is slightly crooked, and he reaches out to steady the screen.

[Then he glares at it, as if it personally has done him some grave disservice.]

So, these dream... post things. What right have we got to be seeing this stuff?

[I'm looking at you, Dreamberry. Ken glares a bit more, then sighs.]

This ain't TV, right? It's... someone else's head in here. It's private and this thing's dishing it up like it was a stupid drama or something and it's - you're all, why not watch it if it's there? Like TV. And everyone does it and it starts seeming so normal and... and what the Hell's with that, why's that supposed to be okay now just because it's everywhere and--

Look, I'm not saying I'm better than anyone else, I do it too and I don't know why I ever figured it was just fine to, it's not a show and... and... Damn, I hate this place!

[And off.]

Warnings: Ridiculous, only vaguely IC romantic fluff. Oh, and Ken in a girls' school uniform. Zettai ryouiki, anyone?
Dream Effects: Nervousness and expectant hope, then unthinking happiness.
Notes: Calls heavily on this trope (Warning: TV Tropes link). Payment for White Day auction, backdated to mid-week. Youji looks like he did when Ken first met him, namely like this, so may not be recognizable.

( is it can be shoujo manga teims nao? )

[-- which is about when she wakes up. The Dreamberry is glowing pink, but Ken doesn't really take much notice of that. She's aware it was recording, though, and that's quite enough for her to be getting on with. Who cares what 'Dream Converted' means when she's quite occupied enough burying her head under the pillow and wondering if she should kill herself before Youji can inevitably find out about this? It would at least save her the trouble of dying of embarrassment.

[As if the dream wasn't bad enough, she did the whole thing dressed as a schoolgirl. And she wasn't even actually a girl in the dream. Oh, God.]

Warnings: Angst. Lots of it. Based on a canon event that is never canonically described. Head canon in effect throughout.
Dream Effects: Confusion from the start, only intensifying as the dream progresses. A growing sense of helplessness, frustrated anger and sadness, and finally a near-overwhelming feeling of hopelessly misaimed guilt.

( at five years of age most children realize that the dead are different from the living )

[Ken wakes up, but the only sign of it is his open eyes. For a long while he simply lies there unmoving, then closes his eyes again and wipes at them angrily with one hand.]