#like i’m very grateful to have a signed clockwork poster but i’m much more grateful that i got to tell M.M. how much the raging moon meant

[leonardcohenofficial]

i’ve been working professionally in the arts for nearly a decade now (horrifying. the passing of time and all of its sickening crimes etc. etc.) and have seen that you quite literally will not make it if you do not learn how to Act Normal™️ around celebrities; all this to caveat that there are very few feelings of gratitude like that of getting to express to someone whose art has impacted you just how much it and/or they have meant to you;​ giving people their flowers is a mutually beneficial experience when done without performance and unselfishly

[flutteringdreams-matw]

Out of Time 2/?

Sam closed her locker forcefully, spooking the poor freshman down the hall. Her parents had tried, again, to put her in some stupid beauty contest with a ridiculous amount of pink on the poster. Apparently, entering a beauty contest (even if it was to make a statement) and then winning meant more exposure for 'someone in her social standard.' She tried to argue her case, but apart from telling them it was all a ploy cooked up by an evil ghost trying to find a wife (which she couldn't do), she had to promise to at least consider it. Besides, it did have a decent scholarship that she could donate to Jazz if she managed to win (rather…. participate). Some good had to come out of her wearing that unholy colour. One thing was for certain… if this happened… the secret was going to her grave.

"What's got you in a mood?" Tucker joked as he walked toward her. A lot had changed for the trio in the past year; Tucker now stood a good few inches taller than her, but still quite lanky. His love of technology had evolved into more than just hacking, even creating a few hologram machines and working directly with the Fentons on new technology. She herself was a little taller, still very much interested in black apparel, but did try to change her wardrobe up a bit. It did irk her a bit that the boys now towered over her; she had to go to more extravagant lengths to mess with them. Tucker leaned against the lockers smirking, waiting for the Goth girl in front of him to answer.

"Parents," she said, shrugging. "Finish the homework for Lancer?"

"Which one?" Tucker asked drily. "History, English or Science?"

Sam scoffed. "Still can't believe Lancer is teaching 3 out of 4 courses this semester. Let alone having him last semester and most of last year."

Tucker sighed dramatically. "Well Sam, when you live in the most haunted city in America, people tend to pack up and leave. I still can't believe Ishiyama is teaching the Juniors now that most of the teachers quit."

Sam hummed in agreement as she looked down the hall. "Any sign of the clueless one?"

"Why, anything important to confess?" Tucker asked suggestively, wiggling his eyebrows at Sam. She frowned as she pushed the teen into a set of lockers, looking slightly red. "Geez Sam, I'm only kidding. He texted saying he'll be here soon – something about emptying the thermos." Sam nodded absently as they moved down the hallway. Tucker followed her with a frown. "You know I'm not pushing you to do anything right?" he asked, uncharacteristically genuine in his teasing. "Tell Danny whenever you want, but you can't just repress your feelings forever, no matter how Goth you think it is. I just want you guys to be happy."

Sam smiled gratefully at her friend. "Thanks Tuck." They walked in silence, observing Dash and his football cronies tag team putting a couple freshmen into lockers.

Tucker rolled his eyes as he adjusted his beret. "I definitely don't miss that," he said.

"Shame, I'm sure it would be a fun experiment to see if you still fit into one of these little metal boxes," Sam joked darkly. Tucker elbowed her.

"Hey! I'm just glad Danny's ghost fighting muscles made Dash wary about picking on us. I mean, it still sucks for them but I'm glad I only have to worry about ghosts beating us up now."

Sam rolled her eyes at that. "Your priorities astound me," she said sarcastically.

"Sam! Tuck!"

Both teens whirled around to see Danny bounding down the hallway, backpack half open as he ducked past some students. They watched, half amused, as he tripped slightly, regaining his balance and came to a stop in front of them, breathing heavily.

"Morning," Tucker said flippantly. "Good to see you made it before the bell. Long night?"

Danny smiled wryly. Standing to his full height (which Sam only vaguely noticed was almost the same height as Tucker's), he grabbed his backpack and brought it forward, zipping it closed. "Yeah, I overslept and needed to empty the Box Ghost and Skulker into the zone. I can't believe I made it in on time!"

"I'm sure Lancer will say the same thing," Tucker quipped.

"I resent that!" Danny retorted. "I've been on time 4 out of 5 times a week this school year. Gonna end the year on a high." Danny had been grateful to his parents on taking most of the ghosts during the day while he was at school to avoid the amount of absences he racked up. He still handled most of the big ghosts or attacks nearby, but it was nice to have a backup that didn't involve someone trying to waste him.

"So why'd you oversleep anyway – ghost trouble?" Sam asked. The trio used their lack of popularity to speak openly enough in the halls.

Danny shrugged, not quite meeting her eye. "Just a nightmare," he said as they started to head for homeroom. "Didn't get back to sleep for a while so I did Lancer's homework instead."

Sam and Tucker both frowned worriedly. "Another one?" Tucker asked.

"Yeah," Danny said. Sam noticed that he was trying to push through the topic; her brow furrowed as she recognized his tell. "I remember bits and pieces mostly, but nothing concrete." Out of nowhere, Sam grabbed him by the collar and put him up against the lockers. Bewildered, Danny looked down into the accusing violet eyes of his best friend. "Sam!? Wha-"

"Liar," she accused, pointing her finger threateningly. "Was it like the others?" Danny started to make excuses, but she moved her finger in front of his nose and poked him. "Don't play hero right now. Was it like the other dreams?" Some passers-by stopped to watch the commotion, but once seeing it was Sam and Danny, they shrugged and walked by.

Danny looked at Tucker for assistance, but found that he got no sympathy from his best friend. Tucker was also watching him carefully, concerned but fully supportive of Sam's current interrogation technique. Tucker tilted his head, silently repeating the question.

Danny sighed heavily, making Sam release the boy from her vice grip. "Different images this time," Danny admitted, "Felt the same when I woke. Didn't feel like a dream."

"Dude, you need to tell Ethelwulf," Tucker told him.

Danny shook his head. "Not yet," he said, confusing his friends. "It was definitely just a dream. I'm just thinking about it too much and it's making it worse. I'll tell him eventually."

"Once is a dream. Three times is a coincidence."

Sam looked at him worriedly, before sighing in defeat. "If this happens again, I'm telling Ethelwulf myself," she said, walking into Lancer's English class in a huff.

Danny frowned at her demeanour as he watched her go. He glanced at Tucker who shrugged in response. "She's just worried," Tucker told him. "We both are. The last time you thought you were facing him, you almost exploded with power- literally. These dreams- it's starting to be a pattern Danny. It isn't like you've had dreams that predicted battles before."

"Yeah, but that was planted by Fear," Danny said frowning. Tucker gave him a pointed look. "Okay, I see your point. If it gets worse, I'll let him know."

Tucker smiled. "It's all we ask," he replied. Both boys walked into the classroom and headed to the back of the class where Sam was sitting with crossed arms. "Besides, best not to worry Sam. Her fury is enough to give us nightmares for eternity."

Sam's eyes narrowed darkly, but held a bit of humour to them. "And don't you boys forget it," she said menacingly.

:-=-:

Danny floated in front of a darker part of the Ghost Zone, frowning. He was sure this was the way to Clockwork's tower – now, however, it seemed to have distorted, not having a clear sense of direction. "Weird," Danny muttered to himself. He looked down at the map he was currently holding, trying to regain his place. "I'm definitely in the right area." He floated down closer to the Far Frozen, staring at the large swirling vortex in front of him. It shifted again, showing part of Pariah's Keep and Walker's prison instead of the Observant's Headquarters.

Crossing his arms, Danny sighed. He didn't want to admit how much his dreams were bugging him, but Tucker was right. He couldn't ignore them anymore, and if he was worried about his future self escaping, there was really one ghost to ask before he talked to Ethelwulf. Rather… attempt to ask – Clockwork was never one to come out and say anything directly.

"Great One?"

Danny turned at the voice. Frostbite was floating behind him, worry etched in his features. In his thoughts, Danny had floated close to the edge of the Far Frozen's mountainside, where the yeti leader could easily see him from the main gates. "Hey Frostbite," Danny said in greeting, floating towards him.

"I sensed your core as you approached," Frostbite told him, "You've been floating here for a while."

"I had hoped to visit Clockwork," Danny said, looking back at the darker part of the Zone. "Do you know why that area keeps changing?"

Frostbite frowned, looking to the area that Danny was indicating to. "I see you've noticed," Frostbite said seriously. "While the Ghost Zone is constantly shifting, Clockwork's realm shifts more frequently. It's to ward off any unwanted guests."

"But it's always shown the same path for me," Danny argued. He showed Frostbite his map and pointed to where they were. "Past the Observant's Headquarters, through the valley of gears and then his lair."

Frostbite frowned, looking at the map before turning his attention to the young ghost. "Then perhaps the Time Guardian does not wish to see you, Great One."

Danny frowned at that. Clockwork never prevented him from visiting. Annoyingly refuse him help, sure. Perhaps there was something more going on.

"You seem uneasy, Danny," Frostbite probed. Danny looked at him quizzically, recognizing his name rather than the titles Frostbite usually called him. "Our cores are kin; born of a frigid cold that generates from our birth. I'm able to tell when something is bothering you."

"Is it that obvious?" Danny asked drily. They floated for a moment, staring out into the Ghost Zone in silence. "I've been having dreams," Danny admitted. Frostbite said nothing, giving Danny the invitation to continue. "I faced this ghost – an alternate version of me – who was by far the worst ghost I've ever fought. Worse than Pariah Dark even. For a long time, I was afraid of… well… a lot. Facing him. Becoming him. Sometimes, I catch myself checking if I look like him as I get older."

"These dreams you speak of… do you dream of becoming him?" Frostbite asked.

Danny shook his head. "They don't feel like dreams," he said softly, before he could stop himself. "They feel like glimpses of the future."

Frostbite was quiet for a long time before responding. "What do you see Great One?" he asked.

"Battles mostly; at least three different ones. But last night, I saw him. Or I was him? Either way, he was escaping." Frostbite nodded. Danny shifted in his stance, waiting for Frostbite to say something. "It's probably nothing," he added half-heartedly, not wanting to worry his friend. "The last time I really gave him any thought was over a year ago. I'm probably just stressed or worried or something and it's bringing this back up."

"Perhaps," Frostbite mused, still looking out into the Zone. The larger ghost turned to the teen beside him. "Do you remember what I said to you when you were worried about facing Undergrowth?"

Danny nodded. "Fear is natural and charging into battle despite it is what makes you a hero," he summarized.

"It's alright to fear your dreams," Frostbite continued, "But you should not let it consume you Great One. Dwelling on the unknown has caused many a ghost to fall."

"So, you think I'm overreacting?" Danny asked, a tad hopeful.

"It doesn't matter what I think," Frostbite responded quickly. Danny looked down, crestfallen. "It matters what you think. You're discovering new powers daily, focus on the here and now, not the could haves or what will be. Charge into these battles – these dreams – and see what you find. The answer lies with you."

Danny sighed, frowning. "And if they turn out to be just nightmares?"

Frostbite chuckled. "Then you have your answer." Frostbite's small smile fell as he observed the boy in front of him. "Though, I have a feeling you already know the answer."

Danny at looked at him, confused. "What makes you say that?"

"Would you be looking for Clockwork if you truly believed they were only dreams?"

:-=-:

Papers scattered across the Fenton's kitchen table, making Jazz frown in thought. She only had a few more weeks before the deadlines to accept and she still had no clue where she wanted to go to college in the fall. She had no idea how popular her ghost envy paper would be when she wrote it, but to get accepted to all the schools she applied to? She couldn't believe it. Then again, with the appearance of ghosts in the last year and a half, she assumed there were a lack of applicants in the field. Add her last name into it? Yale, Wisconsin, Cincinnati, Fort Eerie, Harvard came knocking at her door.

Jazz turned her attention to the one in her hand, the modest logo of Amity University staring back in the top left hand corner. It was the obvious choice – close to home, she could help out with the ghost fights, study with two pretty amazing scientists and would probably learn more about a ghost's psyche through her brother and his friends than any professor.

"Make a decision yet?" Jazz turned at her mother's voice. Maddie watched her daughter proudly from the top of the basement steps, a small smile on her face.

"No," Jazz whined, shaking her head. "I thought it would be easy to have all the choices laid out in front of me. It's pretty overwhelming."

Maddie nodded knowingly as she walked to the table to join her. "I remember that feeling. You know Jazz, there's not a wrong choice here. Each one of these schools will give you a top notch education. The question you should ask yourself is if you're really choosing the school that's best for you."

Jazz frowned. "Of course I'm picking the best school for me. I'm the one choosing!"

Maddie raised an eyebrow at her daughter. "Then why do you have all these letters on the table, but one in your hand?" Jazz looked down at the letter in her hand with wide eyes. "Sweetheart," Maddie said gently, "While I'd love for you to stay here with us, you need to do what's best for you. You're smart, capable and all of these institutions want your brilliance. Don't choose what you think is best for us. We want you to be happy. Danny included."

Jazz sighed. "I know," she said softly. "Danny's said the same thing. I just… I don't want to miss anything. I worry."

"Didn't you argue that your brother is more capable than we give him credit for?" Maddie asked skeptically.

"Well… yes," Jazz agreed.

"And wasn't a large reason you didn't want to leave was cause you were worried about Danny not confiding in us readily?"

"Yeah, I mean, he usually keeps things close to the vest-"

"And that you're just making all these excuses because you're trying to avoid how scared you are to leave?"

Jazz sighed. She looked at the letter to Yale and then back to Amity University, conflicted. "What if I deferred a year? Learned a bit more about the family business?"

Maddie sighed, then smiled gently at her daughter. "Choose your own path Jazz; we'll support you no matter what." Jazz smiled back and engulfed her mother in a hug.

They broke apart as Danny flew through the floor and landed on the kitchen floor with a soft thud. "Again?" Danny joked, looking at the table full of acceptance letters and mirroring the tone she had used the day before.

"Ha ha, you're hilarious," Jazz said deadpanned. Danny transformed into his human self and walked over to the table, looking over his sister's and mother's shoulders. "Where were you anyway?"

Danny shrugged, eyes darting across the table. "Fort Eerie too? Wow Jazz, that's amazing!" he congratulated. Jazz beamed at her brother. "I was in the Ghost Zone."

That got the attention of both Fenton women. "I didn't know you were going there today?" Jazz said.

"Did something happen?" Maddie asked, confused. "Your next training session with Ethelwulf is next week isn't it?"

Danny shook his head. "Nothing's wrong," he assured with a smile. "Went to visit a friend, but he wasn't home. Stopped to chat with Frostbite instead."

"How is Frostbite?" Maddie asked. She had only met the yeti ghost once, after Jack insisted on doing an ice training session in the basement. It took a week for everything to defrost.

"He's good, didn't chat much about him though," Danny said, frowning slightly in anticipation. "I mentioned the dreams to him. Wasn't much help but he gave me something to think about."

Jazz turned to him expectantly. "Which was?"

"Just to trust my instincts," he told them. "Said it wasn't good to dwell on what could have been or what will be and just trust myself. Gonna mention them to Ethelwulf next week if I can't see Clockwork." He turned back to the table full of paper. "Speaking of could haves, have you picked one yet? The suspense is killing me."

Jazz simply glared at her little brother. "No," she retorted, choosing to ignore his pun. "But I love the pressure you're putting on me. A real motivational speech."

Danny picked up the letter from Yale and handed it to his sister with a sigh. "I would have thought it was a no brainer," he said, giving her the piece of paper. "It's always been your dream to go to Yale. There's nothing stopping you! Just say yes."

Jazz smiled softly at her brother as she locked eyes with Maddie. Their mother nodded encouragingly at her as she looked at the two sheets of paper in front of her. "Thanks," she said to both of them.

Danny hugged his sister tightly before transforming back to his ghost half. "I promised Sam and Tuck I'd meet them after I visited Frostbite – you mind if I miss dinner Mom?"

"Just don't be out too late Danny," Maddie reminded him. With a small wave indicated he heard her, he went intangible, flew up and out of the house. Maddie chuckled softly and shook her head. "That boy never sits still."

Jazz watched her brother go with a smile, before looking down at her hands once more. She was ready to make the decision. She looked back to the table and sighed as she glanced at her choices again. Maybe.

:-=-:

He couldn't remember what he was dreaming about – it was lovely and warm - but he was very aware when it shifted. Danny fell with a thud, ungracefully hitting the ground face first. Groaning, Danny looked around in the darkness around him. "Ow," he muttered, picking himself up from the ground. It was pitch black…the only other light source coming from…

"Phantom?" Danny asked, spotting his ghost half sprawled out in front of him. The ghost in front of him opened his green eyes quickly and scrambled upright, staring back into the blue eyes of Danny Fenton.

"Fenton?"

"What are you doing here?!" they asked at the same time. Phantom groaned in annoyance.

"Here we go again. Mindscape?" he asked, looking around.

"Looks like it," Danny agreed. "But why now? Last thing I remember, I was very much asleep."

Phantom nodded. "Could be a dream?" he speculated.

Danny shook his head. "Doubtful, I definitely feel awake. So why are we here?" Fenton waited expectantly as Phantom looked around. The white haired ghost sighed exasperatedly as he crossed his arms.

"No idea."

"Great," Danny replied drily. "Just what I need; you annoying me while I'm awake and while asleep."

Phantom scoffed. "Like we have any time for that," he said with a frown. Phantom lit up a hand with green ecto-energy, trying to illuminate their surroundings a little more. There was nothing else there. "Our core must have split us for a reason," he said. "The last time we were here, we were using too much raw energy on the shields."

Danny frowned. "But we aren't using any energy now," he said. "Raw or otherwise. We're asleep. We're not using-" Danny trailed off, realizing what he was saying. He turned to Phantom, deadpanned. "Oh hell."

"What?" Phantom asked. It took him a second before he realized it too. "Damn," he swore. "I guess Frostbite was right."

The world lit up around them, various images and battles swirling around as if they were in the eye of the hurricane. When the images settled, both teens found themselves in a large tower, with many clocks and gears hanging from the green castles. Viewing screens with similar images of the battles they had just witnessed danced across it, giving a more ominous presence to their new setting. The sounds of many ticking clocks worked overhead.

"Clockwork's tower?" Danny questioned, looking around the room. Phantom walked around, observing their surroundings. Danny followed suit, exploring what he remembered from the last time here was here. The walls were bare; where many time medallions hung now was empty at the top of the tower. "The medallions are gone."

"No sign of Clockwork either," Phantom called back. "Wonder where he-" Phantom cut himself off, gasping. "Fenton, back up. Slowly."

Noticing the quick change in tone, Danny turned to Phantom in confusion. The ghost was staring at something in his direction with a hard glare. His body was ridged, almost on edge; Danny could feel the anxiety building up within him. Turning back, he gasped as he saw it; the old thermos, battered, dented and most noticeably - cracked.

Danny took a couple steps backward to be side by side with his ghost half. "This can't be real," he whispered in horror.

"Can't it?" Phantom quipped back. "We knew Clockwork had the thermos; Clockwork never told us what he did with it."

"But he just left it there. All this time?"

The thermos rattled, making both boys jump in response. Another crack appeared, this time going down the centre of the thermos. It hissed as a blue light shone from within.

"No," Phantom whispered in dread.

"We gotta go," Danny said, worriedly. "Dream or not, this isn't going to end well if we start fighting."

"We need to know," Phantom argued back. "Frostbite said to trust our powers; we need to know if this is real." Danny felt the onslaught of emotions coming from his ghost half and realized that he was right; if this was a new power, they needed to know if they could trust it.

Danny swallowed as the thermos crackled this time. After a few tense moments, the thermos exploded in a whirl of white and green flames. Phantom quickly put a shield around the two teens, still waiting in anticipation for what was to come.

Danny?

The light from the explosion was blinding even through the shield. By the time it died down, Danny blinked back stars to see the figure in front of him.

Danny!

His white and black cape billowed around the flames as white boots touched the ground. Flaming white hair ignited menacingly as Dan Phantom walked out of the flames, laughing. His red eyes turned to the two wide eyed teens under the shield, a sadistic grin plastered across his face.

Danny, wake up!

"Hello Danny," Dan drawled, raising his hand toward the shield, lighting it with green ecto-energy. "And goodbye." The ectoblast hit the shield and the world exploded with pain. A scream… or was that his scream? The pain was getting almost unbearable. It was almost as if his core was imploding…

They were fighting now, the wails colliding bouncing off each other as they were locked in combat. He felt himself fading but there was no way of knowing for sure…

Son! You need to wake up!

He was tired… run ragged from the battles before. Whatever he managed to heal was definitely not healed anymore. The raw energy in front of him flowed through his veins as it battled against the dark red eyes of his worst enemy. It intensified now, all consuming. He couldn't take it….

:-=-:

Danny sprung upright, eyes shooting open and gasping for air. He's out. He's back. There was a loud clattering noise around him and jumped, hitting whoever was shaking his shoulders in the chest. They put the arms around him tighter. Thinking he was still in danger, Danny tried to transform, but nothing happened, his panicked breathing getting quicker.

"Danny it's me," his father whisper shouted, trying to get Danny to look at him. "It's okay, it's just me."

Above the sound of his breathing, Danny relaxed slightly as he heard his father's voice. Jack breathed with him, trying to get him to calm down. They sat there for a few minutes before Jack spoke again.

"I came to check on you," Jack said quietly, watching Danny apprehensively as he continued to stare wide eyes at the wall gasping for air. "You were making things float around the room, kiddo. It took me a while to wake you. Must have been some dream."

Danny shook his head and swallowed. "That," he said breathlessly, "Was no dream." He pushed away from his dad's grasp as he got out of bed. He was halfway across the room when he tried to transform again. It failed again, this time sending a series of white sparks through his form, causing the boy to fall with a shout.

"Danny!" Jack yelled running to his side. "What's wrong?"

Danny shook his head again. Gritting his teeth, he focused his energy and finally transformed through the sparks into his ghost half. He heard his father yell for Maddie and Jazz, but Danny could only focus on one thing. He's back. Protect the town. He flew up to the Ops Center, ignoring the cries from his father as he left. Protect your home.

Standing at the edge of the Ops Center, Danny stood firmly in place, ignoring the sparks coming from his core. Protect the town. Focusing on the energy within him, his right eye turned blue as an emblem of light appeared at his feet, his logo shining brightly beneath him. The light turned green as energy shot out from the circle. His body glowed as energy flew straight up out into the air. Hitting its mark in the sky, the energy started to encase the town, creating a large dome overtop. The dome continued, widening to the limits of the town. The circle at his feet connected with the dome overhead, trapping the town inside. Danny continued to pour as much energy as he could into the shield, until finally he faltered backwards and collapsed onto his knees, panting from the effort.

He's back. Dannyheard his family shouting for him as they reached the top of the Ops Center. Stamina finally giving in, Danny reverted back to his human self as they came around him.

His father came in front of him, kneeling down and locking eyes with him. "Danny," he said with concern. "What is it? What did you see?"

Still panting, Danny turned to his sister, who looked at him with fearful eyes. "He's out," he whispered hoarsely; dread pooling in the bottom of his stomach as the reality of his words finally sank in.

Jazz gasped, their parents looking at their children in alarm and concern.

"Who's out?" Maddie demanded. "Danny what are you talking about!?"

"Danny, are you sure?" Jazz asked worriedly. "Couldn't this all be a-"

"No," he grunted. White sparks again awakened at his chest. He closed his eyes tightly as he tried to weather the overuse of his powers to explain. They were all in danger. "He's back Jazz. He's coming." More sparks went through the boy's frame making Danny groan in pain. He tried to battle through it, but eventually Danny pitched forward into Jack's arms, unconscious.

First

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[bucketofchum]

So I had this kind of strange, elaborate underwater torture experiment testing mind control dream. It was through my perspective, so I was…consciously me? But I was supposed to be Atumu. Like it might have been his body, but it was me in there. Idk. [Dream under cut]

I don’t remember how we got there, but it was the three of us brothers, me, Atemu, and Yumi. I remember Atemu entering with us, going through the beginning of the process, but by the middle of the dream, I don’t know where he went. Yumi was with me until the .. actual torture scenes.

There was a large pool – like a swim tank. By this point, we were already more of less under their control. But it was a loose sort of control. Like our will was under their control but our thoughts were relatively free? All I could recall regarding that was that we were allowed to roam free around the premises – when we came to this place, we thought that was strange. That there were so many people just walking around, freely being experimented on. I think we got caught snooping and that’s how this all started.

Anyhow, it seems that all the subjects are free to walk around, without shackles or guards, because they don’t have the will to escape. They have only the will to be compliant and to help continue the steps of the experiment, and so they continue about their path like clockwork. Numbly going from one station to the next, completing tasks as they should, and getting checkups.

I think it started with an initial health screening. We laid on a cold metal slab of a platform and they took our fluids to assess the levels of…idk. A lot of things? These were values they would check up on and update after every round of testing. Possibly to see what effects their experiment had on the human body – for various endpoints.

The task at hand was timed. We were to go underwater – had a minute to swim down to the other end of the pool – at the bottom, there was a sign – an image. Usually a series of images. We could bring down a notebook to sketch out or take notes on the image. And when we got back up above water, we had one minute to recount in explicit detail all the things on the image/series of images. There was also a component before the underwater part. There was an above water set of images that primed us for what we’d see at the bottom of the pool (the pool was some 25-30 feet deep [~10 meters], so it wasn’t a shallow pool at all – and standard length).

I can only recall the first image I did – it was some images in a 4 panel comic format; 3 of them had content (image and text), and the 3rd was explanatory (it also had image and text, but was in a different format). The text was scratchy block letters in yellow with green accents, and the background was black. The picture was of a disturbingly veiny cat – just the lineart of it. The text read something explaining the experiment and the three other panels (which were just kind of lineart). I had to essentially recall enough of this poster to describe it with enough detail to recreate it completely when I was above water.

I remember when I first hit the water, I was struggling to get a solid breath. Because apparently we don’t have control over when our bodies are dragged under water – it happens automatically with incredible speed (because tbh to be able to swim the length of a full Olympic sized swimming pool AND swim down 10 meters, that would take up… the entire minute and then some).

I’m almost certain I spent a lot more than 1 minute under there. And by almost certain I mean absolutely certain. I was underwater for probably close to 2.5 minutes if not more.

Somehow, I had a little bit of air still trapped in one of my nostrils – I could “breathe” underwater with this little bit of air, but if I inhaled too much, I’d inhale water and get water in my lungs and…die. Still, I knew I was running out of air – and fast. I hadn’t even gotten to the image by the time I thought I’d run out of air twice.

Maybe being physiologically Atumu took over once I got to the image because I stopped thinking about air. Just the task at hand. It was incredibly stressful. I had to draw and write down with incredible detail the many aspects of the set of images I was seeing and there was… so much. I ended up completely reproducing the first image on my notepad before I realised I had used up a lot of time doing that. I hadn’t even begun to look at the other 3 panels. I was getting light headed as I scrawled out some words in terrible handwriting for the other three, as well as some hard-to-decipher shapes and scratches that were supposed to represent the position of the parts depicted in the image. Like a storyboard. It felt like I was down there for close to 5-6 minutes, idk.

When I surfaced, I gave my account as prompted, and proceeded to another room for a physical examination/another health checkup. It was this room that I had vaguely recalled from earlier – this was the room we had seen and contemplated why the subjects were not leaving. I realised now. We were those subjects. We weren’t leaving. Hm.

This is a bit of a tangent but… I had… kind of like sheets of glass/ice coming off of my body? Idk why or how. But like attached to my foot was a decently thick sheet of glass/ice that I broke off and tried to sort of file down to make it smooth again where the surface of my skin was. Yumi walked over to remark that he had seen me crying? And I made a sheet of glass/ice from crying? Earlier, that is. Around the time of the above water task. I can barely recall it but I guess it must be true. I’m feeling alright now – a bit numb maybe. I remember cutting off a pretty big chunk of the glass/ice and remarking how clear it was to look through. Idk. Irrelevant.

Yumi and I compared notes (our underwater notebooks) and he was amazed at the amount of detail with which I replicated the first image. Yes, but that was why I ran out of time and I should have planned my time better.

It seemed okay.

But then the “flashforwards” started happening. Incoherent scenes, snippets, just flashing. It wasn’t a narrative set up like the previous portion of the dream.

The tests get significantly harder. Instead of a series of images, they become videos. The videos become increasingly long and complex. It is very difficult to recall with tremendous accuracy every aspect of the videos. The colours, the characters, the moving figures in the background, the text.. it’s just a lot. And there are repercussions now too. As I am unable to come up with all the details required, I am punished with shock treatment. This too progressively worsens. As far as I can tell, Yumi is not facing similar treatment, and I am grateful for that I guess.

But anyhow, it’s around this point that I wake up.

Mm, like I said, I tend to be able to feel physical pain in my dreams and often times the pain is enough to wake me up. So there’s that.