DUNGEON - BELLMARE ENCLAVE (BELLMARE MOUNTAINS, PT 2)

[phantasmods]

The shadows are starting to grow very long as you crest his particular ridge - it's not night yet, but it will be soon. In the shadows of the afternoon, with a tall mountain already blocking the sun, lies a snow-covered valley that is different from the ones you've come across thus far in your investigation.

This valley is home to a town, and unlike all the settlements you've seen so far - Incendia, the Telovia mining town, and the manor - it's very much active. There are actual people in the streets, visible from above, going through their days on snow-free streets, bundled up against the cold.

Those of you who asked were told of the handful of people who didn't go into the slumber of stasis as the Fissure conditions of the world grew worse and worse, instead isolating themselves and trying to continue living their lives as they could. Now, it seems, you've found exactly such a group.

Welcome to the Bellmare Enclave, and enjoy your stay.

[[OOC: Welcome to part 2 of the dungeon! For the most part, interaction with the town's NPCs can be handwaved as described on the main information post. Worth noting are the following major things: The Bellmare Enclave isn't expecting visitors, though the people are generally friendly to the new arrivals. They don't know about the time dilation effect of their Fissure - to them, it's only been about eighteen years since the Slumber Plan was put in place and they withdrew from the world. And finally, by a similar token, they have no idea how far the Fissures outside of their own have grown - while it's not uncommon for them to find odd objects from time to time, they'll assume that the characters are just arrivals from other places within their own world, rather than outsiders, until told otherwise.]]

Comments

[byanyother_name]

[The quivering just makes Kurama hold him tighter, curling around Minato protectively. His fingers move to slide tenderly through Minato's hair, the attempt to comfort almost automatic now.

He leans in to rest his forehead against Minato's.]

Time doesn't mean anything to the Fissures, remember? They can draw from any time, any universe.

[biddentodance]

[As usual, stroking his hair helps Minato calm down immensely. It's clear he's still spooked, but...calmer. With Kurama here, it's easier to think of the vision like it was just a bad dream. Even if Minato knows it wasn't.]

Future. Shouldn't feel this familiar. [He can't remember anything like that happening so far. So why the deja vu?]

...Aigis...wouldn't shoot me. [Would she?]

[byanyother_name]

[Kurama closes his eyes for a moment. He's seen so much of what Minato went through but nothing that gives him any insight on this. As much as he wishes he had something concrete he could say, something that will ease Minato's mind, he doesn't.

He presses a gentle kiss to Minato's temple without really thinking about it.]

If there's a reason it feels familiar, we'll do everything we can to help you find it.

[biddentodance]

[It's enough. It doesn't answer anything, doesn't make any of what they just watched okay, but it's a comfort just to know he's not alone anymore. That if he falls, someone will be there to catch him.

He's not sure exactly where he stands with Kurama right now, but Minato trusts him just as much as Akira and Goro. And as far as he can tell, there's nothing the three people he loves can't do. He sheds most of the dread and anxiety, and is able to shove the rest aside, to be dealt with later.

And he lets himself breathe deeply. Relax. Return Kurama's hold gently.]

Glad you're back to your usual self. [The amnesia had its moments, but was more worrying than anything. Minato had stayed nearby until Kurama remembered - but they were promptly separated and this is the first they've spoken since.]

[byanyother_name]

[Kurama relaxes a little as Minato does, relieved to see him calming. Not just see; Minato's scent is losing most of that acrid fear taint. He shifts a little to sit with his back to the wall, cradling Minato close.

The way he looks at Minato is so soft, almost helplessly tender. Between Inari and his own lack of memory, every mask his true feelings were hidden behind has been ripped away.]

As am I. It was...unnerving. Thank you for staying with me.

[biddentodance]

[...It's comfortable. If the future looks bleak, just live for the present. He's pretty fond of the present right now - he's pretty fond of Kurama.]

Of course. [He promised, after all. He doesn't break promises. It's one of the few things he learned from his parents that he's held onto. A promise is sacred - so you only make promises you'll keep, and only to people that are truly important to you.

And Minato admitted to his own feelings back there, too. He's pretty sure he understands them now.] Can't imagine how hard it must have been....must still be. To remember not remembering.

[byanyother_name]

It was, but you made it easier.

[Kurama closes his eyes for a moment, resting his head against Minato's. He takes a breath before sighing softly with a fond, faintly rueful smile.

After all that, Minato is sympathizing with him.

His hand leaves Minato's hair to cup his cheek, thumb softly stroking along the skin.]

It...is. Memory loss... Well, you might have seen it's on the list. But it could have been so much worse.

[biddentodance]

[It's easier, to focus on this, than to marinate in dread over his future. Kurama is safe. He's back to normal. The trouble is over, and there's....well.

There have certainly been developments. They probably ought to talk about that.]

Hurts to be alone... Didn't do a whole lot. Just what anyone would've. [Goro says Minato's kindness sets him apart from others, that he's a rare sort for just wanting to help others....Minato isn't sure he can believe that.]

Sorry about being so forward....did tell me it's alright to be selfish sometimes. [It's closer to lighthearted - not quite teasing, but in that direction. But this next is more serious.] And....sorry about the....ring confusion.

[byanyother_name]

[They probably ought to, yes. Kurama knows this, even. He's just been a bit distracted. Understandably.]

Not really. I've known far too many that would not have acted remotely as you did. [So yeah, Kurama kind of agrees with Goro.]

I did, and I still think so. You're welcome to be as forward with me as you like. [Flirting? Probably. Will Minato realize? That's the real question here.

That last apology, though, that actually gets Kurama to glance away, a very faint tinge of pink to his cheeks. It's nothing on the blushes the amnesiac version had been capable of, but more than most people could cause in him as he really is.]

You don't need to apologize for that. I was the one jumping to conclusions. If anything, I should be apologizing for Inari. They didn't forget anything and definitely took advantage of the situation.

[biddentodance]

[He....brushes past that, doesn't buy it. He knows there are some people who wouldn't, Strega comes to mind, but he believes just about anyone would have done what he did. He believes the vast majority of people are kind.

The permission to be forward... Minato studies Kurama's face for a moment, studies him like a work of art. Then the corner of his mouth curves upward in an almost mischievous smile. He will remember this.

He will also remember that blush. It...seems like a treasure, almost, with how wise and composed Kurama almost always is.]

....No, it's... [Hm. How to put this....] Should've realized it would be confusing. And- don't, it. If Inari hadn't, probably wouldn't have realized or believed it. Akira and Goro are... I'm not... [...] Anyway, Frolic has a risk of inflicting Charm.

Glad it happened. [...Um.] ...What....did you mean you 'liked the idea', though...?

[byanyother_name]

[Ah. Damn it. Kurama is maybe a little too fond of mischief in general? That smile is cute and it's not fair at all. And the way Minato is looking at him...

He doesn't really manage to pull it together until those unfinished sentences. Kurama might not know exactly how Minato would have finished them but he's got a general guess.

So he is going to finish one of them entirely differently, fingers brushing over Minato's cheek gently.]

You're not anything less than someone who is special and important to us. All of us.

[....ah. Amnesiac him did, in fact, say that. Kurama's blush deepens, actually, at the question. He gives a quiet cough, biting his lip briefly before deciding to just answer honestly.]

I...don't know how much my buried memories and feelings influenced how I responded to people, but... It didn't take long at all before that version of me was more than a little enamored of you. The thought that you might be my fiance...wasn't a bad one.

[biddentodance]

[It's Minato's turn to blush. That definitely isn't how that sentence was going to go. It's alright to like Kurama's version better, isn't it?]

Is it alright if I call that cute? [Kurama without memories was pretty different....but there's no denying he was cute that way. Minato still sees hints of it now, and he certainly wouldn't trade this Kurama for that. But that doesn't mean he won't appreciate the memory.] And instead, we were just friends... Pretty big difference. [...Although.] Or. Less big. Kind of...a thing, now.

[They are, he means. He'd kissed first, and it went over much better than he ever would've dared dream. There's a small smile as he rests against Kurama.] Felt good to take care of you for a change...

[As if on cue, the wall lights up with another vision. The mood of this one is somber - people dressed in black, hushed voices, low, serious music. A funeral. Two portraits are on the table at the front, surrounded by flowers: a woman with short-cut dark blue hair and eyes like she knows a secret, and a man with glasses and long dark hair pulled back into a ponytail that hangs down over his shoulder, and a smile that promises everything will be okay.

A boy who is certainly a child version of Minato sits alone in the front row, still and silent as the grave. The portraits of his parents have more life than he does - it's like looking at an empty shell, or a corpse that yet draws breath. There's no sign of light in his eyes.

The whispering from the gathered adults behind him should be familiar. To be completely uninjured, but sleep so long anyway... they say with distaste, and What kind of child doesn't even cry at his own parents' funeral?. Some express relief that they won't be saddled with him, and some even say his parents deserved better than him in voices he can almost certainly hear - or rather, they get mid-way through the sentiment before shutting up in a hurry.

The child Minato doesn't react or respond to anything they say, but he does look up when one person finally approaches him. Tall, with long red hair and familiar green eyes. He kneels, to speak at Minato's level, in a gentle and friendly voice.

"Your name is Arisato Minato, right? My name is Minamino Shuuichi. I'll be taking care of you from now on." He extends a hand to the boy, the gesture carefully offering rather than asking. The boy doesn't take it, even his expression doesn't change any. He opens his mouth as if to speak, but then lowers his eyes and closes it.

The vision fades as the Kurama in it starts gently speaking, presumably explaining what's going on to the child.]