Event #3: Shooting Star Wishes

[beautifuldreamermods]

YUMEMIGAOKA

As it is every year, Yumemigaoka's annual Tanabata festival is held at the street just outside of the Hikawa Shrine. The street and the shrine itself have been closed off during the day beforehand, save for the volunteers running back and forth in the miserable weather to set things up and decorate every inch of the festival space. And all their efforts do pay off - by the time the festival starts at seven in the evening, the street has been transformed into a lovely spectacle; hanging lanterns twinkle with raindrops and cast a warm glow over the street, paper stars are fluttering gently down from strings strung between lampposts and stalls line the full length of the street with food offerings, festival games and just about everything in between. Unfortunately, the month's poor weather hasn't let up yet so the festivities are a little dampened by persistent drizzle, though it seems like everyone's absolutely determined not to let that ruin the festival atmosphere!

For folks looking for games, they can enjoy:


⧖ The most popular stalls, the shooting games! Using a gun loaded with paper bullets (so, you know, mostly harmless) the aim of the game is to get a clean hit on one of the prizes along the back of the booth and knock it down! The prizes are mostly candy, snacks or kids' toys but they're deceptively hard to get a good shot at...
⧖ Goldfish scooping, a summertime classic! Using a scooper with a thin sheet of paper for the net, try your best to catch as many goldfish swimming around the water below. Do well enough and you'll win a prize and you might even be able to take your goldfish home - make sure to take good care of it!
⧖ Senbonbiki is basically pure luck - bundles of prizes, usually candies and small toys, are strung up along the top of the stall and you just have to give the corresponding other end of the string a tug. Whichever bundle of snacks comes down is yours! Of course, if you're particularly unlucky then you might get a dud or penalty prize... but surely nobody's luck is THAT bad, right?
⧖ Ring toss! Throw rings onto targets marked "1" through "10", each worth different amounts depending on where they land. Beat the high score and you'll win a prize! Though do you really want to walk around the whole festival with a giant plushie under your arm all night...?

There's also a ton of options for Japanese street food; some traditional, others more modern takes. There's fried stuff, grilled skewers, rice balls, all manner of delicious noodle dishes and mountains of sweets too; taiyaki, chocolate covered bananas, shaved ice, cotton candy, and just about everything and anything else you'd want to spend an evening stuffing your belly with. And naturally there are plenty of drinks available including freshly squeezed fruit juice and tea and some booze for those who feel like playing with fire.

Aside from the rest of the festivities, the main event is really the hanging of wishes - it is Tanabata, after all. A few tables at the top of bottom of the street have been set up to carefully shelter them from the rain and have a whole rainbow of tanzaku for people to write and hang their wishes on the bamboo trees both in the street and in the shrine down below. You can hang as many wishes as you like, if you're feeling particularly greedy, but...

The festival doesn't really reach its peak until darkness falls and, undeterred by the continued drizzle, the Hikawa Shrine lights up the sky with its famous annual fireworks show - it's always pretty spectacular but perhaps out of spite for the nasty weather, it looks even more fantastic than usual this year.

With the fireworks done, the festival begins wrapping up and it's time to head home. But as you settle into bed for the night and drift off, it becomes apparent that the night's festivities have only just begun...

THE DREAM SPHERE

It's happened almost every night for a week now - when you drift away to sleep, your regular dreams are slowly, gently interrupted by a strangely vivid image, an enormous bamboo tree with a wide canopy of leaves under a dazzling night sky. It's maybe not a surprise, given the upcoming festival, but as the nights go by it just gets more and more intense... until the night of the Tanabata festival itself and suddenly everything changes. As you settle down to sleep for the night, whether you went to the festival or not, the moment you close your eyes and drift off... you find yourself distinctly Somewhere Else.

The dream – and surely, it must be a dream – unfolds as an expansive open field, drenched in the silvery light of a magnificently star-spangled sky above and cut through with a river of flowing water that reflects the sky so clearly, it looks to be filled with stars of its own. A fine, steady rain falls and fills the field with a soft mist and the fragrance of the hundreds of tiny, bell-shaped flowers swaying lazily in the grass. And at the center of the field is a familiar sight – that bamboo tree from your dreams, somehow huger and with branches even more widely spread than before. This time they hang low enough for you to reach out and touch and you'll realize as you draw close that the tree is weighed down with tanzaku strips, all glowing softly as if illuminated from within by the wishes upon them.

It's then that you also realize that you're not alone here. And that you're here at all – in the Dream Sphere. Slipping over to the other side isn't uncommon for Dreamers, but... hold on a second! Aren't some of the people here just regular people too? Whatever this strange dream is doesn't seem to have discriminated between Dreamers and the regular folks – maybe it's thanks to the magic of those two starcrossed lovers but somehow, the lowercase-d dreamers of Yumemigaoka have also crossed into the Dream Sphere tonight! The effect will only last until morning, at which point the dream will unravel, so you might as well enjoy it while you're here. Many of the mundane dreamers will find they're able to move differently in the Dream Sphere, running faster and jumping impossibly high and long distances with nary a scratch to show for it; no magic of their own yet, but at least enough to have a little fun while they're here.

There's a little bit of natural magic at play here in the environment, too. If you approach the tree with a wish in mind, there's no need to write it down; it'll appear in pretty, sparkly ink on an appropriately colored tanzaku strip, already tied to the tree. Or if you go to peer at your reflection in the river, you might see it take on a shape that reflects the wish you're carrying in your heart.

... Except...

What sort of things are you really wishing for? The things you won't admit out loud to anyone, or even to yourself? The deepest wishes right in the darkest part of your heart that you want more than anything? Unfortunately for you, this tree seems to be of a mind to grant wishes and once it's gathered enough of everybody's tanzaku, there's a bright flash of light...

And suddenly everyone's secret wishes have been made manifest... though only in the Dream Sphere, of course. These can be anything from silly wishes to something more serious - the important part is that these secret dreams and wishes have been pulled out of your head and put on display for everyone here to see! How on earth are you going to deal with this gracefully?!

Regardless of what you choose to do, the apparitions only last for an hour or so before fading away and the sky lights up with a beautiful meteor shower that seems to go on forever. You're free to stay and watch the meteor shower and enjoy your last moments in the Dream Sphere for as long as you like but eventually, as you're watching the stars streak down from the sky, the dream around you begins to gradually fade away until you find yourself stirring in your own bed. Though it was an exceptionally busy dream, you find you're well rested and... okay, maybe a little embarrassed after all that.

Nobody will be able to return to that strange field or find the dream to stabilize it but... maybe that's fine. Aren't some things all the more special for only happening once a year?

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Comments

[illrested]

i. Tanabata

[ The festival is, as always, a delightful time. Somehow Makoto has wriggled out of having to look after his little brother (who is old enough to not want to be babysat by his lame older brother anyway) and is wandering the festival himself with no particular destination in mind. Find him at the games, messing around with the senbonbiki. He's got his face screwed up in concentration studying the strings. Finally he reaches forward and pulls one--

Dud. ]

Ehh.... that's just my luck...

ii. how are we here

[ When Makoto has appeared in the midst of the field in his guise Peach, eyes wide as he sees others--so many others who shouldn't be here begin to materialize in the field around him. Oh, this is weird. Weird and possibly bad? Looking around for another Dreamer, Peach hurries up to anyone that looks like they might know what they're doing better than him. ]

How are all these people here?

[ Panik. ]

Do we need to get them out of here?

[ Wait, more importantly: ]

Can we get them out of here?

iii. dream a little dream

[ It's almost like there's a theme song playing when Makoto's dream starts to manifest, though he doesn't know it yet. One minute, it's a perfectly normal (as things go) field in the Dream Sphere.

The next Makoto's house starts to coalesce. The downstairs dining room, where a man and a woman are sitting, along with a younger boy. A domestic scene of tranquil delight, isn't it? The woman sighs and glances over at the clock on the wall, then stands and moves to the door out to the hallway she can call up the stairs. ]

Makoto! Get downstairs and eat breakfast or you'll be late for the first day of school!

[ The younger boy, wearing a middle-school uniform, titters softly. Peach (or the real Makoto) is standing to one side staring at the dream, as if he hasn't the faintest idea what it is he's seeing. He opens his mouth as if to speak and then is cut off by a voice that sounds--really familiar? It's Makoto, but it's not. It's lighter, softer, and distinctly feminine. ]

Coming!

[ And down the stairs comes someone who most certainly must be Makoto but, like the voice, more feminine. She is dressed in the girl's uniform for the academy, her hair is long and shining--she even has a little eyeliner on along with nail polish. It also looks like Makoto, though with a softer face and perhaps a few centimeters shorter. She barrels past the real Makoto who has to stand there staring, mortified, as she sits down at the table to start digging into breakfast. ]

I was gonna eat yours if you were any later, Mako-nee. [ The boy, Makoto's younger brother, teases. ]

You're not big enough for me not to bully you, Saburo-kun. [ Dream Mako replies around her mouth full of breakfast. Saburo simply replies by sticking his tongue out. ]

I made you a lunch. [ The dream-mother is saying. ] Do you remember which trains you have to take to get to school?

[ Dream Mako rolls her eyes. ] Yes, Mom. I'll be fine.

We just want to be sure our youngest daughter is ready. Transferring schools isn't easy. [ Mako's father says. The conversation begins to grow distant, discombobulated as Makoto/Peach clutches at his head for a moment. ]

This--This can't be my dream. I've never had this dream!

[ He waves his arms, as if trying to either wave the dream away or block anyone else from looking at it. ]

I-It's just some stupid Dream Sphere thing!

[ Panic? He's not panicking. He's just... explaining. Yes. ]

1

[saynotobugs]

Not doing too hot, huh?

[Maki looks him over and raises her eyebrows.]

Eh, it's just a game. Someone's gotta lose. The prizes aren't all that anyway.

2

[thezekeinator]

[Well, this has the potential to be a right disaster, doesn't it? Zeke shakes his head, not taking his eye off the crowd.]

Something this size can't be forced. We'd end up doing a lot of harm. It doesn't make any bloody sense, but we're just going to have to ride it out. What we need to do... is protect them.

1

[reluctants]

[ Illya was honestly still busy contemplating whether or not she wanted to play the game for herself. It seems kind of fun, and it's not like you have to be good at anything here to win, so it makes her feel like she's got a better shot at winning a prize than some of the other games..

.. except then the person she's watching play the game pulls a dud.

Maybe she was a little overconfident after all, huh..

And though talking to strangers is always a little intimidating, Illya sucks in a breath, determined to say something. He must feel bad for pulling that dud, s-so maybe she can make him feel a little better..? ]

Um..

[ Don't mind this random young girl speaking up, Makoto. You don't have to look after your little brother for once, and then there's suddenly a different young kid, huh.. ]

A-At least it isn't a penalty..?

[ She tried to encourage him, okay.

She's trying!! ]

ii

[liedol]

They really are here, believe it or not. [ That's Ai-Doll, sounding surprisingly serious and managing to cut an impressively severe figure even in all her sparkly pink froufiness. Experienced Dreamers, man. ] Is this some sort of mass lucid dream...?

[ She's looking up and down the field, frowning all over her face. Somehow, the expression doesn't suit her. ]

Have you seen any Torments?

iii

[daughterofthemark]

[So. The good news is, the person who showed up to witness this entire scene is Dreamer Sovereign, who's fundamentally unlikely to be mean about it.]

How adorable!

[The bad news is, Sovereign is also way too much of an airhead to know when she should shut up.]

[saynotobugs]

[1: pre-festival]

[Along with her job at the DU, Maki also works at the city's tourism board! Naturally, this means she's running around everywhere in the rain, shouting out orders to any of the other workers or volunteers.]

Keep getting the canopies up, but hold off on the supplies and do not unwrap those fireworks! Who has an updated rain forecast? Don't move indoors unless we end up needing to!

[2: festival]

[For most of the festival, Maki will be walking around in a black-and-pink Tourism Yumemigaoka uniform, monitoring the festivities as much as she takes part in them. You can find her eating some fruit-filled mochi with a little star design stamped on --]

Huh, it's actually pretty decent. You can never tell with this stuff.

[-- or checking out the tanzaku, apparently not tying on one of her own yet.]

Okay, who here wished for "world domination?"

[3. Dream Sphere -- influx]

[Maki opens her eyes, blinks, and looks around at the pastel field. She watches the other non-Dreamers running and flying with a shrug and a smirk, and then idly starts floating above the field, glancing down at the flowers.]

You know, it's almost what I imagined it was.

[4. Dream Sphere -- wishes]

[The vision that appears to everyone is Maki with a bright smile on her face, on TV the nation over. The camera is focused on her as she re-enacts the main role from that popular drama you might have watched the other day, or as she appears on a variety show, laughing and joking with the other contestants. Newsstands and gossip sites start talking about the incredible resurgence of the would-be star the system threw away.

The real Maki balls up her fists and starts stalking away from the vision.]

What's with this? I quit acting. Ages ago by now.

4

[thezekeinator]

You tell me, chum. What's with this?

[Zeke leans on the hilt of his sword, which is thrust into the ground to prove a cool leaning post. Gotta make that awesome appearance, after all -- arms folded, eye shut, casual and confident and all.]

[Of course, his Dreamer uniform prominently features a pink skirt, so all of that tends to be a struggle to take seriously.]

3

[reluctants]

[ Truthfully, it's not like this is something that's totally impossible for Illya. She may still be struggling a little with the decision whether to fully go for the Dreamer thing or not, but considering she did have her Awakening, getting pulled into the Dream Sphere all of a sudden isn't completely uncommon or impossible.

.. not that it doesn't make her freak out all the same, considering she didn't expect it all the same. And even more so when there seem to be so many people here. Though the sheer surprise and fluster Illya seems to show, while her pink uniform clearly marks her as a Dreamer here, seems to be more befitting of the reaction some non-Dreamers may have than actual Dreamers.

And yet it's like their reactions are switched around here. Because Illya spots Maki, and Maki seems so-- so calm about this? It only makes the young girl look more surprised. ]

W-Wait, how did you get here? [ Maki doesn't look like a Dreamer.. S-She thinks?? ] Aren't you worried?!

2

[darcangel]

Not I, but if they act upon it, we shall stop them.

[ Jeannette is LOADED DOWN WITH TANZAKU she has SO MANY she is bringing over. ]

4

[flatcola]

I get it.

[ Pretending you don't care about something any more, or that you care a little when you really want it like you're drowning-

Whatever the case. ]

3

[hanamane]

[Meanwhile, Hanako's going to be floating around himself, making his own surveys and rounds in this new location before he inevitably goes to goof off, at least, when he spots Maki in the distance, and... huh. Not every day he sees someone else hovering around here, let alone a normal lower case-d dreamer.

He waits until he's close enough behind her to speak up, his tone light and cheerful.]

"Almost", huh? What's the bit that's different, then?

[Unlike a lot of the other established Dreamers roaming about here, Hanako's never actually met Maki prior to this-- chalk it up to him committing to the secret identity thing super hard and avoiding the DU offices like the plague.]

3

[liedol]

[ Ai-Doll's in the midst of a hasty patrol around the perimeter, just making sure nothing is going catastrophically wrong just yet – she's so focused that she goes zipping right by Maki without a backwards glance only to turn tail and reverse when she realizes who's here. ]

Maki-chan?!

[mnemon]

i - tanabata

[ Big noisy gatherings are so not her thing, but she feels obligated to check out the Tanabata festival, even if her batteries are still in dire need of recharging from the Pride festivities last month. Somehow, the energy here isn't quite as high - maybe it's just because of the dismal weather, but the slight dampening of the fever pitch is enough to make it work a little better for Ryoko.

She hasn't dressed up at all, but she concedes to the atmosphere by purchasing a cat mask and wearing it askew on top of her head. The bright colours don't exactly suit her, but the slightly petulant expression of the cat mask is kind of Ryokocore anyway...

She's content to hang out by herself, but if she comes across any of her classmates or friends then she'll wander around with them for a bit as well. In particular, she's interested in the games and you can usually find her absolutely fucking demolishing the shooting games with some insane precision. It's, uh, a little wild how good she is with a gun??? ]

Huh. I didn't think I'd be that good. [ she's turning over whatever prize she just won in her hands... it's like her fifth one of the evening, so she'll just offer it to the person she's with. ] Here.

[ So generous...

She's also hanging out and trying some of the food stalls but she's got the appetite of a bird so she's sticking with snacky things and shaved ice. And of course, she sticks around to watch the fireworks at the end of the festival. She's not going to miss that.

Despite the festivities, though, Ryoko never writes down a wish. In fact, if you're paying close enough attention, it almost seems like she's going out of her way to avoid the wishing trees... but that would be silly, right? ]

ii - deeper

[ She's exhausted enough when she gets home that Ryoko doesn't do anything except shower, climb into bed and pass out. She's fully ready and looking forward to a good night's sleep without any qualifiers so when she cracks her eyes back open and she's here of all places... seriously, does she not get a single break? ]

It's one thing for it to be just us but there's regular people here, too... [ That's muttered to you by Glasswing, who's got her arms folded across her chest and a look of serious concern on her face. ] They must just be Figments but... has this ever even happened before?

[ Either that, or you'll catch her looking up at the huge tree at the center of all this with a thoughtful look. ]

Do you think it's possible to climb this? It'd be a good vantage point to keep an eye out for any danger.

[ NO!!! ]

iii - dream deeper

[ She hadn't hung up a wish, but it finds its way onto the tree anyway. Maybe it's her own fault for wandering too close to it.

Her own vision is strange. It doesn't overtake your sight like some of the others – it's quiet and sudden and not quite subdued but it doesn't draw attention to itself. But suddenly, when you blink while looking at Glasswing... your vision doubles. There's... another Ryoko stood next to her? They're identical from top to bottom but something is... different. She's dressed in the uniform for Asagao High School and something about her seems... brighter and more colorful in a way that makes Glasswing seem grayed out and dull by comparison.

Glasswing is staring at her like she's seen a ghost. But then a look of deep, horrible understanding comes over her face.

Ah. Right. This is the "real" Ryoko, isn't it? ]

"Are you okay? You're really pale."

[ Even her voice is brighter and prettier.

Glasswing can't bring herself to respond. ]

2

[hanamane]

[Hanako just so happens to be floating by when Glasswing proposes that question, and his eyes flick over towards the tree, sizing it up some for a good moment or two before turning turning his gaze back towards her.]

Sure! You wanna try?

[HANAKO, NO!!!!!]

ii

[healthepast]

[Dreamer Guardian is looking around, rather concerned about the whole ordeal. The whole Tanabata tree and the fact that civilians are being pulled here? He's not entirely sure what to do except keep his guard up and make sure Torments don't come to do them harm.

Who knows? Maybe? They're going to also become Dreamers? It's the most logical conclusion he's drawn so far, he thinks.

Going on what he would call a small patrol, he comes acrost Glasswing. Who... wants to climb the tree.]

Oh, my goodness. Please don't.

[He sounds absolutely exasperated over it. He's got his hands full already (no he doesn't). Please don't cause trouble.]

[hanamane]

i. so much for stardust

[While Amane didn't go to the Tanabata festival this year-- he had another event that took higher priority-- he still had a long day regardless, and he had been looking forward to some regular sleep after all the excitement and activity. But maybe it was being around so many Dreamers during his waking hours that made him land back in the Dream Sphere yet again once he had finally fallen asleep, though things... certainly looked busier here than they usually did this time around. It doesn't take him long to note the more mundane outfits of the extra figures mingling about, zipping around and having fun, and it finally hits him-- there's regular people here right now. He knew it was possible for non-Dreamers to make their way in here on rare occasions, but... this many? All at once?

He sidles up to one of the first obvious Dreamers he spots, cupping his hand around his mouth as he leans in for not-quite-a-stage whisper:]

... hey, this is giving real "bring your parents to school" vibes, don't you think? I feel like they're going to ask us to put on some sort of performance for them or something. It's making me a little nervous...

[Seriously, his own family could be mingling around here at the moment?? And while he had always wanted to show off his Dreamer self to them... there was a part of him that felt a little uneasy about it too. Was this really safe for them here?]

ii. let's sneak in from the cheap seats, honey

[With the lack of Torments making an appearance, however, Hanako does eventually ease up-- maybe a little bit too much, really. If you're hanging around the big tree, either to make a wish known or just admiring the gorgeous star studded night, you're going to hear his voice coming from up above, perched on one of the delicate branches like a cat.]

Nice, huh? Kinda makes you wish we had skies like this back in the Waking World, too.

[??? Hanako, are you supposed to be up there--]

iii. for futures that never came

[But maybe perching in a tree that automatically pulls out one's subconscious wishes wasn't exactly the best idea on Hanako's end. As he leaps nimbly out of the tree, looking to see if he could maybe spot a familiar face in the crowd or find some unfortunate soul to pester, the environment suddenly warps and stutters around him, like a bad signal on an old TV. Quickly, he summons his Sandglass knife, wondering if a Torment really was rearing it's head after all--

The visions flicker in and out, like somebody changing a channel, lingering on each one for but a moment or two before rapidly changing to the next: Amane in a Promised Morning Academy uniform, sitting in a classroom with a number of his peers and laughing over a joke; Amane, playing a game of high energy soccer with some other boys his age, cheeks flushed but looking no worse for wear from all the exertion; Amane walking down Moon Bunny Market with a bunch of friends, holding the hand of one in particular and just enjoying the various shops and stalls as his Dreamer Pendant hangs free and loose off the pen in his pocket--]

... stop it.

[The voice that comes out of Hanako is a fragile thing, quavering at the edges and primed to break at any moment, his expression nothing short of wide-eyed horror. As if the tree somehow understood, the visions slow to a stop, but not before settling upon the worst gut-punch of them all:

There's a boy running down the watery tracks of the Dream Sphere, the telltale manifestation of a new location shimmering in the distance, and he turns to wave excitedly at Hanako, a bright smile on the face that's a mirror image of his own, sans the sharper canines and constricted pupils. The costume he wears is nearly identical in design as well, but the colors seem to a negative somehow-- lighter purples and black accents compared to Hanako's darker twilight colors with white trim.]

"Hanakooooo!! C'mon, c'mon, there's another place showing up over there! Hurry!"

"Hold on-- you sure this is the right one?"

[Dreamer!Tsukasa merely grabs onto the vision!Hanako's hand, the excitable grin never leaving his face.]

"Yeah! I've done this a buncha times with Senpai already! I can't wait to see what we find here!"

[Vision!Hanako can't help but beam back, laughing a little as he follows after his twin into the brand new lands starting to materialize around them.]

"Me too! Let's go!"

[The small thump of a knife hitting the grass below interrupts this cheerful sibling reverie, the real Hanako staring at this scene with no small amount of anguish. His lower lip quivers, tears pricking at the corners of his eyes as the breathing starts to hitch in his chest. Who knew unearthing one's deepest wishes could be this brutal?]

i: I'm stuck in a lonely loop, my baby

[noonecandestroythemetal]

[It's Sam, and she looks more than a bit gratified to see a friendly face. She crouches a little to make it easier on Hanako to stage-whisper, and listens to him. Her brow furrows, and she frowns a little--but it's more at the situation then at him.]

We don't have to put on a show! Not if we don't want to. [Maybe it's a little strange for Sam of all people to not want to perform, but the fact that so many non-Dreamers are here has her...well.

It's got her a bit on edge. She's never experienced Tanabata before, either, in the real or dreaming world, so she's a bit discombobulated.]

Maybe if we hang out to the side and just...keep an eye out? There are enough normal folks making themselves a spectacle, we can just...try to blend in.

[Sam, your outfit kind of resembles armor. Are you sure about that?]

[flatcola]

A - Dream Sphere

Kozakura, to be blunt, just straight skipped all the Tanabata action. Pride stuff was a more important use of her socializing battery if you asked her, sorry ancestors, and anyways she had an inkling that those dreams might be building to something she'd wanna save her energy for.

And she was right, dang it.

The shrimpy Dreamer Mind huffed at the situation, and headed for the tree slowly, taking time to keep an eye on all the people who were, clearly, not capital D Dreamers. This many people in one place wasn't necessarily a disaster waiting to happen, but it wasn't definitively not. There wasn't much she could do without an official response other than keep an eye on the situation and see how things shook out, and chances were that everyone would wake up normally, but she didn't have to like it, and her grumpy expression was worn openly.

B - Dream Sphere - Wishes

Kozakura didn't need wishes. She had a respectable and challenging career that paid well and, if anything, she could wish for a smaller place to live. The few friends she had through work or her other history were plenty. Wishing to be taller was just asking for some stupid genie situation, and she didn't want to wish for something that wasn't mundanely possible anyways.

As an experienced Dreamer who wasn't old enough to remember the early days, it wasn't very 'magical' to her, in the sense that it really existed and was therefore simply a part of life to be understood.

Of course this tree has other things in mind.

Of course, in a flash of light, it displays one thing that's unlikely... one thing she could only wish for...

I want Satsuki to come back

"How dare you." Her voice, small though it was, shook with shame at having such a personal piece of her heart on display. As pale as she was, her flushed face could be seen all too easily, which just made her more embarrassed when she could feel it, which made her redder.

Was there anything left of her to come back? Dreamers weren't supposed to vanish. So where was Dreamer Psyche? It was all so recent; it was all so long ago. Even if a wish brought her back, it couldn't put things back to normal.

A

[reluctants]

Thankfully - for Kozakura, that is - Illya at least definitely looks like a Dreamer. Her pink outfit clearly marks her as someone who belongs here, unlike the more plain-looking people all across the Dream Sphere.

Less thankfully for Kozakura, however, is the fact that Illya is still new enough of a Dreamer that this entire situation is still pretty frightening to her. Suddenly being drawn into the Dream Sphere, having all of these people around who clearly don't belong there..

She has no idea what's going on, and so she just started running after getting startled--

Except she isn't fully watching where she's going in the middle of the panic, making her bump into Kozakura. The girl stumbles backwards before landing on her butt on the ground, but a second later she's already looking up at the other with a flustered expression, sputtering: "I-I-I'm sorry..!"

[miracle_miruca]

1. These games are rigged

Somehow, Miruca had managed to score the night off. The stress of transferring to a new school right before finals had siphoned away most of her free time, and what wasn't taken by that was instead taken up by work. But here she was, with the night off, ready to relax and, perhaps, attempt to have a little bit of fun. It was a small blessing she had barely grown over the last few years, her yukata, a light green with a floral pattern, still fit fine.

Sadly, it seemed fun was not in the stars this evening. She'd been parked in front of the goldfish for 5 minutes now, her attempts to nab one up for herself having resulted in nothing more then several destroyed scoops. "How annoying. There has to be some sort of trick...." She's muttering to herself in an obviously frustrated voice as she reaches into a coin purse that is steadily becoming more and more empty. "I would like to try again. This time, I shall succeed." Unfortunately, that is probably not the case!

2. Sad Miruca in snow (minus the snow)

Eventually, Miruca had finally won that goldfish. With her tiny aquatic friend in a little bag, she'd made her way back to her apartment where it'd been dropped into a small fishbowl she picked up on the way back. It wasn't long after that she dropped into her futon for the night. Was she going to have that same weird dream again?

The answer, of course, was yes. But this time it was a little different. She was very much not alone. There weren't a lot of familiar faces, she had only moved into the area recently and had hardly made a large amount of friends, but even she could tell some of these were normal people. They didn't seem to be in any danger, so it was the large tree that attracted her attention. She'd been so focused on that stupid fish scooping game that she had forgotten to leave a wish in the real world. But it seemed this dream tree had her covered. With a tiny flicker of light another tanzaku appears on the tree's branches.

Even she isn't sure what is on it, but she finds out the moment the wish granting light fills the area. Appearing right in front of her are two figures, a woman with long blonde hair like her own, and a man with short black hair. Her face goes slack-jawed for a moment before she rushes at them, and tries to throw her arms around them. They pass through the figures entirely, causing her to stumble and fall flat onto her face. The figures don't seem to notice at all. She doesn't bother to entirely get up, sitting up with a very obviously distressed look on her face. Of all the things this blasted dream world could do to her, how dare it do THIS? She isn't sure if she should shout angrily, or just cry. Judging by the expression on her face, though, it looks like the later seems to be winning out.

rigged!

[noonecandestroythemetal]

Sam...has been losing, on purpose (If it's all in the wrist, well. Sam's wrists are strong. Music has made them so!). Though she swears she's seen the other girl's face before, and arches a brow at her, more than a bit curious.

"Do you really want a goldfish?" Not that it seems like Sam's had much luck herself. Still, that sort of thing could change in an instant.

"The game's fun, but I'm not sure I could take care of one if I actually won it...if you could give one a good home, I wouldn't mind giving mine up, if I manage to catch one?"

[darknesshotpot]

1. Hikawa Shrine

[Ango loves summer festivals, mostly because they're one of the few times when it's socially acceptable to wear a bathrobe, gamble and drink sake in public. So basically a normal Friday night for Sakaguchi Ango, but when it happens during a festival, nobody calls the cops. He's dressed in a cheap blue-and-white yukata that looks suspiciously like the ones available for customers of the local public bathhouse to borrow, so add theft to his list of crimes.

Ango is intently focused on the ring toss - one of the most difficult games at the festival, but one that he's been training for by throwing his knives whenever he's bored in the Dream Sphere.]

Oh yeah, I'm feeling lucky tonight... not that I need luck with these skills!

2. Tanabata Tree

Hey, magic wish tree! I need some money, you hear me? Don't you be writing any other weird shit on my tanzaku! M-O-N-E-Y! Cash money! A guy's gotta eat, you know?

[Ango's new landlord expects three months rent up front as key money, which Ango sees as brazen robbery (compared to his own history of petty theft). So, he's resorted to begging for favors from a magic tree.]

And if you could throw in a carton of cigs, that would be real sweet! Thanks in advance, tree bro!

3. Impossible Dreams (tw: mention of death)

[Suddenly, there's a flash of light, and then... darkness. When Ango's eyes adjust, he finds himself sitting on a barstool, looking down into a half-empty glass. From the dim, smoky lights to the stained wooden bartop to the scratchy sound of old records being played on an even older turntable, it feels just like the dive bar he and his friends used to hang out at. The Bar Lupin had been one of the last holdouts against gentrification in Tokyo's swanky Ginza district, seeming to hold on out of sheer spite... but even it had closed years ago.

The real Bar Lupin been located in a basement with barely enough room for half a dozen customers, but this place is huge... the bar seems to stretch on forever until it disappears into ominous shadows. Ango doesn't know what's down that way, but he's pretty sure it's not the toilets and he's not eager to find out.

Seated a long way down the bar are three men, absorbed in an intense conversation that occasionally erupts into laughter. Even though he can only see their backs, Ango would know them anywhere. Dazai, flustered as always. Nakahara, teasing him. Oda, smoothing over their disagreements with an easy smile. The four of them used to spend hours in this place, drinking watered-down whiskey and talking through their latest writing projects.

But they're all gone now. The dead don't dream. So whatever Ango is seeing now is just a cheap illusion, even cheaper than the tricks he pulls. He looks away and reaches for his half-empty glass.

...Seriously, magic wish tree? This is some bullshit. At least give me a full glass of the top shelf stuff if you're gonna drag me back to this place.

2

[saynotobugs]

You know, it's more effective to just put in overtime like normal people.

[Maki smirks, leaning against one of the other trees at the shrine.]

Hibiki Tachibana

[determinationtofist]

[1] Tanabata

Hnnnnn...

[ Festivals are always fun! Hibiki wishes that she had a certain someone here to spend it with her, but oh well... she can't have everything, after all! Best to just, not think about it too much.

Fortunately for Hibiki, not thinking about things is practically her specialty at this point! Whether that's a good thing or not is another thing entirely, but it's fine! Super fine.

What isn't fine is apparently Hibiki's total lack of accuracy when it comes to these festival games. ]

Aaaaahh!! I missed again...!!

[ There's a super cute, super big and round duck plushie that Hibiki wants... and unfortunately for her, getting it to fall over with just a toy gun. ]

[2] Why was it that, within this wide world

EHHHHH!?

[ Okay, maybe Hibiki—er, Dreamer Gungnir—is overreacting a bit... but still! She's never seen this many non-dreamers in one place in the dreamsphere before! Or at the very least, not nearly this solid! She can imagine how surprised and in-awe some of these people must be, but while it's all good and fun to leap around in the dreamsphere... ]

H-Hey! Don't run off too far!

[ ...it's also evidently resulted in some considerable recklessness, especially when non-dreamers are suddenly given the ability to leap impossible distances in a single bound and all. So therefore, it's up to the actual Dreamers to make sure nothing bad happens to everyone, right? Right. ]

[3] This is the place where fate guided me to?

[ Eventually, though, curiosity gets the better of Hibiki... and so off she goes to the big massive tree that everyone is crowding around... which is, of course, when everything suddenly goes white... ]

Hibiki...!

[ Hibiki's eyes go wide as suddenly, she finds herself... out on a field? It's a beautiful field, with the same shimmering energy as is typical in the dreamsphere, but at the same time... it feels more like the waking world than the dreamsphere. There are a bunch of white plastic chairs all lined up in front of a large arch of white flowers.

But none of that is important right now, because she knows that voice!! ]

M-Miku...! E-EHHH!??

[ She swivels around, hope overflowing from her voice... which quickly turns to complete and utter bafflement, paired with her face turning flush very quickly. Running up to Hibiki in uh... a very beautiful dress... is someone that you are most assuredly familiar with if you're familiar with Hibiki, even if you've never actually met her yet. Hibiki is always on about her, after all.

In any case, "Miku's" choice of outfit clicks together with the decorations of this place that suddenly manifested around Hibiki... and Hibiki understands what's going on. ]

M-M-M-MIKU!! W-What are you doing here!? I-I-I mean, w-what are you wearing!? H-Huh!?

[ Hibiki's face has never been this red before. "Miku" giggles, moving closer and interlocking her arm with Hibiki's. ]

Isn't it obvious, Hibiki? We're going to spend the rest of our lives together...

[ Hibiki.exe has stopped working. Would you like to send a report? If there were ever a time for Hibiki's poor brain to short-circuit, it'd be now... and clearly she is, seeing as how she's completely frozen up, no longer able to comprehend what's going on. Is it because of too much shock? Too much sheer bliss? Both!? Probably both. What a truly incredible wish you've got in the deepest depths of your heart, Hibiki. At least the real Miku isn't actually here? Even for them, this is way too fast, after all! ]

3

[flatcola]

[ Oh, isn't that cute. These sweet little teenagers - at least the one who's here knows she wants to spend her life with her girlfriend. Or is deeply certain of it. Hopefully this Hibiki is right about this Miku.

...something twists a little in Dreamer Mind's tummy. There had never been a point where she and Satsuki seriously considered marriage but maybe by now, or maybe five years from now that could have changed. ]

Make sure you invite lots of other Dreamers.

[ Or don't. Just wait until you're old enough and have enough money to offer the guests lots of food and alcohol before inviting Kozakura. ]

Shu Amiguchi | Dreamer Cerulean

[breezyplayboy]

I- Waking Festival

[Usually when it comes to these festivals, like with everything, Shu takes them a little more casually. He often shows up in modern, lightweight clothes rather than anything traditional. More comfortable, more approachable! So it may surprise some who know him to see Shu Amiguchi walking around the festival in a whole ass yukata. Or maybe not so surprising for those who saw him arrive in a car with his dad, who then immediately set the young lad off loose and disappeared.]

[Whatever! He isn't bothered! He spends some time perusing the masks for sale, and seems torn between a crane and a blue oni that would match his clothes.]

[He is also eager to throw himself into the games! He has a deft hand with the goldfish scooping and has already one a small drawstring bag with a goldfish design on it. He's concentrating very hard on getting up one more... when the paper gives in at the last moment at the surface and the fish gets away.]

Aw man! So close, too!

II-Waking Wishes

[He waits until the crowd around the tree closest to the shrine thins. He slips gratefully under the protection from the rain, making sure his sleeves aren't dripping before he approaches the table. He takes his time selecting a tanzaku, but rushes to finish writing on it and hang it before someone can peer over his shoulder and see it. His cheeks are flushed a bit as he turns and leaves. He's kind of in a rush to get away, like he did something wrong, or he's late for an appointment.]

III- Unconscious wishes

[Party take two: this time even sparklier. Sure, why not. Dreamer Cerulean takes the time to look for his non-dreamer friends and classmates, showing them the moonjumps and other fun things they can do while they're here. May as well help them take advantage of this rarity, right?]

[Unfortunately for him, that carefree frolicking comes to a very embarrassing halt when he gets too close to that big bamboo tree. With a swirl of color and a flourish, a new wish appears on a branch, and the dream sphere summons it into being. A shimmering like a figment appearing, and two adult shapes appear, one on either side of Cerulean. Two adults, both wearing festive yukata, smiling down at him. The woman starts to fuss with Cerulean's hair, and he's suddenly wearing his own yukata that she's working to adjust. It's a childish pattern, like one he would have worn as an elementary schooler.]

Shu honey don't look so surprised! I promised I'd take off of work to come with you this year, remember? It's been too long since we've done a festival as a family.

[Cerulean swallows and blinks at a spot above her shoulder.]

Mom... You... you can't really be here, right?

[She was supposed to still be in America... The man chuffs Cerulean's ear.]

Don't doubt your mother. She keeps her word.

Unlike you, [Cerulean mutters under his breath.]

ii

[reluctants]

[ Sorry, Shu. It seems that no matter how carefully you plan to do this sort of thing in a secretive way, there's always something that gets in the way, huh..

And today that thing happens to be Illya. Not even on purpose. No, it's just that she got so caught up in a few games at the festival that she almost forgot about putting up her own wish, which means she happens to arrive at the tree a little late as well - and in Shu's own rush to get away from the tree, the two of them just happen to collide.

Not too hard, thankfully, but just enough for the young girl to look over at Shu with big, wide eyes. ]

Oh, sorry..!

[ At least she's quick to apologize, despite neither of them really being in the wrong. It's more just that neither of them really saw the other, huh. ]

I, um.. Are you in a hurry? Is there something bad going on? [ Of course Illya's mind - with how nervous and tense it has been lately - immediately jumps to that conclusion.

Rather than Shu's hurry being for any personal reasons. ]

Larry Laffer 🌺 Dreamer Sudo; cw: fertility, nsfw

[loungelizard]

Dream Tree of Wishes

Much to Dreamer Sudo's frustration, they have wandered too close to the dream-Tanabata tree and have created a bubble much too easy for strangers to wander into.

As you step into it, it feels like you've just come into a warm, inviting house from the bitter cold outside. The sensation of snowflakes melting on your head and shoulders are the last grasp of cold before you feel the lick of heat from a roaring, well-fed fireplace. You find yourself in an extravagant living room, dressed to the nines for Christmas: everywhere you look is decorated in reds, golds, whites, and green.

An elaborately decorated Christmas tree that would require anyone to need a ladder to get to the top of it stands in the corner; world renowned game developer Larry Laffer busy with his seven-year-old daughter putting the last touches on it. His wife, tech CEO Faith Less, sits in a large, comfy recliner with four-year-old son in her lap as she reads a Christmas picture book to him. A moody pre-teen taps away at a Nintendo Switch, not really participating in the festivities...but not in another room, either.

Other than the main cast before you, extended family comes in and out. All of Larry's half-dozen sisters are here, all with their husbands and wives and kids, flitting in and out of the dream bubble and presumably to other rooms like the kitchen and den, occasionally stopping by to contribute to the Christmas tree or listen to storytime.

The vibe is busy, warm, cozy, loving.

There's a lot to unpack here. This wish manifestation threatens Sudo's efforts to conceal their waking world identity, which is the biggest, surface-level concern. The secondary concern is that this wish is something that they've always known about but tries to not to think too much about, hoping that it's just a fleeting desire that comes to them only in quiet moments.

Dreamer Sudo is still. Unnervingly still, facial expression neutral. The only thing that betrays their emotions is the occasional flick of their tail, like a mildly bothered cat.

Why couldn't it have been just some kind of embarrassing wet dream?

[hgs]

Cinnabar shouldn't be here. Their powers are too dangerous and difficult to control - merely getting too close could expose other Dreamers to the highly toxic mercury that fills their body. On top of that, they're an introvert who hates crowds, and they're trying to hide their identity as a Dreamer from their classmates. They shouldn't be here. And yet... they have a wish to make. Not for themself, but for someone else. But as they approach the tree to add their wish to its branches, Cinnabar is pulled into someone else's dream.

A laughing child runs past, almost colliding with Cinnabar... but their poison has no effect, and the little girl continues on unharmed. Startled, Cinnabar jumps back, but none of the partygoers seem to notice their unusual reaction. It's as if they're not there at all.

"It's just a dream..."

Relaxing slightly, they take in the warm, inviting Christmas scene. A family they don't recognize is gathered around an enormous tree laden with decorations. Gifts are piled high around the tree's base, each wrapped in festive paper. The air is warm and sweet with the scent of freshly baked cookies and hot cocoa. When had Cinnabar stopped dreaming about family gatherings like this?

There's just one thing that doesn't belong... and that's the strange, shimmery white alien with the eyeless face. The owner of this dream bubble.

"I... I'm sorry. I didn't mean to intrude! It's lovely here, but... I'll go!"

[tokencanadian]

[A: When you wish upon bamboo]
[Seems there's never enough festivities around here. Honestly, Victoria loved it. What a city, huh? Not even a little rain can stop them.

As it stands, she tries to stay lowkey at the festival... which is hard when she excels at the shooting range - she's downright magnificent at work. As for her prize.... going undetected goes out the window when she receives a giant teddy bear as a reward.

It's making the hanging of Victoria's wish on this bamboo tree a little difficult.]

Okay, just... one hand - no. Can't drop...

[B: Your dreams come true]

Ohhh no! Oh no no no-

[Dreamer Victorious rushes your way, skidding to a stop - just to catch a child who decided to tumble out of the air. It's a credit to her skill that she's not bowled over herself, but luckily, neither of them seem to be worse for wear.

She lets the kid rush off, laughing all the while, while she brushes long red hair back behind her ear.]

I-I get that they probably won't be hurt, but... It's still not safe, right?

a.

[howlmyrage]

[ Alter was just walking past a complete stranger, somebody who had never offended her. And yet the image of someone with a giant teddy bear in one arm tiptoeing towards the bamboo stalk is really funny to her, so... ]

Boo!

[ She's here to startle Victoria. Is it actually bad luck if the wish drops to the ground? Probably not, but it won't stop Alter over here from doing her shit. ]

[daughterofthemark]

1. Excitement

[You know how sometimes there's something you've always heard about, but never really gotten to experience, and then one day you suddenly have the opportunity and you're just like "I'M IN!"? That's Anna this evening. This is her first proper summer festival in Japan (she's definitely been to lots of festivals back home like any very ordinary person) and she is Here To Have A Great Time. And... she's succeeding! The weather is trying valiantly to stop her and failing completely. She is Eating Everything and putting wishes on the trees for very ordinary things like "world peace" and "I hope Phaedra's speech goes well."

Eventually, though, she finds her way over to one of the ring toss games. Concentrating very hard, she throws a ring, and...

...it sails off at a bizarre angle, landing in a different booth entirely.]

Goodness. I'd like to try once more.

[And she offers up the appropriate cash, completely unfazed by her failure.]

2. Reunion

[Dreamer Sovereign has been perhaps-surprisingly responsible, keeping a close eye on the regular folks to make sure none of them hurt themselves or have a nasty encounter with a torment... up until that flash of light. Then, suddenly, her attention is elsewhere, as she has her own bit of chaos to deal with.

Of course, chaos isn't inherently a bad thing.

As everyone else deals with their various issues, Sovereign finds herself face-to-face with a good boy, and subsequently giving said good boy a good hug.]

Wulfgar!

1

[reluctants]

.. wah!

[ Wait, what is that squeak coming from the stall next to the one where Anna is playing the game? At first it might seem like nothing, but then it's followed up by: ]

Why is there a ring in there with the goldfish..?!

[ Ah, so that's where the other's ring went, huh.. Right in the middle of a game of goldfish scooping, apparently. Illya rises from her kneeling position, her little net still in hand, trying to look where this ring came from.. Perhaps trying to make sure she didn't just witness the strangest UFO landing of her life.

But that's when she spots the other girl at the next stall over, already having exchanged the cash for a new ring. Illya stares with surprise - because, even so, how did this ring end up all the way over here-- - before quickly grabbing the now-wet ring out of the water, holding it up. ]

Um, did you-- did you lose this one..?

[ She still seems a little surprised, even as she calls out.

And a little confused, honestly. What just happened.. ]