Heart Seed Ruin Log

[goatsongs]

[You suddenly find yourself in the entrance to a library. Well, it should be an entrance - if you turn around, there isn’t a door behind you, but there’s a desk that says ‘RETURNS’ and a desk that says ‘HELP’, both with containers full of pens on them. There’s also rows and rows of bookcases all stuffed full of books.

Naturally, both the returns desk and the help desk are staffed: the returns desk by a bright-looking young boy, and the help desk by a serious-looking man.

Beyond the shelves of books, there’s a steel door to the left, as well as a wooden door to the right.]

Comments

STEEL ROOM

[goatsongs]

[Unusually for a library, this room contains weapons. Knives, swords, a whip or two - all of them with a light coating of blood. They’re behind a sheer curtain that does nothing to hide their existence, but the floor in front of the curtain is spotless.

Aside from the door you came in through, there don't seem to be any other exits.]

[sunflowering]

[Blood. It's impossible for her not to notice it. Her eyes shift, taking on a crimson hue. Chuuya is a poet. Why in the world would weapons be found in a place like this? She's wary as she approaches, a hand tentatively lifting up to brush one of the metal blades.]

[goatsongs]

[The blades are clearly old, but not rusty, and still sharp. They drew blood recently.

Touching the weapon brings up a memory of Chuuya curled up in a hospital bed. He doesn't have any visible wounds, but the tears falling down his cheeks may answer why he's here.]

[sunflowering]

. . .

[What kind of life has he lived? Looks are clearly deceiving, but she should have known that from the start. Her hand falls away.]

Nakahara-san. . .

[Is there more? It's difficult to force herself to brush one of the whips. She doesn't know if it will reinforce the same painful memory or something new.]

[goatsongs]

[Chuuya surrounded by empty bottles of alcohol. There's another man trying to convince him to stop drinking - Chuuya's memory of this is hazy and the words aren't distinct, something something 'had enough', but Chuuya grabs for another bottle anyway.

Behind the curtain, now that it's been pulled back some, there's another door that wasn't visible before, even though the curtain was practically transparent.]

[sunflowering]

[ . . . It's no wonder that he'd want to forget, or drown out the pain. Not that it truly helps. It doesn't even put a band-aid upon the problem. It's just a temporary fix to avoid the sorrow directly.

She already dreads continuing. But he's in here somewhere. She knows that, and the only way to get him out is to continue forward.]

[goatsongs]

[The door opens.]