[LOG] Check-up | Malcolm & Barth

[Dragain]

Toshihiko Two

It had been a very strange week, as a result of Professor Malcolm's advice. He had expected a bit of emotional turbulence, and ended up with secrets, romance(?), and blood. But Barth had done as requested, and he was quite sure it was time to put an end to the experiment and the thorns altogether. This visit, he was sure, Malcolm would finally help him get rid of the things. It would be a relief to put them behind him.

He knocked on Professor Malcolm's door for the second time.

"Hello, Professor? ...Mind if I step in for a bit?"

Dragain

He didn't exactly forget about Barth's 'problem', but it wasn't really something he thought about on a regular basis during the past week. When he heard the familiar voice address him, he looked up from the papers he had been filling in and regarded the boil with a brief nod, "How may I help you today, Barth?"

Toshihiko Two

"You err, you said I could come by? If there were any...difficulties," Barth ventured. He swallowed, looking at the Professor guiltily. "I- don't want to continue, I think. Just err, just go back to trying to keep them down."

Dragain

"I did," He confirmed with a nod, raising an eye brow at Barth's expression before pausing, his lips pressed into a thin line as he gestured for the boil to take a seat; at least he didn't look angry or upset at the news. He was, however, curious, "Why is that? Was the experiment not going well?"

Toshihiko Two

Barth took a seat. He was relieved that Malcolm wasn't going to bite his head off. It was an ingrained fear concerning authority figures. The question, however, caused him to pause. Especially the use of the word experiment. As it stood...

"It was...going alright, I suppose. I did as you suggested. Err, had a friend over to monitor. Calder. He's been a bit under the weather this week, so he needed the rest. And they didn't- well, they didn't really go outside my room. As far as I know. But- but all that's sort of a moot point." He wrung his claws. "Christof got hurt."

Dragain

He listened, his expression unreadable until they got to the 'Christof' part. Barth would receive another eyebrow raise followed by a pause, "How exactly did he get hurt?" If Calder had been over, and he wasn't hurt, why would someone else get hurt from the same thorns surrounding Barth?

Toshihiko Two

"He- it's partially my fault," Barth said, "I hadn't...talked to him about the thorns yet, so he...went through them. And ended up- it's a good thing he's a patchwork. But really, it was- it was something that was going to happen eventually. And to someone with less replaceable parts. I told him I'd come see you. So it's better that we stop it now, before something more serious happens."

Dragain

"I agree that it was your fault for not informing your friend, but the thorns? Do you think it is fair to say that they should go?" He asked, leaning against the back of his chair, "The thorns did their job of keeping you protected as you slept... And they did not touch Calder or Christof. He went through them - they did not attack him."

Toshihiko Two

"That's...true," Barth admitted. "Still, what if it had been an emergency? It's alright for keeping enemies out..." And Barth could acknowledge the ability would come in handy at Dr. Fell's, "but I wouldn't want to wake up to find a friend hanging from them again. Err, at all. Not again. Slip of the tongue, there."

Dragain

"If the thorns are part of you, you should be able to... Maybe get them to clear a path for any friends coming to visit you?" He frowned, not quite sure how that would work, "Like I said... You are in control and not the other way round... Again, even you admit that the thorns were not at fault."

 

[Dragain]

Toshihiko Two

Barth slumped back. "So you think I should experiment further. At this point I can't get them to do anything. ...What would be enough? What would be too far, or too dangerous? What am I supposed to tell Christof?"

Dragain

"Tell Christof about the thorns acting as your protection - and tell him to not... Hack his way through them," He answered, his frown deepening slightly, "The thorns stayed in your room the way you wanted them to, and they did not hurt Calder the way you wanted them to." To him, that meant something, "Maybe you think that you can't control them, but what about subconsciously? They seem to respond to your thoughts, in a way."

Toshihiko Two

"Subconsciously," Barth repeated. How was he supposed to- well, he had a few ideas, it couldn't be all that different from lucid dreaming. And Barth had practice with that. Sleeping in general was something that was non-problematic. But as for actions in his subconscious...he thought back to that ill-fated obstacle course run. "I think I've been doing a lot of that lately."

Dragain

"Doing things subconsciously, you mean?" He asked with a slight frown, just to get clarification on the matter; besides, he had to know what was wrong in order to tackle it, "Or were you thinking of something else?"

Toshihiko Two

"I fell asleep in the middle of a walk," Barth said, "and woke up signed in for that flaming obstacle course. Not something I would have done consciously. Not even sure why it's something I did subconsciously. That's been becoming...more frequent too. Under ideal circumstances, I'm a light sleeper. I don't...especially need the thorns. I don't know if that's part of it."

Dragain

"Flaming obsta- Ah, I've heard of that," He muttered; he also heard how countless students died countless times on it, but that was not something he was particularly interested in... Those ToTers; you never know what exactly is on their mind, "So, you had been sleep... Sleepwalking, talking and just generally doing things?" He paused briefly, stroking his chin thoughtfully, "Do you know if it is a Sloth demon thing?"

He wouldn't be surprised, actually.

Toshihiko Two

"It err, it didn't start until recently. ...So it's possible. Maybe," Barth said weakly. "Not doing me any favors if it is."

Dragain

"Maybe if you learnt to control it, it might," He looked thoughtful, "As in... Allowing the thorns to work for you. From my point of view, it looks like your body is trying to protect you while you sleep - the thorns, the sleep-moving... If you can somehow learn to control them, even when you are asleep, it might come in handy... For now, maybe some research on Sloth demons is in order? Do you have anyone you can ask?"

Toshihiko Two

Barth thought about the vast variety of Sloth demons he was familiar with. There was his great uncle. He was dead. There was that girl on the Christmas trip, who was also probably dead. There was that other girl at the Floresctival, which he could only presume had been killed by the giant fish.

Claire had mentioned her grandfather had been a Sloth demon, which only lead Barth to one assumption.

"No," Barth said. "I heard the library was...reorganized lately?"

Dragain

"It was," Malcolm answered with a nod, "It is... Much easier to find things now." 'Then when Arel was left in charge of it' was left unspoken, "It might be a good place for you to start... When you had done enough research, as I had said before, my office is always open."