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[inklongdry]

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"Arthur Inkwell here.
I've no earthly idea how this thing is supposed to work, but leave me a message if you're so inclined. I'll retrieve it at some point or another!"

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[inklongdry]

I'm looking forward to it.

[ And lets be real, it doesn't take him overlong to pass out. He's been through a lot today, and exhaustion claims him quickly. He falls asleep nestled in Dream's arms. ]

[dreamlord]

[The dream itself arrives no differently than the rest. It blooms into the consciousness of the sleeping mind, until the dream is all there is. But this time, Arthur will find himself standing amid a grand library, with aisles that seem to stretch on and on and on, books upon books, the lines of shelving interrupting amber rays of light from windows set into the walls. At the center of this library are large tables, with more books stacked upon them. Places to sit, and read, and study, and to be lost in stories.

It is all very much larger than life, but there is a surreality to it, too. Like all the books here may be changed on a whim; that not all their stories are set in stone. They are transient, but they seem infinite all the same.

Arthur will find himself at the library’s center. Dream descends stairs near what must be an exit (or an entrance?) at the other end to meet him.

This will, of course, be a lucid dream.]

Welcome to my library.

[inklongdry]

[ As the library unfolds around him, his first thought is Ah, this reminds me of Gubal, but as the aisles stretch onward and the books pile higher and that strange otherworldly quality seeps through the stacks, he realizes that this is far beyond anything even the famed nation of scholars could conceive of.

Dream's voice tears his eyes away from the shelves for a moment, and the wonder is clear on his face. ]

Dream... 'tis a marvel. I hardly know what to say.

[dreamlord]

[Dream smiles, pleased with Arthur's reaction. He crosses closer, until he can speak without having to rely on his voice being carried across the vast space.]

In this place... Well, in the real Dreaming's library, every story that has ever been told, imagined, or written, exists in these books. Every story that will one day come into existence are somewhere in these pages, too. And that, too, includes the tales belonging to any given individual's life.

[But those are always changing; and thus the transient nature of the books themselves.]

[inklongdry]

Every story?

[ Now it is Arthur who looks starry-eyed, though not so literally as Dream. tfw you don't have an icon of this emote. ]

This place puts even the Studium to shame.

[dreamlord]

[no that's too cute!!]

Every story. [Well, he supposes that's not true.] Rather, every story that exists on my plane of the universe. The ones from your world, for example, are not present. Though perhaps they could be, if you share more of them with me, someday.

[Arthur is free to wander about as much as he likes. Dream will follow.]

The Studium?

[inklongdry]

Do I take that to mean you've the legend of All Saints' Wake somewhere on these shelves?

[ A bit of teasing. Though as he begins to wander the rows of shelves, he finds himself reaching for Dream's hand. Even here, he craves a bit of warmth. Something to ground him. ]

My mother hails from the island nation of Sharlayan. 'Tis a bastion of knowledge, a nation of scholars. I spent my childhood in a Sharlayan colony on the mainland, and the library there was truly grand. I hear the libraries of the Studium, the foremost academy in Sharlayan proper, made the halls of Gubal seem like a trifle.

[dreamlord]

Of course.

[Arthur may be teasing, but somewhere along these rows of shelves in the real Dreaming, there would indeed be a little book that contains the legend of All Saints' Wake nestled in its shelves. Dream is the embodiment of all stories, after all -- if he hears it, of course he will store it here.

But he takes the other man's hand, pale fingers entwining in his. Yes, this is comforting, grounding, even for him. Even if he is not the one needing this time to rest and recover.]

It sounds like a place that I would enjoy seeing with my own eyes, someday.

[inklongdry]

[ A smile. ]

As would I. I've never been. I have only my mother's stories of the place.

[ He hears it's cold, though, which is not his favorite thing in the world. Worth it, though. ]

[dreamlord]

When you are free of this place, and returned once more to your home, perhaps you should make a point to visit.

[He doesn't know about the cold, but it would indeed be worth it, besides. BOOKS are always worth it.]

[inklongdry]

I plan on it. I have been told in no uncertain terms that I'm to see all of the world that I wish to see. Sharlayan has long been on my list.

[dreamlord]

You've been told?

[He wonders where that adventurous spark comes from. After all, it is different in every tale.]

[inklongdry]

By my family. They didn't wish for me to live my life solely in the halls of the library.

[ He reaches up with his free hand, fingers gliding along the spines of the books as they walk. ]

I longed for more and they were happy to encourage me to grasp it.

[dreamlord]

[Ah. Morpheus has only gotten a glimpse of Arthur's mother amid the dream he visited, but somehow this does not surprise him. She had been kind, supportive, and it's easy to see how his family as a whole might want him to experience the world, rather than just the pages of books.]

The best story is the one you can craft for yourself. I am glad you were able to pursue the opportunity to do so.

[The books shift and move beneath Arthur's touch as they walk.]

I am eons old, but it was not until recently I felt that I was able to do the same for myself.

[inklongdry]

[ It's very surreal, the way the books seem to have a life of their own, and yet fascinating all the same. ]

Is that so? What was stopping you before? ... Well, assuming it wasn't your imprisonment.

[dreamlord]

[Dreams, man.]

No. My imprisonment, and the actions I took afterward, actually led to me feeling more... fulfilled, I suppose. Though I had been so angry at the time.

[Even if he lost one century. Because he lost one century. Not much to Dream, but a very harsh blow to his responsibilities.]

It was not until I was forced to look for what was stolen from me that I truly began to feel as though I were- [He pauses. What is the right word? What had he told Death?] -on a quest. An adventure, of sorts.

[inklongdry]

[ Ah yes, he remembers now. Dream talking about his purpose, or lack thereof. He casts Dream a sidelong glance. ]

I was not aware that the lord of all dreams fancied himself an adventurer, as well.

[dreamlord]

I did not fancy myself much of anything. It was a necessity, at first, to find my missing objects of power and restore myself to my proper state.

[But, as he said, he had felt so hollow after he was done.]

But I did miss the journey after it was finished. You would not think the King of Dreams would be wanting for much...

[But you would be wrong!]

[inklongdry]

Well then, once we are free of the prison, mayhap it will be time for a new adventure.

[ Arthur has never been happier than he has been while adventuring. It's fulfilling in a way he didn't think possible. ]

[dreamlord]

Maybe.

[Lucifer is out there making sure Dream will go on quite the "adventure" soon, probably, but he can live on in ignorance regarding that for now.]

And maybe together, someday, if circumstances would allow for it.

[inklongdry]

I'd like that. There's much and more of my world I would like to see, and the experience would be made all the better with someone dear at my side.

[dreamlord]

[Oh... He squeezes his hand as they move leisurely down the aisle.]

The libraries first, of course.

[nerds]

[inklongdry]

[ He laughs. ]

Truly, you are a man after my own heart.

[ Nevermind that Dream is not technically a man, and more of an anthropomorphized aspect of the universe. It's fine. ]

[dreamlord]

[A smile.]

Then, after that, wherever else you would like to go.

[He would like to see what a world like Arthur’s has to offer. Every one is so different, unique.]

And someday, when we are free of this place, you will be able to visit me in the real Dreaming, too.

[inklongdry]

[ Oh, he's already thinking of all the places they could go, over all Eorzea and across the seas. Hingashi, Thavnair, and beyond. Arthur longs to see them all. ]

I would like that very much.

[ Any of it, all of it. ]

Though I imagine you're giving me quite an accurate representation of it now.