Zhuge: to sleep, perchance to Dream

[grimandfatalistic]

Solas would be lying if he said he was not excited at the prospect of teaching someone to Dream. He had carefully studied a map of the city, and cross-referenced it with news articles (what a novelty!) to determine the very best location for Zhuge to learn.

He has enough lyrium. He has the right herbs. He has set up a small sleeping space very near to the building named Bramford, and he has contacted Master Zhuge to alert him to their location. He also sends along the suggestion of comfortable clothing; Solas himself is wearing his cream colored tunic, his trousers, and his footless boots. His staff is nearby, should he require it.

He is very excited. He has a fire to keep them warm, as the evening is a little chilly and sleep comes easier when one is warm and comfortable. When his avid student arrives, Solas looks up. His eyes reflect, as a cat's, the firelight in the dark.

He stands and begins to set wards. Solas has yet to see a giant spider or bear here in Darrow, but he would prefer caution. It is not carelessness that has kept him alive for so long.

"Do you have any questions before we begin?" he asks as he works.

Comments

[anticipate]

The exchange of knowledge is an act that Zhuge considers to be more intimate than any other. Sometimes, knowledge is shared in a manner that's both stark and direct — words, instructions, step by step along a well-worn path. And other times, to pass knowledge off is an act both intangible and unpredictable. Two souls journeying together at the mercy of the direction of the wind. It is the latter that Zhuge often likes best, and so the smile never quite leaves his lips today as he waits for the hour of his lesson.

He feels fortunate to have found an instructor who seems almost as pleased to impart this wisdom as Zhuge himself is to receive it.

To the meeting, Zhuge wears his most comfortable set of inner robes, pale against the darker concrete and brick of Darrow's alleyways. His pigeons, their feathers a matching pale cream, fly ahead of their master as Zhuge's steps echo down the street. Once at the site, Zhuge's eyes silently follow every last movement of Solas, mapping out the distinct setup of their sleeping space.

"The only question I have is what I need to know... to make sure I can do this a second time," Zhuge says, smile bright in his eyes as he bows deferentially. "But all else, I will like to explore in Dream."

[grimandfatalistic]

"As always, you must keep your mind clear," Solas explains. He finishes the last ward and returns to one of the sleeping rolls. "Because this is your first time, I have anticipated that your mind will resist the Fade. Lyrium will be necessary, I am sure, and I will burn these herbs to further aid your journey." He gestures to a bundle of dried plants, near the fire but not yet in it.

"The most important thing you must bear in mind, Master Zhuge, is that the Fade is a very subjective place. The spirits reflect the events, yes. But they also reflect an individual's mind, and the Dreamer's, as well. If you are afraid, the Fade will be frightening."

This is why Solas has avoided telling Zhuge about demons and the Chantry's teachings, at least for now. If he expects to see demons, there will be demons, and he will not have the opportunity to learn from the spirits within.

He prepares a tea for Zhuge to drink, and adds a small amount of lyrium. This will help him sleep more quickly. Solas will enter ahead of him, and at the very worst, may guide him.

[anticipate]

The prospect of keeping his mind clear is, frankly, not an easy one for Zhuge. He is the type of person whose mind is always thinking and revolving, for whom sleep is occasionally hard to come by not because of a lack of desire, but instead because his thoughts refuse to be subjected to the murky filter of one's subconscious. During periods set aside for meditation, Zhuge knows that his skill is more in feigning a serene expression than it necessarily is in clearing out his mind.

But if the latter is a powerful skill to learn for the sake of exploring the Fade, then Zhuge will put his all towards that effort.

"I am not very often afraid," Zhuge says thoughtfully. "Sometime this is what my enemy most hate about being around me. Sometime, even my ally hate this most about me. To fear is very human thing. I don't know when I stopped. I... want to see what is there in my mind, what I can see through walk in the Fade."

Reaching both hands out to receive Solas' cup, Zhuge bows deeply, letting the scent waft towards him before taking a deep sip.

[grimandfatalistic]

Solas tips his head in a polite nod. He needs neither the lyrium, nor the herbs to sleep now, though the latter is certainly doing its job to ready his body for the Fade.

"Then you should have no trouble," he reasons. "I will wait for you to sleep. The draught, and the herbs, will help you fall asleep more quickly. Once you have, I will join you." From thence, he can guide Master Zhuge through the Fade in this area, and they can see the events that have taken place at this location. He has already seen one other here. He is curious what the Fade will show them this time.

[anticipate]

The guidance is exactly of the level that Zhuge needs. Unfettered, but also direct and clear. It gives Zhuge as much insight as he needs into what to do to prepare himself, without spoiling him for the outcome, which Zhuge appreciates immensely. He's always rather preferred to receive a surprise.

The drink that he was given seems to take its effect quickly. Though there are endless questions in his mind, Zhuge does his best and attempts to erase them, one by one. It's not an easy task, but he manages by means of answering his questions. Even if that answer is, in most cases, there is no way to know yet.

Soon enough, even the movement of color behind his eyelids goes black, and before long, Zhuge finds the mist clearing to reveal the same field that he was sitting on before, though the color of the sky is a muted fuchsia. The color of the early dawn.

Without a word, he smiles, and begins to stand.

[grimandfatalistic]

"The Fade in Darrow is a bit different from the Fade I am familiar with," Solas says as he steps into Zhuge's field of view. "But, then, the world I am from is vastly different from Darrow." There is a small smile on his face, and his eyes are alight.

All around them, there are evanescent, pale figures, floating this way and that in slow patterns. Their shapes are reminiscent to people, but they lack solidness and definition. Solas bows shallowly to one as it passes. If it notices him, it does not react.

[anticipate]

While Zhuge often delights himself by getting lost in the weeds and the details, what he finds the most striking about the Fade is how everything is painted in muted colors, slightly indistinct and distant. It creates an almost painted-like effect, and manages to be far more deeply evocative of emotion. Keeping politely still, his eyes follow after the pale figures before he bows to those closest to him, one after the other.

"It is good for not everything to be same," Zhuge offers, straightening and meeting Solas' gaze with a grin. "That makes life interesting. To me, everything here is new. Do some people always live in Fade?"