hey mister sandman;

[gameofsocks]

the i n s o m n i a meme

It happens to everyone - sometimes, you have nights where you just can't fall asleep, no matter what you do. It could be for a number of reasons, or no reason at all. And this is what's happened now: you've been laying in bed for what feels like hours, just tossing and turning, and nothing seems to help. So what's left to do? Get out of bed and go wake someone else up, of course. If you're not getting any sleep, then why should they? i n s t r u c t i o n s • Post with your character (note the name and fandom in the subject). • Other people reply to you by generating a number from 1 to 10. • Have fun! o p t i o n s 01 • FEAR. Maybe you're hearing strange, indeterminable noises; maybe there's a severe storm happening outside; maybe you watched a scary movie before bed? Whatever the reason, you're terrified and it's keeping you awake. You just want to wake someone else up so they can protect you from the monster in your closet. 02 • HUNGER. Your stomach is growling and it just won't stop. Or perhaps your throat is so dry you could cough up a tumbleweed? Well, you've gone to the kitchen to remedy this and hey, that was a pan that just dropped on the floor. It was loud enough to wake the dead! Oops. 03 • PAIN. Your body is completely worn out, be it from exercise, battle, sickness, or what have you. Either way you're in enough pain to keep you from sleeping, so maybe someone else has a home remedy or something, or can at least help you take your mind off of it. 04 • SOLITUDE. For some reason, your bed just feels so empty at the moment. You're feeling terribly lonely and really just want someone to keep you company for a while. Maybe it'd be easier to fall asleep if you're with them... 05 • DISCOMFORT. Your room is an oven. Either that or a freezer. Or maybe this bed is just really uncomfortable? Who knows why you can't get to sleep, it feels like it could be anything. Why even bother trying? Maybe someone else can preoccupy you until you feel tired enough to ignore your discomfort. 06 • PENSIVE. Something's on your mind, and no matter how hard you try to focus elsewhere, it's just not going to work. Your body may be tired, but your mind is incredibly busy and it's virtually impossible to get to sleep. Surely, talking it out with someone else will help? 07 • SADNESS. Something terrible has happened that day, perhaps; or you could just be severely depressed. Either way you're trying your hardest not to cry yourself to sleep, and it's not working at all. Better find a way to get it out of your system somehow; you need a shoulder to cry on. 08 • ANGER. You are just... fuming. Who knows why - that annoying dog is barking again, or maybe the people next door are getting busy and keeping you awake. Whatever the reason for your ire is, you'd better put an end to it so you can get some damn rest already! Go wake up a friend so you can complain to them. 09 • RESTLESS. You're far too energetic to sleep right now. Maybe you're just trying to do so out of necessity - you have to be up early tomorrow! But you just don't think you'll be able to fall asleep for a while now, so why waste the time trying to sleep when you could be doing something else? Namely bothering someone else - you're totally jealous because they're getting more sleep than you. 10 • WILDCARD. Choose one of the options above, or make up your own scenario.

Comments

a mix of them

[meetfear]

Slipping in through the window, Inej decided to announce her presence this time around rather than try to sneak up on Kaz. She couldn't become predictable, now could she? "Do you ever sleep?" she asked as a way to announce herself, moving forward on silent footfalls to see what had taken up his attention and focus. "Writing love letters?" she continued, slowly revealing her face. There were scraps all over her hands but she would worry about them later. They weren't bleeding anymore so she didn't really need to bother at the moment.

Once she finished, she sat down by him but not close enough to have him scowl. "There will be new grabs for power. What are we thinking?" There were other plans she wanted to attend to but she would see through what he wanted. His words continued to linger, after all, and she couldn't shake them as easily. It figured he would have to open up when she had closed the door.

[ketterdams]

Just as Inej had slowly, over time, made it a sort of game to see if she could sneak up on the Bastard of the Barrel, he'd also methodically trained himself to not jolt whenever he first caught sight of her. It wouldn't do to look like a startled housewife, leaping at shadows or the scurrying of a mouse. And his mouse tiptoed in and made herself comfortable, as she always did, and as always, he didn't react. No welcoming smile, no touch, but the fact that he always let her in here counted as a welcome itself. No one else came to these rooms.

"'We'," Kaz repeated, picking over that one word — that one particular, very specific word — but that was the extent of his greeting. He didn't address the jibe about love letters.

"We need to make sure Rollins can't keep buying up the new real estate from some of the latest dissolved holdings. The properties need to scatter to the vultures instead. I've made a list of all the likeliest buyers." He slid a piece of paper across the table to her. "We'll want leverage. Whatever secrets and vulnerabilities you can ferret out. I'd rather the deeds go to them than Rollins."

Because Rollins was slippery. Kaz continued to gather as much information as he could, but the other man couldn't be taken down. Not fully. Not yet.

[meetfear]

We; a tiny and in most cases an insignificant word tossed around freely and without much recourse. But Inej knew word choices mattered, especially with Kaz and she wanted to see if she had a reason to actually linger in this place. The place being the in between they had somehow traveled into. Not just colleagues but not really anything more either. The lines blurred constantly and kept her up at night, wondering if she had begun to waste her time. Would Kaz ever truly care about someone on a deeper level? Better yet, could he? Now, she knew he CARED to an extent for her and for Jes but she needed to know how far it went. Her heart couldn't withstand another deep gash.

"I can do that tomorrow," she responded, shaken from her thoughts to watch him with intent eyes. "Do you know what Rollins wants with the properties?" It would be helpful to know if they were being used as residential for his lackeys or for business holdings. There were a lot of business dealings to be had in the Barrel.

After a lengthy pause, she offered, "Have you left these rooms at all tonight?" As in, have you eaten? have you shown yourself to inspire the others they mattered?

[ketterdams]

"Business. Money. Coin, as ever."

His chin was propped up against his hand, and when she asked that question, Kaz swiveled slightly to look at her beside him. He looked tired — he always looked tired, with bags under his eyes and deep hollows in his thin cheeks. But now that Inej was closer, he could tell that she looked like she'd been through something as well: there were scrapes all over her hands, raw red lines where she'd evidently been bleeding earlier.

"I haven't been out, no. But where have you been?"

One gloved hand reached out, almost close enough to take her hand to turn her fingers over and inspect the scrapes more closely; but then he hesitated, stopped, and the hand fell back to his side. (While, at the same time, something turned over in his chest, a tightening vise. How he wanted to be able to thoughtlessly take her hand. To be able to do this one thing without overthinking it, without the way it made the back of his throat catch.)

[meetfear]

Again, she wanted to press about the intent focus on this one man but she knew to do so would invoke Kaz's anger and at the moment she wanted the relative peace and quiet. Both were very lacking nowadays and she knew in time it would become worse. They had dangers pressing in from all sides but they needed to decide where to extend the most beneficial focus. Rollins had a lot of influence and she supposed she could see why they needed to eliminate him but Kaz had too much emotion towards it. Emotion could get them all killed.

Reaching out, she took the paper to fold up and put in her pocket, tempted to touch him but she refrained. It would only bring Kaz discomfort and she didn't want to hurt him. The one everyone feared; the monster in the darkest hours and yet Inej knew the fragility resting beneath his masks. If only he would open it up to her and let her help. Let her in. She had her own demons to contend with and sudden touch could unnerve her and send her spiraling into her own shame. Together, they could understand one another, piece together what others had broken into thousands of pieces.

She noted his tired appearance and it took all her willpower to not nudge at him like she did with the others. "Climbing," she replied, curling her fingers into her palms. "Some areas were slicker than others." She had her own people to destroy. Well, one woman being the direct target and she knew her emotions clouded things with it. "It was busy tonight." More ships, new arrivals and the hollowed out soundless screams echoed within her because of it.

"I'm going to get food. Do you want anything?"