And the wind smells slow and sour when it blows

[whichwayyoulean]

Who: The Once-ler and YOU!
What: Nightmares
When: Friday
Where: HIS MIND
Rating: Uh PG/PG13.


[You'd be forgiven for thinking you've entered a pleasant dream, rather than a horrific nightmare here. You've arrived in Truffula Valley, a peaceful, wonderful place that almost puts Paradisa's created beauty to shame. Forest creatures are scurrying about, singing and playing and generally going about their business.

The sky is bright blue, the sun is shining and the waters of the nearby river and pond are crystal clear. And most importantly there are miles upon miles upon miles of Truffula trees. For anyone the Once-ler described these trees to, he wasn't kidding. The touch of their tufts really is softer than silk and that comforting, wonderful smell? Fresh butterfly milk baby.

Nothing good lasts forever, and there's a general unease about the place. A disjointed sort of feel, like someone's putting on a play and you've already been told everyone dies at the end]

[[ooc: Sections: Pretty Valley | Dying Valley | Dead Valley ]]

Comments

[whichwayyoulean]

[His fist clenches a little. Sheena, you always ask far too many questions. He takes a calming breath, seemingly unaffected by the smoke himself]

No. The factory did that. My factory.

[ninjainviolet]

[She's kind of in shock--not to mention angry, so yeah, a few questions are bound to happen.

But his answer allows several things he's told her before click into place.

"Thneed"

"Factory"

"No sun"

When they do, she turns to him, surprised.]

You did this?

[whichwayyoulean]

[His shoulders slump, the fight gone out of him, ready for whatever anger she might want to throw at him, and knowing Sheena, he'd expect some]

I did. I tore down the trees to make my Thneed, and I was too proud and stupid and greedy to realise what was happening before it was too late.

[ninjainviolet]

[Sheena takes a step towards the wasteland, too shocked at the number of stumps to be angry for the moment. It just sounded too familiar.]

You needed the whole tree?

[whichwayyoulean]

No, only the tufts at the top. [A sigh] But it was too slow to meet demand, just harvesting the tufts. I got greedy and... [Well, the wasteland speaks for itself]

[ninjainviolet]

[Now comes the anger. She whirls around, her eyes glinting with that emotion as she faces him.]

That's all you needed?! So what if it took too long?! Those leaves or tufts or whatever they were would have grown back!

[Give her a moment to take all of it in in her normal fashion; she'll calm down eventually.]

[whichwayyoulean]

[He doesn't even react to it. His expression is just full of regret and sorrow, he just looks so TIRED]

But I didn't give them the chance. Despite the warnings of the spirit who protected the forest, I kept on biggering.

[ninjainviolet]

So, you kept on taking and taking, until it was all gone.

[Oh, the tone of one who's seen the results of that.]

[whichwayyoulean]

Until it became this [he waves at the mess around them] and it was too late to do anything. Yes.

[ninjainviolet]

[Well, Once-ler, she can't stay mad at you forever for two reasons:

One, she can see you regret what happened, and

two, everyone makes mistakes and should be forgiven for them.]

It's not too late to correct this, Once-ler. It can't be.

[whichwayyoulean]

[He'd honestly find it easier to deal with if she DID stay mad at him. It's a lot harder to think people forgive him for what he's done, when he can't even forgive himself]

It'll get fixed. In about fifty years. It'll take someone special to do it. Someone who isn't me.

[ninjainviolet]

[Unfortunately, that's the first step, and the hardest--forgiving yourself. It's also something she knows from experience.]

Once-ler, do you want it to be fixed?

[whichwayyoulean]

[He casts her a incredulous look]

Of course I want it to be fixed. All I've done since the last tree fall is regret everything I've ever done to this place and the creatures who lived here. I want it fixed more than anything in the world.

[ninjainviolet]

[Her expression remains the same as she steps to him, her stride confident for a change.]

Good. Because regretting the mistake is the first step towards correcting it. [And being forgiven for it.]

But, why can't you be the one to fix it?

[whichwayyoulean]

[The Once-ler looks anything but confident. He folds his arms around himself, casting his gaze to the ruined, infertile land]

Because it doesn't work that way. [He wanders a little closer to that rock pile, nodding at it]

I have to wait until someone else cares enough...for someone to care a whole awful lot, before it gets better again. It's not enough for me to care.

[ninjainviolet]

[She thinks about what he says.]

So, even though you feel that way, you may not be strong enough to fix this alone? Is that what you mean?

[Sheena follows him, her expression turning perplexed as she sees the stone.]

"Unless"?

[whichwayyoulean]

I can't fix it. The earth here is ruined. It's hard to explain.

[He nods]

That's why the word follows me everywhere in Paradisa. Why it's my loss, you know? I'm not allowed to escape it, because it's a message. Or a reminder or...something.

[He clears his throat, reciting the words carefully, if not with some reverence ] Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It's not.

[ninjainviolet]

It kinda looks like what happens when mana drains away.

[It's a quiet observation as she takes in the surrounding area again before kneeling respectfully before the stones.]

Oh. I didn't know that's what your loss was--[Although, seriously, did the man really need the reminder with this forever with him?]

[She looks up, craning her neck again.]

So, you're not allowed to even help fix this, even though you want to? That doesn't seem right.

[whichwayyoulean]

Next time you're around me...assuming there is a next time, have a look around. It appears everywhere I go.

[And with that comment, he gives a dry laugh]

I don't deserve what's right, Sheena. The guardian of this forest warned me over and over again. For five years he warned me, tried to make me see what I was doing, and I brushed him aside each and every time. After I swore to him I wouldn't cut down another tree.

[He glances around his desolate surroundings] No. I'm getting what's right for me.

[ninjainviolet]

[She gives him a silent nod of a promise, although she doubts she'd actually look for it. That would probably only add to how bad he feels.]

[At the mention of a guardian, she nods again in understanding.]

So, this is a form of punishment? [Guardians and spirits can have different ideas of what's right when it comes to their domains.]

[whichwayyoulean]

Maybe not so much as a punishment as...I don't know.

[The Once-ler stares at that rock. That stupid, haunting rock] I think he wanted to make me understand. Really understand what it was like for him. When whatever he did to try and save his forest was met with failure. [Another pause] How much it hurts to be betrayed by your best friend.

[It's rare he really talks about the Lorax to anyone, even Martel. But Sheena's different. She understands what it's like to have a spirit link itself into your life. It's an experience that's almost impossible to explain]

[ninjainviolet]

[Sheena looks up at him, her expression neither stern or judging, as he explains. Spirits like hers are connected to the planet by mana, and when it's gone, they're gone. And since she hasn't seen any type of spirit around, it's probably safe to believe a similar thing is true here:

Without a forest, there's no need for a Spirit to protect it, so it disappeared. But as she listens to his words and studies the stone in front of her, something else comes to mind.

Rising, she places her hand on his arm in a uncharacteristic gentle manner and looks up at him.]

You told me that people who didn't care who they hurt as long as they got what they wanted were the worst. And they are--if they don't regret what they've done. You regret it, so you're not like those others.

I think you're friend knew this and had faith in you, otherwise, he'd have never left you that message.

[whichwayyoulean]

[The Once-ler startles a little at her touch. He was too deep in his thoughts of how much better things would have been if he'd just done what the Lorax asked of him. If he'd just LISTENED. He'd be poor, yes, but at least he'd be happy]

You really think that, huh? [His tone suggests he really doesn't. Not yet]

Maybe. He was always so...irritatingly vague about things.

[ninjainviolet]

[She nods, her hand remaining where she placed it.]

I really do, Once-ler. [And her tone says she's not lying.] Sometimes it's easier to believe in yourself when others do it first.

[She smiles softly.]

Maybe he needed you to realize it for yourself.

[whichwayyoulean]

...And here we go with the optimism again.

[He gives a soft shrug, turning away from the stone]

It would have taken me long enough.