Sunhat for Two, Please!

[solitarynote]

WHO: Sunny and Mari (and you!). First prompt closed to Mari, the second is OTA ^^
WHAT: Sunny gets a new Sunhat and gifts his sister one.
WHERE: Closed prompt - Sunny and Mari’s shared hut; OTA - around the Oasis
WHEN: Before the second Crossing, after Arrival in the Oasis
WARNINGS None right now, though will update subject lines as applicable. As always, Omori characters can delve into complex topics, so CWs will probably apply more or the Closed thread than Open.

## A Sunhat for You, A Sunhat for Me (Closed to Mari)

[After Sunny’s visit to the Ferryman, he had been acting somewhat strange. A little more aloof, especially when it came to his sister. He normally didn’t approach her, keeping a respectable distance away, until…

One day, he did.

Sunny’s expression can only be described as one a sibling gives their elder when they’ve been caught hiding a secret - which is entirely true. His ears burn in embarrassment and his gaze is pointed away from Mari, AND he’s hiding something in his hands behind his back. It’s difficult getting the words out to tell her what though.]

U-um…


~~~
Begone, Sun Rays! (OTA)

[Those who may have seen Sunny around the Oasis might notice he looks a little different lately: he’s wearing a watermellon-colored sunhat. On top of that, he’s actually walking outside now even during the daytime.

Said hat might be the cause.

Anyone who approaches Sunny may be met with the teen flipping the hat inside out, showing a brightly colored toucan on the inside-now-outside. He looks quite pleased with himself.]

T-Tada…!

Comments

[urtitan]

Which season is your favourite, and why?

[Her, encouraging him to hold more smalltalk? Why, perish the thought!]

CW: brief hallucination flashback

[solitarynote]

[It took him a moment to weigh the pros and cons. For a second, Frieda was replaced with a similar memory that Sunny had dreamed, a sprout mole taking her place.

”Which one’s your favorite? Choose wisely!”

Then he blinked and he was back with Frieda. Weird.]

Summer… I think. [He paused. Yeah, it had to be summer.] It’s hot but… no school… and we go… fun places… me and… my friends-

[He cut off suddenly, eye trailing to the side. That was the past. Not now, not for the last four years… his voice was barely a whisper when he spoke next.] Now… I don’t think… any of them… are my favorite…

[urtitan]

[Of course, that flashback entirely escapes her notice - but she does see the change in him, how he goes from engaged and chipper to expressionless and quiet.]

Hm? How come?

[She still has no idea what happened to him - what made him so withdrawn, so timid, so silent oftentimes. Granted, his shouting, axe-swinging father has given her a decent enough idea. She steps forward and puts a reassuring hand on his back.]

Summer is a good choice - and it suits you, after all your name is Sunny! Do you think you might come to like it again?

[solitarynote]

[He opted to not answer her first question, even if she might think that was rude. Sorry Frieda, it was too tangled to explain that simply.

He seemed to almost pout as he tried to think. Could he… enjoy Summer again? It was like here, right? Did it even matter, if they were all dead? Did that mean the seasons wouldn’t come too?]

I… don’t know… [It was an unsatisfactory answer, even to his own ears, which burned with a small amount of shame. He took her hat off, holding it out for her. The sun was hot on his head but… he didn’t deserve to wear her hat. Not when he couldn’t tell the truth.] S-sorry…

[urtitan]

[It takes more than that to offend her! If anything, she wonders what about her question - or maybe not so much the question but the thoughts it triggered - upset him. She accepts her hat back, giving his own back to him in turn.]

It's alright. Being in a desert isn't the same as experiencing summer at home, after all.

...

For me, summer back home meant swimming in the lake with my siblings, and having picnic on the shore or in the meadows. The days were so long, the the air smelled so wonderful.

[Her voice is warm and wistful. Those were happy days for her. As nobles, the Reiss children didn't have to work or worry.]

[solitarynote]

[Hearing Frieda talk about it so fondly… the tone of her voice and the nostalgia of her own memories seems to melt the tension right out of him again.

He finds himself nodding in agreement… because that’s what it had felt like to him. Not a desert, but endless days of fun with his friends.

Until… he had ruined that too.]

…

[He hid beneath the toucan side of the hat for a moment, taking a few breaths and trying to find the courage to speak again. With Frieda, it was easier than others. His voice was still small.]

What… was your… favorite? [She had listed a lot, but what did she enjoy the most out of all that? Did she have anything at all?]

[urtitan]

My favourite summer activity, or my favourite season?

[But before he can clarify, she already proceeds.]

Honestly, I like all the seasons! Each has its own beauty and customs and celebrations. But in summer, I think I liked swimming especially much. It was so refreshing! Oh, and eating berries right from the bushes!

[solitarynote]

[Conversation was difficult like that… Sunny really did need to learn how to elaborate. But sometimes he forgot that he mind could jump from one topic to another seamlessly, but others had a hard time picking up on that. Just like he struggled with knowing the nuances of the flow of conversing.

He listened patiently though, paling a bit when she mentioned swimming. Berries seemed like a safer topic though.]

What… kinds…?

[urtitan]

[Being caught up in her fond memories, she doesn't register his subtle discomfort this time.]

All kinds - strawberries, gooseberries, raspberries, blackberries, currants... they all grew in our garden and all over the lands. And when summer turned into autumn, we'd have plums and apples and pears...

...

It's strange to not feel hunger anymore, isn't it?

[solitarynote]

[Sunny tried to imagine that… and what his brain came up with was a verifiable utopian garden, filled with all sorts of colors and tastes. There, shadows would not reach, the air filled with an abundance of light and cheer. Even winter, with its chill, would seem brighter there…

It was almost like something out of a dream. Sunny could almost see it, smell the fruity scents in the air…

And then her remark brought him back down to earth.]

Mhmm… [He nodded though… ‘strange’ was one way to put it. Sunny would have said not having hunger was almost ‘nice.’ Outside of nightmares, his stomach grumbling had been the most persistent thing to wake him from his idealistic slumber.

Which meant he had to get out of bed, go down the stairs, watch as the shadows from the window elongated into wispy trails, feather-light touches, a creeping darkness…

He may have paled slightly at the remembrance - it was hard to tell, he was still so pale here - but he didn’t want to worry Frieda with all of that.]

[urtitan]

[At his silence, her smile also diminishes.]

...

There isn't much for us to do here, is there?

[She wants to make herself useful, do something productive... but what options are there, really, beyond venturing out into the treacherous dunes for a chance of making a discovery?]

[solitarynote]

N-no…

[There really wasn’t anything to do here. Not that Sunny was bothered as much by that as the others. Most of his time was filled with…] Nap? [He seemed almost content when he suggested this. It was nice to not have to worry about something sneaking up on him while he slept (aside from the random thunder and sand storms).

If anyone asked Sunny, why explore the desert? It could be dangerous, there were Toast Ghost wandering around - ready to deal out emotionally damaging phrases - and it seemed endless. Why bother when they could stay here and be safe?

…Why couldn’t they stay here forever, instead of Crossing to another area? Sunny would have been content with that. Maybe… maybe then things wouldn’t go bad again.]

[urtitan]

[She has to smile at that suggestion. He's not wrong, is he? When was the last time she could just like down in the warm sun and rest, not having to worry about the past or the future? It's selfish, she knows that, but it's not like she has any other recourse.]

You're right, Sunny. We can finally catch up on all the sleep we missed out on in life.

(We can probably wrap with yours if you want <3 )

[solitarynote]

[He seems pleased that she agrees, a small hum leaving his mouth as he sat down. Patting the space near him almost absentmindedly, an invitation he hadn’t realized he had given and wanted accepted.

All of his worries seemingly forgotten for the moment…

It was warm out, Frieda was here, he had a new fun hat…

He could be content for a little while.]

🎀

[urtitan]

[She sits down, once again happy that he enjoys her company enough to seek her out and invite her to be with him - he's not one of her little siblings, so it isn't a given!

With how warm the sand is, it feels luxurious to stretch out, and she covers her face with her hat. With the light still finding its way through the natural fibres, she doesn't feel shut away from the world at all.]

Sleep well, Sunny.

[Even if neither of them really falls asleep, this atmosphere will make it easier to think brighter thoughts than the ones that were on her mind in the darkness of the cavern.]