You really should sleep if you can. Even normal snake bites have a hard recovery.
[ Oscar picks up his glove and tucks it into his pocket. He's debating how he wants to ask Dipper if he wouldn't mind revisiting that strangeness from earlier when Dipper beats him to it. Oscar's shoulder droop, but going by his expression when he turns around he's relieved rather than resigned. ]
I was hoping to ask you the same thing, actually.
[ He offers Dipper a faint smile, which only sticks around long enough to be registered before it fades. ]
[Basically his body will give up on him at some point and make him sleep, but Oscar does not yet know this about him, Hahaha. Anyway.]
[Dipper's own shoulders drop a bit in relief. He remembers what Josh said and ...he really didn't think Oscar would just ghost him, but he also doesn't know how much of Ozpin is in him right now and he knows THAT guy certainly would. He'd been worried.]
[He has to think of where he wants to start this. He'd made a list of talking points in his journal but now that the conversation is here he's scrambling a little.]
I'm sorry about lying to you when we met. I just ...wasn't sure what to do when I saw you. I panicked and kind of put you in a weird position when you've literally only been here since today.
[He takes a deep breath.]
Anything you want to know, I'll explain, promise. But ...if you don't want to know anything, that's fine too. I can even pretend like I don't know you again if that's what you want. [Even if it will kill him inside to do it.]
[ The apology comes first, and Oscar shakes his head. ]
I appreciate the apology, but don't stress yourself about it. I think I would have done something similar in your position.
[ And that's when he's only got a vague idea of what Dipper's 'position' even is. He thinks he'll feel even more strongly about that once he has all the details.
Being given carte blanche to ask whatever he wants is a little overwhelming. Where does he even start? He's already gathered that Dipper knows him, and that they were... somewhat close. Close enough that Dipper understood that Oscar associated himself with orange and made an effort to keep the color on him in one way or another, despite allegedly not being from Remnant. Oscar kind of doesn't want to start unpacking that right away, but he can't just ask nothing.
[That's not a surprising answer to get from Oscar about this apology, but he's grateful for it either way. It does a remarkable amount to actually settle him and this talk might actually go pretty okay-]
[And then Dipper's mood sours instantly at the mention of Ozpin.]
Ugh, okay. Fine, we can talk about him.
[He pinches the bridge of his nose to try and figure out how to start.]
So, full disclosure, I do know the full situation going on between you two. Let's just get that out of the way. In- Deerington where we met. Deerington being ...basically a nightmare realm, you and Ozpin had separate bodies. Ozpin used to date my uncle.
[ Dipper speaks, and Oscar goes through the most absurdly uncomfortable roller coaster of his life. First is mild surprise at the vehemence of Dipper's dislike for Ozpin... though that admittedly has more to do with Oscar's current understanding of Dipper's character, rather than any surprise that Ozpin could inspire that sort of dislike in someone.
But that surprise is quickly wiped out by a mix of shock and outright horror when Dipper claims to know the 'full situation' going on between them. Not because it's a huge secret—there are more than a dozen people on Remnant who know what's happening to him, not counting the ones that are dead—but because Dipper is a stranger to he and Ozpin both. He doesn't even appear to be associated with Salem. Oscar's not sure what he wants his base reaction to that to be because he has no other situation to compare it to.
And right when he thinks he's getting a grip on that emotional reaction, Dipper somehow hits him with an even bigger reveal. ]
[Yeah, he had a feeling this would be a lot all at once. He kind of had to get it out though. There's no real easy way to set this up. He does let his petty annoyance about Ozpin drain out of him, since it looks like they're not going to immediately address the fact that he's Ford's ex.]
Yeah.
[He sighs, scratches his hair for a moment, trying to think of what to say next.]
Is he in your head right now? If not, then this is kind of what happened in the last place I was in. You guys showed up separately from each other in your own bodies. I ...don't know if I have any pictures of him laying around to show you, though. Maybe in my first journal?
[ Man, it's strange to have someone just... call him out like that. Oscar blinks at the question of Ozpin's current status, but he shakes his head to confirm Dipper's suspicions. ]
No, he's not.
[ Does that mean he's somewhere else right now? Somewhere in his own body again? That's... a lot to take in. It's better than him just being permanently gone, but it's uncomfortable that Oscar has no idea where he is. ]
Oh—it's okay if you don't have any pictures. I know what he looked like. [ A pause. ] Kind of.
[ It's mostly just vague impressions of brown eyes and gray hair, and the occasional disconcerting sense that he should be much taller than he is right now. Ozpin owned a mirror, but he wasn't really much for preening. There wasn't much point in doing more than looking somewhat professional— ]
[Dipper nods a bit to him confirming that theory. He figures he would have noticed something if Ozpin had been there, but who knows. Anyway, he waves a hand a bit.]
Really, it's more so I can prove to you that I'm not crazy.
[He knows all of this must be wild to hear from a stranger, and it's going to probably keep getting wilder the more he explains, so he wouldn't begrudge Oscar being suspicious, even if he knows that him even knowing this stuff at all goes a long way to proving he isn't a liar.]
[Sometimes photographs are good. They don't tend to lie.]
Dated. They broke up after Ozpin did something that really violated my uncle's trust, so he's been on my shitlist for a while. The only reason I have not made his life utterly miserable in return is because I knew if I did anything beyond pranking him with glitter bombs you would make those eyes at me. So I behaved. Mostly.
[ Oscar just saw a horrifying vision of himself and Ozpin rendered in trees. He's willing to accept a lot of things at face value right now.
The news that Ozpin's relationship with Dipper's uncle was temporary, and that it appears to have ended entirely due to Ozpin's behavior, prompts Oscar to look equal parts frustrated and exasperated. What the hell? Ozpin had been doing so well for so long, and now this? He scuffs a hand through his hair. ]
I... can understand why you're not a fan.
[ Maybe he's being a little unfair, accepting that this all is true without giving Ozpin a chance to explain himself first. But all he has to do is think about the Relic attracting grim, about that day in the snow, about the months of silence that followed, and... yeah, he can see how Ozpin might fuck up a romantic relationship.
[Well. It's a relief that he really doesn't have to convince him. Oscar is not so far gone that he isn't willing to also be deeply frustrated by Ozpin's horeshit. That's nice, Dipper is happy about that.]
I really tried to give him a chance, too, for the record.
[HE DID. Ugh, that guy makes him so mad even now. Anyway, he sobers up at what he asks next and.]
[Dipper clearly hesitates, suddenly looking very uncertain of what he wants to say. Talking about Ozpin was a good distraction from everything else, but now he has to come clean about this.]
[He bites his lip and opens his journal. He turns a few pages, he knows exactly where that photo is, he's kept it in there for ages.]
...Before I show you this, I just need you to know. I'm not- I'm not expecting anything from you, okay? I know that I'm a complete stranger to you, and the Oscar I knew may as well be a whole different person.
[But he's stalling now. He holds the picture out to him.]
[It's cute. It looks like maybe they were in a kitchen, cooking something together. Their clothing seems kind of old fashioned under the aprons, and Dipper looks a little younger. He has less scars, his hair is shorter. He's grinning wildly while holding the camera up to catch them in a selfie. Oscar is holding a casserole dish. His hair is long and has a silver streak through it. They're both happy. Dipper's arms around his shoulder. They were. Very Close, in fact.]
[ When Oscar considers what he already knows for a fact and what he's already managed to guess at, that sort of preamble means there's only really one thing Dipper could be about to show him. But as Oscar accepts the picture, he's reminded that assuming is pretty different from seeing.
Oscar almost doesn't recognize himself. Not because of the longer hair or the silver streak; in anything, the silver seems like an almost appropriate parallel to Ozpin. It's just that the Oscar in the photo looks so happy. Oscar can't remember the last time he smiled like that, joyous and relaxed without relief or exhaustion coloring his expression. When he was a kid, maybe? And even if Oscar doesn't know this Oscar that Dipper knows, he does still know himself. He knows that he's picky about being touched. He knows that he prefers to work alone when he cooks. And yet here he is, looking as happy as can be with an arm around his shoulder and a collaborative meal in progress.
Yeah. There's really only thing this could be.
Oscar is silent as he studies the picture, and he's silent as he hands it back. He finally sits down, melancholy and regret plain in his expression. ]
... I'm sorry. It must be hard, meeting someone that looks like him but doesn't remember you.
[Dipper is quiet, and he watches Oscar for a moment while he studies the picture before finally tearing his gaze away to look at his journal. He waits, like waiting for something to drop, but when Oscar hands back the picture there is a moment of ...resignation? Acceptance maybe?]
[Maybe Dipper had still held out hope that the photograph would have jarred something loose. That despite all the signs pointing otherwise, maybe his Oscar still was in there somewhere.]
[But there's nothing, just an apology, and Dipper has no choice but to swallow it. He'll grieve some time later, when he is alone. For now he quietly takes the photo back and puts it ever so gently back in between the pages of his journal where it lives. Dipper has quite a few photos in there, as it turns out. He likes taking pictures.]
It isn't your fault, [He finally says, shaking is head.] The whims of the multiverse are just kind of like this. There isn't anything either of us can do about it.
[It is hard, and it's been hard this entire time, but he isn't going to make that Oscar's problem.]
I meant what I said earlier. I'm not expecting anything from you. As far as I know you're both different people. You could choose not to have anything to do with me and that would be your right.
[But he hopes that's not what happens, honestly. He's saying all this but...]
[ Oscar catches that hint of resignation in Dipper's body language, but he's not about the remark on it. He just watches as Dipper carefully tucks the photograph back into his journal. Really, even if he did want to say something he knows there's nothing that would make any difference. He knows absolutely nothing about Dipper's relationship with this other version of Oscar, and he's not about to propose a romantic entanglement just to make Dipper feel better.
But still, he wishes there was something more he could say or do.
Dipper's reminder that he's not expecting anything isn't exactly a relief—Oscar had believed him the first time—but Oscar appreciates that he insists on reasserting himself. But the additional reassurance that Dipper will accept if Oscar wants nothing to do with him has Oscar blinking.
And then laughs. Not much, barely enough to even qualify as a chuckle, but when he tries for a smile this time it doesn't fade immediately after. ]
I was actually about to say the same thing to you.
[ It might be awkward for Oscar, but surely it's agonizing for Dipper. ]
So it sounds like we can assume neither of us actually wants to part ways to never see each other again.
[He did not realize just how much he was hoping Oscar wouldn't take that offer up. When he straight up proposes maybe they shouldn't avoid each other, something deeply relieved runs through him. He would do it if it was what he wanted.]
[But he knew it would hurt worse in the end, to not even have his friendship while he was right there. Above all else, he valued that the most.]
Yeah. I um. I would like ...if nothing else, that maybe we could still be friends.
[ Oscar, too, relaxes a little. They didn't have much of a conversation prior to the snake ruining everything, but what conversation was there was enough to make Oscar think Dipper was someone worth knowing. It's a relief to know that this extremely awkwardness hasn't ruined that. ]
I'd like that.
[ There's a lot more he'd like to ask, honestly, but this has already been a pretty intense conversation. And he's not even the one recovering from a haunted snake bite. ]
And if it's not to much to ask as a new friend, you really should get some sleep.
[You can see the way he almost protests, but then he relents, sighing and leaning back against his pillow. Alcaid spitefully clambers onto his chest with a little squeak.]
Fine. [If he will listen to anyone, its Oscar.] I’ll try to sleep, but I know you’ve got questions so-
[He leans over and grabs his journal, handing it off to him.]
I keep a pretty thorough journal of the stuff that happens here. It should answer a lot of your questions. [A Pause.]
I have more of them at my house, about the stuff that happened before I got here, which includes all my notes about Remnant. You’re welcome to those, too. My place is a log cabin up north on the tree line. My great-uncle Stan should be there, he’d let you in if you need anything.
[ Oscar can see the way Dipper almost protests, and he's reminded powerfully of several people he already knows. He doesn't comment, though—partially because it is weird as fuck to watch and ambulatory puffball vanish into Dipper's chest.
Oscar's visibly surprised to have Dipper offer out his journal, though he reaches out and takes it all the same. It seems like something pretty important (that photo is in there) and some part of Oscar wants to insist that it's okay, he can wait until Dipper is up to read it.
But Oscar's spent a lot of time poring over books without finding answers, lately. It sounds like this one might actually contain the information he needs. So he reaches out and accepts it, though he does still handle it with care. ]
Near where you found me, right?
[ He remembers Dipper mentioning that his family lived nearby. He doesn't think he wants to go actually rummaging through Dipper's things uninvited, but he might at least drop this journal off there once he's done. ]
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
no subject
[ Oscar picks up his glove and tucks it into his pocket. He's debating how he wants to ask Dipper if he wouldn't mind revisiting that strangeness from earlier when Dipper beats him to it. Oscar's shoulder droop, but going by his expression when he turns around he's relieved rather than resigned. ]
I was hoping to ask you the same thing, actually.
[ He offers Dipper a faint smile, which only sticks around long enough to be registered before it fades. ]
You beat me to it, so... you first.
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[Basically his body will give up on him at some point and make him sleep, but Oscar does not yet know this about him, Hahaha. Anyway.]
[Dipper's own shoulders drop a bit in relief. He remembers what Josh said and ...he really didn't think Oscar would just ghost him, but he also doesn't know how much of Ozpin is in him right now and he knows THAT guy certainly would. He'd been worried.]
[He has to think of where he wants to start this. He'd made a list of talking points in his journal but now that the conversation is here he's scrambling a little.]
I'm sorry about lying to you when we met. I just ...wasn't sure what to do when I saw you. I panicked and kind of put you in a weird position when you've literally only been here since today.
[He takes a deep breath.]
Anything you want to know, I'll explain, promise. But ...if you don't want to know anything, that's fine too. I can even pretend like I don't know you again if that's what you want. [Even if it will kill him inside to do it.]
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I appreciate the apology, but don't stress yourself about it. I think I would have done something similar in your position.
[ And that's when he's only got a vague idea of what Dipper's 'position' even is. He thinks he'll feel even more strongly about that once he has all the details.
Being given carte blanche to ask whatever he wants is a little overwhelming. Where does he even start? He's already gathered that Dipper knows him, and that they were... somewhat close. Close enough that Dipper understood that Oscar associated himself with orange and made an effort to keep the color on him in one way or another, despite allegedly not being from Remnant. Oscar kind of doesn't want to start unpacking that right away, but he can't just ask nothing.
In the end, he only sees one way forward. ]
... How do you know Ozpin?
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[And then Dipper's mood sours instantly at the mention of Ozpin.]
Ugh, okay. Fine, we can talk about him.
[He pinches the bridge of his nose to try and figure out how to start.]
So, full disclosure, I do know the full situation going on between you two. Let's just get that out of the way. In- Deerington where we met. Deerington being ...basically a nightmare realm, you and Ozpin had separate bodies. Ozpin used to date my uncle.
no subject
But that surprise is quickly wiped out by a mix of shock and outright horror when Dipper claims to know the 'full situation' going on between them. Not because it's a huge secret—there are more than a dozen people on Remnant who know what's happening to him, not counting the ones that are dead—but because Dipper is a stranger to he and Ozpin both. He doesn't even appear to be associated with Salem. Oscar's not sure what he wants his base reaction to that to be because he has no other situation to compare it to.
And right when he thinks he's getting a grip on that emotional reaction, Dipper somehow hits him with an even bigger reveal. ]
... Separate bodies...?
no subject
Yeah.
[He sighs, scratches his hair for a moment, trying to think of what to say next.]
Is he in your head right now? If not, then this is kind of what happened in the last place I was in. You guys showed up separately from each other in your own bodies. I ...don't know if I have any pictures of him laying around to show you, though. Maybe in my first journal?
no subject
No, he's not.
[ Does that mean he's somewhere else right now? Somewhere in his own body again? That's... a lot to take in. It's better than him just being permanently gone, but it's uncomfortable that Oscar has no idea where he is. ]
Oh—it's okay if you don't have any pictures. I know what he looked like. [ A pause. ] Kind of.
[ It's mostly just vague impressions of brown eyes and gray hair, and the occasional disconcerting sense that he should be much taller than he is right now. Ozpin owned a mirror, but he wasn't really much for preening. There wasn't much point in doing more than looking somewhat professional— ]
Wait. Ozpin was dating someone? Your uncle?
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Really, it's more so I can prove to you that I'm not crazy.
[He knows all of this must be wild to hear from a stranger, and it's going to probably keep getting wilder the more he explains, so he wouldn't begrudge Oscar being suspicious, even if he knows that him even knowing this stuff at all goes a long way to proving he isn't a liar.]
[Sometimes photographs are good. They don't tend to lie.]
Dated. They broke up after Ozpin did something that really violated my uncle's trust, so he's been on my shitlist for a while. The only reason I have not made his life utterly miserable in return is because I knew if I did anything beyond pranking him with glitter bombs you would make those eyes at me. So I behaved. Mostly.
no subject
The news that Ozpin's relationship with Dipper's uncle was temporary, and that it appears to have ended entirely due to Ozpin's behavior, prompts Oscar to look equal parts frustrated and exasperated. What the hell? Ozpin had been doing so well for so long, and now this? He scuffs a hand through his hair. ]
I... can understand why you're not a fan.
[ Maybe he's being a little unfair, accepting that this all is true without giving Ozpin a chance to explain himself first. But all he has to do is think about the Relic attracting grim, about that day in the snow, about the months of silence that followed, and... yeah, he can see how Ozpin might fuck up a romantic relationship.
And Dipper only refrained cause of Oscar, huh? ]
... And what about us? How did you know me?
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I really tried to give him a chance, too, for the record.
[HE DID. Ugh, that guy makes him so mad even now. Anyway, he sobers up at what he asks next and.]
[Dipper clearly hesitates, suddenly looking very uncertain of what he wants to say. Talking about Ozpin was a good distraction from everything else, but now he has to come clean about this.]
[He bites his lip and opens his journal. He turns a few pages, he knows exactly where that photo is, he's kept it in there for ages.]
...Before I show you this, I just need you to know. I'm not- I'm not expecting anything from you, okay? I know that I'm a complete stranger to you, and the Oscar I knew may as well be a whole different person.
[But he's stalling now. He holds the picture out to him.]
[It's cute. It looks like maybe they were in a kitchen, cooking something together. Their clothing seems kind of old fashioned under the aprons, and Dipper looks a little younger. He has less scars, his hair is shorter. He's grinning wildly while holding the camera up to catch them in a selfie. Oscar is holding a casserole dish. His hair is long and has a silver streak through it. They're both happy. Dipper's arms around his shoulder. They were. Very Close, in fact.]
no subject
Oscar almost doesn't recognize himself. Not because of the longer hair or the silver streak; in anything, the silver seems like an almost appropriate parallel to Ozpin. It's just that the Oscar in the photo looks so happy. Oscar can't remember the last time he smiled like that, joyous and relaxed without relief or exhaustion coloring his expression. When he was a kid, maybe? And even if Oscar doesn't know this Oscar that Dipper knows, he does still know himself. He knows that he's picky about being touched. He knows that he prefers to work alone when he cooks. And yet here he is, looking as happy as can be with an arm around his shoulder and a collaborative meal in progress.
Yeah. There's really only thing this could be.
Oscar is silent as he studies the picture, and he's silent as he hands it back. He finally sits down, melancholy and regret plain in his expression. ]
... I'm sorry. It must be hard, meeting someone that looks like him but doesn't remember you.
no subject
[Maybe Dipper had still held out hope that the photograph would have jarred something loose. That despite all the signs pointing otherwise, maybe his Oscar still was in there somewhere.]
[But there's nothing, just an apology, and Dipper has no choice but to swallow it. He'll grieve some time later, when he is alone. For now he quietly takes the photo back and puts it ever so gently back in between the pages of his journal where it lives. Dipper has quite a few photos in there, as it turns out. He likes taking pictures.]
It isn't your fault, [He finally says, shaking is head.] The whims of the multiverse are just kind of like this. There isn't anything either of us can do about it.
[It is hard, and it's been hard this entire time, but he isn't going to make that Oscar's problem.]
I meant what I said earlier. I'm not expecting anything from you. As far as I know you're both different people. You could choose not to have anything to do with me and that would be your right.
[But he hopes that's not what happens, honestly. He's saying all this but...]
no subject
But still, he wishes there was something more he could say or do.
Dipper's reminder that he's not expecting anything isn't exactly a relief—Oscar had believed him the first time—but Oscar appreciates that he insists on reasserting himself. But the additional reassurance that Dipper will accept if Oscar wants nothing to do with him has Oscar blinking.
And then laughs. Not much, barely enough to even qualify as a chuckle, but when he tries for a smile this time it doesn't fade immediately after. ]
I was actually about to say the same thing to you.
[ It might be awkward for Oscar, but surely it's agonizing for Dipper. ]
So it sounds like we can assume neither of us actually wants to part ways to never see each other again.
no subject
[He did not realize just how much he was hoping Oscar wouldn't take that offer up. When he straight up proposes maybe they shouldn't avoid each other, something deeply relieved runs through him. He would do it if it was what he wanted.]
[But he knew it would hurt worse in the end, to not even have his friendship while he was right there. Above all else, he valued that the most.]
Yeah. I um. I would like ...if nothing else, that maybe we could still be friends.
no subject
I'd like that.
[ There's a lot more he'd like to ask, honestly, but this has already been a pretty intense conversation. And he's not even the one recovering from a haunted snake bite. ]
And if it's not to much to ask as a new friend, you really should get some sleep.
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Fine. [If he will listen to anyone, its Oscar.] I’ll try to sleep, but I know you’ve got questions so-
[He leans over and grabs his journal, handing it off to him.]
I keep a pretty thorough journal of the stuff that happens here. It should answer a lot of your questions. [A Pause.]
I have more of them at my house, about the stuff that happened before I got here, which includes all my notes about Remnant. You’re welcome to those, too. My place is a log cabin up north on the tree line. My great-uncle Stan should be there, he’d let you in if you need anything.
no subject
Oscar's visibly surprised to have Dipper offer out his journal, though he reaches out and takes it all the same. It seems like something pretty important (that photo is in there) and some part of Oscar wants to insist that it's okay, he can wait until Dipper is up to read it.
But Oscar's spent a lot of time poring over books without finding answers, lately. It sounds like this one might actually contain the information he needs. So he reaches out and accepts it, though he does still handle it with care. ]
Near where you found me, right?
[ He remembers Dipper mentioning that his family lived nearby. He doesn't think he wants to go actually rummaging through Dipper's things uninvited, but he might at least drop this journal off there once he's done. ]