oceanview (different path) || ❝ turn the page i need to see something new. ❞

[outlierdirector]

a different path,
the same road.

When I thought that I fought this war alone
You were there by my side on the frontline
When I thought that I fought without a cause
You gave me a reason to try CODE BY TESSISAMESS

Comments

📜— forward, by alan wake.

[outlierdirector]

Every story has the same path. The beginning, the middle, the end. Each has a part and a step. Pieces that need to happen along the plot to make it move. To give it a heartbeat. Make it feel real. The more real it feels, the more people believe, and then the story becomes real. A living thing. The new reality around you.

Readers see the final version of that story. The one that gets to the printing press. They don't see the different versions. The rough drafts. The edits. That's the magic behind the scenes to make a story real. But those drafts--those versions--are just as real as the final one. Parts of them live on in that perfected work of art while the rest get thrown aside.

How many versions of "Return" had I written before I stopped? How many versions went by before I realized that "Initiation" had to happen first? Did I ever go back and try to change "Departure" to make it work? I can't remember. Memory is fluid in the Dark Place.

Maybe there was some version of "Return" that had a revised edition of "Departure." A rewrite, a remaster, something added to make the future events make sense. Maybe a longing to put something in to help me for "Initiation" and "Return."

The story would have to stay the same in so many parts. Delicate, hard work. Subtle things that would change the path of the over arcing narrative, but not the story of "Departure." I would still have to end up in the Dark Place. Alice would have to be safe. The same people would have to have the same fate. Just with something unordinary added.

"Departure" 2.0. Remastered.

📜— episode 3: ransom.

[outlierdirector]

( the indulging will continue until we get jesse proper in alan wake 2 SMADGE )

—good morning, bright falls.

[outlierdirector]

[ Jesse Faden can't say she had an exact reason for being in Bright Springs, Washington.

All she did was follow a message.

The message was sent by her friend... her best friend. Sometimes months would go by before she heard anything from her. It had been the case after graduation, and stumbling into the "real" world. Work, rent, money. She refused to stay at another foster home and would rather sleep on a park bench (which she has) then rely on people picked by the system. A system she didn't even trust.

Polaris. That's what she had named her friend, and her friend didn't seem to mind the name at all. The message was faint, but, Jesse had been able to piece it together. Where to go, the dates to be there by. She arrived earlier than what Polaris had sent her, but, that may have been for the best. There's been so much she's found... not that she's sure why.

She thought maybe coming here would lead her to Dylan after all these years. That doesn't seem to be the case. Once again, another place, no closer to her baby brother she lost. She was mad at Polaris for a few days for it. She didn't care. If it didn't lead to Dylan, why was she even here? The longer she stayed, the more she realized one thing.

Bright Falls. Just weird enough to almost be like home was. Ordinary.

Which meant something weird would happen... or was happening.

Bright Falls is a quaint little old town. Everyone knows everyone, so when someone new rolls in, everyone notices. The exact attention Jesse hates. She wants to be under the radar so no one notices her. She keeps to herself, offers to do jobs here and there, paying for a few months of rent at a time. She didn't plan on staying forever. Just until whatever she was here for was over and she'd move onto the next town. The next place Polaris pointed her.

The only thing in the small one bedroom apartment that she has that would point to personal affects is the wall plastered in notes, pictures of old newspaper clippings, and newer newspapers. Some strings that connect things together as she's pieced it together. Bits of notes she got from asking around town. The people that no one ever really talked to... like Cynthia Weaver.

That's how she's fallen asleep. On the couch, facing the wall, dozing after putting a few more things together. She still doesn't understand why Polaris brought her here. Minus the eerie feeling at night that seems to crawl into the town. A feeling that reminds her of how Ordinary felt when everything went to hell. Something was happening, but even those weird glowing pages she found didn't seem to make sense in any order she put them in.

Especially the ones about her.

The banging on the door is what startles her awake.

She rolls onto the floor and snaps her head up, green eyes wide under the misplaced red hair. She quickly scrambles to the front door, staying below any view sight of the window. Her hands press against the bottom of the door, listening to the erratic pounding. It sounds... tired. Stressed. Sometimes it pounds louder, sometimes it's quieter. There's mumbling beyond the door.

« It's probably not them--right? They wouldn't knock. They'd just break the door down and snatch me away. No questions, no debates, no chance to get away. They'd just drag me off. So... who the hell is banging on the door at six in the morning? »

Jesse quickly pulls herself up, still pressed against the door. She makes sure the chain is still in place--which really shows how old things in Bright Falls are--before unlocking the door handle. She moves close to the door as she opens it, peeking her head around the side to see who it is. Just in case she needs to slam the door quickly and head out the back.

Her bright green eyes widen at the sight of the man there. Of course she knows who it is, cause everyone in Bright Falls knows him. Even if Pat Maine hadn't said it on the radio? That cut out in the diner was the clear key of who he is the moment he walked in. She blinks once, eyebrows knitting together.

« Wow, he looks like shit. »

Polaris shifts slightly and Jesse feels her friend might have even found the comment funny.

The nineteen year old shifts slightly to try and hide more view of the darkened apartment. Not that it's too dark, the light shines through the blinds and curtains to indicate the sunrise. ]

...Alan Wake?

[ « Why would he be here? He didn't pay us any attention in the diner when he showed up in town. » ]

[crazyisinevitable]

[ How did everything go to hell so quickly? All Alan wanted was to get away. To get away from the tension at home, the stilted conversations, the fights. Doors would slam, one or both of them would stomp away (how many noise complaints had they gotten? Alan couldn't remember), and usually, Alan would end up sleeping alone on the couch.

Maybe it wouldn't make sense to anyone who hadn't gone through relationship troubles, but when the hammer finally came down and the paperwork to finalize the separation arrived, he felt relieved. Nothing was signed yet, but the papers were there. He just had to put his name on them, send them off to his lawyer, and the process would be in motion.

But there was a delay of some kind, so his lawyer recommended he just relax a little bit, maybe not worry about what was going to happen. It wasn't really what anyone wanted, but Alan decided to get away for a little while. The city was home, of course, but it was starting to feel stifling. He's not really sure how he landed on Bright Falls; maybe he opened an atlas, pointed at a spot, and that's where he decided to go.

It's not really surprising that when he got there, the whole town was set abuzz. Of course people knew him. They even dragged out a cutout of him from somewhere. People wanted to talk to him, wanted him to sign things, and for the most part, he did what they wanted. It kept him from thinking too much, and that really was the trouble with him. If he thought too much, he started to get a little crazy. If he could just put on the celebrity author face and sign a few books, he could maybe feel a little normal.

As close to normal as he could get, anyway.

But then things abruptly stopped being normal. Alan's memories of it all are hazy. He remembers collecting the keys to a cabin, and everything went weird from there. There was something about a kidnapping- no, not just a kidnapping. Alice was kidnapped. Alan had to find her. But when he tried to find her, he just kept getting turned around. Looped back on himself. Lost. He never found Alice. There's blood on his hands, but he doesn't remember how it got there. His hands feel like they're bruised too. Did he get in a fight with Alice's kidnapper? What the hell?

Nothing really makes sense. He can barely keep track of what time it is, and his head is all foggy like he's been drugged. Was I drugged? I think- Barry. Barry was there. And Rose. Rose did something, though. But what?

That girl in the diner, the one with all the notes on the table. She looked like she knew something. Or maybe she doesn't. But she looked like the type of person who overhears things. People overlook her, but she's there listening. Maybe she heard something. I need to talk to her.

And that's what led him to her door, where he stands there banging erratically on it. He hears rustling from inside, so someone's there, but they're taking their time coming to the door. He keeps knocking until he sees the door start to move. The chain is still on it, but that doesn't bother him. With how paranoid he feels, it makes sense.

He peers in through the crack in the door. Of course she knows his name. Who doesn't, around here? ]

Yeah. Look, I- I'm... I need a hand with something, and- it sounds insane, but maybe you can help.

[outlierdirector]

[ Her eyebrows knit further.

« Me? What can I do? I... I've done everything I can to keep my head down. I always draw attention no matter where I go. No matter how hard I try. As long as it's not enough to get THEIR attention. Not unless it's on my terms... wait, blood? »

Jesse's green eyes dart down to Alan's hands. There is blood on them. Not much, but, enough where it can stand out. Dried, so it's not on her door, which is a good thing. She wouldn't want to explain that. ]

I don't know how I could...

[ Jesse trails off and looks to the side. Polaris tugs her mind to the "crazy wall." There's something Alan needs there?

None of it makes sense.

Polaris hasn't been wrong before.

She closes the door for a moment. The sound of the chain can be heard. Then, the door reopens enough for Alan to walk inside comfortably. Jesse closes the door quickly and slides the chain lock back in place.

The apartment is clean, tidy, almost doesn't look lived in. Except for the notes pinned to the wall. Jesse awkwardly shifts for a moment rubbing her shoulder. ]

There's a bathroom you can clean up in if you want. [ She glances Alan over again. Some blood, bits of dirt, greenery from the forest. ] Do you... sorry. I don't usually have .... well...

[ A sigh. ] Do you want coffee? Breakfast? Maybe you had some already...

—the early evening.

[outlierdirector]

[ By the time she comes out with breakfast, Alan Wake is fast asleep. She pauses and simply watches him for a moment. Her mind is trying to understand the series of events that led to a famous writer sleeping on a couch she rents in an apartment, but honestly, the only thing she can find is her gut reaction.

She's here for a reason neither understand. Maybe only Polaris understands or knows it. Her best friend is... well, she doesn't always share all that she knows with Jesse. There have been starts that feel false, dead ends, failed leads. All to try and find her brother. So, why would Polaris want her here to help with Alan Wake?

She sighs.

After breakfast, she grabs another blanket and drapes it on the chair nearby Alan. The curtains are shut and she gets to work. The map, the notes, the string. All of it is taken down and secured in a bag. A bag she is going to take with her. If the people who did take Dylan show up? She won't give them another chance to take information. Not on their terms anyways.

She places the bag beside the chair and curls up in it. The blanket is pulled around her and she finds herself drifting off into a light sleep. She hasn't slept deeply in years. ]

[crazyisinevitable]

[ He really didn't intend to fall asleep so quickly or so deeply, but his need to just stop for a second finally caught up to him. His sleep is restful for a little while, but coinciding with Jesse curling up in the chair, it becomes a little bit less so. His brow furrows and his mouth turns down into a frown.

He mumbles in his sleep, but he doesn't wake up. In his dream, or nightmare, or whatever it is, he sees a redhead. Jesse. At first, he can't hear what she's saying, but she's yelling at him. And then the scene seems to shift again. It's still Jesse, but she's older, and angrier, but he still can't hear what she's yelling at him.

Is she angry with him? What did he do? She yells again, and suddenly she's behind a window... or a mirror... She's not angry, but she pounds on the glass.

Alan turns over restlessly as the dream continues. He may not remember this when he wakes up, and perhaps that's for the best. After all, it's just something his mind made up, right? ]

[outlierdirector]

[ Jesse Faden has been trying to reach the missing writer. Maybe not long in relativity to the waking world, but it feels like a long time.

She can't control the dream like reality of the Dark Place. She isn't a creator or a scientist. She's... a weapon, a force that plows through things or defends them. Shaping things like dreams isn't what she does. Which means she has no real way to shape how messages get to Alan Wake--if they do at all. Visions, phone calls, radio signals, notes, dreams. Any can apply, but she can't chose which way Alan can recieve it... or even when he does.

She's sent herself a message through a mirror before. A message to try and change things in a time Alan Wake can barely convince of now. She's trying again to reach the writer who can shape reality. Again, and again, and again, and again... and she so rarely makes it through.

Maybe this time it has.

Her eyes widen at the sight of him, clearly surprised to have caught his attention. It's him. The tweed jacket, hoodie, jeans... but it's also not him in a way. Short hair, stubble instead of a beard, and younger. His eyes not haunted. It makes her heart pound at the sight in front of him. Alan Wake as he should be.

Just, a little younger.

« Maybe it will still help somehow. A ripple. Like, when you throw a rock at the water and the ripples spread out and out... the Dark Place is like an ocean. Right? »

She puts her hands on the mirror surface once again. The mirror she's been able to find as a weak point between where she is and where he is. Or, when. ]

Nala. Pu ekaw ot deen uoy. Ni etirw uoy moor eht ni tub, smaerd ni ton. [ Her head tilts slightly and she frowns. Worry is in her eyes, but so is one other emotion: love. Her tone has become gentler now that she has his attention. ] Nala.

[ More details become obvious then. Her outfit is strangely shaped made of blacks and teal straps falling from the front. Fingerless gloves. Her green eyes are brighter, almost as if they are shimmering something else. Behind her is nothing but darkness--and one Alan should be familiar with even now. Thin whisps of smoke and dark clouds. ]

—the coal mine musuem.

[outlierdirector]

( cont from here)

[ Jesse nods to his statements and his resolve. It's the most they can do--trust what's on the pages. Considering she doesn't trust easy? It's quite a feat from her. She's willing to trust him, his manuscript pages, and his direction.

That's more than she gives most people.

The thought remains in the back of her mind as the car starts and they make their way to the Coal Mine Museum. Why does she trust him so much? It can't only be the fact that he believes what she's told him about Ordinary. This much trust can't be afforded just because of a little belief.

« Can it? »

She pulls into the mine once the sun has risen to a comfortable morning warmth. It's still crisp for an early autumn day, but better now that the sun is up. She parks the car and then hands him her bag. The kidnapper needs the manuscript, right? That means he needs to hang onto it. She promises not to drive off and to stay close.

Just in case.

Jesse watches him head into the Coal Mine Museum. He climbs the set of stairs, enters the inside, and closes the door. Her hands curl on the steering wheel. She leans forward. The door doesn't reopen. A moment passes.

She leans back into the seat.

« His wife means the world to him. Having someone do something crazy like this for you... does she realize how much he must love her?

It must be nice. Having someone that cares like that. Even if he is a bit of an asshole. »

She glances to the side then as Polaris simply shifts. It's clear to Jesse then how lonely she's become. It's been her for so long. Polaris doesn't always answer, and sometimes she's not even there to answer. The time in Bright Falls has been the most Polaris has "spoken" to her in years.

« Are you going to leave again after this is over? Wake will. If this story really has pulled his wife into it? Then, they'll leave together when it's over. It'll just be me... and you. You'll stay with me. Won't you? »

Polaris shimmers.

« ...thank you. »

Jesse slips from the car then. The thought had occurred to her that if the kidnapper sees her in the car? The deal could be off. She quickly makes her way to one of the other buildings. The door opens quietly and closes just as softly. Her foots echo in the room as she walks from exhibit to exhibit, taking in the history of Bright Falls and how the town and it's sister rival Watery began.

She comes to stop at a large painting. That wave of loneliness strikes her again.

« When he does leave... no one is going to be left who believes me. »

It feels like a punch to the gut when she realizes it. Her hands begin to shake. Jesse lowers herself to the ground and curls up slightly. Alan would leave with his wife and put all this weirdness behind him. He'd go back to "normal" reality. It'll pass over him like it does everyone else.

She'll be the only one in the room with the poster removed.

Jesse moves to lower her head when a ringing cuts through the air. It's the phone at the entry desk. She glances around, seeing no employees. It makes sense as no cares were parked outside. She simply settles back down.

The phone rings again.

Polaris pulls at her to answer it.

Jesse hesitates for another moment. Then, she's quickly but quietly making her way to the phone. Her hand shakes before she picks it up. Then, she turns and sinks down to the floor so the kidnapper doesn't see her through a window. ]

...Hello?

[crazyisinevitable]

[ When they reach their destination, the Coal Mine Museum, Alan exchanges a few words, more or less a "see you in a minute" rather than "goodbye", because this isn't goodbye. He just needs to figure out what the hell is going on, and maybe whatever happens in the museum will help with that. If it doesn't, well, then they're back to square one.

But even if they have to start over, maybe they'll have a few more clues than they started with. He eventually nods and takes the bag with the manuscript and leaves the car with a promise to come back as soon as he can.

But in the meantime, somewhere far away from where Jesse's parked the car, another man is pacing: pacing back and forth along the hardwood floor. His pace isn't frantic or panicked, but it's no less purposeful. It's slow but steady. He doesn't appear too disturbed, but there's an air of longing about him nonetheless. It's not quite sadness, but there's a bit of that in his expression.

He speaks to the empty room, knowing no one will answer back: ] I shouldn't do this, and I know it. I shouldn't call out to her, or even try reaching her, because- what more can she do than she's already done? But... I miss her and I just want to hear her voice, even if it's only for a second.

[ His hands clench into fists as he battles with himself about what to do. Finally, he speaks aloud again: ]

Screw it.

[ Somewhere, a phone rings, and the man in the quiet room is on the other end of the call. A rush of breath leaves him when he hears the call get picked up and hears the voice on the other end. ]

Jesse?

[outlierdirector]

[ Jesse just gives a half-smile at his "see you in a minute." She doesn't doubt he'll be back... it's more the end of the "adventure" that's hovering in her mind. What happens when the weird is over. Not that she should think about it, as she's certain she knows how it'll end.

Just her and Polaris.

Her eyebrows come together at the sound of Alan's voice on the phone. She glances up at the coal mine, then down at the phone in her hand. Weirder things have happened, but it's certainly weird. She curls back under the desk and holds it back to her ear.

« He sounds... older. » ]

...Wake? [ If he sounds older, she certainly sounds younger. ]

📜— episode 4: the truth.

[outlierdirector]

—cauldron lake lodge.

[outlierdirector]

[ Jesse smiles fondly at him. She thinks it helps--that he helps. There was nothing to point her in the way of what to do in Ordinary. Not until they were able to reach Polaris again. Even then, it didn't bring the people back that were missing. It didn't fix their town. It just stopped everything.

She imagines he has more than her and Polaris. There are plenty of people who would help famous Alan Wake. There's that loud mouth agent that is walking around town threatening authorities about Alan. Rose is his biggest fan. Supposedly. She drugged him, didn't she?

Jesse and Alan make their way in the direction of Mirror Peak. She holds his hand, except when they're assaulted by Taken that they can't run away from. They cross through the leftovers of an old mining town, and Jesse has to wonder if all of this is present during the day. Or, did it just happen for the story? There are ghost towns of the old mining aspects of Bright Falls and Watery, but, something about it just feels off.

They eventually find their way to Mirror Peak. Jesse falls in line behind Alan, hands on his back to make sure she doesn't lose him. A scream suddenly fills the air and she can feel a shift. Her head snaps the way of the scream, and Alan seems to shift into another mindset. He tells her to stay where she is in the light, and dashes off on the path ahead. ]

Alan!

"I'm sorry! Please, lady! The boss didn't know who he was messing with! I swear, I didn't know! We don't have his wife! We don't know where she is! She probably drowned! We just said we had her to make him play ball, you see, you see? To get him to write for us!"

[ « That's the voice of the guy on the phone. »

Polaris pulses in the direction Alan went. She can see the shimmer of her friend. Jesse wastes no time and takes off into the night, knowing Alan is ahead of her somewhere. ]

Alan, stop!

[ Jesse darts up the wooden stairs that leads to the peak outlook. Right as she comes to the top, her eyes land on the two men just ahead of her. Polaris shimmers again and she starts running as fast as she can to them. ]

Alan! Get away from him!

[ She suddenly is hit by a force she can't even see. A high pitched scream echoes in the air as a torendo forms. Jesse hits the ground on her side, looking up at the force of air and... just pure darkness. It almost seems to reach out and first grab the man, pulling it into the Dark whisps of wind. Jesse's eyes widen as she suddenly feels dread fill her.

Polaris tugs at her mind.

« That's it? The thing thats hunting him? The Dark Presence? It's... »

It isn't the same as the Not-Mother, but Jesse knows that feel of reality changing to something it shouldn't be. Something that doesn't belong invading in.

She pushes herself up and once again starts running towards Alan and yelling his name.

Too late.

The Dark Presence seems to launch the Writer off the look out.

Jesse's feet hit the wood of the lookout and she hits the railing full force. Her eyes scan the darkness below in hopes of seeing him. It's so dark that she doesn't think even a flashlight would be able to shine through. She moves to the other railing, climbing up one of the wood planks to lift herself higher in hopes of seeing more. ]

Alan? Alan!

[ The shift of waves roar up from Cauldron Lake below. The distant sound of engines from boats can be heard. Jesse, however, slumps against the railing with her whole body shaking. Polaris shimmers around her, but she can't even focus on what her friend is trying to tell her.

All she can feel is that same numbness that hit her when she realized every adult in Ordinary was gone. When all her friends were stuck with the Not-Mother. When they took Dylan.

Except this feels almost like a part of her has been torn off.

« Why--why does it feel this way? We... he can't be gone. Not like everyone else. Not him too. I just... »

I just found him. ]


[ However, for Alan, the dark waters recede. A familiar sense of home envelopes him. Open eyes would show the apartment he shares with Alice. Everything is as he left it before their split, before he went to Bright Falls.

The morning sun is even entering the windows.

Footsteps and movement can be heard from further in the apartment. Though, it's not Alice he finds. Instead a woman with bright red hair is making her way through the living room. Pulled back in a ponytail, a brown leather jacket, jeans, boots. She hasn't noticed he's awake. ]

[crazyisinevitable]

[ Alan doesn't know it, but things are already beginning to unravel. His determined statement to not let go of her is already being tested as they make their way closer to Mirror Peak. Danger follows them even before they get there, as Taken are lurking around. They survive the encounters with Taken, if it can be called surviving, but suddenly, a switch flips. There's a scream, and abruptly, Alan's senses dial up to 11. Suddenly he's on high alert, and he tells Jesse to stay there, to stay in the light while he goes and finds out what's going on.

His hurried steps propel him away from Jesse and further off down the path. Everything is really spiraling out of control now, and Alan seems to be caught up in it. But as he's running, as he's trying to do something, a sinking feeling pulls at him. What if this was all a trick? What if Alice was never in danger?

We don't have his wife! We don't know where she is!

... It was all a lie. He did all this for nothing, and now he's no closer to finding out where Alice is. Maybe Alice was never here at all. Maybe she's back in New York where she's supposed to be. And now Alan's dragged Jesse into this and put her and himself in danger for nothing, for no reason at all.

I'm an idiot! A stupid idiot...

But Alan has no more time to react than Jesse does. He's not swept away by an invisible force. It's more that he's pushed away, and all the pushing back that he tries to do proves to be fruitless no matter how hard he struggles against what might as well be a wall of darkness. ]

Alice...! Jesse...! NO- [ Alan's desperation is clear, but there's nothing he can do as he's being pushed closer to the edge and to the drop off that he knows must be there waiting.

I said I wouldn't let her go. I said- I want to stay with her...!

It's too late. The Dark Presence launches Alan off solid ground and into the air, and for just a second, he seems to hover there before he starts to fall. A scream of terror rips from him, but it's silenced just as quickly as he falls into the waves.

Drowning. Coughing. Choking. Water's filling his lungs. I'm going to die.

But that sensation of drowning only lasts for a minute. The water recedes, and in its place is an overwhelming closeness to home. Home. Alice. ...But there's someone else. Someone besides Alice. Who is it?

His mind feels like it's soaked in water and it won't dry off. I know this. I know who this someone else is. I- I can't forget her. I promised her.

His thoughts are interrupted and his attentions pulled towards the direction the footsteps are coming from. He holds his breath until the person the steps belong to appears, and he lets that breath go all in a rush. He knows her instantly, even though he's only just getting to know her.

She's not wearing what he remembers her wearing, but then again, his memory seems to be hazy. But he knows her and knows that red hair. ]

... Jesse?

—the anderson farm.

[outlierdirector]

[ Barry finds a car and they drive to the Anderson Farm. It takes time, given it's further out from Bright Falls than even Cauldron Lake. They have to pass radio towers. Broadcast from Pat Maine comes over the airwaves. Jesse thinks they may even see dawn before they see this farm, but that turns out not to be the case. They arrive at an old farm and head into the barn first.

A television (somehow) is broadcasting Night Springs. Barry drags Alan over to reminisce over it. The episode isn't one that Alan writes for but the two have a brief conversation on how Alan started as a writer. Their conversation echoes in the barn as Jesse continues to move forward in it. The feeling of an outsider grows inside but she keeps it locked away. The attention instead turns to the items in the barn as she quickly notices the Viking motif--then a banner of an old tour. Dates. Locations. The band name.

The Old Gods of Asgard.

Jesse stops in her tracks and simply stares at the name. The familiar name and logo, almost like something that haunts her from the past. Her dad's favorite band. She was a fan too, but, hasn't listened to them in a long time. It brings back memories of times when her life was ... different. Really different. Whole. A family--even if that family would rather have nothing to do with her and Dylan it seemed.

« Alan even knows the Old Gods of Asgard? How many things connect... I don't understand. »

She moves on as she hears the footsteps behind her. She doesn't want them to see her lingering over things that will cause questions.

They can't get too close.

All she can describe that happens next is something of a fever dream. They stand on a homemade stage of the Old Gods, blasting Children of the Elder God. A song she knows--because she knows all their songs--but that song has a sinking feeling inside her now. Almost as if she's witnessing what the song is really about. Living it. Barry shouts at how great the moment was and checks in with Alan while Jesse begins to shuffle off to the farmhouse. Never lingering too long because then those thoughts will have to catch up to her. Questions.

The power is cut in the farmhouse. It takes some time to find it, but Alan gets the lights on. A faint tune hovers in the house. Jesse knows it immediately, moving from the dining room to stand in the entryway to the living room. An older in house stage sits at the back of the room, a pair of couches in front of the table besides a fireplace. She shuffles out of the way for Barry and Alan, nodding to them to move into the room. Yet, she stays where she is, ever on the outskirts on the events but somehow still present.

Barry sets the record on the player and hands Alan the cover. The slow melody, for a rock band, sings about the local legends. The poet and his muse--Thomas Zane and Barbara Jagger. Jesse glances down once more. That sinking feeling returning of living events that the songs are truly about. Any other rock band making songs about local legends wouldn't be a problem. However, it should be quite apparent that these legends are real. The people were real.

The art is real. ]

♪ And now to see your love set free,
You'll need the witch's cabin key,
Find the lady of the light gone mad with the night,
that's how you reshape destiny ♪

[ Barry shoots up from his seat pointing out that must be it. They just need to find the "crazy lamp lady" in town and see what to do next. He moves in excitement to get right in front of Alan, which Jesse finds herself grateful for. It makes the fact she silently slips from view that much easier. The men are distracted which means she can do what she does best: disappear.

She's perfected the art of making no noise and shifting into the background. Barry and Alan's conversation echoes over the music. As does the celebratory excitement from Barry and finding moonshine. Jesse glances over her shoulder at the men before silently moving to the upstairs. A few glances at each room before she finds an open door and slips inside. She doesn't close the door all the way behind her. Just enough to put a barrier between her and everything else.

Hell, she would go outside if a storm wasn't coming in. The thunder and winds echoing throughout the farmhouse.

« All of this is about them: Alan and his wife. Zane and Jagger. It all surrounds them and just... loops back. Everyone has a place in it but me. Don't they? I'm just HERE. Almost inserted like I don't belong. Not that it's surprising. There's nowhere I really belong anyways. Not anymore. »

Jesse sits down against the bed, pulling the backpack off and sitting it between her legs. Her lips press together tightly as she feels that feeling bubble insider her. That loneliness that can threaten to consume her but she never lets it. Instead it hovers there, ever reminding her that she is.... an outlier. For a brief moment she hugs the backpack to her and listening to the sounds of the men downstairs drink. Jesse stares down at the backpack before opening it and pulling the binder out that she keeps all the manuscript pages in.

« Might as well be useful and play the part I'm here to do. »

She begins sorting through the manuscript--moving pages. Shifting them into the order she thinks is best. Pages that have her name are ones she barely considers. Just a part in the story, a role to have, and a name on the page. There's not much more to it than that. Regardless of how she feels... how Alan may feel. It doesn't belong.

An hour or so passes before she closes the binder and sets it to the side.

Then, she moves the backpack to the floor. She turns, back to the door, head on the bag, and curling up slightly. She hugs herself and refuses to move to get a blanket or pillow.

« It's... probably a good idea to get some sleep while they do whatever it they're doing. Even if it's only a few hours. » ]

[crazyisinevitable]

[ As they make their way along, Barry keeps up a running commentary, chatting with Alan about anything that comes to mind, and Alan nods along, sometimes even offering a comment or two when the topic turns to something he can comment on. But as the drive continues, Alan feels his mood begin to turn: moodiness, Barry would call it, and maybe he wouldn't even disagree. Maybe it's the environment starting to get to him, as darker thoughts seem to flow in and out of his mind. Still, he can play the part, keep up the act of going along with Barry's energetic chatter.

Eventually, they reach the barn, and a short ways off, he hears the familiar Night Springs theme and the equally familiar narrator. Barry grabs him excitedly by the arm when he recognizes the TV show, and he drags him off to the television, not noticing that he's taken Alan by surprise or how Alan's shoes catch on the rocks and gravel of the path as he's dragged along. Still, he doesn't put up much of a fight because well, it's Night Springs. It's where he got his start as a writer.

Barry's frenetic chatter continues, and Alan continues listening, but the need to just go somewhere and be quiet and think is growing stronger all the time. Something chimes in his mind and he realizes he hasn't seen Jesse around for the last handful of minutes that Barry's been talking. Well, it's been more than a handful, but that's not the point. The point is, he doesn't know where she is, and the chime turns into a warning bell. It's not safe to wander off alone, but he can't detach himself from Barry, not yet.

That becomes even less likely as something that should be completely incomprehensible happens. A song by the Old Gods of Asgard blasts loudly around them and there's a stage and Alan finds himself swept off by a wave of adrenaline. Well, he'd take that over a wave of darkness, anyway. The moment eventually ends and Barry just goes off on an excited ramble about how great and thrilling that was while Alan tries to regroup and settle back down from whatever that was. The story doing its thing, probably.

He was aware of Jesse lingering around during the chaos, but before he could so much as even approach her, she's gone again. He shakes his head; he needs to find her and talk to her and make sure that she's okay. But before he can do that, the power goes off and he reluctantly sets to work trying to get the lights back on. They can't just sit in the dark and let themselves become targets for the Taken. It takes a few tries but eventually he manages it, and after a bit of shuffling around, they all make their way inside the farmhouse.

Finally he has a moment to try and talk to Jesse, but she seems to keep herself at a distance, maybe even holding them at arm's length. He keeps glancing over in her direction, but every time he tries to talk to her, Barry interjects. He doesn't resent his old friend, because he knows that's just how he is, but he wants a second to talk with Jesse.

The record goes on the player and the song starts playing, and Barry launches into another excited barrage of words which only halts when he finds moonshine. In no time at all, Barry's drunk and Alan's tipsy and veering closer to being drunk himself (maybe accepting the moonshine wasn't the best idea, but when did he ever make good choices?). With his mind becoming muddled by alcohol, some of those darker thoughts that he tried to keep at bay earlier start swirling around again, but rather than feeling anger or like he's being swept away, he just feels sad. Why sad? He's not really sure. Maybe it's a combination of everything, of being caught up in this story, of knowing his marriage is on the rocks and heading for disaster...

He looks over to Barry who's still rambling away but his words are becoming slurred and slowing down, and before too long, his old friend is passed out and snoring on the couch.

Alan sits there for a few seconds as he tries to figure out what the hell he should do. Sitting here lost in thought isn't getting him anywhere, and he hates when his thoughts start spiraling away from him and getting all weird and depressed. But weird and depressed seems to be the mood he's in at the moment, helped along by the darkness around them and the melancholy tone of the song on the record player.

He pushes himself up from the couch and wobbles a bit as he tries to move through the house in search of someone who's purposefully detached herself from everyone. He keeps stumbling along the way, sometimes tripping over objects in the way, but eventually, he makes his way to the room Jesse's been holed up in for the last hour and he leans heavily against the doorframe. ]

Hey. What- [ He starts to ask what she's doing, but he catches sight of her curled up on the floor. Oh.

He doesn't say anything more, but he stumbles over to her and tries to lower himself to the ground so he can sit next to her. His legs accidentally give out about halfway down and there's a dull thud as he lands on the floor. ]

Shit. [ He curses quietly to himself, hoping he didn't disturb her too much. Maybe she's already asleep and she didn't hear a thing. Still, he mumbles out a slurred apology. ] Sorry.

—remember, remember.

[outlierdirector]

... Okay. [ Jesse curls into him slightly more. ] Together.

[ Eventually, the two drift off to sleep once they lay back down. Jesse more or less remains where she is, sleeping on top of him. Maybe slightly off to his side. The sleep isn't as deep as one would have thought for their activity, but it is enough to ease her into a state of comfort.

Alan, however, may not have as restful as a night. Enlightening may be a far better word. Revealing could be another way to describe it.

The night has settled in and Alan Wake finds himself on a small familiar bridge. One that led to Diver's Island with the Bird Leg Cabin looming over head. The night air is cool for September and odd heaviness hangs. Almost as if a tension is waiting to be sprung and all it takes is one match to set it ablaze.

The cabin has been empty except for the affects left by the previous occupants: apparently the poet Thomas Zane. Books, plates, pictures, even the study where the man worked are all present and oddly pristine. Untouched. Almost as if the famous ill-fated poet had simply been there the day before.

A perfect place to get away from the world to try and write a comeback novel.

Maybe one that could also save his marriage, despite the divorce papers that had been served and signed.

A scream cuts through the air. A familiar one that Alan should know whenever the lights went out. Then, a cry for help from the house for him. Strange... hadn't he come to the island alone? ]

[crazyisinevitable]

[ Alan smiles and moves in a little closer, not quite snuggling against her but not pulling away from her either. It's nice to have someone close by like this, even if he hasn't exactly said it out loud.

But when he eventually falls asleep, it doesn't stay restful for long. He starts to dream, and at first, he stays still, lying next to Jesse and looking unbothered. But then the dream continues and it seems normal enough. But the images being conjured up in his sleeping mind's eye gradually become less and less normal; there's a darkness beginning to creep over everything, slowly at first and barely noticeable, but soon, it starts to appear as though shadows have come to life and are weaving themselves around trees, bushes, rocks... and around an unsuspecting individual.

Said individual is looking ahead of him, up past the bridge and to what he can see of the cabin up ahead. It looks relatively unremarkable from the outside, and yet Alan feels drawn to it somehow.

Still, he stands there looking at the cabin until a scream cuts through the air. ]

What the hell was that? [ But he knows the answer as soon as he asks the question, and he knows immediately who made the scream. The voice is one he'd know anywhere, even if they're currently estranged. In the dream, he takes off running, and he jerks abruptly on the bed next to Jesse as lines of tension form on his forehead.

Everything after that seems to happen in a blur. There's another scream, and Alice calls out for help, and then... there's a splash. Alan jerks on the bed as horror grips him in the dream. He runs to the drop off point, but it's too late. Alice is already underwater. Without even hesitating, Alan dives into the water after her, and the Alan that's on the bed next to Jesse shifts again.

He wants to wake up, to end the dream, but it seems as though he can't pull himself free of it just yet. Fitting, in a way, since he has yet to be able to pull himself free of the story. ]

📜— episode 5: the clicker.

[outlierdirector]

📜— american nightmare.

[outlierdirector]

—desert shore motel.

[outlierdirector]

( cont here )

I don't know.

She hasn't answered yet.

A year ago.

[ Short quick answers. Defensive. She doesn't have the answers and what she does know she doesn't want to share necessarily. Does it matter if she does? He's... who knows where that motel is. What can he really do to help? She hardly understands how Polaris works. Maybe this is normal for whatever Polaris really is. She just doesn't know.

Just like she doesn't know if Alan will ever really come home.

If he really misses her or if he would even want to continue whatever they...

« We didn't get the chance to really be anything. He might not want to be anything. It might just be me. » ]

[crazyisinevitable]

[ Alan doesn't type out a response immediately; he doesn't like this. He doesn't like what he's hearing, that Polaris has gone silent for that long. It feels wrong, like something that should be just one of the standards in the world has been dislodged. Damaged. And yet she's right, because what can he even do that might help? He's in no position to help anyone, let alone himself. ]

I'm sorry. I'm sorry I brought it up.

...I'm-

[ Maybe he should go. Maybe he should end the connection. But that's not what he wants either. If he ends the connection, maybe he'll never reach her again. ]

I want to help, but I don't know how.

[ The admission doesn't make him feel better, but he has to say something. ]

[outlierdirector]

( cont here )

[ She shivers under his fingers. Something of her remembers his touch and the way it feels to be in his hands. That spark is missing from her. With it gone, however, she is able to truly touch into her feelings. Not only recognizing her feelings to him, but how much of what she felt before came from her and not that otherworldly connection they seemed to share.

She does her best not to lean into him. It would cause the moment to turn more intimate than needed. As before, the focus is on the story and situation they are in. Just as it should be.

How much of just a side character is she in his stories? ]

I asked you how to get to you to help you. Why would it be weird? [ Her eyes narrow slightly at him. Then, she pauses. Her gaze softens and her shoulders curl slightly as if she is shy by the notion. ] Do--you would want to come home for me? What about Barry, or Alice, or...

[ Jesse stops at his next question. A frown sets to her face. Then, her gaze lowers and moves to the side, avoiding looking at anything of him. Did she know he didn't want to leave her? She insisted on going with him. A promise was a promise, and she was going to stay at his side. The Dark didn't bother her. The story could be changed. She'd help him save his wife. Maybe his marriage would be fixed. That would be a better outcome than him leaving her behind. At least then he would still be in their reality... maybe even writing... ]

I... I thought that... [ « I became someone that was in the way. Someone that couldn't help. Someone he wouldn't be able to relate to once the story ended. He'd be normal Alan Wake, while... it doesn't matter. You don't answer anymore. » ] Just don't do it again.

[ I won't let him do it again. He either comes home with me, or I stay. ]

Okay. What is it you're trying to do in the story? Before I showed up. You saved that woman from Taken. What else?

—national observatory.

[outlierdirector]

[ Her eyes slide shut at his hands and mouth touching anywhere he can touch. It takes a few moments before she feels as if she is close to that frequency they were on at one point. When it was mostly the two of them roaming into the night to fight the Dark Presence to save his ex-wife. Just the two of them interlocked and trying to find a way to exist in the world that refuses to admit to reality.

They find the right pace, the right momentum, that right movement that syncs them together. Jesse can still tell something is wrong. Something isn't entirely there as it should be. At least, not for her. Polaris is missing to be that hum that brightens in her mind. Hopefully Alan won't notice it.

Hopefully he won't decide she isn't worth it without Polaris with her.

Eventually, the come down from that moment and that high. They settle together under the water that is cooling. She wraps around him entirely, not wanting to let go even to dry and crawl into the roadside motel's bed. At one point they have to. Which is precisely why Jesse practically wraps herself around him in the bed. She refuses to let him go as they sleep. Tucked in against his side, head on his shoulder, arms wrapped around him. He doesn't get to wander into the night again without her.

Not again.

As the very early morning hours begin to creep in, the television turns on. A familiar crackling sound fills the room. A motel room--one that Alan would recognize from previous messages--is shown to be empty. However, shuffling can be heard off camera.

Followed by a deep sigh. ]

[crazyisinevitable]

[ If only they could be uninterrupted; if this moment of intimacy between them could go on forever. But they can't avoid sleep forever, because the time will eventually come when one or both of them needs to rest. And of course, that comes sooner rather than later. Still, Alan does his best to keep the high going for as long as he can. He'd rather not end the experience too soon, so in a way, it feels as thoug he's pushed himself to his limits in the name of satisfying her as best as he can.

At least this way, the sleep that finally comes for both of them feels like a reward. The two of them slip from the shower and then into the bed, and when she wraps herself around him, he doesn't protest one bit. He wants this as much as she seems to, and he never wants to let her go, not even in sleep. Maybe if they can hold onto each other, they'll be able to stay together.

Hours pass and Alan stays asleep for most of them, but then a sound fills the room and a frown forms on his face as he shifts slightly, still in Jesse's arms. It's not a strange sound, just some static and crackling coming from the television set in the room. The crackling grows louder, and Alan stirs, eyes gradually opening.

His gaze shifts towards the television screen, and he freezes in place. There's a room on the screen, and shuffling noises coming from out of the frame. What is this?

He has to move carefully so that he doesn't disturb Jesse, but it takes some maneuvering on his part, given how entangled the two of them became. Still, he manages it, and he pauses for a moment to make sure she's stayed asleep. The last thing he wants is to disturb her.

Once he's managed to separate himself from her, he cautiously moves over to the television, eyes searching the screen as if looking for something mysterious. ]

What the hell...? [ In his experience, TVs don't just turn themselves on, which means something strange is going on here, and he doesn't think it's a ghost. ]