A conversation with Tiktok

Apologies for the lack of a Kitten Monday (AGAIN!) this week. Tiktok and I engaged in the quintessential teenage-girl activity during the holidays- a sleepover and a movie marathon.

I don't really feel comfortable calling her Tiktok. She may only be, in her own words "a shadow of what she used to be", but to me she is still Penny. She likes the same movies, the same music, still laughs at our injokes. She's still my best friend. She's Penny. the part of her she calls Penny, (or She, or Her) belongs to It. She's nothing more than a marionette now.

Speaking of Her, to Tiktok's puzzlement she has not taken the reins, as it were, for quite some time. Since she started reuploading the old posts to Time Waits, in fact. Although it's tempting to assume the best, my life hasn't really worked that way for a very long time.

I transcribed a particular conversations you lot might find interesting. It is as follows:

A: So why do you call yourself Tiktok?

T: She called me that, really. Because in the beginning all I was was the ticking. I couldn't do much else, just tick and tock and tick-tock some more. Back when she was Penny and I was nothing more than self-preservation, urging her to keep away, wake up, see Him for what he was, I was just the ticking. When she lost her identity, I gained mine. And for lack of anything else to call myself, I called myself Tiktok.

A: You've said you are to Penny what Waking!Ary is to m-

T: We're the only cases of Dreaming and Waking I know of, but I hope sincerely that-

A: You sound really weird using formal language.

T: I love you too, you're a great friend- I hope sincerely that splitting the Waking self from the Dreaming self completely to hinder Him from using you for his purposes is the worst case scenario.

A: Uh...what?

T: Okay, to put it shortly, stop referring to your Waking self as separate from yourself. She's still you. You can wake up and see things for what they really are, see things for what they really are. That's probably why the letters in your name are red when you are Awake. You're asserting, to yourself, that you are still you.

A: So Waking is basically some kind of freaky superpower?

T: Not really. From what I can see, most people who are involved Him Wake sooner or later. You're unusual in that even after Waking you still can still go back to Dreaming. That worries me.

A: So what the fuck is Waking actually?

T: It's being able to see Him. That's all. Any other differences are, well- I have this idea that it's because he doesn't belong in our reality so he fucks shit up.

A: Fair. C'mon, we prolly have time to watch another terrible musical before Mum makes us go to sleep.

Personally, I find that highly informative. Anyone have any thoughts? Other than "DONT TRUST TIKTOK". (I heard you the first time, JediZero.)

Ciao for now,
Ariadne