♖ 003.

[summerschild]

Who: Bran Stark and YOU
Broadcast: Fleetwide
Action: The Dusty Moon
When: 9/23

[Just a short broadcast, as this tiny wolf child makes some Serious Contemplations...]

What do you... What makes a person good, do you think? Is it something they can control?

[He can be found out by the stables, getting as close to the horses as he can in his chair, without rolling over their feet. He wishes so hard that he could just climb up and ride one - almost as much as he wishes he could shift into his wolf's skin, and run with the strange fox-dogs out in the desert sand. Today is not a very happy day.]

Comments

[Video]

[misterprongs]

[James has a lot of Opinions (TM) regarding this subject, BUT]

What do you think?

[Kids always have better answers anyway.]

[summerschild]

... I don't know.

[He looks down at his feet.]

I thought that just your intentions mattered, but what if you still do a bad thing, even if you meant it to be good?

audio;

[unbearablynaive]

That's a rather philosophical question, as it requires a definition of "good". [That;s tricky in the best of cases.] But for my opinion, I would say it is important to consider both your actions and their consequences, as these most certainly are under your control. If you define good as someone who is not only liked and respected but trustworthy, it is vital to consider the role of empathy in your interactions. Considering the other point of view and understanding it, even if you disagree, helps to develop this skill.

[summerschild]

So if you hurt someone who is hurting you, you have to understand why they are doing it before you hurt them?

[He might not have gotten all of that very well on the first try. He is upset right now, in his defense.]

[video]

[curiositykilledthecats]

[Oh, what a question, especially from one so young. Miah has to take a moment to mull over how to answer.]

Good is in one's efforts.

[summerschild]

Even if you do something bad?

[He's so unsure, and his voice sounds far too serious for his age.]

action;

[bolder]

[Toph doesn't give a crap about the horses, but she does give a crap about Bran. She hears the broadcast, she goes out of her way to track him down. Of course, she'll never admit to that.]

Hey, Bran!

[summerschild]

[Bran looks behind him, and gives a little nod of acknowledgement. He isn't the plaintive, self-righteous child from the Marsiva right now; he looks much more like the little lord who lost his castle.]

Toph.

Not Here;

[save_the_souls]

[Oh goddammit.]

[Normally he'd make a response to something like this, but considering the past few days and what happened? Yeah he's just...gonna not, and follow the responses. That seems like the safer option right now]

not here either

[summerschild]

[STOP LISTENING IN YOU MONSTER]

video;

[xenoscientist]

[Hello, Bran. Mordin doesn't really waste any time browsing the network, and this one intrigues him.]

Goodness not quantifiable by scientific means. Emotional, ethical, spiritual. Differing cultures define differently.

[He inhales, bringing a hand to his mouth, thinking.]

Cultural norms important, define one's world outlook. Goodness defined there, largely. Good for some, evil for others.

[summerschild]

[Bran listens, apt. Forgive him for staring at bit at the feed.]

... What are cultural norms?

Action

[preformthisneigh]

[Oh look, Bran, a much smaller horse is making his way over to you. He casts the horse-beasts a nervous glance, before moving to sit next to Bran's chair. ]

I dunno, I mean, sometimes you can do a thing that you think is good, but turns out to be actually super bad. It doesn't make you a bad person, it just means you make mistakes. And everypony does that.

[summerschild]

[Oh gods of all that is good and holy what is that]

Um...

[Bran just stares.]

Are you... Are you a horse?

Voice

[tobeajedi]

Hm... compassion. Feeling for others and thinking about their needs. You can control it. But sometimes, people can forget without realizing it.

These are interesting questions.

[summerschild]

Compassion...

[He tries the word out. It's like kindness, he knows, but stronger.]

So is it possible to hurt someone but still be a good person?

[video]

[got_it_memorized]

[Hoo, boy, that's a loaded question. It's kind of one that Axel wonders a lot about, himself.]

I think 'good' is kind of a flexible concept, really. What's good for one person might not be good for another, but that doesn't necessarily make it bad, but just because something works out for you, that doesn't necessarily make it good, either. [Yes, he has a bit of experience with this sort of thing, unfortunately.] Good intentions don't always make something the right choice, unfortunately, but I think it's definitely something you can control, and something you can change. [At least he hopes you can change it. He wants to be good, he really does, he's just not sure he's there yet.] Keeping the needs of other people in mind when making decisions is a big part of it.

[summerschild]

Is that like "cultural norms"? [Little boy's learning new words, look out.] When one person thinks something's good, but it's bad for someone else?

[He has to think about this for a moment.]

... What I did was good for my friends, because they didn't get hurt. But other people got hurt. I don't think it had to do with culture.

[Video]

[jamminshield]

Um... I'd say it's your heart. And it's definitely something you can control.

You're a really good person, Bran!

[summerschild]

[Bran doesn't entirely understand what that means - "it's in your heart" is so vague, it sounds like something the three-eyed crow might tell him. But he flushes at the ears and gives as much of a smile as he can manage.]

You're a better person than I am.

voice;

[redactions]

Any answers you're liking, so far?

[summerschild]

Most people are saying that it's not possible to be entirely good, from everyone's perspective. I think that's true. You have to help the people you care about, and try not to hurt others the best that you can, unless it's necessary.

video

[unfulfilledpotential]

I'm not sure, but I'd like to know the answer too.

[There's a small pause, before he adds hesitantly:] I think we can control it. It just takes a whole lotta effort sometimes.

[summerschild]

[Bran nods.]

Everyone makes it sound really hard. I always thought that a person was either good or bad, though.

voice

[electrostatics]

Sure. What you choose to do or choose not to do makes you good, I guess. There's a lot of variables that go into every choice you make, so you should gather data and act according to how you want to act.

[ He doesn't believe in people being inherently something. That had done him no favours. ]

It's not a big deal, though.

[summerschild]

It isn't? Allen and my father made it sound really important.

( video )

[mucked]

[ oh, dear aunt nelly. ]

Your question likely has a hundred answers. Test every one of them, and still they mightn't be correct. Goodness is something individual. [ a soft sigh. ] It's bespoke.

[summerschild]

I think that I've heard that many already. But I understand better, now. It's about consequences, and... and empathy. There aren't simply good people and bad people, like you're always told as a child.

video

[lord_wizard]

[Children should never be asking these questions.

It's a loaded question, however, since it's something he doesn't quite know the answer to either, but he will try.]

It meets in between actions that that which is inherent to your character, I think.

[summerschild]

So... it's what I do and who I am that makes me bad or good?

[This sounds like a simple answer, but he isn't sure how to judge whether he's good or not now.]

[forgetyourusedtobe]

I think some people have to work at it more than others, but I do think it's something people can control.

[She doesn't like the excuse of someone just being bad with no capacity for good as their reason for being an unrepentant asshole to other people.]

[summerschild]

Does that mean people can be born bad, then? If they have to work more to be good?

[openhands]

We are but the sum of our choices, but I believe that even that is somewhat...simplistic. The heart of any man or woman is complex and made even more so by their minds.

sorry this is so late ;;

[summerschild]

The sum of our choices? It's in what we decide to do, then?

video

[blindoptimism]

[Nunnally considers the question for a moment before answering. This boy looks younger than her, which is rare on the fleet. But it's a deep question, so she simply answers with her thoughts]

I think that it's many things, some things that they can control and some that they cannot.

A person's parents, where they were raised, the friends surrounding them... Those are all factors that contribute to what a person grows up to be, but one could stay that there is still an innate-- [she pauses, trying to think of one word to sum it up and failing] Sense of kindness, decency, empathy... And how they act, that is something that a person chooses.

[...] What do you think?

aljsdh sorry this is so late ;;

[summerschild]

My parents were very good, and so are my brothers... Perhaps that means I am, as well?

[He would love to be anything like his father, honestly.]

I don't know what I think. Everyone's answers have varied so much.