driftfleet | (no subject)

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(no subject)

Who: Windrose crew and friends!
Broadcast: Nope
Action: All Windrose, all the time
When: In the general August area

[We may be sad to leave the beautiful planet behind, but we still have each other!]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[The Vision actually rubs a temple at that.]

They are good people, but as Wrath would say, there is a great deal of "hurfdurf".

[ A little dry. ]

I can believe that. You've made some of my past experiences seem relatively tame.

That cannot possibly be a good thing.

[Still, he looks somewhat mollified.]

My apologies, but this is very difficult for me.

[NOT THAT CHARLES COULDN'T TELL.]

[ His lips twitch slightly. ]

It's not. But I find there's always a way to change the situation. My partner - Erik - was once my enemy. For lack of a better term. If we can reforge that, then surely you can too.

Being a hero also means undertaking great personal strides. It has nothing to do with powers or even how you use them. That'll never be enough.

Situations certainly can change how people think of one another.

[He shakes his head again, though this time to clear it rather than as a signal of disagreement. Charles is probably right, but where exactly does that leave him? He's had more decline than growth, it often seems.]

And if those strides are in the wrong direction, I turn into that which I was made to oppose, yes.

And they can continue changing. That doesn't mean they're set in stone.

Are you saying that because you think it'll happen? Or because you wish to run in circles so that you've given it enough thought?

[The Vision nods, even though he means exactly the opposite. Charles is apparently making it hard to keep his behaviors straight today.]

If I thought I were truly at risk I'd have myself shut down immediately, whatever it took. But I must remain aware of the possibility; it helps to keep me where I am.

Overthinking something is a weakness of mine, I'd agree.

Self-flagellation. Marvelous. I wonder how much further do we have to go to the Dark Ages.

[He at least has the grace to look abashed at that.]

It's seemed more important of late.

Because you feel guilty and unsure.

But your course of action isn't going to benefit others, much less yourself.

[That's the crux of it.]

Actively harming them isn't an improvement.

Do you want to actively harm someone?

If the answer is no, then it is.

Of course not. That doesn't stop it from happening.

It'll happen. With or without your consent or help. People are always going to hurt each other. I've certainly hurt people. We don't live our lives in a void where everything is peaceful and serene.

What makes someone better is how they answer to their hurts. Do they blame the world? Blame themselves?

Or do they choose to rise above it and give that responsibility to those they've hurt?

[ And Charles is getting tired. There's only so much he's willing to endure. ]

It's your choice.

[He exhales, looking beaten.]

Very well. I'll think on it.

[He doesn't need to think on it. He already knows what the right thing to do is - he's known it for some time - but that doesn't make the prospect anything less than an unpleasant chore.

it's not the mood he wants to leave Charles with, though, so he scoops his fluff slug out of the aquarium once more to help soothe both of them. They really are effective like that.]

I appreciate the advice, in any case.

[ He smiles tiredly, but no less real. ]

You're welcome to it.

[In a few hours, he'll undoubtedly feel guilty for putting Charles through the emotional blender, but there aren't enough other people that could bully him into doing the right thing. Steve, the usual moral center, would probably not be sympathetic at all to someone who had chosen the other side of the argument.]

It does make me feel grateful the slugs have the ability they do, regardless. It's good to know they don't care about that kind of conflict.

[ He's used to it. ]

Why would they?

Oh, they shouldn't. It's the simplicity I appreciate; few things are so uncomplicated as a slug who wants to be a friend.

Or a slug who chooses to live uncomplicated. It's not as hard as it looks.

[The fluffball snuggles into the crook of his elbow.]

Ah, but the slug does not perceive that it is responsible for protecting the world on a large scale.

Is . . . Is he now.

[It's a figure of speech, Charles, gawd.]

A simple life would cause me too much guilt, I'm afraid.

[ Look, there's deep and there's . . . whatever this is. ]

I've never known life, even on a smaller scale to be simple in any form.

[Being a literal two-year-old?]

I suppose not, if you can sense the complexity in it. I realize I shouldn't complain overly much, as it's part of what I find so intriguing.