poly_chromatic | ii. ][ voice

So why do I just feel like talking? Is this one of those curses people were talking about?

I was actually starting to wonder if they were gonna happen because, honestly, everything that's been going on is pretty different from what people were telling me to expect. I guess maybe things weren't so bad when I got here, though. I mean, I'd sort of expect people to mention to a kid that was just tossed into another dimension that there was some crazy revolution going on. Political unrest turning violent is just the sort of thing that warrants a mention in passing, right?

I mean, not that adults don't try to shelter kids, but I'd expect at least a "be careful" if this was going on. Some kind of ambiguous warning to stay inside and hide, even if you don't expect someone my age to be able to understand the implications of what's happening.

For the record, though, we usually understand what's going on a lot better than most people think we do. It'd be much more helpful to talk to us about things like we're actually people rather than try to lie to us about something that's completely obvious. It's really just insulting, and something like this affects everyone, no matter how old they are or how much they've been told about what's going on. Seems like you might as well help them understand what's going on, since ignorance doesn't actually protect anyone.

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I think that, to explain this to someone else, we would need to know what is going on ourselves.

How old are you?

Well, that makes sense - though it's really more of a general complaint than necessarily about this situation. I just figured it would have warranted some kind of mention if any of this had been happening, that's all. From there I just... kind of kept talking. I'm not really sure why.

[Huh.]

I'm ten.

Curses can do that. Sometimes they are like compulsions, and all that you can do is hope that the City won't make you say anything unbearably humiliating. The rest of this is something other than a curse. I have no desire to become involved in it.

Ah! That explains why no one keeps you informed. When I was ten, no one told me anything. Even now that I'm older, I am not always told everything.

Yeah, I don't have a great grasp on everything here yet since I'm pretty new, but it seems like it's probably not how things usually are. Not that I really want to get involved, but I'd like to understand as much of what's going on as I can.

People still don't tell you things? How old are you now?

If you have questions, I would answer them as well as I can.

I'm eighteen now! It is because I am still small. If you want people to tell you things, concentrate on growing taller.

Well, I think people tried to explain the basics of the City to me, but things seem to be pretty chaotic right now. Does anyone really know what's going on with that?

And believe me, I try to concentrate on that, but it doesn't seem to be going that well. I feel like I should be at least seven feet tall by now, and that's a pretty conservative estimate.

If anyone knows, they have decided not to say so. The deities have had their power over us threatened before, I think, but never by a force as organized as the one currently against them. None of the dissidents are familiar to me. I don't know if they are from the City, and I would not want to trust them.

At least you're clever. If you cannot be tall and trusted with information, then being very clever is the next best thing.

Huh. So nobody knows what's going on, really. It's probably best to wait it out and see who ends up with the advantage and what they do with it.

To be totally honest, which I don't seem to have a lot of choice about, being clever is pretty much the only way I accomplish anything. In my experience at least, being direct doesn't usually work, so I have to get creative. The secret is making sure nobody else figures it out.

No, no one. Regardless of what happens, I believe that everyone in the City will be fine. We're resilient.

What, you would rather not have anyone know that you are clever? To what ends?

No, it's really that I'd rather not people realize when I'm using it to get something out of them. It's always easier if they don't know what I'm doing.

[Damnit, honesty compulsion.]

That is why you must be cute in addition to clever. If anyone notices what you're doing, they will often overlook it if you are cute.

Oh, don't worry. I've got that down.

Then you have no reason to worry! What more could you want, beyond being intelligent and cute?

...Besides taller, perhaps.

I could want a dog, or a castle, or a jet, or to be respected, or have a family that notices my interests or encourages me, or a piece of clothing or a toy that three people haven't taken turns destroying before me.

[ ...geez curse, let him shut up. ]

I think I'm starting to understand why people are annoyed by these curses.

No, no--those are all good things to want. Why is everything destroyed before you get it? Siblings?

[ Nod. ]

I have three brothers. I'm the youngest. I've never even had my own bed before I got here.

Edited 2013-07-17 21:34 (UTC)

Now you will have all of your own everything.

Are there good things about having so many siblings?

I guess there are some things that aren't so bad. I mean, if you do something bad, you have someone else to blame. And if anybody picks on me, Reese will usually beat them up for me. I mean, the fact that he's naturally prone to violence usually works against me, but sometimes it can be an advantage.