ii. ][ voice

[thefavorite]

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.

Comments

[eiremagic]

Do you want a gun?

[thefavorite]

Uh... I don't think I'd go that far, exactly.

[eiremagic]

Up to you, boyo.

[thefavorite]

Well, it's not like I would really know what I was doing with a real gun, you know? I've played with toy guns, and I've set off some fireworks and stuff like that with my brothers, but none of that is even close to the kind of stuff you have. Honestly, it's a good thing they're not here.

[eiremagic]

Would they make a mess?

[thefavorite]

If you let him into the apartment at all, Reese would have blown off at least a few fingers by now, maybe a whole arm. Malcolm would still be busy complaining about how unfair it is that he's been stuck in an alternate dimension.

[eiremagic]

I got lucky, then?

[unflagging]

Hey, kid? Be careful, okay?

[thefavorite]

Well, that was the plan I came up with, so I guess I'll go ahead with it.

[unflagging]

It sounds reasonable to me.

[thefavorite]

Thanks. The validation will probably help keep me on track.

[unflagging]

I sure hope so. That's the general principle with using validation and positive reinforcement in young children.

[dignity_misery]

Do you ever shut up?

[thefavorite]

Sure, a lot of the time. It doesn't really seem like I have a choice about it right now, though.

[dignity_misery]

[That's comforting.]

Sounds cursed to me. I did that one a few weeks ago.

[thefavorite]

Wow, the curses get reruns? That's actually kind of disappointing.

I mean, not that any of this was what I really had in mind when people told me I might get cursed. That seems more like you should be turning into enchanted animals or being turned into stone or having everything you touch turn to dirt, like your food would turn to dirt, and maybe the floor when you walk on it, and probably other people, too.

I guess magic is probably just another thing that's not going to live up to stories.

[dignity_misery]

That other shit happens too.

[Just so you know.]

But others come back around, from time to time.

[thefavorite]

That's almost disappointing. I mean, I would expect that if you have a whole alternate reality thing dedicated to bringing people here and cursing them, you would at least be able to keep coming up with new ideas about what to do to them.

[dignity_misery]

Multiply 365 by who-even-knows how many years this place has existed.

video;

[candothat]

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

How old are you?

video;

[thefavorite]

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.

video;

[candothat]

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.

video;

[thefavorite]

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?

video;

[candothat]

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.

video;

[thefavorite]

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.