video (un: falcogrice)

[grice]

CONTENT WARNING: psychological changes, hoarding, and obsessive behavior related to lavish desires

[ this video opens up with the blink of two eyes and a disgruntled chitter. perle is filming falco and focusing on . . . quite a mess of books in various assortments, stacked upon each other until they were in danger of tilting. among the open spines on the floors pinned with bookmarks were scrolls of paintings, sketches, statues, sepia photography— anything resembling a loving relationship, falco has seemed to have snatched it and keeps it all hostage in his little cabin home's attic like a greedy little dragon buried in precious, hoarded gold. he's pacing left, right, and has been caught mid-explanation as he works a red thread between his fingers. ]

—ee this, Perle? What I read, [ he paces some ways to the right to splay his hands on oh dear god what mad science project is this— so many pieces of paper glued to each other until it forms one massive canvas taking up the entirety of the attic wall. he's written words, names, and has a wild amount of different colored threads connecting to the various names. ] there're different types of love in a relationship, but that goes for any relationship, so it doesn't have to be romantic so— See Paul, right here?

Yes, boy, I can see. I wish I could close my eyes, and unsee. Would you listen just a moment to me—

[ she seems very close to her limit to listening to all of this for hours— but she relents. falco points to the names written on the slips next to his. ]

There's Eros, like the story, for two people, [ he pins the red thread from paul to both, and as he does so, with his back turned, ] and that's really hard to pull off because it's easy for anyone that loves someone to feel jealous, and Brother already said he feels that way sometimes like there'll be nothing left, do you think there's some Mania in there too? I'm not sure if it's Pragma, that takes time to evolve— Erwin and Levi are definitely Pragma.

Boy—

But these started as Philia and that's what this green is going to be for, and this gold is supposed to be Storge because we're all from the same House so that counts as familial like these here, it's really different from, like, Ymir and Historia, or Anne Elliot and Captain Wentworth in Persuasion—

I've had it!

Wh—

You heard me! This is too much! It's been days! Cease! Go play outside! Make bread, brew tea for your fathers! Read your books and not the ones you stole! Is everyone seeing this, hm?! Good! [ it's clear she's talking to the sleepers, now, hopping onto an entire stack of books. ] Is this yours? Or this? Come get it! And this? [ she flutters onto a statue, then someone's flowery gift to a loved one, an elaborate painting of a couple in the hues of a purple sunset, then pecking at a little box with . . . were those— rings? ] These! Those! Also stolen! You haven't even apologized to Jun! And before you start, I am indeed shaming you! You've never stolen! You've never been obsessive or nosy or combative or— [ she puffs up big and nasty for a falcon no larger than a human palm. ] This! It is worse than hormonal! I do not like it! [ peck!! peck!! peck!! ] Shame! Shame on you!

What's with you—?!

And what's with you?! I hope they talk some sense into that smitten little head!

[ falco's face changes so many shades then, going from lime, to slime, to a deep castelon green from the tips of his ears to his collar bones. he's hushing angrily: ]

No one was supposed to see, they'll want to have it! Just like Jun!

You are dreadfully mistaken! A problem must be seen!

[ the worst (or best) of it is his sputtering voice that just gives way to the harshest, cracked shriek in teenage rebellion: ]

This is beautiful!!

Comments

Omen???

[justoscar]

[The abrupt switch left Oscar momentarily confused-- and, out of habit, he asked--]

Diggs?

[It always helped when he could see his Omen. Like clockwork, the little deer-like creature was there when he turned to look, watching him patiently. Oscar heaved a relieved sigh.]

Ruby and Ozpin were who I was waiting for. And, anyone else they could bring along. Uncle Qrow had a vision about Willow... he and I could move the fastest.

[martyrofduty]

I haven't heard details about what, if anything, they did that day. How did it go?

You can understand why this is best handled here, I hope.

[justoscar]

No, no. I get it. I'm just not used to it.

...And everything went pretty badly, from what I heard. Willow was already corrupted at the start, but Chara stepping in to take me out of the picture tipped her over the edge. I think they both killed people, and Chara got their people to burn our house down.

Because. Evidently that's fair.

[A sigh.]

I don't know the full story. It started a chain reaction that went in a lot of directions, including Johnny coming and taking most of the kids from John's house. I've been going back and forth between the sea and the back of Paul's head until recently, so there's parts I just don't remember.

I'm just glad my friends and our animals are safe.

[martyrofduty]

At high corruption levels, what seems right or fair is rooted in negative emotion, not balanced emotions or reason. It does not excuse actions, but it explains them.

It's messy. Some people put every part of it squarely on John. He kickstarted it and deserves plenty of blame, but I don't find it healthy (for anyone) to pin that complex series of reactions on one person. It undermines our ability to prevent it from happening again.

I've always cared more about preventing further bad things from happening than punishing old ones, and I prefer punishments that keep that in mind.

I'm glad you kids (and everyone else, including animals, at your house) are okay. That's what matters.

[justoscar]

There's too many interwoven choices and too many people at fault, myself included. This place can literally turn us all into monsters... so you're right.

All we can do is try to prevent more of the same from happening.

And, for what it's worth? Thanks. There's not a lot of us. We were scattered bits from our own worlds until we all decided to live under the same roof when the Dream broke down. It was a way of keeping an eye on each other.

...There's not too many of us left from the Dream. It's a little weird to think about.

[martyrofduty]

It's a delicate balance—taking responsibility without ignoring the impositions upon us. We can prepare, as best we can, for the possibility we lose control over ourselves. I trust my friends to stop me if I need stopping, and I'll do the same for them. For others too, if I can.

You're welcome. If you guys need help rebuilding, well, I can see if anyone working with me at the Outpost is interested in helping elsewhere. Seems foolish to work in construction and not be able to help.

How few is few? I met Shiro.

[justoscar]

I didn't know everyone personally, and we're not all friends, but if my count's right there's probably about two dozen of us left. That doesn't sound like a big deal.... but it's a lot when we used to be at least twice that number.

I just don't want Julia's memory to be forgotten.

...We'll take whatever help you can offer, Pyrrha. This isn't the first time we've had homes burned down, but it's never fun when it happens.

[martyrofduty]

It's not a lot of people. I get it. I know what it's like to be so few. Though we'd built the Houses by then, of the original group, lyctorhood cut our numbers in half when we were already so few. Ten thousand years later, it's still a wound.

You repeat yourself plenty enough, but if you or you and the others want to preserve that memory, we can do it. Others can take it up and carry it on. That's history.

I'll ask around.