deernet | video; un: ushiromiya

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video; un: ushiromiya

[ Even as the image can be seen, it seems like there's still a moment of set up, tiny hands fiddling with the Omni like they're trying to get the perfect shot.. But then there are two faces visible. Two faces that are looking decidedly younger than usually - it's Ange and Ruby, looking like they definitely can't be much older than six years old.

And looking very excited. ]

Um, so, so..! We heard that there's some sort of reaaally scary snake monster out there! So.. we thought we'd help out everyone and get rid of it! Because Ruby.. She's a really, reaaally cool huntress! [ Ange may be Will-Smith-esque posing at Ruby for emphasis right as she says that. ]

[Ruby just stares at the camera briefly until she notices Ange's hands pointing her way. She blinks and quickly starts to flex her twiggy arms to the camera.]

Yeah! We're super strong and awesome and we've got tons of weapons! [Ruby gestures to a sack of potato's and a large collection of sticks that they've gathered up.]

That snack is going to be- a- -uh- a, a piece of snack!

[ While Ruby is saying that last part, it seems that Ange has already moved over to grab one of the sticks for a demonstration. As she's running back towards where Ruby and the Omni are, she's waving the stick wildly. ]

We'll get it just like thi--

[ Ange manages to smack the stick right against the device, turning the view sideways before it just cuts out entirely.

Oops. ]

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Twenty.. [ Just listen to the way Ange repeats that word.

It's pretty obvious that it sounds so far away to her too. Twenty might as well be ancient. That's such a long time of training. Ange can't even imagine doing it herself. ]

Isn't it difficult to work so hard all the way until you're twenty?

Yeah, it is, but um, he doesn't let me say no if I don't want to do something.

[That was a one-way ticket to end up in pain as Palpatine punished him for his small defiances.]

[ .. Ange goes quiet for a moment.

She may be young still, so she might not understand this as well as an adult would, but even to her it sounds.. bad. Bad enough to be quiet for a moment, wondering how she should say this. Can it really be bad if it's normal to him? But it sounds so bad.. ]

Isn't that.. scary? I mean, you must wanna say no sometimes..

Uh-huh. But he gets really mean when I say I don't wanna and then bad stuff can happen.

[He says in a quiet, sad tone, looking down at the ground. He doesn't like to talk about his master because inevitably he has to face the fact his master shouldn't be doing this to him at all. He's convinced himself it's his own fault his master abuses him, that if he was just a little smarter or better or do things quicker he wouldn't end up getting hurt.]

I.. don't think that sounds good.

[ Granted, Ange is aware that she doesn't know a whole lot about his relationship with his master,but.. it just doesn't sound good. She's pretty sure she can objectively say that. ]

If my teacher at school acted that way, I'd be really scared..! I'd tell mom and dad about it for sure!

Oh, um, well I haven't seen my mother in a long, long time. Master says I'm not supposed to talk about my family.

[That was an attachment Sidious most definitely didn't want his young charge to cling to. Granted, he'd already made an error when he decided to adopt the small Nightbrother as his apprentice. Maul's history and culture had been tattooed onto his very skin and nothing his master did could erase that.]

[ At least Ange can kind of understand not having seen your mom for a long time.

Even if it is sad.

But the other part of it? That's what she can't wrap her mind around as easily. ]

.. Why can't you talk about your family? Isn't talking about your family nice?

[ This master is sounding like a less and less fun person by the moment.. ]

I like to do it but Master says I'm not supposed to. Something about attachment like that being bad. [He's never really had it explained to his satisfaction but Maul has learned he'll be punished if he asks too many questions.] And if I do talk about Mother or my brother he gets really mad and that's scary.

[Then he would hurt Maul physically in some way or another, terrifying the small boy into doing what he wanted.]

Talking about your family isn't bad.

[ It's a little scary to say that - mostly since he's making his master sound so scary, and the last thing Ange wants is to get in trouble with him.

But since her own parents aren't in this place, she's just going to hope that person isn't here either. ]

Being close to your family.. that's nice! It's important! If I could spend all my time with my family, I would..!

He says it is. And he knows everything.

[The idea that Sidious might actually be wrong about something, or worse yet, lie to his young ward is completely unfathomable to the young Nightbrother.]

I would too....

[Maul says wistfully. It's been years since he was back on Dathomir. Much as Sidious has been successful in putting anger and hate into his young apprentice's hearts, he also hasn't been able to quite get him to forget his former life and the happiness Maul had found there in the time before Sidious had selected him to become his apprentice.]

[ Ange goes quiet for a moment, seeming to ponder something. ]

Are you sure he knows everything..?

[ At least she sounds like she's being cautious about saying it, rather than being too abrasive. She can sense that the other kid has a lot of feelings about this other person, after all. ]

I mean.. He's also wrong about punishing you. You don't deserve to be punished for little stuff. So.. he can be wrong about this too, you know.

Yeah, he does. He's really, really smart and knows about all sorts of stuff.

[But Maul gets twitchy and nervous again when she mentions his master is wrong to treat him the way he does.]

No, it's okay, see he only punishes me when I deserve it. It helps make it so I don't do anything wrong again.

[There's that Stockholm Syndrome Maul had developed in order to cope with living under the thumb of a brutal sociopath. He adores his master just as much as he hates and despises him.]

You don't deserve to be punished.

[ Especially not since it sounds like that person isn't just giving him normal punishment. No 'no-cookies-for-a-month' punishment. No 'go-to-your-room-for-15-minutes' punishment.

And little Ange thinks no one deserves punishment worse than that. Ever. ]

Are you really saying that you like him? Or that you like that he punishes you..?

No, I don't like that he punishes me. But if I were better he wouldn't have to. [Maul says quietly. Then he brightens up a tiny bit.] But sometimes he's alright. He'll be nice and tell me what a good job I've done or how smart I am.

[He's yet to realize this is Sidious' way of keeping him under his control. Peppering in little bits of faux kindness mixed in with the gaslighting where he would convince Maul it was his own fault for being punished by him.]

[ Ange may be young too. If she were her regular self, she'd probably recognize a whole lot more patterns here and realise what's going on..

But even though she can't fully grasp the situation at her current age, Ange is still pretty sure something is off here. It doesn't take twelve more years of growing up to realise that basic fact. ]

I don't think sometimes being nice makes up for sometimes really being bad.. You should be careful, you know?

Well, not everyone is nice all the time either, so I guess sometimes people can be bad too.

[The logic of a small child just trying to survive. Then he brightens up just a little bit.]

But it's okay cause he's not here right now so I can just stay with one of the Nightbrothers and I like that better!

Are the Nightbrothers.. nice people..?

[ Ange asks that slowly, cautiously. Because she sure hopes that he's staying with someone who's nicer here, but since she doesn't recognize that name, she has absolutely no idea what these Nightbrothers are like. ]

Some are. Some aren't. [He scowls for a moment at the thought of his former caretaker and his two horrible sons. But then he remembers how that ended and quickly tries to think of something else more pleasant.] But this one's name is Savage and he's really nice and he's been taking care of me so I don't have to worry about taking care of myself.

Oh, that's.. good, then..

[ Even if she isn't so sure whether to trust this boy's sense of 'nice' though, given the fact that he was defending someone who clearly sounded not nice only a moment ago..

Ange can only hope this person is genuinely nice. ]

I hope you'll be okay here.

There's plenty to eat and a home to sleep in and Savage protects me, so it's a lot better than some places I've been

[Already this is miles better than living on Mustafar under his master's care. He smiles just a little in a shy manner.]

Yeah, I'll be okay.

[On that he sounds confident.]

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video; un: ushiromiya

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cw: references to physical child abuse

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cw: gaslighting and mental child abuse

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