closedish to cool guys having chill day

[megatheorem]

Who: a bunch of funky friends invited by Viktor and Palamedes*
What: Having a Party in a field with Fireworks
When: the second week-ish in May
Where: (the field outside of) Pal and Viktor's bunker in Gaze

Content Warnings: alcohol and teens drinking it, irresponsible use of explosives, see threads for anything else that comes up

*If you have friendly CR with Palamedes please feel free to handwave that he mentioned this happening, also if your character has CR with a Pal Friend (a pal^2) who would invite them along, he's broadly allowing this. It's not a formal affair in the slightest lmaooo

--

afternoon/evening.

Earlier in the morning on the day of The Fireworks Field Party (tm), Palamedes makes sure to send a quick location ping to anyone who's never been to the Sixth bunker (also tm) before, because it is, indeed, just in a field somewhere in Gaze. The treeline is comfortably distant from the door to said bunker, which is the only real indication anything is out here besides a few "big rocks" that he names, in his message, as landmarks.

As an afterthought, he has set up a little trail of mason jars containing glowing mushrooms to lead the way to The Field, helpfully. The Field is what it sounds like: a dang field, just slightly ominous in the Gaze fashion, although besides the usual somebody's-watching feeling, it's grassy and spacious for kitschy lawn games. Among the things Palamedes has provided (upon recommendation of a shopkeeper, so like, do not perceive his choices, they were made for him) include:

1. Just a load of blankets, big cozy ones dutifully spread out for chilling on, on the ground.

2. Throwing game Crossbones, definitely chosen because of the bones (they are wooden sticks), and just kind of left sitting there waiting because your host does not know how to play physical games.

3. beanbag horseshoes because it rocks

4. Just, like, a specific blanket that has pencils and blank paper sitting on it... This is a free station, no one will question what art happens here.

Harrow has also provided bone chairs for alternate seating, which are precisely what they sound like.

Eventually, the field will also feature a snack table, which is a community effort, and a booze table, which is slightly supervised in the way that your esteemed host(s) will not permit booze and cherry bombs at the same time.

And, because it's an open field in Trench, there is also a table where emergency incense is waiting. Wandering too far from the space immediately around the bunker (which, it's a big space, you'd have to go far) will eventually lead you to blood wards on the ground, on the trunks of a few trees, etc. Don't touch these. Don't be gross.


the fucken fireworks.

It's fireworks. Once it's dark, there are even more glowing mushroom jars and homemade alchemy glowsticks from Waver to be passed around, somehow, and at least some of the little beanbags glow in the dark, ooh!! Viktor has provided cherry bombs to be used with at least a little caution, for god's sake. There are also some slightly larger fireworks in much shorter supply, from a shop, that will be closely guarded until someone with pyrotechnics talent convinces Palamedes they deserve one. Godspeed.

Broadly: this is a fireworks party (tm) for individual wee ones you can throw around on your own, with only a brief smattering of the big ones that light up the whole sky above the field. It's a chill time for cool buds, fire safety is encouraged, so is vibing on the blankets and enjoying a nice evening.

At various times, local dope musician Anna Amarande will be providing some light musical entertainment, for vibes.


the bunker i guess.

The party is not in here, but for reference:
-it's locked via numpad and neither of these stickbug nerds are giving out the code but they'll open the door if asked... you don't have to leave the place to go to the bathroom lmf
-it's a bunker. it's one room and a bathroom in the back. it's full of disorganized nerd stuff and an oversized moon orb and pal's mean omen, rocky the cool rat (harpy eagle), who will aggressively flap at anyone with sticky fingers until they leave
-the code is 69420 so if you're super funny like gideon you COULD guess it

Comments

[likethelight]

[ It's funny because... it isn't even something Allen could really describe or teach. It's just how he is; it's compulsive. He can't not want to connect with people, and it's entirely genuine. Though he is also the sort to absolutely tug Shouto along -- not as well as he could if he could still walk, but you get the idea -- and introduce him to people he knows. Share little tidbits about their personality, lives, who will give you a sweet roll just for stopping by and sharing their day with them a little, who needs someone to look in on them a little more than others might. That sort of thing is second nature to him: trying to make people feel involved and part of things. To try and help them understand each other.

Which is also why he wouldn't just forget about Shouto even if he got bogged down for a while when checking in with someone. Coming back up brightly to ask -- after trying to let him sleep as long as he needed if caught napping -- ne, do you like tea? Look, she just told me about this nice little place down the street. Let's stop for a while, maybe they'll have snacks too. ♥ It's about subtleties. And baby steps.

The smile is more warming than anything he could say, faint or not -- you do have a good smile, and he's glad to see it more -- although that sort of answer to his question... ]

Haha! [ An outright laugh, gentle and radiantly light and easy, so genuinely good-natured like that really did pick up his spirits. ]

Yes, you did. And I was. [ Not even going to chide him that that's not normally how you have fun, and he just lays a fond hand on his shoulder for it. He'll just find subtle ways when he can to drag him along into other activities he might also find fun. For example: ]

I could teach you sometime, if you'd like. How to juggle. [ Less subtle, but still lit up with a good mood. ]

We don't have to stay terribly late though? If you'd like to get some actual sleep. [ He won't say it since he has an idea of how that would be received, but he does feel rather guilty how he seems to need so many naps. ]

[swellter]

[ Subtleties go over his head. They always have and likely always will. It's a skill he never had the chance to learn, locked away from everyone but his mother. Sweet and kind, she was like him. Quiet and encouraging, filled with so many subtleties, he could never fully see the full scope of her beauty until she was gone, bereft of his angel, he broke.

Allen laughs, and what is faint grows deeper. Generous and hearty, it draws him into his sphere. It was never his smile that put him at ease, but his laughter, tinkling with life like the touch at his shoulder. Light and warm, it's impossible to ignore. His eyes flick to the hand at his shoulder and back to him. ]

Juggle? [ He looks a little puzzled by the prospect. ] Why?

[ A genuine question. It's not a skill he needs nor is it one of the many that need polishing.

He blinks at the offer, mystified by it. ]

I have patrol after this.

[ Even if they leave early, he won't be getting much more sleep tonight. At least here, among people he trusts, he feels safe enough to let himself drift. ]

Do you want to leave early?

[likethelight]

[ Patrol after this? Ah... of course he does. It isn't surprising and is something Allen's used to from the Order, honestly. Exorcists didn't get many days off and there wasn't a lot of time for sleep, rest, or... much beyond missions and training. At least he did get to nap then, so he smiles lightly and shakes his head. ]

Mm, no. I was thinking more for you. [ But since he does have patrol, at least it's good to be able to spend some time able to relax beforehand. It's good for all of them, Viktor and Palamedes offering this sort of reprieve, and Allen gives his shoulder another light pat before letting his hand drop. ]

It's nice just being able to be somewhere relaxing for a while. [ Said with a peaceable sort of hum, before his eyes flick back to Shouto's, and this time with a bright and quietly lively sort of spark; almost conspiratorial. He waves a finger, tsk tsk. ]

And does there need to be a reason to learn how to juggle? It's fun, and something that can be done together too. [ Even if somewhere between friendly chide and tease, he says it quite genuinely and with a warm and happy sort of smile. ]

But it can be nice, seeing people's reactions to it too.

[swellter]

I'm fine.

[ Despite what his double shifts might lead one to believe, he asked for them. To make up for the week he disappeared but also... it's easier to deal with darkening thoughts when you have something to focus on. By the time his shift ends, he's tired enough to pass out the moment his head hits his futon. Enough so, he almost doesn't want to put it away in the morning but the extra effort to set it up at night when he's already tired helps him too.

However, the extra sleep doesn't help him to understand Allen in these last few weeks. He's a little different than how he's come to know him. Caught up in the catacombs and the Akuma fight, and... his brother, he's only seen him as a fellow hero. Seeing him in the light of day without their lives on the line, he's discovering different aspects of him. Like the fact that he's talkative and easy-going kind of like Kirishima. It's a little odd, but his perception of him is expanding. Growing, even if sometimes he doesn't always understand what he's getting at. ]

Yes, you and your father were pierrots, so you learned how to juggle because it's a common skill in the circus. If you were both in a different profession like running a tea shop then you'd be good at making tea. Or if you both opened up a soba shop, you'd be very good at making soba noodles. Or if you went into growing square watermelons, you'd be good at changing the shape of fruit even if you are gong against nature.

[ Fun isn't he? He's going to keep going until something or someone cuts him off. ]

1/2

[likethelight]

[ It's been good for Allen gaining a better, more rounded understanding about Shouto too. Though in his case, there hasn't been much that's surprising to him either. Allen may be a man who wears many different hats, even ones most people would think mutually exclusive, but Shouto... what you see is what you get, he's realizing; quiet, forthright, and direct. It suits him. The difference between the more emotion shown when fighting or under duress isn't surprising: it's commented on among Exorcists. It was commented on to him directly regarding his own manner... Unsurprising, yes, even if it does make him pause sometimes. Even if it seems like the other boy utterly misses the point half the time when it comes to normal human conversation.

Like... right now. Because that's-- um... No, you see... Shouto... ]

2/2

[likethelight]

...

[ No, you know, this is fine. He's weak to this. Apparently, at least, as Allen tries in vain to politely muffle his laughter with his wrist and just fails utterly, pitching forward a little from it. Light and helplessly full of life, yes. You know the irony in it, Shouto?

He doesn't laugh that much. He really, really doesn't. A small one that cracks through in his tone from time to time, the occasional wry chuckle -- those, sure. Little things that bleed into his tone more than anything. But actual, real laughter? Very rarely... especially since he left the Order. It isn't just the Trench; he doesn't laugh that much the rest of the time around other people. Just the small occasional and the wry chuckles. If it was pointed out to him he wouldn't even know what to say.

But wiping some of the mirth from the corner of one eye, he twists around and leans in then to press two fingers lightly against the other boy's lips without even a second thought. Shushing him? Shushing him, but not really and in teasing gesture alone, still with a bubbled laugh hiding in his tone. ]

Who's to say someone couldn't learn to do all of that too? [ Maybe he has, you wouldn't know. He's a man of many hats. ✰

But in the process of turning towards him his eyes snagged on something at the edge of the blanket, too. Something he hadn't noticed before, because -- well. He can be kind of a space cadet about these things sometimes. ]

Hm? [ it's a little distracted. wait, oh. he saw people with those earlier? ] Glowsticks?

[swellter]

[ He's so very terrible with making conversation. At least, in the normal sense which is half the reason he listens more than speaks. For one, half the things his friends chat about go over his head. So, his thoughts tend to drift to more important matters like when he'll take his next nap. Second, and most importantly, he's not that social and doesn't care to be. Keeping up a conversation for the simple act of chatting will never appeal to him.

The complete opposite of his companion in so many ways, but similar in others. Sometimes, they even complement each other. Like when Allen picks up conversations that he leaves behind, nipping those awkward pauses before they have time to make themselves known. While he's blunt in his mannerism, Allen is a bit more finicky. If they get the wrong order at a restaurant he'll point it out. If someone tries to extend a conversation, he'll step in and tell them they need to leave. He has no qualms about speaking his mind which comes as a surprise to some, no one expects the seemingly quiet one to be so forthright and assertive when prompted.

How Allen manages to deal with him for so long is anyone's guess, but he is very understanding, at least from what he's seen from watching him talk with others. Friendly and kind, there are few who aren't charmed by his engaging personality and bright smile. It's even more effective when he laughs, not the muffled one he tries to hide with the back of his hand, but the bright tinkling tones free of restraint that draw everyone in, including him. Case in point, it's not the two fingers at his lips that cut him off but the sparkling laugh teeming with life. He stares, not so subtlety, while his thoughts cascade to grey skies and silver seas entirely missing the question.

He blinks. What did he say? He would ask but Allen moves on to the glowsticks and this time he pays attention, somewhat. ]

They're for you.

[ He answers, talking while those two fingers are still on his mouth with absolutely no qualms about keeping up the conversation like this. ]

[likethelight]

[ How Allen manages to deal with him in those circumstances? The same way already pointed out: complimenting each other. The irony to Allen's manners and good decorum is he isn't blind about it the reality of a situation. If something or someone is annoying he fully recognizes it as really annoying, but finds a diplomatic way around it. Takes a moment to step out of himself and into someone else's shoes to try and understand their feelings. He smooths out edges, even his own. So he'll fully recognize in those moments that Shouto is at least partially right, even if he'll laugh a touch sheepishly and try to smooth it out a touch more tactfully so no one's feelings are hurt while not exactly being contrary either. It isn't like he has bad intentions, so why would Allen mind?

I mean, unless there was someone was being a dick. Then all bets are off and he's all about cheerfully crushing them at their own game... He has a strong sense of justice and fairness about these things.

But they're a good team like that, and so no, he doesn't mind and doesn't feel like it's having to "deal" with him. He enjoys it. ...Even with having to scramble a little sometimes to reassure someone else's bruised feelings. ]

...? [ He blinks for a moment, still smiling wide but it's more like an afterthought as he's distracted. Why are you staring at him like that? He's caught it a couple times now. Except he stares a little too, smile finally dropping from surprise -- and the sensation -- at that answer while he's still not-quite shushed him. ]

You got them? [ A pause, the wheels turning as that clicks. ]

...and the blanket too. [ That's what he'd been doing while Allen was juggling. That's why he had been sitting and waiting like he had. He blinks a few more times, a touch rapidly-- ...and belatedly remembers to withdraw his hand then. With a bit of a blush, as he had kept talking despite that and Allen hadn't expected that and the ticklish sort of tingle. _{Probably should have.}

But he smiles then, warmed by that sentiment, though much more gently this time. Canting his head to the side, grateful. ]

Did anyone ever tell you that you're very considerate?

[swellter]

[ Shouto, of course, doesn't catch on to the cheerful mental crushing going on in front of him, be it mutual or one-sided. Or when he leaves behind bruised feelings unless it's pointed out to him outright and explained. Just don't ask him to explain why he's staring; he has no answer. He tends to stare out into space, mostly at landscapes, but people? Not so much. They don't usually garner his attention unless he has something on his mind regarding them. Like their hand on his mouth. Does it bother him? No. He wouldn't have a problem doing it himself, if the roles were reversed, and if he thought to do something like this. ]

I asked for two, they gave me four.

[ A nod at the follow-up question, and his lips tingle with the movement just as Allen abruptly pulls his hand away. Is something wrong? He doesn't question him aloud, too busy pressing his own thumb to his mouth. Huh. It doesn't tickle. The touch is only for a second before he gets caught up by his smile, again. ]

Considerate?

[ It takes a few seconds for the cogs to start turning, a few more before he remembers to drop his hand from his mouth before responding. ]

No... did someone tell you that?

[ Is that why he's asking? ]

[likethelight]

[ Two but they gave him four? Ah, they knew he was asking for a friend and wanted him to have fun too, that's kind. Likely Shouto doesn't fully get that's why either, given how he just phrased that, but that's okay.

His gaze snags on the other's hand for a moment when he does that, blinking, before glancing away and reaching over for the glowsticks, though it takes him a moment as he has to stretch a bit more than he'd like. _{Blast, this is annoying for a mobility-type like him.} ]

No. [ Snagging the four of them, he sits back up and turns to Shouto with a smile, eyes bright with certainty and sincerity. Handing him two of them? Yes. ]

It's just because you are. [ Not all the time and there are probably a lot of people who'd disagree, he's met them when they're together on the street, but in his own way? And certainly from how he's treated him?

It shines. And is so very warming. ]

[swellter]

[ He would disagree with it. He's selfish with things he wants, pushing when he's unsure if the person on the other side is ready for it. His brother is a prime example, he pushed too much too quickly and got burned. If he were considerate he wouldn't have approached him in the first place, not after Dabi made it known exactly what he thought of him after he tried to torch him the first time they met in Trench. But he's persisted, will persist, because he's selfish, always has been since infancy when he clung to his mother's side, contributing to her breakdown. ]

... I think you have low standards.

[ He takes the two offered sticks from him, intending to hold them for him. ]

If you want to turn them on, you have to crack them so the chemicals inside mix and create the glow.

[ He explains showing him how to 'crack' one in half without actually doing so. Dusk is fast approaching and there's still enough light out it would diminish the effect. ]

[likethelight]

[ Low standards? Ouch.

Allen just gives him a wincing sort of grin in response to that. Haha... maybe that's a little spot on. Even if he would still say the other is considerate in his own, hard to describe sort of manner, but that's the last sort of thing one argues about. And he holds one of his glowsticks up into the air and tilts it back and forth, peering at the liquids in it after Shouto demonstrates how it works. ]

Really? [ Huh. That's really neat.

Likewise he doesn't crack his own yet, wanting to wait for the fireworks themselves after he saw somewhat what they looked like after seeing a few other people running around with theirs already lit, and sets his two next to him. Timcanpy trundles over from where he had been busy chewing on and inadvertently rolling himself up in one of the corners of the blanket, batting at them lightly with one of his stubby hands. ]

We never had anything like that before. [ Sparklers and simple fireworks, yes. Glowsticks? No. Komui would be enchanted and learn how to make a hundred, and the thought makes him smile a touch ruefully. ]

[swellter]

[ Distracted by the odd grin, he misses the jab he inadvertently caused him. Shouto doesn't even realize he said anything wrong with no response to his words. So, his thoughts move on to the glow sticks leaving the little jab behind without ever knowing his part in it. ]

They're common where I'm from. People usually use them as a light source at parties.

[ He answers while tracking Tim's antics with his eyes. The tiny hands still fascinate him and after spending so much time with the little omen, he feels like a kindred spirit. He's tempted to reach out and tap him on his round metallic tummy but refrains himself. Instead, he reaches into his pocket where he slips out a small plastic cylinder filled with about fifty toothpicks. Tapping out two for the little omen, he pockets the container, and nudges the two little sticks close enough for him to grab and eat. ]

CW (cute warning): butts 🍑

[likethelight]

[ Well they do say ignorance is bliss. ]

Oh! That makes sense. [ He'd wondered slightly how they were meant to use them, because you know he's been considering what sorts of tricks he can do with them otherwise. But that makes sense, and he's excited to see for how the whole place looks as it continues to get darker really.

But Allen tilts his head curiously when Shouto reaches into his pocket for that cylinder, not recognizing it, and watches as he taps out some of the contents. Toothpicks? What for—oh.

Timcanpy watches the other boy intently, ceasing his play and rolling back onto his stomach. When the two sticks are nudges towards him he waddles forward, leaning forward as if he's sniffing them for a moment (if he had a nose?), before he reaches out with a hand and grabs one. Waving it around for a moment not unlike how Allen had studied the glowstick; it's almost disturbingly adorable.

And then he bites down on the end with a crunch, chomping on it somewhat noisily for a moment before he whips his head back at Allen, then back up at Shouto, the long end of the toothpick dangling from his toothy little mouth. He grins up at Shouto when he does though, his backside wiggling for a moment as the toothpick bobs up and down in his mouth; a little sassy. It almost looks like how someone with a toothpick habit might chew on one, except not quite.

Allen laughs, genuinely. Recognizing it immediately. ]

He wants to pretend that they're cigarettes.

[ Should it be weird that the golem is a smoker? Apparently not. ]

OMG! My eyes!!! That's too adorable!!!

[swellter]

[ Tim waddles forward and Shouto watches his approach with flickers of hope behind mismatched eyes. Like trying to bribe a stray cat, his movements are purposeful and he stills, so very still, when Tim starts to sniff them. Hook. Then that impossibly tiny hand grabs at one of them and starts waving it around and he outright stares. Line. Only one thing left now and Shouto is practically vibrating with unspent energy, so very intent on what happens next he almost forgets Allen's still there, when the little omen opens his mouth and - Sinker - Bites It!

Bright eyes immediately flick to Allen. Did you see that?! Stays there long enough to confirm it, then just as quickly turns back to Tim who grins up at him. His eyes sparkle with bottled excitement that tugs at the corner of his mouth, utterly pleased by the outcome. Only to be thrown for a loop, when he comes across that wiggling butt with that toothpick bobbing out of his mouth. Kizu hums with humor in his mind and Shouto stares not quite believing what he's seeing or what Allen tells him. ]

Cigarettes?!

[ Did he turn him onto a smoker?! Oh, no. What has he done. ...I'm a bad influence. He thinks, managing to look lost while feeling like a villain in one of those mangas Sero reads. Except, Allen sounds happy and Tim looks just as pleased with his new... toy? What's going on??? ]

the world became a better place with Timbutt :D

[likethelight]

[ It's contagious, that quiet sort of excitement, even if he knows Timcanpy well enough to know what's going to happen. So much so that when when Shouto looks up at him with that bright and excited sort of look in his eyes far more expressive than his face, Allen's own smile lights up and splits wide with a silent sort of laugh in shared joy. So absolutely warmed by that, and laughing for real all the more easily a moment later when Tim begins treating them as he would miniature cigarettes. ]

It's because my master would smoke them. [ He reaches over to pat Shouto's arm lightly and tries not to be so very amused. Don't feel bad. ]

He likes to eat them sometimes. Or their smoke.

[ And almost as if to prove his point, Timcanpy has taken the second stick now and is proudly chewing on both of them like some swag sort of debonair. Two is twice as cool, right? ]

Shouto will never unsee it *__*

[swellter]

[ Excuse him while he tries to get that image out of his head. The hands he can understand, even the mouth full of teeth. His tiny little feet too. Just... give him a moment. He's seen things... cute... things?

Even though he knows he's being placated, he accepts Allen's gesture. Still, a little off, he doesn't quite register the explanation taking a few moments for it to fully settle, and then he's turning to him, brows slightly creased in question. ]

Your master? The General?

[ It clears his thoughts in an instance. He spoke about him before. The one he apprenticed under. A very highly-ranked Exorcist like Allen. ]

[likethelight]

[ Don't worry, Shouto. The tushy isn't going anywhere. It's always there when you least suspect it. Cheekily -- and Timcanpy seems to know it, grinning wide in a pleased sort of manner.

And there's nothing wrong with placating! It's not like he's lying! But he blinks at the question, before giving a small nod. Still in his good mood. ]

Mm. [ He pauses for a moment, considering. ] General Cross Marian.

[swellter]

[ He'll get over it. He's fascinated by his tiny hands more than anything. How much dexterity does he have?! He doesn't like platitudes, but if he trusts the source, then it's not so much platitude but sincerity. He trusts Allen. ]

Cross... Marian.

[ He doesn't butcher the name this time. Allen spoke of him before, not much, but he seemed to be important to him. ]

Do you miss him?

1/2

[likethelight]

[ Allen is nothing but sincerity, almost to a fault. Well, there are some exceptions with people he dislikes, but someone has to really earn that and provoke him. Even when he's not being entire genuine he's still being sincere with his feelings and intentions in some form, if not in whole. So yes he sincerely thinks you shouldn't feel bad and the whole thing is endearing.

But that question throws him a little comically off-kilter. ]

Eh? [ um

scrambling,, mentally, to try and even figure that out. You know anyone in his life before just knew better than to ever ask something like that, knowing what a can of worms it was... and guessing the likely answer... ]

Um-- [ fidgeting ] That's...

2/2

[likethelight]

[ ... ]

He was a bastard, you know? [ He glances over at Shouto as he says it, ironically no bite in his tone. Just calm and honest eyes as he folds his hands into his lap. ] An absolute demon of a man. He drank, had too many lovers, a disagreeable temper, bad morality, spent all of his time in gentlemen's clubs, and had no sense of responsibility with money...

[ And yet -- he pauses. His expression softening a little for a moment. ]

...but he used to make me this really salty stew sometimes, to try and get me to eat when I didn't want to. It was terrible.

[ Another pause. Clear-eyed, as his chin tips back and he regards Shouto for a moment. ]

I miss that.

[ It's because you make him sentimental or something. Or are hard to lie to -- and thus make it hard to lie to himself. Or Allen's own feelings have mellowed and become more sentimental with time. Possibly all of the above. It'd almost be annoying, honestly, if it was anyone else. ]

[swellter]

[ Watching him closely the way he is, it's impossible to miss Allen's reaction. Is he... nervous? Midoriya was like this sometimes and Shouto spent a long time studying him. From confidence to fidgeting in the span of one breath. Shouto stares, curious about the kind of mentor that would make him react this way. ]

A bastard?

[ Oh... Not what he expected when he first asked the question. He listens to Allen's description, building a picture of this Cross Marian in his head, more movie character than a real-life man. Born into a well-off family with social standing, he can't even parse the true nature of a gentlemen's club and writes it off as one of those upscale bars. People do that sort of thing there, right?

He doesn't need to understand the details of his tale when the answer lies in the soft expression of his face. He meets his eyes adn Shouto looks back at him, feeling like he knows him just a little bit more. ]

You miss him.

[likethelight]

[ More movie character than real life man is absolutely what Cross always was to Allen, if he'd had movies like that in his world, so that's honestly pretty accurate. Ten feet tall and bulletproof, larger than life, terrifying and amazing -- not even the laws of reality seemed to apply to him, the man didn't even age. But that Shouto took that entire list of every single one of Cross Marian's vices and synthesized it down to that...

Allen blinks at him, perfectly flummoxed for a second. Sometimes... sometimes you can read him very well. And he considers it for a moment, and his own conflicted feelings. The comfortable dusk air and oncoming night bringing a cooler scent, Timcanpy playing with his wooden "cigarettes" and beginning to truly chomp down on them like delightful little chewtoys now-- and that's what does it. Watching Timcanpy play with toys that remind him of his old master, and it brings a softer smile still to Allen's face.

They were both dead in his memories, after all. Dead by the same creature, who'd taken two of the things he loved in the world away.

He laces his own fingers together and smiles down towards the ground, expression nostalgic and a little faraway. Bittersweet. ]

Sometimes. [ It's quiet; thoughtful. ]

He was killed some time ago, even in what I remember from "before". I guess about a year, going from "now".

[ Ten feet tall and bulletproof -- that's why it had hit him so hard, realizing that even Cross Marian could die. ]

[swellter]

[ The softness of his face when he spoke about him is what he focused on. Allen looked lost in cherished memories. The same look he sometimes wore when remembering his mother, so he knows what it means. The feelings tied to it. The longing of missing someone that was once your world. Their presence leaves an absence impossible to fill. That faraway look is different from how he spoke about his father but very similar. A mentor, someone you look up to. Didn't Allen say he lost his father when he was young? How young? How did he become the General's apprentice? It must have been after Mana. The way he speaks of the General, Cross Marian, it's impossible not to see the affection layered in his tone no matter what he says.

Lost in thought, Allen looks almost wistful. Like remembering a sweet memory and finding comfort in it, but the admission, so very quiet, leaves him stunned. How long have you been holding that in? It sets the state of his world into stark perspective. Unstable. Men that powerful don't die by chance. Either they break down and turn into a tragedy, or it's the natural progression of a losing war.

Are you... following in his footsteps? The every idea has him slotting his presence next to his, shoulder to shoulder, an undeniable force contained within the breath of his shoulders ready to march at a command. ]

Where does that leave you?

[likethelight]

[ The question draws a bit of a surprised look from Allen, not so much from being asked that but because perhaps he hadn't considered it. But his expression gentles at how the other boy shifted closer at asking that too, the light touch of shoulders, and he's quiet for a moment, briefly looking down before back up at the twilight sky.

He leans in slightly too, shoulders pressed lightly together in fond and a touch indulgent manner, and finding some stability in that.

Where does that leave him? It's a different question in Trench than it would be in his world. There's no mystery or meaning of Cross's death to unravel, no "third side of the war" or holy war at all to figure out, no Apocryphos, no being on the run... no Noah inside him... no Noah at all... no Order... absolutely nothing. Even if he wanted to, all of that is unreachable and long gone here. All the things he had been doing in order to, yes follow in his footsteps in his own fashion. Did that mean his death didn't effect or mean anything him? Definitely not... but--

He's silent, turning that over in his head. Not distressed, but with a genuinely thoughtful and quiet look on his face. Until his lips quirk slightly and he turns back to Shouto then, pale eyes quiet but also a little bright, and smiles wide. Light and airy, certain, happy but also bittersweet. ]

Here.