#this started as a 'stop claiming jc's innocent because he was ~manipulated~'

[crossdressingdeath]

It infuriates me when people say that "oh it wasn't their fault JGY manipulated them" for every bad thing happening in MDZS. Especially in defense of JC. Like yes, he manipulated a lot of people and he's a murderous little bastard, but even when JGY put his hand in, the person still made the choice. JC, especially because of the CQL, is treated like a poor little baby due to this. Manipulation to cause harm and actually causing harm are two separate things. Very similar, but still different. And honestly, it wasn't even very hard for JC to go off, he didn't even need manipulation. It's also hypocritical of JC stans to criticize JGY and WWX of being mass murderers and killers when JC is guilty of the same thing and more!

I think the trouble is that people often miss that just because there are situations in the novel where "JGY manipulated them" largely (though never completely) absolves a character of guilt doesn't mean that that applies to every character JGY ever talks to. Like... we know JGY is a master manipulator, but one of the interesting things about him is that if we look at just the main cast he... very rarely does. He manipulates LXC into not seeing him as suspicious (although I'd argue that that's at least partially incidental and related to him genuinely wanting to be LXC's friend), but otherwise he seems to mostly just... occasionally suggest the cast act on their preexisting impulses. Hell, it's usually JGS making the suggestions! For instance, it's JGS who's all "Hey, Sect Leader Jiang, your second in command insulted you one time" and then JC is like "Shit, did he? I'd better kill him". That's the thing with the manipulators in MDZS; all they do is get the ball rolling. They'll make a suggestion, they'll tell a couple lies, and that is all it takes for whoever they're talking to to go full mass murderer. JC is the perfect example, because as far as we know the Jins did practically nothing! JGS said WWX insulted JC (and was immediately shot down by Lan "never ever lies ever" Wangji) and then claimed the Wens JC knew for a fact were civilians were actually an army; there's no mention of them doing anything beyond that. They were at most an excuse for JC to do what he already wanted to, because JC knew from what he'd seen with his own eyes that everything they were saying was bullshit.

And yeah, people act like manipulation completely removes all culpability from the shoulders of the person who actually did whatever deed is being discussed when... that's not how it works. And because it's mostly JC people keep trying to absolve of guilt by claiming he was manipulated: not only was he not manipulated himself on account of being one of the only people who went to the Burial Mounds and saw the Wen remnants (meaning he had all the information that JGY and JGS were hiding from everyone else to manipulate them into killing a bunch of civilians), he actually does a good chunk of the manipulating for the Jins! Remember, he actively hides the fact that the Wens a) are civilians and b) are led by the people who risked their lives protecting him after Lotus Pier fell in favour of telling everyone that WWX is a traitor for... fulfilling JC's life debts for him. This is the sort of manipulation that removes culpability from a person, because the people JC's talking to aren't getting the full story. Because he's hiding it from them. So if people are going to insist that JC shouldn't be held culpable for anything because "JGY manipulated him" (footage not found), then everyone involved in the first siege of the Burial Mounds except JGS, JGY and JC is totally innocent because the three of them are, as far as we know, the only cast members who actually knew what was happening. And yet people keep insisting that everyone is guilty except JC! Very strange, that one of the only people who actually knew what was happening is also the only one who isn't guilty. People should just admit that the "JGY manipulated them" line is just about scrambling for an excuse to insist that JC willingly slaughtering a civilian population out of sheer spite and desire for revenge against people who were already dead isn't a completely morally bankrupt act already.

And yeah, it's incredibly hypocritical that people both in and out of universe freak out over WWX and JGY being mass murderers when a) WWX only acted in self defence and b) JC is also a mass murderer. And a serial killer! Which JGY and WWX are not! Keep that in mind next time you read the bit where the sects all turn on JGY; they are doing this in the presence of a known serial killer who tortures people to death and doesn't even benefit from it (one thing you can say about JGY is that he never kills anyone without some sort of tangible benefit) with no intention of doing anything about him. I'm not suggesting that JGY shouldn't have been dealt with for his crimes, but... just keep in mind that they're doing all this with the support and arguably under the leadership of a guy who has brutally tortured so many people to death that his entire reputation is based around it. And do nothing about that at any point. Classism is alive and well among the sects.

[roshellrp]

NAME: Kaito Parker

AGE: 24

GENDER & PRONOUNS: Agender (presenting as male on Earth), He/Him

AGE AT TIME OF POD EMERGENCE: 17

LENGTH OF TIME IN ROSWELL: 7 years

POWER: Glaciokinesis (ice manipulation)

OCCUPATION: Sunshine Daycare - Teacher

FC: Yuzuru Hanyu

this is not the world we had in mind, but we got time. we are stuck on answers we can’t find, but we got time. and even though we might have lost tonight, the skyline reminds us of a different time. 

Death CW

The air around the sand dunes where his pod had lain for decades was abrasively warm against his cool skin as soon as he emerged in the year 2012–a fresh faced ‘boy’ with no memory of who he was. He was woken up by a wise, old Navajo man named Jáan who had uncovered the long lost pod that was mostly submerged in sand by that time. Jáan knew that the somewhat fragile-looking, long-limbed boy would not survive out there on his own and wordlessly took him into his home that stood a bit secluded just on the edge of Roswell.

Kaito Parker–the name he would become known as, under the guise of being an immigrant from the far east adopted into an American family–understood hardly a word of English at the time of his emergence. In fact, he could only distantly recall being able to speak some language that he did not know the name of. Occasionally a few words would slip out without him realizing it, but they did not help him in this land of a harsh sun that aggravated his overly sensitive skin. It took a long time for him to physically adjust to the discomforting heat of Roswell’s summer months, to be able to control his body temperature more or less. Whenever he ran a fever, he covered in cold sweat and his body temperature was still abnormally low compared to that of a regular human.

Jáan did everything to help assimilate Kaito into Roswell’s society–taught him English, basic maths, how to be polite. Kaito was a surprisingly quick learner–perhaps, some of the lessons were already ingrained in him from his past life and now he was merely remembering them.

He tried various jobs. He tried working at a bookstore, but he could not read well. He tried working at a cafe, but whenever he tried preparing a hot drink, it would mysteriously run ice cold by the time he got it to a customer. It caused complaints, confusion, and a deep-seated feeling of inadequacy within him. He had to quit, the power of ice having finally made itself known to him. It was something that he’d have to learn how to hide.

From nineteen, he took a couple of courses at the University–that’s where he met Michael, a guy in his twenties who seemed overly interested in him, who found his broken English endearing. Kaito wasn’t sure why, but he was excited by the prospect of having a friend. Still mentally young, he was overly trusting and craved any kind of attention. He learned a lot from Michael–leisure sports, movies, nightlife… romance, or at least what he believed was romance. Lacking experience, he was quick to fall in love where Michael just wanted to have some fun with him. Michael quickly realized this, but instead of setting him straight, he took advantage and continued leading him on. He would often comment about how cool Kaito’s body felt to the touch–it made Kaito self-conscious and want to recoil, but Michael always stopped him and claimed that he liked it. Kaito always wondered if somehow Michael knew, but even so, he trusted him and felt a bubble of hope at the prospect of being accepted fully for who he was.

How naive.

Can you show me? he asked one day, then further clarified what he meant. It was the first time Kaito had ever been asked about his power–mostly because no one knew. He admitted that he couldn’t–he didn’t know how. Michael then took it upon himself to help him learn how to wield it properly. Whereas it was usually a part of him that he felt ashamed of, he was filled with a sense of joy the moment he managed to dispel ice from his hand. He didn’t question Michael’s knowledge of these things, simply accepted him for being observant. He was the second person who knew. Jáan’s words–no one must know–echoed in his head, but he figured Michael was safe. They were together, after all…

It started with small, seemingly innocent requests. It’s hot, can you make my drink colder? Then it became less innocent. I wanna go for a swim, can you break the lock to the pool?–he did it, with a lot of hesitation. They almost got caught and the next day Kaito said that he was never doing it again. He didn’t like using his power for anything and he felt uncomfortable being coaxed into doing so. What? It’s not like I’m asking you to break anyone out of prison. Lighten up. Something about that left a sick feeling in the pit of his stomach but he ignored it–he had to, since he didn’t know what to make of it, didn’t know what to make of the mysterious yet overbearing sense of sadness and melancholy that swept over him. Didn’t know about his real family, detained and tortured at Caulfield Prison many years ago.

It became a string of manipulation – no one else will ever accept you, I’m the only one you’ve got. It was a constant tug and pull, constant attempts to lead Kaito astray mixed with an instilled fear that his identity would be compromised. He told Jáan–someone knows. He shared his fears. He cried–his typically sunny personality and brilliant smile clouded over by the looming shadow of his manipulator. He was now in his twenties, and yet, being on Earth for only so many years made it feel as though he was far too young to get his heart played with and trampled on in this fashion. He took the risk and cut off all contact with Michael, met him with brutal (figurative) coldness whenever they did happen to come in contact–Michael didn’t seem too nonplussed about it. Perhaps he’d moved on to someone else who was like Kaito–if other such individuals truly existed in Roswell, as Jáan has claimed to be a likely possibility. Kaito had yet to meet anyone who was so the prospects weren’t too high for him.

Jáan, the man who’d become like a grandfather to him, passed away in 2018. With no other close family members, he left the house and a modest inheritance to Kaito. The empty house filled him with too much sadness, so he got a place closer to the center of town where he now worked at a daycare and rented the house out to tenants, not wanting to be faced with the short-lived yet bittersweet memories every day.

KAITO is penned by JC