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oveliagirlhaditright · 6 years ago

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Night Light: A RokuNami fic. Chapters 1-3

In a future, where the Master of Masters has already been dealt with by Sora-and Kairi dies once more, making Sora lose it for a while-Roxas and Naminé must now contend with the similar to Roxas, Gula, going bad.

Chapter One

Roxas blinked—for what felt like the millionth time—as Naminé tried to tell him why this night light in their room was a good idea.

They were still young and innocent, so they weren’t living together in the same room because they were having sex. But because they needed comfort after everything they’d been through.

He wanted to ask her why she thought it was safe to do this, when she’d recently whacked her eye on the lava lamp thing and had nearly gone blind in the eye because of it.

But then again… if one were to really close themselves off to anything that hurt them, Roxas supposed they’d never grow and live.

He’d come into life as a fourteen-year-old, so he had no true basis for this: But he supposed an example of this, was when a kid was burnt by fire when they were young. If they let that affect them forever, they’d never learn to cook, play with sparklers, or anything like that.

But Naminé was still afraid of the darkness… And if this gave her some relief from it, Roxas would happily oblige (he would just hold Naminé, and make sure she wouldn’t fall off the bed to smack herself again)… Even if he didn’t like light very much...

Naminé grinned, as she pushed the night light into the outlet and it painted the room in pinks:

Naminé had been hoping for pinks—to make her think of her sister Kairi—but oddly enough, there had been no night lights in that color that they could find.

Nami had then opted that they go for red, because maybe it would be faded and look rose-colored… and she had been right.

Sometimes Roxas really thought with Naminé’s powers, that she may be psychic. But with as self-conscious as she still was, after everything she’d done, Roxas dared not bring it up.

“There, Roxas. I promise I’m done with the home improvement now. So if you want, we can go meet our friends now. And so they did: After Roxas dropped a quick kiss to Naminé’s lips, to let her know that he had no issue with helping her at all.

…

As always, Roxas met Hayner, Pence, and Olette on the clock tower (and he would have met Lea, Xion, and Isa, if they hadn’t been busy right now): This was their true Usual Spot, after all, and hell or high water Roxas was sure that this was what they’d continue to do.

Things were a little different now, though: Pence and Olette had just gotten married at the young age of eighteen, and Olette was already pregnant: So Olette had to be very careful when she did this now.

And Hayner, after he had made it big as a basketball player had—sadly—twisted his ankle and lost his career (so now he ironically painted like Naminé did), so getting up here was also a trip for him:

And yet they still did it, because they wanted to make up for every memory they didn’t have from the Digital Twilight Town and more. And how Roxas loved them for it.

“So, have you heard from Sora?” Olette asked—as she made sure to hand Naminé the fruity kind of ice cream that she would want (that Olette was now trying because of her), whilst Hayner handed the boys sea salt bars. “It sounds like Gula’s gone evil.”

And in hearing this, Roxas almost threw up. He didn’t know Gula very well, but from what he did know of him the man had always reminded Roxas of himself.

So, to hear that he was capable of this kind of thing made Roxas begin having doubts about himself, and everything that he thought he knew.

…He’d been just a hair’s breadth away from turning evil in the datascape, perhaps, so did this really mean if he’d been given the proper push there, he would have gone on a rampage?

Sensing how Roxas felt about this, Naminé squeezed his arm softly as she leaned her head against his shoulder.

“You and Gula are very different, Roxas. Don’t worry about it. …If anything, he’s more like when Sora went to the dark side after… after Kairi- than you.”

This instantly struck a chord with Roxas… Naminé had been in love with Sora for so long, and she’d idolized him. Roxas was sure she’d still adored him even while they’d first dating… So, to hear Naminé speak of her belief in him now—even over Sora—spoke to Roxas well of Naminé’s feelings for him.

Olette looked like she wanted to say something to that—and Roxas had no doubt that she did, since she had tried to woo Sora after Kairi had died—but seemed to think better of it, and stopped herself.

“Well,” Hayner began—already trying to be the diplomat, Roxas could tell by his tone—“as much as it sucks to have someone trying to conquer the world again, or whatever, at least you guys have the foreknowledge about it this time: It’s not like what happened with the Xehanorts, the Master of Masters, or when Sora went insane for a little bit. You should easily be able to go find him and beat him. Right? Or go talk some sense into him.”

Hayner wasn’t completely wrong. After their first journeys, Naminé had done recon missions on every world and now knew them like the back of her hand.

Furthermore, she’d implanted devices in each and every location that told you what people were there.

Given that Gula hadn’t come up with a way to get rid of them—and so far, no one else had—they should be able to find him easily. It was true. But this was only if he didn’t world hop and world hop, which was what he probably was doing.

…But it still left a bad taste in Roxas’ mouth, to turn against an ally like this. Yes, Gula had now done it first. But still.

Despite the fact that Roxas had only felt a little safe with the night light Naminé had earlier put in their room… With this new knowledge, even that feeling had completely disappeared.

Chapter Two

The obvious thing Roxas could have done, after finding out that Gula had fallen to darkness, would have been for him to go home, take a look at the picture of his former friend, and brood....and perhaps even lose himself. But Roxas didn't do this. No.

Instead, he decided to pretend that things were normal by going to the store with Naminé. His girl had recently wanted to buy a strawberry cake mix? Well, then, Roxas was going to buy it for her! And it was the first thing on his agenda, as it should have been. And as Roxas pushed Naminé around in the cart—as he now looked for fresh strawberries and some icing of that same flavor—she ended up asking him the question he'd been too afraid to consider himself. "Gula also has a connection to Sora, Roxas? Do you- do you think this is all happening as punishment for him, in 'getting Kairi back' in such an inhumane way?" Right... Kairi was really dead. Roxas almost didn't believe that himself (he didn't want his dear friend to be that way), and the only way Sora had her in his life at all, was when he'd found traces of her in the Datascape and put a new her together brought it-her into the real world. Roxas knew that Xion, Naminé, Vanitas, Xemnas and himself were all exceptions to the normal rules of cloning and Nobodies, so maybe what Sora had done with Kaitwo was different... But he couldn't help feeling this copy of Kairi was exactly that: a copy, and Sora was only fooling himself to think otherwise... and the real Kairi might even be watching on from above in a heartbroken manner. "After all Sora's been through, I don't think he needs to be punished for nothin', so I genuinely hope you're wrong, Naminé."

“I… know, Roxas,” Naminé said sympathetically, as she reached up and put a hand atop Roxas’ own. “I do, too. I also think he’s suffered enough, and that’s why we’ll try to handle this ourselves… and not get him—them—involved.”

And with that idea planted firmly in their heads, Roxas and Naminé got the rest of their supplies, went up to the cash register and paid, and headed back home.

And once they’d made their cake there—because, hey: Roxas and Naminé were retired. And though they were still okay with helping the world when it needed them, they’d enjoy themselves a little bit first—Naminé opened up the Book of Prophecies and set to work.

“You think that has something to do with it?” Roxas asked, as he popped a maraschino cherry into his mouth: In the end, they’d gone a little too crazy with all the strawberry stuff and Roxas had realized he needed some cherries in his life to cut through the taste.

“I know it’s a stupid question, Nami… since everything the Foretellers did was tied to the book. But ever since the Master of Masters was defeated, I thought the whole thing had been rendered null and void.”

Unless, of course, there were some secret passages in the tome that most no one knew about. And of course, if any of the copies of the book were to contain something like that, it would be Gula’s: which Naminé fortunately had on hand, because Gula had given it to her in trying to impress her once.

Naminé sent Roxas a look at his question—that seemed to say that ever since she’d become her own person, and therefore not connected to a Princess of Heart’s power, she’d become weaker and couldn’t know much anymore… And that she’d mostly been keeping her nose out of this kind of gossip for years, too, so forgive her if she was a little rusty.

But Roxas couldn’t help it: He was just so used to Naminé having the answer to everything where he was concerned. And it was part of the reason he loved her so much.

And he was about to hug her tense shoulders and to tell her just that, but he was interrupted from it as Xion and Lea quite literally broke into Roxas and Naminé’s home.

Roxas glared at Xion as it happened, since he knew full well she had a key and had only kicked the door in to make an entrance.

Sure, they had magic that could fix this toot sweet… but it didn’t make it any less annoying to Roxas.

“So, I thought you guys would like to be the first to hear that Gula’s gathering up the Princesses of Heart… Which is just wonderful. Though call me crazy… but I don’t think he’s using them to unlock the Final Keyhole or to create the X-Blade. We never get lucky enough to have villains repeat old plans that we’ve already exploited. No, he must be doing something else with them…”

And at her explanation, Roxas felt his anger at Xion cool down some.

Roxas hadn’t expected that Gula could possibly be going this crazy yet… but if it all really was as dire as Xion was saying, time truly was of the essence and they had no time to wait on anything.

“How do you know this, Xion?” Lea was the one to ask, with his hands on his hips. And he kept clenching and unclenching his fingers, so Roxas could only guess he was fighting to remain calm in this situation and to not summon his chakrams or his Keyblade this very second.

A beat passed, as Xion seemed to only stare at the bluish-violet faux-fish tank that Roxas had.

And the former wielder got the sense that Xion was staring at the purple there in particular: The same color as Naminé and Kairi’s eyes.

And it made Roxas think that maybe when Kairi had died, she’d passed her powers onto Xion and this was why his best friend knew what she did: Not because of the surveillance that Naminé had set up in the worlds, but because Xion had a direct connection to the Pure Lights in now being one herself.

But whatever the real answer here was, Xion wasn’t giving it.

She just crossed her arms over her chest self-consciously and barked, “Because I just do, okay?! …And if I’d known I was going to get the third degree, I would have gone with Isa to check on what, if anything, is happening with the moon.”

And that was as much a cry for help as Roxas had ever heard. And thankfully, Naminé seemed to hear it, too:

And so, she ushered Xion over the threshold, sat her down with a blanket around her shoulders, and offered her a piece of cake: something she happily took.

And upon seeing it, Lea was then running to the kitchen to get a piece himself—with the explanation that “an army marches on its stomach”, of course.

“So, what do we do?” Naminé asked the obvious and looked pointedly at Xion as she did so: which seemed to hint to Roxas that she had figured out exactly what he had about her. “Do we try and contact the Princesses and tell them to give their abilities to others, so Gula has to start the search again? It might save the world, for the time being, but-”

But there was no guarantee that Gula wouldn’t kill the Princesses if they attempted to undermine him like that, if he truly had gone over the edge here. And Roxas wasn’t willing to risk it.

At least if Gula was using the Lights’ powers right now, he couldn’t dispose of them until he had them all, and they’d fulfilled their purpose—which would at least give the Guardians of Light some time to work with.

“No,” Lea cut in—surprising Roxas, because since he was still the newest in trying to protect Kingdom Hearts and so Roxas hadn’t entirely been sure he’d been able to yet keep up with all the rules about summoning it. “We try and find Gula. And we all split up and do so. We have a better chance of managing that kind of thing now, than we would have ever before—since some of the worlds went back to being just one after our last fight… And even if Gula is jumping from world to world, what Naminé set up should be able to tell us where he is… We just need to get there before he leaves.”

That certainly sounded like a plan to Roxas: The only one, really.

…But though they were doing it for the best, Roxas had to wonder if it was a misstep to not tell Sora.

Chapter Three

Naminé’s PoV

While Naminé was, of course, okay with going on this quest with Roxas to stop Gula… she couldn't help mourning—of all things—the nightlight that she and Roxas would be leaving behind. And she even tried to explain that to Roxas, when—with her hands clasped together in front of her, as she stared at their room for the last time--she said "I'm just going to miss it, you know? The sense of safety it provides... Granted, we didn't have this place and these decorations for long. But Roxas, it made me feel safe in Twilight Town. And now we're going on a new mission, away from this sanctuary. And if I can only feel okay here just now... how can I experience that in more dangerous worlds?"

Naminé knew that this was pretty craven talk, for someone who had been to all the worlds and set up security there… but that had been before Kairi had died a third time—taking a part of Nami with her—and she could feel the experience. So that—combined with the fact that evil never seemed to end, and that even any of them could go dark—had Naminé feeling depressed again.

And perhaps in sensing this, Roxas tried to reassure her."Because we'll always come home to it, Nami. In fact, the nightlight will be a beacon leading us here."

Naminé smiled in a slightly forced way here and turned around so that she was in Roxas’ arms.

Hugging him just once, she rested her chin on his shoulder and tried to just breathe for a moment.

And then she disentangled herself from him, picked up her bag, and resolutely went to face this task at hand.

…

Naminé was feeling a lot better, despite everything, when she and Roxas landed on the new world.

She remembered this world well. How could she not? It was home to a sweet, retired elderly lady—with refined taste that Naminé couldn’t even begin to match—with a butler named Edgar, who waited on her so caringly.

Naminé had always admired people much older than herself. For on the few times she had ventured out into the World, despite DiZ’s orders, those were the ones who had treated her best: even with her being Nobody.

And the woman here in particular was very sweet, and had taught Naminé how to do art with paints rather than crayons.

So, the artist in her alone, wanted to go and meet Madame Adelaide again. But there were other parts of her that of course wanted to as well.

And all of this together made Naminé as giddy as she’d been when she’d realized Roxas truly did love her.

That was why she grabbed Roxas’ hand as soon as he appeared by her side—and jumped up and down as she did so, making him do the same action with her.

“Naminé, what-”

“Oh, Roxas! This is one of my favorite worlds I visited! Let’s go visit the best place in it right now!”

To Roxas’ credit, he was quick to comply. He seemed about to voice the word “okay”, but he was cut off when Naminé began dragging him along.

It was a good thing she had a photographic memory that she’d developed with her witch powers. Because otherwise, she might have tried to open a Corridor of Darkness to teleport to the house.

But instead, she realized they had landed on the world fairly close to where the manor was located.

So, they just walked a few blocks, keeping up some nice idle banter as they did, and finally they were at one of the places of Naminé’s dreams.

And it became even more that, when Naminé noticed that there were all these cats in front of it! Maybe they had even lived here all along, and she’d had no idea.

Naminé ignored her aching feet, and ran up to the white kitten that was trying to climb a beam with ivory crawling up it.

The white witch couldn’t help admiring her, since the kitty’s siblings—and father?—were all content rolling around in the grass, or trying to climb trees:

So Nami loved the go-getter personality this one had. Maybe a bit selfishly, it reminded her of how she had gone above and beyond the call of duty, in sending Lingering Will to the Guardians’ aid while she’d essentially been dead.

This would have been a happy moment—and Naminé might have thought Kingdom Hearts had sent them to such a wonderful location, to hint that Gula wasn’t really up to too much bad at all—if at that moment, the orange boy cat (that Naminé would later learn was named Toulouse) didn’t come darting to her, to cry that his mother “Duchess” had been kidnapped.

Roxas looked between Naminé and the kitten and then back again, before settling his glance on his hands: Something that spoke similarly to how Sora had reacted upon seeing Roxas leave him for the first time. And Naminé would have appreciated it, if she hadn’t been busy freaking out.

Gula was apparently after the Princesses of Heart again… But the Seven Pure Lights had the ability to pass their powers onto another: Belle, Jasmine, Alice, Cinderella, Aurora, and Snow White were all proof of this.

And what if the new Princesses—such as Elsa, Anna, and Rapunzel—had given up their abilities… but this time they had been given to the animal royalty in the worlds, like perhaps Nala that Naminé had heard about? …Or moreover, Duchess here?

Sora, on a later adventure, had met a villain named Cruella de Vil, and in Naminé’s mind she had been the cruelest person to ever exist. Because attacking humans was one thing, but pure and defenseless animals? It was too much. Especially anthropomorphic ones that seemed to exist in most of the worlds. The Moogles were like that, and Naminé had bonded with them during her time in Castle Oblivion. So, she couldn’t. She just couldn’t!

What if Gula was now standing over this Duchess, and telling her she had served her purpose the way that Ansem had Kairi?

Naminé, just a few hours ago, had been almost against leaving her nightlight… but now she realized she was more than willing to be that for others, if the World would let her.

“It’s okay,” Roxas whispered kindly to Toulouse, seeming close to tears himself. “We’ll find your mom. Naminé in particular really wants to.”

And she would, because madame Adelaide was coming over to her, needing support from Naminé now, too, and she gave it.

She also called Xion on the gummi phone, informing her to leave Kuzco alone and to go check on Nala instead…

Author’s Note: If any of this has weird mistakes, I apologize. I’m posting this while being half-asleep (but I wanted to post it now, since I know I’ve left this story for a while).

Also, just so it’s known… Kairi isn’t dead in this story because I hate her or dislike SoKai or anything like that. The opposites on both counts, really. Kairi’s my favorite character ever and SoKai’s my ultimate OTP… but somehow it just came to me while writing the first chapter of this that Kairi’s dead. And I tried to fight against it… but I sadly couldn’t: this story/plot seemed to demand it, for some reason. And it will be a plot point later, since Sora will be showing up and all. Yeah.

#rokunami #night light

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someobscurereference · 7 years ago

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fe anon here! Woah I'm actually crying your answer was so Intense and just So Much. Thank you! I love hearing your thoughts on their relationships. Out of curiosity tho, I sent an ask a while back about whether or not you'd be willing to share some more headcanons on how the Nohrian sibs+Beruka and Niles would interact with/react to the deaged awakening trio (and vice versa)? Bc I know u weren't sure you'd continue. Did Tumblr eat that? If ur comfortable talking about it I'd still love to know!

Oh, no, Tumblr absolutely ate that! My inbox is empty 99% of the time, so I definitely would have remembered something like that. If I don’t answer something within a few days, definitely feel free to re-send any asks because that means I didn’t see it!

As a whole, the kids would be wayyyy more wary of the Nohrians right off the bat, even if they’re told what happened and they believe it. They’d be like, “Really? A world without Risen?” and everyone else would say, “what the fuck is a Risen” and then they’d shut up real fast because these are Strangers. All three would probably be convinced they were actually in Plegia somehow until proven otherwise.

Also, they’d still want to fight because that’s what they’ve been used to their whole lives, but the war is probably over at this point? So it’s just wandering packs of bandits and Faceless to take care of, and if one of the Royal Sibs or even someone the Trio knows goes out to take care of Faceless, the Trio wants to go too because they’re used to protecting their home and they feel restless and anxious to just be sitting around doing nothing.

“No?” Literally everyone else says. “You’re like fourteen???”

“Yeah, and so’s Elise?” the Trio says, even though Elise is a few years older by this point. “It’s the same thing. But we actually have swords.”

“It’s different.”

“It absolutely isn’t.”

It’s uncomfortable for everyone.

Also if they actually did sneak away and fight a Faceless, they’d probably be very efficient about it and work together really well, despite bickering almost 24/7 amongst each other in every other minute of every day. Risen are undead, so they don’t “die” the way most enemies would, and Faceless, though without souls, don’t work the same way? A Faceless is bigger but it will fall if you slice it enough times, unlike a Risen that takes extra effort and energy. So Faceless are actually a little easier to kill, but the fact these 13/14 year olds have so much experience fighting to kill would probably bother anyone that thought about it for 0.2 seconds. “Like. I know we grew up in Nohr, but that’s Not Good.”

Fighting bandits is a different story, and I think if the Trio had to see actual humans hurting other humans, it would mess them up a lot because they came from a time where everyone who didn’t work as a group probably died already? Since lone figures cannot win against a pack of Risen by themselves. So humans vs humans is not anything they really think about until now. Laslow and Odin would probably take this extra hard because their moms were pretty caring and kind people (especially as healers/dancers, whose job it is to help and encourage people), while this would also fuck with Selena but she maybe got a talking to a little more explicitly from her mother or father before they left. (I’m taking this from Laslow’s conversation with Odin in…either the Hot Spring or Harvest Scramble DLC, where Laslow admits that taking his first human life after jumping through time nearly destroyed him because that wasn’t something he thought he’d ever have to do.)

Honestly, living is a peaceful world without fighting is probably the most important thing for their mental health.

Odin

I’ve been lowkey thinking about this for a long time, but Odin would probably gravitate towards Elise a lot? Both because she has a very accepting and bubbly personality (she RP’d with Odin just because it was cool, and now they’re even closer in age so she’d probably do it again) and honestly she probably reminds him of Lissa. Straight up. Blond hair, pigtail style, youngest sibling, healer, cares a lot, etc. Even if he hadn’t recently lost his mom (which was probably semi-recently, since I hc Lissa being the last to go in the doomed timeline), he still would gravitate towards her. So they chill a lot.

Leo is probably like lowkey jealous? Because Odin isn’t as interested in him anymore whereas he’d been totally devoted as an adult. He just wants to chill with Elise and other “cool” people and sometimes be by himself to fight imaginary enemies, so Leo actually gets a little more grumpy. Plus Odin uses swords now? Even though Leo had figured out Odin hadn’t used tomes all his life, it was still something they connected on and now this kid is insisting that swords and swordsmen are the coolest (like Xander) and Leo is very :/// about it. (Until maybe Odin sees Leo use Brynhilder and gets all starry eyed. Doubly so if you hc Odin’s dad as a mage. Leo coughs and blusters and pretends it’s not super strange to be the loudly admired person out of all his sibs for once.)

Niles would put on a big teasing front for Odin and probably follow him around a lot even though Odin probably is really distrustful of him, both because he loves annoying little punk kid Odin who takes himself so seriously and because Niles feels like he has to make sure Odin doesn’t run off and hurt himself. (Either Leo or Niles is always hanging around Odin, actually, or at least has someone they trust watching all three kids because magic is strange and they don’t want anything bad happening because the kids got spooked in this new world or something.)

Actually Niles probably spends the most time keeping an eye on Odin because of that interaction they had when Odin was first de-aged, as Odin’s reaction was so uncharacteristic of his adult self. He’s actually concerned about the kind of world Odin grew up in, and he might not pry too hard, but he’s definitely keeping an eye and ear out for any concerning stuff.

(Odin, meanwhile, thinks Niles is Evil because he’s a creepy guy who keeps following Odin around and he’s heard bad rumors about Niles and Odin’s brain is insistent that this guy Has To Be A Villain.)

(Maybe that changes, but they’d have to have some kind of heart-to-heart first. Maybe because Odin really does go too far and Niles has to pull him out of some trouble.)

Selena

Camilla probably wants to dote on Selena pretty hard, but Selena is Not Having It.

“But this will wear off soon, and it’s not every day I get to see my darling retainer so young and cute,” Camilla coos. “Just enjoy yourself. When you’re an adult again, I’ll having you running errands again in no time.”

Selena: “I don’t know you!! You’re not my mom!! Stop acting like it!”

Camilla, serious: “I’m absolutely not your mother and never will be/want to be.” (Back to cheerful) “But that doesn’t mean we can’t do X/Y/Z together.”

Basically she treats Selena a lot of the same way she treated baby Corrin, only Selena resists it a lot more. As time goes by and they realize through context clues that the Trio actually had a really rough life, Camilla maybe has a few conversations with her about what it’s like to grow up in a world where you can die at any moment and the whole world is out to get you (Selena via the Risen/Grima and Camilla via assassins/the other mothers of her half-siblings and Garon’s wives.) It’s a tough life, and Camilla gets where Selena’s need to fight and get better is coming from.

Beruka probably doesn’t really have any experience with children at this point? She doesn’t know what to do except treat Selena or the others like smaller adults, which Selena actually appreciates a lot but also maybe stresses her out a bit.

When they first meet, Selena looks up at Beruka (probably not too far because Selena is really Tall for her age and also in general and Beruka is probably shorter than adult Selena) and says, “So you’re Lady Camilla’s retainer like me, right?”

“Correct,” Beruka says. Because it is.

“Am I a better retainer than you?” Selena demands, hands on her hips, and Beruka. Stares. Because it’s really driving home that Selena’s insecurities started Young.

(Also if Subaki is ever around, she probably hates his guts because he has red hair like her mom and is viewed as “perfect” because he strives to be so all the time and it makes her too uncomfortable and she Hates It. Niles loves laughing at this 13/14 year old girl chewing the hell out of this grown ass man just for existing.)

Laslow

Laslow is super short, worse about hiding his shyness than he was at twenty-something, and stumbles sometimes when talking to adults (especially beautiful people and people with a lot of power, so Xander is a double-whammy, but so is half the army), but by golly, does he try to flirt with anything that breathes. He’s not as smooth as his adult self, but sometimes he pulls off some okay lines. Even though everyone is like “You…are a child.”

(Laslow gets that he’s a kid and he doesn’t even usually flirt seriously as an adult, but when people keep using that line on him even when he’s trying to do some good and fight, he gets really internally frustrated because he wasn’t a child when everyone died and he had been fighting a war where half the army was his age, was he? Lot of complex feelings there.)

Xander can Relate a lot because he was also super shy as a child and if this is how Laslow overcomes that in his own way (especially since this was apparently his mother’s advice, who Laslow values a lot), Xander doesn’t really want to be the one to stop him. But also he is Exasperated because he keeps getting complaints that this bratty 14 year old is flirting with half the women in the army and town and can he Not??? Can Laslow just chill for like two minutes?? Is there no better solution????

Sometimes he helps teach Laslow how to spar properly, just like he did for Corrin and his other sibs, and he respects Laslow’s apparent drive to protect others and sees somewhat through Laslow’s cheerful, flirty facade to the more struggling kid underneath.

Peri coos over Laslow a bit, but he’s not big enough to fight with her/by her side anymore and she doesn’t want to kill him, so there’s not a ton they can do together. She watches him when told to, though, and sometimes even withought even being told, and they manage to get a long surprisingly well. (She’s a great cook and sometimes shares her snacks with him, and they bond through that.)

All three kids probably interact the same way they did with each other as immature people, so they actually don’t get along very well? When not in immediate danger? Like Odin’s bffs were Cynthia and Brady, probably. He and Laslow keep getting into brawls, which is… mildly concerning, actually. Laslow keeps stealing his journals (”It’s not a diary! Give it back!” “It absolutely is, and no”) and Odin keeps insulting him. Selena and Laslow don’t get along because Laslow is too flirty and Selena thinks he’s just making fun of her. She’s a little better with Odin (who in their FE13 support I think was said to have still treated her with kindness, even when she was mean to him) but she keeps getting flustered and fed up with his antics and growing up?? Is so hard??? It’s so hard, and nobody understands.

The difference between getting along as kids and how they get along as adults is astounding.

(All three of them worry about their friends back home, even though they don’t say anything. Supposedly those guys and gals are all adults now too, but?? Who’s gonna walk Noire to the bathroom at night? Who’s gonna protect Brady? Who’s gonna make sure Gerome doesn’t become too much a loner and die???? They Worry.)

(If you wanted me to expand on something more specific, let me know!)

EDIT: Also one of the kids at some point definitely asks how old they were and get old “like 25” and they are all Shocked. Like. One of them (probably Odin, who also expected to die a heroic death by 16) says aloud “I made it to 20??!??” shocked.

Everyone else takes a moment to compose themselves and remind themselves that there’s a lot they don’t know about these three

#my text #asks #fe14 #long post

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duanecbrooks · 8 years ago

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The Return Of Girls Gone Write Further unmistakable evidence that women, by and large, are the superior writers: the former George W. Bush press secretary and current Fox News host Dana Perino's my-life-with-my-dog-Jasper memoir Let Me Tell You About Jasper...: How My Best Friend Became America's Dog and the large-screen sprite Anna Kendrick's personal/professional memoir Scrappy Little Nobody. These two books are, frankly, flat-out joys to read, the former being a frequently warmhearted, often humorous, always heartfelt telling of her life and experiences with her pet dog Jasper, who, as she convincingly claims, has become the real and true star of the Perino family; the latter being an engaging, sprightly, consistently witty literary self-examination of one of the modern-day American cinema's most succulent and most appealing chicks. To partake of these tomes consecutively, both from beginning to end, is to spend quality time with a pair of delightfully quirky, keenly aware, firmly articulate she-babes who, each in her own way, have a marvelous sense of proportion, a marvelous refusal to see themselves as having any kind of Greatness. Before getting into just exactly why these superb books are superb, allow me to go into how I first became aware of Kendrick (If you'll remember, Perino first came into my life via her first-rate within-the-George W. Bush-administration memoir And The Good News Is...: Lessons and Advice from the Bright Side). Kendrick caught my attention, as do many other other folks and things these days, via YouTube. Specifically, first, during a compilation of Kathie Lee/Hoda's "best" Today "celebrity moments," wherein, when Kendrick was asked whether or not she'd like to play a game, she facetiously mimicked Nader and replied mock-earnestly: "No! I hate games! I hate fun, I hate laughing!" (Later, she was shown doing some mock-dirty dancing with said girls); second, during a trailer for one of Kendrick's more recent theatrical films, namely Get A Job, the aforementioned trailer's two highlights, for me, being 1) this scene where Kendrick's filmic character, Jillian by name, is sitting on the floor lamenting the fact that she spent almost all of the money she had on a BITCHIIN' pair of shoes, while clad in a pair of equally bangin' black toreador pants that, given her sitting position, magnificently show off her magnificently long, lean legs and her magnificently-proportioned bare feet; and 2) a long shot of Kendrick adorned in a man's white shirt and tie and black high heels and again displaying those stylishly long, lean legs. Thus I was already primed, due to being previously turned on by Kendrick, to favor her tome. It's here where I'll deal with the highlights of both books, the places where our memoirists especially grab ahold of and, simultaneously, charm and delight us. .Perino, on the vast network of fans/friends that has developed due to her having Jasper: "It is a bit wonderful that through television and social media, Jasper and I became friends with so many people across the country. I enjoy interacting with my followers and fans, and I really feel that we have modern-day friendships--people I've never met, but that I've come to know over time through short digital interactions. It has widened my circle of people I talk to, and it's deepened my appreciation for people from all walks of life. I now get a chance to communicate with people I wouldn't have ever known; the Internet has given us a way to connect and network that didn't exist before. We're all neighbors now (with the proper amount of fencing to keep things friendly). "Often this new group of people has cheered me up or warmed my heart just when I needed it. Working in politics and live cable television can be stressful, and switching off at the end of the day isn't always easy. Jasper's following has actually given me a way to set aside the work portion of my day and exchange some messages with my electronic friends, which helps me keep grounded and cheerful." .Kendrick, on her brother Mike: "My brother is my hero. I've idolized him since the day I was born and I still do. He's responsible for at least sixty percent of my personality, for better or worse. I'm told that if you're an only child, you grow up thinking you're the center of the universe, and if you have tons of siblings you grow up with a healthy perspective on how small you are in the grand scheme of things. I'd like to think that my brother told me I was a worthless brat often enough that I got the same effect... "Mike's main interests [when we were kids] were watching Star Wars, playing Magic: The Gathering, and avoiding his annoying little sister. The only time he happily included me was when he wanted to play 'Pro Wrestling Champions,' as I was an ideal partner on which to inflict moderate injury." .Perino, on Jasper's television debut: "Jasper made his debut on The Five [Perino's Fox News political talk show] as a sleepy puppy at just two months old, and a star was born. I brought him on set and when we were back from commercial break, I showed him off for the camera. He looked right into the lens with his deep blue eyes (a Vizsla [Jasper's breed] is born with blue eyes that eventually turn amber). He snuggled into me. Hearts melted. "Jasper has tons of personality and is as photogenic as any dog I've known. On Jasper's birthday, my [The Five] producer lets him come on the show and he sits on a chair, for the most part, wearing a bow tie collar, and you would think he knows exactly what he's doing when he looks into the teleprompter. He's certainly better behaved than [Five co-host Greg] Gutfield." .Kendrick, on her early period as an actor: "Starting in theater gave me a basic work ethic that I may not have gotten if I started in film and television. I worked six days a week, eight shows a week (two shows on Wednesdays and Saturdays, Mondays off). It wasn't so much the schedule--I worked in accordance with child labor laws--it was that I was held accountable for my work. "Once, during rehearsals, our director was playing with the shape of a musical number that involved most of the cast--which jokes should stay, where they should go, etc. He decided to try reinstituting a small joke I'd had in a previous draft, and we started the number again from the top. I lost where we were in the music and I opened my mouth to say the line, a measure too late. He was already shaking his head and signaling the pianist to stop. "'Anna just lost a line. Let's go back to how it was before and start again.'" .Perino, on her period as W.'s press secretary: "[B]ecoming the White House press secretary was the best thing that ever happened to my career. I learned so much--about policy, world affairs, management, and politics. "But the most important lesson I learned working for President Bush was about character and how to conduct myself under stress and attack. I found out how to be productive despite obstacles, and appreciated how a communicator can help calm a situation, advance a negotiation, or lead to a solution. "The press secretary is the pinnacle for a public relations professional--it was the opportunity of a lifetime. "But having worked in politics for so many years, I'd built up a fairly tough exterior. The daily battles can wear a person out, and in some ways, I became edgier and harder than I'd ever been. "It was also a lofty position, and the surest way you can lose your way in Washington, D.C., is to let any of that power or prestige go to your head. "Throughout those years [first dog] Henry kept me from losing sight of what was important in life: appreciation and gratitude for my health and blessings, and the love I shared with [hubby] Peter and our dog." .Kendrick, on her early life as a struggling actor: "The next pilot season [for television series] was starting up, which meant I was usually sent on one to four auditions a day. I discovered MapQuest and wrote down directions by hand since I didn't have a printer. Between that and my growing knowledge of the city, I was only getting lost, like, six times a day. Pilot season is grim because you're sent in for everything, no matter how wrong you are for it. I kept a mountain of clothes and accessories in my trunk so I could go from the fourteen-year-old goth daughter on a TNT drama to the spoiled twenty-two-year-old receptionist on a workplace comedy. It's obvious now that splitting my focus made it responsible for me to do well on any of them, but I was in no position to turn down auditions. "How do I describe my personal life during this time? I met funny, interesting people. I went to art galleries downtown, I performed a one-woman show for free on the street corner. Except none of that's true. I spent most of my time trying to find ways to occupy myself without spending money or ingesting calories." .Perino, on what she terms Jasper's "protest pee": "When I wrote And the Good News Is... I received a lot of gifts for Jasper, including an embroidered quilt with the Great Seal of the United States. It is beautiful and functional. [Peter and I] take it with us to our friends' homes if we are invited to stay the night, because, well, you try telling Jasper he can't sleep on the bed. With the quilt, we're covered. Literally and figuratively. "When we're at our place in South Carolina, leaving him in the house is even more stressful. For a while, whenever we'd go out, we'd come home and find that he'd peed on the floor. As soon as we'd walk in, we'd know something happened, because Jasper would grab a toy as he always does, but instead of frantic joy and butt wagging, his tail would be down and he'd look guilty. It was hard to discipline him because you're supposed to catch them in the act. [Hubby] Peter would get pretty made at Jasper, and I'd feel terrible. "'He's so scared to be left alone,' I'd say. "'No, he's being a brat,' Peter responded." .Kendrick, on behavior at showbiz events: "There's a campaign called #AskHerMore, which was started by some thoughtful, intelligent females (Lena Dunham, Reese Witherspoon, Shondra Rimes, etc.). It aims to ensure that when women attend events, they are asked about more than their dresses. Men don't answer questions about their clothes; why should we [women]? A simple and understandable request. "However, if people could ask me less, that would be great. I would love it if we could limit my red carpet topics to my favorite colors, what sound a duck makes, and my thoughts on McDonald's All-Day Breakfast--blessing or curse?" Also: Nearly the final half of Perino's book consists of various @FiveFanPhotoshops pictures that very humorously show Jasper in a collection of quite colorful poses--Jasper painting a portrait of Perino's former boss, W.; Jasper as a race-car driver; Jasper and Perino involved in the Kentucky Derby with the latter on top of the former, et al. And Kendrick's tome closes with a "Bonus Reading Group Guide," wherein there are "a few questions to help you get the most out of your reading experience."(As an addend, Kendrick wittily 1] apologizes for the "fact" that her "Guide" offers no red meat for those of us who "happen to run a trashy celebrity news blog that requires you to peruse the content of privileged cretins like me"; and 2] gives us permission to "use these questions [in the "Guide"] as a template for creating misleading but juicy headlines." She winds up by, also wittily, summing up what she, so she claims, is conveying: "[F]amous white girls are really fun to be mad at") Among the queries asked in the "Guide": .."Though every page of Scrappy Little Nobody is perfect in every way, which part is your favorite? Make a list (it can be a Post-it that says, 'Every part is my favorite') and tape it to your chest for the rest of the day." .."When Anna compares Zac Efron to Charles Manson, is she making a joke or trying to warn us about a potential murderous mastermind?" .."In the sections about Alexa Chung and Olivia Palermo, the author viciously maligns two innocent and very fashionable girls. Is Anna a shady, basic bitch, or the shadiest, basic-est bitch?" .."Anna makes a lot of bad decisions. Can you think of a time when you've made a bad decision? Oh wow, really? We're gonna pretend you can't think of a single example? YOU THINK YOU'RE BETTER THAN ME?!" And thus there are the books of Dana Perino and Anna Kendrick, the former being a greatly stylish, consistently witty, always loving paean to a dog who is not only a beloved pet but, as Perino very convincingly limns, one of the most well-known and well-regarded personalities in America (easily, happily, well above and beyond any yammering about "animal rights"); the latter being an engagingly lively, undeniably honest, unrelievedly funny self-portrait of a celebrity gal who is obviously on the sides of life and living, whose unflinchingly upbeat, never-say-die attitude comes through in literally every paragraph. In the much-lauded theatrical film The Magic of Belle Isle, the single Mom Charlotte O'Neill (Virginia Madsen), during an evening dinner with her daughters and that evening's guest, the renowned Western novelist Monte Wildhorn (Morgan Freeman), asserted: "I've always felt that a book does something no friend could: Stay quiet when you want to think." To partake of the Perino and Kendrick tomes as they "[s]tay quiet" is to have you "wanting to think" about them--always favorably and, very often, with unsheathed laughter.

#women #superior writers #Dana Perino #Let Me Tell You About Jasper...#anna kendrick #scrappy little nobody #pet dog #jasper #and the good news is...#youtube #get a job #the five #AskHerMore #@FiveFanPhotoshops #the magic of belle isle #Virginia Madsen #Morgan Freeman #unsheathed laughter

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