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Cough 039 - [Video]
[Have Ukitake.
Have Ukitake who is very unhappy. Don't let his pretty pretty wings give you the wrong impression.]
I will not condemn the killings and general chaos that has been happening this week as that will do no good now. Instead, I suggest, though it should be common sense by now, that everyone stay inside if you feel you cannot protect yourself. And even if you can, do not let your confidence take control. There is a time for risks, and there is a time for caution. There is nothing wrong with asking for a walking buddy if you must go out.
I will even offer myself to act as such if anyone wishes.
Take care and keep your eyes open.
[Private//Unhackable to Jr./Albedo]
I know you are grieving, Albedo-san. That doesn't mean you have to lose yourself in this madness.
[ooc: No, Ukitake is not female again. Those wings on the fairy are just really pretty.]
Have Ukitake who is very unhappy. Don't let his pretty pretty wings give you the wrong impression.]
I will not condemn the killings and general chaos that has been happening this week as that will do no good now. Instead, I suggest, though it should be common sense by now, that everyone stay inside if you feel you cannot protect yourself. And even if you can, do not let your confidence take control. There is a time for risks, and there is a time for caution. There is nothing wrong with asking for a walking buddy if you must go out.
I will even offer myself to act as such if anyone wishes.
Take care and keep your eyes open.
[Private//Unhackable to Jr./Albedo]
I know you are grieving, Albedo-san. That doesn't mean you have to lose yourself in this madness.
[ooc: No, Ukitake is not female again. Those wings on the fairy are just really pretty.]
[Voice/Private]
They are never allowed to meet.
[Voice/Private]
That bad, huh?
[Voice/Private]
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[Voice/Private] I want Azula so baaaad.
[Voice/Private] /patpats
[Voice/Private]
I'm -- part of the royal family, where I come from. The prince of the Fire Nation. My father is the Fire Lord. He's a tyrant. He wants to take over the other two surviving nations and he's... terrible. I've been in exile for three years because I spoke out of turn at a court meeting. He burnt my face as punishment because I refused to fight him to the death.
My little sister is a psychopath firebending prodigy [and oh, how those last two words pain him] who would rather be an only child and has spent the last three years trying to make that happen.
My mom... died when I was nine. [He's quiet for a long moment -- this is what truly pains him.] Or -- she vanished. I don't know. Before I came here, my father told me that she did something treasonous to protect me, to save my life. And she was banished. I thought she was dead, but she might not be.
My uncle is who's always been a real father to me. He and my mom are my family. Or. Well. He is. I don't know if my mom -- [... yeah.]
[Voice/Private]
Finally, after a pause, Sasuke speaks up.]
I'm sorry, Zuko.
[Voice/Private]
[It's a lie, of course, but it's far easier than admitting 'Yeah, I'm pretty fucked up'. He still has much to do before he's completely over everything that's happened... but defying his father is the first step in the process. Teeny tiny steps in the opposite direction are sure to come.]
[Voice/Private] /tl;drs
And then, out of the blue--]
The Uchiha used to be a noble clan in Konoha. They co-founded the village with the Senjuu, and did so in order to end the wars and form a truce. They used to be mortal enemies, according to my father.
By the time I was old enough to understand, the clan dwindled down and headed the police force. My father was both the head of the force and the clan's leader. He constantly gave Itachi all of the attention, always praised him. I didn't get any of it.
Itachi's the clan prodigy. He graduated from the academy in only a year at the age of 7, awoke his Sharingan at 8, became a Chuunin at 10, and an ANBU captain at 13. Only a teenager, and already in the village's most skilled group of shinobi that reported to the Hokage himself.
I idolized him. Looked up to him. I wanted to be like him, but I just wasn't strong enough. I could tell that my father was disappointed that I was only average when in comparison to aniki.
When it came time for me to enter the academy, Father only went because Itachi was going to skip his mission to do so. Even then, I was in my brother's shadow. My father wasn't even proud that I was the top of my class and got the highest grades. He only told me "continue on this path and be like your brother."
I hated it. I hated all the attention my parents were giving my brother, and Itachi saw that. He was still a brother, though. But then... he missed some important meeting the day before, and his best friend, too. He was killed then, Itachi's friend. Itachi was accused of killing him, even though it appeared to be nothing more than a suicide.
Itachi beat those three to the ground for the accusation, and started acting unlike himself. Father showed up then, and my calling out to him stopped him. When Father went inside, the look Itachi gave him... It was his Mangekyou Sharingan.
Only then did my father pay attention to me. It took me a week to learn the most basic fire jutsu, but it made me so happy when I finally heard "that's my son." Then he told me to stop aspiring to be like my brother.
Not long after that, I came home late one night. All the lights in the district for out, even though it was dinner time. When I came up to our street... there were dead bodies everywhere. I ran home, fearing for my parents. I was scared, naturally; I was only seven. When I finally found my parents, they had just been killed. The one standing above them - their killer - was...
Itachi. I didn't know why. Didn't get it. He showed me his side of it - that he killed because he could, and because he hated all of us, wanted us dead. I ran away, but he caught me. He told me to hate him, to despise him. I did.
He took everything away from me, and made my life hell.
[Sasuke paused here, taking in a shaky breath. He started talking again after a moment.]
Madara showed me differently, here. That Itachi didn't do it because he could, that he did it because he had to. My father wasn't happy with the direction the clan was going. He planned a coup. Itachi was a double agent, spying on the Uchiha for the Hokage while spying on Konoha for the clan. The elders ordered the entire clan to be wiped out when peace negotiations failed. He was practically forced to play the role of the villain. If he couldn't do it, then they would get others from ANBU to do it. Itachi agreed, and found Madara who helped willingly, with agreement that he would touch Konoha.
Itachi couldn't follow through completely, or I wouldn't be here. He killed his lover, but he couldn't...kill me.
[Voice/Private] <3
That's terrible... Sasuke --
[He stops himself for a moment.]
You shouldn't be telling me sorry, stupid.
[Affection. Zuko does not have it.]
[Voice/Private] <333
But I am sorry your father did that to you, even if it doesn't change what happened.
[Voice/Private]
[He's quiet for a moment.]
Toph told me that Aang does defeat my father and restores balance to the world. At least I don't have to keep worrying about that while I'm here.
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[You will never hear Zuko sound more exasperated. Ever. Seriously, what the fuck is in the water.]
[Voice/Private]
Makes a damn good place to call home, though.
[Voice/Private]
[It's the closest Zuko will get to complimenting Adstringendum.]
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