[Network] Nerd Moment

[fogboundcrow]

This is a matter of urgency.

Do you, or do you not, believe that Featherman is relevant enough in the collective cognition to manifest as Personas?

It stands to reason that it's possible, doesn't it? It's a long-lasting tokusatsu franchise that has touched the hearts and minds of children across generations.

There are some Personas with utterly abhorrent forms. Completely obscene, even.

Ergo, I don't think it's too much to ask for a Persona based on heroic symbols of justice.

Comments

[minipancake]

"Really?" Oh no, look at those wide eyes. Even wolf Wagtail didn't have such big eyes. But he shakes his head.

"Honestly, I don't know what I'll get. I don't think I'll get Robin Hood or Loki. Too much is weird now."

He looks thoughtful. Maybe he should talk to Sagiri-san after all.

[fogboundcrow]

"I'm sure whatever you get will be impressive in its own right."

Here, he'll even get off the couch and move closer. "A Persona is a reflection of yourself, after all."

[minipancake]

"So I'm told."

But hi, Raven, you can come closer. Wagtail's face lights up, before he looks down to cut the sandwiches, with a little bit of a blush. Whipped cream splodges out at the sides.

"Is Feather Hawk a reflection of you? Or do you just really like him?"

[fogboundcrow]

Hmm... It's a good question. So good, he pauses to tap his chin. "Well, my Shadow and Loki are the truest reflections of me, but even Robin Hood has some aesthetic sensibilities evocative of the Featherman franchise."

[minipancake]

"Like being a badass." He places one of the sandwiches neatly in front of Raven, on its plate. "Or even more badass than Feather Hawk, actually. A lot more."

[fogboundcrow]

"Oh." Um. Pardon Raven if he stares, cheeks slightly pink. "...You honestly think so?"

That's high praise, certainly. Not something to take lightly.

[minipancake]

Oh. Shit. Did he mean that?

It's the work of only a moment to decide that he did. His smile creeps back, soft and warm as he picks up his own sandwich. "Yeah. I really do. You looked into a whole murder. And you worked with Naoto Shirogane. And you're friends with Magpie."

Okay, maybe that last is a little self-deprecating.

[fogboundcrow]

Okay, that Magpie comment makes him laugh. "Well, we haven't finished solving the case... but Magpie is somewhat imposing until you get to know him."

Even he can see that. Doesn't make Magpie any less cool, though.

[minipancake]

"I know him." Who else would, after all, if Wagtail doesn't? He takes his plate to head to the couch, beckoning Raven with his free hand.

[fogboundcrow]

Raven follows along. "But do you know him? There is a difference." Casual versus closeness... Raven has a certain advantage in that respect.

[minipancake]

Dropping down onto the couch, he looks up at Raven. "No, I mean...."

He touches his heart with one slightly sticky hand. "He only did what I was going to do. I know him."

[fogboundcrow]

Ah. Raven sits down beside him, resting his plate in his lap. "It's all right. You have so many other options now."

[minipancake]

"Yeah. And he doesn't."

Decisively, he shoves half a sandwich into his mouth. They still haven't answered Raven's question, have they?

[fogboundcrow]

"He has a chance to change his future, just as you changed yours. Even if he can't go back in time, there's still hope."

Here, he'll place a hand on Wagtail's shoulder. It's okay.

[minipancake]

Ooh. He glances at the hand, then summons a smile. It's tougher going than before.

"See, maybe that's what makes you a hero. Like Feather Hawk. You always see the best in everything, somehow. At least in the people who matter to you."

[fogboundcrow]

"I wasn't always so hopeful." He shyly takes a bite of his sandwich. No, all things considered, he's changed quite a lot.

[minipancake]

"Maybe. Or maybe we always had to be hopeful, somehow, so as not to give up."

He takes a more restrained bite of his own sandwich. After all, even when nothing but hate keeps you going, you still keep going.

[fogboundcrow]

"Honestly, spite drove me forward for a long time. I was guarded. I barely trusted anyone..." Hmm... Another bite. At least the snack is sweet.

[minipancake]

He knows. He reaches for Raven's free hand, with his own.

[fogboundcrow]

"I suppose we're both living proof that it's possible to recover." He accepts the hand, giving it a little squeeze. "But it's easier at our age, I think."

[minipancake]

Easier, sure. When you're surrounded by people who care about you, all of a sudden, it feels like the whole world is new. But Magpie has had that too, for far longer than Wagtail, and yet....

He squeezes Raven's hand in return. "What's your plan, anyway? To bend Feather Hawk to your will?"

[fogboundcrow]

"That makes it sound so aggressive." Not that he's necessarily wrong in terms of the raw logistics... "It's more that I'd like to welcome him into my soul and fight alongside him."

[minipancake]

"Yes, with a gun to his head." Beginning to grin again, he resists the urge to dab whipped cream on Raven's nose. "Don't you have to find a Shadow first, who is Feather Hawk?"

It bears mentioning that Wagtail does not exactly know how this works.

[fogboundcrow]

"...Well, I could also get lucky with Shuffle Time. Or fusion." Ah, but now that he mentions it, a hold up is rather forceful, isn't it?

[minipancake]

Oh, that's a thought. And yes, now he comes to mention it... "How does fusion work, anyway? If you could design a fusion to get anything you want, you would just have said so."