Open Log

[devwocean]

Who: Orphaner Dualscar and YOU
When: Any time throughout the curse week
Where: Out and about in the bubble or the island
Style: Starting in action, but I'll follow your lead
Status: Open

[Dualscar's taken careful notice of this curse, and is pretty sure what it's all about - and that he's not affected. As a highblood troll, it would be practically unconscionable for him not to take advantage of this opportunity.

He may be deliberately visiting your character - if you're someone he knows - or it could be a chance meeting. Either way, he may be trying to ferret out information. Or there might not be anything in particular that he cares to know.]

Comments

[bethehugejerk]

That, and... if I should be intimidated, for legitimate reasons and not just satisfying your ego boner. Can you blame me for wanting to know if I can feel safe?

[It's annoying to be this open about his worries, and he cringes about it, but there's nothing he can do. Curses are curses: they do what they want.]

[devwocean]

I can't blame you for bein' intimidated or wworried about me. [He shrugs and spreads his hands in a helpless gesture] But wwhat can I evven do to reassure you? You'vve been hostile towwards me from the start, though you ought to knoww not evveryone is the sum total a their blood.

[bethehugejerk]

I haven't been as hostile as I could have been!

[Pause. Huff. He wanted to say "haven't been hostile", but the curse corrected him.]

And don't even talk to me about blood, not like that. You are not the fucking troll to schoolfeed me on what blood means. I'm the one who's lived with this color, so I know it better than you ever will.

[His eyes narrow, but this line of talk has brought an idea to mind.]

If you want to reassure me, try this. What, in detail, are your views on the hemospectrum and the value it gives trolls?

[devwocean]

[Dualscar arches an eyebrow. He's not affected by the curse, and he's not one for monologuing]

I suppose I could indulge you a bit. Blood affects a lot about trolls, like wwhether they'vve got long livves or sea dwwellin' anatomy, or psychic powwers, but I'm not sure wwhat you mean by vvalue. Evvery troll is vvaluable in their owwn wway.

[bethehugejerk]

[A muscle in his jaw tightens together with the deepening of his scowl.]

You know exactly what I meant, you disingenuous tool. Give me a straight answer.

[devwocean]

[He frowns a little and takes a sip] I believve the hemospectrum affects a lot about the place a troll should havve in life. But that don't mean they should be wwantonly culled or enslavved. Or that someone like you, wwho doesn't havve a place, should be culled either. Does that wwork for you?

[bethehugejerk]

[He folds his arms and scuffs his foot a bit.]

Still kind of vague, but it's probably the best I can expect out of a presumably old as globes sea dweller.

[His gaze slips down, towards a cupboard door. He wants to keep being irritable and defensive, but the curse hinders that.]

It's better than you could give me.

[devwocean]

I'm three hundred swweeps old. [He sniffs faintly] Wwhat do you mean? Wwhat is it you wwant me to say?

[bethehugejerk]

Old enough.

[He looks back. He doubts he'll reach a century, if half that.]

But... I don't know, I guess. I'm being stupid, because of course you aren't just going to roll over and say it picture perfect to my liking when this is a pretty big concession in the first place - especially for a troll who's lived three centuries in our society. You could have killed me, I don't know, ten, twenty, a hundred times over now if all it took was a sufficiently delusional human to do it the first time.

[He cringes considerably; he did not want to bring that into this.]

But still some animalistic part of my sponge hisses and squeals and tells me, don't trust this bulgewart! So maybe I'm kind of a tool, too, and I am already scowling mentally at my past self for even getting into this conversation.

[devwocean]

[He considers Karkat for a moment] Yeah, the fact is you are bein' dowwnright stupid, is wwhat it comes dowwn to. I could a killed you, but I ain't goin' to and that's not about to change. If you're wworried on some levvel, though, I can't really blame you. I knoww I'm pretty fuckin' intimidatin, especially to a wwiggler like yourself. But that's no reason not to givve me a chance.

[bethehugejerk]

[Karkat frowns up at him, just on this side of a pout, but he can't really argue. He wants to claim he's not a wiggler, but he really is next to a troll of 300 sweeps; he's a child no matter the term. He wants to lash out against being called stupid, but he just admitted it himself, didn't he?]

[He rolls his shoulders, irritable.]

Then consider the chance given. I am tentatively going to allow you to call me on my bullshit when I'm being stupid, but solely if I get to call you in turn if you do something that makes me leery of you. Sound fair?

[devwocean]

[Dualscar smirks] If I said it wwasn't fair, howw wwould you stop me from callin' it like it is, anywway?

[bethehugejerk]

[He looks back up at him, expression firm.]

Ignore the shit out of you and be a disrespectful bulgebite, what else?

[devwocean]

Wwell. [He chuckles faintly] Wwe both knoww that's true.

[bethehugejerk]

[Karkat sighs, head tipping back so he can regard the ceiling. It has no help for him.]

Look, can we just agree to the terms I laid out? Mutual right to call each other out, with the purposes that we might actually get along better. That's what you wanted, isn't it? Or are you just bitching about my attitude for no reason?

[devwocean]

[His expression softens just a little.] Wwell, wwe're agreed, then. If it'll make you feel better for me to say it ovvertly.

[bethehugejerk]

[The look lowers to Dualscar, for as little as that movement takes.]

Considering you were the one going, "and what if I don't think it's fair?" like a contrary wiggler, yes, I do feel better to hear it overtly.

[He pauses, then motions at the kettle.]

I'll take that tea now, if you're still offering.

[devwocean]

Only on account a I wwas curious wwhat you'd say.

[He smirks, then lifts the kettle and moves to pour a second cup]

So wwe're allies, then.

[bethehugejerk]

... You picked the most counterproductive thing to say for the situation out of curiosity? Okay, I am hereby exercising my agreed upon right to call you out: that was stupid. Its stupidity is immutable and unchangeable, both because why the fuck would you do that when it seemed like you want us to get along, and also because why did you even need to be curious about what should have been obvious in the first place? You weren't surprised by my answer; you didn't even pretend to be.

[Still, he takes the cup, and glowers mildly at Dualscar as he takes a sip.]

But yes, we are now allies.

[devwocean]

It wwasn't counterproductivve on account a the fact that it still resulted in the same thing. An it wwasn't stupid, either. I wwanted to see howw you'd react. I'm still a fuckin' highblood, in case you'vve forgotten, and there's a chance I'll act like one from time to time, evven if I'vve committed to associatin' peacefully wwith the likes a you. [He smiles superiorially at Karkat in return, sipping his own tea] If you ain't prepared to handle that, then wwe'vve got a problem right out a the gate.