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[parodeity]

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[splinten]

I'm allowed to pick whatever I want. That's the really awesome thing about being a living being with agency. I get to choose, and you get to be motherfuckin' Pikachu.

[Quality conversation with the Striders.]

[parodeity]

You wouldn't.

[ dave doesn't raise his voice at all. ]

Eventually you wouldn't, and I don't think I'd be able to handle it. On like. Someone's birthday or Christmas or just a really bad day for someone else. Because I wouldn't want you to pick me and you wouldn't, so it'd even be what I'd want, but it'd still make me feel like nothing, and I hate that, okay?

[splinten]

[For a moment, Dirk is quiet. It isn't the quiet of injury; it's the quiet of letting go of the stubbornness. Shifting modes. And, gently, he takes back Dave's hand with his second.]

Making sure you never feel like nothing is important to me. I'd choose for that. Have done, though you've tried to push me back when I do. But that need, it's important. It's important to me to protect it.

[You protect me in the important ways. Dirk wants to do that. He wants to keep doing that. He wants to protect his brother's heart.]

[parodeity]

Have to. I don't want anyone else to feel like that 'cause of me.

[ he'll avoid the pain when he can but if someone has to have it, dave will accept it without flinching.

so yeah, he never accepts dirk trying to choose him, not easily. that always means someone else isn't being chosen, and dave knows in his bones he should never be the one picked in those situations. ]

So it's better all around if I just...don't. Pretend to have that claim.

[splinten]

You do have that claim. I can give you another grand tour of the mentality of Dirk Strider if you need it to see. You aren't second to anyone, dude!

[And it kills him that Dave can't see that even though he understands why; it kills him and he just wishes he could get it across, he just wishes Dave could understand.]

I haven't mentioned Warpers to anyone yet because I'm waiting for you to okay it. I am keeping the promise I made for you.

[parodeity]

You...wait, what, you didn't?

[ he. completely fucking assumed dirk would? oops. and that information is maybe semi important.

shit dave should probably say something to the base as a whole about that? dirk's the only person he bothered to update. ]

[splinten]

No. You hadn't given me the okay, so I waited.

[Like! He promised to! About all information Dave brought him!

...at the risk of the entire base, possibly. But you know. Promises to Dave > Base.]

[parodeity]

Oh. Shit.

[ he scrubs at his eye for a second. not tears, he doesn't exactly tear up as discussed previously, but just. wow. ]

Uh, I need to check into some more shit before I do that. I didn't want to do it alone but I didn't feel up to draggin' anyone into it yet. And I didn't want anyone I didn't trust to invite themselves along.

[splinten]

Okay. Your call.

[Because. Dirk said it would be Dave's call. Because that was his promise.]

[parodeity]

I forget. Did I tell you about the shit I had to look into or not?

[ he knows he explained the warpers and the portals at least vaguely but he's not sure if he got into anything else. ]

[splinten]

You just mentioned how John showed up and how he and Homura disappeared.

[And then a weird question about whether or not Dirk will do time travel with him again.]

[parodeity]

I checked how we arrived, too, and other times - but when we came here there was some weird huge distortion in the direction of the Monolith. A shit ton of portals around where we came through, obviously, but...

[ but. ]

I was in a bad place, I wasn't - whatever.

[ thinking straight, on the ball. he seriously considered going to check it out alone for a grand total of like, five minutes, but then he'd reconidered. ]

You would've been pissed if I'd gone to check it out alone. [ the distortion at the monolith, whatever the fuck that was. ] So I didn't. I have to loop back to it.

[splinten]

[Oh. Hm.]

According to the logs on the Monolith, that was when everyone there was put into their pods.

[So it makes sense. Dirk quiets, though.]

Thank you.

[For not going alone.]

[parodeity]

I still intend to go see what's up. But I don't want to like...tell people I'm doin' that in case they try to insist they come along. Because I would not let them? They might get the idea they should like, interfere with shit.

[ the people being in pods. which they CANNOT interfere with? he's not even sure if the pods would be a thing at that time and is curious to find out. ]

Or otherwise disobey the rules of time travel.

[splinten]

And we can't dead end a timeline. Yeah, I get it.

[His voice is quieter still.]

I've wanted to tell Jake. Roxy, too, and the rest of the Base to at least warn them to keep some distance from Warpers, but Jake most of all.

I made you a promise I wouldn't share that kind of information, though. So I haven't.

[And it has been hard. He has wanted to tell people, badly. But he hasn't. He has chosen to keep his promise to Dave.]

[parodeity]

I don't think keepin' a distance matters. There's somethin' about it - I think they can draw you out, like with Rose. Homura at least would've contacted me if she were seriously investigatin' that shit. We always texted one another about anything related to that bullshit.

[ "that bullshit" being time or the people who fucked with it. ]

You and Rose were my best options for backtracking just in case they are lyin' there in the pods at that point in time. Neither of you would be stupid enough to potentially kill me or yourselves over somethin' we can't change. I hope.

[ he knows he can take it and he is pretty sure rose could and he thinks? dirk might be able to? but he's not sure. ]

I didn't think you were a serious option because of the time thing. But you said that was okay, so - if you think you can handle potentially leavin' them all there if they're there, you have the option of comin' with.

[ he

does not say anything about the promise right this second because dave has to process that. ]

[splinten]

I'll come.

[And not poke at pods although getting Dirk to go back and time and look at people he likes in pods and not poke them is. Probably not ideal. But Dirk didn't try to kill Dave's Bro, so he's winning at the self-restraint issue here.]

The thing with Rose was probably the planet messing with her head. Given that the planet has a split personality, it might be that the tails half of Two-Face lures us out and sends the Warpers to sweep us up.

[parodeity]

[ actually that is exactly the reason dave is willing to allow dirk to come: he kept his promise not to interfere with a memory. this is that, on a greater scale. ]

Probably. But the bottom line here is it doesn't super matter how careful you are. It's not really about skill or anythin'. Hell, I doubt I could avoid it if the thing got in my head, even though I could avoid most of the other shit that'd attack me by just steppin' out of time.

[splinten]

I get what you're saying, and the hypothesis has its evidence. At that point, the challenge becomes trying to figure out how to keep the ocean out of your head. [Which none of them have managed. Ha...]

[parodeity]

Which we've nixed as a thing we're willin' to experiment with.

[ or. dave would, but he's pretty sure they'd break dirk in the process, so he would...not............. ]

[splinten]

[There's the. Little moment of quiet.]

It should be my job. It's a soul.

[He won't. He knows Dave won't let him. But it is his aspect. It feels like his responsibility.]

[parodeity]

And you mean that how, exactly.

[ he's trying to figure out if dirk misunderstood what he just said or not. ]

[splinten]

[Why does it feel like he's about to be scolded.]

I mean that it should be possible for me to learn how to block it from taking over people. If I encountered it more, learned how to fight off its effects, I could maybe take it. A God of Heart should be able to handle a planet's soul.

[But he isn't good enough to stand between them and it.]

[parodeity]

You missed my meanin'. Rose heard the song. I was sayin' if we learned to overcome that shit, we'd probably be better off.

[ however: examine the last time they fucked with the song. ]

Don't go pokin' the hornet's nest without a plan, dude.

[splinten]

[Oh. That.]

We... can try it. You can try it on me. I should be able to resist it easiest.

[Heart player and a sense of responsibility. This is what he's for.]

I'm not going. You've lectured me out of chasing down boss fights. [A Planet Soul: literally the biggest boss fight possible, let him do it, he wants to. He must resist.]