redthreadgame | Day 10

[It's awfully warm today. There are cool drinks in bowls of ice, and shady umbrellas anywhere that there's likely to be a lot of sun. It's a little cooler inside, or in the caves and grottos near the ocean, but even the woodland paths are muggy and unpleasant. Swimming might be the thing to do, today.]

[The poll board has switched over to proclaim:]

HANA & RUSSI ARE: NOT A MATCH

Nicon pipes up to say: "Just a reminder to everyone, we're pretty much halfway through! Day 20 will be the last day, if you don't get everyone matched before then. I think you're starting to narrow things down, but . . ."

[ the teams ]

White	Black
Hana	~~Viola~~
Katsura	~~Anna~~
Alex	Pascal
Kasey	Gale
~~Lisbeth~~	Russi
Morgen	Jun
Seo	Eliza
~~Roz~~	Kyriss
Fen	Kaname
Asato	Ren

[ the poll ]
[Your goal today is to pair off with someone you think might be your own soulbonded. Remember, this needs to be consensual, and it must be pairs.]

[Functionally, the poll below has only members of the white team. Black team members are responsible for placing a vote on their partner only when you and your partner have mutually decided. You can do so AT ANY TIME—if you come to an agreement with a partner early on in the day, please do toss up a vote so it's clear to everyone that you're thinking about it! You can switch things around later, or move your vote to "I'm thinking about it…" if you're reconsidering. You can also handwave the discussion and pair up OOCly; the key part is that we don't end up with two people on one person, anyone without a pair, or an OOC misunderstanding that would make it a one-sided agreement.]

Poll #18556

This poll is closed.
Open to: Registered Users, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 6

View Respondents

Who is your match?

View Answers

Hana
1 (16.7%)

Katsura
1 (16.7%)

Alex
1 (16.7%)

Kasey
1 (16.7%)

Morgen
0 (0.0%)

Seo
1 (16.7%)

Fen
0 (0.0%)

Asato
1 (16.7%)

I'm still thinking about it . . .
0 (0.0%)

[Please remember that the deadline is SUNDAY @ NOON PST! It's probably best to try to arrange pairings by Saturday evening at the latest.]

[ full rules ❤ setting ❤ talk to the deities ]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[he shakes his head fervently]

No. You were sixteen. You were a child. No one should ever have to go through what you did, and you were forced to make an awful decision on top of everything else.

They were my responsibility.

[said like it's an irrefutable fact. and to Ren, it is.]

You hold yourself responsible for them, but you had to get out of there for your own survival. What about your grandparents? Did they ever express any concern for your little brother and sister? Did they ever call child services?

We moved to the states. My siblings never had passports. And they could barely afford to keep me fed and clothed.

That's still no excuse not to notify someone. The authorities exist for a reason.

[he leans back and grips ren's shoulders]

Listen to me, Ren. There was no good way out of that situation. There was no decision you could have made that would have fixed things.

I know that. I do, really. But that doesn't erase the gaping, what if?-sized hole that's been growing in the back of my mind for nearly a decade. If I had stayed in Canada...

[cups his cheek with one hand]

Not knowing what kind of state they're in now must make it so much worse, too.

[for someone who should be storming off in disgust, Seo is being painfully tender about this.]

I think about them every day. What they must be going through. He only started the water torture when I entered junior high.

[he's disgusted, certainly, but not with ren]

He should be locked in prison for the rest of his life. How can anyone do something like that to another person...? To a child--to their own child...?

Seo, Seo. I know. There was something wrong with him. He was destroyed, I suppose, by something completely unknowable decades before he ever met us.

Edited 2017-07-07 12:49 (UTC)

[his ears lower]

Sorry. You must know better than anyone.

[he brushes the hair out of Seo's eyes.]

It's fine. No apologies necessary.

Ren... I don't think any less of you for this.

[he stays silent. his fingers twitch against Seo's forehead.]

Edited 2017-07-07 13:00 (UTC)

I think you've had to shoulder a terrible burden for a long time... and that you're so used to it, that you just shouldered the blame for your brother and sister's abuse, too. But you should never have had to go through that. It's not fair to pin everything on you, when you were just a scared, hurt kid who was trying to survive. It doesn't mean what happened to your siblings is excusable--but there are a lot of other people who should be held accountable for it.

[he thumbs ren's cheek, gentle]

Right now, you're the one fighting for them. You're the one who's trying to get them out. You shouldn't be the only one.

Edited 2017-07-07 13:07 (UTC)

[enjoy this look of sheer disbelief.]

So you're... not interested in breaking things off with me.

[he smiles]

No, I'm not. I want to help you save them.

[he fists his hands in Seo's shirt pulls him close again.]

I'm sorry. But I'm too selfish to refuse that offer, and down the line, I'll probably make you regret it.

[he shakes his head, and wraps his arms around ren again, in a looser hug this time]

I could say the same thing about you helping me break my curse... who knows what could happen if you get involved? But still... I want to support you.