piratejournal | 003 Strike [Written/Action for Shepherds]

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003 Strike [Written/Action for Shepherds]

[WRITTEN]
what does strength mean to you? and how does a person become stronger?

[ACTION]
[Asbel sits quietly on one of the crates abovedeck. It's not really clear if he's in some sort of "time out" or if he's here for his own reasons, but what's plain is he doesn't have any intention of moving. A few hours have passed, and he hasn't so much as gotten up to stretch or even gotten up to his usual antics. Instead, the eleven-year-old appears to be thinking hard about something.]

[He said he wanted to become a knight someday; he still does. But what does being a knight really mean? How can he serve a king and protect a whole country full of people when he can't even protect his friends or his own little brother from danger?]

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[Wow, a heart? Seriously? Seems like something Cheria would do. The drawing isn't too bad, though. Asbel isn't much of an artist, so he'll focus on keeping his letters straight.]

[Fortunately for Anise, she doesn't have to worry too much about this kid being pushed around. Hubert maybe, but definitely not Asbel.]

is that really all there is to it, though? i mean, i already pretty much do whatever i want, no matter what other people say. and it usually just gets me into a ton of trouble.

Edited 2014-02-03 18:08 (UTC)

[Hmm, interesting! She's going to assume he means parent trouble which...she can't entirely sympathize with, since she can't really remember the last time she got into trouble with her parents aside from a few scolding words when she was too upset and angry at the world and let all that frustration come tumbling out. She's pretty sure she's in the right during those times, and getting out of trouble is always an important skill to master, so she quickly scribbles:]

You've gotta be strong enough to get out of trouble too!

[Although if Asbel was the one in the wrong...]

But you need to have qualities other than strength too. Like being clever! And doing the right thing!

[Now this is starting to get complicated. He's pretty good at getting out of trouble so long as there aren't any doors involved. But not without getting into it first. Plus there's usually some kind of punishment sandwiched in the middle somewhere. A lecture or a slap across the face or getting grounded - he's been through them all. He's almost beyond being bothered by them, too. Almost.]

yeah, i get ya.

clever, huh? i guess i could try to work on that. i'm not a huge fan of books, but if there are other ways to become smarter, i wouldn't mind giving it a shot.

[As for doing the right thing...maybe 75% of the time?]

Hmm it's not really about books!

[Man, it's so hard to put into words. After a bunch of jumbled scribbles and strikethroughs:]

It's more like getting lots of experience and thinking quickly so you know how to not act stupidly! But you have to learn from your mistakes too, and listen to other people.

[Things would be so much easier if her parents did those things...]

[Good news for him, then! Man, if he could become smart and cunning without having to rely on books, that'd sure show everyone!]

[But, wow, what a mess.] listening again, huh?

so i have to make mistakes sometimes in order to figure out how to not make them in the future? [That could get tricky.] maybe trying new things and doing some different chores around the ship would help.

[He's not volunteering for extra work, mind. But mixing things up a bit might do some good.]

Edited 2014-02-18 18:28 (UTC)

[no prizes for guessing which part of his writing Anise pounces onto]

That's a good idea! Hey, maybe you can do my chores!

come on... i wasn't offering to do your chores, too. i meant maybe i could switch with someone for a little while. learn to do different stuff.

get experience.

Edited 2014-02-25 22:28 (UTC)

Yeah, but working harder than usual is a new experience too! You can't be lazy about this kind of stuff!

[And she draws a huge heart.]

i'm not lazy! besides, if i really did agree to do your chores, then what would you be doing?

[Come on, Anise. Drawing hearts isn't very convincing or impressive. Asbel scribbles a face that might look annoyed or sad if you squint at it right. Hard to tell, since it's so lopsided anyway.]

[What is that squiggle? Anise squints at it for a moment, head tilted, rotating the journal, and finally gives up trying to decipher it.]

I'd be helping other people of course! I need to get experience too!

[She's lying like a mofo, but Asbel doesn't need to know that.]

[Ugh... He scrunches up his face at the journal, trying to decide if he really wants to do this. It's a balancing act between wanting to do the right thing for the ship, wanting to gain experience, and really, really not wanting to get stuck with some super lame chores like cleaning out the toilet area or whatever.]

well, i guess i could think about it. that's not a promise, though!

[After a second or two, he adds:]

so which are your chores anyway?

[She's about to write down something like "yay!", but on second thought, that might not be a good idea.]

Oh, I have a bunch of easy ones! I sweep up around the deck and clean up after the cooking!

[She doesn't really mind the sweeping; it's mostly just washing the dishes that she dislikes.]

those don't sound all that bad...

you just get the food off the dishes and dunk them in water, then dry them off, right?

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003 Strike [Written/Action for Shepherds]

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