Video

[runs_on_batteries]

Good evening, Voidtreckers. I'd like to announce a council meeting in three days. It's overdue and I believe we have a number of items to discuss.

Please council members take some time over the next few days to come up with and notify me of topics we need to discuss so I can prepare an agenda. If anyone who is not a council member feels strongly about a certain topic we should consider, either tell me or seek out a council member so they may relay the information.

Comments

[madcuriosity]

I know. I love you too, Miss Alice. I don't want anything bad to happen to you either.

[irrationally]

[ Little Alice really is too sweet. And too clever, to be able to pick up on the implied meaning in that statement enough to say she loves the older Alice too.

Said implied meaning only being emphasized by this Alice not denying any of it in the slightest. ]

Then if someone is mean to me next time, you can yell at them instead. [ Yes, that's an actual attempt at humor. ]

[madcuriosity]

[She can be terribly clever, wickedly so if she so wished, but her sweetness thankfully stops that.]

I will, but whyever would anyone be mean to you!

[irrationally]

You would be surprised. [ Or, well, only this younger Alice would be. The older Alice can imagine plenty of reasons why people wouldn't be nice to her, after all. She knows she herself isn't the nicest person in return either. ]

A lot of people have been quite mean to me in the past.

[ Understatement of the year. ]

[madcuriosity]

They have? That's awful! [Did that mean those people would be mean to her too?]

[irrationally]

.. It is. [ She wishes she could sugarcoat it for this younger Alice, but there's no real way to do so. ] But no matter how awful people are, you must never lose your spirit. That's the trick to dealing with them. They want to break you, but you can't give up.

[madcuriosity]

What does breaking anyone's spirit get them? Why would someone want to do that?

[irrationally]

[ She thinks of Bumby and her stomach turns.

That's not something she can just explain to the younger Alice. Not in detail, anyway. ]

I know it may be very difficult to understand, but some people don't see others' humanity. They only think about how they can use others for their own goals. And breaking their spirit means those people won't resist.

[madcuriosity]

That is terribly cruel... not even the Queen of Hearts was as cruel as that. I don't think I ever wish to meet such people. I should hope I never do... [She knows, she knows she can ask right. now. if they do. Older Alice is right there and so very, very capable of telling her.

But... but she also doesn't want to know, she doesn't want to know the answer. If it's no, then all the better for it, may neither of them meet such a person. But what if her older self said yes? What if...

And if the answer WAS yes... then she would make herself go through having to recall such an encounter, and that seemed so viciously cruel.

But she wants to ask... and she is very sure her older knows how much she does and refraining from it.]

And... [She manages after a long thought but then pauses. What does one say about a broken spirit?] and I do hope that there is a way to be put back together after such a thing.

[irrationally]

I.. hope so too.

[ She really wishes she could just tell the younger Alice that there is a way. But she's not sure, and she doesn't want to lie. Sure, she's been able to pick pieces of herself back up and piece them back together, but even now there are days where she still feels so broken compared to normal people.

She shakes her head though, not wanting to lose herself in the feeling when she should be focusing on the other Alice. ]

.. Please.. Do not worry though. If there's such a person in this place, or if one ever shows up, I'll protect you from them. No matter what. [ Back home is harder. Could she somehow prevent this younger version of her from having to go through all that trauma? The fire, the asylum, everything after-- She has no idea how to do so yet, but if she can find a way, then she'll even protect Alice from that. ]