meadowlark | @nill.klein & @ren.amamiya

[this is not nill’s bag of chips. she hasn’t addressed the network in... six months? right, not since heine left. so this is a much better thing to talk about than losing her best friend and also the only other person from her world. this is loads better. just asking people for stuff.]

@nill.klein
We need some new supplies for the new arrivals. [good, solid start. she’s got this.] Any clothes or toiletries you can spare. Some of the things we have are getting run down, and we could use a better variety of sizes for clothing.

And any cloth that can be turned into sheets, too. If anyone knows how to sew, that would also be helpful. I know a little about sewing, but I’m not very good at it. Any sheets I make will probably be a little crooked.

[okay, the hard part is done.

Ren is here for support, so when Nill finishes her thoughts, he steps in to wrap it up.]

@ren.amamiya
It's rough showing up the way we do, so Nill and I thought we could make things better, rather than just limiting it to the basics. She did a good job outlining what we need, but we're willing to take suggestions if anyone has them. Ah--we also have another question.

@nill.klein
What are some things you wish you’d had when you arrived? Or what did you wish was in the safehouse? I don’t think we can do anything extravagant, but we can try to make it more welcoming when everything is up and running again.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

That's an interesting takeaway to have gotten from this conversation.

And the rest of this conversation?

[ given the rest that have jumped in. ]

Also interesting.

Don't be a prick.

[He can't even be insulted by that, it's fair enough. But still--]

What kind of answer are you expecting? I've said my piece, and Sam--who has more directly relevant experience, having arrived while the safehouses were offline--has said his. You disagree, and you're entitled to, but it doesn't look like anyone's going to be changing their stances at this point. I'm not sure what else you want me to say.

If you want this so badly, I expect you to fight harder.
To take some responsibility for it.
Are you going to let someone else do it for you?

So you're annoyed that I'm not arguing with you more? What would that accomplish?

That you're not looking for an excuse to stand on the sidelines and watch.
If you believe that this is for the better of people who arrive, then yeah. Argue. Do it as hard as you can.

If it were your decision to make, then that might be true.

Then you can take up your ideals to someone who has authority.
Adults are all the same.

[Part of him is tempted to just leave the conversation there but this is now the second time he's seen this particular comment, and underneath the frustration and annoyance the part of him that's empathetic is still very much there. And what Ren says is a very familiar sentiment.

So, after a moment, he decides to ask--]

What do you mean?

[ maybe he's being unfair. his life had been dictated by rotten adults. so much so, that he had taken a social reform into his own hands—he wanted to help people. ]

Adults don't value the opinion of younger people.
All it takes is one thing for them to look down on you for.

[Lance very distinctly remembers feeling this way as a kid, and as a teenager, and often as an adult. He became a psychologist specifically because of his experiences when he was young, and so he quickly finds his annoyance fading away again.]

You're right, some don't. Some think that their age is all they need to be correct, and no matter what is said to them by someone younger than them, it doesn't matter.

But that's a personality trait, and although it's an unfortunately common one, it isn't universal. Sometimes people just don't agree.

[ once upon a time, he had an argument with Stephen Strange around the same core issue. something had been done that Strange had thought was the benefit for all. it unnerved him at the time, and it still does now.

there's something that he wants to get a sense of, and it's always best to be forward. ]

You said arguing with me didn't matter because I didn't make those decisions.
Do you think you're right?

Do I think I'm right about which part, my stance on things or on you not making the decision?

[He wants to be sure before he answers, especially since if part of the issue is being listened to, he wants to make certain he's doing that and interpreting the question correctly.]

On the part where it doesn't matter.

It doesn't matter in the sense that I told you my stance on this and my reasons, and you told me yours. I don't have anything new to try to convince you with, and don't think repeating myself is going to accomplish anything; you're not going to suddenly change your mind if I just keep saying the same thing I've already said, right?

Therefore there's no point in us going back and forth on this, at least not unless one or both of us has something new to bring to the conversation. All that continuing to argue would accomplish is frustrating both of us.

Gaby's here now too. You can take up your argument with her.
However you frame it, it just makes it seem like you've already given up on a compromise.
Still, I want to let people make their choices safely. I don't mind escorting people into the city on a case by case basis.
Don't make any irresponsible adult choices, Sweets.

[Part of him is tempted not to respond to this at all and just let it be, because he doesn't see the point in continuing to refute things; all it's doing is annoying him and distracting from actually getting anything done. But another part of him is curious about something, and so eventually he decides to ask.]

I have a question, if you're willing to entertain it.

Whatever experiences you have, and the knowledge you've gained, and everything else you've done or been through that makes you think--and I'm not saying you're necessarily wrong--that adults are irresponsible and can't be trusted, is any of that going to just disappear in a few years when you're an adult yourself?

[ Lance isn't the only one mildly annoyed. there's an uneasy feeling that he has as Sam argues fervently and Lance side-steps. Ren has never been one to compromise on his own personal responsibility.

all the other conversations have been well and good, and he's not one to hold a grudge. however, this is a reminder that he's still surrounded in adults. the Phantom Thieves, even as a group of teenagers, had always made decisions unanimously. they had been astutely aware of delicate power balances, even if they didn't have the direct political experiences. here it almost seemed impossible for anyone to reach an agreement.

it strikes a chord. ]

We'll have to see.

[It's not exactly an answer, but that can often say just as much. He could choose to pry further, but he's confident Ren is more than smart enough to have gotten the point behind the question, so this time he does just leave the conversation there.]

@nill.klein & @ren.amamiya

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