two 🌼 anon text

[letmewin]

( This time, Asriel's decided to try to go anonymously on the network -- or not so anonymously. This was very much inspired by a recent conversation he had with one of the heroes here. )

Howdy--

Greetings, beings of Avalon! It is I, the great deity: the ★☆Absolute God of Hyperdeath★☆!!

( Attached is picture taken of a rathe childish drawing, as if to illustrate just who he is. )



I am the God who controls time and space, capable of erasing all timelines and resetting everything back to zero! Fortunately, I, a former harbinger of death and destruction, have decided to turn over a new leaf and take a stand against any and all bad guys!!! Fuahahahah! Be thankful! I, an omnipotent being, will protect Avalon through the powers of stars and my might sword! No mortal being stands a chance against my mighty powers!

Any villains should quake in fear of my powers!!! I will erase anyone who stands against me from existence!

Comments

[prontissimo]

Okayyy… So send us all home. Pretty sure everyone’s got “missions” they abandoned cuz they showed up here. Aren’t we all “in need?”

[ Alberto isn’t exactly playing along even if he’s got half an inkling it’s an act, cuz if it is… he’d still have fun being a smartass enough to reveal it. ]

[letmewin]

uhm
well

Time stands still while you're here, so there is nothing to fear while you're here!!

( GOSH ALBERTO IS SMART. He keeps asking really good questions... )

[prontissimo]

Wait— "there's nothing to fear while we're here?" Isn't the whole reason we're all here in the first place because our worlds are all in danger of ending or something? Right? That's the deal?

[ Alberto has his own brand of intelligence... A lot of it is presented with a fair bit of condescension, though, unfortunately. ]

[letmewin]

Foolish, tiny mortal! There's nothing to fear because you will not be sent home until your world is saved! As a God of Time and Space, you would be wise to believe in that!

( It's fine! He's smart a lot like Chara is... But, Chara would also usually play along with him. )

[prontissimo]

[ Alberto just stares at his camera for a long silent second, flat-faced, his next smartass comment failing to load momentarily. But in the end, he just shrugs, rolling his eyes subtly. ]

...So you're saying you can't save the world. Or else we could go home once our worlds are safe. But you don't control Time and Space enough to save everyone's worlds. Despite being all-powerful and super magical or whatever. Got it.

[ Alberto's smart enough to be a smartass but dumb enough to be taking this as anything other than an obvious joke by a child... ]

video - un: starblazing

[letmewin]

( This time, Asriel appears on the feed -- looking completely and totally stumped. Hey, even though this was technically a game of pretend, he considers this Alberto's victory. )

You ask a lot of really good questions, Alberto... I guess I gotta keep thinking of good ideas for Hyperdeath.

[prontissimo]

[ Alberto's face absolutely lights up at the sight of Asriel. He's grinning ear-to-ear, eyes wide and staring right at the camera, not his usual lazy-lidded smirk. He's so tickled and impressed, like, sheer delight at this. ]

Asriel! That was you?! Hahaaah...~!

[ It's a breathy sigh of a laugh, amused and surprised. He skips a beat, and his grin softens into a friendly smirk, a cockeyed cheerful smile. ]

Nice drawing!

[ He speaks matter-of-factly, but still with that certain air about him, as if he's an expert judge. Regardless, it's still totally sincere. ]

[letmewin]

Heheheh, howdy Alberto!

( He can't help but offer a similar expression - grinning widely, happily. )

Thanks! Uhm... do you have a character like this, too? It's really fun to play pretend like this.

( Hey, he totally trusts his judgement! He has only good opinions and feelings about him. )

[prontissimo]

Howdy.

[ He's never gonna get over that. He likes it. His smirk shows it. But it dips into a certain vague sheepishness to answer the question that'd followed, til he's keeping up that façade of confidence. That in itself is his Hyperdeath persona... But he won't admit that, even to himself. He needs it to be real or else it won't work. So heavy-lidded and smug as ever, he flips the issue. ]

Heh— Nah, I have, like, the opposite character. Bruno. That voice in the back of your mind that you've gotta shut up if you're every gonna take any chances or do anything, y'know? "Alberto, you can't; Alberto, you shouldn't; Alberto, you're gonna die; Alberto, don't put that in your mouth," ahah...! But the voice that drowns it out— that's just my own. I don't need another character to defeat my Bruno. Just me.

[letmewin]

Oh! It's sorta like someone who tries to keep you from doing bad stuff. ... I don't think it's always so bad to listen to it, though. Especially if it's something that's trying to keep you safe sometimes.

( It's funny -- Asriel has the opposite problem. He has a part of him constantly telling him to do things that aren't right or okay. He was trapped in a pretty bad situation for so long that it's hard to really walk away completely from that. )

[prontissimo]

Ma, no, you sound like my friend Luca...! You've gotta take chances, man! Safety's overrated. How else will you know what you're really capable of, right? That Hyperdeath stuff comes from somewhere inside you, doesn't it, ragazzo? So tell your Bruno "Silenzio!" and just do it, whatever it is! The risk's, like, pretty much always worth it~

[ "Safety's overrated" is probably the most telling and worrisome thing Alberto has ever said to Asriel and should probably clue him in that his new friend is, uh, maaaaybe not always to be trusted... It's a pretty heavy statement, for how lighthearted he delivers it... ]

[letmewin]

( He's using a lot of words that Asriel isn't familiar with! But, he can sort of guess what it means... )

Heheh, I know that some danger can be fun! Life isn't fun if you don't take risks sometimes. ( In the past, he would have been a bit more hesitant to do anything dangerous. However, the time after he met Chara did change a lot. )

But... gosh, I think our voices might be a little different.

[prontissimo]

Whadya mean? What's your Bruno say? Or, y'know— whatever you call him.

[letmewin]

... Your is the opposite of how you want to act, right? It's... k-kinda like that for me, too.

( That is... putting it very lightly. )

[prontissimo]

Hmm... I guess you could say that. More like— the stupid voice that holds me back. And tells me dumb things. Dumb things that aren't true. But Bruno makes me think they are true. Like when I'm alone at night and can't sleep...— Bruno has a lot to say, heh... Y'know what I mean? Bruno lies a lot.

[ He can tell this shift in Asriel's reaction, and rather than prying, lays on the charm thicker to cheer him up. ]

I'm sure whatever your Bruno says, he's a liar, too. That's why we've gotta shut 'em up! So just tell him, Stupido Bruno!

[letmewin]

Y... Yeah! You're right! We just have to stand up for ourselves!

( His brows furrow, looking more determined than ever. )

My voice is like that, too. ... I can hear him when things are hard, or really frustrating. But, I don't want to give into what he says no matter what.

Uhm... Are you by yourself, Alberto...? I know that staying with Chara has helped a lot...

[prontissimo]

Yeah, I'm alone, but it's fine— I'm used to being alone. I can take care of myself~

[ For someone who's been as charismatic and vivacious and outgoing as Alberto's been, this response may come as some surprise, but the nonchalance with which he says it, almost boastful, is the typical Alberto Asriel has known so far. ]

It's great you have Chara and all, but I'm an only child. I don't need anyone else.

[letmewin]

... But, Chara and I aren't just siblings-- we're best friends, too.

( He didn't really know what he was missing before his family took them in... So, he knows that there's a chance that Alberto doesn't feel lonely without a sibling of their own. )

A-And, everyone needs a friend.

[prontissimo]

Heh— I guess that’s true…

[ Talking about it makes him feel awkward. He doesn’t have many friends — not that he’s admitted to that at any point. Nor rebuked it, though. He grins at the camera, trying to light a new spark as a way to distract yet stay on topic. ]

Hehe, hey— did I ever tell you about my friend Luca back home~? He’s the best!

[letmewin]

Uh-uh! But, I'd like to hear about him if you wanna tell me.

( He talks a lot about Chara, so it's only fair! Plus, it's nice to hear about what makes other people happy. )

[prontissimo]

Hah! Luca's great! He's my best friend!

[ Technically only friend, but we're splitting hairs. ]

He's super smart, funny, nice, brave— and he's the best bike-rider I know! He's, like, crazy-brave! You'd like Luca! Everyone would like Luca; anyone who wouldn't like Luca, wow — che imbecille!

[ Definitely, the renewed energy and gusto he speaks with is a welcome segue. He's grinning ear-to-ear, gesticulating with his free hand, holding his phone carefully with his other as he gestures emphatically and looks about, glancing to the camera at key words for emphasis. Talking to Alberto online is barely different than talking to Alberto in person; somehow he manages to capture so much expression within such a narrow frame. But the affection he speaks about Luca with is something entirely new so far. But, so subtle, just seen around the corners of his eyes, however well-disguised in his tone of voice, it's clear that he misses him, too... ]

[letmewin]

( Asriel can't help but smile then, looking genuinely happy to see Alberto look so fond. They know what it's like to have a friend that's so dearly loved. )

Golly, if you like him so much -- he must be as amazing as you're saying.

( There's no sarcasm in what he's saying. More than anything, they just want to see the people he cares about be happy. And... it sounds like having Luca here would help him find that here. )

... I hope that we can both meet our best friends. I... I know I shouldn't want them to be away from home, but... I'd really like to introduce you to Frisk if they come here. They're one of the kindest, but bravest people I've ever met. They've helped me a lot.

Chara's my best friend too, but... I always wanted to meet someone like Frisk, too.

[prontissimo]

[ “Always wanted to meet someone like them,” something about this phrasing pulls a heartstring and he doesn’t know why. That forced energy he put on suddenly, genuine though it was, is a little softer for the thought. “I know I shouldn’t want them to be away from home” gives a twinge of guilt, while meantime Alberto has been writing letters and collecting photographs all addressed to Luca in the hopes he can either a) send them in the interdimensional mail or b) save them until Luca shows up too. But… should he not be hoping that? …it’s fine, it’s fine, there’s a school here. It all comes back to wishing Luca was here. Because if Alberto goes home… Luca still won’t be there. Even a letter is better than nothing, though.

All these are thoughts hidden behind a smile that only barely falters. These are happy thoughts about their best friends. Bruno’s trying to change the topic. Alberto renews his vigor, not that the lapse in it was all too obvious. Just softer. ]

Well, if you don’t wanna wish that Frisk shows up here cuz it makes you feel guilty they’ll be away from home, then I’ll wish it for you so I can meet them! If Frisk is so kind and brave and helpful, maybe they’d be friends with Luca, too! If Luca shows up here! I hope Luca shows up! All we ever wanted back home was to see the world together. We built our own Vespas together, we ran away together, we went to the human town together, we even won ourselves a real Vespa—!

[ an oversimplification of a contest Alberto ultimately never even participated in himself but no matter! ]

I mean— I sold it… Cuz Luca wanted to go to school… [ Disguising that bittersweet twinge in his tone again, tyvm. ]

But, uh, there’s a school here, so he can just go to school here with me instead! Besides, this school is probably even better than Giulia’s school cuz it’s a magic school, anyway! And I wanna figure out how to build a Magic Vespa now — so basically everything will be better here if Luca shows up!

[ Not the same point, Alberto, and Luca’s probably not of the same mind, but go off. ]

Sooo— I don’t feel bad wishing Luca was here. All we ever wanted was to see the world together— now we could see a whole other world together!

[ Not that Alberto had any trouble talking before, seemingly, but talking about Luca? Obviously the ticket to get him to open up in a whole other way. ]

[letmewin]

( The words mean a lot -- more than Asriel can say, and it's enough to make tears sting the corner of his eyes. He's always been a crybaby, really. When he thinks about seeing Frisk again, he can't help but think back at the last conversation they had with one another. Asriel was able to experience firsthand just how much all the monsters in the Underground loved them. He could never want to be so selfish as to want them to be away from a place where they're able to be so happy. But, he had said good bye to Frisk and pushed them away with every intention of wanting them to live their lives to the fullest. There was no way that Asriel could go with them, after all.

But, Alberto wants to do it for him, and... even that feels selfish to Asriel. Still, he can't help but think that it would be a dream come true to have that childhood he never really got to have -- one where he can find happiness with all of his friends.

Monsters.... were definitely weird. Even though Asriel hadn't known Alberto for very long, he already cares as much for him as he does. They were creatures of empathy and love, after all.

He quickly uses the sleeve of his sweater to wipe the tears away that were beginning to fall, sniffling. His throat feels tight, but he tries to talk regardless. )

... You're a really good friend, Alberto. I... I hope we can all become good friends. And, I really hope that I get to meet Luca, too.

When someone becomes your friend, it makes them really special to you, right...? So... at least, I hope you can go home soon to see them again.

But... if you can't, I'll try to hope that you can see them soon again, too. It'd be nice if we could all go to school together.

[prontissimo]

[ Alberto notices Asriel's face growing more and more emotional, and it softens his own smile, empathetic, wistful himself now. It means more than he can say to be told he's a really good friend. He didn't always treat Luca like a really good friend should. That's part of what made him so resolved to help Luca go to school with Giulia... even if it meant leaving Alberto behind. He misses Luca every day since Luca left for Genoa; and he's missed Luca every day since he arrived here. He'll be ecstatic to see his friend again. He never had many friends before. Not like this. He never had that childhood he always wanted, either. He's used to being alone... but that doesn't mean he wants to be. He never did.

It's hard to disguise his own emotions on his face, but golly, he tries his best to! ]

Hehe— y-yeah. Luca's definitely special to me. A-And I think you'd get along too, y'know? There's, uh... not really a lot for me back home. So if Luca comes here— I'll be happy. That's enough. Heh. And if he does, you'll be the first person I'll tell, Asriel! So we can all have fun together!

[ He manages to twist his smile into a more tongue-in-cheek smirk, though, as he feels his own eyes growing wet, too. No, no, none of that, time for jokes. ]

No school, though, ahah— cut that out, that's no fun. That's Luca's thing, not mine. But! We can all cook together, eh? I'll make you guys pasta, trenette al pesto~ ...Chara, too!