HOPE IS.

“Hold on a sec. I said I don’t hate you. Sure, I have a strong dislike for ya, but hate’s for people like what Butch was. 

If there was one thing Pi-chan hated, it was being targeted. Being double-crossed was a close second, and being flirted with was an even closer third, but there weren’t too many people willing to do either of those, as compared to the number of assassins she’d had to teach a lesson or five because they took money from the wrong person.

In fact, that’s the reason why she feels nothing but slight pain and an intense desire to return fire when a bullet lodges itself neatly in her skull. Sure, there’s more blood than she really hoped for - really, at least some people knew how to be clean and use poisons, but no - and she’s going to have a massive headache for the next couple of hours thanks to the bullet in her head, but that’s nothing compared to what she’s going to do to the idiot that put it there.

She pretends to stumble forward from the impact before reaching behind her head to touch the wound - too large, clearly present, it’ll take a bit longer to heal up - and turning to face where she knew the sniper was sitting, a bright, fake, smile plastered on her face.

This is fine, he is fine, thanks for asking. Ian’s been trying to douse the fire he started on accident, only to end up making it worse and keep on adding fuel to fire. He was next to surprised when Pi chan called for him, the only reason that came to his mind was a probable beat down to which he wouldn’t blame her for.

Needless to say he was near speechless when he was met with words instead of punches. You know somethings is wrong when the first thing you expect from someone angry is for them to try and kick your ass.

“…”

Even so, there was a weird air of danger still going around her. Ian paid closed attention as she spoke with an unsettle look on him. Sure he had come to realize must of the problems had come from him doing nothing but it just wasn’t in him to act that way. It had started to become a problem yes, but it wasn’t because people were trying to kill him, it was more of him getting concerned of what he had done to them and feeling extremely guilty about it.

His brow raises again, but once he hears the voice the realization hits him like a god damn truck. His face goes pale as he stares at Pi chan with a mortified look.

“…What sort of sick trick is this?! Answer me Pi chan!”

“It ain’t a trick, Ortega. I just wanna help you man up.”

It’s mostly true; while she’s still miffed at him, she also would never stoop so low as to kill somebody as collateral damage for a petty argument. She had too much blood on her hands as it was already.

“Ya think I’m bluffing or something? You have that, uh, whatchamacallit, seer power, right? You can tell I’m not lying. Anyways, this shouldn’t be as hard as a damn mafia simulation; at least you know she’ll revive now anyways.”

That was another reason why she was so....calm, that wasn’t the word, more like unconcerned. They both knew that you couldn’t die permanently on the island if the goat gods didn’t want you to, and so Pi-chan had no qualms about killing somebody who technically couldn’t die- or getting killed herself. Memory loss was a bitch, sure, but it wasn’t something that a week or so couldn’t fix, either.

@viderxanima​ !!

“Oi, Ortega. We need to talk.”

Pi-chan was pissed. Still pissed, probably more so than she had any right to be, but most of it wasn’t at Ian anymore. Actually, there was something else she felt for the Seer of Heart more than anything- contempt. He was weak, fragile-hearted, and somebody needed to teach him a lesson in taking action.

And Pi-chan was going to be that somebody.

“Sorry for being so pissy at you during the last simulation....it wasn’t your fault the goats decided to pull something like that on you. But at the same time, you’re passive attitude is pissin’ a lot of people off, ya hear me? Any longer on this shit, and I promise ya I won’t be  the one out for your blood. So I’m gonna have to hold an intervention. I figured, I see this chick wanderin’ around with you a bit, so I’ll give you a couple options-”

She pulled a short figure out from behind her- the person in question was unidentifiable by the execution bag placed over her head, but a few moments later, the person spoke up, and it was obvious who was under the hood.

“T-Tou-san? Are you there? What’s going on?”

“I-I want things to.....t-to go back to n-n-normal......m-m-aster, please......it h-hurts.......being human....r-really hurts.......”

“M-Master, please.......everything h-hurts.......w-why does it hurt.......make it stop, p-p-please.....I never asked for t-this........why do humans hurt s-so much........”

Exploration. Was it a crime? To Aoko’s knowledge, (at least on an island she knows next to nothing about), it wasn’t. The only reason she was around this forest was to gain a sense of familiarity for her surroundings so she wouldn’t feel absolutely trapped and isolated. She hadn’t a clue she was trespassing, especially not on an angel-like creature’s plains–

– The same winged person who startled her when she had suddenly landed in front of her, wings spread out in what Aoko assumed to be a threat.

❝ Whoa, pretty– ❞

Clasping a hand on her mouth once she realised what she had just said out loud, she takes a couple of steps back, bowing in apology. Humiliating. She didn’t even know this person, and she had already pushed two probably buttons even though she’s being threatened with violence.

Good job, Aoko.

❝ I’m really sorry, Miss! Aoko is just a little lost! If you could help out, Aoko would really appreciate it! ❞

Aoko- why did that name sound familiar? It was foggy, as if something she only experienced when she was still a bird, and so she ignored the thought. Instead, she just sighed and folded her wings slightly, sighing softly.

“.....at least you’re polite about it, I guess. Whatever, I’ll help you out.” Contrary to popular belief, Pi-chan wasn’t unnecessarily violent like others, even if there were several people she wanted to punch unapologetically. Aoko was nice enough, anyways, so hurting her wasn’t going to do any good.

And she called her pretty.

“You’re Aoko, right? I’m Pi-chan. I’ve been guarding the other doves’ nesting grounds around here since they went wild. Sorry for the big show, some people just don’t know how to leave us alone.” She coughed into her fist- a cough that sounded suspiciously like idiots.

Truth be told, there were too many new people to worry about on the islands. She could put up with the older residents because they could handle themselves - Brick and Butch notwithstanding - but the new ones.

The new ones.

None of them knew how to keep their noses out of trouble! She had to save at least two stupid humans from the even stupider shadows, and now there were a bunch of lousy tourists traipsing all over the forest. And not even towards the haunted campgrounds, oh no, that would be too convenient. No, they had to head towards the one place she didn’t want any humans going without her express permission.

The girl currently trespassing on Pi-chan’s land looked familiar, but only vaguely so, and it didn’t matter in the long run anyways. With a stern expression and her wings spread wide, Pi-chan landed in front of her with the vengeance of a thousand angels (or doves, rather).

“The moment you doubt whether you can fly, you cease for ever to be able to do it.”                                                                                                      ― J.M. Barrie, Peter Pan

{ x } recommended listening

“You don’t understand! I’ve been trying to tell you for years, we deserve more than this!”

Pi-chan curls her hands into fists glaring at the ground

“I love Solitude as much as you do- it’s my home, you know this! But I can’t just sit around and watch everybody get fucked over by those stupid mammals! Do you think we deserve this? We never did anything to them! Maybe- maybe it was for revenge at first, I don’t fucking know, but they’re just disgusting now. Nobody deserves this, not Auntie, not Master, and sure as hell not me.

“....I was out once, you know. The real world. There are so many birds, you know? And the sky....it’s so big. There are giant human machines that can fly like birds, and- and thousands of acres of world for us to explore! But....but there are trapped birds, too....ones whose wings are clipped, and one who are kept in cages. And every time I saw one, I thought....that’s us, isn’t it? We’re fed, we’re given a home, we’re kept happy.....but we can’t do what we want. Every time we want to do something, we have to get the goats’ approval. Every time I leave, or come  back, it’s because of the goats. Free will....it’s a human thing, isn’t it? And once you have it....it’s addicting. Having it stolen from you is like living without air. I just wish you could understand.

“A-And-! That’s why I want you to fly for yourselves! Stop looking up to them as an ultimate authority! They can’t control you if you don’t let them, damnit! We were born as birds, but that doesn’t give them the right to clip our wings! I just....I want what’s best for you, and if that means stopping your worship of these false gods who demand that we give them tribute for destroying the ones who gave us our home before, then jesus, I’m going to do it!”

She finishes here speech, breath running ragged from the emotion in her voice. Still, Tim and Tam do nothing but blink back at her from their spot on a nearby tree branch and tilt their heads in unison. She should have expected as much; the twins are the smartest birds in the flock by far, but even they have their limits. They are, after all, just doves.

  “OI, YOU BLEATIN’ BASTARDS! STOP FUCKIN’ WITH ME!”