it's hard to be charming and smart and disarming ★

Michael the Architect | The Good Place

[SPOILERS!]

an eternal being, so-called “demon”

only just recently started giving the whole Being Nice thing a try

human morality is so complicated but he’s doing his best

can, will, and has tried plans thousands of times over until they work (or don’t)

loves his friends so much.

humans in general are just so neat and great!!! what’s not to like.

[random things a professor has said starters]

@ascarletflame​ said: “Make sure you don’t take my picture. I’m copyrighted.”

[WTWTLW Starters]

@temperateskies​ said: “ hearing stories is important work. ”

[WTWTLW Starters]

@losingmyjustice​ said: “everyone wants to be heard and so few are listening.”

𝐁𝐋𝐔𝐄 cloudless sky / ocean waves / winter dusk / deserted rest stops / dust-filled book jackets / sea salt in your lungs / open space lofts / mountainside meditation / empty ski lodges / calm before storms / electric charged air / lighthouses / road trips with no destination / desert skies / summer breeze through a cottage window / cool air against water-soaked skin / seaside towns during off-season / wind-chimes / big bed with lots of blankets / coming home after a long time away / a wolf howling in the distance / fingers dancing along spine / a hug from an old friend / afternoon tea / wild flowers off abandoned highways.

𝐑𝐄𝐃 wine soaked lips / internalized rage / blood on knuckles / four poster beds / barefoot on marble floor / velvet drapes / lipstick marks / murder mysteries / old barns with hay lofts / mouth full of weapons / love / dark chocolate / apple orchard visits / handwritten letters / fresh strawberry fields / cherry flavored chapstick / soft candlelight / vintage pumps / tingles over your body / strong but gentle hand around your throat / scarf tied over your eyes / fog on a rainy night / intimate bar settings / complete destruction / kiss swollen lips / scratches against flesh / sitting by a fireplace / blood orange sunsets.

𝐘𝐄𝐋𝐋𝐎𝐖 community gardens / sunflower seeds / open fields / blowing dandelion fluffs / bubbles in spring / warm champagne / drafty cottages opened after winter / soft buzzing near your ear / loose braids / flaxen sundresses / handmade straw hats / warm butter on fresh toast / daisy chains / drum circles / sun on your face / maypoles / outdoor festivals / street food / car shows / pop art drawings / fruity flavors / mist on produce / running through sprinklers / cucumber water / wrap around porches / worn pages of a book / honey in tea / yard sales / freckled skin / tarnished gold lockets / angel food cake / windmills / flashlight beams.

𝐆𝐑𝐄𝐄𝐍 marshy swamps / haunted graveyards / old road signs / the house people tell stories about / lights flickering / jazz music / twig snapping / campfires / ghost stories / urban exploration / vines creeping up brick / wooden flutes / quiet forests / labored breaths / hiking trails / rain on leaves / bonfires / fresh smoothies / water logged grotto / painful whispers from jealous lovers / successful business ventures / leaky cellars / park theatre productions / mint scented lotions / ambitious promises / pine needle covered floors / oil lanterns / aloe on warmed skin / crushing floral foam / forgotten towns.

𝐁𝐋𝐀𝐂𝐊

crinkle of leather jacket / midnight walks / bulbs burning out / black lacquered nails / the sound of bats screeching / distant marching band music / noises when you’re home alone / blood soaked knife / dark lipstick on pale skin / scent of sulfur / soot on boots / slasher movies / glint of cat eyes in the dark / oil slicks on dark asphalt / basement bedrooms / investigating a noise / grainy camera footage / black and white photos / dust filled attics / empty theatres / whistling in the middle of the night / scratches at your window / wrought iron gates / lace neck ruffles / long floor sweeping skirts / broken music boxes / needle scratching on vinyl / lost memories / disembodied voices / forgotten faces.

   “Nowhere near,” In the face of questions on the distant, unknown land of Arizona, Lynne continues, undeterred. It isn’t unheard of that she will happen on a place that rings no bells – for the simple reason it doesn’t belong to her world, or maybe the fact that her knowledge in geography is sorely lacking  – but the answer is the same for anyone, no matter how familiar or bizarre it might hit. “I’m sorry about your dentist appointment! But you won’t get there on time– um, you won’t get there, period.”

   “I’m Lynne. I’ve been here for almost two years. You get used to it.” A warm smile to accompany this statement as if it isn’t downright depressing, especially to one so new and rightfully eager to be home. “If it’s urgent, I can help you find a dentist here – there should be someone that can fit you in on a short notice. You can count on me!”

“Two years...” it takes a moment for the urgency to hit him, because a few years is barely anything to him, but that is going to be a lot for his human friends. He’d much prefer to be out of here sooner, if he can.

“I’m,” he hasn’t prepared an alias for showing up in a totally random place where people tell you Arizona’s not even accessible, “Sal Evergreen, dental... reviewer. No, see, I can’t go to just any dentist, the appointment is to review one specific dentist, in Arizona, for my new article. It’s very important.”

This new hoverboard sure is exciting.

Okay, so, he had his speakers back too and that should probably be more exciting but he couldn’t really use his speakers all too much, he quickly found out. So thus, Hifumi found himself more entertained by leaning forward on the wheeled board he had been gifted by...well, whatever brought him here in the first place, just riding it around Spirale with his jacket slung over his shoulder.

Why he ended up by that strange hole in the center, he wasn’t sure, but he was glad he did when someone called out to ask for help.

“‘Course I can, Jii-chan!” The blond chirped out the little rhyme, rolling to a stop by the older man and not paying any mind that talking to a complete stranger - someone who was certainly older than him - in such a familiar way could be unsettling.

“This city’s called Spirale! It’s kinda like...a whole bunch’a people from a whole lotta places all wind up here. I dunno if anyone really knows how we all end up here, though.”

“Okay,” Michael says, processing, “Okay, great. So, lots of people here, and nobody knows anything. That’s really, that’s so great.”

Sarcasm aside, it’s not like he can take it out on this random stranger. Nobody he’s met so far seems to have a whole lot more knowledge than he can access on his own. So he’s stuck, for the time being. He’s trying to be annoyed about that, but something distracts him.

Now that his android body is available to him, Ai likes to hang around the place where newcomers pop in when he has the time. With all the people living in the city who are so down and pessimistic about starting their new lives here, he imagines it’s good for them to see a friendly face when they first arrive.

After all, Ai feels like one of the few people in the city who is genuinely happy to live here. It feels like he’s being given a second chance.

A nicely dressed older human (He thinks. Ai himself is walking around with a human appearance too after all) tries to catch his attention and the android spins around with a grin, arms outstretched like a ringmaster introducing the next act.

“Welcome to the city of Spirale! You must be new here, but I can tell you this world is different from the one you just came from. You’ll meet people of all different types and from all different worlds here! My name is Ai!” He gives a dramatic bow. “What’s yours?”

This is all overwhelming so far. Not on Earth, no way to get back to the afterlife... no way to help his friends at all. But... Janet can handle things in his absence, surely. Probably. For now, Michael needs to learn what’s going on, and get himself back.

“Worlds...? What, like, different planets?” He knows about other dimensions, but if other planets have life, let alone their own afterlife systems, he knows barely more than humans do about it. But that can’t be what’s going on here, can it? He can’t have been sent that far off mark.

   She’s well used to this, and the approach does little to surprise her considering how close it is to the most recent eclipse; so she reacts quickly to put herself in his field of vision, make certain he knows he has her immediate attention.

   “Sure! This is Radial Island. And you’re in the city of Spirale.” It comes in a chipper, matter-of-fact way as though it should be self-explanatory. “You’re new here, right? Um, this probably isn’t the world you’re used to, and we none of us have a way of going home yet, so – if you want to go back, I can’t help with that, sorry!”

   “So welcome, for now! Where are you from?”

“Right, okay, um,” says Michael, clearly still confused. He glances behind him again, as though the door’s going to maybe be there this time (it isn’t). Of course this isn’t his home, but nobody should be able to tell that by looking at him.

He doesn’t recognize either of those place names, but it’s not like he’s got an encyclopedic knowledge of what every person calls every place on Earth. “Where is this in relation to... say, Arizona? Because I need to go there, it’s, it’s pretty urgent. In a normal way, you know, I have to--I have a dentist appointment, there. Very dire.”

Where is he? He looks around for a moment, adjusting his suit, and then waves to get the attention of one of the people nearby.

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