Jeka

Great dialogue can come from radical emotional honesty. But in most real conversations, people

dodge questions

answer indirectly

lie (badly)

change the subject

crack jokes to avoid serious answers

lie (convincingly)

say half of what they mean

tell the truth but get so anxious/angry/defensive others now think they're lying

If your dialogue feels unnatural, it might be because everyone is saying exactly what they think, or articulating their thoughts too well. Try letting characters hide things instead.

the therapy:

The thing about Occtis is that I take things literally and now that he is dead and he emphasizes that like most of the normal unconscious body processes cannot happen and that he only has the state he died with left like

does he generate stomach acid.

his heart is gone, the cardiovascular system is fucked. this also means that the liquid in his body is ACTIVELY able to dry out without being circulated through the veins. Do his organs have blood pooling with livor mortis too and are they drying out and will he experience his organs chafing against each other

we know it takes active effort to produce saliva but also he is currently not seen drinking water or liquid ever since the fail early on. without the imbibing of water to refuel his resources is saliva and are tears a finite resource

IF this is a finite resource is it possible that healing him back to full health (which puts him back to the state he died in) is actually also putting his hydration levels back as well

Does he move the same or does he move more mechanically because he has to think about certain aspects of it more

does he experience muscular atrophy? It seems not but do his movements look more stiff or does he like become more gaunt because of that process

how much blood does he have left

if he carved out all of his organs and treated himself as a storage bag could he do so without great harm to himself or does his body need to maintain the illusion of whole-ness to work

could he technically do a stomach removal and replace it with a bag of holding to eat again without having the question of "do my intestines work or are they just sitting there sewn and welded together too"

how much of his current experience of pain is the memory that pain is supposed to happen versus actual feeling of it

will his body experience Autolysis if he goes long enough without healing to revert it to the way it was when he died

It isn't as if Julien wanted this to happen. This--this obsession that he has, it's dangerous. Caring gets you killed. Teor's body, still warm, can speak to that. And yet: the Tachonis boy.

What had he been thinking? Jumping out a window without a second thought, trusting Occtis' word more than gravity. And then, of course, the rest of it; the terrible fear in Occtis voice, the anger, those poison green eyes. His gaze had seemed to pin Julien to the spot. Why do you care? And Julien couldn't answer. Because Occtis was dangerous, surely. Because he was the key to defeating the Tachonis. Because he was the only link to a life Julien knows is dead forever.

But he didn't use any of those (perfectly reasonable, rehearsed) excuses. Instead he choked on his words for about an eternity before blathering something about what Occtis' family might still want with him. It wasn't a lie--I don't want them to get their hands on you--but it wasn't the truth, either. Because the truth, Julien knows, is not that he's afraid of, by losing Occtis, gaining another enemy, but losing another friend. The truth is that Julien has seen the violent bruising around Occtis' neck, the jagged line down his sternum, and aches at the thought of what else such a family could do.

Thankfully, Occtis didn't catch on. Quite the opposite, actually, if the flash of hurt in his eyes was to be believed. But as Occtis spat dismissals in barely-cloaked terror, Julien wondered if this was really any better. He could barely admit his...affection, obsession, whatever--to himself; voicing it to Occtis was out of the question. But Julien could tell that when Occtis said the only two people who care about me, he believed it. And once again, against all logic, Julien ached.

So he followed. Of course he followed. And thank the dead gods he did--if not for Julien, Occtis might still be frozen in place, staring at the man that--Julien is beginning to realize--has hurt him far more than his current scars belie. It's such a far cry from the sharp-witted, terrifying necromancer Julien's been traveling with that a new kind of hatred for Primus Tachonis enters his heart. When he kills that man, he will do it for his father, his home, his honor--yes. But he will also do it for the life of Occtis Tachonis, who trembled under Julien's arm the whole way back to the Fang house.

And now--here they are. Occtis still convinced that Julien sees him as a tool at best, Julien still despairing every time catching those poison eyes sends a thrill down his spine. Orbiting each other like twin stars. Julien tries to kill this caring, he really does. There is every possibility that Occtis will be dead tomorrow, one of his many enemies catching up to him, and Julien cannot afford to fall apart again if that happens. It seems, though, that Julien's affection takes after the boy himself: it simply will not die. Occtis Tachonis is dangerous, heartless, terrified and terrifying. He hates Julien's guts and believes Julien feels the same. And, shapers damn him, Julien Davinos doesn't care. He wants to follow this beautiful, wretched creature into realms beyond, if it means keeping him safe. He wants to never see that petrified look on Occtis' face again. He wants--damn it all--to hold him, just that, without the threat of imminent death.

Thank you! These prompts are really fun and easy and Occtis is the perfect little dead guy to fixate on!

A=Aftercare (What they’re like after sex)

If he's the dom he is very focused on caring for his submissive and making sure they come back to themselves and ground. Even if he hates the person, even if it was a pain scene. He always checks in and cares for his partners after the act. He knows what it feels like to be left alone emotionally raw and exposed and he does his best not to let anyone else feel that way.

However if he is the sub he drops hard and desperately needs to be held and reassured after the act. He may even get glassy eyed and stutter. Struggling to be present and grounded. Sometimes he needs a back rub and a long hug, other times he needs to be reminded that he isn't a monster and that his partner does want him and isn't going to leave. What ever the case he just needs reassurance afterwards until he can calm down enough to fully settle into his body again. Or at least as much as he can these days.

D=Dirty Secret (Pretty self explanatory)

He would never admit it but I think Occtis has fantasized about almost every member of the group. Thoughts about Julien catching him alone in a stairwell and forcing him to his knees at sword point? Yup he's had those fantasies. Slowly undressing Vaelus like he's unwrapping a present so he can study the immortal and she can fully witness his undeath? Yup, he's had those fantasies. Murray scolding him for conducting himself poorly during a lesson and ordering him to bend over a desk and put his pants around his ankles? Yup, he's had those fantasies. Thaisha guiding him to suck on her breasts and grind against her thigh until he's drunk on her soft touch and praises? Yup he's had those fantasies. Kattigan chasing him down through the woods like the prey animal he often feels like, finally catching him, tearing his clothes off and having his way with him? Oh yup he's definitely has those fantasies! You get the idea~

F= Favorite Position

I think he really likes being cradled in someones lap as he's lovingly impaled on their cock or fingers. He craves to be held and filled and settled in a larger partners lap fills the brief. However, I think he also has a thing for having someone on their knees in front of him. It taps into his power kink a little bit and always turns him on to see someone below him, forced to crane their neck to look up at him.

Thank you! These prompts are really fun and easy and Occtis is the perfect little dead guy to fixate on!

A=Aftercare (What they’re like after sex)

If he's the dom he is very focused on caring for his submissive and making sure they come back to themselves and ground. Even if he hates the person, even if it was a pain scene. He always checks in and cares for his partners after the act. He knows what it feels like to be left alone emotionally raw and exposed and he does his best not to let anyone else feel that way.

However if he is the sub he drops hard and desperately needs to be held and reassured after the act. He may even get glassy eyed and stutter. Struggling to be present and grounded. Sometimes he needs a back rub and a long hug, other times he needs to be reminded that he isn't a monster and that his partner does want him and isn't going to leave. What ever the case he just needs reassurance afterwards until he can calm down enough to fully settle into his body again. Or at least as much as he can these days.

D=Dirty Secret (Pretty self explanatory)

He would never admit it but I think Occtis has fantasized about almost every member of the group. Thoughts about Julien catching him alone in a stairwell and forcing him to his knees at sword point? Yup he's had those fantasies. Slowly undressing Vaelus like he's unwrapping a present so he can study the immortal and she can fully witness his undeath? Yup, he's had those fantasies. Murray scolding him for conducting himself poorly during a lesson and ordering him to bend over a desk and put his pants around his ankles? Yup, he's had those fantasies. Thaisha guiding him to suck on her breasts and grind against her thigh until he's drunk on her soft touch and praises? Yup he's had those fantasies. Kattigan chasing him down through the woods like the prey animal he often feels like, finally catching him, tearing his clothes off and having his way with him? Oh yup he's definitely has those fantasies! You get the idea~

F= Favorite Position

I think he really likes being cradled in someones lap as he's lovingly impaled on their cock or fingers. He craves to be held and filled and settled in a larger partners lap fills the brief. However, I think he also has a thing for having someone on their knees in front of him. It taps into his power kink a little bit and always turns him on to see someone below him, forced to crane their neck to look up at him.

Thank you so much for giving me an excuse to think about this one!

V = Volume (How loud they are, what sounds they make)

Oh dear dead gods this man is loud. Loud and shameless. Most of the time he doesn't care if he's overheard, in fact he likes to know people can hear him. Especially when he's taking it, he's a screamer. If someone hurts him good enough to scream he will wail for them like a ghost. No pun intended. He has a beautiful voice and he isn't afraid to use it. His moans, dirty talking and even his most hushed little gasps are beautiful. He knows his voice turns his partners on, hell I think it even turns him on a little. He's never seen a reason to restrain his pleasure or hold back from expressing how he feels. He loves to scream for a partner just as much as he loves it when they make him sing.

Oh no, Thimble asking Teor to go with her to the Golden Orchard! How dare you make me feel emotions?

We get a really fun contrast in this episode about the differences between how achieving revenge affects Thimble vs Julien. Here, Thimble has an "unsettled, almost manic need to find the next distraction". Later in this episode, Julien gets a chance for revenge and, afterwards, "something in him healed". I really hope we get to hear Thimble and Julien talking about revenge in Seekers 2.0 (and throw in Kattigan, given what we learned about him during the Convergence!)

What I will say is that what Thimble is feeling here kinda describes the impression that we've been given of how Julien was behaving for the last twelve years -- always searching for the next distraction, whether that be sex, drugs, or maybe a fight, depending on how we read the Barrowguard stuff.