roguesquadron | hurt/comfort meme

hurt/comfort meme

the hurt/comfort meme

It is in times of distress that hope is truly found. How you handle those periods of duress is a mark of character. Whether you're the one in pain, providing sanctuary, or even if that ache is mutual, hurt/comfort is all about empathy. Connecting with the people around you.

Instructions:

→ Post with your character (note name, canon [if relevant], and preferences in the subject line).
→ Others reply by either generating a number between 1-21 for a prompt, ~~or go off script, I'm not the boss of you~~.
→ Go forth and connect.

Options:

o1. injury: somehow, you've been injured. the severity, whether a mortal wound or "just a scrape" is up to you.
o2. sickness: thinking of calling out of work today? chances are you've got a common bug...or worse.
o3. fear & anxiety: careful where you throw that "scared to death" nonsense...it might just be an omen.
o4. loss of senses: you're missing one of those fundamental six senses, whether it's your sight, hearing, touch, smell, taste, or the Force.
o5. despair: the idea of hope looks more and more like a pipe dream right now.
o6. breakup: and we are never ever ever ever getting back together. ever.
o7. makeup: but you called me up again tonight...
o8. rescued: it's time for one of you to get your damsel in distress on.
o9. bad romance: i knew you were trouble when you walked in.
1o. loss: one of you has just experienced a loss of some kind; can you cope?
11. insanity: for whatever reason, "reason" is lost to you. you're seeing and hearing things. sometimes dead people.
12. tired/insomnia: is it the caffeine or the fact that you never leave your damned senatorial office? whether it's just lack of sleep or lack of energy, this exhaustion is bone-deep.
13. addiction: something's got you hooked, and you might just need a helping hand to give it some distance.
14. nightmares: okay, now you're definitely seeing dead people. do you dare go back to sleep?
15. blackmail: you've been caught and the evidence is compromising. do you seek help or vengeance?
16. separation/homesickness: whatever it is, the nostalgia's got you missing something (or someone) awfully.
17. betrayal: your trust has been violated, but is it a real or imagined slight?
18. stranded: you're stuck. maybe someone crashed your only ship for the 50th damn time. are you sure this isn't reality tv?
19. sins & guilt: the weight of your past deeds is like holding a world on your shoulders. maybe it's time to seek some help, atlas.
2o. secret: loose lips sink spaceships.
21. wildcard: "take your script and shove it, meme."

[adapted and remixed from here.]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[Ezra's shoulders hunch at the question, and he moodily pushes his spoon through the bowl with his fruit salad. He knows he shouldn't talk about specifics, and he won't, but he's been sitting on this for three days now. A teen can only bottle things up for so long.]

Things happened. My crew had to leave. I wasn't on board, and they didn't have time to wait. Now I'm just waiting for them to come back for me.

There's no emergency plan for what to do if something like that happened?

::That seems to lack a certain amount of foresight to him. What is this kid supposed to do, wait on this planet for the rest of his life?::

How long have you been waiting?

This is the plan. Lie low and wait until things cool down enough for someone to circle back.

[They just... hadn't had the funds to load everyone with money on the off chance that one of them might get left behind. It wasn't deliberate negligence, he has to remind himself.

Even if it still sucks.]

It's been three days.

Waiting for them to come back is all well and good, but what if they can't? How are you supposed to catch up? Stow away on a ship that might go somewhere you might be able to rejoin them?

::He sees so many problems with this plan. Along with just waiting here.::

[Ezra scowls, temper rankling at the criticism he's reading into that. He leans back in his seat, crossing his arms defensively.]

Well, what else am I supposed to do? Steal a ship and fly it off to find them myself? Hope that I can fly whatever I get my hands on?

[Yes, he can manage the Phantom, but flying a shuttle is a far cry from flying a whole ship.]

You look like a sulking teenager.

::It's said almost absently as he takes another bite of stew. He was just about done with his own food and starts keeping an eye out for the serving droid.::

Is there at least a planet for you all to meet at for if worst comes to worst and they can't return to pick someone up?

[He probably sounds like a sulking teenager because he is a sulking teenager, but what teenager likes to be called out on that? Ezra bristles now, glaring.]

I'm not sulking! It's a legitimate factor! And sure, there's a planet we do most of our work around, but they're expecting me here, not there.

::Garth'zel gives him an even look.::

Settle down. Yes, they may be expecting you to be here, but for how long? Surely they'd expect you to find your own way back to them if they can't return?

Does it matter?

[Yes, Ezra's grousing. No, he doesn't care.]

I can't exactly afford to book passage, and almost no one flies to that world. I'd still be right back to the problem of stealing and flying a ship.

::Ah, there's the droid. The bill gets asked for and Garth'zel just raises his eyebrows at Ezra as the droid shuffles off.::

How do you think I reached this planet? I'd prefer not to be limited to the schedule and destinations of a passenger ship.

::Not to mention, hiding his lightsaber would be a touch more complicated. Forget quick escapes if they're needed.::

[Ezra eyes Garth'zel at that comment, not sure what he should be reading into it. It almost sounds like a hint of an offer, but that just wouldn't make sense. Seriously, who'd offer a random kid they just met a ride out to a planet that hadn't even been named yet?

And what kid with any sense would accept that offer from someone they just met?

He's definitely reading too much into what's probably just a comment about being prepared for contingencies.]

Yeah, well, I'll have to remember that for the future.

[He's only being slightly sarcastic there. The guy has been nice to him so far. He doesn't deserve the full brunt of Ezra's sour mood.

Sighing, he finishes off the last few bites of his fruit salad, tucking the other half of the sandwich into the satchel on his belt while he chews.]

You ready to find somewhere else to talk?

Soon.

::The droid returns, and after a quick glance at how much he owed, enough credits have been handed over. Then Garth'zel drinks the last of his ale and stands.::

Now we can go. After you.

::The kid is the one who knows where they're going, after all.::

[As soon as he's finished his own drink off, Ezra's standing with him. Business taken care of, there's no reason to linger, so he starts off, leading the way. The upside to having been on the streets for three days is that he's had time to orient himself more during that time. Enough to take a shorter path than he might otherwise have to the old abandoned warehouse where the Ghost crew had originally been planning to do their business. It should only take a few minutes to get there.]

Thanks for the food, by the way.

[That's two meals he won't have to look for alternatives.]

You're welcome. I know what it's like to be hungry, although my circumstances were admittedly different.

::It's said with a shake of his head as he banishes the memories even as they rise up. Visions of his mother trying to make their food stretch isn't something he needs right now.::

I take it you've had to live on the streets before?

[Ezra frowns, giving Garth'zel a sidelong glance. How had he figured that out? Prickly teenage pride wars with curiosity. He doesn't want this guy's pity, but on the other hand, that can't have been just a guess.]

What makes you say that?

[Curiosity wins, though he passes it off as just simple caution, wanting to know how Garth'zel got that information.]

::Garth'zel shrugs a little. It wasn't hard for him to work out.::

Things like where I found you. Your foresight in saving some of your food. Some of the way you act.

::People with a normal upbringing generally aren't so damn skittish and prickly. Or as willing to dumpster dive.::

[Ezra's estimation of Garth'zel raises a grudging notch. He can see how the guy picked up on it now, but that's still a level of observation that most people don't practice.]

You know, none of that necessarily means I've had experience on the streets. [He just feels like he has to point that out.] But yeah. I've been on my own before.

[He shrugs it off, acting nonchalant. Still not wanting Garth'zel to pity him.]

Does that mean you have too, if you noticed all that?

::Garth'zel shakes his head.::

No, I've had other problems. Frankly, in some ways, the streets probably would have been better.

::Of course, then there would have been the trade off of doing his own dumpster-diving and finding places to spend the night, but at least he would have been free.::

[Life on the streets isn't anything pretty. Most people don't understand how bad it can be, scraping for every mouthful you eat, getting kicked and abused and spat on by people who think they're so much better, living with the worst that a city has to offer and having no hope of ever getting out of it, and so, so much more. And yet, Ezra's not so naive as to think that it's the worst life that someone can have. He gives Garth'zel a long, measuring look.

Then deliberately doesn't ask for details. If Garth'zel can respect the fact that Ezra doesn't want to talk about his past, then Ezra can do the same.

Besides, they've reached the old meeting point.]

Well, this is it. According to our contacts, this warehouse hasn't been used in years. Something about not meeting city regulations anymore, but no one's gotten around to fixing it or tearing it down.

[Which means it's nice and open and empty inside. Perfect if you want to talk without someone sneaking up behind you.]

::He didn't say it would be completely better. Just better in some ways.

Garth'zel nods absently as he stretches out with his senses... and finds three bugs. A pinching together of his thumb and forefinger later, they are no longer a problem; a tiny puff of smoke showing the location of at least one of them.::

It's clear now.

::And he wouldn't be surprised in the least if Ezra decides he wants to learn how to do that. It is a pretty handy skill.::

[It's good that he isn't going to be surprised, because Ezra immediately perks up with interest.]

Whoa. Can you teach me how to do that? I mean, how to know that they were even there?

[Crushing them probably isn't the hard part here.]

::It isn't, for someone experienced with the Force and with more than the bare minimum of ability with it, no.::

I could. Are you looking for a teacher, then?

::Even if the boy wasn't, it was probably best to work out how much ability and training he may or may not have.::

[Ezra's posture stiffens at the question, at the apparent implication that he might have given up on his Master. Maybe that's not even what Garth'zel is trying to say. It's not like he'd know if Ezra had a Master or not. But still, Ezra can get pretty defensive when it comes to anything that even hints of trying to take Kanan's place.

Mouth forming a thin line, he folds his arms, but pauses before he opens his mouth. Garth'zel checked for bugs, but Ezra still glances around, then lowers his voice for good measure. This right here is the kind of stuff they can't risk people hearing them talk about.]

No. I already have a Master.

[Let's just lay that out straight. Then, because there is room for doubt that Garth'zel meant to infringe, he offers an apologetic shrug.]

Sorry, if you're only willing to teach your own student, I guess that won't be me.

Ah.

::He considers that and the information he's gleaned so far. So. Partly trained then, and undergoing an interruption to said training. Perfect.::

He was on board the ship that left without you, wasn't he? I have to admit you're the first person worth teaching I've found. Granted, it's not like I've really been looking. Adjusting to the way the galaxy's changed and all.

::He shrugs a little.::

You would have been the youngest, though.

[The implication that Kanan left him stings, no matter that it's technically true. Ezra bristles a little.]

He didn't have a choice. And you can thank the Empire for the fact that it's so hard to find people like us. They kill anyone they find that they can't twist to their cause, and they'll take even the babies if they know where they are.

[He's wondered before how many Inquisitors there are. It's conversations like this that make him not sure he wants to know.]

They'll kill you, too, if they find out what you are. That's why I warned you about it when you started talking about Force-users.

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