033 -- [Action]

[endgames]

[In anticipation of a witch hunt, Shikamaru left the village a solid week or more ago for a spot he could wait things out and do as he liked. After John's report to the village, he trained with Twila's powers some and checked out the barrier. He never forgot that looming detail - that a deadline was approaching - but it wasn't the loudest though to linger in his mind.

"I've let your new attitude and wings slide, because we're friends. But it's starting to make you do things you wouldn't normally in a bad way. You should get it together."

It's troublesome but not untrue, which means that comes before anything else. Control is the name of the game here. Twila catered to his apathy, and while there's something nice about not feeling sad or anxious anymore, until they split ways he's going to be the one calling the shots. And after that week... he is for the most part, and ready to take care of things.]

[Since it's hard telling over the journals how much things settled in the village, so on June 9th he makes his way back on his very best behavior. Best. Maybe. PROVOKE HIM AND FIND OUT. He's still possessed by the start of the day, but in general, Shikamaru can be found attempting to mind himself while doing any of the following:

1. Observing people from high up places and making weirdly realistic shadow puppets to pass the time
2. Exploring the new parts of the tunnels
3. Searching out anyone he might have been an ass to, because he should make up for that 8|

One way or another he's back to normal by the end of the day, so people might find him in CH1 too after the fact.]

Comments

[precipitous]

Heh. Never heard that one before. [ She eyes his wings, more curious than wary. ] So...that's still a thing for you, huh?

[endgames]

[That hers are small again doesn't escape his notice. Things really are settling down...]

For now, yeah.

[precipitous]

Have you tried getting rid of them?

[endgames]

Oh no. I'm back in the village because I felt like sight-seeing and going back to work.

[precipitous]

[ She makes a face. ] I was just asking. I've noticed a few people still have them.

[endgames]

How'd you get rid of yours?

[Genuinely curious.]

[precipitous]

[ She shrugs lightly. ] It just left eventually. I didn't really do anything. I guess I got tired of starting fires all the time.

[endgames]

[That sounds logical. If you stop the behavior the spirit would encourage, you become less appealing as a host. Shikamaru nods, and laces his fingers behind his neck.]

I'll have to find my own way, I guess.

[Because unfortunately for him, even taking control of his own actions, he still likes Twila and it him. At the least, it's not grown bored of him just yet.]

[precipitous]

What, you like being possessed by an evil spirit?

[ Yes, she's conflating 'darkness and chaos' with 'evil'. ]

[endgames]

[And that's the part he takes immediate offense to, marked only by a subtle twitch around his eyes as he lowers his chin.]

It's not evil, Korra.

[precipitous]

But it's - did you see what it did to everyone? It made them go crazy. Maybe it's not evil, but it's definitely not good, either.

[endgames]

Were the rest of them so much better?

[Twila wasn't the only one possessing people. Still possessing people - he's seen some of the other spirits have lingered, here and there.]

[precipitous]

Twila started it.

[ Yep, she's that mature. ]

[endgames]

Even if that's the truth of it - and I'm not blind. I know it is. [He puts his hands in his pockets and circles around now.] The other spirits fed the problem instead of corrected it. That's nothing to look higher upon them for.

[precipitous]

Maybe that was the only way they could fight it. Fight fire with fire. [ She shrugs. ] I don't know.

[endgames]

You see anybody be freed because of a fight?

[precipitous]

[ She can't help but think of her own fight with Sokka. ]

...That's not what I meant.

[endgames]

The point stands whichever way you meant it.

[A point he tries to focus on now, before Twila exploits his sensitivity - and he's talking to someone from Katara's world, no less - to this subject.]

Twila is no more inherently evil anymore than the other spirits are inherently good. There's no distinction to them such as that... they just are. And when it comes to light and dark, they need each other if even one of them is to exist.

[precipitous]

[ She kicks a foot at the ground. Avatar stuff - the kind of stuff she should know. She and Aang hadn't talked much about the Spirit World. She wonders if he would say something similar about the nature of spirits.

It kind of bugs her to be hearing it from Shikamaru, but she brushes it off. ]

How do you figure that? Why would light need darkness?

[endgames]

You ever had a bright light shined in your eyes?

[precipitous]

Yeah, sure. What does that have to do with it?

[endgames]

How well could you see?

[precipitous]

I...guess not so good, at first.

[endgames]

You'd never see as good as you could again, if no one turned it off.

[precipitous]

Wouldn't you just get used to it?