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Post by eyesinthedark on May 22, 2022 22:56:23 GMT
Hex's questioning didn't seem to trigger much in the way of a direct response but it did at least stir up some old memories that came with a surge of negativity, Not quite what Hex had been hoping for but still interesting enough to satisfy him for the moment.
Shouta was relieved both that LJ wasn't overly upset by Hex's probing and by LJ's words regarding his own problems with Hex. "You are likely right. Several of my siblings have had behavioral issues of varying kinds over the years and I've managed to overcome them with time. I suppose I am just concerned about being unprepared for this specific challenge. Hex was literally born from negative emotions and some of his issues thus may well be an intrinsic part of his nature," he reflected, keeping his voice low primarily out of reflex. He didn't think Hex was actually bothered by discussions of this nature, as he had been very candid about his nature since they first met and did not seem bothered by it at all, but it still felt odd to discuss such issues right in front of him. "I tend to believe in the power of nurture over nature, of course, as my youngest siblings have already proven to be nothing like their deadbeat father, and regardless of how he was born it is clear that Hex has positive emotions of his own. He can be happy and friendly without issue. But if certain aspects of his personality stem directly from his essential nature, then adjusting the behaviors connected to those personality traits will likely be a more arduous task," he mused, frowning thoughtfully. He had considered the implications of Hex's nature before but being able to verbalize it aloud made it seem more of an immediate problem, one with no immediate solution.
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Post by ricochet7-LJ on May 22, 2022 23:14:56 GMT
"Negative emotions?" LJ asked before looking over at Hex before he said "I guess that explains his fascination with negative emotions and some what socially odd behavior." Shouta had also explained that some of his siblings had behavioral issues. "Sounds like your siblings are lucky to have been able to overcome the worst of their behavioral issues based on what you said about your step dad. Good thing your family doesn't have to deal with him anymore."
"As for behavioral issues I guess I got off fairly lucky with my worst problem being my temper. As for my siblings Kshin and Lilly, only Kshin had major issues but seeing as he was an orphan living on the streets of Whitewater I suppose him once having separation anxiety was not the worst that could of happen." LJ said as Shouta mentioned believing in the power of nurture over nature. "I've heard about the concept of nurture over nature. It seems to work for many as an approach. Maybe overtime you can figure out healthy outlets for Hex's issues."
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Post by eyesinthedark on May 23, 2022 10:29:57 GMT
"An orphan, hmm?" Hex mused aloud, storing this fact away in his memory. If they did wind up meeting the final member of Mandrake and Lothar's children in the future, it could be useful to already have knowledge of his vulnerabilities. "He must have been lucky to find Mandrake and Lothar then," he trailed off, silently inviting LJ to elaborate.
"That would be ideal, to find some way to channel Hex's urges towards more constructive or at least socially acceptable ends. Despite his rough edges, it is clear he can be intelligent when he desires to be so," Shouta admitted. "If that intelligence as put to positive uses rather than simply the acquisition of fleeting desires, he could do a great deal of good for both himself and those around him," he suggested. At this, Hex lowered himself in the air to hover closer to Shouta again.
"What's the point of thinking if it doesn't get you what you want?" he asked, somewhat incredulously. "If you don't want something, why would you try to do it? Everything people do ultimately stems from desire," he pointed out. Shouta raised an eyebrow at the unusually philosophical answer from Hex.
"Some obligations and responsibilities trump base desires. Perhaps you could argue that my desire to be a good person is simply greater than the desires that would be satisfied by being selfish, but the fact remains that I restrain myself from pursuing desires that would interfere with my ability to live up to my various responsibilities," he argued back.
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Post by ricochet7-LJ on May 23, 2022 11:35:21 GMT
"Actually based on what I was told it was the other way around. Dad and Pops were the ones who found Kshin. The circumstances why were quite interesting. Apparently Kshin was under the care of rookie level dragons when he was an in training digimon called Dorimon. The leader of the gang lured my parents in with a plot to rob them by having Kshin fake being injured but the robbery plan backfired and the gang ran away leaving Kshin behind. My parents ended up adopting him and he eventually overcame his separation anxiety before digivolving to his rookie form of Gumdramon." LJ explained. Sure he wasn't around Kshin most of the time and, at first, it was awkward for him to adjust to being an older brother.
LJ listened to the exchange between Shouta and Hex and when the debate finished he said "I can see the points in both of your arguments. After all everyone has desires but learning that there is a time and place for fulfilling those desires can be a delicate balance. For example, I spent time wanting to get stronger. However while I still have that desire I also enjoy learning new things. Probably makes sense given my magical nature. After all magicians are typically known for seeking knowledge of some form. Even a magical warrior like myself."
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Post by eyesinthedark on May 24, 2022 10:27:04 GMT
Shouta listened to the story of Kshin's history and nodded in approval at the end. Fortunate indeed. Those thieves sound like a detestable sort but if he had stayed with them for too long, it is likely Kshin would have adopted their attitude. I have little doubt that Mandrake and Lothar serve as much better influences," he commented. The idea of thieves taking advantage of a child like that was a loathsome prospect for him but the story only further cemented his respect for Mandrake and Lothar.
"I like learning new things as well," Hex agree in response to LJ's comment. "I want to see and hear and feel as many different things as possible, good or bad. Life is filled with desires but it can end quickly, and even for digimon that can mean all those desires go unfulfilled if their memories and personalities are too badly scrambled during their reincarnation. That's why I don't want to miss any opportunities to get something that I want," he explained. While Shouta often felt that Hex had no standards in life, being perfectly happy to eat trash, the truth was that he had just as many standards as anybody else. He just found that experiences that fell short of those standards were interesting in their own way.
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Post by ricochet7-LJ on May 24, 2022 11:11:06 GMT
"Maybe but fortunately that didn't happen. I guess it was for the best that gang of dragons abandoned Kshin when the robbery plan went askew though from what I was told poor Kshin was understandably terrified when he realized he was left behind at the mercy of digimon that were stronger than himself without knowing he was in no danger." LJ said as he thought about Shouta's words. Then again if his dads didn't find Kshin it was also possible he may not have survived to be a rookie as well seeing as the gang was more than willing to abandon a helpless child that couldn't defend himself. The very thought disgusted LJ making him relieved that things went so well for Kshin.
"The humans have a saying that says knowledge is power and for digimon that can be especially true in many ways since digimon have the potential to live centuries. However humans also have a saying that life is too short though I don't know if that saying always makes sense for a digimon and I and Kshin have been attending school in the Human World."
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Post by eyesinthedark on May 24, 2022 19:36:13 GMT
"Indeed. The best thing that can be said of poor role models is that they often disappear before they can cause too much lasting harm," Shouta acknowledged solemnly, mentally grouping Kshin's former gang with his mother's husband number three. Irresponsible wastes, serving as nuisances and drains on society and only occasionally contributing nything of worth, more by accident than design.
"Life can be short for digimon too. Sometimes even more so, since most humans don't have to worry about getting attacked by a wild or hostile digimon that's stronger than them," Hex countered LJ's comment. "We don't think about it as much because we can come back from it, but death usually changes us to some degree. I might have time to get everything I desire in my next lives but those will likely be different versions of me. This version was born of disappointment and unfulfilled desire, so I want to correct that as much as possible before I die and my data gets reformatted," he explained. Shouta cast a concerned glance his way, once again disturbed by how casually Hex referred to his own death. Fortunately, LJ had given him a possible source of distraction.
"Once we have your own holosuit, do you think you'd be interested in going to school? It is a new experience after all, and a chance to learn new things about the Human World," he suggested. Left unsaid was that it was also a structured environment that might teach Hex a little more restraint and consideration.
"That could be interesting. I'd like to try it out," Hex acquiesced cheerfully, causing Shouta to begin thinking about how he might manage to get Hex enrolled in a school.
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Post by ricochet7-LJ on May 24, 2022 21:23:55 GMT
"I suppose you're right but, poor Kshin, he most likely wouldn't of been in that situation at all if pirates hadn't murdered his parents and grandfather." LJ said with a shake of the head. Sure Kshin was now happy and trying to establish himself as a stage magician to be more like Mandrake but the thought of what could of happened was unsettling indeed.
"Fair enough point, Hex. Not all young digimon are fortunate to make it to rookie never mind champion. Since I'm on my first life I don't know much about the process of being reborn. All I know is digimon can be born under more circumstances than simply hatching from an egg." LJ said noticing how Shouta looked concerned with Hex's talk of his death and to be honest it concerned LJ a bit too. Most digimon didn't just bring up such a difficult subject so easily.
"Well depending on how young you are it would influence which school you attended. I remember when my dads went to enroll me in school. They were intending to put me in high school but sent me to the middle school by mistake so I came up with the cover story that I am just real tall for my age. Since you saw my dads you can see why such an excuse could work." LJ said finishing his last sentence with a chuckle.
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Post by eyesinthedark on May 25, 2022 10:33:21 GMT
"Ah, my condolences for his loss," Shouta offered upon learning of the fate of Kshin's birth family. It seemed the middle child of the family had gone through quite an ordeal in his life so far, even if it had ended up in a happy family.
Shouta also nodded along to LJ's reference to his height, remembering how the elder Lothar had towered over the people around him. It would be easy for LJ to claim to have inherited the same height in his human form. "I suspect Hex would likely attend an elementary school or possibly a junior high, depending on what sort of holosuit we eventually settle on. The former might be ideal to explain his behavioral issues but the latter might be of more interest to him in the long run," he said contemplatively. As childish in temperament as Hex could be, he didn't seem unintelligent and Shouta feared he would grow bored of an elementary school education too quickly.
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Post by ricochet7-LJ on May 25, 2022 21:07:41 GMT
"I was told that the leader of the pirates was sent to jail so I guess that's some piece of good news. Though I don't know what part she took in the murder of his parents and grandfather. All I know from Kshin is that his grandfather left behind a message on a chip that was slipped onto him sometime before he died. I don't think he remembers all the details of the murder as I get the feeling certain key points in his story are missing. Then again I don't blame him for forgetting details given the tragic circumstances." LJ said with a sigh before he then said "I don't remember all my childhood anyway."
"He did say he wanted a young male form so middle schooler at oldest makes sense. The school would likely also need to be alerted that he has some unusual behavioral quirks so that he won't come off as too problematic. At least both of us know some people have behavioral issues for various reasons. You two can use that knowledge to come up with a decent cover story."
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Post by eyesinthedark on May 25, 2022 23:20:59 GMT
"People don't want to think about the worst parts of their past and eventually, the details of the memories fade entirely. Of course, the parts they do remember only grow worse in their heads as their imagination fills in those missing details with worse ones," Hex reflected. While he didn't have any traumatic memories from this life, he was vaguely aware of the various tragic experiences that made up his data from past lives. To be honest, he would actually quite like to be able to access those memories more clearly, to know exactly what had happened to all those deceased digimon that led to the emotions that made him up, but he could understand why others preferred to forget. Besides, buried memories like that were a useful tool to pry at people's mental defenses, often causing more distress than the intact memories did.
"Indeed, that is doubly true for memories from early childhood," Shouta agreed, thinking about how only the oldest of his siblings seemed to remember the troubled period following his stepfather's death with any clarity. It was a blessing, of course, and he sometimes wished that Rin and Kosuke could more easily forget that time as well but alas, that was not the case.
In response to LJ's comments on Hex's possible education, Shouta nodded in agreement. "That would likely be wise. I could likely pass him off as a relative of one of my fathers, perhaps claiming that he has come to Shibuya to avoid issues at home which could also explain some behavioral issues," he proposed thoughtfully before sighing wearily. "I must admit, I am uncomfortable with the idea of forging an identity for Hex. I understand the necessity of it, there is no system in place for helping a being from another world enroll in a school, but it is nevertheless unpleasant to have to set up such a deception," he bemoaned his situation. The fact was that Shouta liked rules. He liked setting them and he liked following them. Rules were what allowed society to function and what he was planning certainly violated any number of rules on the legal, organizational and social levels. Unfortunately, there were no rules governing this situation, leaving him flying somewhat blind.
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Post by ricochet7-LJ on May 26, 2022 1:32:06 GMT
LJ glanced back at Hex shocked before an uncomfortable look appeared on the young Leomon X's face and then said "That honestly isn't a pleasant thing to think about. I already have some fragmented memories from my infancy that I would rather completely forget since I was told those experiences were not pleasant ones for my parents either." The thought of a certain SkullSatamon that occasionally haunted his nightmares came to mind before remnants of one night of being held by a red haired human while crying came to his mind while hearing his Wizardmon father, Mandrake, scream flitted through his mind causing him to shake his head. This new image was new to him. Could this of been the night Mandrake lost one of his arms?
Seeing Shouta's weary expression LJ said "Shouta, I get you would be worried about Hex's impulsive behavior. Who wouldn't be given your situation? You are right about there being no precedence for situations involving beings from other worlds in place for all of humanity but at least here in the Digital World digimon are better prepared for dealing with humans. However there are some places here in the Digital World humans should probably avoid."
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Post by eyesinthedark on May 26, 2022 10:27:54 GMT
Hex hadn't been specifically trying to provoke a reaction from LJ with his discussion on the nature of memory but the discomfort emanating off of him was a pleasant surprise. Clearly LJ had some buried memories of his own, although it was hard to say exactly what they were. He hadn't seemed overly bothered by the mention of Ravemon so it was likely something beyond that single kidnapping. "Memories make us who we are. Good or bad, they're all valuable," he countered, though he was not particularly invested in an argument on the topic. He was well aware that most people were less welcoming of negative experiences than he was and knew that he was unlikely to change many minds on that front.
"I suppose that's true. At least while I am here I don't need to conceal Hex's nature and can hopefully function normally within Rustport and Terminus," Shouta agreed with LJ's assessment, although he frowned slightly as the Leomon X's advice turned to a warning. "Places humans should avoid? Is that simply because they are too dangerous in general and humans are less capable of surviving than digimon, or do you mean there are places that are dangerous for humans specifically?" he asked, concerned. Being dropped into the desert was bad enough but if there were worse places he could have wound up, then he would have to be very careful to avoid stumbling into any further portals. Not that he had been planning to do so anyway but a little extra caution might be merited.
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Post by ricochet7-LJ on May 26, 2022 11:44:40 GMT
LJ shook his head before he smiled as he said "I suppose you're right, Hex, but that doesn't always make it easy to deal with such emotions." LJ wondered just why he didn't remember some of his memories given he wasn't really that old by digimon standards so such memory loss made no sense to him. "Now that I think more about my missing memories I wonder why I am missing a good chunk of my early memories. My parents never mentioned any logical reason for such memory loss."
"Yes not needing to conceal ones nature definitely makes things easier in the Digital World as there is only so much a digimon can do while using a holosuit. Holosuits block the majority of digimon abilities." LJ said. When Shouta asked about what LJ meant regarding places humans should avoid the Leomon X closed his eyes before he said "While all parts of the Digital World have their fare share of dangers, there is one place for certain humans should avoid and that is the city on top of the giant digimon known as ElDoradimon. According to what I've heard that place is not very welcoming of humans. However since I've never been there I don't know how bad it was."
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Post by eyesinthedark on May 26, 2022 20:56:49 GMT
"Oh? You have gaps in your memory?" Hex asked, intrigued. "It could be due to some particularly severe trauma that you've repressed entirely," he suggested, sounding just a little too hopeful at the prospect.
"Humans can occasionally suffer memory loss from injuries to the head," Shouta pointed out. "I'm not sure if digimon function the same way but however your memories are stored, it is possible that an injury of the right sort could trigger memory loss," he suggested. In truth he could only speculate, limited as his knowledge of digimon still was. Case in point, LJ's description of ElDoradimon drew a raised eyebrow from him.
"Truly, an entire city atop a digimon?" he asked, taken aback by the idea. While he knew digimon could vary in size quite dramatically, with Hex's armor form dwarfing Shouta as much as he dwarfed Hex's more common form, he hadn't imagined that they could grow to that size. That the city apparently was closed to humans was somewhat concerning but just the very idea of it was astounding.
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