[That sure is something. Akechi blinks at him, visibly surprised for a moment — and then he huffs out a laugh.]
Well, I can answer that question for you. You're spineless. You don't have what it takes to kill someone with your own two hands, so you will stand back and do nothing. Or was that sense of morality you and your teammates touted just a lie?
[He 100% does not believe Akira has it in him to take someone out, sorry.]
[that— cuts deeper than Akira was expecting, and he visibly flinches as his gaze swivels back to Akechi. when he next speaks, it's with a raised voice, his frustration barely contained]
Not wanting to kill isn't a bad thing. That's our justice— we don't stoop to the same levels as those who might oppose us.
[not everyone can be redeemed, but with a power as potent as the ability to steal hearts, Akira is dead set on not beginning the precarious slide down the slope of abusing that power. he has his ideals, his values, his code— and in most circumstances, nothing can force him to break it]
[. . . these circumstances are a little different though, aren't they?]
[Ah, that's funny. That's the self-righteous attitude he has come to expect from him. Akira gets worked up, and Akechi sneers at him.]
Is that how you'll justify your inaction? [Coward.] It's an eat or be eaten world. You're naive if you think some people don't deserve a taste of their own medicine.
[Like, you know... After you order a psychotic breakdown that results in the death of four individuals, or after you bite a 14-year-old girl's head off and sentence someone to death in your place. It's karma, man.]
[Akira's gaze narrows, frustration bubbling to life in the pit of his stomach. TOO BAD THIS IS PRE-RED THREAD RIGHT!!]
I never said anything about not taking action.
[not that he can, considering they don't know who took Nia's life in the first place, but. . .]
I'm not naive. I'm not stupid or spineless or blind enough to believe that doing nothing is the better choice, here.
[inaction is not Akira's style. it never has ben. . . and it never will be. but-- that doesn't mean the idea of taking someone's life, the life of someone who is a person before they are a monster-- isn't. . . well. a little terrifying]
[but perhaps Akechi was the wrong person to even begin to talk to about this]
[Akechi was absolutely the wrong person to even begin to talk about this. Sorry, Akira.]
Answer this for me. You don't want to kill, so what will you do instead? Reasoning with them is out of the question, of course. A rabid dog won't listen to logic.
["A rabid dog," he says, like they aren't people as well... But, eh. Sometimes you turn into a creature and it be like that.]
They're more than just rabid creatures. They're human, Akechi. And I'll be damned if I forget about that part. I'll be damned if I let you forget that part, too.
[. . . what would he do, though? congratulations Akechi this single conversation has sent Akira spiraling into a MORAL CRISIS for the rest of the week]
I don't know what I'd do yet. [beg Peach or Plum or Pumpkin for the Metaverse. try to figure out how to restrain the monsters before they kill. continue searching the mansion to discover its secrets, hoping that one reveals the secrets behind the infections] But whatever answer I eventually come to, it'll be something in line with my sense of justice.
[notably, that does leave room for doing the unthinkable, but he isn't going to say that]
And I won't stand idly by and watch while people are hurt. I won't.
No, I suppose not. A rabid creature wouldn't resort to deceit to escape from death, would it?
[It's unclear whether he thinks this is better or worse, though.]
Say whatever you want to satisfy your own self-righteousness, but the truth of the matter remains. There's only one way to reduce the casualties, and you don't have the guts to do it. Saying you won't stand idly while people are hurt is nothing more than lip service.
[Because, well. Akechi genuinely doesn't think Akira has it in him to pull the trigger. They're very different in that regard, after all. They were always meant to disagree on this point... Which is perhaps why he smiles at the end; more of an upward tilt of his lips than anything born from genuine happiness.]
But don't worry. When the time comes, I won't hesitate.
[He can only ever be himself. Akira is an idiot if he thinks that will change.]
[it's true. they were always meant to disagree on this point. Akira, with his firm ideals, his sense of right and wrong, his unwillingness to become that which he despised. and then Akechi, the man willing to turn himself into a monster to destroy the man he heated most]
[. . .]
[Akira turns to face Akechi again, his hardened expression smoothing over, his own lips twitching]
To you, there is always only one way, isn't there?
[. . .]
When the time comes, I won't hesitate, either.
[but for him. . . that means something completely different than how Akechi means it]
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
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He smiles, humorlessly.]
Of course not. Why ask when you already know the answer?
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Because I don't yet know my own answer to that question.
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[That sure is something. Akechi blinks at him, visibly surprised for a moment — and then he huffs out a laugh.]
Well, I can answer that question for you. You're spineless. You don't have what it takes to kill someone with your own two hands, so you will stand back and do nothing. Or was that sense of morality you and your teammates touted just a lie?
[He 100% does not believe Akira has it in him to take someone out, sorry.]
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Not wanting to kill isn't a bad thing. That's our justice— we don't stoop to the same levels as those who might oppose us.
[not everyone can be redeemed, but with a power as potent as the ability to steal hearts, Akira is dead set on not beginning the precarious slide down the slope of abusing that power. he has his ideals, his values, his code— and in most circumstances, nothing can force him to break it]
[. . . these circumstances are a little different though, aren't they?]
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Is that how you'll justify your inaction? [Coward.] It's an eat or be eaten world. You're naive if you think some people don't deserve a taste of their own medicine.
[Like, you know... After you order a psychotic breakdown that results in the death of four individuals, or after you bite a 14-year-old girl's head off and sentence someone to death in your place. It's karma, man.]
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[Akira's gaze narrows, frustration bubbling to life in the pit of his stomach. TOO BAD THIS IS PRE-RED THREAD RIGHT!!]
I never said anything about not taking action.
[not that he can, considering they don't know who took Nia's life in the first place, but. . .]
I'm not naive. I'm not stupid or spineless or blind enough to believe that doing nothing is the better choice, here.
[inaction is not Akira's style. it never has ben. . . and it never will be. but-- that doesn't mean the idea of taking someone's life, the life of someone who is a person before they are a monster-- isn't. . . well. a little terrifying]
[but perhaps Akechi was the wrong person to even begin to talk to about this]
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[Akechi was absolutely the wrong person to even begin to talk about this. Sorry, Akira.]
Answer this for me. You don't want to kill, so what will you do instead? Reasoning with them is out of the question, of course. A rabid dog won't listen to logic.
["A rabid dog," he says, like they aren't people as well... But, eh. Sometimes you turn into a creature and it be like that.]
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They're more than just rabid creatures. They're human, Akechi. And I'll be damned if I forget about that part. I'll be damned if I let you forget that part, too.
[. . . what would he do, though? congratulations Akechi this single conversation has sent Akira spiraling into a MORAL CRISIS for the rest of the week]
I don't know what I'd do yet. [beg Peach or Plum or Pumpkin for the Metaverse. try to figure out how to restrain the monsters before they kill. continue searching the mansion to discover its secrets, hoping that one reveals the secrets behind the infections] But whatever answer I eventually come to, it'll be something in line with my sense of justice.
[notably, that does leave room for doing the unthinkable, but he isn't going to say that]
And I won't stand idly by and watch while people are hurt. I won't.
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No, I suppose not. A rabid creature wouldn't resort to deceit to escape from death, would it?
[It's unclear whether he thinks this is better or worse, though.]
Say whatever you want to satisfy your own self-righteousness, but the truth of the matter remains. There's only one way to reduce the casualties, and you don't have the guts to do it. Saying you won't stand idly while people are hurt is nothing more than lip service.
[Because, well. Akechi genuinely doesn't think Akira has it in him to pull the trigger. They're very different in that regard, after all. They were always meant to disagree on this point... Which is perhaps why he smiles at the end; more of an upward tilt of his lips than anything born from genuine happiness.]
But don't worry. When the time comes, I won't hesitate.
[He can only ever be himself. Akira is an idiot if he thinks that will change.]
no subject
[. . .]
[Akira turns to face Akechi again, his hardened expression smoothing over, his own lips twitching]
To you, there is always only one way, isn't there?
[. . .]
When the time comes, I won't hesitate, either.
[but for him. . . that means something completely different than how Akechi means it]