"Do you want me to explain my stance on the matter, or are you committed to your indignation?"
It's an honest question. Umemiya's not interested in fighting with anyone who won't have an open mind on this topic. But he's also not ashamed of where he sits in the whole thing, as someone who, yeah, does hunt.
Simon shuts up. For a moment, anyway. He shuts up and he hovers, silent.
"I'm not indignant," he says, finally. His voice is mostly deadpan, but there's an exaggerated bluntness, like he's frustrated--or exasperated. "I'm confused."
And then, quieter: "'s different."
If he was a little bit less upset, he might be able to acknowledge that he is at least kind of indignant, because the line this guy is drawing doesn't make any fucking sense. But being indignant isn't allowed.
Umemiya's ears perk up a little. He looks down at his garden plot, and back at Simon.
"You're not wrong, when you say it's like animals. Here's the thing: we're like animals, too. Out in the wild, it's normal, natural for Pokemon to hunt and forage. You'll see a Froakie stick out its tongue and catch a Butterfree, or a pack of Houndour chasing after a Stantler. If I go out hunting something alone, and I fuck up and get myself killed, my body wouldn't go to waste. Scavenging Mandibuzz would eat my flesh. To make the choice to hunt is to choose to actively participate in this world, rather than trying to hold onto every last scrap of my humanity and make the world conform to me. We're already leaving a big mark on this world, building settlements on what used to be wild land. I want to be thoughtful about trying to hold myself apart from the world I'm in now."
He shakes his head, holding up one of his paws.
"There's a friend I made, early on in my time here. Before he arrived in the Bay, he was a cat. Like, a stray cat, the kind who hunts rats and pigeons in the wild. The first time I went on a hunt, it was to feed him, when he'd just gotten out of the clinic, too weak to get his own 'freshkill', as he put it. Because he had only ever eaten animals, you know? I know we're all bringing the mindset of the world we came from with us. Can't help not to. But it's not the default, here."
But they flow over him, around him, and even through him. He understands what's being said, nominally at the very least. He knows most of the words, and the ones he doesn't--which is actually quite a few--he can navigate well enough through context. X catches Y with its tongue. A pack of G chases after H. Animals eating animals. He's not from the COI, he doesn't understand all the scientific details of the world that they claim to. But he's not stupid. He's not completely clueless.
What he gets out of this explanation is this: the guy he is talking to uses a lot of words. He thinks that he and Simon are invaders, somehow. He 'chooses' to 'actively participate' in 'this world,' which sounds kind of meaningless to Simon but it means a lot to the guy.
And... that whatever Simon thinks--like whatever this guy thinks, and whatever this guy's friend-cat thinks--is wrong, here. That if he doesn't obey this place's rules, that's his choice. But it's the wrong one.
Putting up buildings and living like a human being is wrong, but they still do it.
And he gardens to feed people who want to act like humans, but he doesn't do it himself? That part is a little murkier, but it's all just a lot to take in, a lot to try and understand and follow and process and.... and what? Simon isn't sure what it is he's supposed to do with all this information. The guy didn't tell him that part. So he sits--or rather, floats--in place, staring at Umemiya silently and with no real clear expression on his blank light-and-energy face, a face set agaiy still do it.
And he gardens to feed people who want to act like humans, but he doesn't do it himself? That part is a little murkier, but it's all just a lot to take in, like a sermon. A sermon, he knows what a sermon is, how the Father spoke and he listened, they all listened. He and his Brothers, and then--
And then what? Simon isn't sure what. The guy didn't tell him that part.
So he sits--or rather, floats--obediently in place. And when it's over, he stays there, staring back at Umemiya silently. There's no clear expression on his blank light-and-energy face. Solemn, serious, like he was in fact listening... but passive. Blank.
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timeasmymeasure
no subject
Date: 2026-04-15 04:30 am (UTC)It's an honest question. Umemiya's not interested in fighting with anyone who won't have an open mind on this topic. But he's also not ashamed of where he sits in the whole thing, as someone who, yeah, does hunt.
no subject
Date: 2026-04-15 04:51 am (UTC)"I'm not indignant," he says, finally. His voice is mostly deadpan, but there's an exaggerated bluntness, like he's frustrated--or exasperated. "I'm confused."
And then, quieter: "'s different."
If he was a little bit less upset, he might be able to acknowledge that he is at least kind of indignant, because the line this guy is drawing doesn't make any fucking sense. But being indignant isn't allowed.
no subject
Date: 2026-04-15 05:02 am (UTC)"You're not wrong, when you say it's like animals. Here's the thing: we're like animals, too. Out in the wild, it's normal, natural for Pokemon to hunt and forage. You'll see a Froakie stick out its tongue and catch a Butterfree, or a pack of Houndour chasing after a Stantler. If I go out hunting something alone, and I fuck up and get myself killed, my body wouldn't go to waste. Scavenging Mandibuzz would eat my flesh. To make the choice to hunt is to choose to actively participate in this world, rather than trying to hold onto every last scrap of my humanity and make the world conform to me. We're already leaving a big mark on this world, building settlements on what used to be wild land. I want to be thoughtful about trying to hold myself apart from the world I'm in now."
He shakes his head, holding up one of his paws.
"There's a friend I made, early on in my time here. Before he arrived in the Bay, he was a cat. Like, a stray cat, the kind who hunts rats and pigeons in the wild. The first time I went on a hunt, it was to feed him, when he'd just gotten out of the clinic, too weak to get his own 'freshkill', as he put it. Because he had only ever eaten animals, you know? I know we're all bringing the mindset of the world we came from with us. Can't help not to. But it's not the default, here."
CW cult upbringing
Date: 2026-04-15 09:11 pm (UTC)Uh....
You know what, let's skip that metaphor.
But they flow over him, around him, and even through him. He understands what's being said, nominally at the very least. He knows most of the words, and the ones he doesn't--which is actually quite a few--he can navigate well enough through context. X catches Y with its tongue. A pack of G chases after H. Animals eating animals. He's not from the COI, he doesn't understand all the scientific details of the world that they claim to. But he's not stupid. He's not completely clueless.
What he gets out of this explanation is this: the guy he is talking to uses a lot of words. He thinks that he and Simon are invaders, somehow. He 'chooses' to 'actively participate' in 'this world,' which sounds kind of meaningless to Simon but it means a lot to the guy.
And... that whatever Simon thinks--like whatever this guy thinks, and whatever this guy's friend-cat thinks--is wrong, here. That if he doesn't obey this place's rules, that's his choice. But it's the wrong one.
Putting up buildings and living like a human being is wrong, but they still do it.
And he gardens to feed people who want to act like humans, but he doesn't do it himself? That part is a little murkier, but it's all just a lot to take in, a lot to try and understand and follow and process and.... and what? Simon isn't sure what it is he's supposed to do with all this information. The guy didn't tell him that part. So he sits--or rather, floats--in place, staring at Umemiya silently and with no real clear expression on his blank light-and-energy face, a face set agaiy still do it.
And he gardens to feed people who want to act like humans, but he doesn't do it himself? That part is a little murkier, but it's all just a lot to take in, like a sermon. A sermon, he knows what a sermon is, how the Father spoke and he listened, they all listened. He and his Brothers, and then--
And then what? Simon isn't sure what. The guy didn't tell him that part.
So he sits--or rather, floats--obediently in place. And when it's over, he stays there, staring back at Umemiya silently. There's no clear expression on his blank light-and-energy face. Solemn, serious, like he was in fact listening... but passive. Blank.
no subject
Date: 2026-04-16 01:20 am (UTC)"...dude, are you alright?"
This is much less of a speech, isn't it?