middaeg | [open] your ambiguous true face is hidden in the magic hour

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[open] your ambiguous true face is hidden in the magic hour

Who: Momo and you!
When: Throughout Aguril
Where: Around and about...
What: Catch-all feat. Lunasa + Antler Fruit, Forget-Me-Nots, and Darkness and Frost quest things (plus some closed prompts)
Warnings: Potentially raunchy discussion in Lunasa and Antler Fruit prompts, and Violence (tm) in the Darkness and Frost prompt.

[a: don't do the fashion crime if you can't do the fashion time (lunasa)]

[While Momo isn't exactly dressed in a not-extra way when he's out and about during Lunasa, what with the pinstriped dress shirt and useless fashionable suspender aesthetic because why not, the fact that he has modelling as a more permanent side job here now means he has to get involved in Lunasa things one way or another. And as far as he's concerned, it's better to have a little fun with it than just get set up with a bunch of local models. He figures Yuki will only have the patience for a little of it, though the single red string trailing off Momo's finger (coincidentally, it's chosen to tie itself around the finger he wears his repeat ring on, the left middle) somewhere off into the abyss of the city may be a dead giveaway to some people that Momo's oft-mentioned partner isn't directly present.

As such, anyone who comes near the right modelling locations may find themselves being propositioned by more than just the locals, as Momo taps shoulders (or just takes arms in cases he knows someone well enough or they look relaxed enough that he can assume he won't get hit for it) and starts trying to guide people towards the hell of designers and glitter and flashiness.]

Have you tried out a little modelling yet? You'll get some cute clothes out of it, I promise! [Or just. Good useful clothes for if anything fancy happens. He may have to change his tactics with some people...]

--

[b: pursuing the elusive hornyfruit (antler fruit, 18+ characters only)]

[Considering Momo tends to favour trap tactics initially when fighting things out in the Wilde anyway, something that involves having to keep an animal still long enough to pluck fruit off its horns seems pretty ideal. And the pay is good, and the jury is very much out on how long Momo is going to hold out before he makes one or more horny puns. Maybe they should be offering extra hazard pay for that part.

As it stands, though, it's still out in the Wilde and that still means Momo is going to have to pick up interested parties to help him out in the collection process. Out of habit he'll favour adults, in large part because of the nature of the quest, but other than that he's not particularly picky as long as his company has some idea what they're doing. Most of his supplies are concealed under his very covering clothing since he'll be drawing on magic much more here, but on occasion he can be seen tapping at things under his clothes as if to make sure they're still in the right place.

On final approach, behind some trees from which clear sounds of the deers' presence can be heard and one or two of them even start to be visible in a clearing nearby, Momo finally cracks while peering out to check how many there are around.]

Wow, I guess they really are as horny as advertised. [In reference to the giant "branches" of antlers hanging with fruit that are visible even from here, but he's still grinning like he knows he just made the worst joke in the world and isn't at all sorry.]

--

[c: animal crossing cheat codes (forget-me-nots)]

[Another particularly handy aspect of having focused primarily on distraction and protection magic in his early months is that thorny plants aren't a huge concern. He covers up habitually when travelling to the Wilde anyway, because Cwyld is like that, but some of the plants here are remarkably good at getting through gloves and he doesn't really want to learn if these prickly bushes are like that the hard way. So he's gathering the seeds with a layer of pink around his hands - a shield to prevent giving himself dead arm for the duration - and a nostalgic sort of smile on his face, courtesy of the fumes. He's dropping his own seeds into vials similar to those used to collect plant samples with a bit of soil, and while he knows time is of the essence, he'll spare some for anyone else who comes collecting.]

Are you here for seeds? If you've got something to transport them in I can get you some real quick, might as well carry as many as we can.

[He was told about the time limit when he came out, but at worst he can leg it back to the city after he helps.]

--

[d: tattoo responsibly (darkness and frost)]

[With the amount of time Momo is spending in the Wilde and on the outskirts of the city this month, of course he hears the warnings about the screaming and the creatures. And initially he classes it as a general danger, something to be wary of but that he's not necessarily more at risk of than anyone else.

Unfortunately, he is as yet blissfully unaware of the creatures' targets of choice, and he happened to get an enchanted tattoo not at all long after he arrived in this world. And spends a solid chunk of time in Dorchacht for the open spaces.

Initially, it's just that the screams seem to come remarkably close a few of the times he's near the borders of the Outer City or in the Wilde - but in the case of the former he's generally in the company of the Wilders and others helping out beyond the walls. It's not until he ends up having to chase a Shade a little further out from locals that can muddle his scent than is entirely ideal that one of them bursts from the trees, giving off its eerie screaming. On the one hand, it spooks the smaller Shade enough for it to hightail it back into the deeper Wilde for the moment. On the other, it's much bigger and more vicious than what he was just dealing with, and Momo barely gets a shield up before it crashes into the pink dome, trying to stomp through it and screaming all the louder. It's rare to see Momo look legitimately afraid of something, but he definitely does for the first few moments of holding it out of the shield.]

What the fuck...? [The cuss slips out in his absence of care for pretense in this kind of situation, and while the flayed creature's screaming is probably attraction enough for help, he does call out to anyone who might've seen fit to follow him.] Stay back! And if you have any idea what this thing is I could use the update!

[Unless whoever came to assist fills the target criteria for the nuckelavee as well, it's likely to remain very obviously focused on trying to get through that barrier to stomp and/or chew on Momo. Otherwise...well, it's going to turn its attention to the target that doesn't have a shield in front of it.]

--

[e: wildcard]

[[Feel free to hit me up at

reviseleviathan for other plans! Momo will also be doing his usual Out of the City duties besides the ones that involve getting attacked by weird revenge horses. Also feel free to tweak prompts slightly as needed to suit any plans we might've had for certain quests!]]

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[Momo gives a cheery laugh at Styx's observation about how into it he is, because...well, yeah. Back home he doesn't often get the chance to actively dress someone up like this - he's done Yuki's stage makeup (and helped his big sister with hers) often enough to know how to do it and hands out advice on looks pretty often, but besides his partner the hands-on opportunities are a bit rare.

He looks aside at Styx's choices, still seemingly looking for something in the crate with one hand but paying attention to what colours he's laying out. He nods approvingly at the purple, and the green gets an almost knowing grin, like Momo is enjoying a private joke. Which doesn't stay private very long.]

I hope they're not bad, that green is pretty close to my darling's key colour! Though his is more lime green than...acid? I guess you'd call that one. But no matter what people say, you can make hot pink and lime green go together well if you do it right. I think electric purple would be fun to work with for this, though, I haven't used it much before!

[Finally seizing on what he was apparently looking for, he raises something triumphantly - a rather old-timey version of what's probably a makeup palette, more boxy than the slim, portable ones of the modern-day. There's a bit of a shimmer on the wood, and indeed, when Momo opens the lid it reveals several metallic pigments from bright golds through dark and light silvers to rusty copper colours. Some are just metallic, some are metallic and glittery, and some even seem to have what appears more like actual tiny metal-like fragments in them to enhance the look.]

We could throw a little of this into the mix, too! It's good to have a highlight, and something like this breaks up the dark colours a bit without being out of place. Which one do you like?

[he shouldn't be touching, definitely shouldn't, but the strange antiquity of the old palette immediately captures his attention - and when Momo reveals the dazzling shades within there's just no stopping him from reaching out. it was...ok, right? you were supposed to see how the color looked on your skin...uh, he thought. it sounds very close to something that Ymir had told him once, anyway.

even so, as his fingertips trace over the fragmented silver makeup, he thinks maybe he shouldn't make eye contact with Momo just yet. just in case.]

No kidding? [well, gaze avoidance didn't last too long.] You guys must be real killer to watch on stage with colors like that.

[bright colors could only mean an even brighter performance - your presence had to be larger than life to pull off something so arresting. it really makes Styx want to ask when the pair would be putting on a show here next, but that seems really presumptuous...so he just files that away as something he should keep an eye out for when it came to flyers in music shops.]

I mean, honest? Probably use the whole box if you left it up to me.

[he laughs, and this time the sound has no trace of self-deprecation. whether he realizes it or not, Momo's relentless positivity has been slowly wearing down the drummer's hesitance.]

Like this silver one here a lot...kinda reminds me of the one I wanted to use at home - uh, but Vincent said it was too flashy. Might make everything too cold, though? I dunno.

[Momo laughs a little appreciatively at that comment, poking his tongue out between his sharp canines in a mischievous sort of gesture.] I hope you get to see just how killer we can be one of these days! Once my darling has settled in a bit more we'll be looking into performance opportunities.

[As he does back home, Momo's been schmoozing his way around the entertainment industry here a bit, so he's confident they'll have a foothold. It's more just a question of when a good open audience is going to present itself so they can grab people's interest on a more public stage. But that has to wait until Yuki gets used to being half an octopus, sadly.

For now, Momo traces a finger thoughtfully around the edge of the silver.] Well, too flashy isn't an issue here! We could balance out the colour temperature with a warmer shade of purple, but warm purples do have a pretty different look to them if that's a concern for you...since you mentioned liking red earlier, I wondered if something like this could be another option.

[He moves his finger to circle around one of the brighter, more coppery colours, decidedly on the warm side of things. The question at this point is probably whether they want to do a warmer main colour and cold metallic highlight or vice versa.]

[it was almost like he'd read his mind, and Styx can't help but beam at the happy coincidence. although he has his preferred genres, the truth of the matter is that he loves all music - especially when the people playing put their heart and soul into her. he's got no doubt that someone as passionate about something like fashion would give anything less than his all onstage as well.]

Hell yeah, man! If you put up flyers or whatever 'm gonna be there for sure.

[he wants to add that otherwise he might forget about it over a stretch of time, being such an idiot, but...not when it comes to music. he was going to hold onto this future excitement until that performance came to fruition.

with that thought neatly filed away for whenever it would be needed next, the big guy turns his attention to the row of copper hues Momo was indicating. warm tones are admittedly something that - aside from red - he had very little tangential experience with. the 'warmest' Ymir ever got with his own outfits were the gold accents in his jewelry, and even then his choices trended more towards silver and platinum.

it made sense, given that he was practically merged with the velvety nightscape...but Styx would be lying if he said he didn't like these tones. they reminded him of a hot summer's day, the light reflecting off swingsets and fountains in the park. it was nostalgic and exciting all at once, and he can't help but gently press a finger into one of the colors to see it against his own skin.]

You're warm, right? [uh...in tone, he means. that seems correct, from Momo's enthusiasm and his bright eyes.] Think maybe this stuff would match us both better? Uh...I think.

I'll announce it on my radio show for sure! But I can throw some flyers around too, I'm sure, we can't miss a good chance to make our name.

[He spreads his hands a bit dramatically, as if welcoming a familiar kind of hard work. Momo did a lot of the heavy lifting when it came to spreading the word on Re:vale in their early days and making the connections needed to ensure their success, so to him this is just another form of the same thing.

For now, though, he focuses on the makeup. With the stage makeup Styx had described earlier, Momo wouldn't be surprised if this isn't really a regular colour for him, but the fact that he goes along with it anyway gets a bright grin.]

People do tell me so! [Momo rarely actually owns anything positive said about him, even if it's something as simple as being warm.] I think it'd work well for both of us for sure. Especially if you're pretty used to a certain set of tones in your makeup, this one might be a bit of a new spin for you! So you can broaden your palette a bit.

[He cranes over Styx's shoulder to see what Annette is doing - it still looks like she's deliberating over some details, so Momo turns back and picks up a brush kit he pulled from the box earlier.]

I'll do a little test before Annette's done with the clothes, just so we can make sure it works before doing a full look. Can you hold out your arm?

[Momo turns his own arm so the underside is up, indicating what part of it he'd like.]

[he ran a radio show along with being a performer and model? it's nothing unusual for celebrities, not really, yet it still strikes Styx deeply just how much of a true professional this man is. Vincent looked at fame as just another adversary to mow down in his way, an impediment to perfectly expressing the music he wanted to create. his own band would never be well-known in the same way that Momo and his partner were, the drummer understood that, but even so...he's terribly impressed. there was still an awful lot of that mountain left for him to climb, wasn't there?

when the big guy sees Momo trying to look over his shoulder at something, he obligingly bends his knees a little to make the endeavor a bit less maddening. it's an instinct by now, something that he doesn't even think about while doing - especially not when he's busy misinterpreting the word palette. isn't that the sort of food you liked to eat? he could probably stand to narrow his 'palette' down, all things considered...]

Uh-

[well, he knows what 'new spin' means, so the rest is probably fine? and the other man is definitely right in that Styx could probably use a little nudging outside his comfort zone where style is concerned. even as an adult, it's difficult for him not to feel a little nervous when presented with something that might make him stand out...unless it's onstage, of course.

for all that ignorance, he surprisingly knows exactly what Momo's asking for when he decides a color test is in order. he holds out his arm as commended, positioning it to rest on the table so that his companion won't have to lean too much to get at it. watching him start up, he can't help but admit to a little nostalgia.]

...'s been a while since I did anything like this. Not since I joined the band, don't think. Almost feels a little funny to be doing it just for fun, you know?

[but in a good way.]

[Momo works with enough tall people to know how much he should be expecting to suffer trying to do this sort of thing with them, so when Styx leans his arm on the table it does make his life a bit easier. He picks out the bright purple, the black and the copper and twirls a mid-sized brush into his fingers for a moment before starting out with the purple.]

Yeah, it was a little bit like that for me when I started out! I'd never had much to do with makeup before then besides helping big sis do it sometimes, and then suddenly I kept needing it for work. Even though it was a professional thing, it made me want to know how to use it properly outside of that.

[After he's done a decently thick line of the purple so he can lay the colours on top of it without completely obscuring it, he moves to the black to run it down one side, blending the colours very slightly so the black isn't completely neutral.] I mostly do nails outside of work, but my darling's got a finer hand than me for it. I'm best at just basic colours and not anything fancy.

[He wiggles the fingers of his hand that's not on the brush. His red nailpolish is pretty flawlessly done, but it is indeed just a solid colour job and doesn't have any attempts at patterns or glitters or anything similar.] Anyway, how long has it been since you joined your band?

[for someone with a professed lack of talent for fashion, he's watching Momo work pretty damn intently. the idea of just wearing makeup outside of shows is so massively intimidating, even if his companion's reasoning made sense. you wouldn't get better unless you practiced, right? and the man's hand was impressive steady even just drawing straight lines against his skin.]

Still way better than what I can do, dude! Gotta have my buddy do even the solids for me when it starts chipping.

[the brushes are just way too small for his massive fingers...but it makes him appreciate Momo's display of his own nail-based prowess all the more. he'd come into this world with a pretty killer set of black nails himself, if he said so himself, but that had been a month ago at this point; watching it slowly erode with no confidence to fix things had been a strangely painful experience for Styx.]

Think it's been...shit, maybe a little over two years now? Feels like way longer 'nd way shorter than that at the same time. Guess that happens when you're going real hard all the time, haha.

Edited 2020-09-17 15:46 (UTC)

[Taking a few moments aside to make sure the dust of the darker colours is out of the brush before he uses the metallic highlight, Momo gives a bright grin at Styx's mention of doing it himself.]

I can help you paint them if you like! Or help you learn how to do it. I had a bottle of nailpolish on me when I got here, so I managed to get an alchemist here to make a similar recipe and some more colours.

[He usually flips between red or hot pink, but he does have black because it's sometimes good for work. He blows a few last dregs of powder out to one side while he listens to Styx's experience, then gives an understanding, familiar sort of laugh.]

The early years are a real rush like that! Two years was around when Yuki and I started getting swept up into the big leagues. I've always been a pretty average guy, so it was super overwhelming to begin with. These days, it feels more familiar and settled even though the work is still incredibly intense.

[Also because Momo doesn't have a time limit weighing on him anymore, but that's a topic he'd rather not broach as he carefully starts to pick up the metallic copper colour. After ensuring it's not being stained black by some residue he missed, he starts loading the colour up a bit more definitively.]

Seriously? Would really appreciate it...'s kinda dumb, but I've been really missing having some polish.

[it's especially stupid because he's not an attractive man who should be wearing nail polish, even as an underground performer, but he can't help himself. not only does it make him think of the bandmates he's missing so dearly, but it feels...better, to look down and see that dark stain. a little more like himself, for whatever that was worth.

hopefully Momo knew where he could get extra large handles for the brushes.]

It's crazy, right? Vincent doesn't really wanna get big like that so 's probably been even more nuts for you guys. I love it, though...feels like 's what you're supposed to be doing, you know? Even the rough things.

[hmm...that copper really looked nice, didn't it? it had been pretty in the makeup case but now that it was on his skin Styx liked it even more. what a fun surprise!]

I'd love to! I've done nail art with my juniors before, but they never seem to appreciate it that much...

[He sighs in a very faux dramatic and put-upon manner, as if it's Terrible that his juniors don't share his opinions on nailpolish. But it doesn't interrupt his careful laying down of the copper colour, a bit more steadily than the other two to make sure he's getting a substantial enough layer to stand against the black and purple.

There's a very knowing grin at how Styx describes this Vincent person, though.]

I mean, Yuki's like that too, the music matters more than anything else to him and he won't compromise on it. But I always wanted him to get the recognition he deserved for his talent, so now that we're up there it's definitely a really satisfying feeling since we had to drag ourselves up from rock bottom. The rough stuff is just the cost of it all - nothing's perfect, right? But if you love it, it's worth it.

[He finishes with the copper colour, turning his head to flick and blow the powder out of the brush. It's definitely a very high contrast look, since Momo hasn't been at all shy with the metallic and it makes for a very strong highlight to break up and distinguish the two darker colours.]

I dunno, seems kinda funny to not be excited about something like that...probably just shy about saying thanks.

[because how could someone not be impressed by having someone talented giving you their time and expertise? it just doesn't make sense to Styx, so his naively hopeful heart refuses to process a reality where it's true.

when Momo talks about his partner and his music, however, the rest of the conversation unfortunately falls right out the back of the big guy's head. how could he focus on anything else? this man was speaking words directly from his own heart...if he could ever be that eloquent on his own.]

...yeah, 's how it is, isn't it? The guys in my band - the stuff they write's real killer, not like anything you can hear from anybody else. Feels wrong not to let as many people listen as we can get, you know?

[it was his clumsy way of saying thank you, after a fashion. for letting him soar high in the slipstream of their talent and for accepting him as a friend worthy of standing on the same stage. what else could he do but help them achieve the acclaim they deserved?

the thought's a little embarrassing, though, even if part of it remains just a thought, and he can't help running a hand through his hair when Momo turns away for a moment to clean out the brush. halfway through he realizes the massive mistake the thoughtless action is and pulls his arm back with a soft yelp of surprise - having thankfully noticed in time to save their little swatch. small mercies.]

Shit, I'm sorry! Almost ruined all that work you just did.

[Momo grins to himself a bit at Styx's reasoning, because...well. His juniors are certainly reluctant to express some things around him and Yuki since they're the senpai, but that doesn't usually stop them. Up to and including their juniors roasting them for things like pulling out the married couple act in the middle of handling a kidnapping.

Setting the brush down for the moment, he hums an assent and nods along with the sentiment on getting as many people to listen as they could. He'd always wanted Re:vale to be heard by as many people as possible, and it had ultimately just turned into a matter of whether he maintained that across whatever form Re:vale happened to be in. Which he did, ultimately, because he loves it.

About to say something further, there's a pause when he hears that sound from Styx before he turns back, looking a bit concerned. The apology just makes him grin and wave a hand, though.]

It's fine! I mostly wanted to check how it looked, though Annette might find it handy for the details. Don't worry too much about it.

[Though that might be too much to ask, so he distracts from the subject instead.] Anyway, it sounds like you've got a great band together. I'd love to hear your stuff sometime if you had anything on you when you came here, though I guess I was probably just lucky I kept a bunch of songs on my phone for easy listening.

[He laughs and rubs the back of his hair like that might've been a bit Much.]

[he's gonna worry anyway, Momo. but nice try.]

Man, I wish I had some've our stuff on my phone. Be a hell of a lot easier to listen to it when I'm running 'nd stuff.

[if carrying around your group's songs is going overboard then it's news to Styx, who seems to be a little envious of the other man's forethought and technological know-how. don't be ashamed, Momo! you own your passion!!]

I've got a couple of our demo CDs in the bag I had on me when I showed up...uh, but I dunno if there's anything to play them on here.

[now it's his turn to look a little sheepish as he chuckles, somewhat ashamed to have something so low tech as his only offering for what he genuinely believes is a truly one of a kind sound. some band rep he was, huh?]

That was the plan! I'm on the go so much normally that it's the easiest music player for me to carry around...if I'm not playing phone games between jobs instead or something.

[He grins. Momo takes his work seriously, but the minimal downtime he gets between jobs in different venues tends to be perfect for playing phone games. And then missing his console and computer games because phones don't really lend themselves to his favoured genre, FPS games (usually western ones with a ridiculously hard mode that he can put unnecessary amounts of strategy into).]

It is kind of a shame to have them but not be able to play them...there's one or two CDs it'd be nice to just have with me, but not being able to play them would make me pretty sad. [Not that he has one in mind or anything. Of course not.] I guess it's the same trouble I saw someone mention with bringing electric instruments here - there's plenty of us who've used them, but nobody who knows how to build them.

Yeah, shit. Think I got pretty lucky when I was looking around for a drum kit 'nd stuff. Still had to get it done custom, but they already had like, the general idea, you know?

[it had been enough of a struggle banging out the smaller details as it was, even with how familiar he was with the instrument. he couldn't imagine trying to essentially reverse engineer something like an electric.]

Still, not like 'm ever gonna have the cool accessories I did at home...you think they could do that kinda thing with magic, though?

Yeah, this isn't so long ago compared to "modern" times that most acoustic instruments are gonna be a huge issue.

[Since that's been most of his job since he got here. He does modelling on the side and it does make up a decent chunk of his schedule too, but radio is definitely what he considers his main job until he and Yuki get things rolling again.]

I think they could! They've got some pretty impressive things here that shouldn't really be a thing in this kind of time period without magic. I mean, look at the Watches. And the fact that they have radio, and I've seen some close knockoffs of modern materials using alchemy...like my nailpolish, since I had one bottle with me when I came one of the local alchemists managed to replicate it when that kind of enamel paint wouldn't have existed a hundred years ago otherwise.

[although a lot of the nail polish explanation flies right over Styx's thick head he still listens to Momo with earnest intensity, gathering the important details as he goes. it's something that he'd been tentatively thinking was possible, but now with outside (and thus more trustworthy) confirmation - ah, it really was kind of exciting.]

Gotta be honest, really makes me wish I wasn't so shit at magic 'nd stuff...be really killer to get to make that kind of thing from scratch.

[and like. it was wishful thinking, but if the rest of his band ever did find themselves pulled into this world he could prepare their equipment for them. what a lovely thought.]

[That makes Momo laugh and wave a hand, as if he shouldn't be so hard on himself about it.] That's not it! Learning how to craft like that still seems to take real time, even with magic. I've been here for a good six months now and I haven't even touched conjuration, so I definitely couldn't make anything like that...the craftiest I can be is with illusions! And those are mostly based on stuff I've already seen, so it's kinda just copying something but it's not real.

[It's still fun to use, but it's decidedly his oldest magic class that could be used to "create" anything and it's definitely not anything like what it would take to craft something magically.] So don't be hard on yourself about stuff that takes time to click, you know?

[six months...that was a while. Styx feels like he wants to be heartened by that fact, but at the same time...mmph.]

'm really not all that smart, man. Don't think I'll even hit where you are now after a whole year.

[but that was fine too, wasn't it? not everybody was talented in the same ways. chuckling softly, he rubs at the back of his neck without really thinking.]

Guess it's not bad to have something to shoot for though, even if you're never gonna reach it...keeps you busy, yeah?

[Momo would make a "not with that attitude" kind of comment, but Styx kind of makes it for him so he just jumps on the opportunity to add a bit more, clapping his hands together.]

Of course it's better to aim high, even if you're not confident in yourself! If you expect low and aim low, then all you're going to get is something low, right? But shoot for the moon and you'll still land among the stars! Achieving something, even if it's not quite what you held yourself to, is always better than achieving nothing.

[Momo's terrible self-worth means he's had to try to teach himself these lessons more of late, but his juniors have struggled with it as well, so it's easy enough to advise on.]

[Momo's definitely got the right strategy where Styx is concerned - he's so uncertain of his own thoughts and feelings that it only takes the smallest push from someone else to influence his opinions. while usually that's something people have manipulated him for, in cases like this...]

You really think so? Even if it's, uh, you know...real shitty?

[his horrendous attempt at an umbrella sprinkler from last month comes to mind...but so does the memory of all those kids enjoying splashing around in the aftermath thanks to the other man's words. you can practically see him teetering on the edge of positivity in his expression alone.]

[Momo waves a hand as if to say the quality doesn't matter at all.] Everyone starts somewhere! But it's still something and not nothing, and the more you do it the more you'll learn! Some people just take a little bit longer than others, but that's no reason not to keep trying, since not trying at all just makes it certain that no improvement happens.

[He's very much one of those people who throws himself hard at anything he does, even if he doesn't consider himself very good at it. Not being a natural talent has never stopped him from trying, so he basically takes that same attitude with everyone else too.]

Mm.

[he nods, understanding the concept behind things - and even having told other people the same! but it was so difficult to apply that idea to himself when his entire life he's been told the opposite.]

Just kinda feels like...you do bad enough that even the nothing's better than that sometimes, you know? 's scary.

[and if you start at such a low point, and improve as slowly as he does...is it ever really worth it? he just can't let go of that apprehension no matter how optimistically it's been delivered.]

[Momo kind of knows the feeling, though he only gives it away in the slight, knowing quirk of his mouth before he nods understandingly. And then gives Styx a bracing clap on on the shoulder, because he's just a physical kind of person and this almost sounds like grounds for someone needing a hug.]

Yeah, it can be hard to keep pressing on if you feel like you're going to fail, or like you're starting so much lower than others. But even slow progress is progress. You might not notice it as easily yourself, but at the same time, you have to be understanding with yourself. You're not hurting or inconveniencing anyone by taking time to get better at something. So it's okay to give yourself what space you need to improve.

[Things it would've been nice if he'd said to himself six years ago, when he was utterly convinced he had to get good at performing immediately or he'd be ruining Yuki's life. There are still times he doesn't quite feel content with his skills, but he's in a vastly better place now than he was then.]

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