It was not a secret you could have kept for long from me. I was the one who saw to his wounds after your first encounter. If I met you in that form, there is a possibility I would have brought you unknowingly to harm — he would not forgive himself for such a thing.
（ and not because wei ying understands, with a keen awareness that lives beneath his skin like the slip of a knife, that itachi prefers not to harm others whenever it is an option. the man knows better than to consider his feelings in such a thing. it is because wei ying would bear the weight of nikolai's injuries like his own, if such a thing came to pass and if he had not taken the opportunity to speak to avert it.
his words are a contrast to the young man nikolai may eventually connect him to aboard the silent plunder. his role upon the ship has been that of a meek, subservient creature creeping about in the shadows with little talent in combat — a role jake decided for him, and spoke to before itachi could ever interject. the circus child with skills of petty thievery and acrobatics. now it is something he has been locked into playing and he has done so unflinchingly — but his cover identity would never speak so bluntly or boldly as this. ）
The reason for my reaching out is that it is possible I can help you, if that is something you wish to consider. However, I understand that is a bold statement to posit as a stranger, and wish to stress it is only an offer — one you need not take now or ever.
[ for taking care of wei wuxian. for cleaning up a mess that should have never been. the circle of his damage grows wider with each passing day, and at this rate containment feels more and more like an impossible dream.
he has been woefully distracted aboard the silent plunder, spending his time pilfering expensive wines from the captain's quarters and making friends with the cook so that he might have an unlimited supply of strong coffee at all hours of the night. he hasn't slept for more than an hour at a time for days. every time he sees the darkling prowling the ship, he starts telling jokes to the person nearest to him to temper his desire to put a knife in him and throw him over the railing.
overall, one might say he's seen better days. ]
trust me, i'm very good at saying no. i don't need the encouragement. your bold statement lacks the finer details. i require a more personal touch.
There is no debt I would accept of you. He is alive and has recovered. I have done much worse to him than what you managed, and somehow our acquaintance has survived — it would be hypocritical of me to act otherwise.
the fact that you've done worse doesn't really negate my actions, but it might make one concerned about your general acquaintance. luckily for you, most of my acquaintances are well suited for violence.
i didn't say no. but you can hardly expect a man to make an informed decision without being informed of anything. you're not much for small talk.
you said you could possibly help me. now that we've helpfully established that you can hardly be trusted, i'm dying to hear how. i've armed myself with snacks for this explanation. do you like herring? i'm drinking fantastic wine.
（ he snorts, faint amusement threading through the sound. lucky he's alone in the crow's nest. ）
I'm indifferent to herring.
（ and we aren't even going to touch on the wine. instead — ）
I am shinobi. You may understand the term as 'ninja' also.
I have an inborn energy called 'chakra' that can be utilized to underpin a variety of abilities, often but not always elemental in nature, called 'jutsu', or techniques.
One of my specialties is sealing techniques. These can be done without harm to the recipient. It is not uncommon in my world for individuals to share a body with a being or entity that requires it.
（ and, you know, he hunted a few and participated in the death of more — but he's politely not going to mention that. ）
[ being indifferent to herring, he supposes, should not set an additional strike of distrust against him. but even considering his words with his most innovative and reckless side sends alarm bells ringing through his fatigued head. ]
harm to the recipient is the least of my concerns. pain isn't an issue. what you're proposing sounds like i would become a permanent host to my shadow. i'll have you know i don't like sharing.
[ a beat. ]
i don't wish to bore you with the politics of a foreign nation, but i need to expel the beast. a king can't be a cage to a monster. it's a secret that would ruin me. you might think it's my reputation i care about, but my name has been dragged through the mud so much that i don't care how sullied it gets. i only care what sort of damage that truth could do to my country. she has trouble weathering storms. ravka, i mean. but really, i don't like sharing.
I suppose that depends on your definition of the word 'innocent'.
However, supposing everyone aboard the Ximilia therefore deserves to be injured by something you cannot control — that says nothing of those at risk in the worlds we visit. Surely you are not so foolish as to assume no one is innocent anywhere at all.
What I am proposing may sound permanent to you. It isn't. The point of such a seal is that offers a bulwark until such time as it can be removed. Entities can be extracted in my world as well — however, the only way I know to do it kills the host. To do otherwise would require time and research on my behalf.
rabbits and other furry little creatures that like to cuddle? they also make good soup.
[ after a bit of time — ]
do you know for certain that your seal will be effective against a creature made of shadow? merzost isn't of your world. grisha science is... well, it's difficult to explain and i'm hardly the person to ask. the monster and i were one, once. i wasn't a man anymore. i can't with certainty say where it ends and i begin.
Nothing is certain. You will recall I said it may be possible, I offered no assurances it was a foregone conclusion. What I have is awareness enough of my own abilities, and of your world, to make an educated attempt. Very likely, that attempt will be the first of many.
（ he had been quite ready to wash his hands of this man, finding the irreverence especially grating. hardly ignorant to the fact it is being used as both shield and sword, he simply has little patience for such bandying about.
but now, it draws a flicker of sympathy like infection from a wound. his jaw sets. he may not understand, in a strictly literal sense — but when one lives alongside madness, one comes to be intimately aware of the nature of monsters. ）
I do not mean to approach this cruelly. I am sure it is a difficult thing for you to discuss, much less with one you have yet to meet. Would it ease your mind to have this conversation in person?
nothing gained without a healthy dose of reckless experimentation. if i wasn't the experiment, i would be excited about this. normally, i love attention.
[ what do u mean he's annoying ]
i think i'd rather you put a bullet in my head than have this conversation in person. oh, wait, you're the literal type. a shot to the head would be bracing, but since you've never had the pleasure of speaking with me in person, i at least owe you that. i believe we're on the same ship? i normally know all my crew, but i keep forgetting i'm not the captain, so it's not my business. i don't think i like it. i enjoy being in everyone's business. most people enjoy it, too. having me in their business. do you want wine?
（ he's already exhausted, tbqh. is this nervous prattle a feature, or a bug? ）
I wouldn't use a bullet.
（ this is actually the manifestation of a sense of humour, if you... squint. and like your humour like you like your coffee: so black anish kapoor tries to sue you for it. ）
We are. I am in the crow's nest, if you find yourself of a mind to climb.
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no subject
what did wei wuxian tell you?
no subject
Precious little. He is not a man to whom the spilling of another's secrets gives pleasure.
But I was made aware of your possession.
no subject
so then, are you the other one on the ship that had something inside of you that wanted to kill everyone else? or are there multiple culprits?
no subject
（ and not because wei ying understands, with a keen awareness that lives beneath his skin like the slip of a knife, that itachi prefers not to harm others whenever it is an option. the man knows better than to consider his feelings in such a thing. it is because wei ying would bear the weight of nikolai's injuries like his own, if such a thing came to pass and if he had not taken the opportunity to speak to avert it.
his words are a contrast to the young man nikolai may eventually connect him to aboard the silent plunder. his role upon the ship has been that of a meek, subservient creature creeping about in the shadows with little talent in combat — a role jake decided for him, and spoke to before itachi could ever interject. the circus child with skills of petty thievery and acrobatics. now it is something he has been locked into playing and he has done so unflinchingly — but his cover identity would never speak so bluntly or boldly as this. ）
The reason for my reaching out is that it is possible I can help you, if that is something you wish to consider. However, I understand that is a bold statement to posit as a stranger, and wish to stress it is only an offer — one you need not take now or ever.
no subject
[ for taking care of wei wuxian. for cleaning up a mess that should have never been. the circle of his damage grows wider with each passing day, and at this rate containment feels more and more like an impossible dream.
he has been woefully distracted aboard the silent plunder, spending his time pilfering expensive wines from the captain's quarters and making friends with the cook so that he might have an unlimited supply of strong coffee at all hours of the night. he hasn't slept for more than an hour at a time for days. every time he sees the darkling prowling the ship, he starts telling jokes to the person nearest to him to temper his desire to put a knife in him and throw him over the railing.
overall, one might say he's seen better days. ]
trust me, i'm very good at saying no. i don't need the encouragement.
your bold statement lacks the finer details. i require a more personal touch.
no subject
（ to the last — ）
As you say. I will not raise the matter again.
no subject
i didn't say no. but you can hardly expect a man to make an informed decision without being informed of anything.
you're not much for small talk.
no subject
It was intended as a reflection upon his character rather than my own.
（ local dumpster fire well aware of his deficiencies, thank you. ）
Then I misunderstood your statement.
You may ask me whatever you wish. I will answer.
no subject
[ lack thereof???? ]
you said you could possibly help me. now that we've helpfully established that you can hardly be trusted, i'm dying to hear how.
i've armed myself with snacks for this explanation. do you like herring? i'm drinking fantastic wine.
no subject
I'm indifferent to herring.
（ and we aren't even going to touch on the wine. instead — ）
I am shinobi. You may understand the term as 'ninja' also.
I have an inborn energy called 'chakra' that can be utilized to underpin a variety of abilities, often but not always elemental in nature, called 'jutsu', or techniques.
One of my specialties is sealing techniques. These can be done without harm to the recipient. It is not uncommon in my world for individuals to share a body with a being or entity that requires it.
（ and, you know, he hunted a few and participated in the death of more — but he's politely not going to mention that. ）
no subject
harm to the recipient is the least of my concerns. pain isn't an issue.
what you're proposing sounds like i would become a permanent host to my shadow. i'll have you know i don't like sharing.
[ a beat. ]
i don't wish to bore you with the politics of a foreign nation, but i need to expel the beast. a king can't be a cage to a monster. it's a secret that would ruin me.
you might think it's my reputation i care about, but my name has been dragged through the mud so much that i don't care how sullied it gets. i only care what sort of damage that truth could do to my country.
she has trouble weathering storms. ravka, i mean.
but really, i don't like sharing.
no subject
no subject
are we saying that the ship is full of innocents now?
no subject
However, supposing everyone aboard the Ximilia therefore deserves to be injured by something you cannot control — that says nothing of those at risk in the worlds we visit. Surely you are not so foolish as to assume no one is innocent anywhere at all.
What I am proposing may sound permanent to you. It isn't. The point of such a seal is that offers a bulwark until such time as it can be removed. Entities can be extracted in my world as well — however, the only way I know to do it kills the host. To do otherwise would require time and research on my behalf.
no subject
they also make good soup.
[ after a bit of time — ]
do you know for certain that your seal will be effective against a creature made of shadow? merzost isn't of your world. grisha science is... well, it's difficult to explain and i'm hardly the person to ask.
the monster and i were one, once. i wasn't a man anymore.
i can't with certainty say where it ends and i begin.
no subject
（ on the subject of innocence, and... soup. ）
Nothing is certain. You will recall I said it may be possible, I offered no assurances it was a foregone conclusion. What I have is awareness enough of my own abilities, and of your world, to make an educated attempt. Very likely, that attempt will be the first of many.
（ he had been quite ready to wash his hands of this man, finding the irreverence especially grating. hardly ignorant to the fact it is being used as both shield and sword, he simply has little patience for such bandying about.
but now, it draws a flicker of sympathy like infection from a wound. his jaw sets. he may not understand, in a strictly literal sense — but when one lives alongside madness, one comes to be intimately aware of the nature of monsters. ）
I do not mean to approach this cruelly. I am sure it is a difficult thing for you to discuss, much less with one you have yet to meet. Would it ease your mind to have this conversation in person?
no subject
if i wasn't the experiment, i would be excited about this. normally, i love attention.
[ what do u mean he's annoying ]
i think i'd rather you put a bullet in my head than have this conversation in person.
oh, wait, you're the literal type. a shot to the head would be bracing, but since you've never had the pleasure of speaking with me in person, i at least owe you that. i believe we're on the same ship? i normally know all my crew, but i keep forgetting i'm not the captain, so it's not my business.
i don't think i like it. i enjoy being in everyone's business. most people enjoy it, too. having me in their business.
do you want wine?
no subject
I wouldn't use a bullet.
（ this is actually the manifestation of a sense of humour, if you... squint. and like your humour like you like your coffee: so black anish kapoor tries to sue you for it. ）
We are. I am in the crow's nest, if you find yourself of a mind to climb.
Bring wine if you wish. I will not partake.