maskormenacelogs | (no subject)

WHO: Tina Belcher and you
WHERE: Various places throughout the Porter cities, except for Jeopardy
WHEN: Early January
WHAT: Two more of Tina's closest friends have disappeared, so she's a mixture of Sadsack and Angry and might get into a bit of trouble in the meantime.
WARNINGS: TEENAGE ANGST and being sad over lost friends

1. Maurtia Falls #001

Home is a difficult place to be right now, now that Angus has disappeared. He'd been around the entire time Tina had been, and she's always taken for granted that he's just going to be there. So she's going to alternate between being mopey, doing things like lying on the couch and groaning, and trying to keep busy by stress-cooking and cleaning. At least the household will be clean and well-fed?

2. Mischief - Porter city of your choice

Tina's still hanging around with Team Skull, as much as she tries to disentangle from them and remind herself she's not suited for gang life. Perhaps that will change, though, if this place keeps throwing crap at her. After Iris and Ango's departures, Tina can be found stalking around some of the Porter cities, Skull cap and bandana to obscure her identity, being egged on by a small group of grunts in various bits of teenage mischief- like pushing over trash cans or using rotten produce or soda to make sticky messes.

3. Horse/mischief cleanup - Porter city of your choice

Other times, Tina feels bad about whatever trouble she's causing and tries to overcompensate by taking out her beloved Jake, a placid piebald miniature pony, and visiting the Porter cities. He'll sometimes don a unicorn costume, complete with colorful chalk in his mane. Or else she can be found picking up trash, even if it wasn't her specific fault, with a frenzied energy that's unlike her.

4. Wildcard

Or anywhere else? Hit me up on Plurk at

shurimon or Discord at Yedong#9491 to talk ideas.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

"I think you're doing great," Finn offers before vanishing.

He reappears a second or two later, holding the kids but the collars of their shirts before pushing them forward and folding his arms across his chest again. "Help her."

At least he's impressed with Tina again. Still a sweet kid. But Finn starts making a mental list of things to nag Guzma about, anyway.

The grunts shoot Tina a glare of death; however, knowing they're caught and won't get away this time, they begrudgingly begin helping turn the trash can right side up. Tina can't make eye contact with Finn, though she makes sure every last scrap is picked up, as the grunts step back and loaf a little.

"Yo, T, I knew you were too soft for this," a tall boy grumbles.

"I think you all figured that out a long time ago," she snaps back at them, before muttering aloud, mostly to herself, "So why can't I admit that to myself? Oh, right, because everyone I care about keeps disappearing and I don't know what else to do about it."

"Oh yeah," Finn groans, rolling his eyes. "Because kicking around trash makes you real tough." At least do some graffiti or something. That's actually creative. But he's not at liberty to suggest that.

Not to mention that his expression softens when he looks down at Tina. "Kicking around trash doesn't help anything either... C'mon. Let's go back to Helix. Figure out what to do with such dangerous criminals."

The law? Call their guardians (if they don't have any, call Guzma) and hand out a couple of fines. What Finn's going to do? Lock them in a cell for an hour or so, ask them what they learned if anything, and wave them home with a warning.

All of these kids probably need some help, some other outlets beyond whatever they're doing here, but Tina seems like the easiest to reach first. He'll have to start with her.

"Thanks a lot, T," the other boy grumbles. "The whole point is for us to stay OUT of trouble, moron." The rest of the grunts voice their agreement, and Tina's shoulders slump. She's going to hear it from Guzma to be sure... although, of course, part of this is her own fault for not listening to her own conscience and disentangling from this organization.

"... Yeah, I guess it doesn't," she sighs, before looking around at the grunts. "Come on. It's not the end of the world, and I doubt Guzma's going to punish all of you very hard." To Finn she says, "Lead the way. And I'll take whatever punishments I have coming my way. ... I really should've known better."

"Trust me. She's not the reason you're in trouble." Tina's part of it, sure, but not because she's giving in.

He does tilt his head and starts walking to Helix. They'll follow or he'll make them follow. "Headquarters isn't far. I'll give you all the tour of the cell block. Don't worry about Guzma, though. He'll be fine."

They aren't legally in trouble, so it should be all right.

Then he looks at Tina again. "So... lost someone recently or-...?" Sometimes it doesn't matter if it's recent.

"Yeah she is," one of the grunts grumbles. "She always chickens out." Looking uncomfortable, Tina crosses her arms and looks away. When Finn makes the remark about the cell block, the grunts fall back a little to talk and complain amongst themselves, and she nods in reply to his question.

"A lot of people over the past year," she replies. "It started with my mom, though it's been a while since she disappeared. Every time it happens, I just feel... so angry, and sometimes it gets to the point where I need to let it out. And ever since I fell in with the Skull gang, they've given me an outlet for it, if I want one. It's true that I always chicken out, though. I get into it in the moment, then I feel terrible about it."

Finn grimaces at the other kids before they back off. Even with them back there, he keeps half an eye on them.

But he does kind of give his heart out to Tina. She had her own mother here... Ugh.

"I'm sorry. I can't imagine what that feels like." Literally. Finn sighs. "Letting out anger is good. Maybe what the Skull gang does just isn't what you need, though. What parts about it make you feel bad? The whole... breaking the law thing?"

It's a genuine question.

"It sucks," she replies bluntly. "My family has always been close, and when Mom got here... it was like the sun coming out again. So when she left, it left a mark. I never 100% got over it."

She then nods in reply to his last question.

"Yeah. I was the kind of kid who was a teachers' pet back home. I was the hall monitor, I rarely got into trouble, and I tried to always behave. I'm the oldest sibling, so I felt like I had to set a good example for my brother and sister. But more than that, I just... like being responsible. I like it when my parents and other adults trust me to do the right thing. So being a destructive brat is so unlike me, my conscience bothers me a lot."

Finn really can't relate. Not because he hadn't known his own family but because he hadn't really lost anyone too close to him since arriving here. Poe and Rey had each left for a small amount of time but they came back... He tries to imagine a world where they didn't come back and has a difficult time doing it. Maybe the closest idea he has is of Slip and- Ugh.

He does get needing outlets because of grief, though. "Being rebellious a little isn't always a bad thing. It's all right if you enjoyed some of your time with them, but if it's bothering you so much, you don't have to keep doing it. You just need to find something else. Some other outlets that's... you know, legal..."

Finn's quiet for a beat. "You ever tried kickboxing?"

"Honestly, I'm not sure why I stick with these guys," Tina confesses. "I guess... part of me wants to understand how someone could end up in a gang, just because the idea is so foreign to me. And since it took me... way too long to realize they were a gang, I wanted to make new friends. But you're right, there are better ways to handle my feelings."

Tina doesn't want to admit that part of her still hopes to fix them, too- to convince them that they also are capable of more. Of staying on the right side of the law, of doing more productive things with their lives.

She grins at Finn's suggestion.

"No, but doing something aggressive like that might help," she replies. "I try to stick with focusing on taking care of my horse and playing with dogs... quiet, respectful things. But it doesn't make me feel much better when I'm angry."

Finn does understand why someone would join a gang, even someone like Tina. At the same time, he agrees with wanting to help the ones that want help. Approaching the situation just doesn't feel like his place, though.

"I know a friend who used to teach fighting classes, Rey. She might be willing to take you on. If not, I can help you find something else." Finn used to teach a few people, but Clotho--

"Something physical, something you can focus on and meet new people through. I think that might help you out."

"I would appreciate it," Tina says with a sigh. "Because whatever I'm doing now... well, obviously it's not doing me any good. It's just getting me into trouble, and making me feel worse."

The brief moments of satisfaction are definitely not proving to be worth it in Tina's view. And she's going to have to truly admit to herself that she may have made a mistake in joining up with the Skulls to begin with... but that's going to take time.