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

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.