08 | video

[fistofthejoestar]

[although he seems to live and breathe courtesy, Jonathan Joestar does actually find time to relax now and then. he's seated comfortably on the couch when the video feed clicks on, dressed in what presumably passes for casual in his own world. he certainly seems at ease in the getup, anyway.]

It seems that the time for new arrivals has somehow crept up again without my noticing. I hope that you're all settling in well - if there's anything I can do to make things a bit easier, please tell me.

[it may seem odd for a stranger giving a blanket offer like that, but Jonathan seems to be completely and utterly sincere in his desire to help. he knows that the first few weeks can be incredibly overwhelming even for those used to the sort of technology present here.]

The influx has gotten me a bit thoughtful, and I do hope that you'll forgive me for being a bit self-indulgent. You see, at home I studied in archaeology, even if I seem to be doing everything but that here.

[as he pauses to give a quiet chuckle, there's the sound of movement just below the camera's view. without warning an enormous black dog hops up onto the couch next to Jonathan, its sweet (but, alas, quite ugly) face radiating the simple joy of an animal near its master.

said master laughs even more, but still gently nudges the dog back off the furniture with a soft admonishment. as he continues speaking, however, the dogs creeps back up with what it must believe to be fantastic stealth.]

If it isn't much trouble, I'd love to hear about the myths and legends of your world - especially those that began with something real. It's always been fascinating for me to look at the similarities between completely disparate cultures, and it would be quite amazing to see if perhaps there are similarities between entire worlds as well.

I'd be happy to share some tales of my own as well, although I'm afraid they won't be nearly as exciting. My own universe seems to follow the history of this one fairly closely.

[during this little speech the dog, having managed to successfully maintain his position without being shoved off, casually proceeds to walk right onto Jonathan's lap and sling his front paws over his shoulders with complete disregard for his inability to fit on even the monstrous Joestar patriarch.

he rests his head on his master's shoulder with a soft whuff of contentment, and there's really nothing else that Jonathan can do but laugh in defeat and wrap his arms around the dog.]

Alright, you win.

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[helpline]

I'm sure I've got a Gallifreyan bedtime story saved in here that counts for myths and legends...have I told you about Zagreus?

[ because he KNOWS he's told that story to someone, he just can't remember who. ]

[fistofthejoestar]

I'm afraid that wasn't me, although if you'd care to repeat it to a fresh face I'd be quite appreciative.

[helpline]

[ The Doctor pauses, clears his throat, and then recites. ]

Zagreus sits inside your head,
Zagreus lives among the dead,
Zagreus sees you in your bed,
And eats you when you're sleeping.
Zagreus at the end of days,
Zagreus lies all other ways,
Zagreus comes when time's a maze,
And all of history is weeping.

[ another pause. ]

This goes on for about five or so more stanzas, it's a little ridiculous. But hey, nothing better for scaring the kiddies.

[fistofthejoestar]

[Jonathan laughs, thoroughly amused. perhaps that's not the usual reaction to hearing a morbid little rhyme like that, but he's accepted that 'usual' reactions have long since left his capabilities.]

It's good to know that the boogeyman is one of those universal constants. Does he happen to have any basis in reality, or is he simply fear with a name?

[helpline]

I've got a pet theory, that no matter where you're from or how you've grown up, you've got some sort of boogeyman or monster under the bed...and also have had one of those dreams where something under the bed grabs your ankle.

[ don't ask Clara about that, he drove her halfway across the universe to deal with that. ]

But Zagreus...Zagreus is complicated. How much time do we have?

[fistofthejoestar]

[Jonathan's most recurring nightmare has always had his brother on top of the bed, strangling him, but that seems like splitting hairs. and also putting Dio a little too close to some kind of universal monster for anyone's comfort.

instead he laughs, gently patting the mass of dog still laying on him. Hyperion appears to have fallen asleep at this point.]

He doesn't seem to be going anywhere.

[helpline]

[ The Doctor sighs, frowns, pauses, then continues. ]

Time Lord history: Rassilon supposedly destroyed Zagreus around the time he made the Eye of Harmony. Turns out this was spread by the Neverpeople, don't worry about them, in an attempt to get Time Lords to visit the Antiverse, don't worry about that, in order to find Rassilon's casket which was actually a big bomb that would make the regular universe like the Antiverse. The TARDIS helped absorb those particles of anti-time which helped create Zagreus.

[ It's at about this point that the Doctor...decides to fudge a lot of details about the story. Because how that happened? The anti-time particles made the Doctor into Zagreus. Whoops. ]

The anti-time particles almost destroyed the universe. It was only due to a friend of mine that we managed to escape in the first place.

video | id reads "power girl"

[boobwindow]

[ She would gladly share some myths if she could remember her world. Alas poor Krypton!

She's not even going to touch what he's wearing. That's... something. ]

I know of a non-Earth myth, but the details are a bit fuzzy.

[fistofthejoestar]

[he has worse in his closet, Peej. far, far worse.]

I'm happy to hear whatever you happen to recall, if you don't mind. A little mystery simply makes it more exciting.

[boobwindow]

[ Jojo's Bizarre Fashion. ]

There's a story about two gods, Flamebird and Nightwing. They're partners and each other's mates. Every cycle they are reborn and they're supposed to find each other, but it's also said each time they're betrayed by a friend and killed.

[ She pauses. ]

Not the happiest tale.

[fistofthejoestar]

I think that would depend on whether they manage to find each other before they die. But then - well, I suppose most people wouldn't see it that way.

[it's certainly a sad fate to be tied to, but Jonathan has had his fill of those. it's difficult to look at them with anything but hopeful eyes, even in mere stories.]

[boobwindow]

They always do. They're supposed to be passionate and driven, so there's that at least.

[fistofthejoestar]

Then I think it's not really fair to call it a tragedy. Even if it's a few moments, between people who care for each other, that's enough.

video;

[hasitsthorns]

In Japanese lore, there's a world called the Makai - the demon realm - alongside the Reikai and Ningenkai. Those are the 'spirit realm' and 'human realm' respectively. It's kind of like... the concept of Hell, Heaven, and earth to put it in a way that may be more understandable!

Anyway, the Makai is full of lots of monsters. Yokai. Demons. They come in all different kinds from elemental apparitions of fire and ice to animal spirits. [ Now here's where it gets a little more personal for Rose though he doesn't need to know that. ] Some are the same, but different. Wolves, for example! Some wolves are guardians of people but others are dreadful creatures that trick humans and eat them.

There's basically a yokai for everything you can think of, too! A lot are supposedly scary, but there's some good ones in there as well.

[fistofthejoestar]

It sounds an awful lot like humanity to me. Are you certain that it's really apt to compare it to hell?

[he's just being gently playful, easily figured out by the kind smile on his face. Jonathan is especially grateful for any tidbit about Asia in general, his own specialization leaning as far from the region as possible.]

[hasitsthorns]

Well, I can't actually argue with that... but maybe I'm naive and want to think humanity isn't all that bad.

[ She's often been called as such, anyway. ]

[fistofthejoestar]

Oh, certainly not. But it's those occasional shadows that help us appreciate the light all the more.

[it's doubtful that anyone believes more ardently in the human race than Jonathan, but he knows that the potential to reach great heights also means the same for incredible depths. and...it seemed unfair to ascribe devilry to an entire race of people as well, fictional or not.]

[hasitsthorns]

... I suppose that's a good way of looking at it.

[ She agrees, definitely. It was probably her worst experiences that made her want to search for the good all that much more. ]

What about your world? Let's hear some stories from you!

[fistofthejoestar]

Oh, I doubt that anyone would be interested in those. As I said, most of them can be found in library books here.

[it's one of the downsides to living in a world so similar to this one, albeit in the past. ...and also thinking that all the vampire adventures he lived through weren't really that interesting.]

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[valuemeal]

[ Honestly, at first Hyunsoo is kind of here for the dog. Maybe it's because he is part dog now (kind.. of? He's not sure how it works either with his powers, honestly), but he's rather drawn to it, and he keeps watching the dog to a point that it even drowns out what Jonathan is saying. ]

Looks like he's asking for attention. [ .. yeah, he's not even mentioning the myths or legends part at all, making it obvious what he was watching all this time. ]

[fistofthejoestar]

[there's absolutely no sign of ill feelings on Jonathan's face. as he loved his dog dearly he was basically the last person in the world who wouldn't understand being entranced by Hyperion. in fact, he just laughs warmly.]

He's supposed to ask to come up first. [but clearly Jonathan doesn't care enough about that to enforce it as strictly as he should.] But I suppose that I created this monster, so I'm obligated to deal with the consequences.

[valuemeal]

I hope that monster part is an exaggeration. Or.. you know. Metaphorical.

[ Because you just never know in this place, okay? There's so much innocent-looking stuff that's scary as hell and the other way around. For all he knows that's a literal monster, and when it isn't being a cute way oversized dog, it eats flesh for dinner. Something like that. ]

.. Although I guess he could probably kill a smaller person by crushing them if he tried to do that.

[fistofthejoestar]

There's no need to worry; he's far too kind to even consider something like that.

[and even if he wasn't, Jonathan has trained him so well that Hyperion wouldn't so much as move a muscle without the command regardless of what his instincts were spurring him on to do. it was simply what the responsibility of owning a pet dictated - and to be perfectly honest, Jonathan enjoys working with dogs like that.]

The worst you'd have to be afraid of is your legs going numb. He sincerely believes that he's at least half his actual size.

[what a terrible thing to have to deal with, a jumbo lap dog. what's the world coming to.]

[valuemeal]

[ That's actually really cute.. no matter how big that dog is, it's a good dog that just wants to lie on its owner's lap. If Hyunsoo doesn't know all about that. He hardly even realises he's kind of slipped into a fond little smile, and he quickly tries to sort his face back to a more neutral expression a moment later. ]

Uh, I guess that's.. kinda nice.

[ Obviously downplaying it? Of course not. Why would you ever think that. ]

Did you adopt him in this place?

[fistofthejoestar]

He was a gift from my grandson. I'd been visiting him in the shelter for some time, so I suppose the idea was a bit obvious.

[it had been such a wonderful surprise all the same, even if Jonathan had inadvertently given Joseph the idea himself. he hadn't wanted to take on an animal out of fear that he wouldn't be able to provide for it in this world...but that sort of thing never mattered to his grandson. in many ways he admired Joseph's willingness to charge ahead towards what made him happy.]