★ Seto Kaiba ★ (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
bluescreenwhitedragon) wrote2019-12-30 04:05 pm
bluescreenwhitedragon) wrote2019-12-30 04:05 pmEntry tags:
End of year question meme
'Tis the season.
You know what to do.
You know what to do.
bluescreenwhitedragon) wrote2019-12-30 04:05 pm
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1/2
Sabre has the disadvantage that Intensity has already adopted a cat which was clearly marked as "does not get along with other cats" in her paperwork. Throw in the fact that Kohime has also saved his life and the life of his unitmates, and it's not a bond he is planning on endangering anytime soon. Especially considering how paranoid she is. So at the moment, he has clearly boxed Sabre as part of ZRAEL so be somewhat nice (to keep up unit relations). But also don't get attached.
Also, I'm partial to the idea that Sabre thinks that everyone on FiN is a homicidal lunatic. Is she really wrong though!? And it'd be a real shame if she thought Intensity was the "normal" one. But we'll see where it goes!
P.S. How dare she call him a bleeding heart? How. dare.
BONUS ROUND
Shadow Weaver -> Sabre
Whomst the fuck let Catra and Adora take over the Horde? And how dare Catra rub her nose in it? A Catra that is harder to control and more independent is definitely a Catra that Shadow Weaver wants to avoid at present. Since she doesn't have the power base that she once had to control her.
Which is why she focused more of her attention on Kohime who was having a bad time during the GM game. Easier to manipulate.
But don't worry. She hasn't forgotten her other "more successful" daughter. :) :) :)
----
Okay. Now novella incoming.
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Whew. I have not officially CR-memed since pre-Liar Hell. So WHEW. Here we go.
Boys and girls, Intensity and King is exhibit A on why relationships should not follow the order of: getting married -> banging -> dueling (the hip rival term for admitting feelings). It has certainly made the journey interesting and probably needlessly complicated. But what about these two has not been needlessly complicated?
I'll try to break this down into chunks of development.
The first and foremost being the agreed upon definition of the word "rival" and the effect it has had on Intensity's raging jealousy issues. Intensity knew going into this that he would always be second place to Yugi, and that has been a persistent thorn in his pride which he really didn't have a good way to cope with for a very long time. And in fact, it got worse when Maki fell for King. And then the mysterious fourth love interest entered the picture. It drove Intensity crazy to go into a competition (because he couldn't see it as anything other than a competition) knowing that he was at best 2nd best and at worst --- well Intensity didn't want to think about that. Because he couldn't afford to lose King, that frustration was mostly pushed verbally on Yugi and Maki and via indirect landmines on King because Intensity couldn't talk about the core issue. Which lead to King rivaldumping him after Liar Hell. And Intensity dreading when King would find a reason to give up on him for good.
But after the Betrayal fallout, things began to shift from Intensity just insanely and possessively wanting King to be his to actually wanting King to be alive. And maybe slowing moving the dial to Intensity wants King to be happy(???). Very slowly. If asked, Intensity will just loudly proclaim that he doesn't want King to be a self-sacrificing paladin and leave it at that. But even more importantly, the two of them have found a common language on what they mean to each other without overlap of that relationship with anyone else. King is Intensity's rival. His one and only rival. And rivals push each other to be the best that they can be but also do not coddle each other. They have other people for coddling. And this is very important! Because that is something Intensity thinks he can be for King without fucking up all the other parts of the relationship that he has been fucking up from day 1. And it also alleviates the majority of the jealousy issues because now King can have as big a harem as he wants. As long as none of them are rivals! (And let's face it, Yugi and Maki are not rival material worthy of King.) So while he's still a possessive fucko, maybe he will start being less of a jealous one.
As a small side conversation - Seto falls into a whole other jealousy bucket. Once again - because of facetwin soulmates and him supposedly being a reincarnation or other hocus pocus nonsense. (He doesn't actually know how they are supposed to be related). But also King just accepted Seto from the start while Intensity had this months-long battle of figuring out the relationship between him and King. And yes, right now Intensity has the advantage. But Seto also seems to be a softer version of Intensity (from his very biased opinion) and a yes man/people pleaser. Which makes Intensity paranoid that King could get all the benefits he gets from their current relationship with Seto without all the excess baggage that Intensity brings to the table.
The next big thing is protection and reciprocation expectations. Intensity first extended the olive branch in the Castle Game and View Scream - where he (and FiN) were willing to put their lives on the line for HSS. King reciprocated in the Buddy Bond (despite Intensity's arguments about not being an obligation) that he wanted to protect Intensity. And while Intensity knows King actually feels that way (he said it under Buddy Bond) - it did not manifest in the way Intensity was expecting in Liar Hell. During their confrontation with FurFur and Lilith, King attempted to protect Yugi, Req, and Hurricane. But let Intensity handle himself and the transactions with Lilith. Which showed that he trusted Intensity, but mostly (outside of being upset that he was not informed) let Intensity wander in and out of danger as he pleased. On the other hand, Intensity literally can't help himself from being overprotective of King. When they made up from the rival dumping, Intensity vehemently declared he wouldn't protect King anymore. Which is a promise that didn't even last 24 hours. And also has not held up in any closed room game. Yet when listing units that are off the table, Intensity always has to add the disclaimer that Heart Soldier will not protect them. Which can be hard to sell to himself (and perhaps his unit). Silence's comment during the GM game (the difficulties of balancing multiple priorities and friends) plus Intensity seeing all sides of that mess (Hurricane, Eclipse, and King being tired as fuck) has currently pushed that into not something worth worrying about right now besides trying to keep HSS from internally imploding. And that's why he said what he did to King after GM.
Which indirectly leads into the topic of how King is able to manage Intensity - even if neither of them are probably quite happy about how it works. King allows Intensity to try all other alternatives before he comes to the one that works - which is what King probably would suggest from the start, but knows that Intensity can never get their directly. An important part of this equation is that King doesn't stop Intensity. Intensity has to stop himself. And self-restraint has never been Intensity's strong suit. In fact, canonly it is Mokuba and Blue Eyes that have to intervene on Kaiba's behalf when he's being crazy, and in Imeeji it is usually Man Eater or Angel. Unfortunately the most effective way to stop Intensity from doing something stupid is to put that feeling in direct confrontation with wanting to protect King. Which means in their latest worst bout of it (after GM game), it takes both a plummet off Blue Eyes and attempted strangling of King to calm him down. Neither of which he sees to completion, and both of which he has to be the one to stop himself. Not ideal! Not ideal at all! But with each extreme bad decision, Intensity is learning. So who knows what this bad habit will evolve into.
Other timeline things I need to mention are GM game and the following holidays because both of them are game changers in different ways. GM Game being the biggest game changer because now King is actually not Intensity's first priority. Mokuba is. Because Mokuba is off dying on some side production with no one. And while Imeeji does suck - King also has a wide network of support he can rely on. Also Intensity is very goal focused. He does not think the same priority can be given to people or problems. So all things have currently taken a backseat to solving the Mokuba problem.
But bless King, he came and floored Intensity with a ring as a Christmas gift which he was 100% not expecting. And a video from Mokuba which he was kind enough to warn Intensity to watch on his own. So Intensity is pretty sure King understands this priority shift without having to have an actual conversation about it. Let's face it, they communicate best when they don't have to actually use words. Unless it is the word "rival" or some combination of a competitive/grandstanding "You're mine" and "I'm yours." So Intensity also wants to somehow show King that the feelings were received and are reciprocated. And that he still intends for the road to his future to always have King as his one and only rival. So. Stay tuned for that.
Also reverse CR me.
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Intensity -> B
❏ Head of Public Relations
❏ Voice of reason
❏ Normalcy litmus test
❏ Up-and-coming god wrangler
❏ Secret item keeper
❏ Holder of the fort when off doing stupid irresponsible stuff
❏ Bad news relayer
❏ Person in charge of torching the place if you've been caught by the enemy
❏ Stitch and bitch partner (except without the stitching)
❏ Romance counselor???
❏ That person whose balcony you climb in at 5 in the morning even though their bf is spending the night to whine about how you've been rivaldumped
❏ (Plus enough teasing that it wouldn't be a surprise if a sexual harassment lawsuit appeared on your desk in the morning)
B is so many things and so valuable to Intensity that he would probably be 50% less efficient and 200% crazier without him. Anytime he is at the end of his rope and needs actual good advice to solve a problem, B has always been there for him (in both a personal and professional capacity). And B also never lets him get away with bullshit when he is full of bullshit. All of these things are very important to have in a trusted adviser. And probably things Intensity takes for granted because he's been fortunate enough to have B at his side since basically the beginning (even if he scouted and hounded him to take the position).
Another thing that Intensity takes for granted is B's loyalty and unending faith in him, for lack of a better word. There have certainly been other smart and less off-putting people that B could side with, but he has always remained true to Intensity and I2. And the only way that Intensity could possibly repay B is to give him the simple quiet life that he always wanted. And somehow wrangle/overthrow C to that same place so the two of them can get some fucking rest with their volleyboys. Sheesh. He knows it's easier said than done, but Intensity also doesn't believe in trivialities like "realism" and "limitations" so you can bet that he'll keep trying until he accomplishes this goal. Outside of his brother and King, there is no one else he'd rather see have a happy ending than B. No matter what it takes.
Intensity also realizes that he's not good with down time, and when he's expected to just hang out with B, he can get awkward like the nerdlord he is. But the fact that B accepts his inability to be chill ever and also suffers through all his hairbrained schemes makes him that much more endearing to Intensity. He really likes B. Platonically (even if he jokes with him otherwise).
And since they've been together since the beginning, Intensity has also had the opportunity to watch B flourish into the person that he is now. Sure he is stressed most of the time (who isn't!?). Maybe he doesn't eat enough (also common)! But he would bet 1,000 points (which he doesn't have) that if he met Mukuro again today, he'd be much better equipped to handle him and his smarmy ass. He doesn't let people push him around anymore. He doesn't allow people to drag him down (unless it's someone he cares for and then that's a different problem). And he can sass back just as good as he gets. Sometimes even better!
So, good on you, B. His potential has already wildly exceeded Intensity's expectations (and Intensity knew in the beginning he was the best of the best). And there ain't no stopping the two of them now. Not until they cross that fucking finish line.
Intensity -> Shine
Thanks for keeping him properly caffeinated everyday (and probably politely not saying anything about his shitty shitty sleep schedule).
Thanks for lightening the mood with your drunk (or sober) mom antics about shit movies and Intensity's questionable taste in everything.
And no thanks for trying to pawn Kharg off to him in the divorce.
Intensity and Shine have a very interesting and unique dynamic in that they have an implicit trust of each other without having to go too deep into their feelings or even reasonings. They rely a lot on shared goals and logic, while using bickering and bantering as a way to smooth out the tension. And while they live together and probably get along (relatively) fine, they also don't pry too much into each other's lives besides older brother solidarity and Shine making sure Intensity keeps the kiss kiss love love away from the "children".
In the back of his mind, Intensity is always lowkey worried about what would happen if Shine were to transfer/graduate/leave. It really would be a huge blow to Intensity because while every FiN is very capable, he really does see the two of them as the sheep herders in general. And he feels like FiN would lose a major pillar of emotional support if Shine were not around. Please don't leave any emotional competency up to Intensity. He will just fuck it up majorly. And he can't think of a good replacement in the current batch of misfit toys. That's the curse of being normal and somewhat well-adjusted, Shine.
One thing that Intensity has been mulling over since the last game is Shine's comment that Intensity perhaps had too many units he wanted to protect. Which Intensity has been much more thoughtful of since they have someone from Persona on their unit now - which means a ton of connections. He definitely does not want FiN to ever go the way of the other units who tear themselves apart in the closed room games. So he is rethinking what choices he would make if resources and options were incredibly limited.
Also, he will forever be grateful for Shine's acceptance and quiet agreement about what happened during the Capitalism game (where they bussed pep! hard to save Silence). Sometimes choices are made that have to be made. And you don't have to dwell on them (or blessedly even talk about them) in order to move on with your life.
Keep shining on, you only sane diamond amidst the crazies.
Reverse CR me.
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GAWD.
Seto arriving was just at a bad time and in a bad way that really grated on Intensity more than it normally should have.
Reason #1 - Obviously brought in as a guest to fuck with him and King. Thanks producers for not being subtle about that at all! And also with all of his memories, so he and King could be buddy buddy. Fuck that, too! All Intensity wanted to do is run over his facetwin a little bit with a golf cart because he had a bad day. But was he allowed to? NoOoOoOoO! Because King jumped in the way to protect him, which to Intensity was beyond infuriating for someone that had been around for probably less than 8 hours. Even if Intensity got to flaunt his relationship with King right in Seto's face, it still leaves a sour taste in his mouth that King and Seto's bond started out that strong. (Considering how hard and how many fuck-ups Intensity has had to work through himself with King.)
Reason #2 - Thanks for ruining his name for him! He already knew he had lost part of it forever because of the trial. But after Mokuba's arrival and name revelation, he was wondering what he should do with his first name - Seto. Since it seems he could remember that. But having a facetwin arrive immediately with that name was just--- too awful. So Intensity has sworn off his true name forever except he lets Mokuba call him Seto in private (because he really existentially crushed his poor younger brother when he asked him not to).
Reason #3 - Seto thinks King going to the afterlife is a good thing. Thanks. Intensity hates it on principle.
Due to Intensity being 95% ego and 5% self-loathing, there was little chance he was going to like his double from the start. Especially since Intensity is supposed to be the soft one - being from the future or the reincarnation or whatnot. So the timing of Seto's arrival just exasperated the issue. And really Intensity is hoping for good riddance to bad rubbish. AND STAY GONE.
Sorry that he is just an unreasonable bratty brat.
Reverse me!
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As for the elephant in the room -- for Intensity, it is not hard to see and even understand Eclipse's viewpoint that he'd rather not self-sacrifice in games, and that people who are kind-hearted can overpromise and not deliver. That is something that Intensity has struggled with himself while in Imeeji. And the main divider he has when trying to understand and work with the softer or good-er units. It just does not compute with him on any level. Which is why he passed on Silence's explanation to Eclipse because he thought it might help. It has at least provided a different angle on the issue that Intensity himself had not previously considered.
Unlike Intensity, though, he gets the vague impression that Eclipse still wants to believe in those things. And when someones says something, he wants to trust them. Which is like - oh boy. That is only going to lead you down the path of hurt, Eclipse. Trust no one. Always depend on yourself. And never show vulnerability. These are lifestyle decisions that Intensity has chosen to live by due to his unfortunate upbringing and because of the multiple loss streak suffered by FiN until they themselves started playing selfishly. (Or we can attribute that to Silence. Either way...)
What Intensity doesn't know how to help Eclipse with is resolve the tension between him and Heart Soldier Senshi. Intensity's method of choice is "if you want something done right, do it yourself", which is why he tries to take the leadership role for Future is Now. Not likely that is going to happen in Heart Soldier. And let's face it, FiN humors Intensity GREATLY and also their worldviews all fortunately pretty much align. So it's going to have to be some sort of compromise between Eclipse's viewpoint and Hurricane's if things are going to get sorted out.
Intensity likened the problem with Heart Soldier as a pendulum that has swung too far before and is now extreme on the other side. Hopefully (except Intensity doesn't believe in hope), middle ground can be found. If not with Hurricane, then with other members of HSS who Eclipse does respect and care for. Some manipulation and jury rigging may be necessary though. Good luck with that Eclipse. You're going to need it.
Just as a note about age, Intensity decided at age 10 that he was an adult. So he definitely never thinks "oh Eclipse is too young for x and y" or "Eclipse should be protected because he is a kid." If Eclipse wants to be an adult, he can be an adult. And nobody can say otherwise! But also Intensity will treat him like an adult which --- might not exactly be ideal since he is very demanding and has little compassion/empathy for things like vulnerability, learning from mistakes, regret, etc. But it seems to have worked out so far, so Intensity is not going to change the way he treats Eclipse anytime soon.
In short, if Eclipse is restless, Intensity will always be around to hand out busy work. And if needs perspective on something, Intensity will give his unfiltered and candid (and probably ruthless) opinion. Because he does want Eclipse to succeed, but he's also not going to coddle him.
Reverse CR me?
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Intensity -> D.Va
So overall, their CR has not changed much from the last check-in besides continuing to be more on the same trajectory.
D.Va is fun and competitive and very earnest, which turns out is very endearing. She also doesn't take no for an answer, which is also particularly endearing to Intensity. So he humors/gets owned by her and it usually doesn't sting his pride too much, because he can always get her back in some fashion. And the cycle begins anew. And it's peppered with genuinely thoughtful things like a sandwich to the face, an espresso machine, and doing Lives together because the both of them are dirt poor.
Though over the past weeks, Intensity has noticed one other thing about D.Va that he hadn't taken into account before. He always knew she was charismatic, but now he knows she's very articulate and has a silver tongue - as he's watched her interact with more people other than his grumpy self. No wonder she was able to snag a demon girlfriend so easily. It's kind of put a new spin on how he views her as previously he assumed her to have no filter from though to spoken word. But in fact, she does! And he's been a little extra cautious to not fall for those words so easily as he's trying to size up her actions (because he's a paranoid fucko).
But her intentions and motivations seem to be on par with what he always thought, so business as usual really.
Which brings us to one advancement - the proposal and trial acceptance of the two of them being friends with benefits. He likes D.Va. Definitely thinks she's hot. And definitely thinks they could have fun together. But he and she are also very very very high maintenance people. And he's not quite sure if he can juggle even a FWB on top of his Man Eater, King, Maki trinity. Relationships are hard work. Doubly hard for Intensity to ensure he doesn't fuck them up. Triply hard since he's never managed a FWB without catching pesky feelings. And D.Va seems a little volatile and easily hurt by Intensity being... well the ass that he is. So he's willing to give it a go. But he's also looking to see if he can handle it long term or not. And will drop it immediately if it seems to negatively impact their relationship. Because frankly - her trust and tie to a host are more important to him. And he will do his damnest not to jeopardize either.
Which brings us to the snaffu - Kohime. Intensity is insanely protective of Kohime as he relates to her a little too well and because she saved the lives of him/his unit. She also keeps FiN off the BARiTONES chopping block. She is very important to him, and one of the few people who has even more trust issues than Intensity. So the incident with bloodless D.Va showing up on his doorstep with an aggravated Kohime has been in the forefront of his mind. As has a lot of their arguments. He knows D.Va is careless and that Kohime assumes the worst, so it's definitely a landmine that he wants to avoid at all costs. And if holding off getting physically entangled with D.Va will avoid it - he's definitely going to go that route.
Now, how to ask Kohime if that bothers her when the both of them don't talk about friends and feelings is a problem that Intensity will have to wrangle on his own.
In the meantime, Intensity will continue to enjoy his interactions with D.Va. He'll be eye-rolly and judging of some of her more ridiculous choices (because he is Intensity) and positively thrilled with some of her others depending on the outcomes. I mean, one true sign of Intensity's affection is that he makes you shit for free, and Intensity rarely charges for her commissions and repairs. And it doesn't look like that will change anytime soon.
Intensity -> Yugi
Yugi is still the biggest fushigi mystery to Intensity.
Just ??? all around.
Since the last CR-meme, they've only had two major interactions.
One was Liar Hell, where the friendship squad tried to save the angel with very disastrous results, resulting in Intensity offering to pay the toll when Lilith finally showed up at the end. From previous interactions, he knew that Yugi was slowly bleeding out from his corruptions and yet he still decided he wanted to proceed with the mission. Had amnesia and wanted to proceed with the mission. Saw Nemesis's Gates of Babylon come flying back in her face, and still wanted to attack Furfur. Yugi just doesn't seem to be able to make good decisions in the heat of the moment. And thus Intensity firmly labeled him as a liability.
And then came Betrayal - where their interaction consisted of a bloody Yugi sitting in the foyer with a chainsaw ranting about - well, it really wasn't important. Because King's reaction to Yugi later and the fact that King went home with Intensity showed that something had gone down. Though Intensity doesn't know what. It just was Castle game level of bad since that is the only time Yugi and King have not gone back together in his memory.
Later, when Intensity got a call from Cobalt that Yugi wasn't in the dorm and they needed Blue Eyes to help search for him so he wouldn't go grey --- Intensity was just... internal sigh. It seemed that the only thing Yugi knew how to do is run from his problems.
And Intensity's only solution was to keep a polite distance - neither supporting or attacking Yugi because that is still an quick play card to get King upset with him. And he's not about to do that unless it's over something he deems important.
So for a long while, Intensity has not only been insanely jealous of Yugi. But he also has thought of him as a coward.
But as his own insecurities with King finally get settled, Intensity has taken a more neutral stance on Yugi. Kind of like that in-law that you have to put up with. He's still firmly convinced that Yugi is ranked #1 to King, but now that he has accepted that expectation is not really part of a rival package, he's more okay with it. And Yugi does seem to be treating Intensity in the same way - offering to help look for Hurricane and Nemesis and also offering to revive Duality.
So time is slowly healing this wound and considering Imeeji never stops or sleeps, who knows what's going to happen to their relationship in the future.
Intensity certainly can't predict it outside of the fact that he has had to get use to the idea that in order for King to remain in his life, Yugi also has to be somewhat of a permanent fixture. So is apathy an improvement? Who knows.
Re: Intensity -> Yugi
Intensity -> Mokuba
This entire time, Intensity had been operating under the incorrect assumption that while Hell controlled their world, Mokuba was blissfully unaware back home. Or at least worried about his older brother, but Intensity was the only one who was stuck in Hell and in danger. Only to have it revealed that not only had Mokuba been in Hell for months, but he had died enough times to obtain three corruptions, and was currently on a show where he could be killed at anytime. Alone. And completely unaware of his brother's presence.
Cool.
Cool cool cool.
Intensity's relationship with Mokuba can only be described as codependent - even with only 5 memories. He is 100% devoted to the safety of his younger brother (not happiness, this is an important distinction. Because Intensity literally has never understood what would make his brother happy - even when Mokuba tells it to his face.) So now that he knows his brother is in danger, all efforts are going to be redirected toward securing his immediate safety. And now everyone around him has become immediately expendable. Sorry, other idols. This is his most important person.
Now if we remove all that awful - having Mokuba around was good for Intensity. Because his love for Mokuba is one that he is proud of and can be expressed freely. And he knows Mokuba is a capable 13 year old and brave and strong and all of those good things. He loves Intensity just as much as Intensity loves him. And they have always definitely functioned better as a team than as individuals (except for Death-T which Intensity thankfully doesn't know yet how that went down).
But you can't have the Kaiba brothers interact without one instance of Intensity completely and (un)intentionally stepping all over his brother's feelings. This time it came in the form of Intensity denying his true name - Seto Kaiba. Seto - because that damned priest also had the same name. And Kaiba - because that name was lost forever because of the Trial. And it broke Mokuba's poor little heart to have to call his brother Intensity. But he did it. Because Mokuba also can't deny his brother anything. (Eventually Intensity agreed to be called Seto in private - but still. Kaiba brothers vs. communication is always bad).
Some balance has been restored to the universe because as a result of the guest stars - Intensity and Mokuba now have their card lockets back, Intensity got an intense crash course in his childhood and Duelist Kingdom, and Intensity knows what happened after his last attempt to get to King. So in one day, Intensity has gained at least 33% of who he was through his younger brother. Which he doesn't have to hide anymore because the producers already fucking know about him. So intentionally or not, having Mokuba around automatically got Intensity closer to canon Kaiba than anything else previously. And now he has the memories of taking down his stepfather after being his pawn for 6 years, so---
Hell better watch out. Because now Intensity is more determined than ever to claim it. There is literally nothing back at home worth going back for. It's all here.
Reverse CR me.
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Intensity -> Shrike
With the Nemesis and Hurricane broadcast, Shrike also proved that she is dependable under very stressful situations. Herding people is a clusterfuck and Intensity was about ready to explode near the end. And really, Intensity's only goal was to get healers, HSS, and avante to the site ASAP. Shrike took care of the avante portion masterfully and without adding additional stress, so bless her. She also checked in on him afterwards which was actually pretty sweet (even if Intensity was not personally appreciative of it because he's a strong independent adult or some other such nonsense).
As a completely random fact, Intensity is also appreciative of Shrike's tall-ness and was very glad for the masquerade dance. While not!dating three people that come up to his elbow is definitely a showing of his Type (tm), it's also nice to not have to strain your neck while dancing, conversing, and other mundane activities. Though looking down at people is always a good time. Please bench press all of your SOs for the fun of it, please and thank you.
P.S. He doesn't know that Shrike and Griffin are dating, but if she ever needs fun gadgets to add to his arm, Intensity has got her covered.
Intensity -> Paloma
Re: Intensity -> Paloma
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It kind of amazes Intensity that he and Cobalt can be on such good terms because they seem to fall on pretty opposite ends of the moral spectrum, and their coping mechanisms are as different as different can get. What do you mean anger isn't your go-to for everything!??? Also Intensity v. soft people is a struggle. But SOMEHOW they have managed this friendship where they can talk to each other and even get advice from each other, and yet not understand how the other functions at all basically. To Intensity, Cobalt is a mystical Rubix cube of traits that he associates with "good" that somehow magically comes together when they need to without the usual drawbacks of being a "good" person - denial, righteousness, naivety, etc.
This friendship is also probably bolstered by the fact that there are really no expectations to the friendship outside of they are working towards a common goal. Intensity does not protect Cobalt in games, and he expects the same of Cobalt. And while they frequently touch base and try to course correct after a bad time, it's not right after every bad game so that also gives them the time and space to work through things before they approach each other.
Dreamwalking into Cobalt's subconscious was also pretty enlightening for Intensity and showed him a deeper layer to Cobalt that he always assumed existed, but now has actual visual confirmation. It also helped him understand him a little better - for better or for worse. Cobalt is haunted by his past and the lives he couldn't save. And this has carried over to Imeeji with some pretty rough symbolism - having to constantly rebury the corpses of those deaths he hasn't properly dealt with. Corpses that seems to encompass friend and foe alike.
And it seems the person who has caused Cobalt the most distress personally (Yasuragi) is also one of the corpses Cobalt has to bury time and time again. Because (from Intensity's skewed viewpoint anyway) he doesn't have a good way for him to metaphorically stay dead and buried where he belongs. Intensity assumes this is because Cobalt is trying to do what he thinks the right thing is (forgiveness) but that might not necessarily be what is right for Cobalt. Which Intensity doesn't know have the first idea of how to unpack (being the King of Denial himself) or help Cobalt deal with. Maybe he should have just gotten rid of the body! Would have that solved anything? Who knows.
One other notable thing about that dream is Intensity also got a pretty good snapshot of what Cobalt thinks of him (thanks Cobalt mom), and he's not quite sure how he should feel about it. On one hand, that kind of rose-colored view is good for Intensity's PR. And it makes him a trustworthy person for information which is a good thing. On the other hand, Intensity does not and will never seem himself as a "good" person. He is a very ends-justify-the-means type of guy. He just hasn't had a compelling reason to throw anyone under the bus yet. And he will! Without hesitation. So he's a bit concerned that he's setting up Cobalt's expectations for a fall.
And really, Cobalt should know better - considering he saw the memory where Intensity was hosting actual death games back at home.
tl;dr Somehow people from opposite backgrounds manage to form a friendship. And perhaps they do not know how to relate to each other, but they are doing their besto. Future predicts either Intensity pulling some sort of betrayal or Cobalt having a breakdown. Which will happen first? (Maybe neither.) Stay tuned!!!
Also reverse CR me.
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They have seen and been through a lot of shit together, and they have unequivocally had each other's backs the whole time so you'd have to pry these two apart with a crowbar to get any sort of distance.
First and foremost, Intensity is insanely proud of how Angel has developed as a person. It's hard to imagine the proud, lost-bet-avenging not!daughter was once a very meek and confused girl wondering if she should break her own arm in that very first trauma game. And also being a little shit to God - A+. Please keep doing more of that.
They've really stabilized as equals. And it's pretty amazing how open and honest Intensity is with Angel. The only other two people who have reached that level of frankness are Man Eater and Mokuba. And even then there is more of an ease with Angel since he avoids too many feelings with Man Eater and he still feels guardian responsibilities toward Mokuba. So he's not ashamed to tell Angel that he's lost a bet - even if it hurts his pride. He's really more interested in siccing her kindness terrorism on the two winners (because let's face it Paloma and Izanagi will enjoy it).
He also feels very fortunate (and that is not a feeling Intensity feels often) that he got to meet Walnut and Primrose during the GM game. And had a good talk with Slot, too, in the following mistletoe game. He's really only seen them in her crazy wacky adventure memories. But seeing her try to confront head-on her feelings about Walnut and also having Primrose come in and make sure Angel's "new" court was up to snuff just gives him the feeling that --- well, everything is going to work out okay for her. Once they conquer Hell and she gets to take her Court back, she is well equipped to handle the challenges that life throws at her. Also a rare feeling - that something is going to work out okay.
There is a little bit of mixed feelings (that someone with Intensity's emotional competence can not begin to identify) about her taking on her original name Dusk and settling into her role as Ruler. Suddenly Angel is more than just a member of FiN, and there is a bit of nostalgia (for lack of a better word) that things will never be as simple as they were back in the original Imeeji days. That things are only going to grow more complex over time. Intensity doesn't dwell on these feelings too much because he is very forward looking. But he also wants to make sure that he doesn't lose one of his more formative bonds in the process of moving forward with what he has to do to get ahead of the game.
Reverse CR me!
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Intensity -> Yvette
I don't know how canon familiar you are with ygo, but Intensity has one very faithful employee who does nothing but humor his complete and utter nonsense, probably makes sure the company doesn't fall apart, and also is on point and looking sharp whenever someone needs to shout "Duel Start" and declare a winner. That, my friends, is the thankless job that somehow Yvette has managed to land herself into.
Intensity trusts her a lot - obviously almost on par with B or she wouldn't be in the I2 inner circle. He's just a little more careful with the information because she's on BARiTONES - ye old time team of auditions. So it's not like he doesn't trust her. It's just BARiTONES. (And he likes BARiTONES. A lot a lot.) And of the inner circle, she's probably the best equipped to navigate that hornet nest of shady dealings and double layered talks.
Also - a very important characteristic of all the people truly under Intensity's employ is they must be able to outsmart him or outmatch him in some capacity. And Yvette can talk circles around Intensity. Possibly also walk circles around Intensity. And is a good barometer for - am I doing something crazy??? She also has her own side pokers in the fire - going around and finding out what the auditions are up to, coded communication technique design - which makes her invaluable. And best (and also probably the most worrisome of all) she's not afraid to mindwipe herself to protect what they know from the auditions. That's the high bar of pro-activism that we need around here. Well done!
There is the brief question of what Yvette's end game is since Intensity knows what's B is. This mostly came to light when Mr. Emet Selcchi himself knocked on Intensity's door and asked what I2 was all about. Apparently B and Yvette's politically correct PR answer was to be informed so they could act appropriately - which Emet Selch found a bit lackluster. Intensity told him his "take over Hell" plans but that did get him thinking that he really doesn't know what Yvette wants out of this whole deal. If he did, he'd probably be more thoughtful of it. But then GM game happened and Intensity was occupied with other things.
On a more personal level, Yvette is just the right amount of professionalism and snark that Intensity enjoys working with. He really appreciates B and Yvette's ability to be no nonsense about things. But he also enjoys the little helpings of salt they also add to the conversation. What's work without a little water cooler gossip?
A+. Would send a glowing recommendation should she need employment after this gig.
Intensity -> Q
Re: Intensity -> Q
Canon vs Imeeji - Yvette
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Buckle in. Cuz we haven't done this since Liar Hell.
Man☆Eater is probably the only person that Intensity will seek out when he is having a rough time. Sure, if someone shows up, he will not (necessarily) turn them away. And if someone is conveniently around he may have a feelings meltdown (unintentionally) around them, but Man☆Eater is definitely the only person that he proactively contacts when he knows a feeling implosion is imminent. Just looking at Man☆Eater's inbox and seeing Intensity multiple meltdowns it's like --- ah. Yes. that is definitely a thing. Sorry for blowing up your phone, Man☆Eater.
Like Man☆Eater, Intensity also does not believe that all relationships are created equal. Especially in Imeeji where things have to be prioritized. So on a personal level, he has always struggled with attempting to rank his own relationships. Angel and Mokuba definitely top the list - which should surprise no one. But he was having a hard time dealing with the Man☆Eater-King-Maki trifecta. And for King and Maki, Intensity was getting very very jealous of their relationships and feeling like he was failing some unspoken expectations that he just didn't understand. And he was just waiting to fail a hidden test from Man☆Eater as well.
When Man☆Eater found out about that in Liar Hell, he very bluntly told Intensity he was stupid, walled him, and Intensity has never doubted him again. Because Man☆Eater doesn't want for relationships and he doesn't say nice things for the sake of saying nice things - so when he told Intensity he didn't have expectations, Intensity believed him. Man☆Eater has no reason to lie there. And that sealed the deal for Intensity trusting Man☆Eater (in addition to attempting to go to the jail to come for him in Liar Hell). Which is why when things went south on the mission, it was Man☆Eater that got the text. First, because he had context. And second, he knew he would tell the people he should tell. And from what he learned later - Man☆Eater told B and Maki, which is what he wanted him to do. Good job for understanding the cryptic wants of your communication-challenged boyfriend.
That still left the issues revolving around Man☆Eater-King-Maki, which was causing a lot of tension until Intensity and King finally pigeon-holed what they had going as rivals - someone who brings out your best. But if King was a rival, than that immediately slotted Man☆Eater as family - someone who accepts you at your worst. So once Intensity was able to apply labels to things, he soon thereafter dubbed Man☆Eater family to his face. Which seemed to get a favorable response. So that is how Intensity handles things now. Man☆Eater - family. King - rival. Maki - dating. There. Done. No need to stress about it anymore. Surely he may to have to pick between them in a game, but that is a problem for future!Intensity that current!Intensity doesn't have time to deal with right now.
The next big influential event was the second round of the Betrayal (because of course it was). How Man☆Eater acted under the influence really stood out to Intensity (even though Intensity still really doesn't believe in the ghost hocus pocus bullshit). Man☆Eater approached it as - I will kill the people I love. He already knew who those people were and he specifically sought them out - as evident by waiting for Intensity in the foyer. It was an expression of his feelings. And even punch drunk on House ghosts (and due to dice rolls), he still didn't kill Angel. Because WHEW then things would have had a different ending. When compared to Maki, she was using the ghosts as her own method of self-discovering what love was and murdered a very important person in front of Intensity. And then she went through the guilty, regretful phase similar to what happened during the Last Supper. Whereas on the other hand, with Man☆Eater, it felt like progress of openly admitting his feelings even if it ended in a murderdate. Not exactly unexpected considering the two of them. And all things considered, very mutual and the easiest way for these two to express their feelings. And it created a nice circle of what happened when tied back to the first round of the House - which was extremely formative to the two of them.
Ever since then, things between them have been - dare we say comfortable? With more affection and PDA in public and Intensity openly admitting that Man☆Eater is his.
Regarding Man☆Eater himself -- being the big hypocrite he is, Intensity has become increasingly more concerned about Man☆Eater's isolationism. It started when Little☆Red left and watching how unhinged Man☆Eater was after that. It spiked a little during ViewScream which prompted Intensity to invite Man☆Eater and humiliate C in front of him (it was for a good cause because he really likes C). And has come to play in other recent events - (1) being when he lost an eye in GM game and the rest of ☆ZRAEL was no where to be seen and (2) after GM game, when Man☆Eater offhandedly admitted that ☆ZRAEL wasn't considering his feelings regarding Intensity being in the dorm. Obviously ☆ZRAEL is not what is used to be, and Man☆Eater is head of the old guard. That is glaringly obvious by him being worried about G☆d coming back while the rest of the unit was still (rightfully) mad. And Intensity is concerned that maybe Man☆Eater is not getting what he is providing other people. Man☆Eater told him to shut up when he pointed it out, so he probably won't bring it up again. But it's still at the back of his mind. Which brings us to:
Intensity's solution: Man☆Eater needs a rival to cheer him up. That's what he is missing! Which is why he'll waste numerous points on goading Mars into a lap dance for Man☆Eater during maid cafe. Looks like that whole - never been jealous thing paid off. Because even though Intensity has never been good at relationships, he has also never questioned whether Man☆Eater would get tired of him someday. It just has never occurred to him.
There have been other developments - like older brother solidarity since Man☆Eater has met Mokuba and Intensity met Rizumu in a dream. And Man☆Eater also explaining his feelings regarding Big Blue and that he left her body in a ditch somewhere. Which seems reasonable - by Intensity standards.
But tl;dr Intensity is very comfortable around Man☆Eater and is very secure in their current family status. No complaints on his end.
Reverse CR me.
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The only exception to this rule is when Persephone is transferred to another program, and Intensity doesn't have his pocket White Mage to call upon. Those days suck.
But otherwise, Persephone is dependable and reliable and unchanging. Even if a conversation has gone awry, Persephone will have usually forgiven Intensity (probably. It's hard to tell really) by the next one and things can continue on per usual. And in the meantime, he can get snippets of information about Persephone's world that help give insight to why he is the way he is. And why all the Exalted are the way they are. Considering some of the things he's seen, he's not surprised that Shrike is very orderly and Eclipse doesn't trust people and Amaranth is very militaristic. Their world is not a kind one. Nor does it seem to be a forgiving one. People are just doing what they need to survive.
He does like that the healing entity is called the Maiden of Endings. How appropriate.
Intensity is also very glad to have Persephone join the ranks of Intensity corp under a more officially capacity and as an information gatherer. He's very orderly and complete, so Intensity doesn't have to worry about a bias or information loss in transfer. Nor does he have to worry about secrecy since these are all things in Persephone's wheelhouse.
Could do with a little more ambition, but he'll take what he can get!
tl;dr Persephone is exactly as advertised on the tin. No giant changes in CR since they've leveled out BUT THAT IS A GOOD THING. He wouldn't want it any other way.
Reverse CR me.
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cw: suicide ideation
I do not know how familiar you are with ygo but basically in one arc where Mokuba gets kidnapped, Intensity forces himself out of a 6-month coma, immediately hops on a helicopter, fights off multiple people with trading cards and metal briefcases and guns (LIKE YOU DO), and then when he's about to lose a card game to Yugi/King to save his brother (just more ygo things) - he emotionally manipulates both of them by threatening to throw himself off a castle to his death if they don't throw the match.
They throw the match. Intensity's dickish plot is a raging success that haunts both characters for the entire series. But it also highlights just to what lengths he is willing to go to save his brother.
SMASH CUT to Imeeji and he finds out his brother has been in Hell for MONTHS. And not only that, he's not on a nice production where he gets to judge puppies. Oh no. He's on some death maze show with deadly traps and blood thirsty competitors. And he's died so many times that he has not 1, not 2, but THREE corruptions. So not only is Mokuba trapped in a hellscape nightmare program, but he can't even graduate from it. (Sidenote: Lilith's nightmare for Intensity was Mokuba being pulled to the Imeeji production. He finds this alternative actual reality to be worse than the nightmare.)
So yes, HYPER FUELED to take over Hell is probably an understatement at this point. In fact, he probably can't wait until he becomes King of Hell to fix this problem. So stay tuned for him going hard on the side of Vengeance in the near future because he needs that fucking wish. Or a favor. And he needs it like yesterday. Still working out the logistics on what that is going to be, but when Intensity knows B and C will probably be in the first wave of people who will know about it. And it's probably best that he starts building his Hell repertoire sooner than later. B and C have Exael/Pythia/Heaven well handled in their corner pocket. Though he might nominate King as his heavenly stand in if he does get entrenched in Vengeance and also ask Yvette for some very strategic mind wiping.
Only time will tell.
As a note, since GM game, Intensity has been "phoning in" a lot of his usual concerns and pleasantries because everything else has been de-prioritized. Sorry, everyone. The only reason he's been putting on a show for the games (i.e. extra bets in the mistletoe game) is to keep up ratings and exposure. If belief and standing out rule the world, well then he's not going to let anyone forget who the fuck he is.
Can I ask for CR? Is that an acceptable question.
If not, tell me if C's end game has changed. Or what plans does he have for his gang?
Re: cw: suicide ideation
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She makes sense! And that alone is quite a big deal for Intensity. Most people in Imeeji don't make sense to him. Either they are paladins or nice and soft, and he doesn't know what to do with them. Or they are irrational (in his mind) and are content as puppets in a glass cage. There are various flavors of in between and the occasional unicorn normal person sometimes as well, but theirs is a rare breed. So it's very refreshing that he found someone who gets where he's coming from and vice versa. That is a solid base for a "friendship" in and of itself.
He also trusts Kohime, which is also a big deal. She's probably in the top 3 people that he trusts. Sure they made a pact after the cry wolf trial game to not hit each other/look out for each other as long as it wasn't at the expense of their units. But normally when that happens, and Intensity protects a unit - there is always a disbelief period after it which is very ??? for Intensity. Did they not believe him? Do they feel guilty? Did they hit Future is Now?! What's going on there! But with Kohime, it's completely different. It's not even on the table for them to hit each other and they don't have to affirm that after the game. It's just a fact. Intensity pointed this out to Silence in the GM game as well - the only people he really think have their backs are BARiTONES and ZRAEL. And he's glad that Silence and Wildfire are pairing up (selfishly) because he doesn't want that to all fall apart if he is not present at one of these trauma games.
So A+ compatibility on that front.
She's also just fun. Witty, snarky, a pain in the ass. Always willing to throw his own shit back at him. It's great! Someone he doesn't have to handle with kid gloves. And someone who doesn't take offense to his comments - ala saying how he would run a murder game if he was in charge.
It took him a long time to realize it (due to his own emotional incompetency), but he has come to understand that there are some issues that Kohime wears openly on her sleeve. Mostly without her being aware of it (or so he thinks). The first one is her abandonment issues which is tightly intertwined with her must-win issues - which (let's be honest) because they were intertwined is why he was even able to identify it. That walk through her dreamscape opened his eyes to her shitty upbringing and her shitty parental figure (something that Intensity identifies with though he ended disowning his) and the House confirmed it.
She was abandoned. She understandably put up walls because of it. But she still doesn't know what to do with herself.
Same feel, Kohime. Same feel. (Though Intensity has the benefit of his rival being here so they are working through their issues, and also creating more because FEELINGS SUCK!)
So he shows his camaraderie in the only way he knows how. Property destruction on bad days. (OOCly in my heart of hearts, I hope she sics Blue Eyes on someone since she is now attuned to use the LASER WEAPON.) And willingness to hide a body (even one that's still alive and bloodless) on even worse days. No questions asked. No need to pry into that awful past unless she needs it. Instead they can just take out her frustrations on the world around them.
A+ cat. She has a forever home provided she wants to stay in Hell and doesn't mind being associated with a looney tunes 80s cartoon villain.
Also solidarity in not liking their own doubles when they show up. Some people just can't get along with themselves.
Reverse CR me.
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Intensity obviously has a lot of feelings about Liar Hell. First, he was pretty impressed with how Hurricane and Nemesis were handling things and their tenacity in trying to save their angel friend. If he didn't believe that, Intensity would have never lent them Blue Eyes to them. He was more unsure about their strategy to look for clues in Pythia's house because 1) they had no reason to believe for sure anything was there and 2) half their party was already amnesiacs due to the last fallen angel encounter. So he was exasperated about the fact that they had to get in a boss fight with Furfur. And got owned. HARD.
But then enter Lilith, and Hurricane offering up his soul for forever or some other paladin nonsense, and Intensity had HAD ENOUGH. Good thing both Req and King were also on his side for shutting Hurricane down, and he actually listened to Intensity (whether he resent Intensity for it, Intensity neither knows nor cares). But whatever. Intensity paid the toll, they went home, and for a while Intensity just sort of seethed not-so-quietly and didn't want to have to think about anything except work. This also attributed to every retelling of the story to be insanely snarky of Intensity's side.
But then Hurricane kept trying to get back to Hell and try to save the angel. And it drove Intensity crazy! All of out sympathy points at that point (which Intensity only has 2 a year anyway), he just ruthlessly tore down Hurricane and eventually convinced him to not do that. Which obviously created some personal distance between the two (it was not professional work related on Intensity's part anyway), while they both licked their wounds from that incident.
However, Intensity fell easily back into protective mode as soon as he saw Nemesis and Hurricane's torture broadcast on TV. He knew he couldn't do anything for them at the time. But he could provide them with medical assistance and their units whenever they got back, so that's what he did. He was a little fussed at Heart for telling him he wasn't "qualified" to deal with Hurricane's feelings and promised not to tell him anything. Which is why their conversation was so stilted at the time. Sorry, buddy. But even if it wasn't much - he was trying to do right by Hurricane and Nemesis. And it did kind of kick him in the butt that maybe he should be a little nicer to these people who he considers friends - which is now at least half a word in his vocabulary.
So he has tried to be at least a little more open and friendly like he was before Liar Hell. Indulging in Hurricane's Lives. Teasing him. The general banter and the like. The shift in his attitude after has been more of a general tiredness of being an oldbie rather than directed at Hurricane in general. They're just both real tired.
For one specific issue, Intensity just could not fathom why Hurricane was still sad about the angel. (INTENSITY, PLEASE, PEOPLE GET SAD!) They only knew each other for a short time. And the angel made their own choices even if Hurricane was the one to give the all clear. They both knew what they were going into. Just because one got captured and tortured and one didn't (which is arguable because Hurricane is also being tortured in his own way) is not the fault of Hurricane. So there was kind of exasperated - "I'm trying to understand but also get over it and get better so we can get back to work" element to all of it.
Well that has definitely changed since Mokuba has showed up. And it's kind of like a "Oh, that's why moment." Not that Intensity will ever admit it. But he will try to be more... understanding of Hurricane's plight. As much as Intensity can be understanding of anyone anyway.
Which brings us to the last point - bitter!Hurricane after GM game. Intensity really has a soft spot for HSS. How could it be that he likes the paladin unit? And so he's also upset that Heart is having a bad time. The problem is he definitely understands more of Eclipse's viewpoint than Hurricane's. Maybe don't kill yourselves. Though he also can see how Hurricane could perceive their play style as overboard. Anyway, he hopes they can mediate their differences - which is why tried to suggest that this might have been too extreme in the other direction. But also he doesn't know the first thing about feelings and compromise in this scenario, so he just has to cross his fingers and hopes Heart figures it out.
Reverse CR me.
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Is anyone actually aware of how dangerous Silver is? Holy shit!
Sure Intensity has always been mildly impressed by him. A lit bit resentful of all the drinking games that he's been bested at. A little respectful of the company he keeps - twin and tinies and Yvette and Talon and John. Very in awe about how he's gotten John to trust him. But he had always just slotted him into that also good at PR thing that B is talented at. And didn't think too much of it outside of that, because outside of the occasional Live, these boys are just good for bets and snark.
So Silver was firmly slotted as a "good" person (whatever that means) who takes care of B and C and also comes to Intensity/B with plot info. So no complaints all around.
But then that dating bet. Whew. W H E W. The compliments were on the annoying side. The accuracy of them aggravating. But when he stormed into Wild City dorm to bring the escalation and Silver just topped the fuck out of him in like 30 seconds, Intensity had to actually apply brakes. Thanks, he hates it. Mostly because it was done so effortlessly. But also - only one rival gets to top him like that and it's not Silver. So congrats on the forfeit and win. It couldn't have gone to a more deserving person.
Conclusion: Silver is very dangerous. And Silver knows it. He knows exactly what people would do for him - because he so easily and blatantly stated that Wild City would do a stab for him in a heartbeat. And Intensity knew it was not a bluff. Good thing he isn't in the running for either King of Hell or god because that would be some pretty intense competition.
And now that he knows Silver and C are a thing - well, good. If there is anyone that can wrangle that gremlin, it's Silver. (Though there is the occasional big brother flare ups because even though Intensity knows C and his little brother are different, he would also put anyone dating his younger brother under a very powerful and potentially painful microscope). But on the other hand, he also knows (from B) that Silver will treat C well. And it's probably a favorably arrangement for twins and volleyboys.
As a side note, his protection to B and C also extends to Silver and Gold by proxy, because they are so vitally important to B and C. And Intensity did promise B a nice retirement package - which he is doing his best to keep. Intensity doesn't make promises lightly so he is very intent to help B do whatever he needs to ship the four of them off to their happily ever after.
Reverse CR me.