#psyche tag

[samglyph]

Psyche, the most entertaining (for a given definition) of Pieridae’s siblings, is a shapeshifter with the power to make people really suggestible, which would be unethical but the only thing they use it for is going “five more minutes” whenever anyone tries to leave a party. And getting people to do shots.

Maybe it’s still a little unethical.

It’s their birthday today :)

[angelinbreeding]

she's my butterfly my psyche and my star

[ctesiphus]

grabbing you by the shoulders. shaved ice, train, green heart for dec and psyche

🍧 SHAVED ICE - do they still have any objects from their childhood? what significance does it have to them? what would their reaction be if they lost it?

dec: an assortment of things that they keep tucked close at the bottom of their ender chest storage (though no surviving photographs, which he's... normal about.) two bottles of magical pollen from the garden, a couple battered books he's had since he was a kid, the same sewing kit his pa passed onto him from his grandma. they're the last pieces of home that dec can have for... the foreseeable future, so far as he knows, and if he somehow lost them he'd be inconsolable for days and then silently aching for... a long while after

psyche: the only thing they've brought from their childhood is themself and even that's warped beyond recognition. they feel very strongly that the person from their childhood is dead; they wouldn't have even known what to keep

🚆 TRAIN - what is their answer to the trolley problem?

dec: "if i simply throw myself onto the tracks first i will divert the tram before it can hit any of the people and it will be fine"

psyche: i think it genuinely depends on whether they're with the strawhats or the kidd pirates but. before that point for them it's probably just to walk away. not their circus not their People Who Are About To Die To A Tram

💚 GREEN HEART - what things make your oc feel comforted? hugs, kisses, food?

dec: he's comforted by a lot of things! most of them revolve around having company, though. physical contact (as much as humanly possible and then some, preferably) + call & response + Being Held, specifically. besides company- homecooked meals, warm lights, being able to go outside, etc. also also: will purr so loud at being pet kitty-style

psyche: normal things, like being in the same room as people they care for, heavy blankets/fur, vivisection, watching their husbands make out, and checking the pulses of their dolls. things that remind them of perona and/or just perona herself, also. they're besties

[ctesiphus]

also 8. an arm sneaking around a waist, holding them close with psyche (or, substitution eli if youd prefer) plus character of choice

in the aftermath the lines between crews are blurred as they mingle and drink and party; psyche falls in step with ace and caledula when they can't find kidd and killer, laughing and leaning and finally letting themself breath. they don't get drunk - can't - but they almost feel it secondhand.

ace's head falls to their shoulder a little while later, drowsy. psyche startles, cloth smudging as they dig their hand into the dirt, but he's undeterred and after a moment, so are they.

or they would be, if it wasn't for their idiot of a captain.

"psyche," kidd snaps, not quite a growl. psyche looks up and around until they see him, eyebrows raised in question. "where the hell've you been?"

"... right here, captain?" they let their skepticism seep into their voice, layered and sharp. "you n' kil are the- the ones who ran off all by your lonesome. come on."

there must be some slip in their expression, because instead of goading him into an argument he just rolls his eyes and drops down next to them, arm sliding around their waist. in the moment it takes them to look around for killer - and find him, a few steps away talking to roronoa - kidd yanks them into his lap.

ace's head falls and he startles awake, hat catching fire as he glowers at kidd. "hey-! they were here first, asshole, give 'em back."

"they're my damn crew," kidd retorts, "and i get to do whatever the hell i want."

psyche sighs and makes pained eye contact with caledula, who sits there unhelpfully and looks amused, raising one eyebrow at them as if to ask: what the hell are you going to do about it?

"both of you- fuck off," they mutter, wiggling out of kidd's grasp and crawling over to lay down in caledula's lap.

she blinks down at them, bottle hanging loosely from her hand, and shrugs as she sets it down. "that settles that. go find your damn husbands, we're gonna sit down right here and wait."

ace blinks and jolts at the reminder, exhaustion snapping away as he jumps to his feet. "you're right, yamato wouldn't do this to me- i'm gonna go get him, so don't go anywhere, okay?"

"wouldn't dream of it," dula drawls. his gaze strays to kidd in challenge as he cards a hand through the yarn of psyche's hair. "and you?"

"one of mine is right fuckin' there," kidd snarls. psyche opens one eye and shoots him a warning look, and he glares right back, stubborn. "you're gonna pay for this one later, stuffie."

"go get kil, idiot, 'm napping."

"you're gonna wish you were napping when i'm done with you." psyche snickers, and kidd groans, reaching over to tap them on the head with an empty bottle. "you're such a piece of shit, whatever. a couple weeks without your captain and it's all fuckin'- insubordination central, i see how it fuckin' is. mutiny. kil wouldn't do this to me."

"he would," killer says, having finally wandered back over from his own conversation. there's the telltale strain to his voice already, and he doesn't say anything else, just crouches down next to kidd and leans.

kidd jerks his hand in his direction, raising his eyebrows in challenge. psyche stays put, just as stubborn - when he really wants them over there, they'll know. nobody knows the next time these crews'll see each other (not that psyche wants to be thinking about it, on a night like this) and, of course, dula's lap is comfy.

they won't make him wait too long, though. they've missed their captain and first mate far too much for that.

[ctesiphus]

also 31. pinky swear with psyche and one piece guy of your choice :]

“vel,” psyche says, “i'm okay.”

vel's ears twitch, its hands shaking as it traces the uneven, rough-hewn stitches it made along their neck. their head is back on, and it's staying that way—and they're happy with that, or so they tell it. but vel isn't like them, velveteen as it is like this, and seeing their head fall off scared it.

it's not a new sentiment. psyche has been trying to reassure it for an hour, but they only managed to really start holding themself together when vel finished the stitching five minutes ago. “i thought- you said he cared about you. i don't- i don't get it, and i- i don't want you to leave—”

psyche reaches up to hug it, gentle even as they tug it down so it can curl up against them—body too big to be held in half-zoan form, but god are they both trying. “i'm alive. 'm here.”

“you- not forever! you're—” vel sniffles, shaky and distressed at its own tears. “one day you're gonna leave here, and- and then i'm—”

“you can come with!”

vel shudders to a stop, breathing paused, like if it moves too much psyche will take it back. they don't. “i'm- i'm sorry i didn't offer before. but- if you- if you want to stay with me, even after all this, i'd love that, okay? i'll take care of you, vel.”

“... promise?”

psyche smiles, lopsided and warm. “i promise,” they echo, holding out their pinky finger.

it feels as small as it is, when it loops its finger around theirs, and it transforms out of its half-zoan form to match. psyche readjusts their arms, and keeps holding on.

[ctesiphus]

13. + 22. for psyche :-]?

13. what gets them flustered

psyche is very much a person who. gives a lot to the people they care about and genuinely does not expect anything in return. so when people do or offer to do nice things for them, or a lot of compliments, they kind of. don't know how to respond at all so they very much bluescreen about it. angry flustered wise, insinuating stuff about their ability to be a pirate based off their devil fruit's effects on their body gets them VERY riled up very quick

22. people who have influenced them greatly

positively, perona! psyche's aspirations to be a pirate, a lot of their taste in clothing and decor, etc. plus, you know, when you're close to someone for that long you both pick up a lot of things, and this is definitely not an exception!

i would also put kuma on this list. not because they've had any particularly lengthy interactions, but because if kuma hadn't sent them away from tb, their life from that point on would've been a lot different. and worse

[ctesiphus]

psyche, 49 + 53 + 13 + 19 + 65 if you wanna do all of em :]

13. what are some motifs you associate with them? did you intentionally bring in those motifs, or did it happen over time?

i always meant to go pretty hard on the string motifs, both literally and metaphorically, but not quite so much on the stuffed animal (body horror to an extent) of it all, which. definitely happened over time. guys who are obsessed w less human body horror will see a doll motif and say is anyone going to horror that

19. what sparks genuine, unadulterated rage in them?

People Hurting Their People. the mix of devotion and mild possessiveness is a great cocktail for if you lay a hand emotionally or physically on the people who are mine i will kill you, which makes them a great fit amongst their post-paradise peers

49. how often do they cut their hair, if at all?

they try to keep it relatively short :] brushing their shoulders, a little below that but no more. usually perona did their haircuts but now its a rotation of whoever's available and trustworthy with hair

53. do they keep their plans close to their chest?

sometimes! it isn't often that they make very intricate plans that don't inherently involve people they need to tell, but if they get too deep in their own head/go too far on the protectiveness front it can get rough on the communication side of things. theyre getting better with it

65. what would their go-to karaoke song be?

it could literally never be anything but darkness at the heart of my love