About Boothill : “That guy…It’d take too long to explain it all, but, uh, I really do owe him my life. He’s eccentric, to say the least, but he’s a good man. A…really good man. He’s gone through a lot more than he lets on, and yet…he never stopped forging his own path. He’s stronger than I am for that. I wouldn't be where I am now without his help.”
About Argenti : “Before meeting him, I had never dealt with the Knights of Beauty before. But now, I can say without a doubt that he's the most devout of them all. I think I can understand him. Even if there's nothing at the end of the tunnel, you’ve gotta keep chasing that light.”
About Rappa : “You know her? Ha, some connections you’ve got. That girl is just amazing! You have no clue how stoked I was when I got a ninja nickname of my own!”
About Aventurine : “Some people might think our situations are complete opposites, but I’d disagree. Assassin or executive…we’re just different types of prisoners, in the end. But between you and me? I can't stand cunning types like him.”
About Moze : “I once had the pleasure of meeting a Xianzhou fellow in a similar line of work to mine. He was…a strange one, to say the least. Sigh…He really isn't helping our PR. We aren't all weirdos, I promise.”
About Ashveil: "Ah, the good ol’ detective? He's quite the character, but- Oh, I probably shouldn't be saying this about my friends’ boss- but I really wish he’d quit trying to recruit me as a Ranger! Because every time, I have to turn him down and I always feel awful about it. Seriously, doesn't he have bigger worries? ...Financial ones?”
About Acheron: "I've met many a wanderer in my time, but none were quite like her. I didn't buy the 'Ranger' identity for a second, but...haha, that's fine. We all have things to hide."
Added to team with:
Added to team with Boothill: “Ah, this really brings me back! Just like old times, eh?”
Added to team with Ashveil: "...Haven't I told you already? I don't think I’m the potential Ranger you're looking for.”
Added to team with Argenti: "Beautiful as ever, my friend! How ‘bout I scatter some petals for you?”
Added to team with Rappa: "Lead the way, my Dazzling Ninja!”
Added to team with Aventurine: "...Let's just get this over with. I can't stand that attitude of yours.”
Added to team with Moze: "Isn't one of us enough? They must really want this guy dead.”
Added to team with Acheron: "Uh...are you sure you even need my help?"
just thought itd be fun to put these here!! but yeah aventurine pisses her off she does NOT like him. i think she'd get past some of that if they got to know each other a bit, though. i really like ellipses
Chewing on Boothill like beef jerky today thinking about how his past self would look at his current self, because I don't think it would be like... anything remotely close to pleased or proud.
Like there are some truly fascinating things to consider there; about his views then, his views now, the beliefs held on Aeragan-Epharshel, and the fact that what Boothill has willingly done to himself would probably be considered borderline blasphemous.
And I love it so so much, that Past Boothill probably wouldn't look at his current self with the feeling of teamwork, or passing the baton, or even any kind of friendliness. Instead, it's more like the demon he willingly became/sold himself to.
In 2.6 we get to see Boothill's dream through the dreampeek phone, and while it is technically a dream, the content skews very much towards this being a memory. And the younger Boothill of the past has some very verrrrrry different views from the Boothill of the present.
(Forever going insane over the fact that even in a dream of a memory, Boothill STILL DOES NOT HEAR HIS BIRTH NAME-)
Some of this is, of course, just the naivety of youth. At this point in his life, Boothill probably hasn't lost anyone close to him yet- at the very least, it's before the major loss he suffered from the carpet bombing. So he doesn't know what it's like to lose everything, even the planet beneath your feet, yet. Something like that is nearly impossible to truly fathom until it actually happens to you. Until then, it's just some far off possibility, a hypothetical. It's not something you consider, particularly when you're young like that.
And as we see in his character stories, Boothill held on to that logic, because he did go on to lose people he knew- not just to the IPC, but long before that. Life was rough on Aeragan-Epharshel.
And even so, we never see any evidence of him going off on a revenge quest. It says he took revenge on a rival gang, but nothing about him leaving home or taking such a long journey to do so- besides, for a gang to be considered rivals, they would have to be close enough to butt heads with Boothill and his gang, and cause problems. So he never would have left his home and his family behind for something like vengeance.
In 2.6 we also get the saying "death is the fairest form of grace" and oh I have always loved that one, and what it says about the place Boothill grew up in.
To say that death keeps one's purity intact implies that simply living in the world too long makes one impure. The longer you live, the more you're corrupted, or at least the more easily. The only thing that stops that is death.
When Boothill remade his body, when he stripped himself of all mortality, he purposely removed himself from what he and his people considered grace.
He's not going to age anymore! He seemingly can't starve or dehydrate or even die of exhaustion! He is so damn difficult to kill now that he may as well be functionally immortal!
And he chose this! He chose this! Boothill willingly and intentionally threw away the one salvation he's ever known, all for the sake of hunting one man to the ends of the earth and spilling his blood!
This would have been a view held by the Boothill of the past too, and in combination with him still unable to fathom the extent of the loss he has yet to suffer, I really don't think he'd be able to understand his current self's actions. Because to him, it would seem akin to summoning a demon to sell his soul and sign his name in blood. It's going against everything he ever believed in.
So it's not awe, or pride, or anything remotely positive, but it's not hatred either. It's not even dislike.
He's just. Baffled.
What do you mean, you have nowhere you want to return to?
What do you mean, you travel alone with no one beside you?
How on earth does someone build a life like that, with no home and no family?
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