ledbythewind | [Voice/Action]

[Ah, Valentine's Day. The one experiment a year Richard hates most, for a variety of reasons. Granted, this year wasn't TOO terrible, as he was spared the unfortunate fate of falling in love with anyone under the effects of the experiment... but that didn't stop other people from from falling in love/lust with HIM, much to his dismay. And that's left him with many things to think about, as have some of the reactions to the experiment that he's seen from other people. Which leads him to ponder...]

Indulge my curiosity: what sorts of things are considered traditionally "masculine" where you come from?

[A bit later on, Richard will head out of the house on a shopping trip to All Passions and the item store, where he can be found looking for a new wardrobe and a few other things, probably as a result of some of the answers he received to his question. After picking out a bunch of things to take home with him, he chooses something new to wear home as well: cargo pants, combat boots, and a leather motorcycle jacket, because all of those things are super-masculine, right? Alas, on someone with the approximate build of a toothpick and delicate features like Richard has, the end result is a bit ridiculous, but don't tell him that. (Or do, your choice.) He can't quite bring himself to cut his hair - he's still far too proud of it - so instead he opts to pull it back into a ponytail.

There. Much better, in his eyes. Now the question is, what will his friends and housemates think of this?]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Become a pirate. At least that would be the answer given back home.

But in general I would say you would have to find some way to break free of society's demands on you... or at least find compromises that allow you some freedom. That might require sacrifices, but the alternative, denying yourself of who you are is not right.

[He takes a moment to adjust the filter; even though there are a bunch of people in Luceti who know about this, he still prefers to keep it from being common knowledge for the simple fact that he doesn't want anyone to feel obligated to treat him differently as a result.]

... I'm a king back in my world.

[That should explain it all. Breaking free of society's demands isn't so easy for him.]

I know.

[He was there when you and Ling and Guy were discussing who got first go at kissing Miss Nami.]

Then you also know why it isn't that simple for me to just do as I please.

Yes.

But I have a question for you. Say you were straight, had a wife, had plenty of sex, and didn't manage to beget any children. [Because it DOES happen.] What happens to the line of succession then?

[Yeah, he's going somewhere with this.]

Then the next closest male relative would inherit the throne, which would be Duke Dalen, I suppose. I don't have any siblings, nor did my uncle have any children.

And in that hypothetical situation, would you be okay with that?

[Truthfully? Yes, he would. There's no guarantee that his own children would be good rulers, after all.]

... yes. Direct bloodline doesn't give someone the necessary qualities to be a good leader.

Then the problem really isn't the line of succession. There's already somebody you can trust the throne to.

It's your people's perceptions of their leader and if letting yourself be who you are will bring harm to their welfare, right?

[He inhales, then exhales audibly.]

I want to be normal, like everyone else.

[A small sigh.]

Don't we all? Normal. It's not the magic bullet though.

Edited 2013-04-06 07:45 (UTC)

Perhaps not, but that doesn't mean it might not make things easier.

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