[ While the Pale King prefers to scrub out flaws where he finds them - mistakes, errors, any imperfection that interferes with his work - the Troupe Master is the opposite, seemingly delighting in illuminating them. He has an annoying talent for finding the little cracks and blemishes the Pale King has yet to scour from himself and delighting in them.
It's yet another thing he doesn't understand. He doesn't understand that inherent fascination with not only him, but those flaws and cracks and moments where he is not as unfeeling and unfaltering as he projects.
He doesn't understand that concept of finding it beautiful, either. It was not something he had ever truly needed a word for; it was his subjects, those who admired his works, that instilled that concept in his head. What he created simply was, and functioned, and functioned well, and that was as close to comprehending beauty as he ever got, or desired to get.
(A vessel built to command, to build, to rule a kingdom does not need to feel to do it. In his old body, his old existence, he had judged it so.
But it seems that even this plan, this process he had once thought perfect, had its errors. Just not where he could see them.
He had not thought that putting his mind into something mortal, something closer and smaller, would change the mind itself. Shape it, without noticing, into something just as strange and separated to his old, shed self as the Wyrm was to mortal bugs and other gods.)
He just sighs, this time. A slight (unneeded) exhale. This, on the other hand, sounds tired. ]
So you continue to tell me.
[ And, as if he's only just noticed that Grimm's constant physical contact (as if he's not just letting it happen all the time), he glances to the side, to where one of the Troupe Master's hands rests on his shoulder. ] Are you always this insistent on touching everyone you talk to?
[ There's no judgement in his voice. Once again, his feelings, if they can be called that, are simple, almost childish things. Basic curiosity.
Is it a way to try and change the subject? Is it a simple observation of what's happening? Both? ]
[The answer behind why Grimm finds one's flaws so beautiful is something that can be traced back to the Nightmare King. When the Pale King behold the God of Nightmares for the first time, did he find the Living Flame perfect? Likely no, not without some changes. He was a monstrous God who sought to scorch the earth clean of those who entered Grimm's mind, friend or foe. A God who had created his vessel so he would not suffer the insanity of isolation. Nightmares were the fear and power of the heart, screaming to be heard from the smallest bug to the land itself. Even the flames of the dead and dying were much of the same, chaotic until Grimm pulled them into body and mind so the lands could rest and grow.
But there was a beauty in those flames, something that would be lost if they were restrained in the name of perfection. They were damaging, tiring and sometimes Grimm would sleep for a long time until woken again, by call or by music. But he bore them as well as he could, by breed, role and care.
All the way until the end.
Still, the damaging flaws of these flames were something he would always bare. It is the same as the flaws of the Pale King that Grimm took delight in seeing. Perhaps many preferred to see a perfect statue but the Troupe Master found the odd warps and bents lent a personal touch, something that no one else could replicate.
Grimm can see the Pale King in these flaws and what he may become. For better or for worse...as it was with everyone else.
The Troupe Master chuckles at the Pale King's observation and answers the simple question.]
Only those I cherish.
[In turn, is Grimm aware that is a loaded statement? Is he simply being blunt? Yes.]
[ A god that chooses to hide himself away, shunning worshippers, preferring not to show his true form until it becomes necessary; a vessel who rarely speaks of his own status.
He is strong already, the Nightmare King; he could be so much stronger. Burning brightly, as terrible and powerful as his estranged sister was.
He does not understand why a god sees fit to lock himself away, why that power is masked and muzzled. (Though, in some ways, pushing away what little emotions he has - seeing them as a painful inconvenience - is the first step to beginning to comprehend it.
The heart has such power, after all. More than he could ever imagine, as he is right now.)
Another quiet, irritable clicking sound. He shakes his head at that statement, more like he is trying to rid himself of something bothering him than true disagreement.
It's not something he can disagree with, in any case; he has no control over what others say.
(Well, he does, but not with Grimm. Grimm will talk about things whether the Pale King wants it or not, and trying to dodge or ignore the topic only seems to encourage him.
Irritating.
But a small part of him - that flawed part he has long ignored - is oddly pleased, in its own way. Something for him to clash against, to learn from, to strive to understand and fail and gain more understanding still.)
Were this any other time, this conversation would have already ended; the Pale King would have dismissed Grimm or otherwise indicated he no longer desired his presence.
But he tolerates being touched, and he tolerates him being there, and perhaps 'tolerates' is too distant of a word for what this is. Perhaps, without noticing, it never really was the right word. ]
You pick strange things to cherish, then.
I do not understand why you are so fascinated with such imperfections.
[ Is he trying to force a change of topic, or is he referring to himself? For all that bugs speak highly of the Pale King, he rarely has anything to say about himself as an individual; only what actions he will take. Perhaps it's more telling than he wants it to be that he only speaks of himself when things are irritating, when he sees them as flaws and errors to be erased. ]
[Why Grimm muzzles his power, sealed half away into a vessel should be obvious. The Nightmare King's immediate reaction to the Pale King's intrusion upon Grimm's mind was to attempt to incinerate the Wyrm. His flame and flaws were beautiful but Grimm was not and would never be blind to the destruction he could cause if he wished. Should he decide, he could break the rules and cross the line between waking and nightmares, raze Hallownest to the ground.
Nightmare King Grimm would not care.
Likely the Pale King was aware of that.
But he does not dwell on it, to focused on the topic at hand. The smile on his face shows that Grimm can indeed read between the lines of what is and is not said. If the Pale King did not want something, he would have long since ended things. This conversation would be over, Grimm's hands would not be on him. The Troupe Master merrily danced over these lines and went where most dared not with their monarch, but he knew when not to push and when the Pale King meant enough was enough.
He may have not intended for things to go this far, yes, but he still chose to question it. Forge forward with something he considered an annoyance at best but forge forward he did.
A strange thing to cherish, yes. But Grimm has no regrets. It was the strange and unique that often produced the most spectacular flames.]
I enjoy them simply because they are fascinating. It is not a lie when I say it would be difficult for even myself to explain the desire to see it.
[Well, that is not quite true. Grimm could not explain it with words alone. But he could certainly show, if the Pale King was willing.]
I could show you, but I would have to request something that may be difficult for you, my dear friend.
[ The Nightmare King would not care, would raze Hallownest to ashes if he ever got it into his head to do so. He is aware.
It's not something he would be pleased about, but that is simply how gods are; they will for something to happen, and by fire or will it happens. It is something he understands.
(It is something he innately understood, until he became more vulnerable, more mortal, and now he finds it...troubling?
Hallownest is in truth a kingdom formed because...he thought he could. He had the power, so why should he not? But lately, the thought of it being destroyed is...disquieting. It's strange. He becomes restless, driven. Protective?
Such feelings, if that is what they truly are, have never happened before.)
He simply sighs at Grimm's words. If the Troupe Master saw fit to tell him that, then clearly it was going to be something he likely found amusing and the Pale King did not. ]
What did you have in mind.
[ ...And yet, he still agrees to it, implicitly. Bothers to engage with it at all. ]
I would like you to join me and my Troupe when we travel next, wherever that may be. Not as a member but as an observer.
[Following the Grimm Troupe would be a difficult task for any ordinary bug but this is the Pale King. Through dreams and nightmares, he would follow if he so chose.
Just as he could chose to allow Grimm to stay or banish him forever. That choice would always be in the Pale King's hands.
But Grimm has his reasons to extend this offer to the Pale King beyond his own amusement at the possibility of seeing the Wyrm like a fish out of water in a land that was not Hallownest.
Exposure to the dead and dying often made one see just how beautiful life is, flaws and all.]
Perhaps you will find an answer there. Or something new to experiment with.
[ Grimm can practically see the gears turning in his head as he dispassionately dissects the offer. (That is something that will not change for a long time, feelings or not; he analyses and picks and pulls apart, never quite understanding that these things can sometimes lead to destruction and not comprehension.)
The being he was before would have refused without a second thought. There was a kingdom, and he was part of it, and he might as well have been his kingdom for all the separation there was. A perfect, pure vessel, a glowing figurehead. A god on a throne, a single light in the darkness.
The being he is now - hesitates and thinks it over. Struggling to understand what has changed, why this choice is even considered. But he has always been curious, and in this smaller form where things are not always clear to him, where even his sharpest tools cannot cut apart the form to reveal something he comprehends beneath...
Curiosity wins out, in the end. ]
I doubt it will be enlightening. [ He's never understood all the fanfare that surrounds the Troupe, their acts and showmanship and things that weren't strictly practical and were in fact impractical for their risk. ]
But if it is brief, I can spare some time.
[ That's about as close as a 'yes' as you're going to get from him, Grimm. Why is he like this. ]
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It's yet another thing he doesn't understand. He doesn't understand that inherent fascination with not only him, but those flaws and cracks and moments where he is not as unfeeling and unfaltering as he projects.
He doesn't understand that concept of finding it beautiful, either. It was not something he had ever truly needed a word for; it was his subjects, those who admired his works, that instilled that concept in his head. What he created simply was, and functioned, and functioned well, and that was as close to comprehending beauty as he ever got, or desired to get.
(A vessel built to command, to build, to rule a kingdom does not need to feel to do it. In his old body, his old existence, he had judged it so.
But it seems that even this plan, this process he had once thought perfect, had its errors. Just not where he could see them.
He had not thought that putting his mind into something mortal, something closer and smaller, would change the mind itself. Shape it, without noticing, into something just as strange and separated to his old, shed self as the Wyrm was to mortal bugs and other gods.)
He just sighs, this time. A slight (unneeded) exhale. This, on the other hand, sounds tired. ]
So you continue to tell me.
[ And, as if he's only just noticed that Grimm's constant physical contact (as if he's not just letting it happen all the time), he glances to the side, to where one of the Troupe Master's hands rests on his shoulder. ] Are you always this insistent on touching everyone you talk to?
[ There's no judgement in his voice. Once again, his feelings, if they can be called that, are simple, almost childish things. Basic curiosity.
Is it a way to try and change the subject? Is it a simple observation of what's happening? Both? ]
no subject
But there was a beauty in those flames, something that would be lost if they were restrained in the name of perfection. They were damaging, tiring and sometimes Grimm would sleep for a long time until woken again, by call or by music. But he bore them as well as he could, by breed, role and care.
All the way until the end.
Still, the damaging flaws of these flames were something he would always bare. It is the same as the flaws of the Pale King that Grimm took delight in seeing. Perhaps many preferred to see a perfect statue but the Troupe Master found the odd warps and bents lent a personal touch, something that no one else could replicate.
Grimm can see the Pale King in these flaws and what he may become. For better or for worse...as it was with everyone else.
The Troupe Master chuckles at the Pale King's observation and answers the simple question.]
Only those I cherish.
[In turn, is Grimm aware that is a loaded statement? Is he simply being blunt? Yes.]
no subject
He is strong already, the Nightmare King; he could be so much stronger. Burning brightly, as terrible and powerful as his estranged sister was.
He does not understand why a god sees fit to lock himself away, why that power is masked and muzzled. (Though, in some ways, pushing away what little emotions he has - seeing them as a painful inconvenience - is the first step to beginning to comprehend it.
The heart has such power, after all. More than he could ever imagine, as he is right now.)
Another quiet, irritable clicking sound. He shakes his head at that statement, more like he is trying to rid himself of something bothering him than true disagreement.
It's not something he can disagree with, in any case; he has no control over what others say.
(Well, he does, but not with Grimm. Grimm will talk about things whether the Pale King wants it or not, and trying to dodge or ignore the topic only seems to encourage him.
Irritating.
But a small part of him - that flawed part he has long ignored - is oddly pleased, in its own way. Something for him to clash against, to learn from, to strive to understand and fail and gain more understanding still.)
Were this any other time, this conversation would have already ended; the Pale King would have dismissed Grimm or otherwise indicated he no longer desired his presence.
But he tolerates being touched, and he tolerates him being there, and perhaps 'tolerates' is too distant of a word for what this is. Perhaps, without noticing, it never really was the right word. ]
You pick strange things to cherish, then.
I do not understand why you are so fascinated with such imperfections.
[ Is he trying to force a change of topic, or is he referring to himself? For all that bugs speak highly of the Pale King, he rarely has anything to say about himself as an individual; only what actions he will take. Perhaps it's more telling than he wants it to be that he only speaks of himself when things are irritating, when he sees them as flaws and errors to be erased. ]
no subject
Nightmare King Grimm would not care.
Likely the Pale King was aware of that.
But he does not dwell on it, to focused on the topic at hand. The smile on his face shows that Grimm can indeed read between the lines of what is and is not said. If the Pale King did not want something, he would have long since ended things. This conversation would be over, Grimm's hands would not be on him. The Troupe Master merrily danced over these lines and went where most dared not with their monarch, but he knew when not to push and when the Pale King meant enough was enough.
He may have not intended for things to go this far, yes, but he still chose to question it. Forge forward with something he considered an annoyance at best but forge forward he did.
A strange thing to cherish, yes. But Grimm has no regrets. It was the strange and unique that often produced the most spectacular flames.]
I enjoy them simply because they are fascinating. It is not a lie when I say it would be difficult for even myself to explain the desire to see it.
[Well, that is not quite true. Grimm could not explain it with words alone. But he could certainly show, if the Pale King was willing.]
I could show you, but I would have to request something that may be difficult for you, my dear friend.
no subject
It's not something he would be pleased about, but that is simply how gods are; they will for something to happen, and by fire or will it happens. It is something he understands.
(It is something he innately understood, until he became more vulnerable, more mortal, and now he finds it...troubling?
Hallownest is in truth a kingdom formed because...he thought he could. He had the power, so why should he not? But lately, the thought of it being destroyed is...disquieting. It's strange. He becomes restless, driven. Protective?
Such feelings, if that is what they truly are, have never happened before.)
He simply sighs at Grimm's words. If the Troupe Master saw fit to tell him that, then clearly it was going to be something he likely found amusing and the Pale King did not. ]
What did you have in mind.
[ ...And yet, he still agrees to it, implicitly. Bothers to engage with it at all. ]
no subject
[Following the Grimm Troupe would be a difficult task for any ordinary bug but this is the Pale King. Through dreams and nightmares, he would follow if he so chose.
Just as he could chose to allow Grimm to stay or banish him forever. That choice would always be in the Pale King's hands.
But Grimm has his reasons to extend this offer to the Pale King beyond his own amusement at the possibility of seeing the Wyrm like a fish out of water in a land that was not Hallownest.
Exposure to the dead and dying often made one see just how beautiful life is, flaws and all.]
Perhaps you will find an answer there. Or something new to experiment with.
[Both are options.]
no subject
The being he was before would have refused without a second thought. There was a kingdom, and he was part of it, and he might as well have been his kingdom for all the separation there was. A perfect, pure vessel, a glowing figurehead. A god on a throne, a single light in the darkness.
The being he is now - hesitates and thinks it over. Struggling to understand what has changed, why this choice is even considered. But he has always been curious, and in this smaller form where things are not always clear to him, where even his sharpest tools cannot cut apart the form to reveal something he comprehends beneath...
Curiosity wins out, in the end. ]
I doubt it will be enlightening. [ He's never understood all the fanfare that surrounds the Troupe, their acts and showmanship and things that weren't strictly practical and were in fact impractical for their risk. ]
But if it is brief, I can spare some time.
[ That's about as close as a 'yes' as you're going to get from him, Grimm. Why is he like this. ]