[The words erupt from Darin with way more force, way more conviction than his shadow thought possible at this juncture. It's enough of a surprise that it wipes the ever-present grin from his face as he turns to look at his counterpart.]
SO WHAT?! AH?! WHO CARES WHAT YOU DID?! YOU'RE A HERO, NOT A SAINT!! HEROES DON'T HAVE TO BE SPOTLESS, PERFECT INDIVIDUALS. HELL, FLAWS ARE WHAT MAKE YOU A HERO! BECAUSE DESPITE THE MISTAKES YOU'VE MADE, DESPITE THE HORRORS YOU'VE ENDURED, YOU'RE STILL PLANTING ONE FOOT IN FRONT OF THE OTHER! YOU'RE STILL MOVING FORWARD, STILL FIGHTING, STILL TRYING TO TAKE ON EVERYONE ELSE'S BURDENS INCLUDING YOUR OWN!
[Darin's rage starts to boil over and he starts thrashing against his chains once more, adrenaline overwriting the intense pain as the chains binding him continue to chew away at his body.]
A HERO ISN'T JUST SOME TITLE GIVEN TO THE MOST PERFECT INDIVIDUAL! IT'S MORE THAN JUST THE SUM OF YOUR DEEDS! IT ISN'T MEASURED BY HOW MANY PEOPLE YOU SAVE OR HOW MANY PEOPLE IDOLIZE YOU! IT'S MORE THAN THAT! YOU'RE MORE THAN THAT!
[Darin's shadow begins to make his way over, glowering all the while.]
I'm getting tired of this...
[But Darin ignores him as he pulls and thrashed against the chains, tearing them free link by link from the wall]
LISTEN TO ME, SHIRO! FOR ONCE IN YOUR LIFE, LISTEN TO ME! HERO'S ARE ALLOWED TO MAKE MISTAKES! WHAT MAKES THEM HEROES IS WHAT THEY DO TO ATONE FOR THEM! SO, WHAT ARE YOU GONNA DO?! ARE YOU JUST GOING TO STAND THERE AND TAKE THIS?! ACCEPT WHAT YOU'VE DONE! STAND TALL! AND KEEP WALKING FORWARD DOWN YOUR PATH! IF NOT FOR YOURSELF, THEN FOR EVERYONE ELSE WHO LOVES AND BELIEVES IN YOU! PIDGE, HUNK, LANCE, KEITH, ALLURA!
YOU'RE A HERO BECAUSE WE ALL BELIEVE IN YOU!
[He'd say more, but his shadow has clamped a hand tightly over his mouth, smashing the back of his head against the stone.]
That's enough out of you. You really think your little speech will reach him? You really think the words of that old man mean anything to anyone else other than you? You're a dreamer. Nothing more. And no one in this universe knows that better than we do.
Well, Dromas likely knows...it's probably why he's so disappointed in you...
[The sneer returns to his shadow's face as he starts to twist Darin's head, Darin's neck bulging as he tries to resist.]
no subject
[The words erupt from Darin with way more force, way more conviction than his shadow thought possible at this juncture. It's enough of a surprise that it wipes the ever-present grin from his face as he turns to look at his counterpart.]
SO WHAT?! AH?! WHO CARES WHAT YOU DID?! YOU'RE A HERO, NOT A SAINT!! HEROES DON'T HAVE TO BE SPOTLESS, PERFECT INDIVIDUALS. HELL, FLAWS ARE WHAT MAKE YOU A HERO! BECAUSE DESPITE THE MISTAKES YOU'VE MADE, DESPITE THE HORRORS YOU'VE ENDURED, YOU'RE STILL PLANTING ONE FOOT IN FRONT OF THE OTHER! YOU'RE STILL MOVING FORWARD, STILL FIGHTING, STILL TRYING TO TAKE ON EVERYONE ELSE'S BURDENS INCLUDING YOUR OWN!
[Darin's rage starts to boil over and he starts thrashing against his chains once more, adrenaline overwriting the intense pain as the chains binding him continue to chew away at his body.]
A HERO ISN'T JUST SOME TITLE GIVEN TO THE MOST PERFECT INDIVIDUAL! IT'S MORE THAN JUST THE SUM OF YOUR DEEDS! IT ISN'T MEASURED BY HOW MANY PEOPLE YOU SAVE OR HOW MANY PEOPLE IDOLIZE YOU! IT'S MORE THAN THAT! YOU'RE MORE THAN THAT!
[Darin's shadow begins to make his way over, glowering all the while.]
I'm getting tired of this...
[But Darin ignores him as he pulls and thrashed against the chains, tearing them free link by link from the wall]
LISTEN TO ME, SHIRO! FOR ONCE IN YOUR LIFE, LISTEN TO ME! HERO'S ARE ALLOWED TO MAKE MISTAKES! WHAT MAKES THEM HEROES IS WHAT THEY DO TO ATONE FOR THEM! SO, WHAT ARE YOU GONNA DO?! ARE YOU JUST GOING TO STAND THERE AND TAKE THIS?! ACCEPT WHAT YOU'VE DONE! STAND TALL! AND KEEP WALKING FORWARD DOWN YOUR PATH! IF NOT FOR YOURSELF, THEN FOR EVERYONE ELSE WHO LOVES AND BELIEVES IN YOU! PIDGE, HUNK, LANCE, KEITH, ALLURA!
YOU'RE A HERO BECAUSE WE ALL BELIEVE IN YOU!
[He'd say more, but his shadow has clamped a hand tightly over his mouth, smashing the back of his head against the stone.]
That's enough out of you. You really think your little speech will reach him? You really think the words of that old man mean anything to anyone else other than you? You're a dreamer. Nothing more. And no one in this universe knows that better than we do.
Well, Dromas likely knows...it's probably why he's so disappointed in you...
[The sneer returns to his shadow's face as he starts to twist Darin's head, Darin's neck bulging as he tries to resist.]
Now...be a good little failure and break...