Brutus & Odin, bonding, for penfold_x

[lorata]

I'm not sure whether to put this one on AO3 or not -- might be too self-indulgent? IDK? What do you guys think? I'd say I'm worried about clogging the tag again but lololol half the Brutus tag is me, so.

Comments

[lorata]

There's that bit in Sherlock S1 where Moriarty says "Carl laughed at me, so I stopped him laughing" and it's super chilling and creepy and later I was like ....... yeah that's totally a thing baby Careers say. Claudius has pretty much had that exact experience, so I threw it in here with Brutus as well.

YOU KNOW THEY WANTED BRUTUS TO HAVE A DUMB HOOK-HAND.

Brutus and his rocks is my favourite indulgent thing ever.

Also Brutus not wanting to take his meds makes me laugh because in one of the AUs when he's Loki's mentor for a short short time, Loki does the same thing to him. Loki thinks Brutus doesn't know but Brutus is like ....... ah fuck kid, c'mon.

Am I a terrible person for laughing at this? :x

IT'S OKAY I FEEL BAD. It's a standard thing mentors say to their kids, so the first time I just put it in because of course Odin would say that, and then I was like ....... oh yeesh.

[xanify]

Mentor bonding!!!

Daw, Brutus. Poor kid. OF COURSE he thinks he should be able to just bounce back after a few weeks, and when Odin goes "I took my meds for six months" he's like ha no, and it takes a dislocated shoulder to get his attention.

Odin's actually a good mentor when he's not banging his victor, eh?

[lorata]

Odin's actually a good mentor when he's not banging his victor, eh?

laughing out loud so hard i scared the cat

[penfold_x]

The trainers used to tell them so. Pain meant they were doing it right.

Oooooh. I know I said it when you first posted but, oh, Brutus.

the lines of his face rearranging as though a mountainside decided to get up and walk away.

This description is still amazing. I want to be you when I grow up.

They wanted to cut it off and give you a hook instead, something terrifying.

Your ability to get into the Capitol mind is amazing! So sick and out of left field, but of course they did

The rich, heady scent of Two. Of victory. The geode pokes him in the elbow, a reminder, as he tears the roll to pieces and eats.

bb!Brutus cuddling his rock=new favorite thing. Also, that Odin brings him to eat what he had in the Arena, that it's still that symbol for him, is fantastic.

He's dropped at least twenty pounds since the Arena, and he feels the loss as though they did take his hand.

Ohh, yes, I can see how Brutus would feel.... insecure? incomplete? being in such comparatively 'weak' shape.

like striking a chisel into a flaw in a slab of

[lorata]

I should probably be afraid at how easy it is for me to think of creepy-ass Capitol things, but uh...???

I'M GLAD THIS WORKED OUT, I had a lot of trouble getting Brutus to talk because he was like, I AM THE LONE ISLE OF BRUTUS, EVERYTHING IS FINE AND I NEED NO ONE. In the married AU I can just ask Frigga, but I was SOL here. XD

[penfold_x]

Oh, and yes, this should be on AO3--it's a canon-based character study, exploring his background, and it's very accessible. It's not the least self-indulgent.

[lorata]

Yeah, I'll put it up tomorrow when I get to work, as that's a more reasonable time zone for most people. XD Thank you for the vote! :)

[marble_sharp]

I love this. Your D2 victors are becoming my adoptive headcanon. I haven't thought about the Careers/Career districts this extensively so I really admire/appreciate the thought you put into them. Though it is my personal headcanon that Brutus was in the 'desert with only maces' arena. I think that's the same here, right?

Brutus and Odin are written so well (and so Two-ish, I just?? <3) but in a sympathetic manner that doesn't excuse them or criminalize them but portrays them as real people. As it should be, imo.

Amazing work!!

[lorata]

I love the Careers. >> And I don't feel bad dedicating all my time to them because almost no one does, y'know?

For me the all maces year was his girl Petra, actually! In mine Brutus had a wasteland with no cover and very little food in the Cornucopia, but there were other weapons in it.

I really like writing Twos because yeah, they're people, and I try neither to condone nor condemn (my general rule about writing people who make terrible decisions is "explain, not excuse") but I do think that they do try to be good. It's just that their barometer is skewed.

[marble_sharp]

Totally understand that. I mean, I have no need to write Everlark or Finnick-centric or Finnick/Annie because fandom covers them so much, and sometimes so well. But then there's Haymitch. ;)

Aw, right, I remember that. Either way, it was an arena where being a Career was an even bigger advantage.

[lorata]

Hah yeah see, exactly. (Hilariously almost all my HGs-friends love Haymitch and write him constantly, so for ages I honestly thought he was a fan-favourite. Then I ventured outside my bubble and OH NO)

Yeah, I've only written Brutus' Arena from his mom's POV, but the way she saw it, the middle urbanized-district kids were pretty much dead from the get-go based on the environment, and anyone who didn't have the means to work a sponsor angle would starve, so. It meant he had a higher chance than a lot of others, so she was tentatively hopeful.