[Fireheart doesn't feel great about that answer, but Bigby does have a point. And he does have to admit, begrudgingly, that he doesn't have that much experience with leaders other than Ribombee. He loved living under Bluestar, but for all he knows she might have had her own selfish habits. It's not like he knew her very well.]
...I guess you're right. I should... ask him, the next time I get a chance.
[If nothing else, he's pretty confident that Ribombee will listen to him. And maybe, at the same time, he can broach the subject of why Flowey is getting ignored.
He really hopes it doesn't mean Ribombee was taking his side when he and Flowey were fighting.]
Can I ask you something? You had a leader where you're from, right?
[ It's something at least. Not like Bigby can do much himself when he's not even in Cheri to begin with. He'll just have to ask how that eventually goes. ]
... Mm. [ He's not entirely opposed to talking about Fabletown politics at a high level, but he's not exactly comfortable with it either. ] Yeah, I do. A mayor, technically. What about him?
I just want to know what he's like. Akechi mentioned politicians can be... two-faced. Saying whatever they need to say to keep their voters happy.
[He's still a little shaken by the mental image of Akechi's human form. Fireheart doesn't quite have the context to understand an empty smile, but he knows he found Akechi's face very unsettling, and he doesn't think that's just because he's a human.]
[ The lack of nuance there gets a small, amused huff. Unsurprising, given Akechi's take on electing Umbreon. ]
A lot of them can be. Power does things to people. [ And in ways he won't speak on, he gets it. ] But the mayor is a good man. A smart man too, but most people know him for his kindness. Always cared about everyone, no matter who they were or what they did.
[ He'd leave it there, but the contrast between King Cole and Ribombee is one he can't gloss over. ]
Story goes, he made sure everyone else stayed fed during a rough patch a long time ago. Almost starved to death for it. Been the mayor ever since. [ Then, a pang of resentment. ] Doesn't mean he's perfect either though.
[Fireheart pauses, flexing his claws in the ground while he's thinking this over.]
Bluestar was like that, too. She seemed like it, at least, I didn't know her for very long. Warriors always feed the Clan before they feed themselves, and Bluestar, um... got very angry at me when we met, for hunting in their territory when I was still a housecat.
[Bluestar also allowed one of her warriors to interrupt Fireheart's apprentice ceremony and attack him, but... Fireheart doesn't know that was unusual. Surely, that's just part of it, because it's still hard to imagine that Bluestar could make mistakes.]
He’s a good person. Whether or not he's a good mayor is debatable. A lot of things happened under his not-so-careful watch that left people... [ Forgotten. Struggling. Dead. ] Anyway, when I say he isn't perfect, I have my reasons. [ He sighs, clearly not wanting to get into it. ]
Maybe things are different with cats. Maybe you just never got to see another side of her. I don't know. But if there's one takeaway I can give you, just... don't blindly follow the leaders around here without asking questions first.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
no subject
...I guess you're right. I should... ask him, the next time I get a chance.
[If nothing else, he's pretty confident that Ribombee will listen to him. And maybe, at the same time, he can broach the subject of why Flowey is getting ignored.
He really hopes it doesn't mean Ribombee was taking his side when he and Flowey were fighting.]
Can I ask you something? You had a leader where you're from, right?
no subject
... Mm. [ He's not entirely opposed to talking about Fabletown politics at a high level, but he's not exactly comfortable with it either. ] Yeah, I do. A mayor, technically. What about him?
no subject
[He's still a little shaken by the mental image of Akechi's human form. Fireheart doesn't quite have the context to understand an empty smile, but he knows he found Akechi's face very unsettling, and he doesn't think that's just because he's a human.]
no subject
A lot of them can be. Power does things to people. [ And in ways he won't speak on, he gets it. ] But the mayor is a good man. A smart man too, but most people know him for his kindness. Always cared about everyone, no matter who they were or what they did.
[ He'd leave it there, but the contrast between King Cole and Ribombee is one he can't gloss over. ]
Story goes, he made sure everyone else stayed fed during a rough patch a long time ago. Almost starved to death for it. Been the mayor ever since. [ Then, a pang of resentment. ] Doesn't mean he's perfect either though.
no subject
[Fireheart pauses, flexing his claws in the ground while he's thinking this over.]
Bluestar was like that, too. She seemed like it, at least, I didn't know her for very long. Warriors always feed the Clan before they feed themselves, and Bluestar, um... got very angry at me when we met, for hunting in their territory when I was still a housecat.
[Bluestar also allowed one of her warriors to interrupt Fireheart's apprentice ceremony and attack him, but... Fireheart doesn't know that was unusual. Surely, that's just part of it, because it's still hard to imagine that Bluestar could make mistakes.]
no subject
Maybe things are different with cats. Maybe you just never got to see another side of her. I don't know. But if there's one takeaway I can give you, just... don't blindly follow the leaders around here without asking questions first.