2019-11-11 [DMFA #1954] - Time for a scene

[MT Hazard]

"Don't mention Hizell in front of Cyra, Okay?"

That was all Arry needed to say, in all the time she knew this meeting was coming. That one sentence would have done it. She's admitted that she knows that Dan doesn't always pay attention and is very new to cubi history, politics and culture. Yet, knowing all of this, she is still blaming him.

I expect the next line to come from Cyra.

"Please stop manhandling my grandson"

[Tapewolf]

You've also got the fact that this was 7000 years ago.  Cyra has broached the subject of her clan being massacred already, in p.1215.  While she has no reason to be happy about the situation, time heals a lot of wounds - or at least scars them over - and she's had several generations worth of time to take the edge off it.  Dan has been deliberately kept in the dark by his mother, and to an extent even by Cyra herself (p.1003) so he has basically no way of knowing that this would trigger her in the literal sense.

While it is true that Dan could have made a study of history at SAIA, Furrae's recorded history goes back about 25 times our own, so without some kind of guidance it would be like finding a needle in a haystack.  That said, reading Destania's book might not have been a bad starting point.

EDIT: wait, That's not entirely true.  I forgot that Fa'Lina has actually given him a good summary of the situation regarding the fact that Hizell wiped out most of his clan...

[Kuzma Volkov]

There's also the fact that he's been hit in the head a lot. I mean all those concussions can't be good for memory.

[InhumanInterest]

He's also a former adventurer, the majority of his life has had him in a very different place regarding discussing horrible things people do.

Plus, just as a reminder, this is Dan it's hardly the first time he's made a potentially colossal misestimation of someone's feelings.

[AzureEdge]

I honestly can't remember if Dan has ever been told Hizell's name by anyone when explaining the past concerning things involving the Dragon-Cubi War. And I think even if it was ever mentioned it might have only been so in relation to Fa'Lina's Clan and/or Abel's.

[Hoodoo]

Arry's reaction makes sense - she's someone who is heavily invested in the identity and culture of the Cubi race. If mentioning the name is a strict and absolute taboo in that culture, immediate reprimand would be expected. Imagine if someone who had just learned your language started using an extreme ethnic slur in polite company without seeming to know the gravity of what they were doing. 

That said, because of her personality, that reprimand is much heavier than most would probably consider warranted. "Cyra's Children" were literally Dan's uncles, cousins, etc... Hizell is attacking his immediate friends and family right now. Aggressively chiding Dan over referencing someone trying to murder him by name seems.. crass at best.

[Rafe]

Aary is going after Dan for really, really, REALLY major insensitivity to Cyra. Yes, it was mainly through ignorance, but it was (as far as Aary sees it, anyway) the willful ignorance of not caring enough about his clan and his grandmother.

Cyra probably understands both Dan and Aary's reactions. She knows how ignorant Dan is about his family history (after all, she's the one who first filled him in on some of the horrors for which she was responsible). And she probably also appreciates Aary being sensitive to her feelings. Problem now is that this whole new situation just broadsided her, and right now, she must be consumed with what she's going to do next.

Something major is going to happen soon. And if Amber is worried enough to telegraph us with her apprehension about showing it, it looks like it will be something gut-wrenching.  I, for one, am loving every minute of this.

[Cassi-kun]

I honestly can't remember if Dan has ever been told Hizell's name by anyone when explaining the past concerning things involving the Dragon-Cubi War.

He's been willfully failing his classes from the sound of things, to me. He may not be the best student, but from the way Aary is speaking it sounds like he's taking classes that should have clued him in on the most basic details of the war if he had only bothered to pay attention.

[Tapewolf]

I honestly can't remember if Dan has ever been told Hizell's name by anyone when explaining the past concerning things involving the Dragon-Cubi War.

He's been willfully failing his classes from the sound of things, to me. He may not be the best student, but from the way Aary is speaking it sounds like he's taking classes that should have clued him in on the most basic details of the war if he had only bothered to pay attention.

He was name-dropped on page 1586.  As for willfully failing his classes, that's probably overstating it.  However, the necessity of paying attention has not yet been drummed into him - remember, he was browbeaten into attending the academy at all.  The event which made him finally go for it was relating to his powers taking him over, so he's naturally going to focus on that side of things.  It's only within the last few days that he's been made aware that he's in any real danger regarding his clan's history.

Something major is going to happen soon. And if Amber is worried enough to telegraph us with her apprehension about showing it, it looks like it will be something gut-wrenching.  I, for one, am loving every minute of this.

That may be.  Hope it doesn't ruin the convention for me!  That said, DMFA is (or was) nominally rated PG so we'll see what we'll see.

[Nightmask]

While he does seem to have crossed into the realm of malicious ignorance (he certainly says things pretty offhandedly regarding what happened to Abel) he's grown up like an average being, completely isolated from his roots.  He has no actual concept of clan or extended family to feel any emotional connection to all his cousins, aunts, uncles, etc that were killed during the Dragon-Cubi War.  They're just a story to him without any real meaning to him.  He also seems to spend way too much time drifting through life in general, when someone says he may have taken too many hits to the head it almost makes sense as he's almost like Goku.

[Akisohida]

...Anyone else imagine Dan's head making a *bobble, wobble, bobble* sound while Aary shakes it?

[ProfesseurRenard]

...Anyone else imagine Dan's head making a *bobble, wobble, bobble* sound while Aary shakes it?

What, like 2D's head here?: https://youtu.be/gQpvb2oc2B4

[Tuyu]

Ayda no...

I've been reading the comic a while; I've paid attention during all the bits where stuff was explained to Dan, as much as possible (allowing for the times when the dialogue degenerated to 'blah blah blah' or the dialogue balloon turned into background).

And my reaction to Dan's namedrop was NOT "(facepalm) Dan, you should've broached the subject a little more delicately".

Yes, he could have, but doing so wasn't my first thought either. The only real way to measure whether this is a big oops is by Cyra's response.

I wonder whether there's more reasons for Aary's reaction, like, "I am TRYING to create a good first impression of my clan and YOU'RE RUINING IT!"

[Dracologist]

Something I don't understand.  Mabs has always had a very specific ooc design for her character.  Some lady artist with a paige style haircut (or something).  But lately it's turned into a bald stick figure in a turtleneck sweater.  Is there a reason for this change?

[The One Guy]

Something I don't understand.  Mabs has always had a very specific ooc design for her character.  Some lady artist with a paige style haircut (or something).  But lately it's turned into a bald stick figure in a turtleneck sweater.  Is there a reason for this change?

I just answered this in a different thread yesterday, but I'm pretty sure it has to do with Amber coming out as agender (see here).

[Cassi-kun]

He has no actual concept of clan or extended family to feel any emotional connection to all his cousins, aunts, uncles, etc that were killed during the Dragon-Cubi War.  They're just a story to him without any real meaning to him.

And even his own parents aren't the highest priority it seems. While he did go to Biggs, and later Fa'Lina, for info on Dee, and Taun apparently has some sort of information on Edward, Dan hasn't shown much initiative in finding them since then.

[PhycoKrusk]

He was name-dropped on page 1586.  As for willfully failing his classes, that's probably overstating it.  However, the necessity of paying attention has not yet been drummed into him - remember, he was browbeaten into attending the academy at all.  The event which made him finally go for it was relating to his powers taking him over, so he's naturally going to focus on that side of things.  It's only within the last few days that he's been made aware that he's in any real danger regarding his clan's history.

This makes sense and is understandable. After all, most of his "secondary schooling" was almost certainly as an adventurer. Venturing out into the world, putting your life on the line beating up dangerous creatures is about as blue collar as you can get, and that colors your perception of things. So far, Dan's only real interest in attending the academy is to learn things that he sees as immediately and profoundly useful, such as controlling his abilities. History, while interesting, isn't all that practical outside of an academic setting. It certainly isn't going to put food on the table, as it were, so it's naturally a low priority for him because he can't apply it like he can apply swordsmanship.

And even his own parents aren't the highest priority it seems. While he did go to Biggs, and later Fa'Lina, for info on Dee, and Taun apparently has some sort of information on Edward, Dan hasn't shown much initiative in finding them since then.

The sense I've gotten is that Edward disappeared when Dan was still quite young. He's had time to deal with that and then move on, and he hasn't been on an epic quest for years to find him, so it may just be lower priority with everything else going on. It's even likely that he's been living under the assumption that Edward has been dead for a while, and so it isn't terribly important.

Destania, meanwhile, he can find anytime he wants to; he knows exactly where she's hanging out. He just probably hasn't wanted to, and likely won't until he figures out how to reconcile his memory of her as his mother, with the fact that she's a psychopath (even by the standards of other Cubi).

[Tuyu]

Destania, meanwhile, he can find anytime he wants to; he knows exactly where she's hanging out. He just probably hasn't wanted to, and likely won't until he figures out how to reconcile his memory of her as his mother, with the fact that she's a psychopath (even by the standards of other Cubi).

Alexsi knows. If she  ever told Dan, we didn't see it in the comic.

[ZacAttac21]

Destania, meanwhile, he can find anytime he wants to; he knows exactly where she's hanging out. He just probably hasn't wanted to, and likely won't until he figures out how to reconcile his memory of her as his mother, with the fact that she's a psychopath (even by the standards of other Cubi).

Alexsi knows. If she  ever told Dan, we didn't see it in the comic.

He knows. He went straight to Biggs after he found out about the horrible things she did at SAIA, remember?

[techmaster-glitch]

Quoting myself;

Okay, I'm...actually with Dan on this one. I don't get it, what did Dan say that he shouldn't have?  I mean, Cyra needed to be brought up to speed on that at -some- point...

Ohhhkay, with Aary's explanation here, I mostly get it now.

[Kazy]

Hasn't Dan only been at SAIA for a literal month? And it's also been less than a year (if not half a year) since he even found out he was part Cubi. I don't think Aary's got much ground here.