The Age Up/Down Meme

[kingshaming]

Look, most of our characters have lots of backstory to take advantage of, or headcanons for their future. This is the place to use it!

Prompts

1) People are suddenly shifting ages on the good ship Teremity! It's probably space waves and will fix itself in a day or two, so enjoy reliving your mispent youth.

2) You were always this age! Nothing bad is happening and you all already know each other and it's all cute af. A fluff option.

3) You are this age... and going through your round (or a remixed version) of your Airlocked season. Not for the REALLY young age downs!

Comments

[scourgingstars]

[and some of us have headcanon that's no longer viable THANKS SQUEENIX]

[Ardyn Lucis Caelum II, age eighteen, looks not unlike Junpei, if Junpei had wine-red hair slowly edging towards shades of violet and hazel eyes that weren't quite yellow just yet. He wears the same orange scarf he always does, along with a black outfit and a silver accessory on the right side of his head that resembles a small horn or antler. He carries himself like any other confident teenager even if his speech patterns are pretty archaic; he's casual, friendly, and almost always smiling. Except when he's causing trouble. Or flirting. Then he's smirking like the coeurl that caught the chocochick.]

[If we're going the murdergame option, the Champion Healer is exactly as kind and affable--but one hundred percent serious when he needs to be, especially during trials. He doesn't take any death well at all, but consistently refuses to let anyone see him unless he's either smiling or determined. If he's beaten to organizing an afterparty himself, you can bet he's helping as much as possible and checking up on everyone.]

moider

[kingshaming]

[for being a full three years Ardyn's junior, Xander is already starting to look aged past his years. But his long gangly limbs and not quite leaned out baby face give him away. He sure TRIES to act older, always frowning and lecturing others. But occasionally he can be caught laughing or joining in on the fun- after which he always looks guilty.

During trials his mature facade breaks though, and he often can't look anyone in the eye, and he stutters through evidence, though his meticulous notekeeping has helped more then once. In fact, tonight's trial had him actually cry out and bite back tears at the execution- and flee right after. All anyone could get out of him was that 'Father would be disgusted with my conduct.' He doesn't show up at the afterparty at all. But around the time things are being cleaned up for the night he shows up, red faced and sweating, curls limp and stuck to his neck... and shocked to see anyone still up.

He stares, then turns, clearly meaning to bolt]

2

[pandorasbunny]

[Yes, technically this is a journal for Mai's hope and not actual child Mai. However, this is a meme and I do what I want.

Mai knocks on Ardyn's door and shyly looks in.]

Um... you're really good at healing stuff, right? Better than me, since you're a grownup.

Murder murder kill kill kill

[misanthropicprinciple]

[It's still so damn weird to see his younger self's almost-doppelganger traipsing around talking like ye olde timey Renfest actor, helping the others, throwing himself into the role he's chosen. Tenmyouji wants to tell him to stop before he gets hurt, turns into a bitter dried-out husk at twenty-two that even the apocalypse couldn't weather further, but he doesn't want to draw the kid's attention and turn that earnest hero bullshit on him, either. So he stays away aside from the occasional snide comment in trials or at meals. He doesn't need that particular headache.

It's after one motive announcement, though--one about futures, and hell if that's something Tenmyouji can ignore--that he finds himself unable to leave well enough alone. Maybe the others were fooled by that constantly determined energy, but he knows a faker when he sees one. So once it seems like everyone's settled down, withdrawn to their own spaces to deal with the ramifications of their Overseers' offer and how willing they are to break trust, Tenmyouji knocks on Ardyn's door with the toe of his shoe.]

Hey, kid. You in there?

1

[motherfucking_ghost]

[So the day might have started with Church sleepily yelling for Junpei to get out of his bed, and it's only gone uphill from there. Or downhill. There's a hill, and Church isn't sure where he's situated on it, but this sure is happening.]

You know I've got to get a picture. Just so older-you can see. Also because I'm pretty sure I'm not gonna believe it myself when this is fixed. Like a fever dream. Like...pretty sure I dreamed this once.

[hellostonehenge]

[new regeneration, who dis]

[Long story short and partially incorrect? Time Lord aging is WEIRD. Despite looking and acting far younger than his other self, the Doctor's PIP, if affected, will list him at the ripe old age of about 1100. His personality can best be described as something akin to a housecat with infinite catnip access who somehow frequently manages get to seemingly impossible places in ways that aren't clearly accidental or deliberate. If we're talking the murdergame option, this translates in trials to focussing on seemingly everything but the relevant evidence until he points out some critical idea or clue, usually assuming everyone else had already been aware of it.]

[He has little mercy or patience for any intentional culprits, but takes each death very hard, usually disappearing for most of any afterparties. He also has a very bad habit of trying to test the exact limits of any rules in place.]

1

[ratherdoweddings]

[La la, coming in after getting the mail when--]

Bwah! Warn people when you're playing around with the hardlights, you'll make people think there's an intruder! ...Wait, who is this?

[cyan_maid]

[Wait. Wait, hey. Who's this grandmotherly woman puttering about a space murdergame? She certainly seems rather Betty White-esque, from the sweet, unassuming exterior to the mischievous, clever interior that you just can't bring yourself to suspect until it rears its head. During the peaceful moments she bakes and makes the children - i.e., anyone younger than her - laugh and feel a lot more at home and comfortable, and she will grandmother the heck out of you if she feels you've been straining yourself, or perceives that you're incredibly upset. During the serious moments? This Jane Crocker's bones may creak, but her brain is sharp as a tack, and she observes murder scenes and takes stock of clues and can put them together with relative ease, not pleased in the least with anything that's happened but determined to get to the truth and set right what's been wronged.

She's got a funny, old-fashioned way of speaking still, and that distinct "Hoo hoo hoo!" of a laugh, so exactly how much has changed in Jane besides the addition of a several decades?

Open to all three options!]

1

[hellostonehenge]

Jane! Good.

[The Doctor is pacing around frantically, but stops and does a sort of pirouette in place as he spots Jane, approaching.]

It's me, the Doctor. Try to stay calm, but something's gone very badly wibbly wobbly. Not sure what, not sure how many people it's affecting, don't know how to fix it. Ignore that last part. We need to find everyone and get them together, take stock of everyone affected.

[He takes a couple short steps back and forth before turning back to her.]

There's something I'm missing, I know it. Something big, staring me right in the face, you ever get that feeling?

2

[misanthropicprinciple]

[Was.

Was that a bucket of water that just fell on Tenmyouji's head as he opened the door to the kitchen?

It takes the old man a moment to truly register what Just Happened, but once he does, the fire rises to his face. If this were a cartoon, steam should be rising out of his soaked clothes. He clenches a fist and yells with the cantankerousness of a thousand grouchy grandpas:]

Who the hell thinks this is funny? I'll kill you!

1

[kingshaming]

[It doesn't take long for Jane to end up with a seven year old tag along. He doesn't exactly remember her- and maybe it's a kindness he only remembers their time in the space station as a foggy 'I know these people' and not any details. But he does find her familiar enough to feel safe with. Maybe he thinks she's one of his nursemaids? Still, for now the curly haired moppet is content to follow her around, softly telling her about his new baby brother and other such things. He is still a year from his mother's death. A full three from knowing Corrin. He is, for a small bit longer, happy.]

1

[refusedtoleave]

[This one definitely wasn't here earlier. Or was she?

Either way she’s wandered into the kitchen, or whatever counts as one here. She’s going to very badly stealthy sneak in. And looking at the cupboards.

She gives the door a tug open. Then she looks to Jane. It’s a bit late to ask for permission now and a part of her is telling her it’s fine, she doesn’t have to ask. But mother would be upset if she didn’t behave. Wouldn’t she? ]

[misanthropicprinciple]

[Welcome to crotchety grandpa town. While Tenmyouji, as he introduces himself, doesn't seem like a bad person per se--that is, he's not cruel for cruelty's sake and has no plans for world domination--he's definitely an asshole. He wastes no time on sympathy or trust--not unless someone's a child in need. Then he's got a softer side, buried as it is under layers of gruff garbage.

The man is sharp but too quick to anger, which often clouds his otherwise decent powers of observation and character judgment. Those who can withstand his bitterness and acid tongue long enough will find that he has a goofy sense of humor and a more generous nature than he projects. At times he may be found looking at a picture of one of two children.

As the Champion of Salvage, he's a keen investigator but not necessarily the greatest at putting things together. It makes sense, given how much he pushes other Champions away--he just doesn't know people as well as he should. He does, however, attend afterparties, and if he survives to later rounds, he may even hand-deliver root beer floats to those who look like they need it. If that doesn't do the trick, he may have a rough word of grandfatherly wisdom to share. He has, after all, been through this before.]

[refusedtoleave]

[The 19 year old just excepts the crankiness….Mostly. There might be a few mean things written about him in a notebook.

But Natsuhi was raised to respect her elders. And he’s very much older.

Not that it really matters at the moment. Cause she's the one who found the dead person this week and fainted for the investigation. She does sheepishly join the after party though, even if she doesn’t do much there other than watch people.]

[serrata]

[ ... So, Yuuri doesn't really look all that different at twenty six. She holds herself differently, her eyes are darker and sharper but for the most part she really does look like the same old Yuuri.

Similarly, the Champion Survivalist as she's now known doesn't really seem all that different on the surface. She's as quick to smile and big sister everyone as ever but the keyword there is 'surface'. Somehow, she'll always effortlessly navigate past personal questions and despite how kind she is, she doesn't actually seem particularly close to anyone.

Then trials start happening. And the gloves come off.

There's no tears or sympathy. Just shocking ruthlessness and ice cold practicality. She's a good asset during investigations and she's not too bad during trials but it's all still a little bit terrifying.

And then without missing a beat, she'll be back to smiles and big sistering at the afterparty. Jesus Christ, Yuuri. ]

[tasteslikesurvival]

[Champion Hermit. It's got to be a joke, Kurumi thought until she realized Yuuri was among the group she's in. Then she knows why the Overseers chose it. The idiots.

Kurumi vanished... well, she can't remember how long ago. Must have been at least a year but she's sure there's been more time in between that. It's hard when you can't tell night and day apart much, let alone seasons or years. She had left for their own good. This time Yuki didn't find her to bring her back. After that, well, Kurumi didn't remember much.

She's a little leaner than before but her easy-going manner didn't seem to change until she sees Yuuri.]

Shit...

[She doesn't run, though. In fact, she doesn't even seem to see Yuuri all that well, instead responding more to her voice than anything else.] Didn't think we'd meet again.

[misanthropicprinciple]

[The Champion Action Hero is twelve years old.

At this age, he's rowdy and rude and fiercely against being 'babied,' even though he's by far the youngest of the captive Champions. Like any kid might be, he's unreasonably proud of a title like Champion Action Hero and thinks it makes him invincible. Happily, this hasn't gotten him into trouble yet.

Unhappily, trouble is never far in a life-and-death game.

The other Champions manage to keep Junpei away from the body of the first victim while they make their investigation, but none of them are prepared for what happens once they find the culprit. Junpei gets the same unimpeded view of the execution as everyone else--stares as Prince Xander's ripped to shreds by robot dragons.

His knees wobble, then give out entirely when he tries to step back, dropping him numbly onto his butt, and his mouth is open but he can't make a sound.]

[scourgingstars]

[The Survivalist and Healer weren't so different, when it came down to it. Ardyn was just as sharp in trials, though perhaps holding far more sympathy for the accidental or hesitant culprits. But once it was all over, he was one hundred percent smiles and determined compassion, helping in the kitchen as much as he was capable.]

Lady Wakasa, I left everyone the adequate invitations. How else might I be of assistance to you?

[daughterofthemark]

[Arianna has made it her mission to be the one to get close to Yuuri. At first it was just because she totally wanted to hit that. Then P.A.L. took over, and it started also being about how befriending the Champion Survivalist seems like an obvious good idea. But after their first trial, she's come up with a third reason, one that's far more important than the others: she wants to befriend Yuuri for Yuuri's sake, because being that detached can't be good for anyone.

That's why one morning, after getting up early to exercise skills she hasn't used in years and wasting a lot of ingredients, the Champion Negotiator knocks on Yuuri's door, carrying a tray full of food.]

[motherfucking_ghost]

[Church does not respond to Church because his name is not Church. His name is Alpha. He is two years old. He is not where he's supposed to be, which might be a good thing, because when all this starts, he's in a panic, asking desperately for the Director or the Counselor.

When he does finally get calmed down, when he settles into the idea of having a body of his own and that this isn't a test, or a mission, or even if it is it's not one of the usual ones, there are still bits of Church in there. He's still snarky and sarcastic, still got flares of anger, but he's smarter, wiser. Outwardly he seems kinder and less prone to acting like a total jackass. But it also takes him longer to get used to living in a human shell. Physical needs are bullshit.

If we're murdergaming specifically, the Champion of Project Freelancer is very reactive during deaths and executions, but less so during trials where he's actually, for once, pretty good at putting things together. When he does react, it's more with grief than anger. And he wants to help. He might be smarter than thou, but he's here to assist. It's what he was made for.]

[misanthropicprinciple]

[There's a kid around who's taken it upon himself to help Alpha get used to his fleshy new digs. After all, who knows the struggle of developing motor functions quite so well as a child? Of course, at twelve years old, Junpei's long mastered basic hand-eye coordination, but he's got tons of kinetic energy to spend and all of it can be put towards teaching a computer thing about jumping in pools.]

You're not gonna short-circuit, right? You're all the way human now?

[He's insisted Alpha put water wings on anyway, but those won't save him from drowning if he shorts out as soon as he jumps in the pool.]

shirou emiya | fate/stay night

[peopledieifkilled]

[ You get two options here: the first being that there's a twelve year old child roaming around; he's pretty short but has a rather strong sense of justice to the point where, if we're going the murdergame option, he'll be known as the Champion of Justice. Even though he doesn't agree with the so-called 'game' that they're playing, and while he's rather mature for his age due to the fact that he was left alone a good amount of the time while his adoptive father left the house to do "certain things".

Nevertheless, the young boy doesn't seem to falter until he sees the dead bodies; something that causes him to freeze up and flashback to the time when he saw them all laying on the floor surrounded in flames. It's scary enough to make his face turn as pale as a sheet.

But that won't deter him from solving the murders, but he seems rather disgusted at the trials and he definitely watches the executions, not because he enjoys it, but so that he can make sure he doesn't forget that this is what they're all going through. He'll be attending the afterparties, trying to reassure everyone that things are going to turn out alright in the end.

Option number two brings you an older Emiya Shirou in his early twenties - he's decisively a little taller, rounding out at 187cm (6'1") and luckily (?) for most of you, the default outfit that he comes with seems to not cover much of his chest. In the murdergame setting, he's known as the Champion of Sakura instead of the Champion of Swords that he used to be; it's hilariously fitting, considering that Sakura is on his likes.

Even though he's more chill than he was during his round of Airlocked!, that's mostly due to the fact that he's not heralding the title of 'ally of justice' anymore, nor does he have as much of an obsession with swords as before. Those are replaced with the people he loves and cares about, although that isn't to say that he isn't still fascinated with the object. He's not much of a people person, although he'll still help as necessary, whether it be in the kitchen or fixing things up.

He can at least do the minimum of his magic - projecting swords, utilizing structural grasp magecraft and reinforcement. But no Unlimited Blade Works here until there's a motive relative to that.

During murders, however, he's still taken aback to the point where it almost freezes him up - but it's only for a flicker of a second before he turns serious. He won't be going near the body since he's not good with that, but he'll help immensely with the investigations and speak up at the trials as necessary. In terms of afterparties, Shirou attends them, but he doesn't really do much there unless there's someone he's relatively close to and is worried about, just to check up on them. That's the important part, after all. ]

[refusedtoleave]

1. Space waves! The silly babby option
[It’d be easy to think you’d picked up a tag along. If it weren’t for the pip covering the small girl’s left forearm. That and Natsuhi’s absence, with the girl looking over when the name is said.

She doesn’t say anything. Except maybe a shy hello. It’s not polite to bother adults when they’re busy. Or touch things that aren’t yours, or run inside, or stare at people… There are so many things she’s been told to do, and she obediently follows those rules.

Unless there’s no one watching…

She can’t get told off if they don’t see it. Not that she really thinks it through. You’ll probably hear the rapid footsteps. Or notice her looking away with a blush if you turn to her…]

3. Murdergame time
[And in another world, there’s the Champion Miko. Whose absolutely baffled by her profile. ‘That’s not my last name… ‘Why is Father in the dislike section? I’m still in school…’ Most of her profile gets dismissed as wrong.

Overall she’s just a normal teenager. One with a tendency to fret and make a fuss over the smallest things. Who might be a little bit clumsy and naive enough to take anyone at face value. There is a vicious temper hidden away but it’s easy enough to tell when she’s about to start yelling.

The predictability soon disappears. The more she remembers, the tenser she gets and the more everything is met with distrust and a glare. Even minor annoyances get her ire and that temper is so much easier to set off. She’s not easy to talk to anymore and it might take some effort if you want to try?]]

[windowdressing]

[ 1 ]

[ At twelve, Rideaux is small and gaunt and a little disheveled, with dull eyes and raggedy clothes. Regardless of what's going on, he's wary and on edge. And he might be trying to steal whatever food he can pocket from the kitchen when he thinks no one's looking.

Look, he's got to eat to live, and he's got to steal to eat. He'll tell you all about it when he's got the time. ]


[ 3 ]

[ Well, he sure is going to pretend to be traumatized by that corpse over there so you'll feel inclined to protect him. And. You know, not suspect him of making that corpse happen or anything. ]

[daughterofthemark]

[Meet Arianna of Caledonia, the Champion Negotiator. Age: 27. Occupation: Duchess of Caledonia. Married to a foreign prince for political reasons, hasn't let that stop her. Generally much more cynical than the usual Arianna, yet she's even more certain that if they can just trust each other and work together they'll all be able to go home alive. Then again, she's rarely seen without the rapier she got out of the dumbwaiter early on (blunted, but still dangerous in the right hands). Still upset by every death, but rarely hesitates to vote.

Also, she seems to have a much better grasp of modern and futuristic technology. So that's weird.]