The observatory was quite different from her old home. Yes, indeed. The stars were so bright here, almost every one of them visible in the night sky. And that was what Thea was gazing at, a small smile on her face, the scars beneath the cub's fluffy fur just barely visible when she smiled.

It had been going on for some time now. Thea would go out, and pick fights, often losing them. Instead of her mother comforting her after the little cub came home, the shouting would start. Oh, how she hating the shouting. As Thea nursed her cuts and bruises, her mother would lecture her.

"Thea, you're strong. Win."

"You are plenty capable of defending yourself."

Her mother's parenting philosophy? That children should learn to fend for themselves at a young age. Thea still didn't understand why, to this day.

When she told the others, they told her that her mom, she wasn't right. It was okay to lose. That her mother was sick, and not fit to be a parent. That Thea would end up just like her. To smile, that it would be alright.

But it had been far too ingrained in the young cub's head for Thea to bother listening, that this was okay, and she would challenge them to a rematch. And lose. Over and over again. It was a neverending cycle. Thea would come home after a loss, the shouting began, Thea would cry as she was told to go back out, challenge them, and win. She was plenty strong. And so Thea did. And eventually, instead of crying, she began... smiling. She didn't know why. Maybe because she was told, over and over, to smile, and it would be okay. And she believed that to this day. It was how she coped, now. That, and winning.

Memories from when she was three months old flitted through the cub's mind, and the smile remained, all the same.

Beneath that cheerful, smiling face, was a completely different person, as the cub's grin grew wider and wider. Because she knew she was strong. And that because of this, she didn't need anybody to help her win.

And when Thea finally won her first fight, the smile on her face?

Her mother embraced her, tears streaming down her face. "Keep winning. Win with your own power, no matter what the cost. Not mine, not anybody else's. I'm so proud, Thea." That was her first memory of motherly affection, and something she held close to this day.

I'm so proud, Thea.

I'm so proud, Thea.

I'm so proud, Thea.

That sentence had run through her mind then, and when she killed her mother. But that was okay, because she had won that fight, right?

//basically, Thea went through psychological and emotional abuse as a very young child, and as a result, she doesn't view stuff like hurting people and killing as wrong, as long as she wins, as her mother ingrained that into her from a young age. I've never done a character with this sort of trauma before, so if I did anything wrong, please inform me.

SUITE
HEART

Suiteheart had grown up in a loving home. Things had been wonderful. She had a mother that loved her, a father that loved her, and two older siblings that adored her. Everything had been normal, good. For a long time, she hadn't believed that though. Her own twisted reality (which was a result of having her memories skewed) made her think her parents had more or less cast her aside as her violent temper tantrums grew and grew, but that wasn't the case. Her parents had loved her wholly and completely and helped her whenever they could. It was Suite that left. She had abandoned them, not the other way around.

Regardless of her childhood, she had made it her mission to help those of all backgrounds. She was a mother and sister to practically everyone. Those that didn't have homes often were able to find one within her, or so she always hoped. She did try (even if she messed up from time to time; she hated that she did that, but it wasn't something that could always be helped). She wanted to be good for those around her.

She was flicking through various mental notes she had drawn for herself when she spotted Theta. The smile on the cub's face was odd. It was too big for her features, almost forced. Then again, perhaps this grin was real. She couldn't tell; she hadn't really met Theta before... But something just seemed off.

"Hey there," the Admiral called, trotting closer, weaving a lopsided smile on her features. "I'm not sure if we've met before. I'm Suiteheart. What's your name?"

© [color=black]MADI

Snapped out of her thoughts, the young leopard cub's ears flicked, turning her head towards the unfamiliar voice. The grin was still on her face, but it quickly toned down to a more... normal smile, but still probably a bit unsettling all the same. "It's Thea! Nice to meet you, though!" She was tempted to ask if they wanted to fight, but suppressed the urge. Maybe wait until daytime. She stretched, as if waking up from a nap, and twitched her whiskers, an innocent, childlike gesture.

"The stars are so bright tonight, right? Is that why the observatory's here? And not somewhere else?" She finally mewed, tilting her head.

SUITE
HEART

The white feline allowed her own smile to remain on her lips as Thea introduced herself. "It's nice to meet you too," she returned with a nod. "How're you liking the Ascendants so far?" She made it a point to ask all the new bloods (hm, vampire pun?) this whenever she had the chance. She just wanted to make sure they were all fitting in nicely. And if they weren't, she was definitely going to work on helping them.

At the young cub's question, her eyes moved skyward. The stars were big and bright on this night. Baby blues moved instinctively towards the moon, and she thought of Cooper. "Yeah, you're right. It's always so clear here, which is something that always amazes me. I'm sure that's why that thing was built too, yeah... Back home, I never got to see the stars this much. It's a nice change, you know?" Her gaze trailed the night sky, eyes reflecting starlight. The night would always hold a special place in her heart for its sheer beauty and its peacefulness.

© [color=black]MADI

The young leopard stayed silent for a few moments, before responding, "Yeah! Everyone's really nice. But not many wanna spar. You think if I took their food or something, they'd fight me?" She tilted her head, as if seriously considering it.

"I never really noticed the stars at night. I just wanted to get stronger. Be strong enough so Mom would acknowledge me. But here, it's almost impossible to ignore them." Thea said quietly, almost as if talking to herself, but it seemed to be directed at Suiteheart, as she glanced up. "Some people said that the dead are stars. You think my mom's up there? Even though she was weak?" The Fireball turned her head towards the older female, curious. Why would you be remembered, even in the stars, if you were weak enough to die? Especially her mother, who had instilled that thinking, but ended up being weaker than Thea? Most, if not all of the Ascendents were unaware of how emotionally-stunted she was, and even Thea herself was unaware, for the most part.