Cesare thinks Sarah is pretty legit. He doesn't know anything really personal about her but he likes what he does. He appreciated the ready offer to help him with the shitcar, both for driving and for trying to figure out what happened to it. He'll keep her number just in case. She's much more relaxed than Alison and he's pretty sure she'd help him get the keys back if Alison ever takes them from him >(
Younger Cesare likes Sarah a lot. He is very interested in mother figures and she's different enough from what he's used to that he's very very curious. He would have liked to have met Kira. He always wants to hear more about her experiences, especially as a child, and her daughter and is comfortable enough to keep asking. He likes having her attention and he likes that she's willing to engage with him.
Honestly Cesare likes Harley more now that Juan is going to ~make an honest woman out of her~ because she's like partially family now kind of and he has to operate under the assumption that she's a permanent fixture. Especially since she's taking Juan to her world NO TAKE BACKSIES. He finally made his peace with it, a deal is a deal, etc. Also because now there's less drama so he can appreciate her good qualities, like that (as was pointed out to him) she doesn't make him walk the hyenas.
Also Juan really likes her and the feeling appears to be mutual. So. He'll be less of a dick ar least until Canada is out of the honeymoon period.
I mentioned this before but part of the reason Cesae likes Rakushun is just that he's been around forever. It's nice to know a guy you can talk about books and compare government systems with, just because. I imagine they bump into one another at the library and compare notes on what they are taking out or returning. It's very laid back.
I'm on the way to the movies so I will do this later but I noticed this morning that Yusuke is four inches taller than Cesare and I wasnt in a place where I could laugh and omg it was so hard I was dying behind my hand
They have to readjust the driver's seat that is how big a difference that is
Look honestly, I don't know how long it has been since Cesare has had a friend on the same level. He has had friends in Camp (like Pell or Natsumi)! He has people in Camp that he really truly loves and cares about and is friends with (like Alvis)! He has people that he likes to fuck off with and makes a point of bothering (like Hamel)! Now that it has been established that, yes, he actually does form attachments to people and is much better at being social just for the sake of being social than he was when he first arrived, he still really isn't used to the whole being friends thing. Ask Alvis, he adores her and they've still had several moments when she actually needed to make him confirm that, yes, they are friends and he honestly cares about her because he's so used to doing things for other reasons that he'll rationalize it away unless he's forced to admit it. Cesare really likes Yusuke. He actively wants to be friends. And he's been trying (ever since he aged back up and we started having stupid long threads) to approach it as a normal person would, which is to say just being like "hey, you're cool, let's hang out" instead of trying to find some ulterior motive or just generally keeping the other person at a slight distance (at least until they force him to cut it out). It's a leap of faith that he's not used to and honestly not comfortable with.
That said, they click really well and if they didn't he wouldn't have made himself vulnerable in the first place. He's been consciously doing things throughout their threads to disrupt the balance of power he usually tries to maintain, such as letting himself be disarmed or get hammered or admitting to things that he generally keeps more on the down low. Each time he presents the opportunity to be hurt, physically or otherwise, and there's no negative repercussions he's more willing to try it again. He's said things that he pointblank refuses to admit to under most circumstances, at least not still in the "hey let's generally get to know one another" phase, and Yusuke's just rolled with it. It's actually a super healthy relationship for him? Cesare's trying really hard. And having a lot of fun, or he wouldn't keep coming back. He missed having someone he could be such an unrepentant dick to, and Yusuke can take it as well as dish it out so!
I don't know I probably have more to say but you go now and if I can think of anything I'll add it in. I'm just super thrilled about their stupid stupid precious CR.
Before Cesare deaged, it wasn't that Yusuke actively disliked him or anything (catty acquaintances!!) but meeting a younger Cesare completely tipped the scales. DESPITE APPEARANCES Yusuke really likes kids! Sometimes he leans toward the hard knocks tough love school of childsitting, but he's also totally game to goof around and let them have fun, especially if he knows they're not used to being able to. Running around with Cesare hit all those high points + the added bonus of FIGHTIN'. Yusuke walked away thinking of Cesare as a Good Kid, and when he realized it was That One Guy he'd already had more than a few conversations with, Cesare instantly went from neutral to "oh yeah alright, we're bros now. SWEET." And it's just gotten better from there. /o/ Getting on Yusuke's good side is easier than it seems, but that doesn't mean that he'll automatically get into everything that he and Cesare have talked about. They click really well and Cesare is a combination of a lot of traits Yusuke's dealt with before in a few of his friends, just all rolled into one, which means THE POSSIBILITIES ARE ENDLESS. Dumb sparring? Car racing? DEFINITELY. Chill contemplations on how people are kinda shitty? Touching on daddy issues? SURE. Yusuke's not an especially secretive person, but it takes the right kind of timing and mood for him to really talk about some things in depth, and Cesare's good at setting the stage for that. It helps that Yusuke knows he's interested and he won't really have to worry about justifying himself. There's no pity there, either, which is important. Yusuke's gotten close to Jade in camp, and they've sort of touched on the same topics, but her reaction tends to be much more sympathetic and touchy-feely and that's not what he wants or needs. He knows Cesare won't try to pull that shit with him, which means that in the future he might bring up some things he hasn't really voiced before because he knows they're kind of off-putting (what it means to be Human! demon cannibalism! WHO KNOWS WHAT ELSE).
In terms of power differences, it's kind of an interesting dynamic! In terms of smarts, Cesare is so out of Yusuke's league it's not even funny--but let's be real. Yusuke can bust out some impressive strategy during fights, but he knows he'll never be the smartest one in the room, so even if he makes fun of Cesare for it sometimes it doesn't actually bother him. And Cesare can just as easily be a dumb macho teenage boy (Yusuke's sweet spot!) and they can bicker and push each other around and then transition right into chilling and none of it feels forced or unnatural. I GUESS I'M SAYING CESARE IS THE TOTAL PACKAGE except for the fact that he can't actually take Yusuke in a fight, but not many people can and it's not really something he thinks about. Cesare likes tussling and wants to watch MMA with him (AND YUSUKE LOVES MMA TOURNAMENTS, the nerd) and that's almost even better.
For someone who basically didn't have any friends up until two/two and a half years ago (as of the time he came to camp), Yusuke's surprisingly comfortable with hanging out/talkin' about life/all the things that come with getting close to someone, but he's also kind of a loud dick and it's nice that there's a balance here! Cesare alternately brings out his douchebro punk side and his more laid back one. He doesn't feel like he needs to puff up and get defensive, but Cesare can also be kind of a dick so Yusuke doesn't feel like he needs to be on his best behavior, either. They've quickly fallen into a really comfortable groove and even Yusuke recognizes how nice it is. As much as he hates the idea of being stuck in camp, the fact that he's found someone that hits all the friendship high notes in one person (and who's been here long enough to provide some perspective) really helps him cope with days where the whole situation just grates. Because he spent a long time as a Typical Pissed Off Teenage Loner Against the World, Yusuke tends to be really protective of the friends he's made since then. He's not going to try to make anyone sit in a locked room somewhere to keep them safe from THE BULLSHIT OF CAMP, but there have been a few times with Cesare where a situation has raised his hackles and he's reacted more strongly than a normal person would (see: why he spent most of the amnesia thread in a huge funk). If Cesare had beef with anyone or got into a situation where he'd need it, Yusuke would be there to smash some heads together in a second.
BASICALLY WHAT I'M TRYING TO SAY is that being friends with Yusuke is like owning the world's worst trained but hella loyal (and secretly cuddly) pit bull. ENJOY.
I don't know where this is going anymore but I love how they've both gotten to the point where they casually mention each other to people and just generally have each other's backs when it comes to things like "yo ava said this thing about you" and "hey did you know alison hates your guts" etc etc etc. Trusting that it won't hurt their feelings and they won't run off and do something stupid (probably), but also knowing they'd want to know. When it comes to the Ava thing, Yusuke really doesn't care if she and Cesare get along, and he has zero expectations about it! He just knew Cesare would give him the real story. :|b If he finds out Cesare was trying to play nice he might make fun of him for being a softie but DEEP DOWN he'd feel kind of touched.
AND YEAH. Holy shit this got long. I HAVE MORE TO SAY PROBABLY if you have anything to add or any specific questions let's do this
I am not sure what it says about them that they both secretly have a soft spot for kids and actually enjoy playing with them, except that they could star in the worst/best book ever of the Babysitters Club.
Cesare really reacts well to Yusuke's Typical Pissed Off Teenage Loner Against the World responses to shit going down because he rebels hard against anyone trying to control him. He's had a lot of that already and when someone tries to pull it in Camp it takes a lot of work on his behalf to not have a knee-jerk reaction against it and even when he controls himself it really puts a distance between them that he has no intention to try to overcome. Because fuck you. He reacts poorly when Miguel pulls a lighter version of it and it was frankly more than deserved and also it was Miguel. He is much better with the Friendship Anger and veiled threats.
Similarly Cesare is also very protective of people he actually cares about. He and Shaun have had multiple falling outs but he still felt the responsibility to cut Yusuke off right away. What that means here is that no questions asked, Cesare will show up to help bury the metaphorical body. It takes work to really get him more than superficially on your side but once he's there he is dead loyal.
Also HA HA oh god Cesare knows he cannot do touchy-feely, he sucks at it hard as people are more than willing to tell him. He's too much up in his own head to do it right--what he thinks of as comforting most people just find kind of cold. With Yusuke he doesn't feel like he has to try. He can just say whatever his gut reaction is, which is actually probably better anyway. He doesn't want that kind of response back himself, so it's nice to not have to worry about getting it and then having to deal with the awkward situation of deflecting it. They can just speak the language of Bro and it all comes out in the wash.
Cesare knows that Yusuke is stronger than he is and it's not even a question so there's no sense in getting all weird about it. He's just a regular guy at the end of the day and he knows he's no match for like 99% of Camp. It kind of blows, and he appreciates that Yusuke is still really willing to mess around with him and... not really go easy on him but adjust so they are more on the same level. Yusuke can win, whatever. He's not a sore loser if it's a fair fight (and if he's not already in a super crappy mood going into it). Similarly, he doesn't care if Yusuke isn't on the same level as he is in terms of education and intellectual interests. He knows he's really smart and that many of the things he likes are just by default solo activities. He's fine with it. They're not things he really shared much in canon anyway, and he's not about to look down on him for not wanting to participate.
Seriously, people who actually know Cesare well ie: had to put up with his shit for years and years and years in canon would be hella shocked at how he's behaving around Yusuke. He would never get lying-on-the-floor drunk with all his pointy objects out of easy reach with someone he only recently started talking to and who he knows for a fact is like 100000x stronger than him. He's trained to pick up on danger and have like fifty back up plans in place to only be fake in that position, not real.
I actually never heard anyone not from here use the term beef in this context. I didn't realize that was a thing other places.
TELL ME MORE about stuff uh tell me about anything but also anything??
Don't hate me I had this thought and I didn't want to deal with plurk formatting so I'm adding to this.
Three things Cesare is doing when he talks to Yusuke were sticking out to me so I wanted to comment on them. The first is that he doesn't use his name a whole lot, at least much less proportionately than when he talks to other people. Cesare is very aware of language as power and tends to be very intentional with what he does with it. It's part of the reason he's so into being a polyglot He very strongly believes in reading sources in their original tongues in order to better understand them and he switches what language he's speaking in in canon for different situations and for different displays of power--he uses Spanish when giving orders or speaking to his inner circle (and an agreement to teach Angelo Spanish is a sign that he's fully accepting him), he shows off in Latin to prove his academic and intellectual credentials to people who doubt them, etc. With the translator this doesn't come up so much (although Italian is his first language and what he defaults to, which was why he was teaching Yusuke swears in it) but what does translate into Camp is his using names to assert authority. Cesare insists on calling adults and other supposed authority figures by their first names specifically because he wants to make it clear that they're on the same level and half the time his calling them that in conversation is a subtle reminder of such. He does similar things with other people, such as to establish closeness (he tends to use a name in or immediately before a request or similar). He doesn't use Yusuke's name often because he doesn't feel like he has to.
The second thing is that Cesare is talking much more casually and using more slang than he normally does. This is partially a carry over from him learning Yusuke's Japanese and adapting how he had been speaking to match it. It's also him just being comfortable around him and letting his guard down. He's very relaxed and his language reflects that. He really really enjoys having inside jokes with him ("shit outta luck," etc) although he wouldn't admit that. It's not something he's ever had before.
Lastly, Cesare's mentioned several times now that he trusts him, usually kind of as a one off half-joke. He means it very seriously and it's important to him that Yusuke understands that. For him, trust is hard won and a very serious matter. To tell someone he trusts them is basically the highest complement he could give them--it has a lot of other things wrapped up in it, it means he thinks they are loyal and competent (which for the record is the other highest complement) and that he will honor that bond regardless of what it takes. It's not easy to get Cesare really seriously on your side but once he is there he's there 100%. Cesare is really big on the whole blood brother sort of concept. He has ridiculous standards and he can be a complete jerk, even to people who are depending on him, but ultimately he is fiercely loyal to his people. Yusuke is now part of that circle.
But then I was thinking about that third point and it occurred to me that if someone in Camp were to ask Cesare what he was thinking hanging out with Yusuke and generally being such a dumbass and threatening his reputation and safety and etc etc etc he would basically tell them Yusuke is his friend and to fuck off. That said, if someone he was close to from canon (not even necessarily at the level of his father, but like for example his tutor) were to ask him the same question he would probably automatically revert and tell them that it's not a big deal and that they need to understand that if he spends time with Yusuke and lets him think they are friends then he winds up with the greatest guard dog Camp has to offer, so the benefits clearly outweigh the risks. He'd just feel really guilty about it afterwards (which is still growth in and of itself, so).
OKAY HERE IT COMES. Something that's interesting to me is where Cesare and Yusuke can be really, really different—like the name thing, for example. Yusuke spends a lot of time calling his (louder, more macho and/or naggy) friends things like asshole/bastard/ETC, but he also uses real names a lot. He might call them names behind their backs but at the end of the day goddamn does he love his friends, and that's one of the ways it comes out. (AS A RANDOM SIDENOTE he doesn't really care enough about the giant linguistic melting pot that is camp and tends to just sort of barrel through with what he's used to. Especially for someone as observant as Cesare, it's super easy to notice he's Japanese in the name order he calls himself, taking off shoes, etc etc etc. HE MIGHT BE THE WORST AND THE RUDEST but he still has habits he's not bothering to wander away from. He's genuinely interested in getting to know people he likes, but that's not the same as being interested in ~cultural sensitivity~ so that's a very different approach from Cesare's.)
Another huge difference between them is trust! Because of the STUPID MACHO and how he carries himself/dresses, Yusuke probably seems like he'd be a lot less trustworthy than he is. The truth is that he listens to his gut when it comes to people, and he's pretty generous with second chances. I don't exactly know where it comes from, but part of it is probably a combination of generally high confidence (especially now that it'd take a lot for someone to take him down) and a Secret Heart of Gold. I think Cesare comes off as clever enough that people wouldn't just assume he takes everyone at face value, but there's a dissonance between how hard it is to really win Cesare's loyalty vs. how easy it really is to win Yusuke's. WHICH IS REALLY INTERESTING and makes for an interesting dynamic!
oh gosh what else. Going back to #1 fan of friendship Yusuke Urameshi, he's definitely in the "HEY THAT'S ONLY OKAY WHEN I SAY IT" camp. He flips between complaining about and complimenting his bros behind their backs, but if someone were to really try to talk shit about them in front of him, they'd be up against a wall in a second. There's obvious leeway here for clashing personalities, friends not liking other friends of his, etc etc because Yusuke isn't a black and white kind of guy, but he has zero patience when someone's actually trying to start something. A huge theme throughout the series is that the only way to really unlock 100% of his fighting potential is by seriously threatening his friends. It's an ABSOLUTE NO and it's a big part of the reason he has so much trouble with standing back and letting Cesare do things that are dangerous but logically the only reasonable solution. SEE: getting rid of the amnesia items, giving up the green bracelet, etc etc. Yusuke will kick up a big fuss and get prickly and emotionally constipated about it, even if he eventually gives in, because he hates it. A tiny part of it is that he doesn't like when he can't handle things his way (ie charging straight in like a moron), but absolutely none of his reaction to Cesare being a sneaky jerk about the bracelet was because he was afraid of what would happen to him—he was pissed at the idea that Cesare could be giving up a serious perk or protection down the road, and it just kind of manifested as LOUD INDIGNATION.
Something else about Cesare that sort of kicks at Yusuke's (over??)protectiveness is the situation he's in at home, where it seems like he's basically doing the dirty work for his dad. Yusuke's not in a huge rush to poke at that badger hole, but it does kind of remind him of something that happened back home, where it turned out that the ruler of the spirit world was basically bribing and threatening demons to cause trouble in the human world so the spirit world could swoop in and save the day, and the whole thing was a huge mess for his son (Yusuke's buddy) and Yusuke himself. Political coups and death threats and FUN TIMES. It's part of this bigger story that he's working up to telling—he mentioned in passing that there aren't really spirit detectives anymore and that after he got killed he came back as a demon but has more or less left it at "it's a long story, i'll tell you later." Yusuke's never going to come out and say "hey this reminds me of you, just watch your back," but he sees some parallels and even though he knows it's totally out of his hands, it's... I DUNNO. It makes him extra glad Cesare's been able to do all the stuff he's been doing (and enjoying) in camp over the years, even if he hates the idea of camp on principal. Which he'll also never say! BUT STILL.
If anyone from home came to camp, Yusuke wouldn't even bother justifying or explaining his friendship with Cesare beyond "he's a cool guy, he's from italy WANNA KNOW HOW TO SWEAR IN ITALIAN?" because the absolute last emotion Yusuke feels ever is the need to explain himself to anyone. BUT. It would be interesting if someone did show up, because depending on who it was, they might actually take away from the TRAINWRECK BROMANCE that the whole thing's turned into. Part of what made it all happen so fast and so well is that Cesare easily and fluidly fills the roles of multiple people Yusuke's close to back home. They can talk about pretty much anything, and switch super naturally between frat nonsense/talking shop/getting Deep/etc. But especially if someone like his #1 Best Bro showed up, he'd have someone else to be a total roughhousing moron with, and it'd be interesting to see if the dynamic with Cesare changed because of it. :|aa WE WILL PROBABLY NEVER KNOW psst someone out there app kuwabara BUT IT'S INTERESTING TO THINK ABOUT. Their friendship is the best thing ever but so much of it is right time, right place.
Annnnd if Keiko showed up again he'd spend half his entire life flipping Cesare off behind her back SO THERE'S THAT. All in all Yusuke is happier not having his friends around because it means they're not stuck there, but that's a much much much easier stance to take and hold when he has someone like Cesare to fill the void. :<b
First of all, I'm very glad that Yusuke has so quickly been shuffled through the levels of getting to know Cesare of "this guy seems pretty cool" to "oh my god why is he an asshole" to "no actually I guess he's a good person deep down??" and didn't just get stuck somewhere in #2. Which happens sometimes. But would have been tragic. Cesare unfortunately tends to start acting like a huge entitled jerk to people he likes before he turns it around and does nice things for them. I love how Yusuke has no qualms about calling him out on being A SPOILED BRAT when it comes up because it is so true and he could stand to hear it more. Most things people say don't really affect him but he are last sometimes tries to stop and think about it if it's coming from someone he likes/respects.
Which can be the point of entry into what you mentioned before, re: how has Cesare's opinion of Yusuke changed. Obviously he likes him a lot more now than when he was just some random guy he knew from around Camp. He has a great deal of respect for Yusuke--he trusts his opinion on things (in some ways far more than anyone else who is around) and he knows he can count on him. This is something that has only grown stronger. Whereas at the start of their trainride into crazytown he liked him and he wanted to be friends and he was gambling that he would be worth the effort, now he knows he was even taking all his obnoxious habits into consideration. He got so excited about the prospect of visiting Tokyo with him one day because Yusuke is one of the few people he will really deeply miss when he leaves Camp and he doesn't really know what to do about that other than push it to the side.
Cesare wants to know all about anything Yusuke has to tell him, but not like with other people where he wants to know so he can use it for his own purposes or to convince them of something. He's just honestly really curious. Similarly he wants to tell him (almost) everything just because! No ulterior motive for once! There are some things he is going to try to keep quiet on, but not because he thinks he can't trust Yusuke with them as much as because they are embarrassing or potentially so. Especially right now, Yusuke already has enough material to rib him on. He needs to make up that difference first.
And I know I said it already but Cesare responds very well to Yusuke's brand of friendship/communication. Sometimes things should be blunt! Sometimes they should be left unsaid! He is very grateful that Yusuke knows the difference and he doesn't have to constantly explain. Like with the save point, Cesare understands the "hey you're kind of fucked up atm, I'm going to give you a lift back" and he's never actually offended when Yusuke gets loud and swear-y when he's a stubborn ass about things, but he also REALLY appreciated that not only did he not have to try to justify why he wanted things done his way but also that Yusuke anticipated the rest of what it was and just went ahead and did it. It makes Yusuke more of a safe space. He's comfortable embarrassing himself in front of him in a way that he isn't really with anyone else because at the end of the day he just gets it. Thank you for understanding his stupid pride.
I'm going to come back to the others later but first Alvis!
Like I said above, Cesare adores Alvis. He is very protective of her and wants only good things for her and tries to arrange things in her favor when he can. Like I said before, he feels very strongly that she is smart and talented and will go on to do great things. He actually has a lot of faith in her and her abilities and didn't need to see her as an adult to know that his trust was well-placed. He can see it, he can see potential. I don't want to say that he is her biggest fan because let's be real a ton of people love Alvis, but he's a really really big one.
Recently he's been trying to be more... understanding? Considerate? Generally a better person, emotionally? In large part because of her. He knows she's upset because someone else left and he really wants to be there for her, although at the same time he also knows he's not exactly good at comforting and that sort of thing. He's trying. He's going to put his foot in his mouth a lot, but he's really trying and it's frustrating to him because he hates not being good at things. He depends on her for a lot (food, companionship...) and he wants to make sure she knows how much he appreciates it.
Cesare's also very aware that Alvis is just about the same age he is when he first came to Camp and on the one hand it causes him to treat her more like an adult (even if she is frustrated that she hasn't aged physically, he definitely does not see her as a little kid) but on the other it's making him come to the painful realization that not only was her childhood fucked up but so was his. All his memories from home were formed when he was her age or younger. All of his early experiences at Camp, where he was so insistent on being treated as an adult, even when it was to his detriment, happened when he was her age. It's been kind of a blow to realize just how blind he was and, furthermore, how much he was taken advantage of, whether or not he at the time felt that he was an equal partner. He's really torn about it because circumstances were different and he felt like he was mature enough to handle everything then, but at the same time he knows he would seriously fuck someone up if they tried to pull anything like that with Alvis--definitely not because she's a girl but because she's so young.
Anyway. Tell me things! I will get the others later tonight.
OKAY, LET'S SEE IF I CAN MAKE SENSE HERE. It may take a couple of replies for me to get it all.
BRAINS: She thinks Cesare is Dio-level smart. That Cesare is always two steps ahead, planning and analyzing everything. She can see his mind work, how he sort of takes a problem and looks at it from all angles and comes up with a few different options before deciding. So the fact that this person... This incredibly intelligent individual... So obviously encourages and praises and VALUES her mind really pleases and flatters her. He doesn't talk down to her, even when he's teaching. Cesare guides and sort of shows her the path and then she feels so proud when she seems to get the answer right. Al really feels that education is something they bond over because they're both so interested in learning/exploring just for the sake of it. Because they like to know how things tick/puzzle pieces/etc and why and when.
BRO: For someone who never had a family that she remembers, Alvis values it immensely. So when she calls Cesare her brother, it is the total ideal that a 15 year old girl could come up with -- he's her mentor/guardian/pal/partner-in-crime/idol. Big brother in shining armor who can do (almost) no wrong. She's not completely blind... Objectively she knows he can be selfish and abrupt... But he's CESARE and he's GREAT so all these things that she hasn't experienced often with him are swept under the rug.
Okay let's see what else I can come up with later. This'll get me started.
Cesare is always very very flattered when it is brought up that Alvis sees him as a big brother because he knows exactly what that idolization is like. His own idol is very literally his older brother as a knight in shining armor. He can't quite accept that statement from her because he doesn't see himself that way at all and it makes him a little uncomfortable in that way. Not because he doesn't like that she thinks it (see above, very very flattered), but because he is aware of the weight of responsibility that comes with it. Even if he can't actually be that ideal, he wants to not let her down--or at least to do it gently. Similarly, Alvis is like a little sister to him and he will literally shank a guy for her. c:
Cesare also really enjoys that Alvis likes the same sort of intellectual challenges that he does. He loves feeling like a teacher or at least like he is opening up new worlds of information for her and if she mentions something and he doesn't know the answer (or feels like he can't give one satisfactorily) he always goes to look it up so that it won't happen again. She's actually a great intellectual muse for him, always challenging him to stay on his game and expand the scope of his knowledge.
I just want to say that tiny!Cesare ADORES Toothless. He's like the best dog ever. He's BIG and he's SMART and he can practically have whole conversations with him and they play fun games like catch or Eat All the Sweet Things. He tells everyone about him when he's a kid if they have a conversation with him for long enough. Toothless is like #1 the thing he likes most about Camp because DRAGON FRIEND.
Cesare's not really fond of Ava. It's not even that he dislikes her, he just kind of aggressively does not care. On some level he knows he should feel bad for her because she's clearly had a shit lot in life and to a degree he does. But it's for the most part overridden by the fact that she's so annoying and also was going through his stuff and tried to worm her way out of it when he caught her. :| So it's not like he wants bad things to happen to her or wouldn't lend a hand if something was about to go down, just that he's kind of washed his hands of her and Odin's drama. They can deal with it on their own like the annoying teenagers they are, fine by him.
Except it turns out she's Yusuke's friend so he'll be nicer than that. :\ Not because he thinks Yusuke really cares about having them get along so much as because he thinks it will be more convenient for him that way. It's a favor for him, not for Ava, and not one he's going to draw attention to.
Cesare likes Alison! But also ha ha ha she's not his mother and he's not doing anything she says that he doesn't want to anyway. That said, it's a little bit of a tricky area because he wants to be on good terms with her. She's frankly very useful to keep around and he appreciates being able to rope her into doing things for him. Basically this means he is willing to make some compromises (not planting things by the hotel, keeping conversation polite and not ribbing her, moving the car away from where she's aware of it) for the sake of their relationship. On the other hand he's not above going behind her back and only pretending to be apologetic for stuff. \o/
As a child Cesare really liked both Alison and Helo. They were both fun and interesting in very different ways but both ways ended with him getting food, so?? He's very interested in mothers (as a child and at his normal age, but more so when he's younger) and he didn't need to ask about her family to see her as one since she so easily slipped back into the role. He didn't like her telling him what not to do but he's more willing to accept that kind of restriction as a kid and he's used to putting up with worse, so the only reason it made any kind of impression was because Camp is generally so lax. He's not on his best behavior in Camp by a long shot. Helo on the other hand was super interesting to him because he's a soldier!! like his brother!! and Cesare idolizes his older brother. He has no idea he thought he was making all that stuff about Camp up.
Cesare doesn't have a huge impression of Helo normally--he seems like a nice enough guy and he knows he knows Felix and that he apparently likes kids. He suspects drama between him and Felix since they haven't been all buddy-buddy and he knows Shit Went Down. It actually is making him a little bit wary until he gets more information.
On the actual topic at hand, though, Cesare more or less likes Felix even putting aside his obvious use as a distraction for Juan. He really appreciated that he could tell him "hey, go make sure Shaun's okay" and that he did it. Even though it ended in murder. So I guess he'll need to figure out Plan B for next time. Damnit, Shaun. I guess that gets back to "Cesare likes Felix because he's useful," and I'm sorry about that. He does like talking to him too sometimes? He's pretty interesting, even if he won't tell him all the stuff he wants to know about Space Future. If it's any consolation, Cesare trusts Felix more than Helo? For now. Mostly based off of the fact that Felix has been helpful and has not sought revenge for the aforementioned murder.
I'm trying to think how much has changed since the last time we talked about this...Generally, Felix likes Cesare. He especially likes Cesare as a foil to Juan. (....which is terrible because haha 'Juan why can't you be like Cesare' haha. Which...I feel like I've said at some point.) I think it's amusing that he still doesn't get that Cesare is potentially the more dangerous one, although I guess that's not entirely the case with this version + how he's mellowed out since he's been in Camp for a while? Mostly he just sees him as polite and well mannered. I think he's even starting to think of him much more as an adult. Felix very much appreciates intellectual curiosity, so I think their relationship is always at its best when they're talking something over. He'd probably be just fine telling him more about Space Future? As long as it doesn't touch on issues and stays pretty general. I'm....not sure how much he TRUSTS him, in the sense that yeah he's probably not going to open up to him about much. At all. But that's just Felix being Felix, and it's not that he distrusts him either. It's just that as much as he finds him to be pleasant and polite, it's not like he's proven himself to Felix either. (...Also. Borgia.)
(also it's okay if he starts to trust Helo more, it's probably the safe option anyway.)
Cesare is totally the safer brother yeah in the sense that he's much more stable. On the other hand if he wanted to he has a farther reach than Juan does, so. I guess it is conditional. But he's cool with Felix so no worries. Using Cesare as a foil to Juan might be horrible but tbf even Cesare does that. "Why does Juan have to x, I don't do that..." Etc.
And the problem is that Cesare doesn't like "general," he likes specifics. He always wants to know more detail and to go over things with a fine tooth comb. It's just part of his natural curiosity and he knows Felix is shutting him out and that just makes him want to know more. He'll probably end up going to Helo about it.
Cesare always appreciates being thought of as more of an adult than not, especially since he's not technically a teenager anymore. He might fuck off with his peers sometimes but he definitely knows how to turn on the "acting like an adult" and that's still his default setting.
First of all I just want to say that Cesare spared Shaun an ass kicking or at least some killer stinkeye. You're welcome.
About Juan, though, Cesare has accepted that they'll just never really see eye to eye and that he can't expect them to understand one another. He's happy that he's with Harley and that he has some kind of plan for the future, even if it's not at all what he would have wanted him to do. He's trying. He's also secretly very proud of his involvement in setting the scene for the proposal, although he's never ever going to tell either of them that. He still worries frequently about how Juan is going to get by in Gotham but is trying to take a step back and let him and Harley work it out. Even though he still tells everyone that Juan is his younger brother, it's almost as an inside joke by this point. He recognizes that Juan is, in fact, an adult with more life experience than he has and that he is therefore capable of making his own choices. He still feels compelled to clean up after and arrange things for him, but he's not embarrassed by him or as frustrated by his behavior as he used to be.
I think I had more things to say but I can't think of them right now, so reverse me and we will see if they come to me. :|a
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Younger Cesare likes Sarah a lot. He is very interested in mother figures and she's different enough from what he's used to that he's very very curious. He would have liked to have met Kira. He always wants to hear more about her experiences, especially as a child, and her daughter and is comfortable enough to keep asking. He likes having her attention and he likes that she's willing to engage with him.
Reverse me!
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Also Juan really likes her and the feeling appears to be mutual. So. He'll be less of a dick ar least until Canada is out of the honeymoon period.
Idk tell me something.
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I mentioned this before but part of the reason Cesae likes Rakushun is just that he's been around forever. It's nice to know a guy you can talk about books and compare government systems with, just because. I imagine they bump into one another at the library and compare notes on what they are taking out or returning. It's very laid back.
Give me a SOTU for Rakushun
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i promise i will actually write back this time!!
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They have to readjust the driver's seat that is how big a difference that is
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That said, they click really well and if they didn't he wouldn't have made himself vulnerable in the first place. He's been consciously doing things throughout their threads to disrupt the balance of power he usually tries to maintain, such as letting himself be disarmed or get hammered or admitting to things that he generally keeps more on the down low. Each time he presents the opportunity to be hurt, physically or otherwise, and there's no negative repercussions he's more willing to try it again. He's said things that he pointblank refuses to admit to under most circumstances, at least not still in the "hey let's generally get to know one another" phase, and Yusuke's just rolled with it. It's actually a super healthy relationship for him? Cesare's trying really hard. And having a lot of fun, or he wouldn't keep coming back. He missed having someone he could be such an unrepentant dick to, and Yusuke can take it as well as dish it out so!
I don't know I probably have more to say but you go now and if I can think of anything I'll add it in. I'm just super thrilled about their stupid stupid precious CR.
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Before Cesare deaged, it wasn't that Yusuke actively disliked him or anything (catty acquaintances!!) but meeting a younger Cesare completely tipped the scales. DESPITE APPEARANCES Yusuke really likes kids! Sometimes he leans toward the hard knocks tough love school of childsitting, but he's also totally game to goof around and let them have fun, especially if he knows they're not used to being able to. Running around with Cesare hit all those high points + the added bonus of FIGHTIN'. Yusuke walked away thinking of Cesare as a Good Kid, and when he realized it was That One Guy he'd already had more than a few conversations with, Cesare instantly went from neutral to "oh yeah alright, we're bros now. SWEET." And it's just gotten better from there. /o/ Getting on Yusuke's good side is easier than it seems, but that doesn't mean that he'll automatically get into everything that he and Cesare have talked about. They click really well and Cesare is a combination of a lot of traits Yusuke's dealt with before in a few of his friends, just all rolled into one, which means THE POSSIBILITIES ARE ENDLESS. Dumb sparring? Car racing? DEFINITELY. Chill contemplations on how people are kinda shitty? Touching on daddy issues? SURE. Yusuke's not an especially secretive person, but it takes the right kind of timing and mood for him to really talk about some things in depth, and Cesare's good at setting the stage for that. It helps that Yusuke knows he's interested and he won't really have to worry about justifying himself. There's no pity there, either, which is important. Yusuke's gotten close to Jade in camp, and they've sort of touched on the same topics, but her reaction tends to be much more sympathetic and touchy-feely and that's not what he wants or needs. He knows Cesare won't try to pull that shit with him, which means that in the future he might bring up some things he hasn't really voiced before because he knows they're kind of off-putting (what it means to be Human! demon cannibalism! WHO KNOWS WHAT ELSE).
In terms of power differences, it's kind of an interesting dynamic! In terms of smarts, Cesare is so out of Yusuke's league it's not even funny--but let's be real. Yusuke can bust out some impressive strategy during fights, but he knows he'll never be the smartest one in the room, so even if he makes fun of Cesare for it sometimes it doesn't actually bother him. And Cesare can just as easily be a dumb macho teenage boy (Yusuke's sweet spot!) and they can bicker and push each other around and then transition right into chilling and none of it feels forced or unnatural. I GUESS I'M SAYING CESARE IS THE TOTAL PACKAGE except for the fact that he can't actually take Yusuke in a fight, but not many people can and it's not really something he thinks about. Cesare likes tussling and wants to watch MMA with him (AND YUSUKE LOVES MMA TOURNAMENTS, the nerd) and that's almost even better.
For someone who basically didn't have any friends up until two/two and a half years ago (as of the time he came to camp), Yusuke's surprisingly comfortable with hanging out/talkin' about life/all the things that come with getting close to someone, but he's also kind of a loud dick and it's nice that there's a balance here! Cesare alternately brings out his douchebro punk side and his more laid back one. He doesn't feel like he needs to puff up and get defensive, but Cesare can also be kind of a dick so Yusuke doesn't feel like he needs to be on his best behavior, either. They've quickly fallen into a really comfortable groove and even Yusuke recognizes how nice it is. As much as he hates the idea of being stuck in camp, the fact that he's found someone that hits all the friendship high notes in one person (and who's been here long enough to provide some perspective) really helps him cope with days where the whole situation just grates. Because he spent a long time as a Typical Pissed Off Teenage Loner Against the World, Yusuke tends to be really protective of the friends he's made since then. He's not going to try to make anyone sit in a locked room somewhere to keep them safe from THE BULLSHIT OF CAMP, but there have been a few times with Cesare where a situation has raised his hackles and he's reacted more strongly than a normal person would (see: why he spent most of the amnesia thread in a huge funk). If Cesare had beef with anyone or got into a situation where he'd need it, Yusuke would be there to smash some heads together in a second.
BASICALLY WHAT I'M TRYING TO SAY is that being friends with Yusuke is like owning the world's worst trained but hella loyal (and secretly cuddly) pit bull. ENJOY.
I don't know where this is going anymore but I love how they've both gotten to the point where they casually mention each other to people and just generally have each other's backs when it comes to things like "yo ava said this thing about you" and "hey did you know alison hates your guts" etc etc etc. Trusting that it won't hurt their feelings and they won't run off and do something stupid (probably), but also knowing they'd want to know. When it comes to the Ava thing, Yusuke really doesn't care if she and Cesare get along, and he has zero expectations about it! He just knew Cesare would give him the real story. :|b If he finds out Cesare was trying to play nice he might make fun of him for being a softie but DEEP DOWN he'd feel kind of touched.
AND YEAH. Holy shit this got long. I HAVE MORE TO SAY PROBABLY if you have anything to add or any specific questions let's do this
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Cesare really reacts well to Yusuke's Typical Pissed Off Teenage Loner Against the World responses to shit going down because he rebels hard against anyone trying to control him. He's had a lot of that already and when someone tries to pull it in Camp it takes a lot of work on his behalf to not have a knee-jerk reaction against it and even when he controls himself it really puts a distance between them that he has no intention to try to overcome. Because fuck you. He reacts poorly when Miguel pulls a lighter version of it and it was frankly more than deserved and also it was Miguel. He is much better with the Friendship Anger and veiled threats.
Similarly Cesare is also very protective of people he actually cares about. He and Shaun have had multiple falling outs but he still felt the responsibility to cut Yusuke off right away. What that means here is that no questions asked, Cesare will show up to help bury the metaphorical body. It takes work to really get him more than superficially on your side but once he's there he is dead loyal.
Also HA HA oh god Cesare knows he cannot do touchy-feely, he sucks at it hard as people are more than willing to tell him. He's too much up in his own head to do it right--what he thinks of as comforting most people just find kind of cold. With Yusuke he doesn't feel like he has to try. He can just say whatever his gut reaction is, which is actually probably better anyway. He doesn't want that kind of response back himself, so it's nice to not have to worry about getting it and then having to deal with the awkward situation of deflecting it. They can just speak the language of Bro and it all comes out in the wash.
Cesare knows that Yusuke is stronger than he is and it's not even a question so there's no sense in getting all weird about it. He's just a regular guy at the end of the day and he knows he's no match for like 99% of Camp. It kind of blows, and he appreciates that Yusuke is still really willing to mess around with him and... not really go easy on him but adjust so they are more on the same level. Yusuke can win, whatever. He's not a sore loser if it's a fair fight (and if he's not already in a super crappy mood going into it). Similarly, he doesn't care if Yusuke isn't on the same level as he is in terms of education and intellectual interests. He knows he's really smart and that many of the things he likes are just by default solo activities. He's fine with it. They're not things he really shared much in canon anyway, and he's not about to look down on him for not wanting to participate.
Seriously, people who actually know Cesare well ie: had to put up with his shit for years and years and years in canon would be hella shocked at how he's behaving around Yusuke. He would never get lying-on-the-floor drunk with all his pointy objects out of easy reach with someone he only recently started talking to and who he knows for a fact is like 100000x stronger than him. He's trained to pick up on danger and have like fifty back up plans in place to only be fake in that position, not real.
I actually never heard anyone not from here use the term beef in this context. I didn't realize that was a thing other places.
TELL ME MORE about stuff uh tell me about anything but also anything??
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Three things Cesare is doing when he talks to Yusuke were sticking out to me so I wanted to comment on them. The first is that he doesn't use his name a whole lot, at least much less proportionately than when he talks to other people. Cesare is very aware of language as power and tends to be very intentional with what he does with it. It's part of the reason he's so into being a polyglot He very strongly believes in reading sources in their original tongues in order to better understand them and he switches what language he's speaking in in canon for different situations and for different displays of power--he uses Spanish when giving orders or speaking to his inner circle (and an agreement to teach Angelo Spanish is a sign that he's fully accepting him), he shows off in Latin to prove his academic and intellectual credentials to people who doubt them, etc. With the translator this doesn't come up so much (although Italian is his first language and what he defaults to, which was why he was teaching Yusuke swears in it) but what does translate into Camp is his using names to assert authority. Cesare insists on calling adults and other supposed authority figures by their first names specifically because he wants to make it clear that they're on the same level and half the time his calling them that in conversation is a subtle reminder of such. He does similar things with other people, such as to establish closeness (he tends to use a name in or immediately before a request or similar). He doesn't use Yusuke's name often because he doesn't feel like he has to.
The second thing is that Cesare is talking much more casually and using more slang than he normally does. This is partially a carry over from him learning Yusuke's Japanese and adapting how he had been speaking to match it. It's also him just being comfortable around him and letting his guard down. He's very relaxed and his language reflects that. He really really enjoys having inside jokes with him ("shit outta luck," etc) although he wouldn't admit that. It's not something he's ever had before.
Lastly, Cesare's mentioned several times now that he trusts him, usually kind of as a one off half-joke. He means it very seriously and it's important to him that Yusuke understands that. For him, trust is hard won and a very serious matter. To tell someone he trusts them is basically the highest complement he could give them--it has a lot of other things wrapped up in it, it means he thinks they are loyal and competent (which for the record is the other highest complement) and that he will honor that bond regardless of what it takes. It's not easy to get Cesare really seriously on your side but once he is there he's there 100%. Cesare is really big on the whole blood brother sort of concept. He has ridiculous standards and he can be a complete jerk, even to people who are depending on him, but ultimately he is fiercely loyal to his people. Yusuke is now part of that circle.
But then I was thinking about that third point and it occurred to me that if someone in Camp were to ask Cesare what he was thinking hanging out with Yusuke and generally being such a dumbass and threatening his reputation and safety and etc etc etc he would basically tell them Yusuke is his friend and to fuck off. That said, if someone he was close to from canon (not even necessarily at the level of his father, but like for example his tutor) were to ask him the same question he would probably automatically revert and tell them that it's not a big deal and that they need to understand that if he spends time with Yusuke and lets him think they are friends then he winds up with the greatest guard dog Camp has to offer, so the benefits clearly outweigh the risks. He'd just feel really guilty about it afterwards (which is still growth in and of itself, so).
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Another huge difference between them is trust! Because of the STUPID MACHO and how he carries himself/dresses, Yusuke probably seems like he'd be a lot less trustworthy than he is. The truth is that he listens to his gut when it comes to people, and he's pretty generous with second chances. I don't exactly know where it comes from, but part of it is probably a combination of generally high confidence (especially now that it'd take a lot for someone to take him down) and a Secret Heart of Gold. I think Cesare comes off as clever enough that people wouldn't just assume he takes everyone at face value, but there's a dissonance between how hard it is to really win Cesare's loyalty vs. how easy it really is to win Yusuke's. WHICH IS REALLY INTERESTING and makes for an interesting dynamic!
oh gosh what else. Going back to #1 fan of friendship Yusuke Urameshi, he's definitely in the "HEY THAT'S ONLY OKAY WHEN I SAY IT" camp. He flips between complaining about and complimenting his bros behind their backs, but if someone were to really try to talk shit about them in front of him, they'd be up against a wall in a second. There's obvious leeway here for clashing personalities, friends not liking other friends of his, etc etc because Yusuke isn't a black and white kind of guy, but he has zero patience when someone's actually trying to start something. A huge theme throughout the series is that the only way to really unlock 100% of his fighting potential is by seriously threatening his friends. It's an ABSOLUTE NO and it's a big part of the reason he has so much trouble with standing back and letting Cesare do things that are dangerous but logically the only reasonable solution. SEE: getting rid of the amnesia items, giving up the green bracelet, etc etc. Yusuke will kick up a big fuss and get prickly and emotionally constipated about it, even if he eventually gives in, because he hates it. A tiny part of it is that he doesn't like when he can't handle things his way (ie charging straight in like a moron), but absolutely none of his reaction to Cesare being a sneaky jerk about the bracelet was because he was afraid of what would happen to him—he was pissed at the idea that Cesare could be giving up a serious perk or protection down the road, and it just kind of manifested as LOUD INDIGNATION.
Something else about Cesare that sort of kicks at Yusuke's (over??)protectiveness is the situation he's in at home, where it seems like he's basically doing the dirty work for his dad. Yusuke's not in a huge rush to poke at that badger hole, but it does kind of remind him of something that happened back home, where it turned out that the ruler of the spirit world was basically bribing and threatening demons to cause trouble in the human world so the spirit world could swoop in and save the day, and the whole thing was a huge mess for his son (Yusuke's buddy) and Yusuke himself. Political coups and death threats and FUN TIMES. It's part of this bigger story that he's working up to telling—he mentioned in passing that there aren't really spirit detectives anymore and that after he got killed he came back as a demon but has more or less left it at "it's a long story, i'll tell you later." Yusuke's never going to come out and say "hey this reminds me of you, just watch your back," but he sees some parallels and even though he knows it's totally out of his hands, it's... I DUNNO. It makes him extra glad Cesare's been able to do all the stuff he's been doing (and enjoying) in camp over the years, even if he hates the idea of camp on principal. Which he'll also never say! BUT STILL.
If anyone from home came to camp, Yusuke wouldn't even bother justifying or explaining his friendship with Cesare beyond "he's a cool guy, he's from italy WANNA KNOW HOW TO SWEAR IN ITALIAN?" because the absolute last emotion Yusuke feels ever is the need to explain himself to anyone. BUT. It would be interesting if someone did show up, because depending on who it was, they might actually take away from the TRAINWRECK BROMANCE that the whole thing's turned into. Part of what made it all happen so fast and so well is that Cesare easily and fluidly fills the roles of multiple people Yusuke's close to back home. They can talk about pretty much anything, and switch super naturally between frat nonsense/talking shop/getting Deep/etc. But especially if someone like his #1 Best Bro showed up, he'd have someone else to be a total roughhousing moron with, and it'd be interesting to see if the dynamic with Cesare changed because of it. :|aa WE WILL PROBABLY NEVER KNOW psst someone out there app kuwabara BUT IT'S INTERESTING TO THINK ABOUT. Their friendship is the best thing ever but so much of it is right time, right place.
Annnnd if Keiko showed up again he'd spend half his entire life flipping Cesare off behind her back SO THERE'S THAT. All in all Yusuke is happier not having his friends around because it means they're not stuck there, but that's a much much much easier stance to take and hold when he has someone like Cesare to fill the void. :<b
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Which can be the point of entry into what you mentioned before, re: how has Cesare's opinion of Yusuke changed. Obviously he likes him a lot more now than when he was just some random guy he knew from around Camp. He has a great deal of respect for Yusuke--he trusts his opinion on things (in some ways far more than anyone else who is around) and he knows he can count on him. This is something that has only grown stronger. Whereas at the start of their trainride into crazytown he liked him and he wanted to be friends and he was gambling that he would be worth the effort, now he knows he was even taking all his obnoxious habits into consideration. He got so excited about the prospect of visiting Tokyo with him one day because Yusuke is one of the few people he will really deeply miss when he leaves Camp and he doesn't really know what to do about that other than push it to the side.
Cesare wants to know all about anything Yusuke has to tell him, but not like with other people where he wants to know so he can use it for his own purposes or to convince them of something. He's just honestly really curious. Similarly he wants to tell him (almost) everything just because! No ulterior motive for once! There are some things he is going to try to keep quiet on, but not because he thinks he can't trust Yusuke with them as much as because they are embarrassing or potentially so. Especially right now, Yusuke already has enough material to rib him on. He needs to make up that difference first.
And I know I said it already but Cesare responds very well to Yusuke's brand of friendship/communication. Sometimes things should be blunt! Sometimes they should be left unsaid! He is very grateful that Yusuke knows the difference and he doesn't have to constantly explain. Like with the save point, Cesare understands the "hey you're kind of fucked up atm, I'm going to give you a lift back" and he's never actually offended when Yusuke gets loud and swear-y when he's a stubborn ass about things, but he also REALLY appreciated that not only did he not have to try to justify why he wanted things done his way but also that Yusuke anticipated the rest of what it was and just went ahead and did it. It makes Yusuke more of a safe space. He's comfortable embarrassing himself in front of him in a way that he isn't really with anyone else because at the end of the day he just gets it. Thank you for understanding his stupid pride.
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Like I said above, Cesare adores Alvis. He is very protective of her and wants only good things for her and tries to arrange things in her favor when he can. Like I said before, he feels very strongly that she is smart and talented and will go on to do great things. He actually has a lot of faith in her and her abilities and didn't need to see her as an adult to know that his trust was well-placed. He can see it, he can see potential. I don't want to say that he is her biggest fan because let's be real a ton of people love Alvis, but he's a really really big one.
Recently he's been trying to be more... understanding? Considerate? Generally a better person, emotionally? In large part because of her. He knows she's upset because someone else left and he really wants to be there for her, although at the same time he also knows he's not exactly good at comforting and that sort of thing. He's trying. He's going to put his foot in his mouth a lot, but he's really trying and it's frustrating to him because he hates not being good at things. He depends on her for a lot (food, companionship...) and he wants to make sure she knows how much he appreciates it.
Cesare's also very aware that Alvis is just about the same age he is when he first came to Camp and on the one hand it causes him to treat her more like an adult (even if she is frustrated that she hasn't aged physically, he definitely does not see her as a little kid) but on the other it's making him come to the painful realization that not only was her childhood fucked up but so was his. All his memories from home were formed when he was her age or younger. All of his early experiences at Camp, where he was so insistent on being treated as an adult, even when it was to his detriment, happened when he was her age. It's been kind of a blow to realize just how blind he was and, furthermore, how much he was taken advantage of, whether or not he at the time felt that he was an equal partner. He's really torn about it because circumstances were different and he felt like he was mature enough to handle everything then, but at the same time he knows he would seriously fuck someone up if they tried to pull anything like that with Alvis--definitely not because she's a girl but because she's so young.
Anyway. Tell me things! I will get the others later tonight.
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BRAINS:
She thinks Cesare is Dio-level smart. That Cesare is always two steps ahead, planning and analyzing everything. She can see his mind work, how he sort of takes a problem and looks at it from all angles and comes up with a few different options before deciding. So the fact that this person... This incredibly intelligent individual... So obviously encourages and praises and VALUES her mind really pleases and flatters her. He doesn't talk down to her, even when he's teaching. Cesare guides and sort of shows her the path and then she feels so proud when she seems to get the answer right. Al really feels that education is something they bond over because they're both so interested in learning/exploring just for the sake of it. Because they like to know how things tick/puzzle pieces/etc and why and when.
BRO:
For someone who never had a family that she remembers, Alvis values it immensely. So when she calls Cesare her brother, it is the total ideal that a 15 year old girl could come up with -- he's her mentor/guardian/pal/partner-in-crime/idol. Big brother in shining armor who can do (almost) no wrong. She's not completely blind... Objectively she knows he can be selfish and abrupt... But he's CESARE and he's GREAT so all these things that she hasn't experienced often with him are swept under the rug.
Okay let's see what else I can come up with later. This'll get me started.
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Cesare also really enjoys that Alvis likes the same sort of intellectual challenges that he does. He loves feeling like a teacher or at least like he is opening up new worlds of information for her and if she mentions something and he doesn't know the answer (or feels like he can't give one satisfactorily) he always goes to look it up so that it won't happen again. She's actually a great intellectual muse for him, always challenging him to stay on his game and expand the scope of his knowledge.
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Except it turns out she's Yusuke's friend so he'll be nicer than that. :\ Not because he thinks Yusuke really cares about having them get along so much as because he thinks it will be more convenient for him that way. It's a favor for him, not for Ava, and not one he's going to draw attention to.
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And Helo, if he's made an impression.
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As a child Cesare really liked both Alison and Helo. They were both fun and interesting in very different ways but both ways ended with him getting food, so?? He's very interested in mothers (as a child and at his normal age, but more so when he's younger) and he didn't need to ask about her family to see her as one since she so easily slipped back into the role. He didn't like her telling him what not to do but he's more willing to accept that kind of restriction as a kid and he's used to putting up with worse, so the only reason it made any kind of impression was because Camp is generally so lax. He's not on his best behavior in Camp by a long shot. Helo on the other hand was super interesting to him because he's a soldier!! like his brother!! and Cesare idolizes his older brother. He has no idea he thought he was making all that stuff about Camp up.
Cesare doesn't have a huge impression of Helo normally--he seems like a nice enough guy and he knows he knows Felix and that he apparently likes kids. He suspects drama between him and Felix since they haven't been all buddy-buddy and he knows Shit Went Down. It actually is making him a little bit wary until he gets more information.
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(also preemptively no he is not Juan's toy or plaything :|
also any plans Cesare had for him coming along to the bachelor party are probably out because he and Juan managed to fall out again.)
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come on, get it together
On the actual topic at hand, though, Cesare more or less likes Felix even putting aside his obvious use as a distraction for Juan. He really appreciated that he could tell him "hey, go make sure Shaun's okay" and that he did it. Even though it ended in murder. So I guess he'll need to figure out Plan B for next time. Damnit, Shaun. I guess that gets back to "Cesare likes Felix because he's useful," and I'm sorry about that. He does like talking to him too sometimes? He's pretty interesting, even if he won't tell him all the stuff he wants to know about Space Future. If it's any consolation, Cesare trusts Felix more than Helo? For now. Mostly based off of the fact that Felix has been helpful and has not sought revenge for the aforementioned murder.
...
Reverse me?
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I'm trying to think how much has changed since the last time we talked about this...Generally, Felix likes Cesare. He especially likes Cesare as a foil to Juan. (....which is terrible because haha 'Juan why can't you be like Cesare' haha. Which...I feel like I've said at some point.) I think it's amusing that he still doesn't get that Cesare is potentially the more dangerous one, although I guess that's not entirely the case with this version + how he's mellowed out since he's been in Camp for a while? Mostly he just sees him as polite and well mannered. I think he's even starting to think of him much more as an adult. Felix very much appreciates intellectual curiosity, so I think their relationship is always at its best when they're talking something over. He'd probably be just fine telling him more about Space Future? As long as it doesn't touch on issues and stays pretty general. I'm....not sure how much he TRUSTS him, in the sense that yeah he's probably not going to open up to him about much. At all. But that's just Felix being Felix, and it's not that he distrusts him either. It's just that as much as he finds him to be pleasant and polite, it's not like he's proven himself to Felix either. (...Also. Borgia.)
(also it's okay if he starts to trust Helo more, it's probably the safe option anyway.)
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And the problem is that Cesare doesn't like "general," he likes specifics. He always wants to know more detail and to go over things with a fine tooth comb. It's just part of his natural curiosity and he knows Felix is shutting him out and that just makes him want to know more. He'll probably end up going to Helo about it.
Cesare always appreciates being thought of as more of an adult than not, especially since he's not technically a teenager anymore. He might fuck off with his peers sometimes but he definitely knows how to turn on the "acting like an adult" and that's still his default setting.
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About Juan, though, Cesare has accepted that they'll just never really see eye to eye and that he can't expect them to understand one another. He's happy that he's with Harley and that he has some kind of plan for the future, even if it's not at all what he would have wanted him to do. He's trying. He's also secretly very proud of his involvement in setting the scene for the proposal, although he's never ever going to tell either of them that. He still worries frequently about how Juan is going to get by in Gotham but is trying to take a step back and let him and Harley work it out. Even though he still tells everyone that Juan is his younger brother, it's almost as an inside joke by this point. He recognizes that Juan is, in fact, an adult with more life experience than he has and that he is therefore capable of making his own choices. He still feels compelled to clean up after and arrange things for him, but he's not embarrassed by him or as frustrated by his behavior as he used to be.
I think I had more things to say but I can't think of them right now, so reverse me and we will see if they come to me. :|a