Avali - "The Price of Silence"

Content Warnings: Descriptions of death, religious trauma, post traumatic episodes

MAJOR Lobotomy Corporation and Library of Ruina spoilers abound.

Honestly, I think this is the first Project Moon OC I've made to have an actual story, even if it's kinda sloppy. I've come up with chopped-up ideas in the past, but I never really fleshed them out properly or didn't care to, and ended up scrapping the entire character in the end. I'm somewhat proud of this OC, but I will say that I had to (somewhat) make some things up for the Price of Silence bits, as the Abnormality itself was only a Legacy Abno, and didn't make an official appearance in the series until Library of Ruina. I think it's fun to take scrapped ideas and attempt to build off of it, because Price of Silence is an Abnormality that I would love to learn more about in the source material/canon (if we ever see it again), and coming up with headcanons of sorts is something I enjoy personally.

I also believe that Avali's traumatic past with and hatred for WhiteNight could itself be an allegory for religious trauma, especially given the whole nature and theme of the Abnormality. After all, WhiteNight is a "trauma" Abnormality (T-03-46), and honestly, trying to get its weapon is a pain in the ass, so I feel like it makes sense... I think. I will leave this part of her story up to interpretation.

Avali is also partially a self-insert, because I'm in love with Hokma lmao. It's not *too* big of a deal to add an obligatory romantic side-story, but I might as well express my love for the old man somehow, you know?

The backstory was made VERY late at night, while I was in a paranoia-insomnia induced sleep-deprived state, so I apologize in advance if it sounds messy or makes no sense (with my bad grammar); I will update it eventually, but this should(?) be okay for now.

Avali is able to use E.G.O weapons similar to how Gebura can use Mimicry, but for Price of Silence. She originally worked for Lobotomy Corporation alongside her brother before she was killed during Angela's whole thing after the White Days and Dark Nights, and was revived as an assistant Librarian. She and her brother worked in the Record Department (Hokma) with her often having to work with Price of Silence (I kind of had to make some things up because in Lobotomy Corporation it is a legacy abnormality), which was how she got her weapon to begin with. She and her brother grew up in the Backstreets as their family was impoverished, so they learned how to defend themselves at an early age, which they often had to do for a variety of reasons. Despite their living situation, they managed to survive to adulthood. At some point, they hear about Lobotomy Corporation and believing at the time that they would be able to make enough money to potentially allow their family to live within a Nest, they apply and manage to get accepted to work for the Record Department. However, they quickly realized what working for Lobotomy Corporation actually entails, and used the combat abilities that learned from living in the Backstreets when it was needed, which allowed them to fight and suppress efficiently.

Often times, when she was sent to work with Price of Silence, a HE-class Abnormality within the facility, she would sit by the lamppost and reminisce about her and her brother's childhood, full of regret that they couldn't have a normal childhood due to the nature of Backstreets living. Price of Silence is known to be some sort of 'gift' given to certain people to get a chance to recover their lost time as well as giving even more time, which ties into how she got her weapon. One day, as if understanding her, it gave her its gift allowing her to use it in a form of a scythe, making it even easier to fight. She believed that she and her brother would be able to get out with a good fortune and live life with their parents comfortably after Lobotomy Corporation. However, during Hokma's suppression, her brother is killed. (One of Hokma's gimmicks during his suppression is that if you pause the game, your employees will panic and die, and Price of Silence was planned to have a similar gimmick as well. This is how her brother dies.) She then realized what the text on the back of the abnormality truly meant, and she paid the price in the form of losing her beloved brother. She then grew to resent the company, but for Hokma, as she didn't know the inner workings, she hated him most of all (same with X the manager, believing he is an incompetent fool), but at the same time couldn't bring herself to fully blame him. This caused her to become highly aggressive, particularly towards the Abnormalities, and this was when she learned how to wield E.G.O weapons to it's full potential. After having her own little "realization" closer to the end of Lobotomy Corporation, she realizes the full extent of the Price of Silence's warning, and how to properly wield it despite it, so it has become her trusted weapon since then. However, when the Abnormalities are released when the Sefirah fight Angela and Binah, she is killed. But she is later revived by Angela when Hokma wakes up and his floor in the Library becomes available.

In Library of Ruina, she isn't revived until Hokma's floor would be unlocked. She developed PTSD from Lobotomy Corporation and watching her brother die, and is wary of Hokma and Angela, hating the idea of being put in a very similar position, but now having to do everything Angela says. She is also fearful of getting close to people since she lost her brother, believing to be due to Price of Silence's warning, and doesn't want to deal with it again while also acknowledging the risks of using the weapon (which she still has because yes). She is also known to have a very drastic reaction to WhiteNight, whether its through the mention of it or actually seeing it, due to having had to suppress it in the past, which would often times go very poorly and contributing to her self-isolation. However, at some point during Library of Ruina, spending this much time around Hokma allowed her to understand what was really going on, and alleviated her hatred towards him a bit.

Working for Hokma allowed her to become patient and collected, unlike how she was when her brother died, and it allowed her to not see it as a punishment, but more of something to learn by, and she was able to move on while keeping the memory of him close to her heart, and continues to assist Angela in her goal to fulfill her own, as well as on the behalf of her late brother. Due to her PTSD though, she has a visceral reaction to the Abnormalities, particularly Price of Silence and WhiteNight, and especially during the Religion realization. She is filled with a deep resentment upon having to fight Angela like this, but she realizes how much in pain Angela is in, which is what keeps her from boiling over and having a meltdown herself. This is also how she finds out of other uses of E.G.O besides the weapons (and one sin Hokma（*´▽｀*)). After this realization, despite the trauma she went through and her hatred for the Abnormalities, she comes to fully understand the weight of the situation, and though she still disagrees with Angela, no longer resents her.

In the True Ending, she stays at the Library when it's banished to the Outskirts. As things seemed to calm down, she decides to take the time to try to understand herself better, and her E.G.O weapon Price of Silence. Even though her original plan didn't work out, she instead decides to work on growing in understanding to the world around her and as a person, on behalf of her brother. (I understand that he could of technically been revived but for her character it's become a Tiphereth situation) She does develop feelings for Hokma as well at some point before the finale, but I don't really know how to write that yet lmao. I think it starts off as a mentor relationship before actually becoming romantic, as she would often go to Hokma for advice.