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Jun. 20th, 2020 11:19 pm- He's genuinely a good person, but just struggling to actually act like one. Being a teenager that's carried heavy and unaddressed trauma since he was ten years old, he can struggle with being kind to others, or even doing the right thing at times over the self-preserving/self-gain thing. It's not that he doesn't want to, but just that he needs some patience and time to get used to it (and to get used to not being snappily demanding of others, though he's far better on that and can mostly catch himself when that happens).
- He tends to talk semi-formally and doesn't curse much. He sounds more like someone raised proper rather than Togami-level business, mostly, and his language tends to be calmer or somewhat withdrawn if he's unsure. While he can talk aggressive and rudely, it's usually only to Yami Bakura -- or if someone really gets under his skin.
- He doesn't expect people to genuinely care about his mental state or feelings. Most of the concern for those comes from a place of "we really do not want to see Yami Malik again", which he understands, but someone caring about him just for his own pain is something new to him. It often confuses him, though he does feel touched and somewhat warm about it.
- He is very, very defensive of his back. Even though he's trying to be better, he has negative memories associated with what's on it, and none good. He doesn't like people touching or looking at it, though he can bite back his feelings easily enough if people bump into him and he's prepared for it. If, however, someone touches him there by surprise, he can become very defensive and snappish over it until he calms down. This is only touching his back -- grabbing his shoulder from behind or startling him doesn't upset him.
- Malik absolutely hates meat, and for good reason. Because leaving was forbidden in the tomb he was raised in, his family (most likely) had a straight vegetarian diet, meaning that not only did Malik not develop a taste for meat (the vast majority of it tastes vile to him), but his body simply can't digest it well. He doesn't mind things made with meat products -- soups with chicken/beef/pork broth are fine, he can eat eggs fine, etc. -- but he just can't stand the taste of straight meat or dishes with a heavy meat focus. In addition, while he can (and will) eat white meat if he absolutely has to, under no circumstances will he ever eat red meat. This isn't because of its taste (though that is factor), but because for someone like him, red meat can and will make him seriously ill, possibly even violently so, and eating it puts him in a worse situation than just not having food.
- He's somewhat of a clean freak. It's not so bad that Malik feels the need to deep clean things all the time, but being cut off from the outside world meant no hospitals, no doctors, so it was of the utmost importance to keep things as clean as possible to avoid infections. He doesn't really mind clutter, though he prefers to tidy things, but he won't leave outright dirt around. Dust on the mantle? That'll probably get ignored. Dirty dishes? Immediately cleaned. Dirt or mud on the carpet? Immediately cleaned. Any sort of bodily fluids? Cleaned, disinfected, and possibly someone scowled at for bleeding on his floor.
- For the same reason, he also knows how to treat, clean, and dress wounds. It's nothing professional, not even close, but he can handle most simple injuries unless it's something very serious.
- ON BAKURA:
It's a mutual-use thing where Bakura agreed to help him so Malik aggravates Bakura by ordering him around and Bakura inexplicably goes along with it despite not wanting to and DESPITE NOT WANTING WHAT HE AGREED TO HELP HIM IN EXCHANGE FOR mostly for shits and giggles. When the two of them are on semi-equal ground during the YM fight, they spat a bit like wet cats, but they seem to get along tolerably well, though their personalities can scrape a bit. Malik's not scared of him or anything.
