WEEK 2 - TRIAL

[foundationmods]

TRIAL

The morning seemed so far away yesterday - yet, it also seems too soon when morning comes and you are all yet again ushered to the third floor by The Lady. The Captain is there, in all of his....glory? It's hard to tell.

The doors close, and he speaks up, this time reclining on one of the couches in the room.

"You know the drill - Since one of you have died during the game, it's your responsibility to try and vote someone out. You have six hours to talk about it, but then-"

He taps on a box on the coffee table in front of him, labeled 'VOTES'.

"-you'll have to put in your vote so someone can be punished. You all saw what happens when you refuse to play, right?"

He leans back, placing his hands behind his head.

"So get to it."

As he says that, music begins to play in the room...


VICTIM: YOSHI NANASE

27 GUESTS REMAIN.

Comments

[justfists]

That's not what I thought. I also don't understand why you would obsess over that being "normal" to the rest of us, rather than normal for you?

[she seems... unconvinced.]

[escardos]

Because that's...one of my biggest problems back at home. [ he seems to shrink a little in his shoulders. ] I've always reacted differently from normal humans and mages and was treated well...

[ he laughs a little ]

Like I'm a monster.

[moonlightbeast]

[Oh.

Oh that just makes Atsushi frown.]

You...just want to be accepted, don't you?

[escardos]

Ahaha~ this is kind of a depressing topic, isn't it?

[ flat chuckles, but it doesn't sound happy at all. ]

Yeah. So when I met Yoshi, I realized that I had found someone that was kinda like me? It felt...kind of like a relief, actually. I thought that, even though there's no one at home that's like me, I could still find someone to relate to here. Someone that felt about life the same way I do.

But being alone again...I guess I can get used to that, too.

[dereban]

[ overhearing this and frowning because. . . mm, some of this? is? relatable?

but also doesn't say anything because as much as she wants to say "you don't have to be alone" it would make her a hypocrite, so instead she just. says nothing. ]

[moonlightbeast]

[Ow this is hitting him in his everywhere.]

Yoshi is a good friend, and not seeing him every day is going to be hard. But you will still be able to talk to him. And I think you'll be surprised to find out that you're not so alone here, either.

[relentlesslyonwards]

[He shakes his head.]

I can't speak about knowing what goes on in your home, but things aren't the same here. For one thing, Yoshi's still here with us. And for another, being 'different' isn't grounds to exclude someone when we're all displaced here. You've got your own experiences and your own viewpoints to bring to the table, and I don't think that's a bad thing.

I guess what I'm trying to say is... don't think you're alone just because you're a little different. You're still a person with feelings, hopes and dreams, and I think everyone here knows that.

[diesifkilled]

[...

Shirou closes his eyes for a moment, gritting his teeth. When he opens them again, his gaze is harsh.]

I'm sorry you've had to deal with that, Flat. But you know that doesn't clear you from suspicion, right?

[escardos]

It's fine, I understand. It's probably my fault, anyways...I should have checked up on Yoshi instead of just letting it go as a coincidence.

[diesifkilled]

...Regardless of what happens... the monster we're looking for isn't you. Please remember that.

[latebluemer]

... And we should have tried harder to find him, since Cinque and I were the ones who had plans with him Thursday night. It's not your fault.

[She's pretty firm about this.]

[purrtagonist]

[. . . . . . ah. . .]

[he looks a little pained for a moment, before he speaks]

Flat-san isn't a monster. You know that, right?

[thejusticewagon]

Y-yeah... I mean, I think Flat’s been pretty against killing.

...but... all of us have. Hmm... maybe I wanna ask the Apprentice about something when we’re done here.

[purrtagonist]

[. . .?]

What do you want to ask him?

[thejusticewagon]

Well... it’s about our bodies, you know? And it’s something I wanna think about for it we get out of this, not right now.

[dolleyed]

[ Looks over curiously for a moment bc hrm.]

[purrtagonist]

[also giving her a curious look??]

. . . all right. If you say so.

[diesifkilled]

He... probably has killed people before, though.

[thejusticewagon]

Well, yeah, but so have I, because I was fighting in a war...

...

So, yeah, I guess it comes down to circumstances...

[diesifkilled]

...Yeah. That's true. And I've done it too, so it's not like that's something I can use as any kind of proof.

[escardos]

I don't know.

[ flat says that in an emotionless tone, his gaze distant. the smile on his face, however, stays on. ]

I don't really know much about myself, actually. There are parts of myself that don't sync with anyone I've ever met, and I see things that no one I know can see. Even if I'm not the monster that Makoto thinks I am, I might still be one back at home, so it's not like she'd be wrong, right?

[purrtagonist]

[. . .]

Why do you think you might be a monster back home? You've always seemed bright and energetic to me, even if we haven't spoken much.

[escardos]

"He doesn't make sacrifices. At first, I thought that he had too much kindness for a mage, that he was defective. But he's not even that. His purpose is fundamentally different. It's like finding out the tube you thought was a telescope was actually the barrel of a cannon. He's something...something different." [ he recites this in a neutral, passionless tone, despite the smile on his face. if anyone notices, he's reciting a conversation from his memory. ] "That boy is no child of ours. He's nobody. Nothing. Just a phenomenon that slipped in from some other world. We just got it into our heads that he was our son and named him. There was never a child called Flat, just a flat expanse with some unintelligible scribbles on it...isn't that right?"

[purrtagonist]

[his eyes flash, anger visible in their depths]

Who said that to you?

[justfists]

... Just because there are monsters in this game doesn't mean anyone is actually a monster.