My Self-SummarySince the Interastral Peace Corporation wouldn’t mean much to most people here, let’s just say I help people all over the universe. I love what I do, but I’m usually a lot busier than this.
I’m not sure what to do with all this free time on my hands. Let’s be friends.
My Future Plans
Having fun, I guess? I feel like anything bigger than that might end up ruined.
My Talents
Business Operations, Investing, Animal Care and Video Games.
Favorite Books, Movies, Music, and Food
Math and Science textbooks, Business reports, stock market analyses. No opinions on the other stuff.
My Ideal Partner
Someone who values trust, honesty and clear communication. This is at the foundation of any good business partnership.
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softstoneheart) wrote2024-03-02 04:15 pm
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[And, true to his word, the ice cream stand next to Birdbucks is where he'll be. Standing before the selection and perusing the different flavors. ... And trying to ignore the smell wafting from behind the counter. Yep, that's why he doesn't hang around here much, even though he likes ice cream!]
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See anything good?
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[He manages a smile despite the stench.]
They do have some good-looking flavors. Though I sure hope that's not coming from the ice cream...
[This in reference to the smell. As for the flavors, those come in varieties that range from normal-sounding (Mint Chocolate Chip) to highly suspicious-sounding (Love Potion #69). There's a lot to choose from, but the person in front of Hiyori finishes paying and moves aside, so now it's his turn. He points to one of the flavors.]
I'll have that pretty-looking one! "Berry blossom," it's called ♪
[He holds out his watch, the chips are exchanged, and one stoned-looking staffer proceeds to scoop his ice cream. While they're doing that, he turns back to Topaz.]
Need me to treat? I know your boss has some cheat where he can win unlimited chips from the casino, but I wasn't sure whether he split his winnings with you or not.
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He offers, but I try not abuse it. He earned it, after all.
[ She'd been financially independent— wealthy, even— for so long, it's weird taking handouts, even if she's pretty sure this is the only way he knows how to connect with people. ]
I'll take the same, but I'll pay my own way.
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Sounds like something you'd say! Though I don't see anything wrong with accepting. Just as long he's not the type to expect reimbursement later. Some might even say it's the duty of people like him to share the wealth ♪
[Plus she's already bumming off him room-wise. But he doesn't point that out.
He steps aside so she can pay for her own order. Shortly afterwards, their ice cream is handed to them.]
Now that's what you call "Pretty" ♪
["Pretty," said in English. He's sure that if he went to this ice cream stand with his circle, they'd all unanimously agree this is the prettiest flavor. Perhaps they'd even declare it to be the official ice cream flavor of Pretty 5.
But enough nostalgia.]
It smells like a skunk here, so let's go elsewhere!
[Somewhere without onlookers. Or eavesdropers. With the ice cream cup in-hand, he starts walking swiftly away from Birdbucks.]
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[ She says "pretty" in English, too, and it rolls off her tongue like a native speaker. Even if tech makes learning languages unnecessary, learning is important to her. ]
And I totally agree. We'll appreciate the flavor way more if we go somewhere with fresher air.
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[Alright, so maybe he's not done being nostalgic. There's the faintest trace of yearning in his voice; even the happy discoveries here are tempered by the realization that he can't just text the people back home and show them what he's seeing.
Still. His present company isn't bad. She even knows what "pretty" means!]
Yep, that we will!
[He throws her a smile, and then continues to walk off.
He doesn't grab the first unoccupied table he sees. Nor does he suggest grabbing the second or third. Those are too close to occupied tables. Only once they've reached a quiet corner does he stop walking, one that should afford them some conversational privacy.]
Now this seems like the spot~♪
[He pulls out a chair and sits down. Rather than jump right into the crime talk, however, he'll go ahead and sample the ice cream first.]
I wonder what the flowers taste like? Guess we'll find out ♪
[And then he scoops up a bite of ice cream and spoons it into his mouth.
(The answer: they're strawberry-flavored cookie dough.)]
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But his mood shifts and she follows the flow, taking a seat and sampling her own scoop. ]
Oh! It's cookie dough. This is delicious!
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So it is! That adds a nice texture.
[He beams, very enthusiastic.]
And they even flavored it so that it matches the ice cream ♪ The one-point deduction is for that weird smell that came from behind the counter. But it gets full points for taste and presentation~
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[ her nose wrinkles again just thinking about it. So gross. ]
This was a good idea, so thank you.
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[His dorm room back home isn't always free of alcohol stench (or fish stench), but it is thankfully weed-free.
He eats another spoonful before he chirps,]
No problem ♪ Ice cream's usually a good idea, in my view. Sometimes even when it's cold!
[Then he eats another spoonful. And another.
It's only when they're starting to get close to being done that he mentions, casually:]
Whenever you're finished, I have something to show you.
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It's a drug. Nothing super-crazy, if it's related to what I think it is. Like obviously it's not killing anyone, but try not to breathe too deeply when you're around there.
[ she finishes off her ice cream and wipes her hands. ]
I'm good, let's see it.
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Really? That's what it is?
[He wouldn't be surprised to see guests doing that kind of thing. But staff? Aren't they usually more professional??
Never mind that, though.
When she confirms, he reaches into his bag and pulls out a note. It isn't laminated, and it's not part of some case file (or romance novel) despite what he said in the text. It's something he wrote hastily on a piece of scrap paper after their Network thread.
He glances around the vicinity surreptitiously before he passes it across the table.]
Here.
[It'd feel inappropriate to smile at this point. It's with a somewhat grim look that he resumes eating the last of his ice cream. Here's what the notebook page says:
The first crime I heard about involved a guest killing a staff member. Some detective told me he knows someone who killed one accidentally. I'm not sure who did it - I assumed he was covering for a friend, though I guess there's a non-zero chance he was telling me about something he did. Whoever it was, he said they received no punishment for it. He also said he thought the staff members were something other than human. Something akin to "puppets," which might line up with something else I heard later.
The second crime I heard about wasn't quite as severe. It involved someone breaking another person's arm and locking him inside his suite afterwards. There was a Network post about it, and the victim wasn't shy about naming the culprit, so I'll just go ahead and say that it was Kirma-kun who did that. He's a short muscular boy with funny dog ears. I don't know if his suit was influencing him or what, but I think it's just that one person he has it out for, so I wouldn't assume he's a danger to you or me. I'd stay away if there's ever an outbreak where people's suits are acting up, though.
The third crime I heard about was just awful. Someone apparently murdered someone else and did something disgusting to the corpse afterwards. I don't know who did it, because the person who witnessed it said they were worried the killer would go after them if they spread it around to everyone. But supposedly they got taken to the clinic and "brought back to life" by the staff after.
The person who did it is still on the loose, as far as I know. I just heard about it, so there's no reason to think they've gone anywhere. The House knows and seems to reward that sort of behavior. So, that's something I'm worried about.]
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[ The House has her disapproval especially in this regard, even if her gripes are more with the danger lower level guests are subjected to.
When reading Hiyori's report, Topaz does her best to maintain a neutral expression, but she has the worst poker face. Her eyes go wide and her jaw drops. She knows Kirma and suspects his suit might have been at play in his case. But murders? Two of them? And one was a guest? This is disturbing.
Even worse, The House carries on as if nothing happened. Truly any vice can be indulged here. She pushes the sheet back to him, her mouth pressed into a tense line. ]
I can't imagine the cost of revival is free.
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[He didn't think the staff had the free will to slack off and do drugs at work. Then again, they're not all perfect. Just look at Steve!
But back to the murder discussion.
Her reaction mirrors his own when he found out about the crimes listed. Some people are awfully cavalier about violent crime here, but he's not one of them, and hearing about the last one in particular really disturbed him.
He sets down his plastic spoon in the empty container and takes back the sheet, tucking it into his bag.]
I wouldn't think so either. I'm not sure what the cost is, though. And it's funny that it's not something they advertise. Someone who can bring the dead back to life is basically a god, no? Proving that they can do that could earn them even more worshippers.
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It's somewhat reassuring that they haven't announced their revival ability. Except it's just as possible keeping the murder and the fix a secret is to protect the culprit.
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[... But back to the murder discussion again.
Her words only turn his expression more grave—he didn't think the House truly cared about them, so he's not sure why they'd bother to protect the culprit. But they're certainly not on the side of the victim, either. He looks at the empty ice cream cup, eyes downcast.]
Honestly, I feel like people should know there's a killer on the loose. But if everyone knew you can get away with murder here, that might just embolden others to act on their worst thoughts. I wish I could say it was just one bad apple, and that the rest of us should all join hands and trust each other. But that would just be hopelessly naive, so.
[So he won't say that.]
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I'm not sure if it's worth it.
If it helps, keeping the revival ability a secret should keep those who'd take advantage of it from doing harm. The House not making that public is prolly to our advantage. As for the murderer, it's hard to say if they'll kill again without knowing the motive of why they killed in the first place. But you're prolly right to assume they didn't get punished.
[ It's saddening to hear optimistic Hiyori say this is "hopelessly naive." It's a failing she takes almost personally, because she doesn't think a normie like him should be exposed to things that would get him down. ]
There's nothing wrong with hoping people would do better simply because it's the right thing to do. Punishment shouldn't have to exist to keep people from murdering each other. That's just basic human decency.
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[That first response piques his interest; for all his info-gathering, he didn't really know what effects the "rebellion" had (if it could even be called that; seemed like a pretty weak rebellion in his opinion).]
I'm not sure I've noticed things getting any less glamorous. The resort seems as tacky as ever to me. Places haven't started to rot and fall apart again, have they? The last thing I want is for our suites to rot.
[Then it might just be time to put a stop to Clubs. The enemy of your enemy isn't always your friend. Sometimes everyone's just terrible!
Which ties into the rest of their conversation. She brings up the issue of the murderer's motive and his shoulders sag, his stomach churning with disgust when he thinks back to what Esikko told him.]
I don't know about a motive. All I know is the killer must be horribly depraved, since the crime sounded absolutely disgusting. Someone no longer fit to call themselves human.
[He won't get into the details about what precisely was so disgusting. She'd be happier not knowing, surely.
So would he, of course, though he's not completely sheltered. Things like violence and criminal networks exist even in his world (thanks Akira). That Gatekeeper guy who hijacked SS was some overseas mafia boss, wasn't he? And then there's that unit called Double Face, which exists to resolve problems in the underworld. These things wouldn't be part of his ideal world, but they do exist, much to his disgust.
He's not hopelessly naive. His tone is measured as he responds to her last words.]
You're not wrong, of course. But even in my world, you hear about killings and other things on the news sometimes. And that's with the threat of jail looming over people's heads. In this place, no one needs a clean reputation, and the "jail" is just a place where you can play games all day. And then there are those suit effects, and that Springtime game that encouraged people to hunt "rabbits"... It's like they want us to hurt each other. Though I don't think that's all they want.
[He trails off, pausing for a moment, remembering Jin Mingming's words. Then he seems to realize something.]
Whether we embrace or kill each other, we might be "changing our fate" either way. And that's supposedly what gives them energy.
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[ It's become one of her favorite places to go, not just to study, but because the music practice rooms are soundproofed. It's the best option for discussing private matters.
"Changing fate" is a different energy concept from the one she and Matoba had discussed. It's interesting. ]
How does changing fate generate energy?
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[He blinks.]
That name doesn't sound very appealing. Though I guess I've heard worse around here. Do you know if they have rooms for dance rehearsal? If so, then I'll just have to show all the ugly ducklings what a beautiful swan looks like...♪
[He'd love to stop having to use Mating Season pods for practice.
But now it's time to give her some info. He initially chirps,]
No clue!
[Because he really, truly doesn't understand how magic works.]
But that's what she said. "She" being the Red Cardinal proprietress. That was the same woman Victoria mentioned in her journal entry. I asked her what she meant when she told Victoria that the resort runs on us, and that some are more "valuable than others." Then she said what the resort takes from us is "our fate." Some people are destined to do great things, like an emperor, while some aren't, like a servant who dies young—that was the example she used. Apparently someone like the emperor is worth more to the House, since they offer more for the resort to "sustain itself on."
As for how "changing our fate" works, she said that by "sharing something so intimate" with people from different worlds, we're changing our fate since we never would've met those people otherwise. Or at least that's the idea. And that's supposedly how the resort gets its energy.
[He waves a hand as he finishes. There's a smile on his lips but it doesn't quite meet his eyes.]
I don't know how you feel, but that explanation didn't satisfy me at all. But she declined to answer more questions even though I offered to double what I'd done for her before. So for now, that's all I have to go on.
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[ Honestly from what she understands about alternate timeline theories, the explanation does make a little sense. Even if she dislikes the answer. ]
That's still more than what I knew, so I appreciate it. It makes getting closer to people from your world sounds useless to them.
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[He says in response to her invite. But as for the second thing, well.
His smile tightens.]
Apparently. Which doesn't make much sense, but it is what it is, I guess.
[It's not just sour grapes. He doesn't see why having a fling with someone you'll never see again would have any more impact on "fate" than being with someone you will see throughout your life. But he's decided he's done talking about this. Or thinking about it. So. He pushes his chair back somewhat forcefully and gets up from the table.]
Which way did you say that school was?
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[ she gets up and starts leading the way. ]
I think get what they meant: basically everyone has their set "fate." For you, it's being an idol in your universe. That's a pretty clear game plan, right? But then you meet someone from another universe, or hundreds of years in the past or the future. Meeting them under normal circumstances would never have been part of your original life plan. It's impossible. The power born from making the impossible possible... that's prolly why the merging of those paths has more weight. Not that I like that idea.
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He listens to her explanation while they walk—apparently he's not done thinking about this—and it doesn't make him happy. Or explain much, in his opinion.]
They want us to do more than just meet people, though. So I'm not sure that holds too much water.
[There's a trace of spitefulness now, in his voice and in his steps, which clomp against the floor harder than necessary. It's not aimed at her, of course. She's probably not thrilled to hear that her dalliance with her boss means nothing, either.]
I guess having an illegitimate child could change the course of fate. Or spreading a life-threatening disease around. But they haven't been encouraging those things to happen in particular, have they?
[(Hopefully he didn't just give them two new ideas.)]
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