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.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
softstoneheart) wrote2024-03-02 04:15 pm
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I brought all my critters to work, 'cause they made me more productive. I don't mind sneaking in, but let's do it in a practice room we won't actually use.
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I should try that with Mary with more often!
[(This will not make him more productive.)]
But that sounds good to me. I'll walk in front of you, and you can hide the ice cream behind my back. Now let's go...♪
[And then he turns towards the hallway full of practice rooms. He'll choose an empty one at random.]
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And I'm on it.
[ immediately falls in line behind him, ice cream below she level. Given their height difference, it'd be hard to notice while they're on the move. ]
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[Actually, it was because the owner of the farm on the TV show was allergic to dogs. Yet Hiyori tried to bring her along despite knowing this?? He only relented once Ibara pointed out Mary might get bored of farm life, since he and Jun would be too busy filming to pay much attention to her.
But anyway. Stealthily, he finds them a soundproofed practice room, and stealthily, he sneaks inside! Once she's not sticking to him as closely, he'll shut the door.]
Looks like we're home free...♪
[And then reach out to accept his ice cream.]
So. Did you want to do good news first, or bad news first?
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[ this is the kind of forbidden act she's always happy to do. It fills her with pride, and she hands over Hiyori's ice cream like a hard-earned trophy.
Her mirth is dampened by the question: good news or bad news? She shouldn't be surprised by bad news in this place, but she can't hide her disappointment. ]
Let's hear the bad news first. Better to end on a good note, right?
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[Now for a pause.]
Though the good news isn't all that good, either, to be honest. So I guess it's more like "bad news" and "worse news." But the worse news is someone got murdered again. I don't know who did it, but the victim was Kirma-kun, and the method was apparently poisoning!
[And then he just... takes a fucking bite of his ice cream. Funny how talking about death by poisoning ruins the taste, though!!]
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It's baffling. She can only think to say one word: ]
Why?
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Er... are you okay?
[He's, uh, going to check on her first. And her ice cream. Which she hopefully didn't drop...?!]
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[ and so is her ice cream, though her appetite has left her, too. ]
Sorry to make you worry. Go on.
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That's all I have to say there, really. I don't know what the motive was. I thought his boyfriend might have been the culprit, since whoever he's dating seems to have a nasty violent streak. I was told they're happily in love, though.
[And then he plows ahead and says:]
The "good" news is your hunch was right. You thought the cost of revival must not be free, and apparently it's not. The House lowers your rank, and you get cursed if you die here. I don't know if that's what's happening to Kirma-kun, though, since I heard that from someone I don't think is involved with him at all.
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Like with the last murder you told me about?
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Is the second person who told you the same?
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No, I suppose not, since he was talking about it in public. That was Esikko-kun—he's from the same world as Kirma-kun.
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Murders of two people who share a connection.
[ now the gears are turning. ]
...was Esikko the one who witnessed the first murder?
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[He doesn't know Kirma's boyfriend was the first murder victim!
But that might be about to change. His eyebrows jump when she asks that last question, and for all his media training, it's painfully clear from looking at his face that she hit the jackpot.]
Huh? How'd you figure that out...?
[*This thread is now forward-dated past all his other threads btw. Just for, uh, continuity reasons...]
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[ the way his idol perfect expression breaks is very telling. She stays calm— there's no point in freaking out over something in the past. ]
Just stay calm. If he's telling you, it's because he trusts you. That's a good thing.
[ and she'll make a personal point to stay away from that guy. ]
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[Yet he still hasn't made the connection to Kirma's boyfriend. Nor does he realize Kirma's boyfriend is Aventurine. He thinks of Aventurine as Topaz's non-stabby boyfriend! Not Kirma's stabby one. But then how are the two victims connected, exactly...?
There's one point of connection. The person who told him about both incidents is the same, and Topaz draws the obvious conclusion from that. But he just can't believe it—at least not all of it.]
You really think he did it?
[A pause. And then, more quietly:]
Both of them?
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except for the the ones that happened during Eichi's rise to power.Even if her hypothesis is that Esikko is the culprit, so far she doesn't have evidence, and she's sure Aventurine won't give her any. Furthermore... is he a threat to Hiyori? Probably not. ]
I don't know, it's just an unproven theory. Let's not jump to conclusions and go with business as usual.
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At least not both crimes. But Kirma's death... well. Even he thought Esikko's explanation didn't make much sense. And if this was a mystery, then Esikko would have an obvious motive. He didn't want to think Esikko was capable of something like that. But if he poisoned Kirma-kun to get "revenge" for the things Kirma did earlier, like kidnapping him and breaking his arm, all while knowing death isn't permanent in this place...
His stomach twists. That would still leave the first murder, and that one can't have been him. The details were repulsive. Absolutely disgusting. Only someone truly depraved could have committed that crime. It couldn't be someone he drinks tea with regularly and set up on a date with Leo-kun. Even if he had killed Kirma, he couldn't have done that.
... he couldn't have. Right?
Still he thinks about the surprisingly unsympathetic way Esikko described the victim in that case, and his stomach knots with uncertainty.]
..... mm.
[That's his response. Just a subdued-sounding "mm."]
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If she's right though, the offense is probably personal. She didn't know Esikko and Kirma were from the same place, and that crucial piece made her understand that the murders were likely personal. If that's true, then he really isn't a threat to Hiyori. ]
Tell me what you're thinking. We'll keep it between us.
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He thinks, oddly enough, about Nagisa: how there was clearly something going on with him back home, how he hadn't been the same since visiting that temple. But Hiyori didn't press him for any answers. No, on the contrary, he pretended not to see that there was something wrong. But what good did that do?
He stares down at his ice cream for a moment, before he shakes that thought—all those thoughts—and turns his attention back to Topaz.]
You said you know the first victim. ["Know," not "knew."] Does that mean they're still here?
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But I only know that they died, and that there were consequences for revival. Even they wouldn't tell me who did it.
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[And he heard the victim was someone with a death wish.]
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[ it's such a hard question to answer: He wanted to know if people could die For Science and definitely entered got a "Find Out" era for it. And he suffered. She saw the consequences of his revival; how flowers obstructed his lungs and his awful, dingy rank 2 suite reeked of blood.
And he's not there now. And they've gotten closer, but is he "alright?" The way her face looks says she isn't sure but, she'll still say: ]
They're pretty resilient. I'm not sure how the recent murder makes them feel, though. They have little regard for their own well-being, but will do anything to avoid others getting roped into their troubles.
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