jackhole | week 10 | wednesday evening

[They're actually not hard to find! All three of them are in a corner of the lobby, Hinata still working to fold a couple more cranes. This is seriously starting to hurt his thumbs, though, how the hell did Urashima do 500 all by himself??]

Huh?

[What's up, fellow kids? Hinata just glances up, both eyebrows quirking into a kind of wry amusement at being addressed so uncertainly.]

Oh, Rhys... what's up?

[Plus one to the eyebrow quirking. Really? Kids? Sure, they're younger than Rhys but come on.]

[Well...that and the fact that it's also Rhys. Who only earlier today said he didn't care about anybody here so Faize is a little stunned he apparently wants to talk to the three of them at all. He is listening and perfectly available to talk, though! But since Hinata already covered that, he's just going to be the silent sidekick as usual.]

[What up, nerd.]

[ Roxy was working on origami for .5 seconds but now she appears to be making what may be a paper wizard hat. It absolutely is. She will plop it on Faize's head, since this seems like as good a time as any. ]

Sup, adult male.

[ "Kids" really Rhys. Really. ]

[ this is a nicer response than he expected honestly, but he still kind of falters at the "adult male". uh. was what he said really that awkward?? shit. ]

Yeaaaah.

[ let's have a long pause here that's honestly pretty once again, awkward and rhys just runs a hand through his hair. ]

It's about Miata and Katerina. They had an argument at the church the other night, after the thing with Bill? I recorded it, if you want to hear. Sans asked me to play it for you by the way, Hinata. He was there with me when we heard it.

[...Did... did Rhys just want to fold some origami? Is that why he's over here not sure what to say? He'd thought Inaba was the only tsundere, but he'd never had thought Rhys of all people-- ah, no, okay. That makes way more sense.]

...The same night Inaba and the others found Miata's talisman? Sans wrote about it in his... in his note to me.

[Alright, origami is going to have to wait. Hinata doesn't even bother finishing the fold he'd started, instead just pushing it aside. He'd honestly pretty grateful Rhys mentioned it right from the beginning instead of trying to fumble through more conversation with them.]

[Th...anks, Roxy. Faize just gives her a perplexed look, takes the hat off for a second to look at it, then puts it back on. He doesn't get it, but he's not going to be rude to his best friend's girl who is also his friend.]

[But ah yes...the night after the thing with Bill. That would explain why Faize missed it. Too busy sleeping off death shocks of THE SAME THING HE'D FELT ALL WEEKEND, thanks for nothing murder town.]

[Faize frowns slightly.]

I take it some of the bullet points in Sans's general notes had to do with this conversation? I am glad to hear that you managed to record it, Rhys. As I am most certainly interested in hearing what was said for myself.

[He's honestly not surprised they were arguing, because for a long time it's seemed like the two of them have some very key differences in opinion. But what exactly were they arguing about?? That's the mystery here.]

Edited (HOW COULD I FORGET WIZARD HAT) 2016-04-21 12:35 (UTC)

[ Good Faize, appreciate her hardwork.

Yes, that night. The night of ow my head why this deathshocks. Roxy was also sleeping that off, like a normal person.

For once Roxy's mouth is shut since all she has to add is "all Sans told me was to practice safe sex" which is frankly not relevant to this discussion and wow, yes, she also would like to know what Miata and Kitty were arguing about?

Actually one thing needs to be said from her peanut gallery-- ]

Was it a lovers' quarrel?

[ #importantquestion ]

Same night, yeah.

[ don't worry, hinata. he would never make the three of them suffer through that. mostly because he has no idea how to go through that conversation without saying something absolutely terrible. HE STILL HAS A REPUTATION TO UPHOLD...! or something.

instead he just jabs a finger at roxy and nods. ]

It was totally a lovers quarrel.

[ and then he holds out his robot hand, projecting a holographic screen and after a moment, he'll play a certain conversation (without the tidbits from the skelebros and rhys) for them all to hear. after, he'll stay silent to wait for their reactions. ]

[I really doubt it was a lover's quarrel...]

...T-this is--?!

[Wtf wtf. He visibly goes still as soon as he recognizes the sound of... that's Katerina, isn't it?

But he's quiet to listen to the recording, bringing his hand to his chin as he clearly gives it his full attention, closing his eyes as if that might help him listen better. Or maybe he's just imagining riding a snowboard through some weird mental mindscape, who knows with this kid.]

...Eight?

[He finally opens his eyes, looking toward Rhys' arm as if that might somehow give him more information before looking to the others.]

She said... eight, didn't she? What's...

[There's so many questions he wants to ask, but that was the last thing he heard, so he's going to focus on it first.]

[No shit it's Katerina, Hinata, Rhys said it was a few minutes ago!! Faize listens quietly, giving neither a vocal nor visible reaction to any of this. Because...honestly, most of it doesn't really seem all that important. Or surprising. Because, gain, it wasn't exactly hard to guess that Miata and Katerina have had a difference of opinion for a while now. Sounds like it finally came to a head. Miata's trying to bail, big surprise there only not.]

[The last bit though...that gets him to frown a little.]

Perhaps she misspoke? It seemed to me as though she was referring to the number of people who would die this week, however...on Saturday night, there were still sixteen of us left. If this "game" can only end with seven, nine need to die this week, not eight. [His frown deepens. Which would probably look a hell of a lot more serious without the origami wizard hat.] Unless...retirement means something other than what we thought?

[Are there going to be eight survivors now? One for every sin and also Buddy??? What is the math here, it's not adding up.]

Edited 2016-04-22 01:13 (UTC)

[ What the f, that actually does sound like a lovers' quarrel? And briefly a sex quarrel, but presumably they were not banging during that conversation.

But the boys are right, what the hell is Kitty on about "eight people". What eight people?? Why are they vague blogging, don't they know Rhys was listening in and wanted to record some actual information. ]

Whatever it means, she said it's a chance she's not willing to take...? And she's locking Miata in the basement [ so that's where their lovely hostess has been during the death galore extravaganza ] 'cause she thought someone was gonna off her, somehow-- maybe 'cause of the talisman thing Hinata just said about--, so maybe she's factoring in... that...?

[ math how does it Work ]

Like rather than eight people need to die, eight people need to live? Seven of us, and Miata?

[ ???? what ]

[ it sure does, doesn't it, roxy!! that's a big reason why rhys is pretty annoyed. he feels like nothing was even explained, even with all that risk.

so, rhys watches the three reactions, considering each one and weighing the pros and cons of revealing what he knows. at this point, he really doesn't care to hide anything so you know what? why not. after they debate, he'll helpfully add on something. ]

Miata told me in private, a few weeks ago -- retirement status doesn't really mean anything. Katerina's going to do what she wants regardless, her goal is more important to her than our lives... obviously.

[ a shrug and he places his hands on his hips, looking to the floor with a frown. ]

Katerina wants Miata to live. Miata is obviously sacrificing herself for something. To stop Katerina, I'm assuming, but that sure didn't help any of us in the end, did it? So maybe, yeah, seven of us and Miata. It's the final stretch now and I'm pretty sure whoever is killing this week -- it's probably Katerina's demons.

Which means here we are, left to be picked off however Katerina wants because Miata... who knows, fucked off somewhere and left us all to die. It's only fair that everyone knows this.

...Retirement... doesn't mean anything?

[And for a moment, Hinata's actually glad to hear that, because it means Poland has a chance. ...And then almost immediately after, he feels sick for even thinking like that, shaking his head.]

So what, it was a way to maybe protect us from ourselves, but none of it even mattered in the end, since Katerina's stupid demons can just kill us after all. What was the point of the last few weeks?

[He'd known the motives were bullshit, but he'd been able to see retirement in action, after all.]

There likely is no point, at least not one that those of us forced into this game will care much about. [Since...they were all just dragged into this mess...] Though I would hazard a guess that the reason why they could not attack us directly until now is a matter of the rules Sans alluded to in his summary. He did say Wrath was the only one not following them, and her altercation with Undyne is the only thing I can think of that would qualify.

[He frowns more deeply and lapses into silence once more. You guys keep talking, he's gotta sit here and think and try and fit these pieces together.]

Snorts, of course there isn't a point. We're just toys to Kitty and her demon bros.

[ So, Hinata snowboards and Faize does puzzles. You boys and your weird mind game think tricks. Roxy just thinks like a Normal person, gosh, with a small "huh". ]

Well, what about Sisuca...? Could that have been like these deaths, too?

[ Since that. That was a thing. Forever and a day ago. ]

I dunno what Miata was up to, but even if she had been plannin' to fuck off and ditch us, can't really blame her. This place sucks balls, and her girlfriend is a fuckin' psycho obvs.

[ once again, rhys does agree with roxy and drags a hand over his face as he figures out how to reply to all of this. he'll just go right for it, be direct. ]

Roxy's right. Greed was the one that killed Sisuca. I know this because I... talked to Greed, weeks ago. [ a-ahaha, oops. ] She's unhinged, totally out of her mind psycho and I'm really surprised she hasn't killed more of her own. It wouldn't be very out of character, if you met her. So, Wrath isn't the only one but... who knows? We haven't been told anything, honestly.

[ then he considers faize and hinata's guesswork before shaking his head. ]

I think you're giving the demons too much credit. The mastermind behind all of this is Katerina. All the demons seem to want to do is kill us for power but Katerina's the one with the leashes around their necks. Find Katerina, kill Katerina, stop the demons. That's how this works.

Sisuca...

[...Ah, apparently he's still upset about that, if the look on his face is anything to go by. It might have been months, but do you remember? ~~Pepperidge Farm~~ Hajime Hinata remembers.

But wait, hang on, something seems wrong about that. Hinata puts a hand to his chin and shakes his head.]

I... don't know if that's true, though. About Katerina, I mean. Sure, she might act like she's in control, but... she said it herself, in your recording. "Even if I told them to spare you, they wouldn't care"... is what she said, right? That doesn't sound like someone who's in control to me.

[Glances to Faize. Back him up on this, bro. Put that genius-level IQ to work.]

[Faize looks completely unsurprised about the stuff with Sisuca and Greed. Well, if Rhys was just gonna come out and say it, that spares him the debate on whether or not he should keep sitting on that bit of information...]

And dying at the hands of her own designated sin is most likely why Sisuca is the exception to the half-dead rule. Remember how Lucifer went out of her way to try and ensure that Satan was the one who finished Undyne, as opposed to doing it herself? [Except...Undyne did it for them but HIS POINT STILL STANDS. Pridemom didn't want to kill Undyne] For whatever reason, they don't want to kill those of us they consider "theirs". That said, we cannot say for certain whether or not these deaths are exactly the same as Sisuca's or not. Not unless one of you has spoken with one of the dead recently and can confirm that Hanyuu, Papyrus, and Sans have joined them.

[He looks to each of them. Anybody had any seances recently?? Faize hasn't. Alisha is the only ghost who bothers to visit him. Oh, but wait. Hinata wants backup. Alright. Good thing he glanced at you when he did, man.]

And I have to say that I agree with Hajime. Beyond her words, just listen to her tone during that conversation. That is not the tone of someone who is in complete control of a situation. Perhaps you are right...maybe we are giving the sins too much credit. But you are clearly doing the same to Katerina, Rhys. She is most certainly a key figure in all this and holds quite a bit of power, but...I do not believe the situation is as straightforward as you think it is. To use your analogy: the sins may be collared, but I do not believe that they are leashed. [More like...they're trapped in Katerina's yard behind a tall fence. Just waiting to figure out how to best escape it. That's his guess. If we have to keep using this dog analogy.] Or, if they are, it's likely that Katerina is as well, and that they hold her leash in turn.

[Contracts with beings from hellish dimensions are complicated things!!]

So, if I were you, I would not wholly commit to this "find Katerina, kill Katerina, stop the demons" plan of action just yet. Not without the exact details of the contract between them. Killing her without fully understanding that much could have dire repercussions.

Edited 2016-04-23 04:24 (UTC)

[ Thanks, Velma, for being the smart one. ]

It's not too surprisin' when you think about it. They wanted us here for a purpose, and if that purpose could be served by offin' us themselves, they woulda done it weeks ago instead of this whole song and dance with the trials. I think it's a safe bet to say Hanyuu, Pap, and Sans are half-dead, too, even without pesterchummin' the ghost brigade.

[ But also shrug?? ]

I think that neither Kitty or her pet demons are as in control as they think. There's a legit power imbalance here, and I doubt shit is copacetic between them. Whatever contract they have with her, presumin' there is one, which we can reasonably assume tbqh, it's likely more in their favor than in hers. Killing one half of the murdertown equation doesn't solve the problem of the other half, so. [ she agrees?? is that agreement. who is she agreeing with?? ] Well, unless it does, we don't know, it could collapse whatever shit they're up to.

Really, there's no way a knowing what kinda dealie they got goin' and how we can gum it up without them tellin us-- Kitty or the demons. Which. Is unlikely, unless anyone of you are secret bros with one or somethin. But uh, in general I do kinda agree with Rhys on needing some kinda plan of action, if not the plan just straight up stabbing Kitty-- I mean, we can do that too, but.

[ Fiddles with another piece of paper. Vague hand gesture. Shrug? ]

[ rhys listens to all this and after both faize and roxy are done, he lifts a hand to rub at his forehead with a sigh. his other hand braces against his hip and he looks very tired for a moment. ]

First, yeah. Papyrus and Sans are half-dead like the others. Undyne came and visited... well, as best as a visit can go with Undyne.

[ as in, she threw a lot of stuff and broke break's tea set and yelled a lot, but ghostly. ]

Second, alright. I just hate Katerina. And Miata. It's their fault we're stuck here anyway so even if the demons as wrestling control from Katerina like you suggest, she's still the most at fault here. So, she's going to die. If she doesn't by anyone else's hand, I'll do it myself. I don't care. She will die.

[ rhys, that's a bit dark to say to some teens. don't be shady to people you aren't cool with. ]

Aaaanyway, Roxy's right. I guess the power imbalance isn't really relevant until we know what to do with it? How do we play this to our advantage? I'm thinking the trials are some sort of ritual then, if we're going to consider them important and not just frivolous bullshit. We need to die a certain way to feed power to our designations. Otherwise, why not just kill us once you have us? This still all shows that we're nothing more than a freezer full of meat though and both parties couldn't care less what happens to us.

[Hinata just hums quietly, keeping his hand to his chin, clearly taking in what everyone else has to say. There's a part of him that still balks at murder -- how can it not, with everything they've been through? That killing and death just causes pain and doesn't really help anyone in the end. But there's another part of him that agrees with Rhys, that Katerina deserves to get what's coming to her.]

...I think you'd have to contend with Lithuania to get at Miata at least, but... yeah. I won't be standing in your way to get at Katerina, that's for sure.

[Not... that there's much Hinata would be able to do to stop Rhys tbqh. But the weenie sentiment is there.]

For now... I think we have to consider the trials important. Weeks of killings, "motives," all of that seems way too elaborate for just a "game," right? There has to be a purpose behind it. Behind them, and behind our designations. I... have to wonder if that's the key. For lots of trials, the motives... seemed to appeal to people of a particular designation, right? Could there be a pattern behind that? Something we can use to... try to unlock just what they're planning?

week 10 | wednesday evening

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good to see gmail is lagging with the notifs again

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thanks @ gmail

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