[the worry in his expression is very real for once, and he doesn't bother trying to hide it.]
I want to go to the graveyard, but I don't want to visit by myself... There are a lot of things on my mind and I don't think that being alone would help. [his shoulders rise briefly.]
Would you accompany me? I think I could pick some flowers first...
[OR SOMETHING. with a grateful nod, he'll turn to lead the way into the greenhouse. it isn't until they're about halfway into the field of flowers that he speaks again.]
...What does Skye-san think about all of this? [his head dips down a little, gaze focused on some of the flowers by his feet hanging heavily from their bent stems.] To come so far, only to face such a cruel decision...
[She seems honestly taken aback at the question. It's not like she's been any kind of leader in all of this; why ask her opinion?
After a few moments' thought, she replies.]
I don't think any of this is fair. We did everything we were asked to. We even did things we weren't asked to. We worked really hard to save as many people as we could. We stopped those things and still we're told that people have to die.
[She's nearly shouting now without realizing it.]
And I don't even fully understand why. Yes, we know what the cat's said, and what other people have told us, but... [She loses steam rather quickly, sighing crossing her arms over herself.] Everyone who volunteered today is a good person. They don't deserve this.
[he does seem a little surprised by Ema's initial outburst, but remains silent as she speaks.]
...I don't think any of us understand it. And don't you think it's strange that even now, we still can't remember every moment leading to our deaths...? [funny enough, the longer he's had time to sit and think about this, the more his resentment has shifted from anyone else trapped in this situation with him and focused squarely on that damn cat. it didn't even matter if he was supposedly giving them an option to escape. in the end, it seems so much more cruel to give that chance only for it to be taken away.]
From the very start, I think that the cat planned such a thing. Why else would he have taken on so many more people than he could bring back? [the way he had spoken about the shadows, too - a good parasite... it has his teeth on edge.
after a few seconds of quiet:] In the end, this is going to boil down to a contest of who has the greatest sympathy. It isn't fair for those who are forced to vote or for those who have the fewest ties here... Even those who've volunteered are putting themselves and everyone around them into an unfair dilemma. Everyone here has something to return to...
...now that you mention it, that is strange. Scientifically speaking, none of this makes any sense. [Although scientifically speaking, the laws of science went out the window a long time ago.] And I can't really disagree with your theory about the cat. I don't think it was ever really on our side.
[Siiiiiiiiiigh.]
Even the people who don't think they'll be missed will be. How does the cat honestly expect us to make this decision? It's impossible.
No, I don't think that it was. It's clear that it doesn't understand the weight of lives... [like treating them like something to barter for with important memories or abilities!!]
...I don't know. It must be particularly tough for Skye-san, since so many people that know you have volunteered...
[Ema nods at that second part.] And people that obviously know me well enough to care about me in the future. I don't know them back home yet, but... but after everything that's happened here, after all the ways they've helped me, I can't just stand by and let them try to throw their lives away.
...Maya-san seems determined, and no one spoke up against Klavier-san presenting himself except her... Athena-san should be able to survive, though, but she promised to stay behind with Maya-san, didn't she?
Do you think they wouldn't? [his head cants a little to the side, but he draws his gaze up from the flowers, too.]
Athena-san was ready to sacrifice herself during her trial if she couldn't be saved... Klavier-san had to be talked into trying in the first place, and Maya-san— [his lips purse.] ...Well, we all saw her cabinet.
[Horror slowly builds in Ema's expression and her blood runs cold as she realizes that Kaoru has some pretty strong evidence to support his suggestion.]
I... they... they can't! [Because that would be too horrible.]
[the look he gives her is a thoughtful one, though the concern also still seems to linger in his expression. eventually, quietly:]
It's good to be determined, but could Skye-san stop all three of them if things came down to it? Talking alone... with such stubborn people, I can't tell if any of them would really listen to anyone else. What do you think...?
[He's right. How can she expect to be in three places all at once?
She can feel tears starting to sting in her eyes, but she refuses to let them fall. Instead, she clutches her hands into fists and allows herself to default to anger rather than hopelessness.]
There has to be something I can do! I'll think of something!
[a second or two of silence again; Kaoru's gaze briefly drifts back to the flowers but doesn't stay there long.]
...I had an idea earlier. In the end, all three of them would be able to return regardless of how it works, but... it could also give us the opportunity to regain our losses. [and despite how ruthlessly manipulative he's being in general, he very much means what he says next:] I can't allow that cat to think it can control us.
[welp no time like the present to dive into a theory that he only thought up a few hours ago. he's very artful with his words when he needs to be, though, and talks like he's been thinking along these lines for quite a while.]
The cat isn't giving us an opportunity to barter our way out of this situation, as I'm sure you've noticed... [sounding very bitter? SOUNDING VERY BITTER.] It's my belief that even if a vote were to be made, he wouldn't allow anything after. He would just kill the ones voted for in whatever gruesome manner he could without the help of those shadows, and then send the rest of us home... But, if we were able to draw him back before-hand... we might have a chance at striking that barter. [or killing the cat, maybe - he'd be cool with either. that said, he takes a deep breath before leveling her a serious look.]
I believe that three people should die before the vote. The cat would have to come, and it's possible that we could do whatever is in our power to give a chance to those who never had one... [his brow furrows again.] But it's still a risk. Those who die may not return... I would give my own life, if possible, but if things go wrong I would like to be here to protect those who can't defend themselves. I don't know if anyone else would approve of such a reckless idea, but our backs are against a wall and three people will die tomorrow either way, whether we're forced to commit murder through the vote or take matters into their own hands...
[Ema listens quietly to his idea. It seems sound, or at least sound enough that it could work--and really, that's the best they can hope for at this point. If they can draw the cat out, and if they can bargain with it or force it to act on their terms for once... things might honestly be okay.
There's only one thing that Ema doesn't understand. After a few long moments of silence, she brings it up:]
It's reckless, but we haven't gotten anything by playing by the rules, either...
I just don't see how it saves Athena, Maya, and Mr. Gavin. It sounds like them dying would help your idea, wouldn't it?
It would be a logical choice... But Athena-san and Klavier-san both escaped death once. They were condemned for no greater reason than having been born into unfortunate circumstances, and to be given that hope back again just for them to have to relinquish it with their own hands... it just seems too cruel. [his sympathy is almost kind of real... as real as it can get for him, anyway. they shared a situation, after all, and tried their best to help him; in his own way, he's grateful to them for it.]
As for Maya-san - keeping the person that can bridge the living and the dead is an important thing, don't you think?
[Of course, Ema agrees with everything he's just said, with the addition that they're her friends and that there's a not-small, selfish part of herself who doesn't want them to die based on that alone.
Deep breath. Ema's not panicked and ready to bolt at the idea that horrible things might happen to her friends, but that doesn't mean she's any less determined to stop them from doing the unthinkable. She supposes she owes Kaoru a thank you for keeping her from losing it, but she keeps her communication focused on the task at hand.]
How do we stop them from deciding that they should die before we even vote on it?
[She does her best to keep her voice even, her body language strong and competent. Her eyes, and the slightly-too-wide desperation therein, give her away.]
[that much he's actually very sure of. if any of the three of them decided to take matters into their own hands, there's very little that the rest could do - but he doesn't think that will actually happen, which is why he's here in the first place.]
...But if we were to move their attention from the situation while lowering the number that the cat asks us to vote for, it would be very possible—
[he could go for a wider-ranged approach - "we'll have to find three people to die before them" - but assumes from the basis of their conversation so far that a more personal one will net better results. it's with equal determination that he finishes the last part.]
...A person who would be a willing catalyst for such a thing would be a very useful person right now.
She turns the thought over a few times in her head and finds that she can't wrap her brain around it. Aside from the fact that dying is a terrifying prospect, there are other people to think of here...]
W-what about Mr. Wright? My sister? They'll... Lana will lose her mind if something happens to me...
[the determination doesn't leave his face, though he does nod once in reply to her question.]
Then we'll just have to do our best to make sure that the cat doesn't get away with making this the final decision. ...But for now, no matter how this situation is looked at, it's weighing so many lives against others, right? So if you think you could be of more help to those waiting for you back home than those of us here, I won't press the topic any further than this.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
no subject
I want to go to the graveyard, but I don't want to visit by myself... There are a lot of things on my mind and I don't think that being alone would help. [his shoulders rise briefly.]
Would you accompany me? I think I could pick some flowers first...
no subject
Yeah, I don't mind keeping you company. You're probably right about not being alone. Maybe we can help each other figure things out.
[Or something.]
no subject
...What does Skye-san think about all of this? [his head dips down a little, gaze focused on some of the flowers by his feet hanging heavily from their bent stems.] To come so far, only to face such a cruel decision...
no subject
[She seems honestly taken aback at the question. It's not like she's been any kind of leader in all of this; why ask her opinion?
After a few moments' thought, she replies.]
I don't think any of this is fair. We did everything we were asked to. We even did things we weren't asked to. We worked really hard to save as many people as we could. We stopped those things and still we're told that people have to die.
[She's nearly shouting now without realizing it.]
And I don't even fully understand why. Yes, we know what the cat's said, and what other people have told us, but... [She loses steam rather quickly, sighing crossing her arms over herself.] Everyone who volunteered today is a good person. They don't deserve this.
no subject
...I don't think any of us understand it. And don't you think it's strange that even now, we still can't remember every moment leading to our deaths...? [funny enough, the longer he's had time to sit and think about this, the more his resentment has shifted from anyone else trapped in this situation with him and focused squarely on that damn cat. it didn't even matter if he was supposedly giving them an option to escape. in the end, it seems so much more cruel to give that chance only for it to be taken away.]
From the very start, I think that the cat planned such a thing. Why else would he have taken on so many more people than he could bring back? [the way he had spoken about the shadows, too - a good parasite... it has his teeth on edge.
after a few seconds of quiet:] In the end, this is going to boil down to a contest of who has the greatest sympathy. It isn't fair for those who are forced to vote or for those who have the fewest ties here... Even those who've volunteered are putting themselves and everyone around them into an unfair dilemma. Everyone here has something to return to...
no subject
[Siiiiiiiiiigh.]
Even the people who don't think they'll be missed will be. How does the cat honestly expect us to make this decision? It's impossible.
no subject
...I don't know. It must be particularly tough for Skye-san, since so many people that know you have volunteered...
no subject
no subject
...Maya-san seems determined, and no one spoke up against Klavier-san presenting himself except her... Athena-san should be able to survive, though, but she promised to stay behind with Maya-san, didn't she?
no subject
All three of them, then...
no subject
They're trying so hard to defend each other, too... I'm a little concerned that one or more may do something drastic at this rate.
no subject
Y-you really think they would?!
no subject
Athena-san was ready to sacrifice herself during her trial if she couldn't be saved... Klavier-san had to be talked into trying in the first place, and Maya-san— [his lips purse.] ...Well, we all saw her cabinet.
no subject
I... they... they can't! [Because that would be too horrible.]
I won't let them! I'll stop them if I have to!
no subject
It's good to be determined, but could Skye-san stop all three of them if things came down to it? Talking alone... with such stubborn people, I can't tell if any of them would really listen to anyone else. What do you think...?
no subject
[He's right. How can she expect to be in three places all at once?
She can feel tears starting to sting in her eyes, but she refuses to let them fall. Instead, she clutches her hands into fists and allows herself to default to anger rather than hopelessness.]
There has to be something I can do! I'll think of something!
no subject
...I had an idea earlier. In the end, all three of them would be able to return regardless of how it works, but... it could also give us the opportunity to regain our losses. [and despite how ruthlessly manipulative he's being in general, he very much means what he says next:] I can't allow that cat to think it can control us.
no subject
What's your idea?
[She is ALL FOR saving all three of them and getting back at the cat.]
no subject
The cat isn't giving us an opportunity to barter our way out of this situation, as I'm sure you've noticed... [sounding very bitter? SOUNDING VERY BITTER.] It's my belief that even if a vote were to be made, he wouldn't allow anything after. He would just kill the ones voted for in whatever gruesome manner he could without the help of those shadows, and then send the rest of us home... But, if we were able to draw him back before-hand... we might have a chance at striking that barter. [or killing the cat, maybe - he'd be cool with either. that said, he takes a deep breath before leveling her a serious look.]
I believe that three people should die before the vote. The cat would have to come, and it's possible that we could do whatever is in our power to give a chance to those who never had one... [his brow furrows again.] But it's still a risk. Those who die may not return... I would give my own life, if possible, but if things go wrong I would like to be here to protect those who can't defend themselves. I don't know if anyone else would approve of such a reckless idea, but our backs are against a wall and three people will die tomorrow either way, whether we're forced to commit murder through the vote or take matters into their own hands...
no subject
There's only one thing that Ema doesn't understand. After a few long moments of silence, she brings it up:]
It's reckless, but we haven't gotten anything by playing by the rules, either...
I just don't see how it saves Athena, Maya, and Mr. Gavin. It sounds like them dying would help your idea, wouldn't it?
no subject
It would be a logical choice... But Athena-san and Klavier-san both escaped death once. They were condemned for no greater reason than having been born into unfortunate circumstances, and to be given that hope back again just for them to have to relinquish it with their own hands... it just seems too cruel. [his sympathy is almost kind of real... as real as it can get for him, anyway. they shared a situation, after all, and tried their best to help him; in his own way, he's grateful to them for it.]
As for Maya-san - keeping the person that can bridge the living and the dead is an important thing, don't you think?
no subject
Deep breath. Ema's not panicked and ready to bolt at the idea that horrible things might happen to her friends, but that doesn't mean she's any less determined to stop them from doing the unthinkable. She supposes she owes Kaoru a thank you for keeping her from losing it, but she keeps her communication focused on the task at hand.]
How do we stop them from deciding that they should die before we even vote on it?
[She does her best to keep her voice even, her body language strong and competent. Her eyes, and the slightly-too-wide desperation therein, give her away.]
no subject
[that much he's actually very sure of. if any of the three of them decided to take matters into their own hands, there's very little that the rest could do - but he doesn't think that will actually happen, which is why he's here in the first place.]
...But if we were to move their attention from the situation while lowering the number that the cat asks us to vote for, it would be very possible—
[he could go for a wider-ranged approach - "we'll have to find three people to die before them" - but assumes from the basis of their conversation so far that a more personal one will net better results. it's with equal determination that he finishes the last part.]
...A person who would be a willing catalyst for such a thing would be a very useful person right now.
no subject
[Why else would he bring it up to her like this?
She turns the thought over a few times in her head and finds that she can't wrap her brain around it. Aside from the fact that dying is a terrifying prospect, there are other people to think of here...]
W-what about Mr. Wright? My sister? They'll... Lana will lose her mind if something happens to me...
no subject
Then we'll just have to do our best to make sure that the cat doesn't get away with making this the final decision. ...But for now, no matter how this situation is looked at, it's weighing so many lives against others, right? So if you think you could be of more help to those waiting for you back home than those of us here, I won't press the topic any further than this.
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)