ain't no party like a murdergame afterparty, cw: some mentions of alcohol

[originallutece]

[--cuz a murdergame afterparty is horrifying and sad and possibly a little threatening if Mahiro insists on bringing his gun with him, please don't do that buddy.

Honestly, guys, we're running out of cooks at this rate. But it's nice to gather after horrifying events, and so while Rosalind's cooking skills are absolutely terrible, her alcohol-pouring skills are a little better. Come have a glass of wine or three and ruminate on the fact that there's only fourteen of us left.]

Comments

[maddogs]

Ya seemed upset over Zero, an' this is worse. Mahiro-kun actually killed someone.

[gyakusatsu]

Zero cornered a defenseless woman and attempted to cleave her in half from behind. Someone I considered a friend -- of course I was upset.

[asjdh;; so much for not feeling bitter.]

I'll admit it, shooting Zero would've been satisfying in that moment. I understand where Mahiro-kun is coming from. But just because you have the power doesn't mean you succumb to your base instincts. We can't all be like this and give the Sage what he wants.

[buddyoldpal]

Aw, he never said ya wasn't, pal. Majima might not look it, but he's a real softie on the inside.

[ Unlike Nishitani, who is... just as awful as they come. ]

But ya got a point -- Sage-chan's just gonna keep gettin' his way like this.

[maddogs]

I ain't soft.

[ grumble grumble ]

But Nishitani's right, I understand why you're upset.

[gyakusatsu]

[...She takes a deep breath there and exhales out slowly.]

I apologize. I haven't been great at keeping an even temper lately and I've been trying to keep to myself to make up for it.

[....which may or may not be a good move. Uh.]

But focusing on the bigger picture... five people have died this week and all that's been accomplished is providing more fodder for that tree. How have we gotten worse after learning critical information like that..?

[buddyoldpal]

Oh, yeah! Ya girls ain't heard about that, have ya? We got a visit from Water-chan couple days ago. Said 'is name is Emperor-han.

[ Maybe you guys should've had a meeting, Nishitani. ]

Tree's just a timer. I dunno if the energy's goin' there or what, but it sounds like the tree bloomin'll just mean we're outta time ta stop this shit.

[ "This shit" is probably the Sage tbh. ]

[maddogs]

It's all a fuckin' mess, ain't it? Wish people'd just stop fuckin' killin' each other. I can't believe Mako was the one tryin' ta tell everyone that an' then he ended up offin' two kids.

[gyakusatsu]

[Wait... what? Misora looks from Majima to Nishi, looking puzzled. It's perhaps a testament to the fact that she actually considered Mako a friend that she feels any need to defend him from Majima before addressing this new Emperor shenanigans.]

Those two boys ambushed Mako knowing that they'd die if they didn't take action. Mako... he went too far in defending himself, but I can't say that I condemn him for it either.

That's neither here nor there anymore. What's this about the "Emperor," Nishitani-san? How were you able to contact him?

[buddyoldpal]

[ Well, they must've been close for Misora to defend the killer like that. Nishitani keeps his mouth shut -- mostly because he likes Misora and isn't about to argue the point with her. It's not like he was there at the trial either, so he can't say much. ]

Yeah, he came an' talked ta us in the bathhouse. Thursday or somethin', I think? Used bubbles this time, like he did with the fuckin' sink. Turns out our dead pals are with 'im, but if the tree blooms, they're all gonna vanish or somethin' like that.

[maddogs]

The whole thing's pretty fucked up.

[gyakusatsu]

[...A very tiny part of her, the part that still wants there to be some sanity in this castle is facepalming. For the most part though, she accepts it with a repressed sigh.]

Did he say anything about whether we could get them back or-?

[This is probably the most hopeful she's looked in weeks and hearing it in her own voice makes it seem pretty futile.
Places like these don't have happy endings, after all.]

[buddyoldpal]

He said he'd left somethin'. Somethin' none of us ain't found yet, but somethin' that's supposed ta fuckin' help us stop the fucker behind this shit.

[ Of course, Nishitani won't be big on details since The Sage is listening at all times, but this seems like knowledge someone should have shared by now. ]

I ain't sure if that's gonna bring people back or what, but it ain't nothin'.

[maddogs]

Hope's kinda an awful thing sometimes, but it might be worth it in this case.