nowyouseeit | [WEEK 5: Thursday later morning, Room 104; Dirk]

[an extremely frustrated sigh escapes his mouth as he rests his chin in his palm and his elbow on his knee]

Well, to be quite frank, when we made up our minds we were pretty resigned to people being angry at us. So that's not a big deal.

[I mean, it kind of is, but that's something he was at least prepared for]

And I'm aware of Dave's circumstances-- I talked to him about it, before he. . . but it isn't like we have the option to save only some dead people and leave the rest? 'Sides, even we don't know what the Unclean is going to do with the souls of the dead people if we don't rescue them. We never asked.

[and quite frankly, he hates the Unclean so much and wouldn't put it past her to do something HORRIBLE with the dead people if they don't rescue them]

And you can be glad Andersen blabbed all you want, but I'm pretty pissed at him for doing something stupid like sending an angry mob at our group. You're right-- a person is smart, but people are dumb, panicky dangerous animals.

Which is another reason dumping all of this on you at once seemed like a bad idea! I mean. . . hell, Dirk. We didn't want kids like Dipper or Mabel or Violet to feel like they had to kill someone, y'know? We didn't want to make them feel like they were going to be forced into selling their soul into eternal servitude for an eternity, either.

We don't want people to die, but if they have to in order for everyone to go home, then. . . [that is that, though he still hates that he's already resigned to that fact] We know the stakes. . . we know these are lives, and we know they're precious, and that's why we proceeded as cautiously as we could.

We couldn't afford to mess up.

[except, with Andersen, they definitely already did]

He didn't send an angry mob at you, dude. None of you have been strung up and lynched. I invited you to sit on my bed and talk to me about it. Mabel and Dipper came running because they wanted their friend to reassure them.

People are dumb, panicky animals, so instead of treating us like that, you had an option to talk to us as individuals who could make decisions outside of a group. I wasn't even that angry that you were going to finish the ritual to its end, even if I still don't know if agree with it—the uncertainty's 'cause I still don't have all the information I want to make my decision. I'm angry that you were going to have me die on someone else's terms, for my own fuckin' good, without ever asking if that was what I wanted. That I wasted weeks trying to stay alive so I could keep a promise when none of it mattered and I could have started being a lot more risky about finding ways to stop this permanently. As it is, I plan on killing myself as soon as one of you pops up to take my life.

[He would have done things differently. He would have taken risks. He would have broken rules. He would have tried far less at the trials, trials that didn't even matter because there was never any way they'd catch the worst killers. It was never fair. It was always pointless and stupid.]

Ask the Unclean. Ask her what the limits of her deals are. Find out what happens to the dead if you don't save them. Get the information on why the ritual has to be done this way, help us understand how it works and why it works.

You have the opportunity to get information when the rest of us don't. The charade's up, and I'm sick of hearing things second hand and not knowing when someone misunderstood or didn't get the full picture. Find out everything for us and bring it back so we can decide how we'll die.

Edited (WORDS ARE REALLY HARD) 2017-06-22 03:01 (UTC)

How the heck d'you think we felt when Girge told us the truth behind this stupid ritual?

[the sense of defeat, of pointlessness. . . that all four weeks they spent trying to locate the Prophets to keep their heads down, to find the murderers every week in order to put an end to this charade. . . all for nothing. he still feels that very clearly sometimes. especially now]

[he tries to replace it with a hope for the future, and a determination to reach the best end to this ritual as possible. but sometimes even that's hard, when he thinks about the things they have to do to reach it]

And you can be mad about us takin' that choice away from you. 'Cause it's true; we would have.

But as of now? You've got every bit of information we have, as well as the power to help decide who the final three will be. So. . .

[a small, tired shrug]

On Saturday. . . make your choice.

I already told you, I'm going to vote for Tsurugi to be executed. No one else deserves that fate.

[Blunt and calm. Dirk doesn't like him or care about him. He'll let him die.]

Do you know why you can't just kill us all at once this week? And will you ask the Unclean for that information for us? Or if you aren't up for the task, I'm more than willing to do whatever it is that we have to to ask her. I'd guess it involves cutting off a body part and putting it in a bowl.

That's not the only choice I'm talking about. You guys also get to decide if you trust us enough to let us be your final three. Or if you'd rather trust someone else.

[they're 100% committed, but after learning that Andersen blabbed, the Hunter faction had decided to let the rest of the people here make that decision. if they wall wanted the Hunters dead for their secrecy. . . then so be it]

I don't know why there's a limitation, but I can ask. And it involves jumping through a mirror.

And also, headaches, nausea, nosebleeds and brain freezes.

I already told you that I trust you'd make the sacrifice. As it is, the easiest thing would be for us to all kill ourselves at the trial and end the bullshit now. If there's a reason not to, I need to know.

[Because why not? Why not die painlessly and of their own choice? Why not end it?]

I can handle all of that crap. If you can make it so I can do it, I will. We need to know everything about the Unclean: why the ritual is how it is, what she does with the dead, what the limits are on the wish or whatever of the final three.

. . . okay.

[at this point, Kaito doesn't really care if he lives or dies. . . as long as someone who is willing to revive the dead makes it to the end]

Don't-- do anything drastic yet. I'll ask everything I can from her, but she doesn't like answering questions. I already tried to ask her about the ritual, and why the deal can only be made with three survivors and not more, and why the stupid deal has to be made in the first place, but--

She gave me brain freeze.

I could handle it. I basically spent my life listening to Cthulhu sing me lullabies in my sleep.

Edited 2017-06-22 03:34 (UTC)

[hmph. he snorts]

Well, if you really want to try, then keep at least one Prophet alive.

We need them to reach her shrine.

I had thought about lynching Girge, but Mabel really likes him. If you aren't idiots tomorrow, you can probably keep him and yourselves alive. Persuade everyone that keeping Girge alive is the only way for us to even begin to get a hint about whether or not there are other options.

Of course, you might get reamed for not asking earlier the questions I suggested, but you said you're cool with everyone hating you. Better that than lose your link to the Unclean.

We've been thinking about what to tell everyone, but. . . in the end, like I told you, the choice is gonna be up to you guys. Not us.

[another tired shrug]

We're all gonna get reamed, there's no other way around it. That's what I meant by an angry mob.

[that last part he says somewhat bitterly, so yeah, he's gonna be angry at Andersen forever now]

You were stupid and apparently didn't think about some pretty useful questions to ask, so yeah, you're going to get reamed. You should have talked to us before you killed anyone; that was the dumbest move you pulled. There are enough self-sacrificing people here who would have seen that choice and understood, then worked to their deaths to make sure there are no other options. That's all I wanted, Kaito. I wanted the opportunity to make sure that there really were no other real choices before I died.

Then you could have killed off everyone who would be unable to agree with the plan once all other options were guaranteed to be impossible.

[Dirk is a good person to talk to. Aren't you glad you're here, Kaito, on this very tiring morning.]

I don't intend on seeing anyone lynched at that trial. I'll ask the people who trust me enough to listen to me to make sure you aren't lynched, too.

[NO HE'S EXHAUSTED??? AND HE JUST GIVES DIRK A LONG, TIRED LOOK. . . but accepts the scolding for what it is. he knew they were going to get yelled at for that, be it now or when everything had ended]

[though he had kind of hoped it'd be when everything ended]

[it's what Dirk says last that finally, finally gets him to relax. they've all been on edge ever since Dipper and Mabel accosted Jay earlier]

. . . thanks.

That means a lot. 'Cause we were gonna go into the trial Saturday expecting it.

[-- oh, shit. AND THEN SUDDENLY HE REMEMBERS SOMETHING]

[BECAUSE I FORGOT IT OOCLY UNTIL NOW]

-- oh, right. One Prophet is needed to access the shrine room to talk to the Unclean, but Tsurugi's role as the Soldier allows him to talk to her whenever he wants.

So. . . I know you wanna execute him on Saturday, but keep that in mind.

I can't promise it won't happen. I'm not exactly a mover-and-shaker here. But I'll ask the people who do know and trust me, for what it's worth.

[There are a few and they might be persuaded. They might even be persuaded to help defend Kaito and his cohorts if it comes to that.]

I can give you recommendations on how to spin it at the trial.

[At the new information, he pauses.]

You've have to find a candidate more people are willing to execute over him, and I doubt you will. So have Tsurugi take me to her tonight.

. . .

[he rubs at his face with his uninjured hand, taking a moment to process this. things. . . may actually be okay? and that's a relief. it almost feels like a weight has been lifted off of his chest, actually]

Better idea.

[he says, as he drops his hand to his lap]

I'll have him bring the statue to the trial on Saturday.

You can all ask her whatever questions you want then.

[KAITO HE CAN'T MAKE PROMISES. YOU MAY DIE. But he'll at least ask.]

That's a good idea. Everyone can ask what they want to know. Do you think having people take turns talking to her might split up the mind-fucking effects of it all?

[Since having only one person bear the burden vs letting people take turns seems like it might make talking to a horrorterror easier.]

[I MEAN. HE MIGHT?? BUT. he and his hunters have a plan, and honestly, they're all pretty a-okay with being lynched as long as SOMEone is alive to take the deal and revive the dead]

[HUNTER LIFE IS HARD RIGHT NOW]

It might, but I've never spoken to her through the statue, so I can't say for sure. But either way, if you guys wanna talk with her, then I think that's the best thing for us to do.

[he pauses, fingers curling into the cloth of his sling]

. . . Dirk. Even with all of this information, there's something you've gotta remember.

[Oh well maybe everyone will die from Cthulhu tomorrow. Whoops.]

I have a pretty decent memory. Hit me.

[prepare for nosebleeds and nausea, everyone!!]

Kamui and Suzaku. Neither of them were associated with the Prophets, but they killed, anyway.

[and he hasn't forgotten, especially since he worked so hard to catch them both]

So stay on the look out for other third party murders, all right?

I intend to. [Dirk thinks about the people they have left. He doesn't have Dave's knack for spotting people who are strange, but—]

Light Yamagi. Quer, I think. Saya, Tsurugi obviously, Velvet. You're killing off Light and Saya anyway. Tsurugi has agreed to your side. Velvet and Quer are the biggest risks. Other people will be willing to kill once this is out, because it proves everything is pointless. If they're smart, they won't target people who have agreed to be the Innkeeper.

Not that people are always smart.

[Seriously:]

When you do this tomorrow, lay out your reasons, give them all the information you know. Especially explain why you had to do the kills the way you did, because people are not going to let go of that. Apologize for taking the choice away from us, and tell everyone that you're bringing the Soldier to talk to us so that we can ask questions for ourselves and make our own choice. That's your best chance of not being lynched.

Your worst shot is if you make it sounds like it is in any way our fault. Don't call people panicky and stupid and dangerous, don't call them idiots for wanting something else. There are a lot of people who would make the same choice you intend to. Don't be an dick by focusing on how you couldn't trust us.

The more time you spend justifying the choices that hurt us, the more you'll come off as self-righteous assholes. Just explain the damned rules behind the deaths you're going to cause, say what your intentions are, and let the stupid statue give us the rest of the information we need to make our own choices. If this is a trust game, you need to trust us.

[. . . part of Kaito is feeling petulant and he wants to be like, DON'T TELL ME WHAT TO DO HERE!! but the advice Dirk gives is sound]

I'll keep all of that in mind. We'll take care of it. . . as best as we can.

[but he knows they can only do so much]

Edited 2017-06-22 04:52 (UTC)

[HE IS TRYING TO KEEP YOU ALIVE, KAITO!!

There's a pause and then,]

So can I get a sword.

[look

LOOK]

[HE KNOWS!! and he knows the lumps are deserved, too. no matter how they tried to approach things logically]

. . .

Er.

Craftly isn't really into the whole killing thing, so he doesn't provide us with weapons.

[LOOK. . .]

That's Girge and Tsurugi's thing, not ours. And either way, you'll probably have to wait until Monday.

Damn.

[HE EXPECTED IT HE COULDN'T GET ONE BUT STILL.

He flops on the couch.]

I miss my katana. And my power to rip souls out of things. Pretty sure I could fuck the Unclean up a little if I had that.

Edited 2017-06-22 05:01 (UTC)

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2/2

WHOOPS PART TWO

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