nowyouseeit | [WEEK 3: Thursday morning, room 112; Jay, Yukina]

[WEEK 3: Thursday morning, room 112; Jay, Yukina]

[NEEDLESS TO SAY, Kaito still looks like crap come Thurday morning. at least he's not longer covered in monster goo? but his right arm is wrapped in a sling and bandages, and he looks pretty pale. he's just exhausted, really]

[it's what happens when you get impaled in the shoulder by a giant monster and don't have any painkillers]

[either way, he flags Jay and Yukina down as soon as he can Thursday morning, asking them to meet him in his (now empty) room]

Well. . . first things are first, I think.

How're you guys feeling?

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[ he glances at yukina, raising an eyebrow. ]

I've heard him been called a sociopath more than once by people here. I've spoken to him a few times and... I would just feel better if we checked them at some point.

Every time I speak to him, I try to find something to like about him. Every time, I fail.

[And Yukina is usually pretty good at finding things she likes about people.]

...maybe it's just the way he is, but his attitude is a little... concerning.

[Kaito hasn't spoken to Girge much, but]

Okay.

[that sounds fine to him]

I feel like if we waste time checking the people we trust, just to make sure we can trust them, we'll keep missing the Prophets. So maybe this next week, it's better to pick someone we don't trust.

No, you're right. Although even though Light wasn't a Prophet, I don't think we wasted checking him at least. Finding out he's the Teacher is very helpful.

[ they at least now know who to judge whenever someone ends up in a pool. ]

We might have to check Tsurugi eventually too, depending on how this weekend goes. A lot of people thought he may have been the second killer.

...I'm not convinced of that, actually.

[because that private convo kept going even after we had our meeting I'M SORRY. let's just say the paranoia made her unsure if she should share or not]

He hasn't told me what his role is yet, but he did say it's an item that allows him to... communicate with someone important to him. So I think it's either the phone, or he's the Bootlegger, because communicating with someone from the outside seems... illegal.

. . . what if he's the Medium?

[he had kind of thought said Medium was Kurusu, but he's been getting nothing from Akira since he gave him Jason's mask]

Is there someone dead who may be important to him?

I have no idea. As far as I know, he's one of the people who arrived here without knowing anyone else.

[ jay hasn't really spoken to him though, so he can't say for sure. ]

I don't think we've been here long enough for most people to consider someone else "important" to them though.

It's a possibility. He said he was going to ask this... person, if it was okay to tell me.

[So, you know, that person could say "No, kill her." But only time will tell.]

He seems willing to cooperate if he's paid for it. Assuming we escape from here and get our powers back, I'll be able to pay him, so that shouldn't be a problem. But we might want to check him just in case this important person turns out to be...

["Mother," maybe. She's not sure if they should say that title here.]

[she doesn't have to say the title for Kaito to know who she means. he was thinking along the same lines]

So. . . this Monday, Girge. Next Monday, Tsurugui? Unless anything else comes up, of course.

[a beat]

-- wait, what do you mean you could pay him when you get your powers back?

[ he looks at yukina because he was going to ask more or less the same question. ]

[She nods - the schedule for checking sounds good.

But since she's being asked a question, she'll answer that, too.]

My people can... make jewels. They're rather rare, so he should be able to sell them for the money he loves so much. Assuming we go back home and everything is as it was before, I shouldn't have any trouble paying him.

[since omega got to arrive with her choker and ribbons i'm assuming yukina also arrived with her tear gem necklace, so she'll reach under her collar to pull it out and hold it out on the string for them to see.]

[ooooooh shiny. being a thief who specializes in gems, Kaito can tell that this is one quality stone]

Wow. . .

[he whistles, impressed]

How do you make those? And-- you know you don't really have to pay him, even though you offer, right?

Why, Kaito, are you suggesting that Yukina just lies to the poor man? How uncivilized.

[ he's joking, obviously, but it's also said very flatly.

he's also peering at the stone, curious. ]

[On the one hand, she knows it's going to sound odd. On the other, there's no other way to explain it, so. Here goes.]

My people call them hiruiseki. They're... what our tears become, when we cry.

[Which doesn't happen often.]

...I don't want to lie any more than I already have to. As long as he cooperates, then I won't have any reason to break my promise to him.

[suddenly, it clicks]

Is that why you didn't-- when you. . .

[his gaze flickers to her hand, to the finger she sacrificed the other day. his own twitches, as though to reach out for hers. but he aborts the movement pretty quickly]

. . . sometimes you've gotta lie to people to get results. [he shrugs] I wouldn't particularly feel sorry about lying to someone about payin' them a lot of money.

[his index card did say "deceiving others," didn't it]

It's up to her. if she doesn't actually mind giving him one, then she might as well.

[ he shrugs. that's not the most interesting part of this conversation. ]

What are you, exactly, if you don't mind me asking?

[She nods slowly.]

...I've already shed enough tears, long before coming here. I don't want... to cry in this place.

[There have been a couple of times when she's come close, but - not over anything that's been done to her. Now, seeing others suffer, on the other hand...

Yukina looks down.]

My people are called the Koorime. We're... ice demons, I suppose is the simplest way to describe it.

[. . . again, he's reminded of how little they know about each other, despite their alliance]

Shed enough tears. . .?

[he feels like he might be prying into something very private, but. he can't help but ask]

[ it's an interesting choice of words.. jay's also curious, but kaito beats him to the question before he can ask it himself, so he just stays quiet and waits to see if yukina answers. ]

...it isn't a pleasant story. Are you sure you want to hear it?

[They have enough unpleasantness in this place, she thinks... but she doesn't mind telling it, if it's them. They're her allies, after all.]

[he shifts on his feet and nods, quietly]

Only if you're willing to share, Yukina.

Whatever you're willing to share with us.

[ it's nice to know, where they came from before here. it'll make understanding their actions easier. ]

[She nods, and falls silent for a moment, gathering her thoughts as she tries to figure out where to start.]

Hiruiseki are... rare. Usually, a Koorime only sheds a single tear once every hundred years, when she has a child... and there aren't very many of us to start with. So to own a jewel like that... even just one or two could make someone very, very rich.

[To put it mildly.]

Especially because... my people tend not to be very warm to outsiders. We are forbidden from interacting with them in any meaningful way, and as a result there are only a small handful of jewels that have ever left our island.

My mother broke that rule. And... everyone knew it, because she gave birth to twins. Me, and my brother. Male Koorime are unheard of... to give birth to a son is proof that you have been with a man.

[Her expression becomes a little harder as she speaks - less fragile, and more quietly furious.]

My mother took her own life, and our elders... they threw him from our island when he was an infant, but... I have no doubt that he survived. And I wanted to meet him, so I... left, on my own, to search for him. And that was when I was captured by someone who knew what I was, and who knew what he had to do to make me produce those gems for him.

[Yukina takes a breath. Her voice is a little shaky, now - it's difficult to talk about, even this long after it's all over.]

He grew rich off my tears at first. But I learned to stop crying... that's why my profile mentioned that I have a high tolerance for pain. And that's why I've been able to bear the sacrifices we've had to make each week.

[holy]

[shit]

Yukina. . .

[that's awful?? THAT'S AWFUL?? just thinking about it makes him sick, offends his sense of justice, and reminds him that the world is full of shitty people. and Yukina. . .]

[he didn't know her well, but she definitely didn't deserve that]

[ he's quiet, mulling over what she told them. the world truly is a horrible place, and he's not surprised that that's a constant no matter where you are. ]

I'm sorry you had to go through that, Yukina.

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