Aftergathering 6

[clearasmud]

Rule 17 hits like a gutpunch. The plan she'd talked about, as improbable as it already was, had just become much harder.

But something - someone - digs its heels in inside her, the same way it did prior to their most recent trial. The presence of their latest, insurmountable hurdle, has the odd effect of only making Youko more determined.

They're going to win.

There's hot soup, rice, and tea in the kitchen. We're holding a meeting tomorrow morning in the conference room. I want you to be there.

- Youko

Comments

[announcemyvictory]

[Elise didn't want to come. Still, it doesn't look like there's a choice, so she walks in with a fruit from the machine and sets it on a plate.]

What are we going to do?

[clearasmud]

We're going to win. [ stated like one would say "the sun will rise tomorrow", or "there are stars in the sky". ] We just need to figure out what that means, although we're getting close.

...Hopefully even closer after the meeting tomorrow. You'll definitely be there, right? We need all hands on deck.

[announcemyvictory]

R-right. Of course. We'll need everyone, after all. Have you found anything new?

[clearasmud]

Some things! But it's more about what we can do when we put our heads together, offer each other new perspectives on what we've col... lected...

[ Youko trails off like she's just thought of something.

Then, she brightens. ]

Hey, remind me to cook you something really nice during the week, alright?

[announcemyvictory]

Really? Of course! If you've decided on that, then it must be a good idea. [For some reason.]

[clearasmud]

Oh, it is! Thank you for giving me the idea!

How are you doing, aside from that? This past week... it's possibly been our most difficult yet.

[announcemyvictory]

I don't know. It's always the ones who don't deserve it who die.

[clearasmud]

[ quickly mentally runs through the list of victims... ]

...You're right. It's strange; I would have thought two jerks would have gotten into a deadly fight or gone after each other by now.

[ instead, they have a whole bunch of dead children who were defenseless in life.

it makes sense, when she puts it like that, but... ]

[announcemyvictory]

I used to think everyone in here was like that. That they'd all betray one another easily. Even now, I wish I hadn't thought that.

[clearasmud]

What? But... you come from such a nice place. [ SHE'S HEARD SO MANY STRANGE TIDBITS ABOUT IT... ] Why did you think that?

[ Youko's in complete disbelief. ]

[announcemyvictory]

Because of that first murder. Nothing made sense anymore. I'd thought before then that I could just do whatever was easiest to last until someone came to rescue me, but no one did, and then someone actually died. After that, I thought that this place was too different from home and that I couldn't believe in anything.

[clearasmud]

...Oh.

[ That... Seriously, oh.

Quietly: ]

I'm sorry, Elise. I had no idea.

[ And it's true - she may have been perfectly neutral towards the other woman, but it doesn't change that Youko let something completely slip her by. Ignorance was always a sin, even when it was bliss. ]

But... if things have changed - might I ask what caused that? That's quite the view to back down from.

[announcemyvictory]

[sigh] It's silly, honestly. Why should I change that? But Ashley said she trusted me. Hibiki believed in me. For some reason, they gave more than I was willing to.

[sunsong]

Keep on going. That's...all we can do, right?

[announcemyvictory]

All we've ever done. But he knows now. He's stopping us.

[sunsong]

Well...so what? That means what we were doin' was workin', right? And he can't tell the dead what to do or not do. So if he's worried about them for some reason, I'm happy.

[ The guy keeping them there being worried? ACES. ]

We can't give up just because of this. I mean, shit - we've got this far, and I fuckin' refuse to give up.

[announcemyvictory]

I hope you're right. I don't know how we're to... incite them, especially without contact, or whether that monstrosity is still alive after Tabitha happened to it. But I hope there's something we can do in any case.

[sunsong]

We can keep looking for clues. And...we can not kill anyone.

[ LIKE. THEY COULD TAKE THAT OPTION. FOR ONCE. IT WOULD BE A CHANGE OF PACE!!!! ]

We just have to keep going...even if we're not certain how to proceed, proceeding together is the best option, right?

[announcemyvictory]

...I think so. Even with all the times belief in another person went wrong. Well, it either kills you or keeps you alive, it looks like.

[sunsong]

We weren't wrong about all of them, though. I mean - the people who didn't kill, who died. They never betrayed us at all, did they? And some of the killers...were trying to help, even if it wasn't the best way to go about it. Tabby was tryin' to take out that monster for us. She wanted to be caught...

[ So, belief hasn't always ruined them. ]

And, well. You can still always believe in me, like I told you before.

[announcemyvictory]

Thank you, Sol. I just... it's difficult. I always try to pretend I know everything, but I don't even feel like my old self anymore.

[sunsong]

In a good or bad way? I mean - there's no reason to pretend you know everythin' with us. We're all in the same boat, here.

[announcemyvictory]

I'm not sure. How am I supposed to care about things like dances and sweets when people are dying? I've made a lot of mistakes in here, Sol, and I don't know how to fix it.

[sunsong]

Wanting to fix it is the first step! And...well, all you have to do is try, Elise. No one is going to hold your mistakes against you. You haven't killed anyone, and you don't want to, right? What we all want is to get out of this...and to save the ghosts.

[ so...mistakes? Whatever. They can fix them. ]

[announcemyvictory]

I hope there's still a way. They deserve to get out of this place, too.