♪ my class trial, our class trial ♫

[heroicpolonaise]

Who: Everyone + Hiro if ori wants
When: January 12th, then anytime past January 15th
Where: Common Room
What: please let's wake steph and also maybe prove miyuki innocent if he really is
Warnings: tbd

[there is no gentle way to do this on the pda.

but you know what that is perfectly fine they were doing CSI rp earlier what's one more--]

All hands, round up.

Think we've got as much as we can right now, so let's settle in and work it out -- together. Come to the usual meet-up spot as soon as you can, and we're not leaving until the perp's worked out. Bring your own joe and a wit sharp as can be, because we are in for the long haul.

Detective Akamatsu, signing out.

[...

a-anyway.

meng yao's done his best to preserve one (1) stephanie meanswell and she's currently laying on the couch in a state some may find familiar and others not at all, but she's very much alive -- if barely. have your shock and surprise, this is going to be once all evidence is collected icly. also after noah and kaede make a grave for miss vp god rest her soul.

...

hiro is allowed to be here, if he wants, if only because part of this is his sister's death and one of y'all had BETTER take care of him.

there are no snacks, no drinks unless you byoj (bring your own joe), and kaede will wait until... all or presumably all are filed in before she speaks.]

I hate to say this, but you all are easily more experienced with this than I am... Still, there's no reason to wait on this when one of our classmates has turned up dead, and another [she is assuming stephanie is theirs] is in the state that she is. I don't want to think one of us had anything to do with it, but turning away from the truth only invites more pain--

So let's lay out what we know and try not to go at each others' throats about it.

[please. even the most unbelievable, impossible happenings have roots to them, and she wants it solved -- not just for hiro's sake, who's pain is something she can barely imagine, but for stephanie and the vice principal, too.]

[links:

○ investigative miroboard
○ round up one
○ round up two

Comments

(Forgive the newbie if these are stupid questions! ^^;)

[cloversandcranes]

[Makoto listened to Miyuki present all the evidence carefully as he tried to piece together what was happening. One of the victims named Maya Arisu was murdered and then nailed to the ceiling. Why? Why had someone put that much effort into making sure her body was displayed like that? And the vice principal was found out outside, looking like have been pushed or fallen out of the windows near where Arisu was found.

Then it was the state of the Vice principal's corpse. Her face had been completely burned. What was the purpose of that? They had found out her identity without her face so it couldn't be trying to hide her identity, could it? Arisu also had burns on her hands and face but there was no damage on her uniform...

Whatever happened, it was mostly cleaned up after, only leaving a blood hammer and some strands of hair. And the note and it's own evidence with it...And the fourth floor...the handprint matched Ishimaru-kun. He didn't know if that was a clue or not but he hoped it wasn't. Ishimaru shouldn't be involved with something like this.

After a moment of silence, Makoto opened his mouth to speak.]

Forgive me if these are dumb questions but I have to ask...What is the benefit of killing someone here? I've heard many people casually admit they've killed people here but they are still here. I've even heard people talk about it like it was essential to solving things. And as for this discussion, what is the purpose of this if other murders are seemingly forgotten? What makes these murders different? I don't approve of murder of any kind, but I have to ask why these ones are different. And...

[He stopped for a moment before gathering himself to ask.]

...what happens to the murderer when this conversation is finished?

[silentabyss]

[To the latter question...]

...nothing.

[He crosses his arms over his chest. What he's not saying is that people who kill get to feel tons of pain the next day, something he found out the hard way after the practicum ended.]

There's nothing we can do. We get merit points for killing. It's encouraged, almost. What are we supposed to do? If we kill the killers, we're not better. It's not our justice to dole out, in most cases.

[cloversandcranes]

E-eh?!

[Makoto gaped at Noah at his response. He was expecting an argument about justice or some mention of the greater good. Not...that.]

B-but then...Why are we doing this? If it's normal, even encouraged, why are these ones different?

[He shook his head in bewilderment before continuing.]

N-Not that I want to brush aside this tragedy, that's not it! I'm just confused.

[Was there some kind of mastermind behind everything?]

[silentabyss]

...we do this for each one. Each one that matters, anyway.

[It's cold, how he states it, but that's the truth. No one bothered to investigate Hyde, because they hated Hyde, and when they found out Noah had to kill the serial killer that was Hyde, everyone forgave him because it was in self-defense.

Noah's sort of the odd one out.]

Sometimes, we find answers. Sometimes, we don't. No matter what happens, someone gets rewarded at the end of the day. It sucks.

[cloversandcranes]

[Makoto stared at Noah in shock at those cold words. The ones that matter? Did the people here only show compassion to a select few that they like? That was...

Not shocking but it hurt. He truly believed everyone deserved compassion. Even the people he hated. Even the mastermind to ending the world back home. Sighing in resigned acceptance, he looked away at the wall in thought.]

...Answers to leaving this school I'm assuming?

[silentabyss]

[Noah has a negative worldview, and so it slightly colours his perceptions of this place; even so, it's undeniable that people tend to give more attention to those they love, and turn a blind eye to those they hate. Perhaps that's not true in every circumstance, perhaps Noah's a bitter kid who's lost too much in his living life and is now losing more in this one, but it's the way he sees the world.

He can't say a single thing about how murder is wrong, when he quietly seeks vengeance on those who took from him once upon a time. So he doesn't; he won't. He's learnt better than that now.]

No. Answers to the murders. ...Sorry. If it were that simple, we'd be slaughtering each other en masse for answers, I think.

[cloversandcranes]

[Makoto closed his eyes in distress at the answer, trying not to think of the killing game he escaped from. So it really was just a cycle of suffering here. There wasn't even an excuse of getting clues to escaping here. Letting out a sigh, he opened his eyes to look at Noah in resignment.]

...Figures. I was hoping that at least all this murder was counting to something.

[Even the excuse of the greater good would be better than just senseless unending pain. Even pain that could be argued that was deserved.]

[notsosou]

[Shh, no the genre conventions! But no, Shin has been salty about the same thing in the past.]

Ahaha, nothing usually. We all just go on with our lives, and pretend that didn't happen and everything's fine. Like it won't happen again!

[Oh. Huh. Do you maybe have... something you want to get of your chest, Shin?]

Nobody's been upset enough to care, before. Or are you going to argue with a murderer and their friends? Have another go in the tree yourself? You can try again when you come back!

[Trying to rein himself in, come back down to ground.]

Personally, I'm just here to make sure Hiro stabs the right person.

[taketori]

Can we please stop encouraging this?!

[ PLS HE WANTS TO GO HOME SOME DAY ]

[closewithnewintown]

Why be upset, if you're not the right person?

[taketori]

I just saw one of my classmates' lifeless corpse nailed to the ceiling. I don't want to see anyone else die here.

[ And it's not like closing his eyes is an option anymore. ]

[closewithnewintown]

I mean, you wouldn't have to die. Just let Hiro stab you a little bit.

[taketori]

--And then what? That's something you can have on your conscience?

[ He doesn't know that there's someone who can heal him, nor does he think that someone would. For all of that, letting himself get stabbed might as well be a confession.

If you confess, you lose. ]

If somebody wanted to be the student council president, they could win it by a vote. Nobody has to die for that position, nobody should kill for that position. Having any part of that would be a slap in the face to my friends back home.

[samuraiwomen]

Because its wrong to kill, Stephanie.

[ She doesn't look at Sou...and ignore her hipocriscy, because she knows she's not the best person to say this. But nobody else seems to be sticking up for the idea of mercy. So many people here have done...really bad things...but punishment doesn't seem right. ]

We're all trapped by this school, and we all want to escape. We should work together instead of focusing on who among us deserves to be punished.

[closewithnewintown]

Well, my best friend is an arm now, so I think Hiro should get to stab whoever killed his sister. Just a little bit? Maybe here? [taps shoulder]

[samuraiwomen]

Sportacus was a very kind man... You're not the only one upset by the idea he may be dead.

[ Crona is rolling with glee in their nonexistant grave but you know!! Sara liked that guy!!! He was really nice. ]

I can't tell Hiro what to do...its a complicated situation. [ She would still tell him revenge was bad, make no mistake, but she's going to reserve judgement until they find the murderer. ] Still, as a group, I think its good we don't focus to much on trying to punish people. Hurting people just makes more people hurt, you know that.

[cloversandcranes]

[Makoto watched the back and forth of the accused and one of the almost victims with concern as he processed everything he heard.]

So...All of this is because it's personal this time?

[Sure that was usually the case with murder. After all, it was rare for someone who had no one that cared for them to get a real investigation. But if there was something he learned from his time living in a broken world it was that everyone has a reason for doing something. Even she had her reasons no matter how twisted those reasons were.]

[notsosou]

[Boring holes into Sara's head in the background. Wrong to kill, huh? He'll turn back to Naegi, though.]

This time... All the others as well I guess. It's all about who you know...

[Something pent up in him is draining back into the depths, leaving him tired.]

Solving things... There isn't any difference between these meetings and the ones we call about finding things out, really. It's all only if it concerns us... or people we care about.

[He doesn't like that it's that way, admittedly.]

[cloversandcranes]

[So he was right. It was simply because this was someone they knew and cared for. Which on its own isn't necessarily wrong but... It was tiring. One person gets murdered, someone tries to avenge or bring justice to the killer, then the killer suffers which causes someone they know to try to avenge them...And so it circles on and on till the cycle is somehow stopped, whether by choice or lack of care.]

I see...So that's how it is...

[Any hope of ending this cycle before more people got hurt fizzled at those words. Which he wasn't surprised by, not at all! But he had to try.]

[notsosou]

[He and Noah did just say nothing happens... It's better than a cycle of revenge, which as far as Shin knows hasn't happened until, potentially, now. (If barely, looks at Noah again.) It's still frustrating when there's nothing stopping a particular murder from happening again... although the revelation of the power loss is something.

He can't read the small text though.]

Mm. It's not great, ahaha. Hard to see a solution...

[He's cooling down a bit. Despite his words, he doesn't actually want anyone to die.]

u good!!!

[taketori]

--I have no idea what'll come of this. I'm not sure if there are authorities we turn them over to or what.

[ Except... Hiro's already pretty much established what'll probably happen. Which-- does he really have the right to stop that? ]

When it comes to a motive though... [ Ugh. He hates to say this. ]

Arisu told me a while ago that being a part of the student council paints a target on your back, sometimes to open up a spot in the council itself. Given the position that she holds, how public facing she would be, one would see those as a reason to... do that.

!

[cloversandcranes]

[Makoto watched Miyuki with concern as he listened. This didn't seem like the lies of someone trying to get away with murder. Could Miyuki have done it? Whoever did it didn't seem to care much for the victims, yet this man seemed genuinely upset at their loss.

Still, there was something he had to ask.]

Being part of the student council is that dangerous? Why? I mean, there's the power and influence I suppose but to murder someone over that? It seems a bit extreme to me.

[taketori]

It's because of that influence. Being able to make decisions to impact the entire school's a powerful weapon in itself. One that can be abused if someone's desperate.

I wouldn't be surprised if any of that came from the aftermath of the exams. A large amount of students didn't make it past them.

[cloversandcranes]

[That was true. Makoto knew personally how powerful desperation was and what it could lead people to do. Still...]

The students? Did something happen to them?

[After these murders, he almost didn't want to ask.]

[taketori]

Well, the implication was... er, from what I overheard from the other students, is that the exams were a matter of life or death. Not the way it usually is, but...

Well. You can probably assume what may have happened to the students who failed.