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(may catch-all) the cool kids table, but rika's the only cool kid
‣ WHO: Shuichi Saihara & a bunch of people!
‣ WHEN: All throughout May.
‣ WHERE: Various locations.
‣ WHAT: Catch-all for May starters.
‣ WARNINGS: Just mild NDRV3 & SDR2 spoilers so far, subject to change.
◦ ◦ ◦
‣ WHEN: All throughout May.
‣ WHERE: Various locations.
‣ WHAT: Catch-all for May starters.
‣ WARNINGS: Just mild NDRV3 & SDR2 spoilers so far, subject to change.
Tfw neither you nor like half of everyone you have plans with top-level, so this happens. I'm using this to write starters for people based on stuff we discussed beforehand. No open prompts, but if you want something specific with me or Saihara during May, I'm still up for that and you're free to throw a starter in here!
Alternately, hit me up via Plurk atgarlemald or contact me on Discord at Rina#8760 whenever to discuss.
may 6th / closed to ouma (@liesexual)
It still feels mostly like a fever dream, but the effects it left are real; he's more than exhausted, and frayed at the edges as if about to break. Routine work like this, checking things around the school and verifying everything, might just be the only thing that still keeps him together.
The auction display cases are only a regular item on his list -- though this time, there's a figure in there he hadn't expected to see. ]
...Ouma-kun?
[ Come to think of it... he'd spotted no trace of him through the whole ordeal -- and while that doesn't necessarily mean anything... where was he? No matter how tired Saihara is, seeing Ouma in front of the case still has the power to get the gears inside his mind to start turning. ]
What are you doing here?
aaaaaaaaa
Time feels weird. It's not just the strangeness of the school. His stint at the Ultimate Academy had felt like an eternity, murders and investigations and trials and executions with just enough time in between to sit an stew in it all. But he's already been here far longer than he spent there. Months of being on edge, watching his back, waiting for the other shoe to drop. Barely sleeping for lack of anywhere truly safe to do so, barely eating in an attempt to accomplish something in this drawn-out, tense monotony of daily school life.
The haze of the fumigation was a break from the routine, but not a nice one. The less said about that, the better.
And through all of it, what progress has he even made? Still no concrete answers about anything, multiple corpses without culprits – they'd have all been long dead by now, if this were the same kind of killing game as the last one. At this point, it feels like he's just killing himself slowly because it's all he knows how to do anymore. It's morbid as fuck, but the body on display at least reminds him that there's a purpose to all of it. There's an important clue within reach, just days away. He can do this.
But he must have been more out of it than he realized – than he was ever comfortable being, really. He hadn't even heard the auditorium doors open. Shuichi's voice takes him by surprise, and he startles a little, barely keeping himself from whipping around to face a threat.
(Not a threat. Not an immediate one, anyway. Even in the worst case scenario, he didn't think Shuichi was likely to kill him here – there'd been plenty of opportunities already if that had ever been a goal. No, this isn't that kind of game.)
Stock-still for a second, Kokichi takes that moment to gather himself. He plasters on a smile – shakier than he'd like to admit – and glances over his shoulder, giving a careless wave.]
Ehh? I'm just spending some quality friend with Body-chan. What are you doing, sneaking up on people in the dark like this?
[Deflect, reverse. It's habit by now, even when he's far from at his best.]
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[ Well, it's starting to be, outside at least. The evening's been setting in, and the lights in the building have switched automatically to their after-school dimness, but they haven't completely turned off the way they do at midnight. So his argument holds, as tiredly as he offers it; he's not in the mood for this after... everything.
Ouma looks like a mess, himself. Maybe it's because of his own exhaustion, that somehow makes it easier to relate, but Saihara finds it easier to tell than usual -- from the pause in his demeanor, the somehow subtle lack of flavor in that expression, the bit of sluggishness in the other's moves. The dark circles around his eyes seem more pronounced as well. He doesn't think it's faked. ]
...How do you know it's a body?
[ He asks as he draws closer, stopping just short a few steps from Ouma, at the other end of the case. This way, the display is almost between them, like a separator of sorts, and he can look at the person inside it one more time. Still unchanged from before. It's a thought he hasn't shared with anyone else yet -- he's come close a few times, but always changed his mind. He's not quite sure what makes him say it now. ]
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Well, I do have eyes. I've even been told they're super pretty!
[He glances at Shuichi around the side of the case and bats his lashes – much less long and thick than Shuichi's, honestly – and grins.]
Buuut that's a lie.
[His usual habit? An attempt at levity while they both radiate weariness? Who can really say at this point?
He's already gone back to quietly staring at the body, but his eyes flick over to Shuichi, and...well, he really does look like shit. Kokichi probably does too, but he's trying to ignore his own reflection in the display case. Either way, it's a depressing symptom of their current situation. Even the Ultimate Academy hadn't been so soul-crushingly tiring, even at its darkest moments. Maybe it's that that prompts Kokichi to throw the detective a bone. Even he knows how exhausting his typical runaround must get sometimes.]
...I didn't say it was a lifeless body, though.
[It's casual. He doesn't look at Shuichi while saying it. But it's...an acknowledgement, maybe.]
no subject
...
[ He's swiftly just gonna ignore it. They have more important things to be worrying about. ]
So you did think about it too.
[ That's honestly all the confirmation he needed.
Crouching beside the case, he sets a hand delicately against the wall next to it, so he can lean a little closer and examine things without touching the glass. There haven't been any changes... there never are. Nothing about the posture of the person changes, it's impossible to tell if they're breathing, and the injury or their body itself doesn't seem any different either. Needless to say, that includes any state of decomposition it should have been in by now if they were dead. ]
I mean, obviously it's pretty odd its condition remains unchanged... that applies no matter what. But that's why it's difficult to really tell without checking for pulse. I just can't help but think we maybe shouldn't have decided so easily, knowing that.
[ You know, he means how everyone's been talking about this as a dead body by default all along. Like it's fact. ]
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This group isn't all that bright. At least it's not as bad as the mess they made with the other body. Sure makes you miss our idiots, huh?
[He says it with a lighthearted air, but he winces to think about it, just for a split second. Because he does. He really, really does, and it's been hard to not think about that lately. The fumigation had left him feeling sick and disoriented, and he could swear he was seeing and hearing things at the time. People he misses dearly. Voices whispering accusations and insults – much of it he's heard before, but it somehow stings more now that the speakers are dead.
He sets his jaw and hastily repairs his cheery mask. He's fine. He's fine.]
Either way, we'll find out what's up with it in a few days. The auction is almost over, right? No use stressing about it in the meantime.
[As if he hasn't spent the last month exclusively stressing his body over this.]
no subject
But Ouma already knows all this, doesn't he? ]
You don't... look like someone who hasn't been stressing.
[ Usually Ouma does, that's true... but not right now. Saihara doesn't pull his full attention from the "body" in the case just yet, but he does lift his head to take a look through the glass, at the familiar face somewhat blurred and reflected on the other side of it, as if mirroring his own exhaustion back at him. The question comes back -- where did Ouma even disappear to during the fumigation and the ensuing after-effects? What has he even been up to before then...? He's the type to only act serious behind the scenes, that's true, but he wouldn't stay quiet or do nothing.
...Of course. How did he manage to miss it for this long? In retrospect, it all makes a frustrating amount of sense. ]
You're planning to bid on this, aren't you? No... not just planning. You've been saving your points for it exclusively.
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Kokichi doesn't dislike it. He's settled in now, enough at least that he can sort through the paranoia and confusion to just appreciate it again. He likes the thought that Shuichi is working so hard to understand him, whatever the motivation is.
At the accusation, his cheery expression goes a bit sly. There's something almost approving in it, the way he smirks at his classmate through the glass before glancing away again with feigned flippancy.]
You don't really wanna risk leaving it to chance, do you? I mean, the last body we found got moved around for no reason and was left rotting in the clock tower for weeks.
[Yeah, he's still boggling over that one. And that kind of nonsense isn't the only threat, either. Someone could fuck with it in a much more deliberate way. It could be spirited away, never to be seen again, or the actual cause of death (if there is one) could be obscured.
He's in a better mood now than he was a few minutes ago, for some reason. So fuck it, he'll give Shuichi a bit more.]
Oh, but if you're worried about me messing with it, you can relax! I just don't want anyone else getting to it first. I'll totally let Saihara-chan take a peek at it!
[After he does first, of course. He's preeeeetty sure Shuichi isn't responsible for whatever's going on here or likely to fuck with the body, but at least he can account for that slim possibility by examining the body on his own alone first.]
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[ Or well, it is a little if someone's gonna take a look at it anyway, but it's complicated enough that it still has him glancing off to the side for a moment and mumbling a little moodily. It's difficult to explain... thus, the 'exactly' part of the equation. It's not that he isn't curious, as shown by the fact that he's got his own theories about the state of the person in the case and he's been coming to look at it on the daily, but there are other factors too. For example -- only the winners will be displayed, right? So if one of them wins this bid, they'll never be able to see the names of anyone else that might have wanted it.
How do they determine if it's more important to know who this person is and what happened to them, or if it might be more advantageous to learn who else wants them? But that's... a scarily practical line of thinking when there might be a life at stake, isn't it? He almost hates that he's thought that far, too.
Anyway, tl;dr there's a lot more he's worried about than just that. Then again... he knows Ouma probably only said as much to mess with him in the first place. And as usual, Saihara's letting him. ]
And there were circumstances to the other body being moved, too. You know that, right? There's... a lot of evidence we couldn't have obtained without all that time to examine it. And the person who moved it... went missing soon after.
[ He's asked around. No one even remembers Abel, except a handful of other transfers. It doesn't seem like the disappearance even has anything to do with moving the body... since it happened to others as well. People who weren't involved. ]
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[ why does that sound like a lie
Kokichi hums idly, rocking on the balls of his feet. It looks like he isn't taking any of this at all seriously, but more than anyone here, Shuichi likely knows there's more to it than that. There's a long pause. Maybe he's done with that subject. It almost seems like he's done talking entirely, but then he pipes back up.]
So what is Saihara-chan worried about?
[He says it so nonchalantly, like it's just idle conversation, completely unrelated to murder or the corpse before them.]
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The better question here is... why is Ouma asking? Is he hoping for Saihara to slip up and show weakness, reveal information he doesn't know yet? If so, it's a pretty pointless endeavor since most of his knowledge is just half-founded supposition and deductions with insufficient evidence as of yet. He's not gonna talk about those. Instead, he takes a moment and then, with the same hand on the wall as before, he pulls himself up from where he'd crouched and allows the new wave of weariness from that move to wash off first.
Taking a couple of steps, he walks halfway around the case after that, cutting at least some of the distance between them, if not all of it. The only things he can focus on in the end... are the tangible, sort of right in front of him ones. No matter how much he doesn't like it. ]
Ouma-kun... where were you after the fumigation happened?
[ He does have his own guesses, but... those entail the possibility that Ouma isn't behind this after all. Which, as much as he'd like to clear, still isn't zero. ]
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His casual manner doesn't slip an inch. He simply glances back to Shuichi, his tone teasing.]
Why, did you miss me?
[Fat chance. If Shuichi noted he wasn't anywhere to be found, it was out if suspicion. He flashes Shuichi a grin before looking back to the body, idly moving to circle the case as well. Just to get a good look at it, of course. Not like he's trying to keep his distance or anything.]
Obviously, I escaped this hellschool and was partying it up while you losers dealt with that mess. Can't have the Ultimate Supreme Leader choking on that gunk, right? Oh, but I came back because I wanted to play with you some more. You're my favorite, after all.
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[ He's irritated enough to say it, or maybe frustrated by the way he gets answered with only nonsense, just to prevent any progress. He's too tired for this. Also, anything about him being the favorite and all that? Immediate sign of a lie, in through the doubt ear and out through the disbelief one.
He doesn't really follow Ouma though, and just opts for a distance that lets him keep an eye out for small clues without glass in the way. Even if part of him does wonder -- where would the other even go if he chose to keep circling the case? He'd just hit the wall soon enough.
Saihara's not petty enough to try it, at least. ]
People have been going missing, like I told you. Is it really so weird that I'd notice you weren't around?
[ You know, to the level where you'd have to suspect him and answer with nonsense. ]
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S-senpai noticed me?
[Noticed his absence, at least. Close enough. He suddenly smirks behind his fingers and snickers his stupid fucking horse laugh.]
Nope, it's not weird at all! Of course the Ultimate Detective would notice something so obviously suspicious. I'd be disappointed if you didn't!
[In more ways than one.
But he gives up the runaround and the pretense of examining the body, turning fully to face Shuichi. A thoughtful look and then he just shrugs.]
Fiiine. I was just hiding. And that's the truth. I'm just really good at it. You remember that, don't you? And can you really blame me? Who'd wanna be around all these freaks with something like that going on?
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[ There's a really long moment where he just wants to leave, and he considers it to be honest, if only he hadn't been the one to kind of start this. Besides... at the end of all the nonsense, Ouma does tell him enough to quell that impulse -- for now at least. Thank God he doesn't have to keep thinking about the technicalities of being "senpai" for too long. ]
...That's what I thought.
[ It's that quiet, firmer voice Saihara employs without realizing when his suspicions are confirmed. ]
You couldn't get away from it either, which means naturally you also experienced the effects. But that left you feeling vulnerable... so you most likely must have spent that whole time in the crawlspaces or going between the locked rooms.
[ He's too tired to dance around it. The truth doesn't change form for anyone, even Ouma with all his lies. ]
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Yeah, yeah. You don't have to explain it to me, y'know. This isn't a trial where you've gotta spell it all out for the idiots in the room.
[It's just them here. Well, them and a body.]
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[ Like damn it, Ouma, maybe the "idiot in the room" is him. Believe it or not, this is helping Saihara understand the situation they're in. Or at least... what kind of direction he should take things, or what angle it might be okay to look at them from.
It makes it pretty clear... that a truce might be in order, at least for now. There's an order and a priority even to their outstanding issues. ]
After all... you haven't been sleeping, have you?
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Something stops him, though. Maybe it's the exhaustion getting to him, making him too weary for even his own shit. Or maybe it's the fact that Shuichi is bringing it up at all. Why should he care? What does it matter to him whether or not Kokichi gets any rest?
Kokichi eyes the detective for just a moment before his eyebrows raise, the expression almost challenging.]
So?
[Completely unphased. Unbothered. He shrugs, returning his attention to the body. It's kind of an apt metaphor for the whole setting right now.]
As if any sane person is gonna rest easy in a place like this. Besides, my body doesn't require sleep. Obviously, such an ordinary thing is beneath the Ultimate Supreme Leader.
[...Okay, so he can't entirely resist lying. But the choice of where the lie sits matters, doesn't it?]