en stille stund i skogens dyp

SHSL Forester - Arvid Furuholmen (danganronpa rp oc blog, affiliated with carcerem)

[carcerare]

Arvid | The Ugly Reality | Casino > Hotel

The Nekomachine’s meow happened just as expected, but it still managed to startle Arvid so much that he visibly jumped. With tired eyes and a deep frown, the brunet glowered accusingly at the machine before he grabbed the two items he had recieved in change for two credits. Why he even found it necessary to use those worthless coins everyone earned after another “solved” trial, he couldn’t tell.

Kitty Treats

These paw-shaped treats look crunchy! You might take a handful if you were… y’know, not a human being. Seriously, lay off the cat treats. You’re freaking everybody out.

Ghost Chasers Box Set

Do you like daredevils? Do you like people who hunt down ghosts and put them back in their graves? Then this is the DVD box set for you!

Honestly, he wasn’t sure which one of the prizes made him most ill. The kitty treats, probably something he was meant to hand over to one of the wretched cats, or the DVD of someone chasing ghosts and putting them back in … their … graves …

The forester shuddered and made a grimace, which made it clear just how uncomfortable the thought of dead people made him feel. Arvid considered leaving the box set somewhere nearby the Nekomachine so maybe Nakiwa would see it and take the whole thing with her, but instead he tucked the DVD under his arm and decided to head back for the hotel. At least there he could drop things off and ignore them for a while.

On his way to the capsule hotel, he had more than enough of both time and silence to be left with his own thoughts. Which was the case about 24 hours a day now. The last trial had, without doubt, shaken most of the students in new ways, and he still couldn’t get over the fact that Haru’s death had made him almost relieved. Content. Happy. He had actually enjoyed seeing the psychologist’s existence come to an abrupt end, and that fact alone left him awake and unable to calm his spinning mind at night. 

Oh, how he just wanted everything to stop. One thing was to lose control over what happened around him, but to lose control over himself?

There was so much he was supposed to feel, think, do, decide! And most of the time he wasn’t capable of doing what was right, because the situation wouldn’t allow him to. He felt like it changed him, forced him to think in new ways, accept the harsh reality and let all the vile things happen without him raising one single finger to fight against it.

Arvid halted in front of his capsule, unlocked it with his student ID, placed the DVD box inside, but kept the treats well hidden in one of his pockets. He then locked up his “room” once again and sat down on the floor with a tired sigh.

"Kanskje på tide å gi opp …"

[shsl-forester]

im aware of that there are no good excuses ...

[shsl-forester]

if anyone's interested, im open for threads! just reply to this post if u want to see how bad u can be rp with me!!! :^)

[carcerare]

Arvid | hvor ille kan jeg være? | RE: Execution

As Haru spoke and the vote results blinked as they usually did from the wide screen, Arvid was clutching his head with both hands. His mouth twitched in an unfamiliar way and his sight went blurry, but no tears nor anguished cries came. A grotesque sort of tingling warmed his chest, erased the burning feeling of anger and made him feel like something good had happened. As if sentencing the psychologist to an early death was a victory.

Then again, maybe it was? The blond boy had killed not only one, but two of his classmates. Wasn’t it just fair and square to get rid of the culprit? Certainly, such a tainted and wicked life couldn’t be worth saving?

Arvid hurriedly halted that train of thought and bit down on his lower lip, hard. No, this wasn’t what he wanted to become. Not some cynical, revenge-thirsty person who had been changed thanks to the mutual killing game. He had to stick to his original ideas and morals, remember what he had decided to fight for. Though really, it was just too clear what Haru thought of them … The beautiful boy had already killed twice, and had singled out Hisato as the next victim on top of it all. Just that thought alone made whatever guilt within the forester evaporate like a drop of water on a hot surface. 

With the same loathing glare from earlier, he raised his head, fingers still buried desperately in brown tresses as though he feared something would escape from the inside, and kept his eyes locked on the smug-looking killer. Whatever the blond had to say about Arvid didn’t matter, it was an empty and meaningless opinion. But what was said about everyone, Hisato especially, made him grit his teeth, drag them harshly against each other so the person standing beside him could probably hear it. Then the time came for the execution to begin, and the forester just barely heard himself chuckle scornfully as Haru got sent off.

While the punishment went on, Arvid paced back and forth, feeling uneasy and torn. Muffled sobs and panicked chuckles escaped him every now and then, until the number of students left had been lowered once more. The silence felt heavy and dreadful, as if it marked a terrifying change, but he tried his best to ignore it so exiting the trial room instantly wouldn’t feel too wrong. It was over, after all. Haru Ikezawa was dead and gone. Hisato was safe and sound. Their deed was done in that place for now. 

Once in the elevator, the forester faced away from the rest of his class and stared intently at the wall. A part of him hoped to spot his own reflection, just so he could confirm that there was in fact an uncontrollable smile on his face.

[shsl-forester]

here have an arvid after chapter 4

[shsl-magic-boy-blog]

just in case anyone is wondering just what happened in the hot spring. this is it. this is exactly it.

[superdupermaknae-blog]

probably how this murder went down

[carcerare]

Arvid punches in a vote for Haru.

[carcerare]

Arvid | White Flag | RE: Trial Start, Everyone

The elevator ride was painfully quiet, as always. Arvid swallowed thickly as he tried to ignore the easily noticable lack of people. The emptiness his lost classmates had left behind did nothing to calm his aching chest.

The walk to his own podium was difficult, as the forester wanted to do nothing but let his knees give out and never let the trial start. They were already too few. There were already too many empty podiums.

Emptiness. Grief. Regret. Fear …

As the trial started, Arvid’s empty gaze remained locked on the floor in front of him, but it wasn’t enough to keep him from realising just how few voices were heard this time. It made a sort of desperation claw at his insides, and the only thing he could focus on was how could he possibly make the pain disappear?

The accusations came sooner than later, and once he heard Hisato’s family name on someone’s lips, he drew a sharp breath and gripped the podium so hard his knuckles went white. No. NO. That wasn’t possible. How could they even think of pointing out the pale-haired boy as the culprit. They should know better than that. And Arvid wouldn’t let them take away his only —-

Moss-coloured eyes darkened all of a sudden. The forester let his furious glare fall on Haru as soon as the blond had clearly implied who the killer was. Within mere seconds, the psychologist’s words had flipped Arvid’s mournful mood to one of pure rage.

“Ikezawa. If you say one more fucking word about Hisato being the murderer, you will regret it! I swear! And if one of you two is supposed to be a liar, I will be placing my bets on you any day!!! Besides, if I don’t remember wrong, you were a part of the suspicious group from Kojima’s trial, no? Makes you sound more like the ideal murderer here, bastard!”

The tall brunet seethed with anger as he kept his eyes set on Haru, his breath heavy and quick as soon as the short speech was over. Arvid wasn’t even bothered by the fact that Chinatsu had exploded with harsh words, mostly because he could do nothing but agree with her.

[shsl-forester]

bc certain people make the dash look sad again here's an old doodle featuring arvid and his brilliant way of making a good first impression when he meets some unknown space sheriff (max)

[shsl-forester]

once a ship gets fanart it's sort of canon??? ? ????

[carcerare]

Hisato || Helping Hand || RE: Execution, Chinatsu, Arvid

[shslpokemonchamp]

The entire ride back up felt more nervewracking than usual, at least in Hisato’s definition of the word. Arvid was weeping next to him, silently maybe but still very much crying, he was carrying another student perhaps rather precariously, and overall the entire space just seemed… far too quiet, no thanks to the loudness of the execution they’d just had front row seats to. Even though Hisato naturally preferred quiet, this was weighing on him pretty heavily.

(She’d seriously considered him a friend. She’d seriously considered him a friend then ended up dying before him. Oh, he really was damned when it came to connections with people, wasn’t he?)

(…He should know that by now.)

Arvid’s voice meant that it took Hisato a good few moments to realise the other male was speaking, finally turning his attention away from the doors to his roommate when he replied. 

"…Well. I wasn’t exactly planning on dumping her in the street." An instinctive sort of response, really, but one that Hisato at least tried to soften somewhat. "So yes. Basically. That sounds the best plan."

It was probably a horrible contrast, really; Arvid there, apparently barely holding himself upright after all that had occurred and Hisato… not really seeming to be giving a shit at all. Sure, he winced now and then when the elevator rumbled and shook Chinatsu with it, but in the grand scheme of things… yep, the male really seemed to have achieved his neutral state already. Was he just naturally good at hiding so much about himself and his thoughts, or was he forcing it a little bit after what had just occurred?

Honestly, Hisato himself wasn’t too sure at that moment. Though he wasn’t about to dig around for the source; not when he felt stable again and fully away from that numb, stunned feeling.

…Never mind. 

"…It’s fine. ‘Hisato’ is… fine. Don’t worry about slipping up." His next words came somewhat quicker than usual, as though to try and cover their predecessors up. "I honestly have no idea what her problem is with me right now. I don’t recall doing anything ‘stupid’."

He was really damn curious at whatever the hell it was that was making Chinatsu act so strangely regarding him. But it was hardly an appropriate time to ask.

It was honestly a relief when the elevator doors finally opened once again, though that wore off quickly as Hisato found himself having to move with Arvid to continue carrying the architect securely. Truthfully he was hoping that Chinatsu wouldn’t regain consciousness for as long as it took them to get to the capsule hotel and a little while after, hence his next words to Arvid when they started to near the building.

"Let’s just get her to her capsule then leave her be. Honestly. I feel she would have a worse reaction to us being there when she woke up."

[vivalanine]

Slowly regaining her counsciousness, Chinatsu’s eyelids fluttered open. Her vision was blurry at first and she wasn’t really aware of her surroundings, because damn, did her head hurt. Why did it hurt? Where was she and what happened?

As the blur in her mind starts to fade away, more and more impressions as well as memories returned. Alright, she felt like she was floating, but this couldn’t be it. No, she didn’t recall turning into a ghost, there was someone else who bit the dust. Who was it again? Who was-

Oh.

Oh.

Almost ear-shattering music. Dancing figurines. One of them being killed by the others. Min-yun. She was the one who would be floating around now, not her.

So why was she floating again?

Okay, scratch that, she wasn’t actually floating like she presumed - no, she felt how she was being carried somewhere. Where to, though? And who was it?

Chinatsu blinked confused and eyes both of her sides. Wait a minute, she knows these people, oh, her vision is back and- OH.

"Fwuahuahuaaaaah?!"

Truly an intellectual expression. Just observe how this non-majestic human being jerks away from the two males, only to flail with her arms uncoordinately before her three letters meet the ground.

"Yikes?!"

Why even the question mark? Does it hurt now or not? Goddamnit, Chinatsu, get a grip, you’re embarrassing yourself - again. Honestly how didn’t you hide away forever in a hole yet with how many fuck ups you did by now? Astounding for someone as self-conscious as you.

"Ah, um, e-err? Uh, w-what the fuuu- a-ahem! AHEM. Um. S-Sorry?”

The landscape architect barely avoided to curse which surprised her as well. She would never really curse such bad words, but what can you do? The more they were held captive, the less shit she gave about attitudes and mannerism. Still, she tried to save as much of her dignity as possible, because what would her mother say if she heard her little daughter curse so badly?

"R-R-Really, I- uh, am s-s-sorry. I-It was j-just a reflex? Y-Yeah. Reflex. R-Right."

Seems like as if someone had large difficulties to compose herself.

Fidgeting nervously, she threw them both glances and turned a bit red, before she decided that the ground was suddenly such a fascinating thing to look at.

"U-Um, we’re n-n-not in the trial room anymore. Y-Yeah?", she took a short glance around - of course they weren’t, you dummy,"Y-Yeah. I-I guess y-y-you c-c-carried me o-out? I-I mean, o-of fu- o-o-o-o-of course you did. I-I see it for myself, s-s-so, uh, err, t-thank you? I’m good n-n-now. Uh, maybe. N-No, I mean absolutely!"

No you’re not. Christ.

[shsl-forester]

After sniffing and messily wiping his wet face with a temporarily free arm, Arvid then turned to face the smaller male again. He managed a barely visible twitch at the corner of his mouth, all in all meant as a smile, then shook his head. Hisato deserved a far more proper "thank you" at some point later ...

"I didn't exactly imagine you as the kind of careless person who would just abandone someone anyway, but glad we agree," Arvid said softly, then furrowed his brows in an apologetic manner. "Hisato, then. And maybe you just have to ask her. Better solve the problem rather than letting it grow into something worse."

As they made their way to the hotel, the forester nodded a couple of times at his roommates words. He felt the same way.

Honestly, he didn't want to be there when Chinatsu woke up, more or less because he suspected his presence would only cause more trouble. Arvid wasn't sure if the brief talk they shared back in the disco hall had changed anything between himself and the architect, so taking silly chances didn't sound like a wise plan. Even if it hurt to know that he frightened people, there wasn't really much to do about it. Certainly not in the kind of situation they found themselves in. 

Just as he opened his mouth to say something else to Hisato, the previously fainted girl was suddenly back in the conscious world. Very much so. Before he could even react, Chinatsu had panicked her way out of their supporting hold, arms flailing about. 

Well, that could have gone better. At least she hadn't fainted again.

"It's quite alright, Kobayashi. You went out cold back in the trial room, and Hisato helped me carry you out. Wouldn't have wanted anyone to be left down there."

Arvid then cleared his throat and glanced in every possible direction, before he breathed out and gave the girl a concerned look. Sure, she stressed as much as usual, but something about her choice of words had changed a little. Did Chinatsu ever curse before?

"Please calm down and don't strain yourself too much. I didn't see if you hit the floor rather badly or not, so you might want to take it easy ... in case you have a light concussion. If you go back to rest, make sure you wake up every now and then. Maybe every half hour to begin with."

[carcerare]

Hisato || Helping Hand || RE: Execution, Chinatsu, Arvid

It wasn’t as though he had a choice whether or not to avoid watching the execution this time. Hisato would have watched even if they hadn’t been forced to, it only seemed… right, really. That said, it was certainly the most intimate of the executions they’d seen so far. The proximity to Min-yun’s demise, the fact they really had no choice but to watch and the ‘people’ behind them, the overall creepiness. Despite himself, Hisato couldn’t help but naturally tense up cringing at the whole thing, especially the suddenness of the final moment.

Jeez. What the hell was up with him?

The way his hand was still holding onto the pictures and note in his pocket answered that for him.

Really, why was he allowing something genuinely surprising silly like that whole completely unheard of last speech to him from the maknae? Just the entire concept of someone having faith in him, thinking of him as a friend, trusting him with something clearly precious had really thrown the male off. It had been a double edged sword; something perhaps a younger Hisato would have loved to hear, everything his current self strived to avoid and was… genuinely confused by.

Fuck.

The execution came to a close, Hisato’s eyes only lingering on the now-stilled scene for a few moments before turning his back on the late maknae. His hand finally released the contents of his pocket, Hisato excusing it with a tug on his hat to pull it back into place where it had been slightly jostled during that sudden gathering of them as an audience.

Well. Time to file away the memories of this trial where he’d put all the other thoughts regarding those previous, never to flash up in his mind again unless he so desired-

 ’… Hisato?’

…Nope. He wasn’t quite free yet.

Wait. Who the hell called him Hisato? He never used what was perhaps the standard way of referring to people (honestly he wasn’t sure), but everyone else here did. Or gave him some ridiculous nickname. But ‘Hisato’? He honestly couldn’t recall…

Oh, right. There was someone else here who had become his friend by sheer insistence. Though this… this was new. More familar. Or at least thought to be so, if he actually knew this stuff correctly.

His composure had been regained when Hisato turned to the source of the voice, though really, he probably would have looked incredibly calm in comparison to the forester anyways. It took him a few moments but Hisato finally approached, wordless for the time being, looking down on the other two. Eventually, it clicked. 

"…I’ll try."

Hisato had absolutely no clue what exactly he was actually trying to do here, and it probably showed as he attempted to help Arvid, crouching down and rather awkwardly trying to ease Chinatsu off the floor. That said he did a fair job of actually helping to carry the girl, not leaving the task completely to Arvid despite how hesitant he seemed to be. When they reached the elevator Hisato blanked out anyone else that may be close to them inside it, staring straight ahead at the closed door rather than at Arvid as he spoke to the other male.

"…Where exactly are we going to carry her to, anyway." 

A pause.

"She’s going to freak out when she wakes up and finds me carrying her, isn’t she. I think she has a problem with me right now."

At least she wouldn’t be insisting friendship if so.

[shsl-forester]

When Hisato turned at the sound of his name and actually came over to help, Arvid felt almost numbed by relief. Of course he could count on the pale-haired student. Although the forester was incapable of mustering even a faint smile, he gave a thankful nod before the two boys lifted their knocked out classmate together.

Once in the elevator, he found it hard not to let his thoughts wander back to what had happened barely minutes ago. Tears spilled automatically down Arvid's exhausted face as the late maknae's words and animated expressions replayed in his mind. Like he could ever forget.

He remained still and cried quietly, ignoring the fact that everyone who glanced at him could easily see tears dripping from his chin, when his roommate spoke up. 

"A-ah, uhm, right ... W-wouldn't it be for the best if we got her back to the hotel? Leaving her anywhere else would seem rather irresponsible and dangerous, considering ..."

Arvid trailed off and grimaced as he remembered the blood-stained streets and empty, cold buildings. No way was he going to leave Chinatsu in a place that made even his own skin crawl. The hotel was safe. Well, safer.

"Yeah, I wondered what that was about ... Hope you haven't done something stupid, Hi-- Fukuyama. Then again, it's the same in my case. Think she would have a heart attack from seeing me."

His voice felt raw as he spoke gently in Hisato's direction. Not that it was surprising, really, he felt so beyond tired that even the capsule bed seemed decent (his mild case of claustrophobia be damned). The tall boy wanted nothing but to pause his life for some time and forget a little.

As the elevator came to an awaited stop, Arvid stepped out carefully along with his friend and sent him a questioning look.

"So let's see if we get to carry her back to the hotel before she wakes up, which I hope is soon anyway. Being out cold for too long is not good, and Kobayashi might have got a concussion from the fall."

[carcerare]

Arvid | Beyond Repair | RE: Execution, ATTN: Chinatsu, Hisato

There was no place to curl up and hide now. No possibilty to avoid witnessing the execution, as he had tried to do the previous times. This time, everyone but Min-yun were placed in the most “convenient” spot to watch as the maknae became history.  It was clearly a part of the “how to mess up these kids further”-plan the feline demons seemed to go with every now and then. Her final words, especially the ones directed to him, replayed over and over in his head. It was painful.

Why couldn’t he stop this?

Min-yun appeared, the disturbingly cheerful tune played off and Arvid could only watch with sheer fear and frustration as the smaller student didn’t realise what was actually going on around her. He, among others, tried his best to warn the girl, but to no avail. The threatening music had grown too loud, and then it was all too late. 

The forester cried, nearly howled, as the execution came to an end and another classmate of his was dead. Gone. Never going to come back. It felt like something had torn out a huge part of him, straight from the chest, and nothing in the future could possibly fill the empty hole. He couldn’t handle more of this pain, these emotions, neither physically nor mentally. This had to end. NOW.

No matter how much the brunet respected (had respected, she was gone now, remember?) Min-yun, he couldn’t handle the thought of staying in the trial room any longer. Arvid had to get out, avoid seeing the maknae’s body, the one which had been alive just minutes ago, and focus his thoughts on something else before he went mad. 

Just as he set for the elevator with shaky knees, his horrified gaze fell on yet another limp body. It took him less than a second to realise it was Chinatsu, the usually terrified girl, and knew he had to check on her. With a trembling hand, he gently touched the landscape architect’s shoulder and called her surname (his voice unsteady and weird), but no response. She appeared to be breathing, but judging by how the timid student reacted to death, this execution might have been too much for her to handle and caused her to faint.

As he was in no way able to leave the unconcious student there, alone and unconcious in that room of all places, he looked up and decided to call for help. In his current state, he didn’t trust his own strength to carry the girl by himself.

With a scared and unsure voice, Arvid called out.

"S-someone! Can someone help me? … Hisato?”

[carcerare]

Arvid | Don't Go | Vote Reaction

While staring anxiously at the screen where the number of votes would be shown within moments, Arvid expected things to turn out the same way as last time. Another innocent student pointed out, simply because no one had any solid evidence to base their suspicions on. And it was his fault. Their fault. Though most of all, the creator of this game's fault. He shouldn't forget about that. None of them would have been here had it not been for the true culprit's (culprits'?) doings. 

Kuroneko proved his expectations wrong by laughing cruelly in Min-yun’s direction as the screen stopped on her name, and told her to explain herself. He froze. Min-yun? The murderer? That couldn’t be true. Even if the smaller student had never actually interacted with him, he still knew, had felt, through her actions and words during meet-ups, that the maknae was a kindhearted person. He would have trusted her with his life, if the situation called for it, but now …

All eyes, his confused pair included, seemed to fall on the girl. A heartbreaking smile appeared on her face and Arvid knew where it was going.

Min-yun was completely honest, told the story no one would have wanted her to tell (because she shouldn’t have had a story like that to tell, in the first place), and the forester could only bite his lower lip regretfully as tears spilled down his cheeks, as if to sympathize with the maknae’s own. Yes, she had killed another student, but … Could anyone really be blamed anymore? As the motives grew harsher, and the survivors had seen more death within few weeks than an average person would see during their entire life, it wasn’t surprising. They were all children. Min-yun Yi was a child.

As she walked over to Hisato and handed him something, her words made something tighten only further in the tall brunet’s chest. Arvid could barely muffle his upset sobs at that point. He wanted nothing more but to gather all the students behind himself and promise them they would be safe now. No more murders, no more executions. None of that. Then again, wants and wishes wouldn’t get him anywhere .., It wouldn’t save any lives. All of them could do nothing but try and fail.

But he had to speak now, before it was too late.

"Yi! … Y-you, … You are not alone! You haven’t been any more useless than anyone else! Y-you even thought of finding a solution, to save us all, and that’s … I respect you for that alone. Some here claim to only care for themselves, while you have taken the next step. You are above that, even if … T-there are no excuses for taking a life, but I, h-heh, understand you, in this situation … I …” 

That was as far as Arvid got, before he broke down in tears and ended up on his knees behind the podium. His shoulders shook violently as he tried to voice something more, a barely understandable “someone just stop this”.

[carcerare]

Arvid | I Could Feel Better | Trial | RE: Everyone

As Arvid reached the unchanging podium and tried to gather his thoughts before the trial started, he realised how out of shape he was. He felt more clammy and uncomfortably warm than usual, and his hands hadn’t ceased their trembling since the investigation started. Could he get anymore useless in these trials? Like that was even possible.

The first words and statements from his classmates seemed like nothing but a blur of voices he couldn’t quite make out. While a part of him wanted so desperately to listen and know what was going on, another part tried its best to make him space out and focus on the throbbing headache he had developed over the last few hours. Perhaps his own body had started to work against him, to personally put an end to his miserable situation and being. Arvid found the concept oddly fascinating, as the Mother Nature fanboy he was. 

No, he had to focus. Someone was saying something. Obviously.

Tired eyes narrowed as Arvid raised his gaze from the floor and tried to spot the student who spoke. Right then, it seemed like Makoto talked about excluding some of the larger students, because of a footprint. A small footprint … With brows furrowed, he recalled how they had tried to cut down on the suspect list in earlier trials, because of size. He felt like saying something.

"Uhm, uh … While excluding some people from the group of suspects sounds nice and all, I still think we … hmm. We shouldn’t assume anything just yet? Either the murderer was clumsy and left their footprint just like that, or the murderer wanted to fool us with it. My point is, let’s not make any exceptions before we have more clues put down on the table. Yeah."

Arvid shrugged, then gave an unsure nod. He wasn’t sure if his disoriented rambling was any helpful at all, but he wanted to make a point. In a way. Then Chinatsu mentioned something, her voice actually not that timid this time, about a bloody shoe in Min-yun’s locker, and he wanted nothing more but to tune out the voices again. 

[carcerare]

Arvid | Death to the Rescue | RE: Body Discovery

With his head more or less buried in a trash bin, Arvid sobbed softly as he worked on pulling himself together. He felt like he might as well just die right there and then, his body trembling violently from the fading shock. The brunet felt terribly sick, in all too many ways. Clumsy hands pulled out a spare napkin he had stored in a pocket for some time, then wiped his miserable face while he tried to block out the sight of Orino’s body which seemed to have etched into his mind.

As the announcement, which he had so dreadfully expected, played off earlier on his partly cracked student ID, his body had tensed up at the mention of a “pretty messy” crime scene. Arvid hoped it was only Kuroneko trying to give them a scare or just being nasty as usual, but once he had entered the building and began approaching the right part where most of the other students had gathered (a part of him automatically searched for Hisato’s head, then guiltily felt relieved upon spotting his roommate alive), the forester had let out a strangled noise as his frightened gaze fell on the victim.

The stagehand’s murder had been far more brutal, at least visibly, than any of the previous ones. And it had a far more physical impact on him. Just seeing his former classmate like that … it went beyond too much. If he hadn’t been overwhelmed by the shock and horror, he would have asked if they were at least allowed to close Orino’s lifeless eyes. Out of respect. That was a question he was never able to ask though, as the tall boy found himself heading for the exit in a hurry, desperately searching for a container in the hall. 

Now, with a trash bin he needed to get rid of and the feeling of sickness slowly letting sorrow take its place, he had at least enough focus to think through everything. Orino had been killed, thus saving the rest of them. Just another sacrifice. Then another trial would follow, and someone had to die again. It was nothing but death. Death, death, death and more death.

With thick brows furrowed in thought, Arvid rose from his spot and stood on weak legs. He glanced at his still shaking hands with some sort of hatred, then drew a deep breath and figured there was nothing else to do but suck it up. Get going. Do like everyone else.