i want out.

"...I'm sure you can't blame me for trying. But I would rather have not, either." [afflitated with da5k. formly blog for ac1] playing | stopped

[shslelectronics-blog]

just a kid who got in too deep

what do you want from me? a mix for a girl who had to build her walls too steep until the end.

[ LISTEN ]

tracklist + lyrics under the cut.

(i want to thank you for showing me what i could be i won't let go, i thank you so)

dollhouse // melanie martinez places, places, get in your places throw on your dress and put on your doll faces

control // halsey i sat alone in bed 'til the morning i'm crying "they're coming for me" and i tried to hold these secrets inside me my mind's like a deadly disease

human // oh land i don't like you're human you remind me of the things i hate in me

numb // oh land thunder and rain will weigh on her shelter all expectations make her heart feel numb

runs in the family // amanda palmer mary have mercy now look what i've done but don't blame me because i can't help where i come from

icarus // bastille you put up your defenses when you leave you leave because you're certain of who you want to be

fences // paramore don't you know by now you can't turn back because this road is all you'll ever have

radioactive in the dark // imagine dragons + fall out boy be careful making wishes in the dark can’t be sure where they’ll hit their mark and besides in the mean time i’m just dreaming of tearing you apart

high regard // the story so far my walls are built up high forever bound to be steep i've got a birds eye view of all the secrets you keep

bonus song.

[shsl-doubttsuchi-blog]

Monobear Theater - A Jazzy Execution

[tw: #Electrocution [also the music suddenly jumps to loud early on!]]

She’s said all she needs, confessed all she has to, and now Jaz knows her path is finally winding down. No longer is there any opportunity for her to push on and make her own; all possible exits are now sealed, and Jaz knows as much.

But why not give herself a chance at going out on her own terms?

Now back at her podium Jaz steps away from it once all has been built up for the conclusion, closing her eyes and dipping her head.

“…Any time you like.”

Silence. Jaz’s ears are straining for the sound of scraping metal, but she should surely know by now that if her ears are straining for a sound, it’s not there.

“Is… this for tension? Seriously?”

Still nothing.

“…Honestly. I thought you liked getting these executions done? You’ve been hyped up enough, honestly- aha, wouldn’t it be a fucking riot if it all had broken n-”

Turned out she wasn’t in control of her last moments after all, as the chain suddenly shooting out from behind her squeezed out whatever words she had been about to say and dragged her off with a high pitched scream instead.

COMMENCING EXECUTION: FEEDBACK

[♫♫♫]

People. Crowding. That’s the first thing Jaz notices when she’s finally dropped in the middle of her execution, smack bang in the middle of a heaving monochrome crowd with the only light coming from fluorescent paint on their bodies. Music thuds in her ears, the bass feeling like it’s shaking her very core as she’s physically jostled by the crowd around her in time to the beat.

Thud, thud thud, thud, thud thud, thud

For a while the exact nature of why she’s here is completely forgotten as she’s utterly frozen in the confined space, feeling like she can barely move her chest to breathe in the small space she has in a Monobear crowd. Any sound she manages to make in frustration or panic goes completely unheard, that heavy music that pounds in time with her heartbeat going thud, thud thud, thud in her ears and drowning her out.

It’s only when the glowing Monobear crowd gives another particularly large surge that Jaz is pushed into action. Her gaze is thrown towards an empty stage not too far away at all; wide open, lit up and mercifully raised above the suffocating crowd. The sight is enough to push her to take control of her position in the scene, Jaz’s breaths quick from exertion now rather than panic as she begins to desperately elbow her way through the Monobears before they crush her. Not a single audience member (membear?) is spared, ruthlessly shoved and jostled from their partying by the musician as she fights to pull herself above the masses.

Thud, thud thud, thud, thud thud

There’s no steps up onto the stage, forcing Jaz to pull herself up onto her stomach while still being knocked by the Monobears. She doesn’t waste time lying there however once she’s escaped falling back into the mass, scrambling up to investigate the music desk in the centre that’s oh-so-reminiscent of those she’s performed at many a time. Now that she’s free of that claustrophobic environment, up above the Monobears who continue about their partying business, she’s able to start considering how to get a hold on this ‘execution’ of hers. How to take control.

And her first manner of business is the plug.

Gripping it with both hands Jaz yanks as hard as she can on the cable- and everything stills.

Thud, thud thud, thuuuuuu…

Silence.

(Show them it’s positively not working.)

Her shaking hands move away from the cable and clench into fists before her, a bright smile that doesn’t match her usual (though you… feel like you’ve seen similar actions and joy before) being forced onto Jaz’s face in spite of her sweat and her skin still prickling.

It doesn’t last long though.

That determined smile is quickly replaced by shock on her face as what light there had been is spluttering out save for the still-glowing Monobears, music stuttering and jumping before dying with a humming sound like microphone feedback. The stage fixtures above Jaz are crumbling, some starting to hang and swing precariously, and in a moment of fleeting panic totally at odds with her normal formal composure Jaz throws her arms over her head with a shriek as she crouches and braces herself for any impact-

Only when the fixtures do fall they crash down around her rather than on her, sickening cracks coming from the stage floor underneath her rather than bones breaking. Ever so slowly Jaz stands herself back up, gaze falling on the steel bars and lights that still continue to plummet. Underneath some of them she can see a grey surface starting to peek out from underneath the cracked stage, though she doesn’t stop to ponder what it is. The Monobears having stopping pushing forward as that wild crowd, the party’s over- now’s her chance to try and get away! Once again feeling in control Jaz scrambles to get out from behind the desk- only for that grey surface to start moving at an incredible pace, snatching Jaz’s feet out from underneath her and tugging her away. With one futile reach for the solid support of the stage edge Jaz is pulled away by the fast moving track, swept right through the stage’s backdrop with all of its fallen debris into…

…a factory production line of some kind, in just as small as space as the party she’s come from, but feeling much more suffocating to the girl and holding a very different context. A shocked glance upwards means Jaz catches the name of the section she’s just entered on the wall: QUALITY CONTROL- and at the moment, it seems to be Jaz up for inspection.

Turning herself over on the conveyer belt shows her destination, the pieces of stage debris further ahead of her giving Jaz a sneak preview of what’s to come. Each piece is being swept underneath a thick archway that’s then sealed off with metal shutters, the piece resting inside the tiny formed chamber for a few moments before a light in the shape of Monobear’s jagged eye flashes green and it’s released again to continue on its way. Even now that previous beat doesn’t stop, now heard in the slamming of the metal shutters.

Slam, khchunk, slam, khchunk

Somehow, Jaz has the feeling she won’t end up passing whatever test it’s conducting.

Slam, khchunk, slam, khchunk

Her head’s ringing from something other than the beat this execution insists on following now.

(She knows it’s probably pointless to try running, escaping- but instinct is forcing her to heavily consider the idea- fighting isn’t an option so everything is screaming flight flight flight-)

Her fingers fail to get any sort of grip on the smooth belt surface, desperate hands creating the sound of metal hitting its own kind as she scrambles to get a hold on something, anything to get herself standing again. A stage light is thrown off the edge of the conveyer belt, wrenched aside by the sheer force of Jaz using it to pull herself up. With that she begins to run, run from that cramped metal box that’s only advancing closer and closer to her, darting and hopping over the obstacles in her path as she desperately tries to sprint back into the stage area. Her look of ever-increasing frustration can clearly be seen even among the new sweat on her face as the conveyer belt actively fights her progress, tugging her back again every time she manages to get the slightest bit ahead. Even with her path clearing as more and more debris is passed through that mechanism, the musician still can’t escape her factory hell.

Slam, khchunk, slam, khchunk

She can’t run forever either. Especially not with her feet in their current state.

But it’s not fatigue that leads to her demise.

With the ever increasing in speed belt now clear of any debris, all of it having passed the quality check, Jaz lifts her gaze from the moving surface below her with that slam, khchunk, slam, khchunk still continuing behind her to see how far she is- only to freeze completely, that angered look melting away into pure shock.

Until now she hadn’t looked above the entrance she’d been ferried through, and now she has- she’s completely shut down.

Her feet stumble on the conveyer belt and she falls backwards, unable to do anything despite that slam, khchunk, slam, khchunk increasing in volume as she’s taken nearer and nearer to it. It’s impossible for her to tear her eyes away from the two figures she’s spotted in a control booth above the conveyor belt’s start; in silhouette perhaps, but that doesn’t matter. Jaz can still make out the shape of the flower in one’s hair, the long braid of the other on the opposite side to her own, hell, just the way both their figures are formed is enough for Jaz’s eyes to widen in recognition.

(Of course.)

(But why.)

Slam, khchunk, slam, khchunk

SLAM, khchunk, SLAM, khchunk

It’s obvious that at least one of those well-known figures is responsible for Jaz’s acceleration to the clearing mechanism from the way their hand is outstretched, movement being seen there just before Jaz is shot backwards at an even faster rate. Though she’s still completely in shock from those two appearing to somehow be the ones responsible here, pure terror and adrenaline pushes her back up to try and scramble away once again.

But it’s all futile. With one quick movement that controller sends Jaz’s feet out from underneath her once again, finally sending her towards what can only be a metal coffin without any hope of escaping it anymore.

SLAM, khchunk, SLAM, khchuuuuu…

The closing of the steel doors is dragged out into a hiss as Jaz is finally pulled into the container, only to try and drag the shutters back open with nothing but her bare hands. It’s only just occurring to her now that she should have tried to keep some debris for this purpose, that desperate frustrated look still only just visible as she tries to pry her way out.

Yet somehow… she holds it, slipping back slightly further into the metal chamber in as much of a stance as she can manage to lever the doors- you’ve seen a variation of that stance before, actually, except it was someone with their hands less twisted and lifting a vending machine instead-

Maybe, just maybe, she can hold it long enough for the doors to retract on their own.

But clearly not, if the voices that ring out over the painful scene are anything to go by. Especially as Jaz’s hands start shaking at the very first word.

“Mother and Father did say there was a defective one…”

“‘Course it’s this one. She was going to ruin everything for us someday.”

Protests are screamed from the third girl. But the other’s hands move and a mechanism whirrs, and Jaz’s fingers slip off the metal just before they’re crushed.

khchunk

For a moment all you can hear is the girl’s terrified screaming, the sound of Jaz’s fists pounding the walls from the inside ringing out slam slam slam thud thud completely out of time with that regular beat that’s accompanied the whole execution thus far. But then it’s drowned out by a loud warning siren, blaring through the small factory accompanied by the bright red of that Monokuma eye.

Then all of a sudden the cacophony drops. The siren halts, the conveyer belt stops whirring, Jaz’s fists stop hammering from inside her tiny metal cell at one sound: a girl’s whisper, one of the voices from before, floating through the previously panicked scene with an incredible gentle tone that carries high contrast to the previous harsh machine sounds. But to Jaz it holds a completely different level of malice, even a sickeningly sweet sound.

“Corruption found.”

Silence once again.

Then a crackling fills the air, bright blue sparks being seen running up and down the seams of the shutters as a high pitched scream filters through them. The shrill noise just continues and continues, just loud enough to be heard over the obviously enhanced electricity that just seems to run on

and on

and on.

Eventually both noises splutter out. And the shutters open with a hiss.

The conveyer belt starts up again with a whirr as a blur of dark green and purple slumps out onto it. It’s still set at its top speed clearly, judging by the way you’re barely able to get a look at Jaz’s state before she’s carried out of sight, into the darkness.

Until a loud crashing is heard from the back of the trial room near the elevator, some perhaps turning just in time to see all that debris from Jaz’s stage be dumped onto the floor from a hatch that’s opened at the back.

And then follows the body itself of course, burnt and charred by electricity, being rather unceremoniously dumped on top of the pile of ruined stage lights and metal beams with a crash. Her burnt face is set in an expression of complete horror, darkened hands still curled up as though to scratch or hit, seared clothing clinging to arms laced with lightning-like scars that hang limply from the pile of ruins Jaz lies on.

The dream she’d tried to escape with was only fed back into her hell in the end.

JASMINE HAYES, SHSL ELECTRONIC MUSICIAN, HAS BEEN EXECUTED.

[this week’s art by farren! thank you so much!]

[visceralserendipity]

im ufckign sobibn

[shslelectronics-blog]

when will my reflection show who i am inside

[shsl-doubttsuchi-blog]

and we'll be waiting at the end || jaz || re: aideen, yori, aideen, shin, masuyo

This wasn’t her life.

This couldn’t be her life. No, Jaz surely had to have somehow stolen someone else’s, because this series of events didn’t make sense with hers.

Not because she was finding it surreal because she was about to be executed like so many deaths she’d seen before her now either.

It was because Jaz didn’t ever have someone catching her wrist and thanking her for being friends.  

(She’d tried to play the moment off a little, managing a wry smile and asking Aideen to buy a better jokebook when she got out still, but she couldn’t quite lift her words enough in the exchange to match the attempt at lightheartedness.)

It was because Jaz didn’t feel a burning sense of shame for not being quite the person someone she got along with well.

( > honestly i don’t even know if i’m friends with tahara or if we just acknowledge that we’re some of the few who have our heads screwed on here

Whether that text rung true or not at the end of it all, through her thoughts or another’s, her heart still felt so heavy-)

It was because Jaz never expected to have someone clinging onto her begging her not to go. 

(If only she could oblige.)

“…Kaya.” Jaz’s voice was calm but very much at odds with her demeanor; Jaz was bad at hugs but right now she was deciding to try, eyes squeezed shut and fingers digging into Kaya’s outfit to try grip just as hard. “K-Kaya, let go. Let go- I have to go any moment now, I am not letting you get dragged off too- Kaya-”

It was in reluctance but Jaz’s hands finally started to move from Kaya’s back, gently trying to prise the idol’s arms from around her. But her first attempt failed, and so Jaz was left just rubbing Kaya’s back (that… was the sort of thing Lily would do, right?) as she responded to Yori over Kaya’s shoulder. 

“Believe me, Tahara-san, I wish it had been left outside here too. Aha… guess I could never really escape it, though. You can trace my invitation here back to that bullshit, after all- never really could escape in the end could I- still those fuckers influencing my useless life even when I thought I was- I was moving by myself-”

(She was glad she was only realising that now, when it barely even mattered anymore.)

Talking to herself. 

A sigh.

“I’m… I’m s-sorry I dis- disappointed you.”

(…)

(aaaaaaaAAAAAAAAAAAA-) 

No. 

She hadn’t gone backwards. Even though saying something like that stirred up a ton of unpleasant memories Jaz had not gone back to Jasmine Hayes. 

But she really did need to talk. 

With a mutter to Kaya promising that she’d come back in a minute Jaz finally succeeded in prying the girl off her, crossing over to the bellhop and doing her best to put that usually neutral expression back on her face. But she hadn’t quite managed by the time she reached Yori, though whatever was troubling her clearly wasn’t about to be made public as she tugged gently on his arm to turn him away from addressing the general trial room. 

A short while later (and a nod of thanks at Susumu for what he’d just said ) Jaz was returning to her podium just as promised- only to walk a little further past it too. After all, there was one person she hadn’t addressed yet. Who she really should.

Shin Hayashi. 

For a moment it looked like Jaz, the bundle of pent up rage that she generally was, was actually going to end things rather civilly. With the way her hand moved it looked like she was going to offer it for a fair handshake- but then her other hand raised too and she jammed both her palms into Shin’s chest, suddenly shoving the male away with all her might. The fire always in her chest in some way seemed determined to burn everything up before she died- and it seemed Shin was going to be the target of some last throws. 

“You- IDIOT! Of course I didn’t expect you to keep it secret- but I expected you to have some fucking sense!”

She could have pushed him again. Hell, she could have done more than that, judging by the way her shaking hands had curled into fists as she yelled at Shin, but her arms remained stiffly by her sides as she all but hissed at him.

“Everyone was voting Masamune already! Making out like you're such a great strategic ass by deceiving me- you could have let the BIGGER threat die first! Don’t think I didn’t notice that you already have it out for him- YOU were the first to fucking start THAT bandwagon, I’m sure! Then you could havejust- thrown me on the pile of expendable killers or whatever- but no, he's still close to fucking us- you all over when you could have got two with one stone, genius, do you even know what you're doing, I-”

…Wait. 

Was she… even really angry? Well, yes, but- at Shin? 

(Well- well of course she was but- but he’d been, they'd all been following a lead just like she would- he hadn't forced her lack of control over herself, he hadn't forced her to throw away everything in panic and go against everything she’d ever known in- faith? Well- maybe- oh god, she didn't know-!)

Any more words Jaz had to sling at Shin died away. All anger slipped from her expression to be replaced with that usual neutrality, and with an air much much colder than her previous anger she turned and walked away with a mutter.

“Hope it all works out for you." 

Not like it affected her anymore anyway. 

(…Would it be selfish to go back to Kaya for a hug?) 

(She was a friend, after all, against all the odds.)

(…Her sisters liked the girl’s work too.)

Someone was yelling at her.

"Tell me something I don’t know.”

Yeah. This was more like it. Closing everything down.

If she’d been planning to burn any forming bridges before she even knew she was going to die, might as well go out in an inferno, huh?

[shsl-doubttsuchi-blog]

memory || jaz || re: kuma, aideen, yona

Ah. Right. Of course. She’d let slip that it was meant to be Susumu dead rather than Kaori. 

He took it much better than Jaz expected, admittedly, which in turn thankfully allowed Jaz to remain somewhat level headed too. Still ringing and a little light from her previous admission, and that thump thump thump of her heart or of adrenaline or whatever certainly wasn’t going away any time soon- but calm, at least. Calmer than she could be. At least she wasn’t, couldn't be the sort to be bothered by many stares resting on her. 

(Incredible, really, how one could become so much more aware of themselves when their death was imminent. Her heart especially felt determined to pump out all it was owed.) 

Amazingly, she managed a wry smile at Susumu. 

“I’ll take tripping you up as something of an honour, if you don’t mind. You’re one of the best here. And… it’s not that I dislike you, Kumashiro-san. Don’t think I could. Nor have I planned to kill you from the beginning, I… I swear. Please, I’ve lied my ass off over this whole trial, it’s about due time I told the truth. I said already that I didn’t want to be like the friends who were just in it to use me. I’ve… just been scared about how much power you seem to hold over trials, honestly. I’m not someone who doesn’t like not feeling in control, and well… actually, I’ll let you fill in the blanks. And despite my… hesitations about killing you-” The glance that snapped to Yori and back was more sympathetic than wary; perhaps slightly incredible, given Jaz’s character. “After getting so panicked by the motive, I… decided to try. Obviously. That’s all we really can do, right?”

A pause, Jaz’s gaze dropping from the hacker. 

“…Last wish of the damned? Keep an eye on Ayano, won’t you. If she’s… i-if she’s alive. I know you like her too. Knew as much in the third trial.”

Speaking of that matter. She couldn’t stand here frozen forever. 

(As easy as it would be to just take root and for the first time in years stop pushing.)

Slowly, almost numbly, Jaz quietly slipped out from behind her podium and looped around to Aideen’s, deliberately staying on the side of the artist that did not also contain a certain musician. Yona was there of course but Jaz completely ignored her- please, she was the one taking a one way trip out of this trial room, she surely had free goddamn reign to go and do what she liked-!

Digging in her jacket pocket Jaz pulled out her keycard, unlocking it without even looking at the screen before gently placing it face down on Aideen’s podium. 

“<< If… i-if she’s alive at the end of all this. Please give this to Ayano. She’ll get it, hopefully. Tell her I’m s- >>”

…Actually, no. That was cruel.

“ <<…N-never mind. If she’s… if she’s not alive then… you keep it. Go check out my journal, will you? And… thanks, Aideen. Hang in there. W-wait, actually- >>

With one swift tug Jaz pulled her headphones out and tugged her music player out of her pocket with them, wrapping them around the device and gently placing that on Aideen’s podium too.

”<< You keep this. Well, do what you like with it I guess, but I’m passing it to you. Might kill some time when you’re hiding behind your podium. Aha. Hey. There’s some stuff on there I didn’t release yet though. Don’t go leaking it. >> “

Still terrible at jokes even to the end.

Something seemed… off, though. And she supposed there must have been a reason Yona had come over here and asked such a thing. 

With a distant memory suddenly springing up again,

(god that felt like so long ago now, back when she’d only been annoyed at Siyu Zhen and worrying about whoever K-san was)

(how times changed)

(how people changed)

Jaz decided to be safe rather than sorry, reaching into the inside of her jacket and tugging out a scrap of paper and a pen. Rolling the pen into her left hand she scribbled on both halves, before ripping the paper in half in a quick practiced movement and leaving one half on each item. 

Perhaps she should have left Aideen then. Make a clean cut before the lingered too long here and got tangled up with her ‘ally’. 

But Jaz couldn’t bring herself to move just yet. Anyway. Kaya was still occupied by Tori, Ayano was missing, and Jaz didn’t dare even look at Yori given her exchange with Kuma.

So Aideen it was. One final attempt at fulfilling what she’d come to recognise was… no bad thing, really.

(Perhaps the two might have poked fun at it, had they been acknowledging friendship-like feelings outside of such a dire situation.)

(Guess she’d never know.) 

Distraction. 

”…You don’t get it, do you?“ Oh, hang on ,Yona had been speaking mostly in English. Jaz fumbled quickly to correct herself. ”<< My sister’s futures. That’s what it’d ruin, outside of how people saw and thought of me here. I didn’t want that secret coming out in a way I wasn’t controlling, so having Monobear scatter them around-! >>“ A deep breath. ”<< Just one piece of paper of all of it would be enough to ruin my parents. I’d do it if not for my sisters. They’re- they're everything to me, al-always have been always w-will, I- I c-couldn’t leave them w-with nothing! I w-wanted to work out a way I didn't have to k-keep this secret, m-make sure my sisters were secure somehow b-before but- but time got away and- and I ended up here and- o-oh god->>“

Her cheeks were burning, and the sensation was starting to melt over her skin. 

…Oh. 

Oh god. 

Instantly Jaz’s hand snapped to pinch at the corners of her eyes, quickly turning on her heel and swooping back around to her podium. At least the quick movement pushed some air against her face and though her face felt raw it felt dry, the girl quickly shaking her head and straightening up in a practiced movement. Her face settled back into neutrality, the girl quickly managing to arrange an air despite everything that made it seem like she was bored with the whole situation now. It seemed the right time for her to offer an apology. 

Except one never came. Not verbally, at least. 

sorry lily sorry amelia sorry lily sorry amelia sorry lily sorry amelia 

i’m not what you needed.

[ultimatethereminist-blog]

I still can’t believe Jaz Hayes is a… mergerer.

[shslelectronics-blog]

[shsl-doubttsuchi-blog]

and business runs in the family || jaz || re: results, aideen, others here and there

Jasmine Hayes was a quiet girl who hid behind her long long hair, and her parents were the thing she feared most in the world. 

(It was Lily crying next door when she thought her sisters were asleep, it was Amelia’s utter terror breaking through her usual lazy expression at the slightest of slips, it was Jaz herself constantly hearing that’s not what we need- that’s not what we need- that’s not-)

Jaz was a girl who stood tall and continued pushing herself down her own paths, and she was the thing her parents feared most in the world. 

–Over a hobby? You ungrateful BRAT! Do you REALLY think- Personally, Mother, I don’t see that you have much of a choice. Hobby or not. 

Jaz was a girl utterly on her own, but Jasmine Hayes had convinced her that path was the best one.

You have no further help from us. Not after your graduation. In fact I’m not even inclined to call you my daughter anymore, we’ve given you EVERYTHING and you throw it right back like this- At what cost?

Jaz was a girl who’d just recently realised that she didn’t have to be as alone as she thought, and she was going to die for foolishly, stupidly upholding their request in their bargain. 

Static. That was all that filled Jaz’s mind; pure, unadulterated static, her expression just as blank as her mind was. Perhaps some were expecting Jaz to utterly explode in rage- and honestly, she was waiting for that herself. That was what usually happened after all, she hated it but had come to expect it. Yet nothing sparked. For once Jaz’s panic had sped straight past the usual angry response, nose diving her straight into absolute shut down.

Then all of a sudden, like someone had just been taking their time to rewind the key on a clockwork toy, Jaz sprung back into life.

And that someone was Aideen Quinn.

“<< For the same reason I damn well hesitated when I said you were using my bathroom and therefore had access to my hair! For the same reason I didn’t mention the colour of the dye you won! Because all my past friends have just been there to use me and I didn’t want to take that to the extreme myself no matter how much I wanted to live! >>" 

She’d reverted to English but Jaz honestly couldn’t care less as she screamed over at Aideen in retort; why should anyone else understand anyway, these words were meant for Aideen, they could dance around the issue all they fucking liked but the fact remained that they had become friends and if Jaz didn’t explain herself to her now… well. She’d never get the chance to. 

Any tender moment that may have then happened was lost due to one particular student, however. 

"Oh, go fucking fly south, Otoko, stop acting so righteous. It’s not Ayano’s fault they took Kita.”

No. There was no time to be wasted on useless insults and anyone else who may be slinging shit at her. (Especially in the case of one Shion Tsuzuki, who would certainly want that attention.) Jaz had things to do, things to cover, and she’d never get this chance again. As usual, she had to strike while the iron was hot. It was rapidly cooling down, after all.

(Keep pushing forward. Keep pushing forward keep pushing forward oh god but it was getting so difficult now-)

“…You know what the most incredible part is? Not a single one of you had a correct timeline.” Beat. “What. You think I’m going to give you all the satisfaction of spelling out how it all went down? Nah. I don’t have time for that, more important stuff to do and cover. Though I’ll throw you some bones. Aideen was closest to the trap overall. That plan Nishida found? Fake. I never wrote one down- and speaking of Nishida, NO-! I didn’t even write that fucking kanji, I first saw it when Tsu-fuck-zuki sped everything up! M-mhm- gun was mine, had it on me since this all first started- sorry Suzuran, Kaya, I lied to you back then when you questioned my Monocoins. Kumashiro was part right, though he shouldn’t have been alive to tell you that. Number 3 never existed. Oh, and my feet are great, thanks for asking; you clever smug assholes completely missed that idea.”

“Bet I know what you’re mostly thinking about though. What did Jaz kill for. Who’s the lucky person who got the killer’s secret card. Did she kill the rest of the Hayes family? Cheat at music somehow Something petty so we can laugh at how pathetic she is? No. I killed to protect a secret that I couldn’t let come out while I was alive. And especially not up here. I don’t know what you’d think of me and I don’t know who’s here, this - this motive - wasn’t the controlled way I’d like the information to come out. It’s… sensitive stuff, you know. A-ah…”

keep pushing forward keep going keep going no looking back keep going

(Kaya was sobbing, screaming, twice Jaz nearly bailed out on everything to go to her but Tori had already beaten her there- and as much as she didn’t like Tori right now- she had to accept that not approaching would be the best right now- but god she’d lied so much to the girl-)

Deep breath.

“P-problem is. If I die without letting anyone know now, the only two people that- the only two that know this are the entire cause. T-that’s what I want to address, and- the person I trusted most w-with this is missing, so, I… that’s what I want to cover. Right now. Mhm.”

It was a rush that Jaz couldn’t describe, finally getting to telling her most closely guarded secrets to the masses no less. And a true sense of finality.

“I killed to hide the fact I could only start my career properly by blackmailing my parents. Family company’s corrupt. Horribly so. I dug all that up when I was younger - and there’s so much - and ended up blackmailing them with it. Let me leave the role you have planned, no, forced for me to follow my own dream and all your awful awful shit stays under wraps indefinitely. They eventually agreed. Had no choice, really, just one bit would be enough never mind all I have Even for a worldwide business like those assholes. I said I’d keep quiet after that. I… I a-also hid that to protect my sister’s futures - th-they’re so much to me, they’d have nothing if I put out one piece of that, never mind all of it - but… I c-can’t leave it with just my parents knowing. I can’t.”

(‘Jaz, I can tell you’re not sleeping well’ Lily had said, but how could she tell her sister that it was because she was literally sleeping on enough information to ruin a whole business? Their business some day?)

“Don’t get me wrong. I’m not telling you this for a sob story, a last moment of pity. This is me feeling somewhat better by safe guarding myself. Can’t have- can’t have the damn causes left being the only ones left alive knowing, right? Aha. I wanted to keep this secret while I was still alive and stuck here for certain. Guess both those conditions aren’t… a-aren’t gonna hold anymore, right? I did… a-ask someone to deal with it upon my death, b-but she… may have beaten me there. T-trust me, I hate just… throwing it out there like this, but you know… desperate times, d-desperate measures…”

When she finally got around to it, whether that be here or back out in the big wide world, Jaz had expected it to be akin to just ripping off a band-aid. Painful, but as long as she pushed on, it would turn out fine. 

Haha. How naive. 

(Naive was bad, they had always called her sweet sweet sister Lily naive, and that was not what was needed-)

(Oh god-) 

(She was what was needed for them and now she’d never see them-)

That wasn’t all that Jaz wanted to say. No, there were important things she had to do, had to say before everything erupted into chaos and before she knew it she was dead. But the mere act of speaking had paralyzed her, the girl’s eyes wide now as she stared down at her podium with her hands obviously trembling on the surface. Her thoughts had run away with her, and everything was halted for now.

“I…”

keep… 

pushing…

“I s-still have t-to…”

No. 

All paths were running out. She might as well stop near the end for a while. 

[idolyuyui-blog]

realized that its been a criminally long time since ive drawn jaz

(please free her, i love her)

[shsl-doubttsuchi-blog]

stop. || jaz || re: shin

You

absolute

idiot.

“I-I…”

One moment of desperation. One moment she’d suddenly latched her trust onto someone she didn’t even know and had, honestly, been pissed at for a good majority of the trial.

And if that hadn’t been a good indication of why she didn’t bother with trust-!

It would have been so, so easy to let rip right now. In fact, Jaz expected it. 

And yet. 

She stayed silent, for perhaps the first time. 

[shsl-doubttsuchi-blog]

"Voting for Data Masamune right now. No mastermind vote."

[shsl-doubttsuchi-blog]

and we'll be waiting at the end || jaz || re: kaya, everyone talking to her o lord

[#caps] 

Hayes-s-… Hayes-san.

Slightly stuttered, but unmistakable. 

“What did I JUST FUCKING SAY!" 

And Jaz was not about to let that lay. 

"Why does everyone these days insist on sticking that name to me? I’M NOT EVEN A HAYES ANYMORE! Jesus fucking Christ, you go to the trouble to get yourself DISOWNED and people STILL link me to THAT SHITTY NAME! I don’t WANT to be linked to that! I’m! Not! Part! Of! That! I have NOTHING to do with them anymore! I-”

…Ah. 

“…W-well. Good to get some things out in the air, I suppose..?”

(Slipping with her secrets. Ironic, this week.)

Fuck. Okay. Smooth it over. Carry on. There was no apology offered towards Hinatea, though- no, right now she had to just keep calm, breathe, push on- oh for FUCK’S SAKE. 

“Because Ayano is my FRIEND and I DON’T WANT HER LYING DEAD SOMEWHERE! The past two trials. Someone’s been missing. Then we find them dead. Forgive me for being scared for a- for a FRIEND! That a foreign concept to you, Hayashi?! Alright, fine- fine, you cowboy fuck, here’s your fucking hair- showing-”

Her hands were shaking as she tugged at the tie holding her braid in place, shaking it out and slamming the small item onto her podium as her hair fell around her shoulders. From looking at her hair as it was now, there was no sign of any areas missing or disturbed. Perfectly normal looking, except perhaps for Jaz’s worried look now hidden slightly behind her long hair like she was peeking behind curtains.

“All roads lead to me, h-huh? Did you not just say Nishida’s name? Were we not just considering the fact that he could have helped Fujino out?! Also, l-like Kaya said. We’ve had time between the motive and now, and this sort of trap- this sort of setup clearly requires planning, hell, someone found a fucking plan what was to stop them dying the hair yesterday-" 

A shuddering breath in, Jaz’s hands still shaking where they loosely held the ends of her long hair. 

(She felt like a little girl again.) 

(She hated that.) 

"K-Kaya’s also right- g-god, I didn’t expect this of all things to come up, but I’m very bad at using emoticons. Forced formality in everything I do- old enforced habits die hard, y'know? It’s… it’s h-how I was brought up. Dragged up. I’ll- I’ll show all my texts if I have to, especially my ones from this investigation, that’s more than enough to prove that. And again with Kaya, could you really get dark markers completely washed out of hair? Especially just trying to wash small awkward pieces rather than a w-whole head? I don’t know wh-what you guys washed it with, but- but it’d surely remain dark to some degree, right? And- and it’s okay, Kaya. I… I don't like that I have such a temper, but it’s… true. As I’ve probably made obvious.”

(Her voice was shaking too much. She hated it.)

“Also… Yoshida-san, is it? I dyed my hair today as I said. I didn’t get the chance to grab cleaning materials never mind actually get started with it. Someone who dyed the hair yesterday, however…”

A pause, a nervous swallow.

“..C-can I… can I p-please put my hair back in a braid now, I… I hate having it like this. L-like when I was younger, y'know? A-aha…”

The nervous note in her laugh sounded too raw to be faked. 

[shsl-doubttsuchi-blog]

drop your chin and take yourself back home || jaz || re: shin, ren

And with just a few sentences from Shin, the fire that Jaz had only just managed to stamp out was reignited twice as strong- as was easily proven by her very quick flare up.

“IT’S NOT MY FUCKING HAIR!”

At least she was only audibly seething for a few moments before crashing back to her senses, the rests of Jaz’s short sharp breaths rolling together and rushing out in an exhausted sounding sigh. Briefly she closed her eyes, running a hand down her face before attempting to address Shin a little more civilly. A little. 

“Come on. Has no-one been listening to what I’ve been saying? Or are you all so keen to have me dragged off? Access to hair dye? Our Monomachine has hair dye in. Aideen-san told me she received some. I don’t know about Mizu’s machine nor if our classes’ prizes are mixed, given our eventual connecting situations, but our Monomachine at least had personal or related items in. I should know. I got two of my old textbooks from there, one direct, one by proxy. For the record. Including myself, there were originally four students with purple hair in our class. That’s probablyat least four chances of getting purple dye, right? That’s not even including Mizu. Oh, and also. It would very easy for one to lie about what they received from the Monomachine. So wasting time asking what people received is useless.”

“Access to my room, though. A few people have investigated it in the past. While I’ve always been there, I guess I can’t catch everything - actually, come to think of it, I'm pretty sure Nishida-san stopped by once - and Aideen-san’s frequently been… using my… water.”

An awkward silence. Though only those looking incredibly closely at Jaz’s face when her words started faltering would notice her eyes widening, gaze dropping to her podium before the girl jumped tracks entirely. At least she wanted to do so, so it didn’t come across as awkwardly forced. 

“Wait, donations? You mean you’re saying that he gets hair from others that just… send it to him or something? What’s to stop him having purple, then? Purple hair dye isn’t exactly rare. Certainly not unique to me. Hell, my own class proved that-”

‘That finances book in your room, the one you hollowed out. Was there ever anything inside it?’

Ah.

(She really was revisiting the past today, wasn’t she?)

The wind left Jaz’s sails and left an air of resignation around her, her head dropping along with her gaze this time with her shoulders sinking as though under a physical weight. And yet when she finally replied her voice was calm; a little monotone, but steady. 

“…I know what you’re thinking. I would too in your situation. Did she keep a gun in there. A revolver, maybe. The answer is no, and anyone who’s investigated my room after we all received that letter from K-san - that’s when Kita-san mailed it to me, and I still have their letter to prove it - will be able to attest to that. If they don’t want me dead already. Why is it hollowed out? Aha. Already told this to Nomura-san today. I’ve never kept anything in that book, not while it’s been with me in Kaze. I… used to hide things in it. But not here. Never here. I don’t need to anymore.”

A pause.

“…And thank you for not using Hayes-san again. Apologies I snapped at you about that one earlier.”

[shsl-doubttsuchi-blog]

sick of words that hang above my head || jaz || re: a lot of people

Then in the blink of an eye, everything started speeding downhill. 

Though Jaz herself didn’t help with that at all, kicking off her own portion of events with a slightly irritated response to Shin that she really couldn’t hold back. 

“Didn’t you listen? I said I was curious, I wasn’t aware of what you were getting at. So. Thank you for explaining your idea, no thanks for that somewhat passive aggressive ‘clearing my conscience shit’. Also, if I was going to cut off my hair to leave it behind, I’d just hack off my whole braid honestly.”

Great opener after being quiet for so long. 

Susumu started to speak up again and so Jaz let him take the floor, under the excuse of grounding herself again after that little bite at Shin. One, two, one, two, calm yourself down, distract yourself, don’t let things get away that’s not helping anyone-

…Hang on.

Where the hell was Ayano Katsuki? 

“…A-Ayano?”

It was the first time that trial that Jaz had actually looked incredibly shaken that whole trial. 

(Third time’s the charm they always said but they also said things come in threes and while Jaz hated fate-based statements like that there was no denying the fact that for the past two trials someone had gone missing and died-)

People were talking. Possibly saying important things. Addressing her.

As hard as it was (oh god oh god Ayano couldn't be dead don’t you dare) Jaz would have to do what she always did: suck it up and keep pushing on. 

(There was so much she hadn’t said yet and now might not get the chance to-) 

Time to talk to Yona. 

“Alibis? Mhm. There’s a lot of thing I’ve done today, but I guess you’re only concerned about close to the time of death. Ironically enough, I’ve been dying my hair today. What. You think this is natural? We’ve been here weeks, I guess, it was about due. I put the dye in at 3:18pm- and yes, that is the exact time, I remember checking so I knew how long to leave the dye in. Do you know how long hair dye takes? My box says leave the dye in for at least 30 minutes. I always leave it in longer. This is a fairly solid colour, after all, and if we’re going to be stuck here longer I’d rather give the dye some chance to have good depth to it. I leave it 40 minutes at least. That’s just sitting with the dye in, though, I’m not counting prep time before or cleaning up. I got it done and was start to look for clean up materials by the time we were called to the body. Didn’t quite get there though. A bunch of you investigated my room- they will have seen the mess still in the bathroom, ask them. And before you say anything, why the fuck would I run around murdering someone or setting things up with dye in my hair? Because nothing’s more innocent looking than purple smears left everywhere, right? Speaking of my room. You will have seen my handwriting too, right?”

“Also. Fuck, I don’t even know why we’re still entertaining this, but whatever. About this case calling back to the previous murders here or whatever- ignoring the fact that this incident appears to miss our fourth case out, unless we missed finding something like another fucking plant that can ruin my hands, are we just going to miss the fact that Fujino-san could have just talked to someone? You’re acting like she only just got contact with our class with the rest of you, rather than being here for a good while with someone she’s known prior to this and would probably be more than willing to explain to her what’s been going on!" 

Breathe. 

With one last lingering glance that was more like a glare at Yona Jaz turned to listen to someone whose words already sounded like ones she’d much more rather consider. 

”…The culprit framing themselves is certainly an option to consider. Or framing an accomplice. Or just framing someone they’re close to. Why? Number of possibilities. We’re bound to pass off such a thing as a frame - like we’re doing now, in fact - and rule out the person completely. Or if they’ve framed someone they’re close to, it’d be a situation like oh come on guys, why would I frame someone I’m super close to? Now you can rule both of us out, right? Both the culprit and their framed friend, helper or not, are then safe.“

She… really wasn’t being subtle in terms of accusations any more, but Jaz was past the point of caring. 

”…That said, Nomura-san. I’m not sure about the hook being a false lead. We found it right there attached to something taped to the wall, right? Set up just like on that paper Nishida-san found. I know a hook wasn’t described on that paper, but considering the length of the string appears to match that dotted line, I’m inclined to believe it’s there.“

”…You know, there was an hour in between the victim’s time of death and the body being found. That’s probably more than enough time for things such as notes to be scattered around - especially if there’s more than one of you - or finding enough force to drop a vending machine by yourself or quickly finding someone else to help out with that post mortem in order to confuse or mess up the scene. I know that it’s been suggested that the vending machine was used to keep the victim in place while shooting, but truthfully? I’m not sure if that’s the case. How would you shoot someone’s leg if it’s trapped under a large machine? I think it’s more likely that the bullets ended up around the room because the victim was trying to get away while being shot at - or get her gun back, if we want to consider it being hers again at any point - and the culprit got lucky striking the fatal area Aideen-san’s mentioned before.“ 

It was after that particular bout of speech that Jaz seemed to suddenly become rather self conscious of how much she was speaking, a sheepish smile crossing her face for a brief second and her gaze finally dropping to her podium.

"I… apologise if I seem like I’m pushing too much. But even in what’s turning out to be a really bad situation for me - due to my hair, of all things, fucking incredible - I… I would still like to push for what I believe could be the right answer. I hope you understand that, at least.”

[shsl-doubttsuchi-blog]

and you don't know where to go || jaz || re: shin, susumu, suzume

As someone who usually loved (for lack of a word that sounded less positive towards this entire situation) involving herself in these class trials they were forced to go through for the sake of getting to the bottom of a case, it was almost painful for Jaz to keep biting her tongue like she had been doing for so long now. But it was just as she said: this entire trial she was likely to be speaking from between a rock and a hard place what with the damn chunk of hair, and so Jaz needed to be absolutely sure of her words and when to speak more than ever. Especially when she didn’t know a good deal of the people in this room still, and thus was completely unaware of how they might react to her.

(Or her screaming, should she let her temper run away from her again.)

(She’d never hated that side of her so much before now.)

The most Jaz contributed for a time was a simple nod of acknowledgement towards Aideen- alright, there was a small grateful smile in there too, but it left Jaz’s face just as quickly as it came and was thus pretty easily missed. Even by the intended recipient. Any words she had to offer came in short bursts and were few and far between; brief remarks or questions rather than anything more in depth like trials of the past.

“‘An act of symbolism’? What sort of symbol would involve that sort of thing? I’m not saying you’re wrong. I’m just curious.”

It was only after Jaz responded to Shin that she recognised him for who he was- or rather, the sort of person she’d pegged him to be already, given his introduction upon the two classes being combined. But of course she didn’t state any of that, simply looking at Shin for a little longer than was necessary after finishing her question. 

Jaz fell rather silent after that, only offering the odd string of words or actions rather than any more formed point as the discussion continued. A statement of “Be my guest” in Shion’s general direction, a hum of thought as she mentally went over Yori’s words. Small actions to show she was still engaged with the trial, but she didn’t quite dare step over the line into more involved words just yet. It was only when Kuma- no, Susumu spoke up that Jaz decided it would be an acceptable time for her to speak up in depth again, given that he wasn’t so focused on what had initially made things look oh so very bad for her. With a small cough the girl shifted her feet as she stood up straight once more and started speaking as though there was nothing awkward at all, no faltering in her speech whatsoever. 

(Keep pushing on.) 

“Kuma… shiro-san, ah, apologies, I’m still getting used to that- Kumashiro-san is right on that. This is something that admittedly makes me doubt my belief that the culprit has a high chance of coming from the other class. The note specifically refers to 'this floor’, which while out of context seeming a bit confusing, would make perfect sense when delivered to a room on that floor. At first I did consider the possibility that the note was delivered to someone else who happened to be on that floor at the time, so as to avoid speaking - the note writer did seem concerned about Monobear catching wind, after all - but then that wouldn’t quite lead up to someone walking into the trap. Not as much as what Kumashiro-san voiced, anyway, so I started to ignore that idea." 

Quickly realising that her words had high potential to tangle herself and thus others in knots Jaz swiftly cut them off, shaking her head to clear away the thoughts and move on. The heel of her shoe tapped against the ground in a quiet yet thoughtful sort of rhythm, easily drowned out by the volume she forced her voice to carry.

"I also considered that the victim was the one to set up the trap and initiate all this. Perhaps the victim intended to have the vending machine drop on the eventual culprit, or ambush them some other way we don’t know about. The potential gas ingredients, maybe. But rather than her plan working the invited party actually owned a gun - I know that knife was found on her person, but maybe she wanted a backup or couldn’t always keep the gun on her - or took it from the victim in a struggle perhaps, and. Well. I’m sure you can all guess how this sentence ends.”

She took a deep breath, closing her eyes for a moment. 

“…Whatever happened, though, all I’ve said eventually leads back to the invited party - and our potential culprit, with these theories - being a resident on the second floor. That said, I would like to consider crossing Tsuzuki-kun off Kumashiro-san’s list- she did, after all, trigger the body alarm. Which I’m guessing the killer can’t do.”

“…Actually, that’s a point, did anyone find the note numbered three? That’s been pissing me off this whole time. I want to say that the four shapes on the paper Nishida-san found relate to those numbers, and the numbers could have been the order they should have been mixed in for the plan. Maybe it was something like vinegar for a gassing or irritation plan that never came to fruition." 

[shsl-doubttsuchi-blog]

@ me next time || jaz || re: trial start

It was safe to say that the investigation had drained Jaz, but she hadn’t even been sprinting around today or screaming over her hands. No, it was more emotionally exhausting, the girl eventually fighting more with keeping herself in check rather than any evidence her and her team found among upset and worry and her own rapidly building panic response that just made her want to scream- 

At least the podium Kaori would have stood at wasn’t directly in her line of sight at all with this switcharound. Jaz had picked up quite enough unsettling feelings being next to Tobio’s gap. 

(So many morally questionable sensations of relief this week.)

Shion fired them all straight into it and it didn’t take long at all for Jaz to be shuffling even more uncomfortably in her shoes, though the way she was clearly gritting her teeth offset the more concerned action of holding the end of her braid. But Jaz hadn’t gotten anywhere by remaining a nervous scrap unwilling to go over the edge, and so Jaz would continue to blindly push herself through trouble, and in fact ever since she found out about that stupid fucking hair she had built up so much to just let rip- 

But first. 

“…Alright, Kuma… shiro-san. Whatever you prefer. Speaking of names. My podium probably says ‘Jasmine Hayes’, sadly, but I very much prefer Jaz. Super High School Level Electronic Musician. Good meeting you all, somewh- are you CRAZY?”

Unlucky Yui. You really drew the short straw with podium space right now. 

“You seriously think people would want to- no, should reveal their secrets or their cards? Maybe someone did kill for this motive but it’s a motive for a reason! It’ll affect multiple people! You want innocents to just start slinging their personal shit around-" 

Not the time. Not the place. Breathe.

With a muttered apology to the idol next to her Jaz ran her hands down her face as though to try physically wipe everything away and restart. No. She couldn’t do what she just did. In this trial, from what she had heard so far, she could not afford to let her own words run away and dig her into a hole. She had to be very clear. 

”…Alright. Now. I realise I’m going to probably be speaking from between a rock and a hard place this entire trial, given this-“ She gently flicked the end of her purple braid up with her hand. ”-But I think I still have an excuse to butt in. Ignoring the fact for now that there’s one other person with definitely purple hair here - before you all go slinging shit at me only - and if you’re going to decide to skip the idea of a plant, I think there’s still a possibility that the hair - should it be that - could have been coloured further, with both the markers and hair dye.Aideen-san confirmed to me that she once received hair dye from the Monomachine, as an example location, and our Monomachine at least has been throwing out personal items left right and centre. It’s not far fetched to assume more purple dye in there, given our original student body. Think about it. Right now there seems to only be one student with outright purple hair in each class, so if you really want to try pushing the blame onto someone, why not colour your hair a really distinctive colour- and then colour it further to make it look like they're framing someone or hiding it? There is also the possibility that the hair was light purple or another close lighter colour to start with and remained darker even when washed, but…“

Looks like someone else just joined the indirect accusation club. Jaz paused for a moment, before taking a deep breath and pulling herself up standing straight again.

"I want to jump to a different idea though. More a disagreement, actually. I think our culprit could be from Mizu. Perhaps the character on the ground does mean 'sky’- but what better way to throw suspicion off yourself then to throw it onto an entire other class? Especially if you didn’t meet anyone from it yet, or only a few people, in order to write a specific name? The victim’s hand had blood smeared on, that’s true, but there was enough blood around that place for the culprit to just smear her hand in afterwards in my opinion. To make it look like she wrote it, you know?”

With her first case made Jaz stepped back from the discussion for now with that, forcing herself to keep her gaze up and flicking around the filled out trial room rather than shrinking away like she might have done in the past.

God. 

[shsl-doubttsuchi-blog]

but the scenery is so loud || jaz || re: body, vending machine lifters

Jaz, probably like many if not the entity of the remaining students, had expected the announcement of yet another dead body.

What she hadn't expected was such an announcement at the time it ended up coming to them. 

It was a rare moment in that Jaz wasn’t blearily stumbling out of bed at a ridiculous time in the morning and racing to wake herself up for investigation, the girl having no need to rush at all this time around and only needing to take the equivalent of a short stroll. The fact that they were all heading for a crime scene in broad daylight carried a sick sense of novelty in comparison to the rather late or early times her class at least had been abruptly called to witness a body; a sense that only further twisted the knife in this whole situation. But in was only different in the sense of its timeframe- as many people would possibly dejectedly vouch for now, the sight of a corpse was sadly nothing new. 

(For a moment Jaz wondered if anyone envied the first victims in these places, having never having chance to learn of the true extent of their situation.)

(But then she remembered the implication that Jaejin at least had somehow been part of this before, dead, even. It really was just a loop of horror that became number and number until all of them were corpses or killers or both.)

Cheerful today.  

(It beat focusing on the twisted sense of what could only be relief at the fact that their secrets weren’t coming out soon. Yet another layer of personal difficulty, and one that didn’t bear mentioning. Though she… probably wasn’t the only one.)

Though she arrived quickly Jaz waited a little while before making it her turn to enter the small Ice Room that had become even further cluttered, wriggling her feet in her shoes to make sure they were definitely on and not about to expose her skin to anything awful on the floor - Lord knew she had had enough of that sort of thing last investigation, her hands curling into fists in her pocket just at the memory - before finally carefully stepping across the blood and water, closer to the body. 

Jaz had no idea who this girl had been, save for her name only just now provided. Now she certainly never would. 

But Jaz had never been one for apologies or blessings at a crime scene and there was no point in starting to make a habit of it now, the musician instead turning her attention to what she considered more practical, pressing, useful issues. 

“…There are probably others much better suited to the task, but… if you need another pair of hands for lifting, I’m here. Also. Didn’t Monobear imply someone found the body first? Who was that?”

That line of inquiry did, of course, have the potential to reveal absolutely nothing else of use. But it might be good to know. 

[shslelectronics-blog]

jaz's room is closed, but you can ask and see if she'll let you in as is the usual :0