~ ☆ ta dah! ☆ ~

Welcome one, welcome all! This is a closed roleplay blog for the super-cute, super-talented, Super High School Level Magician, Emi Matsuzawa! Currently unaffiliated. Formerly affiliated with Dangan Ronpa Descent Status: Alive and kicking!

[shslmagics]

[CHALLENGE 9] Double Or Nothing || OPEN

One for the money, two for the show. It's almost grotesquely fitting that the bodies she stumbled across were, indeed, bodies plural, and not a single one -- they are at a carnival, after all; the whole place is a show. At least, for EDO.

The announcement's over, and her fellow students will be arriving soon enough, she knows... but for the moment it's just her and Nagamasa's and Abel's corpses, the latter with his eyes wide open... it's like he's staring right at her, and she clasps her hands over her mouth to fight the bile rising in her throat.

She wills herself to move, but her legs are shaking, frozen in place. It's empathy central here lately, huh? First for Sachie... and now for how Jinsei had been back in the 'city', when he had found Tokaji's body. There's something profoundly different about being there alone... especially when she's outnumbered by them. Like she's the one that doesn't belong, not them -- like they might get up, zombie-style, and remedy that.

--No, no, snap out of it! Closing her eyes, Emi breathes deep from behind her hands, trying to calm her nerves and the shakes. Like all the times before, she reminds herself she's a magician. She's stronger than this! Death is nothing to her! ...At least, she can pretend it's nothing, for now.

Gathering her wits, she takes out her ID and opens up the EDOfile. So they both died less than an hour ago... shivering at the thought, she goes over to Abel's body, kneeling next to it. She's the first responder, here...! She has to do something! With shaking hands, she first checks his pockets, avoiding looking at his face. The next obvious spot... is the back of his head. The cause of death on the file was asphyxiation... so why is he bleeding? The fact that she's wearing gloves helps when she lifts the dead weight of his head to look... but she's trembling hard where she kneels, even as the mantra of 'keep cool, you can do this' plays over and over in her mind. Even with gloves... he's cold to the touch. A human shouldn't feel like that -- shouldn't ever feel like that. It's the worst magic trick possible.

[shslduelist]

back to battle city: part iii [reaction/open]

[♫]

At the sight of hir classmates’ families, Yamirou offered little to no response. As evidently high-scale as this operation was, what with its giant murderous hourglasses and arbitrary casinos, there was little surprise that a few family members could be abducted on the side. Really, if they themselves were still here against their will, it was only be expected that a few feeble accessories to their fame could also go missing without any great consequence. It was just a shock that this mysterious organisation’s evident kidnapping capabilities had not been used as leverage against them sooner.

This, of course, was a tactical opinion held with the utmost certainty that Hiroko Yuugiri herself had not been abducted. She was above and beyond this — and for better or worse, the world itself would clamour at her absence. Panic throes could be left to the peons whose families had not invested in a multimillion-Yen security budget.

An opinion held until Tonton’s famliy flashed across the screen, at least. That… was odd. Sie might have cracked a smile at the sight of his panic, had the fact not been equally worrying to hirself. Surely, anyone linked to a personage such as himself enjoyed the utmost protection — not quite as extensive as the Yuugiri family’s, naturally, but the sort of ironclad corporate defence whose seriousness Yamirou could attest to nonetheless. Even if Tonton’s parents themselves were not the executive titans, the whole affair held some worrying connotations.

And before sie could ruminate on the potential differences between Tonton’s family security and hir own, Hiroko Yuugiri herself flashed onto that damned screen. Hiroko Yuugiri, President of Yuugiri Kabushiki Kaisha and hir own mother. Hiroko Yuugiri and her two sisters, no less. This was not just impossible, but improbable, illogical, and insulting.

The company would continue to operate, of course, but deep within all three of their management styles had lurked the murky suspicion that their leadership was resented. And perhaps that was true — perhaps the moment they were gone, the company would be frantically divided amongst the underlings like a birthday cake at an otherwise disappointing party. None of this worried Yamirou nearly as much as the fact that the company could be touched. TuanTuan Electronics was one paltry prize that could be comfortably tucked under EDO’s belt, but YuugiCo? Never.

Unconsciously, and with the utmost irritation, Yamirou began to make hir way over to the EDOcoin game in the Arcade. It was only after a few seconds’ fruitless fumbling in hir pockets that sie recalled that sie had no money to speak of or gamble with; rather than do the sensible thing and drift away before anyone had noticed, Yamirou simply glared at the machine, as though a coin (even one of those accursed, mortifying mini-coins) might mysteriously summon itself from its depths.

[shslmagics]

Even through the shock at seeing the faces of Kotone and her parents... there had been some other faces on that screen that Emi could recognize right away. Or at least, one face -- Hiroko Yuugiri. Anybody who paid even the slightest bit of attention to the news wold know who she was. Her family and Kotone were one thing... although they were related to her, they were otherwise unremarkable; her father was a salaryman, her mother a stay at home wife. And Kotone... though remarkable in her own way, she was just an ordinary high school girl, not remarkable at all. As distressing as it is, she isn't surprised that they could fall into EDO's clutches.

Hiroko Yuugiri, though? That had to be nigh impossible -- and if it's unbelievable for her, she thinks with a start, it has to be even more bizarre for Yamirou. 

Emi wouldn't consider herself a particularly thoughtful person, and, true to form, that's not why she seeks out the duelist -- like the carousel she had been on earlier, her head's spinning round and round and it keeps coming back to that terrified face -- what she might do because of it. For now, what she wants is a distraction, and she finds it in the arcade.

Yamirou's apparantly having a staring contest with one of the EDOcoin games, and it provides a suitable opening. She quietly retrieves the card she received earlier from her pocket, holding it hidden in her palm as she moves into Yamirou's field of view, leaning against the machine and looking up at hir.

"--Out of coins, Yuugiri-san?" she asks, stating the obvious in as cheerful a tone as she can muster, with as cheerful a face to match. She manages it, just about. Hopefully Yamirou won't see fit to ask about her kidnapped persons of interest -- the other reason she selected Yamirou of all people is because she has the feeling sie won't care. "If you're looking for any extra stuff out of the machine, I got something I feel like you might like!"

With a flick of her wrist and a flourish, she makes the card 'appear' from her hand, the back side pointing towards Yamirou and concealing the actual name of the card from hir view. She holds it out, offering it to hir.

"I don't really know anything about Oh-Gi-Yu, so I don't know if it's any good or not. So even if you're out of coins, it's kinda like a gamble if you think about it!"

[shslmagics]

[Challenge 8] Assistant's Revenge || OPEN

If there's anything Emi can count on herself to do, it's put on a brave face in situations that seem perilous. Her assistant has a gun pointed at her? No problem -- she knows that it'll fire a blank, and she'll exchange it with the bullet on her person in an instant, seemingly catching it between her teeth. A Table of Death with spikes hanging ominously over her head is no problem. In those situations, she's in control. The illusion of peril is her specialty -- her forté.

When the situation is hopelessly out of her hands, she can't put on that brave face. Standing in the luck and skill games section, all she can do is look up at the shifting screen with fear rising in her heart -- a heart that sinks into her stomach when she sees the three faces on the screen. Her parents, of course, and that would have been bad enough, but the girl beside them-- tied up and terrified with a gun at her head -- that girl is--

"...Kotone-chan..."

Within moments the screen flickers and Kotone's face vanishes, replaced by that of another, somebody near and dear to somebody in this place. Those terrified eyes, though, remain burned into her brain...as well as the price. Kill somebody and she'll be safe. Kill somebody and they'll all be safe.

...She understands, suddenly, how Sachie must have felt. But... is that really something she can do? Is that really... a risk she's willing to take? The carousel looms in the back of her mind... and suddenly, overwhelmingly, she has to know. Emi rushes up through the rooms towards the food court, ending up in front of the horrible machine itself. 

As she steps towards it and climbs on to the edge, she turns around to notice she's got company in the room before the carousel loops around. Unwilling to get off now she's on, she waits until the carousel loops around to face them to actually address them.

"What are you--" -- loop -- "-- looking at?" Another loop. "Mind your own--" and again-- "...business!"

[shslmagics]

[Challenge 7] A Spoonful of Sugar || Nagamasa

[shslpirate]

Most of he people here, in fact, didn’t know much about Nagamasa. For the most part, that was intentional, of course. He went over toward Emi and handed her a fistful of the scraps of paper. They would be lingering on his person for a while, wouldn’t they. Days from now he’d shake out his coat and still find little stars coming out of it. What a pain in the ass.

"Nah, they ain’t really my style, huh?" he agreed, "Neither’s this sword, really." Making sure not to point it at her, he unsheathed blade and looked it over. "No blade on it or anything, that’s boring. Guess it’s just for practice, huh?"

He put that away again. Maybe Ginchiyo would have a use for it. Or maybe he’d just hold onto it in case anything came up.

He turned back to the magician. “My sailin’? It’s a bunch o’ things, really. On the one hand, I got the sporty sailboat racing; that’s fun, ‘n it pays well if ya win. I also used to run somethin’ of a business ferryin’ people and cargo from the mainland to the islands ‘round my city ‘n back again.”

He paused. “Those’re the things Hope’s Peak was interested in, though. They ain’t actually that interestin’. Really, I just like sailing ‘n bein’ out on the water. I visit China ‘n Korea a lot, just for the hell of it.”

"The really good stories come outta those trips across the sea. That’s where ya meet people, ‘n get into trouble, ‘n cool things like that." He could elaborate, if she asked, maybe tell a story or two.

"Why, what about you? All I know ‘bout bein’ a magician is gettin’ up on stage once in a while ‘n pullin’ furry li’l critters outta strange hats."

[shslmagics]

Oh, a practice sword? Well, that's slightly less exciting! Still more useful than the paper stars, though, even if they are cute. She tucks all but one away out of sight, holding it up to the glare of an arcade machine to get a better look at it as Nagamasa speaks, although she does look back at him from time to time. 

Stories... though she's not usually overly interested in other people and their exploits -- preferring to talk about her own at every given opportunity -- she makes an exception for other interesting people. And Nagamasa certainly fits the bill!

"Who, me? Oh, there's a lot of pulling furry critters out of hats, that's true! But there's all kinds of disciplines of magic, y'know? There's escape artistry, mentalism, street magic, table magic -- all sorts! My specialty's big, exciting stage magic, but I can do allll the other stuff, too! I wouldn't be very Super High School Level if I couldn't, right?"

"But hey, I'm a performer, not a talker! If you wanna see what I do some time, I'll give you a show -- charitably free of charge, of course! Well, free except for a story or two. I'm dying for some entertainment that doesn't come from that stupid robot."

She focuses her attention fully on Nagamasa again, absently but dextrously passing the paper star between the fingers of one hand as she does so -- it's an idle motion to keep her hands occupied, and not showing off at all, no sir. Okay, maybe a little, but it's mostly just idle, honest!

"Tell me a tale of high adventure, then, Kitaura-kun! Or at least something exciting -- the metaphorical floor is yours!"

[shslmagics]

[Challenge 7] A Spoonful of Sugar || Nagamasa

[shslpirate]

"Matter o’ fact, I am here for the machine,” Nagamasa said to Emi as he entered the room, his heels scuffing on the floor and his hands in his pockets. It was true! He had gotten two coins after the trial, and he intended to use them. There was a third still stashed in his room that he would deal with later. Or not. Can you really blame a pirate for wanting to hold onto coins?

Humming some merry little tune to himself, he stuck the two coins in the machine and waited for items to come out.

"A bunch o’ paper stars," he said. Oh fuck, they were spilling everywhere. Thanks, EDOmachine. He got the majority of them gathered into his hands just in time for a loud clonk. He dumped the stars into his pocket and pulled out-

"Shit, that’s a sword." He was keeping that. "Eh, whaddaya think?" he then asked, hooking the scabbard to his belt, "Want some li’l paper bits?"

[shslmagics]

Ah, now there's a voice she would recognize anywhere. Nagamasa Kitaura, resident pirate of the group of imprisoned students. Another one she's not sure what to think of -- on the one hand, he was far less interested in becoming her assistant back when they were still in the school area than she would have liked. But on the other... he was one of the people in the last trial who actually spoke sense! Emi gets the feeling it's more out of simple pragmatism than any particular affection towards Sachie -- but that isn't necessarily a bad thing. 

With interest, she turns away from the arcade machine and moves over to Nagamasa's side, watching him put in two coins (how come he got more than one? Unfair!) one after the other. 

The first thing to come out is a flurry of little paper stars, and Nagamasa looks so perplexed by the fact they're going all over the place that Emi can't help but giggle, making no attempt to help him gather them up. Her laughter ceases abruptly, though, when he pulls out the second item.

"...That is a sword. Sheesh! Some people have all the luck!"  The stars are a paltry consolation prize in comparison, but... they're kind of cute, and she can probably make a trick out of them. Ah, what the hell.

"I'll take some, sure!" she declares, holding out her hands for Nagamasa to deposit the stars in. "They don't really suit you, anyway -- you look way better with a sword than trying to pick up a bunch of little pieces of paper! What with the whole pirate thing, and all."

A thought comes to her, and she peers up at Nagamasa after a moment, thoughtfully.

"--Come to think of it, what is it you actually do, Kitaura-kun? The little ID thing EDO gave us says you're a sailor, but is it like a sporty competition thing or a round-the-world-in-80-days kind of thing? Enlighten me a little! I mean, I don't really know anything about you, you know? I'll feel sort of bad about that if you end up..."

She trails off, inclining her head back and forth to indicate a word she doesn't quite want to say -- 'Dead'. "...You get what I mean, right?"

[shslmagics]

[Challenge 7] A Spoonful of Sugar || Emi&Jinsei

[jinseiyuuhara-blog]

It’s a big joke.  A sick joke, not that that surprises him.  It’s a matter of public record by this point that, whoever their captor is, they’re got a pretty poor sense of humour, so in fact he’s less shocked than just… disappointed, bone deep.  Room after room, it’s the same story.  There’s nothing for him here but flashes of Tokaji’s dead body, slumped against glass; Sachie’s tear-stained face as she rides the carousel.  It just makes him feel dirty all over again, even after his much-needed shower.

His automatic first stop is due north, where food lives - but as painful as the stomach cramps are, the overwhelming smell of grease and the blood coating the carousel, combined, would surely be enough to destroy any appetite, however powerful.

He can put it off a little longer, Jinsei tells himself, rubbing sleep out of his eyes as he turns away.  Fuck it.  He still has an EDOcoin to spend, after all.  Quite how these things keep ending up in his pockets, he isn’t sure, but if they continue to churn out sweet loot then it’s not like he minds.  Not that that last offering could really be considered sweet loot… maybe this time he’ll have better luck.

It’s dead quiet in the arcade apart from the plinking and bleeping of the machines, to the point that, until he has the ties and is starting to further investigate, he doesn’t even notice anyone else is there.  He knows that voice well, and the horrible knot that rises in his throat is familiar too - anxiety and relief and terrible sadness, all for her.  Not pity… but damn close.  Is he ready to face Emi?  Is he prepared for the possibility of having to to actually comfort her?

Jinsei swallows, looks down at the bows in his hand, and makes a snap decision.  He follows her voice through the maze of games, bright splashes of colour washing over his face, and comes up behind her.  It doesn’t even occur to him that this might be a poor way to approach someone, given the circumstances.

"Hey, hold still a sec, Emi-chan."

He can see her reflected in the screen she’s facing easily - he’s a good head taller than her, after all - and uses it as a mirror, unclipping her huge prop bow and passing it over her shoulder to her.  Jinsei separates her hair in to two thick bunches and ties them off, stony-faced as he works.

After a little fussing and faffing around - rotating the bows so they’re best visible, evening up the split between the bunches - he’s apparently satisfied, and steps back to admire her.  Admire her?  Is that the right term?

"… you can keep ‘em, if you like ‘em."  Suddenly becoming aware of how serious he looks in the reflection, he smiles, sheepish.  

"Not like I’m gonna do anything with ‘em, right?"

[shslmagics]

Whoever her mystery guest is, she doesn't get a response immediately... which, if she's being honest, puts her on edge. As she hears footsteps approach, she glances over her shoulder, more than a little nervous, and--

"Oh, Jinsei-kun." The tension fades from her shoulders as she sees who it is, surprisingly enough. Jinsei is... she doesn't even know if she likes Jinsei -- he's certainly not the type of person she would ordinarily choose to hang around. But she's reasonably certain that she can, at least, trust Jinsei -- and since four of them are already dead, she'll take what she can get. Still, she doesn't really feel like talking much right now, and turns back to face the arcade machine--

'Hold still a sec'?

Before she really has the time to properly react, he's taken out her massive bow, and-- is he touching her hair? What the hell? She takes it all back about trust -- he was creepy all along! She's too worried about damaging her hair to pull away from him completely, but she does wiggle back and forth and try to turn to see what he's doing in a defiance of his request for her not to move. 

"Hey, what do you think you're doing?! You can't just mess around with a girl's hair without permission, it's a sin, a sin! Stop touching it, let me--"

"...Go?"

As he finishes and pulls back, she actually starts paying attention to her reflection in the glare of the arcade screen. Apparantly all that fussing was... to put ribbon-shaped hair ties in? He must have gotten them from the EDOmachine -- and if she's being honest, they really are cute. ...Still, there are better ways to give a present to a girl. Sheesh!

"--You could have just handed them to me, you know! You don't need to make a big production out of it!"

Entirely ignorant of the incredible irony that just came out of her mouth, she turns to face Jinsei properly, this time with a smile.

"...Still, I do like them. So, I'll accept your offering! I'd give you something, but all I have from the machine is a suitcase and... I think it's an Oh-Gi-Yu card? Green eyes grey something something. Probably nothing special!" 

She chooses to avoid mentioning the pill. But after seeing the label on it... she wouldn't feel right not letting him know about it, at least indirectly, after he's given her a gift, and all. Damn the human conscience! "By the way, you see that weird little peg game over there? It's a real doozy, but I finished it in... about forty five minutes, I guess? Real skill, right there! I wouldn't blame you if you couldn't beat it in that time, but... you should try it if you have some time to kill!"

[shslmagics]

[Challenge 7] A Spoonful of Sugar || OPEN

"...Huh?"

Emi stares down at her prize, an expression of extreme discontent painted all over her face. As of this morning, the water is back on and the area's shifted again -- gone are the city streets, replaced by a grim mockery of a carnival. The fact that she's been able to drink, shower, and stuff her face with churros in the food court until she was nearly sick makes up for the cruel irony some, but the red splatter on the carousel meant the greasy carnival fare went down even harder than it should have.

After her usual exploratory loop, the magician found herself lingering in the arcade -- that's where the EDOmachine is, after all, having spat out the card that's currently stashed safely in one of her pockets. More to the point, though, the strange little peg game caught her attention far more than any of the arcade machines. Quite by accident, she ended up frittering away a large amount of time there, popping pegs here and there, determined to win -- until she finally did, and the game spat out the small bottle she now holds in her hand.

"...'Important'? What's that supposed to mean?" Frowning, she gives the bottle a rattle -- and the sound makes her open it up and tip the contents out into her hand. One, single, lousy pill. What the hell? What a crappy prize!

...Still... knowing the way things work here, it might be -- well, important, as the label on the front says. So, she replaces it in the bottle and stows it on her person, safe from prying eyes.

At a loss for what to do next and with no leads for any sort of 'stop-killing-us-you-fricking-frick' investigation against their robotic overlord, she decides to try her hand at some of the arcade games. Blood and guts were never her style when it comes to games, especially now they hit pretty close to home -- but she has her eye on some of the things behind the ticket counter, so she can bear it just this once. As she approaches a machine, though,  she spots someone else entering the room, out of the corner of her eye.

"Are you here to use the EDOmachine?" Emi asks, not looking at the intruder as she examines the machine she's chosen. Doesn't look like they take EDOcoins -- good thing, since she doesn't have any left. "Show me what you get, okay? If you get something you don't like, maybe we can trade!" Her voice is chipper enough, but it sounds a little forced -- the events of yesterday, the ironic surroundings  and the too-fried food sitting heavy in her stomach have worn her down noticeably, if only just.

[shslmagics]

Better Late Than Never || [REACTION]

It would have been okay, probably, if EDO had made good on its promise immediately.

By the time the trial wraps up, it's late -- their artificial city is dark and gloomy, like the atmosphere hanging over them all. Much like before, Emi returns straight to her room, letting the door click shut behind her as she leans against it, replaying the trial in her head.

Sachie had killed Tokaji. When the possibility arose, she hadn't felt anything -- when the truth arose, she hadn't felt anything but... the best way to describe it was that it was like being winded. Like being eight again and taking a nasty fall from a climbing frame and having all the breath knocked out of her -- learning the truth was like that.

They weren't particularly close. But they were similar, more similar than Sachie even knew -- friends. Fellow idols. With similar problems, she suspects.

She thinks of Sachie's mysterious Masayo, of how she meant enough to Sachie that she wrote a note from her to persuade her to commit murder, and she thinks of her own Kotone, thankfully somewhere not in a robot-controlled death jail, as she leans off the door and pulls her hair down from its bun, falling limply around her shoulders.  

She thinks of how warm Sachie's cheek was under her lips as she enters her bathroom, how devoid of colour they looked even underneath the blaring carousel lights as the blade inched closer and closer to her neck. She thinks--

She stops thinking, for a moment, to turn the handle on the faucet in her bathroom sink -- and it runs dry.

"...What the hell?!"

She turns the handle harder, more violently. It squeaks under her hands, echoing around the tiled room, but still no water. She tries the shower, the bath -- and no dice. The pipes are still quiet, and it hits her quite suddenly that even after days of no showers and rationing what little water she could scrape up -- EDO is making them wait.

She thinks of how Sachie would probably still be alive if it wasn't for EDO. She thinks of how none of them would be here if it wasn't for EDO. The mocking, robotic lilt blaming them for killing each other when it forced their hands. Keeping her here when she could be, should be, deserves to be anywhere but! EDO, EDO, EDO -- all of it is EDO.

The rush of anger brings all her emotions back with it, and before she knows it she's sunk to her knees in front of the shower-bath, crying her heart out for the loss of a friend, for the injustice of being put through this, of EDO, of everything.

It isn't fair. Things like this shouldn't happen -- not to her. 

Emi stays there for who knows how long before she trails back through to the bedroom, still sniffling, and somehow manages to summon the energy to change into pyjamas and lie down. The dirt and grime of the last few days still feels heavy on her skin and in her hair, and it makes it almost impossible to sleep -- almost.

At some point, she drifts off, the carousel music still ringing in her ears.

[drdescent]

[EXECUTION] Round and Round

Although the courtroom is understandably chaotic, it fades to silence after a collar clicks around Sachie’s neck. She gives you all one last terrified look before she’s pulled back into the darkness.

When you can see Sachie again, she’s seated atop a carousel horse. It’s rusted, and old, and looks like something straight out of a horror movie. The theme park worker looks petrified, and you notice tears in her eyes. Her arms are bound to her sides, rendering her helpless.

Read More

[shslmagics]

5!!! and 9 if you feel like it bc i'm going to go on a date with her

(( 5 for now i'll do 9 Later B) ))

(( stay thematic emi ))

[shslmagics]

16 !!

(( behold the most temperature sensitive baby on the planet. she's got like 3 pairs of tights on underneath those socks ))

[sephiramy]

The Character Wardrobe Meme

Send a number to my ask box along with a character of your choice, and I’ll draw up the ensuing ensemble! (If the character chosen wouldn’t wear the option given… go ahead and sub in something else!)

DRAW YOUR CHARACTER WEARING…

Underwear

Casual clothes

Work uniform

Night clothes

Swimwear

Formal gala garb

Lounging, lazy-time stuff

A party outfit

Date night threads

Something outdoorsy

Interview outfit

Tourist/travel wear

A costume!

Their sick day scrubs

Summer clothes

Winter clothes

Um, spring clothes?

Why not - fall clothes!

Workout wear

Last minute throw-ons

The most expensive thing they own

A fig leaf

Feel free to add, subtract, or alter as you please to fit your character bunch!

[jinseiyuuhara-blog]

TASK 6: Lost For Words [Jinsei&Emi&Michiru]

It’s like the earth opens beneath him - and it’s so much worse than the first time, because this time he is alone, no classmates around him that he can put between himself and the body.  The world before him narrows down to a tiny point, and all he can see is Tokaji - Tokaji’s body.  There’s no point rushing to his side, or trying to help him.  He’s dead, the announcement has gone out.

There is no coming back from this.

His legs crumple under him, his breaths come fast and harsh as he grabs blindly for the water bottle.  The air is choking him - water - he needs the water, but he can’t take his eyes off the dead man in front of him.  Despair is a dark, yawning chasm he can feel himself teetering on the edge of, and it’s nothing he’ll ever be able to climb out of again, if he falls.

Tokaji… he’d barely known the dude, hadn’t bothered getting to know him - who’d want to be friends with the goddamn Chuunibyou Bomber?!  But there’d always been something tough about him.  He was the last person Jinsei had expected to die.  If someone in here could kill him...

How could he have been so stupid?  How could he have let himself believe for even one second that no one would kill again, that surely EDO would have to be merciful eventually?  He thinks back to how cynical he was that first day with Emi, how she’d chided him for not even trying.  But he had been right then… and wrong now, so wrong.

What an idiot.  Stupid, useless idiot!

And still he cannot eke out a single sound.  Pathetic.  Anyone normal would scream or… or cry, or something…  Through sheer force of will he presses his hands hard against his eyes and just sits there, motionless - heart pounding in his ears, stomach flopping like a dying fish - afraid that if he moves he’ll be sick, or start to hyperventilate, or something else totally fucking useless!

Don’t look, just don’t look. Think about anything else. Someone will be here soon…

He prays he’s right, this time.

[shslmagics]

Her off-hand remark to Yamirou during their game a few days ago had been prophetic, it seemed -- and this time, it doesn't come as a surprise. When the motive was announced... there was no enthusiastic denial, this time. This wasn't a flimsy dream-come-true you couldn't even be sure was real. This was no food, no water, no nothing -- kill or be killed, duh! It was only a matter of time. 

The victim, though... when she hurries into the hip-hop studio -- her hair tucked up in a tight bun to hide the 'I haven't been able to take a shower for days' look -- the victim is a shock. Tokaji Uzaki, Chuunibyou-kun himself, Super High School Level Counter-Terrorist. He was tall, strong -- a tough, bad-boy type, some of the first things Emi had noticed about him when they came into this place. And-- he's dead. Someone killed him -- overpowered someone like that. How was that even possiible?!

From the looks of things when she arrives, Jinsei of all people was the one to find him. While the sight of a corpse is, as before, jarring... she was prepared for it, this time. She believes it's not a trick. And so she doesn't turn and flee, doesn't need to be alone, this time. But while she's coping better, this time... Jinsei looks like he's breaking down. It's unsettling -- eerie, even, and it's creeping her out. So it has to stop!

"...Jinsei-kun? Hey, Jinsei-kun!"

Emi gets to her knees beside him -- he's making her scuff her socks again, on top of there being a murder! -- and shakes his shoulder, gently, at first. But as she doesn't get a reaction, the motion gets more violent, and her expression more distressed.

"H-hey, snap out of it! You're really weirding me out, and you're not gonna be any use investigating like this, you know! You don't want to know what that creepy Wheel of Misfortune thing is if we get it wrong, right?! So we have to find clues! Personally! And that means you have to get--" a shake, "up--" a tug, "--already!"

[shslduelist]

back to battle city: part ii [reaction/open]

[shslduelist]

Sie turned slowly, fixing hir gaze upon the magician. Not just an interruption, but a request. The half of Yamirou that had just witnessed the death of two teenagers and was mostly keen on a moment’s peace was ready to turn heel and leave, but the half of Yamirou that craved competition… did exactly that. No bets were necessary as to which part of Yamirou would win out, else sie might have metaphorically fallen off the duelling circuit a long time ago. Non-deadly competition had arrived in the form of a person sie could almost tolerate, and sie would be damned if sie wasn’t going to take advantage of that opportunity.

And so, Yamirou stared down at Emi with a look falling somewhere between disdain and genuine consideration — as though debating whether or not to pick up and eat a piece of food sie had just dropped on the ground. (Not that genuine consideration had ever factored itself into that particular scenario, but to a bystander, the simile held.) After a moment, hir expression shifted inscrutably, and sie gestured towards the seat opposite hir.

As Emi had said, perhaps a magician would serve a momentary challenge, if only for the fact that one could probably cheat if they set their mind to it. Whether or not she chose to would be the closest thing to a test of character here without involving murder. Not looking anything but pleased at hir own magnanimity, sie swept the cards on the table to one side and began to shuffle two decks together anew.

"Money? Would that we were so trusted by our captors," Yamirou shook hir head, looking remarkably less aggrieved by the situation than hir words might have implied. After all, money itself had never been the issue or the goal when it came to hir own competitive exploits; if anything, an excess thereof had been an obstacle to being famous for anything else. In hir mind, this was a fact to be lamented and not appreciated. "I suppose we’ll have to play for our pride. Which, to be frank, gives us different sums to bet with, but what can one do."

Rather than elaborate on this enigmatic insult, Yamirou then fell silent and began to deal the cards between them. Two to each, face-down but for one of hir own cards. The seven of hearts. It was only after the game was formally set up that Yamirou deigned to introduce it, although any famous magician worth her salt hardly required a condescending introduction at this point. Fortunately, the fear of being too condescending was least among Yamirou’s concerns.

"The game is blackjack," sie raised an eyebrow, then finally seated hirself opposite Emi. Posture rigid, sie stared across the table with a new energy, some form of focus, if not excitement, entering hir body language at the prospect of a game. "Pitch. Not my game of choice, of course, but you know what they say about trying to be a chooser in a… disadvantaged situation.  As you can see, I will be the dealer.” For a moment, sie paused, as though allowing some phrase or sentiment to filter through correctly. Something resembling a smile threatened to cross hir face, though there was something a little alarming about its determination. "As befits a sorcerer, your bravery is impressive — but bravado without skill means nothing. Now… show me what you are capable of."

[shslmagics]

Her smile brightens at the non-verbal acceptance of her offer, and Emi moves towards the indicated seat, unfastening her cape from around her shoulders to drape it over the back before sitting down. She sets her elbows on the table, lacing her fingers together and resting her chin on them in turn as she looks between Yamirou and the cards being dealt onto the table. Pitch blackjack? Well, that should be fine! But...

...Somehow, the comment about playing for pride rubs her the wrong way -- what did Yamirou mean by 'different sums to work with', anyway?! Sure, she had been strongly considering cheating when she made the offer, under the impression that they were going to play to win -- it's something she's more than capable of, after all, and no stranger to, to boot. But if they're playing for pride? Cheating would be unacceptable in that situation -- if only because, if caught, that would make her the loser by default... both in a game sense and a moral sense.

"You, too, Yuugiri-san. Let's start the battle, then!"

She takes her cards in one hand, then, turning them towards herself with an easy, practiced motion. The two of diamonds and the king of spades... the decision is an easy one, although she keeps her face carefully blank. She scratches the table towards herself with her cards.

"Say, Yuugiri-san -- I know some people aren't huge talkers during games like this, but I'm kinda curious -- it got me thinking, since we're playing a game that involves chance, and all. What do you think of what happened with Satou-san and Velez-kun?"

She pauses upon receipt of another card. it turns out to be the nine of clubs, and she grins widely, placing the cards back down on the table in the appropriate manner and pushing them towards Yamirou. 

"There!"

"But I mean -- it feels kind of like it's over, you know? We're not even in the same place any more! But if someone like Velez-kun could straight up murder someone, then what's stopping someone else, you know? I mean, I could be sitting playing blackjack with a future killer! ...No offense, or anything, but you never know, right?"

[shslemt-blog]

Haha laziness

[shslduelist]

back to battle city: part ii [reaction/open]

[♫]

Both company politics and tournament politics were renowned to be trying (and where victory was concerned, Yamirou had tried both of these back with great abandon), but sie had never expected classroom politics to be quite this absurd. At most, perhaps, a few petty arguments about talents and their relative worth in the ranks well below hir.

Instead: two teenagers had died, their homicidal-by-proxy television principal had taken liberties with the term ‘cruel and unusual’ for the punishment of the second, they had been transported without warning to another equally vexing circular floor, and now… a nightclub.

Needless to say, Yamirou did not enter the nightclub. There was only one place worth hir time on this entire glorified Cluedo board, and that was the place where sie could find a small piece of victory without actually having to kill a person for it. The paint shop, though sie could not quite profess to knowing what it entailed, seemed too nominally undignified to even pass through. Through the record store sie went, then, and towards the two casino rooms that awaited.

The furthest, unfortunately, housed little more than a few meagre slot machines. There was no immediate guarantee that sie would be receiving hir money’s worth or more if sie consigned hir single EDOcoin to one of the more generic machines — and was there truly much dignity in pissing away one’s only coin in the hope of more, when all this game came down to was sheer luck? No, Yamirou declared internally, there was not — and then proceeded to piss away hir coin in the slightly more elaborate-looking machine.

A love letter. Well, that was entirely useless. If hir fans wanted to profess their eternal admiration, they would have to enclose at least three rare cards… and that was just for the privilege of Yamirou reading the first line of their tripe. Unreasonably irked by how events had progressed, the game’s reliance on sheer luck notwithstanding, sie doubled back into the previous room.

Opulent, quiet, and fully outfitted with non-deadly games; this room, sie decided, was acceptable. Though hir own game of choice was markedly absent, this didn’t surprise Yamirou overmuch, nor did it truly displease hir. The Oh-Gi-Yu Trading Card Game, while the ideal, was also impossible to play on one’s own at the moment. If sie had been able to duel hirself, sie could have done so with hir own materials by now. These slightly lesser pursuits — which Yamirou had, of course, been equally invested in many moons ago — would have to make do.

With that, Yamirou took up two of the fresh (woefully sans wyverns) decks and began to set up a game of solitaire in the Picture Patience format. Seated in this generally agreeable room with the promise of a tactical headache soon to come, it was, well… still difficult to forget that they were here to murder each other, but small solaces would have to suffice for the moment.

[shslmagics]

Arguably, besides the city streets themselves, the area where Emi felt most at home was the casino -- it reminds her of her shows in Las Vegas, with some of the fanciest effects, the most exciting tricks, and the biggest crowds and biggest round of applause she's raked in in recent memory. Sure, America doesn't go for the idol thing as much as Japan... but they can appreciate a good show with a lot of flash-bang-boom better than anyone else in the world, that's for sure. Besides, the glamour and shine of the machines, the plush feeling of the carpet under her feet... even if it's a facade, the whole area expensive and exclusive. She fits right in.

...Speaking of expensive and exclusive, it seems like she has company, here! She spends a few moments contemplating giving the EDOmachine a shakedown to see if it'll give her any more coins or gifts, but after remembering the overly-complicated diorama-death of the previous night, she decides against it. Better not incite the wrath of the robotic overlord. The sound of shuffling cards attracts her attention instead; intrigued, she makes her way through to the other room, and--

"Oh, Yuugiri-san!"

The prodigal child of YuugiCo hirself! They had spoken briefly on the first day, before being interrupted by EDO -- but the brief conversation had been all it took for Emi to know she liked hir. Sie had called her a Dusk Sorcerer... 'an art to be feared and admired'. And, perhaps most importantly -- 'I know you'. 

That was the most important thing, after all! And, of course, she knows of Yamirou -- maybe not for hir abilities in the dueling arena, but definitely for hir family. And now for hir ability to shuffle cards! It's about as good as her own, almost. 

"Are you playing a card game?" she asks, strutting over and peering over the table. "You're setting up for Solitaire, right? Isn't that a little dull for a casino? You should play high-stakes games in places like these! Or at least something against somebody! Then again, I guess there's nobody else around, huh...?"

An idea strikes her, and she looks up at Yamirou -- though sie's a full foot taller (and then a little more) than she, she doesn't seem intimidated by hir height at all -- in fact, her look can only be described as challenging.

"How about taking me on as your opponent, huh? Any magician has to be familiar with a deck of cards -- I bet I could give you a run for your money!"

[namigaeshi-deactivated20140831]

[Free time] Paint your heart out || Matsuzawa-kun

After having spent some free time away from the rest of the group to mull over their situation, the iaidoka emerged from her room and graced everyone with her presence once more. Or, at least, she would have, if there was anyone around.

The tragedy that struck Yuina, the happenings that occurred during the trial, and Jorge’s very elaborate execution were things that’d scar Ginchiyo for life. She herself played a part in the late diorama maker’s demise, and she felt single-handedly guilty for what happened to him. But at the same time, she couldn’t forgive him. No one had the right to take another’s life.

In order to take her mind off thing, Ginchiyo decided to visit some rooms that she had expected to remain the same, but she found herself shocked when she learned that everything was… completely different. Checking the maps resulted in her scrunching up her face. Why did none of these places suit her?

Full of curiosity, Ginchiyo visited one of the casino rooms, with much hesitance, and instantly took notice of the large, flashy machine. It seemed to only accept specific coins; which she only had one of, thanks to… their former friends’ sacrifices. She had cashed in her only coin and received a bottle of perfume with a stench most unfamiliar to her. She strangely felt attached to it, somehow.

She quickly left the casinos and reluctantly checked the maps again. Having to use technology for almost everything here was proving to be tasking; had her ignorance run its course? Of course not, she just needed a helping hand to navigate.

Having visited the last floor’s art room, Ginchiyo expected the paint shop on this new map to be the exact same. Upon entering the room, her theory was proven incorrect but that didn’t deter her surprisingly. Perfume bottle in hand, she inspected the room with wide eyes, having not seen anything like this before. She sauntered over to the spray cans and took one, spraying it and her face filling with shock and interest when she sprayed it.

Suddenly interested, she bundles a dozen cans in her arms and instinctively moves to the graffiti room. With a sudden overwhelming need to express herself, she took any random can and sprayed whatever came to mind; flowers, kanji and even a little portrait of herself. Her artistic licence would be put to good use here, and she found herself having fun. She was so engrossed in her spray painting activities, that she didn’t hear someone enter the room.

[shslmagics]

After the godawful skateboarding debacle, Emi decided that trying her hand at something a little less new and hazardous would probably be a better idea. The issue is... what? The entire reason she had ended up on the ramp in the first place is because nothing here is particularly relevant to her interests -- which means, of course, she's going to have to experiment. 

Well, if you're going to be trapped in a place that can change its entire setting at the drop of the hat, you might as well try to branch out a little! With that train of thought, she ends up in the paint room, gathering a pile of cans and brushes and bottles of spray paint into her arms. The idea of a 'graffiti room' was intriguing -- graffiti was kind of performance art, right? The whole media storm over Mike TV not too long ago, for instance -- besides, it sounds kind of fun! Living a life touring from show to show doesn't leave you too much to walk on the wild side... and while it's not really walking on the wild side if you're doing it in a room sanctioned for that very purpose, it counts enough to hold her attention.

Upon entering the room, however, the magician discovers she's not alone! The beautiful, traditional-looking girl who had yanked up Jorge's shirt at the trial was present, spray painting various designs onto the blank white wall --  it's so incongruent with her appearance that Emi actually drops her armful of supplies while she isn't paying attention, the pile overbalancing and dropping onto the floor. A can of blue paint pops open, spilling out over the black surface. Oops.

"...Whoopsie!" 

Abandoning the can and its fallen brethren, she steps through the puddle of paint like it doesn't mean anything, leaving blue footprints across the asphalt.

"You're....Nobuga-- no, Nobunaga-san, right? I remember seeing your name when I was going through everyone on the ID cards we got --  even if you hadn't stood out so much at the trial, you're really pretty! So I'm not surprised I remembered, ehehe!"

"I don't think we've really talked one on one before! I'm Matsuzawa Emi. The famous magician, you know? I'm usually more graceful than that, I promise! I guess getting paint everywhere isn't a great first impression."

Looking away from Ginchiyo, she casts her eyes over the spray-painted white expanse. "Still, I'm kinda surprised at you, too! It's really rare to see girls dressing so traditionally these days, but I've never seen one so good with a spray can! Is graffiti your secret hobby, or something?"