He gave a slight nod as she spoke, almost certain that whatever came out of her mouth next, heâd agree with it solely based on her enthusiasm. But he did have a feeling they were imagining the same thingâŠ
âYesâexactly! A pool party!â
Maguro echoed her words with unparalleled enthusiasm, thoughts about the impending pool party (that he was absolutely going to make a reality now) racing through his mind. Many of their classmates were most likely still contemplating the events of the trial, and by extension the dubious fate of their assorted loved onesâthere was nothing better that immediately came to mind than a pool party.
âAh!!â A sudden moment of realization dawned on him, and he became a bit more frantic, ââŠDo yâthink the bear would let us have our own party, without tryinâ to ruin it?!â
When Maguro echoed her declaration, Eri quite literally grinned from ear to ear; it was much more relieving to see him like this. The first time sheâd properly spoken to the lifeguard, it had been in the wake of a life lost, and sheâd taken him for the brooding type. Now, she realised, it was just that this whole set-up had been getting to him â and given that it was getting old even to her by this point, Eri couldnât blame him.
âEhh, youâre still worried about the bear?â Eri tilted her head in response to Maguroâs question, looking mostly unruffled by the extremely valid concern heâd raised. âDonât you think theyâre just kind of a chuunibyou? Kyahaha, donât get me wrong! I still canât wait to analyse their specs, and the special effects when they âspearedâ Dorian Tolbrynd were simply sensational, but... isnât the whole bear gimmick kind of too light for a tasteless set-up like this? Like something out of a cult-hit manga or something, right??â
Rather than keep theorising about Monokuma, she seemed to visibly cut herself off. If Maguro was worried about the bear ruining things, sheâd just have to do her duty as their resident people person and girl genius, and settle his concerns.
âHey, hey, why donât we just summon the bear here and ask them? They arenât exactly obeying Asimovâs Laws, but... the way theyâve set up all these rules, they must be programmed to tell the truth, right?! Hmm, maybe if you splash around and scream for a few minutes...â
Yes! Another student shared his enthusiasm about the new floor! He turned to face Eri, an enormous grin covering his face. Despite their best efforts in the trial ultimately being in vainâhalf the evidence theyâd found ended up being irrelevant, he still thought they made a good teamâŠeven if investigating wasnât their forte.
âGahâ! Takenaka-san⊠youâre rightâŠâ he crossed his arms, somberly looking downwards, bobbing up and down more precariously as his legs did all the work keeping him afloat. âPlease forgive me! I was so overcome with joyâI forgot tâ look around tâ determine the level of safety!â
Then, a little more heated: âBut! Thereâs a serious problem here, Takenaka-san! Can you tell!? Thereâs no students enjoyinâ themselves in this pool! I canât guard lives when no oneâs swimminâ!â
âKyahaha! Consider yourself forgiven, Lifeguard-san.â Just in case sheâd actually upset him, she ramped up the lightness of her tone to 11 on a scale of 1 to âobviously ribbingâ. âYouâre lucky an upstanding citizen like me was around to remind you of the rules, though. Youâd better report back to Nee-san that Iâve been acting responsible, Caprica-tan!â
Once sheâd made the final remark to her robot, who warbled a tired âaffirmativeâ from behind the bleachers, she turned back to Maguro, processing what heâd said. It seemed the two of them were of the same opinion; even if the pool had been provided by a morally dubious captor, it was also definitely a potential site of teenage recreation, and seeing that go to waste was tragic. When the realisation dawned upon her, so did an expression of delight â then she leaned her elbow on her knee and rested her face on the hand of the same arm, leaning forward.
âOho! Your passion on the subjectâs captivated me, Maguro Ando!! Iâm tuning into your wavelength right now!â She paused for a moment as though actually tuning in, even if the phrase was entirely metaphorical. Then, somehow, her enthusiasm managed to double again. âKyahaha! Youâre confoundingly correct!! What we need after all that doom and gloom... is a party.â
Aisha jumped slightly at Eriâs exclamation, but just as quickly slumped in relief when she realized that the other girl didnât seem to be angry with her at all. It didnât even seem as though the thought had crossed her mindâŠwhich just made Aisha feel even guiltier, in a way. She straightened up and took a piece of gum from her belt, fidgeting with the wrapper.
âB-But I really screwed up back there, blurting out the first thing that came to mind like that! I was actually starting to think that youâd been covering up something suspicious about Tadashi-kunâs death, and after I said I wouldnât let Monokuma turn me against anyoneâŠI mean, what if weâd all voted wrong because of what I said?â
ââŠMan, youâre really cool, Takenaka-san. I feel like such an idiot. You couldâve started pointing fingers right back at me, but you just let it slide without a second thought. I wish I could be more like you, instead of worrying about stuff all the time.â
Realisation unsubtly dawned on Eriâs expression â so that was what had been bothering Aisha. It hadnât even occurred to her that Aisha would blame herself for her reaction, and frankly, she didnât agree or approve of the idea that Aisha had screwed up in any way. She simply stared at the other girl as she continued to berate herself; it was strange to think that someone sheâd initially pegged for the carefree type had been tying herself in knots over the situation. If anything, it made her fifteen minutes of bomb-defusing fame a lot more impressive to Eri.
â...Aha, you know what?â She pursed her lips in jovial accusation, looking directly up at Aisha, âFrom where Iâm standing, it sounds suspiciously like youâre doing the worrying thing right now.â Eriâs tone was as teasing as it usually was at any given time, but as gently so as possible. She was much better at keeping the mood light than bringing it down, so if that was what she had to do to properly hold Aisha accountable for her self-blame, her years of near-idol status in the media were about to come in handy.
âKyahaha! Thatâs superbly sweet of you to say, but my sisterâs on an infinite loop of telling me to take things more seriously. I think sheâd approve of your methods a lot more!!â She got the feeling Aisha might keep going if she didnât explicitly accept her apology, though, so she cut whatever tangential monologue sheâd been about to go off on short. âAnyway, itâs nothing between friends, right?! A totally negligible value in my amity algorithms! ...Besides, it makes me feel kind of safer, knowing we have someone whoâs ready to hunt for the truth!!â
taking the bait // trial reaction + chapter 2 open
After Monokuma opened the new floor, he made his way up the stairs, checking the ElectroID as he did so. Despite the circumstances, he wouldnât lose moraleâthe addition of a new area to explore was certainly intriguing. Maguro made an abrupt stop at the top of the staircase, eyeing the map like a falcon. A sushi bar, a weight lifting area (he made a mental note to check it out asap), a sauna⊠Â
And then he spotted it.
A pool.
He made a frantic dash down the hallwayâfinally! This vault had something just for him! Every worry heâd hadâabout murder, about his brother, if anyone would kill nextâit melted away in a heartbeat. There was a pool! (Certainly running definitely wasnât good pool etiquette, he hoped none of the students would point this out. They could make an exception for this one timeâŠ)
In one fell swoop he had ripped off his jacket, kicked of his flip-flops, and canon-balled into the poolâanyone close to him most certainly would have gotten wet.
He resurfaced, energetically throwing his arms up and giving an enthusiastic shout.
It wouldnât be accurate to say Eri saw Maguro run in â when his steps began to thunder towards the pool, she and Caprica-tan had been busy foraging underneath the poolside bleachers. It was right as the source of the sound had cannonballed into the air that Eri decided to poke her head out from beneath the lower gaps in the bleachers, the errant droplets from his dive hitting her square in the face.
Before Eri even had time to react, Maguro surfaced again â it was good to know someone was still having a good time, in spite of the odds. Her neck still halfway craned out between the gap in the bleachers, she returned Maguroâs shout with at least double the enthusiasm.
âYa-hoo!â She briefly filled the room with applause, then paused to wipe the water off from the splash sheâd taken to the face halfway. Remembering this, her expression turned oddly serious, in bizarre contrast to the position she was currently in.
âHold it right there!! Shame on you, Maguro Ando! Doesnât a lifeguard know to survey the area for friendly robots before splashing around like a shark?! ...Itâs a good thing Iâm waterproof, you know.â She paused sagely â it seemed the friendly robot sheâd been referring to was herself, not Caprica-tan. âKyahaha!! And arenât you meant to be super-high-school-level lifeguarding the rest of us, hmmmm?â
Without further ado, she contorted herself through the gap in the bleachers, then came to sit on the row in front of her. It didnât seem like she was concerned enough about the water to actually keep her distance from it, or Maguro. Instead, she dangled her legs off the edge with a grin, waiting to see if she would get a rise out of the boy.
Like everyone else, Aisha had returned to her room after the trial numb with shock. What they thought theyâd known about the two âstarsâ of the case had been shattered by revelation after revelation. Tadashi Takuyo, the one who would have been the killer if things had gone differently; Jiro Oshiro, his past a veritable knot of tangled secretsâŠLike this, it wouldnât be surprising if everyone really did become much more suspicious of each other.
Even worse, sheâd already fallen into that trap herself, if only for an instant. All through the night, Aisha felt herself hit by waves of guilt. Sheâd actually suspected that Eri Takenaka, of all people, had been involved in Tadashiâs murder! Why hadnât she just kept her mouth shut? If the others had gotten swept up in her panic instead of seeing the glaring mistake, they all couldâve died!
What could she do to make up for that? As soon as morning came, she was out of bed and pacing in circles outside her room, trying to think. And pretty much all of that thinking went out the window when she heard a door open and saw Eri step out.
Aisha ran and skidded to a stop before the other girl, her head bowed and hands tightly together in a gesture of supplication.
âT-Takenaka-sanâŠIf you donât want to talk to me I totally understand, but- I am soooo sorry!â
Anyone else might have reeled back from being approached so suddenly so early in the morning, but Eri looked ready to come at Aisha with an overenthusiastic greeting of her own until the other girl bowed. The unexpected gesture threw her for a loop; so she stared for a moment, tilted her head sideways until it was at a level with Aishaâs bowed head, then peered at her with confusion. It was only when the other girl spoke that Eriâs eyebrows shot up in understanding â then returned to their previous furrowed confusion all over again.
Aisha was sorry?
âAre you feeling alright, Aisha Hino?â Eri asked, the concern in her voice entirely genuine before it dropped to an unsubtle whisper. If Aisha wasnât feeling well, it wouldnât do any good to advertise the fact around the vault, after all. The incident with Momoki overhearing about Tadashiâs peanut allergy had caused quite the stir in court, after all â even if he hadnât actually died from the allergy, of course. âDo you have a fever? Can I get you some water? Do you need me to install a cooling fan?!â
Eri might have continued asking increasingly incomprehensible questions if the other girlâs words hadnât suddenly sunk in: âif you donât want to talk to meâ. Which meant Aisha thought Eri was offended, which meant she thought sheâd done something to offend her in the first place, which meantâ
âAha!â Eri raised her pointer finger, looking inordinately pleased with her social deduction. She paced for a moment in the same position, then turned around to face the other girl again with a gleam in her eye. âIâve got it! You think Iâm angry at you!!â A beat. Her face fell. âWaitâ you think Iâm angry at you?â
ââŠTakuyoâs dead,â Momoki said, then shooting a somewhat distressed look in Eriâs direction. âAnd that other guy from earlier? The one who got speared? Dead! Definitely deceased. IâdâIâd have more caution about this staged theory, unless youâre looking to be an easy targetâŠâ
Or maybe pretending nothing was wrong was the way to win? They grumbled to themselves as they considered the prospect.
They circled around the cafe, eventually settling on passing Eri to examine the kitchen for anything that might look amiss. After a moment of consideration, they craned their head to look back at Maguro.
âAndo-san, how about you check around those tables for anything suspicious?â
Then, diplomatically:
âIf I find anything, Iâll let you two know.â
They had not found anything â not yet, at least, but paused to consider the cleaning supplies on the counter, where Eri seemed to be happily dismantling the cash register.
ââŠer, Takenaka-san, what do you think those chemicals are?â
Uncharacteristically taciturn, Maguro followed the other two without a word, clenching his fists as Momoki recounted just how completely dead their fellow dead classmates were. Poker face? He was honestly trying hard not to lose it at the moment. If pretending everything was a set-up helped her, he wasnât going to challenge it. There was also the likelihood that everything was some kind of elaborate prank (they were at Hopeâs Peak, it didnât seem out of their budget to do something like this), which if that was the case, it was well past the point of comedy.
He awkwardly stood there as Momoki and Eri branched out to do their own investigating. He didnât know what to do, unfamiliar with the idea of looking for evidence, and was relieved as Momoki gave him a task to busy himself with.
âAh! Sure thingâŠâ Without pause he made his way over to the neatly arranged tables, looking for anything suspicious laid on top of them, pulling out a few chairs for good measure as well.
He was completely engrossed in his current task, only looking up at the mention of chemicals.
Eriâs head whipped around at Momokiâs question, the pieces of the cash register sheâd gotten halfway through dismantling falling out of her hands and onto the counter with a faint series of clinks. There hadnât been much to discover or salvage there anyway (notwithstanding that the concept of money was temporarily null in their situation), so she made a mental note to put it back together later and address Momokiâs far more fascinating concerns first.
Only after she leaned forward to peer at the array of chemicals next to the mug did she raise her pointer finger triumphantly.
âA-ha! Thatâs a sensational question, Momoki Samezaya! You see, my dear colleagues, these are undoubtedly...â Eri trailed off to thoughtfully regard the cleaning chemicals for one long, protracted moment. Then, she recoiled at her own revelation, arms whipping back into an overstated pose of alarm.
â...Gyahâ! I donât have a clue! I make robots, not chemical reactions!! Iâve never seen such cryptic concoctions in my life!!â
She glanced between Momoki and Maguro with her most dire panic-eyes, then picked up the mug and stared into it; even if the chemicals were altogether a mystery to her, it was clear that they probably werenât for drinking. After a momentâs consideration, she crouched down, in a motion as gentle on her knees as possible, to search underneath the counter for any sign of where the chemicals came from...
Momoki couldnât say they were entirely surprised. The motive video, whether it had been doctored or not, seemed rather convincing. It was easier to do that when you already had people in an emotional bind, they supposedâŠ
They were still worried about Ocha and Maron⊠was the bear at least checking to make sure their tank temperature was ideal? âŠdid the murder mean they were safe?
Before they could ponder it for too long, they noticed their classmates sectioning off into groups to investigate, as the bear had demanded. Not to be outdone, they sought out whoever in the crowd would notice them first â
It was the shark-punching man. God damn it.
Eri he figured he could build up a tolerance toâŠ
âHey, you two. We should look⊠um, maybe in the cafe. I think everyone else is swarming around the bodyâŠÂ
He couldnât say he didnât expect itâafter such a convincing video of his own brother screaming for help, heâd spent quite a few hours racking his mind convincing himself that Kujira was too smart to get caught by the bear like that. He would have found a way to escape, wouldnât he? He was smarter than him.
He just didnât expect it would be so soon. It had only been a dayâno, less than that, and heâd discovered the dead body of Tadashi Takuyo.
For a minute he stood there, staring straight ahead, not paying attention to what was going on around him. It wasnât a joke, Maguro had learned the bear was serious when he killed Dorian in front of all of them. He wasnât roused from his thoughts until he heard Momoki call out to him.
Eriâs reaction was about as confusing as she was confused, which was to say, a lot. From the robot to the realism of the gun props to the special effects involved in Dorianâs âdeathâ, sheâd been high-key thrilled by the whole set-up, to the point where she hadnât even entertained the thought that it might not be a set-up. Then, the videos had broadcasted â and Eri had amended her opinion that it was a set-up to that it was a set-up in very bad taste, because there was no way someone as astute and altogether amazing as her sister, the Anju Takenaka, had been captured, let alone all of their Super High School Level relatives at once.
Now, Eri thought, looking at the lifeless body of Tadashi Takuyo, this really was an incredible set-up after all.
Momoki and Maguro, however, looked a little unappreciative of how far the special effects department had gone to make Tadashi look dead. Or maybe they were just acting along for immersionâs sake. That had to be it, of course â there was no way they werenât amazed by this set-upâs dedication to realism, and if they thought this was real, there was no way they could be coping this well. Either way, Eri moved with such a frenetic thrill that she managed to walk circles around the other two as they retreated from the room and towards the cafe, with very little regard for their personal space.
âKyahaha, Iâm astoundingly astonished!! They really pulled out all the stops on the special effects budget, didnât they? If I didnât know better, Iâd think Tadashi Takuyo was well and truly expired!â A beat passed, then she leaned forward and regarded both of them in turn. âAnd speaking of acting!! You twoâs poker faces are really showing me up! My circuits are overloading with jealousy!! If Hopeâs Peak ever releases the highlights reel of this, I donât intend to let you outshine me!â
Immediately, she schooled her features into her best attempt at seriousness, then stepped into the cafe. Making sure to show her best side to the cameras, she and Caprica-tan did a sweep of the counters â then she started taking apart the cash register, as much for clues as for her own personal curiosity. Somewhere along the way, she forgot her poker face.
reunions in the earth sphere// chapter 1 pre-motive // eris von rrong
In which Eri and Eris have a rational discussion, become pals, and are subjected to a lot of textual Ace Attorney references. (Takes place pre-motive.)
Content warning for reference to abuse (tagged in text).
â
Eri Takenaka: It isnât surprising that Eris is the one to speak up â even if the chance Monobear was telling the truth was close to zero in Eriâs mind, she had a suspsicion Eris would get to the truth of whatever set-up this really was.
âAha, how fascinating! What a splendidly sensational strategy, Eris von Rrong!! If we actually /were/ in a genuine murder-vault, I bet weâd still be A-OK in your lawyerly hands!!â She grins to herself as though sheâs made an amazingly good joke â since thatâs what this whole situation is, of course â then lets a beat pass. ââŠAnyway, Iâm going to go see what I can do about that charmingly low-tech gate before this gets old. See you all when I see you!! Kyahaha!â
And with that, her attention span spent, she disappears from the crowd towards the gate at the stairs to Central.
Eris von Rrong: Eri is undoubtedly the second smartest person here. And unlike Jiro, she's not a teenage /boy/, so that makes her an infinitely more desirable ally in this New Hell. When Eri leaves, in the middle of everyone /else/ leaving (mostly wordlessly)... Eris finds herself flabberghasted. After a brief conversation with two Easier Targets, Eri makes her way to the main gate. She stares at her back, and for a second time, remarks inwardly that it's surprising Eris has actually found someone shorter and louder than herself.
"Takenaka-san. It has come to my attention that you do not truly believe that a sadistic teddy bear wants us all to kill each other." She nods once, dramatically. "I can clearly understand why you would be skeptical. But we saw a teenage boy-- practically a mere /child/ in comparison to us and our clearly superior and ingenious accomplishments--died right before our worldly and intensely experienced eyes. Oshiro-san has assured me he is in fact, dead. And, despite his lack of credentials... I've seen enough dead bodies to believe it to be true myself."
Her chest rises as she takes the deepest of breaths, and then deflates ever so slightly as she lets out a small sigh. It rises again as she pushes her shoulders back and tilts her chin upwards. Her glasses seem to shine, if only for a second.
"This all equates to one thing and one thing alone, Takenaka-san. We are in a state of /emergency/. We must come together." Her fist clenches in front of her. "We must /fight/ against invasive impulses!" She extends her splayed fingers outwards. "But we must do so as a cohesive whole." Her head lowers in regret, and then rises, (like a Phoenix) in determination. " We must bring /order/ to our new and semi-permanent grouping... In 'order' to bring order to our naturally chaotic, criminal selves." Her voice rises, her fist clenching once more and returning to her chest. "We must become a /team/. A unit. For if anything happens to one of us... Just /one/... And we have not tried our hardest to learn to live in harmony.... Then we are /all/ truly and utterly.... /guilty/."
Finally, her hand returns to her side. She appears to be finished. That was certainly something.
Eri Takenaka: By the time Eris arrives at the gate, Eriâs already trying every solution in the book to break through it â while violence against the Overseer and the surveillance cameras seems to be banned in the rules contained in their ElectroIDs, thereâs nothing stopping her from a little creative exploration. Unfortunately, all of Caprica-tanâs tools that might have laser-cut, welded, or otherwise broken through the gate seemed to conveniently have gone missing since xe and Eri woke up. (Eriâs been developing her theories about that too, of course.)
All of this means that when Eris bursts in and begins speaking, Eri is seated on the ground, watching Caprica-tan attempt to contort xemself into various forms in order to (so far unsuccessfully) slip through the gate. Her eyebrows simply raise, and Continue to raise, as Eris makes her speech, both staying silent and attempting to draw out her attention span for once. When Eris finishes, Eri pulls herself up to stand and unabashedly applauds, the seriousness of the speech seemingly lost on the size of the grin sheâs sporting now.
âHow enthralling!! How enrapturing! Iâm filled with the burning resolve to be a team player!â For a moment, it seems like she might be sold on the entire truth of Erisâ speech, until she adds: ââŠEven if you were fooled by those /spectacular/ special effects, you really do have a point about working together. Kyahaha! And here I thought you were going to be the angsty lone wolf workaholic type! Youâve far exceeded my hypothesis, Eris von Rrong.â
If nothing else, she was at least convinced on the âteamwork and unity partâ, then. After a moment Eri pauses and leans against the wall, mentally replaying the speech to make up for her gaps in concentration. ââŠAha, you donât really think weâre all ânaturally criminalâ, do you? How does that explain a perfectly proper prosecutor like yourself, ehhh?â
Eris von Rrong: At first, Eris is overcome with the haughty feeling of pride. Yes, she does /indeed/ deserve that applause. She has convinced so many judges in impossible to judge cases of a suspect's guilt with rousing speeches in similar veins to this one. Undoubtably, they were more enthused, dramatic, aggressive and persuasive... but there's no doubt in Eris's mind that this was was good too in its own way. Yes, it was adequate. No, it was /perfect/ for the situation. Eris, a von Rrong... could do no less.
Regardless, it all immediately fades when Eri reveals she believes Eris to be a foolishly fooled fool fooled by foolish special effect foolishness! How rude! How unbecoming! How /wrong/. She huffs, crossing her arms tightly to her chest and turning her head pointedly and disjointedly to the /right/ side (which she is), and then the left, and then the right again  (which she always gets to in the end). Her pleasantly perpetually pouty lips push out ever so slightly, and one could /say/ she was pouting. But they'd be /wrong/. She's simply perturbed.
The question Eri poses is as aggravating as Eris's next pose is repressedly aggravated. The slight loosening of her arms and quirk of her brow do not betray her, but the dead and intense look her eye show off a distinct lack of mercy. "In my line of work, one must learn to be cynical. Our job is to press the suspect and the evidence until it /breaks/ into unquestionable truth. And the truth, I have found, is that everyone is guilty of something... and every case I have been involved with has /rightfully/ come to conclusion... with /me/ in the right... and them cast into spotlight of their sins... and their /wrong/doings. I hope you've noticed in your research of me that I've gotten gotten a guilty verdict on every case in my perfectly spotless career. That /means/ something. I'm sure you're logical enough to understand such a simple verdict."
Eri Takenaka: Eri canât read people half as well as she can read manuals or lines of code or the movements of a machine â so, while it hasnât /quite/ become clear to her that sheâs offended Eris, sheâs beginning to realise that the other girl is making an appeal to their mutual intelligence. That would explain all the flattering adjectives (which Eris has generously directed to both her and /herself/). In a way, the deluge of media adulation sheâs both endured and welcomed has already steeled her to that kind of recognition, but itâs undoubtedly different coming from someone her own age.
âOf /course/ I am!â Eri blinks, then clasps her hands behind her back and smirks. if Eris is going to practice one of her opening statements on her, she might as well continue to push her dashingly tailored buttons for her own personal amusement. Aside from speculating on whether robots could commit crimes, Eri herself hasnât spent much time philosophising about criminality, so she canât say she had a solid stance on the issue â but it does seem like /Erisâ/ stance is firmly rooted in the assumption that she is in the (W)right. âIt means youâre a pro!! Kyahaha! With someone as righteously right as you on the other side of the court, Eris von Rrong, how could I /not/ be in the wrong?â
Itâs clear that they arenât going to agree on the nature of the situation just yet, and Eri hardly intends to concede until sheâs done more speculating of her own. Still, the two of them seem to share a penchant for investigating and having opinions, and itâd practically be a waste not to hear Erisâ Miles of opinions on the situation given how well-suited her SHSL is to it. Leaving Caprica-tan to xir own devices as xe attempts to squeeze through the gates, Eri peers into Erisâ still-stony eyes and asks another question for the sheer hell of it.
âSo who deserves the guilty verdict this time, Demon Heiress Eris-san?â Behind the teasing tone â at least, and as always â lies an air of genuine curiosity. âWho are you going to shine the spotlight of sin on for this, hmmm?â
Eris von Rrong: She gets the feeling Eri is making fun of her again and it makes her more than a little disappointed. She had hoped that the two of them, being the clearly most superior of the bunch, would be friends. It seems as though that will not be the case. She feels her heart sink, and the Haughty-ness leaves her eyes and posture as she looks down and clenches her fists at her sides. Her head eventually perks at her sides when she's directly questioned, and she knows she will give a perfect answer, regardless of how she feels. Her formality increases as she puts up a weak tough front.
"There is no way to assess that at this point. It could be anyone. The clear motives behind this could belong to just about anyone, including every one of us here and our own families. The use of a robotic puppet that's so advanced would /seem/ to narrow it down... but... in this day and age, just about anyone either has access to machinery or access to someone /with/ machinery with the right connections. The talent required of course, is immense. But criminal and technological genius is surprisingly well-hidden among the general populace. They could be living a double life just as easily as they could be living entirely off the grid. Though... if it /is/ one of us..." Eris trails off in thought.
Eri Takenaka: Itâs obvious Eris is sticking to her guns vis-a-vis the idea that this really is a serious criminal incident, and at this point Eri sees little point in arguing back. Sheâd pushed the discussion of their situation in just about every direction that yielded any entertainment and/or information, but now it seems like Eris is just shutting down. Lightly teasing Eris had seemed like the best strategy to befriend someone so totally /formal/, but instead of getting a decrease in formality or even getting a rise out of her, her formality just seems to be snowballing into an even larger, icier mass of formality.
It still isnât totally apparent to her that sheâs offended the other girl, but at the very least she tries another approach. When it comes to reading people, a gumshoe she is not.
âKyahaha! Our Overseer Monokuma-sanâs a unique one, arenât they? Iâm not sure I could build such a complex system of joints into a robot like that without⊠well, without the kind of funding that Iâm /getting/, if my job was to build cartoon murder bears and not superbly superlatively important space robots.â She considers this point for a second, then raises her finger in a frenetic addition. âWhich it isnât!! Iâm morally opposed to murder, and Iâm very allergic to fur!â Phew. Placing that testimony on the recordâs probably a good idea before Eris cross-examines /her/ as a suspect.
Thinking back over Erisâ words, though, sheâs right â regardless of what this scenario is, it really could have been set up by anyone. Â The other girlâs words sink in belatedly, Eriâs shoulders somewhat slumping at the thought of how deprived for information they are right now.
âGyah, youâre completely correct!! Hopeâs Peak has the resources, but /anyone/ can have a double life; itâs just like Kamen Rider said!! Maybeâ maybe we should all just try and act like normal friends until we have more data?â
Eris von Rrong: "That is what I believe as well," she finishes. She was going to say /Eri/ was the most likely suspect... Or Rei-sama... and the latter is too upsetting to even repeat out loud. "Which is why I /told/ you that to begin with. Regardless, I believe we should have ground rules in order to create the most harmious cohabitation possible. So I am interviewing everyone. What, Â Takenaka-san, are your 'pet peeves' if you will?"
Eri Takenaka: âOho, an /interview/?â Eri brightens up immediately as though the previous topic never happened; this, at least, is something closer to an area of expertise for her. âWhy didnât you say so? Kyahaha! We couldâve left all that gloomy guesswork /light years/ behind!!â She considers the question â then, after the several secondsâ thinking time she gives herself, proceeds to throw every answer sheâs come up with therein at the other girl.
âSkeptics. Critics! Killjoys. Not that I dislike them as people or anything â theyâre more like a challenge, you know?!â Each of her answers, after that, seemed to increase in speed. âAh⊠when you drink too much of the tea in boba tea and you have to suck up the pearls dry. The worst!! Touching weird stuff with my bare hands. Also the worst!! People telling me Iâm an âinspirationâ with that tone of voice like itâs a surprise, or something? Gyah, thatâs pretty bad too. Silences, but also when people act like the silence automatically makes things uncomfortable? I change my mind, that one really /is/ the worst!!â A beat passed, then Eri glanced up at Eris with a toothy grin. âAnd⊠interviewers that only ask me questions about /me/ and donât tell me about themselves. Hey, hey, you didnât think thisâd be one-sided after all /my/ data input, did you?!â
Eris von Rrong: 'Data input.' A curious choice of words. Fitting for an engineer, though, she supposes. Interview was perhaps the wrong word, she decides. She meant /interrogation/... but thought that that might /intimidate/ Eri too much. Now she has to talk about herself. Frantastic. Zis kan only end in disaster. She looks to either side as she answers, clearly uncomfortable. Her eyes flit back to Eri every so often. But this is not her strong suit.
She's not exactly used to people being interested in her as a /person/. Not anymore, anyway. But that time feels like an entire life ago.
"I am Eris von Rrong, as you know. My pet peeves are foolishness, disorderly conduct, and insubordination. That is all you need to know about me. Let us return to the interr--view." Close one. She hopes with her slight accent, it won't be noticed. "What would you say was the easiest way to get along with you?â
Eri Takenaka: Eri raises her eyebrows at Erisâ reply; it doesnât quite hit her that this isnât the other girlâs strong Suit, but itâs hard not to get the impression sheâs a little Ruffled. She slides down back into her previous sitting position and taps the space next to her with the air of an offer to Eris â then, she begins to retrieve all the miscellaneous electrical wires and parts sheâd scavenged from her pockets, neatly arranging them in front of her on the ground as she speaks.
ââŠIf you want to get along with me, all you have to do is ask,â Eri blinks, missing the point, before it audibly hits her. âOh!! Oh, right!! Youâre data-mining me for interrrrview purposes. Got it.â Erisâ Unique And Definitely Accent-Related Spin on the word is by far the coolest pronunciation of it sheâs ever heard, so she experimentally rolls it on her tongue with complete earnestness.
âI usually just⊠talk to people? About their current research?? I donât really think about it, I just⊠wait for the getting along to happen?â Okay, so maybe this interview is getting harder than she expected. Mamma /Mia/. She cocks her head, in deep thought, then grins at Eris. âKyahaha, Heiress-san, where did you get these questions? Aha! Are they specialised conflict avoidance inquiries?! Most of my interviewers donât ask me questions that sound like they come from a dating site profile, to be honest.â
Eris von Rrong: Eris... sits next to her, crossing her legs properly and squeezing her arms around her chest. The second Eri mentions /dating/, though... she flushes bright red and jumps to her feet, throwing her arm outwards with the feyrce of a thousand sisters. "Objection! These are not dating questions and you have no evidence of which to suggest it is! There is /no/ E to the harmony which I wish to create, Takenaka-san!" She huffs, pushing up her glasses and clenching her fist. "I simply want us all to be friends. I am going to tell everyone in a group meeting the best ways to get along with each other. This way, people will have less of an inclination to go around /offing/ one another."
Eri Takenaka: âAha. Gotcha!â Eri says, meeting Erisâ objection-point with her own less legally-qualified finger pistols. Then, she sagely nods in mock, just barely suppressing a playful smile through her next words. âOf course! Theyâre friendship questions! I should have known all along.â It isnât like anyone is /actually/ going to go around offing each other, Eri thinks, so her sense of humour stays as (Ful)bright as ever.
After a moment spent intensely staring at the motor sheâd taken out of the washing machine, she glances up at Eris, catching the end of her Pearl of a reaction. âKyahaha! Iâm sorry, Iâm sorry, Iâll be serious now! I shouldnât have made your facial systems overheat. That was very irresponsible of me. Get ready for me to be superlatively serious about this trust-building exercise! âŠSpeaking of which, you never answered your last question, did you?!â
Eris von Rrong: "I did not ask it of myself." A simple answer to a simple-minded question.
Eri Takenaka: âIf answering these questions is for the good of everyone, doesnât it make sense that you would too, Eris von Rrong?â Eri cocks her head, in a rare moment of both internal and external seriousness. Maybe she realises sheâs hit a nerve. Or maybe sheâs just vaguely curious about what the answer is. âAll of us getting along doesnât work so well if we donât get along with you too, you know.â
Eris von Rrong: Eris thinks for a long hard second as to whether she /wants/ to answer or not. And then... She surprises herself. "I do not believe I have ever been asked that question before... and I am unsure how to answer." When's the last time someone's tried to be her friend? When's the last time some even /tried/ to care about her? It feels like a lifetime ago.
Eri Takenaka: Eri glances up briefly from the scrap electronics sheâs still inspecting, then her shoulders fall in open relief. Sheâd begun to worry that Eris was withholding her answers out of a desire to be distant, or as some lawyer tactic to Cykes them out. âKyahaha! Thatâs totally fine!! Iâd be /sensationally/ surprised if any of us had straightforward answers to questions about our lives, anyway.â A pause, as she regards the other girl seriously. âJust as long as you arenât excluding yourself from your harmony-without-the-E plan, Eris von Rrong!! /That/ would be a shame. I wasnât joking when I said I was ready to be serious about peace and friendship!!â
Eris von Rrong: In an Athenian effort, Eris decides to cement the trucy between them. What she blurts out Apolls her. "I don't know how to make friends!" She gasps, covering her mouth with a flush.
Eri Takenaka: Oh, m(a)y(a ). Not Gavin up on this attempt at friendship was clearly beginning to Payne off. âKyahaha! Objection!! Itâs far too late to say that, Eris von Rrong, now that youâve already made one!!â Her toneâs still intentionally light enough that Eris doesnât have to seriously address the comment if she doesnât want to, but itâs clear that itâs meant in earnest. âWerenât you the one to give me the speech about unity, Heiress-san? Iâm no expert⊠but Iâd say the evidence suggests youâre doing a superlatively successful job.â
Eris von Rrong: "I..." For once, Eris is... speechless. Her Guilty Love of praise has risen The Bar of her interest in friendship with the other girl... And she is afraid she is, for the first time in her life, failing the Exam. She doesn't have to be a Detective to know that Eri is at least trying to /look/ earnest. And she appreciates that.
In an ideal situation, she would turn her platonic prospects elsewhere. She has /already/ been made fun of and insulted and confused. But here, she will have to be at least cordial with everyone. And she did come to school to make friends. And Eri is the only one perhaps equal to her in intelligence. Yes. A Magpie in hand is better than two in the bush. Perhaps she can kill two Byrdes with one stone. Will she Powers on? Steeling her expression, Eris decided to return her proposition for friendship. Yes, you Redd White. Eris, for once, chooses life.
"I am.... glad! We have! Become friends!" Each phrase is extended with a loud huff. By the end, she feels absolutely wended.
Eri Takenaka: âYa-hoo! Sensational!! We did it! Friendship systems are online!â Eri jumps to her feet, with feeling, and pumps her fists. Then, remembering the superbly solemn lawyer still standing beside her, she straightens up with a cough and resolves to stop Dahlian around. She canât match Erisâ Aura of formality, but at the very least she can attempt to match her for volume and spirited gestures. âI mean⊠ahem. The contract of friendship has been concluded! You wonât regret this!! I hope youâre ready to witness the true power of my superbly scientific companion capacitiesâŠ!!!â
âŠWhich sheâs totally ready to unleash, until she realises that she has no idea what kind of friendship activities are appropriate for a situation like this.
ââŠSay, Heiress-san, what do you think two high school pals are meant to do in a kidnapping scenario?â
Eris von Rrong: Eri clearly has a whole Lotta Heart. She smiles at her genuinely and quietly. And then, just as quickly, she returns to her formality. "Why, there's only one thing /for/ the two most superior high school pals in a kidnapping scenario to do. Protect the others by any means necessary. Besides, of course, murder." She pushes up her glasses again.
Eri Takenaka: Eri catches the smile, but with all the Powers of subtlety she can muster refraints from pointing it out. Getting a rise out of Eris had seemed like a good way to get her to open up, but as entertaining as the prospect remains, sheâs starting to get the impression that friendly teasing only goes so far with a very serious woman of the law.
âKyahaha! Got it! I hear you loud and clear!!â For good measure and Extra Professionalism, she salutes, then glances towards the gates blocking off the next floor. Before she continues, her voice drops to a conspiratorial whisper (for a liberal defintion of âwhisperâ, at least): ââŠYou know, Iâve been thinking, the rules on our ID cards donât say anything against us finding our own way out. And Iâm getting kind of tired of waiting for the punchline, here!! There must be a way for us to evacuate this floor without the robo-bear noticing us, right?â
Eris von Rrong: Her lips purse, and her voice comes out quiet. "I find that idea to be ill-advised at this point, my friend. We do not have enough information to ensure this course of action is completely safe, 'buddy.'" The word feels so, /so/ good to say. "I cannot protect you if the murder-bear decides to attack you out of the blue without warning. However... if you decide to risk your life for the cause... I will consider you to be even more noble than I previously thought. And I can ask around... see if anyone would be willing to offer their assistance and risk their lives in a similar manner.â
Eri Takenaka: The gravity of their subject matter notwithstanding, Eri looks thrilled enough to vibrate out of her skin when Eris says âbuddyâ. Then she panics, because sheâs made some weighty promises regarding the potency of her friendship powers, and Erisâ terms of endearment are already soundly defeating her at that.
âAha! Teamwork! Thatâs a fair point, comrade,â she nods thoughtfully â then raises her hand in a proffered fist-bump, just to /really/ amp up the friendship levels. Confusion briefly plays across her face when Eris mentions risking their lives; given that this is still quite obviously some kind of set-up to her, it seems unfathomable that anyoneâs life would actually be at risk here. ââŠWell, I donât think the murder-bearâs going to give me the same treatment as Dorian Tolbrynd, since the special effects department havenât contacted me yet. Iâve asked Caprica-tan to scan the gates for any exploitable weaknesses, butâŠ!! Most of xir tools have been disabled since we woke up. And thereâs barely anything to work with at /all/ in this place! Gyahâ! Itâs driving me wild!!â
Eris von Rrong: #abuse allusion tw????
Eris /flinches/ at the fist, though she's learned not to cower. She stares at it, unable to look away, though she listens to her words. She finally looks up at her curiously when she finishes speaking. Her words are not disparaging, or professing the desire for violence... she's not sure exactly what Eri wants her to say to her, then. If she wants her to apologize.
Eri Takenaka: âAh⊠Heiress-sanâŠ? Are you alright?â Eri stares at Eris equally quizzically for a long few seconds, then finally registers where the other girlâs been focusing and stares down at her own still-pending fist bump. If realisation spreads across her face, itâs momentary â then, with her usual lightheartedness, she plays the moment off for both their sakes. âAha, Iâve failed! I shouldâve calculated all along that the high five was a superior gesture of friendship to the fist bump!! âMy badâ!â Still, she makes a visible effort not to be too loud or go on for too long, then fluidly drops the fist so that her hand hangs low and upwards-facing at her side â such that Eris can react to the situation however she wants or needs to.
Eris von Rrong: High-fives. She's familiar with those. "I... A high-five. Yes." Her lips quirk into an attempt at a smile, and she finally starts to relax. "I have seen these before, and am sure that I will give an /absolutely/ perfect one, pal." She takes a deep breath, and then slaps Eri's hand with all her strength.
Eri Takenaka: âKyahaha! Astonishing!â Eri laughs delightedly, then clasps the hand Eris just righteously high-fived in her other hand. Realistically, most of the relief in her tone is at Eris relaxing, but her very genuine eagerness at the Gesture of Friendship succeeding belies that. âJust as promised, Eris von Rrong! Thatâs the most statistically satisfying high-five Iâve ever received!! âŠThe scientists at JAXA werenât very cooperative test subjects vis-a-vis teenage rituals.â Still mindful of Erisâ personal space and the need to keep the tone light, she rubs the back of her head, then glances around. âWhat do you say we seal the deal of this blossoming friendship by paying a visit to the cafe, hmm?! We can check it for clues and more people to interrrrview, andâŠâ â she adds, somewhat more sheepishly â ââŠI can see if thereâs anything else worth taking apart for electronics.â
Eris von Rrong: "A perfect plan from an altogether perfect companion. I daresay I would actually /enjoy/ that." She smiles. This has truly turned around.
ïčchapter 01 motive - letâs have a stab at itïč
ââŠâ
Momoki let his gaze rest on his shoes, because it was the easiest place to look. The television set before him was broadcasting the voices of â unmistakable, it had to beâŠ
He forced his apartment door back open, jarring it far enough that it hit the wall and caused a reverberating slam. One had already been killed, so who was he to completely doubt the validity of the footage heâd just seen? This situation, hostage or not, was still clearly bad either way â there was a chance he could die here.
âWhere is the bear,â Momoki demanded, as soon as he felt confident enough to speak without his voice faltering. âIt could be doctored⊠thereâs a chance itâs⊠fakeâŠâ
Before anyone could humor his guesses, Momoki cut a sharp diagonal path across the hallway to the library.Â
Though it wasnât nearly as impressive as he wouldâve hoped, it would do him well enough; Momoki made a stack of thick reference books around him as a slapdash sort of wall, then sat in the middle of his structure and began flipping through a peculiar-looking book about how to treat knife wounds.
(Ensconced in it was a manga about a fish who turned into a human who wanted to return to her home in the sea. It acted as a de-stressor, nothing else.)
And anyone, upon entering, would be greeted with an especially nervous snap:
If the bear thought that it wouldnât take more than an impressively realistic video edit to make a woman of science cave... well, the bear was wrong. After all, anyone who could build such a sensationally superb robo-bear presumably also had the tech skills to lift video footage of famous peopleâs families and edit them into a video. Hell, Eri had done that herself with clips of Dana Scully and Major Kusanagi at age thirteen, so it hardly took a criminal mastermind.
Upon entering the library and seeing Momokiâs book-fortress, she groaned quietly; this was going to be another threat-believer. Or not. When she approached closer, the head of the aquarist whoâd very solemnly denounced the bear earlier came into partial view; âfakeâ wasnât the precise scientific term Eri would use to describe the bear, but it captured the essence of her thoughts as well.
A threat-hater after her own heart, then. She could work with this.
The conviction that she could work with this only slightly decreased upon the stabbing comment. Eri raised her open palms over her head, then grinned (in a way she at least thought was) disarmingly at the visible sliver of her classmate from over the book fort.
âDo I look like the kind of girl who stabs someone after a cartoon bear with Windows Movie Maker tells me to?â The line might have had a statistically relevant chance of a decent first impression if she hadnât scrunched up her face in thought right after. Maybe she did look like that. In which case, she was just making things uncomfortable for the both of them by asking. â...Gyahâ! Never mind!! Request cancelled!! Donât answer that, book overlord-san!!â
A beat passed, then she crouched down to sit a suitably respectful distance from the entrance of Momokiâs book fort. Caprica-san did too, with an equal amount of decorum.
âSo. Well, well, well,â she started finally, with the dignity of someone attempting to grasp onto the first conversation-opener that wasnât about murder. âCome here often?â
They flinched when the girl pressed her face to the glass and moved up their hands defensively, so if the machine was opened, they would be ready to counter attack!! Alas, all the girl did was spout some nonsense that made their head spin and they frowned. She actually believed they were some panda godâ oh well, might as well play along with her while she still believed them.Â
âYes! Kyahaha, itâs me! The Almighty Panda God ofâ EEEHHH?â Laundryâ did she really pick laundry?! âYou will get the zing youâve always wanted all of your life if only you bring your sacrifice, that is correct!â Smooth, Yoshimi.
They completely froze and their eyes went wide, (even if Eri couldnât see) when they heard.. another visitor. â..Fuuuuck.â Yoshimi muttered as their eyes went directed to the tiny and cute, but totally menacing robot near Eri. Theyâve been snookered, alright.
They relaxed in the machine a little more as Eri went on, and moved around some cosmetics.Â
âYeah yeah, Iâm just a simple human. Sadly not some other weird ass life form. Did I let you doââ Nope, the didnât. They flinched again at the massive grin and blinked a few times.. They.. they might like this one.
âYeah, Iâm a panda human and thereâs no way in hell this mask is ever cominâ off. Itâs like Iâm some fuckin hybrid. Is that the word, I think thatâs the word. Annnywaaaay~ Who are you and..â They moved their arm to tap the glass and point down at Caprica-tan. âWhat cute little thing is that?â
Approximately five minutes into their conversation and it had finally occurred to Eri that looming less than a foot away from the washing machine probably wasnât the best way to sustain a conversation. After all, the person inside was a self-proclaimed human â and unlike panda gods, humans (as her sister often reminded her) needed their personal space.
âI see, I see!â Eri nodded sagely at the mask comment, scrubbing a hand through the back of her shock of green hair in thought. âUnderstood!! A hybrid canât just give away the secrets behind their mask of mystery. Especially when the mask is so terrifyingly trendsetting!!â
Eri pointed her fingers in makeshift guns at Yoshimi, then sat to lean against the washing machine next to theirs, her nonchalance belying the caution with which she lowered herself to sit. The whole waking-up-on-the-ground situation had been hard enough on her joints, but she wasnât about to cloister herself in her room when there were people to meet, things to see, and places to go. And there werenât all that many things to see and places to go, so that left bothering Yoshimi as the natural conclusion.
âEri Takenaka, the one and only! The girl geniusââ (here, she solemnly raised her eyebrows) ââ the woman of science â the incomparable comrade to all humans, aliens, gods, enigmatic hybrids, mechanical friends of various levels of sapience, etcetera, and et al. Kyahaha! Nice to meet you!!â
The introduction was as boastful as it was dubious in its reliability, but she was so earnest about it it was hard to suspect she was making any kind of power play. Very sincerely blowing her trumpet had proved itself an at least somewhat successful friend-making tactic when it came to the media, after all. Before Eri could fill the gap with more rambling, Caprica-tan scurried over to the washing machine and gave a bashful wave with one of xir limbs.
âGreetings, [UEMURA-SAMA]. ...Ah, I hope you werenât too alarmed by my presence! I would be [CAPRICA-TAN], [TAKENAKA-ONEESAMA]âs planetary exploration prototype and personal companion.âÂ
âDonât be so formal, Caprica-tan!! Between you, me, and these ominous security cameras, xeâs been a little self-conscious since we got here.â Still leaning against the washing machine, Eri reached out to reassuringly pat Caprica-tanâs chassis. Then, she glanced back in Yoshimiâs direction, assuming they were still cocooned in the washing machine of skincare products. â...Aha, so. Are you still searching for that food sacrifice, panda hybrid human Uemura-san?â
Hearing someone make noise to get her attention, Atsuko let out a laugh and turned to face the girl and herâŠrobot? Was that a robot? Someone had a robot?! She would have to..inquire about that. She didnât think that robot companions were a thing quite yet. Though, based on who this person was, she really couldnât see the idea being that far fetched. She was a mechatronics engineer after all.
Was the girl really insinuating this whole thing was a farce? Sure, this was a very strange and unbelievable situation but was the dead body really not enough to confirm that this whole thing was not a show, but reality? Maybe this was just the otherâs coping mechanism? They did just see someone die after all. Some may go to imagination for shelter she supposed.
âUm, Takenaka-san, right? W-Well, I really donât see myself as an actor, Iâm quite dreadful at the arts actuallyâŠI-Iâm getting off topic though! I guess this all could be one big, er, act. However, I-I really donât think this is a show being put on. I certainly wasnât informed of such a thing. Tolbrynd-sanâŠI think he actually is dead though. I didnât check for a pulse, but the chances of him living through being stabbed like thatâŠTheyâre incredibly low.â
She decided to play along with the other girl and whispered her response. As Eri came closer and closer to her though, she backed up little by little. If there was one thing Atsuko was not used to, it was physical contact with people who were not family. This girl, she was very animated. Not a bad thing but any means. It just meant she was passionate and high energy! It was a good thing! JustâŠnot so close to Atsuko.
In an attempt to make the situation less saddening and frightening, Atsuko decided the best course of action was to ask about something Eri was presumably passionate about and could help with an negative side effects with coming to the realization this was no play.
âExcuse me for asking, but is that a robot? Did you make the robot? How does it work? Ah, perhaps Iâm rambling? W-Would you mind telling me about such a thing? Iâve always been fascinated with such things.â
Unfortunately for Atsuko, the great conversational tact sheâd displayed was about to be filtered through the perception of someone who had little to no concept thereof. While the other girlâs read on Eriâs reaction had been completely correct, it was going to take more than words to snap her out of said reaction, and maybe a fair amount of time to boot.
Eri stared at Atsuko blankly as she tried to talk reason into the situation; then, her face lit up with realisation. Of course Atsuko was acting like the situation wasnât a test or initiation âas their student council president, she was presumably in on the set-up, and thus sworn to total secrecy. If Atsuko revealed the plot twist to another classmate this early on, that was as good as treason! Eri nodded sagely, then in an entirely unsubtle show of pretence, winked for about three seconds straight as though alluding to a shared secret.
âKyahaha! I see, I see!! If this was a show, of course you wouldnât have been informed! Thatâd be ridiculous! Outrageous! And even if the student council did happen to know what was really happening here, itâs not like they could just say!! Thatâd be unprofessional, after all.â
While it didnât take much to divert Eriâs attention, Atsuko had expertly picked the topic most likely to divert the full force of her attention. Sheâd taken Caprica-tan along to enough interviews, meetings, and spontaneous life occasions that introducing them felt like a practiced routine, but it never got old, particularly given that the person she was introducing xem to this time was a genius in her own right. It was only after Eri had taken a step back and dramatically flourished in Caprica-tanâs direction that she began to answer Atsukoâs questions, insofar as the monologue that followed could be called an answer.
âYouâre excused! Yes, xe is. And yes, I did!! Aha, well, technically, Nee-san and I collaborated on xir software package â I still couldnât program my way out of a paper bag next to her. Kyahaha! Assuming I couldnât just tear through the bag, anyway.â
A beat passed, then she seemed to recall what sheâd first been talking about.
âXe gets shy about it, but Caprica-tanâs a prototype for the next Mars mission, you know. A multi-tool companion bot for astronauts designed to learn from new environments and assist in the height of danger! But Iâm not letting xem fly the coop so fast!! Literally or metaphorically!! What kind of sister would I be if I launched Caprica-tan into the cold embrace of space without coming with xem? ...Anyway, if thereâs anything specific you want to know, I can lend you xir full fifty-chapter manual.â
Despite all of Eriâs bragging, Caprica-tan xemselves seemed fairly reticent, the digital 'eyesâ on xir interface darting around as though xe wanted to shift the conversation away from them as soon as possible. Then, xir eyes sheepishly focused on Atsuko, a mild-mannered voice finally filtering through xir speakers.
âOh, dear! I wish we could meet in more pleasant circumstances, [FUJIMOTO]-sama. After Takenaka-oneesanâs description of my functions, Iâm just terribly sorry Iâve failed to be of any help in this situation yet.â
Hearing the strange announcement from the screen in the library where she had retreated to once more, Atsuko pushed her ponytail back to its respectful place and placed the book she had taken off the shelf back. Deeming that the room was exactly as she had found it, she nodded to herself and made her way back to the room she and the others had woken up in.
She stood in an empty space where she wouldnât invade anyoneâs privacy nor would she make herself uncomfortable. Standing near the front meant she could see the teddy bearâ movements and could read its body language (if it had any). It gave her slight comfort to see that it was very cute in appearance. If something was cute, it couldnât possibly be malicious, could it be?
Apparently it could. Not only did it have very threatening words to say, itâs actions were alsoâŠnot exactly pleasant to look at. Especially if you defied its orders. That poor boyâŠHeâŠHe was just trying to save everyone and instead heâŠShe choked on her emotions and swallowed them back, letting only a few tears slip past her hand before she shook her head. No. She should not be crying. It would be unbecoming of her to do such a thing, not when someone had just been so strong and lost their life to try and save the rest of them from the monochrome menace!
Instead of viewing her fellow captives with distrust as she had been a few moments ago, Atsuko straightened herself out and slapped her cheeks lightly as if she were waking herself up from a trance and cleared her throat, speaking in a clear and audible tone.
âNow, really. The bear seems to be quite serious a-and does not seem to be j-joking with us, but Tolbrynd-san just gave his life to try and save ours! It would be foolish to simply throw such a sacrifice away like a piece of waste! Weâre all in this together!â
Atsuko thumped a balled fist against her opened palm for emphasis on her words and her face was decorated by a determined smile and her eyes held a shine of determination. When faced with peril, one must look for the light at the end of the tunnel!
Everything Atsuko had said in the heat of the moment was perfectly sensible â so sensible, in fact, that it was guaranteed that Eri was thinking the opposite. It wasnât that she didnât value the opinion of the media-hailed smartest girl in Japan, but if Atsuko was the smartest she fancied herself the second smartest, and there had to be occasions that the second smartest was just plain right. Such as this one.
Of course the bear wasnât being serious â if the bear was being serious, then that meant Dorian was actually dead, as in actually killed, and that this wasnât all an elaborate test of some kind with a special effects budget courtesy of HPA. It wasnât exactly the most conventional student initiation, but then again, this wasnât exactly the most conventional school. And it was better than the alternative.
Of all the possibilities this inexplicable cartoon bear opened up, Eri was least willing to humour the possibility that sheâd actually witnessed her classmate die.
Sheâd been throwing around government abduction theories less than an hour ago, but now that the scenario had actually unfolded in front of her, she had no short supply of theories on what was really happening. If this was some kind of test or initiation or media stunt or show (or, the list went on), either Atsuko had totally missed that possibility or she was going along with it. Now that Eri thought about it, that made far more sense: as their student council president, Atsukoâs determination and brief flash of teariness were just her getting into the spirit of the scenario. It was admirable, really!
âPssssssst!!â
Eri hissed in Atsukoâs direction, glancing back and forth for any cameras in their proximity before making her best attempt at a conspiratorial whisper. Given the robot companion tailing her at every turn, any of her attempts at inconspicuousness were doomed to fail from the start.
âMy, my, seitokaichou-san, these are some sensational special effects! And your actingâs really ramping up the realism! I thought the blood spurts were a little overboard, but when you talked about Dorian Tolbrynd like he was really deadâ gyah! I canât deny it!! You activated my tear generators!!â
Seemingly oblivious to the mood of the situation and Atsuko herself, Eri continued to enthuse, her gesticulations becoming wider and her regard for Atsukoâs personal space becoming scarcer with every audibly exclamation-pointed statement.
They had to completely admit, they had been hiding for most of the beginning. Ever since they woke up surrounded by several other kids, who were also knocked out, they ditched the place. Admittedly, they didnât really have anywhere to go, save for their room and some hiding places they found from merely wandering around and basically avoiding everyone. Well, some people may have spotted them walking around, but they never initiated conversations.Â
Eventually, wandering around had become tedious and they resorted to living in the washing machines. Of course, to avoid dying by a washing machine being turned on, they wiggled in the machine whenever someone came close and hissed. That kept people away, obviously, because nobody had found them yet. Yet, that is, until they heard a new voice and popped out from the machine, and headed towards the reception area.Â
After the following events of mutual killing and the actual killing of some kid they saw around, they merely shrugged.Â
âEeeh~ Beary must be jokinâ right. That kid ainât dead, heâs probably just fakinâ it man. The things people do for attention. Holy shit dude, what an act!â They shook their head, âHonestly though, thought beary was chill enough to join the bear clique but I guess noooot! Murder? Psshh. What a funny joke. Maybe he can join it once he stops spoutinâ shit about that! Gyahaha!â They hadnât been talking to anyone in particular, but their voice could be heard with anyone nearby.Â
With that, they merely nodded and skipped off, hands in pockets.Â
They headed back towards the laundromat, climbing in the same secure place they had been residing in for a while (except for sleeping there, because who sleeps in a laundry machine? What kind of a filthy animal do you think Yoshimi is). They had already collected the skin care products they found in their room and gathered it to make a very nice nest.Â
Yoshimi climbed in and shut the lid, wiggling in for a more comfortable position in the machine. They sighed happily and moved up their mask so their lips could be seen and reached in their pocket. Taking out a candy, they tossed one in their mouth and chewed.
Hearing incoming footsteps, they decided to mess around a bit this time. No more hiding for Yoshimi. Slipping their mask back down, they hollered.
âTHE ALMIGHTY RED PANDA WISHES TO SPEAK TO THE MORTAL.â What a great introduction. âTHE RED PANDA REQUESTS FOOD BE SACRIFICED TO THE GREAT PANDA GODS.â They paused, âALSO MAYBE SOME NICE BEVERAGES. THE RED PANDA FAVORS STRAWBERRY MILK. CHOCOLATE IS OKAY.â For dramatic effect, they hissed at the end and started wiggling to make rattling noises.Â
The last time Eri had gone to the laundromat, sheâd found both new electronics and new friends â and even if that statement only really worked for very limited values of âfoundâ, âelectronicsâ, and âfriendsâ, Eri wasnât about to give up on a winning formula.
If Yoshimi had previously been in the room at the same time as her, Eri's focus had been so scattered as to entirely miss them, mistaking the intermittent hissing and rattling sounds for the sound of clothes serenely being washed. That was probably what washing machines sounded like, Eri thought. Even if she had the mechanical skills to build one from scratch, it wasnât like she had ever washed her clothes in one herself.
This time, though, it was hard to mistake the imperious demands of a panda god for any kind of ambient laundromat noise. Eri glanced down at the greeting, then crouched down in the way least likely to strain her joints and pressed her face against the glass.
âKyahaha! A wandering panda god! Spectacular!! All this time, Iâve been searching for the wrong life forms!!â It seemed cruel that sheâd accidentally run into a panda god first after a life of dedicated but fruitless alien-hunting, but such was fate. Today had been a strange day. As a result, though, she was entirely unprepared for the godâs demands. Entirely without preface, she blurted out the first question that came to mind. âIf I bring you your sacrifice, laundry spirit, will you grant me the power of eternal fresh detergent smell? I've always yearned for the zingy aura of a lime!!â
Regardless of Yoshimiâs dramatic wiggling, Eri put a hand to her chin in serious thought, looking ready to interrogate them with about six more questions if she wasnât interrupted. Fortunately for everyone involved, she was interrupted, Caprica-tanâs interface lighting up in xir notification sequence behind her.
âTakenaka-oneesan, scanning of the [PANDA GOD] has been completed!â Caprica-tanâs loading icon briefly spun. âOh, my! Scan results confirm that the [PANDA GOD] is: a [HUMAN].â
âEhhh?â Eri staggered back, leaving steam marks in the shape of her face on the front panel of the washing machine. âWeâve been snookered, Caprica-tan!!â When the shock of being mistaken for a foolish mortal wore off, Eriâs pose went slack, then she looked the person in the washing machine over again. âYou werenât a panda god all along, were you? You were a panda human! With a panda mask!â A beat passed, then she broke out in a thrilled grin. âHow impressive!!â
Yes, Eris was /absolutely/ correct in IDing the âperpâ⊠Â
Eriâs fine space tailoring is definitely, letâs say⊠âhard to missâŠâ but after seeing her so plainly âin actionâŠâ Eris was positive.
Eris had actually quite enjoyed herself watching Eriâs videos. Eri, on screen, reminded her much of a zany cartoon or video game character, full of larger-than-life energy and gusto. She knocked many reporters out with her strange wit and charmâand Eris had considered briefly that she would like to see Eri in person, in action. She most certainly wondered what she was /really/ like.
In person, in action, Eris feels sheâs gotten more than she asked for. After each tangent, Eris finds herself almost /doubling backwards/. How can such big gestures and personality come out of such a small person? She canât be more than five feet tall! In the courtroom, sheâs perfectly content to deal with any manner of outburst. In fact, she relies on it. But in her everyday life⊠Itâs almost too much for her to take in!
But when she mocks her Chords of Steel⊠Well, thatâs when Eris decides sheâs had enough. Time to stop being overwhelmed and get down to business. She goes back to gritting her teeth.
âYou may call me. Von Rrong-sama or Rrong-sama.â She huffs it out. Taking a deep breath, she tilts her chin upwards again.
âI noticed the cameras. I had assumed cameras would be /everywhere/ in the school in case of a mishap or a theft. Surely a school as prestigious as this one that that takes in /criminals/ as âprodigiesâ would want to watch them at all times.â
Eri cocked her head slightly at the correction; it hadnât quite occurred to her that when a person had a public nickname, they didnât always want to be constantly addressed by it. With the help of an overeager media, sheâd garnered a few grandiose nicknames herself â The Girl Genius of JAXA, The Cybernetic Savant, and so on â but none of them had been so impressive as to reference demons. She was almost jealous, really! So jealous, in fact, that Erisâ next point regarding the cameras threw both her conspiracy and her focus off-balance.
âGyah! Youâve defeated me! Thatâs a totally logical explanation!!â Eri reeled back dramatically, insofar as one could reel when they were still sitting on the edge of a laundry machine. Unfortunately, the shock of being proven wrong also had the effect of making her forget Erisâ minute-old request. âThatâs the analytical annihilation I was waiting to see, The Demon Heiress Eris Von Rrong!â Remembering a few seconds too late, Eri raised a finger, then added in a deadpan: â...âsama.â
âMy, my, I almost fell for it! You almost bamboozled me with your word tricks!! But you didnât realise you were reckoning with The Mechanical Maiden, Eri Takenaka!â Alright, so perhaps sheâd made that particular title up. âIâll just make an objection! Take that!â A beat passed, then Eri tilted her head again, looking genuinely concerned that she was following her totally imagined lawyer-protocol. âThatâs how this works, right?â
The entertainment value of the scenario aside, the other girl had a point â but the 'bunkerâ cover story still sat entirely wrong with Eri. Placing a hand to her chin, Eri looked unnervingly solemnly into the distance for a moment, then verbalised her thoughts with an odd directness.
âIf this rationale for this surveillance system is to protect us against internal threats, why isnât there a way for us to contact the outside from this bunker? Isnât it almost like... theyâre blocking us from doing just that?!â She cocked her head, still looking uncharacteristically grave â then, finally, broke out in an impish smirk. âEhhhhh?â
[PROMPT] Three Heads Are Better Than One // Threeway Closed Thread // Eri and Reika
This ElectroID that theyâd beeen handed was a fascinating little gadget; Kibin hadnât put it dow in all the spare moments heâd had to himself. Looking over itâs functions, giving it a small knock against the walls and floor to test itâs durability, even trying to have a look into it to see if he could find anything helpful in itâs coding. Alas, thre was nothing to be found, though upon studying the map once more, Kibin grew curious of the area at the end of the dormatory halls  where there was a room marked only with a question mark to be seen.
Was it an error in the mapâs code which stopped the roomâs symbol from showing up? Was it a secret room that was yet to be explored? Either way, Kibin was curious as all hell right now. But he figured going alone could be risky, he didnât want to end up stuck somewhere with no one knowing where he would be. Thus he ended up looking around for any classmates in his immediate area,
âHmmmm, Iâm not sure if anyone came this way-! Oh!â
No sooner had the words left his mouth than heâd noticed Eri and Reika walking around the nearest corner. What a lucky break! An adventure on the horizon and two new friends to hopefully accompany him!
âAh, excuse me! Would you two be able to spare a moment? Iâve found something on the map and my curiosity is getting the better of me right now!â
His excited tone was mirrored by his eager shaking as he held out his ElectroID so they wouldnât have to take out theirs,
âSee? This room here, it looks pretty curious, right? Perhaps we can go and explore it!â
Eri had noticed it too, of course. As thrilling as it had been to realise that the bunker had a cafe, or to steal electronics from the laundromatâs washing machines, neither of those experiences had quite compared to the mystery of a hidden room. Sheâd headed there as soon as sheâd made her rounds around the rest of the explorable map â and while it was sheer coincidence that Kibin was already there (and that Reika would appear soon), she couldnât say she wasnât pleasantly entertained by the prospect of several SHSL students dramatically breaking in.
As was probably apparent, she was taking this situation about as seriously as Kibin was.
âMy, my. My, my, my,â Eri mused at the greeting, leaning forward to peer at the proffered ElectroID. âI knew it! Youâve noticed it too, Kibin Kuchibashi!!â They hadnât formally introduced themselves yet, but that was besides the point. Kibin was in a field not too distant from her own, to the point where she had begun to playfully consider them rivals already â so the potential uncomfortableness of calling them by their name escaped her even more quickly than most social graces did.
She briefly rattled the door handle â to no success, as sheâd suspected â then crouched to stare at the card key reader blocking their way. When she finally turned back to Kibin, it was with an inquisitive sparkle in her eyes. âKyahaha! Theyâve underestimated us! Iâm almost disappointed they thought they could thwart us with such a low-tech barrier!!â
Before she and Kibin found themselves in an infinite loop of enthusing about the door, Eri startled, her head turning towards the sound of footsteps echoing from further down the hall.
Kimiko had spent an extensive amount of time on getting information. Socially, she was absolutely exhausted. Not only had she grown dull of the repetitive introductions, but so far none of the students had shed the slightest bit of light on their situation. Kimiko supposed that was to be expected though. If she hadnât been informed of anything, why would anyone else? It was rather frustrating to say the least though. Hopeâs Peak sure had some terrible emergency response; thatâs what she would like to think at least. There were other possible answers to this scenario, but a majority of them were much more grim. Shaking the thought, Kimiko paused as she heard an odd noise coming from the laundry room. Did she finally stumble across some staff that could help her?
It had to be a personâ or she hoped it was. She couldnât quite tell from the yelp that followed the peculiar sounds. Hesitant, Kimiko entered the room, glancing around for any occupants. Just as she began to swear that she was simply imagining the sounds, a hand reached from behind the washing machine. Was this some sort of technician? She cocked her head to the side, a mixture of lost and vaguely intrigued as a person climbed out from behind the machineâ wait were they holding wires?
âWho the hell areâ?â She was cut off as they dashed towards her, frantically whispering about something dire. Too late for what exactly? Had one of those dreaded alternatives become reality? Before she could press further, the stranger asked a question, then followed up with laughter.
âA 1N3 what?!â God this person was making her head spin. Needless to say, she was beginning to get a bit annoyed. This person obviously had the attention span of a five year old, so the probability of them being actually helpful was growing slimmer by the second. âCan you slow the hell down for a second? Youâre making me even more confused than I already was, and thatâs saying a lot.âÂ
âMay I start off by asking what the hell youâre doing in here? Second of all, what do you mean itâs already too late? What is it too late for; and third⊠who are you?â She finally finished, catching her breath from firing the questions so fast. So much for getting some quiet alone timeâŠ
Even if Eri hadnât researched her future classmates to the point of recalling their talents on sight, Kimikoâs impeccably maintained make-up would have been a dead giveaway. Instead of being particularly unsettled by the situation, Eriâs thoughts wandered: if Kimiko could live up to her title even in the wake of a disaster and/or conspiracy abduction, she really was a prodigy!Â
The other girl had been right about Eriâs attention span; Kimikoâs questions were a quick-fire blur to her. Her tone was both very urgent and very blunt, but Eri was neither good at reading other people nor inclined to judge them â so at the very least, she wasnât about to take offence. Everyone, including Kimiko, had their own way of being serious about serious situations, she thought. Even if, at face value, Eri seemed far from serious herself.
âYes, I can slow down!!â Eri said, then immediately forgot to slow down. Though she seemed genuinely committed to providing information, her answers sprawled in all directions, each sentence punctuated with an even grander gesture than the last.
âJust looking for some components the old-fashioned way! Kyahaha, would you believe it? I was nearly convinced by theirââ (air-quotes) âââofficialâ notice, but then I checked my things, andâ Gyah!â She mimicked her reaction, in a motion that was probably too animated for comfort given how close she was standing. âNo phone! No signal at all!! Theyâve left me no choice but to radio my way out!! How positively vintage!â A beat passed, then she patted the washing machine sheâd gutted as though to console it for its sacrifice. â...If it makes you feel better, that one needed maintenance anyway.â
As though to answer Kimikoâs second question, she pointedly glanced up at the camera in the room. âBut itâs too late... for us to do anything without them watching us already. Without a signal to the outside! Either this is a HPA initiation test, or Iâve seriously misjudged our governmentâs agenda!!â Without even the slightest hint of a pause, the ominousness of her tone vanished, and she moved on to Kimikoâs third question. âIâm Eri Takenaka, andâ wait!! I forgot to slow down! Transmitting apology signals to Kimiko Wakahisa!!â
Aisha knew that a fair number of her classmates were practically celebrities, but she hadnât been expecting anyone to immediately recognize her. Her current work - making sure buildings went down as neatly and silently as possible - wasnât exactly what you might call glamorous, and she hadnât been in the news that much. Not that she minded, of course; having paparazzi constantly hanging around, or having to run around between interviews and stuff like that, wouldâve been kind of a pain.
Turning around at the sound of her name and title, she was even more surprised to see the face of the student addressing her. It was definitely one she knew.
âYouâreâŠE-Eri Takenaka! You seriously know who I am?â
âYeah, thatâs totally me! Itâs so cool that Iâm actually getting to meet you!â She hadnât visited the message boards where people discussed who was in the next class of Hopeâs Peak, but she did know enough about Eri in particular that sheâd been anticipating having her as a classmate. âYou probably hear this a lot, but Iâm a big fan!â
She chuckled awkwardly at the idea of needing to blast open an exit for them. It really did seem to be taking a while for a teacher to come, but that wouldnât be necessary, would it?
âAhahaâŠwell, I donât think the school would like that very much. Or the cops. Or my mom.â Yeah, Eri had to be joking. âHypothetically speaking, it all depends on what I can get my hands on. This place probably doesnât have any chemicals, but if I take a good look at the cleaning implements they use-â
ââŠWait, forget I said any of that last stuff there. Seriously.â
âThatâs me! At your service!â Eri straightened up at the sound of her name, giving an exaggerated salute. When Aisha went on to say she was a fan, Eriâs face lit up with both a wider grin and a touch of embarrassment â then, noticing the latter, she rapidly turned her face away, shielding it with the back of her hand.
âGyahâ! My circuits are overloading!!â She wasnât going to pretend praise didnât affect her; nor could she really pretend so, even if she really tried. âI do hear it a lot! But Iâm still overwhelmed!!â
It was everyday for her to be described as a prodigy on the news and in the workplace, but there was a world of difference between that and praise from someone her own age. Despite being a technical SHSL like her whose explosives knowledge was intense enough to advice law enforcement, Aisha came across as entirely more down to earth than Eri (both literally and figuratively) and that made this situation almost entirely new to her.
When Aisha turned the subject back to her question, it was a relief â even if Aishaâs joking on the matter was interpreted entirely seriously by Eri, and Eriâs seriousness on the matter interpreted entirely as a joke by Aisha. As soon as Aisha mentioned her hypothetical ability to assemble something out of the cleaning chemicals, Eri snapped her fingers through her gloves, then pointed them at Aisha with another broad beam.
âKyahaha! I knew you could do it! Sensational! Weâll be blasting off in no time, Aisha Hino!!â It was probably still hard to tell whether Eri was actually joking, at least to a stranger. On a visibly solemn note, though, she pointed a thumb back towards Caprica-tan, who had just managed to weave xir way through the crowd, adding:Â â...Oho, just make sure you donât reveal your recipes to Caprica-tan over there. When xe sees new things, the learning algorithms Nee-san programmed into xem can get a little... unruly.â
