Yes. Now only Zhongli's killer remains at large. [... a pause.] Speaking of, do you have any thoughts now that we can eliminate Akihiko from the list of suspects?
I do. [ he sets his sketchbook aside for now, and pulls out his trial notes, instead, smoothing the pages open to the chart of people with bruises from the week of zhongli's trial. all of the names of those that were in the flower garden are highlighted! including his own because he's a thorough bitch.
Basilio. Claude. Lucas. Taair. Uruha.
he taps his pen against the page. ]
... I think it must have been someone in this group, Mizu. I can set myself aside, in this situation, for obvious reasons. [ unless i did a murder?? spooky ] But... I kept thinking about it - the flower garden was the only strange location. Every other place mentioned that day, related to that case, was at least on the island where the attack occurred. It makes logical sense that if someone wanted to cover their own injury, they would round out all the locations in the new area and hit anyone sleeping there at random, because most weeks, we tend to pile into new places.
But the garden is different. It was far from the site of the killing, and had no other connection to it - no evidence, or anything. That means that logically, the person who killed and was attempting to cover their tracks must have been there.
[ his pen lingers on the page... and after a moment, he taps the names. the first is lucas. ] I thought Lucas has been acting a bit strangely, but... I'm not sure. [ also aki was ooc out sweaty ] He does not strike me as the type to try to trick his opponent. Neither does Basilio.
[ there's a pause. his emotions do a twist of something anxious and deeply unhappy.
his pen lands on claude. ]
.... Mizu. Do you remember a few weeks ago? We discussed as a group, the four of us, that we might set traps if we awoke on a Thursday. And what did we find in the diner but... a trap.
there's no alarm. there's no surprise. only the quiet and resigned acceptance of someone who had come to the same conclusion, though perhaps less eloquently. anticipatory grief.]
... Claude has been behaving strangely as of late. You are not the only one who came to this conclusion. [closes eye, briefly. there is grief, yes. but there is also resolve.] I'm sure I don't need to tell you to avoid confronting him, alone, with this information.
No. No, of course not - I would likely perish in the process.
[ in tandem, taair's grief matches mizu's - a gnawing sense of loss, loneliness, and then slowly it numbs itself, settling out into that very same sense of resignation and... resolve. the understanding of what must happen, no matter how painful.
I haven't told him of my suspicions, and I have no plans to do so. I ask that you don't tell him, either.
[there is something... complicated in mizu's emotions here. worry and concern. the slightest tinge of fear, now that richie's involvement has come up.]
You know he's the kind of man who doesn't always think before he leaps. [frustratingly. stupid fucking idiot of a man.] I worry that if he becomes suspicious of Claude, he won't be able to pretend nothing is wrong between them. And they're roommates.
[ taair says, immediately - there's a rush of emotion on his end, warmth and fondness and worry all at once, and he reaches out to set his hand on their arm and squeeze, gentle and reassuring, heart aching and soft, too soft, for his dear, dear friends. ] Rest assured, any secret you tell would be safe with me.
[ he falls silent for a moment, brows furrowing in consideration as he steps back from the situation mentally, replays what mizu has said, and slowly, there's a soft, building feeling of dread. ]
[this is now very funny in light of uruha and saber just GOING for it off schedule, but it's fine. neither of them know shit about anything in this backtagged saturday thread, so mizu just nods.]
If he is afflicted, then I don't intend to leave him like this. We owe him that much.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
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I do. [ he sets his sketchbook aside for now, and pulls out his trial notes, instead, smoothing the pages open to the chart of people with bruises from the week of zhongli's trial. all of the names of those that were in the flower garden are highlighted! including his own because he's a thorough bitch.
Basilio. Claude. Lucas. Taair. Uruha.
he taps his pen against the page. ]
... I think it must have been someone in this group, Mizu. I can set myself aside, in this situation, for obvious reasons. [ unless i did a murder?? spooky ] But... I kept thinking about it - the flower garden was the only strange location. Every other place mentioned that day, related to that case, was at least on the island where the attack occurred. It makes logical sense that if someone wanted to cover their own injury, they would round out all the locations in the new area and hit anyone sleeping there at random, because most weeks, we tend to pile into new places.
But the garden is different. It was far from the site of the killing, and had no other connection to it - no evidence, or anything. That means that logically, the person who killed and was attempting to cover their tracks must have been there.
[ his pen lingers on the page... and after a moment, he taps the names. the first is lucas. ] I thought Lucas has been acting a bit strangely, but... I'm not sure. [ also aki was ooc out sweaty ] He does not strike me as the type to try to trick his opponent. Neither does Basilio.
[ there's a pause. his emotions do a twist of something anxious and deeply unhappy.
his pen lands on claude. ]
.... Mizu. Do you remember a few weeks ago? We discussed as a group, the four of us, that we might set traps if we awoke on a Thursday. And what did we find in the diner but... a trap.
I think... I think this is my best guess.
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there's no alarm. there's no surprise. only the quiet and resigned acceptance of someone who had come to the same conclusion, though perhaps less eloquently. anticipatory grief.]
... Claude has been behaving strangely as of late. You are not the only one who came to this conclusion. [closes eye, briefly. there is grief, yes. but there is also resolve.] I'm sure I don't need to tell you to avoid confronting him, alone, with this information.
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No. No, of course not - I would likely perish in the process.
[ in tandem, taair's grief matches mizu's - a gnawing sense of loss, loneliness, and then slowly it numbs itself, settling out into that very same sense of resignation and... resolve. the understanding of what must happen, no matter how painful.
he swallows, hard. ] Does Richie know?
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I haven't told him of my suspicions, and I have no plans to do so. I ask that you don't tell him, either.
[there is something... complicated in mizu's emotions here. worry and concern. the slightest tinge of fear, now that richie's involvement has come up.]
You know he's the kind of man who doesn't always think before he leaps. [frustratingly. stupid fucking idiot of a man.] I worry that if he becomes suspicious of Claude, he won't be able to pretend nothing is wrong between them. And they're roommates.
no subject
[ taair says, immediately - there's a rush of emotion on his end, warmth and fondness and worry all at once, and he reaches out to set his hand on their arm and squeeze, gentle and reassuring, heart aching and soft, too soft, for his dear, dear friends. ] Rest assured, any secret you tell would be safe with me.
[ he falls silent for a moment, brows furrowing in consideration as he steps back from the situation mentally, replays what mizu has said, and slowly, there's a soft, building feeling of dread. ]
...Do you intend to....
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If he is afflicted, then I don't intend to leave him like this. We owe him that much.