week 5; sunday ( hikage & steph )

[axilium]

[today has been... eventful. the execution sucked, but hikage is making the day better, at least? amazing.

in any case, off they go to hikage's and steph's room, since that's where belph's taking him.]

Steph, you better be in there—I've got your boyfriend with me!

Comments

[vigilantics]

[ hold on, she's just going to toss a pillow at belph. shut up, troll. ]

I'm just glad he was finally able to tell you. I was getting worried that he was going to resort to smoke signals.

[ she grew more and more tired every time belph came back with a "uh i didn't tell him." ]

You're the only person who knows that I'm a Vizier, by the way. Well... besides Belph, obviously, but he doesn't count there.

[psychedelica]

[ thank you, Steph, for not choosing to side with the "embarrass Hikage" faction this time. Still, he finds he's not even mad about Belph's teasing, either. He's happy. That's the teasing of a friend. He didn't think he could feel this way again... ]

I won't say anything. There's nothing for me to gain from that.

[ That's not a lie. This is all real. They came to him with this. Hikage looks a little flustered, still, by all of this, but he smiles, and it's warmer and more alive than any of his others have been. ]

... I wish I could have met you two while I was alive. [ it's impossible, of course. still, he's sure things would have gone differently. ] Thank you. For believing in me.

[axilium]

I'm pretty sure Hikage would miss smoke signals too.

[don't tease him, steph!!

anyway, that's... honestly a pretty heavy statement, and belph is touched but also not sure how to respond.]

Well, as miserable as this shi—I mean, as somewhat undesirable as our current situation is, glad to know we can make your pseudo-afterlife a little more bearable.

... Actually, I guess Steph still makes it pretty insufferable, what with her recklessness...

[vigilantics]

I haven't gotten injured in weeks.

[ it's said with a huff, because how dare they ignore her valiant efforts at not losing another limb?

still, hikage's words make her... happy. for weeks she had been struggling to figure out some sort of way to get him to accept that she does actually genuinely like him as a person and not just as her partner. ]

I'm thankful that I've gotten to meet you.

[psychedelica]

[ she's lucky she has 3 spare limbs, frankly...

As usual, Belph doesn't offer much in the way of his own feelings, but for once, he feels like he can actually believe what Steph's telling him. Heart-to-hearts like this are foreign to him, by this point - it's been decades since he had one - and, feeling embarrassed, he ducks his head. ]

... If you're really grateful, then don't make me worry about you.

[ it's a response to Steph, but it applies to both of them, really... and it's more of a deflection than anything. He's not good at being honest with his feelings. The fact that he thanked them took most of his effort already. ]

[axilium]

Pretty sure that's impossible for her!

[belph, the peanut gallery. still, he's glad for the two of them. hikage, in particular, seems like he needs this.]

[vigilantics]

[ TOSES ANOTHER PILLOW AT BELPH. ]

I don't do it on purpose.

[ how was she supposed to know that her getting maimed would make people worry about her? ]

[psychedelica]

[ WHO COULD HAVE GUESSED... ]

Whatever. You're a lost cause. [ he waves a hand - but it's in good spirits, as harsh as his words may be. ]

I don't know if I can help you. But if there's an item you need for Saturday, I can try and get it.

[axilium]

What the heck have you been using your role for, anyway? I'm actually still not completely sure what you even do.

[vigilantics]

Yeah, speaking of role... I haven't smelled anything bad in a while.

[ she still thinks the sulfur incident was hilarious. ]

[psychedelica]

Ah... The items don't have anything to do with my role.

[ he looks mildly annoyed at the stinky comment, but he lets it go, putting his hands on his hips and lowering his head in thought. ]

The Alchemist is offered a set of 5 words every week. I pick one, and it has a random effect on the palace... They won't tell me what it is, though. Last week, it was those memory pearls.

[axilium]

[............]

Hikage, you officially owe me a drink.

[vigilantics]

Hikage, I am pretty sure I traumatized a fourteen year old over that?

[ listen she knows he doesn't know what they do when he picks them. but why. ]

[psychedelica]

It's not my fault. I have no idea what they do. I've been trying to get clues out of them every week, and they won't tell me anything! [ ... ] The one time I asked for a recommendation, everyone got stab wounds. So I just go with my gut.

[axilium]

Well, good to know your gut wasn't what got us injured...?

[STILL. UGGGGGH.]

So how exactly does your title ability work, then?

[vigilantics]

[ she just nods her head. answer, binch. ]

[psychedelica]

[ he doesn't like it, either.

it shocks him how quickly he answers these questions when they're the ones asking. He trusts them, he realizes. He never trusts anyone. ]

Every Friday, I can request an item to help with the trial on Saturday. [ this one isn't quite as funny. but he doesn't care. if they betray him now, he deserves it for being so foolish. ] ... When Tiger and Dragon bring items into the middle of the trial - those are my requests.

[axilium]

Do you choose, or do the Crafters? Like, did you voluntarily give us dead swans?

[vigilantics]

And is there any particular time you have to do it by?

[psychedelica]

I choose. I can be very specific.

[ his first choice was not killing the swans but it was probably worse... ]

And I can only do it on Friday after the investigation.

[axilium]

[wtf was his first choice.]

So do you get a list of options, or...?

[honestly, there's no point to these questions other than that he's curious.]

[vigilantics]

And do you choose when they actually show up?

[ since it's been at different times... ]

[psychedelica]

No. To both of you.

[ a pause. ]

... My original objective was to identify three culprits, so I used it for that when I could. Now that I've completed that, I can use it for my own whims. I just felt like trying to solve the mystery this week.

[axilium]

[well, hikage mentioned that to him before, so none of that is a surprise. he just smiles wryly.]

Like giving us dead swans.

[vigilantics]

That was so gross...

[ i say as if i was there but steph, in theory, was, ]