asswipe | [ch. 5] post-investigation, w/ the three stooges

[It sure is a piece of paper. Dazai reads it.]

...Nine total survivors... would mean a lot more deaths.

[He's still distraught after finding another body, another person he cares for, and even if that weren't the case - the information wouldn't sink in immediately. It's too much all at once, especially when taking the implications here are.

Quietly:]

...I don't, don't understand what this means.

[Part of him does, probably, but it isn't clicking immediately, even when Dazai speaks up.]

[Souji is also looking Listless Once Again. Sousei and Jae-ha were both people he was close to and they have a mystery body out there somewhere which is an EXTRA STRESS!!

But he does understand the implications here, lips pressed together.]

...It means that by the end of this, there ought to be three survivors from every faction, with seven objectives completed from each. Is that right?

... Yeah. What Souji said.

[She's not as wrung out as Souji and Evan are, given that she wasn't particularly close to either of the known victims, but... There's a missing body somewhere out there. And then, there's this fun fact.

Though, at least she's had enough time to process it by now.]

Furthermore, nine isn't an even number. Even if we got that number, someone is going to be partnerless, and... I don't think there's another doll laying around to save them like Natsuo. I... I don't know how we're going to make this work.

Does that mean exactly nine? Or at least three from each remaining when all factions have seven objectives completed?

...What? No. No, no, that's not... That can't be right, that's...

[As it starts to sink in, he glances towards each of them in turn, alarmed. The sensations that start up as the information settles are familiar to him, by now. His hands start to tremble, his heartbeat echoes in his ears, and he suddenly has a sensation that the room is spinning around him.

He doesn't say another word, but his breath is more shallow than it normally is as he brings his hands up to his face, planting them over his mouth as his eyes widen with realization.

It's probably fine, just give him a minute.]

[HE WILL get back to Veronica's Very Important Point in a second, because Evan's reaction is definitely immediately concerning. Despite how exhausted he is from the Everything of today, he'll still reach out, placing a careful hand on Evan's shoulder but not really knowing what to... say. Obviously he's not okay. None of them are.]

[She's about to open her mouth to answer that question when Evan starts panicking so, uh. This takes precedence, obviously.

She's going to scoot closer to him, but not enough that he'd feel like everyone is crowding up on him. Maybe........ Maybe she should have been more gentle about revealing this to them? Maybe. It's too late for that, though.]

Hey— Hey, no. No, no, Evan. It's okay. It's going to be okay. I need you to breathe in sync with me, okay? Can you do that? Can you follow my lead?

[Oh no. Oh no, oh no, nothing else about what they were discussing is important because Evan is panicking. Veronica is talking to Evan and what she's saying might calm Evan down, so Dazai won't say anything over her - but he is going to slide behind Evan so he can hug him fully without getting in anyone's way. He holds Evan close to his chest, hoping that it's warm and secure and at least a little comforting.

If he gets stuck like this for a few hours, so be it.]

[Someone's putting a hand on his shoulder and someone is drawing him closer, and he's aware of it in a vague sense, but it's the words Veronica is saying that finally cut through the rush of thoughts and the haze of panic that have started to overtake him.

He looks up at her, making an effort to stop himself from hyperventilating. His heart feels like it's going to burst, but he closes his eyes and draws in heavy, deep breaths, bringing his hands away from his face.

After a few moments of this, once he's sure that he can gather enough air to form words. His tone is still frenzied, but he's trying to focus. There's a lot he wants to say, but he'll start with...]

Sorry. Sorry, sorry, I'm, I'll be fine, I'm - sorry. You, you were saying something. I'm okay. Sorry. Keep going.

[Thank god at least one of them is good at handling someone dealing with panic attacks...]

You don't need to apologize, Evan.

[First and foremost. That's probably a pretty healthy reaction to news like that, honestly. Still, after giving Evan a careful look, he turns his attention back to Veronica, brow creased.]

...I'd also like to know if it needs to be exactly that, though, or if it's some sort of minimum.

... Seriously, you don't have to apologize. We can take a break and go make some tea, or— or drink some cola if you don't feel okay to continue. This can wait.

[It's a very healthy reaction, if not... bad, given that they need to stay calm to properly digest this. Either way, she chews on her lower lip for a moment before she just kind of. Gives them a one armed shrug.]

I used one of my, um, tokens. From completing my objectives, not murder. And... yesterday, I woke up knowing that one set of numbers is tied to how many objectives must be completed, and that the other is tied to how many of each faction must remain. But— I didn't know which. [...] I spoke to someone else who had better information than me. They confirmed that there needs to be three survivors from each faction. I... I don't think it's a minimum.

[Hmmmm don't like that. But Dazai's only halfway present in Veronica's conversation now, because Partner Priorities.]

You don't have anything to be sorry for, you didn't do anything wrong...

So three is a, a maximum.

[He still seems like it's taken a concerted effort to keep breathing, especially with that confirmation. Still...]

Is, is seven a maximum or a minimum?

[Getting down to exactly nine people to win seems like a DANGEROUS GAME!! He sighs, pressing his fingers to his lips before speaking again.]

I've seen the numbers before, but I wasn't aware of what they meant back then. I assume this person you spoke with has your trust?

[Because he feels a big ol' Unsure here, but... who knows. Maybe that's just him not wanting to accept that they'll need to shave off over half of their remaining fellows to be successful.]

I hope it's a minimum. If it isn't, the villains are already screwed over because I've finished three of mine.

[SO. That's a thing. At Souji's question, though, she nods.]

Yes. I trust them with my life. [Which are big words!! But after a moment, she frowns.] ... If you don't mind me asking, where did you see them? Someone else showed them to me, but their information was secondhand.

[Dazai... doesn't have any useful info to add here, so he just nods along while he clings to Evan's back.]

Considering how much we're encouraged to fulfill our objectives, I don't think it would be a maximum...

...I know the heroes have, have finished more than, than seven.

[So. Let's pray it's a minimum. But, the bigger question...]

What are we... What are we going to, to do?

[With this information, but also in general. Save them!!]

Is it how many our factions finish in total, though? Or the total number of objectives completed by our last three...?

[That could make things even more complicated, which he assumes means it's probably true. THANKS CASTLE HE HATES IT!!

To Veronica, though - first, he nods in acceptance of her answer. Trusting people with your life in murdercastle does mean a lot! As for the question:]

It was a wish from the well for a clue that could help to end the game... A puzzle which revealed those numbers once it was assembled, but that was all.

[Obviously just 777333 with no further information was met with a lot of "WHY THE FCK" and general Well Irritation.]

If it's the total number completed by the Narrators who are still with us, we're screwed. So... Let's hope it's the former. I'm worried about the other factions having to match however many objectives the heroes complete, though.

[Because, well. Balance is the key in this war, for whatever shitty reason. It's good that the heroes have done more than seven, but it's not going to be good if the villains are going to have to play catch up with them.

God.]

Oh. [Just, oh.] My source must have gotten the numbers from you, then? Or... from someone else you showed it to. Some people don't know how to stop gossiping around here.

Normally, sharing info about how to escape the murder game would be a good thing...

I can safely say I'm a hero who hasn't completed an objective and probably never will, if that helps?

[god he hates his objective]

[ch. 5] post-investigation, w/ the three stooges

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