crau2 pcs: harrowhark

[unbested]

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[unbested]

Mm...

[ he frowns a little, but nods. he'd wished kazunari had taken his gloves from him that night so he wouldn't have been the one they caught, and he guesses he can't say for sure that he wouldn't have still felt the same if there'd been only one killer that week. ...he likes to think he would have handled it differently, though. ]

Um, Aquarius and Gemini, mostly? And sometimes Aquila. I didn't see anyone's memories, though. ...Uh, though I'm pretty sure I know who Gemini is, if that makes a difference.

[outsidebones]

Ah. That happens to be a very fruitful place to start this conversation. Let’s put aside whether or not you know who they are.

What was Gemini’s staff room like?

[unbested]

Um... well, Estelle said there was wood furniture and a bunch of law books and a chess set and... some kind of pet that had made a mess everywhere? I think?

[outsidebones]

Did the pet make a mess, or was it messy and there was also a pet?

I think I understand why you assumed the former, because Gemini doesn’t seem the sort to leave their personal quarters messy.

And how did Estelle describe the pet? Be specific.

[unbested]

Oh... I guess that's true. She said there were dog toys everywhere, so I figured...

[ huh. ]

Um, she said it was either a cat or a dog, and she couldn't tell which? Which... I thought was weird, but I figured maybe it was just because some of her world's animals looked different...

[outsidebones]

Having spoken to Estelle, I believe she knows what a cat and a dog look like. It does sound like a very strange creature making a mess of the messy room.

[she drums her fingers on the table.]

Every room had some sort of odd discrepancy, didn't it? Such as the woman's room where there were two styles of makeup, and both male and female clothes. Or the room filled with ornate furniture and also a simple cot.

[unbested]

Oh... yeah, that's true! Vulpecula's closet had like, western-style women's clothes up front, and then smaller Asian-looking men's clothes in the back. I thought maybe they were just... dating someone...

[outsidebones]

Who would they be dating...

[hmm.]

A worry has struck me. It would be easy to assume you knew who was under the hood, to believe them to be someone familiar, but it would be quite embarrassing to be mistaken. Particularly if it was someone you felt you trusted.

[unbested]

Ah... w-well, yeah, that's true too...

[outsidebones]

And then there was that video. People changing their size and shape in it. I happened to notice on Saturday that Virgo - they couldn't seem to lift a shovel, or carry it well. In the video, Virgo was smaller than they appear to be.

Do you have any thoughts about any of this?

[unbested]

Um... I've noticed before that whenever anyone throws something at their head, it kind of just goes straight through? But I could still dance with Aquarius... so...

[ hm. ]

You think the way they're showing themselves to us is... changed by the shadows or something...? Like, it's giving them a more generic appearance to try to keep us from guessing who they are, if their usual appearance would make them too recognizable? So maybe Virgo's really short, but the shadows are making them look taller, and since it's just shadows, they're not... solid... in those extra parts...?

[outsidebones]

Yes, I think their appearance is being changed in exactly the way you describe.

But is it by shadows, or are they doing it? And is it really generic, or are they trying to look a specific way?

[unbested]

I... I don't know. I never really paid attention to how they looked? With Gemini I was just going off of what they said and like, things they did... but you think maybe that's fake too?

[outsidebones]

The reason I asked you if you'd seen any memories is that I have, and in some instances, they were a little different than what I expected.

[unbested]

I-in what way? Um, if you can say without giving too much detail, I guess...

[outsidebones]

I don't think I can.

[she seems frustrated.]

I saw one from Gemini.

[unbested]

And... it didn't seem like it was hi— theirs?

[outsidebones]

[she doesn't react exactly, but a moment later, slowly nodding.]

[unbested]

Did they say anything about it...? If it was during that memory week they would have seen it when you did, right?

[outsidebones]

I don't think I can talk in too much detail about this, based on our conversation.

[unbested]

Y-yeah, okay... that wasn't a broad enough question?

[outsidebones]

It was during memory week. They saw it too. They asked me not to speak about it. I don't want to get them in trouble.

But it is...important to understand the situation almost all of the staff may be in.

[unbested]

Right...

Um... I mean, I'd like to be able to help with stuff, and also maybe to have a better idea of what's going on so I don't misunderstand things and mess something up... A-and I wouldn't tell anyone anything! But... if you think that's a bad idea, then okay. I get it.

[outsidebones]

I know. I would like you to understand as well. That seems valuable.

[she has to stop and think for a moment.]

Let me put it this way. I think you understand the critical point I am making. Both you and I made an assumption about Gemini. Both you and I were incorrect. But we did not make the assumption for no reason. As you said, mannerisms, patterns of speech, the type of items found in the staff room...

It is not a coincidence that we made this assumption. Rather, we were taken in by something deliberate. A word that someone has used that I find useful here is "actor."

[unbested]

[ frowns... ]

So... you think they're not who we think they are, they're someone else pretending to be... that person?

[ oh he hates this theory if he's understanding it correctly. ]

What... would be the reason for that? To trick us into telling them private stuff, or...