Take Responsibility.

[wordsmithery]

The ride up to the courtroom occurs, as before, after an allotted period of time for investigation; the elevator waits patiently for you at each floor - third, second, first - before sending you upwards and on your way to the courtroom high above. As always, the trip is a smooth one; granted, after everything that the morning had been, any small comfort that fact may bring is likely not helping much. There are three less of you this time around, a fact reflected in the podium circle standing in the middle of the room; Alani, Milla and Chiyuki have all joined the ranks of the deceased, their podiums draped in black and their portraits in greyscale keeping a watchful eye over the rest of the trial circle. There's still no one present in the lectern above; however, once everyone has found their place in the circle, the Wordsmith's voice can be heard throughout the room. "I can see that matters are beginning to seem dire for you, Apprentices. I am sure that you all cared for Sympathetic in some measure—all except the guilty party. And now it falls to you once again to determine who that is. For your own sake as well as Sympathetic's, hold her killer accountable and have them take responsibility for their actions." Twenty-four Apprentices remain. We'll see how many remain at the end of the day.

Comments

[modernmedicine]

You seem awfully defensive about that, Kira. Most people wouldn't take a test of character as something to be worried about if there was nothing remarkable about it. Maybe a light shrug and a 'nothing special here', but that's hardly worrying...

[alchemicals]

So. What. He wasn't involved in this.

[modernmedicine]

I'm curious. Also, what makes you so insistent? If you were together the entire night, it's best to come out and say that so it's an alibi for both of you.

[avoidcomplications]

....What is that implying, doctor?

[modernmedicine]

Nothing at all. If you were up talking all night, you would be an alibi for each other. It doesn't have to mean anything sordid.

[alchemicals]

We weren't, no.

[foundfate]

Did you do it, then? So that nobody would find out your friend's secret?

[feistytrader]

Kimbley doesn't care if he dies. If that was the case, he easily could have admitted to it or even killed someone right in front of us instead of helping us figure out what happened.

[elepe]

...Silver, dear, do you remember what happened the last time we suspected him?

[He'd probably be a difficult brat whether he was the culprit or not in her eyes, god.]

[feistytrader]

I do. I'm not saying he wouldn't give us a hard time.

I just don't think that he'd let it go on like this if the intention was to cover for Kira.

[foundfate]

[He looks away and his voice is a little quieter as he speaks, because yeah.]

If one of my friends killed someone, I would be in denial over it.

[foundfate]

Kira's secret doesn't necessarily make him the killer, but everything right now makes me believe that it's a secret worth killing him over. Kimbley is very quick to defend Kira, insisting that Kira didn't do it, but won't say anything else beyond that.

It's suspicious.

[It's got to be one of them, right?]

[introspects]

Well...they're lovers, aren't they? I can see why Kimbley-san would be quick to defend him...

[ UM??? ]

It still is a little suspicious, though.

[avoidcomplications]

Excuse me?

[plegia]

[MORE EVIL LAUGHTER FROM THE PEANUT GALLERY]

[uncouthhatcher]

Don't be assumin' they're lovers, girly, that's just askin' for trouble.

[... source: he has Experienced the assumptions of like, everyone here, and it's kind of a Pain]

[modernmedicine]

[HIME.............]

It's definitely suspicious, but I don't know if I'd quite go that far.

[uncouthhatcher]

Kimbley's always been like this, he defended Elda last trial and his own right to feet privacy in the first.

[... So.]

[alchemicals]

[YOU FUCKING KNOW WHAT- ]

Yoshikage Kira has an "ability." That's what his secret said. His world has supernatural shit in it and he's also got something weird going on. That's what he doesn't want people to know, he doesn't want the interruptions to his damn life and he doesn't want to field nine thousand questions from everyone because he likes being boring.

My goddamn secret was that I blackmailed the leader of my country, slaughtered a city and killed 7000 additional people. Furthermore, I showed him my damn envelope. Yeah, his is bad as far as he's concerned. But why would he kill anyone over his secret, knowing that things like that were out there?

[avoidcomplications]

...

[you know what kimbley you're alright]

1/2

[foundfate]

[That outburst tho]

[neverheardofhim]

... 7000 people. [Shit dude...]

[iaspis]

[jesus christ]

....let's talk after this is over.

[again]

[plegia]

[Now is absolutely not the time but listen, he just can't let this one go—]

Sounds like you had fun!

2/2

[foundfate]

[He's noticeably less insistent when he speaks now, because holy hell he wasn't expecting that much of a reaction, but.]

Kimbley, half the people here have the same kind of powers! There's a giant shadow that's been swallowing people and bodies up whole! There's talking animals!

Why would he keep hiding that when the people here are probably one of the few chances he would get to have someone that can relate to that kind of life?