i feel the love, and i feel it burn, down this river every turn

[oyashiromama]

[The trial, as usual, was taxing. It's for different reasons every week, but what it all comes down to is there are fewer of them than there were, and that keeps on happening. The note comes, as it always does, earlier than last week, but still with some delay. There's a note slipped under everyone's door. ...One under Gold's door because of course Silver will be staying there, she knows.]

Please come to the dining room, if you would like not to be alone. There will be food, and there will be some cards and board games if you need a distraction.

- Hanyuu & Elda

[True to that, there are a variety of foods. It's nothing too fancy. Rice, grilled fish, eggs in various styles. ...No creampuffs this time, it seems Hanyuu thought that would be a little in poor taste. Also a bunch of fries? ...Really spicy fries, like incredibly so.

On a far table, board games brought from the games room have been left out, along with many decks of cards.]

Comments

[ravagers]

You're not!

[ It... hurts deeply that Orihime thinks this way. She's never thought of Orihime as a burden in any way; she's helped them, both during trials and outside of trials. If anyone is a burden, it's Vanille--what has she contributed to trials? Nothing. Nothing, ever. But she keeps that inside, because turning this back around on herself isn't the way to go. ]

I promise you that. You've helped us so much... You've been a bright spot in the darkness here. [ Vanille holds her close, and she even gives her hair a little nuzzle. ] If you weren't here, I think we wouldn't have gotten so far. You've worked just as hard as any of us.

[ And... more than some, like herself. ]

[introspects]

[ but is that any better than not contributing at all? is it really okay to be sentencing people to their deaths when most of the murders were either from pressure from the wordsmith, or something out of their control? ]

Y-You...you can't possibly...

[ you can't mean that, vanille.

she doesn't finish her sentence, can't bring herself to shatter vanille's spirits when they've both already been broken enough. orihime sobs into vanille's shoulder. so much for staying strong. ]