now listen good and listen straight, you're not the master of your fate

[bloodisthicker]

[Another week, another murder, another absolute shitshow. Tarrlok kind of just wants to lock himself in his room for a while, but... well, he volunteered. So... it's definitely going to be much later in the day before a note advising everyone to meet up in the bar for some comfort food is slipped under everyone's door.

At least Tarrlok didn't have to take care of everything alone, though; while he spent most of the time cooking by himself, Speedwagon and Yosuke helped take some delicious pork buns up to set them out across the bar so that everyone could drown their sorrows in stuffing their faces. And, you know, alcohol, maybe that too. There's also some vegetarian stir fry for people who don't like pork, too, of course.

There isn't an official bartender to start out with, but there is live entertainment courtesy of Yosuke, who's strumming his guitar over in the corner there.

Hopefully someone will step up, because lord knows everyone in the Vault needs a drink right now.]

Comments

[goodforsomething]

[Stan's slow to arrive at the gathering this time. That whole thing back there hit a lot of buttons he's only just realizing he still has, and he needs to get himself back together. Besides, what might people say? He never meant to have defends murderers" as part of his image here. He doesn't regret it; he just isn't in the mood to explain his thinking.

But he does turn up eventually, and pours himself a drink before withdrawing to a table to pick at a pork roll.]

[amygdalae]

Hey.

[And here's Bruce sliding in to settle at his side, having some vegetarian fare himself.

...he can probably ask if Stan's alright, but its pretty clear that he isn't.]

[goodforsomething]

Hey.

[Stan looks up at Bruce for a moment. But he can't think of anything to say.]

[amygdalae]

[Bruce does his best to give a smile, although it probably doesn't work out as well as anybody is hoping.]

How are you feeling?

[...its not quite 'are you alright' but close enough, he supposes.]

[goodforsomething]

Eh.

[He shrugs. There's not a lot to say that isn't obvious, really.]

At least it went quick. I know what I said before, but... [He does regret that some, now.]

[amygdalae]

...they were both victims, in their way.

[Megumi for dying like this, Norman for... being how he is. There's no real good ending for this one, not really.]

[goodforsomething]

Yeah. I don't think -

[Stan stops himself, glances around the room, and starts again.]

I dunno if a lotta folks here really get that. All these vampires and aliens - it's like we forgot that sometimes folks just come from fucked-up situations.

[amygdalae]

...yeah.

[Bruce mutters with a soft sigh tacked on at the end. He knows very, very well about fucked up situations, like it or not.]

It's not hard to... [A pause.] I just wish we could have done something to help before he...

[Well.]

[goodforsomething]

I feel like I should've seen it. I've known a lotta guys who were...

...not like that, exactly. But not exactly on their meds either, if y'know what I mean.

[notjustawriter]

Hey.

[Gabriel takes a seat after a while, looking sad and somber.]

...I got so tied up in the last few cases, somehow I forgot that sometimes people just come from horrible situations.

[goodforsomething]

.....yeah. Thought so.

[He was never particularly upset with Gabriel, really; he wasn't being outright cruel.]

I don't really blame ya. Shit's gotten so weird in here it's easy to jump to ghosts or whatever.

[notjustawriter]

It has.

[Goddamn, though. That case was....]

I wonder what she was like. His real mother, not that....

She must have been a terrible person.

[goodforsomething]

Yeah. [Stan's expression darkens, his grip tightening on his glass for a moment.] I wish...

...hmph. Doesn't matter now.

[notjustawriter]

It's not... it's not fair.

[.....]

I can't excuse it, can't say him killn' Megumi was all right, but he....

He was fucked up! The guy needed some goddamn help, and none of us saw the warning signs!

[goodforsomething]

Yeah. I feel like I should've, if anybody. Not the first nut I've run across.

[Stan's quiet for a moment. He hadn't meant anything by the word, hadn't even thought before he said it, but now it feels too harsh after everything that just happened.]

Somebody should've helped him thirty-odd years ago. I don't know what we could've done about it here. Not a lotta meds and shrinks. Still... I wish he could've talked to someone.

[notjustawriter]

...The sixties were a hell of a time, weren't they?

[He doesn't sound happy about it.]

Bein' surrounded by death and dying... no wonder he snapped. Stronger people than him are findin' it difficult to stay in good spirits.

[goodforsomething]

Sounds like he was never too far from it anyway. People didn't deal too well with that stuff back then. Probably would've just shot a couple thousand volts through his brain.

[Stan falls uneasily silent.]

Guys would come outta those places twice as fucked up as they went in.

[bloodisthicker]

[...Should he approach Stan about this? Probably. Maybe. ...do either of them want to talk about it, though...]

...

So, how did the pork buns turn out?

[goodforsomething]

...pretty good. Thanks.

[We both know he didn't really come over here to ask about the food though.]

[bloodisthicker]

...

[...hnnnngh should he or shouldn't he actually admit Feelings...

...]

I... really respect the way you handled that whole thing, by the way.

[goodforsomething]

...oh.

[When you get right down to it, Stan is not that used to receiving genuine compliments.]

Uh...thanks, I guess. Seemed like someone had to. [Things sort of dissolved into a shitshow of screaming at Norman like he really was his mother, like all that sickness and trauma was something that could just be shouted down.] We all got a little too used to things bein' supernatural here.

[bloodisthicker]

...I don't really know what to think about the whole thing, honestly. With all the strangeness that I've seen here, there's a chance it could go either way, but...

Well, in the end, sometimes being figuratively haunted isn't too much different from the literal sort. I'm sure the former is a lot more difficult to deal with than the latter, though.

[goodforsomething]

Yeah, I know a few people who could take care of ghosts. That, not so much.

[Stan falls silent for a moment.]

He shouldn'tve been executed. Not sayin' he oughta be able to get away with murder, but there's places he could've gone back home. [Though psych wards in the sixties weren't super fun. Still, they were a sight better than Murdervault.] Maybe they could've even helped him.

[bloodisthicker]

...I don't know. Do you think there's a point where you're too far gone? I... would agree with you otherwise, but... there's a pretty infamous instance of a highly notorious criminal escaping from prison back home.

...granted, he never committed any crimes that anyone could connect to him, but I don't know if that's better or worse.

[...he's silent for a few seconds.]

...in any case, even looking at it from that angle... well, this is a place where you get executed for sleeping outside your room.

[goodforsomething]

If he never got pinned for anything, how'd he end up in prison?

[IMPORTANT QUESTIONS I guess]

Yeah, I ain't sayin' I expect much outta the Kingmaker. Geez, that's such a pretentious name...