Take Responsibility.

[kingmakereffect]

And once the allotted time for investigating comes to a close, those elevator doors at the end of the first-floor corridor open up; the ride down is fast, smooth, and understandably tense as far as atmosphere goes. You're down to less than half of your original number. The doors slide open and the podium circle comes into view, standing stark against the black-walled courtroom and encircling that pit in the center; Misa and Aqua have joined the ranks of the deceased, photographs in greyscale watching the proceedings from their podiums draped in black. Of course and as always, the deceased aren't the only ones watching; the Kingmaker will make his presence known once everyone has settled at their podium, his voice sounding out through the room for all to hear. "Resilient has been taken from you. Maybe this time the guilty party will actually succeed at fulfilling Rule Seven, seeing as this is the sixth try and all. Whether they manage it is up to the rest of you." Thirteen Survivors remain. However many will be down by the end of the day is up to you.

Comments

[ratingspoint]

So that's your final answer, then? "Something that was in the music room, we just don't know what?"

Please. It's a wonder all of us haven't died yet.

[garudynamic]

Oh come on now you're just being an ass.

Okay fine, there's only so many instruments that wouldn't splinter into her wounds but still be heavy enough. Again, maybe one of the guitars since they have sharp edges and various switches and prongs on them that could have made the secondary wound. The Harp might be heavy enough too.

[ratingspoint]

I'm going to be an- I'm going to be like that because you're accusing me with absolutely no definitive proof that I did it! You don't even have a murder weapon! You're just assuming that I, for some reason, killed one of my friends with an unknown weapon because...of course I did, I guess.

[cherryblooded]

Because you have her goddamn phone.

[Oh, look who's back again.]

You haven't given a single reason for that.

[ratingspoint]

And what reason could I possibly give that you would consider good enough?

Really, the answer could be something as simple as "I broke my own and stole hers because I was feeling opportunistic." I have a lot of conversations I wouldn't want anyone to see.

[cherryblooded]

You wouldn't do that. You like your room too much if you were planning on continuing living here, and if she couldn't get back into her room, there's too much chance she'd pass out outside of the dorms, and we know how that ends.

You'd only do that if you weren't intending to stay here at all.

[ratingspoint]

But you said yourself that those would be secondary thoughts - that I'd be playing to win. And you know how confident I am - why would I bother with a backup plan like that?

[cherryblooded]

Confident and careless are different things. Misa asked for the murder weapon last time - it's not impossible to think something incriminating is on your phone, and it's not impossible we might ask to see them this time around.

[garudynamic]

...would the Kingmaker still have the texts, I wonder?

Not that I think he'd share of course, but- [Shrug]

[cherryblooded]

When I take his head off for making me go through this with my son I'll ask for his phone first.

[garudynamic]

Well let's think: we know Mettaton didn't ask for any items or powers from the Kingmaker- the wound was just blunt force, and his soul is normal.

What else could he want hidden?

[ratingspoint]

It's like I've already said, darling - I have a lot of conversations that wouldn't reflect too well.

[cherryblooded]

You don't care what anyone thinks about you, though. It'd have to be something more dangerous to you than 'generally looking bad'.

[ratingspoint]

Well, there's that one conversation I told you about; you'd really hate that one for a few reasons, I think.

[cherryblooded]

I would, yes. But none of what you've told me about it is bad enough to want to get rid of it entirely.

[ratingspoint]

What if I wasn't volunteering to be killed?

[cherryblooded]

[...What.]

What if, then. Let's say that's true.

Were you volunteering to kill someone else?

[ratingspoint]

You've got it, sweetheart!

If the Kingmaker had gotten in contact with me that Friday, Mouri would have died.

[cherryblooded]

Oh good. I don't have to ask who it was.

Why did you ask first?

[garudynamic]

Enough to ruin someone else's phone?

[sleepingkogoro]

I can't believe I'm once again getting nagging feelings you may not be a simple victim of the Kingmaker's whims.

[In other words, like he had insinuated what seems ages ago: are you an accomplice, Mettaton? Because that's what he is starting to think again. At least this time he has something else to base it on than "hey maybe alphys is the kingmaker"]

[garudynamic]

What are you getting at Mouri-san?

[He remembers all that yelling about Alphys but...]

[sleepingkogoro]

...

[Somehow it is a bit harder to say it now, because he has grown to like Mettaton]

There's something Knight-san said earlier that may be worth keeping in mind from now on. "Are you suggesting someone is working with the Kingmaker?"

I don't really want to think that is what Mettaton-kun could be hiding, but it is something I could see as being bad enough to try to hide at the cost of destroying his phone.

Especially if it would hurt people Mettaton-kun appreciates such as Cherryblod-san or Eide-san.

[garudynamic]

But... but what would he get out of it?! I guess the Kingmaker could, I dunno, promise his safety or something...

[Now things are happening up thread]

[garudynamic]

Ugh, you know if you just explained your phone we wouldn't think it was you Mettaton. All this hoopla isn't helping either- you never did this any other time we looked at you during a trial.