week 3 ( saturday );

[reidentify]

[Well, everything is a mess.

But Lief has wanted to talk to Vriska about something all day, regardless of the trial's outcome, and... in the end, the results haven't changed that. (And he has to focus on this, or else he'll be overwhelmed.)

So, as soon as he finds Vriska alone—]

You are the item role.

Comments

[hypertoxic]

It's true. That is the real reason Battler was staying in my hut Thursday night. To act as my alibi.

[ She won't move towards him, or away, but her jaw is tight. ]

This was the only way we knew to save everyone.

[ Another beat, and she slowly lifts a hand in what is meant to be a placating gesture. ]

I need you to stay calm. I'm not going to hurt you, and I was sincere about wanting to trust and work with you.

[reidentify]

[... From the way Vriska spoke earlier, he figured that she knew about Battler's role already. Looking at it now, perhaps she did seem oddly close to him.

A part of him is still waiting for this to be a trick—to test to see if he's a Siren—but...]

I-I believe you did not lie about that.

[Blood is roaring in his ears. This is still a shock that he has to wrap his mind around.]

[hypertoxic]

[ ......

The way she watches him is a little bit like the way a caged animal might watch its captor. Which might seem backwards, but Vriska is aware of the sway Lief has in the village. He could easily rouse everyone else into capturing and killing her. For revenge. To stop the game. Whatever good they think murdering her would do. Right now, her life is in his hands.

Slowly, Vriska will move up through the surf. When the water only comes up to her ankles, she will simply sit down in the ocean, not seeming to mind the way it washes around her hips and waist. She spreads her hands, and they are open, empty. ]

I know this is a shock to you. But I need allies, Lief. Real allies, ones who won't throw me into the village bonfire for a moment's satisfuckingfaction over all the death we've had to go through so far. If all of the Sirens die, we lose the game and everyone stays dead for good. At least one of us has to live. And I am doing everything I can to find another way out.

[reidentify]

[...]

If you are telling the truth, the Sirens and the Wickies have been conflicting information on how to bring about the ideal outcome for this game. If we cannot find a third option, it is important that, at least, we determine which one is the truth.

[hypertoxic]

One of them always lies, and one of them always tells the truth, [ Vriska says with some rancor. ] Those fucking Chiefs. I know what the Wickies believed. I personally think it was just to give them drive to find and kill us, but I can't conclusively say our goals were true while theirs aren't.

[ ... ]

There is a spirit in the volcano. If all of the Sirens die, or if there are no deaths in a week, it will become enraged and the volcano will erupt, killing everyone and ending the game in a way that no one will be able to come back. For right now, that is what I know and believe, and it is those rules I'm working under. My only goal from the very beginning has been to save all of these people and send them home. Whatever it took.

I am running out of time. If we don't find a solution before Thursday, we will have to kill again to avoid the worst possible outcome. I also suspect the true item role will likely start to contradict my story this week. Too many people have found out about my "role." Someone is going to figure it out, and when they do, I'm toast. I have no illusions that the rest of the village won't kill me for what I've done.

[reidentify]

[He listens. There are a lot of things he could say, but first, quietly, he asks,]

Why did you want to organize that meeting?

[hypertoxic]

Misdirection, as I'm sure you can guess. As well as gaining trust. I needed people to let me in, think I was harmless. Most people aren't going to believe that a murderer is organizing a meeting that will help everybody figure out their sordid secrets.

[ She just sounds kind of tired at this point, but she's frank and straightforward as always. ]

[reidentify]

[He sighs. Yeah, he's not surprised.

Likewise, he's suddenly feeling even more tired than usual, his mind whirling with what he's supposed to do from here.]

Indeed. You seem to have Jacopo fooled, unless he, too, is a part of this.

[hypertoxic]

Jacopo is a fucking idiot and I should kick his ass, [ Vriska drawls, with some mild acid. But then she'll huff a soulful sigh. ]

I never told him I was the item role, you know. I told him my job was to save everyone, and he talked himself into believing it. It was convenient, so I let him! I should have done a better job of telling him to keep his trap shut.

[ ... ]

Jacopo is a good person who likes to think of himself as a sneaky manipulator. An operator behind the scenes! But I believe his true intent is to help. He does not have a role. As far as I know, he is a complete innocent in all this, aside from his one execution.

[reidentify]

... I had the same impression. He claimed he did not have a role—though I cannot really take anyone who says that at their word—but for all of his attitude, I believe he has good intentions as well.

And I do not think he would have taken the initiative to risk his neck if he had a role.

[He was the one who outright suggested going into the cavern (the jungle, first), after all.]

[hypertoxic]

Why do you think I didn't go into the jungle? [ Said dryly. ] Not only did I have a general impression of the risks, I knew better than to do anything that would risk my life when so much relies on the five of us staying alive.

[ There's a pause then. ]

Whatever Jacopo's status is, he isn't a Siren, and I won't be revealing any of the other Sirens to you. If the villagers want to lynch someone for our crimes, they'll lynch me. If I have to go down for the other Sirens to stay alive, that's fine. I have been saying since the very beginning that I am fine with being a monster if that's what it takes to get everyone out of here alive.

[reidentify]

[To be honest, that was why Lief went around trying to figure out who suggested the idea among each group, since—yeah. Not likely the murderers would be among them.

Her words echo uncomfortably, as he thinks of his conversation with the Piper, long ago.]

... Why Lelouch?

[hypertoxic]

The reasons you'd expect. He was smart, and a possible threat! We decided to get him out of the way before he could figure out who we were. It wasn't personal. I liked Lelouch, [ she comments, but there's something beneath her casual tone. Something hard to describe, but not happy. ] But I had to do what needed to be done!

[reidentify]

[He feels sick, especially thinking of his friends who could very well fall under that category.

...

Sorry, Vriska. He doesn't hold that thinking against her (if he were in her shoes, perhaps he'd do the same), but he can't say anything right now.]

[hypertoxic]

[ Vriska lets him have his moment. She knows what she said, and how heartless it sounds. There ain't nothing she can do about that.

She just sits in the surf and watches the ocean foam swirl around her, letting it run through her fingers and thinking about everything she's ever done that brought her here.

Eventually she'll say: ]

I know how horrifying it sounds to someone like you. But that's why I'm a Siren, and you're not.

[reidentify]

... Indeed. Perhaps.

[He knows that he isn't quite as kind and idealistic as everyone thinks he is, but most likely, he's not ruthless enough for the role of Siren.]

What... precisely do you want with my cooperation?

[hypertoxic]

... I won't ask you to do anything you're not comfortable with, [ she says, with a slight drawl and eyebrows raised. ] Like, I'm not going to ask you to murder somebody on my behalf. At most I'd ask you to back me up in the next trial, if I even make it to next Saturday.

What I will really request is your help in securing a third option if I find out there's a way. I don't know what that will mean, but I know it could be extremely dangerous.

[reidentify]

... If it is my own life to risk, that I can handle. [...] And I can lie, if need be.

[Vriska's already seen a glimpse of that, at least. Lief's nice, but surprise, he can be manipulative when he needs to be.

... Though he certainly doesn't enjoy it when he has to be so against anyone but his enemies.]

[hypertoxic]

Then it sounds like we have a deal.

[ A sigh, and she'll wipe her hands down her front. There is still some corpse goo on her shirt. Gross. ]

I will let you know as soon as I find anything out. Was there anything else you wanted to interrogate me about while we're fuck deep into honesty hour?

[reidentify]

... I suppose I might as well ask if there is anything else you can tell me about your role.

[hypertoxic]

What else do you want to know? Battler was pretty thorough. He stated the facts as the rest of us know them.

[reidentify]

I am not sure. I have no role, remember? I do not know the extent of what rules you have been given.

[...]

Do you know anything about Ruby's disappearance? Or the hallucinations?

[hypertoxic]

No, aaaaaaaand nope. Those things are just as much a mystery to us as they are to the rest of you! We don't have a fucking clue. For the record, I have no idea what happened with Mello, either. I don't think any of us do, and the only person who does wasn't exactly forthcoming.

[reidentify]

[He figured as much, but it was worth a shot.]

... And you will not confirm if—Raven is among you, will you?

[hypertoxic]

I won't confirm any names you give me, Lief. Not because I don't trust you, but because unless it is absolutely necessary, it is their decision whether or not to reveal themselves! If you want to know, you will have to ask her yourself.