We're the lifers here till the bitter end, condemned from the start [W2 Post-trial

[zerotohiro]

[What a mess. After the trial and voting for an executioner, Hiro headed out from the longhouse and wandered down the beach. He didn't feel quite like going back to his hut just yet, but he also knew he shouldn't stray too far. No cavern tonight, and no oasis either. It's too dark for either and so like a moth to flame he heads for the bonfire.

It's not at all surprising when he finds someone else there and he hovers for a moment, not quite sitting down.]

Think I can join you for a while?

Comments

[zerotohiro]

We have to look at everybody as future victims until we narrow down who the killers are. I think it might have had to do with his personality, but maybe not for the reason people thought. Most people thought Joshua was a jerk, right? But at the same time, not a lot of people really had much to say about him besides first impressions.

[There's a point.] Tell me about some of the people you've met on the island. Your favorite people so far, people who've left an impression, whatever.

[seaclipsed]

[ ... hm. give her a moment to really think about it. ]

Newt and Jack keep trying to look after me. It's sweet, I think. [ ... ] The Jack who asked for the alcohol. [ why must she have to specify which jack. why are there three. ] Inuyasha is loud and kind of dumb, but... he doesn't want people to die. His heart is in the right place. Fie's nice, if quiet. Neku seems like the type of person who would take a while to get to know. Keith and I get along really well since we seem to agree on mostly everything. Lief is kind, and keeps watching over people.

Vriska... [ katara frowns. ] I don't know. I agreed with her on a lot of points during the trial, but she also laughed hysterically when Nino got stabbed in the eye. Magilou is always acting out so it's hard to get a good read on her. Jaffar and Nino... if it wasn't for Nino, I'd be more concerned about Jaffar. I think if anything happens to her we may be in trouble though. Prussia is another person who really doesn't like to show how she's really feeling. I've only spoken to Jinah briefly and she seems nice? Yona is actually pretty concerned about what's going on and is doing her best, I think. Mera is very sensible, I think, even though she admitted that if it wasn't for her husband she'd probably be doing things a lot differently here. I'm still on the fence about Lelouch, he seems more like the observing type than anything. Laphicet seems like just a kid but he's pretty smart and... hm. Anyway, Laura is Laura.

[zerotohiro]

[He's nodding along, not quite agreeing or disagreeing with any of that though there are a lot of things he does agree with. It's only when she's finished speaking that he leans forward in his seat again.]

You just told me a lot about a lot of people and it's all stuff that makes them pretty distinctive. But we couldn't come up with any of that stuff for somebody like Joshua outside of people just giving the most shallow trait possible. That he was a jerk.

Let me ask you something else. Since Joshua didn't really leave an impression, do you think him being gone is going to have a huge impact on the island as a whole? Or would it be the same as killing somebody like Nino?

[seaclipsed]

So, you think they took him out because it wouldn't affect the island as a whole?

[ katara actually had a pretty long conversation with him that left her with an impression that was more than him just being a jerk. like... she still thought he was a jerk, but still. she knows that most people probably didn't bother with that though. ]

There are... a few people who might fit that though. Ones who haven't really been helping out as much as everyone else.

[zerotohiro]

[That's because Katara's a nice girl and most people on the island are impatient lbr. But there's a sigh following that.]

Maybe. If they wanted to start out small. But I can't say, it's just a theory. Which other people are you thinking about anyway? If you're bringing it up, you have names.

[seaclipsed]

Hm, well... I guess it's more like people who don't really speak up much during trials? You can't really expect everyone to contribute the same amount, since some people are just naturally more opinionated than others.

[ in this thread: two opinionated people who talk a lot because they can't shut up. ]

Like Ruby seems nice, but I'm not sure if people would be as outraged if someone targeted her versus targeting someone who's been more proactive, if that makes sense? Or with the Jacks, how there's one who talks more than the other. Things like that.

[zerotohiro]

The Jacks confuse me. I can't say I disagree with Ruby, but on the other hand it's like…you'd think they'd also go after people that could threaten to reveal their roles. But maybe that's a whole other game. I'm a little worried about the quiet ones since if we're following that trail then yeah, they "wouldn't be missed." [Air quotes because that's an awful thing to say.]

Serph and Erhard are other people that come to mind that keep quiet. I don't know how we're supposed to protect these people either.

[seaclipsed]

We could think about this a lot of different ways here. We could, technically, put every single person in some kind of category and figure out a reason why that category might be targeted. Like if we're going by the "take out the intelligent people," one, then you could potentially be next.

[ hiro asks a lot of questions? which could potentially be dangerous to someone who's trying to kill them off. ]

We're also assuming that whoever the people who are guaranteed to kill someone each week, like the Chiefs say, are actually working closely together. Or how that even works in general? We know that the Chiefs have some way of enforcing the rule, but we don't really know how it works.

[zerotohiro]

[I'm glad this is the last conversation they'll ever have where Katara has both arms. But he anyway, he doesn't look too bothered by that and instead settles for playing with the drawstring of his hoodie.]

Yeah. Maybe I am. [That should bother him, and yet.] So okay, I get what you're saying. Categories are just about as useful as everything else we have right now.

So what, you think we have a couple of different groups of killers running around on top of each other? Would that be possible?

[seaclipsed]

[ same..... same.... ]

I don't know. That's the thing, we don't have enough information yet to really be able to say either or. Like... um, I wouldn't be surprised if there are people working together, but I also don't think we should ignore the fact that someone might do something on their own just because they want to go home. So with the first thing, we'll more likely to be able to find patterns in who's dead. But with the second one, we might not.

[zerotohiro]

[...]

You ever feel like maybe we're just wasting time since we don't have nearly enough information yet? [It sucks. He hates that.] Like...it could go one way or the other and we're not gonna know right away until we accidentally stumble on somebody who has a role.

But you're right. We shouldn't ignore people who're likely to isolate themselves and act on their own. Somehow that makes it even more dangerous.

[seaclipsed]

If we keep speculating now then maybe at least one of the theories will end up being right?

[ one out of fifty. ]

It would be easier if we at least knew how many there were.

[zerotohiro]

Somebody's bound to crack. We just have to ask people the right questions and they'll spill the right information we need. Just...don't forget to stay focused no matter what happens.

[seaclipsed]

I will. Our first priority is to get everyone home safely. If what Hal said was true and he can bring back those who died, then we need to make sure we at least make the criteria required for that to happen.

[zerotohiro]

Right. Do you...I mean how many other people should we tell to make sure that we meet the right criteria but without starting a massive panic with the rest of the island?

[seaclipsed]

That's... hard to say. Even if the theory is right, it's not going to fly well with the others.

[ i mean it doesn't fly well with her either but she has seen enough bullshit here that she wouldn't be surprised if the chiefs set it up that way for laughs. ]

They can always claim we're actually the killers and made it up so that murdering people will be easier. So the people we talk to about it will probably be ones we know won't just... lynch us, or something. I'll probably mention it as a theory to Zuko, and... I'm not sure how Inuyasha would take it.

[zerotohiro]

I can't tell Yona. I don't want to worry her like that, even if it's a theory. But I have people who might listen. Maybe Newt? He listens to a lot of my theories either way. But we can test how people react and go from there.

[seaclipsed]

[ she nods. ]

We have to start somewhere.

[zerotohiro]

We'll test it out and regroup later. That's about all I can figure. And if that doesn't work, we'll figure out another plan. [A half-smile.] But thanks, Katara.

[seaclipsed]

No problem, Hiro. We have to do what we can here.