luministi

I'm sorry, Hawk. I should have brought myself to talk to you again sooner.

Things make even less sense than before. Perhaps when everyone shares what they've learned, it will. But for now... it's such a tangle.

I've seen a librarian come back, but she's mostly interested in the preparations for the festival.

If you like, perhaps you could come talk with me? I'm at the library, in the open reading area. (Somehow, it feels really... comfortable here. Like it's the only relaxing place left in the world. ^.^)

No, I think I understand. It's fine.

I hope so.

The festival… so that's still going ahead. It'd be hard, without anyone attending or holding stalls.

…I could do with some relaxing right now. All right, I'll see you there.

[and after another round of checking over himself that everything's all right, he heads out and to the library's reading area.]

[On the second floor, the reading area is bright and open, looking out over the town square. On one of the plush couches Fuu is curled up with her journal. Although there are still dark circles under her eyes she looks relaxed. And as Hawk enters the area he will feel so as well, as if his stresses have melted away.]

[She looks up at his approach - few other people have been around, after all. She smiles welcomingly and gestures for him to take a seat on the couch beside her as she puts her feet on the floor.]

I'm so glad to see you, Hawk. And- I cannot apologize enough for... what happened at the Chrysalis. It was... my worst fear. In more ways than one...

[It's much better than staying in the townhouse- there's still the smell of burning, even after opening the window. Hawk relaxes a little, shoulders dropping, body language becoming less guarded, though his steps are still cautious as he comes over and sits down, as though everything else could drop away too. He only really relaxes on the couch after a minute or so of sitting on it and being sure it's there.]

Don't- don't apologise. It wasn't something you could have helped. I'm just glad you're all right. [reaching for her hand and grasping tightly.]

Thank you... [Blushing, she squeezes Hawk's hand. Then, she looks into his face with concern.]

Has something... happened to you, too?

[Under his fingers, her hand is warm, and if he puts his fingers against her wrist he'll feel her pulse- proof that her heart's beating, that she's alive. He breathes- he can, it doesn't hurt-, and raises his gaze to meet hers.] Yes.

[Looking at his face, she recognizes her face from when she'd first woken up. Haunted, disbelieving.]

I'm sorry. If you can - if you want - you can tell me. But you don't have to.

I don't- I don't think I want to. I'm sorry. [Because what he remembers seeing- he doesn't think he can stand sharing that with one of the people involved.

Instead, he moves to hug Fuu.]

[As Hawk envelops her in a hug, her heart skips a beat (or two). She gasps slightly in surprise - then slowly brings her arms up to hug him back. It feels terribly awkward and her face is hot with her blush but... at the same time, she's glad. She's... hugging a friend.]

It's all right. It's all right, Hawk. I understand.

[Hawk's fingers tighten in her shirt, and he presses his face against her shoulder. It's awkward, and his face is heating up a little- but she's hugging him back, and it's also comforting.]

I'm sorry. I wish I'd been able to do something.

No... no, you're right... nothing could have been done...

[Unless... he wasn't apologizing for something else, was he?
Tentatively she rests her head on his shoulder and with one hand strokes his back. (It just... seemed a comforting thing to do.)]

…no.

[It's definitely comforting, and he relaxes again, grip less desperate. It's embarrassing to be the one being comforted, but no one else is in the area to pay them any mind.

Once he's feeling better, Hawk straightens up a little.] I'm sick of this place's tricks.

[Glad when his grip loosens, she patiently keeps it up until the subtle cue of him straightening. She draws back a bit, so she can see his face.]

I am too. Very much. But all we can do to fight back is try and make sense of the clues given us...

It's not- fair. [His expression turns bitter.] Just to have what's tossed our way…

[He shakes his head for a moment, furious, and then draws away a little.] Though. I did find this, when I… woke up. [He takes off his boot, and shows Fuu the drawing of a sun on his ankle.] And I remember seeing someone with long hair in the sunlight… I don't know what it means, but Croix said he saw someone's hair, too. The same person, I'd be willing to bet.

[She nods her agreement.] It's so frustrating that we can't pursue our own clues...

[She gives a start at seeing the image on his ankle.]

This has to be orchestrated. [Quickly, she rolls down her sock and shows him the flame on her ankle.] I wondered why flame, when my element is wind. But perhaps it will become more clear if others have designs like this.

I didn't get an image of a man, but... I did get this... [Her voice suddenly uncomfortable, she brings out her Guide to show Hawk the pictures she'd taken of her hands before removing the purple nail polish.]

It's the same as Miss Audres' in the video. Ichijou confirmed it.

I doubt it's personally tailored to us… the Thieves' Guild worked in the shadows, after all. [He nods.] It's probably part of a theme. A flame and the sun… heat, perhaps? We should ask after that, too.

[He leans over for a better look.] That's… a little disturbing. Doing that while… [He stops, choking on the words.]

Mmm, a theme... Good thought!
All the same, I've started carrying a lighter with me. I don't know what good it might do, but... I suppose I just took 'flame' literally.

[(Tell her about it.) She makes a dissatisfied sound in her throat to echo Hawk's sentiment.]

But if the nail polish is a clue... I suppose it gives some validity to the theory of there being two of Miss Ardes? Somehow it still feels like a stretch, but it fits the facts we have.

[He shrugs and smiles.] It seemed like the most likely thing… but I suppose we might need more to figure out what the theme really is. I just… I hope no one else has to die for it.

[He laughs, a little.] You know… I could probably do some fire magic if we needed it. But I don't think that's a bad idea either.

Mm. I can't quite work it out, but it doesn't make sense to apply polish when it wasn't on her body. It would draw attention to the differences, after all.

[She nods grave agreement - no one should have to die for their hints. But it seems to be the dark theme now.]

[At his slight laugh she smiles back at him. Ah, it's been a while since she's heard a laugh.]

Unless drawing attention to the differences is what they - our benefactors? - want to have happen.

[With a sigh she shakes her head.] But what does all the rest of it mean? [She starts ticking off points on her hands]

The hyper-surveillance and the CATs malfunctioning.
The young man who warned us to keep an eye out for a message.
Those two mysterious men - one of them mentioned finding someone, but it was such a patchy transmission...
The cards, which practically could have been given us by friends and foes.
Miss Ardes, proving that she was an ally and that there is another in town who will help us. But her message was rather thin on details, but that PL is in charge and Plan B happened.

Then, those two men again. One is called Proctor. They both knew Miss Ardes, but they reacted differently to her.
Miss Ardes was acting rather strangely in that video too, though.
That darn chart.
Then, Miss Ardes... so suddenly appearing here. At the same time, the townspeople disappear.
And now... others of us are being killed, but come back with clues. The hair, the symbols, the nail polish.

[Looking at her ten spread fingers, she frowns at them.]
All I get is that they're messing with us horribly. And like you said, I'm tired of it.

It could be. Someone seems to want things to be disrupted, anyway.

[He listens to her, nodding as she ticks off the points.]

Keeping an eye on everyone and what we're saying… I suppose they're really trying to keep out moles this time.

Plan B- the mayor said that was a kind of reset, didn't he?

It all seems more extreme than last time. Maybe since I arrived later… but still.

I feel that it's more extreme too, somehow. Perhaps it's the... emotion of it all. This has been emotionally so difficult.

As for the Plan B... [She fingers the journal on the seat beside her as she casts her mind back to it.] The Plan B that was both the Mayor's and doctor Resarci's was a 'clean slate' protocol. But Resarci's own Plan B...

[She picks up the journal and takes a moment to skim some pages.]
I thought it might have to do with him taking control of the Luministi Research Labs, but now being here again, it seems that there may have been more to it than that.

[She suddenly shivers.] I hadn't quite thought of it that way before. If he did take control, he probably has like-minded people around him, and above him.

…yeah. [He drops his head against her shoulder.] I don't think there's anything that really compares.

So he probably set that off, then… something different, more in his favour.

[He nods, and reaches out to touch her hand again.] It'd make sense to do that. But we'll sort it out. Can't let things just go on like this.

[Blushing and looking down, she squeezes his hand reassuringly.]

You're right. On all accounts.

I almost wish I wasn't. [sounding very wry] Still. We only have the hand we're dealt… so we need to make the best of it.

That's the spirit!

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