hey mom, dead mom, i need a little help here

[nothingcanstop]

[ ...All of that happened, huh. That's the sentiment each and every week, and it's no different this time. Except, this time they've lost more people than before. Five.

The gathering invitation is slipped under everyone's doors, but it specifies something a little different. ]



[ That's a good two hours or so of difference. Enough time to wander around, for sure.

But, in the garden, at the appointed time, there's a variable arrangement of fresh-cooked food. A good amount of beef stew, some Chinese hot pot, and...watermelon? Just, an absurd amount of watermelon, cut up and set on plates. All the food's set on tables that seem to have been moved from the library, and the ground is littered with blankets, for those who don't want to sit on the grass.

And yes, she did not lie. There is, indeed, a variable fuckton of alcohol. (And coffee, for our underaged.)

This has become routine. But, we're still here. We're still alive. ]

Comments

[mouflon]

I mean, same here. Being what I am, a lot of the time it's just me and my wits against the world.

[ Sometimes, there are other people with her. But it hasn't been that way for months now. Even before all this...

The rhythm of it isn't unlike the Holy Grail War, she realizes now. Every week, they all step into an elevator and let it carry them down to a battle that will determine their fate. And, every week, she has come out on top or die.

Just two more weeks. Just like the Holy Grail War. One way or another— ]

But I said thanks because I wanted to, Valentine. Don't worry, I'm not polite enough to do it out of obligation.

[valentinus]

Mm, being 'what' you are...?

[ Maybe there was a little tilt of his head at that. That said, it's been a long while anyone had said or expression any sort of gratitude to him. It felt like such a foreign thing. ]

...Alright, but I can't remember the last time someone's called me by my last name.

Just Vincent is fine.

[ Even if before he hadn't made it exactly a policy to get close to people, he kind of would like to hear people say his first name. Or at least, some of the remaining people here. It made him feel more human than what he really was. ]

[mouflon]

[ congratulations, Vincent, you are literally the first person here to actually ask that Rin use your given name ]

Is- Is it really? We're all just... We're just working partners, so I thought...

I... I'm a mercenary, you know! [ among other things, but ] Whenever I had a temporary partnership with someone, we just...!

[ Kept things formal. Maybe. ]

[valentinus]

[ And to think he had no idea...well, this was probably only even happening because his social skills were definitely out of practice. ]

...?

We just what?

[mouflon]

It's a formality...!

[ The word squeaks out. ]

We should all be trying not to get too attached or anything, right?!

[ rin you were literally JUST SAYING how you all need to be a cohesive group at this point-- ]

[valentinus]

I suppose it can be, but...

[ And this was why his expression managed to look even more confused.

He's too blunt to not point it out. ]

...That sounds like the opposite of what you were implying not too long ago.

[mouflon]

Eh, really?! B, but, being a team and getting all buddy-buddy with each other are two different things...!

[valentinus]

[ i can't believe it took literally six weeks for cultural shock to be a thing ]

...I guess. Sorry, I'm just used to...things working a little differently in a team.

[mouflon]

I mean—!

[ ugh!!! ]

I'm not saying that teams can't be like that. Sometimes, it's... It's okay to have a relationship like that, when you've worked with someone for a long time and trust them. But... It's a stupid idea to get attached here, isn't it?!

[valentinus]

...I don't see how using my first name means you're attached or holding a deeper relationship. Though, I haven't really done anything to get close to anyone here, so...

[ He'll frown, the confusion still there. Well, it was just a simple request. But, he did feel like he was missing something, though part of him just says that maybe it's fine this way too.

He'll pause, wondering again at her words. ]

I suppose it doesn't matter to me all that much in the end.

[mouflon]

Because it's... more personal...

[ aaaa ]

It's not the same as when you call someone by their last name out on the field.

[valentinus]

...I think I understand, then. It's different for those who're mercenaries.

[ Or...mercenaries not from his world. ]

Didn't mean to cause such a misunderstanding.

[mouflon]

[ Ugh... She's blushing, but she looks like she feels just as much at fault for the "misunderstanding" as him. ]

Not... just mercenaries, necessarily. A lot of military jobs, I think... Well, I guess that's to be expected. A lot of us are ex-military in some way, so it's not really a surprise that certain quirks would carry over like that.

[valentinus]

[ It really was kind of embarrassing, but at the least they came to an understanding here. Kind of. ]

...I used to be around a lot of ex-military due to the nature of my previous job. But...even then...interaction with others has never been my specialty.

[ ... ]

I also understand that we just had a discussion about distance from each other...but can you tell me what made you decide to become a mercenary?

[mouflon]

It was be best choice I had.

[ She almost says she had no choice—but that's never true. There's always the option to give up, and that's something she prides herself on refusing, every time. ]

It's not like I don't have any scruples, if that's what you're thinking, or that I'll take any job for the right money. But there's... something I need to do, and it's not something I can accomplish without someone else giving me the funding. I'm just lucky, in that my enemies have a lot of people who hate them just as much as I do.

[valentinus]

[ He'll nod, accepting what she had to say. If he had any judgments to make, he was half-sure they'd be hypocrisy, on account of once being a Turk, and what the nature of that entailed. ]

...I see. I appreciate you answering honestly.

[mouflon]

[ She huffs a little breath through her nose. ]

No problem. People are quick to judge me when they see I'm called a terrorist and rebel and whatever else, so the best I can do is set the record straight when the opportunity presents itself.

[valentinus]

I can see why. As unfair as it is, people will naturally be inclined to assume the worst in situations like those, as you've pointed out.

After all, people are quick to fear and make judgments, but slow to consider the big picture first.

[ He'd have made a comparison with views on AVALANCHE here, but people had more reason to think badly or good of them. Not to say he believed that this was a black or white situation either. It was never that easy. ]

[mouflon]

Yeah. That's what happened with...

[ With Rhea, during the first trial. But she's talked shit about her enough times already, so she'll let the thought go. ]

Well, I guess it doesn't matter, as long as nobody left does the same thing. Vincent.

[ she's TRYING ]

[valentinus]

[ ...he's been actually pleasantly surprised.

And he appreciated it along with her trying her best, judging by that little smile. ]

Mm. You're right about that.