night three - kill log

[guestcontrol]

Who: Killers, Dipper, and Mahiru
What: "dipper and mabel would win any twinoff murder game just by virtue of not having one crazy twin and one sane twin." - aki
When: The third night
Where: The park...

[It's in the dead of the night when Dipper's door abruptly unlocks. His bracelet begins to beep. Something seems to be calling him, ordering him to leave his room. For every moment he delays, it beeps with more and more urgency, especially if he tries to bring anything. And besides, he feels groggy, not inclined to protest much. Shortly after, Mahiru's door also unlocks, and she's led to the park behind him.

As he steps outside, lights illuminate the path. The lights lead into the park. As soon as either one steps through the door into the park, the door slams shut. It won't open for again, and pounding on the door or calling for help will not yield any results. It's only once inside that the grogginess wears off.

You can run or try to hide, but there's not much use to it. Your bracelet is still beeping, the only obvious sound in the darkness. And though you're not restrained, you'll find there's no way you can strike a blow against the killers; the bracelet will tighten and you'll feel the grogginess return if you try to fight back.]

Comments

[poyoyon]

No no no no no! Ibuki definitely saw something when she was sitting in the teacup! So we should go sit there again to see it.

[ When Mahiru reaches out to take her hand, though, Ibuki laces her fingers through the other girl's, leading the way. She's been over to the teacup ride dozens of times in the past few days, often riding them...even despite Kuzuryuu's warnings from their first-day meeting. ]

After she came in here, she thought she'd just use the time to ride a few things, but...but!

[photonement]

But what...? I'd be kinda relieved if we did something else instead. [Taking Kuzuryuu's injunction very seriously, Mahiru has not gone on a ride once except when Ibuki has insisted.] The door to the barracks is locked, you know, that means we can't get back into the infirmary.

[Something about those words' sound really bothers Mahiru and she frowns, repeating herself, muscles in her hand tense.]

We can't go back... I can't run away...

[poyoyon]

We can hide, then! Ibuki thinks if we hide somewhere, it'll be fine, right?!

[ They should be getting nearer to the teacups, though. Ibuki's not making any moves except in that direction, worried and insistent. ]

If running away isn't an option, let's just go sit somewhere together until the sun comes up, Mahiru-chan.

[photonement]

I hope that we don't pass out here, Ibuki-chan. The VIPs have the run of the whole park, and they're gonna find us eventua--

[And everything makes sense all of a sudden. They're alone, and somehow eight people have been eager to play along, and Mabel would have told Ibuki, and she didn't have such strong strategic considerations. Mahiru can see they've reached the teacups by both the little loop shapes and the arching castle just a little further south. Mahiru stops and closes her eyes, patting herself down to make sure her camera isn't on her.]

Oh, no. I'd love to take a picture of you in the sunrise, but I guess my snap chat buddies get to keep my camera.

[poyoyon]

Huh? That's fine, Mahiru-chan can jut take a picture of Ibuki later.

[ It's not like it's a big deal if it isn't right now...Ibuki tugs at Mahiru's hand again, still interested in heading to the teacups. ]

Shouldn't we just worry about keeping a move on until we're there, for now?

[photonement]

Alright. Let's go.

[A few steps later, it occurs to Mahiru that with their intertwined hands keeping their bodies so close, perhaps there is something she can do to Ibuki. She raises her free hand; but feeling dizzy again, her arm lowers just as easily.

There's no escape. She is with Ibuki, and she trusted her almost more than Missile, and she goes through the gate and stands in front of that pink teacup.]

I'm really tired. Ibuki-chan, you're gonna have to spin it.

[poyoyon]

Ibuki doesn't mind spinning it, but we'll have to get in, you know? Mahiru-chan goes in first!

[ Though after Mahiru gets in - if she does - Ibuki will slide in just as easily, though she doesn't plan to close the door or let the ride start. ]

Ready?

[photonement]

Yup!

[So, Mahiru's gotten into the ride now. At night, the cheap paint feels even colder against the bare backs of her knees. She gently tries to tug their hands apart, since she figures they're gonna operate the ride now--whether their hands end up freed or not, she sees then the failure for them to start moving.]

Ibuki-chan, does this not work at night or something?

[poyoyon]

Huh? Oh, it's nothing like that. If we close the door, it'll start. Do you want to ride it, though, Mahiru-chan?

[ It's not like they can't...if Mahiru really wants to, they'll close the door and Ibuki'll spin them around for the space of one ride. ]

It's up to you! Ibuki only has time to ride it once, though.

[photonement]

...Nah.

[Mahiru had said she was going to stop lying and hiding and running away. Her hands stay at her sides, palms flat on the bench.]

Do we have a little time for questions instead, Ibuki-chan...? [Probably not, or even likelier a refusal, so just one anyway--] Was last night like this too?

[poyoyon]

E-eh? No way! Fuyuhiko-chan...wouldn't stay still, you know? But he can tell you all about it some other time. You're ready now, right? Ibuki can do it now, right?

[ It's okay to start? This time, if she doesn't do it like that, it'll be...

It's not easier, but she can pretend it is. It's not like there's any real choice. There's only one option, and this is it. ]

Sorry...but, when it's a pair, it's both. And Mahiru-chan's partner was our choice.

[ But Mahiru is Ibuki's responsibility. No one else's. ]

Ready?

[photonement]

No he can't! HE'S DEAD! I'm gonna be dead! You're gonna get punished and be dead! Then Peko-chan's stuck scaring the crap out of Tanaka's hamsters!

[This gravity swirling up in her head... Mahiru doesn't understand any of it. She's never felt like this before; the decision to be loyal to the group Peko led was one thing. Ibuki was part of it, all solemn vows about how the four of them were going to get out together, the mark on her neck bobbing under her gulps at their decision to lynch Legion if they had to prevent another conversion.

And then she understands what partner means. That thing Mahiru felt she had to hide but Ibuki already could have known through Mabel, and this wasn't about who would miss whom. If Dipper's a fair target so is the Mabel they're going to bereave; Kenny, Ciel, Anise, Nanami. There are enough days left for all of them to be dead.

Mahiru lunges forward to put both hands around Ibuki's throat. She can't make it anywhere near that far, of course; as the bracelet gets tighter again and her eyes slip half-closed in greater exhaustion, struggling to focus on Ibuki above her, Mahiru's elbows slump to a stop, over the wheel in the middle.]

[poyoyon]

[ That's the moment Ibuki will stab her with the needle. She doesn't normally carry much on her, but tonight? The lethal injection is something she does have, and Ibuki does it calmly. This is much, much better than the other method, even if it's...still unpleasant. ]

Eh...it's fine if Mahiru-chan doesn't understand for now. Ibuki doesn't mind dying for the sake of this, y'know. Bye-bye.

[ Enjoy the poison - it should work reasonably fast. And at least Ibuki got her into the teacup first, because she really wasn't looking forward to dragging a damn body around. ]

Hey! Ibuki did her part! Time for phase two?!

[ As soon as Mahiru's dead from the injection, at least. Ibuki will stand and hop over the side of the teacup anyway, sliding away from the other girl. ]

[photonement]

[This is fast. Mahiru has no time to struggle anymore, so Ibuki can get away with the needle drawing a mere pinprick of blood. Mahiru just manages to relax her face from a murderous scowl into a more dissatisfied frown. She didn't want to die like this, turned against her friend; but at least Ibuki tried to make her understand, or something, and... she did her part with the camera. As much as she wanted to keep on living, that's the second best thing.

Her elbows fold under her head and on top of the wheel Mahiru just looks like she did take a nap out here after all.]

[cheats]

[ From somewhere nearby, always out of sight enough that Mahiru wouldn't have noticed, another figure steps out. He had been waiting until he had been given the signal by Ibuki, and it was a sign that it was his turn to finish the job, so to speak. Not that she wasn't already dead, but there was a particular scene to be set. He walks to where he'll have the correct vantage, hunting rifle in hand, though it almost looks strange in the hands of someone as small and unassuming as he is. ]

Ah, she laid down. Can you just prop her back up for a moment, Ibuki? I need a clear shot of her head.

[poyoyon]

[ Ciel gets a smile, even if not one of Ibuki's brighter ones, which he's familiar with by this point. He hadn't had to step in like the last time, at least...maybe she was getting better at this? Which was a strange thought in and of itself, even if it wasn't quite true.

Ibuki was just as grateful this time as she had been last time, though, even if he'd kept to the shadows. ]

Whoopsies! Give Ibuki a second... [ She'll wipe away the pinprick of blood, too, carefully propping Mahiru back up into a sitting position. The arrangement had been discussed prior to the event, and after Mahiru looks right, Ibuki will skip to Ciel's side, out of the way. ]

Good?

[cheats]

Perfect.

[ Ciel raises the hunting rifle, and though it looks odd in his small hands, he holds it with familiarity. He's a fair distance away, so this would be a difficult shot for anyone inexperienced with guns to make, truthfully. Though he prefers not to think about things like this, when he's aiming at her head, it occurs to him just how red her hair is, a familiar, pleasant shade, but— ]

Just like a pheasant...

[ He murmurs it to himself, then once he's confident that it's aimed correctly, pulls the trigger. Sebastian had demanded excellence in all of Ciel's pursuits, and marksmanship was no different. As his information card said, hunting as sport was a task expected of a proper English nobleman. Ciel's shot hits its mark perfectly on Mahiru's temple, and Ciel's control of the recoil is surprising for his stature. The force knocks her over into the teacup, but Ciel just sighs and lowers the gun slowly before he pulls the lever to pop out the shell, which he'll pick up after a moment once it's cooled off. ]

Done. Let's go, Ibuki.

[poyoyon]

[ It's weird to watch him take the shot, but given she'd seen his skills the other night, and that Ibuki was set to attend a school where people were extraordinarily talented, even if they were narrowly focused...it's not something she's surprised by, or something she disbelieves.

Instead, it just makes her curious, again, about Ciel. He's told them a little bit about himself, but not everything.

But it's only been a few days, even if it feels like longer. After a pause, watching Ciel to try to gauge his feelings, Ibuki nods. ]

Right! ...C'mon, Ciel-chan, let's get back to the others. [ And off they go. ]