subdivided | week four: mingle

week four: mingle

Week Four
22 in Competition

As the sun rises on Monday morning, all participants will find themselves awakening with a sense of purpose. Regardless of where they slept the night before, they’ll find themselves compelled to return to the main meeting hall first thing in the morning.

Approaching the hall, however, they will find a large, swirling mass grey in color looming near the sakura tree. This swirl cannot be approached just yet, but seems to be locked and waiting for something more.

As the last member of the village enters the hall, they will find Lune and Sol at the head of the room. Though they’re together, it’s Sol who speaks up first this time.

"We've been asked to open another gateway for you guys, but...it's funny. It sort of feels like things have calmed down. The corruption's temporarily evened out and the universe is stabilized for now, but that doesn't mean we should stop looking. Take a look and see what you can find on the other side. You might even get to learn something new."

When Sol finishes, they turn to face Lune, allowing for the other to speak for themselves.

"A bit of reprieve of welcome, isn't it? Please take this time to recover, even as you make steps forward to continue your good work. Thank you, thank you."

The moment participants leave the hall, they will find that the gateway has changed from grey to white, the opening widening enough for multiple people to step through. The Signs will soon take their leave, and all will remain peaceful once more.

In addition, as the week goes on, partners will be able to hear each other's thoughts whenever they look at one another! They may not hear every single thought that occurs, but the link will partners to hear thoughts as though their partner is speaking out loud. The more private the thought, the more likely the partner will pick up on it.

Welcome to your week three mingle! As a reminder, this is break week! This means no murders and no trial! Your normal schedule will resume next week. We will still be hosting a laid-back mini-event on Tuesday, however.

In addition, ensure that all of your week three private conversations were reported on the page, and your week four private conversations are reported on that page. If you'll be taking anything from locations, please report that as well.

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[ Minato nods, sitting up a little straighter so he can hold the carving in his lap, and he pats the ground on his side for Akane to sit so she doesn't have to keep crouching.

For her question, he answers by crossing his index fingers and holding them in front of his forehead. Someday Shess might learn this is Minato-code for Saix. aka Saix stopped by to give him ice cream today. ]

[ ......... She definitely doesn't understand. An X means no, right? But he nodded?

But she sits down beside him and figures he would be more clear if he needed some food brought to him... Even if she looks confused... ]

[ Sometimes an X is just a facial scar! Confusion is sort of the norm when anybody talks to Minato, so he doesn't feel the need to be any clearer, leaning against Akane until the side of his head rests against the top of hers and it's very tempting to just close his eyes and fall asleep like this.

But he should make an attempt to make her visiting him worth something, so. Time for charades.

He holds out two fingers and presses the tips of them on top of the carving's head. ]

[ Aw. She tries to shift to make sure it's at least mildly comfortable for him.

But also ?????? ]

Why aren't you talking? Do you need a tablet like Shess-san's?

[ Akane, at least try to play along. ]

[ Honestly, that's the question to ask, instead of "can you talk?"

He'd like a tablet like Shess' but mostly to pray it has internet, or at least a music player installed, so he shakes his head at that and lifts his hand up, sort of assuming she'll take his hand because that's what Naminé automatically does now, the only thing about Minato that makes sense or something. ]

[ ... Unfortunately, Akane does not have this same habit.

So she sets her phone in his hand. ]

[ ...That's fine, Minato looks down at the phone and proceeds to snoop around it, can he read texts or see pictures and does Akane have music on her phone, more important things than why he isn't talking. ]

[ Huh, well. Okay.

Akane's phone has some typical game apps--bejeweled and stuff. Her photo album isn't noteworthy; there are the typical things a girl would photograph. Stray cats and sometimes selfies with some other girls, probably her friends. One or two of this girl in particular. And, uh, the most recent photo is some boy? That's fine.

Her text messages are even more sparse than her photos, but she is apparently part of a group chat with a couple of other people! They talk about music and tv dramas and pretty generic small-talk? But she has not contributed to the group chat a single time. (And her icon is an Alien Baltan!)

... But returning to fun stuff, she has a couple video clips from ultraman and other tokusatsu shows on her phone, as well as downloaded soundtracks! Nice. ]

[ She's so weird, but just seeing all this stuff makes Minato smile fondly, pictures of friends and classmates and things that she likes- he laughs a little, under his breath, when he recognizes the image in the icon. It'd be nice to watch that sort of stuff together, but what he does first is open up her contacts list, and goes to add a new one.

His name.

His phone number.

He knows it won't ever connect, and that she won't ever call him, but at least it's there. ]

[ Ah...

She nestles up just a little bit closer to him at that. It's a nice thought. She never explained why it wouldn't work, why it really wouldn't work, did she...?

Somehow, it's a little easier to talk when they're sitting like this; when she's staring out ahead instead of having to actually look at him. Instead of him being able to look at her. ]

... If I were in a world that could even reach yours, you wouldn't recognize me.

[ It's mutual, liking the upsides of sitting side by side with somebody instead of facing them, so he can look down at Akane's phone and have her see what he's doing at the same time. That is, opening up the texting app and starting a new conversation, his number at the top and then in the message section, he taps out

Why does that matter?

and tilts the screen over to Akane instead of hitting send.

His best friend turned out to be a soul monster, and it didn't matter. Sure, Minato ended up killing him, but it didn't matter. ]

Well... If you like who I am now, and then suddenly I was different...

[ Then he wouldn't like her anymore. ]

[ ...He takes the phone back, deletes the previous message, and types a new one before showing it to her.

Isn't it like liking different people? I like everybody here. And everybody here is different. I think I would like all of your yous too.

Minato-kuuuun. I'm your girlfriend, so you're supposed to like me especially.

[ Differently than he likes everybody else! ]

[ That's being pedantic, Akane!!! Of course he likes her differently than he likes everybody else- he likes different things about different people, in different ways and in different strengths, and he can't type this fast enough so she would know. ]

I do. I love you.

[ Is that not different enough? ]

[ With someone like Minato, who is such an extreme pushover, she kind of has to check. Besides, she is deeply, deeply insecure. ]

Oh, good.

[ ... Phew!

... Not going to say it back, Akane? Not going to clarify what you were just talking about at all, Akane??? ]

[ Apparently not!!! And apparently Minato doesn't really care about being loved back, because he smiles when Akane does and deletes that message too to replace it with a new one. ]

I'll love you no matter what you're like or who you are. And I'll tell you as many times as you need me to.
In return, can I ask for my favor now?

[ That's a nice thought... So nice that Akane, usually the epitome of selfishness, usually the type to evade doing even things she's already agreed to do, nods. ]

Sure.

Do you know how to make one of a shiba inu?

That doesn't sound too hard...!

I'll need to look up reference pictures, but I bet I can find some in the library.

[ Oh, good, because that wasn't his full request. ]

Cool. Will you let me watch while you work?

I don't mind, but... It's pretty boring to watch.

You're doing something you enjoy. So it wouldn't be boring.

If you say so.

[ Hm, she wiggles her toes a little. She's happy...

But also, hey, uh, Minato. ]

... Why aren't you talking? Do you have a sore throat?

[ He nods and I'm so glad somebody got it? I've been so tired all day. ]

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