SEANCE - LUCRETIA & SIEGHART

[dormheads]

[After the mini-event:

As Lucretia walks, she will suddenly find herself in a room. It might be a bathroom. Was Francy joking? Maybe but I'm going with it.

Sieghart is there, waiting.

NOTE: You will have a max. of 20 comments (10 from each), before Lucretia will be forced to leave, ending the conversation.]

Comments

[ambiography]

[SCHOOL BATHROOMS DON'T and i am begging you not to phrase it like that. but yeah they're short on space in here just because of that, we're speaking it into existence i GUESS. i hate us.

anyway, she also notes that he doesn't clarify that question and just. sighs. okay, they will work with it.]

We were told we should be paying attention to those, but we don't actually have any idea about why, or what criteria the Principal thinks makes an exemplary student.

The people who end up in strange places on Thursday nights were another thing we were told we should pay attention to; so far we've got that one of them is always the person cursed into school spirit for the week, and one of them almost always matches a victim except for the first week... the theory's been thrown out that one matches a culprit, too, but someone's claimed that stopped matching up.

[ercnerd]

If there's another meaning behind the list, I don't know about it.

. . . The saying that good things come in threes also holds true for the bad, huh? [He makes a face.] And about that . . . what was that about my acting strange that one week? I was totally myself.

[ambiography]

The first week seems to be-- an outlier on all counts, I think, but... I don't know. Maybe things just hadn't quite fallen into place yet? None of the potential patterns fit that week if you're sure you were yourself, except for the culprit one, and that apparently didn't stick. If there's something else to it, we... sure weren't seeing it.

Feels a little bit in general like there's something we just haven't connected and we're all going to feel like idiots once we do, so if you've got any further advice to work off of there... anything about the plot hole business would be pretty welcome as well, from what I can tell.

[ercnerd]

That meeting was the first time I heard about the plot hole.

I don't know about finishing the story, but didn't that buy-in also talk about wanting to stay with friends? I haven't seen it for myself, though.

[ambiography]

It did, yes. Forever. Just a little threatening-- it ended by repeating, "you will" multiple times, so I'm going to assume that's our sort of, you know, worst-case scenario.

[she's just. sighing, leaning against him and also probably like, nuzzling against him a bit bc i remembered about the weekly effect, still hate it here!]

But with what you mentioned about this voice saying to come find them... we theorized on this a little, but if there's that focus on being with friends and everything, maybe that's-- the sort of thing we're supposed to aim for, that could be what they wanted. Though I don't like the sound of that voice asking 'who am I', either. Are our memories getting messed with the way they have been because... theirs is?

[ercnerd]

[He blinks in surprise at the contact, but returns to the current topic without fuss. Subconsciously, he leans forward to meet her halfway and bring them closer; in his mind, he's just trying to get a better look at her notes.]

I don't know about you, but I'm not keen on befriending the cause of so much suffering. Forcing someone to change and stay for their own satisfaction is exactly the behavior of a possessive stalker.

As for the voice . . . it could just be relevant on our end, if Bradley's case is anything to go by.

[ambiography]

The things it has to say might not be. I don't know. We keep talking about it as if whatever, or whoever, is behind this is doing it maliciously, and that's the easiest way to see it considering what we've all gone through, but I do know a thing or two about... misguided intentions gone wrong. The death toll on that was a lot higher than forty-odd people, I can say that much for a certainty, and the whole murder situation still just feels-- we just don't know. There's so much that's strange about it.

All we have to work off for some of it is what little we got from Otome before-- [....] ...and the rest is apparently just. Not necessarily even their fault.

[there is... more of a pause, here.]

I know, by the way. I'm sorry, Sieghart.

[ercnerd]

[Right. Misguided intentions. While Lucretia pauses, Sieghart rests his head on her shoulder—only to lift it abruptly at her apology.

His surprise gives way to the usual smile.]

. . . Why are you sorry? Rather, if it's what I think it is, I'm grateful that you haven't aired it in public.

[ambiography]

I was told about what happened, and-- we agreed not to do exactly that.

[there's definite relief at his response, though-- that's one thing answered without having to actually ask, or to linger on it for too long.]

Oh, someone else wanted to ask about the bear-- does he seem like there's more he knows about this, or like he's truly just a part of it all?

[ercnerd]

[Seemingly pleased by their decision, he rests his head on her shoulder again. A hand also comes up to paw softly at her arm.]

He heads the assignments we receive on Wednesdays, claiming that we're helping. Other than that, he seems as clueless as we are. He's the one who brought me here.

[ambiography]

[sieghart what the fuck she only has one good one. she is trying to write. she pauses to kind of pat his hand, there.]

Noted, then. I'll keep in mind we probably shouldn't come earlier than Wednesday-- it might not be me every time, by the way, I went in on this with Claude. Next week is either him, or someone he chooses to give it to.

But I... do want to circle around to something I'm trying to work through, sort of. I don't know if you have any idea on this one, but-- worth the risk to maybe stop listening so much to things we're required to do, or still a bad idea overall?

[ercnerd]

[Okay, okay. Sieghart drops his hand. Now this, he thinks, is strange.

He turns his head to look curiously at Lucretia.]

Haven't the requirements been rewarding you? We don't earn vouchers, but we still have our extra credit assignments here.

Should I also keep you and Claude a secret?

[ambiography]

No, you can mention that to the others, it's fine, but-- different requirements. Related to what I tried to ask you earlier. As it stands, we... still have to fulfill one requirement that's just gotten much more difficult to do, if I'm taking your previous answer correctly.

[a pause, her pen tapping against the page.]

How else can I even try to ask-- I don't know, should we all be of the same opinion when it comes to making certain decisions? Anything, Sieghart, literally anything.

[i realized i never explicitly said bc i was so lost in the plot sauce but for the record she has shoved the papers at him in this meeting she probably did it much earlier i was phone tagging.]

[ercnerd]

[There's a hum as he mentally reviews their conversation, glancing down at her notes the while.]

. . . We tried to tell you not to ask Byleth questions the week she was killed. We hoped it would dissuade everyone from retaliating against her.

[He straightens, lifting his head from Lucretia's shoulder once more, and looks down at the papers in the hand that's been hanging by his side the whole time.]

Thanks for the visitation, Director. I'll take these back to everyone. Who knows? Maybe you can expect replies to some of them.

[Sieghart grins at Lucretia when a sudden impulse drives him to nuzzle against the crook of her neck. But he doesn't stop there. Without pause, he lifts his head to give her a small lick on the lips.

It's only when he pulls back, far away from Lucretia's face, that the gravity of what he's done slams into him, and Sieghart wishes with a look of wide-eyed horror that the toilet would engulf him right then and there.]