The Lady of Justice - Chapter 1 Trial Start

Roadie 🪶Jack

Jack just raised an eyebrow at Abel’s sudden tape interrogation. A murder trial didn’t seem like the time for this, but who was he to deny someone begging for his expertise? Hmm hmm.

“Dunno ’f I’d say good, but at least a little less…” While searching for a word, he fumbled the coin threading between his fingers. Still snapped it up before it could hit the floor. “…y’know. Like those were.”

“Honestly, the tapes’ve never been part of a car’s thing. Not like I’ve been to every single one, but I don’t think these’re s’posed to be anywhere we can get to ’em. Only ever seen ’em on the black market, ’r in the hands of some shady Denizens.”

Taran “If they’re a recurring thing out here, it sounds like Neko’s trainjacking tendencies are probably at work, but someone else could have been involved here.”

“Awful suspicious this guy had so many an’ wanted us to watch ‘em. Bet they wanted to trap us. Probably spliced up the tapes themselves t’ get rid of the decent parts, if ‘m understanding what splicin’ is at this point.” People sure had been talking about it enough, even if the tapes could trap people without anything that fancy and high-tech.

R.N.A. “The only people… who do not have… solid alibis are… Fenna, Melvin, Taran, Viper and Jack. They are the… five we should focus on… going forward.”

“Sure, I can accept that. ‘cept the big footprints get rid a’ me and Viper. Everybody else in our group saw ’em, too, so it’s not like we’re just co-conspirin’. Down to Fenna, Melvin, an’ Taran, then.” …Whichever ones those were. Maybe he needed to pay slightly closer attention to people’s names. As if that’d be easy.

But Fenna was easy enough to place just from her clear dismay at the looks of suspicion. First time falling from the “upstanding citizen” judgment, huh? Always a time.

Fenna Van Daalen “Bah, that’s prolly what it was. I did go out swimmin’ earlier…”

“Oh, y’mean to wash off the gun residue?”

Hoo, that oughta get some of her guard dogs after him. Maybe that’d liven things up enough to wake him up a little better.

Melvin Greene There’s rocks everywhere. Doesn’t mean [crap].”

“Doesn’t put her anywhere in particular, no. But does mean she’s been barefoot, and I coulda sworn there were some toe marks in those prints at the scene.”

Now that he thought about it… He bent to check his socks, but they were still far from dry. Dang. Sure felt like they’d been in here long enough. He sighed and wrung them again before laying them out at a different angle.

Melvin Greene “Huh, I kinda thought the scratched up tape that thing* dropped off might have been Jack’s. Had the scar, I think–” he gestures across his own face for emphasis (on the wrong side, for the record, but you get the idea) “– but I thought he threw his into the ocean???"

“Did it, now.”

…Relax. No one had watched his tape. No one knew anything. It was fine.

“…‘s what I said, yeah. Guess some things keep washin’ up on the shore, but mostly from the shipwreck…”

“…I’m sure it was someone else’s tape. Can’t be the only guy in the world who got my face scratched up.” With a grin, he inclined his head toward Abel. “Right, buddy?”

Viper

Roadie 🪶Jack “Doesn’t put her anywhere in particular, no. But does mean she’s been barefoot, and I coulda sworn there were some toe marks in those prints at the scene.”

“I…kinda have ta agree with Jack.” Viper admits, still shaking at RNA’s foot. “Fenna…I don’t wanna believe it’s true, but it’s startin’ ta seem more an’ more likely that ya just happen ta be th’ most suspicious one’a all of us.”

Viper frowned, “…I know ya think Fenna was drinkin’ after watchin’ her tape but…I got a different thought.” It felt like acid in her throat to get the words out. Fenna had treated her so kindly, and now…here she was.

“…I think ya were drinkin’ ta cope with the realisation that ya killed two people. Or…I think Comedy’s death was intended. After makin’ us watch those stupid tapes. But ’Suko…I dunno. Maybe that was intended too.” Viper scowls at the ground, still gripping onto her quarry.

“Please, Fenna, if ya did it…jus’… jus’ own up, yeah? We…ain’t gotta go ’round in circles forever. It’s gonna be found out one way or tha other.”

Abel Lazarus

Viper she stretched across Abel, leaning, in fact, across his lap.

Hi Viper! He grabs onto her to make sure she doesn’t fall but he seems mildly annoyed.

Roadie 🪶Jack “…I’m sure it was someone else’s tape. Can’t be the only guy in the world who got my face scratched up.” With a grin, he inclined his head toward Abel. “Right, buddy?”

Abel bristles and reaches up to rub his nose with an even more p*ssed expression. It’s. There! For sure! He doesn’t look Amazing!

“Well the person in the tape isn’t ginger so.” Viper be damned Abel leans over her in his lap to look at Jack around the RNA situation right next to him. “Who knows, though. Maybe there was a moment I didn’t remember in my own life where I found a box of hair dye! What do you think? Would brown suit me?” He winds a strand around his finger and extends it to reference the length of his hair slightly.

He’s back to antagonizing him it seems. He leans right on Viper’s back and smiles at Jack.

This isn’t………. A good idea- but he’s not wanting to engage the accusations flying at Fenna mostly because he doesn’t want to engage all the mentions of Alcohol flying around. He’s uncomfortable- and the best way to Avoid saying anything at the moment is just to Antagonize it seems.

“I could do you a favor, maybe.” That isn’t clarified on. He doesn’t. Make it obvious what he’s referring to or Actually offering. It just Doesn’t Sound Good.

Now is…. Not the time. BACK ON TOPIC PLEASE BACK ON TOPIC-

Fenna Van Daalen

Asuka Fukuda “Can we see the flask?"

Fenna held up the metal flask again, shaking it to show it was empty.

Asuka Fukuda Don’t get pissy getting suspected - it’s gonna happen whether you like it or not.

Roadie 🪶Jack “Oh, y’mean to wash off the gun residue?”

Viper “…I think ya were drinkin’ ta cope with the realisation that ya killed two people."

Viper “Please, Fenna, if ya did it…jus’… jus’ own up, yeah?"

“I–”

She flinched a bit at the accusations, her face growing almost… angry for a split second, in the midst of the clammy fear. She looked like she was about to say something…

But then the conversation continued. Abel was getting riled up again. Matsu finally spoke up– and thought she didn’t do it? Something about footprints on the eastern shore?

Maybe if she just kept quiet… Maybe no one would notice that her tape hadn’t even been watched halfway through, or–

Roadie 🪶Jack “So what, she went for her little swim an’ walked outta the surf, in her heels, straight to the TV to watch her tape? Which woulda been wet, too?”

Uhh– that too. It was still far from an airtight case, but anything she said would just lock it down further. She was better off staying quiet, if she wanted to…

“………”

R.N.A.

Narrator Since R.N.A. did ask nicely, they went over to the jury box to present a tape. The name on the label (Fenna Van Daalen) was one of the clearer ones you’d seen, and you could tell by the reels that it had been watched… partly. Nothing seemed more unusual about the tape’s film than anyone else’s.

Interesting. Well, it was clear the tape had not been tampered with, at least.

Despite Viper’s best efforts, R.N.A. had retained their foot, as well as awareness of the proceedings in the trial. It seemed like all points were converging on a specific person.

…There had been quite a few things brewing under the surface of this case. With far more evidence having come to light than initially, R.N.A. had been led to a far different conclusion than they had initially concluded.

Arty Takenaka “So all of this is exactly why everyone needs to stop jumping to conclusions about everything, okay? Seriously! You all make up explanations for evidence based on nothing and then use that to accuse people and not give them any benefit of the doubt at all.

"I’m sorry, Arty… but there are several points of suspicion. This is not… nothing. For starters… She has no verifiable… alibi for the crime.

Fenna Van Daalen “H-huh? The gun?! It’s… I lost it in the shipwreck… Taran told me he lost the bullet, too.”

Fenna Van Daalen Fenna obliges to the search, opening her purse to show a ruined pack of cigarettes, a romance novel, and an empty flask.

“First of all… the gun and bullet… It is about… who has access to it. Not who knows. The only people were… Fenna and Taran.”

R.N.A. turns to Taran. “Taran… am I correct in assuming… Miss Fenna emptied the gun and gave you the bullet?” R.N.A. questions. “Because it is very possible… there were more bullets. So she kept a bullet for herself. In essence… the gun was always loaded.”

“Secondly… I find it hard… to believe the only thing she lost… in the shipwreck was the gun. All the other items… in her purse were still there. I don’t believe… she ever lost it.” It was too coincidental, wasn’t it?

Roadie 🪶Jack “Doesn’t put her anywhere in particular, no. But does mean she’s been barefoot, and I coulda sworn there were some toe marks in those prints at the scene.”

Fenna Van Daalen It looks like more of a scrape than a cut from broken glass.

Fenna Van Daalen Fenna’s glittery heel was quite a bit larger than Viper’s foot, and the velvety insole bore trace amounts of blood.

“Fenna scraped her foot… so she must have taken her… shoes off on the beach… at some point. Much like the killer… must have, if there were toe… prints in the sand. Her foot is also… larger than Viper’s… like the killer’s.”

“But I think most unusual…”

Fenna Van Daalen “I think the sunset was behind me when I started the tape, so… east coast, right? I just thought I’d get the damn thing over with, didn’t think it’d take so long… I know it ain’t much of an alibi.”

Fenna Van Daalen Maybe if she just kept quiet… Maybe no one would notice that her tape hadn’t even been watched halfway through, or–

They hold up the tape that Nekoneko had given them. Fenna Van Daalen’s tape. “…Is that Miss Fenna’s tape has been barely watched. Despite her saying how long she… was watching for, less than half… of the tape has elapsed. I find it hard… to believe she watched much at all.”

“Miss Fenna, do you care to admit your crime? I believe you killed Atsuko Samukura.” R.N.A. concluded.

Narrator

Narrator “I WAS NOT MADE AWARE OF THIS BY THE COUNSEL.”

Neko-Neko made one of those little “oopsies! [raps knuckles on head and a little anime star floats out]” faces, but they didn’t seem very concerned.

“Don’t worry, Your Honor, we can add it to tomorra’s docket if we gotta. I have copies of the paperwork ready for every trial situation!”

R.N.A. “Excuse me, Nekoneko. Would you… be able to fetch Fenna’s tape? I’d like… to examine it in greater detail.”

“Fetch? We look like a dog to you?”

“I did bring it, though! Here…”

Since R.N.A. did ask nicely, they went over to the jury box to present a tape. The name on the label (Fenna Van Daalen) was one of the clearer ones you’d seen, and you could tell by the reels that it had been watched… partly. Nothing seemed more unusual about the tape’s film than anyone else’s.

Roadie 🪶Jack

Abel Lazarus “Who knows, though. Maybe there was a moment I didn’t remember in my own life where I found a box of hair dye! What do you think? Would brown suit me?”

“Considering you’re already wearin’ brown?” Jack pretended to scan him up and down, then shook his head sadly.

“Doesn’t suitcha at all. Maybe try out a good traffic yellow ‘r somethin’.”

If there were any more implications in Abel’s calculated response, they weren’t obvious enough for Jack to pick up on. Still too hard to focus.

Dexter Blanche We managed to find different footprints from the northern shore to the TV where she was stuck, and they were heeled.

“From the shore t’ the TV? So what, she went for her little swim an’ walked outta the surf, in her heels, straight to the TV to watch her tape? Which woulda been wet, too? That even safe?”

He turned to Fenna.

“Or d’you got some secret waterproof compartment in those oh-so-bulky clothes?”

Dexter Blanche a pair of people with suspicious movements, who can potentially Fake an Alibi, vouching for eachother.

“Well! The good news is no idiot’d ask me to fake their alibi. Not worth the trouble if nobody’d believe me.”

“And if I was havin’ somebody fake mine, I’d make up something better than disappearin’ halfway through. Gimme a little credit here.”

Vinzent Mayer That said, we were NOT searching for the gun, we were checking the flotsam to try to find anything that’d help us get out of here and a gun would be the last thing we’d need.”

Vinzent Mayer Why would we need to kill Comedy if we dealt with our tapes prior so that the murder doesn’t happen? It doesn’t make sense, does it?”

“Whaddaya mean? Gun could be real helpful getting you out if you, I dunno, murdered somebody t’ go home? Least, if we’re supposed to believe what that cat’s said. Doesn’t all gotta be ’bout the tapes. For anybody with a home to go back to, at least.”

Dexter Blanche

“Er… hold on. Let me get my thoughts straight.” Dexter says, as the pressure mounts on Fenna. He’s holding his hand to his temple.

“So you saw that there was footprints, barefoot, that makes sense… but what I’m curious about is that we also found some footprints in the sand. They were very clearly not Miss Fenna’s however. We managed to find different footprints from the northern shore to the TV where she was stuck, and they were heeled. As if she didn’t take off her shoes. I can also attest to there being… well, Mr Melvin called it rocks, but it’s more like Coral In the Sand. If you don’t know, Coral is Very Easy to cut yourself on. Just thought I’d bring that up as reasonable doubt. Anyone could have stepped on those rocks, if we are to condemn Miss Fenna, I believe we need more solid evidence.”

“No, what makes me more concerned are the footprints I mentioned earlier, along the eastern shore, going in and out of the water. What worries me is that it wasn’t footprints, it was two sets. If we posit that this was Miss Fenna washing off gun residue, then there’s someone else here who was with her when she did it. If its not Miss Fenna… thats still a pair of people with suspicious movements, who can potentially Fake an Alibi, vouching for eachother.”

Dexter cleared his throat into his scarf.

“This means that rather than going by our own word, we’ll have to be going by logical deduction. For one, we need to place Time of Death as well as When the fire was started. I believe trying to find out who was where, ultimately, when the murder happened. There is a chance that an accomplice may be involved, so id watch out.”

Vinzent Mayer

Dexter Blanche “No, what makes me more concerned are the footprints I mentioned earlier, along the eastern shore, going in and out of the water. What worries me is that it wasn’t footprints, it was two sets. If we posit that this was Miss Fenna washing off gun residue, then there’s someone else here who was with her when she did it. If its not Miss Fenna… thats still a pair of people with suspicious movements, who can potentially Fake an Alibi, vouching for eachother.”

Vinzent was taking a solid minute to realize what this meant, considering what he has stated earlier. It was him and Arty who were there.

“I’ll stop you there, my guy.”

“The footprints were mine’s and Arty’s. That said, we were NOT searching for the gun, we were checking the flotsam to try to find anything that’d help us get out of here and a gun would be the last thing we’d need.”

“And… Be honest, do you think a constitution like mine will have no problem smashing Comedy’s head?”

As he spoke, Vinzent pulled his sleeves to let his arm out to show that, uh. He’s thin, and without much muscle. Not an ounce of strength in this dude at all-

“At best, I would have pulled a muscle and I’m pretty sure you’d notice if I was in pain.”

“Not like I’m fine at the sight of blood either because I am not, but that’s not important, I feel…”

“And. If you think this means I instead helped Arty cover up in case she did it? You’re absolutely out of left field. My tape got destroyed after a dumb fight and I helped destroy Arty’s after she watched it, and that was within the first few days. Why would we need to kill Comedy if we dealt with our tapes prior so that the murder doesn’t happen? It doesn’t make sense, does it?”

Hopefully that explained enough and that will get Dexter off their asses soon enough.

Matsu

Matsukaze has been quiet, fidgeting with the hem of their scarf. Their name has come up several times, but other than a nod the first time R.N.A. mentioned the two of them being together – a small gesture, easily missed. Their eyes follow a lot of the conversation, glaring particularly at Taran for a moment in passing.

At some point they had spun their chair to face the others better, and pulled their feet up so they could hug their knees.

“I was with R.N.A.” They finally say. Sure, they had voted for R.N.A. to be the defendant, but like… why not? Their suggestion of Jack had been easily swayed. “That’s why we were together when we found it.”

It being both the fire and the corpse. Matsu shifts again, and they look away. “It doesn’t matter what we were doing. We just were busy. There wasn’t a gunshot, either.” Not that they’d ever heard a gunshot in real life. Though… there was…

“Or. Well, I heard something weird, right before the fire started.” They furrow their brow, thinking, and give Abel a bit of a wary look. “It wasn’t a gun, though. I’m not stupid, I’ve seen movies. I know what a fucking gun sounds like.” Matsu snaps defensively (and preemptively). But they don’t know how a ‘silencer’ or whatever would change the sound…

They reach up to adjust their face mask slightly.

“Whoever did it wasn’t the old lady, though.” RUDE. “There wasn’t enough time to get to wherever she was and start watching her tape, if the sound was what started the fire.”

Maybe. They don’t actually know how far away she was. For all they knew, she was about 4 trees over the whole time.

If anyone (Viper) is bothering to check, no measurement is required at all to see that Matsu’s feet are definitely too small to be the tracks. From just a glance, it’s pretty clear that their boots are smaller than Viper’s. Thankfully no measurement is needed because they don’t offer.

Arty Takenaka

Arty assumed her contribution to the trial was pretty much over after she’d presented her evidence. Since then, she’d figured the best course of action was just to listen, since she had nothing else in the way of theories to add. There were already plenty of half-baked explanations floating around without her help, after all. But the more everyone kept talking, the more it all sounded like most of them were talking out of their own butts. It was hard not to get frustrated seeing people accuse each other of murder over the tiniest things. Like that was the most logical conclusion to jump to! Anyone who’s spared a look Arty’s way over the past few exchanges can practically see the stormcloud gathering over her head as she slinks downward in her chair and scowls at pretty much everybody.

Vinzent Mayer “The footprints were mine’s and Arty’s. That said, we were NOT searching for the gun, we were checking the flotsam to try to find anything that’d help us get out of here and a gun would be the last thing we’d need.”

In full honesty, Arty hadn’t kept track of what shore she’d been frequenting earlier, so it takes Vinzent saying this for her to put together that they made some of the suspicious footprints. But it sounds right, and he sounds confident, so yeah, sure. Note to self: keep track of cardinal directions in the future, because apparently that’s important to murder investigations??

“I can back up everything he said, yeah. Including the stuff about his physical strength. Vinzent couldn’t even snap my tape in half on his own, he had to break it over his knee. …Uh, sorry.” Arty grimaces apologetically, but she knows it’s probably more important to clear him of suspicion even if that means inadvertently insulting him. “And, like, I’m not that strong either, so.”

“And also, I didn’t have any knowledge of the gun, which seems like kind of something I’d need to have in order to steal it? So yeah. And I couldn’t have recovered it from the shipwreck, because I can’t swim. Some people can back me up on that one.”

Arty’s surprised her name took so long to come up, considering the way everyone’s been pointing fingers at each other over nothing. To her relief, though, it doesn’t seem like she’s a serious suspect. Arty is silently, privately, just a little bit grateful for her small size and correspondingly tiny feet. Just this once. She doesn’t know if she’d be able to take it if people were talking about her the way they were talking about R.N.A. or Fenna. And looking over at the latter sends Arty’s frustration to new heights. Fenna was clearly upset over being accused, and nobody seemed to care.

“So all of this is exactly why everyone needs to stop jumping to conclusions about everything, okay? Seriously! You all make up explanations for evidence based on nothing and then use that to accuse people and not give them any benefit of the doubt at all. Like ‘oh, we see footprints, must be Fenna washing off gun residue.’ Like what the hec—what the hell did she even do for none of you to trust her at all? She’s not the only one who knew about the gun, and she’s not the only one without a solid alibi. And she’s not the only one with big feet, either! Multiple people are in all those groups. And assuming she got drunk because she killed people? Are you guys serious? Being an adult sucks! There’s so many reasons to get drunk! I just don’t see why she has to be singled out when we should be looking at other people, too, so maybe just everyone shut up and leave her alone for TEN SECONDS‽”

Maybe she’s too mad to continue or maybe she’s just out of air, but for whatever reason, Arty falls silent after that, looking even grumpier than before.

Melvin Greene

Well, this entire situation still sucks. Jack is scary, everyone is still bickering and everything is flying over Melvin’s head, or falling just short, or whatever. As usual, almost nobody in this room was making a lick of goddamn sense to him! Fenna? Really? C’mon. Why would she…

Roadie 🪶Jack Doesn’t all gotta be ’bout the tapes. For anybody with a home to go back to, at least.

… Shit. There was– well, but that didn’t mean anything either! Sure, it looked bad. Real bad. But just looking bad isn’t proof, anyone could just make shit up by twisting the smallest things into a bigger deal than they really were. Fenna was smart, she’d just explain why it couldn’t be the case and they’d move on.

Fenna Van Daalen “………”

Uhhh. That wasn’t good. Hey, look, he gets it, sometimes when you’re being accused of shit it’s hard to find the words to defend yourself. But accusations of murder were a lot more heinous than anything he’d ever had to put up with. Far be it from him to know about putting effort into basically anything, but if there was ever gonna be a time, this sure seemed like it.

“Fenna? Why aren’t you saying anything?! You know it’s bullshit, tell him he’s wrong!”

Now he was starting to panic again. He’s not smart enough to figure out a different explanation, a better one. He can’t come up with a defense for someone he’s actually willing to call a friend for the first time in years. Maybe if he wasn’t so stupid he could actually help. Go ahead and add that to the list of failures.

Arty Takenaka I just don’t see why she has to be singled out when we should be looking at other people, too, so maybe just everyone shut up and leave her alone for TEN SECONDS‽

“Damn right, kid, you tell ’em.”

At least someone was talking sense. Leave it to a bright kid like that to point out how everyone was being too hasty. Hell yeah, go Arty go. If they were going by solid alibis, there was… yeah, okay, a lot of people could back each other up, but not everyone. They’d narrowed it down already, but what was he gonna do, throw Taran’s name back out there when the guy had done nothing but help him out? That’d just be uncool, even by his standards. Especially when the only defense basically anyone had put forward for him was that he was Too Pathetic.

Maybe they were right, considering he can’t seem to muster the nerve to actually point that out either.

Abel Lazarus

CW: he sucks. Mentions of addiction, death, cussing. I think. Yeah. It’s not good. : (

Fenna Van Daalen “………”

You know. There’s a lot Abel is getting increasingly frustrated about and Fenna being quiet might have just broken any sort of Resolve he still held to act like a normal person about Any Of This.

Listen. He tried so hard! He did! But whatever the hell is happening- the smell of alcohol, the way she’s acting-

He’s Agitated.

Arty Takenaka Being an adult sucks! There’s so many reasons to get drunk!

And that’s it. If it’s Convincing Arty this is okay to do it’s surely crossing some line, right? He can’t just… WATCH this.

He Laughs. “Choosing to get drunk right now isn’t a Positive Sign. What? Can’t handle the tapes everyone else has been getting through without alcohol without drinking? Sure yours Sucked Fenna- but really?” Cool it, Abel. Calm down.

“Sure. Being an Adult Sucks- but I’ve been working since I was 6 and I’ve still never decided to drink to get through a day. Have you considered its a problem? But perhaps you think Jaundice is some hot new fashion accessory. You know Livers aren’t that easy to come by, right? Did you want to live to see your son again?”

Reel it back Abel. There’s a Lot you aren’t considering about this. There’s a lot you’re putting out here-

He looks at Fenna. Really looks at her. There’s a Lot going on in his head- really kind of way too much- “Fenna. Just confess if it was you. If it wasn’t I don’t see why you wouldn’t keep professing your Innocence. Come on. Did you just want to see your son again that badly? I have to be Honest. Do you think he’d be proud to know what you’ve become?” ABEL….. THE LINE…..

He’s. He’s not doing well. Undoubtably he Looks Bad. Beaten, bloodied, Exhausted. The smell. That damn smell-

“Your footprints come from the water. Your tape isn’t all that far in. It looks bad. If it wasn’t you- defend yourself. Did you see something? Hear something? Feel the need to Drown It Out? Or Did You Do It?”

He’s. Here. He. Doesn’t want to be. He doesn’t want it to be her. He can’t rectify these versions of Fenna with each other. Maybe his mother was right about him.

Fenna Van Daalen

Melvin Greene “Fenna? Why aren’t you saying anything?! You know it’s bullshit, tell him he’s wrong!”

Arty Takenaka Like what the hec—what the hell did she even do for none of you to trust her at all?"

What the hell was she doing? That was a child. A teenager was defending her, when the reason she couldn’t speak was… And good ol’ Melvin, backing her up to the very end…

The two of them sat on either side of her. Fenna shivered and put a hand on each of their shoulders, whispering so only they could hear.

“I’m sorry… I’m sorry…”

But then the yelling started. She nodded simply at R.N.A.– they’d gotten it mostly right. But Abel was trying so hard to hurt her– as if he could say anything worse than how she thought about herself. And Viper’s voice stung with heartbreak– she’d known that kind of venom well, a long time ago. And all of them turned so quickly again, even if they were right this time… These really were just a bunch of kids.

“Are you all fuckin’ done?! Screamin’ like y’know everythin’ when y’were floundering like fishes just minutes ago– that kinda shit’s gonna get someone framed! Yous gatta be more careful, I don’t want yous ta…”

Abel Lazarus "Did you just want to see your son again that badly? I have to be Honest. Do you think he’d be proud to know what you’ve become?”

“A course I wanted ta see him again! He’s in danger! Yous didn’t see the– the letter he wrote– I had ta do somethin’–”

Viper “And you thought Atsuko could die perhaps ’cause people wouldn’t miss her."

“But Atsuko… that’s not what I…”

She glanced warily over at Neko-Neko, at the towering judge of stone, and then at the people around her, steeling herself.

“…Call me selfish all yous like. But I’m not sayin anythin’ until we know Comedy’s killah, too. I won’t let the proceedin’s move on until we find ’em– and it wasn’t me.”

Vinzent Mayer

[cw in the quote! sorry I wasn’t sure what to cut out! And panic attack later on way after the quote]

A lot… Has been happening since Arty backed him up with their alibi. Vinzent had half a mind to take his shoe and chuck it at Jack’s face for talking again. God did he hate this man.

But… Even before Vinzent could talk… Fenna’s reaction was not helping. If anything, it disappointed Vinzent more and more. He wanted to believe she was innocent. He really did. But… Then Arty came to Fenna’s defense and… Melvin too, why is Vinzent not that surprised? Still…

Then. Abel spoke. Getting agitated. Getting too far. That worried Vinzent a lot. So, so much.

Abel Lazarus CW: he sucks. Mentions of addiction, death, cussing. I think. Yeah. It’s not good. : (

[…]

And that’s it. If it’s Convincing Arty this is okay to do it’s surely crossing some line, right? He can’t just… WATCH this.

He Laughs. “Choosing to get drunk right now isn’t a Positive Sign. What? Can’t handle the tapes everyone else has been getting through without alcohol without drinking? Sure yours Sucked Fenna- but really?” Cool it, Abel. Calm down.

“Sure. Being an Adult Sucks- but I’ve been working since I was 6 and I’ve still never decided to drink to get through a day. Have you considered its a problem? But perhaps you think Jaundice is some hot new fashion accessory. You know Livers aren’t that easy to come by, right? Did you want to live to see your son again?”

Reel it back Abel. There’s a Lot you aren’t considering about this. There’s a lot you’re putting out here-

He looks at Fenna. Really looks at her. There’s a Lot going on in his head- really kind of way too much- “Fenna. Just confess if it was you. If it wasn’t I don’t see why you wouldn’t keep professing your Innocence. Come on. Did you just want to see your son again that badly? I have to be Honest. Do you think he’d be proud to know what you’ve become?” ABEL….. THE LINE…..

He’s. He’s not doing well. Undoubtably he Looks Bad. Beaten, bloodied, Exhausted. The smell. That damn smell-

“Your footprints come from the water. Your tape isn’t all that far in. It looks bad. If it wasn’t you- defend yourself. Did you see something? Hear something? Feel the need to Drown It Out? Or Did You Do It?”

He’s. Here. He. Doesn’t want to be. He doesn’t want it to be her. He can’t rectify these versions of Fenna with each other. Maybe his mother was right about him.

At the son line, Vinzent puts his hand gently on Abel’s good shoulder. To squeeze a bit.

“That’s… Abel. Please… Calm down.”

More rubs, he wanted to tell Abel to not say any more hurtful things. But… Can he fault Abel? For being forced to relive some really bad memories? He can’t. Just as he can’t fault Fenna for not knowing presumably. A sad, horrible coincidence. But if he could do something for Abel… It’s being there, for him. Something to be stable. It’s not much… But it’s preferable than letting Abel drown further in more painful memories. Than letting Abel say more things he’ll regret. But again, can he fault him?

It was without saying Vinzent flinched at Viper’s voice. Oh man, oh man.

… Viper wasn’t wrong. Vinzent agreed with her, but only quietly. Mainly… Because. There’s Abel who needs Vinzent. If only to not be alone. The artist had no will to chew out Fenna while also having to deal with Abel’s emotions. He had to pick one…

He still felt he let Fenna down. But he was going to wait on her response.

…

Yelling. He… He. He’s scared, he’s trying so hard to be there for Abel, and look at him, barely trying to keep himself together.

A confession?

A..

It… It wasn’t her who killed Comedy? What the fuck. He… Vinzent was not… He wasn’t breathing regularily. As if he forgot everything he looked for. Yes, they have to find out who but… Would it really matter in the end? His knuckles has gotten paler, he’s fighting for not losing his cool any further, while trying to calm Abel down. He…

He didn’t know what to do anymore. Maybe… Maybe he too needs some stability. He didn’t know. Before he could realize it… He was gripping Abel’s coat, with his face hidden by his own hair. Trying so hard to calm down. But he… Maybe… Some sobs can be heard. But not much, because he was trying so hard to not let it out. It…

It was too much. He wanted this to end already. Please.

Viper

Viper may have been convinced to release RNA’s foot when Abel leant on her and made her yelp, but she had quickly bounced back in time to address the rest of the room. Arty and Melvin were defending Fenna, and Abel and RNA the opposite… all the talking was getting too much.

Viper huffed and rolled from Abel’s lap despite the pain, landing on a practical heap on the ground, looking up at the ceiling.

“EVERYONE SHUT UP FOR A SECOND!” She yelled from her floor seat, sitting up and dragging herself to her feet. She approached Fenna, this meant passing one of Fenna’s guard dogs, Arty.

It was such a shame. She liked Fenna.

Viper, unfortunately for her stature, didn’t tower over Fenna as much as she would like to in the current moment.

“Is that it? Is Abel right?” Viper’s voice was somewhat cold, a stark contrast to her usual vibrance. “You wanted to see your son again, so you condemn the rest of us? Don’t think most of us have people to go back to as well?” Viper was leaning over, an intensity burning in her stare.

“And you thought Atsuko could die perhaps ’cause people wouldn’t miss her. Well you f-ckin’ thought wrong.” Viper, she… it was a little hard to tell how much of this anger was an act, but perhaps… just maybe it was all genuine. “Even with nobody out there, there’s gonna be people who miss’er.”

“Selfish people make me f-ckin’ sick, jus’ f-ckin’ prove ya ain’t no selfish broad and maybe I’ll feel bad for ya.”

Fenna I’m so sorry.

Viper

Fenna Van Daalen “Are you all fuckin’ done?! Screamin’ like y’know everythin’ when y’were floundering like fishes just minutes ago– that kinda shit’s gonna get someone framed! Yous gatta be more careful, I don’t want yous ta…”

“Ya don’t want us ta die? Ta die like Atsuko? Like Comedy? Like those people who didn’t f-cking deserve it?” Viper half sneers, feeling rage bubbling up from the very pit of her stomach. Fenna was acting like a true martyr. Her son may have been in danger, yeah, but…

“DID YA NOT EVEN STOP TA THINK IT COULD’A BEEN A TRAP?!” The rage was burning, bubbling, threatening to spill over. “THIS F-CKIN’ CAT HAS US TRAPPED ON THIS WEIRD-AF TRAIN AND YOU TAKE IT FOR WHAT IT IS?!”

Viper’s fist balls at her side. It wasn’t shaking to start with, but as Fenna continues, the rage spills. It sends a veritable avalanche down to her arm, and she winds back, before throwing a punch straight at Fenna’s face. There’s nothing she wants more than to pummel her into the ground. To make her see just how she’d put everyone in danger with her actions.

Her hand connects, she feels the impact- but her eyes widen when she sees just who she hit.

“Augh- F-CK!”

Taran

Fenna’s admission hits Taran hard. It wasn’t exactly a calm situation, true, but he trusted her with that gun. And she what, took the bullet back? And killed Atsuko? With that kind of desperation in her voice… ‘Betrayal’ is too personal for what this is. Something broke for her. He was pissed at her and that she was RIGHT about how they (he!) had been treating this ‘trial,’ but he couldn’t shake the sadness or the belief that she had to have something like a good reason.

Fenna Van Daalen “…Call me selfish all yous like. But I’m not sayin anythin’ until we know Comedy’s killah, too. I won’t let the proceedin’s move on until we find ’em– and it wasn’t me.”

And if she wants the other killer caught before she explains herself, then that’s just Taran’s new job.

But he doesn’t have time to dwell on it as Viper raises her voice, puts that metal edge into it. She just committed to being a problem. Taran leaps from his chair as she winds up…

Viper Her hand connects, she feels the impact- but her eyes widen when she sees just who she hit.

Haruka?! He’s already moving, taking a couple sprinting steps across the jury box. And Viper is STILL angling to hit Fenna as Haruka staggers. Hardheaded little nerd! Might not make it in time, gotta… lunge?

Taran launches into a tackle, and they both hit the hard floor.

“Viper, fucking stop!”

Melvin Greene

Fenna Van Daalen I’m sorry… I’m sorry…

“… what?”

What for? What the hell for? She doesn’t mean… goddammit, who’s he kidding, of course she does. Well, Melvin was banking on someone smarter than him spelling it out and that’s exactly what he got. Careful what you wish for, buddy! The situation keeps unravelling like a cheap sweater and there are just too many threads to keep track of them anymore. It’s completely overwhelming. For god’s sake, he’s just a late-night delivery driver, how did he get roped into this?

Vinzent Mayer It was too much. He wanted this to end already. Please.

He’s just in so far over his head,

Viper It sends a veritable avalanche down to her arm, and she winds back, before throwing a punch straight at Fenna’s face.

and he’s trying to make sense of everything going on

Haruka Yukimura “Ah. P… please, don’t… fight.”

but it’s all just noise to him.

Matsu “What the fuck are you doing?!”

It’s just shouting and noise

Asuka Fukuda Real panic seizes Asuka’s heart, and she stares, looking lost and exactly her age.

and the only thing any of it means is that

Abel Lazarus Ahah. ahahahaha. AHAHAHHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAH.

He starts laughing.

nobody in this room is anything close to okay.

Taran “Viper, fucking stop!”

He’s sure feeling pretty bad himself right about now.

“What is WRONG with you people what the HELL.”

Not you, everyone who is trying to stop the fighting, you’re doing amazing but it’s a real uphill battle for y’all.

He never should have set foot on this train. Being stuck in that rut doesn’t seem so bad all of a sudden. He’d have never been forced to sit through this crappy courtroom drama, or meet any of these people, or god help him start to think he was still capable of making friends. Nothing that seemed promising ever worked out well for him. Why didn’t he know better by now?

Fenna Van Daalen “Look, I’ll tell yous everythin’, but we gatta find Comedy’s killah! Quick, before the cat gets any ideas…”

It’s funny. Fenna had even stood up for him at Dexter’s initial accusations. No wonder she could be so certain - the person most willing to discount him for reasons that weren’t based on how much they thought he was pathetically stupid had done it. Of course. It’s not like he could prove anyone wrong on that front, either - with everything going on in moment, he’s still managed to forget what Taran had said about the tape. Very funny, but Comedy is dead and nobody’s laughing anymore.

… Except maybe Abel. But he’s not even remotely willing or able to deal with that right now.

Roadie 🪶Jack

Oh, Jack had been hoping somebody’d get riled up, but this spiraled into more than he could have dreamed. No regrets deciding to stick around with this group. At least none he could remember.

Though he was certainly cackling, any additional jeers were easily lost in the chaos. He still didn’t see reason to raise his voice, apparently. All the better, though—did anyone really need to hear his misguided boxing commentary or him calling Haruka naive for getting punched in the face? I don’t think so.

Fenna Van Daalen But I’m not sayin anythin’ until we know Comedy’s killah, too. I won’t let the proceedin’s move on until we find ’em– and it wasn’t me.”

“Right, and we should humor you ‘cause…” He scoffed.

“Not like you got any way to hold trial up after confessin’.” Was that a challenge? Possibly.

“At this point maybe we oughta just wrap this up an’ move on before we get a couple more murders here. ‘less you don’t mind that, in which case—“ he gestured at the rest of the box in general to beckon them onward—“far be it from me to stop you!”

A shame he couldn’t kick back with some popcorn here.

Fenna Van Daalen

Viper “DID YA NOT EVEN STOP TA THINK IT COULD’A BEEN A TRAP?!”

“Of course I did– whoa! Jesus!”

Fenna tried to push Haruka out of harm’s way, but everything happened too quickly for her addled reflexes. She couldn’t do much but watch as Viper’s fist met Haruka’s face, Asuka rushed to her aid, and Taran rushed to take Viper down. Honestly, she wouldn’t have cared much if the punch did connect, but what’s done is done. Now what was this Matsu and Abel were on about…

Matsu “Her family is yakuza, did you like want to die?!"

Abel Lazarus “What even made you Pick her?”

“Yakuza? Like– like the mob? I mean– that explains things but– h-how the hell was I s’posed ta know that?! I wasn’t even really lookin’ fer her in the first place…”

“Look, I’ll tell yous everythin’, but we gatta find Comedy’s killah! Quick, before the cat gets any ideas…”

She glanced down at the floor.

“…Uhh, not you, Taran. Actually, didn’t ja say there was a tape at the scene? And the Creature took it? Can someone describe it again?”

Haruka Yukimura

[CW: small mention of tooth trauma, hypothetical]

As the trial turned towards discussion of Atsuko, and then towards accusations, Haruka stayed silent in her seat. There wasn’t anything she could offer on the factual side of things - and she was very reluctant to get involved in the emotional side of things. Especially as things started heating up. Especially as people started shouting and insulting…

She hoped people didn’t notice her small uncomfortable wheeze when Abel and Fenna argued about her son, and her probable motive… This wasn’t about her own problems! It just… happened to hit a little close to home, perhaps!

But then speaking of hits close to home…

Haruka’s head shoots up as Viper rises and approaches Fenna. Oh, that’s a fist she sees being raised - oh, that’s bad - she moves almost before she knows it.

The heights at play here make it worse, probably. Viper’s flying punch is more of an uppercut, and Haruka has only a moment where she realises she’s thankful for her layers of scarves before there’s a horrible crunch and clack.

“…”

“Ah. P… please, don’t… fight.”

Trying to stop herself crying out, she sucks air through her teeth. Is one broken…? She hopes not… That is definitely blood she can taste, though, and the others might see some begin to seep from the edge of her mouth as she speaks again.

“I… know you’re angry, but… a-ah, violence won’t solve things. Augh…”

She can’t talk any more like this. The blood is beginning to stain her scarf a bit…

Matsu

[cw: depression symptom stuff and existential dread I guess?]

Matsu frowns at Jack – not really a change in expression, especially not one visible over the face mask aside from a slight increase in tension in their brows.

Arty surprises them, though. They didn’t think some kid would get that, but she’s right. Being an adult sucks. Being a kid sucks. It was hard to think of something that didn’t, now that they think about it.

And then Abel digs into Fenna, startling Matsukaze visibly. Fuck. Fuck.

They hadn’t thought he was so judgemental – they can’t help but think about what he saw in their tape. Is that what he thought about them too?

They don’t know, of course, about what is the real trigger for it here. They don’t… know him very well at all, do they?

Barely do they listen to R.N.A., instead staring at a spot on the floor. Vaguely they hear that the tape had only been watched a little, which means there… probably was enough time for her to have done everything, wasn’t there? The one thing they had to offer to help was wrong.

Viper isn’t really a surprise that this point when she starts tearing into Fenna, too. It feels… weird, the tightness in their chest.

“Are you stupid, of course Atsuko had-” but they cut themself off as people just keep going and going.

They scoot a little farther from Viper in their chair.

Everything happened so fast. One minute, Fenna was all but admitting to killing Atsuko, the next Viper is punching Haruka in the face?

Matsu turns their chair back around before standing. It’s an impulse, they don’t even know why they do. They aren’t… stupid enough to jump into this. Yet.

“What the fuck are you doing?!”

They grit their teeth, looking along the other people there before looking to Fenna. “If you wanted to leave, Atsuko was the worst fucking option here for that,” they finally say, though a bit less firey than may be expected. “Her family is yakuza, did you like want to die?! What good is killing to go home if you’re just going to get killed as soon as they find you?”

It just didn’t make sense. Obviously everyone knew who Atsuko was, they were sure.

Right?

Abel Lazarus

Asuka Fukuda Abel had some kind of alcohol issues - or mommy issues or whatever, Asuka got the gist of it from that little speech no issue - and Fenna had done something bad while liking alcohol. That meant it was okay to yell at her, to assume as much as possible, to make every point personal and razor sharp. It would make Abel feel better, certainly. It wasn’t even really about the murder, was it?

Uhhhh yeah! Exactly 💖 Atsuko barely listened to him unless he said something she found interesting- and she didn’t meet the right boxes for him to attempt to impress her when he knew she didn’t care about listening to him. Certainly he didn’t mind her but he’s not exactly about to suddenly have emotions about her when they were nothing more than acquaintances.

Matsu “If you wanted to leave, Atsuko was the worst fucking option here for that,” they finally say, though a bit less firey than may be expected. “Her family is yakuza, did you like want to die?! What good is killing to go home if you’re just going to get killed as soon as they find you?”

Until!

Ahah. ahahahaha. AHAHAHHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAH.

He starts laughing. Oh. Oh of course. “She. She was Yakuza? Oh.” He clearly thinks this is a funny turn of events.

Oh man. Oh MAN! Suddenly he likes Atsuko a whole hell of a lot more- which is definitely a bit Late but. He gets it now. The question about his dad. He understands.

“Oh. Wow. You really knew how to pick them. Quite possibly the only worse option for a Victim was me.”

Which is… a bit of a self inflated opinion to have but. He’s sort of… right. Perhaps Fenna could have some hope escaping the Yakuza if she never went to Japan ever but. If she’s hypothetically killed Abel? She couldn’t step foot in at Least four different countries.

Abel. You suck. You Really Suck.

“What even made you Pick her?” Abel please. Please. I’m begging you. Calm down. This is Quite Literally why people Do Not Like You.

Asuka Fukuda

Are all adults like this?

For the record, Asuka doesn’t have a problem with fighting or holding grudges. She’s the champion of holding grudges, after all! It’d be kind of hypocritical if she didn’t. But the more she watches the trial go on, the more she has to wonder: is adulthood all about being self-serving? It’s all the girl can see, and there’s a few seconds where she lets herself feel horribly, horribly lost.

Abel had some kind of alcohol issues - or mommy issues or whatever, Asuka got the gist of it from that little speech no issue - and Fenna had done something bad while liking alcohol. That meant it was okay to yell at her, to assume as much as possible, to make every point personal and razor sharp. It would make Abel feel better, certainly. It wasn’t even really about the murder, was it?

Fenna’s son was in danger, so it was okay for her to kill somebody else? Lives had different values - so long as you were the one assigning them. Asuka could understand caring for yourself - who else would protect you when you’re disposable? - but deciding one life weighed more than another? Deciding it was okay to lose a person for whatever reason? Fenna had clearly felt she could act that way - because it benefited her to do so, calmed and soothed her nerves in some form. Asuka was almost envious - would Fenna’s son even be able to appreciate this?

Viper is angry - and it makes sense to be angry. But that anger is meant to justify assault. Fenna killed, so she lost the right to be safe, to be protected. It’d be easy to spin it as vengeance, if not for the fact Viper seemed just as quick to turn on others. Why had Asuka found her cool? Would Viper attack Asuka like that if she did something wrong? The idea bothers Asuka more than the idea of people attacking her usually does, and so she reaches her conclusion. Atsuko’s death and Fenna’s confession were an excuse for Viper to work through her own feelings - it wasn’t about the death, it was about getting even. Making Viper feel better.

Remember when you attacked R.N.A.? Do any of you remember pursuing them and their alibi? Viciousness was wielded like a hammer with no real purpose. At least Asuka knew why she wielded it - could anybody else say the same? Or would they come up with some excuse above “you lost the right to decency, so we can be as cruel as we want in turn?”

Gami, you would have loved it here. None of them would have looked at you twice.

Her heart aches, but nothing makes it hurt than seeing Viper’s blow connect with Haruka. Real panic seizes Asuka’s heart, and she stares, looking lost and exactly her age.

“Haruka!!!” The panic is undeniable, Asuka’s eyes locked onto the blood. Without another thought, Asuka abandons her post, rushing over to Haruka’s side as she desperately tries to assess the extent of injury. She doesn’t care about anybody else around her - why should she - as she takes in the blood on Haruka’s scarf and awkwardly starts muttering words Asuka hopes are comforting.

Even with her fussing, however, Asuka can’t help but glance at Viper from her periphery. There’s nothing there to be read.

People hate Asuka, even when she doesn’t want them to. She won’t ever complain though; as much as people hate her, they let Asuka stay on stage. Maybe having somebody to hate is as exciting as it is to have somebody to adore, to fawn over. A villain for every hero - or maybe the racket Asuka made was enough. Whatever. So long as their eyes were on Asuka, she usually didn’t care.

If things worked out, however….

Viper probably trusted Asuka somewhat. From their last conversation, Viper had been nice. Very nice. There were probably plenty of small, sharp objects around. Nothing lethal - Asuka wasn’t an idiot, but she was a fighter, and she could do damage, as Jack could attest. Maybe she could even do it with just her fists.

Asuka wasn’t self-righteous either. It wasn’t for Haruka - it was because Haruka getting hurt made Asuka angry. Asuka wanted that pain shared, demanded it.

That was for another time though. For now, Asuka takes one of her sleeves and starts futilely trying to wipe the blood away. This isn’t an ideal place for medical treatment, but Asuka can handle it later. Her parents certainly weren’t patching her up after fights in the end. Asuka had endured worse than this, and she could do better for Haruka as a result.

Maybe, in some twisted way, this was the justice that was deserved.

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