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Post by Shimakage Seitaro on Dec 17, 2017 20:16:38 GMT -5
Shimakage doesn't know how Marugou knows of his past - or even how much of it she knows - but he doesn't like it. It makes him feel vulnerable, like she holds his entire existence in the palm of her hand. It isn't his goal to be well-liked by his peers, or even to be begrudgingly accepted by them, but the fact that she could singlehandedly unravel a con that he's put so much work into makes unease stew in the pit of his stomach. He wants to believe she's just perceptive, and that she doesn't have any evidence against him, but... (But maybe there's something here that gives away his secret, and he's not as in control of his own relationships as he'd once thought.) As fate would have it, his opportunity to confront her arrives sooner rather than later. When he makes his way into the shrine area, she's already there, and briefly, he notes that she really is a true detective - always one step ahead of everyone else in her investigations. He knows she hates him (though that sentiment, surprisingly, isn't mutual), but that doesn't stop Shimakage from donning the most sickeningly sugary grin he can muster and approaching her as though they're old pals.   |
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Post by Marugou Madoka on Dec 18, 2017 17:29:35 GMT -5
Focusing on her investigations certainly helped her out in the long run.
Not only was she constantly preoccupied with paying utmost attention to her new surroundings, it also served as an opportunity to find something that could lead to a potential solution to their situation - or at least a clue to it. At this point, it didn't matter how big of a hint it was, Madoka would take anything to make some kind of progress in her search of the truth.
Eventually though, she wouldn't remain alone anymore. It's not something unexpected, given that new areas were just opened to be explored, but right now, she would've preferred to be by her lonesome self for a little bit longer. Although she calmed down considerably ever since her outburst at the end of the trial, there were some people that she didn't exactly want to see right now.
With her accursed luck, it just had to be someone who fell right into that category (although surprisingly enough, he wasn't the one she wanted to see the least at the moment).
Seeing Shimakage putting on the sweetest smile imaginable made her face go into deadfish mode. The detective sighed internally, not exactly in the mood to deal with the other's shenanigans. Still, brushing him off without a second thought didn't seem smart - especially when she could guess what he would be bringing up.
"Guess you could say that", she responded curtly, not joining in on the superficial pleasantries. Madoka wasn't one to hide her general feelings about someone, especially if it didn't involve any work. She was quite upfront on whether she liked someone or not - she just didn't feel like pretending to feel a certain way about someone when it wasn't the truth. Advantages and the likes be damned.
When Shimakage was trying to convince her that she'd made a mistake regarding his identity, Madoka finally turned her head around to properly face him - with the most deadpan face that one could imagine. You know, the one that just screamed 'are you kidding me?'
"Wouldn't that be just peachy for you if I'd have actually made a mistake, Mister Conman?"
Well, someone was awfully blunt today.
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Post by Shimakage Seitaro on Dec 18, 2017 19:14:16 GMT -5
Immediately, Shimakage notes that the temperature seems to drop considerably when Marugou stares at him. He isn't surprised by her chilly reception, and to drive that point home, he breathes a quiet chuckle almost as though her words don't bother him in the slightest. With nothing but a smirk playing upon his lips, he meanders around the area. It isn't the most informative of places - from what he can tell, it's just your average Shinto shrine - but perhaps Marugou picked up on something significant that he'd overlooked. When he finally turns back towards her, he's got a wooden talisman hanging off one finger, displaying it as if it's a Christmas ornament.  But pleasantries aren't why he's here. He knows this, and he knows Marugou knows this, so after a few moments, he shoves the talisman into his pocket and drops the innocent routine. When Shimakage opens his mouth again, his voice still drips with honey, but his tone is much cooler than it had been previously.  |
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Post by Marugou Madoka on Dec 20, 2017 15:52:46 GMT -5
Madoka knew that Shimakage wasn't being serious when he asked about her stance towards talismans. It was simply another pleasantry before diving into the real meat. Thus, she merely waited for him to speak up again - and sure enough, he's done just that a few seconds afterwards. The conman's cooler tone wasn't lost on her and she turned her head around to face him again.
When he was done saying his part, Madoka allowed herself another moment of silence, before opening her mouth:"I've already told you that in my line of work, it would be odd to not have heard about the young, successful conman that was allowed to attend Hope's Peak despite his criminal background. However, at least now I can guess why you were even taken in to begin with - some sort of rehabilitation process, I'd wager? Your little comments here and there allude to at least that much."
The detective shrugged, before furrowing her eyebrows slightly, holding a stance that told those around her that she was incredibly serious about her next words:"It's easy - I don't like liars. I cannot fathom what kind of person you have to be to go on about your business and not care what anguish your actions caused to your victims. Probs asking for naught, but have you ever considered the consequences of your actions?"
She crossed her arms before her chest, leaning against one of the pillars that formed the gate to the shrine. "Then again, the police most likely asked you something similar and judging how you want to get money out of an amnesiac, I guess it's easy to tell, huh?"
The detective surpressed a sigh, before going over the last bit of what Shimakage had said to her:"No need to remind me. It is concerning how some of them can excuse a murderer's action so readily while not giving a damn about the victim." There was a bit more snarl to her words than she would've liked there to be. "Not like I don't understand from where they're coming from. If not for this asinine game, Karamazov wouldn't have murdered Mukizu. But that's it - we are part of this mutual killing game and someone did succumb to it. No two ways about it. This is the beginning of a harrowing chain of events."
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Post by Shimakage Seitaro on Dec 20, 2017 18:59:36 GMT -5
Marugou's response certainly answers the question of how she came to know about his past. Really, it's just bad luck on his part that their resident detective specializes in frauds and not murders, and it's even worse luck that she harbors a disdain for criminals. But if either fact bothers Shimakage, it doesn't show on his face; his smile never once wavers, even as she lays into him like a mother chastising her son. In fact, he chuckles as she speaks, and when Shimakage finally raises his voice, he remains cryptic as ever.  And then she brings up his most recent victim - or at least, attempted victim - and Shimakage can't hold back the laugh that escapes his lungs.  He's quick, however, to settle down, sectioning off part of his hair and gliding his fingers through it. He has the same opinion as she does when it comes to the game, and it's for that reason that he doesn't understand why she can't put their differences aside and work as a team.  |
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Post by Marugou Madoka on Dec 25, 2017 19:17:22 GMT -5
The more Shimakage talked, the more displeased Madoka seemed to get. She didn't even know what she expected here, really - of course he would start to shift blame onto the victims for being not smart enough to see through a ruse. As if it was their fault alone that they were tricked.
(Frighteningly familiar to the murder case they just had, huh?)
Madoka didn't take long to respond back:"Don't put words into my mouth, Shimakage. Never said that it's impossible to rehabilitate you, but given your behaviour thus far, I think it's not too likely for that to actually succeed. And don't deflect blame to those whom you hurt - you were the one who offered items that didn't hold up to the promise to begin with. As a vendor, it's your duty to advertise and sell your items correctly. There are laws to protect buyers from scam, after all."
She shrugged, before furrowing her eyebrows yet again:"Course I am. As an amnesiac, he's the most vulnerable student here, so it only makes sense to keep an eye on him. And he's a nice guy. Yanagi doesn't need any more troubles than he already has."
Though she had to admit, it did puzzle her how Yanagi still chose to trust Shimakage after he told him about his true talent. Maybe it was naivety? Or he was simply too forgiving for his own good...
Afterwards, Madoka rolled her eyes in annoyance, a bit miffed how he tried to guilt her when all she'd done was to give hints to his true talent. The detective sounded unimpressed when she spoke up:"Oh please, no need to try so hard on that front. Won't work on me, so you better save your breath right there." Her hands went to her hips, eyebrows slightly knitted as she continued:"I think even without me alluding to your true talent, you'd still have a target on your back. And for that, you only have your own shadiness to blame, really."
One of her hands went up to play with a strand of her hair; and she wasn't done talking yet:"And don't you think that a future killer would rather try to kill someone who has proved themself to be an asset to the trial? I mean, if they plan to avoid execution, they'd rather try to decimitate the number of people who have a better chance to catch them red-handed. And well, I'm kinda on the top list for that."
Well, someone expected to get assaulted if it ever came to that again, huh?
"... Thing is, even though you don't have a motive right now, it can still change. That goes for everyone, including myself. Depends on what kind of motives this stupid gremlin is gonna hand out. Just think about it; what if they would threathen to hurt or even kill us one after another, unless one of us does the killing? Or what if someone wants to keep a dark secret they have under wraps through all means? Or what if they threathen to hurt our beloved ones? Only a few examples to show that these might be enough to push someone over the edge", she began to counter Shimakage's claims of never succumbing to the game. Even though she disliked to think about these possibilities, unpleasantries needed to be dealt with if they could vastly affect your life.
The detective sighed a bit defeated when she chirped up one more time:"Ideally, no one should've need to watch their back from anyone, but alas, reality isn't so kind. And as I said, I don't trust notorious liars. If you wanna convince me, you need to put some major work in it."
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Post by Shimakage Seitaro on Dec 25, 2017 20:54:21 GMT -5
He isn't about to waste his time being offended by how little Marugou thinks of him. She's a detective; of course she wouldn't favor a criminal. So he laughs, dismissively, as though doing so will get under her skin and win him the upper hand.  He grins to himself, evidently quite proud of his accomplishments. That grin persists until Marugou brings up how circumstances can change at the drop of a hat. Intellectually, he knows this, and while he doesn't feel the urge to kill someone now, he supposes that plans can always change. Arguably, the same could be said about Marugou, who perhaps had people she loved enough to kill for, or perhaps other pressure points that would drive her to take a life. Regardless, Shimakage doesn't feel like conceding that point to someone like Marugou, so he flips a section of hair over his shoulder. |
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