[ You’re praticipating in one of the inane minigames the doll required when the headache starts. The dark cavernous room helps you some, but you still slump against the hard concrete wall you were hiding against with Sou. You can’t really remember the rules of this one, something about pulling a lever while some macrabe automata turns around. You weren’t paying attention, as usual. Little lord Franz Urtica liked keeping to his high horse.
You eye your partner, weighing your options for how to get out of going after the lever next. You surprised yourself with the inexplicable sense of sympathy you had for Sou Hiyori. Not enough to outweigh the show you watched him put on in the trial, but enough you let yourself be paired with him on this game. An idiotic decision, but the rest of the group must have been pleased to pair troublemaker with you instead of Kanna for once. He’s probably not going to split the stars, and serves you right. ]
We may as well give up. [ You don’t speak as quietly as you should, but you roll your eyes and hit Sou with the slightly pained expression that always worked wonders for getting away from your minders.] The timing is too tight on this level, we may as well come back with more athletic partners.
[ I’m not a coward. You think. I’m risk adverse. Dying by vote seemed fin and fine until they went ahead and made it so public and unpleasant. Kai had the right idea when his back was against the wall so I’d like to muddle along until I can find a way out of here that isn’t so awful. ]
You can still go with Keiji, yes? Just make him do this.
[Every single one of these "minigames" is terrible, but this has to be one of the worst. Shin's stress level has not left the ceiling since the start, every single hair on his body prickling for the slightest sign the monster is going to turn around, every single nerve screaming that it will. There's been some split second close calls so far.
He never liked this sort of thing even when it was fake and 'all in good fun'.]
Keep your voice down.
[His voice is detached and steady only because the rest of him is hidden behind his scarf. He's thinking, but also who knows how well that thing can hear.]
I don't care if you want to die... but don't go dragging anyone down with you.
[Is this meant to be encouragement? Shin please never work at a suicide hotline.
It's also kind of a lie, it's been bothering him, in a darkened room where everything's been locked away. It's thrown him off, because while he's had some time such that he's not as set off kilter as he was in the trial itself, he still can't understand it. If he could read Franz's thoughts and see that balking at the reality of it some part of him might bark 'Ha!' but he can't. Was it all some grand gesture or ploy instead, like Shin's own with Kanna?
Shin shifts against the wall, pulling back from peering around it, catching the tail end of the expression. It's an uncertainty he's heard before, incongruous coming from this confident guy.]
You've been keeping track, huh?
[It's stalling. Shin can, in theory, but... he can't waste Keiji on this. There's only one pairing set each, and Shin knows, and despises the fact, that he's going to need help on the arm wrestling one because if his partner on that fails, he's guaranteed to lose. He's not looking forward to Keiji making him eat crow about it, too.]
We're already halfway through. Going back and doing it again with someone else means more time at risk. Let's just get this over with.
[He's hoping the logic is persuasive enough, despite the incoming contradiction.]
...Although since we're safe behind the wall, we can catch our breath for a bit.
[ Yes, mother. You think privately to yourself, but your better nature keeps your less savory thoughts hidden. You're still making an annoyed expression, so the meaning gets through anyway if this man has any sense. ]
I'm helping you out with the tokens, aren't I? Where's my thanks? [ After you've done so little and then balked the second things looked difficult. Yes, its hard to imagine why Sou is not more grateful to your efforts. You're pretending of course, that you don't mind Sou's accusation as much as you do. You dislike being thought of as a burden, even to the groups pariah. ] I didn't realize I was killing you by pointing out better options. I'll be sure to keep that in mind from now on.
[ You have been keeping track. "What, like its hard?" You might even say. You've been doing it out of idle boredom mostly, trying to stay away from the worst of the group infighting. You have a pretty good head for numbers when you use it. The only person you have left to pair with is Reko... ]
Lets just get this over with... [ Repeating things when you don't know what to say is a bad habit. But its true you don't really want to go with Reko. Sou is preferable. ]
Fine. I hope you know how to make use of the time, because my head is killing me. You'll be lucky if I don't start seeing double soon.
[A shadow falls over Shin. It is the shadow of... retail past, present and future.
He has remembered an ancient antipathy, as echoed across the eons. Ah yes. You.
The Customer.]
Ahaha... jumping the gun aren't we? We haven't got the tokens yet...
[Maybe the smile he fixes Franz with is a little plastic. Why was this guy more believed than Shin, again? No seriously, why. It's maddening. At least pretending to have amnesia seems to have worked and cooled things down a little...
Shin actually makes the purple disco elysium roll this time and realizes Franz thought he was referring to the Keiji thing instead of the noise itself. This doesn't help him much.]
Isn't rest it's own use of time? [You were the one wanting to get someone more athletic. Which, the sting is an old friend to Shin, but surely this is the next best thing?] If you're that eager to be done, though, I'll keep a lookout while you pull.
[Fundamentally, this is, like all of these disgusting games, about trust. In theory the two partners could just pull the levers independently until the bar was full. In practice, this is the safe way to do it... and more safe for one.]
[ The worst customer. You are known by your local starbucks, and by many other outlets nearby. A life of confinement has finely trained you to push the people you have power over to their absolute limits.
Exempli gratia]
So? Weren't you planning on taking both? [ Excellent diversion, Franz! Now its your turn to stall for time because like hell do you want to jump out and go scrabbling for a lever. You are a bit genuinely curious, Sou has been inconsistent with how much he works for the group. Kanna kept him under wraps, the other coalition hates him, he raged so much in the first game it wasn't clear what he wanted. A mystery. And now he doesn't seem to want you dead, in a sense. ]
Anyway. I have a correction to make. [ You do sit up and rub your eyes, trying to ignore the increasing volume of your thoughts. The machine creak creak creaks in the distance. You glare at the lever, watching it wobble as your head throbs. ]
You were putting words in my mouth earlier. I never said I wanted to die. I said I would accept being voted for. I don't like being misquoted.
[Why is this suddenly turning into a Trial. His reflexive tactic is the same; deflect like a mirror and lie like a rug. Franz's reluctance makes perfect sense, but also of the two of them... who has the lower percentage? His attention does sharpen as Franz sits up.]
It's the same thing, isn't it? [Something something you're all fooling yourselves that you're voting with pure logic.] Don't pretend you don't know what voting here means.
[Mishima's death was very clear. Which was itself clearly the point. Was he really that naive to think it wasn't...?]
Well, it seemed logical to assume. [ If you were wrong, you refuse to admit it. ] Maybe you thought I would let you?
[ You're not actually sure if you would let him or not. Perhaps you would think you don't care, but then the idea of being stolen from would upset your fragile pride enough you'd actually stand up for yourself. ]
I feel like I'm the only person here who actually heard the whole explanation. [ You give an aristocratic little sigh, flopping your wrist at Sou flippantly. Come now, master of minds. You refuse to be led on a spin. ]
There can only be two finalists in this game. Unless we can find rescue, that means most of us are already dead.
[ You could continue but you find you really have nothing more to say. Is it too soon to give up? You weren't sure on that first floor, but faced with the prospect of voting to kill another person, it suddenly seemed so much more attractive. ]
[If he were a little more socially self-aware he might think 'is this what it's like to interact with me'. Unfortunately he is not. He can still seethe a little though.]
A-already dead, huh...
[Franz is hitting his insecurities DEAD on. He is being murdered here. It's the very thing he cannot afford to think, except by pushing it into the past. Shin is already dead. But Sou is still alive.]
So it's that you've already accepted the outcome?
[It's so alien to him. This... should be something to be happy about, since it's one less competitor... right? There's a crystal, deep in the earth and formed under heat and pressure, that still shines with a desperate animal hope of escape, a way to sidestep kill or be killed completely. It'll be unburied later, but for now...]
Ahaha... you really don't make any sense you know. Stalling like this... do you prefer death by human or machine?
[AND YET YOU LIVE IN A SOCIETY.]
Edited (small thing) Date: 2024-02-18 09:11 am (UTC)
[ You really haven't. You know deep down you aren't as brave as you pretend. You don't know what to do, but you should have done more. People have died, real people, and you can't stand the thought of it. Joe could have been your underclassman.
But you have your sick sense of pride, prince of a thousand enemies. It's a flaw you come by honestly. Your refusal to be toyed with is even stronger then your desire to live. ]
Why must I accept anything? Our situation is absurd! I refuse to accept it.
[ The pain in your head loosens your tongue, little fool. You aren't shouting, but the look in your eyes when you glance at Sou under your dark bangs is far more impassioned then your act in the trial. ]
What's the difference to you how I die, if you've your heart set on winning? Human. Machine. Dolls. Bah, its dolls all the way down. Well I'm no puppet. I'm not. I'm not. I'm not.
[ Your thoughts are filled with strings. Your grip on reality is slipping, you can feel them digging into your wrists, wrapping around your throat. It's the familiar sort of hallucination, the type that leaves you screaming at walls. You can't afford to loose it here. ]
The most human thing we could do is refuse. Like right now, I refuse to go get myself killed for your sake. Why should I trust you?
The anger is an uncomfortable, warped mirror, the kind that gets weak laughs and aversive gazes from what it exposes, reveals. He can't afford to think about it right now, but Kai and Joe's actions did shake him. If his heart is set on winning, huh...]
Isn't that a contradiction? Refusing to die, and refusing by dying? Or are you just that contrarian?
[That's it's own way of being lead around by the nose in the end, isn't it?]
Ahaha... I'm sure none of us are here by choice, you know.
[He'd thought maybe Sara... but the facts of the matter are bad enough as it is, much as the idea tugs at his paranoia. The masterminds behind this clearly expected and accounted for their refusal. Franz is not unique in not wanting to go along with this. The strings are tight and taut around all of their necks.
"Why should I trust you?" he says... Well, the answer is, he shouldn't, but Shin doesn't want that to actually happen, since he needs anyone he can tear away from Sara. He wants out of this stupid minigame, and also the game in general, and that means deceiving others, knapping himself like flint until it's finally easy, somehow. So instead of saying any of this, what comes out is instead.]
Don't be stupid. If you die, I'm stuck here too. You've just got the best chances here.
[They kind of HAVE to work together... Shin hates it. But he also doesn't actually want the guy to die, so much as to prove his point.]
You think me thoughtless. I've had days to ponder thus. [ You talk like an old book when you're mad. Too much Shakespeare, tsk. ] We're not here by choice, but we still have a choice. You, I, even little Gin. We all killed someone.
[ You slump back, your part spent. It hurts to hear it out loud, worse then your headache. You have been thinking about it for days. Three people really, but Kai and Mishima give you enough rope to hang yourself on the way out. ]
So the reason I should risk myself is just to save you... For you are doomed without me and I without you? Hmph.
[ Strangely, there's a moment of quiet. You put your head in your hands and stare at Sou. You look him in the eye like you're assessing him for the first time. What do you really know about Sou Hiyori? ]
Tell me one good thing about yourself. Then maybe I'll do it.
[Thus???? What era are we in??? It's like there's two Alices.]
...
[If there's one thing Shin has managed to achieve, it's something resembling a poker face in response to intense scrutiny and an unnerving stare. He can keep all his sweating internal... most of the time.
He's also flashing back to what feels like a million job interviews. Tell us what you bring to our company, Shin. Tell us how you're useful to us. The resentment and shame is normal.
Anything he reveals here is something he can't later, a tipping of his hand that Franz might be able to use to his advantage. If he makes something up, he might be asked for proof. And even then... there isn't much, is there? He's not strong. He doesn't have Sara's almost supernatural influence. The secrets he managed to glean from that dark room are right out. He's not even a good person, is Sou. There's his work with computers, but that's about it, and it might be weird how a jobhopper knows that. He's weak, the underdog. But it's clear Franz isn't going to budge without something. Getting caught in an impasse like this...
His desperate rummaging through his own mind stumbles upon a dusty box.]
Well... I'm a pretty good swimmer.
[He used to be really proud of it; the one kind of physical exercise he could not only do, but could do well in. He can't remember when or why he stopped. It's painful to think about now. And not actually all that helpful, he's silently kicking himself.]
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
timeasmymeasure
for shinny
Date: 2024-02-17 01:57 am (UTC)You eye your partner, weighing your options for how to get out of going after the lever next. You surprised yourself with the inexplicable sense of sympathy you had for Sou Hiyori. Not enough to outweigh the show you watched him put on in the trial, but enough you let yourself be paired with him on this game. An idiotic decision, but the rest of the group must have been pleased to pair troublemaker with you instead of Kanna for once. He’s probably not going to split the stars, and serves you right. ]
We may as well give up. [ You don’t speak as quietly as you should, but you roll your eyes and hit Sou with the slightly pained expression that always worked wonders for getting away from your minders.] The timing is too tight on this level, we may as well come back with more athletic partners.
[ I’m not a coward. You think. I’m risk adverse. Dying by vote seemed fin and fine until they went ahead and made it so public and unpleasant. Kai had the right idea when his back was against the wall so I’d like to muddle along until I can find a way out of here that isn’t so awful. ]
You can still go with Keiji, yes? Just make him do this.
yesss come to me
Date: 2024-02-17 05:21 am (UTC)He never liked this sort of thing even when it was fake and 'all in good fun'.]
Keep your voice down.
[His voice is detached and steady only because the rest of him is hidden behind his scarf. He's thinking, but also who knows how well that thing can hear.]
I don't care if you want to die... but don't go dragging anyone down with you.
[Is this meant to be encouragement? Shin please never work at a suicide hotline.
It's also kind of a lie, it's been bothering him, in a darkened room where everything's been locked away. It's thrown him off, because while he's had some time such that he's not as set off kilter as he was in the trial itself, he still can't understand it. If he could read Franz's thoughts and see that balking at the reality of it some part of him might bark 'Ha!' but he can't. Was it all some grand gesture or ploy instead, like Shin's own with Kanna?
Shin shifts against the wall, pulling back from peering around it, catching the tail end of the expression. It's an uncertainty he's heard before, incongruous coming from this confident guy.]
You've been keeping track, huh?
[It's stalling. Shin can, in theory, but... he can't waste Keiji on this. There's only one pairing set each, and Shin knows, and despises the fact, that he's going to need help on the arm wrestling one because if his partner on that fails, he's guaranteed to lose. He's not looking forward to Keiji making him eat crow about it, too.]
We're already halfway through. Going back and doing it again with someone else means more time at risk. Let's just get this over with.
[He's hoping the logic is persuasive enough, despite the incoming contradiction.]
...Although since we're safe behind the wall, we can catch our breath for a bit.
shin in squid games how well would he do
Date: 2024-02-17 07:35 am (UTC)[ Yes, mother. You think privately to yourself, but your better nature keeps your less savory thoughts hidden. You're still making an annoyed expression, so the meaning gets through anyway if this man has any sense. ]
I'm helping you out with the tokens, aren't I? Where's my thanks? [ After you've done so little and then balked the second things looked difficult. Yes, its hard to imagine why Sou is not more grateful to your efforts. You're pretending of course, that you don't mind Sou's accusation as much as you do. You dislike being thought of as a burden, even to the groups pariah. ] I didn't realize I was killing you by pointing out better options. I'll be sure to keep that in mind from now on.
[ You have been keeping track. "What, like its hard?" You might even say. You've been doing it out of idle boredom mostly, trying to stay away from the worst of the group infighting. You have a pretty good head for numbers when you use it. The only person you have left to pair with is Reko... ]
Lets just get this over with... [ Repeating things when you don't know what to say is a bad habit. But its true you don't really want to go with Reko. Sou is preferable. ]
Fine. I hope you know how to make use of the time, because my head is killing me. You'll be lucky if I don't start seeing double soon.
it's a hard knock life montage
Date: 2024-02-17 08:21 am (UTC)He has remembered an ancient antipathy, as echoed across the eons. Ah yes. You.
The Customer.]
Ahaha... jumping the gun aren't we? We haven't got the tokens yet...
[Maybe the smile he fixes Franz with is a little plastic. Why was this guy more believed than Shin, again? No seriously, why. It's maddening. At least pretending to have amnesia seems to have worked and cooled things down a little...
Shin actually makes the purple disco elysium roll this time and realizes Franz thought he was referring to the Keiji thing instead of the noise itself. This doesn't help him much.]
Isn't rest it's own use of time? [You were the one wanting to get someone more athletic. Which, the sting is an old friend to Shin, but surely this is the next best thing?] If you're that eager to be done, though, I'll keep a lookout while you pull.
[Fundamentally, this is, like all of these disgusting games, about trust. In theory the two partners could just pull the levers independently until the bar was full. In practice, this is the safe way to do it... and more safe for one.]
thats right PEASANT. WHERE IS HIS ICED MOCHA VANILLA STRAWBERRY FRAPPACINO LATTE? WITH NO SUGAR
Date: 2024-02-17 08:38 am (UTC)Exempli gratia]
So? Weren't you planning on taking both? [ Excellent diversion, Franz! Now its your turn to stall for time because like hell do you want to jump out and go scrabbling for a lever. You are a bit genuinely curious, Sou has been inconsistent with how much he works for the group. Kanna kept him under wraps, the other coalition hates him, he raged so much in the first game it wasn't clear what he wanted. A mystery. And now he doesn't seem to want you dead, in a sense. ]
Anyway. I have a correction to make. [ You do sit up and rub your eyes, trying to ignore the increasing volume of your thoughts. The machine creak creak creaks in the distance. You glare at the lever, watching it wobble as your head throbs. ]
You were putting words in my mouth earlier. I never said I wanted to die. I said I would accept being voted for. I don't like being misquoted.
sighs. right away sir [dissociates]
Date: 2024-02-17 09:15 am (UTC)[Why is this suddenly turning into a Trial. His reflexive tactic is the same; deflect like a mirror and lie like a rug. Franz's reluctance makes perfect sense, but also of the two of them... who has the lower percentage? His attention does sharpen as Franz sits up.]
It's the same thing, isn't it? [Something something you're all fooling yourselves that you're voting with pure logic.] Don't pretend you don't know what voting here means.
[Mishima's death was very clear. Which was itself clearly the point. Was he really that naive to think it wasn't...?]
no subject
Date: 2024-02-17 06:58 pm (UTC)[ You're not actually sure if you would let him or not. Perhaps you would think you don't care, but then the idea of being stolen from would upset your fragile pride enough you'd actually stand up for yourself. ]
I feel like I'm the only person here who actually heard the whole explanation. [ You give an aristocratic little sigh, flopping your wrist at Sou flippantly. Come now, master of minds. You refuse to be led on a spin. ]
There can only be two finalists in this game. Unless we can find rescue, that means most of us are already dead.
[ You could continue but you find you really have nothing more to say. Is it too soon to give up? You weren't sure on that first floor, but faced with the prospect of voting to kill another person, it suddenly seemed so much more attractive. ]
he's not literally making this expression but he sure is feeling it mr krabs
Date: 2024-02-18 09:05 am (UTC)A-already dead, huh...
[Franz is hitting his insecurities DEAD on. He is being murdered here. It's the very thing he cannot afford to think, except by pushing it into the past. Shin is already dead. But Sou is still alive.]
So it's that you've already accepted the outcome?
[It's so alien to him. This... should be something to be happy about, since it's one less competitor... right? There's a crystal, deep in the earth and formed under heat and pressure, that still shines with a desperate animal hope of escape, a way to sidestep kill or be killed completely. It'll be unburied later, but for now...]
Ahaha... you really don't make any sense you know. Stalling like this... do you prefer death by human or machine?
[AND YET YOU LIVE IN A SOCIETY.]
its not like he cares or anything b-baka
Date: 2024-03-08 07:15 am (UTC)But you have your sick sense of pride, prince of a thousand enemies. It's a flaw you come by honestly. Your refusal to be toyed with is even stronger then your desire to live. ]
Why must I accept anything? Our situation is absurd! I refuse to accept it.
[ The pain in your head loosens your tongue, little fool. You aren't shouting, but the look in your eyes when you glance at Sou under your dark bangs is far more impassioned then your act in the trial. ]
What's the difference to you how I die, if you've your heart set on winning? Human. Machine. Dolls. Bah, its dolls all the way down. Well I'm no puppet. I'm not. I'm not. I'm not.
[ Your thoughts are filled with strings. Your grip on reality is slipping, you can feel them digging into your wrists, wrapping around your throat. It's the familiar sort of hallucination, the type that leaves you screaming at walls. You can't afford to loose it here. ]
The most human thing we could do is refuse. Like right now, I refuse to go get myself killed for your sake. Why should I trust you?
guess who got more iconnnns
Date: 2024-03-08 07:57 am (UTC)The anger is an uncomfortable, warped mirror, the kind that gets weak laughs and aversive gazes from what it exposes, reveals. He can't afford to think about it right now, but Kai and Joe's actions did shake him. If his heart is set on winning, huh...]
Isn't that a contradiction? Refusing to die, and refusing by dying? Or are you just that contrarian?
[That's it's own way of being lead around by the nose in the end, isn't it?]
Ahaha... I'm sure none of us are here by choice, you know.
[He'd thought maybe Sara... but the facts of the matter are bad enough as it is, much as the idea tugs at his paranoia. The masterminds behind this clearly expected and accounted for their refusal. Franz is not unique in not wanting to go along with this. The strings are tight and taut around all of their necks.
"Why should I trust you?" he says... Well, the answer is, he shouldn't, but Shin doesn't want that to actually happen, since he needs anyone he can tear away from Sara. He wants out of this stupid minigame, and also the game in general, and that means deceiving others, knapping himself like flint until it's finally easy, somehow. So instead of saying any of this, what comes out is instead.]
Don't be stupid. If you die, I'm stuck here too. You've just got the best chances here.
[They kind of HAVE to work together... Shin hates it. But he also doesn't actually want the guy to die, so much as to prove his point.]
gasp
Date: 2024-03-08 08:19 am (UTC)[ You could just say yes. ]
You think me thoughtless. I've had days to ponder thus. [ You talk like an old book when you're mad. Too much Shakespeare, tsk. ] We're not here by choice, but we still have a choice. You, I, even little Gin. We all killed someone.
[ You slump back, your part spent. It hurts to hear it out loud, worse then your headache. You have been thinking about it for days. Three people really, but Kai and Mishima give you enough rope to hang yourself on the way out. ]
So the reason I should risk myself is just to save you... For you are doomed without me and I without you? Hmph.
[ Strangely, there's a moment of quiet. You put your head in your hands and stare at Sou. You look him in the eye like you're assessing him for the first time. What do you really know about Sou Hiyori? ]
Tell me one good thing about yourself. Then maybe I'll do it.
hand in insufferable hand
Date: 2024-03-08 10:07 am (UTC)...
[If there's one thing Shin has managed to achieve, it's something resembling a poker face in response to intense scrutiny and an unnerving stare. He can keep all his sweating internal... most of the time.
He's also flashing back to what feels like a million job interviews. Tell us what you bring to our company, Shin. Tell us how you're useful to us. The resentment and shame is normal.
Anything he reveals here is something he can't later, a tipping of his hand that Franz might be able to use to his advantage. If he makes something up, he might be asked for proof. And even then... there isn't much, is there? He's not strong. He doesn't have Sara's almost supernatural influence. The secrets he managed to glean from that dark room are right out. He's not even a good person, is Sou. There's his work with computers, but that's about it, and it might be weird how a jobhopper knows that. He's weak, the underdog. But it's clear Franz isn't going to budge without something. Getting caught in an impasse like this...
His desperate rummaging through his own mind stumbles upon a dusty box.]
Well... I'm a pretty good swimmer.
[He used to be really proud of it; the one kind of physical exercise he could not only do, but could do well in. He can't remember when or why he stopped. It's painful to think about now. And not actually all that helpful, he's silently kicking himself.]