maege | night 18

I—lady bandages? Like okay not that I can't totally keep going like this for at least a bit or anything but I'm gonna be stuck on "lady bandages" for at least a little while.

And people wonder why chivalry is dead.

Seriously, what's the logic here? Are regular bandages too good for me, is it the other way around? I don't—Oof. [staggers, but picks herself up real fast] Okay, I'll go back to making fun of that when we're sitting down.

Do I know like I know anything about women or bandages? I make games, not solve the mysteries of life.

[he at least looks like he thinks that makes sense, one arm pressing the hem of his ruined coat against the wound on his chest since he at least sortof knows how this works.]

...Man bandages would probably be too big, anyway.

Man bandages.

[making a GREAT EFFORT to pull herself together enough to continue mocking him]

They're all-purpose. That's not a thing.

They'd come in blue, grey, and camouflage print. Appeal to fragile masculine identities and anyone who would giggle at the brand name "Mandage."

[he actually does pay attention to her state, if only because if she were to actually pass out that would be troublesome]

[as a matter of fact, Mae is one of the people who would giggle at the brand name "Mandage," which very nearly results in her falling over, but listen, it's fine, she's fine.]

Okay, okay, that was good—Are we there yet? Have we decided where "there" is, besides drunk?

[he even cracks a smile, a small one. don't tell anyone (also he's totally gonna pitch mandages back home under a shell company)]

I have a fine bottle of Japanese whiskey in my room. And no, that's not a line.

[she's going to wait to ask what "Japanese" means when she's sitting, and doing less dying]

Okay, good, because I do not have the energy to deal with that kinda mess right now. Or stairs? Can we take the—the, the lifty thingy, you know, with the buttons. The thing that isn't stairs.

[e...levator......]

Yes.

[because even if going down is technically easier than going up, the problem becomes not going down all of the stairs at once

...anyway they blood trail over to the elevator; it hopefully does not take them to the evil 13th floor haunted by Slimer but instead just to the dorms. Kaiba's room is fairly clean save for the stacks of junk around the desk--half-gutted gadgets and wires and a soldiering iron set and old copies of Electronic Trash Monthly and stacks of hand-drawn--are those playing cards? and notebooks filled with code and other card nerd bullshit. The bottle of shochu is sitting mostly unopened on the bed, along with a box of scratch-and-dent toaster pastries]

[i accidentally almost tagged this with the mod account and i was like okay well i guess this is a mod tag now and i guess i have to haunt them with slimer

honestly though Kaiba's room could be covered wall to wall in dressed up Tycoon corpses somehow dubiously collected despite the raccoons' multiple plan-foils and Mae would not even care because you know what it DOES have?? a chair, which she pretty much immediately collapses into with a grunt that doubles as a big relieved sigh. it doesn't have to be a comfortable chair it just is a chair. she'll snoop through and make fun of his belongings in a couple of minutes though]

I can't help but feel like making a bandages trip first wouldn't have been the worst idea buuut I guess we're committed to bad decisions tonight—Are you good over there?

[as long as they're BOTH BLEEDING]

[it's okay, slimer always haunts our hearts]

I asked you about bandages and now they're on a whole other floor, make up your mind.

[he probably intends this to sound nasty but it kinda just ends up someplace between tired parent and petulant child. sulky or no, he hands over a towel or something so she can at least make an attempt to apply pressure, christ his room's gonna look like a murder happened in there!]

...Look, we can go back out if you're so set on proper healthcare. Just...give me a minute. --You don't think you need stitches, do you? Since neither of us are anaestheticists, you're probably going to want that drink before you do.

[so much for "proper" healthcare]

The nurse's office was right there and you were the one with other ideas— No, it's fine, iiiit's probably fine.

[more fine as she takes the towel and goes right to applying pressure, wincing a little but already doing better now that she doesn't have to keep trying to move]

Thanks. I don't think so? I've been stabbed better but I've been stabbed worse. This is like—ugh, how does anyone live without Recover spells. This is like, one Recover and done, we don't have to play with stitches in the middle of the night, I can just wrap it up. At some point. Don't hurry on my account.

[...]

You didn't answer my question. You good?

Ugh, I was distracted, I forgot, sue me. My lawyers'll be waiting.

[disgruntled, he opens the bottle and offers it to her]

And I'm fine, it's not so deep. --You're not supposed to get so close you get stabbed, by the way.

Wow, really?! I had no idea!

[she had every idea]

Really I am not supposed to get close at all because that's the whole point of being a mage but some stupid squirrels took my lighting away so a girl's gotta make due.

[and okay if he's just gonna hold out the whole bottle like that she's taking a big inelegant swig right from it, but she kind of makes a face as she hands it back, like she's caught off guard by the taste, this is not a girl who drinks much. RECOVERING TO BE RUDE SOME MORE THO]

And you're one to talk, because if it had been deeper you'd be pretty close to pretty dead in a spot like that.

[rude but like, in a concerned way]

They make projectiles that aren't ridiculous magic things, you know.

[For example, playing cards, which are not only aerodynamic but easy to get through airport security.

Anyway, yeah, the cups he stole he gave away--another reason to hate will graham? Kaiba'll take the bottle back for an incredibly elegant swig of his own, pinky up and everything. It's...no coffee, but it's warm enough going down, so it'll have to do for now. Of course, the real reason his frown doesn't change is that he is quite aware just how close he was to In Bad Shape, which is one reason he's sitting here drinking booze despite it generally being a bad idea when you want blood to clot in a timely fashion. He takes another drink before offering the bottle back]

...Next time I'll dodge faster.

Lessons learned, I guess.

[She takes the bottle less because she actively wants it and more because it's there and takes a smaller sip this time before she hands it back. This is pretty much definitely the least classy she has ever been, though. What would Celica think. She doesn't even have to imagine what Boey wold think because she can already imagine his panicked screaming? It sucks.]

...Leeeet's think of positives? Neither of us are actually dead yet, which is cool. We could have run into preeeetty much anyone else a few minutes ago and that probably would have sucked.

[The bottle fits on the desk once Kaiba's shoved some stuff onto the floor; all he can hear is dogdad fussing in the back of his mind, and there really are only so many bad ideas one needs to pack into one evening]

It...definitely wouldn't have been ideal. I'm surprised this worked, frankly.

[Was working? Hopefully? Murder is frankly a lot of work and having to deal with too much afterwards is really a lot to ask. Ah, and now he's thought of another positive.]

We could cover for each other.

Sure could.

[she sounds a little distant, though, in part because it is way too late in the evening after way too much bullshit to try to fabricate a convincing alibi while also bleeding but that's where they're at! sure are outta choices on that front!]

Not that that ever matters around here because everyone else had that idea first, but it's the thought and all.

[but—quieter, watching the pile o' stuff on the floor instead, because the chances she'll hear an answer she can't abide by are low but not zero, and fuck if she wants to deal with anything remotely resembling that again:]

Who was it?

If you'd rather go it alone, you can.

[this is pointed, a little on the sore side. it's fine, he's good at being alone. if only he hadn't bled all over his coat like a dumbshit.]

And are you certain you really want to know? Who did you fail to stab from far enough away?

Yeah, I do.

[the last time she didn't know things, SOMEONE manipulated her FRIEND into committing suicide after and during DAYS OF STANNING??? TELL HER THINGS FROM NOW ON PLEASE]

...Corrin. [it's only fair that she answer first, she figures, but she sure isn't proud of it. a little hastily, but sincere:] If I wanted to go it alone, I sure wouldn't have gone this far already.

[well,

well. he sighs, tired]

Tomoe.

[he sighs again. stay on target, can't take your eyes of the prize now.]

...Alright, "cooperation." That said, I don't know if there's much point in setting it up as if they fought each other. Might seem too convenient. Should think about someone to scapegoat in a pinch.

[she doesn't like that answer, just for Tsumugi's sake, but a lot of tension she didn't realize she'd been holding visibly drops from her at it regardless, and she nods a little in acknowledgement.]

Hopefully the obvious scapegoat will make it through the night and be right there for the voting [will, she means will] and no one is gonna actually care about anything else long enough to make us think of a cool cover story for why we're all cut up.

That's not gonna happen. You know Graham's got six now.

[and his tone isn't quite happy but it's far from disappointed]

...Here. Don't volunteer anything. But if anyone asks, we found a room with...with a knife-in-the-box.

A girl can dream.

[just kind of muttered out as all the intensity leaves her, though, replaced by the misery of feeling like a total dumbass, but at least she's offered a distraction real quick.]

...Did you find a room with a knife-in-a-box?

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