ONCE UPON | PC - ALEXEI

[scythegun]

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week 1 | friday

[scythegun]

[It's not exactly a surprise that someone's turned up dead already. It's not particularly a surprise that it was one of the teenagers. Being told to investigate so they can hold a trial afterwards is... interesting, but not really anything Yeager's interested in.

So he's certainly "investigating", because clearly if he looks busy then no one can comment on the fact that he's nowhere near the actual scene of the crime. It's totally fine.

He's not particularly looking for Alexei, but hey, if he happens to run into him he's not going to complain, for once. Better to make sure they're on the same page before that "trial" starts, after all.]

[ideismo]

[Alexei wouldn't say he's surprised that someone is dead, but he's...disappointed? Disappointed seems accurate, though perhaps a bit too mild a word; he's certain that some of them are going to be upset at the loss of one of the younger ones, but from what he knew of the deceased she was both old enough and powerful enough to hold her own in combat normally. Perhaps someone got the better of her due to her decreased power here? It's difficult to say, and bluntly put he isn't particularly interested in dwelling on it, and as such he is here occupying himself exactly nowhere near the crime scene.

He probably should have expected Yeager to do the same; as it is...well.]

I see you're keeping yourself busy, to a certain extent.

[scythegun]

Ja, certainly! We are supposed to be investigating, right?

[Which neither of us are doing, of course.]

[ideismo]

Of course. I don't suppose you've found anything of interest.

[scythegun]

Nothing yet, I'm afraid. But I'm sure the others will bring something useful to this "trial"!

week 1 | friday evening

[scythegun]

[So. That sure was a trial. It wasn't as much of a mess as it could have been, but that doesn't mean it wasn't a disaster anyway. Yeager's feeling restless this evening and he only stops by the gathering for a bit before he's off. Once again he isn't intending to seek Alexei out, and yet once again their paths cross by coincidence as Alexei's pacing around. It's quiet, and no one else is nearby, and perhaps if things had gone differently it'd be simple just to walk away.

But instead here he is, holding up a hand and greeting Alexei with the usual cheer.]

You seem to be a bit riled up this evening, milord.

[It's stating the obvious, but at least he isn't being sarcastic??]

[ideismo]

[...You know, if anything he's surprised that Yeager has chosen to address him rather than ignore him; it's easy enough to act as though they don't really know each other here, easier still when there's no one around. And yet here they are, and... Huh.]

Tonight seems to warrant it. I'm surprised you aren't in with the others.

[scythegun]

I tried that for a bit, but their little gathering is far too dull and depressing for me.

[That's not exactly it, but honestly, he isn't sure what it is exactly that's got him riled up.]

[ideismo]

I'm surprised that they have the nerve to behave as though they're mourning now that all of that is over. It seems their self-righteous anger only carried them so far.

[scythegun]

[It gets a short, sharp laugh from him.]

You certainly did cut right to the heart of the matter, ja? I won't pretend I'm outraged at what happened, because frankly, I don't care. But acting as though it's inconceivable that anyone would be willing to kill for a wish is rather silly.

week 2 | post-execution

[ideismo]

[Normally he wouldn't be here; he would leave well enough alone, and take his assumptions with him, and that would be the end of it. But it's been a bad week, and honestly? There are only so many ways that Yeager could possibly make it worse.

In the end, that's what he'll tell himself more or less brings him to Room 4; the knock is unhesitating, but not overly demanding. If Yeager isn't here, he's content in the knowledge that he did the bare minimum that no one asked him to do and he can move on with his life.]

[scythegun]

[At this point, Yeager isn't sure if he's expecting Alexei to swing by or not. What point would there be in it, anyway? It's not like it'll matter in the end. Either they'll assume he's guilty and vote for him the next opportunity they have, or everyone will forget about it by the next time someone dies. Either way, it hardly matters for Alexei; it's not like Yeager is his most useful tool here, after all.

The knock at the door draws his attention, and after a moment he gets it. He looks as put-together as always, though his expression is certainly more blank than usual. It immediately shifts into his usual smile and he steps back to allow Alexei to enter.]

You didn't need to stop by to check on me, you know~

[There's nothing pointed or angry in the words. There isn't anything, really. But once he's let Alexei in and shut the door behind him, Yeager takes a seat on the bed.]

Is there something I can do for you, milord?

[That's at least a touch sarcastic, though even that is far less so than usual.]

[ideismo]

If I were seeking you out for an explicit purpose, you would know already.

[It isn't irritated, though; it seems it's a good day for words without much behind them.]

I was curious as to how you were doing, after all of that.

[scythegun]

Ja, ja, of course.

[As for that... Yeager lifts his shoulders a bit.]

Surely you don't think something like that rattled me too much~ I'm still here, after all.

[And at the end of the day, that's what matters most.]

[ideismo]

Evidently.

[He knows how that goes, even if he never really feels the need to actually voice it. Maybe in front of Schwann, sometimes. But not in front of Yeager.]

I don't believe you were responsible for killing Gin, either.

week 3 | saturday evening

[scythegun]

[The sun is starting to set and people are likely going to start making their way back to their rooms fairly soon, which is exactly why Yeager's heading out now. He definitely didn't spend all morning mourning his poor goddamn ribs, shut up. He's out here now, looking as chipper as ever and still carrying around his weapon... and that expression only intensifies when he sees a certain someone at the sparring grounds. Excellent, just as he figured.]

Good evening milord~ What a funny coincidence, running into you here again so soon!

[It certainly isn't a coincidence given the amount of knifecat going on here.]

[ideismo]

[God, Alexei barely even glances over when he hears him; he'd imagined this weekend wouldn't be peaceful.]

Yeager. I didn't imagine you would want me to destroy you again so soon.

[scythegun]

[No rest for the wicked.]

Oh, you misunderstand me. I have been thoroughly destroyed, I can't imagine I'll be moving again anytime soon!

No, no, I'm here to keep you company - oh, unless I'm intruding, of course. You aren't waiting for someone here, are you?

[ideismo]

I'm not.

That also seems suspiciously polite, so I'm going to ask you to just start with whatever you're here to irritate me with today.

[scythegun]

Pushy, pushy... But since you are a very busy man, I suppose I'll go ahead and get on with it.

[Shrug!!]

So are you and Raven dating yet?

[knifecat!!!]

week 6 | thursday evening

[ideismo]

[There are worse ways to spend Thursday evenings; Alexei had meant what he said to Yuri, in that he believes entirely that this sort of gathering is needed by most of the group and honestly, at this point he's sort of partial to them. That...doesn't change the fact that everyone is So Much at these sorts of parties; everyone ends up some kind of intoxicated and saying way too much, and Suga keeps trying to touch him and Jack is dressed like he would have a lot to discuss with Cumore, and it's just... He wants to be outside. Not for the entire rest of the night, just for a while, and the evening finds him pacing near the general area of the tower.

He isn't going to go up there, because that seems like...not the best idea he's ever had? But he's wandering the distance between there and the parlor when Yeager comes to join him.]

...I didn't expect you to be out here.

[He knows he told Yeager that he wanted to talk, but that was with the general understanding of "eventually" and a...lack of foreknowledge that we're all going to be knocked out in like an hour, oops.]

[scythegun]

[It's not difficult to notice that Alexei's left, and honestly, Yeager could use the break as well. While he's hardly the sort who needs to be away from gatherings, he's still not exactly doing great after last weekend and there's only so long he can fake it until he gets tired. So since Alexei did want to discuss something, finding him is easy enough.]

I needed a break, and I figured we might as well talk now, ja?

[It's probably nothing bad, but you never know.]

[ideismo]

It seems as good a time as any.

[Come on, let's just. wander around for a while so we're not just standing around. Maybe we'll find something to do with ourselves. ...That doesn't involve gross amounts of gelato, he is not going in the gelato place.]

I wanted to hear your thoughts on leaving this place, should we be permitted to do so. What you plan on doing from here.

[scythegun]

[That's fair!! Gelato is So Much.]

To be perfectly honest, I haven't given it much thought. I want to believe we'll make it out of here and be able to return home... But I don't want to plan on it in case that isn't possible.

[In case we die here or end up stuck here or something. But with that said...]

At this point, the only thing I want to do is go back and take a very long nap.

[That's not exactly it, but returning home to the Manor of the Wicked and being someplace safe with people he trusts sounds like an excellent idea. He can let his guard down, he can see the people who willingly follow him again, and he can finally let Gauche and Droite into the goddamn house.]

Why do you ask?

[ideismo]

[...Why. Why don't you let them into the house.]

It's something the others have been discussing with me as though it's a certainty and not just a distant possibility. You already know my own plans upon return, should it come to that.