[week three - saturday]

[hypertoxic]

[ You know, it's funny how their paths bring them to the same place. Right after the trial Vriska went straight to the beach, and she's been there ever since. Sometimes talking to people, sometimes not; it's hard to imagine being cooped up indoors right now.

And it turns out for the best when her wandering through the surf brings her to Newt. She was going to look for him anyway, because she couldn't let him go into tomorrow without speaking to him. But still, seeing him, knowing what's going to happen, is...

well, it sucks. ]

Hey.

[ She's subdued when she calls out, leaving the water behind and stepping up onto the sand to approach him. ]

This fucking sucks, huh?

[ Straightforward as always. ]

Comments

[hypertoxic]

[ Glances at him, a smile flickering across her face at the laughter. That's nice, at least. ]

I had a feeling they might spite us that way, but you convinced me to act on it. So, hey, thanks for that, for whatever it's worth.

[ Vriska will go quiet for a moment, staring up at the stars. ]

... Battler is a good friend of mine. It's hard to imagine him killing anyone. I am just as surprised as anyone else that he was a killing role, [ she'll mutter, her voice a little dull. ]

[completelycrazy]

Oh? [He hadn't realized Battler and Vriska were close.] Sorry. That's gotta be hard.

[But he won't pry. She can talk more about how crappy it must be to find out your friend was a designated killer if she wants to. Instead, he sighs.]

It's worth something. I changed my vote, like... [He blows out a breath.] Three times? I don't know.

[And then he's quiet for a long moment. He's just going to upset himself if he talks about this, but they're already talking about it, so.] I should've voted for Laura. I was this close. This fucking close. I don't know why I didn't. If I had, it'd just be her and Nino on the block tomorrow, and not...

[Not him. Not six other (mostly) innocent people, but mainly, not him.]

[hypertoxic]

... it's why I volunteered for his execution. I don't ... [ a sigh. ] I want to be the one to do it.

[ Shakes her head, pulling her hair over one shoulder and idly running her hands through it. ]

Pff. I'm starting to think I should have, and I considered Laura a friend! But she was cool at first, you know? Great to talk to, really chill to hang out with. And then during this trial she just went out of her fucking mind! You know why me and Bellamy were pinning her at the end? Not to keep her from burning the longhouse down, but to keep her from fucking killing herself by ripping her own stomach open! It was completely insane. I know this is probably true of everyone here, but I feel like I didn't actually know her at all.

[ in the end vriska will shut her eyes, waving one hand. ]

Besides, you think Jaffar wouldn't start stabbing everyone in a 20 foot radius if only Nino died and he didn't? Honestly, from the way things turned out, I think the Chiefs always planned to kill all six of you if even one Jack got voted for. Because of course Hal would find that funny.

[completelycrazy]

Mm. That's, um. That's nice of you. [He remembers what Vriska said about all the crap she's been through in her life, but man. She's still a kid. She shouldn't have to do this. Any of this.

But, Newt gets it. Sort of. Being on the other side of things for tomorrow, he's glad Prussia will be the one doing him. He didn't think it mattered much who would do the honors, but now it's a small comfort, maybe, knowing that he can trust Prussia to make it quick. Make it as painless as possible.

Granted, last time she executed someone, she drove a sword through their stomach, but... God, add that to the list of things he doesn't want to think about tonight.]

I get that. We weren't friends, really, but I liked her okay. I tried to help her with her arm and her body and stuff. Never really showed a ton of gratitude for it, though. [He's not sure why that is. Maybe she just thought he was annoying. Usually that's the case.]

If it helps, I think she, uh, wanted to die. It's probably best that she's dying tomorrow, honestly. Poor Nino, but she's been doomed from the start with Laura as a partner, and... At least now Laura won't be around to give you guys trouble down the road. Sucks, but it's true.

[And, as for the rest, ugh. He shakes his head.] Yeah, I know. That would be the type of shit they'd pull. Guess I got unlucky with my partner, too.

[hypertoxic]

... I know how it sounds, Newt. [ she, on the other hand, sounds tired. ] It is tough to explain the many cultural differences between trolls and humans, but we view death very differently than humans do.

Anyway, yes, I was aware Laura wanted to die. I ... [ a beat. and then, very dryly: ] Frankly, I should have assumed from the start she was enough of a bitch to try killing herself to take Nino down with her! As much as I will miss her, this was probably for the best.

[ Vriska will glance at him, but then she ends up kind of ... not looking away. After a long moment, she will sigh through her nose. ]

... I'm going to fix this, Newt. All of this. i don't know how yet, but I will.

[completelycrazy]

How do you view death, then? [He's not sure he's in the mood to contemplate this particular philosophy, but his curiosity is getting the best of him. Man, he should've taken the time to get to know Vriska better. He'd like to know more about her species.

He nudges her knee with his elbow.] You know you're not carrying the whole island on your shoulders, right? You're not going to be able to fix anything, not alone. Don't put that kind of pressure on yourself.

[hypertoxic]

I don't want to say more casual, but it's ... more normalized? Trolls are a warlike race of conquerers! The weak die, and the strong thrive. In fact, the strong are expected to cull the weak! It would especially be expected of someone of my caste to keep the lower bloods in line. Killing any who insulted me would be considered no less than fitting! Failing to do it would be the real social faux pas. In fact, refusing to kill would make me such a useless disgrace, I'd probably be killed for it! That's just what it's like. Or what it was like, anyway.

[ What he says after he nudges her will get a long glance, inscrutable. Finally she'll sigh through her nose, and there's a faint smile on her face. ]

It might sound unbelievable, but I have done things like this to myself before. Shouldering this kind of pressure is nothing new. But whether or not I should is actually a pretty good question. I guess we'll have to see how that's going to work out for us.

[completelycrazy]

...Huh. [Yeah, that's way different. Vriska certainly doesn't look human, but then again, he's seen aliens before. She looks more like a human than a Precursor or a Kaiju, so it's strange to think she has a whole culture out there that's totally foreign to him.

Even if it still qualifies as death talk, he's interested.] So... How do you know that's different from human culture? I mean, it is, for the most part. We have some stuff like that in our history, I guess. But it's not exactly comparable, I don't think. This isn't your first time encountering humans then, right? And, uh, what do you mean you've done things like this before? Just because you have experience with it doesn't mean it should fall on you.