crazily | week 2 - after the execution

[It probably isn't surprising that Gilbert doesn't look placated by that attempt at lightening things up. Break doesn't have any intention of dying here - that much is certainly the truth, as far as truths go. But whether or not he'll be able to do anything about seeing that through to the end is another matter entirely, out of both of their hands.

His hands tighten into fists at his sides, and he's quiet for a few more moments, mulling this over and wishing that a magic out would appear.]

...I'll make sure that you come back with me.

[He can't accept any other alternative, really.]

So we'll work toward immunity first, and worry about the rest after.

You're still a troublesome brat even after this long, you know.

[ But his words still sound fond over actually scathing, that said. Even if Break is difficult to deal with, and it's even more difficult to get him to acknowledge people that are important to him... He's gotten better in the last year. He would have never expected that Oz's return would have such an effect, or maybe it's more that his reappearance set a series of events into motion.

Either way, despite himself, he's remembering Shelly's words. He can never remember them with a full sense of nostalgia, but at the very least, he's understanding them more. Break realizes the irony in the fact that it's taken him this long, but he only hopes that Shelly wouldn't hold that against him too terribly. ]

That's all we can do, I think. So~! I'll certainly continue doing my best. We just have to make sure to keep catching culprits, since if someone takes up our spots, I'll be fairly cross! [ he'll straight up murder them, immunity be damned ]

[Break won't be able to see it, but he probably doesn't have to to know that there's a soft sort of surprise on Gilbert's face when he hears that. Still a troublesome brat, huh... Well, he supposes that isn't wrong. He was a troublesome brat as a kid, and hadn't it just been recently that Break had scolded him for the exact same thing? For not moving forward, for being unable to climb the hurdles of his flaws...

He hopes he's doing better with it, now. It's a nebulous feeling that he can't really put into words, and it's not the same at all as it is with Oscar, but-- when things boil down to it, he still wants to make Break proud.

That said.]

That won't happen.

[Because Break would straight up murder them yes, but mostly he's just trying to be shonen here. Kind of. They're still talking about mass murder...]

But... how long do you think we should wait now? I'd rather not have a repeat of this weekend so soon, but if we wait longer... [He shifts suddenly, a little discomforted. It goes beyond just caution now, honestly.

Break will probably be able to guess the crux of Gilbert's problem too, knowing him and his soft heart. It's only week two and Gilbert is already becoming reluctant to do what needs to be done, but at least he's aware of that.]

[ As they move onto more practical matters, it's also easier for Break to slip away from uncomfortable truths that he would still rather not confront. He shifts and relaxes instead of being so visibly tense, because there's nothing to calm you down like talking about murder with your pal. ]

Well... About that. I did have an idea, actually.

[ He cants his head back and forth thoughtfully, but then ends up finishing off his tea. It's quick, even for him, so maybe he's more anxious about the day that he had been letting on. He gestures for Gilbert to pour him another, since that's a little difficult, and he's willing to accept Gilbert's help for small things like this. ]

Only one suspect will be executed, wasn't it? The wording implies two people working together, but it doesn't say that has to be the case. So, what if it were more than one accomplice? My thought was that "if every suspect was an accomplice," that would work out nicely. Getting five people to work together, kill five people, and then the group is playing a game of chance, but the other four would be able to retire. I also had the idea of tying it in with the "true" culprit being someone who had immunity for the week, but I'm not sure just how permissible that part would be.

[ He'll reach to take a sugarcube at this point just to eat as a sweet. ]

Now, we don't know three people that would be willing to agree... But I can think of two that might. Not this week, since I wouldn't propose it before I was sure. But it's a thought.

[Gilbert's human heart feels honestly horrible about considering this...

But he's also had years of practice when it comes to pushing those feelings aside to do some murdering, SO. HERE WE ARE. Break proposing this ridiculous-ass murder scheme and Gilbert genuinely considering it.]

There's a two kill limit per person, but if we had three direct killers and two accomplices... That would be enough for six, wouldn't it? And four of the five of us could still retire. We would just have to be careful, because... regardless, the person who's executed would have a lot riding on their participation.

[Someone who'd agree to kill with them would also probably be willing to throw them under the bus, basically. HE CAN SEE THE FLAWS HERE.]

—Who are the two?

That's the idea. ♥ If we're playing a game of numbers and only one person could be executed, then it won't matter. Even if one piece decides to back out, so long as they participate in the kill, it's irrelevant. Our fellow captives can ultimately only pick one. The only way to ensure a double kill would be a tie, and with our votes, that would be very difficult, wouldn't it?

[ Leave it to Break to come up with not only a plan, but a plan that murders the most people. ]

As for the two, I have a feeling that Morrigan and Rhys would do it. Not for being killers, necessarily, since I don't know either well enough to make that judgement... But I think they would both protect themselves if they were give the opportunity. It's better chance than simply hoping that you aren't killed.

[WELL CONSIDERING HIS SORDID PAST AS A SERIAL KILLER AND ALL...

The plan itself seems pretty solid to Gilbert either way, though, so he doesn't have anything more to say in regard to that. He does look a little surprised by the names given, though...]

Those two? [Morrigan, he could totally see. Rhys... He's a little less sure. He seems like an actual king weenie and not just a "I seem like a king weenie but I also murder people for a living" king weenie.]

I haven't spoken to Morrigan much, but I'm not sure Rhys would participate in something like that.

That's why we can't do it right way.

[ Ironically, considering Break totally has immunity this week... GOD... ]

I'm not completely sure about either, and I wouldn't go forward with such an bold plan until I was certain of it. If they reject the plan from the start, then it'll never work, and we'd be likely to die the next trial for being traitors. But I'm not counting on them to kill, necessarily. We can do that. They only need to agree to be accomplices.

[ Coolly, ] If it's offered as self-preservation to leave the game, well. My gamble here is that they would value their own lives over morals. Combine it with an opportune motive, and we can be all the more certain of it.

[WHAT A WASTE OF IMMUNITY BREAK, GOD!!]

Well... You might not be wrong about that. [The right motive in particular can have a great impact, as they've both learned quite well.]

It's a big risk to take, but it's better than trying to wait out three months and hoping we'll survive just through the luck of the draw. Especially if more deaths like Sisuca's happen... That was a complete wildcard.

[He really doesn't appreciate that it happened at around the same time as his dreams, either?!]

[ He nods ]

That's more or less my thoughts on the matter. Either way... If they refuse, then we'll just continue with the plan regardless. All of our chances are improved with more people, but even with just the two of us, it's not terrible.

[ Break pauses, then laughs gently. ]

I would take a certainty that at least one of us return home over simply watching and waiting, after all.

[It's still awful, having to talk about things in these terms. Awful for them, awful for the others - a no-win situation. The paranoia of last week has faded, and the anxiety from the trial is over, but this guilt and heaviness will cling to him and continue weighing him down. He knows it already. That's how it always is.

But if they don't keep moving forward, they'll just be waiting, and Gilbert has already done so much waiting in his life. It's why he's made those hard decisions in the first place - because he hates waiting and not doing.

(It makes him an awful person in some regards, but he's never claimed to be kind.)]

Right... Right. We'll have to wait and see what their reactions are, then. [It'll be a risk, but still better than nothing.

He lapses into silence after that, quietly considering.]

Just bear with it for now, if you can. I know it's hardly easy for you, but... We'll manage.

[ It's unsaid, but there's a tone there of "we always do." Break bows his head lightly, and his expression shifts, serious, but a bit more insistent for a moment. There's another topic that has to be discussed too— ]

[ But that all said. He scrunches up his face and tilts his cup back and forth. ]

Ahhh, but you're being cruel by now~! Can I just have some more tea, please~?

[ He knows Gilbert just got distracted (for fair reasons) and forgot, but it's not Break if he's not teasing Gilbert, honestly. ]

I know. And I will.

[Because there isn't any option.

When it seems like Break will speak again, Gilbert looks over a little, curious - but oh shit OOPS. IT'S JUST GILBERT FORGETTING.]

Er— sorry. [And he's reaching for the teapot to refill Break's cup now, good lord.]

[ He'll at least hold his cup still once Gilbert starts to reach for the teapot, since he's not quite bad enough to toss it in his face. Or pour it on his hands like certain young masters, but. Enough about GFantasy crossovers. Once it's poured, Break will begin to make a similarly terrible and sugary concoction. ]

That's better... I had to get something to drink before I started on the rest, you know. I wasn't exaggerating [ for once ] when I said it was a long story~.

[Gilbert would die if he had to deal with Ciel, honestly...

But after he's done pouring Break a cup, he'll pour himself a little more and sit back so he's more comfortable. ...Well, as comfortable as someone can be when their posture is a constant state of rigid and anxious, anyway.]

Right... What was all that about, anyway? You really weren't lying...

[He was kind of hoping he'd be able to look back on that and be like "aha, I see! A clever distraction ploy!" but no...]

[ Break also settles himself comfortably in his burrito, since even if he had just been teasing Gilbert, this is a matter that he'll also take seriously, but for very different reasons. It's one thing to have feelings (bleurgh), but this is much more related and relevant to their circumstances at home. ]

No, I wasn't.

[ This is a hard story to explain, because it's one that's more than a little convoluted. He supposes that starting with how this was discovered at all would be the best place to start, but it doesn't make it that much easier to actually accept. ]

Barma— Well. His role in all of this isn't simple either, but it seemed that he'd betrayed us. We ended up at the sealing stone, but... It was the one with the head. [ That in itself is pretty gross, but that's not why Break pauses. He shakes his head. ] Jack was lying to us the whole time, Gilbert. The person in the sealing stones wasn't Jack—It was Oswald.

[ This doesn't exactly explain how Gilbert is a Baskerville, but he's going to go plot twist by plot twist here. It's kind of a lot. ]

[A long comfortable jaunt down Weird Plot Twist lane... Exactly what they both need after a harrowing weekend of Gilbert almost dying!!

He doesn't think he's ready for whatever Break has to say, but honestly, he's even less ready than that, somehow. This is just the first hurdle and it's clear he's already struggling to comprehend what the actual hell happened.]

Barma betrayed us? [Or "seemed like it" anyway, but--

There's a long pause, then. A brief, sharp pain at his left temple.]

...What do you mean, Break? Jack was lying? Why— was Oswald's...

[HE'S STRUGGLING but on the plus side he's not literally holding a severed head this time, so he's not having a complete breakdown.]

[ We honestly take what we can get with Pandora Hearts... It's not as if Break is exactly the best person to have a meltdown around anyways, but he's at least trying to be careful here. That's more than what Gilbert usually gets. ]

Barma's role in it is... [ stupid ] complicated. Just for what I'm telling you now, don't worry about him.

[ He really doesn't want to explain Barma's weird crush on Cheryl. Considering how close he is to the Rainsworths and how much he dislikes Barma, he really doesn't want to think about it at all. ]

The one who caused the tragedy at Sablier was Jack. That's what I mean. He changed the way we know the story so that Oswald plays the role that he did, it seems like.

Edited 2016-03-01 21:03 (UTC)

[DAMMIT BARMA
-Every PH character ever, including Gilbert right now just because he's somehow still existing to make the plot even more complicated than it should be.]

Jack—?

[He's reeling, because he knows that Break wouldn't lie about something like his, but it just doesn't make sense. Jack, who he'd thought was his past master, had been responsible for the fall of Sablier?]

I don't... understand. Why? Why would he do something like that—? Framing Oswald-- No— why would he cause the tragedy at all...? I don't understand this.

Well... [ His expression turns a little more difficult at that, but it's more like he's tired by the plot of his own series over anything else. ] I can't actually explain why very well. He's just insane, honestly.

[ That's the short explanation that is 100% true, but he'll at least make an effort to properly explain it. He takes a drink of his tea first, though. ]

Lacie... That was Oswald's sister, apparently, and from what I can tell, Jack was in love with her. She was pulled into the abyss, but that's not what caused the tragedy. Jack just got the idea in his head of bringing the Abyss to Lacie, or something like that. He wanted to destroy the world to meet Lacie again, and used— [ Here, Break pauses, even falters, but he shakes his head. He can't tell Gilbert this part, ultimately. It's not because he wants to keep it from him, but it's something he knows will become Gilbert's focus even though he can't do anything about it here. So... Later. If they return home, then he'll finish telling the story. ]

He used B-Rabbit to try it. Everything we know about the story is reversed, essentially. Jack was the traitor. He just did a very good job of fooling the entire world about the truth.

[THIS IS AN AWFUL NIGHT FOR GILBERT'S SANITY.]

He used Alice? [A rare use of her name instead of just "the stupid rabbit", because of course since Gilbert's "forgotten" pretty much everything else of importance, he'd forget the revelation about Oz, too. And he's undoubtedly furious about the idea of Alice being used for something like that, but Break's made the right decision here, since he'd basically cease to function as he should be in a murder town if he knew the real truth...]

I— can't believe that this entire time... [That it was Jack, that Jack had been lying, that Jack had used people like tools just for what sounds like one single, selfish wish--

But of course there are always hang-ups with a plot this stupidly convoluted.]

—We have to get back. As soon as possible, no matter what the cost. [Which was a given from the start, but there's even more motivation behind it now. Leo was one thing, but if Jack is a danger, and Jack is residing within Oz's body...]

[ It's not going to get any better with Break doing the explaining, because even with all of this, he still hasn't gotten to his ultimate point here. This is all just used to explain where this came about, because otherwise, it would make even less sense.

The uses of Alice's name gets Break to look surprised, but then he bows his head with a little smile. I would seem to be at the use of her name, but it's actually at the misunderstanding that Gilbert makes. That's what he had been leading him to believe, of course, but still, now it sounds strange to think of Alice as that Chain. It's not much better to know that it's Oz, but it only confirms the little deception to keep that a secret. He knows Gilbert well, so he knows that wouldn't be taken with the determination he's hearing here. ]

Mm, we do. We have to stop Leo and Jack both, and neither one of them is going to make it easy, I'm sure.

[ To say the very least. Leo is almost simple in comparison to Jack, because there's a plan to take care of Jack, but only Break and Cheryl knew that one. He also knows Gilbert well enough to know that he wouldn't forgive him if Break ended up being the one having to take care of that problem.

There's a twist in his chest at that thought. So he moves past it as quickly as he can. ]

...So. If you imagine everything Jack told us in reverse, that goes for you too. Sorry it's taken so long to get to the point, but it's complicated, as I think you see. Jack was lying about you being his servant too.

[ DID YOU FORGET WHAT THIS WAS ORIGINALLY ABOUT... Let Break remind you. ]

You and Vincent were both taken in by the Baskervilles. That's what I meant. But now you probably see why I couldn't explain that then.

[Of course, because it's not like anything is ever easy and it's not like any of them have ever had good luck--

Hah.

But if it boils down to luck in the end, then he supposes "Gilbert Baskerville" is something that makes more sense than "Gilbert Nightray". And to think he'd spent so long wondering why misfortune had befallen that house so vigorously.

There's a pressure behind his eyes by now - the start of one of his unpleasantly sharp headaches, because the memories tied to those words are still with him. They just aren't unlocked yet, and that's also likely for the best. Being told by another person is making him emotional already; he's almost grateful that a second or third-hand recounting is the only thing they have to go off of, currently.]

Then... this entire time— [It's automatic to think of himself as "the villain" in this scenario, though if what Break says is true, the Baskervilles were never in that role to begin with. It's a lot to take in, obviously - but it does clear up some things. The note on his card, for one.]

...So that's why I survived... when Cheshire attacked, or during that poisoning attempt, or— [So many years ago, when that scar had been left on his chest-- So many other times that now he feels foolish for just assuming he'd been lucky or resilient.]

That's right. I'm—

[ Break struggles again here briefly, but he exhales with a tension shifting back into his posture again. He reaches up and rubs his hand through his hair briefly, a sort of anxious gesture, but it's also quickly gone. ]

I'm sorry that I had to be the one to tell you, for what it's worth. Being... delicate has never been my strong suit.

[ But this is delicate, for Break. He's trying, and unbeknownst to both of them, that in itself is a quiet sign of the difference in time that exists between them. Break has learned to be a little more gentle and less flippant when it counts, though he's still awkward and terrible at it. ]

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