[Last Time, On El WHAT?!: Shiho's climactic accusation of murder against Amy collapsed into fear, uncertainty, and doubt in the face of her rebuttal. No more murders have happened in the meantime, in spite of Shiho's offering of herself as bait to the killer. Who knows what will happen next, though? Only one day remains if they are to find the killer before the next round of fights.] [Session Start!] * It's late evening of the second night of rest before the second round of the tournament. * Cara sits on her bed hugging her knees to her chest and staring at nothing in particular. * Daphne sits on her bed having a drink and looking contemplative. No good can come of this. * Rocky is asleep :P * Shiho is asleep too. * Ichi is at the foot of his bed with his stuff spread messily around him, looking down at his swords now and then as thoughts come and go. * There's a loud, insistent knock at the door of the small room. * Ichi blinks a few times and stands up. * Daphne contemplates whoever it is to bugger off. * The knocking continues. * Ichi walks over to the door and calls out "Who's there?" It Is I. Oh! Give me a second to wake everybody up then. * Ichi walks back to everybody else and tells them that Tulpa's at the door. * Ichi then tries to wake up Shiho. * Cara looks up at Ichi, her eyes refocussing. "...oh." * Shiho grumbles and sits up. I'm sorry to wake you up, but Tulpa's outside. Fine. Leddim' in. * Shiho shrugs. "Can't be helped." Okay. ::walks back to the door and opens it:: Sorry about the wait, you can come in now. I Am Impressed At The Period Which I Was Forced To Wait. I Wish To Inquire Any Information Which You Have Obtained About The Killer. I'd like t' know what we learned 'bout th' killur, too. I don't think I have anything new. ...ask Shiho. * Tulpa turns his stare on Shiho. * Shiho shrugs. "I'm not sure who it is." * Daphne grimaces and takes another drink. * Tulpa's eyes flare an evil red. "Are You... Sure?" ... No. I know who it is. I'm not sure why. * Ichi looks confused. * Cara looks at Shiho. You Know Who It Is? Diddo heer. I don't have proof. Or at least, I don't remember what that proof was. Most Impressive. * Shiho grimaces. "Not the words I would've chosen." * Cara speaks quietly. "I just...I can't believe it's her." I can. Or, I could've. * Ichi shakes his head, "I don't belive it either." You Must Feel So Evil, Withholding The Identity From Me While Saying You Can Or Cannot Believe It. I Am So Very Impressed. Perhaps I Will Reserve A Place For You In My Legions Of Terror. * Cara looks up and GLARES at Tulpa. "How about I just turn you into a turnip?" Uhm....No thank you. I Would Not Make A Good Turnip. I Find Your Threat Less Than Satisfactory. You Shall Have No Place In My Legions Of Terror. I'm crushed. If You Insist. * Tulpa raises his hand towards Cara. * Daphne growls. "Amy, damn yer 'ide. We think it wus Amy, arright?" Just stop it * Tulpa Lowers His Hand. Amy? The Animal Lover Freak? A Murderer? * Cara turns away and leans over the side of the bed, picking up her sketchpad and pencil. She ignores Tulpa and begins to draw something or other. Yeah, that one. * Shiho nods. I don't think it's Amy, but I don't have any other ideas either. * Daphne glares into the distance. "Ah knew it was hur. Jus' *knew*, yunno? An' then I... jus' didn't." Likewise. * Daphne hiccups. It...it just makes too much horrible sense. But...she's Amy! She's not Amy. NO, SHE'S NOT! * Ichi takes a step back away from Daphne. * Daphne has to steady herself after shouting, and shakes her head some. "She looked like Amy, an' she sounds like Amy, an' she likes animals entirely too much, like Amy. But that doesn't make 'er Amy. Not our Amy, anyway." * Cara slumps. "I...I know. But...I just...I want Amy back." She starts to cry softly. Sounds Like An Interesting Discussion, But I Must Take My Leave. Have You Any Questions Before I Do So? I have one. What are you going to do? I Will Continue To Seek The Murderer, Whether It Be Amy Or No. Can you keep an eye on her? I Have Neither The Time Nor The Disposition. * Shiho nods. I have a question too. Do you have any other ideas of who it might be? I Am Uncertain. I Have Yet To Question The Melosoras Boy. It's not him. Are You Certain? Yesh. How? He wash wit' you when the second murdur happen'. Or so he said. ...'least, I think 'e said. Impressive. Had He Been With Me, I Think I Would Have Questioned Him. * Ichi blinks. Yet Somehow I Have Not Questioned Him. * Shiho blinks. "... What?" Perhaps Your Peculiar Memory Problem Has Also Struck Me, For I Possess No Memory Of Meeting With The Melosoras Boy Since We Last Spoke. * Daphne blinkblinks. He lied? An' when'd ye lash sh... spoke? * Cara falls silent, and looks up, tears still slowly rolling down her cheeks. "You mean..." This Morning, Of Course. Or Was It This Afternoon. Time Is So Ephemeral. * Shiho cups her chin in thought. * Daphne blinks. * Ichi looks confused, he's quite good at it since he gets lots of practice. ...Cara? Y'knoo any magic that'll un-drunk me? * Tulpa STARES at Daphne. * Cara blinks a few times. "Uh, I think I could do that. But you might end up looking different." A Drunken Master Asking To Be Un-Drunked. That's Impossible. * Daphne waves her hand dismissively. "'M nodda drunken mashtur. Jus' drunk." She crosses her eyes. "'Least, I don' thing ayam." Not Possible. I Saw Your First Round Fight After I Finished My Opponent. * Ichi blinks, "Didn't you hear the announcement? There are two Daphne's here." * Daphne shakes her head. "No, tha's the other one. I missed me ferst fight." The Announcement Stated That Somehow One Person Had Signed Up Twice. * Daphne shakes her head. "The Announcement wush wrong. There's two a' us, an' I shoule knoo; the other one kicked m'ass thish mornin'." You Were So Drunk That You Kicked Your Own Ass. Impressive. * Daphne chuckles. "Tha' wush funny." * Ichi shakes his head, "No no, there are two Daphnes." * Daphne nods. "See? Itchi 'grees wid me." Most Interesting. Twins Separated At Birth? * Shiho snickers despite herself. "No, no. 'M from anudder dimenshun. There'sh native Daphne, an' foreign Daphne. 'M foreign Daphne." So You Are A Dimensional Exile. Such Things Are Not Unheard Of. * Daphne nodnods. "Yeah, tha'." * Daphne points vaguely to the rest of the room. "'n Soo're they. One big happy buncha' exiles, we are." I'm not very happy. And The Other? 'S sarcasm, Rocky. Th' other? Y'mean the other me? She's from this world, 's far as I knoo. No. Your Other Companion. * Daphne blinks. "Uh? Y'mean Taro?" Indeed. * Daphne nod nod nods. "Right, right. 'Ees from our wurld, too." Very Well. Perhaps We Shall Meet In The Morning. * Tulpa Exits Stage Left Good night. Right, right. s'long, Tulps. Do...should we go talk to that other guy, then? ...mebbe. Yeah. * About this time, all the hallway lights go dark, as it is now what may be described as, "Lights Out" Tomorrow. Or we culd keepaneye onnim, mebbe. Wade for 'im t'doo sumtin' sushpishioush. ...or we culd sleep. I think we sleep. * Shiho gets out of bed and pulls her shoes on. "I'm not tired. I'm going for a walk." * Shiho snatches her bow and quiver and heads out the door. ...Cara? Y'knoo any magic that'll take care of a headache? Shiho...is it alright...if I come with you? * Shiho shrugs. "If you want." * Cara turns back to Daphne. "Uh, I think so...but like I said, you might end up looking different." * Cara touches her hair self conciously. Oh, right. * Cara gets up off her bed and follows Shiho after putting her coat on. I don't think I can sleep right now, either. * Rocky curls up on Shiho's bed and goes to sleep. * Ichi looks down at his weapons.... "Maybe this will make more sense in the morning." ...Itchy, go widdum. Huh? Okay... ::grabs his shoes and his katana and hurries out:: * Shiho sighs. "Y'know, I changed my mind." * Daphne goes to sleep. Or maybe passes out. The world will never know. * Cara blinks. "Uh. Alright." * Ichi stops trying to catch up, "So...we're not going anywhere?" * Shiho shakes her head and heads back. "Better get some sleep. I've got to fight tomorrow." Oh right...::puts his sword down:: ...I wonder if I got disqualified... * Cara returns to her bed, but doesn't get changed to sleep, instead just sitting down and trying to draw. "I don't know if I can sleep at all tonight. Not with all that's happened." * Shiho shrugs and goes to sleep. * Ichi climbes into bed and lets better heads than his worry about the future. * It doesn't take long for everybody to nod off, and soon the sun rises, the lights come back on, and the noise of fighters waking up, stretching, exercising, and shouting can be heard. * Daphne wakes up, and immediately wishes she hadn't. * Daphne's head throbs with a mighty beat. It's telling her to wake up. * Shiho wakes up and wastes no time getting ready. * Ichi yawns and streaches before climbing out of bed. * Cara slowly awakens blearily, looking quite dishevelled due to the position she was sleeping in and the fact that she slept fully dressed, trenchcoat and all. ...Cara? 'Bout that magic? * Cara yawns, and looks at Daphne. "You sure about this?" * Shiho comes out of the shower before long, fully dressed. Yes. I don' care if I turn intae someone else, s'long as that someone doesn't have a hangover. Alright...just try to stay still, it'll make it a bit easier. * Daphne nods and stays still. Easy to do; she doesn't want to move, anyway. * Ichi goes to the bathroom to brush his teath and other such things. * Cara very very carefully draws a picture of Daphne waking up, looking refreshed and chipper, and making very certain to get all the details on Daphne right. * Daphne's hangover abruptly vanishes. She seems a tad different, but it's hard to tell. Her clothing does seem to hang a tad differently, though. * Daphne blinks. Hey! It worked! * Cara looks carefully at Daphne, trying to see if she changed anything. * Daphne seems quite happy about not being hungover. * Daphne hops out of Bed and stretches. * Daphne overbalances and almost falls over on her face. * Ichi walks out of the bathroom, "I'm glad to see you...Daph!" * Daphne barely manages to not fall over. "Wha?" * Daphne's balance appears to be temporarily shot to hell. * Daphne wobbles? o_O What's wrong? * Daphne checks herself for differences. * Cara blinks at Daphne, then flushes bright red. "Erm...uh...I think...I messed up your, uh...your breasts." * Ichi blinks and then looks at Daphne. * Daphne blinks and feels her rack. Shouldn't have asked her to do that unless it was an emergency. * Daphne grumbles. "You've obviously never had a hangover." Because I'm not old enough to drink. * Cara looks down, horribly embarrassed. "I'm so sorry, Daphne." Remind me to never become drunk. * Daphne eyes Shiho. "So? 'S never stopped me." I know. * Cara looks sharply at Shiho. "Shiho, there's no need to be like that." * Shiho shoots Cara a glance, then picks up her bow. "I'm going out." And she does. * Cara sighs. * The PA system rings with the sound of bells. "All Fighters, Please report to main lounge for an important meeting." Meh. She jus' couldn't resist, could she? * Rocky does too. "Oi, what a morning." Uhg. Uhm...do you want a hand Daphne? But, I mean, she's upset. We all are. I don't think she really means anything by it. * Daphne reaches up the back of her shirt and fiddles with something. "Yeah, I knoo." She doesn't. She's already sorry for it. Probably won't mention it to you guys, though. "An' don't think I'm mad about this. I don' think I'll mind having smaller breasts for a day or three. Nothin' but trouble." * Ichi blinks at Rocky, "Oh." Um...for a day or three? My hair never changed back. * Daphne nods at Rocky. "'Course. But if someone were to casually mention to her that she shouldn't worry about it, that'd be fine, right?" Probably. Might wanna wait a while, though. All this stress is finally starting to cause her to break down. Is there anything else we can do to help? * Cara looks worried. "Oh no." Well... Yes and no. * Daphne nods. "I kinda' meant for you to relay it, but I can just tell her later on." Oh. Well, I sorta already did. I'm nice like that. Thing is, Shiho doesn't want me talking about her feelings. Says it'll just make matters worse. * Cara sighs. So...we pretend you didn't? * Daphne shrugs. "I understand. Anyway, we need to go to that meeting. Hop oboard, Rocky." Yeah, we should. Right. * Rocky hops onto Daphne's shoulder. * Daphne heads to... the meeting! * Cara follows Daphne. * Ichi walks after Cara. * By the time you walk in, pretty much all the fighters have filed in and taken seats wherever they're available. There's a little floor space in the front, and that's it. Once again, the head referee is standing at the front of the room. I'm sorry to have to call you all together again this morning... It pains me to say this, but there have been two more reported deaths. Taro Urashima, who was burned until only ash remained in a storage room. He will be missed, I'm sure. * Ichi blinks. * Cara whispers "Wait, two?" * Daphne blinks. And second... last night, approximately three hours after lights out according to the coroner, Amy O'Neal was killed, in her bed, in a murder very similar to the first. This time, however, the murder weapon, or a piece of it, has been recovered. * Daphne gapes. Wha...What!? * Cara turns white as a sheet, and wavers. "No...Amy!" Inside the wound was an arrowhead, broken from its shaft. It was stuck in the spinal column, and apparently broke free while the murderer was trying to pull the arrow free. * Rocky blinks. ... I don't like where this is going one bit. * Cara looks like she's about to collapse. * Daphne scowls. * Almost as one, the eyes of the many fighters in the room focus on Shiho. * Daphne whispers to Rocky. "This stinks. A lot." * Ichi looks confusedly at Shiho. * Shiho looks just as surprised as anyone. * Cara falls to her knees, as it doesn't seem anyone's going to move to steady her, and sits there shivering. * Rocky whispers to Daphne. * Ichi blinks as the movement distracts him to something he can act on. * Tulpa stands up, eyes flaring brightly. "Indeed, It May Well Be The Blazing Arrow Fighter. I Saw Her Leave Her Room In The Dark Of The Night, Alone." * Daphne scowls and whispers back. * Ichi stops moving as his brain goes back into boggle mode. * Shiho shoots a glance at Tulpa. "I didn't go anywhere near Amy's room! Or didn't you see that, either?" * Rocky whispers more. I Saw Nothing Of The Sort. I Am Not So Suicidal As To Follow A Killer Into The Darkness. * Daphne wants to say something to that, but decides not to. * Mui stands up. "No wonder you were accusing me of killing Taro! You sick bitch!" * Daphne whispers to Rocky some more. * Cara mumbles to herself, evidently in a state of shock. "No way...can't be...no...not possible..." Bu...but...bu...but.. * Rocky glares at Cara. "She didn't, dammit!" Amy dead...no...why... Calm down, Rocky. We need to keep cool, here. * Cara starts to cry. "And they're gonna blame Shiho for it, too!" Is there any present who can offer an alibi for this fighter? * Ichi tries to figure this out, "Wasn't she with me both times? And I wasn't there..." * Shiho clenches her fists. * Ichi begins to strobe with light. * The fighters in the room shield their eyes. * Ichi vanishes in a burst of light, leaving a plushie of himself, in the kneeling position, a look of utter disbelief on his plushy face. * Daphne sighs and picks up the plushie, putting him in her backpack. So, Tulpa. You saw Shiho leaving after lights-out? I Did. So, why didn't you report her, if you were suddenly so certain she was a killer? Actually, I Am Hoping To Recruit Her For My Legions Of Terror. She was in violation of some rule or another, I'm sure. You could've recruited her or stopped her, take your pick. * There are nods from a few of the most evil looking fighters in the audience. Fine. Why didn't you recruit he then? I figure evil times love those midnight meetings in darkness, an' whotnot. But I Will Not Accept Her If She Is So Bad A Killer As To Be Caught In This Manner. If She Can Prove Herself Innocent, I Shall Extend An Invitation To Join My Legions. * Again, a few of the more evil looking fighters nod in agreement. * Daphne rolls her eyes. "Right, whatever." She thinks for a second. "By the way, Mui? Why'd you lie about talking to our friend Tulpa yesterday?" Lie? I didn't! Why would I lie?! * Mui starts to look frantic. * Shiho looks over at Tulpa. Because you didn't want anyone uncovering your role in the rather firey killing of Taro yesterday? Just a wild guess. * Cara speaks up suddenly. "I bet Tulpa killed Amy and tried to frame Shiho. He does say he's evil." I told you, damn it! I couldn't make that big a fire if I burned my own life to do it! Ha. An Excellent Attempt To Shift Suspicion, Yet You Fail To Take Into Account That An Evil Overlord Never Kills. He Merely Casts Into Another Dimension, Another Time, Or Another Place, So That His Enemies May Come Back And Defeat Him Another Time. Y'know, at that time, Shiho was with Mather Froelich. Well, shucks. Then who can? C'mon, you pyrofighters, let's get up a good round of bragging. * The referee looks over at Mather. "Mister Froelich? Have you been withholding this girl's alibi?" Who can do that? What school teaches such techniques? You'd better pass the buck fast, Mui, or you'll just keep looking suspicious. * Mather stands up from his seat near the back, blushing profusely. "I'm afraid I have, sir." Why would you do such a thing? * Cara looks at Tulpa. Though she's speaking calmly, she doesn't LOOK very calm. "You aren't much of an overlord. Where are all your minions?" Well... er... ahem... well, you see... fighters of my school are *mumblemumble* * Daphne frowns. "Speak up, man." * Daphne blinks suddenly and glances around. * Mather turns so red that he may be about to burst. I said fighters of my school are supposed to remain celibate. * Mather sits down in a hurry. * Daphne blinks. * Shiho stares at Mather. * Everyone else stares at Shiho. * Daphne blinks again, then whispers to Rocky. * Rocky looks wide-eyed at Daphne and rapidly shakes his head. * Daphne nods. "Figured." * Cara blinks and looks very confused and lost. * Rocky whispers to Daphne. * The rest of the room is still staring, shocked, at Shiho. Ahhhh... Has Mui explained yet about the whole fire thing? No, he hasn't. Mui? * Daphne whispers back to Rocky. * Mui tears his eyes away from Shiho. "Huh?" * Rocky whispers back. The fire thing. If your flame's as weak as you say, whose is strong enough to have torched Taro as was done? I don't know, lady. Jeez, I don't know any of the other fighters here well at ALL. Too bad. Just in theory, tho? Any schools you'd know that might have that kind of power? I'm sure you keep up on the competetion at least that much. Hey, watch it. NOBODY is more powerful than the Thousand Fires. Nobody? * Daphne waves dismissively. "Well, apparently someone is." MUCH more powerful, it looks like. No, they're more powerful than ME. I don't know how powerful the people here are. I won't get to, either, since that punk eliminated me with that cheesy rod. Yeah, that punk did, didn't he? That must really cheese you off, ey? Hey, screw you, lady. I ain't no fuckin' killer. 'Course you're not. You just lucked out, then? Someone else just happened to burn someone you don't like? You're damn right. I don't kill, lady. I might make his life a living hell, LITERALLY, but I don't kill. * Daphne grins. "Sure y'don't. How mean of me to say otherwise. * Daphne glances around for any other easy targets, while she's at it. He still hasn't said where he was when Taro was killed. I ALREADY TOLD YOU! I was in the lounge, talkin' to Tulpa! And Tulpa's already said you weren't. I Did? Why, yes you did, Tulpa. Last night, when you came to our room. You specifically said that if you'd talked to Mui yesterday, you would've interrogated him about the murder, which you specifically said you hadn't. Or were you lying? I'm Afraid You Must Have Mistaken Me For Someone Else. Perhaps Another Evil Overlord Visited You In Your Quarters? No, I'm pretty sure it was you. Looked like you, Talked Like You, and generally acted like you. That Is Most Interesting, Since I Was With My Evil Minions All Evening, Playing Lie Or Die. * Daphne blinks. "You mean you actually have minions? ...no, save that for later." She shakes her head. "Anyway, if it wasn't you, it was someone doing a very good job of pretending to be you. Which means we have a wonderful new problem on our hands." Oh Ho! So You Believe Our Problem Lies In A Shapeshifter, Which Is A Whole Other Problem. Most... Interesting Claim. * Daphne shrugs. "Could be. It's either that or there's two of you. I don't suppose you regularly clone yourself?" I Am Afraid Not. I Do Not Wish My Clone To Rise Up Against Me. * Rocky whispers to Daphne Right. Oh, by the way. If you were playing Lie or Die last night, why were you hiding outside our door when Shiho left in the middle of the night? I Was Not. I Was Returning From An Excursion To The Restroom. Even Evil Overlords Must Relieve Themselves. Real convenient. Why, exactly, is the word of an 'Evil Overlord' worth anything, anyway? It Is Also Convenient That Your Friend's Lover Stood After Remaining Silent For So Long. And I still wanna know about Mui. Was he with you? I Will Agree To Enter Confinement Until The True Murderer Is Determined If She Will, Also. Mui Was With Me, Yes. Doin' what? Alright. Will you have your minions either leave or lie low, while you're confined? I Will Go You One Better. We Shall Be Confined Together. * Daphne nods. "Works for me. Oh, and what were you doin' with Mui? Might as well answer." * Rocky stares at Daphne. * Daphne whispers to Rocky. I Was Questioning Him. [Session End]