[I GUESS........... They will be running across each other on the second floor, near the stairs. Though this is the first time they've actually talked, Akechi will offer him a polite smile once he spots him.]
[ yeah he’s at the top of the stairs and was kind of staring down them with a weird mix of irritation and utter dread but Akechi’s snapped him out of it, made him look up. ]
You ... know my name already? Did you memorize the stuff in the ballroom?
[Well. Nothing unfortunate will come out of this, clearly...]
Of course. [Time to gently flex on a 13-year-old, ig.] As a detective, memorizing such information has become a second nature to me. I apologize if I caught you off guard.
[ Given he's still got one arm in a sling and he can only cling to the banister with one hand it's honestly even worse. why does god hate him personally?
also akechi why are you like this. isaac just kinda stares at him. ]
A ... detective?
[ .... ]
Wait! I remember now. I read your thing!
[ TWO CAN PLAY THIS GAME
but also instead of continuing he actually kind of turns red and shuts up, looking away? what's up with that ]
Yeah, whatever humor is there is just going to fly over his head. Goodbye. Still smiling, though he now looks an itty bitty confused.]
... Or we could step back into the hallway. [Since. Isaac is still at the top of the stairs.] Unless there's something urgent you must take care of downstairs? I don't want to keep you if that's the case.
[ yeahhhhh it's fine currently only isaac gets the joke and it is not a very good joke.
also for some reason he hadn't considered that and just kinda
pauses. ]
... not really. Okay, good point.
[ It's with some small relief that he edges away from the stairs
.... very slowly ... while wobbling ....
until he can reach a wall and brace himself on it with a huge sigh of relief. ]
I've just kinda been dreading it all morning since I lost my sense of balance... [ softly, staring into the middle distance ] I never understood how terrifying stairs are until yesterday.
[Slowly raising his eyebrows while watching him wobble, uhhhh. Just going to inch a little closer just in case the 13-year-old suddenly tilts over and eats shit. Bad.]
Your sense of balance? [Gasp. Shock. Alarm. That's a new one.] Are you going to be alright? Perhaps it'd be for the best if you avoid stairs altogether.
[............ WELL. EVERYTHING SURE IS HAPPENING! This is probably a while after the Asch fiasco, but Akechi will run into Isaac in (throws dart) the stables. He'll stop once he sees him, and then immediately approach.]
[ tbh that works because isaac is so fucking freaked out by everything that, once the hubbub died down a little, he had to escape for a while just to breathe.
he'll startle a little when he hears a voice, and turns. he's pale as a sheet and his eyes are red but he doesn't seem to be crying or anything. ]
Isaac frowns, though it's more a sad thing than an angry one. He just looks so defeated. ]
... I know. It's just ... to be honest, it really freaks me out that they were able to steal her right out from under our noses. She wasn't more than two feet from either me or Ash. Really makes it hit home that we're not safe anywhere in or around this mansion, huh...? [ he gives a quiet, hollow laugh. ] We can't do a damn thing to actually stop the murders. And Pumpkin called my power OP?
[It does, in fact, suck. Akechi's expression was already grim, but it only gets worse when Isaac brings Pumpkin up.]
... The sisters often say things that work for the benefit of the killers, don't they? [And isn't that nice? Isn't that lovely?] And yet they feel affronted when we rightfully point out how unjust this is.
... you don't trust them either, huh. Man, I was furious with them during the first trial...! Who do they think they are?!
[ a sigh ]
Like, that's what I've been saying! The whole way they act and everything they do just feels so rehearsed! There's no way this hasn't happened before, and they knew that and lied to our faces during the first few days!
[ this is before [REDACTED] convinced him to go easier on the girls, so he's still all fired up angry about them right now. ]
Those girls are as much our enemy as Master Blue himself, if you ask me.
[ Find Isaac in the garden, standing vigil over what looks like ... well, there might be something growing there! But it's only just begun, and there's nothing exciting to look at. Certainly nothing worth guarding...
and yet here he is.
But he'll blink and tilt his head when he spots Akechi. ]
[... Well, that dodge clearly wasn't as effective as he hoped. But whatever it is that he expected from this line of questioning? It... probably wasn't that. And he stares at him, surprised visible on his face before his expression softens.]
O'Connor-kun...
[Gently, voice laced with concern.]
I... appreciate you reaching out to me. But I'm sorry you have been made to feel that way. [...] ... This isn't something I wished we had in common.
[ this is the worst because Isaac looks really happy too? for a moment, but, yeah, it's there... his happiness and his relief. he'll rub the back of his neck. ]
Then call me Isaac, dude. You're too formal.
[ and you sound like an anime, as much as Isaac does genuinely try not to fanboy out every time he's called literally-anything-"kun". ]
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
week zero, tuesday morning.
Oh... O'Connor-kun, is it? Good morning.
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[ yeah he’s at the top of the stairs and was kind of staring down them with a weird mix of irritation and utter dread but Akechi’s snapped him out of it, made him look up. ]
You ... know my name already? Did you memorize the stuff in the ballroom?
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Of course. [Time to gently flex on a 13-year-old, ig.] As a detective, memorizing such information has become a second nature to me. I apologize if I caught you off guard.
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also akechi why are you like this. isaac just kinda stares at him. ]
A ... detective?
[ .... ]
Wait! I remember now. I read your thing!
[ TWO CAN PLAY THIS GAME
but also instead of continuing he actually kind of turns red and shuts up, looking away? what's up with that ]
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Hey, what the heckie. He takes a step closer, leaning forward like he's trying to get a good look at his face again.]
Yes...? Is something wrong?
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[ ............................................ ]
This is probably a talk for the bottom of the stairs, [ he'll say, with a sort of very rueful, faint humor. ]
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Yeah, whatever humor is there is just going to fly over his head. Goodbye. Still smiling, though he now looks an itty bitty confused.]
... Or we could step back into the hallway. [Since. Isaac is still at the top of the stairs.] Unless there's something urgent you must take care of downstairs? I don't want to keep you if that's the case.
no subject
also for some reason he hadn't considered that and just kinda
pauses. ]
... not really. Okay, good point.
[ It's with some small relief that he edges away from the stairs
.... very slowly ... while wobbling ....
until he can reach a wall and brace himself on it with a huge sigh of relief. ]
I've just kinda been dreading it all morning since I lost my sense of balance... [ softly, staring into the middle distance ] I never understood how terrifying stairs are until yesterday.
no subject
Your sense of balance? [Gasp. Shock. Alarm. That's a new one.] Are you going to be alright? Perhaps it'd be for the best if you avoid stairs altogether.
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[ isaac don't say that so casually ]
What about you? Seems like everyone's lost something.
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[Isaac you're killing him... Probably. He sighs.]
I've lost something as well, but there's no need to concern yourself on my account. It hasn't affected my performance as a detective.
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This is like the least deadly thing I've faced down before 8 AM.
[ ... okay??????
anyway ]
What?? I wasn't gonna doubt your detective skills or whatever. I was ... making conversation? You don't have to share if you don't want, it's fine.
week one, friday.
O'Connor-kun, are you unharmed?
[RIP TO YOUR ROOMIE...]
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he'll startle a little when he hears a voice, and turns. he's pale as a sheet and his eyes are red but he doesn't seem to be crying or anything. ]
... I'm fine. I mean--I'm not hurt. I, uh...
[ ... yeah, he has no idea what to say. ]
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Well, that's not good.
He stops where he is, just a couple of paces away from him, and lifts both of his hands with the palms facing Isaac.]
... My apologies, I didn't mean to startle you. [Genuinely.] Would you rather be alone right now?
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I dunno. First Nia, then Asch... at least Asch is still alive. [ said quietly. ] It's just a lot. I have no idea what I'm supposed to do.
Even with me and Ash both there... somehow, Nia still died! It's not fair...!
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["Asch is still alive." Boy, that's awful in retrospect.]
But I hope you aren't blaming yourself for her death. It's difficult to accept, but we are dealing with something that refuses to abide by any rules.
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Isaac frowns, though it's more a sad thing than an angry one. He just looks so defeated. ]
... I know. It's just ... to be honest, it really freaks me out that they were able to steal her right out from under our noses. She wasn't more than two feet from either me or Ash. Really makes it hit home that we're not safe anywhere in or around this mansion, huh...? [ he gives a quiet, hollow laugh. ] We can't do a damn thing to actually stop the murders. And Pumpkin called my power OP?
This sucks. [ blunt. ]
no subject
... The sisters often say things that work for the benefit of the killers, don't they? [And isn't that nice? Isn't that lovely?] And yet they feel affronted when we rightfully point out how unjust this is.
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[ a sigh ]
Like, that's what I've been saying! The whole way they act and everything they do just feels so rehearsed! There's no way this hasn't happened before, and they knew that and lied to our faces during the first few days!
[ this is before [REDACTED] convinced him to go easier on the girls, so he's still all fired up angry about them right now. ]
Those girls are as much our enemy as Master Blue himself, if you ask me.
[ isaac, vindictive? neeeeever. ]
WEEK TWO: TUESDAY MORNING
and yet here he is.
But he'll blink and tilt his head when he spots Akechi. ]
Hey. You busy?
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[Hi. Hello. What's up, Isaac? He was likely just walking through here, but since he's been addressed.]
Was there something you needed?
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[ ... but then he's quiet for a second, and briefly, he looks at the patch of dirt at his feet. ]
You know that quote, on your profile? Is ... that something you've actually said?
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He pauses, momentarily caught off guard — and then he recovers. The smile he offers him in return is pretty sheepish.]
... Right. [...] Master Blue certainly made sure to include everything that would paint us in an unflattering light, didn't he?
[That's not exactly an answer to Isaac's question, huh.]
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Yeah, I know. Mine's pretty bad.
[ since it literally has a lecture about how much he hates himself and is prone to violence!
that akechi kind of dodged his question doesn't actually seem to register with isaac, though. he just continues: ]
I guess I just ... wanted to tell you I get it. I know what it's like to feel like you don't belong anywhere.
no subject
O'Connor-kun...
[Gently, voice laced with concern.]
I... appreciate you reaching out to me. But I'm sorry you have been made to feel that way. [...] ... This isn't something I wished we had in common.
[Might as well.]
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scuffs a foot, looking away, but nodding ]
... yeah, me too. You don't have to tell me what your deal was or anything, I just wanted to ... I dunno, like ...
I'd be your friend. [ a rather definitive, almost defiant statement. isaac rubs his nose, lifting his gaze to meet Akechi's.
it's almost like a challenge, in a way. You're unwelcome? Bull. I'll MAKE a place where you're welcome.
It's what he wishes someone had done for him. ]
no subject
... I'd be your friend as well, you know. Although, we don't necessarily have to share similar backgrounds in order to strike up a friendship.
no subject
Then call me Isaac, dude. You're too formal.
[ and you sound like an anime, as much as Isaac does genuinely try not to fanboy out every time he's called literally-anything-"kun". ]
no subject
Very well. I will call you Isaac from now on.
[Awful.]