CHAPTER SEVEN ; TRIAL

[themodsgrimm]

The Story Continues... CHAPTER 7 - WEEK 711 Narrators Remain ; Wakey wakey, naughty murder children. It's a lovely Saturday, after all. Breakfast is served piping hot at its usual time and all of the evidence has been removed from the scenes of yesterday. No matter how you choose to spent your morning though, the clock will begin to chime the moment both hands reach the large, ornate twelve. Before your eyes materializes a door...but not just any door. Unlike the door leading to the festival, this door sits primly and properly right in front of the foyer. Whether you exit the castle on your own or you feel a friendly, invisible push, you begin to walk under an arc of wisterias. Behind you, the clock continues to chime with every step you take. By the time the time the clock strikes twelve, you've entered a beautiful garden. In front of you is a long table, 19 seats on each side. Around the garden are several glass cases containing evidence collected yesterday. As noon intensifies on the sun-shaped clock, you'll find Dragon at the head of the table, a glass-covered rose near her right hand. Tick tock, Narrators. You have nine hours to deliberate. The garden is strangely silent and there are no snacks today...it seems as though you'll be left to your own devices. Welcome to your trial post! Please see here for the OOC summary of events from yesterday's investigation. In addition, please be sure to vote! Please see the voting page on how to vote, as we will have two special things to vote for. Voting will close at 9pm EST/6pm PST or sooner if the game ICly elects so. If you have any questions, please ask on our Discord server or ping us on plurk. Please direct pings for the NPC to Dana (decals), as she will be taking point for today's NPC, and the moderator team will be on deck for all other questions. full navigation. locations taken (statuses) stories (profiles) info & faq wishing well private conversations

Comments

[unromanceable]

[ a few minutes later, with a great big splash, monika resurfaces, laughing???

hey breathing underwater feels weird did you know

and triumphantly in a hand she is holding up, like a trophy,

a fucking ax.

She'll swim over to hand it to Eichi, grinning. ]

I think this will help!

[


how's frogs going guys ]

[fragileprophet]

Okay!

[He’s just gonna stick to this cute green frog. They’re friends now. After absolutely getting himself covered in mud and water he’s cradling one frog carefully and petting it’s slimy head. This is the Fon Master’s true calling. He is now the Frog Master. He’s out of breath but this is fine.]

I got one! We should probably hold onto them until we’re sure we don’t need them...have you caught one, Rebecca?

[finethanks]

Wow, Monika-chan!

[Reaching, he takes it firmly in his own hand, and then lifts it up like it weighs nothing.]

It's a real axe! This will help me considerably. ♪ Fufu, you're quite talented, finding things under such dirty water... Please be careful and try again. I'll be nearby as I cut trees down, okay?

[Cough cough! But he'll move over to do just that... except when he's by himself he stares at the tree and ponders.]

Hmm, which way does a tree fall if I cut at it from this direction...? I suppose I'll find out. ♪ [And then he's just... chopping away.]

[disclosures]

[Hold on, she's been running through this very gross swamp to catch this very brown little frog.

But at least she has it and is holding it in a loose fist so it doesn't go hopping out away from her.]

One. We just need... what, two more? Man, I really wish we had a cage or something for these guys.

[unromanceable]

[ Treading water, Monika will laugh again, looking sincerely so happy? god she's missed him, ]

You know, to be honest, I'm just glad I finally get to use my gift! [ and, calling out as she looks over at Rebecca and Ion: ] You two are doing great, keep going!

[ aaaanyway farewell she's diving back down again ]

[fragileprophet]

It would come in handy—it’ll be hard to catch another one-handed.

[He pauses, thinking.]

If you don’t mind holding this one, you can make sure they don’t run away and I’ll catch the final two myself?

[finethanks]

[He's missed you too, Monika!! Ah, but—]

Timber~! ♪

[A large tree is falling down. Watch out for that! Maybe some spare frogs will run out from the commotion.]

[disclosures]

That works for me.

[She'll hold her other hand out for Ion to give her his frog. This is her life now, frog collecting.

... Is this better or worse than being dead?

Well at least she hasn't been poisoned yet.]

[unromanceable]

[ Once again Monika will pop out of the water, but this time she seems to be struggling? She struggles closer to land, trying to call out-- ]

E-Eichi-kun!

[ She just barely manages to lift one hand above water, clutching the grimy strands of a net. It seems to be stuck! ]

[fragileprophet]

[Monika is struggling. Ion just has time to hand over his frog to Rebecca before Eichi fells the tree. And then a frog comes leaping out and smacks him in the face. He catches it, but not before totally beefing it. What a loser.]

Ah...there’s three...

[finethanks]

[I love Ion so much. Good catch.

Eichi is over here with Monika, though, and he's close enough that it just takes him jogging a couple steps to reach the edge of the water. He drops the axe and crouches, ignoring the way his chest protests even that to reach out and grab onto the net.

Ahh, he really can't swim, so he's trying not to fall in, but this net is caught in a strange way.]

Should I yank it, or would it tear? Does it count if it's torn? [Another reach forward, a careful lean, and he has more of the net.]

[disclosures]

[... At least they are getting things done.

She'll take the frog off of Ion's hands and now she's just standing here with three frogs in her hands.

Where did her life go wrong...?]

One more and we'll be done with this one.

[unromanceable]

That's perfect! Tug on it gently, okay? [ She's breathing a little easier now that she's not half-drowning trying to haul this thing up. ] I'll dive back down and get it loose now!

[ she's gone in a flash, disappearing beneath the water and algae.

slowly, the net will come free...! ]

[fragileprophet]

[Ion, dazed, has to take a couple of minutes, but on shaky legs he finally gets back up and seeks out The Final Frog. Hopefully he and Monika will finish up their tasks at close to the same time here—eventually, he comes wheezing his way back to Rebecca with frog the fourth.]

[finethanks]

Please be careful, won't you? I thought my heart would stop, hearing you call like that...

[But he'll do as instructed, slowly tugging at the net as it comes more and more loose. All while continuing to try and peer through the water, to be sure Monika is coming back up.]

[disclosures]

[She's holding one frog, two frogs, three frogs.

She hopes they get the key once they have four of them. They're kind of gross and slimy.

There's Ion with the fourth one! That just ribbits before spitting out a key.]

Looks like we're done with the frogs.

[unromanceable]

[ ah, here she is, bobbing up once the net is free. ]

There! [ WHOOF. ] Take it, I need to go back for one more thing! ... don't worry about me, okay? [ a smile, and once again she disappears, trying to work quickly ]

[fragileprophet]

[With Uno Key acquired they’re free to drop the frogs...but Ion definitely looks a bit sad to see them go.]

What next? Eichi, is there any way I can help?

[finethanks]

[He stares after Monika quietly, only snapping out of it once Ion speaks.]

Ah, if you don't mind making sure that Monika-chan resurfaces just fine, that would be a great help, Ion-kun.

If she's able to return with a third item... [He pauses to cough, even as he drags the net away and picks up his axe again.] Then help her out and see where I might be able to carry these trees to form a bridge.

[If he has to cut them more, he will, but for now, he moves near the first, takes a deep breath, and swings some more.

Actually, with his super strength, and with all of them behind him and not in potential danger of tree death, this is going pretty fast.]

[disclosures]

[ At long last she's allowed to let the frogs go! Which she does gladly, wiping the slime against her pants. ]

Then we're almost done here, right?

[unromanceable]

[ Give her a few moments, and...

she appears...

with...



an egg beater!!!!

Crawling out of the swamp, looking honestly pretty disgusting as water sloshes off her: ]

I-It was all I could find!

[fragileprophet]

[Ion’s there to help Monika out of the water, and with her final find they have another key! He smiles encouragingly at her.]

It’s perfect! Thank you so much for doing all of this.

[finethanks]

[You know, it's so funny, knocking these trees down takes almost no effort at all... Lifting them over his shoulder three at a time, entire trees, also is just fine. But when you're in a body like Eichi's, even things that take almost no effort end up difficult.

Just the motion is exhausting, but he's hanging in there!! Anyway, look how cool he looks with three TREES over his shoulder.]

Hello, Monika-chan! Ion-kun, Rebecca-chan! Where should I put these?

[disclosures]

... Wow.

Okay um... Just put them across the swap, I guess?

[unromanceable]

[ holy fuck there are STARS in her eyes as she watches eichi

s-so cool...

anyway

hopping forward! even if every movement gets disgusting swamp slime everywhere! ]

Yeah, Rebecca's right! If we lay them down over there, we should be able to cross just fine!

[ she'll point and do her best to try and show eichi what she's thinking, without touching him, because gross ]