suitedreams: Rupert

[battling]

don't run me over (with a horse)

Comments

[agleam]

[he thinks about asking him whether this a good time for that, but actually, that's valid. he walks towards him instead.]

...You going to be alright?

[battling]

[ Let him have his alcohol. ]

Always will. You?

[agleam]

Yeah. But...

[he frowns.]

I don't know. I didn't expect it to be him. Not to say it would be fine if it had been someone else, but...

[battling]

Don't think anybody expected it to be you that week either, y'know.

[agleam]

[after a moment, he nods, though he takes a breath.]

Yeah, that's fair.

[battling]

I ain't happy about it either, y'know. Better to keep an open mind than rule people out on character alone.

[agleam]

...Yeah. I'm going to talk to him later, and he said he would explain, but even now - the way he seemed to calm down really abruptly after the verdict happened makes me think maybe something was influencing him somehow. Like the other group of killers back at the school.

[he frowns.]

If that's the case, then you're right that we won't be able to decide just based on somebody's personality. If they're being altered, somehow.

[battling]

If it's some sorta compulsion around here, that's gonna be fucking annoying to deal with. [ But it will have to be dealt with sooner or later. ]

[agleam]

It's better if it's that rather than being surrounded by people who would kill for selfish reasons, right?

[battling]

I'm used to that type, I can handle them. Like this... [ He's somewhat worried about the less prepared group. The younger ones especially.

He won't say that. ]

It's gonna weigh heavy on some.

[agleam]

Sure, but...

[he shrugs.]

I mean, I get it, but this kind of place - it weighs heavy on everyone, no matter what.

[battling]

Kinda amazing going through these games and not getting numb to 'em.

Does it feel worse when the choice ain't in your hands? [ He thinks so. The things he does he wants to have agency over. It's his life and his choices, but if something else took that from him... ]

[agleam]

[he has to pause to give that some honest thought.]

...I don't know. I think - I might've been happier if I could have said it wasn't really me who did those things, back at the school. But it wouldn't have changed the fact that people were dying.

[battling]

[People die all the time, but it shouldn't be like this.

He takes a slow sip of his drink.]

[agleam]

[after a moment:]

What about you?

[battling]

I want to be in control of myself. I was a bandit boss for a centuries. Death and killin' ain't unknown to me. Those were my choices. I knew why I was killing them, they knew why.

Prefer that to this.