Day 10 - NEW FEAR'S EVE

[pandatrash]

THREE! TWO! ONE! HAPPPPPY NEW FEAR!

This is the last raccoon holiday for a while, so if you'd like a vacation from this murder game before the KILLING NIGHT, check your tablets! We'll even let you leave the campus, so you'd better praise our generosity!

[There's a new app on the tablets that cannot be removed. It will only activate when you are alone in your room, but click the cute carrot icon and you'll be given a simple prompt: "TAKE A VACATION?" with yes/no prompts. If you click "no," nothing happens; the app simply closes, ready for you to click on it again. But if you choose "yes," you'll become a bit lightheaded, and the next thing you know, you'll be back home. But not just any home: The home in which your murder carrot(s) (the best one, the newest one, or maybe even both of them? It's up to player discretion) has already been made reality. You'll be there for a full three hours before you're brought back to Nope's Peak, holding the tablet as if you never left. After that, the app will only say, "You know what to do."]

By the way, if it ain't obvious, that killing night is tonight! If you're thinking about doing a murder, rest assured: We will NOT let the dead mess up a trial like that again!

[In other news, the science lab has been restocked, and the raccoons made a HUGE mess eating out of the kitchen trash, like worse than usual.]

((Game nav
Day 10 Recyclr
Vacation time!
Trust sheets - get those submitted by tomorrow evening!))

Comments

[purrtagonist]

[. . . SNORTS]

I never said you shouldn't try. I was just wondering how you planned on making it work.

[he'd be worried about getting some of the forensic evidence confused with the raccoons fucking with the crime scene, honestly. but he keeps that to himself]

[very_good_end]

Perhaps if I'm lucky I can discover where the real crime scene ended and the raccoons' manipulations began.

Blood stains that indicate a body was moved, unmasked with chemicals, for example...

Rather than annoy me with pointless contention, why don't you come over here and help? That is, if you have the guts to play around with potentially dangerous chemicals, Kurusu-san.

[purrtagonist]

It isn't pointless contention. I'm trying to get you to think critically, that's all.

[he pushes away from the door and strides across the room towards her, grabbing a pair of safety goggles as he goes]

I made top marks in my chemistry class.

[soooo, yeah. he ain't afraid]

[very_good_end]

Did you? But have you made top marks... as a guinea pig?

[grins]

Of course, to check and see if any concoction I've created reacts to blood, I first need a little blood.

[purrtagonist]

[hmmmm]

You'd have to ask Dr. Takemi, but I think she was pleased with my performance as one.

[what kind of people does he hang out with at home oh my god]

How much blood do you need?

[very_good_end]

Not so fast. Let's do this scientifically. Or at least, as scientific as possible under the circumstances.

[She cuts two strips of cloth and hands them to him.]

Here. I'll close my eyes, then you bleed on one of these, then wipe the blood off. Set them both in front of me without telling me which is which. ...If I can use the chemicals to detect which one has the blood, then I'll know I've got a working compound.

[pause]

...Don't be cute, though. Don't just act like you've bled on it and leave them both dry, or bleed on both of them. That's just false pretenses.

[purrtagonist]

[blinks at the strips of cloth, then shakes his head]

The blood will soak into the cloth and stain them, yeah? Shouldn't we use something a little easier to clean? Something that won't leave a visible residue of blood behind when I wipe it off.

[he can just bleed on the counter, he supposes]

[very_good_end]

Not if you only do the surface. Wash it off with water afterward if you see it leaves a visible stain.

[Still, he had a point.]

You could simply bleed on the table, but you'll likely do it only in front of you, and then I'll have a confirmation bias when I only test that area. --And I don't want to waste excess chemicals testing the entire table if I tell you to just bleed anywhere.

[purrtagonist]

[he debates this, an idea slowly formulating in his brain]

Does luminol work on glass? Because I could always bleed on one of two glass slides instead.

[very_good_end]

Hm. Presumptive, aren't you? That's hardly the only thing that detects blood.

[shrugs]

We may end up with a false positive, but if you're willing to try again if it fails, be my guest.

[purrtagonist]

I'm no detective.

[he only knows about luminol! also, he's totally rolling up the sleeve of one arm]

Might as well go with the cloth, since I only want to bleed once. [a beat] What do I get in return for going along with this?

[very_good_end]

What do you get? Isn't it obvious? You get the satisfaction of helping me, and I receive the benefit of your help. What more could either of us possibly want?

Are you planning to make an incision in your wrists, Kurusu-san? I might suggest something that won't flow so freely. It need only be traces.

[On the other hand, if he really wanted to...]

[purrtagonist]

[GIVES HER A LOOK]

On my hand. . . I just didn't want any to get on my sleeve.

[Erika, plz!]

And personally, I'd like something a little more than just satisfaction.

[very_good_end]

Oh? Are you looking for 'equivalent exchange'? Would Kurusu-san like it if I bled a little in return?

[purrtagonist]

I have no use for blood.

[not even fazed by her question]

But I'll take something of equal value. Not a body part, but a favor.

[very_good_end]

...Well, then. It would depend on this so-called 'favor' and what is, in fact, was.

What is it you're looking for, Kurusu-san?

[purrtagonist]

For now? An I.O.U. One favor, to be cashed in at my own convenience.

[as he speaks, he reaches for a lab knife. something sharp with which to cut the pad of his thumb when the time is right]

I won't ask you to do anything that compromises your. . . morals, though.

[very_good_end]

[tilts her head]

Hm. I must admit, I'm intrigued. Very well. I accept.

However, if that favor in any way asks me to compromise my rights as the detective, I will refuse, categorically. Of course, that means overlooking any clues, halting my pursuit of interrogation or questioning of anyone, or otherwise altering my personality or individual style. --And it's up to me to decide what that means.

...Do we have an agreement?

[purrtagonist]

[a nod, because that's. . . basically what he meant when he said he wouldn't compromise her morals]

We do.

Turn around and close your eyes.

[very_good_end]

[Obediently does so.]

[purrtagonist]

[as promised! Akira nicks his thumb with the lab knife, wincing slightly as he does so, and presses the pad against one of the pieces of cloth, just long enough to get about a small dot of blood on it. when he pulls back, he grabs both pieces of cloth and runs them under the water in the sink, so the spot of blood is washed away and both of them are damp]

[and when finished, he places both pieces of cloth back on the table]

All right. You're up.

[. . . and then he sticks his cut thumb into his mouth, 'cause ow]

[very_good_end]

[Turns around and opens her eyes, seeing where he cut himself and shaking her head.]

You would have been much better off puncturing a fleshy part of your arm or shoulder, Kurusu-san. With a wound in your thumb, it's going to annoy you terribly whenever you manipulate anything.

[Still, waste not want not. She takes both cloths, and one of her test-tubes with chemicals.]

Well, then... let's see what happens.

[She takes one of the many q-tips, swabs it with chemical, applies it to one of the cloths, then another q-tip with another chemical, then another q-tip with what she labels 'hydrogen peroxide' earlier (so three q-tips total)... and no visible change.]

Hm.

[She repeats it with the other one and this time the final q-tip immediately turns pink.]

A-ha. Is this the one with the blood, Kurusu-san?

[purrtagonist]

I think I'll live.

[he responds dryly. and he stays quiet as she does her investigation, all the way up until--]

Oooh, nice job. Your concoction worked pretty well.

[a little impressed, despite himself]

[very_good_end]

Of course it did.

[She wastes no time capping the solutions.]

Luminol isn't a bad idea, but it requires making the room dark and the solution needs a spray bottle and will degrade quickly exposed to air. This is called the "Kastle–Meyer test," and it predates luminol by a few decades. You touch a sample of what you're testing with one solution, add hydrogen-peroxide, and if the swab turns pink immediately, it indicates the likely presence of blood. ...Well, I also added ethanol to make it a little more stable, but that can be omitted.

It's not perfect. The swab will turn pink by its own even without the presence of blood. It's only if blood is present that it will immediately turn pink.

[Turns over the other swap she did on the no-blood-stained cloth, which has turned pink by now.]

False positives are also possible... and it won't differentiate between human and animal blood. It's probably asking too much to do an entire crime scene with this... but it should at least help determine if any of the weapons here have tasted human blood.

There now, don't you come out ahead, Kurusu-san? You learned something new, and you have a 'favor' of me.

[purrtagonist]

[. . . he hates to admit that she's right, but like hell he's about to feed that ego. so he goes for the next best thing]

I know what your favor to me can be.