Forum Thread

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Jace Mawer (Nora)

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"Someday..." Nora hummed deep in her throat, sighing and snuggling into the wood of the table. "Yeah, someday. That works."

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It is just another day, trying to get some food, Kat thought. It has been a month since Kat has been kicked out of the house.

The fact that she was living on the street wouldn't have bothered her that much, if it wasn't for the cold night and the extreme boredom. It was always the same day. Trying to get some food, some water and a nice place to rest. Sometimes succeeding in these, sometimes not.

The thought of stealing the food often crossed her mind, but she didn't want to do that. She didn't know why she didn't want to do it, but the thought of stealing start crossing her mind more often, the longer she was outside. She just wanted a full meal, it did not have to be the type of meal she was used to, as long as it was edible.

But doing this didn't solve the biggest problem she had, which was her extreme boredom. Begging everyday, while only sometimes even getting something was not something for her.

Who is that? She thought, while heard someone... Unusual talking about a breakfast place. They didn't look like other people she has seen and she found that interesting.

And thus, she decided to follow them, not too obvious, but you couldn't say it was good either.

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คภ๔гคєɭ ςครร๏ฬคгץ

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קг๏Ŧเɭєг

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Andry seized the opportunity to redirect the conversation, her dry tone cutting through the fleeting warmth that had briefly colored their interaction. "Someday," she echoed, her voice regaining its customary detachment. She was done with pleasantries for the time being.

Her gaze shifted to Nora, who was now nestled against the table as if it were a comforting companion. "Nice to see you've found a friend in the furniture. Cuddling with the tables now, are we?" Andry remarked, the sarcasm returning to her tone. "That must be veeery comfortable. A wooden embrace – the new standard in emotional furniture relationships. I mean, who knew tables could be such 'supportive' friends?" She rolled her eyes, crossing her arms dismissively.

"And since you're clearly not getting the hint, let me make it abundantly clear. It's your turn, Detective. Since we're all baring our souls today, how about a glimpse into the enigma that is Buraddo Jimu?" The challenge was veiled in a layer of casual banter, but Andry's analytical mind was already calculating the potential reactions and outcomes of her query. It was her patented formula. Be acerbic and cruel. Immediately follow it up with something sarcastic or vaguely humorous to backtrack. Then, because a single joke usually broadcasted to the world that she was in a sunshiny mood, ask a serious question to disarm them. Bonus point for maximum dramatization.

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Jace Mawer (Nora)

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"Oh? Buraddo?" Nora opened her eyes. "Now that's reeall interesting."

Grinning, she sat back up and recrossed her legs, turning to face said Head Detective. I gotta admit, I'm curious. They don't have much in the way of social media.

None of the Head Detectives did, really. All of them were kinda weird and anti-social. She doubted old Narcisse even knew what social media was. He probably got his news on the stone tablet every morning.

Nora laughed to herself, running her fingertips over a knot in the wood. Really... they're all so mysterious.

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When Andrael asks her "question", Stella briefly stops toying with her piece of candy. Mh, the taste... started sweet, then went sour fast, then goes back to sweet halfway. "So... artificial.", she thought, "Well, everyone's got their own taste I guess.".

She does not add anything to the conversation though, simply swallowing the candy after a while and giving Buraddo a bit of a soft smile, trying to ease the tension here a little. Her eyes occasionally dart to the other two but she was all ears for the more taciturn detective, curious about their response. Would they fall for Andrael's bait?

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Buraddo

"Well... I've always been... myself, I guess. How I am now, I mean. I wanted to be a lawyer for a while but that field's wiped out, so I settled for close enough. I had some beef with one of our analysts a while back, before we even worked here. That's about the most you'd have need to know."

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Jace Mawer (Nora)

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"Boooooringggg," Nora moaned. She dropped down on the table. "You got me all worked up for nothing, Bura. How could you do that to your trusted colleague?"

She shook her head. "We can't pass the next hour like this. We gotta find something to do. Something interesting." She looked up with narrowed eyes. "The first person to suggest cards dies. I refuse to touch old people stuff. Absolutely disgusting."

But...

"But anything else is on the table." She gave the table a cheerful thump with her hand. "Literally! Unless it's Eye-Spy, then it's literally figurative."

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A short comment from Stella. "Huh. Short and sweet. Though a human as a lawyer would be a welcome throwback. All automated... it'd be nice to have a lawyer with a heart."

When Nora complains though, she gets a raised eyebrow from the aged detective. Well, doesn't like old people stuff? Doesn't seem like it when she ate the discontinued (but in no way hazardous) candy of her. She normally does not get worked up by things like that but it is still a rude interlude nonetheless! So, she just makes a little "aha" and reaches into her pocket, taking another piece of candy and handing it to Buraddo. "For your troubles."

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Niwa Atsushi

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They were being followed. Niwa wasn't sure how obvious it was to his colleagues, because it was kinda a him-thing... but the person was clearly coming after them. Besides, even if it wasn't obvious, he could pretend it was because these were interns so- oh my gosh too much logic time to pull to a stop.

"Hold on," he whispered. "Someone's following us. Should we call out to them, or do we want to lay a trap?"

Probably a bad idea to tell a teenager to call out to a potentially dangerous and murderous criminal, but... hey, who ever said I make good choices?

And anyway, the person was definitely a kid. The way they moved reminded him of a kicked puppy- skittish and curious, but there was nothing overtly threatening. They kept away from the dark alleys too. More likely than not, they were some homeless teenager following a group of humans, praying their acclaimed empathy might provide a free meal

So he should definitely feed them. He was good, he was empathetic, so this was his calling right here.

Licking his dry lips, Niwa called out, "Hey, um- kid. Do you want to come with us? We're going to a breakfast place... and we've got money..." He trailed off. Wow. Shouting 'we've got money' into a deserted street on the bad side of town. I'm really bad at this, aren't I?

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Jace Mawer (Nora)

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"What about my troubles for listening to that dumb stuff?" Nora pouted. "Come on, even you gotta admit this might be the most boring trip of all time. So far we've talked about college and skipping out on drinking nights. We need to liven this up before the gods decide to do some train-murder thingy."

She wrinkled her nose. "Like seriously. Four detectives in a single room on a train going a hundred-something kilometres an hour? We're asking for the conductor to get murdered at this point. You know the trope guys, don't tempt fate."

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"Peace is a good thing, not everything has to be an action-thriller. We will get our fair share of action when we arrive at the scene, Nora. For now, let's enjoy the calm of the storm." Stella replies, playing with a sweet of hers by doing that little trick where she lets it pass through her fingers. Though she kept her hand just out of Nora's reach, so she'd need to lean over the table to snatch it.

"Besides, you would not like the treat. It's old people's stuff."

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Jace Mawer (Nora)

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Nora stared at Stella for a hot minute, then felt a grin spread over her face. "Wow. Ice cold. Well done, SDC. You pass the cool old person test."

Laughing a bit to herself, Nora leaned back in her chair. "In all seriousness though, guys... I am kinda worried. It's not like us to not attract trouble, you know? And a train's kinda bad for that. It's not like we can jump out the window if things go south. I'm no James Bond, and even if I was, I couldn't take the road rash."

It was funny, but the idea was not. Nora didn't like being contained. And here she felt trapped, controlled- if anything happened, she could easily be thrown onto the train tracks.

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"Thanks." Stella sighs and puts the candy back. Nora still hadn't earned it. "Look, it's best if you don't invite trouble like that. Let us just enjoy this. I know we're colleagues and all this bonding isn't for everyone but disaster does not follow us like some malicious entity. But, you're an energetic one... don't you have some phone or anything so you can distract yourself that way?"

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Jace Mawer (Nora)

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"Aha, maybe." Nora brushed her hair to the side awkwardly and twisted around to survey the corridor. "Very true, but there's nothing wrong with keeping an eye out, huh?"

She hated how condescending Stella was. "Energetic one" and "distract yourself"- it was the same tone someone might use when describing an overenthusiastic toddler. They couldn't take it- it made their skin itch.

For all her talk about the importance of being underestimated, she found that it was hard to deal with when talking to Stella. For some reason, the old lady just had a way of getting on her nerves.

Or something. Haha, what did Nora know?

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"Not at all." Stella says, she could not argue there. After all, she keeps looking around and picking up trivia and small details whenever possible. She was more mellow but no hypocrite yet. "I think you learned your lesson." She snaps her fingers and, in a high arc, a candy falls down right in front of Nora.

Her smile returned, even showing her teeth now a little. W... Was that just a little act as a revenge for Nora calling her old? Or did she just decide to be mischievious for once. Who knows?

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Andreja Buivis

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"Your hat, huh?" Andreja pondered for a second. "How about... no? I really think it fits me better. Don't you think I look dashing in this?"

She lifted it just slightly off her head and tipped it. "M'lady." Replacing it, she shot Walty a grin. "I look twice the Detective you are... oh wait! I am! Haha, stupid intern."

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Adrik Volkov

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"Buckaroonies?" Adrik echoed. "I'm not sure I've heard of that currency. Is bucks shorthand for it?" He frowned to himself. "It must be foreign. Is that what the Chinese Federation uses?"

That wasn't quite right. The word had a Western feel to it. Possibly buckaroonies belonged to- wait hold up. Was Aleks messing with him?

Adrik squinted hard. "Did you just make that up?"

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Jace Mawer (Nora)

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Hmm, candy. The food of the gods. Nora caught it and popped it into her mouth, mmming her content.

Honestly, it reminded her of the old days, back when she was a kid and this was what she'd lived for. Back when she hadn't been a "she", nor Nora, or even Jace. Back when she'd thought everyone would love her no matter what.

Fool's gold. You couldn't accept anything that was too good. You'd end up burned.

As subtly as she could manage, she brought up a tissue to her mouth and coughed, then moved the tissue and candy into her pocket. The sickly sweet taste danced on her tongue and made her dizzy- she wanted more, but tamped down the urge.

Indulgence was dangerous. You could never do too little.

"Anyway," she said cheerfully, clicking her tongue. "I volunteer Monopoly! It's an old game, so you know SDC will like it, and it's also evil meaning... yeah! Everyone else too!"

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"Haven't seen this many dollary-doos since I left the good ol' Volkov estate!"

Aleksnadr shifted his gaze to Adrik, smirking.

"make it up? Of course not! Would I, your bestest and most beloved cousin of all, Aleksnadr Konstantin, Make that up, dearest little cousin?"

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"F-followed?!"

Iliya's voice squeaked ever so slightly, as he nervously fiddled with the straps of his camera.

"Oh, shock, are we in danger? Trouble?"

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♟️Laurence Walton's POV📖

"Your hat, huh? How about... no? I really think it fits me better. Don't you think I look dashing in this?"

Laurence stared in disbelief and indignation, eye twitching. "How about... "Yes, Walton, I am going to give you your hat back. My sincerest apologies for my rude and obnoxious behavior earlier."' He sighed in frustration. "It looks... Tolerable on you. Pleasant. Decent. May I please have my hat back now?"

Oh, good grief. She clearly had no interest in being civil. He would take it by force if he had to. But he couldn't risk hurting her again.

"M'lady." He facepalmed. "How ironic," he murmured. She wasn't even pretending to be civil, and then... Wow, here she was. PRETENDING to be civil.

"I look twice the Detective you are... oh wait! I am! Haha, stupid intern."

Everything about this girl was infuriating. He was half-convinced she wasn't even human. Maybe she was some sort of husk for a bunch of parasites to wriggle their way in, to grow, to nurture themselves, and to infect... He shuddered. He wasn't sure why anything of that nature would come to mind.

Still... He had to keep his cool. He wasn't going to lose any hope of a promising future. Not to mention, he wasn't about to hurt her, behaving so animalistically just because she was irritating. Don't be intimidated, Walton. Just remember you're going to surpass her one day.

He decided to completely ignore her remark. "Fine, then. Let's just get down to business. What are the details regarding the case we have been put on?"

I'll just take my hat back from her later when she's not looking. By then, she should let her guard down, or be bored with her ridiculous charade.

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"Hey, um- kid. Do you want to come with us? We're going to a breakfast place... and we've got money..."

Kat was schocked by this. She didn't expect one of them to find her when following them. Saying you have money is kinda odd though... But the chance to have a good meal after all this time was a opportunity she couldn't pass.

"Uhm, if I can, I would love to join you two to go to that breakfast place", Kat said. Hoping they weren't making a joke. "And what are those clothes if I may ask?"

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Niwa Atsushi

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The kid approached... and he was right! It was a kid. A teen girl. Black hair, quiet, hopeful brown eyes, general scraggliness from sleeping rough a couple times. His assessment had been spot on.

A smile was already creeping up his face. This is my chance! I get to prove myself to her. I'm not a failure, I'm not a mistake, I-

"Clothes?" Niwa blinked. "Uh..."

Do I look weird? Who's this girl to call me weird? She looks like a- No, don't be mean. Don't be stupid. You have a detectivey aesthetic. That's all she's asking about. You're fine.

"We're detectives, actually!" He beamed. "For the Clockwork Detective Agency! I'm leading a break-in case right now, and these guys are helping me with it; they're studying under us right now, so I'm bringing them out on their first investigation and- I'm... going to be leading it?" Had he said that already. "We're a humans-only business. So we're definitely up to spending a few funds on another human!"

It occurred to Niwa that he might be rambling. I don't need to prove myself to a teenager. What am I doing?

Honestly.

"So... breakfast place, then."

Being very careful not to make eye contact, he turned around and started up the street again. Cafes everywhere, but none of them seemed very friendly. Most seemed to be in some state of forclosure, and the one appeared to be a very blatant cover for the mafia. Probably not a good place to take a couple teenagers. But... just out of the corner of his eye, he spotted a cat cafe.

It was beautiful. Simplistic, shapely, it looked like a cottage almost. The big sign out front had a cat on it and a "Warm Whiskers! :)" scrawled on it in admittedly beautiful calligraphy.

"You like cats?" he asked the little Volkov, shooting a grin at him. "I think we've found the spot. We can set up camp amidst the cats and coffee. It'll be lovely."

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Adrik Volkov

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"Yes you would," Adrik deadpanned. Rolling his eyes, he pushed past his idiot cousin, taking the steps double at a time. "Honestly, you haven't matured one bit since you left home."

He tripped over the last step and swore, barely catching himself against the wall. It kind of hurt, he thought as he regained his balance and continued storming down the hall. Aleks leaving, and still being like this; like nothing had happened at all. It made something deep inside him ache.

That part of him was weak and stupid. Hannah would kick Aleks in the shin for it. It was only him who had to make this stuff complicated and- well, that was frustrating. Why couldn't he just hate who he was supposed to hate?

Aleks betrayed me. I don't owe him anything. Except a couple bruises up his leg, I guess.

Just as the door closed behind them, the alarm went off and Adrik jumped.

"Lockdown! Lockdown! Lockdown! Intruder on premises! Report immediately to your respective office!"

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"You know, there's no need to treat me like a senior, Nora. I'm only 47." Stella replies, sighing. At this point, it almost feels intentional. "Also if you're going to volunteer games with "subtle* messages, why not go for Risk entirely?" She chuckles, looking around. Where would Nora even get a board game... unless she has one with her at all times.

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