sevenhorrors | kai-un dorm

[ Is he really in a position to speak for his entire team? Probably not, he only just met them, doesn't even know their real names, but since he's been asked: ]

Oh, we're holding up well enough. All of us were injured to some degree, aside from one - but we're a resilient bunch. And how about yours?

[ He's got to give information as good as he gets to get far with Aventurine. ]

[For a moment, Holmes allows his gaze to rove over his host. It's a habit of his, to pick up details that they might not tell him about, though not always a habit to bring them up immediately. Instead, he follows the line of conversation with relative ease.]

We are all exhausted. [Is Holmes not, though?? For how he's still out and about.] But we are alive, and doing well enough because of that. But... you had one of yours escape injury somehow?

[ If Aventurine feels the pressure of being scrutinized, he doesn't show it. If anything, it's a little familiar. ]

That's right. She disappeared from our classroom right about the time that the dolls showed up, yet she was just sitting on the bleachers in the gymnasium when we woke up there. She claims she doesn't remember a thing. Missed out on all the fun, just like that.

Really? Now that is odd. I've not heard of that happening until now.

[Huh!]

...I fear the rules of this place are going to be hard to untangle.

"Rules" may even be putting it in generous terms, aside from the one we received first and foremost.

[ No true names, and all. ]

Yes. Tell me, what do you make of that one? It's clear our true names are worth plenty, but for what reason? Is it like the old stories of the fae?

[as some of his classmates seem to believe]

[ He could ask why Mister Adair is so eager to hear the opinion of a man he just met, but he sounds sincere in his asking, so Aventurine will humor him. ]

Well, names tell stories. Where we came from, who gave them to us, if we use a pseudonym rather than a given name. And information is power, my friend! Even down to the most minute detail, such stories can be put to work. Even if there's nothing supernatural about it, it's always best to err on the side of caution.

[ Would he have used a fake moniker even if they didn't have their rule? Who can say. ]

[Ah, interesting. Mr Garnet has given the most expounding answer regarding this question thus far, which either is notable or means nothing at all.

But it does mean he wishes to take this idea a bit further down the winding path of conversation with him.]

Hm. Let's assume these names do hold supernatural power, as it would align with the rest of our experiences so far. And now, put yourself in the mind of a powerful, vengeful entity that has somehow just learned the names of your victims. What would you do to them? What is the next step?

[ That's true of every word that comes from Aventurine's mouth: either notable or meaning nothing at all. The gamble is figuring out which is which! ]

Mister Adair, I'm surprised at you! Asking a relative stranger to put himself in the mindset of the very entities that may be responsible for bringing him here. Why, I couldn't think of using something so underhanded as power over a name to exact my vengeance. Besides...

[ His voice colors just a bit darker. ]

There's no satisfaction to be found in means that put others in chains. [ Metaphorical, or otherwise. ]

[Oh, that last bit. He wonders if there's more meaning to it than one might assume at first.]

Hum! A stranger's opinion is no less valuable than a friend's in this instance. [Besides, you're all strangers to him.] Awful as it might be to cast your thoughts in such malicious light, I have found that it helps to try to put yourself in the shoes of the perpetrator; and answers may spring forth with just a bit of creative-thinking.

Of course, I've never dealt with ghosts before now, so perhaps even that strategy is flawed.

[ He's perhaps spent a little too much time putting himself in the shoes of the perpetrator, and more or less arrived at the conclusion that Mister Adair has. Maybe in time, more of their captors' motives will reveal themselves, but he hasn't had much dealing with ghosts himself. ]

There's creativity, and then there's making impossible leaps of logic. I think we need a little of both to understand why we're here. I do wonder, though...will knowing why we're here really make us feel any better about our circumstances?

[ He's curious, more than anything. He'd still like to know, and he gets the impression this fellow would, too. ]

[Leaps of logic… Normally, maybe, he’d be offended by that. But as it stands, he cannot argue the point. It is all nothing but “leaps”, in the hopes that he might at least get others brainstorming.]

It is not about making us feel better. It is about learning more about our situation, and therefore, how to be free of it completely. I don’t know about you, but I’d much rather be home right now.

Given what we've been through so far, do you believe knowing why our captors brought us here will help us get home?

[ This, perhaps more than anything else, will tell him what he wants to know about this peculiar man. ]

[Oh, without hesitation:]

Yes, of course. There is a reason why motive is such a critical pillar in understanding the nature of any crime or wrongdoing. Often, it helps unravel the rest of it.

[ Hah. Good man. ]

Indeed. I couldn't have said it better myself...you seem familiar with breaking things down in such terms.

[A quirking grin.] I'm a man who likes to read the morning paper every day, all for the sake of being caught up to date on the more sensational aspects of London life. That is: the criminal element.

It's a hobbyist's interest, true- [he is not telling people he is a detective for now; Watson has made him too well-known, and he cannot risk it, even amid people from... very far away places.] -but it changes one's perspective on such dour mysteries.

[ So, he's the nosy sort, who likes to know who's who and what the latest drama is — not unlike Aventurine himself, even if he isn't one to gather information just for the sake of a hobby. He's always looking for ways to make it useful for him...so what will he do know that he knows this about Mister Adair? ]

I'd daresay we're almost something like kindred spirits. I can't help but want to know what's going on and get to the bottom of whatever's right under my nose. Usually those skills are put to use negotiating business deals in my employer's favor, but who knew they might come in handy for getting to the bottom of the real mystery we've found ourselves in now?

[ As though he didn't very recently also investigate a murder and the nature of dreams. Those were, of course, related to a business deal. ]

[A kindred spirit, is it? He will happily wortk with of any of those who feel the same way, especially when faced with their new circumstances, in which Holmes is already starting to believe is too big in scope for just one man to tackle. He hums with satisfaction.]

I see! In that case, between the two of us, maybe we'll make for one proper detective. Ha!

[Clearly he finds something amusing about that, but in his usual fashion, he just continues on.]

You say you're skilled in negotiation for the sake of your employer, but might I inquire as to what that actually means? Your hands suggest that you do more than just dally in tense conversation.

[He is doing his annoying detective thing now; noting the calluses on Mr Garnet's hands, and using it as a jumping off point to push the conversation further.]

[ His hands? Aventurine glances down at his own slender fingers, folded together politely, yet for all his poise, his palms are still rough with callouses, from hard work time couldn't wear away.

Well, his companion is putting his money where his mouth is, so to speak. His expression sharpens with interest. ]

My, my, you are observant. I had to put in quite a bit of hard labor to get where I am today, but these hands do little for me aside from shake upon established deals these days. It's not terribly exciting: I'm a merchant, and I go after promising investments that Director Diamond finds worthwhile.

[ The name drop is deliberate, too. Yes, the gemstone name motif is a whole thing. ]

[Director Diamond. Yes, the gem motif is evident.

His lips quirk a bit at the recognition of his rather nosy and observant nature, but he says nothing on the matter. Instead-]

Promising investments? Land? Estates?

A little of column A, a little of column B, and C, D, and so on. The corporation I work for strives towards total peace across the cosmos, so as you might expect, they have their fingers in a lot of pies.

[ He sounds so convincing that this is a cause he believes in, too. ]

[He does, and Holmes has no reason to doubt otherwise at the moment. The very concept is an interesting one to him, at least.]

Striving for peace, and yet they are a corporation? So they are straddling the line between business and politics. [Across the cosmos, at that?]

Sounds like messy business, Mr Garnet.

[ Oh, peace has little to do with it in Aventurine's eyes, but he doesn't say as much — his expression doesn't even flicker. He'll need to be particularly careful to not let his guard down around this man, to not let his guise slip. It reminds him of dealing with the good Doctor, in a way. ]

Oh, to say the least. As you might imagine, there's red tape and bureaucracy for days — but that's none of my business, really. I just enjoy the work.

[ Well. On occasion, anyway. ]

And what about yourself, Mister Adair? What do you do for work?

[ He better not tell him he's a professor. ]

[PLEASE no that's the other guy in his canon (dead)]

You've more patience than I. [For red tape, he means. But he waves the notion away in the next moment with his hand.]

Myself? I fear that my work is not nearly as exciting. I'm a bookseller in London.

[This is a lie that, for now, he will stick to like glue. If their names are really so precious and dangerous to give away, his blasted renown will only work against him — even if he suspects he needn't worry when it comes to those hailing from far, far away.

Still. Better safe than sorry.]

[ Fortunately for Holmes, this lines up well enough with Aventurine's estimation of him so far that it doesn't raise a red flag. No wonder he has such an eccentric hobby, if he spends his days in the company of books. ]

Oh, is that so? I'm afraid I don't have much time for reading these days, so I'm a bit envious, really. Well — I guess now I do have the time, but I no longer have access to every book in the cosmos. Regardless, maybe you have some recommendations for me?

[ He doesn't know about the library yet... ]

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