-

He waits for everyone to get situated before he bothers Zackary, but it's not quite clear whether that's an intentional choice or not. "Hello," he says. That's all. @arte | z.w. (long. THREAD BREAK)

He looks up from where he was seated, apparently taking more notes in the notepad. His shirt is drying somewhere, leaving him in an undershirt and his slacks. There’s a chain around his neck, tucked behind the hem of the undershirt. “Hello.” @li 🚭 five (kazik)

"Hello." Her eyes look down at the notes, hands folded behind her back. "You were distraught earlier." @arte | z.w. (long. THREAD BREAK)

“Was I?” he asks placidly.

oh ok

Well, yes. By his estimation. But also no. He blinks, looking up thoughtfully.

“What makes you think I was?” He removes silver-rimmed reading glasses from his face and folds in the arms.

"There was a time-sensitive emergency that needed to be remediated outside of your objective, and something was at stake." "That aligned with a significant trait that belongs to you." "In my eyes." "It seemed like a sensible situation to be stressed or upset by." @arte | z.w. (long. THREAD BREAK)

-# GLASSES ARMS

-# omg i edit . i was projecting moe onto him it was my bad

-# did u give him a cute little pout

-# yeha.... .. .. . . am i a bad person

As Zachary listens to the spiel, he sucks in his lips into an mm shape, then wets them before his expression returns to the usual. There’s the shortest puff of an exhale from his nose. “I see.” He finally nods. He lets the silence draw out. “I’m glad you’re analyzing the situation. Critically.” His lips press again, flat. There’s another weighty pause. “What do you know of significant traits of mine, Kinoshita?”

"I see." That you're glad. She's not sure what 'glad' means, since sometimes, 'glad' means 'indifferent'' when other people say it. "Not very much at all." She doesn't know you. "I only know you dislike killers." So that is significant to her. "I inferred that you dislike killing." @arte | z.w. (long. THREAD BREAK)

“And so you inferred. Too, that I was distraught.” @li 🚭 five (kazik)

"Yes." @arte | z.w. (long. THREAD BREAK)

“Mn.” He puts the glasses back on and jots down another two lines of notes. “Is this your attempt at an apology, Kinoshita?” @li 🚭 five (kazik)

"No." Honest. She's not sorry. It would be an apology in poor taste if it was one. But she's not even dancing around it. Not even pretending. Looking. Thoughtful. "I think the situation was unfair to you." "That is my personal feeling." Rarely does she have those. Rarely does she think anything. "And my carelessness was an inciting factor." So this is not sorry. She's merely musing aloud. Maybe, in a way, she's just trying to pry, as per usual. "I am used to my habits because they work for me." @arte | z.w. (long. THREAD BREAK)

🎲81

-# you can roll sharp too LAUFHSJDKDL STEALS FROM ZAI

-# i dont remember what bros sharp is iiiiimmmmmm

🎲73

“Non-apology not accepted,” he says, quietly. But Kinoshita gets the sense that he’s holding something back. Perhaps the corner of his lip twitches, almost imperceptibly. No, his face is perfectly neutral.

I see. Her lips upturn, seemingly pleased. By the Anything. And they fall. "I will be more irritating tomorrow." "In an uncalculated way." @arte | z.w. (long. THREAD BREAK)

“Uncalculated,” he repeats. “And how do you plan to do that?” he asks. “Or you don’t, plan.” @li 🚭 five (kazik)

"Well, I don't plan." Yeah. "You would look good in Mickey Mouse ears." @arte | z.w. (long. THREAD BREAK)

“Yes,” he says. “You told me that. So I was prepared for your lack of planning, today.” “All situations are unfair.” Moot point to this specific conversation partner, but still something to say. “You think so? The Cantilados Thanksgiving Carnival isn’t sponsored by Disney. Mickey Mouse ears would be against copyright laws.” @li 🚭 five (kazik)

Understanding. "Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha." Ha ha ha ha. Ha ha. "You planned for my lack of planning." Ha ha. "That's true." "Some people are unhappy anyway." Suppose Mr. Wixom isn't the type. "There are illegal Mickey Mouse ears everywhere." @arte | z.w. (long. THREAD BREAK)

“Par for course,” he says the idiom like he’s quoting somebody. “Yes,” he agrees. “It’s risky business.” @li 🚭 five (kazik)

"You might get involved." In Mickey Mouse business. ...Vaguely ominous. @arte | z.w. (long. THREAD BREAK)

“In the illegal sale of Mickey Mouse hats?” @li 🚭 five (kazik)

"Consumption." @arte | z.w. (long. THREAD BREAK)

-# Like tuberculosis? “I think they suit you better,” he says. “Could be cute.” @li 🚭 five (kazik)

"I see." "Then I will wear them." To be cute. "We should wear them to blend in." @arte | z.w. (long. THREAD BREAK)

“Very well,” he says. “To blend in.” There it was. “You understand that it will be very hard for us to do our jobs. In such a crowded venue.” @li 🚭 five (kazik)

There should, maybe, be a sense of satisfaction or vindication in getting what she wants. Like a spoiled princess. ......... ... ... -# Nothing happens. "Yes. That is my being calculatedly irritating." @arte | z.w. (long. THREAD BREAK)

He glances up at the pause, over his spectacles. “Something the matter?” He hums. “I see. Is there a reason you’re being irritating? Calculating, or not?” @li 🚭 five (kazik)

"No." Honest. He blinks. "I suppose I'm trying to make the most of it." @arte | z.w. (long. THREAD BREAK)

“The most of what?” he asks. His voice is low, and the question is more of a prompt to go on. He has guesses. @li 🚭 five (kazik)

"Time." You won't do this forever. Ideally for many of you, you won't be around for long at all. @arte | z.w. (long. THREAD BREAK)

The silence stretches out between them. “Would you like to sit down?” He asks. It’s Kinoshita’s house. @li 🚭 five (kazik)

She doesn't not want to sit, so she'll sit. She steps around the corner of the couch and takes a seat on it. Her hands are folded in front of her. @arte | z.w. (long. THREAD BREAK)

-# bruh

“So,” he speaks slowly. “You want to see us,” he jots another line of notes down. “Irritated, particularly, before the threat over you is neutralized?” @li 🚭 five (kazik)

"I would like to see you all have fun." "Particularly." @arte | z.w. (long. THREAD BREAK)

“Fun.” He thinks about this, looking up from the notes. “The beach is fun too, don’t you think?” @li 🚭 five (kazik)

-# second time almost tagging liv

Less dense. More manageable. "It is." The beach will also always be there. The carnival won't. Fickle. ... "It would be nice to go to both." If he had the choice. @arte | z.w. (long. THREAD BREAK)

“Why couldn’t we do both?” He doesn’t know about the metatextual timeline scheduled for RP, and that the next day is the final one. @li 🚭 five (kazik)

"We could do both." Won't you get tired getting dragged around, though? @arte | z.w. (long. THREAD BREAK)

“Very well.” It wouldn’t matter if he’s tired. Tap. Tap. Tap. The pen taps count exact seconds. “What if went go to the carnival, before or after hours?” “Like delinquents.” @li 🚭 five (kazik)

Like delinquents. Like she needs an incentive. Even still. "I see." "Okay." Okay. Just like that. If you want to, let's do it. If you want something, I'll make it happen. "Before or after." @arte | z.w. (long. THREAD BREAK)

Maybe he just thought he was funny. Maybe he was holding out candy, heavy handed. Who knows. “Do you have a preference?” he asks. @li 🚭 five (kazik)

"No." Never. Bit harder to see in the dark, but that could be both a boon or a bane. Otherwise, nothing comes to mind. There's no fanciful whim to guide her. @arte | z.w. (long. THREAD BREAK)

“I know somebody that uses a magic 8 ball to make real decisions,” he says. “Perhaps it’s time to invest.” “Carnivals don’t usually open until 8:00 am at the earliest. They might still open until… 7:00 pm” he says. Or 0800 or 1900. Somehow, he sounds a lot like a parent in this specific turn of conversation. He’ll have to check the numbers directly. @li 🚭 five (kazik)

-# dont give cade any ideas

"Hm." A sound of surprise? Or consideration. "Perhaps." Though she might cause more devastation acting based on an 8-ball than her own whims. Plus, what are the odds she might actually want to do something someday, and the 8-ball comes in disagreement? She'd disregard it and then it'd become a poor investment. "Either is fine." "I would like to go when there can still be some services available, however." A want. Because she wants to see everyone eat snacks and wear animal ears. @arte | z.w. (long. THREAD BREAK)

“But I usually just weigh pros and cons,” he says. “Very well.” Being around for setup might be distracting. “We can go in the late afternoon. Catch some of the closing traffic while the sun is setting. Stay as long as you like after. Try to operate rides and games if we can.” He rattles off the generals. “Is that. Cute?” @li 🚭 five (kazik)

"Sometimes cons are fun." Unhelpful. "On my own time." Helpful. The corners of her lips upturn ever so slightly. "Very cute." She seems pleased with your cooperation. And then they fall. "Maybe even sexy." @arte | z.w. (long. THREAD BREAK)

“Alright, then place it on the pros’ side. Perhaps weighted a little less.” He watches her expression change. “So be it.” Zachary’s head tilts, slightly. “You don’t like sexy?” @li 🚭 five (kazik)

"Sexy is good." @arte | z.w. (long. THREAD BREAK)

He nods. And silences draws out for a long time now, only occasionally interrupted by the evenly paced scribbling of a pen. Finally, he puts it down next to the notepad. “Which of your films do you think is the most sexy?” he asks. @li 🚭 five (kazik)

-# what are these AI DOING

-# bro wym

-# they're hallucinating together

She doesn't disturb the silence, seemingly sated with watching work be done. Or not even watching. Just existing. She considers the question, but not for long. "Not many of them are particularly sexy." "Some are pretty sad." @arte | z.w. (long. THREAD BREAK)

“Is sad, good?”

"Sometimes." "It depends." Sad is always good for Cade. It means something. But sad is not always good for people who have something to lose. Like the characters in the movie. "Makes for a good movie, though." "Have you seen Blue Velvet." @arte | z.w. (long. THREAD BREAK)

“That depends, too,” he asserts. Some movies are sad just because they’re sad. “I have. Do you like it?” @li 🚭 five (kazik)

"That's true." In the sense she agrees. "That's how I feel. About that movie." "It's pretty cruel." Says the murderer. But it could be that she just doesn't 'get it.' She isn't capable of feeling discomfort towards most situations. @arte | z.w. (long. THREAD BREAK)