damedana | [UMINEKO SPOILERS] Heart (Unscored): Beatrice

You find yourself at the entrance to a garden. The sky here is blue and calm, the weather warm with a nice breeze like it's the height of spring ready to bleed into summer. The garden is bursting with various flowers and colors, red roses, gold roses, blue forget-me-nots--or ordinarily it would be. Today, they all seem to be struggling under the weight of those purple vines with thorns which wrap and wind their way through the garden as if trying to strangle out every last flower there.

In the center of the garden are two identical individuals with red hair sitting at a wrought iron table in the arbor. They're even dressed the same--or rather, are mirrored--a nice fancy suit with a dark emerald vest and the design on the cape is actually in gold, a single eagle wing. One seems to be content, sipping at his tea and moving a chess piece along the board sitting atop the table as if this is all perfectly normal, nothing wrong. The other… is sweating hard, pale, struggling to breathe. The reason becomes apparent: there's a bloody hole in his chest where those very same thorny vines have stabbed into and pulled the flesh open wide, and his beating heart can be seen struggling in their grip.

Edited 2023-02-11 10:38 (UTC)

Battler...!

[approaching them]

I'm here.

[oh good, the one with the heart problems looks like he could cry with relief.]

[meanwhile the other one just kind of waves her over.]

That was quick. Probably because you wouldn't play any games with my truths. I'm a little disappointed.

[stepping closer to the battler with heart issues and giving his shoulder a reassuring squeeze]

I'm here to help you, not to play games.

Well, if your plan is to pull that out of... my... heart... I wouldn't recommend it. Tried it. It's pretty stuck.

[confusing to call a double yourself but that IS the truth of it. metaphysical things be wilding.]

So what is your plan? Are you just going to sit here playing with yourself and pretend nothing is wrong?

No. The plan was to play with someone else but it's kind of difficult to do that when the other party says they don't want to.

After all your games, you're really going to say mine are just for fun?

I even made it pretty simple. Since the color reminded me of Bern's game and the rules there. How a purple truth can work the same as a red truth so long as it's spoken by someone who has not killed someone.

Ushiromiya Battler is not the culprit.
But because Ushiromiya Battler has killed due to outward influences, he can use a purple truth as both truth and lies.

Do you agree?

[...nods reluctantly]

If I'm going to play with you, I want it to be face to face. Surely you can't hold that against me.

I don't. I'd feel the same way.

So.

Simple rules.

Spot the lie. Correct it with your own truth. With some truths being especially fragile for me right now-- [looks at the other Battler kind of pointedly] --it's a little difficult to know what's what on my own. So that's how you'll help.

[nods again, more firmly this time]

Simple enough.

Very well, I accept the challenge.

Don't start crying just because you hear something you don't like.

[but honestly, really looking more engaged now himself as he pushes the chess board aside and gestures to a seat--when'd a third one turn up? don't even worry about it.]

Starting easy, then:

I am Ushiromiya Battler.
I am born from the theories of the future.
I am also born from the mind of someone who knows Ushiromiya Battler.
If you can't disprove my lies-as-truths, they will just become the new truth for Ushiromiya Battler.

[taking a seat]

The true Ushiromiya Battler is not born from anyone else's theories. Such forgeries may be considered truth in the world of the future, but they cannot touch the contents of the catbox.

[the Battler with the enthroned heart makes a noise of discomfort, but then seems to relax more. seems like that got a thorn out.

the other Battler just smiles.]

The corruption is starting to affect memories of what occurred on Rokkenjima in 1986.
There is no true way for someone like Ange to know how Ushiromiya Battler was actually like without something like this occurring.
My only regret is that I couldn't help more with making Rokkenjima the reality it was.
I took full advantage of my own weakened state because I was bored and needed people to engage with the truths distorted by the corruption.

Edited 2023-02-11 17:51 (UTC)

Aren't you contradicting yourself? With truth and lies mixed together like this, Ange currently has no way of seeing her brother for who he really is.

As for the rest... I wonder about that. If you are telling the truth, it's not the whole truth.

Ehhh... isn't some truth better than none? But I guess you've got me there.

[janky heart Battler just kind of wheezes. there goes another thorn. actually, a few. nice.]

All right. I'll make this the last one. Since it's most relevant and central to the corruption.

Love is despair.
I will continue to love in spite of despair.
I will not love anyone else the way I love you.
I love you.

...You've got it backwards. It's true that love can lead to despair, but that's only because despair can only exist if there is love in the first place.

Because...

Love is hope.

[softest look on the Battler saying those purple truths's face.]

[meanwhile, the Battler with the heart problems just kind of reaching into his chest to pull at the thorns--no longer that purple color, going black and withering. they snap, brittle, under his fingers and he gives the biggest sigh of relief.

similarly, the vines and thorns among the flowers seem to be steadily going the same way, dark and withering.]

--why do they gotta keep targeting that, anyway...

[and why's it so hard to remember that golden truth sometimes.]

[jumping up from her chair to give him the biggest hug]

Because you have such a big beautiful heart, probably...!

[she might be crying with relief just a little]

[oof noises followed by soft owowowows but this Battler just gonna put arms around her in spite of the open wound.]

Hasn't felt very beautiful recently.

That's why you need me to remind you.

[looks across the table at the other battler]

Give me a minute, I'm going to hug you too.

[he crosses his arms and looks to the side before. waving a hand. a Battler who is clearly embarrassed but refusing to fluster about it, because he's a cool kid, okok.]

There's no rush or anything.

[omg cute]

Liar.

[she's giving wounded battler a kiss on the cheek before pulling away so she can circle around and hug the other battler]

Edited 2023-02-11 19:32 (UTC)

[trying to play it cool!

gonna be a cool guy!

ok no, fuck it. he's pulling her onto his lap so he can wrap his arms around her and maybe be a bit clingy like it's been another stupid long time since hugs were last had.

meanwhile, injured Battler kind of gives a small snicker which gets a muttered "Shuddup" in response.]

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