adsum | npc contact.1

npc contact.1

full navigation

As the game progresses, different npc faculty and students will become available for threading. To request a thread, please comment below with the name of the npc and the ic date in the subject header. Threads may be cut short due to mod availability, so please have a reason in mind for the interaction.

✽ index
✽ post 1
✽ post 2
✽ post 3
✽ post 4

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

You tell me. You remember the feeling of possession... of your body moving and your conscience not stepping in as it's supposed to. Do you remember when you were yourself again? When was that?

( similar words he'd spoken at the meeting, or maybe possession is more common here than other places.

but he guesses he'll test something. )

...I was on top of Sena-san, asking him what would happen if I let him GO. If he wouldn't try to kill ME, knowing I had just been trying to kill HIM. ( he says it quietly, looking at his hands; they clench in his lap and his lips purse, like it's painful to remember.

and it is. it is, but the timing is a lie, and he continues, the pause just long enough to convey something - remorse, the small bit of fear he must have had, the finality. ) I killed Sena-san - it wasn't by some posseSSION. That's just what kickstarted IT. I didn't want to DIE, Arata-sensei.

And that is your truth?

[ He locks eyes with Natsume, nothing readable in them. ]

Tell me about the other two.

( it's not, but he can pretend to be the monster some people would like him to be for a little while.

his gaze doesn't shift either now; these weren't directly his fault and no one was really upset about them, anyway. not as upset as over izumi or chiaki. )

I hit them before THAT. Those were a product of the posseSSION. I don't think they were dead THOUGH, so I hope the ground brought them the mercy I didn't show them THEN.

If you didn't mean to do something, it's not your fault. If you don't remember doing something, you can't be held accountable. What do you think?

Neither of those would hold up in a court of law as a legitimate deFENSE. Even if you didn't mean IT, it still happened - actions have consequenCES. Even if you don't remember IT... It's not FAIR, but the law rarely recognizes it as a legitimate defense against a defendant's CRIMES.

( people are a little different; some people are willing to be a little more forgiving. )

You are not a court of law. What is your opinion, if this had happened to somebody else?

[ Would he be just as harsh? more forgiving? ]

( ... )

Does it matTER?

( does it? this could happen again, maybe, so maybe it does. )

I wouldn't forgive THEM, but I'd keep it in MIND.

It doesn't matter in the sense that there's no specific situation to apply it to at the moment, but they're good thoughts to keep in mind. When the time comes, you'll be sure of yourself, and won't act in the heat of the moment.

[ But Natsume wouldn't forgive either, huh? Makes sense. Murder is murder. ]

What about YOU? Same questions that you asked ME.

( could he forgive, or? )

[ He smiles a little at that ]

Does it matter what I think? I am not a court of law either. I am not here to judge.

I'm only curiOUS, Arata-sensei. ( a similar smile back. ) I'm not here to judge eiTHER, but I answered anyWAY. Or are the students here the only ones at risking of murdering one anoTHER?

[ Answering is a choice, one the counselor doesn't make. He'll answer that other question instead, for as much as his opinion matters, which is none at all. ]

Every person has the capacity to murder. There is little difference between the students I see in my office and those I have not, other than timing.

( ... )

Not everyONE. Yashiro-chan doesn't have the heart for it, in examPLE.

She doesn't need to have the heart for it. What if what happened to you had happened to her instead? You weren't singled out because you had the capacity.

[ It was, all in all, bad luck. ]

( Just bad luck... Maybe he should hang around k haha nah )

...But I showed that I did because of Kudo-chan. ( That's — more to himself, because when push comes to shove (haha) he will. ) Did she ever get invited to your ofFICE?

[ Everybody has the capacity, when push comes to shove. Again and again he's seen it, from people who would never, not even to save their own lives, but there's always something... ]

I'm sorry, but I cannot discuss that, even if she isn't currently here.

( HE THOUGHT THAT'D BE THE ANSWER AND YETTTTTT )

Patient confidentiality isn't nulled by the patient's DEATH, so that's FAIR. I'm surprised you remember that rule despite graduating so long aGO.

Edited 2021-07-24 20:39 (UTC)

I've been a counselor all this time, you know. It would be amiss of me to forget about patient confidentiality.

[ What if a student comes back in two years and kicks his ass for blabbing? can't risk it ]

That aside... what do you think? Would Kudo kill anyone? Would she have given me the time of day if she had?

( >implying anyone would want to come back to yogen even if it WAS to kick the counselor's ass )

...I've been told off lately about assuming other people's feeLINGS, but the way she spoke to me prior to her murder implied she'd be more than happy and justified in taking the life of whoever it was that killed Sena-senpai, so I'd say YES, given proper reason TO. She probably would've told you the same thing as WELL, with that same sureness in her VOICE... She wouldn't be in the wrong avenging someONE.

( ... )

But that's just my opinION. I've deprived her of the chance to prove or disprove my suspiCIONS, as others have pointed out to me without hesitaTION.

[ His maturity shows in how he can be objective about this, but it also removes himself from the situation. From what the counselor knows of Chiaki, he can very easily imagine her stating she's going to kill Natsume for killing all those students, she would use her own hands if she had to.

But would she? ]

You're right. We won't know. She would undoubtedly have a strong driving force, but...

[ He looks at Natsume, searching his eyes. ]

Is revenge just?

( Natsume looks right back, searching him for a moment before he cants his head and replies: )

Of course it IS.

( He's still taking revenge for what happened his first year, after all; it's just in a more overall productive way than "ruining one person". )

[ "Of course," like a fact of life. The counselor closes his eyes, and smiles. ]

Many share that sentiment. Do you have anything else you wish to speak about, or shall we end or session here?

( Does this entertain you, Arata-sensei... Natsume considers it, what he's gotten, what he's shared, and slowly shakes his head. )

...I think that's ALL, but there's one more thing I'd like to ASK... Should I feel like I'm going to hurt someone aGAIN, would you mind if I came around and talked to you inSTEAD? It's not often I meet an adult who doesn't insist on patronizing me just because I'm younger than THEM.

( thats showbiz baybee )

Am I the best person to talk to when you feel like hurting somebody? Even if you feel like there's nobody you can talk to, your classmates are the ones who share in your situation, and best understand and can empathize with it.

[ Does the counselor want to be around a possessed murderous Natsume?

...

He supposes this is part of the job too. ]

When you have nobody else to turn to, then you may come to me. I should be your failsafe, not your first choice.

(no subject)

crystallomancy - 2021-08-03 19:39 (UTC) - Expand

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only