Season 3/ Suzune Gikou - "Counting Sheep" [The Third Trial Projection]

Kaoru Naito

His first thought is ‘crazy, she married A Vincent’. (Maybe there’s something psychological here about typecasting Vincent as a feeble puppy guy). His next thought is he thinks she should divorce this guy because he sounds lame as fuck. That kind of humble shock at everything that happens pisses him off. Men that go ‘auuaa’ <<<<<

The mannequin asks him something, and he turns up the record player (he knows he isn’t real and the requests probably don’t matter, but it’s automatic). Then, he’ll play the mauve record.

Emmy | Akemi

Akemi stares at the projection for a while, sighing. She looks to the mannequin beside her, the very person she sees in the mirror, but says nothing. Just like the reflections in her 2nd projection, none of this comes as a surprise to her. Still, it isn’t the sort of thing she enjoys being right about.

“Let’s keep moving, Gikou-chan.”

She makes her way into the dining room, overhearing the various voices playing over the record player. The mannequin beside her continues to cling to her arm, moving its head as if speaking. Akemi says nothing, trying her best to focus instead on what she’s hearing, even as the mannequin continues to pat at her arm and chatter on. This was a lot to keep track of.

She finds herself looking over the picross puzzle on the table, still trying to maintain her focus.

“…if any of you can find the pieces, I can solve this puzzle.”

Finally, unable to handle the continuing chatter, Akemi links arms with her mannequin and leads her back to the kitchen, steeping a cup of tea just as Suzune prefers it to be served. She checks the drawers while awaiting the tea.

Chula - Suzune

Kaoru Naito Then, he’ll play the mauve record.

You turn the crank on the record player after sliding the mauve record onto the wheel. This cranks seems to not take as much difficulty to turn as the purple record, spinning with ease.

The sound begins with the gurgling cry of a newborn infant. The sounds are followed by more and more crying, but eventually… laughter. Giggles… babbling, cooing. Raspberries. But finally, you hear a couple of words.

“Dada.”

“Mama.”

This record is not very long.

Chula - Suzune

Emmy | Akemi She checks the drawers while awaiting the tea.

The drawers contain various cookware like wooden spoons, whisks, and the like. There’s also a dedicated drawer for silverware, metals that have been tinted a blue, purple, mauve, and white. They’re all neatly placed in a metal organizer, though the colors are mixed in together within each type of silverware. Finally, you come across what can best be described as a junk drawer. Within the junk drawer are various odds and ends that wouldn’t normally have a specific location to be in, such as thumbtacks, tape, scissors, wire cutters, and… odd multicolored square tiles that have no clear purpose.

Emmy | Akemi

Well, that solves that riddle. Akemi scoops up the multicolored tiles and carries them back into the dining room. Her mannequin hurries along beside her, their linked arms making it just the slightest bit more difficult to carry those pieces back with her.

It takes her several minutes, during which time she finds herself glancing back toward the clock containing that bomb. The impending doom and time constraint do little to keep her focused.

Ultimately, she places the tiles in this configuration:

Chula - Suzune

Emmy | Akemi Ultimately, she places the tiles in this configuration:

Placing the squares from the junk drawer in the shape of a heart sounds a small click from within the wooden board. A slot opens on the side, spitting out a white record album in a sleeve. Hmm…

Kaoru Naito

He plays the baby asmr and starts pacing around, watching Akemi solve the puzzle while finding new things to fiddle with in the room. White record’s good, but his mannequin has started holding onto his arm, then his side, and that seems to be souring his mood. He steps towards Akemi…

“Ya said this thing’s Suzune?”

He reaches up to knock his knuckles on her clingy mannequin’s head like it’s a door.

“Oiii, RIng-a-ling, you recognize me? Gonna pretend t’ recognize me, ’t least?”

Emmy | Akemi

No sooner had Akemi placed the final piece than her mannequin suddenly slipped its arms around her. Akemi freezes a bit, turning to look at the mannequin with some level of frustration. She wasn’t a very affectionate person, by nature, and even though she’s received far more hugs than she’s used to in these last few weeks, that didn’t make this much easier. Not to mention, knowing what she knew…

“Mm? Yes, it is Gikou-chan, to me.”

Before she could fall too deep into that thread of thinking, Kaoru has once again done his part to break the mold and mess with the ‘intended order’ of the projection. The mannequin turns its head to look at Kaoru, its shoulders moving as if it is letting out a bit of a giggle. It tilts its head, as if speaking. It releases Akemi from the hug just enough to, assumedly, rub its forehead and fix its hair that had been messed up by Kaoru’s gesture.

Then, it once again clings onto Akemi’s arm and rests its head on her shoulder.

“She says she knows who you are, but ‘Kuro-chan’ is the one who is here to help her right now.”

Kaoru Naito

“Okaaay, well, they ain’t th’ worst simulations. We’re ‘helpin’ ’em, huh…”

It’s sticking in his thoughts. Obviously there’s some symbolism from the mirror, and watching Robert fawning over his is getting his gears turning. He walks away from her, his mannequin following along.

“Y’know, mine’s kinda pissing me off.”

He mumbles to himself, not loud but stating this for the benefit of the others, because next he is going to grab and yank his mannequin off of him, grabbing the un-cuffed wrist to hold them both away from him. He’s so curious how this thing will act if he’s just mean to it. Can he break whatever programming its operating on? Or will it get worse?

Kaoru Naito

The way the mannequin reacts, trying to keen its head to look back at him while trying to pull its wrists out plus whatever it says that only he can hear makes him fully flinch back again, eyes wide for a second, all like he just had a firework go off in his face.

But he shakes it off, twisting its arm around to hold its wrists from behind like he’s arresting it, physically keeping it off of him.

He leans around it to say.

“Aw, sad, you really think yer real, huh? Freaky ass metaphorical bullshit shit…”

Then says to his peers, but namely Emily, mainly because he assumes Robert’s is his husband and knows who Akemi’s is and thinks they won’t fuck with this at all.

“It gets reaaaal in-character if ya start freakin’ it out, if ya ever wanted t’ fuck with whoever ya got, you sure can!”

Then he stands back, annoyed but feeling better(?) with it off of him. He looks to Akemi, expression annoyed but as calm as he can force it to be, trying to use a bit of humor to cheer himself up. He wants to record played so they can move on.

Emily Lewenhock

Emily’s mannequin nudged her at the first record as she ran her fingers along the grooves of the puzzle.

“Yeah, yeah. Y’know, when he asked about trying crayons, he probably meant for coloring.”

Not much to say on the other recording. Pretty clear-cut. With a thanks to Akemi, she stepped out of the way for someone to take the white record as her mannequin leaned to rest its chin on her shoulder. Public nuisance.

Kaoru Naito “It gets reaaaal in-character if ya start freakin’ it out, if ya ever wanted t’ [freak] with whoever ya got, you sure can!”

It’s an idea, but even being out of the prison clothes for a bit, it was a little…

“Not worth it if I don’t get to see the look on his real face.”

The mannequin didn’t look too happy about that, but she just "mhm"ed it off.

Robert McCay

The silence of that third bedroom door… Robert frowns and doesn’t linger long. He follows the sound of the record player back to the others. His mannequin has both arms draped around his shoulders now, nuzzling its featureless face against his cheek.

“Yes, love, I missed ya too… but we ain’t got time t’sit down, sorry!”

He rejoins the group uneventfully, as if the mannequin’s new behavior seems perfectly normal to him. The real Tony must be a pretty high-maintenance guy.

“Y’all ain’t found anything like a big key, have ya? If it doesn’t work on the clock there’s a door t’the backyard too… Ooh, nice record player.”

Emmy | Akemi

Akemi watches Kaoru’s display, frowning a bit. She supposes that she’s getting off fairly easily, considering her bond with Suzune compared to the others’ obvious bonds with their mannequins. As much as Kaoru tried to disguise it all with humor, it’s clear to Akemi just how deeply bothered he is.

“No key yet, but I imagine we will have to find something to that effect soon enough.”

She uses her free arm to carefully put the white record onto the record player, her other arm immobilized by Suzune’s clinging.

Chula - Suzune

Emmy | Akemi She uses her free arm to carefully put the white record onto the record player, her other arm immobilized by Suzune’s clinging.

You turn the crank on the record player after sliding the white record onto the wheel. For this one, the crank seems to take the most amount of muscle to turn, to the point of being actively tiring.

CW: Discussions of domestic abuse, discussion of suicide, discussion of drug overdose

(Written version under the cut)

“Hi, Fukuizumi-san! Welcome to the broadcast club! It’s so nice to have some new kouhai around, you know? I’m Chiyu Seki, one of the third-years. But feel free to call me Seki-chan, ok? How about I teach you some of the equipment around here?”

“You know… I know we didn’t talk much this year, but it was nice to get to meet you, Fukuizumi-chan. Maybe, if we’re lucky, we’ll meet again in high school, right? … Thanks for wishing me congratulations. Good luck in broadcasting club without me, ok?”

“Wait… Fukuizumi-san, is that you? … Oh my god, I’m right! Wow, it’s been AGES, how have you been? Oh, my family name is Otsuka now, but if it’s easier to remember, you can just call me Chiyu. Oh… could I call you Suzune-chan, then?”

“You know, I always looked up to you back then. I was a bit of a weird girl back in middle school, and had a harder time talking to other people, but for you… it seemed to come naturally. You even made friends with those two bitches, you know? How you managed that, I don’t think I’ll ever know. … Me? Well. Yeah, I was friends with one of them, for a while. But after I graduated we never really spoke again.”

“Suzune-chan, hey, so, you know how I’m a photojournalist major, right? I was… Well. I thought it would be nice if you could model for me, so I could build up a portfolio for entertainment-related photographs, you know. Uh… If you’re willing! But you could use the pictures however you want to, too! It’s just that you’re so beautiful, I can’t really keep my eyes off you sometimes.”

“So, Suzune-chan, did you hear about the protestor of the current administration who lit himself on fire in front of the Diet building? Yeah, no, it was crazy. Some people do the weirdest things to spark change.”

“Suzune-chan, could you do me a favor and help me get a reference letter for this job I’m applying to? There’s a lot of people in your company who’ve seen my work by now, so if anyone could get me a good letter, it’s you!”

“Congratulations on your wedding, Suzune-chan… And thanks for inviting me. It was a beautiful ceremony, you know? It left me moved beyond words. I hope you end up the happiest you could be. Um… hey, Suzune-chan, can we talk later?”

“… I know you’ve asked me about the… bruises, before. I used to lie about it. But… Well, you see… my husband beats me, and… I don’t really know what to do anymore. I love him, but I just… can’t! Deal with this anymore. Please, Suzune-chan, could you help me talk to him about it?”

“Suzune-chan! I just finished writing my first professional report! It’s about that idol who overdosed on heroin and died yesterday. I’m excited they gave me such a big story immediately after I started! It’s all thanks to you!”

“Suzune-chan, he hit me again, I-I don’t… I don’t understand, I thought you helped us talk, but it’s all so much… Can’t you try something else again?”

“Suzune-chan, please I need help.”

“Suzune-chan, could you do me a favor?”

“Suzune, I’m in a bit of a rut and could use a hand.”

“Suzune, I need… to divorce him. I don’t think… I love him anymore. I just… Well, I can’t stop thinking about you, and it’s… You’ve always made me feel so warm, so… Ah… right. Your husband, I’m… sorry I brought it up.”

“I think Tetsuya is going to kill me if I try to get him to sign these papers, Suzune. He threatened to, and I… Could I… stay with you for a while while I go through the police, please?”

“You know, Suzune. I love you the most. I… I-I know, you don’t have to verbally reject me again, I already know, I just… wanted you to know. That I still do. And that I always will.”

“… W-Wait, no you can’t!! I can’t go out alone, if I stay in this place by myself he’ll!! He’ll find me, I-I have no protection! I-I know it’s a gated community, but how would that stop a man as crazy as him?!”

“… Goodbye, Suzune. I’m sorry, I’ll… take some time to myself for a while. … Keep in touch. Please.”

Chula - Suzune

As the record reaches its end, a small panel on the side of the table flips open, revealing a golden-colored key! Falling out of the table, it lands unceremoniously onto the floor. Your muscles also feel like jelly from all that turning.

Kaoru Naito

Nothing he didn’t expect, to be honest. He listens quietly, holding his mannequin in place. As the key fall, he won’t move to get it. It’s likely for the clock, right? Ugh. He just waits. Maybe Suzune had multiple people chained to each arm.

Robert McCay

Robert’s face darkens as the recording goes on. He looks away when the key pops out.

“…Well, fuck, I didn’t mean t’jinx it like that.”

Still, he stoops to pick it up, still carrying his mannequin in one arm, sort of slung over his shoulder. He glances around quietly and motions for them to follow him back to the living room. Something the mannequin says makes him tilt his head.

“Tony… what are y’talkin’ about?”

He’ll try the key on the clock first, just in case, then the back door.

Chula - Suzune

Robert McCay He’ll try the key on the clock first, just in case, then the back door.

It does not work on clock! However, the porch in fact unlocks!

You slip the key into the keyhole and slide open the door, greeted by the scent of city air. The backyard is very modest, truly, with just enough room for the vegetable garden, and a patch of grass a child may play in. While the house is relatively spacey, with the size of the backyard, it’s clear just how close the neighbors are, feeling somewhere in-between urban and suburban in vibes. The porch is paved with cement and covered with a tin awning to provide shade. A series of string lights provide an ambient glow, lighting up the porch, currently turned on. As far as seating goes, two stationary cushioned seats sit on either side of a small table, and a porch swing hangs from the awning.

Kaoru Naito

Kaoru, naturally, drags his mannequin out and kicks the swing to make it move back and forth. He’s helping.

Emmy | Akemi

Of course, Akemi already knew what had happened to Chiyu. Suzune told her. But to hear Chiyu’s voice gradually grow more and more frightened, more needy, more desperate, only for her to break at the end…Akemi can only sigh and shake out her terribly sore arm. Yet again, a Suzune projection leaves her tired and sore. This is certainly an expected theme at this point. What a messy situation.

She puts her hand on Suzune’s arm, the mannequin still clinging almost desperately to Akemi.

“Gikou-chan isn’t fully behaving like herself. She would not leave me without space to this degree.”

She goes to investigate the small table.

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