Fine Dining, Milgram Prison Style [Post-Projections]

Bow-wow

Bow-Wow is a simple man. He smells food, he follows smell of food. He's in the metaphorical mousetrap that is social interaction.

Oh well, he's been meaning to introduce himself to Nobuko officially anyway! Peeping his head in the door, he's fascinated by the sight of all the food currently up for grabs. He creeps in the door, almost like he's trying to avoid being seen, but, then he realizes he would definitely need to speak.

"Hi there, Miss Nobuko! This food looks real great!" He greets, "Ya really did make a completely awesome spread!" He approaches the display of food, examining it very carefully, although clearly waiting for permission to get himself some. After all, it would be impolite to just start grabbing random food!

"It's mighty kind for ya ta do this for all'a us!"

Nobuko Yoshida

At the arrival of the first guest, Nobuko bows.

"Welcome, Mister…. Bow-Wow?" She seems to be unsure about referring to someone by such an unusual name, but recovers quite quickly. "Please, take a seat wherever you see fit. Everything out is available to you, I only ask that you leave some for the others. If you have any questions on what each dish contains, so that you might find a meal that corresponds to any dietary requirements you may have, I will answer to the best of my ability."

She gives a nod at the compliment, her composure remaining impeccable. "Thank you, but really, it was the least I could do."

Emmy | Akemi

Akemi was, herself, dubious at the sudden invitation for a dinner. She considered how easy it would be to tamper with a meal, and considered everything she had seen in the sisters' projection.

Then again, she had grown tired of cooking for herself and even more tired of picking around rabbit fur otherwise. She supposed that Nobuko would have little reason to try to hurt everyone here.

And, walking by the dining room, it did smell good. So, she entered and took a brief glance at the spread before offering a polite yet curt nod toward Nobuko.

"…this is rather impressive, Yoshida-san. Is there a particular reason for such an effort?"

Nobuko Yoshida

As with Bow-Wow, Nobuko turns to face Akemi and gives her a polite smile and bow.

"Ah, Kuro-san, welcome. Please, take a seat and help yourself." At the question, she tilts her head and puts a finger to her chin, as if to think. "Partially because I thought it would a good way to raise morale. A good meal is something anyone can connect over, I believe." She gives a more coy smile. "The other part is that I am not used to having so much time to myself. If what I enjoy doing should be beneficial to everyone here, all the more reason to do it, no?"

Bow-wow

"That's me!" Bow-Wow responds to his name, quickly taking the invitation to sit down, and already helping himself to a (surprisingly reasonable) amount of food. "Ah, thank ya, Miss Nobuko!" He beams, before he waits to ask-

"Oh! D'ya mind if I take some to Mr. Robert? He's kinda… stuck in his cell, uh… by choice! But…I don't want him t'miss out!" Oh, they have more company!!!

Bow-Wow places his plate down to wave at Akemi. "Miss Akemi! Hello!"

He's being pretty conservative with the amount of food he's taking, and very particular about what he picks up too, by the look of it. But he hesitates a little less than he usually would when he flips up his mask enough that he can finally taste some of the food. There's a moment of self-consciousness that nags at his mind when he realizes they can probably see the slight glint of his braces underneath the upturned mask, but… he's trying to push down the worry. Because damn is Nobuko a good cook.

"By the way! You and Shiori kinda got a weird spy-lookin' thing goin' on if ya projection was anythin' to go by!" Bow-Wow has never been the most tactful guy ever….

Nobuko Yoshida

Bow-wow “Oh! D’ya mind if I take some to Mr. Robert? He’s kinda… stuck in his cell, uh… by choice! But…I don’t want him t’miss out!”

Nobuko nods "Of course! I was not aware Mr. McCay was unable to attend, if you would like to bring him his share, than you are more than welcome to. In fact, as a way to make up for this oversight, I would be happy to assist you, if that would be to your liking."

Emmy | Akemi “If you were curious as to what we saw, this is an opportunity for the two of us to enlighten you. You and your sister seemed rather insistent of your innocence, so perhaps hearing more would allow you to pinpoint your reasoning for being here.”

"If you would be so kind, I would greatly appreciate that. I am quite curious as to what our 'projection' entailed, especially considering the impressions the others I've been a part of have left with me."

Shiori Yoshida “Thank you for preparing all this. Please let me know if you need assistance with cleaning up later.”

Nobuko gives a nod to her sister. "Of course, Shiori, I will likely take you up on that. But for now, please, eat to your heart's content."

Shiori Yoshida “..we are not spies. And we are not murderers.”

Her smile fades at the insinuation that the two were killers, even theoretically. "Quite. I am skilled in many fields, but espionage is not one of them. And while I have been present at the end of many of our master's lives, it was to make sure their transition into the next life was as comfortable as possible. An important duty, but never one I look forward to, or would intentionally hasten."

Emmy | Akemi

The idea of enjoying cooking was already pushing it for Akemi, but enjoying cooking for others? Cannot relate.

Nonetheless, she takes a seat and offers Bow-wow a nod in greeting. She adds a reasonable serving portion to her plate-- having not been feeding herself the best these last few days.

"…your effort is appreciated, Yoshida-san."

She raises an eyebrow at Bow-wow's lack of tact, taking a small bite of food before continuing his statement.

"If you were curious as to what we saw, this is an opportunity for the two of us to enlighten you. You and your sister seemed rather insistent of your innocence, so perhaps hearing more would allow you to pinpoint your reasoning for being here."

Shiori Yoshida

Well, speak of the devil! Say her name and she appears!

A certain younger sister finally shows up to her older sister's event, looking over the spread with a barely noticeable smile. She always enjoyed Nobuko's cooking, and as she serves herself up a small plate, it certainly reminds her more of home than the other meals she's had here. Shiori steps up to her sister's side, giving her a nod in greeting.

"Thank you for preparing all this. Please let me know if you need assistance with cleaning up later."

Her expression reverts to a deeper frown than usual as she processes what exactly she overheard from Bow-Wow and Akemi. Though she supposes the comments weren't directly addressed at her since she wasn't fully in the room when they were spoken, she can't help the muttered reply that escapes her, her gaze directed at the floor.

"..we are not spies. And we are not murderers."

Bow-wow

"Sorry, I didn't mean ta offend ya, ladies!" Bow-Wow waves his arms in front of himself almost defensively- he truly did need to get better at his habit of just… saying things without thinking, huh?

"But, accordin' ta ya projection, y'all definitely did kill that guy…" He taps his fork on his plate, furrowing his brow thoughtfully. "We were kinda… givin' orders ta puppet versions of both of ya? But then the murder happened when ya were takin' care of some old geezer."

He's very certain that won't at all narrow it down, judging by the fact Nobuko says they've had more than one client…

"It jus' kinda made me think of the movie trope, y'know? The rich old guy, the butler kills him, gets his money… not sayin' that's th'case! But that's kinda what it made me think 'bout." He pauses,

"I don't think I believe either of ya killed someone on purpose, ya both seem so nice!"

Nobuko Yoshida

Bow-wow “It jus’ kinda made me think of the movie trope, y’know? The rich old guy, the butler kills him, gets his money… not sayin’ that’s th’case! But that’s kinda what it made me think ’bout.”

“Such a dreadful stereotype, to think that that’s how people perceive this profession.

Bow-wow “I don’t think I believe either of ya killed someone on purpose, ya both seem so nice!”

“I appreciate the sentiment. With any luck, it’s one our wardens will share.”

Emmy | Akemi She took a bite of the prepared food, smiling ever so slightly at it. She did miss cooked meals of this caliber.

Noticing Akemi smile at her cooking, Nobuko has a pleased look on her face. It’s nice to know that her work is not going unappreciated.

The description of her and Shiori’s projection does give her pause.

“How peculiar. Our master was quite well last I remember seeing him. In fact, he had recently recovered from a most worrisome illness.”

She glances over to Shiori, her head tilted ever so slightly. “Shiori, do you remember Hajime-san’s state prior to our arrival here?”

Emmy | Akemi

Oh boy, Bow-wow was sure tripping over himself here. Akemi stepped in, hoping to salvage the conversation.

"For clarity, what we saw was a show containing puppet versions of both of you, being controlled by odd disembodied hands above a stage. We had a series of orders we had to give, beginning with cleaning, preparing and serving dinner, and retrieving and administering medicine. But then one set of orders read 'discover his secret' which occurred off screen, so we have little idea what it means. This was immediately followed by the order to 'finish the job.' The discovery of his supposed secret took place behind his house, while finishing the job entailed loading him into a car and driving off."

She took a bite of the prepared food, smiling ever so slightly at it. She did miss cooked meals of this caliber.

"…the theater was a silent movie, as well, which I feel relates to the roles you fulfill often being discouraged from showing a strong presence. Regardless, there are some details within that were not entirely clear, regarding your personal culpability or intent."

Shiori Yoshida

Shiori nods back at her sister, standing off to the side and eating daintily from her plate as the others continue to chat. Her eyebrows furrow slightly as Bow-Wow and Akemi describe the projection they saw, her hand gripping noticeably tightly onto her plate as she stuffs some food into her mouth to keep her frown from getting deeper.

It was worrying to hear how convinced the two were by the projection that Shiori and her sister really had killed someone, or at least that their puppet selves really did in the projection itself. The idea of it being a puppet show and silent film hit a particular chord with her, though. If the projections truly were a manifestation of one's mindscape.. well, that's certainly accurate, at least in Shiori's case.

Then Nobuko addresses her, and her eyes widen slightly, quickly swallowing before blinking rapidly and looking down at the floor. "Ah. Yes. Hajime-san. He was.. mostly well. But.."A nervous sighs escapes her lips as she holds her hands in front of her, rubbing her thumb over the back of her other hand. She steps closer to Nobuko, leaning down slightly as she speaks to her sister in a hushed voice, though anyone in the immediate vicinity actively listening in can still mostly catch what she's saying.

"..he passed away while I was driving him to go golfing. I did not realize he had passed until we arrived. My last memory before we found ourselves here was of driving back to his home with his body still in the car." She steps back and bows her head toward Nobuko in shame and apology. "I'm terribly sorry that I neglected to inform you of this until now."