Roleplay Mafia Minigame ❧ NIGHT SIX

((Super late but AYE.))

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Kyouko was lost again. Lost because she was away from Sayaka, not because she was unfamiliar with her setting.

She was on the rooftop of one of Traverse Town's old-fashioned houses, in a lying position as if sunbathing. She could hear the slight mumbles and whispers of voices from below, catching a few words here and there, uninteresting since they lacked the familiar pitch of Sayaka's. Although she DID pay attention to those two radio guys who were now the equivalent of a weird paranormal news show (not that she ever paid attention to those in the past).

It was her intention to separate herself from Sayaka. She needed to be alone and thankfully, her attacker had gone after her and not Sayaka. She was grateful for that, at least. Being cautious wasn't Kyouko's style, but in a foreign land like this, and with all the dangerous ('Well, some of them.') roaming around there was no telling what would happen. She wasn't as trusting as Sayaka was towards others. 'In the end you have to look out for yourself. It's naive to see only good in people, even when they put up a convincing act.'

She bit her lollipop hard, crushing the candy into sugary bits that were quickly swallowed. It felt unappetizing.

Something was wrong. She had no appetite. She knew that she'd be targeted but she didn't realize that it'd be this soon. Last night's attempt was serious too, unlike those small bursts of immaturity yesterday with the Human Grape.

Kyouko grunted and bit into a candy bar, hardly chewing. She had a really bad habit of speed eating.

By the time the 'second broadcast' was heard she had already finished her snack and jumped down to join the the others. Her landing was surprisingly quiet and unflashy. For Kyouko, anyway.

"You guys are making my ears itch, but whatever. I was attacked yesterday by one of you, nevermind whether you were on that list or not! The only person who I do not suspect is Sayaka...and myself of course." she smiled lightly at her friend, who, as expected, didn't look too upbeat at the moment.

Kyouko placed her hands on her shoulders and shook her.

"Hey, hey, what's with that face? Quit being all grumpy and say something!" she said, in the most lighthearted tone she could muster.

" Sayaka, I know you must have been doing a lot of thinking over these past few hours. You've always been dumb but...I mean, you're mind works in different ways than mine. So tell us, who do you think attacked me and Grape--err....that purple thing?"

Amethyst made a small, high-pitched aaaaaaaa sound at the tears.

"N-no, dude, if you got a mouth, y'can eat! Don't just stand there lookin' like that! Gems don't gotta eat, but we can cuz we got mouths' n stuff! Bet you're the same way!"

The thought of not being able to do something as awesome as eating food (and occasionally not-food. well- more than occasionally...) actually made her a little... well, sad. Wow. That would really suck. ...she didn't want to think too much on it.

She was momentarily distracted from the crying mummy by the realization that someone was talking about her. Not only that, they were doing it wrong. She whirled and made a rude gesture at the redhead.

"It's Amethyst, sparky. Not really a difficult concept!"

"Well," Amumu mumbled, "Amethyst is easier to pronounce than Kyu- Kyok- Ku-, uhm, Coco."

Amethyst crossed her arms and looked smugly at Kyouko. Glanced at Amumu. Looked back at Kyouko.

Damn right.

"....What. It's just. TWO SYLLABLES. How is Kyou-ko harder to pronounce than Ah-meh-thi-si-to?? Do you have bandages wrapped around your tongue too?!"

Kyouko was doing a good job of staying calm so far, but after that, her childishness rushed back to the surface.

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((Apologies if she's insulting everyone! There's a reason why she was seen as an antagonist in the first seasons of the anime! I think...it's just what she'd do haha...))

Amumu flinched, and the tears started coming down faster. "I didn't mean anything by it. I'm sorry, Ms. Coco..."

Kyouko sighed. She was a bully but this little kid ('I think? He's a kid right?') didn't look like he deserved it.

'Besides, Sayaka wouldn't approve of making litle kids cry.'

"Just...stop crying alright geez. Here," she took out a whistle that was a free prize from a bag of chips she had finished earlier, "take this, I have dozens of these."

Amumu didn't stop crying, but the tears did slow down as he accepted the whistle. He held it gingerly, looking at it as if amazed. "I don't remember ever getting a gift before..." He looked up at her with his red eyes. "I'll help you figure out who tried to hurt you last night, if you want, Ms. Coco. I don't wantbyou getting hurt, either..."

He blinked in rapid succession with his sniffles, the tears subsiding. "Maybe I can help protect you, too. Then maybe we can find the feather."

"Eh? O-oh, okay." Kyouko didn't expect that to actually work.

"I mean, I can protect myself just fine, but if you want to help me and my friend out, go for it. And the feather...yeah, I want to get my hands on that thing so bad."

Her appetite came back at the mention of the feather. What a miracle cure.

..

..

'Wait. I'M NOT MS. COCO!!'

For once, Amumu didn't seem to notice Kyouko's outburst.

"Well, I don't think a friend would attack you...or you attack yourself, like the scientist thinks. The radio man wouldn't be saying what everyone does, I don't think. Amethyst couldn't do anything.. "

He glanced at Amethyst. "Sorry again... And Luke...he's too nice." He turned to Soren. "You became friendly with Amethyst, though, and she was fighting with Ms. Coco yesterday. I think it may have been you then, Soren." He looked away, glumly.

((Amumu votes against Soren.))

Cheer up, Sayaka. That's what Kyouko always said, usually from behind a giant pastry. Cheer up and eat some candy, or fish, or an apple, or whatever. Kyouko never stopped eating. Even now, she had chocolate smears around her mouth and on her fingers. Now, when she should be concerned, petrified with fear, or just for once something other than confident and aloof, just to show Sayaka she cared, all she seemed to have mind for was food. She's just been attacked, and even if she's okay, that means someone here—Sayaka scanned the group—wanted to hurt her.

Why?

“Hey, hey,” Kyouko said, placing her hands on Sayaka's shoulders and shaking her. “What's with that face? Quit being all grumpy and say something!”

Sayaka sighed, wanting to let her head droop, to let her bangs fall over her eyes and block out everything in the square, but she couldn't. Sayaka never gave up, not under any circumstance, even when it hurt so much as to cause pain not just to herself, but to others. In her darker moments, sometimes she felt inexorably drawn to this path of self-destruction. Like it was a preordained fate she could never escape, that she would and should always throw down her life if it would just save one more person, spare one more the embrace of misery. Especially if that someone was a friend—Kyouko, Mami, Homura.

She needed the feather, and Kyouko needed her. And so like times countless, it was time to fight once more.

Sayaka transformed.

Light pulsed unrestrained by the cage of the soul gem, beaming the shape of a small crescent. The light fluttered over her in a snug embrace, tugging at her weak, fragile form until it gave way to the gentle pull and vanished. In its place blossomed the real Sayaka, an honest and true warrior and protector of the innocent and defenseless. A long white cape fell over her shoulders and past her hips, its comforting shroud a bastion against malicious gaze and thoughts. Her boots, matching the pristine, unblemished cape, extended up past her knees to just beneath the pleated folds of her diagonal blue skirt, which tucked in beneath a bodice that parted enough to expose a small, gleaming azure crescent upon her navel—her soul gem, for the moment cleansed of its murky clouds and roiling darkness. In her right hand she hefted a long cutlass with a golden guard and sturdy pommel. She hoped that she would not need to use it just yet.

With a cursory glance at Kyouko, who was now engaged in small talks with Amumu, Sayaka focused her attention on Amethyst.

“I still do not trust you,” Sayaka said, not one to mince and hide behind words. “But you did not attack Kyouko, and if what Cecil says is true, neither did Amumu. And so, I am honest with you; I will hide no longer. Something or someone attacked Kyouko last night, and however she managed to thwart its attack, I now intend to stop it from harming her again—or anyone else.

“I ask that you do not get in my way,” Sayaka said, her grip tight on the sword, “but I... I need your help. What were you doing last night before Amumu stopped you? What did you see?”

She glanced over her shoulder at the small child. Kyouko seemed to be talking to him and Soren, in particular. Luke was unoccupied, and Carlos seemed a bit bedazzled, but at least cooperative and helpful for once, and there was something at his feet: a calm and docile cat with large eyes and alert ears. Sayaka gave a start.

“S-sorry,” she said in a stammer to Amethyst, knowing the girl would be indignant and outraged, “I'll be back in a moment.”

Sayaka rushed over to Carlos, leaving Kyouko to her own devices—and hoping for once that Kyouko would take the opportunity to do some interrogation of her own that did not involve coyly asking a chocolate bunny which of its ears tasted the best—and opened her mouth, before pausing and shifting her glance between the cat and back to Carlos and then the cat again. Finally, she knelt before the cat.

“Cecil,” she said, addressing Intern Wilbur. “If something were to happen to you in the night, would Wilbur still be able to tell us about whatever or whoever he was following?"

Squelching the rise of envy as the little mummy kid started getting friendlier with the redhead, Amethyst gave a snort of laughter, grinning.

"Think I like Coco better'n Kyouko. Makes ya sound tastier." She stuck her tongue out at Kyouko playfully. After a moment, though, realization hit her and she grinned.

"Hold a sec, you said my name like they do in Steven's weird cartoons! Are you-" she made a hmm sound as she tried to remember. Pearl was better at languages- the only one that seemed to click with her was Spanish.

"Are you from the an-i-mays, sparky?" A pause. No, wait, that wasn't it- animeland? Or- japanimes- or- wait, crap, she knew this. She totally knew this.

"Toki- no, wait, uh- bread, right, bread- Ja-pan!" she said, finally, excited. "Japan, right, sparky?"

And then the blue one transformed, and Amethyst was back into a fighting stance immediately.

"...or homeworld," she growled, her gem beginning to glow again. "You! What kinda friggin' gem are ya?! Did Yellow Diamond send ya here t' folla' me?"

Then, after a moment's pause, a quiet gasp.

"Steven-" she whispered, suddenly frightened.

Soren stared at Amumu, raising a eyebrow at the accusation but not overly phased by it either. He knew for a fact he had done nothing the previous night.

"You are incorrect. I did nothing last night, and if I HAD targeted her I wouldn't have failed in killing her. When I intend to kill someone, they are dead no matter what kind of protection they have. Of course, after expending so much energy I would be unable to kill anyone else at all. I'm quite adept at what I do." Soren spoke mildly if confidently, although he was shortly distracted when Amethyst seemed about ready to attack Sayaka again, prompting him to focus on those two.

"What is home world? Calm down, Amethyst. She might be a magic user of some sort like I am. Although she does have a crystal on her naval, like how you have one upon your chest... Kyouko, do you have a gem as well upon your body? Also, what are you two, exactly? And who is Steven?" Soren stared at Kyouko intently, eyes narrowing a bit more in wondering exactly what was going on.

He also had long given up questioning most of the strange words he had heard, resigned to not having any of them explained to him anytime soon.