In the end, Sayaka decided that she did not much enjoy science, talking about science, or even thinking about science. In fact, she would rather stay away from it altogether; it only made her head spin. Often in Mitakihara, her tendency to rush into things with the bare minimum of planning had proven to be a bit of her downfall.
She was embarrassed. There was no hiding that fact. Her cheeks were red, her sword arm wavered a little, and of greater concern, perhaps, Amumu had wrapped himself around her person, restricting her movement entirely.
So this is what Amethyst had to deal with.
Sayaka made to pull herself free, but then caught a glance at Amumu's tear-stricken face and knew what it was he really wanted. With a twist of her hand, the cutlas, pommel and all, vanished into nothingness.
“I am sorry, Amumu, I did not mean to upset you,” she said. “Truthfully, I had no intention of hurting Cecil.” She looked at Cecil, apology evident in her gaze, and then back to perfect Carlos, his mouth worked into all sorts of distraught positions. “It's just the only way to get Carlos to talk.”
With that, the sticky bandage hold lessened, and Sayaka plucked herself free and dusted off her knees and skirt. “That is a little gross, though...”
She took a few steps forward, mind no longer racing with the endless possibilities and theories she had voiced mere moments ago. Instead, she thought of all that had transpired, looking to each individual in turn and realizing they were all studying her—Kyouko foremost of all.
“I will admit that I am shocked,” Sayaka said. “When I heard of the attack, I imagined that Kyouko had been the one to protect herself. She's always been rather strong-willed, and a far better fighter than I could ever hope to be. Knowing now that she had help... I am ashamed. I am ashamed that I was not able to help her in her time of need, but I am grateful to whomever it was that may have lent their aid.”
For a moment, Carlos' words about Kyouko faking her own attack came to mind—but she was quick to banish them. Kyouko would never do that.
“I will admit it is possible that Kyouko may have felt the need to lie about not having any protection—but she is prideful. I believe she would have taken all the credit for her survival, so to say that she doesn't says to me that this is a serious matter.”
Sayaka paused.
“I have been thinking about what you all have said, or not said. I am hesitant to fully trust Cecil, given that Carlos is likely to ignore all of his faults, but there is a certain logic in what was said. Cecil, more than anyone we know of so far, has an ability to help us weed out the deniers—or feather guardians or whatever. Whether he used this ability in a deceitful manner or not, the information is still valuable. I would like to hope that both Cecil—and even Carlos in his attempt to protect Cecil—will cooperate and continue to provide information.”
She eyed Carlos.
“Plus, I sort of think Carlos might do something terrible to whomever attacks Cecil.”
Sayaka took a few steps forward.
“Lastly, I still stand by that I am suspicious of both Soren and Luke, but I am not wholly convinced on the innocence of Amumu and Amethyst under certain circumstances. I think Amumu means well, however, and Soren has been cooperative and... I feel that he is being honest,” Sayaka said with a shrug, as if she weren't altogether convinced by her own statement.
“That said, I am most concerned with both Amethyst and Luke. Amethyst has struck me as being overly belligerent and ready to attack while offering little thought of her own—but this seems too candid and attracts attention to herself.
“Really, I am worried about Luke. His responses have felt off-putting. He continued to deny the presence of hostiles in our midst while we had conclusive proof that Kyouko had been attacked. He also advised Amumu to not attack Amethyst again... which seems...” Sayaka bit her lip, “Unusual.
“His vote on Soren seemed without much conviction, whereas Soren hesitated to vote for anyone until Luke's defense—as Carlos pointed out earlier—was very much nonexistent.”
Sayaka held her hands up.
“I'm... long-winded, and maybe foolish, but I care a lot for Kyouko and I want to help her. I can charge into things sometimes, and I might be doing that now. But...”
She looked straight at Luke.
“I don't trust him.”
((Hmmm. This took some time. I read through every post in this thread to double-check things. I'm still working through my analysis—which I may return to after I do this post, but I wanted this out sooner rather than later—but I think for better or worse, Cecil and Carlos are best left alone for the moment since they provide a lot of information.
Amumu is cleared of direct involvement with Kyouko, as is Amethyst. Soren could be lying and blindsiding us, and Cecil may have something up his sleeves, but I find more merit in their defenses than in Luke's slightly inconsistent narrative. It's a bit of a gut read after going through all the posts, but I would rather Vote: Luke right now than anyone else.))
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