♦ ♦ 14th Contract [Video/Action]

[mortemscintilla]

[ The feed snaps on to 'Li' popping shut the oven. He's in Cafe Satine's kitchen, surrounded by a colorful cornucopia of half-and-fully decorated desserts. Most stark is a tray of painfully red cupcakes with sugar-shards. A serial killer's treat. ]

[ Sublimation is a terrible thing. ]

[ Scowling, Li digs the heels of his hands into a slab of dough. Folds it. Digs again. From behind it looks like he's pummeling someone to death. One of his memories has crept its way onto the Network. He can't ignore it. But he can't withdraw somewhere until it disappears either. ]

[ That'd be tantamount to admitting he has much, much more to hide. ]

[ OOC: Memory bits shown are from 11:27 to 12:37, 15:21 to 20:17 and 20:28 to 24:19. ]

Comments

[ video ]

[haring_to_go]

[ It was the cupcakes that caught his eye at first as most things do when he's been thinking too much of Break. He barely even recognizes the Li in the cafe from the Li he saw in the videos first thing that morning.

No, no indeed not.

Because he can't help but think that Break would still swallow that cupcake whole. ]

Ah... I don't mean to interrupt, but what's that sticking out of those cupcakes? [ curiosity. It really does kill a cat. ]

[ video ]

[mortemscintilla]

[ There's no smokescreen quite like food. Indeed, how could it be the same 'Li' as in the video? When he glances up at Liam, he looks like such a nice guy. Clear-eyed, giving off an air of friendliness. Well-adjusted. ]

[ Nothing suspicious at all. ]

Hm? [ Oh. The cupcake. He affects a sheepish smile.] It's sugar-crystals. They're edible. And crunchy. [ Buy them 8V ]

[ video ]

[haring_to_go]

[ he attempts to look a little closer, mesmerized ] Those aren't left over from Halloween, are they?

[ because they look suspiciously like something he saw at a party once. ]

[ video ]

[mortemscintilla]

No, sir! [ PERISH THE THOUGHT! ] That was days ago. We're not supposed to keep products for that long. [ A placid smile. ] Would you like to try them?

[valentineluke]

They're better suited for Valentine's Day.

[mortemscintilla]

Do your Valentine's Days end in shattered glass and blood?

[valentineluke]

Occasionally. Back in the homeworld it was far more frequent.

[mortemscintilla]

Bad luck with women?

[ Hei certainly has enough of it. ]

action;

[dignity_misery]

[She's come to watch from the doorway. No, she shouldn't be back here. But what nobody else saw her do won't hurt them. Hey baby. She hasn't seen his memories, truthfully, she already knows he's got things to hide.]

action;

[mortemscintilla]

[ What's crackin', Lala? He's been bred with the best of soldiers, in the most chaotic of warzones. He knows she's standing at the door -- her reflection is blurry but distinguishable on the bright metal shelves. He doesn't turn around. He continues punching the dough. ]

[ He has secrets, yes. But so does everyone else. The easiest way of dealing with pests is to give them just enough to think they know you well, so they don't bother digging deeper. ]

action;

[dignity_misery]

Something under your skin, Li?

[ She's not trying to hide. ]

action;

[mortemscintilla]

[ A dismissive shake of the head. There's very little difference between Hei stewing and Hei just being quiet. But he refolds the dough, in a way that shows how careful he is being, to rein himself in. ]

Did you need something?

video;

[oceantrauma]

[So that one time Ken felt Li wasn't quite who he was might have some depth behind it. Still, Ken's too polite and gentle to mention it or bring it up. It's obvious "Li" knows it was shown. When he does talk, though, his voice is so quiet.]

A-are you going to sell those cupcakes?

video;

[mortemscintilla]

[ Years of gameplaying have honed Hei's percipience to a finely-tuned point. Ken's subdued tone is more revealing than any question. How much of the memory did he see? ]

Would you be interested in buying them?

video;

[oceantrauma]

[The whole thing. He DOES like gathering information, still.]

Yes. I'd like to try one. I'm assuming the shards are actually made of sugar? It's not too sweet, is it?

video;

[mortemscintilla]

[ Dammit. All that's left is to determine how deep the boy's suspicions run. Hei will deal with him accordingly. ]

That's right. Sugar-crystals. It's just them and the cream-cheese frosting that's sweet.

video;

[negativegate]

[Rita...is sort of confused by the memories and is thinking Li is kind of a weirdo for following a girl around. She could possibly give him credit for trying to fight off those goons...if she thought he was any good at fighting.]

...Your world looks pretty weird.

video;

[mortemscintilla]

[ His expression is carefully neutral. ]

Weird?

How so?

video;

[negativegate]

Following around complete strangers is considered creepy in my world.

[harrydresden]

What happened to the girl?

[mortemscintilla]

[ There's a softness in his eyes that verges on pity. It's not entirely faked. She -- Mai -- was turned into a monster. Stripped of decency, dehumanized and trained as a killer. ]

[ Just like him. ]

Nothing good. [ An exhale. ] She didn't make it.

[harrydresden]

Someone set something on fire man. Those guys had guns not flamethrowers.

What do you mean she didn't make it? [caveman Harry doesn't like to hear about little girls not making it]

[video]

[candothat]

[Chekov watched all of it. There's something... familiar? Something he isn't surprised to see? He wants to ask about the girl, and about--everything, but he isn't sure how to go about it.

And he has a terrible poker face.]

Those cupcakes are very interesting.

[video]

[mortemscintilla]

[ The inability to confide the truth doesn't bother Hei. His life has always been stringently compartmentalized. If Chekov had asked questions, he'd be wary of how much the other man suspected. The fact that he doesn't ask is equally telling. It's a lose-lose. But his smile is easy and full of welcome. ]

Thank you. Would you like to try one?

[video]

[candothat]

Ah... no thank you. They look [like they were made by a murderer who was well-trained in the culinary arts, but this is Li] difficult to eat.