THE SECOND TRIAL

[strangerpeople]

THE SECOND TRIAL

[After the final clue is found, the ticking sound in everyone's head abruptly stops.]

Well done, well done. Now, I believe you know where to go from here!

[There is the tell-tale rumble once more, and once more, if the Strangers don't go to the garden, there are dozens of bats more than happy to drag them there.

Despite the very dim light of the candles and the tray of "food" in the center of the Ossuary, it becomes clear- once everyone's been chained up and dragged to their designated place-that there are less coffins present than there were last week. Where Eddie, Akko, and Felicity's graves had been, there are nothing but a carefully balanced pile of skulls in their place. It's...best not to speculate whether any of those skulls happen to belong to the dead of your group.

Once everyone is forcibly settled, the scrolls that everyone possesses light up. Five faces appear alongside the evidence.]

THE FAST	THE ENEMY	THE CIRCUIT	THE APPROACH
				THE NOODLES

Now that we are all settled, I suggest you get to it. You do not have forever.

[As the Elder Steward finishes, the clock is ticking again. It's time to decide who is responsible for this horrible crime.


The trial for the murder of Franciscus Erkens, the Scorching, has begun.]

Comments

[joinhands]

Was even her clothing something you wouldn't find here...?

[incendiarize]

She was wearing a white dress, pretty fancy. I don't think I've seen something like that here?

[joinhands]

Wait—Jun was in possession of something like that at the meeting...! Of course he didn't do this, but from there—?

[whiterosefoes]

I'm sure he'd know if someone took it then. Did they?

[joinhands]

[Leave it to Jun but]

At any rate, if this Azura truly appeared through whatever mystical means, I'm not sure the stewards would have a trial like this. They went without for Eddie Kim, after all. They're trying to change us, and Azura's appearance wouldn't further that goal, would it?

[whiterosefoes]

No, it wouldn't. Voting for Azura would probably just screw us over somehow.

[icanhearscreams]

No, no one took it. I left it there, though. I'm not gonna wear a dress.

[necroyalty]

...do you happen to remember its size?

[icanhearscreams]

I... don't know female clothing sizes. Dress sized?

[He puts his hand out with how tall the dress was. Definitely taller than him.]

[inadequacyfeelings]

[Zelda's eyes widen]

Could you please quickly describe it?

[icanhearscreams]

Long, white... pretty delicate. It looked like really fancy material. I don't know much about fabrics.

[inadequacyfeelings]

...I wouldn't know for certain until I saw it myself, but it sounds like something I would own.

[Sure sounds a bit familiar, but hey, hers can't be the only long white delicate fancy dress in the whole universe. Still...she can't discard the possibility, yes?]

[necroyalty]

Something that diaphanous certainly sounds like a garment of elven make, but I wouldn't know without seeing it.

[icanhearscreams]

[Elves what the hell. He just gives Ambro a Look.]

[necroyalty]

...what?

[necroyalty]

[Ambrosine is about average height for a woman, with a build that's slim, yet curvy in a way that makes you think no real person looks like this. And very few people look like that, because magic was involved.

She never said she wasn't vain.

But she figures she could use herself as a baseline here.]

Alright. Krone says it was too small for herself, but do you suppose it could fit any of the women on the suspect list?

MODS

[icanhearscreams]

Hm... let me think...

[Could it have?]

[strangerpeople]

[Yes.]

[icanhearscreams]

[Which people are the right height for it?]

[strangerpeople]

[Pretty much every suspect except Eric are withing two-three inches of making the dress a dress and not a tunic.]

[icanhearscreams]

Most people here would fit, other than Eric. And I really don't want to see him try. Or Osomatsu.

[joinhands]

I remember thinking it was too small for myself, at least.