smash_logs | The Framing of Justice

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The Framing of Justice

Who: People and Caim
What: This is a catch all.
When: November 26 ~ November 30
Where: See the aforementioned cut.
Warning: Probably not.

What is this? Why, it's a 'catch-all' log. Very simple!

Caim doesn't have an office, unfortunately. You can find him in any number of places, however, between the dates listed previously. So if you're looking to... 'talk' with the mute, try looking in the following.

♦ Personal Quarters - TD-07 (It's a very organised and somewhat barren room.)
♦ Fencing Classroom - (There's not much in here yet.)
♦ Greenhouse
♦ The Lake

He's available for talking to, whether you're interrogating him over past events, recent ~~dick cat~~ events, future events, or if you've never met the man at all.

Make a separate thread for each character and in the subject line, specify an approximate time, day, and location. Action or prose, either's fine. Backdate, futuredate - whatever is convenient for you. That's all you need to do!

INSTANT MUTE MAGIC!

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[Arching an eyebrow, if he could have spoken, he would have simply asked if she was being silly intentionally. Instead, he shook his head and beckoned her in with his other hand, after he gave her a slightly amused bow.

For sometimes, it was nice to act like royalty, even with a kingdom lost. Somewhere in the very back of his mind, he was playing with the thought of remaking their kingdom. In one of the worlds that the portals led to. If Furiae wanted it, he would do so in a heartbeat.

His hand found the board again.]

I was getting the room ready for its first session. Next week, I think. What think you?

[ To be teased so - it was still such a strange thing for Furiae, who hadn't been victim of it in a long time. It easily made her feel slightly foolish, but she accepted it when she was given it, and moved into the room at his invitation (after closing the door).

For a moment, she took a look at the room around them. The teacher desk, the rows of smaller ones for the student, the bookcase by a wall - it struck her as odd, if only because it didn't meet with the image she had in her head.

But when she heard the sound of the writing, she brought her attention back to the board and her brother to see what he wrote. Ah, another for her... ]

If you are close to ready, then it should be fine. Are you?

[As he eyed her for a time, he thought her response a platter of delightful diplomacy. And it was a bit suspicious if he were to be honest over it. Had something bothered her? And supposed that something was him? For surely she had overheard something regarding the situation of the murdered young girl. And likely somehow that there was some far off connection with him. Perhaps she had come to chide him for past behaviours she could not recall.

But had he ever told her? He was certain he had.

Replacing the marker, he moved around his desk over to her and after a moment of simply admiring her, as he rather liked her being in one piece, he reached over to finger some of the locks of brown. So much like his and yet completely different. And if he didn't watch his own, then it could very well grow to the same length. A thought he filed away for later and instead, he voiced his words for her, as she seemed to prefer it.

Slow. And. Deliberate.]

As ready as a mute man can be. Are you teasing me, sister?

[ His stare, the walk to her and the touch of her hair. Furiae felt a sense of worry come over her than any of comfort. Was what she had said so strange? When it had been a response given earnestly of a sister thinking of her brother's future...

but those words he mimed and how clearly he did so. Did he truly think that she was teasing him? Her brows furrowed and a hand went to mess with a bracelet that wasn't there, instead touching a wrist and then the book. ]

Why would I tease you, Caim? Do you think it will be impossible to do without your voice?

[ But then, a thought- the recollection of the rumours of the murder. It made her frown, and the positivity she had felt only just moments seemed to begin to fade. ]

... you believe the suspicion of the murder will get in the way.

You must admit that it could be troublesome without a voice to instruct.

[Would he have considered himself in distress over the loss of his voice? No. Not particularly. He'd spent some time without it to begin with. Why would the rest of his life be such an ordeal? It was a symbol of his bond to Angelus and he could not deny that he thought of it as some punishment from Divine Providence. Karma, some would have called it.

Her keen observation rendered from him a transparent pause and after a moment he tilted his head with some consideration. That would likely cause some problems. The murder anyway. His hand withdrew and he tapped at his chin.]

A little. I must fight for my innocence. I have never imagined I would even consider the thought. Should something happen to me... I have ensured your safety and security even without my presence.

[ She didn't like it - the thought that something would 'get in the way'. And that the thing would be something that Caim, as far as Furiae believed, had no part of. He said he would fight for his innocence, but Furiae didn't to believe in an outcome that would involve Caim being taken away for a crime he didn't do, not reading fully the last of the words he lipped. She shook her head. ]

You have done nothing wrong. You had only returned when it happened, and you have spent most of your time since with me. I will tell that to anyone I must.

[ Maybe Caim didn't need to hear that she would and already believed it, but it was a bitter feeling to know that he was being blamed for this and she wanted to say it anyway. If he were taken down for it - that would bring justice to no one, especially not to the murdered victim. She knew they could say she wasn't a reliable person due to their relation, but she wanted to believe in a better outcome. ]

[His immediate reaction was to blink. What an endearing girl. But she had been so precocious since she was a child and he could still see those traits in her in the present. There was some odd comfort he got from the idea that not all things had to change with time. Even if he needed to, it was nice and soothing to see that she did not entirely need to.

...Except perhaps to grow a little more assertive. But with hopes stashed away, Caim believed he could teach her something of that.

Caim reached over for her and with a ginger motion, he moved to slip an arm about her small frame. Her words garnered from him a genuine smile, the kind of smile he reserved only for her. It was just a glimpse that the brother she'd grown up with still existed and was not lost to all of the rage he'd suffered through.]

I trust that. You do not need to lie for me - now or ever, in the case you ever feel you must. It is true. Much of my time has been spent with you when I am not slumbering. Fret less for me, however. I imagine I shall be fine.

[After all, he had plans of helping out Knuckles. Perhaps he could redeem at least a sliver of himself.]

[ Where Caim could see traces of her younger self, Furiae wondered often how much of that girl had been lost in those long and lonely years. She had always wished for bygone times in those days, but now that she had just an inkling of that in the form of a life returned with her only family (even if it had been at the price of death), Furiae felt within herself a reservation, even to her own brother.

But his touch was still mostly a comfort, and even more the smile that she thought had been lost the tragedy long ago. When he brought her into his arm and she saw his face, some of the anxiety inside her mind did feel soothed. She followed his lips, garnering as much of their message by their movement and by his expression, and took a breath. ]

I only want you to be safe, and to be happy. I do not want accusations to stand in the way of that.

[ She looked out to the classroom for a moment, then looked back to her brother. ] And I pray that you might find some good as a teacher. Even without your voice- I am sure we can find a way to resolve that, somehow.

[ Her words were softly-spoken as usual for her voice, but the sincerity and hope in them were clear, and maybe that made them somehow stronger. Perhaps she had even given more thought to Caim's place as a teacher more than she had to herself as a student. ]

[She was a bit of a silly girl, wasn't she? Furiae, trying to look out more for him than for herself. And it was supposed to be the other way around. He was the elder. It was not only his privileged position, but his right as her older brother to care for her, protect her, and furl his proverbial wings about her. He was to be her tower of strength, the sword and 'shield' that guarded her from all that would attempt to do unto her detriment.

And yet she seemed to be...

Well. It was as if they lived in a storybook. Soldiers came home from war to wives and children who loved them and cared for them. And while the thought of trying to associate Furiae as a 'wife' of sorts was... interesting. For a brief moment, his eyebrows knit together and he finally took her left cheek into his palm carefully.]

I prosper as long as you are here and safe.

[And he idly wondered if he might never be unhappy again. But it was far too soon to even imply such a thing.]

[ When Caim moved his hand to her cheek, she tilted her head so that it would cup it with ease. The smile that had begun to replace the look of concern was now more visible, turning from something small and gentle to one with a little more brightness. Her brother, when they had been young and growing up, had always cared for her, and Furiae thought no differently of his position as the one who cared for her.

But it was true that she now wanted to return that kindness and to take some form of the responsibility for the two of them. She was no longer fourteen, nor a child, and while she may not be as wise as she should, she was a woman, capable and free. Even if she did not know all the ways she could help, Furiae intended to try nonetheless.

And wanting to help and comfort Caim, this desire - it came so naturally to her. She brought up a hand to rest against his. ]

As long as you are here, there is nowhere else I wish to be.

[They were the kinds of words that made him panic a mite. Not because they were ill-suited or not genuine, but rather that he didn't always know how to handle them. Sensations of sympathy, care, tenderness, and so on were all very foreign concepts to him. Well, not foreign, but rather concepts he'd not put into practise for many, many years.

Yet Furiae seemed to wield them easily just as she ever had from their more youthful days.

He took her hand instead, very gently squeezed it, and he nodded.]

No truer words were ever spoken by princesses so lovely. [It caused him to smile and he looked around his classroom before turning his attention back onto her.] Do you still intend to attend my class when it begins? I do not believe I am permitted to hold favourtism toward you, though we are bound by blood.

[ Her own words, after said and out there, made even Furiae feel a certain bashfulness to them, as if they were perhaps too strange to say - but it was only when Caim took hold of her hand and lipped those words ('lovely' so easy to read even with how little use it often received) that Furiae thought she could feel some heat to her cheeks. She was glad that his attention went elsewhere, so she too could turn her face away. Ah, how easily she could be teased...

When she caught him turning his head back out of the corner of her eye, she did the same too, hoping that there was nothing noticeable to see. The lag in her attention nearly caused her to miss his first few words, but she quickly caught onto the subject. The practice ~~that they probably did because well why not they had to waste time doing something~~ had helped her well. ]

I would not want you to treat me any differently than your other students. If you did, I don't know if you would ever permit me to hold a weapon.

[ She smiled, and it was something of a playful smile. A little bashful, too. Did she think that? Well... ]

[Her response garnered from him almost an immediate expression of mirth. Subtle, perhaps, but still certainly there and not something that she would miss. Unless of course her attention had been elsewhere, for no matter how inconspicuous she had tried to seem, Caim dared to say he knew his baby sister better than anyone else. She could attempt to be as sly as she wanted to be, but he imagined he would know the truth of things.

Most of the time anyway. And to see her come off as so genuinely shy was indeed its own category of precious. For that reason - among others - he was not quick to release her hand and instead he eventually guided it to settle at his chest, right above the calm thumping of his heart, with his own hand resting upon hers.]

You know me too well, Furiae. [Which caused mirth to gradually grow into a light smile.]

As your brother, I should wonder if it is safe for you to learn weaponry skills. Yet this world is not ours and I intend to make us a 'kingdom' within it. Those freedoms I spoke of for you before extend here. If you wish to learn, then learn you shall. You are to do as you please. There are no obligations or duties for you to follow.

[ It had been useless for her to worry about the passing warmth she had felt on her face before. Not because of the look he gave her, indeed noticed by his sister who felt her own smile grow more at the sight of it. That was a face that allowed her to know that he had caught the playfulness in her words and made her happy for it, unused as she still was to teasing but glad that it was accepted.

No, it had become a needless act when he took her hand in his and pressed it to his chest. At such a move Furiae wanted to look down, but the soundless words that Caim began to speak made her hesitate to give anything more than a mere glance. She kept her face towards his, attention to him, and felt almost trapped between a simple conversation and the gentle heartbeat hidden under the fabric of Caim's shirt. Her own voice became lost somewhere inside herself, taking Furiae a moment to speak, and not as playfully as she had only been a second ago. ]

Y... yes, I understand... and I will be careful, too, of course...

[ It could hardly be called a response. Not even half of the words had left her mouth before Furiae turned her face away at the growing flustered sensation that was in her body.

If his sister's shyness was the goal, then Caim had certainly received the reward. ]

[Furiae's bashful nature was something that made Caim feel something very deep within himself. In fact, most of the time they were together, it was as if she rebirthed life into the parts of him he thought dead. A beautiful concept, he supposed, and it sounded completely unlike the Caim that everyone else knew him to be - except his sister, of course. For she'd known he wasn't always the stern and cold man that he portrayed himself to be.

To the rest of the world minus a few, he was heartless. Yet to Furiae, Caim imagined he was all she had. With Inuart dead, no dragon, Manah still in the guidance counselor's position... Furiae's list of allies had shortened. She needed him whether she admitted it or not, and her brother knew it.

He squeezed her hand gently and released it, consequently attempting to release her from her flustered state as well. He turned his attention onto the whiteboard and in a matter of moments, demonstrated for her only a piece of the tranquility he had obtained while in the academy. Once upon a time, he and Ai had plans of doing art together and Caim was not so unhandy with a pencil in hand.

He gave a rather rough sketch of Furiae, though more childlike in nature, wielding a rapier and shot his sister a vague smile over his left shoulder as he tapped the board.]

I do believe that shall be you.

[ And thus came the freedom of her hand back to her own person, finding refuge with her other in holding the book that had been mostly forgotten by the woman. But no freedom came as instantly from her own beating heart and how mixed she felt inside for her reaction. She could at least be glad that he didn't tease her any more than he had so far that day.

... Though she did have to wonder about that image he drew of her. Her, holding a rapier, a weapon. Yes, this was where she was leading herself, and yet - oh, could she think of it so seriously with how Caim had portrayed it? She took a step forward to look at it - and she couldn't help but to smile in amusement as it; a hand even went up to her lips in case she was to chuckle.

But she didn't say anything, not straight away. Instead, Furiae took a second to put the book down onto Caim's desk (being the closest surface to her) and then went up to the board. She turned to her brother, taking the pen (his or a spare) to then add a friend to the drawing.

She didn't draw a quickly as Caim did, and her own piece didn't come out as well as his, either. It was an image of himself, stiff-looking thanks to the lines she tried to make as tidy as possible, in what looked like one of the many suits that teachers wore at the academy. A tidy collar, a tie that hid underneath the buttoned up jacket, and shoes that looked, well... like she tried.

And he held a book too, open and held out by an awkwardly bent elbow. But Furiae had a bit of a proud smile when she was done, taking a small step back to look at it. She had never taken to drawing when she was younger, much rather preferring to spend her time with Caim and Inuart, and her parents hadn't pressured her into the activity since she behaved in her more necessary subjects.

And, well... it showed. But Furiae didn't seem so embarrassed by the attempt she had displayed, when she looked up her brother. ]

And this shall be you.

[There was pleasant surprise in Caim's features when she joined him and even more so when he realised what she was doing. If either had been educated of anything in the art field as children, it was likely music. Except neither had a forte in it, it seemed. Well, Caim had not. He was certain Furiae held her own variety of secrets and he wouldn't have put it past her to claim an expertise in something without him knowing. Unlikely, perhaps, but certainly not impossible.

He eyed her completed drawing and gave unto her a sincere smile, almost on the very edge of baring his teeth. This was the life they should have been allowed to have. This was the feeling they should have been able to experience sooner rather than later, but at least they were having it now rather than not at all.

Something lurked in the back of his mind, however, and it came up whenever he began to feel 'too pleased' or 'too content.' He had not forgotten that Furiae had needed a reminder of what she had missed in her last visit to the academy. And Caim assumed that even before that, she knew nothing of what he had suffered, or of what he had done to her. The Seed of 'Resurrection,' her 'rebirth,' and mankind's salvation. The very occasion that had sent him to the floor of an academy hall without Angelus the first time.

A series of sounds that he would hear at night as he slept. Sounds that would echo between his ears in the silence that sometimes sat between them. Sounds that pulled at the strings of Caim's remaining sanity. It was the dark fact of the matter that no matter how he may have worked to atone the academy, the greater sin still was the one that brought him to kill his own sister. Terrifying and something he could not ask forgiveness for, for if he told her...

He shook his head slowly and looked back to her drawing. Then he tried to straighten his posture and look more the instructor than the older brother.]

Why, what a spitting image of me. [And he really didn't think it was half bad at all.]

[ Though Caim's wasn't all that bad, neither of their pieces were likely to find themselves displayed for years to come amongst the collections of a wealthy lord. Furiae knew that, and the more that she looked at the drawings before her, looked at her brother's straightened posture beside her, back again to the scribbles on the board -

The laughter came. It was like a chuckle, maybe more like a giggle, and Furiae couldn't stop it from coming out. The hand to her mouth was now necessary, covering her lips with the back of her fingers as she turned her head away.

Could she have ever guessed in those moments ago she would laughing in this? It for too long had been such a foreign reaction to her, but now it seemed to come out from her as natural as laughter should: suddenly, with humour and with pleasure.

What an awful drawing! For whatever Caim would think of it, Furiae could see nothing else. And that was fine. ]

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The Framing of Justice

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I was getting the room ready for its first session. Next week, I think. What think you?

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