trusthell | Take Responsibility.

The time allotted for investigation this week is a bit longer than normal - not due to anything done wrong on the part of the Apprentices, but perhaps due to a basic understanding that two corpses are going to be decidedly more difficult to handle than one. However, at the end of the time period you've been given, the elevator is waiting for you, as cold and sterile as always in its journey up to the courtroom; you're down to almost half of your original number, and if anything is going to indicate that this shows no signs of stopping, it's probably this week.

The deceased have had three more join their numbers since you were here last - Gold, Varric, and Viktor's portraits have been greyed-out and set atop their spots in the podium circle, the podiums themselves draped in black fabric.

As always, the lectern above stands empty.

Whether he's with you or not, however, once everyone has found their place in the circle, the Wordsmith's voice can be heard throughout the room.

"Welcome back. Two more Apprentices are missing from your number today, and I have little doubt that weighs heavily on your minds. Balanced and Capricious have been lost to you, so that the guilty may have a chance to leave the academy and possibly even gain something otherwise impossible to attain.

If you wish for your fallen Apprentices to receive justice in death, then you know what to do: yet again, hold the guilty accountable."

Sixteen Apprentices remain. However many leave here at the end of the day has yet to be seen.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Go over what was wrong with them again?

[ He'll nod. ]

The trombone was rather dented. I think it's possible it may have come into contact with the Hammer at some point. The Piano looked pretty bashed up as well, including the keys. So I think a fight of some sort went down, and it's likely the trombone was used in that, along with the Hammer.

So... so what, do we think someone tried to use the trombone defensively? In a duel with a hammer?

Maybe they were playing it? That might be how Viktor's arms broke, if someone took a swing at him and hit the trombone first on accident.

... So what? Tethras and Viktor went for a drink, then went to the art room and didn't do anything, and then went to the music room and some weirdo came in with a hammer and smashed them up while they were doing a duet?

[ That sounds. So silly. ]

Well, we have drinks in a bar, stuff in the art room, and then the bulk of everything in the music room. And we still have to figure out why Varric was two floors above all of this when he died too.

What do you think happened?

...He could have been getting his crossbow to fight the culprit!

...the archery room is on the third floor. If Varric went there for a weapon, then that might be why he died there.

And if he really did kill Viktor-san, I highly doubt he would have done it like that!

Exactly. If he was planning to kill Viktor, then he would have already had a weapon in his hands. Why run to get another one?

But he died on the stairway going up to the second floor, right? So he just kept going?

Well he did always talk about Bianca, if that was in his room then maybe that's where he was going? Or maybe he grabbed a weapon and then started to run towards the rooms to get help?

The killer certainly went up to the rooms, since they did stuff in Varric's room.

Wait, wait, that doesn't work! Varric died or at least was pushed down the stairs, right? So the killer had to be above him on the second floor to do that. If the killer was chasing him, how does that work?

If Varric turned around to fight, that would explain why he was higher up on the stairs. Because of the height difference between him and pretty much everyone here, he would have had to be standing on a taller stair, for the killer to hit him in the chest instead of in the head.

Varric was pushed down the stairs though, do he'd be lower... right?

Not if he fell forward instead of being pushed.

[ Okay let her visualize this... ]

So someone hit him, and he fell forward. And they stepped out of the way as he tumbled down?

It's possible. If someone got hit in the chest so hard that it broke their ribs, then I can't imagine they would be able to stay standing.

[ She... slowly nods. Okay, yes, that could actually make sense. ]

How should I know?! None of this makes sense, especially the damned paints!

[ Nothing has come up about the paints. Or the cream puffs for that matter other than Gangrel circumstantially likes them ]

Did anyone find any paintbrushes or paper to go with them? Because otherwise, I don't really see how they fit into any of this.

There were some paintbrushes there and the had paint on them, but there was nothing they were used on. That I could see.

[Suddenly something clicks in Watanuki's mind.]

The time. If the paints were still wet this morning, then they had to have been used pretty late last night. And Varric and Viktor met up at 10 pm, and they probably hung out for a while before anything bad happened, given how much they apparently did last night.

If the paints were still wet, then it's reasonable to expect that the killer's hair might still be wet. Since they showered and all. That's especially true for those of you with long hair too, that stuff takes forever to dry!

Yeah it does! Mine can take hours to air dry completely!

Yes, I believe that could have happened. Either way, I'm sure the Trombone somehow met with the Hammer, and it wasn't over pleasantries.

Take Responsibility.

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