vivarium | DOUBLE BLIND

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DOUBLE BLIND

Shortly after the conversation with Zero ends, Zero opens the doors of the Garden and allows everyone to leave. However, the rest of the warehouse isn't better than the Garden:

The lights are still off, leaving everyone surrounded in darkness. The temperature just keeps on dropping, reaching near freezing point. The air feels more and more polluted, making it difficult to breathe without coughing, and nothing seems to be working as they should be. The electronic doors refuse to open without any power source, cutting off access to the cafeteria and dorms. At the very least, Zero has managed to open all the doors leading to puzzle rooms and has informed the group that new areas are now accessible to them, but they're on their own should they want to enter any other rooms.

Before the screens in the Garden turn off, Zero finally informs them that a new feature has been unlocked on their bracelets: any test subject wearing a bracelet may communicate with one another with the bracelet acting as a communication device. Holding onto the left button will enable the line to open just like a walkie-talkie. As long as test subjects are in the warehouse, they will have no troubles speaking with one another. What if they wish to talk to Zero? Zero's time is not be riffled, but they were generous enough to appear whenever anyone found a screen and pressed the on button a total of three quick successions.

And with that, Zero disappears from the grids and finally leaves everyone in complete darkness, leaving only one last piece:

"Best of luck, Test Subjects."

BASIC INFO ✖ MISSIONS ✖ MINGLE

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Hershel, pettiness was rude. Although Heiji was sort of amused by the idea, too. "The Singing Skull, Windy City Blues, The Q on the Radio... Oh, I bet Sasuke'd like this one: The Cat Who Knew Too Much."

He looked absolutely delighted by their finds and sadly he was... not the best candidate for getting someone to stop reading. "Oh, hey, here's an etiquette book.

'If a woman places feathers from a capon that has hatched young chickens in her husband's ear as well as hair from the right leg of his dog and from the tip of his cat's tail, he would never forget his love for her.'"

Heiji looked suspiciously at Hershel, like he was responsible for this.

Shh, no one needed to know how rude he truly was. "Oh, I've never heard of that one." That, at least, go him to stop reading, hooking the other book under his arm to examine this new one. Nothing was going to get done. Nothing. This is a disaster.

He missed that, too engrossed in sampling all this wonderful shit, but he did glance up to catch that look. "... what? What's that-" He leaned over, wrinkling his nose. "Etiquette? You know we did never finish those lessons." You brought this upon yourself.

"Hey, it's got some 'Useful British Phrases for Everyday Conversation'." Clearly this was not going to be a disaster, clearly not. Heiji flipped through a few pages.

"Let's see, ordering lunch... 'Not to be a bother, but I'd like a spot of bollocking fish and chips. Now chivvy along, lad, bob's your uncle.'"

"Why would you need a book for that, I wonder." Hershel shook his head, clearly unaware British slang was crazy bananas and made no god damned sense.

He went back to his book, freezing when Heiji went and spoke in tongues. "Heiji, what on earth was that?" At least he stopped reading a minute to properly look the book over again with a disapproving frown. "Well someone was having a right laugh, you didn't make a bloody bit of sense there. 'Chivvy along,' for goodness's sake." Tip tip cheerio old chap etc, get it right. "That book is clearly rubbish, it won't do at all."

Heiji meanwhile was just trying not to laugh as he flipped through the book, randomly opening it to a page that was apparently about yelling at people. "'Cor Blimey, you blinkered shitlord wanker! I'll box your ears!'"

Oh, wow, and this next section was about bangs. Heiji turned a bit red and closed the book, handing it to Hershel. Britshisms were mysterious...

"A-anyway, there's a phrasebook in Ukrainian, too. I bet we could use this on Jake."

"Well I say!" Goodness what was he hearing, have a stern look. "Don't curse, Heiji, it's terribly untoward. Put that dreadful book down- etiquette, it says. Honestly..."

He took the book with a curious look, why that red, Heiji. Why. Was it because of banging. "What's that look for?"

Now he's interested. "Oh? I hope it's better than this one- what does it say?"

"Um, it was nothing, it just... bangs..." Yeah, uh. He'd always thought those were like... part of a haircut.

"Well, it gives ya a bunch of things to say while you're traveling and ways to strike up a conversation. Like 'Hello, my name is so-and-so', and 'What happened to your face?' 'Do you like beef jerky?'" Hmm. Hmm. Well, in any case, it seemed more legit than that other one.

"Bangs?" Hershel stared a moment before turning a touch red. Oh. Oh. Just going to throw the book to one of the tables. How uncouth.

"I'm not sure I could even pronounce some of this." He said in amusement. "Vitayu?" Imagine him trying to say that. "Jak ty... how on earth do you say that?"

Y-yeah. Good save, Hershel.

"You got me," said Heiji, "But come to think of it, ain't it odd? If he's Ukranian, how come he sounds like an American all the time?" Neither of them knew how to pronounce anything. They were going to end up asking Jake if his ducks liked hot tea, that's what was going to happen.

Let us never speak of this terrible book again...

"Oh, actually-" Hershel lit up a bit, the light of fresh gossip to chat about. He's literally the worst. "Ema and I thought that was very odd too, but the other day I accidentally woke him up and he most certainly had an accent that wasn't American." It was awesome. "I don't really know why he must make a point of hiding it, but for whatever reason he does. Maybe he doesn't want people to know where he's from?" Mysterious.

Until someone needed to be called a shitlord wanker, of course.

"You mean if we bug him while he's half asleep, he might do it again?" Heiji seemed rather amused by the idea. "It does make sense, though. If he just talks with an American accent, everyone'd think he was just some tourist. People let their guards down around sightseers -- even store owners."

Just above the Ukranian book was another language guide. Hmm. Heiji took it off the shelf. "Oh, it looks like this one's about Japanese."

He opened it to a random page; maybe some kind of huge nerd had written this one, because it was some entry about tsundere individuals and examples of being tsun. "...Wait, what's this garbage?"

"Possibly. I wouldn't recommend waking him but..." Hey, if they happened to find him when he was sleepy? Could anyone blame them? Absolutely not, look at their faces. "Maybe he spent some time in America too, I imagine it's easier to pick up accents that way. What a strange bunch we have here."

"Oh? Let me see." Hershel peered over, skimming the bit about tsunderes with a furrowed brow before suddenly it shot up again. "Ah! That's like you, isn't it? What's it called- tsundere?" Imagine that pronounced completely wrong.

"It ain't like me at all!" said Heiji, whose reaction to being called tsun was apparently to tsunly deny that he was tsun at all. "Who's 'irritable'? If anyone here runs hot and cold, it's Snake!"

Heiji was suddenly fuming. "You know what he did when we were down in the basement? He just ran off and took a bunch of those robots with them. 'Good luck with that generator manual', he says. Then when I finally find him again, he's got himself cornered. And what's he say when I ask him what he was thinking? 'One of us has to be logical'. Oh, so it's okay when he does it, is it? But when I do it, I'm bein' irrational? Logical, my foot!"

Uh.

Hershel wasn't exactly shocked by the response, it was properly tsun and all. He did keep quiet as Heiji said his piece, peeking over at the definition again. Yeah, well. Yeah.

"I see..." Good answer, Hershel. He stopped himself from pointing out anymore tsun shit, for now, instead shaking his head. "That sounds exactly like the sort of thing you would do and then say it was the best option or what not. Not that he was right to be so flippant about it. You two really do need to be more careful." He sighed, then paused.

"Does that make you both tsundere then? That doesn't seem quite right."

"He's the one who needs to be careful," grumbled Heiji in a manner that was not tsun, not tsun at all. "That dummy coulda gotten himself really hurt. He almost did!" Clearly Heiji was the only one around here allowed to use himself as bait. CLEARLY.

"Neither of us are, okay? That's just something a bunch of weirdos that like dating sims came up with."

Have an unimpressed look. "You can be just as bad and you know it. How many times have I said the same sort of thing to you?" Tsk tsk. "If you expect him to listen you should try being more careful too- leading by example, you know?" This clearly would never happen but he can dream.

Hershel didn't look convinced, pulling the book so he could get a better look at it. "What's a 'baka' and a 'senpai?'"

"Yeah, but I don't insult you when ya do it." So there. Hmph.

"I can't believe I thought he was even a little bit -- oh. A senpai's like an upperclassman or a senior. Like someone who's in a class above yours or someone who's been in a job longer than you. They're supposed to help out the newer folks. Baka's just like... y'know, a dummy or a moron or somethin'."

"I'm not trying to insult you." Hershel had to smile a little. "But fair point. We're all a little daft, I suppose. A bunch of pots calling kettles black and what not." And a pause. "So he's alright? He wasn't hurt, was he?"

"I see." He frowned down seriously at the book. "'It's not like I like you or anything, baka.' You know this reminds me of Kuzuryuu too the more I read about it. I always though you-" two were kind of similar. He politely coughed and doesn't say that, you're welcome. "Well, there we are."

"Yeah, but I'm pretty sure he was," said Heiji, making a face. He slid his gaze away from Hershel, looking a little unhappy. "He did get hurt. That robot slammed him into the wall a couple times and he cut his forehead. I made sure to clean it, but...

But he'd still been worried about Snake, goddammit. Headbutting a robot, how ridiculous. He needed to take better care of himself and definitely not get into any more danger, what a total jerk. Not that he cared or anything, b-baka.

When Hershel said almost the exact same thing Heiji was thinking, Heiji froze a little but you know what he was resisting this messaging. Not tsun, nope. "...you mean me and Kuzuryuu were kinda the same? Of course we were. We both talk straight. Although he probably coulda used some more manners."

"Ah, well, Snake is rather... direct." Polite way of putting it. When Heiji went a little more downtrodden Hershel tried patting his arm. "I can see why you're so agitated then. I'm sure he'll be alright, he's a tough one, but if you like I could try talking to him about being more careful in the future. I doubt it will help much coming from me but maybe hearing it on more than one side will mean something."

That was the best he could offer to do, at least. And in the meantime, tsunderes. "Ah, well yes, basically." That's one way of putting it. "Kuzuryuu was a funny one, wasn't he? Half the time you needed to read between the lines to see how he really felt." Tsun.

"Makin' me worry like that," said Heiji, grumble grumble. "Don't even know why he did it; it's not like him to go haring off like that. If he messes with that bandage of his, I'm really gonna lay him out."

...So basically, a large part of Heiji's complaining was simply him worrying about Snake. Sorry bro, but now you knew why he acted like this.

"...Really? I understood him just fine, though." Tsunspeak, it was like telepathy. "I mean, there are some things you just can't come out and say. Know what I'm sayin'?"

He's not surprised, that's pretty Heiji. "I'm sure he won't, he's sensible in these matters at least." And he wouldn't want to be badgered into a hole with how people fret around here.

"I suppose so." Tsun speak is so mysterious. "Though what would you say those things are? Love and the like?" That seemed to be the sticking point for Heiji when it came to getting flustered and tsun.

"I guess. I dunno how you and Snake can just talk about that kinda thing. But as for Kuzuryuu... it's probably more than that. He don't want anyone to know that he really cares about certain things, y'know? Like that girl from his memories."

He waved a hand, suddenly cheerful. "He's just a little shy, that's all!" If you thought about it, it was kind of cute...?

"It's hardly an unpleasant topic, even if it's an embarrassing one occasionally." These westerners and their weird romance chatter. "That's true, I think he was afraid of having a reputation for caring rather than having one for being tough. Strange, but it did seem important to him." Yakuza...

He shook his head. "Well, this has been an interesting cultural exchange, to say the least." He was still totally behind tsundere being a thing, it just finally explained so much. It was clearly an important piece to the puzzle.

"It's not that it's unpleasant," said Heiji, looking a little... tsun. "It's just not something ya really talk about out loud. If ya like someone, you don't always have to say it out loud." Apparently Snake hadn't gotten that memo, as he talked about everything.

"For a tough guy like Kuzuryuu, he can't just let on that he's got a soft spot. If he does, everyone's gonna try and get in his face. So part of it's maintaining his reputation. You already saw how people got on his case for bein' short, right?"

Yes, Hershel, but would you ever truly understand the true depth of being tsun.

DOUBLE BLIND

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it's your wish hal it has come true

finally the time has come...

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