[POST-MORTEM] not to blame

[theuniverseleads]

Who: Loop & others
What: Loop doing Loop things
When: October 5th ~ 14th (and probably onward to the end of the month)
Where: Locations™
Warnings: hello depression spiral my old friend.... talk of murder/dead kids, suicidal thoughts, ISAT and GF spoilers, will update if needed!


After everything that happened on the 4th, it's not long before Loop's cozy new camp is also left abandoned. The cozy pillows remain for awhile, perhaps, but Loop is nowhere to be found near it for the rest of the month.

... and they're not at their old tree, either, if anyone decides to check. There's slash marks in the ground, here, and deep in the tree's bark, swathes off willowy branches sheared from the curtain surrounding it. How long has it been like that?

Regardless, they don't plan on being an easy person to find.


((using this as a catch-all instead of attacking like a dozen inboxes maybe, so hit me up BlueFlewFedUQueen/discord/PMs/etc if you want to do something with Loop!!))

Comments

[ephemeralflow]

[Timekeeper has... managed to miss this whole thing. On the plus side, she's found one half of her Sonic Embroider again, buried somewhere random at the edge of the woods. How it got like that is a mystery for another time... she's still brushing dirt and polishing smudges off it as she walks back towards the inn, and it isn't until the black, bony dog walking with her stops dead in his tracks and growls that she looks up.

...Is that window broken? Hmm. More importantly, she spies a familiar glow up on the roof. She thought Loop had a new space, now? Something feels off, and it's an easy choice to speak to the person she knows who's right here, first.

She pats Sidereal on the shoulders, then points to the ground. He sits back on his haunches, staying obediently on watch, and Timekeeper steps onto the Embroider like it's some kind of hoverboard, swooping upwards to step onto the roof and approach Loop.]

Well now, what are you doing up here of all places, looking so glum?

[theuniverseleads]

[They're looking pretty glum, yeah. Having your secret exposed along with the realization that your better-self was replaced and no one else seems to care will do that to you. They look up at her tiredly.

... hah, wouldn't it be awful if she was a doppelganger, too? That'd just be their luck. They sigh, unfolding themselves to lean back on their palms.]

If you're another copy, just get it over with and kill me. I don't care anymore. No one will bother looking for me anyway.

[So, you know! Having a normal one!]

[ephemeralflow]

[Ah, hm, yeah, that's... something. Timekeeper tilts her head questioningly, taps her chin, then sits down herself in one smooth motion, legs crossed as she sets the abused scissor half down next to her.]

I did notice a few spats with apparent doubles... [That she more or less ignored because it wasn't anyone she immediately cared about, oops!] ...So have you encountered yours, then? Hm! At the least, I do not have to worry that this is really you. I doubt a copy would offer to die, or believe that lie so deeply.

[She would look. Siffrin would look. Any of Siffrin's friends would look, she'd wager, they're all frustratingly mushy enough for that - well, if none of them are imposters, anyway.

Timekeeper isn't going to proclaim that she's not a double, because what would be the point? A double would say they're not a double. Instead, she snaps her fingers, and after a moment Continuum Cog zips up, having arrived from somewhere else in town. It clicks curiously, then in alarm as it sees Loop, hovering down to nudge at them in concern.]

As for me, would it do to have Cog vouch?

[theuniverseleads]

[Cog is just about the weirdest animal(?) to be comforted by, but they're not one to argue right now. Loop quietly gives the little guy a pat, listening in passive silence.

... she won't kill them, at least. Supposedly. Maybe that's good enough for right now. They'll get upset about it later if she ends up backstabbing them while they're already down.]

You're fine, Timekeeper.

... Siffrin is gone. So is Dipper. And Siffrin still has a copy running around, so be careful if you see him. I want to believe he's still alive somewhere, but...

[They never saw a corpse, but they don't think a copy would get so cozy in Siffrin's bedroom unless the original was taken care of. Makes them sick to think about it. They sigh.]

Dipper was found dead this morning. Stan and I, we proved that the fake Siffrin did it but the others let him go anyway... I should've known sooner, I could've had him.

[If they'd used killing intent from the start, they could've taken him out so, so much faster. Faster than anyone could've stopped them. But they fell for his lies, and almost believed him. Tragic.]

[ephemeralflow]

[The moment "So is Dipper" leaves Loop's, uh, face? Timekeeper goes completely still. Not even breathing still. Her eye is locked on them, expression quite possibly the blankest they've seen yet. She lets them finish, but all words that aren't the relevant information slip through her ears.

Siffrin's copy killed Dipper. It's still out there somewhere. Got it.

Cog looks up from leaning into Loop's pat, shudders, and hides behind Loop. Timekeeper stands again abruptly, Embroider in hand, and scans the area, her face cast in shadow from the brim of her hat.]

Which direction.

[It's a demand, not a question. Her lips still curl, but it looks more like a snarl than a smile now. (She wants to rip out the voice in her head telling her not to care, that this timeline doesn't have to be real, that she can just wind it back. She saw someone try that here once. She's tried enough herself to know it won't work.)]

[theuniverseleads]

[It's a pretty unnerving expression. They stare at her, hand still on Cog, and find that it's weirdly... reassuring? If looks could kill that fake would be dead in the woods already. They meet her gaze, expression softly touched.

... well, until they have to break the bad news. Their face falls again, coloured with shame.]

I don't know. I... lost track of them pretty quickly. [ah. they should explain more, so she doesn't try to kill—] The Fighter is with the copy. I didn't see them from this side, so they must've gone the other way somewhere. I'm not sure where.

[Sorry is implied. They're feeling pretty useless today, after everything that went down.]

[ephemeralflow]

[And unfortunately, Timekeeper is not much good at comforting. Especially not when she's this incensed. She stalks over to the edge of the roof and whistles sharply - Sidereal stands immediately, giving a single bark. Timekeeper glances back towards Loop.]

If the Fighter gets in the way, I won't hesitate.

[That's all she has to say before she hops off the roof and lands easily on the grass. She waves for the dog to follow, and enters the inn with him trotting after her.

She's headed for Siffrin's room. There's more than one way to sniff out a rat, and if the copies are good enough that they even threw Loop off for a bit, surely the scent is similar enough.]

[theuniverseleads]

Don't hurt him, he's— [They crawl forward and shout after her before she's fully gone, before they can doubt their own words. The Fighter didn't believe them, the Fighter replaced Siffrin, they shouldn't care anymore, but—

They sigh, leaning over the edge of the roof even after she disappears. They're tempted to go after her...

Turns out they don't have to, though, when they hear familiar steps from an open window below. They scale their way back down the wall, swinging into Siffrin's room—it's still a mess in here, glass on the floor and huge dents in the walls. The door is in about a hundred pieces outside.

... Ah, they do also remember spotting that in here. Not that they should need to point it out to her. They pull it out of the fishtank anyway, since Callan seems to be out.

......... they might have to bring him a gift later, to appease his petty wrath or something. Hrm.

Anyway, they hesitate before holding it out to her, a more resolute expression on their face this time.]

Please don't hurt him. The Fighter... [sigh. their stupid lovesick idiot,] I doubt he would've been able to anyway, even knowing it's a fake. That's just the kind of person he is.

[ephemeralflow]

Ah, that's where it went.

[She might have more to say about how funny it is that Siffrin wound up with the other, long-missing half of the Embroider, if she weren't of a singular seething mind right now. Instead, she simply takes the battered and broken length of metal from Loop, setting it behind her and letting it rest against her back like a weapon in a video game. Levitation magic is good for more than just flying, after all.]

...No promises.

[But she will try, she supposes. Even with the small amount she's spoken to Isabeau before, it's obvious he's exactly that kind of person. Too kind for his own good, indeed. And... with Loop asking this of her, she's going to guess he's not on the suspected duplicates list. She wouldn't know how to tell, certainly.

She also doesn't know what she'll do once she finds this fake Siffrin. Hence, no promises.

With that, she sets to searching for something that will smell well enough like Siffrin. The bedding, perhaps? She pulls the sheets back, letting Sidereal step over to sniff at them. With a few snuffles, he has the scent, and starts sniffing around at the floor, following it out the door and back towards the inn's entrance. Timekeeper follows, her strides stiff and purposeful.]

[theuniverseleads]

[No promises, and if they were a better person they would demand it. If they were a better friend they would insist, refuse to back down, they would go with her and help and take down the villain themselves...

But there's still a bitter anger in their chest, and they can only look away. The Fighter didn't just betray them, after all. He betrayed stardust, Siffrin, and that's so much worse. Did he ever really care about them, or was it always just his crush talking? They feel vile thinking about it.

And as much as they feel this is their responsibility to handle... hah, they'd just screw it up again, wouldn't they?

It's better if they don't. They watch her start to leave, standing in the doorway.]

... Be careful, Timekeeper. [as much as they believe she's strong... Siffrin isn't a pushover. If she got hurt, because they told her where to go—] Call me if you need to. I'll answer.

[They can send for help, if nothing else. If anyone will trust them, that is.]

[ephemeralflow]

[Timekeeper glances back, watches Loop's expression for a moment, carefully. She can tell they're twisted up about it, but who wouldn't be? The nuance is lost on her. And she's learning, slowly, that... Loop cares a lot more about Siffrin than she ever did for Croissant Cookie. That much she can glean. Ha... one more reason for everything, isn't it?

So she'll shoulder the burden that she can see alone, as always.

Her eye slips away, and she nods, curtly. She knows full well that Siffrin and Loop are both incredibly strong, but she couldn't bring herself to fear this even if she weren't too angry to. She briefly holds up her hand in the phone call sign that Loop taught her, possibly setting off a bit of a receiver pick up/hang up sound in their head, to show she hasn't forgotten.]

If it takes more than a couple of hours, assume the worst.

[She's yet to see her own doppelganger, after all - and if it were her? She'd wait for the perfect opportunity. This just might be one. She still won't hold back.

With that, she follows Sidereal out of the inn and off on a path through the town. The dog-creature seems to have picked up a trail readily - however far the fake Siffrin got, it won't take her long to catch up.]