cradleproject | WEEK FIVE

[he does deflate at that question, answering it a bit woodenly]

She's gone. [there's a beat before he speaks again] I know my father's got his faults. But things have been... getting better.

[ssssooort of]

[It's about that point he realizes he's getting a little too invested, but…then again, this has happened before. Isn't that why he promised the girls they'd be a family and that he'd protect them? He shakes his head slowly, tentatively poking the case with the scarf to see what it does.]

…right. [There's an awkward sort of pause, and then:] Being a year-rounder meant never going home, but I didn't really have a home I wanted to go back to anyway. I left my mom when I was 9. Didn't even meet my dad 'til I was 14 since he was too busy to bother. [So. He gets it, sort of.] If you wanna believe it's getting better, then who can stop you? [His fingers drum on the case again.] Maybe you'll get a set of gloves for your next birthday to match.

[he doesn't know what to say to Luke's Tragic Backstory(TM), but honesty begets honesty, so he decides to be more open about things:]

...It's not about stuff. He's always getting me things-- "the best money can buy". [it's said with annoyance and grief, which he'd normally try to downplay but, again. honesty begets honesty.] He spent so much time trying to protect me from the world and barely any spending actual time with me. He's stubborn and overprotective and I'm always trying to please him. [... he sighs] But it's been hard for both of us since mother, and he is busy with work a lot. He has flaws, and he-- drives me insane, but he's my father.

[he touches the glass case himself]

I know that's not what family is supposed to be like, but I can't even imagine leaving him alone.

[Normally he isn't nearly that honest, but considering everything went to hell solely because of the fact that godly parental figures ignored their kids and he became pretty angry about it? It's fair enough. Adrien's a normal kid, sure, but it's still a weird kind of neglect he doesn't like.]

How is almost actively avoiding you protecting you? [Then again, Hermes ignoring Luke was his way of protecting his son. Not telling him his fate was "protection." It's bullshit, really.] Maybe I just believe in making your own family to make up for the failures you don't get to pick. [His gaze shifts to look at the celestial bronze dagger in the case not too far over.]

Why haven't you ever asked him?

No, the "protecting" part involved more... bodyguards and trying to keep me from ever leaving the house. Limited freedom. That sort of thing. He's let some of that go now, though. [he trails off as he looks at the dagger himself, too polite to ask after Luke's already shared so much stuff, though he's obviously curious.]

Asked him what?

[…the fuck.]

You're famous, aren't you. [Why else would he need bodyguards? Or have them??? Rolling right along…he's still speaking more directly to the dagger at first, but when Adrien asks another question he glances away.] Just wondering if you've ever asked him why he works more than he pays attention to you. That's all.

I guess? [his face is plastered all over paris but sure he "guesses"] It's more him than it is me. My father's a famous fashion designer, and I'm his... go-to model. [he's back to being reluctant in sharing all of this, so he's the one looking away from Luke when Luke looks back] I've never asked that, no.

[Ah. Okay look considering Luke was wandering around in a bright orange t-shirt a while ago he's not exactly up and up on fashion but that makes a little more sense.]

Might not be a bad place to start. Maybe you'll have better luck than the rest of us. [It's bitter, sure, but at the same time he truly believes what he once said. This shouldn't happen to people. Not that there's much that can be done on the ship now, but it's the thought.] Something to consider when we get off of this ship.

[that... gets a derisive snort out of him] Sure. I'll ask him that once I'm back. I'll have all the time in the world, since I'm definitely never getting out of my house again after all of this.

[isnt that cute both of them assuming adrien definitely isn't dying. hopes and dreams.]

[Ehhh he'll cut nice flowers from the garden to leave on Adrien's grave when their hopes and dreams get shattered. It's fine, totally fine. The snort isn't exactly a surprising reaction, given Luke would react the same way, but he does sigh.]

After being stuck in this place? That kinda sounds like a good call. [He pokes at the case with the scarf one more time, cutting another glance at the bronze dagger.] …question for you. You think if just one person takes the motive we'll all get our stuff back anyway?

[he pouts at Luke because rude don't agree!! but then he looks up at the ceiling with a sigh]

I doubt it. The way she worded it, it sounds like whoever kills gets theirs back, and everyone else is out of luck. [a small pause as he considers his wording before admitting:] It makes sense. If only one person needs to kill so everyone else gets their stuff, it might end with no one doing it because everyone else thinks maybe someone else might go for it. If the only way to get it back is to kill yourself... there's more of a chance that someone will break.

[it's more pragmatic than he usually is about these things, and he quite clearly doesn't like anything he's saying. whiiich is why he's quick to continue]

But I don't think anyone will. Even during paranoia week, the only murder we had was accidental. That's got to mean something. She's starting to get desperate.

It's definitely a clever way to do things in terms of incentives, especially since we don't know how they're getting these things and what will really happen to them. The threat of losing them's pretty brutal.

If she's starting to get desperate then that means things are gonna get worse. Maybe next time it won't even be items. Maybe it'll be people. Who knows? There's also no saying these items are even the real ones and they aren't just replicas either.

People... [well. that's worrying.] These are just things, they could've been gotten at the same time as us if they're the real deal. But people?

Mine shouldn't have been with me at all since it doesn't belong to me anymore. [Just. To discount that point…] And why not? Just because we're stuck on this ship doesn't mean whoever else is involved in this is. I want to be prepared for the worst thing possible.

[you sure know how to be reassuring to kids, luke]

So... you think they've already got hostages for us and they're-- what, keeping them in storage? [THAT'S AWFUL??? and also obviously not safe considering the other people who were being kept in storage. yikes.]

No, not that. I'm saying it may be possible that whoever's doing this could leave to go back to our worlds and pull whatever they want to make us try and behave in the way they want us to. They could know exactly who and what is most important to us so all they have to do is leave to get them and bring them here.

[It's a dumb theory, but a theory.]

... That sounds... complicated. If they went through all this trouble already, you'd think they'd have things planned out better than that.

[he's not completely against the idea, but considering how much effort went into learning who they were and what they could do, "shit let me go grab an hostage bitches ain't listening" seems far-fetched to him]

Haven't you ever heard that desperate times call for desperate measures? [As someone who's fucked up a lot in the most royal fashions, he thinks he gets it.]

I'm familiar with the concept. [...intimately] It's just... I don't know. I hope it won't come to that. There's enough people involved right now without adding hostages.

I'm not saying I want it to come to that either. [This...time...] But if our numbers dwindle down far enough...

...I'm still hoping our numbers are done dwindling. We didn't have a trial last week. There's got to be hope for everyone left.

We were also handcuffed to each other last week. What if something like that is the answer to this?

...You think we should handcuff ourselves to one another all the time?

[what]

[...]

Maybe not that far, but a buddy system could maybe work. A more improved buddy system. [Because that really didn't work out for Allen and Lavi, but maybe it would have if Machias wasn't wandering around by himself.]

That's... not a bad idea.

[adrien he's had like 3 good ones so far let him live and stop being surprised each time.]

But there's an odd number of people on board right now. Someone would have to go buddy-less.

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