The White Elephant in the Room Playground

[IFBench]

-Voted skip, skip, Mia, nothing.

...wait, I never voted Mia! I have to say something about that!

"I...I..." Gen trailed off as he glanced over to where Nocitlalin's opened present lay.

The words wouldn't come.

 

[unrepentantAuthor]

Jesse was still passed out at the bar, his monopoly piece moving via telekenisis even in his dreams.

A stick of chalk underlined Gen's square on the guest conduct board.

Gen	Terrified out of his wits at all times, no investigative efforts to speak of. Always votes to skip. Claims to have a powerful ability that would make him a target for the Naughty guests.

 

[IFBench]

"If it was a trap- though we kinda set it up ourselves,- and Noci and I are both innocent, that would mean the only possible culprit left... is Gen."

Gen's expression paled. Now he was next on the chopping block. He gripped his reunion cape tightly with both nubs, his scalchop clattering onto the floor.

But it's Nilam! It has to be Nilam! They're the only one under suspicion left other than me!

"But...I...you...I never voted...Nocit...why...I thought..." Gen stammered. Thoughts raced through his head, yet the sentences wouldn't come.

Tears welled up in the Oshawott's eyes once more.

 

[Shiny Phantump]

G-Gen?

No. It couldn't be Gen. He was her favourite figment of her envenomed imagination...

Oh. Could that have been why the Nihilego venom had let him comfort her? Why it had let her have that sense of solidarity? So that she could be betrayed. It made too much sense. It was just setting her up to break more later down the line.

She had the Lens of Nia. The fog in it had cleared when Darkwhite had eaten the night...

It was worth a shot, right? Maybe there was a chance, however small, that he was safe to keep around.

 

[IFBench]

Drip, drop, drip, drop.

Splish, splash, splish, splash.

Tears fell from Gen's face, as he panickedly looker around the room. At Nilam. At Jesse. At Darkwhite. At Lee. At Palkia. At Abigail.

His expression was filled with fear.

 

[Fusion]

Whether or not it was Lee's fault for Noci getting voted out, he still had a sour taste in his mouth from it. It felt like it would have made it if he hadn't thought of a possible argument against it, but it was too late to change that...

"If Noci wasn't nau- bad, then it's only fair we got for Nilam, the one person consistantly going after it," Lee grumbled, cracking his neck as he woke up. "Elbert, this has been happening since we got here. Someone dies by opening a present, and then they aren't here. All of us were given magical items that do... things, like skipping through the night, talking to the dead, or protecting someone from another person's item."

"How the fuck do you not know what's been happening Mr Day Shift? It's been almost a week," Lee growled. "It's not like this is new. We've been battling against the baddies since day one... or two, actually. Since Squirt died."

 

[Shiny Phantump]

Abigail pressed the Lens of Nia against Gen's gift.

Anything but coal, please...

The image of the wrapping paper and box inside the lens faded to translucency, revealing the contents. It was... a blanket? She slid the lens around the surface of the gift to see if there was anything else. In the center, on top of the blankets was... a photo. Of... Oh. She'd assumed Gen has become an Oshawott at more or less the same time she'd become a Ralts, but if this was his most wanted gift... he must've been cut off from his human family for longer than she'd assumed.

Abigail let out a breath she didn't know she'd been holding in. "Gen is... clear."

She ran up to Gen and gave him a hug. As she did so, she whispered in his ear. "You've been a Oshawott for a while now, haven't you?"

 

[Chibi Pika]

Palkia surveyed the party sadly. There was a Beldum-shaped hole in its heart, one that could not be filled by shoveling down food. Who would fill the quota for senseless destruction now?

"Well, I didn't vote for her," it said under her breath.

The spatial lord was also pretty sure that it was starting to get some idea of what was going on here. But it would refrain from saying anything for the time being. Maybe it was force of habit after being forced to wait and watch back in that other universe. Or maybe it was just the fact that it'd be interesting to see if anyone figured it out.

 

[DawningWinds]

"I withdraw my vote on Gen," Nilam said.

 

[unrepentantAuthor]

The stick of chalk continued its work with Jesse unconscious.
​

Jesse's Take:​

Confirmed Nice​	DEFINITELY SCUM​
Jesse​	NILAM​
Palkia​	Mia 💀​
Darkwhite​	​
Lee​	​
Abigail​	​
Tabitha​	​
Gen​	​
Mewtwo 💀​	​
Squirt 💀​	​
Nickit 💀​	​
Nocitlalin 💀​	​

THERE'S NO FUCKING WAY ALL THE ALIGNMENT-CLEARING SO FAR IS LEGITIMATE. SOMETHING HAS TO BE WRONG. WE'VE BEEN DUPED SOMEHOW. WHAT THE FUCK IS GOING ON.​

 

[DawningWinds]

THERE'S NO FUCKING WAY ALL THE ALIGNMENT-CLEARING SO FAR IS LEGITIMATE.
SOMETHING HAS TO BE WRONG. WE'VE BEEN DUPED SOMEHOW.
WHAT THE FUCK IS GOING ON.

"Nobody cleared Nicket as an accomplice," Nilam pointed out.

 

[Chibi Pika]

Palkia surveyed the board for several minutes, humming to itself. Yes, yes, this did all track, didn't it? Well, except for...

"I don't think it's Nilam."

 

[Fusion]

THERE'S NO FUCKING WAY ALL THE ALIGNMENT-CLEARING SO FAR IS LEGITIMATE.
SOMETHING HAS TO BE WRONG. WE'VE BEEN DUPED SOMEHOW.
WHAT THE FUCK IS GOING ON.

Lee winced, taken aback from the anger Jesse's chalk was able to convey. He made his way back to the bar and rested a paw on the still-resting Jesse's back. "I didn't think someone else could be so pissed they yell in their sleep."

"Nobody cleared Nicket as an accomplice," Nilam pointed out.

"Nickit is out of this already, remember? They aren't... well they're here but they're also not a part of this," Lee rolled his eyes, looking at the morbidly stiff fox in the corner. "I'm mostly convinced she's made of plastic..."

Palkia surveyed the board for several minutes, humming to itself. Yes, yes, this did all track, didn't it? Well, except for...

"I don't think it's Nilam."

"Then who do you think it is?" Lee raised a brow. "There aren't too many other suspects left."

 

[DawningWinds]

"Nickit is out of this already, remember? They aren't... well they're here but they're also not a part of this," Lee rolled his eyes, looking at the morbidly stiff fox in the corner. "I'm mostly convinced she's made of plastic..."

"Well, yeah," they said, "but presuming that nickit was formerly part of the game, they could hypothetically be an accomplice, so long as there's another Naughty guest still participating."

 

[Shiny Phantump]

Abigail felt like this didn't bode well for her, seeing as she'd thus far failed to uphold the end of her deal that involved... well, actually catching anyone. She'd gotten nothing but clean results thus far... If someone was falsely clearing people... She had to admit that there was a reasonable suspect.

"We should go over the results Vaporeon and I got early on, before I revealed my power. If Nocitalin targeted either of us, we could've gotten a false negative. So... to start. Does anyone know of a game called 'Pokken Tournement DX?'"

 

[Fusion]

"Well, yeah," they said, "but presuming that nickit was formerly part of the game, they could hypothetically be an accomplice, so long as there's another Naughty guest still participating."

"Then we focus on getting the culprit first instead of wasting more time on someone that isn't even technically here," Lee huffed.

"We should go over the results Vaporeon and I got early on, before I revealed my power. If Nocitalin targeted either of us, we could've gotten a false negative. So... to start. Does anyone know of a game called 'Pokken Tournement DX?'"

"Po...ken?" Lee tilted his head. "I don't... what? Did you just make that up?"

 

[Chibi Pika]

"Then who do you think it is?" Lee raised a brow. "There aren't too many other suspects left."

"Haven't yet got any actual theories," Palkia lied. "But I'll be happy to share my thoughts after a bit of skiing!" And with that, Palkia took a step and vanished off to somewhere else on the mountain.

 

[Shiny Phantump]

"Po...ken?" Lee tilted his head. "I don't... what? Did you just make that up?"

Abigail took a step back, as if she'd been physically hit by the words. That was the exact answer she'd been hoping not to hear, from the exact person she'd been hoping not to hear it from. "Y-You don't know what it is at all? That's what vaporeon saw when he scanned what was supposedly 'your' gift."

After a moment, she released her tension and sighed. "Please, someone tell me I wasn't the only one who cleared Lee."

 

[DawningWinds]

"Please, someone tell me I wasn't the only one who cleared Lee."

"Lee cleared Lee. Fur thing," Nilam said. "Jesse cleared you with magic hen, and I think that's all the clearing that's happened that's not been done by you or Lee."

 

[IFBench]

Abigail pressed the Lens of Nia against Gen's gift.

Anything but coal, please...

The image of the wrapping paper and box inside the lens faded to translucency, revealing the contents. It was... a blanket? She slid the lens around the surface of the gift to see if there was anything else. In the center, on top of the blankets was... a photo. Of... Oh. She'd assumed Gen has become an Oshawott at more or less the same time she'd become a Ralts, but if this was his most wanted gift... he must've been cut off from his human family for longer than she'd assumed.

Abigail let out a breath she didn't know she'd been holding in. "Gen is... clear."

Gen smiled. He was...safe. He was safe. They weren't going to kill him. He was safe.

As Abigail hugged the Oshawott, he returned the hug in turn. "T-thank you. Thank you so much."

The tears continued flowing, but the smile remained on his face.

She ran up to Gen and gave him a hug. As she did so, she whispered in his ear. "You've been a Oshawott for a while now, haven't you?"

Gen hesitated, then whispered back, "Y-yeah."

He hugged Abigail tighter.