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[forensicks]

[Walter has recorded a video message from the point of view of someone who has just come through the door into his cabin and sees Walter at his desk in the chair turned around to face the viewer. He gives a little salute-wave.]

Didn't get me. But nice try.

Comments

audio

[citizendetective]

Walter. Can we talk?

[There's a pause here, because it's not that she hasn't spent time thinking about how she wants to do this, it's that she's spent so much time thinking about it and still hasn't come up with an answer. Does she want to keep the comforting barrier of the network, or--]

In person?

audio

[forensicks]

Hi! Hi.

[Step one of promptly answering the audio feed from a memorized network ID is accomplished. Step two, saying anything of substance, is taking a little longer. He'd known this was coming. Be it from Misty herself, or Arthur, or some weird friend of Arthur's, or succumbing to curiosity and asking for an account of the warden ledger, or maybe even a flood down the road. But the one thing he'd never imagined was that Misty would be at all calm. Generally, Future!Misty was either happy or upset. He'd thought either was plausible in this case. Well... You never know. It could be something else.]

In person is great! Where are you? [Said like he would definitely drop literally everything and run to where she is.] Or, library, I've already done plenty of work today, there's plenty of places like Study Room 2 in the library.

[two of them dot jpg]

audio

[citizendetective]

Yes, the library; the library's good. Great.

[She sounds distracted; the place itself really matters very little, as far as she's concerned.]

See you in... let's say fifteen minutes? Will that give you enough time to wrap up whatever you're doing now?

audio -> action

[forensicks]

Totally! I'll see you then.

[... He's pretty sure this is not about something else. Great. The "sure" and "cool" of it all. Taking initiative to keep his mind from wandering like total insanity, he cuts the feed now. ... he's doing the absolute bare minimum to make this area not look like a mess and then booking it.

Walter has made his way to the room within ten minutes. He's lurking just within the study room threshold. Even when Misty shows up, he's not ready to say anything, just looks at her. There is a little unmasked yearning.]

action

[citizendetective]

[At fifteen minutes on the dot, he'll hear footsteps approaching at a quick and steady pace - before they suddenly stop a few feet from the room. Misty pauses; closes her eyes. Breathes in and out three times. And then enters, immediately spinning to face him.]

Hi.

[She knots her fingers together, her mouth thinning into a line - nerves, not displeasure.]

Not that the mystery and intrigue hasn't been... well, mysterious and intriguing. But I think I need the full story, from beginning to end. With nothing left out.

cont'd

[forensicks]

[...sigh. Well, at least she's getting the full story and not whatever the hell spin Arthur Lester put onto it. He won't have to worry about what that rat said. He knows it's inevitable that someone will read his file... that this will go into his ledger... that a flood will bring it out of him... It doesn't feel right when she's still brainwashed. But she didn't ask for his opinion on that. She asked for his story.]

...yeah. Listen, I'm sorry. For everything. And—I'm sorry that I was going to keep hiding this from you, too.

[He takes a step to shut the door around then.]

But I didn't think it was the right time to talk yet. After all, you remember Jessica Roberts, so you remember that too, right? [Completely earnest and not expecting any answer other than yes:] Killing Adam Martin?

[citizendetective]

[And there it is.

Is it right, as a warden, to keep letting him believe the Adam Martin lie? After all, it's not a malicious lie. And though it makes her feel kind of icky to expect the truth from him while concealing this, isn't feeling icky worth keeping Shauna safe? No, Shauna shouldn't have killed the guy, but it was self-defense. There are wardens, even wardens who were never inmates, who have killed in self-defense before. There are wardens who are soldiers, and police, and--]

Yes.

[She says, without any hint of uncertainty.]

I remember killing Adam Martin.

[forensicks]

[His heart pounds faster in his chest, actually hearing that. He certainly hadn't anticipated some third answer that would shake his understanding of the situation, nor known what point she could have in denying it now, but nevertheless she had implicitly denied it before, and she admits it now, something she clearly discusses very little on the barge. It's the same progression as with the Misty in his memories. Walter ends up just kind of nodding at her before continuing.]

So, back in summer with the texts, it was on the level, all like I said. Adam Martin had just gone missing, and I was curious about it.

[Slower:]

But afterwards... It came to light that Ms. Scatorccio had been taken. And Taissa Turner didn't help. Shauna Sadecki didn't help. So, where would you ask for help? And who answered that call for help?

[citizendetective]

Citizen Detectives.

[She nods, slowly.]

I'm with you so far. How did you help?

[forensicks]

First we, she and I, interrogated Randy Walsh, who was staying in the same motel. Then after some more investigation, we made it to Camp Green Pine, in New York.

[He's leaving out the letter but literally nothing has made him doubt both that it was cool and that Barge!Misty specifically would agree that it was cool.]

And it was like Ms. Matthews said back on your post. That Ms. Scatorccio claimed she was staying willingly to reflect, didn't need us.

[This is obviously not the end of the story but seems like a particularly important place to let her react.]

[citizendetective]

You can just say me.

[Misty mutters under her breath, loud enough to actually hear but not loud enough to be mistaken for an attempt at interruption. Her fingers knot together more firmly still, and she finally takes a seat at the room's study table, leaning forward across its surface.]

Was Natalie lying?

[forensicks]

I... honestly don't know at this point.

[He stands there near the front of the room awkwardly and then makes the turn so his gaze follows her to the table, to take his chance. He'll make the switch, maybe that'll have an influence.]

But you thought she was coerced. Like in a cult. [This is a phrase engraved clearly into his mind, the words on her lips as he studied her face trying to take the plunge and declare he accepted her.] "Cut ties with all her close friends, that's cult 101." That was when I brought up the Adam Martin thing again, because I wanted us all to be on the same page.

[What Inmate Misty would have called "the same team".]

You denied it, understandably, and we went our separate ways for a bit. But then you called me back. And not much later, the police discovered Adam's body. So I... [How does he want to play this? He always presents remorse, which will supposedly magically release him from this place, and thought Misty as a warden wanted that from him too. Will she actually see this as a good thing, if Adam Martin will stay dead? If nothing else, he might as well emphasize that he was genuinely occupied during this critical period.] I got to work.

[citizendetective]

Slow down.

[She says, because she sees the way he's skipping over details here - either accidentally, because he was there and doesn't realize how useless a surface-level skim is to someone who wasn't... or on purpose, because there's something that he doesn't want her to know. Either way, she's sure as hell going to dig.]

Where did you go when we went our separate ways? Where did I go? How much time passed between us separating and me calling you, and what did I say when I did?

[forensicks]

[It's true that this is very much an elision. Though, summoning the details is a genuine headache. He rubs his hands together a bit, restless.]

The compound was very remote. Took well over an hour to drive in from anything like civilization. You made me leave you there, and at first I thought you'd get someone else to bring you out. I went to this house I have somewhere else in the state, so, even further than that. [Realizing that she is thoughtful and appreciates his thoughtfulness and will notice this distinction that he didn't just immediately ditch her like a douchebag:] A couple hours later, so I could refuel and be sure you hadn't changed your mind.

[He looks down at his hands, using them to count in his head without actually pointing his fingers.]

We first showed up on the 11th. The call was on the 12th, about 24 hours later. Technically it was a voicemail. So, it turned out that you stayed there, and also they had everyone turn in their phones in the office, which is why you used their landline at first. You were probably anxious about it being tapped... so you just said that I was "right about the thing". And that you were unplugging with the girls. And... "I miss you."

[He can't look her in the eyes. It was easier to handle all those things Misty had said when there was that space between them. How does he tell her the truth without saying... that? He misses it so much...]

A lot?

[citizendetective]

Did I say "I miss you a lot", or did I say "I miss you" a lot of times?

[An inconsequential distinction to some, maybe, and poor Walter, having to sit through this level of scrutiny - but Misty knows herself well, and the more exact info she can get on her phrasing and tone of voice, the better she'll be able to analyze her own future self's actions and mindset. If only this place was connected to a network; she would love to be able to listen to that voicemail herself.]

And the thing I was right about - you thought I was talking about Natalie having been coerced?

[forensicks]

[...he'd thought it was normal to be stripped of his cell phone, to not even have a notepad app on the barge intranet device so he'd have to seek out more, but now he really misses it, because that voice mail would be on it.]

More like variations on "I miss you."

[She wants to reconstruct her other self's state of mind but is it really right for him to present evidence of what seems to have been falling in love? Present imperfect tense. If he had some kind of claim, at least, that would be easier to assert... But all else aside, speaking out loud instead of in text has made it easy to misunderstand the boundaries of the phrases, so he'll cooperate a little longer. When she is of course focused on the question of whether Natalie had been coerced, it does disturb Walter to think about what he doesn't know for sure about what happened between them.]

No, it was like—...all you really said about any of them was "unplugging with your friends for a little girls' weekend". Which is why you hadn't called me back until then. But I was right about the thing, and... you were sorry for pushing me away. And, you missed me. Uh...

So before, you'd been mad I accused you of murder, that, "whatever this is, it's over". Now I thought you were ready to trust me about how you killed Adam Martin... You were staying for a little while but we'd see each other again soon. At least, that's what happened...

[The Misty before him has made him think of how little was really said. What if she really was going to stay in the compound forever? Long distance relationships have never bothered him in theory but that's the least of the concerns.]

[citizendetective]

[A sudden thought occurs to Misty: had she had a crush on this guy? Oh god, how embarrassing; no wonder he's acting so strange. He's probably trying to think of how to let her down easily, apparently for the second time - and who knows what she'd pulled on him in response to the first. She'd probably tried out a litany of her dating tricks, like guilting him or turning on the waterworks--]

Right. I think I understand.

[She pulls in a deep breath.]

Listen, Walter - Mr. Tattersall. I know this likely won't come as much of a comfort considering it was another version of me, but - I am truly sorry if I-- if she-- if she made you feel uncomfortable. Or pressured, or-- or anything like that. I can assure you that it won't happen again.

[forensicks]

[A confused look passes over his face that she will likely see as an extension of that "strange behavior". What have they done to her? Did he leave out too many of the awkward details... No, surely what he's described is still a dogged pursuit on his end. "Misty" was the one who had to push him away. She's certainly clingy by nature - rebuffed by Taissa and Shauna, then Natalie herself. That hasn't gone away with her insistence on learning the truth. But far from sensing Walter's feelings for her, she sees herself as some kind of predatory monster...? Will she convince herself that Misty simply manipulated him into killing for her?

He puts his hand on her shoulder.]

You don't have to be formal with me if you don't want to! I only call you Ms. Quigley because, well. [Ah, hell, lighten the mood a little.] You're Barge!Misty, and Misty is Future!Misty. Unless you don't like that, of course.

[citizendetective]

No, it's fine. And you're being very... kind.

[But she purses her lips, still clearly troubled.]

So, do you believe me when I say that I don't want to pressure you into anything? Or do you think I'm completely full of crap?

[forensicks]

[Walter is outright frowning now, an expression that instantly stands out on his boyish face. What made her so afraid of this? Something very specific must have happened. He softens his expression and continues, hand still on her shoulder, even leaning a little further down]

Ms. Quigley, I might not be able to tell you what "you" were thinking, but what I can say is that I chose to go all the way back to the compound. That was my choice! I was choosing that, and it was a choice. If I have any regrets about it now, that's not because you took away any part of my choice. Okay?

[citizendetective]

[Misty closes her eyes and takes in a deep breath: centering herself, and also letting herself believe the words.]

Okay.

[She says, blinking her eyes open again.]

Thank you. I appreciate that.

[forensicks]

Good. I hope you can hold onto that.

[He pats her shoulder and finally lets his arm draw away, to the table. It seems like Misty has tears bottled up inside that fortunately didn't quite come out at this moment... Walter speaks calmly, somber but not losing his motivation, looking at her without a directly piercing gaze.]

You see... When I went back to the compound, I came prepared. I told the police where to go, so they took their places on the stage. One of the cops investigating the case was Matt Saracusa, he had to present and legitimize the fabricated evidence. The other was Kevyn Tan, and to frame him for the deaths of Adam Martin and Jessica Roberts... I killed him. [This is the part where the music would get louder to tell the audience "Walter, what the fuck?" as he keeps talking with, still a somberness, but nowhere near dark enough.] I'm sorry if that's hard to hear, it was morally wrong, and, I know at least Jeffrey knew him...

[citizendetective]

[Misty looks shocked, maybe even a little rattled, but not heartbroken. She blinks again (and, luckily for Walter, is still completely tearless), shaking her head slightly.]

No, it's not-- I mean, yes, it's not the most pleasant piece of news I've heard today, but I-- we-- I didn't know him well.

[But Natalie did. God, is she going to have to break this news to Natalie? But no, of course not; he's still alive on their world, and if they've prevented Natalie's kidnapping, then surely they've prevented this, too.]

Walter. You did this all for me?

[forensicks]

OK... [That they did not know Kevyn well is perhaps good but doesn't make the homicide any less illegal, so he gives a slight unobtrusive acknowledgment. Then there's the question. It's much like in his past. Misty Quigley, always unappreciated and unaware that she is so special. He says something completely serious, even though it might sound unserious but that's just what those things are called--]

Yes. Unless the admiral cannot forgive the occasional slime tutorial, that is why I'm here.

[So why didn't he tell her something so important...]

Your timeline is so different now, and you could have gone back any day for all I knew. [Honestly... he also drastically overestimated how weird "we were falling in love over the course of a week in the future and I committed murder for you" would actually sound on the barge and by the time he realized it was already awkward.] But yes, after everything you went through, and becoming your friend, I wanted you to be safe.

[He gives a small smile, says three words that are very obvious but mean a lot to him.]

You're Agent AfricanGrey.

[citizendetective]

But that never means anything to anybody.

[Except her, anyway, but that's a given. Misty had long since learned not to expect or rely on the approval of others: experience had told her that it would never come. Some of the relationships she's formed on the Barge had been exceptions, of course, but Walter is talking about back home, where such things just don't happen, and--

She crosses her arms hard over her chest.]

Am I supposed to say thank you?

[It comes out sounding a little harsh, which she hadn't intended; she thins her mouth into a line.]

Wait, no-- listen. Whatever happened with Kevyn was obviously not ideal, but I'm not angry with you. I am a little worried about how Natalie reacted, though.