video, un: hopscotch

[clavesregni]

[Caitlyn enthusiastically shows off a small wooden box. Visible on the lid is an insignia of a Minaras governmental medical facility. Over Caitlyn's shoulder is a redhead looking wholly uninspired by this discovery.]

This was found following an altercation with a group of drunk individuals. One man was tall, must have been a little over six feet, with a blond beard, head shaved, and some sort of tattoo visible on his neck. Another was a few inches shorter, clean-shaven and close-cropped black hair, wearing a rather ostentatious, if tattered, blue coat. The third was a few inches shorter still, also clean-shaven, with long brown hair tied in a ponytail and several scars along the length of his forearms.

[Vi rolls her eyes as Caitlyn rattles off these descriptions. Caitlyn, oblivious, continues:] Does anyone know who these men might have been? If they could be identified, they could perhaps be located and questioned as to how a box belonging to a medical facility came into their possession.

[Vi mutters,] Probably going to sell whatever it is to the highest bidder.

[At the interruption, Caitlyn glances over her shoulder to respond to Vi. Her tone is less critical and more like she's excited to brainstorm possible motivations.] We can't assume that.

[Caitlyn turns back to the contents of the box.] Yes. Um. There are herbs inside, they smell-- [She takes a whiff, wrinkling her nose.] --earthy. Musky. And faintly of fruit. And... [She smells again, and a horrified look crosses her face, as though she's just smelled the most odious smell imaginable. She quickly moves the box further away from herself, looking at it as though it's done her a great personal wrong.] Urine.

[Vi shouldn't look so amused at the posh description, but she does.

Caitlyn holds up a few of the whole dried leaves and flowers: foxglove, wisteria, passion flower, and valerian. There is a small sack visible inside the box containing more herbs ground up.]

Are there any herbalists in the group who might be able to identify these? What purpose could these serve, either individually or in combination?

[Vi leans in closer and says,] And by the way, I need to talk to the resident hextech genius.



[ooc: for the herbalists out there, this combination of herbs leads to memory loss]

Comments

[clavesregni]

[Caitlyn's not going to question it. She pretty much acted like a small adult when she was Yuuri's age, so as far as she's concerned, there's nothing strange about a child going into a bar to investigate crimes.]

My friend's planning to track them down. She's very good at that sort of thing.

[wantshappiness]

Oh, that's good. I also knew someone like that back home, too.

[The joys of knowing a psychometer with an interest in cold cases. She sounds a little fond but also sad. She really does miss being able to go to school with everyone.]

I wonder why they were carrying those plants around though. It doesn't seem like something someone would take with them while going to get drunk...

[clavesregni]

[Caitlyn offers her a smile.] We'll get you back home to them soon enough.

The herbs may have been for selling, or the men may have had some other untoward purpose for them. I'm hoping my friend will be able to get more information from them.

[wantshappiness]

[Her expression looks a little melancholic. Because...she can't go back. Not even if she goes through the beacon. At least, not yet (maybe not ever).

But she does her best to smile anyway.]

Mm. I hope we all get back soon.

[She'll also try to help to see how to make that happen.]

Have you been able to figure out what the herbs do? I recognize the wisteria but I've only ever seen it as decoration.

[clavesregni]

[Caitlyn picks up on the sadness in Yuuri's expression, and her expression falls.

She frowns down at the box before continuing.] Yes. Some are poisonous, but in combination they can cause memory loss.

[wantshappiness]

...memory loss? That can be caused by herbs?

[Huh. That's news to her! But that makes her wonder...]

Is that why the people around here don't remember that we went through that....you know. [She gestures, a little vaguely to imply like, the unwinding. But if so....could they have given that medicine to everyone.]

[clavesregni]

It's a possibility. Though I've no idea how it could have been adminstered to all of us, and you'd need much more of it than this.

[wantshappiness]

...I guess if it's put in the water, that could be possible. But someone would notice if the water tasted strange, right?

[clavesregni]

Yes, I imagine steeping enough in the water to have an effect would also noticeably colour it.

It could be in the food, I suppose, or the air. [Now that's a troubling thought.] Still, you'd need a lot of it.

It's just as possible that the goal was to erase the memories of only a few specific individuals. We can't rule anything out at this point.

[wantshappiness]

No. If it's in the air we would also have been affected, right?

[But, hm. If the point is to target specific individuals...]

If they're targeting specific individuals, if you could catch them in the act I think...that is, I know someone who might be able to figure out why or what they're doing it for. Though whether or not it would work would depend on a lot of factors that can't be confirmed until it's attempted.

[Though she supposed......the hardest part would be to catch the act all

[clavesregni]

If it erases memories, we wouldn't remember whether we'd been affected, would we?

[She ponders for just a moment.]

Catching whoever's responsible in the act would be useful for all sorts of reasons, but it seems less likely now that we've confiscated the herbs. Unless, of course, there are more out there. And ideally we would catch them before they were actively tampering with anyone's memory.

I'll keep you apprised if we do, though I have got a few techniques myself. [She's talking about interrogation techniques.]