Nexus Campus Town

[Kotomine_Rin]

Costin

"Hoy, quit moaning like a deflowered wench, you're fine and in one piece. Can't say the same for your dear old friend there though, shame. Heh heh heh." His tone was grave and deadpan, but there was a lighthearted humor to the low growl-like laughter. A sick pleasure, as if he hadn't just killed a fellow teacher right in front of her eyes.

But even that subsided quickly, and Costin sighed.

"Look, I was careful to keep the casualties to a minimum. I'm not the type to go after women or children. The former can give birth to strong warriors, and with time the latter can become strong prey for my claws and fangs. There are only two kinds of people I'll kill: those with no rights, and those with worth."

A hint of something fierce and fiery slipped out his circuits, like a red haze shimmering for a moment. It was nothing more than his pure bloodlust, and the unshakeable voice that could pour out nothing but ironclad principled conviction. The earnes desire to wage battle, not just eat. Rather than a beast, it was the unmistakeable tone of a warrior.

"Villains with no right to live, and warriors worth facing with everything at my disposal."

[YOLF]

Headmaster

If he had working sight, he might have taken note of the minute twitch of her lips. She allowed herself the reflex only because she had realized, and it would be funny if it were more tasteful. What did this arbitrary division make Costin himself, then? A warrior with no right to live? Perhaps that is what he would answer, with pride in his voice.

"Your care is merely self-serving," she said, dragging her drink close. "You give me no reason to sympathize, and even less to be impressive. You could not leave me in pieces even with a thousand years to try, Mister Costin."

She sipped at her mug, and set it down with a clack. "So tell me. Why did you go out of your way to kill my employee, instead of spending your remaining energies pursuing that worthy foe you were having so much fun with?"

[Kotomine_Rin]

Costin

"Ha, don't tempt me. I can tell you have the age to back that up, but I'm enough of an idiot to try that anyway. Not like I care about my life, it's an ill-spent pile of shit wasted moving blindly the only ways I could. If I could change that, maybe I would serve myself better once in a while. But then, I wouldn't be me."

Try. That was a damned word. Because its implication was clear. Against her, against the squirrel, even here, he hardly made an effort or attempt to truly exert himself. It was a game, a sham, a sick little amusement that surely had no bigger purpose.

Then why go out of his way to kill that one man?

Why try?

"Other than that, your guess is spot on. That's exactly what I am." He grinned like he guessed her exact thoughts before she uttered them, yet he hardly seemed offended. He smacked his lips and sighed casually. "As for the why... who knows? The moment the sun glared on my drowned body, Its warmth glinted on my wretchedness. I realized I could either shoot or not shoot."

[YOLF]

Headmaster

"Quaint nonsense," she replied. The heat of the mug was still comforting against her palm, but a mere human would have wondered if the temperature of the room did not fall with her tone. "No one does anything without a reason, even should that be a mere whim to act. There is a root to all deeds that bear fruits, regardless of who or what planted them. Arbitrary actions predetermined to one's self are only inherent to machines. If you like repeating excuses, I would be glad to engage in a contest of them with you at a different time."

The headmaster tipped her drink and sipped loudly. The wobbling of her throat, the slurping through her lips and the breath of relief once she was done all echoed into Costin's skull.

"Did you come looking for him? Or was it opportunistic?"

[Kotomine_Rin]

Costin

Beneath his dark shades, the vampire's brow furrowed - almost sadly. It was the sort of innocent statement that could get even a monster to pity you. "That just ain't true. There's plenty of irrational, senseless things around. You try to scrutinize every little thing, you'll end up seeing things you shouldn't see, believing things you shouldn't believe, assuming things you shouldn't assume."

He relaxed and stretched his neck.

"But as I said, it's not my job telling you what to think. You're better off believing what you want, it'll spare you a whole lot of pain." And with a grin like the crescent moon, he laughed. "All I can say is that everything went according to the mission. Same as last time." A hint of malice gleamed off his smile. "Three days were promised to you to make your peace, but that didn't account for timezones."

[YOLF]

Headmaster

It was her turn to shake her head. "Ideals and principles are as irrational and senseless as whims," she said. Her golden lashes fell slightly as she cast her eyes to the table. "Ah, so the deranged child and the merry beast. And what was your compensation?"

[Kotomine_Rin]

Costin

"The mission's details got wiped the moment I completed them, but I figure I must've been paid in advance to accept terms so stringent." He shrugged as if he weren't sure himself. "What I do remember is that the first part was to gauge five district's defenses. The second, to get rid of impediments that might get in the way. I didn't get to meet my employer face to face, but for insurance, they placed a mental lock on me to make sure I didn't spill any compromising information. As long as the target was eliminated, any secondary goal was just that, secondary."

He looked away for a second, his expression hiding some kind of mischief. But it was honest, in an odd way. He wouldn't have come this far just to bullshit her.

"Of course, the only reason I can say this much is that my employers must have deemed it unnecessary to hide... but I wouldn't pry too hard. Part of that lock included a killswitch that'd wipe my memory before... you know..." He feigned a dying expression to emphasize the point. "What matters is that the apocalyptic event didn't happen in three days. That means someone is working behind the scenes to stop it. That is my goal as well."

[YOLF]

Headmaster

Her fingers drummed the table, one after the other, as if the Headmaster was playing piano one-handed. She raised her gaze, responding with candour like a quiet furnace. "The aid of someone who enacts such works for personal gain and has already played a part in weakening the district is neither desirable, not reliable in the first place."

Her drink was no longer producing richly bitter steam, and she pushed it to the side, resting her cheek on her raised palm.

"Why do you care to stop this?"

[Kotomine_Rin]

Costin

"Can't tell you. But maybe it's because I'm a nice sweet empathic lad deep down." He tilted his head with a casual expression, neither happy nor angry.

"And don't give me that much credit, I didn't weaken much - your defenses are already quite poor. I don't know what that idiot was spouting, but as far as the floor administrator goes, I'm one of the weakest. But if *they* show up at this rate, this city won't hold a day. That's all I can say, so don't ask further." His words were serious and as boastful as they might sound, his tone was nothing but sincere.

"Take our little amusement as a wake-up jolt. If you don't get your act together and start seeking allies, this divided kingdom will soon crumble to naught. With or without me." He sighed and stretched. "In the meantime, I see no reason why I should accelerate it. Your company isn't too terrible either."

[YOLF]

Headmaster

"I see that an unceasing requiem of no-matter-how-many years does not dull glibness," she said. The Headmaster's lidded gaze brushed over his expression as an afterthought. "If that's all, then I better see us rid of you. Time bombs with a sense of humor sound like terrible allies."

[Kotomine_Rin]

Costin

"You're goddamn right. Don't call me glib again though, I resent that. Lies and pretty words make me want to grind things into nothing." There was no plead or fear in those words, and the light gleaming off his sunglasses didn't betray anything more than a sincere ember. An irritation at the predicament he was at, not the person before him.

He tried to be honest here. Still, he couldn't afford to be too honest. His job didn't allow personal feelings to get in the way like that. So deep down, perhaps the title suited him. That managed to make him angry, if only for a moment.

They say an immoral man trying to be moral is a better person than a normal man living normally. But that man would never agree to such a title. He never learned a different way to live. Only to follow his own path, wherever it took.

"Are you going to kill me?"

[YOLF]

Headmaster

She seemed to ponder this, and pushed the near-emptied, cooled mug she had brought with her to the edge of the table, grinding with a low sound against the wood. If her face was made of stone before, now a minute crack shifted around her mouth.

"Do you want to die?" She asked in turn.

[Kotomine_Rin]

Costin

A simple shake of his head, calm and manner of factly.

"Whoever says out loud they want to die is full of crap. They actually want to live more than anyone, so they express that urge one way or another. On the other hand, if someone is genuinely willing to die, they end up disappearing silently." He answered her seriously, with words tinted with the bitterness of a life ill-spent.

He inhaled the blackened scent of cooled coffee. Softly, quietly, he took the time to enjoy its aromas.

"Besides, I've yet to meet a lucky bastard who gets to choose when death takes him. Friend, foe, good, evil... whatever misfortune or misery comes your way, it's not going to care about what you want. The best thing you can do is close your eyes and take it."

[YOLF]

Headmaster

"Fortunate are those with the privilege to choose when and how they will die," she said. The Headmaster did not stand up, but her voice resounded as if she had taken a lone stand at a podium. Or perhaps as if speaking into the chasm that was Costin. "Convince me to not take that possibility away from you."

[Kotomine_Rin]

Costin

What came first was a grimace, the low animalistic growl of a monster, faint enough most would miss it. But then, and only then, a cracked smile, bitter yet with good humor. The chuckle was almost melodious in comparison.

With the warm mirth of a killer to its fellow.

"Goddamn, lady. You just aren't going to let up." He shook his head with a small laugh, bitter yet amused. Was it his own predicament that he found so ironic, or something else?

The apostle inhaled a deep breath, he savored her smell before answering.

"Killing someone means committing yourself to that idea, to the act. If you really wanted to fucking end me, you wouldn't be asking me for permission. You do it, or you don't, with no room for convincing or second-guessing. Otherwise, murder becomes a half-measure, something cheap to be tossed away like scraps, or a currency to give or hold back whenever convenient."

And with a sudden snap, the chain rattled and tensed with a lunge that jerked his entire body. The room suddenly shook, the sound cutting the air like a cold blade. But his body stopped, held back by its restraint. Only an inch away from her. An inch

I

nch

ing.

Close enough that they could embrace if they were lovers. Close enough her good smell could mingle with his acrid, bloody smell. Close enough she could dig her claws in his heart if she so desired. And yet his voice was soft and... kind.

"If you're so certain of this path, do it and don't doubt yourself over it. If you question that finality at all, don't bother, it's not the kind of choice you can make with regrets or half-measures in mind. That's the only thing I'll say on that subject."