[Semi-Open] Eating Crow

[maltesefalcon]

Who: Cerrit Agrupnin and People that Should Know
What: Little Talks about a Big Deal
When: Backdated late August up until Dahlia's Gala
Where: Wherever Talks Happen
Warning(s): None yet


Cerrit's secret has been eating at him, and now it's time to let it out. If you work closely with him as an Enforcer or a member of the militia, or if you're good friends with Cerrit and you don't know about his deal with Aster yet, sometime in late August (post-Blight) or early September he's going to invite you for a private conversation.

The means may vary, the context may vary, but he has some things he needs to say.

Comments

[ss_buttcrack]

Crichton has only been on the job for a short while so he can't help but be a little nervous when he's asked for a private conversation. He's expecting to get handed a pink slip today so he's mentally preparing himself for the walk of shame that comes after. Won't he be in for a surprise?

"You wanted to talk to me?"

[maltesefalcon]

"Come on in, have a seat. Close the door."

Look, he wants this to be one person at a time instead of broadcasting everything to the entire station all at once. Cerrit's nervous, and it shows in ways that may-or-may-not read to Crichton, with his experience with non-humans. His wings are held tight to his back and slightly lifted, even though he's sitting on a backless stool. The feathers along his neck and crest are flared slightly. His desk is immaculately tidy, no papers laid out before him.

[ss_buttcrack]

Yep. he's getting fired isn't he? Or... is he? Once he's shut the door and taken his seat, he finally gets out of his own head enough to notice that he isn't the only one who seems nervous.

"Is there a problem?"

[maltesefalcon]

"There's...a matter I'd like to discuss with you. Something I haven't been open about."

Cerrit folds his scaly, taloned hands on the top of his desk, looking John right in the eyes.

[ss_buttcrack]

"So I'm... not fired?" It just kind of slips out before Crichton remembers to screw the filter back in.

That serious look, though. Okay, not the time for jokes. (Please don't be about to tell him you eat people. Please, can it not be that for once?)

Long breath out. "Okay. Well, try not to keep me in suspense?"

[maltesefalcon]

"Shortly after my arrival on this island, I was a guest at a dinner party held by one of the local demon princes, specifically Aster. While I was at the dinner, Aster offered me a deal."

[ss_buttcrack]

Oh god. It is that, isn't it? He closes his eyes and takes another long breath to center himself while he fights the urge to put his head in his hands. Focus. You don't know it for sure. But... Aster? Cerrit, what were you thinking making deals with a demon prince?

"I'm assuming you took the deal or we probably wouldn't be talking about it. What price did you pay?"

[maltesefalcon]

"That I would become physically unable to share information on a particular topic with anyone who doesn't already know it." Cerrit almost seems to physically brace for the reaction to that. "At the time, it wasn't a topic that seemed vital to discuss, and there was more than a little metaphysical manipulation being applied that night, to everyone else present."

[ss_buttcrack]

"No point in me asking what it is, then." Crichton isn't happy about this, obviously, but he's keeping his voice level. He was bracing for something so much worse.

"Villains don't play fair. They never do. So, what did you get in return?"

[maltesefalcon]

He nods at the question, glad to hear it. He's already decided that he isn't going to volunteer this information immediately, allowing people to start figuring out their judgment of the situation before knowing.

"The sending stones. Before them, the telephones were the only mode of communication on the island. Those radios hadn't been constructed or distributed on the island yet. Aster offered the ability to communicate or coordinate from anywhere, during any disaster, and at the time I'd have promised nearly anything for that."

[ss_buttcrack]

"After what we just went through, I can't disagree with you about how important coordination and communication are. But I gotta ask, what are the odds that Aster can listen in on those calls?"

[maltesefalcon]

The Blight and the Flood before it did reassure Cerrit that his choice was not inherently a bad one.

"I don't know."

[ss_buttcrack]

Damn. Crichton was really hoping Cerrit managed to get some fine print written in the deal.

"We'll just have to assume it's a possibility. Hmm."

He sits back in his chair and taps his fingers against his lip while he processes all of this. The real question is what was Aster so keen to keep secret that it would be worth making this deal over? The list is too long to narrow down.

"What can you tell me? Is there anyone else who does know the secret already?"

[lightconductor]

A private conversation with Cerrit is hardly unusual at this point. One that needs an announcement is alarming.

There's no sense in jumping to conclusions. Watson closes the flat door behind them, locks it behind him out of habit. "Well," he says. "You have my attention. What is it that's on your mind?"

[maltesefalcon]

"It has nothing to do with the cult of Nyarlathotep or its central figure, the goddesses or the Temple, or the barrier. There was an Enforcer who knew, but he's not around anymore."

[ss_buttcrack]

"There goes that idea." More tapping on his lips. Hmm. So it's not those three things but there's more players in town than that. Not a lot more, however...

"Did Aster say anything about someone guessing the right answer? I play a mean game of twenty-questions."

[maltesefalcon]

"Hah, I bet you can. But I wouldn't be able to confirm anything near the right answer, so it'd only be so useful, even in potential."

[ss_buttcrack]

"That's what I was afraid of." Rats. But there has to be something he can do about this.

"Do you have theories on why Aster wanted to shut you up? Give me a lead and I'll follow it."

[maltesefalcon]

"I can't point you right in a direction like that. There's clear reasons I know that Aster wanted this topic obscured, but..." Loose hand gesture of all-encompassing here, like a softball in mid-air. "It's not something either of his brothers would want kept secret, far as I know."

[maltesefalcon]

"There's something I haven't shared with you, something you ought to be aware of. I...I am sorry for hiding it from you, but it's a complicated matter."

John knows how to read Cerrit. The droopy crest and tightness in his wings are tense. Guilty, in this case.

[ss_buttcrack]

"Yeah, I get it. Just testing the boundaries." It wasn't ever going to be that easy.

"A thought occurs to me that maybe the other brothers might be willing to sell out their competition if I ask it the right way but... that's a risky move. I've talked my way out of more than a few situations but I'm not sure I can outfox a demon prince."

[maltesefalcon]

"I think that's not worth it. This is not an urgent matter, not something that will happen on a set deadline. It's likely to become public in its own time. Right now, I'm letting you know, in case there's anything you run into that I don't say everything I know about. That you don't get it into your head that I'm completely reliable in every way."

All that said, that it was something only Aster would care to hide, and that Cerrit could say that might make that prince an angle to try to dig at this from.

[lightconductor]

Watson looks at Cerrit for a long moment, his expression troubled -- this does not in fact narrow it down very much -- but he takes Cerrit gently but firmly by the elbow to steer him. "Come sit down, then, and tell me about it."

[maltesefalcon]

"You remember the dinner party Aster threw, months ago?" This is not going to be a pleasant conversation, but at least John's known him since before that night.

[lightconductor]

"...Oh."

He straightens a little. It's maybe not actually surprising that he hasn't heard everything that happened that night. "I remember, yes."