❀ Kim Kitsuragi

[cranelike]

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[voltadomar]

[But when he realizes who it is, he just sighs.]

... I see. Yes, you got me.

[cranelike]

Ah, you're surprised! Wonderful!

(He's excited! He even does a little jump since he can't clap.)

Are you relaxing while you can? You were quite busy last week~

(WHY DID EVERYONE GET HURT LAST WEEK)

[voltadomar]

When I can, yes.

[That doesn't sound like he's doing it much.]

There's still a lot of investigating to do.

[cranelike]

(Just hanging onto Kim and humming,)

Do you have stories where you're from? Old stories! The ones that people will never forget.

(Fairytales and folktales. He means those.)

[voltadomar]

Hm? [This is pretty sudden?] Well, yes. Sure we do.

[cranelike]

Good, good. Stories keep the world exciting.

Your name sounds almost like one from my home so I wonder... are you familiar with "The Crane's Return of a Favor?"

[voltadomar]

No, I'm not.

[cranelike]

(He hums a little and starts to swing,)

"It was a long and cold winter many, many years ago. A hunter went into the woods to find food. What he found was a crane caught in his trap. At last, he could finally eat but instead, he felt pity for the creature and let it go. He returned home for the evening, cold, empty-handed, and hungry. Night fell, a great blizzard came, and from his door... he heard a knock.

When he opened it, he saw a beautiful woman dressed in wedding robes. She declared herself his wife and asked to be let in.

"But I'm poor," The hunter replied, "I don't even have food for us to eat."

"Don't worry," She insisted, "I will make sure we never go hungry." And she produced an enchanted bag of rice that would never go empty. They ate well and lived happily for some time. They never wanted for anything~"

(His voice trails and it's clear there's a lingering "but" coming. He just wants to make sure Kim is paying attention.)

[voltadomar]

[Well, there's not much he can do besides listen. He stands straight, facing forward with his eyes occasionally glancing at Tsurumaru.]

But...

[cranelike]

"Winter passed, spring came, the hunter became sick and they couldn't afford medicine. His wife told him not to worry. She said, "I will go to the second room tonight. Promise you won't look at me." He promised and when he awoke the next morning, she had made a beautiful robe. She took it to to the market and sold it to buy medicine.

But it wasn't enough. He would get better and become sick again. So she would go to the second room and work into the night. Every time, she would create a new robe and each time, she bought medicine.

Finally, the hunter couldn't bear it anymore. Curious, he opened the door to the second room one night. What he saw was not his wife but a crane that would pluck its feathers to create the silk for her robes. He recognized the crane as the one he saved the winter before and gasped.

It surprised her and she dropped the robe she had been working on. "I told you not to look at me!" She cried and took flight. He had seen her true nature and could no longer stay with him."

(And he finishes the story like. Yeah. It just ends like that.)

[voltadomar]

[The story ends, and he nods.]

Huh. Okay.

So what's the moral here?

[cranelike]

(Yes, of course there's a moral here and Tsurumaru smiles,)

Cranes are very hard and generous workers, of course.

(And he leans juuuuust a little closer to whisper,)

But if you wonder too much, it will fly away. A crane's secrets are precious.

[voltadomar]

Okay... Is there a more practical point you're trying to make?

[cranelike]

I have another gift to share.

Have you wondered about the last trial? How we only caught one?

[voltadomar]

Okay, you've got my attention.

Yes?

[cranelike]

(He'll finally let go of Kim! He'll take a step back to speak a little more comfortably,)

It's important to remember something else about the last trial. Do you remember when van Zieks told too many his secret and the Watchers were hurt? There are things that can't be known. Do you understand?

[voltadomar]

[A grim nod.]

Yes, I remember. Both what he said, and what the immediate result was.

[cranelike]

(He holds up three fingers and with each point he makes, he lowers one,)

You must not give my name.

If you must speak of me, you must be careful.

There are questions I will not answer.

If you agree, then I will share my work with you.

[voltadomar]

[Kim studies him...]

I see.

Yes, I can agree to that.

1/2

[cranelike]

(He smiles and claps his hands together lightly, pleased.)

Good. What do you think, Kiku?

[cranelike]

(From the hood of his robe, Kiku emerges in her magpie form and watches Kim.)

We can find things. Sometimes good, sometimes not, and sometimes a surprise.

(He reaches into his sleeve to take out his coin. He shows the side with the feathers to him.)

At the cost of changing one person's vote at random, I can correctly vote once.

[voltadomar]

[Kim's eyes widen just a little.]

Now that is an interesting ability.

I take it you used it last Saturday?

[cranelike]

(He shakes his head and frowns,)

No. It can only be used once and last time there was too much confusion until the end and too many possibilities. Something like this is best if we can narrow the list down more.

[voltadomar]

I see. That's good to know, still.

Have you told anyone else about this?

[cranelike]

Akira-kun.

He's the only other one who knows. I also gave him my reward for this week to share. Do you remember the clue I gave you before? If I'm always the one finding things, others will begin to wonder.