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[Shinjiro awakens slowly; his wounds might not have been fatal, but they were severe nonetheless, and even with the clinic's healing efforts, he'll need some days before he's properly recovered. He stirs with a light groan, apparently disoriented for the first few moments before he seems to process where he is. Slate gray eyes settle on Caitlyn and linger, confused. He doesn't recognize her, so...]

Did you bring me here?

[ Standing off to the side, Caitlyn is pouring over her notes and jotting down a few things as she's rereading. There is a little blood on her clothes from hauling him back to where his wound could be addressed properly. She looks up and over at him. ]

I was instructed to tell you not to move. [ Caitlyn places her quill against the gutter of her notepad and closes it. ] Do you remember what happened?

[ A pause. ]

Caitlyn Kiramman. [ And she holds her hand out. A bit in the wrong order but that's probably fine. ]

[Yeah, Shinjiro's not really one for following instructions, and he's not about to stay lying down while she stands. With a low grunt, he pushes himself up into at least a sitting position, one hand pressed against his now-bandaged wound.

And he was about to thank her, express that he owed her one, when that question settles in and his eyes catch on the notebook. Is this ... she couldn't possibly be --

The flat 'what are you a cop' look is probably one she's not unused to, but it practically radiates disbelief at first. Then he sighs, taking the offered hand.]

Shinjiro Aragaki.

[His full name isn't typically offered right away, but he supposes it's fair enough, after this woman apparently saved his life.]

Don't go kicking over any hornet's nests on my account, though. Shit happens in this place. It's fine.

Edited 2026-01-10 02:06 (UTC)

[ That sort of stubbornness is far too familiar to Caitlyn, who had been up and piecing together a mystery within hours of being treated for her injuries after the explosion. There was always work to be done as far as she is concerned and nothing was going to stop her from seeing to it.

So she doesn't say anything else, or insist that he lay back down. If the medical staff wanted to lecture him, she wouldn't interfere with that either, but as far as she's concerned, she has an injured party who is also a witness, potentially, to something and she is determined to discover what. ]

A pleasure.

[ Caitlyn flashes a brief smile and nods. ]

Kicking hornet's nests is my line of work. [ You can take the girl out of the Piltover, but you can't take the Enforcer out of the girl. ] So if you do remember anything, I am willing to look into it. I'll look into it either way, just to be clear.

[ And she means that, if the look in her eye says anything. ]

[He's definitely noted that look in her eye, and after a moment of silently watching her, he just sighs.]

...Of course you will.

[Really, he's not sure why he even tried; considering she came in here with an entire notebook, he wasn't going to get her to drop the matter, was he.]

Even if it ends up gettin' you stabbed, huh?

[It's probably obvious he does know something, at this point, but the question is whether or not he's willing to cough any of it up.]

Of course I will.

[ Caitlyn is amused but somehow serious at the same time as she echoes the words back, but she is ready with her notebook. In fact, she's already written a few things down but her quill is paused now, waiting for the next observation. ]

I chased a lead right to a bomb. [ She pauses for effect. ] I'm not afraid to get stabbed.

[ Not as much as she should be, anyway. All she's hoping for is that her training on how to avoid getting stabbed in the wrong places is as reflexive as she thinks it is. ]

[Yeah, that's not exactly encouraging for Shinjiro to tell her anything about what he actually knows. Despite his grouchy exterior, he can be a bit of a worrywart at times, and he doesn't especially like the idea of someone putting themselves in harm's way because of him.]

It's your life, I guess, but I wouldn't exactly recommend it. Hurts like a bitch.

[A small huff.]

Why're you so invested in this, anyway? Not like we got jail around here. S'like I said, shit happens around here. Then it ends, and you get on with your life.

Edited (phrasing nitpick) 2026-01-13 15:13 (UTC)

[ Caitlyn worries. Her priorities are, admittedly, skewed but she is willing to face down a knife or a blade if it means hunting down whoever it is undermining the people here while they're already stretched thin because of everything that's happening. ]

Well, if I get stabbed, I can see how it compares.

[ Is she particularly keen? No. Will the threat of it stop her? Also no. ]

Even so, we can't really let someone run around injuring or even killing people. There's enough to worry about without needing to be looking over our shoulders for someone making what we're already dealing with worse for reasons unknown.

[He lets out a noncommittal grunt as he rolls a shoulder in a shrug, otherwise ignoring how it pulls a little at his wound. He's blunt enough to speak his mind on something he sees as a bad idea, but it's not like he's going to try to pressure her to change her mind.]

Ain't sure what exactly you think you can do about it, is the thing. Someone who'd just stab a guy on purpose probably ain't gonna stop just 'cause someone told 'em to, y'know? And if that's not the case, situation's already over. No point beatin' a dead horse.

[He will, however, make it a pain in the ass for her to go about looking for the answer to her mystery. It's just better if she doesn't go marching up to Knives trying to detain him or something when simply a misplaced insult was enough to leave him to bleed out in the castle.]

Edited 2026-01-21 08:57 (UTC)

I wasn't intending to sit them down and lecture them about why stabbing people is wrong. I'm sure they already know that.

[ Caitlyn arches her eyebrows, a look of challenge mixed with exasperation. ]

As far as I'm concerned, someone willing to stab someone else while we're in the midst of [ and she gestures with both hands, palm up, in a sweeping motion, ] all of this, they're a threat that people should at the very least be cautioned against.

[ If not just dealt with. Caitlyn is down the bullets to her gun, but with any luck, her meticulous practicing with her newfound fire ability would be a decent replacement should the time come she needs to use that rifle. ]

You can tell me what you know, or I can take what evidence I have and search elsewhere.

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post-castle / knives out mystery for caitlyns

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