Really? [It shouldn't surprise her; there are commanders like Alexandria out there who are so well ahead of their terms when it comes to what they've accomplished.]
Look at you, Commander. I guess I'm kinda shocked, though maybe I shouldn't be? You're good at pulling rank and leading a room.
If a detective can't lead a room, they're pretty useless. Being likeable comes a very distant second to being commanding when you're in my line of work. You need to be able to get testimonies from uncooperative and often grieving strangers.
[She shrugs.] I can actually also do charm, though. I didn't think it was necessary in this case.
[Still doesn't. Everyone else can tiptoe around the gory details of what they're here to do, but Erika's not inclined to play along.]
Can you, now? [Mio sounds curious rather than mocking; she's trying to imagine something her brain finds interesting but ultimately mysterious.]
I think I'd have liked to see you pull that off. [She doesn't feel very joyful, but the mental image summons a ghost of it. Erika's always seemed capable of pulling unbelievable things off, though not because of her massive ego. Do detectives often lie to get closer to others?
Mmhm. [Erika smirks. The bold confidence that she could have socially maneuvered her way into not only being acknowledged but genuinely liked. It wouldn't have done anything.]
Granted, most of the people I find myself with are rich socialites with tomes about how to properly perform in a social sphere. But the rules aren't as different as they'd have you believe. Nobody actually wants someone's social performance to be perfect.
[It really wouldn't have done anything, would it? Just thinking about what's transpired so far, Mio realizes that a charming personality wouldn't have made a difference when it came either to dealing with Makima and Adela or to the other people living here. They wouldn't listen to charm.]
I can't quite wrap my head around it. Having whole groups of people where you're expected to be yourself in a certain way... seems like more trouble than it's worth even if you can do it. Just sorta seems like not being yourself.
Oh, they never want you to be yourself. That's the fundamental rule of all social hierarchies. Be a palatable version, or an entirely fabricated persona, but never express your true self or tell the truth.
[People only really like her when she lies to them.]
It helps, of course, that people's "real selves" are more often than not hideously unpleasant. Including mine.
[It might sound rich coming from her when she'd found her initial impression of Erika so distasteful. Even Mio, who hopes their regular talks might have meant something, can't be completely convinced that the person taking the entire town by storm those first few days had been closer to the "true" Erika.]
I can't deny that people are always doing things for the sake of others, though. Whether it's someone's opinion, someone's orders, or someone's life... that's all the same, at least.
[Mio doesn't understand it, but Erika smiles, faintly amused at her phrasing. If she reflects on it, it's a bit more complicated than how she summarized it. But there's evidently nothing worth loving about her true nature, whether that be the sneering bully or the pitiful clingy manipulative little brat.]
We do things to be accepted by others so that we can live the lives we want to live for our own sakes. It's a fun paradox.
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[She thinks Dlanor is more of a soldier than she is, but it's an apt description, all things considered.]
I have lead armies before.
[Umineko is a story.]
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Really? [It shouldn't surprise her; there are commanders like Alexandria out there who are so well ahead of their terms when it comes to what they've accomplished.]
Look at you, Commander. I guess I'm kinda shocked, though maybe I shouldn't be? You're good at pulling rank and leading a room.
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[She shrugs.] I can actually also do charm, though. I didn't think it was necessary in this case.
[Still doesn't. Everyone else can tiptoe around the gory details of what they're here to do, but Erika's not inclined to play along.]
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I think I'd have liked to see you pull that off. [She doesn't feel very joyful, but the mental image summons a ghost of it. Erika's always seemed capable of pulling unbelievable things off, though not because of her massive ego. Do detectives often lie to get closer to others?
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Granted, most of the people I find myself with are rich socialites with tomes about how to properly perform in a social sphere. But the rules aren't as different as they'd have you believe. Nobody actually wants someone's social performance to be perfect.
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I can't quite wrap my head around it. Having whole groups of people where you're expected to be yourself in a certain way... seems like more trouble than it's worth even if you can do it. Just sorta seems like not being yourself.
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[People only really like her when she lies to them.]
It helps, of course, that people's "real selves" are more often than not hideously unpleasant. Including mine.
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[It might sound rich coming from her when she'd found her initial impression of Erika so distasteful. Even Mio, who hopes their regular talks might have meant something, can't be completely convinced that the person taking the entire town by storm those first few days had been closer to the "true" Erika.]
I can't deny that people are always doing things for the sake of others, though. Whether it's someone's opinion, someone's orders, or someone's life... that's all the same, at least.
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[Mio doesn't understand it, but Erika smiles, faintly amused at her phrasing. If she reflects on it, it's a bit more complicated than how she summarized it. But there's evidently nothing worth loving about her true nature, whether that be the sneering bully or the pitiful clingy manipulative little brat.]
We do things to be accepted by others so that we can live the lives we want to live for our own sakes. It's a fun paradox.