[Open RL - Accidental Incest is only hot/funny when it's other people.]

[material_guy]

It would be fair to call Greed a man of strong psychological constitution. Little things could set him off, odd things, and he was prone to mood swings from time to time, but he tended to swing back just as easily, prone to joie de vivre at his own ambitions.

It would be appropriate to call Greed a man of an extremely hardy physical constitution.

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[truthinfortune]

With her phone now out of commission, there was no way for Naoto to connect to the community until she was able to return home and charge it again.

But she didn't need a cell phone to perform a proper investigation. A little luck and a lot of footwork... that's the majority of investigative work. It's not glamorous, but it's effective.

So the Detective Prince decided to act on her hunch and seek out the greedy Homunculus. Perhaps he might be able to clue her in and confirm whether the shapeshifting Homunculus really was stuck on the ship with them or not.

Approaching purposefully, but keeping a respectful distance (lest he should lash out), Naoto announced her presence in a polite manner. "Excuse me, but I'd like to have a word with you, if you don't mind."

[material_guy]

He'd be easy enough to find, parked on the top deck still, perhaps prone to moving from perch to perch, but in the end the ocean looked the same from any angle, when out in the middle of it. Greed wasn't exactly the type to admire scenery at length. He wasn't normally the type to stew in unpleasant thoughts for quite so long, but it was cyclical. He couldn't enjoy the things around him because of his mood and being unable to enjoy them kept him trapped in that mood

[truthinfortune]

"I'm conducting an official investigation," Naoto said, dismissing Greed's earlier statement out of hand. If Envy really was loose on the ship, she needed to confirm that fact as soon as possible. "I was speaking to Issei earlier, whom I learned had an altercation with you. After speaking with him further, I've come to the conclusion that you assumed he was actually Envy in disguise."

Reaching into her pocket, she pulled out a leather-bound notebook and pen.

"I would like to ask you a few questions concerning Envy's whereabouts. If he is running amok, I need to take steps to inform the other passengers."

[material_guy]

The set of his jaw drew back as his teeth ground at the sound of her voice. He just said he minded, and she breezed right over with the words 'official investigation'. Maybe it was being read through so thoroughly but what might have been Envy gloating over creating havoc, maybe it was because it sounded like he was being accused of a crime with a witness and a motive, maybe he was just pissed off at everything already, anyway.

"Sounds like a personal problem, kid."

[truthinfortune]

Naoto's brows furrowed a bit. "That may be so, but it's a problem that will affect a lot of people if left unattended. I have a duty to make certain that the other passengers are safe, and in order to do that, Envy needs to be apprehended."

While it was true she had a personal stake in this matter, she couldn't neglect her duties as a detective, and that meant insuring the safety of those around her. Dealing with a suspect that could disguise himself as would make following his movements that much more difficult. She needed to gather as much information as possible in order to build a profile, and who was more knowledgeable about Envy than a fellow Homunculus?

"I know that you don't like to give out information for free. I'd be willing to strike a bargain in return for information that could lead to Envy's capture."

[material_guy]

Ah. Envy was testing the waters to see if Greed had the will to sell him out and hunt him down. Well, it only made sense that he would want to play freely with others, and to know how on guard they would have to be.

Of course, Envy would try to bribe him. He was Greed, after all; almost anything he wanted out of Greed could be had at a price. Appreciating the irony of the situation, Greed supposed he could at least be convinced to play along in the little charade if he were getting something out of it.

He didn't answer in the affirmative or the negative, but, he didn't tell her to bugger off; that was, in a way, progress.

[truthinfortune]

He hadn't outright rejected her offer, but didn't exactly appear cooperative, either. Having experience in interviewing countless eyewitnesses throughout her career, Naoto was very good at reading people's body language: and right now Greed's posture indicated that he was very much on guard. And why shouldn't he? After all, he was probably thinking at this very moment that Naoto herself was actually Envy in disguise

[material_guy]

His body language didn't become any more open, even if confusion rushed over his features briefly; he was never closed off with expressions. Greed's head cocked to the side, wondering why he would be hesitant to answer a question that had no immediate benefit to Envy, such as his knowledge of Envy's whereabouts. After all, an Envy who was aware of the fact that Greed suspected that he was really speaking with Envy would have to turn over any negative answer as a lie and any positive answer as an attempt to put him on edge.

There was also the fact that he didn't make a habit of lying, but so few people believed that, much less Envy.

But, either way, this detective was overstepping her boundaries, not playing the game right. Dissatisfied even with her less formal approach, he replied: "No."

Not 'no' as in an absolute. Simply no as in he wasn't satisfied with these terms; he considered this round of conversation a step backwards from the last one, and his mood and sense of cooperation could change with the direction of the wind.

[truthinfortune]

Her lips pursed into a thin line, the only outward sign of her frustration. Even when Envy wasn't physically there to wreak havoc, his influence caused much misery for herself and her family. She was really starting to hate that little worm...

"What if I answer one of your questions first?"

[material_guy]

He probably could have gotten some enjoyment out of a game of Truth for Truth, but he was not in a particularly social mood, and there were some bits of information kept for bigger games. You could play poker with one Cenz coins for fun but you saved the big bills for a real games.

"Nothin' I wanna ask you."

[truthinfortune]

He was becoming even more closed off, and that was bad. At this rate, Naoto wouldn't be able to get any significant information out of him. She'd have to think of something drastic in order to turn the tables and put herself in Greed's favor once more.

She turned her back on him, even knowing that such an action was dangerous. Hadn't he nearly threatened to put his fist through Issei's skull because he was convinced the monk was really Envy in disguise? Yamato-Takeru was trying to warn her of the danger she was placing herself in by leaving herself thus exposed, but she pushed his thoughts aside, for the moment.

"Maybe that's because you don't know the right questions to ask."

[material_guy]

If Greed had known of Yamato-Takeru, much less of the warnings of danger, without a doubt his expression would have become only more confused. As it was, he watched her turn, supposing she was willing to leave. So much the better. If she wanted to make a blow to his intelligence as she went, he'd brush it off as bitterness at her own failure.

"Nn. Maybe not." The tone was detached enough that she could surely hear the half hearted wave given as he assumed her to be leaving.

Greed's moods were difficult to predict, a function based on an endless run of variables from who to how to when. A hot, violent outburst at Issei was followed by an indifferent and cool almost one-way conversation with her.

[truthinfortune]

"I'll show you something you've never seen before..." she said softly. Her right hand disappeared inside her jacket momentarily before pulling out a small, silver automatic pistol. "That way, you'll know for certain that the 'Naoto' standing before you is genuine."

Without turning, she placed the muzzle of the Evoker to the side of her head...

[material_guy]

"...Nn?" Greed watched, only half interested before realizing what was going on--or at least, realized what he thought was going on.

"Oh, like fucking hell!" He snapped, launching from where he was standing to attempt to tackle her, both hands going towards the gun in an attempt to pull it off aim before the trigger was pulled.

[truthinfortune]

She'd had the foresight to stay just out of his range. From what little she knew of Homunculi, they were faster than ordinary human. But no matter how fast he might be, her trigger finger was ever faster...

There is the very audible sound of a gunshot reverberating in the still air, followed inexplicably by the sound of shattering glass. One would expect to see an explosion of blood and skull fragments bursting from the side of her skull. Instead, what appeared to be ghostly fragments of shattered glass floated near her head, which evaporated as quickly as they had appeared.

There was a certain pressure in the air building behind Naoto's body... A condensing of psychic energy into a tangible form. And that form took shape in a matter of seconds to reveal what appeared to be a man dressed in a cavalry officer's uniform. His face was concealed behind a birdlike mask. He held a sheathed katana in both hands, taking a defensive posture.

[material_guy]

There was the sound of shattering glass, the echo of a gunshot still reverberating in auditory memory, but, Greed assumed from the lack of visual signals that some how he had beaten the trigger, pulling the gun from her grip with one hand, the other shielded and sliding into place over where the bullet should have pierced. Holding that position as he took a breath, trying to get a grip on the situation, it took him a few seconds to notice the lithe figure standing beside the tangle of the two on the ground.

Oh, he noticed the rush of light, the flashes that took place, if only because they were something too fantastic to miss even if one tried, but his attention had been on the task at hand. Once it was confirmed that, somehow, nothing was fired, he could look up.

He looked down at the detective beneath him.

And up.

And down.

And back up, holding up the shielded hand in a stiff fingered wave as that shield dissipated.

"Yo."