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Pearl did not have a good eye for aesthetics, but even she could tell that Ashveil looked out of place in her office.
Her office was full of neutral colors and light marble. It was clean, sanitized. Some might even call it dull, and they would probably be right. Pearl still had trouble relating aesthetics to certain moods or types of character.
Ashveil was a blot of harsh reds and blacks in front of the soulless scenery. Against the rest of his clothing, even the white fabrics he wore seemed to pop with color.
Pearl wondered if he specifically curated his aesthetic to his personality, as many humans seemed to do.
Pearl folded her hands in front of herself, donning a polite smile. “Welcome, Mr. Ashveil. I appreciate your timely arrival.”
“The pleasure’s mine.” Ashveil’s hat went skew as he scratched the part of his scalp that was hidden under it. “I’m just hoping this isn’t some sort of trap.”
“I assure you, I am sincere in my offer. Even if this happens to be a trap, you are fully capable of defending yourself, are you not?”
“You never know. You IPC folks always have something new up your sleeves.” Ashveil looked around the room awkwardly. “So, are there some kind of pleasantries we need to exchange before you give me the mask?”
Ashveil’s visual incongruity with the office seemed to correspond with his uneasiness with the situation.
“I believe we have just exchanged them,” Pearl said. “However, out of personal curiosity, I would like to ask you a question.”
Ashveil gave her a look she didn’t know how to interpret. Perhaps he was displeased by the delay. “Go ahead.”
“What do you think about this room?”
“The room?” Ashveil looked around—not out of awkwardness this time. “Why do you ask? I don’t want to say the wrong thing or anything.”
“You are a detective. What can you deduce about me?”
“Deduce?” Ashveil said, and then muttered under his breath, “If only Mr. N was here.”
Pearl was polite enough to pretend she hadn’t heard.
Ashveil put more weight on his cane, observing the room with a deceptively lazy gaze. Pearl, however, could tell that his eyes weren’t randomly darting around; they were focusing on the things that mattered.
His eyes finally settled on Pearl herself. He said, “Honestly, not much. You keep it pretty bare in here.”
“Is that not telling in itself?”
“It is, but…” Ashveil sighed. “Look, just tell me if this is a trick question.”
Pearl smiled. “I promise I will not take offense to anything you say.”
Ashveil seemed doubtful, but he said, “Alright. Well, what it tells me is that either you’re trying to hide things about yourself, or you don’t know much about yourself at all.” He shrugged. “Or, maybe you just don’t like personalizing your place of work. But even for that, this is… bare.”
“Your deductions indeed have some merit,” she said, pleased. “Now, before I keep you too long, I will retrieve the mask for you.” Pearl went to her desk, picked up a deceptively mundane box—almost as ordinary as a shoe box—and held it out. “This is the mask I have promised you. You may check the contents of the box as you wish.”
The polite thing to do would have been for Ashveil to take the box before opening it. What he did in reality, though, was lift only the lid, making Pearl stand there still holding the box.
When he saw the mask, Ashveil quickly put the lid back on. “Is this seriously okay for me to have? I really don’t have much to give in return.”
“I am aware. You have expressed this to me several times. I only wish for you to cooperate with me in keeping the Games under control.”
“And that’s it? No other catch?”
Pearl was still stuck there holding the box. “There is no catch, Mr. Ashveil. However, there is indeed something valuable you have already offered me.”
“There is?” Ashveil was wracking his brain hard enough that even Pearl could see it on his face. He smoothed a strand of his hair—which looked like it had gone a day too long between washes—between his index finger and thumb.
Finally, Ashveil shot her a puzzled look. “I told you on the phone that all I had to offer was a heart set on revenge. Is that really what you’re referring to? I wasn’t literally offering that. I need that thing to live, and I, uh, much prefer living.”
Pearl nodded. “I am aware. What you were offering was not your organic heart, but the conviction to see your revenge through.”
“Sorry to ask, but what’s so great about that?”
Pearl weighed the benefits and risks of explaining her reasoning to him. She decided it would be worth it to gain his trust.
She said, “I admit, my reasoning is a personal one. I do not have a full understanding of human aesthetics, artistic expression, or emotions. I wish to see for myself how your heart inspires your actions.”
“Great way to make me feel like an experiment in a petri dish.”
“Is it not within the terms of our agreement? Your heart is something you have offered to me, after all. It follows that I would be allowed to observe it.”
Ashveil laughed. “You’re more ruthless than you seem!” He finally took the box from Pearl’s hands, and she stepped back to a polite distance. “You’ve got a deal, then.”
Pearl frowned slightly. “I did not mean to be ruthless.”
“That’s what’s so interesting about it! So, what, do you want me to send diary entries to you or something? I’m not really the type to write those.”
“Not at all. I only wish to stay in frequent correspondence to track your progress and cooperate with one another.”
“I guess I’d better put on a good show.”
“There is no need for that. Just act how you would normally act.”
“How could I?” Ashveil picked up his cane and twirled it in an arc, lifting his head to watch it spin. “I’ll even throw in a little something already. Do you want to know how my heart is feeling right now, Miss Pearl?”
“I’m interested to know.”
Ashveil’s cane stamped back onto the ground, and he smirked. “I’m more fired up than I’ve been in a long time.”
Pearl smiled, not entirely knowing why she did so. “Was this my doing, in part?”
“Of course it was! I want to see the effects of what you end up learning during the games, too.” He turned around, raising the hand that held his cane in farewell, since the other was occupied with holding the box. “You’d better call me often, you hear?”
“I will contact you at the appropriate time.”
Just before Ashveil reached the door, he tripped a little and his hat fell to the ground, exposing the messy hair under his hat. As he reached down to retrieve his hat, he muttered, “There goes my cool exit.”
Pearl let out something resembling a giggle, but Ashveil didn’t seem to hear a thing.
Pearl had a feeling that Ashveil would be the key to her understanding of humans.