Yoruichi-san

The wanted criminal known as Cinderella has sought asylum in China after being convicted of fraud for faking her status as a princess, a crime that was discovered after her coach turned into a mushy pile of pumpkin goo at twenty past midnight. Edit: Some good sentences, just wanted to point out that it's not really, like, about constructing the shortest grammatically correct sentence possible, but more, like, to try to connect the words in an interesting and sensical way.

Oh, I forgot about this, lol...

After being delated by the ocean of conservatives, the tree hugger was drawn and quarters by pirouetting horses.

Sorry, I realize that many here do not remember my previous stint of mystery series, but I tend towards the, like, Japanese/manga style of mystery where it's more about the 'trick' the culprit uses than about psychology. Also, my 'detective' is usually pretty infallible...okay, maybe at times a bit unrealistically so...*whistling*

Yes, cards are dealt one at a time. It will count as whichever will make the player win or not lose if there's a difference, otherwise it doesn't matter. Yes, it's to imply, say, the probability of getting an A on your next turn is always the same, regardless of what cards have already been dealt, for simplicity.

First person comes up with a list of say 3-5 random words/phrases and the next person tries to make a sentence using all of them. Then they construct their own list of words. Generally the more seemingly unconnected the words are, the better, and using different parts of speech (noun, verb, adjective, etc) and is usually good. Also, feel free to reply to previous lists for fun if you have a good sentence . I'll start: Good luck >D.

If I had a cake for every one I ate, I could have my cake and eat it too .

I remember hearing from college-mates that some grad student did their thesis on Blackjack and proved that there was a 51% chance of winning if the player counted cards. Let's look at a simpler variant, with only one decision making node. The game is thus: there are 3 players, and a first card is dealt to each, then a second card is dealt to each, then a third card, etc. The game ends when either one player has 20 or 21, in which case they win, or when 2 players have busted with 22 or above, in which case the remaining player wins. Your decision: which seat do you sit in? For simplicity, assume the cards are dealt from an infinite stack of decks.

Male. Good observations, everyone. There are references to things revealed in past series, to be revealed in future series, etc. There are a lot of things that tie in to the over-arching storyline(s), which are necessarily vague. but I try to make things that tie in to the current mystery pretty clear.

Hand towel. And the poison was definitely ingested. Yeah, there's a lot of details I left out, mainly because it would take too much time and energy to list every single thing. The important things should have been mentioned though .

Points to RG and P-ji (sorry, PG is and forever will be taken by puzzlegirl). Interesting line of thought TO, but the letter was somewhat centered, not on the edge of the meat. Sorry for confusing P-ji, I negligently assumed everyone likes their sirloin steaks the way I do...with a red wine reduction. Hence the pot. The mystery is a tad biased in favor of those who like cooking *whistling*.

Both curr3nt and Prof. T bring up an interesting point about "let anonymity stand unless it's criminal". I probably would agree with this, except for I don't really think the courts are yet fully equipped to handle cyber crimes. I mean, like hacking into a bank and stealing money, they can do something about, since the stealing of material wealth is something they have been dealing with for a long time, but like, things that could be considered 'crimes', that are unique to the fabric of cyber-space, there's still not a firm policy on. Just because something is not a crime yet, does not mean it shouldn't be . Technology and the world we live in is changing so quickly, and like, legislation is so slow (especially with the current state of congress *cough*), that it's not surprising that cyber-vigilantes take it on themselves to punish 'wrong-doers'. It really saddens me that people use cyber anonymity to bring the worst out in themselves. Personally, I see it as an opportunity to be better than you are, to free yourself from the shackles of life and responsibilities and society and be the person you really wanted to be. I mean, in real life I have had to make compromises, I'm pretty sure we all have had to. We need to keep our jobs, make money for food and shelter, take care of our families, sometimes tone down our crazeativity to work with others and get the mundane minutia of life done (well, I know I've definitely had to), etc. But in cyber space I can be strong and uncompromising and let my crazeativity run rampant. I mean, yes, I know I'm not polite or tactful and there are people who don't like cyber me, but that's okay....and that's the beauty of it. If (and sometimes when) people in my real life discover my cyber-personality(ies), sometimes they're surprised, but I don't feel like their opinion of me is impacted negatively. In fact, often I feel like they have a new respect, a new appreciation for the sides of me they hadn't seen before. Anonymity gives the opportunity to reinvent yourself. Why so many choose to be re-invented as villains when they have the opportunity to be heroes is beyond me .

1 point to RG, 1 point to phaze, still 1 point up for grabs for 1 . @flame: um...I'm pretty sure that's not a crime... Edit: And of course I'm familiar with DN...after all, I am a shinigami ;P

Good starting thoughts, but let's assume that Violet knows her father's hand writing style of letters and A looks roughly like it does in this font (i.e no curvy stuff or blocky stuff).

The controversy surrounding the redditor, at least, and what the OP was based on, was not whether to force non-anonymity, but whether to protect anonymity, as some sort of a right. On reddit, threads were deleted by mods that talked about the real life identity, even though reddit prides itself as a center for 'freedom of speech'. Hence my question to you assumed there was 'stalking' since the RL identity could be traced if anonymity is not protected, but unless the person themselves posted under their real name, they would take some effort. The extreme case you discuss is interesting, and if people want to discuss it, it's fine, but it's not the same situation that I am discussing.

Previously... Having broken through the codes with ease, B-kun perused the contents of the man’s phone. He would have frowned had he not already been frowning. Nothing of use. This man was clearly a lower echelon lackey of Evitceted Corp, with access to no information but that which the higher echelons deemed he needed in order to complete his task. After carefully wiping off his fingerprints with his sleeve, B-kun tucked the cell back into the man’s pocket. “What, you’re giving it back? After we went through all that trouble?” Ben Near asked unhappily. “Shouldn’t we at least, like, take it with us?” B-kun shook his head. “No. Doubtless the organization will be suspicious that their lackeys have not reported in by now. They’re most likely tracking it. I should be going as soon as possible. No, we should be going.” Then he looked straight into the hobo’s eyes with his clear, dark expression as serious as ever. “You shouldn’t have helped me, but you did, and now they’ll suspect you’re involved with me. They’ll capture you and torture you and try to get information out of you, and when they find out you don’t, they won’t just let you go. The only way for you to be safe is to come with me now. I’m sorry.” Ben shrugged. “Eh...it wasn’t like my life was all that great before you came along. Besides,” he broke out into a toothy grin that reeked of alcohol, “you owe me a bottle of vodka.” Twenty minutes later the odd pair was skirting through a backstreet in the business district. B-kun kept alert to any sudden changes in his surroundings, but he moved with purpose. “I have acquaintances who can help find a safe place for you,” B-kun said to his unexpected companion. “But it will have to wait until morning. The only reason I came out tonight was that a friend asked for my help.” They came to a well crafted door, above which was inscribed: The law offices of O’Hare, Heptan, Vittaro, and Deltaskos. B-kun raised a fine-fingered hand and knocked: two long raps followed by three quick ones. There was a scuffling of feet on the other side and the door swung open. “You came!” the pretty young woman in the doorway exclaimed before throwing her arms around B-kun’s aristocratic neck. Then she noticed his ragged companion and frowned. “...And you brought a friend...” “Violet, this is Ben Near. The circumstances of our acquaintance are...complicated. Ben, this is Violet O’Hare.” “College friend,” Violet filled in. She started to hold out her hand, but then, taking in the man’s attire, thought better of it. “I’m at Harvard Law now, where B-kun should be.” She gave him a warm smile but there was lament in her tone. “You were always the best of us, B. If only...” “I didn’t come here to socialize,” B-kun interrupted. “You said you needed my help.” Violet nodded, and her baby blue eyes clouded. “My father, Victor O’Hare, the one whose name is on the sign...he died...he...was murdered.” “I’m sorry...” Ben said slowly. B-kun lowered his eyes. Violet gestured in acknowledgement and continued. “It happened here, in the kitchen in the back. Dad had this place outfitted with a professional quality kitchen.” B-kun’s brows furrowed. “The police don’t have any leads?” The young woman shook her strawberry blonde head. “They think it was perpetrated by an outsider, because, well, it’s probably better to show you.” She motioned for them to follow her. “The kitchen...I mean, the crime scene, has pretty much been left the way it was. None of us have had the heart to go in there since the body was discovered.” Ben Near whistled when they entered the large room. The stainless steel of the appliances glinted, the hanging copper pots glistened, and the marble of the counters shone. Violet nodded absentmindedly. “Dad always loved cooking. He fancied himself a bit of a chef. He was a stickler for cleanliness.” She garnered a weak smile as she led them around the center island, atop which a pot sat on a stove, a bowl held the wilted remnants of salad greens, and a greying slab of meat lay on a bamboo chopping board. There was a sharp intake of breath from Ben as attention was caught by the form on the ground, or at least, the chalk outline of where a form had been. “Yes, that’s where he was found,” she struggled to keep her voice from shaking. “Poison, the police said. They took samples of everything but left things they way they found them...the way I found them.” Pain surged in her pretty eyes. “I was the one who found the body.” . B-kun’s shrewd gaze stoically surveyed the scene. It alighted on the sirloin, or what had been sirloin, on the chopping board. There appeared to be a letter carved into it: A. “The police believe that was his dying message,” Violet said, noticing his scrutiny. “That’s why they think it was an outsider. It doesn’t really seem to point to the partners, even though from I gathered, they were having some internal issues.” “No,” B-kun stated steadily, “on the contrary, it could have implicated any of the partners.” Violet gasped. “What do you mean?” The detective pointed to the knife beside the board. “It’s pointing towards where the body is. The natural motion for a person is to put the knife down pointing away from himself. Someone must have used the knife after your father was dead, from the other side of the island.” “Why? Why carve an A into a piece of meat? It seems risky to alter the crime scene like that for something that doesn’t seem that useful to the perpetrator...” “Most likely your father already carved something into the sirloin, to implicate the perpetrator, and he used the knife to cover it up by making it into an A when he returned to the scene,” B-kun replied. “Did the police uncover which of the partners were in this kitchen the afternoon of your father’s death?” Violet nodded, still processing the new information. “They all admitted to being in here that afternoon, but no one can remember the exact time they were in. Neil Hepton came in for a towel, Michael Vittaro for a spoon, and George Deltaskos for a plate.” “Do the police know how the poison was delivered?” Violet shook her head. “The lab tests haven’t come back yet. Dad always cooked alone and never let anyone near the island when he was cooking so the killer couldn’t have just dropped the poison in somewhere. He always gathered all his ingredients on the island when he started cooking...mise en place, he called it, and he never told anyone beforehand what he was going to cook.” She gestured to the plethora of pot and pans. “No one would have known what vessel he would have used, and he always randomly chose an utensil from the drawer to use or taste with. The other partners and I sometimes cook things in here too, or make ourselves a snack, so I don’t think the killer would have poisoned everything...” B-kun nodded. “Unlikely. And I doubt the police will find the murder weapon, the killer had the chance to take it with him when he carved the A.” He frowned and worked the case in his mind. Suddenly an image popped up in his head, a face with a cheshire-cat-that-swallowed-the-canary grin. She liked to cook too... “I know who the killer is.”

@phil: I post as if no one knows who I really am *cue Life is Like a Boat by Rie Fu* ;P @chad: (cool last name, btw ) What other methods would you suggest to garner support for your cause on a mass scale without being punished by an oppressive regime? @curr3nt: Do you really think a boss would go to the trouble of stalking his employee's cyber personalities to find out their political orientation and would fire them for it? Aren't there laws against that? And don't bother posting my resume...it's just a front anyways, that the secret organization I work for put up .

Transformers was the big Independence Day movie, since it was an American tradition, like tarte tatin *cough* I mean apple pie.

Let's say we have poisons A, B, and C with strength A<B<C. So if someone takes A then B then C they will die, correct? What happens if they take B then A then C? Does C antidote both? Also, does the Witch know what the highest strength of poison the wizard can make is?

I've been trying to avoid thinking about this since I can foresee not getting any work done for the next week...*whistling*

Touche ;P.

I don't know if you're familiar with Reddit, but there has been a major controversy surrounding the leakage of the real-life identity of one of its moderators. The crux of the controversy, as I understand it, is that Reddit is supposedly a major proponent of 'free speech' but it's administration has suppressed the flow of information on the mod's identity. So I think it brings up an interesting question. Should there be a right to cyber-anonymity? Do you have a right to keep the persona(s) you use online separate from your real life persona? Should the internet give you the right to say whatever you want whenever you want without fear of repercussion on your real life self?

...then I wouldn't count on the cavalry.