who are you to judge?

things here will work like they do in most fangrams, but i thought a guide would be nice. so!!

voice dramas

i'll do a transcript of the warden's and prisoner's conversation. there's not much to say here.

songs

i'm not one for making lyrics, so the prisoners will basically 'cover' songs. i'll choose songs that fit them and the trial, and i'll write out a description of the mv. if i feel like it, i'll draw 'screenshots' from the mv, or i might animate a bit of it - i cant promise that, but i'll try to..!!

interrogations

ill be using a mix of the canon milgram questions and my own. if you have any questions for the characters, send to me and i might include them:3 !!!

voting

i'll just use the poll function on here, i'll always set it to a week. if the poll ties, the result will be opposite of what i voted. ex. if tess' poll ties, they wont be forgiven, because i voted for them to be forgiven. i dont want my vote to be the deciding one!

also, if you shared any thoughts, theories, etc on my ocs, i'd be very happy!! not only that, but knowing what the audience (you hehe) thinks would be very helpful in deciding what direction to take the story in!!! even if its something very minor, itd be very appreciated:) you could influence the future trials this way!!

if you have any suggestions on what i should add here, lmk!!

.

.

be aware this story deals with sensitive topics!! it's nothing worse than what's in milgram itself, i think - nothing here that isn't already there. jic, i've included a list of possible tws here!! i'll remind you of them again when they're relevant, too

Do you think you'll be forgiven this time too? Of course. I'm innocent, after all.

What do you do in your free time? I've had a lot of time to read lately.

What are you thinking about right now? That's none of your business.

What do you think about Nastya? Her parents obviously failed in raising her.

What was your childhood like? What kind of question is that? It was normal.

Do you want to get out of MILGRAM? Yes. I have better things to do with my time than this.

State the name of your victim. There is no victim.

Do you get along with any of the other prisoners? No.

How long were you in a relationship with your fiancée? 3 years or so.

Do you regret it? There is nothing for me to regret.

What do you think about the Warden? You're just a child.

Do you like children? No.

Tell us your dating history. I already told you that I never dated anyone before or after Marya.

What was your fiancée like? She was naive.

If you could go back in time, would you do things the same way? I'd try to.

If you were reborn, would you still want to be yourself? It doesn't matter what I think. That's not up to me, after all.

What do you want to do after MILGRAM ends? I'll go back to my job and continue on as normal.

Don't you feel bad for your victim? Even if I did, it wouldn't change anything. Regret won't bring him back.

Do you have a desire to get married? No. There's no point.

The door opens. Petro starts talking before the Warden sits down. He sounds confident.

P: Finally. I was starting to think you wouldn't show.

W: I'm here now.

They sit down.

P: Be on time next time. You won't get anywhere in life if you're late all the time.

W: Excuse me?

P: You were late last time, too, weren't you? What kind of example are you setting for your prisoners, disregarding rules like this? I'll look past it, just this once, but don't let it happen again.

W: Let me stop you right there. I am the Warden, not you, you-

P: Really? You could have fooled me! You're not acting like one at all.

W: Is that right?

P: Yes. Where were when Nastya attacked Tess? Hm? Let me remind you that I'm the one that patched her up! Not you. She wouldn't have received any treatment at all were it not for me. Don't you feel ashamed?

W: I don't see how that concerns me.

P: What?

W: My duties don't include providing you with medical care — maybe if Tess was forgiven, I'd help them, but as it stands, their safety is not my primary goal. I thought someone like you would understand that.

P: But-

W: Above all else, my duty is to oversee your judgement. I'd rather that Nastya did not attack Tess, yes, but I am not to blame for her actions.

P: … so, it's like that. You refuse to take responsibility. It's only because you judged her 'innocent' that she was able to attack Tess.

W: Don't concern yourself with this. An unforgiven prisoner doesn't deserve your sympathy.

P: Is it not within my rights to do so?

W: I'm merely stating that you don't need to pity them.

P: Even though they're a child?

W: Tess is hardly a child anymore. In a few years, they'll be considered an adult by most of the world. It's up to me to set them on the right path.

Petro raises his voice.

P: In a few years, yes, but right now, she's still a child! There's no point in excessive violence like this.

W: I didn't think you cared about Tess so deeply.

P: I don't. Like you said, they're guilty. Me caring about someone like that is preposterous… ugh, I don't get why you bother with this 3 trial system. They're all guilty.

W: Tell me, Petro. If you were the warden, how would you punish them?

P: I'd send her to prison. They'd deal with her there.

W: Hah! No.

P: No?

The Warden sounds amused.

W: No! Petro, if you were the warden, you'd have to punish the prisoners with your own two hands! If you were in my place, here in MILGRAM, you wouldn't be able to 'send them to prison'. They're already there.

P: You… ugh. Forget it.

W: No, no. Don't be shy. Tell me! You've already admitted to seeing everyone here as unforgivable. How would you punish that, hm? Maybe, if your answer's good enough, it'll change my mind. Maybe I'll be easier on you.

P: Stop it.

W: Mhm, who's avoiding responsibility now? You disagree with me, yet you refuse the opportunity to change things… you're the worst.

P: See, you're not fit to be warden at all! Your emotions get the better of you. How can you make a fair judgement?!

W: It's not often that I get to debate someone like this! Forgive me for getting excited… to answer your question, I can't.

P: So you admit it?

W: Of course. You shouldn't worry about getting a fair verdict. It's never a fair verdict.

W: What would that even look like? One way or another, the verdict will seem unfair to someone… your victims most of all, of course. A forgiven verdict will never seem fair to the person who's life you took. Regarding the other verdict…

W: Say, Petro — you admitted to not forgiving Tess. Why is that?

P: Isn't it obvious? Murder is wrong.

W: That's all there is to it for you? Hm. Well, say that I don't forgive Tess because I find them annoying. Is my judgement fair?

P: … what? Of coure not.

W: Is the verdict only fair as long as the reasoning holds up, then?

P: Yes.

W: But the end result is the same.

P: That doesn't matter.

W: Hm… how can I put it in a way that you'll undertand?

W: Let's use Viktor and Sasha as an exampe. Say that Viktor wasn't forgiven becuase he's ugly, and that Sasha wasn't forgiven because I want her to accept that she's done something wrong. What changes? They're both just as restrained and, as you would put it, "mistreated".

P: That doesn't matter. You can't base your judgement on personal preference.

W: Of course I can. What's stopping me?

P: You know what I mean! You shouldn't do it.

W: What should I base it on, then? Explain your thought process to me.

P: I already told you! They're all guilty-

The Warden's hands slam down on top of the table.

W: Are you even listening to me?! That's not what this is about. You're all guilty! You've all killed someone — be it directly or indirectly, by accident or on purpose! You're all guilty of causing someone's death. Were it not for you, your victims would still be alive.

P: … what is this about, then?

W: Forgiveness.

P: How does that change anything? Murder is unforgivable.

W: Hm. Say, you broke up Tess' and Nastya's fight, didn't you? What if you accidentally killed Nastya while defending Tess? Would that still be unforgivable?

P: Oh, fuck off with these hypotheticals. What matters is the here and now, not what could have been!

W: I only want to understand you, Petro. It's my duty as your warden to-

P: Yeah, yeah, shut up already! If you're gonna make me answer your idiotic questios, I might as well do so without hearing you prattle on about your duty.

P: Accidental murder is still murder. No matter your intent, you still killed a person.

W: So, in the scenario where you kill Nastya-

P: Hypothetical scenario.

W: … in my hypothetical scenario, would you forgive yourself?

P: It doesn't matter.

W: I assume you wouldn't, then? "Accidental murder is still murder", after all… or would you forgive yourself for the pure reason that you're you? Surely, your circumstances make you the exception to your worldview.

P: What are you getting at?

W: Say that I commited the same murder as you. Would you forgive me?

Petro is silent for a bit.

P: … excuse me?

W: Imagine that I was in the same circumstances as you that led you to murder. Same job, same family, same problems. Can you forgive me?

P: I didn't murder anyone! For god's sake, I thought we were over this already — you judged me as innocent!

W: Like you said, MILGRAM has a 3 trial system. You may not be forgiven all three times.

P: Changing your mind now would mean admitting that you were wrong about me.

The Warden sounds uncomfortable, if only briefly.

W: We here at MILGRAM do make lapses in judgement sometimes, yes. It's only natural. But thanks to how MILGRAM works, we can fix our mistakes.

P: "We"..? What do you mean by that?

W: Don't get distracted. You still haven't answered my question. Would you forgive me if I commited the same murder as you?

Petro makes a frustrated sound.

P: It's not murder!

W: What was it, then? An accident? A suicide?

Petro raises his voice in anger.

P: Fuck off! You- You don't know anything! You come in here, and, what?! Spew hypotheticals at me like they matter?! You don't deserve your title, not one fucking bit. You damned philospher.! When your superiors realise how defective you really are, you-

The Warden stands up. Petro doesn't stop speaking until they slap him. They sound furious.

W: And you think, what?! That you'd make a better warden?! You, who think all murder is unforgivable for the pure reason that it's murder?!

P: Of course! Anyone who doesn't see that-

W: MILGRAM exists to give those who have gone astray another chance! The thought that everyone here is unforgivable, that they can do nothing to change that fact… it makes me want to vomit.

Mechanical sounds start to fill the room. The Warden doesn't pay it any mind.

W: When people have something they believe in, they're able to rise up no matter what! MILGRAM is that something for many people. Be grateful.

W: Even scum like you, who reject MILGRAM's ideals, deserve another chance. It's because of MILGRAM that you can be forgiven at all! By rejecting the reality that you are a murderer, you reject your chance at forgiveness.

Petro is yelling at them too, now.

P: What this damned MILGRAM thinks of me —I don't care! I know that I'm innocent. Nothing can change that. Why did you forgive me if you hate me so much?!

W: Why… why were you forgiven?! It was obviously going to end like this! Ugh… You're awful. Terrible. You can change, I want you to, but you can't do that without accepting what you've done!

P: I had nothing to do with his death.

W: If it weren't you, this "he" would still be alive! That makes you a murderer well enough, doesn't it?!

They're both silent.

W: … I'll be the first to admit that I got a bit carried away there. Even so, my point still stands. These verdicts don't decide your innocence. Where did you even come up with that?

W: It doesn't matter, I suppose. We're out of time. Prisoner 005, Petro-

P: Wait!

W: For the love of… what?!

P: Who will take care of Tess if you don't forgive me? What if another fight breaks out and I can't stop it, huh? What if someone dies because of your unfair verdict?

W: It wouldn't be the first time.

W: Prisoner 005, Petro, sing your sins!

---

the song that petro covers is old enough 2 die by heart attack man

This was such a lovely evening But your mother ruined everything

Petro's sitting at a table with his son, who seems to be a teenager. We only see Petro's face. They're having dinner. The teen's is full, but he's not eating anything. Petro doesn't seem to care.

We could be a happy family But you wanna run away from me

The teen seems to be talking to him but he doesn't participate in the conversation. If anything, he seems annoyed. It's unclear whether it's because of what the teen's saying, or if he's just upset to be interrupted.

Pop The trunk And grab My gun And make my way back to Our final resting place

The teen and Petro are arguing now. The teen gets fed up and storms off to his room and shuts his door. Petro follows after him, but hesitates at the door.

There's no way in hell I'll ever let you go I'm gonna take you out Take you with me

He opens the door for a moment, but shuts it just as fast.

During the instrumental, we see him spending time with his family. The colors are lighter. We see Marya's face here, but not their son's. They're eating dinner together, but the mood isn't as somber this time. They're laughing and chatting away. Eventually, a door shuts on this view. Petro locks it away.

This was such a lovely evening We're gonna make the headlines tomorrow A celebration gone so horribly awry Father kills his wife and [son]

Petro sits in a hospital hallway. He looks exhausted. A nurse approaches him. He looks hopeful for a moment, but his hope gets replaced by anger the moment that she speaks. He storms off.

Yes I know You're [12] Years old But you're still old enough to die Right here, right now

Petro's wearing the same clothes as that of the dinner. He's washing the dishes. His son is desperately trying to tell him something, but Petro won't listen. He brushes him off.

I can't stand the thought of going this alone I'm gonna take you out Take you with me

We very nearly see his son's face, but Petro covers it with his hands;the shot changes so that he's holding a photo of him. He rips it in half.

Standing scared, at the end of the barrel

Wearing the same clothes as in the hospital, Petro's stands in the doorway to his son's bedroom. We see him from his son's POV, so the angle is skewed. There's a look of horror on his face.

Happy birthday baby girl

We see from POV. Inside of the room, we can see his son and Marya sitting on the bed, laughing together. We still don't see his face.

Old enough to die Old enough to die Old enough to die

We see more flashes of Petro's life, though his son is significantly younger in these shots. He's at the playground with his son. He's driving him to school. He's reading him a goodnight story. Then, he gets up to leave. He stands in the doorway for a moment and fondly smiles at his sleeping son. He shuts the door.

--

what milgram song would they cover? i dont knowww.. scratches head ...

what other, non-milgram song would they cover? seamstress by dessa 🔥🔥that was supposed to be his main song, but i couldnt come up with an mv for it ＞︿＜

as always, if you have any theories, i'd be more than happy to hear them! thank you for reading <3