damned_institute | Day 58: Cafeteria

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Day 58: Cafeteria

Anise woke up feeling lucky to be alive. She still felt a bit waterlogged, even though her skin, hair, and clothes were completely dry. During last night's adventures, she'd swallowed a lot of water, and it still felt heavy and disgusting in her stomach. Her arms and legs were tired from treading water. Lying still in her bed, she still kind of felt like she was floating and bobbing in the water.

But she was alive.

Knowing how close she came to death last night, and remembering the lengths her friends had gone to in order to save her, there was no way Anise could let a little discomfort get her down. She had to be at her best today so she wouldn't seem ungrateful to Guy and Claude. On that note, she had to remember to thank them properly, now that she was better able to express herself.

While getting ready, Anise was surprised to actually run into Claude that morning. He came to her room asking for the notebook he stored there (or maybe it was an excuse to see her cute face again), so Anise happily located it and handed it over. She was pretty tired, but the big smile she gave him was genuine. Who wouldn't be happy to see her savior so soon after a dramatic rescue?

After he left, Anise finished re-tying her pigtails into a low position so the military beret would fit on her head, and then she was ready! Even though her stomach wasn't feeling that great, she figured sitting down to a decent meal would help normalize it. And luckily for her, she was among the few who had the privilege of eating such a meal. Anise filled a plate with french toast topped with syrup and fruit, accompanied by small portions of each of the available side dishes.

It looked like she was early, which meant there weren't a lot of people around. That was okay, though. Anise could get a good head start on her meal before any company came around. She sat down at a table by herself and started on her sausage first.

[for Tolten!]

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.... So, it was morning. It may have been early, and he had slept well enough, but Battler certainly couldn't say that he felt all that refreshed. To tell the truth, part of him just wanted to stay in bed. But he couldn't do that, right? In fact, he should have never slept at all. .... He didn't have the time to be sleeping here. He had to gather information.

But, as it was, he was having a difficult time focusing on anything like that. Instead, his mind kept drifting back to yesterday. To Dad. .... To Ange. Or at least, the people calling themselves that. He was convinced it couldn't be them, but even so, hadn't they looked and sounded exactly the same....? ... Of course, it couldn't be. It was just a trick, right? .... Nothing but emotional blackmail. They were just trying to force him into doing whatever they wanted by showing him people he cared about. Like hell he was going to let that happen....! Using family against you was bad enough as it was, but his sister? She was just a little girl...!!

Somewhere in the middle of his thoughts, he noticed that, despite telling himself it wasn't really them, his thoughts began to stray, treating it as though they really had been brainwashed. Because the truth was ... he wasn't really sure which it was himself. He wanted to believe that it definitely hadn't been them, and yet...

Either way, it was clear from just that the military knew exactly how to push his buttons. There was no reason to show him a thing like that but to get him to react to it, right? Therefore, instead of letting them get to him and agonizing over it, he had to leave his room and continue like normal. No more staying holed up in here and being depressed on his own. And after such a totally unfair trick, these assholes actually had the guts to offer rewards for listening to them? Yeah, right, don't fuck with me! As if he was about to get bullied into helping his enemy...!

Indignant, he followed his escort to the cafeteria, grabbing his "meal" and settling into a random seat with a sigh. He'd said that he wasn't going to let them get to him, yet... he wasn't really in the mood to be eating.

[for a glimmerous fop.]

As per usual, Klavier was up before his escort had come to the room to collect him for the day. Though it had been several days now, he couldn't say he was adjusting to this whole military shift very easily. The nurses had been a little irritating at times, true, but he would much rather be greeted with a smiling face in the morning than this new stern one. The contrast somehow seemed more apparent with the jarringly upbeat morning announcement by someone he didn't even recognize. Klavier almost had to wonder if he'd woken up in some parallel dimension by mistake. Who the heck was this now? Just how many people were in charge here? And how many were in on this whole mess?

He mulled it over as he quietly followed the soldiers to the cafeteria, sadly used to the routine and the route by this point, before just deciding to file it away as one more thing to add to the list of mysteries. Frankly, it wasn't important at the moment. And he really needed to focus on what was immediately important. He was irritated by his lack of progress and the itchy feeling of having wasted far too much time. He'd spent too much time here. Getting too used to this place. He needed to learn more about this place and get both himself and everyone else out of here. And fast.

For now, though, he had a role to play. There was a pace to these things, and there was little he could do if too much attention was drawn to himself. For now, he was content with staying obscure and figuring things out from the shadows. So despite the sickening-looking garbage they places on his tray, Klavier offered no complaint or comment (which actually did cause his escort to look at him a little strangely). He just took it with a slight wrinkling of his nose before quickly smiling to cover for it and walking off to find a seat.

Klavier scanned the room, trying to find some familiar faces to sit with. He wasn't really in the mood to press his luck by sitting with a potential psychopath at the moment. Something a little lighthearted was a far nicer way to start the day, if he said so himself. So once Klavier spotted Battler sitting alone with his pink mess of a breakfast, it was a quick decision to saunter over and slip into the seat across from him.

He offered a bright smile in greeting, something nice to contrast the gloomy atmosphere created by the staff and circumstance. "Well good morning, Herr Red. I'd say, 'Fancy seeing you here,' but I suppose that would be a bit redundant, ja?" There was a small pause and he blinked at Red with a feigned curiosity. "...You remember me, don't you? Or should I run through introductions again?"

.... Oh, great. This guy. Not that Battler had a problem with him, exactly, but right now, he would rather just have been left alone than try to figure out what exactly went when on in this person's head. Of course, with so many people around, he wouldn't really be granted the luxury of telling him to go away. Even if he did, someone else would just end up taking his spot, and at least in this case, he had a vague idea of what to expect. .... That kind of irritating comment was one of them.

"A pain in the ass guy like you? How could I forget," he provided sarcastically. He probably sounded a little frustrated, in part because of what he'd been thinking about, and in part because he'd been interrupted from it, but a part of him was glad to have something else to focus on for the time being.

And speaking of distractions, "... By the way, I heard you left out some things from when we first met."

The response was quick. Surprisingly so. It was enough to get Klavier laughing a bit despite the slightly irritated tone used. Well, someone was certainly awake this morning, weren't they? Good. He would take that as a sign that things were just fine. Possibly not in the best of moods, but fine nonetheless. If anything were really wrong, he'd expect the guy to be a bit more distressed looking.

Rather than continuing along with the usual small talk, however, Red suddenly said that. His eyebrows lifted a little, surprised and curious at once. It wasn't at all what he was expecting, he had to admit.

"Oh really? You heard that, did you? ...So I suppose that would mean you've been gossiping a little. With Fräulein Prosecutor, at that." Because there was no one else who would have any details regarding that night. So he's been keeping in contact with her. Good to know. "What exactly did she say?"

It wasn't really that Klavier had been hiding things, per say. And it wasn't that he cared about hiding anything now either. He didn't really have a reason to. At the time Battler had asked about their first meeting, the conversation had already been convoluted enough with Red's memory loss. Klavier simply wanted to answer his questions with as little confusion as possible. There was already too much to absorb between their current situation and everything else that was going on. He didn't see a reason to complicate things needlessly when all Red had wanted to know was how the two of them knew each other.

The only reason he was being a little evasive right now was so he knew just how much he had to explain. No sense in wasting time repeating information he already knew.

"Gossiping? .... Not really. I just mentioned I'd heard a little about it," Battler shrugged. It was a pretty flat response for him, admittedly, but at the moment, he honestly didn't have the energy to be screwing around. The contrast was kind of off-putting, actually, but he didn't feel pointing out that he wasn't in the mood and drawing attention to himself. So instead, he continued the conversation.

"Like a giant scorpion? You don't think something like that is weird enough to point out?" He wasn't quite sure what to make of that bit of information, to be honest.

...Yes, needless to say, Battler really wasn't in much of a playful mood today. That was a shame. He wondered if it was due to anything in particular or if he was simply not a morning person. It could have been either, honestly. Not that Klavier was going to let that ruin anything for himself. This was the first time in a very long while he was in a relatively good mood after waking up here. So he wasn't going to let it be shattered too easily. No, this just meant he'd be a little reserved with his own banter. To a point, anyhow.

...He wondered. Was he irritated at Klavier having excluded certain details from his little story the other day? If so, it might have been similar to how Skye had felt. She had seemed openly betrayed and infuriated by it. Even though it hadn't been anything meant to be harmful. Still... That expression she'd given him still lingered and was coming up strong and vivid, like she had shock that look only yesterday. It was like she was scolding him even without her being there. ...Hmn...

Klavier leaned back in his seat a little, casual and relaxed, expression not shifting from its lighthearted smile. He was subtly stalling having to eat the pink monstrosity before him for just a little while longer. If he could do that by talking, he'd gladly answer first.

"Ah. That. ...I suppose it could be considered important in the context of the entire story, yes." It was said bluntly but the smile and tone didn't waver at all. "I did mention something about us being attacked while the three of us were speaking, I believe? That 'something' would be the scorpion in question. It was... about the size of a large house cat, if I'm not mistaken." His right hand came up and he started distractedly playing with some fringe of hair between two fingers. "...We managed to move very quickly, though. And the Fräulein was very resourceful in keeping it at bay for a moment or two longer. We got away from it unscathed."

The way Klavier openly admitted he'd left things out without changing tone or expression, as if this were perfectly natural, gave Battler some pause. "... What the heck, what a shameless guy," he muttered to himself. "If it's so important, then shouldn't you be saying that right away instead of in such a vague way?"

Though he had to admit, this didn't stray too far from his expectations. Even during their first conversation, it had been so vague that he was sure something was being glossed over. "... I was thinking this at the time, too. It sounded like we all ended up running off somewhere strange and didn't know how to get back, but you didn't feel like admitting it for some reason. ... Is that right?"

Battler frowned as he considered that rest. .... A scorpion the size of a cat? What the hell? He'd definitely never heard of anything like that. Well, it was true he wasn't entirely sure how big they could get, but come on, that was pretty ridiculous-sounding. In the first place, how would something of that size even sustain itself? That just sounded totally suspicious. And of course, even if something like that were running around somehow, it kind of left the question of what else this guy wasn't telling him. If he didn't think that was important, then what else...?

Perhaps his deduction was correct. It didn't seem Red was terribly happy about certain items being excluded, though Klavier himself didn't see what the issue was. It would have been a problem had Battler asked for a description of that night. But he hadn't. And it wasn't like he'd excluded it entirely. What they were attacked by changed little in the context of the story. Was that really what Red was thrown off by?

"Ah. My apologies. I would have included it had I known you would consider such a thing so important." He didn't look very apologetic. Actually, he looked like he was trying not to laugh at someone being needlessly nitpicky. Which was only partially the case. "If I recall correctly, you had simply asked how it was that we met. I didn't think that every single little detail of that night was necessary to establish that. ...Especially since I was throwing a lot at you in one sitting as it was. I remember what it's like to sit down and have all of this mess thrown into one's lap, after all. It's a lot to take in. Even before you get to the... more headache-inducing details."

He let out a small laugh at that last bit, pulling his hand from his hair to pick up his glass of water instead. "...That and I didn't think you would believe me. You don't really remember much about me, correct? If I were listening to some stranger telling me I had been thrown in here before, that we knew each other and I'd had my memories conveniently and mysteriously wiped... then was told something like that, I'd think the guy was trying to mess with me and considered me gullible. You're telling me you wouldn't have felt the same?" There was also the fact that Battler hadn't believed the existence of the scorpion when it had happened right in front of him. That was evidence enough he'd be seen as an immediate liar. "If I wanted you to believe anything I was saying, telling you something that might throw off my credibility wouldn't be a terribly good idea, ja?"

He tilted the glass a little, one way and then the other, distractedly looking at the water. ...He was still never sure about consuming the things here. "But since you've been here a while, there's nothing wrong with sharing more of what happened that night." He looked away from the water and back up at him, then smiled.

...... Incredible. Just ... incredible. Battler had thought to himself a few times things like 'What is wrong with this guy?', but had kept it to himself, thinking it the product of a bizarre first meeting. Right now, however, he was already frustrated, and hearing this, and seeing the nonchalance that came with it, didn't help at all. And, without anywhere direct the stress from the real source of his tension, it was only natural that something like this would cause him to release those feelings in another from.

He stared at Klavier a long moment, before slowly responding, "Did you .... hit you head or something....?"

As he let that sink in, his calm face all but vanished, leaving him visibly angry. " 'Credibility'? Are you kidding me? Whether I'd believed you or not, if you actually told the truth, there'd be no issue, right? No, more than that, you call obscuring things and only pointing out details if asked 'credible'? Who the hell is going to know to ask for something like that anyway?! ..... That stuff isn't even an issue. After all, I'm not really the person it happened to. But you're the one asking me if I would have believed you, if you'd just told me everything, when really, it's just the opposite! Does a guy who only mentions things when it's convenient sound trustworthy to you? Of course not...!! I'll admit, you've helped me out before, and it's not like I'm not grateful for that, but that doesn't mean I have to ignore things like this. If someone's going to leave something out, even if it's small, then who's to say what else? Don't you think that's totally suspicious? Isn't there enough to worry about in a place like this without wondering what someone asshole isn't telling you?!"

.... Ah. There. He'd almost started talking about what what was really bothering him. Battler sank back into his seat, taking some deep breaths to get the frustration out of his system. He'd definitely... gotten more worked up than the situation really called for. Of course, that being the case, nothing that he'd said had been wrong, so he had no intention of apologizing for it, either.

The silence that followed actually wasn't the least bit jarring as far as Klavier was concerned. He'd already figured Battler was annoyed or irritated anyway, so the reaction didn't cause much of a second thought. That is, until Battler actually spoke.

Klavier blinked, obviously surprised as that first comment sank in. Then Battler's face shifted to rage and... the guy started yelling at him. Straight out, blatant yelling. He was truly, legitimately angry. It most certainly wasn't expected at all, and Klavier hadn't thought the kid would have the guts to yell at him out of nowhere like that either. So to say he was caught off guard by it was an understatement.

The act of yelling alone wasn't enough to throw him off, and that was probably apparent. Loud voices weren't a foreign concept for him (it was part of his job, after all). Neither was pushing people's buttons. As any good lawyer knew, the best way to get people to talk was to get them emotionally charged. He'd used that in court before. And even on a personal level, he had a tendency to tease and irritate people. Klavier wasn't oblivious to this fact. He knew. But these were all controlled instances. Part of the plan or routine. Something like this, out of nowhere and with no benefit to anyone or anything, was certainly not something he ever liked to have happen. There was a difference between annoying someone playfully and really getting them angry.

Klavier did nothing to interrupt the tirade. No he simply sat there, staring at Battler with surprise written across his face and quietly listening as though to an interesting lecture. And when he was done and had settled back down, fuming? Klavier just continued to look at him. He wasn't smiling so much anymore, but he didn't look any less on edge either. To be perfectly honest, despite how completely unnecessary the anger felt, Ushiromiya did raise some significant points. And it was all something he had been told before by the young Skye after she'd felt 'betrayed' by him. The repetition made the comments stick a bit more than they might have alone.

But really, what got him was that very last sentence. That was what struck a chord. Because wasn't that just so incredibly true?

"Hmn." He took a small drink of his water before putting it back down on the table in front of him. "I must admit, you do raise a good point. In retrospect, none of that makes me seem very trustworthy at all, now does it? I probably come off as rather conniving right now." He answered Battler levelly, as though everything the guy had just said was only stated rather than yelled in anger. "I don't really make a habit of doing such a thing. Not when it comes to information about this place, anyhow. There's generally no reason to hold such things back. Information is really all we have here, and we should all be freely sharing as much of it as possible. ...Most especially when it comes to the dangers here."

There was a pause, and then said very matter-of-factly: "Please do accept my apologies. I was attempting to be courteous. But I see now that it came across as anything but. I really had no intention of hiding anything from you."

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Day 58: Cafeteria

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