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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While the sincerity in his sentiment over what had happened was appreciated, Mike realized rather quickly that Niikura had completely missed the point. Completely. Which was completely understandable, because exactly how often were giant talking turtles turned into humans only to be turned into giant talking turtles again? That probably had a lot more than a trillion to one odds.

The annoyance not only helped Mike settle a bit, but it caused him to pull a face. "No, that was me."

Edited 2011-08-20 06:21 (UTC)

Unfortunately, the emphasis on the word "me" did nothing whatsoever for Niikura's further enlightenment; if anything, it only made him irritated.

"Ya just said that," he said defensively. Seriously, what was he missing here? They'd turned Mike into a giant turtle, the giant turtle had been Mike...that was the same conclusion. There was literally nothing else to know here.

Mike let out a sigh. Niikura just wasn't getting what he was hinting at, not that Mike had ever been good at subtlety. Really, he was only good at stating the obvious.

He only showed more irritation on his face. "No, Niikura. I'm a giant walking, talking mutated pet shop turtle turned human."

Edited 2011-08-20 06:51 (UTC)

First thought: sarcasm. All the sarcasm. Wow, it wasn't as if he'd insinuated that sort of possibility. He was just wondering...okay, maybe the question had been a little insensitive. But seriously. There wasn't the need for that kind of blatant sarcasm.

And then Niikura actually took the time to think back on what Mike had been saying all along, and with realization came an unfortunate shift in facial expression, the sort of shift that happened when people realized that no, it wasn't a joke. They really had won the lottery.

Except he hadn't won the won the lottery. All he'd done was find out that this guy he knew was actually a giant turtle who'd been turned into a human who last night had been turned back into a giant turtle.

...hopefully, Mike wouldn't be offended by the way he was staring. Or the way that his jaw had dropped.

"...for--for real?"

He was a clone who really wasn't "Niikura" so much as he was "Niikura plus a few hundred more Shou's", and he thought he'd be the strangest person he'd ever come across. But apparently not. In a way, it was sort of gratifying to hear that someone else had an identity issue perhaps more severe than his; Niikura had heard about these people on the bulletin board, these people who had gone from not-human to human. He'd even met one before: Sesshoumaru. However, Sesshoumaru had always looked fairly human. A gigantic turtle did not.

"...oh man, you're totally serious about that, aren't ya?" Wow, what was he supposed to say here? "Look, I..." Niikura rubbed the back of his neck, suddenly feeling like a bug under a magnifying glass. "Why didn't ya tell me sooner?" he asked, laughing weakly. "Could've saved me the heart attack."

Mike watched Niikura's facial expressions change with the realization that, no, he wasn't kidding. It was amusing, yet also reassuring. Niikura wasn't afraid of him. He was just in shock.

Usually it went from shock straight to fear, except for the rebel army. They regarded him as a hero. (Some hero he was, being the first of his brothers to be caught down during the climatic final battle.)

But Niikura was different. He wasn't about ready to shoot at him, or attack him, scream at him, or even hit him with a purse. There was only surprise, not horror, not fear. That reaction was refreshing to say the least.

Mike knew he liked Niikura for a reason.

At the question, he sighed and leaned back a bit. "Let's just say that most humans don't take my existence very well. They're more likely to shoot first, then shoot until I'm dead."

But that was mostly the Foot Police.

"Duh," Niikura said without thinking. He looked briefly taken aback as his automatic reaction sank in and then shook his head. "Er--what I mean is, not like I could've done anything about it, maybe given ya a funny look." The teen managed to crack a grin, although it was mostly on just one side of his face. "Can't really be picky with who I'm workin' with, y'know. We're all stuck here all the same so...it'd be stupid to just ditch ya 'cause you're actually a giant mutant...ninja turtle thing."

He shrugged. "Anyway, I guess we're square now: I know what ya really are, and ya know all that..." Niikura motioned vaguely. "That...stuff ya saw the other night." And then, on impulse: "People wouldn't really take well to me either if they knew about...things, so...I guess...I kinda know what it's like. And stuff."

His words hung in the air for a few seconds before the side grin widened into a full-on goofy one. "Damn, what is wrong with me today, gettin' all mopey over somethin' like this."

Niikura's sudden reply shocked Mike, too, and then he let out a bark of a laugh. Well at least Niikura didn't beat around the bush about it, even if he had been straightforward only automatically. Reassuring, in a way.

Mike surprised himself by managing a grin back at Niikura's goofy one. It wasn't a big one--he wasn't good at those anymore--but it was real, and it was there. Niikura was someone he could trust.

Which was exactly what he needed right now.

"You don't see me complaining," Mike replied back, and he meant it. "You came after me, anyways. It's too late to feign indifference."

Niikura hadn't been able to stop the doctor, but he was still there afterwards. Even if Mike had passed out pretty much immediately after being freed, he still remembered seeing Niikura's face, seeing him run towards him.

It was what he had needed most in that moment after--to not be alone.

...oh wow. Mike was smiling. Oh--oh man, he needed to immortalize this moment in his mind forever. Just. WOW.

He could have stared at the other man for a few seconds longer and still have been completely lost for words, but then Mike gave him something to work with, so Niikura was swiftly back in business with a familiar devilish slant to his expression: "Well I'd hope ya wouldn't be complainin', seein' as how I had to get into another fight for ya - now is that indifference? 'M tellin' ya, I couldn't fake it if I tried--anyway, the point is that passin' out and leavin' me in the lurch like that ain't cool, y'know. So maybe ya do owe me one."

No, he couldn't feign indifference if he tried. Niikura was loyal to a fault (one of his more endearing traits), and he never bothered to try to hide it at all.

Mike reached over the table and, without fanfare, punched Niikura in the shoulder. "Stop it. I'm trying to be mushy here."

The smile faded after a moment--Mike couldn't keep something like that up for too long. But something in him finally settled down. He wasn't at peace, but he didn't feel desperate anymore. Perhaps he was even finding his center, but Mike really didn't care about that sort of stuff right now.

He was just happy to have an actual friend here. Wally was cool and all that, but part of the reason they got along was that Mike was star struck by him. There was nothing like that between him and Niikura. They were more on equal footing.

Mike didn't have his hope back, and especially not like it had been so long ago, but maybe he could find a glimmer of something to hang onto here.

Shell, he was getting mushy.

Edited 2011-08-23 01:37 (UTC)

"Owwww," Niikura whined, although his smile did not fade. "Don't have to punch so hard!" He rubbed his arm where Mike had punched it and feigned pain. "Gonna ruin my arm for tonight, okay? So watch it!"

Heh, this was kind of cool, just messing around, being his usual jokester self. After all that rushing last night and tension, it was good to get back to his roots as soon as he woke up. Yeah, it was still kind of weird that Mike was getting all bro-ish (for lack of a better word) with him, but...he was okay with that.

Just as long as they didn't hug. He'd only accepted that one from Ippo because Ippo was a famous manga character, and people would kill to have that kind of experience. Mike was just Mike, turtle-y nature aside.

There would be no hugging from this former (transfomer?) turtle. The shoulder punch was the end of his over-affection for the moment. Mike was hungry, and he wanted to eat.

Mike shook his head at Niikura goofing off, didn't quite roll his eyes, and finally sat down normally so he could begin to eat. He couldn't waste the food, as unappetizing as it was. And if he was eating, he could focus on how it sucked and not on last night.

Of course, Mike's silence didn't last long, as he spoke around his third bite. "So what are the plans for tonight?"

He didn't mention the fact he might turn into a turtle again. As stupid as it was, he'd rather cross that bridge when they got there.

"Mmm..." Niikura frowned as he considered their options and chewed on a bite of oatmeal at the same time. "See, the thing is, I wanna look around here some more - like in that basement I keep hearin' about. People seem so keen to get in there...makes me kinda curious, y'know?

"But the thing is, I can't keep bashin' in everything that jumps us with a flashlight. If it breaks, I'm out a light and a weapon. So that needs to be taken care of. Somehow."

He sighed and leaned back in his chair so that it was tilted back on two legs. "I don't know. What sounds good to you?"

"Sounds like we need weapons first," Mike remarked, pointing out the obvious. "Ain't safe to be without 'em in this place. Sure, we can take out a bunch of weak creatures, but I want somethin' more substantial if we're gonna go to the basement."

He had heard rumors about it, but didn't know very much conclusive about it himself. Mike had originally been concerned primarily with escape, but now that proved to pretty much be impossible... he needed a new focus. Niikura had a good idea, so Mike rapidly jumped onto it.

"Got any weapons you prefer?"

"Cool, we're on the same page then." That made things nice and easy. "As for gettin' a hold of aforementioned weapons, I only have one tip from that guy whose ass we saved the other night- y'know, Phoenix, the guy with the same hair as me. Anyway, he said that ya could find some bats in the shed out on the rec field, and I'm not talkin' about the rat-with-wings variety here."

He shrugged. "Tried to check it out the other night without ya, but we got held up and...I don't know. Tryin' again's alright with me if ya don't have any better ideas."

The teen tapped his finger on the table as he took another bite of oatmeal and just barely resisted the urge to pull a face for the fifteenth time. "But I don't really care what I end up with 'cause I'm a fan of whatever. Good with anything, actually, so long as I can do some damage with it."

"It sounds good to me," Mike stated with a shrug. "It's not like I'm gonna find a nunchaku around here, so bat's as good as anything. We could possibly even put some nails into 'em for a bit of somethin' extra."

Yes, Mike just suggested that they make a nail bat. Thirty years ago, he would've just thought the Nail Bat was an awesome videogame weapon that should never be used on people, but that turtle was long dead. He wasn't playing games anymore.

Although part of him had always wanted a Nail Bat, and sometimes, Mike just had to satisfy his instincts.

"Sure, if ya find the nails," Niikura replied, eyebrow raised. Weren't nail bats like things that only showed up in animes? He'd never actually seen anyone use one--not even Akumetsu had ever bothered, but then, why bother with a nail bat when you had a semi-automatic hand gun? Ah, the great questions of life.

At that moment, the intercom buzzed on, signaling the end of breakfast. The teen swiftly shoved the rest of his breakfast into his mouth and coughed as he tried to swallow all of it in one go. "Well--hurk--guess I'll see ya--later." He gulped and grimaced as the entire lump went down his throat. "Thanks for tellin' me 'bout stuff. And...I don't know...stop by my room or somethin' first tonight--M114." He shrugged. "Since I guess now I'm the one more likely to vanish off the face of the earth."

Niikura stood up and then froze as something struck him. "Wait--you're not gonna, y'know, turn back into a turtle later, are ya?"

Well, a nailbat was a big stick with spiky things in it. Mike was used to two smaller sticks with spiky things on them connected by a chain. It was something a bit more familiar to him. ... that, and it was a Nail Bat.

"Aw shell," Mike muttered at the intercom, before quickly picking up his bowl and swallowing his breakfast pretty much whole--except he didn't gag like Niikura did, having had worse before.

At the question, Mike froze for a moment, then looked back to Niikura. "... I don't know. M'not a scientist. It could happen again."

He looked disturbed about it. "... If it does happen again, and it hurts like that again...."

Mike was going to be useless.

Niikura stared. "Uhhh...." Think, brain, think. There had to be something good about this- something he could say, even. Never mind that his thoughts were instead filling with images of him having to fend off multiple Sesshoumaru's as they tried to walk down the hall.

"...guess we'll just play it by ear?" Save the hassle for later: always the best solution. "I mean, if it comes down to it, I guess if ya wore a big cloak thing or somethin', that'd kinda disguise...the shell?"

He was so helpful. Truly.

He didn't really want to think about being in his real body but being taken out due to pain. Pain just like when he first got all of his scars, pain just like when he had to have the amputation. Unconsciously, he rubbed at his half-arm. It had seemed to subside a bit, but Mike wasn't sure if he'd be able to do anything in that form. It was too ironic.

Somehow, though, he managed a weak smirk. "Nah. If it happens again, I'd rather walk around naked like I used to."

Niikura's head slowly, almost comically tilted to the side. "...oh." That. Wasn't awkward at all. It made sense, but to a normal guy, it was kind of..."Okay, you...do that." The way his eyebrows were currently positioned, though, suggested that he wasn't especially keen on the idea.

He shrugged and smirked back. "Just don't expect me to be defendin' ya all heroic-like all night.

"Anyway, see ya 'round, Mike-san. M114--don't forget it now." With a short salute, Niikura was gone, swiftly blending into the trickle of patients leaving the cafeteria.

"I won't," Mike replied, but to which of the last two statements, he didn't give any indication--likely both.

Mike watched him leave, waiting until there were more patients in between them before he began walking again. He felt... settled. Maybe even a bit better. In this place, despite everything that had already happened, he finally knew he had someone whom he could trust. A friend, even. An anchor.

There was also Wally, but Mike didn't want to rely on the superhero too much. He knew Wally wouldn't think less of him, but some fanboy part of him didn't want to seem weak. He had something to prove.

Not that he'd ever have a chance to prove it, now that Wally West had left the institute. Mike didn't know that yet, however, and he focused his thoughts on his friends in order to keep his pain off his arm. And so breakfast ended.

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Day 58: Cafeteria

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from zero to tl;dr aww yeah

Pffffffffffffffffffffff. Such is life.

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