Day 61: Greenhouse

[dualistic]

While Harvey never really enjoyed having to babysit one of the newer patients, he had to admit that Barnaby had been pretty easy to deal with. He'd been composed, quiet, and focused, which was a lot better than some of the other patients who only gave confused looks or had over-the-top reactions to everything they heard.

The point was, that conversation had almost been enjoyable, which was strange for Harvey to admit. He didn't know how Barnaby was going to manage in this place in the long run, but he wouldn't be surprised if he found his feet eventually and then did decently well for himself. It wasn't Harvey's job to care either way, but the close quarters they were kept in meant he'd probably end up finding out anyway.

Unfortunately, a positive note could only last for so long. As usual, it was a nurse who ruined it by insisting that he should go to the greenhouse for the last shift of the day. "Mr. Eckhart, it's not cold in there, so it shouldn't be any strain on you. It might be nice to help something grow, don't you think?"

He didn't dignify any of that with a response and instead resigned himself to his fate. He was one of the first people to make it into the muggy greenhouse, and he realized that he wasn't a fan of being cold or being hot. He fanned the air in front of his face for a few seconds and then went to find somewhere to sit down.

All the plants were lined up in pots; it almost felt like they were staring at him, waiting for him to do something about it. Well, that wasn't gonna happen.

[For Peter Parker.]

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[earthling]

Lunch shift had been pretty invigorating, but he could only take his mind off of his troubles for so long. Although he'd left a note for his mother, he'd caught sight of another message addressed to her and three others. Judging from the contents, it sounded like it was her basement group. While Claude knew it was probably better to butt out and let them sort through their issues, he'd never been one to just stand back and let someone unknowingly walk into danger -- especially not his own family or a couple of children.

That's why he was in more of a somber mood by the time fourth shift rolled around. His nurse seemed to believe the greenhouse would put him in a better mood, but Claude wasn't so sure. In the end, though, he hadn't been given much of a choice.

"Here, Mr. Matthews over there is new," the nurse said with a sunny smile once they'd stepped inside the moist room. She gestured toward a patient sitting in the back of the greenhouse. "Why don't you help him feel more welcome here?"

Claude looked over at the man with faintly raised eyebrows. At first glance, he didn't exactly look like the sort of guy who welcomed company, but the nurse insisted that he go. Eventually, he had to relent, and he approached the older man, taking a seat on the other side of the bench.

"Hi," he greeted, not immediately looking at the stranger in case it came across as too confrontational. Instead, his gaze wandered across the various plants and flowers that were neatly arranged for them to look at. If he was as new as the nurse implied, then this man probably wasn't in the best of moods. Better to start off easy, then. "I'm Claude. I don't think I've seen you around before."

[envy_the_sinners]

Scar was about to doze off where he sat. Between sitting in the Sun Room all through last shift and the hot, damp air of the greenhouse, his head and limbs felt heavy and his eyes drooped a bit. Despite his drowsiness, Scar still refused to just let his bad mood go. He was still brooding about that man from earlier when someone else greeted him, taking a seat next to him.

The Ishbalan glanced over at his current company briefly, intending to mumble some sort of greeting before returning to his moping. But the other man's, or more specifically, other boy's appearance startled him. He was only a child! What was a kid doing here? If this place was anything like how Lust or Renji had described it, it wasn't a place for a kid! And the boy had a... slightly soft air about him. Sure, everyone seemed soft when placed next to Scar. But still, he could only be a year or two older than the Elric boys. But like the Elrics, first impressions could be deceiving, he supposed.

Scar took a double take, and a more socially conscious man would have noticed that he was being a little awkward. Though he did realize that he should probably respond.

"Yeah, I just got here this morning."

At least he had something else to direct his frustration at besides the redhead from the Sun Room. What were these people doing? Bringing kids into this hell hole...

[earthling]

Just this morning, huh? The nurse really hadn't been kidding when she'd told him he was new. Although they didn't seem to get the same influx of new captives every few days or so like they once had before, Landel clearly hadn't stopped kidnapping people for his own purposes. The thought depressed him more than he cared to admit out loud. All Claude could do was offer his assistance to anyone who might need help getting acclimated.

Even if this man apparently hadn't expected him to sit here, at least he wasn't ignoring him. Another glance in his direction provided Claude with a better look at the X-shaped scars on his dark face. That combined with his large build gave Claude the impression that he'd seen his fair share of battles before waking up here. He knew better than to directly ask about it, though, so he stuck to the subject at hand.

"Has anyone gotten the chance to tell you a little bit about this place?" he asked. "Like how different it is at night, and things like that." He hoped so -- not because he wasn't willing to explain it to this stranger himself, but because he knew it could be a lot for a new person to take in all at once.

[envy_the_sinners]

He was pleasant enough, at least. And he wasn't fueling Scar's touchy mood.

"Yes, the differences at night have been explained to me, along with how people have been pulled from various places." That reminded him. He needed to figure out where he and Lust were going to meet tonight. Scar had no idea where anything was, save for the rooms he had visited today. He should have used the bulletin board... The Ishbalan mentally kicked himself. Surely they would be feeding them again, though. He could find her in the cafeteria later.

Maybe this boy had been here longer than Lust or Renji. He wondered if he knew anything about the mind control the homunculus had mentioned at breakfast. The thought frightened him, whether he would admit it or not. And he needed to know how to avoid it, considering that it was unlikely anyone would come to his aid.

"Someone told me about some sort of brain washing. Do you know anything about it?"

[earthling]

Thankfully, someone had found the opportunity to set a few things straight for this man, which left Claude inwardly relieved. As long as he knew about how dangerous things could get at night, then that meant he could actually prepare himself for what was to come. Some new people didn't get that luxury, but there was no reason why those who first appeared during the day couldn't at least get some warning.

It sounded like he had a few more questions, though, which was perfectly understandable. With the way this place loved to throw curve balls at people, even the veterans had something new to ask every few days. Most of the time they were all as clueless as the next person, but brainwashing was, unfortunately, something Claude knew a little bit about.

"Yeah," he answered with a nod, and he couldn't quite hide the small frown that creased his features. "They call it 'Special Counseling' here. The nurses make it sound like it'll help everyone, but what it really means is that they'll brainwash you into attacking other captives for a whole night. Dinnertime is usually when some orderlies grab whoever they want to use for either that or the institute's other experiments." Claude's expression darkened as though he spoke from firsthand experience. "I'm afraid the people who're chosen don't get any other warning before that."

[envy_the_sinners]

Scar's perpetual frown deepened. 'Special Counseling,' they called it? He would keep that word in mind- Along with whom they took from dinner. Lust hadn't mentioned the people getting violent, either; just that they became convinced of their fake lives.

But either way, that was three people in a row who said the same thing: This place is powerful and dangerous. Especially at night. It was safe to say that Scar's initial cynicism was all but erased. He really was alive. And he really was caged up in an asylum for sane people.

But he still couldn't get Special Counseling out of his mind. He dreaded the idea of losing himself completely. Scar was loath to admit to himself that he was afraid. But there was something vaguely frightening about being controlled. If he were more psychologically conscious, he would probably realize that this whole place just reminded him of Amestris' takeover of Ishbal. So many years of war had become what he was accustomed to- being controlled and living in a constant state of fear.

The boy had said that they didn't get warning. But was there a way to break it if it was too late? Lust hadn't known either.

"Can it be broken? Someone told me that people could be saved from the room where they... do the brain washing." What a weird thing to say... "But if it's too late is there a way to break it?

[earthling]

Claude couldn't help but raise his eyebrows in surprise. Was there really a way to save someone from Special Counseling once they'd been taken by the orderlies? This was the first time he'd heard of such a thing, but maybe someone else had found a way.

He rubbed his chin, thinking back on the things he'd witnessed since waking up here. "Well, I've never known anyone to be able to break it," he admitted. "As far as I know, people usually revert back to how they normally are the next morning, but it can be really stressful for everyone involved."

It was almost infuriating, the way this place could turn people "on" or "off" to do its bidding, as though all it took was a push of a button or a flip of a switch. Maybe Claude shouldn't have been surprised that the Institute was so good at it, though.

"You could say brainwashing is their specialty here," he softly admitted as he stared down at the ground. "I've seen people think they were someone entirely different for a whole day. I've also had friends disappear. They might be living under a different name somewhere in this world."

It wasn't pretty. Quite frankly, Claude hated talking about it. But a new person had every right to know what to expect in the future.

[envy_the_sinners]

Scar's only response was a silent nod. Lust had explained all of that to him- when people believe the lies. And when they don't come back.

So no one seemed to know of a way to break the... "spell," so to speak. So Scar would just have to deal with things when they came along. He glanced sideways at the boy.

"Is there anything else I ought to know?"

Sure, Lust had been open with information. But he didn't trust her completely, even though it seemed that everything she told him was true, going on the words of other patients. And his talk with Renji hadn't been hugely revealing.

[earthling]

That was kind of a broad question, and Claude found himself floundering for a moment. It would have been easy to let himself overload this man with more information than he knew what to do with. For now, though, he tried to stick with what he thought was the most important.

"I guess it goes without saying that it's better to find buddies to travel with at night," he said. "This place is packed with monsters, and you don't want to get caught alone." Folding his arms over his chest, he paused as he inwardly debated on whether to add a second warning. In the end, his recent chats with his mom pushed him into saying something else.

"Aside from that, I'd stay away from the basement if I were you," Claude cautioned. "It's a dangerous place. If anyone asks you to go with them, you're better off saying no and trying to talk them out of it."