Day 62: Sun Room (4th Shift)

[dividedby]

What an unproductive day this was so far. Doing nothing but sitting on a couch, watching the bulletin board and thinking too much about things...if only his injuries weren't keeping him from getting some decent exercise. (If only he hadn't let himself get injured, period, but...)

This shift, Zero was left with nothing to do but sit around, without the promise of a useful conversation like last shift with Nigredo. It wasn't like his other option was any better, though. Showers, already being a waste of time as they were, just sounded very uncomfortable, if not impossible, to do while wearing a sling and a cast. So when his chatty nurse came up to him at shift change and tried to get him to follow her to the showers, the once-Reploid refused to budge. She seemed surprised at his refusal, tossed a few 'why not's and 'we can do this and this to protect your bandages so they won't get wet's at him, but he stubbornly shook his head at everything she said. There was no way he was going in there in this condition. Too much effort for no gain. Why did getting clean matter so much, anyway? It had only been a few days since the last time he'd bathed. It didn't matter.

Thankfully, the nurse took pity on him (only because of his injuries, he was guessing) and gave up trying to persuade him to move. She left him alone with his thoughts, and the once-Reploid carefully reclined on the couch and lay his uninjured arm across his stomach, staring up at the ceiling.

... He supposed some quiet time to think wasn't all bad. He was feeling much better emotionally than he was this morning, mainly because he'd had time to let recent events sink in. Zex and Ema's fates had hurt at first, but by now he'd managed to channel most of that hurt into more resolve to fight. His conversation with Nigredo had helped keep his mind off of things and was enough to leave him wondering for awhile, even though figuring out what to do about Landel was more important than that right now. And, he had a new self-assigned mission for tomorrow via the bulletin board - to assist Ema's sister Lana in any way he could. Not to mention he'd learned about the existence of a town outside of this place....

...Alright. On second thought, the day was not as unproductive as he'd been thinking it was. Didn't mean Zero wanted to spend the rest of this shift just lying here, but at least he could say the times he was doing so earlier in the day weren't a total waste.

[free!]

Comments

[fourstonewalls]

[from here]

One could, if one paid attention, measure the time Lana had been sitting in the chair by the puddle of water that had dripped off her hair and onto the carpet below. Not very long -- only a few minutes or so. She had a book in her hands. She wasn't reading it, but it would take a much more careful inspection to notice that; she ran her index finger down her hairline to wet it before flicking to the next page, and then repeated the action a minute or two later.

The deceit wasn't intentional; the only person she was trying to fool was herself, that there was nothing extraordinary about this afternoon except that she had no case files to review, no notes to take, no one she needed to consult, and thus was at liberty to read an old favorite in an uncomfortable, straight-backed chair, standing at attention in a room full of couches.

[L]

[ryuuzaki]

[From the showers.]

If L was going to be out and around tonight without being a hazard to himself, he would have to take it easy until then, save his energy. He'd kept the shower short for that reason; when he got out, plenty of seats were still available in the Sun Room. Leaving his slippers on the floor, he folded himself into a corner of a long, unoccupied sofa.

The shower had gone a long way towards clearing his head, but he still felt a persistent yearning for a cup of hot, sweet tea. He knew he wouldn't be getting it.

A young woman sat in a chair to his left. He had seen her around--at this point, he suspected that he had a vague familiarity with almost everyone who had been trapped in the Institute for longer than a day or two--but he had never spoken to her. Sometimes he saw her with the young girl who'd sat near him a week earlier. That girl had promised to be quiet, and she'd been true to her word.

He was tempted to close his eyes, lean back into the sofa, and spend the rest of the stretch of time before supper turning the usual mysteries over and over in his mind. Why couldn't we get further last night? If the situation repeats itself tonight, I'll have to--

The young woman was doing something weird enough to catch his attention. Her long hair was still wet from the shower, and she was reading a book, but using the moisture from her hair to help her turn the pages. No--he observed her as closely as he could without turning his head in her direction, a long glance out of the corner of his eye. There was something wrong with the whole picture: she was doing a good job of looking like she could be reading the book, but elements seemed to be missing or inconsistent. You'd have to watch her for a while to notice, and even then....

It piqued his curiosity. Why would someone make a show of reading this way when they could just feign sleep? She didn't seem to be waiting for anyone; she didn't seem to be doing anything other than pretending to devour a book.

"Is it interesting?" Inquisitive and mild. At least his throat wasn't sore.

[fourstonewalls]

"It was when I was twelve. That obvious, is it?" She didn't have to specify what; if he'd asked before disturbing her because he thought she was engrossed in her book, he wouldn't have phrased it that way.

"If I'm not fooling anyone else, I'm certainly not going to fool myself." She closed the book, not bothering to mark her place. She looked over at the man, tucked birdlike into the corner of a sofa. He was barefoot, and his hands were empty. He looked almost like a puppet who's strings had been cut, dropping him into the room. She could sympathize. "Can I help you?"

[ninelivesonce]

Afternoon, and still nothing from Okita. Taura was covered in sweat; she'd had a good time out on the field, but now she wasn't exactly fit for enclosed spaces. So she didn't argue with the intercom barking out orders to the showers, or the staff looking ready to enforce it with any means necessary. Unlimited hot water was another one of their schemes, she suspected, but it wasn't going to hurt anyone to take advantage of it while it lasted.

When she stepped back out of the showers a few minutes later, there was a note with her name on it.

At least he was still here. He'd been the one to post Asuka's goodbye -- she didn't like the idea of two people she'd worked with disappearing at once. They'd lost too many people, of late, and it was hell on morale. Hers, included. So she scrawled up a cheerful note and went to lurking near the board as well as a two-meter-tall woman could lurk in a small, well-lit room. (Which, since she could move very quickly and very silently, was enough to startle several people. One of the staff had taken her for a section of wall, and leaned up against her; she'd found it a lot funnier than he had, and her rumble of laughter had provoked the rest of the responses.)

[Okita]

[notachick]

After a quick shower and then a longer time to dry his hair with that noisy gun-thing, Okita finally made his way out into the Sun Room again. He was still feeling ill from this afternoon, having to take a short rest in his room during lunch to eat, and now had finally emerged again. It was strange, he realized, how quickly he was being eaten away, but somehow he had the feeling this sickness wasn't what the Head Doctor was going on about - and that it was something much worse. He kept his head up, though, just in case Hijikata was in the area, and went to check the note he'd put on the board before his shower.

Taura had responded.

And she was nearby. He quickly took both notes off the board, folding them and hiding them in his pocket before he looked around. It wasn't hard to find her considering her great size and the enclosed space. She was nearby indeed, trying her best to stay inconspicuous. His usual smile brightened upon seeing her and he moved over, mentally ticking off a list in his head.

Chin up, hands casual, smile, keep your eyes wide and alert, ignore the feeling of heaviness in your limbs, step lightly now - you are healthy and well and just need to talk to her.

All lies, of course, but convincing enough to him that he knew how to play this part without needing to act. He stopped a few feet from her and bowed. "Good afternoon, Taura-san. Thank you for waiting for me. Shall we sit?"

[ninelivesonce]

"Um, sure." There was a couch and two chairs facing it, all unoccupied, and she made a beeline for it. Once there, though, she hesitated for a moment, and then dropped down onto the rug. It would put her head below Okita's, rather than towering over him. She was disappointed in him -- he hadn't shown up for two nights in a row, but she's also agreed to work for him, and this was the kind of command-chain snafu that she probably should be used to, but wasn't. Not using her height as a blunt instrument of intimidation seemed like a good starting point.

She didn't smile, though she wasn't frowning, either. Just concerned, and radiating it through her eyebrows like some sort of high-tech Betan emotional communications system. Or maybe that was a bad thing to think; Betans could read a novel of nuance in a blank sheet of old-fashioned paper: concern and bizarre sexual innuendo were probably only a few millimeters apart. Best not.

"Are you all right? We couldn't wait any longer, last night." By day, waiting was no problem. It wasn't like there was much else to do besides work out and eat -- the waiting was the hardest part, really. "I'm glad you're still here, though."

[terriblehaiku]

[From here]

The shower had helped, but Hijikata was still limping heavily and moving far slower than usual as he made his way into the Sun Room. It was quiet in there, nearly empty. He spotted Souji talking with Taura, but decided to give them their space--if it was important, Souji would inform him later.

For the moment, he was going to find someplace to sit--glad for once of the western styled furnishings--and quietly wrestle with trying to put his hair back in its usual ponytail using only the flimsy, stretchy band of fabric the people here seemed to favor for this sort of thing. It was, to put it lightly, no easy task, especially when using his right arm resulted in nothing but pain.

[Open]

[avengingfists]

Now that she had hugged it out with two of her closest friends in the institute, Ilia was ready to face her next big challenge; talking with Gamzee. The boy seemed confused about her message before. He had written that he had conveniently "forgotten" what had happened.

The kid gloves were coming off. As much as Ilia hated the thought, she had to confront him about it and make sure he wasn't lying. If he was... she wasn't sure what she would do, quite honestly. A sound scolding didn't seem adequate, but it was probably the worst she could get away with considering the amount of orderlies and nurses around.

Taking a deep breath, Ilia left the little corner she had shared with Claude and Anise. Making her way to the center of the Sun Room, Ilia planted herself in plain sight, glancing about for the child who had lived.

[avengingFists [AF] began scolding terminallyCapricious [TC]]

[mirthful]

Gamzee arrived shortly after. The troll wasn't normally known for looking awkward, but there was no doubting there was a bit of that in his movements as he made his way over toward the familiar blond.

He hadn't meant to kill Rose, if that was what had happened. He liked the younger human, and he'd miss their nightly romps. That said, he wasn't the sort to shed any tears over it, and honestly he was too drugged up at the moment to manage emotions that deep anyway. Ilia seemed upset, though. Maybe a talk would allow him to help her chill out some, even if he wasn't sure how to go about doing that exactly.

The troll stood in front of her, waiting to be invited to sit down.

[avengingfists]

Ilia could tell from Gamzee's posture that something was amiss. Usually he seemed to be completely dazed, but this time he at least had the decency to look somewhat... unsettled. Whether that was the product of guilt or simply confusion was yet to be made known.

Ilia crossed her arms in front of her chest and gazed at Gamzee with suspicion. From his behavior last night, she really had to wonder who the real Gamzee was underneath that calm exterior. He had even looked inhuman during that battle, and a lot faster and stronger than he had even seemed that night she had been at full-strength. "So... Gamzee..."

She took another deep breath, then glanced around. Their nurses weren't very far off, and the orderlies were always within sprinting distance. Maybe they should take this somewhere a little more secluded. "Come here."

She walked to a set of armchairs and indicated he take a seat in the one opposite her. She sat herself in the other, placing her elbows on her knees and propping her chin on her clenched hands. Maybe if she kept them together, she wouldn't end up throttling the boy for his actions against Rose. It was difficult trying to remain neutral, but Ilia had great self-control when she wanted it.

"So. You don't remember what happened last night." She had to take another breath. Such an irritatingly convenient out. "What do you remember, then? Do you remember the coliseum at all? Or the Head Doctor? Anything at all?"

[ichangedforgood]

Robin sat at the table nearest the Bulletin Board, facing away from the largest cluster of nurses she could manage. Surreptitiously, she kept her head firmly fixed away while she read the messages out of the corner of her eye.

On a scrap of paper in her lap under the table, she casually wrote as many names and subject matters as she could garner. She was reconciling this with the information she'd received earlier in the day from the languid man and the stricken one, along with her own observations from the intercoms.

Granted that she was very good at hiding her intentions behind a thin smile and blank eyes, but her bearing was best hidden from an uneducated public. When it came to assassins, spies, and other trained observers... well, they say it takes one to know one.

[For Barnaby Brooks Jr.]

[baniichan]

((After his conversation with Kotetsu here.))

Although the nurses had thankfully spared him the indignity of being forced to walk out into the Sun Room with damp, unkempt hair, that didn't mean as much when he was still clad in these hideous pajamas. Still, his assigned escort had been remarkably patient with him as he meticulously dried and tidied up his curls. He supposed she felt like he now owed it to her to "make friends with other people", as she liked to word it, but that didn't make the sentiment any less obnoxious. Collecting information and finding a way out were on his list of priorities. Socializing with these strangers simply for the sake of doing so, on the other hand, was something he didn't care for.

His nurse, of course, didn't need to know that. Despite the humiliation of being led out into the Sun Room like a child who needed help adjusting to a new school, Barnaby kept a neutral expression. If he wanted to be honest with himself, the shower hadn't improved his physical condition much, but he couldn't bring himself to admit as much to the woman. His illness, or bug, or whatever it was, wasn't severe enough to warrant returning to his room, which meant it didn't merit mentioning to his captors, either.

Barnaby glanced around the room, hoping to catch a glimpse of Kotetsu as he wondered how he was faring. The nurse, though, promptly directed his attention toward an unfamiliar woman sitting alone.

"This is Miss Satanella," she sweetly spoke as she introduced the pair to one another. "Miss Satanella, this is Bruce Banks, a patient who just arrived yesterday. Since you're both quite new, I thought you two might get along well."

Upon meeting the nurse's expectant look, Barnaby offered a polite smile that didn't quite reflect in his eyes. "All right." With that, he took a seat beside the woman, watching the nurse until she got the hint and decided to take her leave. Barnaby turned his gaze onto the stranger next to him, though he could feel the nurse's eyes on them from a distance.

"As you might have guessed by now, I'm not really called Bruce Banks," he told her, letting his smile gradually fade and cutting straight to the chase. "My name is Barnaby -- Barnaby Brooks Jr."

[ichangedforgood]

Stowing the paper up her shirt again, Robin faced the nurse and man with the most insincere of smiles. While she was no happier than Barnaby at the forced interaction, it didn't show on her face.

"Ah, B-B-J. A face to go with a name." She reclined a little, fingers resting on her chin. "I'm rather fond of 'Miss Satanella' myself." It's a convenient shield, in any event. My true name is not on public display, after all.

She gestured to the chair opposite her. "You may as well sit to pass the time, Mr. Barnaby." Calling him 'Mr. Brooks' felt too close to her newest shipmate's name.

In truth, she hoped he would talk out of his obvious frustration with the situation; it had worked for her many times in the past. He was a person of interest to her after his pointed questions on the Bulletin Board; she was even a little grateful for it, as it was information she was able to obtain without asking directly herself.

Perhaps... Her eyes fell on his well-kept locks. He has certain needs that can be traded for information later, as well.

[thecamellia]

_{[For Soma!]}

When it came to picking a place where she and Soma could find each other, the Sun Room seemed like the best bet. Tsubaki didn’t think Soma was in the same age division as her, but if she happened to be mistaken about that the Sun Room was still the best place to catch someone before they went outside. If she didn’t see anyone after a while, she could always go outside and look…

To be perfectly honest, though, Tsubaki would have preferred a breath of fresh air in the courtyard. She felt a bit sad, being inside and in sight of the note regarding Rose Lalonde’s death. Having to put on a good face for the staff and carry on with her day despite yet another needless death was suffocating. The poor girl. What could have happened to her… ?

It wasn’t her place to bother the people involved about it, however. They had a right to mourn in peace, and she had made a promise with Soma. With that in mind, she continued to circle the room slowly, hands behind her back. She had to remember this was going to be their first time meeting in person, so she smiled, setting her concerns aside for the time being. First meetings were meant to be pleasant, not miserable.

[madeinthehrl]

[from here]

Soma pulled her still-wet hair back as she entered the Sun Room, scanning her surroundings for anyone who matched Tsubaki's description. Thankfully, there weren't as many people here as she'd expected, and she quickly spotted a girl pacing along the wall.

"Tsubaki?" she called, heading over. "I'm Soma Peries."

[thecamellia]

It wasn’t long before the older women began filtering out of the showers one after another, and with them eventually came a girl with long, milky-colored hair, still wet from its wash. Tsubaki stilled when the girl approached her. She definitely looked familiar; she was sure she’d seen Rapunzel with her before.

“Yes, that’s me,” she confirmed, letting her hands fall to her sides. Although shorter in stature than Rapunzel, Soma obviously had to be a few years older like Rapunzel was, too. “It’s nice to meet you,” she said, giving a bow. Her own hair had dried well enough by lunch time that she'd been able to separate it into two braids, and when she straightened she had to push them back over her shoulders again. “I’m sorry it wasn’t sooner.”

[earthling]

((From here.))

Claude thought maybe looking over the bulletin would help take his mind off of his present worries, but they only served to remind him of more problems. Why hadn't Guy or Luke responded to Anise's coded message? A knot of worry formed in the pit of Claude's stomach. This wasn't the first time Luke had dropped off the radar, but it was rare for Guy to become so quiet. Was he ill, too? Or maybe...

He briefly closed his eyes, trying to ward off the sick feeling he got along with another dizzy spell. For a moment Claude wondered if he ought to head back for the bathroom, but his slightly trembling knees mostly just wanted to sit down for awhile.

Once he reached one of the sofas, Claude had to clutch onto the arm rest to save himself from wobbling to much. Blinking rapidly, he tried to shake off his blurred vision, but only wound up reminding himself of the uncomfortable ache nesting in the back of his head.

Ugh, great, he inwardly groaned. How was he going to keep exploring at night if he wasn't in tip-top shape? Of all the times to start coming down with something!

((For Rainbow Dash!))

[rainboompow]

Great, no one was even taking her bulletin message seriously, looked like. Really? Could anyone really blame her for not wanting to miss anything? For crying out loud!

Rainbow put a hand to her forehead as she walked away from the board. She couldn't let herself get too worked up right now. Someone would answer her at some point, she told herself. Enough people (human and otherwise) had answered her questions on that first day, so she knew at least some of the patients here were actually helpful. And teasers were always the quickest on the scene when someone was making themselves look dumb, anyway. Rainbow Dash knew that well enough — she could tease with the best of them.

Speaking of which: just as she was thinking about heading somewhere else to get her mood back up, Rainbow spotted someone taking a stumble over the arm of a nearby couch. She didn't even have to think as the grin came to her lips and the words started coming out: "Heheh, try not to take a big trip there! We might not see you 'til next Fall!"

Rainbow Dash laughed over the blond man. Old joke? Yes. Was it ever not funny? Nope!

[earthling]

The jibe came out of nowhere, and it took Claude a second to realize that it had been directed at him. Blearily looking around for the source, his eyes soon landed on a short girl with crazy-colored rainbow hair. With an odd style like that, it was hard to miss her. In fact, Claude might have caught a few glimpses of her over the past couple of days.

Normally he would have asked her some of the usual questions (What's your name? Where are you from? Why does your hair look like that? Just to name a few.) But, right then? Claude felt a stab of annoyance and embarrassment at her laughter, and he didn't bother to hide the grumpy frown on his face.

"Hardy har har," he sarcastically countered as he straightened to a full stand. "It's been awhile since I've heard that one."

[sarcasmfordummies]

[from showers]

Donna had a renewed fondness for the showers as well as an equally renewed loathing for the staff there. Really, was it too much to ask to be able to shave her legs without having to get help?! As much as the idea of cutting oneself with the tiny blades would help someone "escape" this place, Donna still found the amount of staff caution utterly ridiculous!

Someone who wanted to kill themselves wouldn't want to shave her legs in the first place, idiots!

Leveling out somewhere in the middle of refreshed and angry, Donna made it into the Sun Room and found a couch to sit back and relax on. Regardless of how much of an invasion of privacy they were, Donna couldn't help but enjoy herself after a nice shower in this place. It was one of the few niceties she still had. At the very least she wasn't being only sponged down and shooed off when it came to cleaning here. That really would have been a prison.

[BIG HERO TYPE HERE! I.e. Snow]

[heroesdontshave]

[from here]

Despite all the toweling, his hair was still damp and scraggly from the shower. This was never really an issue back home since it was usually so warm, everything dried quick. Plus he at least had his bandana to keep it out of his face. With both gone, he couldn't help but find it a little distracting and kept running his fingers through it with annoyance. It kept sticking to his face. ...Anyway.

Like that wasn't annoying enough, the nurse-guard-escort-woman whatever started admonishing him like a scolding teacher would a child for having spent all day inside. And told him that there "wouldn't be any excuses tomorrow." She called it getting fresh air. He called it being shoved out into the freaking cold. And who was she to go berating him like that?

...And she was still going. Oh man, why? Why is this lady so annoying? And why is she on his back like this today? And he had just finished thinking this was better than the soldiers. Give him a damn break, lady, huh?

He tried ignoring her, but she kept going on. Finally, he just wordlessly walked away, feeling a little guilty about it when she started calling "Mr. Davidson!" after him. She seemed like she was going to follow after him, but when he got close to a couch where this other lady was sitting, she seemed to huff and back off. Apparently, enforcing patient interactions was more important than nagging.

Thankfully, Snow managed to put two and two together and realized the nurse would leave him alone if he was talking to someone. Which worked plenty for him. So he went and plopped himself down on the couch next to the woman, scratching the back of his head and looking somewhere between annoyed and sheepish.

"Heh. Ever get the feeling they think they're our moms?" He says this like he and the woman had been talking for the last five minutes already. It carries that sense of familiarity. He just turns and grins at her with a sort of implied shrug.

[rocksthecourt]

[from here]

He walked out into the Sun Room quickly, scanning the room for familiar faces. If he couldn't find them here, he'd look elsewhere, nurses and security be damned. He'd use the bulletin if he had to.

...The bulletin. He was going to have to inform everyone, wasn't he? That Yomi was dead. It wasn't a duty he was all too eager to carry out, but it was one he would perform nonetheless. Because someone had to inform those close to her. He glanced around the room again, still not seeing any familiar faces, then quickly headed to the bulletin board as a slight detour. He really didn't want to discuss the particulars to be honest, so he'd just...

And then he saw it. Another post on the board: simple and short. Or more, he saw the name on it first. Ema Skye. He stared at the message, reading that single sentence over and over before he allowed it to sink in. Slowly. ...Then it dropped like a brick into the pit of his stomach. Ema. Ema Skye... was gone. Another lost, another gone, another day in Landel's. It was part of the routine by now. But it never stopped hurting to see names appearing on the board. And it hit especially hard when it was that name.

So many people gone. People he knew from here, people he knew from home, people he might have called friends. And his brother. Now Ema was another to add to the tally, and it just suddenly felt like too much. Far, far too much. Too much loss and pain in a short period of time. He didn't think he could... No, he couldn't handle it. Not anymore. Not one more. If he had to see one more name he knew, he might just scream.

He never did end up making that announcement. He pulled away from the bulletin board, suddenly even more desperate to find the others from last night. No, that wasn't really it. Because he was frantic and selfish. So he was only really looking for one particular individual. One he hoped to whatever powers might be listening that he managed to find him in person. And not as another name.

[Nigredoooo]

[atrabilis]

His heart thrummed, lifeblood pumping merrily through his veins as the body continued its existence. Nigredo would have been grateful if not for the circumstances, if not for owing his life to kin and stranger alike. Without doubt, he understood, as he perhaps would not on another day. Yomi would have lived longer than he if she had been so inclined. There was no question, especially if Dr. Landel (Martin without his Alec) gave his assertion as truth.

The death had been a forfeit, and it was likely for that reason that Albedo was hiding.

But that was neither here nor there. Until night, Nigredo could not relay the single potential to the one who deserved to hear it. For now, he would have to wait and suffer through the day with his mild fever.

It was here, while crossing through the Sun Room, that he saw Klavier.

The man seemed wretched. In the days they had not spoken, Klavier appeared worse for wear. For good reason, Nigredo supposed. This place had its methods in cruelty. It was here, while watching the man move, that he supposed the potential could go to this one first. That perhaps news of a revival might do him well. Nigredo walked over and with a hesitant hand, grasped the hem of the other's shirt.

"Klavier."

[kings_thief]

[From Here]

As soon as Locke found an empty seat, he took it. Now that he was out of the heat of the shower he felt a bit better, but this..ailment, or whatever, had been distracting him for most of the day. He hadn't made any progress with the keys or the locked doors upstairs at all. What was he supposed to say when he met with Tolten later? Sure, he didn't get sick often but that was no excuse for accomplishing nothing.

Once again he was feeling useless, it seemed like the feeling was never going to stop in this place. With a huff he buried his face in his hands and worked on willing away the sudden nausea.

[Edgar~]

[girlsandgadgets]

[From here.]

After another stop at the board, Edgar crossed the room quickly, hair still wet from the shower, cool temperature soothing his mood. With a quick look around the area, eyes darting from patient to patient, he finally spotted Locke in one of the empty seats, face buried in his hands. He couldn't determine what was wrong from a simple glance- that meant asking was in order.

"Locke," he addressed as he approached. "Surely my teasing didn't make you that ill."