DAY 64: CHAPEL

[skeletonenigma]

This time, when the darkness faded and the next thing Skulduggery became aware of was that same bed underneath him, he didn't take the time to absorb the jarring feeling and sort out what might be going on. He leaped off the bed immediately, almost stumbling in the process - damn balance - and took a moment to realize that his eyes were burning and he could barely see a thing.

The room was blinding. The light itself wasn't an issue; it was the fact that Skulduggery's eyes had to slowly adjust to it, a sensation he hadn't experienced in ages and had never expected to experience again. He had a hand pressed to his forehead and was blinking rapidly when a woman knocked on the door and came in.

She was... cheerful. Everything was cheerful, from the bright light and noises outside to the intercom announcement that interrupted the woman's sudden spiel. It was such a startling change from just a few minutes ago that Skulduggery found himself lost for words while the... nurse... nodded brightly at him. She'd said something about a mental hospital, something about a man called Erik, and something else about 'not real' and 'getting better.' With Skulduggery's mental prowess - even operating at less than its usual efficiency - it was easy to work out what she meant.

He studied her openly once the light wasn't so blinding. "You're either a very convincing liar, utterly insane, or a psychopath. Let me find out which one." His head tilted. "Would you believe me if I said there was a woman last night who had been mortally wounded, but who was still walking around?" He cut her off before she could answer. "No, obviously not. And I don't think you're a psychopath who murders people for fun. A convincing liar, then. That doesn't clear anything up in the slightest, but I suppose it's something."

"Mr. MacAuley, you were sleeping all of last night. Are you sure you didn't just have a nightmare?"

Skulduggery wanted to point out that as a skeleton, he didn't sleep, and he certainly didn't have nightmares. The blurriness at the edges of his vision, however, reminded him with a jolt of his mysterious transformation to human. Suddenly, annoyingly, the nurse was making much more sense.

Was it... real, then? Everything with Yomi and the chapel - had that all just been a vivid hallucination? Had his entire life just been a vivid hallucination, like the woman was insisting?

In a slight daze, Skulduggery asked to see the chapel. He was standing there alone now, examining the fountain carefully for any sign of its demonic visage from before. But now it was just a fountain, the water was just water, and despite Skulduggery's best efforts, the water didn't respond to his Elemental magic. It remained stubbornly in its basin without so much as a ripple, silently mocking him.

Skulduggery sat down heavily on one of the pews, mystified. He wasn't insane. He joked sometimes that he was, and it might partly be true, but he wasn't insane on a level like this. He didn't just make up his whole life as he pleased.

[Free! But be prepared for a barrage of questions.]

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[oyaji]

Take medication, he said. Right, because there was nothing Kotetsu longed for more than some delicious unmarked pills from a crime syndicate posing as a mental institute. Yeah, he'd pass. The older man told the nurse as much when she had sen the rash that was steadily creeping up his arms. He had woken up in a cold sweat, heart hammering against his rib cage to find that, once again, he was alone. Barnaby was probably back in his own bed. Kotetsu hoped so, at least.

For his partner' sake, he asked his nurse to grab him a long-sleeved shirt so it would cover most of the rash up. The pair of them had enough to worry about without adding a strange disease to the list. While she was at it, Kotetsu asked if she could grab his crappy Doyleton mask for him. The nurse gave him a look, but he was immune to them already. If he wanted to be a crazy old man with a mask, that was prerogative! He was tired of having to make up a new story every time he ran into someone, because his stories weren't very well constructed! Plus, they were hard to keep up with.

As they made their way to the stairwell, he realized this wasn't the route to breakfast. "Are we not eating?" he asked.

"Not on Sunday. We have chapel first and then we'll take you to brunch."

"Oh... Okay, chapel, huh?" When he finally figured out what she meant, he stopped walking and his nurse had to circle back. "Yeah, uh, I'm not really Christian or anything..." His wedding had been Christian, but neither of them had ever been active practitioners, especially once his wife had died.

"That's fine. This isn't about denomination. This is a place for anyone to sit and think. Everyone is heard here, no matter what they belief."

"Everyone? Oh, well that's nice of him..." That made the nurse laugh as she shuffled him inside. It was very small, but there was plenty of space. He found room in one of the pews closer to the door and sat down. It didn't take him long to grow restless. His shoe creaked softly as he rocked back and forth on the balls of his foot. Uncrossing his legs, he changed legs and crossed them again.

The quiet got to him as much as the scenery. Most whispered softly to each other, but he could see some actually resting or thinking like they were supposed to be. Frankly, Kotetsu couldn't remember the last time he tried praying--Actually, no that was a lie. He remembered the day perfectly. It was the night before his leave of absence was used up and he had to return to work. He didn't ask for anyone in particular, just that someone listen to him when he asked to keep his wife safe while he was out helping everyone else. The last thing he wanted was to have her all alone in her last moments.

Well, Kotetsu reflected bitterly, that hadn't worked out very well. He never thought about a higher power since then. Still, he had others to think of again. Sitting up straight, Kotetsu brought his hands together and bowed his head.

Okay, god or gods--I dunno, but just listen for a second. I'm not sure how I got myself in this. I thought I was out for good, and here I am! I don't care if I have to stay a deadbeat as long as Kaede isn't left alone. She's only got me--

And so does Bunny... Damnit, he's gone through more than enough for one lifetime, please just fix him. Fix him so he remembers. It's just not fair after spending his whole life finding answers and then waking up to find them all gone again. please, enough is enough!

Smacking his hands together twice, Kotetsu slouched back against the pew and felt silly for using such desperate tactics, but it was unfortunately a desperate situation they found themselves in.

[Free]

[somesoulsearching]

A new morning was always a good start. Another day in which his eyes opened and he was alive would never be bad thing. Only Brook did not feel much like singing when his eyes opened this time and... well something about that was just unnatural!

As bad as he'd been feeling in the days before, he now felt infinitely worse and for once would have been quite content to have stayed in the bed for just a little longer. His nurse shouldn't mind that much. Only she did and was forcing him up and out with a little assistance. He somewhat registered that she was helping him dress over the fact that the rash on his arm had spread even more. Was that what was causing all this. A rash that made him weak. No, a rash that kept him from singing! It was evil, and actually just too horrid for words! Not that he could muster up the strength to talk down on it.

Somehow making it to the chapel, Brook was thankful when the nurse showed him to a seat where he could rest, managing his best to give her a, "Thank you," and a smile before she headed off.

The chapel was the place where they were supposed to pray. He knew that much, but he'd never really considered trying something like that. Having already been kicked back from death, he felt like he'd cheated the gods somehow and they probably didn't like him much. Praying to one might get him smitten or something. Though there was one he at least hoped wouldn't get mad at him. Maybe the god of music is in a listening mood...? he wondered curiously.

[oyaji]

When Wild Tiger realized someone was coming down his pew, he turned his long, ungainly legs to the side so the patients could get past them. There was never a good spot for them anywhere. No matter what, they were always in the way of something.

Behind his tacky black mask, the older man glanced up at the patient's face briefly and realized it was no one he had talked to before. His thoughts immediately turned back to his problems as he adjusted his mask fretfully. This piece of crap did not fit so well against his face. It itched and chafed the way his domino mask was smooth and light, almost forgettable. There had been times when he had actually forgotten to take it off before, but his partner was usually there to remind him.

His thoughts once again came full-circle back to the blond, as they usually did. They really needed to find a way out of here before they were forgotten.

[somesoulsearching]

Singing might have been eluding him, but Brook was at least able to hum along with the soft background music echoing around the room. He could still do that much.

If Chopper had still been there, the little boy would have known what to do about all this. So many patients were ill now. Just the kind of thing for a Doctor that wasn't enslaving them. Then again, Brook hadn't seen Chopper sick before, and with Landel's horrible sense of irony, he'd probably have been as sick as the rest of them. Wouldn't have stopped him though. Still, Brook was thankful that none of his crew were there. They didn't need to be there.

Through his distant thoughts, Brook let his eyes wander over the room, hoping to find the source of the music, but instead found that he had been seated next to someone. Whether he felt bad or not, it would have been rude not to introduce himself to his seat-mate. "Good morning, sir," he provided with the best smile he could get.

[oyaji]

If he hadn't seen what he had last night, Wild Tiger would have been enthused by meeting someone with such a stellar smile. Now, he wasn't sure whether to pity him or wonder if the strange was simply an habitual liar like himself. It didn't really matter either way, as long as the person was informed about how dangerous this place could be at night. Even if he was only a former Hero, that still didn't mean he couldn't help people in his own small way. Frankly, it was only the small things that were left to him, and damned if he was going to give them up! It would take a bit more than some oppression to bring him down!

"Oh, hello!" Wild Tiger greeted right back with a sharp smile and a wave of his ruddy, rash-covered hand. He felt awkward calling the other man sir, so he just left it off. Hopefully the other man wouldn't be offended by his loose manners. Barnaby never seemed to be. "So, uh, is today a holiday or something?" He was more than a little disappointed he had to put his munching on hold for something he didn't even believe in.