Day 65: Sun Room

[fallenbeanpole]

His nurse had whisked him away from breakfast as soon as the intercom’s voice faded.  Surprisingly, she didn’t take him to the shower rooms, instead bringing him to the Sun Room (as she called it), explaining that since this was his first day he would be allowed to skip the showers.  Besides, it would be good to let his injuries heal a little more.

 

He’d passed through this room on the way to breakfast, but hadn’t really paid much attention to it the first time.  Now that he was standing here, the Once-ler understood why it was called the Sun Room.

 

Despite the fact that it was cloudy outside, there was still far more natural light coming in through the ceiling windows than he had seen in a long time.  The Once-ler stood still for a few moments, simply staring up.  It seemed almost like a dream, really.  The valley never got brighter than twilight, even at noon.  There was too much smog in the air to let any more light through.

 

After a few minutes, he shook his head.  Anybody who saw him just standing in the middle of the room would probably have questions about it, and he did not relish the thought of explaining himself to a stranger.  He glanced around the room itself, spotting the bulletin board Soma had talked about during breakfast.  The Once-ler decided that was a good place to start, and hobbled on over to get a closer look.

 

[For Nina, I believe?]

Comments

<333 /snugs~

[awokentospring]

It wasn't completely surprising that Facilier had never heard of shinobi. Lee was fairly certain even most ordinary civilians from the Fire country had never even heard of Konoha village, but that's why it was a "hidden" village. Generally lords and nobility came to shinobi villages for help in matters both serious and trivial. Common citizens either didn't have the coin or the knowledge of the village to ever manage a request of it.

"Yes! A shinobi is a ninja! A warrior of shadow and stealth!" Lee liked to layer on the details in an exciting manner. He had been taught well in the art of grandstanding through observation of his mentor and his methods of attracting attention. "We are trained in several skills, from chakra control and illusions to basic and advanced martial arts! Often our talents are utilized in fulfilling missions brought to us by our clients!"

Being a ninja was a very lucrative business if one managed to break past the genin level. Luckily, despite Lee's handicap when it came to ninjutsu and genjutsu, he still had manged to impress the judges at the tender age of 15 and jumped to the next rank. He was, by no means, a throwaway ninja, as had been expected of him.

"I have not heard of a new Ah-Lands." Lee's attempt to mimic Facilier's pronunciation of his hometown was dismal at best. But he continued to try in earnest. "I have not heard of an old Ah-Lands, either!"

Lee was impressed by Facilier's way with words. He could appreciate the long, poetic-sounding lilt in the man's voice coupled with his use of exotic words that Lee only ever encountered in books. But what the doctor told him was troubling all the same, and he had to put away his admiration in favor of coming to terms with the situation.

"Stolen abilities you say?" Like how Kakashi-sensei copied abilities, or was this something else entirely? Lee leaned forward the slightest bit, suddenly wishing he had a pen and paper in his hands. "The building itself has great power? What is so special about this place at night?"

[doctor_voodoo]

A warrior of the shadows... Facilier truly grinned at the boy, if not almost greedily, knowing that his intuition about Lee's use was spot on. As a mere mortal, the lad would never be as good as Facilier's own Shadow entity, but a stealthy fighter with enough empty space in the skull and a good dose of naivety would make a most industrious servant for the Shadow Man! Facilier couldn't help but chuckle a little to himself at his own finding. "Ah, a ninja! I see! Most impressive indeed!"

It was then that he decided to take this one under his wing -- or more like his long lanky arm, as Facilier placed a hand upon Lee's shoulder and firmly directed him towards one of the windows. "And that would be New Or-Leens. Not Ah-Lands," he taught the shinobi with a casual wave of his hand, "The whole 'new' thing is common in my home country, it's a bit of a history lesson that you'd probably find boring. Don't worry 'bout it!"

Facilier halted upon approaching the nearest window, his hand still on Lee's shoulder. "What you should learn about is what happens once night falls," he explained, gesturing towards the setting sun outside. "Everyone is free to move about the place, but they won't be the only ones roaming the halls here..."

Taking on a serious tone and a grim mask to his face, Facilier turned to face Lee, placing both hands on his shoulders and looking him dead in the eye. "There be monsters and other prisoners controlled by Landel's spell!" he said in a lowered voice, "It be a dangerous place to be alone and helpless, if not an absolute nightmare! Most of us can barely defend ourselves no thanks to Landel's power-stealing schemes!"

Letting those dark words sink in, Facilier released Lee and withdrew his hands behind his back, slouching slightly into a convincingly downtrodden slump. "Perhaps y'all could help me out sometime? I'm just a humble doctor with only a measly costume cane to protect myself with at night..." he said in his best pleading voice, "It would help me feel much more at ease if a proud shinobi such as yourself could accompany me! In the meantime, I can help you survive this place and escape it as well..."

[awokentospring]

Lee allowed himself to be steered along, not at all aware of the gears that turned in the doctor's head. He appreciated the correction, making a mental note that Facilier's country name was not like the ones he was used to, where every one was so simply named as a 'Land of...' whatever personified the country best.

"I will be sure to remember!" Lee beamed. "Thank you for your help! And for the compliment as well!" Not too many people considered Lee impressive until after they saw his skills. It made him all that more determined to not ever be caught lacking in Dr. Facilier's eyes.

Facilier's way of speaking was attention-grabbing, to say the least. Lee was immediately drawn in, his wide eyes widening even further as he listened. Monsters? That wasn't something he was used to; at least, not in the general sense of the word. He had seen demons and he believed in ghosts, but beyond that he was at a loss. He understood that it was Not A Good Thing, however, as the doctor seemed truly bothered by it. It sounded like more elaborate genjutsu, but controlled by someone Lee had never heard of until today.

Someone needed Rock Lee's help. While he was under no obligation to help anyone that the Hokage did not specify, Lee wasn't the type to turn his nose up at an earnest plea.

"Facilier-sensei!" Lee gave a sharp salute, standing as tall as he could and offering the man his most earnest face. "I will indeed help you in any way that I can! As an honorable Konoha-nin with a Spirit of Fire, I will not let you down!" And he meant it. Lee never spoke a word he did not mean with his entire heart and being.