Day 65: Sun Room (Fourth Shift)

[monkeyboy]

[From here]

Once again, he was dumped out into this spacious room that was pretty, sure, but wholly unfun. He stared up through the glass ceiling above them, soaking up the rays of sun that seemed like he would never be able to bask in freely again.

Three meals a day and some entertainment at night was enjoyable enough, but he was starting to get bored with this routine. Spontaneity was the spice of life and Goku was starting to feel suffocated by this constant rhythm. The little boy may only have room for a few goals at a time in his head, but they were just as important as everyone else's, even more so in some cases! He needed to reclaim his grandpa's treasure and continue his training! The witches in white just couldn't understand this, girls as they were.

Huffing, the young boy set out to look for one of his furry companions for any new information on the secrets of the institute. He got down on all fours and began crawling around the couches, looking here and there for any signs of his accomplices.

[For Taura~!]

Comments

[lighthearted]

Sora couldn't really blame the Once-ler for being in such a bad mood. He wouldn't have liked using a crutch to get around either, and he wasn't even going to think about dealing with a wheelchair. While Sora was a bit startled by the crutch falling over, Rapunzel was quick to deal with it.

The girl was so caring and so willing to help -- Sora couldn't help smiling as a result. But even though she was offering to help him and even though he needed that help, Sora was pretty sure that she had too much on her hands already. Her friend, Flynn, probably needed her help too, and Sora could tell they were close.

"Maybe tomorrow night," he told her quietly after a pause. "I'm going to see if I can get some supplies together before then." If he was prepared, then he would make sure not to waste anyone's time. Rapunzel could focus on others for now.

There was something that the Once-ler had said which Sora couldn't ignore, though. "Why do you not want to eat the food?" he asked. "You're not going to heal very well unless you try." He was being pretty hypocritical because he'd barely eaten all day, but that was because his stomach had been bothering him. It was different!

[fallenbeanpole]

Someone named Rapunzel on the bulletin board and a girl with really long hair helping him out last night. The Once-ler hadn’t made the connection before, but it seemed so obvious now. While the hairball from lunch was still fresh on his mind, at least Rapunzel was blonde and her hair was coming out of her head and not someone’s throat. The Once-ler nodded in gratitude at Rapunzel when she put the crutch back up. He’d been content to leave it there for the moment, but the gesture was appreciated all the same.

The offer to help him out was too good to resist. Being crippled like this was going to drive him crazy. “I think I’ll take you up on that offer.” Something occurred to him, and he frowned. “Wasn’t your hair longer last night?”

The Once-ler responded to Sora almost instantly. “The guy I had lunch with coughed up a hairball and pulled a fingernail out of his teeth after eating some of his sandwich. I am not trusting the food here after that,” he said, visibly shuddering. Belatedly, he realized that those mental images were not the best thing for a sick boy to have. The man bit his lower lip in frustration. This whole situation was just so completely messed up.

[hairraising]

"Are you sure?" Rapunzel asked Sora. "You look like you can barely get up, let alone go around gathering things." She hated to be rude, but it was true. She was surprised he was even sitting up in his state.

When the Once-ler chimed in, she nodded towards him. "Oh good. Come to F15 when you're ready, then," she said, smiling with some relief. Looking back at Sora, she added, "That goes for you too, if you change your mind."

She had been about to say something about her hair when another hairy subject came up, this one far less pleasant. "Ulgh, really?" Rapunzel went green. "There's been at least one time where the food turned on me too, so believe me, I don't blame you. I mean, it's pretty safe most of the time, but still." The less she thought about that day when all the food had looked and tasted like rot, the better. Eeyuughh.

As for the other matter of hair, when she had a moment, Rapunzel only said, "My hair's kiiiiind of a long story. You'll see tonight. I'll tell you then."

[lighthearted]

Rapunzel had a point, of course. He'd managed well enough last night, but his symptoms had only gotten worse since then. If Sora ran into another brainwashed patient, he'd probably be done for. But what else could he do? In the end, he was going to have to play it by ear and see how he felt. "I'm... gonna try," he said after a pause. "But if I really can't make it, then I'll stay in my room." He knew that other people were trying to get hold of supplies for him, so it wouldn't be so bad if he stayed in. Right?

It was good to hear that the Once-ler was going to get healed, even if it meant that Rapunzel would be draining herself even further. When the food problem was mentioned, Sora made a face and tilted his head to the side.

"I haven't heard of that happening before, so it was probably a one-time thing," he said after a pause. "But you can check out your food tonight at dinner, I guess." Chances were that whoever the Once-ler's roommate was would be eating, and then maybe some of his fears could be put to rest.