damned_institute | Day 66: Greenhouse

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Day 66: Greenhouse

Gabriel, no matter how hypocritical or snide Landel's well-wishes might have been under the veneer of niceness, had actually in fact had a rather nice morning. He'd managed to help Skulduggery eat something and checked in with Castiel. His brother's illness was, to all appearances, gone. Although the surgery itself wasn't going to be easy to recover from, at least that was an injury Castiel has chosen and wouldn't turn him into a monster.

So the Archangel was humming absently as he was led outside, smiling and, for the moment, more convinced than ever that he was where his Master intended him to be. Rachel had made it known she didn't think it would be a good idea for him to hover, so after making sure Castiel would be okay Gabriel had asked to go to the greenhouse this lunch-time, thinking of Lee and still with the idea of possibly making smoothies. Rachel had thrown up her hands and shaken her head when he toed off his shoes at the doorway, but she got her own back once they reached the greenhouse and Gabriel surveyed the stony path ruefully.

"Now maybe this will teach you to keep them on," she said, shaking a finger, taking the slippers and crouching to slide them onto his feet as if he was a child. "It's for your own good, you know. You'll injure your feet if you go around like that all the time."

"I'm sorry," Gabe said with a smile, not as repentant as he probably should have been and using the mischief to hide the ache in his chest. This woman was, at best, brainwashed and cursed to turn into a monster at night. He almost hoped she was complicit; the alternative was nearly too much to bear.

Still, as awful as the thought was, he set it aside as best as he could to avoid ruining his thus-far nice day. While Rachel watched from one of the tables, Gabe wandered through the greenhouse, eating his beef sandwich from the hand while enjoying the company of the plants and keeping an eye out for any fruit-trees.

[for Rock Lee!]

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So it was like that? Guy knew that some of his own friends could get picky about things, so he wasn't about to judge Lloyd. He was the sort of person who would eat most anything, but it took time for some people to expand their tastes. And there were certain things that someone might not ever like, no matter how many times they tried it. That was what distinguished them, after all.

"Well, that seems like a healthy way to deal with it," Guy remarked with a small smile. "They do serve stuff here with tomato in it some time, so I guess it's no surprise that they've got a few of them here." Guy doubted they used these tomatoes in their food, though. All of those ingredients had to be delivered, right?

But he couldn't muse on how the institute fed them for very much longer. While Guy was getting sick of talking about the illness that was going around, he realized he couldn't avoid it. Maybe Lloyd didn't know anything, but one never knew when the way a conversation went might spark an idea.

"Well, we've been told there's a cure and they've offered us clues, but even after seeing both of them I don't have a very good idea of what they mean," he admitted. "You'd think they'd make it a little easier for us to figure this out." Was the rebel group really on their side, or were they getting just as much of a kick out of this as Landel? Guy was at a point where he really had to wonder.

That wasn't news he wanted to hear, and it made him groan when he did. "Aw man, don't we get a choice?" Not that he always got a choice for what he ate, even before he'd come to this place, but someplace like this where there was plenty of time and they didn't have to worry about food running low in their packs, surely the people who made the food could make something without tomatoes in it.

Maybe he could pick the tomatoes out... He let the thought trail off in favor of focusing on the other things Guy had said. Lloyd was new, so there were so many things he still didn't know a lot about, and that included the sickness that he'd heard was going around. Not just that, though...

"Clues?" he echoed with a frown. The word triggered a memory, of the voice from the night before. He continued slowly, rolling over the words. "Someone used that... that voice thing to talk to us last night. They talked about clues. Is that what you're talking about?" He barely waited a moment for Guy to answer that. "Who would be trying to help us? If they're using that voice thing, doesn't that mean they work for the doctors here, too?"

"Well, I think sometimes there are secondary options, but you'd have to ask a nurse." Guy had never bothered to find out, because he wasn't a vegetarian and he wasn't the type to hate food so much that he'd refuse to eat it. Not that he hadn't skipped a few meals during his time here, but that had always been due to other reasons. He'd learned that you were better off accepting whatever food came your way.

Lloyd was clearly confused about how the clues worked, and who they came from, which wasn't a big surprise if he was new. Guy also would have been confused if he'd heard random announcements without understanding the context of them. He paused in front of a pot of flowers and admired them idly as he pondered how to explain.

"There's a rebel group working from outside of the institute to help us. They haven't kept good contact with us lately, but sometimes they get through. From the sounds of it, they overrode Landel's announcement to make their own, which is why the voice sounds so weird." Guy honestly wasn't that comfortable with listening to a disembodied voice that they didn't know the source of, but what other choice did they have? And for those who had already tried surgery, the information hadn't been explicitly wrong so far.

"I'll definitely have to remember that if I'm still here the next time they serve anything like that. Thanks for the warning." He really meant that. Most any other food he wouldn't be so picky with, but tomatoes were the one thing he couldn't stand and would do almost anything he could to avoid. He really didn't want to skip meals, though. Food was important, especially now that he was injured. He also just didn't like going hungry.

After his failure to escape last night and the confrontation he'd had with Kratos this morning, Lloyd's spirits had been feeling... not exactly depressed, but he'd definitely had better mornings. But if there was someone out there trying to help them... His spirits lifted. That meant they weren't as cut off as he'd thought. Not only that, but-

"That's great! If we've got help from the outside, and we're fighting this place ourselves, then our chances have practically doubled!" That was two groups instead of just one, after all. Simple mathematical sense. "So what kinds of clues do you have already? I'm not a healer, so I'm not sure how much good I'll be at figuring out how to cure something, but I could tell my roommate. He said he was going to look for clues last night, so I bet he'd be interested." Lloyd hadn't really had a chance to talk to Claude since then. He wondered how the search had gone.

That kind of optimism was pretty rare to see in the patients these days, and so Guy for a moment Guy just stared at Lloyd. It wasn't like his mouth was gaping open or anything, but he did have to smile at it. While he couldn't necessarily agree, because the rebel group had been around this whole time and hadn't seemed to contribute much, he didn't want to crush Lloyd's hopes just for the sake of it.

As for the clues, that was easy enough to explain. "Your roommate?" Guy asked first. "Is he sick too?" And if this roommate of Lloyd's had gone looking for clues last night -- well, Guy hadn't seen anyone else in that X-ray room with him and Claude. But there were all kinds of other possibilities. Maybe Lloyd's roommate hadn't made it there, or he'd arrived at a different time...

That was beside the point. "Basically, the first clue was a drawing of a stomach," at which point he paused and motioned to his own, "with a butterfly inside. My friends and I managed to take X-rays of two different people with different results, but either way, there's something inside the sick patients. The second clue was a little stranger..." Guy paused, figuring he would give Lloyd a chance to absorb everything before he pressed on.

"Yeah, his name's Claude," Lloyd said. Some of his optimism faded a little when he thought back on the haggard condition his roommate had been in when they'd talked over dinner last night. "I'm not sure if he's sick, or if it's something else, but he wasn't looking very good last night. He still went out, though, so I don't know. Maybe he was just tired." He probably sounded like he wasn't too sure he even believed that himself.

Speaking of food, though - or, well, thinking about it - he should probably get around to eating some of his lunch. He took a bite of his sandwich, chewing it in thought.

"So, you can use X-ray things to look inside of people?" he asked, curiosity perking back up. "That's amazing." And something he'd never heard of before in his life. "So, wait, how could there be butterflies or whatever inside of people without them knowing it? They'd have to swallow it, and I think they'd remember if they ate something like that." And that wasn't even taking into account the question of why they'd eat it in the first place at all.

"Wait, Claude's your roommate?" What were the chances of that? Guy stared at Lloyd for a few seconds and then broke out into a smile. While it would be difficult to not confirm or deny if Claude was sick, maybe he should just throw caution to the wind. Lloyd was going to find out soon enough anyway. "He's a good friend of mine, and... he is sick, but we've been working on it."

Not that they'd made a whole lot of progress, but what else could he say? It wasn't like he hadn't been trying, and Guy thought that was clear. Of course, none of that mattered if night rolled around and Claude or Anise changed.

Lloyd seemed similarly impressed by the idea of an X-ray, and Guy nodded and grinned in reply. "That's right. As for how they got there..." It wasn't the sort of thing that he liked to think about. He didn't think anyone did. But there were plenty of things like that in Landel's. How did they end up back in their rooms each morning, for instance?

"It was probably done while they were passed out or... something like that," he said with a sigh as he rubbed at the side of his neck. "Anyway, hopefully we get somewhere with finding that cure tonight."

Surprise flickered across Lloyd's face when the other patient revealed that he knew Claude. Maybe he shouldn't be so surprised, though. Claude had been here over a month, so he probably knew a lot of people. With what else he said, though, it was hard for Lloyd to stay optimistic. He bit his lip at the confirmation that Claude really was sick.

"There isn't anything I can do to help, is there?" He was more than half expecting the answer to be no, especially after Claude had turned him down, but he couldn't just hold the offer back either. Even if it was something small, he'd be glad to do it if he could.

He frowned, then, rubbing the back of his neck. "I'm not sure I get it, but... got it. I guess it doesn't really matter how it happened, just that it happened at all. It's more important to fix it." He pulled his hand down then held it out. "I'm Lloyd, by the way. What's your name?"

There was nothing about this situation that was easy to swallow, and Guy frowned as he realized that the other patient was upset. This guy barely even knew Claude, and he was already worrying for him. It showed Guy that he was a good person, and made him glad that Claude had this kind of roommate. He would need someone understanding if a night rolled around where he ended up turning...

"Oh, I'm Guy," he said. "Sorry, I should have introduced myself earlier. I'd say it's nice to meet you, Lloyd, but..." He shrugged and extended his hand to Lloyd anyway. In a way, he was still glad they'd met, because now they had a safety measure in place if the worst happened.

Which meant there actually was something Lloyd could do. "There is one thing," he said after a pause. "You'd probably be the first one to see it, if Claude started to change into something. If that happens, do you think you'd be able to tie him down, or lock him in the room? And then you'd just have to come and find me -- my room isn't that far from M44." And he usually waited for Claude out in the connecting hallway, which made it even easier.

The greeting earned a small, wry smile. "Don't worry, I understand. I think we both would have preferred if we could have met someplace else." But they hadn't, and this was how they'd met, so they might as well make the most of it. He shook Guy's hand firmly, trying to communicate that he was still glad to know the other man.

The request surprised him, but only for a moment. It was sobering to think about, but it would be better to lock Claude in their room or tie him up than to let him run loose like that. It would be better than having to fight him, or letting him hurt someone else, and maybe if they could keep him still long enough, they could find some way to help. Something still ached inside him, though. Even if it was the best option they had, it still hurt to think of locking someone up.

"I don't have any rope," he said, voice quiet. "But if it's really that bad, I can lock the door. I don't... I don't think I should leave him alone, though. If he changes back, he may need help. I could stand guard outside his door." A pause, then- "Should I tell him?"

Maybe they both would have preferred if they'd met elsewhere, but Guy realized that in reality, this was the only way he and Lloyd could have met. It was the frustrating part of this whole place. While he didn't want to be here, the fact was that he'd have missed out on making some very good friends if this hadn't happened to him. He'd more or less come to terms with it, which was why he was working with those friends to get back home.

Guy wondered if maybe he had been too direct with that request, judging by the stunned look on Lloyd's face. It wasn't easy for Guy to ask, as Claude was a friend, but that was exactly why he wanted to take extra caution with him. He knew that getting a stranger involved wasn't the best idea, but Lloyd seemed like a good person and Guy didn't know what else to do.

"Hmm... You might be able to use the bedsheets to tie him up. Otherwise, I'd say just lock and barricade the door. You can probably put a few chairs in front of it." Guy had no idea what Claude might turn into, let alone how strong it would be, but he figured it was best to prepare for the worst. "And standing guard is fine. If he takes too long to come meet me tonight, I'll assume something happened and head over."

The promise of backup helped ease his mind a little. The worry for Claude was still there and still real, but it was relieving to know that he wouldn't have to deal with it by himself if the worst came to pass. He nodded at the suggestions. He hadn't thought of using the sheets, but that was a good idea.

"I'll do what I can," he promised. "Hopefully it won't come to that." Hope. Because no matter how bleak things seemed to be, he couldn't let go of that. If they gave up hope, then they'd really lost, and Lloyd wasn't about to lose.

With that plan made, though, they could focus on something else. "Do you want me to pass any messages to him? Just in case you don't see him before tonight?"

Messages to pass on? Guy couldn't think of anything, and so he shook his head in response. If he needed to tell Claude anything, there was always the bulletin board. They already had a routine worked out for how they met up each night, so nothing needed to be said on that point either.

"He should know what the plan is for tonight, so it's fine. Thanks for the offer, though, and I'm sorry I had to ask you to help with this. I just want to take any precaution I can." And hopefully Claude wouldn't be upset that Guy had taken this step without asking him first. There just wasn't time for that.

Before Guy could say anything else, though, the intercom came on and the nurses started moving up and down the greenhouse in search of patients. "Well, looks like time's up," Guy said. "Be careful tonight, all right?" Guy knew that Claude would probably never be able to forgive himself if he hurt Lloyd -- or anyone else, for that matter.

Lloyd shook his head at Guy's apology. "It's fine," he said. "It's not your fault or Claude's that this is happening, and it's better if we all work together." The whole world would be better if they all worked together, but right now Lloyd would settle for just this little piece of it.

Spotting his nurse coming for him, Lloyd knew he only had a minute to say anything else. He nodded and lifted his hand, both to wave goodbye and to acknowledge Guy's caution. "Don't worry. I can take care of myself. Good luck!" For all of them.

Then his nurse was there and there wasn't time for anything else.

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Day 66: Greenhouse

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