Without a word, the Scarecrow returned his gaze to the ring in his palm, thinking. Despite his initial assumption regarding the subject, there was some hope in his mind attached to the thought that death might not be permanent, a small glimmer his usual optimism simply wouldn't let fade away. On the other hand, it might not be such a good idea, after all: if death wasn't the end all be all as Abe had implied in his explanation of the matter so long ago, did that mean someone like the Wicked Witch of the West could come back to life, as well? And if that was the case, was the Emerald City safe in his absence? Oh dear. That was troubling.
Perhaps it was something unique to the Institute, he thought. It was a curious place in and of itself, given how the Wizard Landel seemingly had complete control over everything and everyone in it, at times. Brainwashed patients, roaming witches, the ability to put non-human constructs like himself into a human form- it wouldn't have surprised the Scarecrow to find that their captor had magic strong enough to bring back the dead, as well. That presented an even more unsettling thought: that Landel might have the Wicked Witch of the West working for him in a similar fashion to the Mangled Witch or the Burning Man. Oh, the Scarecrow didn't expect she'd be happy at all if she remembered what happened to her.
And then, there was an even worse notion that came to the surface of the Scarecrow's mind: that if death wasn't permanent in Landel's by some magic or other anomaly, that he'd return to life as well. This wouldn't have been an awful prospect if it didn't come with the thought that he'd be a monster again, and that there'd be no end to the trouble he might cause his friends because of it.
He shook that thought from his mind, trying to keep himself on track for a change rather than letting his mind wander as it often did. He didn't have the luxury of spending hours entertaining any topic that came to him, using his newfound brains to ponder over each and every question he had. Even if he did have the time in Landel's, which he certainly didn't, he hadn't the brains to think properly anymore- the ones he'd been granted by the Wizard in the form of a diploma, which he so trusted to be the best there ever were, were no longer in his possession with his human body. He had brains enough with it, but they'd been tampered with in his sleep study, and had proven themselves nowhere near as capable as those he'd been granted back home. It was unfortunate, as he knew he could have thought of something— a solution, a plan, a way home— had he only had them.
When he doubted himself, the Scarecrow had only one place to turn: his friends. He decided to put his faith in his roommate for now, given Skulduggery seemed to know a lot about the topics of death, and of doing what needed to be done when it needed to be done. He had to admit that it was a welcome change from his previous roommate- Depth Charge never failed to beat around the bush when it came to telling the Scarecrow what was going to happen, always wanting to spare him the finer details in the hopes of keeping him out of trouble.
And yet, he was the one who was gone, and the Scarecrow, naive and ignorant and painfully aware he was both of those things to a frustrating degree, was the one left to try to deal with Landel, the one who would be setting out to do what he could to save his missing friends. It wasn't the best of circumstances, but he'd never been one to give up- not until that moment, where he realized that a permanent death might be the only way to keep himself from hurting, and therefore hindering, anyone else, especially the friends he had still remaining at the Institute.
"I suppose that's best," he noted finally, closing his fingers around the ring in his hand, looking over its twin he wore on his own. "I've only ever seen one person die, and I do hope she never comes back. Or hasn't already, if that's possible."
He cast another look toward his roommate before making his way into Skulduggery's side of the room. Opening his hand, the Scarecrow offered the ring to him, the blood-red gem a far darker shade than the rash that covered his palm. "Just in case something does happen to me tonight, and you get into trouble after all, you'd better take this. I don't know if you've seen one of these, but if you break the stone on it, it'll get you out of here. Hopefully, it'll take you somewhere safe."
no subject
Perhaps it was something unique to the Institute, he thought. It was a curious place in and of itself, given how the Wizard Landel seemingly had complete control over everything and everyone in it, at times. Brainwashed patients, roaming witches, the ability to put non-human constructs like himself into a human form- it wouldn't have surprised the Scarecrow to find that their captor had magic strong enough to bring back the dead, as well. That presented an even more unsettling thought: that Landel might have the Wicked Witch of the West working for him in a similar fashion to the Mangled Witch or the Burning Man. Oh, the Scarecrow didn't expect she'd be happy at all if she remembered what happened to her.
And then, there was an even worse notion that came to the surface of the Scarecrow's mind: that if death wasn't permanent in Landel's by some magic or other anomaly, that he'd return to life as well. This wouldn't have been an awful prospect if it didn't come with the thought that he'd be a monster again, and that there'd be no end to the trouble he might cause his friends because of it.
He shook that thought from his mind, trying to keep himself on track for a change rather than letting his mind wander as it often did. He didn't have the luxury of spending hours entertaining any topic that came to him, using his newfound brains to ponder over each and every question he had. Even if he did have the time in Landel's, which he certainly didn't, he hadn't the brains to think properly anymore- the ones he'd been granted by the Wizard in the form of a diploma, which he so trusted to be the best there ever were, were no longer in his possession with his human body. He had brains enough with it, but they'd been tampered with in his sleep study, and had proven themselves nowhere near as capable as those he'd been granted back home. It was unfortunate, as he knew he could have thought of something— a solution, a plan, a way home— had he only had them.
When he doubted himself, the Scarecrow had only one place to turn: his friends. He decided to put his faith in his roommate for now, given Skulduggery seemed to know a lot about the topics of death, and of doing what needed to be done when it needed to be done. He had to admit that it was a welcome change from his previous roommate- Depth Charge never failed to beat around the bush when it came to telling the Scarecrow what was going to happen, always wanting to spare him the finer details in the hopes of keeping him out of trouble.
And yet, he was the one who was gone, and the Scarecrow, naive and ignorant and painfully aware he was both of those things to a frustrating degree, was the one left to try to deal with Landel, the one who would be setting out to do what he could to save his missing friends. It wasn't the best of circumstances, but he'd never been one to give up- not until that moment, where he realized that a permanent death might be the only way to keep himself from hurting, and therefore hindering, anyone else, especially the friends he had still remaining at the Institute.
"I suppose that's best," he noted finally, closing his fingers around the ring in his hand, looking over its twin he wore on his own. "I've only ever seen one person die, and I do hope she never comes back. Or hasn't already, if that's possible."
He cast another look toward his roommate before making his way into Skulduggery's side of the room. Opening his hand, the Scarecrow offered the ring to him, the blood-red gem a far darker shade than the rash that covered his palm. "Just in case something does happen to me tonight, and you get into trouble after all, you'd better take this. I don't know if you've seen one of these, but if you break the stone on it, it'll get you out of here. Hopefully, it'll take you somewhere safe."