Dayshift 70: Bus 1

[ever_loyal_dog]

Soushi startled awake, and in a panic felt around the blankets and sheets. Ririchiyo's photograph. Where was it? He remembered to breathe a moment later when he found the photo, stuck between the sheets along with the bag he'd found in his box of supposed belongings. Now that it was daytime, it was easier to see the picture; Ririchiyo's cute round cheeks, her long hair, the soft pout of her lips, there was no mistaking it for a fraud. But why then, didn't he recognize when the photo had been taken or the outfit she was wearing? There were none like it in his collection, and he was sure he knew most of what was in her closet...

He tucked the scrap into his shirt when the radio came to life. Doyleton? They were taking a trip? Soushi was sorely tempted to look through the bag, now that he could see it, but if the staff here saw it, wouldn't they confiscate it? Rather than take the chance, he stuffed the bag back under his mattress, keeping the single photograph with him as the nurse opened the door to greet him.

While the clothing was much more acceptable than the pajamas they were usually assigned, the jeans were a little too big, but luckily included a belt. The plaid shirt was like nothing in his previous wardrobe, but at least it had a pocket on the chest, which he slipped the photograph into as he turned his back on the nurse to dress. He was accustomed to wearing what he was told, and managed to make even the jeans and patterned shirt look somewhat natural. Last, he was given a jacket, tan in color(though there were a few stubborn stains here and there), with buttons running down the front.

Once he was dressed and ready to go, he was led outside to the buses. It was strange being outside the institution like this. It certainly gave the illusion of freedom. How did they manage to control so many patients on a trip such as this? Surely, he wanted to believe, they wouldn't notice one missing. Not until the end of the day, at least. Did they take attendance?

Though if it were that simple, other patients would have made their escape by now. And of all those he'd spoken with, not one could cite a patient that had successfully escaped. The goal, he reminded himself, was not to escape at all, but to find his master and make certain she was safe. If escape was a key factor in determining that, so be it, but he'd yet to find proof of where to even begin his search for the girl. The notebook might have something more to it, but now it was out of reach. He resigned himself to the bus, accepting the bagged breakfast with a smile.

[Loki]

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[freewill]

Castiel woke with a start, shoving the sheets off of him in a groggy daze as he dealt with the sudden switch from night to day. While it wasn't quite the same, he did understand now why Dean had always protested to being transported places without warning.

He sat up, remembering the previous night and Michael Collins' box, which he'd eventually opened. He hadn't had much time to look through it, catching sight of only a few items (a wallet, a notebook, a Bible), but he wouldn't have the chance to look now either, provided that it had even been moved into the room with him. He didn't quite know what rules this place functioned by when it came to that.

His nurse bustled in and gave him his clothing for the day. Castiel had become slightly more practiced at changing by now. He pulled on black pants that were worn at the knees and then buttoned up yet another plaid shirt. Finally, he zipped up a gray, cotton jacket and changed into some sneakers. Catching sight of himself in the mirror, it still didn't seem right, but that wasn't the point. Now he was fit to get on the bus by the nurse's standards, at least.

She handed over a sack lunch, and Castiel realized that he felt well enough today to walk without a limp as they made their way from his room out to the loading area. There was still some tightness in his middle, but he seemed to have made it over the hurdle when it came to healing from his surgery.

As he boarded the bus, Castiel spotted Soushi and Lingormr talking. Curious as he was to know what they were discussing, he chose not to interrupt, instead finding a seat at the back of the bus. He carefully opened up the brown bag and pulled out the granola bar first.

[For Skullduggery!]

[skeletonenigma]

Waking up was still disorienting. Not because of the sudden change in location - which Skulduggery was remarkably accustomed to, come to think of it, for somebody who couldn't sleep - but because he still wasn't used to losing consciousness without actively trying to. Or at least knowing what the cause of it was.

This time, he must have fallen asleep on the couch in the Sun Room just after posting to the bulletin board, because that... was the last thing he remembered. And now, it seemed to be morning again. Did Skulduggery miss a night entirely?

Apparently not. According to Stephanie, when she came bustling into the room a moment later carrying a whole host of things, he'd missed two. Two nights, and two days. It was now Saturday, (and an absolutely glorious day outside, Erik, you're going to feel so much better!) and the patients were being escorted to the nearby town of Doyleton for a supervised shopping trip.

Skulduggery remembered someone from the bulletin board mentioning a similar trip almost a week ago. And things hadn't gone quite as smoothly as Stephanie was now insisting to him they would. He wished vaguely for some sort of concealable weapon; anything might have worked at this point. What he got instead was a bag lunch, a coupon book, and a pile of clothes topped with a t-shirt that, admittedly, did make him laugh.

He wasn't so enamoured with the jeans. Or with the fact that the jacket's zipper seemed to be broken. He did, however, get Stephanie to agree to his wearing a belt with minimal persuasion, which he supposed counted as a minor victory. You had to take those where you could.

Here, near the Institute itself, running wasn't going to do any good. Skulduggery doubted Doyleton would be any better, but at least in a town there'd be less constant supervision. A chance to slip away and see what he could discover. That was more than he'd had so far, and the chance to find a gun within the sheriff's office was a little too tempting to pass up.

He nearly gave his bag lunch to the bus driver when he boarded, but held onto it in the end. He was hungry. He didn't want to be, but he was, and it didn't feel any less sickening than it did before.

Here was an opportunity, though. Someone was sitting alone at the back of the bus. It meant a longer walk, but Skulduggery's balance was greatly improved since he first arrived here, and he managed it without too much difficulty. "Hello there," the detective greeted the man, lowering himself carefully down into the opposite seat. The cheer in his voice was as much for his own benefit as it was for lowering the man's guard; the last couple of nights Skulduggery had experienced were making escape from this place seem less and less possible, even if only for him. "Have you ever been on one of these trips before?"

[freewill]

After Castiel had only gotten one bite into the granola bar, he was approached by another patient, a stranger. He was tall, about as tall as Sam from the looks of it, but much slighter, so thin that it almost looked like it shouldn't be possible. Human bodies were improbable in general, but the fact that those legs could hold up the rest of the man's body was perplexing, to say the least.

Castiel noticed the accent and wondered vaguely at where the man was from (somewhere in Ireland, as far as he could tell), but he focused on the question first. "Yes, I have," he said with a nod. "A few times. This is your first time going?"

That was no surprise, as new patients seemed to come in every other day at the least, though the man struck him as oddly calm. For a moment Castiel thought that there was something off about him, something that brushed at him on a non-physical level, but he didn't have the power right now to sense it. It was curious, but in the end he'd learned there was no easy way to ask, other than being blunt about it. He would keep it in mind.

[skeletonenigma]

A few times. That was three weeks, at least. Skulduggery might have cringed, if he'd remembered he was capable of that now. People appeared and disappeared from this place all the time, which probably made three weeks an impressive record. What was the longest span of time anyone lasted? One month? Two?

No wonder no one ever got anywhere concrete, if it was so easy to sleep through entire nights.

"It is," Skulduggery replied, setting his bag lunch down on the seat beside him. He'd chosen well, apparently. Some of the people here seemed almost allergic to answering questions. A healthy amount of caution was perfectly understandable, but there came a point where caution inhibited progress, and that line was far too blurry here. "I take it the town isn't any easier to escape. Is there anything useful there?"

[freewill]

Castiel noticed that the other man didn't seem interested in eating so far. The bus started up and headed on its way down the hill. Castiel still remembered that the last time he had seen Dean, they'd been on a bus like this, trying to escape by cover of night, and yet that had all gone wrong. He knew that Dean hadn't died that night because he'd seen him as a visitor, but the memory was still an unsettling one.

He glanced back at the stranger when he was asked a question, forcing himself to focus on the conversation. "It depends on what you consider useful," he said after a pause. "The townspeople themselves don't have much information, but we're allowed to purchase things. There's an antique store, a sheriff's office, a hardware store, and a bar, among other things."

Personally, there wasn't much of interest for an angel who was already armed. He didn't deal much with material items to begin with, and so he suspected that most of his allotted currency would go to waste. He could try to pass it off to someone else who might need it, but he wasn't certain if the nurses would allow such a thing. The rules they functioned by seemed so arbitrary.

[skeletonenigma]

Under the right circumstances, that all sounded very useful - particularly since Skulduggery had been told before that there were guns in the sheriff's office. Unfortunately, he didn't think anything beyond souvenirs and knick-knacks would be available for under twenty-five dollars, nor would the nurses allow purchase of anything more than that. He could argue, of course, or steal and smuggle, but that would likely only draw dangerous attention. What Skulduggery needed was a good, long, uninterrupted search, even if it was at night. Especially if it was at night.

For now, he nodded slowly. "Nothing noteworthy during the day, then. What about at night? Has anyone managed to make it there after dark? I heard some sort of attack took place last time."

Which only made the absence of a weapon, or any of his magic, feel all the more constricting. And if they were caught outside the Institute when night fell, he wouldn't even have his well-tailored suit. Skulduggery would be reduced to fighting in jeans and a t-shirt with a skull on it. Now, his sense of humour was as boundless as the next dry and sarcastic man's, but that was pushing it.

[asteroidbelt]

Ryusei wasn't really sure what would have been worse: his nurse knowing his measurements, or his having to put up with this sweater. No, one was definitely worse: his measurements could have been obtained from his normal doctors—the ones who checked his physical health.

He wasn't entirely sure his nurse would engage in petty torture, either, but he hadn't been able to read her when he'd had to take off the shirt she'd given him just so the sweater would fit. It was uncomfortably tight, and itched, but she'd said that as long as he could breathe in it, it would be sufficient, which hadn't struck Ryusei as responsible, but she'd given him a look and Ryusei had decided he didn't want to find out if she could actually force him to put the shirt on again under the sweater.

To add insult to injury, the coat was too big; he felt swaddled in it, and clumsy. He couldn't even button the thing or pull a belt around his waist; the coat was missing both. He'd taken it off when he'd dropped into a seat and put it on his lap, and stared out the window and tried not to entertain the childish idea of tossing it out. Even if he weren't sure that the nurse would collect the clothes back at the end of the day, he'd need this coat in this weather. He'd just have to bear with it for today.

[free]

[impudentsongbird]

It was almost ironic. After the night before, almost the very last thing Gabe wanted was to be going out into the sunlight and the day. At the same time, he wanted to get away from the dark corridors of the facility with an intense need that almost frightened him. His fingers were still shaking when he put on the clothes, to such an extent that eventually Rachael tutted and came forward to dress him herself.

The jeans were too loose, but that was better than the opposite, and the T-shirt was old and worn. The coat was just a bit too large, enough that the sleeves ended almost at his fingers, but it was grey and reminded him so much of Raphael's customary human guise that Gabriel hugged it close while wearing it.

The Archangel was tired and a little dazed with the constant nerves, his eyes darting this way and that as he clutched his food baggie and stumbled down the aisle. Ryusei caught his eye and the Archangel half wanted to turn around and walk off the bus.

Then he check himself and made himself sit down next to the man, trying--and failing--to muster a proper smile. "Good morning."

[asteroidbelt]

"Morning," Ryusei said, sullenly turning from the view he had of the building from out here. "—Mr. Gabe?"

Had Gabe always looked this bad? It wasn't like Ryusei had seen the guy this close, in the daytime before. Of course, there was a reasonable explanation. Did you have breakfast yet, Ryusei almost said, but didn't, because that was a relic from his school life. And anyway, why would anyone have eaten before taking a seat?

"You seem tired," Ryusei said as he opened his paper bag. "Did you have a bad night?"

The question was more vague than he really wanted it to be, but in the case that Ryusei really had been seeing things (somehow) or Gabe wanted to deny seeing things, Ryusei didn't want to come across as the not-quite-all-there one. Less difficult to have a conversation this way.

[impudentsongbird]

Before he could stop it, Gabe laughed--a laugh with the faintest edge of hysteria. Then he managed to stop it in its tracks and took a shuddering breath. "Is there any other kind around here?"

The fact was that he'd sat here because, when he saw Ryusei, he realised there were things he wanted to ask. Castiel had been hearing things the day before, but Gabriel hadn't. Had Ryusei? Or had his hallucinations only begun in the night, as Gabriel's had?

And before he could stop it, the words blurted out, "Were you seeing or hearing things yesterday or last night?"

[asteroidbelt]

That was a strangely specific question, which meant Gabe had been seeing or hearing things, which answered Ryusei's inquiry. Except not, because he and Gabe and Miketsukami had seen the strange thing the night before last. If Gabe had shifted his time-frame a little forward—

Ryusei ducked his head to hide his expression. He'd seen something over his shoulder in the mirror when he'd gone to the bathroom this morning, and he didn't want to admit it looked a little—maybe a lot—like that ghost, because it meant that he'd let the ghost affect him. He couldn't fight ghosts. Except mentally. "No...." he said slowly.

But if Gabe was going to laugh and say that about the nights in general, then Ryusei must be missing something. He'd gone out last night, too. "Did something happen...?"

He realized belatedly that he didn't know anything about Gabe. For all Ryusei knew, Gabe could have been having bad experiences before the night before last—he'd been jumpy then, too. "... Last night...?" he added casually (he hoped).

[impudentsongbird]

"Yes," Gabe admitted rather miserably, sitting upright in his seat and with his hands clenched on his lap. "Nothing happened yesterday, though I was expecting it to. My brother met the same ghost on the same night and he was affected."

The sudden drenching of his arms had been startling enough, although Gabe rather felt that the sounds Castiel had described hearing would have been far more unnerving than getting a little bit wet. Gabriel liked the water ... usually. It almost figured that Lucifer would throw it back into his face, even through someone else.

"But then I--started seeing things last night." He almost didn't dare look around him, let alone outside the window. What if he saw her again? Even here, in the daylight, with that hair and that shambling, broken walk, and those awful eyes? "What have you seen?"

[complicatedliar]

Loki was not in a good mood, at all. While he'd avoided the group and thus not been fully seen in his more monstrous appearance, he couldn't shake the feeling of it. He found himself glancing at his hands often to make certain his skin hadn't gone blue again.

And cold. He felt very cold.

The new clothing and the forced cheer of the nurse didn't help his mood, particularly because he didn't like having his arms hanging out of the 't-shirt' at all. The jacket they gave him barely made a difference at all, and they wouldn't hand over a second one.

He was more than ready to spread a little of his misery around when he was taken to the now-familiar buses and shuffled on to one. Well. He made Soushi uncomfortable. He seemed like a good prospect to annoy, entertainment to take his mind off his troubles.

And more importantly, if he sat next to that known quantity, he would not be forced to sit with Link, Soma, or the Once-ler. They were high on his list of people to avoid right now until he felt back on firmer footing.

Loki dropped into the seat next to Soushi and somehow gave the man a cheery smile. The sort of cheery smile he wore when he just desperately wanted to bite someone.

[ever_loyal_dog]

Soushi found a seat and checked the contents of his bag thoroughly. In addition to the simple breakfast, there was a coupon book and a plastic card with his picture. Some sort of ID or credit card? He didn't recall the photo being taken, but the face certainly looked like his. He put the coupons and card in a pocket, trying not to make too much noise with the paper bag.

After an internal struggle over whether or not to eat the blueberry muffin, Soushi decided it was more important to keep up his strength than to fret and worry. True, he didn't know whether or not Ririchiyo was well or eating properly herself, but if he wasn't able to save her because he'd let his own health fail, how could he forgive himself? He managed all of two bites before company joined him on the small bus seat. Soushi covered his mouth and half-choked on the food as a blush rose in his cheeks. Eating in front of others was embarrassing enough, nevermind that it was Lingormr that had sat beside him.

He winced and swallowed the rest down, trying not to look a mess as he did so. This man continued to seek him out. Why? Castiel certainly trusted the man enough to resort to babysitting Soushi last night, just to be sure he wasn't up to any demonic possessions. The man didn't seem to understand that he wasn't that sort of demon.

"Ah- Pardon me. Good morning Lingormr-san. You are... well?" he asked, returning the smile for one of his own. It was a little unnerving, seeing Lingormr smile like that. He couldn't recall the man ever being quite so cheerful.

[complicatedliar]

"Spectacular," he said, his voice desert-dry. "And yourself?"

Loki looked through the bag, taking out the muffin to pick at it. "Something wrong with this bit of pastry?"

[ever_loyal_dog]

From the tone of voice, he was certain Lingormr was anything but spectacular, though he kept that to himself. Smiles could mean a number of things, but the only sense he got of this one was dangerous.

"I'm well, thank you for asking. Castiel-san was very helpful," he replied carefully, sure to mention the other's friend. News seemed to travel quickly enough between them, so odds were good that Lingormr already knew.

As for the muffin, he watched a moment as Lingormr picked at his own, "I... Not at all. I just haven't much appetite this morning."

[complicatedliar]

"He is, at that," Loki said, making a mental note to talk to Castiel... soon. But not today. Right now he didn't want to talk to anyone that really knew him at all. "I am so very glad that he found you. Did you have some nice adventures together?"

He carefully shredded the blueberry muffin between his fingers.

Ugh, even the muffin was blue. This place was starting to get to him.

"Oh, whyever not? Didn't run to and fro enough last night?" He brushed all of the crumbs and bits of muffin onto the floor.

[ever_loyal_dog]

"He made an excellent guide, yes. We were able to find the room that holds our possessions, from our time before being held here," he explained, uncertain of how to handle this sort of reaction. Though he wore a smile, he watched as Lingormr tore apart his muffin and dusted it to the floor.

"I don't know how much use they will be, since they are items supposedly carried by our false selves, but at least we were able to reach our goal," he managed, clasping the paper bag a bit tighter. It was almost instinctive to try to clean the mess Lingormr had left, but he averted his gaze, glancing down at his lap instead.

"It is difficult to have much appetite when I cannot be certain of my master's safety. It is a constant concern," a half-truth, though there was a bit more to it than that. A change in subject seemed appropriate though, perhaps something to lighten the mood?

"Have you been to this town before? Doyleton?"

[fullmetalheart]

Ed shot up in bed when the intercom went off, giving it a cranky look. He really hated this 'ending up in bed without doing it on his own and no idea how he got from point a to point b' thing.

However, when he actually started to pay attention to what was being said, his interest perked up. Maybe he'd get a chance to escape. Even if he didn't get the chance, at least he'd still get the opportunity to see what was outside the Institute and get the lay of the land.

These thoughts in mind, he was relatively pleasant to the nurse when she arrived with clothes for him. He fairly quickly stripped down to his boxers and slipped on the blue jeans and white long-sleeved shirt that was brought for him. The purple sneakers didn't get any comment either although the bright orange lightweight jacket got a pained look. He liked bright colors, but come on!

It wasn't long until he was on the first bus with his bag of food. He glanced at the people already on as he made his way to an empty seat to find out what was in his bag.

[Free!]

[madeinthehrl]

Soma woke still shivering.

For a moment she was content to lie in bed, but she kept expecting to see her breath puffing out in front of her, and after a moment she shut her eyes and rolled into a sitting position, exhaling slowly. It was ridiculous and paranoid to assume there was some kind of pattern behind all this, but that didn't change the fact that she'd been dropped unceremoniously into freezing water twice in the last three days, and it was getting old fast.

Compared to that memory, it was positively warm outside, and she lingered for a moment in the parking lot before she boarded. It would be good to get out in the sun again, and she'd made enough trips to Doyleton to accept the garish pink sweater and ill-fitting sneakers with little more than a dubious stare.

Her nurse herded her onto the bus nearest the door. Lingormr was nowhere in sight--that was annoying, she'd wanted to check on him first and foremost--but at least there were plenty of empty seats.

She paused beside a patient who looked about her age. It wasn't often she saw someone who was even shorter than she was.

"Is this seat taken?"

[fullmetalheart]

Ed looked up from the muffin he was getting the wrapper off of and shook his head. "Nope. Feel free to take it."

Then he started eating his food. "I wish they gave us more," he said between bites.

[madeinthehrl]

"I guess they think the coupons they give us should be enough to last us through the day." She slipped into the seat beside him and unwrapped her own breakfast.

"I'm Soma, by the way. Soma Peries." She glanced at him, frowning thoughtfully. "You've been here for a while, right? I think I've seen you around before."

[fullmetalheart]

Ed shook his head. "I've been here for less than a week. And yeah? I'll take a look at them when I'm done. I was a bit too fixated on my breakfast to check the other stuff I was given."

He made short work of his muffin before remembering to introduce himself. "Oh yeah. My name's Edward Elric. Just Ed's fine though."

[madeinthehrl]

Ed was fairly distinctive-looking; she could have sworn she'd seen him around. Maybe it was one of those instances where patients reappeared without their memories? Either way, pressing the matter wasn't going to get her any answers.

She paused to swallow a bite of her own muffin before answering. "It's nice to meet you, Ed, although I wish it were under better circumstances. I guess someone's already given you the standard introduction?"

[idolism]

_[free.]

Aidou certainly hadn't had any "fun" last night--nightshift had been an even duller affair than usual, the epitome of wasted time. All that waiting, only to be catapulted back into bed without warning...

Landel's chipper messages did little to put him in a good mood, all things considered. And it was a field trip day, no less. Would the indignities never cease!

Donning his casual wear in silence, the vampire snatched his coupons from the nurse on his way up the bus's steps and shoved them inside his lunch sack before finding an empty seat. He sat down on an aisle end, away from the window and the warm sunlight pooling on the seat below it, throwing the bag down beside him. Although he'd been cooped up without fresh air long enough, Aidou couldn't say he was overjoyed to be outside in broad daylight. Too much sun and too little progress in the caverns was a toxic combination.

Worst of all, Aidou doubted his chances of getting in contact with those amongst his fellow prisoners. Who knew when he and Sasuke would have a chance to challenge the basement again?

"Good trip," his ass.