damned_institute | Day 27: Breakfast

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Day 27: Breakfast

Day came too soon.

Sora hadn't been able to find Rena, had instead been forced to crumple onto the grass of the recreational field and bleed all over himself, and hadn't even accomplished what he'd been sent out to do. What he'd been entrusted to do. He didn't know how he was going to be able to face Renji and the others, but he also knew he wasn't going to hide from them, either. That would just be low, after all, and he was ready to face up to the consequences.

He didn't try to make excuses for himself. Even though there had been a Special Counseling patient, they had managed to take her down by sheer numbers. The fact that he hadn't seen any sign of Rena was what had him the most worried. He hoped he could find her today.

The boy laid in his bed for a good while that morning before his nurse finally came in to collect him. She clucked over the bandages wrapped tightly around his chest and leg, and asked him if he was okay to walk.

Once Sora assured her he was fine (he didn't really want to use crutches, as that would just attract attention to himself, and he didn't need others worrying over him), they made their way to the cafeteria. Sora yawned and winced against the bright light of morning - it seemed even earlier than usual, and he realized why when they entered the cafeteria and found it empty.

The boy shuffled over to grab a chocolate chip pancake, a bowl of cereal, and a glass of milk (good for the bones, or so his mom had always told him) before settling at a table. He kept an eye on the door, hoping he would see Rena walking in soon.

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Hitsugaya raised an eyebrow. "What question did you ask?" he queried. He couldn't fathom what Homura would have asked Gin about that would have led to that answer.

"It's the weapon of another traitor," he answered. "I don't know its significance as relevant to Ichimaru."

Well, if ever there were a conversation that could benefit from the presence of a telepath, this one was it. There were whole worlds of information that weren't making it past the men's lips.

Even the concept of waiting to be invited never crossed Schuldig's mind. He simply dropped his tray on the table next to Homura's, sitting down beside him and smirking between the two men.
His seating choice was strategic; he expected to be pissing Hitsugaya off considerably more than Homura. "I'd say 'mind if I join in', except that I'd do the exact same thing regardless of your answers, so let's just skip over that part and take it as read that I'm joining you. I've been meaning to speak to both of you anyway; you in particular." This last was said with a sidelong glance at Hitsugaya. "But if you'd rather continue to omit important details from each other, by all means, continue." He folded his hands under his chin and grinned.

Homura had been about to continue to pry for those very details when the pair was suddenly joined by another man, one Homura had seen, but never had spoken to. And he was certainly right about pissing off Hitsugaya more than the demi-god; Homura was already quite aware that he was leaving out a great deal, and having the same done in return. Schuldig's threat didn't phase him beyond the point where it might cost him an advantage, but a minor one in the end.

"And you can fill in these blanks?" Homura turned his gaze to the new man, the distraction very effective for ignoring Hitsugaya's question. "Are you another that can read minds, then?"

Hitsugaya also wasn't phased by Schuldig's casual threat. Both Homura and Hitsugaya knew that they weren't giving or receiving the full truth. For Hitsugaya, it simply was a matter of trust. He had no idea why Homura was playing the game, but it centered around his earlier assumption that Homura was much like Aizen. Arrogant, clever, and deceitful. Any information given could potentially have been turned against the captain.

Hitsugaya wasn't as disturbed by the telepath's presence as he had been last night. Last night had been a moment of panic, having come to conclusions over...well, he wasn't going to think about that...and fear at having to face it again. Today he was calmer. Concerned deeply over Hinamori...who happened to have intered recently...but mostly composed. He imagined the telepath's need to speak with him stemmed from his investigation over Muraki, and the request for more information that had been offered last night. Likely the information came with a price.

"No," he answered. "We were mostly finished."

"Another?" Schuldig raised a languid eyebrow at Homura. "I'm the only one worth noting. And we have spoken before - on the bulletin board. As I recall, I suggested you go be intimate with a cactus in tasteful haiku." After all, the man had been (or at least had tried to be) intimate with almost everything else...

"In that case," he continued with barely a pause, turning back to Hitsugaya - Schuldig was a master of multitasking, easily able to switch between separate threads of conversation or even maintain several simultaneously, "I believe you wanted to know who Renji's roommate is. Agree to doing me a couple small favors and I can tell you right now."

Homura grinned, remembering the bulletin in question. It had been a rather fun one, in fact. "So that was you. It's nice to have a face to put with the snide remarks."

Homura remained unphased, even as Schuldig turned away. In a way, it was good to have the focus taken off of him for the moment. The information about Gin would remain hidden for now, and Homura got to overhear what Hitsugaya wanted.

Abarai's roommate. Schuldig's blunt manner almost made Homura wish that he knew the name himself, just so he could put a dent in the other man's plans. But he would settle for the opportunity to watch Hitsugaya bargain, to get a better understanding of the Captain who was so reluctant to deal with him.

Hitsugaya never was good with bargaining. As a shinigami captain, you rarely had to bargain for anything. He didn't know much; however, he knew enough to know he had to wait for the favors before agreeing to anything.

"Name your favors," Hitsugaya said. Unless he didn't want to voice them in front of Homura. In that case, it could wait. They already knew to be cautious of Muraki. The point of the further investigations was to know what further actions needed to be taken.

Schuldig chuckled. "No need to be too wary, Hitsugaya. Actually, both of these favors benefit Renji, and there can't be too much wrong with that, can there?" He paused briefly to take a bite of his pancakes, which were almost swimming in a pool of syrup. Sugar was important. "In fact, the first is something you might've been inclined to do anyway, whether I asked or not. When Renji goes back to meet with Muraki, I want their session interrupted. I was trying to think of some way to manage it myself, but I expect it'd be easier with help - and you've got connections to any number of people who'd like to help Renji, don't you? I'm sure with all of us working on the problem we can figure out some way to manage it.

"As to the second..." Schuldig took another bite of pancake. "Your investigation into Muraki? Drop it. If you already know he's dangerous and you're going to warn people away from him, then you don't need to know any more than that anyway, really. So just leave it alone."

[skipping with permission]

Hitsugaya pondered Schuldig's words. Was he the man who had made the cryptic conversation with Renji on the boards yesterday, the conversation which the vice captain had torn down moments later? Being a telepath, he likely knew what was going on with Renji.

Hitsugaya didn't like giving up a case, not when there was clear evidence of foul play, and especially not when he didn't know how deep the problem went, or if there was anything he could use in the situation that might help them tear down the facilities.

"Then you know what the problem is. You're a telepath, and I'm guessing you know what's going on. I'll agree to your requests on the following conditions."

He paused briefly. "First, you assure me me that this incident will no longer affect my vice captain's ability to do his duty, or if there are any obstacles, you inform me in private of what those might be. And second, if anything comes up in this situation with Muraki or the other doctors that might directly affect myself or anyone under me, you let me know immediately so that I can address it."

He didn't like compromise, but Schuldig wasn't one of his soldiers. Sometimes agreements had to be made. Farfarello had indicated they were mercenaries. Likely Schuldig could be trusted so long as he was getting something out of the deal.

Which begged the question: What was Schuldig getting out of this?

"I can't promise anything about Renji's actions." Schuldig shrugged. "How can I be held accountable for what he does, or how he reacts? All I can do is tell you what he's thinking, should the mood strike me. But I don't mind keeping you more or less informed about the doctors...but it's all going to be secondhand. The minds of the doctors are blocked off to me, somehow, as with all the staff. I won't know anything about what they're up to that a patient whose mind is accessible doesn't."

[skip skip skipping again!]

"But if something comes up in his thoughts that might impede his work, or put the life of those under him in danger, I want to know," Hitsugaya clarified. " Otherwise, we have a deal."

It was ultimately the reason why he wanted to continue the investigation. If Schuldig could tell Hitsugaya if and when there was an issue relating to this mysterious incident, then he could drop the case.

"I'll tell you what I can. Some things are off-limits even to me." This was part truth, part lie; yes, there were thoughts Schuldig couldn't reach, or that were too well-defended to be worth the effort of reaching. However, what had happened to Renji - which was the crux of the current matter - didn't fall in that category; the telepath simply was choosing not to divulge it to anyone of his own volition. Of course, there was no reason he had to tell anyone that...

"Deal." That had gone remarkably well, as dealings with Schuldig went. Of course, that he'd actually had someone's best interests - or at least their best interests as he perceived them - in mind for a change probably helped. Still, there were some matters even Schuldig found too grave to toy with - remarkably few, but they did exist.

Some part of Homura was disappointed by how easily the agreement had been reached, but that was often the nature of such things. Once the two seemed satisfied, he spoke up, looking curiously at the telepath who joined them.

"And just what is your benefit in all of this?" If Hitsugaya wouldn't ask it, Homura certainly would. "From what I've seen, you don't strike me as one of those who would just do someone a good deed."

Hitsugaya had wondered that himself, but didn't feel it worth mentioning. The telepath had known the thought came into his mind. He was starting to recognize that if he wanted to answer something the captain was wondering, he would have.

Besides, this meant there were now other things he could focus on, like River's investigation into the man she could only assume was Ichimaru. Why did Renji ask her to do that? It wasn't that he was angry with the vice captain for his decision, so much as simply perplexed. Ichimaru had betrayed them all, had stood idly by while Renji's closest friend was scheduled for execution over a crime she did not commit when he knew fully well that she was innocent.

And then there was Momo. Glancing back over to the table where she sat, some pretty-faced man with a definite noble air about him had sat down to talk to her. What does he want? he absently wondered, then shook off the thought and turned his attention back to the conversation at his own table.

"Given how often people wish for me to be less of a bastard, I see no reason I should have to justify any good deeds I feel like doing," Schuldig replied, casually and deliberately avoiding answering the question. "Whether or not I get anything out of it, I don't think I have to explain myself to anyone, especially when my terms have already been agreed to. In fact, I might counter with the question as to why my motivations interest you."

"Motivations always tend to interest me." Homura glanced at Hitsugaya, thinking of the way the boy hadn't cared about Gin's reasons earlier. The choice was rather stupid in Homura's mind. "The best of deeds could be nothing more than a knife in the back, part of a greater scheme. I think it was rather foolish of the Taicho to agree to your terms without finding out the whys behind them."

Nothing less than honest. Homura smirked, and relaxed back in his chair. "But the young do tend to be rather rash, don't they?"

Perhaps Hitsugaya simply hadn't learned from the betrayal he spoke so passionately about. Homura knew that lesson so very well, had been shown by Heaven time and time again the darker side to each blessing and each reward. It was why he didn't trust so easily; every gift had it's price.

Hitsugaya would learn.

Hitsugaya glanced back at Homura, masking his distaste for the other man as best he could. A simple agreement over what had ultimately become a trivial matter was neither rash nor foolish. Giving up the minutiae of an investigation in favor of making sure his Vice Captain could still do his job and get them out of this damn place? It was practical.

Choosing to ignore Homura's insults for the time, he glanced back at Schuldig. "Renji's next doctor's visit isn't for a few days at least," he said calmly. "We have time to plan. Did you have anything in mind?"

"Even if I answered, I could always lie. I don't see how pursuing the matter could assure him of my intentions anyway." Schuldig took another bite of pancake; Homura was going to be a problem, he could see that right now. An interesting problem, granted...but this was one subject where even he didn't want to examine his motivations too closely.

In response to Hitsugaya's question, he shrugged. "Nothing beyond the painfully basic, such as making a request of a nurse to see Muraki personally so that their session is interrupted. But that could easily not work if the request is refused, and I can't say that even if it did work I'd be eager to take personal responsibility for interfering; Muraki is unscrupulous enough that if I deliberately caused problems for him, he might make a point of giving me enough problems of my own to deal with that I wouldn't have the time or inclination to bother him again. And for it to be truly effective, the nurse or doctor who interrupted Muraki would have to catch him in the act of doing something clearly outside acceptable therapy methods." He chuckled. "Which does mean risking Renji to some degree for the chance to get rid of Muraki, although it's a situation he's going to be forced into regardless. But this admittedly lackluster plan was made based on the assumption that I'd be working alone." The telepath glanced up at Hitsugaya. "But you've got connections with any number of people who trust you and who'd happily come to Renji's assistance. Probably we can come up with something better with more people at our disposal."

Homura only shook his head in reply; Schuldig's continued evasion should has sparked Hitsugaya's interest, should have made him realize that the man before them didn't want to reveal his intentions. But Hitsugaya was a child, and stubborn children only learned their lessons in a single way.

Through experience.

Which is why he let the matter of motivations drop, and took a calm sip of his water before adding in his own two cents. "Create an emergency. Set the building on fire." No, the demi-god didn't really care about Renji (though all this talk was making him curious as to just what had happened), but he did have to keep the Arts and Crafts group guessing about him. "If it's large enough and close to the doctor's offices, they'll have to evacuate them, correct? Which means they would enter without knocking or without warning."

Schuldig's evasion hadn't gone entirely unnoticed by the young captain, but the fact of the matter was that Hitsugaya wanted to keep Renji from meeting Muraki as well. It was a difficult thing to say no to an offer where the payment was just as desired as the payoff. Keeping order in his army was his primary goal, and if this could keep it, then it was all for the better.

"Another option would be to start a commotion when the nurses come to pick up Abarai-fukutaicho," he added. "In the resulting confusion, he could escape. The only two issues I can see is first finding people willing to risk sedation, and second convincing him to do it. Neither he nor I have any particular love of stealth or trickery. On another point, we can keep your idea as a backup plan if our primary plan fails, because it does have some merit."

He paused, thinking further on this. "I'm meeting with Abarai-fukutaicho next shift. He may have other ideas as well." Besides, Renji's complicity in this case would increase the likelihood of success. If he didn't know it was coming, he wouldn't be able to take advantage of an opportunity to escape should one arise.

The big question then remained: how to approach his Vice Captain on the matter?

"I don't know how escape will help," Schuldig replied dubiously. "Unless you mean escape the institute entirely, which would be all but impossible to pull off during the day. If he ran away, he could just as easily be dragged back, and probably sedated for his trouble - assuming he was willing to run away at all. He's rather stubborn and prideful, and it's all the more important to him that he holds onto that in the face of Muraki. Anyway, escape would only be a temporary solution at best - he'd still be at risk the next time his therapy session came up, and the therapy session he missed might even be rescheduled rather than simply skipped over so it might not even buy him more than a few hours' respite. Either we need to get Renji transferred to another doctor somehow - not much of a solution, as it'd save Renji but leave the rest of Muraki's patients open to whatever he might choose to do to them, would probably just encourage him to turn his attention to someone else - or we find a way to get rid of Muraki for good. The one good aspect of my plan is that, assuming it worked exactly as meant, it could get Muraki fired...the problem is that it's not a reliable plan as it is."

Apparently, neither of the men gave a damn about what Homura had said, which did not please the war god. Outside of Heaven, he wasn't used to being ignored, and it irritated him.

Especially when he was trying to help.

Obviously, these two were going to go about whatever they willed without regard for anything Homura might have to input. His expression darkened, and the demi-god found himself tempted to leave entirely.

He hated wasting his time.

Hitsugaya was about to answer Schuldig when he noticed Homura's face darkening. What the hell was he getting grumpy about? Maybe he was upset that Schuldig batted down both of their ideas. Maybe he just wanted to be the center of attention.

"Is there a problem?" he asked.

Schuldig turned to Homura and grinned. "I wasn't ignoring you," he informed the god, going so far as to pat him on the shoulder. He'd never been good with religion; probably Farfarello's fault. "But Renji ducking his therapy during a fire alarm is no less temporary than his running away. And if it were a matter of trying to get to Muraki himself during the commotion..." He bit his bottom lip speculatively. "I'm not even sure that would work. For one thing, if this place has a sprinkler system, a fire alarm wouldn't even last very long; for another, I don't know how good our chances would be against him. Martin Landel actually had some sort of barrier around him; there's no way of knowing whether the other doctors in this place are extended the same sort of protection. Add to that he's probably still got his powers while we've all been weakened and the unknown quantity that would be the consequences to us assuming we succeeded, and I think we'd be better off with a more subtle plan."

Homura controlled the urge to brush the hand away as Schuldig patted him, almost like an older man to a child. It wasn't a matter of being the center of attention as Hitsugaya might have thought. It was a matter of being respected, something Homura didn't necessarily realize was such an issue, but likely would if he had thought about it. He'd long hated the treatment of the heresies by Heaven, and he was far too proud to be treated the same way here.

Even if they had no such intention.

"Sprinkler system?" Such a thing wasn't heard of in Homura's world. "I hadn't heard of the shielding. I only meant it as a distraction so the staff might be able to discover just what he's doing to his patients."

Shaking his head, he looked to Hitsugaya. "Regardless, I didn't make this appointment to discuss Abarai's situation. You said yourself that you're meeting with him this coming shift. We were talking about Ichimaru Gin beforehand."

And not getting anywhere, but hopefully that would change.

Day 27: Breakfast

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