damned_institute | Day 28: Bus 2

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Day 28: Bus 2

Momo tugged on the collar of the light blue sweater she was wearing as she followed her nurse to wherever these buses were, winding her hair up into its customary bun as she went. It was an odd feeling, knowing she was about to go outside of the institute's borders. Maybe the Head Doctor was about to make an error and the shinigami, as well as everyone else, would no longer be limited and they could finish what they started several nights back.

That was probably too much to hope for. She was feeling better this morning, even with the blood moon, and was mildly looking forward to the bus ride. Captain Jack said he was going to be here this morning and even if it wasn't customary breakfast in the cafeteria, she's be satisfied with him sitting next to her on the bus.

The nurse handed her a muffin, some napkins, and a small box with a straw. She stared at this box for a moment before shaking it. From the sound it contained liquid. How odd... Momo wasn't sure why they would but liquid inside a small paper box - it didn't make any sense to her and she wasn't sure how one was supposed to get it out of the box.

Clambering onto an empty bus, Momo chose to sit in the very back near the emergency exit. Maybe she could force her way out of it as they were moving and escape the limiter enough to come back and level the institute, freeing everyone. Or maybe she just wanted to be able to see everyone that was on the same bus as her. Wishful thinking versus reality.

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Sephiroth couldn't say that he really minded the bus. He'd ridden in much worse during his time in Shin-Ra's army. Walked through worse if one wanted the truth. The change in clothing had been likewise accepted without a complaint. He was pleased to make it back to wearing something that wasn't just grey. While the black jeans were ragged at the knee and ankle, he was content with them.

There was a reason for Sephiroth's passivity today, and it wasn't druggings. Since arriving at Landel's, he'd been lucky so far in avoiding nurses with needles although there had been a few close calls such as with the Turk and his friend. No, Sephiroth had plans which probably didn't bode well for anyone. The next move was Kadaj's and Cloud's, although he was willing to speed things up himself if necessary.

Farfarello was a little disappointed that neither Schuldig, nor Artemis, nor the ShinRa bastard appeared to be on the bus he'd been hustled onto. He wanted to make sure his partner and Artemis were still in one piece after a night without his help, though he was a lot more concerned about Artemis in that sense than he was about Schuldig, and he wanted to point and laugh at ShinRa's busted nose. That had been worth the sedation, it really had.

In fact, he only saw one especially familiar face, in his cursory glance around the bus. Despite the reasonably mellow note their last communication had ended on, it was probably a really, really bad idea to approach Sephiroth.

And yet, that's exactly what Farfarello did. He was, after all, a masochist. So he sat himself down next to the silver-haire general and rummaged about in his bagged breakfast. "Yo."

Sephiroth's unblinking gaze moved to Farfarello as the man sat down, one brow arching in inquiry. There were very few people that would dare be in his immediate area. So why this one? Oh yes...

While it had been dark and Sephiroth hadn't gotten the best of looks at his attacker, this was the human that had bitten him of all things. The wound had healed, the pain gone, but Sephiroth had a long memory.

"I find myself trying to decide if you are foolish or one of those that sanity has deserted and are left uncaring what may happen to them," Sephiroth drawled thoughtfully. "I believe it is the latter. Your stomache did settle finally, did it not?"

"Got it in one. Certifiably insane, and all that. And yeah, my stomach's fine. Shoulder's fine. Head's fine, in the external kind of way. All good." Farfarello poked the straw into the juice box and sipped at it a little. "Not very creative, these nurses. Lots of ways to kill someone with a straw, especially one with a pointed end." Not that he was threatening Sephiroth, he was just making conversation.

Sephiroth hadn't bothered with the human food he'd been given, just now turning it over to examine the straw himself. A fingertip traced over its curved edge, resting on the pointed end.

"A poor weapon at best, but it could make do in necessary. I doubt highly that it would kill unless struck in a person just so."

His interest in that was gone already, not caring about killing all the time. After all, he had the universe to consider.

"It makes one wonder what is to be accomplished by showing us the outer world," he said, more to himself than Farfarello. What human could follow intelligent thought after all? "I wonder if it is to instill a sense of hopelessness, that all things are controlled?"

Farfarello shrugged. "You wouldn't believe the things they stopped letting me have, in real mental institutions. Kill a few annoying nurses, and they get all paranoid."

The juice was pretty okay for something that came in a box, though. The muffin, Farfarello ignored entirely. He wasn't really into carbs. Hopefully he'd be able to get some protein in town at some point. "Anyway, I don't really care why they're doing anything. I kinda like it here, lots of potential for violence at night."

"You know, your name is really interesting to me. It's a word that exists in my world. It's actually the name for the Tree of Life in a particular mystic tradition. The irony is kinda funny, no?" Irony: incongruity between what might be expected and what actually is, for example, a dangerous nutcase being named after the Tree of Life.

"I may believe it."

He had never been captured in the sense that Farfarello meant, but Sephiroth did view his years under Shin-Ra as a sort of imprisonment where they had chosen to lie to him. Sephiroth dismissed the food equally, barely looking through the book of coupons. Once free, he had plans to scout the area and see what he was facing once he escaped. It was a task he couldn't count on the other parts of himself to see to. They were proving disappointing at best.

"Oh?" Sephiroth turned back to Farfarello, that empty gaze settling on the Irishman. "I do not find it surprising on the whole. I am a god after all. Death sits in my hands, so why not life as well? I simply choose not to give it to such lesser beings."

Farfarello grinned at Sephiroth's words; not that he needed more reasons to want the man dead, but Sephiroth seemed determined to provide him with them nonetheless. "God, huh? And yet here you are, trapped in this place like us lesser beings. Head Doc must be a bigger, badder god than you then, huh?"

A moue of distaste twisted Sephiroth's lips at the mention of the Head Doctor, smoothing out quickly to leave his face expressionless. It wouldn't do to let a mere human draw a reaction from him, would it?

"This 'Martin Landel' or 'Head Doctor' is not a god. He is merely a human that is attempting to reach beyond his means, just as Shin-Ra Company did. I believe this is a test, nothing more... nothing less. Adversity keeps us strong after all."

Sephiroth waved a hand dismissively on the whole subject of the Head Doctor. He didn't consider Landel a threat anymore than a child who knows the secret of the Great and Powerful Oz considers the true wizard frightening. Sephiroth had found other pursuits here to amuse him.

"And what of you? If I am the Tree of Life, then what are you? The termite that tried to eat at its roots? I doubt you come to me to truly understand anything. Searching for a weakness or such foolishness is most likely what draws you to me."

Farfarello had to snicker at the mention of ShinRa--he was definitely quite chuffed to have broken the pretty boy's face. It wasn't significant damage or anything, but no one was pretty with a freshly broken nose.

As for the idea that this was a test... "Well, whatever lets you sleep at night, man. So to speak." Everyone had their own rationalisations for being stuck in this place, he supposed.

Sephiroth's last statement raised Farfarello's eyebrows, and he laughed in earnest. "Oh, man. You don't get me at all." Not that most people did, but it was funny how far off Sephiroth was.

Sephiroth didn't seem disturbed by any of Farfarello's amusement. His solemn manner never changed, his gaze never wavered. He had hardly expected a human to understand or even pick up on the least bit of knowledge he was trying to impart. As they said, pearls before swine and all.

"I have no desire to 'get' you or anyone else. You think too highly of yourself in that regard."

That was one of the things about humanity in general that bothered him. They tended to think far too much of themselves, little realizing that they were nothing more than cockroaches racing frantically over the floor before someone like himself put them out of their misery. It was an act of mercy really. Revenge was more like it though. Destroying them avenged Mother/himself.

"Yeah, I'm the one with an ego problem. See, this is why I came this morning. I'm bored and you entertain me." Farfarello finished off his juice box, and tossed it aside, coincidentally in the general direction of Sephiroth's head. It was a light toss, easily caught even by someone who wasn't a trained fighter, Farfarello just didn't feel like carrying around an empty juice box.

"Besides, who needs to find out your 'weaknesses'? God or not, you bleed just as easy as a mortal, around here." Farfarello stretched, and yawned. He never was much of a morning person, and was considering taking a cat nap.

Sephiroth's hand closed around the remains of the juice box just before it could strike his head. There was no real thought in it, merely an automatic reaction to something flying towards him. Setting it aside on the seat, the former general's gaze turned back to the window once more. Landmarks were tracked, distances guessed at as the vehicle moved. Were there anything worth knowing about or getting later, he needed to remember all of those.

The gates had been of special interest to Sephiroth. Not easily climbed it looked, but not impossible either if one was motivated enough. It might serve him well tonight to get outside and see what Landel's own landscape was like beyond what he had seen during 'exercise' time.

As the human next to him continued to chatter on, Sephiroth paid him only surface attention to ensure that he wasn't caught off-guard in the event of an attack. Foolish creature. Who didn't want to know the weaknesses of a predator, especially when they were the prey? This is what he got for expecting intelligence in one.

"I see," he replied.

Farfarello slouched lower in the seat, yawning again and pulling the hood of his sweatshirt forward to partially cover his eyes. "Wake me up when we get to town, yeah? Or, you know, before trying to kill me or something. More sporting, and all that."

At this point in his life, Farfarello could sleep just about anywhere: in alleyways, on tree limbs, on moving buses while sitting next to people who intended to kill him, you know, wherever was comfortable. And without a decent breakfast in his stomach, Farfarello was definitely not feeling too terribly awake.

Sephiroth had no intentions of waking the man up or killing him. He had learned the rules of this place quick enough and could play by them since circumstances dictated that he must for the time being. Soon enough, that would all change.

When the buses slowed to a stop, Sephiroth rose silently from his seat and disembarked with the others. He had things to do, people to torment.

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Day 28: Bus 2

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