damned_institute | Day 30: Cafeteria, Dinner

Moving again was once again a welcome thing. The Sun Room incident had kept him from being able to rest, both his own mess with Fai, and the following one with the chase. Though he wouldn't admit to it, the man who had chased after another giggling idiot was... very familiar. He'd been sure to note their faces, particularly the one belonging to the one being chased. People like that were ones that he should avoid. He had the magician to deal with, and that was enough.

This time, the chatty nurse led him through the food line, explaining what he was supposed to do and what was what food wise. He didn't recognize half of it, but it was no matter. Food was food, and so long as it wasn't dripping with sugar, he had no problem with it. His condition at breakfast had kept him from eating anything all day, so the food was welcome.

He took a seat to himself and kept a wary eye on the doorway leading in. Fai would have to come through that door eventually. He was welcome to avoid sitting with Kurogane - the Shinobi wouldn't have minded if he didn't - but he wouldn't be avoiding Kurogane's glare. They still had things to settle. Not now with the people in white around, but later tonight when things changed.

ZEX engaged the nurse who accompanied him in small talk to be polite, but when they entered the cafeteria he broke off mid-word in favor of something infinitely more important. Where could his human have gotten off to...? Surely he must be here.

Ah, there he was. Unaware of his presence for now, but that was fine with him. He liked the advantage of surprise. Rather than exercising his usual caution about human foodstuffs, he picked up a little of everything available for dinner, and tried to keep everything in balance on his tray while he walked. Ironic that a body that was so stiff and rigid would feel so untrustworthy.

He glanced around with the intention of making it look like he wasn't making a direct line for the Captain, but he found that he couldn't keep it up for very long.

"Fancy meeting you here, Captain!" ZEX said, with a perhaps inappropriately satisfied smile. "What are the odds? Hee! Hee! Hee!" Mmm, he's so beautiful. After a short pause where ZEX practically leered at him without much shame, he adjusted his tray slightly and tried to keep his voice smooth. "I was just wondering if, since you were so helpful and informative with me before, if you might explain some of these... items. Human food is still quite foreign to me, and the utensils even more so."

ZEX shifted his weight onto one foot in what he thought might be a coquetteish way, but instead he nearly lost his balance entirely. He cut a rather pathetic figure trying to make sure everything on his tray stayed in place and salvage what dignity he had in the process.

ZEX stared at his tray with a tinge of disappointment, like it was the tray's fault he'd overbalanced, and then he smiled at the Captain sheepishly, although that was not the emotion he thought he was conveying. "There was something else I wanted to ask you as well, actually. I'm surprised I didn't ask before, but I suppose I lost track of time."

[ waiting for Hanyuu~! ♥ ]

The rest of the shower was uneventful, as Rika and Hanyuu had to leave Mion and Rena to their own devices. Rika briefly wondered if she would be able to squeeze some information out of Rena, but... well, Rena and Mion would hopefully tell her about the events of last night eventually.

But it still frustrated Rika, to never be able to find out what her friends were thinking. She was aware, as always, that something was wrong, but she never knew the extent of her friend's suffering until it was too late.

Well, at least she had Hanyuu to tell her everything, as usual. But now, even her friend didn't really know what had happened to Mion, it seemed. After getting her dinner, Rika sat near the door so that she would be able to spot Hanyuu once the other girl walked through the door.

Renji felt a little better, after seeing Rukia. Yes, she was hurt, and obviously worried about her brother. And it was still disconcerting that she was minus a couple of toes. But she was still basically okay, and that was the important part. Beyond that, there was something for her to do tonight that would help her feel useful but also keep her from getting hurt more. It was a solution he liked.

He didn't feel light-hearted precisely when he got his dinner, but he did feel relieved. And the food looked pretty good. Maybe this Western barbecue would taste like Chinese barbecue. He really liked that stuff. And even better, he managed to get his mashed potatoes without gravy so he didn't have to waste the time scraping the nasty stuff off.

He took a seat where he'd be able to keep an eye out, though he wasn't looking for anyone in particular, and started eating his dinner.

Jack was amused. Highly amused. Not that he wasn't normally, but he found the idea of all the prisoners that had gotten into fights having to sit bracketed by the large, knuckle-dragging orderlies. It made him more glad than ever that he'd just slept through the entire mess.

And there was barbecue. He was a big fan of barbecue; he'd spent a little time in the United States, in Texas to be precise, during the mid-twentieth century. Those people had made barbecue into an art form. He doubted this would be up to the standards, but it was still certain to be better than anything he'd been able to get in Wales for the last decade.

He loaded his plate up and found himself a place to sit; there weren't many people in the cafeteria yet. Hopefully someone interesting would sit near him soon.

Faust frowned down at the food the nurse had piled on his plate. Something about needing to put some meat on his bones, then she'd laughed and he hadn't gotten the joke.

Taking a seat, he kept contemplating the food like it was some kind of strange monster ready to leap up and attack him.

[waiting for Kyon and Akabane :3]

Ginji didn't mind having dinner the in the cafeteria. He liked being around big crowds after all. He thought about trying to stand to walk to the line, but he thought he might as well save that for the night, when there weren't people watching him if he failed.

He piled his meal onto his plate, all too happy with the sight of the food. He really was never going to get used to having so much food every day. Then he sat it in his lap and used the wheelchair, that he was also getting very used to, back to a table to eat.

He politely gave thanks for the meal and then started eating. He had missed breakfast this morning, so the food was even more delicious to him.

Dinner was going to be in the cafeteria? That was certainly different, but given what had happened during breakfast, this whole day had been different. And by different she meant odd, especially when compared to the typical Landel's day.

Nevertheless, MOMO gathered her dinner without questioning her nurse about the slight change (the woman on the intercom had given a reason for it, anyway). Honestly, though it was a little strange, it was nice to have things changed around for once. Living by the same basic schedule day in and day out became tiresome after a while.

As she sat at a table, the realian only hoped they were able to return to their rooms before night fell. Not only were her journal and maps there, but she was supposed to meet someone there shortly after nightshift began.

[free to bug, since Hermione dropped]

Harry didn't really pay attention to his plate as dinner was served. He was looking around the room, completely distracted by the thoughts of Hermione being here. So far the mess hall wasn't filled very much, but he would have to keep his eyes open to find her. If she really was here... he wasn't sure what he would do. For one, he would be grateful to have his friend with him. Hermione was one of the few people he could really count on. The problem was that he wasn't really okay with the idea of anyone he cared about being in danger.

He moved to sit at a table where he could see the rest of the room, nervously torn between wanting to see her and the hope that the person who had posted on the bulletin board had been incorrect.

Naoto had enjoyed a relatively quiet day, even with all the strangeness and chaos. A shower, a bit of uninterrupted time in the library with a decent book, and now dinner--in the cafeteria instead of in their rooms. Naoya would come in soon enough, and they would likely sit together--yes, Naoto was about as pleased as he could be. He didn't mind his roommate, but he would much rather spend his time with his little brother.

He took the 'vegetarian alternative' to the barbecued meat sandwich, and sat down to one side of the room, watching the door intently for Naoya.

[free to annoy]

Knives had so far been reserved judgment about this place. His roommate had told him that night would show the truth, so he waited until then to made the choice if everyone in this place was really crazy, or if what they were saying was what was really going on. If the first was true... then Knives had to consider a few things about his own mental state. The second at least gave him the thought that someone more powerful than him had forced his body back into one piece and had taken him from Gunsmoke to bring him here.

He wasn't hungry so instead he walked to a table and sat down, arms crossed and waiting. When the sunset he would know for sure what was really going on and then he could make up his own mind what to do next.

Quatre was calm as he entered the cafeteria and looked around briefly before making it to the line to get his food and sit back down. He sort of wished he had thought to bring his journal with him, seeing as the bulletin board had had a long list of the monsters in this place that people had come across, but at least he had managed to read it over a few times and commit most of it to memory. He noticed Renji in the room but he was already talking to a girl around Quatre's age.

He set to eating his dinner, remembering that the food would give him the energy he needed to face the night. Perhaps now he could actually get something done. He was still a little more than worried about Heero and Duo though, he hadn't seen them all day.

Haku walked into the cafeteria and spotted Zabuza-san instantly. He bowed his head slightly to his Master before heading to the food line. The meat looked .... strange, so he asked for the 'alternative' instead.

Food in hand, he found a fairly empty spot and sat down, looking around as he began to eat.

[This Space Reserved for Pirate Hunter Zoro]

Working on a ship had built up Usopp's muscle tone quite a bit, though he remained generally wiry in build (when putting it politely; scrawny might also be appropriate) especially when not actually straining any muscles. And so the happily smiling and freshly cleaned young pirate looked pretty funny with a burly guard on either side, when each one of them looked as though they could easily wrestle the kid to the ground and hold him there should he start anything.

Usopp had no intentions of starting anything other than dinner, fortunately. Barbecue was practically 'party food' in Usopp's book, and although this tasted a little different from the way he'd always had it cooked it was good. It also sounded from the intercom as though Dr. Landel was going to be coming back for the night. In a weird way, that pleased him; it was strange to have the nurse talking instead, especially at night, when he had seen what the nurses became. He'd never seen Dr. Landel himself but could imagine him as some unassuming evil man in a labcoat at a speaker. Much less disturbing. If he'd just had his bandanna to keep his hair out of his eyes, he'd have had nothing to complain about. And that after running over a table and giving someone a bloody nose! This place really was different in the daytime.

... Unless the punishment would come at night. Suddenly Usopp didn't feel quite as cheerful.

By the time Archer had got to the cafeteria there were only a few people there. That meant he got his pick of the seats. Oh joy. At least he was having barbecue for a meal. Hopefully it was decently made because he hadn't had any for awhile now. That was how many centuries or millenia ago? It was hard to keep track of among all the evil entities he whacked that endangered the world. He picked up some barbecue, mashed potatoes, and vegetable mix consisting of corn, carrots, and string beans before finding an empty seat by himself.

The announcement was from that woman again, Nurse Lydia not Dr. Landel. Armand resisted being made to stand as long as possible. Finally the orderly who'd spoken more often said, "It's time for dinner, Gilles. I'm sure after missing lunch, you're hungry." It was exactly what one of the kindlier female nurses would have said, but the tone was far more hostile.

Armand glared at the man, then sighed. "I am thirsty," he admitted. With that nominal permission, both men hauled him upright and led him to the cafeteria. They escorted him through the line, supervising his choices then sitting on either side of him at the table. It wasn't crowded yet, but Armand predicted that it would rapidly become so with more orderlies seating themselves with the "troublemakers."

The meat smelled strange with some heavy red sauce on it. He poked at it dubiously then drank down his water, hoping to be hungrier when he wasn't so dry-mouthed.

For a few moments, Kikyo's touch lingered on the plastic keys, smooth alabaster beneath his cool fingertips. The feeble note had died away a long time ago, too solitary to carry a tune on its own. And then without a word Kikyo stepped away, finding a seat somewhere in the music room where he stayed for the remainder of the time, idly drifting on from time to time.

There was a light touch on his shoulder. He peered up through his dark strands of hair with a set of cold placid eyes.

"A shame that you should waste your time in here without any music," the nurse said with a smile and a voice that was gently reproaching.

With a brief chuckle, Kikyo replied. "Ah...but perhaps there is music in silence, too. Have you thought of that?"

"I would be more apt to believe you, if you didn't appear so bored," she teased.

Bored? True enough, there was little he found amusing, here. Even less so than the world he had left, which was equally colorless. His lips curled into a pale smile as he rose to his feet.

"Boredom, I am afraid, is a constant companion," he answered absently.

Kikyo followed as he was led, back to the cafeteria for the evening meal. Upon a tray, he set a sparse array of vegetables and drink.

His fingers curled around the tea cup as he took a sip, his food as usual, remaining largely untouched upon his plate.

[Waiting for Allen.]

When the shift changed, Rukia managed to scoot back into her wheelchair before any nurses could make a fuss over the fact that she had been in Renji's lap. Squeezing his hand, she waited for a moment as the nurse approached, and was wheeled into the cafeteria.

She wasn't very happy about being stuck with an orderly on each side of her; maybe she could convince at least one of them to go away...

She needed to speak to Allen, but he wasn't in the cafeteria yet. While one of her assigned orderlies came to take her chair, another went to fill a tray of food for her. When all three were seated, Rukia smiled sweetly. "Oh, thank you so much. You really didn't need to go to such trouble."

The dark haired one, who had gotten her food, gave her a sidelong glance. "Just doing our jobs." Hm, she would have to work on them. For the time being, though, she kept an eye out for Allen and dug into her food; she hadn't eaten since dinner the previous night, after all.

[Waiting on Vlad. Maybe. If Vlad still wants to chat. If not, s'all good!]

Mousse was a bit miffed when he sat down to dinner. True, it had probably been for the best that Sousuke had stepped in and stopped the fight in the showers, but the Amazon was not one to back down from a fight, especially not one that was uncalled. He tried to think why the other man might have hit him for no reason-- it wasn't as if he had mistaken him for another.

Sighing, he began to eat. He had taking a bit of everything, but none of it really made him feel any better. At least he'd have something in him. Skipping breakfast, albeit unintentionally, meant that he'd have to eat well this meal to keep his stamina up.

[Schwarz meeting tiem!]

Well, pork wasn't red meat, but at least it was meat of some kind, so Farfarello figured it would have to do for now. He'd have to be careful about cleaning any trace of sauce off his fingers and mouth, though--the last thing he needed was Roland deciding he smelled extra tasty with barbecue sauce.

Farfarello looked around for Schuldig, but he didn't seem to be here yet. Sending out a thought that he wanted to speak with him, he waited for the telepath to come find him.

[Free to bother!]

After her shower Usagi took a seat in the cafeteria with a plate covered in food. Landel's food was never spectacular, but she was growing to enjoy it more and more, she could never say no to a free meal!

Usagi didn't wait to start digging into her food, she wasn't meeting anyone for the dinner shift; she would find Ami later tonight, along with her roommate and Kunzite if all went well. They would be heading to the shed in the field to look for weapons, maybe they'd actually be successful this time! And tomorrow she would see what she could do about getting her and Ami in a club...

[reserved for the twin!]

The barbecued pork smelled really, really good--almost like the filling of nikuman. The fact that Subaru liked meat just fine made it more difficult for him to stick to a strictly vegetarian diet here, but he just couldn't take the risk that his powers would be weakened if he ate meat. So, with one last, longing look at the barbecued pork, Subaru took the vegetarian option and headed over to the tables.

Danny wasn't particularly hungry, because he'd actually eaten breakfast. But he wasn't going to skip a meal. After all, if he was going to stay up all night (running, no less), he didn't want to go without food. Especially since he'd be running around a lot. No powers meant all he could do was run and hope he wouldn't get caught. Maybe if he were sleeping all night he'd go without dinner...

Danny took his dinner and sat down at a table, poking at it for several moments before he began to actually eat it. He wasn't expecting anyone to sit down and start talking with him, but that was fine by him. After this, night would fall shortly, and Danny would have to go out without any powers. Maybe it would be okay...after all, he made it through last night just fine, with less injury than when he did have his powers, so all hope was not lost. He was just nervous about it. And being so nervous made him lose his appetite.

Perfect. So when he wanted to eat, he couldn't.

[reserved for the SDS and Sierra. ^_^]

There had been no lunch, after all, which Frey gathered was not usual, so he hadn't yet had a chance to find the person he'd spoken with on the message board. After a day full of strangeness and unfamiliar things, Frey found he was quite desperately wanting to speak with someone from his world, even if that someone seemed rather abrasive.

Frey took the tray of food offered by a helpful nurse, though he hardly noticed what was on it, and sought out a table that was visible from the door. Hopefully that person still wanted to speak with him, and would be able to find him in this crowd.

Armed with his journal and the extra pages stuck between, Ken entered the cafeteria with the intent of searching for Yukari. He cared little for the food (even if he hadn't eaten properly the last few days) or the crowd; the boy just wanted to get started on tonight's plans. Of course, he had no idea what they could accomplish, but if the maps and the description from the bulletin were remotely useful, they could hopefully pick out what to work on.

Plus, there was a subject Ken wished to bring up with his older teammate.

Unable to find the brown-haired girl, he took the nearest open seat to the entrance. A nurse noticed the boy's lack of a tray and immediately brought over some food, an act he ignored, opting instead to watch out for Yukari.

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