damned_institute | Dayshift 31: Doctor's Office 3 (Dr. Muraki)

Entry tags:

muraki,
sasuke

Dayshift 31: Doctor's Office 3 (Dr. Muraki)

There were other things missing from his office. Muraki didn't pay much attention to them - even the books were just distracting things and decoration with no real purpose - but he knew that they were gone. Curious. He was sure the other things would turn up again someplace interesting.

After a quick lunch in his office he got ready for his next patient. It was mildly disappointing to know he hadn't gotten the older Li brother as well, but only mildly because the older boy possessed few of the traits Muraki found to be so...entertaining in Sean.

It was be just as well. He'd never get any real work done if he played with all of his sweet dolls until they broke. And wasn't there enough going on to state his appetite for a while?

The doctor crossed over to the door and waited patiently for the nurse to lead Sean into the room. Ever the gentleman, he didn't want one of his favourites to be escorted to his chair by anyone else.

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Sasuke's fairly good mood plummeted the instant he remembered that today was 'therapy.' His only hope was that Muraki might possibly be succinct and finish quickly today, but the chances of that ...

His nurse sounded surprised when she opened the door; evidently Muraki was actually waiting at it (which was a little more creepy than professional nicety could strictly call for, probably, but that summed up most of what Muraki did). Frowning, Sasuke walked stiffly into the room before his nurse had quite finished turning him over.

If he remembered correctly, Muraki placed the patient's chair quite close to the desk. Relying on memory, Sasuke struck out in what he hoped was the right direction.

Muraki had a short, casual conversation with the nurse before she departed. She seemed to be flattered by the attention he paid her, if not a little disturbed by his presence. She thought it was nice that he was trying to accommodate his patient but the nurses were sufficient, no it was only her job, he really shouldn't think it was a hassle...

She departed and Muraki closed the door behind him with a satisfying click. There would be no opening it until he said so. Despite his intention, he'd given Sean a fair amount of time to strike out in search of the chair that simply wasn't there for this session. It was up against the wall, well behind his desk.

Muraki moved to the side of his desk, blocking the route while knowing very well that his help wouldn't be welcome. "Would you like a hand, Uke-kun?"

... Sasuke was not amused. Doubtless Muraki had had a good laugh on the inside watching Sasuke reach out, expecting to feel chair, and end up with his hand groping through thin air.

It was overwhelmingly tempting to just launch himself across the room at the source of Muraki's voice and punch as hard as he could, but common sense brutally overrode too many of Sasuke's instincts here. Instead, he took another few steps forward and leaned against Muraki's desk, folding his arms.

"I'm fine," he said shortly. "Make this quick."

"That's a little cruel, don't you think? I'm wounded. I missed you very much." He moved closer as he spoke, putting himself well within Sean's range and beyond what he knew the boy's comfort zone to be. His eyes were subtly fascinating now that he'd lost his sight. Muraki knew prosthetics well, having taken care of his own for so many years. Sean's were well done; perfect, even.

Muraki was struck with the urge to pass his thumb just underneath them tenderly then tear them out with slow, savage grace.

He almost pouted. "You seem so tense today. Is it because of our latest addition?"

Sasuke discounted the exact words Muraki was saying, but moved backwards slightly as the voice itself moved closer. If Muraki thought that the blinding somehow made him less aware of people who invaded his space ...

Keeping carefully tense, Sasuke narrowed his eyes when he processed the final question.

"Addition?" He asked, wary. "What do you mean?"

Muraki knew that, at the least, Sean knew where he was just by listening to his voice. The boy had tensed and moved back, but not away. The doctor smirked.

"You mean you haven't met yet? I was sure he'd find you at his first opportunity. You two were so close..." He knew the tense, careful lines of Sean's body were as dangerous as they were graceful. He dragged his nails along the edge of his desk, all but announcing his intention to wrap his arm around Sean's waist and guide him. "Why don't you have a seat if we're going to talk for a while? The lounge is very comfortable."

Sean would understand the underlying meaning quite clearly (Muraki thought it was obvious enough): do as I ask or you won't gain anything at all from this session.

The sound of nails across the desk was as grating as it was obvious, and Sasuke took a very planned step back, establishing enough leverage for a sharp blow if necessary. Muraki's words made him tense up even further -- had they brought Naruto back, or something?

"I have little interest in the patients here," Sasuke said shortly. "I'll stay standing if that will hurry this up."

Muraki was acting as if he had some particularly delightful piece of information, but Sasuke was in no mood to humour him. Not that he ever was, really, but that was beside the point.

Sean was as stubborn as ever, and though Muraki quite enjoyed it at times he thought the boy needed to learn when to yield. He could get into a lot of trouble. He didn't move any closer, his hand simply resting on the desk nearby but he leaned forward and spoke quietly as if this was meant for just the two of them.

"Even if the other patient is family of yours? You really are cold, Uke-kun."

Sasuke almost leaned back when Muraki's voice came closer still, but managed to stay where he was out of a combination of stubbornness and irritation. Muraki probably already thought he had the best of him because Sasuke had essentially given up on trying to correct for his name -- not that he much deserved any Uchiha name anyway -- but giving in with this type was the last thing he wanted to do.

All of that vanished the instant Muraki spoke, though, Sasuke freezing in place and glaring sightlessly in the direction of Muraki's voice in frustrated disbelief.

"Explain yourself," he demanded, voice tense and dangerous.

"Have a seat where I've asked and I'll tell you everything I know without being so irritatingly evasive." Muraki didn't touch him yet, but his voice was full of soothing malice. He really didn't like to be defied. He chuckled, almost too easy and warm for the bitterness that had come just before. "What harm could it do? I'm not going to tie you down."

Normally Sasuke might have thought rationally, aware that if he wanted important information that Muraki apparently had, the most efficient way was to acquiesce -- but Muraki's implication meant Itachi.

And Sasuke had never been particularly rational where Itachi was concerned. The constant frustration of the Institute wasn't helping, and before he'd even thought about it, Sasuke's hand shot out towards his estimation of Muraki's throat, aiming to crush just hard enough to make breathing difficult.

"Don't fuck with me," he snarled. "Spit out what you know. Now."

Sean was much faster than Muraki would have given him credit for. Though the doctor moved back, Sean's grip was still solid and far too well-executed for a boy. His only mistake was leaving it so that Muraki could breathe.

"And if I refuse?" The doctor hissed, not moving to break away. In fact, he leaned into the hand circling his throat. Someone so pale bruised quickly and easily, something that would definitely be a gift in this situation. Sean's grip was far from forgiving, and Muraki's grip on the boy's wrist was far too light in comparison.

But Sean was just a boy and Muraki was a vampire. He took a fairly large amount of Sean's life energy but it wasn't what he was after. Inevitably, the process caused brief paralysis, disorientation and weakness; enough time for Muraki to break away and fetch an anaesthetic. He wasn't weak and he he was as proficient as Landel's well practiced nurses. Let Sean try to stand with that sedative in his system. It would lose most of its potency in under an hour but that was still a long time away.

"I think I'll fuck with whatever I please." Muraki replied, his voice returning to that too-smooth purr. "Don't worry, I still plan to tell you everything you want to know."

Sasuke's chakra was so dulled in Landel's that it took him far too long to realise that he was losing it, something even more dangerous at these limited levels than what he'd lost through a similar technique years ago in the Chuunin Exams. He tried to yank his hand away too late and stumbled to lean against the desk, trying to stabilise his perception; in the next moment he felt what was definitely a needle pressed into his flesh.

Oh, shit.

The anaesthetic worked much too quickly: Sasuke could feel his legs threatening to give and with pure force of will forced himself to stay upright, leaning heavily against the desk. Even he had to admit that that wasn't going to last long, but damned if he was going to give in before then.

"All you doctors are the same," he spat, remembering Kabuto with particular venom. "Fine. What do you want in exchange for your information?"

Muraki laughed. Were all doctors the same? Cruel, uncompromising, heartless monsters? Well, he tried not to flatter himself.

He caressed the side of Sean's face but there was no sweetness in the gesture. His smile, however, had returned. "You're petulant as ever. You'll find out soon enough, Uke-kun."

He leaned against the edge of his desk, letting Sean cling to it while he still had the strength. His smile was twisted with dark amusement. Soon enough, he wouldn't be able to stand...and likely just when he wanted nothing more than to run. "As I was saying," He continued without ceremony. "It seems your prolonged stay here has had quite the adverse effect on your family. You must have some suspicion as to who to have had such a violent reaction to the news. Are you really that excited to see your big brother again?"

Muraki's touch made Sasuke flinch, but he couldn't actually lift a hand to shove the man away -- and for the first time, he realised that he was at a crippling disadvantage in this office. Muraki was dangerous in the same way Orochimaru or Kabuto was: if he found a weakness or manufactured one ...

All of that fell away as what Muraki said confirmed Sasuke's suspicions, even as part of Sasuke inevitably thought They couldn't catch Itachi.

Before he could even begin to form a verbal answer, Sasuke's knees finally bucked. He went down hard, a grunt of pain escaping as he hit the floor and struggled desperately into a position where he was at least leaning against the desk, not sprawled helplessly over the floor.

"When --" Fuck, drugs were so -- "When did he --"

Muraki watched him struggle. He twirled the needle in his hand almost casually despite how inadvisable such an action might be. "Why don't you ask him? I'm sure he's had the time to settle in by now."

"He seemed to have such an ambitious future ahead of him. Does it disappoint you that someone you looked up to could have fallen so far?" Muraki drawled, almost a mockery of the doctor's role he'd been meant to take. "You should be proud to be the cause of it. This place would never have gotten him without you."

Sasuke's mind was still trying to process the concept of anyone capturing Itachi -- complicated but it's Itachi and no one else has the right to -- when Muraki went on to mention the fallacy that the Institute claimed was his 'real life,' and Sasuke glanced up uselessly towards the voice, startled.

There was -- or there seemed to be -- some other version of him here, and some other version of Fugaku and Mikoto, and maybe some version of Itachi. And maybe that one wasn't insane and apparently their family had been fine except for whatever Sasuke or his double had done. And of course it was Sasuke's fault.

But Itachi was here, which meant he was the Itachi Sasuke knew, which meant Sasuke was going to have to face his brother blind.

"I didn't," he managed finally, voice not nearly as steady as it should have been, and pressed back defensively against the desk. "It wasn't me who put him here." What was he saying? "I need to know where he is -- where the fuck is he?! Tell me!"

"Who else would it be?" Muraki asked, not even a drop of false sympathy in his voice. This was fact, pure and simple. It was Sean's fault his brother had come to join him in his little hell.

There was a rustle of clothing as Muraki shifted again, this time to kneel beside Sean on the floor. He looked more like a doll than ever, his limbs almost unable to help him cling to the remainder of his pride. The tip of the used needle pressed against his neck, barely breaking the skin. Beneath his needle tip exactly was the carotid artery; he wondered if Sean would know that, if he would perceive how deeply this threat ran.

"Do you really think he would let me catch him in this position?" Muraki teased. He flicked the tip of the needle, leaving a thin line but nothing more. "I can tell you his room number if you learn to behave. I wonder why he hasn't come to see you himself."

"It wasn't --" Sasuke started, voice too loud and more hysterical than he'd intended, and reined it back in immediately. His breath was coming a little hard now (he couldn't move anything) and --

He tensed as much as he could when he felt the pinprick of a needle, basic Academy lessons more than enough to tell him exactly what Muraki was threatening. And the taunt -- no, Itachi wouldn't because Itachi was better, always better, and Sasuke had let the Institute take his sight because he was weak (would always be weak, too weak).

But there was no choice about it. If Itachi was actually here, Sasuke had to kill him.

"What do you want in exchange?" He managed, glaring as accurately in Muraki's direction as possible.

You.

He wanted to watch this desperate, hate-filled boy writhe in agony while his pride was torn away piece by tiny, little piece. He wanted him to submit, little by little, so that there would be nothing left but the doll before him, limp and broken and dressed in ruby drops of blood.

He missed his collection. Could he really be blamed for that?

He still hadn't moved the needle away from Sean's neck. "Agree to deliver a gift for me, and you can have it right now."

Sasuke wasn't sure he could believe Muraki -- unless the gift was some kind of poison -- but the damnable man was his only option. If Muraki was thinking of delivering a fake room number or some kind of joke ... but as much of an asshole as Muraki was, he'd done as he said he would so far.

In that way he was like Kabuto; less willing to lie than to use the truth for his purposes. Sasuke narrowed his eyes and glared at Muraki in his peripheral vision. The needle was still there and Muraki was as much a threat as ever, but Sasuke couldn't even turn his head.

And regardless of absolutely everything, Itachi's presence meant there were no other options.

"Fine," he said, clipped and furious. "What's the number?"

Muraki finally moved the makeshift weapon from Sean's throat. There was a shadow of hesitation in the movement having to leave his plaything alone for now, but these were small steps they took - if he didn't handle Sean with a little care, the boy would be useless.

"Calm down, you won't be going anywhere for a few minutes yet. The room you want is M22." He replied, true to his word as Sean suspected. He took a small, flat box from his suit jacket; it was plain white, secured with a thin length of black twine tied in a neat little bow. The box was light, giving no indication of its contents.

Muraki dropped it lightly in Sean's lap to get his attention. "It goes to M47 - Sean Malloy, Artemis Fowl, whatever he wants to call himself. Give him my regards, won't you?"

The faint pressure of the needle left slowly, and Sasuke kept his eyes trained uselessly on the sound of Muraki as the man moved, for keeping the appearance of threat, regardless how far-fetched. Muraki was dangerous -- Sasuke should have known that even the daytime doctors were sadists like this.

All doctors had some kind of problem.

That train of thought vanished in an instant when a target coalesced in Sasuke's mind. M22, he repeated mentally, needlessly because he was likely to never forget. And regardless of how little Sasuke could move right now, how blind he was -- Itachi was meeting his end tonight.

He barely registered the rest of the information, woodenly noting the box and the information. "Get my nurse," he said once Muraki was finished talking, as sharply as he could. "We're done here."

Muraki's eyes narrowed slightly. He didn't care much for demands, despite the fact that they only proved his victory with Sean. "You can get her once you can stand again." He replied, all his sharpness hidden in an almost imperceptible smirk. He moved back to his desk and hid the needle back in his drawer for now. He fetched a small band aid too, and within moments he'd covered the small mark with a little more contact than strictly necessary. "Unless you would like an escort..?" He offered helpfully. "I didn't think your pride would allow for that."

What little of it there was left, anyway.

Sean would be able to stand soon. Other than his annoyance, there was a reason Muraki didn't summon the nurse as requested: the paralytic was a secret between him and his delicious Uke-kun.

"Don't touch me," Sasuke snarled, and did his damnedest to struggle to his feet. He could feel the worst of the physical effects wearing off, and it was more than a little obvious that this particular 'therapy' was not officially supported by the Institute.

For a moment Sasuke allowed himself to entertain a fantasy of exactly how he would kill Muraki when this was over (paralysis, definitely, and then perhaps turning the man over to Kabuto to be destroyed by irony). Only for a moment, though; it was impossible not to face reality in Landel's.

He staggered for the door as soon as he was able, not bothering to acknowledge Muraki any further. By the time his nurse arrived he was able to stand almost normally, and she was more than happy to lend a hand when he walked a little out of line.

For once, Sasuke didn't care about the woman's babbling. Itachi was here, and he was going to die.

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Dayshift 31: Doctor's Office 3 (Dr. Muraki)

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