damned_institute | Day 32: Sun Room (2nd shift)

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Day 32: Sun Room (2nd shift)

After the couple glasses of water Leon managed to gulp down during breakfast, the mage felt immensely better. He was still a bit tired, but that was nothing a little lounging on one of the sofas wouldn't cure. Stretching his arms above his head, he couldn't help but wish he'd had the chance to grab one of his new doctor's coats before leaving his room that morning. Maybe they would have let him get away with wearing it. Maybe.

He grabbed an empty sofa, pulling out the journal he tried to keep on him at all times. It was nearly complete now. Just a couple more pages to go. It might not improve his spellcasting that much, but any improvement was better than none. It was getting to where it might be too dangerous for him to use spells at all, if it left him so worn out without even finishing a monster off.

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[Waiting for Artemis.]

Light was fairly quick to write off breakfast as a loss on his part, but that was more due to the fact that he'd been unable to locate someone suitable to escort Misa at night (Kiddo currently wasn't an option, unfortunately, for a variety of reasons) and that he hadn't been able to eat anything when his attention had been taken up by that woman for the majority of the meal than because he felt he'd lost to L or anyone else in particular. That could easily change, however, so he'd need to be on the lookout.

For now, he went to find a seat that would allow him to keep an eye on L as well as the rest of the room. There had to be a pattern to these meetings the detective had been holding, and while it was entirely possible L would tell him what he was up to himself at some point, it wasn't enough of a chance to make Light drop his guard. He appeared perfectly at ease when he finally did sit down, though, and like many others in the room, he soon shut his eyes. Sleeping was out of the question, but that didn't mean he couldn't rest for a moment.

Artemis wasn't feeling particularly up to being social yet again, but his nurse insisted. After his little chat with Hitsugaya, he wasn't feeling much up to anything save crawling into a hole and dying.

He looked around the room, adjusting himself in his sling for what seemed the forty-seventh time. The thing was so restricting. He spotted Light across the room, apparently asleep. Normally he wouldn't bother anyone who appeared to need rest, but Artemis remembered that Light owed him enough metal for a weapon. And... well, he already had a weapon, so there wasn't a need for the metal anymore. It would be courteous to let Light know that he didn't have to continue risking his life for something Artemis didn't need anymore.

He quietly approached the teenager and sat down in a chair next to Light's. "I'm sorry to disturb you, but I believe I should inform you of some changes to our agreement."

... Hm.

Light opened his eyes and took a long look at Artemis, one eyebrow slightly raised. "Strictly speaking, it's better practice to inform people of proposed changes to agreements, see if they then agree to the revisions, and revise with them further if necessary before finalizing the new agreement rather than simply springing said changes on them without any previous discussion. I'm sure you knew and meant that, though."

He sighed, running one hand through his hair and sitting up a bit straighter as he prepared himself for the upcoming conversation. He wasn't feeling very patient at the moment, hence his somewhat blunt response to Artemis earlier (if the boy thought he could slip anything past him, he was sorely mistaken), but he was going to need to at least pretend to be if he wanted to keep the advantage of this situation. "What sort of changes were you hoping to discuss? And don't worry, you're not disturbing me at all."

Artemis listened to what Light said with mild amusement. He was so evil sometimes. Somehow, without realizing it, he'd set himself up to sound like the overlord businessman demanding more from his underlings. Well, what a surprise Light was about to have.

"I don't need the metal anymore. I had a weapon made," He pulled the transcripts he'd made from his journal and handed them over to Light. "You, however, wanted these. I trust you will approve?" Artemis smiled lightly and tilted his head.

That was unexpected. Light couldn't say he was displeased with this, however, so he accepted the transcripts with a smile and said, "Yes, I approve. Thank you, Fowl-kun." That was one less thing to worry about, at least. With everything that had been going on, he'd been starting to think he'd never acquire the metal necessary to win Artemis's trusts-- and the transcripts too, of course.

"I'll try to deliver your tea as soon as possible," he went on to say, affecting mild embarrassment. "I'm sorry to say that what with one thing and another, finding an opportunity to retrieve it has become something of a trial." To say the least. He made no further excuses, though, adding instead, "Was there anything else you wanted to talk about?"

"It's not a problem. I understand how easy it is to be wrapped up in the things that go on around here," He said with a smile. "And please, call me Artemis. Calling me by my last name seems so stiff and unnecessary."

The boy seemed rather surprised, and raised his eyebrows. "My, so quick to get rid of me, I see," he laughed lightly. "I thought perhaps we could have a friendly chat, since I didn't exactly put my best foot forward when we first met." Mostly because Ryuga was challenging him and as a consequence, he was pushing back, but that had nothing to do with Light except that the teenager had been present for the rather unfriendly spat. "But if you would rather I left you to your nap, I would be happy to do so."

"Artemis-kun, then-- or would you prefer it if I drop the honorific?" Light didn't have any real preference himself, but since staying on Artemis's good side was in his best interests, it made more sense to ask than not.

"I actually meant 'anything else related to our agreement' rather than 'anything else in general,' but I can see where you'd get that impression," Light replied, smiling faintly. "My apologies. A friendly chat is all right with me, though. I hadn't intended on napping anyway-- just resting my eyes." His smile became somewhat wry, and he amended, "I suppose they amount to the same thing in the end, but that doesn't matter."

"No, Artemis-kun is fine. I suppose you could call me whatever you like, actually. I rarely get irate about what people call me. Just... please don't call me 'Arty'," he amended with a rather sour look on his face.

Artemis nodded thoughtfully, "Yes, I've come across the same thought. I don't believe I've actually slept in about a week. I should have collapsed from exhaustion by now, but obviously it hasn't happened yet." He gave Light a weak smile.

"How have you been faring? During the nights, I mean."

"Artemis, then." Light wondered if he'd even read into that. After all, the only other people he dropped honorifics with were "Ryuga" and Misa, and while that could simply imply a degree of familiarity, it could also mean that he viewed Ryuga and Artemis as equals. It didn't, but he doubted Artemis would see it that way.

"I've been doing well enough, I suppose. I haven't run into that much trouble, at least, but that's largely because I've been getting caught up in helping at the clinic and helping my girlfriend adjust to this place. There's not a lot of traveling involved with those, but it can be time-consuming." Which was all true, more or less. "What about you?"

"Ahh, the clinic," Artemis nodded thoughtfully. "I was there once. I don't remember much of it, though. I was in very bad shape," He laughed a little at the wry humor. "I'm sorry to hear that your girlfriend has showed up here, though. This isn't a place for the ones we love and care about."

Butler, Holly, Minerva... he hoped they never managed to find themselves in an unfamiliar bed staring at white walls. He wished Haku didn't have to as well, but... he was first and foremost a selfish creature. Artemis wanted Haku to stay in the Institute... because it meant that he would stay with Artemis.

"I... I've been working through some adjustment problems of my own. This place isn't geared towards the intellectually-based, I'm afraid. Most of the time, I end up feeling rather useless in the Arts and Crafts division. But, last night was a reminder that no matter where I go, group-wise," He shifted in his sling again. "Things will be more or less the same."

Evidently not. "No, it really isn't." Cue worried look here. Misa's arrival had been too much of a boon for Light for him to be able to summon any genuine concern at this point, but thankfully, he was good enough at acting that it was impossible to tell the difference.

He had to agree with Artemis's second point, though, even if he considered it to be not quite as bad as the boy made it out to be. It could be different when one was affiliated with that group, though, so he nodded sympathetically. "In this environment, intellectuals are essentially limited to support roles. It's frustrating, but there's not really much that can be done about it unless more people start offering self-defense lessons. There aren't that many doing so now, right?"

Light wasn't entirely sure on this point. With how many people seemed to be arriving and disappearing, it was difficult to keep an exact count of who was in what club and what role they filled, and since he was certain that the majority of people who were capable of fighting were more interested in exploring and so on than teaching, it seemed like a reasonable assumption to make.

"No, there aren't," Artemis admitted. "I've received some instruction, but it was very limited. I still manage to end up with the short end of the stick when it comes to injuries. I'm not at the point where I can form strategy under pressure and threat of bodily harm." He laughed a little. "But I'm sure if you posted a request for help concerning self-defense, someone would answer you. I had at least four different people offering to train me.

"However, if you're only working in the clinic, it may not be necessary. Or are you planning on venturing out into the Institute sometime?"

"A combination of the two," Light admitted. "I'm more concerned about getting self-defense lessons for Misa, though-- my girlfriend, you know-- but I think she's going to be asking soon on her own, so I might not need to worry." His tone suggested that he'd be worrying plenty regardless, but that was only to be expected. "Once that's taken care of, I'll see about the rest. I know some basic self-defense already, so I should be fine until then." More or less.

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Day 32: Sun Room (2nd shift)

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