damned_institute | Day 34: Breakfast

[starting off in M13]

The last part of the night was little more than a blur in Homura's mind. The men had rushed in, but not joined them, instead staying off to themselves. Before any of them had a chance to react, however, a voice sounded through the air, mocking some other person Homura had never heard of, and the patients themselves.

To Homura, whoever that man was, he sounded a great deal like a god.

But before he could ask questions, the demi-god found himself no longer in the chapel, but some strange room on a bed. Is that what Kenren had meant from his earlier warning? Homura sat up, glad at least that the world didn't spin when he did so. Then the same man from before began to speak again, with a completely different tone. It was confusing to hear him talk that way, calling them patients instead of prisoners as he had before. Homura listened quietly as the announcement was made, then got out of bed.

Maybe he wouldn't have to go anywhere yet. It wasn't like Homura knew where to go anyway, and that meant he had time. If this was his room, and if he had been here as long as Kenren had said, there was a chance he could find something with answers. The Taisho had even told him that Homura had seen Rinrei. Certainly he would've written something down, made a map, something that could let him find her again! He started with the desk at the end of his bed, first finding a small stack of notebooks. Picking up the first, he flipped through, turning the pages with quickening desperation as he found each one to be blank.

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"No," he replied perfunctorily, his smile growing lopsided. "Good thing you weren't fooled. I wouldn't want to be charged for impersonating staff," he stated matter-of-factly, waving his hand at an agent by the door. Well, they certainly ran with a hospital theme. What was up with the scrubs they were wearing? He much preferred the reaper dress code, and that was saying something.

Manny didn't budge, though the twinkle in his eyes also hadn't faded yet.

"If I'd known this was where we'd end up, I'd have taken you on that ocean cruise first." It wasn't that he was sour about the outcome - he was just a sore loser. That and he couldn't shake the inexplicable feeling this wasn't their final destination. This wasn't what Meche deserved.

"If you'd known?!"

Her fist had already slammed into his jaw before she'd even realized it was moving. Not quite the tender reunion she'd been hoping for, but Meche was too far gone to care. "You mean you didn't even know where that train was really going?! 'The Ninth Underworld,' you said. 'The Land of Eternal Rest!' You knew we might end up in some kind of crazy hospital, and you just didn't think it was important enough to mention?"

She couldn't believe it. Sure, he hadn't known whether they were going to be together in the next life, but she'd just assumed an ex-reaper would know what he was talking about with his own damned merchandise. Would know he had tickets for the right train, at least! Never trust a salesman.

Whatever she'd been about to say next, about the angelitos or the nurses or how incredibly glad she was to see him, flew right out of her head.

She knew she was going overboard here. It was just that she couldn't slow her anger down. Manny still looked like he was reeling, and she wasn't done yet. "All right, mister, start talking," she snapped. "If this isn't the Ninth Underworld, where is it? And what other little surprises weren't you planning on telling me about?"

But that? He deserved.

"Hey!" he shot back a little helplessly, the abruptness of the blow stunning him into silence. What shocked him more than that was the thought that followed: this was probably going to leave a mark. Lifting a hand to the point of impact, dazed by what had to be the ache of a bruise forming, he touched his fingertips to it as he heard Meche out.

The tingling wouldn't stop. After so many years without any blood canals to speak of, the pain was rather distracting, but it didn't take a lot of effort to keep a firm stance. She was upset. This was only going to get worse if he didn't console her.

"We didn't have sources on this," he said calmly, a hint of impatience seeping into his tone. "The brochures never went as far to tell us salesmen what 'Eternal Rest' really meant."

"If I'd known it meant bed rest and cafeteria pancakes, I would've stayed dead," Meche shot back automatically. But she was already starting to cool off a little. Of course he didn't have any idea what was going to happen, any more than an undertaker could've given her a definitive answer on what was going to happen after she died. He was a cog in the machine. They were just going to have to figure it out, and it was gonna be a lot easier if they were on the same team.

"Look, I'm sorry," she sighed after a minute, running her fingers through her cropped hair in a nervous gesture she'd forgotten she used to have. She was still tense, but the anger was draining. "It's just that this is a little overwhelming. It's not what I expected, but that's not your fault."

With a Herculean effort, she extended a hand to him. "Come on, looks like people are starting to leave. Let's get some breakfast while we still can, and afterwards we'll look for the children and the others."

"Uhh..." His attention was drawn to the big guys nearby who were eyeing them both with suspicion. When Meche held her hand out to him, one of the men lifted a needle and gave it a menacing flick. Manny had trouble hiding his grimace as the obvious threat advanced towards them.

"I think the meal can wait," he answered evenly, squeezing the offered hand a bit tighter than he realised and starting to lead her outside – as far away from her newest fan as this place would permit. Left unspoken was a silent promise; no way he'd let her go until he knew the crazy pacifist wasn't tailing her.

Day 34: Breakfast

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