damned_institute | Day 35: Bus 1

Sanji woke up groggily to find his nurse already in his room. He gave a sleepy and half-hearted "Buh?" before realizing that nurse meant dayshift, and he'd fallen asleep after dinner.

"Shit!" He sat up abruptly, which gave his nurse a start. "Nami-swan!" How had he allowed himself to sleep through an entire night? What if she'd tried to return to the basement? What if she'd been waiting for him to appear and protect her? He'd let her down!

"There, there. Calm down." His nurse set a familiar flannel shirt down on the bed and Sanji eyed it with confusion. The last time he'd worn that had been... "Sorry I didn't knock or anything, but I was so excited~!" A pair of jeans followed the shirt. "Today is the field trip into town! Aren't you looking forward to it?"

The chef had to admit, the town had been an interesting enough place the last time he'd been. If he could find Nami early on he might even be able to lead her around... So he didn't complain too much as he changed into the other outfit (which he really wished they'd let him keep - anything was better than the regular gray) and was led out to the first of the buses.

He took a seat near the front, hopefully easily visible to any of his crew - especially to a certain member of his crew.

[for Usopp!]

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Lucivar didn't really know what to expect when he was suddenly ushered out of the building and onto a large metal carriage. He was not in the best temper, having spent most of last night waiting around doing nothing. It was frustrating but at least he could try again tonight. And this strange trip out of the hospital left him too puzzled to be completely enraged.

He saw Daemon on the carriage and walked over to him, sitting down with a bit of a flop. "Morning," he said, slouching against the back of the chair, looking deceptively lazy as he scanned the area. "How was your evening?"

Daemon shifted over to make room for his brother on the seat beside him, his gaze narrowed and studying his brother intently for a moment. Deciding that his brother seemed well enough, though slightly irritable, he casually shrugged one shoulder.

"Eventful, if not in the way I planned."

Lucivar raised an eyebrow, curious of Daemon's tone. "Trouble?" he asked, his muscles tensing as though he was preparing for a fight.

"Not... exactly," Daemon replied carefully, not meeting his brother's gaze as he stared out the window. He looked for the right words to phrase this, uncertain of them himself. Everything had gotten... twisted last night.

"River came to my room last night."

A cold shiver ran down Lucivar's back as he gaped at his brother, doing his best not to jump to conclusions. It was difficult with Daemon being what he was to not let his brain drift to unpleasant things. "How is the Lady?" he asked, figuring this simple question was safer then asking if the Sadist was out last night. He didn't know the girl well enough to know if she would provoke Daemon or not.

"Confusing," Daemon answered, hips lips twitching faintly in remembrance. "But that is nothing unusual."

His expression turned solemn once more, however, and he raked fingers through his hair in mild agitation. "Something happened last night that... probably shouldn't have," he admitted quietly.

"You're making me anxious," Lucivar said, turning to face his brother. "What exactly happened last night? I'm going to assume that the Sadist did not come out or else you wouldn't be as calm as you are right now. If it wasn't the Sadist then, what?"

Daemon opened his mouth, then paused and shook his head, still looking for the right words, unsure whether he should be ashamed or angry with himself, or if he... His thoughts were all jumbled and he didn't like it. He didn't like the mental struggle he'd been having since he first awoke.

"No, not the Sadist. Lucivar, I... River... She kissed me."

Lucivar was quiet for a moment, judging his own feelings for the moment. For some reason he wasn't as shocked as he expected to feel. He knew Daemon, knew his devotion to Cat. Hell, he remembered being told of the secret wedding and all that surrounded it. But this was different somehow. He'd have to delve deeper to find out exactly how different it was.

"She kissed you," he repeated. "Was it a welcomed kiss? Or did she steal one from you?"

"She... surprised me," Daemon admitted, not meeting his brother's gaze. "But I can't say it was entirely unwelcome once she'd started."

At least there weren't any blood splatters for the hospital staff to clean up, Lucivar thought. "Are you upset that you kissed her in return or that it happened at all? If it wasn't an unwelcomed kiss I'm puzzled as to what the problem is."

"I shouldn't have wanted to," Daemon admitted, turning away, the words barely audible, guilt washing over him in a near palpable wave. What had he been thinking??

Lucivar sighed and put his hand on his brother's shoulder. "Look, old boy," he said gently. "Things are different here. You didn't betray her, you know. It's much like seeing someone through their virgin night. There are feelings involved, of course, but there shouldn't be guilt. And this place has a nasty way of making us forget who we were before. It's getting so that I'm even growing used to the strange absence of my wings. That isn't normal. It isn't natural. But these things seem to happen. Don't beat yourself up because a young girl kissed you and you happened to enjoy it. You are a man, after all."

"I haven't forgotten who I was before," Daemon replied quickly, a hint of a snarl in his voice as he went on the defensive. "Who I am. It's just..." he trailed off, clearly agitated. "River just never played into that before I came here. She... complicates things."

"Listen," Lucivar said, feeling that Daemon was on the verge of blowing everything out of proportion. "You can wonder all you like about what it means but at the end of the day all that matters is how you feel. If you enjoyed the kiss then that is all you need to know. Is she likely to kiss you again?"

"It is not all I need to known," Daemon snarled quietly, golden gaze narrowing on his brother. "It shouldn't even be an issue. I feel like..." Like he'd let his Queen down. Even if she wasn't here. Or wasn't anywhere. And he didn't know what to think about that, because this place had changed everything, and he was still reeling from loss and shock, and something more than that.

"Then what are you going to do?" Lucivar asked, frowning deeply. "You are carrying on as if you were Daemonar begining a snit. There are only a few options. You either spurn the girl's affections, accept them or return them. What happened cannot be erased and you will have to face those consequences when the time arrives. Now is not that time, no matter how much time you waste worrying about it. There is much that is different here. Mother Night, I understand. I am sure Witch will understand as well but running yourself in circles will get you no where."

Daemon sighed and raked long fingers through his hair in agitation. "I know," he replied quietly. "I just don't know which I should do. Or rather, if the one I should do and the one I want to do are the same."

Day 35: Bus 1

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