damned_institute | Day 35: Twin Pines Restaurant

Kunzite was hardly surprised at Michiru's response. He had stayed in his room himself a few nights; true, the majority of those times he was ill or too severely injured from the night before, but even he, as ambitions as he was, often felt that he would be a greater liability venturing out alone than exploring. Lately, however, joining the History Club gave him a good reason to go on nightly excursions...perhaps that, in the end, was what he really needed, to BELONG to something...

The swordsman looked over the menu again and finally settled in on his choice. He also perused the wine list, but the names were unfamiliar to him; all he knew was that he enjoyed the red ones over the whites. During this time, he listened to Michiru's question with interest, and answered almost immediately.

"Monsters," he said, pausing just briefly before clarifying, "youma. Creatures of shadow and darkness that seem intent on destroying us, or at the very least distracting us from fully exploring the facilities. They wield interesting powers, the likes of which I had actually experienced in my world. In addition...it seems that at least one patient is taken during some nights and somehow turned to the side of the institute, attacking fellow inmates in similar ways as the youma do."

Monsters. Even the way that Kunzite explained them, Michiru wasn't new to creatures like that. As a Sailor Senshi, she'd seen (and defeated) a good number of monsters. Still, she remained visibly worried as she stared down at the table.

"I heard as much this morning, but I didn't want to believe it." Michiru paused, letting a small length of time elapse before continuing her questioning. "I also heard that patients go missing from time to time. Do you know where they're taken? Or where the ones who turn against us are taken?"

Didn't want to believe it? he thought, still looking over the menu to try and keep himself occupied, but of course not...without your transformation pen, you - as the others - are practically powerless. Yet, as the others, you'll have to deal with them eventually.

"I cannot speak for the ones who have been removed from the facility," the swordsman started. "I only knew of this from a few...let's say allies of mine; one of them was taken some time over the last two days, and those that remained informed me of this. I don't know where they've gone, unfortunately. It appears that the staff is responsible, but of course, they remain ever obstinant."

Kunzite then gave pause himself, rubbing his right wrist soothingly as he tried to dig up memories locked deep in his subconscious. "As for the ones forced to fight on behalf of Landel...well, I can tell you of this from personal experience." He stopped briefly again, looking into Michiru's eyes intently before continuing. "It's a small examining room somewhere in the facility - I was drugged during supper so I could not see clearly when I was removed from my room. After performing some procedure that, for me at the least, involved electrocutive techniques and some manner of injections, I was released, given an area to stalk, and told to kill anyone who got in my way." Kunzite had spoken low enough that the waitress who stopped nearby could not hear; the swordsman ordered a bottle of one of the red wines, then gestured to Michriu to place her meal order.

Michiru was careful not to let disappointment color her expression when Kunzite revealed nothing about the disappearances that she hadn't heard already. It was foolish to hope for a clue to Usagi's whereabouts so quickly, but lucky breaks sometimes happened. Just not this time.

However, Kunzite's following revelation drew a look of surprise from Michiru that wasn't entirely feigned. She let him finish without interruption, using the time spent ordering a small garden salad from the waitress to collect her thoughts.

"It's a little worrying, how casually you can say that you were ordered to kill," she remarked as soon as the woman had left to fetch their orders. With nothing left to distract her gaze, she regarded Kunzite with a slight frown. "Were you...trained to do so before you arrived here? Is that why they chose you? And how were you able to overcome their influence?"

Kunzite made his order after Michiru's - a steak/potato/rice meal which seemed appetizing - then waved her off (a bit rudely, to be sure) and listened to Michiru's response. It wasn't surprising to hear a touch of disappointment in his choice of words, but he was hardly one to sugar coat his expressions. Indeed, he was all to eager to "explain" himself as the right question slipped from his companion's mouth.

"To an extent, I was...not trained to kill, per se, but I WAS a warrior." He paused for a moment, then decided that the best course of action was to address her questions in a slightly different order. "They didn't tell me why I was chosen, no, but I can only assume they have used others like this in the past, and unless we're ALL here because of a particularly...violent history..." Here he paused again, and smirked somewhat wickedly as he looked into Michiru's eyes, "then they just randomly choose whichever patients they feel would best accomplish whatever goals they have in mind." The wine arrived, and Kunzite graciously accepted the pouring of his first glass. He sipped it wordlessly, then let out a satisfied gasp as he placed his goblet onto the table.

"I was able to overcome the influence - to a certain extent - because I've been brainwashed in the past." The swordsman placed the tip of his finger along the rim of the glass and drew it along its circumference slowly. His expression was one of satisfied malice, as if some nefarious plot had finally come to fruition for him. "For you see...I was a member of the contingent from the Earth that waged war against the Silver Millennium all those years ago. I'm sure you remember that dread event, if even just vaguely...Sailor Senshi."

Michiru didn't appreciate the look that Kunzite had given her just before his order of wine came. It was something that set her even further on edge, beyond the odd vibe that she couldn't shake. Like her subconscious knew something that she didn't. But she set aside the warning bells, paying careful attention to what Kunzite was saying.

Up to this point, Michiru had been careful not to do or say anything that would arouse suspicion as to her true nature. It was an act that she'd crafted for years. Honestly, who would suspect a dainty well-to-do flower such as herself of being a senshi? Never did she imagine that she would stumble across this sort of meeting.

Her pride already wounded from recent failure, Michiru did not take well to the added reminder of the failures of her past life. Nor to the insinuation that he'd had a part in it. It mattered very little that Kunzite was allegedly 'brainwashed'. The look on his face showed no remorse for his actions, and Michiru's own expression instantly cooled to a thinly-veiled glare.

"I see I was correct in assuming that there was something odd about you," she stated, her tone frigid but still quiet. She didn't bother denying his accusation, and any semblance of being a civilian had been abandoned. "Is there some reason you approached me, or are you looking for a fight?"

Kunzite laughed a hearty, satisfied laugh. Just like Mercury, just like Usagi...the paralyzing fear and subsequent 'strength' and 'determination' that overcame these womens' countenances gave him quite a sense of amusement, especially because he knew, all things returned normal, that he could deal with each one individually or the lot of them all by himself. He had no overt intentions of starting anything up, of course - for what good could thoughtlessly attacking ANYONE at the institute bring to him, to his mission? If anything, he needed those around him ALIVE; they might hold answers, or they would have clues about the facility that would bring him closer to his own destiny, to the confrontation he HAD to have with Endymion...

"Oh, you Sailor Senshi are ever a treat to confront," he grinned, taking another long sip from his wine, then letting the bubbles forming within fizzle down as he stared at his companion with sinister eyes. "Truth be told...part of my rationale in 'approaching' you was to gauge your reaction when you learned of my true identity, for it DOES amuse me so to see how you behave. But I do not intend to fight you, no; for one, it is pointless to do so with our powers so stunted; and for another, I do not recognize your precise Senshi form. You are not Mars or Jupiter, and I've already met Mercury and Moon." There was another reason for his approaching her, but that could wait for later...

Kunzite's laugh, while obnoxiously self-confident to Michiru's ears, did little to cause her glare to waver. This man was now distinctly classified as an enemy, and there was little he could do to sway her judgment. Not that anything he was saying was helping his case. No, despite her previous encouragements to Ami, her dignity as an Outer Senshi wasn't quite ready to let Kunzite lump her in with the younger ones.

She caught sight of the waitress returning just in time to forestall her response. Smiling up at the woman as if nothing was happening, Michiru thanked her and took the salad. The woman also delivered Kunzite's meal before departing.

"Perhaps you would recognize me if you and your kind weren't so accustomed to playing with children." Michiru shot the quip out at him without missing a beat--as nonchalantly as chatting about the weather. Glancing to her salad, she speared a cherry tomato on the end of her fork. "There are Sailor Senshi, and then there are Soldiers. I'll assume you've fought the former of those. You should pray not to deal with the latter."

"Is that so?" Kunzite jeered, nodding to the waitress as he reached for his knife and fork. As Michiru started on her venomous tirade, he started dissecting pieces out of the rare steak, taking a piece to mouth and chewing on it rudely while a wicked grin widened on his lips. So, she classifies herself as a different breed from the ones I've met? No matter...in the end, they all support the same foolish ideals; age or no, a Sailor Senshi is a Sailor Senshi. He moved to quickly ingest a small portion of the potato before taking another sip of his wine.

"I've only encountered five of your number - well, there were only four left before I was taken here - but I can assure you, girl, that whatever age disparity you might have with the others matters little to me." He tipped the end of his knife in her direction menacingly, then returned to cutting up the steak, shoving another piece into his mouth before continuing. "I've seen Sailor Moon at her most powerful...and, even taking into account that your powers are dampened, you are nowhere near her level, not by a long shot. So do not propose to intimidate me by think yourself to be above the others...because you are nothing to me."

Nowhere near Sailor Moon's level? Well, perhaps not. Usagi was their princess, their Messiah. However, she was also naive, idealistic, and gullible. Traits which had clashed with hers and Haruka's during their first encounters. Her inner circle of guardians weren't much better. If Kunzite wanted to believe that age was the only thing setting them apart, well... He was welcome to his incorrect assumption.

"Funny, I was thinking the same about you." Michiru picked at her partly-eaten salad a bit more, but by this point her appetite had disappeared completely. Bad company and a bad mood had the tendency to turn even the best meals sour. "If you're done asserting your notions of superiority, I'd like to be on my way. You've been an entertaining host, but I'm sure there's more worthwhile conversations I could be having."

"Hmph," Kunzite snorted, shrugging his shoulders and poking at the potatoes listlessly. "You do what you think is best, Sailor Senshi. Perhaps my attitude IS something that needs improving, but truth be told my intention was NOT to antagonize you this day." He grasped the stem of his wineglass, looking up at the standing Michiru with a sincere glare. "I wish you all the best in your dealings with the youma tonight, if you decide to venture out and see for yourself the hell to which you've been dragged." With that, he took a long sip from his glass, then returned to his meal eagerly.

Michiru couldn't deny the slight satisfaction she received from putting a damper on Kunzite's mood. It was petty, but it raised her own spirits just a bit.

"Perhaps you should state your intentions more clearly next time," she advised, standing from the table and fishing in her pocket for the coupon that would count as proper payment. Pulling it out and setting it down, Michiru placed the bowl of her half-eaten salad partly over the piece of paper to hold it in place. "It's been a pleasure dining with you."

She forced a polite smile, waved, and turned her back on her dining companion as she headed for the door.

Day 35: Twin Pines Restaurant

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject