damned_institute | Day 21: Lunch

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Day 21: Lunch

Hikaru and Kaoru had been so caught up in their little game that they initially hadn't heard the intercom go off. The new "ding" system was far less jarring than the old SCREECH, and as such, wasn't as easily heard, even in a place as quiet as the library. All too soon, the nurses came to separate the twins and take them to the next activity--lunch.

It only felt like a few minutes since breakfast, somehow, and yet Hikaru was starved. The lunch selection was ridiculously Americanized food of the "Pan Asian" genre, as bad as when his family had wanted Japanese food in California and had gone to the "nicest" restaurant in the English language guidebook. He cringed visibly when the surly cafeteria worker poured sauce on his rice--which was supposed to be plain--but...food was food, and he wasn't feeling terribly picky right now. At least it smelled all right.

One of the good things about being the first one into the cafeteria was having his pick of the tables. Hikaru chose one of the larger ones, saving seats for Kaoru, Tamaki, and (in a fit of hopefulness) Haruhi.

He hoped they'd come soon. He hated being alone.

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Water supply.

Elena seemed to shake some of her terror-induced stupor at the mention of water, eyes going a little wider as her sluggish brain kicked back into gear and processed what President Shin-Ra had just said. She had no idea what Kadaj had done to the children of Edge (in fact, she didn't quite know where Edge was), but words like "army" and "patients" did not go without her notice. What was he suggesting Kadaj do? Put something in the water that would turn everyone into mindless zombies?

Reno seemed to know much more than she did...how else would he be so calm when the man who basically owned the world was talking to a known psychopath about turning the patients into an army via water contamination?! The girl caught his eye without really looking at him, trying to convey all of her questions into a single glance. What was going on here?

Kadaj stared at the glass between them for a moment, a slightly bemused smile playing about his lips. Of course by now he was sure he'd have to talk to Yazoo about the little conversation he had with the president, but that could wait until later.

Right now, he was much more concerned with the fact that he didn't know if he could duplicate the black water here at Landel's. The president didn't know it, but Kadaj was almost completely shut off from his abilities here. He had gotten lucky with the materia he had liberated from Elena that night, but other than that...

Abandoning his fork, he reached out to pull the glass even closer to himself, beginning to trace his finger around the brim once he deemed it close enough. "Only a few sips are needed for it to work. That might have changed here, but that's how it worked on Gaia. As for how long it lasts...." He laughed softly. "I gave it to the children the night before we returned to Edge for the last time. The explosion of the monument seemed to snap them out of it, but you saw that, right Mister President?"

Smiling much more confidently now, he let one finger dip into the water, swirling it around for a moment. Any moment now, the water would start to turn pitch black...

... but no. Nothing happened. Frowning, Kadaj withdrew his finger from the water and pushed the glass back across the table with enough force that it was almost knocked over. "I'm afraid your plan isn't going to work, Mister President. So sorry, but I'm sure you'll come up with something else soon." He plucked his fork back up from the table, making no secret of his agitation now as he resumed stabbing at his food. "Wouldn't have worked anyway," he muttered, half to himself. "No one here has Geostigma anyway."

No longer in the mood to play along with Reno, he just gave the redhead a look, then let his eyes slide over to Elena. "You're awfully quiet," he said to her, starting to smile again. "Don't you have anything to contribute? I love your new haircut, by the way."

Damn.

Rufus reached out with his bad hand to steady the glass, lips compressing tightly at the pain that clawed its way up his arm at the simple motion. He’d have to be more careful tonight. At the time, he hadn’t been thinking. His only concern had been Reno. That was unacceptable, something he reprimanded himself harshly for. His concern should have been himself, not his Turk. The other half of him sent up a low grumble that Reno was his Turk and thus his. The memory of Reno’s words from last night silenced that quickly.

Drawing his glass back to himself, Rufus stared at the liquid within thoughtfully. What Kadaj had said before that made it sound like a good plan. It would group together all these people and send them out to attack a common enemy. It would figure that Kadaj was cut off from that ability. For a painful moment, Rufus wanted to toss the glass away from him. Making his hands stay loosely on either side of it, he forced what approached calm for him to override that anger. A temper tantrum wouldn’t do anyone good, least of all him, and it certainly wouldn’t make the water suddenly be what he wanted it to be. His lips twisted down at the mention of Geostigma.

“Behave, Kadaj,” Rufus said absentmindedly, sounding more like a parent to tell quibbling children to stop than anything. “I can look at your plate and know you’re upset, but save that for the Head Doctor. I hadn’t been aware that one needed to have G-... that disease for it to work.”

Appetite gone, Rufus didn’t bother to even toy with his food, studying the water as if he too expected it to suddenly turn black. With Elena’s position to him, he didn’t see her look of inquiry to Reno or the redhead’s reaction. He was well aware that Kadaj’s rage tended to turn on the first target and that he might end up with a fork in his throat at this rate, but showing fear wasn’t something he would ever do. Other thoughts flicked through his mind as well and none of them would benefit from him backing down.

“Regardless, be careful, Kadaj. I told Yazoo the same, and suggested he stay with you during the night, but I doubted he listened. I don’t need Valentine or your other enemies ripping your head off or attempting the same. Or you doing it to my people. I’m sure the Head Doctor would love that if you kill us off or they do you.”

The look Elena gave him was noted, but Reno had no answer for her. He was as out of the loop as she was. Not that he could’ve really explained at the moment, anyway. He gave a slight wave of his finger, indicating for her to leave the subject for now.

He watched as Kadaj stuck his finger in the water, trying to figure out what the hell the guy was doing without appearing as though he were in any way fascinated.

Which he actually was, although not as interested as to what Rufus was scheming about. Using Kadaj to control a goddamned patient army? Something said that whatever Rufus was planning ran a lot deeper than just that—hell, maybe the President was just playing Kadaj—but Reno wasn’t completely sure. He’d never been able to fully figure out Rufus—part of the reason why he actually liked the man, certainly far more than the former President Shin-Ra—and it wasn’t something that normally concerned him...until stuff like this cropped up.

Although it didn’t technically matter, as it seemed whatever was supposed to have happened didn’t. Which apparently pissed Kadaj off, given the way he attacked his lunch in so violent a manner, it was almost comical. The flash of pain from Rufus, though, quickly erased any amusement that might’ve occurred.

The mention of Geostigma didn’t escape his attention, either. So it only worked on those with the disease. And Rufus hadn’t known, from what he said. Which meant he’d been under the impression that it would affect everyone. Had he even planned on informing Reno of this? It was true that there was little chance for them to talk much, but Reno couldn’t shake the feeling that it was all too possible for Rufus to have decided to risk lumping him in with the masses to get zombified. It wasn’t as though the President lacked the ruthlessness required. Rufus had defended him last night, yeah, but no doubt because it wouldn't have suited his purposes otherwise. And Reno was aware that he was disposable should the President require it, something that didn't bother him, exactly—under the right circumstances. Being put under Kadaj’s control did not fall under that category.

Dammit. What the hell’s going on?

Still distracted, he hardly paid attention to the look Kadaj gave him, but the words he did hear. Already not the most cool headed person in the world, with both the Special Counseling and the fact that he had absolutely no idea what the fuck Rufus was playing at right now combining with Kadaj’s taunts and Elena’s evident distress, he snapped a little earlier than he normally would’ve.

The fork slammed against the edge of his plate with a sharp clatter. He did manage to not drive it through Kadaj’s eye. “Is there a reason why you’re still here, or do you just like hanging around even when you’ve proven yourself useless in doing whatever it was you were going to?”

Elena stared intently at the water glass, not really knowing what was supposed to happen, but certainly expecting something.

Nothing happened.

She would have giggled if they had been in any other circumstances. It was just so...ridiculous. Kadaj had just swirled his finger around like a child playing in the mud, but whatever magical change that was supposed to take place was decidedly absent, leaving the water as clear as it had been before...though she didn't think anyone ought to be drinking it. Not after the little silver-haired bastard had gotten his fingers into it. That was just unsanitary.

It was good, though, that whatever Kadaj had tried to do hadn't happened, and that it would only have worked on those with Geostigma (whatever that was), because that raised all sorts of questions. Was the President actually in league with Kadaj? Did the Turks (well, the Turk and not-quite-Turk) fall into the list of "those to be controlled"? It was a scary prospect. Elena knew that Shin-Ra wasn't exactly...ethical in many (most) of its dealings, but she didn't know if its president would trade his most loyal underlings in favor of a slightly increased chance of escape. From the way Reno had snarled at the silver-haired boy, he was thinking the same things she was.

When Kadaj turned to her, Elena snapped. "Just shut the fuck up and leave, okay?" Her voice was about an octave higher than normal.

The pointless food abuse stopped, only to start up again in the form of Kadaj actually bothering to eat the mess now on his plate. Chewing it was just the same as mashing with his fork when you got right down to it, wasn't it? A split second later, he was glancing away and pretending this change had been entirely his idea and not prompted by the president's words at all. Couldn't let him know that, now could we?

"The Head Doctor won't get the satisfaction of either," he said eventually, looking thoughtfully down at his food. It wasn't that bad, even in this form. "I admit I might kill some of you if the mood strikes me, but for now I think you're safe."

That declaration immediately preceded the outbursts from Reno and Elena, though, and there was a rather tense pause while Kadaj considered the two of them from underneath his silver hair. Reno naturally proved to be the more annoying of the two, voicing the exact same idea that had been plaguing Kadaj since he had discovered his impotence in regards to the black water. What right did he have anyway, saying something like that thing to him? Hadn't Kadaj already put him in his place when he went to see the president in Healin Lodge? No matter. Reno had never struck him as a fast learner anyway.

Smiling grimly, he spoke to the Turk rather than his young companion, hoping to aggravate her even further by refusing to address her directly. "I'm definitely more useful than your blond friend over here at least-- all she's managed to do so far is get herself brainwashed by the staff, attacked by one of the most dangerous people in this insane asylum, and kissed by the biggest idiot. And what do those accomplish? Nothing." He stared down the girl in question, looking more and more malignant by the second. "You'd be so much better off without her."

“Elena, control your language, especially in my presence.”

The clatter of Reno’s silverware off the plate brought his attention up from the glass of water to fix on Reno. With no idea of the thoughts going through the heads of either of them, he was left mildly surprised at the outburst. Rufus was aware that it had been Kadaj that attacked Elena, but he took that as par for the course of this place and Kadaj’s way. What he was trying to do would ensure that such never happened again.

“Reno, control yourself as well. I’ve seen some of the sedated patients who cause problems, and I have no desire to get into another fight to keep you safe. In that case, I don’t think I’d be able to hold off however many staff they have here.”

Scarily enough, he briefly had the same mental image that Kadaj did, that of Reno and Rude sprawled out across the floor his room at Healin’ Lodge in pain. That wasn’t something he wanted to come to pass a second time when it could possibly be avoided. The question in Rufus’ mind was just how much lying space did he have when it came to Kadaj and Yazoo. More than a few could probably confirm that Rufus and Yazoo had indeed spoken, even Yazoo himself. The problem lay in if he could play the two remnants off against each other.

We’re only remnants.
“I’ve always thought you were the mind behind you and your brothers.
You see, I don't know Sephiroth. But, you know, I can sense him. It really irritates me. Is it Me or Sephiroth? which one will Mother decide...

Leaning back in his chair, Rufus settled his right arm across his lap. As much as he detested having to ask the staff of this place for anything, he would have to get something for pain most likely. Showing off to Kadaj had left him hurting. He did arch a brow at the list of what Elena had been doing since here. Once again, he had that difficulty meshing this girl with the woman he knew. That had to wait though. Kadaj was the biggest threat to himself and the safety of his people.

“Kadaj, do calm down. I am sure that Yazoo would have told you all we discussed since he realiz…”

Rufus purposely trailed off there, looking confused and then nodding to himself as if he finally understood something.

“No, he probably wouldn’t have. He always was Sephiroth’s mind. That’s not important now. I’ll think of something else soon enough or you will. Stop bickering like children over who I need or want the most. It’s useless and wastes time and energy better directed towards the Head Doctor.”

The reprimand irritated him, even more so than Kadaj's presence. Rufus could've told him to shut up or given him a look and Reno would've heeded without much complaint, but being scolded like a child—by someone who was actually younger than him, no less—was the one thing that just pissed him off. It was only due to Rufus being the President and Kadaj being there that he didn't snarl something back.

That, and he couldn't deny that Rufus was right. There was no winning in getting the nurses to pull out their pointy weapons on him. Though if he could rip out Kadaj’s throat, it'd be worth it, but given that he probably couldn’t, it would be stupid to lose control in front of the little bastard for nothing.

Biting back his ready retort to Kadaj, Reno shifted narrowed eyes away towards a neutral spot ahead of him. He closed them for a second, trying to keep his cool and clear out his clutter of thoughts. He managed the former. Not so much the latter.

As Rufus continued to speak, Reno glanced back at him, chin resting on top of his hand. He kept his gaze casual as he made an attempt at reading the President. It wasn’t until Rufus hinted at Yazoo’s possible deception at the end, with a carefully placed pause, that something finally clicked.

Reno’s initial suspicion had been right. Rufus was playing Kadaj. Or was he? But then why bother with the deal about the damned water in the first place? Had he known Kadaj would be cut off from his powers or had he just been betting on it? Or was it something he’d actually been considering on doing?

There was no asking anything, though. Not with Kadaj here.

Fuck. Fine. He’d see how things played out, and save his questions for later.

"Sorry, sir," Elena muttered at the President's rebuke, sounding like a petulant child. She lowered her eyes, refusing to meet Kadaj's smug little face or Rufus' admonishing look. She wanted to stab the eyes out of the former, and well...she was too embarrassed to face the latter.

She was, however, extremely hard-pressed not to just snap and go for Kadaj's scrawny little throat as he detailed her exploits of the past several days. He saw. He saw the kiss and now she was terrified that he'd go after Tamaki, just to get at her. The poor boy was making himself too much a target, anyway, proclaiming himself her knight and champion and God knew what else on the message board (Elena still needed to have a little chat with him about that). As it was, she just glared daggers at him and prayed for the best.

The girl tore her mind away from her murderous thoughts towards Kadaj long enough to listen to what the President was saying. Was he...was he stringing Kadaj along? It seemed that way, but if she could notice, wouldn't he?

Elena was actually a lot more perceptive than she gave herself credit for.

Whatever pleasure Kadaj felt at getting to Elena as well as the fact that the president had told them to control themselves first was quickly lost under another flood of anger. Yazoo always was Sephiroth's mind? What the hell was that supposed to mean? He had been the one to come up with all of their plans, not Yazoo! The president had an even worse understanding of the way they operated than he had originally thought. This along with the fact that he hadn't even known that the black water only worked on people with Geostigma was rapidly lowering Kadaj's opinion of the man, even as he tried to recover from yet another blow to his pride. Yazoo always was... hah.

He snorted, poking at his food again with a decidedly sour expression on his face. "Why don't you go and talk to Yazoo then, since you have such a high opinion of him? Must be exactly like talking to Sephiroth. I wouldn't know, of course, but maybe our big brother can tell you about it. If not, Zack's been around too, and he knew Sephiroth. Ask him."

He fell silent, not particularly in the mood to discuss this topic any further but finding himself unable to stop thinking about it. Hadn't Zack said he didn't act like Sephiroth just that morning? Of course he didn't say that Yazoo did, but still... no, it couldn't be true. He had been the one to find Mother and have the Reunion. It was all him. The president just didn't know what he was talking about. He wouldn't accept any other explanation than that.

When Kadaj went back to stabbing at his food Rufus dared to meet Reno’s gaze, feeling the weight of it on him. His face was its usual impassive mask that he wore when it came to dealing with Kadaj. What he couldn’t do at this point was let Kadaj see or get the feeling that anything was off, to find the niche to start hammering away at that could form a break. What he did let Reno see in that few seconds glance was the Rufus himself was worried but it was mixed with a weird elation, more like a man that was running to his own suicide.

How far are you willing to trust me, Reno? How far are you willing to go with me? Is your loyalty even with me still?

He didn’t spare any words for Elena, restraining his urge to lean across the table and make her behave. If she set Kadaj off again by glaring at him, Rufus saw an ugly fight ahead of them. While he had little doubt the three of them could take Kadaj down, he had no desire to spend the rest of the afternoon drugged up or the like.

Holding Reno’s gaze a moment longer than he dared, Rufus was surprised to find himself missing his Reno. At least once a day he had cursed the Turk’s antics and quick mouth, but when bad things happened, he always had him by his side. When he’d dove/fallen off that building after tossing Jenova over, the redhead had been the first to reach him. There was no time for that now. Kadaj had to be dealt with.

Instead, Rufus laughed quietly. It was a sound he rarely made. Instead of his usual razored mocking, there was a kind amusement to it. A smile came and went quickly as he watched Kadaj.

“I think Yazoo is the strategist or perhaps Sephiroth’s cool head, but you… you’re his heart and soul. In the end, that’s worth more and probably why you always were my favourite. You’re more like talking to Sephiroth once I get past the prickly part. You’ve got a quick mind like he does, but unrestrained in a way he wasn’t.”

Rufus’ expression was introspective for a moment.

“You take the slightest criticism too harshly, Kadaj. Yazoo figured out something before you. I wouldn’t blow it up into something horrible or a failing in you.”

Rufus returning his look was expected. What was not expected was the glimpse of worry he conveyed. It was damned rare for the President to allow something like that to shine through.

Reno gave an imperceptible nod before looking away. Yeah, he’d go along with whatever Rufus was planning. He’d just have to keep his eyes open a hell of a lot wider while he did. Because full loyalty did lie with the President, always would, but his complete trust...that remained with the Turks alone. Not that Rufus had done anything to lose it—it had just never fully been there in the first place. Working side by side with Tseng, Elena, and most notably Rude, meant Reno had established something with the three that simply wasn’t there with Rufus.

There wasn’t much time to do more than that, though, as the intercom gave another annoying ding.

Dammit. And he still hadn’t had a chance to speak with either Rufus or Elena alone.

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Day 21: Lunch

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