Nightshift 36: M31-40

[captain-hunam.livejournal.com]

[M39]

Dinner finished, Zelnick grabbed his flashlight and settled down with his journal and a pen, fully intending to catch up on taking down notes-- and finding himself too distracted to do more than scribble out vague doodles in the margins, occasionally jotting down a word or two before becoming distracted again.

Well, supposedly, allies would come by and distract him. And until then, it wouldn't hurt to try and sketch out Talana's smile from memory, the way her eyes should flash, the curl of her hair...

Comments

[udo-retrovirus.livejournal.com]

It was another awfully quiet dinner for Junior, and it just felt really weird knowing that there wouldn't be anyone else coming in. At least not until these new patients that the Head Doctor had mentioned earlier in the day came along. Still, it had given Junior some more time to look over his maps, and get everything ready. He'd had the last two nights off, but now it was back to work as usual.

Homura wanted them on the second floor, for medical supplies and metals. They could always hit a few of the rooms on the eastern end for metals, like maybe the janitor's closet and the laundry room. But medical supplies...it had been mostly medication in the pharmacy, from what he'd been able to see a few nights back. They could always go for a second look, and then maybe check down the nurse hallway if it wasn't blocked by nurses.

And this was all assuming that they'd have a straight shot. Well, he'd talk it over with Kunzite and Shito, see what they thought, and they'd figure things out from there.

Junior had pulled out his pillowcase of pill bottles, taking the aspirin bottles out and stuffing them back up under the pillow, while leaving the magnesium and lithium tablets in there. He tossed his radio in for good measure, after flipping it on. He figured it'd be good to go ahead and bring the pillowcase, once he dumped the medication off with Usopp next door, so why not go ahead and put it to use?

When the night's announcement finally came, he grabbed his makeshift sack, the flashlight and one of the scalpels, then headed out the door, making a right and stopping right next door.

It sure made things easier that way. Junior was glad to finally be dropping this stuff off, but he couldn't stay long, which was a real shame. He'd been hoping to be able to go with Usopp and whoever else went along for that mission to the shed, but that really couldn't be helped. In the meantime, he'd help out where he could, and see what the guy could do with the medication.

"Usopp, you there? It's Junior!" he called out, just in case. For all he knew, the guy could have been taken for whatever the Institute had planned for tonight, but hopefully that wasn't the case.

M33

[usoppsenchou.livejournal.com]

Usopp was still worried about Sousuke, but he didn't have time for that. His first visitor came by even sooner than he'd expected, although he was relieved to hear Junior's familiar voice.

"Yeah, one second!" He'd been in the middle of changing his clothes, leaving his boots off for Sanji's future possible benefit. Even if it had lead to a misunderstanding the other night, it was just too comfortable to work in his own clothes instead of the Institute's uniforms.

Coming to the door, he opened it, smiling. "Hi, you had some stuff you wanted to drop off?" It looked like the shorter man was loaded down, considering the pillowcase in hand. Junior had said he'd had other plans for the night, so maybe he was dropping off things for multiple people...

Re: M33

[tsunagari.livejournal.com]

Sai came to a stop a few feet away. It appeared as though the pirate was already busy with someone else. Not wanting to cause any difficulties, he held back and leaned against the wall for the moment. He didn't intend to stay long, so he shouldn't be getting in anyone's way.

Though he hadn't expected Usopp to go anywhere, it was a small comfort knowing the pirate was still around after everything that had happened that day.

Re: M33

[udo-retrovirus.livejournal.com]

Junior glanced up at the other man and nodded. So Usopp had a different outfit, too? Where was everyone getting them from?

"Yeah. Sorry if this is too early." He lifted the bag up a bit. "I picked up some pill bottles from the pharmacy a few nights ago that I thought you might be able to use. Magnesium and lithium. They can't be pure, but they're probably as close as we can get in here."

He glanced over when he noticed someone leaning against the wall, probably waiting to talk to Usopp. It sounded like he'd have a bunch of people coming by tonight, before heading out. "Anyway, I don't want to get in the way. Where would you like me to put them?"

Outside M39

[floraltempest.livejournal.com]

MOMO breathed another sigh of relief upon entering the hall, glad that she'd gotten this far without running into anything. Plus, if the voices were any indication, there were others around here as well. That helped ease the anxiety that had started to form as she made the quick trip.

Counting the doors as she went, the realian stopped in front of M39 and knocked on the door. Hopefully Kenren wouldn't mind that she'd come so early.

Re: Outside M39

[opposingheaven.livejournal.com]

Kenren looked up sharply when he heard a knock at the door. He hadn't expected his team to arrive so quickly tonight. But the sooner the better, he supposed. He glanced over at Zelnick. "A couple of people are meant to be meeting me here," he explained. "We shouldn't be around too long though."

With that, he stood and went to pull open the door, smiling at the girl who was standing there. "Hey, MOMO," he said, stepping aside to let her in. "Thanks for coming. I appreciate it."

Re: Outside M39

[captain-hunam.livejournal.com]

Zelnick blinked up at his roommate. "Oh, that's fine," he said. He was pretty sure ZEX wouldn't want an audience for whatever was troubling him, but if it wasn't going to take long...

He waved slightly at the girl before going back to his notebook.

Re: M39

[floraltempest.livejournal.com]

MOMO had forgotten how eerie it could be waiting alone in a hall. Since she'd joined with the History Club, it seemed the people typically met at her room--not that she minded the change tonight. Quite the opposite actually; she was glad for a little bit of change, but it was still a little scary when you were alone. Thankfully she didn't have to wait too long.

"Good evening," she replied, making a quick bow before moving into the room. "It's no problem at all; I just hope I'm not interrupting anything. I know it's early still, but," she gave a quick laugh, "it's best to get an early start, right?"

[forgot-it-all.livejournal.com]

Ritsuka made sure to leave quietly tonight. Tamaki was likely tired and they hadn't said much to each other during dinner. Ritsuka wasn't a fan of steak, but the fries and the vegetable had been good. He'd eaten a bit of the meat, just because someone was bound to ask sooner or later if he was keeping a balanced diet, and now he wouldn't have to lie.

Having stuffed more bandages into his backpack and picked out his radio and his flashlight like usual, Ritsuka headed out into the hall and started to make his way to Soubi's room. He didn't want to meet anyone else tonight, in case they wanted to take him somewhere. He didn't think Soubi would like it if he showed up with anyone else when he'd been adamant about Soubi not coming to pick him up.

He'd just been there the night before, so he remembered the way pretty well. Keeping his flashlight off, Ritsuka took off at a slow jog.

[forgot-it-all.livejournal.com]

skipping a hall to here (http://community.livejournal.com/damned/489285.html?thread=39793989#t39793989)

[intoindra.livejournal.com]

While Roland felt more optimistic now than he ever had before, he still felt some niggling doubts about the course of his mission. Sure, it was more likely to find answers outside of the Institute instead of inside; why else would the Head Doctor have been so upset when people were able to go outside? However, there was still the chance that it was inside the Institute that the answers were... but that seemed to be explored well enough as it was.

So the man took batteries in hand and started heading out to the rendezvous point. Last time they hadn't gotten to explore as thoroughly as they had liked... this time, he and his comrades would get much further, he was sure of it.

((To here.)) (http://community.livejournal.com/damned/489285.html)

[per-ardua.livejournal.com]

[[From here (http://community.livejournal.com/damned/491309.html?thread=39751469#t39955245).]]

"When was the last time you saw your parents?" Raine asked quietly. She was guessing around the time the summoner had first tried to make a pact with Volt, but before that was also a possibility.

It was more personal than she usually asked Sheena, but since she'd told her share of family stories, she didn't think it was out of line.

[mizuhomaiden.livejournal.com]

Sheena stopped so abruptly Raine would be hard-pressed to keep from running into the ninja. She looked back over her shoulder, eyes wide, before facing forward again.

"Why do you want to know?" Her voice held a defensive tone, but it wasn't the kind she normally used.

[per-ardua.livejournal.com]

"Everything you keep bringing up about family; it's clear enough that for whatever reason, you haven't connected with your parents in a long time." Raine was simply stating a fact, not being accusing. "Especially since you're asking me." She was less certain that her abandonment issues had to do with anything, but it wouldn't surprise her.

Actually, the combination of losing her parents at a young age and then being more of a mother than a sister to Genis might also have something to do with it, but she'd leave that for later.

[mizuhomaiden.livejournal.com]

"Yeah, you could say that," Sheena muttered to herself when Raine mentioned the ninja's parents, forgetting that the half-elf had better hearing than her.

"I'm asking you because you're my friend and generally more... worldly than me with all that book knowledge and stuff," Sheena shot back, almost clipping her words but not. It was pretty obvious the ninja was trying to derail the conversation. "Why do you care about my parents? It's not like they're around anyways."

[jei.livejournal.com]

Farfarello really wasn't looking forward to this night. Schuldig was going to be in a bitchy mood, for sure, but it wasn't like Farfarello could just ditch him. He was no good at this stuff, dealing with Schuldig's moods, and frankly he didn't really care to be, but Crawford was gone and Schwarz had to hold together somehow.

After arming himself--just in case Schuldig wanted to go out and enjoy some other people's pain or something--Farfarello set out for Schuldig's room.

[jei.livejournal.com]

[to here (http://community.livejournal.com/damned/485798.html?thread=39983270#t39983270)]

[undesirableone.livejournal.com]

Harry stepped from his room, his pipe in his hand, waiting for some trouble. Even though the wand was much heavier and bigger than a wand, it was still comfortable to have his wand hand holding something.

He got the clue from the radio, and wanted to actually go check it out for now. He bet there was going to be a problem getting there, but it was better to be prepared than not.

[to here (http://community.livejournal.com/damned/489591.html)]

M37 and beyond

[notaghostreally.livejournal.com]

Day had ended, it had become night, and Danny finally had plans. He snatched his maps, folded into smaller pieces, and transformed into his ghost form before quickly running out the room.

In all truth, he was running a bit late now, and could only hope that Hitsugaya was still there. He expected him to be, since they had planned a meeting and everything beforehand, but sometimes things just happened.

Regardless, Danny quickly made his way out of the hall and into the next.

[skipping to here. (http://community.livejournal.com/damned/487656.html?thread=40205288#t40205288)]

Inside M39

[wantsyourzex.livejournal.com]

[moved from here (http://community.livejournal.com/damned/487746.html?thread=39931458#t39931458) with mod permission]


ZEX wasn't at his best and was not happy at all about others being present (this was a matter between him and his Captain, he hadn't planned for this), but he tapped into the strength he had that allowed him to be polite when most other VUX found it impossible. He looked to his Captain's roommates and for a moment attempted the weakest of smiles before giving up.

"Greetings..." His voice was shaking, and it was obvious that this took him effort. "I do apologize, but this is really a private matter between the two of us, so if you'll forgive me..." He cleared his throat, focusing hard on trying to keep his voice from breaking. "Perhaps we can become better acquainted later, under more favorable circumstances. Until then..."

The best he could do as strained thin as he was. He kept his tight hold on his Captain and tried to pull him away to get some distance between the two of them and the others. ZEX was still shaking, and both his eyes were still open.

"I'm not sure where to begin..." ZEX tightened his hold on him, keeping his voice low and quiet so that only his Captain could hear. "This is... difficult for me..."

Re: Inside M39

[captain-hunam.livejournal.com]

Zelnick went with ZEX (not like he had much choice), until they were as far from MOMO and Kenren as they could get.

"Well, the beginning is usually a good place," Zelnick said, half-serious and half-trying to make ZEX laugh. Ow, tight hug. "But I'll be here and listening, wherever you start. Okay, Admiral?"

Re: Inside M39

[wantsyourzex.livejournal.com]

This had to be real, it had to be... he felt real, and his voice was just as he remembered, and he looked just as he was supposed to...

Could he have really done something like that to him, to himself? Could he have really caused his imprisonment here, and constructed an elaborate fantasy to escape it all? Lying to himself... he'd sworn he would never lie to himself...

His human said he'd watched him die...

ZEX looked down, troubled and trying to sort through the difficult problem in front of him... he'd thought seeing his Captain might help him decide one way or the other, and instead it only amplified his doubt.

He thought, tried to think of an eloquent way to sum up his dilemma, and only a few words escaped him. It was barely a whisper, and ZEX was staring at nothing while he said it.

"Who am I?"

[full-score.livejournal.com]

((From here (http://community.livejournal.com/damned/489591.html?thread=40385143#t40385143).))

"I guess it's just down here," Claude remarked, trying to sound casual. Probably halfway down, if the numbers were anything to go by. Still, Claude was careful to keep an eye out as they walked. It wouldn't do any good to run into any trouble this late into the game, right?

"Hopefully they've got people who can help you out," he added before grinning towards his friend. "With the way people heal faster than normal anyway, you'll be back in action in no time, right?" It'd be weird, not even being able to work with Guy while he recovered, but hopefully the older man wouldn't get too restless. Nightshift probably wouldn't be going anywhere, so there'd be opportunities to make up for lost time, he was sure.

[nobleman]

When Claude didn't make any further comment about his phobia, Guy wasn't sure what to think. On one hand, his friend was probably making an effort to not make a huge thing out of it; on the other, Guy had respected a little more of a response than that. Those two thoughts were almost contradictory, though, and he knew that. He tried to brush it all off. Claude knew now, and that had been the whole point of it, so there was no reason to worry about it any longer.

Besides, they were just about at the clinic now. Claude was already moving on to another topic of discussion, and Guy nodded in response. "A broken bone is pretty serious, though. Even here, it's probably going to take a few days." Unless there was someone really good at healing around. Tear probably would have been able to do something about his injury, but he wasn't going to dwell on that.

Once they had made it roughly halfway down the hall, Guy paused and realized that the nearest door was wide open, and there were voices coming from inside. "Well, I guess this is it," he said, not quite sure what to expect. He doubted any of the people inside were going to bite, though. Turning back to face Claude, he managed a small smile. "Thanks for making the trip with me." There was no need for the younger man to head inside with him when he had other matters to attend to, after all.

[full-score.livejournal.com]

"I suppose that's true, but...well, I guess we'll see what happens," he said. Maybe he wouldn't have to spend the whole time cooped up in his room. He remembered what Dias had said to him earlier, about how it'd be good for him to stick by Guy if he was going to do any wandering around. But he had a feeling the older man would try waving him off if he thought he was doing it out of a sense of obligation.

There would be time to think about all that, though.

Once he saw the room number, he came to a halt. Well, it looked like they hadn't had any problems finding the clinic, which was nice. "Oh, sure!" he replied with a bright expression. "Don't even mention it."

Claude paused, glancing around. This was where they parted ways, then. Except...it seemed weird for Guy to tell him something so personal, and then to just leave it at that, didn't it? He already knew what he thought of everything, but it was easy for him to forget people would be left hanging unless he vocalized it. And it was hard to know what people wanted to hear after sharing something like that, to find the perfect thing to say. Sometimes he could think of something great, but...

He inwardly sighed. Other times, he really was no good with these things.

"Say, Guy..." Claude hesitated, as if choosing his words carefully. He spoke quietly, so no one in the room could listen to what he was about to say. "I'm really glad you told me about...you know. It must not have been easy for you." If the fact he'd put it off for so long was any indication, anyway. "I'll try my best not to do anything to betray your trust, and..."

He scratched the back of his head, averting his gaze a little. "I don't think you're weird or anything." Wait, no -- not the best way to word that. "Actually, uh, what I mean is," he fixed his friend with a smile, "I think you're pretty amazing. Really. I could learn a few things from you." That probably sounded strange, too, but was he at least getting his point across?