damned_institute | Day 37: Breakfast

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Day 37: Breakfast

[for Sylar, I believe]

At the sound of the intercom, Wally jerked awake and blinked around at the room. He’d fallen asleep. He should have been up and keeping an eye open for ZEX, but he’d fallen asleep waiting on his bed.

“Idiot,” he groaned, ruffling his hair and sighing in annoyance. “Way to help a guy out, hotshot.” Hopefully ZEX hadn’t dropped by and thought he’d left or something, or wouldn’t be too mad at him for just forgetting about it like that. If he was lucky, he’d be able to catch up with the other patient at some point and explain what had happened.

Rolling himself a little awkwardly out of the bed, Wally took the opportunity to stretch his injured leg and test how well it was holding up. It was feeling a bit better, not so much that he could abandon his crutch or that it didn’t pull painfully if he wasn’t careful, but better. Tony had apparently made it through the night in one piece as well, which was a relief. He really didn’t feel comfortable about the thought of his roommate wandering about on his own with an injured arm. Not when Wally himself could relax and fall asleep in the apparent safety of their room.

Yeah, he wasn’t going to let himself forget that one in a hurry.

It was at that moment that the door swung open to admit one of the nurses. She seemed surprised to find him awake and ready to go already, but smiled warmly. “Hungry, are we Mr. West? Well in that case, let’s get you to the cafeteria. The staff have provided some delicious French Toast as well as a range of other foods I’m sure you’ll like. Now will you be needing a hand with your leg, dear?”

“No thanks, I can handle it,” Wally replied, smiling back. After all, it probably wasn’t the nurses’ fault that this place was so messed up, so it wasn’t like picking fights with them would do anything. With a cheery wave goodbye, Wally slowly made his way to the cafeteria, keeping a tight grip on his crutch all the while. Obtaining a plate of food was only slightly less difficult than it had been yesterday – he didn’t have the painkillers to work around this time – but he managed well enough, coming away from the buffet with a tray containing a plate piled high with slices of French Toast and slathered in maple syrup, butter, and sugar, as well as a glass of juice. Not quite as good as some coffee would be right now, but the sugar would hopefully make up for it. And, with how few people were here at the moment, he could afford to take more food than might have been considered ‘normal’ – he’d have most of it gone by the time anyone came to keep him company, then he could just worry about how many extra serves would be allowed before he aroused suspicion.

Feeling pretty happy with how things were looking so far, Wally hummed faintly to himself as he dug in to his breakfast.

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That had been careless. Inwardly Kakashi kicked himself for the slip, but he was careful to let none of his self-aimed dismay show on his face. If Renamon was an enemy, as she very well could still be, Kakashi had just carelessly given away a vital piece of information. Of course, it wasn't something he was used to seeing: people who were supposed to be dead coming back to life.

But what was done was done. Now Kakashi just had to decide exactly what was safe to tell Renamon. Information that was commonly known would normally be the easiest choice, and so Kakashi went down that route for now. "We're from the same village." Which of them she had meant was still a mystery, but Kakashi would leave it to Renamon to clarify.

More importantly was what came next, and what didn't come next. "I'd appreciate that a great deal." Renamon was offering him information instead of coming over the table and attempting to kill him. It made it seem less likely that she was an enemy of the Leaf, but Kakashi still didn't let his guard down. He didn't want to die. Especially not for a second time, if it was possible. "Anything you're willing to tell me would be helpful."

"Hm," she added to his explanation. If Kakashi didn't want to talk about it, she wouldn't push it. Not unless it came up again. Though if he came from the same village, she was assuming he was a ninja as well.

Renamon nodded to him. Her role as information-giver was one she was quite comfortable in. "This is a lot to take in, but it's better to learn it all now, then to be caught in something later on. It's... hard to grasp for most new people, but feel free to run what I say by a few people--perhaps your friends that are here as well."

She leaned back in her chair, crossing her arms. "We're in a place called Landel's Institute. The basics are that this a mental institution. They try to tell us that we are crazy or delusional, often refering to us by different names and telling us about lives that didn't happen. There's things to add to that; all here are human now, even if they existed as something else before. If you had any powers before coming here, they're likely dulled or missing. Abilities are restrained as well. You most likely deal with chakra, I believe? So any abilities fostered by that might be gone.

"That's the simple things. Other things would be that at night this place turns into a madman's playground. Creatures and monsters roam the halls as the 'patients' of this Institute try to figure out how to escape, or sucessfully fight back. During the night certain patients are taken to be brain-washed--they get their complete powers and abilities back, but they fight for the Institute. Others are taken to be experimented on."

Renamon closed her eyes. "There's random things that people are doing to go against this place. There's three clubs--Arts & Crafts, Cooking, and History--that run assignments at night for that reason. There's people like myself, Jiraiya, and another named Mello, that would rather seek to understand this place first, and how it works so we can better take it apart." Her eyes opened back up. "Landel, the man in charge, has full control of this place, and running around won't accomplish anything."

Renamon blinked suddenly. She hadn't meant to give any personal opinions. She mentally shrugged. The length of her explanation didn't faze her in the least; it was better for the man to know than for her to sweeten it for him in any way. She did, however, pause at this point, looking at Kakashi openly, waiting for the questions that would surely come.

Well, Renamon had been right about it being a lot to take in. But Kakashi was a fairly good listener, and despite the casual attitude he put on, he remained very alert to both what Renamon said, and what was going on. Sakura throwing her tray at Uchiha Itachi of all people was troubling, but the man didn't react except to stop her. That was good, ultimately, because Kakashi didn't want to drop the facade just yet, and if he were to go up against Itachi, he'd prefer something more reliable and more lethal than a plastic fork.

None of what Renamon said sounded pleasant, but Kakashi already knew that enough of it was true to not completely disregard the rest, as impossible as it sounded. And from what she was saying, it sounded like Renamon and Jiraiya were working together, at least somewhat, towards a common goal. Kakashi had to admit, that just based on what the woman had said, it sounded like these clubs weren't doing anything that would ultimately be useful. In a way, it was better. Kakashi took the value of teamwork to heart, and to that end, he preferred to work with his own. He knew their abilities and their personalities, and that made it easier to make critical decisions when it was necessary to do so.

Renamon had paused, giving Kakashi an expectant look. "It sounds like you've run through this a few times for people." Maybe even Jiraiya himself. She was the type of ample-breasted person he'd turn to for any reason he possibly could, after all. "So what have you found out about how this place works?" What Kakashi was most curious about, of course, was how it dealt with the dead. Being dead himself made the matter a pressing one, but even more importantly, he had to be sure that Naruto and Sakura hadn't died. They were too important to the future of their village.

[I am so sorry that this is so long. T_T]

Renamon graced Kakashi with a small rare smile. It seemed like the people that came from this village were all intelligent. He seemed to have followed what she had said, and asked the question she would have asked herself. "I have. There's nothing to be gained from withholding knowledge, and not having certain kinds might allow someone to be killed when it wasn't necessary."

She brought a hand up to her face, thinking. "You came at a good time, if that's possible. There was a meeting last night about theories about the Institute and to share other information. A few subject there were that people have a tendency to disappear here, as sudden as they came. Obviously, they were not rehabilitated. So the conclusion came to was that Landel already had used that person all that he could. Mello and I are currently looking for a pattern by interviewing the friends and family of the people missing. If we know what he received from them, we can attempt to deny him such.

"Landel has absolute power: the entire populace can suddenly black out at his whim, so fighting back in force is meaningless. When we're free at night, it's simply a game; he limits where we can go, and what we do there. So we're trying to learn more, and understand. There's many people here from different worlds, different lifes, human and otherwise, ones already dead, ones from different time periods from others. So Jiraiya and I formed a theory about how this place works from a logical standpoint.

"It restrains our powers by the powers themselves. The energy from the abilities is what mutes them. It makes sense since there are no patterns. Some powers are activated with emotion, some with spells, etc. So some people still have access to their abilities, depending.

"That doesn't explain why there are perfectly normal people here. How would they contribute energy or power?" She paused, tilting her head. "First it would have to do with how we come here. I spent most of my first days interviewing other people that normally traveled between worlds. Finding the patterns there, I feel comfortable enough to postulate that we ourselves create the portals that bring us here. Most of us come here after a world-shattering event; something that shakes our reality, even our own death. There are of course exceptions to the rule, but for the majority, that holds true. We open the portal in a moment of extreme emotion, and Landel manipulates it to bring us through.

"Second, it would have to do with the extreme stress we're under. People telling us our lives are fictional, creatures attacking us at night, people we possibly care about being brain-washed or disappearing. Not only that but people form connections here, quickly and severely, some are even ones that wouldn't think to form those connections in the first place. Stress creates emotional bonds, but these all can't be attributed to that. What we believe is that our heightened emotions power and strengthen this place. The severe circumstances we're under don't allow for any to be calm unless they've made a life of it, and the possibly forced bonds between patients add to the strength as well. Because things that are powered by emotions aren't picky in what emotions they feed on. As long as they're strong and deep, that's enough. Love, pain, anger, sorrow. It's all the same to those kinds of constructs."

Renamon had been talking again too much, she knew that. She found it funny, in an offhand hand, that because she'd become the information sharer, these past days were probably the most she'd ever spoke at once. It was... uncomfortable, but necessary. Especially when there was still one more thing. "Jiraiya shared with me that death magic is the strongest kind of magic. In many of my interviews concerning alternate worlds, some agreed with this as well. It has the power to reanimate the dead, or even bring them back to life. It requires sacrifices--though, I don't think this place would be short on those. But it would explain how they brought the dead back to life if they harnessed that. It does have holes, though," she added, offhand, "Are the ones that died truly alive here? Will they die again upon leaving this place? I don't have as much information concerning this."

She shook her head, as if annoyed at her lack of expertise in an area. She had fell silent again though, waiting once more.

[No worries. I'm also a DN-mun, so trust me. I understand tl;dr. ;)]

There was more than one thing Kakashi didn't like about Renamon's theories, starting with the words absolute power. The idea that any one person could control them so easily, including people like the legendary Jiraiya or Naruto, who had the Kyuubi locked within him, on top of everyone else he saw in the cafeteria, was more than a little troubling. The sheer number of patients was enough to make it clear that the man had immense strength; the power Kakashi knew to be in only a small portion of that number just made the thought worse.

Still, he listened to everything Renamon had to say, taking it all in and considering it carefully before he replied. "That's interesting, but I'm not sure I agree." Particularly since Kakashi himself had possessed the ability to transport things and people to alternate spaces, along with knowledge of summoning techniques. It wasn't the same as traveling between worlds, exactly, but it was close. "Doing something like that isn't such an easy thing. Not even where Jiraiya-sama and I are from. And while Death Magic is the most powerful kind of energy, not everyone is dead when they're brought here." Naruto and Sakura, for example, even if Kakashi was solely basing that on his hopes at this point.

"Even in cases of extreme emotion, I don't think it's possible for that many people to suddenly open a portal to an entirely different dimension. At least in my world, that's something very difficult to do, and that requires a great deal of chakra--energy, to put it in broader terms--and specific talents." Kakashi spoke with experience, but he also knew that Jiraiya had a hand in forming this theory. How much remained to be seen, but he couldn't quite think that the sennin wouldn't have made a similar assertion. If he had, Renamon no doubt would say so.

Then there was the rest of the theory: the idea that emotions were what kept them prisoner, and powers were what chained them. Kakashi's smile grew a bit, but not out of any sort of happiness over the news. "So if you're right, Renamon-san, how would it be possible to defeat this place? Even ninja can't shake off their bonds, no matter how hard they try. Yet based on our lives, we should be some of the best ones at it. Maybe that's a bit arrogant though. I'm still new to all of this, so I really can only speak to my world."

As for the things about death, Kakashi only shrugged outwardly. "I don't think there will be a way to find out that sort of thing until everything's over. It would fit with your theory, wouldn't it? The dead wondering about their own status, up until the end, questioning if they really want to go through it a second time." Kakashi could easily picture himself wondering those things; he certainly had the first time. But as it had been only an hour or so ago, he also imagined he'd do the same thing. That was part of his role as a ninja, and as someone loyal to his village and his friends.

Renamon nodded. "That's the problem. We can't test anything; at least, not now. These are all assumptions, theories, and what we need are facts, which is why we're still searching. As for Death Magic," she added, using the term he had, "I'm not sure at all. I only know a few people who said they died before coming here, so the majority of that is from Jiraiya."

She found it interesting that Kakashi used such a respectful title for the man that she was now comfortable calling a friend. Kakashi himself seemed very together, not like the majority of the new people that she'd encountered. A kind of confidence and ease like that usually was attributed to power, though she guessed it could be from other things. But the point was that Renamon would never have guessed that Jiraiya would be referred to as '-sama'. He had never said or done anything to show that he had a position of power.

She would file that away for now.

"That's true," she agreed. "I would state as well that most humans don't have the strength of will or self to open a portal by an almost random instance. But I find it more reassuring as a placeholder than the thought of Landel simply being able to pick and choose at random. He holds enough power without giving him more."

She shook her head slightly. "The truth of the matter is that, in this, we aren't sure. How do you find out how a place works when the control is absolute thus far? Jiraiya and I pieced this together within a day, and even all of this, worked out and contemplated on, is full of holes." Not like her usual work at all. "It's most likely simply a reassurance, and wouldn't hold up to fact. But nothing is known. So until something is, we'll research this. Even if we're proved wrong, it will be something more than we have. Something solid."

She returned Kakashi's smile, one that was extremely tired yet still calmly determined. "Exactly. There's no way that normal people would be able to overcome this, let alone the amount of people here all at once. The three clubs can't even seem to work together." Her eyes narrowed in thought. "But there has to be something. Every program has a glitch that can be manipulated. We just have to find it."

She tilted her head. "I don't know much about your world, but so far, your people seem very intelligent and have a lot of ideas to offer." A pause. "And the fighting skills shown say much as well," she added with casual appreciation.

So if people were drawn from different times, and Jiraiya had spoken of death magic so openly, did that mean that Jiraiya, like Kakashi, had been taken from the point of his death? What Renamon said made it likely, and that made the ninja wonder exactly who else knew about the sennin's passing. There really wasn't any way to tell, not until he spoke to the man himself. And if Jiraiya had noticed Kakashi or the note he'd left, that would happen soon.

When Renamon talked about reassurance, a bit more of her reasoning became clear, especially since Kakashi was assuming certain things for the same purpose. For now, he couldn't see the point of talking her out of that assumption, since there really wasn't any proof otherwise. So long as she didn't do anything foolish based on it, Kakashi thought it would be okay to let her get hope where she could.

"That sounds like the best thing to do." Research until they found an answer; really, it sounded like the only thing they could do. Renamon's opinion showed through again, and Kakashi had to wonder just what these three clubs were up to to be so prolific, and apparently, so useless. Idly he also wondered if Jiraiya had shared any of this with Naruto or the others, but what Renamon said next made it very clear that she, at least, hadn't met the Leaf's number one unpredictable ninja yet.

"Well, there are a great deal of talented people where I'm from." It was bragging, but only to an extent. The students he'd first met on that day so long ago had come a long way, be it for better, or for worse. "Though they're talented in different ways. Everyone I recognize here is a strong fighter though. Even with our chakra sealed, something you are right about, none of us will go down so easily."

In a way, it was Kakashi's method of thanking Renamon for the information. She wanted reassurance, and badly. That much was easy for Kakashi to see. So he gave it to her in the form he could, smiling behind the mask, offering hope for her to believe in.

It helped that he sincerely believed in it too.

Renamon shrugged. She wasn't a being that was self-conscious, but the fact that their theory was untested and in parts probably not likely irked her. "The only thing. But I'm open to any new ideas if you have any. Everyone sees things in different ways."

Renamon had started to nod at Kakashi, when a loud noise from Jiraiya table caused her to visibly wince, hands going to her sensitive ears. Here was the downside of accelerated hearing in a human body. When people take it upon themselves to shriek... Renamon narrowed her eyes at the other table when the child did so again. Rubbing her ears slightly, she remarked, "Loud one, isn't he?"

With another glance at the table, she continued, "That's good. There's too many people that get hurt day in and day out here. If you can take care of yourself, all the better." And she did wish that everyone here were fighters at least. Children like Orihime... even Dairine and Toph... shouldn't be here. Renamon shouldn't be here. Renamon should be....

It may have been reassurance that she wanted, even if it was only subconscious to her, but it wasn't something she could accept. Her bland neutrality and stoicism spoke of a lifetime of fighting without emotional attachments, and she herself believed that it was meaningless. She just had nothing to go on here. And where before she would persevere, here was a little more difficult.

Obviously she was becoming more human than she thought. She suddenly missed Orihime.

"Well, I'll gladly share any I have with you." Kakashi wished he could then, except anything he offered, he wanted to have been thought through. Having just woken up after just having died, the man was still feeling a bit overwhelmed. He needed time to think over everything, and to make his own judgments before he started offering up opinions. Anything he said now wouldn't be as solid as it should be, and despite appearing a slacker quite often, Kakashi was also serious when it came to matters that called for it.

And as thankful as he was, Kakashi had another priority: checking on the people he knew. If Renamon was right about people coming from different times, then it was quite possible that the younger ninja hadn't been killed. But he had to find out for certain, just to erase the possibility of it that nagged in his mind.

Kakashi wasn't so bothered by the noise as Renamon was. The consequence of being used to it. Laughing a little, he waved a hand in helpless apology. "That's his nature, really. But Naruto really is an amazing person once you get to know him." Which made Kakashi wonder why Renamon didn't; it seemed strange that Jiraiya hadn't yet introduced them. Then again, if Renamon didn't like loud people, it might make more sense.

"Well, everyone will try their best, so I wouldn't be too worried." Kakashi might have said more then, but Renamon's silence indicated the woman was thinking. True, she'd been overly neutral for the most part, but that facade was rarely perfect. And even without the special power of the Sharingan giving him that extra perception, Kakashi was pretty good at figuring things out. He got the idea then that maybe he wasn't the only one feeling overwhelmed.

About then, Kakashi would be reading his book. Except he didn't have a book to read. He still wasn't happy about that.

Renamon nodded again. "Thank you." All in all, it had been an intelligent conversation, something Renamon needed after last night. Perhaps she hadn't been quite... herself, but at least Kakashi knew a little about the Institute now. "I'll have to meet him and see," she added. She didn't doubt Kakashi; she had an extreme fondness for children even if this one reminded her a little too much of Takato. But he was Jiraiya's student.

Renamon's eyebrows raised. Not too worried? Hm. "Well, I hope everything works for the best with you." She glanced at the nurse coming towards them as the shift ended. "And that your day is informative." She stood, inclining her head in a small bow.

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Day 37: Breakfast

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