damned_institute | Day 38: Patients' Library

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Day 38: Patients' Library

The intercom rang out, disrupting what had turned out to be a rather pointless breakfast conversation, at least in Brainiac 5's eyes. He couldn't wait to put more distance between himself and Scar's blather of how logic, of all things, might not work the same way in this dimension. It was almost enough to make him believe that the man may very well have been a lion originally after all, as he'd never heard anything so very... ignorant and uneducated.

He quickly finished up the fruit he'd been nibbling on - he was no longer as hungry as he had been - and looked around automatically to see where Clark was. Unfortunately with the press of people around, some being led off to the library and others to the mentioned 'therapy sessions' - if that was what they really were - he had lost sight of the Kryptonian. Still there wasn't many places he could go, so Brainiac 5 would be able to catch up with him eventually to check on his condition and try and learn more about what had happened last night. That the Chapel had healed him - admittedly by passing his injuries to another - was interesting, but far more important in his eyes was what had happened to Clark and his powers. They hadn't been working correctly and that worried the Coluan boy more than he would normally have admitted. Without Clark's abilities... he wasn't sure what they would have to rely on in order to escape.

Another problem he would have to deal with was Grell... or, if he was to believe the notes on the bulletin board, the person pretending to be Grell. But that was going to require more careful planning before he made a move. Come to think of it, he had agreed to meet another in the library today on that same post that had sparked this whole mess. At least then he would have something of interest to look forward to, as he doubted any of the 21st century books were likely to be worthwhile to someone of his advanced intellect.

Following the nurses led him to what must have been the library; a reasonably large room filled with a range of archaic books on tall shelves, a few tables and chairs interspersed around the room. The Coluan boy couldn't refrain from wrinkling his nose in distaste as he entered the room, not liking the cumbersome books and the dust that he knew would have gathered on them; he much preferred the clean arrangement of his C.O.M.P.U.T.O. systems back in the Legion headquarters. It was much more practical then shelves and shelves of books on fictional worlds and dated information.

Trying to avoid as much of the room as possible, Brainiac 5 settled himself down on a chair to wait, keeping an eye out for a tall, dark-haired man with a red... something on his forehead.

[for Homura]

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Zex's description of his arms almost reminded Teisel of a squid or something. The stump-armed people in his mind were replaced with tentacle-armed people. Still weird.

Whatever reaction he'd been expecting, that kind of shock hadn't been it. "Yeah, I was pretty upset about it." Which was an understatement, but the admiral seemed upset enough right now for both of them, so Teisel would spare him the tale of woe. "But it was only a few months before I got my optics, and my siblings helped me out a lot." Mostly by giving him a reason to drag his worthless carcass out of bed. "Relief isn't the word I'd use. I mean, I did miss them, but now I have to worry about losing them all over again." Whatever a Vux was, precisely, their eyes must have been really important. "You don't have anything that can help where you're from? Is it really that bad?" They didn't live very long? What, did the other Vux just abandon the blind one?

Zex looked a little psychotic when his face twitched like that. Idly, Teisel wondered just what expression he'd been going for, 'cause it hadn't worked. "I'm no scientist myself, but I don't know what they could be testing. It seems pretty sloppy for an experiment." Though that doctor last night had been writing something down; he'd heard the scratch of the pen. Of course, she could have just been drawing flowers and clouds, for all he knew. She'd been enjoying herself too much to seem too professional...

"Sure, sure. Moving around in here's no trouble at all." The layout of the building was more logical and less maze-like than most ruins. Easy as pie. Ah, so there were traps in the basement, eh? This place was predictable; the good stuff was always the deepest underground, so naturally they'd guard whatever was down there. "'Impede one's progress'... Yeah, that's one way of putting it." Teisel chuckled. "I'll just have to make sure we don't get hurt, then." The basement could wait. Whatever was down there, Teisel had to admit he wasn't ready for that large an undertaking at the moment.

For such a pale guy, there was a lot of colour beginning to crawl up his his face. It almost made him look the colour of a dying rose.

"Watch?" he asked, stupidly. Oh, like Jealous, right? Watching young women. Stalkers. Or FBI. COuld be Fb- "Ah. No. I... don't know many women."

He looked around for some sort of escape. Ryuk wasn't exactly polite, but he seemed unable to really find a way out of this. Light had always impressed Ryuk when it came to his way with the ladies (a dumb species, sometimes), but now Ryu was just about ready to worship Light as some sort of God. Just not one of Justice.

"Hm."

Matsuda wasn't the type to confront him like this if L had mentioned Mello as a potential aggressor. It was risky and required close attention to detail, and Matsuda knew that Mello was L's heir. One thing Mello appreciated about the young detective was that he didn't seem to overestimate himself. He knew that he wouldn't be able to outsmart Mello, so it was unlikely that he'd attempt it.

Because he'd made himself known to Mikami and Mikami would have passed the information along to Light, the public role of L's successor was his responsibility to take. Near probably appreciated it and the fact left a sour taste in his mouth, although Mello knew that he was doing this to accomplish his own goals and not to assist the younger heir.

No one in the institute would remark to potential strangers that he believed certain people would be better off dead. The speaker wouldn't have known the allegiances of those he sought as potential allies, so it was a stupid risk. Who could Matsuda have talked to, then? Surely not Light--he was known by both L and Matsuda. The same went for Misa. While it was possible that Naomi could have spoken to the two of them, she'd have no reason to include Matsuda in what should have been a private conversation with L, and since Naomi didn't even know that Light was Kira, her list of enemies couldn't be long. She wasn't the type to wish death on anyone.

That left one suspect. A shrewd plan.

"Who went missing?"

Edited 2009-01-12 18:39 (UTC)

"Heh, who knows?" Tyki laughed at the suggestion of the staff using 'fun' drugs. "It could actually work, ya know. Maybe we should try it sometime." The nurses weren't that difficult to provoke, anyway.

"We just gotta be careful we dun' get solitary. They got padded walls and sweaters that tie yer arms up." Or at least a normal nut house had. Maybe in this one you would end up on the operation table?

Scar studied the drawing Alita showed to him along with the included notes. He remembered a notice stating this particular creature had been killed, however, but there was no saying Landel didn't have more of them. Either way, it wasn't something the King would particularly enjoy running into. It looked like some insect of sorts...

"This a lot more detailed than the descriptions I had come across on the bulletin board, which are only a sentence or two long. Impressive indeed." he eventually commented, honestly impressed by it's detail.

"I haven't seen too many monsters myself, I am afraid. Only those who appear to be more...humanoid." Not that he was complaining...

[....0_0 I hate LJ. It ate my long post. Goddamnit.]

What Jiraiya was saying was perfectly in line with her own thoughts, and she nodded along. Nothing more needed to be said on that. The line about other Institutes, however, wasn't something she had considered. But it would waste focus if they spent too much time thinking about it. "Regardless of the possibility, the fact doesn't give us anything or hinder us more. It's possible that that is where the visitors come from. But I would rather focus on this Institute."

The rehashing of ideas would normally be welcomed; analyzing until something new appeared out of the turmoil. But after not being able to... do anything for Yukari, Renamon didn't want to be reminded of more of her failures. For the time that she had been here, she understood very little of how it actually worked. A handful of theories and ideas was worthless.

And then there was the matter of Jiraiya. The man needed to be cheered up, or at the very least, distracted. She bent over to replace the book in her hands, saying in a delibrate offhand tone, "So how does one come by the nickname 'Ero-Sennin'?"

Ken was sick of the Sun Room. So when his nurse tried taking him there, assuming her charge would prefer the open area to the library, Ken surprised her by requesting to go to the library instead.

Of course, all the books were thicker than Ken was usually seen with. Any of his team would likely be shocked to see him with anything other than a sports magazine, and to be honest Ken wasn't really intending on reading that much. But he picked up a book anyway, Alice in Wonderland according to the title, and settled himself in a chair to read.

[free~]

"Amanda? Eh... maybe. I don't know. Things were pretty crazy back home when I left. She may think I'm hiding out or something. Or sick." Of course, if she called the Xavier Institute and asked after him, the other X-Men probably wouldn't know where he was. He didn't want her to worry... he wondered if there was a way to get a message to Professor Xavier concerning this whole mess.

Kurt smiled, "I'm sure you do plenty! Sometimes everyone just needs a good friend."

He almost wished Landel had spent the entire day MIA, what with his infuriating voice, and his infuriating announcements.

Therapy. On his way to the library, Aidou gave a soft ‘hmph’ to no one in particular at the thought. So he wasn’t going to be forced to play the farce today… but soon. Thinking ahead to certain days in the dull, distasteful line of days that could, potentially, be awaiting him gave him a bit of a headache, the same way part of the conversation with Sasuke had.

Aidou wasn’t about to pretend he could just ignore such things, but for now, focussing on the immediate was enough. The pinch in his chest, his half-sated appetite, the recent messages on the bulletin board, the other vampires. Perhaps a return to the basement that night. The only consolation was knowing he wouldn’t have to face his ‘doctor’ while wounded; certainly his chest injury would be healed by then, whether or not he had more successful hunting nights.

If he could tune out the activity around him, a rest would do him some good…

The vampire paused to note the prisoners sitting out in the open, saw a young girl reading alone (and conversations with girls was usually relaxing), and chose to approach. But then he saw who she was, and abruptly turned on his heel to leave before his mistake was called to attention. He did not need one of them.

"Uh-huh. That would be vital information and all, if I actually cared about, you know. What you know."

Reno discarded the book with a lazy flip, watching it bounce as it landed on the couch beside him. Because no, he really didn't care anymore about Schuldig poking around because it wasn't like he could do anything about it and caring was hard work. So.

Nobody said he wasn't practical.

He matched Schuldig's smirk. "Aw, that's sweet. So you gonna sit or what? 'Cause, y'know, flattering me while hovering like that just makes you look like a nervous date. Not that I'm complaining, mind you."

Ah, the smell of books. It was kind of nostalgic, and kind of pleasing too. For a moment, Kenren's thoughts turned to that other Tenpou, the one who'd come to visit him. He'd sounded the same, when it came to books. Letting them accumulate in piles until they could be considered a potentially lethal weapon. Heh, odd to think that somehow Hakkai had ended up as the tidy one of the pair. Weird how that worked out.

He stepped further into the library, giving a friendly nod to Homura and then walking further into the stacks, giving each shelf a cursory look over, occasionally pausing to nudge a book back into place or stand one up on end. Force of habit compelled him.

[Free]

"We could go dancing on the tables at lunch, perhaps?" Yukari suggested with a smile. "As long as we're not too rowdy about it, we should be fine. I'd rather avoid solitary too; that would be boring no matter how many funny drugs they give us."

"Of course, it could just be easier to go looking for recreational medicines at night," she offered as an alternative. "In the supply rooms, of course. Even if I haven't met one yet, from what I've heard, I'm pretty sure the dark nurses don't use fun drugs."

Raine twitched, but settled on very calmly putting the book back and finding something else. At least Sheena didn't seem to think she was interested in Valyn.

If she was lucky she'd be left alone for a while...

Schuldig laughed as he turned from the books and sauntered over to the couch, scooping up Reno's discarded reading material in order to give himself room to sit down. "I don't think I'm capable of being nervous, since I'd have to be uncertain about something first and, as a rule, I never am." He gave Reno an amused sidelong glance. "But if you like picturing me as your date, don't let my logic intrude upon your fantasies any."

He lifted Reno's book, dangling it between his fingers to idly examine the title on the spine. "So were you actually reading this, or did its lack of big, colorful pictures disappoint?" By Schuldig standards, the lack of any real malice in his tone turned what could have been a mocking insult into a milder form of teasing than he usually engaged in, but he was trying to be sociable. It was harder than it looked, hence why he rarely bothered.

It was becoming more apparent to Ophelia that the man was merely inept when it came to women, but he didn't have to know that, now did he? Not when she was having so much fun with him.

"Ah, is that the reason, then? So you don't know how to deal with them in person, and so content yourself with staring in silence and imagining instead. How gorgeously tragic," she purred, fighting to keep from laughing hysterically out loud. "I'll bet you're a virgin, too. Am I right?" she added, neglecting to mention that she herself was a virgin (though she didn't much care).

Soubi was fairly sure he knew who he was looking for once his Defense lesson was over, and what an interesting lesson it had been. But Raine was a regular visitor to the Clinic and he'd seen her around with Sheena.

Having to walk up and play nice to the second stranger today, Soubi readied his smile and forced his limp away as he approached.

"Raine-san? I'm Soubi."

He almost wanted to reach up and put a hand around his bandaged neck, just in case she tried anything. He was hoping that this woman wasn't as head strong as her friend or he'd have kept it on the bulletin. But he didn't need people reading his business. Especially Kio.

Martin Landel was back on the intercom… what did that mean? And it was a ‘therapy day’…

With the pleasant breakfast conversation now over with, Tsubaki’s thoughts began to return to their original dark tones as she was led back to the library. She’d seen a few of the faces from last night in the cafeteria, but no one had replied to her message. What bothered her the most was that she couldn’t have expected them to. The kinds of things that could be happening at night…

She paused in front of a bookshelf without conscious thought, trailing her fingertips against a few spines idly. Names were slow to register. The Last of the Mohicans, Jane Eyre… Many titles she didn’t know. Only a few rang very distant bells in the back of her mind, like Gulliver’s Travels, as though she’d heard the name before, but couldn’t place where it’d come from.

Would it be worth it to take a book and try to read?

After moving further up the alphabet, something in the ‘F’ section caught her eye. Frankenstein? Tsubaki pulled it down, moving to look inside out of growing curiosity, until a sound from nearby made her instinctively look around the shelf to see where it had come from.

The book in her hand was forgotten when she recognized the owner of that dark head of hair. “Tachibana-san…” she blurted. Quiet though it’d been, she still bit her lip. She’d definitely seen him coming out of those rooms last night, but he looked like he was in the middle of resting at the table, and out of need, not want.

This woman was getting away ahead of herself! Ryuk wasn't like that at all. Sure he'd had a peek at those magazines Light had bought, but it was sheer curiosity. Ryuk didn't know if he could even get aroused. As for love? He wasn't killing himself or any girl.

"Hey, I'm not stu- WHAT?!"

That was unfair! Shinigami probably didn't have a virginity to lose!

"Ah, uh..." he looked around again. Matsuda probably got picked on a lot like this. What would he do? Shoot her? No, not yet, he took his time.

Ryuk scribbled 'Ophelia - Bookcase falls on her' on the off chance that it might work now. Hey....

"Stop, Ophelia," he said, in his creepiest Shinigami tone.

Oho, now there was an interesting new element in the game. Although it would have been simple enough to assume that Ryuk had been watching her in an earlier shift and overheard her name then, the tone of voice he used then reeked of inhumanity. It sounded almost like yoma did when they tried to use human speech in their real bodies, but a lot raspier.

Good thing she wasn't scared of yoma.

"Or what?" she asked simply, her smirk getting decidedly darker.

"Thanks!" Falis wasn't against people complimenting her when she did damn fine work. "It was a bitch to kill with acid blood. Fucked me up for a while."

She wasn't sure if she should tell Scar that he was lucky he hadn't run into any monsters or offer condolences. He didn't seem like much of a fighter, reminding her of some of the Grandalian nobles with their shifty eyes and backyard schemes. Not that she cared much as long as they left her kingdom alone.

"Well, what all have you come across? I'm currently hunting vampires and I've also got a trio of demons that I'm keeping my eye out for again." She paused a moment. "Oh! Have you seen his Royal Whininess Mozenrath lately?"

Well. That didn't work. She must really believe Ryuk liked watching girls. Yeah right, as if he would. Boring.

"Or...." something caught his eye. A bookcase shook a little and he jumped out of his seat, triumphantly. "Or Death awa- Fall, dammit."

Ryuk stared at the bookcase and then at the nurse who walked past, rubbing her sore arm. He lowered his hands and sighed. He never realised how tough life was. Still beat bumming around as a Shinigami though. Mostly.

Girls like Ophelia put him off a little.

Maybe he could push the bookcase himself? Or beat her with just a book. Killing people couldn't be that hard, right? The mental trauma it caused most people wouldn't affect him. He might just lack the energy or strength.

You never knew until you tried. The anti-motto of the lazy Shinigami.

"Uh. Nevermind." He sat back down, for some reason.

Edited 2009-01-12 22:24 (UTC)

"Can't dance." Tyki admitted with a sheepish grin. Well, his white side couldn't dance, and the Noah would rather avoid such activities as much as possible. "Besides, they're probably just gonna warn us 'cause dancin's pretty innocent, right?"

He paused for a bit. "We could try a food fight?"

Just getting them at night seemed a less bothersome activity, even if it'd bring some complications because of his....situation. Keeping both of his sides separate was a lot more difficult here, which annoyed Tyki to no end.

"There's gotta be a pharmacy 'round this place, right?" he suggested. "And of course not, they probably just got stuff in their needles that makes ya sleepy."

The girl wanted to continue the conversation, it seemed, so Sai rested the book in his lap and raised his head back up to give her his undivided attention. "The thought had occurred to me, yes. I'm afraid I'm not all that good at being able to tell."

He didn't appear the least bit annoyed by her intentions, either. People teased each other all the time. The smile on his face didn't falter. "Was there something you needed?"

If she was teasing, then the answer to that was probably no. Most likely she was just looking for a way to pass the time.

"You're quite welcome." Saying Scar wasn't a fighter would be the understatement of the year. He'd rather avoid it if he could help it. He once again spared a glance to the drawing with the creature. Acid blood didn't sound too pleasant...

As for what he had run into, he supposed sharing his own run-ins could possibly gain him something. "Let's see, aside from the nurses...a man clad in gold with a rather large collection of blades. He seemed to be able to pull them from a gate of sorts. I have spotted a fellow patient crawling through it, but I fear I do not know what has happened to him." Scar had to wonder if these 'waffles' were truly worth such an antic. "And a woman with I believe is called 'a heated poker'. She kept mentioning we should return to our room and that it was cleaning time."

Ironically, he had met this female while he had been traveling with Mozenrath, who just so happened to be their next conversation topic.

"Not as of late." Scar said, looking thoughtful before adding: "I was wondering why it had seemed so silent recently."

So much for the fool being useful...

"Pity he seems to have disappeared; I was looking forward to killing him the next time I saw him at night," Falis replied with a genuine amount of disappointment. No one spit in her face and lived. Maybe this place tortured him before quartering him and tossing him out for Sparky and Fido to munch on.

Unfortunately, that made her think about Namine, since she disappeared, and it sobered her up a little. She didn't want to think about what might have been done to her friend before the girl disappeared. Anyways, back to the talk about nasty beasties.

"Okay, the man in gold armor was mentioned on the board before. Someone from the same world as him said he answers to the name Archer and that he's very dangerous, yadda, yadda, yadda and do on," Falis said. "Now the woman with the poker I haven't heard about. What else can you tell me about her? Can you draw what she looks like?" Falis offered up her journal.

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Day 38: Patients' Library

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