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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Alice in Wonderland. It was kind of weird from what Allelujah had read so far. Not bad, just strange. Bizarre characters and no real plot that he could tell. It was written in an archaic style too which occasionally took him a few moments to decipher.

He looked up when he heard a familiar voice and smiled at the man. "Ah, Mr Edgeworth," he said. "Nice to see you again. I've been as well as can be expected. And you?"

[have a prince?]

Frey's "conversation" with Mori had been oddly pleasant, once Frey got over the idea that the boy's quietness had anything to do with disinterest or lack of friendliness. It would have been nice to continue and get to know the quiet boy a little more, but Frey couldn't think of a polite way to follow the other boy around from shift to shift. So, he let the nurses separate them and followed the crowd into the library.

And just when Frey thought he was starting to get used to this place and all the sorts of people that were here, he happened to catch the sight of someone... adjusting his under things in public. Looking away again hurriedly, Frey coughed delicately, in case the man hadn't realised there were people within view.

Normally Shito would appreciate the opportunity to spend a shift in the library, but right now all he really wanted to do was to try to sleep off the pain he was in. How long would it take for his regenerating and abused nerves to settle down? Every time he moved his right arm, fresh waves of hell travelled up from his wrist, and it was already getting more than a little tiresome. And he didn't even look that hurt, so the nurses didn't seem to get why he was even more snappish than usual when they wouldn't let him nap in the Sun Room like he wanted.

Grumbling to himself, Shito sought out an unoccupied spot and curled up in it, repressing a shudder as the movement triggered yet more complaints from his right arm. He could only imagine this was just going to get worse tonight, when he would actually need to use his hand.

[Tsubaki]

He'd been hoping to avoid getting engrossed in anything. But sadly, the fascinating tale of the witch and her flying army of monkeys, and the lovely adventures of the stupid girl in fabulous shoes managed to suck him in. Soon, Kio was reading about naps in poppy fields, which seemed like a metaphor for something creepy and perverted. Oh, well, then he could take the book out for Sou-chan. His friend would like that.

When he was spoken to at long last, Kio jumped slightly, the book falling to the floor. It wasn't Soubi or Ritsuka, or indeed anyone else he'd met before. With no recourse to leaving a message for Ophelia on the board, he had hoped the young woman would find him. It seemed someone had.

"Sure, sit down. And I don't know about your morning, but mine was okay." He'd put on the rather defensive act, if only because this was the first time since coming here that he was ambushed like this. If the kid proved trustworthy, then Kio would relent. It wouldn't have been the first time his grumpy look made someone back off.

Forte looked up, taking a moment to put together what he'd said (without realizing it) with the man's response. So, another prisoner with nothing but contempt for Starscream. Did that mean this was the elusive Lugnut?

"So I've heard. I'm Forte. Are you another decepticon?"

"Good morning," Ken greeted in turn.

So that was why he wanted to speak with the boy regarding the topic. Although, it did bring up the question as to why the redhead had not mentioned it herself. "I see. Was there a problem with it?" Probably, if Akihiko's nervous energy indicated anything.

Brown eyes widened in surprise when last night was addressed. "Oh, a little bit. She told me Yukari-san was okay. That's about it, really," he answered. "I get the feeling more went on, though. Did...something happen?" Such as a fight, perhaps?

Edited 2009-01-11 23:03 (UTC)

A quiet cough -- the kind that said "excuse me" but was too hesitant to actually come out and say it -- drew his attention up from the page. A scrawny kid, with prematurely gray hair, was pointedly not looking at him. S.T. wondered what his problem was -- if he wanted to get past, why didn't he just ask? S.T. had barely been here long enough to know anyone, so he couldn't possibly have enough of a reputation to be unnerving teenage guys. Besides, he wasn't usually the violent kind of asshole.

Then again, this place had all types. Maybe something else was wrong. So when he spoke, his tone was level and just above a whisper -- they were in a library, after all.

"Sorry, am I in your way?" he said, stepping back from the shelf and closing the paperback in his left hand.

It was still surprising how well Renamon could read him even though they had known each other for only a few days. For not being used to human emotions, Renamon understood them well. In many ways, it was a relief--especially since he could trust her to keep discussions like this private.

She, too had felt helpless once. Even if she was hiding her emotions, because she was merely mentioning it had happened to her, Jiraiya knew she was still affected by whatever had happened. He wanted to know more but, at the same time, didn't dare to ask.

Renamon explained how one of her precious people had been taken last night, and Jiraiya's eyes widened a little. Her too? The fact she knew what had happened to her charge meant that she had met her charge in that state, and the fact she had helped them protect Naruto afterwards meant that Renamon had won the fight.

Jiraiya understood what that felt like. The one time he and Naruto experimented with Naruto's seal, Kyuubi's chakra had overwhelmed the boy. It had forced a fight--a fight that nearly killed Jiraiya--and Jiraiya had barely managed to stop the outflow of chakra before Naruto was uncontrollable.

"We must," Jiraiya agreed with Renamon. "They're toying with us, trying to break our spirits, either for their own amusement or to nullify us as a threat."

His eyes softened after a moment, and he smiled sadly to Renamon, "I know what it feels like, to be forced into a fight like that. I was trying something with Naruto to give him more access to his hidden power, but something went wrong." Jiraiya paused for a moment, considering how to word what he wanted to say without mentioning Kyuubi. "But the amount of chakra was too much for his mind to handle. He nearly killed me before I managed to seal it back away."

So she claimed to have an interesting life, hmm? "Ah, now you've made me curious." Scar told her. Though she certainly had a point. There was no sense in bothering with such silly stories if you had a life to worry about.

He wondered if this said anything about their captor if Mello's theory was indeed correct.

"A bestiary would certainly be more informative." Scar agreed. He believed he had once seen a notice on the bulletin board, but some of these descriptions were a little lacking in detail from what he had remembered.

"Ah, Blitzwing's human-built ally." Lugnut nodded, satisfied. "I am Lugnut, loyal servant of the Decepticon cause and Lord Megatron's will." He didn't quite rise up out of his chair to shout it to the heavens, but it was certainly a emphatic and devout declaration, the way he said it-- almost religious in its fervent tone.

After a moment, he added, "Blitzwing told me the traitor was even more useless than usual, here."

Tyki liked her attitude.

"Before we get to the buddy part, I probably should be sayin' my name's João dos Santos." he answered, grin still present on his face. "But I guess I like 'Tyki Mikk' better. It's a lotta easier to pronounce anyway." He wondered how many people would end up raping his "real" name to something unrecognizable. The least Landels could've done was thinking of something more practical. Not everyone could speak Portuguese after all.

He laughed, a little mischievous glint in his eyes that his glasses weren't able to cover up. "Where's the fun in doin' what the nurses say, anyway?"

"It explains the experimentation. And the cholesterol content in my breakfast."

Despite the non-content of their conversation, from the way this man carried himself Bruce would venture a guess that he was one of the more careful ones here at the Institute. Though Bruce did not comment on the map the stranger was copying, he made a mental note that whoever this guy was, he had friends or allies here to help him out.

"And if we're going to be trapped here forever, I'd rather it be for some useful purpose. Rather than say...reality TV."

Kenshin was a bit particular about his personal space. He came from a culture where even husbands and wives didn't really openly engage in public displays of affection, and he wasn't entirely used to having young girls that he had only known for a few days lean over him like that. In spite of himself, he stiffened slightly, though he didn't let it show on his face.

"Oro? About as stimulating as washing clothes." Wait, no. He enjoyed doing laundry, so that was a bad comparison. "Or sorting seeds to plant."

Now it was time to play. "Of course, but you're going to need to widen the base a little if you want to make it any higher," he pointed out sagely. "Otherwise it'll collapse under the weight of its own magnificence, and you don't want that, do you?"

Edited 2009-01-11 23:53 (UTC)

If there had been a subtle, easily hidden way to smack one's hand against one's forehead, Mello would have done it. Matt had been so close to using some of those trademark Wammy's House brains, but no, he'd decided to go with blushing and lines so cliche they would have been cut from a 1990s romantic comedy. Reasoning with him would be impossible. Matt had already recognized Sen as a risk, and chosen to disregard it. The only option was finding a way to make Matt's idiocy work for him rather than against him. Mello turned another page, still keeping the two in his peripheral vision, when an unexpected voice came from beside him.

Speaking of being smacked in the face...

This time, Matsuda was calmer And Mello regarded him with interest, trying to determine his motive. If L's incompetence had reached the level where even Matsuda noticed it, he was going to have to deal with the detective sooner than he'd initially planned.

"Not since yesterday," he said after a glance around. Mikami wasn't present, nor was Light, but that didn't mean they weren't being watched. Matsuda had already placed the purpose of the conversation in the open, though, so trying to silence or distract him would be seen as a reaction to the importance of the subject. His eyes returned to the pages of his book. "Why?"

'Hectic' was about right. Things were usually like that, but there was just something about this place that tended to make things a little frantic. Not so much for Roland, who was used to having to fend off inhuman monsters and having close friends die, but even he had suffered some shocks in this place. It would be even worse for those poor souls who hadn't been toughened up like the Lokapala had.

So he nodded a little, his voice as even as always. "Hanging in there, for the most part. Finally managed to get a decent weapon around here; hopefully that will help with the exploration. ...you?" He wasn't 'pressing,' so much, but he had the feeling that something was going on with Peter. Had to be; the only question was if the guy wanted to talk about it or if he wanted to be distracted. In that regard, Roland felt a bit out of his depth; he understood people, but he just didn't have Greg's knack for dealing with them. Didn't help that his people skills were a tiny bit rusty.

"Ten'll get you twenty that nothing's gonna happen," Xigbar rejoined her, shaking his head in mock-sadness. Well, normally it'd have been real sadness, if he had a heart to go with it. This place was boring as anything, and it wasn't like he had a whole host of people to play off of. Seriously, he needed out of the Hohumvee. Now.

Still, there was someone around, so why not try to work with it? "...'less we try somethin', of course."

Renamon was an analytical being. She had perserved against Yukari for the sole reason of being able to shut down the things that defined her as a person, and for those moments, exist solely as a weapon. She had been forced in many fights like that; those situations weren't new to her. You simply went forward, did what you had to, and repair the damage afterward.

She shook her head a little. She did not want to start thinking about Impmon. "I'm almost used to situations like that. This one was... suprising, however."

She took a breath, then slid back to her normal state. "Break out spirits seems likely. Since we last had a chance to talk, I've met the acquaintence of a man named Mello. He's highly intelligent, and has more than enough to offer in insight and facts, and is a valuable ally. We've been working together the past couple of days.

"But we were just touching on the point of the disappearences today. The majority of the ones that simply vanish go through a severe crisis in the time before--ones that are close dying, experimentation, the list goes on--so it would be safe to say that everything that happens to us here is perfectly planned."

"I dunno, for being a superhero? I don't think I'm doing a good job here so far."

He found a chair to pull up and sat down. "If I could just find my V-watch, I'd be out of here so fast, and save everyone."

"Yes, all you humans here!" ZEX smiled and for a moment considered gesturing towards the other humans around them, but decided he'd rather continue touching Teisel's hand. "There's so much variation in your species. It's extraordinary." Hmm... Teisel's mouth was open. Was he going to say something? ZEX waited for a moment to see if he would, but instead he just remained silent. What an odd thing to do. Perhaps a human gesture he wasn't familiar with? Well, no matter.

When he did begin describing himself, ZEX listened with rapt fascination. A human warrior! And one who might not get lost with the same frequency that ZEX did, no less. There was no way that this human couldn't be useful to him during the night, and in more ways than exploring each other's bodies. Although, the two didn't necessarily have to cancel each other out. What a find this was!

ZEX squeezed his hand a bit in an unconscious attempt to replicate a VUX gesture. "Wonderful! I'd been hoping you'd share my... enthusiasm for interpersonal relationships." ZEX tried to make his smile look more natural and achieved just the opposite. "There are many things that can only be done at night between two people... and I'm certainly looking forward to exploring just such things with you." If he was willing, but at this point ZEX assumed consent was a given.

Although, thinking about it... while he could spend tonight seducing this new human friend of his, there was the matter of his file. If he did decide to go out tonight, his mystery companion Mello offered him no guarantees as to his safety. After all, he didn't even know what this Mello looked like, how strong they were, or what they could do. On the other hand, if he joined Mello with, say, a large bodyguard in tow who had some experience with combat, then that would make him feel much more safe.

Although he could also just stay in and have Mello bring him his file later, but on the other hand he had spent a lot of time in one room or another lately, and he really should be taking a more proactive role in trying to find out more about this place. And besides, if they found their files quickly, he could always take Teisel back and celebrate for the rest of the night, and there was always tomorrow night as well...

"I was actually just hoping to find someone with your... unique skillset," ZEX said, this time with a slyness absent from his previous compliments. "You don't have plans tonight, I hope?"

Well, there went breakfast. And, apparently, the Head Doctor had returned from wherever he was earlier. Wonka made a note to ask about the matter on the bulletin board later; in all of the material he'd read there thus far, there had never been any mention of a woman's voice on the intercom. Another piece to the puzzle, he supposed... if anyone who'd been here longer had more knowledge of the lady.

In the meantime, however, it seemed the patients were being herded into the Institute library, and Wonka had no complaints about doing a little light reading. Wandering over to one of the closer bookshelves, he began to look through the available titles, and quickly found that most of the books were the newer, television-era stuff - hardly "great literature" by his lights. He finally settled on a battered copy of Through the Looking-Glass, leaning against the edge of a bookcase as he paged through the familiar tale, letting the book take him away to a more pleasant (if no more bizarre) world than the one he was stuck in today. Sweet relief, if only for a few hours.

[free]

Clark shook his head. "Not really. I mean, I never thought about sitting down and reading a book here," he said, indicating where they were. He'd been too busy worrying about that nurse on the bus, his secret, Lex, Brainy, Wally and it seemed like he really hadn't sat down to do something relaxing other than bask in the sun like a lizard a few times.

[Ack, sorry it's short ;-;]

"Oh- ah... I'm sorry, I didn't mean to startle you. Let me get that," Allen supposed the library probably wasn't ideal for conversation. Maybe he should've thought things through a little better before diving in. Still, this man's annoyed face was not nearly as intimidating as Renji's had been. Perhaps if he they got to talking, he would warm a bit.

He offered the book, managing to look apologetic as well. "I'm Allen Walker," he managed a smile, thin as it might be. "My morning was fine, thank you for asking." In truth it'd been anything but fine, and he was worried that Tyki might try to go murdering people, shinigami in particular, the moment evening hit. But that was hardly a way to go starting conversation.

"Reality shows are useful," Tony replied. "They provide a brief, shining window in which a large percentage of the country's idiots are off the street."

He ran his left hand through his hair, the right still fiddling with the pen in the absent manner of someone who was used to having his hands occupied, with one thing or another. His expression went faintly abstracted as he realized the gesture only sparked a slight twinge. He glanced curiously at the bandages as he lowered his hand back to the table. One more strange thing in an ocean of oddities.

"I doubt they're planning to keep us here forever," he continued. "Not with the rate they seem to be bringing people in."

"Other dimensions?" Well, that was an unexpected conversation topic, but given what she had told him yesterday about possibly alternate!Neku, maybe he shouldn't have been so surprised...

Although, this was some top-secret stuff he was going to give out. Just a little. It couldn't be too bad to tell her, provided he didn't blab too much.

"Well...there are parallel worlds; I guess they could be kind of like other dimensions," Sanae said, scratching the back of his head. "By parallel worlds, I mean like, when you make a decision, the choice you didn't make splits off into something like its own separate universe. Is that kind of what you're getting at?"

Material composition ... no, Kira couldn't help him. It didn't sound like the kind of book they'd keep here, anyway; if they wanted them to remain as docile and helpless as possible until the last moment, they wouldn't give them anything that might prove helpful. Just books about ... Kira glanced down at the page. Poetry. Western poetry, at that, and not very good. He was certain he'd written better.

"Why were you looking for that?" It was an honest question - why would someone want to know the composition of minerals? And where would this boy come from that what he knew didn't match up with what was available? He thought back through what he'd been told and what he'd read, through the empty void at his side and within him - where Wabisuke typically was. Was this boy one of the so-called alchemists who could craft weapons ... ?

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Day 38: Patients' Library

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