toxicspiderman: Photo of a grassy, tree-lined riverbank.  (Specifically, The Charles River) (bucolic)
Sangamon Taylor ([personal profile] toxicspiderman) wrote in [community profile] damned_institute2009-04-09 05:01 pm

Day 40: Greenhouse [Fourth Shift]

Most days, fish and chips (and a cold beer or three) was pretty goddamned high on S.T.'s list of perfect expense-account lunches. Today, the idea of picking at greasy hunks of unidentified bottom-feeder odds-and-ends (politely known as scrod, to the delight of teenagers all across the Northeast) didn't appeal.

He begged off and collapsed into his bed, after using his damp shirt as an excuse to surreptiously check the contents of his closet. Bingo. His nurse watched his little show, unimpressed but (more importantly) unsuspicious. Not that his hairy chest was much of a catch today, pale and sweating from fever. At least she didn't tuck him in.

The intercom woke up up right on schedule, and pulling the sheets back over his head almost won. But a handful of unanswered missives and a vague sense of duty dragged him out to the bulletin, and from there it was easier to stagger over to the greenhouse.

It was warm inside -- a deep, humid warmth that actually penetrated to the aches in more joints and muscles than he could remember the names of. Like a sauna, without the hassle of finding someplace to look that wasn't a mound of pasty middle-management cellulite. Or a sweat lodge, without the opposite hassle of being conscious that he was the only white guy in the room. In fact, besides the nurses in holding patterns, he was the only person in the room.

He located a tray of tomato seedlings going rootbound in their tiny six-packs, and a potting bench whose location was a quick-and-dirty approximation of equidistantly far from anything blooming. He assured his nurse he knew what he was doing, and after a couple of successful repottings, gently sliding the little seedlings out and loosening the tangled roots, she seemed to agree and backed off. It was, by far, the most fucking theraputic thing he'd found in this hellhole so far, and he let himself sink into the rhythm of the task.

[Free!]

[identity profile] arrogantflame.livejournal.com 2009-04-11 08:07 pm (UTC)(link)
Out tonight? It... wasn't a bad idea at all. As much as he'd been enjoying his company with Kaoru, going and wanting to bake cakes wasn't all that productive, even if he understood why they did it. He'd feel a little guilty for not going and protecting them, but...

"Yes, I'll go," Wolfram agreed almost instantly. There was no hesitation in his voice. It was as if... as if he needed to do this for himself, to get back on his feet again somehow.

He wanted to ask Aidou more questions, but that he did hesitate on. They hadn't exactly gotten along perfectly, and it still bothered him a little on how closed Aidou was when it came to himself... He'd seen the way he acted around some of the girls around here, from a distance anyways, and it was nothing like how their encounters had ever been.

It was... really weird. But part of him was still hoping that maybe something better would happen for them. That maybe...

His gaze turned to the roses close by. "My weapon was borrowed by someone, though. I might have to get it back first, but it wouldn't take long. Or I could go without it."
idolism: (thoughts are frozen)

[personal profile] idolism 2009-04-12 05:06 pm (UTC)(link)
A pause broke the flow of conversation.

Aidou nodded finally. “Fine. It will be three of us.” As for needing to make a stop first... That was convenient in its own way, because the vampire needed time to himself before he joined the others, too. Was it arrogant to think they could turn their attention in so many directions and still expect to be successful that night? It wasn't, not necessarily. “And you should reclaim your weapon beforehand.”

A formal rendezvous wasn't likely to happen, when it would waste time to wait for each of them. And Aidou knew that out of the three of them, his business would no doubt take the longest if things went smoothly for Wolfram.

[identity profile] arrogantflame.livejournal.com 2009-04-15 07:23 pm (UTC)(link)
Wolfram nodded, thinking over the process in his head. It shouldn't take too long to find the right room, and then find Aidou again, especially now that his head was clearer today.

"Three?" He remembered that they had needed at least that many to open the doors down there, but he didn't remember the other blond mentioning any specific names, not that it mattered all that much.

"Where should I be meeting you at? Outside the sun room like last time?"
idolism: (aidoulize)

[personal profile] idolism 2009-04-16 07:55 pm (UTC)(link)
"That's right," Aidou confirmed, crossing his arms over his chest. "Though it won't be like last time. That man was unlikeable beyond the luck of having him around at the time." Which was the most diplomatic way to put it, really. Jack had proved himself a pain, and he believed Sasuke, at least, had a drive closer in nature to Aidou's own. "This time it's someone named Uchiha Sasuke. He's been around a while, like me."

Also diplomatic. The vampire didn't have time to let his personal feelings come awake at everything he wasn't saying.

"Yes, outside the Sun Room," he continued. "But I also have to meet someone and that will take longer, so you'll be meeting Sasuke first. Go on without me; I'll catch up." He then gave Wolfram a brief idea of what Sasuke looked like, much like he'd done with Sasuke in regards to Wolfram. Only this time he had to emphasize the fact that Sasuke couldn't rely on his sight like they could. "So approach him first if he gets there."

'Because chances are it'd be faster than relying on his senses' went unsaid, along with the reason behind the 'if', which was the usual problem of staff interference. The coming night was to be Special Counseling, as he recalled.