damned_institute | Day 41: Intercom, Evening

When the intercom's jingle sounded, there seemed to be some kind of tapping in the background noise, like letters being punched into a keyboard. It stopped and the Head Doctor chuckled.

"Hello, everyone! I'm actually taking a break from paperwork for once – everyone needs some recreational time, you know! – and of course, now we can all look forward to a scrumptious dinner from our cooks. Tonight, herb-seasoned grilled salmon is on the menu, served with buttery mashed potatoes and asparagus. All our regular drinks and vegetarian options are available, and for dessert, we will be serving yellow cake with a whipped cream icing.

"...Well! I can hardly wait to get my own dinner after saying all that. Good bye for now, everyone, and enjoy your delicious food!"

The intercom clicked off.

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"A wise decision, Lady Hinamori, though I am sad to hear it." The woman had been pushed to her limit, and it was doubtful that she'd had much left in her when Celes had come along. Her words were sincere, of course. If Celes had been faced with the same problem, she likely would've kept going until she got herself killed.

Such was the way of things.

It wasn't Momo's own life that caused her to realize she was in no condition to lead, but the fact that she would bring about the death of those beneath her. Her imagined sense of Hitsugaya's presence only confirmed that, as if he was calling her to join him.

"Matsumoto-kun disagrees with me," Momo replied. "Which is surprising given she is twice my age and has been a vice captain since before I even thought about entering the Academy. But when things run smoother under her direct command and there are less casualties, I'm sure she will come to understand this was for the best. A broken shinigami is not fit for command."

Momo paused in her folding. "Though, I may have been a bit harsh."

Her meal finished, Celes began to dress in her regular clothing, glad that she was slipping in to equally clean clothes to go with the rest of her cleansed body. "Perhaps you'll have an opportunity later to smooth things over," she replied. "Though, I can understand if she'd have lingering feelings regarding the business of leadership."

Still, it sounded as though her companion's reservations were of another sphere entirely.

"Hmm. It's not as if she'd been thrust into leadership; she and I had been working together. She has my journal and all the reports, information and whatnot we've collected," Momo replied.

"I have this odd feeling that she believes she can order me back into the ranks. And, more importantly, that I'll do as she says." The shinigami fell silent then, staring unseeing at the area before her, as if thinking on things at another time, another place.

"But you were co-leaders, were you not? Now she has the duty to care for all, instead of half your troops," she couldn't help it. Calling them 'clubs' were ridiculous. The Institute certainly knew about the insurgent groups.

Celes fell silent and continued to tie up the sides of her pants, the action familiar and comforting.

"She just doesn't want to have to the paperwork, wishing to shirk it off just as she did back in Seireitei," Momo said with a far harder edge than she'd expected. She was on edge, imagining things, and having a hard time keeping her temper in check these days. It was sad that she really hadn't had one until she ended up in this place.

Sighing, Momo set the flag down and wiped a hand across her face. "I... shouldn't have said that. My apologies."

"Quite alright, Lady Hinamori," Celes pulled off her grey shirt and the ridiculous contraption meant for holding breasts with it, throwing them into a pile upon her bed as she pulled on her corslet and vest. "Take a rest, you likely need it, do you not?"

She was almost hesitant to ask about Momo's plans for the evening, but went along with it, anyway. Best to keep her mind off her comrades. "What is it you plan to do this evening?"

Momo chose not to respond to the sentiment that she needed rest.

"I have a few things to deliver, though my intentions are to continue investigating the mystery that is the decimated town across the river not far from this place. It will allow me to put aside the... distractions I'm dealing with, giving me something to focus on." A place where she couldn't hurt anyone.

Celes made a sort of acknowledging noise through her curtain of hair, bent over as she pulled up her boots. "Is just a ghost town over there?"

"Something of that sort," Momo replied. "Though I sense no errant souls there."

Idly, Celes sat up to straighten her hair and affix her hair pins. She wondered if there was a train that went through the town, or had gone through. "If you find anything interesting, will you let me know, Lady Hinamori? I've a man exploring the basement, should he find anything of interest, I'll be sure to share it." Even if she didn't have a direction connection to the club anymore, Celes would still keep an ear to the ground for her roommate.

The shinigami deserved at least that much.

"The pieces to the puzzle already do not add up when it comes to that place, Chere," Momo replied, "but I will certainly pass along what I learn. I still wish to help where I can, but I must keep my distance from the larger groups."

She started strapping the sword across her back. "For their safety," she added on quietly.

"Thank you, Lady Hinamori." With nothing further to say, and unwilling to further delve into the tangled emotions that belonged to her roommate (she was no Priestess to confide in, after all) Celes turned to her desk and idly ran her fingers over the single rose.

"It appears we've both much to think about."

Day 41: Intercom, Evening

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