damned_institute | Day 42: Lil' Tyke Toys

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Day 42: Lil' Tyke Toys

Sora had been glad enough to get further into the quarry, but that had all changed when the shack he had Allen had been searching suddenly got clogged with fog and covered in blood. He'd woken up disoriented and shaky, but relieved rather than frustrated. They hadn't gotten a chance to search the whole area, but they had seen a lot more of it.

Had things suddenly turned strange like that because of them getting too curious, though? He wasn't sure if that had been some kind of warning and if it would be dangerous to head back there...

Whether or not he actually got to report to Momo about it remained to be seen, though. Today marked another trip into Doyleton, and Sora was outfitted with warm clothes and dumped on the bus. He was distracted on the way down, staring out the window, and so before he knew it they had arrived and he hadn't even gotten the chance to talk to anyone.

Well, all he knew was that today he was going to explore some more. His wounds weren't as bad as they had been yesterday - he wasn't feeling great by any means, but he could manage - which meant that he had the freedom to wander around as he pleased. He exited the bus with coupons in hand and then deliberately turned away from the park. He'd spent far too many of his trips in that place.

As he started down the main road, he quickly spotted the toy shop that Allen had mentioned the night before. Figuring he might as well check it out (even though it might not be particularly helpful), he stepped inside. It looked like he was the first customer of the day - the store was empty except for the clerk - but Sora didn't mind. There was a lot to look over, and so he started browsing the shelves with a certain nostalgia for Santa's factory.

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“I would assume so,” he said. That was if they spent any kind of time in their rooms, and weren’t running about the hospital, dodging threats as seemed to be the official story.

The rest he had little to say on, and instead merely smiled at the doll while she made her criticisms. He had no affiliations with the vibrant colors of which she seemed to be attracted to. Romdo was a city of neutrals, in appearance and in politics. That was, if one didn’t look too deeply. But he liked the blue of Re-l’s eye shadow. The doll, though, was an overabundance of materials to him, but this wasn’t for his benefit, so it mattered little what his personal taste was.

Well, in a way, it was for his benefit, but not in any way that was immediately decipherable.

“Pink, huh?” reiterated Daedalus as he reached out to take the doll. Without gloves, the touch of its stylized dress rasped against his skin. “I’ll keep that in mind.” He lifted the doll so that it was turned to Anise. “Well, if it’s her you want, let’s get her.” But then a touch of cheerful slyness came over him. “But let’s not tell everyone where she came from. Some people would probably be unhappy with me.”

"Yay!" Anise threw her arms up in the air triumphantly. While it hadn't seemed like the doctor was going to retract his offer at any point, it was still a big relief to see he was still going to go through with it.

"Hmm? Well, okay! It'll be our little secret," she agreed with a wide grin and a giggle. It was a lie, of course. While Anise didn't plan to advertise it to everyone, and she didn't mind keeping it from the staff, she was definitely going to mention it to her friends. Besides, it would be hard to keep the present a secret if she had to carry it around until she got back to her room.

That reminded Anise of something important, however. "Oh, but the nurses'll take it away if I can't prove I was allowed to have it."

He lowered the doll to his side. “Don’t worry about that part, you can leave it to me,” Daedalus assured.

Secrets weren’t precisely what he was aiming for, anyway, only discretion. But expecting some silly message not to appear on the lounge’s handwritten bulletin board and alert most of the patients was expecting too much, no doubt. Having a rumour spread that he was some kind of gift-giver wasn’t necessarily a detrimental one, but it certainly could be given the wrong word of mouth.

Like he hadn’t already planned for that possibility.

Daedalus began to retract his steps, leading them back along the aisle and towards the till. “For now, I’ll sign for it, and you can show them that.” And if anyone truly wanted to confirm, he was around, in sight of dozens of staff members.

As the doctor made his way over to the till, Anise followed closely, brimming with excitement. Even back at home, it was rare for anyone to buy her luxuries like that doll. A lot of what Anise owned was either hand made or hand-me-downs.

Anise had expected Daedalus would know something about the security measures of Landel's, and she had been wondering what he planned to do about it. Getting his signature was a simple enough solution, and she nodded eagerly. "Okay, works for me!"

All that was left was to wait for him to pay.

Although he hardly looked old enough to be on such a footing as to be the girl’s medical guardian, all Daedalus had to do was pass over his identification alongside his card, and the questions were waylaid before they were uttered. And he knew there were still questions from each side, patient, co-worker, outsider alike, but that was part of the point in sending him to this nowhere place.

The prince had been demoted to squire, a well-deserved reputation for competence left unknown.

It was an added trouble, but Daedalus would survive. It wasn’t him who was getting the most furtive glances, anyway. He was, at least, a factor that could be (in the minds of others) rationalized, unlike the patients, who seemingly suffered in ways the “normal” person couldn’t or did not want to comprehend. But smiles and polite ‘thank you’s were enough to end the transaction without merit, and then it came time to wrap the purchase. There was always the option of boxing it, or even having it come with him…

Daedalus looked over at the chipper girl. “You probably don’t want to wait for it, do you,” and it wasn’t really a question, not with the knowing smile at the corner of his mouth.

Anise watched curiously as the transaction went through, interested in both the doctor's identification and in the currency of Earth, although the exchange was quick enough that she didn't get a clear look at either.

The doctor's look was met with the girl's bright smile, which hadn't faded for an instant since the moment he first picked up the doll. "You can tell? Hee hee." It looked like he wasn't a doctor for nothing, even if Anise had been hinting pretty heavily at her wants. "Don't worry! I'll take good care of it until I can get it back to my room," she assured him, since the doll looked delicate enough for that to be a possible concern. Anise knew how to treat valuable items, though. And with the look on Daedalus' face, he didn't seem to need the assurance.

...Hm. It was hard to tell just how well he understood her. The thought might have worried Anise, if they were on a more serious subject.

Perhaps merely a fortunate guess?

“I trust you will,” he said. “All right, we’ll take it as is,” and when the doll was passed back to him, he held it out for his patient. The money didn’t concern him, nor did the prospect of a delicate toy being ruined carelessly--he was curious to what she would do with it, but not in the way that would make him fret if she happened to smash it on another patient’s face or something similar.

Such a use for the doll would certainly make him wonder, and that, in itself, almost seemed a good enough reason to spoil her.

When the doll was held out for her, Anise took it from her doctor's hands and for a moment, held it up like it was a trophy. "Yay! Thank you so much!" She then lowered it to her chest, facing outward, and wrapped her arms around the front of the doll to hold it safely.

It was nice, getting another taste of the luxuries she envied in more fortunate kids. At least Anise could find something to be happy about in such a dump.

With their business done, it looked like it was time for them to go. Anise made her way over to the door, stopping next to it and facing the doctor. "So, what are you going to do now?" It would probably be rude to suddenly say her goodbyes and run off right after getting her gift, and besides, Anise was curious about what kind of stuff Daedalus did during his days off.

"Don't mention it; you're very welcome. Consider it a treat," Daedalus said. She wore a smile more often than not, but he supposed in this instance, she had something genuine to smile about. She'd gotten a small amount of free choice back, an opportunity he doubted would likely come around with any regularity. He held the receipt out next, which was a rickety failsafe in its own right, but a suitable solution, nonetheless. "That should do it, and if it doesn't, I'm always reachable."

He gave a half-smile, returning his hands to his pockets. He didn't expect himself to be much of an attraction to the patients, not unless he was to be the object of someone's misplaced scorn--in a way, perhaps he was trading for time.

Ah, how they'd tried to strip him down in the meantime. And then they would need him again, and Rombo would bear its deceptions in silence, as it always did.

He came to a halt beside her, a sheepish half-smile on his face. "That's a good question. I don't have anything in mind. And you?"

Anise took the receipt, looked it over for a second, then folded it and tucked it into her jacket pocket. A treat, huh? Well, she certainly deserved one, with everything she'd been putting up with for the past two weeks.

So the doctor was just wandering aimlessly? It definitely sounded like he was out to see the patients, if he didn't have any other plan in mind. Maybe he was just hanging out with Anise for the sake of observing her... which wasn't so terrible, really. Anise had been putting on her best face the entire time!

When the question was turned back at her, Anise cocked her head as she thought. "Hmm... me neither, really. I guess I'll keep looking around at shops. With any luck, I'll run into some friends, too."

He wasn't so surprised at her answer. From what he was gathering, planning days in advance was less common than planning for the moment.

Daedalus reached for the door and held it open for her, preventing them from further taking up space in the doorway. "There should be something entertaining to do, no?" he asked as he did so. "If you want to go look for your friends, don't feel obligated to spend time on me."

Ironic, wasn't it?

Maybe... a little too ironic. Doing favours and being left behind... Re-l was really no better, but because it was Re-l who mattered, these circumstances were rather inconsequential, given the plans in motion.

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Day 42: Lil' Tyke Toys

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