damned_institute | Dayshift 43: Waiting Room / Lobby 2 [4th Shift]

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Dayshift 43: Waiting Room / Lobby 2 [4th Shift]

"Now you just have a seat and wait for your visitor like everyone else."

As the nurse went away from him, Kurogane huffed out some agitation but refused to have a seat. Hearing that he had a visitor had been one of the last things he'd expected. It was always the magician who got one, not him. And who the hell would want to visit him anyway?

During his first protests, the nurse had been telling him to behave since it wasn't nice to be sour to girls, so he knew it had to be a girl that was visiting. There were a few of those Kurogane knew could show up as a "visitor" for him, all of which were annoying. Some were worse than others too. He could probably handle if Sohma showed up, and maybe Amaterasu, but when it came to Tomoyo-hime... she was already hard to handle normally, no matter what world she came from. The Piffle version had been pretty much the same, just raised differently. If he saw her, even a fake her, she would probably be just the same and he'd have to at put up with it no matter what.

Eventually he chose to take a seat, knowing that he would not be leaving any time soon. Of course, he picked the one that was furthest into the corner to avoid unwanted conversations. He would already have to deal with a visitor; he shouldn't have to deal with anything more.

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Sitting down now, Sheena rest her head against his shoulder and drew in the woodsy scent that was his as her hand idly moved across his chest, as it she was stroking his fur. She was half on auto-pilot, half there, and half completely elsewhere. Wait a minute. That was too many halves. Maybe the here and there were really the same half.

"You know, zombies," she repeated as if that clarified things. "We went down to the town yesterday, but didn't come back before it got dark. Then there were zombies." She shuddered at the thought. "I, uh... kinda got bit."

Kishin had no idea what to say to that one. He touched her shoulder, lightly, and found a bandage there. "This happened in town?" How hard was the staff trying to keep people safe? It was good that they had field trips, but those were only for the well-behaved patients, right...?

He still hoped, for her sake, that they weren't too strict here either. Sara wouldn't take well to that.

"Yeah..."

Something was bothering Sheena, aside from the sudden appearance of the summon spirit and friend she'd thought dead. It took her a bit of scowling at the wall across the room before she managed to get it into words.

"Hey, Corrine? I couldn't sense you before, but I can now. I feel our pact. Why couldn't I last night when I really needed you?"

Kishin gave her a little squeeze. "Of course you can feel our pact. We swore, right?" It was sad to hear she hadn't the night before, but it was hard to feel the presence of someone who wasn't physically there, especially when they were separated by such unhappy circumstances.

He let the name usage pass; it wasn't important, really. Not compared to everything else. Honestly, if she decided she really did want to change her name, he'd support her, like he did in everything else.

"Yeah, we did, which is why I should have felt it..." Her words trailed off as she thought about how long she hadn't been feeling it. Not since the Tower of Lightning and Volt.

Putting her hand flat against his chest, she looked up. "It's been months since you left me. Why now? Why, if my vow is still valid and you had no reason to annul the pact, have I not sensed you, felt you with me all this time? I don't understand. Were you trapped somewhere?"

"Oh, Sara..." He knew she'd bring up how long he'd been gone. Hugging her close again, he murmured into her hair, "Being apart like this is only for now. You know I couldn't stay away from you forever... you're strong, you'll be home for good long before I'm back on break."

He supposed being away at college could qualify as "trapped", but he'd save that for later.

Break? What the hell was that? And it didn't matter if he was away or not. Her summons could be millions of miles away, on the opposite world, and she'd still be able to feel the pact. Except in this place. If it wasn't for the fact that she'd lost Corrine before she ended up here, she'd have just thought it was like whatever was keeping her from sensing the other pacts.

"Stop calling me that," she told him, a bit of an edge slipping into her voice. Sara wasn't her name.

"Decided it's time to stop blending in?" Kishin smiled a little. "Because your new name is unusual." But if she was ready to stop hiding--at least, once she was out of here--and hold her head up high, power to her. Be strong.

He wasn't encouraging her delusions; he was encouraging her to find herself, however she chose to. All he asked was that she come back to their world, for good.

"I never did blend in," Sheena snapped, her irritability flaring. "And this isn't a new name; I've been using it for years. I always did wonder if you spirits knew my true name or not." Guess that answered that question.

"I know everything about you," he winked, trying to keep things light. "Remember that."

Was it mean to tease his mentally ill friend? Well... it was probably better than walking on eggshells around her. Besides, it was how she knew she was loved.

Sitting up straight, Sheena sputtered for a bit before she managed to get words out.

"Now listen here, fox, just because you've known me forever doesn't mean you get to lord those really embarrassing moments in Meltokio over my head!" She poked him in the chest. "Remember, I saved your furry little butt from taking a swim in the sewers that one time." Sure, she'd had to grab his tails to do so, but he forgave her after a day or so.

Kishin's reply was to ask sweetly, "And how do you know what my butt currently looks like?" Sure, they'd known each other back when they were young enough not to have much modesty, but things had changed somewhat in the last few years.

"But I am flattered to be called a fox..."

Sheena turned bright red with the teasing comment and looked away. "Umm... uh... uh... S-shut up!"

"And you are a fox. Or you used to be one," Sheena replied. "Why aren't you one now? Is this place like a no tail zone?"

"So the nurses made sure to tell me," Kishin replied with a straight face. "I guess I should have clarified that we're not that close."

It might take her a minute to get, but he had faith she'd figure out the joke.

"..."

It took her longer than a minute. A couple times she opened her mouth to say something and then shut it. She then got a really confused look on her face before her eyes went wide and her mouth dropped. Did he just say what she thought he said?

"Did you just-- Wait a damn minute, Corrine! We're NOT-- Please tell me they didn't actually say something like that to you?"

Kishin managed not to fall off his chair laughing. Barely. "No, no," he finally got out, still chuckling. "We were warned you're all closely supervised, but... nothing that specific."

The twinkle in his eyes dimmed a little when he remembered her bandages, and her story of being bitten. He could definitely see they were watched closely during the day, but he wondered about nighttime.

"Ugh! You!" Sheena hit his arm, but it lacked the vigor she normally hit Zelos with, partly because she was hurt and partly because it was Corrine. "You do something like that again and I'll get specific with you."

She silently fumed for a moment before calming down and getting a more inquisitive look on her face. "Hey... why were we brought here? I mean, I know the official story about us being crazy and stuff, but what's the real reason? I know you know. I mean... why Raine? Why Kratos? What's going on? I was on my way to do something really important when I ended up here. I'm worried about Tethe'alla." She was worried about Sylvarant, too, but Tethe'alla was her home.

He rubbed her cheek with the back of his hand--much like some small animals nudged their humans to be affectionate. "Just worry about yourself right now, and focus on getting better. Everything else can wait."

It seemed he'd come up with a strategy for her remaining delusions, after all--ignore what he could, and encourage her to get past them. He only had so much time to remind her that he was rooting for her, and he wasn't going to waste it.

Sheena went quiet for a long moment. She didn't understand. He knew her. He should know...

"There's nothing wrong with me," she told him, her voice strangely even as she searched Corrine's eyes.

"You're sick," he said, very gently. "Maybe it doesn't feel like it, but you said it yourself--you're going back and forth between two worlds. It's time to come back to ours for good."

Maybe it was hard for her to hear this, but she needed to. The important thing, really, was that she knew she was still loved. He was waiting for her.

A heavy feeling lingered in the air between them for a long moment before Sheena exploded.

"I am NOT sick! Don't you dare tell me that I'm making this all up," Sheena growled. "Are you going to sit there and tell me Mizuho isn't real? That I should just abandon Sylvarant to the fate I left it in? You KNOW both world exist since you've been to BOTH with me!"

The ninja pulled out of his arms and almost stood up. "I'm trying to help get the two worlds to rejoin together as one! Trying to split them apart caused more problems than before we severed all the mana links! How can you sit there and tell me that I'm sick, that I need to abandon the things I said I'd do, the vows I made to the other spirits? Damnit, Corrine, you're the one that told me I needed to do what I thought was right back when I was wavering on my mission to kill Colette! Why are you trying to stop me from doing what I think is right now, wanting me to just give up?"

"Hey, hey..." Kishin tried to get her to sit with him again, worried. "You know I'm on your side. I do want what's best for you, but what that is might be hard to see right now. If it's too hard... forget I said anything."

In the barest whisper, he added, "Please, Sheena... I just want you to come home." If she kept believing in this spirit world, fine--maybe she was right, even. But it wasn't okay for her to stay in a mindset where she had... such major breaks from reality. She needed to be aware of this world, too.

At the sound of her name, all the bluster and anger left her and she deflated like a balloon. The ninja's shoulders slumped and she looked down at her hands in her lap. What was the point in getting angry at Corrine. This place had just done something to him. Still...

"I want to go home, too," she replied. "But home doesn't want me. It hasn't wanted me since... grandfather..." She swallowed. "I just want a place to belong." She was so tired of being lonely.

"You'll always belong with me," he murmured, pulling her close again. "You know I've never wanted you to go away..."

Even though I did. It was just for a few years, he thought she'd be okay. Would she--?

Okay, this was NOT the time to doubt her. Kishin added softly, "Home is where the heart is, right?"

She wanted to believe that so much, the aching in her own heart echoing that sentiment. She really did.

Reaching up to grasp his collar, Sheena pulled him down to eye level. "I didn't go away, Corrine. You died. You died protecting me because I was too much of a failure to protect myself. It's my fault."

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