damned_institute | Day 43: Sun Room, 4th Shift

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Day 43: Sun Room, 4th Shift

The late-afternoon sun filled the large, open Sun Room. It was almost enough to make you sleepy, Euphemia thought, as she walked in, brushing a little glitter off her shirt. She didn't particularly feel like she was up to much - the worrying about everyone had drained her, as much as she'd tried not to think too much about it.

With that thought in the back of her mind, she walked over towards the bulletin board. It looked like it was cleared off at the end of the day, because now it was filled with information. She made a note of the 'primer' post, then began copying the maps onto some paper she'd taken with her from the Arts and Crafts Room.

One more thing struck her, though - the idea of visitors. Was this what all the announcements about graduates were? She thought of the others then, and frowned, hoping that neither of them were going through anything like that today.

[reserved for the tallmore.]

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"Mm? Don't know, it was a bit blurry after that." Which was true enough; once demons like himself got into a feeding frenzy, it was hard to pull out of the rage and think normally again. Was he infected? That was more of a question... hadn't even thought of it, even though he was vaguely familiar with zombie movies in general. At least, some of the old cultural tropes still survived from it.

It was still a little odd to hear Peter being so concerned, but for now, Roland would take the advice to heart. Maybe going to the clinic would be a good idea, at least to make sure that nothing too odd was going on. Besides, he wasn't sure how Argilla was doing; if she was injured, then going there would be a good thing as well.

After a moment, though, Roland gave a slight smile. He almost wanted to be a little sardonic with his response, but Peter was so earnest and serious about it that he couldn't find it in him. So, he was serious in return, a slightly curious expression on his face as he asked, "...why are you so concerned about me, Peter?"

It wasn't good to just not know, but Peter also got the feeling that if Roland had been infected then he would have remembered it. Either way, Roland had now had the idea put into his head, so if it resurfaced when night came he'd be a least a little prepared. There wasn't much more that Peter could do than that. Maybe he felt like they were friends, but it wasn't to the point where he felt he was in the position to offer the man help in the coming night. Roland probably had much closer friends who could do that for him.

The man's question made Peter glance away in slight embarrassment. That wasn't the first time he'd been asked that. He knew that sometimes his worry for people could even become overbearing (he'd lost a girlfriend or two that way), but it wasn't like he meant any harm by it.

"Well, you are kind of laying here looking like Hell warmed over," he pointed out with a quick smile, breaking up the serious streak they had going. "And I know we've only spoken a few times, but... you've always been willing to listen to my problems, so I wasn't going to just look away when I spotted you like this. And... I did used to be a nurse, so maybe there's some old instinct kicking in too." He shrugged, since he wasn't really sure why he needed a reason to be worried.

That smile- and the point that went with it, of course- made Roland grin a little as well, despite the roiling of his stomach. It was always a bit better to have a brave face to situations like this, and for that matter, Roland hadn't had enough to smile about as of late. He was still finding Peter a rather odd guy- hearing that he was a nurse added to that- but nevertheless, someone friendly was never a bad thing. Especially here. "I appreciate that," he honestly answered, "it's better than lying here in a heap, at least."

A pause, and then he shrugged his shoulders. A bit of an odd motion, considering how he was lying down, but regardless. "...then again, this isn't the worst that I've ever gone through. Give me a few more hours and I'll be good, I'm sure."

If he had managed to get a grin out of the man, then Peter had to be doing something right. (He suspected Roland was mainly grinning because he thought Peter was kind of weird and a little off, but Peter was surprisingly used to that.) Still, when the man offered his thanks there didn't seem to be any sarcasm in it, and so Peter nodded in response. He was more than willing to keep his friend company while he suffered from whatever was bothering him (though it did bug him that he wasn't quite sure what that was, still).

He let out a sigh when Roland remarked that he'd been through worse. "Yeah, same here," he admitted. "I guess that's a good thing, though. If we survived all of that, then we'll be able to handle whatever this place tosses at us." He didn't think Landel could make him explode, after all -- well, maybe he could, but he wouldn't. Probably.

This place also hadn't put him into a coma for two weeks straight, so that was one more thing to be grateful for.

"Well, I didn't survive everything in it, but I get your point." With it being rather distant now, Roland could afford to laugh at the irony of not having lasted through the entirety of the experiences of his world. It wasn't every day that someone got atomized, and while he had been blessedly unaware of most of the physical sensations, there was still the firm realization that he'd been blown into data.

Even still, he had to wonder about that. Heat had survived longer than he himself had, and yet he seemed to be gone... ah, that reminded him, he should probably mention that. "...by the way, I don't think I ever told you this, but considering, you probably would want to know. Heat's disappeared." There was a decided note of regret to his voice at that. He'd promised himself that he'd look after Heat, and just like before, he'd failed...

That gave Peter pause. He straightened up in his position next to the couch and slowly made eye contact with Roland as he tried to reaffirm what the man had just said. He hadn't survived all of it? While Peter was quite aware that some patients here had died before arriving, he hadn't realized that Roland was one of them. It was strange, talking to a literal dead man walking. (Not like one of those zombies...)

He really didn't like the implications it had, either. Were they back for good? Could people get second chances that easily? Sure, he'd seen people heal from wounds and even prevented Claire's death in the courtyard a week or so ago, but...

Peter was forced out of his thoughts when Roland continued to speak. He frowned at the mention of Heat, feeling some guilt when he heard that the man was gone. He knew that there were strange circumstances surrounding the whole cannibalism incident, and that Roland considered Heat a friend, so he could definitely feel for him on that level -- and he felt bad that he'd caused trouble for the man by getting so confrontational about it.

He looked away, not sure he could hold eye contact at the moment. "I'm... sorry to hear that. I hope he's all right." Nathan had disappeared and come back, so maybe the same thing would happen with Heat. It was possible, at least.

Hm, perhaps Peter wasn't one of those people who had a more morbid sense of humor? Roland had always had a sense of proportion about death and dying- his world had been deadly long before the demons had been awakened- and to be honest, death hadn't been as bad as he had thought. Maybe it was still something he'd rather avoid, but there were far worse ways to go out than with a bang that brought someone else down with him.

As for Heat? Roland shrugged, trying to put a brave face on it. It wouldn't do for Peter to know just how badly it stung to have another comrade taken away from him, after he'd sworn to himself that he would never let it happen again. Heh, he should have known better... he never was able to live up to his promises, was he? "'All right' is a bit of an odd phrase when used about him," he quietly admitted, "but I'm sure he went taking a swarm of monsters down with him. Perhaps it is better that way."

While Peter didn't have a sense of humor about death, necessarily, he certainly had a different view on it than most people. He wasn't scared of it and had even put himself in close contact with it during his nursing career -- hell, he'd come back from the dead himself. Still, what Roland must have gone through was different. Being dead (really dead) and then coming back into some foreign place with no idea as to when your time ran out again? That couldn't be easy for most people.

It seemed that Roland wasn't all that bothered by the idea of Heat dying, either -- or at least not as bothered as he should have been. Peter frowned. "He might not have died, you know. I told you about how my brother disappeared and then came to see me as a visitor, right? Well, he's back here in the institute now. The same thing could happen to Heat..." Roland's friend wouldn't remember anything (and Peter personally thought it might be easier if the cannibal stayed gone, but that was his own selfish mind getting away with itself), but he would still be back and Peter imagined that would be good enough for Roland.

Before either of them could say any more, the intercom rudely cut in and caused Peter to straighten slightly. Roland was still mainly immobile on the couch... "Are you going to be all right?" he asked. "Maybe the nurses will help me get you back to your room, if our rooms are close to each other."

"I hope that's not the case," Roland quietly answered, "not unless it changes some of the rules about us... him, rather." He shook his head, not wanting to think about that. A Heat who was still cannibalistic in a civilized society was insane. A Heat that lacked Sera and Serph was dangerous. And a Heat who was perfectly well-adjusted... that was like bringing the dead back to life. And Heat O'Brien had no need for anyone, let alone someone like Roland, still in this incarnation of life.

That wasn't what he wanted to think about right now. He waved Peter off, smiling a little as he slowly started moving himself upright. A little stomach ache was bad, but he could endure it. He hoped. "I'll be fine, I feel better already." Which was half-true; speaking to Peter had helped out a little bit. "You stay safe tonight, all right?"

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Day 43: Sun Room, 4th Shift

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