damned_institute | Day 44: Sun Room, Second Shift

[from here]

He really had beat the rush. Suzaku found a chair as close to the corner and as far from the bulletin as he could, and turned it to face the wall before curling up in it. His nurse frowned at him again, but she was still being cooperative, and frankly he didn't care what she had to say in the slightest. He didn't care even if he got sedated. All he cared about was finally having a few moments to himself, to sort out what Euphie's love meant and what the hell Lelouch's problem was.

It felt like he had all the pieces of a puzzle and was just too stupid to figure out how they fit together. What Lelouch had said about Shirley at breakfast and the tone he'd taken with Euphie on the board, Lelouch asking how Suzaku was, Lelouch dying. . . "All we can do is move forward and look out for the ones we care about." Euphie struggling to get out her last words, pain overtaking Suzaku's consciousness while he fought pathetically to carry out Lelouch's order. . . The last couple days, when he'd felt like he was finally figuring this out, seemed so far away now.

There were a couple things that were certain, at least: he hated what Lelouch had done, he always would. But he -- he didn't hate Lelouch, and he hadn't for a while now, and that wasn't going to change. And he didn't have much time, because everyone but Suzaku was terrifyingly mortal. And Lelouch was an idiot, but he still wasn't sure about the how and why of that one yet.

[for the Saucinator]

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Games? Which his little brother gave up on, if this stranger's words held any weight. Suddenly, the interest in supposedly dead prosecutors and their implications slipped to the back burner as Kristoph turned to regard this new development. Why on earth would Klavier play games with a child, give up on said games, looks so obviously distressed at his presence, and make such an obvious attempt at switching the subject?

Kristoph was, first and foremost, a man of opportunities. And this was an opportunity worth entertaining.

"Why did he do that?" the attorney questioned, completely ignoring any statements uttered by his brother in favor of digging information from the boy.

And Klavier had started lying now. No, perhaps not lying, but simply shifting the subject. Why? Was it the person he was with? Albedo dragged his gaze to the man, abstractly noting that they had similar hair. Related? Maybe. Brothers?--

--Oh. Right. Klavier did have a brother. Albedo drew a hand to his face, pressing against his eyes in an attempt to regain some mental acuity. The man spoke and Albedo watched from between his fingers, eyes clearly slightly as he spoke. There was no reason not to answer truthfully. No reason not to state the reasons why. He maintained a pleasant expression as he spoke, hand trailing down to rest at his side. He hadn't seen fit to shift away from the closeness of Klavier. "Because he was scared, I assume. Looking back at least. His anger was unbecoming and he refused to play with me anymore after I heightened our play."

The boy blinked once, something shifting to the forefront in memory. Albedo didn't look to Klavier, but his expression grew unreadable as he took in the man in front of him again. "Are you the brother that Klavier abandoned?" Because if so, oh, they had some things in common.

Klavier froze completely. For a moment, he was sure his heart actually stopped along with the rest of him. That... didn't just happen. No. None of this was happening. Albedo hadn't just blurted all of that out so carelessly to his brother. Klavier was still sedated and lying in a catatonic state in his room and was imagining all of this. He had to have been.

Exposing that Klavier had actually been frightened and had blown into a burst of anger was bad enough. Men of their calibur have enough self control to keep their emotions in check and to do otherwise was embarrassing. But revealing what he'd said about Kristoph?! Telling him that he was still so completely overridden with guilt even now? Admitting that despite everything... Klavier couldn't and wouldn't do anything to help?

The apprehension he'd felt before was absolutely nothing in comparison to that very moment. Any and all composure fell to the wayside, and Klavier almost looked like a child waiting for some kind of imminent beating. He felt like he was going to be sick. There was no way in hell he could possibly stomach looking at his brother head on, so he simply stared at Albedo, openly flabberghasted. His mouth opened as though to say something, but no words came out. He tried again. "Ah... N-... He..."

Only a few things could make Kristoph pause. That statement happened to be at the top tier. Not only had his brother potentially discussed a forbidden topic with a child, but he had the audacity to be sentimental over it. With a child. Short, snotty little brats lacking inhibitions as was just delightfully demonstrated. The man pressed a hand to his glasses as if to adjust them, the glint of glass hiding the acidic glare beneath.

Well. He had considered playing nice. Now there was no excuse. "Abandoned?" Kristoph echoed, pleasantries returning in the form of kind eyes and a wide smile. "You cannot abandon the Devil, child."

The title came as a jest as well as a reference, of which neither would get. And that was preferable. After all, inside jokes were the best sort, and Kristoph loved nothing more than the best.

At this, Albedo blinked, and his full attentions shifted to the yet unnamed man. The word had been spoken like a name, weighty and full. Of all the remarks he had been expecting, this had not been one of them. Albedo's eyes rolled to Klavier, considering, then returned to the man in front of him. Then Albedo smiled in full, a duplicate of what was given to him, grin wide and eyes almost shining.

After all, Albedo's subconscious was fond of distractions, even ones who--perchance--slid too close to home. "So you're his shadow," Albedo mused, his tones completely shifted from the child's voice he had worn the minute before. "Have you shown him darkness, or simply haunted?"

The words lacked common form, but it fell to Albedo's logic just the same. A Dark Half, dark to the light, something to trail in footsteps and carefully watch over... Something to guide in a way. A small part of him shifted at the knowledge that this man did not consider himself abandoned, but even Albedo did not know what indeed had changed within. His expression stagnated, the smile that seemed out of place slid into a line, eyebrows raised fractionally in a question. It was possible this was just a human having fun, but all the same....

Klavier had been so terried of Kristoph's response to this for a number of reasons, main of which being that it would reveal how Kristoph really felt about certain things including the younger brother. But again, he was caught off guard by the unexpected.

All apprehension swiftly dropped and Klavier whipped his head to look at his brother in both surprise and slight anger. He did not just refer to himself in that manner. He wasn't pulling this I'm-Just-A-Bad-Person thing out again. They were not discussing this... with someone other than just the two of them, at that.

When Albedo opened his mouth, Klavier turned his attention and irritation toward him. The man who looked like he might just shatter apart only a minute ago was gone. He was stern and resolved, something verging between defensive and angry beneath the surface. "He is not my shadow. Don't jump to stupid conclusions."

The creepy child (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/CreepyChild) motif was charming, in the "sucking of one's soul" sort of way. Of course, Kristoph maintained none of this humanity dribble and thus, had no soul to affect. He continued watching the boy, unnatural amusement dancing in his eyes. The posed question was ignored.

Eventually, Kristoph turned to the previously disregarded brother and, after noting the shift in expression, chuckled. "Lovely thing, this one," he stated. "Do not become so attached. We can't keep him." The words came with a warning. Of what, only Klavier understood for certain.

Day 44: Sun Room, Second Shift

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