damned_institute | M31-M40 Hall

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M31-M40 Hall

Darman still wasn't pleased with the fact he had a new cellmate, but there was really nothing to do about it.

When the doors gave that telltale snick of the locks opening, he went for the closet under the pretense of getting one of the thicker overcoats, and fished about discreetly for his last remaining knife - it was almost lovingly wrapped in the remnants of the hand towel they had raided from the kitchen the night previous. Concealing it in his coat, and leaving Faust to decide what he wanted to do, Darman stepped out into the darkness of the corridors.

He should probably find Ordo, although he hadn't seen the other clone since that encounter in the courtyard, and knew that there was always the possibility he was being interrogated (good luck with that) or dead. Most beings, if they knew what a Null-ARC even was, also knew they were instant death on two legs...and that the best Null-ARC to them was a dead one. Brother or not, it was what Darman would do if he were in the enemy's place. Keeping Ordo alive and imprisoned seemed pretty suicidal, although it still begged the question how he of all clones had been captured. Ordo was supposed to be just plain better.

Sighing, and deciding to be optimistic - he still did have his knife after all - Darman set off down the hallway, following his mental map toward the main men's hall near the "bathrooms".

[Darman's moved here]

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"Never mind." Seimei rose away from the bed, stood with his back to Ritsuka, arms clasped around himself. "I'm sorry. I've ruined it." He took a step toward the door as if he intended to leave, yet his hand never reached for the knob.

"I won't ask again." He murmured, playing the part of the injured party very, very well. "I just... I don't want their hands on me!"

Ritsuka sat up, taken in completely by the act. He was usually so clear-headed about these things, but when it concerned his brother... "No, Seimei- it's not like that."

Jumping off the bed, he ran up and caught the edge of Seimei's shirt in one unsteady hand. "It's just... I'm not..." His shoulders sagged and he tugged on Seimei's shirt hem pathetically. "Don't be sorry... It's just, I'm not ready to answer that yet. We're brothers, Seimei - I don't know if it's right..."

How to go about this now? He understood Seimei's feelings - the very thought of having the doctors being the ones who deprived him of his innocence sickened him. "I understand, but..." He tugged on the shirt hem again, pleading with the other to look at him. "Please don't be sad..."

"Is there anything right in this place? There's nothing right!" Seimei said, turning his face away so that Ritsuka couldn't see his expression.

"It's fine. It's only fitting that I suffer the same as you, after all. Whatever they did to you, they can do it to me too... if that's what's best."

He sighed and pulled away. "You said you wanted to look for your camera. Well, then, we should go."

He let go of his brother's shirt and stepped back as if struck in the face. He had hurt his brother. He'd just found him again and now he'd been the idiot to go and drive a wedge between them. "No! I don't want you to suffer - I don't want this to happen to you! I'd never let them do this to you!"

He felt like crying again. What could he say to make it better? He didn't want Seimei to lose his ears yet. He wasn't ready to be the one to take them. He didn't even know how to take them!

"Don't be angry... please, Seimei... don't be angry..." he whimpered, feeling the coldness and pain in his brother's tone seeping into him. What had he done?

"It's not right that it was done to you, either!" Seimei said, suddenly turning around and grasping his brother by the shoulders. "It's better that I suffer the same as you. We're together, aren't we?"

"Aren't we?" His brow furrowed, he suddenly sunk to his knees, tugging the other against him. "I am sorry I said such a foolish thing... I don't care if it is right or not... but I would rather you took from me than some stranger getting their kicks by playing with me."

"I'm... I don't want to drive you away... not after we have been reunited."

Ritsuka threw his arms around Seimei and held him close, trying to repair the damage his refusal had wrought.

"We are together - we'll always be together, Seimei. I just can't do that to you - not now. I'm not even sure it was done to me." Pulling back slightly, he took his brother's face in both hands, touching their foreheads together. He was too young, that's all he could think about. He'd refused Soubi how many times on that very same premise? He loved his brother, but there was just something that wasn't right about Ritsuka being the one to take Seimei's ears. He couldn't do it no matter how much he loved him. "I love you. I won't let them hurt you like that. I'll fight for you, I promise. I'll fight with everything I have."

He'd save his brother somehow. Even if it cost him everything, he'd fight to save him from sharing the same fate.

"I love you, Ritsuka." Seimei leaned up and pressed his lips against the other's, with a soft whimper, hands closing to fists on the fabric of his sibling's Landel's-issue shirt. "In all the ways a person can love another, that is how I love you." He whispered, a single tear sliding down his cheek; it added a needed effect. He could always cry on cue, from a young age when his mother was swayed by such tears.

"You are all that I have. For so long I have been alone here." His gaze tilted upward to include the other. "Promise me you'll never let anything or anyone come between us."

What was he supposed to do? He knew in the back of his mind that something about this was wrong, but this was Seimei and he couldn't betray him. For the longest time, the only one who had accepted the new Ritsuka and told him to just be who he had become had been Seimei. He couldn't reject his brother's confession completely. It felt like he was stabbing him in the back.

While he didn't return his brother's kiss, he leaned in and pressed his lips to the tear that had escaped, erasing it from the other's face. "I love you, too, Seimei. You're not alone anymore. You won't ever be alone again - I promise."

Now perhaps, he understood better what Tamaki had been talking about back in their room. Another fluttery kiss pressed to his brother's forehead and a reassuring smile, aimed at soothing his distraught sibling. He'd never seen Seimei so upset before. "I promise. You don't need to worry anymore. We'll be together."

This always worked like a charm. Seimei marked down a victory for himself in his mind and slowly got to his feet. "I believe you, little brother." He said and put on what he thought of as 'a brave smile.'

"You're going to sleep with me, at least, right?" He said, with warmth and just the slightest hint of a wry tone.

He sighed slightly, a mixture of relief and the barest hint of remaining confusion. At least Seimei believed him, meaning things would be alright. Looking up, Ritsuka returned the other's smile, trying to normalize the situation again.

After their baths, he had always wandered back to Seimei's room and watched him work for a bit before dropping off to sleep. He'd just assumed they'd do the same here. Although... with what had just happened, would it be alright? Ritsuka scoffed at himself for even thinking that. Of course it would be alright! This was Seimei, not Soubi. It's not like he would do anything in the middle of the night. Smiling up at his brother, he replied, "Don't see why I wouldn't - we always did back home, yeah?"

Seimei took Ritsuka's hand in his. "Yes, there was often little point to each having our own rooms, because we were together so much. I remember waking to find you draped over me, so warm... Other people might have thought it was weird... but we didn't care."

"Come on, let us see if we can't locate your camera. I know it is precious to you." He gestured toward the door with his free hand.

Fingers curled around the other's hand and he turned up his nose at the imaginary 'other people.' "None of their business anyway." He smiled up at Seimei. "It'll be nice to be able to sleep with you again."

Ritsuka hoped things were alright between them now, and that they could go back to how things used to be. At the mention of his camera, he reached back and picked up the flashlight from where he'd deposited it earlier and waved it at Seimei. "If we're heading out, we can't forget supplies, right?" He pulled up his shirt, showing the pens he'd clipped to his waistband. "I have these, too. Not much, but hopefully it'll be worth something."

Hand still clasping tightly to Seimei's, Ritsuka started for the door and opened it cautiously. He couldn't see anything outside, but it was dark and he wasn't sure if turning on the flashlight would be a good idea. "...any idea which way we should go...?"

Seimei grabbed his flashlight as well; it did have some heft to it, but in a fight, he'd probably run rather than try and stick it out. He had Ritsuka to consider, after all, and he didn't want to see his brother get hurt.

"Let's just explore a bit and see where it takes us." He said, slipping out and shutting the door behind them softly. "We should get to know the layout piece by piece, so we can find our way back, yes?"

"Alright, that makes sense." Ritsuka nodded and padded out after Seimei. The dark hallway was creepy and different from how he remembered it during the daylight. Everything must change here at night, he supposed. Hopefully it didn't change too much, though. He remembered seeing stairs outside and the rumor of the patients' personal belongings being in a room upstairs.

The hallway was empty - it seemed the other patients had already moved on. Nothing seemed wrong yet. He held his brother's hand as they left the hallway, the familiar feel of Seimei's hand in his giving him a little more confidence.

"I saw stairs over here this morning," he said, heading in their general direction. "I think that's the best way up."

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M31-M40 Hall

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