Night 46: Main Hallway, 1-West

[quickdrawbkiddo.livejournal.com]

[from here]

Beatrix had walked this path to the Sun Room so many times, she could do it in complete darkness. Which was exactly what she was doing. Knowing the way, there was little need for light as it would only draw creatures and other unwanted attention. Silently counting her steps, at the right number, the assassin headed left and down the hallway.

[to here]

Comments

[spandexorgtfo.livejournal.com]

Kratos indeed had an inkling of which Hitsugaya was the real one. From their clothing, he had gotten the sense that the one in the strange uniform was in fact the true Hitsugaya, since there was no reason he could think of for a mimic to wear that sort of clothing. Most patients still wandered around in the Landel's uniform; to deviate from that would mean drawing unnecessary attention and suspicion.

And of course he had suspected the strangely-dressed Hitsugaya of being an SC patient, but the more he thought about it, the less it seemed reasonable that an agent of the institute (even if it was just for one night) would attack another and give time for him and Hokuto to escape.

There was one problem, however, with his hypothesis: it was a hypothesis. Kratos disliked operating on conjecture, and until he had definite proof of which one was true, he would not interfere, not if he ran the risk of injuring the real Hitsugaya. The institute did sometimes run contrary to logic, after all.

Still...he wasn't about to be caught unprepared. Tilting his head back, Kratos muttered to Hokuto, "I suspect the second one is the real thing - suspect." Even as he said that, he was pushing his teammate back, giving himself some room and her more leeway for escape, and shifting into a better position for attack.

[damned-monsters.livejournal.com]

Unlike many of the more bestial creatures roaming the Institute at night, this particular one was blessed with an important weapon: intelligence. He was no burly fighter; his style was usually to lure prey into a situation beneficial to him and then strike. Since that clearly hadn't worked, due to the unfortunate interruption of the one whose form he had assumed, he now had two options. Fight or flee.

It took only the barest instant of consideration to assess the situation and decide which one was the better. And only an instant later, it put thought into action - and fled.

The mimic threw himself to one side to avoid the sword blow, turning the lunge into a flat-out run as soon as his balance was right, heading for the safety of the darkness. There was plenty of prey about tonight that would be easier to obtain than this.

[akarusa.livejournal.com]

"...I guess that answers that," Hokuto finally said, blinking. The monsters here had self-preservation instincts?

It didn't look like Hitsugaya was hurt, but she'd seen too many anime where mimics like that tracked down their original and hurt them before taking their form. "Are you okay?" She knew better than to fuss over him like she would a real little kid, but she was still concerned.

Hopefully, their mission tonight wouldn't be over before it even started.

[itstaichoutoyou.livejournal.com]

Even after his foe had fled to the shadows, Hitsugaya stood there with his blade pointing towards the darkness, but after he was certain the danger had passed, he lowered his sword and turned towards his comrades. He wished he could have sheathed his blade to make himself look less threatening; no doubt his comrades were probably still a little rattled and suspicious after a run in with his look alike, but the truth was obvious to see as Hokuto had mentioned. "Yes. I would never abandon my comrades to save myself."

Honestly, Hitsugaya had been expecting more of a fight from his double. To his knowledge, it was first time that a monster had ever retreated from a patient without fighting. Clearly the creature was intelligent enough to recognize a losing battle when presented with one.

"I'm fine," he replied, waving away Hokuto's concern. Although his head wound was still bothering him a little, it wouldn't have an effect on his performance tonight. He'd dealt with much worse before. Perhaps, something within the bundle of medical supplies that Kagura had left him might help his pain? He'd have to check later.

Hokuto seemed to have accepted him as the real Hitsugaya, but Kratos was, as usual, harder to read. And while Hitsugaya was concerned that his teammates might have been harmed somehow by his double, they both seemed fine, at least physically. "My apologies for being late. My room was suddenly changed today, so I had to make a detour. How are you two? That impostor didn't do anything to you, did he?"

[spandexorgtfo.livejournal.com]

"Ah...yes." Kratos stood there blankly for a few seconds, unable to comprehend not only the fact that a monster had actually chosen flight over fight but also that he had been right in his assumption. Which gave plenty of ammunition for hindsight...

But, hadn't things turned out for the best?

He dropped his sword and sheathed it, backing away from Hokuto now that the danger had passed, and giving Hitsugaya a rare, wry smile. "No, he didn't. Your interruption was quite timely." A few moments later, and he was sure that either he or Hokuto would have been injured somehow.

[akarusa.livejournal.com]

"Nothing," Hokuto confirmed. She was definitely weirded out, but the thing hadn't touched either of them. "He showed up and just said we should get moving since we have a lot to do." If the mimic hadn't managed to get them separated or otherwise in a situation convenient for attacking them.... what would have happened? It would be beyond bizarre if they just had a normal (if there was such a thing) mission while they were unknowingly being led by a monster.

Hopefully, it had taken off in search of easier prey; if it planned on stalking them... well, if she saw any one of a number of people from home she was missing, or friends from here, that might not go well.

[itstaichoutoyou.livejournal.com]

"That's good," Hitsugaya replied stoically. He was glad they were both safe, but showing his feelings just wasn't his style. However, due to his experiences in this place, he was trying to change his ways, but it was slow process, like a snail's pace. The only outward sign that Hitsugaya felt relieved was that his glare wasn't as harsh as usual.

After he gave his team a few more moments to calm down, Hitsugaya decided that they had rested enough. They needed to move on. "Since you're both alright, we should go. The night grows shorter, and we have a job to do."