Day 47: Recreational Field [Fourth Shift]

[scientist-skye.livejournal.com]

Ema let the nurse lead her through the facility and out into the recreational field. She wished the nurse hadn't have taken the journal out of her hands to be left in the room--there was quite a bit to take in and Ema's hands were itching to record every little detail. If she was, in fact, kidnapped in order to prevent Lana from being proven innocent, then she was going to have to pass along everything she possibly could to Mr. Wright the instant she managed to get free.

However, that hypothesis was starting to fall apart, as much as Ema wasn't quite ready to let it go. The nurse had called her "Marie," for starters, and it was becoming increasingly obvious that Ema was not the only prisoner. This was a rather large facility, and there were several cells (dormitories?) that lined even the halls the nurse led her through. And then there was that comment that her family had admitted her. That made the least sense of all; Lana couldn't have done this to her to get her out of the way of the trial.

Could she? Lana was really well-connected; it wasn't likely, but it was possible. The thought made Ema a bit sick to her stomach. The two of them didn't get along these days, sure, but to have her kidnapped and locked up somewhere? That was just cruel. Her sister was not cruel. She hoped.

Maybe it was better that Ema didn't have her notebook. She was too lost in her own thoughts to really take in her surroundings. Before she knew it, the nurse opened the door to the recreational field, smiled down at her, and told her to go have fun. Wearing the same smile, she gave a warning not to try running off--there were people watching, and this place was for her own good. There went that idea.

New plan: talk to other prisoners (patients?) and see what the heck was going on. Ema strode past the nurse and into the field, hoping that she wasn't going to be forced to actually do anything physical while outside. Sports were not her thing, and that was the last thing she wanted to be put through after the day she'd had so far.

[Free~!]

Comments

[thatdamnedninja.livejournal.com]

"I am not," said Yuffie, "wearing a coat."

And that was that.

Really, it wasn't that cold outside. With her running start, the cartwheels—standard, aerial—and the handsprings, both calculated and spontaneous, she was already warm again by the time she reached the equipment shed. Frisbee in hand, weighted briefly just for the sake of it, she tumbled into a backward somersault and ran to find a spot in the mostly empty field. Somehow, it wasn't difficult.

For a long moment, Yuffie stood still. She breathed. The air was sharp and her muscles didn't even burn. Good, that was—good. Awesome, actually. It was disconcerting—had been disconcerting—when such minor scrapes and bruises had actually hurt. And they'd hurt bad. Which wasn't good, she decided, throwing herself suddenly into a new routine, because when she moved she wanted to feel weightless. Or, well, not exactly. It was tough to explain, even in her own head. Move like the wind moves, Godo had told her, years ago. Move like fire moves. Move like water. And when in stillness, blah blah blah.

She kept herself on a tight leash, in an imaginary circle only so wide.

The Frisbee flew and she tracked it, caught it seamlessly, let it fly again. Sometimes she held it, moving through half-disguised kata. It was playful enough not to ping on Plucky's radars, Yuffie thought. Soft enough. Not sloppy, though, because that would be silly. Dumb. Exceedingly embarrassing, too, since these moments out on the field were almost (nowhere near) enough to be a pride and joy. She'd had a good day so far, and nothing was going to ruin it for her.

[For Euphie.]

[euphemise.livejournal.com]

On the other hand? Euphemia definitely wanted a coat, though she'd settle for burrowing into her sweatshirt a little more than she would have otherwise. It was nice to get some fresh air, though. She stretched her arms above her head, her face turning up towards the sun - now that was more like it.

When she looked up, she couldn't help noticing - who turned that many flips and stuff and made it look like it was nothing? That was impressive, and she couldn't keep herself from watching for a few minutes. The princess watched as if she was at a tennis match, following the Frisbee with her eyes. Up, down, back around, then almost like a dance.

She finally approached the other girl with a bright smile. "That was pretty amazing! I'd have fallen right away if I tried anything like that."

[thatdamnedninja.livejournal.com]

There was a pink thing spectating. Very pink. Pink enough to out-pink even Aerith, maybe, except this pink was in the hair and not in the clothes. Yuffie watched out of the corner of her eye, lip curled into a half grin. It was always nice when people paid attention to her.

And it was even better when they complimented her!

Yuffie slowed when the girl approached, slipping smoothly out of her routine. The Frisbee cut through the air in one last loop, arcing back to her hand at the apex of its circuit. "Practice makes perfect," she replied brightly. "So does natural genius, but, well." It'd taken her years to iron the natural clumsiness that'd haunted her early years, back when skinned knees and scraped palms had been a permanent feature. Nobody needed to know that, though. Nope. Nobody.

The girl was familiar, she realized then. Hair that pink was hard to miss, and Yuffie liked to keep an eye out for the people she knew. Suzie, for instance, and even Lulu. This girl—what was her name?—spent quite a bit of time with the both of 'em. "Do you want to try?" she asked instead, curious. Testing the waters.

[hajike-tobiume.livejournal.com]

It was a bit chilly outside, so Momo was glad her nurse had given her the jacket to wear. Wrapped up in it, the small shinigami sat down off to the side (so as not to be in the way) and propped her sketchpad up on a leg. With easy, smooth strokes, she started to draw, a pencil box resting on the ground by her feet.

Though she was looking at the paper, her eyes were not seeing it. Her eyes were turned inward. Furudo Erika. What an odd girl. Lost in thought as she replayed the conversation from lunch, Momo continued to draw.

[Yowatashi Boshi]

[constellates.livejournal.com]

Well, lunch had been... really fun. It was interesting to be around someone who was really obviously strong... It made her kind of excited, to see that kinda strength in the Institute.

At the same time, though, it was a little worrying. There were so many strong people here, so many people who could do so many things, and yet they hadn't figured out how to bust out of this place.

On the other hand, there were so many reports of people disappearing. Everyone kept saying it was the worst thing ever, and she knew some people died and stuff, but... couldn't the rest of them just have escaped? She made a mental note to ask on the bulletin...

Ahhhh, the recreational field. To the nurse's chagrin, Alkaid refused to put on the coat she offered. Cold like this was fun. Much warmer than Sapporo in this type of weather. No snow flurries to speak of. Except wasn't it, like, July back home? Don't think about it, don't think about it, Alkaid...

Spotting a familiar face - or one that she, uh, hoped was familiar, now that it was daytime - she jogged over. The healer girl was crouched over a sketchpad. Should she... sneak up on her from behind? Nah, that would probably ruin her drawing.

So Alkaid settled for a simple wave, slowing her jog and walking right up to her from the front. "Peaches! Hey! I didn't know you were artsy." She bent over a little to see what she was workin' on, though it'd be upside down.

[hajike-tobiume.livejournal.com]

The wave was missed by Momo, so she didn't notice Alkaid was there until a shadow partially covered her sketchpad and the girl spoke up given how deep her thoughts had been. The form on the paper was the same one she'd been drawing anytime she let her hand move of its own accord. Unlike the one she'd drawn in her doctor's office, this was a much more detailed fire bird as she was using her own pencil with the sharpened point. The eraser half of the broken pencil was held between her teeth, so she was sure she had to look somewhat comical to Alkaid.

Removing the pencil so she could talk, Momo gave a bit of a chuckle. "A girl needs to have a hobby, doesn't she?" Since Alkaid seemed interested, the shinigami tilted the sketchpad down a bit to make it easier for the girl to see. "I illustrate the Seireitei Newsletter back home."

[mistressmadgirl.livejournal.com]

Ah, there was a look Agatha was familiar with. It was the look of someone watching the world not just to see it but to analyze it. Usually she herself was elbow-deep in clank parts when she wore it, but there had been a disappointing lack of equipment so far so it probably didn't mean much that this girl wasn't.

If she was right, maybe she could get an assistant, or maybe they could pool whatever resources they could get their hands on and do more science that way. So she approached, waving, from where she'd been inspecting some of the sporting equipment for potential usefulness.


[Want a madgirl, Ema?]

[scientist-skye.livejournal.com]

[Of course! These two were fated to meet. XD]

Ema was surprised to find herself noticed by one of the women outside almost immediately. The woman was approaching her, so Ema shifted directions to more-quickly close the distance between them. She didn't look like a nurse (she was wearing the same ridiculous t-shirt-and-sweatshirt combo as Ema was dressed in, after all), which meant that she might get real answers.

Plus, there was something about this woman that Ema instantly liked. She wasn't quite sure what it was exactly--possibly an unconscious realization that this woman was a fellow SCIENTIST--but Ema was willing to follow her gut. It was better than nothing at this point.

"Are you here against your will, too?" was the question Ema asked once the woman got close enough that conversation was possible. She wanted to make sure that everyone was in the same boat.

[mistressmadgirl.livejournal.com]

Agatha made a face. "I don't think anyone wants to be here," she said with all the distaste she could summon, which was considerable. "I've got things to do at home, they have no scientific equipment where I can get to it, and the Head Doctor is incredibly patronizing."

It didn't actually occur to her to mention the rumors of monsters and brainwashing. She hadn't personally seen any yet, whereas all the rest came from her own experience. Besides, she had monsters at home, too.

[tofindherwings.livejournal.com]

Well, that was her good deed for the day. Or week. Or for however long she could go without doing good deeds for random people. She wasn't an altruist by nature, or at least, any bent towards altruism she might have had had been thoroughly trained out of her by ShinRa. It wasn't anything that she missed. But perhaps Agatha could be useful at some point. She'd have to keep notes about the people she met more thoroughly. Since one of their number was gone, they were in a more precarious position too. She had no intention of relying on these clubs for information either.

She let the nurse lead her outside, glad for the fresh air and the chance to stretch, not to mention take in the view of an area she hadn't really visited yet. She set about walking the perimeter, a foot or two from the wall, hands brushing it occasionally, feeling for hand holds. The wall was slightly crumbly, weather worn, which suggested that it was relatively old. But in this place, who could tell? At night the place looked as though it had been abandoned for years, like some of the old ShinRa labs.. During the day it looked pristine.

[Free]

[cursed-exorcist.livejournal.com]

Every time she met with Yomi, it was emotionally draining, although, the encounter wasn't that bad this time, since Kagura had steeled herself.

The recreational field looked nice during the day, completely different from how it looked at night. It was amazing what the nighshift could do to the environment. When the shadows rolled in, the grass looked like a haunting sea of green, where anything could be lurking. Within the institute, there was no telling where the monsters would ambush the patients. Although Kagura had yet to encounter one, her exorcism job had taught her not to expect anything during combat.

She walked along the perimeter, scanning the walls. Kagura had proved they were scalable last night, not that escape mattered much, since they always woke up in their respective rooms come morning. During her walk, she came across a young woman with reddish-brown hair, who seemed to have had the same idea.

"Hi," Kagura said out of the blue, having stopped walking, since their paths collided.

[tofindherwings.livejournal.com]

Someone else had the same idea hm? Cissnei had spotted the other young woman doing much the same as she was, walking the perimeter scanning the walls for anything that could be of use. It was both reasurring and a little depressing to know that someone else had the same idea. Hopefully this didn't mean that it had been tried too many times before. That would be frustrating. She was going to have to check it out at some point. She'd just have to kick Rude's ass into gear and make him do something instead of pining. So Reno was gone? It was annoying but she could deal without the red-haired idiot if she had to.

"Hello," she replied when the girl spoke, giving her a small smile. "Looks like we have the same thing in mind."

[mizuhomaiden.livejournal.com]

A part of Sheena wanted to stay inside where it was warm and curl up on a couch, preferably with someonething soft to use as a pillow. She chose not to, though, knowing that the outdoor destination was the rec field.

Wrapping herself in a coat provided by her nurse, the ninja shuffled outside. Shaking her head when offered a selection of balls and other exercise implements, Sheena walked toward the shed in the back. From that location, she had a decent vantage of that damn window on the third floor she'd tried to break. It looked like a regular window. She had been hoping that in the daylight, maybe she'd notice something off. Either there wasn't anything visible or she was simply too far away to tell. Or it was a magic barrier.

Huddling into her coat more, the ninja sighed and pondered just going back inside. At least it was warm in there. How she hated being injured as much as she was; it made her far more sensitive to the cold.

[free]

[mind-the-sukima.livejournal.com]

"You're kidding, right?"

It wasn't like Yukari to be irritable or not see the humor in any given situation, but when the joke was so obviously on her, she sometimes took offense. Having had her fill of both food and conversation, the youkai was perfectly prepared to go back into hibernation until night fell, but apparently her nurse had other ideas. Before Yukari could so much as look at the couches in the Sun Room, she was herded through the patient blocks, stopping just long enough to be suited up with a coat, before being thrust out of the building and into the crisp winter air. While Yukari enjoyed the outdoors, she preferred to enjoy it from somewhere warm and not actually out in it.

Still, no matter what kind of look, unamused, irritated, pleading or cajoling, she gave her nurse, the woman seemed completely unwilling to let her retreat indoors again until the shift was over. Phooey.

And it didn't look like Yuyuko was out here either. At least playing with her might have been a little fun. Giving the field a second look, now actually paying attention to figures that didn't have violently pink hair, Yukari spotted somethingone just as good over by the shed. Trotting on over, the youkai faked throwing herself on the girl in the last few steps.

"Sheeeeenaa~!" she whined to the girl, much as her friend had to her two shifts prior. Yukari had enough sense not to just throw her arms around the ninja's body though, remember her back injuries, and instead latched onto her uninjured arm. "They forced me out here and won't let me go back inside!"

[windstwilight.livejournal.com]

End of the day was finally close. She hadn't ended up seeing Soma, but she was sure she could find Meche at least. They'd been meeting almost every day for the past few days for fourth shift, and she had faith that the habit would continue for awhile. At least, for today.

But there wasn't a whole bunch of people here when she got out. Eh. She could kill some time. Wasn't like she hadn't done so before. The cold wasn't enough to stop her. There was plenty to do. Like....

The Shinigami paused in the middle of the field, hand on her hip in thought. Well. There was some. But if Meche wanted to insist on a race, Senna had better stretch out. Sleeping for days didn't do much for a person's flexibility. To that, the girl shrugged, then twisted her torso to the side, only to duplicate the motion in reverse a moment later.

[for Meche!]

[sheisthecause.livejournal.com]

Meche bypassed the equipment and headed out onto the field, buttoning her coat down as she went. She left the bottom few undone to give her legs more room to move--not that she thought it would've mattered too much if she could have buttoned herself all the way to her toes. She was almost certainly going to lose, and lose hard. Good thing winning had nothing to do with her reasons for challenging Senna.

It wouldn't hurt sometime, though. She'd better keep up with the cardio, especially since Dr. Wilson approved so much. (Ha ha.)

The little reaper was already out there in the middle, stretching out. Meche hurried to join her. "I'm glad to see you're already warming up," she called teasingly when she was in earshot. "You're going to need all the help you can get to beat me."

[ninelivesonce]

Taura jogged onto the field, coat flapping as she looked around for Utena. The young woman wasn't anywhere in sight, so she jogged back to where the medics were clustered out of the breeze. She dodged meeting the eyes of the woman she'd half strangled the other day, and walked up to one who looked entirely unfamiliar.

"A few of us were hoping to play a game?" She wasn't sure she'd recognize any of the gear, but the staff should. Sure enough, the woman's eyes lit up, and she immediately crossed over to the shed and started dragging out an elaborate apparatus involving a lot of rope. Taura grabbed the two poles -- both taller than she was, which meant the 'tech had had her hands full trying to keep both ends off the ground as well as the sagging netting.

[group volleyball shenanigans, a.k.a. Utena, Harley and Anthy]

[revolutionise]

Despite it being forced by the nurses, Utena had very much enjoyed sitting down with Sakura and Euphy. She almost hadn't wanted to leave, they were both so friendly. She wouldn't have minded hearing more stories about the ninjas of Konoha, either. She couldn't say no to being outside, though, especially not with the promise of a good game involved. It had been way, way too long since she had gotten any exercise that wasn't also tied to escaping from some danger or another. The fact that she would be able to play with friends both new and old was a definite plus as well.

By the time she made her way outside, she could already spot the nurses helping a woman with brown, braided hair set up a volleyball net. Utena hadn't been able to see all that clearly in the dark of nightshift, but from what she could remember (very tall, athletic build, braided hair), she figured that the woman had to be Taura. She smiled widely and started jogging toward the net. "Ooooi, Taura!" she called out, waving as she approached. She slowed to a stop, then asked, "It's Taura, right?" to be certain that she had the right person. "I'm Utena. Nice to meet you in the sunlight where we can actually see each other," she greeted with a short laugh. "Thanks for getting things set up, by the way. Volleyball should be great for the group size we're going to have."

[angels-inflight.livejournal.com]

When given the choice between going outside or staying cooped up in the Sun Room, Naminé's answer was so predictable that she wondered why her nurse kept asking. Then again, there were so many patients to keep track of that perhaps she just didn't remember. But Naminé didn't mind, smiling as she walked out into the rec field and breathed in some fresh air. It would do her good to stay outside and think for a little.

She had a lot to think about. Riku and Kairi had returned to the Institute, something that worried her; yet, she couldn't help but feel glad at the same time, because now they could be with Sora. It was wrong to keep the three of them apart, but at the same time, she felt like wishing they could be together in a place like this wasn't much better.

There was Roxas, who remembered nothing, and Axel, who remembered something. So many familiar faces today... Who would she meet next? Naminé wondered if it would be another friend, or a member of the Organization. She closed her eyes and sat on the soft grass, taking a moment to calm herself. No, it wouldn't do to worry about things she couldn't control. She would have to think about helping Sora and the others now.

[ for KAIRI, her soul sista~ ]

[kingdomless.livejournal.com]

Meeting with Sora and Riku had been absolutely wonderful, and Kairi felt as if nothing could possibly bring her mood down. Sure, they were still stuck in a hellish world, but at least they were all together! Now all she had to find was Axel and Naminé ...

Speak of the devil.

The second Kairi felt the breeze on her face, and shut her eyes and breathed in, tilting her head back and enjoying the sensation. It felt like ages since she had been outside, and it was something she severely missed. Too bad she couldn't go to the beach ...

When she opened her eyes, the first thing Kairi noticed was her Nobody. Like a connection that couldn't possibly be severed, she found herself moving towards the blonde as if she had no control over her body. And yet, despite that, she couldn't help but smile and wave her hand to her friend. "Naminé!"

[witchoftruth]

Finally! Erika would have liked it if the nurse complied with her demands to see this 'recreational field' because of her detective's authority, but it looked like she could no longer rely on that. Hmph. However, Erika was not a third-rate detective, and therefore wouldn't allow herself to be hindered as she marched out onto the field and surveyed the area.

This climate... Yes, it certainly did seem like she was in the New England area, nodding to herself. The claims that they were in New Jersey was still unsupported, but the area could be correct. Of course, as brilliant as Erika was, she knew it was not enough to make such claims without the correct proof. Proof that she would obtain, in time.

For now, the rec field offered nothing more than a view of the outside, so Erika took her time leisurely strolling the lawn as she took in every single detail that she could. In the moonlight, it was sure to look different, so she had to get her bearings now.

[ ONE CREEPY DETECTIVE, FREE TO A GOOD HOME. ]

[gald_digger]

The recreational field? Great timing! Anise was just thinking about trying to sneak out again through the field, so this would give her a chance to look around and confirm her route. The girl walked around the edge of the field, stopping once the shed was close enough to be seen clearly.

Last night's route had probably been the best. Aidou really had known what he was doing; the wall behind the shed was the one place on the field where they could climb without being seen by enemies.

...Well, that was that, then. It was time to find something more interesting to do! Finished with her surveying, Anise turned and started to walk back, but as she did, she caught a glimpse of a blue-haired girl out of the corner of her eye. She didn't think anything of it at first, but after a moment, she did a double-take.

Rika?

She looked like her... but something was off. Her hair was longer, Anise was pretty sure, and she definitely looked older. Actually, the longer Anise looked, the less the girl seemed to resemble her roommate. But there were still a lot of similarities too, so... maybe it was her sister or a cousin or something?

Without thinking, Anise had stopped walking. While standing a little ways away, she stared at the girl curiously.

[chainsaw-royal.livejournal.com]

Hime's look towards her nurse was even more flat and unimpressed than usual, if that was at all possible, when the woman suggested she go out to the recreational field. It was the kind of look that asked, "Do I look like I need to recreate?" or better yet, "What makes you think I need a field to do that?" It seemed her chaperon was immune to such glares before and the Royal saw little point in trying to argue. Having to do what other people who had no authority told her to do was such a pain.

The air wasn't quite cold enough to cause her breath to fog the air, but it was chill and sharp when she breathed in. She huddled miserably in her jacket as she stood by the sidelines of the field, having no intention to actually play. She cast a glance over at the activities shed.

How ironic that she'd spent all last night getting there and now she could just walk over at her leisure and take whatever she wanted. Well, not that she'd be allowed to keep it, but really. Maybe they'd get some time in the courtyard soon and she could take a look in the gardening shed and see if it was worth a trip at night.

[Free]

[number1smiley.livejournal.com]

With the way Teresa's body seemed to be reacting to her death, the hybrid decided she's run herself through some of the drills she did as a whelp. It felt ridiculous to have to do them, but if she was to engage in something remotely threatening in her current state, she should get to know the limitations of her body.

Off to the side, away from the others, Teresa closed her eyes and began. After the basic warm up which looked like nothing more than general exercises, albeit a bit fast, she shifted into a sword form. Granted, she lacked her claymore, but anyone with the right amount of knowledge or imagination could envision the great sword in her hand as she swept her arm about.

[Soma]

[madeinthehrl]

[Sorry about the wait. Backthread?]

It was surprising how being held captive changed Soma's view of the outside world. She'd been raised in a closed environment, breathing the same recycled air for eighteen years before she'd ever set foot on Earth. Fresh air had never been something to miss. And yet she couldn't help feel more relaxed as she stepped outside.

She was handed a soccer ball with surprising speed--her nurse said something about her having played at home. She didn't need the reminder of yet another girl she wasn't, especially so soon after her conversation with E-0057, but she took the ball anyway and kicked it down the field. At least she knew how to play.

She spotted Teresa a short distance away from most of the other women, apparently stretching. As she neared, Teresa shifted into a different form--almost a martial art, it seemed, except there was clearly a weapon missing. A sword or some sort of bladed weapon, she thought.

The soccer ball came to a rest against her foot. Soma ignored it and said nothing, not wishing to disturb the older woman.