Day 48: Courtyard [Fourth Shift]

[gald_digger]

So much for a relaxing shower. Anise couldn't possibly relax around someone with a voice like that! This was beyond weird. How could a girl who didn't have any relation to Sync have the exact same voice as him?

And what made it even weirder was that this wasn't even the first time Anise had encountered something like that. There was a boy, who also had tattoos like hers, who sounded just like Luke. What was his name? It was so long ago, Anise couldn't remember. Maybe she'd know it if she heard it again, but...

That gave her an idea. She wasn't using her journal for much besides cooking notes, recipes, and a few room numbers, right? Maybe from now on, whenever she saw or heard something really strange or suspicious, she'd write it down. Then, if it happened again or she learned more about it, she could look back to the entry and add the details. She'd call it... 'Anise's Mystery Diary.' That sounded kind of cool!

During the lunch shift, Anise worked on putting as many memories as possible to paper. The radio man, the rumored third floor, the ruins she found last night, things like that. By the time fourth shift rolled around, she wasn't quite done yet. It was getting harder to think of more things to write about, even though she was sure there were hundreds of mysteries in the institute. Maybe she'd feel more inspired if she took her writing outside.

"Oh, Dolores!" A nurse came to stop her as she was walking out the door. "If you're going outside, you should put on a coat! We wouldn't want you catching a cold." Even though Anise disliked being assisted by the nurses, she cooperated as the woman helped her into the coat, quickly putting Tokunaga back in its place on her back when they were finished. It did look kind of cold out, so there was no point in arguing.

Outside, Anise found herself a bench to sit on while she wrote some more in her journal. Occasionally she'd pause and fidget with the pen for a bit, or doodle some stars and other shapes into the corner of the page she was on, unsure of what to write next.

[free!]

Comments

[chainsaw-royal.livejournal.com]

Regardless of whether or not Hime was lonely - though, not that she'd tell anyone, she had to admit she did miss her friends from home... oh, and Hiro too - she wasn't really one who would seek out other company to ease that. On the other hand, neither was she one to turn down company that sought her out, at least not without good reason.

While it was, perhaps, a little odd to be approached by a young boy with a pink stuffed rabbit, it wasn't threatening or offensive. Hime turned towards him and also smiled, though hers was much subtler.

"Good afternoon," replied the Royal. "My name is Hime." He seemed awfully enthusiastic, a rare mood to be in here. "You're surprisingly cheerful."

[host-club-honey.livejournal.com]

The girl didn't smile very big, but at least she was nice. He smiled right back, taking a few steps closer.

"It's nice to meet you Hime-chan," he replied, nodding his head slightly in place of a bow. Maybe he was cheerful, but it helped him as much as it helped others. At least most of the time it did. As long as it kept his mind off of the loss of his friend, then it was all the better.

"I like meeting new people and... and it's always nice to get outside and play. Even if the weather isn't so nice. Rain is good sometimes too."

[chainsaw-royal.livejournal.com]

Her observation wasn't meant to be a recrimination, just that most here were of a much more dour mood. If anything, it amused Hime, as evidenced by the way her smile grew a little.

"Rain does have its uses," she agreed. "Watering plants and keeping vampires away among them." Though in her situation at home, that could just be inconvenient if Reiri got cooped up inside too much. It wasn't like she needed to be out and active like the werewolf, but no one really liked being cooped up inside. "It leaves the air a lot fresher afterward as well."

[host-club-honey.livejournal.com]

Honey giggled and gave Hime a curious look. While most of her answer was perfectly normal, the rest stuck out, somewhat strange. "Vampires don't like rain? I always thought they were scared of the sun."

Just like Nekozawa! He'd seen in first hand! "You think they're really real? Me and Takashi and the rest of Host Club dressed up as vampires for Halloween one year, but I've never seen a real one!"

He took in a breath of the air, easily catching the scent of coming rainfall. "But I do like the smell a lot!" Takashi probably did too. His nose was a lot keener after all.

[chainsaw-royal.livejournal.com]

"Vampires are weak to a surprisingly large number of things," said Hime with a smile. "Running water is one of those weaknesses, and that includes the rain. However, killing them for good is another matter though." Hopefully, if there were any vampires here she wouldn't make enemies of them or they lost their vampiric strength. She somehow doubted a mental institute had white ash stakes lying around.

"And I know for a fact they're real," explained the Royal indulgently. His childlike wonder was truly amusing. "One of my close acquaintances is one, after all."

As for the smell, Hime couldn't say she liked or disliked it. If it did rain tonight, however, that would be inconvenient for their plans.

[host-club-honey.livejournal.com]

"Wow," he breathed with a quiet smile, "you really know a lot about them! That's amazing Hime-chan! Isn't it dangerous to be around them?" A couple weeks ago he might have doubted just how valid her claim was, but after fighting off a zombie invasion, giant robots, and making friends with the local ghosts, he was willing to believe a lot of things he wouldn't have even thought of before.

"Or if they're your friend, are they nice? Does that mean there's good vampires and bad vampires?" he asked, curious now. If there were vampires here too, who knew what kind of creatures they might find next.

[chainsaw-royal.livejournal.com]

"Hmhmm, of course I do," she said with a note of pride in her voice. "As a Royal, it's only fitting that I know all about the many and varied monsters that populate the Kingdom."

Vampires were one of the larger factions as well, so it would be shameful indeed if she didn't know as much as she did about their ilk.

"Well, I wouldn't say she's nice," said Hime with a smirk, "but she's friendly enough. I hear she's quite well liked at school and is protective of the little lambs in her flock of followers." Though she couldn't help but think they weren't far from being sacrificial lambs. "So yes, you could say there are good and bad vampires. She's aided me on several occasions, not least of which was against another vampire who had imprisoned my sister."