damned_institute | Day 49: Morning

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Day 49: Morning - Main Street

[From here.]

Easily forgiven? Unlikely. A pair of (presumably) mental patient committing theft. No, it was highly unlikely they would be easily forgiven. Conscience-wise? It wouldn't even stain his thoughts, really. Nothing like ten years of judgemental slaughter to make your mind jaded against the simpler crimes in the world.

Either way, it could prove to be... okay, he didn't want to say fun because not much about Venom was even slightly amusing (and Edward was very much ignoring the teenage part of him that was all ready to rebel), but it could prove to be adventurous. Especially since he didn't have the agility nor the power to make the feat easy. Having Alice play the stock market wasn't exactly the most hands-on way of stealing after all. It couldn't really be called stealing, after all... it was just using her naturally-created gifts to further the family's fortune.

So his morals were a little skewed. That was okay with him.

Once he'd left the polluted bus behind him - fresh air, thank god - he smiled to see the sky completely overcast, the smallest drops of water misting through the air. He shrugged into the obnoxiously bright raincoat he'd been given, tucking the coupons and the untouched breakfast into one of the pockets, covering his face with the hood. The suit he was wearing was a little worse for wear, but the vampire wasn't exactly looking forward to marching around damp.

Waiting just off to the side for Venom, Edward surveyed what he could see of the town so far. It didn't seen very big... which was good, he supposed. That way it would be easier to navigate. Now that the first order of business had been planned, they would need to find the right outlet for their theft opportunity.

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Aigis had been impossible for Utena to dislike. The two of them had shared a lot more in common than she was used to seeing in other teenage girls, even if Aigis had been a good deal more soft-spoken than Utena. She was certain that the girl (or the android, whatever) would live up to her goals, especially if any of the friends she wanted to protect were in the Institute with her.

Speaking of friends. She kept her eyes peeled for that telltale head of violet hair as soon as she stepped off the bus. To her surprise, she soon saw Himemiya getting off the very same bus she had been on. She must have missed the other girl getting on after her, and felt a little guilty over that. Well, it's natural to get wrapped up in something. It probably doesn't really matter, she assured herself. All Utena really cared about was seeing her friend again after the night they had shared. "Ooooooi! Himemiya! Over here!" she called across the heads of disembarking patients with a big smile and a wave, still in a very good mood after talking with Aigis. Nothing could keep her down right now - neither the drab look of the town nor the rain.

Well, no, that wasn't entirely true. She did start to feel a bit worried when she noticed the dreary look on Himemiya's face. "Hey, you feeling okay?" she asked when they got closer, wondering if the girl was still feeling disoriented after the previous night. Or maybe she was the type to get motion sick? Utena didn't really know. Sometimes it felt easy to read Himemiya, and other times it felt nearly impossible; now was one of those latter times.

She couldn't help her nerves, considering that the last time she'd faced down unhappy townsfolk went very poorly, but at least the targets of this apparent disdain were spread out amongst a group. The sound of Utena's voice calling to her distracted her soon enough. Anthy's face lifted as they approached each other on the sidewalk and she chased away the dreariness.

"I'm fine," she replied. "I wasn't expecting all this when I woke up, but I take it this is part of the routine, somehow?"

However -- however, oh gosh, what was Utena wearing? The jacket and the shoes matched her hair in a way that was positively adorable. This was the first time Anthy was getting a good look at the new ensemble and she couldn't help but give her friend an unabashed once-over, her fist curling into a little ball as she lifted it to her chin and her expression tinting towards delighted. Of the few times she'd seen Utena in clothes that might be called feminine, she thought she actually liked this one best.

"Oh, Utena, you look very cute," Anthy commented, almost teasing.

Utena felt a twitch coming on. She knew Himemiya meant it as a compliment, but...

"Ugh. Is it really that bad?" she asked, lifting up the hem of her pink raincoat between her thumb and forefinger. Her cheeks flushed a similar shade of pink when she looked back up at her friend. "Think I'd rather have your outfit. I mean, it looks great on you—" and Utena really meant that "—but at least it's not, uh, well." She gestured down at herself from her waist bow to her heart-splattered rain boots. "This."

She shook her head, reaching out to touch Himemiya's upper arm. She started leading them away from the buses and east down Main Street, careful to walk slowly to go easy on both their injuries. Storefront damage and graffiti passed by their gazes as they went, and now that Utena really noticed it, she couldn't get her eyes off it all. She couldn't help but remember the words of the man the previous night, either. "Anyway, coming here is part of the weekly routine, sure, but all this isn't," she answered, waving her hand out at some of the vandalized walls. A short pause, and then she asked: "Hey, didn't that guy say something about coming here after we helped him? You don't think...?" She was pretty sure Himemiya could guess at her meaning.

Anthy couldn't help the chuckles that escaped, even as she appeared to be trying to hide them behind her fist. The institute had given Anthy a sports jersey underneath this coat and Utena a pair of heart-print rain boots, and this remained funny to her even as they walked away from the buses down a new street. She settled down and moved in a little closer to her friend's side once the conversation shifted to more important matters.

"Mm, he did, didn't he..."

Her gaze scanned up and down the buildings, taking in all the vandalism once more. That person they'd met last night had the potential to unlock a few mysteries about Landel's, if they could find him again, but was he really on their side? At the time she didn't know what 'Doyleton' was supposed to mean, but now she knew. Anthy noted that her bagged goods and coupons in the over-sized coat pocket were probably getting wet, fiddling with the garment as she walked.

"Although if this is his work, all it's done is upset the townspeople living here."

Utena heard the chuckles loud and clear. Oh geez, it really is that bad, she thought with an audible sigh, though the sound of Himemiya's laughter did keep her from being as frustrated as maybe she would have been otherwise.

"Yeah, I don't know why he'd choose to do this, either. If it was even him," said Utena, gazing at a spray-painted yellow smiley face on the side of a building as they passed it by. She couldn't think of anyone else with a clear interest in Landel's who would have been able to make it down here. It had to be him. At least as far as she could figure. Ahhgh, but there's still so much we don't know about him - about this whole area! she thought, shaking her head in confusion. "Maybe it's supposed to be a message to us? To Landel, maybe?"

Edited 2010-04-21 07:39 (UTC)

"Should we try to find him and ask him?" Anthy wondered as she craned her neck to peek into the different shops. He wouldn't be anywhere in plain sight, that much was for certain. "I don't know where we'd start, but..."

While glancing at the ground for a moment, she noticed their blurred reflections in a puddle passing by. When she'd left Ohtori to find Utena, she'd had every intention of starting over anew, but it was truly difficult to do that in a place where they could be turned against each other as soon as night fell.

She had to do something about it for now, then. Anthy turned quiet and contemplative after she trailed off. An idea came to mind, but Utena probably wouldn't like it.

"Sure would be nice to try and get a straight answer out of him, yeah," Utena answered, starting to stretch her arms behind her head out of habit before her side told her that doing so was a bad idea. She winced, lowering her arms again as she added, "Where would he be hiding, though? Would he even still be around town?"

She noticed Himemiya staring off toward the ground as they walked, not saying anything back to her. The girl looked like she was thinking intently about something. "Mm? What is it, Himemiya?" she asked curiously.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Utena flinch. It was apparent she could not even lift her arms without discomfort, and although Anthy had an injury to match, Anthy was without question the one who'd been the cause of both. Her resolve hardened before she spoke.

"Utena," the name as it was with no additions still sounded strange on her tongue, but the more she used it, the more used to it she got. "If it ever happens again, I want you to run."

The meaning was clear. "I want you to get as far away from me as possible and wait until morning."

"Eh?" Utena blinked with slightly widened eyes, not having expected that. The sudden warning combined with the unencumbered use of her name made her slow down some. She wanted to think that maybe Himemiya was talking about something else, but just from the way she was talking, Utena knew that the girl couldn't be referring to anything but that night.

"Most people only get SC once, though, don't they?" she protested after a moment of dumbfoundedness. "You won't get hit again. And even if you did, I still wouldn't run. What kind of person runs when their best friend is in danger?"

Edited 2010-04-21 19:14 (UTC)

In truth, Anthy didn't yet know how often things like "Special Counseling" were supposed to happen. It was a bit of a relief to hear that most only experienced it once, but her worries could not be completely assuaged, her eyes lidding as she kept her gaze low.

"We don't know what else they might do. In the short time I've been here, the both of us have been brainwashed very successfully. We have to be prepared."

"If the situation looks dangerous, I don't want you to get hurt again. Bonds between people can be used for sinister purposes in places like this. Odds are by morning everything will be back to normal, so it's best to just run."

Utena listened to Himemiya go on. It was true that both of them had been taken under the Institute's control at this point - Akio still was too, if her theory about visitors was right. But still, the idea of just running? That didn't sit right with her at all.

"No, everything is not always 'back to normal' in the morning," Utena insisted more strongly. "You already disappeared once, Himemiya. We were lucky being brought back together again, and I'm not gonna let us get separated again! I don't care if I get hurt!"

Disappeared once... Utena mentioned something before about that. In Anthy's opinion, that was only more proof that the institute was too unpredictable and they were better off acting with as much ration and caution as possible. There was a more simple reason for her request, however.

Her chin drooped a little father at Utena's words and reaction-- it was predictable, and it made things heavier.

"...I do. I care. I don't know if I could stand hurting you like that a third time."

It was words like that that made it hard for Utena to keep up her protests. She felt her chest and shoulders fall - she hadn't even realized they had tensed up. The rain spattered down on their heads and coats, filling the silence between them. She felt horrible all of a sudden. Why hadn't she thought of it from that perspective? Wasn't she supposed to be working on seeing things from Himemiya's - from Anthy's point of view? And here she was, already falling back into instincts and old habits at the drop of a hat.

". . . I guess when you put it like that," Utena started, her her mouth dry despite the rain and her throat tight, "I oughta make sure you don't do anything you couldn't live with, right?" The words were still uncertain on her tongue.

Anthy shook her head lightly, eyes fluttering closed for a short minute. "It's still my responsibility. I have to deal with what I've done. But..."

It came back to her in flashes, the other night, the last duel, all the times she'd taken flat-out advantage of Utena with barely a second thought. She'd learned that she could do a number of truly awful things to Utena and the girl would just keep coming back to call Anthy a friend.

She lifted her head and shot Utena a quietly amused side-glance. "I know how stubborn you can be."

Edited 2010-04-22 23:06 (UTC)

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Day 49: Morning - Main Street

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