damned_institute | DAY 23: BREAKFAST

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DAY 23: BREAKFAST

That hadn't felt like an entire night.

And his goddamn head hurt. Pounded, even. Enough that he wondered if he was going to end up playing another round of "Christen the nurse" this morning.

Maybe it was because he'd spent so much time and energy trying to find Nowe. That could be the reason behind both those problems. Just the thought of it made his stomach turn, made him want to fucking choke something.

Still, there was shit to do. He forced himself out of bed to put away his pens and the other leftovers from the adventures that didn't happen last night. He'd have to try to talk to Sora today, to see if they could just do tonight what they were going to do last night... and to see if the kid was doing alright.

...he just wished his head would stop hurting. That was probably the result of just how badly he'd overreached himself the previous morning.

The nurse that showed up to get him was cheerful. He grunted at her, listening to her with only half an ear until she mentioned all the excitement, about someone pretending to be a patient, all that crap that Landel had mentioned.

Renji gave her a narrow-eyed look. "Dr. Landel is a goddamn lying coward, and he's lying about that, too," he said. Whether it was true or not, there was only so much good cheer he could take on a shitty morning. "I hope he chokes on a cock." No matter how much venom he put in that statement, it wasn't enough.

Then he had to listen to a lecture about language and gratitude for the rest of the walk to the cafeteria, so maybe it wasn't worth it after all. She dragged him through the breakfast line, and he ended up with granola and toast and tea and a cinnamon roll, because not even a shitty fucking night could ruin his sweet tooth. Though that thing was looking a little too sweet.

The cafeteria was pretty much empty; he had his run of the place. He sat himself about as far from the doors as he could get, and proceeded to stare at his breakfast.

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"It was his fault, and I-"

Time simply froze. Aidou's words were still ringing in his mind a few seconds after the boy had spoken. He didn't. The vampire's eyes widened, pupils shrinking to a near-nonexistent slit. The barb had stung him like nothing before. "Take. That. Back," he hissed, the sound barely human at all, as he began to struggle. Aidou was digging his own grave, and come hell or high water, he would pay.

If there was anything Alucard hated most, it was anyone bringing up the more...painful parts of his past.

But no.

He couldn't torture him right now. Too many witnesses. Instead, he settled with the hardest, coldest, most malicious glare he could muster. Devoid of any emotion except for hate. If looks could kill, Aidou would've spontaneously combusted by now. Deadly teeth bared, Alucard kept that gorgon's stare with the boy.

"Just wait till night falls. How dare you speak of them this way."

Aidou was probably going to be killed, and at this rate, Adelheid wouldn't protect him. It was one thing to be a victim, quite another to bring that fate upon himself. No, the important thing now was to keep that situation from spiraling out of control and getting innocents involved. If Alucard was injured, he would seek more blood, and that Adelheid couldn't abide.

...it felt sickening, actually being seen as working with the staff, but he offered a slight smile to the nurse as well. So long as they could keep Alucard under control, that was the important thing.

"Not here," he whispered, crimson eyes focused on the taller vampire... and only because he had fought against demons himself could he look at those eyes without shivering. Even then, it was only because of his determination that he even mustered up that courage, as even though the glare wasn't directed at him, such inhuman hatred was still stunning. "Not now, Alucard."

Disgusting as it was, he would have to interpose himself to make sure no blood was spilled in broad daylight. Between himself and the staff, nothing could win on their own. But he didn't want it to degenerate into that. Besides, it wasn't like the other deserved any notice, anyway.

The expression that settled over Alucard's face brought nothing but a perverse satisfaction. When Aidou finally raised his head, his eyes were light, clear, and full of mockery. He couldn't say why, exactly, Alucard reacted so strongly - evidence was against him, more than against him, when it came to the title of Dracula, leaving Aidou with nothing but disbelief - but if it resonated somewhere within him, then good.

"I have no interest in staying, so I'll be the one vacating," Aidou chirped at the nurses, smiling widely at both of them. The flow of blood was beginning to slow, and he absently rubbed the excess away with the edge of his hand. "And thank you for the offer, but I'll be fine. Wouldn't want to trouble you both."

Sedation would have been nice, but Aidou would settle for the boy trying desperately to calm the other like one would a rabid dog. For now, anyway. That scourge had a lot to make up to Aidou, after all. A lot. But what else did he know about Dracula? There was Bram Stoker's novel he had once studied...

Once the forgotten journal and pen were picked up and tucked away once again, he excused himself, turned his back once more, and walked away down the aisle. There was no fear to be seen, because on all accounts, Aidou wasn't alarmed.

He was just vengeful. Coming to an abrupt stop, he looked over his shoulder and wagged his finger at Alucard in a exceedingly insulting manner. "How dare I? I really don't see what you're so angry about, Alucard. I mean, after all, most of it was your fault. After all... oh, what was her name... Wilhelmina? Mina, for short? That was all your mess. Perhaps she made the right choice in choosing them over you, hmm?

"But don't get upset, I won't be concerning myself with you any longer." His gaze flicked briefly to Adelheid. "You or your plaything."

Aidou always had been good with dramatic entrances and exits. He kept walking.

Once again, Yuffie found herself staring up at the ceiling when she woke and she let a string of very angry words leave her mouth. Ugh! She was tired of this already! Just when they'd been about to complete their job! Either that had rotten luck, or someone planned that... Could that crazy man over he intercom knock them ot whenever he wanted to?

The thought was disturbing, but the ninja girl brushed it aside. No time to be thinking about that now. She noticed MOMO's empty bed as soon as she got up and frowned a little. She hadn't even bothered to wake her up? Oh well... Maybe she forgot... Though Yuffie was still a little miffed.

She threw the pillowcase back into her closet and stuck the key in her slipper before journeying out into the hallway. She assumed everyone was at breakfast, though she was a little surprised that she'd slept so late. Through the intercom even! So she didn't even know what was for breakfast...which kinda sucked.

But any thought of food vanished from her head when she entered the cafeteria and saw the beginnings of a scuffle, nurses included. Yuffie paused, watching with a healthy (or unhealthy as the case my be) dose of curiosity in her gaze. Interesting... No idea what they were fighting about, but the smallest of the three looked ~~really~~ cute. And seemed to be fleeing the scene.

That was really all she needed to go up to the boy and take him by the elbow with a grin. "Hey, troublemaker, come with me" she demanded in a hushed voice before throwing the nurses a cheerful smile, even if she'd rather be sticking out her tongue at them.

Nevermind the fact if the boy actually wanted to go with her... She was too busy leading him off across the room to worry about whether or not he would protest.

It seemed that things were settling down. The nurse let go of Aidou when he announced that he would be leaving, and it seemed that another patient had even come to collect him.

That didn't mean the nurses could leave just yet, however. Aidan had been mocking the other man, after all, and there was a chance Mr. Fairbrook would attempt to chase after him. If that ended up being the case, they were ready to sedate.

Hopefully, from now on, the two would know to stay away from each other.

"You didn't know the first thing that-" Alucard caught himself in time, forcibly becoming calm and composed as Aidou merrily strode away. His pride and temper were ranting at him to run up to the boy, and rip his head off in a single blow. But Adelheid was right, now was not the time and place. So the vampire stared hard at the back of Aidou's head, eyes still burning with fury.

Yes. Run. Run while you still can. You're dead meat by dusk. I'll find you and I will kill you.

The vampire took an un-needed breath to calm himself further, his clawed digits twitching. Nodding at Adelheid, he turned to face the nurses.

"Nothing more to see here. Now move along," he hissed, in a rather acidic tone, before going to sit down again, looking straight ahead at a wall.

A 'plaything.' That word grated on Adelheid, the other boy not understanding the full situation at all... but what rage he had felt dissipated in a moment. No, Aidou didn't understand; for that reason, the boy was beneath notice or contempt. He was looking, as always, for a cheap thrill; it was to his detriment that Alucard was such an easy target.

But Adelheid wouldn't be. He knew the full truth, and so the barb didn't bother the boy in the least, now.

"I think everything's under control," he added for the nurse's benefit, still watching Alucard rather closely now. Just in case.

That seemed to be the truth. While it was obvious that Mr. Fairbrook was still steaming, he seemed to have overcome his anger to the point that he wouldn't actually act on it. It was good news, considering what the alternative could be.

Besides, he had another patient looking after him. Considering it was a mental institute, that might be cause for concern, but the nurses could tell that Franz was much more lucid in comparison. They would keep an eye on them, but there was no longer any need to be directly involved.

"Enjoy the rest of your breakfast, then," one nurse said as she let Alucard out of his grip and watched him sit. Then the two of them moved away, though they didn't leave the cafeteria completely. Had to keep watch, after all.

Alucard was still simmering angrily when the staff finally vacated the area. Claws digging into the table, he continued to glare at nothing. Damn it, damn it all. He was used to simply killing insolent little gnats with a swat of his hand, but now one had gotten away with it while rubbing salt into his many old wounds.

"He's a dead man by tomorrow. I swear it," came the barely-human snarl.

The nurses went away, and Adelheid breathed a soft sigh of relief. While there was still a sense of tension in the air, Alucard still smoldering, at least there wasn't so much of a threat. For that, at least, the boy was grateful.

He ran his finger along one of the red spatters, frowning as he felt blood. "You cut someone in broad daylight; I was hoping for a little more restraint from you. Unless, of course, there is a reason why you decided to do so." No, Adelheid was not happy with this situation, nor with Alucard being so furious. Not happy in the slightest.

The vampire did not even bother with cleaning up the smatters. He wanted to take whole chunks out of flesh out with his teeth, and then consume the entire body and soul. Growling, he tossed Adelheid a rather withering look. "He's been a thorn in my side for a while already," Alucard replied, before going to put his head down on the table.

Adelheid may or may not have noticed that the vampire was actually sulking.

"And then he decided to take it on himself to insult the memory of my dead wife and son. Of course I was furious."

Adelheid didn't know what he was seeing at first. At first he was afraid Alucard was licking up the blood, until he realized there wasn't any over there. Then he wondered if it was a need for rest or to hide from the sun, but the tone of voice said that was impossible.

As strange as it sounded, Alucard seemed to be in the same sort of pose as Adelheid's own sister; that of sulking after not being able to have her way. The fact that this was a centuries-old vampire doing so baffled Adelheid to no end. So, best to get to the bottom of the matter as soon as possible, right?

"What did he say?"

There was a long pause. Adelheid wasn't really trying to -God help him if he was- aggravate him further, but then Alucard did not like talking about what happened either. "Things that one should never say in front of me. I'd rather...not repeat it. I'm already as furious as it is," he muttered. And the part about Mina? It gnawed at his pride. Really, for him to fall into such an elementary trap...

"By right, he should've been a bloodied smear upon the floor by now," he added with a growl. And in such a place, obviously he wouldn't get to do things his way.

"...I see." Adelheid still found it hard to believe. Count Dracula, sulking at a breakfast table. And from the grit of his teeth, it was obvious that Alucard was more than a little furious.

Even still, Adelheid kept his tone even as he asked further. He had overheard the tail end of it, after all. "Why are you so upset? He obviously does not believe your claims, nor would he know about any of your family. And if he's the one I'm thinking of, then he's been doing this for more than just you; why, then, are you acting as though his opinion matters to you?"

From what he had read, Dracula had been almost unruffleable, or at least, he had been from those who didn't matter. So seeing this was more than a little confusing.

"Like I said. There are some things, that can get under my skin easier than others. It's just that...none of my enemies or prey has lived long enough to actually throw such an insult at me," he replied grouchily. If he was going to hunt, he was going to do it with a focused mind. After all, it was far too easy to be blinded by rage. It was best not to get too worked up about it right now.

"See, that is the bad thing about being notorious. My past and my life has been recorded in many books. All he had to do was read them," Alucard spoke, his tone still rather gruff.

"It only matters now, just because he was foolish enough not to hold his tongue. Had he simply left, I wouldn't have pursued the matter."

Hm... Adelheid leaned back, thinking. On the one hand, if that was a human, he had made Alucard swear not to hunt them. On the other, the man had kind of brought it on himself. It was an interesting ethical quandary; especially since he was certain that the other wouldn't be appreciative of any efforts put forth on his behalf. "I do suppose that he should have held his peace, or at least not gone to such lengths to bait you. Although..." Although he still considered Alucard a bit dense for both falling for the bait and for falling with such passion that the boy would be certain to do it again.

"Which is he?" Adelheid was quiet, yet still calm; surprisingly so, given the situation. Family was dear to him, so he understood Alucard's position, but there was still that niggling doubt. "Prey, or an enemy? Or rather; is he one like you, or more like me?"

A clearly warning tone accompanied that last question; if the one was human, then Adel would protect him. That was the agreement he had reached, and he wasn't going to let Alucard think that he could kill a human for a mere insult.

"It's his fault. I'm still wondering if I should have him beg for mercy before killing him," he wondered aloud, his tone of speech taking on a sharp, wicked edge. It was nothing more than a few, mere words, but picking on a lesser vampire was one of Alucard's hobbies too. Aidou healed too fast to be a human anyway.

At Adelheid's next question though, Alucard let out a harsh bark of a laugh. "Enemy. He claims to be a vampire, and in our ethics, it is suicide to show such disrespect to an elder. More so a king. I simply must discipline him."

His anger was again, ebbing away to be replaced by that thrill he loved when he was allowed to hunt. "I suppose that settles your question then? He isn't human, and thus I can do whatever I want."

"Hm..." Adelheid considered that, resting his hand on his chin and gazing at the red staining his finger. There was definitely a question of fault and blame, and yet Adel had noticed something. "...and yet he had only said such things after you had clawed him across the face."

He was silent for a moment, then turned once more to the vampire. "He is outside of our agreement, perhaps, but you may wish to reconsider your hatred of him. For some of us, drawing blood would have resulted in much more than harsh words. Besides, he is one of the few of your kind here; you should consider this carefully."

For Adelheid, at least, drawing blood was a very serious, very dangerous matter. One that he was still feeling weird about, letting Alucard taste that blood. To simply claw because of an insult...

"This little feud of ours has been going on for a while now," Alucard shot back, now absently grooming the blood off his clawtips, and wiping the smears off the table to remove them. Mmm. It was sweet, and it actually was more of an incentive to hunt the little bastard down. "It has only escalated to this over much...talking on both our parts. Of course, Aidou did try to kill me last night..." the vampire added absentmindedly, his perpetual smirk returning.

Everything was simmering down quite nicely now. "He claims to be a vampire, that is the key word. But yet, he has breathing and a heartbeat. Perhaps, no...if. IF he actually manages to convince me about his being one of my own, then perhaps I may spare him," he spoke, with all the mannerisms of a playful housecat.

Adel raised his eyebrow at the first statement, somehow finding it tremendously amusing. "Did he try to kill you before or after you enacted your plan to hit him with that monster? I may not have your senses, but even I could smell the lingering scent. And, again, there is much worse that could have been done over such a slight."

Honestly, the entire situation was starting to become less serious and more humorous, somehow. Perhaps because it was all intensely silly to an outside observer; both vampires were taking such offense at each other for such small things, things that Adelheid had long ago learned to just put up with and deal with as best he could. Perhaps, when one lived so long, it was necessary to hold on to such things? Or perhaps it was simply a question of power, power that could make one feel each slight like a knife...?

A slight grin and a shrug answered that playful smirk of Alucard's, and Adelheid added, "I suppose that's the best that can be expected. As well, don't forget the other terms of our agreement; if you've found any worthwhile information or items, I'll pay for it." A pause, and he continued, "That is, of course, assuming that you have found anything... I imagine that, with your personal mission, such would not be the case."

From little arguments on the bulletin, to exploding corpses. Yes, they had come a long, long way. And Alucard hadn't even started with the fun either. "Hah. I wager he was already trying to eliminate me before. Something about being a rampant 'E-class'," he replied. Again, Alucard had naught the foggiest idea of what an E-class was.

If that was simply a term to describe a ghoul, however...

"And yes, I know I'm going quite far, because of a petty squabble. But trust me, between vampires, or any other creature which lives this long, every little bit matters. It at least alleviates the boredom which comes, when you have too much time and nothing to do at all." But enough of that. He was already missing his Master as much as it was. He yearned for her directing his warpath...and he just missed her in general.

"Of course. In fact, my so-called 'mission' might have me stumble upon something interesting, even."

That made Adelheid tap his chin again, thinking for a bit. For as long as Dracula had lived, he still wasn't the oldest being that the German knew. Perhaps it was different, when one had been human and was later divine? It was certainly something to wonder about, later.

"I don't know about the system he's referring to, but 'E-class' generally refers to the lowest class of whatever is being referenced to. An 'E-class' fighter is barely worth mentioning, an 'E-bracket' race is hardly heart-pounding, and such to that extent." He wasn't sure, but that was his best guess; referring to a very low-class vampire, one with few powers. Which, considering the locale, would likely describe both of them.

Still, he thought that there was at least some progress made. 'Progress' being a nebulous term, naturally. "So long as you realize that it is nothing more than a petty squabble, then I suppose there isn't much more to say. And once you find something, let me know and we can arrange something. Or, should we simply go to the same place tonight, and see if you've earned more?"

The teenager grinned as he started standing up; so long as he was allowed to set the terms, he could handle this. Not that he harbored any delusions as to Alucard wanting to change the situation around, but for now it seemed safe enough. But then, then he faltered for a brief moment. Something gnawed at the back of his mind, and who better to ask than another monster? "Alucard... might I ask two questions about your state?"

"Ah. So it is as I have thought. My pride and title demands I'll have to prove him otherwise then," he spoke serenely. Labeling someone like him as something a little more than a ghoul servant, it was a blow to his already beaten pride. And now that a mere boy had dismissed him than nothing more than a pestering gnat, Alucard was so tempted to prove him wrong. Unlike his dream of killing the Head Doctor and eating him, the vampire could, and would inflict grievious injury to Aidou.

"Alright, that sounds good to me. I'll see if I can get some exploring done tonight."

With a wave of his hand, he nodded at the last question. "By all means, shoot."

"I've explored most of the second story near the patient's blocks; hopefully there will be no need for covering the same territory twice, correct?" A bit of a smile at that; he would have hated for Alucard to obtain that Adelheid would not pay for; that would make him seem to be other than a man of his word, and such he would not abide.

As for the other question? He took a deep breath, then looked into those gleaming eyes. "Firstly, do you suffer from a... 'beast', or otherwise fly into bloodthirsty rages which you can not control? And secondly, if so, what have you done after falling into such a state?" Only another monster could speak on the situation, right? And if someone else knew about how to handle it, then Adel would at least know something, wouldn't he?

"Correct. I thank you for telling me this in advance," he replied smoothly, nodding once. To tromp through hostile territory -while fighting off any monsters- to earn nothing, that would make things between the two of them go sour almost immediately. And Alucard did not want to lose his only source of willing food.

At Adelheid's last question, however, Alucard grinned, licking his teeth. "Bloodlust, hmm? Well..that depends. I do have an 'inner' beast, so to speak. But as long as no one actively tries to aggravate me into losing my temper entirely...such uncontrollable rages should be easily avoidable."

"As for what I have done...well..." he hadn't really flew into such rages in quite a while. Integral kept him controlled. Alucard kept his hands neatly folded on the table. If one looked closely, one would be able to see faint inscriptions upon the pale skin.

"I go on a rampage, what else?" After which, Integral would bring him back to reality with a harsh tug on the leash.

DAY 23: BREAKFAST

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