Nightshift 49: West Wing, South Hall 2-B

[scalyfishman.livejournal.com]

[from here]

The hallway was empty, but Depth Charge was used to that by now. This place seemed to have a thing for drama, and what could be more dramatic than footsteps echoing in a long, bare, dark hallway?

Checking briefly over his shoulder to make sure Hime was still following him (like Pit he was going to lose sight of her around here, not with his track record), he bypassed the first door and stopped in front of the door to the sleep trial hallway. "Not broken down yet," he commented, giving the door a little experimental push with his shoulder. As expected it didn't budge, but it gave the same old satisfactory creak that indicated it could be easily broken down. "Congratulations. We're the first here tonight." The first ones not strapped down, at least.

Obviously, expecting the princess herself to do any manual labour was out of the question. Dropping his flashlight expectantly in the general direction of Hime's hands so that he at least had one hand free, he stood back, gripped the crowbar in both hands and swung it at the lock so that it made that satisfying little chipping sound he was so used to hearing around here. A few solid hits and the lock would free up, good as gold.

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[herr-inspektor.livejournal.com]

The panic subsided a little as that door passed him by at what seemed like a blur. There. It was an irrational fear, anyway, of course it was: being near the room was inevitable in this part of the second floor and, at any rate, he was the one in the driving seat tonight. Yes. That moment had almost verged on embarrassing- there was no basis in such illogical feeling. All it did was delay them further.

"What did you decide between you?" Lunge asked, before that same old conversational rhythm could miss a beat. Hopefully, all L would notice was that his pace had momentarily picked up. There were other patients in both corridors, and he adjusted his volume accordingly.

[ryuuzaki]

"Yes, control," L murmured, as they reached the top of the stairs.

Before he had the chance to continue speaking, the atmosphere became more charged than usual. It was Lunge, who seemed -- L gave him a speculative sidelong glance, appraising his current state -- who seemed to want to be anywhere else, other than where he was. L prepared for him to bolt back down the stairs, even as he doubted that it would happen.

Instead, Lunge picked up the pace and passed through the hall at the top of the stairs, then around the corner, in a grim headlong rush.

L didn't know what to call the area; Edgeworth's map had left it nameless, but it didn't seem to need a name. It was a place where no one wanted to be unless they had to, or unless they were driven by altruism to help someone. Lunge's reaction was the best L could have expected apart from indifference, which was unlikely. Would I be able to muster it...?, he wondered. ... No. Signs of post-traumatic stress are involuntary.

As they left the two locked doors behind them, L listened for noises beyond the wall -- Nothing. Yet he knew that at least a few unfortunate souls were being tormented just a few yards away, and the knowledge kept him moving, propelling him towards the next door, the one at the end of the corridor.

The beam of his torch, as they approached, showed that someone had already pried open the lock. That meant that they might have company in the next corridor. If it was unavoidable, he hoped that it would be the benign sort.

"I wouldn't say that a decision was reached, but we discussed loose collaboration, among other things." He had already told Lunge that he wanted to wait until he was certain they were alone before he revealed any specific details. But then the realization struck: He is covering his distress. L, resigned, let out a soft sigh. "I think Dr. Jones was the only one to raise any specific objections."

They had reached the door. He put his back to the wall, and his flashlight up, and made sure that his knife was accessible. Then, he pushed the door open with his foot, and stepped through.

[To Sphinx's Chamber.]