Day 51: Breakfast

[thatdamnedninja.livejournal.com]

Yuffie Kisaragi, indomitable bouncing ball of sunshine and unfathomable ebullience, was tired. It'd been a long night full of gibberish and getting nowhere fast.

"Can't I—"

Plucky, who had been busily loading a plate full of French toast and bacon, tittered. "I'm afraid not, Hanna, darling. A chat over a nice, hearty breakfast would do you a world of good, don't you think?"

"Aaaaactually—"

"Come on, let's find you a seat. Plenty to choose from this morning!"

For a long moment, Yuffie seriously considered doing something—anything—to act out. Punch her nurse, rub jam in an orderly's face, climb a wall and hang off the ceiling, jump on a table and parody Loveless… A ruckus like that would definitely jolt her back into gear, right? Sedation aside. And it'd turn Plucky's good day right on its head, which was always a bonus worth shooting for.

But, by the time she'd reached a decision—and it was an epic decision, a really awesome one; everybody'd appreciate the genius, she was sure—she was already alone. Her breakfast tray had been set down neatly by the nurse, who had left with an infuriatingly winsome smile.

"Wow," Yuffie muttered. Shaking her head, she picked a chair at random and threw herself into it. She kicked back, one arm slung across her eyes, to wait. For what, she wasn't totally sure. Some moron to decide that she looked like good company? That was how it usually went.

Comments

[feartehreaper.livejournal.com]

"No," came the once more purposefully-general answer, accompanied by a sideways glance and serious, careful tone- an attempt to avoid letting on anything more than mild annoyance. Names were one thing, but just because Haseo gave up his own didn't mean he was simply willing to give information to just anyone about who his friends and... whatever Endrance was were. He was already troubled about that anyway; he couldn't deny that the closer he let the Blade Brandier get to him, the more danger they were both put in. The institute had already proven the sort of horror they could pull off. What could be next?

It was a sobering thought, and since he had already been in a mediocre mood to begin with, his attempt to cover the reaction was probably only partially successful. It wasn't like he was able to hide behind his PC here, even if the way he was able to persist steadfastly remained.

... This morning. "Oh," Haseo said, just as short as his previous denial. He finally looked over again, feeling a bit off-balance for a reason he didn't get at first. It wasn't as if he hadn't met someone new before, but... after a moment he realized that it was the word 'admitted' that tipped him off. Usually, it would be something like 'told I was admitted' instead.

"Well... you should know this isn't a normal hospital," he said then, rearranging the fruit left on his tray. Even if he was on-edge and Maya seemed a little weird, it was only right to warn her. Due to the implausibility of the premise, there was a chance he wouldn't be believed anyway, but it was a start.

[selfnighted.livejournal.com]

Once more, an abrupt answer. And a suspicious look, too! Perhaps it was time to let the subject drop.

"Mental institute, you mean?" Was there a difference between hospital and mental institution? Maya had never bothered to find out. Or did he simply not like it here? Or...something to do with her little adventure last night? She had been returned to the room unharmed, but perhaps it was not so innocuous as that. "How is it different from a normal hospital?"

[feartehreaper.livejournal.com]

Haseo frowned at the table. "You aren't actually crazy, right?" he answered, "Most of the people here aren't." Okay, so he wasn't an expert in explaining things, but that seemed reasonable. The part where they were all held against their will and told a bunch of lies about who they were was the most obvious thing wrong about the stupid place.

The suspicion in the Rogue lingered still, however. There was something about the way that... oh, he'd been mercilessly PKed the first time he'd played 'The World', and a good deal of the things he'd witnessed since that time, that made him wary of those who acted like Maya was. It didn't help either that, aside from the one day where some of the patients had been brainwashed to do so, Haseo had yet to meet anyone who actually believed any of the institute's stories. From the beginning it seemed most people could tell something was off, even if there was little chance they would also be able to predict monsters roamed the halls at night... until they were told or saw it themselves, of course.

[selfnighted.livejournal.com]

"No, I think that's normal in mental institutions." Smiling, Maya picked up a slice of apple from the food she hadn't—until now—touched. "What are you in for—no...I mean, what were you brought in for?" It didn't seem a question he would clam up for, but...perhaps not. "...If you wouldn't mind?"

Maya nibbled at the apple as she considered. She would ask if something was bothering him, but she'd already tried that. However, earlier, she'd only been teasing with a slice of actual concern. She wished she hadn't used that card so early on; it seemed to have only made him more uncomfortable. She hadn't figured until now that she'd have something to bargain for. Hmm, but she'd had nothing to give in the first place. Only what she'd experienced last night.

By all accounts, it wasn't good to feed a person's paranoia, but... "Hey." She leaned forward conspiratorially, being careful not to get so close—she didn't want to imply or otherwise indicate she might touch him. "There was a flashlight under my pillow last night. And a scary noise came from the speaker system. Is that what you mean?"

[feartehreaper.livejournal.com]

... This lady thinks I'm actually crazy! Haseo thought, feeling a bit of stunned annoyance, Or... is acting like she thinks that, I guess. He straightened in his seat slightly, expression flat as he just stared at Maya for a long, tense pause. Were people being brainwashed again? If she actually did consider herself worthy of being institutionalized or whatever, then... what?

"None of your business," he answered at last, though he briefly toyed with the idea of regurgitating the ridiculous story he'd been fed by the daytime staff and 'visitors'- that little tale about anger and jealousy and hurting people in retaliation for imagined slights. Maya probably would have believed it too, motorcycles and all. But she definitely didn't need to know about the stuff he'd actually been through... or his suspicions about the real reasons he was there for.

In the end, it wasn't his responsibility to make her see the dangers, or for that matter, even tell the truth. Or feel sorry for her. If it was a ploy to trick him somehow, then he wasn't falling for it. Should the offer to meet her after dark come up, then she was getting stood up, damn it.

"Hey, I thought you were admitted this morning," he remarked, setting his elbows on the table. A pause, and his eyes narrowed. "But yeah, you could say that. You don't have to believe me, but if you're not into fighting monsters in the dark, you should really keep an eye on that flashlight."