damned_institute | Day 51: Breakfast

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.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

"Thanks," replied Sakura as her cheeks turned slightly red. Even though other patients had also commented similarly, she still wasn't used to people calling her name pretty. It was just so normal at home, but when everyone came from different worlds, it was easy to see how names could be interesting or even pretty.

As she listened to Kairi fish for the words to describe her experiences, Sakura began thinking about her own experiences here at the institute. She had only been here for a little over a week and that was already terrifying. However, Kairi had been here for what seemed like over a month, and she didn't even know what was going on for part of that time. Most likely, Kairi had gone through everything Sakura had already gone through and more.

Once the conversation shifted toward her home, Sakura felt a little more at ease once more. "Me?" she asked in verification. "I live with my dad and brother in Tomoeda, Japan. Or... I used to. I woke up in the institute a little over a week ago and have been here ever since." The young girl paused for a moment as she mulled over her captivity before continuing and sending a smile toward Kairi. "But I'm sure we'll both find a way back home. Where are you from?"

"Japan? I've been meeting a lot of others from Japan," she said with a smile. "But I've never heard of Tomoeda yet. Everyone normally just tells me about Tokyo and a few other places."

So many were from the Earth world. It once again made her realize just how small her world truly was. The only ones she had seen from her world were Sora and Riku. She couldn't help but wonder what would happen if Selphie suddenly appeared in the institute, or maybe Wakka. Kairi wondered how they were.

However, once the conversation shifted back towards her, the once princess smiled sheepishly. "Destiny Islands. It's a pretty small world, so it's understandable if you've never heard of it. We don't really even have a lot of people there anyway," her smile turned genuine. "I live with my mother and father. They found me on the beach when I was younger and took me in and kept me for their own. Still, it's a nice place to live - I live only a few yards away from a beach. You hear the ocean no matter where you go."

Talking about home often made her homesick - especially because she hadn't been there in so long. First she had been to Twilight Town for a bit, then to The World That Never Was ... it truly felt like years since she had been home.

"I know we're all going to get home. I'm sure of it. I know plenty of people who are working to find a way, and I believe in all of them."

Sakura nodded in recognition that many others had come from Japan, but few from Tomoeda. Although she wanted to see the faces of her father and friends, she honestly hoped that no one else from her home ever had to come here. The place had a way with messing with your mind which Sakura probably wouldn't have been able to deal with had Yue and Touya not helped her through it.

"Destiny Islands? That sounds like a pretty place," the young girl commented. "We have to drive for a while to reach the ocean, but living by it must be nice." She remembered how enjoyable her trips to the ocean had been, excluding the incident with the Erase card a few years ago. Kairi's parents seemed nice too, so it was no wonder that Kairi was so friendly.

Sakura nodded in excitement as she heard that lots of other patients were trying to find a way home. "We're trying to find a way home too -- oniichan, Yue-san, and me that is," she explained. "We haven't found it yet, but you're right. With so many people, we'll definitely get to go home!"

Kairi smiled. "It is. Palm trees everywhere, mostly blue skies ... my friend and I got so bored of it when we were younger that we tried to build a raft and escape to other worlds. But now ..." Looking around the cafeteria, the once princess sighed. "There's no place I'd rather be."

Turning back towards Sakura, Kairi's smile once again grew. "My friends and I are as well. We're a part of the Arts and Crafts club - actually, my other friend and I are trying to talk our friend into being the leader of it now, since apparently the old one is gone," she said with a soft laugh. "But he's stubborn, so I don't know. But still, someone has to find a way out of here! There's so many of us, how can we not?"

However, the word "oniichan" had Kairi pausing, and she tilted her head to the side. "What's oniichan mean? I know I've met someone who used it before, but they never told me ..."

As Kairi described the Destiny Islands, Sakura mentally painted a portrait of what it sounded like in her mind. Once she had finished filling in tidbits with her imagination, to call the portrait paradise almost seemed like an understatement. As long as your friends and family were there, it seemed like the perfect place to live.

"Arts and crafts?" Sakura repeated as she listened to Kairi's explanation. "You guys... make art?" Sakura had heard a bit about clubs before, but even though she never really looked too into them, they always seemed like night-related groups which tried to solve the mysteries of the institute. So it seemed strange that one club seemed to be making art?

Yet Kairi's last question took Sakura back a bit. Sakura used oniichan so often that she took it for granted that some of the other patients might not understand. She smiled warmly before responding, "Oniichan means big brother where I live."

Day 51: Breakfast

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject