[from here]

The women's block was empty as she turned from her hall into the larger connecting one; there were fewer and fewer people here every day. She'd slept through almost all of it herself; would she be next? It might be welcome. On the other hand, they'd made something approaching real progress last night, if there was any point to any of it.

And she didn't especially like the idea of leaving Ryuuzaki alone. He wasn't the easiest partner she'd ever worked with, but she'd soured on the idea of perfection anyway; she and Damon had been like hand in glove, and that had turned out so well, hadn't it?

[to here]

The Head Doctor had dropped most of his pretense. That was always a sign that a change was coming -- a witness about to spill a secret on the stand, a defense attorney no longer trying to pretend they believed their client was innocent. A detective offering to forge evidence outright. Landel was either confident or overconfident. Or just exhausted. He had had a tumultuous few weeks, after all. Much more so than when she'd first arrived, and the Institute had been running like a terrible, orderly machine.

Lana packed in silence, the keycard and her gun being the two most important items, stowed carefully in her coat pockets. Then she grabbed her radio and flashlight and headed out.

[to here]

We'll see how long that lasts.

Those ominous words followed Lloyd as he made his way out of his room. Tonight, unlike last night, he'd chosen to wear his own clothes, red jacket and black pants, red gloves and boots, despite the metal that would get him into trouble if he had to go through that metal-detecting trap again. The Key Crest on his hand meant that he'd be in trouble anyway, so he figured he might as well dress as he wanted. His tool belt rested comfortable around his waist, packed with the things he thought he might need. His sword rested in his hand, ready for any attack, though he wished, not for the first time, that he had something to sheathe it in and make it easier to carry when he didn't need it. At least his other hand was free now that he didn't need to hold his flashlight. The little lamp he'd taken from that first aid kit last night dangled at his hip, attached to his tool belt with the ring at the top. It jostled with each step and he couldn't aim it easily, prompting him to take his flashlight along with him, too, tucked into a pocket in his tool belt, but the fact that he didn't need to hold it more than made up for that. It also made up for the fact that he had to stop every twenty minutes to wind the light back up. He'd spent dinner playing with it, getting a feel for how long the light would last.

He'd tried not to think about his roommate's still-empty bed, or the plate of food growing cold on the other's desk. It had been days since he'd seen Claude. What had happened to him? If he was gone, or if he'd escaped, then why did they still bring him food? Lloyd had tried to ask his nurse, but she'd just brushed the question off with a smile and a reassurance that "Thomas" was fine, then told Lloyd he needed to worry about himself, she'd hardly seen him eat a thing at lunch.

Lloyd frowned at the memory, then shook his head, pushing it to the back of his mind. He needed to focus on what he was doing tonight. Footsteps sure, he rounded the corner.

[To here.]

It had been a long, tiring trip back.

Honestly, Guy still felt apprehensive about the fact that they had decided to give up the relative freedom that they'd found in Farwell to come right back into the institute, but this device that the rebels had trusted them with was important. If the only way to stop Landel was by taking him down from the inside, then that's what they would do.

That didn't make Guy feel any better as he stepped off of the train tracks and onto the dirt ground that eventually led out of the tunnels and into the underground lake. He'd been hoping they would never have to come back here, but he'd known it would eventually be necessary, seeing how they needed to collect Luke and all of their other friends.

Having trusted Claude to hold onto the device, Guy glanced over his shoulder at him as he reached the mouth of the tunnel. At least they were all in one piece. That was what he had to keep telling himself. Of course, now that they were back in the institute, that was bound to change.

"Guess we'd better call for that ferryman."

[From here.]

They appeared in the same area as they always did when they transported, but a different part of it. As Guy found his feet unsteadily settle on the other bank of the shore, where the ferryman had taken them the night before, he almost stumbled right into the lapping water of the lake. He stopped himself up, sucking in a breath as he came face-to-face with one of those drowned ghouls.

Guy regained his balance, backed away, and then glanced at the torches that only sort of lit the way into the tunnel where they would be heading next. It was just as dark and mysterious as it had been last night, but they couldn't let some apprehension stop them now.

"Well, at least that ferryman kept his word," Guy said. "No toll, no crossing the river, we're just... here." Which meant that they probably shouldn't waste any time seeing where the tunnel led.

[From here]

Korra rounded the corner into the bigger block hallway quickly. The flashlight felt bulky and unnatural in her hand, but it cast off more light than a safely sized flame could in the hallways. Frustrating as it was, she had to get around even at night without much help from her bending.

Soma's words of warning still tingled in the back of her mind, as well. What it it was somehow limited?

The Avatar shook her head, pushing forward.

[To here]

One more night. Korra was thankful that she could finally get moving to doing something useful again. When she and Tsubaki were through with their nightly chat, she set off into the hallways.

Korra didn't really have a set goal in mind. She just knew that she wanted to do something. Maybe she'd get lucky and run into someone who had a better idea of what was going on, or someone else that she knew. Guy and Luke seemed to be pretty cool guys, even if Luke could be a bit annoying.

Or maybe he was just more similar to Korra than she was willing to admit.

[To here]

After exchanging radio numbers, Uryuu picked at the salad in relative silence. Once sure he really couldn't be bothered with another bite, he set about arranging his things for the night. The sound of the intercom stirred his attention, and he looked up, waiting for the static. As ever, a nice addition to the atmosphere. He could still appreciate that, despite himself.

Grateful, indeed. Nook or cranny probably referred to the newly found passage in the library, which stirred Uryuu's curiosity further. Tomorrow, perhaps, unless Kratos-san did the unexpected and really did call. The very thought had his mouth curling with dry amusement, which failed to reach his eyes, narrowing with irritation. The doctor's spiel was the usual, and yet...

"Someday," he groused, "I'm going to put an arrow in that man's throat."

Uryuu said it, but did not swear -- not to his pride as a Quincy, not to anything. Not because he doubted he could, but because it wouldn't be practical in the moment. Much as he would aim to maim, not kill, to make speaking impossible, that would be a problem. They would want him to speak, after all.

As gratifying as imagining that future was, it only wasted time in the moment. The door unlocked, and almost simultaneously, Uryuu felt the pressure of the spirit particles filling the air. He reached, seeking Inoue-san, and felt nothing like. Pressing his teeth together, he nodded to Tsurugi-kun (expecting him off) and stood, to set about changing into the uniform. It was an obnoxious thing to have to choose, but unfortunately, better than the sweater and ill-fitting pants he'd be forced to wear during the day. Placing the toy radio in his pocket alongside the key ring and two pens, he lifted his pillowcase turned bag(with its two sweatshirts, journal, and his room radio) and slid it over his shoulder.

Wasteful as it was, he left the bat in the closet. Vantas-kun seemed to have disappeared as well, and it had never properly gotten to Inoue-san. Tonight it would just get in the way. Ready, he started into and down the hall, clutching his flashlight switched off.

[ to here ]

[From here.]

It was quiet -- so quiet that Castiel slowed his pace slightly, keeping a careful eye on the dark hallway that stretched out in front of him. With the help of his flashlight he was able to spot the stairs that would have taken him up to the second floor, if that was where he wanted to go. Instead, access to the third floor was supposedly found here on the ground level. That was the exact sort of confusion that he would expect from the Head Doctor, however.

As empty as the area was, there didn't seem to be any sign of monsters or ghosts, either. He was alone, and while that might have been frightening to a human, Castiel saw it as liberating. He squared his shoulders and kept moving toward the meeting place he and Kratos had decided on.

[To here.]

[from here]

The store itself seemed typical enough to Al, though certainly he didn't recognize a few of the tools offered here. He looked around for a moment, then turned back to Anise. "Did you need to get anything from here, too?"

It had been nice to chat with Anise on the way into town and make their plans for the day, and Guy headed off the bus a few feet behind her, collecting his coupons and currency in the process. Which was difficult to do since he had to make sure that his hand didn't brush against the nurse's, but he managed it without any episodes.

He said goodbye to his friend as the two of them split up in search of Luke. It would be best if they could find him as soon as possible so that he was filled in on what would be happening. The problem was, Guy had to work out where he would go if he was Luke. The inn? Not likely. Maybe the pet store, probably not the book store, but the toy store was a possibility...

It was hard to be sure, and so Guy ended up wandering his way down the main street, keeping an eye out for what should have been a very obvious head of red hair. Luke wasn't usually that hard to find. He wasn't exactly a quiet person most of the time.

He just hoped his friend hadn't stayed behind for some reason. They didn't even have the bulletin to rely on at this point. There was one in the grocery store, but most people didn't bother to check it and he didn't even know if Luke was aware of it.

Guy was pretty persistent, though, and so he didn't plan to let up until he found his friend.

[Free!!]

Castiel certainly hadn't expected to encounter someone who was already dead and forced back into life on his bus ride into Doyleton. It was a reminder that there was more going on here than he could easily determine, and that the power this place wielded was an unknown even now. There seemed to be a common pattern here of taking beings and forcing them out of their normal forms -- between him, Skulduggery, and Aigis, among others.

As the bus parked and they were ordered outside, Castiel nodded a farewell to Skulduggery. He had to admit that it was odd even speaking to him, as if there was some kind of cardinal law being broken. The dead should not speak. Then again, the dead should not come back to life either, and Castiel had done that once or twice himself.

With the coupon book and one of those credit cards in hand, Castiel placed both into the pocket of his pants and then looked over the rest of the exiting patients. He still didn't quite know what to do with himself in this place, beyond wander in search of something intriguing. In the end, it was his fellow patients who held more interest for him, rather than the material goods this town offered.

[For Loki.]

As usual, night had ended too damn early. Anise really wanted to see what was at the end of that tunnel! But on the bright side, it sounded like she and her friends could get back there easily.

Actually, maybe it was a good thing that they got interrupted when they did. Today was a field trip day; it'd give them a chance to stock up on any tools or supplies they might need for their venture into the unknown. Anise just hoped the Head Doctor wasn't going to interfere with them going back, now that they were so close...

The outfit selected for Anise that day was a little colorless for her tastes, but the style was cute enough to satisfy her. There was a long, striped sweater with a hood. Two long flaps dangled down from the hood, resembling the floppy ears of a rappig. She fidgeted with them as she was led aboard one of the buses. It looked like she was the first on this bus, so she went ahead and sat down in a window seat.

With little else to do at the moment, she took the blueberry muffin from her paper bag and started breaking off tiny bits with her fingers to eat.

[Free!]

[From here.]

Guy landed awkwardly in the sandy area, his ankle almost twisting as a result, though he managed to regain his balance before he hurt himself or fell over. It was still disorienting, though, especially since it had been a while, and so he took a few moments to orient himself.

It looked like Anise and Claude had made it safely, and the underground cave itself was just as he remembered it. Good to see that not much changed when they weren't around, then. Then again, there wasn't much at Landel's that changed. The entrance of the military had been the largest change, and even that had turned out to be temporary.

"By the way, Claude," Guy spoke up once he'd recovered, "Anise and I worked out that I'm the one who'll be giving the toll this time." It was better if he just got that out of the way now so they didn't have to get into a discussion about it when they approached the ferryman.

[From here]

Just as last night, Link stood and waited along the wall of the main hallway. Nobody else was out, yet. Good. He had made good time. One never truly knew, here.

He didn't expect to wait long. They all seemed to be very competent people, perhaps with the slight exception of the Once-ler. Though Link could not complain. He had been a bumbling fool the first time he had faced a true monster.

[The Green Team!]

Full of dinner and sick of sitting around, Korra moved quickly down the women's hallway with only her flashlight. She kept a close eye out for trouble as well as for other patients.

The third floor... That was what the head doctor had been talking about on the speaker, right? Soma said that was where they kept everything, including their stupid "power jamming device." That was what was wrecking her bending. That was what she needed to take out. But she didn't know where to even start looking for this so-called "entrance." Landel's threats didn't scare her, at least not enough to make her lose her curiosity.

She wasn't too keen on doing anything alone, though, not in poor visibility like this. Maybe she'd get lucky and come across someone willing to keep her company.

[To here]

After shift change, Ed was hauled outside alone even though he really would have preferred to stay with his brother. But the nurse insisted and he didn't feel like putting up enough of a fuss to get sedated.

After scanning the immediate area, Ed walked along the path and looked around to inspect his surroundings. When he reached the further wall that was covered in vines, he paused to look at it and try to decide how likely he'd be able to escape by climbing over it at night.

[Free!]

Tomatoes in both choices. Lloyd's face fell the moment he heard the announcement, and with a groan he let his forehead thunk against the table in the Sun Room. He couldn't even ask if he could have a sandwich made without tomatoes in it. The lunches were already made, his nurse holding one of each in her hands. Unhappily, he accepted the one that had meat. Maybe something could be salvaged from it.

Ignoring his nurse's cheerful parting words to enjoy his meal, the teen waited until she'd stepped away before he took his lunch out of the bag and started picking it apart - only to freeze, heart pounding unevenly. A deep, rattling breath had just- Lloyd didn't even finish the thought. Something was here! He whipped around, not even sure how he was going to defend himself. The only thing he had was one of those plastic spoon-forks, and if he was up against that same thing they'd run from last night-

There was nothing. Nothing but nurses and patients passing by. Not even any cats. No one else looked like they'd even heard anything. Lloyd's eyes darted around, but still nothing showed up.

Come on, I know I heard it...

[For Ed and Al!]

[From here]

Korra wandered into the Sun Room while rubbing her hair dry with a small towel. The shower had been nice, at least. She had wanted her nurse to take her outside, but apparently there would be none of that for the moment. The "adults" were out there. What were they doing that they couldn't let her go outside, too?? She wasn't used to this, being cooped up. It reminded her of her time in the sewers.

She flopped down onto one of the couches, keeping an eye out for someone to chat up. Sure, her social skills weren't exactly 'honed,' yet, but that didn't mean she didn't want to talk to people. There wasn't anything else to do here, anyway.

[Barnaby!]

Scar scowled, both relieved and angry that he had woken up once again in his own bed. That lanky man who had become his new roommate on the night of his death was sound asleep one bed over.

This was coming to be the new "normal." It was infuriating.

As always, he begrudgingly followed his nurse into the cafeteria and took a seat. He preferred to file in with the majority of the patients in order to avoid sticking out, but no such luck this morning.

Scar stared at his food rather than starting in on it, despite the newly found appetite that had been lost thanks to that blasted sickness. He had a lot to think about. He hadn't managed to find Frank last night. The damn intercom had beaten him to it. And judging by Tsubaki's reaction to him, he had been out for at least a day's time. How many had noticed? Cared? It couldn't have been many.

But it was the few who did whose detection Scar was desperate to avoid.

[Eddyyyy!]