[From here.]

At least if he couldn't soothe anything else, he could soothe the flashlight. While it seemed to rebel by flickering a few more times, the light stayed steady otherwise. So now, on top of attempting to supply himself with blood so he didn't randomly select a new victim and get stabbed between his ribs again or set on fire, he had to find new batteries for a finicky flashlight before it permanently went out.

Welcome to your eternity, Edward Cullen.

At this point, vampire or not, his overwhelmingly human biology was beginning to work against him in waves. The muscles of his calves felt tight and warm; his mouth was parched, without even saliva to attempt to cool his body of exertion. His throat was raw, and he felt like calling it burning was an apt description now that he had had several first-hand encounters with varying degrees of burns. All in all, the combination was not pleasant. After he'd thrown open the - what, fourth, fifth? - door, he paused just inside the door frame to lean against the wall, taking deep breath. He wasn't out of breath of course, but it helped him focus. The pause helped his muscles from complaining too loudly.

Now that he was almost there, his walk was almost leisurely.

[To here.]

[From here.]

It was probably a good time to declare everyone legally dead, because this was the fourth hallway in a row. This was what being proactive felt like. Yes. He was going to roll with that. Proactive and paranoid as hell, that was him.

Paranoid enough to take out the pathetic little knife from the pillow case and clutch it around the handful of cloth. Maybe one day, Edward thought derisively, I'll be lucky enough to find night-vision goggles so I can stop wasting my time with the light. As soon as he thought it the flashlight flickered, the round yellow beam turning black before popping back on again.

What little blood he had in him drained from his face. "That was terrible of me, I'm sorry. You're a fine flashlight. Possibly the best."

[To here.]

There was little to be said of the daily business that went on. He allowed himself to be shuffled, mind embedded too deeply in things he shouldn't be dwelling on. The night was over, the shadows had vanished, and there was little more than bad memories to be left in their stead. This was logic, pure and simple, and should have been reassuring but for the whispered accusations made by his own. Of all things that his mind moved to unconsciously focus on, it was one of the first things spoken. That he could kill himself and nothing would stop him.

Which was pointless. In the whole of its entirety. Gaara had not truly moved in that way for time past--And now, even, he had goals and aspirations that he would see come to pass before he gave anything of himself away. He was working for what he believed in; he was working to become acknowledged by others as himself, and not as what he was created for. And there was no point to anything that thing had said.

His thoughts shifted, moved over the night, each dark statement echoed by an internal vow of his own, a denial of returning to what he once was. He still had yet to seek out Temari--his sister, too, would have been confronted by her demons, and there was a edge of concern in that thought. Considering all of this, he seated himself in a place near the wall, glancing at the doorway every few moments.

[sister dear.]

With breakfast finished and a new acquaintance made, the Scarecrow's mind turned to his other friends. The disappearance of Depth Charge's friend had brought back memories of how he'd felt when Kaiji went missing: helpless, useless, as though he should have and could have done something more to find him. If only he had his brain, then maybe he could have thought of something!

As much as he didn't like to admit it, it was unlikely his former roommate was still within the Institute's walls at this point, though the Scarecrow wouldn't know for sure unless Kaiji returned to visit him as Dorothy had, encouraging his supposed recovery. There was still the concern that Landel, despite his vile methods, was actually right and he was suffering from the delusion of having been a scarecrow in Oz. After all, that movie had been a pretty elaborate trick. Would he have planted it in town on purpose, knowing the Scarecrow would be taken there the night of the enchanted doors? And how could he guarantee that once he did find it, he'd take it and actually watch it? There was so much guesswork involved- it seemed the Wizard Landel either liked coincidences or he had more power on his side than any of the patients could have guessed.

The Scarecrow stopped by the bulletin board before heading for a seat, considering writing a note to his friends to check on them. He'd heard from Depth Charge, Remy, and Kibitoshin within a day's time, so he figured they were probably fine (as fine as Depth Charge could have been after last night, anyway). He'd seen Mele and Scar the day before. He put a finger to his head, thinking- he'd not heard from Abe or Sangamon in a day or so, but being professionals, they were probably very busy. Perhaps a note would be best for them.

[Kibby]

[from here]

This was already further than Sai had gotten the past couple nights, which was saying something. It was getting over the wall that would be the real test, though. The actual act of scaling the brick would be simple, but the night had an odd way of ending before he'd gotten beyond that point. Hopefully the same wouldn't hold true this time around.

The important thing was to just keep on the move. Chances were there would already be something or someone in the field waiting to hinder them and keep them from their goal. If they could avoid them, and avoid getting drawn into a pointless struggle, then perhaps they could actually get into the woods for once. Of course, this was much easier said than done. He'd been controlled by the Institute once before, and he knew how easy it could be just to keep a patient with their abilities dampened from getting between one door and another.

He would tell himself to think positive, except that wasn't really what Sai was known for.

((From here.))

As Claude made his way through the dark, he considered the message he'd seen on the bulletin just before dinner. Guy had invited him to come along for...whatever he'd had planned. To be honest, he wasn't too sure of what he'd agreed to do tonight. But with how crazy everything had been the past several days, he wouldn't have been surprised if he'd made plans with his friend and somehow forgotten it. The thought made him feel kind of embarrassed, and he hadn't wanted to draw more attention to that kind of slip than was necessary. After all, he didn't want anyone thinking he was unreliable, especially after how much time and care Guy had put into looking after Claude during the last two nights.

Even if the trip hadn't been planned before today, though, Claude was still glad to get a chance to help out and make himself useful. He didn't want to get rusty with his sword or anything, after all. Plus it was hard to imagine his friends going off to face the institute's dangers without him, even if part of him realized that things very well could have played out that way if it hadn't been for Natalia.

But now wasn't the time to think about stuff like that, and Claude did his best to focus on what was right in front of him. There wasn't a single soul in the hallway yet. He passed by the entrance to Guy's hallway, his steps slowing down. Maybe they could walk to the meeting place together? It was what they usually did for things like this, anyway. Not only that, but after what had happened in the library this morning, Claude knew he owed Guy a proper explanation. Even though he probably wouldn't have been able to explain much until tomorrow, he at least wanted to acknowledge that he appreciated Guy's support today.

There was also everything that had happened with some of Guy's missing memories. His friend hadn't given him an update about that for awhile now, though Claude assumed part of it was because he hadn't want to be a burden to someone who was recovering from experimentation. Now that he was better, he intended to find out if anything had changed since their talk in the sun room that day. Like the mess with Mom, though, he'd probably have to wait to delve into that, too. Talking about heavy stuff while walking around at night usually didn't work out too well for them.

Frowning to himself, Claude leaned against the wall and waited for Guy to appear.

[from here]

She remembered the last time she'd been down this way. With Yukari in tow, she'd headed over to Mori's room to exchange a closet rod for her shuriken. Okita'd popped out of his own room—man, she hadn't expected that.

But, this time…

Maybe it was a little weird, that she was willing to work with the same guy who'd stabbed a pen through Sagara's lung. That she was being polite enough to set her shuriken point-down on the floor, and to keep it slightly behind herself, with her fingers clasped loosely around the top-most blade. It was a big weapon and not exactly something she could sheathe; keeping it in a non-threatening but easy to manoeuvre from position was a courtesy, though not a deference.

… Kinda weird how interacting with Okita made her actually think about these things, too.

Shaking off any further thoughts of weirdness for the time being, Yuffie knocked on the door. "Special delivery," she announced

[From here.]

Even though the hallway seemed especially quiet tonight, Zack wasn't bothered. He was used to moving around in quiet areas on his own, from caverns to wide open fields to shorelines. He didn't get spooked very easily, and if anything, he felt like he was in his element. He had a weapon in hand was was moving at his own pace, not trailing after anyone else or being followed by someone. As much as he realized that working solo wasn't possible here, sometimes he wished he could still have the luxury of only having to rely on himself.

"Ahh well," he muttered to himself as he took a few testing swings with the pry bar. This was yet another thing he had to thank Tifa for. He was hoping the metal wouldn't bend when he actually started to pummel monsters with it, but there was really only one way to test that. Though he also had to wonder if it could double as a way to get doors open when they were being difficult.

Zack was still jealous of Cloud's sword, but he had to remind himself that he had a materia to test out. He still didn't think that sizzled zombie flesh sounded like something he wanted to be exposed to, but sometimes sacrifices had to be made.

He'd set the meeting spot as the hallway by the stairs, and so Zack continued down the corridor. At this rate, he'd probably beat Tifa there.

[To here.]

The intercom jingle was slightly different for this shift, almost as if it had gone up in quality. The Head Doctor gave a sigh of relief, his own voice clear as a bell despite the usual electronic buzz.

"Hello, everyone – from our new and improved intercom system! We've had electronics rehauling our circuitry, and you can hear the result quite nicely! A whole bunch of improvement! Right, anyway...

"As I'm sure you've noticed, we have a whole new bunch of patients that have joined us recently, and because of the changes in our roster, we've updated our roommate assignments, so some of you might be enjoying the company of someone entirely new tonight! Please be polite and friendly to anyone you might encounter!

"Which brings us to... dinner! Tonight, we'll be having a delicious 'bento box' meal consisting of fish and vegetable tempura along with chicken teriyaki, a bowl of steamed rice, miso soup, salad, and... green tea! Decaffeinated, of course. We can't have you bouncing from wall to wall when there's sleep to be had! Our usual assorted drinks and alternative meals are also available. Oh, and... dessert! Green tea ice cream, with a topping of red bean paste.

"I think that's all for now! I'll speak to you once more before bed time."

The intercom clicked off.

[ All room threads go in response to this post; please post your character's room number as the subject line of the initial post. Please refer to the updated room assignments before posting. Thank you! ]

How one's body could maintain a waking schedule when sleep came unnaturally and in a room without windows, must surely be a mystery. Yet, as if working on cue, Natalia stirred well before her nurse arrived. That was normal. Less so, the weight that sought to press her eyelids closed again, the heaviness of her limbs that made lifting her hands to her face an effort. She put her wrist to her forehead with a frown, then attempted a jolt of energy – to swiftly dig her hands into the mattress and shove herself into a seated position, and from there, to her feet.

Not to overexert herself once again, but to refuse that it could be possible after sleeping. Happily, though all still felt leaden, her head did not swim. Encouraged, Natalia put on her slippers, rearranged the bedding, and waited. There came the announcement (reminding her, suddenly, of what she had last heard, and the guilt that had twisted in her gut, Jill--), and her face wrinkled with disgust at the hacking sound. Therapy and breakfast. Food would surely help.

Natalia did not wait long before her nurse opened the door, and after exchanging cursory “Good Morning”s (with rather more enthusiasm on the other woman's part), they began the walk to the Cafeteria. With, of course, the essential rest room stop, where water was splashed and scrubbed over her face, and her hair toyed with to no great satisfaction. At least the shower had renewed its body.

Separating in the Cafeteria, Natalia took her place in line and loaded her plate: eggs, fruit salad, fried “tater tots” (potatoes?), and curious meat wrapped in cooked dough. Some of everything, with juice and water. She thanked her servers, collected utensils and napkins, and found a seat at an empty table. It was early yet.

Sparing a brief look around to be sure no one she recognized had arrived – though she remained eager to greet every patient, at the moment she chose to focus on the possible strength gained from the meal – Natalia began to cut up the items and eat with a refined gusto. Entirely possible!

[Claude!]

There was no telling if the next announcement came hours or minutes after the previous one, but regardless of that, it did come on with the onset of dawn. Like clockwork, like always, someone was there to greet the half-groggy patients as they woke up in their beds.

Except this greeting got off on the wrong foot, starting with a harsh cough that persisted for a few seconds before the speaker recovered.

"I apologize for that," the head nurse said, without any further explanation given. "As today is Tuesday, it will be the first day of therapy for the week. But before that, all patients will be taken to the cafeteria, as always, to eat their breakfast. We're serving pigs in blankets with fruit, scrambled eggs, and tater tots on the side. Please enjoy juice, milk, or water as possible drinks."

After another coughing fit, the nurse continued. "The Head Doctor will most likely be with you after your meal. Thank you."

And the announcement ended, signaling the nurses to go rouse the patients from their sleep.