"AACHOO! Ahem!" The Head Doctor's slightly-better-but-still-congested voice came on clearly over the intercom. The sound of Nurse Lydia sighing and pulling out a tissue from somewhere in the background was also audible.

"Ah! Yes, thank you..." the Head Doctor muttered before continuing: "Well, it seems like today, like all days, must come to an end, even if it wasn't quite as bright and cheerful as we would like, hmmm? In any case, everyone will now be escorted to their quarters.... mmaahh... AAACHOO! Ah! Erb– yes, to their quarters, where they'll be served some Atlantic wild-caught salmon seasoned with garlic and herbs, along with mashed potatoes and a small garden salad. Our usual vegetarian alternatives and drinks are also available, along with a chocolate mousse dessert.

"And that's all... all ...aaaachoo!"

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. I think Court said something about the new roomies not being completely sorted out yet? :O She'll probably post about that later, so hang tight! ]

[from here]

The room wasn't big, about the same size as the Music Room Tony judged and full of little tables. He moved to the center, looking for where the supplies Kvothe mentioned would be, but he wasn't too worried since his roommate was supposed to be right behind him. They'd been very lucky in the Sun Room, he thought and shivered.

[From here.]

For once, this hall was devoid of traffic, though people were beginning to appear in the adjacent areas. Ken simply looked on and ran, seeing little point in staying in one place.

[To here.]

[from here]

There was no one in the hallway at all when Toboe turned the corner, slowing from his run for a brief moment to look around. No, there really was no one there...they probably were still getting ready for the night.

He walked toward the next hallway down, peeking to see the number at the end of the hallway. That was 20, he thought...It would be one more down then, wouldn't it? This reading thing wasn't that hard...

"Well, here goes..." He took off down the second hallway.

[to here]

[M39]

Dinner finished, Zelnick grabbed his flashlight and settled down with his journal and a pen, fully intending to catch up on taking down notes-- and finding himself too distracted to do more than scribble out vague doodles in the margins, occasionally jotting down a word or two before becoming distracted again.

Well, supposedly, allies would come by and distract him. And until then, it wouldn't hurt to try and sketch out Talana's smile from memory, the way her eyes should flash, the curl of her hair...

Bidding farewell to his brunchmates, Zelnick headed into the sunroom, pausing to consider which of the other rooms to spend his time in--

-- only to find his arm caught by a nurse. "Come on, Caleb, time to see your visitor!"

He couldn't have heard that right. "Visitor?" he echoed, and she nodded, guiding through the sun room.

"Yes, visitor. Come on, you don't want to keep her waiting, do you?" The nurse took him into an unfamiliar room, settling him into a chair, and left him to wait.

[from here]

Still no one.  Although he could hear muffled voices through a few doors, the corridors were so black that if it hadn't been for his flashlight, he wouldn't have been able to see where the walls met the floor.  The circle of yellow light bobbed with his footsteps, periodically swinging towards the walls.  He'd been caught off guard before, and he wouldn't let it happen again.

He counted the room numbers:  M34.  Easier than last night, that much was certain, but the design of the institute still infuriated him.  Landel had gone to great lengths to make their stay difficult, with the monsters and sedative-armed nurses.  Something like bad architecture just seemed petty.  He gave the door a solid knock then leaned against the wall beside it, the beam of his light still darting around the shadowy space.

[from here]

Which way was it, now? Out and down and around. Further into the facility. Who'd reach their destination first, Callisto wondered. Perhaps they'd run into each other along the way.

This really got the blood going. She still didn't know what was really going on with this place, but at least she had a goal for now.

[to here]

[From here]

He moved as quickly as his leg would allow him to, taking the pain for what it was and letting it flow through him and out of him. Qui-Gon knew how to get to the Main Hall from here and didn't anticipate any trouble.

[to here]

Unlike the week before, the buses pulled in to the front of the Institute before the sky became dark, and so the departure was a very organized situation rather than a chaotic one. Nurses and orderlies escorted patients off the buses, and just as the front doors to the Institute opened and the patients were taken back to their rooms, the intercom clicked on with its usual jingle to the sound of the Head Doctor's cheery voice.

"Hello, patients, and I hope you all enjoyed a delightful day at our neighboring town! I regret that last-minute duties prevented me from joining all of you on your trip, but I'm glad I can talk to you a bit now before you retire for the night!

"As far as dinner tonight, we have a wonderfully exotic meal of tasty, spicy lamb curry for you, served on a bed of steamed rice and with a side of seasoned vegetables and plain Indian flatbread. For desert, we'll be having sweet rice pudding, and we'll be offering our normal assortment of juices, milk, and water as drinks. As always, for vegetarians and for those of you with mild tastebuds, a large, fresh garden salad is always an option.

"And... I believe that's all! I hope you all enjoy dinner and that you're able to wind down from the excitement of today's excursion."

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. Thank you! ]

Shiki was a little disappointed. When she heard the words 'field trip', she had expected the town to be a whole lot bigger. How could you even go shopping properly in a town like this? There needed to be a whole lot more stores, she decided. Two department stores, boutiques, and a record store, at least.

She walked down the main street. Maybe she'd stumble into something.

Rukia filed out of the bus with the other prisoners, shivering a little in the cool autumn air. She was a little irked that the nurses hadn't given her mittens on this trip. Forced to stuff her hands in to the pockets of her jeans, Rukia hunched her shoulders and wandered to the edge of the park before turning around to look for anyone she knew.

Nurses and orderlies were already milling about, supervising and watching the prisoners. Rukia's plan was to get a hold of something - anything - that she could use as a weapon when they returned to the Institute that night. It would be difficult with so many staff members around, but she was determined; the last thing she wanted was to be trapped on the buses again with no weapon.

Sanji woke up groggily to find his nurse already in his room. He gave a sleepy and half-hearted "Buh?" before realizing that nurse meant dayshift, and he'd fallen asleep after dinner.

"Shit!" He sat up abruptly, which gave his nurse a start. "Nami-swan!" How had he allowed himself to sleep through an entire night? What if she'd tried to return to the basement? What if she'd been waiting for him to appear and protect her? He'd let her down!

"There, there. Calm down." His nurse set a familiar flannel shirt down on the bed and Sanji eyed it with confusion. The last time he'd worn that had been... "Sorry I didn't knock or anything, but I was so excited~!" A pair of jeans followed the shirt. "Today is the field trip into town! Aren't you looking forward to it?"

The chef had to admit, the town had been an interesting enough place the last time he'd been. If he could find Nami early on he might even be able to lead her around... So he didn't complain too much as he changed into the other outfit (which he really wished they'd let him keep - anything was better than the regular gray) and was led out to the first of the buses.

He took a seat near the front, hopefully easily visible to any of his crew - especially to a certain member of his crew.

[for Usopp!]

[Waiting for Daemon and Renji.]

After spending the last shift in discussion in the library, Rukia had a lot on her mind. Speaking with Captain Harkness had been somewhat informative, but only increased her worry. How easily were they all being controlled by Landel? And by what means? Too many questions.

Since she was still confined to a wheelchair, Rukia asked a nurse to get her some fruit, salad, and a big bowl of rice. She could have easily done it herself, but wanted to find a spot in one of the corners near the door to wait for Renji. She hadn't spoken to him for long the previous day, and had been very upset at the time. Maybe they could just have a nice lunch together.

Rukia thanked the nurse who brought her food and began to eat, looking up at the door every so often.

[from here.]

Leading the way, Edward gestured at the door in front of them. "The M-Block bathroom," he explained, opening the door to peek his head in. He looked around with a frown, inhaling deeply a few times.

He turned back to Bella with a small smile. "No blood this time. I think you're safe." Wasn't he glad that was the case this time? He hoped he wouldn't have to deal with bleeding pipes again. The weapon Bella now carried still held a faint aroma of the unidentified blood.

Stepping into the bathroom, the vampire's eyes scanned across the friendly looking blue and white tiles, stopping on the row of mirrors nailed above a line of sinks. As used to it as he was, Edward was surprised to see coal-black eyes staring back at him through the darkness, devoid of the golden hue from yesterday. It was still utterly irritating to know one simple wound had drained him. Was he really as weak as all that?

Looking over the pipes that flowed down from the sink, he moved to kneel beside one. They were small, but having something in hand was better than nothing at all.

[M39]

Being dragged away from ZEX mid-conversation was something of a mixed blessing. On the upside, it meant that Zelnick would have at least few minutes to regain emotional balance before spending the whole night with the guy....

Well, perhaps it was more of a mixed curse. Normally Zelnick didn't begrudge allies their oddities, but ZEX had this amazing ability to jump straight from normal conversation to oh-god-awkward innuendo-laden flirting, and Zelnick couldn't do much but hope that he'd keep away from the latter.

In any case, he paid closer attention to where they took him, this time, not just his room number, and he realized he was actually really close to Yuber's room. Wasn't that convenient?

Once he was in his room, he started to get ready for the night; skillet, knife, pestle, all loaded into the apple basket that had wound up in his closet, along with a couple pens and the radio (hadn't Yuber said it spilled hints at night?). This meant he couldn't take all the apples with him, so Zelnick wrapped them in one of the extra shirts and left them in the corner of the closet. All that was left was to get the flashlight, which he found under his pillow like he did last night.

Then the intercom clicked on.

So that was their lord and master, in this place? After spending the first night confused and the first day hearing the voice of the Head Nurse, he found that the guy sounded pretty sane, until he admitted to killing someone. "The man on the radio--" did he mean whoever was on the other side of the little antique, sending out hints? And the method of death sounded... frighteningly personal.

He unloaded the skillet from the basket and held on to it as the doors unlocked, and sat at his desk to wait for ZEX.

The cafeteria was all but empty when Zelnick got there. He was a little disappointed; he had gotten the impression that patients usually ate dinner in their rooms, so he hadn't arranged to meet anyone, and there really wasn't anyone to sit by and engage in conversation yet.

Quietly, he collected dinner and a big glass of orange juice, and chose a seat near the food-serving counters. Talking for so long had made him thirsty... and, well, fruit juice was a luxury he had missed.

[Stalk away, my dearest Admiral. <3 ]

As though his conversation during the last shift hadn't been terrible enough... the way that girl had treated him like a child, it was just another nail in the coffin to be herded along to the showers with all the other children.  Allen knew he must be dirty, but he was far from enthusiastic about the idea of public nudity. 

When he arrived, however, he was relieved to be the first one in the room.  Perhaps he could get this over with and get moving before very many others showed up.  He was too tired to argue with the nurses, but at least they were kind enough to help him get the water to a decent temperature before leaving him to his business.  He was a little unsteady, but better than this morning.  His shoulder ached, though after a few minutes under the warm water, he could feel it starting to relax.  If he could just tune out everything else around him, this shift might even be a little bit pleasant.

[[waiting for captain pedo pants hitsu]]

[Waiting for Kaito... I think...]

Well, meeting his new roommate had been an interesting experience. Especially since the guy had been strapped to his bed and barely able to form coherent sentences. Heiji had to give him some credit, though, there weren't many people who would have tried to rescue a girl from the riot. Too bad he got caught.

He wanted to relax--away from all the orderlies and such, so he opted for the Game Room (even though he was, after eating pretty much nothing at all, starving). His nurse, at his request, handed him one of the old Gameboys out of a box along with a game. The detective flopped down on a chair, popped the cartridge in and began playing.

Heiji frowned. Just what the hell was this? He'd never even heard of this game. It looked like he was playing some kid who had these cards, that transformed into a ball, and then into a monster. What was the point of that?

...wait, was that monster named Whiplash?

Burly orderlies and agile Calm Effect nurses flooded the cafeteria from the Courtyard while regular hall nurses filed in from the Sun Room and ushered out those not involved in the rebellion. It indeed seemed as if Landel was sending out all the cavalry, and an effective cavalry they were: The riot didn't continue for much longer after the alarm sounded, though it seemed strange just how quickly all of the mutinous patients fell, even the ones who hadn't been injected with anything.

The hall nurses were quick to escort their well-behaved charges back to their rooms, praising those who hadn't joined in and chiding those who muttered under their breath in response. There were some exceptions, of course: One nice young man had even defended one of the nurses from the violent patients! Now, wasn't that exemplary behavior? Dr. Landel would be so proud to hear about it...

Within half an hour, all of the so-called "loyal" patients had been safely deposited in their rooms, and it was then that the alarm finally stopped and the true difficulty of the situation was tackled. There certainly weren't enough rooms in solitary to accommodate such rampant disobedience, and yet measures would have to be taken to ensure proper consequences for each and every patient involved. After all, something like this couldn't be allowed to happen again!

Different options were considered. Perhaps they should make an example out of the girl who had sparked the riot, but then again, perhaps not. This certainly wasn't the first case of patients attacking nurses or their peers in a crowded area, but what had been different this time was the sheer support that the other patients had shown for her. Should the staff then make examples of all those who had tried to "protect" her from the well-meaning nurses? No, there were too many for that...

In the end, it was decided that the best immediate solution would be to treat the rebellious patients in the Medical Wing while they were unconscious and then move them back to their rooms to await punishment. To ensure the safety of both their roommates and the patients themselves, however, the staff decided to securely fasten their limbs to their beds and keep them heavily drugged. Such a sad sight they were to see, but... it was necessary.

Finally, when each and every patient had been escorted back to their respective rooms, the staff hurried off to an emergency meeting upstairs. Strangely, Head Nurse Lydia was the one taking care of the proceedings in the Head Doctor's stead. She calmly told them that he was preoccupied with more urgent matters, and as she began to speak to the crowd, the staff could only wonder what could possibly be more important than an unprecedented patient riot...

[ Comment to this post with separate threads for each patient room, and please put your character's room number in the subject line. Thank you! ]