Prowl listened to the radio, the door and the halls outside. It seemed the night had officially begun. Now...he had to wait. Just a while so that Lockdown wouldn't realise how close they were. Prowl had to be prepared for failure, even if he didn't want to consider it. Lockdown could overpower him or escape and Prowl would have to face him again. Besides, there was the roommate to worry about. HK. He'd be there, questioning Lockdown no doubt. Would he suspect anything? Would he continue his plans for the night?

Prowl sat on the bed, legs crossed, eyes closed.

[from here]

And of course she was the firs to arrive. It was becoming a common occurrence.

Leaning back against the wall next to the Sun Room doors, Beatrix waited and listened to the silence of the hall. While detecting HK-47 would be difficult, she was certain Lugnut would be pathetically easy to hear coming. She was not thrilled with the idea of another Cybertronia joining them, but she could not deny that without SubZero, they had to take measures to secure their passage to Landel.

Lugnut wanted her dead, she recalled. This was going to be like working with the Vipers again. The only difference? The Bride had no ties at all to Lugnut. Then again, perhaps he understood how outclassed he was. She could only hope HK-47 had given him proper warning. Beatrix was even less thrilled with the idea of securing a hostage so she and the droid could pass through the doors.

Kaworu immediately gravitated towards the keyboard. It was not a piano, not truly, but it was attractive in all of the same ways. Music freed the mind from conscious thought, and Kaworu was feeling exceptionally weighed down by exactly that. There was a heaviness, as well as a lightness. He did not know where to begin approaching the situation with Shinji. It was a simple task to forget such things when the problem itself was caused by such an enamoring distraction.

Shinji needed to survive, he was supposed to continue, and yet he was here. This place would take his life without needing a reason. A soul so important could simply be put out, and the world would continue as it always had. It seemed wrong, but was it because it was not the way things should be, or simply because Kaworu wished it were so?

And yet, Kaworu could not say he was unhappy. He had done nothing to earn himself more time with Shinji. He had made his decision, and created for himself a fate apart from the Lilim. But as much as many Lilim wished the world to work in those terms, it rarely did. Events would move into place regardless of their actions. It was rare that something happened because an individual deserved it. It was only chance. Kaworu knew that he should not have been glad, but being with Shinji was indescribable.

His long, bony fingers moved across the keys easily, constructing Ode to Joy with each progressive note.

[Reserved for Albedo.]

The mere fact that she'd been susceptible to whatever hold the Institute had had on her yesterday was sufficient to leave Ayumu both upset and angry - no, not angry, downright furious, both at herself and whoever was responsible for that. But there was also the fact that because of it, she'd lost out on an entire day of work, and in several ways had ruined some of what she'd done already. That little conversation with Himura the day before, for instance, was something she'd sincerely prefer not to remember if she'd had any choice in the matter.

Unless the man was a complete moron, which, unfortunately, was one thing she couldn't believe of him, he had to have realized just who her brother was. After all the effort to keep that fact quiet (not exactly a secret, but certainly not advertised; half the Shinsengumi probably never even realized it because there was no reason to) she'd gone and chatted about it with him. Told him all about it, practically painted a bright target around a weakness that shouldn't have existed in the first place.

She'd spent the shift in the Sun Room pretending to sleep, while in truth forcing herself into calm. After years of practice she could shunt away the useless and distracting emotions, focusing only on what was important and needed to be at the forefront of her mind, and by the time the intercom signaled the lunch period she was feeling considerably calmer. The time to silently observe others had, as well, alerted her to something she probably should have noticed earlier: Mello was back. Would her previous objective be reinstated now? He seemed to have far less of a bulletin presence this time, so perhaps not. Still, though, it bore investigating.

None of her thoughts were visible, of course, as she moved through the line, examining the lunch selection somewhat dubiously. Now with the benefit of Yuuko's memories she might recognize the food, but she certainly didn't share the enthusiasm for it that her imaginary self apparently had. Ayumu skipped past that part and settled for the salad bar and some bread, then positioned herself in a place where she could watch both the door and the rest of the room, setting her journal open in front of herself as though planning to write something. There was far too much that she'd missed, too much work to do now.

[for Okita]

Somehow, Wilson had ended up with an even longer weekend. When it turned out to be five days long, it didn't really count as a weekend anymore, did it? He had spent most of it trying to get a hold of either House or Cuddy, but both of them were doing a fantastic job of avoiding their calls.

It was weird, since his friend usually only did that when he knew he was in for some sort of lecture, and Wilson didn't have any to give at the moment. House might just be doing it to mess with him, but Wilson found that it was a lot harder to go into work at Landel's Institute knowing that his friend wouldn't be in the office a few doors down.

He hadn't been given much of an explanation for why they were starting on Wednesday as opposed to Tuesday. Apparently there had been some sort of occurrence, but that was the extent of what he'd been told. This place was shaping up to be a real winner, all right.

Though one of the nurses did tell him that a few patients had experienced vast improvements over the past few days. It was good to hear, but he had to wonder why he had been told not to come in until now if that was the case. Sighing and shaking his head, the doctor walked into his dusty office and started to tidy up as he waited for his first patient of the day to come in. It was a new one, but that wasn't surprising considering how this place seemed to operate.

For the second time, Rika found herself waking with a start. She blinked at the grey light streaming through the windows, and looked across the room. Anise was still asleep. So. I'm still here. Let me just check...

Rika put on her slippers and walked over to the desk, checking the drawer and breathing a light sigh of relief. Good, the knife was still there. She wasn't sure why it would be there - shouldn't they have confiscated the weapon? Either way, though, as much as she was reluctant to use it, she was glad to have it still there.

Just then, she heard the creak of the open door, and quickly closed the drawer. Her nurse peeked in, whispering, "Rachel? Time for breakfast. You should put on a sweatshirt, it's a bit chilly." Rika nodded, quickly adding the extra layer and following the nurse out into the hall and to the cafeteria.

She was used to a Japanese-style breakfast, so the idea of something sweet - which the nurse was avidly describing, with the waffles and fruit and syrup - was a bit odd. Once she walked in, though, she had to admit it smelled good. She filled her plate with waffles topped with blueberries, some sausage, and eggs, took a glass of orange juice, and took a seat. It seemed she was early, so she took a seat close to one of the windows and waited.

[For Ange.]

[from here]

The room was very bright. That was the Bride's first thought and then she noticed why. Gold. Everything was gold. Everything, that was, except the Sphinx on a pedestal in the center watching them with eyes far more intelligence than any beast should have.

"Do be careful what you say to it," she warned before setting her attention on the Sphinx.

[from here]

Stepping into the hallway, Beatrix noted that this one was almost exactly like the eastern one except for the tapestries. These ones were different and depicted battle scenes that, like in the other hall, didn't quite match with the apparent age of the threadworks. It was yet another mystery she didn't care to solve.

"Would either of you have guessed that?" she asked in relation to the riddle's answer.

[from here]

Beatrix lead the4 way down the stairs into the vast ballroom. It was just as the last time she and the assassin's had been there. Stepping lightly, knowing all to well how much sound echoed in the room, the Bride moved so she could see on the other side of the closest group of fountains. It would not do to get attacked again so soon.

Taking a sconce down off the wall, Beatrix started toward the western door. She didn't like being in this room for very long.

[from here]

And here they were again. This was becoming routine. HK headed for the tile he knew hid the way down to the basement, lifting it up and gesturing to it with completely faked politeness. "Deferential: Meatbags first!"

[From here]

And on they went, into the realm of meatbag fuel preparation. The damned guards didn't even have the courtesy to leave any knives laying around, or, so far as he could tell from his frequent walks through the place, chocolate.

The galaxy was a cruel place indeed.

[From here]

HK skidded in through the door to the cafeteria, stopping dead and letting his concentration slip, meatbag reflexes returning to their pathetic norm. His heart rate and breathing had increased significantly, but he tried to hide that. He really wished this was not so taxing to do.

"Statement: Well, that went far better than can be expected when a meatbag actually finds a way to attack you by shooting themselves in the head," he said, not sounding as winded as he was. For HK, talking was always a free action.

[From here]

Oh, Sun Room. During the day, a place of boredom, lounging meatbags and... sun. But at night, it was a place where one moved quickly and quietly if keeping all your extremities was high on your list of things to do.

Also, one generally tried to be the second group into the room, so that what was left of the first group acted as a distraction to whatever brainwashed meatbag or misshapen monstrosity was stationed there that night.

Unfortunately, they were the first group. And they had someone along who wasn't taking this seriously. If 'Lance' kriffs this up for us, I'm offering him up as a sacrifice to tonight's hostile thing, HK thought grumpily as he scanned the surroundings for a heat signature. "Statement: Nothing yet," he whispered, moving carefully forward.

[from here.]

There seemed to be a lot more options here, Aerith noted as she passed a few doors along the way. Maybe she'd come to center of the building? It was hard to tell, and her sense of direction wasn't fantastic. She was lucky if she'd remember the path she'd taken so whimsically to get here. Stopping in front of a particularly large set of doors, the flower girl took a quick break from her exploration to try and commit to memory all the turns she'd taken to get here from her room.

It was certainly worth noting that she still hadn't heard even a whisper from the Planet. Aerith had always thought she would be thankful to not hear the screams and whispers for once in her life. Now that her wish had been granted, she honestly found it strange and more than a little unsettling. Even in Midgar, she'd had a place that she could always go to if she needed to hear the echo of her mother's voice. If anything Gaia had always given her direction and companionship. Clearly, she'd have to apologize when she got out of this place.

And Aerith Gainsborough would get out of here. One way or another. She had to believe that.

The young woman lifted her flashlight, scanning every inch of the wide hallway that she could. Maybe it would be best to take a moment and collect before she continued on her exploration.

"Commentary: The comms meatbag shut up quickly tonight! What a relief," HK said, standing up and grabbing his weapons. Scalpels were hidden up his sleeves, and his axe and his shiny new knife were taken in each hand. "Suggestion: If you are leaving the room tonight, it would be best if you come with me. I have infrared capabilities and therefore do not need the glowrod that is likely still under your pillow, meaning that we can move covertly." Yes, sometimes HK was capable of moving covertly. He just didn't often feel the need to here.

He opened the door, standing in the doorway. "Query: Well?"

The game room made Heath feel more like he was being treated as a child than any other place in the Institute. It might have just been the selection they had to choose from. A deck of cards was a safe choice and would hopefully keep him from attracting much more energetic company. Yet as he sat down and began shuffling them between his hands he was surprised to find that he couldn't remember how to play a single game. At a loss, he blamed it on his current state of mind.

The red-head sat back in his chair and began looking through the deck one card at a time, if only to have something to do with his hands. The kings, queens, and jacks blurred together despite suits as this did nothing to distract him from the pangs of his still somehow empty stomach.

The deck was eventually tossed to the floor in front of him, free for anyone who felt like a game of 52-card pick-up.

Heath swore under his breath and slouched where he sat. This whole ridiculous matter was more than wearing thin. He'd have to get the involvement of a nurse before dinner. There was nothing else for it. Still, more than one came close enough to stop and he did nothing. Something deep within him knew there wasn't anything any of them could do.

[for Argilla]

There was something fishy going on in the Institute today. All over the bulletin board, people were talking about having "woken up", having been "cured"... and it seemed as though ZEX was one of them. Tanaka wouldn't have recognized the note at all if it hadn't been signed - his wording, his handwriting, even his name had changed - and a part of him still wondered if it had been an imposter, trying to pull the wool over the Captain's allies.

But it'd be easy enough to find out the truth. Whoever it was had agreed to meet him, and Tanaka was waiting for him just outside the cafeteria doors, ready to catch him as he came from breakfast. If "Max" was an imposter, then he'd discover the identity of a hidden enemy. And if he was really ZEX...

...well, he'd have a whole new set of things to worry about.

[for a spoiled rich brat brainwashed Admiral]

Mori woke with a start. He lay on the bed for a moment, staring up at the ceiling and sighed quietly. Another day, another round of shifts and people and-- Wait a minute. Breathing in carefully, Mori's brow knit together as he realized that his ribs were no longer broken. After testing his collarbone, he found that it, too, was healing faster than it should have. Not that he was complaining, but there was something odd about broken bones setting so quickly. Pushing himself up out of bed, the teen shook his head, knowing that he'd have another day or two of the sling and then he'd be free from it.

But more important than that was finding out how Mitsukuni was doing. The last thing he remembered was the bathroom and gathering metal. Since they were together at the end of the night, Mori was certain that Mitsukuni would be fine, but...well, he still liked to confirm such things with his own eyes. With the twins gone and Tamaki still missing, Mori didn't want to take any chances anymore. Especially not with the strange announcements this morning.

As usual, his nurse came to collect him and helped him into his sling. Then he followed her quietly into the cafeteria, taking notice of the unusually empty bulletin board. They really were cracking down on it already. Weird. Even weirder? For once, he was the first into the room. Picking up a tray, he pointed out what he wanted, making sure to take double of the pancakes (asking to keep them away from the sausages for now), double of the strawberry jam and biscuits, and an extra helping of fruit. To top it off? Milk. It'd help his bones mend. Hopefully.

Going to a nearby seat, Mori took a look around the empty room and shivered. Kind of eerie in here without anyone else but the nurses. Someone was certain to come sooner or later though, right? He hoped so at least.

[for Chihaya]

[From here]

By now, Tenzen had to switch on his flashlight to see where he was, considering he had never visited this area before. The beam of light, though small, would be more obvious than the ninja would like, but he'd choose that over traversing these halls aimlessly. After all, there were many directions upon the second floor.

He easily spotted the railing a small distance away, which meant his current location was above the sun room.

[Unknowingly 'waiting' for Lockdown]

Huh. So the head doctor actually cared about their well-being? Yeah, right. Though he guessed a game would be pretty boring if all of them had kicked the bucket.

But whatever, night had arrived hadn't it? When Tyki heard the click of the door unlocking, his skin had already turned into a shade of gray and the cross-shaped markings had appeared on his forehead. He removed his glasses from his nose and left them on his desk. He couldn't be really bothered to tie his hair back right now, though. It wasn't like anyone important was going to see him or whatever, so the Noah simply left it as it was.

Ignoring the pain from his burns as best as he could, Tyki slipped out into the still-deserted hallway. Was he early again tonight? Jeez, he was going to break a personal record again at this rate.

He guessed he would need to take it at least a little easy tonight. He guessed keeping it entertaining nonetheless was part of the challenge.

[To here]