[tl;dr]

Renamon was resolute in maintaining an aura of unemotional professionalism after last shift. She wasn’t going to allow herself to be affected by anything here--at least, not until she could analyze them. Lost in thought, she followed the nurse leading her without paying much attention to her surroundings. It wasn’t until she realized they were moving through the Sun Room that she spoke up.

“If possible, I’d like to stay in the Sun Room again. I’m still feeling worn out.” Her speech was clipped and polite. Hopefully the nurse would allow her to do-so again--she had to meet another this afternoon.

The nurse was cheerful, replying reassuringly, “Oh, that’s fine dear. You can come back here right after your shower.”

Renamon took a moment. Shower. She filtered through her knowledge of human speech for an exact definition for the word. Once she found it, her eyes widened and she missed a step. She instantly calmed herself, and spoke as if everything were fine. “Would it be possible to pass? I’m not quite sure it’d be…” She couldn’t think of an excuse. Starting to panic, she clutched the short sleeves of her shirt, wishing for the sweatshirt she mistakenly passed on. Why hadn’t she kept it on?! Her voice had turned soft and pleading. “Could I not? Please.”

The nurse went over Renamon’s strange reaction. “Dear, it’ll be fine! You must want to get cleaned up--you’ve been here a few days already.” The woman kept walking, turning her head back to smile at Renamon. “I’m afraid the doctor made it clear that all patients must participate.”

Renamon’s eyes darted to either side, eying the room. Orderlies were seen by the doorways, and she had seen several patients be sedated at mealtimes. She wasn’t willing to risk losing her mental agility and alertness for a doomed from the start escape attempt. And over such a ridiculous thing too. She trailed after her nurse silently, for all purposes seeming like someone being led to hang.

She froze in the changing room, and had to be coaxed by her nurse to slip out of her clothes, and then into the shower room, where the nurse turned on the spray. Renamon had long fallen back into the “catatonia” the first nurse she had come into contact with had whispered about, non-responsive and sluggish. In actuality, Renamon was in a forced meditation, the only thing keeping her calm at the thought of no fur covering her, nothing covering her, nothing protecting her, she was naked, skinned! Muscles and flesh revealing the delicate organs beneath for any predator to rip and tear out; her outsides torn off by ones who only wished her harm, trying to reach at her insides, her core, her soul. Did she have a soul? Was she just data? Is she was just data, then this wouldn’t bother her. She wouldn’t care. Did this prove she was real? Her arm brushed her bare side and she jumped sideways, cracking into the wall and sliding down. She stayed sitting, slumped on the floor, letting the water hit her in the face as she stared at nothing. The heightened sensations were numbing her, leaving her skin tingling from the extra sensitivity. Everything was felt in explicit details: where the spray was hitting her, where her side was going to be bruised, the re-opened cut on her shoulder, the hard floor underneath her, the weight of her hair pulling on her skull. This body wasn’t hers. This wasn’t her. This wasn’t real.

Maybe she didn’t want to be real, if this is what it was. Renamon raised her head to stare mournfully at her nurse, looking more like an animal then she had as a fox Digimon. Hand half raised to her mouth in a mix of surprise and shock, her nurse stared back for a moment. Renamon didn’t care enough at that point to control her expressions. Her eyes and face showed everything she was, and wasn’t, feeling for the first time. She sat there in the water, motionless, until her nurse saw fit to take her away.

[taken to here]

Momo was planning on heading to the red field, but her instructions from Hitsugaya about her needing to see to Mustang had her going to the Sun Room. The shinigami stood by the door, leaning back against the wall, as she waited for the colonel to appear.

[poised to Roy-nap for a quickie^^]

[from here]

Carefully, Beatrix lead the way up the stairs, one hand trailing lightly along the wall just to ensure she was keeping an adequate distance from it. She wasn't using the flashlight and she didn't think she needed it, having walked this path with Rena the night before, but she would not begrudge her apprentice light if she needed it. After all, Mion hadn't been with them the night before.

As she was heading up the stairs, something she hadn't thought of dawned upon her, hoping that Mion simply wouldn't use the light. They were going to be passing right by the door to the place where the girl had been taken for experimentation and torture. The girl was strong, yes, but the Bride had learned that a good portion of that exterior confidence and bluster was just the girl's way of hiding the fact that she was, indeed, a fragile teenager.

"Stay close behind me when we reach the top," she said in a low quiet voice, not wanting to draw the attention of any hostile creatures. "Mion, I want you to stay along the right-hand wall in these halls up here."

[From here]

Tyki was surprised to feel the chilly air from outside on his skin. He took a few steps forward, sweeping his flashlight around the area only to see he was standing on some kind of outdoor patio. Judging from the type of furniture present, it seemed to be used to lounge. From what he saw this morning, patients used the Sun Room for this. Would this be a lounge for the staff, then?

In any case, the patio was a welcome change from all the (boring) hallways. He couldn't help but wonder if he could find what he was looking for, though, but he supposed there wouldn't be any harm in taking a look around.

"It seems we're getting somewhere now." he announced, glancing over his shoulder to Lia.

[From here]

The sounds of battle didn't seem to follow them as Tyki slipped into the next hallway. That was at least one less bothersome problem to stand between him and his cigarettes (provided that he'd find any tonight, of course).

The hallway they stood in now didn't look any different than any other hallway. It didn't really make for exciting scenery, but that wasn't really what the Noah was currently bothered with. He glanced at the various doors in front of him, and groaned at the sight of having even more directions to choose from. They had to be kidding him. Did it ever end?

The Noah was starting to get annoyed by all of this. He was going to kill the person responsible for making this building. And the one who decided it would be a good idea to steal his cigarettes and make him go through nicotine withdrawal. Chances were they were actually the same person, but that would save him some extra work anyway.

He had no idea where any of these doors led to, and doubted his nightshift companion would know much more than him. Just his luck to run into someone that was just as new as he was, but there wasn't really anything he could do about it.

"So, which door should we take?" he asked her anyway. Why should he decide all the time?

[ETA: Mixed up the East and West. It's fixed now. Sorry! D:]

[from here]

John stepped out of the stairwell and into the hallway, moving slowly. It was much more quiet up here and it unnerved him. "Switch your flashlight on," he said to Wolfram. "I get the feeling the extra light can't hurt."

He cast the light around, trying to get a feel for the area. There weren't any signs anywhere, which was so strange. Most hospitals had signs on the doors and electronic locks, letting everyone know what was behind the doors but here it was all a mystery. John didn't like being kept in the dark, literally or figuratively, and he moved forward hoping that the sense of dread was only in his mind.

[From here.]

Sync stifled a yawn as he entered one of the main hallways, already knowing where it led since he’d already spent a majority of his time around the Sun Room that day. He couldn’t help but find himself smirking smugly as fond memories sprouted from those thoughts, wiping at his cheeks as if Anise’s tears were still smeared all over his face.

With Anise, Guy and that bastard Fon Master lingering around, he had to wonder who else managed to get themselves in this mess. From the way the swordsman tried to threaten him, Sync could only assume that there were even more of their allies around. Yet, in the same light, it sounded as if he was the only God-General there as well.

No matter. He knew he was more than enough of a challenge for all of them.

[To here.]

The intercom clicked on and the Head Doctor spoke with his usual fervor.

"Good evening, patients and staff! I am pleased to announce that the arrival of nearly all of our new patients will conclude this shift. In addition, we have a very delicious dinner in store for you: carved Turkey with a side of mashed potatoes and steamed, seasoned vegetables. For drinks, we have our usual assortment available, and as a dessert included with your dinner, we will be serving a slice of warm apple pie with each meal.

"I trust that those of you enjoying the company of new roommates will give them a warm Landel's welcome, and I also hope that those of you who participated in therapy today were able to find a productive time with their doctors.

"That's all for now! Enjoy dinner, everyone!"

The intercom clicked off again.

[ Please respond to this post with all dinner shift threads between roommate, putting your character's respective room in the subject line. While we have none scheduled for this shift at this time: all introduction posts for this shift's group of new characters should be made in response to this post; the introduction may then continue on to be a regular roommate thread. ]

((taking place in room F25 specifically))

Dinner had been alright. She had somehow avoided talking to anyone, which was both good and bad. The good part was, unless it had been someone she knew, she didn't have to talk to anyone. While she felt considerably better after meeting Rena, she couldn't stop her mind from going back to being strapped to that table again... The bad part was, she wouldn't get to talk much until nightshift ended.

Mion wasn't quite sure how she should have felt about the announcemnt, but if you got right down to it, it honestly meant nothing to her. On the one hand, the man on the radio had apparently been helping people. But who knew if that was true? Seeing as he wasn't exactly on good terms with the boss here, it made perfect sense for him to have been using them during Nightshift, for whatever reason.

Plus, his help couldn't have been that helpful anyway. She hadn't heard about any break outs yet, and until she did, she wouldn't call it helping. Not from someone who apparently had been on the same terms as the Head Doctor, anyway. She might have felt differently had she known she had met him during the trip, and then again, maybe she wouldn't. Living in Hinamizawa meant you saw things.

Letting out a loud, exagerated moan, Mion got off of what she had been forced to call her bed and began pulling the mattress off of it. It was going to be a long, lonely night; might as well start.

River's feet were finally beginning to catch up with the rest of her. Movements didn't come in slow, painful motions, at least not so much, and there weren't any hot coals left to fear. Where they lay, sprinkled in the earth, they were just as easy to see as she was quick to step around them. Her tightrope was taut, and she wasn't falling anymore. Or yet. It was hard to tell in the middle of the storm when there were so many other things to see and not.

Lightning. 1...2...3...4... Thunder.

Under the watchful eye of the nurses, the firestarter stepped into the showers, among the first of the cattle to step up for cleaning. Efficiency was the key. A record time to let her sins be washed away before they pulled her out for taking too long.

At least her hair would be softer once all the tangles were out.

[Bother away~]

It was surprising how quickly the staff had lifted the lockdown, particularly for those who had a hand in this morning's "incident". Ken was certain they were going to be stuck in their rooms until nightfall and thus, felt wary of the intercom's announcement. Partly for possible ulterior motives, partly for the fact they were treating them as children.

This whole situation was one glorified time-out, when he thought about it.

Still, there were some benefits to the matter, which the nurse was now spelling out for him. "....choice of the Sun Room, the Music Room, the Game Room, or the Arts and Crafts Room--"

"Wait." Ken stopped short in the middle of the hallway. "Excuse me, but did you say Arts and Crafts Room?"

The nurse nodded and smiled. "Would you like to go there?" she asked. "You deserve it, considering you were so good during today's ordeal."

Perfect. He was hoping for a place to finish the copy of the map he had planned to give Yukari. This "Arts and Crafts" Room should have something more eye-catching than pens. (Blue and black ink were boring selections.) With a nod of approval, Ken allowed himself to be escorted.

In five minutes, the boy managed to assemble several choice markers and four sheets of white paper, which he took to one of the round tables in the room. There, he set to work, using the map within his journal pages as a reference.

Hitsugaya woke with a start.

His entire body ached, but the pain was nowhere near as bad as it had been the night before. His injuries had been tended two with clean gauze and bandages, and he found every movement wasn't agony. He wasn't in the best of shape, but thanks to the miracle of landel's strange time distortion, he had mostly recovered from the vile poison without having to waste anyone else's talents.

And in his hand, still...there was the key.

He dressed quickly, sliding the key onto the key ring from his desk drawer and stuck it into his pocket. Whether the key stood to gain them anything or not, it stood as a vital reminder that they could succeed in this place. There was hope, as insignificant as it often seemed. They could beat this place.

That small shred of hope made getting up worth it.

The nurse who escorted him to breakfast was cheerful, and commented idly about how wonderful it was to see young Tommy Winters up and about again after his unfortunate run-in with a bad case of food poisoning. He smirked slightly, knowing that any lies the institute forced into their heads were only that: lies. He wouldn't buy it for a second. And on top of that, the concept of muffins sounded almost appetizing. While he still preferred his authentic Japanese cuisine, the food here was slowly becoming more and more bearable. He would have preferred a warm bowl of sweet nattou over rice over the mufffins, but they would do. The plain yogurt and fruit, on the other hand, was excellent. He piled his plate high with fruit as usual, and got several small bowls of yogurt as well.

Finding the most convenient table to the end of the food line, he took a seat and scanned for the new arrivals. New arrivals meant people who would be lost and confused. Renji did a good job of making a bulliten post last time...he should recommend abarai-fukutaicho do the same again this time.

[Waiting for Angel]

[From here.]

"O-oi!" Sousuke hissed, following Miku into the darkness. He looked over his shoulder and gesturing to Mousse to follow. Walking blindly into an unlit room when there was 'something' there that Miku was trying to follow was right up there with leaving his apartment without his Glock in his jacket--it just didn't feel right.

"Hinasaki-san," The sergeant caught up to the girl and put a protective hand on the center of her back. "I respect your desire to follow your instincts, but entering a dark room unarmed is reckless! We should leave immediately."

His senses were open all the way, trying to sense anything that would be a threat. Something didn't feel right... his skin was prickling and his throat was suddenly blocked. Something was in here...

"We need to leave. Now."

Zelgadis entered the sun room, severely shaken by his conversation with Rezo despite attempts to ignore it.
The man he had spent half his life trying to please had been there, alive, telling him all the things Zelgadis wanted to hear. And it was all a lie, a waking dream. It hurt.
Zelgadis settled himself into a soft chair, hoping that sleep would take him.

[ running fast from Germaine St. ]

Ed was now screaming at the top of her lungs, "Help, help, I'm being repressed!" Stupid doctors and nurses must be elsewhere obsessed, they weren't yet coming to rescue Ed who was quite distressed! The evil stormtrooper was still on her heals, and as if she was going to trust his appeals. Pain and punishment were probably on his list and she didn't want to get the gist. Hopefully a nurse or some other kind person would put a stop to the madness, before Ed's life was ended by Empire badness.

There was, Naomi decided, some sort of cosmic irony in all of this. Not that she was trapped in a deranged and possibly other-worldly asylum with a man she'd idolized for years and a boy who was being investigated for - among other things - the murder of her fiance. No, at this point, those were perfectly normal occurrences. Rather it was the soft, pretty, feminine pink sweater dress she'd been stuffed into in the morning. A chance to wear normal clothes, and she looked like a soccer mom. The white blazer and white boots only made her look like a soccer mom who maybe hadn't given up gogo boots.

It was humiliating. Why couldn't she have jeans and a sweater? And sneakers? Something she would conceivably wear? Not this damned pink monstrosity. And her nurse kept saying how pretty she was.

She didn't care if she looked pretty.

Grumbling to herself, and taking it out on her muffin, Naomi was shoved onto an empty bus and told to 'sit tight'. Oh, she'd sit tight alright....

At least she was relatively certain L was alright. She'd spent the whole night with him, and other than falling on his ass, nothing had happened to him. And hopefully nothing would happen to him in town, either....

[From here]

If she hadn't been holding onto the door, Hanyuu would've most likely fallen face first into the room in her haste. Luckily, her grip kept her on her feet, but that was the least of her worries at the moment.

"Auu auauauu!" Moving away from the door so Arlene could enter as well, the former spirit rubbed a hand over her eyes. She wasn't going to cry. She was not going to cry! Rika was okay. Rika had to be okay!

If only believing that was as easy as thinking it...

...oh. Right. The room. Figuring out what room they were in seemed much less exciting-- and not to mention, important-- now. But Arlene was there, too, and figuring out where they were would probably be good...

"Wh-where... where do you think we are?" she asked, shakily shining her flashlight around the room.

[From here.]

Darkness once again met Rena as she crossed the threshold into the room. The interior contained vague outlines of chairs and occasional tables as well as a couple of items the girl couldn't quite place. It also seemed to be devoid of any living entities.

"This looks like a waiting room," she said to Mion, beckoning the other girl in. "I guess we can start our search here."

Some time between waiting for Mion and assessing their situation, Rena had discovered one very unfortunate fact. Both her flashlight and the metal bar were missing, likely lost during last night's confrontation in the recreational field. Although the girl wasn't particularly attached to the former, the latter had served as a valuable asset since day one. Losing it, especially considering Renji had given it to her, was disheartening.

"Hau... How could I have been so careless?" she huffed, tossing aside the bedsheet in frustration. Sentimentality demanded Rena search for the items, but logic put an end to that thought immediately. No way they'd still be there; a nurse or another patient probably took them. She had little, if any, hope of seeing those two items again.

A sharp knock brought Rena out of her distress, and the girl nearly tripped in the rush to let her visitor in. A click and a turn later, the door was open for Mion to enter. "Good evening!" greeted Rena nervously.