Despite the rough start and the heavier snowfall, the buses managed to stay on route and on schedule. With minutes to spare, they arrived at the gates of Landel's Institute, back to the waiting arms of the military. All pretenses seemed to drop at this point, and the soldiers again took on their patented gruff exteriors. Patients were filed out of the buses in an orderly manner, eventually being escorted to their rooms for dinner in much the same. There, as promised by the personnel, well-behaved patients found their purchases among their returned possessions. A few even found new faces, though whether they brought as much joy as bought goods remained unseen.

The woman manning the intercom seemed to have missed the notice about the day's trip as her announcement remained no different from the usual. "Attention all subjects and personnel," she said. "Lights Out will commence within the hour."

A pause.

"I repeat, Lights Out will commence within the hour. All personnel: please report to your stations. The General will begin his address once preparations are underway. Thank you."

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. ANY NEWLY ACCEPTED CHARACTERS MAY POST TO THIS SHIFT (but are not obligated to if you would like to wait for Nightshift or Dayshift); please refer to the new room assignments before posting. Thank you! ]

Five boondollars wasn't going to go very far. Nor would a couple of tickets for restaurants and salons, unless Mystic Healing Spa was a euphemism for more prosaic forms of repair work. Since she hadn't been injured aside from her pride, last night, it was superfluous either way.

Rose would have to be circumspect in her purchases. No new laptop. Five minutes at an internet cafe might be pushing it. Maybe she could find a connection just lying around. It wouldn't be the first time.

The largest building bordering the park looked promising. Black Rock Inn. Real life didn't come with save points, but what kind of adventurer would she be if she didn't hit up an inn or two? Sentimental nonsense, of course, but she couldn't rely on the designers being as immune to its wiles as she was. She strolled over to the door, and flung it open as if she owned the place.

The inside was, in a word, quaint. A fireplace burbled merrily away, welcoming weary souls with its dancing, ephemeral visage, and an empty bar promised ale and wenches to roaming heroes who had reached the age of wanting one or both temptations.

Rose just wanted an internet connection. Or a clue. Really. She wasn't picky. Any sort of indication towards the next step would be welcomed with open arms. If by open arms one meant biting sarcasm, of course.

[free!]

(from here. nnn so close.)

Closer. She was getting closer. Almost there, almost at her destination. ... And then she would have to do it all over again. Get from one point to the other, without hopefully being hit or ... well, if she was being honest, she would really appreciate it if she wasn't noticed, but hey, she couldn't look a gift horse in the mouth. For once, she thanked the fact that she was small. That way, if anything caught her, she could at least make a break for it. Maybe she would be hard to catch.

And, honestly, she was going good at running! Go, Bella, go.

Was it bad she was feeling at least proud of that? She hoped not. Because honestly, it made her feel confident that everything was going to be okay.

(to here finally wheee.)

[from here]

Indy banked to the right as soon as they got outside, ready to scale the wall into the courtyard. He didn't see anything suspicious on the field--but then, the threats in here never did make themselves apparent until it was too late to avoid them. You'd've thought a guy with a giant blade would be more obvious.

He began the usual process of securing his flashlight and machete once they were a few yards away. When they reached the wall, then, his hands were free, leaving him ready to start the climb.

The commotion just after the intercom's jingle displayed the same kind of erratic energy that the Head Doctor had been exuding all day.

"Come on, get those papers out of the way – no, I don't...! Ah! Good evening, everyone, and I hope you all enjoyed the activities we had to–"

Someone whispered something in the background. The Head Doctor sighed and muttered: "Yes, Lydia, I know we don't have many organized activities...

"...But anyway! Next up is dinner with your roommates! Tonight, we'll be having turkey and gravy, which will consist of some moist slices of turkey breast and garlic mashed potatoes, garnished with steamed broccoli, grilled asparagus, and topped with delicious gravy. We'll be serving the dinners with small side salads and our dessert will be pumpkin pie – as per usual, we have alternate meals for alternate dietary needs."

The Head Doctor took a long pause. Lydia mumbled something in the background.

"No, I'm not dawdling–! Er... I'll talk to you shortly, everyone!"

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! ]

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 sigh that toed the ambiguous no-mans-land between soft and explosive, Yuffie collected a plateful of waffles with all the toppings. She was sure that, if nothing else, it'd making a pretty satisfying splat if—when?—she launched it at somebody's face, and that was all that counted.

"Hanna, isn't that a little much?" Plucky asked, doubtfully.

"Uhhm. No. About, like... a little while ago, I managed five caramel apple pies with ice cream and berries and, y'know, I think there was a gallon of soda involved at some point." It wasn't the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. There really had been five caramel apple pies, but Cloud had ended up wearing two and a half and the third had taken a vacation to Boobsville (Tifa had loved it. Really. Really). The moral of the story (as she'd told Marlene and Denzel later) was that anything was game, just as long as you could run fast enough afterwards.

The nurse nodded slowly. "I… suppose. Well, I'll leave you to it. See that you behave, won't you, dear? You need to set a good example for the new batch of patients."

"My examples are the best examples," Yuffie proclaimed, with the dark-bright grin that still came so easily, no matter how little she felt really felt it. It lingered even when the nurse had flitted off to deal with another charge, but there was an edge to it. What the edge was, Yuffie couldn't say. Didn't want to say, after what'd gone down last night. Nah, she had better things to do; things like sitting down and waiting, just waiting, for Cloud or some other sucker of an easy target to walk through the door.

[HARLEY HARTWELL o/]

[from here]

Last time he'd been in the Sun Room at night, there'd been some crazy guy with a gun and Neku really wasn't looking to have another bullet in him, so he was cautious as he pushed the door open, his flashlight darting from place to place.  He might not have all his old psychs on him, but he still had a few of Mr. H's pins and those would have to do.  Things seemed pretty clear, but trying a scan before the others got into the room might be dangerous.  Every time he'd tried using his psychs or his other abilities, he ended up getting light-headed, or the static got so loud he couldn't concentrate. 

The Sun Room was supposed to be the big bad hangout for all the brainwashed patients or other creepy night things, but this had to be the first time he'd actually sought one out on purpose. 

"Clear so far," he said quietly, keeping the wall to his back as he took a few more side steps into the room.

[From here]

The amount of thin lights and hushed voices thinned greatly as Xemnas made his way further down the corridor, cloaking the area in a silent and deserted darkness. Silence was what drifted even from beyond the doors leading to the Sun room, a silence that may have been eerie to those who had the essence to be gripped by such a primal emotion. As one that wasn't part of such a measure of existence, such a thing held little meaning. The Superior passed those doors without so much as a second glance.

Still, orange eyes searched the darkness as he walked this familiar path, prepared for possible threats lingering within those shadowy depths, seeking to devour those who who passed by. The night had only just began, and he himself was likely among the first to walk these empty corridors; there would naturally be no battles to alert him of any undesired presences. Though time was of the essence in this world, a sense of caution was indeed something holding more importance.

[To here]

[To here]

"Made it..." She whispered triumphantly as she walked quietly into the dark and quiet hallway first. It was hard to decide where the best place would be to stand since once others began to flood in, Asuka could easily be overshadowed by the taller adults. "Hmmm..." The best she could guess was to hug the opposite wall by the doorway and hope she would pick out the two members once they entered.

Remember, Asuka, you aren't the veteran here.

This wasn't NERV anymore. She had no one under her to display her impressive and extensive training to. The redhead was a newbie like the ones she was going to be working with, though perhaps a bit more intelligent. This first mission was important for popularity's sake. She needed to play nice for now, gauge their strengths and weaknesses until she knew who she could topple the easiest.

[Waiting on Agatha and Zevran]

[From here]

"Ah...!" This wasn't the right hallway yet, but he could tell it was close from the fresh smell of patients off in the distance. He continued to jog briskly down the hallway, making sure to control his breathing so he didn't get winded so easily. There would be a lot of running (he hoped, at least) this night and it would be good for him to return to his basics in order to ration his stamina. Unfortunately, honing his stamina did nothing for his irregularly terrible night vision. Out of nowhere, he bumped into the wall beside him, squawking like a bird at the sudden impact.

"Jeez..." At least he only got hit on his forehead, that was the thickest part of him really. Keeping one small hand on the side of the hallway for safety, he continued forward, grumbling softly.

Yuffie Kisaragi, indomitable bouncing ball of sunshine and unfathomable ebullience, was tired. It'd been a long night full of gibberish and getting nowhere fast.

"Can't I—"

Plucky, who had been busily loading a plate full of French toast and bacon, tittered. "I'm afraid not, Hanna, darling. A chat over a nice, hearty breakfast would do you a world of good, don't you think?"

"Aaaaactually—"

"Come on, let's find you a seat. Plenty to choose from this morning!"

For a long moment, Yuffie seriously considered doing something—anything—to act out. Punch her nurse, rub jam in an orderly's face, climb a wall and hang off the ceiling, jump on a table and parody Loveless… A ruckus like that would definitely jolt her back into gear, right? Sedation aside. And it'd turn Plucky's good day right on its head, which was always a bonus worth shooting for.

But, by the time she'd reached a decision—and it was an epic decision, a really awesome one; everybody'd appreciate the genius, she was sure—she was already alone. Her breakfast tray had been set down neatly by the nurse, who had left with an infuriatingly winsome smile.

"Wow," Yuffie muttered. Shaking her head, she picked a chair at random and threw herself into it. She kicked back, one arm slung across her eyes, to wait. For what, she wasn't totally sure. Some moron to decide that she looked like good company? That was how it usually went.

[[from here]]

Trying to communicate with Abe was seriously becoming a drag.  Not that it was Abe's fault, but...   Even if Neku wasn't talkative on the best days, he still didn't have to worry about anyone understanding what he said.  Apathetic teen was universal.  Leave it to this place though, to stick them in pairs or groups and make them work together.  Seemed way too familiar.

It took a good deal of kicking at the door, throwing his weight on it, and shoving before the lock finally gave and led them out into the open air of the patio.  Sure enough, they were outside, overlooking the Recreation field.  There were plenty of people running around, no surprise there.  He waved Abe over, still on the lookout for anything suspicious, but so far, so good.  How they were supposed to get to the roof from here though... that was a little trickier.

"Up?" he tried, simplifying the Japanese as much as he could and adding a hand gesture for emphasis.

"...how?" he added a second later, frowning at the prospect.  He might be able to throw things a bit with his telekinesis, but who knew how well that would even work!  Not to mention that he hadn't even tried the majority of his pins.  If he tried it with someone as big as Abe, he might end up pitching him off the patio. 

[[From here]]

One second he was in the hallway, the next he was tumbling through a door and looking up at the skyscrapers of Shibuya.  Shibuya!  If there was one place he'd recognize in an instant, it was Scramble Crossing.  The massive crosswalk, 104 towering high in the distance, and buildings sprouting up all around them.  Of  course, there was also one other thing that was truly, most heinously screwed up. 

It was totally empty!  Shibuya, the most crowded, noisy city he could think of, and there wasn't a single person, save him and Sora on the street.  It was like the zombie apocalypse or something!  The streets should've been crawling with people even in the middle of the night!  But it was like the place just died.  Or possibly just everyone in it.  By way of noise, at least one thing was familiar, but-   how was he back in his old clothes?  His pins, his accessories, brand-name JotM shirt and shorts, everything was back, just like it'd been in the UG.   Even though it'd been less than a week since he'd been home, being without his mp3 player and favorite playlist was driving him crazy by itself.  But now the familiar beat of his favorite J-pop artists was happily pulsing through his headphones.  Probably his only consolation in all this.

"What is this?!" he managed, getting to his feet and oddly enough being able to hear the crunch of asphalt under his shoes.  It was just... really freaking creepy.  Where the hell was everyone? 

[From here]

The last hall! HK had never been here before, but he'd long ago memorized maps of the area long before the censorship began on the bulletin, and generally ruined his daytime fun. He darted ahead through the darkness, examining the doors as he passed them. Aha! The janitor's closet. "Statement: Here it is." Improvised blunt weaponry awaited!

The door was locked, but the whole assembly looked flimsy. Remembering how Lugnut had broken his foot before, he decided it was better if he managed to get the thing open. A carefully placed kick or two should do it...

[From here]

Still quiet. 622 really didn't trust this, but if they could get to where they were going, at least he might be able to find out more about what this place expected him to be, even if there wasn't anything useful. Maybe he could still make something out of it.

Still, he had a bad feeling about this.

[To here]

[From here]

622 risked a glance over the railing as they passed the Sun Room down below. Nothing there yet. Not even something guarding the area. "Hmm." That was odd. There was always a guard stationed there. Maybe he just couldn't see it, but shouldn't people be trying to head through there by now? There would be evidence if they had.

[from here]

As Mello walked toward the area overlooking the Sun Room, a tension he hadn't realized he was carrying eased off a little, not entirely. There'd be screaming in the rooms by that hallway, the one he deliberately hadn't let himself glance in the direction of, though he knew the sound wouldn't carry to the hall itself. Nothing he could do for them, he reminded himself, and finding out what Matt knew was more important. "Did we win yet?" he asked.

He fought to drown out the doubts trying to crowd in, the thought that even if they had for Matt, that didn't mean it would happen that way for Mello. Here L was with the answers to the case ready to act on, but Mello still remembered standing in Roger's office, hearing the unthinkable, as vividly as if it had been yesterday. The possible explanations were all equally horrible--L dead despite everything, or dead no matter what in Mello's timeline, or unable to escape soon enough--and though Matt hadn't had time to answer, Mello looked back at him and snapped, "Well?"

[from here]

Mello needed to replace his lost pipe, for starters, or find something better, if he could. As with many things he believed, he believed wholeheartedly in the existence of his Sig somewhere in the Institute, because to think otherwise would be to give in to despair. Someone had a gun; he'd heard it a couple of nights ago.

Trying to seem less lost than he felt, as if he actually had a plan he was confident of pulling off, he addressed Matt again. "I'll bust us all the fuck out of here before long. When was it, for you?" He snuck that last in, not as whip-fast as he would've wanted, but abruptly all the same, in hopes of surprising an honest answer out of Matt.

[from here]

When he rounded the corner into the larger hallway, Kurogane determined to put the thoughts of being the only patient there aside. Even if that were the case, it didn't change his final goal for the night. The magician would have been helpful, but he was confident enough in his own ability to get things done.

Finding the feather remained a difficult task though. The basement had been less than helpful when it had come to locating the source of this place's power. But the third floor... no one had ever been able to reach it, yet they all knew it existed. The outside of the building proved enough. They just had to find the way to get up. If that meant forcing a hole through the floor, then fine, because right now it was the last place to go.

[gone here]