[from here]

And the winner was....

Not them.

This room was a bit bigger to be sure, and the sight wasn't too clear from the doorway. Senna trudged inside, peering around. The boxes looked promising at first, but a bit of poking and they only resulted in medical supplies. Which seemed to be the theme here. Hell, they could be useful but it was a bit of a let-down. She had been expecting monsters or something horrific. "Well," she started. "Guess it can't be fun all the time."

Fishing around in a box, she came up with a roll of gauze and medical tape. This could definitely be useful if anybody got hurt. She nodded to herself, and tucked them into her sash. Then she looked curiously at Maya. "Find anything interesting?"

[From here.]

L had expected to have to kick the door open himself, so he appreciated that his companion took the initiative this time; he was less pleased, however, that he had to enter the room first, as he had also entered the stairwell. He held up a hand, to indicate a pause in conversation. Standing against the door jamb, peering around the door, he scoured the walls, the floor, and the corners and center of the ceiling with the beam of his light.

Still nothing, but there was another door at the far end of the room, and no way of knowing what might wait behind it. The closet itself was so cluttered that he suspected that rifling through it could be perilous: they would have to be cautious in more than one sense. He moved towards the sink, intending to check that, too.

When they were finished here, and the room where their possessions were ostensibly stored, he wanted to try some of the doors that were reputed to have strong locks. He was skeptical of the idea that no one would have mentioned discovering that the reputation was false, but he couldn't take it on faith. Tonight would be convenient for a test; four doors on this hall alone had been marked red on Edgeworth's map. The ones closer to the open turn in the corridor would be better than the one at the isolated far end.

"No--I was in the greenhouse." He peered into the illuminated basin of the sink; when he was satisfied that it was empty, he looked up at Figaro. "What happened?"

[From here.]

So far, it seemed they were the only ones on that side of the main hall. Edgar wasn't about to complain- after all, that meant the storerooms would still be full, the wares there not yet picked clean by other resourceful patients. He shook his light as the beam wavered again, shining it down the corridor and into the corners. The doors to the storage closets were in sight now, and they were an encouraging sight indeed.

Aside from darkness, silence filled the hallway. Edgar decided to try his hand at conversation, now that they were away from the rest of the patients. He knelt beside the left door first, inspecting the lock- as with other nights, it was as though it had never been broken. Aligning the handle of his flashlight just below the lock, he prepared to break it.

"In regard to what he was saying just now..." The first hit made a crack, but the door didn't budge. "Were you in the Sun Room just before dinner?" There was another crack from the second hit, and the door creaked open. Edgar stood, rubbing the side of his hand, allowing Ryuuzaki passage into the room.

[From here.]

"It's lucky for me we're headed this way, actually," Edgar continued as they crossed the threshold into the hallway. He didn't wait for Ryuuzaki to lead this way this time, taking a few steps in the direction of the storerooms. "I've been meaning to return for the last couple of nights, but I've been unable to get as far as I..."

Edgar trailed off, pausing as he turned to look toward the western end of the hall. There was that odd feeling again- the same one he'd felt as they passed the Sun Room. It wasn't instinct kicking in, not years of keeping on his toes in delicate situations giving him warning. It wasn't the battles he'd fought making him aware of the presence of monsters lurking in the darkness, forcing him to keep his guard. It was an unfounded knowing. He couldn't prove it in any way, but he simply... knew there was something there.

More specifically was the distinct knowledge it was one of the brainwashed patients, someone who had been taken for the "special counseling." But how could he have known? Edgar listened carefully, trying to hear through the stifling atmosphere that pervaded every hallway. Aside from the murmuring of other patients, there was nothing outstanding: no sounds of intense fighting, no unnatural feel of magic coursing through the air around them, nothing to clearly indicate that it was one of the brainwashed sentries. And yet, he somehow knew.

But how? He disliked second-guessing his own judgment, but simply knowing sounded ridiculous in this situation. He kept his eyes down the hall a moment longer- he couldn't deny what he felt. He was absolutely certain there was someone there, another in the Sun Room, and two more outside.

[From here.]

L ducked his head into the stairwell, peering into the gloom. It was hard to tell what might be waiting there.

He remembered how Jones had objected to him sweeping corners with the light, and it was true that it would signal their presence, maybe even their location, to anything that might be waiting. However, he had learned by now that if something was lying in wait, it would ambush them whether or not it had advance warning of their approach. The risk that something would take his quick investigation as encouragement to attack him was outweighed by his need to know--even if it wasn't with absolute certainty--that he wasn't walking into a trap.

He cleared the area as well as he could with the beam of his light, in the same way that he would expect officers working under him to know how to clear it with their firearms. When he was satisfied that as much of the stairwell as he could see was safe, he made his way up, cautious, keeping his back to the wall, continuing to check the areas ahead of him, hoping that he and Figaro wouldn't be followed.

[From here]

Beelzemon stopped as he neared the doors to the Sun Room, a look about as close to thoughtful as he ever got crossing his face. The last time he'd seen all those soldier boys running around was in the cafeteria, but they probably weren't there now. There was always something in the Sun Room, but it probably wouldn't be something he'd feel quite as good about hitting over the head with extreme prejudice. So...

"Eesh, how hard can it be ta find those guys?" Maybe outside? He had no freakin' clue.

[Donna!]

(from here.)

There was no one in the hallways. Bella couldn't help but feel the fear spike up for a moment when she realized that her light was the only on visible, but she quickly swallowed it down, chanting that same mantra over and over again in her head. No one was out because she had ran out of the room quickly, that was all.

Okay, stick to the plan, she got herself thinking, nodding her head as she moved towards the door that lead into one of the main hallways. Get to Edward's room. Get the jars. Empty said jars ... then somehow make my way upstairs. ... Well, obviously, use the stairs to get upstairs. There's really no other way to get up to a second level ... unless there's an elevator somewhere ...

"Oh god," Bella muttered to herself, unable to help herself when she rolled her eyes at her own antics. "Shuush. Is silence so hard to ask for, brain?"

You don't want the silence, she reminded herself. The silence will make your paranoia come back.

So maybe the talking to herself wasn't so bad after all.

(jumping to here.)

[From here.]

The big connecting corridor. He may be in a rush, but this hallway deserved extra caution. What would he do if he tried to get to Stefan and ended up mauled on the way there? The first night when he'd smelled blood here, it was still a bit... haunting. It meant there was a chance of something lurking, dragon or not.

Dammit, he was trying to reminisce again. Less thinking, more walking (which, as things went, was actually a feat for a vampire. It came with the whole multi-tasking thing.)

Sweeping his light through the length of the corridor, Edward inspected every bit of wall the light touched, eyes darting like a bird's for any sign of movement. Still no patients. At least the stillness would make it easy to see any potential ambush. At least, that's what he was going to tell himself.

[To here.]

[From here.]

... this was not a good sign. Edward was used to the single hallway his room was in being empty considering how it was part of the last row of rooms, but once he stepped outside the block there had always been a few stragglers wearing the tell-tale gray slacks. Unconsciously, he pulled the pillowcase closer to him. He wasn't stupid. This was... odd.

Two hallways without a single soul in sight. Maybe it was his pace. It was hard to tell if it was merely human or not; all he knew was that he couldn't stop now. He wished he could be selfish and say it was only worry that pushed him, but his throat was rough and dry. Thirst helped. It always did. It had the driving force of a wrecking ball and the insistence of fatal pain.

[To here.]

[F21]

If Aigis hadn't been there to see it herself she would not have believed it. Martin Landel, the bane of her existence for the past week, was now gone. Replaced. And she didn't know what to make of the new authority put in place. She told herself it was her inaction that filled her with unease. For a moment, he had been there right where she wanted him. She could have made him pay for all he had done. She could have avenged Heat or repaid him for the time he had returned her body along with a mission of violence. But she didn't. For some reason she had remained rooted in the spot, staring at the spectacle. Now that dinner had passed she wondered to herself, why had remained so unmoved? When she finally had her chance why had she uselessly let it go to waste?

( The rest cut for tl;dring )

The jingle of the intercom seemed ill-timed this round, a fact that was further pronounced by the pleasant voice following suit.

"Hello, patients. This is I.R.I.S. again. Due to technical difficulties, we are unable to speak to you directly at this time. Until the matter is resolved, we will be announcing the remainder of today's events from our automated service.

It is now time for everyone to retire to their assigned rooms for Dinner Shift. Tonight's menu consists of premium spaghetti with Landel's signature marinara sauce, garlic bread, and a side of Caesar salad. Our dessert for tonight is chocolate chip cookies. In addition, we will be providing the usual selection of drinks, and vegetarian alternatives can be made available upon request.

We again would like to apologize for any inconvenience. Please contact your nurse with any questions or concerns you might have. Thank you, and have a wonderful evening."

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! ]

All things considered, last shift had been pretty low key. After this morning's disaster, though, that was perfectly fine by Claude. Some fresh air and a chance to make sure Guy and Okita were all right weren't things to take for granted. It was also good to have a fairly normal, conversation with Guy that didn't slip off into awkward territory. Having Okita there as a sort of buffer probably made things a bit easier in that regard. Claude was confident that things would smooth about between them fairly soon -- if they hadn't already, even.

After checking the bulletin and making some notes of his own, Claude walked alongside his nurse into the cafeteria. As far as he could tell, the soldiers hasn't cleared out any since their arrival this morning. Not only that, but Landel didn't sound too happy about what happened. Was he going to get into trouble for the food fight?

Not that he had any sympathy for the Head Doctor, of course. That bastard deserved every bad thing that ever happened to him, and then some. On the other hand, it did make Claude wonder what would become of the captives if someone even harsher stepped in to take his place...

Was that even possible? Then again, Claude had to consider that no one even used tear gas the last time a riot happened. Had this morning's response been someone else's idea?

As hard as it was to sit and wait for things to pan out, Claude knew that ultimately time would tell what was going to happen. Thankfully, he had a lunch appointment to keep him occupied. After collecting his tray of food, Claude took a seat at one of the tables. It looked like he was one of the first people here, which gave him an opportunity to notice just how much better the room looked than after breakfast. He couldn't imagine how many people had been asked to clean things up. Really, it was a wonder they hadn't just made the patients do it themselves as punishment.

Well, regardless of all that, he needed to wait for that Mordio person to show up now, right? Claude kept an eye on the cafeteria entrance, although he suddenly remembered that the patient had never given a description of themselves. Hopefully Claude's own description would be distinct enough for Mordio to find him.

[For Rita!]

For once, HK was working very hard to hide a giddy facial expression as he met his nurse at the door. He'd already hidden his scalpels in his clothing. The wonderful, sharp implements of doom would be needed today. “Statement: Despite my reticence towards all processed meat and plant products, I am experiencing intolerable levels of hunger,” he informed his nurse. “I require an especially large meal.”

It was the easiest and best excuse to load his food tray with several of these 'inglish muffin sandwiches', and two glasses of white milk. He then found a table strategically located in the center of the refueling area, and waited. He needed the room as full as possible before the Evil Plan could begin.

[Free, but planning doom upon all.]

[From here.]

Well, the second floor was just room after room of boxes, wasn't it? The Scarecrow reached for his map and pen, preparing to label the entire hall as "Where one might find boxes and batteries" when the name of the room caught his eye. "It says here that this is the Patient Possessions Storage," he said, stopping after only a few steps into the room. He took another look around- surely enough, every box on the shelf had its own label, each bearing the name of a patient. Whether they were the possessions of past or present patients was yet to be known.

The Scarecrow started at the A section, passing slowly down the line in the hopes of finding a box for Abe Sapien. With no luck on the first name, he skipped to the wall with the S boxes, scanning for a "Scarecrow" box while he was there. It looked like they followed the same pattern as the files, going with the name given by the Institute. He paused again, turning to Mele as an idea came to mind. "Do you suppose this is where they keep what we had on us when they brought us here?"

[from here]

That was a lie, though. She didn't have a definitive list that she added to and subtracted from, but she had the general sense that certain people she'd talked to once or twice were missing. But if they were gone, there was nothing she could do. Except rain curses on the institute, but she'd already done plenty of that, and it didn't work. Because then they'd just take away someone else.

Swinging her light cautiously from side to side, Mele squinted into the dark at the doors lining the halls. "What are you looking for, anyway? What's in these rooms?"

[From here.]

Reaching the top of the stairs, the Scarecrow followed Mele into the eastern end of the Horrible Hallway. Two steps in, and it didn't seem very dangerous yet- then again, the western end of the Hallway hadn't seemed so bad his first night until they discovered Mele and the somethings attacked. The balcony overlooking the Sun Room was usually dangerous, as well. It seemed only natural to assume there'd probably be witches on the eastern end occasionally.

That thought in mind, the Scarecrow gave the area a cautious sweep with his flashlight before looking at his map again. "We'll find some time tomorrow for you to copy this," he said quietly, breaking the eerie stillness of the corridor with his voice. "I usually see you at breakfast- it's a good thing, too. I know I'd be worried if I didn't see you every couple of days, knowing how people come and go in this place."

The Scarecrow looked toward the side halls, turning right and taking a few steps. "It'll be this one over here. Let's move before something notices us."

[from here]

"I have a pen," she added as she ascended the stairs. She was already using her journal to keep track of the days, why not stick a map in the same place? Unless they didn't let her carry the journal around tomorrow, but if so, that didn't make any sense (why give her a journal? Why let her carry a pen?), and she was going to tell the nurse so. "Tomorrow."

More importantly, she needed to keep her attention on what might lay ahead. "You haven't been this way before, right? Keep behind me." On the other hand, if Mele fell, she'd tumble into him. But someone had to take point, so... "And a little to the side," she added, glancing down.

[from here]

"And anyway, was that a map or what?" She hadn't gotten a good look, but if Scarecrow had consulted it, it was either a map or instructions. Mele didn't know which was more likely.

It was a good idea to exchange notes once in a while, probably. Maybe she'd do that in the day tomorrow; she'd been focusing so much on what everyone encountered that it hadn't occurred to her to ask where they'd been exploring. It wasn't that hard to see all there was to see in a building, or so she'd thought.

The flashlight flickered again, and Mele bit back a curse as she paused to shake it.

[from here]

And the center of the main hallways it was. Nice and tidy, right, right; a bit too quiet to be sure, but hey. The place would probably liven up soon, one way or the other. She, on the other hand, just needed to wait here for this Scott guy so they could go on their important mission of stealing instruments that may or may not be there.

...Yeah, this might have been a way to release some stress by not worrying about things for a little, but hey. Senna was reminded of Reid, and that damn ice field night, but either way, things had started off the same that night, hadn't they? Ah, well.... The girl stretched upwards, then wandered next to the entry room doors, leaning against the wall. In her shinigami uniform, with the red-hilted sword in her waist band, she might have made an impressive figure... If she wasn't only five feet tall. Oh, well. Intimidations could be had by someone else. Senna would just stick to wit and charms if she got accosted by a random passerbyer.

[For Scott!]