Somehow, after their talk in the chapel, Elaine felt simultaneously more accepting of and more irritated by her future husband. On the one hand, seven years had clearly been good to him. He seemed more sincere and thoughtful than he had been before his disappearance, and he had a more mature (dare she say, handsome?) look to him. On the other hand, there were clearly some things that made even time throw up its hands in vain and say, "To hell with this!" Guybrush was still inexorably prone to disastrous accidents if the story about the Pox of LeChuck was anything to go by, and he was so obviously keeping something important from her that any passing dolt in the Institute would have been able to tell. In the end, that eternal underlying sweetness of his that won out, keeping her from punching him again, at least. That was only by a hairs width, though. Her snugglecakes was going to have to stay on his best behaviour if he knew what was good for him.

She left the Mighty Pirate™ alone for the time being when the announcement of the next shift went off. He would want some time to catch up with Morgan next, presumably. As much as the woman's attitude bothered her, she was a friend of Guybrush's, as she had claimed. Elaine could be strict, but she wasn't the kind of shrewish future wife/past fiancé who would keep her man from seeing his friends. Besides, she needed some more time to catch up on the goings-on of the Institute. Patients filled the building to the brim, now, it seemed; there would be a lot to investigate.

After a few quick trips back and forth to the bulletin and a few new leads to follow up on, the governor gave in to her nurse's persistent nagging and headed to the cafeteria for brunch. After the relatively light fare of the day before, Elaine took advantage of the Institute's admittedly scrumptious offerings and loaded up a full, balanced brunchfast of eggs, sausage links, waffles, and vegetable soup. As expected, the selection of drinks did not offer either root beer or grog. Grog she could live without, at least, she thought while making a face. Eugh. For now, she settled for a tall glass of water.

Elaine settled into a seat in the cafeteria and tucked into her meal. Her eyes didn't stay on her food, though, instead gazing around restlessly; she hadn't seen LeChuck so far this morning, and god forbid he wanted to invite himself to brunch with her if he chose now to show up. A certain horribly unpleasant dinner on Mêlée Island came to mind. She was prepared to either move at the first sign of the dread pirate or signal a random stranger to sit with her before he could.

[For Dean]

[From here]

As far as Yuffie could remember, the journey was a straight shot over to the central section of the main hallway; that'd put 'em directly across from the sun room, and then it'd be a quick right turn into the only door. Easy peasy. With her shuriken and the two SOLDIER dudes—Cloud totally still counted, only not—in tow, the little ninja led the way through the doom n' gloom.

Past the stairs, past the waiting room. There we go. "It's just through here," Yuffie said when they were close enough. "We'll be in the entry room. There's two file rooms, one on the left, one on the right."

Zack was staring to think that he had bad luck when it came to roommates, since this time his new one had come back from wherever he'd been (not the field trip, since he hadn't looked like he'd just taken a dive into a river) and then immediately fallen asleep. His first roommate had slept until he'd just disappeared, and so the soldier couldn't help wondering if this was some sort of nasty repeat.

As a result, he'd had to deal with a very quiet dinner until the intercom announcements came on. The head doctor was just as much of a creep as usual, though it sounded like the rain was doing some structural damage to the building. "That bad, huh," Zack commented to himself as he stood from his desk to grab his flashlight and prepared to leave. It wasn't like that was going to stop him from venturing out.

The talk of visitors also nagged at the man, but it was something he'd be better off asking a more experienced patient about. For now, he just needed to get going. From what he'd managed to piece together, Tifa was heading out with Rude tonight, which meant that he'd be better off finding Cloud or Aerith. Maybe even his favorite ninja.

The faster he got going, the more likely he'd be able to catch someone on their way out of the patient rooms. And if he didn't manage that, then he'd just invite himself into another group. There was, of course, that urge to just go off on his own, but Zack was doing his best to hold back and listen to the multiple warnings he'd been given. He wasn't always the best at thinking before he leaped, but he knew that he couldn't toss his life around like it meant nothing.

Nodding to himself, Zack left his room (it looked like he was the first in this hallway to do so -- good sign!) and started down the hall.

[To here.]

[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]

[from here]

Another empty hallway. And the same hallway at that. Kurogane had yet to find any of the "changes" the intercom had gloated over so far, but given his pace that was bound to change. If he trusted the intercom words to anything, it was that he would be facing something sooner or later. Hopefully after he got the magician.

He turned left at first, intent to take his usual pathway through the field but paused at the memory of the day. Right, it was probably still raining outside. Much as water didn't bother him, Kurogane didn't feel like getting weighted down by soggy clothes tonight. He was already hindered enough by the restrictions here that anymore could end up being lethal.

Turning back, Kurogane moved instead towards the next hallway. It wasn't too much trouble going the indoor route, and since he was out so fast, chances were he could still catch the magician before he tried to get too far ahead of him.

[gone here]

Even with the nasty weather, Zack still felt refreshed after going outside. Humidity would have reminded him of Gongaga, but he wasn't sure he needed that. Not now, not when he wasn't even sure if he'd be able to get back home and see his parents again. Not that he should have the chance at all, but it was hard to think about nonetheless. Seeing how Gaia hadn't even gotten a rocket into space yet, the idea of figuring out how to get home was one huge question mark in Zack's head.

He already felt hungry again, but after his talk with Aidou the soldier knew that he needed to get that bulletin note up as soon as possible. For that reason, he gave the nurse who was currently herding him his best pleading eyes as he asked to be taken into the Sun Room for a quick second. Once there, he scribbled out a note as fast as he could (he hoped his friends would be able to read his writing) and then tacked it up.

Also, what was with the guy on the intercom all of a sudden? Had he gotten a spontaneous cold? It seemed ridiculous considering he was their captor, but it also meant he was at least somewhat human. He could get a stuffy nose. That meant he was probably weak in other ways.

But there he was, resorting to violence again. It was difficult not to, when that was what he was used to. Besides, Zack was getting the feeling that this Landel guy deserved it.

Shrugging to himself, he entered the cafeteria again and got in line for his lunch. He had to admit he was glad that the food didn't seem to be drugged, seeing how it was downright delicious. Zack got a whiff of the fried poultry as it was put onto his tray and let out a happy sigh. Chow time!

Seeing how the cafeteria was still pretty empty, the young man found the closest empty spot and then sat down. Hopefully one of his friends would spot him and head on over. For now, though, Zack picked up one of the pieces of meat, bit into it, and leaned back into his chair with a content look on his face. So much better than the slop Shin-Ra had called food...

[For Tobias! Let us know if you want to join.]

[from here]

622 headed down to the last door in the cell block corridor, keeping alert for anything that might already have set itself up in the hall. There usually weren't any ambushes this early in the night, but better safe than dead.

He knocked on the door to M41, waiting slightly back from the door for the Commander to open it.

Heh, tonight was promising to be kind of interesting. First time in awhile, it seemed like, for which Xigbar was far too happy to give things a shot. That in mind, he stripped off that aggravating gray shirt and started grabbing his weapons, making sure that they were all okay. Three knives lashed to his ankles, three arrows tied around his waist, and the clips of ammunition for the gun were carefully put away for safe-keeping. The gun, naturally, remained in his hands, and he reminded himself that he needed to get some duct tape so he could lash the flashlight on the thing.

For now, though, after preparations were complete, he opened the door and eased out into the hallway, keeping his eye open for trouble. Not that he'd mind, but he'd prefer seeing some trouble after meeting with his people. No point in showing off if there wasn't an appreciative audience, after all!

Peter woke up suddenly, his body twisting in the bed and then forcing him to catch his breath in pain. Pain, which was coming from his middle because of the thing that had scratched him last night, and after that...

After that, Zach had jumped in front of him like some kind of martyr, like the exact opposite of everything Sylar stood for, to take the next hit for him. It got pretty fuzzy after that, so night must have ended right around then.

The man let out a pained grunt as he straightened himself up in bed. For some reason, he got the feeling that he'd slept in. There was no way for him to really tell without a window in the room, but he just knew. The fact that Sam's bed looked long since vacated was another clue.

Sam, but was he Sam again? Had the brainwashing worn off, as he and Roland had hoped, or was he going to have to go through this nightmare for even longer? He didn't know how long he could handle "Zach" and "Harrison" before he started going batty himself.

Pulling himself out of bed, Peter lifted his shirt and saw that he was tightly bandaged. The scratch most likely wasn't nearly as bad as the bite that "Zach" had received, but it still smarted. He let his shirt fall and then had to deal with a nurse chiding him for sleeping through the morning announcements. Not that Peter really cared at the moment. He was too busy thinking about last night and the fact that in a way, he now owed something to Sylar. Except it hadn't been Sylar. That was something he was sure of now.

Lost in his thoughts, Peter reached the Sun Room right as the rest of the patient populace was trickling in from breakfast. Sighing to himself, he headed over to the bulletin board and then saw a note written in familiar yet unpleasant handwriting. Holding his pen in a vice grip, Peter scribbled out a reply and then stalked over to an armchair and fell into it with a huff.

While Sylar was maddeningly frustrating, there was one good thing about the fact that he was himself again. It meant that Nathan was too.

[For Spock!]

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.]

Even before he got sick, Sean had enjoyed reading. His teachers had always said that he read 'ahead of his age group', but he figured that was just because he read more than most kids his age did. He liked everything: fantasy, science fiction, biographies, journal articles... There was just something satisfying about holding a book--something someone poured a lot of effort into producing--to Sean.

Today, though, he didn't want to get into anything particularly heavy or involved. No psychology textbooks for him today--he was going to read something fictional. Pulling what looked like an interesting science fiction novel off the shelves, he cracked it open and began to read happily. Oliver would find him soon enough and no doubt interrupt him, so he'd just read as much as he could for now.

[For Badou]

[From here]

These two were just little Chatty Cathies, weren't they? Whatever. As long as they didn't start talking about how much their love could never be and got to kissing in front of her, they didn't have a problem here. Dahlia followed them as quietly as she could, doing a nice job of attempting to be stealthy and just looking ridiculously cute.

THWIP.

...Did she even want to know the source of that? "What's that noise...?!" she whispered, voice shaken and scared as she tried to hide herself behind the bodies in front of her. Fighting in the Sun Room? Maybe the extra meatshield was warranted after all.

[from here]

A sudden wave of fear washed over the Decepticon as his recently-injured foot hit the first step; granted, tonight was, as far as he could tell, no different from any other night here... but the events of the previous evening had had their impact upon him, as it doubtless had on the other patients. Thus, it was with quiet trepidation that he slowly made his way up the two flights of stairs, his back to the inner railing, the flashlight pointed forward with an occasional swing back to the ground floor.

His foot, though no longer in a cast, still ached if he placed too much pressure on it, and though he could walk just fine, he found the branch to serve as an excellent cane in times of particular pain. Perhaps I should fashion this into a proper staff at some point, he mused; it's certainly long enough, and from its heft, it does not appear as if it would break should its mass be decreased to a more manageable amount.

Reaching the top of the stairs after a few tense minutes, Starscream paused, sweeping his light around him. No one here yet, he thought to himself. Rather than stepping into the hall, however, he chose to wait just to the left of the doorway, light shining forward as he slid to a seated position, back to the wall. He held the branch vertically at his side; surely his anonymous companion would not mistake him for someone else now.

The intercom's words grew more and more telling as the day neared its end. Faize now understood that to those running the institute, he and the other captives were the subjects of some sort of reeducation program, one which was responsible for the brainwashing of patients, visitors, and doctors alike. Next Wave, the announcements mentioned often. Whatever it referred to, it seemed important.

Shortly after Faize finished his dinner, the automated voice seemed to malfunction, repeating a single word as though trapped in a loop until the doors finally unlocked. Without hesitation, Faize took his newly copied maps, stuffing them into the waistband of his pants at the back, where they would be out of the way. With his flashlight in hand, he took to the halls.

The moment he stepped out into the hallway, he thought he saw a door on the opposite side of the hall, but after a blink, it was gone. It wasn't unusual for one's eyes to play tricks on them in the dark; when trying to identify obscured objects, the mind often attributed a familiar shape to them, such as a human figure or a face. Perhaps that was what happened just then. It showed that Faize needed to be more focused.

The Eldarian's pause lasted only a second, and soon he was walking again, making his way over to the next hallway.

[to here]

[from here]

Finally, the Sun Room. Unlike the hallways, this one actually had some light in it. Specifically, moonlight coming from the big window on the ceiling. It did help to have some light, but the big, dark room washed in moonlight didn't exactly make the place look too inviting.

"Doesn't look like he's here yet," Loz said, finding a couch and sitting down in it. He'd mostly regained his strength from his run, and sitting down felt nice.

Loz whipped his head around when he thought he caught movement ou of the corner of his eye. Once again, nothing was there. What was going on here?

[from here]

Even distracted as he was, Suzaku remembered to stay on his guard as he passed into the main hallway. He would only be here for a moment, but there could still be a monster lurking in the darkness. And it was so quiet and deserted just now that he would make easy prey.

[to here]

[from here]

Raz trudged on forward over to the Sun Room. Still no monsters...

[to here]

When the shift changed, HK stayed put. Even after a long night of zombie killing, he had no interest in meatbag fuel, especially after all the discussion of chocolate with that rather strange meatbag. It was just making him crave the stuff even more than he had previously, if that was possible.

Oh, right. He was supposed to be looking for someone who was "VERY LARGE, WITH DARK HAIR." And also seemed to not know what lower-case letters were on the bulletin. As if that would help. He'd seen a likely candidate last shift, but talk of chocolate had distracted him.

Where was Blitzwing?

Lugnut ignored the nurse's fussing over his foot, even as it howled objections to his ill treatment of it the night before, pounding through the town in search of his wingmate, reportedly helpless and injured by an attack the night before-- and not finding him, not seeing even a glimpse of his crazy triple-changing ally.

Snarling at the nurse, but restraining himself from shows of violence-- Blitzwing would mock him if he showed up drugged already, and he would be useless to Megatron like that--he made his way impatiently to the cafeteria, stopping for just long enough to post an urgent notice on the board.

Where was he?

Looming in the middle of the cafeteria, he took the tray the nurse handed him (filled with disgusting human fuel, didn't she know he didn't have time to eat, not when his wingmate was missing?) and ignored it, watching for Blitzwing, where was he?

He refused to think about what might have happened to a wheelchair-bound, drugged, incapacitated warrior, with the swarms of monsters flooding around him, clawing and biting...

[for Scourge]

[from here]

"There's gotta be something here you can use..." Yousuke was a little proud of himself for having thought of this, even though it was possible they wouldn't find anything. It would also be less crowded here, at least for the time being. If they could take care of the zombies here and around it they might be able to hold up in there for a bit while they discussed what else they needed to do (aside from finding Kanji). "A sheriff would have a gun somewhere, right?"

Yousuke had never been inside an American sheriff's office before. He'd nearly expected there to be a pole out front with a couple horses tied up. Maybe there were some extra badges lying around...

He didn't have much chance to start looking, however, as not long after they walked in they found themselves being approached by the zombified sheriff and deputy. Despite the situation, Yousuke was still disappointed to see they lacked ten-gallon hats and cowboy boots. "Shit."