Day 53: Breakfast

[thatdamnedninja]

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

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[gamingsostfu]

The first thing Matt realized upon waking right back where he started was that his face hurt - a lot. It was more annoying that anything else, really, and he noted that his nose and face was no longer bloody, and he was wearing a new, crisp, clean smiley shirt as he sat up in the twin bed, wincing at the brightness of the white room. His head pounded faintly with an impending headache, and he had to wonder if that was from being smacked in the face with a frigging sword the night before, or the fact that he only managed to smoke two cigarettes before Landel's magical staff managed to shove them back into his desk drawer

[doyoustillsee]

[DO NOT CALL ME THAT D< lol]

Waking up to find his body wracked with pain was nothing new for Kanda Yuu. It had been commonplace years ago--even with his body's increased healing abilities, repairing the extensive damage caused by experiment after experiment could take a while. The pain wasn't really all that bad this time, comparatively, though the results (or almost total lack thereof) when he tried to clench his right hand into a fist were still less than pleasant, or pleasing.

Then he remembered what had actually caused those injuries--those huge birds, not the Order's experiments with Innocence--and he sat up with a jerk, followed by gritted teeth and a determination not to wince as he swung his legs over the side of the bed. He gave himself a quick once-over, noting the well-wrapped bandages on his arm, shoulder, chest, and from the feel of it, his back. His feet stung a bit too when he'd placed them on the floor--from going outside and walking through the glass-covered entry room in just his sock feet (twice), no doubt.

[gamingsostfu]

Matt looked up, of course, when he heard his "name" - but the nurse was quick to set someone down across from him and dash off before he could react. His first instinct was to be disgruntled, of course - I'm still recovering, you jerk. That means no socializing whatsoever. It was useless, though, he knew, which was why the brunet went without saying anything for the first few minutes, opting instead to avert his eyes and silently go on inhaling his waffles damn near whole.

He did glance back at the other boy a few times, as he continued eating. Long black hair, thin build - but not wiry. He was built like a fighter, if Matt could say he knew what he was talking about with that statement, and the way he held himself... The way he sat in the chair, mostly ignoring Matt right back... It actually took the edge off the fact that Landel's so-called "staff" was once again trying to force him into an uncomfortable situation.

Naturally, all situations including speaking face-to-face with other people made Matt nervous, but, so far at least,

[doyoustillsee]

So much for peace and quiet at breakfast. But at least the other guy had been quiet for a decent amount of time first--longer than a lot of people in the Order's cafeteria, that was for sure.

When "Mason" finally spoke, Kanda's gaze flicked up from his food almost immediately (he'd given up trying to actually cut the waffles with the plastic fork he'd been provided with, for the most part anyway, and had simply settled for spearing a whole damn waffle and biting chunks off it). More irritable than usual from trying to force away thoughts of last night, it took some genuine effort to bite back a harsh what the hell do I care who you are? But no, like it or not (obviously not), he did need allies and information if he was ever going to get out of here. He might as well start now.

"...Kanda," the Exorcist conceded, making no move to offer a handshake in greeting. And because he did want more information about this place--"What the hell happened to you?"

All things considered, it was a question that Kanda probably deserved to be

[gamingsostfu]

Matt liked Kanda already. He wasn't sure if it was the gruff manner, the way he wasn't outright looking for company, or the fact that he honestly reminded him somewhat of Mello. Whatever it was, it made an impression on the brunet, who just sat back in his seat, dug into his waffles again, and actually laughed.

Stuffing another mangled piece of waffle into his mouth, Matt nodded to the other boy, regarding him with an approving look as he chewed and swallowed. "I've had a hell of a time here," he answered, surprisingly cheerful for him - and for the subject at hand. "Most recently, though, I was chewed and spit out, then hit in the face with the flat side of a sword." It honestly sounded like he'd just been up all night playing as much Legend of Zelda as humanly possible, but Mello would back him up on the fact that it had actually happened.

Which was a fact that Matt was having a slight problem coping with, but he'd deal sometime. Probably after having a cigarette.

...okay, okay. A few cigarettes

[doyoustillsee]

Though the Exorcist's eyes narrowed initially at the laughter, it seemed more self-deprecating than anything, so he let it pass without response; he didn't really care enough to start snarling about something like that right now anyway. Kanda just listened to Matt's answer without comment or the least flicker of surprise, though that look of approval had made him a little wary. (He didn't care what anyone else thought about much of anything really, but he did wonder what exactly this guy so approving of. He hadn't even done anything.)

"Tch. What's to like?" He stabbed at another waffle with more force than was strictly necessary, but though his typically stony expression didn't betray it, his mind had caught on the word either. Someone else who didn't go in for all that touchy-feely interpersonal crap would be a nice change of pace from how things had been back at the Order...provided this guy knew what he was doing, and actually had the potential to be useful somehow

[gamingsostfu]

Right down to business. Mello would like him.

Matt raised a brow at the swordsman comment. He'd known Kanda must've been a real fighter of some kind - not some wannabe thug - but he hadn't really pictured what kind of fighter. Now that the other boy said something, though, he had to admit that it made some weird sort of sense. His build, his walk, the way he moved, even while sitting down- It all made sense, given that explanation.

A sharp nod. "I mostly deal in reconnaissance myself - and I'm not half-bad with technology." And I can fight... about as well as any ten-year-old girl you can pull off the street, Matt thought, knowing better than to let that fact known. Besides, didn't it lend credence to his capabilities that he was still alive at all, despite all the crap Landel had flung at them? Matt liked to think so, anyway.

He stretched a little in his seat. "I haven't been here long, but my ally has... more allies." Wow, nice wording there, Matty.

Shut up, wanker, he shot back to his brain's rendition of Mello, his internal

[doyoustillsee]

The fact that this guy was more support staff than field agent wasn't all that surprising to Kanda--he looked too small, too slight to be much of a fighter, but then again size wasn't always everything. But having someone who knew their way around technology could certainly prove useful (if he wasn't the type to abuse that knowledge, like a certain bespectacled Branch Head).

'Recruiting' made it sound like a goddamn army. Kanda was already caught up with one of those, and didn't exactly relish the idea of getting entangled with another. Still, the situation was decidedly different here, and if those birds he'd fought last night were any indication of how strong the monsters around there were, they would need an army to break out...though in Kanda's experience, armies tended to have more than just one simple purpose behind their formation and most of their actions

[gamingsostfu]

Matt met that intense stare with one of his own, all too used to it from Mello by this point. His left hand fell still, the fork still clutched loosely between two of his fingers as he let his hand relax; it still ached from the night before, though he couldn't recall using it all that much. He listened closely to Kanda's words, letting them sink in and fully register before he even began to contemplate his response.

It started with a small smile, pleasant and knowing. He looked away from Kanda's face for a moment, his eyes settling on the other boy's hands, unfocusing for the time. His thoughts started to race as he wondered: What else do I want? Aside from getting out of here, of course.

Matt... honestly didn't know. He hadn't thought any further than Get the hell out of dodge, but the things Kanda had just said to him...

He knew Mello had goals outside Landel's freakish playground - bring an end to Kira's madness, beat Near out in that same regard, possibly find a way of exposing Yagami for the madman he was without dying.But

[doyoustillsee]

It was the way he'd had to take a second to think about what he wanted that made Kanda accept what he'd said as the truth. This guy really didn't seem to know what he wanted, aside from getting out, but the hell if Kanda cared about something like that. At least it meant he didn't have a bunch of dirty, underhanded intentions, and so long as it didn't keep him from doing his job, Kanda didn't give a damn if the guy didn't know his own name.

For a moment longer, Kanda's hard, measuring stare didn't waver; then he nodded--both an acknowledgment and acceptance--the sharpness in his gaze easing before it slid sideways to scan the room.

Someone with the same goal, without any other unnecessary complications or secret designs. Good. Just what he was looking for--provided "Mason" proved himself useful when night came--and the fact that the other boy could obviously keep his mouth shut unless he had something that actually needed to be said had already won him some (semi-subconscious) points with Kanda

[gamingsostfu]

Matt scoffed, glancing over at the slowly busying nurses. So far, none of them seemed to be headed their way just yet; he had a couple more minutes. Needed to work fast, to get anything worth saying said.

"Nobody knows anything about this place- That's about all I've gotten from anyone else I've spoken to on the subject," he replied in a quick, low tone. "By day, everything seems like a normally run mental hospital - a fact you've probably already figured out. But at night - again, something you probably already know - everything goes completely mad, and there's... not much any of us trapped in here can do about it.

"I haven't made it past the wall yet; that's where the hurt face came from last night." Come on, Matty, come on... He needed to hurry, before that obnoxious nurse came over to split them up and lead them both on to their next destinations.

Oh joy.

"It doesn't happen every night, as far as I can tell - but most nights, this place just gets weirder than it already is. Doors that lead to rooms they're not supposed to,