Day 54: Lunch

[full_score]

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

Comments

[corvus_veritas]

Byrne was so immersed in his own world that he failed to notice someone had sat down across from him until they spoke up, startling the prosecutor from his thoughts. Oh, great. Company. Perhaps he should screw being polite this time and just tell the guy to leave him alone. He was really not in the mood for casual conversation right now.

But on second thought, he needed another testimony about this place. And who knows? Maybe this guy knew something about the mysterious person posting the Yatagarasu symbol on the bulletin board. It was better to be nice than to be a jerk, anyway. The more allies he made in this place, the better. Heaving a sigh, Byrne glanced up at the man, forcing himself to get over his sour mood for a few minutes of questioning.

...Wait a minute.

Hold it! It couldn't be!? Byrne gawked at the man, hoping he was just imagining things. No, it was him alright. He seemed to have aged quite a bit since the last time Byrne saw him, but there was no mistaking it. "D-Detective Gant?" His voice had become weaker than usual. "You...w-what are you doing here?!"

And after he'd just thought of how terrible it would be if he recognized anyone here. Shit.

[gargantuanlaugh]

He almost thought he was going to be ignored and then... Wow. It had been years since someone had called him Detective, and now here was the second person to use that title on him here. The first had been Lana, on his first night here, but now she knew the truth. This man, he recognized Gant yet knew nothing. What was going on here now?

"Afraid you're a little behind the times there, sonny," Gant said, carefully keeping his smile in place. His eyes remained sharp, keen behind his glasses. "I've been promoted to Chief for two years. Recently retired, actually." He didn't have to let the man know the reason for his retirement, of course.

Now he knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that he knew this person, but just where did he know him? He expected this was another officer from back in his detective days, or a lawyer or office clerk perhaps. Not someone he worked with closely or he would have remembered. Well, there was a time to bite the bullet; better to get a leg up then sit in the shadows. "Don't mean to sound rude, but could you remind me of your name? My memory has gotten foggy recently..."

Actually, he was still just as sharp as ever, but it would be careless to offend someone who might have expected to be remembered by their face. He did remember him, he just wasn't sure from when or where.

[corvus_veritas]

Of course, it wasn't too surprising to Byrne that Gant was having trouble recognizing him. They had never actually been on any cases together, just worked in the same district. But absolutely no member of the Los Angeles law enforcement could not have heard of senior Detective Damon Gant. He was one of the best on the force along with his partner, Ms. Lana Skye, and the two of them were often called the 'Legendary Duo'.

But since when was he promoted to Chief?

That couldn't be right, and especially not for two years. Sure, Gant looked a bit older now, but there was no physical way he could've been Chief for two years without Byrne and the rest of the LAPD knowing about it. Impossible.

He would ask about that in a moment, though. First he needed to help Gant remember him. "Byrne Faraday," he uttered, still trying to compose himself after that terrible shock. "Prosecutor. I worked with Detective Badd." Now there's a name Gant would surely know. After all, Badd was just as well known around the office as Gant for his abilities as a homicide detective.

[gargantuanlaugh]

The man seemed to be a little unsure of what to think when Gant had supplied his new-old title. Well, Gant was a little unsure of what to think when the man supplied his own information. Byrne Faraday. Now that was truly impossible. It had only been a little time after Manfred's death that Gant had found himself stuck alongside his supposedly dead friend in this place, and he had believed with all his might that Manfred was dead until coming here. But the possibility of someone mistyping that paperwork was always possible.

This case, however, was indeed impossible. Byrne was dead. Had been for years. And faking death was something he could never have pulled off that long, Yattagottasue-whatever capabilities notwithstanding. Gant remembered the look on Badd's face those few years after his partner's death. He had never before looked so dark and he was a gloomy guy to begin with.

"Prosecutor Faraday, right! Er, nice to see you again!" For a moment that was all that Gant could really say. What did he have to say to a dead man? 'Saw your daughter recently. She's looking healthy and much older then the last time you knew her.' No way. 'Ran into Baddo the day before and he told me all about your thieving escapades, but think nothing of it!' Really, what could he say?

Well, no harm in remaining cautious and not mentioning them altogether.

"Now, this question may make me sound senile, but please indulge me." Gant smiled again, locking his own logic away into a quiet, safe place in his brain. "What was the last date you remember? Before coming here, naturally."

Hope this posts! Power outages + LJ fail make this the 6th time I've tried posting this XD;x;x;

[corvus_veritas]

The last date I remember? Byrne raised an eyebrow, hesitating to respond. He didn't like the sound of this, nor did he like the older detective's attitude about it. Why did Gant need to ask him that question? Hadn't it only been a day since he blacked out, if even that? Byrne remembered the trial like it was yesterday. It was yesterday. And yet, Gant reacted to Byrne's name like there was something up, something going on that the prosecutor wasn't, or hadn't, been told about. Did this have something to do with how Gant claimed he'd 'been chief for two years'? And why he looked older?

No, Byrne didn't like the sound of this at all.

"Um. September 10, 2011." He stopped himself from explaining what had been going on before he'd blacked out. Unless Gant specifically asked or already knew, Byrne would keep his mouth shut about the accusation. It wasn't as if he had actually been convicted of being the Yatagarasu or anything, but with the way everyone had stared at him that day in the courtroom and how the judge was so eager to replace him with another prosecutor, he might as well have been.

LJ is being pretty terrible as it is. D: Sorry to hear about the power problems, bro!

[gargantuanlaugh]

Gant closed his eyes for a moment, letting the date sink in. Yes, that was definitely the same year and month. The same day as that day. By the hesitancy he sensed about Byrne it was obvious the question had shook him up a bit. This wasn't going to be pretty. At least the prosecutor was already sitting down.

"Now, you may not want to believe this, but the last year I remember is 2017." Gant sat back in his chair, twirling his bangs as he contemplated how he wanted to go about this. Really, it had sounded ludicrous to him as well his first few days here, all the time variation and multi-verse mumbo-jumbo. "I don't expect you to believe me. Not now, anyway. It's hard for everyone at first."

He picked up his fork and began cutting his food into pieces, still smiling but a little more somber than before. "Hate to say it, but you'll get used to this place eventually. You might reject a lot of what people say or do around here but all will fall into place in time." He speared a piece of fish and brought it to his lips. Poor bastard, winding up here when he should be dead. It was hard to tell what would be a worse fate.

"Just keep in mind, this is no ordinary mental institution. I can guarantee most of the patients here are saner than even myself, and I'm of perfectly sound mind and body." Or as sound in mind and body as anyone could be after a few days here. It was a little depressing to think he might be getting used to this place.

Yeah, the same ice storm that made L go on hiatus hit us here DDD:

[corvus_veritas]

Not this again. Renamon, too, had mentioned some time-related nonsense that Byrne'd simply written off as a physical impossibility. Now here was Gant saying the same thing. It just couldn't be possible, even if two different people said it. There had to be another reason. Had to be.

"I know this place isn't normal," Byrne responded slowly, eyes focused on the older man, "I know mostly everyone here is sane and the nurses are a bunch of liars." He paused and shook his head. "But I also know it's 2011, and there's no such thing as time travel. It's impossible." The proscutor's expression hardened, making his assertion crystal clear. "I don't believe you."

So what if Gant looked older, it could've been stress that caused it. Maybe he'd been brainwashed by whoever kidnapped them. His memories manipulated to make him think he was Chief at some point. Or it really had been a little while after all, age like that could only come naturally. And it looked like several years, from the wrinkles on his face. If these people were capable of erasing memory, there could be all kinds of things wrong here with everyone.

Maybe Byrne himself had been manipulated to believe in the life he once knew, and he'd been sleeping in a test tube for so many years. Or maybe that was his life, and he'd spent years here suffering otherwise and just had his memories altered in some sort of experiment. He hadn't seen himself all day, maybe he'd aged too, maybe this---

No, stop it! Thoughts like that would get him nowhere, only make him feel more ill. Keep together Faraday, you can't lose your wits now. Grimacing, he forced himself off that train of thought as he watched Gant eat his lunch. Think more positive thoughts now, think of food. Food - yes, he needed to eat. This would be the second time today he got a meal and almost forgot to eat it. He needed to eat, yet...the food before him looked even less appetizing than it did before.

It hit here too, but probably not as bad as anyone futher north. Glad you're safe, though! <3

[gargantuanlaugh]

Gant was a little amused to hear such an outright rejection to his claims. Almost made him want to laugh. And he would have, if not for the sedation that still held him in check from this morning. Damn that Showy. Though now Gant had a feeling he understood the amusement one held when dropping some physically impossible yet factual trivia to ruin someone's meal. Kinda fun, really.

"Cheer up, now, Byrnie," Gant said with an encouraging grin. "It's not all bad. You're alive and well, and that's something!" Though instances like this really did make the chief wonder if perhaps there really was a way to save people from their death here. At least if Landel could pick them from a time when they weren't dead... he didn't really want to consider if the Head Doctor really could bring them back after death. That was just too much.

Gant took a sip of water and glanced over the cafeteria then back at his tablemate. "... If you want information or need help with anything, feel free to ask me!" What else was a good ol' "Detective" for?

It hit everywhere didn't it? Even people as far south as me. Hope you didn't get any damage!

[corvus_veritas]

Byrne looked up at the other man glumly. At least Gant was cheerful. How could he have such a big smile on his face when he was stuck in a hellhole like this? (Then again, this was Detective Gant, who had always smiled no matter what was going on those times Byrne had seen him.) But somehow, he felt eased by the other man's friendliness. Or maybe just the fact that this was someone he knew and could trust more than most of the other people here was the thing that reassured him the most. Either way, it was enough to loosen the prosecutor up a little. Maybe it wasn't all bad seeing someone he knew here.

Of course, the offer to get information was highly appealing as well. Gant sounded like he'd been here for awhile, he must know something. While Byrne had already admitted to knowing the general gist of this place, losing any chance of getting the 'blank slate' testimony he'd received from Ranulf and Renamon, there were still questions that needed answers. Byrne sat up straight in his seat and pondered what was best to ask the detective. Curiosity nagged him, tempting him to question why Gant claimed to be from years in the future and if he might know about the Yatagarasu accusation, but Byrne rejected the ideas. It was impossible anyway. There was no way.

Instead, he settled for an obvious question that he'd probably get a general answer to. Ah well, it was worth getting Gant's opinion on the matter anyway. "Have you figured out the ulterior motive here for keeping all these people locked up? I've heard theories, but I don't believe anyone really knows."

No damage, so that's good for me! But I can't leave campus. :< And it just keeps snowing here!

[gargantuanlaugh]

Byrne seemed a little more at ease, just a bit more at least, so that was a good thing! A man had to relax and keep an open mind if he wanted to get anywhere around here. Hopefully the man would also be smart and start on eating. He was alive again! Best to keep up his energy up so he could keep himself that way a while longer!

And of course, the first thing he would go for was the one thing that Gant had been asking around plenty himself. And just like Byrne had concluded, no one else really had a clue. "Theories, I'm afraid, are the best even I can offer." He shrugged his large shoulders and gazed over his clear lenses at the prosecutor. For a moment the joyful gleam in his eyes disappeared, but only for a moment!

"From what I know the Head Doctor, Martin Landel, doesn't show his face too often. I've never even seen him. And if the hints he leaves in his nightly announcements to us are supposed to somehow clue us in..." He shrugged yet again. He hadn't the slightest idea. His grin came back forcefully then, or as forcefully as he could push it for now. "Don't think so badly of this washed up old detective just yet! It's not for lack of trying, just... information of that caliber is hard to come by. All my sources have yet to yield results."

He had talked with Asuka and Izaya today and neither had anything new to add in that respect. When he had last met with Lana that had not been a priority, but now he wished he had taken the time to ask if she had more information. And the same went for his info-swapping with Gren. No one knew and it was starting to really bother him that all his ties led to dead ends.

Aww I'm sorry :[ *pats* Thankfully, I think it might finally be over soon!

[corvus_veritas]

"I see." Byrne brought a hand up to his chin in a thoughtful pose. If even Gant didn't know...

None of this made any damn sense. All these unanswered questions, these possibilities. The question of 'why' had been especially baffling him all day. What the point of this place was, why these people. Renamon had given him the answer to the latter question - their 'abilities', so to speak. It made sense in his own situation. But not for everyone else. There were kids walking around. Innocent kids. Why take them away? What did they do, what 'abilities' did they possess?

Actually, a better question at the moment was why was Gant here? Unless there's something he hadn't told Byrne, something that would also make him a victim to some diabolical plot? No, Gant wouldn't hide anything. He was a senior detective with a bunch of enemies, that was the only explanation. Gant wasn't a highly respected detective for nothing, he was damn good at his job from what Byrne had heard of him; of course, marvelous detectives like that also attracted attention from angry criminals. It was the same with Detective Badd, after all. There was a reason the man's trenchcoat was riddled with bullet holes.

"Detective," asked Byrne, after taking a moment to ponder all of this to himself, "do you at least know why they kidnapped these people specifically? I mean, what made them choose us over anyone else?" It could be just random selection, but then why go through the trouble of kidnapping him, just after that huge accusation? It'd be more trouble nabbing him, especially at a time like that, than it would be nabbing some random guy walking down the street.