NIGHT 54: West Wing, South Hall 1-B

[sanguinario]

[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.

Comments

[itneverwas]

It wasn't long before Erika finally emerged from the female patient blocks. The apology she offered was an empty one, yet it did not matter to a man lacking the ability to care for such things. The comment that followed, too, failed in bringing forth the faintest glimmer of annoyance.

"Project 2911. Indeed, it would seem something of interest will occur tonight," Xemnas responded, offering a nod. He had heard observed all that had occurred today, all that had been spoken over the intercom by an alien voice. Yes, tonight will be an interesting night. "It is a shame that I will likely not be able to perceive this occurrence myself." He sincerely doubted this appointment would allow him a proper opportunity to observe the phenomenon, so he would have to resort to the findings of another. Erika was an acceptable solution to the problem; he was confident she would not disappoint.

"Very well. Then, I hope you will be able to inform me of tonight's occurrence." Though the words were spoken it a fairly polite manner, it did betray the fact that Xemnas would expect no less.

He noticed her eyes trailing down to the metal, yet he did not comment on it. He, too, was curious about how Leon would create a pair of blades from these.

[witchdetective]

Normally, Erika would have been satisfied, even proud, with Xemnas expecting her to give him a report. It wasn't like Erika thought she owed him anything, but Xemnas was by far the only person who was even worth speaking to about the mysteries of the institute. So, normally, she would have accepted his words and would have left by now to investigate. Normally.

Tonight, however... Erika had a strange feeling about his request. It meant that Xemnas, whatever he was doing, would be preoccupied for the whole night. It should have made sense that crafting a usable weapon out of scrap metal would take the whole night, but Erika didn't buy it. Maybe it was more like she didn't think a mere patient, a piece on this board, could accomplish that task at all. Which meant either Xemnas was visting someone extremely powerful, or he was lying.

Erika didn't really like how difficult Xemnas was to read, all of the sudden. She only gave a wry smile in response and turned around, about to head down the hallway. Yet... She didn't know why, but it really bothered her. Really, truly bothered her. At the very least, Erika wanted to know where Xemnas was going to be. Actually, she wanted to confirm it, with her own eyes. She couldn't simply trust his statement, especially if she didn't know who he was supposed to be meeting with.

"At the very least, let me accompany you, Xemnas-san," Erika decided, turning around and walking back towards him. "I'd like to know who makes these weapons. For future reference, of course. I won't interfere, as you requested." She remembered his warnings well, and suddenly, they seemed more ominous than she remembered.

[itneverwas]

Xemnas took notice of the young detective's hesitation, the uncertainty that had seemingly taken hold of her heart. The wry smile before she turned, the pause and the question that was accompanied by her return; was the desire for both pieces of knowledge truly the cause for her indecisiveness? The Nobody did not believe it was the case. No, it was something else.

The Superior experienced a mild curiosity. What had caused this particularly fickle behavior in the girl? For that reason, Xemnas would allow her to accompany him once more. Furthermore, Erika had already proved to be a worthy source of information; it would seem a certain amount of flexibility was required in order to maintain her usefulness.

An echo of smile crossed his lips, implying the faintest memory of amusement in the girl's indecisiveness. "The heart can be fickle, indeed," he spoke before making sweepy gesture towards to the direction they were heading in. "Then, let us be on our way."

[To here]