Day 55: Courtyard [4th Shift]

[gald_digger]

Talking with friends usually put Anise in a better mood, but the subjects that she, Guy, and Tear covered at lunch were so heavy that Anise couldn't help but feel weighed down afterward. It was hard to think and talk about the terrible things that came about from her lies. She wasn't going to cry, not now, but she felt like she needed a little

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[gald_digger]

And just like that, the beauty and tranquility of the outdoors was ruined.

At the sound of the familiar voice, Anise turned her head sharply, scowling when she saw the God-General approaching. She hadn't seen him in so long that she was beginning to hope he'd disappeared, and this was the time he picked to show up? Getting harassed by Sync was the last thing Anise needed right now.

"None of your business!" she snapped. Though Sync had a knack for bringing out the worst in Anise, stress and hunger caused her knee-jerk response to his presence to come out even more hostile than usual, as far as the sharpness of her tone went. However, she knew that showing that kind of emotion around Sync would only encourage him, so the next thing she did was try to calm herself down.

Once the initial surprise wore off, Anise crossed her arms and regarded Sync with a hateful glare. "What do you want?" she asked after a pause. It was probably just the same thing he always wanted: to be a huge creep. Still, she had to wonder if there was some reason he decided to approach her after being so scarce for the last week or so. It was either that, or today just happened to be Anise's unlucky day.

[full_score]

((From here.))

Claude walked across the courtyard with a purpose, his boots crunching in the fresh snow. He couldn't help but think back on all those times Sync had sought him out on purpose for his own sick entertainment. That boy had even gone as far as messing up his lunch while he'd been blind. As if he hadn't gotten enough kicks from murdering Guy! If it weren't for the guards, Claude would have gladly tried socking him in the face every time they passed each other between shifts. The realization that Sync probably went out of his way to taunt the others didn't help ebb that feeling much. Instead, it made his blood boil so hot that he scarcely noticed the chilled air anymore.

While he could have caused a scene by yelling at him, Claude instead stopped at the girl's side, his eyes narrowing at the monster who'd caused them all so much grief in the basement.

"You'd better not be bothering Anise," he said in a low tone.

[ran_on_empty]

Unfortunately, Anise was right in figuring out that showing any anger would only encourage Sync more. He openly grinned at the 'greeting', and while he kept his distance he certainly wasn't going to leave her alone any time soon. It didn't matter that she was likely in a bad mood, though he couldn't see anyone being in the mood for this; who in their right mind would actually look forward to being bothered?

"For you to stay just as you are," Sync pointed out.

But just as he was about to continue he heard the crunch of footsteps moving closer, green eyes glancing off to the side to catch a familiar blond making his way over. And instead of showing any frustration for being outnumbered, the God-General remained amused that Claude would have the nerve to bother him in the first place.

"Why? Are you getting jealous for being left out, Claude?" He wasn't stupid; starting anything in broad daylight would only bring trouble to all of them. Unlike some, he actually thought this was common sense.

[gald_digger]

He wanted her to... stay like she was? Like what? 'Angry and upset' was a likely answer. It always seemed like the only thing Sync was interested in was getting under her skin as much as he could.

Though she couldn't erase the anger and irritation from her face, Anise managed to keep herself from saying anything in response, deliberately pressing her lips tightly together in a frown. Maybe if she just kept on not saying anything, he'd get bored and leave her alone.

The sound of heavy, approaching footsteps drew her attention, however, and Anise looked over her shoulder to see who it was. Her eyes grew wide as she recognized the man and saw the furious expression on his face. "Claude...?" As she looked up at the friend at her side, Anise couldn't think of what else to say, her thoughts torn between you don't have to do this and thanks. It was actually really touching that he was sticking up for her... but would it really help? Sync didn't seem bothered at all, and he probably knew that there wasn't anything the two of them could do to him during the day... Maybe this would even encourage him to be more of a creep.

[full_score]

"You know exactly why," Claude said with a tight frown. With Anise watching, he realized he couldn't let himself lose his cool too much. But that didn't mean he could just stand by and do nothing, either. How could he just leave Anise alone with Sync's company? No one deserved that, especially her. She'd already had a rough enough time last night.

If only he could just take her by the hand and leave this crap behind them. But Sync would only follow after. Threatening him wouldn't do much good, either. He wouldn't be able to follow through with any of it during the day, for one thing. For another, Claude also knew it was better to focus on trying to escape at night. As much as he wanted to end things with Sync once and for all, he wasn't worth expending that sort of effort when he needed to be working on more productive things right now.

"Don't you have anything better to do than act this petty?" he added. "The military's shown up, and all you can think about is harassing other people. Why are you even doing this?"

[ran_on_empty]

Sync hoped that Anise wouldn't think she'd get away with letting Claude do all the work, but for now he didn't mind drawing his attention to the annoyed blond. If anything, it was so much easier to get him riled up over nothing, which made him a reliable source of fun if he wanted to get a reaction fast. And given what other choices he had it was almost nice to have a bit of variety for these kinds of things.

"Like I care that the military's here," Sync sneered, having a different opinion of the shift in control than most people. "In fact, I think I prefer them. The more miserable people are, the better, right?"

Their captor was bad either way, but at least these people were smart enough to realize that running them all down throughout the entire day would bring better results. And while it likely wouldn't affect people like Anise, who was used to the military breathing down her neck while likely having the same privileges as him, the rest weren't so lucky. Especially if they were forced to eat that pink slop they called 'food'.

[gald_digger]

Anise, who had been relatively silent since Claude joined them, was suddenly vocal again. "You're such a creep! How can you think like that!?" she shot at Sync. While having Claude by her side made her anxious, it also made her a little bolder. There were some tricks that Sync couldn't use when there was someone with her.

... But there could also be tricks he would only use when there was someone with her. She couldn't let her guard down.

She was calmer now, but not any less disgusted by the God-General. It was obvious from Sync's deeds that he got some kind of sick enjoyment out of seeing others suffer, but to admit to it so nonchalantly! Sync really was twisted beyond redemption... something Anise had taken far too long to admit to herself. She truly wanted to believe there was some good in Sync, but the only thing her experiences with him ever proved was that he really was rotten to the core.

[full_score]

The boy's answer shouldn't have surprised Claude. He had already seen how cruel and heartless he could be, had evem gotten a glimpse of the destruction and bloodshed he was capable of causing when not restricted by the institute. Yet, it still somehow shocked him to hear someone speaking of other people's misery in such a casual way. Not only that, but it was like he wasn't concerned at all about what this could mean for the patients as a group.

He definitely agreed with Anise. There was no doubt that Sync was one of the biggest creeps he'd ever met.

"Just remember that whatever happens to everyone else has an effect on you, too," Claude pointed out with a glare. "Sooner or later it'll catch up with you, Sync."

Somehow he doubted Sync would be terribly amused if he got tear-gassed or was forced to do push-ups for an entire shift. Then again, he was fairly certain Sync was too clever to get caught up in something like that so carelessly. On the other hand, with how unpredictable their new captors were, there was no telling whether there could be worse punishments at night.

[ran_on_empty]

Sync had to laugh at Anise's retort, wondering how she could be so stupid as to think that everyone thought the same, even him. Though he didn't move closer he might as well have with that sneer, voice lowering as if to make a point. "It's easy once you realize that everyone deserves this one way or another."

And what about Claude? Points might've been made, but he wasn't going to show that the latter had even the slightest bit of sense to his words. If anything, menial punishments were nothing compared to the bigger picture.

"And you think I care?" Sync chuckled, leaning in closer to Claude. "Getting swept up by the tide is just a small price to pay."

Hadn't he been around him long enough to realize that it just didn't work that way? And it never will-not completely-at this point, which was why it was so amusing in the first place. His tone shifted then, straightening himself as he gave a glance up at the sky.

"Who knows. Maybe they'll actually find a way to off me for good. That might be the only thing we're both looking forward to."

[gald_digger]

Everyone deserves this. Anise's eyes narrowed at Sync, and she clenched her teeth to keep herself from taking the bait and yelling at him again. That kind of thing might have been true for people like Sync... and even Anise, who did a lot of things to hurt people. But there were lots of innocent people at Landel's, too! Anise knew that most people had their secrets and their darker sides, but if someone like Ion could be taken prisoner, then anyone could.

And even if the place was packed with people who had something to own up to, who died and made the staff the bosses of the universe!? They didn't have any right to do this to people, no matter who those people were or what they did before.

There was a part of Anise that was still bothered by Sync's casual declaration that he still wanted to die. It disgusted her. How could she spare even a shred of pity for that monster!?

It was Ion, she told herself. She didn't care one bit about Sync; it only bothered her because Ion would find it upsetting. But Anise knew that Sync wouldn't hesitate to kill her or Ion or any of her other friends. She wasn't going to feel bad for him.

"If you want to die that badly, go die by yourself," she spat at him. Trying to get other people to do it for him, or to drag people down with him... that was just stupid!