Day 56: North Street (Morning)

[escapedpandora]

Maybe it was the sudden influx of normality (or what passed as such a thing here) along with the townspeople, but it barely took a few minutes before Hope couldn't stand to be walking along the shops down the street anymore. He didn't want to listen to people laugh and coo over gossip and shopping lists, with their smiles and happily ever after

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[exterrabang]

Snow. How strange. Even in his time on Earth, Elfangor had not experienced snow first hand, only seen it portrayed on television programs. It had looked interesting, but that idle thought had done nothing to prepare him for how cold and wet it was, or how difficult it was to trudge through the slushy substance while maintaining his balance.

Still, it was a vast improvement to be outdoors, and so, cold as he was even bundled up in the clothes provided for him, he decided against seeking out warmth indoors, at least for now. He needed to think, and walking could only help with that, even if some of his attention was necessarily diverted to keeping traction on the walkway.

His feet led him almost subconsciously toward the fields, as he wasn't truly paying attention to where he was going. Elfangor supposed it was only natural for the open space to draw him there, even if the grass was buried under snow. He could not have eaten it anyway, not with human feet.

But oh, he didn't want to think about that. He needed a diversion, and so when he saw someone sitting on a bench not far off, he headed over toward him. Elfangor noticed the way he shivered, and could not help but feel concerned. "Hello. Do you mind if I sit here as well?"

[escapedpandora]

He looked up from the middle of his muffin, having peeled parts of it away in chucks before eating it, if only trying to figure out how long it would last him. It certainly hadn't felt like a meal to him, especially after not having eaten the past two days--

Hope shook his head at the question, scooting over slightly on the bench, keeping his legs up the entire time to conserve warmth. He fumbled a bit to prevent the muffin from falling off his knees, but other than that and shivering at the new cold spot, it didn't seem to bother him at all.

He wasn't sure if the person was someone from town or the hospital, but from the clothing it seemed the latter. Still, he wasn't one to speak up because of a presumption, especially if he didn't have enough of a basis to back it up.

[exterrabang]

Elfangor sat beside him, curling his arms around himself to ward off the cold, curious at the silence despite his apparent acceptance.

Although he was familiar enough with human clothing to identify the different types and functions of them, it was much more difficult to pinpoint the differences that might indicate anything useful in identifying this person as a fellow hospital inmate. But what did give him a clue was the paper bag and muffin, which he knew they'd all been given, though he'd certainly inhaled his in a hurry. He couldn't help it, he hadn't enjoyed human food in far too long to resist the overpowering sense of taste.

Even so, he couldn't be sure based on just that observation, and so he asked, "Are you from the hospital as well?"

[escapedpandora]

He looked up again from his muffin, wondering if he should save the rest for lunch or whether he should just eat it now in order to appease his hunger. But it seemed like the more he ate, the hungrier he got... at least that was what his stomach wanted to tell him. Two days without food and constantly on the run... now that he had started to eat again, it felt like he had poked at a sleeping beast.

"Yeah," he responded, soft but surprised. Guess he shouldn't have been, though... his own clothes felt like a dead give-away. But... as well. It was almost a relief. Someone he could talk to, even if it was just to confirm what others had already told him-- another world, another universe.

He scuffed his shoes against the bench, kicking at the bit of snow remaining, trying to get it further away from him. As nice as the snow seemed, it was still really cold.

"I-- did you just... wake up here, too?"

[exterrabang]

"Yes, I woke up here this morning with no idea how I came to be here. I assume it was much the same for you?" And everyone else here. What was this place? There had to be more to it than there appeared to be. He had some clue, from the vague warning he'd received earlier about the futility of trying to escape at night, but the lack of details was more ominous than reassuring.

In addition to that nagging worry, he could not help but feel a sharp pang of concerned for this person, particularly at the way he picked at his muffin; though his actions belied a disinterest in eating, his eyes told a much different story. But he couldn't be sure, and pointing it out would likely only make him more uncomfortable, so Elfangor opted to take a more... indirect route, to see if he was correct in his assessment.

"I've heard that the hospital was recently taken over by some sort of militia force. It is strange that they would continue to provide things such as this outing, which I understand is not necessary but gives the impression of continued 'normalcy' at the institution." He flipped through his coupon booklet in bemusement. "The free meals I somewhat understand, but facials? Manicures? It just seems a bit odd."

[escapedpandora]

He nodded, but then shook his head, unable to decide on his own answer. "I got here... last night, I think? I don't know. It was all dark."

Completely dark. Darker than anything he'd ever experienced before. Hope had never known the world could be darker than when he closed his eyes, but he had been proven wrong last night. There had been no night lights, no glimmer of stars in the sky and no glow from the land. It had been... frightening, to say the least.

"I heard about the military." At least, he had just heard about that from Anise. She had tried to explain things to him, but it was still confusing. And the most important questions (why they were here, and how to get home) went unanswered seeing as no one seemed to know. "Maybe they're trying to pretend that they haven't taken over."

His curiosity was peaked at the coupon booklet, though, and he leaned over just slightly, shifting in his seat. He hadn't gone through his bag yet, especially since the first thing he had seen was the muffin, but... "Free meals?"

[exterrabang]

He inclined his head. "If they aim to make things appear as normal from an outsider's perspective, then perhaps there is potential assistance to be found in the outside world. Alternatively, garnering too much attention could just allow a stronger and possibly even less benevolent force to take over. It is difficult to say. But they must be fairly confident in our unwillingness to take that risk, if they are allowing us out, even with covert supervision."

When he glanced over at his coupon booklet, Elfangor gave a small smile. "Yes, it seems we can obtain two free meals during this outing, at establishments called Twin Pines and Tasty Burger. I suppose it would not do for them to allow their prisoners to go hungry--no telling what sort of trouble humans might be inclined to cause when their needs are not adequately met."

It was only after he'd made the attempt at a joke that he realized that saying humans in this context might give indication that he did not strictly fall within that category. Well. Perhaps he might overlook it.

[escapedpandora]

Hope might have reacted badly to the idea of someone not being human once upon a time, and there was still a part of him that recoiled at the thought... but with the knowledge of different worlds (and the knowledge that l'Cie weren't human anymore), he couldn't bring himself to linger on the thought. Instead, what seemed more important had been the thought of food, and free food.

Two places? He would have to walk around town, then, rather than just settling himself up here. It only took him a moment to wonder if he really wanted to wander among people in search for food, but his stomach was more than ready to make that decision for him.

"Prisoners, huh?" Maybe that's what they really were, rather than hospital patients. It would explain things just as well, after all. (He was wondering, however, what kind of food they would have at a place called Twin Pines.) "I wonder why they'd actually want us as prisoners, though..."