Night 57: M61-M70 Hallway
[M64]Hijikata finished his meal just as the doors unlocked themselves. Strange, that there were none of the usual announcements, but he wasn't going to take the time to dwell on it. He had a mission to accomplish. Setting the lighter down on the desk for the time being, he went back to his box and began pulling out the few things he was certain to
( Read more... )
Just as he was preparing to head down the hall, though, Claude turned back to him with an apologetic glance and explained that he no longer needed his cast.
"...That was fast," Guy remarked after a pause, tilting his head in surprise. Not that it was a bad thing, but it did stand out. "Were you able to get it healed?" Guy didn't know when that could have happened unless Claude's roommate was a healer or something along those lines.
Either way, he didn't mind helping Claude out with that, and it certainly made sense to take care of it before they got going. He lifted his sword, realizing that this was the first time he'd be putting it to real use. "Just hold still and I can cut it off with this." He gave Claude an easy smile, wanting to make it clear that he could be trusted to do the task without harming him.
Reply
"Something like that," he answered as he propped his blade against the wall. "I did it myself. Well, not with heraldry, but--" Not that heraldry should have been a viable option before now, but the possibility was still there, especially after talking to Rita.
"I redirected some of my body's energy into my injuries, and a lot of the pain is gone now," Claude quickly continued. Some of the excitement before returned to his voice, but the swordsman still remained largely subdued due to Okita's predicament. "It's a technique I used sometimes during my travels on Expel and Energy Nede, but this is the first time I've been able to do it here in the institute. When I realized that, I thought that maybe you'd be able to use some of your fonons, too."
Either way, Guy sounded like he was willing to help with his bandages. Placing his right hand underneath his left elbow in order to better hold the cast still, he freely extended his arm to his friend. Under normal circumstances, he might have felt a bit anxious. But that smile always put him at ease, which allowed Claude to quietly return it. "Thanks..."
Reply
"But why would they be giving us any of our power back?" he asked with a frown. He didn't feel like there was a greater concentration of fonons around them, either. Trying to unleash an Arte in a cramped hallway wouldn't be a good idea, though, and he didn't have any injuries to try and heal, so he couldn't test it for certain. "Did it just come back to you suddenly?"
Honestly, it should have been a good thing, especially if there was a chance that if (when) they found Okita he was injured and in need of healing. If Claude was even capable of healing others -- but Guy was getting ahead of himself. The point was that this worried him more than it gave him hope, which was sad in its own right.
When Claude extended his arm, Guy made sure to focus on the task at hand even though his thoughts were elsewhere. He put his free hand on the side of the cast and then pulled his sword up to begin slicing down it. It took a lot of precision to cut into the cast enough that it would come off while not accidentally cutting into Claude's skin, but Guy was practiced enough to do so without much trouble.
Reply
"Um, yeah, while I was walking to your room," he answered, his expression growing more confused. "I thought if I could harness some of my energy, then maybe that device the military uses to control us was damaged somehow. But if it's just me, then..."
Well, it had been a nice thought. But that still didn't explain why Claude could use some of his more advanced techniques. While the injection from earlier may have possibly caused it, that didn't quite sound right, either. Weren't those supposed to have bad side effects?
Although he could have speculated about all that out loud, Claude grew quiet once Guy began to cut into his cast. He didn't want to accidentally distract his friend, especially while handling such a sharp blade so close to his arm.
Reply
"I guess we'll just have to keep an eye on you," he said, half to himself as he continued to cut through Claude's cast. With a final bit of added pressure, he got his sword all the way down the cast's length until it came apart and fell to the ground. "There we go. Feel better?"
Having to worry about Claude on top of Okita was definitely going to put some added stress on Guy, but he'd managed to rein in his emotions and was putting on a strong face for now. He didn't know if that would last when they made it up to the morgue, but...
"So there's a device that they're using?" he asked at a delay, Claude's words finally sinking in. "Are you sure of that, or is it just a guess?" It might explain why Claude had suddenly gotten extra power, but... they really didn't have the time to puzzle through this right now. Guy let out a sigh, glancing down the hall. "Though really, we should get going."
Reply
"Much better," he said with a firm nod as he unraveled some of the bandages that stubbornly clung to his arm. "Sorry for the trouble." At least he hadn't had to spend too much time sawing off the cast, and maybe this meant he could be of better use later on tonight.
When Guy asked him about the device, though, Claude rapidly blinked in surprise. "Yeah, they're using a device to weaken our abilities," he responded, complete surety coloring his words. "You mean...you didn't know? But..."
Something didn't quite sit right with Claude, though it was difficult to grasp, like an elusive butterfly fleeing from a bug-catcher's net. For a moment, he thought he'd made a connection, and his eyes lit up, but Guy's next words interrupted his train of thought. "Huh? O-oh, right. Of course." Claude reached out to pick up his sword again. "Maybe we should start upstairs first."
Reply
"No problem," Guy said with a shake of his head. It felt nice to put his sword to some use and he was particularly glad to see that it hadn't rusted after all of the water exposure the night before. Maybe it had been silly of him to worry, seeing how most things here got returned to normal by morning.
What Guy couldn't understand was how Claude could be so certain of the fact that it was a device and not something else entirely that was blocking their powers. He tilted his head at him curiously but realized that this was something better discussed while on the move.
"Yeah, I'm thinking we'd better check the morgue," he said grimly. Without another word, he turned away from Claude and moved down the hall.
[To here.]
Reply
Leave a comment