Day 60: Patient Library (Third Shift)

[poorexample]

After handling two conversations that had been difficult for completely different reasons, Castiel had to admit that he felt weary. It was not a sensation that was new to him; between Izaya showing far too much interest in his kind and Ruby simply being who she was, some peace and quiet was what he craved

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[corvus_veritas]

Well. Last shift had certainly been...interesting, to say the least. As soon as the intercom broadcast was over, Byrne received his sack lunch from his nurse and slipped into the library. (Were they really going to let people eat food in here? That's kind of unusual for a library, but whatever.) After last shift, spending a little time alone in a quieter area of the Institute was most preferred at the moment. Otherwise he would have opted for the Courtyard if it weren't so damn cold out.

As he began considering whether he should actually get a book to read or just sit in a chair quietly, however, he caught sight of someone in the library that took him by complete surprise. Someone familiar. Someone...who wasn't supposed to be here anymore, if a certain bulletin board conversation was to be believed.

Rei?

Byrne's eyes widened slightly. Really? It was Rei? She hadn't been 'released' after all? He didn't know whether to feel relieved or sickened at the discovery, honestly. It really depended on what 'being released' actually meant, and if it was better or worse than being trapped in Landel's Hellhole again. Regardless, he found himself quickly walking over to the girl, forgetting any desire to spend the shift being antisocial in a chair.

"Rei?" he asked upon reaching her, blinking in surprise, "Is that really you?"

[hasnomeaning]

Silence came as flawed. There still existed the murmur of tones, the sound of others moving and shifting things. All dulled, all too loud to her senses. She leaned against the side of a book case, eyes closed in an attempt for, if not peace, then calm. An attempt that would serve faulty.

Her brief sanctuary of mind was broken by her name being called. There was a brief moment of vertigo, of questioning (Rei. Rei Ayanami. That is who I am.) and then her mind placed the speaker as an adult male. Few here knew her name, less fit that category. In that, then.... Her eyes opened to the man's face, red eyes almost wary. She had not forgotten how he had lacked the power to believe what she had tried to say. "Byrne Faraday."

Was it really her? A strange query. "...It's me."

[corvus_veritas]

She remembered him, at least. What was going on here, then? At her reaction to his surprise, Byrne shook his head and looked more apologetic. "Sorry, I'm just...I was told you got released, so I'm just surprised to see you here."

Again, he wasn't sure whether it was good or bad that she was back, so he settled with saying he was surprised rather than saying relieved or disappointed. He also wasn't sure how she felt about him after...god, that's right, after that one lunch together. Where she claimed she had read his mind, and he'd been a complete jerk to her for it. He'd felt regretful when he learned she'd been released, that he hadn't tried to contact her sooner to be able to apologize before she'd left. Well, now that she was here, apologies could finally be made. That was good, at least.

But only after she explained why and how she was back, as that was an even bigger concern right now. "I'm glad to see you're alright, in any case. What happened?" There was heavy concern in his voice; his parental instincts were quickly taking over.

[hasnomeaning]

Released.

There was the slightest reaction to this, chin tilting up in something of a tell as she contemplated. She knew what that referenced, what it inferred, and it seemed more strange somehow that the man was informed that she was gone. It was not that she left. She understood this. There had been no transition that her mind could allow. It was only.... "I was not released," she stated quietly, clearly.

She had been asleep. Unconscious, at the easiest level of explanation. But it did not exist as something she could share with this man. Not as such. There existed a weakness there, an insecurity that she would not verbalize. And so it remained unsaid, an explanation unnamed. And a question lacking an answer. A different way, then. "...I'm missing three days." This she would allow. "The military is gone."

[corvus_veritas]

Wait, what? Rei never left? So why did that one person over the board tell Byrne that she'd been...well, maybe they didn't know. Maybe they hadn't seen Rei around and assumed the worst, despite Rei saying she was only 'missing' three days. (How did one just miss three days anyway, without, y'know, being in a coma? Unless that's exactly what she was implying here?).

As for the military, though... "Yeah, they just got kicked out yesterday, if you haven't been informed yet," Byrne replied a little glumly. "Things've just never stopped being crazy around here, but that's nothing new, I guess."

He paused, still looking as worried as ever. Rei's vagueness was not making him feel any better, so he would keep questioning until she explained herself at least a little more than I'm missing three days. "So if you weren't released, then you've been here the whole time?" he asked next, hoping to encourage her to be a bit more talkative.

[hasnomeaning]

...Yesterday. It seemed... A little too convenient, that she awoke right after they left. There existed an awkward taste in her mouth, a shift of her insides in a way that was attributed to feeling ill. Was there something more to that? Or was she overthinking something that had little to do with anything? Her eyes fluttered uncharacteristically, then dropped to the ground, staring carefully. What exactly was she thinking... That caused this sensation....

She replied without looking up. "I've been here." She was less sure of that now. "I've been unconscious." A tell, a reveal, in place of now a larger weakness. For what shook her was the simple question of-- Was there something that had been done to her while she was asleep?

To the larger point. Did it even matter if something had?

She was silent a moment, then asked quietly. "Why did they leave?"

[corvus_veritas]

So it was a coma, like he'd thought. Byrne believed he'd feel a bit relieved to hear a clearer explanation, but the way Rei was reacting was making him feel even worse. She seemed bothered by something and wouldn't even look up at him anymore. Was she not telling him the whole story? They...nothing horrible had happened to her, had it?

No, don't jump to conclusions. Not yet. Better answer Rei's immediate question first.

"Landel made them, I think. I don't really know. Everything was crazy last night, with this pink glow everywhere and a boatload more monsters than usual, and..." And people having strange powers, unless he'd just somehow missed that aspect of nighttime the whole week he'd been here. Which was likely, given everything else he'd encountered so far. He'd, ah, skip over that particular detail for now, then. "Then this morning, it's back to the way things were all of a sudden, and everyone's pretending the military were never here." Which was pretty annoying, honestly. At least some sort of acknowledgment of Aguilar's presence would be nice, but no, the nurses (and even Landel) were acting like nothing had ever changed.

Right now, though, Byrne was more worried about Rei's behavior than what Landel or the nurses had been saying. Jumping to conclusions was clearly too easy to do. He paused for a moment after his explanation and gave the girl a very concerned look. "...Are you alright, Rei?" he asked, softening his tone.

[hasnomeaning]

He explained in ways she could accept. It lined up with what she knew of the institute both before the change and during. If that man had made them leave, he had found something to hold over them. It was a play at power like anything else. She had no interest in it. Only the timing of what had happened. Only time.

And then Byrne Faraday asked a question that was beyond professionalism, and a part of her grew cold. Uncomfortable. No, she could not discuss this with that man. She ignored the question. It was not something she would acknowledge. There were other things.... Things she couldn't yet put into words. She should take the opportunity to question him, find out details, but instead she was curious. Possibly because she had been 'gone,' one way or the other.

She finally looked up, and her expression held nothing. "Byrne Faraday," she said, and her voice was soft. "Were those your memories that fell against my mind?"

It tracked back nearly a week, but she still asked it. Too quiet to be a demand, it still was too clear to be simply a question. She was calling for truth, and that alone. In the moment, it was all that she required.

[corvus_veritas]

Was that it all along?

Byrne figured the subject would come up eventually, just not this suddenly. And now it was making him think that this was the reason why Rei was bothered all along. Not because of her 'being missing' three days, but because, well, he'd been a jerk the last time they'd spoken, and she clearly remembered it. Great.

The prosecutor scratched the back of his neck sheepishly; now it was his turn to stare down at the floor. "Yeah," he admitted slowly. "They were." He remembered that at least one of the things Rei had mentioned at the time had to do with a thief, which, even now, made him a bit hesitant to admit that those memories were his. But really, what did it matter? It wasn't like Rei or anyone else could put him in jail right now, and he could always fib if it really came down to it. Besides, he needed to apologize properly for the way he'd behaved those days ago. The only way he could do that was by being honest.

So...here went nothing. "I'm sorry for doubting you," he said next, looking up at her again. "And I'm sorry for reacting badly that day. I don't think I wanted to believe anything I was seeing or hearing days ago. But now that I've been here almost a week, it's like anything is possible, and, well, I just...I believe you now."

Ugh, that could have gone much better. He wanted to say more, but that was probably good enough for now (not to mention he wasn't exactly sure what to say anymore, anyway). Byrne just hoped Rei would understand.

[hasnomeaning]

His admittance was all that she wanted. As soon as he did, her form relaxed noticeably, small shoulders loosening from a lack of tension. Here, at least, something could set itself aside in the tumult that had been caused. There was still the mystery of the entry plugs. The creature or patient that had attacked her. The location of the other pilots. And her missing time. But here, at least, something could be clarified. Her eyes shut as she nodded, and for the time being she kept her eyes closed.

Even as the man surprised her by continuing, by drawing out an explanation and apology that she hadn't asked for. It was unnecessary, and hadn't been required, but he offered it anyway. Once sound had died to silence, she allowed that to remain for another minute, taking comfort in the lack of intonations. It was difficult here, she thought. To find a complete silence.

Ayanami's eyes fluttered open to stare at the man. "You had no reason to trust me. And my explanation wasn't logical. I don't require an apology." Just clarification. Only that. "I only needed to know."

The rest went unsaid, but it was vaguely obvious. Rei needed to know so she knew that she--and her world--wasn't going insane. That it reminded, even now, carefully kept and detailed to specifics. She needed to know that she was herself. And wasn't going crazy.