Night 26: M1-M40 Bathrooms

[screwthegods]

[ From here.]Homura knew the way well by now, and he quickly led the other men to the bathrooms. The rest had done him well, only the lingering pain from his injuries hindering him now, and that he could block out easily enough

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[haiku_master]

Maybe the only thing that kept Hijikata from staring when they entered the bathroom was that he'd seen it already out of necessity. He'd had ample opportunity to stare, then, even if he'd chosen not to ask too many questions. Most of it still baffled him though. How did it all work? But now was the time to work, not to wonder.

He pulled his own shirt off; tattered as the shoulder was it would be good to cover his hands for a better grip. And naturally, Souji was there, offering another to wear. "Thank you." He paused halfway through the acceptance, realizing that Souji had given him his own shirt, his eyes quickly scanning the other for any signs of laboured breathing. He shouldn't be making gestures like that - but Souji moved on too quickly for him to protest and Hijikata frowned.

He grasped Souji's arm to hold his attention, perhaps an unwise move for anyone who didn't know him like Hijikata did. "Thank you, but that's unnecessary. Put it back on."

His tone brooked no room for argument. He appreciated the gesture but this wasn't something to spend time dwelling over. Souji might get some measure of use out of the shirt. Simple as that.

[screwthegods]

Homura watched the two interact with a spark of curiosity. Just what was the relationship between them? The roles of leader and subordinate had been made clear enough, but the demi-god sensed something greater in their actions that mere professionalism.

Was he going to have to apologize to Okita for that kiss? Without speaking his thoughts, Homura grinned, then nodded to Hijikata.

"Don't strain your shoulder too much. We could still be attacked." Moving to the first sink in the line, Homura examined it for a moment before 'holstering' his sword in the loop of fabric. Leaning down, he gripped the pipe, and for lack of a better method, began pulling near the top of the pipe where it connected to the basin.

[notachick]

Okita made a face at Hijikata as he refused the shirt, but followed his order and put it back on. He supposed one day soon he'd have to tell Hijikata that he no longer had that particular "cold," but right now was not the time. His commander was stubborn and probably wouldn't believe him anyway.

"If you catch cold without a shirt, I wash my hands of it~" he said, keeping his attention mainly on the task at hand. He held the flashlight steady even as he looked the other way toward the door, making sure Homura could see what he was doing without any considerable difficulty. The bathroom wasn't especially well lit, but thankfully the artificial torch was strong enough to pierce the darkness. Homura confirmed what Okita suspected - that Hijikata was ignoring an injury in his shoulder - and he frowned slightly.

[haiku_master]

Hijikata moved back towards the metal things and spread the blanket behind him to toss them onto.

"Let me worry about that." He told the two of them, already rolling his shoulder to ease away some of the stiffness. The blood had done quite a bit of work, and if he was careful it shouldn't open up again.

He made quick work of his shirt and wrapped it around his hands, then braced a leg against the wall to pull the metal from it. The first time was only a test, and they were right about it being surprisingly resistant. Hijikata adjusted his grip and tried again.

[truthisntsimple]

From here]]

Severus stopped short at the sight of the three people already in the bathrooms. He had a feeling their situation was about to get a bit more complicated.

[screwthegods]

Just as the newcomers began to enter, the pipe Homura was working on broke away from the sink, sending the demi-god falling back hard as thick, black water soaked him. His sense of balance was good at least, and Homura was able to land on his rear without hurting himself too much. His pride was most at risk in the stumble, but thankfully, Homura's ego seemed able to handle just about anything.

Which was definitely good, or else he might be blushing right about now.

"Company." Homura stood up, seemingly not caring that he was now soaked and smelling rancid, even grinning at the strangers. "I'm afraid I'm going to have to ask you what your goal is. We've already set our sights on the metal in this room."

No, Homura was not one for sharing, at least not when it didn't work to his direct advantage. But he'd be polite about it at least, and give the other group a chance to leave before things got too territorial.

[felled_hero]

Hughes immediately held up his hands when the man mad his claim known. He felt a pang of sympathy - he knew what it was like to suffer through breaking apart pipes in the bathrooms at night.

"We're not after any metal," he said, easily. And they weren't. Much as he knew Roy needed all he could get, that wasn't their mission tonight. "We're looking for radio clues. We're just gonna check the toilets."

He hoped that these people wouldn't turn their attentions to looking for things in the bathroom now. But if they were after metal...

Maybe they'd be polite and leave anything else to Hughes and his group.

[screwthegods]

Homura looked over Hughes silently as the man made his claim. Considering the even numbers and the weapons, it'd be dangerous and rather stupid to lie.

"Very well." Homura gave a slight nod to Okita, letting the younger man know it was okay to let the trio pass. "Considering the clues, I doubt the three of us would have use for what's likely hidden here."

Cigarettes were the only things that were supposed to be submerged, after all. Though it would be tempting to claim them for Sanzo, Homura had business to attend to.

Turning away from the newcomers, he went back to his pipe. Still ignoring the mess and the smell, he worked to wrench it free from the wall.

[right_handed]

[ Hughes' group moving down a thread. ]

[notachick]

When the newcomers had entered, Okita had naturally been standing in their way. He palmed a scalpel when he heard them approaching, but Homura's rather amusing tumble and the disgusting smell that accompanied it distracted him enough that Homura was able to get the first word in. If they weren't after the same thing, then their presence wouldn't be too big of a deal.

Wordlessly, Okita stepped aside and hid the scalpel again, smiling at the three man group. Even as he moved aside, however, he kept himself between Hughes' group and his own. They seemed friendly enough, but Sakamoto was the friendly type, too, and he was one of the Shinsengumi's worst enemies now. As long as whatever was hidden in the bathroom wasn't going to be of service to either Hijikata or Homura, Okita wasn't terribly interested. The only things he wanted were Saizou and some sort of confectionary - and he highly doubted either of those were going to be in a toilet. Sometimes, Okita couldn't stand how dirty Landel's was at night.

Once again he turned the flashlight and his attention back to the work at hand. He hated dividing his attention this way, but he had no choice. Keeping a wary eye toward the other three, he focused on the door once more and tried to hold the light steady.

[haiku_master]

Luckily for Hijikata, Homura's tumble distracted him before he could yank his own pipe free. He was suddenly very glad he hadn't taken the shirt from Souji, as it would have turned disgusting and useless all too soon. He couldn't really see a way to avoid the water and pull it free at the same time, especially with most of his strength focused to one side.

Homura was the first to intercept the group, and Hijikata listened to the exchange with his own hand resting inconspicously at his side. They didn't seem to want any trouble, or even the metal the three of them were after, and presently they moved off towards the toilets.

Hijikata went back to work on the pipe, body braced this time for the backlash. It was more stubborn than expected, and finally he had to give a sharp yank for it to break free of the wall. He stumbled back, blasted with disgusting water, but didn't fall.

Hijikata dropped the pipe onto his cloth and wiped his mouth with the back of his arm. On to the next one.

[screwthegods]

Not long after, Homura had wrenched his own pipe free, and moved on as well. One by one the duo managed to pull the pipes out, 4 per man, with Okita standing guard all the while. Once his final pipe had been pried and he was thoroughly covered in putrid mess, Homura eyed the sink fixtures.

"Perhaps there's a simpler way to proceed from here." Moving to the counter away from Hijikata, Homura took his final pipe, and swung it hard at one of the faucets. The war god's aim was true, and with a few strikes, he'd managed to clear the first sink of it's fixtures.

Grinning at his success, Homura collected the items, dropping them into the pillowcase along with his three pipes. " You and Okita are free to switch places, if you need." Homura was feeling the weariness of the night's efforts already, ache spreading through his muscles. He would push past it, however, too used to recklessly continuing until the job was done. That didn't mean he expected anyone else to, however. "There are more pipes in the stalls, and fixtures in the showers. It will take some time."

He was trying to be nice, really. It just wasn't always so easy to tell.

[notachick]

The smell was revolting and Okita unconsciously covered his nose with the back of his hand. People had been saying that modern times were cleaner and yet he had never experienced any odor quite so pungent back at the temple, or even in the long walk from Edo to Kyoto.

When Homura broke the fixtures off with the pipe and suggested he and Hijikata switched places, Okita steeled himself and smiled at both men. The sight of his commander and Homura covered in the black water was enough to turn his stomach, but losing his cool now would do nothing. Especially if he lost it just because of a little dirt and grime. If it were blood, he wouldn't care, but the dirt... "It seems no one else is coming, so I'd be happy to switch places with either of you."

He just hoped that smell of the brackish water didn't linger til morning. Offering the flashlight to Hijikata, he waited to see what his commander would say.

[haiku_master]

Hijikata felt disgusting. He would have liked to strip right there to wash beneath the mechanisms from earlier, but he doubted if they would work and again it simply wasn't the time. He'd managed to avoid the first stumble, but he'd slipped once after on the filthy water that stained the floor. This was dirty, tedious work. He resented it, but he set his mouth into a stubborn line. It would be worth it for a sword after all.

When the last of the pipes were cleared away, he watched curiously as Homura moved to the other pieces. This wouldn't be disgusting at least. He rolled his shoulder, feeling tense and irritated. He had something else to worry about soon: opium withdrawal.

"We will in a moment." He replied, moving to the faucets the same way Homura had. When his half was cleared, he offered the metal pipe to Souji and took the flashlight in exchange. "Help Homura-san with the..fixtures."

By now Hijikata himself would be more of a hindrance than an asset.

[screwthegods]

As Hijikata had cleared the sinks, so had Homura, leaving the porcelin tubs rather bare by the time things were done. He had been ready to lead Okita to the stalls when the intercom clicked on.

"Make sure you have everything we've gathered on you. Quickly." Homura got his own pilowcase, holding it tightly as he made sure his sword was still on his person. He knew that he had woken with everything he carried the night before, and now should be no different.

[notachick]

Okita stopped with the pipe in his hand and looked to Hijikata and Homura. Soon would be that unpleasant sensation of waking up when he'd never gone to sleep, and he sighed at the thought of it. He checked once to be certain that he had all of his belongings, and waved to the other two men as if this were nothing but a normal parting.

"See you both in the morning then," he said, cheerfully. "Don't sleep in too late, Hijikata-san."