Night 18: M40 Hallway

[0ver_the_moon]

Haru woke slowly, feeling disoriented and very thirsty. The past day or two had passed in feverish dreams and vague snatches of memories. He'd been aware of a nurse in the room once or twice, but other than that, he had no real recollection of what had gone on or how much time had passed. The dark room, however, left little question about what time

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[felled_hero]

Hughes had spent most of the time locked in his room puzzling over his notes. He had been snapped out of his reverie by the sound of the Head Doctor over the intercom. And he sounded...

Well, he sounded like he was in a damn confident mood. Hughes frowned and narrowed his eyes, transcribing everything that was said over the intercom. He'd look over it later. For the moment, he had things he needed to get done. He needed to talk to Al, and he needed to find Quistis. He bolted out the door as soon as it was opened, his journal clenched in one hand. His mind was racing now, and he knew he was going to have to be careful. He wasn't an idiot, he knew what those names called at the end of the annoucement meant.

He was torn between waiting for Roy or not. But he had seen Roy earlier, seen him with the crutch... Roy would probably not bother letting that slow him down any. Would it be better to wait, or... well, he was planning on finding Quistis anyway, who had offered to heal Hughes' companions from the night before. He'd find Roy afterwards. It didn't even occur to him that there could have been more patients lost in this shift.

Utilizing his night vision, he began to check the neighboring hallways. He spotted single figure down a hallway and frowned. Wasn't that...

"Hey," Hughes called, a loud whisper that echoed down the hallway.

[0ver_the_moon]

Haru's head turned at the sound of the loud whisper, his flashlight immediately swinging in that direction. His form was alert and ready for a fight, despite the casual appearance, and the metal pole still swung absently over one shoulder. His gaze narrowed at the sight of the man, but he relaxed when he recognized him, though he couldn't remember the man's name. He was from Lust's world, though, Haru was pretty sure.

"You're one of the soldier dudes, aren't you?" Haru called in return as he turned down the hall towards him, approaching the other man, his own voice somewhere between a loud whisper and a hushed call.

[felled_hero]

"Yeah, Maes Hughes, Brigadier General." Hughes nodded and came down the hallway to meet the boy halfway. "You're... Kyo's cousin, right?" He could never remember the kid's name, and he wasn't about to identify him as 'that guy that turns into a cow'. That was just rude. There were too many names to keep track of, really. He wondered what the kid was doing out by himself. Probably the same thing Hughes was doing, heading out to look for people.

[0ver_the_moon]

Haru snorted and shook his head. "He really needs to stop becoming so infamous," he commented dryly as he reached the other man and stuck out his hand in greeting, lips quirking into a crooked smile. "Yeah, I'm Haru, nice to meet you. Your name's Maze?"

[felled_hero]

"I wouldn't call him infamous, but I don't think you and I've really been properly introduced." Maes took the offered hand, giving it a firm shake. "And I couldn't remember your name." Haru. That was it. He'd have to remember it.

He didn't realize the slight difference in pronunciation when Haru repeated his name, and he only nodded. "Yeah, but almost everybody save for Quistis just calls me Hughes." And there was the occasional patient who just addressed him by rank, but those were few and far between.

"You headed anywhere in particular?" he asked, eyeing the metal rod the teenager had over his shoulder.

[0ver_the_moon]

"No, not yet, though Lust talked about you," Haru answered, returning the handshake with an easy smile. "I didn't think you were one of the zombies, but wanted to make sure." Then again, with a name like Maze, what would his purpose have been? Confusing the heck out of people?

"Even if I were, I wouldn't know how to get there again. The damned place switched on us again, didn't it? There used to be a room across from mine, and now it's a straight hallway with rooms only on the one side. I get lost easily enough on my own without the dumb place changing on me so often I'll never get my bearings. What about you?"

[felled_hero]

"I'm sure she did," Hughes said, careful not to let the usual sarcastic tone invade his voice. He knew what the two's relationship was, and he didn't really feel like getting into a fight. "I'm definitely not a zombie. Well, not one of the hospital's ones, anyway." He gave a small wink and glanced about the corridor.

"I'm looking for some people. I'll have to head over to the women's hall, though." He turned to look at Haru. "This building switch may not be a bad thing." Because of the announcement, the tone of voice, the words.... Something was different, something had happened. And he wasn't sure he liked it any.

[0ver_the_moon]

Haru glanced up and down the hallway, too, and shook his head in frustration. "Have you ever known the building switches not to be a bad thing?" he returned, then gave a shrug. "But the women's hall seems like as good a destination as any. You have any idea on how to get there?"

[felled_hero]

"Well, the way I see it, something had to trigger it. And did you hear the anouncement before the doors opened? Whoever's running this place, he's feeling good tonight." Which meant what? Something had gone in his favor, maybe. But what? Hughes didn't know, but he wanted to find out.

"Nope. But I figure it'll be on the other side of the building. If we head left, we should find it." That made the most sense to him. "Maybe do some poking around while we're on our way. You know how to use that pole of yours?" Hughes realized it was probably funny, him questioning someone else's abilities when he appeared completely unarmed.

[0ver_the_moon]

"No, must have slept through it," Haru replied, wondering what the damned hospital was gloating about this time. "I've been out of commission the last day or so. I think. And I'm willing enough to follow wherever you feel like heading. You just don't want to be following me, because I'll never get you there, even if I did know where it was."

Haru's lips quirked in amusement and he shifted the pole on his shoulder. "Poking's always good, though. I could probably use a warm-up or two. I can use it well enough to get by. Careful you don't get to close if we do get into a fight, though. I'm all for watching your back and you watching mine, but when it comes to close quarters, I get a hell of a bigger back to watch than normal."

[felled_hero]

"Well, things are different tonight," Hughes said, frowning some. "Sounds like we've got different monsters, different layout, new patients...." He shook his head. "We better be on our toes. And if there's another weapon you're better with, let me know. I'll see if I can get one for you." He raised his eyebrows, wondering what Haru was on about.

"What do you mean about close quarters? And I can handle myself pretty good, so don't worry about that too much." Of course, he had been wounded to the point of incapacitation last night. But that wasn't normal. He headed off, though, not wanting to stand around and waste the night.

[0ver_the_moon]

"I was taught to fight with and without a weapon," Haru answered as he followed him, half a step behind. "Don't really need one, since I can fight just as well without, but that gets a little too close for comfort with some of the things around here, and this resembles something like guys back home used to fight, so it'll do. I make do with what I have, don't need anything special."

"I didn't mean that. I figure if you're a general, you should be able to handle yourself well enough, considering you've survived long enough to get to that point. I'm just saying... I'm a bit touchy about personal space. Nothing against you, of course, I've just got my reasons." And if the man hadn't heard about his curse yet, Haru wasn't going to enlighten him. Habit was hard to break, even here.

[felled_hero]

"Alright, good." Hughes nodded. He felt better knowing that his companion was able to take care of himself. And that he didn't need any other weapon. He kept his voice low, as not to attract any unwanted attention as they headed into the main hallway.

At the mention of close quarters, Hughes nodded. And then paused. "Yeah, you... you're like Kyo, right. But... wait." He looked over his shoulder. Kyo turned into a cat whenever he was touched by a woman. But as far as Hughes could tell, Haru was pretty close and personal with Lust. Who was a woman.

"How does that work?" he found himself asking, curiosity overcoming his usual politeness.

[0ver_the_moon]

Apparently the man did know about the curse, then, though Haru was careful just in case he didn't. "How does what work?"

[felled_hero]

"Oh, well, I don't mean to pry, or anything, but, uh...." Hughes cleared his throat. He glanced over at Haru, his expression sheepish as he entered the main hall.

"Aren't you and Lust... you know?" He waved his hand vaguely, shrugging. "How does that work? I mean, I just... you know. What with your... condition."

[0ver_the_moon]

"You mean my tendency to go moo?" Haru's lips twitched at the way the man stuttered over saying it outright. He wondered how red the man would turn if he started making insinuations about Lust and.... but no, it probably wouldn't be very nice to traumatize the man during nightshift when they might get jumped on and would need their wits about them. Maybe another time...

"The hospital screwed with my curse one of my first nights here. Don't know what they did, have been trying to figure it out since, or at least get to the offices and see if they have records or notes or something. They switched it, though. Made it opposite of what it used to be. I have to be careful around guys now instead of girls, which is why Lust is fine and I warned you about close quarters."