Day 32: Cafeteria, Breakfast

[7_to_midnight]

Sylar's gears were still turning as the nurse and a burly orderly escorted him down long halls and through a strange, sunlit room. He'd been forced to drop his pen when the orderly had seen it, and since then, he'd realized that this place had better security than he'd originally anticipated, as well as a large population of patients. It looked

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[haiiro_no_chou]

"Of course!: she assured him with a smile. Despite the weird way he had looked at her before, Zachary seemed like a really nice guy. A little odd, perhaps, but Rukia was glad she'd met him. She shook her head at the compliment, though. "I just make it my business to let the newer patients know what they're up against. We're all stuck here together, so there's no sense in not working together."

She thought for a moment about his question. "Well, first I should explain that there are four main groups. Like I said, I'm part of Arts and Crafts. We do a lot of scouting, fighting, and are in charge of rescue parties. Then there's the Cooking Club." As she named each group, she couldn't help but give Zachary a crooked smile; the titles sounded so silly, after all. "They're in charge of making weapons and procuring the raw materials for said weapons. Arts and Crafts does help them out with that, though, when we can. Next is the St. Francis Aid Club - I think that's what it's called, anyway - and they run a clinic out of room M35 every night. So if you or someone with you is injured, you can go there. Last is the History Club, which does a lot of information gathering, primarily focused on how we can escape."

It was a long list, and she still hadn't really answered his question. "As far as what resources my group has... well, there are the maps." She gestured to several more loose pieces of paper tucked into her notebook. "And most of us are very capable in combat, so we provide protection and training to those who don't know how to fight."

[7_to_midnight]

Sylar gave what looked to be a sheepish smile at Rukia's explanation for her generosity; inwardly, he ridiculed her. Sure, allies were useful as tools and toys, but survival was about being the best and destroying the competition. It was a brutal world, and protecting the weak from extinction only dragged the species down into the depths of degeneration.

Of course, he was the weak link now, he who had earned his place, who'd had his birthright stripped away by lesser beings who couldn't possibly understand the importance of his mission. The importance of his existence.

Regardless of his turbulent thoughts, Sylar listened to the rest of what Rukia had to say with an expression of mild curiosity, interjecting a "hmm" or an "oh, I see" every now and then. It sounded as if the patients here had already built a useful infrastructure, one that Sylar could infiltrate and exploit. He needed that cure and he needed it soon.

"Capable in combat?" Sylar echoed, happy that they were breaching the topic that truly interested him. "But you're so young! How is it that you're so... talented?"

[haiiro_no_chou]

Rukia smiled awkwardly. "Ah, well, it's sort of complicated," she said, chuckling quietly. "I'm a lot older than I look, and not technically... alive." Zachary had taken all the new information very well so far, but finding out that your conversation partner had died long ago was probably a shocking revelation.

"I mean," she added quickly, "this body is, I suppose. But I died a long time ago. I guess about a hundred years?" She studied his face, waiting to see how he would react.

[7_to_midnight]

Sylar took in the information as best he could, gears turning in regards to both how he should respond and what he should actually think. Like everything else in this conversation, he couldn't find a trace of a lie on her face, nor did she seem erratic in the way she articulated her words. She wasn't crazy and she wasn't dishonest, which meant that she was beginning to open up to him, as far-fetched as that openness might sound. This was where he could begin to plant seeds, begin to grow a bond that would tie a valuable tool to him until he could use it.

A wide smile spread across Sylar's features. He sighed.

"You know..." He started, glancing away as if trying to form his words before he looked back to her. "You probably think I'm going to tell you you're crazy...? But I'm not. I'm not normal either, Rukia, not by a long shot. Where I come from, people have abilities--amazing abilities--why," he continued, leaning forward in his enthusiasm, "this one man I came across, and this one girl... they both died right in front of my eyes and then they came back to life."

He made a small motion with his hand in front of his face to emphasize his description. He then glanced down slightly, his brow furrowing.

"I had abilities too, but... some terrible people took them away from me."

[haiiro_no_chou]

Rukia blinked in surprise at Zachary's smile, listening to his words with increasing interest. From what he said, coming back from the dead wasn't normal in his world, but was somehow possible. Rukia was reminded of the post on the bulletin board the previous day, about bringing people back to life, and the costs of doing so.

"How... How did they die?" she asked, leaning forward as well. "And did their wounds just heal up?" There were some Hollows that could regenerate, but Rukia had never met a person who could do that. At least, not that she knew of.

Her expression changed to one of concern, though, a crease forming between her eyebrows as she looked up at Zachary. "I'm sorry," she said. "Do you mean to say that they took your powers before you came here? Or just that you don't have them now? Because all of us seem to have been weakened here."

[7_to_midnight]

"Well," Sylar began, taking a bite of his waffles before he continued, "they both took injuries and healed, yes. As far as me..."

He trailed off, looking nostalgic as he thought about the people he'd murdered, the brains he'd studied, and the wonderful powers he'd taken as his own. He looked to Rukia, eyes narrowed in thought. He tried not to stare at her forehead.

"My powers were taken away from me before I got here. In fact, I'd just gotten my hands on the cure for my... condition when I woke up."

He shook his head ruefully.

"All just because I was trying to help humanity..."

[haiiro_no_chou]

"That's remarkable," she commented, for a moment wishing that the shinigami were capable of regeneration. Then she considered Aizen, Ichimaru, and Tousen, and thought better of it.

He had just gotten a hold of the cure when he was brought here... From her conversations with other prisoners, Rukia was beginning to see a general trend. "Did you pass out?" she asked, "Or fall asleep or something, before waking up here?" Rukia herself had somehow been brought to the Institute when she should have gone to Soul Society through a portal, but it seemed that a lot of the prisoners had blacked out, fallen asleep, or even died before arriving. It was an odd trend.

Of all people, Rukia understood what it was like to have one's powers taken. She nodded sympathetically. "I know how you feel, believe it or not. I had many of my abilities taken from me for a time, as well. I'm afraid my goal wasn't as noble as helping humanity, though. May I ask what... you can do?" The inhuman powers that some people had seemed to vary wildly from world to world; Rukia was very curious as to what Zachary was capable of.

[7_to_midnight]

"Why, yes, I woke up after being knocked out," Sylar replied, guessing from Rukia's words that it was the norm around here. However, what Rukia had to say next was far more useful and far more intriguing. So, she did have abilities, and many of them. She was becoming more and more worthy of his time; he could already see it on her face, a glimpse of what he'd soon have. The fact that she could relate to him about what he'd lost only made it so much easier.

Tick, tick, tick...

At her question, he smiled like a man thinking back on his life's work, and what a body of work it was! What accomplishment, what significance. What loss.

"I can see how things work," he began, gently pushing his now-empty plate aside so he could better converse with his dining partner. "But that's not all. I discovered other abilities as well: I can move anything with my mind, hear sounds from miles away, freeze water just by touch, memorize anything I want to--I can even see the future and then paint it on a canvas..."

He trailed off and then shook his head, looking back to Rukia. This was where he had to catch her, hook, line, and sinker.

"I tried using my abilities to fight this man, this... horrible man who was about to blow up all of New York City." He paused, wondering just how different her world was. "Er--New York, that's where I'm from. Do you know about it?"

[haiiro_no_chou]

"Hm," she uttered thoughtfully between bites of fruit from her waffle. Maybe there was something about being unconscious or asleep that made it easier for Landel to get a hold of people? It was something to think on, anyway.

Rukia's eyes widened at Zachary's description of his powers. "That's... amazing!" she gushed, leaning forward in her excitement. "And you paint? How wonderful! I'm also an artist, but I'll admit I can't see the future!"

She sobered with his next comment, though. "I-- yes, I've heard of New York City, though I've never been to America. But, that's horrible! Did you succeed? Were you able to stop him?"

[7_to_midnight]

"A painting was how I knew the explosion was going to happen," Sylar said, looking conflicted even if he was actually pleased by her enthrallment. He shook his head, his brow creased. "And I don't know if I was able to stop it. I was knocked out and when I woke up, I'd been taken captive and my powers were gone."

He looked up at her again, gauging her reaction as he gave a small smile. He didn't know what had happened in Kirby Plaza after his unconsciousness, but destiny had somehow been avoided. He'd change that someday, when another future was foretold.

"Thank God that after I escaped, I found out New York was fine. Someone must have swooped in and... saved the day, I guess."

[haiiro_no_chou]

"That's awful!" she said, tilting her head to one side. "I hope you weren't held prisoner for long... Do you know what they did to you, to take your powers?" The Hougyoku had sapped Rukia's powers, almost turning her into a normal human. What could have done it to Zachary?

Trying to cheer him up, she shrugged. "Who knows? Maybe you were the one who saved the city, even though you were knocked out."

Then, her expression turning hopeful - and perhaps more like the young girl she appeared to be - Rukia asked, "Do you think... I could see one of your drawings some time?"

[7_to_midnight]

At Rukia's attempt to make him feel better about his 'failure,' Sylar simply smiled. "It's very good of you to say that, but... I get the feeling I wasn't. It was a virus they used, by the way--to nullify my powers. And as for the picture..."

He remembered the things he had painted--the president, the radioactive man, the explosion, Kirby Plaza, all with his very own style and intentions. He frowned slightly as he remembered all over again just one of the many things he had lost.

He looked towards the girl. He wished he could take her powers right here and now; he wished he could pin her down with his mind and then cut her skull open slowly, savoring each line of blood, each scream of pain, each goading word he used against her...

But he couldn't, and so he'd be her friend.

"...As for the drawing," he continued, tone mild and warm as he gazed at her, "I think I can only paint when I have my powers. But..."

He leaned forward a little, a genuinely excited smile on his face. "If you really want to see my work, I should show you some my timepieces--watches, clocks... You see, I was a watchmaker before my... current calling."

[haiiro_no_chou]

Rukia regarded Zachary solemnly; apparently he wasn't one to accept comforting words. That was something Rukia could respect, even though she had hoped to make him feel better.

But there was that look again. When Zachary hesitated, his gaze flicked up to her forehead again. Rukia reached up and brushed hair away from her eyes, surreptitiously checking to make sure there wasn't anything stuck to her forehead. She glanced away, feeling distinctly uncomfortable for a moment.

Then it was gone, just as quickly as it had come, and Zachary started speaking again. Rukia returned his smile, though hers was slightly strained at the edges. She quickly settled down again, though, her grin turning genuine. "Oh, yes! I would love to see them!" she said, nodding. "But can you get them here?"

Before they could continue their conversation, though, the intercom came on to announce the shift change. A nurse approached Rukia to tell her that she had an appointment with Dr. Yumeno, and Rukia blinked in surprise. "I... I see," she said uncertainly. Then, turning back to Zachary, she gave a slight bow. "It was really nice talking to you, Zachary. Please leave a note for me on the bulletin board if you have any questions or... anything."

[7_to_midnight]

A therapy session? Zachary found that tidbit interesting, and though he was losing his dining partner, he certainly wasn't losing any of the information he'd gotten from her. He nodded at her as she bowed, wondering if her name and mannerisms pointed at her being Japanese.

"It was very nice talking to you too, Rukia," he replied. He narrowed his eyes in interest at her mention of a bulletin and then smiled. "And don't worry, I will. Thank you so much for all of your help."

And then the nurse was taking her away. Sylar waved at her, but as soon as she turned her back, he smirked. He'd certainly check out that bulletin board on his own and see just how true Rukia's words had been. And if they were... well, then this was an intriguing situation indeed.