Dayshift 22: Chapel

[claire_ity]

Claire woke up in her room just like before, with little idea of how she actually got there. This time, though, she noticed something different about the room. There was another young woman, a blond, sleeping in a bed across from her. Before questioning that, though, she made sure to hide the items she'd gotten that night in her closet, shutting

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[walking_complex]

Hojo wasn't a religious man, and under most circumstances he would have given anything resembling a church a very wide berth. The fact that the Institute had one at all struck him as very odd, though, and the remark made by the Head Doctor on the intercom got him curious.

The normally jarring feeling of going from awake in the hall to waking up in his room was decidedly more welcome this time around. Getting up was something of an effort; the gash in his stomach had been stapled shut and he was stiff so as not to jostle it too much. A quick check revealed that three of the four cuts on his face had also been stitched closed, which would probably make talking difficult.

How aggravating.

He didn't question the nurse about the second person in his room, hardly in the mood for getting answers out of uncooperative people and even less pleased by the idea of talking and possibly damaging his stitches, so he left quietly, shaking the nurse off as soon as soon as they got to the (in his opinion) overly ornate chapel. It made little sense to have something like this an an asylum, especially if they weren't going to bother with any hints of religion. Secular things were not often constructed this meticulously.

He sat in one of the back pews, on the end near the wall. Standing and walking was far more tiring than he was happy with.

[angels_inflight]

Despite all the events of last night, Naminé felt very awake and ready when she awoke. She already knew she wasn't alone - she had awoken to the sight of someone else sleeping in a bed across from her that wasn't there. Who... who was that?! Naminé was so startled by the new body that she was completely silent as the nurse escorted her out. The young witch looked deeply troubled.

Naminé suddenly realized the nurse was speaking to her as they were walking out, and she had the nurse escort her to the Chapel. She was there once... during the night. Luxord didn't seem to happy with the place, and it seemed... unsettling in the moonlight. The witch wondered if it would be of some importance to them later on in the future.

What a difference lightning made! It seemed peaceful and quaint in the morning sunlight. Naminé was going to take a seat up in the front, but she noticed a man sitting in the back, one that she remembered seeing the night before. Naminé slided into the pew, sitting next to the stranger with some distance between them in case he... well, wasn't in the mood for company.

"Um, you were the man from last night... with Luxord and Xigbar. Are you alright?" She asked, looking truly concerned. She couldn't help but feel that his injuries were her fault somehow.

[walking_complex]

Hojo looked up, his expression puzzled. He didn't remember the girl, but given the events of the night before that was not surprising. Apparently he'd had blood in his eyes when this one had been around.

"I don't think I fit most definitions of 'all right,'" he said after a few moments, his voice rather low mostly so he wouldn't have to move his mouth much. "Nothing immediately fatal, though, provided nothing gets infected, so in that respect I'd say yes."

[angels_inflight]

"I... I see," Naminé nodded. Yes, he didn't seem like he was in the best shape in the world... but it was better than dead. She wasn't sure what exactly else there was to say. He didn't recognize her (not that she could blame him), and it must have been uncomfortable to be spoken to by a stranger about one's health. But she did have a few questions for him.

"Um... I just wanted to ask you... You were Luxord and Xigbar. Where were they going?" Naminé had the feeling she knew the answer to this, but some confirmation would be nice. Depending on the man's answer, perhaps she would have a different agenda for tonight.

[walking_complex]

"Looking for someone called Naminé. Given that you're blonde and you know them I'd assume that's you." He smirked a little; from the look of her she hadn't been injured, meaning that while they hadn't been able to hold on to her they still had a chance to try again. He wasn't sure if he'd be accompanying Xigbar again, though; while he may be one of the few people in the Institute who was both recognizable and not determined to kill him, the scientist didn't particularly want to get mocked for his uselessness. He'd be able to laugh about it once the wounds were healed over.

"You showed up last night. Did you want them to find you, or was that a coincidence?"

[angels_inflight]

The young girl actually looked surprised at the scientist's deductive reasoning. Of course, considering what Naminé's usual company was, it was not surprising.

"Y-Yes, that's me... I'm sorry, I was actually trying to run away," Naminé admitted. She didn't know what it was, but ever since the meeting, she had been wary of Luxord and Xigbar's true intentions. She knew that the Organization was slowly, but surely "reforming" as it were, and she wasn't sure if it was something she wanted to get caught up in again. Naminé was able to cut ties with the Organization before, but she had protection and a small amount of power. Here, she truly had nothing.

"Do you know why they were coming for me?" She asked. She wasn't sure how much this man knew (or if he even cared), but it was something Naminé needed to know. Of course, finding out from Luxord and Xigbar themselves would have been better, but they certainly wouldn't show up here, she figured.

[walking_complex]

"Mm." Interesting. If he was going to assume that what they said about wanting to protect her was true, then, that meant that they must want to use her for something. It was very rare to find someone running away from people who genuinely wanted to keep them safe.

"They told me they wanted to protect you," he said after a few moments of silence. "What can you do?" That was the real question, and he figured he was more likely to get the answer directly from the girl rather than II or X. She didn't look like a skilled liar... though, granted, that didn't mean anything.

[angels_inflight]

They wanted to protect her? That was the only answer she ever got... Naminé could accept that. It was a good gesture, perhaps she shouldn't have gotten suspicious. Still... there was just something wrong with that mindset. The only reason anyone protected her was because they needed her for something. When it was just Luxord, he seemed genuine enough, but why Xigbar? She wondered if he was just following orders.

"Huh? Oh..." What could she 'do'? She wasn't sure how to answer that. Saying nothing would be an obvious lie, but Naminé could not do much anymore. Should she tell him what she used to be able to do or what she could do now?

"... I have a very good memory. I have memorized almost everything I have seen so far," Naminé explained. She didn't go further than that. What she could do back "home" was useless information now.

[walking_complex]

"That can't be why they want you," he said with a slight shrug. "A good memory can be faked by simply writing everything down, and if that was all they needed I'm sure they wouldn't spend all their time trying to hold on to you." Not when she seemed so easy to kill, at any rate. "In this place? If all they were doing was protecting you I find it hard to believe that you would reject it. Not that it seems to amount to much." Granted, he hadn't ended up dead, but that was just about the only positive part of the previous night.

[angels_inflight]

That was actually very reassuring to hear. So her memory wasn't an asset to fight over to this man. In that case, maybe Luxord and Xigbar's intentions were true, even if they were only following orders. Maybe they just wanted to protect her.

It wouldn't have made sense to anyone listening in, but Naminé had her reasons for wanting to avoid the Organization. If only they knew... well, they would know if she told them, but Naminé never liked telling anyone about her past. Why bring it up now? And this stranger certainly didn't need another sob story.

"I think you're right... I'm sorry, I'm getting the past scare me more than it should. I'm sorry I caused so much trouble last night," Naminé sighed. Maybe tonight, she would make an effort to meet Luxord and Xigbar again (the idea of waiting for them to get her still didn't bode well with her. She wasn't that useless, was she?). "I just didn't know what to think of it, that was all..."