Day 43: Game Room (4th Shift)

[emotionl4arobot]

Brainiac 5 had been planning to spend some more time in the sun room in order to check up on his attempt to gather more information about the different technology levels people were familiar with and to think about what his ancestor had said to him (not to mention try and keep an eye on Peter's activities before he did something else monumentally

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[4lulzngiggles]

((Closed for Sora!))

So, the situation seemed rather clear-cut to Joshua. He had a week to take over the Institute, or he was going to have to fight against Minamimoto all over again. How wonderful was that? And the Reaper had tried to pretend that he was the Composer in the Game... well, hubris was most certainly his fatal flaw, and Joshua was too unflappable to be faked out by such a transparent attempt to shift initiative.

However, the problem still remained. He had few options, few contacts, little power, and no real leads. This put him at a distinct disadvantage when compared to the majority of the other patients. That, with the fact that he had fewer marketable skills, meant that he'd have to think of something. But what? For now, he walked about aimlessly, gnawing at his lip as he considered a plan of attack. What he needed was a good, gullible, well-connected person he could guilt into helping him out...

[scintillatingly]

Getting to stretch his legs out on the field had Sora energized, and so he almost considered heading out to the courtyard for the final shift of the day so that he could spend some more time outside. In the end, though, he decided on the Game Room -- he'd gotten pretty fond of the Game Boys and he knew he'd have a better chance of getting his hands on one during their free choice day. When the whole patient population was sent there, chances were other people were going to snatch them up before him

[4lulzngiggles]

...well, that wasn't a question that Joshua could say that he heard all that tremendously often. Usually the question was more along the lines of 'Why did you do such-and-such!?' The blond stared at Sora for a moment, adopting a thoughtful expression as he tried to think. It couldn't have been for long, or else he'd have remembered right off the bat, but that odd hair and earnest voice were rather distinctive.

Then recognition dawned. "Ah, Sora, was it? You seem to be doing well." In one piece, which was a little bit more than his last snappish thought had been. Still, it seemed like a solution to his problems might just have presented itself. With a sigh, he added, "A little better than myself, anyway."

[scintillatingly]

Glad to hear that Joshua hadn't already pushed him out of his mind, Sora smiled and nodded when the boy came out with his name. "That's right!" he confirmed. As for doing well, he figured he couldn't complain. His neck wound wasn't hurting him as much as it had when he'd first woken up, and there was still no sign of any weird infection like some people had been complaining of, so it looked like he'd gotten off easy.

His thoughts were quickly drawn away from that when Joshua implied that he wasn't faring as well. Most people weren't willing to admit when things were tough for them, so chances were that the other boy really needed someone to talk to right now. Hopefully he'd be willing to open up to someone he barely knew...

"Did something happen?" Sora asked with a frown, shifting his Game Boy from one hand to the other. "Are you all right?"

[4lulzngiggles]

So it was Sora. At least Joshua hadn't managed to lose his memory in addition to everything else this Institute had swiped from him. It would have been a cruel irony, considering the entry fees he'd taken over all of those years, but apparently Martin Landel wasn't such a fan of personal touches. Sloppy work, really; he wondered if 'I.R.I.S.' would be different.

As for talking about it? Oh, Joshua was never one to share what was really on his mind. But making a sympathy play to bully someone? That he could do with gusto. "Oh, for now, yes." He giggled softly despite himself. He couldn't help it, the thought of Minamimoto thinking that he was the Composer in this game was still endlessly amusing to the boy. "An old enemy of mine was kind enough to give me a full week before he tries to kill me again. Quite a bit of restraint on his part."

[scintillatingly]

Wait a second, who laughed when they were in danger of being killed? Was Joshua really that unconcerned about what he'd just said? Sora watched him for a moment, sorting through his disbelief. It wasn't that he couldn't relate, either, since there were a few people around (well, maybe only two) who wanted him dead. He knew from first hand experience that it did not feel nice, and it definitely wasn't something to laugh about.

"That's terrible," he said with a frown. Without really thinking, he started to glance around the room, wondering if Joshua's enemy was skulking around. When he didn't see anything that seemed too out of place, he looked back to the other boy. "So he's tried to kill you a lot of times before? Isn't there anything you can do to stop him? I mean, err, besides..." Sora looked away, feeling guilty even though Joshua wouldn't understand why.

[4lulzngiggles]

Oh, right, Sora probably wasn't the sort of person who could find amusement in situations like that. He probably hadn't died already and gotten that out of the way, and if he was a normal boy, then death was a large terrifying thing, instead of a major inconvenience to be avoided. He'd have to remember that later on; he had to keep up appearances when things like this happened.

As for the question? He shrugged, frowning slightly as he did so. "He thinks that I have something he wants, and he's also convinced he has to kill me to get it. He nearly incinerated himself in an explosion in an attempt to get me, I very much doubt that there's much I can do to dissuade him. ...I suppose that's what makes it so funny, in a black comedy sort of way. No matter where I go or what I do, he's always there. Even in a place like this."

[scintillatingly]

Sora really wasn't sure what someone would be able to get from killing another person, but it sounded pretty serious if this enemy of Joshua's was willing to almost kill himself for it. Then again, Joshua had said that this crazy killer guy only thought that Joshua had... whatever it was. Either way, the person Joshua was describing didn't sound stable, and that kind of craziness mixed with a dogged determination was a deadly combination.

"I still don't think that's very funny," Sora murmured with a sigh. "But I guess if he hasn't killed you yet, then you must be able to fight back pretty well, right?" Joshua didn't look like he would be very strong, but lots of people were hiding intense power. Sora knew perfectly well that he couldn't judge by appearances. "You should just tell him that you don't have what he wants!" he insisted, his expression changing into a frown. He smacked his fist into the palm of his opposite hand. "Don't let him push you around!"

[4lulzngiggles]

"That's what got me the one-week delay, otherwise he would have done me in by now. No matter what I say, he isn't convinced that being here changes everything." It was more than a little aggravating, when he thought of it. Minamimoto did have a longer view than Joshua had thought, and because of that, he wasn't going to be dissuaded from going through his plan. At most, Joshua could fight off his attempts; at worst...

Well. He shrugged, almost resignedly. "And on that topic, in my world, I had a few more tricks up my sleeve than I do now. More than he did, at least. But in terms of how we are here? I've lost a lot more than he has."

[scintillatingly]

Sora wasn't sure how Joshua could be so calm about the fact that his life was in danger, but maybe he just wasn't the sort of person who panicked over things. It made the Keyblade Master feel like he needed to get upset on the other boy's behalf or something, even though he barely knew the details. He still knew that Joshua's life was being threatened, and that was enough as far as he was concerned.

It was even more bothersome to hear that there was a good chance Joshua wouldn't be able to stand up to the jerk who was giving him trouble because of his decreased powers. Sora frowned and crossed his arms over his chest. This really could only lead to one train of thought

[4lulzngiggles]

Well... Joshua's shocked expression was genuine, but more for being thrown off of the Script for Manipulating Heroic Kids than out of genuine surprise. Sora was genuinely offering help, and the kid didn't seem to be stating anything out of the ordinary or bending the truth whatsoever when he said that. It was... kind of refreshing, in a way. Joshua hadn't had to go through the entire spiel, and while he was a little skeptical, at least it was some progress being made. At last.

Still, he did have to press just a little bit. An offer was great, but was Sora really capable of defeating someone as powerful as Sho Minamimoto? Sora had plenty of heart, that was certain, but this wasn't a place where emotion could override the cold reality of biological physics. As said Reaper could explain with far, far too many equations. "That... means a lot to me, Sora," he said with a quiet smile, "but I couldn't ask you to do that. He wouldn't hesitate a second to kill you, if you got in the way."

[scintillatingly]

It wasn't like Sora had expected Joshua to accept his offer just like that. He knew if their roles had been reversed, Sora would have never wanted someone else to get involved in his problems. That was why he had made sure to lead Xigbar to an empty room where there had been little chance of them getting interrupted. (Come to think of it, he hadn't spotted the Nobody around in a while. It was kind of concerning

[4lulzngiggles]

Oh no, Joshua entirely believed that people might want Sora dead. The world was a rather twisted place, and especially in this world, everyone seemed to be have someone after them. The bulletin board was rife with petty squabbles, people died all of the time, and the intercom was only too happy to remind them just how deadly the world was. Yes, someone probably wanted Sora dead; the question was whether that person was on the same tier as Sho Minamimoto, the Reaper who had even managed to pull himself back from annihilation and gain the power of Taboo.

It was also a good thing that Sora didn't say out loud the matter of putting two and two together, as Joshua would not have been able to restrain a giggle at the sheer irony of the moment. Instead... Joshua nodded slightly, finally offering a tiny smile. "That means a lot to me, Sora. And while I don't have all of the powers I did back home, if there's ever anything I can do for you, just let me know, all right? It's only fair." And it would give him a chance to see what Sora could do

[scintillatingly]

While that wasn't an exact agreement on Joshua's part, the fact that he was offering the same thing at least suggested that he was willing to accept Sora's help when the time came. That was better than nothing, and so the Keyblade Master nodded enthusiastically. "Yeah, I'll make sure to let you know! I think that I'm okay for now, but in this place it's hard to know when things'll come up..." Those zombies last night had come out of nowhere, for example. Who knew when another Organization member might show up in this place and want to smear the floor with him?

He wasn't entirely sure he would be willing to ask for Joshua's help if that happened, but it was at least something to keep in mind. It sounded like the boy had a week before he had to worry, so Sora would just keep an eye on him and continue to check on him. He didn't think it would be a good idea to keep pushing him at the moment.

Besides, the shift was ending and the nurses were stirring. Sora sent one last brief smile at Joshua. "Stay safe, okay? I'll talk to you later