Aug 29, 2009 16:32
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Even distracted as he was, Suzaku remembered to stay on his guard as he passed into the main hallway. He would only be here for a moment, but there could still be a monster lurking in the darkness. And it was so quiet and deserted just now that he would make easy prey.
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starscream,
kirk,
tenzen,
tsubaki,
xigbar,
badou,
anise,
minato,
leonard,
teisel,
kuukaku,
impulse,
sam winchester,
indiana jones,
utena,
asch,
euphemia,
zex,
suzaku,
taura,
franziska,
claire bennet,
luxord,
lunge,
raphael,
kanji,
brainiac 5,
the flash,
phoenix,
peter petrelli,
two-face,
porky,
edgar,
faize,
the scarecrow,
sync,
tenpou,
ayumu,
okita,
hitsugaya,
howl,
tyki,
spock,
kratos,
l,
nathan petrelli,
sokka,
ronixis,
kitty pryde,
scott pilgrim,
dias,
dahlia,
hanatarou,
sora,
luffy,
lockon (neil),
renamon,
rorschach,
alkaid,
edgeworth,
joshua,
harley,
teresa,
dean winchester,
pied piper,
von karma,
alfred,
kio,
chekov,
depth charge,
apollo,
sam,
jamie,
rolo,
manny,
aidou,
kaworu
She was careful to stretch her senses and pace herself, but Tsubaki still hurried on at a sprint, silencing her movements in the way of the ninja (that she'd been taught by--) so that she drew neither prisoner eyes nor enemy ones.
There'd been no concrete confirmation of who, if anyone, she was supposed to meet, but either way, Tsubaki was set to reach the upstairs hall without pause. Time was always the key. The night had started off normally enough, sans the intercom, but there could be no predicting when things might change...
As Tsubaki came into the main corridor, she slowed, both to avoid a potential collision situation with a man a little taller than her who was heading eastward, and because the stairwell needed to be scoped out more carefully before she surrounded herself with two thick walls on an unprotected staircase. "Excuse me," she said passingly, announcing her presence and diffusing it all at the same time. She'd seen fights here before, not long ago, involving people dressed in clothes she guessed were theirs, and although he was dressed in the typical Landel's uniform, she wasn't. Nevertheless, she was no enemy.
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In truth, Lockon wouldn't have minded so much if she'd run into him. Everybody slipped up sometimes, and it would have given him more of an excuse to open a conversation with her.
Oh, well: he didn't need an excuse. "Yo," he said, turning to take a step after her. "I hate to bother you, but I'm new here and I think I'm a little lost. I get the feeling you're not as new, so you might be able to help."
He gave her a hopeful smile.
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And then he spoke, sending a resonating oh no through her. Did he... not know...?
Two many new 'patients' joined their ranks, too many for Tsubaki to help in the time she'd been imprisoned. When face to face with a person in need, though, she had to do what she could. More so if he was so inexperienced in how the Institute worked that he had no idea about the nightshifts.
"Yes... I've been here for some time," she revealed. More strongly, she added, "Did you just wake up here this evening? It's very dangerous at night; it's not safe to be out." That was the most important point.
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"Then I bet you can help me," he said, smiling. "No, I've been awake for a few hours now, and I know all about how dangerous it is." That didn't explain why he was smiling, but he seemed to be telling the truth. "Well, maybe not all. I haven't run into any monsters yet, but I don't deny there's a risk. I've got to get to my companions, though. One of them is in M99. Do you know which way I should go to reach him?"
A beat, and he added rather facetiously, "What I'd really like to know is which way I should go to get a gun, but I've been told there aren't any here. I'll have to make do with what I have."
He pulled a couple sharp shards of plastic from his coat pocket and held them up to demonstrate.
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A few hours couldn't have prepared anyone, but he must've meant that he'd talked to someone before her--someone who had already warned him. She picked up a more easygoing calmness about him than she did concern. That wasn't good strictly speaking, but she was a little reassured that he seemed to know enough to have made his decision to walk the halls on his own.
Knowing there was a risk usually meant one would be careful...
The day's circumstances had left some of the muscles in her shoulders stiff, but just the realization that she hadn't met someone who was utterly unknowing made her relax slightly--she wasn't sure if she could fully protect someone who needed a companion all on her own.
Directions, at least, were easy enough. Tsubaki hadn't visited every part of the male blocks, nor was she as clever with numbers and architecture as some people were, but she could do the math. There were ten rooms per row, four rows per block... Pointing back at the corridor she'd come from, she said, "Up that way. The first open door on the left leads to the girls' wing, but if you go into the one up from that, you'll be in the third male cell block. M99 should be in there." A question about weapons was tougher; Tsubaki peered at the makeshift projectiles he brought out. A gun for a marksman or someone long range? "I'd have to agree," she said. "The building only seems to supply things a normal hospital would, but the strangest things happen at night, so I wouldn't rule it out... If you already know about the bulletin, try asking there. Some people might know more, or even be able to make one from scratch."
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He paused, though, before heading that way. "I've used the bulletin already, but I hadn't thought to ask about weapons there. Wouldn't the nurses take that kind of message down?" He lifted a hand ruefully to his head. "One of them wouldn't even give me my gloves back, when I told her I needed to keep my hands safe for sniping."
[OOC: wow belated, sorry!]
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Ha... if only he knew that helping him would be far easier to a part of her...
"It's no problem, it's my pleasure," she said in response to both his attempt at reassurance and at his thanks, voice soft.
The problem was, Tsubaki had no choice but to see him off and let him go. There were other tasks that called to her, and for one person... For just one person, Tsubaki couldn't help anymore than that, as much as she wanted to. So many people were left to fend for themselves in much worse conditions, because of that fact.
She moved on to answer the question spoken over his shoulder without a hitch, shaking her head slightly. "I thought so, too, but for the most part, the staff don't seem to bother with what gets written. Because... you're sick. To them." That was the least of it--there was so much that went unsaid in that moment. Some of it had nothing to do with him at all. "I don't think anything would change even if they knew it was you who was writing the note. But if you've seen one of the handmade maps, there's a room on the second floor, at the very end of the far east hall. It's called patient possessions. Anything your other self," and it was impossible to find a simple term that encompassed the whole horror of the alternate identities of theirs, "might have come in with, like clothes, would be stored there."
But there was danger in moving around the hospital after hours, always. More so in areas like that, she thought. Being a sniper would probably mean combat experience, but even so...
"Be careful wherever you go, okay? My name is Tsubaki; don't hesitate to find me if you need anything else. It'd be good to hear you're okay in the morning."
Stranger or not, her feelings were the same.
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But he could tell one thing: there was a lot she wasn't saying, and a lot more she wished she could do. Lockon didn't know the details behind it, but he knew he wanted to help. That was typical, really. For now, though, he just shook his head and smiled. "I think there are a lot less sick people here than the nurses think."
He turned and looked up at the information she offered, as if he could see his way up to the second floor: a silly gesture. "My other self..." He sighed, gave a rueful smile. His other self had his real name, though. Maybe he could count on him(self?) to have brought in a weapon as well. But it seemed like a long shot. Then again, he'd been good at those, once, and he could be good again here. Absently, Lockon touched the place under his right eye where only faint scars betrayed what had in his world been a crippling injury.
"I'll be fine," he said, smiling at Tsubaki to draw his thoughts away from things like that. "I'll definitely talk to you again in the morning." Especially if it might help her open up--she seemed like she needed someone to talk to. "Keep an eye out for Lockon Stratos, all right?"
He winked.
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If he didn't already learn that, he probably would before long...
As expected, in even so short a dialogue, there were touchy subjects, topics better left to a safer and more appropriate time, if she could say that. She smiled politely in return. "Lockon Stratos," repeated Tsubaki, who then dipped into a small bow. That they would both be fine and able to meet again the next day was the most she could hope for as they went their separate ways. "I will. Until next time, then."
She'd hope that strong attitude helped him through.
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