Day 46: Breakfast

[repeatingfate]

For the second time, Rika found herself waking with a start. She blinked at the grey light streaming through the windows, and looked across the room. Anise was still asleep. So. I'm still here. Let me just check...Rika put on her slippers and walked over to the desk, checking the drawer and breathing a light sigh of relief. Good, the knife was

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[notthistrain]

Cloud had expected to hear the unbelievable. He just obviously wasn't as prepared for it as he thought. He listened to what Yuffie told him. He let the words process. The more she spoke, the more he tried to find some hint to her tone or inflection that she was joking with him... but it wasn't there. She kept going and she was dead serious and it wasn't even logical.

The blond tried not to let his bafflement and disbelief show in his face, because that wasn't what she needed right then. She needed him to be there for her - to be able to help her through this mess. And it was definitely a mess. A mess beyond messes, if any of this was to be believed. Rude believed it, or he was playing along. Reno too, apparently.

But that there would be people from other worlds, other planets outside their own... It wasn't totally unbelievable, he supposed. Cid would have wanted to be able to travel there himself. They all seemed human, though - not like Jenova, the so-called Calamity from the Skies. But then, Jenova had taken on the form of those that already dwelt on their planet, hadn't she?

It was too much, and he couldn't deny that it was too much. It was doubtful she even expected him to believe it all right off the bat. He ran his hand through the hair at the base of his neck. "That's, uh... wow. Yeah, I guess... I'm just gonna have to see some of this for myself."

[thatdamnedninja]

"Crazy, yeah? Yeah. I thought so as well."

Yuffie trailed off, one leg swinging loosely under the table. He wasn't taking it badly, all things considered; he didn't believe her, but that wasn't what really mattered. He was making an effort, and he'd get it eventually. "Talk to Kenshin again, sometime. He's one of the ones from that Earth place, and he's a good guy." High praise, coming from the ninja.

"Anyway, that's only the start of it." She cocked her head slightly. "We're cool on the whole 'infested with monsters' thing, but there's a few to watch out for. Like that-that thing from last night; they pretend to be loved ones 'til they've got you, and then they chow down. I'll give you my list tonight, or something.

"The stuff that can really get you is the mindfucks. They do, um, psychological torture, like making you relive somebody's death like it was your own, scientific experiments, and brainwashing. They call that one Special Counselling. You get your stuff back, you get needled and drilled, and then you're sic'd on the other patients to do Landel's bidding." Flippancy, now, just a touch, because it all felt so raw right now that reverence would hurt like a bitch. Keep it chill, like you're talking about the weather. See, not so hard, is it?

She closed her eyes, the chick from the library drifting through her mind. She'd been so scared, like a kid faced with a wolf for the very first time.

[notthistrain]

Talking to Kenshin again would definitely be on his to-do list. That, along with tearing this place to the ground. He already knew there were some sort of tests happening in the Institute, but the outright mention of experimentation hit a deep nerve. Worse, Yuffie's attitude about the whole thing made it clear that she'd been a part of worse brainwashing that what he'd seen the day before. Whether he could get himself to believe everything she said or not, he at least believed that much. Mako eyes narrowed in anger at the tabletop, and his appetite was suddenly gone.

The hand on her shoulder squeezed. He wasn't going to ask about it. She didn't need the matter dragged back up into the light. He willed the anger down as well. It would end up being directed at the wrong people. The nurses would just be pawns. "I said I would listen, but if you'd rather not talk about it, you don't have to."

[thatdamnedninja]

Something almost like surprise flickered across Yuffie's face, followed by a mostly suppressed wince as his fingers pressed right against a bruise.

This Cloud, he really was… All of a sudden, the little ninja laughed, a soft little snicker to spare her throat. The damage wasn't too bad, but breathing too deep sent sharp pinpricks through her nerves, and it made her chest ache where she'd been punched. Last time she'd seen him, really seen him, he'd been so dour and dreary and emo. Almost like every day and every word was an excuse to kick himself silly on the inside. It'd been like guilt had parked itself on top of him, wriggled its way into every nook and cranny, until he was diluted with it.

Now, this, this was Cloud. This was the Cloud she'd robbed blind in all those forests. This was the Cloud who'd chased her through Wutai and waved aside her life-history to demand his materia back. This was the Cloud who'd she'd seen fit to follow all that way, and if anybody could help her tear this place to its component atoms, it was him.

… Ugh. She was really gonna have to sort herself out, thinking all sappily like this. Being happy to see friends was one thing, but this was hitting a little too close to squishy-marshmallow-fluffy-time for her liking. "If I let talking about that stuff bother me," she said eventually, when the gigglefit had subsided, "it'll just be another point to Landel. He might've controlled me, but I won't let him rule me like that. 'Sides, it's important - if you ever come up against someone on SC, you need to know what to expect from them, right? And tryin' to talk them down doesn't work, no matter how close you are. Ask any questions you've got."

[notthistrain]

...What had he said? Cloud blinked, watching Yuffie with an expression that might have included a light 'Oro?' if coming from another acquaintance of hers. The laughter was unexpected, and he wasn't sure what he'd done to warrant it, but it looked as though she was feeling better for it so he wasn't going to complain. He smiled too, relieved that she was once again showing how impossible it was to truly break her spirit - Wutai's spirit, wrapped up in one little energetic ninja package.

"Any questions, huh?" Where do they keep the weapons? might have been one, followed by What part of the building do you think would burn the fastest? But he knew it wasn't as simple as that or Yuffie would have been long gone. Perhaps there was one... "Your friend last night - he was dressed differently. I don't know if you saw. He was also armed. The clothes aren't so much an issue, but I know I'm not the only one without a weapon that could use one." Him, his roommate, and there had to be others like them. Kenshin's 'friend,' who he'd claimed was also skilled in combat, hadn't been wielding a blade either.

[thatdamnedninja]

Yuffie's lips curved into a smirk at the dumbfounded expression. It was true; she was starting to feel a tad bit better. Even more so, knowing that it was at his expense, kind of. Sort of? Well, in a way. For a moment she contemplated telling him for real about how he'd been there before, and that if he left again, by Da Chao's frilly knickers, she was going to put him through five walls and stick his head in a blender.

Ah, it could wait. This question was a pretty hefty one.

"Straight to the pragmatism, huh? Can't say I blame you. There's a couple of way to get weapons, but it's hard, and there's no guarantees," Yuffie explained, gesturing loosely-and pointlessly-with one hand. "You can get small knives from the kitchens, obviously, and gardening tools like claws from the shed outside. Metal bats from the rec field. Real weapons, like swords, you've gotta have made, or you've gotta get… lucky." Her voice dipped there, the sound of shattering bones playing through the back of her mind. "I've got three kitchen knives that I've picked up here and there, a Wutaian-style blade meant as a back-up that was made for me, and my Four Point.

"The clothes, I don't even know. They just seem to turn up in our wardrobes every so often."

[notthistrain]

There were more questions now that he felt like he shouldn't ask - what she meant by lucky being one of them. What was important was that it was possible to get weapons, if difficult. She even had her Four Point, so getting hold of their original weapons wasn't even impossible, though he bet that was the hardest of all to accomplish. He'd have to pass this information along to Luke.

The clothes were probably some other means of the Institute messing with them, or maybe someone on the staff felt sorry for them having to wear these horrible gray sweats all the time. Whatever the case, it wasn't all that important.

"What do you mean, 'have them made?'" Was there a blacksmith somewhere in the middle of this supposed mental institution?

[thatdamnedninja]

"People've got some Weird abilities in this dive," said Yuffie. "And that's with a capital L. This naïve kid who looked about fourteen drew out some symbols-a little like the matrixes you get when you use summon materia-and sort of… magic'd a pile of gross plumbing pipes into a shiny new sword." It was still a little hard for her to get her head around, but having seen it happen right there in front of her, there was no denying it. "They call it alchemy. It's a bitch and a half to get onto the lists, though, since everybody and their sparkle spaghetti ancestors want a weapon."

"Actually, that's another thing," she added, her eyebrows drawing down in a flash of irritation. "You're gonna find out sooner or later, since this one happens to everyone. They put a limiter on our abilities, somehow. Speed, strength, you name it. They even axed most of my Limit Breaks." Even though she still had access to Clear Tranquil-to some extent, at least-and by extension to Greased Lightning, it beyond pissed her off. All of it did! She'd worked hard to reach this level, and to have it stolen from her like that..!

… And then to have it given back, just for that one night. Just so she could kick around a bunch of people who had no idea who they were up against, and who wouldn't have stood a chance either way. Worse than that, a large part of her had enjoyed it. The freedom-pfft-and the power, it had been addictive. The memory of it still was.

[notthistrain]

Cloud thought he might have noticed a change in the way he felt since he'd arrived here, but there had been so many other things to worry about and he hadn't gotten far into the fight with whatever had been attacking Yuffie. At some point he was going to have to see just how badly he'd been limited. That anyone could be so powerful... it didn't seem fair. There had to be machines involved somewhere - something that sent out emissions that interfered with brain patterns. That was easier to take in than a being that could just wave his hand and remove all ability to fight back.

Alchemy. He'd remember that. Was there materia, he wondered, that allowed for the transformation of objects? It was possible. Not every form of materia on the planet had been discovered, and new ones were created all the time. Still, that was trying to paste details he was familiar with into an unfamiliar setting where they may or may not actually apply.

"I'll see what I can find on my own, then. I'm flexible." No need to back the lists up even further. A metal bat wasn't as good as a real sword, but he'd worked with something similar in the past.

[thatdamnedninja]

"Noble, but if you think I'm lettin' you wander around unarmed in this place, you've got another thing coming."

The look she shot him then was sharp, and almost cool. Yuffie had a reputation for being spendthrift, always had and always would, but that did not mean she'd be irresponsible towards her teammates. Not now-not anymore. "You can borrow my sword 'til you find something better. 'Bout two pounds? Twenty seven and a half inches long, and I'll kick your butt to Da Chao and back if you let anythin' happen to it."

She could make do with the shuriken and her knives, and it wasn't as though he was gonna be keeping it. Cloud was pretty handy with almost anything he picked up, but he always did have that fixation with overcompensation. Yuffie was pretty sure that he'd go for some other weapon before too long.

Her expression lightened, like sunshine breaking through a spring rainstorm. Serious topic or not, she wanted to be cheerful; she had to be, as close to the edge as she was already. Yuffie wasn't a big fan of self-delusion, but sometimes it was necessary just to keep going. "Now that AVALANCHE is getting back in business, we can pool whatever resources we can get our hands on. Like the Turk's booze." Which she still hadn't gotten anywhere near. Lamesauce.

[notthistrain]

Yuffie was being generous? This was a serious situation. The weapon was certainly smaller than what he was used to, but Cloud knew better than to make a comment about that. He nodded, smiling again at her offer. It might not ever come again, so he should be thankful.

Now he was back to conversing with the ninja he knew. He raised an eyebrow at the comment about booze, hardly considering that a resource at this point. Leave it to the Turks to get their hands on some, though. The blond still considered Yuffie too young to be drinking, extra three years or no, but he'd bring that up at a better time.

"Don't know if I really like the idea of lettin' the Turks handle our resources, but I know we might not have better options. How are things on their end?" They'd had an odd relationship in the past, had helped and hindered each other the same. It was difficult to forgive someone who could so easily press a button and destroy a whole sector of a city, though.

[thatdamnedninja]

"We won't," said Yuffie, firmly. "Nope. No way, no how. Over my cold dead fingers, et cetera. We sometimes split what we can afford to, but I've never given them serious loot and I'm not about to start now." Though it wasn't like she spent a whole lot of time around them anyway. That one night with Reno aside, she'd only ever seen them during the day.

Crossing her legs at the ankles, the girl reclined a little further. How far could she go before Cloud started getting bugged? Only time would tell. And Yuffie wouldn't deny it; a little friendly, casual contact could do her some good. Reno-related incidents once again notwithstanding, it'd been a while. A long while since she'd really touched anyone, even if it was nowhere close to beating those years of wandering the world and robbing all the suckers she could find.

"Far as I can tell? They're breakin' even, or as even as you can get in a dump like this. They lost Elena a little while back, but then they picked up this chick called Cissnei. Reno's…" Yuffie cocked her head. "Surprisingly tolerable. Rude's an insufferable dick and I think he's out to poison me." Hey, he hadn't denied it! "Or, I dunno, maybe he just really wants me to rip his intestines out through his nose. Either way, we keep each other informed and nobody's died yet, so it's not a total waste of a deal."

[notthistrain]

Lost Elena? As in she'd disappeared or that she'd died? Cloud didn't ask further, because the second name had pinged something in the back of his mind. The name sounded very familiar, but unfortunately he couldn't place it and that left him staring at his breakfast again in consternation. "Cissnei... I've heard that name somewhere." If she was a Turk, it was possible he'd just heard it mentioned off-hand somewhere. He hadn't had much interaction with that group until after he joined AVALANCHE.

He shook his head. That was something he could figure out later. Now for a more sensitive subject... "What about us?" There wouldn't be any reason to explain what 'us' he was referring to. "Is it just you and me?" Which would mean it would have been just her before he arrived and that was a terrible thought. If he had to pick someone to be stuck in a place like this, Yuffie wouldn't have been his first pick (probably not in the top five) but that option was better than the alternative.

[thatdamnedninja]

Yuffie shrugged her shoulders loosely. "Reddish-brown hair, brown eyes, my height, probably the same age as me," she described. "We never saw her once during the whole Jenova War and Meteorfall thing, and it sounds to me like she's only had experience with the old AVALANCHE. She's a bit behind on the times." Just like Cloud.

Which was just peachy-awesome, seriously. One of these days she was gonna have to show her appreciation for this joint by punching a doctor in the nose. One of these days.

The blond shook his head, then, and Yuffie snapped back to matters at hand. Us. Good question, wasn't it? The ninja fidgeted for a moment, fingers curling and then clenching tight, arms faux-casually wrapped around herself. "Cid was here when I first woke up in this dump. Something was… Something was weird, though. He kept dropping off the radar, and five days later he disappeared entirely. That was eleven days ago. You, too; you were here. And one night, around the same time as Cid went MIA, your old roomie-he was a pal of mine-told me that you'd disappeared. Then he disap- oh, wait, you just meant AVALANCHE, didn't'cha?" It had completely slipped her mind to personalize the monologue, to throw in one of her usual egotistical asides, and by the time she did remember, the timing was all ruined. "Wutai's Lone Blossom had the spotlight all to herself, in other words. I bet you're mad sorry you missed it."

[notthistrain]

The description seemed familiar, though he could be confusing her with any number of people. He'd think yeah, and didn't she have a suit? except that all Turks wore suits, male or female. Cloud decided just to file the information away for later when he wasn't being bombarded with all sorts of other revelations.

And speaking of... His eyes snapped to Yuffie on Cid's name. This whole 'they were here and then they weren't' thing was really really bothering him, especially since it involved close friends of his. He could never have been prepared to hear her mention his own name next, and he just stared at her. Any moment now she was going to grin and say she was just kidding. Memory loss was nothing new, but to have been here before and not be able to recall it at all? That was beyond disturbing.

"I was here...?" The blond frowned in confusion. "That's impossible. Are you sure it was me?"

[thatdamnedninja]

"There's a lot of impossible stuff in this hell hole," was her reply. Short, simple, to the point. Utter conviction. All traces of smiles and grins had faded again, leaving nothing but the gritty truth and one worn out ninja. "And while there's a lot of things I'll lie about, this isn't one of 'em. It was you. The same thing happened to me, as well; when Cid told me, I didn't really believe him… until I ran into random strangers who'd met me here before. Like Kenshin; he can tell-"

Yuffie's head snapped up when the intercom chimed, her expression disgruntled. She straightened slowly, pushing herself to her feet with one hand against the table. The other rubbed absently at her sternum, pressing against the ache. "Looks like that's a wrap for this one. Come to my room tonight, and be ready to deal with the Turks. It's F4."