Night 50: West Wing, South Hall 1-A

[heroesdontshave]

[from here]

Nothing in here either. Snow was starting to wonder if maybe Badou had been exaggerating when he said all of the staff turn into monsters. The place'd probably be crawling with Cie'th if that were really the case, or maybe they were all off in another part of the building. At least there wasn't anyone getting attacked or anything yet.

Comments

[dreadofthegrave]

[ from here ]

Where most nights Battler would simply pass through the door, this time he found himself pausing. Normally there was a general sense of what to do, but it seemed that the longer he was there, the more options opened up, and it was hard to say what was the most pressing and what would only lead to a dead end, especially when not everything could be accomplished at once. His best bet was probably to look into the happenings of the previous night. He didn't trust what the Head Doctor was saying about it at all, and while there was a good chance that any evidence of what had really happened had either been tampered with or cleared away, it would be stupid to assume that before even trying.

In the scheme of things, it didn't seem like the most important thing to figure out, but even if it seemed miniscule, the more uncovered, the more could be pieced together, and that was probably the only way that they'd ever be able to unravel the institute's true face. There were other things that could be done too, like finding those cages Klavier had mentioned, or even just getting a better look around, but this seemed like as good a plan as any for now. He could only really take things one at a time, especially when the methods weren't ones he was inherently used to, so it was better not to consider too much at once.

That was what he'd been thinking, but that was abandoned when he stepped into the hall and spotted an unexpectedly familiar face. That was him, wasn't it? He was in the normal patient uniform now, and didn't have that weird-looking sword, but it was definitely the same person.

".... You're from the other night. Luke, right?" That was what the bulletin had said, at least. "You said you wanted to talk about what happened."

All considered, he probably should have approached this a bit more cautiously, but if the other guy did really did want explain himself over what happened that night, there wasn't much of a reason not to listen. Just the responses from that had made it clear that something had been going on that Battler didn't quite understand, and he definitely wouldn't mind hearing about that. Whether he accepted it or not was a different story, but there was no need to make any hasty judgments, either.

[replicatedorder]

In the midst of trying to seek out someone else to accompany him for the evening, it never occurred to Luke that someone would approach him first. The red head of hair and face looked familiar, and the dots slid together very quickly for him. He recalled attacking the woman that this guy had been with, and he recalled the conversation the next day. It unsettled him that he would run into him now, because his stomach filled with guilt at having to face him. Most of his victims that night had been connected to Cloud, and thankfully, his roommate managed to assuage his worries. This was different.

None of his determination left him, but he knew he needed to have this conversation. If anything, he could inform him about what happened so that he would know, and maybe, since this guy had been here a while, they could share information. It was a start, and he couldn't ignore the fact that it could lead to something interesting.

"Yeah, that's me," he said, and he lowered his flashlight a bit to illuminate the floor. "I'd like to talk about it. ... And to your friend, too, if I could." He didn't know if this guy was headed to find her or not, but there was a chance that he was. Luke figured he would cover all bases, if that was the case.

"Actually," he pressed on, emphasizing that he had something else to add. "I was looking for someone to talk to tonight about what's been happening lately. Between what happened to me, the random teleportations, and some things that have happened to my friends, I'd like to get the word out more. Would you mind after I explain what happened that night?"

It was only the fact that he needed to get that out that he hadn't apologized yet, and Luke realized it after he finished and felt rather sheepish. He had time, and he remembered Jade scolding him for apologizing once upon a time. Information was more useful and more necessary than communicating that, he recalled, and he decided he took the better option here.

[dreadofthegrave]

Friend, huh.... That wasn't exactly that word Battler would use when it came to Beatrice, so it felt strange to hear her being referred to that way. It wasn't like he hated her, but even so, a small trace of bitterness made him want to rebel against the idea. It certainly wouldn't have been the first time. But still, it wasn't the time or place for antagonism, so he kept his thoughts to himself.

"I know where her room is, but I'm not sure if she'd still be there," he explained instead. It was possible that she would be, but doubted that would be the case. It was hard to imagine someone with such a hatred of boredom staying shut in. ... She was probably out in the halls laughing and thinking this place was interesting, with that terrible sense of humor of hers.

"... Come to think of it, I haven't seen her in a couple days," he thought aloud, more to himself than anything. Of course, one of those was his own fault, but it definitely wasn't like her to not make herself known. .... Well, whatever. Beatrice was more than capable of taking care of herself. Or at least, that was what he'd normally think, but doing so now, it was accompanied by a sense of guilt. It wasn't long ago at all that she'd been so fragile and weak that she couldn't even lift her own teacup. Thinking back on how badly she'd been suffering during that time, it was harder to just blow her off like that. Even those couple of times he'd seen her here, she wasn't nearly as crude and obnoxious as usual. ... Something didn't feel right about it. He was going to have to look for her soon, wasn't he...

The rest of what Luke was saying brought Battler back from his thoughts, which he decided to leave for later. "... Sure, sounds good. I'll listen to whatever you have to say. I can't really guarantee anything'll come out of it, but I can at least do that much."

After all, there was no real reason to say no. He seemed serious enough about what he was saying, and there was always the chance that, by exchanging ideas, they might be a step a closer to something. It was definitely worth trying. The more information the better.

[replicatedorder]

Battler's willingness to brush off her absence struck Luke as unusual, and he wondered if the other male was aware of the potential problem within her leaving. He wasn't certain if he misread their relationship, either. The meeting place was odd for a pair that didn't have an established relationship with one another, though. It was unknown to be a place for trouble, but Luke didn't know how long Battler had been there. Chances were that he wasn't informed by that point, the same way that Luke still found himself filled in whenever he was lacking important bits of information.

He still lacked all the knowledge he needed, but his numerous conversations with his friends left him feeling somewhat steadied. Their accounts bewildered him, but also made him feel like he could do something with that. He refused to give up because of club organizations and individuals who thought he needed to approach things differently. The fact that the guy before him was willing to listen to him was a bit of a relief.

"I never caught your name," he told him, and shifted his sword and glanced down the hall. It wouldn't be a good idea to just stand around here and talk. Like he and Guy frequently did, Luke realized that it might not be a bad suggestion to talk and move. While he had no destination in mind aside from striking up a conversation like this, odds were that his companion for the evening-if he stuck around, that was-had a place he was headed to.

"And were you headed somewhere? We can go there, if you don't mind. I don't think it's good to just stand around and talk at night." Any action could lead to a new piece of information, even if it was seeing someone taken in for the same special counseling as him. Their behaviors while under the influence could very well lead to a new perspective in the morning, even if Luke hated it.