Day 51: Intercom, Evening

[damned_intercom]

"Well, that's it for today's activities and hygiene!" The Head Doctor said with a jovial tone just after the sound system's jingle. He seemed excited and maybe even giddy. "Our nurses will now be escorting everyone back to their rooms, and some of you might find that you have brand new roommates to share your dinner with! That's right: we've gotten

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[human_sponge]

The last thing Peter had expected Sam to mention was witchcraft. He used the word as if it was the most normal thing in the world, but he'd acted that way about demons, too. Sam was pretty much as prepared as he could be for this place, it seemed like. Teleportation was something Peter could wrap his head around because he'd seen it happen and he had a small idea of how it worked. But trying to throw witches into the mix made it suddenly seem ridiculous.

Or it would have, before he'd met some of the people here: people who weren't actually people in the first place, like Brooklyn.

If Sam hadn't heard of this, even with all of the knowledge that he supposedly had, then chances were that Landel had crafted it himself. Did that mean that he was a witch-wizard-whatever? That was a bizarre thought, but it also occurred to Peter that the man could have brainwashed a patient who had that sort of power into doing it for him.

While Peter wouldn't be surprised if there was a catch, like Sam had said, he wasn't sure if that was reason enough to just avoid using something that could very well help them get either out of this place or to the Head Doctor himself. While he realized that he was playing right into Landel's hands, sometimes you had to make some sacrifices and take risks to get anywhere.

"You aren't planning on trying it out?" Peter asked carefully as he watched his roommate. He wasn't going to jump at the chance just yet, but he wasn't totally against it, either, even considering his roommate's warnings. Nathan would have called him ridiculous and teased him for even considering it, probably, but Nathan also hadn't wanted him to go to Odessa. Peter hadn't listened to him and had ended up saving Nathan's daughter as a result.

At least he could take care of Claire in Nathan's stead. Peter wished his brother was here to work out his issues with Claire himself, but that was apparently too much to ask. He frowned as he realized he was swirling his food around on his plate again, but didn't stop.

[allroadslead]

Well, okay, good question.

"I kinda wanna figure it out first," Sam said. "Just-try to avoid using it where you can."

It wasn't so much the catch itself (because there would be one, at least that much he was certain of) that was bothering him, but more that he didn't know exactly what it was. Not even a partial idea. He didn't mind diving in despite the consequences; he just preferred to know what those consequences were beforehand.

Still, he had to admit, it was probably true that just being in this place was a catch in and of itself. He wasn't sure they had much to lose anymore-friends, maybe, but even the uncertainty of the disappearances and deaths made it impossible to move forward in that regard. Everything about it was more and more of a mindtrip.

The lights went out abruptly before he could say anything else. He reached for his flashlight and flicked it on. Whatever was happening over the intercom, it sounded vaguely more ominous than usual, but-at the same time, none of them had ever managed to figure out what was going on between...the three of them. Three? There were three, weren't there.

Sometimes it felt as if he were trying to follow the convoluted plot of a really bad show.

"Um." Sam picked up the ring. "Do you mind if I take this for the night? I kinda wanna show it to someone."

[human_sponge]

Peter had no clue as to how Sam was going to figure out anything about that ring, but he decided that there was no harm in giving him a couple days to try, at the least. His roommate seemed to be an expert in that sort of stuff, after all, so he wasn't against hearing him out. If he didn't come up with anything and Peter got to a point where he really needed it, though, then he wasn't going to hesitate.

"Fair enough," he said with a nod, agreeing to avoid it but not to refrain completely. He wasn't sure how well Sam knew him yet, but there was a chance he could see the underlying message in those two words.

The intercom announcement with Landel's cheery voice was enough to irritate him all on its own, but the mention of sleep studies caused a tension to build between Peter's shoulder blades. He was going up there, dammit. He was going to help them out as much as he could, even if it didn't amount to much. He just wanted them to know that they weren't alone, regardless of what their tormentors told them.

It was funny, how Sam had been warning him against the ring only to turn around and ask for it after all that. Peter quirked a smile and then shook his head. "I don't mind," he said, though he got the feeling that "showing it to someone" might turn into "using it with someone." That was fine, though. He hadn't been planning to use it tonight, so it was no skin off his back.

"I guess we should get ready," he said, pushing away the dinner he hadn't eaten much of as he stood from his seat.