Day 52: Sun Room

[windsome]

If she were honest, Yukari would have said she had no idea what a "sun room" was supposed to entail. She didn't ask, though, because by the time she had finished asking all the more important questions (which still weren't getting answered in any way that made sense), Yukari was getting rather fed up with all the nonsense her accompanying nurse was

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[mukuchi]

[For Anise!]

And here it was the end of the day and Mori still wasn't sure what to do with himself. If the night came, he would protect those still left here, but after that...? Mitsukuni was gone and Mori felt like he was a ship lost at sea. Worse than that, he was a practical danger to anyone near him. He wasn't paying attention and he had thirteen new bruises, one of which was on a very conspicuous spot on his forehead, to show for it. If more of the same happened when he was supposed to be protecting someone, he could never forgive himself.

That was why Mori chose to do somewhere quiet for the last shift of the day. He didn't want to risk falling over and hurting someone else, just as he didn't exactly want to go to the game room. Mitsukuni would have liked to go there. That he wouldn't be there, enjoying a game of Candy Land or something else with someone was too much to bear.

Instead, Mori wandered into the Sun Room, noting the only other girl in here was on a couch, apparently getting some rest. He took a different couch, laying out over it and feeling a bit put out that they were shorter than the ones at home and his legs dangled over the edge. He could hear the kittens in the corner scrambling over like they always did when he showed up and let one arm hang down to the floor so they could crawl up his arm if they so wanted. Other than that, Mori just....rested his eyes. He didn't have much else to do after all.

[gald_digger]

After lunch, Anise took some time to look over the bulletin in the Sun Room. There wasn't very much that was relevant to her, but a couple notes did catch her eye. Among them was one discussing Honey's whereabouts. Anise felt her heart sink when she saw the confirmation that Honey had, in fact, been released. Honey, of all people? It didn't seem fair.

It was hard to see any friend disappear, but it was even harder when it was someone as fun and cheerful as Honey. During the time she spent with him, it was pretty easy to forget what a horrible place they were in... and now something had happened to him. It was a painful reality check, and a reminder that any of them could disappear at any time... even Anise herself.

Feeling a bit disheartened, Anise turned away from the bulletin, planning to join most of the other patients in the Game Room. She didn't get far, however, before she spotted a pair of feet sticking out over the side of a couch. She could also make out the telltale sounds of kittens shuffling around. Curious, she walked around to see who or what was there.

Mori... He had to be going through a tough time right now. There was a mark on his face, too... Had he gotten injured by a monster on top of losing Honey?

"Mori... Are you awake?" she asked in a whisper. Being a friend of both him and Honey, Anise felt she ought to offer some support, but if he was already asleep, it was probably best to just let the guy get some rest.

[mukuchi]

The kittens had found him like they always did. Two had jumped up to wrestle on his stomach and one was busy trying to chew his fingertips off, but Mori didn't mind. It was business as usual as far as he was concerned with kittens. The two on his stomach didn't both him very much anyway since they were busy biting at each other and not him. They were also being careful not to use claws, which was good seeing how the shirts weren't all that impervious to little kitty claws.

He was about to drift off when he caught wind of a familiar scent and then of a familiar voice calling out to him. He opened one eye and then the other, raising his head and causing the two kittens to take off across his legs to continue their playfight.

It was Anise, looking concerned. Did he really look that bad? He remembered the bump on his forehead and decided that, yes, he must. To reassure his friend, Mori nodded and sat up a bit, swinging his legs out of the way and reaching over to grab both kittens gently and move them into his lap. That caused the third to have nothing more to play with so it ran to Anise instead, mewling. He tried to smile at her as best he could considering his mood and motioned to the seat next to him.

[gald_digger]

Anise matched Mori's weak smile with one of her own as she took up his offer and sat down next to him. The kitten that ran at her rubbed itself against her ankles, then flopped down on the floor, rolling over her toes and batting at her slippers playfully. Anise watched it for a moment, but soon looked back up at Mori.

"I, um, heard about Honey," she began, unsure if this was the right way or the right time to broach the subject. With how quiet and reserved Mori was, it was sometimes hard to judge his feelings and opinions, but he usually seemed content with her company, so Anise decided to proceed gently for now. "... How are you holding up?"

[mukuchi]

She took his offer and Mori felt his smile deepen a little and grow a little more sincere. It was nice, seeing the people he and Mitsukuni had grown close to still doing well. Even if Mitsukuni wasn't here to play with them anymore... The thought of that combined with Anise's inquiry dampened his spirits and Mori looked down at the kittens in his lap as they wrestled. How would one of them feel if their brother suddenly disappeared? How did he even answer that question?

It was his duty, his honor, his entire life to take care of Mitsukuni. Even if they were going to go to different schools when they graduated, they wouldn't have really been separated. The colleges were connected to Ouran anyway and even if they graduated high school they were still going to hang out at the old music room anyway. They had decided that a long time ago. They would still be together even if they weren't in the same class.

Now he couldn't even see Mitsukuni if he tried. The thought of that was enough to make Mori's head swim. He didn't know if his cousin was eating well, brushing his teeth properly, getting a cavity, keeping up with his training, being eaten by monsters somewhere, being turned into a zombie, being experimented upon... He had no idea. Reaching out, he put a hand on one of the kittens and summarily had his hand bitten. He didn't seem to notice, however, and kept staring down, not really seeing anything. "...okay. You?"

[gald_digger]

Mori didn't look okay at all. When the cat bit his hand, Anise's eyes widened in surprise, but Mori gave no reaction at all. He was seriously out of it, wasn't he?

Through some effort, Anise managed to peel her eyes away from Mori's hand to give him a small nod. "I'm okay." Between the news about Honey, her recent injury, and fighting with Aidou earlier that day, Anise couldn't say she was doing great, but compared to Mori, it was fair to say she was all right.

"...I'm kind of like you, actually," she began after a long silence. "I was separated from someone I was supposed to protect, too." Ion... It hurt to think about what happened to him, how he didn't even know who he was anymore. And with how far away he was, if something happened to him, Anise wouldn't even know about it, much less be able to help. And now... Honey was likely in the same situation. Mori had to feel as helpless and frustrated as she did.

"What I'm trying to say is, um... you're not alone." Her voice grew quiet, and she fidgeted a little with her hands, unsure if what she was saying would make Mori feel better or worse. Maybe Mori would be willing to open up more if she did, and if not... well, there was only so much she could do, but Anise would try to be there for him anyway.

[mukuchi]

When Mori didn't move or start at the feel of teeth on his finger, the cat seemed to realize he hadn't meant to startle it and backed down. Soon enough it was back playing and Mori was left looking at his finger, noting for the first time that he seemed to be bleeding slightly. He wiped it off on his pants and then turned his attention back to Anise. She seemed to be done and it didn't take long before she admitted the reason why.

She'd lost her ward, too. He had originally thought Anise would be the one to be the protected, but to hear that she was the same as him struck a chord with him. She understood the pain of losing someone and of failing them at the same time. She knew enough that Mori wished she didn't. He knew how she felt right now and how much he wouldn't wish this feeling upon anyone.

Her heartfelt attempt at commiseration, at making him feel better, caused him to smile. It was faint and it was still tinged with sadness, but it was a melancholy shared - the burden no less painful to carry, but perhaps a little easier to bear in the heart. She was fidgeting and Mori reached out, touching her shoulder gently. "...You're not alone either, Anise. Thank you."

[gald_digger]

When Anise felt the gentle hand on her shoulder, the fidgeting stopped, and the girl lifted her chin to face Mori more directly. Somehow, having her own words turned back at her was... really touching. Anise hadn't spoken much about Ion since his disappearance, even though it was a constant weight on her mind, but here was someone who already understood how she felt without her needing to say anything more.

A small, genuine smile crossed her face and stayed there for several long seconds. Then, once Anise felt she could, she broke into a much brighter smile. "That's why we can't give up. We'll have to work extra hard so we can beat up the Head Doctor and take back everything he stole!"

At that moment, Anise looked and sounded far more confident than she felt, but she figured both of them could use a little more positivity. Sure, things looked bleak, but that was what the Head Doctor wanted them to think. As soon as they started giving up, they'd be handing a victory over to the bastard who took away both Ion and Honey. That just wasn't acceptable!