Day 44: breakfast

[thatdamnedninja]

Yuffie had died.

No, really. Seriously. She had actually died. Bleeding all over the place, making a horrid, sticky mess and scaring the hell out of Suzaku; she remembered it clearly. Kind of. Sort of. Through the blood loss, the pain, and the visions. Through Aerith's voice whispering in her ear, Cloud's stricken eyes, and her own panic. As bad

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[mizuhomaiden]

Sheena lay on her back, stared at the ceiling in her room for what felt like a long time. She was full clothed again, but, more importantly, she was alone. The bed may have been small by conventional standards, but without the youkai in it with her, it felt far too large. She couldn't even really think, her mind still focused on the actions of the previous night. The feel, the taste... the youkai. Her body still tingled, remnants of the lightning in her that still ached for Yukari's touch

[thatdamnedninja]

Yuffie barely twitched when somebody sat next to her. Her ears registered the other's approach early on, all light footsteps and a soft tinkle (tinkle? What?), but other than a slight stiffening of the shoulders, she didn't pay them the courtesy of a reaction. She had things to think about! Couldn't they, whoever it was, tell that she just wanted to be left alone for a few minutes?

King of ironic, huh.

Still, now she had to keep an itty-bit of attention on her tablemate, in case they decided that they wanted an intimate introduction to one or more of the many biros she had stashed on her. Great. Though from what Yuffie could tell, they seemed more interested in playing with their food than trying anything dumb.

She couldn't let last night keep her down; Yuffie knew that as well as she knew her shuriken. If she did, Landel won. And if Landel won, well… Then she'd have no right to call herself the Great Ninja Yuffie, and that wouldn't be good for anybody. Least of all herself. Vicious cycle, blah blah. Still, it wasn't every night

[mizuhomaiden]

Maybe she should find the youkai later on. Yukari had to have her ribbon - HAD TO HAVE IT - so she should get it back, exchanging her rightful ribbon with the youkai's longer, bright red ribbon currently holding the ninja's hair back. But then she'd have to deal with the youkai's teasing and blatantly pointing out that, yes, the two of them had made out last night and all that stuff...

Damnit! Why hadn't she had something else, like normal, happen to her last night? Despite the need for her ribbon back, Sheena decided she was going to play Avoid the Youkai again. At least until she got her thoughts in order on the matter and stopped thinking about Yukari's soft skin and the way she kissed and...

UGH!

Sheena stabbed viciously at her food, leaving the fork standing in it. That was when she noted that Yuffie hadn't said anything to her. Not that Sheena had been any better.

"Hey," she said quietly.

[thatdamnedninja]

"I think it's dead already. Do you mind?" Yuffie glared between her fingers. "I'm trying to have a moment here, and--"

-- Oh.

The ninja trailed off, torn between awkward realization and irritation. What was Mizuho doing here? Why was she mutilating her breakfast? Why was she tinkling? Even more important, why did she think that now was a good time to come calling, since it should be really obvious that it really wasn't? Why was she asking these questions in her head, instead of actually, y'know, asking them? Actually, she had the answer to that last one; probably because her tongue was drowning in the rising tide of emo, just like the rest of her.

Time to backtrack. She hadn't had five minutes, but three was enough.

She dropped her hands. And then her face. It landed with a soft clunk on the table, cheek first. "Mizuho," she said bleakly. "Mizuho, you have epic bad timing. I am being completely serious here." Her tone suggested otherwise.

[yourtravelagent]

The pain was gone, and for a moment, he thought he was gone, too. A voice he didn't think he'd be relieved to hear woke him up. The tone was one Manny had never heard from him before, and it was all he could do to pay attention to it so he wouldn't have to think about what had just happened. Whatever went down last night hadn't been Martin's fault. The apology might have been fake, but there was no blaming his lack of enthusiasm on his lack of coffee breaks. Something had happened to him

[sheisthecause]

Meche dreamed that the Sun Room roof had broken open and the angelitos flew in. Somehow they'd grown up big and strong in the last week and a half, and they lifted all the patients out one by one to a big airship where Manny was waiting to take them to the other side. All she could think was that she needed to stop him, but he just kept waving and tossing down travel brochures

[yourtravelagent]

Manny's head jerked up at the sound of his name and the voice that gave it. It was so sudden that he couldn't resist straightening in his chair and grinning back, an almost childlike giddiness overtaking him for all of three seconds. The delay gave him the time he needed to tone it down a little, so he was ready to show her a wry smile of his own when she came back.

"Every moment counts," he cracked, propping an elbow up on to the table. "I took a bunk somewhere. I can't remember why."

[sheisthecause]

"They said you were sick," Meche replied. She edged the tray to one side so she could lean forward. "Well, actually, they said a lot of things. Believe me, that was the most comforting version." And his answer wasn't doing a lot to tell her which of those stories was right. Maybe even Manny didn't remember. "They didn't hurt you at all, did they?" she asked. If they had, she didn't think they'd let him forget it. But a sudden, weeklong illness didn't make much sense either. What in the world had happened to him?

It was a little hard to believe he was really sitting there--maybe even less because of the last week than because she still wasn't used to seeing him with skin. Suddenly Meche felt self-conscious about the bandages, wished she were wearing some decent clothes. That week probably hadn't done her any favors.

[himetsuru]

[unknowingly waiting for Porky]

"I don't want anything."

"Rose, dear, you haven't had anything to eat since dinner."

"I fucking know that."

"Language! Aren't you hungry?"

"Not as much as last night."

"Then you should eat. We don't want you to end up with a sudden craving next shift."

Falis just gave the woman a glare at that, pushing past her to the buffet. The hunger from the previous night had vanished, as had the decayed skin on her arm, but she didn't want to eat anything. If she was honest, the hunter was afraid she'd taste Senna's blood on her tongue with every bite of whatever this...

Sweet bread stuff? Fuck no. Falis shoved that plate back on the buffet and grabbed some fruit instead. Sitting down alone, the hunter gently prodded the pair of vibrantly red scratches on her cheek as she stared at her tray. She really should talk to Soma. She didn't want to, but she should.

[piggy_king]

So this is what death is like, huh? Just kinda...sleeping? How boring...I was hoping for something a bit more exciting than this...At least I'm alone. That's kinda nice. Real peaceful. Nice and quiet. I could get used to this. Of course, it might get a little dull after a while. Hey, wait a sec...shouldn't I be in Hell or something? I mean, not that I'm complaining or anything, but...I wasn't exactly the nicest guy back when I was...alive. Come to think of it...where am I? It's just...black. Kinda feels like I'm...in a bed?"Mr. Reynolds? It's time for breakfast

[himetsuru]

Did she remember the old geezer?

"Yeah," Falis replied. "I do. Why are you so fucking cheerful?"

If Al was about to go on and on about how beautiful and brilliant the mornings were or some other fucking shit like that, Falis was going to have to stab him.

[piggy_king]

"Well," Porky began, "Y'see, I died last night! At least, that's what I thought. So I'm sure you can relate when I tell you that I was really bummed out! I mean, who wouldn't be after they died? Especially if they died the same way that I did..."

Porky shuddered at the memory, the smile momentarily leaving his face.

"Oooh, it was rough," Porky said somberly, "Impaled through the chest. All my organs fell out an everything. I think I scared the person I was with pretty badly, too. It sure was brutal...but that's not the point!"

Once again, Porky was ecstatic, almost glowing with joy.

"The point is I'm alive!" Porky laughed, "Oh, I can't tell you how happy I am!"

After he finished his explanation, Porky finally got a good look at Falis. Oh dear. She wasn't looking too happy, was she?

"Alita," Porky began, a bit more serious this time, "I know that I'm probably not the best person to ask, but...is something wrong? Is there anything I can do?"

[poolcuemurder]

It wasn't unusual anymore for Venom to find himself bolting upright out of bed with a scream just barely kept from leaving him, something that had become a common occurrence over the past three months. Nightmares weren't anything out of the ordinary for him, not with his life. What was unusual, especially after a person has found themselves dying on the floor from a mixture of overexertion, collapsed lungs, and a nightwalker attached to your throat like a rabid dog?

He was still alive.

There had been no possible way he had survived last night and he knew, he knew he hadn't. He had died, and yet here he was, sitting in bed with his chest pounding as though it were just a bad dream. There was no more blood, no tired feeling, no parasite, only bandages splayed across his neck and collarbone in his only evidence that he hadn't been dreaming the entire thing

[sanguinario]

Though he had awoken only the night before, the process wasn't any easier a second time. Edward woke with a start, panting like a mad dog, jerked awkwardly upright with his left leg curled tightly against his side and his left arm the same. There was no sweat staining the bed or a heart beating frantically to signal his... his sleep had been unpleasant, but he didn't need those human reminders.

When his senses returned, he groaned. He wanted to vomit - perhaps the act would help cleanse the taste of blood coating his tongue. Maybe, for a moment, he could pretend he wasn't licking his lips for the last flaking drop.

He welcomed the pain when he swung his legs off the bed to hit the floor, the burns coating his side erupting in pain once more. To his surprise, however, every inch of his wound was meticulously bandages with clean, white strips of gauze - touching his face yielded the same conclusion.

Who had?With more disgust, he studied his hands. Spotlessly clean. If the taste of the man's blood wasn't still in his mouth - and if he

[whos_da_man]

[This place sucks, Yuka-tan. Let's grab Mr. Perfect and blow this Popsicle joint.]

Junpei didn't like dying. Before last night, he'd been there, done that and gotten the damn t-shirt. When he died again last night, it'd been different. It's been Chidori's death, not his own, that he'd experienced. He thought that would be the end of it, no matter how much it sucked, but his nurse decided to answer his questions that morning.

Chidori was gone. Yes, he'd felt it deep inside, that she'd died when he died the previous night, but to hear it... And then he asked about the rest of S.E.E.S. The squirt was gone. Both senpai were too. He couldn't even ask about Minato, not knowing what the nurses called him. At least Yukari was still there; he didn't know what he'd do if she'd disappeared or died too.

The junior sat at a table, elbows propped up, with his forehead resting against his hands. What were they going to do? What was he going to do? Chidori was gone. He'd known she could be taken from him again in a moment's notice,

[remedying]

When the night ended before it even started, it always left an annoying feeling within Yukari. The conversation with Mitsuru barely got anywhere, and then-- morning again. She didn't even get to see what Junpei wanted, but hopefully he managed on his own okay. At least it ended on something good-- she had the Evoker back, which meant if she needed it for anything she could actually use it now.

Unlike most others, Yukari was feeling fine, and one could say she was pretty much oblivious to whatever the previous night had brought. She got breakfast as usual, and when she scanned around the cafeteria to see who was around, Junpei was quickly spotted; although...

Wow, he really didn't look very good at all. When she got closer, Yukari could definitely tell something happened.

"Junpei," Yukari called out softly to him, her voice full of concern as she set her tray down on the table across from him. "What's wrong?"

[foolishmessiah]

Waking up had been disconcerting for Minato; his last clear memory had been of running towards the main hallway, an eerie feeling of paranoia creeping up on him. But then he was in bed again, being woken up by a nurse and ushered off towards the cafeteria. He had almost woken up late again, despite the chiding he had received the other day.

Explosions, ghostly voices over the intercom, bursting bathroom pipes -- definitely not what he had been expecting for his first night. He wondered if he had left the rest of S.E.E.S. unable to do anything because of his own unfamiliarity with the area. Mitsuru would have made sure they completed any outstanding missions. ...If they did missions within the institute.

Oblivious to the extent of the hardships faced last night, Minato picked through the breakfast selection while glancing around the cafeteria. The nurse said everyone was expected to eat breakfast for the first shift, so he would be able to see the others if he searched hard enough.

[whos_da_man]

He didn't look up when he heard the tray placed on the table across from him. Whoever it was, he didn't want to deal with them. He didn't want to have to explain to some dumb kid or nosy old guy or girl why he was crying. He just wanted...

Yukari. She was there. Hopefully Minato would be around too. He'd figure something out; he always did.

He still didn't look up. "Come over here," he told Yukari in a choked whisper. "Please."