Day 45: Sun Room

[notthistrain]

Despite the bit of bravado he'd displayed for Yuffie's sake, seeing her that way really had done a number on him. It was a good thing he'd found the bulletin board afterward. Having it confirmed that this state wasn't normal (was, in fact, new as of that morning) made it much easier to think positive. They'd get back the Yuffie they knew one way

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[beloved_less]

Soubi still hadn't heard back from the nurse about Ritsuo. He...was losing hope. And he hated himself for it. After everything he'd put Ritsuo through, he owed it to him to have faith. He just had to sit tight and avoid these awful people.

Soubi found a quiet seat and picked up his book again. He really should have changed it. And he hadn't even had a chance to get rid of the photograph yet. Tonight. Somehow.

[mizuhomaiden]

Sheena was upset. Nothing was right anymore and everyone was abandoning her in some capacity. It didn't matter that she wasn't one of the patients afflicted, what mattered was how much she was hurting inside. And when Sheena was hurting this bad it was so very easy for her to channel it all into a rage so intense it sometimes scared her. It was when she was that angry that she truly was capable of evil. She harnessed the elemental darkness within and wrapped it in Celsius' ice. And when she saw Soubi sitting there in the Sun Room, everything from their fight on board came rushing back and she refused to feel that much pain again. She turned it into something cold, hard, and dark.

Silently, she drew up in front of Soubi with an expression that was very much not Sheena. It was the same expression she had when she stood before Colette's bed in Palmacosta with a dagger in hand, ready to end the Chosen's life. The difference, this time, was that she really did have that necessary darkness within and she wasn't going to be killing

[beloved_less]

Oh. That was why he'd wanted to be Soubi. Soubi didn't get hurt like that. Soubi had been trained. Soubi would hit back if he didn't deserve the pain. The idiot.

Hiro had frozen when he saw that look. It was so horribly familiar even though it was from the wrong eyes. He didn't know what to do, resistance had always made punishment worse. His face turned with the force of the hit and he kept it there until he heard her leave.

Soubi would never have accepted it. Soubi was an idiot.

[mizuhomaiden]

She didn't hear him come after her. She didn't hear him freak out. She didn't hear him yell at her. It was like he just took it. Like her anger didn't even matter...

Sheena continued to stalk away, her eyes falling on Kratos. When she realized the nurses weren't going to stop her, she altered her direction and marched right up to Kratos.

[to here]

[not_rly_fai]

The nurse picked him up and led him into the Sun Room to relax a little. He was more than happy to pick a couch and stretch out across it, head on the armrest. He could accept that this was reality, that he'd been wrong all along, that there were all these little things wrong with him too, but something still didn't feel right. He kept waiting for it to get easier. For some memory or bit of clarity to come with the acceptance. But it didn't come.

He pulled the locket from beneath his shirt, turning it over in his fingers, but not daring to open it again. It didn't explain the injuries or the strange things that happened at night. Dismissing the happenings as dreams was one thing, but the injuries? He couldn't be imagining them. It wasn't possible.

And even if he figured all this out, what then? There was nowhere to go from here and certainly no one to go with. No way to travel to other worlds, no way to escape this place without getting better and even that was no guarantee. It was a confusing mess and getting

[winged_moon]

It was all well and good that Touya didn't object to Fai accompanying them to the basement tonight, but first, they should probably talk to Fai about the idea. He might not even want to go. Or might want to bring Kurogane along too, which was an idea that Yue couldn't become particularly enthusiastic about. (Not that he was usually the type given to shows of enthusiasm, but it was the idea that mattered.)

Upon leaving the cafeteria, then, he paused to scan the room. Fortunately it wasn't terribly full yet, and he spotted the blond lying on one of the couches. Yue immediately moved that direction, pleased that he didn't have to search any other rooms for his target, and paused just a short distance away from the armrest Fai was using as a pillow. "Fai," he said, voice as flat as though he were simply categorizing the contents of the couch rather than offering a greeting. If that was what he was doing.

[not_rly_fai]

There were so many names he'd been called today, it was hard to pick which one to hang on to. Still, he'd been "Fai" for long enough that he couldn't just ignore it when someone spoke it aloud. He dropped the necklace, letting the charm drop to his chest as his eyes slid over to see who had spoken.

Yue. Unless he was someone else now too.

His smile was a little slow at falling into place, but he pulled his legs in, making room if the other man wanted to sit on the couch. Of course, he could just continue to glare down at him if he'd prefer.

"Hnn?"

[winged_moon]

There was a moment of hesitation then, as Yue seemed about to move to take the seat, then paused, shifting his weight a little as though uncharacteristically uncertain. He finally pressed his lips together in an irritated-looking frown and settled for a compromise, moving over to stand in front of the now-empty space on the couch. "You seem unaffected by today's...events," he observed, tone still neutral.

He didn't care whether or not Fai disappeared, of course. And he wasn't at all affected by the fact that Subaru had. It was just conversation. The guardian folded his arms across his chest, glancing around the room briefly before returning his attention to Fai with pretended disinterest.

[number1smiley]

Teresa was rather pleased with the way her lunch had turned out. She was glad Soma, or whomever the girl decided she wanted to be, was alright and Hime had certainly been interesting company. She would have to look the noble up again some day.

Once in the Sun Room, Teresa glanced over the bulletin board before leaning up against the wall nearby. She crossed her arms and kept a watchful eye on those moving within and through the room. Suzaku would have to pass through the room at some point. She was a patient woman.

[closed to Suzaku]

[superdynamic]

At this point, Suzaku was just trying to hold himself together as he wandered back into the Sun Room. He had to focus on how he was going to help Lelouch, but it was hard not to panic with everything happening at the same time. And he didn't know how he was going to accomplish this, not when all he was good for was killing things. Lelouch was the smart one, and with the bulletin being censored it would be a lot harder to enlist anyone's help -- if he could even trust anyone else.

He started to drift in the bulletin's direction anyway, just to see what people had to say on the topic, even if they had to guard their words. But he slowed when he spotted Teresa. He couldn't just not address her, not when she was looking after Euphie while he was off being moronic. "Hi," he said, nodding at her. He wasn't sure what else to say. It was a bit awkward, now that she knew entirely too much about him.

[number1smiley]

"Sukazu," Teresa greeted, her voice as calm as ever.

The man's body posture spoke of stress which, inevitably, lead to weakness. Perhaps she would get the answer to her question from him. Perhaps taking advantage, albeit minor advantage, of the situation would prove fruitful. But she would not open with what she really wanted to know.

"Have you thought about what all I've said?"

[superdynamic]

He blinked at the question. It seemed like he really wouldn't be able to avoid talking to her again. While he was grateful to her, and he was already starting to respect her quite a bit, he just couldn't deal with this right now. Dammit. Still, maybe she could help him with the Lelouch situation, even if her loyalty was to Euphie.

"A little," he finally answered. "A lot has happened between now and then, and a lot of things have changed, so. . ." But some things didn't change, like the fact that he was still ravaged by guilt -- more so than ever, in fact. And her words still stood, as hard as they were to accept. "You know about some of it, don't you?" he asked, suddenly remembering that Euphie said Teresa had been there last night. That definitely wasn't what he wanted to talk about, but it was better than his own problems.

[unheroed]

Lunch had been a good deal more enjoyable than Harvey had expected, mainly because he'd gotten the chance to watch McCoy squirm and make excuses. It wasn't going to amount to anything in the end, and Harvey made a note to track the doctor down a few days from now if only to say, "I told you so."

Given a choice between the Game Room and the Sun Room, Harvey couldn't say that he liked either option. Still, if he stayed on the edges of the Sun Room, then he didn't have to deal with those rays beating down on him. It was better than risking getting asked to a game of checkers or something equally inane.

He only played one game, and he was the only player.

Finding an armchair that was off to the side, Harvey settled into the seat and then watched the patients who were lingering around the bulletin board. The nurses were definitely being more vigilant about reading everything and tearing things down if need be. They hadn't been bluffing, then, and it was something Harvey would have to keep in mind.

[For Franziska.]

[iwhipthefool]

Her father. The bastards had gotten to her father of all people. Why not that blasted spikey haired fool?! Or even that redhaired miscreant? Or... or anyone but her father?! Franziska was fuming as much as she was hurt that he'd be leaving. Again. Another shadow to chase to somewhere she didn't even want to go, but he was her anchor and because of that, she had to go. She had to follow in his footsteps--- or did she? She'd been doing so well on her own, building her own version of the von Karma legacy following her fateful meeting with Phoenix Wright and her reunion with Miles Edgeworth. But she was...still her father's daughter. She still had to--

Blast it all! Franziska stopped by a table and slammed her hand down on it, wishing she was in a courtroom just to take the stress off her mind. A case would help her focus, but right now the only case she had was all about him and soon her defendant would be released and then she'd have another blemish on her record

[unheroed]

Having taken a rare moment to relax, Harvey was jerked out of that by a loud banging noise. What now? Sometimes the patients here behaved like nothing better than children.

Glancing up, he saw a familiar shade of blue hair that he still didn't understand. Since when were prosecutors allowed to dye their hair such ridiculous colors, anyway? He knew there wasn't any law against it (no pun intended), but it was a matter of personal respect. He didn't see how the girl could be taken seriously when she looked like that.

That was besides the point, though. Right now, Miss Franziska looked like she was ready to wring someone's neck, and before he could wonder any further, she gave him the answer as to who: Landel again. It always came back to that, and while he still had no idea what this was about, he couldn't blame her. He was prone to outbursts himself.

Sitting up in his chair, he raised his voice so that it would hopefully break through the cloud of anger that he could almost see circling around the woman. "What'd he do this time?"

[iwhipthefool]

The whip was too merciful. Maybe she'd demean him to working public roads for a good long while, allowing the fellow inmates here to throw whatever they wanted at him (within reason of course - his punishment had to be drawn out and painful), then she'd whip him. After that? The Trial. A perfect trial, one that she was certain to win. Even that spikey-haired loser wouldn't defend him if it came down to it and he'd likely conveniently look the other way when

[usoppsenchou]

The "Sun Room" the nurse directed him to was kind of comfortable looking, for a hospital room with a bunch of freaky or depressed looking people who were all dressed the same. Somehow, the nurse had managed to discard her charge at the doorway, but this room had enough other nurses, including a few more muscular types who seemed more like guards

[tsunagari]

Lunch had been interesting, and left Sai with even more on his mind than before. Who was Mello, really? Morgan claimed they were two separate individuals, but the ninja still believed he was lying. The Institute could pull people from all different times, after all. Was it possible that "Mello" had come from a time after Morgan and thus the latter wasn't yet aware of his own nickname? The entire subject left him confused.

Further thoughts on the matter were dropped completely as he entered the sun room to see another familiar face. Sai froze in his tracks, just staring and uncertain how to react. First Mello, now Usopp? What was Landel planning with all the sudden changes today?

He knew the pirate wouldn't recognize him, just as Mello/Morgan hadn't. He knew it, and yet he was walking quickly to the boy's side before he could stop himself. "Usopp." He plopped himself down next to him, wrapping one arm around his shoulders in the most brotherly way he could think of. "You're all right. It's good to see you."

[sasuke_of_sound]

[sorry for slow response! *dumb* 8|]And back into the Sun Room. The boredom of the daily routine was another memory Sean was pretty sure was non-delusional, though he had to admit that part of it was probably because his options for activities were somewhat limited in comparison to others. And while he had to be grudgingly grateful to the Institute for even bothering to try to fix what had happened to his eyes, he still wished it hadn't completely blocked out his vision

[usoppsenchou]

Usopp had been just starting to calm down when a pale young man about his own age approached, sitting a little close and putting an arm around him as if they were really, really good friends. He'd almost started to blurt out that he wasn't Terence Housman before realizing the new person had called Usopp by his real name instead. So this wasn't just another case of mistaken identity. Instead, it was a case of--of--

He opened and closed his mouth a few times, gulping once. Who the guy was, why he was hugging him, how he knew Usopp, if he knew where the rest of the crew was, why he thought Usopp shouldn't be all right, it was hard to know which question to start with. Fortunately, his rush of thoughts was interrupted by another arrival, who gave the touchy guy's name (although that only sort of answered the first question) and who had weird looking eyes.

Unless Usopp was supposed to be Simon, which would be just too confusing, considering he was at least two people in this place already. The urge to scream for help was coming