Day 48: Lunch

[zack_fair]

Even with the nasty weather, Zack still felt refreshed after going outside. Humidity would have reminded him of Gongaga, but he wasn't sure he needed that. Not now, not when he wasn't even sure if he'd be able to get back home and see his parents again. Not that he should have the chance at all, but it was hard to think about nonetheless. Seeing

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[scintillatingly]

Well, Luxord had been acting really funny, and Sora wasn't sure if it was just another way that the man was trying to mess with him or if something was really wrong. He knew it wasn't his business in the end, but that didn't stop him from being curious. Normally he would have just assumed the guy was messing with him (it wouldn't be the first time an Organization member had tried to confuse him), but Landel's always made this stuff more complicated.

He figured he could ask on the bulletin board if his curiosity didn't fade, but for now Sora was going to sit on it. He could think about it over lunch, at the very least. Fried food wasn't his favorite, but there was nothing bad about it! He was staying away from the coleslaw, though. That stuff just looked gross.

He got his meal quickly due to the line still being short. He kept getting to things early today, and while that was normally not a problem, it did matter when he was trying to find his two friends. They hadn't responded to his bulletin note yet, and while he knew it hadn't

[razing_phoenix]

Speaking with Ashton had taken a small weight off of Guy's shoulders. It wasn't like he'd resolved much by talking to the man, but it was something he'd wanted to do, if only to thank him for letting him use his sword. Guy still didn't feel comfortable about keeping the weapon, but this would at least motivate him to get something more suited to him. Hopefully Okita wouldn't take it badly if he kept bothering him about that

[girlsandgadgets]

Well, that hadn't gone nearly as well as Edgar had hoped. Celes had been missing for day and night, and he'd had plenty of time to fret and contemplate what he'd say to her, should he ever see her again. What did he do instead? Chastise her for being human, for allowing the loss of allies to affect her. She wasn't a machine, some sort of magic-casting creature with no heart- still, he couldn't deny he'd expected better of her. Perhaps his luck would hold out and he'd see her during the nightly hours; however, he wouldn't be surprised if she avoided him entirely for a while

[razing_phoenix]

None of the people he'd thought about earlier sat with him, but in this case that was not a bad thing. Even though he'd only spoken with Edgar once so far, Guy still found himself excited to see him again today. More than that, the man had decided to approach him, which meant that he hadn't been annoyed by his enthusiasm yesterday

[girlsandgadgets]

"It seems we have more in common," Edgar said with another sigh. "I've got a friend who isn't doing very well, either. I'm fairly certain I just made matters worse, to top it off." He rubbed his eyes, still feeling the frustration from the previous shift. He was sure Celes would be fine, but he could have been more tactful in dealing with her.

"Aside from that, I'm well," he added. "I had a rather successful run last night and am eager for this evening to arrive." It seemed strange to be saying such a thing, given the abominations that wandered the halls at night. Still, he couldn't deny his desire to have a new weapon in his hands, ready for testing. With any luck, it wouldn't fail him on the first try, despite the crude construction.

[falseblack]

Dr. Landel sounded as debilitated as Nigredo felt. This relatively unknown strain of virus must be making rounds. Thankfully, the variant's symptoms hadn't extended beyond head fog and a painful throat. It was rather undignified to sniffle in public, especially over an intercom.

He was one of a few to first reach the cafeteria, a fact Nigredo appreciated. Choosing a seat had the tendency to develop into a painful process while he always found less constricted personal spaces to be quite pleasant. As soon as the child had his tray, he settled into one corner, spacing out the areas between other people and himself evenly. Rather than eating, however, Nigredo curled into his chair, leaned into the table, and fell asleep.

A nearby nurse stared at him but made no move to interrupt this impromptu nap.

[Rika. I guess we could take one more if necessary.]

[repeatingfate]

Rika's nurse had let her take a short nap in her room once she was out of the shower, a privilege she happily took. She didn't particularly want to be in the same room with her doppleganger more than she had to be. It made her...uncomfortable seemed an understatement, but it was the best word that the girl could think of.

At least she was relatively early getting to lunch after her nap, early enough that she didn't see -- no. There was someone she recognized, and someone she wanted to talk to, after the events of last night. She took her food over, gently set the tray down, and asked, "Nigredo-kun? Are you all right? I was - am - worried..."

[falseblack]

Regardless of length or time, the effects within sleep came pleasantly. A threshold for tension was in short supply, even for one of his patience. Being unconscious proved to be more or less a release while the lack of occasional breaks served to deteriorate functionality and emotional calm. Nigredo required sleep, or he risked becoming a wreck. The past few days had demonstrated this all too perfectly.

Therefore, when he lifted a head to regard the voice, the movement appeared to flow. Like a slow, trickling river. Unfortunately, his voice killed the effect. "Ri--" Nigredo croaked out, before coughing uncontrollably into his sleeve. He had wanted to say how her sentiment over him reflected his, but it seemed the child would have to take a more roundabout approach.

Once his lungs calmed, he resorted to whispers, "I'm fine. Just have a cold. Are you okay? I'm sorry about--" To his dismay, Nigredo heaved another coughing fit. Perhaps keeping it short would do him well.

[repeatingfate]

"Don't worry about me." Her words were gentle, softer, more childlike than they had been the previous night. "I've been through worse and come out the other side." Rika half-smiled, but her expression was more worried than anything else.

"I'm more worried about you. Between last night and you feeling sick..." She reached out and touched his hand, noting how warm it felt. Feverish. I don't want to call a nurse, though.

"And don't apologize. What happened was my fault. I..."

A pause, as she considered her words.

"I'm used to needing to step in."

[human_sponge]

That conversation with Heat hadn't exactly helped Peter's mood much (if anything, he felt worse now), but at least he didn't feel like he was bursting at the seams with questions anymore. He had a long list of things he wanted to ask Sam about, though. It wasn't going to make for a particularly fun dinner, but had they really had one of those thus far? Sam wasn't exactly the cheery type

[tyki_pon]

Tyki's own second shift had been decidedly less eventful, but the now-hobo didn't really mind. Lazying around on his own was something he enjoyed on occasion anyway, and the sun room had been pretty much perfect for that. Better than the colder courtyard, at least.

After getting his lunch, the Noah looked around for a place to sit before spotting a familiar face at one of the tables. Peter didn't look like he was in the best mood, but that hardly stopped Tyki Mikk. He approached the other man anyway and claimed the seat across him without invitation.

"Hey there," he greeted with a grin. "It's been a while, no?"

[human_sponge]

Strange, how just when he'd been thinking about Sylar, someone who was connected to the man showed up. Peter had told Tyki a fair share of information about the killer, after all, and it sounded like he'd taken the matter into his own hands. Peter honestly hadn't expected all that, even if Sylar thought otherwise. Like he really cared what that man believed

[tyki_pon]

"Heh, guess you could say that," Tyki said with a shrug. He knew very well what Peter was talking about; Sylar's loss had been pretty obvious after all. Too bad he hadn't been able to finish it.

"Things have been pretty quiet since then, though. Guess that counts as 'all right'." Okay, he had gone ahead and taunted a few people, but that hadn't caused any bloodshed. Yet. But he was his white self, wasn't he? Just a normal hobo here. If Peter thought questioning would be easy, he was in for a disappointment. Well, he guessed he could always see how far the other man was able to get. As long as black and white weren't going to end up as a boring shade of grey, the Noah could mess around as much as he'd like.

He took a bite from his chicken. "So how 'bout you?"

[windstwilight]

Talk about a back and forth day. And now what? More crazy? Or more things that would just come to haunt. She didn't know. And she was already tired of playing the part of the cripple. The bandages on her left arm were enough--the fact that her entire right arm was wrapped and tightly secured in a sling was beyond annoying. Ahh.

Reaching the cafeteria wasn't the fun thing that it used to be. Her stomach growled once, then settled. Funny thing, that. It was the first time that she had felt a little hungry in the past day. Man. She knew there was something wrong by that, and she wouldn't even try to deny it. Not eating was nothing good.

Too much had happened lately that she almost forgot to look for Peter. But the boy was too conspicuous with his towering tray. Hopefully he wasn't up for a rematch today. Her own had the basics, no extras grabbed. She balanced it on a hip and wandered over, a grin half-cocked on her lips despite the tiredness in her eyes. "You gonna eat all of that, Mr. Closet Geek?"

[windstwilight]

[needs dork-team backthreads, please? =( I'll be at work all day again tomorrow.]

The girl smiled. "Thanks." She dropped into a chair, slightly more careful than normal. The tray clattered down in front of her. "Half to pass," she said, trying to slide past the subject without too much exclamations from the lack of food-wanting. "I don't know if I'll finish this."

Oh, churning emotions. Happy days, right? A hand reached up to scratch through her hair. "Huh. Yeah, I didn't really... Think to..." Fuck. Trailing off is not really a happy sign either. She should have been more careful on the board. She glanced up, trying to give him a half smile. "Sorry to get you all worried."