[Coming from here.]

Claire stepped into the bookstore, relieved to be out of the chilly autumn air. Her sweater was warm, but the weather outside was still cool, and she guessed it had to be very late autumn, at the very least. Where were they? And when?

The interior of the little bookshop was somewhat cramped and cluttered, the shelves filled with books of every type and size and shape, and she couldn't help but smile at the sight. It felt... homey, if not a bit claustrophobic-inducing.

"Is this better?" she asked, glancing over her shoulder at Tony as she made room for him to squeeze in behind her.

Claude couldn't fight the sinking feeling in his stomach when he woke up. Nightshift was over, and they hadn't even made it into the basement. Man, how tough was that? Sometimes it seemed like the night could drag on and on, and when he actually needed the extra time, it went by too fast. It didn't make any sense.

Too bad he wouldn't have much to report to Ashton. But now the blond's curiosity was peaked, and he had to admit that he was pretty interested in finding out just what was under there. But first things first -- he needed a sword, because walking around there unprepared was probably one step short of suicide, really. The scars in his side were a stark reminder of what happened to people here who weren't ready to face the dangers.

Until that time, the Earthling had plenty of projects to keep him occupied. It really was too bad that they couldn't get anywhere, though. And when Ashton had finally let him borrow a sword, too...

The blond decided not to dwell on that for too long, especially once his nurse came to wake him up. She handed him the same set of clothes he'd worn for the last trip to Doyleton -- a dark, faded jacket, a blue, button-up shirt, some casual slacks, a brown paperboy cap, and a red scarf. He knew he'd have no problems staying warm today, and he didn't really look all that bad, but he kind of wished they'd given him a better pair of shoes than the over-sized sneakers that kind of flopped when he walked around.

As he exited his room, he caught sight of someone sleeping in the other bed, and while he'd never formally met his roommate before, Claude knew it wasn't Asch.

Once he'd boarded the bus, the blond didn't waste much time in finding a seat. There weren't many people here yet, so he opened up his sack and took a bite of his muffin. It was kind of sad how small the portions were for today's breakfast, but he was an adult, so he wouldn't complain about it. At least Landel bothered to feed them at all.

((For Sync, I believe?))

[from here]

This shinigami moved out into the hallway at the end of the women's block. It seemed she was moving faster than the others given how empty it all seemed. She shot a quick look down both Signum and Skuld's hallways as she headed to the door to the outer hallway. She paused at the door, listening for sound beyond it, before opening it and continuing on her way.

[to here]

The intercom came on, and as it did, it seemed to carry a little more interference than usual for a daytime announcement, a little more static. While the patients might have thought for a moment that once again the elusive woman on the radio had hacked into the Head Doctor's system, the man himself soon proved that theory faulty as he laughed over the broadcast.

"Hello, hello, everyone, and I'm sorry for the bad quality of this broadcast; we've been having some technical difficulties lately, you see, and we wanted to make sure everything was fixed by tomo...."

His voice crackled out into inaudibility for a moment before fading back in.

"Yes, hopefully that will be done soon. In any case, now's the time that you all head back to your rooms to enjoy a delicious meal... seasoned salmon! Yes, we have filets of very tasty, very juicy salmon seasoned with herbs and garlic; on the side, we have mashed potatoes, peas, and to drink, our usual assortment of beverages. For dinner, you'll all be enjoying vanilla ice cream with chocolate sauce."

The intercom's broadcast crackled again. The Head Doctor laughed, seemingly a little nervously.

"Ah, yes, perhaps we'll be able to finish the repairing tomorrow, when all of you are away at... Doyleton! Yes, yes, you're all in for a fun and exciting day, a day whose activities will be new for some and a welcome familiarity to others. You'll be under strict supervision, of course, but... well, I suppose you'll find out all about the circumstances tomorrow, before you set off, mm? Yes! In any case... I hope you all enjoy dinner!"

The intercom clicked off again as the nurses began ushering patients back to their quarters.

[ All introduction posts for this shift's group of new characters should be made in response to this post. (You can find your character's room assignment here.) Remember, everyone responds to this post with their character's room number in the subject line. ]

As she was waiting to be led out of the cafeteria, Hokuto looked for someone in Arts & Crafts, and spotted... Renji. She covered her mouth with her hands to muffle her giggles; after everything she'd heard about him, he was the LAST person she wanted to go to with this; he'd probably figure out exactly why she wanted the night off and never let her hear the end of it!

I'll just wait for Momo, I guess... she can't spend the whole shift in the shower, right?

Knowing her friend and vice-captain liked fresh air too, she opted to go outside; she settled down in the grass and pulled out her journal. Writing was... kind of a bad idea right now, but she could always draw something. Clothes were always fun, since they were what she liked sketching the most anyway; after some thought, she started on a dress design.

[[Fukutaichou~!]]

[starting off in M13]

The last part of the night was little more than a blur in Homura's mind. The men had rushed in, but not joined them, instead staying off to themselves. Before any of them had a chance to react, however, a voice sounded through the air, mocking some other person Homura had never heard of, and the patients themselves.

To Homura, whoever that man was, he sounded a great deal like a god.

But before he could ask questions, the demi-god found himself no longer in the chapel, but some strange room on a bed. Is that what Kenren had meant from his earlier warning? Homura sat up, glad at least that the world didn't spin when he did so. Then the same man from before began to speak again, with a completely different tone. It was confusing to hear him talk that way, calling them patients instead of prisoners as he had before. Homura listened quietly as the announcement was made, then got out of bed.

Maybe he wouldn't have to go anywhere yet. It wasn't like Homura knew where to go anyway, and that meant he had time. If this was his room, and if he had been here as long as Kenren had said, there was a chance he could find something with answers. The Taisho had even told him that Homura had seen Rinrei. Certainly he would've written something down, made a map, something that could let him find her again! He started with the desk at the end of his bed, first finding a small stack of notebooks. Picking up the first, he flipped through, turning the pages with quickening desperation as he found each one to be blank.

[from here]

Okita had hefted his weight against the door in his desperation to get out of the room, but found that it opened much more easily than he expected. The door gave way and he stumbled into the corridor, the smell from his "therapy" following him out. His head snapped up, eyes searching wildly for anyone in the area.

But there was no one. None of the other doors were opened yet and he was alone.

If he'd had his wits about him, that would have bothered him. As it was, he was focused solely on getting out and away from the evidence of what had happened to him. The smell...it plagued him. The sludge still clung to his skin, matting his hair against his bare torso. It stung and it reeked and it...

He needed out.

Turning, he ran for the door, grabbing the handle to pull at it like a madman. The room was suffocating him. He needed out. He needed air. He needed something that didn't taste like disease and death in his mouth. Backing up, he let out an infuriated yell and kicked at the door - once, twice, three times - until the lock broke and the door swung open.

[going here]

[from here]

He knew he was out early now; the main hallways like this one usually had at least one or two other people scurrying about even when he was rushing through. Not yet though, but that was just as well. He took the usual right and kept along the wall just in case his senses just weren't picking up on some kind of threat. Being quick did not mean not being cautious, and he'd be damned if he took another injury for being that stupid.

[gone here]