The dinner announcement came as something utterly unexpected. Rather than Harrington's excited tones, the calm accented voice of the General drifted through the intercom speakers
( Read more... )
So it was already this time of the day? Time had flown while Anise was busy going around and meeting new people. She was pretty pleased with how the day had gone, though. Her new acquaintances all acted pretty friendly towards her. Now she had even more allies she could count on in a pinch! Knowing that made Anise feel a little safer, and it made it easier for her to keep wearing her usual smile
( ... )
Utena didn't remember ever leaving the Lieutenant General's office. Everything had just blurred into darkness eventually, and now as she came back to awareness, she found herself lying horizontal again, the same way she always did after nightshift. She could hear the sounds of her roommate moving around elsewhere in the room as she stirred, eyes blinking away the unexpected sleep.
"Anise?" Utena asked, stifling a yawn with her hand. "Oh man, has it been dinner for long yet? I hate it when they do this to us," she said with a slight groan, sitting up and pushing the covers off. She was still in her military uniform, but that wasn't going to be the case for long. She was going to get changed into her own uniform as quickly as she could.
grrrgl...Right after seeing to her empty stomach
( ... )
Utena stirred, then awakened, and Anise looked over her shoulder to greet her, a bright smile on her face. She'd seen people fall into deep sleeps that lasted entire days before, and it often happened just before someone disappeared... so more than anything, Anise felt relieved.
"Nope! Just started," she assured Utena, setting the note aside and settling down in front of her own dinner. Her chicken looked a lot more something than that stuff Utena had, and she felt a little bad because of it, but she supposed she could share a little today, too.
But before that, she wanted to hear what Utena had to tell her. "Huh? Where?" she asked. From the way Utena brought it up, it sounded like it had to be someplace exciting.
"One of the higher-ups just pulled me up to his office last shift. Some guy named Berg," Utena explained, managing to get through the tasteless slop by keeping her focus on the conversation rather than the food - either her own or Anise's. "The weird part was that it wasn't like a questioning or anything. He just kind of sat there and let me talk at him and ask questions. Said he's trying to 'get to know' some of the patients better."
She frowned, and added, "I don't know how much of that I buy, though. He did try to ask what I knew about Marc the radio guy."
Someone from the military? Huh... Anise didn't know they were doing stuff like that. Was Utena the only one they pulled aside? Maybe they were doing it to lots of people.
"Wow... I wonder what they're trying to do?" Anise mused, twirling her fork around. She agreed with Utena; it was hard to believe that they'd want to 'get to know' the patients without some shadowy ulterior motive. It wasn't a big surprise that they wanted to know about the guy harboring the Head Doctor, though.
"That's pretty weird, though," she continued after taking a moment to think. "What kind of stuff did you end up talking about?"
Utena shrugged at Anise's musing. That Berg hadn't pressed about Marc was something in favour of his initial explanation: that he simply wanted to get a feel for the patients, nothing more. Could she be blamed for finding that hard to believe, though? It wasn't like Berg wasn't part of a shady military organization that kept people against their will and tortured them night after night. Not exactly the most trustworthy job description in the world, she thought
( ... )
When Utena mentioned released patients and visitors, Anise looked back to her food, her expression turning solemn. She nodded at Utena's information, but she still wasn't sure she could believe what someone from the military said. It was better than, say, hearing that they were being kept in a laboratory as research subjects or something, though. At least there was a chance that they were safe.
She looked back up to Utena when asked about visitors, a small, mirthless smile on her face. "Yeah... more than one. About four now, I think." Her gaze wandered over to the flowers on her dresser; the ones she received during the most recent visit. They still looked healthy.
"I guess... so long as they're safe, that's all that matters," she murmured after a moment. "It means we can go find them once we get out of here."
"Really? That many?" Utena asked, looking back at Anise at the number. Her shoulders sank some as she imagined it: four visits from the brainwashed and bamboozled, the loved ones who weren't quite loved ones anymore. No thanks to the Institute, anyway. Two had been enough for her, and now Himemiya was out there too? No way. There was no way she could accept Himemiya staying like that, not after all that they'd fought for together, and the freedom they'd talked about
( ... )
Utena's words were inspiring, and Anise agreed completely. No matter what, she had to save Ion, her parents, and her friends. There wouldn't be any use in going home if the people she cared about most weren't there, so that was the absolute most important goal of hers.
There was something Utena mentioned in there that sounded odd, though, and Anise's expression changed to a puzzled one. "What do you mean, a prince?" If it was a man saying that, she would have gotten excited, but a girl? Maybe Anise misheard...
Utena was about to ask What do you mean "what do I mean?" when she stopped and realized that in their introductions the other night, she had never told Anise about her goals outside of just escaping the Institute. That struck her as very odd in retrospect. Prior to Ohtori, she could barely picture a person who knew her who didn't know that about her. Now that she'd been here for a while, though, priorities had changed a bit, it seemed. She still wanted to be a prince, and still put that thinking into almost everything she did, but telling people about it was coming second to more practical topics. Oh man, this isn't that "growing up" thing I've heard so much about, is it? she thought with a bit of a wry smile.
No time like the present, then, she thought as she closed her box and lifted up her jacket for Anise to see. "Ah, sorry, I didn't tell you, I guess! Ever since I was a little girl, I've wanted to be a prince," she explained. "Saving people, being noble, always being there - that's the kind of person I want to be, now more than
Anise's puzzled look remained. She could understand why someone would aspire to be all of those things, and she even shared some of those goals. Anise wanted to be someone people could rely on, someone who could protect all the people closest to her. But a prince? Wasn't being a man kind of a requirement for that?
"That's a good goal and all, but... can a girl even become a prince?" She wasn't sure if asking that would offend Utena, but she was honestly curious. Maybe things were different on Utena's world...
Utena had gotten that exact question so many times in her life that she had well-worn answers ready and waiting for it at this point. Still, that didn't mean the question didn't continue to faze her somewhat - she could never help that slight twinge of frustration whenever someone expressed doubt in her goals. Sure, her aspirations of princehood were unusual, but did it really seem that impossible
( ... )
"I don't really get that prince stuff, but... I guess I understand your feelings. I always thought it'd be really romantic to be the damsel in distress, but now... I think I'm kind of tired of it." Anise poked idly at her potatoes as she spoke, thinking back to the previous night. She was still really grateful to Guy and Claude for everything they did for her, but she needed to be helping them just as much in return! "I'm already a knight, but... I guess I just need to be a better one."
She needed to get stronger, somehow. If her magic abilities were limited... wasn't there something else she could do? There had to be something...
"You always hear stories about knights rescuing princesses and finding their true loves that way, right? I want to be the lady knight who rescues a prince someday." Or a count, or a duke, or an emperor... Anise wasn't that picky.
Utena smiled as she listened to Anise, and nodded in understanding. "Yeah, that's another way to look at it! I hadn't thought of a knight before," she answered, moving onto switching dress pants for her red shorts. "Guess that probably makes more sense when you think about it, huh
( ... )
Hearing the story about Utena's prince on a white horse made the whole prince thing make a little more sense. It wasn't only about being self-reliant and protecting others, but it was more of a special goal of hers
( ... )
"You bet we would!" said Utena, putting a hand on her hip confidently. She had plans tonight, but she was going to have to invite Anise out with her one of these nights, she told herself. She was really curious to see how they would work together now.
Her eyebrows lifted in surprise when Anise offered some of her dinner. "Oh! Are you sure that's okay?" Before Utena could protest that she was fine, her stomach chimed in with another weak gurgle; clearly, the small amount of gruel she'd eaten had not been enough. "Ahaha... I guess that does sound pretty tempting," she said, moving back over to the beds once she was all set in her outfit.
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"Anise?" Utena asked, stifling a yawn with her hand. "Oh man, has it been dinner for long yet? I hate it when they do this to us," she said with a slight groan, sitting up and pushing the covers off. She was still in her military uniform, but that wasn't going to be the case for long. She was going to get changed into her own uniform as quickly as she could.
grrrgl...Right after seeing to her empty stomach ( ... )
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"Nope! Just started," she assured Utena, setting the note aside and settling down in front of her own dinner. Her chicken looked a lot more something than that stuff Utena had, and she felt a little bad because of it, but she supposed she could share a little today, too.
But before that, she wanted to hear what Utena had to tell her. "Huh? Where?" she asked. From the way Utena brought it up, it sounded like it had to be someplace exciting.
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She frowned, and added, "I don't know how much of that I buy, though. He did try to ask what I knew about Marc the radio guy."
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"Wow... I wonder what they're trying to do?" Anise mused, twirling her fork around. She agreed with Utena; it was hard to believe that they'd want to 'get to know' the patients without some shadowy ulterior motive. It wasn't a big surprise that they wanted to know about the guy harboring the Head Doctor, though.
"That's pretty weird, though," she continued after taking a moment to think. "What kind of stuff did you end up talking about?"
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She looked back up to Utena when asked about visitors, a small, mirthless smile on her face. "Yeah... more than one. About four now, I think." Her gaze wandered over to the flowers on her dresser; the ones she received during the most recent visit. They still looked healthy.
"I guess... so long as they're safe, that's all that matters," she murmured after a moment. "It means we can go find them once we get out of here."
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There was something Utena mentioned in there that sounded odd, though, and Anise's expression changed to a puzzled one. "What do you mean, a prince?" If it was a man saying that, she would have gotten excited, but a girl? Maybe Anise misheard...
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No time like the present, then, she thought as she closed her box and lifted up her jacket for Anise to see. "Ah, sorry, I didn't tell you, I guess! Ever since I was a little girl, I've wanted to be a prince," she explained. "Saving people, being noble, always being there - that's the kind of person I want to be, now more than
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"That's a good goal and all, but... can a girl even become a prince?" She wasn't sure if asking that would offend Utena, but she was honestly curious. Maybe things were different on Utena's world...
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She needed to get stronger, somehow. If her magic abilities were limited... wasn't there something else she could do? There had to be something...
"You always hear stories about knights rescuing princesses and finding their true loves that way, right? I want to be the lady knight who rescues a prince someday." Or a count, or a duke, or an emperor... Anise wasn't that picky.
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Her eyebrows lifted in surprise when Anise offered some of her dinner. "Oh! Are you sure that's okay?" Before Utena could protest that she was fine, her stomach chimed in with another weak gurgle; clearly, the small amount of gruel she'd eaten had not been enough. "Ahaha... I guess that does sound pretty tempting," she said, moving back over to the beds once she was all set in her outfit.
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