Gale Eden's Story

Detective March wasn’t sure why he had been selected as an escort, because he sure as hell wasn’t enjoying it right now.

Perhaps it was because he was relatively new to the position, having only received the promotion a few months ago in a blare of lights and trumpets. Perhaps it was his reputation of being stone cold, unmovable; a reputation completely undeserved, in his opinion. After all, as far as March was concerned, he was simply a bleeding heart blessed with the gift of stoicness.

Whatever the reason was, he truly wished that someone else had been selected. The entire ride had left him...well, uneasy, to say the least. The children in the back were about the age of his oldest, and yet both had been accused with murder and the abduction of a poor couple. A glance at the mirror flared those feelings even stronger within him. The boy, Gale, was staring placidly out of the window, wrists looking far too bony and small in their iron cuffs. Olivia, the girl, was fiddling with the yo-yo she had managed to get on the trip, attempting to do a few tricks in spite of her limited movement.

It was...haunting. Disturbing, really. It was just like his chief had told him, way back in training; it was always the innocent-looking ones who were the worse. Tightening his hands around the wheel, March brought his attention back to the road. Focus, Jasper. Nothing wrong with feeling a little off here and now.

Driving into the driveway of the asylum, March pressed gingerly onto the breaks, and, turning off the ignition for the time being, stepped out of the car and went to open the door on Gale’s end. Swallowing in an effort to moisten his suddenly-dried tongue, he took a few steps back, gesturing for the blond to follow. “We’re here,” he said gruffly, watching as the boy blinked up at him before nodding and slipping from the seat. Without any word from March, Olive soon followed, scooting over in pursuit of her brother and dropping to her feet.

The journey wasn’t over yet, however. Fingers brushing absentmindedly over his holster, Jasper moved behind the twins, trailing behind them as they took the steps into the building. Far too old-fashioned for his tastes, he noted as they entered. Looked as if some Dracula-type fellow would just come strolling past the corner, cheerfully informing them that “I vant to suck your blood” with a flick of his cape.

This whole situation was just surreal, really. Gave him the creeps.

After bringing the twins into one of the checkpoints, a few of the guards began to remove all of the belongings they had managed to bring with them. For the most part, the children were just as obedient as they had been on the trip there, and just as silent; at least, until one of the guard’s hands wrapped around Olive’s little yo-yo. Eyes widening almost comedically, the youth took a few steps forward, raising a hand as if to stop the man. “My yo-yo,” she murmured, staring up at the guard with an almost wounded expression.

Upon catching sight of what was occurring, Gale suddenly snapped to attention, and began to speak rapidly towards his sibling- something that March was unable to catch properly. However, it stopped Olive in her tracks, and the detective was able to get at least some understanding of what was happening as the vowels continued to roll off the boy's tongue. German. He was speaking German. Although part of March wanted to ask the guards if they should really be communicating in anything other than English, it managed to make Olive step back beside her sibling, and that seemed to be enough for the workers.

“You can leave now,” one said mercifully, and March nodded eagerly and rocked back on his heels. Thank god. With only a short glance back behind his shoulder, he began to make his way out of the building.

They better be paying him extra for doing this little favor, or god help him…

Back in the asylum, the twins continued their path deeper and deeper, eventually losing the handcuffs- revealing reddish, purple welts on their skin. It seemed as if they had been digging their wrists in somehow- and exchanging their prisoners’ clothing for a set of lost-and-founds’. The outfits made the small teenagers seem even smaller, and both fidgeted with the too-long cuffs, but they did not protest. Gale even chose to thank the guards, voice soft and eyes averted to the floor.

After checking them one last time, a nurse was called in to lead both down the halls, to the rec room. As she explained the basic rules, their privileges, and so on, Olive slipped her hand into Gale’s, giving the slightest of smiles when she felt his fingers curl around hers and squeeze.

“You haven’t forgotten, have you?” The voice was quiet, hardly audible so as to avoid the prying ears of the nurse, and with a bit of a stronger squeeze to ascertain that he had caught his sister’s attention. Without hesitation, Olive nodded, bringing her eyes back onto the end of the hall.

“No. I remember everything.”

“Good.”

And with that brief exchange, they were finally led into the room, the nurse that had escorted them padding away with her duty having been done. The twins stood almost awkwardly at first at the doorway of the room, still hand-in-hand, glancing about and assessing their company. Upon catching sight of an odd, stitched-up creature, Olive gave a light tug, turning away her eyes to allow Gale a glance without bringing suspicion. It was an odd form of mutilation, really; either the medical procedures here were sub-par, or the boy had managed to get away with doing it to himself.

Once their little rounds were over and done with- for the most part, it seemed like many of the surrounding patients were about their age- the pair made their way to a loveseat and sat themselves into it, watching the activity bustling around them curiously.

Gale looked as if he was attempting to appear as inconspicuous as possible, dropping his hands back into his lap and tapping a rhythm onto the bone.

Olive seemed as if she wanted to join one of the conversations about her, but simply did not know where to start; kicking her feet and scuffing her borrowed shoes against the wooden flooring.

Both managed an air of slight nervousness and fascination.

◥◤◢◣

---

Kazue met the eyes of the boy, coming closer, an unusual thing to do. "Do you want some help getting it back? He offered.

The boy's reaction was far more intense then he thought it would be; he seized Kazuo's arms, eyes flaring with hope.

"Yes! Yes I need some help getting it back. I want it back, he needs it and I am his keeper. Roland is my name. You are Yuuji? No, no, the other one is Yuuji. He is Yuuji. Who are you?" He asked excitedly, head whipping back and forth, then pounced and hugged him. "You will help me get it back! Did they take it from you as well? We'll be best friends if we succeed our task. Adair and I help you with yours. How do we start?"

He's so happy, so trusting, the first thing he must learn is not to trust so easily, for humans are terrible creatures.So young, so cute, so innocent. So ignorant. So evil. Yes, Kazuko agreed. He truly is quite the vile creature. Do not worry. We will make him beautiful. He assured.

Kazuko gave the boy an indulgent smile, then attempted to answer him in the correct order, his voice dropping to a whisper after the initial introduction so they nurses wouldn't over hear. "I'm Kazuko. Of course I'll help you - I really hate those guards. I thank you for the offer of help, but I don't need it right now - they tried to take away my council with those drugs, but I wouldn't let them. Of course i'll be your friend - but I'm always really quiet, but when I do talk, it's usually something important so make sure to listen okay? First we have to make them think you're harmless so that you'll be placed with more freedom, so you can sneak away to go get him. Alright?"

Kazuko gave the boy a kind smile, then shot an annoyed look over his shoulder, where one of the other patients was hovering far to close for comfort. "Hm? What's this? Planning on breaking some rules already newbie?" He said cheerily.

Kazuko glared, and then using slammed his elbow behind him into the man's gut. Hard. "Don't get so close to me without permission." He reprimanded, monotone. The startled nurses started rushing forward, but Kazuko waved them off. "We wont fight," he assured, "It was just to make sure he knew I meant it."

He looked up again in curiosity as another person entered through the checkpoint, strange only because she was completely alone, looking around uncertainly, no guard beside her. Quite strange indeed. Bright red hair with blue eyes; unusual, but not nearly as unusual as his own snow white and unnatural mutation of teal eyes. No guard; she was newer, a first ward. The others would harm her. He would help her as well - she needed to learn, to become dark just as they were so that she wouldn't be so alone. So that she could understand them, and they her. Trial was life's best teacher. They who are outcasted, they must stick together, and keep each other strong by making sure the other never forgot, never accepted the blindness of normality. If they did it would be betray for normal people could not understand them; and being a turncoat was the worst offense you could commit, ripping away the warmth of acceptance and trust. She must learn that she would be heavily punished for that; yes, she must learn... perhaps Yuuji would like to help. Kazuko gave the girl a small smile and nod, holding out a hand to her with a palm up, gesturing her over.

He ignored the two who came in after her; he knew with but a glance that they did not need his help, the look in their eyes as they scanned the room fully showing they knew of the darkness and how to protect themselves; independent. Kazuko internally gave a nod of approval and dismissed them from mind. Their actions were their responsibility.

Kazuko glanced at Yuuji to see his reaction to the other three newcomers, only to see he was staring intently at the very first of all the new arrivals, shaking; Kazuko carefully and briefly placed a hand on his shoulder, drawing the boy's attention, and shook his head slightly. It was still day; nurses were here. It was the time to be observing and planning, not teaching. Yuuiji gave the slightest of huffs, then focused once again on the boy, Roland, turning completive as he calmed, then suddenly reaching forward and snatching his arm, tugging up the sleeve; an obvious gesture to anyone familiar with the insane or mentally broken. Checking for scars. Personally Kazuko had never understood cutting; yes, he understood why it would help on a scientific level; the brain would sent out natural pain relieving chemicals, which would numb the emotions as well as the physical pain. But it had never appealed to him.

“What do you need it so bad for?" Yuuiji demanded, referring to whatever the nurses had taken. "You’re too old to carry a blanket around- Oh! Perhaps it’s your needle and thread… It could be one of those mental things. Some people do their cuts inside their head. I haven’t figured out how that works though apparently it’s like finding the right pair of shoes, only certain blades work in that area." Yuuiji thought out loud, then paused before suddenly diverted paths back to his original thought. “What is it exactly?”

Kazuko decided to allow his own curiosity to show as well, tipping his head to the side and widening his eyes slightly in the accepted gesture of innocent inquiry, urging the new one to speak.

---

---

"And the psychos keep pourin' in." David stated grinning widely as he glimpsed at the twins' arrival. He'd taken a seat next to Lilian, completely invading her personal space and resting an arm around her up against the window seated like a king with his concubine. He touched her hair inappropriately letting the silky strands run through his fingers and let his gaze go back to Emmet, dark and threatning like a wolf sizing up to a stranger. 'Fucker thinks he can make a fool of me.' He thought, disregarding lilian's discomfort and anxious eyes looking everywhere but at him as if not seeing him would make him go away. "I'll break his pretty little fag face if he so much as looks at me like that again." He muttered.

An orderly than approached him, glowering and bristling like a fussed up porcupine. His voice was halting and sharp, a real rule wizard practically bursting at the seams from all the violations. The inappropriate conduct with all the hugging and touching, letting the patients gather like some prison gang in the middle of the room. Wolf peered up at him, both amused and bored. "I'm going to have to ask you to find someplace else to sit, newbie. Can't you see you're causing her stress?"

David chuckled, harmlessly and clasped Lilian's shoulder. "What d'you mean? We're getting along just goddamn fine. She got her doodle pad I ain't hurtin' her, and I'm just takin' on the sights. I might learn a thing or two. I'll take good care of the lil' miss don't you fuss. It's those assholes you oughta be concerned 'bout. I think they're planin' some kinda orgy." David nodded towards the small group. "Pasty face is obviously leadin' um. Look at 'im standing there all authorative and shit." He gestured to Emmet stringing his lie flawlessly mispronouncing the larger words like some kind of dull wit." "Looks like they all need time to themselves, know what I mean?"

He orderly huffed and observed the group from afar. They had been in that little cluster for some time, though he doubted they were planning an orgy something was obviously up. He glanced back at David. "You find a seat at one of the tables before I lock you up in your room and leave that girl alone."

With that the orderly approached the group to warn them to loosen up the group and find things to entertain themselves like the few boardgames that had actual pieces in them. David obeyed so as not to get himself in trouble so awfully early in the game and he found a seat on a couch not far away chasing away the other two who'd already been sitting there and taking up most the space on his own by laying on it.

So many questions! So many people! He didn't know who to give his attention to. He mostly wanted to talk to Kazuko considering he was the one that said he'd help him get the mirror shard back. But then... Yuuji sounded like he may help in this endeavor as well. And then there was Emmett. He was really tall. The stranger towered over him and he found he didn't quite like that. Roland hated to admit it, but he did feel threatened by his size and height. If shit hit the fan he would have a hard time fighting against the big guy. Why was he so curious about what they were discussing? He made no indication if he was going to help them or hinder them either so he wasn’t sure the man was someone he could count on or not.

Before he could sort through anything else, Yuuji had grabbed his arm. Alarmed, he immediately tensed and his eyes narrowed on the white haired male. His hand tightened into a fist as his sleeve was rolled up to reveal the healing scars he obtained from fighting with his father and then scrambling over the mirror shards. It was obvious they were not self inflected or methodological. Yuuji didn’t have his permission to see those old injuries so he quickly pulled his arm out of the man’s grip. And what was he going on about? His needle and thread? He didn’t use a needle and thread though it was obvious to him that this Yuuji person used such things to mark himself up. What was the purpose of the threads? Without thinking, he did extend his own hand to touch a particularly interesting bit of threading on the man’s arm and tilted his head to the side curiously. "What do these threads mean?" he asked then. "They have a purpose that is not obvious and the pattern is very interesting," he mused.

When he had satisfied his own curiosity, he registered the fact that both Kazoku and Yuuji wanted to know what it was exactly he was trying to get back from the nurses. He offered a mischievous little smile and winked. “It is everything, it is simple. It is Adair, it is me. Just a fraction of what it used to be. It is light and glossy, its meaning only conveyed by heart,” he answered. “You will see when we get it back. It hangs on a chain.” He wasn’t going to reveal all of his secrets after all and it was no ones’ business to know exactly what was held within that little piece of glass.


Then the orderly hurried over to them and told them to disperse their activity. He had a mind to go against the man, but if he insisted and they continued this chat, the nurses would get suspicious. He didn’t want to rouse them and put them on high alert. That would only make his mirror harder to obtain. He offered a smile to the nurse instead and gave a nod. He shoved his hands in his pockets then looking for a small sheet of paper that had been given to him earlier. This was a good time to bring it up after all and may offer him a chance to speak with Kazoku more without the nurses getting suspicious. When he finally found it, he cried out ‘aha!’ and unfolded the paper. “Kazoku! Could you show me to my room? I used to be ward 3 back at the place but they dropped me down for good behavior,” he explained and gave Kazoku the paper that stated what his room number was. "I don't know where the rooms are or what ward they put me in."

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---

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Yuuji beamed; pleased that he was curious about the red threading that lined his body. It was impossible to tell just how much of his body was decorated with the scarlet thread. “Why it’s…my discipline of course. Everyone needs something to keep them human, you know? I was born empty you see, this keeps me good.” He smiled pleasantly and observed the threading along the back of his hand.

Yuuji understood very little of Adair’s explanation as most of it sounded like some sort of descriptive narrative to describe a simple mirror. The idea that Adair thought it was a piece of him flew past him without difficulty. After all he didn’t at all seem empty like he was. It may have been too early to tell but and empty vessel was pretty easy for him to spot. Ki was empty, Emmet wasn’t empty but he seemed to like pretending he was. Kazu it was harder to tell but he was sure something was there lost behind his madness He opened his mouth to speak before they were interrupted by the orderly telling them to find something to do that didn’t involve suspicious pow-wows. Yuuji sighed, annoyed and disappointed before he wandered over where Ki sat and pulled a chair up in front of him, straddling it like a rocking horse and resting on the back so he could glare into Ki’s eyes, imitating his persistently serious expression. “Look at Ki all lonely and alone. Kiiiiiiiiiiii Kiiiiiiii why won’t you play with meee”

He pouted and turned in his seat sprawling over the back until he was looking at him upside down, his back bending in a way that seemed almost….wrong. His white hair reached towards the ground. His slim neck completely bare and visible, seeming far longer and more delicate with his milk pale skin stretched tight over his trachea and collarbones. A small Adam’s apple bobbed daintily, red threads running down its center and disappearing beneath his shirt collar. “You should wear my threads, you’re empty too. It would do you good….plus….it feels…”

He closed his eyes and smiled before chuckling and sounding as if he’d been intoxicated. He stood and strode over to him then rest an arm on his shoulder casually. “I’ll even let you put a few in me. I need it with all these sweet little temptations strutting their way in.” He sighed and leaned against the wall next to the window and gazed at the twins. “I wonder if the boy would like some threads. The girl I’d like to tear her eyes out…I wonder what he’d do if I tore out her eyes.”

“Hey!” He hissed from across the room, speaking towards Gale. “You there! Cutie! Come here!”

He gestured with a hand; magenta eyes wide as he glanced at the orderly that had split up the last group. “Psst!”

He got impatient and slipped quietly across the room. His eyes glimmered in awe. “So cute! Are you two real twins?”

He’d never, in hind-sight actually spoken to a proper pair of twins. He patted them both on the heads and compared their heights then stared between them. “Have they ever done tests on you? When one twin hurts does the other one feel it?”

He randomly pinched Gale’s forearm to see if Olivia would squeal in pain. “So cool! I’d love to play with you two. You would look absolutely glorious with some solemn black thread.”

“Oh! Let me introduce you to my dearest companion.” He tugged Gale by the arm towards Ki, for the most part assuming his sister would follow. He didn’t really like her nearly as much as cute little Gale.

“Ki! Ki! They’re real twins! This is ….um…”He glanced at Gale. “What was your name again?”

This was already turning out to be quite the interesting gathering.

Within a span of a few moments, one of the patients had jabbed his elbow into the gut of the other, only to get off without a warning. Of course, the fascination of the twins towards the event did not show; instead, both recoiled as if they had been the ones struck, slinking into the cushioning of the sofa and huddling close.

It was easy to tell that there was at least some measure of camaraderie between the gathered patients, if not an alliance of some sort. It only made sense, really; after all, they had been there for who-knew-how-long. It was a necessity to have a truce between killer and killer.

Unfortunately, Olive thought, it would mean that their tricks would be more easily picked up on, if they weren’t careful. Especially if the the orderlies were less lenient when it came to punishment; although it would allow for some freedom, it would undoubtedly cause trouble from the other patients if they were not careful.

Ironically enough, Gale’s mindset had gone a more opportunistic route than his sister’s. Depending on how large the group was, it would definitely be a challenge if they decided to gang up on them, or prefered to stay together in favor of wandering off. If they needed to make someone vanish, then there was a larger risk of getting caught…

Still, though, it was a challenge. A puzzle with vague rules that needed to be defined, and soon. It was with the uncanny ability twins seemed to be gifted with that their minds reached the same conclusion, and that they continued to people-watch.

Their newfound hobby was cut short, however, by the patchworked boy calling out to Gale. As if on cue, the blond immediately started, meeting Yuuji’s eyes with his own. As the other attempted to gesture him over, he put on a nervous look, glancing up at a nearby orderly- as if for permission- before lowering his head, peering at Yuuji through his lashes.

He was focusing on him, and him alone, by the looks of it.

Interesting.

The possibilities as to what the boy could want were endless, really. Everyone had reasons for being in a asylum, and he was no different. The boy could have thought Gale to be the weaker of the two, choosing him as a target.

Perhaps Olive had been picked, instead. After all, there appeared to be a group, and if she was being excluded, it could mean that he had been selected to join. If that was the case, it was difficult to tell what he had in store for the younger of the twins.

There was always the chance he was hoping to separate them, however. Divide and conquer was a fairly common strategy.

Whatever the case was, the best thing they could do was go along with it. Continue acting the part as the nervous children.

Wait until they had a proper grasp on who the stitched boy was, what he wanted.

As Yuuji skipped up to them, words hanging off his tongue, both watched with no small amount of curiosity. At his comment, and subsequent question, Gale once again dipped his head shyly. Olive only blinked up at the man first, before giving a slight smile towards her brother and nudging him to speak. Encouraging him to be social, just like any good sister would for her timid sibling.

“Um, well,” Gale began, seemingly distracted by a particularly interesting piece of lint on his pants. “th...thank you, sir. We’re twins, yes, sir.”

Patting her brother’s arm for the “effort”, Olive nodded slightly, content to let the answer serve as her own for the moment. At the sudden mention of “tests”, and the question of the extent of their bond, both prepared to answer, although they didn’t get a chance to speak before Yuuji had reached out and pinched Gale’s forearm.

Gale gave a wince at the action, attempting to pull away, although it did not seem to give much of an effect on Olive physically. Instead, the girl’s eyes darkened for a moment before switching to a look of concern as she looked over the patch of skin. She seemed to be satisfied by her examination, however, and the pair once again turned their attention to the puppet-like boy.

“Asides from what you did now, sir?” A note of dry amusement had slipped into his tone, momentarily disturbing the innocence Gale had been portraying.

It was at this time that Olive decided to chime into the conversation. “We’ve tried, sir,” she began, “but we can’t.”

At the mention of “looking glorious” with “solemn black thread”, the pair exchanged a brief look, eyes flicking back to Yuujji with an obvious quizzicalness.

“...Thread?”

“Pardon us, sir, but do you mean like yours?” Olive gave a quick sweep towards the bright red stitching on the other’s arm; a stark contrast against pale skin. If that was the case, then that gave an even stronger pointer to self-mutilation. Considering how obvious they were, as well, it didn’t take much to wonder why they hadn’t been removed. And if they had, that meant he had somehow managed to sew them back in again…

Before they could pry further, Gale had been jerked to his feet, Yuuji attempting to drag him off to meet a “dear companion”. An almost feline coyness suddenly flashed in the boy’s eyes at the fact that he was continuing to disregard his sister, and, making an effort to look alarmed, jerked back and wrapped his fingers around Olive’s wrist- effectively taking her along for the ride.

If he was actively trying to split them somehow, his reaction should give some sort of indicator.

As they stopped before yet another older man, the twins took a moment to look over their new company before releasing their grip on each other.

“This is my dear brother, Gale.”

“This is my dear sister, Olivia.”

Both then extended a hand for a shake, although, as expected, Gale was more hesitant about it; shifting from one foot to the next, while Olive held no such shakiness.

◥◤◢◣

---

Kazoku narrowed his eyes thoughtfully at Adair's description of what the attendants had taken from him; a necklace, something that he believed was necessary for his survival. Internally a smirk adorned his face; this kind was easy to control. His eyes betrayed nothing as Adair shoved a piece of paper into his hand, only glancing after Yuuiji as he skipped away when a nurse cautiously approached and sent them on their separate ways.

“Kazoku! Could you show me to my room? I used to be ward 3 back at the place but they dropped me down for good behavior. I don't know where the rooms are or what ward they put me in." Adair babbled. Kazoku merely nodded, glancing at the paper. Second ward; one floor down and one room to the left from his own. Fairly easy to access.

"Yes, I know where this is." Kazoku assured, already going over his options in his head.

The first step is getting back that necklace, after all we want him to trust us.

Which means we have to track which nurse has it and where they put it. Is that one assigned today? If they're assigned we must find out who, if not we must find the one with the most freedom to shadow them. And then we will simply get the door code from Ki and go in to get it.

Or we could just kill the nurse and take it. Kinda, ya know... easier, the moment they're alone and all.

There was a moment of silence inside his head.

... Good point, there's that as well.

Kazoku felt the barest of amused smiles turn up the corner of his mouth. Well then, we have a plan, He summed up as his eyes locked on the nurse Adair had indicated earlier. His eyes followed the man's gaze to the cat girl, Yukiko, just as she was leaving the room in her usual manner. He reached forward and tugged on the hem of Adair's sleeve, indicating for him to follow, and then locked eyes with Yuuji and then Ki where they were in the shadows by the far wall. Aloud he instructed Adair, "This way."

They walked quickly towards the door, two of the nurses following about four yards behind them after a few shared whispers, by the fact they didn't say anything most likely deciding to allow them all to stay together, most likely assuming they were just taking the new ones on a tour. They'd have to ditch them at some point.

For Yuuiji, the moment the boy came close he murmured the plan under his breath; for Ki, who resolutely refused to come within touching distance of any of the other humans, he merely locked eyes and then looked at the nurse, then back to him. It was the entirety of what their fragile treaty was based on; causing trouble.

The door to the entrance lounge swung shut behind them.

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◥◤◢◣

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As stated once before, Ki was never a people person; he'd come here to watch the goings-on, but now, now he severely regretted allowing his boredom to do something so foolish as to be in the same room as a bunch of other people.

It had been okay for a while; no one had seemed to notice him in the shadows thrown by the windows, observing and identifying where each would be in the hierarchy; which ones would fold and die under the experimentation, which ones minds would break completely under the pressure, which ones would endure, and which ones would actually survive. The last category had the least ones in it this time around.

And then that screwed up fashion designer had tried to glomp him again and totally ruined his thought process. He'd dodged purely by reflex, glaring at the boy, who returned it with a deadpan pokerface as he dragged over one of the chairs by the nearby window and tipped it back once he was sitting down. “Look at Ki all lonely and alone. Kiiiiiiiiiiii Kiiiiiiii why won’t you play with meee. You should wear my threads, you’re empty too. It would do you good… plus… it feels…”

The boy trailed off, and Ki gave him a creeped out look hoping to God should he exist and be listening that the other human was not getting aroused at the thoughts inside his head and wishing he would go away regardless of wether he was. "... No thanks." He managed at last, subtly leaning away.

Yuuji stood and walked aver to him, reaching out to touch him. Ki wished he'd had to foresight to bring something sharp to stab him with. But then again, Yuuji would probably enjoy that, which defeated the purpose. This, this right here, was why he tried to avoid the guy. Half the time he didn't actually mind the boy because he wouldn't do something so stupid as to try and touch him or try to involve Ki in his twisted fantasies, but the other half... Ki sidestepped the hand with a glance at the nurses, wondering how much trouble he would get in if he took the plastic vase on the windowsill and broke it, then used the pieces to give Yuuiji a mortal injury that he might not survive so that he'd a least be stuck in bed for a month.

“I’ll even let you put a few in me. I need it with all these sweet little temptations strutting their way in.” He wheedled.

Ki glanced at the small crowd of new arrivals; a large-framed male that was harassing that little shy one from First Ward, the one Kazuko had chosen as one of his possessions, the bright-haired girl hesitating in the doorway, and two that he would take to be twins staring around the room unblinkingly. And this was the reason that the other half of the time he allowed the boy near them... their similar nature as predators. Temptations, indeed; he truly couldn't wait to see if they would break or not. He hoped they did; it would actually be a mercy.

For the first week after a new transfer came, they would hold off on the extra experimentation; so that the patient could settle in. Patients had told people outside, of course, about what happened inside those walls; they left a margin of time to allow themselves to claim that the patient had just heard the rumors among the other patients and was saying those things to try and get out to some lesser facility where they would be able to manipulate the staff. Then after the week was up, they would take the new ones, one by one, and make them a part of the truth behind this asylum. Different minds reacted to different things different ways; they wanted as many experiments in their hands as possible.

That week was the reason he withstood the presences of both Yuuji and Emmett every now and then; it was their time to hunt, before the new ones had been broken or killed off by the staff. Once that week was up, one of three things would happen; the newby's already fragile minds would completely break under the pressure, they would die from drug OD, or they would become stronger. As such, this first week was the only time the hunts would be fun; when they were new, not expecting it. They would break as many as possible so the staff couldn't get to them first. And here they all were, right in front of them, gather like sheep to their slaughter; tempting indeed. But no, they must wait. Just for a bit, until the watchful eyes of the staff were focused somewhere else...

Yuuji finally gave up on physical contact and took the step to lean against the wall a few feet away, observing with him, tipping his head as he eyed the twins. “I wonder if the boy would like some threads. The girl I’d like to tear her eyes out…I wonder what he’d do if I tore out her eyes.”

"Those ones will probably break." Ki stated. "Look how they cling to each other; take one away and the other will loose their grip on reality."

“Hey!” Yuuji called cheerfully. “You there! Cutie! Come here!”

Ki was well aware that he himself had broken; though that fact alone suggested he was still in touch with reality, which was counter by the fact that he was a murderous sociopath, which of course started an eternal paradox. Ki had decided to stop trying to decide on that a long time ago; it was enough to make anyone's head hurt. It could very well be that the one left behind would turn into what he and the other two had; broken but not broken. If that were the case, it could be risky, as it would earn him an enemy, and the broken but not broken could be a very, very dangerous lot. But that was a rare case; in his whole life he had only met seven others like that, in the higher security asylums like this one. And that included Yuuji and Emmett. So it was doubtful that the twins would make the cut, far more likely they would entirely break.

And he couldn't wait to see it. A tiny smirk that he managed to pass off as a welcoming smile invited the two new patients closer. Yuuji couldn't take the distance anymore and raced forward the last few steps, leaving Ki to watch the interaction and plan their course.

“Have they ever done tests on you? When one twin hurts does the other one feel it? So cool! I’d love to play with you two. You would look absolutely glorious with some solemn black thread. Oh! Let me introduce you to my dearest companion.” Yuuji started babbling again, testing the pain theory with a pinch to the arm that made the twin flinch. Ki noted the other twin's glare - so that was the dominant one. Yuuji then seized the boy by the arm and dragged him the few steps close to Ki, the boy twisting to grab his sister's wrist in a slight panic, both calming as they realized he meant no harm... well, yet. “Ki! Ki! They’re real twins! This is… um… What was your name again?” He questioned the boy cluelessly. Ki let out a faint scoff.

“This is my dear brother, Gale.”

“This is my dear sister, Olivia.”

They were speaking for each other?

... Creepy. And cliche. This would be fun.

Bright teal caught his eye, and he looked over at Kazuko, who glanced at the nurse following Yukiko out of the room, then back to him in a look. Ki nodded, and then reached forward to give Yuuji the slightest of shoves to get his attention, motioning towards Kazuko, knowing the other would understand; the hunt was already on.

"Well, it seemed one of the others is taking a newby on a... tour. You can tag along if you like." He invited the twins, attempting to sound friendly and light, then turned and walked after Kazuko and the boy following behind him. After all; though they themselves were good at causing trouble with their rather sadistic tendencies, the prize had to go to Kazuko for creativity in causing trouble. It was always fun when he was on a mission.

He spared a glance at the two nurses who exited after him, one that he recognized as Kazoku's normal assigned nurse. He'd of course ditched his own; being a long-time patient had the advantage that they didn't even bother really trying to make sure they knew where he was anymore, since it made no difference wether they did anyway - and they knew it.

He kept a careful distance from the two others as they left the room and entered the halls; not wanting the new one to get the wrong idea should he be one of those people that hug people in greeting. Those kind freaked him out.

A bit behind him, he could hear the nurses whispering rapidly among themselves, planning what they would do - as if he couldn't hear them or something. Briefly he wondered if this was one of those 'normal person' things, because they seemed to do that a lot. Was he supposed to like... cover his ears so he didn't overhear them? Pretend he didn't even if it meant doing something with whatever he overheard? Ridiculous.

Let the game begin, he thought.

Roland was no more the wiser as he followed his new friend down the hall. He knew there were two nurses following them but he didn't much care about them. So long as they didn't try to do anything to him, they could do whatever they wanted. He didn't even realize that Yuuji, Ki, and the twins were following close behind. How could he know what the three experienced patients were planning to do to him or the twins? He was new around the block after all. At the other asylum, he hadn't interacted with the other patients much since he hadn't had time. When he was brought in, he had been condemned to solitary confinement and strapped down with a straight jacket so he wouldn't hurt himself or others in his psychotic break. When he had finally calmed down, his only social interaction had been the nurses and psychiatrist that had cared for him. This was totally new. And if it was Adair beside Kazuko, he would have sequestered himself away to shyly endure his self imposed solitude. He wouldn't have trusted these people so easily. Roland however, had no such qualms.

Roland eagerly followed after Kazuko. He even hummed as they walk, his deep blue eyes scanning the halls and trying to commit everything he saw to memory. Unfortunately that wouldn't help him much considering settings often got jumbled in his head and it disoriented him. And once Adair came out again, he wouldn't much remember this anyway. Just the same, he hoped that this would help serve him some way eventually. He did notice there were a lot of windows and doors though. Each door was guarded by another orderly that watched them cautiously as they walked.

"Hey, Kazuko, is my room near yours?" he asked then. He figured it would be good to room next to someone he was at least familiar with. If something were to happen, he did hope that he could count on someone at least. Being alone somewhere strange was never a good thing. He glanced back then and noticed the patients following behind the nurses and tilted his head to the side. Were they just walking down the hall or were they being followed? The nurses hadn't raised a fuss. His eyes narrowed as he took in their features. He remembered Yuuji. He assumed Yuuji was there to aid him and Kazuko but he was less familiar with the other taller male. The twins were new patients, he knew that. Were they guiding the twins? Yuuji did seem to cling to the male twin. Huh. How interesting. Ah well. It didn't concern him. He picked up his pace again to catch up with Kazuko.

It seemed that their assumption of there being a group of sorts was correct. Having spent so long practicing their own silent communication, the quiet signals and subtle gestures private signals, it didn’t take much to pick up on at least a few of the others’ means of directing each other.

A glance, a shove, a communication. A union.

Something was up.

Nevertheless, they would have to continue playing the part of the fool, and hope for the best. They needed to keep their cards close to their chest, especially if something was happening beneath their noses. Play the parts of the innocent, the young, the naive, and, with any luck, they’d be left to their own devices for as long as they needed.

A delicate, delicate matter, indeed.

This little reverie of theirs was well hidden, covered by a faint disappointment as the man failed to introduce himself, or even bother to shake their hands. Seeing that keeping them extended would now be a futile gesture, the twins allowed their arms to fall, looping them together so they were once again linked.

At the offer of getting invited along on a tour, the pair exchanged a look, considering it, before both turned. Instead of the more talkative of the two speaking up, however, it was Gale who answered.

”Ah...alright,” he mumbled, smiling sheepishly. “As long as you all don’t mind...we’re...not really sure where to go, ourselves.”

And it was with that agreement that the children of Eden had found themselves following along with the little gathering. They spent their time looking around, taking in the grand windows, the guarded doorways, the fake potted plants- all of it was observed with nothing less than marvel. For what was supposed to be a containment facility for both ill and criminally insane alike, it was surprisingly...lovely. Once they were secure enough in how things worked, they would have to explore the place properly.

An amusing thought flicked through Gale’s head; if their facade had been convincing enough, then any fellow third-warders would be surprised to find them hanging about. With any luck, they could just pass if off as a breakdown of sorts, a fit of insanity. He had heard a story on that before, on one twin being apparently affected by another in their sickness. Both became wild, attempting suicide only to get back up and attack the officers.

And yet they had been released later on with little argument, because they had been on good behavior, because they were deemed sane enough to be free again.

A truly funny incident.

A sudden sound of alarm caught the attention of both twins, and both turned just in time to see the puppet-boy lunge at a guard, red string deftly being wrapped around the unsuspecting man’s throat in a makeshift noose- was that the true purpose of the threads? For use as a makeshift weapon?- before he knew what hit him.

The guards were distracted, but, either way, it didn’t take rocket science to know this was not a good situation to be around.

Mustering up a look of shocked horror instead of fascination, the pair took a few steps backwards, watching the scene go on as if they simply couldn’t tear their eyes away from what was unfolding.

More steps. Then more.

Finally, slipping free of one another, both turned and began to flee.