-prologue-
"Tell me a story."
Dorothy sighed. "Duo, you know I'm not supposed to tell you a story." The boy she was talking to stared at her blankly, his violet eyes unfocused.
"Please. I want to hear a story. About bears."
"Bears? And no, Duo. It's time for sleep."
"I don't want to sleep. Tell me a story." The violet-eyed boy chewed on his braid, staring up at the blonde girl. The white of his bedding made him seem so pale, and the circles under his eyes seemed darker. His clothing was old, and was beginning to smell. She was the only nurse who would tend to him, and made special allowances just for him, for example, telling him stories.
"Not today, Duo."
Tears welled up in the blurred eyes. She didn't think he could even see her, and yet managed to aim the most pitiful look possible in her direction. "Please."
"I have to get going, I'll tell you a story tomorrow." Dorothy cringed, awaiting the rage that she knew would envelop her favored patient. Sure enough, Duo's eyes darkened, his face twisting into a look of rage. Shocking to Dorothy, the rage disappeared almost as quickly as it had come.
"My feet are cold, I need socks." Duo stared down at his feet. Dorothy's brow furrowed.
"Your room is very warm Duo, and you can't have socks." Duo grinned at her.
"Oh yeah. Relena did fun things with socks. She's dead now right? She's dead, and in the ground, and dead. Right?"
Dorothy bit her lip. "Good night, Duo."
"Have a nice day, Dorothy. Tomorrow you'll tell me a story about bears." Duo spoke without question, he never did. Everything he said was a statement, and everything he did was for a purpose – in his mind, anyway. And a warped one his was.
Dorothy shut the door to his block quietly, hearing faintly the sounds of humming. He was going to sing again. She tapped on the door a few times, and the humming ended, only to be replaced by whistling. Dorothy smiled softly; Duo got tired of whistling faster than singing. Soon he would tell himself a story, likely about bears, and then he would sleep. The next morning he would tell her of the dreams he had, about clowns, or some other type of animal.
She brushed her cyan uniform reflexively, and walked down the hallway. Duo's schedule would change soon, he was to gain a roommate. He had lived in the institution for nearly four years, and the board finally deemed him safe to share a room. Apparently, he was not longer planning to kill the president, who was a bear in a clown suit. Dorothy smiled; Duo's stories were always so interesting.
---
Dorothy awoke the next morning at 7:00 AM, the same time she always did. She took a shower, brushed her teeth, and was dressed by 7:30 AM. She headed out and did a routine check of the blocks. They all housed patients; some rooms shared, most not. There weren't many 'safe' people in this particular institution.
"Miss Catalonia," a voice chimed over the intercom. Screams sounded from the cell next to her, and she grimaced. "Please report to the main office immediately. Your new charge has arrived." Dorothy peeked into Duo's room, checking to see if he was awake. He was already up, sitting crosslegged on his bed and staring at the other bed that had been placed in his room during the night. He turned at the sound of the door opening, beaming and waving when he saw whom it was. She nodded back and smiled, gesturing her head towards the front office. Duo's mouth formed a little 'o', making him look much younger than his 16 years. She winked, closing the door again.
She walked down the hallways briskly, barely nodding at Hilde, another nurse in the institution. At a time, they'd been close friends, taking the same training courses and applying to the same institution. However, time at Scraeview Asylum had split them apart. It had split all the nurses apart. She'd thought it was an odd name, but the founder of the institution's last name had been Scraeview, or so she'd heard. She hadn't bothered herself with the institution's history as much as rules, regulations, and present situations with the declining number of rooms. The room problem was the whole reason Duo had been given an evaluation. Many patients had been given the same evaluation, and some had also been deemed 'safe'. But how safe were they, really?
She shook her head, clearing those thoughts from her mind. She hung around Duo too long. Maybe this new charge would help take her mind off of the braided teen, who'd charmed her instantly. Not romantically, of course. She wasn't that stupid as to fall for a mental patient. Not like Relena…
Relena Peacecraft had been another nurse at the institution. She'd been naïve enough to fall for a patient, who, in turn, had driven her insane. She was soon removed from her duties, and placed in her own cell in the asylum. They'd made the mistake of trusting her. No patients wore socks, ever, until Relena. They made allowances since she'd been on the staff. She'd strangled herself with them one night, and unfortunately, Dorothy had been the one to find her.
Dorothy was strong, and after the incident the board had her take some tests, just to be safe. She was smart enough not to be insulted, she knew what seeing something like that could do to a person. Just look at Duo, she thought grimly, rounding the last corner to the main office. She could already see her charge, a teenage boy, holding nothing but a pillow. She smiled sadly, mentally noting to ask if he could keep it. The boy looked up at her as she neared, and she wasn't startled by the haunted look in his eyes. Dorothy smiled warmly, stopping a few feet from the patient. He obviously wasn't violent, since there was only one person keeping an eye on him.
"Hello," she greeted him softly, as if he were a child. "And welcome to Scraeview Asylum."
---
Author – Guess who the patient is! GUESS!! There're millions of people, yes, but guess. It's just so fun. XD And… hey, is Duo really insane? O.o I dunno. Is he? …I need some socks…
"Tell me a story."
Dorothy sighed. "Duo, you know I'm not supposed to tell you a story." The boy she was talking to stared at her blankly, his violet eyes unfocused.
"Please. I want to hear a story. About bears."
"Bears? And no, Duo. It's time for sleep."
"I don't want to sleep. Tell me a story." The violet-eyed boy chewed on his braid, staring up at the blonde girl. The white of his bedding made him seem so pale, and the circles under his eyes seemed darker. His clothing was old, and was beginning to smell. She was the only nurse who would tend to him, and made special allowances just for him, for example, telling him stories.
"Not today, Duo."
Tears welled up in the blurred eyes. She didn't think he could even see her, and yet managed to aim the most pitiful look possible in her direction. "Please."
"I have to get going, I'll tell you a story tomorrow." Dorothy cringed, awaiting the rage that she knew would envelop her favored patient. Sure enough, Duo's eyes darkened, his face twisting into a look of rage. Shocking to Dorothy, the rage disappeared almost as quickly as it had come.
"My feet are cold, I need socks." Duo stared down at his feet. Dorothy's brow furrowed.
"Your room is very warm Duo, and you can't have socks." Duo grinned at her.
"Oh yeah. Relena did fun things with socks. She's dead now right? She's dead, and in the ground, and dead. Right?"
Dorothy bit her lip. "Good night, Duo."
"Have a nice day, Dorothy. Tomorrow you'll tell me a story about bears." Duo spoke without question, he never did. Everything he said was a statement, and everything he did was for a purpose – in his mind, anyway. And a warped one his was.
Dorothy shut the door to his block quietly, hearing faintly the sounds of humming. He was going to sing again. She tapped on the door a few times, and the humming ended, only to be replaced by whistling. Dorothy smiled softly; Duo got tired of whistling faster than singing. Soon he would tell himself a story, likely about bears, and then he would sleep. The next morning he would tell her of the dreams he had, about clowns, or some other type of animal.
She brushed her cyan uniform reflexively, and walked down the hallway. Duo's schedule would change soon, he was to gain a roommate. He had lived in the institution for nearly four years, and the board finally deemed him safe to share a room. Apparently, he was not longer planning to kill the president, who was a bear in a clown suit. Dorothy smiled; Duo's stories were always so interesting.
---
Dorothy awoke the next morning at 7:00 AM, the same time she always did. She took a shower, brushed her teeth, and was dressed by 7:30 AM. She headed out and did a routine check of the blocks. They all housed patients; some rooms shared, most not. There weren't many 'safe' people in this particular institution.
"Miss Catalonia," a voice chimed over the intercom. Screams sounded from the cell next to her, and she grimaced. "Please report to the main office immediately. Your new charge has arrived." Dorothy peeked into Duo's room, checking to see if he was awake. He was already up, sitting crosslegged on his bed and staring at the other bed that had been placed in his room during the night. He turned at the sound of the door opening, beaming and waving when he saw whom it was. She nodded back and smiled, gesturing her head towards the front office. Duo's mouth formed a little 'o', making him look much younger than his 16 years. She winked, closing the door again.
She walked down the hallways briskly, barely nodding at Hilde, another nurse in the institution. At a time, they'd been close friends, taking the same training courses and applying to the same institution. However, time at Scraeview Asylum had split them apart. It had split all the nurses apart. She'd thought it was an odd name, but the founder of the institution's last name had been Scraeview, or so she'd heard. She hadn't bothered herself with the institution's history as much as rules, regulations, and present situations with the declining number of rooms. The room problem was the whole reason Duo had been given an evaluation. Many patients had been given the same evaluation, and some had also been deemed 'safe'. But how safe were they, really?
She shook her head, clearing those thoughts from her mind. She hung around Duo too long. Maybe this new charge would help take her mind off of the braided teen, who'd charmed her instantly. Not romantically, of course. She wasn't that stupid as to fall for a mental patient. Not like Relena…
Relena Peacecraft had been another nurse at the institution. She'd been naïve enough to fall for a patient, who, in turn, had driven her insane. She was soon removed from her duties, and placed in her own cell in the asylum. They'd made the mistake of trusting her. No patients wore socks, ever, until Relena. They made allowances since she'd been on the staff. She'd strangled herself with them one night, and unfortunately, Dorothy had been the one to find her.
Dorothy was strong, and after the incident the board had her take some tests, just to be safe. She was smart enough not to be insulted, she knew what seeing something like that could do to a person. Just look at Duo, she thought grimly, rounding the last corner to the main office. She could already see her charge, a teenage boy, holding nothing but a pillow. She smiled sadly, mentally noting to ask if he could keep it. The boy looked up at her as she neared, and she wasn't startled by the haunted look in his eyes. Dorothy smiled warmly, stopping a few feet from the patient. He obviously wasn't violent, since there was only one person keeping an eye on him.
"Hello," she greeted him softly, as if he were a child. "And welcome to Scraeview Asylum."
---
Author – Guess who the patient is! GUESS!! There're millions of people, yes, but guess. It's just so fun. XD And… hey, is Duo really insane? O.o I dunno. Is he? …I need some socks…