“Stop taking your medication.”

It was as simple as that. The researchers had been concerned that any sleeping pills still in Dawn’s system when the tests began could lead to some...particularly nasty side effects. They hadn’t given anything overly specific, but the threat was sincere enough that Dawn had agreed. For the past two weeks, she hadn’t touched the pills. 

And for the past two weeks, sleep had been hell. 

There were deep, heavy shadows around her eyes as she followed the other applicants through the facility, her hands clasped tight around a cup of coffee. She took slow sips of the stuff throughout the elevator ride, the various winding halls, and had just polished off the last of it when they reached the labs. Smiling wanly at the researcher assigned to her, Dawn tossed the cup in the nearest bin, rolled her sleeves up, and laid down on the experiment table. As soon as she had gotten settled, the researcher deftly pulled the restraints up and clicked them into place, shrugging at Dawn’s questioning look. 

“Just in case.” He dabbed a spot on Dawn’s arm with an alcohol swab, then drew a syringe from somewhere out of her sight, giving it a good tap. “Some patients haven’t reacted too well to the serum, and I’d prefer not to have my nose broken if you start thrashing.”

Despite how generally awful she felt, the comment still elicited a chuckle from Dawn as the researcher brought the needle to flesh. [color=#000949]“Well, um. Thank you for your honesty. I’ll try not to throw any punches.”[/color]

“Appreciated.” And then the needle passed skin, serum injected, and it was over. Stepping back, the researcher replaced the syringe with a pen, and, gripping a clipboard in his other arm, watched Dawn with distant eyes. 

Minutes passed, during which Dawn’s head began to hurt. Her blood pounded in her ears. Soon enough, it became a migraine harsh enough that it forced her to shut her eyes, although it was hardly anything that would warrant her being tied down like she was. 

Eventually, the headache settled into a dull throbbing, and the researcher wordlessly loosened the restraints. He waited until Dawn got her bearings before ushering her to follow him, leading her down another string of corridors to some sort of waiting room. 

Dawn hung in the doorway for a few moments after the man had left her, glancing over the other patients. All of them seemed to be in various states of discomfort- some more than others. As her eyes roamed, however, they caught on one figure in particular. A young man. A boy, really; he couldn’t have been older than seventeen. He was staring off into space, looking as white as a sheet. She had known that there was no real set age for the project, but…

Adjusting the brim of her hat, Dawn made her way over to the boy, settling down into the seat besides his. [color=#000949]“Hey there,”[/color] she said. [color=#000949]“Are you alright?”[/color] Her voice was soft, expression gentle. Hopefully, her speaking with the boy wouldn’t make things worse. 

[@Tenma Tendo]