Brune clears his throat, still carefully angled so that Darrion can stay behind him if need be, and ponders where to begin for a moment. "I don't suppose, Doctor, that you have previously been acquainted with Dr. Antonelli of New Rivaille St. Archit Hospital," he says at length, carefully.
"I daresay that I know Dr. Antonelli quite well, Dr. Abernathy. Several of our research projects here at the university have been performed in conjunction with Terrence's team at the hospital, as Mr. Jenny here should be well aware of."
A discarded granola bar wrapper, lifted by a gust from the climate control system, flutters off Alex's lap onto the floor. They attempt to lean over and stick their arm through the back of the seat to grab it.
"Then you know something of his disposition, I suspect." Brune seems to be choosing his words very cautiously, especially in the presence of someone he knows from experience is very clever - someone who might draw some unwanted conclusions if they're not careful. "What do you know of his... personal research? His background?"
There's a slight color in Brune's face that implies he sometimes gets flustered and rather unpersuasive in the presence of attractive and articulate doctors.
"...There is..." Brune pauses, seeming flustered, and recollects himself. "Well, to be frank, it's a bit of a long story, but the shortest explanation I can provide is that we have some... personal concerns about something Antonelli may be working on."
"I see." Dr. Bardot steeples her fingers. "You are, I believe, a surgeon at the hospital, Dr. Abernathy. Why don't you take up any concerns with the administration there, or directly with Terrence himself? Why come to me?"
"...Mr. Rivers is quite correct, I'm afraid." Brune seems grateful for the interruption; his fingers have started drumming on the armrests of his chair nervously as he debates what to say. "It seems quite apparent to me, Doctor, that you care greatly for your students and for this place. We are here because we care for Mr. Jenny, and because you may prove to be someone we can trust."
Alex gets up from their seat, bored, and wanders over to the lighting control panel in the corner of the room hoping it might provide some distraction.
"Well." Her face softens somewhat, flattered. "If you've already gone through other channels to no avail, and it concerns Mr. Jenny, I will do what I can. Go on then, Dr. Abernathy."
"...Well. I suppose the best place to start is at the beginning." Brune adjusts his tie slightly, shifts, and sits up in his chair, in that professorial way he does when he's about to deliver a long-winded lecture about anatomy to medical students. "Doctor, may I ask how long you have lived in this town?"
"That's quite a personal question, but for the sake of it, I was born and raised in New Rivaille. I completed my studies out of town, but I have always considered this to be my home."
"Have you, in the past few weeks, happened to notice any strange occurrences around town?" Brune watches her expression carefully, trying to get a read on her. "Any strange animals, odd behavior, anomalies in your daily routine? Has anyone been acting out of the ordinary?"
"Have you had any... odd dreams?" Brune delivers the word dreams with utmost caution, remembering how Antonelli reacted so viscerally to it, and he watches her eyes intently for a reaction, his fingers clenching on the armrests.
Brune eyes her, his paranoia whispering somewhere in the back of his mind, but he can't find anything amiss about her near-perfect composure. "...I see."
@AncientSwordRage That equals the Extreme success. You can tell that this non-reaction is studied; there's a certain practiced quality about the face she's making that you recognize. The mention of dreams definitely has an association for Dr. Bardot, but she is very carefully and studiously not betraying that fact.
"Um. You say we should... tell you... when... personal problems affect work..." Darrion stares at a point to the side of Dr. Bardot's head, "... and I've been having... disturbing... dreams... and you... too?" the last being a whisper.
@Mithical "Dr Bardot, even if you've been living with these dreams your whole life... I think we need to know." Jack says, and you can practically hear the seasoned barman in him trying to get to the bottom of the Doctor's misdirection
Brune idly looks over at Alex, frowning in faint concern. They've been acting strangely ever since the confrontation at the hospital, but he's not sure why.
Jack pins Bardot with a knowing look, one lifelong liar to another. Not too hard, but firm enough to try and convince her she can't keep her secret any longer
Dr. Bardot straightens up, her mouth grim. "I see."
She shakes her head resignedly. "Mr. Jenny, you are dismissed from lab work for the next three weeks. The added strain is evidently too much for you to handle at the moment. I appreciate your confidence in bringing this to my attention. I do not, however, appreciate any prying into my personal life. I agreed to answer certain questions due to concerns about Dr. Antonelli. However, there are certain lines that I would appreciate you do not cross."
"Doctor!" Brune says, sharply - he instantly remembers how important that lab work was to Darrion and how happily he talked about it. "Surely you're not going to punish the lad. He's asking for help!"
"Punish? No, of course not, that would be preposterous. However, I understand that my assignments and projects can be demanding in terms of time and effort, and Mr. Jenny here evidently is in need of rest. Take some time to rest and recuperate, and then come back with a clear head."
Brune seethes, his face blanching red, but with some effort maintains his professionalism and says in a very stiff voice: "I see now that coming to you was a grave mistake. Darrion encouraged us to put our faith in you and share his concerns with the professor he trusted most, and now you have deprived him of the one thing that brings him joy. I hope for the greatest success in your work. Doctor."
"My ears are open to any concerns of Mr. Jenny's, and, for that matter of any of my students. I will do what I deem necessary for their health - mental and physical, for the success of our studies, and for my students' success in the future. I thank you for the well-wishes, Dr. Abernathy, and I wish you continued success and good health in your practice."
She hesitates a moment before turning to Jack and saying "Mr. Rivers, was it? I do not appreciate you walking into my university and being so uncouth as to call me a "damn coward"."
She looks a little rattled at this point. "You do not have any idea what I deal with on a regular basis. Mr. Jenny, you are welcome to meet me in my office at any time in the next two hours, alone."
Brune and Jack, with your Psychology successes from earlier, you can tell she probably didn't mean to let the line about "what I deal with" slip, and that it was only let out due to being shaken by Jack.
"Darrion," Brune murmurs, quietly, to him; his hands are trembling on the armrests with barely-contained rage, as if he would have gotten up and confronted her more directly in his anger if he hadn't been in the chair. "It's all right to leave, if you want to. She is not our only option."
"At the moment, Mr. Rivers, whatever I am dealing with is being compounded by presumptious individuals insulting me to my face. Hardly a good way to get information out of someone. I can only say that I expected better of associates of Mr. Jenny here."
Brune's face twitches at that remark, but he's more focused on Darrion having a shutdown again. He abandons the conversation entirely and softly rolls closer to Darrion's side, seeming to push down his own worries for a moment. He brushes Darrion's elbow and whispers, quietly: "Remember the feather. Up, down. Breathe."
Dr. Bardot looks conflicted; she's both concerned about whatever's going on with Darrion, and also highly offended at the prying into her personal life and the insult.
Brune sighs, pats his elbow bracingly, and looks back at Dr. Bardot, with more steadiness and reason evident in his voice. "I apologize for my outburst. It has been a... stressful few days for us."
"Mr. Rivers is under a great deal of strain as well." Brune looks over at Jack. "We have been... struggling to discern who we can consider allies in a place with so many prying eyes."
Brune debates internally, seems to decide something inside of himself, and says, in the tone of voice that implies he is growing more convinced she knows exactly what he is talking about: "That remains to be seen, Doctor."
"There was a nuclear accident in 1975. There are- were giant spiders in the hospital. The town's been wiped off the internet. There's a nuclear power station again-"
Darrion seems to have lost whatever filter was keeping all the words in
Brune looks over sharply at Alex's departure, worried, but returns his gaze to Bardot after a moment. He exhales and grips the armrests, hearing Antonelli's voice echo in his mind about having read the reports. There is nothing to hide anymore, he muses, bitterly.
"Dr. Bardot," he says, "do you wish to destroy the anchor that ties you to the Rivaille, or do you relish in it?"
Dr. Bardot sighs. "Darrion. Dr. Abernathy. I do hope you understand the difference between the Rivaille and New Rivaille. What happens on the island is of no consequence to our university."
"Darrion Jenny. You are here to conduct research in order to save lives. That is an honorable, admirable goal, and I have done all that I can to assist you on that path."
"You must understand that there are other ways of saving lives, and of saving souls. Soon, the spiders and the dreams will be gone. Just a couple more weeks."
Brune rolls closer, shaking with rage; he finally understands what's going on. "Let go of him, Doctor," he says, in a dark, fierce voice that you haven't heard from him in quite some time. "Now."
Dr. Bardot lets go of Darrion's shoulder. "Dismissed, Mr. Jenny. It appears that I have some... discussion to do with your friends." She gives Brune a cold, collected, look.
Brune's whole body is trembling with barely contained fury. "Don't you lay a finger on him," he says, in a voice that sounds just slightly on the verge of being fully unhinged.
Darrion runs into the nearest restroom (a single-person accessible one), locks the door, collapses on the floor, and texts another sos to Kiko while sobbing
Brune exhales, hard. He fixes her with a cold look. "No," he says. "I hope you'll forgive me. Doctor." He says the word like it's poison, and rolls out the door.
Jack and Brune exit the room, leaving Dr. Bardot standing there, calmly, hands clasped behind her back, as a clock in the hallway goes "tick... tick...".
Brune follows the sobbing to the restroom, and pounds on the door. "Darrion, my dear lad," he says, sounding frantic and agonized. "Are you all right?"
"Darrion, dear lad, it's all right." Brune knocks on the door again desperately, not wanting to just go in. "Let's get you out of here and talk about this, all right? We'll find Alex and this will all -" He pauses, painfully, before continuing. "- will be fine."
Closing the messaging app as a lost cause, Darrion flips through pictures of Kiko and other friends, them laughing over pizza, them grinning after Jhou passed their defense, them lazing at a pool...
Brune slumps wearily in his chair after hearing no response, resigning himself to just sitting outside and giving him some space and time. "It's all right," he says. "I'll wait here. I'm right here, lad."
"Alex? Tech support? Down one flight and second door on the left, but I don't think they can help you with your phone or anything, everyone's having trouble. Maybe that's why they almost ran me over earlier..."
After staring at it for a minute, he looks around for paper towels. The university has been swapping out paper towel dispensers for air dryers recently, but you can't mop your face with those.
"I'm sorry, lad." Brune looks out into the hallway, watching students walk by as he speaks. "If I had known that would happen, if I had known she was... I would never have let you come here. I knew we shouldn't have revealed too much..."
Once they're back in their office, they dump the food on the mattress and wake up their computer, trying to remember through the hunger what it was that was misbehaving
