Day 69: Male Showers

[envy_the_sinners]

Scar wasn't fond of being forced to shower with everyone else. Bathing had been a rare luxury during his recent time in Lior, (Had it really only been just over a week ago?) so he was thankful at least for the chance to wash. Just as long as he could spend the whole time facing the wall.

He washed himself quickly and quietly, taking no time to savor the warm water and steam that made him drowsy.

[To here]

Comments

[forsworn]

Ah, the question he hated to answer, especially now. It was wrong to deceive people who had nothing but good intentions in mind, who would do nothing with his answer but perhaps offer sympathy. Unfortunately, Kratos preferred even enmity over the sting of laying himself bare for someone else to see--not that he had to do that every time someone asked how he'd been, just that it always felt that way.

Kratos ducked his head briefly out of the spray to work some shampoo into his hair. "I've been better." He would give the same answer he'd given Ilia. It made the lie a little less, in his opinion. "Worse as well."

He glanced again at Castiel. "You've recovered sufficiently?"

[freewill]

It wasn't much of a response, though Castiel didn't know what else he was expecting. Kratos was the sort of person who didn't seem to enjoy sharing much about himself. Even now, Castiel didn't know that much about the man, despite the fact that they had a number of things in common. He knew the broad facts -- that Kratos was a soldier, for instance -- but didn't know the finer details. Why had he decided to fight? What ideals did he fight for? And so on.

But that was something that he could let Kratos keep to himself, if that was what he wanted. Castiel started to wash off his arms and chest, taking care to make sure that the soap didn't seep into his abdominal wounds.

"I'm getting closer," he responded, nodding his head as he looked down at himself. "It seems that most everyone has been cured by now. Not every life was saved, but it could have been worse. You have my thanks." He owed it to Kratos. Not many people would have had the courage to agree to such a request.

[forsworn]

Something flickered across Kratos's face, a brief tightening of disgust that would be hidden by his hair and the water. Like most people, he was pleased by success, but for him, failure had always left a more powerful impression. When it came to the virus and particular the topic of curing others, inevitably, his mind brought him back to Sora, and that soured all other thoughts of what he'd done.

"It could have been," he agreed quietly, partially to combat that toxic, accusatory voice, as he reached next for the soap. "I'm glad to have been of service." There were likely very few who would have the skills, let alone have dared to attempt the operation, and he had been more than willing to step in and relieve that burden, even if he'd only tried twice.

[freewill]

That expression was impossible for even Castiel to miss. But what had triggered it? Was it possible that one of those lost lives was someone that Kratos had known? Castiel hadn't meant to dig into a scabbed-over wound by saying anything, but he often found that his words took the worst possible meaning with others. There wasn't much he could do about it now; the best option would be not to point it out.

There was something else he could ask about, though, and Castiel spoke up as he started to pump some of the shampoo into his hands. "That wound on your hand... What happened?" This question might not be any easier for Kratos to answer, but Castiel thought it would be amiss if he didn't bring it up. If Kratos was in any kind of need, then Castiel was more than glad to offer a hand and return his debt.

[forsworn]

Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Lloyd entering the showers; Kratos's breath caught momentarily as he watched his son...not come anywhere near him. He would have breathed a loud sigh of relief were Castiel not standing right next to him. Crisis averted.

Of course, it had to be that Castiel would ask about his hand instead. Clearly, he was unable to ever catch a break.

Kratos tried to keep his reaction to a minimum; now more than ever was the time to be nonchalant and casual, in the hopes that it would cast the proper illusion that he could manage whatever it was, that his injury was nothing to worry about. Even so, the urge to stiffen and then withdraw was a very difficult one to completely master, and he couldn't help the stilted, robotic way his voice sounded as he answered: "I ran afoul of a monster the other night." He'd said that story to Lloyd yesterday, and as it had then, so it stood now that he was telling the truth from a certain point of view. One could hardly find a better word to label the doctors here.

"It's been taken care of." Even if Castiel knew the whole truth, there wasn't anything he could really do about it. The only cure to his slow demise involved, among other things, a crystallized fragment of mana and a unicorn, and Kratos sincerely doubted he would be able to find either one of those things in short order, even if he was given the freedom to go where he wished - especially the unicorn.

[freewill]

The way Kratos answered struck a chord in Castiel, because he'd also responded to people's questions in that way. He knew what it meant. Whatever Kratos was involved in, it wasn't something he wished to share. There could be all kinds of reasons for that. Maybe one of the transformed patients had attacked him. Maybe he'd been taken by the doctors for experiments. Regardless of the truth, it wasn't something Castiel was privy to.

He nodded in response as he worked the shampoo through his hair. There was so much that these humans had to keep track of -- eating, cleaning themselves, sleeping. Castiel realized that it came naturally to them, but in his case he had to learn.

"Have you found any leads when it comes to escaping?" he asked next, as it would be best to move to a broader subject, something that Kratos could easily discuss without revealing anything personal. That might make the conversation go somewhere more useful.

[forsworn]

After several days of having people (Lloyd) needle him about his curt, obviously incomplete answers, Kratos certainly welcomed Castiel's quiet acceptance. No doubt the other man had gone through the same routine a few times himself before; it was not hard to imagine.

"To be honest, no." He was thankful for the change in subject, even though the new one was almost as frustrating. "I haven't received any new information, nor have I been able to look into anything over the past few days. I intended to, but...other matters arose." Hopefully, that would be changed tonight. That book had been waiting for him for a while now. "They have all been dealt with now, though."

Kratos scrubbed at his arms, wincing as the soap got into the cuts around his hand. "Have you found anything?"

[freewill]

They seemed to more or less be on the same page when it came to what they'd been spending their time on. Castiel didn't know if that was good or bad, but either way he sighed and shook his head. "No, it's been the same situation in my case. I've been busy healing up and trying to find cures for others, but I'll be getting back to the real matter at hand starting tonight."

Even if it was only in a roundabout way. Castiel had agreed to work with Soushi tonight both to keep an eye on him and because they might have a chance to explore the second floor some. At this point Castiel didn't know what they might find that would be of any use, as this whole building had likely been explored ten times over, but right now he didn't have a better direction.

"You mentioned something about the library the last time we spoke, didn't you? Did that turn out to lead to nothing?" After asking his question, Castiel moved his head under the spray of water, squinting his eyes shut as he let it wash out.