Nightshift 33: M35, Clinic

[the-clown-king.livejournal.com]

Tamaki was still awed and touched that Ritsuka had set up the clinic for him. He... well, he'd stay alert and up and as focused as possible until Raine showed up. And anyone else. He remembered Kratos had said something about not being able to make it....

They really did need more healers and doctors. Maybe during the day he could hold classes in first aide or something, and anyone who wished to help could come. Yes, that was something he could focus his mind on. That was good.

He struggled out of bed, eyes still feeling hot and itchy from crying, and opened the door with another small smile directed at his roommate.

From the sound of the intercom, something was happening tonight. Maybe he should ask Ritsuka to stay after all.....

Comments

[forgot-it-all.livejournal.com]

Ritsuka didn't like the sound of the announcement. He understood some of what they were talking about, but that didn't exactly ease the apprehension building in his gut. Something had gone wrong with the Head Doctor's setup, that Jill person had probably hacked into the system, but why? What did it mean for them, the little lab rats in the maze? As frustrating as it was to be the pawns in this great chess game, it was also terrifying. They had no control, no idea of what was to come next.

He hated that feeling more than anything else. It felt like they were missing the big picture while being led astray with tantilizing tidbits and nothing more. The lights snapped out and Ritsuka dug about in the dark for his flashlight, clicking it on. Tamaki went to open the door and Ritsuka just watched him. Should he leave? Was it going to be a bother if he stayed for once?

Soubi would be coming soon, and then they could decide. "It sounds like something's happening, huh?"

[the-clown-king.livejournal.com]

Tamaki nodded.

"I... I think it's going to be very dangerous out there tonight," he said, wetting his lips. He felt a little like he was trapped somewhere with a storm raging outside. That same tense, apprehensive feeling.

"I'm a little scared," he admitted, turning to Ritsuka.

[forgot-it-all.livejournal.com]

It was always dangerous, but for Tamaki to admit to it was something else entirely. Saying the obvious like that meant it was going to be worse than usual. It meant something evil was lurking out in the halls, something that was going to be preying on them tonight. Clutching his flashlight, Ritsuka aimed it at the floor and focused on keeping it from shaking.

"...I am, too." Without Soubi, he knew he was just monster feed. He couldn't bring himself to hurt them, even after being here so long. Miku and Sousuke were a long ways off and Alfons was gone now. All he had was Soubi and he lived each day wondering if one day, even Soubi would leave. "It's okay though. We'll get through this."

[the-clown-king.livejournal.com]

Tamaki moved to sit beside Ritsuka, nervously reaching for the other boy's hand. He as glad that he was still here, and he hadn't been left alone in his room, waiting and afraid.

"I know." But that didn't mean they weren't scared. "I... I wish we had more people here. At the clinic. It's only going to be me and Raine tonight and...."

Tamaki didn't know how long he could hold himself together like this.

[forgot-it-all.livejournal.com]

"If you want, Soubi and I can stay," he offered, looking up at Tamaki. It would give him something to do, some purpose here other than straying out into the wilderness of the Institute. And maybe it would force Soubi to get along with people again. He'd been getting increasingly anti-social lately without Kio around. Ritsuka had always thought Soubi was a little strange, but Soubi had always been somewhat polite and caring to Yuiko and Yayoi, even to the Zeroes for the most part. It was unnerving to see him focus solely on him, especially when he wasn't accustomed to being around the older man this much.

"Soubi knows first aid a bit and so do I." He could dress wounds one-handed, as if that would come in useful. It was a bit of a relief to hear Tamaki ask for help though. Ritsuka really had no idea what he would have done otherwise with his back and arm in the state they were in.

[spandexorgtfo.livejournal.com]

From here (http://community.livejournal.com/damned/400688.html?thread=32064048#t32064048)

Kratos entered the clinic tentatively. He'd said in his post on the board that he might briefly show up early in the night; hopefully Tamaki wouldn't be confused.

There was another boy in the room, someone Kratos had never seen before. He gave him a curt nod before turning to Tamaki. "Tamaki, could I borrow your sword for the night?" He paused. "I understand if you'd rather I not..."

[the-clown-king.livejournal.com]

(Popping down from above!)

Tamaki's immediate, selfish thought was 'no!'. The idea of being parted from his one and only form of defense sent a chill through him. Especially as Raine wasn't here, and if something happened he'd need to defend himself and Ritsuka....

But Kratos was going out into the halls, where it was far more likely something would happen. And he'd need some sort of protection.

"Okay." He nodded, feeling his stomach churn at the idea of being completely defenseless. Maybe Raine would get here soon....

[spandexorgtfo.livejournal.com]

"Thank you." Kratos shifted his flashlight to his left hand and picked up the sword, hefting it get a feel for the weight and balance. "I'll try my best to return it in the same condition." He didn't like the idea of leaving the two boys defenseless, but he needed to be able to thoroughly support the rest of the team on their mission.

He paused at the door. "I'm sorry this was on such short notice. Please give Miss Sage my regards when she arrives." And then he stepped back out into the hallways.

[spandexorgtfo.livejournal.com]

[to here (http://community.livejournal.com/damned/393234.html?thread=32144146#t32144146)]

[beloved-less.livejournal.com]

[From here (http://community.livejournal.com/damned/392840.html?thread=32709512#t32709512). Feel free to ignore it for a few more posts until the boys have been gone a while, I won't mind! ^_^]

Soubi's anxieties were growing, but he wasn't sure what to make of them. Was he getting closer to the boy or was he about to discover that he'd been abandoned. No, not abandoned. Ritsuka wasn't like that. But they might have stolen him and that would still leave Soubi all on his own...

He paused at the door of the 'clinic' before finally knocking lightly and opening the door without waiting any longer. A smile, faker than Landel's day job, was already fixed on his face as he looked, first, towards Ritsuka's bed. It was gone a split second later as his eyes travelled the rest of the room. No Ritsuka.

Face neutral, but eyes stone cold, he turned his attention to the blond creature with too much self importance. Had Soubi cared about anything but Ritsuka, he'd have noticed the boy was not his usual self (which even a stranger could plainly see). But Soubi only cared about one thing.

"Where is he?" It hurt to have to ask, but the words came out, however hateful the tone was.

[mukuchi.livejournal.com]

Suddenly the room exploded into activity and Mori finally understood what Tamaki had been talking about. Four women and one man entered; the women were injured, but the man was not. Mori wasn't sure what to do yet, but he had started to grab supplies and head over to help when the tall blond asked a question. Mori stopped in front of him, holding bandages and burn cream and raised an eyebrow. Where was who?

He wasn't a friend of Hikaru or Kaoru's and most definitely wasn't from their world, so...? A glance at the empty bed and the puzzle pieces came together. "Went out," he said, motioning to the door the gentleman had just come through moments earlier. "Looking for someone."

[beloved-less.livejournal.com]

This was.... humiliating. Soubi didn't know where Ritsuka was, yet this stranger was already enough of the boy's life to know. Directing his glare at this tall busybody, he stepped closer.
He couldn't afford to assume (or hope) Ritsuka had gone looking for him. He had to know exactly where Ritsuka was going. The boy was injured and too weak to defend himself against Landels.
"Where?"

[mukuchi.livejournal.com]

Raine moved past him before he could help the bleeding woman and he sighed, holding the bandages in one hand. No use going over now. He'd always been good in emergency situations, but with Mitsukuni missing, something just wasn't working well in his head. He was distracted, always thinking of what his cousin was doing, if he was safe, if he was eating right or brushing his teeth before going to bed or taking naps.

The stranger glared at him and Mori just looked at him with his usual stoic expression. Whatever anger the man had it wasn't at him, but the situation. "Next hall over, with Hikaru."

[beloved-less.livejournal.com]

Soubi watched the young man a moment longer, searching for any signs of a lie. Fine. Ritsuka was the next corridor along. With Hikaru. Soubi had a vague feeling that was the name of one of the twins.

He turned on his heel and walked out.

[To here (http://community.livejournal.com/damned/393234.html?thread=32815634#t32815634).]

[angels-inflight.livejournal.com]

[ from here (http://community.livejournal.com/damned/393089.html?thread=32904321#t32904321) ]

Normally, Naminé would have waited outside, upon seeing that the people inside the clinic were occupied. That was normally. Tonight, she had a half-dying friend draped over her shoulders and Naminé burst in a little impulsively, giving an apologetic glance to those who were in the room.

"Excuse me! Is this the clinic?" Naminé sounded tired, a little breathless as she tried to help Alita into the room. Surely, they could see how badly injured the warrior was - it didn't look like there was anyone else injured in the room, at least.

"I'm sorry, but my friend, she needs attention right away!"

[per-ardua.livejournal.com]

[From above.]

Even Raine was taken aback when she saw Falis' condition; the girl looked nearly dead, and she was honestly amazed the younger girl with her hadn't had to just leave her bleeding and run for help. She dashed over to help support Falis the last few steps to the nearest bed; before she was even close enough to touch her, Raine gave her a quick look-over to get a better idea of her injuries. She wasn't even certain what some of them were--acid burns? It would explain her clothing... "Alita, you're too badly hurt for me to just bandage you up," she said, frowning. She remembered well that Falis didn't believe magic could be anything but destructive, but right now there was no real alternative.

Raine had a strong enough survival instinct to stop just out of reach, but she didn't like it. Technically, she could cast the spell without getting anywhere near the girl, but she didn't want her freaking out and possibly injuring herself further--or someone else, for that matter.

[himetsuru.livejournal.com]

Even injured as she was, the bounty hunter's eyes flickered around the room, taking in everyone present. Her eyes found Raine and she locked onto the half-elf. If even a healer had that reaction to the way the bounty hunter looked, Falis knew she had to look on death's door. An odd sort of half-smile touched her lips then, knowing just how much more she could take, and how much more she could kill, before she finally went down, even in this state.

That smile, though, quickly disappeared into something else as the healer made insinuated that magic was going to be used to heal her. Fear welling up in Falis' gut, the princess tried to raise her newly acquired sword at Raine to keep her back out of reach. Sadly, she only managed to get the blade partially up and it held steady for just a few seconds before her hand started to shake.

"Namine... I think I'm going to go find another ugly nasty beastie to kill," Falis said to her friend, not once taking her eyes off of Raine's. The tip of her sword continued to shake as a tiny bit of fear of the magic the half-elf wanted to use on her slipped into the princess' eyes. "I don't want to be here," she said, starting to back unsteadily towards the door.

[angels-inflight.livejournal.com]

Luckily for Naminé, a woman came to help them almost immediately. And she knew Alita too - that was a plus to the girl. Unfortunately, it looked like Alita knew this woman too and it apparently was not a good connection. Naminé knew nothing of Alita's aversion to magic: such a thing was commonplace in her world, she would have been disappointed if the woman who came to them wasn't a healer.

"Alita! You can't be serious!" Naminé ran in front of her friend, trying to coax her friend back inside. What was she thinking?!

"We must get these wounds treated first!" She remembered how strongly Hokuto protested, how she never backed down even when Alita tried to pass her. Well, Naminé had nowhere near the connection Hokuto had with Alita, but she wasn't going to just let her friend die in the hallways either.

"Please, stay. I don't want to see another dead body tonight."

[per-ardua.livejournal.com]

"Alita." Raine followed, but didn't get too close; she didn't want the girl to feel cornered. "You can leave afterwards if you insist, but you really need to be healed." She kept her voice gentle and nonthreatening, but unyielding; as far as she was concerned, Falis had no choice in the matter.

"I can explain what I'm doing as we go, but I need you to cooperate." Technically not true, but it would be helpful. If Falis collapsed, then the negotiations stopped and Raine was healing her if she consented or not.

[quickdrawbkiddo.livejournal.com]

[from here] (http://community.livejournal.com/damned/394104.html?thread=32922744#t32922744)

With Mion's help, Beatrix finally made it to the clinic - at least that's what the sign hanging outside the door said. The door was already open and through it, the Bride could get a look at its occupants. A bunch of children and... that elf-woman.

This could be... problematic.

"Mion," Beatrix said, turning to her apprentice while at the doorway, "How about you head back to your room for the night?" She looked down at her burnt arm and tried to give the girl a smile, though it fell short. "I'm... going to be here a while and you'll probably get bored."

More importantly, she didn't want Mion to find out about the ex-assassin's brutal attack on the white-haired woman inside the clinic. "I'll find you tomorrow."

[dements.livejournal.com]

Finally. Shion helped the woman to her place before taking a few steps back, her eyes widening in surprise as the woman told her to leave.

… Just as planned, except she had no say in it.

“All right. That way I won’t be out alone tonight. Besides, I’m suddenly … very tired,” a laugh, and Shion grinned her Mion grin, taking a step back towards the door. “I just have to go check on something, though, but I promise I’ll go back to my room. Feel better, okay?”

And then, with a grin and a wave, Shion was gone.

[dements.livejournal.com]

[quickdrawbkiddo.livejournal.com]

For a moment, Beatrix watched the green-haired girl head back down the hallway, a look of tenderness in her eyes for a moment. Now that Mion was gone, the ex-assassin had to deal with the situation before her. Turning back to the clinic, the woman stepped just inside the room and leaned heavily against the side of the closet.

She was careful not to put any pressure on her gruesomely burned right arm, the previously existing bandages still somewhat visible amongst the pus and redness of the cracked, seared skin. Her left hand hung down at her side, the chef knife held steady in it, and rested on her thigh. Beatrix was making it very clear that she was armed, but also clear that she was in no way wielding the knife in an aggressive manner. In fact, she looked down right exhausted.

The Bride did not say anything, nor was her expression antagonistic. Her eyes reflected the great amount of pain she was in, though the rest of her expression was neutral. If the other woman wasn't going to bring up the attack, neither was Beatrix. She sighed a little; she suspected she was going to have to talk one of the children through how to help her.

She did not expect help from someone she'd brutally assaulted.

[per-ardua.livejournal.com]

[From above.]

Raine turned and faced the woman she'd been sincerely hoping had vanished by now; she moved towards her, but stopped well out of reach. The syringe she'd taken was capped so she didn't accidentally stab herself, and she was holding it needle-point down, half hidden in her crossed arms.

"Looking for someone?" Because otherwise, Raine wanted her to get out.

[quickdrawbkiddo.livejournal.com]

Even in as much pain as Beatrix was, she was still had an assassin's training and senses; she was well aware of the syringe the white-haired woman was doing a poor job of concealing in her arms. She did not look directly at the syringe nor did she move her knife at all, but maintained the nonthreatening placement of it. Let the woman think she had an edge if it made her feel better.

She found the question amusing and almost laughed. Instead, the Bride simply raised an eyebrow. "Someone to treat my injury," she replied, her voice calm and collected, though the pain she was in slipped into her tone just a little. Her eyes clearly showed it as well as her own exhaustion.

"This is the clinic, yes?"