damaged

[tosa]

inspired by this comic!

(It's after a particularly rough sortie and after everyone's been looked over and evaluated. Most of them might be able to get by with just some light repairs and rest but some are not as lucky. Rest alone won't be enough and they'll have to go in for more serious repairs. It could take all day at best or more at worst.

Serious repairs are exactly what they sound like-- serious-- but there's always that extra element that makes them a little more hesitant to surrender their true forms and enter the repairs room. Without their swords and reeling from heavy damage, they're perhaps in their most vulnerable state. It's times like this, alone with just their thoughts for company, that their years really begin to catch up with them. For some, it isn't too bad. There are a lucky few who are blessed with shorter histories or brighter lives but the unfortunate truth is that for many of them, the years have not been kind.

But this is their situation! And it can go one of a few ways right now...)

A.

(After some light harassing, Mutsunokami has managed to convince someone to get repairs! Would it help if he went with them? He doesn't mind, really and he'll even hold their hand as they stand in front of the room.)

Ready? (He gives their hand a firm squeeze,) It'll be over before ya know it!

B.

(Or maybe Mutsunokami is the one that's here for heavy repairs. Mutsunokami is one of the luckier swords in question, someone with a shorter and much more pleasant history compared to others. Honestly, he finds repairs more boring than anything. Of course, he uses his blessings to focus on his companion right now. Being stuck in this room sure is boring! Sorry to get you dragged in here with him, heh heh... And sometimes he dozes off because being damaged is exhausting.

Repairs are pleasant enough for him but his damage is a little heavier today than usual. It's not something he's really used to and it shows when he suddenly jerks awake from a short nap, looking around the room in an alert sort of daze before relaxing.

Huh... strange.)

C.

(Wildcard, give me your own prompt, talk to me, maybe theyre both in for repairs or something instead.)

Comments

[hoasen]

[She going to punish him so thoroughly, he'll be asking for seconds. (Wait.)

Goodness, his forehead is also warm. He's sore, tired, from the way he's acting, but also unusually warm. Is this meant to be part of the process, or is he running a fever? She touches his forehead again, this time a lot more gentler as she tries to get a feel for his body temperature.

Still, she immediately stops talking when she hears his request and the patter of feet against the tatami mats. They didn't wander in, at least. But then that leaves them completely alone.

It's even worse to be alone here when it comes to Mutsonokami, who is usally so excitable. As requested, she's already quiet, so she then leans against the wall right next to him.]

Here. [It was barely louder than a whisper, because of how he didn't want to be overwhelmed by every sword in the citadel. And then pats her shoulder.]

Rest your head here, if you do not wish to move just yet.

[tosa]

( He doesn't argue, accepting her offer and leaning against her easily enough. He even buries his face in her shoulder, trying to hide away from whatever it is that's bothering him right now. He could really use some physical contact right now so this definitely helps. But when his memories are hitting their peak point.

A dimly lit room, a sound outside the door, someone-- Ryouma-- yelling at whoever it is outside to quiet down. Ryouma standing to yell outside the room while Mutsu waits back and--

He flinches again, curling up next to Vietnam as he pulls he comforter closer around him. )

Ryouma... ( He sounds weak, desperate, and there's a pain in his side. Or is he just remembering it? ) Stop it...

( As vivid as the memory of that night is though, another memory begins to bleed in-- one that is warm and makes his head feel fuzzy, like it's full of smoke. )

[hoasen]

[There there, he can rest now. He needs to sleep this off in any case, with his temperature rising and the fact that he's easily disturbed by the slightest sound and movement...

But it's okay, she'll keep him company. And it's a good thing too, because that was when she noticed that he's much worse off than she had initially thought, now that his defences are down.]

Ryouma?

[Ah his old master. Mutsunokami often spoke about him, and she knows that no one can be as precious to Mutsunokami as Ryouma, who practically shaped him, was.

That kind of memory, if it's hazy from the pain he is suffering now, if he was definitely feverish...

Vietnam pulls the one half of the comforter away from him, cradling his head so she can tug it out from under them, and then crawls in under it, just so she can properly hold him. Away from the thickness of a blanket, close enough so that she can rub his back soothingly.]

Shhh, Mutsnokami. I am here now. [He's hot to the touch, and it would be best to lie him down with a wet towel, she believes. But first, she sees how he responds.] I'm going to move you back to the futon, okay?

[tosa]

( He makes a sound, something like a groan and a whine but he's really in no state to resist. He feels heavy, like his body is more lead than flesh and bone. There's a hand on his back and it feels nice through all of the soreness and heaviness he's feeling. He feels cooler the moment she removes the comforter but he also feels incredibly vulnerable without it and as she rubs at his back, he might make a noise that sounds something like a quiet cry. )

Stay. ( Here? With her? Or with his memories. ) Don't go. Stay here!

( His hands fumble and get tangled but he throws his arms around her, holding her protectively close. )

Just don't go, don't go... ( He's so feverish, he's delirious, ) Who's there? ( In his memory, someone is there. SOmeone is there, slashing and attacking. ) I can't... remember...

( Whispering, )

Why is it hot?

[hoasen]

[Well, her plans to get him to his futon are dashed, because she really should be tending to him right now, right here. It seems it's not just physical, but mentally he's been wounded that it needed mending as well.

That grip around her, protective like he would lose her otherwise, she can't help but hold him back, her head pressed to his chest so that he can be sure that he has her entire form in his grip. There, he can't lose her now. But this also puts her in a good position to lift him if need be.

But gently now, let's ease him through this first.]

It's Vietnam. I'm not going anywhere. Mutsunokami, Ryouma's not... [--here. Wait Ryouma? Why is it hot? What was happening in his dream?

Nevertheless, she starts to stand, to encourage him to do the same so that she can pick him up.]

Let's go somewhere cooler.

[tosa]

( There's a voice reaching him through his fever and he whines, trying to focus on that instead of this growing heat he feels. Ryouma's not... he can finish the thought. He's not here. He hasn't been here in a long, long time.

He can feel some sort of force lifting him up and he really doesn't have the strength to resist. He also doesn't have the strength to support himself which means she's bearing his whole weight. Somewhere cooler sounds nice and if someone is promising that, he wants to go. )

[hoasen]

[He's not feeling well, so this is a lot easier than she thought, being able to move him. He comes with her willingly, so she manages to carry him over, letting him drape all over her smaller body, up until they reach his futon. He's burning up, much more violently than before, and those dreams must have gotten his blood flowing as well.

When they reach his futon, she immediately lies him down, and with the tub of water nearby, possibly used before to try to dress his wounds, she dips a towel into the clear water so that she could try to dab the coolness of water over him. Over his face, his chest, arms and legs, so that he can start to cool down faster.]

This will feel much nicer, no?

[tosa]

( It does feel nicer and it helps him relax a little more, even if he still seems terribly out of it. He doesn't respond right away, fighting back his fever along with his memories. Vaguely, in his haze, he knows that these are all dreams and things that have already passed but it's so hard to not get caught up when he feels so exhausted right now.

He tosses and turns on occasion but eventually he seems to settle and the tension in his body seems to relax. He closes his eyes tight and there's a sound in the back of his throat like a cry beginning to start. When he speaks again, his voice is small, uncertain, nothing like how he usually is, )

They can still fix me... right? ( He opens his eyes, bleary and watery, ) Even if... it's this bad?

[hoasen]

[She's going to have to get that fever down, he won't be the only one fighting it. She's here with him, and being lucid, it means she can succeed. He's doing his best, and she's sure of it. At least his questions were beginning to sound a little more like he's aware.

When he speaks, she stops what she's doing for a moment (checking his temperature to see if she needs to give him another wet towel), and takes his hand into hers. With her other hand, she feels over his cheek, partly to check his temperature again, but mostly to give him comfort.]

Of course. They've been trying so hard to fix you, no? You just need to rest and heal, and you'll be healthy in no time.

[And since no one is around to see it...she presses her lips to his forehead, before continuing to fan him a little more, and then dabbing the wet towel at his neck.]

I'll make sure of it, as I won't leave your side. You still have a lot of nice things to show me as well, and I can't do it without you.

[tosa]

( His memories are uncomfortably warm-- an a dark room, filled with forgotten things, a sudden fire, and then the air is cold.

It's too early to tell because he's still feeling the heat but his fever will break and he'll start to cool down. The worst of it seems to be passing and it helps to have someone close. When she touches his cheek, he can't help but turn his face into her hand, trying to feel her for as long as he can. The kiss is really the last thing it takes to make him cry, though. He hates crying and he'd decided a long time ago to take on the role of the one who can be depended on to smile a long time ago. But actually, he cries just as easily as Izuminokami whom he always teases.

It's embarrassing to cry, though, and he shifts, turning over in the futon and reaching to grab onto Vietnam's hand or skirt or something. Even if she's said she won't leave, he wants to make sure she doesn't. Those memories had been so lonely and right now, he needs to feel someone else with him. )

[hoasen]

[He's beginning to cool, so she's thankful. The worst has passed, most likely, so it's just a matter of making sure it doesn't come back, so that when he wakes up, all will be well. Seeing him distressed like this pains her, and even more so when she realises that the wetness of his cheeks now belongs to his own tears.]

Mutsunokami...!

[She exclaims softly, not wanting to startle him, and starts to wipe away his tears as gently as possible. Just what was he reliving? She knows for a fact, Mutsunokami lives through a lonely life, for someone who is always looking forward, searching the world for his next adventure. She understands all too well, that he will never be able to get back what he once had, or change what he wish he could. Such is the life of an immortal.

The desperation of him reaching out for her, when he touches her skirt, she takes his hand in hers again, rubbing the back of his knuckles. He wants to keep her there, no? Then she will allow it. With their hands still entwined, she lays down next to him, after judging that his fever is beginning to go down, and rests her head on his shoulder. Since she's not that heavy, the weight of her presence can comfort him.]