010 | Talk about changing it up a bit...

[neverbeamemory]

Characters: Sephiroth & OPEN
Setting: December 20th - Floor 4 (Mid-Morning), extending to wherever it goes! 
Format: Start with my normal wordy prose, can switch to action if preferred.
Summary: Sephiroth's condition changes dramatically; well he wanted to be cooler...
Warnings: TBD - Other than the unnerving sight he must be by now. Add: Catarina sex/violence warning.

To Sephiroth, it was so hot now that days had started blurring into each other. He found it extremely hard to concentrate at the best of times and it had only gotten worse the longer this heat was going on. His focus was packed somewhere in the thick stuffy feeling he still had in his head; somewhere in all that thick mucus that wouldn't shift. On top of that the general feeling of sluggishness, sleepiness coupled with the frustrations of not being able to sleep well when he did try - all he seemed to do was slowly make his way daily down in the lift from the Dormitories and then make the slow, labored climb on burning feet to the 7th Floor. He'd spent hours just floating in that cooling pool, in the absolute belief that he needed to otherwise he'd likely cook from the inside.

Sephiroth was just entering the 4th floor from the stairwell when this torture suddenly changed.

"Ugh...."

It felt akin to being hit by a wall; a painfully cold chill hit him. Every pore of exposed skin abruptly felt impaled by icy spines and then sliced around inside - chilling Sephiroth to his core instantly. Extremities, namely Sephiroth's fingers, toes and nose, that were already well on the way to being more-than surface damaged by the real chilly temperature felt both on fire and in agonizing pain. He physically swayed with the impact of and must have blacked out for the second that it knocked the breath out of him.

THUD, THUD, THUD

When the world came back into focus all Sephiroth could hear to start with was the shocked-into-slowness sound of his own pulse. He'd fallen to his knees but couldn't recall his legs giving out from under him; in fact after thinking about it he couldn't feel much at all below his knees at all - he was totally numb. His gloved hands were holding his weight up off of the floor. Instinct it seemed had stopped him from falling flat on his face, though his wrists felt also like they were quickly weakening as the numbness crept quickly up from his frostbitten but covered fingertips. He was left staring at the floor; the limp, near-frozen braid of silver hair flung forward dragged on the floor as well - not that how he looked; white mostly and blue in places, had been at the forefront of his concerns in the last few days.

Since when did it get so cold? This was even colder than anything he remembers before.

And he was shaking. Violently shivering uncontrollably all over from the intense cold as Sephiroth tried to will himself to move. Slowly, Sephiroth near crawled across the floor to the wall, where he went about using the glass wall as support to get back on his feet. It was a painful, awkward affair laced with many failures that ended up with him crunched into the corner between floor and wall. He kept having to stop as well, to forcibly sniff half-frozen mucus back up into his nose; that flu was still a nagging annoyance but at least he couldn't feel much of how sore his nose was anymore. A small, double-edged mercy. At least the Floor seemed clear of monsters for now.

Comments

[xroyal_bratx]

"I'll grab more blankets on my way back," she replied as she rushed off, hearing his words as he said that. Ishtar knew that he was cold, but she didn't expect him to be that cold. That poor guy. She somehow felt very sorry for him, but at the same time, she felt that he kind of showed her he's not that much different from real people. At least, right now. Powerful guys were always full of something if it wasn't pride, it was ego or something else.

She rushed off too fast to see him do anything else as he pulled himself to bed. She managed to grab a few blankets and folded them so she could carry them, along with some disinfectants on top of the blankets and some bandages if the wound didn't heal the way she wanted to, but she was sure that she could fix the would with magic no problem. Ishtar was confident in her abilities as a healer and she knew that it was something that couldn't go wrong at this point. She had been in Facility and this place for a while now.

Even without Yujinn, she still had his magic book and she made sure to study them in her room when she had the chance. If Duzell was around, she'd already asked him to help her out with other things. Ishtar walked back just in time to catch his words, "Yeah and then what? You get an internal infection? Let's not risk that. I've brought extra blankets for you, bandages and alcohol. I'm going to have to remove the blanket for a bit so I can do my work, and then I'll put it back on you. I promise it won't hurt much after the disinfecting part."

She replied in a serious tone as she placed everything on a chair. Ishtar was being Ishtar right now, stubborn and demanding.

[neverbeamemory]

Sephiroth hadn't even gotten under the blankets yet, not even wanting to think about how sore his feet would feel under there once feeling returned from the dead-numb sensation they had currently. Once Ishtar had finished with him, he had already resolved that he would go about wrapping them up himself.

So after some adjusting to get comfortable, Sephiroth lay on top of the sheets with his shoulders propped up a little by the pillows. Lightly shivering all the while with his arms crossed across his middle. His gaze would fix at some irrelevant detail on the ceiling sometimes and he might fancy the idea of letting the exhaustion finally win over. Then he'd remind himself that it wasn't safe and he'd blink back the sleep and look around some more.

"Oh they'd love that." He meant of course the admins, one of which he solely blamed for the shocking cold snap. After all, he wouldn't even be suffering like this if they weren't playing with him in some way. Jenova cells simply didn't allow him to get into much harm when it came to illnesses like the common cold, or in fact anything that might pose as a threat to his survival. If he ended up having further complications as a result - all for their entertainment.

He hated being played with. Sephiroth's expression dropped into one of utter disgust as he slowly moved his arm from covering where the stab wound was so that Ishtar could get to it. He kept his gaze firmly on some distant point in the room; he didn't want to think too much about her playing nurse, his natural distrust of people had to be held back immensely as Ishtar went about her work.

[xroyal_bratx]

Ishtar would try her best to heal whatever pain he was feeling until he felt better about it. It didn't really matter if he was impervious on a daily basis, but right now he was injured, hurt and in pain. That was all that processed for her. She made a face at his comment, because it was true. Those bastards surely would enjoy watching strong people shrivel up in weakness while they watched. They were no different from those goddamn doctors from hell in Facility.

She didn't expect this place to be any better. What kind of place would be nice anyway? It seemed like collars were their thing as well Ishtar made an incoherent sound as she pulled everything out, including some cotton swabs and pouring the alcohol into a small pan that she found. She glanced at him briefly before continuing to his wound after he moved his hand from the festering wound where he was stabbed, "So uh, please grit your teeth and bear it if it hurts," she replied with a brief nervous laugh.

She then proceeded to get the tongs and the cotton attached to it and doused it in alcohol. After a few moments to let the excess drip off the cotton, she slowly started to dab the wound quietly, and precisely, trying to lesson his pain as much as she possibly could. She had a towel as well to dab the excess if there were any that ran down his form. It was probably cold, since Alcohol felt rather cool on normal skin and stung on injuries. She repeated the process a few more times before sitting back and tossing the cotton to the side.

She hoped that the infection would not happen. She didn't want him to be healed with some weird infection. She started to dab around the opened skin. She wanted to ask who had stabbed him, but it seemed like he would probably be pissed if she asked him. He didn't seem like he enjoyed being hurt, when he was usually impervious to things like that. She sighed a little as she finished up with that. She then placed her hands on the opened, cleaned wound.

"Alright, this will take a few minutes," she replied giving him a heads up before she closed her eyes, and started to chant some incoherent, foreign words. The thing that sucked with magic from her world, was that it required a lot of words and pronunciation. One small mispronunciation and it would be fatal.

[neverbeamemory]

As if the initial cold snap wasn't bad enough. Even though he had been prepared for something like it, the sensation of the cold alcoholic swab being dabbed across his wound like that was alike to the initial cold snap - a thousand tiny, freezing needles shooting into him. Sephiroth grunted sharply and flinched away quite significantly at the first contact.

Though with fists clenched and jaw set, he resolved to ride this out. Pointedly not looking at Ishtar at all and sometimes clenching his eyes shut as well while she dealt with the wound that in all fairness shouldn't have remained that open in order to get slightly festered in the first place. He logically surmised that it was due to this unfathomable freezing temperature he was feeling that his cells must have been frozen into inactivity. But if that was true surely he wouldn't be conscious?

Sephiroth had never had any reason to find out the parameters in which Jenova cells operated at their fullest potential - they had always been a constant. He was fairly sure, for one, that the cold shouldn't be having the effects on him that it was.

He nodded at her words when she placed her hands over that wound and then when she started muttering her magical language he closed his eyes as well. To try and concentrate on and wait for that surge that he'd briefly felt back on the stairwell previously. Perhaps this time with just a surge he could will it into giving his cells a jump start.

[xroyal_bratx]

Ishtar attempted to be as delicate as she could possibly be with the situation and she knew he must be in a lot of pain just bearing with the sudden shot of cold that was invading his body. She was glad that the ordeal was finished with cleanly and she rushed to wipe off the remainder of the alcohol that was still dripping down his pale skin.

With that said, she continued with her spell, allowing the healing to expand to every part of his body. She assumed that since he was so injured, she could use something a little stronger. This was something she picked up from Yujinn when he was still teaching her. A spell that would do the trick well but would still take time for the healed patient to recover. It was still the same rules: They shouldn't strain themselves for a short amount of time. The spell continued to exude all over his body, fixing up the wound and closing it while healing anything else that wasvin pain that he was feeling.

Ishtar hoped that the spell itself would provide more than basic healing. She didn't know how he would react if he got better later, but for now he seemed like he could use a lot of assistance and she was not going to deny anyone the assistance that they required. She finished the incantation off with a dizzy end. The room spun a bit before she could regain her posture. Ishtar gave him a look and spoke in a soft tone, "How do you feel?" she questioned as she pushed the blankets back onto his form along with the other spare blankets that she managed to grab on the way back.

"The healing does wonders, but you can't strain yourself. You have to take it easy for at least a day or two before you try anything. You're still probably sick, so that might be the best time to recover from your injuries as well. If anything still hurts, feel free to tell me."

[neverbeamemory]

So much for his cells waking up and assisting Ishtar with the healing that needed to be done, they reacted such as a teenager who stayed up to late and didn't want to get out of bed the next morning. How frustrating.

The spell left the entire surface of his skin feeling tingly. But it was a different, rather more soothing tingle than the tight numbness he'd been dealing with and so Sephiroth at least felt a lot more comfortable. "It feels strange." He answered. He seemed to physically relax a lot more into the bedding. Despite the still-constant shivering and occasional sniffles, he even managed to assist Ishtar to pull blankets over himself. It didn't help much for him to feel any warmer but perhaps she was right in that it would take time. He wanted so much to ask her why she felt so inclined to have gone to this length to help him, but that wasn't the more pressing concern right now.

"Is it safe here?" He referred of course to the Infirmary, having been attacked once by another resident he was of course concerned, should he allow himself to take the time he now needed to heal. Sephiroth wasn't used at all to dealing with being this vulnerable, and as the moments slipped by it became clearer that he was starting to have to fight against the exhaustion now taking over; to the point where even the light shivering was more infrequent in it's more violent spasms.

[xroyal_bratx]

Ishtar was still pulling the sheets over him as he said that. She had long stopped with the healing and hoped that somehow it would help his mood. He didn't seem like he was getting a lot better, but it seemed like the healing was helping a little bit with his nerves. She laughed a little at his words, "Yeah, healing words different depending on where you come from and what kind of grimoire you are used to. In my case, long boring old words could heal plenty of people," she replied attempting to make a joke out of it.

When she was certain that he was tucked in to the best of her abilities she looked at him again. It would take some time and she wasn't sure if she should be using any silly fire spells in this kind of place. It might be dangerous for the health and there's a possibility of burning something while she was here. Ishtar looked at him again when he asked her that question. She assumed that it should be safe, since it was suppose to be patients and people are unwell. There shouldn't be violence happening in these places. Ishtar parted her lips and spoke.

"Well, I'm sure it's pretty safe. If it makes you feel better, I can stay here until you feel like you can take on an ox again, or something," she mused with a bit of determination. She didn't know if he had enemies here or not, but she wasn't going to let anyone lay a hand on an injured and sick person while she could help it. Ishtar felt inclined to do what she did because it was her job and it was something that she enjoyed doing. She didn't judge people all that easily, and she admitted that the firs time she had met him, she assumed he was a pretty bad person. Now that she looked at it, he wasn't all that bad.

He's pretty intelligent and logical, and well she hoped with all her might that he wouldn't run her through with something. There always had to be that thought right? Since she had seen another version of him do just that to people she cared about, "Rest, I'll probably bring you food later and such. I promise I can stick around for however long you need."

[neverbeamemory]

What a strange expression: "until you feel like you can take on an ox again." Sephiroth looked at Ishtar a little perplexed but he got the gist - she didn't mind sticking around.

He really wasn't sure what to think about that though. He'd never had to have anyone take care of him, in fact, he couldn't even remember having been bedbound before. Sephiroth took a deep, shuddering breath and tried to let it out as smoothly as possible. It wasn't the easiest thing to do in his condition, but it helped to keep raging stubborn thoughts in check.

"Why are you doing this?" He near whispered at her, it was easier to speak that way now. It didn't hurt his throat so much and also didn't require so much energy. Before she could answer, Sephiroth coughed weakly pathetically before consciousness was finally starting to draw away.

[xroyal_bratx]

Ishtar had a lot of weird expressions on her mind, and at least they get tot he point? She didn't mind saying weird things, since she was used to it, but other people probably found it a little strange. She made her point clear though. She was going to stick around until he could move and walk on his own and if anyone were to try to hurt an injured and sick person, she'd be a pretty pissed off healer.

It didn't matter if they were bad or good, or whatever. She knew that most of the time people had reasons. If they didn't have reasons, they wouldn't behave the way they behaved. Those who had no reason and acted just because they can, she didn't find interest in assisting or helping them. They were only doing it because they can. She blinked as he whispered that to her.

"That's an easy question, actually," she replied with a small laugh. She paused to let him cough before replying, though not sure if he heard it or not. She'd probably answer it again if he asked later.

"I'm doing this because I can and because I don't like to see people sick or injured. I mean, you haven't really given me a reason to dislike you or something," she replied shrugging, "it's something I don't mind doing. I like to help people and it's not like I'm asking for anything in return, really."

[neverbeamemory]

Sephiroth just doesn't understand the idea of such selfless compassion. There always has to be something more, something that drives a person to act in this manner. He would have pushed the question as well, if he hadn't now been too exhausted to create the argument it would have caused. Time would have to tell what Ishtar's motives were. Undoubtedly something he now had no choice than but to deal with when this sickness had passed.

If it passed. Sephiroth was still freezing even underneath all of the blankets. Even as he slipped into an uneasy and somewhat involuntary sleep there would still be the short breaths, the light shivering and occasional episodes of more violent spasms.

[xroyal_bratx]

Ishtar would have answered the same way if he asked again and again. She simply didn't have any motive or thoughts towards helping him. It was the right thing to do and he needed help, so she helped, despite some of her own problems. He had not proved to be a bad person at all so she didn't want to treat him as such until she found out otherwise.

She pulled the sheets over him once more, a little tighter, before running off to dispose of the antiseptics and other things that needed to go in the trash but making sure to check up on him when she could.