[001] take these sunken eyes and learn to see [CLOSED]

[betrayedambassador]

Who: Zulf, Aerith, Martha, Souji
Where: Zulf's room -- fifth floor, number 016.
When: Monday, April 8, very early morning.
Rating: PG-13 -- blood's involved. Also, mention of suicide.
Summary: Some of Zulf's wounds have opened up again and he's losing blood. Aerith, Martha and maybe Souji come to his aid.

Room 016 has transformed itself into a traditional Ura bedroom. There's an empty altar, covered in white cloth, wedged in a corner. The walls are all covered in tapestries. The bed is wooden, only a couple of inches off the ground and piled with blankets and pillows, all in colours and patterns that Zulf finds almost unbearably nostalgic. Loath to bleed on such finery and too weak to move in any case, he's lying on the floor by the wardrobe. Blood is soaking through his waistcoat, turning the muted orange a deep burgundy. His face is a blank mask. He is too tired and too weak to even moan.

His heart flutters in his chest, a bird beating against the mesh of its cage. Every breath he takes is laboured, painful. At least I'm not coughing up blood, he thinks, letting his eyes fall closed. At least--

The pain is, at least briefly, his whole world. He takes what he thinks might be one of his final breaths, deep and shuddering, and starts reciting, voice wavering, a prayer to the Lorn Mother.

This is not how he thought he'd die. He thought he would die in bed, surrounded by family, hailed as a hero in his obituaries. Later, he thought he'd die at the hands of his own people, on the cold marble of the Tarzal Terminals. He thought he would die falling off the Bastion, he thought he would die by his own hand.

He runs out of prayer and concentrates on breathing. In, out. In, out.

In.

Out.

Comments

[selfrespecting]

If Martha notices that Zulf is uncomfortable, she doesn't show any sign of it. She knows that people can get flustered when they're being examined, and she's found that the best thing to do is carry on as if nothing's wrong to put them at ease. She starts to peel away the old bandages there, coated with the red-brown of dried blood, and then unwraps the new roll that they retrieved from the closet.

The closet, which can supposedly give you whatever you want, if you wish for it. That's almost unbelievable, but she's not about to question it when she just saw it with her own eyes. She can test it later, when she finds a room she can claim as her own. "Well, that should come in handy. Thanks.

"And I'm Martha," she says by way of introduction as she leans forward and starts to wipe at what's left of Zulf's wound with one of the antiseptic wipes. "Sorry, it's gonna sting," she says under her breath.

Even while working, she returns her attention to Aerith and Souji. "Would you mind if I ask what you two did before? How you healed him like that? I've never seen anything like it."

[cetra]

Aerith watches Martha work, tilting her head to the side to get a better look. Though she's able to heal, it doesn't hurt to learn other methods. There's no telling what could happen in the future.

At Martha's question, she blinks, turning her attention back to the doctor. "I'm able to cast healing magic. It's something that runs in my family." Which is probably the best answer to give without going into her entire ancestry, which seems to be what people were always curious about when she was younger.

[eatsyourscience]

Souji is at the closet again, getting some cleaning supplies to get started on the blood on the floor. He speaks over his shoulder.

"I used one of my Personas. They're usually used for fighting, though."

[betrayedambassador]

Zulf tries to keep stoic as Martha tends his wound. He only winces once and makes no noise at all.

He's a little overwhelmed by what's happening -- he's never witnessed magic before directly, being a diplomat and not a Mancer. He's suddenly bursting with questions, but figures they can wait 'til a more opportune time.

Except one.

"This is a rather indelicate question and you should feel free to not reply," he says. "However, am I right in assuming that you are ... shall we say ... not from the same place as I am?"

He hopes they're foreigners. He suspects he is wrong.

[selfrespecting]

If Aerith's magic (and it's odd to realize that magic is something that exists, because the only time Martha's ever encountered it, it's been a kind of technology) is based on her ancestry, then that must mean she's not completely human. It would be rude to ask too many more questions, so Martha only nods and then focuses on Souji.

"A Persona? What is that?" She's never heard of it, but it seems like he definitely relied on help from some kind of being to aid with the healing process.

Martha finishes up with bandaging Zulf, making sure that they're tight enough to give him support without being painful, and then she pulls back, lowering his shirt back down. "There you go! And... that probably is the case, yeah. I'm from Earth, if that helps."

[cetra]

Having grown used to the idea that everyone is pulled from different places, Aerith gives Zulf a sympathetic smile. She remembers her astonishment when she learned that they were all from different planets and universes, so she also knows how overwhelming it can be.

"I'm from a planet called Gaia," Aerith explains, folding her hands in her lap. For the most part, everyone she knows just called it The Planet, the only one they have to even worry about. Except now her horizons have been expanded and she actually knows the name of her home, so it really wouldn't help to say 'I'm from The Planet', would it?

[eatsyourscience]

Souji doesn't look up at first from the two bottles of cleaner he's holding, reading their labels curiously. Blood is such a hard thing to wash out, even from hard surfaces. He does hesitate, though, because Personas are such...private things, on so many levels.

"It's a part of my soul." Just one of many, many parts. He does look up to address Zulf's question, though. "I'm also from Earth, though it might not be the same one."

[betrayedambassador]

"Oh," Zulf says. "I am not from the places you hail from. This is most peculiar. I did not think such things possible. You'll have to forgive me, it will take me some time to adjust."

[selfrespecting]

Something from his soul? If that's the case, then Martha can only imagine that Souji isn't completely human, either. Between Aerith, Souji, and Loki, she's already run into quite the varied bunch of people. Souji claims he's from Earth, but maybe not the same Earth. It's true that Martha's never heard of Personas, but it could all be dependent on what time he's from as well. She wants to ask more questions, but he doesn't seem that eager to answer them.

"It does take some adjusting, yeah," she says in response to Zulf. "For now, though, you just worry about getting some rest. Do you need some help to the bed?"

It would be a good idea to clean the blood out of the floor, not to mention all of it out in the hallway, but Martha wants to make sure that Zulf gets sorted out first.

[cetra]

Aerith's been watching Souji with a somewhat surprised look on her face. His summ-Persona she reminds herself - was actually a part of his soul. She's actually curious about that, but knows this isn't the time to ask him more about how it works.

She looks between Martha and Zulf, then down at the blood on the floor. "If we can get him in the bed, I'll clean up the floor." She looks thoughtful as she takes in Zulf's state. "Maybe we should pull some new clothes out of the closet, too." It can't be comfortable to be dressed in clothes that are caked in blood.

[eatsyourscience]

Souji finally decides on a bottle of cleaner. Armed with that and a handful of rags, he smiles at Aerith.

"I'll take care of the floor." The Mansion would probably clean up on its own if they left it alone long enough, but the smell of blood doesn't exactly make for a restful atmosphere.

He busies himself wiping up the blood, spraying it with the cleaner and then scrubbing it with the rags in his other hand.