ataraxion | ► 002.

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► 002.

[the video coming on is a complete accident. the hallway she's in is cast mostly in gloom, and only slightly more than her outline is visible. nill is clutching the comm in her hand, the camera aimed at her crooked. she's wearing one of her dresses from the most recent jump. her face is just out of the frame, but her wings aren't. they're standing straight out from her back, quivering. and from just that small movement, a feather falls.

and then nill darts from her hiding spot into the lit hall, and her wings are in full view. they look scraggly, a few thin patches visible. the sudden movement makes another feather come out, and then the video darkens again as she finds shelter in the next dark hallway. the feed cuts.]

think i am sick
heine where are you

[ooc; molting molting molting yeah]

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[well that is completely unhelpful, dave. but she isn't going to let it show, because at least he's trying. and that was just about what everyone she'd talked to was doing: trying. nobody really had any solid answers.

that question catches her off guard, and she can't help but be honest, so she nods. and then immediately realizes that it was a mistake, that she should have lied to keep him (and anyone else, really) from worrying. so she adds:]

itches more

[ See, that doesn't actually mollify him any. When something hurts, it hurts, and usually there's nothing you can do about it (if you're a first aid stunted fourteen year old who's been using magical fruit snacks to recover health bar points) except ignore it and keep going. But when something itches and you fucking scratch it, you're being tricked by your own body into picking at the floodgates and worsening things for yourself.

What is logic, stop judging him, he's bad at this being concerned thing.

Dave gnaws at the inside of his bottom lip slightly and finally, resignedly, admits: ]

'kay, guess I just gotta suck it up and admit that... this isn't anything I can do shit about. Run like the devil wants to ram a hot rod up my ass, yeah, that I can do, but deal with dandruff feathers? That's major league shit right there, and I've never been particularly good at not fumbling the ball while making for home base.

[ Maybe his wtfbbqdumb rambling can give her something else to focus on or something. He doesn't know. ]

[word vomit is usually a good way to distract nill. she's too busy trying to decipher it all to think about her own problems.

she blinks once, and then smiles. no, she hadn't expected him to do anything about it. that was silly. he wasn't a doctor, as far as she knew (thank god), so she had zero expectations of help. just a nice conversation, maybe, as one-sided as it might end up being. nill shrugs just a little: it was okay. he didn't need to help, that was a bit much to ask of him even if he could have.]

[ At least he's good for something, right? He snorts, pushes his hair out of his face. ]

Welp, long as we're clear on that, I guess. Hope you find someone who, uh, actually can do more than jack shit for you, 'cause honestly? I'm just shy of straight up taping your feathers on.

[wow maybe he should let her cut his hair or something.

there's a pause before she replies, and she looks caught between being miserable and panicking. this is exactly the last thing she wanted to happen, and even when it's betty, she still doesn't like doctors, doesn't want one near her in any kind of medical or scientific capacity.]

calling a doctor

[ If Nill doesn't get to it first, there's a high chance Dirk will. I mean, c'mon, Dirk's been cutting his own hair since he was born--it's only a matter of time before he takes scissors to Dave's mop. ]

Don't like doctors? Welp, not like you're the only one. It might be better to get a vet up in here anyway. Thing about doctors is that most of 'em specialize, but they've also got good working noggins that can brain out things about other shit too.

[ He pauses. ]

Wait, lemme guess--a diatribe on doctors isn't what you want to hear right now.

[nope nill will definitely get there first if he lets her. boys + mops of hair =/= okay. she's already thinking about cutting heine's, they can make it a party.

nill... doesn't actually know what a vet is, so the first bit of his response is lost on her. so instead she gives a shrug and shakes her head. no, she did not like doctors one bit. besides the fact that doctors (well, scientists) had been the ones to give her those wings and take away her voice, a doctor had traumatized heine. she isn't one for discrimination, truth be told. nothing good had ever come from a doctor's mind, as far as she was concerned.]

[ Why do you judge us and our uncut hair so, Nill? Why? But yeah, ok, a hair trim party sounds kind of gay. ]

Right. I guess here's where I tell you that I don't really go to doctors either. We Striders are firm believers in DIY first aid. [ Though Dave sucks at it. ] 'course I don't think that applies to you right now, but like usually, after a strife? My brother would patch me up good as new.

[ A different brother. But not. Shit's complicated. ]

[wow deal with it a cute girl will be cutting your hair.

but that makes her smile a little. while she hadn't thought she and heine were the only ones, it was good to actually hear it from another person. she only had some basic first aid skills herself, her single patient being badou. heine never needed the help, after all. but it was nice of dirk to take care of his brother--she thought that was something siblings should do.]

[ ...okay, dealing with it sounds like a plan. ]

In case it ain't obvious, a strife is a fight. Like, we'd break out our shitty ninja swords--okay, only mine was shitty, his was the equivalent of some ancient Chinese sword master's legendary blade of unbreakability--duke it out on the rooftop, blazing heat and stink of tar notwithstanding. [ Dave keeps his face neutral, feels the nostalgia eating at him. ] He'd always wipe the floor with me. I never beat the guy. !

[ By this time, he's successfully segued away from doctors. Gj, Dave. ]

excellent choice.

he'd fought with his brother? she couldn't imagine why, but he didn't seem as if he was particularly upset about it. maybe that was a sibling thing. nill could never really tell, especially not with dirk and dave. but yes, the segue away from doctors is an awesome one. she has completely forgotten about them. she's too busy thinking about how good of a fighter dirk might be. that probably isn't where he intended her thoughts to go oops.]

[ Dave suddenly looks thoughtful, like some comical lightbulb has just flickered to life above his head. ]

Maybe I should strife with Dirk here, see what happens. I might be able to beat him, since he's all bite-sized.

[ Ramble, ramble, whoops. ]

[nill stares a bit. she knew that giovanni called himself heine's brother and they fought, but she's pretty sure that if either dirk or dave got shot through the heart they'd just die. they didn't have the collars, weren't able to heal in mere moments. at least, not that she was aware. but she'd never seen someone without the collar do it. even the twins, probably no older than ten, could recover from nearly being choked to death in just a minute or two.

but she does look slightly concerned about the idea of them fighting. only slightly.]

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► 002.

she feels so special deep down inside

He feels special bus all over right about now, so the feeling is kind of mutual?

ahahha good

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