higanbana | week 1, night 1

[ That was .... an experience. And not a pretty one. But it's over and there's a moment to breathe now? Except not really since Mithos can hear how Ris' breath keeps catching. Mithos himself feels like he's on the verge of tears but he's ... managing to hold them back.

He's sitting next to the bed (doesn't seem right to sit on it when it's not his) hugging his knees. He hears King's question and shakes his head without looking at the dog himself. ]

Please, don't concern yourself with me.

[ Concern yourself with the girl who had ... whatever it was it definitely wasn't an eye the way it disappeared ... taken out instead he's Fine ]

[How does one even begin to answer that? The easier answer would be to just break down in tears out of sheer mortification, but... no. She's put both of them through more than enough as it is.

She just needs to swallow it and pull herself together. She can cry once they're not looking. It'll be just like with the Doctor back then, only she doesn't actually detest these people with every fiber of her being.]

It's... [Deep breaths, Ris. She's making some efforts to correct her speech patterns, now, so at the very least it seems like she's re-approaching normal?] It is a little sore, but far better than it was. I imagine some soreness is natural, given... well.

[She makes a soft sound, something approaching a bitter laugh.]

...My apologies, Mithos. I couldn't even keep it at "pleasant" for more than a couple of hours.

[Bowing her head and releasing a shaky sigh, she addresses both of them.]

...Thank you. I hardly know how I can even begin to repay either of you for this.

[Yeah, he knew it was a stupid question, but it was a question that needed to be asked. Ris just went through improv eye surgery, to get rid of an eye that was made of dark magic, or something incredibly close to it. And Mithos got to have a front row seat to see it! The fact that King himself wasn’t screaming into a pillow is a testament to his own self-control, he has no idea how neither of them ended up passing out during the whole thing.

He rubs at his eyes with the palms of his paws, stress starting to show a bit more on his face. So much stress in one day...]

It’s fine, Ris. You...probably would’ve done the same for either of us, right? Plus, even seeing magic stuff before, that was...new.

Now, important question, do you have any idea how that thing got there? It’s fine if you don’t, I’m just...very worried, in all honesty.

[He’s not angry, per say, just...extremely tired. He just wants this to not be caused by the conductor.]

[ Mithos turns his head to look at Ris as she makes her apology to him. He manages a small smile. King pretty much took the words out of his mouth for the most part but-- ]

We might have lost the pleasantries, but maybe ... we'll find something else.

[ This is a game of trust they're playing, after all ...

Beyond that Mithos is quiet. He'll leave King to the questions. Being front row to a scene like that was ... exhausting. And he didn't want to ask too much of Ris right now by answering both their questions. ]

[Honestly, Ris is impressed by the two of them. She's broken down at less. Perhaps she thought too little of some of the guests aboard this train...]

[As for whether or not she would have done the same for them:] Certainly, but...

[She just sighs. She supposes there really is no follow up to that. This is a game of trust they're playing, after all, and with King now, as well. She may as well just try to answer his questions.

Sure, talking about this isn't fun, but Ris barely knows what that is to begin with. To her, it's like being given a task. That's something she knows, something she can grasp onto.]

...I... [She sounds hesitant, like she's still trying to think through what she's saying even as her lips are moving.] ...Perhaps?

It... feels as if trying to look through something opaque. But the last thing I recall, before waking up here...

[...It's funny, in a way. She doesn't mind talking about what the Doctor does, for the most part. Perhaps it's because all of those things happen to other people, and it's easy for Ris to distance herself from the situation. Turn his victims into objects even more than she herself is. But when it comes to her, it's uncomfortable.

Perhaps even moreso because Mithos is here. "Maybe we'll find something else," and yet if she's honest, she'll worry him just like everyone else aboard is. She doesn't want that.

...But this is a game of trust. So.]

Master was strapping me to the operating table. So... perhaps this happened within that fog in my memory? But I cannot imagine what his goal would have been.

Okay, new rule: That “master” of yours? He’s not allowed near you. This is a non-debatable rule. If we somehow ever see him, I’m going to bite him.

[Yeah, sorry if that seems kind of harsh, but...at this point? This is only the second time he’s heard of this guy, and both times have involved human experimentation, with this one involving experimenting on Ris. He doesn’t have any reason to not hate this guy.

King can’t help but pace around a little bit, trying to think. A lot of things are going through his head. The biggest one being, “Is this going to be a problem for anyone else?” Hopefully not, since Ris seems to be the only person missing a body part like that, but he never knows what he should expect in life. This train in general is gut punch to his nice life. The only bright side to it so far is that most people seem fine, and these two seem surprisingly trustworthy. In a place like this? That may be a blessing.]

Okay, that’s one positive, maybe? We don’t need that...woman in purple giving us things like that.

But, if it’s not her, then that may make a different problem. Specifically, since we can’t ask her about it, we have no idea about anything it could do...unless you’ve got something Mithos?

[He looks to Mithos at the last part. It...may not be the best strategy, but Mithos seems like the only one among them that could’ve seen some sort of magic like that. King knows he hasn’t, and Ris screamed at the sight of it. Plus, his world seems fantasy inclined, so hopefully...?]

[ Meanwhile for Mithos this is the first time he's ever heard of this "master". He's.... definitely on that list of people who Mithos instantly dislikes. Either way, although he doesn't voice it he agrees with King completely.

He keeps quiet until King asks his question. What is it that the "eye" can do ... Mithos takes a moment to think over what both Ris and King have said and how the eye just... disintegrated.

And also something that Mithos has realized upon being on this train. ]

Who knows, if it wasn't intended to be used as one would expect.

[ as in ... as an eye and not something-like-an-eye but really isn't if Ris feels like she's looking through something opaque. ]

But it seems she received it before coming here. The woman in purple wouldn't have anything to do with it.

[ ... ]

Many humans have a morbid sense of curiosity that can only be satiated by things such as experimentation, whether it be on another kind of being or another human alike. For all we know that.. is all it could've been.

[ Mithos... ]

Whatever it may have been, it's possible it was instilled with a sort of self-destructive mechanism. I'm not certain if it was due to magic, as magic doesn't seem to work here, but it would explain why it vanished once it was extracted. Perhaps to keep people from discovering its intentions. But this is only a guess.

[ Another one is that it's something that could only survive within Ris' ... eyesocket... but Mithos can't seem to bring himself to say that. Saying all this was exhausting enough and it was evident as he spoke. By the time he finished he voice sounded strained from holding back any emotion that would indicate that he really wasn't okay from all this. ]

[Ris has been keeping herself mostly together, but at the suggestion that King might bite the Doctor, her eyes widen and she sits upright off the wall.]

No. [It's said quickly, fearfully. She shrinks back after that, eyebrows knit together.] ...Please. It... would be dangerous for you, if you ever so much as saw him. [...] I don't want either of you to get hurt. Especially not for me.

[She sounds more genuine with that last bit than she has with most of her speech, short of the hysterical screaming.

And to their hypothesizing...]

...I really have no idea. Whatever it was... I'm just glad it's gone.

Fine, I won’t bite him. I could probably handle myself against him, but fine. The point is, I don’t want you going anywhere near him ever again, even when we get out of here. It’s an order.

[Again, harsh, but seriously, this guy sounds messed up.

Trying to figure out where this eye came from is looking like it’s only going in circles. It’s extremely worrying, but it...seems like it’s handled???]

Okay, proposing an idea here, you can call it out if it’s stupid, but what if we just...let this be? The problem seems like it’s over now. If it comes up again, we can do something about it, but right now it seems...alright?

Again, feel free to call me an idiot, I’m just trying to stop this conversation topic from looping forever.

[ Mithos nods slightly at the proposal ]

It's gone, so there's no reason to really continue it at this point.

[ There's really nothing to do but speculate and go in circles so what King is proposing isn't idiotic at all. That and they're all tired so having such a conversations continue probably isn't a good idea anyways ]

[An order, huh.. Ris just stares, a little wide-eyed, at King for a moment before sighing with the tiniest hint of a smile.

It's not ever going to be that easy, she knows that. But still, it's a sweet gesture.

So, to the proposal, Ris just nods.]

All we'll do is tire ourselves out more than we already are. [Ris will just say it outright.] It is distressing, still, certainly, but it... I am no longer in pain, and it is gone.

...I have always found it is better not to stick one's nose in further where it doesn't belong. It tends to be safer that way.

[...]

...And I would very much like to not be the source of any further distress for either of you this evening.

[King's a little bit surprised that his suggestion is not being treated like the stupid idea. It's nice to be the one suggesting the reasonable option, and everyone agrees with you.]

Alright then, we'll stop talking about it, and only bring it up again if something weird like that happens again.

[While this event was disturbing as all heck, he knows when he needs to be involved with magical insanity, and something like that would definitely worry him enough to get him involved.

He gathers up the utensils that were...used, making sure to keep them away from his body.]

I'm going to find a place to hide these and hope to high heaven they don't get found and used for literally anything else.

Ris, you may want to keep your eye covered up. I don't know much about medical stuff, but I feel like letting it be exposed to the open air might not be the best thing.

Mithos, I'd appreciate it if you would put the disinfectant back where it was. We don't need a panic starting because one of the medical supplies are missing.

And both of you...try to get some sleep if you can. Please.

Does all this sound good?

[His voice takes on a sort of dad-like tone. Not really trying to be bossy when he's giving these orders, just that he's thinking these are the best things they can do in the situation.]

[ Mithos nods to King's proposal. He finally moves from his position on the floor and gets up to grab the disinfectant that he got earlier. ]

Yeah, that sounds alright. Try to get some sleep if you can as well, King.

[ He's ... probably isn't going to if he's honest but he's going to follow what Ris said and try not to let it cause anymore distress tonight. ]

I can work with that.

[As far as keeping the eye covered:] Please, do not worry yourself about me any further. I know how to handle this from here. [Which isn't meant to brush him off, but just reassure him that it will be well taken care of.]

I can make no promises about sleep, but... I will make an attempt. That much, I can promise you both.

[She knows already it won't work, but hey. Laying down and staring at the ceiling while everyone else sleeps won't be much different than wandering.]

Thank you both, again. I can only hope that someday, I'll be able to repay you for this.

I'll try Mithos.

[Which roughly translates to "I'm probably going to be tossing and turning all night from disgusting nightmares. Don't worry about it though."

And Ris has the eye thing handled with! Awesome! He doesn't even need to be paranoid about that!]

I'm sure you will, Ris.

[He starts walking to the door as he's saying this.]

Both of you...try to have a good night, okay?

[He's half jokingly serious, half genuinely afraid for the two of them.]

week 1, night 1

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