2011-06-04 - Chocolate and Flowers for a Cyber-Newtype

As not many ships are prepared to deal with 'mental' injuries, it was only a slight suprise that rather then taking her to a normal carrier's infirmery, a handful of doctors had cordoned off a section of the Hiryu's medbay to treat a recovered pilot. What could be heard while the mercifully soundproofed door was open... wasn't pleasent. However, after a few hours, the medical team had formed their own little huddle in the crew lounge, and the doctor, a somewhat severe-looking Japanese woman with chort-clipped black hair, thin-wire spectacles, and a fresh labcoat, was standing watch in the corridor beside an uncomfortable looking guard, smoking a thin cigarette.

Of course, after hearing that Eight was in the infirmary after yesterday's battle with the DC forces, Ryusei was going to come and check on her and there wasn't really anything anyone could do to keep him from doing just that.

He shows up in his regular uniform, a boquet of flowers in hand as a standard get-well-soon gift and a gift-wrapped box in his other hand. (the paper is red with a pattern of blue chibi-gespensts all over it. It even has a ribbon!) "I'm here to see Eight." He proclaims to the doctor, as if challenging her to somehow stop him. The doctor doesn't challenge him at first, but as he approaches the door, she exhales a large puff of smoke, and glares at Ryusei. The guard reaches out to block Ryusei, silently shaking his head, as the doctor looks Ryusei over, centering on the 'SRX' logo. With a cold, frustrated tone in her voice clouding what would be a high-class accent, she says "This is *just* what I need: one of Kobyashi's brats. Which one are you? The idiot hero, or the cheerleader?"

Ryusei Date has to visibly restrain himself from doing something inappropriate (or, in other words, to punch her.) He just stands his ground, glaring at her, almost growling.

Then, he does something possibly unexpected: He just sidesteps the doctor and walks up to the door, refusing to even answer her question. While he may not have a name, or a clearly defined face, there /is/ a guard, and a weighty hand pushes Ryusei back as the doctor continues, "#8 has just suffered considerable psychic trauma. It's a small miracle we managed to stabilise her this quickly. Why should I let you in, and risk a relapse, boy?"

Ryusei Date of course doesn't understand. "I'm not going to hurt her, damnit! Who do you think I am?!" he responds in kind, waving the boquet of flowers under the guard's nose threateningly (okay, maybe not much). "I just want to pay her a visit!"

Looking over the rim of her glasses, the Doctor states, "A psychodriver. And a particularly powerful one, if your record has anything to say. All that 'Hot Blood and Courage' they've tried to induce in you could have dangerous effects on an esper as strong as her."

Staring the pilot down, a few moments pass silently as the Doctor seems to consider something. Then, with a wave of her cigarette, the soldier reluctantly stands aside, letting Ryusei pass. "Who knows?" the doctor says, more to herself then to Ryusei, "She might even kill you..."

"Don't be ridiculous!" Ryusei mpfhs, not even bothering to take her seriously. He knows how to deal with pushy doctors! He has a lot of experience in the field of visiting people in the hospital, after all... you just need to be pushier than they are! The automatic door slides open, as Ryusei quietly walks in the room... trying not to make too much noise. She could be sleeping, after all.

The isolation room hasn't much changed. The room's sole occupant is lying on the bed, restrained by a series of padded straps at her joints. IV tubes, ECG monitors, and a set of... what one /hopes/ are electrodes banadaged to her forehead are hooked up to the equipment surrounding her, as meaningless readouts report what one hopes is a stable condition. Her eyes are open, but she only seems dimly aware of Ryusei's entrance, turning to look at him in silence.

Ryusei takes in the scene in a handful of seconds as the door closes behind him. He pulls a chair next to the bed, sets down the flowers and the gift box on a nearby table, and just sits down next to her, idly wondering if she's awake or asleep, or how bad her condition is, or if she can see him at all. He's smiling to her, but it's a sad sort of smile.

It takes a little while for Eight to push past the silent, uncomprehending look before she manages, "Re... Ryusei? What... What are you doing...? Where am I?"

Ryusei instantly cheers up when Eight shows some reaction. "Easy." He whispers to her. "Don't try too hard. You're in the Hiryu Kai's sickbay. And this-" He opens the gift-wrapped box, "-is chocolate."

"Flowers... Chocolate..." Eight glances at them both, and tries to sit up, only to be stopped by the restraints. Struggling with them, her placid face suddently twists into a furious grimace, and works her hands quickly and deftly, breacking the lock, and unstrapping herself in a few dozen seconds... And almost instantly regrets it as the monitors flare into cautionary signs, and she grips her head.

".... Hurts...." is about all she can manage, as she breathes heavily.

Ryusei Date almost jumps up from his chair, surrpised and a bit terrified by Eight's sudden reaction. "Whoa, WHOA! You're still wounded! Hold your horses!" He says, gently grabbing her by the shoulders. "Y-you should... you know. Lie down. Take it easy. You're in sickbay for a reason, Eight."

Following Ryusei's advice, Eight lies back down, rubbing at the bandages on her forehead. Patting her face, she suddently realises: It's not her usual mask. The strip of black cloth over her face covers the same area, but on closer inspection, Ryusei can now see the bloodshot, icy-blue eyes behind them, and she quickly whips her head around, looking for the real mask.

It's lying on a gurney, appearing to have had a lot of blood recently cleaned off, from the disinfectant-laden cloths next to it.

Ryusei notices what she's looking for, following her troubled gaze.5 "Wh-what's wrong? You want your mask back?" He asks, standing up. "Don't move... I'll get it for you. Just relax." Walking up to the gurney, he delicately picks the mask up in his hands. "Why do you keep this anyway?" he wonders, more to himself than anything else.

Looking at the inside of the mask, there's perhaps a bit more explaination: Irridescent circuitry patterns are barely visible inside the lining, with tiny gold electrodes at strategic points. The lenses, from the inside, are completely transparent.

Reaching for the mask, Eight looks away, and says, "Please... I just... My eyes are all wrong." she says, not sounding terribly convincing. "I just need it, OK?"

"...If you're sure about this." Ryusei mutters, handing it delicately to Eight. "Here." He walks around the bed and sits back down next to her.

Turning away, Eight unties the cloth mask, and sets it aside. Wrapping the mask under her hair, she clicks the two side straps together, then snaps the third into place, adjusting it so that it fits just right. If Ryusei tries to sneak a look, he'd once again see scarring and discoloration around her eyes, made somewhat worse by a few new minor nicks here and there across her face. Lying back down, she looks back at Ryusei, and after a few moments, admits, "I failed, Ryusei. I had that rebel leader right in front of me... And I couldn't stop him..."

"Did you do your best?" He cuts her short to ask that simple question.

Eight wants to answer, but she looks away, somewhat anguished. "I... I couldn't. He... He did something... His will, it froze my heart... Twisted in my soul like a knife. He was..." She shudders, in reminiscence. "I've never felt something like that before. Something so.... powerful... So *twisted*..."

Ryusei nods quietly. "...There was someone so terrible there that you could feel it so strongly?" His face becomes more grave and serious. "Who was he? What machine was he driving?"

Eight shakes her head. "The leader. He was piloting a silver and gold mobile suit... I've never seen that model before. I don't know his name, but... He's... He's like me. I could feel it." She shudders again, clutching her chest painfully as she remembers. "But... The power he had... I couldn't... I tried to fight it, but it was too much. He managed to get away. And... And then, the command ship... It took us all out in a single salvo. It even crippled the SDF-01..."

"...I've seen the footage. That was some terrible firepower. But it's alright now. You'se safe." He says. offering the box of chocolate to her. "You can take a break. Stop thinking or worrying about that. Relax and stay in bed. You deserved some rest."

Looking at the chocolates carefully, Eight frowns, and selects a single plain caramel from the box, taking a careful bite. She frowns at the taste, more in confusion then dislike. "What... Sweet...?" she asks, not quite sure how to phrase it.

Ryusei stares at her for a moment. "...It's chocolate. You never had chocolate? Mom loves it, I always bring her some when I go see her at the hospital... It's delicious!" He explains.

Eight frowns, munching down on the chocolate, then reaching for another, face screwed up in consternation. "I... Can't remember. It... I can... It *feels* familiar..." she mumbles between bites, and she looks to Ryusei. "Your mother... She's injured?"

In a terrible breach of etiquette, Ryusei can't resist eating one of them himself as he explains. "She's sick. She has a very weak constitution, and spends a lot of time in hospital. One of the reasons I agreed to enlist is that in exchange for my service in Project SRX, the EFA would transfer her to a top-notch hospital and pay all the bills. Munch munch. "I visit her every chance I get."

Ryusei stands back up from the chair. "Well... I'd like to stay here more, but... got training to do. Villetta's trying to put back together team SRX, so it's a lot of simulator and T-Link training for me, in order to pull Variable Formation correctly." He smiles. "I'm happy to see you're fine. Hope to see you back on your feet soon... but don't rush things! Take it easy on your body."

Eight considers this, and then looks... Almost emberassed. "I... I don't..." She nods, and stopping short of a salute, offers Ryusei a timid wave, as she manages a weak smile. "Goodbye."