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 Posted: Wed Mar 16, 2016 4:08 pm
Everything sort of hurt.
Two weeks Fritz had been in the hospital. Two weeks he'd had to endure the almost hourly check ins of his vitals, the changing of his bed sheets, the tiny, cramped bed that was more a piece of cardboard than anything else. His visitors had included Rhys and Hitch (and technically Regan, though that didn't really count, seeing as how she'd actually been in the hospital when he'd seen her), but visitors, while appreciated, did not make it any better staying.
And the nights were the hardest. It was hard to sleep with the constant in and out of the nurses, even harder to sleep when he was left alone with his own thoughts and the consistent, throbbing ache of his broken left wrist and hand, wrapped in its cast.
He wanted to get out. He had to get out.
He could not call Rhys or Hitch. Fritz wanted to give them time together, time to acclimate to the biggest change of his brother's life. He was still getting used to calling him Rhys and not Tolliver; but truth be told, Fritz would take that over being forgotten any day.
There was, however, someone that he could call; though Fritz was somewhat reluctant about that as well. Still, she was the best choice, it seemed.
He sent her a text early one afternoon:nuxaz Text to Fiona:Can you possibly come and get me? I'm at the Destiny City Hospital, room 303.
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Posted: Thu Mar 17, 2016 8:39 pm
It had been one of those rare days when Fiona had zero obligations, opting to relax at home and catch up on some of her favorite shows. She'd been marathoning Netflix's Jessica Jones when her phone lit up, the fairy sound from legend of zelda chiming to get her attention. She stretched across the couch to snatch the device off the end table hurrying to unlock it before it went off again.
Immediately after her two-colored eyes skimmed the message twice the ginger was wearing a very deep frown.
It took two minutes and twelve deep breaths for her to calm down enough to respond in a way that was a) non accusatory and b) not full of angry emojis.
kuropeco [ Text to Fritz: On my way. Be prepared for questions. ]
Once she'd hit send, she rolled off the couch and hurried over to her closet, shedding her comfortable shorts and tank top and pulling on a pale pink dress dotted with green dragonflies, a matching green sweater, long socks and her seemingly favorite pair of knee-high brown boots. Snatching her bag and keys off the counter, Fiona left her house and hurried to the hospital.
When she arrived she looked like a mix of concerned and irritated, long hair tumbling over her shoulder and down her back in messy waves.
"Fritz," she huffed when she saw him.
He looked mostly like he was in one piece and that was relieving.
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Posted: Fri Mar 18, 2016 9:25 am
Fritz looked, in generous terms, relatively worse for the wear. There were bandages on his forehead and beneath his right eye, which made wearing his glasses a little awkward. His left hand was encased in a cast that went all the way up to his elbow, and there were various bruises and scratches across his face, arms, and chest, though the latter of these was hard to see, a few white bandages visible at the neckline of his unflattering hospital gown.
He waited, somewhat apprehensively, for Fiona's arrival, and by the time she did, Fritz was leaning back in his bed, his expression a mixture of pained and sheepish. The glare she leveled at him made him shrink a bit further into the pillows, and he averted his gaze, glancing sideways.
"Fiona," he said, in a tone of not-that-believable-innocence. "Hey. Thanks for coming."
He was not going to mention that this was the second time he'd asked her to save his a**.
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Posted: Sun Mar 27, 2016 6:23 pm
Fritz looked horrible but he also could have looked worse and well - Fiona was grateful that he was all in one piece, casted hand or not. It didn't help that he shrunk into his bed when she fixed a mean glare his way but he deserved it and she exhaled slowly, softening her features so they weren't so...stern.
"What the hell happened?" She ran her tongue across her teeth, pressed it against her cheek as she shook her head and stepped closer, rounding the bed to stand at the side of it. "Jesus Fritz, first against queen curls and now - " she gestured at all of him, mismatched eyes locked on the cast around his hand.
"That's not - " she stopped, worrying down on her bottom lip. That wasn't - it couldn't be his drawing hand. No, no, no.
She breathed in deeply, steading herself by grasping at the raised metal bar at the end of the hospital bed. "So, I'm here to check you out?"
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Posted: Sun Mar 27, 2016 8:04 pm
He averted his gaze from Fiona's accusing stare, mostly because he knew that he deserved it. She'd saved him more than once since they'd met, whether physically or mentally, and he owed her a great deal more than he was capable of giving at present.
Especially since he was asking her to save him, yet again.
"I have a better reason this time," said Fritz, which was not entirely true, all things considered. He saw Fiona's eyes slide to his casted hand, but he sidestepped her unfinished question and said instead, "My brother, we - he's purified now, we managed to purify him."
The thought still amazed him. Fritz eased back onto his pillows, lifting his gaze to meet Fiona's.
"Yes," he said, "I have to get out of here, I'm going mad."
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Posted: Thu Mar 31, 2016 11:50 am
Fiona knew that she had a mean glare, or even just a are you kidding me look. It was no wonder Fritz seemed to wilt beneath it. The expression immediately softened as the other ginger took time to explain.
"I didn't - " but how could she have known with everything else going on and it's not like she'd really talked much to Fritz since they all crashed at her place. It wasn't intention, she'd just been busy with work and looking for an assistant, errand boy really, and this personal project of hers -
"That's really good," she said, trying again in a soft voice with a soft smile. "I'm glad you saved him." She wanted to ask for more details like how purifying his brother ended with him in the hospital and a broken hand but - they could talk about it when he was ready.
"Okay, I'll see if I can get them to release you to me." She was, vaguely, worried that because they weren't family that they wouldn't but she was clever, she'd figure it out.
She slipped back out of the hospital room, was gone for about thirty minutes and there was probably a point in time when her voice could be heard booming down the hallway while she argued with someone but, eventually, she returned triumphant.
"Alright tiger, let's get you - " she hesitated. Did she take him home to his home? Did she drag him to her place? Where did they go? "Let's get out of here so we can talk but - you look better Fritz." Not great, but better.
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Posted: Mon Apr 04, 2016 1:19 pm
"Thank you," said Fritz and gave a slight laugh, though regretted this, his body protesting the movement. "I thought - well, it's a bit of a long story, and I'd rather not tell it here, in the hospital, with all of the..." He waved his good hand around lamely, "...nurses and machines and what have you."
He waited patiently for Fiona to come back while quietly - and not really all that subtly - beginning to push himself up into a sitting position. The bed's controls were easy enough to manage, and by the time she entered the room once more, Fritz was sitting with his legs over the side.
The hospital gown was both ridiculous and revealing, tied in the back with several laces. He cast Fiona a small smile.
"I feel slightly better," he said. "Can you pass me my clothes? They're in the wardrobe over there."
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Posted: Sun Apr 10, 2016 7:15 pm
Fiona stood there quietly for a moment, looking at Fritz with a soft contemplation before she shook her head and moved to the wardrobe to fetch his clothing. The garments were draped over her arm as she walked towards his bed, slender fingers tapping against the crook of her arm when she offered them to him.
"Do you want me to leave while you change or is turning my back and swearing I won't look at you efficient enough?" There was the slightest hint of a teasing tone in her voice but her expression was one that was of mix concern and uncertainty.
Fiona was, admittedly, worried about leaving Fritz for any longer than she had to. If this is the state he ended up in whenever she wasn't around then - she was worried what he might get up to.
"I worry about you Fritz, not because - " she sighed, pushed a stray lock of hair behind an ear and frowned. "I just - nevermind, we can talk about it at my place."
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Posted: Mon May 30, 2016 10:27 am
He knew he was asking a lot from her, but Fiona's presence was consoling all the same. Fritz offered her a little smile, and caught the faint teasing tone to her voice, in spite of the look in her eyes. It was all appreciated a great deal.
"You can just turn around," he said. "But look, and I'll have to blindfold you."
He softened a little and reached out, giving her hand a squeeze.
"I know," said Fritz, wincing a little. "And I'll explain everything, I promise. Just..not here, not where we we can be overheard and where everything smells like antiseptic. I'll get dressed and we'll go to your place and I won't have to walk around worrying about people looking at my butt."
He let go, motioned her around, and proceeded to tug on clothing in slow, painstaking gestures. Every once in a while he'd let out a soft hiss of pain, but determination pushed him forward, and finally, after what seemed like an age, he was dressed again, albeit looking a little worn out in the process.
"All right," said Fritz, reaching for his bag of effects. "Onward and outward we go."
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Posted: Sat Jun 11, 2016 4:12 pm
"Come on Fritz, I'm not a pervert," Fiona responded as playfully as she could muster, going as far to roll her eyes at him as she turned around and pointedly did not look back. "I'm not an animal, I have some self control." If she'd been looking at him, she might've stuck her tongue at him.
It was the only way for her to feel a little more normal about it all, because he was still in bad shape and she was still more worried than she let on.
Every time she heard him hiss in pain she wanted to turn around, to help him with his clothes but she remained firmly in place. If he wanted her help, he would ask. She had to trust that.
It was hard, having faith in people these days.
When she looked back she almost offered him her hand but instead curled it into the folds of her skirt. "Yeah okay, let's go," she mumbled, pulling the door open and holding it for him before leading him to her car and back to her flat.
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Posted: Sat Jun 11, 2016 6:49 pm
"That's what they all say," said Fritz with as much dignity as he could muster. "It's usually the ones who say that who are the most whatever they're saying they're not. I've learned not to trust anyone, thank you very much, Fiona."
He said it with a certain amount of lightheartedness and teasing, even as he cast a grin over his shoulder at her. She was taking the time to help him, which he much appreciated - had always appreciated with her, all things considered. Fiona had been a strength he had not expected but had come to depend on.
The ride over to Fiona's apartment did not take too long. Fritz remembered it, somewhat ruefully, from his past visits.
"You know," he said, as he took a seat on the couch. "I think this is the first time I've been to your place without either being severely injured or in danger of passing out. Now I can at least look around and enjoy it for what it is instead of being concerned about bleeding all over your pillows."
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Posted: Mon Jun 13, 2016 10:25 am
Fiona didn't respond, barely managed a weak smile in response to his attempts at jesting. Weariness seemed to be settling in her bones as they made their way up the stairs and into her flat. It was mostly unchanged from the last time Fritz had passed out on her couch, though some medical textbooks were resting on the coffee table along with a notebook covered in scribbles.
"Well, there's a first time for everything," Fiona replied, moving past him and towards the kitchen. Automatically, she pulled open a cupboard and pulled out a box of peach tea, then fished around in another cupboard for a mug.
It wasn't until she set the cup down too harshly and the sound echoed through her kitchen did she sigh shakily and turn to her company. "Do you - " she stopped, frowning before gently removing her grip from the mug. Nails scraped against the kitchen counter when she turned around, carefully easing her back against it and holding onto the edge more tightly than needed.
"I can't do the small talk. So," she bit the inside of her cheek. "Start talking Fritz."
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Posted: Tue Jun 14, 2016 10:18 am
He could tell from the tone of her voice that Fiona was brooking no arguments and no excuses this time. Fritz shifted guiltily on the couch, watching her somewhat apprehensively as she turned to look at him. He knew he'd worried her, knew he'd screwed up enough times over the past several weeks - months, even - to make things worse than they were. And Fiona had been there throughout it all. He owed her the truth and all of i t.
"My brother was in the Negaverse," said Fritz quietly. "He...I didn't know. I tried to tell his fiance, and his fiance didn't believe me, wouldn't, or couldn't, perhaps all of it. I couldn't do anything about it, and I didn't know what else there was I could do, because I've been...sick, and hearing - hearing voices - "
He swallowed hard, knowing that she still remained the one person he had told about that particular aspect of his persisting feeling of unwell.
"I thought there was nothing left for me here in Order," said Fritz, in a soft voice. "So I sought out a general. I intended - I intended to corrupt. I thought maybe if I could just forget about everything that had happened to me, it would be enough to keep moving."
He closed his eyes and gave a slight shake of his head, as though trying to clear it, before he opened them again; and his gaze was surprisingly level as he regarded Fiona.
"Eurydike - my brother's fiance - he came for me, he found me. He reminded me of what I fight for, and what I live for. He and I, we managed to get away from the general. He took a bit of me with him," Fritz added, slightly ruefully, indicating the bandage above and below his left eye, and the newly shortened hair. "But we got away. After that, we went and we got my brother out from his general. She broke my hand - crushed it, really," he mumbled, glancing at his cast, and then away again. "But again, we got him out. We took him to Cosmos, and we purified him."
He eased out a breath. "He's a Squire now, of Neptune. And that's - that's all of it, I promise," Fritz said hastily. "That's the truth."
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Posted: Tue Jun 14, 2016 1:49 pm
Fiona liked to think of herself as a strong person. She'd been through a lot in her twenty-five years of life and while most of the difficulties had arisen when she'd just left her teen years behind, she liked to think that she held herself together beautifully. She also liked to think that she could be the strength others needed when they doubted themselves.
There was Kam, her high school sweetheart who shattered her heart and yet - still she was someone strong in her foundation that he could lean upon. There was Jamie, who powered up to save her life even when he didn't want to - who talked about how much he hated what he was and the things people expected from him. She'd offered him strength in the form of a companion who wouldn't hold hesitation against him.
And then there was Fritz, whom she'd only known during his darkest times. She'd never seen a happier, whole Fritz, but that had never mattered, because he needed someone who was willing to shoulder the weights he carried with him, even when he didn't realize he needed it. And Fiona had thought that, through it all, she'd been making progress with him. She'd never asked for more than what she knew he was capable of giving, especially when she found out about the voices and yet -
It hadn't been enough.
And, frankly, it felt like a slap in the face. So much so, she almost visibly recoiled. I thought there was nothing left for me here in Order..
"a*****e," she hissed, swallowing hard when she lifted her gaze from the spot on the floor she'd been staring intently at while he talked. "There was nothing left for you? What the hell am I then? What's Cordelia to you? Are you so stuck in your self loathing that you'd toss us aside because you'd rather wallow in self pity than accept the help and support we've been offering you this whole time?" She spoke of herself and Cordy as a unit, because they were partners in their senshi lives but it was clear that she was taking this personally. That for every we she meant I.
"I'm glad you saved your brother and that someone could apparently knock sense into you because god forbid you listen to a word anyone else said."
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Posted: Tue Jun 14, 2016 3:00 pm
It would have been better if she'd slapped him. The cold fury was worse, so much worse, than if she'd punched or kicked him; Fritz felt it like a physical pain as it was, sinking into him like icy knives into his heart and his mind.
"I know," he said, and it wasn't an excuse, because he had none of those anymore. "I screwed up, Fiona, I screwed up, and I'm - I'm so, so sorry, I just..." His voice was desperate, wavering slightly, because he needed her to understand even if she was angry at him - and rightfully so. "I just got so wrapped up in...in my own head, I...I don't have any explanation, because you're right, you...you've done so much for me, and I..."
Fritz swallowed miserably, and if he'd dared, he would have gotten up and reached for her hand, but he wasn't sure she'd let him take it; so he simply curled his fingers together and looked at her pleadingly from where he sat on the couch.
"I'm sorry," he said again, quietly pained. "You...you've kept me afloat all this time and thinking I could just...I almost threw that all away and I threw it back in your face, all of your help and support."
He lapsed into silence for a moment and then said softly, "I couldn't have gotten through any of this were it not for you and I'm...so sorry, Fiona. I really, truly am and I beg your forgiveness even if I don't deserve it."
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