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 Posted: Thu Sep 07, 2023 12:04 pm
While Elliot was glad for Sessrumnir's paranoia, he really didn't want him to get more paranoid. He was going to get an ulcer or have a stroke or something. "You're the perfect amount of paranoid right now, don't go changing," he grumbled.
He needed to answer. He needed to suck it up and get ready for them to peel off the wet fabric from his back. If he delayed answering, he bought himself a few more seconds before he had to deal with that pain.
Practically speaking, he knew he was only delaying the inevitable. It had to be done. And, the faster it was done, the faster Ephesus could use his magic or he could go lay down.
He tilted his head slightly so he could rest his temple against Sessrumnir's shoulder, and partly see Ephesus. He managed a sleepy smile. "Hey. You look good. Except for that knot on your head." He wanted to kiss it. Alastor and Sessrumnir were too close or he would have said it out loud so he just pretended like Ephesus could read his mind and know what he was thinking. "Come on in, the water's great."
He held out a hand, groping just a bit for Ephesus'. It was partly for his own comfort, and partly because he thought Ephesus might like it too.
"I'm okay if you want to cut it off, Michael. It's not even my favorite shirt, it's okay. I really don't want to move, anyway, so the less work I have to do, the better."
He could talk a lot. He could keep himself awake. He was really thirsty all of a sudden, but he didn't try to drink the water. "Maybe when we go home we should stock up on fire extinguishers. Or those little bombs you throw that blow up and put out fires? I don't know if it's dust or foam. We should get some of those, maybe. What do you think?"
He wasn't sure if he was asking Ephesus or Sessrumnir, but he was just doing his best to prove to both of them that he was still here, he was fine. Or, at least, working on it.
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Posted: Thu Sep 07, 2023 12:13 pm
Ephesus didn’t need anything more than Elliot holding out his hand for him to reach over and take hold of it. He did slide further into the water, if only to be closer to Elliot. He held his hand tightly and rubbed the back of it with his thumb -- a silent promise that he was there. That everything would be okay. That he could absolutely see in Elliot’s eyes that he wanted to kiss his head and make everything feel better.
He was holding his breath as Sessrumnir pulled a pair of fabric shears from his subspace -- clearly kept for emergencies like this.
“I’ll be okay,” he promised when he could tell that Sessrumnir was hesitating and paused to give him a worried look. He had to know how bad it was if he was going to try to heal Elliot, right?
His stomach felt like it was in knots, and he felt sick, knowing how much pain Elliot was in. His own head was throbbing, but it wasn’t as though he’d been burned so badly that he was probably going to end up with scars like Sessrumnir. Ephesus, on the other hand, just felt a bit poached from the near boiling water they’d been in. While Sessrumnir didn’t want to traumatize the boys further, he was okay with Ephesus deciding if he could handle seeing Elliot’s injuries or not. He could always look away if he couldn’t, after all.
Very carefully, Sessrumnir fished for the back of Elliot’s collar and began slowly cutting the fabric away. It was easy to peel back the parts that weren't soaked in blood, but at least this fabric hadn’t been burned as well. They were lucky that with the magic of powering down, they didn’t have to worry about dealing with too much extra debris in the wound.
“You’re doing good, Ellie. You too, Effie,” Sessrumnir nodded to his son -- to both of them. It wasn’t easy, but they were alive and would heal.
“Fire extinguishers is a good idea. We can get you a couple fire blankets too, along with those little extinguish bombs,” he agreed, but like Elliot, he was just talking to talk.
Slowly, the shirt was cut off to reveal the wounds caused by the fire. Sessrumnir clicked his tongue to the roof of his mouth and glanced over to where Alastor was. He didn’t say it out loud, but if Ephesus’s magic and the Springs didn’t do enough for Elliot in the next few hours, they were probably going to have to bring him to the hospital. As soon as the fabric was gone, Ephesus moved closer to Elliot so he could channel his magic. He wanted to cry. Oh, he was already crying a little. Not sobbing uncontrollably, but there were tears. He kept his expression determined, though. He did his best to focus on Elliot’s back the most. With what magic was left he would move to his arm and side.
“You always have such good ideas, Ellie. We’ll make sure we’re better prepared, the next time we go out,” he promised, trying to keep his heart from breaking over how much pain Elliot must have been in.
“Is that feeling any better?” Quote: Channeled with the power of hope, Ephesus uses his magic to heal moderate burns and wounds. The longer he channels his magic, the faster the wound is healed. Major burns and wounds can be greatly aided, but not healed completely. He cannot heal life threatening injuries but he can stabilize them until proper medical treatment can be acquired. The person experiencing the magic will have the distinct taste and smell of honey. Those who are usually averse to the smell and/or taste of honey won’t find it unpleasant. It has a calming effect, and fills the target with hope that everything will be okay. Any anxiety or emotional distress the target is feeling will also be tempered, or eased completely. Can be channeled up to 60 seconds.
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Posted: Thu Sep 07, 2023 12:24 pm
Dread was swimming in his stomach. Sessrumnir was hesitating, and he knew some of it must have been to try and give Ephesus time to prepare. Or maybe it was to give Elliot time. He knew it was going to hurt. The water moving over his back tingled now but it didn’t outright burn. His shirt was wet and clinging to his back.
He trusted Michael.
Even if he could imagine it was going to feel like when you peeled off a bandaid where the adhesive had accidentally gotten stuck too close to the wound. But worse. Because this was his whole back. And it burned, even without any extra attention.
It hadn’t occurred to him that some of the wetness would have been blood. He still felt faint.
At first, it didn’t really hurt–not noticeably, at least–when Sessrumnir started cutting. And then the needles started.
Sharp, instant pain that felt like lightning shot from his back to his fingertips. To his toes, to his eyes, to his bellybutton. It was his imagination probably, maybe, unless his nerves were just all so agitated.
He’d stopped breathing at one point. It was intentional, he was bracing himself. He only forced himself to take a slow, measured breath when he realized his vision was starting to dim and he didn’t know if it was from the pain or lack of oxygen.
He held onto Sessrumnir tightly, and squeezed Ephesus’ hand. He didn’t want to hurt either of them, so he was careful. At least, as much as he could be between the avalanche of pain.
Alastor watched, brows knit. He seemed like he was trying to determine if any of the others needed him. He’d changed the sheets on the cot to make sure they were as fresh as possible. He’d opened his own first aid kit and organized it so Sessrumnir could make good use of it. He’d moved the lights around and set up blankets and dry clothes. The options were slim here, but it was enough to make sure he’d be comfortable.
Well. As comfortable as possible, given the circumstances.
Sessrumnir didn’t need to speak for him to make the same assessment. He knew the springs had healing properties and he knew that Ephesus had magic, and he knew that Sessrumnir could work medical miracles and operate well under stress.
Alastor also knew that Sessrumnir wouldn’t allow any harm to befall Elliot, and if he was better off in a hospital, they’d all wind up there.
The boys were being so strong. Alastor didn’t have to work very hard to imagine the pain Elliot was in, or how hard it must have been for Ephesus to keep things together.
They were both doing a good job.
Elliot was silent for a good few seconds after Ephesus spoke, and when he found his words they were a bit faint. “Yeah,” he murmured. “It always smells nice when you use your magic.”
It hurt less. Elliot didn’t know how much it healed, but he felt better. He could breathe again, and his heart had calmed. He wanted to sleep again, and Sessrumnir was feeling more comfortable by the minute.
“That feels a lot better. I’ll be good in no time, I bet.” His eyes fluttered shut, but he squeezed Ephesus’ hand so he’d know he wasn’t sleeping. “Thank you, Effie. That helped a lot.”
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Posted: Thu Sep 07, 2023 12:32 pm
For Ephesus, the smell of honey was always preferable to blood and burnt flesh. He couldn’t imagine someone actually wanting it the other way around, but Ephesus felt like crying just imagining someone like that.
And he was trying not to cry as Elliot fought so hard to withstand the pain.
He sniffled and held his breath and squeezed Elliot’s hand as he held onto the scepter with his other. His magic didn’t last nearly as long as he would have liked, and before long it had run out.
It looked like the bleeding had mostly stopped, at least. Not nearly as much healing as he would have preferred, but once they both rested, he could try again.
“I’m right here, okay? Whatever you need,” he promised, choking a little on the words as he placed his scepter on the side of the pool so he could use his hand to brush Elliot’s hair back from his face. It was a little difficult getting the shirt off without having to jostle Elliot around too much, but Sessrumnir was grateful for Ephesus’s magic. It seemed to be enough to heal the areas he’d been worried about infections, but it wasn’t nearly enough to make Elliot good as new.
“Hate to give you bad news, but we’re going to have to move you now. I want to get you dried off and bandages on. We’ll see about taking some more soaks in the pool after you’ve had some time to sleep,” Sessrumnir said, looking up at Alastor to make sure he knew he might need help in a couple minutes.
He could carry Elliot just fine, but he would be able to get more done with four hands.
And maybe they could then talk about their options.
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Posted: Thu Sep 07, 2023 3:11 pm
Alastor nodded to Sessrumnir; he was doing his best not to crowd them when he knew there was already so much going on. He wasn’t needed right now; he had no magic, no healing expertise. He could be a pair of hands, though. The second someone needed anything, of course he was ready to help
Elliot squeezed Atticus’ hand tightly. He wanted to tell him that he knew he was there, wanted to reassure him that he didn’t need anything.
Words were hard.
His back didn’t hurt like it had before, and for all the relief that was bringing him, he was also just tired. It was harder to keep his eyes open.
The bad news didn’t even sound so bad. Maybe it was because he was tired, or because he trusted Sessrumnir, or because Ephesus’ magic was still soothing him, but he wasn’t worried.
Elliot sighed heavily and managed a faint nod. “Yeah, okay. I guess. You’re going to carry me anyway, right? I’ll just pretend like it’s how you used to carry me to bed. I feel like I could fall asleep. I’m trying to stay awake.”
He didn’t have the same adrenaline rush he had a few minutes ago though, but he knew he was in good hands. He pressed his face a bit more against Ephesus’ touch and relaxed again. “You’re doing really good, Effie. Thank you. I’m okay. Just sleepy.”
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Posted: Thu Sep 07, 2023 5:53 pm
“Here, before we get out, take some of this medicine,” Sessrumnir said as he fished around in his subspace for the pill bottle and bottle of water. He held them both out to Ephesus to take and open, before making sure to give Elliot two pills to swallow and drink some water. Now that he wasn’t worried about Elliot throwing everything back up, he could give him a little more relief from the pain.
“You can go to sleep once you take that,” he promised, although he doubted Elliot would be able to do so easily. They would still have to poke and prod at his wound to make sure it was bandaged, and then get him into a comfortable position to sleep on his stomach. It wasn’t going to be a fun night, but they would do their best.
He wanted for both Elliot and Ephesus to seem like they were ready to move, and then waited to make sure Alastor was near him, in case he needed help getting out, before standing up from the pool and climbing back up onto the ledge. Other than opening the bottles of medicine and water, Ephesus held onto Elliot’s hand the whole time. Even when he was being lifted out of the pool. His back looked horrible and every so often Ephesus could feel his stomach twisting uncomfortably at the sight.
It was really gross to look at, but more than that, he knew how much pain Elliot was probably in. And he knew that it was because Elliot made sure he hadn’t gotten burned.
Oh, he was starting to cry again just thinking about it.
He quickly sucked in a breath and let it out to settle himself, and then walked with Sessrumnir as he carried Elliot to the table, helping with getting him as comfortable as possible on it.
Although once he was settled down and his dads started getting the supplies and ointments ready to take care of Elliot’s injuries, Atticus pulled over a chair so he could sit in front of Elliot so he could be right beside him but out of the way.
“I love you,” he whispered, reaching out to gently touch Elliot’s face again. “Thank you. You’re always protecting me. I’ll be strong enough one day to protect you, too.”
Oh, more tears. No, he was going to suck it up and keep himself from getting emotional. Even though he wanted to do nothing more than wrap his arms around his boyfriend and cry.
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Posted: Thu Sep 07, 2023 6:00 pm
Elliot wasn’t looking forward to any of this. He was putting on a brave face because everyone was worried and was trying so hard, and he didn’t want to let them down. He didn’t want to make things worse.
He took the medicine when it was offered and held his breath when Sessrumnir started to move him.
The air was cold against his back, and while there was almost a brief sense of comfort, it rapidly turned to icy needles scraping along his skin. He squeezed his eyes shut and tried to count to ten, but he couldn’t make it past four and had to keep restarting.
Alastor had moved to the side of the pool, and while he had given Sessrumnir enough room to come out, he was also ready to help pull him–or Ephesus–out. He hadn’t been necessary, but he placed a hand on Sessrumnir’s back as he moved past him before stepping out of the way. He was quiet, still calm, and didn’t seem to need any verbal instruction to make himself useful.
Elliot slumped forward a bit.
There wasn’t really such a thing as a comfortable position. He propped his elbows on his knees and hunched in a position that let him keep his balance while keeping his back exposed. He pressed his face into Ephesus’ hand as he sat still. The medicine wasn’t going to kick in immediately–too bad–so he was already fighting the twisting knots in his stomach when he considered the fact that he knew they were going to be touching his back again.
“You’ve been taking care of me this whole time, Effie.” He kissed his palm, though it was tired and off-center. “I’m okay, honest. You’re perfect just the way you are.”
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Posted: Thu Sep 07, 2023 6:03 pm
Ephesus sniffled and leaned closer so he could press the good part of his forehead against Elliot’s. He brushed his fingers through Elliot’s dark hair and did his best to hold himself together because Elliot was so sweet and undeserving of being in so much pain.
“I’m going to be right here with you. So if you want to go to sleep, when you wake up I’ll be right here,” he promised. He had no intention of leaving Elliot’s side. He would be Elliot’s pillow if it meant it was more comfortable for him to lay down. Sessrumnir didn’t say anything as he watched the two boys and their quiet interactions. He met Alastor’s eyes with silent communication of his own. He didn’t have to tell Alastor how bad the burns were, and he waited patiently for Alastor to pass over the burn cream they would use to make sure the wounds wouldn’t get infected.
They would have to keep an eye on everything, but hopefully they managed to heal it enough with Ephesus’s magic and the waters from the spring that they wouldn’t have to go to the hospital.
He worked quickly and quietly, hoping Alastor knew how grateful he was for his help, and for his presence. He didn’t actually have to do anything, but being there was grounding and kept Sessrumnir focused.
And with Alastor’s help, they were able to get Elliot patched up with bandages and wrapped with gauze. Hopefully before Elliot started feeling too sick or tired to stay awake.
“Ready to try and rest?” he asked Elliot, but reached over to take Alastor’s hand for a moment to give it a quick squeeze of gratitude.
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Posted: Thu Sep 07, 2023 6:13 pm
Elliot had made a slight noise of approval and gratitude, but he fell quiet shortly afterwards. It wasn’t that he didn’t want to talk–there were a thousand things he wished he could say.
He just couldn’t. There was a constant hum in the back of his mind, and a white hot haze that kept him distracted. He hurt. If he opened his mouth he might gasp, or make some noise that would upset Ephesus, so he kept his jaw clenched and forced his breathing to stay even.
He was incredibly careful not to slip up, because he’d said he was okay and he was determined to be okay.
He didn’t want Ephesus to shed a single tear more because of him.
Well, he knew it was inevitable, but he was trying to stay optimistic.
Throughout all of it, Alastor was mostly quiet. At some point in time he was keenly aware of the silence and started humming. He’d never been a fan of absolute quiet, and it seemed like everything was so much more serious, so much more stressful.
Elliot was a good patient. He sat perfectly still, he never complained. He let himself be distracted by Alastor’s tune and wondered where he’d heard it before. Probably while Alastor was tinkering with something. He didn’t want to think too deeply about it.
“I don’t think I’ll have to try very hard,” Elliot sighed. The real fight had been trying to stay awake. Whatever cream they had put on had hurt going on, but now he felt a sort of empty soothing all along his back. It was a dull throb, like a sunburn. He liked to think that meant that was about as bad as his back looked right now but he wasn’t foolish enough to believe that.
“Are we staying here or going home? Effie needs his forehead bandaged up, too.”
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Posted: Thu Sep 07, 2023 6:31 pm
Staying or going home… that was definitely something to consider. They would probably be more comfortable at home. They could go to the hospital if they ended up having to do that. They could get something better to eat than the rations and various shelf stable supplies Sessrumnir had brought there over the various trips in the last year.
But Sessrumnir had the springs. And for whatever reason, his starseed had pulled them to that room.
He felt like there was something more to being there, but he’d been too focused on Elliot to pay attention to anything else.
“We’re going to stay here a little longer. I don’t want your parents to freak out. We can send a message to Lucien to pass along so they don’t worry,” he suggested, glancing over at Alastor to see if he had any other suggestions.
“Don’t worry, we’ll get Effie patched up. You’ll want to power down too,” he nodded to his son. They didn’t want him to get patched up while as Ephesus only to have it all disappear when he powered down later. Oh, right, his head. That’s probably another reason why he was crying. Other than the fact that his boyfriend had horrible burns all on his back and side and arm. And had gotten them because he was protecting him.
“I’m okay,” he sniffled, his hand on Elliot’s as he looked up at his dads to see what they were going to do. He felt so helpless in all of this. He couldn’t fight, and he could only use his healing magic for a short while. The tune Alastor hummed was sweet and made him feel calmer at least. But he was also very tired and wanted to try to sleep, too. He just wished it could have been in their bed at home.
But Sessrumnir was already retrieving the pill bottle of pain medicine and offering it to Ephesus, who soon powered down as well. He quickly took the pills with a drink of water and went back to fussing over Elliot.
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Posted: Thu Sep 07, 2023 6:39 pm
Alastor had a selection of things packed up in his subspace, but what he lacked there he was glad he could find here. He placed a gentle hand on Atticus’ shoulder briefly as he moved past him; he opened a closet and moved a few things around before he pulled out a blanket.
He shook it out, not particularly surprised to find that it wasn’t dusty. There were parts of Sessrumnir that seemed in more disrepair, but something about this place seemed less touched by time.
When he returned, he draped it over Atticus’ shoulders because he anticipated that wherever Elliot was, he would be too. Might as well be as comfortable as possible in the interim.
“Oh, that’s a good idea,” Elliot sighed. “They’re going to be so worried. When you tell them,” because of course he knew Michael was going to, “tone it down some. Don’t sound melodramatic or anything. Please. I don’t want my dad to have a panic attack, especially when you and Atticus were able to patch me up, no problemo. I feel good as new.”
No, he didn’t. His face was pressed into the pillow and he was laying on his stomach hoping he didn’t move at all in his sleep.
“I’ll let Lucien know that we’re hiding out on Sessrumnir until we know a dangerous enemy has left the area,” Alastor suggested. “That way they know we’re somewhere safe and we’re bein responsible instead of rushing into danger, how’s that?”
“I like that, yeah.” Elliot murmured. He groped for Atticus’ hand, even if it made his shoulder a little sore. He just wanted to hold onto him. He’d heal faster that way, for sure.
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Posted: Thu Sep 07, 2023 7:06 pm
“I wouldn’t want your dad to have a panic attack, either,” Sessrumnir sighed, well aware of how easy it was to get Oliver worked up. He didn’t want him in the hospital too. Although hopefully they wouldn’t need to take Elliot. They still needed to keep an eye on things, though.
“Thanks,” he nodded to Alastor, glad that he was going to handle getting in contact with Lucien. It freed Sessrumnir up to take a look at the wound Atticus received. He moved close to gently brush his hair back, sympathetically wincing at the color it was turning -- and the quiet whimper from Atticus.
“You’re lucky, too… Any closer to your eye, and it could… could have been worse,” he decided to go with instead of saying anything about potential broken bones, or injuries that would definitely need a hospital. A concussion was something they needed to keep an eye on him for, but he seemed okay for now. Atticus reached for Elliot’s hand and held it between both of his own. He was grateful for the blanket, and quietly thanked Alastor as he went about getting them settled. He tried to hold still and not make any noises when Sessrumnir was looking at the cut on the side of his head, but now that the adrenaline was pretty much gone, it was a lot more obvious how much it throbbed.
But that was okay. They would both rest and be better in no time. He stroked Elliot’s hand with his fingers, hoping to bring him a little comfort. At least a rock to his head wasn’t anything like what Elliot was going through.
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Posted: Thu Sep 07, 2023 7:20 pm
Lucky was a weird word. Elliot didn’t really disagree, they were lucky that things weren’t worse. But he still felt a bit unlucky that they ran into that guy in the first place.
He had a thousand questions but no energy to ask them. He didn’t know where to start.
Sessrumnir seemed satisfied that he was stabilized. Elliot appreciated him looking over Atticus, too. He squeezed the other boy’s hand reassuringly but suspected his grip was a bit weaker than he’d have liked.
He was just so tired.
They were safe here. They could rest.
No one was going to attack them.
Alastor was already messaging Lucien, and Elliot found that he could just breathe. He let his eyes close, finally.
“When you get patched up, Atticus, we can rest. Sleep close to me, though. I want to hold your hand.”
They could sleep some. And, when they woke up, maybe everything would be okay again.
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