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 Posted: Mon Feb 21, 2011 5:04 pm
Since Malodore agreed to take in Calder's leeches, the little guys had managed to live peacefully and happily in their jars, sitting in Malodore's dorm room and enjoying the sights and strange scenery. It was far from décor of their kelpie owner, who usually had more natural, rustic belongings and plenty of books.
A few had left their jars to mingle around things, being sure to not get stepped on, but also being curious as to whatever Malodore might be working on. It was probably why Fester wasn’t noticed at first. The larger, plumper leech had wormed his way in, knowing the place only because it would travel days to get here to visit, but it was an emergency and the poor thing and strained to get here. That was that morning and it was getting dark now.
Looking about, it spotted the undead Plague doctor and moved over. A few leeches came over, speaking in little noises as they chomped their jaws and eeked out little sounds. It seemed there was a commotion as Fester explained and soon a small crowd of leeches were trying to get the doctor's attention. Lassie Fester was here, and he needed help from a grown up.
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Posted: Mon Feb 21, 2011 5:14 pm
Malodore was busy at work with another set of jars, this one perched on a table that had been shoved into its lightless sleeping nook. The dorm room was all the plague doctor had in terms of a personal laboratory, so it lacked all the functions Malodore might have otherwise wished for, like perfect light and temperature controls. Still, this seemed to be working well enough. Jolly Meal remnants hung within the jars, the solution around them bubbling lightly as Malodore monitored their brain growth.
Thus absorbed, it took the plague doctor a little bit to notice the chomping... but, eventually, stubborn leech-behavior won out. Malodore looked up to see the tiny slimey chorus and tilted its head to one side. "Che cosa è? What is it?"
... though, it realized belatedly, asking a leech something like that was a little bit silly. It's not like they could answer... could they?
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Posted: Mon Feb 21, 2011 5:31 pm
Calder would testify never to underestimate leeches, especially his. The creatures, while ranging from the intelligence of mayo to basic understanding looked up and then looked to Fester, the oldest of the group. Huddling together, they chomped and continued their own languages before they all spread and started to move, leaning slim trails on the ground. At first it was nothing at all, and then at last, a picture started to form. It wasn't artistic in any sense, but a crud, slimy drawing of a horse.
This was when Fester moved away from the picture and to the door, stopping as it waited for Malodore.
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Posted: Mon Feb 21, 2011 5:39 pm
... Huh. The leeches at the Casa had never done that before. Maybe they were deficient? The plague doctor tilted its head the other direction, looking at the pattern on the ground. "Ah... a horse, is it?"
And there was only one horse that would be of concern to the leeches. "Va bene, I understand. You are worried about your master, si?" It glanced over at the largest leech, over by the door. Apparently so.
Well, there was nothing for it. Malodore made sure the brain system was secured again before washing up and moving over to the door, careful not to step on any of the leeches on the way. "Show me."
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Posted: Mon Feb 21, 2011 5:54 pm
Showing him anything would have taken nearly another day, so thinking better of it and too tired to travel ALL the way back, Fester crawled up the doctor's legs and up to his shoulder, mindful of the sharp points and settled. Two others crawled up and took the other shoulder, and one settled on Maldore's hat. Once settled, Fester then pointed it's head towards the door, and hoped that the doctor understood that this was the direction it was supposed to go and this is how it would point out where to go next.
*************************************************
Calder was laying in a patch of shaded clover in some trees by the school. Few students decided to cut through this way and instead took the sidewalk which was why he decided to rest here between walking to class. The bad thing was, he couldn't get up after his rest. He tried and tried and tried, and each time failed each and every time. Morning classes passed and he was left in the same spot, and it was then that he thought about calling someone for help.
It was Fester, the almost ever-present pet of Calder, who had decided to go with him that day and noticed that not only did the kelpie not call anyone, but he laid down in the grass and stayed there. He didn't call for help or try again, but instead just stared at his phone. When the kelpie continued to ignore him, he went off to find someone for Calder and that person was clearly a leech lover.
When Malodore arrived, Calder was still laying in the shade, hidden by a few bushes and beside a tree, one ear flicking away a rather persistent fly. Both of his legs had racing bandages around the ankles, though one was a little larger in shape than the other.
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Posted: Tue Feb 22, 2011 10:22 pm
Following the directions of leeches was... strange, but certainly not the strangest thing Malodore had ever done. After a few false starts, it was able to divine the leeches' intentions, following along the path... until they led him away from it. The plague doctor's feet shuffled through the clover as it rounded the trees.
"Ah... there you are," Malodore said, spotting the kelpie. "Are you quite well? Your little ones are worried about you, it seems." It crouched down, giving Calder a long look.
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Posted: Tue Feb 22, 2011 10:35 pm
His ear flicked when he heard someone approach and hoping it wasn't wolves here to tear him to pieces or drag him to their den, he turned around in time to see Malodore. He hadn't expected to see the Plague doctor, and it wasn't until he spotted Fester and the other leeches riding on the boil that he understood. "I thought Fester left me." He admitted out loud, looking up at his returned friend, who started to make it's way down Malodore and to the grass to return to the kelpie.
With a push, he heaved himself to at least sit, and brushed off some leaves that had fallen on his head. "Just…..sitting here." More than that. He had no option but to sit or lay down. Ears down, he looked as Fester moved in front of him, looking up.
Sighing, he looked away. He knew what the leech wanted him to do. "I can't get up." He probably could play off that he was just relaxing under a tree, but if Malodore left, he would be back to being stuck out here in the woods.
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Posted: Tue Feb 22, 2011 10:46 pm
Malodore shook its head. "No, it didn't leave you. On the contrary, it came to find me and then mobilized quite the leech chorus. It must be quite concerned about you... as am I." It pointed at the swollen leg. "How long has that been bothering you?"
It couldn't tell much more without taking off the racing bandages, but the swelling was evident to a practiced eye.
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Posted: Tue Feb 22, 2011 10:51 pm
He didn't meet It's eye, glancing back at Fester and glad that the one friend he had didn't up and leave him like he thought he did. When the swollen leg was pointed, he gave a childish shrug. "Some time. Ever since I fell out of the window with Christof." Which was a while ago. "...but I could still walk though. It's not broken....I don't think." At least there hadn't been any blood or bones sticking out. It just got red and ballooned in size, not to mention it gave a shockwave of pain each time he put weight on it.
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Posted: Wed Feb 23, 2011 5:32 pm
"Ah... you injured it at that time?" Malodore's eyes narrowed slightly. Calder had done quite a bit of walking during that time, even just what Malodore had itself observed... and not just walking, but dancing! "You should have gone to the nurse immediately... but what's done is done. May I check the injury?"
Implied in its tones were that Calder should still go to the nurse, of course.
((If Calder lets Malodore check the injury, let me know what it will find :3!))
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Posted: Thu Feb 24, 2011 11:37 am
Calder frowned, knowing that he probably should have kept off of it, but thinking he could have just pushed past it. "It was fine back then. Just a little sore." Then again, walking on it, carrying loads on his back, and going to a dance, all had affected it and caused further damage. "I can still walk…most of the time." Until now, where he had been unable to get up without toppling over. He was sure if he laid out for a day or so in the woods, he could have hobbled back to his dorm.
Seeing as there was no way around it, he shifted and lifted up his hoof, letting the Plague doctor take a gander. The first noticeable thing was that there was discoloration. A light pink that, upon closer inspection, showed that Calder had dusted chalk dust over the injury in order to hide what would clearly be a vibrant red. The bandages were digging into his skin as the bulbous wound was swollen large. If It could sense heat, a wafting warmth was radiating around his leg. His leg had been giving all the signs of pain and injury that had all been ignored by the kelpie, and it seemed he only made matters worse. Feeling it would just show it had a lot of fluid and was tender, but nothing seemed broken.
As Malodore handled his wound, the leeches collected on Calder, looking down from his shoulder in concern, while the white-haired boil gripped the grass and clenched his teeth at every brush of the doctor's claws against his leg.
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Posted: Thu Feb 24, 2011 5:24 pm
Malodore crouched down right next to Calder's afflicted leg, hunching over so that it could study the injury at close range. "First of all, these bandages... they have to go," the plague doctor said, firmly. "If you cut off the blood flow, you could lose the foot." A quick snick! of claws, and the bandages fell aside, revealing the full extent of the injury.
If Malodore could furrow its brow in concern, it would have, noticing the winces as it gently felt its way around Calder's leg. "The damage here has been severely increased by neglect," it said, quietly. "I believe there may be damage to the underlying tendons. I do not think there is a break, but this manner of injury left untreated can make you lame just as easily as a shattered bone." It glanced up at Calder, meeting the kelpie's gaze.
"You must go to the nurse. Preferably without walking on that foot any further...." And that was a problem, as Malodore wasn't strong enough to carry him! "Perhaps if you leaned on my arm and hopped on the other foot...?"
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Posted: Thu Feb 24, 2011 6:19 pm
A deep set from formed on his lips at he looked over to the red-clad undead. This was not what he wanted. "The nurse? But aren't you a doctor? Can't you DO something about this? I don't WANT to go to the nurse's office!" He whined, leaning back. "I already go there when I go close to water. It's not fun there. It sssssuuuucccckkkksssssss." He would have kicked his hooves in a tantrum but he felt that wouldn't have been a smart idea.
Looking at his leg, he set it back down and glared at it. "………..I don't want to be lame." He mumbled. "If the nurse finds out, she'll drag me out back." He looked up at Malodore. "I'm too young to be kibble."
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Posted: Thu Feb 24, 2011 8:49 pm
"Nurse Cricket will not do away with you," Malodore said, firmly. "She is a highly capable healer. Your injury requires skilled treatment and possibly FEAR-healing-" ... probably not, on that last one, but any port in a storm... "-and I can't do that at all. I assure you, you will be as safe in her claws as mine. Safer. But if we don't get that treated soon..."
It trailed off, letting the kelpie's imagination fill in the rest.
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Posted: Thu Feb 24, 2011 10:05 pm
Despite what wild imagination Calder had, he was still eyeing his leg as if he was judging if it was really worth it. Then again, he had disguised his leg so he could show that he wasn't lame. If it had to be taken off, a peg one really wasn't going to be something he could hide. The idea of being lame terrified him, but going to the Nurse's Office wasn't something that made him want to skip and dance either.
His eyes looked up at the Plague Doctor in a 'Do I have to?' manner, but despite what little emotion the mask gave in return, he knew what the other creature would answer. Clearly yes, post haste, get up and get moving. Even Fester was looking at him as a few of the leeches moved about, trying to persuade him that it was this or winding up getting the thing hacked off and signing himself for pirate lessons.
Sighing, he gripped the tree trunk behind him and slowly pushed with his one good leg, letting only the tip of his hoof touch the ground as it curled in. "If I get tired to a tree in the back of the school while she goes to find a sharp enough ax, I'm coming back as a ghost. Then I'm going to insist on being your roommate and I'm' going to wail SO HARD every day of your undead life." He said, pointing out his empty thread to the other.
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