Kolina
- Kristen, the most organised girl she knew, was currently in a hurried panic. The teenager was overwhelmed and doing all she could to re-arrange her afternoon whilst keeping an eye on the road. She had called her manager and was halfway through re-arranging a shoot when a car honked at her, sending a very human fear down her spine. s**t, she had run a stop sign. The redhead pulled into the side of the road and caught her breathe, pressing her forehead against the wheel as a curse escaped her lips. Gwen was hurt. The magical girl punched her dashboard with tears in her eyes, why had she not been there? Hy and Zhou always fought together. She was powerless - it left a vile sensation bubbling in her stomach.
No, not powerless. She bit her lip and typed in one last number. It was time to swallow her pride and reach out to someone who had every right to refuse her. However for Gwen, she would swallow that pride. There was a ringing and then a voice, Kristen spoke before the other party could even great her. “Sissy, I need your help.”
When the call ended she leaned back and ran her hands over her face. Kristen killed the engine and stepped out onto the pavement; the hospital was not too far away and given her current emotional state she would be better off running the last few blocks - she did not want to risk a crash. So she set off on foot and on her travels a shop caught her eye. The teenager panted, her chest moving up and down as she caught her breathe and then walked through the sliding doors on the store. She needed to calm down.
On arriving in the hospital she held a balloon in one hand and a teddy bear in the other. Kristen had never liked hospitals and thankfully up to now never needed to set foot it one. “Sarah!” She called out as she stepped through the doors into the lobby, her feet carrying her towards another redhead who was waiting in the entrance with a clipboard in hand. One of the girls looked like a high schooler were as the other was in a white coat, there looked to be ten years between them - but on standing next to each other it was clear to see they shared a face.
She finally made it to Gwens room, still in her Crystal Academy uniform and with her gifts in toe. “Heeey, you look rough.” She joked, her face trying to portray a light heartedness she wished she felt. She walked over to Gwen’s bedside and sat down on the edge, letting the balloon float to the roof as she laid the teddy next to her hand - as she did she could not help put enclose the girls fingers with her own.
She had not been there for her.
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Before Kristen came in, Gwen had been lying in the one of two bed half drowsing with a sketchbook on her lap. Beside her, stacked on the table to her right, was a menagerie of pencils ranging from mechanical to lead, charcoal and even colored. Most still laid in their packaging, stacked on top of one another under a vibrant spring bouquet of flowers nestled in a clear vase. If anyone were to look at the sketch book atop Gwen’s lap they would have found a very rough outline of what would eventually be a still life drawing of the colorful arrangement. Also situated on the table, just within reach, were the worn buddhist beads, wooden bowl for collecting rice, and a card - All from Isaiah and well within reach.
Gwen was neatly tucked into her bed, left arm still strapped to her chest to keep her moving her shoulder and blankets and a hospital gown hiding the major damage on her abdomen. She had been clearly working on her sketch before drowsiness had begun to supercede her desire to draw. The mechanical pencil that had been in her right hand had fallen to lay along the top of the tablet while Gwen’s hand remained perched over her work. She would have remained that way, slowly falling into a full slumber if it wasn’t for the sound of a familiar voice breaking the monotonous tones of the machines that continued to monitor Gwen’s vitals.
Crystal blue eyes flicked opened slowly and Gwen smiled at the sight of Kristen as the girl perched herself on the edge of the bed, reaching forward to touch her hand as she delivered a rather adorable stuffed bear. “I wish I could say the same for the other guy.” Gwen responded to Kristen’s touch with a gentle squeeze of her hand.
“How are you?” She questioned the teenager. “I hope you didn’t rush here from school.” She noted the uniform Kristen was still wearing. “Unless school is out for the day? I am having a terrible time keeping track of what time of day it is.” With the on and off slumbering and being constantly woken up to be evaluated, Gwen wasn’t even sure how long she’d been in the hospital at that point. She remembered Isaiah visiting again, waking to find him gone and a nurse checking on her, some food arriving which she had a terrible time trying to eat with how nauseas she was feeling (Not to mention it was far from looking like anything she wanted to eat) and then feeling awake enough to try and sketch before, apparently, dozing off again. She was sure there were things missing in there but she wasn’t all that interested in knowing what.
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- "I'll kill them." Was the teens reply; a small smile being the only indication that she was not being completely serious. Never-the-less she fully intended to make someone pay for her friends condition. Cosmos help whatever lieutenant crossed her path tonight - This kitsune was out for blood.
The redhead had never seen someone so beat up, though she knew that it would escalate to these depths one day, she still naively thought the people she cared about were immune to it. She thought she could protect them, that they could not break - because they were the hero's. Kristen was born to be a Magical Girl, that in itself was a fact but despite that she did not believe in fairy tales. She always knew how this would end.
That was the law of equivalent exchange right? Nothing came free. Eventually they would all have to pay the price that came with their powers.
Kristen looked down at her uniform and then at her friend before shaking her head. "No. I had Kendo practise, I do not know why I tried to call you. To see if you were patrolling tonight? It was Isaiah that answered." She explained, shrugging her shoulders and forcing a smile onto her face. She usually never called Gwen about things like that; inside she must have felt something was wrong. I mean, she had not seen the auburn haired Page around as of late and maybe that had worried her?
To be honest she had not seen much of anyone as of late. The streets had been so quiet...
"I came straight here after that; it is getting late though, they will not let me stay long." It was almost eight o'clock and she very well knew the only reason she had been let in was because Sarah had pulled some strings for her. Kristen let go of her friends hand and let her eyes wander to her dresser and then the sketch book. If nothing else it looked like she had been awake recently, that in itself was a good sign.
"I just wanted to see how you were before I headed out."
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“Considering he didn’t kill me and he damn well could have I would just stick to some a** kicking.” Gwen returned Kristen’s joking. Truthfully, she hoped the girl didn’t go out and get herself into trouble over this. In fact, Gwen had no intention of ever describing the Captain or his precious youma that had been the cause of all of this. Internally, Gwen groaned at the memories of what she had done and said that night and really, it was her own damn fault she was laying in a hospital bed with a dislocated shoulder and a nasty stab wound.
REaching forward she grabbed the sketchbook and pencil that laid on her lap before carefully moving them off to her left side and out of the way for the time being. With careful movements (considering she had been scolded by a nurse earlier for almost ripping her stitches) she pushed herself up in the bed with her good arm after having slipped down while sleeping. The familiar wave of sickness washed over her but at this point it was becoming a norm. “Could you hand me that cup there.” She questioned Kristen as she noted the paper cup had been placed just out of her reach on the table. Thankfully, she sipped at the room temperature water when the cup was safely in her hands and the nausea slowly diminished.
“You must have called while he was visiting and I was asleep since I don’t remember him answering my phone. I doubt I’ll be patrolling anytime soon though.” Gwen didn’t particularly mind. Unlike others in this war, she was not lamenting the fact that she wouldn’t be out on the streets protecting people. In a way, she somewhat enjoyed the fact she had a reason not to go out and put herself in danger for the sake of others who would never know she was doing just that.
Brows furrowed, Gwen glanced at the small window just behind Kristen and noted the lack of light filtering in from under the curtains. “It’s dark already.” She said quietly before sighing. “You didn’t need to rush down here. All’s well as it can be.” Still, Gwen smiled warmly, glad to have the girl at her side.
At Kristen’s wandering eyes Gwen sighed and grabbed her sketchbook and placed it back on her lap with the pencil. “I’ve been sleeping more than anything today. A side effect of the morphine I think.” She frowned slightly. “I think it was Isaiah that told me that, but it could have been a nurse. It’s all just a jumbled heap.”
“I am glad you came.” She said gently as she pulled the bear to her chest, enjoying the softness of his plushed body on her hands and arms.
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- "We can not continue like that forever, though." Another fact she was coming to terms with; she had already witnessed the death of one civilian and she sure as hell was not going to allow anyone else to fall if she could help it. Chaos was aiming to kill and she thought it was about time she started to fight back seriously; she had to. Cyan eyes ran over Gwen's fragile body once more and her fist could not help but clench from her frustration. She needed to become stronger, so she could protect the ones she cared about, to make sure something like this did not happen again.
As soon as the request left her friend's lips Kristen reached for the cup and passed it to her, remaining on her feet afterwards. The woman looked weak and ill and the redhead could feel her heartstrings screaming.
"Do not worry, I will patrol twice as hard to make up for it. We will manage." She wore that cocky smile of hers like a mask to hide her worry. Gwen clearly needed a break and Kristen would not have blamed her if she harboured some fear inside her heart. It was just awful; the teen had no words to comfort her. She was not a doctor, she had no talents that actively helped people; she was not her sister.
Cyan eyes drifted out the window and she nodded at her friend's observation; it was night and the city was covered in a veil of darkness. "You are my friend, I needed to be here." She almost scolded her, like the very idea of her NOT rushing here was insane. It was not just to make sure Gwen was okay, seeing her was for her own benefit too. To silence the monsters whispering in her ear.
The teen sniffled and closed her eyes, her hands clenching the fabric of her skirt between her fingers. "I know the conversation was interrupted before; but why I do this. It is because I wanted to prove to myself that there was some good in me. I am so selfish Gwen, so unforgivably selfish. I have used people and hurt them and I wanted to redeem myself - But that has changed now." She shook her head. There was so much she wanted to say, but she was not eloquent enough to do so.
"I don’t care about the stupid war or what fuels it, I just want to protect my friends. I want to protect you and I am sorry I was not there. Don't - Don't do anything stupid without me again."
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Kristen’s comment left Gwen thinking about what this war was going to make so many of them do. Was killing really something that they’d all have to face? Gwen wasn’t even sure she could fathom killing anyone, but here Kristen stood with what looked like conviction. At this point Gwen wasn’t sure if she should be worried about the girl or not, but with the amount of morphine coursing through her she was having a hard time being anything but mellow. So instead, she opted not to comment.
“Don’t run yourself into the ground, please. The last thing I want is to see our roles reversed in the future.” That was the truth. Gwen already had to deal with seeing Isaiah in the hospital. The last thing she wanted was to have to visit KRisten as well. Seeing others injured was just a horrible, horrible thing to deal with. “You also have school to focus on.” She admonished. “And college coming up.”
And then Kristen unloaded her heart onto Gwen and the young woman just sat quietly listening to everything the teen had to say. It broke her heart to see Kristen in such a state. She couldn’t exactly get up and enfold the girl in her arms. The best she could do was hold out her one good arm in invitation and hugging the girl to the best of her ability. “It’s alright. I was just as bad when I came to DC. My motives were selfish and sometimes you need to be that way. Wanting to change though is good.” She smiled and carefully released the girl before running a hand down Kristen’s hair to the side of her face. “You’re a good person, Kristen. That’s obvious. I never thought of you otherwise.
“Wanting to protect people, and not being caught up in the necessity of the war I think is very admirable. More so than me. I am still very wishy washy in what I am even doing in all of this.” She sighed and leaned back against her pillows again. “I’ll try not to get myself into too much trouble again though.” She smiled.
“Now. Tell me about how things are going. It’s been awhile since we’ve chatted. How is school going and college planning?”
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- Kristen visibly straightened herself up when she felt Gwen's hand on her face. The redhead was not used to openly expressing any kind of weakness and the realisation was enough to snap her out of it. Her eyes dried in an instant. What was she doing? Was this the toll the war had taken on her? Was her mask finally cracking under the pleasure of it all? For the first time in a long time Kristen felt human and it scared her.
Damn, she wished she could see herself how Gwen saw her. Then again, Gwen was not really seeing her either. People would think that Zhou Yi was good; she was brave, selfless and strong. A persona that Kristen made to be everything she wasn't, a hero she created. Her friend did not know what she did for a living, how many people she had hurt so she could get ahead, how dependant she was on her wealth and her popularity. Sarah saw through her and her parents did too, they called her out on it all the time. "Magical Girls should not have to do homework."
She stated, rolling her eyes in a way that suggested school was just as stressful as it had always been. "I am thinking of maybe moving into the dorms at DCU actually, sometime in the next few months." She added with a small shrug, it would make sneaking out easier and it would also give her time away from her family. Time to evolve as a person without being dependant on her parents or the luxuries she had become accustomed to. More importantly time to find herself; her future and her past.
Kristen placed her hands over her friends and sighed. "Then don't do it. Don't power up until you have a reason to. Every time we henshin we give up a little bit more; be it blood, be it our morality. You do not want to sacrifice either of those things unless you know why you are doing it." Fighting for the sake of fighting was never worth it, nobody should be putting themselves in danger unless they had no other choice. Life was important, Gwen was important, too much so to throw away without cause.
"Hy-Brasil asked you to fight, but just because you were asked does not mean you have to. That is our choice to make, our lives to risk." Gwen needed to work out what her own life was worth. More so, fighting blindly only served to cause unnecessary worry for Kristen.
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“Moving into the dorms would be a good choice. Get you out of the house, around more people your age, and you’ll be able to work on whatever it is you feel you need to change.” With a tired smile, Gwen reached over for the paper cup again to drink down the last of the water it contained before placing it back onto the table. “College is a good time to find yourself.”
With a tired shake of her head Gwen sighed. “It’s funny. When I first was awakened all I wanted to do was forget about all of this, but I was told that ignoring it wouldn’t really be an option for me.” She patted Kristen’s hand with her own. “Just because I don’t have conviction doesn’t mean I can’t be out there trying to find it. I don’t know if it’s something I’ll ever come to terms with unless I am not out trying to understand it all for myself. Sitting at home and not powering up won’t help me. If anything it’ll just make matters worse.” A yawn escaped Gwen at that moment and she did her best to stifle it. “But I came to DC to change too. Being a Magical Girl is maybe the change I need.”
Gwen would have continued to ramble on if another yawn hadn’t cut her short, this one unable to be pushed away. Sleep was in her near future, assuming that the nurses would leave her alone for the night in order to sleep more than an hour or two at a time. Oh how she looked forward to getting back home and being able to be on her own schedule and not at the whim of what the doctors wants and needs when checking up on her.
Plus, being home meant she’d be able to relax with Isaiah whom she was missing. Not sharing a bed with someone was terribly lonely, and not to mention cold.
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- Kristen watched as Gwen slowly began to drift away, holding onto her hand tighter as she did so. Even if her mind was not all there maybe she would be able to feel her. The teen did not know what she could do to help her friend; but if just powering up and going on patrol was enough to help her - then Kristen would gladly take on the night by her side. Do all she could to help her find that change she needed, the change she wanted.
The redhead looked over her shoulder as a figure came in through the doorway, standing side by side the two girls looked at each other. They shared a face as well as the same hair and eye colour - Gwen in her drugged up state might think she was seeing double. "Surprise! This is my Twin, Sarah. She is going to keep an eye on you whilst I can't, she is a junor here so - behave for her okay."
She stated, tilting her head to the side as her friends eyes slowly closed.
"Gwen? Can you h-e...ar m-?"
Fin.
