[PRP - CHECK UP] On The Path To Recovery (COMPLETE)

[Ravina Loki]

Who: Adrian, Cordelia, and Zeke
When: July 17th, 2016; around 6pm
Where: Lab 305
Weather: Hazy, hot, and humid outside but pleasant inside

The call had come almost an hour before and from the moment he hung up the phone Zeke was in action mode. It had been a male voice belonging to someone he did not know calling about a Raeven he did know - Cordelia. He hadn't seen her in literal years, the cause of which had been something of note ever since he had been told. Gods...He had almost thought he might never see this day.

Adrian, that was the name the man had given, was worried about Cordelia and her health. She needed to be seen immediately; things were not right. Who Adrian was in relation to the Basilisk had not been asked at the time - hindsight forever a b***h - but now that Zeke had time to process all the information that had been thrown at him it left him wondering. Where was Ebony? Why had she not made the call? Had something happened? What was going on with Cordelia?

He prepped the exam room for the Basilisk's arrival. Tools for a physical were cobbled together and laid out on a section of counter top. He unlocked the medicine cabinets in advance, just in case. He ran the sink just long enough for the water to start to heat up, in case a compress was necessary. He also grabbed one of those, putting it with the depressors and stethoscope. Lastly, the vet made sure to pull the Smoke Raevan's file; an action that required him returning to the lobby, where he had been ever since. It now sat on his desk, closed, waiting as the colorful but worried man did for the one to whom its contents belonged to float through that front door. The clock on the computer ticked another minute closer to 6pm. He eyed it as it did so and hoped that whatever was keeping them wasn't caused by Cordelia becoming any worse than she perhaps already was.  

[Ebony Shade]

"Granddad, I said I was fine. There's no reason to be here." Cordelia sighed quietly out of tired annoyance. Her actions and appearance betrayed her words as she obviously did not look fine at all. She was quite a bit thinner than she had been before turning to stone and her olive skin took on more of a yellow tone than normal. It was also to be noted that she could not keep herself aloft long and thus the reason for her grandfather to be supporting her as he was when they entered the Lab's lobby.

Blue eyes looked to her in horror, "Fine? You're anything but fine! You can barely float!"

Nose wrinkling as she leaned a bit away from the man and placed a hand gently to her forehead, "Granddad please...your voice...my head..."

His face immediately apologetic, Adrian lowered his voice and replied, "Sorry. But this is necessary. You've been stone for two bloody years after all."

All Delia could do was sigh in response. Her head was still swimming at everything her grandfather had told her on the car ride here. Two years? How could that possibly be?  

[Ravina Loki]

The chime over the door sounded off and Zeke's gaze was pulled from the slowly ticking clock to the two figures hobbling into the lobby. Upon seeing Cordelia leaning against the older man for support, the vet darted around his desk and crossed the short space between them.

"Cordelia!" He did not shout her name, but there was a raised volume as alarm took hold. He looked between the Raevan and the man with her, arms held out as though to catch her or perhaps even take over as the one being leaned upon. For a moment there was not much else from the vet - he was gaping like fish, struggling for words, but soon found the two that made the most sense to say: "Follow me."

He led them through the lobby and into the hall, down a short ways, and into the prepared exam room. He moved toward the examination table, patting the cushioned surface.

"It's been awhile," perhaps not the best thing to say in light of everything, but conversation would be good. At the very least it would keep the jaundiced Frei awake. Now that they were in here he took a good long look at her, noting her thinness, the yellow tint to her skin, the bags under her eyes. Of course, visual exams only led to more questions cropping up; ones that would be asked in due time. "Take a seat up here, Cordelia. Make yourself comfortable. Can I get you anything? A blanket maybe?" The AC was on in the building but although it was set to comfortable for human standards, a Raevan with a snake for a soul might not feel the same. Zeke then looked to the man who had brought her in, smiling just a little in greeting and offering his hand.

"You must be Adrian. I'm Zeke; it's nice to meet you, although I wish the circumstances could be better."  

[Ebony Shade]

Both Shades stopped what they were doing and turned to the call of her name. When the colorful man approached, Adrian couldn't help but be a little shocked at his appearance. Of course both he and Cordelia could only give blank stares at the man as he performed an odd little dance in front of them. It was as if he didn't know what to do or say to them. Luckily for them, Zeke found himself.

Following the vet, Adrian hurriedly moved Cordelia with him down the hall. Actually it was more of a slight dragging motion as the Basilisk couldn't help not really wanting to be there. It seemed like every time she came to the Lab it was because something bad happened and usually something worse would follow. Apparently something bad had happened thus the Frei was worried about what could happen next. Zeke was Anastacia's guardian after all and if that Raevan was anywhere nearby, Delia would be even more miserable than she was. As much as she liked the man, she really couldn't help but not like his ward.

With a sigh, Cordelia settled herself upon the exam table where Zeke had motioned. "Honestly I was hoping to feed since apparently I've been stone for two years..." Steely eyes couldn't help but direct themselves to her grandfather with contempt. He'd called the Lab and thrown her in the car so quickly that Delia hadn't a second to really think about how hungry she was until now. Another dissatisfied sigh, "...but I'll make do with what I can get. A blanket would be lovely. Thank you Zeke."

The look his granddaughter gave him didn't go unnoticed, nor the reuse of his previous statement to her mere seconds ago, but he felt she sort of deserved whatever kind of look she wanted to give to anyone at that moment after all she'd been through. Cobalt eyes perked up as Zeke greeted him. Taking his hand with both of his in a grateful handshake, "Ah yes Zeke! Thank you for seeing us on such short notice. I'm Adrian Shade, Cordelia's grandfather." Honestly, he should mention about Ebony, but he really wasn't sure how to bring up the fact that his daughter had gone missing most recently.  

[Ravina Loki]

Zeke smiled in earnest when Adrian took his hand and introduced himself. Grandfather, eh? Well that was definitely the right word to put the vet's mind at ease about a once-stranger coming in with a sickly Raevan. "Not a problem at all, sir. Any time a member of the Lab needs something, I'll be here to help!"

And with that being said he made good on that offering of a blanket, pulling out a particularly thick and fuzzy grey one and unfurling it just enough for the Smoke Frei to cover herself as she pleased when he handed it off to her. When she made the comment about being in stone he smiled sympathetically. The Lab had been made aware of Cordelia's predicament and had kept up with her status over the past two years. For the Basilisk he was sure that alone was incredibly jarring on top of everything else. From the moment he had learned he had staunchly believed there had to have been some way to free Cordelia from her prison but everyone else had seemed rather nervous about making an attempt. Granted, he saw the merit in holding off, but in the back of his mind he had always had the 'maybe' and the 'what if'.

"I was going to say - you look like you could use a meal." The smile continued but brightened a touch as the vet held up a finger and proceeded to busy himself in a lower cabinet. A few clinks and clatters later and he stood up again. Turning to face the pair, he had a couple small candles in one long-fingered hand and an incense burner and the sticks to go with it cradled in the other. "After being encased for so long, tackling a full meal right now would make you sick. Burning a couple of these, however, should be alright. Start small, work your way up, you feel me?" Besides, the stink of a little sandalwood was a small price to pay and a fair one at that.

"Once you have a little something to eat, I know I'll feel better about beginning the exam. Don't worry too much; it'll be questions, mostly, to start. There's so much to ask you - both of you!" He almost had to wonder where he would even begin.  

[Ebony Shade]

Delia's grey eyes clouded over a bit as she looked down and stared blankly at the cool tiles of the Lab's floor. Two years...the only thing that her own sarcastic remark produced was her feeling bad, not him. Honestly she wasn't sure what she was doing trying to get her grandfather riled up more than he already was. Perhaps she was simply frustrated with how she felt physically, emotionally and mentally. And where the hell was Ebony? You'd think the first thing she'd see after waking up was her actual guardian. Then again...after what Cordelia had said...maybe she couldn't blame the purple haired woman for not being there now. She wanted to ask, but was afraid of the answer.

The Basilisk was pulled out from her thoughts then when a big thick blanket was offered to her. Zeke's sympathetic words and smile then was much needed and much appreciated. "Thank you." Accepting the blanket and quickly wrapping it around herself, Cordelia couldn't help but let out a small sigh of content. There was an immediate response from her rune as it pulsed a little brighter at having the sudden warmth.

Jumping at the chance to do something that was more productive and helpful, Adrian offered to light the candles. "Ah, here allow me to be of some usefulness Zeke." Taking the items from the colorful vet, the elder man quickly busied himself. Busy hands were happy hands or something like that right? "And of course we'll answer your questions as best we can. Though I'm not sure how much actual help I'll be." Adrian gave an awkward laugh then.

Delia rolled her eyes. Her grandfather was being so odd, he was usually much more composed than this. Had she really worried him this much? A tiny pang of guilt hit her then. Sighing, "Ask away."  

[Ravina Loki]

"You're welcome." His smile was warm and his tone had a 'very' in it that had not been said. As she wrapped the blanket around herself he noted the pulse of her rune as it peeked out from between the folds. Perhaps she wouldn't need too long a period before she was one hundred percent again. All things considered, that was good. That was very good.

"Oh! Thank you!" He handed the items over to Adrien and passed over a book of matches from another cupboard as well. He let the scent of the incense fill his nose before turning back to Cordelia, keeping a close eye on her as the smoke from said sticks wafted in her direction. "I'm glad you're both so eager to answer! It'll make everything easier and a lot quicker in the long run which will be good for all of us. Adrien, I'm sure there's a few things you'll be able to chime in on, but I'll want to focus on 'delia here for a little bit. Go ahead and mark me now though; I'll think of a few things just for you before you leave!"

He was bouncier now, his steps lighter as he moved from Adrien over to Cordelia. He gestured to the seats in the room for Adrien to occupy if he so chose, but for now the vet himself opted to stand but let himself lean against the counter top next to the Basilisk.

"You know, I'm almost lost as to where to start with you since there's so much to ask but..." he sucked his lip ring for a moment before shrugging and turning his hands out in a 'oh well' sort of gesture. "I guess the best thing would be this: how do you feel Cordelia? You're obviously hungry and chilly right now so I mean more...Does anything hurt?" He relaxed a little as he spoke and got into it. He might have trouble starting but when he got going? Like water from a tap. "Do you feel any stiffness, numbness, or pain even if only a little sting?"  

[Ebony Shade]

Adrian's task came and went all too quickly and he found himself at a loss as to what to do or say next. As the scents drifted lightly through the room, the elder gent took up Zeke's offer of a seat. Honestly, he'd rather pace the room if he could, but felt that might be all too distracting and rude. Thus the Brit sat quietly while the other two conversed, arms and legs crossed gently, but not in an aggressive manner, just in a way as to keep himself grounded.

The smell of the incense burning was enough to make the Raevan's mouth water. She felt this overwhelming need to feed as her grey eyes dilated between normal and serpentine, but keeping the colorful man's words in mind, Cordelia did what she could to control herself. Taking in several small breathes, the Basilisk gently pressed one hand down onto the exam table she sat upon and gripped it tight. This was going to require some will power the likes of which she'd never used before.

It took a few moments for Cordelia to gather herself before answering. "Mmm...I had a headache, but it feels like it's starting to go away now. As for anything else hurting...not really." Finally feeling under control, the Frei let go of the table and flexed her fingers in front of herself and Zeke. "I feel...tired? Groggy? Maybe? No...slow? That sounds like a better word, but I can't decide. And heavy. Definitely heavy. Restricted even. Like my body's too small for me now or something."

Of course she would feel like that. After being a swirling ball of smoke inside a statue for so long it was only natural. Having a physical form after so long must be quite taxing and exhausting to say the least. Cordelia sighed heavily again at her inability to express herself correctly. Honestly, it was like going through her early days all over again. "Sorry Zeke, I know that sounds weird."  

[Ravina Loki]

The vet listened intently but in a relaxed manner, his posture far from alarmed now. He took each word she uttered into consideration, nodding at the mention of the headache and reaching a hand to his bearded chin as she mentioned being groggy.

"The headache is probably because you haven't eaten for awhile. We humans get that sometimes where if we don't eat for some time, our brains start to ache as kind of a reminder to 'eat dummy!'." He looked to Adrien briefly as a back up to this if she had any doubts about it. "Since it's going away now I don't think there's anything to worry about there. Although if you feel it coming back at all while you're here, let me know, okay?

"As for the grogginess and everything, you were in stone for quite a long time. Your body was stuck in that position so it's not out of the ballpark to say that you're probably feeling some stiffness. Are you? Joints, limbs, neck, anything at all?"

She flexed her fingers and he watched her before holding his hand out to her.

"Tiredness we can chalk up to being asleep for too long. That's another thing we humans go through so it's safe to say a Raevan can experience it too. I'm sure after being awake for awhile and then getting some proper in-bed sleep you'll feel better tomorrow."

He smiled at her with a touch of sympathy as he shook his head.

"Nah it's not weird. Trust me, I've experienced weird because of this job and if anything about this strikes me as such right now, it's just the fact you were encased in stone to begin with!" He almost wanted to ask the how and what and why, but held off for now. They would cross that bridge when they got there, unless Cordelia brought them to it herself first.

"How are you feeling now that you've eaten a little? Better already, I hope."  

[Ebony Shade]

For the time, all Adrian could do was simply nod in agreement with all that Zeke was saying to his granddaughter. There wasn't much he could give in commentary as he wasn't the one of whom was stuck in stone for so long. He couldn't even begin to imagine how things had been for Cordelia during that time. Had she been conscience the whole time, like how people in comas could sometimes remember hearing and seeing things when they had been in one? Or had she merely been asleep the whole time? Honestly, he was hoping for the latter, it was far less horrifying and cruel in his opinion.

Cordelia nodded in agreement as well. As the scent of smoke enveloped the room and she allowed her body to slowly consume it, she could feel her headache start to become nothing more than a bad memory. That added with the warmth she was feeling from being under the blanket was making her feel much better than when she had first come in. The snake closed her eyes briefly as she soaked in the long awaited comfort she was now receiving. Maybe, just maybe she would be okay then.

"Stiffness...?" she muttered the one word that had filtered through and stuck in her mind. Cordelia couldn't remember ever being stuck in any kind of position really. Well they said she was stuck in stone and she did remember stoney scales appearing and taking over her body...An unexplainable fear gripped her suddenly and her body responded almost instantly in the only manner it knew how, escape.

The arm Delia had extended out towards Zeke and was still unconsciously flexing the fingers of, suddenly began to wisp into smoke. Gasping fearfully, the Basilisk held it down with her other arm and stared at it painfully, trying to will it back to solid form. She wasn't having much luck as the smoke kept morphing back and forth between something of a solid arm and a plume. It was obvious the girl was panicking as her hair and other parts began to slowly lose form as well, making it all the harder to keep herself solid. Tears in her silver eyes, Cordelia looked between the two men fearfully and said, "I-I-I dunno how to make it stop! Please..."

There was a painful screeching of metal as it scrapped across the linoleum of the exam room. Adrian had all but bolted from his seat and was standing right next to Zeke and his granddaughter. "Cordelia!" Much like the vet hadn't known what to do with himself earlier when he'd met the Shades, Adrian wasn't sure what to do then either. His hands kept hovering about, trying to figure out where to go. The elder man had wanted to comfort her by holding her hand and tell her everything would be all right, but what hand?! There was nothing to grasp let alone touch without it turning into smoke in his own!  

[Ravina Loki]

The question he had asked was thrown out the window almost immediately as he said it. As she offered him her hand he reached to take it, when suddenly the Basilisk froze and her fingers started to disappear into puffs of smoke.

"Oh!" The vet gasped in surprise, almost as if this were a little joke on Cordelia's part, at least until she pulled away and he saw the look on her face. Then it was as if the s**t hit the metaphorical fan as she began crying and her grandfather came rushing up to help. The older man clearly hadn't experienced this before and while Zeke hadn't exactly either, he at least had enough experience in the Raevan powers department to not be as alarmed as the other two were.

"Adrian, she'll be alright." Zeke put his hand on the other's shoulder. Her parental figure freaking out along with her would not do anyone any good right now. The vet gave Adrian a firm squeeze and a look that said 'please calm down' written on it. "Cordelia..."

He turned from one party to the other, hands up and palms out to show he was not going to hurt her in any way, shape, or form as he drew in close. Gently he put those hands on her shoulders which felt as if they were losing and regaining form just as quickly as the rest of her. He looked the Basilisk dead in the eyes and made a soft shh-ing sound.

"Cordelia, I want you to take a deep breath. Do like me:" He inhaled deeply through his nose, held it, and slowly released it through his mouth. "In through your nose, hold to the count of three, then let it out through your mouth nice and easy. You're okay, I promise. You're not in any danger; it's just you, me, and Adrian here. You CAN regain your form. I know you can. You just need to take a breath and calm down. You're okay. You're okay. You're gonna be just fine, I promise."  

[Ebony Shade]

HIs sapphire eyes were ablaze with panic and worry even as Zeke clamped a hand on his shoulder and reassured him everything would be all right. "But..." he said, indignant as he looked from the younger man towards his half-dissipated granddaughter. Adrian clenched his jaw and hands in anger at his being powerless and useless. As far as he was concerned then, he'd most likely already lost Ebony, he couldn't go on if he lost Cordelia too. And though he felt that way, the elder Brit tried to comply with the colorful vet. It was difficult though as he was far too out of practice to just become stoic at a moments notice.

Cordelia was really starting to loose her s**t, even to the point that she'd begun to hyperventilate. Her eyes darted back and forth between the two men's small exchange. Why were they so calm? Why weren't they panicking like her? Was this something not to be highly concerned about?! Squeezing her eyes shut tight, the snake couldn't help thinking 'Oh dear god, I don't want to disappear! I don't want to...'

The last part of her thoughts were lost as her stormy eyes snapped wide open at the weight of Zeke's hands on her shoulders and the gentle sounds he was using to try and calm her with. As he locked eyes with hers, Delia found it hard to look away as much as she felt like doing. Those golden brown eyes of which she'd only seen glinting with humor and joy were holding her firm in place with their deep conviction of seriousness and focus. Oddly enough, it was somewhat calming and the Basilisk simply nodded at what he'd said.

She tried to mimic him, but it was coming out all wrong. The girl's pacing was all off and her breathe came out all shaky and rushed. Frustrated, Cordelia shook her head as if saying no, but closed her eyes and tried again and again, focusing on listening to how Zeke was breathing so she could match it. Eventually she was in perfect timing with him and slowly she could feel the fear of the moment start to slip away. The dark Frei could finally sense all the little bits of herself floating in the area. He was right, everything was fine. She hadn't disappeared, merely lost track of herself in the heat of the moment. She could reform, she would reform. And with one last breathe, all of Cordelia's molecule's obeyed her wishes and snapped back into alignment.

Carefully she opened her eyes and gave a small sigh of relieve when she saw her arm whole again. Yet it was short lived as a bit of a frown crossed her face. She was curious now and moved her arm about, examining it. Suddenly it morphed back into a tendril of smoke. Adrian immediately stepped forward, beckoning her name, but Cordelia didn't even look to him as she held her other perfectly normal hand towards him as if to say stop. She was so enthralled by her smokey limb and began to experiment with making it form various different shapes before having it come back to normal.

Taking that same hand, Delia carefully placed her face in it and laughed. It was a bit hysterical and shaky, but mostly filled with wonderment. "I've never been able to do that before." the Raevan breathed. Anytime she'd turned to smoke it was either an unconscious thing or the side effect of something else. Never had she ever been able to control it to such a degree. What exactly happened to her while she was asleep these two long years? Meanwhile, Adrian was looking to Zeke for answers, his face still projecting tons of concern and worry over all that was happening right then.  

[Ravina Loki]

Slowly, she followed his instructions. There was a hitch to begin with but as surely as he said it would, she synced with him and finally regained herself. The smile he gave her when she did was luminous.

"Atta girl," Zeke gave those reformed shoulders a firm, fond squeeze, "I knew you could do it. Great job, Cordelia!" He pulled away as she suddenly frowned and went about morphing her arm from fully formed to smoke and back again. Her grandfather gave alarm but the Basilisk was hardly bothered and stopped him short herself this time. Zeke crossed his arms and watched with quite a bit of pride as the dark Frei made shapes out of her smoky appendage, laughing right along with her as if nothing alarming had just happened a few moments before!

"You learn something new every day!" He applauded her before turning to smooth over things with her naturally concerned grandfather. "Sorry, sir, I didn't mean to just steamroll you like that." The vet chuckled sheepishly, gesturing to the now-calmed serpent Frei. "Let me explain: all Raevans are capable of powers because of their make up. Some have them immediately from birth, others take time to develop and won't appear until later on in their lives. Often times new powers will manifest on account of situation, stress, or high emotion. Think like...when a baby gets trapped under a car and the mother suddenly gains super human strength to lift the car off the baby, except that strength doesn't exactly go away after the baby is saved and everything goes back to normal."

That was a bit of a roundabout comparison but it worked.

"Cordelia can now become smoke and can also morph that smoke into whatever she wants!" The pride in his voice was apparent and again he turned that smile onto the Basilisk. "This is a perfectly normal and natural part of any Raevan's life. We're very lucky we got to witness it!"  

[Ebony Shade]

A deep frown crossed the elder man's face as he crossed his arms over his chest. Though Zeke seemed impressed, Adrian was anything but amused by this whole display. "Well that's all well and good to know, but is now really the time for Cordelia to be...experimenting with new powers? We have no idea what put her in that state to begin with or what happened during it or why and how she managed to get out of it today!"

Through the spaces between her fingers, Cordelia peered up at her grandfather. She'd never seen him so upset before in her life. Usually he was a rather composed and laid back kind of man, but perhaps without Ebony there to be the panicked one, Adrian couldn't cope. Perhaps she ought to tell them what exactly had happened before she became stone? With a sigh, she slumped onto her side and curled up more into the blanket. This was all so tiring. She just wanted to go home already. "I know I'm a Basilisk."

The Brit looked at her in shock. As far as he'd known, Cordelia didn't or shouldn't have known that. It had been discussed and disclosed to him by his daughter before he'd moved in, but she'd pleaded for him not to say anything of it to Cordelia. There were very few people who new the truth behind the scaled Frei's soul and Ebony wanted it to stay that way. She wanted the girl to have a fair shot at her second life. Without the stigma that would have been associated with a basilisk soul. Clearly at a loss for words, Adrian fidgeted in place as his mouth opened and closed, trying desperately to find words that could comfort her.

"Ebony never told me, but I..." Delia stopped a moment, trying to decide how much of what had happened she wanted to tell them then. There was no reason for them to know about the other basilisks, her former family. Even if they rejected her in this new form, they were still her children and she would protect them however she could. "...I managed to figure it out. I know how she got my soul and I couldn't face her most days I was so livid. Finally I just blew up at her and then well...here we are."  

[Ravina Loki]

Zeke rubbed at his neck when he saw Adrian's deep frown.

"Well...powers cropping up isn't something that can be controlled, really. They just kind of happen, like hiccups can." He shrugged, hoping that was a good enough comparison to ease the older gentleman and his concern. All the same, Zeke couldn't blame Cordelia for wanting to play a little either. No harm done anyway; she was right as rain now.

Still...he did have to agree with Adrian, at least partially. When he brought about the topic of Cordelia getting encased in stone in the first place, he finally shown the spotlight on the elephant in the room that had been here since the pair had shown up. Before Zeke could mention that he, too, was curious, Cordelia piped up and began to weave what she knew of herself and the situation that had been at hand. When she mentioned her soul, the vet did raise his brows a little, but more at Adrian than Cordelia. In his point of view, this was a natural, normal thing for a Frei to know. It made Zeke wonder if Ebony hadn't filled her father in quite so well on just what Cordelia was or what she (and by extension he) were getting into. Then Cordelia explained and his brow raising turned to her instead. Curious, but in the grand scheme of things very minor. She knew, that's what was really important.

"So you got upset with her for not spilling the beans," quietly he winced as he said that, feeling guilty in his own right. Although that was a different topic for another day about another Raevan, he still hadn't yet revealed to his own Frei the details of her origins. Mostly it was the whole 'time and a place' thing, but then again she had also never seemed very interested in learning anyway. He would have to bite the bullet eventually, whether she gained an interest or not. To know Cordelia got upset with Ebony over her learning about her own? He hoped Anya would take the medicine a little better. "And then in doing so you somehow triggered something in you that encased you in stone. Hmm..." His left hand was brought to his chin and the vet frowned as he sucked on his lip ring at this new information. "Do you remember anything from before you tapped into that power?" It now sounded like some kind of defensive ability gone awry to him. She unwittingly tapped into it while under stress, couldn't control it, and then here she was years later finally free of if somehow. Had it simply worn off on its own? Or had she latently disabled it herself somehow? Curiouser and curiouser.

"Although that leads me to ask...where is Ebony?" His expression turned a little owlish. "To be honest I was surprised that you were the one to bring her in, Adrian; I figured she'd have been the one to do so, or at the very least been the one to make the call."