OPEN | Station Log

[heroooic]

CHARACTERS: Finn & You!
LOCATION: All around the ship
DATE: Immediately post-Aldyhion and onward
CONTENT: Teen brooding, teen helping, teen anxiety!
WARNINGS: Some light gore (blood mentions), will update if any others arise

I. ARRIVAL (closed to close CR)

[ A blinding flash and a stomach turning pop of shifting atmosphere and… they’re back on Ximilia. The crumbling ruins and swaying trees, the smell of burning grass and charred dremnin flesh all gone in an instant so startling, it made your head spin. All replaced by gleaming white walls, and the sterile smell of recycled air. Finn shakes his head, eyes adjusting to the harshness of artificial light after so long in the sun and campfires.

He holds up his hand, fully up to his elbow in dark dremnin blood now tacky and well on its way to drying. He was holding Jun’s sword still, hand clasped too tightly on the hilt. No longer glittering and pristine, it too was marked with battle, caked with mud and blood and all the signs of recent, hard use. He lowers his arm to his side as Viveca addresses them, although her words drift past him, barely heard.

Everyone around looked… tired. Worn thin. Maybe relieved in some cases, distressed in others. There was a disorganized dash to get the badly injured to the infirmary, some authoritative commands from people who knew what needed to be done, but an otherwise mundane feeling dispersal of people. Their job was done. What tasks now needed doing would be handled by the people who were most equipped to handle them, and everyone else was freed to return to the smaller attendances of their lives on the station. Conversation and sleep and long showers and taking stock of what they’d gained, and what they’d lost.

He catches brief glimpses of people as they move; of Itachi, still badly injured, a sudden inexplicable stab of guilt making him look away. After everything, it had been Itachi who’d saved his life, and Jun who’d betrayed the considerable trust he’d heaped on him. Trust that hadn’t been earned by much more than a winning smile and a shakily outdated world view that Finn himself didn’t really believe in anymore. What an idiot.

Sheathing the sword on his back, Finn avoids any accidental meeting of anyone’s eye and heads directly for the sunlight room. In keeping with their own clock, the room wasn’t sunlit at all, but early evening hung over it, quiet and dark. The contrast from the battle they’d been in the thick of, not twenty minutes before, was disorienting. No screeching cries or dremnin, or people shouting or the roar of fire or dragon; crickets, and the gentle swaying of trees in an artificial wind. In some ways, it made Alydhion feel like the simulation. A bad dream that he just needed time to fully wake up from.

Except there was still mud on his shoes, the smell of smoke in is hair, and when he sits on a large stone, putting his head in his hands, he can feel all of that and more, ground into his palms. For better or worse, it was all as real as anything. He just needed five minutes. Five minutes to process it, collect himself and…move on. Then he could get to work. ]

II. INFIRMARY (OTA)

[ After he was cleaned up, scrubbed clear of blood and mud and whatever else came out of the dremnins they’d been fighting, Finn find his way back to the infirmary. It was the most immediate and obvious place to help. So many people had been injured… not just in serious life threatening ways, but small, more mundane ones too. Uninjured, Finn was sure he could be of assistance; anxiously hovering around the peripheral, sidestepping people who were doing the healing, keeping out of the way but just barely. ]

Is there anything I can do to help? I can get things for you if you need, or, hold things? [ His voice comes anxious and rapid, standing a little too close, and whether you are healer or patient, he offers: ] Whatever you need, you got it.

III. KITCHEN (OTA)

[ In the kitchen, there is… an aroma of cooking. Is it food? Yes. Is the smell good? Harder to say. Finn, standing at the stove, looking like he was taking a pop quiz on quantum mathematics he's never heard of, dumps a box of pasta into a simmering pot. The broth bubbles up with the sudden increases volume, spilling over the edge with a hiss. Finn frantically turn the heat down, biting his lip and looking more worried than ever.

Picking up a large metal spoon, he tastes the broth carefully, making a face. It wasn’t at all turning out the way he wanted it to. Soup seemed so easy on paper: a foolproof combining of easily cooked ingredients, all in one big pot. But of course, like many things... there was a lot more to it than that. ]

Crap-- [ He adds a small handful of salt, moving to stir it again when his robotic hand, dented from their mission, doesn’t quite respond in the seamless way that it’s supposed to, and the spoon clatters to the floor. Finn grits his teeth in frustration, the minor inconvenience feelings quite a bit more than that as stoops down to pick it up. ] Stupid…hand…

[ The soup, meanwhile, was beginning to boil up again, bubbling treacherously at the rim of the pot. ]

IV. COMMON AREA (OTA)

[ In the laundry area of the common room, Finn was at the sink. Water pours hot into the basin as he scrubs at a corner of what appears to be an ornately woven scarf, spattered intermittently with dried blood. He’s done his best to keep it clean and safe as promised, but things had gotten a little hairy during the battle and now it was--]

I don’t understand how you’re supposed to do this?

[ Finn snaps at no one in particular. Sighing in frustration, he pushes away the thought that it might be ruined. There had to be a way to clean it. It was just blood. He scrubs harder; the obvious, perhaps excessive, tension clear in his shoulders and movements. ]

V. SUNLIGHT ROOM (OTA)

[ The unending churn of tasks, errands, fetching, and chores was a blessing. Hour by hour, Finn allowed himself to be swept away in the river they created, moving too swiftly along on the surface to ever sink more than a few inches deep into the murkiness below. Though it was always there with him, it could never touch him. Not so long as he kept busy.

But there were times when the river slowed, yawning open into something larger and calm. In those moments, Finn found himself drawn back to the sunlight room as he had that first moment back. Sometimes he sat by the pond, other times he would lay down in the grass and watch the artificial clouds. Fellow visitors may even find him dozing high in the bows of a tree, looking more comfortable and natural there than he ever had in the small Ximilia sleeping quarters.

It's an echo of a ritual from his life before. Every time they returned home from a mission, his brother knew to give him space for a while. Sometimes, after an adventure, he likes to sit on that log out there and think, Jake would say to the curious, keeping them at bay so Finn could brood in peace.

Only Jake wasn't here now, was he? Oh, well. A ritual was a ritual.

Finn pulls up a handful of grass, sinking a couple inches deeper into his own thoughts. Any passers by won't earn so much as a look from the teenager, eyes fixed on the setting artificial sun. ]

(( please feel free to wildcard another scenario at your leisure, or reach out to me at nonvieta to plan something out! I will be adding closed starters in the comments of this post. ))

Comments

Closed to Rand

[heroooic]

[ Keeping busy meant more than just running errands and making an attempt at chores. Each morning over cold cereal, Finn would flip through his mental rolodex of names and review his dailies. Shoot Gwen her daily good morning text, ask Steve if he wants to hit up the training room for a session with Felix, see if Nettle wanted to have lunch with him later, do his infirmary rounds, and obviously check in on Helen in case she needed anything.

People could be projects too, if you worked it hard enough. And unfortunately, no project was immune to problems.

Since their arrival back at the ship, Finn had hardly seen Rand. At first, he chalks it up to his injury and the stress of that final battle. But as time stretches on, Finn begins to wonder if maybe the change of context means things would go back to the way they were before Aldyhion; when they knew each other, but mostly just as two people who might wave in the halls but otherwise have little to say to one another.

Not that Rand ever had that much to say to him, really. Finn stabs his spoon at the remaining cereal milk, frowning at the rhythmic ting-ting of metal on china.

That's stupid, he tells himself, stubbornly. They were both Helen's guards. Brothers-in-arms meant something to Finn. To Rand too, he's sure. Maybe he just wasn't putting enough effort into this particular project. That changed today.

The rest of the day is marked by Finn looking over his shoulder, peeking into rooms he's never been in, driving himself to distraction as he executed his daily tasks. Everyone he asked seemed to have a different version of the same answer: one big shrug. By the time Dr. McCoy chases him out of the infirmary for the day, Finn's resolve is set. It was time to get proactive.

It's early evening when Finn raps on Rand's door. Whether Rand is already in his room or elsewhere on the ship, the teenager doesn't bother waiting for an answer before walking inside. If his friend wasn't already here, well, he had to come back sometime. Finn would wait as long as it takes. ]

[dragonmount]

[ it's been a relief to be back onboard the ximilia.

in truth: he'd never really trusted jun — had struggled even to trust the great mulgrowe, for all that he turned out to be a worthy ally — and so the betrayal doesn't sting. he'd felt guilty for pushing finn to go on into the castle only to be met with that, though. finn hadn't been physically hurt for it, at least, but it's still a blow. but the appearance of the dragon had driven even guilt from his mind, and all that had come next...hadn't sat well with him.

(you won't be coming home, i'm afraid.)

but he'd felt the brightness of the Power even as they arrived back on the station, and when he seized saidin his grip was true. it doesn't always work; sometimes he reaches and finds nothing, and sometimes the swell of Power seems to have a mind of its own and he has to let go right away for fear. but he feels better with it than without, has spent too much time with the tempest raging beneath his skin just to feel the storm.

even now, as he looks up with some small measure of surprise and alarm, no fewer than five lights hang in the air and illuminate his room. they wink out as he recognizes finn, frowning, and goes to stand while releasing saidin. the book in his hands is discarded on the nearby table by an empty water glass, and he grips the back of his chair to support himself. he's had healing, of course, but he isn't completely well yet. even if that were possible with magic — and it very well might be — he's loath for the healers to risk overextending themselves when others were hurt far worse, when others were hurt. ]

Finn? What is it?

Closed to Lúthien & Helen (& whoever else is in around their bedroom)

[heroooic]

[ Finn was a frequent fixture of the room Helen and Lúthien shared; visiting at least once each evening with a rambling report from the infirmary or any other notable goings on around the ship. Usually, he brought a trinket or two with him -- something sweet from the mess hall or the occasional piece of jewelry (marked by Finn's questionable -- but very shiny -- taste) fished out of the supply drop.

These gifts were originally meant for Helen, but it isn't long before Finn begins bringing along treats for Lúthien as well. It's only fair; she had to listen to him babble too. Sometimes for hours, if Helen had a particularly long list of chores for him to complete. The least she deserved was a donut.

Then one day, the visits stop. Neither woman sees or hears from Finn for a full 48 hours. Not particularly notable, per se, but certainly a change from the normal routine.

After the strange blip, Finn's visits resume. Only this time, he doesn't barge in. He doesn't even knock. If the women were to leave their room for any reason between the hours of 5 and 6 o'clock, they'll find Finn sitting in the hall just outside their door. He looks the same as ever, aside from sporting a fresh cut on his cheek.

Upon seeing either of them, Finn promptly stands to attention with a breezy smile. It's not weird. This isn't weird. I'm being normal.]

Hey! There you are. I, uh-- [Arms laden with his usual offerings, Finn extends either a strawberry frosted éclair (for Lúthien) or a bag of lime sours (for Helen).] I was hoping I'd catch you. Things have been really crazy busy, you know how it is!

Is everything, like. Good? With you?

[lest]

〈 helen accepts the offering with a touch of bemusement. 〉 I am well enough. 〈 as she speaks, her sharp eyes sweep across finn from head to toe.

in the privacy of her room, helen has slowly taken to favoring tight bodices, layered skirts, bold pattern. when she must venture into the halls, however, she does so in the raiment with which she arrived. her long, green dress closes around her neck. an umber shawl was artfully draped across one shoulder and bound against her waist by a woven belt. the differences: finn's gift—the small button at the end of an aluminum chain—rests anachronistically against her chest. and her veil is missing. her short hair is kept away from her face with gold ribbons.

taking his chin in hand, she gently tilts his face to observe the cut. 〉

This is recent.

[edraith]

[ there is a frown marring her features as she takes the éclair from finn — with her free hand, she brushes her fingertips along his cheek, not quite touching the wound.

finn will notice that suddenly, any pain he has felt, any sting, it is lessened. perhaps not for long... but the elven way of healing is a strange thing, indeed. ]

Nay, I cannot say it is, when someone I care about is hurt.

[ because she may not have known finn long, but helen cares for him much, and she had seen his posts during the mission and felt his pain; in her heart, she has chosen to care about him, this brave human child. ]

Closed to Newt

[heroooic]

[Finn hadn’t spent much time in or around the lab during his time on Ximilia, but he knew his way there well enough. Running errands for Professor Mikotoba had brought him here a few times, fetching a tool or beaker from the supplies there, but other than that, he knew precious little about what went on here.

Finn flexes his dented prosthetic hand as the door to the lab slides open. He didn’t much mind the scuffs and sizable dent his arm had recieved in the battle on Alydhion; cosmetic wear and tear was just life. But the servos had been acting up since they’d been back, not quite responding the way they should. A few dropped spoons in the kitchen was no big deal, but dropping delicate or breakable vials and tools while he was helping Dr. McCoy in the infirmary was a much bigger deal. He’d have to get it fixed, and there was only one person he knew on board with that kind of expertise.]

Newt? Newton?

[ He suddenly found himself wondering if Newt, like Professor Mikotoba, or Dr McCoy actually carried some kind of formal title to his name. He certainly had the credentials. But on the other hand, he hadn’t introduced himself that way, and he definitely didn’t have the formality (or stuffiness) of either of those men. Nah. “Newt” suited him fine.]

Are you busy? I have something I could use some help with if you’ve got a few minutes…

[Finn had slept through most of it, but he’d caught a bit of Newt’s late night network conversation about all the people they’d lost several days prior. It hadn’t felt like his place to comment, having not known most of those people, but the idea of it had been weighing on Finn’s mind. It had to be weighing far heavier on the crew who’d been here as long as Newt, and Finn hoped he wasn’t intruding on his brooding time, if he was the brooding type. But what little he knew of the man pointed more toward being a project guy.]

[groupiedrifter]

[As Finn enters what is probably commonly known as 'Newt's corner' (a hurricane of wrappers and papers nobody dare touch), Newt swivels around to smile over at Finn with his usual attire, sleeves hiked up to his elbows and tie about as useless as ever.]

Oh! Psht, just call me Newt, kid.

[Newt is... doing as Newt does. Which is being neck-deep in little mechanical parts and different drafts of designs and whatnot. Power dampening gauntlets one month, PONs system the next, Viveca's robot body the next — never-ending stuff over the last year and change! The topic this time is... robot fish? There's definitely a robot fish flopped on its side with some wires hanging out of it. He delicately pushes the work aside to give the kid his full attention.]

I've always got time between missions, so don't sweat it.

What's the sitch?

[Well, if anything, they were destined to meet for the terrible lingo alone.

Also, what late night network convo? No such thing, never happened, nope.

Totally in your imagination. Look how normal he is, no brooding in sight.]

Closed to Itachi

[heroooic]

[ Sent two days after returning from Aldyhion: ]

Sender: raddude5000
Recipient: うちは
Hey. You're not in the infirmary. Where are you?

[ Sent three days after returning from Aldyhion: ]

Sender: raddude5000
Recipient: うちは
I really think I need to talk to you. Are you feeling better? Do you want to meet somewhere?

[ Sent four days after returning from Aldyhion: ]

Sender: raddude5000
Recipient: うちは
I can come to your room if that's easier. I'm can be there in like five minutes.

[ Sent thirty minutes after the prior message: ]

Sender: raddude5000
Recipient: うちは
dude can you not hear me knocking? you don't gotta get up just unlock the door

[ Sent a week after returning from Aldyhion: ]

Sender: raddude5000
Recipient: うちは
what the jib man, i KNOW you gotta be getting these. why are you avoiding me??

[ The messages continue at varying frequency; sometimes only one a day, sometimes in the double digits. It was the kind of thing Finn could feel himself cringing over even while he was doing it, but something in his chest made it impossible to stop. Itachi's frustrating, maddening, confoundingly confusing choice to save his life, to break so hard from Finn's concrete idea of who the man was... it had been lodged in Finn's throat since their return, growing tighter and harder to ignore with each passing day.

I don't hate you.

It would be so much easier if he did. It would make so much more sense if he did. Finn isn't even sure that wasn't a lie, either. It didn't feel like one, but Jun never felt like a liar. Those twin thoughts became so tangled in the weeks back aboard the ship, to the point where Finn realized he couldn't think about Jun without also thinking about Itachi and vice versa. The two men blended together into a baffling stew of hurt feelings and murky motivations; the kind of thing that made Finn feel twelve years old again, pressing his face up to the glass of adult complexities. Seeing, but not understanding.

Only he wasn't a little kid anymore. He knew he could understand, if only Itachi would just answer his freaking texts!

It would be one thing if Itachi was around the station like normal, but Finn hadn't seen hide nor hair of him in nearly two weeks. Nobody he asked had seen him either, though Finn wasn't sure they were telling him the truth or not. Maybe Itachi would have asked them to lie? Finn didn't like to think about that theory too much. It made his insides feel yellow and green. ]

---

[ Things changed at the start of their third week back. Finn was running errands for Dr. McCoy, as usual, when a familiar black silhouette crossed in front of him down the hall. Finn reacts as if he's seen a ghost, dropping the list Bones gave him and taking off at a jog towards Itachi. ]

Hey! [ He waves his robotic arm in the air, trying to grab the elusive man's attention. ] Hey!!

[blackfire]

（ he barely leaves his room. it's a personal choice — even in those early days, after mccoy's regeneration and his own healing, he was not so badly off that he could not have dragged himself to the kitchen if he'd wished to — but he had food enough stored in his quarters to survive, and not much yen for company. there are times he prefers silence and solitude to all else, and besides his brief engagements with those closest to him he has sought little else but that.

so, he had remained in his quarters. when the notifications coming through his earpiece became too obnoxious, he simply kept them muted while he read. he is working his way through a series that viveca had recommended to him, dense novels in another language where the challenge becomes decoding the cypher of it all. it is easily done with the sharigan, but it's still engaging enough that it holds his attention well.

eventually, he emerges from his room in search of the supply drop's contents to shore up his tea supply. it is when he is headed back that finn's voice cuts across his awareness, and his shoulders twitch upwards like someone surprised by a deafening sound. but he does stop. and turn. and wait.

his expression is deeply neutral, jaw set. he looks more-or-less like himself, if pale. a touch more gaunt than has become his custom — though he does not keep a mirror by which to gauge his own appearance. his hair is in a messy bun, his gait as graceful as if he had not been injured at all. he allows the boy to catch up with him, but says nothing in greeting, simply waiting for him to speak. ）

Closed to Steve

[heroooic]

[ The footsteps of someone walking noisily past their room, the whirring of recycled air in the vents, the rustling his sheets made when he tossed and turned... had they always been this distracting? Steve called lights out over two hours ago and here Finn was now, wide awake and somehow equally disturbed by the silence and the sounds interrupting it.

How could a room be too quiet, yet not quiet enough? It was as if someone was giving CPR to his brain, thumping on it over and over while his thoughts ran laps around every bad, sad, and embarrassing thing that had ever happened to him.

Finn sits up, abruptly, turning towards the lump in the bed across the room. ]

Dude. [ He doesn't bother whispering. This is urgent. ] Dude, are you awake?

[spikedbats]

[ Steve knows fully well how rooms can be that awkward liminal space between dead quiet and noisy. He's always struggled with sleeping in his own bed home alone, needing the comfort of something or someone to cover up every little ambient sound.

Unfortunately on the space station, he doesn't have access to Robin's stream of consciousness wearing him down, or the crackling of the walkie talkie to remind him that his newfound family was just on the other end. So unsurprisingly, Finn isn't the only one tossing and turning all night with no hopes of getting to sleep anytime soon.

Of course he had nearly just given up entirely and was about to slip out and off to the training room to try physically wearing him out and taking a nap afterwards, but Finn's voice broke him out of the negative feedback loop that he had very nearly trapped himself in. ] Hngh, yeah 'm awake. What's up, man?

sunlight room

[shishkabob]

[Dante’s footsteps are heavy, and his humming cuts through the silence, only to fade once Dante sits next to Finn, pulling one knee halfway up to his chest and watching the artificial sunset as well.

He says nothing for a long while. Then:]

I know it’s not how our bet turned out, [because Dante had been right to be suspicious, as much as he didn’t want to be,] but I think I still owe you some ice cream.

1/2

[heroooic]

[ Dante's arrival sends a spike of tension through Finn's shoulder, hunching reflexively. It's not the man himself that spurs it, really, more the idea of being seen at all. Finn braces for the questions he's sure are coming; how are you, are you holding up alright, what are you doing out here... all the things plenty of well meaning adults had said to him since their return from Aldyhion. Finn wasn't upset with them for it. They meant well. But as for what to say in response, Finn was coming up emptier and emptier lately.

... Only the man doesn't say anything at all. They sit like that for a while, Finn's shoulders slowly relaxing again. By the time Dante does speak, the teenager actually seems comforted by his presence. ]

Haha, yeah, sure. [ Finn's laugh is genuine, if a little wistful. ] I could always go for some ice cream, dude.

2/2

[heroooic]

[ For a moment it seems like silence might win out again. This time, it's Finn who breaks it. ]

Thanks for not... rubbing my face in it, man. I know you saw this coming a mile away, after that guy you knew did the same thing. [ He toes at the dirt, laughing a little. ] I just thought he was the real deal, I guess. Stupid.

infirmary/wildcard

[karumic]

[Kazuma has made his priorities very clear: the second Ryunosuke had been patched up, administered the antidote, and deemed stable enough to leave alone to recover, Kazuma parked himself right next to his infirmary bed and has yet to leave. It's as much guilt as it is worry, because this is exactly the kind of thing Ryunosuke had meant when he argued the dangers of staying here. And of course it had come down on the wrong person.

The least Kazuma can do is admit it to his face once he wakes up.

Whenever that will be. Now that the dust has settled and his staved-off exhaustion is catching up with him, Kazuma is close to nodding off himself. When Finn makes his rounds over to them, he's in the same position he's been for the past few hours: half-slumped over in his chair, Ryunosuke's hand in one of his, eyes half-lidded as he fights against sleep. Next to him, Ryunosuke is sleeping with his mouth open (and drooling a little). Kazuma's head snaps up at approaching footsteps.]

Finn? What are you doing here?

[It's confused rather than accusatory, but who knows how Finn will take it...]

[heroooic]

[ At first blush upon pulling back the curtain, Finn's sure that they were both asleep. He even has it in him to be a little embarrassed, the intimacy of the moment obvious and Finn's own presence clearly out of place. He only has the space of a second to consider that though, before Kazuma is addressing him. ]

Oh, hey Kazuma. [ He whispers, holding up a basket of fresh bread rolls. ] I was just passing these out. You should have some, they're good.

[ He steps inside, drawing the curtain closed behind them. Without waiting for answer, he extends a warm roll toward the exhausted man. ]

I didn't make them. [ He adds, encouragingly. His smile is more sympathetic than eager. Maybe even hopeful. ] These are Chuuta-originals. You gotta try 'em, dude.

III

[coordination]

Watch your head—!

[ Finn will see a shadow quickly move over him, as Yzak leans over both him and the stove to turn the heat down before the pot boils over and heavens forbid onto Finn himself. They don't need that after this last mission! ]

[heroooic]

Whup- [ Finn keeps his head down a moment longer, allowing Yzak to swoop in for the save. Standing up, spoon in hand, he smiles gratefully.]

Oh, dang. Thanks man…that was almost a real bad situation! [Arguably the soup still had the potential to be “a real bad situation”, but at least it wasn’t spilling over or scalding anyone.]

kitchen

[asymbiotic]

[Chuuta doesn't actually hear the stove bubbling over, he's got his earbuds in and he's listening to music, some kind of generic top-40s pop just for background noise.

So it's some kind of kitchen sixth sense that has him coming into the kitchen just in time to reach past Finn and turn the stove off. It's still probably going to boil over but Chuuta's not going to shove Finn out of the way so he can move that pot.]

Are you okay? [That's the first question, obviously.]

[heroooic]

What? [ Heedless of the last second save he’d just received, Finn jerks back up, head clipping the edge of the counter as he does with a loud thunk. ] Ow! Scra-

[ He cuts himself off mid-profanity, rubbing the back of his head. Whether it was surprise or a change of course or the polite company, he smiles sheepishly. ]

Yes. Yep, totally…okay. [Noticing that Chuuta had turned off the stove, and hastily moving the pot to a cool burner while it splashes over the edge.] Thanks for the soup save, man. I mean…pretty sure it’s ruined still, but you at least put it out of its misery.

infirmary, also wildcard

[swordandshield]

[Felix was in and out of consciousness somewhat consistently for the first few days, never content when he was awake and restless when asleep so that he never appeared happy or healthy. After the first few days he began to stay awake more often and capable of holding conversation though he was still very much a complainer. He didn't like being stuck in the infirmary at all. He didn't like being injured even less.

But the mission was complete and they all made it back to the station with one more orb in their possession. So the day had technically been won. Felix knew the general idea of what happened during the final fight, having kept up via whatever network feed he could get out of others in the thick of things. But between the disorienting, disjointed information from the network and his own lack of full consciousness through the whole matter he only knew the final outcome for certain. For the most part, that was enough for him.

He concentrated on healing and counting down the time till he thought he could get out of here. A few more days if he had his way. There were constants, like Sabriel visiting him to flush him full of healing magic and try to undo more of what the nasty orb spell had done to him. Despite his constant complaints, she was a fucking saint and he appreciated her more than he let on. McCoy told him to shut up and relax at least three times a day when he made his rounds. Others moved around the infirmary to help out or just visit patients stuck in the sterile room. And then there was Finn who came to do his best to help out at any little thing he could.

Felix hadn't said more than a few words to Finn so far, "feigning" pain or drowsiness whenever the boy was around even if he was having a relatively good moment. He didn't know what he wanted to say. He was still trying to remember what rubbish he last had told Finn and wondered if the boy remembered any of it after the hell he'd gone through in the final battle. He could only avoid a real conversation with the boy for so long though, and he finally remembered telling McCoy and Cabrera to grab his sword and Finn's along with it.

When Felix next heard Finn's voice filter through the infirmary room the mercenary glanced to the side where he'd asked McCoy to put the boy's weapon. He shifted uneasily as he turned his head towards where the boy's voice came from and stared at the thin material separating his section from the rest of the room. Finally, he cleared his throat before speaking.]

Finn. [He tried to raise his voice a little to be heard.] Finn, come here!

[heroooic]

[ For all the time that Finn had been spending in the infirmary, he had yet to catch Felix when he was conscious. It had concerned him, but Dr. McCoy had assured him the man was recovering well, and been awake quite a few times. Just bad luck, Finn supposed, that it was never when he was around.

So when he he hears a familiar voice, more hoarse demand than request, his heart leaps with relief. ]

Felix! You’re awake! Oh, man, I was so worried. [He rushes over to his bed, stopping only briefly to set aside the folded linens he’d been carrying over from the laundry. ] How are you feeling? You’ve been out cold every time I stopped by.

[ There were still a lot of complicated feelings for Finn, tied up in their final moments on Alydhion, there was no doubt about that. But they were all set aside for a moment. Just a moment to know that Felix was awake and okay and still wanted to speak to him.]

I.

[construing]

〈 a long shower and a longer nap are near the top of gwen’s list of priorities. earlier, they were third and fourth respectively; getting itachi stable was firmly first, and remained so through his obstinate insistence that he could return to his room.

(at least he was well enough to be a stubborn dickhead about it. still made gwen want to punch him, only 1) viveca would probably be upset by dents in her station, and 2) it would put a hamper on his recovery. c’est la vie.)

that task settled, however, allows her to focus on the new number one: find finn. it is a task made easier by venom. as soon as the jolt took them—as soon as the magic blocks restricting their powers was removed—it had surged within her. tendrils left outside quickly hitched a ride on certain people: wei wuxian, mccoy, itachi, of course. the people gwen cares about—and thus worries about most. today, one filament stole onto finn’s back.

as she approaches, she makes sure the rustle of the grass under the blue soles of her shoes is heard. clad once more in spider-woman’s colors, though lacking the mask, once close, she calls him by name— 〉 Finn. 〈 the rest of the distance is covered soundlessly, and she sinks beside him, wrapping her arms around him in a hug. 〉

[heroooic]

[ Finn doesn’t notice her quiet approach, turning only when she speaks his name. The hug was unexpected but he was grateful for it regardless. Grateful she took the responsibility away of having to say he that needed it. Honestly he thought maybe she needed it too. Maybe all of them did.

He takes a breath, pulling back to look at her, concerned. It was strange how accustomed he’d gotten to seeing Gwen in her Alydhion disguise; he’d known her longer in that world than he had here. But it was good to be back. That particular layer of artifice stripped away from all of them, back to who they really were, for better or worse. ]

Is…he okay? [ he didn’t think she would be here if he wasn’t, but he needed to hear that to be true. ]

IV. COMMON AREA (OTA)

[tochnyy]

[ when he's feeling better, burns healed and his shoulder no longer straining each time he moves, mal's back to his usual routine. it's mostly training, resting in the sunlight room.

sometimes he spends his time in the common room, though, trying to get someone to play cards with him. they don't gamble anything meaningful, not with everything supplied, but it's fun to win. he walks into the common room right before finn lets out that frustrated huff and walks over, watches him scrub at the cloth.

he guesses it's got something from the mission on it, maybe blood. carefully, he sits down next to finn. ] What are you using on it?

[ he knows a few tips and tricks, has picked up a couple new ones since arriving on the station too. mal's clothes are often dirtied and bloodied, after all. ]

[heroooic]

[ Finn glances in Mal’s direction briefly. Internally he was glad that, like many people, Mal was up and about and seemed to be recovered from his injuries. It turns out that fighting a dragon left a lot of damage in its wake; more than just buildings and scorched trees. All things considered, Finn had been lucky, walking away with nothing more than some scrapes and bruises.

Externally, he doesn’t so much as give Mal a smile, doubling down on his scrubbing, obviously frustrated.]

Uh…soap? [ What else is he supposed to use, Mal?]

iv. common area

[evasives]

[ cassian is something of an expert on blood removal. ]

[ laundry too, because he's been doing his own laundry for ages, but blood specifically - he knows when it's cleanable and when it's time to toss it. sometimes you have to toss it even when it's an easy fix. he watches finn struggle with his scarf and debates the merits of stepping in. he remembers finn - the one to confront jun on the mission. he makes a habit of trying to learn everyone's name even when they haven't spoken to yet, simply because he can't break the habit. ]

[ the aggravation and irritation draws his attention too, and perhaps it's the combo that pulls him over with a trace of concern. not that it's in his expression or even his posture. ]

Do you know what the scarf is made of? Certain fabrics come clean better with different methods.

[heroooic]

[ Finn looks up, startled out of his focus by a relatively unknown voice. He’d seen the man around, of course, and although it felt strange that there could still be people he hadn’t spoken too much in such a small place, here he was. And not exactly in his most dignified moment.]

I…don’t know. Helen- [ he provides no further identifier, surely the man knows Helen ] wove it. It’s hers. I need to give it back to her, and I promised I would take care of it. And, I…well, look at it.

[ Why was he rambling with so many details? Finn shakes his head, clearly on edge. Whatever this scarf was, it weighed more heavily on his mind than just the threads it was woven from.]

Arrival

[singlelogbridge]

[That he doesn't know the extent of Itachi's injury is a gift. He knows his friend was injured and knows that it was serious enough to warrant treatment, and maybe he's being foolish relying on an old promise, but he tells himself that if Itachi was really in trouble he would have reached out to him. (He very pointedly does not think about the fact that Itachi had promised to reach out for help not to alert him to an injury that he could do nothing about.) Either way, he's with McCoy now so there is nothing Wei Wuxian can do for him.

It means he's there to spot Finn slipping away from the return crowd, his shoulders slumped and his eyes averted from anyone's gaze.

Wei Wuxian follows him to the Sunlight Room. He watches him for a moment, waiting to see if perhaps he should give him space, but Finn is blood spattered and downtrodden, and the fact that he sought this place before even a shower tells him more than he needs to know.

He's deliberately loud with his steps, making himself known as he approaches and then taking a seat next to Finn on the rock with some distance between them. He doesn't want to crowd him. A water bottle appears from seemingly nowhere and he holds it out for Finn to take.]

Drink this. Your body is exhausted and dehydrated. You need it.

[heroooic]

[ Finn looks over when he hears Wei Wuxian, not terribly surprised to see him, but unsure if he wanted the company or not. A fact he debated for only as long as it took him to be offered water.

He takes the bottle gratefully, and a long drink from it, not stopping until it was over half empty. He really hadn’t realized how thirsty he was. It already made him feel slightly more alert, a little less like his head was in a fog.]

…Sorry. [ He forces a smile, a stiff pastiche of apologetic, holding the half empty bottle out for him to take back. ] I probably need a shower and a nap too, but it… feels weird, to just go back to regular stuff so quick.

[ The suddenness of their departure had been jarring, and difficult to wrap his head around. Maybe it would have been less so if the last hour or two hadn’t been such a whirlwind of emotions. Between Jun and Felix and Ziggy and Itachi, Finn felt like his heart hadn’t quite caught up with his brain or his body. Emotional jet lag. So many big, terrifying things and now they… were just back. And it was all a world away.

It was enough to turn all the highs and lows of the last 24 hours into little more than shallow numbness.]

Oh--[Finn remembers himself, looking genuinely frustrated at being together for all of a minute without asking:] Are you okay? Everything was happening so fast, I didn't see you, so...