Flyaway Birdie - Viper, Haruka - Hospital Car

Viper

Being bustled into the hospital was not the plan. Viper wanted to stay with a few people, Haruka being one of them. After the incident in the last car, she was concerned for their resident pacifist’s wellbeing, she hadn’t looked good… and anyway, she was having trouble relaxing in general so a bit of wandering couldn’t do any harm…

She stands up from her bed, feeling her head swim somewhat in doing so, before she heads her way across to the last place she saw the white-haired woman being directed off to.

“Hey… Haruka?” She called, trying not to disturb any other ‘patients’. “Are ya… alright? Ya didn’t seem too good last car…so…” She trails off, leaving the end open for the other woman to reply.

Haruka Yukimura

Haruka had been chivvied away quite quickly by the Denizens, and had appeared to be talking quietly to them as she went - after all, how much was she to assume that the staff here knew? She very much doubted they had quick and easy access to her medical records, and… well, there was a lot to consider there.

“Come in,” she calls when she hears Viper.

She smiles when she enters, although it’s not the strongest one. It seems like being here has finally let Haruka allow herself to be tired.

“I’ll be fine now. I’d been running low on my medication… Rationing doesn’t work very well when it comes to chronic illnesses. It’ll take a while, but I’m sure I’ll be back up and running soon.”

Even at her best, it feels unlikely that Haruka would be doing much running…

“How is everyone else? Abel? Yourself? I didn’t see how many people got injured at the end there…” She sighs, admonishing her own lack of perception.

Viper

“Hey,” Viper greets again as she finally steps in. She seems relieved that Haruka hasn’t keeled over or anything, and invites herself to sit down on the end of the bed. It… admittedly concerned her a lot to hear Haruka was having to resort to something so… drastic just to try and survive here.

“…D’ya mind if I ask what’s…y’know. What’s goin’ on?” She slips off her shoes, bringing up her legs to fold them under her. “How… worried do we gotta be?”

Haruka, as they always do, seems more concerned about those who got hurt, and Viper sighs, resting her head on her palm.

“…Yeah. Abel’s alright, I jus’… y’know. They didn’t really… see what was goin’ on with my mask.” She picks at a loose thread on her sleeve with her other hand. “…It’s my fault it even happened ta begin wit’.”

Haruka Yukimura

Viper “…D’ya mind if I ask what’s…y’know. What’s goin’ on?” She slips off her shoes, bringing up her legs to fold them under her. “How… worried do we gotta be?”

“Well… hopefully, we don’t have to be too worried now. I’m not sure how much medical knowledge you have - have you heard of aplastic anaemia? Long story short - it’s a chronic condition, but… I was… fortunate enough to have a transplant young enough that I can manage things with medication. I’m never going to be running any marathons, but…”

After stumbling a bit on how to describe her luck, Haruka smiles tiredly. She’s understating it somewhat, but she has got used to her life over time. Right now she’s just looking forward to the exhaustion toning down a bit.

Viper “…Yeah. Abel’s alright, I jus’… y’know. They didn’t really… see what was goin’ on with my mask.” She picks at a loose thread on her sleeve with her other hand. “…It’s my fault it even happened ta begin wit’.”

“There was a lot happening,” she agrees with a sympathetic nod. “Even if it was your mask that shattered, though… I think it was only a matter of time before someone’s did. And it was those Denizens’ choices to react so violently… Don’t blame yourself for that.”

Viper

Unfortunately for you, Haruka, Viper’s medical knowledge ends at knowing how to apply a band-aid. She seems a little… perplexed by the medical term, and shrugs.

“Most I can tell is it’s a blood thing.” She’d had to take supplements after she lost a lot of blood that one time she got beat up… not for long or anything, but… she’d been persuaded to by Kanna. ’Can’t have you being anemic’, she’d said.

“Well… glad ya are better off than ya could be.” Viper means it, Haruka was… nothing short of a blessing with how hectic things had always been among the group. They needed someone sane who wouldn’t try to fight when given the chance, after all. But she did wonder how Haruka had managed to put up with them all this far.

“…Yeah. I know. It’s jus’… so soon after R.N.A… an’ then Abel decides ta do that for me…” She shakes her head slowly. “All this savin’ me ta be some hero’s gettin’ real overwhelmin’.”

Haruka Yukimura

Thankfully, Haruka’s line of work means she’s more than used to explaining medical conditions in ways that a regular human could understand.

Viper “Most I can tell is it’s a blood thing.”

“That’s right. Essentially, my body doesn’t make enough blood cells. Of all kinds… Red, white, and the other ones which I won’t bore you about. It means I don’t have much energy, and my immune system isn’t very good.”

No need to either worry or confuse Viper with the whole extended list of possible symptoms and developments.

Viper “…Yeah. I know. It’s jus’… so soon after R.N.A… an’ then Abel decides ta do that for me…” She shakes her head slowly. “All this savin’ me ta be some hero’s gettin’ real overwhelmin’.”

“…”

Haruka pauses thoughtfully, her silence clearly a sympathetic one.

“I think… they want to help you. And helping people is probably one of the best things a person can do, I think. I’m sure you’ll not be surprised to hear me say that. I don’t think it even has to be particularly heroic, just… human.”