distressedude | 027 ~ [Action]

Entry tags:

027 ~ [Action]

[The past few days have been rather strange for Ion. Between all the problems stemming off of what happened on Christmas eve and the incident with Kohan, something new has started happening. Something he can't quite explain.]

[It started out of nowhere. Just like that day when he was returned from the malnosso, he awoke with a sharp pain running down his arms and legs. But this time it felt different -- stronger. And it took more than a few minutes before he finally felt stable enough to move out of bed. For awhile, he thought perhaps it was nothing. Maybe he was just feeling a little sore from all the stress? It wouldn't be the first time stress had affected his health, after all.]

[But then it happened again at the library. And that was only a few hours after a rather nasty fall while walking around the village, scraping the palms of his hands and his knees. He's lucky it was snowing earlier that day, or it might have been even worse! But in the library, all he had been doing was sitting and reading. And then, once he tried to move again to find another book, his legs prickled with pain, pulling him back down where he'd been sitting.]

[Something was wrong. But what should he do? Would it be right to bring this up, knowing it might be nothing? Especially if it does turn out to be nothing, in which case he'd just be causing undue stress for the others. And he can't help but think back to that last conversation with Nephry...]

[Which is why he'll be popping over to go visit a certain friend, without notice -- rather unlike him, but he didn't exactly want to make the trek back home to fetch his journal. He'll just have to hope he's home...]

[After that, he'll be making his way home. But given the snow still falling and covering the ground, he won't be having a very easy time of it. At least the snow will provide a soft landing for when he trips over his own feet.]

--

((ooc: Hey guys! So this post is basically the starting point for a little plot I've got going for Ion. Feel free to catch him anywhere around the village, including: the plaza, Seventh Heaven, the library, walking towards C4, or making his way back to House 1.))

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["This"? Nephry lifts a brow, but says nothing yet, letting him go carefully so he doesn't slump again when she stands to go to the kitchen.

This.]

[She almost doesn't need to say anything. The silence is enough. But really... falling down the stairs, now? It's not as though he can just keep quiet about things anymore. But what would he even say? If it's what he thinks it is, he just needs to wait it out...]

[But if it's what he fears it is... then nothing can be done anyway, right?]

[Once Nephry is back, he'll already have shifted into a more comfortable position, now leaning against the wall and his legs straightened out in front of him. Keeping them like this hurt the least, though he still wasn't sure why.]

[Nephry hands him the water carefully, noticing that he looks less disoriented now.]

What else can I do?

[He'll take the water with a small smile, taking a good, long drink before replying.]

...I should be well enough to stand in a few minutes, with some help. The only part of my head that hurts is where it grazed the floor, so I don't think I hit it very hard. [...] And... the pain in my legs is subsiding as well.

Is the pain in your legs a result of falling down the stairs, Ion?

...no. It isn't.

[There's little point in keeping things hidden now, is there?]

It's... something I know I should have told you about earlier. But I never knew quite how to bring it up. [His gaze falls.] Thinking about it now, it's probably why I fell in the first place.

Don't worry about not bringing it up. If you don't want to share it with me still, it's all right, but I hope you find someone you can.

[She looks at the mark on his head again and...well, it doesn't look too bad.]

[He shakes his head. This is different than what had him upset before. That was been a more personal matter... but this. This wasn't something he could continue to ignore.]

The only reason I didn't tell you earlier is because I don't know what it is. I thought perhaps the same thing that happened over the summer was happening again... [Which Dist had probably described as an extreme case of stress-induced fatigue, worsened by his already poor health.]

But it's different this time. I think it's getting worse... it used to only hurt when I woke up, but now the pain never completely goes away.

I see. Have you told anyone at all about this?

[She doesn't know enough about replicas. Maybe no one here does.]

I spoke with Luke about it, but he doesn't have any ideas either.

[None that he would ever tell Nephry about, at least. He'd never tell anyone that there's a possibility he could be dying unless he knew for sure. Thankfully, the symptoms are completely different, but still... it was something to consider.]

If it is the same as last summer, it should go away in time. I just need to... relax a little more.

It has been a difficult few weeks for you, hasn't it? [What she wouldn't give to have Jade or Saphir here with her now.] Would you like to stay home from school for a while?

I think I'd only wind up more stressed if I cut out school... [Ion is one of those weird kids who gets all disappointed when he's too sick to attend.]

[But there's definitely something that could probably relieve a lot of the stress he's been going through if he had someone to talk to about it. And he never really had the chance to bring it up when he was talking to Luke...]

...actually, would you mind helping me into the living room? It's... a bit awkward talking here in the hallway.

All right. [At least she has practice with going as slowly as Ion might require. Come on, Fon Master, up off the floor.]

[Though he takes a steadying breath to prepare himself for pain when he gets to his feet, thankfully none of that seems to happen, and they'll be able to proceed to the living room without incident. He'll be a little unsteady, mostly from the fall, but that's nothing having an arm to lean on can't help with.]

[Once he's sitting on the sofa, he'll lean back into it with a tired sigh. Much better than the floor.]

Thank you, Nephry.

You're welcome. [He has the sofa; she takes the nearby chair.] If you're still feeling so shaky in a little while, I'll ask someone to come look at you.

All right. [With a nod. But rather than remain with his back against the cushions, he sits up and glances out back into the hall, silently wondering to himself if they're the only two home right now... presumably so, seeing as no one else came running when he fell.]

[His eyes linger in that direction for a few moments, as though waiting for someone to suddenly burst through the front door... and then he turns back to Nephry.]

...ah, Nephry? Would it... be all right if I spoke with you about something? It's not quite related to all of this, but...

You can speak to me about anything, Ion, no matter what it's related to.

[...]

Did you... hear about what happened to me on Christmas Eve?

[He didn't exactly swear anyone to secrecy, but thankfully he doesn't know too many gossips.]

No. Should I have? [There goes that eyebrow again.]

Not unless someone told you, I'm sure. [He really didn't want Nephry to learn about what happened, though in this instance only because it was rather embarrassing. But it was the starting point for everything that happened afterward... unfortunately, his story would have too many holes if he didn't explain why he wasn't himself that day.]

Those elves that wandering around the village never really asked much from me until that morning. One of them told me to drink two cartons of eggnog, which... I didn't realize contained alcohol. And because of that, I wasn't quite... myself that day. Or maybe I was, but just... more honest than I usually am.

[Honest. Yeah, that's a good word for it.]

Not to imply that I'm usually dishonest of course, but... there are certain things I generally know that I shouldn't do, even if I want to. And I didn't seem capable of remembering that.

I know what alcohol is like. [Oh, but a smile is fighting its way onto her face.] You don't need to explain the finer points of inebriation to me this evening.

[But explaining it all makes him feel a little better about his behavior. By all means, he feels he should have been able to control himself better! You know, unless the truth is that he didn't want to control himself... which to a certain extent, isn't entirely untrue.]

[He nods before continuing.]

Well... it just so happened that Christmas Eve was the same day the Malnosso decided to fill Luceti with mistletoe. I don't know if you happened to run into any, but... if you walked under one with someone, you couldn't move until you kissed them.

[His face is just going to start getting redder the closer he gets to his point.]

...and the person I was with, I... I don't think I was entirely an unwilling participant.

[That is more of an understatement than she'll ever know.]

[This isn't going anywhere good, is it?]

Forgive me for asking, Ion, but it wasn't Anise, was it?

[Though he can't exactly blame her for making that assumption, it still stings a little. While it's true he did run into Anise later in the day, even inebriated as he was, he knew well enough to control himself around her. Their relationship is complicated enough as it is...]

No... no, it wasn't Anise.

[...and yet for some reason, a part of him almost feels as though it would be easier to tell Nephry if it had been. His gaze falls to his lap. It's not as though this is the first time he's spoken to Nephry about something like this... why did it feel so difficult?]

You... remember my friend Kohan, right?

Yes, he's been here before. It was him, then?

[Before she says anything else, Nephry surveys the potential danger in these waters. Ion is obviously bothered by at least one thing about this incident.]

And you think that both of you were...more than just affected by a mischievous experiment?

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