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[pullsneedles]

Day in, day out, all is routine.

Others come in a regular ebb and flow. Old fluids, new fluids, clean this, tidy that, make sure things aren't getting worse, hope things are getting better.

He's still breathing, the only movement he's done himself since his arrival. He's still feverish, if not as bad as he was at first. He's still, even if the shadows seem like they're winding here and there.

But today, something new happens. Or it happened. Who knows if anyone actually witnessed it happening? It was so quick that one could argue it didn't happen at all except for the obvious evidence that it did.

Lucas is most definitely not awake.

But his eyes are open.


[ooc: Have a lump post. Threadhopping encouraged. Psychic/magic/whatever pups answering the previous request for help, have a dragon!]

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[herr_bookman]

It's a change that makes Autor drop his book when he notices. "Lucas? Lucas!" he says, crossing to the bedside.

[pullsneedles]

The clatter of the book landing doesn't even startle the boy. His eyes are too blue, his pupils pinpricks left staring at the ceiling.

Things trickle through the filter of the separate consciousness, seeping inside for Lucas to know later.

He's in a bed built for rest and utility. He's seen this ceiling before. There's the voice of a friend.

Lucas is somewhere safe. Lucas is not alone.

So rest a little more.

[herr_bookman]

Autor furrows his brow at his friend's state. "I'm going to touch your left arm, okay?" he says. "Can you blink to show me if you can feel it?"

[pullsneedles]

There isn't a good way to answer this.

Lucas would want to say yes. Lucas would want to give an answer and see his friend.

But the friend wants Lucas to answer. He is Lucas, but he's not who the friend is looking for, either! And he can't imagine an introduction going well, not when the friend isn't seeking him out the way Katrina did.

Awake is too much for Lucas. He can't be roused now.

So he waits.

[herr_bookman]

Autor stares at the boy, waiting to see if there's any change. After about twenty minutes of nothing, he sighs and turns to one of the rats, to deliver the news to Enzo.

[a1enzo]

Enzo comes pelting in in prompt response to the summons. "Is something up with Lucas?" he demands. (He's getting better at understanding the rats, but some of the nuances still escape him.)

[herr_bookman]

"Yeah, he... He opened his eyes," Autor says, gesturing to him. "See for yourself."

[a1enzo]

Enzo does so with alacrity. "Any other response? Lucas?"

He peers into Lucas' eyes, then holds a hand over them to test for a dilation response.

[herr_bookman]

"No," Autor says. "I tried to get him to blink at me, but he didn't do anything for about twenty minutes or so."

[pullsneedles]

Another friend brings another dilemma. But at least there are friends for Lucas.

This one wants something from Lucas's eyes. Lucas isn't using his eyes. Lucas probably shouldn't use his eyes for a while anyway. There is a lot to this place, a lot he's had to shut his eyes to before.

This friend is different from the other friend. He belongs in the safe place, not just visiting. This is work.

Lucas's pupils widen just a little.

His eyes still work.

[a1enzo]

Enzo gives a small sigh of relief. "Well, his eyes are functional. Still doesn't seem like anyone's home, though."

[herr_bookman]

"No one's home?" Autor says, voice tinged with the slightest bit of panic. "What does that mean? Did the fever hurt him?"

[a1enzo]

"I don't know what it means," Enzo replies, trying not to sound completely miserable. "It could be... that... or he might be fine but still unconscious. Just with his eyes open. I don't know. I'm just an assistant."

[gorgonfondness]

The feeling was building even before she stepped in the room. It's familiar in a way she hadn't felt for 11 years.

As soon as Mia crosses the threshold, she steps back against the wall.

"You weren't kidding," she tells Enzo.

[a1enzo]

Enzo nods solemnly.

"To me, when he first came in, he smelled like burning. But then he smelled like nicer burning, like a campfire, and then like incense. That's how it is now."

[herr_bookman]

"Mia?" Autor says, standing from his seat near Lucas' bedside. He closes the book he'd been reading aloud and tucks it under his arm. "It's great to see you."

He nods at Enzo and tips his head to Lucas, addressing Mia. "You can feel whatever it is, too?"

[gorgonfondness]

She turns to Autor and manages a smile. "Ah, you too, Autor. And that's...that's an understatement. This is massive. It feels like the room is too small."

Mia straightens up some, hoping she hasn't just offended whatever she's speaking about.

Lucas is still as he was, and nothing's come to chomp Mia's head off.

[a1enzo]

"I thought so. Usually I don't smell anything this strong unless it's a major spell in progress or a god. But it still doesn't smell bad…?"

It's a statement, but his face is all question.

[herr_bookman]

"Are you all right?" Autor asks Mia, furrowing his brow. "Do you recognize whatever it is that he has or is it just the presence of magic?"

[gorgonfondness]

"I'm beyond my limits here," she confesses. "I don't recognize it completely, but it's akin to some things I've encountered at home."

And now that she's started that line of conversation, she realizes how rude she's being if this power is indeed a separate entity from Lucas.

"...hello?" she calls towards the bed.

And a deep voice reverberates back in her mind, Hello.

She presses herself against the wall again. "We're using the wrong nouns."

[a1enzo]

"What is it? What are you getting?"

[herr_bookman]

Autor pulls up a chair for her. "Which nouns should we be using?"

[gorgonfondness]

Mia holds up a hand to both boys, still on shaky ground metaphysically speaking.

"Who are you? Can you tell all of us?"

I can, echoes in all three of their skulls, taking Mia's words as introduction. I am the Des-

There's a hesitation. The introduction, to some, is a bit much.

That is, I am the Dark Dragon.

[a1enzo]

"Whoa. That's new."

[herr_bookman]

Autor flinches at the sound. "What do you want with Lucas?" he asks. "He awoke you, right? What does 'passing his heart on' mean?"