jumpthegun | IC Inbox (v1.0)

[The words give Claire pause, and she brings a hand up to her mouth, fighting a sudden rush of nausea. The thought that Rhys was lobotomized makes Claire dizzy with how sick it makes her feel. Despite her best effort, Claire feels the tears burn her eyes, and one slips out. She brushes it off mutely, angrily.]

I see.

[And now...that piece of info. Claire bites on the inside of her cheek, eyes flicking up to Alfie again.]

As I told him, I'll be careful. [Her voice is a little empty now, hollow. She's trying to get a hold of herself, but it's no easy task.] I'm not - mad at him. At least he cares. I feel like many people have become blasé about death, here. For good reason.

[For a second, her mind flashes back to her kidnapping, to Matt, mowing down a whole branch of the mob to get to her. Her eyes burn up again, missing him fiercely for a moment. He would keep her safe. He would care.]

Claire... [He hadn't meant to make her cry or even really upset her. In his own way, though, John's trying to do what Alfie had: prepare this woman for the fact that she might be facing down a psychopath and seek alternatives or protections where she can.]

I think a lot more people pretend than actually are blasé about it. Everyone copes in their own ways, yeah? You're a very kind and compassionate woman. I know it's hard, but just remember that when it seems like people here are acting like idiots--not just Alfie. All the rest of us, too. I'd offer you a hug if I could, sounds like you need it, but go and get one from Alfie, if you can. I'm sure he'll like it, whatever the reason.

I'm fine, John. [She's not, not really, but there's nothing to be done about. She will be fine, really. She just needs to process the information.]

Thank you for the offer.[She gives a tiny chuckle, sounding more broken than she'd like.] I'll see what I can do. But anyway, I promise I'll be careful. I'm not taking unnecessary risks, and I don't plan on doing any self-sacrificing.

I'll hold you to that, Nurse Temple. [Broken. Too many people here are broken. He needs to help get them out. And then... well, and then. They'll cross the bridge for what to do with a way out when there is one.]

And please, if it's just Kid... tell him I'm sorry again about what happened, would you?

[Claire bites at her nail for a second, wondering if she should ask.]

Are you...responsible, in any way? What happened? If you don't mind telling me.

I wasn't able to stop it. [That's responsible enough. John's tone flattens after that. If Claire is familiar with trauma victims, she might recognize the sign as someone distancing themselves from their emotions to relay information.]

Stein apparently had him overdose on cough syrup and knocked Mr. Taylor out and drugged him while I was checking if we could leave through the ice tunnels. I thought they were just sleeping. After he'd finished surgery on one of my eyes, Kid burst into the bathroom. He was still half-asleep, but came to get Stein off of me. Brave young man. He did it by distracting Stein with his own eyes--they were glowing.

Forced another couple sedatives on me, and I was out after that until most of the other trouble started up. He stitched up what he'd done to me, and then I'm praying to god he knocked Kid out before doing the same surgery on him. I don't know, though. Stein didn't care when I woke up, and we haven't been able to talk about it.

Edited 2016-12-07 14:19 (UTC)

John... [The first thing that goes through her head is, you shouldn't have asked. The way his tone goes flat and emotionless as he relies the story tells her that, very plainly. But what's done is done.

Then, she closes her eyes, reminded of the bandage over Kid's face. She braces herself for the day to come, and what she could expect from it.]

So...he's uncontrollable. And unhinged.

[Even if he wanted to understand what was happening with their eyes, his techniques were just absolutely crazy.]

For the moment, yes. Stein is suffering from high-level MN Poisoning and associated mania. He's already naturally prone to mania and has very few medical ethics based on the standards of his own universe. All of that is being amplified beyond his ability to resist.

Is there anything we can do? Is he one that you are thinking of having the Admin manipulate his brain?

Blood transfusions if he'll consent to one. But that might only be temporary. And I've promised someone else I won't ask the Admin to do any brain manipulation. I may talk to Stein about asking for himself, though. Just need to give it a little distance from what happened.

[For John's own mental state.]

If you need my help in any way, John, you know where I am. In the meantime, I hope I can just keep Kid away from him, if he's not getting any better.

Yeah. I will. [And he means it more genuinely now. At least in terms of dealing with the fallout from Stein for other people, like Kid.] Take care of yourself, Claire, and keep warm.

Not an easy task, but will try.

[At least she gets another evening with Alfie to keep her warm.]

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cw: reference to eye gore

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