[IC] Forging Bonds [Ghost & Cheese]

[CheeseOwl]

Devon groaned, his head pounded, his body screamed out in pain. He didn't want to remember, but he did. Kidda's scream, the fireball, the fall. "You'll be okay, Devon. You'll find someone. Find someone, for me, okay?" He hiccuped, swallowing a sob. That was it then, he was alone. Gold eyes opened to try and mask the memories that played in his mind, to a plain medical room in the barracks. Bare wood walls, a small wood burner, dry sink, and window were the only break in the woodgrain. He shakily let out a breath he didn't realize he was holding. A small meow sounded from the door, he turned to look and saw Kidda's fat tabby cat had nosed open the door. Mr. Muffin she had named him, he was probably looking for her. "Hey." he whispered, voice cracking. It felt like he hadn't used his voice in weeks, how long had he been out? Judging by the healing of his wounds, a couple of days maybe. The tabby softly padded over and jumped up onto the bed, curling next to Devon's side. Flexing his arm, he gingerly brought it up to pat the cat's head, already fast asleep. "Guess you're my cat now, huh?" He tried to joke, but his voice came out flat. Suddenly he could feel something cool drop down onto his neck, touching his cheek, he realized he hadn't stopped himself from crying.

[ghost]

Luka paced up and down a quiet corridor of the barracks, eyes scanning the papers on his clipboard. The sound of shoes hitting wood in a steady rhythm was calming to him, but it wasn't nervous pacing, not quite. Perhaps apprehensive was the word. He'd never been given a task quite like this before, and he wasn't entirely sure how to go about it. Not the medical proceedures, that was simple. He'd been able to stabalize Devon and care for his wounds quick enough to save his life. But, the patient was scheduled to wake up within the hour, and Luka wasn't quite sure what to expect. "He's a difficult creature," one of the higher ups had said. "Wouldn't cooperate with anyone that wasn't his rider. And now that she's ... Well, we're afraid it'll be impossible to get him to work with anyone else." He gave Luka a smile a clapped a strong hand on his shoulder. "But you're a charismatic young man, Luka. If anyone can get him working again, it's you." He had talked about Devon as if he was broken and just needed a few repairs, but Luka wasn't a psychologist. What if he messed this up even further? Luka shook his head and halted his pacing. Worrying about it wasn't helping anyone. With as much conviction as he could muster, he rounded the corner and walked a few doors down to the medical room. Fist raised to the wooden door, he took a deep breath before knocking three times, then opening the door. He had expected to see Devon awake, but not with a cat on his lap. "I'm Luka Petrov," he said, eyebrows still slightly furrowed in confusion. "I've been taking care of you for the last few days. How're you feeling?" He smiled and took another small step into the room, not yet closing the door behind him.

[CheeseOwl]

Mr. Muffin's ears twitched as the door creaked open, he had only registered hearing someone pacing down the hall a few seconds prior. At least his hearing was mostly unscathed, though perhaps he was a bit delayed in cognizance still. The shifter tilted his head only slightly, just enough to see the newcomer. He looked the medic up and down slowly, eyes lingering a few seconds more than what he knew would be comfortable before looking back down to the cat pushing his head into his hand. "Sore." he stated sharply, flexing his other arm to test it's movement. He took a breath, a sharp pain echoed through his chest, "Bruised rib, my right. Slight whiplash. No broken bones. Flesh injuries seem to be taken care of, so you can at least do that." He rattled off, mentally taking count of his injuries. Devon had had worse done to him, no point in complaining further. Flinching, he started to pull himself up to get out of bed, if he had been laying there for a few days then that was enough. His arms and back screamed out in protest as he twisted to get leverage, he could do this, he had been through worse, right? The tabby by his side grumbled and batted at him to lay back down and continue petting him, which only earned his a sharp look from the shifter.

[ghost]

Luka felt his cheeks grow warm under the shifter's stare. He moved his eyes to glance around the room, generally unimpressed. The barracks on the humans' land were significantly more modern, made of sturdy concrete and housing more resources and materials. He supposed these were nice too, in their own sort of way. The wood gave the place a home-y feel that was the slightest bit comforting. His eyes returned to Devon as he started speaking, and he listened attentively as he talked about his condition, writing the necessary information on his clipboard. His eyes snapped up and the sound of bed springs creaking. "Whoa, slow down," he protested with a small laugh, stepping toward the bed. "You've still got at least a couple days of bed rest in front of you. Gotta give your body time to recover properly." He knew better than to reach out and push him back into bed, regardless of how gentle he would be. Instead, he positioned himself between his patient and the door. "How's your appetite? Hungry? Thirsty?" He shot another inquisitive glance in the direction of the cat, but decided to save that question for later.

[CheeseOwl]

Devon pursed his lips into a scowl, he could do this, he knew he could! But, maybe sitting down for awhile longer wasn't a bad idea. He pulled his legs back under the thin blanket and leaned against the bed's backboard, he was nothing if not stubborn, he was at least sitting up for now. And anyways, he could wait until the doctor was gone to try and walk around a bit again. He wiped away the tear stains from his cheeks and rubbed the crust from his eyes, no appearing weak to others, that was unacceptable. "Yeah, food." he admitted, he was damn hungry now that he was thinking about it. "Food is a good idea." Mr. Muffins picked himself up and trotted over to the shifter's lap lazily, and made himself comfortable again. Devon jumped as the cat stepped on a few bandaged gashes across his thighs, but managed to keep from yelping. "And a bowl for water for this thing here. Since he's mine now I guess." he nearly growled, grimacing at the pleased looking cat.

[ghost]

Luka nodded, eyes on his clipboard as he scribbled down a few more words. Looking at the writing, he remembered how his sister used to whine about his illegible handwriting. She ended up showing him how to write neater, and his handwriting still held some of her influences. A faint nostalgic smile pulled at his lips before his attention snapped back to his patient. He caught a glimpse of the shifter wiping his eyes and briefly wondered if he had been crying. With all that had happened, he probably wasn't in the best shape emotionally, even if his physcial wounds were healing rather well. "I'll go down to the kitchen and grab something for you and your friend," he said with a grin and set his clipboard down on the bedside table. Luka walked to the door and hesitated for a second before turning around. "And please stay in bed. The longer you let your body rest, the quicker you'll be out of here." He gave Devon a hard look before closing the door and walking to the kitchen. His first encounter had gone better than expected. He wasn't sure why everyone else had acted like Devon was a monster.

[CheeseOwl]

Devon grumbled and looked away from the medic, did he even really want to be out of there? He'd have to return to the training grounds, be broken in by a new rider. He wondered who they would choose to claim him, normally it was the shifter who would die, not the rider. He'd probably some masochistic ass to break him with his luck, the shifter knew he was too stubborn to be given to some new rider. Kidda had known how to work with him, it was almost as if they read eachother's minds, but he wouldn't get that lucky again. He couldn't get Kidda back. He growled, deep and painful, throwing his pillow across the room in anger, a rip in the seam spilling out feathers as it hit the opposite wall. Covering his face in his hands, Devon shuddered as he tried to clear his mind again, but all he wanted to do was tear everything in his sight apart. He just wanted to leave this room, this war, this... could he just leave? His mind stopped and changed directions, could he just leave and never come back? No, on second thought, he was too valuable to do that and not be followed. He would be hunted down and taken back in. Maybe if they weren't at war, but the battles weren't likely to end soon.

[ghost]

As Luka walked to the kitchen, he couldn't help it as his mind wandered to what was happening on the battlefield. Truth be told, the only reason he had become a medic was to stay as close to his siblings as possible. His sister, Anna, had been the first of them to join the war effort. She'd always been too daring and brave for her own good, but Luka knew the dragon she was paired with would take care of her. She'd been working with the dragon since she had hatched, and Luka had even gotten to ride her a couple times. His older brother, Russel, followed Anna almost immediately, enrolling as a foot soldier. Russel had always been protective of Anna, and with his knowledge of weapons and how to handle them, he made for a very valuable soldier. Luka had debated whether to join them in the army or stay back with his parents, but ultimately he knew he wouldn't be able to stand staying at home with his siblings out risking their lives every day. When he got to the kitchen, Luka asked the chef if anything new had happened on the field. They made idle chat while the chef fixed up a plate and a glass of water for the patient and got some water for the cat. Luka carried everything on a tray through the halls, his mind at ease after talking with the chef. Everything seemed to be going in their favor, but it was still early enough for the tide to shift completely. When he got to the door, Luka again knocked three times before entering. He sat the tray down on the bedside table and picked up his clipboard. "Dig in," he said with a grin. It quickly faded, as he knew his next words wouldn't be nearly as lighthearted. "To make sure there aren't any gaps in your memory and to confirm we have the record of the event correct, I need you to explain what you remember before waking up here."