I almost drowned (and all I got was this stupid shirt) Part Open, Part Closed!

[shoplifter]

who: Laura, Stephen, Loki, and any visitors to Option B.
what: The flooding from here.
when: End of March
where: The rushin' waters outside the city, and also the hospital.
warnings: A near-drowning of a child. Maybe flashbacks or heavier material about the hospital, if it reaches that kind of point.


End of March — The Floods.

OPTION A. | Closed to Stephen and Loki

[The flooding's gotten much worse. And with the flooding comes terrible creatures outside the wall, ones she hasn't had the pleasure of running into — giant crocodiles, things with curling, wriggling tentacles, and all manner of fish and bug and frog. She has elected to at the very least kill them before they can get into the city somehow, or scare them away if it's possible. The waters are getting worse, the creatures are more plentiful, and... maybe she is getting stuck in the crossfire more than she'd like to admit.

She leaps from tree to tree as best she can, and scales along the sides of quivering buildings.

Maybe she can just hang out in the — oh, it's raining. This is just great.

How can this get any worse?]

OPTION B. | Hospital | Open to All

[Laura nearly drowns, basically. It's a good thing Stephen and Loki had been around to fish her out. And for the next day or two, Laura lays in a hospital bed looking surprisingly okay for someone who doesn't want to wake up yet; not a scratch on her, because that's just how she works. Maybe it was the rock her head hit during her rather dramatic fall into the pulsing waters below.

But eventually, she does wake up. And it, unlike the fall, is not dramatic at all.

She opens her eyes and stares at the ceiling, knowing exactly where she is. For some reason, though... the fear and panic is abated. Stephen and Beverly work here. The hospital is not bad — it's... not. And though her arms get pimpled at the memory of the sterile world she'd come from, she does not jump up or move to flee. Instead, she says, to the ceiling and whoever may be close by:]

... I am hungry.

[Nailed it.

She can be found hanging out in her room, nurses anxiously peering in (they haven't forgot her last rage, alright?). She's going to try her best to be good for any doctors or nurses this time. And hell, despite being nearly eaten by monsters and almost drowning, she looks 100% healthy.

Also, she may be half-way climbing out a window at some point, when you visit.

........... Oops?]

Comments

option A(HHHHHHHH)

[potentialed]

[ Stephen remembers the rains from the previous summer and they were never like this. It's why he was mildly concerned at first. And then it quickly morphed into putting on his cloak and going out to help with damage control. Not just in trying to help stop the flooding but fighting off or portaling the creatures somewhere else in the jungle.

He's been getting soaked through what feels like days by this point but it's worth it if it means he's making some kind of difference. He firmly believes that. Even as he spots a very familiar figure scaling the wall of a building in one of the more flooded parts of the city. Or he thinks it is. He flies over only to shout out: ]

Laura! What the hell are you doing out here?!

Option B

[ragnarsson]

[With how the pace of gossip travels in the city, it isn't too long before Ivar hears that his sis has landed herself back in the hospital. He doesn't go visit her right away, not because he's uncaring, but mainly because he knows Laura can heal from anything. She'll be fine, right?

When he does show up a couple of days later, he wheels himself into the room, seeing an empty bed, and a small figure on her way out the window. He tsks and shakes his head.]

You better get back in that bed. Or the nurses will go crazy when they find out you're gone.

b!

[winscenario]

[ Jim doesn't really like hospitals much, either. Everything's too bland, too cold, and there's always a weird smell in the air. He knows it's in large part due to the chemicals used, but that doesn't really help him feel a whole lot more at ease about the place.

Luckily he hasn't spent a lot of his time in them, and when he did end up being admitted in the past, he always made it a point to push and pester and insist until he was eventually discharged and allowed to leave.

He doesn't know if he'll be that lucky this time around, but on the other hand, he is dating his doctor, so he might not mind getting stuck here for a couple of days longer than usual. That still doesn't help soothe his severe case of unrest, and he ends up roaming the hallways a lot, wearing sweatpants and a loose hospital gown partly covering his bandaged injury spanning his shoulder and part of his arm.

It's how he ends up wandering past the room where Laura is. She probably thinks he's just a nurse since she doesn't actually look at him when she makes her announcement, but he does come inside and offers with a raised eyebrow and a mildly amused tone. ]

Tough luck. Hospital food sucks. But I can try to get you a sandwich. Do you like jelly?

[shoplifter]

[She hops from one wall to another, scurrying up onto a windowsill before looking sharply up to where the (decidedly unhappy) Stephen Strange is flying through the beginnings of an ugly rain. He must have come out to do the same — make sure nobody's out here getting murdered. Well, she's not about to admit she might be one of the very people he could be carrying by the scruff.

Still, she thought he'd figure why she'd be out here.]

Making sure nothing gets in!

[Obviously!!

She gives him her full attention, and her scent-scoping is dampered by the waters, as is her usually keen hearing. So it's probably why she's not noticing the strange, gnarled fin swimming somehow against the current of the waters; it surely takes a lot of power for whatever that is...]

[shoplifter]

[She looks back slowly, knowing who it is before even seeing him; she can recognize the scents of those closest to her, anyway. The hospital-garbed child huffs through her nose before coming back down from the window.]

They were keeping me a few days to 'watch'.

[by the tone of her voice, she thinks that's stupid; she's quite healthy.

I mean, almost drowned. To death. But still.]

[shoplifter]

... Sí, me gusta.

[She looks at him sharply, her senses returning more fully to her.

... Definitely not who she expected to see. Dark, sharp eyes scan him.]

You smell like blood and antiseptic. What did you do?

[Clearly there's no reason to discuss why she's here. That's silly.]

b

[franciscoramon]

[ The Quarantine is small, and news travels fast. Cisco hears from Lucretia, who heard from Beverly, about Laura nearly dying in the floods and ending up in the hospital. It's a rather savage reminder that anyone could be gone without warning. Even people like Barry or Laura, who had healing powers - that didn't make them immortal.

So he asks to be kept informed, and when Laura finally wakes up, Cisco hears about it a few hours later. He springs into action quickly, knowing that it's miserable for just about anybody to be alone in a hospital, but that it has the potential to be particularly unpleasant, for a girl who has had such awful experiences with "doctors" in the past. ]

Thought you might be.

[ Cisco drops a slightly crumpled paper bag onto the little table next to Laura's hospital bed. The bottom is slightly grease-stained from the enormous quantity of french fries inside, accompanied by - naturally - a burger. Just the antidote to healthful, bland, disgusting hospital food.

He settles himself into the chair next to her bed, pulling his backpack into his lap, unzipping it to start pulling out more presents - because of course, he can't stop her being in a hospital, or stop her from almost having drowned. But he can offer fun, distractions, toys. He holds aloft a rubix cube, eyebrows raised, asks: ]

Ever done one of these before?

[ He wants to ask her what happened, tell her how worried he was, ask her if she's doing okay being in this place. And he will. But he at least has the good sense to ease into all that. ]

[ragnarsson]

[Ivar knows he should chastise her for trying to fly the coop, but really, he can't blame her. There's a soft smile on his face.]

They do seem to love doing that.

[Although in Ivar's case, they tended to try and speed the healing process along as fast as possible. They didn't particularly like having him as a patient.]

Have they at least been giving you lots of Jello?

[One of the oddest and yet most satisfying foods humanity had ever invented.]

[winscenario]

Hm... puedo buscarnos una?

[ His Spanish is broken at best, but look at him trying, isn't he cute. ]

Hey, I didn't do anything. I was just trying to save someone. You should be asking that to the nasty creature who bit me.

[ He narrows his eyes a little at her. ]

What did you do?

[shoplifter]

[She's already grabbing the back and digging into it, the pinnacle of good social graces. In-between stuffing a few fries into her mouth, she eyeballs the colorful cube with immediate interest. As much as she had wanted to complain about being here, or asking why Cisco is here, she is admittedly completely thrown off track by the new — toy? Puzzle?

She shakes her head quickly. She looks like she was a clean bill of health.]

¿Qué es esto?

A box?

[shoplifter]

[She nods; boy, has she gone through some jello cups.]

They wanted to put me in a machine to make sure my head is alright, but they cannot because of my claws.

So now I'm here.

[She crawls back onto her bed, the sheets dramatically disposed of at the foot of it.]

It's not... as — scary as last time. Being here.

[She doesn't want to admit it was scary, but... Ivar would have seen through it anyway.]

[franciscoramon]

[ Laura's voracious enthusiasm for the food brings a smile to Cisco's face. He'd been worried that the visit, and the meal, might not be appreciated. But apparently those worries were baseless. He certainly doesn't mind her lack of manners, scootching the chair a little closer. ]

Naw, it's a Rubix cube. See, you twist it - [ He demonstrates a few times, showing how the various pieces of the cube could be moved around. ] -and the goal is to get it so all of one color is together. Like this.

[ He turns the cube around in his hands, quickly internalizing its layout, and within a minute he's got it so one side of the cube is all orange squares. He's not trying to show off; he's just always been good at the particular set of skills required for this sort of puzzle. ]

If you can get it so every side has its own color, you win. It's harder than it looks, though.

[ He sets the Rubix down on the little table, pulls a pack of playing cards from his bag, next. ]

I've also got these, if you'd rather play go fish.

[ Then, casually, he asks: ]

How are you doing?

[ragnarsson]

I'm glad to hear that.

[A small girl with claws not freaking out at the hospital was a good thing. No need to get anyone else hurt if they could help it.]

How did you end up in here anyway?

[shoplifter]

[Bless his heart...]

Si quieres.

[Ah, but how to approach that conversation-]

I almost drowned.

[... Neeevermind, she's 1000% direct about it. And casual as hell. Talk about bouncing back.]

[shoplifter]

[She wipes her hands on the hospital sheets, she reaches to take the rubix cube. It could be a fun challenge; maybe there's some sort of particular pattern of turns...? She starts fidgeting with it, not quite looking up at Cisco as she tests different moves.]

I'm okay. They cannot do scans because they're worried my claws will cause problems with the machines.

So I'm being watched until they're sure there's nothing wrong with me.

[She seems particularly annoyed with that last bit, rolling her eyes.]

[shoplifter]

[Ah. She crosses her legs.]

I drowned for a little bit.

But I am alright now.

[winscenario]

[ Okay see, he was gonna get them sandwiches and jelly, but he gets sidetracked by her answer. ]

What?

[ Eyebrows knitting together in honest concern, he steps closer to her bed, taking a seat on the edge. ]

How? Did you— was it the flood, is that it?

[franciscoramon]

[ Cisco doesn't mind, the way Laura takes the cube and starts playing with it, rather than looking at him or making small talk. He is just happy that she seems to be interested in it, that his attempt to bring her a fun distraction had been a success.

When she explains about why they can't do scans, Cisco nods; he hadn't thought about that. About how the experiments that had been done to her, the metal that had been grafted inside of her, would make things like an MRI impossible. That could prove to be a real problem in her life, healing powers or no healing powers... ]

Probably a good idea, for a few days. Better safe than sorry. But suuuuuper boring, huh? Guess I'll just have to keep you company a bit.

[ Cisco's expression turns serious, and it's reflected in his tone, as he asks: ]

They're treating you okay, right? No... problems?

C. Because I have to be difficult.

[alchemyfreak]

[Ed doesn't know about Laura's visit to the hospital. He's so wrapped up in his own things by March that it's only when he realizes he hasn't heard from her in awhile that he thinks about checking in. The obvious answer was the community building's roof, the place they usually met - where he sought her out anytime he needed to find her. Curiosity gets the better of him first, though, and he wanders to the small hidden room in the building that he'd personalized just for Laura. He didn't know if she'd even been using it, and if she had it probably required some clean up, maybe some repairs or a replacement depending on how fragile those gaming systems were. He didn't really know anything about them.

Imagine his surprise when he steps into the room and finds her there, in the flesh. He looks older again, by a few years, and Laura was usually perceptive enough to pick up on the slightest change - he doesn't know how much of their relationship he was missing, but she wouldn't be the first person he disappointed by not remembering everything they knew of their time together. Still, he's cautious when he steps into the room, breaking the silence with a hesitant greeting.]

Hey kid.

[shoplifter]

[She nods.]

There were monsters in the water. It took me under.

[She at least has the good sense to look pensive about it; it's not that she thought she was completely invulnerable, but... it was strange, actually feeling the effects of near-death. She doesn't want to admit weakness, though, in thinking it was actually kind of scary.]

I'm all right, though.

[shoplifter]

[Oh. She sees what he's asking. Looking up, she hardly seems troubled at the thought.]

Not yet. But I think... it will be okay.

I try to keep them at a distance, just in case.

[So not quite trust, but also, she's not stabbing anyone.

They're... trying to help.]

[shoplifter]

[Oh. She's not sure who she was expecting — one of the younger folks she's introduced to the top secret room, maybe — but it's Ivar all over again; she gets used to them vanishing, and then suddenly they're just right there, saying 'hi' like it's no big thing. She stands up, eyeing him up and down. Her social graces are as terrible as ever:]

You're back.

[She says it matter-of-factually, but the look in her eyes says 'surprised as hell'.]

[alchemyfreak]

[Luckily Ed has spent enough time with Wrath that Laura's social graces may very well be an improvement. At her words he can't help the smirk in response, shrugging a shoulder as if it was no big deal and of course he was back.]

I told you I wouldn't be long, didn't I?

[Truth be told he didn't know what he told her, but he did know he told her something. His notes from before covered the fact that he'd spoken to her, given her this place to hide out in any time she needed it, and he knew he'd only been gone a few weeks before coming back too.]

[winscenario]

You look alright.

[ Physically, he means. But he knows how an experience like that can be traumatizing. Some injuries just don't show as easily as others, is all. ]

Do you feel alright?

[franciscoramon]

Nothing wrong with that.

[ Maybe the right thing to do would be to try to convince Laura to trust the doctors, to have no fear around them. But after what she's been through, Cisco thinks that is an unrealistic goal. And, well, he's not sure it would be the safest option. Being a doctor doesn't automatically prevent people from being cruel, or inhumane. Cisco has no illusions about that ]

As long as you're not lying when they ask questions about how they're feeling, or not telling them if anything's hurting. And... just in case stuff gets not okay, or- or if you're in danger again and you need backup, I made you this.

[ Cisco pulls from his backpack a tiny cardboard box; in it is a little ring, with a tiny panda face. He remembers the shirt she'd bought at that thrift store and, in classic adult fashion, had just assumed panda's are Laura's Thing and gotten her a gift that is panda-related. But there is a purpose behind it. ]

It looks just like a cute little ring, but if you twist it- [ Cisco twists the little panda head, and immediately, his phone begins letting out a steady beeping, its screen showing the words:

SOS:
LAURA

He holds out the ring in his palm, letting her take it. ]