riverviewlogs | (closed) september (wtf how) catch-all

[ It's moments like this when it is very clear to Cisco that Taako isn't exaggerating, when he talks about all the intense and horrifying shit he's been through in his long life. Even Cisco needs a couple of moments before he can muster up a quip, after something as intense as being attacked by a horrible stabby wraith. But there Taako is, hopping back to his feet and acting like they'd just overcome some mild inconvenience, like crossing a stream.

Only it wasn't minor. The two of them could've died, might've died, and Cisco is shaking from head to foot with adrenaline and lingering panic. He rushes over to Taako, tripping a little on the fallen, broken gauntlet that the creature had ripped off him. Cisco ignores it for now, coming over to Taako and reaching out towards his injured arm, hand hovering in the air a few feet from it, fingers curling a little, fruitlessly. ]

Taako, I told you to go- are you- fuck- we should stop the bleeding.

[ He knows that's the right thing to do, the correct first aid procedure, but the how of it might as well be brain surgery right now, while his mind is abuzz with fear and confusion. He glances from Taako's wound, to the patch of woods that the wraith had flown off into. Cisco keeps glancing around them at short intervals, clearly worried that it will return, on edge and hyper-vigilant. ]

Lemme get a look at it...

[ There could be spines, there could be poison, there could be any number of things. ]

Hey, hey, relax, we're good.

[He holds up a hand in a placating gesture, then noticing the way that Cisco's struggling a little with like - panic, moves that hand to grip Cisco's shoulder, just to give him a slightly steadying presence.]

Can you take a deep breath for me, bubbale? Just like - one real big one, maybe two, but we'll start easy.

[The wound on his arm is so minimal compared to other damage he's walked off, so right now he just wants to make sure Cisco isn't about to have a panic attack on him.]

[ Cisco opens his mouth to argue, to point out that they are absolutely not good, thank you very much. But whatever words he'd been about to say get tangled up in his throat. Taako's hand on his shoulder is an anchor and Cisco gives a couple small nods, glancing around them once more before forcing himself to let out a long, very slow breath, and then inhale slowly and deeply as well. The one benefit of those somewhat silly breathing exercises Sam had taught him - he's getting pretty good at making himself breathe slowly, whatever the situation.

And he doesn't feel better, exactly, but he is a couple inches further away from completely freaking out. He swallows, voice croaky as he says: ]

That motherfucker was some straight-up nightmare fuel.

[ Cisco can't stop thinking about how it had looked, bending low over Taako like that, while he was pinned to the ground. A full-body shudder goes through him, and he glances in the direction it flew off in again, just once more. There's no sign of it. The way it had shrieked... ]

Sorry it took so long. I wasn't- I couldn't- [ Cisco's voice cracks and he has to stop a second or two. He can't finish that sentence honestly without probably starting to cry, from stress and belated fear, so instead he jokes: ] ....gotta wait 'til the last second, right? So much more dramatic that way.

Edited 2017-09-21 04:41 (UTC)

[While Cisco is taking a second to collect himself, Taako subtly and wordlessly casts prestidigitation on a tree behind Cisco, causing a random circle to appear on the bark. It's nothing with any purpose, but the fact he can cast again means that the creature isn't close.]

It was very dramatic, that was some action movie shit right there. Which I guess makes me the damsel in distress?Whatever, I can live with that if means not fucking dying from a weird creepy thing that I think drains magic? But hey! That thing is super gone, can we go get my shit? I didn't think to grab it when he started running for our live, you know? It was low on the list of concerns I had at the time.

[Sometimes Taako gets carried away.]

Living is definitely the best option. Has that ever happened before? With your magic?

[ Whatever effect it had had on Taako's magic, it clearly hadn't interfered with Cisco's metahuman abilities. The difference must lie in the nature of the abilities themselves; for the same reason that Taako's sleep magic hadn't been able to help Cisco get control of his vibes, that wraith's magic-draining force hadn't been able to touch Cisco's powers. Useful to know. Useful having one of them with each Cisco knows that fields can be set up to disrupt metahuman abilities - hell, he'd designed the pipeline and that wing in Iron Heights precisely to do that. But he knows that making a piece of tech that could in any way impede magic would just be totally beyond him.

Those speculations are cut off, however, by Taako's question. Cisco holds up one finger, pausing a good long moment before he replies. ]

You wanna go back? To the place where that thing crawled outta the ground? Which is probably, like, its den or whatever? And probably where it flew back to? You wanna go back there? For real?

[ As far as Cisco's concerned, they had barely escaped with their lives. This is only the second time he's successfully channeled those energy blasts. He doesn't know if he could do it again, if they ran into that wraith - or if it would be deterred this time, even if he did. ]

Isn't that, like. A monumentally stupid idea?

Ye....s?

[That could be answer to so many of the questions that Cisco just asked, but Taako doesn't seem all that worried about creepy crawling magic monster, since once Cisco had the energy nonsense under control, they kicked its ass pretty easily.]

If you're gonna be a baby about it - [He means this affectionately] - I'll send a familiar to scout out the sitch, if tall, dark and spooky is still hanging around, we'll know when the magic disappears.

[With that, he takes a step back from Cisco and pulls the mongoose familiar he created like six months ago out of its pocket dimension and onto the ground between them. It seems a little disoriented for a second, as though it just woke up, but then it chitters at Taako before disappearing into the undergrowth, back in the direction they came from.]

[ Cisco will just have to do all of the worrying for both of them, evidently. It really is strange, seeing how quickly that switch can be flipped in Taako, from sheer terror to complete indifference. Cisco had been through some stressful times, working on Team Flash, worrying about Barry, being confronted with danger what had felt like an awful lot. But for Taako, monsters and danger and fighting for his life are so thoroughly incorporated into the ordinary that about a minute after they'd just gotten out of a scrape, he's entirely over it, emotionally.

But fortunately, Taako doesn't seem to mind, accommodating Cisco's caution and uneasiness. His familiar plan sounds logical enough, and Cisco watches with his mouth slightly open as Taako pulls a small, hurry critter out of thin air and then sets it off in the direction of the clearing they'd been in before. ]

Is that a weasel?

Mongoose, don't be rude.

[This is apparently the highest order of insult that Cisco could give right now; except that it's not because Taako clearly doesn't care, not when he has two more important things to worry about. Thing the first is his stuff, which they're in the process of dealing with, and thing the second is the fact there's a hole in his arm the size of that stupid wraith's tendril.

He glances at his arm, then at Cisco.]

I know I gave you a lotta shit for bringing everything and the kitchen sink last time, but is there any chance you can hook cha boy up with bandages?

Edited (when u realize u used the same icon twice in a row) 2017-09-23 13:37 (UTC)

Is a mongoose.... better?

[ Cisco feels like he's missing something, here (like what is even the difference between the two animals) but they can talk about the nuances of that later. Like, sometime when Taako isn't bleeding, preferably. When Taako asks if he has bandages, Cisco doesn't say 'yes'. Instead, he gnaws on his lower lip, looking worried, and opens up the bag. He had made himself not pack too much, had only brought the gauntlets and some snacks. But maybe...

He digs around, through zippers and pouches, looking if there is anything that might have gotten left in the bag from the times he has taken it with him scavenging scrap. And, in one of the last pockets he could check, he finds a roll of bandages and a single gauze pad. Cisco laughs, amazed and grateful. Thanks goodness he hadn't been thorough. ]

You better believe next time the sink's coming, too. Think you can roll up your sleeve that far? Or is the shirt gonna have to come off?

[ Somehow, he doesn't think Taako would want him ripping the sleeve off of any of his shirts. Cisco glances at the wound and then looks away again, stomach turning a little. He's always been a bit squeamish, when it comes to injuries. He'd never understood how Caitlin could be so dispassionate about them. Had to be, after medical school, he supposed. ]

[A mongoose is much better, but they're going to have to deal with the full explanation later, because as blasé as Taako is about this whole deal, he would actually like to get his stuff so they can head back somewhere safe where he can get a healer to fix him up.

For now, bandages are a good start, and Taako huffs a relieved little breath when Cisco comes up with a bandage, then immediately ruins any potential for being grateful by winking at that comment.]

If you wanted an excuse to get me outta my clothes you could've just asked.

[But despite Cisco's worry re: shirts, Taako really doesn't give a shit, since the sleeve is torn anyway from where a goddamn sharp monster tendril went through it, he uses a combination of mage hand + his knife to neatly slice away the sleeve.

And because he didn't miss that little queasy look, Taako puts the knife away and holds his hand out for the bandages.]

I got this, bubbale.

I'll keep that in mind.

[ Cisco says it as drily and with as much sarcasm as he can; he's gotten used to Taako's particular style of teasing, to the point where now almost all the time he can give as good as he gets. It is becoming rarer that Taako says something that really flusters him - he's not sure whether Taako is going easier on him or if he's used to it or both. ]

I can do it.

[ There's a hint of petulance in the way that he says it; he hates being underestimated, and it crops up at strange times and in strange ways. Cisco turns back towards Taako, ripping the paper around the sterile gauze and then moving it closer as if he is going to lay it over the wound. Except that his hands halt a few inches away, and his face noticeably pales before he concedes, in a quick and strained voice: ]

Nnnnnope okay I lied nevermind you do it.

[ And he carefully hands first the gauze over, and then the bandage, so that Taako can patch up his own arm. Cisco is more than a little embarrassed at his own failure, and if push came to shove he's sure that he could manage, but it's not a life or death situation and he would just really rather not. ]

Edited 2017-09-25 23:22 (UTC)

[Taako doesn't bother voicing his doubts there, either Cisco will do it or he won't, and when it turns out it's the latter, he's grateful enough for the earlier rescue to not be a total dick about it.

Luckily, mage hand makes this easier than it would be if he was just working with one hand, so he makes quick work of pressing the gauze over the wound and wrapping it with the bandage, just tight enough to slow the bleeding. It's not a perfect solution, but it'll do for the next half hour or so until he can get to a doctor/healer.]

Pretty sure this bad boy's gonna need stitches. [And then, with a grin:] Chicks dig scars, right?

[ Cisco feels a wave of guilt when Taako says it'll need stitches (even though he could've guessed that, just based on how bad it looks) but Taako still manages to startle a tiny laugh from him, and Cisco even rolls his eyes. ]

You'll be fighting them off with an even bigger stick than before.

[ He lets out a deliberately slow breath, and it's still shaky, but the panic is receding finally and some level of rationality is coming back to him. Cisco still thinks it's a terrible idea, but Taako's spell book had been in that bag, and he knows that Taako's made up his mind and probably won't listen to reason. So he says, resolutely: ]

Now... c'mon, if we're gonna get your stuff we should just do it now and then get the hell outta here so the docs can sew you back together into a new sexier you.

That's fucking impossible, I'm already as sexy as anyone can get, but sure, let's do this thing.

[Taako can be oblivious sometimes, but he's paying attention to Cisco now because he knows that he's likely to be stressed for a little while, after all the commotion. So he lazily drops his (uninjured) arm around Cisco's shoulders as they start to walk back, just as away to silently reassuring him that everything's going to be okay.]

(closed) september (wtf how) catch-all

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when u get an 18 on a medicine check

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